Fāṭir: (13) He causes the night to enter...

Further Argument on the Variation of Times

This is another line of reasoning concerning the variation of times, which we have mentioned repeatedly. We noted that the subsequent verse, {And He has subjected the sun and the moon}, is a response to an objection raised by the polytheists.

They claimed that the variation between night and day is due to the difference in the arcs traced above and below the Earth. In summer, the sun passes directly overhead in some regions aligned with the horizons, and its movement there is diurnal (passing below the Earth for less than half a circle). The time it remains below the Earth is shorter, thus the night is shortened. In winter, the opposite occurs, and the day is shortened.

Therefore, Allah Almighty said: {And He has subjected the sun and the moon}, meaning: Although the cause of the variation is what you mentioned, the movement of the sun and the moon is by the will and power of Allah; He is the One who caused that.

The Sovereignty of Allah

Then the Almighty said: {That is Allah, your Lord; to Him belongs all sovereignty. And those whom you invoke besides Him do not possess even a qimṭīr (sliver).}

This means: The One who performed these actions—splitting the heavens and the earth, sending the spirits, sending the winds, creating man from dust, and so on—to Him belongs all sovereignty. Thus, none deserves worship except Him due to His perfect essence and His being the Sovereign. Sovereignty necessitates being served according to the extent of that sovereignty. Since all sovereignty belongs to Him, all worship belongs to Him.

He then clarified what contradicts the attribute of divinity: {And those whom you invoke besides Him do not possess even a qimṭīr}.

There is a subtle point here: Allah Almighty mentioned two types of attributes for Himself:

1. Creation through volitional power.
2. Sovereignty (al-Milk).

He used both to prove that He is the worthy object of worship, just as He said: {Say, "I seek refuge in the Lord of mankind, The King of mankind, The God of mankind."} He mentioned being the Lord and the King, and derived from them the status of being the God (worthy of worship).

Regarding those associated with Him (in worship), He negated only one attribute: the lack of sovereignty, saying: {And those whom you invoke besides Him do not possess even a qimṭīr}. He did not negate the other attribute (creation) for two reasons:

1. Universal Acknowledgment: They all admitted that no creator exists for them except Allah. They only claimed that Allah had delegated the affairs of the Earth and terrestrial matters to the celestial bodies (planets) upon whose forms the idols were based, and whose ascensions they followed. Thus, He said: They have no sovereignty, nor did Allah grant them anything, nor do they possess anything.
2. Implication: The negation of sovereignty implies the negation of creation. If they had created anything, they would possess it. Since they do not possess even a qimṭīr, they have not created anything, neither little nor much.

The Futility of Invoking Them

{If you invoke them, they do not hear your call; and if they were to hear, they would not respond to you. And on the Day of Resurrection, they will deny your association of them [with Allah], and none will inform you like the All-Aware.}

Then the Almighty said: {If you invoke them, they do not hear your call; and if they were to hear, they would not respond to you. And on the Day of Resurrection, they will deny your association of them [with Allah], and none will inform you like the All-Aware.}