Tafsir of Al-Hajj 22:3

(And of the people is he who disputes concerning Allah without knowledge)

This was revealed—as Ibn Abi Hatim recorded from Abu Malik, may Allah be pleased with him—regarding al-Nadr ibn al-Harith. He was contentious, saying: "The angels, peace be upon them, are the daughters of Allah, may He be exalted; and the Quran is fables of the ancients; and Allah, may His affair be exalted, is not able to revive those who have decayed and become dust."

It has also been said that it was revealed regarding Abu Jahl, and it has been said regarding Ubayy ibn Khalaf. However, the verse is general, applying to everyone who engages in argumentation concerning what is permissible and what is not permissible regarding Allah, the Glorified, in terms of His attributes and actions, without referring to knowledge, proof, or fairness. The specificity of the cause of revelation does not exclude the verse from its general application. Its mention following the description of the momentous nature of the Hour—which warns of the Resurrection—is to clarify the state of some of those who deny it.

The status of the prepositional phrase ("among the people") is in the nominative case as an inception (mubtada’), either by interpreting it according to the meaning or by assuming a verb to which it relates. "Without knowledge" is in the position of a state (hal) from the pronoun in "he disputes," to clarify the ignorance that the dispute implies. That is: "And some people, or some being among the people, are those who contend regarding the affair of Allah, the Mighty and Majestic, and say that which has no good in it—from falsehoods—while being cloaked in ignorance."

(And follows) in what he engages in of argumentation, or in all that he does and leaves of false matters, of which that is a part, (every rebellious devil).

He is stripped of goodness and denuded of virtue, derived from their saying: "A bare (marda) tree," meaning one that has no leaves. From this, it is said: "Bare (marda) sand," if it grows nothing. Likewise, it is used for a beardless youth (amrad) due to his being stripped of hair. Al-Zajjaj said: "The root of 'mutarid' (rebellious) and 'marid' (rebel) is 'elevated and smooth,' containing the meaning of being stripped and denuded."

The intended meaning is either Iblis and his soldiers, or the leaders of the disbelievers who call others to disbelief alongside them. Zayd ibn Ali, may Allah be pleased with them both, read it as wa-yattabi’ (in the light form).