21:92

إِنَّ هَٰذِهِۦٓ أُمَّتُكُمۡ أُمَّةٗ وَٰحِدَةٗ وَأَنَا۠ رَبُّكُمۡ فَٱعۡبُدُونِ

Inna hathihi ommatukum ommatan wahidatan waana rabbukum faoAAbudooni

Indeed this, your religion, is one religion, and I am your Lord, so worship Me.

Word by word
  1. إِنَّIndeed
  2. هَٰذِهِۦٓthis
  3. أُمَّتُكُمۡ(is) your religion
  4. أُمَّةٗreligion
  5. وَٰحِدَةٗone
  6. وَأَنَا۠and I Am
  7. رَبُّكُمۡyour Lord
  8. فَٱعۡبُدُونِso worship Me
Al-Anbya · 21:92Makkah

Your religion is one religion, and I am your Lord.

All the prophets just named stood on one path


After all the prophets
Ibrahim to 'Isamany prophets
one
religionone path
worship Meone Lord
What unites them
different faiths
brothersone religion, different laws

After the long list of prophets, Allah says: your religion is one religion. The Prophet ﷺ said we prophets are brothers from different mothers, and our religion is one. They all worshipped Allah alone, though their laws differed.

You read about Nuh, Ibrahim, Musa, Yunus, Maryam, 'Isa. They are not distant strangers. They are your spiritual family, all calling to the same Lord you pray to. You belong to a long line.

The prophets of the past belong to different stories.

All the prophets brought one religion. I stand in their line when I worship Allah.

Try this

Read the story of one prophet from this surah again and notice what you share.

Simplified reflection. Read the tafsir for scholarship.draft
Tafsir Ibn Kathir

Truly, this, your Ummah is one, and I am your Lord, therefore worship Me (92)But they have broken up and differed in their religion among themselves. (And) they all shall return to Us (93)So whoever does righteous good deeds while he is a believer, his efforts will not be rejected. Verily, We record it for him (in his Book of deeds)(94)

Mankind is One Ummah

إِنَّ هَٰذِهِ أُمَّتُكُمْ أُمَّةً وَاحِدَةً

(Truly, this, your Ummah is one,) Ibn 'Abbas, Mujahid, Sa'id bin Jubayr, Qatadah and 'Abdur-Rahman bin Zayd bin Aslam said, "Your religion is one religion." Al-Hasan Al-Basri said: "In this Ayah, Allah explains to them what they should avoid and what they should do." Then He said:

إِنَّ هَٰذِهِ أُمَّتُكُمْ أُمَّةً وَاحِدَةً

(Truly, this, your Ummah is one religion,) "Meaning, your path is one path. Certainly this is your Shari'ah (Divine Law) which I have clearly explained you." So Allah says:

وَأَنَا رَبُّكُمْ فَاعْبُدُونِ

(and I am your Lord, therefore worship Me.) This is like the Ayah:

يَا أَيُّهَا الرُّسُلُ كُلُوا مِنَ الطَّيِّبَاتِ وَاعْمَلُوا صَالِحًا

(O (you) Messengers! Eat of the Tayyibat (good things) and do righteous deeds.) Until His saying,

وَأَنَا رَبُّكُمْ فَاتَّقُونِ

(And I am your Lord, so have Taqwa of Me.)(23:51-52) The Messenger of Allah ﷺ said:

نَحْنُ مَعَاشِرَ الْأَنْبِيَاءِ أَوْلَادُ عَلَّاتٍ دِينُنَا وَاحِدٌ

(We Prophets are brothers from different mothers and our religion is one.) What is meant here is that they all worshipped Allah Alone with no partner or associate, although the Laws of each Messenger may have differed, as Allah says:

لِكُلٍّ جَعَلْنَا مِنْكُمْ شِرْعَةً وَمِنْهَاجًا

(To each among you, We have prescribed a Law and a clear way)(5:48)

وَتَقَطَّعُوا أَمْرَهُم بَيْنَهُمْ

(But they have broken up and differed in their religion among themselves.) meaning, the nations were divided over their Messengers; some of them believed in them and some rejected them. Allah says:

كُلٌّ إِلَيْنَا رَاجِعُونَ

((And) they all shall return to Us.) meaning, 'on the Day of Resurrection, when We will requite each person according to his deeds. If they are good, then he will be rewarded and if they are evil then he will be punished.' Allah says:

فَمَن يَعْمَلْ مِنَ الصَّالِحَاتِ وَهُوَ مُؤْمِنٌ

(So whoever does righteous good deeds while he is a believer,) meaning, his heart believes and his deeds are righteous.

فَلَا كُفْرَانَ لِسَعْيِهِ 

(his efforts will not be rejected.) This is like the Ayah:

إِنَّا لَا نُضِيعُ أَجْرَ مَنْ أَحْسَنَ عَمَلًا

(certainly We shall not make the reward of anyone who does his deeds in the most perfect manner to be lost.)(18:30) which means, his efforts will not be wasted; they will be appreciated and not even a speck of dust's weight of injustice will be done. Allah says:

وَإِنَّا لَهُ كَاتِبُونَ

(Verily, We record it for him.) means, all his deeds are recorded and nothing of them at all is lost.