Surat At-Taubah Verse No. 17: Reading and listening
Translation of the verse 17 from Surah At-Taubah : Number of verses 129 - - page 189 - Part 10.
![surah التوبة ayah 17 - It is not for the polytheists to maintain the mosques of Allah [while] witnessing against themselves with disbelief. [For] those, their deeds have become worthless, and in the Fire they will abide eternally.](https://surahquran.com/img/ayah/9-17.png)
﴾مَا كَانَ لِلۡمُشۡرِكِينَ أَن يَعۡمُرُواْ مَسَٰجِدَ ٱللَّهِ شَٰهِدِينَ عَلَىٰٓ أَنفُسِهِم بِٱلۡكُفۡرِۚ أُوْلَٰٓئِكَ حَبِطَتۡ أَعۡمَٰلُهُمۡ وَفِي ٱلنَّارِ هُمۡ خَٰلِدُونَ ﴿
[ التوبة: 17]
It is not for the Mushrikun (polytheists, idolaters, pagans, disbelievers in the Oneness of Allah), to maintain the Mosques of Allah (i.e. to pray and worship Allah therein, to look after their cleanliness and their building, etc.), while they witness against their ownselves of disbelief. The works of such are in vain and in Fire shall they abide.
English - Sahih International
It is not for the polytheists to maintain the mosques of Allah [while] witnessing against themselves with disbelief. [For] those, their deeds have become worthless, and in the Fire they will abide eternally.
Tafheem-ul-Quran by Syed Abu-al-A'la Maududi
(9:17) It does not behove the mushriks to become the guardians and servants of Allah's houses of worship, the while they themselves bear witness against themselves to their disbelief; *19 in fact, all their works have gone to waste *20 and they shall abide in the Fire for ever.
Tafheem-ul-Quran by Syed Abu-al-A'la Maududi
*19) This lays down the general principle for the guardianship of the places of worship that ave been built exclusively for the worship of Allah. Obviously, those people who associate thers with Allah in His essence, His rights and His powers cannot be the proper persons to be the guardians, the servants, the managers etc. of such sacred places. And when they themselves reject the invitations to Tauhid, and openly declare that they are not going to dedicate their worship and obedience exclusively o AIIah, they automatically forfeit any right they ad for the guardianship of such places of worship that had been built for the worship of Allah alone. Though the principle is of a general nature, it has been mentioned here with the particular object of removing the mushriks from the guardianship of the Ka`abah and Masjid-i-Haram and establishing permanently the guardianship of the worshippers of One God over them.
*20) ".........all their works have gone to waste.....", including the little real service they did to the `House of Allah' because they mixed with it shirk and other practices of ignorance. Their little good was destroyed by their far greater evils.