Praise be to Allah, and peace and blessings be upon the Messenger of Allah. To proceed:
Iblis was not one of the angels. Nevertheless, Allah’s command to prostrate to Adam was also directed to him, and this is established explicitly in the Qur’an. Some scholars mentioned that Iblis was present with the angels and outwardly participated with them in worship and deeds, so he was included in the address directed to them. As for the precise manner and complete reason for his inclusion in this command, Allah knows best. What is certain is that Allah commanded him to prostrate, but he refused and behaved arrogantly.
The Qur’an clearly explains the origin of Iblis. Allah Almighty says:
“And when We said to the angels, ‘Prostrate to Adam,’ they prostrated except Iblis. He was one of the jinn and rebelled against the command of his Lord.”
[Al-Kahf 18:50]
The verse explicitly states that Iblis was one of the jinn, not one of the angels.
Therefore, the exception of Iblis after mentioning the angels does not necessarily mean that he was one of them.
Yes, and this is established by an explicit text.
Allah Almighty says:
“He said, ‘What prevented you from prostrating when I commanded you?’”
[Al-A'raf 7:12]
The words of Allah, “when I commanded you,” settle the matter. Iblis was commanded to prostrate, and therefore he deserved blame and punishment when he refused to carry out Allah’s command.
It is therefore incorrect to say that the command was not directed to him and that he was then punished for something he had never been commanded to do.
A number of commentators mentioned that Iblis was present among the angels and outwardly participated with them in acts of worship. Therefore, he was included in the command when Allah ordered them to prostrate to Adam.
Ibn Kathir, may Allah have mercy on him, said:
“When the angels were commanded to prostrate to Adam, Iblis was included in the address to them, because although he was not of their kind, he had resembled them and adopted their actions, and for this reason he was included in the address directed to them.”
In other words, his outward association with them in condition and action was the reason he was included in the command, not because he was of the same kind as the angels.
A command may be directed to a group and also include someone who is not of their kind because he is present among them or shares with them the relevant circumstance.
Therefore, Allah’s statement:
“And when We said to the angels, ‘Prostrate to Adam’”
does not conflict with His statement:
“He was one of the jinn.”
The first verse discusses the command to prostrate and those included in it, while the second explains the true origin and kind of Iblis.
Shaykh Ibn Uthaymeen, may Allah have mercy on him, said concerning Iblis:
“He outwardly participated with them in their deeds, so the command was outwardly inclusive of him.”
A number of commentators mentioned a similar explanation.
Nevertheless, no text has come detailing every aspect of why Iblis was with them and exactly how he was included in the address. Therefore, one should not state with certainty anything that has not been authentically established.
The problem was not that Iblis failed to understand that the command included him. Rather, the Qur’an shows that he rejected the command out of arrogance and objection.
Allah Almighty says:
“He said, ‘I am better than him. You created me from fire and created him from clay.’”
[Al-A'raf 7:12]
Iblis knew the command, but he responded to Allah’s command with arrogance and argued on the basis of the substance from which he had been created. His disobedience was therefore deliberate.
Iblis was one of the jinn and not one of the angels, as the Qur’an explicitly states. Nevertheless, he was commanded to prostrate to Adam together with the angels, as proven by Allah’s words to him: “when I commanded you.”
Scholars have mentioned that he was with the angels and outwardly participated with them in worship and deeds, and therefore he was included in the address directed to them.
As for the details concerning why he was included in this command that revelation has not explained, it is better not to speculate unnecessarily. What is certain is that Allah commanded Iblis to prostrate, but he refused and acted arrogantly, and therefore deserved punishment for disobeying Allah’s command.
And Allah knows best.