Critical Studies on the Quranic Exegesis

Critical Studies on the Quranic Exegesis

Taʿzīr: Reconsidering a Neglected Duty toward God and the Prophet Based on Etymological Analysis

Document Type : Original article

Author
Assistant Professor of Islamic Studies, University of Mazandaran, Babolsar, Iran (Email: h.shirzad@umz.ac.ir).
Abstract
The Quranic term taʿzīr (occurring in Q 5:12, 7:157, 48:9) designates a duty of believers toward God and the Apostle, but its meaning has been disputed since the early Islamic period. Most lexicographers and exegetes have sought to connect it to the juristic term taʿzīr (discretionary punishment), leading to contradictory interpretations such as “helping,” “magnifying,” or “beating.” This article re-examines taʿzīr through comparative Semitic etymology. Tracing the biliteral base ʿ-z (“strong”) across Akkadian, Ugaritic, Hebrew, Aramaic, and South Semitic, the study shows that the triliteral ʿ-z-r and its cognates consistently mean “to help, to assist.” The author argues that Quranic taʿzīr is a Hebrew loanword (cf. ʿāzar) whose authentic Arabic cognate is ʿ-ḏ-r, not ʿ-z-r. The juristic taʿzīr (punishment) is a separate root, making the two homonyms. The semantic component of “strengthening” (taqwiyah), implied by the original meaning of ʿ-z (“strength”), distinguishes taʿzīr from general naṣr (help). The article concludes that taʿzīr in the Qurʾān means “to help with all one’s power,” a duty owed both to God and to the Apostle, and rejects interpretations like “magnifying” as linguistically unfounded.
Keywords
Subjects

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  • Receive Date 11 April 2026
  • Revise Date 20 April 2026
  • Accept Date 25 April 2026