Al-Imran: 75
"Among the People of the Scripture is he who, if you entrust him with a kintar..."
From Ibn Abbas:
- "If you entrust him with a kintar": This refers to Abdullah ibn Salam. A man from the Quraysh entrusted him with 1,200 ounces of gold, and he returned it to him.
- "And among them is he who, if you entrust him with a single dinar..." This refers to Finhas ibn Azura. A man from the Quraysh entrusted him with a single dinar, but he denied it and betrayed him. It is said that those who are trustworthy with large amounts are the Christians, due to the prevalence of honesty among them.
"Except as long as you remain standing over him"
Meaning: except for the duration of your persistence, O owner of the right, standing over him, relying on demanding it, rebuking him, or taking him to the judge and establishing evidence against him. It is recited as yu’addihi (with a kasra on the ha, with and without connection) and with a sukun on the ha. Yahya ibn Wathab recited ta’manhu (with a kasra on the ta) and dimta (with a kasra on the dal, from dama-yadamu).
"That is..."
This refers to the failure to return the trust, which is indicated by the phrase "he does not return it to you." That is, their abandonment of returning rights due to their saying:
"There is no blame upon us concerning the unlettered"
Meaning: No reproach or blame attaches to us regarding the unlettered—they mean those who are not of the People of the Scripture—concerning what we do to them by withholding their wealth or harming them, because they are not of our religion. They used to consider it lawful to oppress those who differed from them, saying: "Our scripture has not established any sanctity for them."
It is also said that Jews had business dealings with men from the Quraysh. When the latter converted to Islam, they demanded their rights, and the Jews said: "You have no right over us, since you have abandoned your religion," claiming they found this in their scripture.
From the Prophet (ﷺ), when this was revealed:
"The enemies of God have lied. There is nothing from the Age of Ignorance that is not beneath my feet, except for the trust; for it must be returned to the righteous and the wicked alike."
From Ibn Abbas:
A man asked him, "In battle, we take chickens and sheep from the wealth of the dhimmis (protected non-Muslims)." Ibn Abbas asked, "What do you say?" The man replied, "We say there is no blame upon us in that." Ibn Abbas said, "This is just as the People of the Scripture said: 'There is no blame upon us concerning the unlettered.'"
Once they have paid the jizya, it is not lawful for you to consume their wealth except with their willing consent.
"And they speak lies about Allah"
By claiming that this is in their scripture.
"While they know"
That they are liars.
"But yes..."
This affirms what they denied regarding the "blame" upon them concerning the unlettered. That is: "Yes, there is blame upon you concerning them."
"Whoever fulfills his covenant..."
This is a new sentence confirming the sentence that took the place of "But yes." The pronoun in "his covenant" refers to "whoever fulfills." It means that whoever fulfills what he has covenanted and fears God by abandoning betrayal and treachery, God loves him.
If you ask: This is general, suggesting that if the People of the Scripture fulfilled their covenants and abandoned betrayal, they would earn God's love.
I say: Yes, because if they fulfilled their covenants, the first thing they would fulfill is the greatest covenant: the one taken from them in their scripture to believe in a Messenger who confirms what is with them. And if they feared God by abandoning betrayal, they would fear Him by abandoning lying about God and distorting His words.
It is also permissible for the pronoun to refer to God Almighty, meaning: whoever fulfills the covenant of God and fears Him, God loves him. This includes faith, other righteous deeds, and the necessity of fearing disbelief and evil actions.
If you ask: Where is the pronoun that returns from the reward to the "whoever"?
I say: The generality of "the righteous" stands in place of the returning pronoun.
From Ibn Abbas: It was revealed regarding Abdullah ibn Salam, Buhayra the monk, and their peers among the Muslims of the People of the Scripture.
