And when it was said by them that the one who gave him that is indeed Allah, and he had been made arrogant by the blessing until he became eager for a response, it was said in a manner of emphasis that everyone knows of themselves their own inability. And that others deny him regarding what he claims he has attained by his own strength: ﴿He said, 'I have only been given it because of knowledge I possess.'﴾ That is, this wealth ﴿is due to knowledge﴾ that is present ﴿with me﴾, so I am deserving of it. And that knowledge is the reason for its attainment; there is no favor of anyone upon me in it - as indicated by the expression 'only' - and the construction of the verb for the unknown indicates his lack of knowledge of who has been given. And it has been said that this knowledge is alchemy.

And when the estimation was that he should not fear that Allah would take away from him - as a punishment for this - his knowledge and wealth [and self]? Did he not know that this is only by the power of Allah? He has no role in that at all, because Allah has made poor one who is greater than him in cunning and more knowledgeable, and has given more than him to one who has no knowledge or power. So He is capable of destroying him, and taking away what he has and annihilating him, just as He was capable of giving it to him. He followed that with His words, denying him: ﴿Did he not know that Allah﴾, that is, by what He has of attributes of majesty, greatness, and perfection ﴿has destroyed﴾. And He pointed out that he did not take heed despite witnessing those who were destroyed, described with the nearness of time by including those in His saying: ﴿before him﴾. And if He had omitted it, the destruction would have encompassed all that preceded him from ﴿the centuries﴾, that is, those who are as solid as the centuries ﴿who are stronger than him﴾, that is, centuries ﴿in strength﴾, that is, in body, and the meanings of knowledge and others, and supporters and servants ﴿and more numerous﴾ in wealth and men, the last of them being Pharaoh, who consulted him in his kingdom and confirmed his matter on the day of [the important] destruction, and he used to enslave those like him and impose upon them severe punishment. And he did not treat them as one who loves them, nor did that prevent him from it due to any knowledge with any of them or gathering. Rather, he took them for their tyranny and condemned their turning and their striving.

And when it was the habit of the people of this world that when they became angry with someone and wanted to destroy him, they would admonish him. Sometimes he swears to deny the sin, and it is accepted from him even if he is lying. And sometimes the state reveals that the inner reality of his matter is contrary to what appeared from his evil, so he has a hidden excuse. Allah, glorified is He, indicated that this is not done except by one who is ignorant of the realities of matters and the measures of what is deserved for every sin from punishment. And the one who is aware of the innermost thoughts and the secrets of the hearts is free from that. So He, the Exalted, said, mentioning the state of the one acted upon, which is ﴿from﴾ ﴿and not﴾, that is, He destroyed them while they are not questioned - this is the origin - but He said: ﴿They will be asked﴾, that is, by a questioner about ﴿their sins, the criminals﴾. So He made clear to indicate that the cause of destruction is crime, which is cutting off what should be connected and connecting what should be cut off.