Tabari (1 passage)

1. Full Dutch translation of Tabari's text

   The explanation of the statement of the Exalted: وَلا يَسْتَطِيعُونَ لَهُمْ نَصْرًا وَلا أَنْفُسَهُمْ يَنْصُرُونَ (192) (And they are unable to give them help, nor can they help themselves.) (192)

   Abū Jaʿfar said: The Exalted, whose mention is exalted, says: Do these polytheists (mushrikīn) ascribe, in the worship of Allah, partners consisting of that which creates nothing of the creation of Allah, and which is unable to help them should Allah intend evil for them or send down a punishment upon them, and which is likewise unable—should He intend evil—to help itself or ward off harm from itself? And the worshipper worships that which he worships only in order to gain benefit from it or to ward off harm by it from himself; yet their gods which they worship and which they make partners in the worship of Allah neither benefit them nor harm them—indeed, they do not even gain any benefit for themselves nor ward off any harm from themselves. Are they then not even further removed from benefiting another than themselves or warding off harm from it? The Blessed and Exalted causes His creatures to marvel at the tremendous misguidance of these who, in their worship of Allah, make another besides Him a partner.

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   Show original Arabic

   القول في تأويل قوله : وَلا يَسْتَطِيعُونَ لَهُمْ نَصْرًا وَلا أَنْفُسَهُمْ يَنْصُرُونَ (192) قال أبو جعفر: يقول تعالى ذكره: أيشرك هؤلاء المشركون في عبادة الله ما لا يخلق شيئًا من خلق الله, ولا يستطيع أن ينصرهم إن أراد الله بهم سوءًا، أو أحلّ بهم عقوبة, ولا هو قادر إن أراد به سوءًا نصر نفسه ولا دفع ضر عنها؟ وإنما العابد يعبد ما يعبده لاجتلاب نفع منه أو لدفع ضر منه عن نفسه، وآلهتهم التي يعبدونها ويشركونها في عبادة الله لا تنفعهم ولا تضرهم, بل لا تجتلب إلى نفسها نفعًا ولا تدفع عنها ضرًّا, فهي من نفع غير أنفسها أو دفع الضر عنها أبعدُ؟ يعجِّب تبارك وتعالى خلقه من عظيم خطأ هؤلاء الذين يشركون في عبادتهم اللهَ غيرَه. * * *