إِن نَّشَأْ نُنَزِّلْ عَلَيْهِم مِّنَ ٱلسَّمَآءِ ءَايَةً فَظَلَّتْ أَعْنَـٰقُهُمْ لَهَا خَـٰضِعِينَ 4
Translations
If We willed, We could send down to them from the sky a sign for which their necks would remain humbled.
Transliteration
In nashaa nunnazzil alayhim minaas-samaa'i ayatan fazallat a'naquhum laha khadi'een
Tafsir (Explanation)
Allah states that if He willed, He could send down a sign from the heaven so miraculous that the necks (people) would remain humbled and submissive to it. Classical scholars like Ibn Kathir and Al-Tabari interpret this as Allah's affirmation of His complete power to compel belief through overwhelming miracles, yet His wisdom dictates that belief without such coercion allows for genuine faith and moral responsibility. The ayah addresses the Meccan disbelievers' demands for miracles while emphasizing that Allah's choice to test humanity through subtle signs and the Quran itself is part of His divine wisdom.
Revelation Context
This ayah appears in Surah Ash-Shu'ara (26), a Meccan chapter revealed during the period of intense opposition to the Prophet Muhammad. The context addresses the persistent demands of Quraysh for miraculous signs as proof of the Prophet's message. Rather than providing the overwhelming miracles they demanded, Allah revealed the Quran itself as the supreme sign, testing faith and discernment.
Related Hadiths
The concept relates to hadith in Sahih Bukhari where the Prophet (ﷺ) said that every prophet was given miracles, but he was given the Quran. This hadith emphasizes that the Quran is the greatest miracle, supporting the theme that Allah's wisdom sometimes withholds overwhelming compulsory signs.
Themes
Key Lesson
This ayah teaches that genuine faith cannot be coerced through overwhelming miraculous displays; rather, Allah's wisdom in providing intellectual and spiritual signs (including the Quran) allows humans to exercise free choice and develop sincere conviction. For modern readers, it encourages accepting that uncertainty and the need for personal reflection are integral to authentic belief.