Surah Al Imran 3:85
ﱟ ﱠ ﱡ ﱢ ﱣ ﱤ ﱥ ﱦ ﱧ ﱨ ﱩ ﱪ ﱫ
And whoever desires other than Islam as religion - never will it be accepted from him, and he, in the Hereafter, will be among the losers.
Tafsir of Al Imran 3:85
Tafsir
Mafatih al-Ghayb
Verse range: 3:85
| Al Imran: (85) And whoever seeks a religion other than...
Know that when the Almighty said at the end of the preceding verse: {And We are to Him submissive} (Al Imran: 84), He followed it by clarifying in this verse that religion is nothing but Islam, and that any religion other than Islam is not accepted by God. This is because the acceptance of an action requires that God be pleased with that action, pleased with its doer, and reward him for it. Therefore, the Almighty said: {Indeed, God only accepts from the righteous} (Al Ma'idah: 27).
Then the Almighty clarified that whoever adopts a religion other than Islam, just as it will not be accepted by God, so too will they be among the losers. Loss in the Hereafter involves deprivation of reward and the attainment of punishment. This includes the regret and sorrow they will feel over the righteous deeds they missed in the world, and over the toil and hardship they endured in the world to establish that false religion.
Know that the apparent meaning of this verse indicates that Iman (faith) is Islam. If Iman were different from Islam, it would necessitate that Iman not be accepted, due to the Almighty's saying: {And whoever seeks a religion other than Islam, it will never be accepted from him}.
However, the apparent meaning of the Almighty's saying: {The Bedouins say, "We have believed." Say, "You have not believed; but say, 'We have submitted [as Muslims],' for belief has not yet entered your hearts"} (Al Hujurat: 14) implies that Islam is distinct from Iman.
The way to reconcile between them is to interpret the first verse (the one under discussion) in terms of the Sharia terminology (the established religious usage), and the second verse (Al Hujurat: 14) in terms of linguistic usage.
| Al Imran: (87-90)
{How will God guide a people who disbelieved after their belief and had testified that the Messenger was true and the clear proofs had come to them? And God does not guide the wrongdoing people. Those! Their recompense is that upon them is the curse of God, the angels, and all the people. Abiding therein; the punishment will not be lightened for them, nor will they be reprieved. Except for those who repent thereafter and set things right, for indeed, God is Forgiving and Merciful.}