And recite to them the news of the one to whom We gave Our signs, but he detached himself from them. He was a scholar among the Children of Israel. It is said that he was from the Canaanites, his name was Balaam son of Ba'ura. He was given knowledge of some of the Books of Allah, but he detached himself from the signs by disbelieving in them and throwing them behind his back. So the devil followed him and caught up with him, and he became a companion to him. Or he followed his steps. It has been read: 'So he followed him,' meaning 'he followed him.' So he was among the misguided and became one of the lost disbelievers. It is narrated that his people asked him to pray against Moses and those with him, but he refused and said: 'How can I pray against those who have angels with them?' They persisted and did not cease until he did. And if We had wished, We would have elevated him by them and raised him to the ranks of the righteous among the scholars through those signs. But he inclined to the earth, leaning towards the worldly life and desiring it. It is said that he inclined towards lowliness. If you say: How did the elevation depend on the will of Allah, and was not dependent on his action which deserves elevation? I say: The meaning is: If he had adhered to the signs and not detached himself from them, We would have elevated him by them. The will of Allah regarding his elevation is dependent on his adherence to the signs, so the will is mentioned. The intended meaning is that it is dependent on and caused by it, as if it were said: If he had adhered to them, We would have elevated him by them. Do you not see His saying: 'But he inclined to the earth'? Thus, the will is linked to his inclination, which is his action, so it is necessary that 'And if We had wished' is in the meaning of what is his action. If the speech were on its apparent meaning, it would have been necessary to say: 'If We had wished, We would have elevated him, but We did not wish.' His example is like that of the dog. His description, which serves as a parable for baseness and lowliness, is like the description of the dog in its most despicable and humiliating state, which is the state of constant panting. The saying 'constant panting' refers to the dog when its tongue hangs out from exhaustion or thirst. And His saying: 'If you drive it, it pants, or if you leave it, it pants,' because if you drive the dog, it barks and runs away. And if you leave it, it barks at you, so it tires itself in both cases, and at that time it experiences what it experiences when thirsty from sticking out its tongue. The right way to say it would have been: 'If We had wished, We would have elevated him by them, but he inclined to the earth, so We lowered him and placed him in a lower status.' Thus, placing the saying 'His example is like that of the dog' in the place of 'We lowered him' is a more profound lowering, because his comparison to the dog in its most despicable and humiliating state conveys that meaning. And from Ibn Abbas, may Allah be pleased with him, the dog is one whose heart is detached; it pants whether it is driven or not. It is said: Its meaning is that if you admonish it, it is misguided, and if you do not admonish it, it is misguided, like the dog; if you drive it away, it pants, and if you leave it as it is, it pants. If you say: What is the position of the conditional sentence? I say: It is in the accusative case as if it were said: 'Like the dog, humiliated and constantly in a state of panting in both cases.' It is said that when Balaam prayed against Moses, peace be upon him, his tongue fell upon his chest, and he began to pant like a panting dog. That is the example of the people who denied Our signs from the Jews after they read the description of the Messenger of Allah, blessings and peace be upon him, in the Torah, and the miraculous Quran and what is in it, and they gave glad tidings to the people of the approaching advent of his prophethood, and they used to seek victory through him. So narrate the story of Balaam, which is similar to their stories, so perhaps they may reflect and beware of a similar consequence, as they walked towards his path and deviated like his deviation, and they may know that you taught him from the direction of revelation, so they may increase in their certainty of you, and the proof against them may become more binding.