سُوْرَةُ يُوْنُسَ
Surah Yunus (10) — Ayah 18
وَيَعْبُدُونَ مِن دُونِ ٱللَّهِ مَا لَا يَضُرُّهُمْ وَلَا يَنفَعُهُمْ وَيَقُولُونَ هَـٰٓؤُلَآءِ شُفَعَـٰٓؤُنَا عِندَ ٱللَّهِ ۚ قُلْ أَتُنَبِّـُٔونَ ٱللَّهَ بِمَا لَا يَعْلَمُ فِى ٱلسَّمَـٰوَٰتِ وَلَا فِى ٱلْأَرْضِ ۚ سُبْحَـٰنَهُۥ وَتَعَـٰلَىٰ عَمَّا يُشْرِكُونَ ﴿18﴾
Translation by Dr. Muhammad Muhsin Khan & Dr. Taqi-ud-Din al-Hilali
And they worship besides Allâh things that harm them not, nor profit them, and they say: "These are our intercessors with Allâh." Say: "Do you inform Allâh of that which He knows not in the heavens and on the earth?" Glorified and Exalted is He above all that which they associate as partners (with Him)!
Word by Word — Arabic, Transliteration & Meaning
وَيَعْبُدُونَ
wayaʿbudūna
And they worship
مِن
min
from
دُونِ
dūni
other than
ٱللَّهِ
l-lahi
Allah
مَا
mā
that (which)
لَا
lā
(does) not
يَضُرُّهُمْ
yaḍurruhum
harm them
وَلَا
walā
and not
يَنفَعُهُمْ
yanfaʿuhum
benefit them
وَيَقُولُونَ
wayaqūlūna
and they say
هَـٰٓؤُلَآءِ
hāulāi
These
شُفَعَـٰٓؤُنَا
shufaʿāunā
(are) our intercessors
عِندَ
ʿinda
with
ٱللَّهِ ۚ
l-lahi
Allah
قُلْ
qul
Say
أَتُنَبِّـُٔونَ
atunabbiūna
Do you inform
ٱللَّهَ
l-laha
Allah
بِمَا
bimā
of what
لَا
lā
not
يَعْلَمُ
yaʿlamu
he knows
فِى
fī
in
ٱلسَّمَـٰوَٰتِ
l-samāwāti
the heavens
وَلَا
walā
and not
فِى
fī
in
ٱلْأَرْضِ ۚ
l-arḍi
the earth
سُبْحَـٰنَهُۥ
sub'ḥānahu
Glorified is He
وَتَعَـٰلَىٰ
wataʿālā
and Exalted
عَمَّا
ʿammā
above what
يُشْرِكُونَ
yush'rikūna
they associate (with Him)
Tafsir Taiseer ul-Quran — Maulana Abdul Rahman Kilani
Tafsir Taiseer ul-Quran (Facilitation of the Quran) is a comprehensive Quran commentary by Maulana Abdul Rahman Kilani, a renowned Salafi (Ahl al-Hadith) scholar from Pakistan. Known for his eloquent and accessible writing style, Kilani authored this tafsir with a focus on clarity — making Quranic meanings understandable to the common reader. The tafsir provides detailed historical context for verses related to battles and expeditions, and firmly refutes modernist ideologies using strong scriptural evidence. It is widely regarded as an invaluable resource for understanding the Quran and countering deviant interpretations. The tafsir is originally written in Urdu, translated to English by tohed.com.
They worship, besides Allah, things that can neither harm nor benefit them [28], and they say, "These are our intercessors with Allah." Say, "Are you informing Allah of something He does not know in the heavens or in the earth [29]?" Exalted is He and far above what they associate with Him.
[28]
Intercession of ﴿من دون الله﴾?
That is, there is no being besides Allah who can rectify anyone’s affairs or benefit anyone, so to worship anyone else with such a belief is futile, and in this regard, associating others with Allah’s attributes is a great crime. And when they are asked why they worship them, they say that indeed the Great God is only One, but worshipping and pleasing these deities is necessary so that, according to whatever little authority they possess, they may set our affairs right, and for what they cannot do, they may intercede for us. And if there is a life after death, then there too they will intercede for us.
[29]
There is No Evidence for the Popular Belief in Intercession:
The belief of the polytheists regarding prostrating before idols or deities, or showing them reverence, is that in reality, they do not worship or revere these stone statues themselves, but rather they show reverence to the spirits of these statues, which according to their belief, reside in these statues. And these statues are of elders, of Allah’s daughters and sons, and of some angels as well. And today’s Muslim attaches the same belief to the graves of their elders. Allah Almighty said in response to the polytheists that the claim of idols being intercessors and any intercessor being worthy of worship—both are false and baseless. And it is impossible that the reality of something exists, but Allah is unaware of it. So, do these polytheists want to inform Allah of such self-invented things that have no existence whatsoever in the heavens or the earth? Then, which intercessors are they trying to inform Allah about?
[28]
Intercession of ﴿من دون الله﴾?
That is, there is no being besides Allah who can rectify anyone’s affairs or benefit anyone, so to worship anyone else with such a belief is futile, and in this regard, associating others with Allah’s attributes is a great crime. And when they are asked why they worship them, they say that indeed the Great God is only One, but worshipping and pleasing these deities is necessary so that, according to whatever little authority they possess, they may set our affairs right, and for what they cannot do, they may intercede for us. And if there is a life after death, then there too they will intercede for us.
[29]
There is No Evidence for the Popular Belief in Intercession:
The belief of the polytheists regarding prostrating before idols or deities, or showing them reverence, is that in reality, they do not worship or revere these stone statues themselves, but rather they show reverence to the spirits of these statues, which according to their belief, reside in these statues. And these statues are of elders, of Allah’s daughters and sons, and of some angels as well. And today’s Muslim attaches the same belief to the graves of their elders. Allah Almighty said in response to the polytheists that the claim of idols being intercessors and any intercessor being worthy of worship—both are false and baseless. And it is impossible that the reality of something exists, but Allah is unaware of it. So, do these polytheists want to inform Allah of such self-invented things that have no existence whatsoever in the heavens or the earth? Then, which intercessors are they trying to inform Allah about?
