'In the name of Allah, the Most Gracious, the Most Merciful' He, the Exalted, said: "Say, 'Indeed, I was commanded to worship Allah, making religion sincere for Him.' And I was commanded to be the first of the Muslims.' Say, 'Indeed, I fear, if I disobey my Lord, the punishment of a great Day.' Say, 'Allah I worship, making my religion sincere for Him.' So worship whatever you wish besides Him. Say, 'Indeed, the losers are those who have lost themselves and their families on the Day of Resurrection. Unquestionably, that is the manifest loss.'" Allah, the Exalted, commanded His Prophet, blessings and peace be upon him, in this verse to declare to the disbelievers what he was commanded regarding the worship of his Lord, the Exalted. And His saying: "And I was commanded to be the first of the Muslims" means: I was commanded with that which I mentioned so that I may be the first of those who embraced Islam from the people of my time and era. This is a blessing from Allah, the Exalted, upon him, and a reminder from Him to him. And His saying: "Indeed, I fear, if I disobey" is an action that is conditional upon disobedience, and it is known that he, blessings and peace be upon him, is protected from it. However, it is a discourse for his nation, whose ruling encompasses them and whose warning frightens them. And His saying: "Say, 'Allah I worship'" is an affirmation of the first meaning and a declaration of his complete compliance with the command. All of this was revealed before the fighting, as they are agreements. And His saying: "So worship whatever you wish besides Him" is a form of command in the context of a threat, like His saying: "Do whatever you wish" [Fussilat: 40], and His saying: "Enjoy your disbelief" [Az-Zumar: 8]. This is frequent. "Those who have lost themselves" is in the position of raising a news for 'Indeed.' His saying: "and their families" it is said that its meaning is that they lost the family that would have been theirs had they been among the people of Paradise. This is as if he said: they lost themselves and their bliss, meaning that which would have been theirs. It is said that he meant the souls and families that were in this world; for they have become in the punishment of the Fire, having no stable souls, nor any substitute from the people of this world. And those in Paradise have either their families or others, depending on what affects that. In any case, there is no loss with Him whatsoever.