Tafseer of Those drawn up in Ranks · As-Saaffaat · 37:96
While Allah created you and that which you do?"
Important: The Arabic source text is always authoritative. This translation is a study aid and has not been verified by scholars — do not use it as a basis for religious proof or for deriving rulings (ahkam). When in doubt, always consult the Arabic text and a qualified scholar.
And His statement وَاللَّهُ خَلَقَكُمْ وَمَا تَعْمَلُونَ ("And Allah created you and what you make"): He, the Exalted, whose mention is exalted, says, reporting what Ibrāhīm said to his people: and Allah created you, O people, and what you make. In His statement وَمَا تَعْمَلُونَ ("and what you make") there are two possible meanings: the first is that the word "mā" has the meaning of a verbal noun (maṣdar), so that the meaning of the sentence is then: and Allah created you and your doing.
And the other is that it has the meaning of "that which" (alladhī), so that the meaning of the sentence is then: and Allah created you and that which you make, that is to say: and that from which you make the idols, namely the wood, the copper, and the things from which they used to carve their idols.
This second meaning is, if Allah wills, what Qatāda intended by his statement that has been transmitted to us: Bishr related to us, he said: Yazīd related to us, he said: Saʿīd related to us, on the authority of Qatāda: وَاللَّهُ خَلَقَكُمْ وَمَا تَعْمَلُونَ: with your hands.
