أَوْ تُسْقِطَ ٱلسَّمَآءَ كَمَا زَعَمْتَ عَلَيْنَا كِسَفًا أَوْ تَأْتِىَ بِٱللَّهِ وَٱلْمَلَـٰٓئِكَةِ قَبِيلًا 92
Translations
Or you make the heaven fall upon us in fragments as you have claimed or you bring Allāh and the angels before [us]
Transliteration
Aw tusqit al-sama'a kama za'amta alayna kisafan aw ta'ti billahi wa-al-mala'ikati qabilan
Tafsir (Explanation)
This ayah presents the challenges that the Meccan disbelievers mockingly posed to the Prophet Muhammad (peace be upon him), demanding miracles as proof of his prophethood. They demanded he either cause the sky to fall upon them in pieces, or bring Allah and the angels before them face-to-face—impossible demands intended to mock rather than genuinely seek truth. Classical scholars like Al-Tabari and Ibn Kathir note that these were arrogant challenges reflecting the disbelievers' obstinate rejection, as they were testing the Prophet with demands that contradicted the nature of divine wisdom and human capacity.
Revelation Context
This ayah is part of Surah Al-Isra (a Meccan surah), which addresses the rejection and opposition faced by the Prophet in Mecca. The context surrounds the various demands and mockery directed at the Prophet by the polytheists of Quraysh, establishing that their rejection was rooted in arrogance and spiritual blindness rather than lack of evidence.
Related Hadiths
The general theme relates to hadith in Sahih Bukhari and Muslim regarding the Meccan disbelievers' demands for miracles. Anas ibn Malik reported that the polytheists demanded from the Prophet signs and miracles, yet each time he provided them, they turned away in denial—illustrating the principle that those determined to disbelieve will not believe regardless of miracles.
Themes
Key Lesson
This ayah teaches that genuine guidance comes through sincere hearts and reflection on signs, not through sensational demands; it reminds believers that those who mock and demand impossible proofs are testing faith's limits, and that our role is to convey the message with wisdom, not to prove ourselves through impossible feats to the spiritually blind.