According to Zemahşerî, this expression is attributed to two causes of punishment: on account of your disbelief and disobedience, and on account of Allah's... In addition, in the nominative reading of the phrase 'mevedde beynekum', there are two interpretations: first, when the 'mâ' particle is connective, it is the predicate of 'en'; second, it is the predicate of an omitted subject. The meaning is that the idols are a means of affection/love among you, that is, they are the objects of love or the cause of love.

والمعنى : أن الأوثان مودة بينكم ، أي : مودودة ، أو سبب مودة

According to this exegete, the direction of the comparison in the phrase 'they love their idols as they love Allah' contains three possibilities: the polytheists' love of idols is like the love of Allah, or it is like the love that is obligatory toward Allah, or it is like the believers' love of Allah. The preference among these possibilities changes depending on the disagreement regarding whether the polytheists knew Allah or not; Fahreddin er-Râzî, by looking at the apparent meaning and context of the verse, finds the first view (that they love their idols as they love Allah) more correct, because the verse precedes with evidences of monotheism, then describes the condition of those who associate partners with Allah, which also shows that they acknowledge Allah.

والقول الأول أقرب لأن قوله : راجع إلى الناس الذين تقدم ذكرهم ، وظاهر قوله : يقتضي حبا لله ثابتا فيهم ، فكأنه تعالى بين في الآية السالفة أن الإله واحد ، ونبه على دلائله ، ثم حكى قول من يشرك معه ، وذلك يقتضي كونهم مقرين بالله تعالى

In this text, Kurtubî addresses the difficulty in the linguistic structure of the verse and omission; he explains the differences in the readings of 'yara/tara', that the response to 'law' is omitted, and that the phrase 'anna al-quwwata li-llah' takes the place of the two objects of the verb 'yara'. He also conveys that the polytheists' love for their idols is compared with the believers' love for Allah, noting that this comparison either points to the intensity of love or establishes an equivalence between Allah and idols in terms of love. Finally, he states that the phrase 'al-quwwata li-llah' in the verse serves as evidence against the Mu'tazilites' negation of attributes.

ولكن التقدير وهو قول الأخفش ولو يرى الذين ظلموا أن القوة لله ويرى بمعنى يعلم أي لو يعلمون حقيقة قوة الله عز وجل وشدة عذابه ف يرى واقعة على أن القوة لله وسدت مسد المفعولين والذين فاعل يرى وجواب لو محذوف

İbn Kesîr states that the believers' love of Allah is a result of perfecting their love, knowing Him fully, venerating Him, and affirming His oneness without associating any partner with Him, worshipping only Him, trusting only in Him, and relying only on Him in all their affairs. He then conveys that Allah threatens the polytheists who associate partners with Him and thus wrong themselves. According to the view of some exegetes, the construction of the verse is: if the polytheists saw the punishment with their own eyes, at that moment they would understand that all power and dominion belong only to Allah, and that everything is under His wrath, His overwhelming might, and His sovereignty.

قال بعضهم تقدير الكلام لو عاينوا العذاب لعلموا حينئذ أن القوة لله جميعا أي أن الحكم له وحده لا شريك له وأن جميع الأشياء تحت قهره وغلبته وسلطانه

Taberî transmits that the phrase 'ondân' (spouses/partners acquired from other than Allah) has been interpreted in two ways among exegetes: one group said that this refers to the idols that the polytheists worship besides Allah, while another group claimed that this refers to leaders/chiefs whom they obeyed in disobedience to Allah. He also explains that the comparison in the phrase 'yuhibbûnehum kehubbillâh' does not mean that the polytheists love Allah, but rather it is a stylistic device based on the rule of omission in language (dropping the second element in place of allusion to the name).

هي الآلهة التي تعبد من دون الله

According to Beydâvî, the phrase 'andâdan' can refer to idols or to leaders who are obeyed; however, it is stated that the primary meaning is something more general than both of these—everything that keeps a person away from Allah. This exegete holds that the believers' love for Allah is more intense because it is continuous; the love directed toward idols is false and for futile purposes, and disappears with the smallest cause. He also explains that the future tense in the phrase 'wa-law yara alladhîna zhalamû' is used in place of past tense because its occurrence is certain.

والذين آمنوا أشد حبا لله لأنه لا تنقطع محبتهم لله تعالى