The benefits of the saying of Allah the Exalted: “Or do they have partners who have legislated for them from the religion what Allah has not permitted? And if not for the Word of Decision, the matter would have been decided between them. And indeed, the wrongdoers will have a painful punishment.”

Among the benefits of this verse is that whoever obeys leaders or elders in forbidding something Allah has made lawful, or permitting something Allah has forbidden, or making obligatory something Allah has not made obligatory, has taken them as partners. And a consequence of this benefit is that the followers of the callers to religious innovation have taken them as partners.
Among the benefits of this noble verse is that prescribed matters must have permission from Allah. That is, matters a person does for the sake of religion must have permission from Allah the Exalted. This is because Allah the Exalted rebuked those who took partners who legislated for them from the religion what Allah has not permitted. This is the meaning of our saying: “The original ruling in acts of worship is prohibition and prevention, unless there is evidence for its prescription”. Therefore, if we see a person worshipping with a form of worship we do not know, we have the right to disapprove of it until he brings evidence, because religion is received from Allah the Exalted.
Among the benefits of this noble verse is that matters other than religious ones are subject to ordinary matters or conditions, based on His saying: . And on this basis, if they legislate laws and systems that have no connection to religion, that is permissible, and conforming to these systems is not considered shirk (associating partners with Allah). How much more so if these systems are supported by general principles, namely attracting benefits and repelling harms?
Among the benefits of this verse is the refutation of those ignorant people who reject every system enacted by governments, regardless of whether it is a religious matter or a worldly matter, and regardless of whether it conforms to the Shari'ah or does not conform to the Shari'ah. For example, some people say: “I do not adhere to traffic regulations because there is no evidence for them,” and perhaps they say, “This is a bid'ah (religious innovation).” It is said to him:
First: The original ruling in worldly matters is permissibility, and one who introduces them outside of custom is not considered an innovator, but one looks to see if they are halal (lawful) or haram (forbidden).
Second: The texts indicate the obligation of obeying those in authority, as in the saying of Allah the Exalted: and the saying of the Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him) regarding the ruler: .
Among the benefits of this noble verse is the wisdom of Allah the Exalted in hastening or delaying punishment, as in His saying: .
Among its benefits is that what Allah has decreed from eternity — meaning in the past — does not change, as in His saying: .
If someone asks, “What do you say about the saying of Allah the Exalted: ? Does it contradict the benefits we have established from this verse?” The answer is: No, it does not contradict, because Allah said: then He said: meaning its original state. So what is in the Mother of the Book does not change, and what is not so does change. Does not Allah the Exalted say: ? So after the bad deeds were written, the good deeds came and erased them. A person sins and the sin is written, then he seeks forgiveness, yes? So the sin is erased. As for what is in the original Book, it does not change. And on this basis, it does not contradict this verse, which is His saying: .
If someone asks, “What do you say about the authentic hadith: ? This indicates that maintaining family ties is a cause for abundance of provision and a cause for long life, while you say that lifespan and provision are written.” The answer is: Provision is written with this cause, and lifespan is written with this cause. So Allah the Exalted has written for this person a later lifespan due to maintaining family ties, and expanded the provision for this person due to maintaining family ties. And this is known to Allah. But the Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him) mentioned this to encourage maintaining family ties, because a person does not know what is written for him in the future. And at that time, there is no contradiction.
As for what some scholars said: that the meaning of his saying is that Allah blesses him in his lifespan, this is incorrect because it contradicts the apparent meaning of the hadith. The apparent meaning of the hadith is that it is delayed, but it is written with Allah that he will reach it and that his lifespan is until such a time. But does a person know that it is written with Allah in this way? He does not know. So the Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him) wanted to urge a person to maintain family ties with such a promise.
Among the benefits of this noble verse is the affirmation of causes, as in His saying: . So the Word is a cause for the delay of punishment, and affirming causes is a matter that no one denies except a denier.
Know that people have divided into three groups regarding causes: a group that denied causes entirely and said: there is no effect of the cause on the effect; a group that affirmed causes to the extent of exaggeration and claimed that they — meaning the causes — are necessitating and inevitable; and the third group affirmed causes but made them subject to the will of Allah the Exalted.
So the groups are three: a group that denied the effect of causes, a group that exaggerated in affirming them and made them necessitating in themselves and inevitable, and the third: a group that took a middle path and said: but they are under the will of Allah. This is the required position: that we do not deny causes. How can we deny them when we see this with our own eyes? They say: what happens by the cause is not happening by it, but it is happening at it. For example, if you throw a stone at a glass and it breaks, they say: the one that broke it was not the stone, but the will of Allah at the contact of the stone. So it happened at the cause, not by the cause. When you put a paper in fire and it burns, they say: the fire did not burn it, the will of Allah burned it at the contact of the fire. This is unreasonable talk that fools laugh at before the wise. How can we say, when we see the stone fall on the glass and break it, that it did not break it? If a person leaned on the glass, someone next to him would say: do not lean on it or it will break.
As for the second opinion: the one who exaggerates in affirming causes and those who say that causes are effective and inevitable, or necessitating and inevitable, these are also misguided. Here is the great fire that was coolness and peace for Ibrahim. If the cause were necessitating in itself and inevitable, it would have burned Ibrahim in any case. But Allah said: so it was coolness and it was peace. The scholars said: “If Allah the Exalted had said ‘Be coolness’ and had not said ‘and peace,’ it would have destroyed Ibrahim from the cold” but Allah coupled the coolness with peace. So the verse with us contains the affirmation of causes, as in His saying: .
Among the benefits of this noble verse is the severe warning for the wrongdoers, as in His saying: .
Among its linguistic benefits is that “alim” (painful) comes to mean “pain-inflicting,” meaning fa'il (active participle) in the meaning of muf'il (causative participle), and this is rare in the Arabic language. Most of the time, “alim” in the Arabic language comes to mean “painful,” meaning in the meaning of fa'il (active participle), and this is the most common. But it may come as fa'il in the meaning of muf'il, as in this verse, and as in the saying of the poet:
“Is it the scent of the hearing caller that keeps me awake, while my companions are asleep?”
“Is it the scent of the hearing caller?” The hearing caller: in the meaning of the one who makes hear. He says it about his beloved. The caller who makes hear keeps me awake, and my companions are asleep.