Substituting Mankind with another race?

Surah an-Nisa' (4:133)

Pickthall Yusuf Ali Shakir Sher Ali Rashad Khalifa
If He will, He can remove you, O people, and produce others (in your stead). Allah is Able to do that. If it were His will, He could destroy you, o mankind, and create another race; for He hath power this to do. If He please, He can make you pass away, O people! and bring others; and Allah has the power to do this. If HE please, HE can take you away, O people, and bring others in your stead; and ALLAH has the full power to do that. If He wills, He can annihilate you, O people, and substitute others in your place. GOD is certainly able to do this.

In Shakir's translation this is a very reasonable statement.

In this verse even Pickthall and Hilali/Khan translate the term as "people" and not as "mankind" as they do in many other verses. Clearly, the audience of Muhammad's recitation is addressed, not mankind as a whole.

Yusuf Ali insists on still translating as "mankind" because that is how he translated it many times in other verses. In order to justify his "mankind" translation, he then has to invent the word "race" which is not in the text, as if Allah threatens to replace mankind with a different species, instead of just turning away from those who are disobedient and choosing other people who will follow his word.

The origin of this discussion comes from the issue whether all of mankind is addressed in the Qur'an which is denied in the article "Mohammed claimed to be a warner only for Arabia".


Qur'an Versions
Answering Islam Home Page