رَحۡمَتِ

16:66; 22:6; 35:28; 39:22; 45:6.

Commentary:

After attention has been drawn in the preceding two verses to the natural phenomenon that when, after severe drought, welcome rain comes, the parched and dry earth gets a new life. In the present verse we are told that similar formula operates in the spiritual renaissance of a morally decrepit people. A people virtually as good as dead receive a new life through a Divine Prophet.

Commentary:

The account of Zachariah precedes the account of Jesus. This is due to two very valid reasons. Yahya, the son of Zachariah, and John of the New Testament, was a harbinger of Jesus. He heralded Jesus’ advent and acted as his precursor to give to the Jews the glad tidings that their deliverer was about to make his appearance.

That Yahya or John was Jesus’ harbinger is apparent from the following prophecy of Prophet Malachi: "Behold, I will send you Elijah the prophet, before the coming of the great and dreadful day of the Lord" (Mal. 4:5). The words "the great and dreadful day" here signify the advent of Jesus. This is why when Jesus was asked where Elias was who was to come before him, he replied: "And if ye will receive it, this is Elias, which was for to come" (Matt. 11:14). As according to Malachi’s prophecy Elias must have appeared before the coming of Jesus, it was in the fitness of things that while giving an account of Jesus, the Quran should have made a mention of Yahya. Secondly, Mary, the mother of Jesus, had unknowingly become the cause of Yahya’s birth. We are told (3:38, 39) how Zachariah was deeply moved by a pious reply of Mary and prayed to God to be blessed with a good child like her. Thus whereas Yahya became a harbinger of Jesus, Mary, Jesus’ mother having indirectly become the cause of the birth of Yahya may as well be said to have become a precursor of Yahya (John) himself. See also 3:38-42.

The words, "Thy Lord" in the sentence, "This is an account of the mercy of thy Lord," appear to be misplaced because whereas the account given in the following verses is that of the mercy of God shown to Zachariah the words "Thy Lord" seem to indicate as if some account is about to be given of God’s mercy to the Holy Prophet. In fact these words signify that the account of Divine mercy to Zachariah does imply a mercy to the Holy Prophet also. Prophet Yahya, as stated above, was a harbinger of Jesus and Jesus was a harbinger of the Holy Prophet. A description of the birth of Yahyafollowed by a somewhat detailed description of Jesus’ birth pointed to the fact that by the introduction of the life accounts of these two Prophets who, in a way, acted as his precursors, the minds of men were being prepared for the acceptance of the Holy Prophet of Islam by an implied reference to the following Biblical prophecies:

And as for Ishmael, I have heard thee. Behold I have blessed him, and will make him fruitful and will multiply him exceedingly; twelve princes shall he beget, and I will make him a great nation (Gen. 17:20);

I will raise them up a prophet from among their brethren, like unto thee; and I will put my words in his mouth (Deut. 18:18).

The pronoun "thy" may also possess an oblique but beautiful reference to Mecca, the birth-place of the Holy Prophet. Mecca like Zachariah’s wife was barren. For thousands of years it had not heard the voice of God. Now God’s mercy was about to dawn upon it. The barren valley of Mecca was about to give birth to the greatest of Adam’s sons. To this barrenness of Mecca reference is found in Isaiah 54:1.

Sing, O barren, thou that didst not bear; break forth into singing, and cry aloud, thou that didst not travail with child: for more are the children of the desolate than the children of the married wife, saith the Lord.