17:31

Al-Israa

Tafsir Ibn Abbas: Al-Israa, Ayah 31

وَلَا تَقْتُلُوٓا۟ أَوْلَٰدَكُمْ خَشْيَةَ إِمْلَٰقٍۢ ۖ نَّحْنُ نَرْزُقُهُمْ وَإِيَّاكُمْ ۚ إِنَّ قَتْلَهُمْ كَانَ خِطْـًۭٔا كَبِيرًۭا

And do not kill your children for fear of poverty. We provide for them and for you. Indeed, their killing is ever a great sin.

Common Words

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ولا1x

تقتلوا1x

أولدكم1x

خشية1x

إملق1x

نحن1x

نرزقهم1x

وإياكم1x

إن1x

قتلهم1x

كان1x

خطـا1x

كبيرا1x

Ibn Abbas Commentary

(Slay not your children). This verse was revealed about the tribe of Khuza'ah who used to bury their new born daughters alive, and so Allah forbade them from doing so, telling them not bury their daughters alive, (fearing a fall to poverty) for fear of humiliation and poverty, (We shall provide for them) i.e. for your daughters (and for you. Lo! the slaying of them) burying them alive (is great sin) is a tremendous sin which deserves a great punishment.

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And do not slay your children by burying them alive fearing penury poverty. We shall provide for them and for you. Slaying them is truly a great sin.

Related Hadiths

Sunan Abu Dawud#3882Sahih

I heard the Messenger of Allah (ﷺ) as saying: Do not kill your children secretly, for the milk, with which a child is suckled while his mother is pregnant, overtakes the horseman and throws him from h...

Narrated by Narrated Asma', daughter of Yazid ibn as-Sakan,:

Sahih Muslim#4554Sahih

The Messenger of Allah (ﷺ) used not to kill the children, so thou shouldst not kill them unless you could know what Khadir had known about the child he killed, or you could distinguish between a child...

Narrated by This tradition has been narrated by the game authority (Yazid b. Hurmus) through a different chain of transmitters with the following difference in the elucidation of one of the points raised by Najda in his letter to Ibn Abas:

Sahih al-Bukhari#3375Sahih

If you wish to know about the ignorance of the Arabs, refer to Surat-al-Anam after Verse No. 130:-- Indeed lost are those who have killed their children From folly without knowledge and have forbidde...

Narrated by Narrated Ibn `Abbas:

Sunan Ibn Majah#1746Sahih

she heard the Messenger of Allah say: "Do not kill your children secretly, for by the One in Whose Hand is my soul, intercourse with a breastfeeding woman catches up with people when they are riding t...

Narrated by It was narrated from Muhajir bin Abu Muslim, from Asma' bint Yazid bin Sakary who was his freed slave womary that:

Sahih Muslim#5871Sahih

Do you kiss your children? He said: Yes. Thereupon they said: By Allah but we do not kiss our children. Thereupon Allah's Messenger (ﷺ) said: Then what can I do if Allah has deprived you of mercy? Ibn...

Narrated by 'A'isha (Allah be pleased with her) reported that there came a few desert Arabs to Allah's Messenger (ﷺ) and said:

Sahih Muslim#5872Sahih

I have ten children, but I have never kissed any one of them, whereupon Allah's Messenger (ﷺ) said: He who does not show mercy (towards his children), no mercy would be shown to him.

Narrated by Abu Huraira reported that al-Aqra' b. Habis saw Allah's Apostle (ﷺ) kissing Hasan. He said:

Jami` at-Tirmidhi#2144Hasan

"I heard the Messenger of Allah (S.A.W) saying: 'I wanted to prohibit Al-Ghilah, but the Persians and Romans did it, and they did not kill their children.'"

Narrated by Aishah narrated from Wahb's daughter - and she is Judamah - who said:

Sunan Ibn Majah#2397Sahih

“A father should not be killed for his son.”

Narrated by It was narrated from Ibn 'Abbas that the Messenger of Allah (ﷺ) said: