4- Qatadah: Qatadah ibn Diʿamah al-Sadusi, a distinguished Qur’an exegete and memorizer; he died circa 117 AH.
5- ʿAwf ibn Malik: ʿAwf ibn Malik al-Ashjaʿi, whose first military engagement was at Khaybar. A number of the Followers narrated from him. He died in 73 AH.

“Their reports have overlapped”: the present narration is a single account compiled from all of their individual chains.

“Our reciters”: the plural of qariʾ; among the early Muslims it referred to those who recited the Qur’an and understood its meanings.

“More gluttonous stomachs”: literally “wider bellies,” portraying them as large-bellied and given to excessive eating.

“At the encounter”: meaning when the enemy is met in battle.

“He found that the Qur’an had preceded him”: revelation from Allah had already informed the Prophet ﷺ of what they had said before he arrived.

“We were only indulging in idle talk …”: we were merely conversing and did not intend genuine mockery.

“Nasʿah”: a broad, braided leather strap used to fasten a saddle.

Overall purport of the report: The narrators describe how the hypocrites maligned the Messenger of Allah ﷺ and his Companions, mocking them because of the disbelief and rancor concealed in their hearts. Allah caused their tongues to expose what lay hidden, so they uttered those words. The sincere believers present rebuked them out of zeal for Allah and His religion, and one of them went to inform the Messenger ﷺ. Yet Allah, who knows the secret and what is more hidden, had already heard their statement and revealed it to His Messenger.