Overall meaning : Almighty Allah mentions some of the material miracles the idolaters have demanded of the Prophet, may Allah bless him and grant him peace, out of sheer stubbornness: We will not believe you, Muhammad, until you make a spring in Makkah gush forth abundantly from the earth before our very eyes, or until you have a garden of palm trees and vineyards and make rivers gush forth plentifully in their midst, or you cause the sky to fall down upon us in pieces, as you have claimed, or you bring Allah and the angels face to face before us, or you have a house of gold, or you ascend a ladder to the sky; nor will we ever believe in your ascending into the heavens until you bring down to us a book from Allah in which we read that you are truly His Messenger.’
‘Say to them,’ Allah directs him, ‘Glory be to my Lord! I declare Him free of all manner of deficiency and weakness! He has power over all things, and it is all up to Him to grant you your requests or not. I am only a human being like you, and I cannot possibly meet your demands. I am also only a messenger, and I have conveyed His message to you.’
The Almighty then points out another fallacy of theirs, saying: Nothing prevents the unbelievers from believing in Allah when His guidance comes to them but the fact that they ignorantly say, ‘Can it be that Allah has sent a human being like us as a messenger?!’
Therefore, He instructs him to say to them, ‘Had there been angels walking about on earth, well settled on it and feeling at home just like human beings are, We would have sent down to them an angel messenger from heaven of their kind in order for them to be able to mix with him and receive teachings from him.’ ‘Say to them,’ He further enjoins him to tell them, ‘Allah is a sufficient witness between me and you. He knows my truthfulness and that I am a true prophet. He is fully aware of His slaves and sees all their actions, and He will repay them according to their deeds.