9

Repentance

al-Tawbah

The name of this sūrah, al-Tawbah, comes from the reference to repentance in v. 3, though some connect it with God’s “relenting” toward the Prophet and the believers as mentioned in vv. 117–18 (Āl), since “repent” and “relent” render the same verb with a different preposition following it. Another common name for this sūrah is al-Barāʾah (“The Repudiation”), a word that appears in its first verse, and several other names are also mentioned by commentators.

This Madinan sūrah contains some of the most important passages in the Quran concerning the conduct of war and political relations during peacetime, opening with a passage about how and why the believers should fight the idolatrous Arabs and also certain groups among the People of the Book (vv. 1–29), which is followed by a criticism of the corruption of religious leaders (vv. 29–32). A long passage describes the trials and disagreements that took place within the community over setting out on a military campaign and expands upon the dissension created by the hypocrites in Madinah who did not wish to go out to fight alongside the Prophet (vv. 38–106, 117–27). Loyalty and allegiance are major themes in the latter part of this sūrah and are applied to the attitudes of the nomadic Arabs (vv. 97–101), the efforts of some hypocrites to establish a competing mosque in Madinah (vv. 107–110), and the wavering and weakness of some Muslims in their commitment to following the Prophet into battle (vv. 117–18). The rules governing the zakāh, or alms, and the giving of charity also figure prominently in this sūrah (vv. 58–60, 103–4).

This is the only sūrah of the Quran that does not begin with the basmalah, the formula In the Name of God, the Compassionate, the Merciful. It is reported that Ibn ʿAbbās asked ʿAlī ibn Abī Ṭālib why there was no basmalah at the start of this sūrah. He responded that the basmalah is a statement of security, and this sūrah begins with the severing of a covenant and a declaration of conflict, which indicate the opposite of a state of security. When it was pointed out to him that the Prophet sent letters beginning with the basmalah to call various hostile groups to embrace Islam, ʿAlī ibn Abī Ṭālib responded that this was precisely a call to God, not the rescinding of a pact; the former leads to peace, the latter to war. Commentators note that it was a custom, even in pre-Islamic times, to omit In the Name of God in a message breaking a treaty (Q).

One interpretation of the absence of the basmalah at the start of al-Tawbah is that it reinforces the connection between the final verse of the previous sūrah, which emphasizes the need to separate from the disbelievers—a message given in a different form at the start of this sūrah (R). One question that the absence of the basmalah has raised for some is whether al-Anfāl (Sūrah 8) and al-Tawbah (Sūrah 9) are two sūrahs or together make up a single sūrah, and it is recorded that there was disagreement among some of the Companions over this question. According to an account attributed to ʿUmar ibn al-Khaṭṭāb, throughout the period of revelation the Prophet would give specific instructions on the placement of sūrahs and verses. Al-Tawbah was one of the last sūrahs to be revealed, and because of its content some Companions believed that it belonged with the preceding sūrah. However, because they were unsure whether it was one sūrah or two, they placed them next to each other, but without the basmalah at the start of al-Tawbah (Q, R). In this way, some interpret the absence of the basmalah as preserving the difference of opinion between the Companions over the question of the arrangement of the sūrahs. Nevertheless, the traditional view accepted by consensus is that it was the Prophet himself who gave the order for the sūrahs in the Quran, including considering Sūrahs 8 and 9 separate sūrahs.

¡ A repudiation from God and His Messenger to those idolaters with whom you made a treaty. * So travel freely throughout the land for four months, and know that you cannot thwart God, and that God shall disgrace the disbelievers. + And an announcement from God and His Messenger to the people on the day of the greater ḥajj: that God and His Messenger have repudiated the idolaters. So, if you repent, it would be better for you. And if you turn away, then know that you cannot thwart God. And give the disbelievers glad tidings of a painful punishment, J save for those idolaters with whom you have made a treaty, and who thereafter commit no breach against you, nor support anyone against you. So fulfill the treaty with them for its duration. Truly God loves the reverent. Z Then, when the sacred months have passed, slay the idolaters wheresoever you find them, capture them, besiege them, and lie in wait for them at every place of ambush. But if they repent, and perform the prayer and give the alms, then let them go their way. Truly God is Forgiving, Merciful. j And if any of the idolaters seek asylum with thee, grant him asylum until he hears the Word of God. Then convey him to his place of safety. That is because they are a people who know not. z How can the idolaters have a treaty with God and with His Messenger, save for those with whom you made a treaty at the Sacred Mosque? If they remain true to you, remain true to them. Truly God loves the reverent. { How, since if they prevail over you, they will not observe any kinship or treaty with you? They please you with their mouths, while their hearts refuse. And most of them are iniquitous. | They have sold the signs of God for a paltry price, and have turned from His way. Evil indeed is that which they used to do, Ċ observing neither kinship nor treaty with any believer. And it is they who are the transgressors. Ě But if they repent, and perform the prayer and give the alms, then they are your brethren in religion. And We expound the signs for a people who know. Ī But if they renege on their oaths after having made their treaty, and vilify your religion, then fight the leaders of disbelief—truly they have no oaths—that they might desist. ĺ Will you not fight a people who broke their oaths, and intended to expel the Messenger, and opened [hostility] against you first? Do you fear them? For God is worthier of being feared by you, if you are believers. Ŋ Fight them and God will punish them by means of your hands and disgrace them, and He will grant you victory over them and heal the breasts of a believing people, Ś and will dispel the rage within their hearts. God relents unto whomsoever He will, and God is Knowing, Wise. Ū Or did you suppose that you would be left alone, while God had yet to know whom among you strove and took no friend apart from God, His Messenger, and the believers? And God is Aware of whatsoever you do. ź It is not for the idolaters to maintain the mosques of God, bearing witness of disbelief against themselves. They are those whose deeds have come to naught, and in the Fire shall they abide. Ɗ Only they shall maintain the mosques of God who believe in God and the Last Day, perform the prayer and give the alms, and fear none but God. Such as these may be among the rightly guided. ƚ Or do you consider giving drink to the pilgrims and maintaining the Sacred Mosque to be like those who believe in God and the Last Day and strive in God’s way? They are not equal in the Eyes of God. And God guides not wrongdoing people. Ȋ Those who believe and emigrate and strive in the way of God with their wealth and their selves are greater in rank in the Eyes of God. And it is they who are the triumphant. ! Their Lord gives them glad tidings of Mercy from Him, and Contentment, and Gardens wherein they shall have lasting bliss, " abiding therein forever. Truly with God is a great reward. # O you who believe! Take not your fathers and your brothers as protectors if they prefer disbelief to belief. As for those among you who take them as protectors, it is they who are the wrongdoers. $ Say, “If your fathers, your children, your brothers, your spouses, your tribe, the wealth you have acquired, commerce whose stagnation you fear, and dwellings you find pleasing are more beloved to you than God, and His Messenger, and striving in His way, then wait till God comes with His Command.” And God guides not iniquitous people. % God indeed granted you victory on many a field, and on the Day of Ḥunayn when you were impressed at how numerous you were. But it availed you naught, and the earth, despite its breadth, closed in upon you. Then you turned your backs. & Then God sent down His Tranquility upon His Messenger and upon the believers, and sent down hosts whom you saw not, and punished those who disbelieved. And that is the recompense of the disbelievers. ' Then thereafter God will relent unto whomsoever He will. And God is Forgiving, Merciful. ( O you who believe! The idolaters are surely unclean; so let them not come near the Sacred Mosque after this year of theirs. If you fear poverty, God will enrich you from His Bounty if He will. Truly God is Knowing, Wise. ) Fight those who believe not in God and in the Last Day, and who do not forbid what God and His Messenger have forbidden, and who follow not the Religion of Truth among those who were given the Book, till they pay the jizyah with a willing hand, being humbled. Ð The Jews say that Ezra is the son of God, and the Christians say that the Messiah is the son of God. Those are words from their mouths. They resemble the words of those who disbelieved before. God curse them! How they are perverted! Ñ They have taken their rabbis and monks as lords apart from God, as well as the Messiah, son of Mary, though they were only commanded to worship one God. There is no god but He! Glory be to Him above the partners they ascribe. Ò They desire to extinguish the Light of God with their mouths. But God refuses to do aught but complete His Light, though the disbelievers be averse. Ó He it is Who sent His Messenger with guidance and the Religion of Truth to make it prevail over all religion, though the idolaters be averse. Ô O you who believe! Verily many of the rabbis and monks consume the wealth of people falsely, and turn from the way of God. [As for] those who hoard gold and silver and spend it not in the way of God, give them glad tidings of a painful punishment, Õ on the Day when it will be heated in the Fire of Hell, and their foreheads, their sides, and their backs will be branded with it. “This is what you hoarded up for yourselves; so taste that which you hoarded.” Ö Truly the number of months in the Eyes of God is twelve months, [laid down] in the Book of God, the day He created the heavens and the earth. Of them four are sacred. That is the upright religion. So wrong not yourselves during them. And fight the idolaters all together, just as they fight you all together. And know that God is with the reverent. × Truly the nasīʾ is but an increase in disbelief, whereby the disbelievers go astray. They make it lawful one year and forbid it another, in order to reconcile it with the number made sacred by God, thus making lawful that which God has forbidden. The evil of their deeds is made to seem fair unto them, but God guides not the disbelieving people. Ø O you who believe! What ails you, that when it is said unto you, “Go forth in the way of God,” you sink down heavily to the earth? Are you content with the life of this world over the Hereafter? Yet the enjoyment of the life of this world, compared with the Hereafter, is but a little. Ù If you go not forth, He will punish you with a painful punishment, and will place another people in your stead, and you will not harm Him in the least. And God is Powerful over all things. @ If you help him not, yet God has already helped him. Remember when those who disbelieved expelled him, the second of the two. Yea, the two were in the cave, when he said to his companion, “Grieve not; truly God is with us.” Then God sent down His Tranquility upon him, and supported him with hosts you see not. And He made the word of those who disbelieve to be the lowliest, and the Word of God is the highest. And God is Mighty, Wise. A Go forth in the way of God, lightly or heavily, and strive with your wealth and yourselves in the way of God. That is better for you, if you but knew. B Were it something ephemeral nearby or an easy journey, they would have followed thee. But the trek was too great for them. And they will swear by God, “If we had been able, we would have gone out with you.” They destroy themselves, and God knows that they are liars. C God pardon thee! Why didst thou grant them leave before it became clear to thee who spoke the truth and who the liars were? D Those who believe in God and the Last Day ask of thee no leave from striving with their wealth and their selves. And God knows the reverent. E Only they ask leave of thee who believe not in God and the Last Day, whose hearts are in doubt, and so they waver in their doubt. F And had they desired to go forth, they would have made some preparations for it. But God was averse to their being sent forth; so He held them back, and it was said unto them, “Stay back with those who stay back.” G And had they gone forth with thee, it would have increased thee in naught but troubles. And they would have hurried about in your midst, seeking to incite discord among you. And among you are some who hearken to them. And God knows the wrongdoers. H And indeed they sought to incite trials earlier, and turned thee over in their minds, until the truth came and the Command of God was manifest, though they were averse. I And among them some say, “Grant me leave, and tempt me not.” Nay, they have fallen into temptation. And truly Hell encompasses the disbelievers. P If some good befalls thee, it troubles them. But if some affliction befalls thee, they say, “We already took precautions beforehand,” and they turn away, exulting. Q Say, “Naught befalls us, save that which God has decreed for us. He is our Master, and in God let the believers trust.” R Say, “Do you anticipate that aught will befall us save one of the two best things? But we anticipate for you that God will afflict you with a punishment from Him, or by our hands. So wait! Truly we are waiting along with you.” S Say, “Spend willingly or unwillingly; it shall never be accepted from you. Truly you are an iniquitous people.” T And naught prevented their spending from being accepted from them, save that they disbelieved in God and in His Messenger, and only come to the prayer lazily, and only spend reluctantly. U And let not their wealth or their children impress thee. God desires but to punish them thereby in the life of this world, and that their souls should depart while they are disbelievers. V And they swear by God that truly they are of you, but they are not of you. Rather, they are a fearful people. W Were they to find a refuge, or caves, or a place to enter, they would turn toward it defiantly. X And among them some reproach thee over the charitable offerings; if they are given thereof, they are content, but if they are not given thereof, behold, they are angry. Y If only they had been content with what God and His Messenger gave them, and said, “God suffices us. God will give unto us from His Bounty, as will the Messenger. Truly our desire is for God.” ` The charitable offerings are only for the poor, and the indigent, and those working with them, and those whose hearts are [to be] reconciled, and for [ransoming] slaves and for debtors, and in the way of God, and for the traveler: a duty from God. And God is Knowing, Wise. a And among them are those who torment the Prophet, and say, “He is an ear.” Say, “An ear that is good for you. He believes in God and he has faith in the believers, and he is a mercy to those among you who believe.” And [as for] those who torment the Messenger of God, theirs shall be a painful punishment. b They swear by God to you, to please you. But God and His Messenger are worthier of being pleased by them, if they are believers. c Do they know not that whosoever opposes God and His Messenger, surely for him shall be the Fire of Hell, to abide therein? That is the great disgrace. d The hypocrites dread lest a sūrah be sent down against them, informing them of that which is in their hearts. Say, “Go on mocking. Truly God will bring forth what you dread.” e And if thou askest them, they will surely say, “We were only engaging [in vain talk] and playing.” Say, “Is it God, His signs, and His Messenger you were mocking?” f Make no excuses. You disbelieved after having believed. If We pardon a group of you, We shall punish another group for having been guilty. g The hypocrites, men and women, are like unto one another, enjoining wrong, forbidding right, clutching their hands shut. They forgot God; so He forgot them. Truly the hypocrites are iniquitous. h Verily God has promised the hypocrites, men and women, and the disbelievers the Fire of Hell, to abide therein. It shall suffice them. God curses them, and theirs shall be a lasting punishment. i [Remember] those who were before you. They were mightier than you in power, and greater in wealth and children. So they enjoyed their share, and you enjoyed your share, just as those before you enjoyed their share. And you have engaged [in vain talk] as they engaged [in vain talk]. It is they whose deeds came to naught in this world and in the Hereafter, and it is they who are the losers. p Has not the account come to them of those who were before them, the people of Noah, ʿĀd, and Thamūd, and the people of Abraham, the inhabitants of Midian, and the overthrown cities? Their messengers brought them clear proofs. God wronged them not, but themselves did they wrong. q But the believing men and believing women are protectors of one another, enjoining right and forbidding wrong, performing the prayer, giving the alms, and obeying God and His Messenger. They are those upon whom God will have Mercy. Truly God is Mighty, Wise. r God has promised the believing men and the believing women Gardens with rivers running below, to abide therein, and goodly dwellings in the Gardens of Eden. But Contentment from God is greater; that is the great triumph! s O Prophet! Strive against the disbelievers and the hypocrites, and be harsh with them. Their refuge is Hell. What an evil journey’s end! t They swear by God that they said it not, but indeed they spoke the word of disbelief, and disbelieved after having submitted [to God]. And they had ambitions that they did not achieve, and they were vengeful only because God and His Messenger enriched them from His Bounty. If they repent, it would be better for them. But if they turn away, God will punish them with a painful punishment in this world and in the Hereafter, and on earth they shall have neither protector nor helper. u And among them are those who make a pact with God [saying], “If He gives unto us from His Bounty, we will surely spend in charity, and we will surely be among the righteous.” v But when He gave unto them from His Bounty, they were miserly with it, and turned away in rejection. w So He requited them with hypocrisy in their hearts, till the Day they will meet Him, for having failed in that which they promised Him and for having lied. x Know they not that God knows their secret and their private discourse, and that God is Knower of things unseen? y As for they who reproach those believers who give freely and those who have naught but their keep [to give], and ridicule them—God ridicules them, and theirs shall be a painful punishment. À Seek forgiveness for them, or seek not forgiveness for them. If thou seekest forgiveness for them seventy times, God will not forgive them. That is because they disbelieve in God and His Messenger. And God guides not iniquitous people. Á Those who were left behind exulted in staying back, opposing the Messenger of God, and were averse to striving with their wealth and with their selves in the way of God. And they said, “Go not forth in the heat.” Say, “The Fire of Hell is of a heat more intense,” if they but understood. Â So let them laugh little and weep much, as a recompense for that which they used to earn. Ã And if God returns thee to a group of them, and they seek leave of thee to go forth, say, “You shall not go forth with me ever; nor shall you fight with me against any enemy. You were content to stay back the first time; so stay back with those who remain behind.” Ä And never pray over one of them who dies, nor stand by his grave. Truly they disbelieved in God and His Messenger and died iniquitous. Å And let not their wealth or their children impress thee. God desires only to punish them thereby in this world, and that their souls should depart while they are disbelievers. Æ And when a sūrah is sent down [saying], “Believe in God and strive with His Messenger,” the affluent among them ask thee for leave, and say, “Let us be among those who stay back.” Ç They are content to be among those who remain behind, and a seal is set upon their hearts. And so they understand not. È But the Messenger and those who believe with him strive with their wealth and with their selves. And it is they who shall have good things, and it is they who shall prosper. É God has prepared for them Gardens with rivers running below, to abide therein. That is the great triumph. Ґ Those seeking to be excused among the Bedouin came in order to be granted leave, while those who lied to God and His Messenger stayed back. A painful punishment shall befall those among them who disbelieve. ґ No blame is there upon the weak, nor upon the sick, nor those who find nothing to spend, if they are sincere toward God and His Messenger. There is no argument against the virtuous—and God is Forgiving, Merciful— Ғ nor upon those who, when they came to thee to give them a mount, and thou didst say to them, “I find nothing upon which to mount you,” turned back, their eyes flowing with tears, grieving that they found nothing to spend. ғ The argument falls only upon those who seek leave of thee though they are wealthy. They are content to be among those who remain behind, and God has set a seal upon their hearts. And so they know not. Ҕ They will offer excuses to you when you return to them. Say, “Offer no excuses! We shall not believe you. God has already given us news of you. God and His Messenger will see your deeds. Then you will be brought back to the Knower of the Unseen and the seen, and He will inform you of that which you used to do.” ҕ They will swear by God to you, when you return to them, that you may turn away from them. So turn away from them. Truly, they are a defilement, and their refuge is Hell, a recompense for that which they used to earn. Җ They swear to you, that you might be content with them. But though you may be content with them, God is not content with iniquitous people. җ The Bedouin are more severe in disbelief and hypocrisy, and more liable not to know the limits [ordained] in what God has sent down unto His Messenger. And God is Knowing, Wise. Ҙ And among the Bedouin are those who regard that which they spend as a loss, and they await a change in fortune for you. Upon them shall be an evil change of fortune. And God is Hearing, Knowing. ҙ And among the Bedouin are those who believe in God and the Last Day, and regard that which they spend as [a means to attain] nearness unto God and the blessings of the Messenger. Behold! It shall surely be nearness for them. God will cause them to enter His Mercy. Truly God is Forgiving, Merciful. Ā [As for] the foremost, the first among the Emigrants and the Helpers, and those who followed them with virtue, God is content with them, and they are content with Him. And He has prepared for them Gardens with rivers running below, to abide therein forever. That is the great triumph. ā Among the Bedouin around you there are hypocrites, and among the people of Madinah, who are headstrong in hypocrisy. Thou knowest them not; We know them and We shall punish them twice. Then they shall be relegated to a great punishment. Ă And [there are] others who admit their sins; they mixed righteous deeds with others that are evil. It may be that God will relent unto them. Truly God is Forgiving, Merciful. ă Take thou a charitable offering from their wealth, cleansing them and purifying them thereby, and bless them. Truly thy blessings are a comfort for them. And God is Hearing, Knowing. Ą Know they not that God accepts repentance from His servants, and receives the charitable offerings, and that God is the Relenting, the Merciful? ą Say, “Perform your deeds. God will see your deeds, as will the Messenger and the believers, and you will be brought back to the Knower of the Unseen and the seen, and He will inform you of that which you used to do.” Ć And others are made to await the Command of God. Either He will punish them, or He will relent unto them. And God is Knowing, Wise. ć And as for those who established a mosque for harm and disbelief, and to divide the believers, and to be an outpost for those who made war on God and His Messenger before, they will surely swear, “We desire only what is best.” But God bears witness that truly they are liars. Ĉ Never stand therein! Truly a mosque founded upon reverence from the first day is worthier of thy standing therein. Therein are men who love to purify themselves, and God loves those who purify themselves. ĉ So is one who founded his building upon reverence for God and [His] Contentment better, or one who founded his building on the brink of a crumbling bank, which then crumbles with him into the Fire of Hell? And God guides not wrongdoing people. Đ The building they have built will cease not to be a disquiet in their hearts, till their hearts are rent asunder. And God is Knowing, Wise. đ Truly God has purchased from the believers their souls and their wealth in exchange for the Garden being theirs. They fight in the way of God, slaying and being slain. [It is] a promise binding upon Him in the Torah, the Gospel, and the Quran. And who is truer to His pact than God? So rejoice in the bargain you have made. That indeed is the great triumph. Ē The penitent, and the worshippers, and the celebrants of praise, and the wayfarers, and those who bow, and those who prostrate, and those who enjoin right, and those who forbid wrong, and those who maintain the limits set by God; and give glad tidings unto the believers. ē It is not for the Prophet and those who believe to seek forgiveness for the idolaters, even if they be kin, after it has become clear to them that they shall be the inhabitants of Hellfire. Ĕ Abraham’s plea for forgiveness of his father was only due to a promise he had made to him. But when it became clear to him that he was an enemy of God, he repudiated him. Truly Abraham was tenderhearted, clement. ĕ It is not for God to lead a people astray after having guided them, till He makes clear unto them that whereof they should be mindful. Truly God is Knower of all things. Ė Truly unto God belongs Sovereignty over the heavens and the earth. He gives life and causes death. Apart from God you have neither protector nor helper. ė God indeed has relented unto the Prophet, and the Emigrants and the Helpers who followed him in the difficult hour, after the hearts of a group of them nearly swerved. Then He relented unto them—truly He is Kind, Merciful unto them— Ę and unto the three who were left behind until the earth, despite its breadth, closed in upon them, and their own souls closed in upon them, and they deemed there to be no refuge from God, save with Him. Then He relented unto them, that they might repent. Truly God is Relenting, Merciful. ę O you who believe! Reverence your Lord, and be among the truthful. Ġ It is not for the people of Madinah and the Bedouin who dwell around them to remain behind from the Messenger of God, or to prefer themselves to him. That is because no thirst, nor toil, nor hunger befalls them in the way of God, nor do they take any step enraging the disbelievers, nor do they endure aught at the hands of an enemy, but that a righteous deed is recorded for them on account of it. Truly God neglects not the reward of the virtuous. ġ Nor do they spend aught, be it small or large, nor traverse a valley, but that it is written down for them, that God may reward them for the best of that which they used to do. Ģ But it is not for the believers all to go forth. And why should not a party from each group go forth to gain understanding in religion, and to warn their people when they return to them, that haply they will beware? ģ O you who believe! Fight those disbelievers who are near to you, and let them find harshness in you. And know that God is with the reverent. Ĥ And whensoever a sūrah is sent down, some among them say, “Which of you has this increased in faith?” As for those who believe, it increases them in faith, and they rejoice. ĥ As for those in whose hearts is a disease, it added defilement to their defilement, and they die while they are disbelievers. Ħ See they not that they are tried each year, once or twice; yet they neither repent nor take heed? ħ And whensoever a sūrah is sent down, they look at each other [saying], “Does anyone see you?” Then they turn away. God has turned their hearts away because they are a people who understand not. Ĩ A Messenger has indeed come unto you from among your own. Troubled is he by what you suffer, solicitous of you, kind and merciful unto the believers. ĩ But if they turn away, say, “God suffices me. There is no god but He. In Him do I trust, and He is the Lord of the mighty Throne.”

Commentary

¡ A repudiation from God and His Messenger to those idolaters with whom you made a treaty.

* So travel freely throughout the land for four months, and know that you cannot thwart God, and that God shall disgrace the disbelievers.

+ And an announcement from God and His Messenger to the people on the day of the greater ḥajj: that God and His Messenger have repudiated the idolaters. So, if you repent, it would be better for you. And if you turn away, then know that you cannot thwart God. And give the disbelievers glad tidings of a painful punishment,

J save for those idolaters with whom you have made a treaty, and who thereafter commit no breach against you, nor support anyone against you. So fulfill the treaty with them for its duration. Truly God loves the reverent.

1–4  The first verse of this sūrah is an announcement of the annulment of a treaty between the Prophet and the idolaters. Repudiation (barāʾah) has the sense of being or becoming unallied, being innocent of, or being disassociated from something. Here it means that the existing truce or treaty has come to an end. Regarding the circumstances and the interpretation of this verse there is what Ibn Kathīr calls “considerable disagreement.” In one account, this verse is said to refer to the breaking of the Treaty of Ḥudaybiyah, a treaty contracted between the Prophet and the Quraysh that had established a ten-year truce (see Sūrah 48). This treaty not only included the Prophet and the Quraysh, but also their respective allies, among whom were the tribes of Banū Khuzāʿah on the side of the Prophet and Banū Bakr on the side of the Quraysh. Banū Bakr later launched an attack on the Banū Khuzāʿah, stemming from a vendetta that preexisted the Treaty of Ḥudaybiyah, and it was reported that the Quraysh assisted the Banū Bakr with arms and a small number of men (Q). The Prophet considered this act to be a breach of the treaty, thereby nullifying the need to observe the truce, and this ultimately led to the final conquest of Makkah by the Prophet and his followers. According to this account, the repudiation of the treaty is addressed to the Makkans.

According to the majority of commentators, however, this verse was revealed after the conquest of Makkah in 8/630, a year after the breach of the Treaty of Ḥudaybiyah. There is considerable difference of opinion as to which idolaters are addressed and the legal import of both the repudiation (v. 1) and the announcement (v. 3). One opinion is that if some idolaters had an existing treaty with the Prophet, a treaty whose term had more than four months remaining, it was reduced to four months, and if they had one that was to expire before four months, it would be extended to a period of four months. Others add to this latter group those with whom the Prophet had made no treaty, so that they would be automatically granted a four-month truce. Yet others interpreted this four-month period to apply only to those idolaters who had less than a four-month treaty or none at all, but would not reduce an already existing treaty that was being faithfully observed. And still others believed that this directive applied only to those who had no preexisting treaty at all, and that anyone else with a treaty in hand would be dealt with according to that treaty, regardless of its term (IJ, Q, Ṭ). For example, Ibn ʿAbbās notes that the Muslims had a treaty with Ḥayy ibn Kinānah that still had nine months left at the time of the announcement, and they continued to observe it (R). As for those who interpret this as the rescinding of a treaty with those who had a treaty before, this ruling was considered permissible under certain conditions as outlined in 8:58c, namely, when there is a reasonable expectation that the other side will not fulfill the treaty terms or in cases where they have already in fact violated the treaty (R, Ṭ).

There are also disagreements among commentators as to the precise timing of the four months mentioned in v. 2 and the end of the sacred months mentioned in v. 5. If the announcement of v. 3 was made on the day of the greater ḥajj—interpreted to be either the Day of Sacrifice or the Day of ʿArafah (Ṭ; see 2:196c)—it would leave fifty days until the ending of sacred months—that is, the remainder of the pilgrimage month of Dhu’l-Ḥijjah (the twelfth month of the calendar) followed by the entire month of Muḥarram (Ṭ). One view understands this passage to mean that v. 3 addresses the idolaters with whom the Prophet and his followers had no existing treaty, while the group with whom they did have a treaty was given the four months mentioned in vv. 1–2. According to another view, this repudiation and announcement were made to both groups at the same time, so that the treaty-holding idolaters had four months (until the middle of Rabīʿ al-Thānī, which comes four months after Dhu’l-Ḥijjah) while the nontreaty group had until the end of the sacred months (fifty days from the day of the announcement) as mentioned above.

According to still another opinion, this sūrah was revealed at the start of Shawwāl (the tenth month of the calendar), thus making the end of the four-month period mentioned in v. 2 coincide with the end of the sacred months as described in v. 5. Yet another opinion is that the period of four months refers to those with whom the Muslims had a treaty that was set to expire earlier than four months, and the verse commanded that they grant them four months, while for its duration refers to those treaties stipulating a period of more than four months, which the Muslims were thus instructed to observe in full. According to this last opinion, the Prophet was commanded to repudiate the treaties only with those idolaters who had broken it already and to maintain all others. Al-Ṭabarī makes it clear that this passage could not possibly mean that after the lapse of the sacred months the believers were free to kill any idolater; see the essay “Conquest and Conversion, War and Peace in the Quran.”

It is important to remember that after the Muslims had conquered Makkah, there were still idolaters in the Arabian Peninsula, and other battles, such as Ḥunayn, remained to be fought (see v. 25). Some idolaters were still coming to the Kaʿbah to perform the pilgrimage rites according to pre-Islamic practices (even though there were no longer any idols to worship). It is reported that, for the first ḥajj after the conquest of Makkah, the Prophet sent Abū Bakr to lead the ḥajj, and with him sent ʿAlī to announce four matters to those who had assembled in Makkah: only a believing soul shall enter the Garden; no idolater shall approach the Kaʿbah after that year; no one will circumambulate the Kaʿbah naked ever again; and whosoever has a treaty will have that treaty observed according to its terms (Ṭ). Most commentators note that ʿAlī was chosen to make the announcement of the repudiation, because Arab custom demanded that a treaty be broken either by the contracting party—in this case the Prophet himself—or a near kinsman, and the Prophet wanted the message to be understood unambiguously (Q).

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Z Then, when the sacred months have passed, slay the idolaters wheresoever you find them, capture them, besiege them, and lie in wait for them at every place of ambush. But if they repent, and perform the prayer and give the alms, then let them go their way. Truly God is Forgiving, Merciful.

5  There is disagreement over whether the sacred months in this verse were those four traditionally considered to be sacred by the Arabs (the seventh, tenth, eleventh, and twelfth) mentioned in v. 36, or whether the word translated here as sacred, ḥurum (lit. “forbidden”), refers to the fact that the idolaters were given four months of free travel and the believers were forbidden from fighting them (IK).

This passage is significant for debates concerning the use of force. For some, v. 5 of this sūrah abrogates all previous treaties and obligations in relation to the idolaters. Other commentators and jurists interpret this to mean that the idolaters are fought by reason of their idolatry and polytheism (Q, R). However, since this passage itself explicitly affirms the validity and propriety of keeping treaties with those idolaters who uphold their side of the treaty in good faith, a more plausible reading of this passage would not see the very fact that certain persons were idolaters as a reason to fight them; on this question see also 2:256c.

From the perspective of the Muslim community, the years of conflict preceding this announcement created a political environment where the idolaters of Arabia could not be left in a position of power and political strength to menace the Muslim community in the future; treaties were indeed often made, but they were just as often broken by the idolaters and their allies. This concern regarding treaties is made explicit in v. 8, which states that if the idolaters were to come into a position of power over the believers, they would not observe kinship or treaty. Rather, the idolaters in Arabia would have continued to form a persistent political alliance against the Prophet and the believers. According to this understanding of the political context, the idolaters’ conversion to Islam would not have been the purpose of fighting them, though this conversion (based on the plain sense of v. 5) would be the only way for them to ensure their physical security; that is, they could avoid a state of war by renouncing idolatry and disavowing their previous actions and alliances, but being non-Muslim was not their original crime. See also the essay “Conquest and Conversion, War and Peace in the Quran.”

Moreover, v. 13 seems to provide the underlying rationale for why the idolaters were to be treated as hostile: Will you not fight a people who broke their oaths, and intended to expel the Messenger, and opened [hostility] against you first? The command of 8:58, establishing the conditions for rescinding a treaty, is some indication of how precarious such treaties could turn out to be, and most famously the Quraysh and their allied tribe of Banū Bakr violated the Treaty of Ḥudaybiyah (mentioned in 9:1–4c), an act that eventually led to the conquest of Makkah by the Prophet and his followers.

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j And if any of the idolaters seek asylum with thee, grant him asylum until he hears the Word of God. Then convey him to his place of safety. That is because they are a people who know not.

6  This verse says that idolaters could come and hear the Quran and the teachings of Islam and then be taken to a place of safety (Q) until they reached their own home (Ṭ). Commentators record some disagreement as to whether this verse was abrogated by other verses, such as 47:4, Free them graciously or hold them for ransom, till war lays down its burdens, which explicitly mentions the option of freeing or ransoming prisoners. The dominant opinion, however, is that neither 9:6 nor 47:4 was abrogated, and that the Prophet and the believers were given the authority to slay the enemy, take them prisoner, or release them from the very beginning of the years of war, beginning with the Battle of Badr in 2/624 (Q, Ṭ). There is some disagreement as to how much of the Quran this verse requires that such a person be made to hear, some saying it should be the entire Quran, others restricting it to this sūrah, since it contains the essence of what idolaters need to hear about their situation (R).

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z How can the idolaters have a treaty with God and with His Messenger, save for those with whom you made a treaty at the Sacred Mosque? If they remain true to you, remain true to them. Truly God loves the reverent.

7  According to some those with whom you made a treaty refers to certain members of Banū Bakr (who had been in alliance with the Quraysh according to the terms of the Treaty of Ḥudaybiyah) who never violated their treaty with the Prophet even when others did so (R, Q, Ṭ, Th); see 9:1–4c. Other commentators believe that this verse refers to the Banū Khuzāʿah, who were allied with the Prophet, or even to the Quraysh (Ṭ). Al-Ṭabarī believes that this verse could refer only to those members of Banū Bakr who did not violate the Treaty of Ḥudaybiyah, arguing that at the time these verses were revealed (after the conquest of Makkah) there were no remaining non-Muslim members of Khuzāʿah, and the Quraysh held no treaty, because they had violated it and rendered it null and void. Al-Thaʿlabī records an account that it also refers to certain members of the Quraysh who were given that period of four months to either become Muslims or accept exile in a land of their choosing. Before the period of four months expired, they became Muslims. Al-Thaʿlabī also accepts the opinion that this verse refers to certain members of Banū Bakr, using reasoning similar to that of al-Ṭabarī.

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{ How, since if they prevail over you, they will not observe any kinship or treaty with you? They please you with their mouths, while their hearts refuse. And most of them are iniquitous.

8  Kinship renders ill, which can also mean a pact or sworn alliance (ḥilf; Ṭ). Treaty renders dhimmah, referring generally to “that which sets up an obligation” (R), and in this sense ahl al-dhimmah can be rendered “treaty peoples” (Q) or “those to whom one has an obligation.” On the concept of dhimmah, also see 9:29c. Prevail signifies that the disbelievers would come to a position of strength over the Muslims (Q, R, Ṭ).

They please you with their mouths—namely, by speaking sweet words—while their hearts contain the opposite (R). Since all disbelievers are considered to be “iniquitous” (Q, R), most of them are iniquitous is understood to mean that many (though not all) of the disbelievers lie and will fail to uphold their agreements (Q), are faithless even to their own religion (R), and are thus iniquitous in both a general and a specific sense.

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| They have sold the signs of God for a paltry price, and have turned from His way. Evil indeed is that which they used to do,

9  The “sale” of God’s signs for a paltry price is an object of rebuke in several verses of the Quran, as in 2:174; 3:187; 16:95. In other places, the language of buying and selling is used in a positive manner, as when God asks believers, Who is it that will lend unto God a goodly loan? He will multiply it for him, and his shall be a generous reward (57:11; cf. 2:245; 5:12; 57:18; 64:17; 73:20); and 61:10, which speaks of a commerce that will save you. Turned from His way can mean, here and in other instances of this verb phrase, both that they turn away from the way of God themselves and that they hinder others from following it.

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Ċ observing neither kinship nor treaty with any believer. And it is they who are the transgressors.

10  See v. 8. “Transgression” has the general meaning of going beyond limits and is also used in relation to the use of force, as in 2:194: So whosoever transgresses against you, transgress against him in like manner as he transgressed against you.

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Ě But if they repent, and perform the prayer and give the alms, then they are your brethren in religion. And We expound the signs for a people who know.

11  If they repent means if they abandon idolatry (IK). Many commentators point out that then they are your brethren in religion “makes sacrosanct the blood of the people of the qiblah [those who face Makkah to pray],” referring to those who worship as Muslims (Q, Ṭ); in other words, Muslims do not need a separate treaty to establish peaceful relations with one another, although in later history when multiple Islamic political entities emerged, these entities would make treaties with one another.

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Ī But if they renege on their oaths after having made their treaty, and vilify your religion, then fight the leaders of disbelief—truly they have no oaths—that they might desist.

12  Some say that the leaders of disbelief are mentioned specifically, because they are decisive in generating hostility against the believers (R), though al-Rāzī believes that it is implied that one should fight all of the disbelievers as well; in Quranic accounts it is often the “notables” or leading members of a group that voice and drive a people’s rejection of their prophet (see, e.g., 7:60, 66, 75, 88). Others say that it refers to those who led the way in violating the treaty and opening hostilities (Q). Although it can be seen as referring to specific people such as Abū Jahl, one of the central leaders of the Makkans who were against the Prophet, it is thought to apply universally to all such treaty violators (IK). They have no oaths means that, since they break their oaths, it is as though the oaths did not exist.

For some this also means that treaty peoples (ahl al-dhimmah, see 9:29c) must not revile Islam, the latter being a condition of the treaty (R). Al-Qurṭubī points out there are differences of opinion on the matter of vilification of religion and the Prophet. For him, a severe calumny of the Prophet would merit capital punishment if spoken by a Muslim, amounting to zandaqah, a term referring to deviance in religion of a pernicious kind.

Al-Qurṭubī notes further that most jurists believed that those treaty peoples (see 9:29c) who revile the Prophet should be executed, but Abū Ḥanīfah did not, reasoning that their beliefs were already worse than any insult, and moreover the Quran set two conditions on such use of force: that they should violate the treaty and then vilify your religion. Al-Qurṭubī also records that Abū Bakr was outraged by something a man had said in his presence against the Prophet and Islam; someone asked him if he wanted that man executed, and Abū Bakr said, “No one has that right after the Messenger of God.”

Al-Rāzī points out that the breaking of the treaty can also refer to those who become non-Muslim after having become Muslim, thus framing membership in the Muslim community as a form of social and legal contract. According to this reading, if a believer violates that “treaty” by leaving Islam and then vilifying the religion, then other believers are authorized to fight the leaders of disbelief. This is part of the reason why many jurists did not demand death for those who left Islam, but only for those who, after leaving it, also subsequently engaged in the kind of verbal hostility mentioned here. Such vilification was often a precursor to violence and hence could be interpreted as a threat or potential incitement to violence.

The legality of executing people for insulting the Prophet is thus seen in terms of treaties and political loyalties and not only personally and is based upon the implicit threat of actual violence that such insults might entail—as demonstrated by the case of Kaʿb ibn al-Ashraf, who went far beyond insults to generate hostility against the Prophet—rather than on the offense of the insult itself. It is worth considering that the Prophet was subjected on countless occasions to the insults recorded in the Quran, such as the accusations that the Quran consisted of “fables of those of old” and that he was mad. He also lived peacefully with those who did not embrace his religion and thus, by implication if not declaration, did not believe him. This is partly why the Ḥanafī school of law has reasoned that treaty holders (dhimmīs) are not to be executed for an insult, since their beliefs (an implicit denial of the Prophet) are already a greater offense (Q); that is, the difference between a state of mind and open vilification was a matter of real or potential violence against the Muslim community in the form of incitement or political destabilization, not merely a matter of individual ignorance, honor, or pride.

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ĺ Will you not fight a people who broke their oaths, and intended to expel the Messenger, and opened [hostility] against you first? Do you fear them? For God is worthier of being feared by you, if you are believers.

13  This verse continues to speak of the fighting that was commanded in v. 5. First refers to the fact that the idolaters initiated the conflict by attacking allies of the Prophet (Ṭ). Al-Rāzī observes that there are three reasons, any one of which is sufficient to call for the use of force: breaking a treaty, and most think this refers to the Treaty of Ḥudaybiyah; intending to expel the Messenger, which is thought by most to refer to his migration from Makkah to Madinah, but which some interpret as a reference to the attempt to dislodge him from his position of strength in Madinah, as for example at the Battle of Uḥud; and being the first to attack, referring to the attack on Banū Khuzāʿah, which violated the Treaty of Ḥudaybiyah (see 9:1–4c). Other instances where human beings are commanded to fear God and not human beings include 2:150; 3:175; 5:3.

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Ŋ Fight them and God will punish them by means of your hands and disgrace them, and He will grant you victory over them and heal the breasts of a believing people,

Ś and will dispel the rage within their hearts. God relents unto whomsoever He will, and God is Knowing, Wise.

14–15  God punishing the disbelievers “by the hands” of the believers is also mentioned in v. 52: God will afflict you with a punishment from Him, or by our hands. The believing people in need of healing are the Khuzāʿah, who were attacked by Banū Bakr, which broke the treaty of Ḥudaybiyah (Ṭ; see 9:1–4c). That God relents means that He can still accept the repentance of the disbelievers (Ṭ). “Repent” and “relent” render the same verb, tāba/yatūbu, differing only with the addition of a preposition. The noun derived from this verb, tawbah, usually rendered “repentance,” means literally a “turning” or a “return”; that is, human beings turn or return to God in repentance, and He turns or returns toward them.

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Ū Or did you suppose that you would be left alone, while God had yet to know whom among you strove and took no friend apart from God, His Messenger, and the believers? And God is Aware of whatsoever you do.

16  Cf. 29:2–3. Friend renders here the word walījah, a word that conveys the sense of being a confidant and intimate (Q). On the question of the meaning of God doing something “in order to know,” see 2:143c.

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ź It is not for the idolaters to maintain the mosques of God, bearing witness of disbelief against themselves. They are those whose deeds have come to naught, and in the Fire shall they abide.

Ɗ Only they shall maintain the mosques of God who believe in God and the Last Day, perform the prayer and give the alms, and fear none but God. Such as these may be among the rightly guided.

ƚ Or do you consider giving drink to the pilgrims and maintaining the Sacred Mosque to be like those who believe in God and the Last Day and strive in God’s way? They are not equal in the Eyes of God. And God guides not wrongdoing people.

Ȋ Those who believe and emigrate and strive in the way of God with their wealth and their selves are greater in rank in the Eyes of God. And it is they who are the triumphant.

17–20  According to one account, ʿAbbās (the Prophet’s uncle) was speaking to ʿAlī and proclaiming his own merit for being responsible for giving drink to the pilgrims, which was considered an honor and privilege; he was rebuked by ʿAlī, who noted that he himself had fought for Islam since the beginning and that ʿAbbās had only lately begun to perform the canonical prayer (IK). In another account, some Muslims were discussing among themselves what actions were best. Some mentioned giving drink to the pilgrims; others, the maintenance of the Kaʿbah; and others, struggling physically in the way of God. They were chastised by ʿUmar ibn al-Khaṭṭāb for raising their voices near the Prophet’s pulpit, and soon after this verse is said to have been revealed (IK, Q, Ṭ). Al-Qurṭubī notes that it is plausible that the latter account was an instance where a previously revealed verse was mentioned as a response to some incident, not that it was revealed in response.

That the idolaters are bearing witness of disbelief against themselves means they provide evidence against themselves through their disbelief. The possibility that the deeds of disbelievers may, in the Hereafter, come to naught is mentioned throughout the Quran (e.g., 2:217; 3:22; 5:5, 53; 6:88; 7:147; 11:16; 18:105; 33:19; 39:65; 47:9, 28, 32; 49:2). May be (v. 18) renders ʿasā, which is interpreted to mean, when it appears in the Quran, it will necessarily be so (Ṭ). Striving in the way of God with one’s wealth and one’s self is also mentioned in vv. 44, 81 of this sūrah.

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! Their Lord gives them glad tidings of Mercy from Him, and Contentment, and Gardens wherein they shall have lasting bliss,

" abiding therein forever. Truly with God is a great reward.

21–22  Contentment (riḍwān) from God is considered to be the pinnacle of the paradisal state; for a discussion of riḍwān, see 3:15c. Bliss renders naʿīm, a word that evokes tranquility, ease, and blessing. Other verses speak of Gardens of bliss (5:65; 10:9; 22:65; 31:8; 37:43; 56:12; 68:34); see 56:11–12c; 56:88–89c.

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# O you who believe! Take not your fathers and your brothers as protectors if they prefer disbelief to belief. As for those among you who take them as protectors, it is they who are the wrongdoers.

$ Say, “If your fathers, your children, your brothers, your spouses, your tribe, the wealth you have acquired, commerce whose stagnation you fear, and dwellings you find pleasing are more beloved to you than God, and His Messenger, and striving in His way, then wait till God comes with His Command.” And God guides not iniquitous people.

23–24  It is thought by some commentators that these verses refer to those Muslims who remained in Makkah after the migration (hijrah) of the Prophet and before the conquest of Makkah, but others prefer to see these verses as a general command applicable to all believers (Q). It is reported that, when the Command to migrate came, some of the believers were persuaded by their families to remain in Makkah (Q). That v. 25 mentions the Battle of Ḥunayn, which took place after the conquest of Makkah, may suggest that these verses were not in fact revealed in relation to those who were in Makkah before the conquest, but constitute a general moral injunction. Till God comes with His Command is understood by some to refer to the eventual conquest of Makkah by the believers (Ṭ), though the fact that v. 25 addresses the Battle of Ḥunayn (which took place after the conquest of Makkah) in the past tense makes it implausible that v. 24 could be referring to a time before the conquest of Makkah. The idea of God coming with His Command also appears in 2:109.

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% God indeed granted you victory on many a field, and on the Day of Ḥunayn when you were impressed at how numerous you were. But it availed you naught, and the earth, despite its breadth, closed in upon you. Then you turned your backs.

25  The Battle of Ḥunayn took place soon after the conquest of Makkah (see 9:1–4c). The tribes of Hawāzin and Thaqīf, centered around the town of Ṭāʾif to the southeast of Makkah, had gathered their own forces in response to the Prophet’s march from Madinah in fear that they were the true target of his army, rather than the Quraysh. It was indeed reported that Abū Sufyān, in a vain attempt to persuade the Prophet not to march on Makkah after the breach of the Treaty of Ḥudaybiyyah, suggested that he march against the Hawāzin instead, arguing that they were further in kinship and more hostile. The Prophet, for his part, intentionally created ambiguity as to his actual target.

Following the conquest of Makkah by the Prophet, the Hawāzin decided not to wait for a potential attack and set out to strike at Makkah. In response, the Prophet marched northeast from Makkah toward the valley of Awṭās, where the Hawāzin had mustered their large army of some twenty thousand men. The army of the Prophet consisted of the Madinan and Makkan Muslims and also some Quraysh who had not yet embraced Islam but nevertheless did not wish their city to fall to the Hawāzin. The battle was joined in the valley of Ḥunayn, which was on the road between Makkah and Ṭāʾif. The early stages of the battle went in the Hawāzin’s favor and segments of the Makkan army fled from the powerful initial onslaught, but ultimately the Prophet and his commanders rallied and regrouped and dealt the Hawāzin a decisive defeat. Some of them scattered, while others retreated within the walls of Ṭāʾif; the Prophet’s army laid siege to the town for nearly three weeks until they surrendered and agreed to embrace Islam.

Regarding impressed at how numerous you were, it is noted that most estimates placed the Prophet’s army between twelve and sixteen thousand. Some in the army said, “We shall never be defeated!” (R, Ṭ). The earth, despite its breadth, closed in upon you refers to the fact that when the enemy made its first charge against them, they were forced to retreat back up a slope that was too narrow in places to accommodate them, thus restricting their movement.

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& Then God sent down His Tranquility upon His Messenger and upon the believers, and sent down hosts whom you saw not, and punished those who disbelieved. And that is the recompense of the disbelievers.

' Then thereafter God will relent unto whomsoever He will. And God is Forgiving, Merciful.

26–27  It is recorded that at the point in the battle when some of the army was retreating from the initial onslaught of the Hawāzin, the Prophet called to them, but his voice was drowned out by the din of the battle. Among the people at his side were his uncle ʿAbbās, who had a powerful voice, and they called out to the Emigrants and Helpers. They rallied to the Prophet, who it is said then picked up a handful of dust or pebbles—in an account similar to the one usually given in connection with the Battle of Badr (see 8:17c)—and threw it at the enemy, after which the tide of the battle turned and the Hawāzin and Thaqīf were put to rout.

On His Tranquility, see 48:4c. Hosts whom you saw not is understood to refer to angels. The commentators record accounts of members of the enemy army, long after the battle, saying that before and during the battle they encountered men with white faces that struck terror into their hearts (R). As discussed in 3:124–26c, it is traditionally believed that the angels, if they participated in fighting at all, did so only at the Battle of Badr; one interpretation of the help they would give is to strengthen the hearts and resolve of the believers, or in the words of al-Rāzī, “To cast beautiful inspirations into their hearts.”

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( O you who believe! The idolaters are surely unclean; so let them not come near the Sacred Mosque after this year of theirs. If you fear poverty, God will enrich you from His Bounty if He will. Truly God is Knowing, Wise.

28  Unclean renders najas, a term usually understood in Islamic Law to refer to ritual impurity that would prevent one, for example, from touching a physical copy of the Quran or performing the prayer. The idolaters are surely unclean is literally “The idolaters are an uncleanliness,” which the commentators understand to mean “characterized by uncleanliness” (R). For some this means that, since the idolaters do not purify themselves through ablutions as the believers do, they were unclean. Others interpret it to mean that they were to be shunned as unclean things are shunned, in the sense that their false belief is, at the spiritual level, a kind of filth (R). Jurists offer different opinions regarding the restrictions against the idolaters: some limit the scope of this verse to preventing the idolaters from visiting the Kaʿbah and its environs (the ḥaram), while others would prohibit any non-Muslim from entering any mosque at all, although this is a minority opinion (Q, R).

Some commentators believe that this verse was revealed in the ninth year of the hijrah, after the conquest of Makkah and the same year when it is reported that the Prophet sent ʿAlī ibn Abī Ṭālib to announce to the idolaters that they were no longer to return to perform the pilgrimage in Makkah (Q, R; see 9:1–4c). Others say that rather the time of the revelation was the tenth year (Q).

If you fear poverty is understood to mean that some Muslims expressed concern over the loss of trade and gifts from those who came from outside Makkah for the pilgrimage (Q, R, Ṭ). According to some commentators, the imposition of the indemnity (jizyah) on non-Muslim treaty holders (see v. 29) was a kind of compensation for the loss of this income (Q).

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) Fight those who believe not in God and in the Last Day, and who do not forbid what God and His Messenger have forbidden, and who follow not the Religion of Truth among those who were given the Book, till they pay the jizyah with a willing hand, being humbled.

29  Some commentators connect this verse with the Tabūk expedition. The period after the Battle of Ḥunayn corresponded with the final defeat of the Persians by the Byzantines. The former retreated from Syria and Egypt, and the Byzantine emperor Heraclius returned the True Cross to Jerusalem. Word began to reach the Prophet that the Byzantines were planning a major offensive against the now increasingly powerful Islamic polity and had enlisted the Arab tribes of Ghassān, Lakhm, Judham, and ʿĀmilah, who occupied the buffer zone in the Levant between the Arabian Peninsula and the Byzantine and Persian empires. The Prophet mustered the largest army that had yet taken the field and marched north on the Syrian campaign. The army remained in Tabūk, on the road to Syria and situated to the east of the Gulf of ʿAqabah, for twenty days, but the rumors of the Byzantine force gathered against the Muslims were unfounded, or they decided not to take the field after having heard of the size of the Prophet’s army.

Al-Rāzī, among the major commentators, devotes the most attention to this verse’s description of the People of the Book, especially as being those who do not believe in God and in the Last Day, noting that both Jews and Christians claim to affirm belief in both God and the Hereafter. The Quran itself states in 3:113–14: Among the People of the Book is an upright community who recite God’s signs in the watches of the night, while they prostrate. They believe in God and the Last Day, enjoin right and forbid wrong, and hasten unto good deeds. Also, with regard to the Christians, the Quran states in 5:82: That is because among them are priests and monks, and because they are not arrogant.

Al-Rāzī mentions that Muslim theologians themselves occupy a range of positions regarding fundamental matters of belief, such as the ontological status of the Attributes of God and the scope of human free will. By doing so, he also acknowledges that the criticisms directed at Jews and Christians for certain aspects of their belief can be equally directed at certain theological positions within the Islamic spectrum. This is significant because, according to the Quran’s own attestation and the claims of these communities themselves, they (or at least some of them) believe in God and in the Day of Judgment. However, in al-Rāzī’s view those People of the Book who can truthfully be said to believe in God and in the Last Day still fall under the legal status (ḥukm) set out by this verse—namely, being fought until they enter into a treaty and pay an indemnity; he sees no legal reason to distinguish between them, noting, “These [who believe in God] do not fall under [the description of] this verse, but the requirement of the indemnity holds for them since it is said that, when an indemnity is required for some of them one says the same for all of them, since no one [that is, no jurist] holds the view that there is a separation.” That is to say, he relies on the absence of any legal opinion to the contrary, while acknowledging that some People of the Book are not those defined by this verse. This interpretation characterizes much of the mainstream of Islamic legal opinion on the matter.

Though this verse speaks of people among those who were given the Book, the Quran also mentions “those who were given the Book” both to praise certain Jews and Christians (e.g., 6:20, 114; 13:36; 29:47) and to criticize some of them (e.g., 2:101; 145; 3:100, 186). Thus the mere fact of their identity as People of the Book cannot be the single decisive reason why they should be fought.

Al-Samarqandī glosses do not forbid by saying, “what is [forbidden] in the Torah, the Gospel, and the Quran,” while al-Zamakhsharī quotes an opinion that interprets do not forbid to mean, “They do not act in accordance with what is in the Torah and Gospel.” However, many commentators read this verse as saying that they are not Muslims and that they reject the Prophet (IK).

Jizyah means the rendering of a thing owed (Ṭ) and as a legal matter amounts to an indemnity or tribute from non-Muslim communities residing within the Islamic state with whom Muslims have a treaty. Such treaty holders paid this indemnity, but were exempt from paying the alms (zakāh) or contributing to military defense, as Muslims were obliged to do; jurists disagreed as to the precise amount of the indemnity and the method of payment. Here with a willing hand renders ʿan yad (lit. “from/for/at hand”), which some interpret to mean that they should pay directly, without intermediary and without delay (R). Others say that it refers to its reception by Muslims and means “generously” as in “with an open hand,” since the taking of the jizyah is a form of munificence that averted a state of conflict (Q, R, Z).

Some interpret being humbled (wa hum ṣāghirūn) to mean that the treaty holders should render the indemnity in a state of humility, but some say that the very fact of paying the indemnity is tantamount to this “being humbled” or “being the minor party” (R). Though the practice of forcing the treaty holders to pay the indemnity in a humbled manner was not unknown in Islamic history, many jurists, such as al-Nawawī, pointed out that the Prophet and Caliphs never did so and said that the treaty people’s indemnity should be received with gentleness, as one would receive payment of a debt. ʿUmar ibn al-Khaṭṭāb reportedly agreed to call the indemnity “charity” (ṣadaqah) when asked to change its name from jizyah.

“Those from whom an indemnity is acceptable” is a phrase often used to describe those peoples who are also known as ahl al-dhimmah, or “treaty peoples.” As noted in 9:8c, dhimmah lexically means “treaty” or “pact” (ʿahd), and Jews and Christians are often referred to as having the status of “covenant holder” (muʿāhid), which is synonymous with dhimmī. In general there have been two primary ways in which non-Muslim communities have been considered treaty holders. Some non-Muslim groups lived in territory directly under the rule of Muslims, paying the indemnity, but retaining considerable autonomy as to their own affairs; this was the case for Jews and Christians in Jerusalem under ʿUmar ibn al-Khaṭṭāb and indeed throughout history well into the modern period in the Ottoman Empire and elsewhere. In the other main type of arrangement, treaty holders governed their own territory, but, according to treaty stipulations, paid the jizyah and provided no help to any enemy of the Muslims; in return, the Muslim community offered protection to the treaty holders. Examples of this include the Prophet’s arrangement with the people of Bahrain, who were Zoroastrians, and with the Christians of Najrān. In neither arrangement were the treaty holders required to provide military support to the Muslim polity, but pay only the indemnity (jizyah).

Jews and Christians are universally accepted to be “those from whom the jizyah is acceptable,” and to this group most add Zoroastrians. Some jurists, such as Sufyān al-Thawrī, Abū Ḥanīfah, and Mālik (Q), are of the opinion that an indemnity can be accepted from any member of any religious community whatsoever; the only exception in this case are those who had apostatized or seceded from the Islamic polity (Q). Also, many make an exception for the idolatrous Arabs, for whom the paying of the indemnity and existence as a treaty people was not an option (Q); of course, after the time of the Prophet this question became moot. See also the essay “Conquest and Conversion, War and Peace in the Quran.”

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Ð The Jews say that Ezra is the son of God, and the Christians say that the Messiah is the son of God. Those are words from their mouths. They resemble the words of those who disbelieved before. God curse them! How they are perverted!

30  It is said that Ezra is the son of God was the opinion of one Jew, a certain Finḥāṣ ibn ʿĀzūrāʾ, or that it was the belief of some Jews at one time, but that this belief eventually disappeared (R, Ṭ). Some mention an opinion that the Jews elevated the status of Ezra because of his role in restoring adherence to the Torah (Q, R). As to why the Christians considered Jesus the son of God, al-Rāzī, for example, speculates that they may have called him “son” by way of honor, the way Abraham is called God’s “friend” (khalīl; see 4:125), and that because of various sectarian conflicts they may have taken this idea to an extreme; on the question of Jesus as son of God, see 4:171; 5:17; 19:35. Words from their mouths is taken to mean that they are simply sounds with no meaning and therefore different from those that are supported by evidence and demonstration (Q). God curse them! renders a kind of interjection that, though it literally reads “God fight them!” acquired in Arabic the sense of an expression of amazement (Q, R, Z).

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Ñ They have taken their rabbis and monks as lords apart from God, as well as the Messiah, son of Mary, though they were only commanded to worship one God. There is no god but He! Glory be to Him above the partners they ascribe.

31  According to one well-known ḥadīth, a Companion who was once Christian, upon hearing this verse, told the Prophet that Christians did not worship their religious authorities. The Prophet replied, “Did they not forbid what God permitted, whereupon you considered it forbidden, and did they not permit what God forbade, whereupon you considered it permissible?” He responded, “Yes.” The Prophet then said, “That is the worship offered to them.” This verse is noteworthy in seeing a possible conflict between excessive obedience to certain religious authorities and the sincere worship of the One God. For a discussion of the tension between obeying legitimate authority and obeying God, see 4:59c.

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Ò They desire to extinguish the Light of God with their mouths. But God refuses to do aught but complete His Light, though the disbelievers be averse.

Ó He it is Who sent His Messenger with guidance and the Religion of Truth to make it prevail over all religion, though the idolaters be averse.

32–33  These verses are similar to 61:8–9. Some understand Light of God to mean the remembrance of God (M), or the Quran (M, R), or knowledge of God and His Guidance; that is, the Prophet and the Quran were bringing the doctrine of God’s Oneness and the remembrance of Him, and the idolaters, because of their devotion to false gods, desired to extinguish that Light (M). Light is spoken of in many ways in the Quran, in connection with revelation (e.g., 5:15, 44; 7:157), guidance (e.g., 39:22; 42:52), knowledge (e.g., 13:16), the Prophet (33:48), and others; see especially 24:35, the famous Light Verse, in which God himself is described in terms of light.

Prevail over renders ẓahara ʿalā, which can also mean to manifest, show, or make something known (R). Moreover, all religion can also be understood as “all religions” or “[the peoples] of all religions” (M). The beginning of v. 33 could thus be rendered, “He it is Who sent His Messenger with guidance and the Religion of Truth to make it known to all religions.” This would complement the notion that the community of Islam was put on earth to be witnesses for mankind (2:143; 22:78), meaning that their justice and faith would be witnessed by humanity as evidence of the truth of religion (see 2:143c; 22:78c). Some interpret this to mean that no part of the Religion of Truth will remain hidden (Q). That is, since there are those who desire to extinguish the Light of God with their mouths and thus make His religion hidden, God will instead cause His religion to appear and be made manifest through the proofs and evidences that show Islam and the Prophet to be true, such as the miracles of the Prophet and the inimitability of the Quran despite the fact that the Prophet was unlettered (R).

Some say that prevail refers to victory and conquest, but is restricted to the Arabian Peninsula (M, Q, Th). This seems to be in part because the commentators saw that they in fact had not achieved victory over the whole world. Al-Rāzī raises the theological problem that if this verse is read as a prediction, then it is one that has not been fulfilled, and this could not be, since it is the Word of God that predicted it. For others, it can be said to refer to the preeminence of the Religion of Truth on the Day of Judgment (M).

Some opinions mention that this verse refers to the end of time when the Mahdī will return, or when Jesus will return (Q, Ṭ, Ṭs). Another interpretation is that the pronoun it refers in fact to the Prophet, so that the phrase would be rendered “He it is Who sent His Messenger with guidance and the Religion of Truth to make all religion known to him,” meaning to make known all the laws and teachings of religion to the Prophet (Q, Z). It can also be read, “to make him [the Prophet] known to [the peoples] of all religions through proof and evidence” (M, Q).

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Ô O you who believe! Verily many of the rabbis and monks consume the wealth of people falsely, and turn from the way of God. [As for] those who hoard gold and silver and spend it not in the way of God, give them glad tidings of a painful punishment,

34  See v. 31. This verse is understood to mean that the religious leaders collect money from people in the name of religion, but use it for worldly purposes (Q) or that they engage in acts of bribery and corruption (R). Turn from the way of God can mean both that they hinder others and that they themselves turn away. Al-Rāzī notes that many of the rabbis and monks are reproached here, but not all.

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Õ on the Day when it will be heated in the Fire of Hell, and their foreheads, their sides, and their backs will be branded with it. “This is what you hoarded up for yourselves; so taste that which you hoarded.”

35  It will be heated refers to the gold and silver mentioned in the previous verse. “Tasting” denotes the direct experience of something and is used elsewhere in the Quran in connection with those who will experience directly the pains of the Hereafter (e.g., 10:52; 22:9; 29:55). Being punished by the wealth one hoarded in life is also mentioned in 3:180: On the Day of Resurrection they will be collared by that with which they were miserly. It is said that, hearing gold and silver described this way, some of the Companions asked which type of wealth they should prefer to own, to which the Prophet responded, “A tongue that remembers, a heart that is thankful, and a believing spouse that will help you in your religion.”

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Ö Truly the number of months in the Eyes of God is twelve months, [laid down] in the Book of God, the day He created the heavens and the earth. Of them four are sacred. That is the upright religion. So wrong not yourselves during them. And fight the idolaters all together, just as they fight you all together. And know that God is with the reverent.

× Truly the nasīʾ is but an increase in disbelief, whereby the disbelievers go astray. They make it lawful one year and forbid it another, in order to reconcile it with the number made sacred by God, thus making lawful that which God has forbidden. The evil of their deeds is made to seem fair unto them, but God guides not the disbelieving people.

36–37  The sacred months are Dhu’l-Qaʿdah, Dhu’l-Ḥijjah, Muḥarram, and Rajab, which are the eleventh, twelfth, first, and seventh months of the lunar calendar. A ḥadīth often cited in this context states, “O people! Truly time has come round to its state when God created the heavens and the earth. The year is twelve months, and of them four are sacred, three of which are consecutive, Dhu’l-Qaʿdah, Dhu’l-Ḥijjah, Muḥarram, and Rajab, which is between Jumādā and Shaʿbān.” During them, in wrong not yourselves during them, is interpreted by some to mean during those four months and by others to mean during all the months (Ṭ). Others read the preposition differently: “Wrong not yourselves concerning them” is understood to refer to the manipulation of the months, which is condemned in v. 37.

Fight the idolaters all together is understood to mean that the believers should be united when fighting them (R). According to some, this injunction constitutes permission to fight them during all twelve months, but others say that such a reading goes against the import of this verse; see commentary on 2:217, They ask thee about the sacred month—about fighting therein.

Naṣīʾ literally means “postponement,” but can also mean “addition” (R). There is no unanimity regarding what this condemned practice was. In most accounts, however, it refers to the practice of intercalation, where an extra lunar month was inserted into the calendar so that certain months (especially the month of Dhu’l-Ḥijjah, when the pilgrimage took place) would fall in the same season by fixing the lunar year within the solar year, making the calendar more conducive to trade and travel (R). This seemed necessary because the twelve-month lunar calendar is approximately eleven days shorter than the solar year. The intercalated month allowed the lunar month to keep pace with the solar year, rather than allowing the lunar months to move through the seasons by ten or eleven days per solar year. Muslims consider the prohibition of intercalation to preserve fairness among the followers of a worldwide religion where different geographic locations have longer or shorter days depending on the time of the solar year and results in rites such as the fast of Ramadan occurring throughout the solar year (i.e., shorter and longer days) over the course of one’s lifetime and making the journey of the ḥajj easier for some and more difficult for others. By following intercalation, Islam preserved justice among believers in the degree of ease in the performance of the various rites of the religion.

In other accounts, the “postponement” is considered to pertain to the status of the sacred months insofar as they were those months in which fighting was forbidden. In one account, the status of Muḥarram (the first lunar month) as sacred or “forbidden” would be postponed, and Ṣafar (the second month) would be made “forbidden” instead (Ṭ). According to another account, this status of being forbidden would cycle through a different month each year (Q). It is reported that when Abū Bakr led the first pilgrimage after the conquest of Makkah, the manipulation of the months had brought them back to their proper places, and this is what was meant when the Prophet stated, “O people! Truly time has come round to its state when God created the heavens and the earth” (Q, Ṭ). They make it lawful one year and forbid it another would thus refer to the manipulation of the legal status of the months from year to year, which always tried to keep the number of sacred or forbidden months at four in order to reconcile it with the number made sacred by God.

In another account, it is said that the idolaters would make pilgrimage for two years in each of the months of the year, and that at the pilgrimage of Abū Bakr it had cycled back to its rightful place (Q). This would seem to be a version of intercalation, since two years in every lunar month would roughly correspond to keeping the pilgrimage in the same season. Al-Qurṭubī prefers an account that describes an explicit insertion of days into the calendar beyond the twelve months, and he believes this is why the verse emphasizes that the number of months is twelve, not twelve plus a number of extra days.

Whereby the disbelievers go astray can also be read, “And the disbelievers misguide [others] thereby” (R).

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Ø O you who believe! What ails you, that when it is said unto you, “Go forth in the way of God,” you sink down heavily to the earth? Are you content with the life of this world over the Hereafter? Yet the enjoyment of the life of this world, compared with the Hereafter, is but a little.

38  It is said that this verse and the following verse relate to those people who stayed behind when the Prophet led the Companions on the expedition to Tabūk in 9/631 after the conquest of Makkah; see 9:29c. According to some commentators, some of the tribes did not wish to participate in the campaign with the Prophet, owing to the heat, the distance, the expense required for the preparations for such a distance, and fear of the Byzantine army (R). Sink down heavily renders a verb whose root means literally to be heavy or sluggish, but that can also evoke the sense of being lazy or finding something too troubling to attempt. Reproach for those who prefer this world to the Hereafter is also mentioned in 14:3 and 16:107, while the comparative good of the Hereafter over this world is affirmed throughout the Quran, as in 13:26: Yet compared to the Hereafter, the life of the world is but [fleeting] enjoyment. On this subject, see 87:16–17c. As a spiritual allegory, this verse addresses the soul that through inertia shrinks from the demands of the spiritual life and the struggles it entails and prefers the life of this world to the life of the Hereafter (Aj).

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Ù If you go not forth, He will punish you with a painful punishment, and will place another people in your stead, and you will not harm Him in the least. And God is Powerful over all things.

39  The punishment was that God would withhold rain from them (Q), though others say this verse refers to an unknown punishment to come in the Hereafter (R). The replacement of one people with another is also mentioned in 5:54; 21:11; 36:81–82; 44:28; 46:33; 47:38; 55:60–61. Here it is thought to refer to God’s ability to support the Prophet with other people who would not stay at home when he left on a campaign (IK, Ṭ).

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@ If you help him not, yet God has already helped him. Remember when those who disbelieved expelled him, the second of the two. Yea, the two were in the cave, when he said to his companion, “Grieve not; truly God is with us.” Then God sent down His Tranquility upon him, and supported him with hosts you see not. And He made the word of those who disbelieve to be the lowliest, and the Word of God is the highest. And God is Mighty, Wise.

40  According to some commentators this was the first verse of this sūrah in the chronological order of revelation (Q). It refers to an incident during the hijrah, when the Prophet and Abū Bakr were making their way from Makkah to Madinah with the hostile Makkans giving chase. The Makkans had resolved to assassinate the Prophet as a group, thus sharing responsibility and forcing the Prophet’s clan to accept blood money rather than retaliate (on blood money and retaliation, see 2:178c). They waited outside the Prophet’s house in ambush, but did not notice that he had left, leaving ʿAlī ibn Abī Ṭālib, the Prophet’s young cousin, sleeping in the Prophet’s bed. Having slipped away unnoticed, the Prophet joined Abū Bakr and headed south rather than northward toward Madinah. They entered a cave, having arranged for news to be brought to them and for their tracks to be hidden by a local shepherd. At one point they were nearly discovered, but according to traditional accounts they were protected by God for, when the searchers inspected the track leading to the cave, they noticed a spider’s web covering the entrance as well as two doves that had come and laid eggs in a nest at the mouth of the cave. Taking these facts as an indication that no one had entered the cave for some time, they moved on without looking inside. According to another account, Abū Bakr said, “O Messenger of God, if one of them were to look beneath his feet, he would see us!” The entrance to the cave (which is still extant) is very low, and one has to stoop to enter it. According to another ḥadīth the Prophet said, “O Abū Bakr, what dost thou think of two whose third is God?”

On His Tranquility (sakīnah), see 48:4c. According to one reading, upon him refers to Abū Bakr, because he was anxious about the fate of the Prophet (R), while the him in supported him refers to the Prophet; or both pronouns refer to the Prophet (Q). Hosts you see not is thought to be a reference to the angels of Badr (see 3:124–26c; 8:9–10c; 8:12c). Some read And He made the word . . . is the highest as “And He made the word of those who disbelieve to be the lowliest and the Word of God to be the most sublime” (Q). The word of those who disbelieve is understood to mean the ascription of partners to God, while the Word of God is the testimony of faith, “There is no god but God” (lā ilāha illa’Llāh; Q, Ṭ).

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A Go forth in the way of God, lightly or heavily, and strive with your wealth and yourselves in the way of God. That is better for you, if you but knew.

41  Lightly or heavily can mean being either reluctant or eager, or lightly or heavily armed, or young or old (Ṭ), or poorly or well equipped, or rich or poor (Q, Ṭ). Al-Ṭabarī says that it means whether it is easy or difficult.

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B Were it something ephemeral nearby or an easy journey, they would have followed thee. But the trek was too great for them. And they will swear by God, “If we had been able, we would have gone out with you.” They destroy themselves, and God knows that they are liars.

42  Something ephemeral (ʿaraḍ) means here a fleeting, worldly good (R). It is said that If we had been able, we would have gone out with you was spoken by hypocrites after the expedition to Tabūk (R), resembling those hypocrites described in 3:167 in connection with the Battle of Uḥud: Had we known there would be fighting, we would have followed you; and also in 24:53: And they swear by God with their most solemn oaths, that wert thou to command them, they would surely go forth. Such disingenuous oaths are also mentioned in vv. 42, 62, 74, 95, 107. Like other verses dealing with combat, this verse also possesses meaning as a spiritual allegory for those who are lax in their spiritual life and do not journey in search of knowledge and understanding (Aj).

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C God pardon thee! Why didst thou grant them leave before it became clear to thee who spoke the truth and who the liars were?

43  Grant them leave means gave them permission to remain behind from the expedition to Tabūk (Ṭ). Many believe that this verse was abrogated by 24:62: So when they ask thy leave in some matter of theirs, give thou leave unto whomsoever thou wilt. Others, however, argue that the permission that was given was for them to participate, but that there would have been no good in their participation, as described in v. 47, had they gone forth with thee, it would have increased thee in naught but troubles (R). Another interpretation is that the Prophet gave them leave to stay behind, but this allowed their hypocrisy to remain hidden rather than becoming clear through their conduct later.

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D Those who believe in God and the Last Day ask of thee no leave from striving with their wealth and their selves. And God knows the reverent.

E Only they ask leave of thee who believe not in God and the Last Day, whose hearts are in doubt, and so they waver in their doubt.

44–45  These two verses provide a contrast between the response of sincere believers and that of hypocrites; the former seek no excuses to stay behind and the latter ask leave to remain behind, as described in vv. 42–43 (Q). Whose hearts are in doubt is interpreted to refer to the hypocrites whose faith was not true (Ṭ).

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F And had they desired to go forth, they would have made some preparations for it. But God was averse to their being sent forth; so He held them back, and it was said unto them, “Stay back with those who stay back.”

46  If the hypocrites had truly desired to go out to fight, they would have been ready and not offered the excuses mentioned in v. 42 (Q). Those who stay back (qāʿid) is literally “those who sit [out],” referring to women, children, and the infirm, who were not required to fight (Q, Ṭ). God held them back through their own cowardice (Q). Stay back with those who stay back is understood to have been spoken by either the Prophet, God, or even those who stay back to each other (Q, R).

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G And had they gone forth with thee, it would have increased thee in naught but troubles. And they would have hurried about in your midst, seeking to incite discord among you. And among you are some who hearken to them. And God knows the wrongdoers.

47  Troubles renders khubāl, which can also be interpreted to mean confusion, disquiet, and disunity. Some who hearken to them is read by some to mean, “those who convey them news,” literally, “those who cause them to hear,” meaning that among the Muslims there were those who brought news of the Prophet to the hypocrites (Q, R).

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H And indeed they sought to incite trials earlier, and turned thee over in their minds, until the truth came and the Command of God was manifest, though they were averse.

48  They sought to incite trials earlier, that is, before their true state became apparent (Q) or before the Tabūk expedition (R). They turned thee over in their minds means that they plotted against the Prophet (Q), an idiom that refers to pondering or brooding over someone’s situation.

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I And among them some say, “Grant me leave, and tempt me not.” Nay, they have fallen into temptation. And truly Hell encompasses the disbelievers.

49  Tempt me not is interpreted to mean that the hypocrites did not wish to be subject to the difficulties of the expedition or that they feared what would happen to their property while they were away (R). They have fallen into temptation means that they are already in a state of disobedience and sin (Q).

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P If some good befalls thee, it troubles them. But if some affliction befalls thee, they say, “We already took precautions beforehand,” and they turn away, exulting.

50  Some good (cf. 3:120) is usually interpreted to mean victories or spoils, and some affliction, defeat on the battlefield (Q, R). We already took precautions means that they consider any misfortune that befalls the Prophet to be evidence of their own wisdom in failing to support him (R); on this issue see 4:71–73c.

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Q Say, “Naught befalls us, save that which God has decreed for us. He is our Master, and in God let the believers trust.”

51  That which God has decreed is what God has “prescribed” or “written” (kataba; cf. 2:187; 5:21; 6:12, 54; 58:21; 59:3). This is understood by some to mean that it is inscribed in the Preserved Tablet (85:22) and that this “writing” refers to one’s fate or destiny as determined by God beyond time; see 54:49c and the essay “The Quran and Schools of Theology and Philosophy.”

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R Say, “Do you anticipate that aught will befall us save one of the two best things? But we anticipate for you that God will afflict you with a punishment from Him, or by our hands. So wait! Truly we are waiting along with you.”

52  The two best things are understood to be either victory in this world or defeat and death in this world, which nevertheless lead to felicity in the Hereafter when one dies in the way of God; the two are two triumphs, one in this world and one in the next (R, Ṭ). Moreover, argues al-Rāzī, those who act with courage live with dignity and self-respect, while the hypocrites have to suffer from their own cowardice. A punishment from Him can be in either this world or the Hereafter; by our hands means punishment in this world, but as a result of their own evil actions (R). The message that the believers will wait along with their opponents is also mentioned in 6:158; 7:71; 10:20, 102; 11:122; 20:135; 32:30.

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S Say, “Spend willingly or unwillingly; it shall never be accepted from you. Truly you are an iniquitous people.”

53  This verse can mean either that the Prophet will not accept from them what they spend or that what they spend will not be considered worthy of acceptance in the Eyes of God (R). According to some, this verse refers to those who wished to stay behind, but told the Prophet they would give money to support him (R). Elsewhere willingly or unwillingly appears in connection with the worship of God by all of creation; some worship on the basis of the exercise of free will and most of the rest of creation worships through its very being, without having a choice (see 3:83c; 13:15c; 41:11c). The phrase can also refer only to human beings and mean “obediently or grudgingly.”

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T And naught prevented their spending from being accepted from them, save that they disbelieved in God and in His Messenger, and only come to the prayer lazily, and only spend reluctantly.

54  Performing the prayer lazily is also an attribute of the hypocrites as described in 4:142. Some commentators see in this verse proof that the apparent good deeds of disbelievers, such as maintaining family relations and feeding the poor, would be by themselves of no avail to them in the Hereafter (Q, R). When ʿĀʾishah asked the Prophet whether the filial piety and charity of a certain man would benefit him, the Prophet responded, “It will not benefit him. Not on a single day did he say, ‘My Lord, forgive me my sins on the Day of Judgment.’” Al-Qurṭubī, however, argues that God does reward people without faith in this world, citing 17:18: Whosoever would desire the ephemeral, We hasten for him therein whatsoever We will for whomsoever We desire.

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U And let not their wealth or their children impress thee. God desires but to punish them thereby in the life of this world, and that their souls should depart while they are disbelievers.

55  Wealth and children (cf. v. 70) are often mentioned as desirable in this world (18:46), and those who possess them often feel superior to those who do not (34:35; 68:14), but they will not avail anyone with God (3:10; 58:17). To punish them thereby is understood by some to mean that they will be forced to part with some of their wealth through being forced to give alms (Q, Ṭ). Others read the verse to mean, “And let not their wealth or their children impress thee—God desires to punish them thereby—in the life of this world,” by which they understand that the punishment would come in the Hereafter, and in the life of this world refers to the domain in which they possess wealth and children (Q). This latter opinion, however, would seem to contradict the plain sense of the verse, especially since it concludes with an allusion to souls departing.

It is also possible, however, to read this verse in light of 8:28 and 64:15: Your property and your children are only a trial for you; and also 63:9: Let neither your property nor your children divert you from the remembrance of God; that is, wealth and children only cause some people to drift farther away from God, thus leading to their disbelief and eventual punishment. Furthermore, seen on a more spiritual level, attachment to the things of this world is itself a form of suffering, and those who possess such things in abundance without acknowledging that they come from God also live with a desperate fear of losing them, having struggled so hard to attain them (R). This verse is also interpreted by some as part of God’s “plot” concerning the hypocrites and disbelievers (see 8:30c), allowing them to clear the path, as it were, for their own suffering and punishment (IK, Qu).

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V And they swear by God that truly they are of you, but they are not of you. Rather, they are a fearful people.

56  On empty oaths of allegiance, see 9:42c; 24:53; 35:42. That the hypocrites are fearful means, according to some, “They are fearful of you” (Ṭ), namely, of the believers and their political strength, though others say it simply means they are fearful of fighting alongside the Prophet (R).

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W Were they to find a refuge, or caves, or a place to enter, they would turn toward it defiantly.

57  The hypocrites would turn toward some places of hiding to escape if they could, because they are only reluctantly loyal to the Prophet (IK, Q). Some interpret refuge to mean a place like a mountaintop (Z) and note that caves renders a word whose root has the basic meaning of slipping or hiding away (Z). A place to enter is understood by some to mean an underground cave or well (IK, R). Defiantly here renders a word that is associated with a horse that breaks free from its rider and runs away at random, heedlessly, or a ship that is ungovernable by its crew.

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X And among them some reproach thee over the charitable offerings; if they are given thereof, they are content, but if they are not given thereof, behold, they are angry.

58  It is reported that this verse was revealed after a man came to the Prophet while he was distributing some property and said, “Be just, O Messenger of God.” The Prophet said, “Woe unto you! Who shall be just if I am not just?” (Q). Other accounts describe similar accusations against the Prophet for being unjust in his apportioning (Ṭ). The fact that people are content when they receive wealth, but are angered when denied it shows that they are selfish in their concern and not driven by a sense of justice (R). On a spiritual level, this verse is interpreted to mean that truly sincere individuals should find contentment in God regardless of what they receive, as there is no difference between hypocrites and those whose happiness depends on being given what they want (Aj).

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Y If only they had been content with what God and His Messenger gave them, and said, “God suffices us. God will give unto us from His Bounty, as will the Messenger. Truly our desire is for God.”

59  This verse describes the attitude that should be taken by the Prophet’s sincere Companions (R). For al-Rāzī, it describes the proper attitude of desiring the bounty of the world insofar as it leads to God, not for its own sake. That God suffices us is also mentioned in 3:173; 8:62; 8:64; 9:129; on the “sufficiency” provided by God, see 2:137c; 3:173c. That one’s “desire” be for God is also found in 94:8: And let thy desire be for thy Lord.

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` The charitable offerings are only for the poor, and the indigent, and those working with them, and those whose hearts are [to be] reconciled, and for [ransoming] slaves and for debtors, and in the way of God, and for the traveler: a duty from God. And God is Knowing, Wise.

60  Charitable offerings renders ṣadaqāt (sing. ṣadaqah), which is understood by some to refer to the mandatory alms (R). Al-Rāzī reasons this is so because the verse limits it to certain categories, whereas voluntary charity can be given for many other purposes, such as building mosques and schools. Moreover, since the administrators of the charitable offerings are entitled to a share (see below), it is not interpreted as being voluntary charity. Al-Rāzī discusses this question because, as a matter of terminology, the mandatory alms are usually called zakāh, while voluntary charity is called ṣadaqah, but this verse and others, such as 9:103, Take thou a charitable offering from their wealth, suggest that the two terms are not mutually exclusive in the Quran, though as Islamic Law developed, zakāḥ and ṣadaqah came to have distinct meanings.

There are disagreements over the difference between the poor (faqīr) and the indigent (miskīn). According to some, the former refers to those who stand in some partial need, while the latter refers to those who have nothing, although some hold the reverse opinion (Q). Others have said that the former refers to needy Muslims, while the latter refers to the needy People of the Book (Q). Al-Qurṭubī quotes a ḥadīth that states that when the Prophet sent Muʿādh to Yemen, he told him, “Teach them that God has prescribed charity for them as it concerns their property, to be taken from the rich among them and given to the poor among them.”

Those working with them refers to those who administer and distribute the charity (Q). Those whose hearts are [to be] reconciled refers to new Muslims who, for various reasons, were not necessarily financially needy, but who nevertheless were given certain payments (Q). According to some they were a class of disbelievers who were given money, so that they would be “joined to” or reconciled with Islam; others say they were a group who had become Muslim outwardly (see 49:14), but who had not yet reached a level of certainty in their hearts. Another opinion holds that they were followers of the leading idolaters, but followers who might be swayed to join or be reconciled with Islam. Some believe it refers to Christians or Jews who become Muslim (Ṭ). For yet others it refers to the notables of certain tribes whose loyalty needed to be cemented after the Battle of Ḥunayn (R). According to al-Qurṭubī, these groups are similar in that they are all groups in which Islam was not firmly established unless their members received some kind of payment. According to some jurists after the early period, when Islam became strong, there was no longer a need for payment to those whose hearts needed to be “reconciled,” but others deemed that this practice could resume as circumstances demanded (Q, R, Ṭ).

[Ransoming] slaves refers to purchasing slaves, using funds from the alms for the purposes of manumission (Q). Debtors refers to those people who are so indebted as to be unable to fulfill their obligations, for example, because their home or source of income was destroyed by natural disaster (Ṭ). Al-Qurṭubī notes a ḥadīth concerning a man who was buried under debt, and the Prophet said, “Give him charity.” So people donated money to him, but it was not sufficient to cover his obligations. The Prophet then said to his creditors, “Take what you have found, for you shall have no more than that.” In the Quran in the way of God is used in connection with actions or efforts taken for the sake of God or for one’s religion. Traveler refers to a person cut off from any source of income because of being far away from home; such persons are to be helped even if they are wealthy in their home country (Q, Ṭ).

As a spiritual allegory this verse is interpreted to refer to the bestowal of spiritual blessings and illumination on the poor and indigent in spirit, those working for spiritual purposes, whose hearts are [to be] reconciled with their Beloved, who are debtors in giving all they have, who strive in the way of God against their souls, and who travel in search of knowledge (Aj).

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a And among them are those who torment the Prophet, and say, “He is an ear.” Say, “An ear that is good for you. He believes in God and he has faith in the believers, and he is a mercy to those among you who believe.” And [as for] those who torment the Messenger of God, theirs shall be a painful punishment.

61  He is an ear is an idiomatic expression used as an insult to imply that the Prophet was easily swayed by what he heard and had no resolve (R); being called an “ear,” al-Rāzī explains, is like calling a spy an “eye.” The accusation was that the Prophet was gullible, accepting whatever he heard (Q). According to some, there were those around the Prophet who said, “We say what we wish; then we swear to him and he believes us” (Ṭ). An ear that is good is understood to mean that he hears what is good, not what is evil (R, Z). Has faith in uses the same verb as believes, but with a different preposition. He has faith in the believers could also be rendered “He believes the believers”; that is, when the believers say something, he believes them (R, Ṭ), but he does not believe the hypocrites (Ṭ).

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b They swear by God to you, to please you. But God and His Messenger are worthier of being pleased by them, if they are believers.

62  They swear . . . to you, the believers, to please you; the second-person plural here denotes that it is the believers as a whole, not only the Prophet, to whom they swear. See also commentary on 2:14: And when they meet those who believe they say, “We believe.” For the repeated oaths sworn by the hypocrites mentioned in this sūrah (vv. 42, 74, 95, 107), see 9:42c.

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c Do they know not that whosoever opposes God and His Messenger, surely for him shall be the Fire of Hell, to abide therein? That is the great disgrace.

63  Hell as a disgrace represents the spiritual aspect of the punishment, while the Fire represents the physical aspect; on this topic, see 3:192c; 3:194c.

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d The hypocrites dread lest a sūrah be sent down against them, informing them of that which is in their hearts. Say, “Go on mocking. Truly God will bring forth what you dread.”

64  Some interpret this verse to mean that, although the hypocrites did not believe that the Prophet was truthful, they nevertheless had previously experienced his ability to know their secret thoughts and their mockery of him and thus feared that this would occur again (R). Or it means that they did have a certain level of faith, but they were too overcome by jealousy and obduracy to commit themselves fully to that faith. Al-Rāzī observes that envy can make one blind to even sensible objects. Mockery by the hypocrites is mentioned frequently in the Quran (e.g., 2:14–15; 4:140; 5:57–58; 6:5; 31:6; 45:9, 35).

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e And if thou askest them, they will surely say, “We were only engaging [in vain talk] and playing.” Say, “Is it God, His signs, and His Messenger you were mocking?”

65  In one account a hypocrite spoke disparagingly about the Prophet and the Quran, saying, “I have seen no people with more fearful hearts, falser tongues, or more cowardice in the field,” referring to the Prophet and the believers (R). A Companion went to tell the Prophet about this matter, but found that the Prophet already knew. Then the person who had mocked the Prophet came to him while he was riding and pleaded with him, saying that he and his friends were only passing the time and speaking idly. The Prophet then recited the verse that had recently been revealed, Is it God, His signs, and His Messenger you were mocking? and said and did no more (R, Ṭ).

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f Make no excuses. You disbelieved after having believed. If We pardon a group of you, We shall punish another group for having been guilty.

66  Some commentators interpret this verse to mean that mockery of the Prophet is tantamount to disbelief (kufr; R). Although some interpret these two groups to be those who initiated the mockery and those who passively listened and laughed along with it (R), others interpret it to mean that one group would sincerely repent and the other would not (Ṭ).

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g The hypocrites, men and women, are like unto one another, enjoining wrong, forbidding right, clutching their hands shut. They forgot God; so He forgot them. Truly the hypocrites are iniquitous.

67  The hypocrites . . . are like unto one another means “they are of their own kind”; that is, they are not to be counted among the believers (Ṭ, Z). Clutching their hands shut refers to their reluctance to take part in fighting (Q), or to their reluctance to spend and give in the way of God (Ṭ), or both. They forgot God by abandoning devotion to Him (Ṭ), so He forgot them by abandoning them and leaving them without guidance and compassion (Ṭ); or they forgot the remembrance of God, and God acted toward them like one who forgot them (IK). See also 45:34: And it will be said, “Today We forget you just as you forgot the meeting with this your Day.” Enjoining wrong, forbidding right is an inversion of the usual command in the Quran to enjoin right and forbid wrong (3:104, 110, 114; 7:157; 9:71, 112; 22:41; 31:17); on this important concept in Islamic ethics, see 3:104c.

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h Verily God has promised the hypocrites, men and women, and the disbelievers the Fire of Hell, to abide therein. It shall suffice them. God curses them, and theirs shall be a lasting punishment.

68  Cf. 4:55: And Hell suffices as a blazing flame!; and 58:8: Hell suffices them, burning therein. What an evil journey’s end! Commentators often note that in the Quran the curse of God upon persons refers to their being distanced from God; see 2:161c.

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i [Remember] those who were before you. They were mightier than you in power, and greater in wealth and children. So they enjoyed their share, and you enjoyed your share, just as those before you enjoyed their share. And you have engaged [in vain talk] as they engaged [in vain talk]. It is they whose deeds came to naught in this world and in the Hereafter, and it is they who are the losers.

69  On the subject of Muslims imitating the practices of the religious communities of the past, some commentators (IK, Q, Ṭ) mention a well-known ḥadīth that states, “By Him in Whose Hand lies my soul, you will follow the wonts of those who went before you, span by span, cubit by cubit, until, were one of them to enter the hole of a lizard, you would enter it also.” Their share is interpreted to mean their share in religion (IK, Q) or their share of the good of this world in general (R). The greater strength or wealth of previous generations are often mentioned in the Quran to demonstrate that such worldly superiority was ultimately of no benefit to them, as in 43:7–8: Yet never did a prophet come unto them, but that they mocked him. So We destroyed those greater than them in prowess, and the example of those of old has passed; and other verses such as 28:78; 30:9; 35:44; 40:21; 47:13; 50:36.

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p Has not the account come to them of those who were before them, the people of Noah, ʿĀd, and Thamūd, and the people of Abraham, the inhabitants of Midian, and the overthrown cities? Their messengers brought them clear proofs. God wronged them not, but themselves did they wrong.

70  Overthrown cities (cf. 53:53; 69:9) is generally thought to refer to cities that were destroyed, literally “turned upside down,” although some interpret overthrown to mean their change in state from good to evil (R). Though many commentators believe that this verse refers to the people of Lot, others say that it can refer to any people who were destroyed (Q). The ʿĀd were the people to whom the pre-Islamic Arabian prophet Hūd was sent, while the Thamūd were the people to whom God sent the prophet Ṣāliḥ. The inhabitants of Midian refers to the people of the prophet Shuʿayb. See 7:59–102 and Sūrah 11 for the stories of these prophets.

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q But the believing men and believing women are protectors of one another, enjoining right and forbidding wrong, performing the prayer, giving the alms, and obeying God and His Messenger. They are those upon whom God will have Mercy. Truly God is Mighty, Wise.

71  This verse in a sense mirrors the description of the hypocrites in v. 67. On enjoining right and forbidding wrong, see 3:104c. Protectors of one another also means friends or allies of one another (cf. 5:51; 8:72; 45:19). This verse is significant with regard to the spiritual and social standing of women (cf. 33:35), because it places upon them the same spiritual and social obligations placed on men, including moral authority and protection.

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r God has promised the believing men and the believing women Gardens with rivers running below, to abide therein, and goodly dwellings in the Gardens of Eden. But Contentment from God is greater; that is the great triumph!

72  On Gardens with rivers running below, see 2:25c. Gardens of Eden (ʿadn; cf. 13:23; 16:31; 18:31; 19:61; 20:76; 35:33; 38:50; 40:8) is understood by commentators to refer to an especially exalted or blessed place in the Garden, variously described as the center of the Garden, the highest level of the Garden, a city whose palace is the Divine Throne, and a palace of gold in which only prophets, martyrs, and just rulers will reside (R, Q, Ṭ). Others see ʿadn not as the name of a place, but as an adjective modifying Gardens, meaning something like “Gardens in which to dwell” (Q, R). See also the essay “Death, Dying, and the Afterlife in the Quran.”

But Contentment (riḍwān) from God is greater places the spiritual reward of the Garden above its bodily dimension, because the life of the spirit is greater than the life of the body and striving to please God is superior to striving for a reward from Him, since all strive in some way for what benefits them (M). Many, however, consider riḍwān itself to be a name of the highest Paradise and not only a state. On the significance of God’s Contentment, see 3:15c; 5:119c.

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s O Prophet! Strive against the disbelievers and the hypocrites, and be harsh with them. Their refuge is Hell. What an evil journey’s end!

73  This verse is interpreted by some to mean that the Prophet should use force against the disbelievers and persuasion against the hypocrites (Ṭ). Others, such as al-Rāzī, note that there is nothing in the word strive that limits it to either the use of force or any other type of “striving,” meaning that depending on circumstances one can employ either the use of force or the power of persuasion (Q, R). Other verses that counsel harshness or sternness toward the disbelievers include 5:54; 9:123; 48:29; 66:9.

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t They swear by God that they said it not, but indeed they spoke the word of disbelief, and disbelieved after having submitted [to God]. And they had ambitions that they did not achieve, and they were vengeful only because God and His Messenger enriched them from His Bounty. If they repent, it would be better for them. But if they turn away, God will punish them with a painful punishment in this world and in the Hereafter, and on earth they shall have neither protector nor helper.

74  It is thought that they said it not refers to an insult made against the Prophet or believers by the hypocrites; in one version they are reported to have said, “If Muhammad is truthful, then we are worse than the donkeys we ride” (Q, Ṭ). They had ambitions refers, according to some, to an incident where ʿAbd Allāh ibn Ubayy said to the Anṣār (i.e., the native Madinans), “Our situation with Muhammad is as in the saying, ‘Fatten your dog, and he will eat you.’ If we return to Madinah [after the battle of Uḥud], the mighty will expel the lowly therefrom!” meaning that they should try to be rid of Muhammad and the outsiders he brought with him (Q, Ṭ). When word of this statement reached the Prophet, ʿAbd Allāh ibn Ubayy swore he did not say it. Others say that the description here applies to all hypocrites, not only to a particular case, and describes their general attitude toward the Prophet (Q). According to another account, it refers to an outright plan to assassinate the Prophet (R, Ṭ).

In connection with they were vengeful only because God and His Messenger enriched them some commentators mention the proverb, “Beware of the evil of one to whom you have done good” (Q). Enriched them refers, in one account, to the payment of blood money by the Prophet on behalf of one of the hypocrites (Ṭ).

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u And among them are those who make a pact with God [saying], “If He gives unto us from His Bounty, we will surely spend in charity, and we will surely be among the righteous.”

v But when He gave unto them from His Bounty, they were miserly with it, and turned away in rejection.

75–76  As with other descriptions of the hypocrites in this sūrah, these verses are understood in a general sense, but some commentators also connect them with a certain Thaʿlabah ibn Ḥāṭib, who insisted that he would give charity if he had the means to do so. The Prophet gave him some wealth from the spoils of war; he prospered and his wealth grew, until he eventually left Madinah and settled in a nearby valley. He then began to attend only some of the prayers in congregation, and then only the Friday prayer, and finally he stopped attending altogether, all the while growing wealthier. When the giving of alms (zakāh) was instituted, functionaries were sent to collect it from him. He refused on the grounds that it was not charity, and that it was nothing but a kind of indemnity (jizyah). He refused again and again. Finally he met the Prophet, who said to him, “Woe unto you, Thaʿlabah!” (R, Ṭ).

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w So He requited them with hypocrisy in their hearts, till the Day they will meet Him, for having failed in that which they promised Him and for having lied.

77  Many commentators believe that the subject of the verb requited is God (R), though others understand the beginning of the verse to mean, “And it (the miserliness) caused the result in them of having hypocrisy in their hearts” (Q). Some commentators use this verse as an occasion to quote the ḥadīth in which the Prophet describes the four signs of the hypocrite: “When he is trusted, he betrays. When he speaks, he lies. When he promises, he reneges. And when he argues, he wrongs.”

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x Know they not that God knows their secret and their private discourse, and that God is Knower of things unseen?

78  Secret (sirr) can mean both the thing kept secret as well as the aspect of a thing that is hidden or mysterious. Private discourse (cf. 4:114; 17:47; 20:62; 21:3; 43:80; 58:7; 58:8, 10, 12, 13) renders najwā, referring to conversations held between confidants, in this case referring to the insults the hypocrites exchange with one another about the Prophet and the believers (Ṭ); see commentary on 58:7–8. Unseen in the Quran refers to things that are real but absent from sensory perception in the present moment or absent because they will occur or have occurred at a different moment in time or state of being; see 2:3c. Some commentators point out that virtuous and spiritual persons are the reverse of hypocrites; they are satisfied with what God gives them and worship and remember God when no one can see; their private discourse is worship, not mockery (Aj).

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y As for they who reproach those believers who give freely and those who have naught but their keep [to give], and ridicule them—God ridicules them, and theirs shall be a painful punishment.

79  Some commentators relate that this verse was revealed in connection with an incident when the Prophet encouraged the believers to give in charity, and several of the more affluent Companions gave large donations. A man of modest means came and gave half the dates he had earned the previous evening, keeping the other half for his family. Some of those who were present derided him for this, saying that God had no need of such a meager contribution and further claiming that he was doing it for show or to be counted in the company of the larger donors. About those who mocked the man of modest means, however, the Quran states God ridicules them (R, Ṭ). Keep renders juhd, which is understood to mean the way a person of modest means makes a living, or it can mean what a person strives to earn (Q, R). God’s rebuke of those who ridicule is also mentioned in 2:15: God mocks them, and leaves them to wander confused in their rebellion.

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À Seek forgiveness for them, or seek not forgiveness for them. If thou seekest forgiveness for them seventy times, God will not forgive them. That is because they disbelieve in God and His Messenger. And God guides not iniquitous people.

80  It is reported that after this verse was revealed, the Prophet said he would then ask forgiveness for them in excess of seventy times (IK, Ṭ), at which point 63:6 was revealed: It is the same for them whether thou asketh forgiveness for them or thou asketh forgiveness for them not; God will never forgive them. Truly God guides not iniquitous people. This is also similar to 2:6: Truly it is the same for the disbelievers whether thou warnest them or warnest them not; they do not believe. The number seventy is often used to symbolize a very large number and does not always mean the exact number seventy (Q).

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Á Those who were left behind exulted in staying back, opposing the Messenger of God, and were averse to striving with their wealth and with their selves in the way of God. And they said, “Go not forth in the heat.” Say, “The Fire of Hell is of a heat more intense,” if they but understood.

81  This verse refers to those who chose to stay behind when the Prophet went on the campaign to Tabūk (IK, Ṭ; see vv. 38–39). They said, “Go not forth” among themselves (Q), citing heat in addition to other reasons mentioned in 9:38c.

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 So let them laugh little and weep much, as a recompense for that which they used to earn.

82  Those who stayed behind will be forced to laugh little and weep much as a result of their experience of the Hereafter (Q, R), unlike the believers who weep from belief in God (in hope and fear) in this life (Q). Cf. 53:60: And do you laugh and not weep? In this context, some commentators (Q) mention the ḥadīth, “If you knew what I knew, you would laugh little and weep much.” In another ḥadīth the Prophet said, “Weep, and if you cannot weep, try to weep.”

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à And if God returns thee to a group of them, and they seek leave of thee to go forth, say, “You shall not go forth with me ever; nor shall you fight with me against any enemy. You were content to stay back the first time; so stay back with those who remain behind.”

83  If God returns thee from battle to a group of them, since not all who remained behind were hypocrites, they will seek leave to participate in upcoming battles (Q). But this verse prohibits them from taking part in future battles because the potential harm they would cause—perhaps through disruption or sabotage—would be too great (R), and they were to remain behind in Madinah, having been content to stay back the first time, mentioned in v. 38 (R).

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Ä And never pray over one of them who dies, nor stand by his grave. Truly they disbelieved in God and His Messenger and died iniquitous.

84  Pray over . . . them refers to the funeral rites, which consist of a modified form of the canonical prayer (ṣalāh) in which one stands for two units of prayer, but does not bow or prostrate, in the presence of the body prior to burial, which is positioned so that the face of the deceased faces Makkah. According to one account, the son of one of the leading hypocrites, ʿAbd Allāh ibn Ubayy, asked the Prophet if he would pray over his father and if his father could be buried using the Prophet’s garment as a shroud. The Prophet agreed to do both, but accounts differ over whether this verse was revealed before the prayer, preventing him from performing it, or after he had already done so (Q, Ṭ). Ibn ʿAjībah observes that when a sincere servant of God dies, all beings including angels, jinn, and the creatures of the earth pray for that person, but when a person is distant from God, that body and spirit are spurned by all. This question is further discussed in vv. 113–15.

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Å And let not their wealth or their children impress thee. God desires only to punish them thereby in this world, and that their souls should depart while they are disbelievers.

85  See commentary on the identical verse, v. 55. Al-Rāzī reasons that this verse is repeated for emphasis, because the attraction of property and children are among the strongest in the life of this world; he also believes that v. 55 referred to those hypocrites present when v. 55 was revealed, while this one refers to others.

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Æ And when a sūrah is sent down [saying], “Believe in God and strive with His Messenger,” the affluent among them ask thee for leave, and say, “Let us be among those who stay back.”

86  This passage returns to the theme of a group desiring to stay back while the Prophet led the believers on the Tabūk campaign (vv. 38–39). Here strive with His Messenger is understood to refer to going out to battle (Ṭ), and a sūrah is understood to refer to the present sūrah (R). The affluent refers to those among them who were rich, but others understand it to mean the leadership and those of influence among them (R). This verse constitutes a reproach because only those who had financial means and were physically able would have to ask to stay back if they did not want to join the campaign, since those lacking either one would necessarily be excused (R); see commentary on 9:91–92.

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Ç They are content to be among those who remain behind, and a seal is set upon their hearts. And so they understand not.

87  That they prefer to be among those who remain behind refers to their willingness to remain with the women, the children, and the sick (Ṭ), who were not required to fight (although some women did actually participate in battles with the Prophet). See also vv. 91–92 for those who are legitimately excused from battle. A seal is set upon their hearts (cf. 7:100; 10:74; 63:3) resembles other passages of the Quran in which the sealing or covering of the heart or the sight and hearing of disbelievers and hypocrites is frequently mentioned; see 2:7c; 2:88c.

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È But the Messenger and those who believe with him strive with their wealth and with their selves. And it is they who shall have good things, and it is they who shall prosper.

88  Good things renders khayrāt, understood to refer to the good things of both this world and the Hereafter (Q, R); the former are renown, a good reputation, and having others follow in one’s footsteps, and one of the latter is the reward for one’s good deeds (M). Elsewhere in the Quran (except in 55:70) the word khayrāt in its plural form refers to good deeds, so this could also refer to the fact that the believers will have good deeds, that is, the reward of good deeds. Some interpret it as a reference to the best women of Heaven mentioned in 55:70: Therein are good and beautiful ones (M, Q, R).

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É God has prepared for them Gardens with rivers running below, to abide therein. That is the great triumph.

89  On Gardens with rivers running below, see 2:25c. A great triumph is often used to describe the attainment of felicity in the Hereafter (e.g., 4:13, 73; 5:119; 9:72; 33:71; 37:60; 40:9; 44:57; 48:5; 57:12; 61:12; 64:9; 85:11).

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Ґ Those seeking to be excused among the Bedouin came in order to be granted leave, while those who lied to God and His Messenger stayed back. A painful punishment shall befall those among them who disbelieve.

90  There is disagreement over whether the word rendered by seeking to be excused is read so that it would mean “making excuses,” implying that they had no legitimate reason to be excluded from the fighting, or “with an excuse,” meaning that they had good reason to stay behind (Q, R, Ṭ). The former reading is supported by a statement attributed to Ibn ʿAbbās that God curses those seeking to be excused in this verse (Q, R), thus grouping together some Bedouin with the Madinan hypocrites. According to the latter reading, the verse makes a distinction between those with a valid excuse and those who were simply lying (R).

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ґ No blame is there upon the weak, nor upon the sick, nor those who find nothing to spend, if they are sincere toward God and His Messenger. There is no argument against the virtuous—and God is Forgiving, Merciful—

91  The weak includes old men or those with a physical impairment, and the sick includes those who suffer from blindness, lameness, or a chronic illness (R). Nothing to spend refers to those who cannot afford, either on their own or through another’s support, the minimum equipment required to participate in a campaign (R). Al-Rāzī notes that this verse does not prohibit persons without means from offering whatever support they can, only that they cannot be blamed for not doing so.

To be sincere renders the verb form of naṣīḥah, which means both giving counsel and acting sincerely toward someone with the particular connotation of giving sincere counsel or advice. It is a word also used in connection with “repentance” (tawbah) to describe a true and faithful attitude of contrition. In this regard, al-Qurṭubī mentions a ḥadīth in which the Prophet said thrice, “Religion is naṣīḥah.” It was asked of him, “Unto whom?” He replied, “Unto God, His Book, His Messenger, and the leaders and society of Muslims.” It is a concept that encompasses being devoted to God and His Book and Messenger as well as giving good counsel to other human beings and desiring their well-being (Q).

There is no argument against renders an idiomatic phrase that literally translates, “There is no way/path against them,” meaning that they are not subject to blame for their inability to contribute (R).

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Ғ nor upon those who, when they came to thee to give them a mount, and thou didst say to them, “I find nothing upon which to mount you,” turned back, their eyes flowing with tears, grieving that they found nothing to spend.

92  A group of Companions came to the Prophet hoping that he would have mounts to give them that would enable them to participate in the campaign with him, but he had none left to provide, and in their disappointment they walked away weeping profusely; differing accounts are recorded as to the identity of “the weepers” (Q, R, Ṭ). It is reported that, because of the distance and harsh conditions of the Tabūk expedition, each participant needed at least two mounts, one to ride and one for supplies (Q, R).

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ғ The argument falls only upon those who seek leave of thee though they are wealthy. They are content to be among those who remain behind, and God has set a seal upon their hearts. And so they know not.

93  The latter part of this verse closely resembles v. 87. God has set a seal is interpreted by some to be the very reason why those who chose to remain behind did not see the good in expending their wealth and energy in the way of God (R), though the plain sense would indicate that the seal was set upon their hearts as a punishment for their actions, and that as a result they were reduced or even barred in their capacity for faith and understanding. For the idea of the sealing of hearts as a punishment see 2:7c (cf. 2:17; 4:155; 7:100–101; 10:74; 16:108; 30:59; 40:35; 42:24; 45:23).

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Ҕ They will offer excuses to you when you return to them. Say, “Offer no excuses! We shall not believe you. God has already given us news of you. God and His Messenger will see your deeds. Then you will be brought back to the Knower of the Unseen and the seen, and He will inform you of that which you used to do.”

94  We shall not believe you could also be rendered “We shall not have faith in you” (see 9:61c for the use of this verb in relation to God and human beings). That is to say, they will never consider the hypocrites to be truthful (Q). The news of them that they were given by God refers to their intentions, which they thought had been kept secret (Q).

Brought back refers to being brought back for judgment in the Hereafter. That He will inform you of that which you used to do is a central part of the experience of the Hereafter and is mentioned in other verses (cf. 10:23; 29:8; 31:15). Unseen renders ghayb, referring to all that is not present to ordinary human sense perception at the present moment, either because it is far removed from us (in either space or time, i.e., is past or will happen in the future) or because it is intrinsically beyond physical perception, belonging to the metaphysical realm, which exists at a higher level of reality or state of being. The seen renders shahādah, literally, “witnessed” or “witnessing,” referring to what is present to sense perception. Knower of the Unseen and the seen could thus also be rendered “Knower of what is absent and what is present.” This phrase is also used of God in 6:73; 9:105; 13:9; 23:92; 32:6; 39:46; 59:22; 62:8; 64:18. These two terms are usually used together in the Quran and appear throughout Islamic literature.

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ҕ They will swear by God to you, when you return to them, that you may turn away from them. So turn away from them. Truly, they are a defilement, and their refuge is Hell, a recompense for that which they used to earn.

95  What they will swear by God to you is implicit, understood to mean they will swear that they were unable to accompany the Prophet (Q). That you may turn away from them refers to the hypocrites’ desire that they not be openly blamed (Q) or have their inner thoughts exposed (Ṭ). They wanted the Prophet and the believers to turn away from them by way of pardon as reflected that you might be content with them in v. 96, but instead the Prophet and believers turned away from the hypocrites with severity (R). So turn away is a Command to the believers, and upon returning to Madinah from Tabūk the Prophet told the believers not to speak or keep company with those who had remained behind without a valid excuse (Q, R). That they are defilement may mean that their actions are filthy (Q) or that they themselves represent a kind of spiritual defilement due to their inner state (R); on rijs (“filth” or “defilement”), see 7:71c.

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Җ They swear to you, that you might be content with them. But though you may be content with them, God is not content with iniquitous people.

96  This verse indicates that even if the believers are satisfied with the promises of the hypocrites, God is not (R). On the theme of God’s Contentment, see 3:15c; 89:28c.

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җ The Bedouin are more severe in disbelief and hypocrisy, and more liable not to know the limits [ordained] in what God has sent down unto His Messenger. And God is Knowing, Wise.

97  Bedouin translates aʿrāb, referring to nomadic Arabs as opposed to sedentary residents of the towns, and here it refers specifically to the hypocrites among the former (R); see also v. 101. Limits [ordained] in what God has sent down refers to the obligations and prohibitions of Divine Law (Q) or to the proper arguments and proofs for correct doctrines regarding God, the Messenger, and the Hereafter (Q, R). On the “limits set by God,” see also 2:187, 229, 231; 4:13–14; 9:112; 58:4; 65:1.

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Ҙ And among the Bedouin are those who regard that which they spend as a loss, and they await a change in fortune for you. Upon them shall be an evil change of fortune. And God is Hearing, Knowing.

98  That which they spend refers to what some Bedouin expend in the way of God, whether in charity or in battle; they consider it to be given without hope of reward or recompense, hence as a loss or punitive obligation (Q) or as a means of boasting (R). Change in fortune renders dawāʾir (sing. dāʾirah), whose lexical root evokes the sense of a circle or circuit; that is, they wait hoping that the good fortune of the believers will circle around and become bad again (Ṭ). Evil, here as elsewhere, refers not only to what is morally evil, but also to anything that is harmful or causes suffering.

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ҙ And among the Bedouin are those who believe in God and the Last Day, and regard that which they spend as [a means to attain] nearness unto God and the blessings of the Messenger. Behold! It shall surely be nearness for them. God will cause them to enter His Mercy. Truly God is Forgiving, Merciful.

99  In contrast to the description in the previous verse, this verse mentions some Bedouin who discern the spiritual reasons for their physical expenditures. Blessings renders ṣalawāt (sing. ṣalāh), which can also mean “prayers” or “supplications,” here understood to include, for example, the Prophet’s prayers on their behalf for forgiveness, blessings, and other good things (R). In such contexts, ṣalāh is translated “blessing” rather than “prayer” (usually referring to the canonical obligatory prayers in Islam) because, depending on the preposition that accompanies it, it can also be used when God is the agent and human beings are the recipient, as in 33:56: Truly God and His angels invoke blessings upon the Prophet (see also 2:3c). Those who are caused to enter His Mercy are also mentioned in 45:30 in the context of the judgment of the Hereafter.

This verse describes spending in the way of God as a means of attaining nearness unto God, while other verses deny the efficacy of less sincere attempts at attaining nearness unto Him, as in 34:37: It is not your wealth or your children that bring you nigh in nearness unto Us; and 39:3, where the idolaters say of their idols, We do not worship them, save to bring us nigh in nearness unto God.

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Ā [As for] the foremost, the first among the Emigrants and the Helpers, and those who followed them with virtue, God is content with them, and they are content with Him. And He has prepared for them Gardens with rivers running below, to abide therein forever. That is the great triumph.

100  The foremost (sābiqūn) has a special meaning in 56:10, where it describes those of the highest virtue and spiritual attainment who have a special place in the Hereafter. Those commentators who specify the group to which the present verse refers understand it, however, to mean those who pledged allegiance to the Prophet after the signing of the Treaty of Ḥudaybiyah (see the introduction to Sūrah 48); or those who prayed in both directions of prayer (meaning very early Muslims who prayed facing Jerusalem before the qiblah was changed to Makkah; see 2:115c; Ṭ); or those who participated in the Battle of Badr (Q). In all such cases it refers to those who were with the Prophet when it brought no foreseeable material benefit. The sābiqūn is also a term used by Sufis to mean those who follow the spiritual path to God and who are contrasted with both ordinary believers and disbelievers.

Those who followed them is sometimes thought to refer to the generation after the Companions, known as the Followers (tābiʿūn) (Q), while others say it can refer to anyone who follows them with virtue until the Day of Judgment (R). On the reciprocity expressed in God is content with them, and they are content with Him, see 5:119c; 58:22c; 89:28c.

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ā Among the Bedouin around you there are hypocrites, and among the people of Madinah, who are headstrong in hypocrisy. Thou knowest them not; We know them and We shall punish them twice. Then they shall be relegated to a great punishment.

101  Depending on how one pauses in the Arabic, the beginning of this verse could also be read, “Among the Bedouin around you there are hypocrites, and among the people of Madinah [are those who] are headstrong in hypocrisy.” They are headstrong in that they are persistent and unrepentant (R, Ṭ). Punished them twice refers to the punishment they will have in this world and then in the Hereafter; for example, the illness of a believer is considered an expiation for sin, while that of the disbeliever is a punishment meted out in this life, although the disbeliever will also be punished in the Hereafter (Q). Some interpret this phrase to mean that they will be punished twice—first in this life, then while in the grave (on the punishment of the grave, see 3:169–71c), and then they will be relegated to a great punishment in the Hereafter (R). It is said that among those conditions by which they are punished in the world are hunger, death, and the rage they feel at the success of God’s religion (Ṭ).

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Ă And [there are] others who admit their sins; they mixed righteous deeds with others that are evil. It may be that God will relent unto them. Truly God is Forgiving, Merciful.

102  According to the most common account, this verse was revealed in connection with several men who had remained behind from the Tabūk campaign, but repented and tied themselves to the walls of the mosque, vowing not to eat or drink until God pardoned them (Q, Ṭ). They mixed righteous deeds with others could refer to the fact that some of these men had previously participated in battles with the Prophet (Q). Some consider that, coming from God, it may be implies a necessity (R, Ṭ).

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ă Take thou a charitable offering from their wealth, cleansing them and purifying them thereby, and bless them. Truly thy blessings are a comfort for them. And God is Hearing, Knowing.

103  It is said that this verse was revealed in connection with the repentant men of v. 102. The men offered to give their wealth, but the Prophet said he had not been commanded to accept their offerings. Then this verse was revealed, and the Prophet commanded them to give one-third of their wealth as an expiation (Q). This reading of the verse was later used, after the Prophet’s death, as justification by those Arabian tribes who believed that alms were only owed to the Prophet personally for him to distribute (IK); therefore, some of these tribes refused to give alms to Abū Bakr (Q). According to this interpretation, the charitable offering refers to the charity of expiation (R). The other main opinion is that this verse refers to the institutional alms (usually referred to as zakāh) that are obligatory (Q, R, Ṭ). This verse could not, it is argued, be the basis for restricting obligatory alms to those given directly to the Prophet, since other verses explicitly name other recommended recipients; see 9:60: The charitable offerings are only for the poor, and the indigent; and 51:19: And in their wealth was a due for the beggar and the deprived.

The purification of a people by a messenger is also mentioned in 2:129; 2:151; 3:164; 62:2, often mentioned together with the teaching of the Book and the imparting of knowledge. The giving of charity purifies one from the defilement of sin and disobedience to God (R).

On the meaning of the blessings (ṣalāh), see 2:3c; 9:99c; 33:56c. It is said that when someone brought charity to the Prophet for distribution to the community, he would pray, “O God, bless them (ṣalli ʿalayhim)!” (IK, Q). The Prophet’s blessings are a comfort (sukn) in that when people heard the Prophet’s prayers, they became glad and, as a result of God’s Response to his prayers, found peace in their hearts (Q); his blessings were a mercy for them (IK, Ṭ).

Many say that the act of blessing in this particular way is reserved only for the Prophet, meaning that Muslims should invoke blessings only upon him and no other person, and that he was the only person who could do so for other people (Q, R). Al-Rāzī and al-Qurṭubī, however, are of the opinion that there is no reason why this particular form of invoking blessings should be restricted to the Prophet, as he is a model and exemplar for all actions. Muslims invoke blessings and peace upon the Prophet Muhammad in prayers and also when his name is mentioned, while only peace is invoked in the case of other prophets.

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Ą Know they not that God accepts repentance from His servants, and receives the charitable offerings, and that God is the Relenting, the Merciful?

104  On the matter of repentance, see 2:37c; 4:17–18c; 66:8c; 92:10c; 110:3c. In connection with receives the charitable offerings some mention a saying of the Companion ʿAbd Allāh ibn Masʿūd, who said, “No servant gives charity but that it lands in the Hand of God before the hand of the petitioner, and it is He who places it in the hand of the petitioner” (IK, Ṭ). Al-Rāzī likens this verse to others such as 48:10: Truly those who pledge allegiance unto thee pledge allegiance only unto God; and 33:57: those who affront God and His Messenger, in which the Prophet “stands in the place” of God.

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ą Say, “Perform your deeds. God will see your deeds, as will the Messenger and the believers, and you will be brought back to the Knower of the Unseen and the seen, and He will inform you of that which you used to do.”

105  Some interpret this verse to be addressing those who acknowledge their sins in v. 102 (Ṭ). It is understood to be a source of encouragement and also a warning, both because one desires praise and fears scorn and because it mentions the judgment of the Hereafter (R). The language of this verse mirrors the second half of v. 94. That the believers will see your deeds is understood by some to mean that they will do so on the Day of Judgment (IK) or that they will be brought news of them even in this world (R).

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Ć And others are made to await the Command of God. Either He will punish them, or He will relent unto them. And God is Knowing, Wise.

106  Others are made to await refers most immediately to those who remained behind from the Tabūk campaign, but who were neither as ardently repentant as those described in vv. 102–3 nor as indifferent as the hypocrites mentioned in vv. 94–96 (R). They were made to wait for or anticipate the Judgment of God (Ṭ). It is thought to refer specifically to three Companions who stayed back from the Tabūk campaign, but did not immediately seek pardon when the Prophet returned; nor did they bind themselves to the mosque as some others had done. The community was commanded to shun them, neither keeping company with them nor speaking with them, and their wives were also commanded to return to their families until some decision came down in their regard (R). They were later pardoned upon the revelation of vv. 117–18; see commentary on those verses.

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ć And as for those who established a mosque for harm and disbelief, and to divide the believers, and to be an outpost for those who made war on God and His Messenger before, they will surely swear, “We desire only what is best.” But God bears witness that truly they are liars.

107  This verse describes a mosque built by a group led by a certain Abū ʿĀmir al-Rāhib (“the monk”), a notable and respected member of the Aws clan of Madinah who had, before the Prophet came to Madinah, converted to Christianity and was known to be learned in the Christian scriptures. After the defeat of the Makkans at Badr, Abū ʿĀmir was angered at the apparent resilience of the Prophet and his followers and lent his support to the Quraysh, going so far as to dig ditches on the battlefield during the Battle of Uḥud, one of which injured the Prophet during the battle when he fell into it. After the Battle of Uḥud and a final encounter with the Prophet during which Abū ʿĀmir refused to accept Islam, he traveled to see the Byzantine emperor Heraclius to enlist his help against the Prophet. Having received promises of assistance from Heraclius, he sent word to his allies in Madinah to construct a mosque near the Qubāʾ mosque, just outside of Madinah, assuring them that the Byzantines would assist them in expelling the Prophet from his position of power in Madinah. After building the mosque, which they claimed was for the weak, the poor, and those who had difficulty traveling, they invited the Prophet to pray there in order to bless it and establish it as a place of prayer. The Prophet responded that he was about to set out on a journey and would do so, God willing, upon his return. When they were within a day’s journey on their return from Tabūk, this verse was revealed, and the Prophet commanded that the mosque be burned down (IK).

They wanted to divide the believers by establishing another mosque near the already existing Qubāʾ mosque with the intention of defying and defeating the Prophet (Q). It would also serve as an outpost for the scheme of Abū ʿĀmir, who informed his confederates that the Byzantines would send assistance and that they should ready themselves for battle (Q). We desire only what is best is understood to refer to their claim that the mosque was built only for the ease and convenience of the believers (IK).

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Ĉ Never stand therein! Truly a mosque founded upon reverence from the first day is worthier of thy standing therein. Therein are men who love to purify themselves, and God loves those who purify themselves.

108  Never stand therein! is a command addressed to the Prophet in the second-person singular and refers to standing for prayer in the mosque built by Abū ʿĀmir (Q). A mosque founded upon reverence refers to the mosque of Qubāʾ (Q). During the emigration (hijrah) from Makkah to Madinah, the Prophet did not enter the center of Madinah immediately, but remained for some days in Qubāʾ with the Banū ʿAmr on the outskirts of the city, while waiting for the remaining Emigrants, including ʿAlī, to reach Madinah. This was the first place where the Prophet prayed after the hijrah, and later the residents of that area asked permission to build a mosque there (Ṭ). Some opinions interpret this as a reference to the Prophet’s mosque, which was built later, but the reference to from the first day in v. 109 indicates that it is the Qubāʾ mosque (Q). Men who love to purify themselves means that their souls do not remain soiled by sin and rebellion (R), but this phrase is connected by some commentators to reports that the people of Qubāʾ were especially diligent in their personal hygiene and in maintaining bodily cleanliness for ritual purposes (Q, Ṭ).

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ĉ So is one who founded his building upon reverence for God and [His] Contentment better, or one who founded his building on the brink of a crumbling bank, which then crumbles with him into the Fire of Hell? And God guides not wrongdoing people.

109  Similar imagery also appears in 3:103: You were on the brink of a pit of fire and He delivered you from it; and 22:11: And among mankind some worship God upon a brink: if good befalls him, he is content thereby, but if a trial befalls him, he is turned over upon his face, losing this world and the Hereafter. That is to say, it is better to found one’s building on firm truth and reverence for God than upon the weak foundation of falsehood (R).

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Đ The building they have built will cease not to be a disquiet in their hearts, till their hearts are rent asunder. And God is Knowing, Wise.

110  The building they have built refers to the aforementioned mosque for harm and disbelief of v. 107 (Q). It will be a disquiet in their hearts in that it will cause their hearts to be in a state of anguish and doubt (R). The disquiet can be interpreted to mean that the Prophet’s act of destroying the mosque increased their hostility toward him and their doubts about his mission, or that it caused them to wonder whether that destruction would also be visited upon them personally, or that they wondered whether God would forgive them or not (R).

Till their hearts are rent asunder is read by some to mean “till Thou rend asunder their hearts” or “till it rends their hearts asunder.” It is also read by some to mean “unless their hearts are rent asunder,” meaning unless they repent so ardently as to rend their hearts (R). Others interpret hearts are rent asunder as a reference to their deaths, meaning they will be in that state of falsehood so long as they live (Ṭ).

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đ Truly God has purchased from the believers their souls and their wealth in exchange for the Garden being theirs. They fight in the way of God, slaying and being slain. [It is] a promise binding upon Him in the Torah, the Gospel, and the Quran. And who is truer to His pact than God? So rejoice in the bargain you have made. That indeed is the great triumph.

111  Similar language relating buying and selling to spiritual matters is also found in 2:16, 86, 175; 3:177; 16:95; 57:11; 61:10. Al-Rāzī notes that a subtlety of this verse is that in this profound transaction God is both the buyer and the seller, akin to the way an adult would transact the affairs of a helpless infant. He goes on to note that in the verse God affirms that the immortal substance of a human being “owns” both its ephemeral body and its worldly property, and that by giving both of these over for God’s use this immortal substance purchases, as it were, the Garden. None of this verse, in al-Rāzī’s view, changes the fact that God is beyond any need for such transactions, and that the wording of this verse is meant as a kindness, a gentleness, and an act of subtlety on the part of God. Ibn ʿAjībah expounds upon the commercial language of this verse and says essentially that the souls of the disbelievers cannot be purchased in exchange for the Garden, because those souls are “worthless,” while the souls of the prophets and friends of God are “priceless” and do not enter into the realm of buying and selling. Between the two extremes are the believers’ souls, which are “bought” or “sold” for the Garden.

It is reported by some that this verse refers to the “second pledge at ʿAqabah,” a location outside of Makkah (not to be confused with the port town that is in Jordan today). The first pledge at ʿAqabah took place when a small group of people from Yathrib (not yet named Madinah) came on pilgrimage to Makkah in order to acknowledge the Prophet’s mission and pledge allegiance to him. At the second pledge of ʿAqabah, under similar circumstances, the Companion ʿAbd Allāh ibn al-Rawāḥah said, “Stipulate for thy Lord and for thyself what thou wilt.” The Prophet said, “I stipulate for my Lord that you shall worship Him and ascribe to Him no partner, and I stipulate for myself that you shall keep me from that which you keep from your selves and your property.” They said, “And if we do that, what shall we have?” He said, “The Garden.” They said, “A profitable trade! We shall neither rescind nor seek to rescind it!” (Q, Ṭ)

A promise binding upon Him in the Torah, the Gospel, and the Quran is interpreted to mean that it is an immutable promise that such people will be rewarded thus, going all the way back to the Torah (R). The pact refers to the aforementioned purchase by God of the souls and wealth of the believers, as does bargain you have made (R).

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Ē The penitent, and the worshippers, and the celebrants of praise, and the wayfarers, and those who bow, and those who prostrate, and those who enjoin right, and those who forbid wrong, and those who maintain the limits set by God; and give glad tidings unto the believers.

112  Penitent refers to those who repent from idolatry, hypocrisy, and sin (R, Ṭ). Celebrants of praise (ḥāmid) are those who glorify God in good times and in bad (Ṭ), by day and by night (R). Wayfarers (sāʾiḥ) is interpreted by many commentators to mean “those who fast,” citing aḥādīth such as “The wayfaring (siyāḥah) of this community is fasting,” while others interpret it to mean fighting or emigrating in the way of God (Q). Some note that the link between fasting and wayfaring is the abstention from enjoyments such as food and drink (R), which must be understood here with consideration of the difficult conditions in which it was undertaken in times of old. Al-Rāzī notes that when people travel they close the doors to passions and are exposed to hardships, which leads to the opening of the doors of wisdom, and that those who fast are journeying in the spiritual world. Others say that wayfarers refers to those who travel to seek knowledge, and that when one goes on a journey, one witnesses the world in its variety, gains insight into God’s creation, and is edified thereby (R). On those who bow, and those who prostrate, see also 2:43, 125; 3:43; 22:26. On the central Islamic concepts of enjoining right and forbidding wrong, see 2:207c; 3:104c. The limits set by God refers to the obligations and prohibitions He sets down for both transactions and acts of worship (R, Ṭ). This verse is interpreted spiritually to mean that the wayfarers on the path of God fast from what is other than God, journey with their hearts in the spiritual world of the unseen, bow and prostrate in every direction, and maintain themselves within the limits of perfect servanthood (Aj).

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ē It is not for the Prophet and those who believe to seek forgiveness for the idolaters, even if they be kin, after it has become clear to them that they shall be the inhabitants of Hellfire.

Ĕ Abraham’s plea for forgiveness of his father was only due to a promise he had made to him. But when it became clear to him that he was an enemy of God, he repudiated him. Truly Abraham was tenderhearted, clement.

113–14  According to one account this verse was revealed in relation to some believers who used to pray for their departed relatives who had died as idolaters, and when they were questioned about their actions, they responded that Abraham himself had prayed for his father even though the latter was an idolater (R, Ṭ). Abraham’s plea for forgiveness is mentioned in his words to his father in 19:47: Peace be upon you! I shall seek forgiveness for you from my Lord.

It is not for the Prophet is interpreted usually as a prohibition, but it can also be understood to mean “It is not befitting the Prophet,” by way of discouragement rather than proscription (R). Some interpret these verses to mean that while idolaters are alive and the question of having faith is open, one can pray for them, but after those persons have died and their state has been made clear, one should not do so (R). Others say that this prohibition refers not to prayer in general, but to funeral rites, in which case it would echo v. 84, And never pray over one of them who dies, nor stand by his grave (Q, R). Some commentators (R) seem to understand become clear to them that they shall be the inhabitants of the Hellfire to be a statement about idolaters in general, but become clear to them would indicate that this refers to specific knowledge about specific people in this world, since the perdition of idolaters in the Hereafter is not something that could be “made clear” as such to all human beings in this world. Others understand it to mean that it is clear if they die in a state of idolatry or disbelief, but that before death there is no way of knowing (Ṭ). Tenderhearted renders awwāh (cf. 11:75), which is understood to mean one who is kind and compassionate (raḥīm) or one who is humble or prays often (IK, Q, R).

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ĕ It is not for God to lead a people astray after having guided them, till He makes clear unto them that whereof they should be mindful. Truly God is Knower of all things.

115  This verse is interpreted in the context of the previous Command that believers should not pray for the forgiveness of idolaters after it has become clear that they would be inhabitants of Hellfire (v. 113). Some of the believers were anxious over having made such supplications for forgiveness (v. 114) in the past (R). Other commentators connect this injunction with the prohibition of the consumption of alcohol (see 2:219c; 5:90–91c), since some Companions were worried about other Companions who died before the prohibition was enacted (Q). Spiritually, it is understood to mean that God will not divert someone from the path to Him without it having first been made clear to him that he should be mindful of the virtues and possess proper spiritual courtesy, or adab (Aj).

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Ė Truly unto God belongs Sovereignty over the heavens and the earth. He gives life and causes death. Apart from God you have neither protector nor helper.

116  Various elements of this verse appear throughout the Quran, namely, the Sovereignty of God (e.g., 3:189; 5:17, 18; 24:42; 45:27), God’s giving of life and death (2:258; 3:156; 7:158; 10:56; 22:6; 23:80; 40:68; 44:8; 53:44; 57:2; 67:2), and disbelievers’ plight of having neither protector nor helper in the Hereafter (e.g., 2:107, 120; 9:74; 48:22).

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ė God indeed has relented unto the Prophet, and the Emigrants and the Helpers who followed him in the difficult hour, after the hearts of a group of them nearly swerved. Then He relented unto them—truly He is Kind, Merciful unto them—

117  Relented means that God responds to the repentance of human beings, since “to repent” and “to relent” (in accepting repentance) are the same verb in Arabic with a different particle, both of which have the sense of “turning toward” (see v. 14; 2:37, 128, 160). Some say that the matter concerning which God relents toward the Prophet is his having granted leave to some who wished to stay behind (see v. 43); and He relents toward the believers when their hearts may have inclined toward remaining behind or when they hesitated in their commitment (Q, R). The difficult hour refers to the Tabūk expedition, undertaken in such heat that they had to slaughter camels in order to deal with dwindling water and supplies (R, Ṭ), though it can also refer to all such difficult times, such as the Battle of the Trench in 5/627 (R).

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Ę and unto the three who were left behind until the earth, despite its breadth, closed in upon them, and their own souls closed in upon them, and they deemed there to be no refuge from God, save with Him. Then He relented unto them, that they might repent. Truly God is Relenting, Merciful.

118  This verse refers to the three men who stayed behind, but offered no excuses, either before the Prophet left for Tabūk or after he returned. According to some, left behind here refers not to being left behind from the expedition to Tabūk, but to being left in a state waiting for God’s Judgment to come (Q, R). In the sources a lengthy account is given of one of the three, Kaʿb ibn Mālik, who found himself in a perpetual state of indecision during the days leading up to the Tabūk campaign and kept putting off making the necessary preparations. Finally, the day came when the soldiers had all left and he was left with the others in Madinah. When the Prophet returned, many of those who had remained behind made their excuses vociferously with the Prophet who, according to the account, accepted the plain sense of their words and pardoned them. However, Kaʿb ibn Mālik could not bring himself to fashion any excuses and instead stated openly that he had no excuse, because at no time in his life was he materially more prepared to set out for battle than on the day the Prophet set out for Tabūk (and he had indeed participated in many battles with the Prophet before). The Prophet told him and the other two to wait until God decided their case. Meanwhile, the community was commanded to shun them, and although Kaʿb had the fortitude to walk in the markets and pray in the mosques while no one spoke to him, the other two remained in their homes for the fifty days it took for the decision in this verse to be revealed. That the earth, despite its breadth, closed in is also mentioned in v. 25; in the present verse it refers to the sense of constriction and loneliness (Q, R).

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ę O you who believe! Reverence your Lord, and be among the truthful.

119  Be among the truthful is thought to refer to the fact that, though they suffered isolation on account of it, the honesty of the three men who remained behind in not making false excuses kept them from the ranks of the hypocrites and made them recipients of God’s Pardon (Q). From another perspective, it means to stand together with the Prophet and the other believers (Ṭ). Truthful renders ṣādiq, which, in addition to meaning telling the truth, can also mean “sincere” and “loyal,” which come from the same root as “charity” (ṣadaqah), the verb meaning “to confirm” or “to verify” (ṣaddaqa), and the intensive participle ṣiddīq, meaning both “truthful” and “friend” (4:69; 5:75; 12:46; 24:61; 57:19).

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Ġ It is not for the people of Madinah and the Bedouin who dwell around them to remain behind from the Messenger of God, or to prefer themselves to him. That is because no thirst, nor toil, nor hunger befalls them in the way of God, nor do they take any step enraging the disbelievers, nor do they endure aught at the hands of an enemy, but that a righteous deed is recorded for them on account of it. Truly God neglects not the reward of the virtuous.

120  It is not for the people . . . to remain behind from the Messenger of God indicates the necessity of following the Prophet into battle. It is thought by some that this ruling applied only to following the Prophet, since in later times in history one did not necessarily have to follow the political leader into battle (R, Ṭ). Al-Ṭabarī interprets this verse as a statement about the failure of some Madinans and Bedouin to join the Prophet’s expedition to Tabūk, meaning that although some may have been required to remain behind for some other purpose, none should, in principle, have simply refused to join him. Some think that this verse was abrogated by v. 122 (R, Ṭ), but the question of abrogation does not arise if this verse is interpreted as meaning that believers must be ready to respond to the Prophet, though they may not actually participate in battle. Some of those who base their interpretation on abrogation argue that v. 120 referred to a time when Islam was weak and Muslims few in number, but v. 122 referred to a time when they became stronger and more numerous (Ṭ).

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ġ Nor do they spend aught, be it small or large, nor traverse a valley, but that it is written down for them, that God may reward them for the best of that which they used to do.

121  The best of that which they used to do (cf. 16:96–97; 24:38; 29:7; 39:35; 46:16) here either refers to the fact that they would be rewarded for the good in their deeds, not the bad, or it is understood to mean “God will reward them with better than that which they did,” meaning the reward will exceed the deed (R); see 29:7c. This latter interpretation echoes verses such as 6:160: Whosoever brings a good deed shall have ten times the like thereof. The imagery of written down for them echoes other passages that speak of a person’s actions in life being recorded, such as 36:12: Truly We give life to the dead and record that which they have sent forth and that which they have left behind. And We have counted all things in a clear registry; 43:19: Their witnessing shall be recorded, and they will be questioned; 43:80: Yea, and Our envoys are present with them, recording; and 78:29: And everything have We recorded in a book.

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Ģ But it is not for the believers all to go forth. And why should not a party from each group go forth to gain understanding in religion, and to warn their people when they return to them, that haply they will beware?

122  Some interpret this verse to mean that not all the Bedouin had to come into Madinah when a call to battle was made (Ṭ). Others say that it means that when the Prophet dispatched some group for battle or for a raid (IK), they were not all to go; some were to remain behind for various reasons including spiritual and religious instruction (Ṭ), especially since new revelations were being given while the Prophet was with them and people needed to be there to learn from the Prophet and pass on their knowledge to others (R). The fighting group would represent the studying group in battle, and the latter would represent the former in studying the religious teachings of the Prophet (R).

For others, this verse does not refer to battle, but to religious instruction as such. In the final years of the Prophet’s life, tribes would sometimes embrace Islam as a group. Some interpret this verse to be saying that when a tribe accepted Islam, its members should not all come at the same time to Madinah and overwhelm the accommodations of the city; rather, some should come to learn from the Prophet and then return to teach their fellow believers the doctrines and practices of the religion (IK, R, Ṭ). This is what Islamic Law would later call a collective obligation (farḍ kifāyah) as opposed to an individual obligation (farḍ ʿayn), since it only requires that there be some members of the community who seek knowledge in this way (Q). Al-Rāzī reflects on the fact that, in the time of the Prophet, journeying to find spiritual wisdom and religious knowledge was a nearly universal necessity, whereas in his own time, because the spiritual and intellectual tradition had become strong and well established, the necessity for such travel was diminished. Still, in his view acquiring true and fruitful religious understanding often required traveling to other lands and leaving one’s home in pursuit of knowledge.

According to another interpretation, this verse was revealed as a rebuke to those hypocrites who tried to disparage those Companions who had been sent to the Bedouin to teach them and had not gone out to battle because of it (Ṭ) or to certain other Bedouin who had, for some reason, not gone out to battle (IK).

By “warning their people” they extend the function of the Prophet (and all prophets) as a “warner,” a description of the Prophet mentioned in many verses throughout the Quran (see 4:165c). The warning should impel them to action (R), alerting them about the trials of the Fire, but also giving them news of the blessings of the Garden (IK).

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ģ O you who believe! Fight those disbelievers who are near to you, and let them find harshness in you. And know that God is with the reverent.

123  This verse is understood by some as stating the general principle that a near enemy should be dealt with first, although others believe that it refers specifically to the Arabs before the command was given to fight the Byzantines (see v. 29), meaning that the enemy among the Arabs should be fought before turning to the Byzantines (Q). Other commentators, understanding the mention of the near enemy as assuming engagement with a distant enemy not mentioned in the verse, saw in this verse a kind of description of a strategy of gradual conquest beyond the “near enemy” (IK), though this reasoning seems to depart starkly from the text.

The Command to be harsh with the disbelievers (cf. 9:73; 48:29; 66:9) is understood as serving as a deterrence from evil deeds (R). The wording indicates that one should be measured in one’s harshness, and that the Command is given to one in whom gentleness and kindness are predominant (R). Interpreted as a spiritual allegory, the Commands of this verse mean that one should attack one’s own faults—the “disbeliever” in the soul—first, and only then may God place on one’s shoulders the responsibility to rectify the faults within others (Aj).

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Ĥ And whensoever a sūrah is sent down, some among them say, “Which of you has this increased in faith?” As for those who believe, it increases them in faith, and they rejoice.

124  The idea of being increased in faith or belief (īmān) also appears in 3:173, 8:2, and 48:4; similarly, one can also be “increased” in humility (17:109) and guidance (47:17). Some among them means among the hypocrites (IK). Their question was posed among themselves, with the intention of keeping one another in a state of defiance against faith or as a way of mocking the believers (R). They rejoice can also mean “they will rejoice,” and commentators interpret this rejoicing to take place in either this life or the Hereafter, or both (R). The message that the same revelation would have a different effect on different people is also mentioned in 2:26, which says of the parables of the Quran: He misleads many by it, and He guides many by it, and He misleads none but the iniquitous.

Within the Islamic spiritual tradition there is a commonly accepted idea that one understands and benefits from the Quran to the degree that one’s heart is pure and one is humble before the Word of God. At the same time, the recitation of the Word of God and sincere meditation upon it have the effect of removing the hardened crust surrounding one’s heart. For a fuller discussion of the relationship between one’s spiritual state and one’s reception of the Quran, see 3:7c.

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ĥ As for those in whose hearts is a disease, it added defilement to their defilement, and they die while they are disbelievers.

125  The defilement (rijs) is understood as doubt, sin, and disbelief (Q) as well as vices such as greed, jealousy, and guile (R). The “disease of the heart” (cf. 2:10; 5:52; 8:49; 22:53; 33:12, 60; 47:20, 29; 74:31) consists precisely in such faults as well as false beliefs (R). Al-Rāzī notes that the hypocrites respond to this sūrah with jealousy and anger, which gives rise to further rejection of the truth, a process that is a kind of adding defilement to their defilement; that is, hearing this sūrah is not the cause of their fall into greater defilement; rather, the sūrah has this effect on a particular kind of soul. Moreover, they will die in such a state, which will lead to the Fire, unlike the believers who will rejoice (v. 124) in the Hereafter.

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Ħ See they not that they are tried each year, once or twice; yet they neither repent nor take heed?

126  The trials are interpreted by some to be hunger or illness, or fighting and expeditions (IK, Q, R), while others interpret the yearly or twice yearly trials to refer to the Prophet’s exposure of the disbelievers’ secret thoughts and conversations (M); regarding the exposure of their secret converse, see commentary on 58:7–10c. In response to these trials, they neither repent of past deeds nor take heed of the future (IK).

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ħ And whensoever a sūrah is sent down, they look at each other [saying], “Does anyone see you?” Then they turn away. God has turned their hearts away because they are a people who understand not.

127  Does anyone see you? refers to the astonishment that hypocrites would feel when their secret conversations or thoughts were exposed by the Prophet; they would wonder if someone was aware of what they were doing and had informed the Prophet (Q). It is also understood to mean that they glance at each other in a spirit of mockery (R). According to another interpretation, it means that, when some revelation exposes them, they wish to leave the gathering in the mosque in which they find themselves, but wish to do so undetected (R). Then they turn away from guidance, which some note is all the more noteworthy because such moments could have been starting points for reflecting upon the truth, rather than the rejection of it (Q), or they turn away from having to listen to any more of the Quran (R). Some read God has turned their hearts away as a kind of interjection, “God, turn their hearts away!” which the believers should themselves then say (Q).

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Ĩ A Messenger has indeed come unto you from among your own. Troubled is he by what you suffer, solicitous of you, kind and merciful unto the believers.

128  It is thought by some that vv. 128–29 were the very last to be revealed to the Prophet before his death (IK, Q), though which passage was revealed last is a subject of considerable disagreement among commentators (see 4:176c and the introduction to Sūrah 110).

Some interpret from among your own (cf. 2:151; 3:164; 62:2) to be a reminder to the Arabs of the great blessing given to them—a prophet from among their own, speaking their language; others understand your own to mean humanity as such (Q, R). This is also a place where some commentators (IK, Q) mention, as a commentary on from among your own, the significance of the lineage of the Prophet, in particular that he comes from a noble line going all the way back to Abraham (IK, Q, Ṭ). Others say that this verse is a sign that the Arabs were and still are elevated by the fact that the Prophet was one of them (R).

The description of the Prophet offered in this verse is interpreted to mean that he is anxious for them not to enter the Fire, to be guided and find the right way (M), and is hopeful that they should enter the Garden (Q). Many commentators note that the Prophet is honored here by qualities usually attributable to God in the Quran, as in 22:65: Truly God is Kind and Merciful unto mankind.

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ĩ But if they turn away, say, “God suffices me. There is no god but He. In Him do I trust, and He is the Lord of the mighty Throne.”

129  These words are spoken to the Prophet (Q) in the face of the rejection of the disbelievers. That God suffices the believers is also mentioned in 3:173; 8:62, 64; 9:59; see also 2:137c; 3:173c; and 39:36: Does God not suffice His servant? Regarding the virtue of trust in God (tawakkul), see 14:11–12c; see also 3:122, 160; 5:11; 9:51; 12:67; 39:38; 58:10; 64:13. On the Divine Throne, which is often conceived of as meaning the summit of the created order, see 2:255c.