SIMPLE LOGIC TO MAKE A POINT AGAINST IDOLATRY
Below is the English translation of verses 21:52–70 from Chapter Al-Anbiya, as provided in Tafheem-ul-Quran by Syed Abul A’ala Maududi, sourced from http://www.islamicstudies.info.
(21:52) Recall, when he(Abraham ) said to his father and his people: “What are these images to which you are devoutly clinging?”
(21:53) They answered: “We found our fathers worshipping them.”
(21:54) He said: “Certainly you and your fathers have all been in manifest error.”
(21:55) They said: “Are you expressing your true ideas before us or are you jesting?”
(21:56) He said: “Nay, but your Lord is the Lord of the heavens and the earth which He created and to that I bear witness before you.
(21:57) By Allah, I shall certainly carry out my plan against your gods after you are gone.”
(21:58) Then he broke them all into pieces, sparing only the supreme one among them that they may possibly return to him.
(21:59) (When they saw the idols in this state) they said: “Who has done this to our gods? Surely he must be one of the wrong-doers.”
(21:60) Some of them said: “We heard a youth called Abraham talking about them.”
(21:61) They said: “Then bring him before the eyes of the people that they may see.”
(21:62) (When Abraham was brought) they said: “Abraham, are you he who has done this to our gods?”
(21:63) He answered: “It is possible that some one bigger than they, who is amongst them, has done this. So ask them, if they can speak.”
(21:64) Thereupon they turned to their (inner) selves and said (to themselves): “Surely it is you who are the wrong-doers.”
(21:65) Then their minds were turned upside down, and they said: “You know well that they do not speak.”
(21:66) Abraham said: “Do you, then, worship beside Allah a thing that can neither benefit you nor hurt you?
(21:67) Fie upon you and upon all that you worship beside Allah. Do you have no sense?”
(21:68) They said: “Burn him, and come to the support of your gods, if you are going to do anything.”
(21:69) We(ALLAH) said: “O fire, become coolness and safety for Abraham.”
(21:70) They had sought to do evil to him, but We caused them to be the worst losers,
Commentary (Tafsir) from Tafheem-ul-Quran
53. The Arabic word rushd is very comprehensive and means righteousness as well. We had blessed Abraham with discretion: The discretion he showed in discriminating between the right and the wrong etc. was not of his own acquirement but had been bestowed on him by Us.
54. The discussion, which had begun with verse 51, is concluded here with the mention that Allah bestowed His favor on Abraham and delivered him from the evil plots of his people.
55. That is, are you presenting this thing in a serious manner in order to make us believe that these idols are not gods and that the Creator of the heavens and earth is the One and only Deity, or are you jesting just to make fun of our beliefs?
56. That is, I shall break your idols into pieces when you are gone to some gathering outside the city. This was a clear and bold challenge to their beliefs and their gods.
57. He broke all the idols into pieces, but left the supreme one intact so that they may turn to it and ask as to who had done that. He did this to prove before them that their idol-gods were absolutely powerless.
58. The supreme idol was spared so that they might turn to it and ask about the incident, but they could get no help from it.
62. Both the words of the verse and the context indicate that Abraham’s opponents did indeed carry out their threat. They prepared a pit of fire, and threw Abraham into it, but God commanded the fire to cool, thus preventing Abraham from suffering any harm. This is doubtlessly a miracle narrated by the Qur’an. Nonetheless, there are still those people who are apologetic about such miracles, and who resort to far-fetched interpretations so as to explain them away. They would appear to believe that it is impossible for God to do anything which runs counter to the routine workings of the cosmic system. One may well, if such is their view, ask why they even bother to believe in God in the first place.
Messages from Quran 