Tafsir of Surah 112 - Al Ikhlaas

Imam Ahmad recorded from Ubayy bin Ka`b that the idolators said to the Prophet , "O Muhammad! Tell us the lineage of your Lord.'' So Allah revealed

﴿ قُلْ هُوَ اللَّهُ أَحَدٌ - اللَّهُ الصَّمَدُ -

لَمْ يَلِدْ وَلَمْ يُولَدْ - وَلَمْ يَكُنْ لَّهُ كُفُواً أَحَدٌ ﴾

(1. Say: "He is Allah") (2. "One".) (3. "He begets not, nor was He begotten".) (4. "And there is non comparable to Him.'') Similar was recorded by At-Tirmidhi and Ibn Jarir and they added in their narration that he said,

﴿الصَّمَدُ﴾

(As-Samad) is One Who does not give birth, nor was He born, because there is nothing that is born except that it will die, and there is nothing that dies except that it leaves behind inheritance, and indeed Allah does not die and He does not leave behind any inheritance.

﴿وَلَمْ يَكُنْ لَّهُ كُفُواً أَحَدٌ ﴾

(And there is none comparable to Him.) This means that there is none similar to Him, none equal to Him and there is nothing at all like Him.'' Ibn Abi Hatim also recorded it and At-Tirmidhi mentioned it as a Mursal narration. Then At-Tirmidhi said, "And this is the most correct.''