that verse from al-Baqarah (2:284) weighed heavily upon the Companions of the Messenger of Allah ﷺ. They went to the Messenger of Allah ﷺ, dropped to their knees, and said, “O Messenger of Allah, we have been enjoined with deeds we can manage—prayer, jihad, fasting, and charity—but this verse has now been revealed to you and we cannot bear it.”

The Messenger of Allah ﷺ replied, “Do you want to say what the people of the two Scriptures said before you, ‘We hear and we disobey’? Rather, say: ‘We hear and we obey. Your forgiveness, our Lord, and to You is the return.’”

They therefore said, “We hear and we obey. Your forgiveness, our Lord, and to You is the return.” When the Companions had recited it and their tongues submitted to it, Allah Most High then revealed: “The Messenger has believed in what was sent down to him from his Lord, and so have the believers. All of them believe in Allah, His angels, His books, and His messengers—they make no distinction between any of His messengers. And they say, ‘We hear and we obey. Your forgiveness, our Lord, and to You is the destination’” (al-Baqarah 2:285). When