Faqaloo abasharan minna wahidan nattabiAAuhu inna ithan lafee dalalin wasuAAurin
English
Ahmed Ali
And said: "Should we follow only one man among us? In that case we shall he in error and insane.
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Tafseer
'Abdullāh Ibn 'Abbās / Muḥammad al-Fīrūzabādī
تفسير : (for they said: is it a mortal man) he is a human being like us, (alone among us, that we are to follow) his matter and religion? (then) if we follow him (indeed we should fall into error) in manifest error (and madness) tiredness and toil.
Jalāl al-Dīn al-Maḥallī
تفسير : and they said, ‘is it a mortal (basharan is in the accusative because it is governed [by a succeeding verb]) alone among us (minnā wāhidan are both adjectives of basharan) that we are to follow? (nattabi‘uhu, this explains the verb which renders it [basharan, ‘mortal’] accusative; the interrogative is meant as a negative, in other words: why should we follow him when there are many of us and he is only one among us and not a king? that is to say, we will not follow him). then indeed, if we were to follow him, we would be in error, a parting with reason, and insanity!
