مَا عَلَى الرَّسُولِ إِلَّا الْبَلَاغُ وَاللَّهُ يَعْلَمُ مَا تُبْدُونَ وَمَا تَكْتُمُونَ ﴿۹۹﴾ قُلْ لَا يَسْتَوِي الْخَبِيثُ وَالطَّيِّبُ وَلَوْ أَعْجَبَكَ كَثْرَةُ الْخَبِيثِ فَاتَّقُوا اللَّهَ يَا أُولِي الْأَلْبَابِ لَعَلَّكُمْ تُفْلِحُونَ ﴿۱۰۰﴾ يَا أَيُّهَا الَّذِينَ آمَنُوا لَا تَسْأَلُوا عَنْ أَشْيَاءَ إِنْ تُبْدَ لَكُمْ تَسُؤْكُمْ وَإِنْ تَسْأَلُوا عَنْهَا حِينَ يُنَزَّلُ الْقُرْآنُ تُبْدَ لَكُمْ عَفَا اللَّهُ عَنْهَا وَاللَّهُ غَفُورٌ حَلِيمٌ ﴿۱۰۱﴾

﴾99﴿ Maa 'alar Rasooli illal balaagh; wallaahu ya'lamu maa tubdoona wa maa taktumoon
﴾100﴿ Qul laa yastawil khabeesu wattaiyibu wa law a'jabaka kasratul khabees; fattaqul laaha yaaa ulil albaabi la'allakum tuflihoon
﴾101﴿ yaaa aiyuhal lazeena aamanoo laa tas'aloo 'an ashyaaa'a in tubda lakum tasu'kum wa in tas'aloo 'anhaa heena yunazzalul Qur'aanu tubda lakum; 'afallaahu 'anhaa; wallaahu Ghafoorun Haleem

﴾99﴿ It is not the Messenger's responsibility except to convey, and Allah knows what you reveal and what you hide
﴾100﴿ Say: The unclean and the pure are not equal, and even though it is surprising that there is an abundance of the unclean, So fear Allah, the Most High, O people of reason, so that you will be successful
﴾101﴿ O believers: do not ask about such things that if revealed to you (the answer) would make you sad, If you ask about these things when the Qur'an is revealed to you (the answer to it), Allah Almighty has forgive them (the questions) and Allah Almighty is Forgiving, has patience

[99] This also emphasizes acting upon the previous rulings in two ways.
First: (مَا عَلَى الرَّسُولِ إِلَّا الْبَلَاغُ) — meaning, your excuse for negligence is not accepted; rather, the message delivered by the Messenger establishes the proof against you.
Second: (وَاللَّهُ يَعْلَمُ) — meaning, Allah knows your outward and inward states, your sincerity and your hypocrisy.
[100] After the emphasis, there is encouragement toward sound beliefs, righteous deeds, and good character, and a warning against what is vile.
This also responds to a misconception—that people often judge matters and actions based merely on popularity, similar to how majority rule is viewed in today’s era.
The conclusion of the response is that the difference between what is pure and what is impure is essential and not based on quantity. As seen in verse 117 of Surah Al-An‘am (الْخَبِيثُ وَالطَّيِّبُ), the impure is mentioned first due to its abundance. Both words here are general.
(وَلَوْ أَعْجَبَكَ كَثْرَةُ الْخَبِيثِ) — this admiration is a natural, involuntary reaction, so the address is to the Prophet (May Allah bless him and give him peace). Alternatively, it could refer to delight and pride, in which case the address applies to anyone who fails to distinguish between the impure and the pure.

[101] The connection here is that since people were encouraged to learn the difference between the impure and the pure, the listeners consequently began to ask many questions. Therefore, now the etiquettes of asking questions are mentioned.
"O you who believe" indicates that the requirement of faith is to differentiate between essential and non-essential matters.
"Do not ask about things which, if made clear to you, would trouble you"—this includes the question of Abdullah ibn Hudhafah, who asked the Prophet (May Allah bless him and give him peace) about his father ("Who is my father?"). This is reported by Bukhari and Muslim.
Similarly, Ibn Hajar mentioned in Fath al-Bari that this also includes questions asked mockingly, as a test, or out of obstinacy.
"If they are made clear to you, they will trouble you"—this means if the answer is given, the questioner will be upset. This clause qualifies "things" and is not meant as a restriction, thus it becomes clear that asking necessary questions is appropriate.
"And if you ask about them while the Qur’an is being revealed, they will be made clear to you"—according to the first interpretation of the commentators, this is a warning and an emphasis on "do not ask." It means the Qur’an is being revealed and you are asking unnecessary questions, so inevitably the answer will come in the Qur’an and you will be displeased—so why ask such questions?
The second view is from Al-Khazin, which means that if you wait until a ruling is revealed in the Qur’an and then you are in need of clarification, then ask—an answer will be given. So according to this explanation, it encourages asking questions when necessary.
"Allah has pardoned them"—this is an independent statement and indicates that such types of questions were sins, but Allah (before the prohibition was revealed) has pardoned you for them.