Likewise, lying is an unlawful and repugnant act for everyone, whether the person is habitually truthful or a liar. How much more blameworthy, then, is the one who explains the intent of Allah and His Messenger in a way that anyone acquainted with their message knows—by self-evident knowledge—they never intended; indeed, he is certain that the intended meaning was universal.

For His words, Exalted is He,
“Whoever seeks a religion other than Islam, it will never be accepted from him” (Q 3:85),
are phrased in universal terms. The conditional particle “whoever” (man) is among the most emphatic forms of generality, just as in His saying,
“So whoever does an atom’s weight of good shall see it” (Q 99:7) (7) “and whoever does an atom’s weight of evil shall see it” (Q 99:8).

Moreover, the context of the passage shows that He meant both the People of the Book and others, for this verse appears in Sūrah Āl ʿImrān during His address to the People of the Book and His disputation with the Christians. It was revealed when the Christian delegation from Najrān came to the Prophet—may Allah bless him and grant him peace—said to have numbered sixty horsemen, among them al-Sayyid, al-Ayham, and al-ʿAqib. Their story is famous and has already been mentioned.

Prior to these words He had condemned the religion the Christians innovated, by which they altered the religion of the Messiah, obscuring the truth with which the Messiah had been sent and blending it with the falsehood they themselves introduced.