RationalWiki:Annotated Qur'an/The Israelites

From RationalWiki
Jump to navigation Jump to search
Annotated Qur'an
Sura 17: The Israelites
Word-by-word translation
Alternate translations and related tafsirs
Alternate translations
Previous sura Following sura


Qur'an 17:1[edit]

Glory to Him who journeyed His servant by night, from the Sacred Mosque, to the Farthest Mosque, whose precincts We have blessed, in order to show him of Our wonders. He is the Listener, the Beholder.

Qur'an 17:1 Notes[edit]

Why exactly does Allah need to be a "Listener" or "Beholder" when he supposedly already knows everything that will ever happen anyways?

Qur'an 17:2[edit]

And We gave Moses the Scripture, and made it a guide for the Children of Israel: Take none for protector other than Me.

Qur'an 17:2 Notes[edit]

The most important part of this "Scripture" is to not hurt your ego by acknowledging that any other gods could exist?

Qur'an 17:3[edit]

The descendants of those We carried with Noah. He was an appreciative servant.

Qur'an 17:3 Notes[edit]

Notably, depending on how many people were with Noah on that magic boat, these descendants are all the result of insane incest.

Qur'an 17:4[edit]

And We conveyed to the Children of Israel in the Scripture: You will commit evil on earth twice, and you will rise to a great height.

Qur'an 17:4 Notes[edit]

Strangely vague, but okay...

Qur'an 17:5[edit]

When the first of the two promises came true, We sent against you servants of Ours, possessing great might, and they ransacked your homes. It was a promise fulfilled.

Qur'an 17:5 Notes[edit]

The lack of details in these stories just makes them hard to read.

Qur'an 17:6[edit]

Then We gave you back your turn against them, and supplied you with wealth and children, and made you more numerous.

Qur'an 17:6 Notes[edit]

Who were these servants? What is the importance of this message?

Qur'an 17:7[edit]

If you work righteousness, you work righteousness for yourselves; and if you commit evil, you do so against yourselves. Then, when the second promise comes true, they will make your faces filled with sorrow, and enter the Temple as they entered it the first time, and utterly destroy all that falls into their power.

Qur'an 17:7 Notes[edit]

Allah could explain, at the very least, what "righteousness" and "evil" he's even talking about here.

Qur'an 17:8[edit]

Perhaps your Lord will have mercy on you. But if you revert, We will revert. We have made Hell a prison for the disbelievers.

Qur'an 17:8 Notes[edit]

This isn't real mercy if it's entirely dependent on total obedience.

Qur'an 17:9[edit]

This Quran guides to what is most upright; and it gives good news to the believers who do good deeds, that they will have a great reward.

Qur'an 17:9 Notes[edit]

This Quran could have guided people to abolishing slavery instead of condoning multiple forms of slavery. This Quran could have guided people to sincere acceptance instead of violent hatred of various minorities for absolutely zero good reasons. This Quran could have guided people to the greatest scientific and philosophical advancements in human history, and many Muslims love to attribute the Islamic Golden Age to specifically the religion of Islam, but the Quran itself goes against scientific thought while getting so many things demonstrably wrong.

Qur'an 17:10[edit]

And those who do not believe in the Hereafter—We have prepared for them a painful punishment.

Qur'an 17:10 Notes[edit]

This Quran could have guided people to accept the fact that people disagree about major things instead of insisting that people who disagree on this one specific thing deserve an agonizing punishment forever simply for disbelief.

Qur'an 17:11[edit]

The human being prays for evil as he prays for good. The human being is very hasty.

Qur'an 17:11 Notes[edit]

This Quran could have guided people to a decent understanding of how humans think and behave instead of sounding like the author had no idea what he was even saying.

Qur'an 17:12[edit]

We have made the night and the day two wonders. We erased the wonder of the night, and made the wonder of the day revealing, that you may seek bounty from your Lord, and know the number of years, and the calculation. We have explained all things in detail.

Qur'an 17:12 Notes[edit]

Unfortunately, the detail was lost or something.

Qur'an 17:13[edit]

For every person We have attached his fate to his neck. And on the Day of Resurrection, We will bring out for him a book which he will find spread open.

Qur'an 17:13 Notes[edit]

Why is this attached to the neck specifically? Is Allah seriously using imagery of choking and lynching for fate? Why?

Qur'an 17:14[edit]

“Read your book; today there will be none but yourself to call you to account.”

Qur'an 17:14 Notes[edit]

That book would describe real events, thus making infinitely more sense than this contradiction-laden "scripture" ever could.

Qur'an 17:15[edit]

Whoever is guided—is guided for his own good. And whoever goes astray—goes astray to his detriment. No burdened soul carries the burdens of another, nor do We ever punish until We have sent a messenger.

Qur'an 17:15 Notes[edit]

Allah could choose to just guide people and never force them astray, but the skydaddy just loves human suffering too much for that.

Qur'an 17:16[edit]

When We decide to destroy a town, We command its affluent ones, they transgress in it, so the word becomes justified against it, and We destroy it completely.

Qur'an 17:16 Notes[edit]

Allah apparently also destroys any evidence that the town was destroyed in any way described in this book along with any evidence that the people of that town died for doing exactly what Allah predestined them to do and going against Allah's questionable orders.

Qur'an 17:17[edit]

How many generations have We destroyed after Noah? Your Lord is sufficient as Knower and Beholder of the sins of his servants.

Qur'an 17:17 Notes[edit]

None, given that Allah is a fictional character.

Qur'an 17:18[edit]

Whoever desires the fleeting life, We expedite for him what We decide to give him, to whomever We desire. Then We consign him to Hell, where he will roast, condemned and defeated.

Qur'an 17:18 Notes[edit]

Similarly, Hell is a fictional location.

Qur'an 17:19[edit]

But whoever desires the Hereafter, and pursues it as it should be pursued, while he is a believer; these—their effort will be appreciated.

Qur'an 17:19 Notes[edit]

Similarly still, Heaven is a fictional location.

Qur'an 17:20[edit]

To all—these and those—We extend from the gifts of your Lord. The gifts of your Lord are not restricted.

Qur'an 17:20 Notes[edit]

How can a fictional character given anything other than a fictional gift?

Qur'an 17:21[edit]

See how We have favored some of them over others; yet the Hereafter is greater in ranks, and greater in favors.

Qur'an 17:21 Notes[edit]

Moreover, why does the skydaddy who supposedly created literally everybody and everything play favorites with his creations?

Qur'an 17:22[edit]

Do not set up another god with God, lest you become condemned and damned.

Qur'an 17:22 Notes[edit]

Only one god allowed, and his name is Allah.

Qur'an 17:23[edit]

Your Lord has commanded that you worship none but Him, and that you be good to your parents. If either of them or both of them reach old age with you, do not say to them a word of disrespect, nor scold them, but say to them kind words.

Qur'an 17:23 Notes[edit]

This verse, among others, leads to entitled parents who can mistreat their kids for perceived disrespect without even realizing. This is not to say that Muslim parents in general are abusive or anything of that sort. However, many parents are abusive without even realizing it because verses like this command kids to obey parents without talking back, leading many parents to take any signs of bad parenting as sinful behavior on the child's part. This verse specifically sets parents up to raise their kids to be obedient in the first place. This Quran could have guided people by teaching them about proper parenting instead of just telling children to obey their parents even in old age and not even talk back to indicate when the parents aren't doing the best job. Parenting is complicated, as each household is in a unique set of circumstances, but this just makes the need for proper nuance that much more important.

Qur'an 17:24[edit]

And lower to them the wing of humility, out of mercy, and say, “My Lord, have mercy on them, as they raised me when I was a child.”

Qur'an 17:24 Notes[edit]

Being humble to one's parents can definitely be a good thing, but it can also cause more harm in several circumstances. Parents don't inherently deserve humility form their kids just for birthing and raising kids.

Qur'an 17:25[edit]

Your Lord knows best what is in your minds. If you are righteous—He is Forgiving to the obedient.

Qur'an 17:25 Notes[edit]

This "Most Merciful" and "Most Forgiving" deity should always be forgiving to everybody and not just "to the obedient" for that to mean anything.

Qur'an 17:26[edit]

And give the relative his rights, and the poor, and the wayfarer, and do not squander wastefully.

Qur'an 17:26 Notes[edit]

Can this verse get any vaguer at all?

Qur'an 17:27[edit]

The extravagant are brethren of the devils, and the devil is ever ungrateful to his Lord.

Qur'an 17:27 Notes[edit]

Why would the devils be grateful to a god who made them as they are exactly?

Qur'an 17:28[edit]

But if you turn away from them, seeking mercy from your Lord which you hope for, then say to them words of comfort.

Qur'an 17:28 Notes[edit]

Allah and the devils are fictional, so there will be no need for that.

Qur'an 17:29[edit]

And do not keep your hand tied to your neck, nor spread it out fully, lest you end up liable and regretful.

Qur'an 17:29 Notes[edit]

Why would anybody tie a hand to their neck? Is this meant to be a metaphor that was somehow not made clear in the book priding itself on clarity?

Qur'an 17:30[edit]

Your Lord expands the provision for whomever He wills, and restricts it. He is fully Informed, Observant of His servants.

Qur'an 17:30 Notes[edit]

Why, then, does he get so many things wrongs about humanity in general?

Qur'an 17:31[edit]

And do not kill your children for fear of poverty. We provide for them, and for you. Killing them is a grave sin.

Qur'an 17:31 Notes[edit]

We finally get parenting advice. Parents should not kill their children even in times of poverty. Also, despite claiming to "provide for them", Allah seems content looking on as children all over the world starve to death.

Qur'an 17:32[edit]

And do not come near adultery. It is immoral, and an evil way.

Qur'an 17:32 Notes[edit]

Sex slavery and child grooming is perfectly acceptable. Allah just has a problem with free adults consenting without any oppressive power dynamics for some reason.

Qur'an 17:33[edit]

And do not kill the soul which God has made sacred, except in the course of justice. If someone is killed unjustly, We have given his next of kin certain authority. But he should not be excessive in killing, for he will be supported.

Qur'an 17:33 Notes[edit]

Allah does a terrible job explaining "justice" in this context.

Qur'an 17:34[edit]

And do not go near the orphan’s property, except with the best of intentions, until he has reached his maturity. And honor your pledge, because the pledge involves responsibility.

Qur'an 17:34 Notes[edit]

Allah could easily institute a systemic solution to orphans suffering as some of the most vulnerable people in almost every society. This command isn't it. Then again, Allah has no problem with letting them suffer as orphans in the first place.

Qur'an 17:35[edit]

And give full measure when you measure, and weigh with accurate scales. That is fair, and the best determination.

Qur'an 17:35 Notes[edit]

This means less than nothing coming from the same god who predestines the vast majority of humanity to commit harmless thoughtcrimes in a finite lifetime and then subjecting all of them to endless torture.

Qur'an 17:36[edit]

And do not occupy yourself with what you have no knowledge of. The hearing, and the sight, and the brains—all these will be questioned.

Qur'an 17:36 Notes[edit]

Is this verse meant as a dig against faith?

Qur'an 17:37[edit]

And do not walk proudly on earth. You can neither pierce the earth, nor can you match the mountains in height.

Qur'an 17:37 Notes[edit]

It apparently was not a dig against faith as digging is somehow impossible according to this verse. What else could "pierce the earth" mean here?

Qur'an 17:38[edit]

The evil of all these is disliked by your Lord.

Qur'an 17:38 Notes[edit]

And yet he created a world where all of these things happen. Why did he knowingly and willingly make something that he dislikes when he could have made a world without any of those.

Qur'an 17:39[edit]

That is some of the wisdom your Lord has revealed to you. Do not set up with God another god, or else you will be thrown in Hell, rebuked and banished.

Qur'an 17:39 Notes[edit]

What kind of "wisdom" is this?

Qur'an 17:40[edit]

Has your Lord favored you with sons, while choosing for Himself daughters from among the angels? You are indeed saying a terrible thing.

Qur'an 17:40 Notes[edit]

This book is full of terrible things. Also, how does Allah find this offensive while he promises to inflict agony on the vast majority of humans forever simply for doing exactly what he predestined them to do?

Qur'an 17:41[edit]

We have explained in this Quran in various ways, that they may remember, but it only adds to their rebellion.

Qur'an 17:41 Notes[edit]

Those ways must all have sucked, though Allah made them suck on purpose to all but a minority of humanity.

Qur'an 17:42[edit]

Say, “If there were other gods with Him, as they say, they would have sought a way to the Lord of the Throne.”

Qur'an 17:42 Notes[edit]

And yet, there are no gods with Allah because there is no Allah in the first place.

Qur'an 17:43[edit]

Be He glorified. He is exalted, far above what they say.

Qur'an 17:43 Notes[edit]

He glorifies himself and created people just to glorify him more. He said in a book that each and every one of these hoomanz was created just to worship him. He predestined the vast majority of them to not do the one thing which they were literally created to do, but he plans on guaranteeing that they all suffer forever just because they did exactly what Allah predestined them to do and not what Allah commanded them to do.

Qur'an 17:44[edit]

Praising Him are the seven heavens, and the earth, and everyone in them. There is not a thing that does not glorify Him with praise, but you do not understand their praises. He is indeed Forbearing and Forgiving.

Qur'an 17:44 Notes[edit]

This verse literally says that everybody in the seven heavens (whatever definition of "heavens" makes that part make sense) and the earth praises Allah. Does this mean that everybody goes to Heaven... or one of the seven heavens, apparently... and nobody gets thrown in Hell? Allah complains about people not praising him, and yet everybody does praise him. Also, the aforementioned "devils" also praise Allah apparently. This book also praises Allah while containing absolutely no contradictions or confusing verses whatsoever. Who needs comedy books when Allah revealed the ultimate cosmic joke that shines over a millennium later with its absurdism?

Qur'an 17:45[edit]

When you read the Quran, We place between you and those who do not believe in the Hereafter an invisible barrier.

Qur'an 17:45 Notes[edit]

This barrier is not only invisible but also intangible. It seems to not block anything visible or tangible.

Qur'an 17:46[edit]

And We drape veils over their hearts, preventing them from understanding it, and heaviness in their ears. And when you mention your Lord alone in the Quran, they turn their backs in aversion.

Qur'an 17:46 Notes[edit]

Humans use brains and not hearts to understand. Allah would know that if he actually designed and created them as this book claims consistently.

Qur'an 17:47[edit]

We know well what they listen to, when they listen to you, as they conspire, when the wrongdoers say, “You only follow a man bewitched.”

Qur'an 17:47 Notes[edit]

Given the lack of convincing evidence for his downright absurd claims, Muhammad being "bewitched" makes considerably more sense than him revealing a contradictory message full of obvious falsehoods from a supposedly omniscient omnipotent being.

Qur'an 17:48[edit]

Note what they compared you to. They are lost, and unable to find a way.

Qur'an 17:48 Notes[edit]

This verse just sounds like Muhammad's frustration with how few people actually believe him. This frustration is understandable assuming that Muhammad sincerely believed that his "revelations" actually came from Allah, as many people today believe.

Qur'an 17:49[edit]

And they say, “When we have become bones and fragments, shall we really be resurrected as a new creation?”

Qur'an 17:49 Notes[edit]

This is a fair question given absolutely no verifiable evidence of decaying cadavers and bones coming back to life.

Qur'an 17:50[edit]

Say, “Even if you become rocks or iron.

Qur'an 17:50 Notes[edit]

This is somehow an even more ridiculous claim requiring stronger evidence.

Qur'an 17:51[edit]

Or some substance, which, in your minds, is even harder.” Then they will say, “Who will restore us?” Say, “The One who originated you the first time.” Then they will nod their heads at you, and say, “When will it be?” Say, “Perhaps it will be soon.”

Qur'an 17:51 Notes[edit]

Prove that a conscious being "originated" anybody at any point for starters. Prove, then, that this being is Allah specifically. This is supposed to address the people who don't believe that Allah created everything by himself in the first place, so answers shouldn't assume that Allah did anything without real evidence.

Qur'an 17:52[edit]

On the Day when He calls you, you will respond with His praise, and you will realize that you stayed only a little.

Qur'an 17:52 Notes[edit]

At the very least, they praised Allah just like everybody else and would continue to do so. A previous verse said so too.

Qur'an 17:53[edit]

Tell My servants to say what is best. Satan sows discord among them. Satan is to man an open enemy.

Qur'an 17:53 Notes[edit]

Allah is an even more open enemy to humanity. According to this book, Allah deliberately creates humanity only for the vast majority of humans to end up suffering eternally by predestining them to disbelieve and preventing them from ever believing even if they could conceivably want it. The book rarely mentions Satan in those parts, by the way, which suggests that Satan can be little more than a tool by which Allah "sows discord among" humanity as a whole.

Qur'an 17:54[edit]

Your Lord knows you best. If He wills, He will have mercy on you; and if He wills, He will punish you. We did not send you as their advocate.

Qur'an 17:54 Notes[edit]

Allah's blatant lies just get tiresome after enough repetition.

Qur'an 17:55[edit]

Your Lord knows well everyone in the heavens and the earth. We have given some prophets advantage over others; and to David We gave the Psalms.

Qur'an 17:55 Notes[edit]

Allah doesn't even know himself remotely well enough to avoid embarrassing contradictions.

Qur'an 17:56[edit]

Say, “Call upon those you claim besides Him. They have no power to relieve your adversity, nor can they change it.”

Qur'an 17:56 Notes[edit]

I can call upon any god ever imagined by mankind. They all gave the exact same responses as Allah and even presented the same exact evidence for their existence as does Allah. Fancy that!

Qur'an 17:57[edit]

Those they call upon are themselves seeking means of access to their Lord, vying to be nearer, and hoping for His mercy, and fearing His punishment. The punishment of your Lord is to be dreaded.

Qur'an 17:57 Notes[edit]

Does this mean that those other gods are real and also worship Allah or what?

Qur'an 17:58[edit]

There is no city but We will destroy before the Day of Resurrection, or punish it with a severe punishment. This is inscribed in the Book.

Qur'an 17:58 Notes[edit]

The same book that contradicted itself and says so many objectively false statements? How amazingly convincing...

Qur'an 17:59[edit]

Nothing prevents Us from sending miraculous signs, except that the ancients called them lies. We gave Thamood the she-camel, a visible sign, but they mistreated her. We do not send the signs except to instill reverence.

Qur'an 17:59 Notes[edit]

The fact "that the ancients called them lies" is actually enough to prevent Allah "from sending miraculous signs" for the rest of time? Does this explain the sheer drought of signs pointing to Allah above all other gods? Also, only one she-camel? Does she get lonely? Is she a sign for anything other than the existence of female camels?

Qur'an 17:60[edit]

We said to you that your Lord encompasses humanity. We did not make the vision We showed you, except as a test for the people, and the tree cursed in the Quran. We frighten them, but that only increases their defiance.

Qur'an 17:60 Notes[edit]

Those in "defiance" against Allah don't fear him specifically because they we clearly don't even believe in him. Such people have historically feared and continue to fear the violence of many people claiming that Allah commanded them to do awful things, but that is not the same as fear of Allah himself. While such fears are unfortunately warranted much of the time, it also leads to much unfair discrimination and persecution against Muslims who believe wholeheartedly in Allah and don't have any ill will against others or intentions to commit violent acts.

Qur'an 17:61[edit]

When We said to the angels, “Bow down before Adam,” they bowed down, except for Satan. He said, “Shall I bow down before someone You created from mud?”

Qur'an 17:61 Notes[edit]

Modern humans are not created from mud directly and have no real similarity to mud other than both being demonstrably realer than Allah has ever been.

Qur'an 17:62[edit]

He said, “Do You see this one whom You have honored more than me? If You reprieve me until the Day of Resurrection, I will bring his descendants under my sway, except for a few.”

Qur'an 17:62 Notes[edit]

Allah accepts this because he wants the vast majority of humanity to suffer forever anyhow and has a scapegoat. Then again, given how infrequently Satan is actually mentioned alongside Allah's sadism, how necessary is a scapegoat? On that note, how necessary is anything when talking about Allah?

Qur'an 17:63[edit]

He said, “Begone! Whoever of them follows you—Hell is your reward, an ample reward.”

Qur'an 17:63 Notes[edit]

To be clear, Allah is the one decreeing this line.

Qur'an 17:64[edit]

“And entice whomever of them you can with your voice, and rally against them your cavalry and your infantry, and share with them in wealth and children, and make promises to them.” But Satan promises them nothing but delusion.

Qur'an 17:64 Notes[edit]

Allah has the nerve to say that Satan is the one who "promises them nothing but delusion" without an iota of awareness.

Qur'an 17:65[edit]

“As for My devotees, you have no authority over them.” Your Lord is an adequate Guardian.

Qur'an 17:65 Notes[edit]

With a religion this awful, why would Satan need to influence anybody. Allah already blames humans for being awful way more often than he blames Satan.

Qur'an 17:66[edit]

Your Lord is He who propels for you the ships at sea, that you may seek of His bounty. He is towards you Most Merciful.

Qur'an 17:66 Notes[edit]

Allah deliberately lets some ships sail smoothly to their destinations while shipwrecking many others. Merciful indeed...

Qur'an 17:67[edit]

When harm afflicts you at sea, those you pray to vanish, except for Him. But when He saves you to land, you turn away. The human being is ever thankless.

Qur'an 17:67 Notes[edit]

So many Muslims at sea pray to Allah in dangerous situations. The result is typically indistinguishable from anybody of any other religion praying to literally any other god. Also, whenever Allah does save ships to land, he never actually reveals or proves that he was the one who did that. He always disguises himself as forces of nature or the ingenuity and wit of the sailors who can save a ship from a dire situation. Why is Allah so insecure that he complains whenever some humans somewhere don't know that they need to thank the one god of one religion out of literally thousands?

Qur'an 17:68[edit]

Are you confident that He will not cause a track of land to cave in beneath you, or unleash a tornado against you, and then you find no protector?

Qur'an 17:68 Notes[edit]

Yes. I am confident that a fictional character cannot do any of these things, though Allah would definitely be capricious enough to do that if he existed.

Qur'an 17:69[edit]

Or are you confident that He will not return you to it once again, and unleash a hurricane against you, and drown you for your ingratitude? Then you will find no helper against Us.

Qur'an 17:69 Notes[edit]

Allah claims to know humans best but doesn't even realize that, according to his own message to humanity, most humans disbelieve not because of their own ingratitude but actually because Allah placed a "veil" over their "hearts" whatever that means, and this "veil" somehow prevents them from knowing and praising Allah. Satan fits somewhere in this incredibly well-written story as a scapegoat.

Qur'an 17:70[edit]

We have honored the Children of Adam, and carried them on land and sea, and provided them with good things, and greatly favored them over many of those We created.

Qur'an 17:70 Notes[edit]

Allah also provided them with awful things.

Qur'an 17:71[edit]

On the Day when We call every people with their leader. Whoever is given his record in his right hand—these will read their record, and they will not be wronged one bit.

Qur'an 17:71 Notes[edit]

This "record" is meant to be a physical object that a hand can hold? It's not meant metaphorically? Is it a scroll? Is it a flash drive with a Word document? Is it a CD? Is it a clay tablet? Is it a cassette?

Qur'an 17:72[edit]

But whoever is blind in this, he will be blind in the Hereafter, and further astray from the way.

Qur'an 17:72 Notes[edit]

What a loving god of mercy and goodness...

Qur'an 17:73[edit]

They almost lured you away from what We have revealed to you, so that you would invent something else in Our name. In that case, they would have taken you for a friend.

Qur'an 17:73 Notes[edit]

Those filthy disbelievers are subhuman and don't deserve friends. This is written somewhere and therefore a fact.

Qur'an 17:74[edit]

Had We not given you stability, you might have inclined towards them a little.

Qur'an 17:74 Notes[edit]

They exist and don't make the ridiculous claims that litter this abysmal excuse of a book.

Qur'an 17:75[edit]

Then We would have made you taste double in life, and double at death; then you would have found for yourself no helper against Us.

Qur'an 17:75 Notes[edit]

Keep yapping, tough guy. Keep yapping your head off if you somehow ever had one.

Qur'an 17:76[edit]

They almost provoked you, to expel you from the land. In that case, they would not have lasted after you, except briefly.

Qur'an 17:76 Notes[edit]

Whom is this verse even addressing exactly?

Qur'an 17:77[edit]

The tradition of the messengers We sent before you—you will find no change in Our rules.

Qur'an 17:77 Notes[edit]

Allah's rules changed during Muhammad's lifetime.

Qur'an 17:78[edit]

Perform the prayer at the decline of the sun, until the darkness of the night; and the Quran at dawn. The Quran at dawn is witnessed.

Qur'an 17:78 Notes[edit]

Allah knows about those places on the earth (which he created) that the sun (which he created and guided on a fixed orbit) can go months on end without rising and setting, right? Those places are in "the darkness of the night" for literal months on end with no dawn until those months eventually draw to a close.

Qur'an 17:79[edit]

And keep vigil with it during parts of the night, as an extra prayer. Perhaps your Lord will raise you to a laudable position.

Qur'an 17:79 Notes[edit]

Humans are already more laudable than Allah. Humans have been demonstrated to exist and crucially not all be psychotic sadists like Allah.

Qur'an 17:80[edit]

And say, “My Lord, lead me in through an entry of truth, and lead me out through an exit of truth, and grant me from You a supporting power.”

Qur'an 17:80 Notes[edit]

Allah should know what "truth" even is first.

Qur'an 17:81[edit]

And say, “The truth has come, and falsehood has withered away; for falsehood is bound to wither away.”

Qur'an 17:81 Notes[edit]

Over fourteen centuries later, Islam is still thriving. It's either the biggest or second biggest religion depending on whether Catholics are actual Christians.

Qur'an 17:82[edit]

We send down in the Quran healing and mercy for the believers, but it increases the wrongdoers only in loss.

Qur'an 17:82 Notes[edit]

Have any clinical trials shown the Quran to have real healing benefits for believers? Then again, the fact that it only works for believers means that the placebo effect is likely the only reason why it would work for people who already expect it to work, though clinical trials should prove that real treatments actually work far better than placebos. Also, what are the side effects of this healing? Many patients and expatients have shared their experiences, and the side effects look dire.

Qur'an 17:83[edit]

When We bless the human being, he turns away and distances himself. But when adversity touches him, he is in despair.

Qur'an 17:83 Notes[edit]

Allah supposedly knows humans better than they know themselves.

Qur'an 17:84[edit]

Say, “Each does according to his disposition. Your Lord knows best who is better guided in the way.”

Qur'an 17:84 Notes[edit]

This is supposedly because Allah guides some people better while dooming others, and also something something Satan something something free will something something deserve something.

Qur'an 17:85[edit]

And they ask you about the Spirit. Say, “The Spirit belongs to the domain of my Lord; and you were given only little knowledge.”

Qur'an 17:85 Notes[edit]

This "domain" is fiction. Spirits much therefore be fictional like Allah.

Qur'an 17:86[edit]

If We willed, We could take away what We revealed to you. Then you will find for yourself no protecting guardian against Us.

Qur'an 17:86 Notes[edit]

Allah is the main villain of this book. Satan is just so forgettable because this is a poorly written book.

Qur'an 17:87[edit]

Except through a mercy from your Lord. His favors upon you have been great.

Qur'an 17:87 Notes[edit]

Allah shouldn't need to keep tooting his own horn if he actually approached anything like a good god.

Qur'an 17:88[edit]

Say, “If mankind and jinn came together to produce the like of this Quran, they could never produce the like of it, even if they backed up one another.”

Qur'an 17:88 Notes[edit]

How could real humans and characters from a fictional story (that is not yet written) come together to write said fictional story? Humans by themselves can write propaganda pieces and fairytales while disregarding those pesky distractions like "reality" or "morality" or even "internal consistency".

Qur'an 17:89[edit]

We have displayed for mankind in this Quran every kind of similitude, but most people insist on denying the truth.

Qur'an 17:89 Notes[edit]

Human authors can even let their works of fiction shine like a polished coprolite gemstone.

Qur'an 17:90[edit]

And they said, “We will not believe in you unless you make a spring burst from the ground for us.

Qur'an 17:90 Notes[edit]

This seems oddly specific for them to say.

Qur'an 17:91[edit]

Or you have a garden of palms and vines; then cause rivers to gush pouring through them.

Qur'an 17:91 Notes[edit]

As is this.

Qur'an 17:92[edit]

Or make the sky fall on us in pieces, as you claim, or bring God and the angels before us.

Qur'an 17:92 Notes[edit]

Those people believed in the same solid sky that Allah somehow thinks that he created?

Qur'an 17:93[edit]

Or you possess a house of gold. Or you ascend into the sky. Even then, we will not believe in your ascension, unless you bring down for us a book that we can read.” Say, “Glory be to my Lord. Am I anything but a human messenger?”

Qur'an 17:93 Notes[edit]

Are thees actual things that skeptics told Muhammad or just strawmen?

Qur'an 17:94[edit]

Nothing prevented the people from believing, when guidance has come to them, except that they said, “Did God send a human messenger?”

Qur'an 17:94 Notes[edit]

Many other things prevent people from believing this nonsense now. This being said, Allah's decision to send Gabriel as an angel messenger to communicate with Muhammad to then communicate with the rest of humanity is questionable at the very least.

Qur'an 17:95[edit]

Say, “If there were angels on earth, walking around in peace, We would have sent down to them from heaven an angel messenger.”

Qur'an 17:95 Notes[edit]

According to other parts of this book, angels literally fight alongside humans in battle. Also, why would Allah rely on angel messengers instead of communicating with humanity directly? Then again, by setting the world in such a way that a given human would think a given thought at a given moment, a decision which Allah does knowingly and intentionally assuming his omnipotence and omniscience, Allah technically does communicate with humans more directly than any human has ever communicated with any other human.

Qur'an 17:96[edit]

Say, “God is enough witness between you and me. He is fully aware of His servants, and He sees them well.”

Qur'an 17:96 Notes[edit]

Say that despite it being so obviously false.

Qur'an 17:97[edit]

Whomever God guides is the guided one. And whomever He leaves astray—for them you will find no protectors apart from Him. And We will gather them on the Day of Resurrection, on their faces, blind, dumb, and deaf. Their abode is Hell; whenever it abates, We intensify the blaze for them.

Qur'an 17:97 Notes[edit]

Satan must be somewhere in this story.

Qur'an 17:98[edit]

This is their repayment for having blasphemed against Our revelations, and having said, “Shall we, when we have become bones and fragments, be resurrected as a new creation?”

Qur'an 17:98 Notes[edit]

They only did that because Allah deliberately misguided them and predestined them to take this grim path.

Qur'an 17:99[edit]

Do they not consider that God, Who created the heavens and the earth, is Able to create the likes of them? He has assigned for them a term, in which there is no doubt. But the wrongdoers persist in denying the truth.

Qur'an 17:99 Notes[edit]

We considered that. We still need evidence that Allah made anything, and this book can only serve as evidence against Allah having created the non-solid sky and the round earth. There is plenty of doubt, though Allah claims to have instilled doubt while also claiming that "there is no doubt" in these baseless assertions.

Qur'an 17:100[edit]

Say, “If you possessed the treasuries of my Lord’s mercy, you would have withheld them for fear of spending.” The human being has always been stingy.

Qur'an 17:100 Notes[edit]

This would not make sense if Allah's "mercy" was actually infinite as it should be.

Qur'an 17:101[edit]

We gave Moses nine clear signs—ask the Children of Israel. When he went to them, Pharaoh said to him, “I think that you, Moses, are bewitched.”

Qur'an 17:101 Notes[edit]

Can anybody see these "nine clear signs" now, because the number of "clear signs" pointing to Islam being truer than any other religion is zero and that's it.

Qur'an 17:102[edit]

He said, “You know that none sent these down except the Lord of the heavens and the earth—eye openers; and I think that you, Pharaoh, are doomed.”

Qur'an 17:102 Notes[edit]

He might have said that to one of several pharaohs, though this Quran could maybe give this mysterious pharaoh a name and evidence that Moses actually existed.

Qur'an 17:103[edit]

He resolved to scare them off the land, but We drowned him, and those with him, altogether.

Qur'an 17:103 Notes[edit]

Does any historical evidence suggest that any pharaoh died in a flood alongside his army?

Qur'an 17:104[edit]

After him, We said to the Children of Israel, “Inhabit the land, and when the promise of the Hereafter arrives, We will bring you all together.”

Qur'an 17:104 Notes[edit]

Any actual historical evidence easily works.

Qur'an 17:105[edit]

With the truth We sent it down, and with the truth it descended. We sent you only as a bearer of good news and a warner.

Qur'an 17:105 Notes[edit]

Is this truth in the room with us now?

Qur'an 17:106[edit]

A Quran which We unfolded gradually, that you may recite to the people over time. And We revealed it in stages.

Qur'an 17:106 Notes[edit]

This method of supposed revelation also makes the entire message seem suspicious, especially given several "stages" coinciding with events in Muhammad's life.

Qur'an 17:107[edit]

Say, “Believe in it, or do not believe.” Those who were given knowledge before it, when it is recited to them, they fall to their chins, prostrating.

Qur'an 17:107 Notes[edit]

Are they falling to their chins because this Quran so absurdly flies in the face of whatever "knowledge" they had received before?

Qur'an 17:108[edit]

And they say, “Glory to our Lord. The promise of our Lord is fulfilled.”

Qur'an 17:108 Notes[edit]

This is apparently actually because the Quran fits with prophecies in previous scriptures. The vast majority of Muslims accept, however, that these previous scriptures were corrupted over time with the originals being lost to time.

Qur'an 17:109[edit]

And they fall to their chins, weeping, and it adds to their humility.

Qur'an 17:109 Notes[edit]

They were probably bawling their eyes out for a completely different reason.

Qur'an 17:110[edit]

Say, “Call Him God, or call Him the Most Merciful. Whichever name you use, to Him belong the Best Names.” And be neither loud in your prayer, nor silent in it, but follow a course in between.

Qur'an 17:110 Notes[edit]

Frankly, neither "God" nor "the Most Merciful" come close to fitting him.

Qur'an 17:111[edit]

And say, “Praise be to God, who has not begotten a son, nor has He a partner in sovereignty, nor has He an ally out of weakness, and glorify Him constantly.”

Qur'an 17:111 Notes[edit]

Say that regardless of anything resembling truthfulness.