The Quran

۞ فَما لَكُم فِي المُنافِقينَ فِئَتَينِ وَاللَّهُ أَركَسَهُم بِما كَسَبوا ۚ أَتُريدونَ أَن تَهدوا مَن أَضَلَّ اللَّهُ ۖ وَمَن يُضلِلِ اللَّهُ فَلَن تَجِدَ لَهُ سَبيلًا

Muhammad Asad

How, then, could you be of two minds¹ about the hypocrites, seeing that God [Himself] has disowned them because of their guilt?² Do you, perchance, seek to guide those whom God has let go astray - when for him whom God lets go astray thou canst never find any way?

Lit., "two parties".
Lit., "seeing that God has thrown them back in result of what they have earned". There are various conjectures, almost all of them of a historical nature, as to the identity of these hypocrites. Some of the commentators think that the verse refers to the hypocrites at Medina in the early years after the hijrah; others (e.g., Tabari) prefer the view expressed by Ibn 'Abbas, according to whom this refers to certain people of Mecca who, before the hijrah, outwardly accepted Islam but secretly continued to support the pagan Quraysh. It seems to me, however, that there is no need to search after "historical" interpretations of the above verse, since it can easily be understood in general terms. The preceding verse speaks of God, and stresses His oneness and the obvious truth inherent in His revealed message, as well as the certainty of judgment on Resurrection Day. "How, then," continues the argument, "could you be of two minds regarding the moral stature of people who go so far as to pay lip-service to the truth of God's message and are, nevertheless, not willing to make a sincere choice between right and wrong?"