Tafseer of The Heights · Al-A'raaf · 7:197
And those you call upon besides Him are unable to help you, nor can they help themselves."
Important: The Arabic source text is always authoritative. This translation is a study aid and has not been verified by scholars — do not use it as a basis for religious proof or for deriving rulings (ahkam). When in doubt, always consult the Arabic text and a qualified scholar.
The explanation of His word: wa-lladhīna tadʿūna min dūnihi lā yastaṭīʿūna naṣrakum wa-lā anfusahum yanṣurūn (197) (And those whom you call upon besides Him are not able to help you, nor do they help themselves) (197).
Abū Jaʿfar said: This too is a command from Allah, exalted be His praise, to His Prophet to address it to the polytheists (mushrikīn). He, exalted is His mention, says to him: Say to them: Truly, Allah is my helper and my support, and those whom you, O polytheists, call upon besides Allah — the gods — are not able to help you, and they, in addition to their inability to help you, are likewise not able to help themselves. Which then of these two is more deserving to be worshipped and has the greater right to divinity? He who helps his protégé and wards off from himself whoever wishes him harm, or he who is not able to help his protégé and is incapable of protecting himself against whoever wishes him harm and assails him with evil?
