سورة البقرة

Imam Baqir (peace be upon him): [The Prophet], regarding the verse: "Say: If what you seek to hasten was with me, the matter between me and you would have been decided" [and had I acted on your demand, the divine punishment would have come down on you], and the matter between me and you would have ended. (An'am/58) — said: "If I were permitted, I would inform you of what you conceal in your hearts" ... What you conceal in your hearts is that you wish for my death and want my death to come quickly, so that after me you may wrong my Ahl al-Bayt (peace be upon them). This verse is your parable, just as the verse "like one who kindled a fire" also describes you.

Imam Ali (peace be upon him), Amir al-Mu'minin (peace be upon him): After the passing of the Noble Prophet, in a gathering of people in the mosque, he said in a loud voice: "Those who disbelieved and barred [others] from the way of Allah, their deeds are rendered void." Ibn Abbas said: "O Aba al-Hasan (peace be upon him)! Why did you say what you said?" He (peace be upon him) said: "... Do you testify that the Prophet appointed Abu Bakr as caliph after himself?" He said: "I did not hear the Prophet appoint anyone other than you as his successor." He (peace be upon him) said: "Then why did you not pledge allegiance to me?" He said: "I saw that all the people gathered to pledge allegiance to Abu Bakr, so I joined them." He (peace be upon him) said: "Just as the Children of Israel gathered to worship the calf, you too were tested in this way, and your parable is like that of one who kindled a fire, and as soon as it lit up what was around him, Allah took away his light and left him in darkness where he could see nothing. They are deaf, dumb and blind, so they do not return [to the truth]."

Imam Kazim (peace be upon him): The parable of these hypocrites is like one who kindles a fire to see what is around him by it; then, just as he is able to see, Allah extinguishes the fire by sending wind or rain, taking away its light. Such is the parable of these covenant-breaking hypocrites: when Allah took from them the pledge of allegiance to the wilayah (guardianship) of Ali ibn Abi Talib (peace be upon him), they outwardly bore witness that there is no god but the One Allah, with no partner, and that Muhammad (peace be upon him and his family) is His servant and messenger, and that Ali (peace be upon him) is his guardian, successor, heir and deputy among his community, adjudicating his rulings, fulfilling his promises, and managing the affairs of Allah's servants in his place after the Prophet; and because of his wilayah they inherited the values of Islam and the Muslims, and the people obeyed him for it, and for that reason they defended him well, and because of his wilayah they were obedient to him and took him as a brother whom they protected as they protect their own possessions. Then, when death came, they fell under the judgment of the Lord of the two worlds, who knows all secrets, from whom nothing hidden remains, and He seized them with the punishment of their inward disbelief. That is when their light vanished and they fell into the darkness of Allah's punishment, the darkness of the rulings of the hereafter, where they see no way out and find no escape from it.

Imam Rida (peace be upon him): Unlike created beings, about whom the words "abandoning" and "leaving" can be used, Allah cannot be described with these words; rather, [what it means regarding Allah is that] when He knows they will not turn away from disbelief and misguidance, He withholds His grace and help from them and leaves them to themselves, to do whatever they wish.

Imam Baqir (peace be upon him): You see them looking at you while they do not see you.

Imam Baqir (peace be upon him): They do not see the virtue and status of the Ahl al-Bayt (peace be upon them).