The benefits of the verse: “Do you enjoin upon people righteousness while you forget yourselves, while you recite the Book? Do you not then use reason?” and the mention of a question
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Among the benefits of this verse is the rebuke of those who enjoin righteousness while forgetting themselves, for that is contrary to reason. A severe warning has been reported regarding one whose habit is this. The Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him) informed: He is among the most severely punished of people, may Allah protect us.
If someone were to say: Based on the fact that this is contrary to reason and based on the severity of its punishment, do we tell the one who does not do what he is commanded and does not leave what he is forbidden from saying, “Do not command and do not forbid”? Yes?
We say: No, rather we say: Command and do what you command, for if he leaves the command while leaving its performance, he commits two sins: the first is leaving the enjoining of good and forbidding of evil, and the second is not performing what he was commanded to do. Likewise, if he commits what is forbidden and does not forbid it, he has committed two harms: the first is leaving the forbidding of evil, and the second is committing the evil. Then we say: Which of us is free from evil? If we said that no one forbids evil except one who has not committed evil, yes? No one would forbid evil. And if we said that no one enjoins good except one who has done good, no one would enjoin good. Which of us is free? For this reason, we say: Enjoin good and strive yourself to do it, and forbid evil and strive yourself to leave it.
And among the benefits of this noble verse is the rebuke of the scholar who deviates, and that if a scholar deviates, he is in a worse state than the ignorant person. Where is this taken from? From His saying:[Al-Baqarah 2:44] This is a matter upon which people are created, that if a scholar deviates, he becomes more severely blamed than the ignorant person. Even the common people, when a scholar commits an evil, say, “How do you do this when you are a scholar?” Or when he leaves an obligatory duty, they say, “How do you leave this obligation when you are a scholar?” The noble verse is clear in this: [Al-Baqarah 2:44].
And among the benefits of the noble verse is that the word “Book” is used in the singular to refer to all the books, because these Jews recite the Book of Allah, the Qur'an, and they also recite the Torah, so they recite this and that.
And among the benefits of this noble verse is the rebuke of the Children of Israel, and that they are a nation of ignorant, foolish people full of transgression, due to His saying:.
And among its benefits is that the one who enjoins good but does not do it, or forbids evil but does it, from this Ummah, has a resemblance to whom? To the Jews, because this is their habit, may Allah protect us.
That a man will be brought and thrown into the Fire until his intestines come out, and the intestines are the bowels, and he will turn around them as a donkey turns around its millstone, and the people of the Fire will gather to him and say, “O so-and-so, are you not the one who used to enjoin good upon us and forbid us from evil?” He will say, “I used to enjoin good upon you but I did not do it, and I used to forbid you from evil but I did it.”
أنه يؤتى بالرجل فيلقى في النار حتى تندلق أقتاب بطنه والأقتاب هي الأمعاء فيدور عليها كما يدور الحمار على رحاه فيجتمع إليه أهل النار ويقولون يا فلان ألست تأمرنا بالمعروف وتنهانا عن المنكر ؟ فيقول: كنت آمركم بالمعروف ولا آتيه وأنهاكم عن المنكر وآتيهIf someone were to say: Based on the fact that this is contrary to reason and based on the severity of its punishment, do we tell the one who does not do what he is commanded and does not leave what he is forbidden from saying, “Do not command and do not forbid”? Yes?
We say: No, rather we say: Command and do what you command, for if he leaves the command while leaving its performance, he commits two sins: the first is leaving the enjoining of good and forbidding of evil, and the second is not performing what he was commanded to do. Likewise, if he commits what is forbidden and does not forbid it, he has committed two harms: the first is leaving the forbidding of evil, and the second is committing the evil. Then we say: Which of us is free from evil? If we said that no one forbids evil except one who has not committed evil, yes? No one would forbid evil. And if we said that no one enjoins good except one who has done good, no one would enjoin good. Which of us is free? For this reason, we say: Enjoin good and strive yourself to do it, and forbid evil and strive yourself to leave it.
And among the benefits of this noble verse is the rebuke of the scholar who deviates, and that if a scholar deviates, he is in a worse state than the ignorant person. Where is this taken from? From His saying:
while you recite the Scripture
وأنتم تتلون الكتابwhile you recite the Scripture
وأنتم تتلون الكتابAnd among the benefits of the noble verse is that the word “Book” is used in the singular to refer to all the books, because these Jews recite the Book of Allah, the Qur'an, and they also recite the Torah, so they recite this and that.
And among the benefits of this noble verse is the rebuke of the Children of Israel, and that they are a nation of ignorant, foolish people full of transgression, due to His saying:
Do they not use their reason?
أفلا تعقلونAnd among its benefits is that the one who enjoins good but does not do it, or forbids evil but does it, from this Ummah, has a resemblance to whom? To the Jews, because this is their habit, may Allah protect us.