Tafsir of Al-Baqarah 2:204

(And among the people is he whose speech pleases you): This is linked to His saying, Exalted is He, (And among the people is he who says). The connective rationale is that when He, Glory be to Him, moved from the explanation of the rulings of Hajj to the division of people regarding the remembrance and supplication during those rituals into the disbeliever and the believer, He perfected it by stating two other categories: the hypocrite and the sincere.

The origin of "wonder" (ta'ajjub) is a perplexity that befalls a person due to his ignorance of the cause of that which he wonders at. Here, however, it is used metaphorically for the pleasure and grandeur that it necessitates, for the strange and unknown matter delights the nature and its impact upon the hearts is profound. It is not in its literal sense because there is no ignorance of the cause—namely, eloquence and sweetness. Thus, the meaning is: "Among them is he whose speech pleases you and appears great in your soul."

(In the life of this world): That is, in the affairs of the world and the means of livelihood, whether they return to him or not. Thus, "life" here means that by which one lives and sustains oneself. Or it may refer to the "world" (al-dunya), as it is intended in the claim of affection and the outward display of faith. Therefore, "the life of this world" is upon its meaning, and making it a prepositional phrase for the speech is like their saying in the titles of research: "The first chapter is in such and such," and "The discussion is in such and such"—meaning that is the intended subject. There is no omission (hadhf) in either of the two interpretations, contrary to what some have imagined. The state of the preposition is, in this case, "estimative" (taqdiriyya), as in the saying of the Prophet, may Allah bless him and grant him peace: "For the life of a believer, one hundred camels"—meaning in the case of his killing. Thus, the cause, which is the killing, contains the blood money just as a container contains the contained. This is what is referred to as "causative" (sababiyya), as mentioned by some researchers in al-Radi.

It is also permitted that the prepositional phrase attaches to the verb before it: "He pleases you in the world with his speech due to its eloquence and the freshness of his words, but he does not please you in the Hereafter due to the astonishment and stuttering that will befall him, or because he will not be permitted to speak, so he shall not speak until he pleases you."

The verse, as al-Sudi said, was revealed regarding al-Akhnas ibn Shariq al-Thaqafi, an ally of Banu Zuhra. He came to the Prophet, may Allah bless him and grant him peace, in Medina and displayed Islam to him. The Prophet, may Allah bless him and grant him peace, was pleased by this from him and he (al-Akhnas) said, "I have only come seeking Islam, and Allah knows that I am truthful." Then he left the Messenger of Allah, may Allah bless him and grant him peace, and passed by a crop belonging to the Muslims and some donkeys, so he burned the crop and slaughtered the donkeys. It is also said it refers to the hypocrites in general.

(And he calls Allah to witness as to what is in his heart): That is, according to his claim, as he says, "Allah knows that what is in my heart conforms to what is on my tongue." It is linked to "(pleases) you." In the codex of Ubayy it is "and he takes Allah as witness," and it is also recited as "yush-hidu Allahu" (Allah witnesses) in the nominative. Thus, the meaning of "what is in his heart" is what is truly in it; this is supported by the recitation of Ibn Abbas, may Allah be pleased with both of them: "And Allah witnesses against what is in his heart," implying that the word "against" ('ala) is used because what is witnessed is harmful to him, and the sentence in this case is parenthetical.

(And he is the most argumentative of opponents): That is, severe in disputation regarding falsehood, as Ibn Abbas, may Allah be pleased with both of them, said, citing the poem of Muhalhil: "Indeed, beneath the stones are plans, wickedness, and a severe opponent."

"The most argumentative" (aladd) is an adjective, like ahmar (red), evidenced by its plural ludd and the coming of its feminine as ladda—it is not a superlative noun (af'al tafdil). The genitive construction is of the type of adding an adjective to its subject, like "handsome of face," based on metaphorical attribution. Some have made it mean "in," for the estimative prepositional phrase, i.e., "severe in disputation." Abu Hayyan reported from al-Khalil that aladd is a superlative noun, so it is necessary to estimate: "His argument is the most severe of arguments," or "the most severe of the possessors of arguments," or it is made to refer back to "argument" understood from the context, though this is distant. Or it may be said that "opponents" (khisam) is the plural of "opponent" (khasm), like bahr (sea) and bihar (seas), or sa'b (difficult) and si'ab (difficult ones). Thus, the meaning is "the most severe of opponents in disputation," and the genitive in it is for specialization, as in "the most beautiful of people in face."

In the verse is an indication that severity in disputation is blameworthy. Al-Bukhari and Muslim recorded from Aisha, may Allah be pleased with her, from the Prophet, may Allah bless him and grant him peace: "The most hated of men to Allah is the most severe in argumentation." Ahmad recorded from Abu al-Darda': "It is sufficient sin for your Lord that you do not cease to be argumentative, and it is sufficient injustice for you that you do not cease to be a disputant, and it is sufficient falsehood for you that you do not cease to be a talker—except for speech in the cause of Allah, the Almighty and Majestic." Severity of disputation is among the traits of the hypocrites because they love the world, so they increase in arguing over it.