أَمِ ٱتَّخَذُوا۟ مِن دُونِهِۦٓ ءَالِهَةً ۖ قُلْ هَاتُوا۟ بُرْهَـٰنَكُمْ ۖ هَـٰذَا ذِكْرُ مَن مَّعِىَ وَذِكْرُ مَن قَبْلِى ۗ بَلْ أَكْثَرُهُمْ لَا يَعْلَمُونَ ٱلْحَقَّ ۖ فَهُم مُّعْرِضُونَ 24
Translations
Or have they taken gods besides Him? Say, [O Muḥammad], "Produce your proof. This [Qur’ān] is the message for those with me and the message of those before me." But most of them do not know the truth, so they are turning away.
Transliteration
Am ittakhadhu min dūnihi āliha qul hātū burhānakum hādhā dhikru man ma'ī wa dhikru man qablī bal akthuruhum lā ya'lamūn al-haqq fa hum mu'ridūn
Tafsir (Explanation)
Allah challenges the polytheists, asking if they have taken other gods besides Him, and commands the Prophet to demand they bring proof for their claim. Ibn Kathir explains that this ayah establishes that monotheism is the consistent message brought by all prophets, and the Quran itself is a sufficient proof. Al-Qurtubi emphasizes that the polytheists' inability to provide evidence exposes the falsehood of their beliefs, and their turning away (i'rād) from truth demonstrates willful rejection rather than intellectual confusion.
Revelation Context
This ayah is part of Surah Al-Anbiyā, which highlights the unity of the message preached by all prophets and refutes polytheism. The surah's thematic focus is establishing Allah's oneness against the backdrop of Meccan idolatry. This particular ayah addresses the Quraysh's worship of idols by demanding rational proof—a challenge they could never meet.
Related Hadiths
The hadith in Sahih Muslim (no. 523) relates to the concept of clear proof, where the Prophet (ﷺ) said: 'Whoever believes in Allah and the Last Day should speak good or remain silent.' This connects to the theme of speaking truth with evidence rather than empty claims.
Themes
Key Lesson
This ayah teaches us that faith in Allah's oneness rests on clear evidence and rational foundation—both the Quran and the consistent testimony of all prophets affirm this truth. For modern readers, it inspires the practice of seeking knowledge and understanding our faith deeply, while recognizing that those who reject truth often do so not from lack of evidence but from deliberate turning away from it.
Related Ayahs
أَيُشْرِكُونَ مَا لَا يَخْلُقُ شَيْـًٔا وَهُمْ يُخْلَقُونَ
Do they associate with Him those who create nothing and they are [themselves] created?
قُلْ هَلْ مِن شُرَكَآئِكُم مَّن يَهْدِىٓ إِلَى ٱلْحَقِّ ۚ قُلِ ٱللَّهُ يَهْدِى لِلْحَقِّ ۗ أَفَمَن يَهْدِىٓ إِلَى ٱلْحَقِّ أَحَقُّ أَن يُتَّبَعَ أَمَّن لَّا يَهِدِّىٓ إِلَّآ أَن يُهْدَىٰ ۖ فَمَا لَكُمْ كَيْفَ تَحْكُمُونَ
Say, "Are there of your 'partners' any who guides to the truth?" Say, "Allāh guides to the truth. So is He who guides to the truth more worthy to be followed or he who guides not unless he is guided? Then what is [wrong] with you - how do you judge?"
مَا ٱتَّخَذَ ٱللَّهُ مِن وَلَدٍ وَمَا كَانَ مَعَهُۥ مِنْ إِلَـٰهٍ ۚ إِذًا لَّذَهَبَ كُلُّ إِلَـٰهٍۭ بِمَا خَلَقَ وَلَعَلَا بَعْضُهُمْ عَلَىٰ بَعْضٍ ۚ سُبْحَـٰنَ ٱللَّهِ عَمَّا يَصِفُونَ
Allāh has not taken any son, nor has there ever been with Him any deity. [If there had been], then each deity would have taken what it created, and some of them would have [sought to] overcome others. Exalted is Allāh above what they describe [concerning Him].
إِن تُعَذِّبْهُمْ فَإِنَّهُمْ عِبَادُكَ ۖ وَإِن تَغْفِرْ لَهُمْ فَإِنَّكَ أَنتَ ٱلْعَزِيزُ ٱلْحَكِيمُ
If You should punish them - indeed they are Your servants; but if You forgive them - indeed it is You who is the Exalted in Might, the Wise."