The Exegesis of the Words of Allah the Exalted: << لولآ إذ سمعتموه ظن المؤمنون و المؤمنات بأنفسهم خيرا و قالوا هذا إفك مبين >>.

Then Allah the Exalted said: The author says: "Why did the believers and believing women not think well of themselves, meaning why did some of them not think well of others, and say, 'This is a clear lie, an evident falsehood, an evident lie'?" "Why did they not, when they heard it" — "Why" here means "why did they not," and it is a particle of exhortation that carries a degree of rebuke, in that they thought... something that should not be, meaning why did they not, when they heard it, meaning when they heard this news that spread and had no basis?
First, the believers and believing women; the author mentions *iltifat* (shift in speech) here, meaning a shift from the second person to the third person. *Lawla* when you heard it; what does the context require? That it be said, "You thought well of yourselves." *Lawla* when you heard it, you thought well of yourselves. But he said, so he shifted from the second person to the third person, meaning from the pronoun of address to the explicit noun. We have previously mentioned that *iltifat* has at least two benefits. What are they? Alertness is one. The second benefit is determined by the context. In any case, the certain, specific benefit of *iltifat* that I intend is alertness, because when the flow of address changes, it requires a person to pay attention. This is why some orators change their style, not from statement to command, or from command to statement, or from question to affirmation, or the like. Even in voice and delivery, you find they change it so that people will pay attention, because if people are addressed in a single tone, they may become bored... but if the style or manner of delivery changes, alertness is achieved. So what is the benefit of *iltifat*? Alertness. This is a specific benefit in every *iltifat*. The second benefit... The student: ...

The Shaykh : Leave the second benefit; the context determines it. We cannot determine it now; the context determines it. So let us look at the second benefit here: "The believers and believing women thought." He did not say "You thought." This indicates that their thinking took them out of faith, because if they had been believers, they would not have thought anything but good. Yes, and he did not say "You thought well" because by their thinking this thought, they exited faith, but not absolutely, except after the verses were revealed. The second or third benefit, after... alertness, is the indication that in this thought, they were not believers, because believers do not think anything but good.
The second benefit is that it was incumbent upon them to think this thought because they are believers. They claim to be believers, and they are truly believers, so it was incumbent upon them to think well. So now, they thought what they thought, and thereby they were not believers, because believers do not think anything but good.
Second, it was incumbent upon them, by their faith, to think well. And His saying, the Exalted: Because the reality is that the matter was between a male and a female, namely Safwan ibn al-Mu'attal and Aisha, the Mother of the Believers (may Allah be pleased with her). So it involved both genders, and therefore He said, "The believers and believing women." He specified both genders because the case or the accusation involved both genders: Safwan, who is among the believers, and Aisha, who is among the believing women. And therefore He said, "Those who are in the position of Safwan," "Those who are in the position of whom?" Aisha. And His saying, does it mean that the hypocrites, and the accusation of Aisha, is that a person thinks ill of himself, or is the intended meaning of "themselves" here the generic sense, because the believers are like one self? Yes, and the meaning is that they thought well of themselves, meaning they thought well of Safwan and Aisha, and even of the Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him). Is this the intended meaning, or the first one? Do you understand the question? Now, "The believers and believing women thought well of themselves." Does the intended meaning of "themselves" here mean their specific selves, or does it mean "themselves" as Aisha, Safwan, and the Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him), and Allah made them selves because they are all like one self, as in His saying: Which of the two meanings is intended? The latter is clear, and the intended meaning is that they thought, meaning some of them of others, as the author said, meaning they thought well of themselves, meaning of these accused people, falsely and deceptively, well, because they know them from their own selves and know their conditions, and they are their brothers in faith. Or is the meaning we indicated that "themselves" means they think well of themselves, and as if, if they were accused of this matter and they know themselves, what would they think of themselves? Good and innocence. Meaning, just as you do not accuse yourselves if that were said about you, it is incumbent upon you likewise to think well of Aisha and Safwan (may Allah be pleased with them both). So the intended meaning of "themselves" is the self of the one who thinks. And how does the meaning descend? The meaning is that they think well of themselves, meaning that if this matter were something they were accused of, they would know their own selves and would not be able to believe in this matter, because they know that they are pure from it and innocent of it. In any case, both meanings are possible, and both have a valid aspect. So Aisha and Safwan are among the selves of the believers, because a believer with his brother is like one self. And whoever thinks of the Mother of the Believers and Safwan other than what is appropriate, it is as if he thought of himself. Just as you know yourself and do not think of yourself such a thought, so you must know the Mother of the Believers and Safwan and not think of them except what you think of yourself. Just as you do not think of yourself except good, so do not think of the Mother of the Believers and Safwan except good. "Well of themselves."
His saying, "And they said," is conjoined to "thought." "The believers thought and they said." In this is that it is obligatory for the believer to refute falsehood with his heart and his tongue. It is not sufficient that you believe that this is not correct; rather, you must clarify the falsity of this thing, because I believe that this matter is not correct and remain silent. What is his position? His position is negative in reality. A man... himself. But it is obligatory to refute falsehood. And therefore He said, "The believers thought well of themselves," it is necessary from one who thinks and speaks. It is not sufficient that you believe that what was said about Aisha and Safwan is a lie; rather, you must say why? So that this falsehood is met with refutation. As for remaining silent and not clearing oneself before Allah and not saying that this is not correct at all, this is not sufficient. We must think well and refute falsehood. And they said, "This." So "and they said" is conjoined to "thought," so it is included in the exhortation, meaning Allah the Exalted says it is obligatory that they think well and refute falsehood.