Harmony of the Verses

This verse and the subsequent verses, which describe the story of the Prophet’s (s.a.w.) mubāhala (“mutual imprecation”) with the delegation of Najrān, branch from the previous verses and complete the story of Jesus (a.s.). The following evidence establishes the conceptual connection of this group with the previous verses:

After pursuing the path of proof, admonition, and best disputation with the Christians of Najrān regarding Jesus (a.s.), which was explained in detail in the previous verses, and their lack of conviction, this section of verses addresses the final and only remaining path, which is the bringing of a miracle.

The Prophet’s (s.a.w.) miracle here appears in the form of an invitation to mubāhala. In the first verse, which begins the story of mubāhala, it emphatically and exclusively rejects any doubt about its legitimacy through two statements - affirmative: “The truth from your Lord” and negative: “so do not be among the skeptics.”

1. The branching fāʾ in the phrase “Then whoever disputes with you” in the second verse branches the topic of mubāhala from the divine teaching that was eloquently presented about Jesus (a.s.) in the previous verses.
2. The expression “after the knowledge that has come to you” in the second verse also refers to the reasoning and best disputation that the verse “Indeed the case of Jesus with God is like the case of Adam…”(640) indicates.
3. The demonstrative pronoun “this” in the verse “This is indeed the true account”(641) also refers to the story of Jesus (a.s.) and the denial of his divinity that was explained in detail.(642)