يَا زَكَرِيَّا إِنَّا نُبَشِّرُكَ بِغُلَامٍ اسْمُهُ يَحْيَى لَمْ نَجْعَلْ لَهُ مِنْ قَبْلُ سَمِيًّا ﴿۷﴾ قَالَ رَبِّ أَنَّى يَكُونُ لِي غُلَامٌ وَكَانَتِ امْرَأَتِي عَاقِرًا وَقَدْ بَلَغْتُ مِنَ الْكِبَرِ عِتِيًّا ﴿۸﴾ قَالَ كَذَلِكَ قَالَ رَبُّكَ هُوَ عَلَيَّ هَيِّنٌ وَقَدْ خَلَقْتُكَ مِنْ قَبْلُ وَلَمْ تَكُ شَيْئًا ﴿۹﴾ قَالَ رَبِّ اجْعَلْ لِي آيَةً قَالَ آيَتُكَ أَلَّا تُكَلِّمَ النَّاسَ ثَلَاثَ لَيَالٍ سَوِيًّا ﴿۱۰﴾ فَخَرَجَ عَلَى قَوْمِهِ مِنَ الْمِحْرَابِ فَأَوْحَى إِلَيْهِمْ أَنْ سَبِّحُوا بُكْرَةً وَعَشِيًّا ﴿۱۱﴾

﴾7﴿ Yaa Zakariyyaaa innaa nubashshiruka bi ghulaamin ismuhoo Yahyaa lam naj'al lahoo min qablu samiyyaa
﴾8﴿ Qaala Rabbi annaa yakoonu lee ghulaamunw wakaanat imra atee 'aaqiranw wa qad balaghtu minal kibari 'itiyyaa
﴾9﴿ Qaala kazaalika qaala Rabbuka huwa 'alaiya haiyinunw wa qad khalaqtuka min qablu wa lam taku shai'aa
﴾10﴿ Qaala Rabbij 'al leee Aayah; qaala Aayatuka allaa tukalliman naasa salaasa layaalin sawiyyaa
﴾11﴿ Fakharaja 'alaa qawmihee minal mihraabi fa-awhaaa ilaihim an sabbihoo bukratanw wa 'ashiyyaa

﴾7﴿ O Zakariya, indeed We give you good tidings of a son whose name will be Yahya. We have not assigned to anyone before him this name
﴾8﴿ He said, O my Lord, how can I have a son when my wife is barren, and I have reached extreme old age
﴾9﴿ [Allah] said, So it will be; your Lord says, 'It is easy for Me, for I created you before, while you were nothing
﴾10﴿ He said, My Lord, make for me a sign." [Allah] said, "Your sign is that you will not speak to the people for three nights while being sound [in health]
﴾11﴿ So he came out to his people from the prayer chamber and signaled to them to glorify [Allah] morning and evening

[7] It means the supplication of Zakariyyā (peace be upon him) was accepted, and in the glad tidings, three matters are mentioned:
First, the glad tidings of a child;
Second, that the child would be named Yaḥyā by Allah Himself;
Third, in the statement (lam najʿal lahu min qablu samiyyā) there are two meanings:
1. No one before him had the name Yaḥyā.
2. Such a name, given directly by Allah, had not been granted to anyone else before him.
[8] In this instance, Zakariyyā (peace be upon him) is not expressing denial, but rather asking about the manner of the child’s birth—just as mentioned previously in the tafsīr of Sūrah Āl ʿImrān.
In this sūrah (Maryam), the explanation is more detailed, so he first mentions the obstacle to childbirth—namely, the barrenness of his wife.
Whereas in Sūrah Āl ʿImrān, he first mentioned his own old age before referring to his wife's condition.
[9] In the phrase (ka-dhālik), there is an indication that both you and your wife will remain in a state of old age, yet Allah, the Most High, will bring forth a child from you.
The phrase (wa qad khalaqtuka) points to the fact that the creation of Yaḥyā (peace be upon him) is being compared to the creation of Zakariyyā (peace be upon him)—from nothing.
The word (shay’an) means "a thing," and here it refers to something that did not even exist to be mentioned by name.
[10] In this request of Zakariya (peace be upon him), there is a specific sign for the birth of a child—this is so that gratitude may be expressed more abundantly before the birth.
(“That you shall not speak to the people”)—this has two interpretations:
First, that your tongue will be tied, and thus you will speak through gestures.
Second, that you will be forbidden from speaking, and this was considered a form of fasting in their religion, whether during the night or the day.
In verse 41 of Surah Al-Imran, the word “days” was mentioned, implying both night and day. Surah Maryam was revealed before Surah Al-Imran. Here, the earlier time—night—is mentioned, because night precedes day, and gestures are more visible during the day, not the night. For this reason, in Surah Al-Imran, the day is mentioned with the phrase “except by gestures.”
[11] The meaning is that Zakariya (peace be upon him) restrained his tongue from speaking, yet he continued to call people to the religion through gestures.
(“Al-mihrab”) refers to an elevated place that was specifically designated for the imam in the religion of the Children of Israel. It is called “mihrab” because it is a place of battle against Satan and desires.
This does not refer to the mihrab of our current times.
In (“morning and evening”), it actually refers to all times, but these two times are superior, which is why they are specifically mentioned.