Quran Universe
40:47

وَإِذۡ يَتَحَآجُّونَ فِي ٱلنَّارِ فَيَقُولُ ٱلضُّعَفَـٰٓؤُاْ لِلَّذِينَ ٱسۡتَكۡبَرُوٓاْ إِنَّا كُنَّا لَكُمۡ تَبَعٗا فَهَلۡ أَنتُم مُّغۡنُونَ عَنَّا نَصِيبٗا مِّنَ ٱلنَّارِ

Waith yatahajjoona fee alnnari fayaqoolu aldduAAafao lillatheena istakbaroo inna kunna lakum tabaAAan fahal antum mughnoona AAanna naseeban mina alnnari

And [mention] when they will argue within the Fire, and the weak will say to those who had been arrogant, "Indeed, we were [only] your followers, so will you relieve us of a share of the Fire?"

Word by word
  1. وَإِذۡAnd when
  2. يَتَحَآجُّونَthey will dispute
  3. فِيin
  4. ٱلنَّارِthe Fire
  5. فَيَقُولُthen will say
  6. ٱلضُّعَفَـٰٓؤُاْthe weak
  7. لِلَّذِينَto those who
  8. ٱسۡتَكۡبَرُوٓاْwere arrogant
  9. إِنَّاIndeed,we
  10. كُنَّا[we] were
  11. لَكُمۡfor you
  12. تَبَعٗاfollowers
  13. فَهَلۡso can
  14. أَنتُمyou
  15. مُّغۡنُونَavert
  16. عَنَّاfrom us
  17. نَصِيبٗاa portion
  18. مِّنَof
  19. ٱلنَّارِthe Fire
Ghafir · 40:47Makkah

We followed you, said the weak. Can you take some of this?

Followers turn to the leaders they obeyed

The argument in the Fire
the weakwe were your followers
ask
the arrogantthe leaders and masters
take a sharecarry part of our burden
Following someone
they lead, they answerI just followed
I answer for my choiceto follow

Ibn Kathir says the weak followers will say to their leaders: we obeyed you and heeded your call, can you carry part of our burden? Pharaoh's people are among them. The followers thought obeying would shield them.

Everyone at work cut corners because the manager did. Your friends joined in the mocking because the loudest one started. I was just following feels like a shield. It is not one.

If I only followed orders, the blame is on them.

Following someone into wrong is still my own choice, and I carry it.

Try this

Notice one thing you do only because a leader or crowd does it. Decide for yourself today.

Simplified reflection. Read the tafsir for scholarship.draft
Tafsir Ibn Kathir

And, when they will dispute in the Fire, the weak will say to those who were arrogant: "Verily, we followed you, can you then take from us some portion of the Fire? (47)Those who were arrogant will say: "We are all (together) in this (Fire)! Verily, Allah has judged between (His) servants! (48)And those in the Fire will say to the keepers (angels) of Hell: "Call upon your Lord to lighten for us the torment for a day! (49)They will say: "Did there not come to you, your Messengers with (clear) evidences" They will say: "Yes." They will reply: "Then call (as you like)! And the invocation of the disbelievers is nothing but in vain! (50)

The Dispute of the People of Hell

Allah tells us how the people of Hell will dispute and argue with one another, and Fir'awn and his people will be among them. The weak, who were the followers, will say to those who were arrogant, who were the leaders and masters:

إِنَّا كُنَّا لَكُمْ تَبَعًا

(Verily, we followed you,) meaning, 'we obeyed you and heeded your call to disbelief and misguidance in the world, '

فَهَلْ أَنْتُمْ مُغْنُونَ عَنَّا نَصِيبًا مِنَ النَّارِ

(can you then take from us some portion of the Fire?) means, 'can you carry a part of our burden for us?'

قَالَ الَّذِينَ اسْتَكْبَرُوا إِنَّا كُلٌّ فِيهَا 

(Those who were arrogant will say: "We are all (together) in this (Fire)!...") meaning, 'we will not bear any part of your burden for you; our own punishment is enough for us to bear.'

إِنَّ اللَّهَ قَدْ حَكَمَ بَيْنَ الْعِبَادِ

(Verily, Allah has judged (His) servants!) means, 'He has shared out the punishment among us according to what each of us deserves'. This is like the Ayah:

قَالَ لِكُلٍّ ضِعْفٌ وَلَٰكِنْ لَا تَعْلَمُونَ

(He will say: "For each one there is double (torment), but you know not.")(7:38)

وَقَالَ الَّذِينَ فِي النَّارِ لِخَزَنَةِ جَهَنَّمَ ادْعُوا رَبَّكُمْ يُخَفِّفْ عَنَّا يَوْمًا مِنَ الْعَذَابِ 

(And those in the Fire will say to the keepers (angels) of Hell: "Call upon your Lord to lighten for us the torment for a day!") They know that Allah will not answer them and will not listen to their prayer, because He said,

اخْسَئُوا فِيهَا وَلَا تُكَلِّمُونِ

(Remain you in it with ignominy! And speak you not to Me!)(23:108), so they will ask the keepers of Hell, who are like jailers watching over the people of Hell, to pray to Allah to lessen the Fire for them if only for one day. But the keepers of Hell will refuse, saying to them,

أَوَلَمْ تَكُ تَأْتِيكُمْ رُسُلُكُمْ بِالْبَيِّنَاتِ

(Did there not come to you, your Messengers with (clear) evidences?) meaning, was not proof established in the world on the lips of the Messengers?

قَالُوا بَلَىٰ ۚ قَالُوا فَادْعُوا ۗ 

(They will say: "Yes." They will reply: "Then call (as you like)!...") means, you are on your own. We will not pray for you or listen to you; we do not want you to be saved and we have nothing to do with you. Moreover, we tell you that it is all the same whether you offer supplication or not, because Allah will not respond and He will not lighten the torment for you.' They will say:

وَمَا دُعَاءُ الْكَافِرِينَ إِلَّا فِي ضَلَالٍ

(And the invocation of the disbelievers is nothing but in vain!) meaning, it will not be accepted or responded to.