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Surah An-Nisa, verse 171: meaning and tafsir
يَٰٓأَهْلَ ٱلْكِتَٰبِ لَا تَغْلُوا۟ فِى دِينِكُمْ وَلَا تَقُولُوا۟ عَلَى ٱللَّهِ إِلَّا ٱلْحَقَّ ۚ إِنَّمَا ٱلْمَسِيحُ عِيسَى ٱبْنُ مَرْيَمَ رَسُولُ ٱللَّهِ وَكَلِمَتُهُۥٓ أَلْقَىٰهَآ إِلَىٰ مَرْيَمَ وَرُوحٌ مِّنْهُ ۖ فَـَٔامِنُوا۟ بِٱللَّهِ وَرُسُلِهِۦ ۖ وَلَا تَقُولُوا۟ ثَلَٰثَةٌ ۚ ٱنتَهُوا۟ خَيْرًا لَّكُمْ ۚ إِنَّمَا ٱللَّهُ إِلَٰهٌ وَٰحِدٌ ۖ سُبْحَٰنَهُۥٓ أَن يَكُونَ لَهُۥ وَلَدٌ ۘ لَّهُۥ مَا فِى ٱلسَّمَٰوَٰتِ وَمَا فِى ٱلْأَرْضِ ۗ وَكَفَىٰ بِٱللَّهِ وَكِيلًا ١٧١
O People of the Book, do not go to extremes in your religion, and do not say about Allah but the truth. The Messiah, Jesus, son of Mary, was only a messenger of Allah, and His Word that He bestowed upon Mary, and a spirit[110] from Him. So believe in Allah and His messengers and do not say “Three” [i.e., Trinity]. Cease; that is better for you. Indeed, Allah is the only One God. Glory be to Him, [far exalted is He] to have a son. To Him belongs all that is in the heavens and all that is on earth, and sufficient is Allah as a Disposer of Affairs.
Translation of the meanings: Rowwad Translation Center — version 1.0.19 · QuranEnc.com
[110] That is, Jesus’s spirit was created by Allah. [Ibn Kathīr, al-Sa‘dī]. Al-Baghawī says: “He (Jesus) is a soul just like any other soul but Allah added him to Himself to honor him”. Al-Shawkānī is also of this opinion. Al-Alūsī says: “Because Jesus was created by a blow (of air), not by a drop (of sperm), he was called a ‘soul’.” The Qur’an makes it clear that Jesus is just like all other human beings, whose spirit was created by Allah.
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Al-Mukhtasar: Abridged Explanation of the Quran
Tafsir Center for Quranic Studies · QuranEnc.com
171. Say, O Messenger, to the Christians who received the Gospel: Do not overstep the limits in your religion and do not say anything but the truth about Allah in relation to Jesus. The Messiah, Jesus, son of Mary, is only Allah’s messenger sent with the truth. He created him by His word which He sent with Gabriel to Mary, which was the word ‘Be’, and he became. It was a breath from Allah which Gabriel blew with Allah’s instruction. So have faith in Allah and all His messengers without making a distinction between them. Do not say, ‘The gods are three’. Avoid saying this false statement and it will be better for you in this world and the Afterlife. Allah is the only One God free of any partner or child. He is Self-sufficient. The dominion of the heavens, the earth and whatever is in between the two is His. He is sufficient as a guardian to carry out the affairs of His creation.
Quran text: Tanzil Project (Tanzil Quran Text, Uthmani v1.1, CC BY 3.0). The translation and tafsir are quoted word for word, unchanged, from the Noble Quran Encyclopedia, QuranEnc.com, each credited to its source. Details on our sources page. These texts are quoted exactly as published; no answer is written by AI. Quran Chat does not issue fatwas.