ذَلِكَ الَّذِي يُبَشِّرُ اللَّهُ عِبَادَهُ الَّذِينَ آمَنُوا وَعَمِلُوا الصَّالِحَاتِ قُلْ لَا أَسْأَلُكُمْ عَلَيْهِ أَجْرًا إِلَّا الْمَوَدَّةَ فِي الْقُرْبَى وَمَنْ يَقْتَرِفْ حَسَنَةً نَزِدْ لَهُ فِيهَا حُسْنًا إِنَّ اللَّهَ غَفُورٌ شَكُورٌ ﴿۲۳﴾ أَمْ يَقُولُونَ افْتَرَى عَلَى اللَّهِ كَذِبًا فَإِنْ يَشَإِ اللَّهُ يَخْتِمْ عَلَى قَلْبِكَ وَيَمْحُ اللَّهُ الْبَاطِلَ وَيُحِقُّ الْحَقَّ بِكَلِمَاتِهِ إِنَّهُ عَلِيمٌ بِذَاتِ الصُّدُورِ ﴿۲۴﴾ وَهُوَ الَّذِي يَقْبَلُ التَّوْبَةَ عَنْ عِبَادِهِ وَيَعْفُو عَنِ السَّيِّئَاتِ وَيَعْلَمُ مَا تَفْعَلُونَ ﴿۲۵﴾

﴾23﴿ Zaalikal lazee yubash shirul laahu 'ibaadahul lazeena aamanoo wa 'amilus saalihaat; qul laaa as'alukum 'alaihi ajran illal mawaddata fil qurbaa; wa mai yaqtarif hasanatan nazid lahoo feehaa husnaa; innal laaha Ghafoorun Shakoor
﴾24﴿ Am yaqooloonaf tara 'alal laahi kaziban fa-iny yasha' illaahu yakhtim 'alaa qalbik; wa yamhul laahul baatila wa yuhiqqul haqqa bi Kalimaatih; innahoo 'Aleemun bizaatis sudoor
﴾25﴿ Wa Huwal lazee yaqbalut tawbata 'an 'ibaadihee wa ya'foo 'anis saiyiaati wa ya'lamu maa taf'aloon

﴾23﴿ This is the thing that Allah gives glad tidings of to His servants who believe and do righteous deeds. Say, "I do not ask you for any reward for this except love for the sake of Allah." And whoever does good, We will increase for him in goodness. Indeed, Allah is Forgiving and Accepting of deeds
﴾24﴿ Do they say that he has fabricated a lie against Allah? But if Allah willed, He could seal your heart. And Allah eliminates falsehood and establishes the truth by His words. Indeed, Allah is All-Knowing of what is in the hearts
﴾25﴿ And He is Allah, the One who accepts repentance from His servants, pardons bad deeds, and knows what you do

[23] At the beginning of this verse, there is an emphasis on the previous glad tidings, and this emphasis is expressed in five ways:
"Say: I do not ask you for any reward for it" (qul lā as’alukum ‘alayhi ajran) — because in giving glad tidings, people normally expect compensation, which contradicts sincerity. Therefore, it is said that the Prophet (May Allah bless him and give him peace) asks for no compensation at all — neither in actual request nor in implied expectation, meaning he has no worldly desire or greed.
"Except love for kinship (illā al-mawaddata fī al-qurbā)" — meaning: because of this, I ask for no reward. Even if, hypothetically, "love for kinship" were considered a type of reward, I still would not be seeking it — because it is not truly a reward, as worldly reward is defined as something that benefits the recipient materially or advances his position, and love for kinship brings no worldly gain to the Prophet, nor raises him in status.
Note: Regarding al-mawaddah fī al-qurbā, there are three interpretations from the commentators:
1. First opinion — from Mujāhid and Hasan al-Baṣrī (and Qurṭubī narrates Mujāhid’s opinion with a marfū‘ chain): it means, “I want from you that you show love toward Allah and seek closeness to Him through obedience.” Here, qurbā means closeness to Allah, and it is described as "love" to emphasize and strengthen the meaning.
2. Second opinion — from Sha‘bī and Ibn ‘Abbās (may Allah be pleased with them both): qurbā refers to the tribal kinship of the Prophet (peace be upon him) with the clans of Quraysh. The meaning becomes: “I do not ask you for any reward except that you honor the ties of kinship between us.”
3. Third opinion — from Kalbī and Suddi: qurbā refers to the relatives of the Prophet (peace be upon him) — i.e., his Ahl al-Bayt (Household). Meaning: “I ask nothing from you except that you love and show kindness to my family.”
This includes his pure wives and family members.
Therefore, showing respect and love to the family of the Messenger of Allah (peace be upon him) and to his noble wives is obligatory upon the Ummah, but without falling into excess or neglect.
[24] This is a rebuke to those who deny the Messenger of Allah (May Allah bless him and give him peace) — meaning, the one who does not show love for kinship (mawaddah fī al-qurbā), but instead attributes falsehood to it.
"If Allah wills, He can seal your heart (fa-in yashā’ Allāh yakhtim ‘alā qalbik)" — according to Qatādah, it means: If Allah wills, at the moment when the idea of fabricating something enters your heart, He would seal your heart — and then you would not understand anything.
According to Mujāhid, yakhtim means “He binds and strengthens”, and in here means idha (when). So the meaning is: Allah strengthens your heart with firmness and patience when they deny you.
"Al-bāṭil" refers to the doubts and false claims of the deniers — one of which is the accusation of fabricating something and attributing it to the Prophet (peace be upon him).
[25] This is an encouragement to repent from denying the Prophet (May Allah bless him and give him peace).