قُلْ يَـٰٓأَيُّهَا ٱلَّذِينَ هَادُوٓا۟ إِن زَعَمْتُمْ أَنَّكُمْ أَوْلِيَآءُ لِلَّهِ مِن دُونِ ٱلنَّاسِ فَتَمَنَّوُا۟ ٱلْمَوْتَ إِن كُنتُمْ صَـٰدِقِينَ 6
Translations
Say, "O you who are Jews, if you claim that you are allies of Allāh, excluding the [other] people, then wish for death, if you should be truthful."
Transliteration
Qul yā ayyuha alladhīna hādū in za'amtum annakum awliyā'u lillāhi min dūni al-nās fatamannaw al-mawta in kuntum sādiqīn
Tafsir (Explanation)
Allah commands the Prophet Muhammad to address the Jews (those who claim to follow the Torah) with a challenge: if they truly believe they are the exclusive allies and chosen people of Allah, then let them wish for death to prove their sincerity, since the righteous do not fear death and would welcome meeting their Lord. Classical scholars like Al-Tabari and Ibn Kathir note this ayah exposes the hypocrisy of those who boast of divine favor while simultaneously fearing death and clinging to worldly life, revealing the falsehood of their claims through a decisive test of their true beliefs.
Revelation Context
This ayah is part of Surah Al-Jumu'ah (Medinan), revealed in the context of addressing the People of the Book in Madinah who claimed exclusive relationship with Allah. The broader surah discusses the rejection of the message by certain Jewish tribes and their refusal to accept the Prophet Muhammad, making this a direct rhetorical challenge to their unsubstantiated claims of superiority and special divine favor.
Related Hadiths
Sahih Bukhari (hadith on the virtue of the Companions): The Prophet said, 'The best of my Ummah are those of my generation, then those who follow them.' This contrasts with those who falsely claim divine selection without corresponding righteous action. Also relevant: Sunan Ibn Majah records that the Prophet said, 'None of you truly believes until he loves for his brother what he loves for himself,' highlighting that true faith manifests in actions, not empty claims.
Themes
Key Lesson
This ayah teaches that sincere faith in Allah manifests through courage in facing reality, including mortality, and that merely claiming divine favor without corresponding righteous action and acceptance of truth is hollow pretense. For modern readers, it serves as a reminder that authentic spirituality is demonstrated through genuine submission to God's will and truthfulness, not through inherited status or verbal claims alone.