“And when Abraham said to his father Azar, ‘Do you take idols as gods? Indeed, I see you and your people in clear error.’ (74) Thus We showed Abraham the dominion of the heavens and the earth, so that he might be among those possessing certainty. (75) Then, when night covered him, he saw a star and said, ‘This is my Lord.’ But when it set, he said, ‘I do not love those that set.’ (76)

His saying, exalted is He: “And when Abraham said to his father Azar”: Ya‘qub recited it as “Azaru,” in the nominative case—that is, “Azaru.” The well-known recitation is in the accusative case. It is a non-Arabic proper name that does not take full declension, and is therefore marked with the accusative ending even when in the genitive position.

Muhammad ibn Ishaq, al-Dahhak, and al-Kalbi said: Azar was the name of Abraham’s father, who was also called Tarikh, just as Israel was also called Jacob. He was from Kutha, (1) a village in the Sawad district of Kufa. Muqatil ibn Hayyan and others said: Azar was a title of Abraham’s father, whose name was Tarikh. 120/A

Sulayman al-Taymi said: It was an insult and a reproach, meaning “the crooked one” in their language. It was also said to mean “a decrepit old man” in Persian. Sa‘id ibn al-Musayyib and Mujahid said: Azar was the name of an idol. According to this view, it is in the accusative position, its implied meaning being: “Do you take Azar as a god?” His saying, “idols as gods,” means: apart from Allah. “Indeed, I see you and your people in clear error.”

“Thus We showed Abraham”: that is, just as We showed him discernment in his religion and the truth in contrast to his people’s way, We showed him “the dominion of the heavens and the earth.” Malakut means dominion; the additional ending serves to intensify the meaning, as in terms such as jabarut, rahamut, and rahabut. Ibn ‘Abbas said: It means the creation of the heavens and the earth. Mujahid and Sa‘id ibn Jubayr said: It means the signs of the heavens and the earth. This was because he was made to stand upon a rock, and the heavens and the earth were unveiled to him, as far as the Throne and the lowest of the earths, and he saw his place in Paradise. This is the meaning of His saying, exalted is He: “And We gave him his reward in this world”—that is, We showed him his place in Paradise.

It is related from Salman, may Allah be pleased with him, and some narrators traced it back [on the authority of ‘Ali, may Allah be pleased with him], (2) that when Abraham was shown