Tafsir of At-Tawbah 9:97

(Al-A’rab): This is a plural form; it is not the plural of al-Arab (the Arabs) according to what has been narrated from Sibawayh, so that the plural does not become more specific than the singular. For al-Arab is this known people as a whole, while al-A’rab are the dwellers of the desert among them. Therefore, the attribution is made to al-A’rab according to its wording, as one says "A’rabi." It is also said that al-Arab are the dwellers of cities and villages, and al-A’rab are the dwellers of the desert from this people, or their clients; thus, they are two distinct terms. The singular and the plural are distinguished by the ya (ya-an-nisbah) in both; one says for the singular "Arabi" and "A’rabi," and for the group "Arab" and "A’rab," as well as "A’arib." This is similar to saying in the singular: "Majusi" and "Yahudi," then dropping the ya in the plural to say "al-Majus" and "al-Yahud." Meaning: The possessors of the desert.

(Are more severe in disbelief and hypocrisy): Than the dwellers of the settled lands—both the disbelievers and the hypocrites—due to their uncivilized nature, the hardness of their hearts, their lack of association with people of wisdom, and their deprivation of hearing the Book and the Sunnah. They are the closest of all things to beasts. In a Hadith from al-Hasan, from Ibn Abbas (may Allah be pleased with them both), from the Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him), he said: "Whoever dwells in the desert becomes coarse, whoever follows the hunt becomes heedless, and whoever frequents the Sultan becomes seduced." Three of the major sins are mentioned, and among them is al-ta’arrub (bedouinization) after the Hijrah, which is to return to the desert and reside with the A’rab after having been a Muhajir (emigrant). Whoever returned after the Hijrah to his original place without an excuse was considered by them as an apostate. This was due to the prevalence of ignorance among the people of the desert and their tendency toward theft, or due to their distance from the assemblies of knowledge and people of virtue; it leads to great evil.

The judgment passed upon the A’rab with what has been mentioned is a case of describing the genus with the description of some of its individuals, as in His saying: "And man is ever ungrateful" (17:67), for not all of them are as described. This is indicated by His following saying: "And among the bedouins are those who believe..." (9:99), and so on. Ibn Sirin, as Abu al-Shaykh reported from him, used to say: "If one of you recites this verse, let him recite the other verse," meaning what we have alluded to. The mentioned verse, as narrated from al-Kalbi, was revealed regarding the tribes of Asad and Ghatafan, and the lesson is in the generality of the wording, not the specificity of the cause.

(And more likely): That is, more deserving and more fitting. According to al-Tabarsi, it is derived from jidr of the wall—with a quiescent dal—which is its root and foundation. It is connected with the preposition bi. Thus, His saying: (not to know) is with the estimation of "that they do not know" (the limits of what Allah has revealed to His Messenger).

These are, as Abu al-Shaykh reported from al-Dahhak, the obligatory duties (fara'id) and what they have been commanded regarding Jihad. Some have included the Sunan (supererogatory acts) within the "limits," but the well-known view is that it is specific to the obligatory duties or the commands and prohibitions, due to His saying: "These are the limits of Allah, so do not transgress them" (2:229), and "These are the limits of Allah, so do not approach them" (2:187). Perhaps this is a case of taghlib (preponderance), and there is nothing far-fetched about it, for the A’rab are indeed more likely not to know all of that due to their distance from those from whom one acquires it. It is also said that the intended meaning—given the context of His warning regarding opposition to the Messenger (peace and blessings be upon him) in Jihad—is the quantitative measures of the religious obligations.

(And Allah is Knowing): He knows the conditions of all, whether they be people of the tent or the clay (Wise): In what He will recompense their evildoers and their doers of good with, in terms of punishment and reward.