وَيَوْمَ نَحْشُرُهُمْ جَمِيعًا ثُمَّ نَقُولُ لِلَّذِينَ أَشْرَكُوٓا۟ أَيْنَ شُرَكَآؤُكُمُ ٱلَّذِينَ كُنتُمْ تَزْعُمُونَ 22
Translations
And [mention, O Muḥammad], the Day We will gather them all together; then We will say to those who associated others with Allāh, "Where are your 'partners' that you used to claim [with Him]?"
Transliteration
Wa yawma nahshuruhum jami'an thumma naqoolu lilladhina ashrakoo ayna shurakaaa'ukumu alladhina kuntum taz'umoon
Tafsir (Explanation)
This ayah describes the Day of Judgment when Allah will gather all people together and confront the polytheists, asking them where their supposed partners to Allah are—those false deities and intercessors they claimed to possess. According to Ibn Kathir and Al-Tabari, this questioning on the Day of Judgment will serve as a humiliating reminder to the disbelievers of their false beliefs, as these idols and partners will neither respond nor come to their aid. The ayah emphasizes that all the false gods and partners attributed to Allah will be proven powerless and non-existent on that ultimate day.
Revelation Context
This ayah is part of Surah Al-An'am, a Meccan surah revealed to address the polytheism prevalent among the Quraysh and Arab pagans. The surah comprehensively refutes polytheism and idolatry by presenting logical arguments and descriptions of the afterlife consequences. This particular ayah fits within the broader thematic arc of the surah that uses the Day of Judgment as evidence against shirk (associating partners with Allah).
Related Hadiths
The general theme relates to authentically reported descriptions of the Day of Judgment found throughout Sahih Bukhari and Sahih Muslim. Specifically, hadiths about the mushrikeen (polytheists) being asked about their deities on the Day of Judgment appear in various collections discussing the scenes of Qiyamah (Resurrection).
Themes
Key Lesson
This ayah serves as a powerful reminder that all false beliefs and idols we rely upon in this life will be exposed as worthless on the Day of Judgment; believers should reflect on where their true trust and devotion lies, ensuring it is directed solely to Allah and not to any created beings or false systems of belief.
Related Ayahs
وَٱلْوَزْنُ يَوْمَئِذٍ ٱلْحَقُّ ۚ فَمَن ثَقُلَتْ مَوَٰزِينُهُۥ فَأُو۟لَـٰٓئِكَ هُمُ ٱلْمُفْلِحُونَ
And the weighing [of deeds] that Day will be the truth. So those whose scales are heavy - it is they who will be the successful.
إِنَّهُۥ مَن يَأْتِ رَبَّهُۥ مُجْرِمًا فَإِنَّ لَهُۥ جَهَنَّمَ لَا يَمُوتُ فِيهَا وَلَا يَحْيَىٰ
Indeed, whoever comes to his Lord as a criminal - indeed, for him is Hell; he will neither die therein nor live.
وَقَالُوا۟ لَن تَمَسَّنَا ٱلنَّارُ إِلَّآ أَيَّامًا مَّعْدُودَةً ۚ قُلْ أَتَّخَذْتُمْ عِندَ ٱللَّهِ عَهْدًا فَلَن يُخْلِفَ ٱللَّهُ عَهْدَهُۥٓ ۖ أَمْ تَقُولُونَ عَلَى ٱللَّهِ مَا لَا تَعْلَمُونَ
And they say, "Never will the Fire touch us, except for [a few] numbered days." Say, "Have you taken a covenant with Allāh? For Allāh will never break His covenant. Or do you say about Allāh that which you do not know?"
سَيَعْلَمُونَ غَدًا مَّنِ ٱلْكَذَّابُ ٱلْأَشِرُ
They will know tomorrow who is the insolent liar.