Quran Universe
40:50

قَالُوٓاْ أَوَلَمۡ تَكُ تَأۡتِيكُمۡ رُسُلُكُم بِٱلۡبَيِّنَٰتِۖ قَالُواْ بَلَىٰۚ قَالُواْ فَٱدۡعُواْۗ وَمَا دُعَـٰٓؤُاْ ٱلۡكَٰفِرِينَ إِلَّا فِي ضَلَٰلٍ

Qaloo awalam taku tateekum rusulukum bialbayyinati qaloo bala qaloo faodAAoo wama duAAao alkafireena illa fee dalalin

They will say, "Did there not come to you your messengers with clear proofs?" They will say, "Yes." They will reply, "Then supplicate [yourselves], but the supplication of the disbelievers is not except in error."

Word by word
  1. قَالُوٓاْThey (will) say
  2. أَوَلَمۡDid there not
  3. تَكُDid there not
  4. تَأۡتِيكُمۡcome to you
  5. رُسُلُكُمyour Messengers
  6. بِٱلۡبَيِّنَٰتِۖwith clear proofs
  7. قَالُواْThey (will) say
  8. بَلَىٰۚYes
  9. قَالُواْThey (will) say
  10. فَٱدۡعُواْۗThen call
  11. وَمَاbut not
  12. دُعَـٰٓؤُاْ(is the) call
  13. ٱلۡكَٰفِرِينَ(of) the disbelievers
  14. إِلَّاexcept
  15. فِيin
  16. ضَلَٰلٍerror
Ghafir · 40:50Makkah

Did your messengers not come with clear proofs? Yes.

The one-word answer that closes the case

The keepers' question
did messengers comewith clear proofs
answer
yeswe were told
What they cannot say
nobody told us
we knewproof was established

Ibn Kathir explains the keepers ask: was proof not established through the messengers? They answer yes. Then they are told to call on their own, for the call of the disbelievers is in vain.

You have heard it all: the khutbah, the friend's reminder, the verse that stopped you once. You cannot say nobody told you. That is not a threat. It is a chance, while answering still changes something.

I can always say I did not really know.

I have been told. The question is what I do with it today.

Try this

Pick one reminder you heard recently and act on it once today.

Simplified reflection. Read the tafsir for scholarship.draft
Tafsir Ibn Kathir (shared passage from 40:47)

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.