In the name of God, the Lord of Grace, the Ever Merciful
When the boy was old enough to work with his father, Abraham said: “My son! I have seen in a dream that I must sacrifice you. Tell me, then, what you think.” (Ishmael) said: “My father! Do as you are bidden, and, God willing, you will find me to be patient in adversity.” When the two of them had surrendered themselves to the will of God, and Abraham laid him prostrate on his forehead, We called to him: “Abraham! You have already fulfilled the dream.” Thus do We reward those who do good. All this was indeed a momentous trial.
We ransomed (Ishmael) with a noble sacrifice. We caused him to be praised by later generations: Peace be upon Abraham! Thus do we reward those who do good. He was truly one of our believing servants.
We gave Abraham the happy news of Isaac, a prophet and a righteous man; and We blessed him and Isaac; but among their offspring there were those who do good and others who would glaringly sin against their souls. (Ranged in Rank, Al-Saffat: 37: 102-113)
Abraham and his son Ishmael gave the ultimate example of obeying God’s orders, no matter what such orders meant to them personally. They were prepared to give any sacrifice required of them. Abraham was asked to sacrifice, by his own hand, his son, born to him in his old age. This is a greater sacrifice and a more difficult task than a call to sacrifice one’s own life. Ishmael was required to submit himself to God’s judgment and accept it without complaint. Both were ready to do what was required of them.
God witnessed the sincerity shown by both Abraham and Ishmael, and He considered them to have fulfilled all that was required of them: “We called to him: ‘Abraham! You have already fulfilled the dream.’ Thus do We reward those who do good. All this was indeed a momentous trial. We ransomed (Ishmael) with a noble sacrifice.”
You have indeed fulfilled all you needed to fulfill. God wants nothing from His servants other than that they submit themselves to Him totally, so that they have nothing which they consider too dear or too precious to give up, not even an only son, or their own lives. You, Abraham, have done this, offering everything dear, with certainty and acceptance. What was left was flesh and blood, which could be substituted by any type of flesh and blood. Thus, God ransomed this young man who had submitted himself to His will by a great and noble sacrifice. It is reported that the sacrifice was a ram which Abraham found ready by God’s will and that he sacrificed this ram in place of Ishmael.
Abraham was then told: “Thus do We reward those who do good.” We reward them by choosing them for such a test, directing their minds and hearts to rise to the necessary level, helping them in such fulfillment and then giving them the reward they deserve.
It is to commemorate this great event which serves as a symbol of true faith and submission to God that Muslims celebrate the Eid of Sacrifice, or Adha. This event serves as a reference point for the Muslim community to know their first father, Abraham, whose faith it follows and to whom it traces its ancestry. It thus understands the nature of its faith, based on submission to God’s will with perfect acceptance and reassurance. It will never need to ask God why. It will never hesitate to do His bidding, once it realizes what He wants of it. It gives its all, withholding nothing, and choosing no particular way or form of offering. It simply does what He bids it to do. The Muslim community also knows that God does not wish to overburden it with the test, nor put it to hardship. All He needs is that Muslims should be ready to give whatever they are required to give, in full obedience and commitment, without hesitation. Once they prove such complete dedication, He will remove the need for their sacrifice and pain. He will consider that they have fulfilled their duty and reward them for that, replacing their sacrifice and honoring them as He honored their father, Abraham.
“We caused him to be praised by later generations.” He is remembered by one generation after another. He is the father of all prophets, and the founding father of the Muslim community, which inherits his faith. God has assigned to the Muslim community the task of leading humanity on the basis of Abraham’s faith. In so doing, God has made the Muslim community Abraham’s descendents for the rest of human life.
“Peace be upon Abraham.” It is a greeting of peace by his Lord, recorded in His book and engraved in the book of the universe. “Thus do we reward those who do good.” We reward them after testing them, and We fulfill Our promise to them and honor them. “He was truly one of our believing servants.” Such is the reward of faith, and such is its nature as revealed by the momentous test.
God’s grace is bestowed once more on Abraham, as He gave him Isaac in his old age. He further blesses him and his son, making Isaac a prophet: “We gave Abraham the happy news of Isaac, a prophet and a righteous man; and We blessed him and Isaac.” Their offspring goes on through generations, but its main criterion is not the relation of blood, but the relation of faith and a code of living: whoever follows in their footsteps does good, and whoever deviates wrongs himself and cannot benefit from this blood relation: “Among their offspring there were those who do good and others who would glaringly sin against their souls.”
