What the Quran Plainly Says in Surah Maryam (19:36)

The verse reads:

“And truly, Allah is my Lord and your Lord, so worship Him. This is the straight path.”

Grammatical Structure

1. First-person possessive: The phrase "Allah is my Lord and your Lord" (إِنَّ اللَّهَ رَبِّي وَرَبُّكُمْ) uses the possessive pronoun "my" (رَبِّي), which implies the speaker is referring to Allah as their Lord.

   • If Allah were the speaker, this phrasing would be illogical, as Allah does not refer to Himself as having a Lord.

   • This grammatical structure strongly indicates that someone other than Allah is speaking.

2. Command to Worship: The imperative "so worship Him" (فَاعْبُدُوهُ) is directed toward an audience. This is consistent with prophets calling others to worship Allah and does not fit the style of Allah addressing humanity in the Quran. When Allah commands worship, He typically uses direct statements like "worship Me" (e.g., Surah Al-Baqarah 2:21).

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Immediate Context

Verses 30–33:

• Jesus speaks as a newborn:

  • “I am the servant of Allah. He has given me the Scripture and made me a prophet.” (19:30)

  • “And peace is on me the day I was born, the day I die, and the day I am raised alive.” (19:33)

• These verses are explicitly attributed to Jesus.

Verses 34–35:

• Allah begins commenting on Jesus:

  • “That is Jesus, the son of Mary—a statement of truth about which they are in dispute.” (19:34)

  • “It is not for Allah to take a son. Glory be to Him! When He decrees a matter, He only says to it, ‘Be!’ and it is.” (19:35)

Verse 36:

• The statement “Allah is my Lord and your Lord” fits seamlessly with Jesus’ prior speech in verses 30–33, rather than Allah’s commentary in verses 34–35. It is logical to conclude that this verse is a continuation of Jesus’ earlier declaration.

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Does the Quran Clarify the Speaker?

Challenges in the Text:

1. The Quran does not explicitly state “Jesus said” in verse 36. Instead, the reader must infer the speaker based on context and grammar.

2. The transition between speakers in verses 34–36 is abrupt and unmarked, leading to potential confusion for readers who are unfamiliar with the Quran’s narrative style.

Implications:

• This lack of explicit clarification may make the verse appear ambiguous, particularly to readers expecting linear narrative transitions.

• While classical tafsir resolves this ambiguity by identifying Jesus as the speaker, the Quran itself relies on implicit cues rather than direct markers.

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What Does the Quran Plainly Say?

From the plain text of the Quran, it is reasonable to deduce:

1. The grammatical structure ("my Lord") and imperative form ("worship Him") strongly suggest that Jesus is the speaker in verse 36.

2. The context aligns this verse with Jesus’ earlier speech (verses 30–33) rather than Allah’s commentary in verses 34–35.

However, because the Quran does not explicitly attribute the statement to Jesus in verse 36, this creates room for differing interpretations, leading to perceived ambiguity.

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Conclusion

When focusing solely on what the Quran plainly says, the most straightforward interpretation is that Jesus is the speaker in Surah Maryam (19:36). This conclusion is based on:

1. The grammatical structure of the verse.

2. The flow of the narrative.

3. The broader context of Jesus’ speech.

That said, the absence of explicit markers or transitions (e.g., "Jesus said") in the Quran makes it possible for some readers to misinterpret the speaker. This lack of explicit clarification contributes to the perception of ambiguity, even if the grammatical and contextual evidence points to Jesus.