وَإِذْ قُلْنَا لِلْمَلَـٰٓئِكَةِ ٱسْجُدُوا۟ لِـَٔادَمَ فَسَجَدُوٓا۟ إِلَّآ إِبْلِيسَ قَالَ ءَأَسْجُدُ لِمَنْ خَلَقْتَ طِينًا 61
Translations
And [mention] when We said to the angels, "Prostrate to Adam," and they prostrated, except for Iblees. He said, "Should I prostrate to one You created from clay?"
Transliteration
Wa-idh qulna lil-mala'ikati asjudoo li-Adam fa-sajadoo illa Iblis qala a-asjudu liman khalaqta teenan
Tafsir (Explanation)
This ayah recounts the divine command to the angels to prostrate before Adam, which they obeyed except for Iblis (Satan), who refused out of arrogance and questioned the wisdom of prostrating to a being created from clay. According to Ibn Kathir and Al-Qurtubi, this prostration was a sign of honor and respect for Adam, not worship, as worship belongs to Allah alone. Iblis's refusal marked the beginning of his rebellion and established the enmity between him and humanity that would persist throughout time.
Revelation Context
While Surah Al-Isra is Meccan, this particular account appears within a broader narrative about the creation of Adam and the trials of humanity. The context serves to explain the origins of Satan's enmity toward mankind and validates the superiority of human intellect and moral capacity over angelic nature, despite humanity's apparent physical weakness.
Related Hadiths
The Prophet (peace be upon him) mentioned in various narrations that the angels were commanded to prostrate to Adam as a sign of honor. A related hadith in Jami' at-Tirmidhi discusses how Iblis refused this command due to his arrogance, saying he was better than Adam because he was created from fire while Adam was created from clay.
Themes
Key Lesson
This ayah teaches us that true honor comes from obedience to Allah's commands, regardless of our perceptions of status or pride, and that arrogance and questioning divine wisdom—as Iblis did—leads to destruction and distance from Allah's mercy.
Related Ayahs
وَلَا تَجْعَلْ يَدَكَ مَغْلُولَةً إِلَىٰ عُنُقِكَ وَلَا تَبْسُطْهَا كُلَّ ٱلْبَسْطِ فَتَقْعُدَ مَلُومًا مَّحْسُورًا
And do not make your hand [as] chained to your neck or extend it completely and [thereby] become blamed and insolvent.
وَٱسْتَفْزِزْ مَنِ ٱسْتَطَعْتَ مِنْهُم بِصَوْتِكَ وَأَجْلِبْ عَلَيْهِم بِخَيْلِكَ وَرَجِلِكَ وَشَارِكْهُمْ فِى ٱلْأَمْوَٰلِ وَٱلْأَوْلَـٰدِ وَعِدْهُمْ ۚ وَمَا يَعِدُهُمُ ٱلشَّيْطَـٰنُ إِلَّا غُرُورًا
And incite [to senselessness] whoever you can among them with your voice and assault them with your horses and foot soldiers and become a partner in their wealth and their children and promise them." But Satan does not promise them except delusion.
مَّنِ ٱهْتَدَىٰ فَإِنَّمَا يَهْتَدِى لِنَفْسِهِۦ ۖ وَمَن ضَلَّ فَإِنَّمَا يَضِلُّ عَلَيْهَا ۚ وَلَا تَزِرُ وَازِرَةٌ وِزْرَ أُخْرَىٰ ۗ وَمَا كُنَّا مُعَذِّبِينَ حَتَّىٰ نَبْعَثَ رَسُولًا
Whoever is guided is only guided for [the benefit of] his soul. And whoever errs only errs against it. And no bearer of burdens will bear the burden of another. And never would We punish until We sent a messenger.
عَسَىٰ رَبُّكُمْ أَن يَرْحَمَكُمْ ۚ وَإِنْ عُدتُّمْ عُدْنَا ۘ وَجَعَلْنَا جَهَنَّمَ لِلْكَـٰفِرِينَ حَصِيرًا
[Then Allāh said], "It is expected, [if you repent], that your Lord will have mercy upon you. But if you return [to sin], We will return [to punishment]. And We have made Hell, for the disbelievers, a prison-bed."