Transliteration:( Wa qaalut takhazar Rahmaanu waladaa; Subhaanahu bal 'ibaadum mukramoon )
"And they said, 'The Most Affectionate has taken for Himself a son.' Holy is He. Nay, they are honoured bondsmen [39]."
This verse refutes the false claim of those who say that Allah has taken a son, whether they refer to angels or prophets.
Allah responds by declaring His absolute purity—“Holy is He”—free from all human-like needs such as having offspring.
But rather than speaking ill of those being wrongly associated with Allah, such as angels or prophets, the verse honours them, calling them noble servants.
This teaches a key principle: when refuting the misguided beliefs of disbelievers, do not insult the pious figures they’ve misunderstood or misrepresented.
Instead, defend their dignity while clarifying their true status as obedient and honoured servants of Allah.
This was revealed in response to tribes like Bani Khaza‘ah, who worshipped angels as daughters of Allah.
It also serves as a reminder to modern groups, like the Wahabis or Kharijites, that disrespecting the awliya (friends of Allah) in the name of Tawheed is itself a deviation.
26. And they say: “The Most Gracious has begotten children.” Glory to Him! They are but honored servants. 27. They speak not until He has spoken, and they act on His command. 28. He knows what is before them, and what is behind them, and they cannot intercede except for him with whom He is pleased. And they stand in awe for fear of Him. 29. And if any of them should say: “Verily, I am a god besides Him,” such We should recompense with Hell. Thus We recompense the wrongdoers.
Here Allah refutes those who claim that He has offspring among the angels — exalted and sanctified be He. Some of the Arabs believed that the angels were the daughters of Allah, but Allah says:
(Glory to Him! They are but honored servants.) meaning, the angels are servants of Allah who are honored by Him and who hold high positions of noble status. They obey Him to the utmost in all their words and deeds.
(They speak not until He has spoken, and they act on His command.) meaning, they do not initiate any matter before Him or go against His commands; on the contrary, they hasten to do as He commands, and He encompasses them with His knowledge so that nothing whatsoever is hidden from Him.
(He knows what is before them, and what is behind them,)
(and they cannot intercede except for him with whom He is pleased.) This is like the Ayat:
(Who is he that can intercede with Him except with His permission) ﴿2:255﴾
(Intercession with Him profits not except for him whom He permits) ﴿34:23﴾. There are many Ayat which say similar things.
(And they for fear of Him) means, because they fear Him.
(And they stand in awe. And if any of them should say: “Verily, I am a god besides Him,”) meaning, whoever claims to be a god instead of Allah, i.e., alongside Allah,
(such We should recompense with Hell. Thus We recompense the wrongdoers.) meaning, everyone who says this. This is a conditional sentence, and the condition stated does not necessarily have to take place. This is like the Ayat:
(Say: “If the Most Gracious had a son, then I am the first of worshippers.”) ﴿43:81﴾
(If you join others in worship with Allah, (then) surely, (all) your deeds will be in vain, and you will certainly be among the losers.) ﴿39:65﴾
(21:26) They say: “The Most Compassionate Lord has taken to Himself a son.”[26] Glory be to Him! Those whom they so designate are only His honoured servants.
26. Here it refers to the angels as is clear from Ayat
[882]- Those they claim to be "children" of Allāh, such as the angels, Ezra, Jesus, etc.
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