whom they love as they love Allah.

Allah, glorified and exalted be He, has commanded that none be worshipped but Him, that all religion be devoted to Him alone, that loyalty and enmity be for His sake, that reliance be placed in Him alone, and that help be sought from Him alone.

The believer who follows the messengers commands people to do what the messengers commanded them, so that all religion may be devoted to Allah, not to himself. If someone else commands the same, he loves and supports him, and rejoices that what he seeks has been achieved.

When he does good to people, he does so only to seek the Face of his Lord, the Most High. He knows that Allah has favoured him by making him one who does good rather than one who does evil. He therefore recognizes that his deeds are for Allah and are accomplished through Allah’s help. This is mentioned in the Opening of the Book, which, as we have explained, all creation needs more than anything else. For this reason, reciting it, unlike the other surahs, has been made obligatory upon them in every prayer. Nothing like it has been revealed in the Torah, the Gospel, the Psalms, or the Quran. For it contains:

“You alone we worship, and You alone we ask for help.”

Thus the believer recognizes that his deeds are for Allah, because he worships Him alone, and that they are accomplished through Allah’s help, because he