هُوَ الَّذِي جَعَلَكُمْ خَلَائِفَ فِي الْأَرْضِ فَمَنْ كَفَرَ فَعَلَيْهِ كُفْرُهُ وَلَا يَزِيدُ الْكَافِرِينَ كُفْرُهُمْ عِنْدَ رَبِّهِمْ إِلَّا مَقْتًا وَلَا يَزِيدُ الْكَافِرِينَ كُفْرُهُمْ إِلَّا خَسَارًا ﴿۳۹﴾ قُلْ أَرَأَيْتُمْ شُرَكَاءَكُمُ الَّذِينَ تَدْعُونَ مِنْ دُونِ اللَّهِ أَرُونِي مَاذَا خَلَقُوا مِنَ الْأَرْضِ أَمْ لَهُمْ شِرْكٌ فِي السَّمَاوَاتِ أَمْ آتَيْنَاهُمْ كِتَابًا فَهُمْ عَلَى بَيِّنَتٍ مِنْهُ بَلْ إِنْ يَعِدُ الظَّالِمُونَ بَعْضُهُمْ بَعْضًا إِلَّا غُرُورًا ﴿۴۰﴾ إِنَّ اللَّهَ يُمْسِكُ السَّمَاوَاتِ وَالْأَرْضَ أَنْ تَزُولَا وَلَئِنْ زَالَتَا إِنْ أَمْسَكَهُمَا مِنْ أَحَدٍ مِنْ بَعْدِهِ إِنَّهُ كَانَ حَلِيمًا غَفُورًا ﴿۴۱﴾

﴾39﴿ Huwal lazee ja'alakum khalaaa'ifa fil ard; faman kafara fa'alaihi kufruhoo; wa laa yazeedul kaafireena kufruhum 'inda Rabbihim illaa maqtanw wa laa yazeedul kaafireena kufruhum illaa khasaaraa
﴾40﴿ Qul ara'aytum shurakaaa'a kumul lazeena tad'oona min doonil laahi; aroonee maazaa khalaqoo minal ardi am lahum shirkun fis samaawaati am aatainaahum Kitaaban fahum 'alaa baiyinatim minh; bal iny ya'iduz zaalimoona ba 'duhum ba'dan illaa ghurooraa
﴾41﴿ Innal laaha yumsikus samaawaati wal arda an tazoolaaa; wa la'in zaalataaa in amsa kahumaa min ahadim mim ba'dih; innahoo kaana Haleeman Ghafooraa

﴾39﴿ It is Allah alone who has made you successors on the earth, one after another. So whoever disbelieves, upon him is the consequence of his disbelief. And the disbelief of the disbelievers only increases them in the wrath of their Lord, and their disbelief only increases them in loss
﴾40﴿ Say, Do you know about your partners whom you invoke besides Allah? Show me what they have created from the earth, or do they have any share in the heavens? Or have We given them a book, so they are upon a clear proof from it, Rather, the wrongdoers promise one another nothing but deception
﴾41﴿ Indeed, Allah Almighty holds the heavens and the earth so that they do not move from their places. And if they were to move, none could hold them in place after Him. Indeed, Allah is Most Forbearing, Most Forgiving

[39] This is the twelfth rational proof: since Allah the Exalted has knowledge over everything, He has appointed you as successors according to your capabilities.
"خَلَائِفَ" means those who succeed one another—either as settlers of the earth, or as nations who come after previous ones.
A "خَلِيفَة" is someone who acts on behalf of another to carry out their affairs. But since Allah the Exalted has no need of a deputy, Abu Bakr (may Allah be pleased with him) disliked the title "Khalīfatullāh" (deputy of Allah) and preferred "Khalīfatu Rasūlillāh" (deputy of the Messenger of Allah, may Allah bless him and give him peace).
This is mentioned in the Tafsir of Qurtubi.
"وَلَا يَزِيدُ الْكَافِرِينَ"—as the disbeliever progresses in his disbelief, so too does the wrath of Allah increase upon him.
And due to Allah’s wrath, the loss and destruction of the disbeliever increases—because the capital of his life is spent in vain.
[40] In this verse, there is a rebuke directed at the polytheists (who were mentioned in the previous verse as those who disbelieve in Me), along with a demand for proof regarding their shirk.
The first is a rational proof from the lower world (earthly signs), the second is a rational proof from the upper world (heavenly signs), and the third is a transmitted proof—revelation from the revealed Book.
"بَلْ إِنْ يَعِدُ الظَّالِمُونَ"—this means that there is no real evidence; rather, their claim is based purely on blind imitation.
These weak followers, without any proof, follow the misguided leaders blindly, and the misleaders (the polytheists) deceive them by making falsehood appear as truth—presenting shirk as tawḥīd and innovation (bid‘ah) as Sunnah.
[41] This is the thirteenth rational proof: since the weakness and inability of the false gods besides Allah were previously mentioned, now Allah the Exalted declares His own majesty and greatness.
"إِنَّهُ كَانَ حَلِيمًا"—this means that due to the sins of creation, it is near that the heavens and the earth would be destroyed, but Allah the Exalted is Forbearing (Ḥalīm); He delays the punishment of the creation, even though they deserve it.