Allah inflicted drought upon the people of Mecca for seven years until they were about to perish. Then He had mercy on them with rain. When He had mercy on them, they began to strike at the signs of Allah and oppose the Messenger of Allah, blessings and peace be upon him, and plot against him. The first 'if' is for the condition, and the latter is its response, which is for surprise. The plotting is the concealment of the scheme and its wrapping up, like the wrapped-up and folded creation. The meaning of 'it touched them' is that it mixed with them until they felt its bad effect on them. If you say: What describes them as quick in plotting? How is his saying 'they are quicker in plotting' correct? I say: Yes, the word of surprise indicates that, as if he said: And when We had mercy on them after hardship, they suddenly fell into plotting against Us and rushed to it before they washed their heads from the touch of hardship, and they did not delay until they could digest their bitterness. The meaning is that Allah, the Exalted, planned your punishment and it is set to befall you before you planned how to extinguish the light of Islam. Indeed, Our messengers write down, informing that what you think is hidden and wrapped up is not hidden from Allah, and He is avenging against you. It has been read: 'they plot', with a 'ta' and a 'ya'. It is said: Their plotting is their saying: 'We were given rain by such and such a star.' And from Abu Huraira: Indeed, Allah makes the people wake up with blessings and makes them end their day with it, so a group of them wakes up as disbelievers in it, saying: 'We were given rain by such and such a star.' [This was narrated by Ishaq and Al-Tabari, and Al-Thalabi from the path of Ibn Ishaq from Muhammad ibn Ibrahim Al-Yamani from Abu Salama from Abu Huraira that the Messenger of Allah, blessings and peace be upon him, said: 'Indeed, Allah makes His servants wake up with blessings or makes them end their day with it, so a group of them wakes up as disbelievers in it, saying: We were given rain by such and such a star.' Muhammad said: I mentioned the hadith to Sa'id ibn Al-Musayyib, and he said: We heard it from Abu Huraira. And Muslim has it from another chain from Abu Huraira, raised: 'Allah, the Exalted, said: No blessing have I bestowed upon My servants except that a group of them wakes up as disbelievers in it, saying: The star and by the star we were given rain.'