A question just came to my mind. Why does it mentions "from family of Jacob"? Is there any specific reason for it? It could have mentioned from family of Ishaq or family of Ibrahim? I think this is to draw a biblical reference, but I can't find anything related to this.
Wa ‘alaykum us-salam! Sorry for the late reply — I actually asked a friend of mine versed in Biblical history and knowledge about this. He just got back to me. He said,
It seems to be because it is the ummah of the Children of Israel that have the gifts of continuous prophecy/revelation. As the Prophet (s) said:
Additionally, Zakariyyah (as) was a priest, which was a hereditary religious responsibility among the Israelites, legislated by the Torah and passed down through the descendants of Harun (as). According to the Gospels, the priests at this time were largely corrupt — they formed a major part of the opposition to Jesus (as) — and so Zakariya’s du’a' here especially makes sense in that context.
A question just came to my mind. Why does it mentions "from family of Jacob"? Is there any specific reason for it? It could have mentioned from family of Ishaq or family of Ibrahim? I think this is to draw a biblical reference, but I can't find anything related to this.
Wa ‘alaykum us-salam! Sorry for the late reply — I actually asked a friend of mine versed in Biblical history and knowledge about this. He just got back to me. He said,
It seems to be because it is the ummah of the Children of Israel that have the gifts of continuous prophecy/revelation. As the Prophet (s) said:
إِنَّ بَنِي إِسْرَائِيلَ كَانَتْ تَسُوسُهُمْ أَنْبِيَاؤُهُمْ كُلَّمَا ذَهَبَ نَبِيٌّ خَلَفَهُ نَبِيٌّ
https://sunnah.com/ibnmajah:2871
Additionally, Zakariyyah (as) was a priest, which was a hereditary religious responsibility among the Israelites, legislated by the Torah and passed down through the descendants of Harun (as). According to the Gospels, the priests at this time were largely corrupt — they formed a major part of the opposition to Jesus (as) — and so Zakariya’s du’a' here especially makes sense in that context.