And when this is the place to say: The signs are sought for what is hoped for from the cause of faith arising from them, it has resulted that it is answered by His saying, the Most High: ﴿So if only﴾ meaning: So why ﴿there was a town﴾ meaning: one of the towns of the past nations that We destroyed ﴿that believed﴾ meaning: its people believed when the signs came or when they saw the causes of punishment ﴿and it benefited them﴾ [meaning: so the cause of their faith was that it benefited them -] ﴿their faith﴾. And since the meaning of 'if only' is negation, the implication is: but no town among them believed except at the time of the shock of punishment, as Pharaoh did, when he believed upon seeing the sea at the moment of parting or when it was in the middle before it flowed upon him, but he did not believe until after its collapse and touching him. And that is when it does not benefit due to the loss of the condition of believing in the unseen ﴿except the people of Yunus﴾ for they believed at the time of the signs while the obligation remained, and that benefited them for they ﴿when they believed﴾ and it indicated that He had overshadowed them by His saying: ﴿We removed﴾ meaning: by Our greatness ﴿from them﴾ meaning: at the time of their belief, it was narrated that there remained between them and the punishment only the distance of a mile ﴿the punishment of disgrace﴾ meaning: which would have necessitated for them if it had befallen them the humiliation of both worlds ﴿in this worldly life﴾ meaning: so it did not seize them at the time of their seeing it ﴿and We granted them enjoyment﴾ [meaning] great enjoyment ﴿until a time﴾ which is the end of their terms, each one of them at his appointed time. And what I have mentioned regarding the meaning of the verse has been transmitted by the judge Abu Muhammad Ishaq ibn Ibrahim al-Basiti in his ascribed tafsir from Ibn Abi Umar who said: Sufyan al-Thawri said: ﴿So if only there was a town that believed﴾ he said: then no town believed, and this is the interpretation of the meaning of the words. As for 'if only', it is in the meaning of 'why not', and it is in forms of urging and femininity, meaning reproach, and it is [here] for reproach. And it is permissible that it be interrogative in the meaning of 'if only', and both meanings necessitate negation; and the benefit: is the obligation of pleasure by doing it or what leads to it like the unpleasant medicine that leads to pleasure; and disgrace is that one be exposed, and it is a state of worthlessness due to the distress that befalls him, and its origin is suffering.