Exegesis of the saying of Allah the Exalted: “So do not attribute to Allah any equals while you know [the truth].”

For the polytheists acknowledge that the Creator is Allah, the Provider is Allah, and the Manager of affairs is Allah; they acknowledge this fully and know that there is no deity with Allah in this. But in worship, they deny it and associate partners with Him, making another god alongside Allah, and they rebuke those who declare the oneness of Allah, until they said regarding the Messenger (peace and blessings be upon him): And we say: — What Allah willed — who brought something astonishing? They did. As for the Messenger (peace and blessings be upon him), he brought the truth, but they brought something astonishing; we ask Allah for well-being. In what? In worship. That He has no equal in Lordship, in creation, provision, and the like. Your acknowledgment that Allah is unique in creation and provision necessitates that you make worship for Allah alone. If you do not do so, you are self-contradictory. For this reason, the scholars (may Allah have mercy on them) said: Tawhid al-uluhiyyah (oneness of worship) includes Tawhid al-rububiyyah (oneness of lordship), and Tawhid al-rububiyyah (oneness of lordship) entails Tawhid al-uluhiyyah (oneness of worship). That is, whoever acknowledges Lordship must acknowledge worship, and whoever acknowledges worship has not truly acknowledged it until he has acknowledged Lordship. Thus, Tawhid al-uluhiyyah (oneness of worship) includes Tawhid al-rububiyyah (oneness of lordship), and Tawhid al-rububiyyah (oneness of lordship) entails Tawhid al-uluhiyyah (oneness of worship).