A Parable of the Removal of the Earnings of the Disbelievers

This is a parable that Allah made of the behavior of the Quraysh disbelievers with the great mercy, and tremendous favors He granted them. The mercy and favor of sending of Muhammad ﷺ to them. But they met him with denial, rejection and opposition. Therefore Allah says,

إِنَّا بَلَوْنَـهُمْ

فَأَقْبَلَ بَعْضُهُمْ عَلَىٰ بَعْضٍ يَتَلَاوَمُونَ (Then, (at the beginning,) they started reproaching one another; 68:30). That is to say, at the beginning they made admission of guilt, but then they turned to face each other in mutual accusation, blaming each other for the punishment that visited them, whereas the crime was not committed by only a single person from among them, but it was committed jointly by all or most of them.

A note of caution