The Holy Quran with Five Volume Commentary (Vol 2) — Page 100
CH. 3 ĀL-E-‘IMRĀN PT. 4 became divided and who وَلَا تَكُونُوا كَالَّذِيْنَ تَفَرَّقُوا وَاخْتَلَفُوا And be not like those who. 106 keis مِنْ بَعْدِ مَا جَاءَهُمُ الْبَيِّنْتُ وَأُولَيكَ disagreed among themselves لَهُمْ عَذَابٌ عَظِيم after clear proofs had come to them. And it is they for whom there shall be a punishment, 392 great a3:104; 6:160; 8:47. Islam God has delivered you from a pit of fire, you should also try to deliver others from the fire of disbelief. The words, And let there be among you a body of men who should invite to goodness, do not mean that the duty of preaching is only confined to a few. What is meant is that, whereas all should try to preach and propagate the truth of Islam, there should be a party of men among Muslims who should be wholly and solely devoted to this work. As for the method of preaching, the Quran says elsewhere, Call unto the way of thy Lord with wisdom and goodly exhortation and argue with them (the disbelievers) in a way that is best (16:126). And the Holy Prophet is reported to have said, "If anyone of you sees anything evil, let him remove it with his hand. If he cannot do it with his hand, then let him forbid it with his tongue. If he cannot do even that, then let him at least detest it in his mind, and that is the weakest kind of faith" (Muslim). The verse also suggests a way by following which Muslims can 540 maintain their unity. So long as a Muslim people have their attention concentrated on the preaching of Islam and doing good, they will live in peace among themselves, for disunion is mostly born of idleness and a false sense of security. Each and every individual Muslim is not enjoined here to devote himself wholly to the preaching of Islam; for if it were so, Muslims could not earn their livelihood nor take part in other healthy pursuits of life. So, though all must contribute their quota, only a section of the community is required to devote itself exclusively to the work of preaching. 392. Commentary: The Quran does not merely give general philosophic teachings but actually refers to historical facts to bring home to the Faithful the gravity of the dangers that proved the ruin of peoples gone by. The verse, therefore, aptly refers to the dissensions of the People of the Book, and Muslims are enjoined to avoid them. The Holy Prophet says: "Whoso separates himself from the body of the Muslims even by the space of a span, throws