This verse serves two functions...

This verse serves two functions: It threatens the pagans warning them all as to the awareness of Allah of their performances, and, at the same time, it carries the good news unto the believers about the fact that Allah is aware of the situation of their enemies and can punish them as well.

This noble verse also stresses once again on Allah’s knowledge of the invisible and His intuition of what is open and hidden, saying that Allah is definitely aware of what they make manifest as well as what they hide away. This sentence is in fact a threat against the pagans and the foes of the Truth about which Allah is never unaware.

“And when they are asked: ‘What has your Lord sent down?’ They say: ‘The legends of the ancients’.” The Arabic term /’as atir/ is the plural form of /’ustūrah/ which signifies the stories and superstitious fables which have been turned into written forms. Or, it may be the plural form of /’ast ar/ which means lines that have been copied in duplicated forms from the previous books.

This word has been quoted nine times in the Qur’an from the pagan’s tongue in all cases of which they have been accompanied by the word /’awwalin/ meaning the ‘first one’s’. That is, they would say: “These words are nothing new; they are contrarily, those expressed or rather fabricated by the predecessors.” In the previous verse, the discussion concentrated on those who were arrogant.

The usual logic of these disbelievers is reflected in this verse which implies that when they are asked as to what their Lord has revealed, they answer that these are not the Divine revelations; they are the same false stories of the predecessors.

The verse says: “And when they are asked: ‘What has your Lord sent down?’ They say: ‘The legends of the ancients’.” It is interesting to note that the arrogant today usually mischievously appeal to this way of escaping the truth in order to mislead others.