أَلَمْ تَرَ إِلَى ٱلَّذِينَ أُوتُوا۟ نَصِيبًۭا مِّنَ ٱلْكِتَٰبِ يُدْعَوْنَ إِلَىٰ كِتَٰبِ ٱللَّهِ لِيَحْكُمَ بَيْنَهُمْ ثُمَّ يَتَوَلَّىٰ فَرِيقٌۭ مِّنْهُمْ وَهُم مُّعْرِضُونَ
Do you not consider, [O Muhammad], those who were given a portion of the Scripture? They are invited to the Scripture of Allah that it should arbitrate between them; then a party of them turns away, and they are refusing.
Introduction
This is āyah 23 of Sūrat Aal-i-Imraan (Family of Imran), the 89th sūrah in the traditional order of revelation. It was revealed in the Medinan period and sits within Juzʾ 3. Medinan verses often address community life, law, and the building of society.
This introduction is a starting point — the community and Bilal will enrich it over time.
Revelation & occasion
- Period
- Medinan
- Order revealed
- 89 of 114
- Surah
- Aal-i-Imraan (3)
(Hast thou not seen how those who have received a portion of the Scripture�) [3:23]. There is a difference of opinion about this verse�s occasion of revelation. Al-Suddi said: �When the Prophet, Allah bless him and give him peace, called the Jews to embrace Islam, al-Nu�man ibn Awfa said to him: �Come, O Muhammad, and let the rabbis judge between us�. He said: �Let the Scripture of Allah be judge between us�. They said: �No! Let the rabbis judge�. And so Allah, exalted is He, revealed this verse�. On the other hand, Sa�id ibn Jubayr and �Ikrimah reported that Ibn �Abbas said: �The Messenger of Allah, Allah bless him and give him peace, entered in on a group of Jews in a Jewish place of study and called them to Allah. Nu�aym ibn �Amr and al-Harith ibn Zayd said to him: �O Muhammad, which religion are you on?� He said: �The religion of Abraham�. They said: �But Abraham was a Jew�. The Messenger of Allah, Allah bless him and give him peace, said: �In that case, let us go to the Torah and let it judge between us�. They refused. And Allah, exalted is He, revealed this verse�. Said al-Kalbi: �This was revealed about those who committed fornication in Khaybar and the Jews who asked the Prophet, Allah bless him and give him peace, about the legal punishment of fornication�. The elaboration on this will come in Surah al-Ma�idah, Allah, exalted is He, willing�.
Tafsir
Hafiz Ibn Kathir
Chains of transmission
Oral — isnād
- ~610–632 CERevelation & memorisation
Received by the Prophet ﷺ and preserved by the ḥuffāẓ (memorisers) among the Companions.
- 1st century AHMutawātir transmissionawaiting curation
Carried by mass-transmission through the generations of qurrāʾ.
- TodayLiving chainsawaiting curation
Continuous ijāzah chains link reciters today back to the Prophet ﷺ.
Verified isnād chains for this āyah will be added by curators.
Written — the manuscript record
- ~650 CEʿUthmānic codicesawaiting curation
The standardised muṣḥaf sent to the great cities (e.g. the Topkapı and Samarqand codices).
- 8th–10th c.Early Ḥijāzī & Kūfic foliosawaiting curation
Surviving leaves in Birmingham, Sanaa, Paris (BnF) and beyond.
- Modern printModern printawaiting curation
The 1924 Cairo edition → today: the standard printed muṣḥaf used worldwide.
A curated chain of manuscript images for this exact āyah — roughly one per century — is coming. Help us source and verify them.
And now — what do you think?
The text, its history and the classical commentary are laid out above. Share your own understanding, ask a question, or reason with others.
Community resources
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