Commentary
Al-Nawawī—may Allah have mercy on him—says in his Riyāḍ al-Ṣāliḥīn under the heading, “Chapter: Urging the judge, the ruler, and anyone else who holds authority to appoint a righteous adviser, and warning against evil companions.” After that the author quotes the saying of Allah, Most High: “Close friends will, on that Day, become enemies to one another, except for the God-fearing” (Q 43:67).

The word al-akhillāʾ is the plural of khalīl. A khalīl is someone who loves you and whom you love with such profound affection that the love permeates the whole body. In this sense the poet says:
You have insinuated yourself along the pathway of my very soul—
and for that reason the beloved is called khalīl.

When affection is genuine and deep, the highest degree of love is khulla (intimate friendship). For this reason Allah took Abraham as a khalīl, and He also took Muhammad (peace and blessings be upon him) as a khalīl. We know of no one else from creation whom He has honored with khulla besides these two prophets, Abraham and Muhammad—may Allah’s peace be upon them both.

Hence we say: whoever declares, “Abraham is the Friend (khalīl) of Allah, Moses is the one to whom Allah spoke, and Muhammad is the Beloved (ḥabīb) of Allah,” has wronged Muhammad (peace and blessings be upon him). By describing him merely as Allah’s beloved, he has lowered his rank, for the Prophet—peace be upon him—is higher than that. Allah loves the believers, He loves those who act justly, and He loves the God-fearing; His love is expansive. Khulla, however, is not granted to everyone.