His saying, exalted and glorified is He:

﴿And Noah called to his Lord and said, 'My Lord, indeed my son is of my family, and indeed Your promise is true, and You are the most just of the judges.'﴾ ﴿He said, 'O Noah, indeed he is not of your family; indeed, he is a work not righteous. So do not ask Me that of which you have no knowledge. Indeed, I advise you lest you be among the ignorant.'﴾

This is a sentence connected to the one before it without arrangement. This is because this story occurred at the beginning when Noah boarded the ship. It appears from the words of al-Tabari that this was after the drowning of the son, which is possible, but the first is more fitting.

And this verse is an argument from Noah, peace be upon him, because Allah commanded him to carry his family, and his son is of his family, so he should be carried. Allah made it clear to him that the intended ones are those who believed from the family. Then He improved the address by saying, ﴿And indeed Your promise is true﴾, and by saying, ﴿And You are the most just of the judges.﴾ For these statements (p-587) are supportive of his argument. And this verse implies that Noah, peace be upon him, thought that his son was a believer, and that is the stronger of the two possibilities.

And His saying, exalted and glorified is He: ﴿He said, 'O Noah'﴾, means: Allah, exalted and glorified is He, said: O Noah. And a group said: The meaning of His saying, ﴿Indeed, he is not of your family﴾ is: he is not your son. They claimed that he was for a reason and that his disbelieving wife was unfaithful to him regarding him. This is the saying of al-Hasan, Ibn Sirin, and Ubaid ibn Umayr. And Ibn Abza said that the Messenger of Allah, blessings and peace be upon him, ruled that the child belongs to the marital bed for the sake of Noah's son. Al-Hasan swore that he is not his son, and Ikrimah and al-Dahhak swore that he is his son.

Qadi Abu Muhammad, may Allah have mercy on him, said: Al-Hasan relied on His saying, exalted and glorified is He: ﴿Indeed, he is not of your family﴾, and al-Dahhak and Ikrimah relied on His saying, exalted and glorified is He: ﴿And Noah called to his son﴾ [Hud: 42].

And al-Hasan and those who interpreted his interpretation read: 'Indeed, he is a work not righteous' - in this - meaning, and this is the reading of the seven except for al-Kisai, and the reading of the majority of the people. And those who opposed al-Hasan ibn Abi al-Hasan said: The meaning is: he is not of your family, those whom the promise encompasses, because he is not on your religion even if he is your son by lineage. So whoever from this group reads: 'Indeed, he is a work not righteous' made it a description of him by the source in the sense of exaggeration, and he described him with that as al-Khansa described a she-camel that lost her young one: (p-588)

؎ She grazes as long as she is heedless until she remembers ∗∗∗ For indeed, it is only an approach and a retreat.

Meaning: 'possessing approach and retreat.'

Some of this group read: "Indeed, he did a deed that is not righteous," which is the reading of al-Kisai. This reading was narrated by Umm Salamah and Aisha from the Messenger of Allah, blessings and peace be upon him. Abu Hatim mentioned it, and al-Tabari weakened this reading and criticized the hadith as being from the narration of Shahr ibn Hawshab. This is the reading of Ali, Ibn Abbas, may Allah be pleased with them, Aisha, and Anas ibn Malik. Abu Hatim favored it, and some of them read: "Indeed, he did an action that is not righteous." A group said: The pronoun in his saying: "Indeed, it is a deed that is not righteous" refers to the reading of the majority of the seven regarding the question of Noah, which is implied in the speech, and the end of the verse explains it. This interpretation is supported by the fact that in the Mushaf of Ibn Mas'ud it says: "Indeed, it is a deed that is not righteous for you to ask me about that of which you have no knowledge." Another group said: The pronoun refers to the riding of Noah's son with them, which is implied in Noah's question. The meaning is that the riding of the disbeliever with the believers is an action that is not righteous. Abu Ali said: It is possible that the intended meaning is that your being with the disbelievers and your leaving the riding with us is an action that is not righteous.

Qadi Abu Muhammad, may Allah have mercy on him, said: This interpretation does not align with the meaning.

All these groups said: The statement that the child was for a purpose and was a child of a maid is a pure mistake. They said: It has been narrated from the Prophet, blessings and peace be upon him, that "No woman of a prophet ever committed adultery."

Qadi Abu Muhammad, may Allah have mercy on him, said: This hadith is not well-known; rather, it is from the words of Ibn Abbas, may Allah be pleased with him, and it is supported by the honor of prophethood. They said regarding His saying, the Exalted and Majestic: "And they both betrayed him" [At-Tahrim: 10] that one of them used to say to the people: He is mad, while the other would alert the guests. As for anything else, no. These are the positions of Ibn Abbas, may Allah be pleased with him, and his arguments, and it is the saying of the majority of the people.

Ibn Abi Malika read: "So do not ask me" with the lightening of the noon and the affirmation of the ya and the silence of the lam without hamzah. A group read it with the lightening of the noon and the dropping of the ya and with hamzah: "So do not ask me." Abu Ja'far and Shaiba read it with the breaking of the noon and its emphasis, with hamzah and the affirmation of the ya: "So do not ask me." Nafi' read it without ya: "So do not ask me." Ibn Kathir and Ibn Amir read: "So do not ask me" with the opening of the emphasized noon, which is the reading of Ibn Abbas. Abu Amr, Asim, Hamzah, and al-Kisai read: "So do not ask me" with a light noon and a silent lam. Abu Amr used to affirm the ya in connection, while Asim and Hamzah dropped it in connection and pause. The meaning of His saying: "So do not ask me about that of which you have no knowledge" is that when I promised you, know with certainty that there is no contradiction in the promise. So when you see your child has not been carried, it is obligatory upon you to stop and know that this is a right due to Allah.

Qadi Abu Muhammad, may Allah have mercy on him, said:

But Noah, peace be upon him, was carried by the compassion of prophethood and the nature of humanity towards being exposed to the breaths of mercy and reminders. On this account, his reproach occurred. Therefore, he came with gentleness and elevation in his saying: "Indeed, I advise you not to be among the ignorant." And Allah, glorified and exalted is He, said to Muhammad, blessings and peace be upon him: "So do not be among them." This is according to the matter for which he was reproached and its greatness. For indeed, it is due to the constriction of his chest with the responsibilities of prophethood. Otherwise, it is established that Muhammad, blessings and peace be upon him, is the best of humanity and most deserving of gentle address. However, this is according to both matters, not according to the prophets. Some said: Noah was honored due to his age. Others said: The wording was directed towards Muhammad, blessings and peace be upon him, just as a person directs towards one who is dear to him.

The judge Abu Muhammad, may Allah have mercy on him, said: All of this is weak.

His saying: "So do not ask me about that of which you have no knowledge" means: Do not request from me a matter in which you do not know the benefit with certain knowledge. Abu Ali al-Farisi inclined towards this and said: The "by it" can be related to the word "knowledge" as the poet said:

I was repaid with the stick to be beaten.

And it is permissible that it is like "in it," so the "by" relates to the established.

The judge Abu Muhammad, may Allah have mercy on him, said: The difference between these two views is merely verbal, and the meaning in the verse is one. It has been narrated that this son was only his stepson, and this is weak. Al-Tabari reported from Ibn Zayd that the meaning of his saying: "Indeed, I advise you not to be among the ignorant" is that you believe that I will not fulfill for you the promise I made to you.

The judge Abu Muhammad, may Allah have mercy on him, said: This is an ugly interpretation, and there is nothing in the words that necessitates that Noah believed this, seeking refuge with Allah. The utmost that occurred for Noah, peace be upon him, was that he saw his son’s abandonment opposing the promise, so he reminded him of it and called out of compassion to clarify to him the reason for which his son deserved to be left behind in the drowning.