Maryam · Makki · ayah 48 of 98

Maryam 19:48

وَأَعْتَزِلُكُمْ وَمَا تَدْعُونَ مِن دُونِ ٱللَّهِ وَأَدْعُوا۟ رَبِّى عَسَىٰٓ أَلَّآ أَكُونَ بِدُعَآءِ رَبِّى شَقِيًّا

“And I will leave you and those you invoke other than Allāh and will invoke[816] my Lord. I expect that I will not be in invocation to my Lord unhappy [i.e., disappointed]."”

Saheeh International

Essence

Ibrahim steps away from his people and their idols, unarmed, and turns to his Lord, hoping his calling will not go unanswered.

A reflection

Withdrawal with a direction

The word ʿuzla, withdrawal, has an uneasy sound to modern ears. It suggests running away, giving up on people, becoming a hermit. Many readers picture Ibrahim here as a man who has had enough and leaves in disgust.

Read the whole sentence. Wa-aʿtazilukum wa-mā tadʿūna min dūni llāh, wa-adʿū rabbī. I will withdraw from you and what you call on besides Allah, and I will call on my Lord. The movement has two directions. Away from the idols; towards his Lord. The second half is the reason for the first.

One commentary explains that he left with his religion, since his advice had had no effect. It records reports that he emigrated, to Syria or to Harran. Another commentary glosses the second half: I will call on my Lord, devoting all worship to Him alone.

The lexicons give the root a picture that fits Ibrahim exactly. To be bi-maʿzil from one's companions is to be over there, not among them. A shepherd is described as taking his flock away from people and grazing it apart. And al-aʿzal was a man with no spear, who therefore stayed out of the fighting.

That is Ibrahim's withdrawal. Not a counter-attack, not a curse. He steps out of the fight unarmed, after saying peace, and goes off to graze his flock under a different sky.

The Makkans heard this as a story about their ancestor. The Prophet ﷺ would one day make the same move, leaving Makka for Madina. Withdrawal, in this surah, is not defeat. It is the first step of a new beginning.

The full entry has 5 more reflections, questions to sit with, and "Live it today" - with the words, the roots and the tafsir alongside. Free, no account, works offline.