“So they returned with a blessing and bounty from Allah; no harm touched them. They pursued the pleasure of Allah, and Allah is the Possessor of great bounty.” (174)

“Those to whom people said”: the grammatical position of “those” is likewise genitive, coordinated with the first occurrence of “those.” According to Mujahid and Ikrimah, “people” here refers to Nu'aym ibn Mas'ud. Thus, this is a general expression intended to refer to a particular individual, like His saying, Exalted is He, “Or do they envy people”—meaning Muhammad, may Allah bless him and grant him peace, alone. Muhammad ibn Ishaq and a group of scholars said that “people” refers to the caravan of Abd al-Qays.

“Indeed, the people have gathered against you”: that is, Abu Sufyan and his companions. “So fear them”: meaning, fear them and beware of them, for you have no power to withstand them. But this only increased them in faith, conviction, and strength. They said, “Allah is Sufficient for us”: that is, Allah is enough for us. “And He is the Best Disposer of affairs”: that is, the One to whom matters are entrusted; the active form here carries a passive meaning.

Abd al-Wahid ibn Ahmad al-Mulayhi informed us; Ahmad ibn Abd Allah al-Nu'aymi informed us; Muhammad ibn Yusuf informed us; Muhammad ibn Isma'il informed us; Ahmad ibn Yunus informed us; Abu Bakr informed us, from Abu Husayn, from Abu al-Duha, from Ibn Abbas, may Allah be pleased with him, who said: “Allah is Sufficient for us, and He is the Best Disposer of affairs” was said by Abraham when he was cast into the fire, and by Muhammad, may Allah bless him and grant him peace, when they said: “Indeed, the people have gathered against you, so fear them.” But it only increased them in faith, and they said, “Allah is Sufficient for us, and He is the Best Disposer of affairs.” (1)

“So they returned”: that is, they departed. “With a blessing from Allah”: with well-being, having encountered no enemy; “and bounty”: trade and profit, which was what they gained