and he did not say, “would nearly swerve” with the feminine form. The others recited it with the feminine prefix. Swerving means inclining; that is, after the hearts of a party among them had nearly ⦗166/a⦘ inclined—the hearts of some of them. This does not mean inclining away from the religion; rather, it means inclining toward remaining behind and turning back because of the hardship they faced. Al-Kalbi said: “Some people contemplated staying behind, but then caught up with him.”
“Then He accepted their repentance.” If it is asked: How did He repeat the mention of repentance when He had said at the beginning of the verse, “Allah has certainly turned in mercy to the Prophet”? It is said: He mentioned repentance at the beginning of the verse before mentioning the sin, and this was pure grace from Allah, exalted is He. Then, when He mentioned the sin, He repeated the mention of repentance; what is meant by it is its acceptance.
“Indeed, He is Most Kind and Most Merciful to them.” Ibn Abbas said: “Whomever Allah accepts in repentance, He will never punish.”
His words, exalted is He: “And upon the three who were left behind”: that is, they remained behind from the expedition to Tabuk. It was also said that their cases were deferred, apart from the repentance of Abu Lubabah and his companions. These three were Kaʿb ibn Malik, the poet; Murarah ibn al-Rabiʿ; and Hilal ibn Umayyah, all of them from the Helpers.
Abd al-Wahid ibn Ahmad al-Mulayhi informed us; Ahmad ibn Abd Allah al-Nuʿaymi informed us; Muhammad ibn Yusuf informed us; Muhammad ibn Ismaʿil related to us; Yahya ibn Bukayr related to us; al-Layth related from ʿUqayl, from Ibn Shihab, from Abd al-Rahman ibn Abd Allah ibn Kaʿb ibn Malik, that Abd Allah ibn Kaʿb ibn Malik—who, after Kaʿb became blind, was his guide from among his sons—said: “I heard Kaʿb ibn Malik relate the account of when he remained behind from [the expedition of] (1) Tabuk.”
Kaʿb said: “I never remained behind from the Messenger of Allah, peace and blessings be upon him, in any expedition he undertook except the expedition of Tabuk. Yet I had remained behind from the expedition of Badr, but he did not reproach anyone who had remained behind from it. The Messenger of Allah, peace and blessings be upon him, had only set out intending the caravan of Quraysh, until Allah brought them together with their enemy without a prior appointment.
“I was present with the Messenger of Allah, peace and blessings be upon him, on the night of al-ʿAqabah, when we pledged ourselves to Islam. I would not wish to have exchanged it for participation at Badr, even though Badr is more widely remembered among people than it. My situation was that I had never been stronger or more prosperous than when I remained behind from him on that expedition. By Allah, I had never possessed two riding mounts at one time before it, until I possessed them both for that expedition.
“The Messenger of Allah, peace and blessings be upon him, would not intend an expedition without giving the impression that he intended another destination, until this expedition. The Messenger of Allah, peace and blessings be upon him, undertook it in intense heat, facing a long journey, a waterless desert, and a numerous enemy. He made their situation clear to the Muslims so that they could make the necessary preparations for their campaign, and he informed them of the destination he intended. The Muslims with the Messenger of Allah, peace and blessings be upon him, were numerous, and no register kept account of them.
“Kaʿb said: Any man wishing to remain absent would assume that this would go unnoticed, unless revelation from Allah was sent down concerning him. The Messenger of Allah, peace and blessings be upon him, undertook that expedition when the fruits and the shade were pleasant, and the Messenger of Allah, peace and blessings be upon him, and the Muslims prepared.”