Al-'Ankabut · Makki · ayah 26 of 69

Al-'Ankabut 29:26

۞ فَـَٔامَنَ لَهُۥ لُوطٌ ۘ وَقَالَ إِنِّى مُهَاجِرٌ إِلَىٰ رَبِّىٓ ۖ إِنَّهُۥ هُوَ ٱلْعَزِيزُ ٱلْحَكِيمُ

“And Lot believed him. [Abraham] said, "Indeed, I will emigrate to [the service of] my Lord. Indeed, He is the Exalted in Might, the Wise."”

Saheeh International

Essence

One man believed Ibrahim, and Ibrahim walked away from everything, carrying only this: my Lord is the Mighty, the Wise.

A reflection

Leaving with nothing but two Names

Ibrahim leaves his homeland with very little. He has no clan to protect him; his own people tried to burn him. No city is waiting with a welcome. What he takes with him is a sentence: innahu huwa l-ʿazīzu l-ḥakīm. He is the Mighty, the Wise.

The commentators explain why these two Names come at this moment. Al-ʿAzīz is the One who is never overcome, and who does not let the one who turns to Him be humbled. He will hold off my enemies. Al-Ḥakīm is the One who commands nothing without wisdom in it. He will send me only where my good lies. Between them, the two Names answer the two fears of everyone who leaves. Will I be safe? And was this a mistake?

Notice the grammar too. Huwa, He, then the definite article on both Names. He, and He alone, is the Mighty. That leaves no might for the emigrant to claim as his own.

That is where the ego takes the blow. Most of our departures are managed for appearances. An employee resigns loudly, tells the office he has a far bigger job lined up, and posts about exciting new challenges. There is no new job. Saving face is the real luggage. Pride needs every exit to look like a victory.

Ibrahim's exit looks like nothing of the sort. A man the city wanted dead walks out with his nephew and his wife. If might is measured by what you can display, he has none. He does not pretend otherwise. He simply says whose might he is walking under.

A fair question follows. Why does Allah describe Himself in such terms? Does He need His might announced? No. Nothing is added to Him by being named. The Names are for the one walking out of the city gate with no one behind him. Being told that the Mighty is with you does not inflate you. It lets you stop pretending to be mighty yourself, and walk on.

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.