His words, Exalted is He:

But among people there is he who purchases idle talk, without knowledge, to mislead…

He said:

This refers to disputing in [matters of] religion and plunging into falsehood (bāṭil).

His words:

…and follow the way of him who returns to Me [in penitence]…

This means that anyone who has not been guided to the path [that leads] to God, Mighty and Majestic is He, should follow in the footsteps of the virtuous (ṣāliḥūn), so that the blessing (baraka) of following them may lead him to the path of God. Do you not see how the dog of the Companions of the Cave benefitted by following those virtuous ones, to the point that God, Exalted is He, repeatedly mentioned it in a good light?^{1See Sūra 18 (al-Kahf) vv. 18 and 22.} Indeed, the Prophet ﷺ said in a ḥadīth in this regard, ‘Anyone who keeps their company will not be among the wretched.’^{2Bukhārī, Ṣaḥīḥ, ‘Kitāb al-Daʿwāt’; Muslim, Ṣaḥīḥ, ‘Kitāb al-Dhikr wa’l-duʿāʾ wa’l-tawba’.}

His words:

Do not turn your cheek disdainfully from people...

That is, ‘Do not turn your back on one who seeks from you guidance on the path to Us. Acquaint them of My grace and goodness towards them.’

His words:

…for the most abominable of all voices is the braying of an ass.

⸢Sufyān al-Thawrī said, ‘The voice[s] of all things glorify [God] except for the voice of the ass (ḥimār),⸣^{1The section in brackets is added on the basis of all three MSS: Z515, f. 85b–86a, F638, f. 40a and MS F3488, f. 259b and F638 has tasbīḥ whereas the other two MSS have yusabbiḥu.} for it screeches on account of seeing Satan, and this is why God, Exalted is He, calls it abominable (munkar).

…and He has showered His favours upon you, [both] outwardly and inwardly…

Outwardly it refers to the love of the virtuous and inwardly it refers to the heart’s tranquil repose (sukūn) in God, Exalted is He.

His words:

And whoever surrenders his purpose to God and does good (muḥsin)…

He said:

[That is,] whoever purifies (akhlaṣa) his religion for God, Mighty and Majestic is He,^{1As stated before, akhlaṣa has the meaning of making one’s religion solely for God, freeing it for Him alone, and of making it pure and sincere for His sake, as is found in the verbal noun derived from it, ikhlāṣ. See IT, pp. lvi–lvii.} and accomplishes well the propriety (adab) of sincerity (ikhlāṣ) [has certainly grasped] the firmest handhold, this being the Sunna.

His words:

…No soul knows what it will reap tomorrow...

That is, [no soul knows] what [counts] for and against it in the preordainment of the unseen (maqdūr al-ghayb). So, be wary of [what has been preordained] by upholding His remembrance and crying out to Him for help, until He takes it upon Himself to take care of your affair,^{1The MSS (Z515, f. 86a, F638, f. 40a and F3488, f. 260a) all have shaʾnikum instead of shaʾnihim, which agrees with the 2nd person plural of the verb used earlier.} just as He has said: God erases and confirms whatever He will. [13:39]

His words, Exalted is He:

…And no soul knows in what land it will die…

He said:

[It does not know] in what state (ḥukm)^{2Or ‘in what decreed state’.} it will be when it dies: [eternal] bliss (saʿāda) or wretchedness (shaqāwa). This is why the Messenger ﷺ said: ‘Do not be deceived by your great [accumulation of] works, for works are [judged] according to the last ones.’^{3Ibn Ḥanbal, al-Musnad, vol. 5, p. 335; Mundhirī, al-Targhīb wa’l-tarhīb, vol. 4, p. 48.} He also used to say, ‘O Protector of Islam and its people! Hold me fast to^{4Correcting thabbitnī in the published edition to massiknī as is written in all three MSS: Z515, f. 86a; F638, f. 40a and F3488, f. 260a.} Islam so that I meet You in Islam’.^{5Ṭabarānī, al-Muʿjam al-awsaṭ, vol. 1, p. 206; Haythamī, Majmaʿ al-zawāʾid, vol. 10, p. 136.} And he would say, ‘O Turner of hearts and eyes, make my heart firm[ly rooted] in Your religion’,^{6Tirmidhī, Sunan, ‘Kitāb al-Qadar’ and ‘Kitāb al-Daʿwāt’; Haythamī, Majmaʿ al-zawāʾid, vol. 6, p. 325 and vol. 7, p. 210.} despite the fact that God had secured for him his end.

In actual fact, he said this by way of instruction (taʾdīb), so that they might follow his example, make known their poverty and need for God, Mighty and Majestic is He, and give up their reliance on being secure from His ruse (makr). It was for this reason that Abraham عليه السلام said, ‘Preserve me and my sons from idolatry’ [14:35], and Joseph said, ‘Let me die in submission to You, and join me to the righteous’ [12:101]. This was by way of disclaiming all power (ḥawl) and strength (quwwa) and showing neediness for Him. Likewise, God has said, ‘were it not for your supplications’ [25:77],^{7The words in context are as follows: Say [Muḥammad], ‘My Lord would not be concerned with you were it not for your supplications’.} that is, [were it not for your] dissociating yourselves from everything besides Me, verbally (qawlan). And He said: O mankind! You are the ones who are in need of God [35:15], Mighty and Majestic is He.