'In the name of Allah, the Most Gracious, the Most Merciful' Allah, the Exalted, says: "O you who have believed, do not be like those who disbelieved and said to their brothers when they traveled in the land or were warriors, 'If they had been with us, they would not have died or been killed.' So Allah makes that a regret within their hearts. And Allah gives life and causes death. And Allah is All-Seer of what you do." Allah, the Exalted, forbids the believers from being like the disbelievers and hypocrites in this corrupt belief, which is that whoever travels for trade or similar reasons, and whoever fights and is killed, if he had stayed in his house, he would have lived and not died at that time when he exposed himself to travel or to fighting. This is the belief of the Mu'tazilah regarding the saying of the two fates, and it is similar to it. And His saying, the Exalted, "to their brothers" refers to brotherhood of lineage, because the martyrs of Uhud were from the Ansar, most of them from the Khazraj, and there were only four among them from the Emigrants. This statement was explicitly made by Abdullah ibn Ubayy, the hypocrite, and his companions, as mentioned by Al-Suddi, Mujahid, and others. It is said that all the hypocrites said it. The word "if" in this verse is a particle of anticipation, as "those who" is a name that contains ambiguity, encompassing those who said in the past and those who will say in the future. And since this incident can be imagined in the future, the prohibition for the believers applies to it. Thus, "if" was placed to indicate the continuity of the matter in the future. This is the benefit of placing the future in the position of the past, as Allah, the Exalted, said: "And Allah invites to the abode of peace" [Yunus: 25], and similar verses. And as the poet said: 'And among us is a Prophet who knows what is in tomorrow.' The benefit of placing the past in the position of the future is to indicate the permanence of the matter, because the past tense is a confirmed occurrence. From that is the saying of the poet: 'And I am coming to you, thankful for what has passed of the matter and seeking what was in tomorrow.' And from it is the saying of Al-Rabi': 'I have become one who does not carry arms and does not own the head of the camel if it strays.' And "traveling in the land" means going far in the journey. From it: 'Time has struck him.' When the duration has become long. And "traveling in the land" is going in it for the needs of a person, especially with the dropping of "in." Al-Suddi and others said regarding this verse: "Traveling in the land" means going in trade; and Ibn Ishaq and others said: Rather, it is going in all acts of obedience to Allah and His Messenger. And "traveling in the land" encompasses both sayings. And "warriors" is the plural of warrior, its form is - Fu'lan - with the letter 'fa' being pronounced with a dammah and the letter 'ayn' being emphasized with an open vowel, like witness and witnesses, speaker and speakers, and the verse of Ru'bah is recited.

He means by saying: If you do not repent now, then you will never repent. It is similar in meaning to: If it is not like this, then it will not be like this. It has been narrated: And their saying, except for a ghuzza, then there is no ghuzza. Sibawayh and others said: 'Ghuzza' does not take the genitive or nominative case. The majority of the reciters read it with the zay being doubled. Al-Hasan ibn Abi al-Hasan and al-Zuhri read it as 'ghuzza' with the zay being lightened. Its reasoning is that he may mean a ghazwah, so he omitted the ha to conform to the language of those who say 'ghuzza' with the doubling. This omission is common in their speech, and among it is the saying of the poet praising al-Kisai:

The character of al-Kisai does not accept blame, and he is attributed to glory, the character of the previous fathers.

He means by fatherhood the plural of father, just as generality is the plural of uncle, and sonship is the plural of son. They have said: son and banw. The reading of both may be that it is a lightening of the zay from 'ghuzza', and its counterpart is the reading of Ali ibn Abi Talib, may Allah be pleased with him: 'And they denied our signs with denial' in the saying of one who said: It is a lightening. It has also been said that it is a source that has been made according to a different source. Al-Hasan read: 'And they were not killed' with the t being doubled.

And His saying, the Exalted: 'So that Allah may make that a regret.' Mujahid said: Its meaning is: His saying saddens them and does not benefit them.

Qadi Abu Muhammad, may Allah have mercy on him, said:

The reference with 'that' is to this belief they have. Allah made that a regret because whoever is certain that every death and killing is by a predetermined time finds the coolness of despair and submission to Allah, the Exalted, in his heart. And whoever believes that if he had remained in his house, he would not have died, feels regret and anguish. And upon this interpretation, the interpreters have proceeded, and it is the clearest meaning in the verse.

And some said: The reference with 'that' is to the end of the believers and their opposition to the disbelievers in this belief, so their disagreement will be a regret in their hearts. And some said: The reference with 'that' is to the prohibition of Allah, the Exalted, from being like the disbelievers in this belief, because when they see that Allah, the Exalted, has marked them with a belief and commanded their opposition, that will be a regret in their hearts. And it is possible for me that the reference is to both the prohibition and the end, so reflect on it. Regret is the yearning for something and the sorrow over it.

Then Allah, the Exalted, informed with a decisive news that He is the One who gives life and causes death by a predetermined decree, not as these people believe. Ibn Kathir, Hamzah, and al-Kisai read: 'And Allah is All-Aware of what they do' with the ya, so this is a warning to the hypocrites. The others read: 'You know' with the ta addressing the believers, so this is an emphasis on the prohibition in His saying: 'Do not be' and a warning to whoever opposes it, and a promise to whoever obeys it.