What is the meaning of "for what was before it and what was behind it" in this āyah?

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

1. The villages in front of it and those behind it. [ʿIkrimah from Ibn ʿAbbās]
2. The sins committed before it and the sins committed afterward. [ʿAṭiyyah from Ibn ʿAbbās]
3. "What was before it" refers to the years in which they were committing sins before it, "and what was after it" refers to the years after it among the Children of Israel, meaning: so they would not repeat such deeds. [ʿAṭiyyah]