The Children of Israel
IN THE NAME OF GOD, THE MOST GRACIOUS, THE DISPENSER OF GRACE[17:61]
AND LO! We said unto the angels, "Prostrate yourselves before Adam" – whereupon they all prostrated themselves, save Iblīs.
Said he: "Shall I prostrate myself before one whom Thou hast created out of clay?"

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* v.61 : For an explanation of the allegory of Adam and the angels, see 2:30-34, 7:11-18 and 15:26-41, as well as the corresponding notes. In the present instance, as in Al-A‘rāf and Al-Hijr, the accent is on the contempt of Iblīs for Adam (which is obviously a metonym for the whole human race): hence, this passage apparently connects with the end of verse 53 above – “verily, Satan is man’s open foe!” The stress on man’s dignity – expressed in God’s commandment to the angels to “prostrate themselves before Adam” – links this allegory with verses 70-72.