“Thereupon Zechariah called upon his Lord, saying, ‘My Lord, grant me from Yourself righteous offspring. Indeed, You are the Hearer of supplication.’ So the angels called to him as he stood praying in the sanctuary: ‘Allah gives you glad tidings of John, confirming a Word from Allah, and a leader, chaste, and a prophet among the righteous.’” (38–39)

Allah Most High says: “Thereupon,” that is, at that point, “Zechariah called upon his Lord.” He entered the sanctuary [and closed the door] (1) and privately implored his Lord. “He said, ‘My Lord,’” that is, O my Lord; “grant me,” give me; “from Yourself,” that is, from Your presence; “righteous offspring,” that is, a blessed, God-fearing, righteous, well-pleasing child. The word “offspring” may refer to one person or many, male or female; here it refers to one person, as indicated by His saying, “So grant me from Yourself an heir” (5—Mary). He used the feminine form of “righteous” because the Arabic word for offspring is grammatically feminine. “Indeed, You are the Hearer of supplication,” that is, the One who hears it. It has also been said that it means the One who answers it, as in His saying: “Indeed, I have believed in your Lord, so hear me” (25—Ya-Sin), meaning: answer me.

“So the angels called to him.” Hamzah and al-Kisa'i read it in the masculine singular, “then he called him,” while the others read it in the feminine singular. Those who read it in the feminine do so because the word “angels” is grammatically feminine and because it is plural. Moreover, when the verb precedes a plural group of males, feminine agreement is preferable, as in His saying: “The Bedouins say” (14—al-Hujurat). It is related from Ibrahim that Abd Allah ibn Mas'ud, may Allah be pleased with him, used masculine agreement for “the angels” in the Quran. Abu Ubaydah said: “It appears that Abd Allah chose this in opposition to the polytheists’ claim that the angels are daughters of Allah, exalted is He.” Al-Sha'bi related that Ibn Mas'ud, may Allah be pleased with him, said: “If you differ over whether to use ta or ya, use ya and give the Quranic wording masculine agreement.”

By “the angels” here, He meant Gabriel, peace be upon him, alone, just as He says in Surah al-Nahl, “He sends down the angels,” meaning Gabriel, “with the Spirit,” that is, with revelation. In Arabic, a single individual may be referred to in the plural, as when one says, “I heard this report from the people,” though he heard it from only one person. Similarly, He says: “Those to whom the people said” (173—Al Imran), referring to Nu'aym ibn Mas'ud; and “Indeed, the people,” referring to Abu Sufyan ibn Harb. Al-Mufaddal ibn Salamah said: “When the speaker is a leader, it is permissible to refer to him in the plural because his companions are gathered with him.” Gabriel, peace be upon him, was the chief of the angels, and he was seldom sent without a group accompanying him; thus this manner of expression was used.

His saying: “As he stood praying in the sanctuary,” means in the mosque. Zechariah was the chief priest who presented the sacrifice. He would open the door of the altar, and they would not enter until he permitted them to do so. Thus, while he was standing and praying in the sanctuary—that is, praying in the mosque beside the altar—and the people were waiting for him to permit them to enter, suddenly there was a man before him.