The Holy Quran 40:74 — Surah Ghafir

Arabic text

مِن دُونِ ٱللَّهِ ۖ قَالُوا۟ ضَلُّوا۟ عَنَّا بَل لَّمْ نَكُن نَّدْعُوا۟ مِن قَبْلُ شَيْـًٔا ۚ كَذَٰلِكَ يُضِلُّ ٱللَّهُ ٱلْكَـٰفِرِينَ

Translation

...to Allaah?" (Will they not assist you today as you claimed in the world?) They will reply, "They have been lost to us. In fact, (it has now occurred to us that) we never worshipped anything before this (because the gods we worshipped in the world were really nothing and our worship was wasted)." In this manner, does Allaah allow the Kaafiroon to stray. (They worship gods whom they admit are powerless in the Aakhirah.)

Tafsir (excerpt) — Tafsir Usmani

That is, at this time none of them is of any use. If you can, call them to help you. The question put to the criminals in Hell: that is, they have gone missing from us. Perhaps at that time the worshippers and those they worshipped will be separated from one another; or the meaning of ضَلُّوْا عَنَّا (“they are lost to us”)

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