ﱁ ﱂ ﱃ ﱄ ﱅ ﱆ ﱇ ﱈ ﱉ ﱊ ﱋ ﱌ ﱍ ﱎ ﱏ ﱐ ﱑ ﱒ ﱓ ﱔ ﱕ ﱖ ﱗ ﱘ ﱙ ﱚ ﱛ ﱜ ﱝ ﱞ ﱟ ﱠ
Indeed, those who came with falsehood are a group among you. Do not think it bad for you; rather it is good for you. For every person among them is what [punishment] he has earned from the sin, and he who took upon himself the greater portion thereof - for him is a great punishment.
Tafsir
Verse range: 24:11
"The Ifk (The Lie)": It is the most extreme form of falsehood and fabrication. It is also said: It is a slander that takes you by surprise before you are aware of it. Its root is al-afk, meaning "inversion," because it is a statement inverted from its true reality. The intended meaning here is the lie fabricated against Aisha (may Allah be pleased with her).
"A group (ʿuṣbah)": A band of people ranging from ten to forty; the same applies to al-ʿiṣābah. Iʿṣawṣabū means they gathered together. They were: Abdullah ibn Ubayy, the head of hypocrisy, Zayd ibn Rifa'ah, Hassan ibn Thabit, Mistah ibn Uthatha, Hamnah bint Jahsh, and those who assisted them.
It is recited as kibruhu (with a damma) and kibrihu (with a kasra), both meaning its magnitude. The one who took the lead in it was Abdullah, due to his deep-seated enmity toward the Messenger of Allah (peace be upon him), his seizing of opportunities, and his seeking of any path to find fault.
"For every person among the group who participated in the lie, there is a portion of the sin according to the extent of his involvement." The "great punishment" is for Abdullah, because the bulk of the evil originated from him.
It is narrated that Safwan (may Allah be pleased with him) passed by her litter while he was among a group of his people. He asked, "Who is this?" They replied, "Aisha (may Allah be pleased with her)." He said, "By Allah, she did not escape him, nor did he escape her," and he said, "The wife of your Prophet spent the night with a man until morning, and then he came leading her."
The address in His saying, "It is better for you," is directed to the believers who were distressed by this, especially the Messenger of Allah (peace be upon him), Abu Bakr, Aisha, and Safwan ibn al-Mu'attal (may Allah be pleased with them).
The meaning of it being "better for them" is that they earned great reward through it. It was a clear trial and an evident test. Eighteen verses were revealed regarding it, each one independent in:
"Why, when you heard it, did the believing men and believing women not think well of their own people and say, 'This is a clear falsehood?'"
