His saying, exalted and majestic is He: "Indeed, the believers are those who, when Allah is mentioned, their hearts tremble; and when His verses are recited to them, it increases them in faith; and upon their Lord they rely." "Those who establish prayer and from what We have provided them, they spend." "It is they who are the true believers. For them are degrees with their Lord and forgiveness and a noble provision."

"Indeed" is a term that is always accompanied by emphasis and confirmation wherever it occurs. It is also suitable for restriction. If it enters a narrative and its meaning supports restriction, then it is valid and follows the same as His saying, exalted is He: "Indeed, your God is one God" [Al-Kahf: 110] and other examples. If the narrative does not lend itself to restriction, then "indeed" remains only for emphasis and confirmation, as in His saying, blessings and peace be upon him: "Indeed, usury is in delay," and as they say: "Indeed, bravery is only 'Antarah.'" As for the one who says that "indeed" is for clarifying the described, this is a weak expression. Clarifying the described occurs in mere reporting without "indeed." And His saying, glorified and exalted is He, here "Indeed, the believers" appears to be for emphasis and confirmation only, meaning: the complete ones.

And "tremble" means: they are frightened, softened, and fearful. With these meanings, the scholars have explained it. Ibn Mas'ud read: "they were frightened," and Ubayy ibn Ka'b read: "they were terrified." It is said: wajala, yawjalu, and yajal - and this is rare - and yijal with the first yā' broken. The reason for this is that when they replaced the wāw with a yā', there was no basis for that, so they broke the first yā' to bring the replacement of the wāw as a yā' for a reason. Sibawayh, may Allah have mercy on him, narrated these four dialects. And "was recited" means: it was narrated and read, and the verses here refer to the recited Qur'an. The increase in faith is in all aspects outside of mere affirmation. Among them is that when a believer has not heard a ruling from the rulings of Allah in the Qur'an that was revealed to the Prophet ﷺ and he hears it, he believes in it, and it increases his faith in all that he has previously believed in. For every ruling, there is a specific affirmation for it. This applies to whoever receives what he did not have of the law until the Day of Resurrection. The increase in faith corresponds to the increase in evidence. For this reason, Malik said: faith increases and does not decrease. The increase in good deeds corresponds to the saying of those who see the term faith as applicable to affirmation and obedience. These say: it increases and decreases.

And His saying, exalted is He: "And upon their Lord they rely" is a comprehensive phrase for the interests of this world and the Hereafter when considered and acted upon. It requires that a person comply with what he has been commanded and strive to the utmost in that without incapacity, and he expects after that what He has guaranteed him of victory, provision, or otherwise.

And these are beautiful attributes with which Allah has described the virtuous believers. He made them a goal for the community so that the virtuous would strive towards them. Then He followed that by counting them and marking them with the establishment of prayer, praising them for it, encouraging that.

And His saying: "And from what We have provided them, they spend" a group of the interpreters said: it refers to zakah.

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

What drove them to that was the conjunction of the speech with the establishment of prayer. Otherwise, it is a general term regarding zakat, voluntary good deeds, and the prayers of those who are deserving. The wording of Ibn Abbas, may Allah be pleased with him, in this meaning is ambiguous.

And His saying, the Exalted, ﴿Indeed, they are the true believers﴾ means: all the believers. And "true" is a confirming source, as Sibawayh has stated, and it is a source that does not change, and the one who acts in it is the one who truly deserves that. And His saying, ﴿Degrees﴾, its apparent meaning - and this is the opinion of the majority - is that it refers to the ranks of Paradise and its abodes, and their degree is according to the extent of their deeds. And Al-Tabari reported from Mujahid that it refers to the degrees of deeds in this world. And His saying, ﴿And a noble provision﴾ means: the food and drink of Paradise. And "noble" is an attribute that necessitates the removal of blame, like your saying: a noble garment and a noble lineage.