وَإِذَا لَمْ تَأْتِهِم بِـَٔايَةٍ قَالُوا۟ لَوْلَا ٱجْتَبَيْتَهَا ۚ قُلْ إِنَّمَآ أَتَّبِعُ مَا يُوحَىٰٓ إِلَىَّ مِن رَّبِّى ۚ هَـٰذَا بَصَآئِرُ مِن رَّبِّكُمْ وَهُدًى وَرَحْمَةٌ لِّقَوْمٍ يُؤْمِنُونَ 203
Translations
And when you, [O Muḥammad], do not bring them a sign [i.e., miracle], they say, "Why have you not contrived it?" Say, "I only follow what is revealed to me from my Lord. This [Qur’ān] is enlightenment from your Lord and guidance and mercy for a people who believe."
Transliteration
Wa-idha lam ta'tihim bi-ayatin qalu lawla ijtabaytha. Qul innama attabi'u ma yuha ilayya min Rabbi. Hadha basa'iru min rabbikum wa hudan wa rahmatun liqawmin yu'minun.
Tafsir (Explanation)
This ayah addresses the Meccan disbelievers' demand that the Prophet Muhammad (peace be upon him) produce miracles of his own choosing, to which he responds that he only follows what Allah reveals to him—he has no authority to produce signs independently. Classical scholars like Ibn Kathir and Al-Tabari explain that the Qur'an itself serves as the greatest miracle and source of clear insight (basa'ir), guidance, and mercy for those who believe, emphasizing that the Prophet's role is to convey what is divinely revealed, not to fulfill the arbitrary demands of the disbelievers.
Revelation Context
This ayah is part of the broader context of Surah Al-A'raf (revealed in Mecca) where the Quraysh repeatedly challenged the Prophet to produce signs and miracles on demand as proof of his prophethood. The ayah responds to their unreasonable skepticism by clarifying the nature of revelation and the limitations of the Prophet's authority—he is a messenger bound by divine will, not a performer of magic or a generator of arbitrary proofs.
Related Hadiths
The hadith reported in Sahih Bukhari (3:2652) wherein the Prophet said, 'Every prophet was given miraculous signs; what I have been given is the Qur'an,' directly relates to this ayah's affirmation that the Qur'an is the supreme miracle. Additionally, the hadith in Muslim (1/141) about the Prophet's night journey addresses how signs are given according to Allah's wisdom, not human demand.
Themes
Key Lesson
Believers should recognize that genuine guidance comes through submission to what Allah has revealed, not through demanding signs tailored to satisfy human ego or doubt. The Qur'an itself—with its spiritual insights (basa'ir), moral guidance, and merciful teachings—is sufficient proof for sincere hearts, reminding us that faith flourishes through acceptance of divine wisdom rather than insistence on our own conditions.
Related Ayahs
وَمَا هُوَ بِقَوْلِ شَيْطَـٰنٍ رَّجِيمٍ
And it [i.e., the Qur’ān] is not the word of a devil, expelled [from the heavens].
۞ وَقِيلَ لِلَّذِينَ ٱتَّقَوْا۟ مَاذَآ أَنزَلَ رَبُّكُمْ ۚ قَالُوا۟ خَيْرًا ۗ لِّلَّذِينَ أَحْسَنُوا۟ فِى هَـٰذِهِ ٱلدُّنْيَا حَسَنَةٌ ۚ وَلَدَارُ ٱلْـَٔاخِرَةِ خَيْرٌ ۚ وَلَنِعْمَ دَارُ ٱلْمُتَّقِينَ
And it will be said to those who feared Allāh, "What did your Lord send down?" They will say, "[That which is] good." For those who do good in this world is good; and the home of the Hereafter is better. And how excellent is the home of the righteous -
نَزَّلَ عَلَيْكَ ٱلْكِتَـٰبَ بِٱلْحَقِّ مُصَدِّقًا لِّمَا بَيْنَ يَدَيْهِ وَأَنزَلَ ٱلتَّوْرَىٰةَ وَٱلْإِنجِيلَ
He has sent down upon you, [O Muḥammad], the Book in truth, confirming what was before it. And He revealed the Torah and the Gospel
وَمَنْ أَظْلَمُ مِمَّنِ ٱفْتَرَىٰ عَلَى ٱللَّهِ كَذِبًا أَوْ قَالَ أُوحِىَ إِلَىَّ وَلَمْ يُوحَ إِلَيْهِ شَىْءٌ وَمَن قَالَ سَأُنزِلُ مِثْلَ مَآ أَنزَلَ ٱللَّهُ ۗ وَلَوْ تَرَىٰٓ إِذِ ٱلظَّـٰلِمُونَ فِى غَمَرَٰتِ ٱلْمَوْتِ وَٱلْمَلَـٰٓئِكَةُ بَاسِطُوٓا۟ أَيْدِيهِمْ أَخْرِجُوٓا۟ أَنفُسَكُمُ ۖ ٱلْيَوْمَ تُجْزَوْنَ عَذَابَ ٱلْهُونِ بِمَا كُنتُمْ تَقُولُونَ عَلَى ٱللَّهِ غَيْرَ ٱلْحَقِّ وَكُنتُمْ عَنْ ءَايَـٰتِهِۦ تَسْتَكْبِرُونَ
And who is more unjust than one who invents a lie about Allāh or says, "It has been inspired to me," while nothing has been inspired to him, and one who says, "I will reveal [something] like what Allāh revealed." And if you could but see when the wrongdoers are in the overwhelming pangs of death while the angels extend their hands, [saying], "Discharge your souls! Today you will be awarded the punishment of [extreme] humiliation for what you used to say against Allāh other than the truth and [that] you were, toward His verses, being arrogant."