be attributed to Him, nor is such parallel wording valid here. Rather, the purpose is to mention attributes and identify the One worshipped by the Messenger and the believers, so that he may disavow what they worship and dissociate them from the One he worships.

When the Jews say, “We intend to worship Allah,” they are speaking falsely, whether or not they realize it. Likewise, the Christians say, “We worship Allah alone and associate no partners with Him,” yet they are speaking falsely. For if they intended to worship Him, they would worship Him as He commanded—according to His revealed law, not what has been abrogated and altered.

Moreover, the Lord whom they claim they intend to worship is, in their view, a Lord who neither revealed the Gospel nor the Quran, and who sent neither the Messiah nor Muhammad. Indeed, some of them regard Him as poor, others as miserly, others as powerless, and others as unable to change what He has legislated. In the view of all of them, He has supported liars who fabricate falsehoods against Him: men who claim to be His messengers but who, in their view, are not His messengers at all, but lying sorcerers. He has supported them and granted them victory, and has granted their followers victory over His believing allies—for they consider themselves alone, to the exclusion of everyone else, to be His allies.

Thus, the Lord they worship is forever granting victory to His enemies. They worship this Lord, whereas the Messenger and the believers do not worship this object of Jewish worship. He is exalted above the attributes the Jews ascribe to the one they worship