Tafsir of Surah Maryam - Verse 81

The Idols of the Polytheists will deny Their Worship

Allah, the Exalted, informs about the disbelievers who associate partners with their Lord, that they have taken gods besides Allah, so that these gods may be a source of honor and might for them. They think that these gods give them power and make them victorious. Then, Allah mentions that the matter is not as they claim, and it will not be as they hope. He says,

كَلاَّ سَيَكْفُرُونَ بِعِبَـدَتِهِمْ

(Nay, but they will deny their worship of them,) on the Day of Judgement.

وَيَكُونُونَ عَلَيْهِمْ ضِدّاً

(and will become their adversaries.) This means that they will be foes in a state other than what they think about these gods. This is similar to Allah's statement,

وَمَنْ أَضَلُّ مِمَّن يَدْعُو مِن دُونِ اللَّهِ مَن لاَّ يَسْتَجِيبُ لَهُ إِلَى يَوْمِ الْقِيَـمَةِ وَهُمْ عَن دُعَآئِهِمْ غَـفِلُونَ - وَإِذَا حُشِرَ النَّاسُ كَانُواْ لَهُمْ أَعْدَآءً وَكَانُواْ بِعِبَادَتِهِمْ كَـفِرِينَ

(And who is more astray than one who calls upon, besides Allah, such as will not answer him till the Day of Resurrection, and who are (even) unaware of their calls to them And when mankind are gathered, they will become their enemies and will deny their worshipping.) 46:5-6 As-Suddi said,

كَلاَّ سَيَكْفُرُونَ بِعِبَـدَتِهِمْ

(Nay, but they will deny their worship of them,) "This means their worshipping of the idols. " Allah said,

وَيَكُونُونَ عَلَيْهِمْ ضِدّاً

(and will become their adversaries) contrary to what they hoped for from these gods. As-Suddi said,

وَيَكُونُونَ عَلَيْهِمْ ضِدّاً

(and will become their adversaries.) "They will be in severe opposition and argument." Ad-Dahhak said,

وَيَكُونُونَ عَلَيْهِمْ ضِدّاً

(and will become their adversaries.) "This means enemies."

The Power of the Devils over the Disbelievers

Concerning Allah's statement,

أَلَمْ تَرَ أَنَّآ أَرْسَلْنَا الشَّيَـطِينَ عَلَى الْكَـفِرِينَ تَؤُزُّهُمْ أَزّاً

(See you not that We have sent the Shayatin against the disbelievers to push them to do evil.) `Ali bin Abi Talhah said that Ibn `Abbas said, "They will lead them astray with temptation." Al-`Awfi said that Ibn `Abbas said, "They will incite them against Muhammad and his Companions." Qatadah said, "They will harass them and disturb them until they disobey Allah." `Abdur-Rahman bin Zayd said, "This is similar to Allah's statement,

وَمَن يَعْشُ عَن ذِكْرِ الرَّحْمَـنِ نُقَيِّضْ لَهُ شَيْطَاناً فَهُوَ لَهُ قَرِينٌ

(And whosoever turns away blindly from the remembrance of the Most Gracious, We appoint for him a Shaytan to be a companion for him.)" 43:36 Concerning Allah's statement,

فَلاَ تَعْجَلْ عَلَيْهِمْ إِنَّمَا نَعُدُّ لَهُمْ عَدّاً

(So make no haste against them; We only count out to them a (limited) number.) This means, "Do not be hasty with the punishment that is going to befall them, O Muhammad."

إِنَّمَا نَعُدُّ لَهُمْ عَدّاً

(We only count out to them a number. ) This means, "We are only delaying them for a fixed appointment whose time is numbered. They are destined for that and there is no escaping the torment of Allah and His exemplary punishment." Allah says,

وَلاَ تَحْسَبَنَّ اللَّهَ غَـفِلاً عَمَّا يَعْمَلُ الظَّـلِمُونَ

(And consider not that Allah is unaware of that which the wrongdoers do.) 14:42 And He says,

فَمَهِّلِ الْكَـفِرِينَ أَمْهِلْهُمْ رُوَيْداً

(So give a respite to the disbelievers; deal gently with them for a while.) 86:17 And Allah says,

إِنَّمَا نُمْلِى لَهُمْ لِيَزْدَادُواْ إِثْمَاً

(We postpone the punishment only so that they may increase in sinfulness.) 3:178

نُمَتِّعُهُمْ قَلِيلاً ثُمَّ نَضْطَرُّهُمْ إِلَى عَذَابٍ غَلِيظٍ

(We let them enjoy for a little while, then in the end We shall oblige them to (enter) a great torment.) 31:24

قُلْ تَمَتَّعُواْ فَإِنَّ مَصِيرَكُمْ إِلَى النَّارِ

(Say: "Enjoy! But certainly, your destination is the (Hell) Fire.") 14:30 As-Suddi said,

إِنَّمَا نَعُدُّ لَهُمْ عَدّاً

(We only count out to them a (limited) number. ) means years, months, days and hours."

يَوْمَ نَحْشُرُ الْمُتَّقِينَ إِلَى الرَّحْمَـنِ وَفْداً

وَنَسُوقُ الْمُجْرِمِينَ إِلَى جَهَنَّمَ وِرْداً

وَنَرِ‌ثُهُ مَا يَقُولُ

"And We will inherit from him what he is talking about" - 19:80.

It is foolish of him to talk about retaining his wealth and children in the Hereafter because he will have to leave behind even these things which he possesses in this world, and his wealth and children will all revert to Allah Ta’ ala.

وَيَأْتِينَا فَرْ‌دًا

"And he.will come to Us all alone" - 19:80.

And on the Day of Judgment he will appear in God's presence one without his wealth and his children.

Man wants to be able to do whatever he likes in this world, but at the same time he does not want to be made to suffer the consequences of his wrongdoings. Naturally, such leniency is not to be expected from God. Therefore, man courts such beings as are supposedly near and dear to God and who could plead his case to Him. But such a course of action, based as it is on false conjectures, will be of no avail to him or to anybody else. So much so that even those beings whom he had supposed to be partners of God and whom he ritually worshipped, will themselves disown him on Judgement Day. They will show him nothing but hatred.