His saying, the Exalted: "Be servants to Me, apart from Allah."

3743 - Al-Hasan b. Ahmad narrated to us, Musa b. Muhkam narrated to us, Abu Bakr al-Hanafi narrated to us, 'Abbad b. Mansur narrated to us, he said: I asked al-Hasan about His saying: "It is not for a human that Allah should give him the Scripture, and authority, and prophethood, then he says to the people: 'Be servants to Me, apart from Allah'." He said: It is not for a believer to do that, [to] command the people to take him [as] lords apart from Allah. He said: The people used to worship one another.

3744 - My father narrated to us, Ahmad b. 'Abd al-Rahman narrated to us, 'Abd Allah b. Abi Ja'far narrated to us, from his father, from al-Rabi', [concerning] His saying: "then he says to the people: 'Be servants to Me, apart from Allah'," he says: He commands the servants of Allah to take him [as] a lord apart from Allah.

3745 - 'Ali b. al-Mubarak informed me, in what he wrote to me, Zayd b. al-Mubarak narrated to us, Ibn Thawr narrated to us, from Ibn Jurayj, concerning His saying: "'Be servants to Me, apart from Allah'," he said: Some of the Jews used to worship the people, without [the people] rejecting them, by their [the Jews] distorting the Book of Allah from its [proper] places, [and] with other than what they read from that which Allah revealed in His Book.

His saying, the Exalted: "Rather, 'Be Rabbaniyyun [devout scholars/people of knowledge].'"

[The First Aspect]

3746 - Ahmad b. al-Fadl al-'Asqalani narrated to us, 'Ali b. al-Hasan al-Marwazi narrated to us, Ibrahim b. Rustum narrated to us, from Qays, from 'Ata', from Sa'id b. Jubayr, from Ibn 'Abbas, concerning this verse: "'Be Rabbaniyyun'," he said: They are the learned jurists (fuqaha') who teach.

And the Second Aspect:

3747 - Yunus b. Habib mentioned it, Abu Dawud narrated to us, Sulayman b. Mu'adh narrated to us, from Simak, from 'Ikrimah, from Ibn 'Abbas: "'Be Rabbaniyyun'," he said: Forbearing, learned, wise ones (1).

Abu Muhammad said: It was narrated from Abi Razin (2): Learned, forbearing [ones].

And the Third Aspect:

3748 - Al-Hasan b. Ahmad narrated to us, Musa b. Muhkam narrated to us, Abu Bakr al-Hanafi narrated to us, 'Abbad b. Mansur narrated to us, he said: I asked al-Hasan about His saying: "'Rather, 'Be Rabbaniyyun'," he says: Be people of worship and people of piety for Allah."