Surah 3. Aal-Imran

But when she had given birth to the child,²⁴ she said: "O my Sustainer! Behold, I have given birth to a female" - the while God had been fully aware of what she would give birth to, and [fully aware] that no male child [she might have hoped for] could ever have been like this female²⁵ - "and I have named her Mary. And, verily, I seek Thy protection for her and her offspring against Satan, the accursed."

  - Mohammad Asad

Lit., "to her" - implying that it was a girl.

Lit., "and the male is not [or "could not be"] like the female". Zamakhshari reads these words as forming part of the parenthetic sentence relating to God's knowledge, and explains them thus: "The male [child] which she had prayed for could not have been like the female which she was granted" - which implies that Mary's excellence would go far beyond any hopes which her mother had ever entertained.

When she gave birth to a girl instead of a boy, she said: "My Rabb! I have given birth to a girl," - Allah knew very well what she had delivered - "and that the male is not like the female, I have named her Maryem (Mary) and I seek Your protection for her and her children from the mischief of Shaitan, the accursed."

  - Muhammad Farooq-i-Azam Malik

And when she was delivered she said: My Lord! Lo! I am delivered of a female--Allah knew best of what she was delivered--the male is not as the female; and Lo! I have named her Mary, and Lo! I crave Thy protection for her and for her offspring from Satan the outcast.

  - Marmaduke Pickthall

And thereupon her Sustainer accepted the girl-child with goodly acceptance, and caused her to grow up in goodly growth, and placed her in the care of Zachariah²⁶ Whenever Zachariah visited her in the sanctuary, he found her provided with food. He would ask: "O Mary, whence came this unto thee?" She would answer: "It is from God; behold, God grants sustenance unto whom He wills, beyond all reckoning."²⁷

  - Mohammad Asad

As is evident from verse {44} of this surah, the guardianship of Mary was entrusted to Zachariah - who was not only her relative but also a priest attached to the Temple - after lots had been drawn to decide which of the priests should have the responsibility for this girl who, in consequence of her mother's vow, was to be dedicated to Temple service (Tabari).

In spite of all the legends quoted in this connection by most of the commentators, there is no indication whatsoever either in the Qur'an or in any authentic Tradition that these provisions were of a miraculous origin. On the other hand, Tabari quotes a story to the effect that when, in his old age, Zachariah became unable to support Mary by his own means, the community decided to assume this responsibility through another of its members, who thereupon provided her daily with food. Whether this story is authentic or not, Mary's answer to Zachariah reflects no more and no less than her deep consciousness of God as the ultimate Provider.

Her Rabb graciously accepted that girl. He made her grow up as a good girl and entrusted her to the care of Zakariya. Whenever Zakariya entered the sanctuary to see her, he found with her food. He asked, "O Maryem! From where did you get it?" She replied, "It came from Allah. In fact, Allah gives to whom He wants without measure."

  - Muhammad Farooq-i-Azam Malik

And her Lord accepted her with full acceptance and vouchsafed to her a goodly growth; and made Zachariah her guardian. Whenever Zachariah went into the sanctuary where she was, he found that she had food. He said: O Mary! Whence cometh unto thee this (food)? She answered: It is from Allah. Allah giveth without stint to whom He will.

  - Marmaduke Pickthall

In that self-same place, Zachariah prayed unto his Sustainer, saying: "O my Sustainer! Bestow upon me [too], out of Thy grace, the gift of goodly offspring; for Thou, indeed, hearest all prayer."

  - Mohammad Asad

Thereupon Zakariya prayed to his Rabb saying: "O my Rabb! Grant me a righteous child as Your special favor; surely You hear all prayers."

  - Muhammad Farooq-i-Azam Malik

Then Zachariah prayed unto his Lord and said: My Lord! Bestow upon me of Thy bounty goodly offspring. Lo! Thou art the Hearer of Prayer.

  - Marmaduke Pickthall

Thereupon, as he stood praying in the sanctuary, the angels called out unto him: "God sends thee the glad tiding of [the birth of] John, who shall confirm the truth of a word from God,²⁸ and [shall be] outstanding among men, and utterly chaste, and a prophet from among the righteous."

  - Mohammad Asad

In view of the fact that the expression kalimah if often used in the Qur'an to denote an announcement from God, or a statement of His will, or His promise (e.g., 4:171 , 6:34 and {115}, 10:64 , 18:27 , and so forth), we must conclude that in the above passage, too, the "word from God" which would be confirmed by the birth of John (described in the Gospels as "John the Baptist") refers to a divine promise given through revelation: and this, indeed, is the interpretation adopted by the famous philologist Abu 'Ubaydah Ma'mar ibn al-Muthanna, who lived in the second century H. and devoted most of his labours to the study of rare expressions in the Arabic language; his identification, in the context under discussion, of kalimah with kitab ("revelation" or "divine writ") has been quoted by Razi in his commentary on this verse and is, moreover, agreeable with a similar announcement conveyed to Mary regarding the birth of Jesus (see verse {45} of this surah).

As he stood praying in the Mahrab (a prayer place in the sanctuary) the angels called out to him saying: "Allah gives you good news of a son to be named Yahya (John), he will confirm the word of Allah, he will be a great leader and chaste, a Prophet and a righteous man."

  - Muhammad Farooq-i-Azam Malik

And the angels called to him as he stood praying in the sanctuary: Allah giveth thee glad tidings of (a son whose name is) John, (who cometh) to confirm a word from Allah, lordly, chaste, a Prophet of the righteous.

  - Marmaduke Pickthall

[Zachariah] exclaimed: "O my Sustainer! How can I have a son when old age has already overtaken me, and my wife is barren?" Answered [the angel]: "Thus it is: God does what He wills."

  - Mohammad Asad

He said: "O my Rabb! How can I have a son now that I have reached an old age and my wife is barren?" "Such is the will of Allah" he replied, " Allah does what He wants."

  - Muhammad Farooq-i-Azam Malik

He said: My Lord! How can I have a son when age hath overtaken me already and my wife is barren? (The angel) answered: So (it will be). Allah doeth what He will.

  - Marmaduke Pickthall

[Zachariah] prayed: "O my Sustainer! Appoint a sign for me!" Said [the angel]: "Thy sign shall be that for three days thou wilt not speak unto men other than by gestures.²⁹ And remember thy Sustainer unceasingly, and extol His limitless glory by night and by day."

  - Mohammad Asad

According to Abu Muslim (quoted with approval by Razi), Zachariah was merely enjoined not to speak to anyone during the period of three days, and not struck dumb as in the New Testament narrative (Luke i, 20-22): thus the "sign" was purely spiritual, and was to consist in Zachariah's utter self-abandonment to prayer and contemplation.

Zakariya said: "My Rabb! Grant me a sign." It was said: "Your sign is that you will not be able to speak to people for three days except through gestures. During this time you should remember your Rabb very much and glorify Him in the evening and in the morning."

  - Muhammad Farooq-i-Azam Malik

He said: My Lord! Appoint a token for me. (The angel) said: The token unto thee (shall be) that thou shalt not speak unto mankind three days except by signs. Remember thy Lord much, and praise (Him) in the early hours of night and morning.

  - Marmaduke Pickthall

AND LO! The angels said: "O Mary! Behold, God has elected thee and made thee pure, and raised thee above all the women of the world.

  - Mohammad Asad

There came the time when angels said: "O Maryem! Surely Allah has exalted you, purified you, and preferred you for His service over all the women of the worlds.

  - Muhammad Farooq-i-Azam Malik

And when the angels said: O Mary! Lo! Allah hath chosen thee and made thee pure, and hath preferred thee above (all) the women of creation.

  - Marmaduke Pickthall

O Mary! Remain thou truly devout unto thy Sustainer, and prostrate thyself in worship, and bow down with those who bow down [before Him]."

  - Mohammad Asad

O Maryem! Be obedient to your Rabb, prostrate and bow down in worship with other worshippers."

  - Muhammad Farooq-i-Azam Malik

O Mary! Be obedient to thy Lord, prostrate thyself and bow with those who bow (in worship).

  - Marmaduke Pickthall

This account of something that was beyond the reach of thy perception We [now] reveal unto thee:³⁰ for thou wert not with them when they drew lots as to which of them should be Mary's guardian,³¹ and thou wert not with them when they contended [about it] with one another.

  - Mohammad Asad

This parenthetic passage, addressed to the Prophet, is meant to stress the fact that the story of Mary, as narrated in the Qur'an, is a direct outcome of revelation and, therefore, inherently true in spite of all the differences between this account and that given in the scriptures regarded by the Christians as authentic (Muhammad 'Abduh in Manar III, 301 f.).

See note [26] above. The phrase rendered above as "they drew lots" reads literally, "they cast their reeds" - obviously a reference to an ancient Semitic custom, perhaps similar to the divination by means of blunt arrows practiced by the pre-Islamic Arabs and comprehensively described in Lane III, 1247. The pronoun "they" relates to the priests, of whom Zachariah was one.

O Muhammad, these are the news from the unseen which We are revealing to you. You were not present with them when priests of the temple cast their pens to decide which of them should be the guardian of Maryem; nor were you with them when they argued about it.

  - Muhammad Farooq-i-Azam Malik

This is of the tidings of things hidden. We reveal it unto thee (Mohammad). Thou wast not present with them when they threw their pens (to know) which of them should be the guardian of Mary, nor wast thou present with them when they quarrelled (thereupon).

  - Marmaduke Pickthall

Lo! The angels said: "O Mary! Behold, God sends thee the glad tiding, through a word from Him, [of a son] who shall become known as the Christ³² Jesus, son of Mary, of great honour in this world and in the life to come, and [shall be] of those who are drawn near unto God.

  - Mohammad Asad

Lit., "whose name shall be 'the Anointed' (al-masih)". The designation al-masih is the Arabicized form of the Aramaic meshiha which, in turn, is derived from the Hebrew mahsiah, "the anointed" - a term frequently applied in the Bible to the Hebrew kings, whose accession to power used to be consecrated by a touch with holy oil taken from the Temple. This anointment appears to have been so important a rite among the Hebrews that the term "the anointed" became in the course of time more or less synonymous with "king". Its application to Jesus may have been due to the widespread conviction among his contemporaries (references to which are found in several places in the Synoptic Gospels) that he was descended in direct - and obviously legitimate - line from the royal House of David. (It is to be noted that this could not have related to his mother's side, because Mary belonged to the priestly class descending from Aaron, and thus to the tribe of Levi, while David descended from the tribe of Judah.) Whatever may have been the historical circumstances, it is evident that the honorific "the Anointed" was applied to Jesus in his own lifetime. In the Greek version of the Gospels - which is undoubtedly based on a now-lost Aramaic original - this designation is correctly translated as Christos (a noun derived from the Greek verb chriein, "to anoint"): and since it is in this form - "the Christ" - that the designation al-masih has achieved currency in all Western languages, I am using it throughout in my translation.

When the angels said "O Maryem! Allah gives you the good news with a Word from Him that you will be given a son: his name will be Messiah, Isa (Jesus Christ) the son of Maryem. He will be noble in this world and the Hereafter; and he will be from those who are very close to Allah.

  - Muhammad Farooq-i-Azam Malik

(And remember) when the angels said: O Mary! Allah giveth thee glad tidings of a word from Him, whose name is the Messiah, Jesus, son of Mary, illustrious in the world and the Hereafter, and one of those brought near (unto Allah).

  - Marmaduke Pickthall

And he shall speak unto men in his cradle,³³ and as a grown man, and shall be of the righteous."

  - Mohammad Asad

A metaphorical allusion to the prophetic wisdom which was to inspire Jesus from a very early age. As regards the expression min al-muqarrabin ("of those who are drawn near", i.e., unto God), see 56:11 , where the most excellent among the inmates of paradise are thus described.

He will speak to the people in the cradle and in his old age and he will be among the righteous."

  - Muhammad Farooq-i-Azam Malik

He will speak unto mankind in his cradle and in his manhood, and he is of the righteous.

  - Marmaduke Pickthall

Said she: "O my Sustainer! How can I have a son when no man has ever touched me?" [The angel] answered: "Thus it is: God creates what He wills:³⁴ when He wills a thing to be, He but says unto it, 'Be'- and it is.

  - Mohammad Asad

See {19:16-22} and the corresponding notes. In the context of the story of Mary in Al 'Imran, the announcement made to her, as well as the parallel one to Zachariah (verses {39-40} above), is meant to stress God's unlimited power of creation - specifically, in both cases, His power to create the circumstances in which His will is to manifest itself - and thus to bring about any event, however unexpected or even improbable it might seem at the time of the announcement.

Hearing this, Maryem said, "O my Rabb! How can I have a son when no man has ever touched me?" He replied, "Even so, Allah creates however He wants; whenever He decides to do anything, He only says it to 'Be' and it is!.

  - Muhammad Farooq-i-Azam Malik

She said: My Lord! How can I have a child when no mortal hath touched me? He said: So (it will be). Allah createth what He will. if He decreeth a thing, He saith unto it only: Be! and it is.

  - Marmaduke Pickthall

And he will impart unto thy son³⁵ revelation, and wisdom, and the Torah, and the Gospel,

  - Mohammad Asad

Lit., "to him".

Allah will teach your son the Book, the Wisdom, the Taurat (Torah), and the Injeel (Gospel)

  - Muhammad Farooq-i-Azam Malik

And He will teach him the Scripture and wisdom, and the Torah and the Gospel.

  - Marmaduke Pickthall

and [will make him] an apostle unto the children of Israel."³⁶ "I HAVE COME unto you with a message from your Sustainer. I shall create for you out of clay, as it were, the shape of [your] destiny, and then breathe into it, so that it might become [your] destiny by God's leave:³⁷ and I shall heal the blind and the leper, and bring the dead back to life by God's leave:³⁸ and I shall let you know what you may eat and what you should store up in your houses.³⁹ Behold, in all this there is indeed a message for you, if you are [truly] believers.

  - Mohammad Asad

The passage which follows here - up to the end of verse {51} - may be understood in either of two ways: as part of the announcement made to Mary (implying that he would thus speak in the future) or, alternatively, as a statement of what, at a later time, he actually did say to the children of Israel. In view of the narrative form adopted in verses {52} ff., the second of these two alternatives seems preferable.

Lit., "[something] like the shape of a bird (tayr); and then I shall breathe into it, so that it might [or "whereupon it will"] become a bird...". The noun tayr is a plural of ta'ir ("flying creature" or "bird"), or an infinitive noun ("flying") derived from the verb tara ("he flew"). In pre-Islamic usage, as well as in the Qur'an, the words ta'ir and tayr often denote "fortune" or "destiny", whether good or evil (as, for instance, in 7:131 , 27:47 or 36:19 , and still more clearly in 17:13 ). Many instances of this idiomatic use of tayr and ta'ir are given in all the authoritative Arabic dictionaries; see also Lane V, 1904 f. Thus, in the parabolic manner so beloved by him, Jesus intimated to the children of Israel that out of the humble clay of their lives he would fashion for them the vision of a soaring destiny, and that this vision, brought to life by his God-given inspiration, would become their real destiny by God's leave and by the strength of their faith (as pointed out at the end of this verse).

It is probable that the "raising of the dead" by Jesus is a metaphorical description of his giving new life to people who were spiritually dead; cf. 6:122 - "Is then he who was dead [in spirit], and whom We thereupon gave life, and for whom We set up a light whereby he can see his way among men - [is then he] like unto one [who is lost] in darkness deep, out of which he cannot emerge?" If this interpretation is - as I believe - correct, then the "healing of the blind and the leper" has a similar significance: namely, an inner regeneration of people who were spiritually diseased and blind to the truth.

I.e., "what good things you may partake of in the life of this world, and what good deeds you should lay up as a treasure for the life to come".

and send him forth as a Rasool to the Children of Israel with this message: 'I have brought you signs of my appointment from your Rabb. I will make for you the likeness of a bird from clay; I will breathe into it and, with Allah's leave, it will become a living bird. I will heal the blind and the lepers, and raise the dead to life, by Allah's leave. Furthermore, I will tell you what you have eaten and what you have stored in your houses. Surely these are the signs to convince you if you are believers.

  - Muhammad Farooq-i-Azam Malik

And will make him a messenger unto the children of Israel, (saying): Lo! I come unto you with a sign from your Lord. Lo! I fashion for you out of clay the likeness of a bird, and I breathe into it and it is a bird, by Allah's leave. I heal him who was born blind, and the leper, and I raise the dead, by Allah's leave. And I announce unto you what ye eat and what ye store up in your houses. Lo! herein verily is a portent for you, if ye are believers.

  - Marmaduke Pickthall

"And [I have come] to confirm the truth of whatever there still remains⁴⁰ of the Torah, and to make lawful unto you some of the things which [aforetime] were forbidden to you. And I have come unto you with a message from your Sustainer; remain, then, conscious of God, and pay heed unto me.

  - Mohammad Asad

Lit., "whatever there is between my hands": for an explanation, see note [3] on verse {3} of this surah.

I am appointed to confirm that which is before me from the Taurat (Torah) and to make lawful to you some of the things forbidden to you. Now I have brought you the signs from your Rabb, therefore fear Allah and obey me.

  - Muhammad Farooq-i-Azam Malik

And (I come) confirming that which was before me of the Torah, and to make lawful some of that which was forbidden unto you. I come unto you with a sign from your Lord, so keep your duty to Allah and obey me.

  - Marmaduke Pickthall