We took their covenant. We took from the Christians a covenant similar to the covenant taken from the people of Moses, which is to believe in Allah and the messengers and to perform good deeds. And we took from the Christians a covenant for themselves regarding that. If you say: Why was it not said: from the Christians? [Mahamud said: 'If you say: Why was it not said from the Christians ... etc.' Ahmad said: And there remains a point in specifying this place by attributing Christianity to their claim, which did not occur in other places. Do you not see His saying: (And the Jews and the Christians said: We are the children of Allah and His beloved ones)? The reason for this, and Allah knows best, is that since the aim in this verse is to blame them for violating the covenant taken upon them to support Allah, it is appropriate that the speech begins with what indicates that they did not support Allah and did not fulfill what they covenanted regarding support. Their situation was nothing but to utter the claim of support and to say it without acting upon it, and Allah knows best.'] I say: Because they only named themselves that as a claim to support Allah, and they are the ones who said to Jesus: We are the supporters of Allah, then they differed afterward: Nestorian, Jacobite, and Melkite. Supporters of Satan [The phrase 'and Melkite supporters of Satan' in Al-Khazin refers to a fourth group, which is the Marcionites, etc. (A)] So We incited them, meaning We attached and obliged them. To incite someone to something means to bind them to it and attach them to it, and We incited others. Among them is the glue that is used to stick. BETWEEN THEM means among the differing sects of the Christians. It was said: between them and the Jews. And similarly (And thus We appoint some of the wrongdoers over others), (Or He causes you to be divided into factions and makes some of you taste the violence of others).