Tafsir of Surah An Nahl | quranmazid.com

وَلَاتَتَّخِذُوٓا۟أَيْمَٰنَكُمْدَخَلًۢابَيْنَكُمْفَتَزِلَّقَدَمٌۢبَعْدَثُبُوتِهَاوَتَذُوقُوا۟ٱلسُّوٓءَبِمَاصَدَدتُّمْعَنسَبِيلِٱللَّهِوَلَكُمْعَذَابٌعَظِيمٌ ٩٤

Saheeh International

And do not take your oaths as [means of] deceit between you, lest a foot slip after it was [once] firm, and you would taste evil [in this world] for what [people] you diverted from the way of Allah, and you would have [in the Hereafter] a great punishment.

en: Ibn Kathir

Tafseer 'Ibn Kathir' (EN)

وَلَا تَتَّخِذُواْ أَيْمَانَكُمْ دَخَلً بَيْنَكُمْ فَتَزِلَّ قَدَمٌ بَعْدَ ثُبُوتِهَا

And do not make your oaths a means of deception among yourselves, resulting in the slip of a foot after it was firmly planted,

Allah warns His servant against taking oaths as means of deception, i.e., using them for treacherous purposes, lest a foot should slip after being firmly planted.

This is an analogy describing one who was on the right path but then deviated and slipped from the path of guidance because of an unfulfilled oath that involved hindering people from the path of Allah. This is because if a disbeliever were to find that after having agreed to a covenant, then the believer betrayed him, then the believer will have hindered him from entering Islam.

Thus Allah says:

وَتَذُوقُواْ الْسُّوءَ بِمَا صَدَدتُّمْ عَن سَبِيلِ اللّهِ وَلَكُمْ عَذَابٌ عَظِيمٌ

and you taste the evil of having hindered from the path of Allah, and you will suffer a terrible punishment.

Do not break Oaths for the sake of Worldly Gain

Then Allah says