17.88. Qul la-ini idschtamaAAati al-insu waaldschinnuAAala an ya/tuu bimithli hatha alqur-ani laya/tuuna bimithlihi walaw kana baAAduhum libaAAdindhahiiran
17.88. Say: Verily, though mankind and the Jinn should assemble to produce the like of this Quran, they could not produce the like thereof though they were helpers one of another. (Pickthall)
17.88. Sag: Wenn sich die Menschheit und die Dschinn dazu zusammentäten, daß sie etwas diesem Koran Gleiches brächten, - sie bringen nicht etwas ihm Gleiches, und wenn die einen von ihnen den anderen Beistand gäben. (Ahmad v. Denffer)
17.88. Sag: Wenn sich die Menschen und die Ginn zusammentäten, um etwas beizubringen, was diesem Qur´an gleich wäre, sie brächten nicht seinesgleichen bei, auch wenn sie einander Beistand leisten würden. (Bubenheim)
17.88. Sage: "Wenn sich die Menschen und die Dschinn zusammentun würden, um einen ähnlichen Koran zu schaffen, würden sie es nicht können, auch wenn sie einander eifrig dabei unterstützen würden." (Azhar)
17.88. Sag: ‚Würden sich die Menschen und die Dschinn vereinigen, damit sie ein diesem Quran Gleiches hervorbringen, würden sie nicht Seinesgleichen hervorbringen, selbst dann nicht, sollten die einen den anderen beistehen.‘ (Zaidan)
17.88. Sag: Gesetzt den Fall, die Menschen und die Dschinn tun sich (alle) zusammen, um etwas beizubringen, was diesem Koran gleich(wertig) ist, so werden sie das nicht können. Auch (nicht), wenn sie sich gegenseitig (dabei) helfen würden. (Paret)
17.88. Sprich: "Wenn sich auch die Menschen und die Dschinn vereinigten, um etwas Gleiches wie diesen Qur'an hervorzubringen, brächten sie doch nichts Gleiches hervor, selbst wenn sie einander beistünden." (Rasul)
17.88. Sprich: "Wenn sich die Menschen und die Dschinn zusammentäten, um etwas wie diesen Koran zu erschaffen, würden sie nichts Vergleichbares zustande bringen, selbst wenn sie sich gegenseitig unterstützen würden." (Périsset)
Tafsir von Maududi für die Ayaat 86 bis 88
O Muhammad, We may, if We so will, take back from you all of what We have revealed to you: then you will find none to help you in getting it back from Us. All that you have received is by the favour of your Lord. Indeed His favour to you is very great. ( 104 ) Declare this, "Even if human beings and jinns should cooperate with one another to bring forth a book like the Qur'an, they will never be able to bring anything like it, even though all of them help one another." ( 105 )
Desc No: 104 Though these words arc apparently addressed by the Holy Prophet, they are in fact meant for the disbelievers who considered the Holy Qur'an to be either the invention of the Holy Prophet himself or of some other man, who secretly taught him the Qur'an. They are being told that this is the Word of Allah, as if to say, "Our Prophet has not fabricated the Qur'an but We have bestowed this on him, and if We take it back from him, the Prophet has no power to invent such a thing nor has any other man the power to help the Prophet to present such a miraculous Book. "
Desc No: 105 This challenge occurs at several other places in the Qur'an: (II: 23, X: 38-39, XL: 13-14, LII: 33-34). At all these places, this has been cited as an answer to the charge of the disbelievers that Muhammad (Allah's peace be upon him) has himself invented the Qur'an but is presenting it as Allah's Word. Besides this, the same has also been refuted in X: 16: "Say also, `Had not Allah willed that I should recite the Qur'an to you, I could not have recited it to you, nor could I have been able to give you any information about it: already have I lived a lifetime among you before its revelation. Do you not use your common sense?'" Now let us turn to the three arguments contained in these verses as a proof that the Qur'an is the Word of Allah. (1) The Qur'an is such a miracle in regard to its language, style, arguments, themes, topics, teachings and prophecies that it is beyond any human power to produce the like of it, as if to say, "You say that a man has invented this but We challenge that even the whole of mankind combined cannot produce a Book like this: nay, even if the jinns, whom the mushriks worship as deities and whom this Book openly attacks, should come to the help of the disbelievers, they cannot produce a Book like this to refute this challenge." (2) As regards the charge that Muhammad (Allah's peace be upon him) has himself invented this Book, the Qur'an refutes their claim, as if to say, "Muhammad is one of you and not a foreigner. He has lived among you for forty years before the revelation of the Qur'an. Did you ever hear words like those of the Qur'an from him even a day before his claim of Prophethood, or did you ever hear him discussing themes and problems contained in the Qur'an? If you consider the matter from this point of view, it will become obvious to you that the sudden change which has come about in the language, ideas, information, style and the way of thinking of Muhammad, could not take place without Divine Guidance." (3) "Can you not see that after the recital of the Qur'an he dces not disappear but lives among you? You hear other things than the Qur'an from him. Do you not notice that the distinction between the two different styles of expression is so obvious that no man can successfully adopt the two styles at one and the same time?" The distinction can also be noticed, even today, between the language of the Qur'an and that of the Traditions of the Holy Prophet. Anyone well-versed in the Arabic language and literature notices the difference which is so marked that one can categorically say that these modes of expression cannot belong to one and the same person. (For further reference please also see E.N. 21 of X 16). "