'In the name of Allah, the Most Gracious, the Most Merciful' He, exalted and glorified, says: "And Allah created you, then He takes your souls, and among you is he who is returned to the most abject of ages, so that he does not know anything after knowledge. Indeed, Allah is Knowing and Powerful." "And Allah has favored some of you over others in provision. So those who have been favored do not give back their provision to what their right hands possess, so they are equal in it. So do they deny the favor of Allah?" "And Allah has made for you from your own selves spouses and made for you from your spouses sons and grandchildren, and He has provided for you from the good things. So do they believe in falsehood and deny the favor of Allah?" This is a reminder to reflect on our creation after non-existence and our death thereafter. Then it is interrupted by mentioning those who decline among people, for they are a place of reflection. And "the most abject of ages" refers to the end of it, in which the senses deteriorate and speech becomes impaired. This is specifically mentioned for the abject state—although childhood is likewise so—because this has hopes along with it, and childhood is merely the beginning, and hope is established with it. Some people said: The beginning of the most abject age is seventy-five years. This was narrated from Ali, may Allah be pleased with him. The judge Abu Muhammad, may Allah have mercy on him, said: And this is in most cases, and it is not limited to a specific duration, but rather it depends on each individual. The meaning is: And among you is he who returns to the most abject of his age. Perhaps one who is fifty years old is in his most abject age, and perhaps one who is a hundred or ninety is not in his most abject age. The 'lam' in "so that he does not know" resembles that it could be a lam of transformation, and it is not clear. The meaning is: So that his affair after knowledge of things becomes such that he does not know anything. And this is an expression of the lack of his knowledge, not that he does not know anything at all. And the 'la' does not prevent 'kay' and its object from being in the state of transformation, and it may be extra. Then He, blessed and exalted, affirmed His knowledge and power that do not change, nor are they altered by events, nor do they change.

And His saying, exalted is He: ﴿And Allah has preferred some of you over others in provision﴾ is a statement intended for reflection. It is indeed a principle upon which the parable is built. The parable is that those who are preferred should not share their possessions with their dependents in what they have given until their conditions are equalized. If this is the case in minor matters, how do you, O disbelievers, attribute to Allah, exalted is He, that He allows partners in His divinity, such as idols and statues, which are His creation, and others that are worshipped like the angels and the prophets, who are His servants and creation? This is the interpretation of al-Tabari, and it was narrated from Ibn Abbas, may Allah be pleased with him, who stated that the verse refers to Jesus, peace be upon him. The commentators said: This verse is like His saying, exalted is He: ﴿He has struck for you a parable from yourselves﴾ [Ar-Rum: 28]. Then He confronted them with their denial of Allah's favor in alerting them to such matters that lead to (p-383) faith. The majority read, and Hafs from Asim read: "They deny" with a 'ya' from below, while Abu Bakr read it from Asim with a 'ta', which is the reading of Abu Abdur-Rahman and Al-A'raj - differing from him - and it means: Say to them, O Muhammad. Qatadah said: Denial can only occur after knowledge.

And His saying, exalted is He: ﴿And Allah has made for you﴾ is a verse enumerating blessings, and "the spouses" refers to the wives. There is no classification in this verse regarding types or anything else. His saying: ﴿From yourselves﴾ may imply that He created Hawwa from the soul of Adam and his body. Since they were the origin of all, it is appropriate to carry their matter upon all until it becomes as if women were created from the souls of men. This is the saying of Qatadah. The more apparent to me is that He means by His saying: ﴿From yourselves﴾ that is, from your kind and in your creation, as He said: ﴿Indeed, a messenger has come to you from among yourselves﴾ [At-Tawbah: 128]. And His saying, exalted is He: ﴿And He has made for you from your spouses sons﴾ is clear in enumerating the blessing in children. People have differed regarding His saying: "and grandchildren." Ibn Abbas said: Grandchildren are the children of sons. Al-Hasan said: They are your children and the children of your children. Ibn Mas'ud, Abu Dhuhah, Ibrahim, and Sa'id ibn Jubair said: Grandchildren are the in-laws, who are the relatives of the wife. Mujahid said: Grandchildren are the supporters, helpers, and servants. Al-Zajjaj narrated that some of them said that grandchildren are daughters. Al-Zahrawi said: Because they serve the parents, and the term "sons" does not indicate them. Do you not see that they are not included in Allah's saying, blessed and exalted is He: ﴿Wealth and children are adornment of the worldly life﴾ [Al-Kahf: 46]? Rather, the adornment is in males. Ibn Abbas, may Allah be pleased with him, also said: Grandchildren are the children of a man's wife from another man. There is no disagreement that the meaning of "grandchildren" is service, kindness, and hastening in obedience. From it is in supplication: "And to You we strive and we hasten." And "hifd" refers to a quick pace above walking. From it is the saying of the poet, and it is Jamil ibn Mu'mar:

The children hastened among them, and it was submitted With their hands were the reins of the camels.

I have tasked its unknown with Yemeni camels. When the guides hastened to its saddles.

The judge Abu Muhammad, may Allah have mercy on him, said:

And these groups that I mentioned their sayings are based on the fact that every individual has been made for him from his spouses sons and attendants. This is generally true for most people. It is possible for me that his saying: ﴿from your spouses﴾ is meant in general and sharing, meaning: from the spouses of mankind Allah has made for them sons, and from them He has made service. So whoever does not have a wife, Allah has made for him attendants and he has attained that blessing. And those attendants are from the spouses. Thus, the blessing that encompasses all of the world is arranged, and the term 'attendants' is consistent with its flow in the language, as mankind as a whole does not suffice without attendants. And a group said: the attendants are the sons.

(p-385) The judge Abu Muhammad, may Allah have mercy on him, said:

And this is consistent on the condition that the 'and' is a conjunction describing them, as if he said: We have made for them sons and helpers, meaning: and they have helpers. So it is as if he said: and they are attendants.

And His saying, the Exalted: ﴿and He provided you with good things﴾ means: the pleasurable of the things that are good for those who are provided with them, and it does not limit here to the lawful; because they are disbelievers who do not earn by a law. And in this verse is a refutation of those from the Mu'tazilah who said: 'Indeed, provision is only lawful.' And they have a connection in the term 'from' as it is for partitive, so they say: the provision that is specified for them is not from all that is in their hands except what is lawful.

And the majority read: 'they secure.' And the verse - on this reading - comes as a stop for Muhammad, blessings and peace be upon him, regarding their belief in falsehood and their disbelief in the blessing of Allah. And Abu Abdur-Rahman read with a 't' from above, and it was narrated from Asim, meaning: say to them, O Muhammad. And His saying comes after that: ﴿and by the blessing of Allah they disbelieve﴾ is merely a report about them, and a judgment upon them, not a coordination. And the stop may also be possible due to the infrequency of the statement.