Surah 19. Maryam

Thereupon he came out of the sanctuary unto his people and signified to them [by gestures]: "Extol His limitless glory by day and by night!"

  - Mohammad Asad

After this Zakariya came out of the shrine and asked his people, through sign language, to glorify Allah in the morning and in the evening.

  - Muhammad Farooq-i-Azam Malik

Then he came forth unto his people from the sanctuary, and signified to them: Glorify your Lord at break of day and fall of night.

  - Marmaduke Pickthall

[And when the son was born and grew up¹⁰, he was told,] "O John! Hold fast unto the divine writ with [all thy] strength!" - for We granted him wisdom while he was yet a little boy,

  - Mohammad Asad

According to Razi, this is clearly implied inasmuch as the sequence presupposes that John had in the meantime reached an age which enabled him to receive and understand God's commandment.

According to Razi, this is clearly implied in as much as the sequence presupposes that John had in the meantime reached an age which enabled him to receive and understand God's commandment.

To Yahya, when he became old enough, We said: " Hold firmly to the Book." We granted him wisdom, while he was yet a boy,

  - Muhammad Farooq-i-Azam Malik

(And it was said unto his son): O John! Hold the Scripture. And We gave him wisdom when a child.

  - Marmaduke Pickthall

as well as, by Our grace, [the gift of] compassion¹¹ and purity; and he was [always] conscious of Us

  - Mohammad Asad

Lit., "compassion from Us"-i.e., as a special divine gift.

and also granted him kindness and purity by Our grace, and he grew up a pious man;

  - Muhammad Farooq-i-Azam Malik

And compassion from Our presence, and purity; and he was devout,

  - Marmaduke Pickthall

and full of piety towards his parents; and never was he haughty or rebellious.

  - Mohammad Asad

dutiful to his parents - he was neither arrogant nor disobedient.

  - Muhammad Farooq-i-Azam Malik

And dutiful toward his parents. And he was not arrogant, rebellious.

  - Marmaduke Pickthall

Hence, [God's] peace was upon him on the day when he was born, and on the day of his death, and will be [upon him] on the day when he shall be raised to life [again].

  - Mohammad Asad

Peace be on him the day he was born, the day of his death and the Day he will be raised to life again!

  - Muhammad Farooq-i-Azam Malik

Peace on him the day be was born, and the day he dieth and the day he shall be raised alive!

  - Marmaduke Pickthall

AND CALL to mind, through this divine writ,¹² Mary. Lo! She withdrew from her family to an eastern place

  - Mohammad Asad

Lit., "in the divine writ". In this surah as well as in Al 'Imran the story of the birth of John is followed by that of Jesus - firstly, because John (called "the Baptist" in the Bible) was to be a precursor of Jesus, and, secondly, because of the obvious parallelism in the form of the announcements of these two births.

O Muhammad, relate to them the story of Maryam in the Book (The Qur'an) when she withdrew from her family to a place in the East.

  - Muhammad Farooq-i-Azam Malik

And make mention of Mary in the Scripture, when she had withdrawn from her people to a chamber looking East,

  - Marmaduke Pickthall

and kept herself in seclusion from them,¹³ whereupon We sent unto her Our angel of revelation, who appeared to her in the shape of a well-made human being.¹⁴

  - Mohammad Asad

Apparently, in order to devote herself undisturbed to prayer and meditation. The "eastern place" may possibly, as Ibn Kathir suggests, signify an eastern chamber of the Temple, to the service of which Mary had been dedicated by her mother (cf. {3: 35-37}).

As pointed out in surah {2}, note [71], and surah {16}, note [2], the term ruh often denotes "divine inspiration". Occasionally, however, it is used to describe the medium through which such inspiration is imparted to God's elect: in other words, the angel (or angelic force) of revelation. Since - as is implied in 6:9 - mortals cannot perceive an angel in his true manifestation, God caused him to appear to Mary "in the shape of a well-made human being", i.e., in a shape accessible to her perception. According to Razi, the designation of the angel as ruh ("spirit" or "soul") indicates that this category of beings is purely spiritual, without any physical element.

She chose to be secluded from them. We sent to her Our angel and he appeared before her as a grown up man.

  - Muhammad Farooq-i-Azam Malik

And had chosen seclusion from them. Then We sent unto her Our spirit and it assumed for her the likeness of a perfect man.

  - Marmaduke Pickthall

She exclaimed: "Verily, I seek refuge from thee with the Most Gracious! [Approach me not] if thou art conscious of Him!"

  - Mohammad Asad

She said: "I seek Rahman's (Allah's) protection against you, leave me alone if you are Godfearing".

  - Muhammad Farooq-i-Azam Malik

She said: Lo! I seek refuge in the Beneficent One from thee, if thou art God fearing.

  - Marmaduke Pickthall

[The angel] answered: "I am but a messenger of thy Sustainer, [who says,] 'I shall bestow upon thee the gift of a son endowed with purity.'"

  - Mohammad Asad

He said: "Don't be afraid, I am merely a messenger from your Rabb to tell you about the gift of a holy son".

  - Muhammad Farooq-i-Azam Malik

He said: I am only a messenger of thy Lord, that I may bestow on thee a faultless son.

  - Marmaduke Pickthall

Said she: "How can I have a son when no man has ever touched me? - for, never have I been a loose woman!"

  - Mohammad Asad

She said: "How shall I bear a son, no man has ever touched me nor am I unchaste?"

  - Muhammad Farooq-i-Azam Malik

She said: How can I have a son when no mortal hath touched me, neither have I been unchaste!

  - Marmaduke Pickthall

[The angel] answered: "Thus it is; [but] thy Sustainer says, 'This is easy for Me;¹⁵ and [thou shalt have a son,] so that We might make him a symbol unto mankind and an act of grace from Us."¹⁶ And it was a thing decreed [by God]:

  - Mohammad Asad

Cf. the identical phrase in verse {9} above, relating to the announcement of John's birth to Zachariah. In both these cases, the implication is that God can and does bring about events which may be utterly unexpected or even inconceivable before they materialize. In connection with the announcement of a son to Mary, the Qur'an states in {3 :47} that "when He wills a thing to be, He but says unto it, 'Be' - and it is": but since neither the Qur'an nor any authentic Tradition tells us anything about the chain of causes and effects (asbab) which God's decree "Be" was to bring into being, all speculation as to the "how" of this event must remain beyond the scope of a Qur'an-commentary. (But see also note [87] on {21: 91}.)

One of the several meanings of the term ayah is "a sign" or, as elaborately defined by Raghib, "a symbol" (cf. surah {17}, note [2]). However, the sense in which it is most frequently used in the Qur'an is "a [divine] message": hence, its metonymic application to Jesus may mean that he was destined to become a vehicle of God's message to man - i.e., a prophet - and, thus, a symbol of God's grace. - As regards the words "thou shalt have a son" interpolated by me between brackets, a statement to this effect is implied in the subsequent phrase beginning with "so that" (Zamakhshari and Razi).

The angel replied: "So shall it be - Your Rabb says: `It is easy for Me. We wish to make him a Sign for mankind and a blessing from Us' - and this matter has already been decreed".

  - Muhammad Farooq-i-Azam Malik

He said: So (it will be). Thy Lord saith: It is easy for Me. And (it will be) that We may make of him a revelation for mankind and a mercy from Us, and it is a thing ordained.

  - Marmaduke Pickthall

and in time she conceived him, and then she withdrew with him to a far-off place.

  - Mohammad Asad

So she conceived the child and she retired with him to a remote place.

  - Muhammad Farooq-i-Azam Malik

And she conceived him, and she withdrew with him to a place.

  - Marmaduke Pickthall

And [when] the throes of childbirth drove her to the trunk of a palm-tree,¹⁷ she exclaimed: "Oh, would that I had died ere this, and had become a thing forgotten, utterly forgotten!"

  - Mohammad Asad

I.e., compelling her to cling to it for support: thus stressing the natural, normal circumstances of this childbirth, attended - as is the case with all women - by severe labour pains.

The pains of childbirth drove her to the trunk of a palm-tree. She cried in her anguish: "Ah! Would that I had died before this, and been long forgotten!"

  - Muhammad Farooq-i-Azam Malik

And the pangs of childbirth drove her unto the trunk of the palm tree. She said: Oh, would that I had died ere this and had become a thing of naught, forgotten!

  - Marmaduke Pickthall

Thereupon [a voice] called out to her from beneath that [palm-tree]:¹⁸ "Grieve not! Thy Sustainer has provided a rivulet [running] beneath thee;

  - Mohammad Asad

Or: "from beneath her". However, Qatadah (as quoted by Zamakhshari) interprets this as meaning "from beneath the palm-tree".

An angel from beneath the palm-tree consoled her, saying: "Do not grieve! Your Rabb has provided a brook at your feet.

  - Muhammad Farooq-i-Azam Malik

Then (one) cried unto her from below her, saying: Grieve not! Thy Lord hath placed a rivulet beneath thee,

  - Marmaduke Pickthall

and shake the trunk of the palm-tree towards thee: it will drop fresh, ripe dates upon thee.

  - Mohammad Asad

If you shake the trunk of this palm-tree, it will drop fresh ripe dates in your lap.

  - Muhammad Farooq-i-Azam Malik

And shake the trunk of the palm tree toward thee, thou wilt cause ripe dates to fall upon thee.

  - Marmaduke Pickthall

Eat, then, and drink, and let thine eye be gladdened! And if thou shouldst see any human being, convey this unto him:¹⁹ 'Behold, abstinence from speech have I vowed unto the Most Gracious; hence, I may not speak today to any mortal.'"²⁰

  - Mohammad Asad

Lit., "say" - but since actual speech would contradict what follows, the "saying" implies here a communication by gestures.

In its primary sense, the term sawm denotes "abstinence" or "self-denial"; in the present context it is synonymous with samt ("abstinence from speech"); in fact-as pointed out by Zamakhshari - the latter term is said to have figured in the Qur'an-copy belonging to 'Abd Allah ibn Mas'ud (possibly as a marginal, explanatory notation).

So eat, drink and refresh yourself. If you see anyone, tell him: `I have vowed a fast to Rahman (Allah), so I will not speak to anyone today'."

  - Muhammad Farooq-i-Azam Malik

So eat and drink and be consoled. And if thou meetest any mortal, say: Lo! I have vowed a fast unto the Beneficent, and may not speak this day to any mortal.

  - Marmaduke Pickthall

And in time she returned to her people, carrying the child with her.²¹ They said: "O Mary! Thou hast indeed done an amazing thing!

  - Mohammad Asad

Lit., "she came with him to her people, carrying him".

Carrying the baby, she came back to her people. They said: "O Maryam! You have brought something hard to believe!

  - Muhammad Farooq-i-Azam Malik

Then she brought him to her own folk, carrying him. They said: O Mary! Thou hast come with an amazing thing.

  - Marmaduke Pickthall

O sister of Aaron!²² Thy father was not a wicked man, nor was thy mother a loose woman!"

  - Mohammad Asad

In ancient Semitic usage, a person's name was often linked with that of a renowned ancestor or founder of the tribal line. Thus, for instance, a man of the tribe of Banu Tamim was sometimes addressed as "son of Tamim" or "brother of Tamim". Since Mary belonged to the priestly caste, and hence descended from Aaron, the brother of Moses, she was called a "sister of Aaron" (in the same way as her cousin Elisabeth. the wife of Zachariah, is spoken of in Luke i, 5, as one "of the daughters of Aaron").

O sister (a woman from the noble family) of Haroon! Your father was not a bad man nor your mother an unchaste woman".

  - Muhammad Farooq-i-Azam Malik

Oh sister of Aaron! Thy father was not a wicked man nor was thy mother a harlot.

  - Marmaduke Pickthall

Thereupon she pointed to him. They exclaimed: "How can we talk to one who [as yet] is a little boy in the cradle?"

  - Mohammad Asad

In response she merely pointed towards the baby. They said: "How can we talk to a babe in the cradle?"

  - Muhammad Farooq-i-Azam Malik

Then she pointed to him. They said How can we talk to one who is in the cradle, a young boy?

  - Marmaduke Pickthall

[But] he said:²³ "Behold, I am a servant of God. He has vouchsafed unto me revelation and made me a prophet,²⁴

  - Mohammad Asad

Although the Qur'an mentions in 3:46 that Jesus would "speak unto men [while yet] in his cradle" - i.e., would be imbued with wisdom from his early childhood - verses {30-33} seem to be in the nature of a trope, projecting the shape of things to come by using, for the sake of emphasis, the past tense to describe something that was to become real in the future. (See also next note.)

Since it is not conceivable that anyone could be granted divine revelation and made a prophet before attaining to full maturity of intellect and experience, 'Ikrimah and Ad-Dahhak - as quoted by Tabari - interpret this passage as meaning, "God has decreed (qada) that He would vouchsafe unto me revelation...", etc., thus regarding it as an allusion to the future. Tabari himself applies the same interpretation to the next verse, explaining it thus: "He has decreed that He would enjoin upon me prayer and charity". However, the whole of this passage (verses {30-33}) may also be understood as having been uttered by Jesus at a much later time - namely, after he had reached maturity and been actually entrusted with his prophetic mission: that is to say, it may be understood as an anticipatory description of the ethical and moral principles which were to dominate the adult life of Jesus and particularly his deep consciousness of being only "a servant of God".

Whereupon the baby spoke out: "I am indeed a servant of Allah. He has given me the Book and made me a Prophet.

  - Muhammad Farooq-i-Azam Malik

He spake: Lo! I am the slave of Allah. He hath given me the Scripture and hath appointed me a Prophet,

  - Marmaduke Pickthall