Surah Al-Anbya, Ayah 73

The Migration of Ibrahim to Ash-Sham (Greater Syria), accompanied by Lut

Allah tells us that He saved Ibrahim from the fire lit by his people, and brought him out from among them, migrating to the land of Ash-Sham, to the sacred regions thereof.

وَوَهَبْنَا لَهُ إِسْحَـقَ وَيَعْقُوبَ نَافِلَةً

(And We bestowed upon him Ishaq, and Ya`qub Nafilatan.) `Ata' and Mujahid said, "Nafilatan means as a gift." Ibn `Abbas, Qatadah and Al-Hakam bin `Uyaynah said, "The gift of a son who has a son," meaning that Ya`qub was the son of Ishaq, as Allah says:

فَبَشَّرْنَـهَا بِإِسْحَـقَ وَمِن وَرَآءِ إِسْحَـقَ يَعْقُوبَ

(But We gave her glad tidings of Ishaq, and after Ishaq, of Ya`qub) 11:71. `Abdur-Rahman bin Zayd bin Aslam said, "He asked for one son, and said,

وَوَهَبْنَا لَهُ إِسْحَاقَ وَيَعْقُوبَ نَافِلَةً (And We blessed him with Ishaq and Ya` qub as gift - 21:72) That is, Allah Ta` la had bestowed upon him the son Ishaq (علیہ السلام) as per his supplication and in addition to that a grandson Ya` qub (علیہ السلام) as a gift. This is why he is referred to as نَافِلَةً nafilah which originally means 'extra'.

The Prophet Abraham was born in Iraq. When the people of his community and Iraq’s ruler, Nimrod, became his enemies, he left his native place after fully conveying the divine message to them. At God’s command he migrated to the lands of Syria and Palestine. Though his countrymen did not support him, God gave him sons and grandsons who followed in his footsteps. God accepted and appreciated his piety to the extent that He started a chain of prophets from amongst his descendants.