His saying, exalted and majestic is He:

"The repentant, the worshippers, the praisers, the travelers, the bowing, the prostrating, the enjoining good, and forbidding evil, and the guardians of the limits of Allah. And give good tidings to the believers."

"It is not for the Prophet and those who have believed to ask forgiveness for the polytheists, even if they were relatives, after it has become clear to them that they are companions of the Hellfire."

These descriptions are among the attributes of the believers whom Allah mentioned that He has purchased their souls. These attributes have been elevated as they came in a separate form at the beginning of a verse, meaning: they are the repentant. The meaning of the verse, according to what the scholars and the Shari'ah imply, is that they are the attributes of the complete among the believers. Allah, exalted is He, mentioned them so that the people of Tawhid may strive towards them, so that they may be in the highest rank. The first verse stands alone by itself; under that pledge falls every monotheist who fought in the way of Allah so that the word of Allah may be the highest, even if he does not possess these attributes mentioned in this verse or most of them. A group said: rather, these attributes came as a condition, and the two verses are connected, so no one enters into the pledge except the believers who possess these attributes and give their souls in the way of Allah. Al-Tabari narrated in this regard from Al-Dahhak ibn Muzahim that a man asked him about the saying of Allah, exalted and majestic is He: "Indeed, Allah has purchased" [At-Tawbah: 111], and the man said: should I not fight the polytheists until I kill them? Al-Dahhak said: woe to you, where is the condition: "the repentant, the worshippers"? This saying is a restriction and a limitation, and Allah knows best. The first is more correct, and the testimony erases every sin except for the injustices of the servants. It has been narrated that Allah, exalted is He, carries the injustices of the servants from the martyr and rewards them for it. Allah has sealed for us with goodness.

A group said: the elevation of the repentant is only at the beginning, and what follows is a description except for His saying: "the enjoining good" for it is the news of the beginning, as if He said: "they are the enjoining good." This is good, but the meaning of the verse separates from the meaning of the one before it, and that is concerning, so contemplate it. In the Mushaf of Abdullah ibn Mas'ud: "the repentant, the worshippers" until its end. Therefore, there are two aspects; one of them is that it is an attribute for the believers according to the following wording, and the other is that it is an accusative for praise.

And "the repentant" encompasses returning from evil to good, whether that is from disbelief or disobedience, and returning from a state to a better one even if the first was not evil but good. Thus was the repentance of the Prophet, blessings and peace be upon him, and his seeking forgiveness seventy times a day. The repentant is the one who refrains from sin, determined to continue refraining, and regretting what has passed. The one who repents from a sin is called a repenter even if he acts upon something else unless it is of its kind, then he is not a repenter. Repentance and its nullification are always better than persistence. Whoever repents and then nullifies and returns to nullification, then his previous sins remain upon him because Allah knows that his repentance from them is nullified. The matter may be different from that, and Allah knows best.

Al-Hasan said in the interpretation of the verse: "The repentant" means: from polytheism.

And "the worshipers" is a term that encompasses the act of worshiping Allah, glorified and exalted is He, adhering to His law, consistently practicing it, and persevering in it. The worshiper is the one who excels, as the Messenger of Allah, blessings and peace be upon him, explained in his saying: "That you worship Allah as if you see Him." And with the slightest act of worship performed by a Muslim, he is called a worshiper and attains the lowest rank of it. According to the extent of his increase in worship, he attains the description.

And "the praisers" means: those who remember Allah with His most beautiful attributes in every situation, in both ease and hardship. His praise is because He is deserving of it, and it is broader than gratitude, as gratitude is only for the specific blessings of the grateful.

And "the travelers" means: the fasting ones. It has been narrated from Aisha, may Allah be pleased with her, that she said: "The travel of this nation is fasting." Al-Tabari reported this, and it has been narrated that it is from the words of the Prophet, blessings and peace be upon him. In the hadith: "Indeed, Allah has angels who travel and roam the horizons, delivering my people's prayers upon me." The hadith is also narrated as "the shouting ones" with a 'sad' from 'siyah'. And traveling on the earth is derived from 'saih', which is the flowing water on the earth without a destination. Some people said - and this is in the book of Naqash - that "the travelers" are those who wander with their thoughts in Allah's power and dominion. This is a good saying, and it is among the best acts of worship. Among that is the saying of Muadh ibn Jabal, may Allah be pleased with him: "Sit with us and believe for an hour." It is narrated that some of the worshipers took a cup to perform ablution for the night prayer, and he put his finger in the ear of the cup and began to think until dawn broke. When he was asked about that, he said: I put my finger in the ear of the cup and remembered the saying of Allah, glorified and exalted is He: "When the shackles are around their necks and the chains" [Ghafir: 71], and I thought about how I would receive the shackles, and I remained in that state all night gathering.

And "the bowing ones and the prostrating ones" are the ones who perform the five daily prayers, as the scholars have said. However, there is no disagreement that the one who frequently performs the voluntary prayers is more included in the name and more immersed in the description.

And His saying: "The enjoiners of what is good and the forbidders of what is evil" is an obligation upon the nation of Muhammad, blessings and peace be upon him, in general. Then the people differ in it with specification. As for the leaders and the rulers, it is an obligation upon them in every situation. As for the rest of the people, it is an obligation upon them under certain conditions, among them: that no harm befall them, and that they know their words will be heard and acted upon, and so on. Then whoever bears hardship for the sake of Allah afterward will have a greater reward. Al-Tabari reported from some scholars that he said: Wherever Allah mentions the command of good and the prohibition of evil, it is the command of Islam and the prohibition of disbelief.

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

There is no doubt that it encompasses this, and it is more appropriate that it encompasses what is below it. Therefore, the generalization of the wording is preferable. As for this 'and' in His saying: ﴿and those who forbid﴾, which has not preceded any of the attributes before it, it has been said: its meaning is the connection between these two attributes, which are enjoining what is good and forbidding what is wrong, as they are not from the category of the first attributes.

The judge Abu Muhammad, may Allah have mercy on him, said:

Because the first pertains to the individual, and these two are between him and others. It is necessary to connect them due to their interdependence and compatibility. It has been said: it is an extra, and this is a weak statement with no meaning. It has been said: it is the 'and' of eight, because this attribute has come eighth in order. From this is His saying, the Exalted, regarding the gates of Paradise: ﴿and its gates were opened﴾ [Az-Zumar: 73], and His saying: ﴿and the eighth of them is their dog﴾ [Al-Kahf: 22], and from this is His saying: ﴿widows and virgins﴾ [At-Tahrim: 5].

The judge Abu Muhammad, may Allah have mercy on him, said:

Although this is objectionable, so it is not necessary that the 'and' of eight has differentiated between two sections that encompass all women, and it is not correct to say 'widows virgins', for it is a necessary separator. The 'and' of eight has been mentioned by Ibn Khalawayh in his debate with Abu Ali Al-Farisi regarding the meaning of His saying: ﴿and its gates were opened﴾ [Az-Zumar: 73], and Abu Ali denied it. My father, may Allah be pleased with him, narrated to me from the grammatical master Abu Abdullah Al-Kafif Al-Maliqi - who was among those who settled in Granada and taught there during the time of Ibn Habous - that he said: 'It is a clear language for some of the Arabs, such that they say when counting: one, two, three, four, five, six, seven, and eight, nine, ten. Thus, this is their language, and whenever the matter of eight comes in their speech, they include the 'and'.

And His saying, the Exalted: ﴿and those who preserve the limits of Allah﴾ is a general wording that includes the obligation of the Sharia and refraining from what Allah has forbidden in everything and in every aspect. And His saying: ﴿and give good tidings to the believers﴾ has been said: it is a general wording that the Prophet, blessings and peace be upon him, was commanded to give good tidings to his entire nation of the goodness from Allah. It has been said: rather, these words are specifically for those who did not (p-422) engage in battle, meaning: since the verse previously promised the Mujahideen and their virtue, he was commanded to give good tidings to the rest of the people who did not engage in battle that faith is a salvation from the Fire, and praise be to Allah, the Lord of the worlds.

And His saying, the Exalted: ﴿It is not for the Prophet﴾, the verse implies reprimand and prohibition of seeking forgiveness for the polytheists, along with despair of their faith, either by agreeing with them in disbelief and their death, and from this is the saying of Umar ibn Al-Khattab, may Allah be pleased with him, regarding Al-As ibn Wa'il: 'May Allah not reward him with good', or by a text from Allah, the Exalted, regarding someone like Abu Lahab and others, so that seeking forgiveness for him is prohibited while he is alive.

The commentators have differed regarding the reason for this verse. The majority, based on Ibn al-Musayyib and Amr ibn Dinar, said: It was revealed concerning Abu Talib. This is because the Messenger of Allah, blessings and peace be upon him, entered upon him when he was on his deathbed and advised him, saying: "O my uncle, say there is no god but Allah, a word by which I will argue for you before Allah, the Exalted." Abu Jahl and Abdullah ibn Umayyah were present, and they said to him: O Abu Talib, do you desire a religion other than that of Abdul Muttalib? Abu Talib replied: O Muhammad, by Allah, if I were not afraid that my son would be blamed for it after me, I would have accepted it for you. Then he said: I am upon the religion of Abdul Muttalib, and he died upon that. The Prophet, blessings and peace be upon him, did not hear from him what he said to Al-Abbas, so the verse was revealed: ﴿Indeed, you do not guide whom you love﴾ [Al-Qasas: 56]. The Messenger of Allah, blessings and peace be upon him, said: "By Allah, I will surely ask forgiveness for you as long as I am not forbidden from doing so." He continued to ask forgiveness for him until this verse was revealed, and the Messenger of Allah, blessings and peace be upon him, ceased asking forgiveness for Abu Talib. It has been narrated that when the believers saw the Messenger of Allah, blessings and peace be upon him, asking forgiveness for Abu Talib, they began to ask forgiveness for their deceased, so they entered into reproach and prohibition. The verse, based on this, abrogates the actions of the Prophet, blessings and peace be upon him, as his actions are considered as established law.

Fudayl ibn Atiyyah and others said: When the Messenger of Allah, blessings and peace be upon him, conquered Mecca, he went to his mother's grave and stood by it until the sun became hot upon him. He wished to be permitted to ask forgiveness for her, but he was not permitted. He informed his companions that he was allowed to visit her grave but was prohibited from asking forgiveness for her. There was not seen a weeper more than on that day. The verse was revealed regarding that. A group said: It was revealed because of the words of the Messenger of Allah, blessings and peace be upon him, regarding the hypocrites: "By Allah, I will surely increase upon seventy." Ibn Abbas, Qatadah, and others said: The verse was revealed because a group of believers said: We ask forgiveness for our deceased just as Ibrahim, peace be upon him, asked forgiveness for his father. So the verse was revealed regarding that. In any case, in the prohibition of asking forgiveness for the polytheists, there is a point of objection regarding the story of Ibrahim, peace be upon him, concerning our Prophet, blessings and peace be upon him. The lifting of that objection was revealed in the following verse.

And His saying, the Exalted: ﴿After it has become clear﴾ means: after death upon disbelief. At that time, it became clear that they are the companions of the Hellfire, meaning its inhabitants. Asking forgiveness for the living polytheist is permissible as there is hope for his Islam. From this is the saying of Abu Hurairah, may Allah be pleased with him: "May Allah have mercy on a man who asked forgiveness for Abu Hurairah and his mother." It was said to him: And for his father? He said: No, my father died as a disbeliever. And Ata ibn Abi Rabah said: The verse is in the prohibition of praying for the polytheists, and asking forgiveness here means prayer.