Tafsir of Al Imran 3:114

This is another description of the "nation" (ummah), and it is permissible for it to be a circumstantial qualifier (hal) in the same manner as what preceded it. If you wish, as Abu al-Baqa’ stated, it is an initiating sentence (isti’naf). The meaning of this "belief" is belief in everything that is obligatory to believe in, in the manner that is accepted. Allah, the Exalted, singled out the Last Day for mention to demonstrate their divergence from the rest of the Jews, regarding what one might mistakenly assume to be their shared participation in it; for they (the Jews) also claim belief in Allah and the Last Day. However, since that claim exists alongside their statement that "Uzair is the son of Allah," their disbelief in some of the Books and Messengers, and their description of the Last Day in a manner contrary to what the Mustafawiyyah (Prophetic) Law has declared, their belief is equivalent to non-existence.

This is an indication of the abundance of their share in the virtue of perfecting others, following the indication of their abundance in the virtue of perfecting the self. In this, there is an allusion to those who compromise and turn others away from the path of Allah, the Exalted.

That is, they hasten to perform good deeds and acts of obedience for fear of missing the opportunity, for instance, through death; or they perform righteous deeds while desiring them, without being lethargic, due to their knowledge of their magnificent status and their good outcome. This is a characteristic that encompasses various virtues and superior traits. Mentioning it contains an allusion to the sluggishness of the Jews and their hesitation regarding such matters.

The root of al-musara'ah (racing) is to hasten, and it is used to mean desire. The choice of the mufa'alah form is for hyperbole. It has been said: It was not expressed as al-'ajalah (rushing/hurrying) because of the distinction between it and al-sur'ah (speed/racing). Al-sur'ah is moving forward in that which is permissible to move forward in, which is praiseworthy, and its opposite is al-ibta’ (sluggishness), which is blameworthy. Al-'ajalah is moving forward in that which one ought not to move forward in, which is blameworthy, and its opposite is al-inah (deliberation), which is praiseworthy.

The preference for "in" (fi) over "to" (ila)—though musara'ah often takes "to"—is, as the Sheikh al-Islam said, to signify that they are firmly established in the foundation of goodness, moving within its various aspects, rather than being outside of it and progressing toward it. The form of the plural of paucity here suffices for the plural of multiplicity, as is not hidden.

Meaning, those described with these manifest and significant attributes, because of their being characterized by them—as is suggested by the departure from the pronoun—

That is, among the count of those whose state has become righteous before Allah, the Exalted. This is a refutation of the Jews' statement: "Only the worst among us have believed in him."

The majority hold that the verse possesses a sense of self-sufficiency by mentioning one of the two parties, following the habit of the Arabs to suffice by mentioning one of two opposites instead of the other. The intent is: "And among them are those who are not like that."