They betray themselves. They betray it with disobedience. As He said: "Allah knew that you were betraying yourselves." The disobedience of the sinners is considered a betrayal of themselves, just as it is considered an injustice to it, because the harm returns to them. If you say: Why was it said "to the betrayers" and "they betray themselves" when the thief is alone in the act? I say: For two reasons. One is that the tribe of Dhafar testified to his innocence and supported him, so they were partners in the sin. The second is that it is gathered to encompass the thief, and everyone who betrays is his betrayal. There is no argument for a betrayer nor any defense for him. If you say: Why was it said "a treacherous sinner" in a manner of exaggeration? I say: Allah was aware of the thief's excess in betrayal and committing sins, and whoever has that as the end of his affair does not doubt his state. It was said: If you find a bad deed from a man, know that it has sisters. And Umar, may Allah be pleased with him, ordered the hand of a thief to be cut off. His mother came weeping and said: This is the first theft he has committed, so pardon him. He said: You have lied, for Allah does not hold His servant accountable for the first time. They conceal themselves from the people, out of shame and fear of their harm, and they do not conceal themselves from Allah, nor do they feel ashamed before Him. And He is with them; He is All-Knowing of them, observing them. Nothing of their secret is hidden from Him. And this verse is enough to indicate to the people what they are in of a lack of shame and fear of their Lord, while they know, if they are believers, that they are in His presence, with no cover, no negligence, and no absence. There is only clear exposure and disgrace. They plot and fabricate. The saying "they fabricate" in the authentic reports means "I beautified the thing" and "I made it upright." Fabrication is the beautification of lies. Its origin is that it is done at night with words that are not pleasing. It is the planning of the thief to throw the armor in the house of Zayd to steal it and swear by his innocence. If you say: How was planning called a saying, when it is merely a meaning in the soul? I say: When he narrated that to himself, it was called a saying in a figurative sense. It may also be intended by the saying: the false oath he swore after he plotted it, and he attributed the sin to the Jew. Here you are, these are. "Here" is for alerting that you are. And "these" is a subject and a predicate. And "you argued" is a clause clarifying the occurrence of "these" as a predicate, just as you would say to some generous people: You are Hatim, you give of your wealth and prefer others over yourself. It is also possible that "these" is a relative pronoun meaning those, and "you argued" is its connection. The meaning is: Suppose you argued on behalf of the thief and his people in this world, who will argue for them in the Hereafter when Allah takes them with His punishment? Abdullah read: about him, meaning about the thief. A guardian, protector, and defender from the punishment of Allah and His vengeance. And whoever does an evil deed, a bad deed that harms others, as the thief did to Qatada and the Jew, or wrongs himself with what he alone is responsible for, such as a false oath. It was said: And whoever does evil from a sin other than polytheism, or wrongs himself with polytheism. This is an encouragement for the thief to seek forgiveness and repentance to bind him with the proof, with knowledge of what will come from him. Or for his people because of what they neglected from supporting him and defending him.