قُلْ أَتُحَآجُّونَنَا فِى ٱللَّهِ وَهُوَ رَبُّنَا وَرَبُّكُمْ وَلَنَآ أَعْمَٰلُنَا وَلَكُمْ أَعْمَٰلُكُمْ وَنَحْنُ لَهُۥ مُخْلِصُونَ
“Say (unto the People of the Scripture): Dispute ye with us concerning Allah when He is our Lord and your Lord? Ours are our works and yours your works. We look to Him alone.” — M. M. Pickthall
Taberî9-10. c.✓ Citation verified
According to Taberî, this verse was revealed in response to Jews and Christians telling the Prophet and his companions 'become Jewish or Christian so that you may be guided' and claiming superiority with Allah due to their religion/scriptures being superior. Allah commands His Prophet to respond to those making this claim with 'Do you argue with us about Allah?'; He informs that everyone will receive reward only for what they have earned through their deeds, and that superiority is not determined by lineage, religion, or the antiquity of scripture, but by deeds. Furthermore, the believers are taught to say that they do not associate anything with Allah in worship (unlike Jews and Christians who worship the calf or the Messiah).
يقول الله لنبيه محمد صلى الله عليه وسلم: قل يا محمد لهؤلاء اليهود والنصارى: أتحاجوننا في الله، وتزعمون أن دينكم أفضل
Zemahşerî12. c.✓ Citation verified
According to this exegete, the expression 'lâghîn' (those who speak frivolously, those who slip in speech) mentioned without a name in the text is understood through the indication of another expression in the context; that is, the pronoun or related word refers to the persons indicated by the preceding expression.
قلت : اللاغين الذين دل عليهم قوله
Fahreddin er-Râzî12-13. c.✓ Citation verified
According to this exegete, the verse contains different possibilities regarding who is arguing with whom and the subject of the argument; the argument either concerns the People of the Book's claim to superiority because prophethood is theirs, or their claim to precedence in faith against the Arab polytheists, or it concerns disputes about Allah's religion in general. Râzî notes that a person cannot object to his Lord and that mankind's relation to Allah is only through servitude, that this relation is common but those who worship with sincerity are superior; he prefers this second interpretation.
لا نسبة لكم إلى الله تعالى إلا بالعبودية ، وهذه النسبة مشتركة بيننا وبينكم ، فلم ترجحون أنفسكم علينا ، بل الترجيح من جانبنا لأنا مخلصون له في العبودية ، ولستم كذلك ، وهو المراد بقوله : { ونحن له } وهذا التأويل أقرب
Kurtubî13. c.✓ Citation verified
Kurtubî explains the expression in the verse as 'those who possess sincerity in worship' and notes that there is a sense of reproach (tevbih) in this; that is, the addressees, despite not being sincere, claim that they have more right than Muslims in this matter. In this context, he explains that the true meaning of sincerity is to completely cleanse the deed performed from regard for creatures, and he transmits hadith and Sufi sayings that support this.
أي مخلصون العبادة وفيه معنى التوبيخ أي ولم تخلصوا أنتم فكيف تدعون ما نحن أولى به منكم والإخلاص حقيقته تصفية الفعل عن ملاحظة المخلوقين
İbn Kesîr14. c.✓ Citation verified
According to Ibn Kesîr, this verse expresses the believers' argument with the People of the Book regarding inviting to Allah's oneness, turning to Him with sincerity, obeying His commands and avoiding His prohibitions. The believers declare themselves free (distant) both from their interlocutors and from what they worship, stating that in worship and turning they are devoted solely to Allah with sincerity. Furthermore, Allah refutes the claim that Ibrahim and the prophets mentioned after him, as well as the tribes, were on Judaism or Christianity.
أي نحن برآء منكم ومما تعبدون وأنتم برآء كما قال في الآية الأخرى أي نحن برآء منكم كما أنتم برآء منا ونحن له مخلصون
Beydâvî13. c.✓ Citation verified
According to Beydâvî, this verse is a response to the People of the Book's claim that 'the prophets are from us, and if you were a prophet you would be from us.' Allah's response is that He is also their Lord, is not specific to a particular people, and manifests His mercy in whomever of His servants He wills; that prophethood is either purely Allah's grace or a right given to those who continue worship and are ready with sincerity, and in either case the Muslims' deeds and sincerity deserve this honor. The text emphasizes that this response is of a nature that refutes and silences them through every sect/viewpoint they might adopt.
فإن كرامة النبوة إما تفضل من الله على من يشاء والكل فيه سواء، وإما إفاضة حق على المستعدين لها بالمواظبة على الطاعة والتحلي بالإخلاص
Comparison
Common ground
All exegetes address the verse as a response to the People of the Book's claims of religious/genealogical superiority and emphasize the believers' sincerity in worship. There is a common emphasis that superiority is determined not by lineage, the antiquity of scripture, or claims to prophethood, but by deeds and sincerity.
Differences
While Taberî focuses on the historical occasion of revelation based on narrations and qiraa'at differences (particularly the meaning of interrogation), Zemahşerî and Râzî give weight to linguistic and rhetorical analysis, resolving whom the expression refers to and the likely parties to the dispute. Kurtubî adds an esoteric layer by deepening the concept of sincerity with hadith and Sufi sayings; Ibn Kesîr refutes the claim of the prophets' association with a particular religion through inter-Quranic comparison; Beydâvî raises the discussion of whether prophethood is grace or a right through rational argumentation. These differences relate to the dominant exegetical method of their periods (narration, juristic reasoning, rhetoric, Islamic theology, mysticism).
Historical context
From Taberî to Beydâvî, there is an enrichment from narration-centered reading to linguistic/rhetorical and theological analysis, followed by mystical deepening in Kurtubî; however, the core message of sincerity's and deeds' determinative role remains constant. Methods have diversified, but the verse's essential meaning has been preserved.
Modern connection
This comparative reading reminds us that superiority is measured not by lineage, affiliation, or purported claims, but by sincere intention and constructive deeds. In today's context, this can be understood as an attitude that encourages a person to prioritize their own effort and sincerity, focusing on the quality of their own deeds rather than judging others. Moreover, it offers a cautious reminder about the importance of seeking a common truth rather than making superiority claims when in dialogue with those of different beliefs and thoughts.
AI analysis — not a fatwa or ruling, not yet reviewed by a scholar