Tafsir of Fussilat 41:22

{And you were not hiding [so] that your hearing, your sight, or your skins would not testify against you}

This is a narrative of what will be said to them on that Day from the perspective of the Exalted, by way of rebuke and reproach, confirming the response of the skins. Abu Hayyan suggested that this is a statement from the limbs themselves. The phrase "that your hearing... would not testify against you" (an tashhada) is a prepositional object (maf'ul lahu) with an implied possessor; meaning: you were not hiding in the world when committing immoral acts out of fear or aversion that your limbs would testify against you. That is, your hiding was not for the fear of what was mentioned, nor out of aversion to it.

{But you assumed that Allah does not know much of what you do}

That is, but because of your assumption that Allah, the Exalted, does not know much of what you do—which is what you committed in secret—and that He, glory be to Him, would not reveal it on the Day of Resurrection nor cause the limbs to speak of it, you strove to hide from the creation rather than from the Creator, the Almighty and Majestic.

Alternatively, it is [linked by] an implied preposition connected to "hiding" (tastatirun). It has been said: it is the letter 'B' (bi), and the one from whom you hid was the limbs. The meaning being: you did not hide from them while engaging in acts, lest they bear witness against you, for you did not think they would testify against you. Rather, you thought that Allah, the Exalted, did not know, so your hiding was not for this reason. It has also been said: it is 'from' ('an), and the meaning is: it was not possible for you to hide from your limbs so that they would not bear witness against you while you were committing what you were committing, but you assumed what you assumed.

It has also been said that "that your hearing... testify" is a maf'ul lahu and the one from whom you hid was the limbs; meaning: you did not hide from your limbs for fear that they would testify against you, but you assumed [what you assumed]. It has been said that tastatirun (hiding) implies the meaning of zann (assuming), so it is transitive in that sense; meaning: you did not hide while assuming that your limbs would testify against you. This is supported by the statement of Qatadah: "meaning you did not assume that they would testify against you..." The truth is that this is an explanation of the resulting meaning.

Ahmad, Al-Bukhari, Muslim, Al-Tirmidhi, Al-Nasa'i, and a group [of scholars] narrated from Ibn Mas'ud, who said: "I was hiding behind the coverings of the Ka'bah when three people came—a Qurashi and two Thaqafis, or a Thaqafi and two Qurashis—men with fat bellies and little restraint in their hearts. They spoke words I could not hear, then one of them said: 'Do you think Allah hears what we are saying?' Another said: 'If we raise our voices, He hears it, and if we do not raise them, He does not.' The other said: 'If He hears some of it, He hears all of it.' I mentioned this to the Prophet, peace be upon him, and Allah, the Exalted, revealed: {And you were not hiding [so] that your hearing, your sight, or your skins would not testify against you} up to His saying: {among the losers}." Thus, the judgment narrated is specific to those who held such a belief among the disbelievers, though it is rare among them.

In Al-Irshad, it is suggested that it is more appropriate for the "assumption" (zann) to be intended in a metaphorical sense, covering both its real meaning and that which follows it in terms of actions that declare it, as in the words of the Exalted: {He thinks that his wealth will make him immortal}. This is to ensure that the state narrated applies to all types of disbelievers; so contemplate this.

In the verse, there is a warning that a believer should not pass through any state without realizing that there is a watcher over him, as Abu Nuwas said:

If you are alone for a day, do not say 'I am alone,' But say: 'There is a watcher over me.' And do not think that Allah is heedless for an hour, Nor that what is hidden from Him is ever absent.