Exegesis of the saying of Allah the Exalted: “Indeed, Ibrahim was a model of submission to Allah, inclined toward truth, and he was not among those who associate partners with Allah. Grateful for His blessings, He chose him and guided him to a straight path. And We gave him in this world a good thing, and indeed, he will be among the righteous in the Hereafter. Then We revealed to you: ‘Follow the religion of Ibrahim, inclined toward truth, and he was not among those who associate partners with Allah.’”

Question:
Please shed light on the saying of Allah (Exalted is He) at the end of Surat al-Nahl; after: “I seek refuge in Allah from Satan, the expelled one,” (Indeed, Ibrahim was a model of submission to Allah, inclined toward truth, and he was not among those who associate partners with Allah. Grateful for His blessings, He chose him and guided him to a straight path. And We gave him in this world a good thing, and indeed, he will be among the righteous in the Hereafter. Then We revealed to you: ‘Follow the religion of Ibrahim, inclined toward truth, and he was not among those who associate partners with Allah.’)

Answer:
Answer: In the name of Allah, the Most Gracious, the Most Merciful. Praise be to Allah, Lord of the worlds, and may blessings and peace be upon His servant and our Prophet Muhammad, and upon his family and all his Companions. These verses are from the end of Surat al-Nahl, which is called the Verse of Blessings; because Allah (Exalted and Majestic is He) mentioned in it many of the blessings with which He favored His servants, and He asked them to be grateful for these blessings. He said: “And be grateful for the blessing of Allah, if it is Him you worship.” And He mentioned regarding Ibrahim (peace be upon him), the intimate friend of Allah, that he was grateful for His blessings, for the blessings of Allah (Glorified is He). So we have in him a model and a good example. This is a great surah, which Allah concluded with these verses describing the attributes of Ibrahim. He mentioned four attributes for him: “Indeed, Ibrahim was a model (ummah),” and “ummah” means a model; so he is a model for people, as Allah (Exalted and Majestic is He) said to him: “Indeed, I will make you a leader (imam) for the people.” So he is a model for the people after him in worshipping Allah and being grateful to Him. The second attribute: “Submission to Allah (qanitan lillah),” and qunut is: the continuity of worship for Allah (Mighty and Majestic). So Ibrahim (peace be upon him) was one who persisted in the worship of Allah. The third attribute: “Inclined toward truth (hanif),” and a hanif is one who turns to Allah (Glorified and Exalted is He) and turns away from everything other than Him. The fourth attribute: “And he was not among those who associate partners with Allah,” that Ibrahim (peace be upon him) was one who disavowed the polytheists, even his father, who was the closest person to him. He (Exalted is He) said: “And the seeking of forgiveness by Ibrahim for his father was only because of a promise he had made to him. But when it became clear to him that he was an enemy of Allah, he disavowed him. Indeed, Ibrahim was one who was full of longing and forbearing.” So Ibrahim (peace be upon him) is the model. Then Allah commanded our Prophet Muhammad (peace and blessings be upon him) and said: “Then We revealed to you: ‘Follow the religion of Ibrahim, inclined toward truth, and he was not among those who associate partners with Allah.’” Because Muhammad (peace and blessings be upon him) was sent with the religion of Ibrahim, the pure monotheism, which is the worship of Allah alone, having no partner, and leaving the worship of anything other than Him, and love for the sake of Allah, and hatred for the sake of Allah (Mighty and Majestic). This is the religion of Ibrahim that we were commanded to follow. This is a great surah, Surat al-Nahl, and at its end are these great verses which Allah mentioned regarding Ibrahim (peace be upon him), whom our Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him) was commanded to follow, and we were commanded to follow his religion and proceed according to his methodology, in the worship of Allah (Mighty and Majestic) alone, having no partner, and disavowal of shirk; disavowal of shirk and its people. For this reason, He said at the end of the surah: “You will not find a people who believe in Allah and the Last Day loving those who oppose Allah and His Messenger, even if they were their fathers or their sons or their brothers or their kindred.” This is the disavowal of shirk and its people. And the religion is not complete for anyone until he has this attribute: that he is loyal to Allah and the awliya (close friends of Allah), and hostile to the enemies of Allah (Mighty and Majestic), even if they are among the closest people to him. So al-wala' wa al-bara' (loyalty and disavowal) is part of the religion of Ibrahim (peace be upon him) that we were commanded to follow.