Tafseer Ibn Kathir of AN NAHL [51]

51. And Allah said ”Do not worship two gods. Indeed, He (Allah) is only One God. Then fear Me Alone. 52. To Him belongs all that is in the heavens and the earth and the religion. Will you then fear any other than Allah 53. And whatever of blessings and good things you have, it is from Allah. Then, when harm touches you, unto Him you cry aloud for help. 54. Then, when He has removed the harm from you, behold! some of you associate others in worship with their Lord (Allah). 55. So they are ungrateful for that which We have given them! Then enjoy yourselves but you will soon come to know. Allah tells us that there is no god but He, and that no one else should be worshipped except Him, alone, without partners, for He is the Sovereign, Creator, and Lord of all things.

(His is the religion Wasiba) Ibn `Abbas, Mujahid, `Ikrimah, Maymun bin Mahran, As-Suddi, Qatadah and others said that this means forever. It was also reported that Ibn `Abbas said, ”It means obligatory.'' Mujahid said: ”It means purely for Him,'' i.e., worship is due to Him Alone, from whoever is in the heavens and on earth. As Allah says:

(Do they seek other than the religion of Allah, while to Him submitted all creatures in the heavens and the earth, willingly or unwillingly. And to Him shall they all be returned.) (3:83) This is in accordance with the opinion of Ibn `Abbas and `Ikrimah, which is that this Ayah is merely stating the case. According to the opinion of Mujahid, it is by way of instruction, i.e., it is saying: You had better fear associating partners in worship with Me, and be sincere in your obedience to Me. As Allah says:

(Surely, the pure religion (sincere devotion) is for Allah only.) (39:3) Then Allah tells us that He is the One Who has the power to benefit and harm, and that the provisions, blessings, good health and help, His servants enjoy are from His bounty and graciousness towards them.

(Then, when harm touches you, to Him you cry aloud for help.) meaning because you know that none has the power to remove that harm except for Him, so when you are harmed, you turn to ask Him for help and beg Him for aid. As Allah says:

(And when harm touches you at sea, those that you call upon vanish, except for Him. But when He brings you safe to land, you turn away. And man is ever ungrateful.)(17:67) Here, Allah tells us:

(Then, when He has removed the harm from you, behold! some of you associate others in worship with their Lord (Allah). So they are ungrateful for that which We have given them!) (16:54-55) It was said that the Lam here (translated as ”So'') is an indicator of sequence, or that it serves an explanatory function, meaning, `We decreed that they would conceal the truth and deny the blessings that Allah has bestowed upon them. He is the One Who bestows blessings and the One Who removes distress.' Then Allah threatens them, saying:

(Then enjoy yourselves) meaning, do what you like and enjoy what you have for a little while.

(but you will soon come to know.) meaning the consequences of that.