they were to have the home of the Hereafter with Allah exclusively, excluding the [other] people, then wish for death.
They did not do so, given that they said: "None shall enter Paradise except he who was a Jew or a Christian," and they said: "We are the children of Allah and His beloved ones." So Allah said that to them. It was narrated from Qatadah and al-Rabi' ibn Anas similarly.
His saying: "Then wish for death, if you should be truthful."
936 - My father narrated to us, 'Ali ibn Muhammad al-Tanafisi narrated to us, 'Aththam narrated to us, he said: I heard al-A'mash, he said: I do not think it is but from al-Minhal, from Sa'id ibn Jubayr, from Ibn 'Abbas, who said: If they had wished for death, one of them would have choked on his own saliva.
937 - Muhammad ibn Yahya narrated to us, Abu Ghassan informed us, Salamah narrated to us, he said: Muhammad ibn Ishaq said: Muhammad ibn Abi Muhammad narrated to me, from 'Ikrimah or Sa'id ibn Jubayr, from Ibn 'Abbas, that Allah says to His Prophet (peace and blessings of Allah be upon him): "Say, 'If the home of the Hereafter with Allah is for you exclusively, excluding the [other] people, then wish for death, if you should be truthful,'" meaning: Pray for death upon whichever of the two parties is the greater liar. They refused that to the Messenger of Allah (peace and blessings of Allah be upon him).
938 - Al-Hasan ibn Abi al-Rabi' narrated to us, 'Abd al-Razzaq informed us, Ma'mar informed us, from 'Abd al-Karim al-Jazari, from 'Ikrimah regarding His saying: "Then wish for death, if you should be truthful," he said: And Ibn 'Abbas said: If the Jews had wished for death, they would have died.
His saying: "If you should be truthful."
939 - 'Isam ibn Rawwad narrated to us, Adam narrated to us, from Abu Ja'far, from al-Rabi', from Abu al-'Aliyah: "If you should be truthful" in what you say, that it is as you say.
His saying: "But they will never wish for it, ever, because of what their hands have put forth. And Allah is Knowing of the wrongdoers."
940 - Muhammad ibn Yahya narrated to us, Abu Ghassan informed us, Salamah narrated to us, he said: Muhammad ibn Ishaq said: Muhammad ibn Abi Muhammad narrated to me, from 'Ikrimah or Sa'id ibn Jubayr, from Ibn 'Abbas, who said: Allah says to His Prophet: "But they will never wish for it, ever, because of what their hands have put forth. And Allah is Knowing of the wrongdoers," meaning: He knows them by what they possess of knowledge concerning you, and their disbelief in that; and if they had wished for it the day He said that to them, there would not have remained a Jew on the earth but that he would have died.