Has He then taken daughters out of His own creation and chosen sons for you? 16 And if one of them hath tidings of that which he likeneth to the Beneficent One, his countenance becometh black and he is full of inward rage. 17 Can one who has been raised on ornaments and cannot present her case coolly in a dispute (be associated with God?) 18 They claim that the angels, who are themselves the worshipers of the Merciful, are females. Did they witness their creation! Their witness shall be written down and they shall be questioned. 19 And they say: had the Compassionate willed we should not have worshipped them. They have no knowledge thereof; they are only guessing. 20 Have We vouchsafed unto them any Book before this, so that they are to it holding fast? 21 Nay! they say: "We found our fathers following a certain religion, and we do guide ourselves by their footsteps." 22 And thus it is: whenever We sent, before thy time, a warner to any community, those of its people who had lost themselves entirely in the pursuit of pleasures would always say: "Behold, we found our forefathers agreed on what to believe - and verily, it is but in their footsteps that we follow!" 23 ۞ [Each warner] said, "Even if I brought you better guidance than that [religion] upon which you found your fathers?" They said, "Indeed we, in that with which you were sent, are disbelievers." 24 So We exacted retribution from them: now see what was the end of those who rejected (Truth)! 25