He said: “This refers to prosperity.” Concerning “But if evil befalls them, they say, ‘This is from you,’” he said: “This refers to adversity.”

Al-Suddī said:

“‘If good befalls them’—good being abundance, whereby their horses, cattle, and other livestock reproduce, their circumstances improve, and their women bear sons—‘they say, “This is from Allah.” But if evil befalls them’—evil being harm to their property—they regard Muhammad as an ill omen and say: ‘This is from you.’ They mean: ‘This affliction has befallen us because we abandoned our religion and followed Muhammad.’ Allah then revealed: ‘Say, “All is from Allah”’—both good and evil—‘So what is wrong with these people that they can hardly understand any speech?’” He said that “speech” meant the Quran.

Al-Wālibī reported from Ibn ‘Abbās concerning “Whatever good befalls you is from Allah”: “This means the victory Allah granted you on the day of Badr.” Al-Dahhāk said likewise.

Al-Wālibī also reported from Ibn ‘Abbās concerning “Whatever good”: “Whatever spoils and victory he obtained were from Allah.” He said: “‘Evil’ refers to what befell him on the day of Uhud, when his face was wounded and his lateral incisor was broken.”

He also said: “As for ‘good,’ Allah bestowed it upon you as a blessing; as for ‘evil,’ Allah tested you with it.”