Tafsir of Ash-Shura 42:21

Surah Ash-Shura 42:21

ﲝ ﲞ ﲟ ﲠ ﲡ ﲢ ﲣ ﲤ ﲥ ﲦ ﲧ ﲨ ﲩ ﲪ ﲫ ﲬ ﲭ ﲮ ﲯ ﲰ ﲱ ﲲ ﲳ ﲴ

Or have they other deities who have ordained for them a religion to which Allah has not consented? But if not for the decisive word, it would have been concluded between them. And indeed, the wrongdoers will have a painful punishment.

Tafsir

Tafsir Ibn Kathir

Verse range: 42:21

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أم لهم شركاء شرعوا لهم من الدين ما لم يٲذن به الله

Or have they partners with Allah who have instituted for them a religion which Allah has not ordained? means, they do not follow what Allah has ordained for you of upright religion; on the contrary, they follow what their devils (Shayatin), of men and Jinn, have prescribed for them. They instituted taboos, such as the Bahirah, Sa'ibah, Wasilah or Ham. They also permitted eating flesh and blood of animals not slaughtered for consumption, gambling and other kinds of misguidance, ignorance and falsehood. These are things that they invented during Jahiliyyah, when they came up with all kinds of false rulings on what was permitted and what was forbidden, and false rites of worship and other corrupt ideas. It was recorded in the Sahih that the Messenger of Allah said:

رأيت عمرو بن لحي بن قمعة يجر قصبه في النار

I saw `Amr bin Luhayy bin Qama`ah dragging his intestines in Hell -- (because he had been the first one to introduce the idea of the Sa'ibah). This man was one of the kings of the Khuza`ah tribe, and he was the first one to do these things. He was the one who had made the Quraysh worship idols, may the curse of Allah be upon him. Allah said:

ولوﻻ كلمة الفصل لقضي بينهم

And had it not been for a decisive Word, the matter would have been judged between them. means, the punishment would have been hastened for them, were it not for the fact that it had already been decreed that it would be delayed until the Day of Resurrection.

وإن الظالمين لهم عذاب أليم

And verily, for the wrongdoers there is a painful torment. i.e., an agonizing torment in Hell, what a terrible destination. The Terror of the Idolators in the Place of Gathering Allah says;