Surah 12. Yusuf, Ayah 110

Lit., "until" (hatta). This connects with the reference to earlier apostles in the first sentence of the preceding verse: the implication being (according to Zamakhshari) that they used to suffer for a long time before they were vindicated by God.

Lit., "thought that they had been given the lie" - i.e., either by their people, who regarded the apostles' expectation of God's succour as mere wishful thinking, or by the harsh reality which seemed to contradict those apostles' own hopes of speedy help from God (Zamakhshari). Commenting on this verse,'Abd Allah ibn'Abbas used to quote 2:214 - "so shaken were they that the apostle, and the believers with him, would exclaim, When will God s succour come?" (ibid.)

Zannu (come to think): I construe the nominative of this verb to be "the messengers" in agreement with the best authorities. Kuzibu is the usual reading, though Kuzzibu, the alternative reading, also rests on good authority. I construe the meaning to be: that Allah gives plenty of rope to the wicked (as in Joseph's story) until His own Messengers feel almost that it will be hopeless to preach to them and come to consider themselves branded as liars by an unbelieving world; that the breaking point is then reached: that Allah's help then comes swiftly to His men, and they are delivered from persecution and danger, while the wrath of Allah overtakes sinners, and nothing can then ward it off. This interpretation has good authority behind it, though there are differences of opinion.