Glorify with the praise of your Lord
فَسَبِّحْ بِحَمْدِ رَبِّكَ
fa-sabbiḥ bi-ḥamdi rabbika — So glorify with the praise of your Lord
In the verses given, the verb sabbaḥa bi-ḥamdi rabb- ('glorify with the praise of the Lord') recurs as a fixed frame whose slots vary in person (a second-person command versus third-person plural description) and in what accompanies it: paired commands to endure or seek forgiveness, and time specifications. Read together, the verses show the formula applied both to a single addressee under pressure from what 'they say' and to angels around the Throne.
The frame consists of the Form II verb سَبِّحْ / يُسَبِّحُونَ ('glorify / they glorify') followed by بِحَمْدِ ('with the praise of') and رَبّ plus a pronoun ('Lord of X'). In the verses given it appears in two shapes. Addressed to a second person masculine singular, it is an imperative: فَسَبِّحْ بِحَمْدِ رَبِّكَ وَاسْتَغْفِرْهُ (110:3), فَسَبِّحْ بِحَمْدِ رَبِّكَ وَكُن مِّنَ السَّاجِدِينَ (15:98), وَسَبِّحْ بِحَمْدِ رَبِّكَ (20:130, 40:55, 50:39, 52:48). Described of angels (39:75, 42:5) and of those who carry the Throne (40:7), it is a third masculine plural imperfect: يُسَبِّحُونَ بِحَمْدِ رَبِّهِمْ. The frame does not stand alone; it takes companions. In 20:130 and 50:39 it follows the command to endure what 'they say' (فَاصْبِرْ عَلَىٰ مَا يَقُولُونَ); in 40:55 it follows 'endure' and a command to seek covering; in 52:48 it follows endurance for the Lord's judgment. It also takes time fillers: 'before the rising of the sun and before its setting' (20:130, 50:39), 'in the evening and at early dawn' (40:55), 'when you rise' (52:48). In 40:7 and 42:5 the glorifying is joined with يَسْتَغْفِرُونَ ('they seek covering-forgiveness') for others, and in 110:3 the addressee's glorifying is joined with seeking it for himself. The verses thus present one verbal frame spanning a commanded human addressee and praising angels.
Where it occurs
- 110:3 Imperative frame joined with 'seek His covering-forgiveness' and grounded in 'He has always been One who repeatedly turns back'.
- 15:98 Imperative frame joined with 'be among those who prostrate'.
- 20:130 Imperative frame after 'endure what they say', filled with times: before sunrise, before sunset, portions of the night, edges of the day.
- 39:75 Third-person plural frame: angels around the Throne glorify with the praise of their Lord, and it has been decided between them in truth.
- 40:55 Imperative frame after 'endure' and 'seek covering for your tail', filled with 'in the evening and at early dawn'.
- 40:7 Third-person plural frame: Throne-bearers glorify with the praise of their Lord, believe, and seek covering-forgiveness for those who believed.
- 42:5 Third-person plural frame: angels glorify with the praise of their Lord and seek covering-forgiveness for whoever is in the earth, as the heavens nearly burst.
- 50:39 Imperative frame after 'endure what they say', filled with 'before the rising of the sun and before the setting'.
- 52:48 Imperative frame after endurance for the Lord's judgment, filled with 'when you rise'.
All Qur'anic expressions