وَإِذَا قِيلَ لَهُ ٱتَّقِ ٱللَّهَ أَخَذَتْهُ ٱلْعِزَّةُ بِٱلْإِثْمِ فَحَسْبُهُۥ جَهَنَّمُ وَلَبِئْسَ ٱلْمِهَادُ
“And when it is said unto him: Be careful of thy duty to Allah, pride taketh him to sin. Hell will settle his account, an evil resting-place.” — M. M. Pickthall
Fahreddin er-Râzî12-13. c.✓ Citation verified
According to Razi, the five attributes mentioned in the verse (speaking fair words in pursuit of the world, falsely bearing witness against Allah, stubbornly invalidating truth, causing corruption, and attempting to destroy crops and offspring) are not exclusive to the hypocrite but also encompass the unjust person; everyone characterized by these attributes falls within the meaning of the verse, and therefore there is no conclusive evidence that the verse directly requires hypocrisy. Furthermore, the interpretation of the expression 'anger seized him for his sin' as meaning that the Prophet specifically commanded this person to abandon these deeds is considered weak because there is no evidence for this in the verse; this can only be accepted if it is established by a report.
فإذن ليس في الآية دلالة على أن هذا المذكور يجب أن يكون منافقا إلا أن المنافق داخل في الآية ، وذلك لأن كل منافق فإنه يكون موصوفا بهذه الصفات الخمسة بل قد يكون الموصوف بهذه الصفات الخمسة غير منافق
İbn Kesîr14. c.✓ Citation verified
According to Ibn Kesir, this verse describes a wicked person to whom it is said to fear Allah, to abandon his words and deeds and return to truth, but he refuses and resists, and this resistance drives him into anger over arrogance and sin. This characteristic is because of the sins it contains, and the commentator compares this verse with another verse; according to him, this condition is sufficient as a punishment for the person.
إمتنع وأبي وأخذته الحمية والغضب بالإثم أي بسبب ما اشتمل عليه من الآثام وهذه الآية شبيهة بقوله تعالى
Beydâvî13. c.✓ Citation verified
According to Beydawi, the expression 'turned away' can mean that this person (the hypocrite/disbeliever) turned away from you and left, or gained power and became a ruler. His causing corruption on earth can mean burning crops and destroying animals as Ahnes did to the Thaqif tribe, or through killing and destruction by unjust rulers, or the destruction of crops and offspring through Allah withholding His rain because of their injustice. When he is told 'fear Allah,' however, the ignorance-era tribalism and arrogance drive him stubbornly into sin; for this reason, Hell is shown to him as a sufficient punishment.
سعى في الأرض ليفسد فيها ويهلك الحرث والنسل كما فعله الأخنس بثقيف إذ بيتهم وأحرق زروعهم وأهلك مواشيهم، أو كما يفعله ولاة السوء بالقتل والإتلاف
Taberî9-10. c.✓ Citation verified
Tabari transmits that this verse refers to those who sell their souls to Allah while striving in His path and who die for this cause, specifically that it was revealed about the expedition in which Asim and Marsad, who were among those killed as martyrs in the incident of Raji, were involved. Some scholars, however, say that the verse refers to all hypocrites in general, and that the Hell promised to them is a bed prepared for them because of their hypocrisy and rebellion.
لما أصيبت السرية التي كان فيها عاصم، ومرثد
Comparison
Common ground
All commentators agree that the verse describes a person who stubbornly resists when called to truth, is driven into anger through arrogance and sin, and that this attitude is met with a severe punishment (Hell). Additionally, there is a shared emphasis that the attributes in the verse (causing corruption, destroying crops and offspring, stubbornly resisting) point to a specific pattern of behavior.
Differences
Razi addresses the verse from a linguistic/rhetorical and logical scope perspective, arguing that these attributes are not specific to the hypocrite but also encompass the unjust person, thus finding the claim of hypocrisy weak; he does not seek conclusive evidence. Ibn Kesir, with a contextual reading, focuses on the wicked person's resistance without tying it to a historical event. Beydawi combines both linguistic possibilities (different meanings of 'turned away') and the Ahnes-Thaqif report, presenting a more concrete historical framework. Tabari, based on narration, conveys that the verse was revealed specifically in the context of the martyrs in the incident of Raji, but also narrates that other scholars related this to a general interpretation of hypocrisy; thus he transmits the disagreement without imposing his own view.
Historical context
While Tabari, an earlier-period commentator, employs a narration-heavy method to connect the event to a historical incident (the Raji expedition), in later periods Beydawi combined both narration and linguistic analysis, whereas Razi largely directed himself toward rational-rhetorical analysis and considered interpretations not based on narration to be weak. Ibn Kesir, for his part, emphasized contextual reading between verses. This shows that the methodology of tafsir evolved over time into a diversified spectrum from narration toward linguistic/logical analysis; however, the moral-theological essence of the verse (stubbornness, arrogance, punishment) remained constant.
Modern connection
This comparative reading offers a reminder that when confronted with truth, showing stubborn resistance and arrogance can distance a person from constructive change. In our time, this can be read as a cautious lesson that knowledge and conscience must work together, and that when confronted with an error, returning to truth instead of insisting stubbornly serves social harmony and solidarity. Furthermore, the methodological diversity of different commentators can exemplify the value of multifaceted thinking about the same text and a tolerant approach.
AI analysis — not a fatwa or ruling, not yet reviewed by a scholar