“When condition and oath together meet,
Omit the response to whichever comes second; this rule is binding.”

Here, what comes later is the conditional clause, ﴿if﴾, while the oath before it is implicit. The full construction is: “By Allah, if he does not desist, We shall surely drag him.” The meaning of ﴿We shall surely drag him﴾ is: We shall seize him forcefully. ﴿The forelock﴾ means the front of the head. The definite article in “the forelock” indicates a particular referent understood from context. The forelock intended here is that of Abu Jahl, who threatened the Prophet, may Allah bless him and his family and grant them peace, because of his prayer and forbade him from it. In other words: We shall surely seize him by his forelock.

Does this mean that he would be seized by the forelock in this world, or that in the Hereafter he would be dragged by his forelock into the Fire? It may mean either. He may have been seized by the forelock in this world—and indeed he was seized by his forelock on the day of Badr, when he was killed along with the other polytheists who were slain. Or it may mean that he will be seized by his forelock on the Day of Resurrection and cast into the Fire, as Allah Most High says:

﴿The criminals will be known by their marks, then seized by their forelocks and feet.﴾ [al-Rahmān: 41]

When a verse admits two meanings that do not contradict one another, it must be understood as encompassing both. This is the well-known principle that we established previously: when a verse can bear two meanings, neither of which conflicts with the other, both meanings must be accepted.

Regarding His words, ﴿a lying, sinful forelock﴾, ﴿a forelock﴾ is an appositive substitute for the first occurrence of ﴿the forelock﴾. It is an indefinite noun substituted for a definite noun, which is permissible in Arabic. The indefinite form ﴿a forelock﴾ is used to prepare for the description that follows, namely, ﴿lying, sinful﴾. ﴿Lying﴾ means that it is characterized by falsehood. Undoubtedly, among the gravest lies is that of the disbelievers, who claim that there are other gods alongside Allah. This is the falsest of statements and the vilest of deeds.

﴿Sinful﴾ means deliberately committing wrongdoing. It should be understood that there is a difference between a khāti (deliberate sinner) and a mukhti (one who errs unintentionally). The khāti commits wrongdoing deliberately, whereas the mukhti does so unknowingly. The latter is excused, while the former is not. Allah, Mighty and Majestic, says:

﴿None shall eat it except the sinners.﴾ [al-Hāqqa: 37]