قَالَ بَلْ فَعَلَهُ كَبِيرُهُمْ هَذَا
They said;"Are you the one who has done this to our gods, O Ibrahim!"
He said;"Nay, this one, the biggest of them did it..."
referring to the one he had left alone and had not broken.
فَاسْأَلُوهُمْ إِن كَانُوا يَنطِقُونَ
Ask them, if they can speak!
He was hoping that they would admit of their own volition that these idols could not speak and that this idol would not say anything because it was inanimate.
In the Two Sahihs it was recorded from Abu Hurayrah that the Messenger of Allah said;
إِنَّ إِبْرَاهِيمَ عَلَيْهِ السَّلَمُ لَمْ يَكْذِبْ غَيْرَ ثَلَثٍ ثِنْتَيْنِ فِي ذَاتِ اللهِ قَوْلُهُ
Ibrahim, upon him be peace, did not tell lies except on three occasions, two for the sake of Allah -- when he said;
بَلْ فَعَلَهُ كَبِيرُهُمْ هَذَا
Nay, this one, the biggest of them did it.
and when he said;
إِنِّى سَقِيمٌ
Verily, I am sick. (37;89)
قَالَ وَبَيْنَا هُوَ يَسِيرُ فِي أَرْضِ جَبَّارٍ مِنَ الْجَبَابِرَةِ وَمَعَهُ سَارَّةُ إِذْ نَزَلَ مَنْزِلاًا فَأَتَى الْجَبَّارَ رَجُلٌ فَقَالَ إِنَّهُ قَدْ نَزَل هَهُنَا رَجُلٌ بِأَرْضِكَ مَعَهُ امْرَأَةٌ أَحْسَنُ النَّاسِ
فَأَرْسَلَ إِلَيْهِ فَجَاءَ فَقَالَ مَا هَذِهِ الْمَرْأَةُ مِنْكَ
قَالَ هِيَ أُخْتِي
قَالَ فَاذْهَبْ فَأَرْسِلْ بِهَا إِلَيَّ
فَانْطَلَقَ إِلَى سَارَّةَ فَقَالَ إِنَّ هَذَا الْجَبَّارَ قَدْ سَأَلَنِي عَنْكِ فَأَخْبَرْتُهُ أَنَّكِ أُخْتِي فَلَا تُكَذِّبِينِي عِنْدَهُ فَإِنَّكِ أُخْتِي فِي كِتَابِ اللهِ وَإِنَّهُ لَيْسَ فِي الاْاَرْضِ مُسْلِمٌ غَيْرِي وَغَيْرُكِ
فَانْطَلَقَ بِهَا إِبْرَاهِيمُ ثُمَّ قَامَ يُصَلِّي
فَلَمَّا أَنْ دَخَلَتْ عَلَيْهِ فَرَاهَا أَهْوَى إِلَيْهَا فَتَنَاوَلَهَا فَأُخِذَ أَخْذًا شَدِيدًا فَقَالَ ادْعِي اللهَ لِي وَلَا أَضُرُّكِ فَدَعَتْ لَهُ
فَأُرْسِلَ فَأَهْوَى إِلَيْهَا فَتَنَاوَلَهَا فَأُخِذَ بِمِثْلِهَا أَوْ أَشَدَّ فَفَعَلَ ذَلِكَ الثَّالِثَةَ فَأُخِذَ فَذَكَرَ مِثْلَ الْمَرَّتَيْنِ الاْأُولَيَيْنِ
فَقَالَ ادْعِي اللهَ فَلَ أُضُرَّكِ فَدَعَتْ لَهُ فَأُرْسِلَ ثُمَّ دَعَا أَدْنَى حُجَّابِهِ فَقَالَ إِنَّكَ لَمْ تَأْتِنِي بِإِنْسَانٍ وَلَكِنَّكَ أَتَيْتَنِي بِشَيْطَانٍ أَخْرِجْهَا وَأَعْطِهَا هَاجَرَ فَأُخْرِجَتْ وَأُعْطِيَتْ هَاجَرَ فَأَقْبَلَتْ
فَلَمَّا أَحَسَّ إِبْرَاهِيمُ بِمَجِييِهَا انْفَتَلَ مِنْ صَلَتِهِ وَقَالَ مَهْيَمْ
قَالَتْ كَفَى اللهُ كَيْدَ الْكَافِرِ الْفَاجِرِ وَأَخْدَمَنِي هَاجَر
and when he was traveling in the land of one of the tyrants, and Sarah was with him; when he made camp, a man came to the tyrant and said, "A man has made camp in your land and with him is a woman who is the most beautiful of people."
The tyrant sent for Ibrahim, and asked him, "What is the relationship of this woman to you?"
He said, "She is my sister."
The tyrant said, "Go and send her to me."
So Ibrahim went to Sarah and said, "This tyrant asked me about you, and I told him that you are my sister, so do not let him think that I am lying. For you are indeed my sister according to the Book of Allah, and there are no Muslims on the earth apart from you and I."
So Ibrahim brought her to him, then he stood and prayed.
When she entered upon the tyrant, he reached for her desirously once he saw her. But he suffered a severe seizure. So he said, "Pray to Allah for me and I will not harm you." So she prayed for him and it released him.
Then he reached for her desirously, but he was stricken similarly before or worse. This continued three times, and each time he said the same as he had said the first time.
Then he called the closest of his guards and said, "You have not brought me a human being, you have brought me a devil! Take her out and give her Hajar. So she was taken out and given Hajar, and she went back.
When Ibrahim realized that she had come back, he finished his prayer and turned around. He said, "What happened?"
She said, "Allah took care of the evil disbeliever's plot, and he gave me Hajar as a servant."
Muhammad bin Sirin said,
"When Abu Hurayrah narrated this Hadith, he said, `This is your mother, O sons of the water of the heaven.' "