And when He, glorified and exalted is He, clarified by this that they were the most obstinate of people and the most deceitful and slanderous, rather they were the most lying and sinful, they were most deserving of being described as disbelievers. This caused His saying: "So the curse of Allah" [Al-Baqarah: 89] to be revealed, meaning: the One to whom belongs all command, "upon the disbelievers" [Al-Baqarah: 89]. He made evident the place of the implicit, linking the ruling to the description so that it encompasses and indicates the righteousness of whom Allah wills among them. And when they deserved by this all forms of blame, it was followed by His saying: "Wretched is that". He brought forth the comprehensive word for blame, which is the opposite of the comprehensive blessings of all forms of praise, meaning: "Wretched is the thing they sold themselves for". That is, their interests, for they preferred them. This was indeed the opposite of what the believers did by selling themselves for Allah through their devotion to Him, preferring what pleases Him over the desires of their souls. Thus, this was indeed the essence of attaining it and presenting it. Then He explained the pronoun referring back to the ambiguous matter taken in securing the soul, saying: "that they disbelieve". That is, they conceal the renewal and continuity of their knowledge, "of what Allah has revealed" which has no equal, meaning: they sold their souls, keeping them for themselves according to their claim of disbelief and did not make them subordinate. It is permissible that "they sold" means: they bought, because they offered them to the devil through disbelief, just as the believers offered their souls to Allah through faith. Then He justified their disbelief by His saying: "out of envy". That is, out of jealousy and wrongdoing for the prophethood to be among the children of Ismail, peace be upon him. Al-Harali said: It is an intensification in the pursuit of something. Its origin is the absolute pursuit and desire, as if a person, when he was created with a tendency towards deficiency and inclined towards evil and disobedience, except for whom Allah has protected and aided, was blameworthy for his absolute desire. For it is his right that he should have no choice or will, but his will should be subordinate to the will of his Lord, as is the case with a servant, and Allah is the One who grants success. Then He justified their transgression by His saying: "that Allah should send down" the Majestic and Honorable "from His bounty". In the form of "He sends down", there is an indication of the continuation of what angers them in what is to come, and good news for the Prophet, blessings and peace be upon him, and the believers "upon whom He wills from His servants" among the Arabs who envied them. Then He caused this to be followed by His saying: "and they returned". That is, they returned because of this, "with anger" in their envy for this Prophet, blessings and peace be upon him, because he is from the Arabs, "upon anger" which they deserved due to their disbelief in their prophets out of obstinacy. Then He linked the ruling that they deserved to their description in general and indicated that some of them would believe, saying: "and for the disbelievers". That is, those who are firmly rooted in this description among them and others, "is a humiliating punishment" from humiliation, which is to be cast down in disgrace and contempt.