Overview (Verses 115 - 116)

A Sin That Cannot Be Forgiven
 
But as for him who, after guidance has been plainly conveyed to him, puts himself in contention with God’s Messenger and follows a path other than that of the believers — him shall We leave to that which he himself has chosen, and shall cause him to endure hell. How evil a journey’s end. For a certainty, God does not forgive that partners should be associated with Him, but He forgives any lesser sin to whomever He wills. He who associates partners with God has indeed gone far astray. (Verses 115-116)
 
It is reported that the reason behind the revelation of these verses was that Bashīr ibn Ubayriq, who had joined the Muslim ranks, reverted to disbelief “after guidance has been plainly conveyed to him.” Thus, he followed a different path to that of the believers. But the statement is general and applicable to every case in which a person puts himself in contention with God’s Messenger. To be opposed to the Prophet is to disbelieve in God and His message.
 
The Arabic expression used in the original text of the Qur’ān and rendered here as being “in contention” with the Prophet means, in its linguistic sense, taking a stand opposite to that taken by another. Hence to put oneself “in contention with God’s Messenger” is to choose a life other than that followed by the Prophet. God’s Messenger has come forward preaching a message that comprises a whole system for life, including faith and worship as well as a legal code legislating for all practical aspects of daily life. The faith and the legal code together constitute the body of this whole system. Should one part of it be adopted and the other neglected, then the whole body, and indeed the whole system, are in ruin. A person brings himself in contention with God’s Messenger when he denies his system in total, or believes in parts of it and denies other parts, implementing the former and ignoring the latter.
 
It is an aspect of God’s grace bestowed on mankind that they will not be doomed to suffer the punishment of hell until He has sent them a Messenger who explains to them His guidance but which they reject and choose falsehood instead. This shows the great extent of God’s grace bestowed on man, a weak creature. When man, having ascertained the truth of God’s guidance and the system He has revealed, still refuses to obey God’s Messenger and implement the Divine system, then he is in contention with God’s Messenger. Thus, does God condemn him to error, leaving him to follow the path he has chosen and allowing him to join the nonbelievers whose path he preferred. This is what condemning him to the punishment mentioned in the same verse actually means: “But as for him who, after guidance has been plainly conveyed to him, puts himself in contention with God’s Messenger and follows a path other than that of the believers — him shall We leave to that which he himself has chosen, and shall cause him to endure hell. How evil a journey’s end.” (Verse 115)
 
The sūrah explains that this depressing end is inevitable because God’s forgiveness may include every sin except that partners should be associated with Him. When any person continues to associate partners with God until he or she dies, then forgiveness will not be granted: “For a certainty, God does not forgive that partners should be associated with Him, but He forgives any lesser sin to whomever He wills. He who associates partners with God has indeed gone far astray.” (Verse 116)
 
As we have explained when commenting on a similar verse earlier, associating partners with God may take the form of open polytheism on the lines of old Arabian and other pagan beliefs. It may also take the form of denying that certain aspects of Godhead belong to God alone and claiming that these also belong to some human beings. A case in point is mentioned in the Qur’ān whereby the Jews and Christians treated their rabbis and priests as gods in association with God. They certainly did not offer any worship rituals to these, but they acknowledged their right to legislate for them. When the priests and rabbis enacted such legislation, forbidding certain things and making others lawful, and they accepted such legislation, they truly became idolaters. This is because they assigned to their priests and rabbis the most important of God’s attributes. Thus, God says of them that they have violated the orders to believe in God’s oneness: “They have been ordered to take for worship none other than a single God.” This means that they should address their worship to God alone and receive their laws only from Him.
 
Associating partners with God is the one sin that cannot be forgiven, if continued until a person dies. Forgiveness is open to all other sins, when God so wills. The reason for portraying the sin of associating partners with God as so great as to permit no forgiveness is that the perpetrator of such a sin goes beyond the boundaries of all goodness. His nature is corrupted beyond redemption: “He who associates partners with God has indeed gone far astray.” (Verses 116) If only one thread of upright nature remains in sound condition, it will pull a person round to accepting the oneness of his Lord, even one hour before his death. But when he continues to associate partners with God until his last throes, then he has condemned himself to an awful doom: “We ... shall cause him to endure hell. How evil a journey’s end.” (Verse 115)

Overview (Verses 115 - 116)

A Sin That Cannot Be Forgiven
 
But as for him who, after guidance has been plainly conveyed to him, puts himself in contention with God’s Messenger and follows a path other than that of the believers — him shall We leave to that which he himself has chosen, and shall cause him to endure hell. How evil a journey’s end. For a certainty, God does not forgive that partners should be associated with Him, but He forgives any lesser sin to whomever He wills. He who associates partners with God has indeed gone far astray. (Verses 115-116)
 
It is reported that the reason behind the revelation of these verses was that Bashīr ibn Ubayriq, who had joined the Muslim ranks, reverted to disbelief “after guidance has been plainly conveyed to him.” Thus, he followed a different path to that of the believers. But the statement is general and applicable to every case in which a person puts himself in contention with God’s Messenger. To be opposed to the Prophet is to disbelieve in God and His message.
 
The Arabic expression used in the original text of the Qur’ān and rendered here as being “in contention” with the Prophet means, in its linguistic sense, taking a stand opposite to that taken by another. Hence to put oneself “in contention with God’s Messenger” is to choose a life other than that followed by the Prophet. God’s Messenger has come forward preaching a message that comprises a whole system for life, including faith and worship as well as a legal code legislating for all practical aspects of daily life. The faith and the legal code together constitute the body of this whole system. Should one part of it be adopted and the other neglected, then the whole body, and indeed the whole system, are in ruin. A person brings himself in contention with God’s Messenger when he denies his system in total, or believes in parts of it and denies other parts, implementing the former and ignoring the latter.
 
It is an aspect of God’s grace bestowed on mankind that they will not be doomed to suffer the punishment of hell until He has sent them a Messenger who explains to them His guidance but which they reject and choose falsehood instead. This shows the great extent of God’s grace bestowed on man, a weak creature. When man, having ascertained the truth of God’s guidance and the system He has revealed, still refuses to obey God’s Messenger and implement the Divine system, then he is in contention with God’s Messenger. Thus, does God condemn him to error, leaving him to follow the path he has chosen and allowing him to join the nonbelievers whose path he preferred. This is what condemning him to the punishment mentioned in the same verse actually means: “But as for him who, after guidance has been plainly conveyed to him, puts himself in contention with God’s Messenger and follows a path other than that of the believers — him shall We leave to that which he himself has chosen, and shall cause him to endure hell. How evil a journey’s end.” (Verse 115)
 
The sūrah explains that this depressing end is inevitable because God’s forgiveness may include every sin except that partners should be associated with Him. When any person continues to associate partners with God until he or she dies, then forgiveness will not be granted: “For a certainty, God does not forgive that partners should be associated with Him, but He forgives any lesser sin to whomever He wills. He who associates partners with God has indeed gone far astray.” (Verse 116)
 
As we have explained when commenting on a similar verse earlier, associating partners with God may take the form of open polytheism on the lines of old Arabian and other pagan beliefs. It may also take the form of denying that certain aspects of Godhead belong to God alone and claiming that these also belong to some human beings. A case in point is mentioned in the Qur’ān whereby the Jews and Christians treated their rabbis and priests as gods in association with God. They certainly did not offer any worship rituals to these, but they acknowledged their right to legislate for them. When the priests and rabbis enacted such legislation, forbidding certain things and making others lawful, and they accepted such legislation, they truly became idolaters. This is because they assigned to their priests and rabbis the most important of God’s attributes. Thus, God says of them that they have violated the orders to believe in God’s oneness: “They have been ordered to take for worship none other than a single God.” This means that they should address their worship to God alone and receive their laws only from Him.
 
Associating partners with God is the one sin that cannot be forgiven, if continued until a person dies. Forgiveness is open to all other sins, when God so wills. The reason for portraying the sin of associating partners with God as so great as to permit no forgiveness is that the perpetrator of such a sin goes beyond the boundaries of all goodness. His nature is corrupted beyond redemption: “He who associates partners with God has indeed gone far astray.” (Verses 116) If only one thread of upright nature remains in sound condition, it will pull a person round to accepting the oneness of his Lord, even one hour before his death. But when he continues to associate partners with God until his last throes, then he has condemned himself to an awful doom: “We ... shall cause him to endure hell. How evil a journey’s end.” (Verse 115)