ﱁ ﱂ ﱃ ﱄ ﱅ ﱆ ﱇ ﱈ ﱉ ﱊ ﱋ ﱌ ﱍ ﱎ ﱏ ﱐ ﱑ ﱒ ﱓ ﱔ ﱕ ﱖ ﱗ ﱘ ﱙ ﱚ ﱛ ﱜ ﱝ ﱞ ﱟ ﱠ ﱡ ﱢ ﱣ
But the Jews and the Christians say, "We are the children of Allah and His beloved." Say, "Then why does He punish you for your sins?" Rather, you are human beings from among those He has created. He forgives whom He wills, and He punishes whom He wills. And to Allah belongs the dominion of the heavens and the earth and whatever is between them, and to Him is the [final] destination.
Tafsir
Verse range: 5:18
"And the Jews and the Christians said..."
"We are the sons of God and His beloveds." They are the followers of the sons of God, Uzayr and the Messiah, just as it was said to the followers of Abu Khubayb—who is Abdullah ibn al-Zubayr—the "Khubaybites." Just as the faction of Musaylimah used to say, "We are the prophets of God," and as the relatives, kin, and attendants of a king say, "We are the kings." For this reason, the believer from the family of Pharaoh said, "Yours is the kingdom today."
"Why then does He punish you for your sins?" If it were true that you are the sons of God and His beloveds, why would you commit sins and be punished for them, being transformed into apes and swine, and being touched by the Fire for a limited number of days, according to your own claims?
If you were the sons of God, you would be of the same essence as the Father, neither committing abominations nor deserving of punishment. And if you were His beloveds, you would not have disobeyed Him, and He would not have punished you.
"Nay, you are human beings..." From the totality of those He created among mankind.
"He forgives whom He wills..." They are the people of obedience.
"And He punishes whom He wills..." They are the disobedient.
