Surah Saba Ayat 22 in Arabic Text
English Translation
Here you can read various translations of verse 22
Say, [O Muhammad], “Invoke those you claim [as deities] besides Allah.” They do not possess an atom’s weight [of ability] in the heavens or on the earth, and they do not have therein any partnership [with Him], nor is there for Him from among them any assistant.
Say: “Call upon other (gods) whom ye fancy, besides Allah: They have no power,- not the weight of an atom,- in the heavens or on earth: No (sort of) share have they therein, nor is any of them a helper to Allah.
(O Prophet), say to those who associate others with Allah in His Divinity: “Call upon those whom you fancied to be deities beside Allah. They own not even the smallest particle, neither in the heavens nor on the earth; nor do they have any share in the ownership of either of them. Nor is any of them even a helper of Allah.
Say: (O Muhammad SAW to those polytheists, pagans, etc.) “Call upon those whom you assert (to be associate gods) besides Allah, they possess not even the weight of an atom (or a small ant), either in the heavens or on the earth, nor have they any share in either, nor there is for Him any supporter from among them.
Say (O Muhammad): Call upon those whom ye set up beside Allah! They possess not an atom’s weight either in the heavens or in the earth, nor have they any share in either, nor hath He an auxiliary among them.
Say, “Invoke the ones you have asserted apart form Allah! They possess not so much as an atom’s weight in the heavens nor in the earth; and in no way do they have any associating in either of them, (Literally: the two of them) and in no way has He in them any backer.”
Say, ‘Pray to your so-called gods besides God: they do not control even the weight of a speck of dust in heaven or earth, nor do they have any share in them, nor are any of them any help to God.
کہہ دیجیئے! کہ اللہ کے سوا جن جن کا تمہیں گمان ہے (سب) کو پکار لو، نہ ان میں سے کسی کو آسمانوں اور زمینوں میں سے ایک ذره کا اختیار ہے نہ ان کا ان میں کوئی حصہ ہے نہ ان میں سے کوئی اللہ کا مددگار ہے
Quran 34 Verse 22 Explanation
For those looking for commentary to help with the understanding of Surah Saba ayat 22, we’ve provided two Tafseer works below. The first is the tafseer of Abul Ala Maududi, the second is of Ibn Kathir.
Ala-Maududi
(34:22) (O Prophet),[38] say to those who associate others with Allah in His Divinity: “Call upon those whom you fancied to be deities beside Allah.[39] They own not even the smallest particle, neither in the heavens nor on the earth; nor do they have any share in the ownership of either of them. Nor is any of them even a helper of Allah.
38. Until now the mushriks’ wrong notions about the Hereafter have been dealt with. From here the discourse turns to the refutation of shirk itself.
39. That is, Allah makes and un-makes the destinies of individuals and nations and kingdoms in ways as you have seen from the stories of the Prophets David and Solomon (peace be upon them) and the people of Saba. Now, you may invoke, if you so like, these self-made gods of yours to see whether they also possess the power to change someone’s good fortune into misfortune and misfortune into good fortune.
Ibn-Kathir
22. Say: “Call upon those whom you assert besides Allah, they possess not even the weight of a speck of dust, either in the heavens or on the earth, nor have they any share in either, nor there is for Him any supporter from among them. ” 23. Intercession with Him profits not except for him whom He permits. So much so that when fear is banished from their hearts, they say: “What is it that your Lord has said” They say the truth. And He is the Most High, the Most Great.
Allah states clearly that He is the One and Only God, the Self-Sufficient Master, Who has no peer or partner; He is independent in His command and there is no one who can share or dispute with Him in that, or overturn His command. So, He says:
(Say: “Call upon those whom you assert besides Allah…”) meaning, the gods who are worshipped besides Allah.
(they possess not even the weight of a speck of dust, either in the heavens or on the earth,) This is like the Ayah:
(And those, whom you invoke or call upon instead of Him, own not even a Qitmir) (35:13).
nor have they any share in either, means, they do not possess anything, either independently or as partners.
(nor there is for Him any supporter from among them. ) means, nor does Allah have among these rivals any whose support He seeks in any matter; on the contrary, all of creation is in need of Him and is enslaved by Him. Then Allah says:
(Intercession with Him profits not except for him whom He permits.) meaning, because of His might, majesty and pride, no one would dare to intercede with Him in any matter, except after being granted His permission to intercede. As Allah says:
(Who is he that can intercede with Him except with His permission) (2:255),
(And there are many angels in the heavens, whose intercession will avail nothing except after Allah has given leave for whom He wills and is pleased with.) (53:26)
(and they cannot intercede except for him with whom He is pleased. And they stand in awe for fear of Him) (21:28). It was reported in the Two Sahihs through more than one chain of narration that the Messenger of Allah , who is the leader of the sons of Adam and the greatest intercessor before Allah, will go to stand in Al-Maqam Al-Mahmud (the praised position) to intercede for all of mankind when their Lord comes to pass judgement upon them. He said:
(Then I will prostrate to Allah, may He be exalted, and He will leave me (in that position), as long as Allah wills, and He will inspire me to speak words of praise which I cannot mention now. Then it will be said, “O Muhammad, raise your head. Speak, you will be heard; ask, you will be given; intercede, your intercession will be accepted…”)
(So much so that when fear is banished from their hearts, they say: “What is it that your Lord has said” They say the truth.) This also refers to the great degree of His might and power. When He speaks words of revelation, the inhabitants of the heavens hear what He says, and they tremble with fear (of Allah) so much that they swoon. This was the view of Ibn Mas`ud, may Allah be pleased with him, Masruq and others.
(So much so that when fear is banished from their hearts,) means, when the fear leaves their hearts. Ibn `Abbas, Ibn `Umar, Abu `Abdur-Rahman As-Sulami, Ash-Sha`bi, Ibrahim An-Nakha`i, Ad-Dhahhak, Al-Hasan and Qatadah said concerning the Ayah,
(So much so that when fear is banished from their hearts, they say: “What is it that your Lord has said” They say the truth.) “When the fear is lifted from their hearts.” When this happens, some of them say to others, “What did your Lord say” Those (angels) who are carrying the Throne tell those who are next to them, then they in turn pass it on to those who are next to them, and so on, until the news reaches the inhabitants of the lowest heaven. Allah says,
They say the truth. meaning, they report what He said, without adding or taking away anything.
(And He is the Most High, the Most Great.) In his Tafsir of this Ayah in his Sahih, Al-Bukhari recorded that Abu Hurayrah, may Allah be pleased with him said, “The Prophet of Allah said:
(When Allah decrees a matter in heaven, the angels beat their wings in submission to His Words, making a sound like a chain striking a smooth rock. When the fear is banished from their hearts, they say, “What is it that your Lord has said” They say the truth, and He is the Most High, the Most Great. Then the one who is listening out hears that, and those who are listening out are standing one above the other) — Sufyan ﴿one of the narrators﴾ demonstrated with his hand, holding it vertically with the fingers outspread. (So he hears what is said and passes it on to the one below him, and that one passes it to the one who is below him, and so on until it reaches the lips of the soothsayer or fortune-teller. Maybe a meteor will hit him before he can pass anything on, or maybe he will pass it on before he is hit. He tells a hundred lies alongside it, but it will be said, “Did he not tell us that on such and such a day, such and such would happen” So they believe him because of the one thing which was heard from heaven.)” This was recorded by Al-Bukhari, not by Muslim. Abu Dawud, At-Tirmidhi and Ibn Majah also recorded it. And Allah knows best.
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