(43–44) “Or have they taken intercessors besides Allah? Say, ‘Even though they possess no power whatsoever and have no understanding?’ Say, ‘All intercession belongs to Allah. To Him belongs the dominion of the heavens and the earth; then to Him you will be returned.’”

Allah Most High condemns those who take intercessors besides Him, becoming attached to them, beseeching them, and worshipping them. “Say” to them, making clear their ignorance and that these objects deserve no share of worship: “Even though they”—that is, those whom you have taken as intercessors—“possess no power whatsoever”: not even an atom’s weight in the heavens or on earth, nor anything smaller or greater than that. Indeed, they do not even possess intelligence for which they might deserve praise, for they are lifeless things—stones, trees, images, and the dead. Can those who take them as gods truly be said to possess reason? Or are they not among the most misguided, ignorant, and unjust of people?

“Say” to them, “All intercession belongs to Allah,” because every matter belongs entirely to Allah. Every intercessor fears Him, and no one can intercede with Him except by His permission. When He wills to show mercy to His servant, He permits an honored intercessor in His presence to intercede, thereby showing mercy to them both. He then affirms that all intercession belongs to Him by saying, “To Him belongs the dominion of the heavens and the earth”—that is, all the beings, actions, and attributes within them. Intercession must therefore be sought from the One who possesses it, and worship must be devoted sincerely to Him. “Then to Him you will be returned,” whereupon He will reward the one who sincerely worshipped Him with an abundant reward and punish the one who associated partners with Him with grievous punishment.