(83) “And when We took the covenant of the Children of Israel: ‘Worship none but Allah; show kindness to parents, relatives, orphans, and the needy; speak kindly to people; establish prayer; and give zakat.’ Then you turned away—all but a few of you—and you were averse.”
These injunctions are among the foundations of religion that Allah has commanded in every revealed law, for they embody universal benefits in every time and place. They are therefore not subject to abrogation, just as the foundation of religion is not. Hence, He commanded us to observe them in His words: “Worship Allah and associate nothing with Him,” to the end of the verse.
His words, “And when We took the covenant of the Children of Israel,” reflect their hardness: whenever they were given any command, they resisted and would accept it only under solemn oaths and binding covenants. “Worship none but Allah” commands the worship of Allah alone and forbids associating partners with Him. This is the foundation of religion, and no deeds whatsoever will be accepted unless it is their foundation. This is Allah Most High’s right over His servants.
He then says, “Show kindness to parents,” meaning: treat your parents with kindness. This encompasses every form of kindness toward them in word and deed. It also prohibits both mistreating parents and withholding kindness from them, for kindness is obligatory, and a command to do something entails a prohibition of its opposite.
Kindness has two opposites: mistreatment, which is the graver sin, and withholding kindness without committing mistreatment. The latter is also prohibited, though it need not be ranked with the former. The same applies to caring for relatives, orphans, and the needy. The particular forms that kindness may take cannot be exhaustively enumerated; rather, they are determined by its general definition, as explained previously.
He then commanded kindness toward people in general, saying: “Speak kindly to people.” Kind speech includes enjoining what is right, forbidding what is wrong, teaching them knowledge, extending greetings of peace, showing cheerfulness, and every other form of wholesome speech.
Since a person cannot encompass everyone with his wealth, Allah commanded something by which he can show kindness to every creature: kind speech. This also entails the prohibition of addressing people offensively, even disbelievers. Allah Most High therefore says: “Do not argue with the People of the Book except in the best manner.”
Among the standards of conduct with which Allah has refined ⦗58⦘ His servants is that a person should be honorable in word and deed—neither obscene nor foul-mouthed, abusive, or quarrelsome. Rather, he should possess good character, great forbearance, and graciousness toward everyone, patiently enduring whatever harm he suffers from people in obedience to Allah’s command and in hope of His reward.
He then commanded them to establish prayer and give zakat, for, as previously explained, prayer embodies sincere devotion to the One worshipped, while zakat embodies kindness toward His servants.
“Then,” after you had been given these excellent commands—commands which any discerning, rational person, upon considering them, would recognize as an expression of Allah’s kindness toward His servants, since He commanded them to observe them, favored them with them, and took solemn covenants from you—“you turned away” in outright rejection. A person may turn away while still intending to return to what he has left, but these people had neither any desire for these commands nor any intention of returning to them. We seek refuge in Allah from being forsaken.
His words, “all but a few of you,” constitute an exception so that it is not assumed that they all turned away. He thus informs us that Allah protected a few of them and kept them steadfast.