سُوْرَةُ الإِسۡرَاءِ
Surah Al-Israa (17) — Ayah 56
قُلِ ٱدْعُوا۟ ٱلَّذِينَ زَعَمْتُم مِّن دُونِهِۦ فَلَا يَمْلِكُونَ كَشْفَ ٱلضُّرِّ عَنكُمْ وَلَا تَحْوِيلًا ﴿56﴾
Translation by Dr. Muhammad Muhsin Khan & Dr. Taqi-ud-Din al-Hilali
Say (O Muhammad صلى الله عليه و سلم): "Call upon those - besides Him - whom you pretend [to be gods like angels, ‘Îsâ (Jesus), ‘Uzair (Ezra), and others.]. They have neither the power to remove the adversity from you nor even to shift it from you to another person."
Word by Word — Arabic, Transliteration & Meaning
قُلِ
quli
Say
ٱدْعُوا۟
id'ʿū
Call
ٱلَّذِينَ
alladhīna
those whom
زَعَمْتُم
zaʿamtum
you claimed
مِّن
min
besides Him
دُونِهِۦ
dūnihi
besides Him
فَلَا
falā
[then] not
يَمْلِكُونَ
yamlikūna
they have power
كَشْفَ
kashfa
(to) remove
ٱلضُّرِّ
l-ḍuri
the misfortunes
عَنكُمْ
ʿankum
from you
وَلَا
walā
and not
تَحْوِيلًا
taḥwīlan
(to) transfer (it)
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.
56. Say, "Call upon those whom you claim besides Allah; they have no power to remove hardship from you [69] or to change it."
[69] There is generality in this verse, meaning whether they are stone idols, angels, jinn, or deceased prophets and saints, all are included in this. The second point that is understood is that shirk is not only the act of prostrating to idols, but also calling upon them in times of difficulty is the same kind of shirk, and this is supported by many other verses and authentic ahadith. The third point is that no matter what kind of beings the objects of worship belong to, they can neither harm anyone nor benefit anyone, and all these are polytheistic beliefs.
[69] There is generality in this verse, meaning whether they are stone idols, angels, jinn, or deceased prophets and saints, all are included in this. The second point that is understood is that shirk is not only the act of prostrating to idols, but also calling upon them in times of difficulty is the same kind of shirk, and this is supported by many other verses and authentic ahadith. The third point is that no matter what kind of beings the objects of worship belong to, they can neither harm anyone nor benefit anyone, and all these are polytheistic beliefs.
