His saying, exalted is He: "Have you then considered Al-Lat and Al-Uzza, and Manat, the third, the other? Is for you the male and for Him the female? That is indeed an unjust division. They are nothing but names you have named them, you and your forefathers. Allah has not sent down any authority for them. They follow nothing but conjecture and what the souls desire. And certainly, there has come to them from their Lord the guidance. Or does man have what he wishes? So to Allah belongs the Hereafter and the first. And how many an angel in the heavens does not avail at all except after Allah has given permission to whom He wills and is pleased."

His saying, the Most High: "Have you then considered" is addressing Quraysh. It is from the sight of the eye because it refers to visible objects. If it were "sight" which is a question, it would not have exceeded that.

And when He finished mentioning the greatness of Allah and His power, He said - in a manner of stopping -: Have you seen these idols and their insignificance and their distance from this power and lofty attributes?

And "Al-Lat" is the name of an idol that the Arabs revered. Abu Ubaidah and others said it was in the Kaaba. And Qatadah said it was in Ta'if. Ibn Zayd said it was in Nakhlah near the market of Ukaz. And the saying of Qatadah is more likely, supported by the poet's words:

"And Thaqif fled to Al-Lat in the return of the disappointed loser."

The 't' in "Al-Lat" is a verbal lam like the 'b' in "Bab." Some people said it is a feminine 't.' However, the context prevents that. Ibn Abbas, Mujahid, and Abu Salih read "Al-Lat" with a doubled 't.' They said this idol was a stone and there was a man from Bihz who used to mix the food of the pilgrims on that stone and serve the idols. When he died, they worshipped the stone that was with him in reverence for that man and named it after him. This reading has been narrated from Ibn Kathir and Ibn Amir.

And "Al-Uzza" is a white rock that the Arabs also worshipped and revered. This was said by Said ibn Jubair. Mujahid said it was trees that were worshipped, and when they decayed, the matter transferred to a rock. "Al-Uzza" is the feminine of "Aziz" like "Kubra" and "Uthma." These idols were revered and worshipped; each tribe would revere its idol, and each one from the Arabs would honor it by honoring its present. Abu Ubaidah said that Al-Uzza and Manat were in the Kaaba. Ibn Zayd said Al-Uzza was in Ta'if, and Qatadah said it was in Nakhlah. As for Manat, it was in Al-Mushallal from Qadid, which is between Mecca and Medina. It was the greatest of these idols in status and had the most worshippers. The Aws and Khazraj would call out to it. That is why Allah, the Most High, said: "And Manat, the third, the other," confirming it with these two attributes, just as you say: I saw so-and-so and so-and-so, then you mention a third greater than both of them and say: and the other so-and-so who is of his matter and affair. The terms "other" and "the other" are used to describe the third of the counted, and that is a clear text in the verse. From this is the saying of Rabiah ibn Mukdam:

"And I have interceded for them with the last third."

And this is the correct interpretation of the poet's saying:

"I made for her two sticks of incense and another from Thumamah."

Ibn Kathir read alone: "And Manat" with the hamzah and elongation. This is a language in it, and the first is more famous and is the reading of the people. From it is the saying of Jarir:

‘Azyad Manat threatens with the son of Taym Consider where the threat has led you.’

Allah, glorified and exalted is He, confronted the disbelievers regarding these idols and their saying about them. They used to say: They are the daughters of Allah. So He seemed to say: Have you seen these idols and your saying that they are the daughters of Allah? Do you have the male and He has the female? That is, the type that is favored and beloved is present among you, while the despised and burdensome is with Him according to your claim? Then Allah, glorified and exalted is He, said - in a manner of denial -: "That is indeed an unjust division." That is, it is crooked. Mujahid said this. It was said that "unjust" means: oppressive. Ibn Abbas and Qatadah said this. Sufyan said: It means: deficient. Ibn Zayd said: It means: contradictory. The Arabs say: "I deprived him of his right, I oppressed him in it," and "unjust" is from this derivation. Its original form is "Dhuzi" with the 'u' in the first syllable, as it is the norm; for there is no occurrence in attributes of "Dhuzi" with the 'i' in the first syllable, as Sibawayh and others have said. If this is the case, then it is "Dhuzi". They broke its first letter as they broke the first of "eye" and "white" seeking ease; for the 'i' and the 'y' are lighter than the 'u' and the 'w', as they said: "houses and sticks" which are originally "F'ul" with the 'u' in the first syllable. The Arabs say: "I deprived him, I oppress him," so it must be that according to this derivation it is "Dhuzi". In all of this, there is consideration. Ibn Kathir read: "Dhi'zi" with the hamzah as it is a source like "dhikri". The majority read without hamzah.

Then Allah, glorified and exalted is He, said: "It is nothing but names." He means, glorified and exalted is He, that these descriptions - that they are females, and that they are worshipped besides Allah as deities and such - are nothing but names. That is, they are invented names by you and your forefathers, and there is no reality to them, nor has Allah, glorified and exalted is He, sent down any proof or evidence regarding them. Isa ibn Umar read: "Sultan" with the 'u' in the lam. He, Ibn Mas'ud, Ibn Abbas, Ibn Wathab, Talhah, and Al-A'mash read: "If they follow" with the 'i' in the narrative of the absent.

And "the suspicion" is the inclination of the soul towards one of two conflicting beliefs without the inclination being based on evidence or proof. And "the desires of the souls" is its will for what is pleasurable to it. You will always find the desires of the soul in abandoning what is better because it is naturally inclined to love pleasure. What restrains it and drives it towards a good outcome is reason and the law.

'And His saying, the Most High: "And indeed, guidance has come to them from their Lord" is an interruption between the two statements, in which there is a reprimand for them. This is because the continuation of the saying is: "They follow nothing but falsehood and what the souls desire. Or does man have what he wishes?" Then He interrupted after His saying, the Most High: "And what the souls desire" with His saying, the Most High: "And indeed, guidance has come to them from their Lord." This means: they commit these abominations while guidance is present, and this is the situation. Thus, His saying, the Most High: "And indeed, guidance has come to them from their Lord" is a statement in the position of the situation. The 'guidance' referred to is Muhammad, blessings and peace be upon him, and his legislation. Ibn Mas'ud and Ibn Abbas, may Allah be pleased with them, read: "And indeed, guidance has come to you from your Lord" with the 'kaf' in both instances. And Al-Dahhak reported from them that they read: "And indeed, guidance has come to you from your Lord."

And 'man' in His saying, the Most High: "Or does man have what he wishes?" is a generic name, as if He is saying: things are not by wishing and desires. Rather, all matters belong to Allah, the Most High, and actions are conducted according to His command and prohibition. So, you have no say, O disbelievers, in your statement: "These are our deities, and they intercede for us and bring us closer" and similar to this. Ibn Zayd and Al-Tabari said: the 'man' here is Muhammad, blessings and peace be upon him, meaning that he did not attain our honor by mere wishful thinking, but by the grace of Allah, the Most High, or meaning: rather, he wished for our honor and attained it; for all is in Allah's hands, He grants whom He wills. This is what the verse necessitates, even if the wording encompasses him.

And 'the Hereafter and the first' are the two abodes, meaning: all of His matters in both are under His dominion and power and under His authority.

And His saying, the Most High: "And how many angels..." is a response to Quraysh in their saying: "The idols are our intercessors." As if He, the Most High, is saying: this is the state of the noble angels, so how about your idols? And 'how many' is for abundance, and it is in the position of a subject with the predicate being "do not avail," and 'availing' means bringing benefit and repelling harm according to the matter in which there is availing. The plural pronoun in "their intercession" is in the meaning of 'how many,' and the meaning of the verse is that Allah, the Most High, permits intercession for a person whom He is pleased with, just as He permitted in His saying, the Most High: "Those who carry the Throne and those around it." [Ghafir: 7]