الَّذِينَ آمَنُوا وَلَمْ يَلْبِسُوا إِيمَانَهُمْ بِظُلْمٍ أُولَئِكَ لَهُمُ الْأَمْنُ وَهُمْ مُهْتَدُونَ ﴿۸۲﴾ وَتِلْكَ حُجَّتُنَا آتَيْنَاهَا إِبْرَاهِيمَ عَلَى قَوْمِهِ نَرْفَعُ دَرَجَاتٍ مَنْ نَشَاءُ إِنَّ رَبَّكَ حَكِيمٌ عَلِيمٌ ﴿۸۳﴾ وَوَهَبْنَا لَهُ إِسْحَاقَ وَيَعْقُوبَ كُلًّا هَدَيْنَا وَنُوحًا هَدَيْنَا مِنْ قَبْلُ وَمِنْ ذُرِّيَّتِهِ دَاوُودَ وَسُلَيْمَانَ وَأَيُّوبَ وَيُوسُفَ وَمُوسَى وَهَارُونَ وَكَذَلِكَ نَجْزِي الْمُحْسِنِينَ ﴿۸۴﴾
﴾82﴿ Allazeena aamanoo wa lam yalbisooo eemaanahum bizulmin ulaaa'ika lahumul amnu wa hum muhtadoon
﴾83﴿ Wa tilka hujjatunaaa aatainaahaaa Ibraaheema 'alaa qawmih; narfa'u darajaatim man nashaaa'; inna Rabbaka Hakeemun 'Aleem
﴾84﴿ Wa wahabnaa lahoo ishaaqa wa ya'qoob; kullan hadainaa; wa Noohan hadainaa min qablu wa min zurriyyatihee Daawooda wa Sulaimaana wa Ayyooba wa Yoosufa wa Moosaa wa Haaroon; wa kazaalika najzil muhsineen
﴾82﴿ Those who believe and do not mix their faith with shirk (polytheism)—for them there is safety, and they are the rightly guided.
﴾83﴿ And this is Our argument which We gave to Abraham (peace be upon him) against his people. We raise in rank whom We will. Surely your Lord is All-Wise, All-Knowing over all things.
﴾84﴿ And We granted him Isaac (peace be upon him) and Jacob (peace be upon him); each of them We guided (to monotheism). And We had previously guided Noah (peace be upon him), and from his descendants—David (peace be upon him), Solomon (peace be upon him), Job (peace be upon him), Joseph (peace be upon him), Moses (peace be upon him), and Aaron (peace be upon him). And thus do We reward the doers of good.
[82] Is this verse the statement of Prophet Ibrahim (peace be upon him) or from Allah Almighty? The meaning of "zulm" (بِظُلْمٍ) in this verse is shirk (associating partners with Allah), as mentioned in a hadith in Bukhari and in verse 13 of Surah Luqman.
From this verse, it is clear that some people mix shirk with their faith—for example, they believe in Allah Almighty, they believe in the Messenger, and they believe in the Book, yet they also consider others besides Allah, such as prophets, saints, etc., to be fulfillers of needs, removers of difficulties, possessors of authority, and knowledgeable of the unseen like Allah.
Therefore, such a person's faith is not valid; rather, he is a mushrik (one who commits shirk), as stated in verse 106 of Surah Yusuf.
[83] This verse serves as evidence that the previous words of Ibrahim (peace be upon him)—from "This is my Lord" to "those who are guided"—were presented as an argument against his people.
“We gave it” (آتَيْنَاهَا) refers to divine revelation.
“Upon his people” (عَلَى قَوْمِهِ) means it was not for Ibrahim (peace be upon him) to gain knowledge, but rather a method of reasoning and argumentation against his people.
“We raise in degrees whom We will” (نَرْفَعُ دَرَجَاتٍ مَنْ نَشَاءُ) is also found in Surah Yusuf.
The difference is that in Surah Yusuf, the raising of ranks is due to knowledge of planning, politics, and worldly aid, while in this Surah, it is due to knowledge of argument, reasoning, and spiritual aid for the Hereafter.
[84] This is a mention of seventeen prophets (peace be upon them) because Tawhid (belief in the oneness of Allah) was the common creed among all of them, and they were chosen to convey this message.
Therefore, this matter is one of consensus and agreement, and this serves as a transmitted (naqli) proof.
Each of these prophets (peace be upon them) also had their unique qualities.
“We guided” (هَدَيْنَا) here refers to the revelation of Tawhid and firmness upon it.
“Their descendants” (ذُرِّيَّتِهِ) – the pronoun refers to Prophet Nuh (peace be upon him), not Ibrahim (peace be upon him), because Yunus and Lut (peace be upon them) were not among the descendants of Ibrahim (peace be upon him).
In the case of Ayyub (peace be upon him), his story centered on being tested, while in the case of Yusuf (peace be upon him), both blessings and trials were combined.
“And thus” (وَكَذَلِكَ) – just as Ibrahim (peace be upon him) was raised in rank, the same reward is given to those who do ihsan (perfect devotion in Tawhid).
“We reward” (نَجْزِي) – here does not refer to prophethood, because prophethood is not something attained through personal effort.