How does one respond to the specious argument that the Quran plagiarized from poets such as Ru'ba ibn al-Ajjaj and Zayd ibn Nufayl, based on the claim that verses from Surahs Al-Fil and Maryam resemble their poetic sayings?

First, the poetry of Ru'ba ibn al-Ajjaj has been attributed to the Holy Quran in several places, but this is incorrect. Ru'ba was born after the Prophet (peace be upon him) and died in the 145th year of the Hijra. He was a Muslim believer that the Quran is the word of Allah the Almighty.

Second, regarding the poetry attributed to Zayd ibn Amr ibn Nufayl, if it is true that it belongs to the pre-Islamic era (Jahiliyyah), then it could only have originated from a Christian poet with knowledge of the People of the Book. However, Zayd was a monotheist and was neither Christian nor Jewish. This poetry has also been attributed to Umayyah ibn Abi al-Salt, a poet who lived during the time of prophethood and aspired to be a prophet. He may have tried to imitate the Holy Quran. The close relatives of Umayyah believed in the Holy Quran, which is evidence that it is not the speech of poets.