فَقالَ إِنّي أَحبَبتُ حُبَّ الخَيرِ عَن ذِكرِ رَبّي حَتّىٰ تَوارَت بِالحِجابِ
He said: ‘Indeed I have loved the love of good [things] for the sake of the remembrance of my Lord,’ until they disappeared behind the veil.
EXEGESIS
Khayr (good) is the opposite of sharr (evil), and is something that everyone wishes to acquire.
It is claimed that khayr means khayl (horse), and that Arabs used to call horses khayr. Another opinion says that khayr means lots of wealth; the verse, when death approaches any of you and he leaves behind any property (khayr) (2:180), is used as an example of this. This is very similar to the English term ‘goods’. Some have combined these two meanings, saying horses are a type of wealth.
Tawārat (disappeared behind) comes from warāʾ, meaning behind something. Here it means to go behind something. The word is feminine and should be referring to the horses. It has also been claimed to refer to the sun, but this is unlikely as there is no direct mention of the sun in the preceding verses.
Ḥijāb (veil) means to prevent something from reaching somewhere else. This can mean, for example, eyesight being blocked, which is why it is used for a veil that covers something. Its specific meaning here is debated amongst the exegetes, but it most likely means the horizon, although it could be some other landmass or building that blocks vision.
As the verse is a controversial one, it behoves us to give the reader a literal translation: He said: ‘Indeed I have loved the love of good ʿan the remembrance of my Lord,’ until it/they disappeared behind the veil.
The word ʿan is a preposition that can have a variety of meanings depending on its context and has no direct literal equivalent in English. It can mean at, from, about, off, out of, on (a topic), according to, on the basis of, for, as a substitute for, and many other such meanings.
EXPOSITION
Before we begin our commentary, it is worthwhile keeping in mind that there should be a compelling reason why this story is mentioned in the Quran in the context of praising Prophet Solomon (a) and that it should be relating one of his merits.
As we noted in our discussion of the previous verse, Prophet Solomon (a) is presented in the Bible as having been a rich man (see Insights from Other Traditions for the many verses related to this. See also the next story mentioned about him in the following verses, which similarly relates to this issue, as he was portrayed as a man interested in women and worldly pleasures), to the extent that even Prophet Jesus (a) is quoted in the Bible as speaking of Prophet Solomon’s (a) fabled wealth. It has even been argued that many of his subjects were greatly displeased with him because he forced them to labour like Pharaoh did, to personally enrich himself and maintain his fabulous court, and this was the reason his people revolted after his death. The Quranic story is meant to set the record straight on that matter.
The Quran quotes Prophet Solomon (a) explicitly stating why he was inspecting those horses; it was not because he loved horses in general or because of their beauty (even though we were told in the previous verses they were quite beautiful), but rather because it was something that God had instructed him to do. I have loved the love of good [things], for the sake of the remembrance of my Lord. In a way he is saying, ‘I have not loved these for the sake of worldly goods or my own self, but rather for the sake of God and strengthening His religion’. As we mentioned previously, the horses were to be used for the holy purpose of jihad, to defend the Israelites and the religion of God.
God began the story by describing Prophet Solomon (a) as an excellent servant and oft-returning. As mentioned with Prophet David (a), this also ties into the beginning of the surah, where we discussed how the Meccan elite offered Prophet Muhammad (s) riches and rewards in exchange for abandoning or corrupting his message, and he replied that if they had given him the sun in his right hand the moon in his left, he would not abandon it. Surely this is evidence that Prophet Muhammad (s) was part of the divine dynasty of men who had no interest in worldly gains and luxuries. This is a theme that is revisited throughout the surah later, and explicitly stated after all the prophets of this chapter are remembered: Indeed We purified them with the exclusiveness of the remembrance of the abode (verse 46).
The verse is meant to exonerate Prophet Solomon (a) from the slander that he was pursuant of worldly goods and riches by showing that even when he did engage with such matters it was purely for the sake of the remembrance of my Lord.
These horses were so many that they stretched all the way to the horizon, until they disappeared behind the veil. Another possibility is that until it disappeared behind the veil is referring to the sun, meaning Prophet Solomon (a) is saying that he dedicated an entire evening to this activity; although this is less likely, as there is no direct mention of the sun in the verse.
We can note that there is no need to claim that he missed his prayer, as some have, as that is contrary to the importance that prophets placed on prayer and performing it on time, and there is nothing in the verse that requires us to claim that he missed his prayers. Such claims are all based on isolated and weak narrations. We shall examine some of those in the commentary on the next verse.
REVIEW OF TAFSĪR LITERATURE
The statement I have loved the love of good has been suggested to mean different things:
- ‘I have loved good’ with the second word ‘love’ being added for emphasis.
- ‘I have loved taking that which is good.’ It is said this is because good itself cannot be loved, but there should be something it is attached to. This would effectively mean then, ‘I have preferred the love of steeds, over the remembrance of my Lord’. This is comparable to the verse, Those who prefer the life of this world to the hereafter (14:3).
The statement above combined with ʿan the remembrance of my Lord:
- ‘I have preferred the love of horses over (ʿalā) the love of my Lord,’ as per the assertion that khayr also means khayl.
- ‘I have loved horses for the sake of remembering my Lord,’ or ‘I have loved horses because of my remembrance of my Lord.’ Related to this Zamakhsharī says it means ‘I have loved my love of these horses’. By this he means that Solomon (a) did not love something that was bad to be loved, like a sick man loving something that will make him even sicker, or a father loving a bad son, but rather his love for his horses was a good thing.
- ‘I have preferred the love of horses rather than my prayer.’ Related to this it is said that it means ‘I have preferred the love of abundant wealth’, as per the assertion that khayr also means lots of wealth.
- ‘I have loved horses because of the Torah.’ According to this opinion dhikr could be understood to mean the Torah, as in ‘I loved these horses because of what the book of God has commanded’.
The statement until they/it disappeared behind the veil has been said to mean:
The scholars who have linked it to the sun have differed about what it entailed:
- That Solomon (a) missed the ʿaṣr prayers because he was busy with inspecting the horses.
- Some have stated the same as above, however qualifying that he only missed the preferred time at the beginning of the prayer (awwal al-waqt/faḍīlah).
- Again the same as the first one, except that he only missed the supererogatory (nāfilah) prayers.
Zamakhsharī defends the first position, saying until it disappeared behind the veil should be referring to the sun, because otherwise there would be no point in mentioning that this occurred one evening as we read in the previous verse. This is not entirely accurate though, as we discussed in the previous verse, there is a great reason for mentioning that.
INSIGHTS FROM OTHER TRADITIONS
According to the Biblical narrative, Solomon’s (a) wealth was of fabled magnitude, and this is reiterated in the New Testament:
- And why do you worry about clothes? See how the flowers of the field grow. They do not labour or spin. Yet I tell you that not even Solomon in all his splendour was dressed like one of these.
The Old Testament is quite detailed in its description of his supposed wealth:
- The weight of the gold that Solomon received yearly was 666 talents, not including the revenues brought in by merchants and traders. Also all the kings of Arabia and the governors of the territories brought gold and silver to Solomon. King Solomon made two hundred large shields of hammered gold; six hundred shekels of hammered gold went into each shield. He also made three hundred small shields of hammered gold, with three hundred shekels of gold in each shield. The king put them in the Palace of the Forest of Lebanon. Then the king made a great throne covered with ivory and overlaid with pure gold. The throne had six steps, and a footstool of gold was attached to it. On both sides of the seat were armrests, with a lion standing beside each of them. Twelve lions stood on the six steps, one at either end of each step. Nothing like it had ever been made for any other kingdom. All King Solomon’s goblets were gold, and all the household articles in the Palace of the Forest of Lebanon were pure gold. Nothing was made of silver, because silver was considered of little value in Solomon’s day. The king had a fleet of trading ships manned by Hiram’s servants. Once every three years it returned, carrying gold, silver and ivory, and apes and baboons. King Solomon was greater in riches and wisdom than all the other kings of the earth. All the kings of the earth sought audience with Solomon to hear the wisdom God had put in his heart. Year after year, everyone who came brought a gift – articles of silver and gold, and robes, weapons and spices, and horses and mules.
Note: The mention of gifts of horses and the mention that he was supposedly the richest man on earth.
- Here is the account of the forced labour King Solomon conscripted to build the Lord’s temple, his own palace, the terraces, the wall of Jerusalem, and Hazor, Megiddo and Gezer. (Pharaoh king of Egypt had attacked and captured Gezer. He had set it on fire. He killed its Canaanite inhabitants and then gave it as a wedding gift to his daughter, Solomon’s wife. And Solomon rebuilt Gezer.) He built up Lower Beth Horon, Baalath, and Tadmor in the desert, within his land, as well as all his store cities and the towns for his chariots and for his horses – whatever he desired to build in Jerusalem, in Lebanon and throughout all the territory he ruled.
Note: The mention of forced labour.
- And Solomon ruled over all the kingdoms from the Euphrates River to the land of the Philistines, as far as the border of Egypt. These countries brought tribute and were Solomon’s subjects all his life. Solomon’s daily provisions were thirty cors of the finest flour and sixty cors of meal, ten head of stall-fed cattle, twenty of pasture-fed cattle and a hundred sheep and goats, as well as deer, gazelles, roebucks and choice fowl.
Note: A palace that would go through this amount of food in one day would have to be absolutely colossal.
This is in apparent contradiction to the command in Deuteronomy:
- The king, moreover, must not acquire great numbers of horses for himself or make the people return to Egypt to get more of them, for the Lord has told you, ‘You are not to go back that way again.’ He must not take many wives, or his heart will be led astray. He must not accumulate large amounts of silver and gold.
Note: The singling out of horses.
[1] Lisan, 4/264.
[2] Raghib, p. 300.
[3] Tibyan, 8/560; Tabrisi, 8/740; Tabari, 23/99; Qurtubi, 15/194; Mizan, 17/202.
[4] Tabrisi, 8/740.
[5] Lisan, 4/265; Zamakhshari, 4/92; Mizan, 17/203. It is said this word is used in that verse because of how good it is to leave such a testament (Raghib, pp. 300-301).
[6] Thalabi, 8/201; Muhit, 9/154.
[7] In Arabic, the feminine is used for non-human plurals.
[8] Raghib, p. 219.
[9] The feminine singular in Arabic can refer to a non-human plural as well.
[10] Hans Wehr, p. 647.
[11] Matthew 6:29.
[12] See for example, Wayne Brindle, 'The Causes of the Division of Israel’s Kingdom', in SOR Faculty Publications and Presentations, n. 76, pp. 223-233; J. Philip Hyatt, 'Solomon in All His Glory', in Journal of Bible and Religion, Vol. 8, No. 1 (Feb., 1940), pp. 27-30.
[13] Razi, 26/391-392.
[14] Tibyan, 8/560.
[15] Tibyan, 8/560.
[16] Tibyan, 8/560; Tabrisi, 8/740; Mizan, 17/203. A similar understanding is suggested by Zamakhshari, 4/92.
[17] Nemuneh, 19/273.
[18] Razi, 26/390.
[19] Razi, 26/390.
[20] Baghawi, 4/68.
[21] Tabrisi, 8/740.
[22] Tabrisi 8/740; Alusi, 12/184.
[23] Tibyan, 8/560; Tabrisi, 8/740; Thalabi, 8/201; Baghawi, 4/68; Alusi, 12/183.
[24] Tibyan, 8/560; Tabrisi, 8/740; Nemuneh, 19/273. Some of those who have said it is about the horses have said that they went to their stables (Alusi, 12/187).
[25] Tibyan, 8/560; Tabrisi, 8/740; Tabari, 23/99; Ahkam, 4/1648. Ṭabrisī and Ṭabarī attribute this view to Imam Ali (a).
[26] Tibyan, 8/560; Tabrisi, 8/740. Ṭūsī attributes this view to Imam Ali (a).
[27] Tibyan, 8/560; Tabrisi, 8/740. This view is attributed to Jubbāʾī.
[28] Zamakhshari, 4/93. This view has been adopted by Mizan, 17/203.
[29] Matthew 6:29.
[30] 2 Chronicles 9:13-24.
[31] 1 Kings 9:16-19.
[32] 1 Kings 4:21-23.
[33] Deuteronomy 17:16-17.