Are angels free-willed, perfectly ethical beings?

Sources

• ✓ 43:19 · Az-Zukhruf

  43:19 · Muhammad Marmaduke Pickthall

  وَجَعَلُوا۟ ٱلْمَلَٰٓئِكَةَ ٱلَّذِينَ هُمْ عِبَٰدُ ٱلرَّحْمَٰنِ إِنَٰثًا ۚ أَشَهِدُوا۟ خَلْقَهُمْ ۚ سَتُكْتَبُ شَهَٰدَتُهُمْ وَيُسْـَٔلُونَ

  And they make the angels, who are the slaves of the Beneficent, females. Did they witness their creation? Their testimony will be recorded and they will be questioned.

• ✓ 37:150 · As-Saaffaat

  37:150 · Muhammad Marmaduke Pickthall

  أَمْ خَلَقْنَا ٱلْمَلَٰٓئِكَةَ إِنَٰثًۭا وَهُمْ شَٰهِدُونَ

  Or created We the angels females while they were present?

• ✓ Tafsir Ibn Kathir on 37:150

  Sunni

  Tafsir Ibn Kathir · 37:150

  The Almighty rebukes those polytheists who attribute daughters to Allah—Glorified and Exalted be He—while they desire sons for themselves, meaning they prefer good offspring for themselves, that is, male children. As Allah states in Surah An-Nahl, when someone is given glad tidings of a daughter, his face darkens with gloom, and he harbors inward grief, indicating his displeasure and preference for sons instead of daughters. Thus, how could they ascribe to Allah that which they do not wish for themselves? This is why Allah says, “So consult them,” inviting them to reflect and question their claim, “Does your Lord have daughters while they have sons?” This is akin to the verse: “Do you have males and He has females? That [then] is an unfair division.” Regarding the phrase, “Or did We create the angels females while they were witnesses?” Allah challenges the false assumption that angels are female, asking how they could make such a judgment without witnessing their creation, similar to what He mentions in Surah Az-Zukhruf about those who claim angels, who are servants of the Most Merciful, to be female — whose false testimony will be recorded and they will be questioned on the Day of Judgment. Allah then declares these claims as fabrications, stating, “Indeed, they are from their lies that they say, ‘Allah has begotten,’ and indeed they are liars.” He highlights three major falsehoods about the angels: first, deeming them daughters of Allah; second, asserting Allah has offspring; third, worshipping those offspring aside from Allah. Each of these errors alone suffices for eternal punishment in Hellfire. He further questions, “Has He chosen daughters over sons for Himself?” pointing out the absurdity of preferring daughters to sons, especially since it contradicts sound reasoning. This echoes similar rebukes in other verses where such judgments are called great falsehoods. Thus, He asks, “What is wrong with you that you judge thus? Do you not use reason to consider what you are saying?” Then He challenges, “Do you not reflect, or do you have a clear proof?” meaning, do you have any evidence to support your claim? Consequently, He commands, “Bring your scripture if you should be truthful,” demanding a heavenly text supporting their claim of Allah choosing daughters, underscoring that such an assertion lacks any rational or scriptural basis. Regarding the phrase, “And they have attributed to Him kinship with the jinn,” Mujahid and others reported that the polytheists claimed angels were daughters of Allah and were born from female jinn known as Sarawat. This is why Allah says, “And indeed, the jinn know they will be gathered [for punishment],” meaning those who spread such lies will be brought forth on the Day of Reckoning due to their falsehood and baseless claims. Al-'Awfi narrated from Ibn ‘Abbas that some enemies of Allah alleged that He and Iblis (Satan) were brothers, a claim Ibn Jarir also reported. Allah then declares, “Exalted is Allah above what they describe,” affirming His transcendence and sanctity above having offspring or any such traits ascribed by the unjust, disbelieving polytheists. Finally, the verse makes an exception: “Except for the purified servants of Allah,” meaning this is an absolute exception, affirming the truth and rejecting false claims. The pronoun in “above which they describe” may be understood as referring to all people, from whom only the sincere followers of divine truth—those who follow the revealed Scripture brought by every prophet and messenger—are excepted. Ibn Jarir considered this exception to refer to the previous phrase about those gathered (for punishment), except for Allah’s sincere servants, though this interpretation contains some unresolved issues.