The Meaning of the Saying of Allah the Exalted: {And whoever intends therein to commit any deviation through injustice}

Question:
What is the meaning of the saying of Allah the Exalted: [Surat al-Hajj: 25]?

Answer:
On the apparent meaning of the verse, al-ilhad (deviation) is turning away from the truth. It is said, "He alhada (deviated)" when he turns away. This is the origin of the term al-lahd (the niche) in the grave, because it is on the side facing the qiblah; it is called a lahda. The mullahidun (deviants) are those who turned away from the truth and correctness toward disbelief and misguidance, or toward sin.
So the deviant in the Haram is the sinner and the disbeliever. Whoever intends therein to commit deviation through injustice is threatened with painful punishment. For this reason, He said: , : "yurid" (intends) carries the meaning of intending and aiming. If he intends to deviate, he is subject to the threat. How much more so if he actually does it? If mere intention merits the threat, then if he commits it, it is more severe, more dangerous, and greater.
And al-ilhad includes sins and types of disbelief: the fornicator in the Haram is a deviant, the backbiter is a deviant, the talebearer in the Haram is a deviant, the one who calls upon other than Allah is a deviant with the greatest deviation, the one who deals in riba (usury or interest) in the Haram is a deviant, the one who is undutiful to his parents is a deviant, and the one who severs his family ties is a deviant, and so on with the rest of the sins. However, they vary in degree; al-ilhad takes different forms, some of which are greater than others—may Allah grant us safety.
Q: He is asking: Does the pronoun "in it" refer to the Haram: the mosque or the Haram?
The Shaykh: The entire Haram, the whole of the Haram, not just the mosque, the whole of the Haram.