فَاعْبُدُوا مَا شِئْتُمْ مِنْ دُونِهِ قُلْ إِنَّ الْخَاسِرِينَ الَّذِينَ خَسِرُوا أَنْفُسَهُمْ وَأَهْلِيهِمْ يَوْمَ الْقِيَامَةِ أَلَا ذَلِكَ هُوَ الْخُسْرَانُ الْمُبِينُ ﴿۱۵﴾ لَهُمْ مِنْ فَوْقِهِمْ ظُلَلٌ مِنَ النَّارِ وَمِنْ تَحْتِهِمْ ظُلَلٌ ذَلِكَ يُخَوِّفُ اللَّهُ بِهِ عِبَادَهُ يَا عِبَادِ فَاتَّقُونِ ﴿۱۶﴾ وَالَّذِينَ اجْتَنَبُوا الطَّاغُوتَ أَنْ يَعْبُدُوهَا وَأَنَابُوا إِلَى اللَّهِ لَهُمُ الْبُشْرَى فَبَشِّرْ عِبَادِ ﴿۱۷﴾ الَّذِينَ يَسْتَمِعُونَ الْقَوْلَ فَيَتَّبِعُونَ أَحْسَنَهُ أُولَئِكَ الَّذِينَ هَدَاهُمُ اللَّهُ وَأُولَئِكَ هُمْ أُولُو الْأَلْبَابِ ﴿۱۸﴾ أَفَمَنْ حَقَّ عَلَيْهِ كَلِمَةُ الْعَذَابِ أَفَأَنْتَ تُنْقِذُ مَنْ فِي النَّارِ ﴿۱۹﴾

﴾15﴿ Fa'budoo maa shi'tum min doonih; qul innal khaasireenal lazeena khasirooo anfusahum wa ahleehim yawmal qiyaamah; alaa zaalika huwal khusraanul mubeen
﴾16﴿ Lahum min fawqihim zulalum minan Naari wa min tahtihim zulal; zaalika yukhaw wiful laahu bihee 'ibaadah; yaa 'ibaadi fattaqoon
﴾17﴿ Wallazeenaj tanabut Taaghoota ai ya'budoohaa wa anaabooo ilal laahi lahumul bushraa; fabashshir 'ibaad
﴾18﴿ Allazeena yastami'oonal qawla fayattabi'oona ahsanah; ulaaa'ikal lazeena hadaahumul laahu wa ulaaa'ika hum ulul albaab
﴾19﴿ Afaman haqqa 'alaihi kalimatul 'azaab; afa anta tunqizu man fin Naar

﴾15﴿ Then worship whatever you will besides Allah. Say: Indeed, the true losers are those who have brought loss upon themselves and their families on the Day of Judgment. Behold! That is the clear loss
﴾16﴿ For them, there will be canopies of fire above them and canopies beneath them as well. With this, Allah warns His servants: O My servants, fear Me
﴾17﴿ And those who avoid every false deity, refusing to worship them, and turn to Allah in sincerity—for them is glad tidings. So give good news to My servants
﴾18﴿ They are the ones who listen to the word and follow the best of it. They are those whom Allah has guided, and they are the people of pure intellect
﴾19﴿ Is the one upon whom the decree of punishment has been fulfilled—can you then save one who is in the Fire forever

[15,16] After mentioning the path of the monotheist, now the path of the polytheist is described—worshipping others besides Allah. The purpose of this is to rebuke them; therefore, the warning of punishment is mentioned afterward.
Following that, the details of their loss are described in (لَهُمْ مِنْ فَوْقِهِمْ ظُلَلٌ) — meaning the Fire of Hell will surround them from all sides. The word ẓulal refers to layers, like massive clouds above; above them is described as ẓulal ghawāsh (covering layers), and below as mihād (bedding), as mentioned in Surah al-A‘rāf (7:41).
A question may arise: what is the benefit in mentioning these punishments, since the stubborn deniers will not accept? The answer is given in (ذَلِكَ يُخَوِّفُ اللَّهُ بِهِ عِبَادَهُ) — “This is how Allah warns His servants.” That is, those who are inclined toward Him will benefit from this.
Then, the path to avoid such punishment is explained with the words: (يَا عِبَادِ فَاتَّقُونِ) — “O My servants, so fear Me.”
[17,18] Previously, the state of the deniers was mentioned along with warnings; now, in contrast, the state of the monotheists is described, along with glad tidings for them. Six qualities of theirs are mentioned.
(الطَّاغُوتَ) — This word is an intensive form of ṭughyān (rebellion). It truly refers to one who is extremely rebellious and misguiding. It includes both human and jinn devils, and figuratively, it applies to anything worshipped besides Allah—like idols, shrines of saints, etc. It is stated in Sirāj al-Munīr that this is its usage.
(لَهُمُ الْبُشْرَى) — They have glad tidings, meaning: their hearts are content in this world, and at the time of death, angels give them glad tidings. Similarly, after resurrection, in the gathering field (ḥashr), and at the time of reckoning, they are given good news. Since this applies in all cases, it is mentioned in absolute form.
The term (الْقَوْلَ) refers either to the Qur’an and Hadith, in which case they listen attentively—because istimā‘ implies listening with intention—or it may refer to all kinds of speech, both true and false, with or without proof, good and bad. They listen to all in order to distinguish between truth and falsehood.
(فَيَتَّبِعُونَ أَحْسَنَهُ) — Meaning: after acquiring knowledge, they act upon it.
If qawl refers to Qur’an and Hadith, then aḥsan (best) refers to what is better in comparison to what is merely acceptable. This applies in both worship and dealings. For example, in prayer, aḥsan is that which fully includes all conditions and pillars, and aligns with the Sunnah of the Prophet (May Allah bless him and give him peace). In disputed matters, they act upon the stronger view. If an act includes disliked (makrūh) elements, it may still be valid, but it is not aḥsan.
In financial matters, for example, if someone owes you money, it is aḥsan to forgive or give extra time. In legal schools (madhāhib), one should act upon the view that is stronger in evidence.
Likewise, if one narration is unanimously authentic (ṣaḥīḥ ittifāqī), and the other is authentic but disputed (ṣaḥīḥ ikhtilāfī)—such as raising the hands (raf‘ al-yadayn) in prayer beyond the first takbīr—the first is aḥsan.
They also prioritize obligatory acts over recommended ones, and recommended acts over permissible ones—these are all examples of what is aḥsan.
If al-qawl refers to speech in general, then aḥsan means the opposite of evil—i.e., they hear various opinions, rulings, and talks, but only act upon what is proven by Shariah evidence.
This also indicates that despite having knowledge, they do not blindly follow others without proof.
[19,20] In these two verses, the contrast between the two groups is presented in terms of their recompense: first comes a warning, then glad tidings.
(كَلِمَةُ الْعَذَابِ) — refers either to the decisive decree of punishment for the wretched, or to the statement mentioned at the end of Surah Ṣād (38:85): “I will surely fill Hell...”
(لَكِنِ الَّذِينَ اتَّقَوْا) — Here, the glad tidings for the second group (the God-fearing) are mentioned. Just as in verse 16 the punishment for the deniers was described as coming from above and below, now in this verse, the ghuraf (elevated chambers) of Paradise are described, both above and below, for the people of Paradise.
(لَكِنِ) — According to Tafsīr al-Qurṭubī, this lakin is not for exception, since there is no preceding negation, but rather it serves as a transition from one story to another.
(مَبْنِيَّةٌ) — The use of this word implies that while the ceilings of worldly palaces become structurally weaker the higher they are, the chambers of Paradise are solid and strong, no matter how high they are.
In a marfū‘ hadith reported by Bukhari and Muslim, it is stated that the people of Paradise will look up at the inhabitants of the elevated chambers and see them like bright stars shining far away in the east or west. This is due to the difference in their ranks.
The Companions said, “O Messenger of Allah, are these ranks for the Prophets (peace be upon them)?” He replied, “No, by the One in whose hand is my soul, these are for those who believed in Allah the Exalted and confirmed His Messengers.”