Tafsir of Al-Burooj 85:8

{And they did not resent them}—that is, they did not disapprove of them, nor did they find fault with them. In Mufradat al-Raghib, it is stated: "It is said that you 'resented' (naqamta) a thing if you disapproved of it with your tongue or by punishment." Zayd ibn Ali, Abu Haywah, and Ibn Abi 'Ablah read it as wa ma naqimu (with a kasra on the qaf).

This sentence is a conjunction upon the nominal sentence, and it is made acceptable—as has been said—by the fact that the aforementioned nominal sentence occurs within the scope of idha (when), which acts as a past-tense marker; thus, the conjunction is of one verbal sentence upon another. It has also been said that this verbal sentence implies "and they did not resent them."

{Except that they believed in Allah, the Exalted in Might, the Praiseworthy} is an exception that clarifies their innocence from anything that could be faulted or disapproved of entirely, following the pattern of the poet’s saying: "And there is no fault in them, except that their swords / have nicks from striking the battalions."

The fact that the disbelievers view faith as something objectionable—while the poet does not view the nicks as such—does not detract, in my view, from the fact that this phrasing from the Almighty follows that method of "confirming praise by way of what resembles blame." Furthermore, if those people were polytheists, what they disapproved of was not belief in Allah the Exalted, but the negation of their other false deities. If they were deniers (of a Creator), what they disapproved of was only the affirmation of a Deity who was unfamiliar to them. However, since the outcome of both matters is the denial of the true Deity, described with attributes of majesty and honor, the expression mentioned was used, clarifying what you have heard, so reflect upon it. Some eminent scholars have discourse on this position which al-Shihab has refuted; if you desire it, refer to him.

In al-Muntakhab, it states: The Exalted only said "except that they believed" because the torture was occurring due to belief in the future; had they disbelieved during that time, they would not have been tortured for what passed. It is as if the Almighty said: "Except that they continued in their faith." This suggests he interpreted "resentment" as disapproval through punishment. He, the Exalted, described Himself as the "Exalted in Might" (the Overpowering whose punishment is feared) and "the Praiseworthy" (the Bestower whose reward is hoped for), confirming this with His, the Exalted's, saying...