Tafsir of Fussilat 41:24

{فإن يصبروا فالنار مثوى لهم} "If they show patience," it will not benefit them, nor will they be freed by it from dwelling in the Fire.

{وإن يستعتبوا} "And if they ask to be excused"—meaning, if they ask for al-‘utba (reconciliation/return to what they love) out of distress at their current state—{فما هم من المعتبين} "they will not be excused"—meaning, they will not be granted reconciliation, nor will their request be answered. Similar to this is His saying, Exalted is He: "Whether we show endurance or impatience, there is no escape for us" (Ibrahim: 21). It is also read: “And if they are asked to seek reconciliation, they will not be among those who reconcile,” meaning: if they are asked to please their Lord, they will not do so; there is no way for them to achieve that.

{وقيضنا لهم قرناء} "And We appointed for them companions"—meaning, We destined for them, referring to the polytheists of Mecca. It is said: "These two garments are qaydan (equivalent/matched)," when they are equal. Al-muqayada is the act of exchange. Qurana’ (companions) are intimate associates from among the devils, the plural of qarin, as in His saying: "And whoever is blinded from the remembrance of the Most Merciful, We appoint for him a devil, and he is to him a companion" (Az-Zukhruf: 36).

If you ask: How is it permissible for Him to appoint devilish companions for them when He forbids them from following their footsteps? I say: The meaning is that He abandoned them and withheld success from them due to their persistence in disbelief, so nothing remained for them but evil companions—the devils. The proof for this is: "And whoever is blinded..."

{فزينوا لهم ما بين أيديهم وما خلفهم} "And they made attractive to them what was before them and what was behind them"—meaning, the deeds that preceded them and those they are determined to do. Or, "what is before them" refers to worldly affairs and the pursuit of desires, and "what is behind them" refers to the matter of the Hereafter, [convincing them] that there is no resurrection and no reckoning.

{وحق عليهم القول} "And the word has come into effect upon them"—meaning, the decree of punishment—{في أمم} "among nations"—meaning, as part of a group of nations. Similar to this is the verse: If you are deluded regarding the best of deeds, then you are among others who have been deluded. Meaning: You are among a group of others; you are counted among them and are not unique in that.

If you ask: What is the grammatical position of {في أمم}? I say: It is in the accusative case as a state (hal) for the pronoun in {عليهم}, meaning: "The word has come into effect upon them, while they are among a group of nations."

{إنهم كانوا خاسرين} "Indeed, they were losers"—this provides the reason for their deserving the punishment. The pronoun refers to them and the [previous] nations.

{وقال الذين كفروا لا تسمعوا لهذا القرءان والغوا فيه لعلكم تغلبون * فلنذيقن الذين كفروا عذابا شديدا ولنجزينهم أسوأ الذي كانوا يعملون * ذلك جزاء أعداء الله النار لهم فيها دار الخلد جزاء بما كانوا بآياتنا يجحدون}