“So their Lord answered them: ‘I will never allow the deed of any of you—male or female—to be lost; you are of one another. Those who emigrated, were driven from their homes, suffered in My cause, fought, and were killed—I will surely absolve them of their misdeeds and admit them into gardens beneath which rivers flow, as a reward from Allah. And with Allah is the finest reward.’” (195)
The words, “Our Lord, we have heard a caller,” refer to Muhammad, peace and blessings be upon him. This was said by Ibn Mas‘ud, Ibn ‘Abbas—may Allah be pleased with them—and most scholars. Al-Qurazi said that it refers to the Quran, since not everyone encounters the Prophet, peace and blessings be upon him. “Calling to faith” means calling to faith. “Believe in your Lord, and so we have believed. Our Lord, forgive us our sins, erase our misdeeds, and cause us to die among the righteous,” that is, in the company of the righteous.
“Our Lord, grant us what You have promised us through Your messengers,” meaning, through the tongues of Your messengers. “And do not disgrace us,” that is, do not punish us, destroy us, expose us, or humiliate us, “on the Day of Resurrection. Truly, You never break Your promise.”
If it is asked: What is the sense of their saying, “Our Lord, grant us what You have promised us through Your messengers,” when they knew that Allah never breaks His promise? The answer is that its wording is that of supplication, while its meaning is declarative: You will surely grant us what You promised us through Your messengers. Its implied meaning is: “Forgive us our sins, erase our misdeeds, and do not disgrace us on the Day of Resurrection,” so that You may grant us what You promised us through Your messengers of bounty and mercy.
It was also said that its meaning is: Our Lord, make us ⦗76b⦘ among those who deserve Your reward, to whom You grant what You promised them through the tongues of Your messengers. This is because they were not certain that they deserved that honor, so they asked Him to make them deserving of it. It was also said that they only asked Him to hasten what He had promised them of victory over their enemies. They said: We know that You do not break Your promise, but we have no patience for Your forbearance; so hasten their disgrace and grant us victory over them.
His saying, Most High: “So their Lord answered them: ‘I…’” means, “by saying: I…” “I will never allow to be lost” means: I will not render vain. “The deed of any of you,” O believers, “male or female.” Mujahid said: Umm Salamah said, “O Messenger of Allah, I hear Allah mention…”