Quran Universe
15:31

إِلَّآ إِبۡلِيسَ أَبَىٰٓ أَن يَكُونَ مَعَ ٱلسَّـٰجِدِينَ

Illa ibleesa aba an yakoona maAAa alssajideena

Except Iblees, he refused to be with those who prostrated.

Word by word
  1. إِلَّآExcept
  2. إِبۡلِيسَIblis
  3. أَبَىٰٓHe refused
  4. أَنto
  5. يَكُونَbe
  6. مَعَwith
  7. ٱلسَّـٰجِدِينَthose who prostrated
Al-Hijr · 15:31Makkah

One refused while everyone else bowed.

Iblis standing alone in the crowd

The one exception
all the angelsprostrating together
except
Iblisrefused to join them
What drove the refusal
a principled standhe had his reasons
envy and pridedressed up as a reason

Right after all the angels bow, one figure stays standing. Ibn Kathir says Iblis, amidst all the angels, refused out of envy, disbelief, stubbornness, arrogance and false pride. The listeners in Makkah were refusing too, after years of hearing the message.

The whole family agrees to make peace with your uncle at Eid. Everyone hugs him. You stay in the kitchen. You tell yourself it is principle. Sometimes standing alone is just pride with a good excuse.

If I am the only one refusing, I must be the one seeing clearly.

Refusing what Allah asks, alone, can be the loneliest form of pride.

Try this

Think of one place you are refusing to bend, and ask yourself honestly if pride is in it.

Simplified reflection. Read the tafsir for scholarship.draft
Tafsir Ibn Kathir (shared passage from 15:28)

And (remember) when your Lord said to the angels: "I am going to create a man (Adam) from dried (sounding) clay of altered mud. (28)"So, when I have fashioned him completely and breathed into him (Adam) of My spirit (the soul which I created for him,) then fall down, prostrating yourselves before him. (29)So the angels prostrated themselves, all of them together (30)Except Iblis (Shaytan) - he refused to be among the prostrate (31)(Allah) said: "O Iblis! What is your reason for not being among the prostrate? (32)[Iblis] said: "I am not one to prostrate myself to a human, whom You created from dried (sounding) clay of altered mud. (33)

The creation of Adam, the Command to the Angels to prostrate to Him, and the Rebellion of Iblis

Allah informs us of how He mentioned Adam to His angels before He created him, and how He honored him by commanding the angels to prostrate to him. He mentions how His enemy Iblis, amidst all the angels, refused to prostrate to him out of envy, disbelief, stubbornness, arrogance, and false pride. This is why Iblis said:

لَمْ أَكُن لِّأَسْجُدَ لِبَشَرٍ خَلَقْتَهُ مِن صَلْصَالٍ مِّنْ حَمَإٍ مَّسْنُونٍ

(I am not one to prostrate myself to a human, whom You created from dried (sounding) clay of altered mud.) this is like when he said,

قَالَ أَنَا خَيْرٌ مِّنْهُ خَلَقْتَنِي مِن نَّارٍ وَخَلَقْتَهُ مِن طِينٍ

(I am better than him (Adam), You created me from Fire and him You created from clay.)(7:12) and

أَرَأَيْتَكَ هَٰذَا الَّذِي كَرَّمْتَ عَلَيَّ

("Do you see this one whom You have honored above me...")[17:62]