سُوْرَةُ الزُّخْرُفِ
Surah Az-Zukhruf (43) — Ayah 58
وَقَالُوٓا۟ ءَأَـٰلِهَتُنَا خَيْرٌ أَمْ هُوَ ۚ مَا ضَرَبُوهُ لَكَ إِلَّا جَدَلًۢا ۚ بَلْ هُمْ قَوْمٌ خَصِمُونَ ﴿58﴾
Translation by Dr. Muhammad Muhsin Khan & Dr. Taqi-ud-Din al-Hilali
And say: "Are our âlihah (gods) better or is he [‘Îsâ (Jesus)]?" They quoted not the above example except for argument. Nay! But they are a quarrelsome people. (See V. 21:98-101)
Word by Word — Arabic, Transliteration & Meaning
وَقَالُوٓا۟
waqālū
And they said
ءَأَـٰلِهَتُنَا
aālihatunā
Are our gods
خَيْرٌ
khayrun
better
أَمْ
am
or
هُوَ ۚ
huwa
he
مَا
mā
Not
ضَرَبُوهُ
ḍarabūhu
they present it
لَكَ
laka
to you
إِلَّا
illā
except
جَدَلًۢا ۚ
jadalan
(for) argument
بَلْ
bal
Nay
هُمْ
hum
they
قَوْمٌ
qawmun
(are) a people
خَصِمُونَ
khaṣimūna
argumentative
Tafsir Taiseer ul-Quran — Maulana Abdul Rahman Kilani
Tafsir Taiseer ul-Quran (Facilitation of the Quran) is a comprehensive Quran commentary by Maulana Abdul Rahman Kilani, a renowned Salafi (Ahl al-Hadith) scholar from Pakistan. Known for his eloquent and accessible writing style, Kilani authored this tafsir with a focus on clarity — making Quranic meanings understandable to the common reader. The tafsir provides detailed historical context for verses related to battles and expeditions, and firmly refutes modernist ideologies using strong scriptural evidence. It is widely regarded as an invaluable resource for understanding the Quran and countering deviant interpretations. The tafsir is originally written in Urdu, translated to English by tohed.com.
58. And they said, "Are our gods better [56], or is he (Jesus)?" They only bring up this example to argue with you. In fact, they are a quarrelsome [57] people.
[56] The polytheists of Makkah made a commotion that if all deities besides Allah will be fuel for Hell, then how is Sayyiduna Isa ؑ better than our deities, and how are our deities inferior to him? In that case, we would consider our own deities to be better.
[57] That is, the polytheists do not engage in such debates so that if they receive a reasonable answer, they will accept it. Rather, they do so because such contentious argumentation has become part of their nature. And they are engaged in trying to entangle the truth in disputes so as to prevent people from coming closer to the truth.
[56] The polytheists of Makkah made a commotion that if all deities besides Allah will be fuel for Hell, then how is Sayyiduna Isa ؑ better than our deities, and how are our deities inferior to him? In that case, we would consider our own deities to be better.
[57] That is, the polytheists do not engage in such debates so that if they receive a reasonable answer, they will accept it. Rather, they do so because such contentious argumentation has become part of their nature. And they are engaged in trying to entangle the truth in disputes so as to prevent people from coming closer to the truth.
