Verily Satan is disobedient unto the Beneficent (Allah).

Verily Satan is disobedient unto the Beneficent (Allah).” The objective meaning of “ Serve not Satan ” is the same as obeying and following Satan which causes man to become its servant and slave. Of course, it is evident that the purpose of service, here, is not a service in the sense of prostration, prayer, and fasting performed for Satan, but it is in the sense of obeying and following the command of Satan which itself is counted a kind of service.

The meaning of ‘worship, or service’ is so vast that it encompasses even the listening to the sayings of a person with the intention of acting accordingly, and also putting the rule of a person to order, is counted a kind of worshipping him. It has been narrated from the Prophet of Islam (S) who said: “He who listens to a speaker (willingly), he has worshipped him.

Then, if the speaker speaks from the side of Allah, the one has worshipped Allah, and if the speaker speaks from the side of Iblis, the one has worshipped Iblis.” [^2] However, Abraham wants to teach this fact to his father (uncle) that no one can live without having a path, a policy. It may be either the path of Allah and the straight way, or the path of Satan, the disobedient, the astray.

I fear lest a chastisement afflict you from the Beneficent (Allah) so that you become a friend to Satan.” Through this holy verses once more Abraham attracts the attention of’Azar to the evil sequels of polytheism and idolatry, when he says: “O my father! I fear lest a chastisement afflict you from the Beneficent (Allah) so that you become a friend to Satan.” The statement of Abraham, here, before his uncle,’Azar, is very attractive.

On one side, he frequently addresses him with the phrase: ‘ O my father ’ which is a sign of respect and courtesy. On the other side, the holy phrase ‘ I fear lest a chastisement afflict you… ’ indicates that Abraham is worried that any disquiet reaches’Azar.

And on the third side, the phrase ‘ a chastisement afflict you from the Beneficent (Allah) ’ points to this matter that due to his polytheism and idolatry,’Azar’s state has reached a point that Allah, whose general compassion has encompassed everybody, becomes angry with him and punishes him.