Do the people of narrations and exegesis, when they mentioned that our master Abraham was 86 years old at the birth of Ishmael, mean his actual age, or do they mean approximating his age to our age?
The chroniclers mention that Abraham, peace be upon him, was eighty-six years old when Ishmael was born, as affirmed by Ibn Kathir. This does not mean that Abraham's lifespan was longer than Moses's, for lifespan is the duration of the body's inhabitation by life, and prior existence does not necessarily imply a longer lifespan. Some history books have mentioned that Abraham and Moses both died at the age of one hundred and twenty, but these reports cannot be definitively confirmed. Assuming the correctness of Moses's age, he lived longer than our Prophet Muhammad, peace and blessings be upon him. This is indicated by Moses's weeping during the Isra' and Mi'raj (Night Journey and Ascension) because more people from Muhammad's nation will enter Paradise than from his own nation, and his saying "ghulam" (young boy) indicates that the Prophet, peace and blessings be upon him, was young in age compared to Moses.
Summarized from the full answer at Ftawy · reviewed Sep 2, 2026
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