Tafheem ul Quran

Surah 6 Al-An'am, Ayat 156-157

اَنۡ تَقُوۡلُـوۡۤا اِنَّمَاۤ اُنۡزِلَ الۡـكِتٰبُ عَلٰى طَآئِفَتَيۡنِ مِنۡ قَبۡلِنَا وَاِنۡ كُنَّا عَنۡ دِرَاسَتِهِمۡ لَغٰفِلِيۡنَۙ‏ ﴿6:156﴾ اَوۡ تَقُوۡلُوۡا لَوۡ اَنَّاۤ اُنۡزِلَ عَلَيۡنَا الۡـكِتٰبُ لَـكُنَّاۤ اَهۡدٰى مِنۡهُمۡ​ ۚ فَقَدۡ جَآءَكُمۡ بَيِّنَةٌ مِّنۡ رَّبِّكُمۡ وَهُدًى وَرَحۡمَةٌ​  ۚ فَمَنۡ اَظۡلَمُ مِمَّنۡ كَذَّبَ بِاٰيٰتِ اللّٰهِ وَصَدَفَ عَنۡهَا​ ؕ سَنَجۡزِى الَّذِيۡنَ يَصۡدِفُوۡنَ عَنۡ اٰيٰتِنَا سُوۡٓءَ الۡعَذَابِ بِمَا كَانُوۡا يَصۡدِفُوۡنَ‏ ﴿6:157﴾

(6:156) (You may no longer) say now that the Book was revealed only to two groups of people before Us 137 and that we had indeed been unaware of what they read. (6:157) Nor may you claim that: 'Had the Book been revealed to us, we would have been better guided than they.' Surely clear evidence has come to you from your Lord, which is both a guidance and a mercy. Who, then, is more unjust than he who gave the lie to the signs of Allah and turned away from them?138 And We shall soon requite those who turn away from Our signs with a severe chastisement for having turned away.


Notes

137. The allusion is to the Jews and the Christians.

138. 'Signs of Allah' include the teachings embodied in the Qur'an. They are also manifest in the noble life of the Prophet (peace be on him), and the pure lives of those who believed in him. Tley also include the natural phenomena to which the Qur'an refers in support of its message.