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Learn › Tafsīr al-Ṭabarī The Source Commentary › Lesson 40

Tafsīr al-Ṭabarī The Source Commentary · Al-Mathānī The Middle Surahs
Lesson 40

Sūrah Ghāfir The Forgiver

سورة غافر

A Makkan sūrah of 85 verses the first of the Ḥawāmīm series. Al-Ṭabarī examines the believing man of Pharaoh's court, his speech defending Mūsā, and the nature of duʿāʾ as the essence of worship, through Companion chains.

Surah Overview

DetailInformationClassificationSignificance
SurahغافرMakkī 85 versesFirst of the Ḥawāmīm al-Ṭabarī notes their special status in prophetic narrations
Key DisagreementWas the believing man of Pharaoh a permanent believer or did he eventually apostatize?Historical identityAl-Ṭabarī: his speech and actions show steadfast belief the Quran presents him as a model, not a lapsed case
Competing OpinionsWhat is "duʿāʾ is the essence of worship"?Ḥadīth integrationAl-Ṭabarī uses the prophetic ḥadīth to decode 40:60 ("call upon Me and I will respond")
MethodologyConnecting the prophetic ḥadīth on duʿāʾ to the Quranic verseḤadīth + Quran integrationAl-Ṭabarī places the "duʿāʾ is ʿibādah" ḥadīth as the commentary on 40:60

Key Themes from Al-Ṭabarī

The believing man of Pharaoh's court (40:28–45) is presented through chains as one of the three greatest examples of a person speaking truth to power. Al-Ṭabarī traces the narration that his speech (40:28–45) is one of the greatest speeches of counsel in the Quran defending Mūsā through rational argument, warning Pharaoh of past civilizations' destruction, and offering a final appeal to reason. He notes that the man's willingness to speak in the court of the most arrogant tyrant in Quranic history makes him a model of courage in truth-telling.

On 40:60 "Call upon Me and I will respond to you" al-Ṭabarī presents the prophetic ḥadīth "al-duʿāʾ huwa l-ʿibādah" (supplication is the essence of worship) as the definitive commentary. He traces this through chains from Nuʿmān ibn Bashīr via the Prophet, then explains: calling upon Allah is the act that most completely expresses tawḥīd it acknowledges need, acknowledges divine power, and rejects all alternative sources of fulfillment. This is why abandoning duʿāʾ out of arrogance is described as "entering Hell in humiliation" (40:60).

وَقَالَ رَجُلٌ مُّؤْمِنٌ مِّنْ آلِ فِرْعَوْنَ يَكْتُمُ إِيمَانَهُ أَتَقْتُلُونَ رَجُلًا أَن يَقُولَ رَبِّيَ اللَّهُ Wa-qāla rajulun muʾminun min āli firʿawna yaktumu īmānahu a-taqtulūna rajulan an yaqūla rabbiya Allāh "And a believing man from the family of Pharaoh who concealed his faith said, 'Would you kill a man because he says, My Lord is Allah?'" (40:28) Al-Ṭabarī traces through chains from Ibn ʿAbbās that this man was a cousin of Pharaoh named Ḥizqīl, who hid his faith, then when Mūsā was threatened with death, spoke up in his defense using rational and historical argument.
وَقَالَ رَبُّكُمُ ادْعُونِي أَسْتَجِبْ لَكُمْ ۚ إِنَّ الَّذِينَ يَسْتَكْبِرُونَ عَنْ عِبَادَتِي سَيَدْخُلُونَ جَهَنَّمَ دَاخِرِينَ Wa-qāla rabbukumu udʿūnī astajib lakum, inna lladhīna yastakbirūna ʿan ʿibādatī sa-yadkhulūna jahannama dākhirīn "And your Lord says, 'Call upon Me; I will respond to you.' Indeed, those who disdain My worship will enter Hell in humiliation." (40:60) Al-Ṭabarī presents the ḥadīth "al-duʿāʾ huwa l-ʿibādah" through the chain of al-Nuʿmān ibn Bashīr from the Prophet as the definitive tafsīr of this verse: supplication is the heart of all worship because it combines acknowledgment of divine lordship, human need, and the rejection of false gods.
  • Tarjīḥ on the believing man: Al-Ṭabarī prefers through chains from Ibn ʿAbbās that he was Pharaoh's cousin Ḥizqīl not an Israelite but an Egyptian who secretly embraced tawḥīd.
  • Historical argument: The man's appeal to past destroyed nations (40:30–31) reflects al-Ṭabarī's interest in the Quran's use of historical precedent as rational proof.
  • Ḥadīth integration: The prophetic statement "duʿāʾ is ʿibādah" is treated by al-Ṭabarī as authentic tafsīr a second revelation explaining the first.
  • Linguistic note: Al-Ṭabarī explains "dākhirīn" (in humiliation) from "dakhara," meaning absolute submission through degradation contrasting the humiliation of the arrogant with the honor of the supplicant.
  • Ḥawāmīm group: Al-Ṭabarī notes that the seven Ḥawāmīm sūrahs form a thematic cluster, tracing the prophetic narration about their special status.

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