Al-MuddaththirThe Cloaked One

Al-muddaththir is one wrapped in his garments; the command 'qum fa-anḏhir' is the true beginning of the call to prophethood, just as al-ʿAlaq began the revelation itself.

— Ibn Kathīr, Tafsīr al-Qurʾān al-ʿAẓīm

'Wa-thiyābaka fa-ṭahhir' (and purify your garments) is read both literally, of clean clothing, and by extension of purifying one's deeds and character — al-Ṭabarī records both views from the salaf.

— Al-Qurṭubī, al-Jāmiʿ li-Aḥkām al-Qurʾān

'Wa-lā tamnun tastakthir' — do not give expecting more in return; sincerity means the deed is for Allah alone, not a transaction for worldly increase.

— Al-Saʿdī, Taysīr al-Karīm al-Raḥmān

'Wa-li-rabbika fa-ṣbir' commands patience specifically for Allah's sake, in bearing the harm of those who would reject and mock the message.

— Ibn Kathīr

The majority of the mufassirūn identify this man as al-Walīd ibn al-Mughīrah, who was asked by Quraysh to describe the Qurʾān and, after being visibly moved by it, deliberated, frowned, and scowled before settling on calling it magic passed down from others.

— Ibn Kathīr, Tafsīr al-Qurʾān al-ʿAẓīm

'Fa-qutila kayfa qaddar, thumma qutila kayfa qaddar' — 'so may he be destroyed, how he calculated!' — is repeated to condemn the deliberateness of his lie; he knew better and chose the slander anyway.

— Al-Ṭabarī, Jāmiʿ al-Bayān

'Lā tubqī wa-lā tadhar' — it leaves nothing of the body and returns it repeatedly, sparing no part; 'lawwāḥatun li-l-bashar' — it visibly scorches and blackens the skin.

— Ibn Kathīr, Tafsīr al-Qurʾān al-ʿAẓīm

The number nineteen was mocked by some of Quraysh as too few to guard so many; Allah responds that their vast numbers are known to none but Him, and the disbelievers' scoffing at the number itself becomes part of their trial.

— Al-Qurṭubī, al-Jāmiʿ li-Aḥkām al-Qurʾān

The four causes named by the people of the Fire — abandoning prayer, withholding from the poor, keeping bad company in falsehood, and denying the Ākhirah — are together a diagnosis: neglect of worship, neglect of others, and neglect of belief in accountability, reinforcing each other.

— Al-Saʿdī, Taysīr al-Karīm al-Raḥmān

'Fa-mā tanfaʿuhum shafāʿatu al-shāfiʿīn' — the intercession of intercessors will not benefit them, because intercession is only granted by Allah's permission to those He allows, and denial forecloses it.

— Ibn Kathīr, Tafsīr al-Qurʾān al-ʿAẓīm