Likewise, if He had meant giving up disbelief and embracing faith, the wording would have been, “until the clear evidence comes to them”—meaning that they would not know the truth until a prophet comes to make it known to them, or would not heed admonition and act upon it until someone comes to admonish and remind them. This is therefore not a place for the past tense, unlike saying, “They remained disbelievers until he came to them.”

The verse thus states that clear evidence must be established and that they cannot be released without it. Its purpose is not merely to report that they were not released and then were released at some point in the past. It is as though He had said, “They would not be released until the clear evidence comes to them.” Here, however, He used the plural active participle, munfakkīn (“released”).

Having explained that messengers must be sent to those who disbelieved among the polytheists and the People of the Book, so that the proof might thereby be established against them, He, glorified be He, then explained that the People of the Book who believed in the messengers became divided only after the clear evidence had come to them and the proof had been established against them. Allah’s clear signs and His proof were thus established against both groups. He punished neither group until the clear evidence had come to them and the proof had been established against them, as in the account of Moses and those to whom he was sent. Allah did not leave Pharaoh and his people alone without sending Moses to them, nor did He punish them until after establishing the proof against them. Then, once the Children of Israel had believed in the Scriptures and the messengers, they became divided and fell into disagreement only