Tafsir of Al Imran 3:32

Surah Al Imran 3:32

ﱮ ﱯ ﱰ ﱱ ﱲ ﱳ ﱴ ﱵ ﱶ ﱷ ﱸ ﱹ

Say, "Obey Allah and the Messenger." But if they turn away - then indeed, Allah does not like the disbelievers.

Tafsir

Ruh al-Ma'ani

Verse range: 3:32

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{Say, "Obey Allah and the Messenger."}

Meaning: in all commands and prohibitions. The previous command is included in this, and the explicit mention is preferred over the implicit by way of iltifat (shift in discourse) to specify the aspect of obedience and to signal its rationale. In this, there is an indication of refuting the suspicion of the hypocrite; it is as if he is saying: Allah the Exalted has only made it obligatory for you to follow me—not because of what the Christians say about Jesus, but because I am the Messenger of Allah.

{If they turn away} Meaning: if they turn away, or if you [plural] turn away—on the assumption that one of the two ta’s is elided. In that case, it falls within the scope of what is spoken [the command]. The omission of the mention of the possibility of obedience is a hint that it is not to be expected from them.

{Indeed, Allah does not like the disbelievers} Meaning: He does not bring them near, nor is He pleased with them. Rather, He distances them from the neighborhood of His sanctity and the enclosures of His might, and He is wrathful toward them on the day He is pleased with the believers.

The intent by "the disbelievers" is those who turned away. The pronoun [for them] was not used to signal that turning away from obedience is disbelief, and that His love—Exalted and Majestic is He—is exclusive to the believers; for the negation of it regarding these disbelievers—which necessitates its negation regarding all others due to the shared cause—entails restriction to their opposites.