سورة البقرة

Ali ibn Ibrahim (may Allah have mercy on him): This verse was revealed about the Jews. They, while being hypocrites, had professed Islam outwardly. When they saw the Prophet (peace be upon him and his family), they would say: إِنَّا مَعَکُمْ [We are with you], and when they saw the Jews, they would say to them too: "We are with you."

Imam Askari (peace be upon him): Allah exposed their hypocrisy and duplicity to others, even though the others did not know that they were hypocrites.

Imam Askari (peace be upon him): Whenever the Jews met the believers and sat down to talk with Salman, Miqdad, Abu Dharr and Ammar (may Allah have mercy on them), they would claim: "We too are believers, and we believe in the prophethood of Muhammad (peace be upon him and his family) and the imamate of Ali (peace be upon him); we believe that Ali (peace be upon him) is the brother of the Messenger of Allah (peace be upon him and his family), who guides the people, and is the Messenger's vizier and successor among the community, who fulfills his promises and carries out the Messenger's (peace be upon him and his family) affairs, and is the executor and defender of the Prophet's (peace be upon him and his family) weighty policies [and plans]. He is the guardian of the people, and he shields [through intercession] those servants who have become deserving of Allah's wrath [the sinners] from Allah's anger; if they obey him, Allah becomes pleased with them. His successors after him are likewise the shining stars and radiant moons. They shine like the sun and radiate light. Their friends are counted as friends of Allah, and their enemies are counted as enemies of Allah."

Imam Askari (peace be upon him): When the Noble Prophet (peace be upon him and his family) overcame these Jews with his miracles and cut off their excuses, so that they had no way to contend and could not resist, they said, before his miracles: "O Muhammad (peace be upon him and his family)! We have believed in your messengership, and that you are the guide and [rightly] guided one, and that Ali (peace be upon him), your brother, is the wasi and wali of Allah."

Imam Baqir (peace be upon him): There was a group among the Jews who were not stubborn enemies or serious opponents of Islam conspiring together; when this group met the Muslims, they would recount to them the description of Muhammad (peace be upon him and his family) that they found in the Torah. The scholars and leaders of the Jews forbade them from doing this and said to them: "Do you narrate Muhammad's description from the Torah to the Muslims, so that they may rise up and argue against you with it before your Lord?" This verse was revealed for this reason.

Ali ibn Ibrahim (may Allah have mercy on him): [A group of non-fanatical Jews] used to inform the Muslims of the attributes of the Prophet (and his companions) which were in the Torah. The leaders and scholars [of the Jews] said to them: "You are telling them (the Muslims) matters by which they will argue against you before your Lord; [you] have no sense."

Imam al-Askari (peace be upon him): But when they sat in private with the other Jews, they used to say to them: "This faith which we outwardly professed protects us from the troubles that reach us from them (the Muslims), and helps us in the destruction of him (the Prophet (peace be upon him and his family)) and his companions; for when they suppose that we are of them, they trust us and place their secrets in our hands and hide nothing from us, and by this means we place their information in the hands of their enemies. [Their enemies too,] with our help, are able to attack them at times when they are preoccupied and troubled and have no means of defence." This was while they [also] used to convey to them [their Jewish accomplices] the observations and miracles which they had seen [from the Muslims].

Imam al-Askari (peace be upon him): When these hypocrite Jews met the other Jews [who were non-fanatical and not opposed to Islam], they would reproachfully ask: "What have you done? You went and [in accordance with what is stated in the Torah] informed the Muslims of the truths whose knowledge Allah had placed with you, and of the proofs and evidences of the truthfulness of the prophethood of Muhammad (peace be upon him and his family) (and the Imamate of his brother Ali ibn Abi Talib (peace be upon him), which is the best witness), so that [the Muslims, on the basis of proof, logic and reality, will defeat, convict and interrogate you and] before Allah say: 'You understood and saw these matters [the truth of Muhammad (peace be upon him and his family) and Ali (peace be upon him)] but did not have faith and did not submit to these truths.'" And [those Jews] supposed that if they did not place these matters at the disposal of the Muslims, the Muslims would no longer have any proof of their own truthfulness or for convicting them!

Imam al-Askari (peace be upon him): Allah the Exalted said: Do you not understand?! These proofs and matters that you inform the Muslims of become an argument against yourselves, which [establishes] the truthfulness and prophethood of Muhammad (peace be upon him and his family) [these truths are known to the Muslims themselves, although they do not disclose them]. That group of Jews who object to another group among themselves [asking why they inform the Muslims of these matters contained in the Torah] do not possess even this much understanding and awareness — that Allah knows the hidden rancour and enmity within them and the hypocritical plan hidden in their hearts; [He knows] that they display faith [outwardly] so that, in their own imagination, through this means they may uproot the Prophet (peace be upon him and his family) and eradicate his companions (and inflict greater harm on the Prophet (peace be upon him and his family) and his companions), and by declaring Islam gain closer contact with the Muslims and obtain knowledge of the internal secrets of the Muslims and hand them over to the enemies of the religion. The Allah of Muhammad (peace be upon him and his family) is fully aware of all these schemes. Allah too, in the face of their evil plan, Himself undertook the completion and perfection of the affair of His Prophet and the delivery of him to his sacred goal, and by His help and support for the noble Messenger (peace be upon him and his family) He brought their hypocritical plan to nothing and preserved the noble Prophet (peace be upon him and his family) safe from their harm and injury.