فَأَتبَعَ سَبَبًا

So he followed a means.

EXEGESIS

Atbaʿa (followed) may also mean ‘he reached’. So atbaʿa sababan may mean: he reached one of the means that were at his disposal.

EXPOSITION

This verse begins to describe the first of his missions explained in this set of verses. He intended to go westward and he utilised one of the means at his disposal to reach his objective.^{‎[1]Tibyan, 7/86; Zamakhshari, 2/734.}

[1] Tibyan, 7/86; Zamakhshari, 2/734.