Some deviants claim that the soul is from "Allah's command", an attribute of Allah and thus uncreated. They use Verse 85 from Surah al-‘Isra as evidence, "Say, ‘The spirit is from my Lord's command' "

How should we refute this claim?

The verse in Surah al-Isra is as follows:

قُلِ الرُّوحُ مِنْ أَمْرِ رَبِّي

"Say, the soul is of the affair of my Lord." [1]

One must have some background in the Arabic language. In this verse أمر (command) is a masdar (infinitive). However, here it is used to mean مأمور (that which is being commanded) which is the ism maf‘ool (passive participle) of the word أمر. For the masdar (infinitive) to be used to mean the ism maf‘ool (passive participle) is a common practice in Arabic grammar.

So, here the meaning of أمر in this verse is not "command" as some may translate it as. Rather its meaning is the opposite of command: the thing being commanded. Hence, there is no evidence in this verse for those who interpret the meaning of Allah's attribute of spirit to mean "command".

And Allah knows best.

Reference:

[1] Surah al-‘Isra, 17:85