3- The Prophet’s statement, “and whoever lays claim to what is not his,” covers every groundless claim—of lineage, wealth, knowledge, craft, or anything else. Whatever a person asserts while knowingly lying, the Prophet ﷺ has disowned him; he belongs to the people of Hell, so let him choose his seat there. How much worse when he props up his false claims with perjured oaths in order to devour people’s property! His harm is immense and his case exceedingly grave.

4- The third threat concerns anyone who casually brands another with kufr (disbelief) or fisq (flagrant sin), denies him faith, or levels similar charges against one who does not deserve them. In reality, the accuser is more entitled to those labels than the accused, for the slander rebounds upon him—“the recompense matches the deed.”

5- From this we learn the prohibition of declaring Muslims disbelievers without a valid Sharʿi basis and without clear, blatant kufr. Excommunicating someone from Islam is a momentous matter; no one should venture into it except with insight, careful verification, and sound knowledge.

Disagreement among the scholars

The scholars of Ahl al-Sunnah are unanimous that a Muslim does not become a disbeliever through sins in a way that expels him from the religion. Yet the Lawgiver sometimes applies the term kufr to certain sinful acts, as in the ḥadith before us, and scholars have differed in explaining this usage.

The majority hold that such aḥadith were spoken as stern warnings and deterrents; they should be left in their full, alarming force, without reinterpretation. Other scholars have construed them to mean ingratitude for blessings, or that the person has come close to kufr, or that the threat applies to one who deems the act permissible, thereby rejecting the unequivocal texts of the Sharia and thus falling into real disbelief.

Similarly, the phrase “he is not one of us” means that he is not following our perfect, straight path; it signals a deficiency in his faith and religion, not outright apostasy.

The preferable view is that of the majority: leave these texts indefinite so that their intended effect remains—a deterrent that restrains people from violating Allah’s sanctities. Human souls are naturally inclined toward desire, and such noble texts may serve as a needed curb. Allah knows best.