And when it is said to them – Comprehensive Interpretation

الآية رقم (91) - وَإِذَا قِيلَ لَهُمْ آمِنُواْ بِمَا أَنزَلَ اللّهُ قَالُواْ نُؤْمِنُ بِمَآ أُنزِلَ عَلَيْنَا وَيَكْفُرونَ بِمَا وَرَاءهُ وَهُوَ الْحَقُّ مُصَدِّقاً لِّمَا مَعَهُمْ قُلْ فَلِمَ تَقْتُلُونَ أَنبِيَاء اللّهِ مِن قَبْلُ إِن كُنتُم مُّؤْمِنِينَ

(91) - “And when it is said to them, ‘Believe in what Allah has revealed,’ they say, ‘We believe [only] in what was revealed to us.’ And they disbelieve in what came after it, while it is the truth confirming that which is with them. Say, ‘Then why did you kill the prophets of Allah before, if you are [indeed] believers?’”

When it was said to them to believe in the Holy Qur’an, they stated that they would only believe in the Torah. Subsequently, they disbelieved in what came after it, that is, namely the Holy Qur’an. This was despite the fact that it is the truth confirming that which is with them, that which came in the Torah and all of the former Divine Books. This shows the unity of the Aqeedah, thus the Holy Qur’an debates with them by saying:

﴾قُلْ فَلِمَ تَقْتُلُونَ أَنْبِيَاءَ اللَّهِ مِنْ قَبْلُ إِنْ كُنتُمْ مُؤْمِنِينَ ﴿,“Say, ‘Then why did you kill the prophets of Allah before, if you are [indeed] believers?’”.

This verse addresses the Jews who were present during the period of revelation. It reminds them that their fore-fathers had killed the Prophets, thus they were liars who did not believe in the Torah, Bible nor the Qur’an. They did not believe except in wealth and their own interests.