His saying - exalted and mighty is He -:

"O you who have believed, do not take the Jews and the Christians as allies. Some of them are allies of others. And whoever among you takes them as allies, then indeed, he is one of them. Indeed, Allah does not guide the wrongdoing people."

"So you see those in their hearts is a disease hastening to them, saying, 'We fear a misfortune may strike us.' Perhaps Allah will bring about a victory or a command from Himself, and they will become regretful for what they have concealed within themselves."

Allah, the Exalted, has prohibited the believers in this verse from taking the Jews and Christians as allies in support; and the mixing that leads to blending; and assistance. The ruling of this verse remains; and whoever frequently associates with these two groups has his share of this condemnation that is implied in His saying: "Then indeed, he is one of them"; as for dealing with a Jew or a Christian without mixing or contact, it does not fall under the prohibition; and the Messenger of Allah - blessings and peace be upon him - dealt with a Jew and pledged his armor to him.

The commentators have differed regarding the reason for this verse; so, it was said by 'Atiyyah ibn Sa'd, Al-Zuhri, Ibn Ishaq, and others: Its reason is that when the Battle of Badr concluded and the matter of Banu Qaynuqa escalated, the Messenger of Allah - blessings and peace be upon him - intended to kill them; then Abdullah ibn Ubayy ibn Salul stood in their defense; and he was an ally to them; and for 'Abadah ibn Al-Samit, his alliance with them was like that of Abdullah; so when 'Abadah saw the stance of the Messenger of Allah - blessings and peace be upon him - and the way the Jews had acted in opposition to Allah, the Exalted, and His Messenger - blessings and peace be upon him - he came to the Prophet - blessings and peace be upon him - and said: "O Messenger of Allah, I disassociate myself from the alliance of the Jews and their loyalty; and I will only be loyal to Allah and His Messenger." Abdullah ibn Ubayy said: "As for me, I will not disassociate from the loyalty of the Jews; for I must have them; I am a man who fears misfortunes."

Ibn Ishaq narrated in the Sirah that he approached the Messenger of Allah - blessings and peace be upon him - and put his hand in the pocket of his armor and said: "O Muhammad, be good to my allies." The Messenger of Allah - blessings and peace be upon him - said to him: "Release the armor from your hand." He said: "No, by Allah, until you give them to me as a gift; for they are three hundred armored men and four hundred unarmored; should I let you reap them in one morning?" The Messenger of Allah - blessings and peace be upon him - said: "I have given them to you as a gift." And the verse was revealed regarding that.

Al-Suddi said: The reason for this verse is that when the matter of Uhud befell the Muslims, a group of them fled; and some said to each other: "Let us take from the Jews a refuge to support us if a calamity befalls us from Quraysh and the other Arabs." So the verse was revealed regarding that.

Ikrimah said: The reason for the verse is the matter of Abu Lubabah ibn Abdul Mundhir and his gesture to Qurayzah that it was slaughter, when they asked him about his opinion regarding their submission to the judgment of Sa'd ibn Mu'adh.

Qadi Abu Muhammad - may Allah have mercy on him - said: And all of these statements are plausible; and the times of these incidents are different.

And Ubayy ibn Ka'b and Ibn Abbas read: "Do not take the Jews and the Christians as allies; some of them are allies of others."

And His saying, the Most High: ﴿Some of them are allies of others﴾; is a statement that is disconnected from the prohibition; it includes the differentiation between them and the believers.

And His saying, the Most High: ﴿And whoever among you takes them as allies, then indeed, he is one of them﴾; is a rebuke directed at Abdullah ibn Ubayy; and all who possess this characteristic of allegiance to them; and whoever takes them as allies with his belief; and his religion; then he is among them in disbelief; and deserving of punishment; and eternal residence in the Fire; and whoever takes them as allies through actions such as assistance; and the like; without belief; or a deficiency in faith; then he is among them in disdain; and the blame that falls upon them; and upon him; and by this verse, Ibn Abbas and others permitted the slaughter of the Christians from the Arabs; and he said: ﴿And whoever among you takes them as allies, then indeed, he is one of them﴾; he said: Whoever enters the religion of a people is one of them; and Ibn Sirin - may Allah have mercy on him - was asked about a man who wanted to sell his house to Christians who would take it as a church; so he recited this verse.

And His saying, the Most High: ﴿Indeed, Allah does not guide the wrongdoing people﴾; is general; either it is meant specifically for those who were predetermined in Allah's knowledge not to believe; nor to be guided; or it is meant to specify the duration of wrongdoing and being involved in it; for indeed, there is no guidance in wrongdoing; and the wrongdoer - as long as he is a wrongdoer - is not guided in his wrongdoing.

And His saying, the Most High: ﴿So you see those in their hearts is a disease﴾; the verse; is addressed to Muhammad - blessings and peace be upon him -; and refers to Abdullah ibn Ubayy ibn Salul; and those who followed him among the hypocrites in his support of Banu Qaynuqa; and included in the verse are those who were among the believers of Khazraj; who followed him out of ignorance and tribalism; this category has its share of the disease of the heart.

And the reading of the majority of the people is: "So you see"; with a 'taa'; from above; if it is made to be the sight of the eye then "they hasten"; is a state; and it contains the intended benefit; and if it is made to be the sight of the heart; then "they hasten"; is in the position of the second object; and "they say" is a state; and Ibrahim al-Nakha'i and Yahya ibn Wathab read: "So he sees"; with a 'yaa' from below; and the subject in this reading is omitted; and you may estimate: "So Allah sees"; or: "So the seer sees"; and "those"; is the object; and it is possible that "those"; is the subject; and the meaning is: "that they hasten"; so "that" is omitted; for brevity.

And "they hasten in them"; means: "in their support; and comforting them; and beautifying their mention."

And His saying, exalted is He: ﴿They say, 'We fear that a circle will strike us'﴾; this phrase is preserved from Abdullah ibn Ubayy; and it is certain that he said this with the words of many hypocrites; and the verse gives that indication. And 'circle' means: an event from time; and an incident from the incidents that necessitate our reliance on our allies from the Jews; and these matters are called circles; in ancient times; in terms of night and day in rotation; so it is as if the incident revolves with their rotation until it descends upon those who have descended. And from it is the saying of Allah, exalted is He: ﴿The circle of evil﴾ [At-Tawbah: 98]; and 'the circles await you'; and from it is the saying of the poet:

The time is ever revolving for man ∗∗∗...............

(p-192) And the saying of another:

∗∗∗ ∗∗∗ And he knows that calamities revolve.

And the saying of another:

He repels from you the destined fate ∗∗∗ ∗∗∗ And the circles of time that they revolve.

And it is supported by the saying of the Prophet - blessings and peace be upon him -: "Indeed, time has turned around."

Qadi Abu Muhammad - may Allah have mercy on him - said: And the action of Abdullah ibn Ubayy in this incident was not outwardly an opposition to the Messenger of Allah - blessings and peace be upon him -; and if he had done that, the Messenger of Allah - blessings and peace be upon him - would have fought him; rather, he was showing to the Prophet - blessings and peace be upon him - that he wanted to keep them for the support of Muhammad - blessings and peace be upon him -; and because that was the opinion; and his saying: "Indeed, I am a man who fears the circles"; meaning: from the Arabs; and from those who fight the city; and its people; and he was concealing in all of that the caution from the Prophet - blessings and peace be upon him -; and the believers; and the weakening of their support; and that is what he secretly harbored in himself and those with him regarding his hypocrisy; from whom some are exposed to each other.

And His saying - blessed and exalted is He -: ﴿So perhaps Allah﴾; this is addressed to the Prophet - blessings and peace be upon him - and to the believers; and a promise to them; and 'perhaps' from Allah, exalted is He, is certain; and the interpreters differed in the meaning of 'the opening' in this verse; so Qatadah said: it means the judgment in these incidents; and 'the opener': the judge; so this promise was what befell the Banu Qaynuqa after that; and with Qurayzah and An-Nadir; and Al-Suddi said: it means the opening of Mecca.

Qadi Abu Muhammad - may Allah have mercy on him - said: And the apparent meaning of the opening in this verse is the appearance of the Messenger of Allah - blessings and peace be upon him -; and the elevation of his word; meaning: so it becomes apparent that there is no need for the Jews; and the hypocrite sees that Allah, exalted is He, has not provided a way to what he hoped for from them of assistance in the matter of Muhammad - blessings and peace be upon him - and the defense in the early days of his prophethood; so he will regret at that time for what he had done in opposing the law; and the covering of the garment of wrath from Allah, exalted is He; and from His Messenger - blessings and peace be upon him -; and the believers; like what occurred and became apparent afterward.

And His saying, exalted is He: "Or a command from Him"; Al-Suddi said: The intended meaning is the imposition of jizyah. Al-Qadi Abu Muhammad - may Allah have mercy on him - said: It appears that this division is because the promised victory is that which results from the efforts of the Prophet - blessings and peace be upon him - and his companions. Their diligence and actions cause it. So, the promise of Allah, exalted is He, is either a victory resulting from those actions, or a command from Him that destroys the enemies of the Shari'ah; this is also a victory in which humans have no role in causing it.

And His saying, exalted is He: "So they will become"; its meaning is: "They will be like that for the duration of their lives"; and the morning is specifically mentioned because a person at night is contemplative and concealed; so at dawn, he is seen in the state that his thoughts or ailments necessitated. And similar to this is the saying of the poet:

I have become one who does not carry arms.

And there are other examples of this.

And what they have concealed is what we have mentioned regarding their practice against the Prophet - blessings and peace be upon him -; and the preparation of the Jews for rebellion against him one day. Ibn al-Zuhri read: "So the wicked will become regretful for what they have concealed in themselves."