| Jonah: (40-41) And among them are those who believe...

Know that when the Almighty mentioned in the preceding verse His saying: {Then observe how was the end of the wrongdoers}, intending thereby the infliction of punishment upon them in this world, He followed it up with His saying: {And among them are those who believe in it, and among them are those who do not believe in it}. This serves as a reminder that what was best in His view, may He be exalted, was to let this group remain rather than annihilate them entirely, given that it was known that some among them would believe in it.

It is more likely that the pronoun in {in it} refers back to the Qur'an, as it was the previously mentioned subject. It is then understood that whenever belief in the Qur'an is achieved, belief in the Messenger (peace be upon him) is also necessarily achieved.

They differed regarding the meaning of {And among them are those who believe in it, and among them are those who do not believe in it}, because the word yu'minu (believe) is a future tense verb, which can refer to the present or the future.

1. Some interpreted it as referring to the present time: meaning that some among them inwardly believe in the Qur'an, but they deliberately deny it and show disbelief outwardly. And among them are those whose inner state matches their outward state in disbelief, including those with doubts and those who follow blindly (through imitation/tradition).
2. Others said the meaning refers to the future: meaning that some among them will believe in it in the future by repenting from disbelief and replacing it with faith, while others will be granted insight and persist in disbelief.

Then He said: {And your Lord is most knowing of the corrupters}, meaning He is the Knower of their conditions—whether they will remain insistent upon disbelief or return from it.

Then He said: {And if they deny you, then say, 'To me are my deeds, and to you are your deeds'}. It is said that this means: "To me is my deed of obedience and faith, and to you is your deed of polytheism." Another interpretation is: "To me is the recompense for my deed, and to you is the recompense for your deeds."

Then He said: {You are free from what I do, and I am free from what you do}. It is said that the meaning of this verse is admonishment and deterrence. Another view is that it means attracting their hearts (to the truth).

Muqatil and Al-Kalbi said: This verse is abrogated by the "Verse of the Sword" (Qitāl). This view is far-fetched because the condition for abrogation is that the abrogating text must remove the ruling of the abrogated text. The meaning of this verse is the specialization of each party concerning their actions and the fruits of their actions—reward and punishment. This does not necessitate the prohibition of fighting. The verse concerning fighting did not remove anything from the meaning of this verse, so the claim of abrogation is invalid.

! 7 < { And among them are those who listen to you. But can you make the deaf hear, even if they do not reason? * And among them are those who look at you. But can you guide the blind, even if they do not see? * Indeed, Allah does not wrong the people at all, but the people wrong themselves. } > 7

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