The author of al-Rawd al-Bāsim fī al-Dhabb ʿan Sunnat Abī al-Qāsim reported from him that he deemed its chain of transmission good. I have not found this in his work al-Tafsīr; perhaps it appears in one of his other books. Indeed, grading this chain as good is what the principles of this noble science require, for it revolves around ʿAbd al-Raḥmān ibn Abī al-Zinād, concerning whom al-Ḥāfiẓ said: “Truthful; his memory deteriorated after he came to Baghdad, and he was a jurist.”

Thus, al-Haythamī’s statement (7/16), “Ahmad and al-Ṭabarānī narrated it in a similar form. Its chain contains ʿAbd al-Raḥmān ibn Abī al-Zinād, who is weak, though he has been declared trustworthy; and the rest of Ahmad’s narrators are reliable,” is not well phrased. I say: his description of him as “weak, though he has been declared trustworthy” is unsound, because it gives preference to the view of those who deemed him weak over that of those who declared him trustworthy. The truth is that he occupies a middle rank and his hadith are good, unless he contradicts others; yet this cannot be inferred from the statement just quoted concerning him. And Allah knows best.

An important benefit: Once you know that the three verses—“And whoever does not judge by what Allah has revealed—then it is they who are the disbelievers”; “then it is they who are the wrongdoers”; and “then it is they who are the defiantly disobedient”—were revealed concerning the Jews and their statement about his judgment, peace and blessings be upon him: “If he gives you what you want, appoint him as arbiter; but if he does not give it to you, then beware of him and do not appoint him as arbiter”—and that the Quran alluded to this statement of theirs before these verses, saying: “They say, ‘If you are given this, then accept it; but if you are not given it, then beware’”—once you know this, it is not permissible to apply these verses to certain Muslim rulers and judges who rule by other than what Allah has revealed, namely man-made laws. I say: it is not permissible thereby to declare them disbelievers and expel them from the religion if they believe in Allah and His Messenger, even though they are sinful for ruling by other than what Allah has revealed. This is not permissible, for although they resemble the Jews in the respect mentioned regarding their ruling, they differ from them in respect of