"O mankind, a similitude has been presented," meaning a description. "So listen to it," meaning the polytheists. "Indeed, those you invoke besides Allah," meaning the idols, "will never create [as much as] a fly, even if they gathered for that purpose. And if the fly should steal away from them a thing, they could not recover it from him."
The fly lands on those idols, pecks at their eyes and faces, and steals from them what it has taken from their faces and eyes.
I heard some of them say that they used to coat them with a perfume (khalūq). Allah said: "Weak are the pursuer," meaning the idol, "and the pursued," meaning the fly.
﴿يَا أَيهَا النَّاس ضرب مثل﴾ أَي: وصف ﴿فَاسْتَمعُوا لَهُ﴾ يَعْنِي: الْمُشْرِكِينَ ﴿إِنَّ الَّذِينَ تَدْعُونَ من دون الله﴾ يَعْنِي: الْأَوْثَانَ ﴿لَنْ يَخْلُقُوا ذُبَابًا وَلَوِ اجْتَمَعُوا لَهُ وَإِنْ يَسْلُبْهُمُ الذُّبَابُ شَيْئًا لَا يَسْتَنْقِذُوهُ مِنْهُ﴾.
إِنَّ الذُّبَابَ يَقَعُ عَلَى تِلْكَ الْأَوْثَانِ فَيَنْقُرُ أَعْيُنَهَا وَوُجُوهَهَا فَيَسْلُبُهَا مَا أَخَذَ مِنْ وُجُوهِهَا وَأَعْيُنِهَا.
وَسَمِعْتُ بَعْضَهُمْ يَقُولُ: إِنَّهُمْ كَانُوا يَطْلُونَهَا بِخَلُوقٍ. قَالَ اللَّهُ ﴿ضَعُفَ الطَّالِب﴾ يَعْنِي: الوثن ﴿وَالْمَطْلُوب﴾ يَعْنِي: الذُّبَاب
