general; and this somewhat weakens the view.

We therefore now have two views:

The first is that it is repetition for emphasis.

The second is that it refers to the future.

The third view is that ﴿I do not worship what you worship﴾ means: I do not worship the idols that you worship; and ﴿nor are you worshippers of what I worship﴾ means: you do not worship Allah. As for ﴿Nor am I a worshipper of what you worship, nor are you worshippers of what I worship﴾, this concerns the manner of worship: my worship is not like yours, nor is your worship like mine. The negation is therefore directed at the act, not its object; that is, it does not negate the object of worship but rather the manner of worship. In other words, I do not worship as you worship, nor do you worship as I do, because my worship is sincerely devoted to Allah, whereas yours is worship involving polytheism.

The fourth view, chosen by Shaykh al-Islam Ibn Taymiyya—may Allah have mercy on him—(1), is that His words, ﴿I do not worship what you worship, nor are you worshippers of what I worship﴾, concern the act itself. In this sentence, therefore, it agrees with the first view. His words, ﴿Nor am I a worshipper of what you worship, nor are you worshippers of what I worship﴾, concern acceptance. That is: I will never accept any worship other than my own, nor will I accept your worship; and likewise, you will never accept mine. Thus, the first pair of clauses concerns the act, while the second concerns acceptance and approval. In other words, I neither worship it nor approve of it; and the same applies to you: you neither worship Allah nor approve of worshipping Him.

Upon reflection, none of the foregoing objections applies to this view, making it a sound and commendable position. From this we learn that absolutely nothing in the Noble Quran is repeated without a purpose; whenever something is repeated, that repetition serves a purpose. For if we were to