We said to the angels, "Submit to Adam," so they submitted except for Iblis, he refused and became arrogant, and became of the ingrates.
Translation endnotes
[2:34] Jeffrey Lang, professor of Mathematics at Kansas University, in his remarkable book Losing My Religion: A Call for Help, (Amana Publications, 2004), notes the following about this verse, "If I had any doubt about the Qur'an's position is that the human character is potentially greater than the angelic one, this verse removed it. When Adam succeeds intellectually where the angels failed, God tells them, "Bow down to Adam." They then bow down, demonstrating their acknowledgement of his superiority. Bowing is also a symbol of subservience and thus the Qur'an seems to be indicating that the angels/controllers will serve mankind in its development on earth. (p.32).