His saying, exalted and majestic is He: "And they will not cease to fight you until they turn you back from your religion if they are able. And whoever among you reverts from his religion and dies while he is a disbeliever, those are the ones whose deeds have become worthless in this world and the Hereafter. And those are the companions of the Fire; they will be therein eternally." [Al-Baqarah: 217] "Indeed, those who have believed and those who have emigrated and fought in the cause of Allah, those are the ones who hope for the mercy of Allah. And Allah is Forgiving and Merciful." "They ask you about wine and gambling. Say, 'In them is great sin and [yet, some] benefit for people. But their sin is greater than their benefit.' And they ask you what they should spend. Say, 'The excess.' Thus Allah makes clear the verses [of revelation] to you that you might give thought." His saying, exalted and majestic is He: "And they will not cease" [Al-Baqarah: 217] is the beginning of a message from Allah - exalted and majestic is He - and a warning to the believers from the evil of the disbelievers. And "turn you back" is in the accusative case because it is an ultimate goal that is merely stated. And His saying, exalted and majestic is He: "And whoever reverts" [Al-Baqarah: 217], means he returns from Islam to disbelief. A group of scholars said: The apostate is to be given a chance to repent; if he repents, well and good, otherwise he is to be killed. And 'Ubaid ibn 'Umayr, Tawus, and Al-Hasan said otherwise, and Ash-Shafi'i - in one of his sayings - said: He is killed without being given a chance to repent. This has been narrated similarly from Abu Musa Al-Ash'ari and Mu'adh ibn Jabal. The judge Abu Muhammad, may Allah have mercy on him, said: The implication of their saying is that he is to be told at that time: 'Return,' and if he refuses, he is killed. And 'Ata ibn Abi Rabah said: If the apostate is the son of Muslims, he is killed without a chance to repent, and if he embraced Islam and then reverted, he is given a chance to repent. This is because he is ignorant of the virtue of Islam in a way that the son of Muslims is not ignorant. And those who spoke about the chance to repent differed; 'Umar ibn Al-Khattab, may Allah be pleased with him, said: He is to be given three days to repent, and this is what Malik, Ahmad, Ishaq, and the people of opinion said, and Ash-Shafi'i - in one of his sayings. And Az-Zuhri said: He is called to Islam; if he repents, well and good, otherwise he is killed. It has been narrated from Ali ibn Abi Talib, may Allah be pleased with him, that he gave an apostate a month to repent; when he refused, he killed him. And An-Nakha'i and Ath-Thawri said: He is to be given a chance to repent while imprisoned indefinitely. Ibn Al-Mundhir said: The reports from 'Umar on this matter differ. The judge Abu Muhammad, may Allah have mercy on him, said: He, may Allah be pleased with him, would implement according to the severity of the crime of that apostate, or the lesser severity of it, which is associated with the apostasy. And deeds become worthless if they are corrupted in the end and thus become invalid. And Abu As-Samali read: "Their deeds have become worthless" with a fatḥah on the bā' in all of the Qur'an. And Ali ibn Abi Talib, Al-Hasan, Ash-Shabi'i, Al-Hakam, Al-Layth, Abu Hanifah, and Ishaq ibn Rahawayh said: The inheritance of the apostate goes to his heirs from the Muslims. And Malik, Rabi'ah, Ibn Abi Laylah, Ash-Shafi'i, and Abu Thawr said: His inheritance goes to the Bayt al-Mal. And the people unanimously agreed that his heirs from the people of disbelief do not inherit from him except in rare cases, as narrated from 'Umar ibn 'Abd Al-Aziz, and from Qatadah, and it has been narrated from 'Umar ibn 'Abd Al-Aziz contrary to this.

And His saying, exalted is He: ﴿Indeed, those who have believed and those who have emigrated﴾. Jundub ibn Abdullah, Urwah ibn al-Zubair, and others said: "When Waqid ibn Abdullah al-Tamimi killed Amr ibn al-Hadhrami in the sacred month, the Messenger of Allah, blessings and peace be upon him, refrained from taking his fifth that was due to him from Abdullah ibn Jahsh." And regarding the two captives, the Muslims reproached Abdullah ibn Jahsh and his companions until it became difficult for them. So Allah, exalted and glorious is He, addressed them with this verse in the sacred month, then by mentioning them and referring to them in His saying: ﴿Indeed, those who have believed﴾. Then it remains applicable to everyone who does what Allah, exalted and glorious is He, has mentioned.

And a man emigrates when he moves from one place to another with the intention of leaving the first place in preference for the second. It is a mutual action from هَجَرَ. And whoever says: emigration is the transition from the desert to the urban area has misled, because that was the most common among the Arabs. And the people of Mecca are not emigrants according to his statement.

And to strive: it is a mutual action from جَهِدَ when he exerts effort. And "they hope" means they desire and seek closeness. Hope is a form of enjoyment, and hope always comes with fear. Just as fear comes with hope. And sometimes hope may be used in the sense of what accompanies it from fear, as the poet said:

If the bee stings him, he does not hope for its sting and he swore by it in the house of the workers.

And Al-Asma'i said: When the particle of negation is combined with hope, it means fear, like this verse, and like His saying, exalted is He: (They do not hope for Our meeting), meaning: they do not fear. It has been said that hope in the verse is in its original meaning, meaning they do not hope for reward in meeting Us, and in contrast to that is the fear of punishment. And some said: the term is from opposites without any metaphor in one of the two directions, and this is not good. Al-Jahiz said in the book of "The Countries": The meaning of his saying: "He did not hope for its sting" is that he did not hope for the healing of its sting and its removal, so he endures it. And the rest of the verse is a promise.

And His saying, exalted is He: ﴿They ask you about wine and gambling﴾. The questioners are the believers. And "wine" is derived from خَمَرَ when it covers. Hence the saying of the Prophet, blessings and peace be upon him: "Cover the container." And from it is the hijab of a woman. And wine is that which covers you from trees and others. And from it is the saying of the poet:

O Zayd and al-Dahhak, go on your way, for you have surpassed the wine of the road.

Meaning: go on, you have surpassed the place where the wolf and others hide. And from it is the saying of al-Ajjaj:

In the shining of the eagles, he does not walk the wine.

Describing an army that came with banners not hidden. And from it is their saying:

So-and-so entered among the people and their cover, meaning: he is in a hidden place. So when wine covers the mind and conceals it, it was named thus. Wine is the juice of grapes that has boiled and has not been cooked, and whatever covers the mind from other than that is in its ruling.

And wine was prohibited in Medina on the day it was prohibited, and it was made from honey, raisins, dates, barley, and wheat. They did not have grape wine among them. The community agreed that grape wine - when it ferments and becomes intoxicating - is forbidden, whether little or much, and that the punishment is obligatory for both little and much of it. The majority of the community holds that whatever intoxicates in large amounts from other than grape wine, its little and much is also forbidden, and the punishment for that is obligatory. Abu Hanifah, Sufyan al-Thawri, Ibn Abi Layla, Ibn Shubrumah, and a group of scholars from Kufa said: "Whatever intoxicates in large amounts from other than grape wine, then what does not intoxicate from it is lawful. And if someone becomes intoxicated from it without intending to reach the limit of intoxication, then there is no punishment on him." This is a weak opinion that is refuted by reasoning. Abu Bakr al-Siddiq, Umar al-Faruq, and the Companions are against this.

It has been narrated that the Prophet, blessings and peace be upon him, said: "Every intoxicant is wine, and every wine is forbidden. Whatever intoxicates in large amounts, its little is forbidden." Ibn al-Mundhir said in "Al-Ishraf": This report leaves no statement for a speaker, nor any proof for a claimant.

It has been narrated that this verse is the first reference to the prohibition of wine, then after it: "Do not approach prayer while you are intoxicated" [An-Nisa: 43]. Then His saying, glorified and exalted is He: "Indeed, Satan only intends to cause between you animosity and hatred through wine and gambling and to avert you from the remembrance of Allah and from prayer. So will you not desist?" [Al-Ma'idah: 91]. Then His saying: "Indeed, wine, gambling, stone altars [to other than Allah], and divining arrows are but defilement from the work of Satan, so avoid it" [Al-Ma'idah: 90]. The Messenger of Allah, blessings and peace be upon him, said: "Wine has been prohibited."

Nothing has been preserved from the Prophet, blessings and peace be upon him, regarding the punishment for wine except that it is forty lashes. This was narrated by Muslim and Abu Dawud. It has been narrated from him, blessings and peace be upon him, that he struck it with a common strike. Abu Bakr estimated it at forty lashes, and he acted upon that, then Umar, and then the people fell into it, so he intensified the punishment upon them and made it as the lightest of the punishments, eighty lashes. Malik said this, and Shafi'i said it is forty. Striking wine is not severe according to a group of scholars, and the buttocks of the striker should not be visible. Malik said: All striking is the same; it should not be lessened or increased. It is unanimously agreed that the face, private parts, heart, brain, and joints should be avoided from the one being struck.

A group said: This verse is abrogated by His saying: "So avoid it that you may be successful" [Al-Ma'idah: 90]; meaning what is in His saying: "And [there are] benefits for people" indicating permissibility and hinting at relaxation.

And "gambling" is derived from yasara: when it is slaughtered, and the yasir is the slaughterer. From this is the saying of the poet:

So he did not cease with their whispering and their plotting until they shared in the unseen flesh of those they slaughtered.

And from this is the saying of another:

I say to them by the tribes when they are slaughtering me, did you not despair that I am the son of Faris Zahdam.

And the camel that is drawn by lot is called a muysir because it is the place of ease, then it was said to the arrows muysir due to their proximity.

Al-Tabari said: Al-Maysir is derived from 'yasara' for me when it becomes obligatory and easy. He attributed the saying to Mujahid, then he brought from the text of Mujahid's words that contradict his saying. Rather, Mujahid meant al-jazar.

And al-yusr is that which is involved in the game with the arrows, and its plural is ayasar. It is said: yusr is the plural of yasir, like haris and haras and ahras.

The arrows of al-maysir are seven, with shares in them, and there are obligations based on the number of shares. Three have no shares, nor obligations in them. They are: al-fadh, al-taw'am, and al-raqib. Al-hils, al-nafis, al-musbil, and al-mu'alla. The three that have no shares are: al-munayyah, al-safih, and al-waghd. These three are added to increase the arrows and to mix them for the gambler, who is the one playing with them, so he finds no way to lean with anyone.

It was the custom of the Arabs to play with these arrows in the winter and the tightness of time and the cold for the poor, buying the camel, and guaranteeing the ayasar for its price, then slaughtering it and dividing it into ten parts. Al-Asma'i erred in the division of the camel, stating that it was according to the number of shares of the arrows, twenty-eight parts, and it is not so. Then he strikes on the ten parts, and whoever's arrow wins by coming out of the rababah first takes his share and gives it to the poor.

At times, they might gamble for themselves, then the one whose arrow does not win pays the price, and the poor of the tribe live by this manner. From this is the saying of al-A'sha:

'The one who feeds the guest when they are in need, and the one who provides food for the poor.'

And from this is the saying of another:

'By their hands, there are provisions and means that return with the sustenance of the needy.'

And the manih in this verse is the one who is generous, because they used to borrow the arrow that had been drawn, and its winning was frequent, so that is the praised manih.

As for the manih which is one of the three foolish ones, that is only described by the act of rushing, and it is he whom Jarir meant in his saying:

'And we have turned to al-Fazarah with a rush, like the rushing manih, and we wandered there freely.'

And from al-maysir is the saying of Labid:

'If they make it easy, ease will not inherit among them, and vile acts are mentioned with the seasons.'

All of this is the benefit of al-maysir, except that it consumes wealth unlawfully, so there is a great sin in it.

Muhammad ibn Sirin, al-Hasan, Ibn Abbas, Ibn al-Musayyib, and others said: Every gambling is maysir, from nard and shatranj and similar to it, even the children playing with nuts.

And His saying, the Exalted: 'Say: In them is a great sin and benefits for people.' Ibn Abbas and al-Rabi' said: The sin in them is after the prohibition, and the benefit in them is before it. A group said: The sin in wine is the loss of reason, and cursing and slandering and harm and transgression that occurs from the drinker. And the benefit is the pleasure in it, as Hassan ibn Thabit said:

'And we drink it, and it leaves us as kings and lions, and nothing hinders us from meeting.'

To other than that of its joys. Mujahid said: "The benefit from it is the earning of its prices. Then Allah, glorified and exalted is He, informed that sin is greater than benefit and returns with harm in the Hereafter. This is the introduction to the prohibition.

Hamzah and Al-Kisai read: "Kathirun" with the three-pointed thaa. Their proof is that the Prophet, blessings and peace be upon him, said: "He cursed wine and cursed with it ten: its seller, its buyer, the one for whom it is bought, its presser, the one pressed for him, its server, its drinker, its carrier, the one carried to, and the one who eats its price." These are many sins.

Also, the gathering of benefits is good with the gathering of sins, and "Kathirun" with the three-pointed thaa gives that.

The rest of the reciters and the majority of the people read: "Kabirun" with the single baa. Their proof is that the sin in gambling and drinking wine is from the major sins, so describing it as major is more appropriate.

Also, their agreement on "Akbar" is evidence for Kabir with the single baa, and they all agreed to reject "Akthar" with the three-pointed thaa, except for what is in the Mus'haf of Ibn Mas'ud, for it contains: "Say: In them is great sin and their sin is greater" with the three-pointed thaa in both letters.

And His saying, glorified and exalted is He: "In them is sin," can be understood in two ways: one is that it is intended in their use after the prohibition, and the other is that it refers to the evils that are in them.

Sa'id ibn Jubair said: When the verse "Say: In them is great sin and benefits for people" was revealed, some people disliked it because of the sin, and some drank it for the benefits. When the verse "Do not approach prayer while you are intoxicated" was revealed [An-Nisa: 43], they avoided it during the times of prayer. When it was revealed: "Indeed, wine, gambling, idols, and divining arrows are but defilement from the work of Satan, so avoid it that you may be successful" [Al-Ma'idah: 90], Umar ibn Al-Khattab said: "A loss for you today, it has been associated with gambling and idols." And the Messenger of Allah, blessings and peace be upon him, said: "Wine has been prohibited." When Umar ibn Al-Khattab heard His saying, glorified and exalted is He: "So will you not desist?" [Al-Ma'idah: 91], he said: "We have desisted. We have desisted."

Al-Farisi said, and some of the scholars of opinion said: Wine was prohibited by this verse, because Allah, glorified and exalted is He, said: "Say: My Lord has only forbidden immoralities, what is apparent of them and what is concealed, and sin" [Al-A'raf: 33], and He informed in this verse that there is sin in it, so it is prohibited.

The judge Abu Muhammad, may Allah have mercy on him, said: This opinion is not good, because the sin that is in it is the prohibited one, not it in itself as this opinion implies.

Qatadah said: Allah condemned wine in this verse and did not prohibit it.

And His saying, glorified and exalted is He: "And they ask you what they should spend. Say: The excess" indicates that Qais ibn Sa'd said: This is the obligatory zakah. The majority of scholars said: Rather, it is voluntary expenditures. Some of them said: It was abrogated by zakah. Others said: It is a definitive ruling, and there is a right in wealth other than zakah.

And "the excess" is what a person spends without straining himself and his wealth. This is the expression of the interpreters, and it is derived from 'afa the thing when it became abundant, meaning: Spend what exceeds your needs and do not burden yourselves in it so that you do not become dependent.

It is narrated that the Prophet, blessings and peace be upon him, said: "Whoever has surplus, let him spend it on himself, then on those he supports. If there is still surplus, let him give charity with it."

And he, blessings and peace be upon him, said: "The best charity is that which leaves one wealthy," and in another hadith: "What is given from surplus wealth." And the majority of people read: "al-'afw" in the accusative. Only Abu 'Amr read: "al-'afw" in the nominative. There is a difference reported from Ibn Kathir. This is based on "what"; whoever considers "what" as the beginning and "that" as its news meaning "which," and the pronoun in "yunafiqoon" is implied; he read "al-'afw" in the nominative to ensure the sentences are appropriate, and its being in the nominative as the beginning is interpreted as: "al-'afw is your spending" or "that which you spend is al-'afw." And whoever considered "what" as a single noun acted upon by "yunafiqoon"; he read: "Say: al-'afw" in the accusative by implying a verb, and it is appropriate for him. The nominative of "al-'afw" with the accusative of "what" is permissible but weak, and likewise its accusative with its nominative.

And regarding their two positions, perhaps they will reflect on those verses. His saying: "in this world" [Al-Baqarah: 220] is related - according to this interpretation - to "the verses," and according to the first interpretation, which is well-known from Ibn Abbas and others, "in this world" relates to "you reflect."