His saying - glorified and exalted is He -: "And when those who believe in Our verses come to you, say, 'Peace be upon you. Your Lord has decreed upon Himself mercy, that whoever among you does a wrong by ignorance and then repents after that and reforms, indeed, He will forgive him and have mercy.'" "And thus do We detail the verses, and that the path of the criminals may become distinct."

The majority of the commentators said: "Those" refers to the people whose expulsion was proposed; so Allah - glorified and exalted is He - prohibited their expulsion; and He supported that by commanding that the Prophet - blessings and peace be upon him - greet them and comfort them.

Ikrimah and Abdur-Rahman ibn Zayd said: "Those" refers to the people among the believers who supported Abu Talib's opinion in expelling the weak; so Allah, the Exalted, commanded His Prophet - blessings and peace be upon him - to greet them and inform them that Allah, the Exalted, forgives them, along with their repentance from that wrongdoing and others.

Al-Tabari narrated from Mahaan that he said: The verse was revealed regarding a group of believers who asked the Prophet - blessings and peace be upon him - about sins that had passed from them; so the verse was revealed because of them.

Qadi Abu Muhammad - may Allah have mercy on him - said: And this - in this regard - encompasses all believers, without indicating a specific group.

Al-Fudail ibn Iyad said: "A group said to the Prophet - blessings and peace be upon him -: 'Indeed, we have committed sins; so seek forgiveness for us.' But he - blessings and peace be upon him - turned away from them; so the verse was revealed."

And His saying: "In Our verses" encompasses the verses of the Qur'an; and also all signs of prophethood; and "Peace be upon you" is an initiation; and the meaning is: "A fixed or obligatory peace upon you"; and the meaning is: "Safety for you from the punishment of Allah, the Exalted, in this world and the Hereafter"; and it was said: The meaning is: "Indeed, Allah, the Exalted, greets you."

Qadi Abu Muhammad - may Allah have mercy on him - said: And this meaning is not necessitated by the wording of the verse; as mentioned by Al-Mahdawi; and its wording is the wording of news; and it is in the meaning of supplication; and this is one of the places where it is permissible to begin with the indefinite noun; since it has been specified; and "And He has decreed" means "He has made it obligatory"; and Allah, the Exalted, is not obligated by anything rationally; except if He informs us that He has made something obligatory; then that thing is obligatory; and regarding "Where is this decree?" there is disagreement; it was said: In the preserved tablet; and it was said: In another book; due to His saying - blessings and peace be upon him - in Sahih Al-Bukhari: "Indeed, Allah - blessed and exalted is He - has decreed a decree - and it is with Him above the Throne -: 'Indeed, My mercy precedes My wrath.'"

(p-372) And 'Asim and Ibn 'Amir read "Annahu"; with the opening of the hamzah in the first and the second. So "Annahu"; the first is a substitute for "Ar-Rahmah"; and "Annahu"; the second is an implicit beginning news; its estimation is: "His command is that He is Forgiving and Merciful"; this is the view of Sibawayh. And Abu Hatim said: "Fa'annahu"; is a beginning; and this is not permissible according to Sibawayh. And An-Nahhas said: it is an addition to the first; and a repetition of it; due to the length of the speech. Abu Ali said: that is not permissible; because "man"; cannot be without being a relative; meaning: "alladhi"; and thus needs a news; or it could be conditional; thus it needs a response; and if we make "Fa'annahu"; a repetition of the first; added to it; the subject remains without news; or the condition without a response.

And Ibn Kathir; and Abu 'Amr; and Hamzah; and Al-Kisai read "Innahu"; with the breaking of the hamzah in the first and the second; and this is in the context of the interpretation of "Ar-Rahmah"; in the first; and the cutting in it; and in the second: either in the place of the news; or in the place of the response to the condition; and the ruling of what follows the fa is only the beginning. And Nafi' read with the opening of the first; and the breaking of the second; and this is on the basis that he substituted for "Ar-Rahmah"; and began anew after the fa; and a group read with the breaking of the first; and the opening of the second; as reported by Az-Zahrawi from Al-A'raj; and I think it is a mistake; because Sibawayh reported it from Al-A'raj similar to the reading of Nafi'; and Abu 'Amr Ad-Dani said: the reading of Al-A'raj is contrary to the reading of Nafi'.

And ignorance - in this context - encompasses that which opposes knowledge; and that which is likened to it; and that is because the one who deliberately does the thing which he has been prohibited from, his disobedience includes that ignorance; as he has done what the one who has not previously had knowledge does. Mujahid said: "From ignorance is not knowing the lawful from the unlawful; and from his ignorance is to undertake the matter"; and from this which does not oppose knowledge is the saying of the Prophet - blessings and peace be upon him - in his seeking refuge: "That I may be ignorant; or that ignorance may befall me"; and from it is the saying of the poet:

"Let not anyone be ignorant towards us ∗∗∗ so we may become more ignorant than the ignorance of the ignorant."

(p-373) And ignorance that is likened is not an excuse in the law at all; and true ignorance may be excused in some of the lighter sins; but it is not excused in a major sin.

And "At-Tawbah": is returning; and its validity is conditioned upon the persistence of reform after it in the matter from which one has repented.

And the reference in His saying: "And likewise"; is to what has preceded of the prohibition against expelling the believers; and the clarification of the invalidity of the stance of those who oppose that; and the detailing of the verses: their clarification; and explanation; and manifestation; and the lam in His saying: "And let it be clear"; is related to an implicit action; its estimation is: "And let the path of the criminals be clear; we have detailed it."

And Nafi' read: "And let it be made clear"; with the 'ya'; meaning the Prophet - blessings and peace be upon him -; "the way"; in the accusative; as reported by Makki in "Al-Mushkil"; for him. And Ibn Kathir, Abu Amr, Ibn Amer, and Hafs from Asim read: "And let the way of the criminals be made clear"; with "the way" in the nominative; and its feminine form. And Asim in the narration of Abu Bakr - may Allah be pleased with him -; and Hamza; and Al-Kisai read: "And let the way be made clear"; with "the way" in the nominative; and its masculine form. The Arabs of Hijaz feminize "the way"; while Tamim and the people of Najd masculine it. And the way of the criminals is specified because they are the ones who raised the previous statements; and they are the most important in this context; as these are verses of rebuttal against them. Also, clarifying their way includes clarifying the way of the believers. Ibn Zayd interpreted his saying: "the criminals"; meaning those who command the expulsion of the weak.