Surah Al Ma'idah Tafseer

وَحَسِبُواْ أَلاَّ تَكُونَ فِتْنَةٌ فَعَمُواْ وَصَمُّواْ

Whenever there came to them a Messenger with what they themselves desired not - a group of them they called liars, and others among them they killed. They thought there will be no Fitnah (trial or punishment) so they became blind and deaf.

thinking that they would suffer no repercussions for of the evil that they committed. Consequently, they were blinded from the truth and became deaf, incapable of hearing the truth. For these reasons they were unable to be guided by it.

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ثُمَّ تَابَ اللّهُ عَلَيْهِمْ ثُمَّ عَمُواْ وَصَمُّواْ

after that Allah turned to them (with forgiveness); yet again many of them became blind and deaf.

Allah forgave that, then,

ثُمَّ عَمُواْ وَصَمُّواْ

(yet they became blind and deaf) again,

كَثِيرٌ مِّنْهُمْ وَاللّهُ بَصِيرٌ بِمَا يَعْمَلُونَ

many of them, and Allah is the All-Seer of what they do.

He has perfect knowledge of what they do and whomever among them deserves the guidance and whomever deserves misguidance