Quran Garden

Session 375

Chapter 3

Verses 38 and 39

There and then, Zachariah prayed to his Lord, saying, "Lord, from Your grace, grant me virtuous offspring: You hear every prayer." (Chapter 3: Verse 38)

When Mary pointed out that God provided for her, she awoke the spiritual intuition of Prophet Zachariah and reminded him that "God provides limitlessly for whoever He will."  In fact, it is enough for Allah to say about something "Be," and it becomes.  Here Zachariah thought to himself, "If God's power can provide directly without means and causes, then I crave a son to carry on prophethood after me."  At that moment, He supplicated his Lord about this issue that required absolute freedom from all physical laws.  He wanted a child, but reproduction requires a young and fertile couple.  Zachariah's wife was infertile even when she was young, and now they both were old.  A matter like this is against the laws that govern humans, even by today's modern medical standards.  God alone is capable of going beyond any set laws. 

Zachariah knew that Allah could provide without account, but that thought was not at the center of his consciousness.  This belief crystallized in his mind only after he witnessed God's provisions for Mary in her prayer chamber: the food she had was not available in the market and was of the sorts the prophet had never seen before.  Mary's words, "They are from God: God provides limitlessly for whoever He will" struck the right cord and awakened certainty within Zachariah.  He must have asked himself, "How did I miss this?" Then, right at that moment, right in Mary's sanctuary, our beloved Zachariah stood in prayer and supplicated the Almighty, "Lord, from Your grace grant me virtuous offspring: You hear every prayer."

Let's take a moment to appreciate what Zachariah asked for.  Most of us want children to be the joy of our life, our pride in society, and our helpers in old age.  We like them to carry our memory and be a legacy for the family.  But was that what Prophet Zachariah asked for? No, because he was aware that a child could be evil and a burden on society.  Zachariah asked explicitly for "virtuous offspring." Listen to his words as narrated in the Quran:

"Lord, my bones have weakened, and my hair is ashen grey, but never, Lord, have I prayed to You in vain: I fear what my kin will do when I am gone, and my wife is barren, so grant me a successor –a gift from You– to be my heir and the heir of the family of Jacob. Lord, make him well-pleasing to You." (19:4-6)

Zachariah wanted a son who would continue the legacy of prophethood, carry the divine scriptures, and uphold heavenly values.  His prayer "grant me" is evidence that he was well aware that he did not possess the requirements to conceive a child or make him or her righteous.  Allah warns us against falling into the trap of believing that we have the ability to create or even raise children.  He says:  

God controls the heavens and the earth; He creates whatever He will –He grants female offspring to whomever He will, and grants to whom He wills sons.  On some, He bestows both sons and daughters, and some He leaves barren. He is all-knowing and all-powerful.

(42:49-50)

So if you are young and healthy, do not be fooled by your superficial abilities: every child is a blessing from God.  Zachariah's words "Lord, from Your grace, grant me" mean "Lord, give me a child despite my shortfalls," because Allah is the Creator of causes and laws, and He alone can overrule them. 

Here it is worth taking a moment to study the difference between God's gifts through causes and God's grants.  Take, for example, a man who learns engineering by spending four years studying in a University, and another who is talented from youth and can design world-renowned buildings on a napkin.  God grants talent to some with no effort on their part, while He facilitates the circumstances for others to study hard and learn.  Thus, Zachariah knew what to ask for when he prayed, "Lord, from Your grace, grant me virtuous offspring."   

The supplication ends with, "You hear every prayer." Here we may ask, was God's hearing of the prayer intended or His acceptance of the prayer? We answer that Prophet Zachariah had pure faith in Allah.  And because of the sincerity of his supplication, and because he wanted a child for God's pleasure alone, he trusted that God would respond to his prayers.  The next verse in Al-Imran confirmed Zachariah's intuition.  God says:

The angels called out to him while he stood praying in the sanctuary, "God gives you the glad tidings of John, confirming a Word from God. He will be noble and chaste, a prophet, one of the righteous." (Chapter 3: Verse 39)

Did all the angels gather and call out to Zachariah? Or was it the Archangel Gabriel? The prevailing scholarly opinion is that it was the Angel Gabriel who spoke to the prophet.  The phrase "The angels called out to him" helps us understand that the angelic voice of revelation is different from the human voice.  When your friend calls your name, you can tell where the voice is coming from.  Your ears can distinguish between a voice coming from in front of you, from your left, or from another room.  However, when an angel speaks to a human, the voice is all-encompassing and fills the entire world.  It sounds as if all the angles in the universe are speaking in one voice.  Nowadays, modern audio equipment can create room-filling sound to the extent that it is difficult to tell where the speakers are located.  Thus, the phrase "The angels called out to him" means that the voice came to Zachariah from all sides.

Gabriel called him during his finest encounter with the Lord.  It is a lesson we learn from all the prophets and messengers.  Our beloved Muhammad would rush to prayer when a matter troubled him, so each one of us should try this when facing difficulty.  But what qualifies as a troubling matter? We answer that issues are problematic when they are beyond your control or when you have tried to solve them with all the tools God gave you, yet you failed.  In such cases, you should not worry yourself sick because you have a wise and capable Lord.  Turn to Him using the best way possible: prayer.  We said before that the child who has a father protecting him or her does not stress about problems; shouldn't the one who has a Lord be more at ease? 

So turn to Allah in prayer and say, "My Lord, this matter has become too difficult for me.  I have exhausted the means you put at my disposal, and You are the Creator of means and causes.  Please help me." If you pray to the Lord with devotion, I guarantee that, even before you complete your supplication, you will be overcome with relief.  Remember that the angels did not wait for the end of Zachariah's prayer to bring the good news.  God says, "The angels called out to him while he stood praying in the sanctuary, "God gives you the glad tidings of John."

"Glad tidings" are good news that is yet to happen and predictions of a bright future.  But, if someone predicts good fortunes for you, you should always take it with a grain of salt.  Why? Because there are many unknowns and circumstances often change.  If, for example, you are expecting a raise at work next month, there is always a chance you could lose your job: your boss may die, or the company may suffer a loss.  There are too many variables outside of your control.  But, if the glad tidings come from God, then you have nothing to worry about.  God is all-competent, and the good news will happen without a doubt.  He says, "God gives you the glad tidings of John, confirming a Word from God. He will be noble and chaste, a prophet, one of the righteous." 

Allah gave Zachariah the blessing of a son and increased him with the gift of naming him "John."  Above all, the phrase "confirming a Word from God" was proof that he would live abiding by God's teachings, walk the path of his forefathers, and carry on God's message. Prophet John was the first to believe in the message of Jesus, peace be upon them.  Allah further described him as "noble and chaste" because he would abstain from all sins even when faced with sexual lust, the strongest of human instincts.