Imām Ibn al-Jawzī (d. 597/1201) summarized the scholars' opinions in his book "Zād al-Masīr" as follows:

1. It refers to all of the descendants of Adam. [Majority]
2. It refers to Adam alone [Mujāhid]. Ibn al-Anbārī explains that this is permissible because the Arabs sometimes use a plural form to refer to a single individual. The meaning of the verse would then be: "Adam was of one religion, but his children differed after him."
3. It refers to Adam and his children, who were initially on the truth, but they differed after Cain killed Abel. [Ibn al-Anbārī]

What is "people" (*al-nas*) referring to in this āyah?

Imām Ibn al-Jawzī (d. 597/1201) summarized the scholars' opinions in his book "Zād al-Masīr" as follows:

The term "ummah" here refers to a group united by a single cause. Regarding the cause that they were initially upon, there are two opinions:

1. It was Islam. [Ubayy ibn Kaʿb, Qatādah, al-Suddī, Muqātil]
2. It was disbelief. [Reported by ʿAṭiyyah from Ibn ʿAbbās]

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Regarding when "they" were a single community, there are five opinions:

1. It was when they were presented to Adam and acknowledged servitude to Allah. [Ubayy ibn Kaʿb]
2. It was during the time of Ibrāhīm, when they were disbelievers. [Ibn ʿAbbās]
3. It was between the time of Adam and Nūḥ. [Qatādah]
4. It was when they boarded the ark, as they were upon the truth. [Muqātil]
5. It was during the time of Adam. [Mentioned by Ibn al-Anbārī]

What is meant by the people being "a single *ummah*", and when was this?

Imām Ibn al-Jawzī (d. 597/1201) summarized the scholars' opinions in his book "*Zād al-Masīr*" as follows:

1. It means honesty and justice.
2. It refers to (God's) judgment in the matters in which they differed.

What is meant by "the truth" (*al-haqq*)?

Imām Ibn al-Jawzī (d. 597/1201) summarized the scholars' opinions in his book "Zād al-Masīr" as follows:

1. It is Allah.
2. It is the Prophet to whom the Book was revealed.
3. It is the Book itself, as in the verse "This is Our Book; it speaks against you with truth" (45:29).

Who would "judge between mankind" according to this?

Imām Ibn al-Jawzī (d. 597/1201) summarized the scholars' opinions in his book "Zād al-Masīr" as follows:

1. Prophet Muḥammad (ﷺ). [Ibn Masʿūd]
2. The religion. [Muqātil]
3. The Book. [Abū Sulaymān al-Dimashqī]

What does the pronoun in "did not differ concerning it/him" refer to?

Imām Ibn al-Jawzī (d. 597/1201) summarized the scholars' opinions in his book "Zād al-Masīr" as follows:

1. It was regarding the day of Friday. The Jews made their sacred day Saturday, and the Christians made it Sunday. Al-Bukhārī and Muslim narrated in their Sahihs from a hadith of Abū Hurayrah that the Prophet (ﷺ) said: "We are the last of the nations, but the first on the Day of Resurrection, even though they were given the Scripture before us, and we were given it after them. This is their day which was enjoined upon them, but they differed concerning it, so Allah guided us to it. Thus, today (Friday) is for us, tomorrow (Saturday) is for the Jews, and the day after (Sunday) is for the Christians."
2. It was about the prayer. Some pray towards the east, and others towards the west.
3. It was about Abraham. The Jews claimed he was Jewish, while the Christians claimed he was Christian.
4. It was about Jesus. The Jews regarded him as illegitimate, while the Christians considered him divine.
5. It was regarding the scriptures. They believed in some and disbelieved in others.
6. It was about religion itself, which is the most correct opinion because all the other interpretations are subsumed within it.

What does "that concerning which they differed" refer to in the āyah?