LessonsSupplementary Practice 22: Comparative Rhetorical Study of Sūrat al-Kāfirūn and al-NaṣrQuiz

وَلَا أَنَا عَابِدٌ مَا عَبَدْتُمْ
Nor am I a worshipper of what you have worshipped. (109:4)

Here anā is the subject, ʿābidun its nominal predicate, and ʿabadtum a past-tense verb. This differs formally from verse 2, where both worship verbs are imperfect: now a nominal characterization is paired with a past expression of the addressees' worship.

The presence of a past verb does not restrict the verse to one completed instant. The full pattern asserts a sustained disjunction in worship; syntax must be read with the discourse as a whole.

Opening interactive controls...

Verse 4: anā ʿābid and ʿabadtum

Supplementary Practice 22: Comparative Rhetorical Study of Sūrat al-Kāfirūn and al-Naṣr

وَلَا أَنَا عَابِدٌ مَا عَبَدْتُمْ
Nor am I a worshipper of what you have worshipped. (109:4)

Here anā is the subject, ʿābidun its nominal predicate, and ʿabadtum a past-tense verb. This differs formally from verse 2, where both worship verbs are imperfect: now a nominal characterization is paired with a past expression of the addressees' worship.

The presence of a past verb does not restrict the verse to one completed instant. The full pattern asserts a sustained disjunction in worship; syntax must be read with the discourse as a whole.