ABSTRACT
The twenty-four suras, which Noldeke ascribed to the Medinan period, comprise approximately forty percent of the Qur'an. The sura is two hundred verses long and has one hundred and eighty-three rhymings. Surat al 'Imran stands in the 'Uthmanic order of the collection of the Qur'an between Surat al-Baqara and Surat al-Nisa. It is clear from the outset that the people addressed in the sura are 'those who were given the kitab', the Jews and the Christians, and 'those who were not given the kitab' the polytheists. The polemic, from the beginning, is addressed against 'those who rejected faith in the signs of God', 'inna'lladhina kafaru' or 'yakfurun' comes up five times in our portion of the sura. The disbelievers already told that their wealth and children will not protect them against disbelief and are reminded of the people of Pharaoh. The Qur'an refers to the story more for the general polemic of the sura than for a specific didactic purpose.
