Tafsir of An-Nisa' 4:64

(And We did not send any messenger except to be obeyed by the permission of Allah) This is a preamble to illustrate their error in attempting to cover the fire of their crime with the dry tinder of their false excuses, rather than extinguishing it with the water of repentance. That is, We did not send any of the messengers for any purpose other than to be obeyed, by virtue of His permission—Exalted be He—and His command to those to whom he was sent that they should obey him; for he conveys from Him—Glorified be His status—so obeying him is obeying Him, and disobeying him is disobeying Him. Alternatively, it means by His facilitation and divine success granted for his obedience. It is not hidden what is intended by shifting from the pronoun to the Majestic Name [Allah].

The Mu'tazila cited this verse as evidence that Allah—Exalted be He—does not will anything but good, and that evil occurs contrary to His will. The author of at-Taysir responded to this by stating that the meaning is: "except that he should be obeyed by those whom He has permitted to obey and for whom He has willed it." As for those whom He has not permitted, He wills that they do not obey, and therefore they do not obey and become disbelievers. Or, it may be that the intent is the imposition of obedience; i.e., "We did not send any messenger except to make his obedience mandatory for the people, so that he who submits is rewarded and he who walks the path of stubbornness is punished." Thus, their claim to use this as evidence for their position does not hold.

Those who affirm purpose in the actions of Allah—Exalted be He—also cited this as evidence, which is apparent. It is not possible to reinterpret this by saying it is an "end" rather than a "purpose," because the obedience of everyone does not follow from the sending, unless one says that the end is that he is "obeyed by permission," but not for everyone, since he who has no permission does not obey. Discussion regarding this issue has already preceded.

(And if they, when they had wronged themselves) and exposed themselves to ruin by hypocrisy and by seeking judgment from the Taghut (false idols/tyrants), (had come to you) in the wake of their oppression without delay, seeking your intercession, repenting from their crime, and not combining [worthless] dates with poor measure by way of their false excuses and wicked oaths, (and asked forgiveness of Allah) for their sins, abandoning what they were upon and regretting what they did, (and the Messenger had asked forgiveness for them)—the use of "The Messenger" [as a noun] instead of "I" is an exaltation of the status of the Messenger of Allah (may Allah grant him peace and blessings), as it shifts from addressing him directly to a description indicative of his lofty attributes, similar to a ruler saying "The Amir has decreed such" instead of "I have decreed." It also magnifies his intercession (peace and blessings be upon him) by attributing it to a title that signifies the loftiness of his rank—(they would have found Allah Forgiving, Merciful)—that is, they would have known Him to be acceptor of their repentance and gracious to them by overlooking their past sins.

Whoever interprets "finding" (al-wijdān) as "encountering" considers the first attribute [Forgiving] as a state, and the second [Merciful] as a substitute for it, or as a state related to the pronoun within it, or similar. Placing the comprehensive Name [Allah] in place of the pronoun serves to announce the magnificence of the acceptance and the mercy.