16-51 And Allah has said: Take not two gods. He is only one God: So Me alone should you fear.a
وَقَالَ ٱللَّهُ لَا تَتَّخِذُوٓا۟ إِلَـٰهَيْنِ ٱثْنَيْنِ ۖ إِنَّمَا هُوَ إِلَـٰهٌۭ وَٰحِدٌۭ ۖ فَإِيَّـٰىَ فَٱرْهَبُونِ (۵۱)
16-51a: Belief in two gods or three gods has been openly accepted by some people and both these creeds have been vehemently contradicted and rejected by the Quran. Although this creed has been rejected in جَعَلَ ٱلظُّلُمَـٰتِ وَٱلنُّورَ : made darkness and light (6:1) for which see 6-1a, but by bringing the word ٱثْنَيْنِ in this verse it is specifically made clear that the creed of two gods is not correct. The proof is given in the next verse in the statement
لَهُۥ مَا فِى ٱلسَّمَـٰوَٰتِ وَٱلْأَرْضِ : whatever is in the heavens and earth are His (16:52). Human nature cannot accept two gods. How can a person fear two gods who are opposed to each other?
16-52 And whatever is in the heavens and the earth is His, and to Him is obedience due always. Will you then fear other than Allah?
وَلَهُۥ مَا فِى ٱلسَّمَـٰوَٰتِ وَٱلْأَرْضِ وَلَهُ ٱلدِّينُ وَاصِبًا ۚ أَفَغَيْرَ ٱللَّهِ تَتَّقُونَ (۵۲)
16-52a: لَهُ ٱلدِّينُ وَاصِبًا – The meaning of دین is both requital and obedience, and وَاصِب is from وَصَب which means a chronic illness. If the meaning of دین is taken as requital then the statement is a warning that a person who believes in two gods will face a lasting punishment, but if the meaning of دین is taken as obedience, which fits the context better, the meaning of وَاصِب will be taken as always and the meaning will be that it is incumbent upon people to always be submissive to Allah (R). Human nature bears witness that one cannot be submissive to two masters.
16-53 And whatever good you have, it is from Allah; then, when evil afflicts you, to Him do you cry for aid.
وَمَا بِكُم مِّن نِّعْمَةٍۢ فَمِنَ ٱللَّهِ ۖ ثُمَّ إِذَا مَسَّكُمُ ٱلضُّرُّ فَإِلَيْهِ تَجْـَٔرُونَ (۵۳)
16-53a: تَجْـَٔرُونَ – The meaning of جَأَرَ is to supplicate excessively and earnestly, to wail and entreat. جُؤَار is in actuality the shriek of a savage (R). This is the third testimony of human nature. In times of distress, one calls only on the One God.
16-54 Then when He removes the evil from you, lo! some of you associate others with their Lord,
ثُمَّ إِذَا كَشَفَ ٱلضُّرَّ عَنكُمْ إِذَا فَرِيقٌۭ مِّنكُم بِرَبِّهِمْ يُشْرِكُونَ
16-55 So as to deny what We have given them. Then enjoy
yourselves, for soon will you know.
لِيَكْفُرُوا۟ بِمَآ ءَاتَيْنَـٰهُمْ ۚ فَتَمَتَّعُوا۟ ۖ فَسَوْف تَعْلَمُونَ (۵۵)
16-56 And they set apart for what they know not, a portion of what We have given them. By Allah! you shall certainly be questioned about that which you forged.
وَيَجْعَلُونَ لِمَا لَا يَعْلَمُونَ نَصِيبًۭا مِّمَّا رَزَقْنَـٰهُمْ ۗ تَٱللَّهِ لَتُسْـَٔلُنَّ عَمَّا كُنتُمْ تَفْتَرُونَ (۵۶)
16-56a: The pronoun in لِمَا لَا يَعْلَمُونَ : they set apart for what they know not stands for اٰلھة deities. The making of these deities is indicated in يَجْعَلُونَ they make and its object (deities) is omitted. The meaning being that they make deities who do not know, or the pronoun stands for the disbelievers and the meaning would be that the disbelievers do not know the reality of their deities.
تَٱللَّهِ – Generally the Arabic alphabet ت comes before or after verbs as in تضرب and ضربت but it also comes before and after nouns as well. It occurs in the beginning when associated specifically with the name of Allah and indicates puzzlement, and is also used as an oath. The sense of wondering and puzzlement is stronger in this oath than in the oaths that start with the alphabets ب and و .
16-57 And they ascribe daughters to Allah. Glory be to Him! And for themselves is what they desire!
وَيَجْعَلُونَ لِلَّهِ ٱلْبَنَـٰتِ سُبْحَـٰنَهُۥ ۙ وَلَهُم مَّا يَشْتَهُونَ (۵۷)
16-58 And when the birth of a daughter is announced to one of them, his face becomes black and he is full of wrath.a
وَإِذَا بُشِّرَ أَحَدُهُم بِٱلْأُنثَىٰ ظَلَّ وَجْهُهُۥ مُسْوَدًّۭا وَهُوَ كَظِيمٌۭ (۵۸)
16-58a: ظَلَّ – The meaning of ظَلَّ has been given previously. ظَلِلۡتُ and ظَلۡتُ (with one ل ( is used for such work as is done during the daytime, but sometimes it is used for صار come to pass; take place (R).
وَجْهُهُۥ مُسْوَدًّۭا – The blackness of the face is indicative of feelings of sorrow, grief, abhorrence, etc. (RM). The term does not mean literally that their faces become black.
Attention is drawn to how the actions of humans prove their own guilt. People who assign daughters to God despise the birth of a girl in their own family. Their own nature holds them guilty of their false belief.
16-59 He hides himself from the people because of the evil of what is announced to him. Shall he keep it with disgrace or bury
it (alive) in the dust? Now surely evil is what they judge!a
يَتَوَٰرَىٰ مِنَ ٱلْقَوْمِ مِن سُوٓءِ مَا بُشِّرَ بِهِۦٓ ۚ أَيُمْسِكُهُۥ عَلَىٰ هُونٍ أَمْ يَدُسُّهُۥ فِى ٱلتُّرَابِ ۗ أَلَا سَآءَ مَا يَحْكُمُونَ (۵۹)
16-59a: يَتَوَٰرَىٰ – It is derived from وری for which see 5-31a. It means to hide oneself.
يَدُسُّ – دَسّ means to make one thing forcibly enter another thing (R). The meaning of
دَسۡت الشئ فی التُّراب is to hide something in the earth. The meaning here is to bury alive, as is stated elsewhere: وَإِذَا ٱلْمَوْءُۥدَةُ سُئِلَتْ And when the one buried alive is asked (81:8). The pronoun in يَدُسُّهُۥ is masculine (as it is in یمسکه ) because with regards to the word, the pronoun is indicative of مَا بُشِّرَ بِهِۦٓ . For a comparison, قَدْ خَابَ مَن دَسَّىٰهَا He indeed fails who buries it (91:10) has the same form (LA) because here too the comparison of purifying, in which there is a sense of growth and development, is with burying the God-given blessings by not using them and letting them atrophy.
A great reform has been instituted in this verse linked to the main discussion on the unity of Allah. Female infanticide was widely prevalent in Arabia, particularly among the nobility. There are some areas of reform towards which the Quran turned its attention at the outset even before the details of shariah had been revealed. These included the care of orphans and poverty stricken and female infanticide. Thus, in a much earlier revelation than this surah, it is stated:
وَإِذَا ٱلْمَوْءُۥدَةُ سُئِلَتْ And when the one buried alive is asked (81:8). In the age of ignorance when a girl reached the age of five or six years, she was either shoved into a deep pit and buried alive with dirt, or thrown from a cliff. This cruelty melted the heart of the Holy Prophet sent as a mercy for all nations and his teaching had an effect that could not have been achieved by passing laws or imposing severe punishments. After the advent of Islam, there was not a single case of female infanticide. There is no power in the earth comparable to the power that is given to the Holy Prophet for removing evils.
16-60 For those who believe not in the Hereafter are evil attributes and Allah’s are the sublime attributes. And He is the Mighty, the Wise.a
لِلَّذِينَ لَا يُؤْمِنُونَ بِٱلْـَٔاخِرَةِ مَثَلُ ٱلسَّوْءِ ۖ وَلِلَّهِ ٱلْمَثَلُ ٱلْأَعْلَىٰ ۚ وَهُوَ ٱلْعَزِيزُ ٱلْحَكِيمُ (۶۰)
16-60a: لِلَّهِ ٱلْمَثَلُ ٱلْأَعْلَىٰ – Because it is stated in another place in the Quran لَيْسَ كَمِثْلِهِۦ Nothing is like Him (42:11), hence the meaning of مَثَل here is attributes. Raghib has taken the meaning of مَثَل in both places in this verse as attributes:
لھُمُ الصِفاتُ الذَّمِیۡمةُ و له الصِفاتُ العُلیٰ : the attributes of those who do not believe in the Hereafter are extremely evil and Allah’s attributes are very great. In the first part of the verse, the مَثَل may be taken to mean an example. The real purpose is to draw attention to the evil state of the polytheists who attribute to Allah what they do not like for themselves. It is also conveyed that this does not mean that if the disbelievers prefer sons for themselves, they can suggest a son for Allah because the attributes of Allah are very lofty, and His Being is above these things. Even though sons may be desirous for men, but it is a form of weakness in them, meaning that humans die and they need sons to continue their lineage, but the Being of the Creator is far above such needs.
Bayan-ul-Quran 