Tafsir of At-Tahreem 66:3

{To some of his wives} Hafsa. The secret he confided to her was the matter of Mariya and the [matter of] the leadership (imama).

{She disclosed it} She spread it to Aisha. It is also read: Anba’at bihi (she announced it).

{And Allah made it known to him} He informed the Prophet, peace be upon him, of the secret—that is, of her disclosing it—by the tongue of Gabriel. It is also said: Allah made the secret manifest to the Prophet, peace be upon him, from the root al-zuhur (to appear).

{He made known part of it} He informed her of part of the secret out of generosity. Sufyan said: "Overlooking [faults] has always been the practice of the noble." It is also read: ‘arafa ba‘dahu (he acknowledged part of it), meaning: he held it against her, as when you say to an evildoer: "I shall certainly acknowledge this against you," and "I have acknowledged what you have done." From this is: {Those are the ones of whom Allah knows what is in their hearts} (4:63), which is frequent in the Quran. His recompense for her was to divorce her.

It is said: The part made known was the matter of the leadership, and the part he turned away from was the matter of Mariya. It is narrated that he, peace be upon him, said to her: "Did I not tell you to keep it secret from me?" She replied: "By the One who sent you with the truth, I could not control myself out of joy for the honor Allah bestowed upon her father."

If you ask: Why was it not said: "When she disclosed it to some of them, and he made known to her some of it"? I reply: The purpose is not to clarify who was told or who was informed. Rather, it is to mention the offense of Hafsa in the act of disclosing and spreading it, and that the Messenger of Allah, peace be upon him, in his generosity and forbearance, only informed her of part of it—which was the matter of the leadership. Do you not see that when the intent in His saying: {When he informed her of it, she said: "Who told you this?"} (66:3) was to mention the one informed, how He brought forth the pronoun?

{If you two repent to Allah, then your hearts have indeed deviated; but if you support one another against him, then indeed Allah is his protector, and Gabriel and the righteous among the believers, and the angels, moreover, are [his] assistants.}