Al-Baqarah: (8) And among the people are those who...

Exegesis

The commentators are unanimously agreed that this verse describes the Hypocrites (Munāfiqūn).

Allah described three categories of people: the believers, the disbelievers, and the hypocrites. He began with the sincere believers whose inner selves were sound and intentions pure. He then followed them with the disbelievers, characterized by persistent denial and obstinacy. Finally, He described the state of those who profess faith with their tongues while their inner selves contradict that claim.

There are several related issues (Masā’il):

To fully grasp the reality of hypocrisy, we must categorize the states of the heart and the tongue.

States of the Heart (Four Categories):

1. Certain Knowledge (‘Ilm): Belief conforming to reality, derived from evidence.
2. Imitative Belief (Taqlīd): Belief conforming to reality, but derived without personal evidence (i.e., the belief of a follower).
3. Ignorance (Jahl): Belief not conforming to reality.
4. Emptiness: The heart devoid of any of the above beliefs.

States of the Tongue (Three Categories):

1. Affirmation (Iqrār).
2. Denial (Inkār).
3. Silence (Sukūt).

Combining these yields twelve possible categories.

Type 1: Heart possesses True Recognition (‘Urfān)

• Case 1: Recognition + Verbal Affirmation:
  • If the affirmation is voluntary, the person is a true believer by consensus.
  • If the affirmation is compelled (i.e., the heart knows the truth but the tongue affirms only out of fear, otherwise it would deny), this person must be counted as a hypocrite. This is because the heart is inwardly denying and rejecting the obligation to affirm.

• Case 2: Recognition + Verbal Denial:
  • If the denial is compelled, the person is a Muslim (referencing the verse: "except for one who is forced [to disbelieve] while his heart is at rest with faith" [16:106]).
  • If the denial is voluntary, the person is a stubborn disbeliever.

• Case 3: Recognition + Verbal Silence:
  • If the silence is compelled (e.g., due to fear), the person is a true Muslim. Or, if someone attained knowledge through evidence but died suddenly before speaking, they are certainly a believer, as they fulfilled all obligations and lacked the opportunity for affirmation/denial.
  • If the silence is voluntary (e.g., knowing the truth but refraining from affirmation), this is debatable. Al-Ghazali leaned toward them being believers, citing the Hadith: "He will be brought out of the Fire who has an atom's weight of faith in his heart." Since this person's heart is full of the light of faith, how could they not be saved?

Type 2: Heart possesses Imitative Belief (Taqlīd)

• Case 1: Imitative Belief + Affirmation:
  • If voluntary, this raises the famous question: Is a follower (Muqallid) a believer?
  • If compelled, the ruling follows the first scenario (Type 1, Case 1). If we ruled them a hypocrite there, they should be a hypocrite here, as their state mirrors the one who knows but affirms under duress.

• Case 2: Imitative Belief + Verbal Denial:
  • If voluntary, this is undoubtedly disbelief (Kufr).
  • If compelled, and we rule the follower a believer, then we must rule them a believer here too.

• Case 3: Imitative Belief + Silence (Voluntary or Compelled):
  • The ruling follows Type 1, Case 3, depending on whether the follower is deemed a believer.

Type 3: Heart possesses Denial (Inkār)

• Case 1: Denial + Verbal Affirmation:
  • If the affirmation is compelled, the person is a hypocrite.
  • If the affirmation is voluntary, it implies they believed something false based on a doubt (e.g., believing the world is eternal) and then voluntarily affirmed the opposite (the world is created). This is plausible, just as it is plausible to know the truth and deny it (stubborn disbelief). Thus, this is also a form of hypocrisy.

• Case 2: Denial + Verbal Denial:
  • This person is a disbeliever, not a hypocrite, as their outward action matches their inner state.

• Case 3: Denial + Verbal Silence:
  • This person is a disbeliever, not a hypocrite, as they revealed nothing contrary to their inner state.

Type 4: Heart is Empty of All Beliefs

• Case 1: Empty Heart + Verbal Affirmation:
  • If voluntary, and the person is still in the period of deliberation (mahlat an-naẓar), they are not necessarily condemned as a disbeliever, but they have acted improperly by speaking about something they do not know to be true. If they are past the period of deliberation, there is further discussion needed.
  • If compelled, they are not condemned, especially if they feared for themselves by remaining silent.

• Case 2: Empty Heart + Verbal Denial:
  • The ruling is the opposite of Type 1, Case 10 (which refers to the third case of Type 1).

• Case 3: Empty Heart + Verbal Silence:
  • If they are within the period of deliberation, this is the required state.
  • If they are past the period of deliberation, they must be condemned as a disbeliever, but not as a hypocrite.

Conclusion on Hypocrisy: From these categories, it is clear that hypocrisy is the state where the outward appearance does not match the inner reality, whether the inner reality contradicts the outward statement, or the inner reality is simply empty of what the outward statement implies.

Therefore, the meaning of the verse, "And among the people are those who say, 'We believe in Allah and the Last Day,'" refers to the Hypocrites.

There are differing opinions:

Opinion 1: The disbelief of the original disbeliever is worse.

• Reason: The original disbeliever is ignorant in the heart and lying with the tongue. The hypocrite is ignorant in the heart but truthful with the tongue (in the sense that they are affirming something they claim to believe).

Opinion 2: The hypocrite is worse.

• Reason: The hypocrite is also lying with the tongue, as they claim to be upon a belief they do not hold. Allah states: "The Bedouins say, 'We have believed.' Say, 'You have not believed; but say, "We have submitted," for faith has not yet entered your hearts'" (49:14), and "And Allah bears witness that the hypocrites are indeed liars" (63:1).

Furthermore, the hypocrite is distinguished by several more reprehensible traits:

1. Intent to Deceive: The hypocrite intends to mislead, whereas the original disbeliever does not necessarily intend deception.
2. Character: The disbeliever acts according to the nature of men, while the hypocrite acts according to the nature of effeminacy/cowardice.
3. Willingness to Lie: The disbeliever disdains lying and only accepts truth, while the hypocrite accepts lying.
4. Mockery: The hypocrite combines disbelief with mockery, unlike the original disbeliever. Because of the severity of their disbelief, Allah states: "Indeed, the hypocrites are in the lowest depths of the Fire" (4:145).
5. Volume of Mention: Mujahid noted that Allah mentioned the believers in four verses, the disbelievers in two, and the hypocrites in thirteen. This suggests the hypocrites' crime is greater. (This view is contested, as the sheer volume of mention does not automatically imply greater sin. The greater sin stems from combining disbelief with deceit, mockery, and seeking mischief.)

Rebuttal to the Volume Argument: The extensive discussion of the hypocrites indicates a greater imperative to guard against their harm, which suggests their crime is more severe than that of the open disbelievers.

This verse indicates two important points:

1. Affirmation without Knowledge is not Faith: Anyone who affirms belief in Allah but does not truly know Him is not a believer (as indicated by "and they are not believers"). This refutes the Karāmiyyah school, which claims such a person is a believer.
   • Proof: If these hypocrites were truly knowledgeable and affirmed belief, their affirmation would constitute faith, as anyone who knows and affirms Allah must be a believer. Since they are not believers, they must lack true knowledge.

2. The Necessity of Knowledge for Accountability: This refutes those theologians who claim all accountable people must possess innate knowledge of Allah, and those who lack it are excused.
   • Proof: If the ignorant were excused, Allah would not have condemned these hypocrites for their lack of true knowledge. Therefore, the position of some theologians that the ignorant are excused is invalidated.

Several derivations are mentioned:

1. From Forgetting: Narrated from Ibn Abbas, the human is named Insān because a covenant (‘ahd) was taken from him, and he forgot it. A poet said: "You are called Insān because you are forgetful."
2. From Sociability: Named Insān because they are sociable with their own kind (isti’nās).
3. From Visibility: They are called Insān because they are apparent (ẓuhūr), and they perceive things (yu’nisūn), derived from the verse about Moses seeing fire: "When he approached it, he was called from the side of the valley..." (28:29). (Just as Jinn are named for being hidden, Ins are named for being visible.)

Note: It is not necessary for every word to be derived from another, as this leads to infinite regress. Therefore, there is no need to insist that Insān must be derived from something else.

Ibn Abbas stated that this verse was revealed concerning the hypocrites among the People of the Book, such as Abdullah ibn Ubayy, Mu‘attab ibn Qushayr, and Jadd ibn Qays. When they met the believers, they would feign faith and say, "We find in our scripture the description and attributes [of the Prophet]," but they would not say this when alone among themselves.

The word Min is suitable for singular, dual, or plural usage.

• Singular example: "And among them are those who listen to you" (6:25).
• Plural example: "And among them are those who listen to you" (10:42).
• The reason is that the word form is singular, but the meaning is collective. When referring to the form, it is singular; when referring to the meaning, it is plural. This verse combines both: Yaqaulu (says) is singular, while Min implies a plural group.

Remaining Questions on the Verse:

Question 1: The hypocrites claimed belief in Allah and the Last Day, but they denied the Prophet's prophethood. Why did Allah deny their claim of belief in Allah and the Last Day?

• Answer: If we apply this to the hypocrites among the polytheists, there is no issue, as most denied Allah and resurrection. If we apply it to the hypocrites among the People of the Book (Jews), Allah denied them because their belief in Allah was not true faith (they believed He was corporeal and claimed Ezra was the son of God). Their belief in the Last Day was also not true faith. Thus, when they said, "We believe in Allah," their malice was doubled: they believed in Him in that false manner in their hearts, while verbally misleading Muslims into thinking their faith was like that of the Muslims. This is why Allah denied them.

Question 2: How does the denial, "And they are not believers" (wa mā hum bi-mu’minīn), correspond to their statement, "We believe in Allah"? The first refers to the action (the state of being a believer), while the second refers to the actor (the person saying "I believe").

• Answer: If someone says, "So-and-so is debating this issue," and you reply, "He did not debate that issue," you have lied to him. But if you say, "He is not one of the debaters," you have exaggerated the denial, implying he does not belong to that category at all. Similarly here, when they said, "We believe in Allah," Allah could have simply said, "They do not believe." But by saying, "And they are not believers," it is a stronger form of denial, negating their very identity as believers. This is analogous to: "They wish to leave the Fire, but they will not leave it," which is stronger than saying, "They will not leave it."

Question 3: What is meant by the "Last Day" (al-Yawm al-Ākhir)?

• Answer: It could mean the eternal time that has no limit (eternity). Or, it could mean the limited time spanning from resurrection until the people of Paradise enter Paradise and the people of the Fire enter the Fire, as this is the last of the limited time periods, after which lies eternity.