وَلَمْ يَكُن لَّهُم مِّن شُرَكَائِهِمْ شُفَعَاءُ وَكَانُوا بِشُرَكَائِهِمْ كَافِرِينَ (13)
(30:13) None whom they had associated with Allah in His Divinity will intercede on their behalf; *16 rather, they will disown those whom they had set up as Allah's associates in His Divinity. *17
*16) "Associates" (shuraka') includes three kinds of beings:
(1) The angels, prophets, saints, martyrs and the righteous men, to whom the polytheists assigned divine attributes and powers in different ages and whom they worshipped as gods. On Resurrection Day, they will say to their worshippers, "You did whatever you did without our consent, rather against our teachings and guidance. Therefore, we have nothing to do with you. Do not place any hope in us that we will intercede for you before AIIah Almighty."
(2) Inanimate things like the moon, the sun, the planets, trees, stones, animals, etc. The polytheists worshipped them as gods, prayed to them, but the poor things themselves were unaware that the vicegerent of AIIah was worshipping them so humbly and devotedly. Evidently, none of these also will come forward to intercede for him.
(3) The arch-criminals, who by deception and fraud, or by use of force, compelled the servants of God to worship thetas, e.g. Satan, false religious guides, and tyrants and despots. They themselves will be in trouble there. Not, to speak; of interceding for others, they will rather try to prove before God that their worshippers and followers were themselves responsible for their crimes, and therefore, they should not be made to bear the burden of their deviation. Thus, the polytheists there will not get any intercession from anywhere.
*17) That is, "The polytheists will themselves admit that they had wrongly held them associates of God. They will realize that none of them really had any ,hare in Godhead. Therefore, in the Hereafter they will disown the shirk on which they insist in the world.