…أَحْبَارَهُمْ…  (their scholars): They are the religious scholar among the Jews and Christians.

(…وَرُهْبَانَهُمْ…) (and monks): denotes those who devote to worship and abstains from a worldly role in life.

(…أَرْبَابًا مِّن دُونِ اللَّهِ…) (as lords besides Allah,): They take their scholars and monks as lords besides Allah, obeying them in disobedience to Allah. Though they did not fast or pray for their scholars and monks, but when they declared something permissible, they considered it permissible, and when they declared something that Allah made permissible as forbidden, they will also take them as forbidden. That was their form of lordship. Adi ibn Hatim (may Allah be pleased with him) related: “I came to the Prophet (saws) and on my neck was a golden cross. Then I heard him saying: (They have taken their scholars and monks as lords besides Allah.) I said: “Oh Messenger of Allah, they did not worship them.” He (saws) said:

“Certainly, but they (scholars and monks) made lawful for them what Allah had forbidden, and they too considered it lawful; and made unlawful for them what Allah had made lawful, and they took it as unlawful too. That was their worship of them.”[1]

(…لَّا إِلَٰهَ إِلَّا هُوَ ۚ …) (there is no deity except Him.): He is exalted and sanctified from any partners, rivals, or associates. There is no god except Him, and there is no lord besides Him (swt).

We emphasize here that Islam did not command fighting people based on their differing beliefs, but it ordered fighting those who act aggressively among them, as have mentioned before.

[1] Sunan Baihaqi Al-Kubra, The Book of The Manners of the Qadhi, Chapter no. 20, Hadith no. 20137