يَا أَيُّهَا النَّاسُ إِنَّا خَلَقْنَاكُمْ مِنْ ذَكَرٍ وَأُنْثَى وَجَعَلْنَاكُمْ شُعُوبًا وَقَبَائِلَ لِتَعَارَفُوا إِنَّ أَكْرَمَكُمْ عِنْدَ اللَّهِ أَتْقَاكُمْ إِنَّ اللَّهَ عَلِيمٌ خَبِيرٌ ﴿۱۳﴾ قَالَتِ الْأَعْرَابُ آمَنَّا قُلْ لَمْ تُؤْمِنُوا وَلَكِنْ قُولُوا أَسْلَمْنَا وَلَمَّا يَدْخُلِ الْإِيمَانُ فِي قُلُوبِكُمْ وَإِنْ تُطِيعُوا اللَّهَ وَرَسُولَهُ لَا يَلِتْكُمْ مِنْ أَعْمَالِكُمْ شَيْئًا إِنَّ اللَّهَ غَفُورٌ رَحِيمٌ ﴿۱۴﴾ إِنَّمَا الْمُؤْمِنُونَ الَّذِينَ آمَنُوا بِاللَّهِ وَرَسُولِهِ ثُمَّ لَمْ يَرْتَابُوا وَجَاهَدُوا بِأَمْوَالِهِمْ وَأَنْفُسِهِمْ فِي سَبِيلِ اللَّهِ أُولَئِكَ هُمُ الصَّادِقُونَ ﴿۱۵﴾

﴾13﴿ Yaaa ayyuhan naasu innaa khalaqnaakum min zakarinw wa unsaa wa ja'alnaakum shu'oobanw wa qabaaa'ila lita'aarafoo inna akramakum 'indal laahi atqaakum innal laaha 'Aleemun khabeer
﴾14﴿ Innamal muu'minoonal lazeena aamanoo billaahi wa Rasoolihee summa lam yartaaboo wa jaahadoo biamwaalihim wa anfusihim fee sabeelil laah; ulaaaika humus saadiqoon
﴾15﴿ Innamal muu'minoonal lazeena aamanoo billaahi wa Rasoolihee summa lam yartaaboo wa jaahadoo biamwaalihim wa anfusihim fee sabeelil laah; ulaaaika humus saadiqoon

﴾13﴿ O mankind, indeed We have created you from a male and a female and made you into nations and tribes so that you may know one another. Indeed, the most honored among you in the sight of Allah the Exalted is the most righteous among you. Verily, Allah the Exalted is All-Knowing, All-Aware
﴾14﴿ The Bedouins say, We have believed. Say, You have not believed, but rather say, 'We have submitted to Islam,' for faith has not yet entered your hearts. But if you obey Allah the Exalted and His Messenger, He will not diminish anything from your deeds. Indeed, Allah the Exalted is Forgiving, Most Merciful
﴾15﴿ Indeed, the true believers are those who have believed in Allah the Exalted and His Messenger, then have never doubted, and have striven with their wealth and their lives in the way of Allah the Exalted. It is they who are the truthful ones

[13] This verse mentions the seventh etiquette, which leads to unity and harmony and is a good way to avoid division and corruption.
The core message (connected to the previous discussion) is that one person considers another inferior and views himself as superior either because he sees his lineage as separate — which is incorrect, since all humans are created from one mother and father — or because he boasts of his ancestry.
Lineage, however, is never a cause for honor except through piety; rather, it is only for identification and knowing one another.
Indeed, true honor is only through taqwa (piety), and a pious person neither belittles others nor becomes arrogant; rather, due to taqwa, he protects himself from the previous bad traits.
(يَا أَيُّهَا النَّاسُ) — Here, the address is general to all people, because being of the same species and having varied lineages is not unique to believers; disbelievers too are all children of Adam and Hawwa (peace be upon them), and have various ancestral lines.
(مِنْ ذَكَرٍ وَأُنْثَى) — This refers to Adam and Hawwa (peace be upon them).
(شُعُوبًا) — The plural of sha‘b, referring to distant ancestral branches, like in Arab tribes: Rabi‘ah, Mudar, Aws, Khazraj.
(وَقَبَائِلَ) — The plural of qabīlah, which falls under sha‘b, and refers to more immediate ancestral lines, like Kinānah is a tribe.
(لِتَعَارَفُوا) — This is the wisdom behind the division into lineages: so you may know your ancestry and maintain ties of kinship because of it.
In a hadith from Tirmidhi, the Messenger of Allah (May Allah bless him and give him peace) said: “Learn enough about your lineage to uphold family ties.”
This is clear proof that lineage is not for pride or boasting, but only for identification and maintaining relationships.
Thus, boasting of lineage is a trait of the people of ignorance (Jāhiliyyah).
(إِنَّ أَكْرَمَكُمْ عِنْدَ اللَّهِ أَتْقَاكُمْ) — That is, in the sight of Allah, the only cause of elevated rank and honor is taqwa.
Qurtubi said: Taqwa means observing Allah’s commands and prohibitions within the bounds set by Allah, and guarding oneself from what He has forbidden.
The phrase (عِنْدَ اللَّهِ) points out that being honored in the eyes of people holds no real value; the true goal is to attain honor in the sight of Allah.
The use of the superlative (أَتْقَاكُمْ) indicates that taqwa has levels, and accordingly, honor with Allah varies by degree.
[14] The connection of this verse to the previous subject is that someone who does not act upon these mentioned etiquettes and merely performs outward acts (such as prayer, ablution, etc.) while claiming faith — he is actually a hypocrite.
Do not trust such a person.
And its connection to the previous verse is that the hypocrites would say, “Our lineage is noble, and we also possess faith and piety,” implying, “So we are better than the noble Companions (may Allah be pleased with them).”
This verse refutes them and rebukes the mere claim of faith — because in reality, what they have is not true faith but only outward actions, which carry no value.
(وَلَكِنْ قُولُوا أَسْلَمْنَا) — Say rather, “We have submitted.”
This refers to outward submission and performing certain deeds merely to protect their lives and wealth or to gain benefits such as spoils of war or zakāt.
This is evidence that Islam is of two types:
1. Outward submission and surrender without inner belief — just physical compliance.
2. Submission by tongue, heart, and limbs, like in the statement of Ibrahim (peace be upon him): “I have submitted to the Lord of the worlds” (Al-Baqarah 2:131), and “Indeed, the religion with Allah is Islam” (Āl ‘Imrān 3:19).
This proves that merely professing belief and reciting the declaration of faith (kalimah) without heartfelt conviction does not constitute true, legal (Shar‘i) faith.
Khatib al-Sharbini reported that the majority of heedless people in this age are in this very state.
[15] This verse describes the true reality of Shar‘i (legal) faith in refutation of the hypocrites, who claim to have faith but are liars in that claim.
(ثُمَّ لَمْ يَرْتَابُوا) — The meaning of irtiyāb (doubt) here refers to actions that indicate disbelief or shirk (associating partners with Allah).
Some of those actions include violating the etiquettes mentioned in this surah.
(وَجَاهَدُوا بِأَمْوَالِهِمْ) — This refers to every effort and struggle made as a requirement of faith, in which either wealth or life is sacrificed.
(أُولَئِكَ هُمُ الصَّادِقُونَ) — This is an indirect critique of anyone who does not possess these conditions of faith: such a person is a liar in his claim to faith.