Overall meaning : These noble verses reveal an aspect of arguments with the idolaters, criticizing them and their illogical reasoning and exposing their appallingly absurd way of thinking. Almighty Allah says: Is, then, He who takes charge of the affairs of all creation, including their sustenance, who is fully aware of what they do and keeps count of their actions to repay them according to them like the lifeless and powerless idols that cannot do anything of this sort?!
Yet they ascribe to Him partners from among His creation which they worship besides Him. Say to them, Muhammad, ‘Just as Allah has the most beautiful names and the loftiest attributes, give them the names they deserve as long as you associate them with Allah. You will by no means find anything about your false gods that makes them worthy of worship. Or do you presume that you could inform Allah of His alleged partners on His earth that He does not know about? Or do you just use empty words for them when they have no real existence?!’ In fact, the unbelievers’ falsehood seems fair to them, and so they have been turned away from Allah’s path due to their unbelief. Whomever Allah leads astray can never find any guide. These unbelievers will suffer punishment in the life of this world (through killing, imprisonment, disgrace, calamities and afflictions), but the punishment of the next world will be harsher still, and there will be no one to protect them against Allah’s punishment.