At-Tawbah: (74) They swear by Allah that they did not...

(They swear by Allah that they did not say) This is a resumption [of the narrative] to explain the crimes they committed, which necessitated what was mentioned previously.

Ibn Jarir, Ibn al-Mundhir, and Ibn Abi Hatim narrated from Qatadah who said: It was mentioned to us that two men fought, one from the tribe of Juhaynah and the other from Ghifar, and Juhaynah were allies of the Ansar. The Ghifari man overcame the Juhayni man. Then Abdullah ibn Ubayy said to the Aws, "Support your brother! By Allah, the likeness of us and Muhammad—may Allah bless him and grant him peace, and far be it from him to be what this hypocrite says—is nothing but as the saying goes: 'Fatten your dog and it will eat you.' By Allah, if we return to Medina, the more honorable will surely drive out the meaner." A Muslim man then reported this to the Messenger of Allah (may Allah bless him and grant him peace), so he sent for him. He began swearing by Allah, the Exalted, that he had not said it, and thus [this verse] was revealed.

Ibn Ishaq and Ibn Abi Hatim narrated from Ka'b ibn Malik who said: When the Quran was revealed mentioning the hypocrites, al-Julas ibn Suwayd said, "By Allah, if this man [the Prophet] is truthful, then we are worse than donkeys." Umayr ibn Sa'd heard them and said, "By Allah, O Julas, you are the most beloved of people to me and have the best influence on me, but you have said something that, if I report it, will disgrace you, and if I keep silent about it, it will destroy me. And either one is heavier upon me than the other." He walked to the Messenger of Allah (may Allah bless him and grant him peace) and told him what al-Julas had said. [Al-Julas] then swore by Allah, the Exalted, that he had not said it and that Umayr had lied about him, and thus [this verse] was revealed.

Abd al-Razzaq narrated from Ibn Sirin that when it was revealed, the Prophet (may Allah bless him and grant him peace) took hold of Umayr’s ear and said, "Your ear has been faithful, O boy, and your Lord has verified you." [Umayr] used to pray when al-Julas swore, "O Allah, reveal to Your servant and Prophet the verification of the truthful and the falsification of the liar." It was narrated from Urwah that al-Julas repented after its revelation and it was accepted from him. Ibn Jarir, Abu al-Shaykh, al-Tabarani, and Ibn Marduyah narrated from Ibn Abbas (may Allah be pleased with them both) who said: The Messenger of Allah (may Allah bless him and grant him peace) was sitting in the shade of a tree and said, "A man will come to you looking at you with the eyes of a devil. When he comes, do not speak to him." It was not long before a man with blue eyes appeared. The Messenger of Allah (may Allah bless him and grant him peace) called him and said, "Why do you and your companion insult me?" He left and came back with his companions, and they swore by Allah, the Exalted, that they had not said it, until he pardoned them, and Allah, the Exalted, revealed the verse.

Attributing the oath to the plural pronoun in this narration is clear. As for the first two narrations, it is said: [it is used] because they were pleased with it and agreed upon it; thus, it is the attribution of an action to its cause, or because the speech was made as if they had said it due to their pleasure with it. There is no need for a generalization of metaphor, for combining literal and metaphorical meanings is permissible in a mental metaphor, and this is not a matter of dispute. The preference for the imperfect tense (future) form in (they swear) over other tenses is to bring the image to mind or to indicate the repetition of the action, as it stands in the place of the oath. (That they did not say) is the object of their oath. (And they have indeed said the word of disbelief) is what was narrated of their saying, "By Allah, the likeness of us... etc.," or "By Allah, if this man is truthful... etc.," or the insults for which he—peace be upon him—reproached them. The sentence, along with what is conjoined to it, is a parenthetical clause. (And they disbelieved after their Islam) means: they displayed the disbelief that was in their hearts after displaying Islam; otherwise, their inner disbelief was already established beforehand, and their true Islam never existed. (And they desired that which they could not attain) from the assassination of the Messenger of Allah (may Allah bless him and grant him peace) when he returned from the Battle of Tabuk. Al-Bayhaqi narrated in al-Dala'il from Hudhayfah ibn al-Yaman who said: I was holding the halter of the she-camel of the Messenger of Allah (may Allah bless him and grant him peace), leading it, and Ammar was driving, or I was driving and Ammar was leading, until when we were at the pass (al-Aqabah), twelve riders intercepted us. I alerted the Messenger of Allah (may Allah bless him and grant him peace), and he shouted at them, so they turned and fled. The Messenger of Allah (may Allah bless him and grant him peace) said to us, "Did you recognize the people?" We said, "No, O Messenger of Allah, they were masked, but we recognized the mounts." He said, "These are the hypocrites until the Day of Resurrection. Do you know what they wanted?" We said, "No." He said, "They wanted to cause the Messenger of Allah to slip at the pass and throw him from it." We said, "O Messenger of Allah, will you not send to their tribes so that each people will send you the head of their man?" He said, "I dislike that the Arabs should say that Muhammad fought with his people, and when Allah enabled him through them, he turned on them and killed them." Then he said, "O Allah, strike them with the Dubaylah." We said, "O Messenger of Allah, what is the Dubaylah?" He said, "A spark of fire that falls on the life-cord (artery) of one of them and destroys him."

(And they did not despise) i.e., they did not hate or find fault with anything (except that Allah and His Messenger had enriched them from His bounty). The exception is mufarragh (vacant) from the most general of objects; meaning: they did not despise faith for any reason except for Allah, the Exalted, having enriched them. Thus, it is an exception mufarragh from the most general of causes. It is like their saying, "I have no fault to find with you except that I did good to you," and the saying: "What did the people find fault with Umayyah, except that they are forbearing if they become angry?" It is connected based on the claim of its inclusion, given the saying that an exception mufarragh cannot be munqati' (disconnected). There is irony in this, and an affirmation of a thing by its opposite, as in his saying: "There is no defect in them except that their swords..."

(And if they repent) from the abominations they are in, it would be better for them (meaning: repentance). (And if they turn away) i.e., continue in what they were in of turning away and shunning the sincerity of faith, or turn away from repentance, (Allah will punish them with a painful punishment in the world) through the troubles of hypocrisy, ill repute, and the like. It is said: the punishment of the world refers to the torment of the grave or what they witness at the time of death. It is also said: it refers to killing and the like, in the sense that they are killed if they manifest disbelief, based on the assumption that turning away is a prelude to manifestation.

(And in the Hereafter) their punishment will be in the Fire and other varieties of torment. (And they have no protector or helper on earth) i.e., in the world; the expression is used for generalization, meaning they have no one in all its regions and parts (who will save them from the punishment by intercession or defense). It is restricted to the world because they absolutely have no protector or helper in the Hereafter, so there is no need to negate it there.