Āl-‘Imrān 3:42
The verses
And when the angels said: O Mary! Lo! Allah hath chosen thee and made thee pure, and hath preferred thee above (all) the women of creation. — Marmaduke Pickthall
O Mary! Be obedient to thy Lord, prostrate thyself and bow with those who bow (in worship). — Marmaduke Pickthall
This is of the tidings of things hidden. We reveal it unto thee (Muhammad). Thou wast not present with them when they threw their pens (to know) which of them should be the guardian of Mary, nor wast thou present with them when they quarrelled (thereupon). — Marmaduke Pickthall
(And remember) when the angels said: O Mary! Lo! Allah giveth thee glad tidings of a word from him, whose name is the Messiah, Jesus, son of Mary, illustrious in the world and the Hereafter, and one of those brought near (unto Allah). — Marmaduke Pickthall
The issue
This verse states that angels brought glad tidings to Mary about the birth of Jesus. But another verse states that only one angel came to her (Q 19.17-21). The scholars ignored this contradiction. However, the commentary Tafsīr al-Jalālayn indicates that Gabriel was the angel indicated by the phrase “the angels said” in Q 3.42, 45 and in “He said: Nay, I am only a messenger” found in Q 19.19. (Unlike Palmer, the current Arabic Qur’ān uses the plural angels in verse 45.) Al-Rāzī explained the phrase “the angels said” in his commentary, stating, “It was said: the word ‘angels’ in that context referred to Gabriel alone, and although it might seem a deviation from the obvious, nonetheless it could not be understood otherwise, because sūra Maryam (Q 19) indicates that the one speaking with Mary is Gabriel: “‘and we sent unto her our spirit; and he took for her the semblance of a well made man [Q 19.17].’”
In order to rid the Qur’ān of this contradiction, al-Rāzī was obliged to accept the statement that the plural word angels actually meant Gabriel alone.
Arabic text of this item
تقول الآية إن الملائكة بشرت مريم بولادة المسيح؛ وفي آية أخرى ورد أنّ ملاكاً واحداً بشرها بالمسيح (مريم 19: 17 ـ 21).
تجاهل المفسرون هذا التعارض؛ في حين ورد في تفسير الجلالين (ص 55) أن جبريل هو المعني بعبارة <قَالَتِ الْمَلاَئِكَةُ> (آل عمران 3: 42 و45) وهو من قال: <إِنَّمَا أَنَا رَسُولُ> (مريم 19:19).
ويعلق الرازي في تفسيره على عبارة <قَالَتِ الْمَلاَئِكَةُ>:
«قالوا: المراد بالملائكة هنا جبريل وحده، وهذا وإنْ كان عدولاً عن الظاهر إلا أنه يجب المصير إليه، لأن سورة مريم دلت على أن المتكلم مع مريم هو جبريل: <فَأَرْسَلْنَا إِلَيْهَا رُوحَنَا فَتَمَثَّلَ لَهَا بَشَراً سَوِيّاً> (مريم 19: 17)، ويقبل الرازي مكرهاً القول بأن كلمة الملائكة هي كناية عن جبريل ليخلص القرآن من التناقض.
Sources cited
- الرازي 8: 46.
This item merges 4 entries of the original site that carried the same text across the passage (old ids 47, 48, 49, 50; the old ids redirect here).