ﳂ ﳃ ﳄ ﳅ ﳆ ﳇ ﳈ ﳉ ﳊ ﳋ ﳌ ﳍ ﳎ ﳏ ﳐ ﳑ
[It was] so that Allah may punish the hypocrite men and hypocrite women and the men and women who associate others with Him and that Allah may accept repentance from the believing men and believing women. And ever is Allah Forgiving and Merciful.
Tafsir
Verse range: 33:73
So that Allah may punish the hypocrites...
This implies that humanity carried it (the Trust) so that the hypocrite and the polytheist would be punished.
If someone asks: Why was punishment mentioned before repentance?
We reply: Because Allah described the religious obligation (Taklīf) as a Trust (Amānah). A necessary consequence of a trust is that the betrayer is liable for compensation (guarantee). It is not a necessary consequence that the trustworthy person who exerts their utmost effort receives a reward. Therefore, punishment for betrayal is like a necessary consequence, whereas reward for safeguarding the trust is an act of grace (Ihsān). Justice precedes grace.
In this context, there are two issues:
Why did Allah not repeat His name, saying, "and Allah punishes the polytheists"? Yet, when mentioning repentance, He repeated His name, saying, "and Allah turns in forgiveness" (or "and Allah forgives"). If He had said, "and forgives the believers," the meaning would have been conveyed.
Reply: Allah intended to elevate the status of the believer above the hypocrite, making the statement about forgiveness a fresh, independent clause. This necessitates the explicit mention of the actor (Allah) as the subject: "and Allah turns in forgiveness" (وَيَتُوبُ اللَّهُ). This is further supported by the reading of those who recite وَيَتُوبُ اللَّهُ with the nominative case (Rafa').
Allah mentioned two characteristics of humanity: "Most unjust and most ignorant" (ظَلُومًا جَهُولًا). He then mentioned two of His own characteristics: "And Allah was ever Forgiving, Merciful" (وَكَانَ اللَّهُ غَفُورًا رَحِيمًا).
This means: Allah is Forgiving towards the unjust (ظَلُومًا) and Merciful towards the ignorant (جَهُولًا).
This is because Allah Almighty promised His servants that He forgives all injustice, except the great injustice, which is polytheism (Shirk), as He said: "Indeed, association with Allah is a great injustice" (Luqmān: 13). As for the promise of forgiveness, it is in His saying: "Indeed, Allah does not forgive association with Him in partnership, but He forgives what is less than that of whom He wills" (An-Nisā’: 48).
As for mercy concerning ignorance, it is because ignorance is a subject deserving of mercy. This is why the wrongdoer often offers the excuse: "I did not know."
Allah informed His servant (humanity) that He is Forgiving and Merciful. He made humanity see itself as most unjust and most ignorant. Then, He offered humanity the Trust. Humanity accepted it despite its injustice and ignorance, due to its knowledge of the forgiveness and mercy that would mend its flaws. And Allah knows best.
