فَسَبِّح بِحَمدِ رَبِّكَ وَاستَغفِرهُ ۚ إِنَّهُ كانَ تَوّابًا

Then celebrate the praise of your Lord, and plead to Him for forgiveness. Indeed, He is all-clement.

EXEGESIS

Sabbiḥ is the imperative form derived from the verb sabbaḥa which means to distance something; when attributed to God, it means to distance and remove any fault or deficiency from Him.^{‎[1]Maqayis, 3/125; Raghib, 392.}

Ḥamd means grateful praise^{‎[2]Ayn, 3/188.} and is only used to praise voluntary acts and virtues. To admire involuntary qualities such as natural beauty, the term madḥ is used. Hence, praising God in terms of ḥamd indicates that He is not compelled in His actions but He does everything out of liberty and volition.^{‎[3]Qaraati, 1/27.}

Since ḥamd indicates our knowledge of the beautiful names of God whilst tasbīḥ is acknowledgement of His transcendence, the two are usually used together to praise Him, as He is both immanent and transcendent. Ḥamd has been used sixty-eight times in the Quran alongside tasbīḥ.

Tawwāb (oft-returning) is the exaggerated form derived from the root word tāba (returned).^{‎[4]Maqayis, 1/357.} It can be applied both to God and to man. When applied to man it means that they turn to God from their sins,^{‎[5]Lisan, 1/233.} as in Rally to Allah in repentance (tūbū), O faithful, so that you may be felicitous (24:31). When applied to God, as in this verse, it means turning to His servants with clemency and accepting their repentance. Indeed, Allah is the all-clement (tawwāb), the all-merciful (9:118).

EXPOSITION

In this verse, God gives three commandments to the Prophet: to exalt and glorify (tasbīḥ) God, to praise (ḥamd) Him, and to seek forgiveness (istighfār) from Him.

Glorification is to remove any defect or shortcomings from God; praise is to describe the attributes of God; and repentance is done by the creation reflecting their deficiencies and shortcomings.^{‎[6]Nemuneh, 27/400.} Glorifying and praising God go hand-in-hand with one another; the former is in relation to the majestic names of God while the latter describes His beatific attributes. Therefore, whenever we say ‘God is exalted’ we are considering God’s oneness, greatness, eternity, etc., and when we say ‘praise belongs to God’ we consider the blessings and bounties of God which He has bestowed to His creation.^{‎[7]Ahsan al-Hadith, 12/389.}

Glorifying and praising God following a victory is quite relevant. But why is the Prophet instructed to seek repentance given that he was sinless? In this regard, Tabatabai^{‎[8]Mizan, 20/377.} suggests that the Prophet exerted a lot of effort to remove falsehood which culminated in the peaceful conquest of Mecca, but he could never have succeeded without the help of Allah. Therefore, he should remember God’s majesty with glorification (tasbīḥ), should not forget His praiseworthy help and succour (ḥamd), and most importantly, he should remember his own deficiency and need and turn to God with repentance (istighfār). Ṭabrisī^{‎[9]Tabrisi, 10/844.} adds that seeking repentance is sometimes in relation to committing sins and mistakes, but at other times it can be used for glorification and acknowledgement of one’s humility and insignificance before God.

INSIGHTS FROM OTHER TRADITIONS

1. Thou art a gracious God, and merciful, slow to anger, and of great kindness, and repentest thee of the evil.^{‎[10] Jonah 2:2.}
2. Who is a God like unto thee, that pardoneth iniquity, and passeth by the transgression of the remnant of his heritage? he retaineth not his anger for ever, because he delighteth in mercy.^{‎[11] Micah 7:18.}
3. For all things are for your sakes, that the abundant grace might through the thanksgiving of many redound to the glory of God.^{‎[12] Corinthians 4:15.}

[1] Maqayis, 3/125; Raghib, 392.
[2] Ayn, 3/188.
[3] Qaraati, 1/27.
[4] Maqayis, 1/357.
[5] Lisan, 1/233.
[6] Nemuneh, 27/400.
[7] Ahsan al-Hadith, 12/389.
[8] Mizan, 20/377.
[9] Tabrisi, 10/844.
[10] Jonah 2:2.
[11] Micah 7:18.
[12] Corinthians 4:15.