His saying, glorified and exalted is He: "Our Lord, do not let our hearts deviate after You have guided us, and grant us from Yourself mercy. Indeed, You are the Bestower." "Our Lord, indeed You will gather the people for a Day about which there is no doubt. Indeed, Allah does not fail in His promise." It is possible that this verse is a narration about those firmly grounded in knowledge that they say this along with their saying, "We have believed in it." It is also possible that the meaning is disconnected from the first, when He mentioned the people of deviation and mentioned their opposite, and what appears between the two states; He followed that by teaching His servants to call upon Him so that they do not become among the despised group that has been mentioned, which is the people of deviation. This verse is a proof against the Mu'tazila in their saying that Allah does not lead the servants astray. If deviation were not from Him, it would not be permissible to call for the removal of what is not permissible for Him to do. And "do not let our hearts deviate" means: incline our hearts away from guidance and truth. Abu Waqqas and Al-Jarrah read: "Do not let our hearts deviate" attributing the action to the hearts. This is also a desire towards Allah, the Most High. Abu Al-Fath said: The apparent meaning of this and similar phrases is a desire towards the hearts, but the one who is asked is Allah, the Most High, and his saying, "the desire towards the hearts" is not firmly established. And the meaning of the verse in both readings is: do not let it be like the creation of deviation so that it deviates. Al-Zajjaj said: It is said that the meaning of the verse is: do not impose upon us a heavy worship that our hearts would deviate from it. This is a statement that is cautious about the creation of Allah, the Most High, causing deviation and misguidance in anyone among the servants. And "from Yourself" means: from You and by Your will, meaning it would be a favor not due to a cause from us or an action. In this is submission and surrender. What is meant is: grant us a blessing that comes from mercy, because mercy relates to the attributes of the essence, so a gift cannot be imagined in it. And His saying, glorified and exalted is He: "Our Lord, indeed You will gather the people" is an acknowledgment of resurrection for the Day of Judgment. Al-Zajjaj said: This is the interpretation that those firmly grounded in knowledge recognized and acknowledged, and they opposed those who followed what was ambiguous to them regarding resurrection when they denied it. And "doubt" means: uncertainty, and the meaning is that it is in itself a truth without doubt. Even if there is doubt among those who deny it, that is not taken into account, as it is an error on their part. And His saying, glorified and exalted is He: "Indeed, Allah does not fail in His promise" may be an announcement from Him to Muhammad, blessings and peace be upon him, and his nation, and it may be a narration from the words of those who call upon Him. In that is an acknowledgment of the attribute of the essence of Allah, the Most High. And "the promise" is a noun derived from the act of promising.