Tafsir of Al-A'raf 7:33

"Say: My Lord has only forbidden immoralities" — that is, those sins whose ugliness has exceeded bounds. It is also said: that which pertains to the private parts.

"what is apparent of them and what is concealed" — an appositive (badal) of "immoralities." It means their open and secret forms. From Ibn Abbas (may Allah be pleased with both of them): "What is apparent" is adultery committed openly, and "what is concealed" is adultery committed secretly. They used to dislike the former but practice the latter, so they were forbidden from both absolutely. Mujahid said: "What is apparent" is stripping naked during Tawaf, and "what is concealed" is adultery. Others said: The former is men performing Tawaf with women, and the latter is women performing Tawaf at night while naked.

"and sin" — that is, that which necessitates sin. Its origin is blame (dham), so it is applied to the general category of sin that necessitates it. It is mentioned for generalization after specification, based on the aforementioned meaning of "immoralities." It is also said that "sin" (al-ithm) refers to wine (khamr), as reported from Ibn Abbas and al-Hasan al-Basri. Linguists like al-Asma'i and others have mentioned this, citing the poet’s verse: The Messenger of Allah forbade us from approaching adultery, and from drinking the 'ithm' which entails a burden. And the saying of another: I drank the 'ithm' until my intellect was lost; thus the 'ithm' takes away the intellect. Ibn al-Anbari claimed that the Arabs did not call wine "ithm" in either the Jahiliyyah or Islam, and that the poetry is fabricated. The well-known view is that it is a case of metaphor, because wine is a cause of sin. Abu Hayyan and others said: This interpretation is not correct here, because the Surah is Meccan and wine was not prohibited until the Medina period after [the battle of] Uhud. Furthermore, it would necessitate the claim that the restriction (hasr) is relative; so contemplate this.

"and oppression" — injustice and overstepping against people. It is mentioned individually based on the generalization preceding it, or [because it is] included within "immoralities" to emphasize the prohibition against it.

"without right" — related to "oppression," because oppression is only ever such. It is permissible that it be a confirming circumstantial qualifier (hal). It is also said that it was brought to exclude oppression against another in response to their oppression, for it is called oppression in a general sense, but it is "with right," and this is as you see it.

"and that you associate with Allah that for which He has not sent down authority" — meaning an argument or proof. The meaning is the negation of both the sending down and the authority in the most eloquent manner, like the saying: You will not see a lizard burying itself in it. In this is a mockery of the polytheists that is not hidden.

"and that you say about Allah that which you do not know" — through heresy regarding His attributes and fabricating against Him, such as their saying: "And Allah has commanded us with it." The secret splendor in directing the prohibition toward their saying about Him (the Exalted) what they do not know—rather than what they know to be false—is not hidden.