believers.” This means that He created them all, and they acknowledged Him as their Creator. Some thanked their Creator, acknowledging His blessings and His bringing them from nonexistence into existence. They thus affirmed His act of creation, accepted what His messengers brought, and worshipped their Lord alone.

Others disbelieved and did not thank their Creator. They wrongfully ascribed partners to Him and rejected His messengers, thus becoming disbelievers through their own deeds.

Something similar has been reported from the Prophet, peace and blessings be upon him, who said:

“Every child is born upon the natural disposition until he can express himself in speech. Once he can do so, he is either grateful or ungrateful.”

Allah Most High says:

“So remember Me; I will remember you. Be grateful to Me, and do not be ungrateful to Me.”

When some obeyed this command while others turned away from it, they were the ones meant by His words:

“Some of you are disbelievers, and some of you are believers.”

He, glorified is He, also says concerning the believers:

“But Allah has endeared faith to you and made it beautiful in your hearts, and has made disbelief, wickedness, and disobedience hateful to you.”

He thus states that He did this for them after creating them. He did not say, “He created you as believers and made disbelief hateful to you.” This indicates that He did not do for the disbeliever what He did for the believer. It is the clearest evidence that they were not created as either disbelievers or believers by their very constitution).