Tafseer Ibn Kathir of MUHAMMAD [1]

1. Those who disbelieve and hinder (men) from the path of Allah, He will render their deeds vain. 2. But those who believe and do righteous good deeds, and believe in that which is sent down to Muhammad -- for it is the truth from their Lord -- He expiates from them their sins and amends their Bal. 3. That is because those who disbelieve follow falsehood, while those who believe follow the truth from their Lord. Thus does Allah set forth for mankind their parables.

(Those who disbelieve) meaning, in the Ayat of Allah.

(and hinder (men)) Others.

(from the path of Allah, He will render their deeds vain.) meaning, He renders their deeds vain and futile, and He denies them any rewards or blessings for them. This is similar to His saying,

(And We will approach what they have done of deeds and make them as dispersed dust.) (25:23) Allah then says,

(And those who believe and do righteous good deeds,) Which means that their hearts and souls have believed, and their limbs and their hidden and apparent acts have complied with Allah's Law.

(And believe in that which has been sent down to Muhammad) Adding this statement to the previous one is a method of adding a specific meaning to a general one. This provides proof that after Muhammad's advent, believing in him is a required condition for the true faith. Allah then says,

(For it is the truth from their Lord.) which is a beautifully placed parenthetical clause. Thus, Allah says,

(He expiates from them their sins and amends their Bal.) Ibn `Abbas, said, ”This means their matter.'' Mujahid said, ”This means their affair.'' Qatadah and Ibn Zayd both said, ”Their condition.'' And all of these are similar in meaning. It has been mentioned (from the Prophet ) in the Hadith of the responding to one who sneezes,

(May Allah guide you and rectify your (Bal) affairs.) Then Allah says,

(That is because those who disbelieve follow falsehood,) meaning, `We only invalidate the deeds of the disbelievers and overlook the sins of the righteous, and amend their affairs, because those who disbelieve follow false- hood.' Meaning, they choose falsehood over the truth.

(while those who believe follow the truth from their Lord. Thus does Allah set forth for the people their parables.) Thus He makes the consequence of their actions clear to them, and He shows them where they will end in their next life -- and Allah knows best.