وَكَيْفَ أَخَافُ مَآ أَشْرَكْتُمْ وَلَا تَخَافُونَ أَنَّكُمْ أَشْرَكْتُم بِٱللَّهِ مَا لَمْ يُنَزِّلْ بِهِۦ عَلَيْكُمْ سُلْطَـٰنًا ۚ فَأَىُّ ٱلْفَرِيقَيْنِ أَحَقُّ بِٱلْأَمْنِ ۖ إِن كُنتُمْ تَعْلَمُونَ 81
Translations
And how should I fear what you associate while you do not fear that you have associated with Allāh that for which He has not sent down to you any authority? So which of the two parties has more right to security, if you should know?"
Transliteration
Wa kayfa akhaafu maa ashraktum wa laa takhaafoona annakum ashraktum billahi maa lam yunazzil bihi alaikum sulta'anaa fa ayy al-fariqayn ahaqq bi al-amni in kuntum ta'lamuun
Tafsir (Explanation)
This ayah contains Prophet Ibrahim's (Abraham) rhetorical challenge to his people, questioning the illogic of their fear regarding his rejection of their idols while they themselves fearlessly associate partners with Allah without any divine proof or authority. Ibn Kathir and Al-Tabari note that Ibrahim is exposing the contradiction in their reasoning—they fear the consequences of monotheism yet show no fear of committing the grave sin of shirk (polytheism) without any scriptural evidence. The ayah concludes by asking which group—the believers in Allah alone or the polytheists—has a greater right to security, emphasizing that only those who practice pure monotheism deserve the ultimate safety and peace.
Revelation Context
This ayah is part of the dialogue between Prophet Ibrahim and his people in Surah Al-An'am, a Meccan surah addressing the idolaters of Mecca. The context shows Ibrahim's intellectual and spiritual response to his community's resistance to his message of pure monotheism, serving as a paradigm for believers facing similar opposition to Islamic teachings.
Related Hadiths
The Quran itself (6:82-83) continues with: 'It is those who believe and confuse not their beliefs with wrong—for them are security and they are rightly guided.' Additionally, hadith in Sahih Muslim relates to the concept that belief in Allah alone brings security: 'Whoever testifies that there is no god but Allah, his wealth and blood become sacred and his reckoning is with Allah.'
Themes
Key Lesson
The ayah teaches believers to recognize the intellectual inconsistency of polytheism and to maintain unwavering confidence in Allah's protection, understanding that true security comes only through sincere monotheism without fear or shame, regardless of others' rejection or criticism.