Al-'Ankabut 29:17
The Spider · Juz 20 · Page 398
إِنَّمَا تَعۡبُدُونَ مِن دُونِ ٱللَّهِ أَوۡثَٰنٗا وَتَخۡلُقُونَ إِفۡكًاۚ إِنَّ ٱلَّذِينَ تَعۡبُدُونَ مِن دُونِ ٱللَّهِ لَا يَمۡلِكُونَ لَكُمۡ رِزۡقٗا فَٱبۡتَغُواْ عِندَ ٱللَّهِ ٱلرِّزۡقَ وَٱعۡبُدُوهُ وَٱشۡكُرُواْ لَهُۥٓۖ إِلَيۡهِ تُرۡجَعُونَ ١٧
You only worship, besides Allāh, idols, and you produce a falsehood. Indeed, those you worship besides Allāh do not possess for you [the power of] provision. So seek from Allāh provision and worship Him and be grateful to Him. To Him you will be returned."
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Tazkirul Quran
Brief · Short modern reflections on each passage.
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Commentary on 29:16–18
Making anybody other than the One God the centre of one’s noble feelings is a sin, because it amounts to presuming that divine attributes inhere in beings other than God. It is this attribution of the lofty qualities unique to God to some thing other than God, that makes it possible for a man to become the worshipper of some entity other than Him. In the earlier days of polytheism, man used to presume that idols possessed such qualities. Today man is behaving no differently. It is just that the names of the idols of the present day vary from those of yore. The sole difference between ancient and modern times is that ancient man used to attribute the lucrative produce of his field to the kindness of some imaginary god, while the man of today says, ‘Our green revolution is a miracle of our agricultural science’.
Page 398
29:15
فَأَنجَيۡنَٰهُ وَأَصۡحَٰبَ ٱلسَّفِينَةِ وَجَعَلۡنَٰهَآ ءَايَةٗ لِّلۡعَٰلَمِينَ ١٥
But We saved him and the companions of the ship, and We made it1 a sign for the worlds.
1 translator’s note
- i.e., the ship, the event or the story. ↩
29:16
وَإِبۡرَٰهِيمَ إِذۡ قَالَ لِقَوۡمِهِ ٱعۡبُدُواْ ٱللَّهَ وَٱتَّقُوهُۖ ذَٰلِكُمۡ خَيۡرٞ لَّكُمۡ إِن كُنتُمۡ تَعۡلَمُونَ ١٦
And [We sent] Abraham, when he said to his people, "Worship Allāh and fear Him. That is best for you, if you should know.
29:17
إِنَّمَا تَعۡبُدُونَ مِن دُونِ ٱللَّهِ أَوۡثَٰنٗا وَتَخۡلُقُونَ إِفۡكًاۚ إِنَّ ٱلَّذِينَ تَعۡبُدُونَ مِن دُونِ ٱللَّهِ لَا يَمۡلِكُونَ لَكُمۡ رِزۡقٗا فَٱبۡتَغُواْ عِندَ ٱللَّهِ ٱلرِّزۡقَ وَٱعۡبُدُوهُ وَٱشۡكُرُواْ لَهُۥٓۖ إِلَيۡهِ تُرۡجَعُونَ ١٧
You only worship, besides Allāh, idols, and you produce a falsehood. Indeed, those you worship besides Allāh do not possess for you [the power of] provision. So seek from Allāh provision and worship Him and be grateful to Him. To Him you will be returned."
29:18
وَإِن تُكَذِّبُواْ فَقَدۡ كَذَّبَ أُمَمٞ مِّن قَبۡلِكُمۡۖ وَمَا عَلَى ٱلرَّسُولِ إِلَّا ٱلۡبَلَٰغُ ٱلۡمُبِينُ ١٨
And if you [people] deny [the message] - already nations before you have denied. And there is not upon the Messenger except [the duty of] clear notification.1
1 translator’s note
- Commentators have differed over this verse - whether it is a continuation of the words of Prophet Abraham or words of comfort given by Allāh to Prophet Muḥammad (ﷺ), which according to context seems more likely. ↩
29:19
أَوَلَمۡ يَرَوۡاْ كَيۡفَ يُبۡدِئُ ٱللَّهُ ٱلۡخَلۡقَ ثُمَّ يُعِيدُهُۥٓۚ إِنَّ ذَٰلِكَ عَلَى ٱللَّهِ يَسِيرٞ ١٩
Have they not considered how Allāh begins creation and then repeats it? Indeed that, for Allāh, is easy.
29:20
قُلۡ سِيرُواْ فِي ٱلۡأَرۡضِ فَٱنظُرُواْ كَيۡفَ بَدَأَ ٱلۡخَلۡقَۚ ثُمَّ ٱللَّهُ يُنشِئُ ٱلنَّشۡأَةَ ٱلۡأٓخِرَةَۚ إِنَّ ٱللَّهَ عَلَىٰ كُلِّ شَيۡءٖ قَدِيرٞ ٢٠
Say, [O Muḥammad], "Travel through the land and observe how He began creation. Then Allāh will produce the final creation [i.e., development]. Indeed Allāh, over all things, is competent."
29:21
يُعَذِّبُ مَن يَشَآءُ وَيَرۡحَمُ مَن يَشَآءُۖ وَإِلَيۡهِ تُقۡلَبُونَ ٢١
He punishes whom He wills and has mercy upon whom He wills, and to Him you will be returned.
29:22
وَمَآ أَنتُم بِمُعۡجِزِينَ فِي ٱلۡأَرۡضِ وَلَا فِي ٱلسَّمَآءِۖ وَمَا لَكُم مِّن دُونِ ٱللَّهِ مِن وَلِيّٖ وَلَا نَصِيرٖ ٢٢
And you will not cause failure [to Allāh] upon the earth or in the heaven. And you have not other than Allāh any protector or any helper.
29:23
وَٱلَّذِينَ كَفَرُواْ بِـَٔايَٰتِ ٱللَّهِ وَلِقَآئِهِۦٓ أُوْلَٰٓئِكَ يَئِسُواْ مِن رَّحۡمَتِي وَأُوْلَٰٓئِكَ لَهُمۡ عَذَابٌ أَلِيمٞ ٢٣
And the ones who disbelieve in the signs of Allāh and the meeting with Him - those have despaired of My mercy, and they will have a painful punishment.