وَامْرَأَتُهُ قَائِمَةٌ فَضَحِكَتْ فَبَشَّرْنَاهَا بِإِسْحَاقَ وَمِنْ وَرَاءِ إِسْحَاقَ يَعْقُوبَ ﴿۷۱﴾ قَالَتْ يَا وَيْلَتَى أَأَلِدُ وَأَنَا عَجُوزٌ وَهَذَا بَعْلِي شَيْخًا إِنَّ هَذَا لَشَيْءٌ عَجِيبٌ ﴿۷۲﴾

﴾71﴿ Wamra atuhoo qaaa'imatun fadahikat fabashsharnaahaa bi Ishaaqa wa minw waraaa'i Ishaaqa Ya'qoob
﴾72﴿ Qaalat yaa wailataaa 'aalidu wa ana 'ajoozunw wa haaza ba'lee shaikhan inna haazaa lashai'un 'ajeeb

﴾71﴿ And his wife was standing there, and she laughed; then We gave her glad tidings of Isaac (Ishaq, peace be upon him), and after Isaac, of Jacob (Yaqub, peace be upon him)
﴾72﴿ She said, Oh, what a wonder! Shall I bear a child when I am an old woman, and this is my husband, an elderly man, Indeed, this is truly an extraordinary thing

[71] (وَامْرَأَتُهُ قَائِمَةٌ) — means his wife was standing, and the context indicates she was behind a curtain, standing to serve the guests.
This is supported by the verse in Surah adh-Dhāriyāt (51:29) — فَأَقْبَلَتِ ٱمْرَأَتُهُ — which shows that she came forward only after realizing they were angels and had delivered the news.
(فَضَحِكَتْ) — here, ضحك (laughter) is not to be understood literally as outward laughing.
Since modest women in traditional societies do not laugh aloud in front of men, it means she was pleased or overjoyed inwardly.
--- Q1: Was the glad tidings (بشارة) given before or after she came forward? There seems to be a variation in the sequencing between this verse and Surah adh-Dhāriyāt.
From adh-Dhāriyāt (51:29), it appears she was given the glad tidings, then she came forward.
But in this surah, it appears the glad tidings came after she came forward.
Resolution: The scholars reconcile this by explaining that the verses use different narrative orders for rhetorical purposes.
In this surah, the sequence is summarized and not fully chronological.
--- Q2: What is the reason for her laughter (ضحك)? Answer 1 (by ʿIkrimah and Mujāhid): ضحكت means she menstruated (حاضت) — a euphemistic expression.
Despite her old age, her menstruation returned, signaling the possibility of childbirth.
This alone was a cause of joy, even before the explicit glad tidings.
Answer 2 (al-Farrā’): The sequence is reversed — first she was given the glad tidings, then she expressed happiness.
This fits the rhetorical style of advancing or delaying information (taqdīm and ta’khīr) common in the Qur'an.
Answer 3: When the angels gave glad tidings to Ibrāhīm (peace be upon him) (as in Dhāriyāt 28), she overheard it from behind the curtain and thought it might be from another wife, yet she felt happiness.
Then the angels specifically addressed her and gave her the glad tidings of a child herself, removing all doubt.
--- Q3: In Surahs Ḥijr and Dhāriyāt, the news of the destruction of the people of Lūṭ came after the glad tidings and removal of Ibrāhīm’s fear — but here it seems to come earlier. Why? Answer: In this surah, the narration is condensed (اختصار) for emphasis.
The actual sequence, when combining all surahs, is as follows:
1. First, the angels remove his fear with the glad tidings of a child.
2. Then, Ibrāhīm asks (ما خطبكم أيها المرسلون؟) — What is your mission?
3. Finally, the angels inform him about the destruction of the people of Lūṭ.
So the phrase (لَا تَخَفْ إِنَّا أُرْسِلْنَا إِلَى قَوْمِ لُوطٍ) in this surah is part of a summarized account, encompassing both the removal of fear and the mission news.
[72] (يَا وَيْلَتَى) — this expression is used to convey astonishment or shock, especially in moments of extreme surprise.
Here, it reflects Sarah’s amazement upon hearing the news of having a child at such an old age.
She was Sārah bint Hārān, the niece of Ibrāhīm (peace be upon him) — daughter of his paternal uncle — and also his wife.
(عَجِيبٌ) — the word ‘ajīb (amazing/strange) refers to the event being unusual in terms of human norms or natural causes — such as old age and infertility.
However, it was not strange in terms of Allah’s power, because nothing is difficult or impossible for Him.
So, the amazement is from a human, habitual perspective, not from a theological one.