Surah Al-Furqan 25:55
ﳈ ﳉ ﳊ ﳋ ﳌ ﳍ ﳎ ﳏ ﳐ ﳑ ﳒ ﳓ ﳔ ﳕ ﳖ
But they worship rather than Allah that which does not benefit them or harm them, and the disbeliever is ever, against his Lord, an assistant [to Satan].
Tafsir of Al-Furqan 25:55
Tafsir
Al-Kashshaf
Verse range: 25:55
Al-Furqān: 55
"And they worship instead of Allah that which neither benefits them nor harms them, and the disbeliever is ever, against his Lord, a ẓahīr (assistant/supporter)."
- Ẓahīr and muẓāhir: These are like ʿawīn (helper) and muʿāwin (assistant). The form faʿīl in the sense of mufāʿil (active participant) is not rare.
- The meaning: The disbeliever supports Satan against his Lord through enmity and polytheism. It is narrated that this was revealed regarding Abū Jahl.
- Alternative interpretation: It is permissible that by ẓahīr, he means a group, as in His saying: "And the angels, moreover, are [his] assistants" (al-Taḥrīm: 4). Just as one says "the friend" (al-ṣadīq) and "the associate" (al-khalīṭ). By "the disbeliever," he means the entire class of disbelievers, and that some of them support others in attempting to extinguish the light of Allah’s religion.
- Another view: The meaning is: "He who performs this act—worshipping that which neither benefits nor harms—is insignificant and contemptible (hayyin mahīn) before his Lord." This is derived from the expression: "I cast him behind my back" (ẓahartu bihi), meaning you leave him behind your back and pay him no attention. This is similar to His saying: "Those will have no share in the Hereafter, and Allah will not speak to them or look at them" (Āl ʿImrān: 77).