His saying, exalted and majestic is He: "And mankind was but one nation, then they differed. And if it had not been for a word that had preceded from your Lord, it would have been judged between them in that in which they differ." "And they say, 'Why has a sign not been sent down to him from his Lord?' Say, 'The unseen is for Allah. So wait; indeed, I am with you among those who wait.'" "And when We let the people taste mercy after adversity has touched them, at once they devise in Our verses. Say, 'Allah is more swift in devising. Indeed, Our messengers record that which you devise.'" A group said: The intended meaning is Adam. He was one nation, then the people differed afterward, and in the matter of his children. And another group said: The intended meaning is the souls of his children when Allah extracted them from his back and made them testify against themselves. And another group said: The intended meaning is Adam and his children from the time of his descent until the killing of one of his sons by the other. And another group said: The intended meaning is: And mankind was but one nation in misguidance and ignorance of Allah, then they differed into factions in that according to their ignorance. It is possible that the meaning is: The people were one kind prepared for guidance. The full explanation of this is found earlier in Surah Al-Baqarah in His saying, glorified and exalted is He: "Mankind was one nation." [Al-Baqarah: 213]. Al-Hasan ibn Abi Al-Hasan, Abu Ja'far, Nafi', Shaiba, and Abu Amr read: "It would have been judged between them" with a damm on the qaf and a kasra on the dad. And 'Isa ibn Umar read: "It would have judged" with a fatha on both as a past tense verb. His saying: "And if it had not been for a word that had preceded from your Lord" means His decree and predestination for the children of Adam with fixed lifetimes. It is possible that He means the word regarding the Day of Resurrection and that punishment and reward would only occur then. His saying, exalted is He: "And they say, 'Why has a sign not been sent down to him from his Lord?'" They mean by their saying: "A sign from his Lord" a sign that compels the people to believe. And this type of signs has never been brought by any prophet, nor are they coercive miracles. Rather, they are presented for reflection so that a people may be guided and another may go astray. His saying: "Say, 'The unseen is for Allah'" means if He wills, He does, and if He wills, He does not. No one can have knowledge of His unseen. And His saying: "So wait" is a threat, and Allah has confirmed it by supporting Muhammad, blessings and peace be upon him, as Al-Tabari said: in Badr and elsewhere. His saying, exalted is He: "And when We let the people taste" means in this verse the disbelievers. It also includes among the sinners those who do not give thanks to Allah, exalted and majestic is He, when the disliked is removed from them, nor do they refrain from their sins because of that. And this is common among people. The mercy here after adversity is like rain after drought, safety after fear, and health after sickness, and such examples are countless. And the devising is mockery and slander against it from the disbelievers and neglecting gratitude and fear from the sinners. And the description of Allah's devising as swift, although the leading astray is gradual for them, is certain to occur without a doubt, and everything coming is near. Abu Hatim said: The people read: "Indeed, Our messengers" with a damm on the scene, and Al-Hasan, Ibn Abi Al-Hasan, and Abu Amr lightened the scene.

It is said: "Asra'u" is from Saru'a, and it is not from Asra'a Yusri'u. Abu Ali narrated this. He said: If it were from Asra'a, it would have been an oddity.

Qadi Abu Muhammad, may Allah have mercy on him, said: The Messenger of Allah, blessings and peace be upon him, said about the fire of Hell: "It is blacker than tar." And what has been preserved for the Prophet, blessings and peace be upon him, is not an oddity.

Al-Hasan, Al-A'raj, Nafi', Qatadah, and Mujahid read: "Tamkurun" with a ت (taa) for addressing, and this is the reading of the people of Makkah, and Shibl, and Abu Amr, and 'Isa, and Talhah, and Asim, and Al-Amash, and Al-Jahdari, and Ayyub ibn Al-Mutawakkil. Al-Hasan, Qatadah, and Mujahid also narrated it. It was also narrated from Nafi' and Al-A'raj: "Yamkurun" in the absent form. Abu Hatim said: Ayyub ibn Al-Mutawakkil said: In the Mushaf of Ubayy: "O people, indeed Allah is quicker in plotting, and indeed His messengers are among you writing what you plot."