ٱلَّذِينَ ءَاتَيْنَـٰهُمُ ٱلْكِتَـٰبَ يَعْرِفُونَهُۥ كَمَا يَعْرِفُونَ أَبْنَآءَهُمْ ۖ وَإِنَّ فَرِيقًا مِّنْهُمْ لَيَكْتُمُونَ ٱلْحَقَّ وَهُمْ يَعْلَمُونَ 146
Translations
Those to whom We gave the Scripture know him [i.e., Prophet Muḥammad (ﷺ)] as they know their own sons. But indeed, a party of them conceal the truth while they know [it].
Transliteration
Al-ladhīna ātaynāhum al-kitāba yaʿrifūnahu kamā yaʿrifūna abnāʾahum wa-inna farīqan minhum layaktumuun al-ḥaqqa wa-hum yaʿlamūn
Tafsir (Explanation)
This ayah refers to the People of the Book (Christians and Jews) who possess the Torah and Gospel and recognize the Prophet Muhammad and his message with the same clarity as they recognize their own children, yet a faction among them deliberately conceals the truth despite their knowledge. Classical scholars like Ibn Kathir and Al-Tabari explain this refers to scholars among the People of the Book who found descriptions of the Prophet in their scriptures but chose to hide this from their people out of arrogance, envy, or fear of losing their positions of authority.
Revelation Context
This ayah was revealed in Medina during the period when the Prophet engaged with Jewish and Christian communities. It addresses the phenomenon of intellectual dishonesty among some religious scholars of those faiths who encountered the Quranic message but rejected it not from ignorance but from conscious suppression of truth they internally recognized.
Related Hadiths
Sahih Bukhari 3942 contains reports of Jewish rabbis acknowledging the Prophet's description in their scriptures. Also relevant is the general hadith about those who hide knowledge, which is condemned in multiple hadith collections including Sunan Ibn Majah.
Themes
Key Lesson
This ayah teaches that possessing knowledge brings responsibility; those who know the truth are accountable before Allah for their actions regarding it. It warns against allowing ego, worldly interests, or fear of social consequences to override our duty to acknowledge and follow the truth when we recognize it.
Related Ayahs
وَمِنَ ٱلنَّاسِ مَن يَقُولُ ءَامَنَّا بِٱللَّهِ وَبِٱلْيَوْمِ ٱلْـَٔاخِرِ وَمَا هُم بِمُؤْمِنِينَ
And of the people are some who say, "We believe in Allāh and the Last Day," but they are not believers.
ٱلَّذِينَ يَنقُضُونَ عَهْدَ ٱللَّهِ مِنۢ بَعْدِ مِيثَـٰقِهِۦ وَيَقْطَعُونَ مَآ أَمَرَ ٱللَّهُ بِهِۦٓ أَن يُوصَلَ وَيُفْسِدُونَ فِى ٱلْأَرْضِ ۚ أُو۟لَـٰٓئِكَ هُمُ ٱلْخَـٰسِرُونَ
Who break the covenant of Allāh after contracting it and sever that which Allāh has ordered to be joined and cause corruption on earth. It is those who are the losers.
وَعَلَّمَ ءَادَمَ ٱلْأَسْمَآءَ كُلَّهَا ثُمَّ عَرَضَهُمْ عَلَى ٱلْمَلَـٰٓئِكَةِ فَقَالَ أَنۢبِـُٔونِى بِأَسْمَآءِ هَـٰٓؤُلَآءِ إِن كُنتُمْ صَـٰدِقِينَ
And He taught Adam the names - all of them. Then He showed them to the angels and said, "Inform Me of the names of these, if you are truthful."
وَلَقَدْ أَنزَلْنَآ إِلَيْكَ ءَايَـٰتٍۭ بَيِّنَـٰتٍ ۖ وَمَا يَكْفُرُ بِهَآ إِلَّا ٱلْفَـٰسِقُونَ
And We have certainly revealed to you verses [which are] clear proofs, and no one would deny them except the defiantly disobedient.