﴿وَإِنَّ هَـذِهِ أُمَّتُكُمْ أُمَّةً وَحِدَةً﴾

(And verily, this your religion is one religion,) means, `your religion, O Prophets, is one religion and one group, which is the call to worship Allah Alone with no partner or associate.' Allah said:

﴿وَأَنَاْ رَبُّكُمْ فَاتَّقُونِ﴾

(and I am your Lord, so have Taqwa.) We have already discussed this in Surat Al-Anbiya'. The phrase

﴿أُمَّةً وَحِدَةً﴾

(one nation) is descriptive.

﴿فَتَقَطَّعُواْ أَمْرَهُمْ بَيْنَهُمْ زُبُراً﴾

(But they have broken their religion among them into sects,) the nations to whom Prophets were sent.

﴿كُلُّ حِزْبٍ بِمَا لَدَيْهِمْ فَرِحُونَ﴾

(each group rejoicing in what is with it.) means, they rejoice in their misguidance because they think that they are rightly-guided. Allah says, threatening and warning:

﴿فَذَرْهُمْ فِى غَمْرَتِهِمْ﴾

(So, leave them in their error) meaning their misguidance,

﴿حَتَّى حِينٍ﴾

(for a time.) means, until the appointed time of their destruction comes. This is like the Ayah:

﴿فَمَهِّلِ الْكَـفِرِينَ أَمْهِلْهُمْ رُوَيْداً ﴾

(So give a respite to the disbelievers; deal gently with them for a while.) ﴿86:17﴾ And Allah says:

﴿ذَرْهُمْ يَأْكُلُواْ وَيَتَمَتَّعُواْ وَيُلْهِهِمُ الاٌّمَلُ فَسَوْفَ يَعْلَمُونَ ﴾

(Leave them to eat and enjoy, and let them be preoccupied with (false) hope. They will come to know!) ﴿15:3﴾

﴿أَيَحْسَبُونَ أَنَّمَا نُمِدُّهُمْ بِهِ مِن مَّالٍ وَبَنِينَ - نُسَارِعُ لَهُمْ فِى الْخَيْرَتِ بَل لاَّ يَشْعُرُونَ ﴾

(Do they think that in wealth and children with which We prolong them, We hasten unto them with good things. Nay, but they perceive not.) means, `do these deceived people think that what We give them of wealth and children is because they are honored and precious in Our sight No, the matter is not as they claim when they say,

﴿نَحْنُ أَكْثَـرُ أَمْوَلاً وَأَوْلَـداً وَمَا نَحْنُ بِمُعَذَّبِينَ﴾

(We are more in wealth and in children, and we are not going to be punished.) ﴿34:35﴾ But this thinking is wrong, and their hopes will be dashed. We only give those things to them in order to make them go further (in sin) and to give them more time.' Allah says:

﴿بَل لاَّ يَشْعُرُونَ﴾

(but they perceive not.) as He says elsewhere:

﴿فَلاَ تُعْجِبْكَ أَمْوَلُهُمْ وَلاَ أَوْلَـدُهُمْ إِنَّمَا يُرِيدُ اللَّهُ لِيُعَذِّبَهُمْ بِهَا فِي الْحَيَوةِ الدُّنْيَا﴾

(So, let not their wealth nor their children amaze you; in reality Allah's plan is to punish them with these things in the life of this world...) ﴿9:55﴾

﴿إِنَّمَا نُمْلِى لَهُمْ لِيَزْدَادُواْ إِثْمَاً﴾

(We postpone the punishment only so that they may increase in sinfulness) ﴿3:178﴾.

﴿فَذَرْنِى وَمَن يُكَذِّبُ بِهَـذَا الْحَدِيثِ سَنَسْتَدْرِجُهُمْ مِّنْ حَيْثُ لاَ يَعْلَمُونَ وَأَمْلَى لَهُمْ﴾

(Then leave Me Alone with such as belie this Qur'an. We shall punish them gradually from directions they perceive not. And I will grant them a respite.) ﴿68:44-45﴾

﴿ذَرْنِى وَمَنْ خَلَقْتُ وَحِيداً ﴾

(Leave Me Alone (to deal) with whom I created lonely.) until His saying:

﴿عَنِيداً﴾

(opposing) ﴿74: 11-16﴾

﴿وَمَآ أَمْوَلُكُمْ وَلاَ أَوْلَـدُكُمْ بِالَّتِى تُقَرِّبُكُمْ عِندَنَا زُلْفَى إِلاَّ مَنْ ءَامَنَ وَعَمِلَ صَـلِحاً﴾

(And it is not your wealth, nor your children that bring you nearer to Us, but only he who believes, and does righteous deeds...) ﴿34:37﴾ And there are many other Ayat which say similar things. Imam Ahmad recorded that `Abdullah bin Mas`ud said, "The Messenger of Allah said:

«إِنَّ اللهَ قَسَمَ بَيْنَكُمْ أَخْلَاقَكُمْ كَمَا قَسَمَ بَيْنَكُمْ أَرْزَاقَكُمْ، وَإِنَّ اللهَ يُعْطِي الدُّنْيَا مَنْ يُحِبُّ وَمَنْ لَا يُحِبُّ، وَلَا يُعْطِي الدِّينَ إِلَّا لِمَنْ أَحَبَّ، فَمَنْ أَعْطَاهُ اللهُ الدِّينَ فَقَدْ أَحَبَّهُ، وَالَّذِي نَفْسِي بِيَدِهِ لَا يُسْلِمُ عَبْدٌ حَتَّى يَسْلَمَ قَلْبُهُ وَلِسَانُهُ، وَلَا يُؤْمِنُ حَتَّى يَأْمَنَ جَارُهُ بَوَائِقَه»

(Allah has distributed your behavior to you just as He has distritbuted your provision. Allah gives the things of this world to those whom He loves and those whom He does not love, but He only gives religious commitment to those whom He loves. Whoever is given religious commitment by Allah is loved by Him. By the One in Whose Hand is my soul, no servant truly submits until his heart and his tongue submit, and he does not truly believe until his neighbor is safe from his harm.) They said, `What is his harm, O Messenger of Allah' He said,

«غَشْمُهُ وَظُلْمُهُ، وَلَا يَكْسِبُ عَبْدٌ مَالًا مِنْ حَرَامٍ فَيُنْفِقَ مِنْهُ فَيُبَارَكَ لَهُ فِيهِ، وَلَا يَتَصَدَّقَ بِهِ فَيُقْبَلَ مِنْهُ، وَلَا يَتْرُكَهُ خَلْفَ ظَهْرِهِ إِلَّا كَانَ زَادَهُ إِلَى النَّارِ، إِنَّ اللهَ لَا يَمْحُو السَّيِّءَ بِالسَّيِّءِ وَلَكِنْ يَمْحُو السَّيِّءَ بِالْحَسَنِ، إِنَّ الْخَبِيثَ لَا يَمْحُو الْخَبِيث»

(His wrongdoing and misbehavior. No person who earns unlawful wealth and spends it will be blessed in that; if he gives it in charity, it will not be accepted from him and if he leaves it behind (when he dies), it will be his provision in the Fire. Allah does not wash away an evil deed with another, but he washes away evil deeds with good deeds, for impurity cannot wash away with another impurity.))

﴿إِنَّ الَّذِينَ هُم مِّنْ خَشْيةِ رَبِّهِمْ مُّشْفِقُونَ - وَالَّذِينَ هُم بِـَايَـتِ رَبَّهِمْ يُؤْمِنُونَ ﴾

﴿وَالَّذِينَ هُم بِرَبِّهِمْ لاَ يُشْرِكُونَ - وَالَّذِينَ يُؤْتُونَ مَآ ءاتَواْ وَّقُلُوبُهُمْ وَجِلَةٌ أَنَّهُمْ إِلَى رَبِّهِمْ رَجِعُونَ - أُوْلَـئِكَ يُسَـرِعُونَ فِى الْخَيْرَتِ وَهُمْ لَهَا سَـبِقُونَ ﴾

(57. Verily, those who live in awe for fear of their Lord;) (58. And those who believe in the Ayat of their Lord;) (59. And those who join not anyone as partners with their Lord;) (60. And those who give that which they give with their hearts full of fear, because they are sure to return to their Lord.) (61. It is these who hasten in the good deeds, and they are foremost in them.)