Imamate of Abraham and His Offpsring (2:124)

 

بسم الله الرحمن الرحيم

الصلاة والسلام عليك يا سيدى يا رسول الله

In the Name of Allah, the Rahman, the Merciful

Concerning the status and excellence of the Patriarch Abraham, peace be upon him, Allah says:

وَاِذِ ابۡتَلٰۤی اِبۡرٰہٖمَ رَبُّہٗ بِکَلِمٰتٍ فَاَتَمَّہُنَّ ؕ قَالَ اِنِّیۡ جَاعِلُکَ لِلنَّاسِ اِمَامًا ؕ قَالَ وَمِنۡ ذُرِّیَّتِیۡ ؕ قَالَ لَا یَنَالُ عَہۡدِی الظّٰلِمِیۡنَ

And when his Lord tried Abraham with words and he fulfilled them. He [Allah] said, “I make you an Imam for the people”. He [Abraham] said, “And from my offspring?” He [Allah] said, “My covenant does not include the wrongdoers”

(Surah 2:124)

Abraham was a Prophet of God, who regularly received revelation from Him, revelation that contained commands, prohibitions, rites and guidance. In this Ayah we are informed that Allah announced to him that He is making him an Imam for the people. Was this Imamate something separate from his Prophethood, or is it synonymous with it? If it is separate was he then granted the rank of Imamate before becoming a Prophet or after?

Imamate is a Test for Abraham

Some have understood that Allah making Abraham an Imam for the people was a reward for him fulfilling the tests. However, it seems that being made an Imam for the people was from among those tests itself, as some of the Mufassirin explained:

‌عن ‌أبي ‌صالح ‌في ‌قوله وإذ ابتلى إبراهيم ربه بكلمات فأتمهن فمنهن إني جاعلك للناس إماما

On the authority of Abu Salih, regarding His statement, “And when his Lord tested Abraham with words, and he fulfilled them”, among them was, “Indeed, I will make you a leader for the people”

عن مـجاهد فـي قوله وَإذِ ابْتَلَـى إبْرَاهِيـمَ رَبّهُ بِكَلِـمَاتٍ فَأتَـمّهُنَّ قال الله لإبراهيـم إنـي مبتلـيك بأمر فما هو قال تـجعلنـي للناس إماما قال نعم

On the authority of Mujahid, regarding his statement, “And when his Lord tested Abraham with certain words, and he fulfilled them,” God said to Abraham, “Indeed, I am testing you with a matter,” so what is it? He said, “Will you make me an Imam for the people?” He said, “Yes.”

عن مـجاهد وَإذِ ابْتَلَـى إبْرَاهِيـمَ رَبّهُ بِكَلِـمَاتٍ فأتَـمّهُنَّ قال ابتلـي بـالآيات التـي بعدها إنّـي جاعِلُكَ للنّاسِ إماماً

On the authority of Mujahid: “And when his Lord tested Abraham with certain words, and he fulfilled them,” He said: He was tested with the verses that come after it: “Indeed, I will make you an Imam for the people...”

عن الربـيع فـي قوله وَإذْ ابْتَلَـى إبْرَاهِيـمَ رَبّهُ بِكَلِـمَاتَ فأتَـمّهُن فـالكلـمات إنّـي جاعِلُكَ للنّاسِ إماماً

On the authority of al-Rabi in His saying: “And when his Lord tested Abraham with words, and he fulfilled them,” and the words were, “Indeed, I will make you an Imam for the people.”

عن ابن عبـاس قوله وَإذِ ابْتَلَـى إبْرَاهِيـمَ رَبّهُ بِكَلِـمَاتٍ فَأتَـمّهُنَّ فمنهنّ إنّـي جاعِلُكَ للنّاسِ إماماً

On the authority of Ibn Abbas, His saying: “And when his Lord tested Abraham with words, and he fulfilled them,” among them was, “Indeed, I will make you an Imam for the people.” (Tafsir Ibn Jarir, v.2, pp.501-503)

Prophets Possess Imamate

Abraham was a Prophet and Messenger of Allah. The Prophets and Messengers are necessarily Imams, because an Imam is someone who is a model of piety for the people to follow and emulate. The Shiah claim that this Ayah (2:124) means Abraham was made a Prophet prior to being granted the rank of Imamate. But that would mean there was a period in which Abraham was a Prophet without being an Imam, meaning without being one to be followed and emulated! The truth is every Prophet and Messenger of God is necessarily an Imam, but not every Imam is necessarily a Prophet and Messenger of God. Allamah Mahmud al-Alusi, in explaining this Ayah (2:124) has mentioned what an Imam is:

وهو بحسب المفهوم وإن كان ‌شاملا ‌للنبي والخليفة وإمام الصلاة بل كل من يقتدى به في شيء ولو باطلا كما يشير إليه قوله تعالى وَجَعَلْناهُمْ أَئِمَّةً يَدْعُونَ إِلَى النَّارِ إلا أن المراد به هاهنا النبي المقتدى به

And according to the meaning, although it includes the Prophet, the Caliph, the Imam of prayer, and indeed everyone who is followed in something, even if it is false, as is indicated by the Almighty’s saying: “And We made them Imams inviting to the Fire,” but what is meant here [2:124] is the Prophet who is followed (Ruh al-Maani, v.2, p.425)

Therefore, when Allah announced to Abraham that He is making him an Imam for the people, He was also making him a Prophet and Messenger simultaneously, for Imamate is one of the functions of Nubuwwah and Risalah. Every Prophet and Messenger of Allah is necessarily an Imam for the people and a Wali (friend) of Allah. So the Prophets possess Imamate and Wilayah, but not everyone who possesses Imamate and Wilayah is necessarily a Prophet. This in fact proves that the rank of Nubuwwah is higher than Imamate and Wilayah, because that which is narrower in attainment is logically better than that which is broader in attainment. If a hundred children are given boxes of candy, every box contains jelly beans, so everyone of them has received jelly beans, but ten of those children were given a box containing chocolate in addition to the jelly beans, then obviously the ten children have been favored above the other ninety.

Fakhr ul-Din al-Razi has also explained that what is meant by Allah making Abraham an Imam is that He made him a Prophet:

أَمَّا الْإِمَامَةُ فَلِأَنَّ الْمُرَادَ منها ‌هاهنا ‌هُوَ ‌النُّبُوَّةُ وَهَذَا التَّكْلِيفُ يَتَضَمَّنُ مَشَاقَّ عَظِيمَةً

As for the Imamate, it is because what is meant by it here is Prophethood, and this obligation includes great hardships (Tafsir al-Kabir, v.2, p.322)

Imamate Among Abraham’s Offspring

Thus when Abraham asked Allah about his offspring, that from among them there should also be Imams, it could means that from among them there should be Prophets specifically, or Imams in the broader sense. Certainly, most if not all of the Prophets who arose after Abraham were from his offspring, especially through Isaac—a chain of hundreds if not thousands of Prophets till Jesus—but also through Ishmael, namely, the Seal of Prophets Muhammad, peace be upon them all. And if Imamate in the broader sense is intended, then apart from the Prophets many other Imams who were not Prophets emerged from the offspring of Abraham. Consider the rightly-guided Caliphs, Abu Bakr, Umar, Uthman and Ali, may Allah be pleased with them, and many other great Imams and Saints from among the Quraysh. Consider the pious Imams of Ahl al-Bayt, such as Imam Hasan and Imam Husain, Imam Ali al-Sajjad, Imam Muhammad al-Baqir, Imam Jafar al-Sadiq, Imam Musa al-Kazim, Imam Ali al-Rida, Imam Muhammad al-Jawwad, Imam Ali al-Hadi, Imam Hasan al-Zaki, and the Promised Mahdi who is yet to come. All of these are from the offspring of Abraham that were blessed with Imamate. And it is not necessary that an Imam possess the formal office of Caliphate or government, nor is it that every ruler is necessarily an Imam in the good sense. An evil and wicked ruler is to be heard and obeyed in his capacity of rulership and possessing temporal authority, but he is not given the title of Imam.

Allah’s declaration that His covenant does not extend to the wrongdoers who would arise from Abraham’s offspring is understood to mean the covenant of Prophethood, according to al-Suddi and others:

حَدَّثَنَا أَبُو زُرْعَةَ ثنا عَمْرُو بْنُ حَمَّادٍ ثنا أَسْبَاطٌ عَنِ السُّدِّيِّ لَا يَنَالُ عَهْدِي الظَّالِمِينَ يَقُولُ عَهْدِي ‌نُبُوَّتِي

On the authority of al-Suddi: “My covenant does not include the wrongdoers.” He says: “My covenant is My Prophethood” (Tafsir Ibn Abi Hatim, v.1, p.223, #1182)

قالَ الله لا يَنالُ أي لا يصيب عَهْدِي أي ‌نبوتي

Allah said: “My covenant will not include...” that is, My Prophethood (Tafsir al-Khazin, v.1, p.77)

Allamah Mahmud al-Alusi has said the same,

فالمتبادر من العهد الإمامة وليست هي ‌هنا ‌إلا ‌النبوة

What comes to mind from the covenant is the Imamate, and here it is nothing but the Prophethood (Ruh al-Maani, v.2, p.428)

And Allah making a covenant of Imamate with the offspring of Abraham does not necessitate exclusion of Imamate for righteous Believers who are not descended from him, for Allah didn’t say “I will only make Imams from your offspring and no other”. Now the Mufassirin have mentioned seven different opinions on what the covenant in 2:124 refers to, but it appears to me the correct view is that it is either Nubuwwah specifically or Imamate broadly.

Abraham an Imam for Humanity

Allamah al-Alusi said,

وهذه الإمامة إما مؤبدة كما هو مقتضى تعريف الناس وصيغة اسم الفاعل الدال على الاستمرار ولا يضر مجيء الأنبياء بعده لأنه لم يبعث نبي إلا وكان من ذريته ومأمورا باتباعه في الجملة لا في جميع الأحكام لعدم اتفاق الشرائع التي بعده في الكل فتكون إمامته باقية بإمامة أولاده التي هي أبعاضه على التناوب وإما مؤقتة بناء على أن ما نسخ ولو بعضه لا يقال له مؤبد وإلا لكانت إمامة كل نبي مؤبدة ولم يشع ذلك فالمراد من الناس حينئذ أمته الذين اتبعوه ولك أن تلتزم القول بتأبيد إمامة كل نبي ولكن في عقائد التوحيد وهي لم تنسخ بل لا تنسخ أصلا كما يشير إليه قوله تعالى أُولئِكَ الَّذِينَ هَدَى اللَّهُ فَبِهُداهُمُ اقْتَدِهْ وعدم الشيوع غير مسلم ولئن سلم لا يضر والامتنان على إبراهيم عليه السلام بذلك دون غيره لخصوصية اقتضت ذلك لا تكاد تخفى فتدبر

This Imamate if it is permanent, as is required by the definition of ‘al-Nas’ and the form of the active participle indicating continuity. The coming of Prophets after him does not harm, because no Prophet was sent except that he was from his descendants and commanded to follow him in general, not in all rulings, due to the lack of agreement of the laws that came after him in all of them. Thus, his Imamate remains through the Imamate of his sons, who are his parts, in rotation. Or it is temporary, based on the fact that what was abrogated, even partially, cannot be called permanent. Otherwise, the Imamate of every Prophet would have been permanent, and that would not have become widespread. What is meant by ‘of the people’ in that case is his nation who followed him. You may adhere to the statement of the perpetual Imamate of every Prophet, but in the beliefs of monotheism, and it was not abrogated, in fact it is not abrogated at all, as is indicated by the Most High’s saying: “Those are the ones whom Allah has guided, so by their guidance be guided.” [Surah 6:90] The lack of prevalence is not accepted, and even if it is accepted, it does not harm. And gratitude to Abraham, peace be upon him, for that, and not to others, is due to a special nature that necessitated that, which is hardly hidden, so reflect (Ruh al-Maani, v.2, p.425)

He is referring to the fact that Abraham’s Imamate is inherited and spread through the Prophets and Imams from his offspring. But the attribution of this affair is to Abraham for he was the first who received it, and the covenant was made through him. While in this dispensation and until the Apocalypse the Believers must be in the Ummah of Prophet Muhammad, peace be upon him, and follow his Shariah only, the Millah or fundamental rites of Abraham, such as circumcision, the pilgrimage to Mecca and all its rituals, are still followed which even this Shariah has preserved and mandated:

فَاتَّبِعُوا مِلَّةَ إِبْرَاهِيمَ حَنِيفًا

So follow the Millat of Abraham, Hanif

(Surah 3:95)

While we are the Ummati Muhammad we are still following the Millati Ibrahim. So Abraham’s Imamate is permanent and continuous until the Resurrection.

Rafidi/Shiite Doubts

Some of the foolish Rafidah Shiah claim that this Ayah [2:124] is a proof that an Imam must be infallible, for everyone who isn’t infallible and commits a sin is necessarily a zalim (wrongdoer). On this basis they then must admit that the entire Shiah community, other than fourteen individuals, are a community of zalimin (wrongdoers)! And Allah says in the Holy Quran that He does not guide the wrongdoing nation, He does not love them and that He curses them!

They also argue that the Prophet’s first three successors, Abu Bakr, Umar and Uthman, may Allah be pleased with him, are not deserving of being considered Imams for before becoming Muslims they were, like the generality of the Arabs, idol worshippers, and idolatry is the “greatest wrongdoing”—zulm azim (Surah 31:13). Allamah al-Alusi has answered this ridiculous objection,

واستدل بها بعض الشيعة على نفي إمامة ‌الصديق وصاحبيه رضي الله تعالى عنهم حيث أنهم عاشوا مدة مديدة على الشرك وإِنَّ الشِّرْكَ لَظُلْمٌ عَظِيمٌ والظالم بنص الآية لا تناله الإمامة وأجيب بأن غاية ما يلزم أن الظالم في حال الظلم لا تناله، والإمامة إنما نالتهم رضي الله تعالى عنهم في وقت كمال إيمانهم وغاية عدالتهم

Some Shiites have used it as evidence to deny the Imamate of the Siddiq [Abu Bakr] and his two companions [Umar and Uthman], may Allah Most High be pleased with them, since they lived for a long time in polytheism, and polytheism is indeed a great injustice. And the oppressor, according to the text of the verse, does not attain the Imamate. And it was answered that the most that is necessary is that the oppressor, in a state of oppression, does not attain it, and the Imamate was attained them, may Allah Most High be pleased with them, at the time of the perfection of their faith and the peak of their justice (Ruh al-Maani)