(75–77) “Among the People of the Scripture are those who, if you entrust them with a fortune, will return it to you; and among them are those who, if you entrust them with a single dinar, will not return it to you unless you persist in demanding it. That is because they say, ‘We incur no blame concerning the unlettered people.’ They knowingly tell lies about Allah. On the contrary, whoever fulfills his covenant and fears Allah—surely Allah loves those who fear Him. Indeed, those who sell Allah’s covenant and their oaths for a paltry price will have no share in the Hereafter. Allah will neither speak to them nor look at them on the Day of Resurrection, nor will He purify them; and they will have a painful punishment.”
The Most High informs us about the People of the Scripture and their faithfulness or treachery in financial matters, having already mentioned their betrayal of the religion, their scheming, and their concealment of the truth. He tells us that some of them are trustworthy while others are treacherous. Among them are those whom, “if you entrust them with a fortune”—meaning a great sum of wealth—“will return it” to you; all the more, such a person will return anything of lesser value. Among them are also those whom, “if you entrust them with a single dinar, will not return it to you”; all the more, such a person will fail to return anything of greater value.
What led them to betray you and fail to honor their obligations was their claim that they incurred “no blame concerning the unlettered people.” In other words, they claimed that they committed no sin by failing to return the latter’s property. In their corrupt presumption and worthless opinion, they held those people in utter contempt while regarding themselves as supremely exalted, although they themselves were the most abject and contemptible. They therefore considered the unlettered people to possess no sanctity and deemed such conduct permissible. Thus, they combined consuming unlawful wealth with believing it lawful.
This was a lie about Allah, for people understand that when a scholar declares forbidden things lawful, he is reporting Allah’s ruling rather than merely expressing his personal opinion. That is precisely what constitutes lying about Allah. Hence He says, “They knowingly tell lies about Allah.” This is an even graver sin than speaking about Allah without knowledge. He then refuted their corrupt claim.
He said, “On the contrary,” meaning: The matter is not as you claim when you say that you incur no blame concerning the unlettered people. Rather, you incur the gravest blame and the severest sin.
“Whoever fulfills his covenant and fears Allah”: the covenant encompasses that between a servant and his Lord, namely everything that Allah has made obligatory upon the servant concerning His rights. It also encompasses the covenants between that person and other people. In this context, fearing Allah refers to avoiding sins committed between the servant and his Lord and between him and other people. Whoever does so is among those who fear Allah and whom Allah Most High loves, whether they are among the unlettered people or others.
Consequently, whoever says, “We incur no blame concerning the unlettered people,” has neither fulfilled his covenant nor feared Allah. He is therefore not among those whom Allah loves, but among those whom Allah hates. If the unlettered people are known for fulfilling covenants, fearing Allah, and not ⦗136⦘ daring to encroach upon inviolable property, then it is they who are beloved to Allah: those who fear Him, for whom Paradise has been prepared. They are then the best and noblest of Allah’s creation, unlike those who say, “We incur no blame concerning the unlettered people.” Such people fall under His words: “Indeed, those who sell Allah’s covenant and their oaths for a paltry price.”
This includes everyone who acquires some worldly gain in exchange for neglecting a right owed to Allah or to His servants. It likewise includes anyone who swears an oath in order to wrongfully appropriate inviolable property. Such people “will have no share in the Hereafter”—that is, no share of anything good. “Allah will neither speak to them” on the Day of Resurrection, out of anger and wrath toward them, because they preferred their own desires to their Lord’s pleasure. “Nor will He purify them”—that is, cleanse them of their sins or remove their faults. “And they will have a painful punishment,” one that causes pain to both hearts and bodies. It is the punishment of wrath and being veiled, as well as the punishment of Hell. We ask Allah to keep us safe.