إِذ عُرِضَ عَلَيهِ بِالعَشِيِّ الصّافِناتُ الجِيادُ

When one evening there were displayed before him prancing steeds.

EXEGESIS

ʿAshī (evening) is the time of ʿaṣr at the very end of the day,^{‎[1]Razi, 26/390.} or alternatively from afternoon till the next morning.^{‎[2]Alusi, 12/182.}

Ṣāfināt (steeds) is the plural of ṣāfinah. It refers to a horse that stands on three legs while being ridden by one rider, holding one hoof angled above the ground resting it on its tip, as it were.^{‎[3]Tibyan, 8/559; Tabari, 23/98-99.} It was thought that this was a sign of a horse that is always ready to go and would be a good and swift steed.^{‎[4]Nemuneh, 19/272.}

Jiyād (prancing) is the plural of jawād or jūd, meaning to give and be generous. A horse is considered to be generous when it gives readily of its speed.^{‎[5]Tibyan, 8/560; Tabari, 23/99.}

EXPOSITION

We are now told a short example of one of Prophet Solomon’s (a) many merits. When one evening there were displayed before him prancing steeds: one day, he was preparing his horses to be sent off, apparently to fight in a war, and sat upon his throne to watch them be presented to him so he might inspect them before they are sent to battle, as befits a king.

Based on the description of the horses, they seem to have been of good stock and prized. Two opposing virtues of the steeds are mentioned: prancing steeds. Ṣāfināt describes their splendour while they are standing still, and jiyād describes their swiftness when moving.^{‎[6]Razi, 26/390.} This completeness is effective in conveying their great worth in just two words.

As with the story of Prophet David (a), this story is also looking at the Biblical narrative and assumes the reader to be familiar with the content there. By perusing the Biblical passages quoted in the final section of the commentary on this verse, two things become clear to the reader. First of all, the Bible several times mentions that Solomon (a) had a great amount of horses. Secondly, it seems to suggest that the Israelites did not use horses for warfare much before Solomon (a), and it seems that under his rule this changed, with horses and especially chariots becoming a central part of the Israelite military strategy.^{‎[7]J. Philip Hyatt, 'Solomon in All His Glory', in Journal of Bible and Religion, Vol. 8, No. 1 (Feb., 1940), pp. 27-30.} This change was a good thing, even though it might not have been seen as such by some.

God advises the Muslims, Prepare against them whatever you can of [military] power and war-horses (8:60). It is probable that the same advice to utilise horses in warfare and to prepare them for battle was given to Prophet Solomon (a) as well. This attention to the military prowess of the Israelites was something that goes back to Prophet David (a) as well, We taught him the making of coats of mail for you, to protect you (21:80).

However, as is common, reformers are seen negatively and slandered. Like we saw in the story of Prophet David (a) – how his attempt to reform marriage customs resulted in him being slandered as a womaniser – here too it could be inferred that Prophet Solomon (a) was slandered as loving horses and worldly goods in general because of keeping these horses. We shall discuss this further in the commentary of the following two verses. It should also be noted that this ties into the earlier theme in the surah, where Prophet Muhammad (s) was slandered for trying to reform Meccan society (we did not hear of this in the latter-day creed. This is nothing but a fabrication (verse 7)), as we discussed there and is a part of the defiance, of drawing lines and resisting reform and change, mentioned in verse 2. This is also why these stories are mentioned to Prophet Muhammad (s), and he is instructed to remember these prophets before him to remind him that every great reformer was met with resistance, no matter how necessary the reform and how immediate the need for it was.

Finally, we may also note the amazing use of symbolism and foreshadowing in this verse. When the story of Prophet David (a) began in the previous verses we were told that indeed We disposed the mountains to glorify [Allah] with him at evening and dawn (verse 18). The prophetic kingdom of Prophet David (a) began in the dark hours of the Israelites, when hope seemed lost, until David killed Goliath, and Allah gave him the kingdom and wisdom (2:251), so Prophet David (a) figuratively brought his people from the dark, troubled night to the dawn of this new dynasty of hope. When we get to Prophet Solomon (a), God mentions one evening. What began with the dawn, ends with the setting of the sun. This foreshadows what we will learn in a few verses, that the prophetic kingdom bequeathed by Prophet David (a) to his son will end with Prophet Solomon (a) who then prays to God, grant me a kingdom that does not befit anyone after me (verse 35).

REVIEW OF TAFSĪR LITERATURE

It is claimed that Prophet Solomon (a) inherited a thousand^{‎[8]Thousand seems to be the most common number, but the reports vary all the way from twenty, to twenty thousand (Qurtubi, 15/193).} horses from his father who had gained them in battle with the Amalekites.^{‎[9]See 1 Samuel 30.} It is also said that Prophet Solomon (a) himself acquired them when battling Damascus and Nusaybin.^{‎[10]Historically known as Nisibis or Nesbis, it is today known as Nusaybin and is located in the south-western corner of modern Turkey.} A more fantastic report claims that they were winged horses that came to Prophet Solomon (a) out of the ocean.^{‎[11]Tabrisi, 8/740; Thalabi, 8/199. Ṭabarī attributed to ʿAbd al-Raḥmān ibn Zayd that these were in fact sent to him by Satan (Tabari, 23/100; see also Qurtubi, 15/193).} The report of him inheriting them from Prophet David (a) is improbable, because Prophet David (a) would not have had such great wealth, as reports say he earned his subsistence from weaving baskets.^{‎[12]Nahj, sermon 160. Although it is not explicitly stated if this was before or after him becoming a king, the context of it being mentioned as a great merit would suggest it is speaking about after him becoming a king.}

This view has been criticised on another basis as well, that is the hadith narrated from Abū Bakr that the prophets do not leave inheritance. Although Ālūsī has tried to defend this by saying that what was bequeathed to Prophet Solomon (a) was the right to dispense with and manage (ḥiyāzat al-taṣarruf) the horses and not actual ownership.^{‎[13]Alusi, 12/183.} He does not however explain how this would differ from ownership.

Ṭabarī once again believes that awwāb in this verse means he repented for his mistake, as he argued in the story of Prophet David (a).^{‎[14]Tabari, 23/98.}

INSIGHTS FROM OTHER TRADITIONS

Prophet David’s (a) battle with the Amalekites is based on the Biblical narrative:

1. David and his men reached Ziklag on the third day. Now the Amalekites had raided the Negev and Ziklag. They had attacked Ziklag and burned it, and had taken captive the women and everyone else in it, both young and old. They killed none of them, but carried them off as they went on their way … David fought them from dusk until the evening of the next day, and none of them got away, except four hundred young men who rode off on camels and fled. David recovered everything the Amalekites had taken, including his two wives. Nothing was missing: young or old, boy or girl, plunder or anything else they had taken. David brought everything back. He took all the flocks and herds, and his men drove them ahead of the other livestock, saying, ‘This is David’s plunder.’^{‎[15]1 Samuel 30:1-2, 17-20.}

Prophet Solomon’s (a) horses are referenced in several Biblical passages:

1. Solomon had four thousand stalls for chariot horses, and twelve thousand horses.^{‎[16]1 Kings 4:28.}
2. Solomon had four thousand stalls for horses and chariots, and twelve thousand horses,^{‎[17]This could also be translated as charioteers.} which he kept in the chariot cities and also with him in Jerusalem. He ruled over all the kings from the Euphrates River to the land of the Philistines, as far as the border of Egypt. The king made silver as common in Jerusalem as stones, and cedar as plentiful as sycamore-fig trees in the foothills. Solomon’s horses were imported from Egypt and from all other countries.^{‎[18]2 Chronicles 9:25-28.}
3. The district governors, each in his month, supplied provisions for King Solomon and all who came to the king’s table. They saw to it that nothing was lacking. They also brought to the proper place their quotas of barley and straw for the chariot horses and the other horses.^{‎[19]1 Kings 4:27-28.}

According to the Biblical narrative the Israelites before Solomon (a) did not use horses for war, preferring to hamstring them:

1. The Lord said to Joshua: ‘Do not be afraid of them, because by this time tomorrow I will hand all of them, slain, over to Israel. You are to hamstring their horses and burn their chariots.’ So Joshua and his whole army came against them suddenly at the Waters of Merom and attacked them, and the Lord gave them into the hand of Israel. They defeated them and pursued them all the way to Greater Sidon, to Misrephoth Maim, and to the Valley of Mizpah on the east, until no survivors were left. Joshua did to them as the Lord had directed: He hamstrung their horses and burned their chariots.^{‎[20]Joshua 11:6-9.}
2. David captured a thousand of his chariots, seven thousand^{‎[21]Some translations of 2 Samuel number this as seven hundred.} charioteers and twenty thousand foot soldiers. He hamstrung all but a hundred of the chariot horses.^{‎[22]2 Samuel 8:4; 1 Chronicles 4:18.}

[1] Razi, 26/390.
[2] Alusi, 12/182.
[3] Tibyan, 8/559; Tabari, 23/98-99.
[4] Nemuneh, 19/272.
[5] Tibyan, 8/560; Tabari, 23/99.
[6] Razi, 26/390.
[7] J. Philip Hyatt, 'Solomon in All His Glory', in Journal of Bible and Religion, Vol. 8, No. 1 (Feb., 1940), pp. 27-30.
[8] Thousand seems to be the most common number, but the reports vary all the way from twenty, to twenty thousand (Qurtubi, 15/193).
[9] See 1 Samuel 30.
[10] Historically known as Nisibis or Nesbis, it is today known as Nusaybin and is located in the south-western corner of modern Turkey.
[11] Tabrisi, 8/740; Thalabi, 8/199. Ṭabarī attributed to ʿAbd al-Raḥmān ibn Zayd that these were in fact sent to him by Satan (Tabari, 23/100; see also Qurtubi, 15/193).
[12] Nahj, sermon 160. Although it is not explicitly stated if this was before or after him becoming a king, the context of it being mentioned as a great merit would suggest it is speaking about after him becoming a king.
[13] Alusi, 12/183.
[14] Tabari, 23/98.
[15] 1 Samuel 30:1-2, 17-20.
[16] 1 Kings 4:28.
[17] This could also be translated as charioteers.
[18] 2 Chronicles 9:25-28.
[19] 1 Kings 4:27-28.
[20] Joshua 11:6-9.
[21] Some translations of 2 Samuel number this as seven hundred.
[22] 2 Samuel 8:4; 1 Chronicles 4:18.