Another report says: “The verse was revealed about two men who fell into a dispute. One of them said, ‘Let us take our case to the Prophet ﷺ,’ while the other replied, ‘To Kaʿb ibn al-Ashraf.’ They then went to ʿUmar. One of the two told him what had happened, whereupon he turned to the man who would not be content with the judgment of Allah’s Messenger ﷺ and asked, ‘Is that really how it was?’ He answered, ‘Yes.’ So ʿUmar struck him with his sword and killed him.”

Biographical note: Kaʿb ibn al-Ashraf was an Arab Jew of the Tayy tribe; his mother was from Banū al-Naḍīr, and he was fiercely hostile to the Prophet ﷺ.

“It was revealed”: i.e., the verse mentioned earlier.

Overall meaning of the report: This narration provides an alternative explanation for the revelation of the noble verse, “Have you not seen those who claim…,” and relates that when the incident reached ʿUmar ibn al-Khaṭṭāb (Allah be pleased with him) and he verified it, he executed the man who had refused the judgment of the Messenger of Allah ﷺ.

Relevance to the chapter: It serves as evidence that whoever seeks judgment from a source other than Allah’s law is guilty of unbelief and deserves execution, for he has apostatized from Islam.

Lessons derived from the report:

1. Submitting disputes to anyone other than Allah and His Messenger ﷺ constitutes apostasy from Islam.
2. An apostate from Islam is to be put to death.
3. Calling others to seek judgment from something other than Allah’s law is a trait of the hypocrites, even if the proposed judge is a virtuous leader such as ʿUmar ibn al-Khaṭṭāb (Allah be pleased with him).