The Quran

۞ قالَ أَوَلَو جِئتُكُم بِأَهدىٰ مِمّا وَجَدتُم عَلَيهِ آباءَكُم ۖ قالوا إِنّا بِما أُرسِلتُم بِهِ كافِرونَ

Muhammad Asad

[Whereupon each prophet] would say,¹ "Why, even though I bring you a guidance better than that which you found your forefathers believing in?" - [to which] the others would reply, "Behold, we deny that there is any truth in [what you claim to be] your messages!"

Whereas in some of the readings of the Qur'an the opening word of this verse is vocalized as an imperative, qul ("say"), the reading of Hafs ibn Sulayman al-Asadi - on which this translation is based - gives the pronounciation qala ("lie said" or, since it is a repeated occurrence, "he would say").