Thus, they are a single category, and He portrayed them with these qualities by means of the conjunction “and.” The same pattern appears in His words:

“Indeed, man was created anxious:
when adversity touches him, he is panicky,
and when good touches him, he becomes tight-fisted—
except for those who pray,
who remain constant in their prayer,
who set aside in their wealth a known share
for the beggar and the deprived,
who affirm the Day of Recompense,
who are fearful of their Lord’s punishment—
for their Lord’s punishment is never to be felt secure from—
who guard their private parts,
except with their spouses or those whom their right hands possess, for in that they are not blameworthy;
but whoever seeks beyond that—such people are the transgressors;
who are faithful to their trusts and covenants;
who stand firm in their testimonies;
and who are diligent about their prayers—
such are the ones who will be honored in gardens.” ⦗70:19–35⦘

He has already explained earlier that the phrase “who believe in the unseen” describes the believers who are not from the People of the Book, such as the pagan Arabs, while “those who believe in what was sent down to you and what was sent down before you” characterizes those from the People of the Book who accepted him.

According to that interpretation, these would be two distinct groups. Yet this view is weak, for any believer who is not from the People of the Book must necessarily believe in what was revealed to him and in what was revealed before him, and any believer from the People of the Book must believe in the unseen. Thus, each of the two kinds of faith