Allah, the Exalted and Majestic, intended to show them the magnitude of the wrongdoing in the departure of those who leave the gathering of the Messenger of Allah, blessings and peace be upon him, without his permission when they are with him on a matter that gathers them together. He made their leaving conditional upon seeking his permission as a third of the faith in Allah and the faith in His Messenger. He likened them to the youthfulness of his mention, and this is with the introduction of the sentence by 'Indeed' and the placement of the believers as the subject, informing about them with a relative clause that encompasses the mention of the two faiths. Then he followed it up with something that increases its emphasis and strength, as he repeated it in another style, saying: 'Indeed, those who seek your permission, they are the ones who believe in Allah and His Messenger.' He included another aspect in it, which is that he made seeking permission as a proof of the validity of the two faiths, and he hinted at the state of the hypocrites and their slipping away. The meaning of his saying 'they did not leave until they sought his permission' is that they did not leave until they sought his permission and he permitted them. Do you not see how he made the matter contingent upon their seeking permission with his will and his permission for whom he deemed appropriate to allow? The matter that gathers people is described as a collective matter, such as fighting an enemy, or consulting on an important issue, or uniting to intimidate an opponent, or gathering for an oath, and so on. Or it is a matter that encompasses harm or benefit. It has been read as 'a matter of all.' In his saying 'when they were with him on a collective matter,' it indicates a significant affair in which the Messenger of Allah, blessings and peace be upon him, needs those of insight and strength to support him and assist him, and to benefit from their opinions, knowledge, and experiences in his sufficiency. The departure of one of them in such a situation is something that weighs heavily on his heart and disrupts his opinion. Therefore, he made the matter of seeking permission strict and limited for them, despite the broad excuse and the need for it, and the interruption of what concerns them. This is his saying regarding some of their affairs. The mention of seeking forgiveness for those who seek permission indicates that it is better and preferable not to entertain the thought of leaving nor to seek permission for it. It is said that it was revealed regarding digging a trench, and there were people slipping away without permission. They said: Likewise, people should be with their leaders and their scholars in religion and knowledge, supporting them and not abandoning them in times of calamity, nor should they disperse from them. The matter of permission is entrusted to the Imam: if he wishes, he may permit, and if he wishes, he may not permit, according to what his opinion dictates.