Ibrahim

Ibrahimعَلَيْهِ السَّلَام is called khalil Allah, the friend of Allah. He is the prophet from whom both Arabs and Israelites trace their lineage. His story carries some of the heaviest tests in the Qur'an, and the mercy in each one is what scholars return to.

The Prophet ﷺ said in salah, O Allah, send blessings on Muhammad and the family of Muhammad as You sent blessings on Ibrahimعَلَيْهِ السَّلَام and the family of Ibrahimعَلَيْهِ السَّلَام. (Sahih al-Bukhari 3370.) Every Muslim says these words at least seventeen times a day in their prayers. The name of Ibrahimعَلَيْهِ السَّلَام is on the tongue of the ummah on a permanent loop.

The young man who argued

Ibrahimعَلَيْهِ السَّلَام grew up in a household that made idols. His father Azar carved them and sold them. Ibrahimعَلَيْهِ السَّلَام looked at them and asked his father the question no one in the household wanted asked.

When he said to his father, "O my father, why do you worship that which does not hear and does not see and will not benefit you at all?" (Qur'an 19:42)

He did not raise his voice. He called his father ya abati, a gentle form of address, four times in the conversation. My dear father, I am afraid a punishment from the Most Merciful will reach you. My dear father, do not worship Shaytan. (Qur'an 19:44-45.)

His father answered with rejection. If you do not desist, I will surely stone you. Leave me for a long time. (Qur'an 19:46.)

Ibrahimعَلَيْهِ السَّلَام answered with peace. Peace be upon you. I will ask forgiveness for you from my Lord. (Qur'an 19:47.) He did not curse his father. He did not raise his hand. He left, and he prayed for him for a long time, until Allah told him not to (Qur'an 9:114).

This first scene sets the spine of his prophethood. He stood for tawhid without softening it. He stood with mercy without abandoning it. He held both.

The idols and the fire

The story that gets most attention is the one with the idols and the fire. The people of Ibrahimعَلَيْهِ السَّلَام celebrated a festival. They went out of the city. Ibrahimعَلَيْهِ السَّلَام stayed behind. He went into the temple where the idols stood. He took an axe and smashed them all, except for the largest one. He hung the axe on the shoulder of the largest idol and went home.

When the people returned and saw the destruction, they asked who had done this. Someone remembered the young man who had questioned the practice. They brought Ibrahimعَلَيْهِ السَّلَام forward.

He said, "Rather, this one, the largest of them, did it. So ask them, if they can speak." (Qur'an 21:63)

It was a trap. The point of breaking the idols was not destruction. The point was the question. Ask them. If they cannot answer, why are you worshipping them?

The people turned to themselves in shame for a moment and said you have known they do not speak (Qur'an 21:65). But pride won. They built a fire so large the heat could be felt at a distance. They threw Ibrahimعَلَيْهِ السَّلَام into it.

Allah spoke directly to the fire.

O fire, be coolness and peace upon Ibrahimعَلَيْهِ السَّلَام. (Qur'an 21:69)

The fire became cool. It became safety. Ibrahimعَلَيْهِ السَّلَام walked out of it unburned. The people who had thrown him in did not believe even then.

The justice in this scene is real. The men who built the fire were exposed. Their idols were broken. Their threat was made cool. The mercy is in the manner. Allah did not consume the people in flame to match what they tried to do to His friend. He simply turned the fire off. The opposing party walked away alive. They had been given another chance to think again. This restraint is one face of the mercy that introduces Allah by name.

The hospitality of the friend of Allah

Ibrahimعَلَيْهِ السَّلَام was famous in his lifetime for his hospitality. Ibn Kathir records in his tafsir that Ibrahimعَلَيْهِ السَّلَام would not eat a meal alone, and would call out for company before any meal. This is tradition rather than authentic hadith, but it has been carried through Sunni scholarship. He would walk a long way to find a traveller to share his food with.

One day three guests came to him. He welcomed them without knowing who they were. He prepared a roasted calf and brought it to them. They did not eat. The Qur'an describes his concern.

But when he saw their hands not reaching for it, he distrusted them and felt from them apprehension. (Qur'an 11:70)

The guests were angels. They told him not to fear. They had come with two pieces of news. His wife Sarah would have a son, Ishaqعَلَيْهِ السَّلَام. And they were on their way to destroy the people of Lutعَلَيْهِ السَّلَام. Ibrahimعَلَيْهِ السَّلَام, the friend of Allah, argued for the people of Lutعَلَيْهِ السَّلَام. He pleaded with the angels. They told him gently that the decree was already passed (Qur'an 11:74-76).

This is also mercy in his character. He did not relish the punishment of a corrupt people. He argued for them even as he knew their crimes. He carried mercy past what the situation deserved.

The son and the dream

The hardest test in Ibrahimعَلَيْهِ السَّلَام's life came when his son Ismailعَلَيْهِ السَّلَام was old enough to walk with him. Ibrahimعَلَيْهِ السَّلَام saw a dream. The dreams of prophets are revelation. The dream was that he should sacrifice his son.

He told his son what he had seen.

He said, "O my father, do as you are commanded. You will find me, in sha' Allah, of the patient." (Qur'an 37:102)

The son answered the father with the same patience the father had shown him. They both submitted. Ibrahimعَلَيْهِ السَّلَام laid his son down. He placed the knife. And at that moment Allah called out.

And We called to him, "O Ibrahimعَلَيْهِ السَّلَام, you have fulfilled the vision." (Qur'an 37:104-105)

A great ram was sent down from heaven. The ram was sacrificed in place of Ismailعَلَيْهِ السَّلَام. The test was the intention. Allah did not actually require the son. He required the willingness.

Every year, millions of Muslims sacrifice an animal on Eid al-Adha in memory of this scene. The whole Hajj is woven through with Ibrahimعَلَيْهِ السَّلَام and his family. The running between Safa and Marwa is Hajar's running. The Zamzam is the water Allah opened for her infant Ismailعَلَيْهِ السَّلَام. The Kaaba is the foundation Ibrahimعَلَيْهِ السَّلَام and Ismailعَلَيْهِ السَّلَام built together.

The justice in this story is that Allah does ask hard things. The mercy is that He does not take the thing once the heart has agreed to give it.

What this teaches the reader

Three small things.

One. Stand for tawhid without harshness. Ibrahimعَلَيْهِ السَّلَام argued with his father gently. He called him ya abati even when his father threatened to stone him. The truth does not need a raised voice.

Two. Allah may ask you to lay something down. He does not always take it. The intention is what is being tested. Once the heart has truly given a thing up for His sake, He often gives it back.

Three. Hospitality is a sunnah of Ibrahimعَلَيْهِ السَّلَام. Do not eat alone if you can help it. Bring someone in. The friend of Allah was famous for his table.