Surah Al-Baqara (2) — Ayah 34

(Ayah 34) ➊ The first virtue of Adam (peace be upon him) was the manifestation of knowledge, now this is the second honor that the angels were commanded to prostrate before him. This was not merely to show respect or obedience, but rather to place their foreheads on the ground, because this is the real meaning of prostration. This was not a prostration of worship, because worshiping other than Allah is shirk, which was never permitted in any nation, so how could Allah command the angels to commit shirk? Rather, this was a prostration of respect, which was permissible in previous nations, but is forbidden in our nation, just as in some previous nations marriage to a sister was permissible, but is now forbidden.
Abdullah bin Abi Awfa (may Allah be pleased with him) narrates that when Muadh (may Allah be pleased with him) returned from Syria, he prostrated to the Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him). The Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him) said: "Muadh! What is this?" He said, "I went to Syria and saw them prostrating to their priests and leaders, so I wished in my heart that we should do the same with you." The Messenger of Allah (peace and blessings be upon him) said: "Do not do this, for if I were to command anyone to prostrate to other than Allah, I would have commanded a woman to prostrate to her husband." [ ابن ماجہ، النکاح، باب حق الزوج علی المرأۃ : ۱۸۵۳] But alas, ignorant Sufis and common people, when they visit the saints, prostrate to them, and they too remain silent and encourage them in this.

➋ Iblis was not an angel but was from the jinn. [ الکہف : ۵۰ ] Here, the command to the angels to prostrate does not mean that Iblis was an angel, nor that he was not commanded, rather the matter is stated briefly here. In Surah Al-A'raf (12) there is detail that Allah, besides the angels, specifically commanded Iblis to prostrate, saying: { « مَا مَنَعَكَ اَلَّا تَسْجُدَ اِذْ اَمَرْتُكَ » } [ الأعراف : ۱۲ ] "What prevented you from prostrating when I commanded you?"

The cause of Iblis's refusal was his arrogance. Abdullah bin Mas'ud (may Allah be pleased with him) narrates that the Messenger of Allah (peace and blessings be upon him) said: "He will not enter Paradise who has even an atom's weight of arrogance in his heart." [ مسلم، الإیمان، باب تحریم الکبر و بیانہ : ۹۱ ]

34. 1 After the excellence in knowledge, this was the second honor bestowed upon Prophet Adam (علیہ السلام). The meaning of sajdah is humility and supplication, and its ultimate form is placing the forehead on the ground (Qurtubi). In Islamic law, sajdah is not permissible for anyone except Allah Almighty. The famous saying of the Prophet ﷺ is that if sajdah were permissible for anyone else, I would have ordered a woman to perform sajdah to her husband. (Sunan Tirmidhi) However, the angels performed sajdah to Prophet Adam (علیہ السلام) by the command of Allah, which made his honor and excellence over the angels clear. Because this sajdah was as a form of respect and honor, not as worship. Now, even as a form of respect, sajdah cannot be performed for anyone.

34. 2 Iblis refused to perform sajdah and became accursed. As clarified in the Quran, Iblis was among the jinn, but Allah Almighty had included him among the angels as an honor, so by divine command, it was necessary for him to perform sajdah as well. But due to jealousy and arrogance, he refused to perform sajdah. Thus, jealousy and arrogance are the sins that were committed first in the world of humanity, and the one who committed them was Iblis.

34. 3 That is, in the knowledge and decree of Allah Almighty.

34. And (remember) when We said to the angels, "Prostrate before Adam [46]." So they all prostrated except Iblis; he refused, acted arrogantly, and became one of the disbelievers [47].

[46]
Prostration of Reverence:

When the angels acknowledged the superiority of Adam ؑ, they were commanded to prostrate to him. Regarding this prostration, scholars have two opinions. One is that since this prostration was by Allah’s command, it was not actually to Adam ؑ but was equivalent to prostrating to Allah Himself and was in compliance with His command. The second is that this was a prostration of reverence, which was permissible before our Shariah. Just as the brothers of Sayyiduna Yusuf ؑ also prostrated to him. Both these interpretations are correct. However, in the Shariah of Muhammad ﷺ, there is no allowance for prostration of reverence.

[47]
The Reason for Iblis’s Rivalry:

Iblis was actually from the species of jinn [18: 50] and, due to his abundance of worship, used to mingle among the angels. When, because of mischief and corruption, the angels drove the jinn towards the seas, at that time too he was included among the angels, and since jinn are also a responsible creation and possess the power of choice and will, after the jinn, Iblis himself was hoping for the vicegerency of the earth. Then, when Allah Almighty made Adam ؑ the vicegerent, he burned with jealousy inside, and when the angels were commanded to prostrate, his inner envy and malice surged, and he refused to prostrate and became arrogant, and openly began to express his superiority over Adam [7: 12]. Because of this, he was cast out from the court of Allah and declared a disbeliever. Thus, his crime was not only that he did not prostrate, but even more so that, due to arrogance, he began to declare his own superiority in opposition to the command of Allah.