Article
Why Does Allah Say “We” in the Qur’an?
Muslim scholars read Allah’s We as a plural of majesty. A plural pronoun, in the Qur’an or in Genesis, does not by itself prove the Trinity.
Muslim scholars say Allah’s “We” is a plural of majesty, one speaker magnifying himself, not three gods. They are right that a plural pronoun, by itself, does not prove the Trinity. The Trinity is shown where the Father, the Son, and the Holy Spirit are named as God, and where the Son is called God.
Key Points
- Qur’an 15:9Qur’an 15:9 · Saheeh International
Indeed, it is We who sent down the message [i.e., the Qur’ān], and indeed, We will be its guardian.
Qur’an 15:9 · Saheeh InternationalOpen the Source, Saheeh International: “Indeed, it is We who sent down the message [i.e., the Qur’ān], and indeed, We will be its guardian.” Qur’an 48:1Qur’an 48:1 · Saheeh InternationalIndeed, We have given you, [O Muḥammad], a clear conquest
Qur’an 48:1 · Saheeh InternationalOpen the Source: “Indeed, We have given you, [O Muḥammad], a clear conquest.” - A fatwa dated 22 May 2015 quotes the Permanent Committee: a person may say “we” “for respect or glorification.” It quotes Ibn Taymiyah: Allah uses the plural “for the respect that He deserves,” and “never refers to Himself by use of the dual.”
- The same fatwa says a Christian who treats “We” as three persons should be answered from Qur’an 2:163Qur’an 2:163 · Saheeh International
And your god is one God. There is no deity [worthy of worship] except Him, the Entirely Merciful, the Especially Merciful.
Qur’an 2:163 · Saheeh InternationalOpen the Source and Qur’an 112:1Qur’an 112:1 · Saheeh InternationalSay, "He is Allāh, [who is] One,
Qur’an 112:1 · Saheeh InternationalOpen the Source, “He is Allāh, [who is] One.” - Genesis 1:26Genesis 1:26 · King James Version
And God said, Let us make man in our image, after our likeness: and let them have dominion over the fish of the sea, and over the fowl of the air, and over the cattle, and over all the earth, and over every creeping thing that creepeth upon the earth.
Genesis 1:26 · King James VersionOpen the Source says, “Let us make man in our image.” Genesis 3:22Genesis 3:22 · King James VersionAnd the LORD God said, Behold, the man is become as one of us, to know good and evil: and now, lest he put forth his hand, and take also of the tree of life, and eat, and live for ever:
Genesis 3:22 · King James VersionOpen the Source, Genesis 11:7Genesis 11:7 · King James VersionGo to, let us go down, and there confound their language, that they may not understand one another’s speech.
Genesis 11:7 · King James VersionOpen the Source, and Isaiah 6:8Isaiah 6:8 · King James VersionAlso I heard the voice of the Lord, saying, Whom shall I send, and who will go for us? Then said I, Here am I; send me.
Isaiah 6:8 · King James VersionOpen the Source also use a plural. - A plural of self-reference, in Arabic or in Hebrew, does not by itself say “three persons.” John 1:1John 1:1 · King James Version
In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God.
John 1:1 · King James VersionOpen the Source says the Word was God. John 20:28John 20:28 · King James VersionAnd Thomas answered and said unto him, My LORD and my God.
John 20:28 · King James VersionOpen the Source has Thomas call Jesus “My LORD and my God.” Matthew 28:19Matthew 28:19 · King James VersionGo ye therefore, and teach all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father, and of the Son, and of the Holy Ghost:
Matthew 28:19 · King James VersionOpen the Source names the Father, the Son, and the Holy Spirit. - What Is the Trinity? and What vs. Who are that confession: one being, three persons. Tawhid and Christian Monotheism is the Muslim confession beside it.
What Muslim Scholars Say the Plural Means
The fatwa “The meaning of the pronoun ‘We’ as used in the Qur’an” answers a reader who asks why the Qur’an says “we,” and whether that refers to Jesus. It says:
It is a feature of literary style in Arabic that a person may refer to himself by the pronoun nahnu (we) for respect or glorification. He may also use the word ana (I), indicating one person, or the third person huwa (he). All three styles are used in the Qur’an, where Allaah addresses the Arabs in their own tongue.
The fatwa “The meaning of the pronoun ‘We’ as used in the Qur’an”
It attributes that paragraph to Fataawa al-Lajnah al-Daa’imah, 4/143. It then quotes Ibn Taymiyah, al-‘Aqeedah al-Tadmuriyyah, page 75: Allah “sometimes refers to Himself in the singular, by name or by use of a pronoun, and sometimes by use of the plural,” as in “Verily, We have given you a manifest victory,” which is Qur’an 48:1Qur’an 48:1 · Saheeh InternationalIndeed, We have given you, [O Muḥammad], a clear conquest
Qur’an 48:1 · Saheeh InternationalOpen the Source. “But Allaah never refers to Himself by use of the dual, because the plural refers to the respect that He deserves, and may refer to His names and attributes, whereas the dual refers to a specific number (and nothing else).”
The same page compares the usage to a king who says “We have decided.” The translator’s bracket calls that “The Royal We.” “When He says in the Qur’an innaa (‘Verily We’) and nahnu (‘We’), it is for respect and glorification, not to indicate plurality of numbers.” If someone treats Qur’an 15:9Qur’an 15:9 · Saheeh InternationalIndeed, it is We who sent down the message [i.e., the Qur’ān], and indeed, We will be its guardian.
Qur’an 15:9 · Saheeh InternationalOpen the Source, “it is We Who have sent down the Dhikr,” as proof of divine plurality, the fatwa says to answer with clear verses: one God, and “Say: He is Allaah, the One.”
That is the Muslim explanation in a scholar’s words, not a paraphrase invented for the debate. Qur’an 112:1Qur’an 112:1 · Saheeh InternationalSay, "He is Allāh, [who is] One,
Qur’an 112:1 · Saheeh InternationalOpen the Source, Saheeh International, is “Say, ‘He is Allāh, [who is] One.’” Qur’an 2:163Qur’an 2:163 · Saheeh InternationalAnd your god is one God. There is no deity [worthy of worship] except Him, the Entirely Merciful, the Especially Merciful.
Qur’an 2:163 · Saheeh InternationalOpen the Source: “And your god is one God. There is no deity [worthy of worship] except Him, the Entirely Merciful, the Especially Merciful.” The Qur’an also says “I” and “He.” The fatwa’s point is that the three styles are one speaker. Christians who treat every “We” as a head count of three are not reading the sentence the way this fatwa reads it, and they are not reading Qur’an 112Qur’an 112:1 · Saheeh InternationalSay, "He is Allāh, [who is] One,
Qur’an 112:1 · Saheeh InternationalOpen the Source.
Where the Bible Uses a Plural
Genesis 1:26Genesis 1:26 · King James VersionAnd God said, Let us make man in our image, after our likeness: and let them have dominion over the fish of the sea, and over the fowl of the air, and over the cattle, and over all the earth, and over every creeping thing that creepeth upon the earth.
Genesis 1:26 · King James VersionOpen the Source: “And God said, Let us make man in our image, after our likeness.” Genesis 3:22Genesis 3:22 · King James VersionAnd the LORD God said, Behold, the man is become as one of us, to know good and evil: and now, lest he put forth his hand, and take also of the tree of life, and eat, and live for ever:
Genesis 3:22 · King James VersionOpen the Source: “Behold, the man is become as one of us.” Genesis 11:7Genesis 11:7 · King James VersionGo to, let us go down, and there confound their language, that they may not understand one another’s speech.
Genesis 11:7 · King James VersionOpen the Source: “Go to, let us go down, and there confound their language.” Isaiah 6:8Isaiah 6:8 · King James VersionAlso I heard the voice of the Lord, saying, Whom shall I send, and who will go for us? Then said I, Here am I; send me.
Isaiah 6:8 · King James VersionOpen the Source: “Whom shall I send, and who will go for us?”
These are few next to the thousands of singular verbs for God. Deuteronomy 6:4Deuteronomy 6:4 · King James VersionHear, O Israel: The LORD our God is one LORD:
Deuteronomy 6:4 · King James VersionOpen the Source says the LORD is one. Genesis 1:26 does not say “let us three.” It does not name the Son or the Spirit. A reader can hear a plural of deliberation, a speaker including a court, or a hint of more than one person, and the verse alone will not decide. The Trinity quotes Augustine on this line and does not rest the doctrine on the pronoun. The honest statement is the one the Muslim fatwa also requires of a Christian who overreads “We”: a plural of self-reference is not a census.
Where the Trinity Is Shown
The Trinity is not “God said us.” It is the claim that the one God is the Father, the Son, and the Holy Spirit, and that Jesus is God.
John 1:1John 1:1 · King James VersionIn the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God.
John 1:1 · King James VersionOpen the Source says, “In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God.” The Word is with God and is God. John 1:14John 1:14 · King James VersionAnd the Word was made flesh, and dwelt among us, (and we beheld his glory, the glory as of the only begotten of the Father,) full of grace and truth.
John 1:14 · King James VersionOpen the Source says the Word was made flesh. John 20:28John 20:28 · King James VersionAnd Thomas answered and said unto him, My LORD and my God.
John 20:28 · King James VersionOpen the Source: “And Thomas answered and said unto him, My LORD and my God.” Matthew 28:19Matthew 28:19 · King James VersionGo ye therefore, and teach all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father, and of the Son, and of the Holy Ghost:
Matthew 28:19 · King James VersionOpen the Source sends the disciples to baptize “in the name of the Father, and of the Son, and of the Holy Ghost.” One name, three who are named. What vs. Who: One Being, Three Persons is the distinction between one being and three persons. Is Jesus God? walks through the passages that call the Son God. Is the Holy Spirit God? is the third.
Who Is Allah? and Tawhid and Christian Monotheism state the Muslim confession that God has no partners, beside those verses. Can God Have a Son? is the Qur’an’s refusal of a son, in its own words. A Christian who cites only Genesis 1:26, or only the Qur’an’s “We,” has not yet said what the church confesses. A Muslim who cites only “He is One” has stated tawhid, which Christians also say, and has not yet answered John 1:1 and John 20:28. Jesus is God. The plural pronoun is not the proof, and it is not the disproof.
Frequently Asked Questions
Does Allah Refer to Himself as We?
Yes, in verses such as Qur’an 15:9Qur’an 15:9 · Saheeh InternationalIndeed, it is We who sent down the message [i.e., the Qur’ān], and indeed, We will be its guardian.
Qur’an 15:9 · Saheeh InternationalOpen the Source and Qur’an 48:1Qur’an 48:1 · Saheeh InternationalIndeed, We have given you, [O Muḥammad], a clear conquest
Qur’an 48:1 · Saheeh InternationalOpen the Source. The fatwa quoted here says that “We” is respect and glorification, and that Allah also says “I” and “He.”
Does the Royal We Prove, or Disprove, the Trinity?
Neither, by itself. The fatwa denies that the pronoun is a count of persons. Genesis 1:26 does not name three persons either. The Trinity is argued from the passages that call the Son God and that name the Father, the Son, and the Holy Spirit together.
Keep Reading
References
- Qur'an, 15:9; 48:1; 2:163; 112:1Qur’an 15:9 · Saheeh International
Indeed, it is We who sent down the message [i.e., the Qur’ān], and indeed, We will be its guardian.
Qur’an 15:9 · Saheeh InternationalOpen the Source - The meaning of the pronoun “We” as used in the Qur’an, Fatwa, 22 May 2015 (Quotes Fataawa al-Lajnah al-Daa’imah, 4/143, and Ibn Taymiyah, al-‘Aqeedah al-Tadmuriyyah.)
- Genesis, 1:26; 3:22; 11:7Genesis 1:26 · King James Version
And God said, Let us make man in our image, after our likeness: and let them have dominion over the fish of the sea, and over the fowl of the air, and over the cattle, and over all the earth, and over every creeping thing that creepeth upon the earth.
Genesis 1:26 · King James VersionOpen the Source. King James Version - Isaiah, 6:8Isaiah 6:8 · King James Version
Also I heard the voice of the Lord, saying, Whom shall I send, and who will go for us? Then said I, Here am I; send me.
Isaiah 6:8 · King James VersionOpen the Source. King James Version - Gospel of John, 1:1; 20:28John 1:1 · King James Version
In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God.
John 1:1 · King James VersionOpen the Source. King James Version - Gospel of Matthew, 28:19Matthew 28:19 · King James Version
Go ye therefore, and teach all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father, and of the Son, and of the Holy Ghost:
Matthew 28:19 · King James VersionOpen the Source. King James Version
See Also
- Does the Qur’an Call Allah the Best of Deceivers? — Qur’an 3:54 and 8:30 say God is the best of planners or schemers. Saheeh International does not say “deceivers.” The Bible says God does not lie.
- Are There Missing and Abrogated Verses in the Qur’an? — Sahih reports say a stoning verse and a suckling ruling were recited as Qur’an and are not in the book. Qur’an 2:106 calls that God’s abrogation.
- Can Anyone Produce a Surah Like It? — Qur’an 2:23 and 17:88 dare mankind and the jinn to produce a surah like it. A book can be unmatched as literature and still be tested by its other claims.
- Can God Have a Son? — The Qur'an refuses a son taken by God. Christians confess the eternal Son, the Word who was God, and not a son by a wife.
- Did Jesus Die on the Cross? — The Qur’an says they did not crucify Jesus. The Gospels, Paul, Tacitus, and Josephus place that death under Pontius Pilate.