قَالُوا مَنْ فَعَلَ هَذَا بِآلِهَتِنَا إِنَّهُ لَمِنَ الظَّالِمِينَ ﴿۵۹﴾ قَالُوا سَمِعْنَا فَتًى يَذْكُرُهُمْ يُقَالُ لَهُ إِبْرَاهِيمُ ﴿۶۰﴾ قَالُوا فَأْتُوا بِهِ عَلَى أَعْيُنِ النَّاسِ لَعَلَّهُمْ يَشْهَدُونَ ﴿۶۱﴾ قَالُوا أَأَنْتَ فَعَلْتَ هَذَا بِآلِهَتِنَا يَا إِبْرَاهِيمُ ﴿۶۲﴾ قَالَ بَلْ فَعَلَهُ كَبِيرُهُمْ هَذَا فَاسْأَلُوهُمْ إِنْ كَانُوا يَنْطِقُونَ ﴿۶۳﴾

﴾59﴿ Qaaloo man fa'ala haazaa bi aalihatinaaa innahoo laminaz zaalimeen
﴾60﴿ Qaaloo sami'naa fatany yazkuruhum yuqaalu lahooo Ibraaheem
﴾61﴿ Qaaloo fa'too bihee 'alaaa a'yunin naasi la'allahum yash hadoon
﴾62﴿ Qaalooo 'a-anta fa'alta haazaa bi aalihatinaa yaaa Ibraaheem
﴾63﴿ Qaala bal fa'alahoo kabeeruhum haazaa fas'aloohum in kaanoo yantiqoon

﴾59﴿ They said, Who has done this to our gods? Indeed, he is surely among the wrongdoers
﴾60﴿ They said, We heard a young man mentioning them with disdain; he is called Abraham (peace be upon him)
﴾61﴿ They said, Bring him before the eyes of the people so that they may witness (what will happen)
﴾62﴿ They said, Did you do this to our gods, O Abraham (peace be upon him)
﴾63﴿ He said, Rather, it was this largest one who did it. So ask them, if they can speak

[59] They, due to their false belief, called the monotheist (Ibrāhīm) a wrongdoer, and began investigating and questioning the one who had carried out the act.
[60] This is the response of those who had heard Ibrāhīm (peace be upon him) say la-akīdanna (I will surely plot).
The phrase yadhkuruhum also refers to this—either in connection with that statement, or as a general observation from everyone, since Ibrāhīm (peace be upon him) used to mention the faults and deficiencies of these false gods.
This made it clear that he was the one who had done this act.
Yadhkuruhum here means criticizing and exposing their flaws, which they considered as insult.
The word fatā (young man) indicates either that Ibrāhīm (peace be upon him) was still in his youth, or that such a bold act was a sign of strength and courage.
[61] The meaning of yashhadūn is the witnessing of the people to establish this claim—meaning, according to their own law, testimony was required to prove a case, just as it is also the ruling in Islamic law.
Alternatively, it means that the people were called to be present for his punishment so they could watch and take a lesson from it.
This second interpretation aligns with the intention of Ibrāhīm (peace be upon him), as mentioned earlier.
[62] First, they questioned him directly, because if he confessed, there would be no need for testimony—since in legal terms, when the accused admits, the case is settled by confession, and no witnesses are required.
[63] In the Ṣaḥīḥayn (Bukhārī and Muslim) and in Tirmidhī, it is mentioned that this statement of Ibrāhīm (peace be upon him) is counted among his kadhbāt (ambiguous statements), meaning ma‘ārīḍ (figurative speech) or tawriyah (deliberate double meaning).
This means the phrase has two interpretations: one apparent, which matches the audience’s understanding, and the other, real, intended by the speaker.
Such speech is not considered a lie in Sharī‘ah, because lying is sinful—and the Prophets (peace be upon them) are pure from sins. This is supported by the view of Imām Rāzī, and such narration is considered bi’l-ma‘nā (narrated by meaning, not exact wording).
Or the use of kadhb (lie) here is only in regard to its outward appearance—used figuratively, not in its true sense. A proof of this is the statement of Ibrāhīm (peace be upon him) to his wife: "You are my sister," meaning: my sister in the Book of Allah.
There are several interpretations of his statement: 1. First interpretation: He attributed the act to the big idol conditionally, saying: If they can speak, then ask them. Since they cannot speak, the condition is not fulfilled—so this is a refutation of their logic and simultaneously a subtle admission of his own action.
2. Second interpretation: The word bal is interrogative here, meaning: Did this big one do it?—a rhetorical question implying criticism. This also subtly acknowledges that he did it.
3. Third interpretation: The doer (fā‘il) of fa‘alahū is omitted, and its omission is allowed by grammarians like Kisā’ī even without a substitute (like a pronoun). Then kabīruhum is the beginning of a new sentence.
4. Fourth interpretation: According to Ibrāhīm (peace be upon him), kabīr refers to Allah the Exalted. The people also acknowledged the greatness (kibriyā) of Allah. As mentioned by Sha‘rānī in Al-Yawāqīt wa’l-Jawāhir, it means: Allah did this—that is, the Prophet carried it out by Allah’s command.