(28) “Keep yourself patiently with those who call upon their Lord morning and evening, seeking His countenance. Do not let your eyes pass beyond them, desiring the adornment of this worldly life. And do not obey one whose heart We have made heedless of Our remembrance, who follows his own desires, and whose affairs have fallen into neglect.”
Allah Most High commands His Prophet Muhammad—may Allah bless him and grant him peace—and all others, who are to follow his example in commands and prohibitions, to remain patiently in the company of devout, repentant believers, “those who call upon their Lord morning and evening”—that is, at the beginning and end of the day—seeking thereby the countenance of Allah. He thus describes them as worshippers who are sincere in their worship. The verse therefore commands keeping the company of righteous people, striving against oneself to remain with them, and associating with them even if they are poor, for their company brings benefits beyond measure.
“Do not let your eyes pass beyond them.” That is, do not look past them or turn your gaze away from them, “desiring the adornment of this worldly life.” This is harmful rather than beneficial, and it cuts one off from religious interests. It causes the heart to become attached to this world, so that one’s thoughts and preoccupations revolve around it and the heart’s desire for the Hereafter disappears. The adornment of this world delights the beholder and bewitches the mind, causing the heart to become heedless of Allah’s remembrance and to turn instead toward pleasures and desires. A person then wastes his time, his affairs fall into disarray, and he suffers everlasting loss and perpetual regret. Hence He says: “And do not obey one whose heart We have made heedless of Our remembrance.” He was heedless of Allah, so Allah punished him by making him heedless of His remembrance.
“Who follows his own desires.” That is, he has become subservient to his desires: whatever his soul craves, he does and strives to attain, even if it leads to his destruction and loss. He has taken his own desires as his god, as Allah Most High says: “Have you seen the one who takes his own desire as his god, and whom Allah has led astray knowingly?”—to the end of the verse.
“And whose affairs”—that is, the interests of his religion and worldly life—“have fallen into neglect”; they are lost and abandoned. Allah has therefore forbidden obedience to such a person, because obeying him leads to following his example, and because he calls only to what characterizes him.
The verse also indicates that the one who deserves to be obeyed and made a leader for the people is one whose heart is filled with love for Allah, whose tongue overflows with that love and constantly remembers Allah, and who pursues what pleases his Lord, giving it precedence over his own desires. Through this he preserves his time, his condition is set aright, his deeds become upright, and he calls people to that with which Allah has favored him. Such a person truly deserves to be followed and made a leader.
The patience mentioned in this verse is patience in obeying Allah, which is the highest form of patience; when it is perfected, all the other forms are perfected as well. The verse also establishes the desirability of remembering Allah, supplicating Him, and worshipping Him at both ends of the day. Allah praises them for doing so, and whenever Allah praises the doer of an act, this indicates that He loves that act. Since He loves it, He commands and encourages it.