Tafsir of An-Nur 24:21

(O you who believe, do not follow the footsteps of Satan): That is, do not tread his paths in all that you do and all that you leave. The phrasing is a metonymy for following Satan and obeying his whispers. It is as if it were said: Do not follow Satan in any of the deeds, among which is spreading immorality and loving it.

Nafi’, al-Bazzi—in one of the narrations of Ibn Rabi’ah from him—Abu ‘Amr, Abu Bakr, and Hamzah read khutuwāt (footsteps) with a sukun on the tā’; others read it with a fatḥah. In all these cases, it is the plural of khutwah, which is the noun for the space between the two feet. As for khatwah with a fatḥah, it is the verbal noun (masdar) of khata’a (to step). The rule for a noun, when pluralized, is for its middle letter to be vocalized (harakah) to distinguish it from an adjective; thus, it is given a dammah to follow the vowel of the first letter, or a fatḥah for ease of pronunciation, and sometimes it is given a sukun.

(And whoever follows the footsteps of Satan): The explicit noun was placed where the two pronouns (of the footsteps and of Satan) would have been—as it did not say "whoever follows them" or "whoever follows his footsteps"—to increase emphasis and hyperbole.

(For indeed, he enjoins immorality): This is what is extreme in its ugliness, such as al-fāḥishah (lewdness) and al-munkar (the reprehensible). The latter is what the Shari'ah considers repugnant. The pronoun in "indeed, he enjoins" refers to Satan, though it has been said that it refers to "the matter" (al-sha’n). The answer to the conditional clause (the apodosis) is implied; what follows the fa’ (in fa-innahu) acts in its place. In essence, this is a justification for the conditional sentence and an explanation for the cause of the prohibition. It is as if it were said: "Whoever follows Satan has committed immorality and the reprehensible, for he enjoins nothing but them; and whoever is such, his following and obedience are not permissible." This was established by al-Nasafi and Ibn Hisham in the fifth chapter of al-Mughni. This was challenged by the argument that the grammarians stated the apodosis cannot be omitted unless the condition is in the past tense—to the extent that they considered it poetic necessity when one says: "If your houses have been too narrow for me, may my Lord know that my house is wider." It has been answered that the verse is not of the category they mentioned in the line of poetry, for that is a case where the apodosis is omitted entirely, whereas this is a case where what is apparent as the apodosis has been put in its place. Abu Hayyan said: The pronoun returns to the conditional, and he did not consider there to be any omission in the speech at all. The meaning according to this is: "Whoever follows Satan becomes a leader in misguidance, to the point that he becomes an enjoiner of immorality and the reprehensible." This is built upon the requirement of a pronoun in the apodosis of a nominal conditional clause that returns to it, and what pertains to this will come, if Allah wills.

(And if not for the favor of Allah upon you and His mercy): By what includes the sending down of those clear verses and the granting of success for repentance that cleanses one of sins, as well as the legislation of the hudud (prescribed punishments), which serve as atonement for all sins except apostasy—according to the view of a group who answered the previously mentioned hadith of Abu Hurayrah by stating it was before the Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him) was informed of this.

(Not one of you would have ever been purified): That is, cleansed of the filth of sins. Rawh and al-A’mash read zukkā with shaddah (emphasis) and imalah. The lightened zakā is written with a ya’ despite it being a verb whose third radical is a waw (which should be written with an alif). Abu Hayyan said: This is because it may be read with imalah, or it is written so by analogy to the emphasized form. The min in the Almighty’s saying (of you) is explanatory. In His saying (any one), it is a sword for the orator (i.e., a linguistic challenge). Ahad (any one) is in the nominative case as the subject in the first reading, and in the accusative case as the object in the second reading. The subject in the second reading is His pronoun—the Almighty—meaning: "Allah, the Almighty, would not have purified any one of you." (Ever): Meaning, with no limit.

(But Allah purifies): He cleanses (whom He wills): From among His servants, by overflowing His favor and mercy upon them, and by prompting them toward repentance and accepting it from them, just as He, the Almighty, did for those among you who were free from the disease of hypocrisy and who had fallen into the slander of the Ifk.

(And Allah is Hearing): Hyperbolic in His hearing of utterances, among which is the repentance they have shown.

(All-Knowing): Of all known things, among which are their intentions. This contains an exhortation for them to be sincere in their repentance. The mention of the Majestic Name is to signify that His Divinity demands hearing and knowledge, alongside the emphasis on the independence of this concluding sentence.