أَتَدْعُونَ بَعْلًا وَتَذَرُونَ أَحْسَنَ ٱلْخَـٰلِقِينَ 125
Translations
Do you call upon Baʿl and leave the best of creators -
Transliteration
Ata-du'ūna ba'lan wa-tadhārūna ahsana al-khāliqīn
Tafsir (Explanation)
This ayah is part of Prophet Salih's address to the people of Thamud, wherein he rebukes them for calling upon Ba'al (a false deity) while abandoning Allah, the Best of Creators. The rhetorical question emphasizes the absurdity and ingratitude of worshipping false gods when the Creator of all existence deserves exclusive devotion. Ibn Kathir notes this represents the core message of Salih's preaching: monotheism and the rejection of idolatry.
Revelation Context
This ayah appears within the narrative of Prophet Salih and the Thamud in Surah As-Saffat, which recounts stories of previous messengers and their peoples. The context is Salih's direct confrontation of his people's polytheism and their worship of idols carved from stone, demonstrating the eternal struggle between divine guidance and human deviation.
Related Hadiths
Thematically related: The hadith in Sahih Bukhari where the Prophet ﷺ said, 'The greatest sin is to associate partners with Allah (shirk),' emphasizing the severity of polytheism. Additionally, the story of Thamud is referenced in multiple hadiths warning against their fate as a consequence of rejecting the messenger.
Themes
Key Lesson
This ayah serves as a timeless reminder that worshipping anything besides Allah represents a fundamental contradiction and ingratitude, as only the Creator deserves devotion. Modern believers should reflect on whether they give precedence to worldly pursuits, desires, or false ideologies over the worship and remembrance of Allah, the Supreme Creator.
Related Ayahs
۞ قُلْ أَئِنَّكُمْ لَتَكْفُرُونَ بِٱلَّذِى خَلَقَ ٱلْأَرْضَ فِى يَوْمَيْنِ وَتَجْعَلُونَ لَهُۥٓ أَندَادًا ۚ ذَٰلِكَ رَبُّ ٱلْعَـٰلَمِينَ
Say, "Do you indeed disbelieve in He who created the earth in two days and attribute to Him equals? That is the Lord of the worlds."
وَأَنَّهُۥ خَلَقَ ٱلزَّوْجَيْنِ ٱلذَّكَرَ وَٱلْأُنثَىٰ
And that He creates the two mates - the male and female -
ٱتَّبِعْ مَآ أُوحِىَ إِلَيْكَ مِن رَّبِّكَ ۖ لَآ إِلَـٰهَ إِلَّا هُوَ ۖ وَأَعْرِضْ عَنِ ٱلْمُشْرِكِينَ
Follow, [O Muḥammad], what has been revealed to you from your Lord - there is no deity except Him - and turn away from those who associate others with Allāh.
إِلَـٰهُكُمْ إِلَـٰهٌ وَٰحِدٌ ۚ فَٱلَّذِينَ لَا يُؤْمِنُونَ بِٱلْـَٔاخِرَةِ قُلُوبُهُم مُّنكِرَةٌ وَهُم مُّسْتَكْبِرُونَ
Your god is one God. But those who do not believe in the Hereafter - their hearts are disapproving, and they are arrogant.