What is intended by the "covenant" (ʿahd) in this āyah?

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

1. Leadership. [Abū Ṣāliḥ from Ibn ʿAbbās, Mujāhid, Saʿīd ibn Jubayr]. This is the soundest view (Ibn al-Jawzī).
2. Obedience. [Al-Ḍaḥḥāk from Ibn ʿAbbās]
3. Mercy. [ʿAṭāʾ, ʿIkrimah]
4. The religion. [Abū al-ʿĀliyah]
5. Prophethood. [Al-Suddī from his teachers]
6. Guaranteed security (amān). [Abū ʿUbaydah]
7. It means a binding pact (mīthāq). [Ibn Qutaybah]