Al-Qur'an Surah Al-'Ankabut Verse 50

Mufti Taqi Usmani

And they say, “Why is it that no signs (miracles) have been sent down to him from his Lord?” Say, “Signs are only with Allah, and I am only a plain warner.”

Dr. Mustafa Khattab, the Clear Quran

They say, “If only ˹some˺ signs had been sent down to him from his Lord!” Say, ˹O Prophet,˺ “Signs are only with Allah. And I am only sent with a clear warning.”

Ruwwad Translation Center

They say, “Why is it that no signs have been sent down to him from his Lord?” Say, “The signs are only with Allah, and I am only a clear warner.”

A. J. Arberry

They say, 'Why have signs not been gent down upon him from his Lord?' Say: 'The signs are only with God, and I am only a plain warner.

Abdul Haleem

They say, ‘Why have no miracles been sent to him by his Lord?’ Say, ‘Miracles lie in God’s hands; I am simply here to warn you plainly.’

Abdul Majid Daryabadi

And they say: wherefore are not signs sent down upon him from his Lord! Say thou: signs are with Allah only, and I am but a manifest warner.

Abdullah Yusuf Ali

Ye they say; "Why are not Signs sent down to him from his Lord?" Say; "The signs are indeed with Allah; and I am indeed a clear Warner."

Abul Ala Maududi

They say: “Why were Signs from his Lord not sent down upon him?” Say: “The Signs are only with Allah. As for me, I am no more than a plain warner.”

Ahmed Ali

For they say: "How Is it no signs were sent down to him from his Lord?" Say: "The signs are with God. I am only a warner, plain and simple."

Ahmed Raza Khan

And they said, “Why did not signs come down to him from his Lord?” Say, “Signs are only with Allah; and I am purely a Herald of plain warning.”

Ali Quli Qarai

They say, ‘Why has not some sign been sent down to him from his Lord?’ Say, ‘These signs are only from Allah, and I am only a manifest warner.’

Ali Ünal

They say: "Why have no miraculous signs been sent down on him from his Lord?" Say: "The miraculous signs are but at the Will and in the Power of only God. I am but a plain warner (with no freedom and power to be able to do whatever I wish)."

Amatul Rahman Omar

And they say, `Why have no signs (of punishment) been revealed to him from his Lord?´ Say (to them), `The signs are many with Allâh, accordingly I am about to give you plain warning (concerning some of the signs of punishment).´

English Literal

And they said: "If only verses/evidences/signs were descended on (to) him from his Lord." Say: "But/truly the verses/evidence/signs (are) at God, and but/truly I am a clear/evident warner/giver of notice ."

Faridul Haque

And they said, “Why did not signs come down to him from his Lord?” Say, “Signs are only with Allah; and I am purely a Herald of plain warning.”

Hamid S. Aziz

Nay, but it is a clear revelation in the heart of those who are endowed with knowledge, and none deny Our revelations save the wrongdoers (or unjust).

Hilali & Khan

And they say: "Why are not signs sent down to him from his Lord? Say: "The signs are only with Allah, and I am only a plain warner."

Maulana Mohammad Ali

And thou didst not recite before it any book, nor didst thou transcribe one with thy right hand, for then could the liars have doubted.

Mohammad Habib Shakir

And they say: Why are not signs sent down upon him from his Lord? Say: The signs are only with Allah, and I am only a plain warner.

Mohammed Marmaduke William Pickthall

And they say: Why are not portents sent down upon him from his Lord? Say: Portents are with Allah only, and I am but a plain warner.

Muhammad Sarwar

They say, "Why a miracle is not sent to him from his Lord." Say, "Miracles are in the hands of God. I am simply a warner."

Qaribullah & Darwish

They ask: 'Why has not a sign been sent down upon him from his Lord' Say: 'The signs are only with Allah. I am only a clear warner'

Safi-ur-Rahman al-Mubarakpuri

And they say: "Why are not signs sent down to him from his Lord" Say: "The signs are only with Allah, and I am only a plain warner."

Wahiduddin Khan

They say, "Why has no sign been given to him by his Lord?" Say, "The signs are in the hands of God. I am but a plain warner."

Talal Itani

And they said, “If only a miracle from his Lord was sent down to him.” Say, “Miracles are only with God, and I am only a clear warner.”

Tafsir jalalayn

And they, namely, the disbelievers of Mecca, say, `Why has not some sign been sent down to him, [to] Muhammad (s), from his Lord?' (yatun, `sign'; a variant reading has ytun, `signs') such as the she-camel of Slih, or the staff of Moses, or the Table of Jesus. Say, to them; `Signs are only with God, and He sends them down as He will, and I am only a plain warner', making manifest my warning of [the punishment of] the Fire for disobedient people.

Tafseer Ibn Kathir

The Idolators' demand for Signs, and the Response

Allah says;

وَقَالُوا لَوْلَا أُنزِلَ عَلَيْهِ ايَاتٌ مِّن رَّبِّهِ

And they say;"Why are not signs sent down to him from his Lord!"

Allah tells us how the idolators stubbornly demanded signs, meaning that they wanted signs to show them that Muhammad was indeed the Messenger of Allah, just as Salih was given the sign of the she-camel.

Allah says;

قُلْ

Say -- `O Muhammad' --

إِنَّمَا الاْيَاتُ عِندَ اللَّهِ

The signs are only with Allah,

meaning, `the matter rests with Allah, and if He knew that you would be guided, He would respond to your request, because it is very easy for Him to do that. Yet He knows that you are merely being stubborn and putting me to the test, so He will not respond to you.'

This is like the Ayah,

وَمَا مَنَعَنَأ أَن نُّرْسِلَ بِالاٌّيَـتِ إِلاَّ أَن كَذَّبَ بِهَا الاٌّوَّلُونَ وَءَاتَيْنَا ثَمُودَ النَّاقَةَ مُبْصِرَةً فَظَلَمُواْ بِهَا

And nothing stops Us from sending the Ayat but that the people of old denied them. And We sent the she-camel to Thamud as a clear sign, but they did her wrong. (17;59)

وَإِنَّمَا أَنَا نَذِيرٌ مُّبِينٌ



and I am only a plain warner.

means, `I have been sent to you only as a warner to bring a clear warning; all I have to do is convey the Message of Allah to you.'

مَن يَهْدِ اللَّهُ فَهُوَ الْمُهْتَدِ وَمَن يُضْلِلْ فَلَن تَجِدَ لَهُ وَلِيًّا مُّرْشِدًا

He whom Allah guides, he is the rightly-guided; but he whom He sends astray, for him you will find no guide to lead him. (18;17)

لَّيْسَ عَلَيْكَ هُدَاهُمْ وَلَـكِنَّ اللَّهَ يَهْدِى مَن يَشَأءُ

Not upon you is their guidance, but Allah guides whom He wills. (2;272)

Then Allah shows us how ignorant and foolish they were when they demanded a sign to prove to them that what Muhammad had brought to them was true. He brought them a great Book which falsehood cannot reach, neither from before it or behind it, it was greater than all other miracles, for the most eloquent of men could not match it or produce ten Surahs, or even one Surah like it