“al-ʿādiyāt” (the chargers).
The pronoun “thereby” (bihi) in its second occurrence has the same referent as in the first. Others have maintained that it refers to the dust, meaning that they plunged into a host enveloped in dust; on this view, “jamʿ” designates the enemy’s gathering, and this is the position of Ibn Masʿūd (1).
ʿAlī (2) held that what is meant are the pilgrims’ camels. Allah, exalted is He, swore by them because of their swift pace during the pilgrimage, which is along His path (3). The “Jamʿ” (4) they passed through is Muzdalifah, which they reached (5) at daybreak.
The first interpretation is weightier for several reasons.
First: the verb ḍabḥ is used almost exclusively for horses. Thus the lexicographers say, “Ḍabḥ is the sound of a horse’s breathing when it runs,” and Allah, exalted is He, says: “By the panting chargers” (Al-ʿĀdiyāt 1). One also says, “The fox panted (ḍabaḥa).”
(1) Reported by al-Tabari in his Tafsir, 30:276; its chain of transmission is interrupted.
(2) Reported by Ibn Wahb in the Tafsir section of his Jamiʿ, 2:70–71, no. 136, in an extended form that includes the story of Ibn ʿAbbas retracting his view in favor of the opinion of ʿAli ibn Abi Talib, may Allah be pleased with him. Al-Tabari also cites it in his Tafsir, 30:276, through Ibn Wahb in an abridged version. The isnad of the report is sound.
(3) The Maṭ manuscript reads “fi sabilihi” (in His cause).
(4) Omitted in the Maṭ manuscript.
(5) The Maṭ manuscript reads “huwa Muzdalifa akhkharta waqt al-subh” (it is Muzdalifah; you postponed the time of the dawn prayer), whereas the H manuscript has “huwa min Muzdalifa agharnabihi waqt al-subh” (it is from Muzdalifah; we launched a dawn raid with it).
(6) In the H manuscript the phrase appears as “bil-subh” (at dawn) instead of “fi al-dabh” (during the panting), while the Maṭ manuscript reads “huwa al-khayl” (it refers to the horses).