Az-Zukhruf (Ornaments of gold)

26. And [remember] when Abraham (as) said unto his father [his paternal uncle, Azar] and his people: “Indeed I dislike what you worship, “Except Him Who did create me; and indeed He will guide me.” And he made it [the formula of Divine Unity, namely “There is no god but Allah”] a Word lasting among his offspring that they may turn back [toward Divine Unity].

As mentioned above, idolaters’ logic rested on following their ancestors’ footsteps. According to the blessed Verse in question, Abraham (as) bitterly criticized the religion of his guardian who was his uncle as well.

The subject (fa’il) of the verb:

ja’ala (“made”)

in the clause:

wa ja’ala-ha kalimat-an baqiya (“and he made it a Word lasting”)

may be either God or Abraham (as); the former made Abraham (as) offspring to believe in Divine Unity thanks to Abraham (as) faith; it may also be said that Abraham (as) left the Call of Divine Unity and abstention from polytheism with his offspring.

According to a narration from Imam ‘Ali (as), the Noble Prophet (S) is a descendant of Abraham (as) and the Prophet’s Household (as) are descendants of Abraham (as) and Muhammad (S).¹

Mention is briefly made of Abraham (as) and his encounter with his idol worshipping people of Babylon to complete the discussion on the reproach of blind imitation in the preceding Verses, since Abraham (as) was the most eminent Arab figure well respected by everyone and being descended from him was regarded as an honor.

He was the one who tore asunder the veils of blind imitation. The Holy Qur’an is saying that were they speaking the truth, they would follow his footsteps. Why did they blindly imitate idolaters if they were inclined toward adherence to their forefathers?

The other point is that the idolaters whose false beliefs were criticized by Abraham (as) resorted to the same groundless claim of following their ancestors’ footsteps; nonetheless, Abraham (as) did not acknowledge their baseless claim as it is in the Holy Qur’an:

“They said, ‘We found our fathers worshipping them.’ He said, ‘Indeed you and your fathers have been in manifest error’”2 .

It is to be noted that it is a consolation for the Prophet (S) and early Muslims so that they know that such oppositions are not unprecedented and they are not supposed to lose their hope.

Firstly, it is said,

“[Remember] when Abraham (as) said unto his father [his paternal uncle, Azar] and his people: ‘Indeed I dislike what you worship.’”

The following Verse says that since many an idolater worshipped god as well, Abraham (as) immediately makes an exception saying:

“Except Him Who did create me; and indeed He will guide me.”

In this terse clause he makes mention of an argument according to which God alone is supposed to be worshipped since the object of worship is the Creator and the Governor of the world and everyone believed that God is the Creator of the world. It is also a reference to Divine Guidance in matters of existence and legislation as necessitated by Divine Grace.

According to Verse 28, Abraham (as) not only adhered to the principle of Divine Unity and struggled against any form of idolatry but also he made his utmost efforts to make the Word of Divine Unity last in the world for ever, as it is mentioned in the blessed Verse 28:

(And he made it [the formula of Divine Unity, namely “There is no god but Allah”] a Word lasting among his offspring that they may turn back [toward Divine Unity]). It is worthy of note that the word ‘aqib is literally used in the sense of “heel,” but it is figuratively employed in the sense of “offspring.”

It is of interest to know that the followers of all world religions believing in Divine Unity are inspired by Abraham’s (as) teachings regarding Divine Unity and the three arch-prophets Moses (as), Jesus (as), and Muhammad (S) are his descendants and it bears testimony to the veracity of the Qur’anic prediction in this vein.

It is true that prophets preceding Abraham (as), e.g. Noah (as) struggled against polytheism and idolatry and called the world to believe in Divine Unity,but it was Abraham(as) who made the Word of Divine Unity rest on its firm basis.

As an iconoclast, he raised the flag of Divine Unity everywhere.

In his lifetime, not only he made his utmost attempts at the continuity of belief in Divine Unity but also in his supplications he inquired the same from God Almighty:

(“and keep me and my sons away from worshipping idols,”3 ).

According to another interpretation, the antecedent of the pronoun of ja’ala in Verse 28 is God Almighty as per which the meaning of the clause is that God placed the Word of Divine Unity in Abraham’s (as) Household.

However, the first interpretation as per which the antecedent of the pronoun is Abraham (as), seems preferable.

On the basis of different traditions narrated on the authority of the Noble Prophet’s Household (as), the antecedent of the pronoun is the question of imamate and naturally the antecedent of the subject pronoun is God; namely, God Almighty made the question of imamate last among Abraham (as) descendants.

It is mentioned in the Holy Qur’an² that when God said unto Abraham (as) that He appointed him as the imam, he prayed to God to appoint his descendants as imams and God answered to his prayer but He made an exception for wrong doers:

(“He said [unto him], ‘Verily, I am going to make you an Imam for mankind [to follow you].’ Abraham (as) said, ‘And of my offspring [to make Imams].’” [Allah] said, ‘My Covenant [prophethood] includes not wrong doers.’”

The question arising at the first glance is that there is no mention of imamate in the Verse in question unless the clause:

“He will indeed guide me” (sayahdin)

be interpreted in a like manner since the prophets’ and imams’ guidance derives from Divine Guidance and the truth of imamate is identified with that of guidance.

It would be preferable to say that the question of imamate is included in that of Divine Unity since one of the branches of Divine Unity is the Unity of rule, guardianship, and leadership. We know that Imams derive their guardianship and leadership from Allah and they do not rely on themselves.

Likewise, such narrations specify a subcategory of the universal concept of:

“And he made it [the formula of Divine Unity, namely “There is no god but Allah”] a Word lasting”

which is not inconsistent with the aforementioned exegesis.³