Surah 19

Surah 19:81

"They have taken gods other than God, so that they might be a (source of) honor for them."
The Idols of the Polytheists will deny Their Worship Verses 19:81-82
Show Full Scripture Context (19:81-82) — 2 Verses
Verse 81

وَٱتَّخَذُواْ مِن دُونِ ٱللَّهِ ءَالِهَةٗ لِّيَكُونُواْ لَهُمۡ عِزّٗا

They have taken gods other than God, so that they might be a (source of) honor for them.

Verse 82

كَلَّاۚ سَيَكۡفُرُونَ بِعِبَادَتِهِمۡ وَيَكُونُونَ عَلَيۡهِمۡ ضِدًّا

By no means! They will deny their service, and they will be opposed to them.

Allah, the Exalted, informs about the disbelievers who associate partners with their Lord, that they have taken gods besides Allah, so that these gods may be a source of honor and might for them. They think that these gods give them power and make them victorious. Then, Allah mentions that the matter is not as they claim, and it will not be as they hope. He says,

{Nay, but they will deny their worship of them,} on the Day of Judgement.

{and will become their adversaries.} This means that they will be foes in a state other than what they think about these gods. This is similar to Allah’s statement.

And who is more astray than one who calls upon, besides Allah, such as will not answer him till the Day of Resurrection, and who are (even) unaware of their calls to them? And when mankind are gathered, they will become their enemies and will deny their worshipping.

As-Suddi said,

Quoted Scripture
"Nay, but they ivill deny their ivorship of them,"

“This means their worshipping of the idols.”
Allah said,

Quoted Scripture
"and will become their adversaries"

contrary to what they hoped for from these gods.

As-Suddi said,

{and will become their adversaries.} “They will be in severe opposition and argument.”

Ad-Dahhak said,

{and ivill become their adversaries.} “This means enemies.”

— from Tafsir Ibn Kathir (Vol. 6, Page 306-307)

About this Source & Scholarly Authority (Tafsir Ibn Kathir)

Universal Sunni Consensus: Tafsir al-Qur'an al-Azim by Hafiz Ibn Kathir (701–774 AH / 1301–1373 AD) is universally regarded across all major schools of Sunni Islam (traditional, Salafi, Ash'ari) as the most authoritative classical exegesis. It is prized because it relies on Tafsir bil-Ma'thur—interpreting the Quran using the Quran itself, authentic Hadiths of Prophet Muhammad, and recorded statements of the early Companions (Sahabah).

Standard English Edition: This text is from the standard 10-volume English abridgment published by Dar-us-Salam Publications (supervised by Shaykh Safiur-Rahman Al-Mubarakpuri), which is the official, most widely distributed English Quranic commentary in mosques and Islamic libraries worldwide today.