Tafsir of Al Imran 3:90

Al Imran: (90) Indeed, those who disbelieved...

The general rule is that the apostate commits an act of increase by persisting and remaining in disbelief, making persistence equivalent to an increase. Alternatively, the increase occurs by adding another disbelief to the initial one. Regarding this second possibility, several interpretations are mentioned:

1. The People of the Book: They were believers in the Prophet Muhammad (PBUH) before his mission, then disbelieved upon his revelation. They then increased in disbelief due to their constant slander against him, breaking their covenant, tempting the believers, and denying every miracle that appeared.
2. The Jews: They believed in Moses (AS), then disbelieved by denying Jesus (AS) and the Gospel. They then increased in disbelief by denying Muhammad (PBUH) and the Qur'an.
3. Those who apostatized and went to Mecca: Their increase in disbelief was their statement: "We will stay in Mecca, waiting for misfortune to befall Muhammad (PBUH)."
4. A group who apostatized and then resolved to return to Islam hypocritically: Allah described this hypocrisy as disbelief.

In the preceding verse, Allah ruled that the repentance of apostates is accepted, but in this verse, He rules that it will not be accepted. This suggests a contradiction. Furthermore, it is established by proof that whenever repentance meets its conditions, it is inevitably accepted. Therefore, commentators differed on the interpretation of "Their repentance will never be accepted" in several ways:

1. Hasan, Qatadah, and 'Ata' said: The reason is that they only repent when death approaches. Allah says: "...But the repentance of those who do evil deeds, until when death comes to one of them, he says, 'Indeed, I repent now...'" (An-Nisa: 18).
2. It applies to those who repent only by the tongue without sincerity in their hearts.
3. Al-Qadi, Al-Qaffal, and Ibn al-Anbari said: Since Allah first mentioned those who disbelieved after believing and established that they are subject to cursing unless they repent, this verse indicates that if they disbelieve again after that initial repentance, the first repentance becomes nullified and as if it never occurred. This view is more appropriate for the verse because the implied context is: "...except for those who repent, believe, and do righteous deeds, then Allah is Forgiving and Merciful. If they then increase in disbelief, their repentance will never be accepted."
4. The author of Al-Kashshaf said: The phrase "Their repentance will never be accepted" is a metaphor for dying while in a state of disbelief. The one whose repentance is not accepted among the disbelievers is the one who dies upon disbelief. It is as if it is said: "The Jews and the apostates who did what they did will die upon disbelief, thus falling under the category of those whose repentance is not accepted."
5. Perhaps it refers to repenting only from that increase in disbelief. Repentance for that increase is not accepted unless repentance for the original disbelief is also achieved.

My view: All these answers hold true if we interpret the phrase "Indeed, those who disbelieved after their faith, then increased in disbelief" as referring to a specific, known group (the contextually mentioned ones), rather than being exhaustive (covering all instances). Otherwise, how many apostates have repented sincerely from their apostasy during the period of accountability? However, the answer attributed to Al-Qaffal and Al-Qadi is consistent whether the wording is taken contextually or exhaustively.

There are two questions concerning this:

1. The phrase "And it is they who are the misguided" seems to negate the misguidance of others. This is not the case, as every disbeliever is misguided, whether they disbelieved after faith or were originally disbelievers.
   • Answer: This is understood to mean that they are the misguided ones in the most complete sense (perfection of misguidance).

2. They were first described as persisting in disbelief and exaggerating in it. Disbelief is the ugliest form of misguidance. A description is usually intended for emphasis (Mubalaghah), and emphasis is achieved by describing something with a stronger state, not a weaker one.
   • Answer: As mentioned, the meaning is that they are the misguided ones in the most complete sense. Under this interpretation, the emphasis is achieved.