Al-Khazraji, in his book نفس الصباح في غريب القرآن وناسخه ومنسوخه, volume 1, pages 243-244, says that
was abrogated by God by
He says An-Nahhaas said the same thing, but that Ibn Salaama said it was abrogated by the
sword verse. Then he says that the majority, e.g., Makki, disagrees because they believe 2:256 was about the people of the Book especially.
Where do I begin? Verse 9:73 orders the Prophet (PBUH) to struggle against the disbelievers and the hypocrites. We know that Muslims cannot initiate hostilities from
Therefore, and since struggle is two-sided, 9:73 means that when they choose to be adversaries to Muslims, Muslims must struggle against them. How is that forcing a religion on them?
See the
sword verse topic for why it did not abrogate anything.
Why is 2:256 about the people of the Book only? Where in it does it say that? It is a general principle that applies to all people and can never be abrogated.
Lastly, if 2:256 is about the people of the Book only, we know that some of them are disbelievers, per
Therefore, 9:73 applies to them, hence a case of abrogation cannot be made, even if we follow the majority's reasoning.