Surah 3. Ali 'Imran

---

Verses [Section]: 1-9[1], 10-20 [2], 21-30 [3], 31-41 [4], 42-54 [5], 55-63 [6], 64-71 [7], 72-80 [8], 81-91 [9], 92-101 [10], 102-109 [11], 110-120 [12], 121-129 [13], 130-143 [14], 144-148 [15], 149-155 [16], 156-172 [17], 173-180 [18], 181-187 [19], 188-200 [20]

---

Quran Text of Verse 64-71قُلْSayیٰۤاَهْلَO Peopleالْكِتٰبِ(of) the BookتَعَالَوْاComeاِلٰیtoكَلِمَةٍa wordسَوَآءٍۭequitableبَیْنَنَاbetween usوَ بَیْنَكُمْand between youاَلَّاthat notنَعْبُدَwe worshipاِلَّاexceptاللّٰهَAllahوَ لَاand notنُشْرِكَwe associate partnersبِهٖwith Himشَیْـًٔاanythingوَّ لَاand notیَتَّخِذَtakeبَعْضُنَاsome of usبَعْضًا(to) othersاَرْبَابًا(as) lordsمِّنْfromدُوْنِbesidesاللّٰهِ ؕAllahفَاِنْThen ifتَوَلَّوْاthey turn awayفَقُوْلُواthen sayاشْهَدُوْاBear witnessبِاَنَّاthat weمُسْلِمُوْنَ (are) Muslims یٰۤاَهْلَO Peopleالْكِتٰبِ(of) the BookلِمَWhyتُحَآجُّوْنَ(do) you argueفِیْۤconcerningاِبْرٰهِیْمَIbrahimوَ مَاۤwhile notاُنْزِلَتِwas revealedالتَّوْرٰىةُthe Tauratوَ الْاِنْجِیْلُand the Injeelاِلَّاexceptمِنْۢfromبَعْدِهٖ ؕafter himاَفَلَاThen why don'tتَعْقِلُوْنَ you use your intellect هٰۤاَنْتُمْHere you areهٰۤؤُلَآءِthose whoحَاجَجْتُمْarguedفِیْمَاabout whatلَكُمْ[for] youبِهٖof itعِلْمٌ(have some) knowledgeفَلِمَThen whyتُحَآجُّوْنَ(do) you argueفِیْمَاabout whatلَیْسَnotلَكُمْfor youبِهٖof itعِلْمٌ ؕ(any) knowledgeوَ اللّٰهُAnd Allahیَعْلَمُknowsوَ اَنْتُمْwhile youلَا(do) notتَعْلَمُوْنَ know مَاNotكَانَwasاِبْرٰهِیْمُIbrahimیَهُوْدِیًّاa Jewوَّ لَاand notنَصْرَانِیًّاa Christianوَّ لٰكِنْand butكَانَhe wasحَنِیْفًاa trueمُّسْلِمًا ؕMuslimوَ مَاand notكَانَhe wasمِنَfromالْمُشْرِكِیْنَ the polytheists اِنَّIndeedاَوْلَیthe best to claim relationshipالنَّاسِ(of) peopleبِاِبْرٰهِیْمَwith Ibrahimلَلَّذِیْنَ(are) those whoاتَّبَعُوْهُfollow himوَ هٰذَاand thisالنَّبِیُّ[the] Prophetوَ الَّذِیْنَand those whoاٰمَنُوْا ؕbelieve[d]وَ اللّٰهُAnd Allahوَلِیُّ(is) a Guardianالْمُؤْمِنِیْنَ (of) the believers وَدَّتْWishedطَّآىِٕفَةٌa groupمِّنْfromاَهْلِ(the) Peopleالْكِتٰبِ(of) the Bookلَوْifیُضِلُّوْنَكُمْ ؕthey could lead you astrayوَ مَاand notیُضِلُّوْنَthey lead astrayاِلَّاۤexceptاَنْفُسَهُمْthemselvesوَ مَاand notیَشْعُرُوْنَ they perceive یٰۤاَهْلَO Peopleالْكِتٰبِ(of) the Book!لِمَWhy doتَكْفُرُوْنَyou denyبِاٰیٰتِ[in] the Signsاللّٰهِ(of) Allahوَ اَنْتُمْwhile youتَشْهَدُوْنَ bear witness 3. Ali 'Imran Page 59یٰۤاَهْلَO Peopleالْكِتٰبِ(of) the Book!لِمَWhyتَلْبِسُوْنَdo you mixالْحَقَّthe truthبِالْبَاطِلِwith the falsehoodوَ تَكْتُمُوْنَand concealالْحَقَّthe truthوَ اَنْتُمْwhile youتَعْلَمُوْنَ۠know

---

Translation of Verse 64-71

64. Say: “O people of the Book ! Come to a point which is common between us and you that we shall worship none but Allah.⁸⁹ and that we shall associate nobody with Him. and that none of us shall take others as Lords beside Allah.”⁹⁰ Then if they turn away, say: “bear witness that we are Muslims.”

65. O people of the Book ! why do you dispute about Ibrahim when the Torah and the Gospel were not revealed till after Him? Have you then no sense? ⁹¹

66. “You are those who disputed about that where of you had some knowledge. Now, why do you dispute about that of which you have no knowledge? Allah knows you know not. ”

67. Ibrahim was not a Jew, nor a Christian, but was an upright Muslim, and he was not of the polytheists.

68. Verily, the nearest of mankind to Ibrahim are only those who followed him, as also this prophet and those who believe; and Allah is the Friend of the faithful.

69. A section of the people of the Book wishes to lead you astray, whereas they mislead themselves only, but they do not perceive.

70. O People of the Book ! why do you disbelieve in the revelation of Allah, when you yourselves are witnessing it ?

71. O people of the Book ! Why do you confound truth with falsehood and conceal the truth while you know it .

---

Commentary

89. That is: The belief in the oneness of Allah is mainly the common denominator between the Muslims and the people of the Book. But the people of the book by wrongly interpreting the commands of Allah, have admitted innovations and polytheism in their religion with the result that it has cleared the room for holding the concept of three gods along with one God. Despite these alterations there is in the existing Torah and the Gospels, the basic teachings of the Tawheed (Oneness of Allah) e.g. in the Torah it is stated –

“You shall have no other gods before me.

You shall not make for yourself a graven image or any likeness of anything that is in heaven above, or that is on the earth any like beneath, or that is in the water under the earth9, you shall not bow down to them or serve them for I the Lord your God am a Jealous God.” ( Deutronomy 5:7 to 9)

And it is written in the Gospel: “You shall worship the Lord your God and him only shall you serve.” (Luke4:8)

Jesus answered. ‘The first is, “Hear, O Israel: The Lord our God, the Lord is one; and you shall love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your mind and with all your strength.” (Mark 12: 29.30)

90. Taking others for Lord besides Allah does not mean that they may merely call a certain being as Lord but that it also means that if people take what is declared by him permissible as such (halal) and what is forbidden by him as forbidden (haram), without any support from the Shariah then this also amounts to treating him as Lord or god because the right of deciding what is halal and what is haram is with Allah only, and to join anybody as his partner in this right is open polytheism to remove which and to free mankind from it, Islam has come in this world. It has been a misguided practice of the people of religions that they have been allowing their learned men, theologians, priests, monks, sufis, derveshes , pandits and yogis the right of interfering in the divine Shariah and of deciding what is halal and haram. Islam considers this course of action as equivalent to polytheism, Accordingly on the plea of certain people of the Book that they did not consider their monks and priests as their Lord (god), the Prophet asked whether they did not treat as halal what they declared halal and haram what they declared haram ‘? When they admitted that it was so then he said that this very thing makes them Lord. (Tafseer Ibn Katheer. Vol. II. p. 348. with reference to Tirmizi). Thus it makes it clear that to admit for some one the right to decide halal and haram is to make him Lord (god), whether that follower may be worshipping him (in the known sense) or not.

91. Prophet Ibrahim (Abraham) is the grandfather of Bani Israil and Bani Ismail. Jews, Christians and the polytheists of Macca, all considered him as their religious leader and ascribed their religion to him. Their claim was that their religion was the original religion of Ibrahim and the religion to which Quran invites is a new religion. Refuting this claim and charge of theirs, Quran says that Judaism and Christianity came into being centuries after Ibrahim, then how can Ibrahim be a Jew or a Christian? It is obvious that it is the talk of ignorance. Similarly the polytheistic religion of the people of Macca is also an invented religion of a period long after Prophet Ibrahim. Prophet Ibrahim was not at all a polytheist. On the contrary he was the standard bearer of the belief of oneness of Allah and he was a Muslim.