The Word فَأَتَمَّهُنَّ in Quran 2:124

The verse reads: وَإِذِ ابْتَلَىٰ إِبْرَاهِيمَ رَبُّهُ بِكَلِمَاتٍ فَأَتَمَّهُنَّ “And [remember] when Abraham was tried by his Lord with words (commands), immediately he fulfilled them perfectly…”

The word فَأَتَمَّهُنَّ consists of three parts:

1. فَ (fa-) — a connective particle meaning “and then” / “so”, indicating sequence or result.

The Letter فَ (Fa)

The fa here is فَاءُ التعقيب (Fa of immediate sequence). It signals:

Immediacy : Ibrahim acted WITHOUT hesitation or delay

Eagerness : He didn’t reluctantly obey — he rushed to comply

Sequence : As soon as the commands came, fulfillment followed

2. أَتَمَّ (atamma) — the verb itself

Root: ت م م (t-m-m), meaning “to be complete”

Form/Wazn: Form IV (أَفْعَلَ) — the causative form

The base verb تَمَّ (tamma) means “it became complete”

In Form IV, أَتَمَّ (atamma) means “he completed it” / “he fulfilled it perfectly” / “he carried it out to completion”

Alternative Words — Why Allah’s Choice is Superior

Consider what Allah COULD have said, and why فأتمَّهُنَّ is uniquely powerful:

فَعَلَهُنَّ – He did them – Just doing — no sense of perfection or depth

أدَّاهُنَّ – He performed them – Implies routine performance, lacks spiritual intensity

قَامَ بِهنَّ – He carried them out – General execution, no indication of totality or perfection

أنجَزَهُنَّ – He accomplished them – Finishing a task, but not necessarily with perfection

وَفَى بِهنَّ – He honored/kept them – Close, but lacks the sense of going ALL THE WAY

فأتمَّهُنَّ uniquely combines: totality (all of them) + perfection (no shortcoming) + speed (fa) + intensity (Form IV). No other word carries all four.

3. هُنَّ (-hunna) —

Means “them” (referring to feminine plural)

It refers back to كَلِمَاتٍ (kalimāt, “words/commands”)

Full Meaning

So فَأَتَمَّهُنَّ literally means: “and he [Abraham] fulfilled/completed them [the commands] perfectly.” The choice of Form IV (أَتَمَّ rather than just فعلهنّ “did them”) carries an important nuance: Abraham didn’t merely perform the commands — he brought them to their full, perfect completion. Classical exegetes (like al-Ṭabarī and al-Zamakhsharī) emphasize that this completeness is precisely what qualified Abraham to be made إِمَامًا لِلنَّاسِ (a leader/imam for mankind) in the next clause of the verse.

why the plural is not ها

In Arabic, there are two ways to refer back to a non-human plural (plural of things, animals, abstract concepts):

1. Treating it as feminine singular → using ها
2. Treating it as feminine plural → using هُنَّ

Both are grammatically correct, but they carry different nuances.

The Distinction: جمع القلة vs جمع الكثرة

Classical Arabic grammarians distinguish between:

جَمْعُ القِلَّة (jamʿ al-qillah) — “plural of paucity” (3 to 10)

• Refers to a small, countable number
• Typically takes the feminine plural pronoun هُنَّ
• Each item is considered individually

جَمْعُ الكَثْرَة (jamʿ al-kathrah) — “plural of abundance” (11+)

• Refers to a large, uncountable mass
• Typically takes the feminine singular pronoun ها
• The group is considered as a single collective

Why هُنَّ and not ها in 2:124?

The word كَلِمَات (kalimāt) is a sound feminine plural (جمع مؤنث سالم), and in this verse it refers to a specific, limited, countable number of commands that Allah tested Abraham with.

The mufassirūn (exegetes) debate the exact number but mention specific counts — some say 10, some say 30, some list specific trials (circumcision, the rites of hajj, the sacrifice of his son, etc.). The point is: these were discrete, countable commands, not an uncountable mass.

Because the كلمات are:

• Few in number (plural of paucity)
• Distinct and individually meaningful
• Each one separately fulfilled by Abraham

…the Quran uses هُنَّ, emphasizing that Abraham completed each and every one of them individually and perfectly.

Contrast with Other Verses

Compare this to verses where ها is used for non-human plurals:

Quran 16:5 — وَالْأَنْعَامَ خَلَقَهَا “And the cattle — He created them (as a collective)”

Here, الأنعام (cattle) is treated as a mass/collective, so ها is used.

Quran 2:164 — وَالسَّحَابِ الْمُسَخَّرِ بَيْنَ السَّمَاءِ وَالْأَرْضِ where clouds are treated collectively.

But when the Quran says كلمات with a specific countable sense, it uses هُنَّ.

The Rhetorical Beauty (بلاغة)

This is not arbitrary — it’s a deliberate rhetorical choice (من باب البلاغة). By using هُنَّ instead of ها, the Quran:

1. Highlights individuality: each command was its own trial
2. Emphasizes completeness: combined with أَتَمَّ (“completed”), it stresses that Abraham fulfilled every single one, not just the collection in general
3. Magnifies the achievement: making him worthy of being declared إِمَامًا لِلنَّاسِ

If the verse had said فَأَتَمَّهَا, it would have meant “he completed them [as a group]” — still correct, but less emphatic about each individual command.

In 2:124, هُنَّ is used because Abraham’s trials were specific, countable commands, and the Quran wants to emphasize that he fulfilled each one to completion.

Pondering Ibrahim’s Example: Moving Beyond the Bare Minimum

The word فأتمَّهُنَّ is not just a historical description of Ibrahim (AS). It is a mirror held up to every believer. When we reflect deeply, we must ask ourselves an uncomfortable question:

A Companion Ayah: Surah Al-Isra 17:19

Ibrahim’s فَأَتَمَّهُنَّ does not stand alone in the Quran. Allah reinforces the same principle in Surah Al-Isra, now addressing every believer directly:

The Key Word: سَعْيَهَا (Sa’yahaa)

The most powerful phrase in this ayah is سَعْيَهَا — not just ‘strives for it’ but ‘strives for it with THE STRIVING DUE TO IT.’ This is the Quran setting a standard, not just a direction. سَعْيَهَا

What Does سَعْيَهَا Look Like in Practice?

The Quran is asking: does your effort MATCH the thing you are striving for? Ibrahim’s effort matched the commands given to him. The believer’s effort must match the Akhirah he claims to desire.