وَإِن تَدْعُوهُمْ إِلَى ٱلْهُدَىٰ لَا يَتَّبِعُوكُمْ ۚ سَوَآءٌ عَلَيْكُمْ أَدَعَوْتُمُوهُمْ أَمْ أَنتُمْ صَـٰمِتُونَ 193
Translations
And if you [believers] invite them to guidance, they will not follow you. It is all the same for you whether you invite them or you are silent.
Transliteration
Wa-in tad'ūhum ilā al-hudā lā yattabi'ūkum. Sawāʾun ʿalaykum a-daʿawtumūhum am antum sāmitūn.
Tafsir (Explanation)
This ayah addresses the futility of calling idols to guidance, as they possess no capacity to hear, understand, or respond. Classical scholars like Ibn Kathir and Al-Qurtubi explain that this verse demonstrates the powerlessness of idols—whether the believers call upon them or remain silent, it makes no difference, emphasizing the absolute foolishness of idol worship. The verse serves as a powerful rhetorical argument against polytheism, highlighting that idols cannot fulfill even the basic function of responding to invocation.
Revelation Context
This ayah appears within Surah Al-A'raf's broader Meccan context, which systematically refutes polytheism and idol worship prevalent in pre-Islamic Arabia. It is part of a passage (7:191-198) that methodically demonstrates the irrationality of worshipping objects that cannot hear, see, or benefit their worshippers, addressing arguments the pagans of Mecca used to justify their idolatrous practices.
Related Hadiths
Sahih Bukhari and Sahih Muslim contain hadith reports where the Prophet ﷺ stated that idols cannot harm or benefit anyone. Related thematically is the hadith in Tirmidhi where the Prophet emphasized that du'a (supplication) should be directed only to Allah, as He alone listens and responds.
Themes
Key Lesson
This ayah teaches believers that true guidance and response come only from Allah, and investing hope or devotion in anything other than Him is spiritually empty; it serves as a reminder to examine whether our hearts are truly oriented toward the One who actually hears and responds.