Surah al-Nisa

(4)

‘Women’

Sent down at Madina, its ayat  or portents, 176.

The surah was sent down at Madina, all of it, according to what is best known. It is called ‘Women’ (al-Nisa) because it clarifies many rights and duties regarding women in the Legislation of Islam.

In the name of Allah, the Compassionate, the Merciful

The clarification of this has been given.

O humankind! Be guardful of Allah who created ye from a single soul, and created from it its mate and propagated from them many men and women. Be guardful of Allah by whom ye ask one each other, and of the wombs; indeed Allah over ye is watchful.

(1)

O humankind! Be guardful of your Master… It means through obedience to His commands and prohibitions. This opening is in harmony with the conclusion of Surah Al ‘Imran, where He said, glorified be He, ‘…and be guardful before Allah…’

…who created ye from a single soul,… The person of Adam, peace be upon him, the father of humankind.

…and created from it… It means from that soul: from the remainder of its essential substance or ‘mud’ (tin) from which the original soul was made, or the meaning is from the substance of that soul itself.

…its mate… She was Hawa, bliss be on her. So, the God is the powerful Creator who is most deserving of such guardfulness.

It should not be hidden that there is no conflict here with Allah having created two more spouses for Habil and Qabil, so that from their children mankind would grow—as we have it from the Imams, bliss be upon them—as the discussion is of the initial creation.  

…and propagated from them many men and women…. Here too there is no conflict, for the original propagation was from the two of them.

…Be guardful of Allah by Whom ye ask one each other,… It means that people say to each other, ‘I ask you by Allah, did you do such and such?’ and so forth.

…and the wombs;… It means be wary of the wombs, be guardful before them. Guardfulness before Allah is not to oppose Him, guardfulness before the wombs is not to disconnect oneself from them, not to cut the ties of the womb, the ties of family relationships. And this is appropriate to what has been given on His creating all from a single soul. All are branches from a single trunk, and therefore it is unfitting that some disconnect themselves from others.

…indeed Allah over ye is watchful. He watches all our actions, deeds and intentions, and so we should not do that which will bring about His wrath, His punishments and His chastisements.

And give the orphans their property, and substitute not the vile for the wholesome, and consume not their property unto your property—indeed it is a great sin.

(2)

And give the orphans their property,… When the father or mother of children die and those children inherit from the deceased, the executors (awsiya) who manage the orphans’ property—or everyone who handles their property—must not consume their property. Instead, they are to spend it on them while they are young, and deliver the remainder to them when they are mature.  

…and substitute not the vile for the wholesome,… It means that they are to be given as good as was received on their behalf.  

…and consume not their property unto your property—… Those who look after the orphans’ property must not add it to their own property, so that it is mixed and both are consumed together.  

…indeed it… It means each one of the two practices, substituting the foul for the fair and consuming it oneself…

…is a great sin. Having major repercussions.

Sometimes a man would take responsibility for an orphan girl and then take her in desire for her wealth. Allah forbade this in His word:

And if ye fear that ye not be fair with the orphans, then marry what women are wholesome for ye, twice, thrice or four times; and if ye fear that ye be not just, then one—or what your right hands possess. That is closer that ye not swerve.

(3)

And if ye fear that ye not be fair with the orphans,…It means being unjust with them and keeping them dependent in seeking to consume their wealth through the device of marrying them.

…then marry… It means marry other than them.

…what women are wholesome for ye,… An orphan girl being without a guardian is liable to exploitation and harm, whereas others are not.

The thread having touched the laws of marriage, the discussion extends to the topic of multiple wives:

…twice, thrice or four times;… It means marry two women with two marriages, three women with three or four women with four. These are the options of marriage for man, not that each should marry that number. And it is not permitted to marry three and three at the same time, for example. It is like saying that a tribe sold goods to a city, by which it is meant hat this is the outline of the affair, not that every man among them did that.

It is not to be overlooked that the fear of not being just does not mean that to marry is forbidden in the sense that it would be void and invalid. Rather, to be just is a duty. And whether the injunction expresses an obligation or is advisory is an open question.

…and if ye fear that ye be not just,… If ye fear, that is, that ye will be unable to treat them in the way made obligatory by Allah.

…then one… It is given as an example—otherwise, he who knows that he can be just with two wives, can marry two, and so on with regards to three. This ayah does not contradict His word, ‘…and ye shall never be able to be just between women…’ (below:130) for there what is meant is total justice in all things, including the inclinations of the heart.

…—or what your right-hands possess…. That is, limit yourselves to slave-women, as they do not require all that is due to free women. Ascribing the ownership to the right-hand is because the hand is predominant in actions, and of the two hands the right is more active than the left.

…That… It means confining oneself to one wife or to women who are owned.

…is closer that ye not swerve. It means away from the truth.

And give the women their dues--a grant. So if they are pleasant to ye over a thing, of their souls, then consume it in relish, beneficial.

(4)

And give the women their dues… ‘Dues’ is put for sadaqat, meaning poor-dues, charities. Here it means their dowers, their muhur.

…--a grant.... ‘Grant’ is put for nihlah.  Allah, glorified be He, has granted them this favour in return for the pleasure taken from them, rather than as a purchase from them. It seems that in the word nihlah there is an indication of an honour to women and their elevation above the level of transactions.

…So if they are pleasant to ye over a thing,… It means if they forego any of their dowers.

…of their souls,… That is, of the pleasantness of their own souls, and not in force and reluctance.

…then consume it in relish, beneficial. ‘In relish’ is given for haniyan, meaning a thing has a pleasant taste, and ‘beneficial’ is given for mariyan, which is said of a thing that is praised for its effects.

As the command to hand the orphans their property was given above, so that is followed by the command not to hand property to the ‘fool’ (safih):

And give not the fools your property that Allah has put as a motivator for ye, and provision them in it and clothe them, and speak to them an honourable word.

(5)

And give not the fools your property…The property of the fools is ascribed to the Muslims in general, as it is actually the society’s, in a general way. So were it to be handed to the fool, he would ruin it, and the loss would be that of the society as a whole. But although property is the society’s, this does not mean the negation of individual ownership, rather the meaning is that the sum of all wealth is for the benefit of the society, and that any loss therefore is a loss incurred by the whole society.

…that Allah has put as a motivator for ye,… ‘Motivator’ is put for qiyyam. It means that it is property that gives rise to human affairs, for without property the affairs of man would not stand up and there would be no ease and no transactions.

…and provision them in it… It means in that property. Perhaps the use of ‘in’ (fi), rather than the more appropriate ‘from’ (min), is to convey that the property should not be eroded and consumed bit by bit until it is gone, but that the provision should be in the property, in that the property remains intact in its original condition. That requires careful management in trade and suchlike, so that it does not decrease.

…and clothe them,… The mention of these two things is given as example—otherwise, all their expenses must be borne.

…and speak to them an honourable word. That is, speak to them in kindness, for orphans and fools are exposed to harshness and reproach.

And test the orphans until when they reach marriage, so if ye perceive rectitude from them, hand them their property,

And consume it not excessively, in hurry, that they grow big.

And whoso is rich—he should be abstinent. And whoso is poor—it is for him to consume in honour.

So when ye have handed to them their property, take witnesses over them; and Allah is sufficient in reckoning.

(6)    

And test the orphans until when they reach marriage,… It means the age of marriage, the age of their maturity in the Legislation.

…so if ye perceive rectitude from them,… ‘Rectitude’ (given for rushd), means that a person is able to manage his property without immoderation, squandering it or foolishness.

…hand them their property,… The property, that is, that ye have on trust.

…and consume it not excessively,… ‘Excessively’ is put for israfan, meaning over and above the fee for managing the property of the orphan. Israf means exceeding the limit.

…in hurry, that they grow big…. It means in fear of their growing-up and taking back their property. It was common for some guardians to dissipate the property of orphans before their maturity, so that on their maturity they would tell them that they had spent it on them.

…And whoso is rich… Rich meaning that he has his provision for an entire year.

…—he should be abstinent…. The rich guardian is not to take a thing for himself from the property of the orphan as a fee or compensation.

…And whoso is poor… He hasn’t a year’s provision, neither in real terms nor in potential.

…--it is for him to consume in honour…. He has the right to take for himself from the property of the orphan to the extent of his fee for looking after the orphan’s property, no more than that.

…So when ye have handed to them their property, take witnesses over them;… When the orphans are mature and have rectitude and the guardians restore to them their property, they are to have the transaction witnessed, so that no recriminations will arise later. It is for the benefit of both parties.

…and Allah is sufficient in reckoning. That is, He needs no help in reckoning, nor in witnessing, so be observant of Him in your deeds, for He knows what ye are doing with the orphans’ properties.

In the pre-Islamic jahiliya, the people would not let the daughters inherit, and so the guardians would restore all of a man’s property between his sons, to the exclusion of the daughters. So Allah banned this in His word:

For the men is a portion from what the parents and close ones leave, and for the women is a portion from what the parents and close ones leave, whether there is a little of it or a lot, an obligatory portion.

(7)

For the men is a portion from what the parents and close ones leave,… A man has a precise share, and is not to receive more than that.

…and for the women is a portion from what the parents and close ones leave,… She too is not to be denied her full share.

…whether there is a little of it or a lot,… It refers to the estate of the deceased which is to be divided among the heirs. What is important is that each person receives his proper share, not how large and wealthy the estate may be. 

…an obligatory portion. It is an obligation imposed by Allah, glorified be He, and we are to meet it without excess or deficiency.

And when the close ones and the orphans and the destitute are present at the division, provision them from it, and speak to them an honourable word.

(8)

And when the close ones and the orphans and the destitute are present at the division,…It means when those relatives of the deceased who do not inherit, along with orphans who are not the deceased’s relatives, are present when the deceased’s estate is being divided.

…provision them from it,… It means give them something from the inherited property.

…and speak to them an honourable word. It means to speak to them kindly, not harshly, but pleasantly, so that their memories will be pleasant and they will be compensated for the disappointment of not inheriting, along with their existing disappointments of being orphans or being destitute.

He then clarifies, glorified be He, that whoso consumes the property of an orphan or wrongs an orphan, can expect the same treatment in respect of his own orphans after him:

And they should fear lest they leave behind them weak offspring; fearing for them. So they should be guardful of Allah, and say a fitting word.

(9)

And they should fear lest they leave behind them weak offspring, fearing for them….The guardian of an orphan should fear consuming the orphan’s property, for if the guardian were to leave his own children as orphans, how would their guardians fear from consuming his children’s property in the same way? So he should refrain from doing that. The import is that whoever looks after an orphan should treat that orphan exactly as he would wish his own children to be treated, were they to be left as orphans.

This does not give rise to the objection of how is it, then, that one person does not carry the burden of another, for the answer is that the meaning here is that Allah, glorified be He, will not attend to the man’s orphans so as to stop them from falling into the clutches of wronging guardians, rather He will leave them to do to them as their father did to the people’s orphans before.  This is the elucidation of all that appears to be about children inheriting the sins of their fathers.

…So they should guard before Allah,… They should be careful of Allah in the way they deal with orphans, and are not to consume their property and not harm or trouble them.

…and say a fitting word. It means a correct and valid word in accordance to justice and the Legislation. Do not scold the orphans and do not be harsh when speaking to them, as is common among many guardians.

Allah, glorified be He, then gives a warning of the chastisement in the hereafter, in His word:

Indeed those who consume the properties of the orphans wrongingly, they merely eat fire into their bellies; and they shall burn in a blaze.

(10)

Indeed those who consume the properties of the orphans wrongfully,…‘Wrongfully’ (zulman) means without any right or due. Here it used explanatorily, explaining that to consume the property of orphans is wrongful and oppressive.

…they merely eat fire into their bellies;… They are filling their bellies with fire, because what they consume of the orphans’ property will turn into fire.

…and they shall burn in a blaze. ‘They shall burn’ is put for sa yaslawna, from sala, meaning to harden under the effect of severity and heat. ‘Blaze’ is put for sa’ir, which is a blazing fire.

The meaning of ‘consume’ (akl) in this ayah includes all expenditure, even a house and clothes, which is common usage.

And Allah recommends ye about your children: for the male is the portion like unto two females. So if they are above two women, they have a third of what he left, and if she is one, then hers is the half.

And for his parents—for each one of the two is a sixth of what he left if he has child; so if he has no child and his parents inherit him, then a third is for his mother.

If he has brothers, then a sixth is for his mother.

After any bequest he has bequeathed or any debt.

Your fathers and your sons—reckon not which of them is closer to ye in benefit.

An obligation from Allah; indeed Allah is aware, wise.

(11)

And Allah recommends ye about your children:…His recommendation is an obligation, as He says, ‘Kill not the soul that Allah has banned, save in truth. That is what He recommends ye unto.’  The meaning of ‘about your children’ is ‘about the inheritance of your children’.

…for the male is the portion like unto two females…. So the son inherits twice as much as the daughter. The phrase is extremely precise, in that the expenditure of a man is more than the expenditure of a daughter, due to the obligation upon a man to meet the expenses of his wife, normally, while in many instances he meets her expenses that are not obligatory for him.  

…So if they are above two women,… That is, if the deceased’s heirs are two women or more. This is a common usage in Arabic.

…they have a third of what he left,… So if the deceased had two daughters or more, and there was another heir from the same category like a father or mother, then they have two thirds while the rest is for the other heirs.

…and if she is one, then hers is the half.… If the deceased has only one heir, a daughter, then she receives half the estate.

…And for the parents—for each one of the two is a sixth of what he left… For the father and mother who are together with the deceased’s children is a sixth, so that the share of both of them is a third.

…if he has child;... It makes no difference whether he has one child or many, male or female. For the details of their legacies refer the books of Fiqh, or jurisprudence.

…and if he has no child… It means that he has neither a child nor a grandchild.

…and his parents inherit him, then a third is for his mother.... The remaining two thirds are for the father.

…If he has brothers,... It is about the deceased who leaves behind his parents and brothers--through both parents or through the father--but no children. ‘Brothers’ (ikhwah) means two or more, with two sisters holding the same place as a brother—so if the deceased leaves father, mother and two brothers or a brother and two sisters or four sisters, or more:

…then a sixth is for his mother…. The presence of the two brothers means that the mother is denied a sixth which transfers to the father.

And the division of the estate is to be:

…After any bequest he has bequeathed or any debt…. That is, after the execution of any legacy the deceased may have made, and after the settlement of any debts. So, first of all any debts are settled from the deceased’s estate, and then any bequest (wasiya) that the deceased may have made is carried out, up to the level of a third, and then the remainder is divided as given. So, if the deceased leaves ten dinars, and he has a debt of four dinars, and he made a bequest for good works of a third, then the heirs have only four dinars between them. Four went for the debt, two for the deceased’s bequest, and only four remained.  

…Your fathers and your sons—reckon not which of them is closer to ye in benefit…. That is, incline not towards making the inheritance of the father more than that of the sons, through supposing that they have more rights on it being fathers, and nor the reverse through supposing them more deserving on account of their natural weakness existing tin them as children. No one knows which of them is closer in benefit—Allah it is who knows these things and establishes the regulations of truth, as has been given. So we must not transgress His limits by assigning the inheritances according to our emotions and suppositions, for we do not know which of us will be successful in the world and the hereafter.

…An obligation from Allah;… This way of apportioning the inheritances is an obligation upon us, mandatory.

…indeed Allah is aware, wise. He is aware of the best interests, and wise in what He does and in what He regulates.

And yours is the half of what your wives leave if they have no child, and if they have a child,  yours is the quarter of what they leave after any bequest they bequeath, or debt.

And theirs is the quarter of what ye leave if ye have no child, so if ye have a child, then theirs is the eighth of what ye leave.

After any bequest they have bequeathed or debt.

And if a man inherits from siblings, or a woman, and he has a brother or sister, then for each of them is a sixth; and if they are more than that, then they are partners in the third.

After any legacy he has bequeathed, or debt, without any harm.

A recommendation from Allah; and Allah is aware, clement.

(12)

And yours is the half of what your wives leave if they have no child,…It means a child from that husband or from another.

…and if they have child… It is the same whether they have one child or several.

…then yours is the quarter of what they leave…. That is, the quarter of their estate.

…After any bequest they have bequeathed or debt…. First the debt is taken out, then any bequest up to a third, and then the remainder is divided with a third inherited by the husband and the rest by the children.

…And theirs is the quarter of what ye leave if ye have no child,… It means that widows who survive their husbands inherit a quarter of their deceased’s husband’s estate, though it is proven in the Legislation that widows do not inherit land.

…so if ye have child,… It means one child or several, male or female, from that wife or from another.

…then theirs is the eighth of what ye leave…. They inherit an eighth of their late husband’s wealth.

…After any bequest ye enjoin or debt…. Perhaps the reason for the mention of the bequest coming before mention of the debt, even though the debt is taken out first, is that most leave a bequest, in contrast to a debt.

…And if a man is inherited by siblings,… ‘Siblings’ is put for kalalah, meaning brothers from both parents or from the father or the mother. The meaning refers to circumstances when the heirs are limited to brothers and sisters, in that there are none of the first category, as the parents and the children constitute the first category, with siblings and grandparents forming the second category, and aunts and uncles forming the third. Spouses inherit along with each category.

…or a woman,… That is, if a women is inherited by siblings.

…and he has a brother or sister,… That is, if the deceased, male or female, leaves a brother or sister. Actually, the meaning here is a maternal sibling, in that the heir shares his mother with the deceased, so that the deceased’s maternal brother or sister survive him.

…then for each of them is a sixth;… A sixth of the deceased’s estate.

…and if they are more than that, then they are partners in the third.... When the heirs are two or more siblings, they share the third equally between them, for maternal siblings inherit equally, the male having the same share as the female.

…After any bequest he has bequeathed or debt,… First any debt or bequest is taken out, then a single sibling receives a sixth, while two or more will share a third equally between them.

…without any harm…. It means that the siblings are not harmed by their being denied a third. Or it means that the bequest should only be carried out when it is not harmful, in that it does not exceed a third. Otherwise, over and above a third it is not implemented.

…A recommendation from Allah;… These laws of assigning the inheritances are recommended to us and enjoined upon us by Allah.

…and Allah is aware,… He determines the division of legacies according to His knowledge of the best interests.

…clement. He does not rush the disobedient to the punishment; so whoso disobeys him in inheritance and does not see a hasty punishment—that is due to His clemency, glorified be He, so be not deceived by it.

These are Allah’s boundaries—and whoso obeys Allah and His Messenger, He shall enter him into gardens, rivers flowing under them, eternal in them. And that is the magnificent achievement.

(13)

These are Allah’s boundaries;… These clarifications regarding inheritance are the limits that He, glorified be He, has put for the shares of inheritance, so it is not permissible to transgress those limits.

…and whoso obeys Allah and His Messenger… That is, by conforming to their commands, and refraining from breaking those commands.

…--He shall enter him into gardens, rivers flowing under them,… Such persons have the reward of the garden, under whose trees and shrubs rivers flow.

…eternal in them…. In those gardens the inhabitants are eternal: they shall not die and not be expelled or suchlike.

…And that is the magnificent achievement. It is the attainment of salvation such that nothing is like it, and so if a person achieves something from a legacy wrongfully, he should not suppose that he has gained anything of consequence, since compared to the achievement of eternity in the gardens it is nothing.

And whoso disobeys Allah and His Messenger and transgresses His limits—He enters him into a fire, eternally in it; and His is a debasing chastisement.

(14)

And whoso disobeys Allah and His Messenger…  by opposing their commands and doing what they have forbidden.

…and transgresses His limits… That is, transgresses against the limits He has set for obedience.

…—He enters him into a fire, eternally in it;… It is clear that those who are eternal in the fire are those who disobey all of the commands, not some of them for which the proofs indicate that the punishment is not eternal. Perhaps this is indicated by the unconditional nature of ‘His limits’ (hududihi). 

…and his is a debasing chastisement. He shall be debased and disgraced in the chastisement, so that he shall have the chastisement of soul as well as of body.

Considering that Allah, glorified be He, has explained the laws of men and women in marriage and inheritance, He now explains the law of prescriptions (hudud) regarding them when they commit what is forbidden:

And those of your women who commit an indecency, so seek testimony of four of ye. If they testify, then confine them to their houses until death reaches them, or Allah puts for them a path.

(15)

And those of your women who commit an indecency,… It means fornication (zina), whether the women are married or not. 

…so seek testimony of four of ye…. It means seek out four male witnesses who saw the fornication like a mascara stick entering its bottle.

…If they testify,… If four just men testify that they saw such a thing.

…then confine them to their houses until death reaches them,… They were to be placed under house-arrest until they died, for this was the law of Islam about the fornicatress at first.

…or Allah puts for them a path. It means until He puts for them another law, different from house-arrest. Thereafter the ayah of prescriptions was sent down: ‘The fornicator and the fornicatress, lash each of them a hundred lashes…’ and the law of confining then to house-arrest was lifted. That which is mentioned in the narrations about the ayah of prescriptions abrogating this ayah of confinement, means that the law of confinement was lifted due to its term coming to an end, as it was temporary, according to His word, ‘…puts for them a path.’

And two men who commit it, bother them. So if they return and reform, turn away from them. Indeed Allah is relenting, merciful.

(16)

And two men who commit it,… This seems to refer to the sodomite, as the pronoun ‘it’ is in place of ‘an indecency’, not in its first meaning but the appropriate meaning. To interpret it as two fornicators—if not refuted by the narration of the Imam, bliss be upon him—is unlikely.

…bother them. It is given for adhuhum, whose meaning includes the prescribed punishment, so that there is no need to say that this abrogates the law—even if that were not refuted by reliable narrations.

…So if they repent… If they turn away from their deed and regret it.

…and reform,… It means that they perform the virtuous deeds.

…turn away from them. Indeed Allah is relenting, merciful. Do them no harm. For is this not the way of Allah Himself?

He then explains, glorified be He, that repentance is made by those from whom it is accepted, and by those from whom it is not accepted—further to His word, ‘…if they repent,…’.

The only repentance before Allah is of those who do the evil in ignorance, thereupon they soon return—those, Allah relents to them, and Allah is aware, wise.

 (17)

Indeed the only repentance before Allah… ‘Repentance’ is given for tawba, which means to return. Here the meaning is that the acceptance of repentance is Allah’s right, accorded to Him by Himself, glorified be He. Or it refers to Allah’s relenting—that is His returning in mercy to the disobedient. Both are from Allah: the tawba of the slave is to return towards the truth and cut himself off from sin, while Allah’s tawba is to return to the slave in the sense of His grace and bounty and once more turning  to the slave in consideration.

…is for those who do the evil in ignorance,… It seems that ‘ignorance’ (jihalah) does not mean ignorance as opposed to knowledge, rather the meaning is all disobedience without conditions, for even though sins are intentional, yet since they are urged upon us by ignorance, so it is true to say that they are from ignorance. So the phrase is not a  cautionary condition, rather it means to tell us that all evils are from ignorance.

…thereupon they soon return… It means before they see the signs of death.

…—those, Allah relents to them,… He returns to them by erasing their sins and restoring to them His grace and bounty.

…and Allah is aware,… He knows the best interests of His creatures, and He legislates according to His knowledge.

…wise. He puts things in their rightful places as determined by His wisdom.

So repentance is not for those who do the evils until when death arrives at one of them, he says, ‘Indeed I now repent.’ And nor those who die as disbelievers—those, we have prepared for them a painful     chastisement.

(18)  

So repentance… That is, accepted, beneficial repentance.

…is not for those who do the evils… ‘Evils’ (sayi.at) means acts of disobedience; they are called ‘evils’ as they render the perpetrator evil.

…until when death arrives at one of them,… He sees the signs of death, like the angel of death and so forth.

…he says, ‘Indeed I now repent.’… This would be a forced repentance seeking escape from chastisement, rather than the regret of an obedient person. It is as He says regarding the Pharaoh, ‘Now, when thou were disobeying beforehand.’

…And nor those who die as disbelievers… Life is the period of action and at death this period is over and it is time for the reckoning, when it is to late for actions.

…—those,… It means both categories.

…we have prepared for them a painful chastisement. They shall endure the pain of chastisement for the disobediences they committed. It should not be overlooked that in the case of one who commits the evils until death, it is not his disobedience that is the cause of the punishment; rather that depends upon the absence of intercession and of pardon.

Here the thread switches to one more of the laws related to women, the laws of the dower or bridal due (mihr):

O ye who believe, it is not permitted for ye that ye inherit the women by compulsion. And confine them not lest they go with some of that ye gave them—unless they commit an open indecency.

And associate with them in honour, for if ye dislike them--it may be that ye dislike a thing while Allah puts in it much goodness.

(19)

O ye who believe,…The regulations that follow are universal; the address is to the believers on account of how it is them to whom attention is being paid.

…it is not permitted for ye that ye inherit the women by compulsion…. During the ignorance the wives of men who died would often be confined until they died, so that they would be inherited by her late husband’s kinsmen, who would seize her estate, even though the woman herself did not want this, but wanted instead to marry another man, though they prevented her.

…And confine them not lest they go with some of that ye gave them… During the ignorance a man who lost interest in his wife would often, rather than divorce her, leave her and prevent her from remarrying until she ransomed herself with some of her bridal-due or other wealth.

…—unless they commit an open indecency.  An obvious indecency like fornication or suchlike. In such circumstances they have the right to confine them until they ransom themselves with some of what was given to them.

…And associate with them in honour,… It means have cordial relations with women—without condition—‘in honour’ which is given for bi ‘l-ma’ruf, meaning acceptable to reason and the religion.

…and if ye dislike them… Do not rush into divorce.

…--it may be that ye dislike a thing while Allah puts in it much goodness. Such goodness includes affection and love in the future, or virtuous children and suchlike. How often it is that disaffection between man wife gives way to unity, concord, harmony, love and affection.

And if ye wish to substitute a wife in place of a wife, and ye gave one of them a pile, so take not from it a thing; would ye take it dishonestly and in clear sin?

(20)

And if ye wish to substitute a wife in place of a wife,… It means when you want to divorce one wife and to marry another to take her place.

…and ye gave one of them a pile,… It refers to the bridal due of the former wife.

…so take not from it a thing;… Take back nothing from the bridal due that was given to her. A man during the ignorance who wanted to divorce one wife and marry another in her place would make things hard for his first wife or would accuse her of an indecency, and force her to ransom herself with a ransom that would provide the bridal due for the second wife.

…would ye take it dishonestly and in clear sin? The interrogative is a prohibition, meaning: would you take some of her property in dishonesty and manifest sinfulness?

And how would ye take it, when some of ye have attained to others, and they took from ye a firm pact?

(21)

And how would ye take it,… It is an expression of indignation and outrage.

…when some of ye have attained to others,… It refers to sexual intercourse. The meaning is: when ye men have been with them and the bridal due is gone due to the deflowering that ye have achieved.

…and they took from ye a firm pact? The pact is that taken by the wife from the husband through the marriage contract or ‘aqd, as the meaning of the ‘aqd is that the bridal-due is in return for her making herself lawful for him; and a requisite of the ‘aqd is to retain them in honour or to discharge them in kindness.

And marry not those women your fathers married, save as has passed. Indeed it was an indecency, loathsome and an evil path.

(22)

And marry not those women your fathers married,… It was customary during the ignorance for men to marry their fathers’ widows. Allah forbade this in respect of those widows their fathers had entered and also those they had not entered.

…save as has passed… It means before Islam, in that they would not be punished for that sin. Their taking their fathers’ widows before Islam was forgiven them.

…Indeed it was an indecency,… It was fornication, in that the father’s wife is forbidden for the son, and so sexuality between them was fornication.

…loathsome and an evil path. It was a cause of Allah’s loathing and anger, and an evil path in that it was the path of the disbelievers and the disobedient.

He then turns, glorified be He, to the mention of the remaining categories of women who are forbidden to a man; and it is clear that the prohibition applies to both parties, in that when a woman is forbidden for a man, he is equally forbidden for her. These prohibitions were lawful among some communities, like the Zoroastrians, and it is for this reason that the noble Quran is explicit about them. So He says,

Banned for ye are your mothers, your daughters, your sisters, your paternal aunts and your maternal aunts, the brother’s daughters and the sister’s daughters, and your mothers who wet-nursed ye and your sisters through wet-nursing, and the mothers of your women and your foster daughters in your care from your women whom ye have entered—and if ye have not entered them, there is no blame on ye—and those permitted for your sons who are from your loins, and that ye gather two sisters, save as has passed. Indeed Allah is forgiving, merciful.

(23)

Banned for ye are your mothers,… It means every woman to whom one’s lineage returns, namely one’s mother and grandmothers through father and mother.

…your daughters,… It means every woman whose lineage goes back to oneself through birth, whether one’s daughter or one’s granddaughter through son or daughter.

…your sisters,… Those from the same womb or the same loins.

…your paternal aunts… ‘Paternal aunts’ (‘ammat): the father’s sisters. It means the sisters of the man to whom one’s lineage returns through the father, like the sister of one’s father and the sister of one’s paternal grandfather, or through the mother’s side, like the paternal aunt (‘amma) of one’s mother, who is the sister of the mother’s father.

…and your maternal aunts,… ‘Maternal aunts’ (khalat): the sisters of a woman to whom one’s lineage goes back, whether through one’s mother, like the sister of one’s mother or the sister of one’s maternal grandmother, or through one’s father, like the sister of one’s father’s mother who is the maternal aunt of one’s father.   

…the brother’s daughters… It means his immediate daughters and also his granddaughters and so on.

…and the sister’s daughters,… Immediate and mediate, like her granddaughters.

These are the seven categories banned through relationship; now He clarifies those who are banned by other factors: 

…and your mothers who wet-nursed ye… ‘Wet-nursing’ is put for rida’ah. It means breast-feeding by other than one’s mother. It applies to one’s own, immediate wet-nurse mother, or a mediate wet-nurse mother, like the ‘milk-mother’ of one’s father or one’s mother and so on.

…and your sisters through wet-nursing,… The other category of ‘milk-relatives’ who are banned, like the aunts, is not mentioned, either because it is understood from the context, or because they are covered by ‘your sisters’—the paternal aunt (‘ammah) is the sister of the father and the maternal aunt (khalah) is the sister of the mother, and when the ban on a sister is established, it covers the daughter of the brother and the daughter of the sister.

…and the mothers of your women… It means the mothers of your personal wives, as well as the mother of a wife’s father, the mother of a wife’s mother. As this is given without conditions it shows that a wife’s mother becomes banned simply with the recitation of the marriage-contract (‘aqd) whether the marriage is consummated by his entering the wife or not.

…and your foster daughters in your care… ‘Foster daughters’ is put for raba.ib, meaning the daughters of a man’s wife by another man, whether it was before that husband or after. The term ‘in your care’ is descriptive, in that it is usual for a man who marries a woman with daughters to foster the daughters. In this law there is no difference between one’s direct foster daughters like the daughters of one’s wife, and indirect foster daughters, like the daughter of one’s foster daughter, or the daughter of the foster daughter’s son, or the sister of her daughter.

…from your women whom ye have entered… It means in sexual intercourse. Accordingly, the foster-daughter is not banned simply by the ‘aqd  of her mother, but only becomes forbidden for a man when he enters her mother. So, if a man marries a woman but does not enter her, then separates from her by divorce or dissolution of the marriage or due to the cessation of the term in a temporary marriage and suchlike, it is permitted for him to marry that woman’s daughter. This is the difference between the wife’s mother and her daughter.

…—and if ye have not entered them, there is no blame on ye… That is, no blame accrues to a man marrying the woman’s daughter, after the woman is no more bound to him.

…—and those permitted for your sons… It means the wife or wives of one’s son, whether he is an immediate son, or a mediate son like the son of one’s son or the son of one’s daughter.

…who are from your loins,… This condition excludes the ‘adopted son’, as there is no ban against a man marrying a woman who was the wife of his adopted son, according to His word, ‘He has not made your adopted sons your sons…’. As for the ‘milk-son’, his position is as the position of the true son, on the strength of the Messenger’s word: ‘Breast-feeding is a bond like the bond of relationship.’

…and that ye gather two sisters,… It is forbidden to be married to two sisters at the same time, but there is no problem with marrying one and then, after she is not one’s responsibility any more, marrying the other.

…save as has passed…. Forbidden marriages that took place before Islam were not punishable in Islam.

…Indeed Allah is forgiving,… He forgives the previous sins.

…merciful. He is merciful, and does not take recompense for these offences when committed prior to Islam.

And the safeguarded among the women, save what your right hands possess—Allah’s book upon ye—and permitted for ye is what is beyond that, that ye reach with your wealth as safeguarders, and not as fornicators. So, as ye take enjoyment from them, give them their wages—an obligation. And there is no stain upon ye for what ye consent upon with each other, after the obligation. Indeed Allah is knowing, wise.

(24)

And the safeguarded among the women,… ‘Safeguarded’ is put for al-muhsanat.It means the women who are safeguarded or protected by their husbands. In other words, married women are forbidden. It is said that a man ‘safeguards’ his wife, meaning that he safeguards her from dishonour.

…save what your right hands possess… It means the women, having husbands, whom the Muslims have captured, because being captured cuts the bonds with their disbelieving husbands and makes them permitted for the Muslims.

…—Allah’s book upon ye—… This is to emphasise that the prohibitions given are the decree of Allah for the Muslims.

…and permitted for ye is what is beyond that,… Any woman who does not fall into one of the mentioned categories is permitted for a man.

…that ye reach with your wealth as safeguarders,… It refers to the believers seeking to marry them through the wealth they use for their dowers, so that through marriage they be the safeguarders of those women.

…and not as fornicators…. ‘Fornicators’ is given for Musafihin. The meaning is that they not use their wealth for fornication, as is the practice of fornicators, who have women fornicate with them in return for wealth. So, beyond the given limitations it is permitted for the Muslims to use their wealth in seeking women, but through the path of marriage, not through the path of fornication.

…So as ye take enjoyment from them,… ‘Take pleasure’ is given for istamta’. It means pleasure, enjoyment..

…give them their wages… The meaning is that the women from whom the Muslims derive pleasure through the path of ‘safeguarding’ or marriage must be given their wages or dowers. This ayah is sent down about temporary marriage (mut’ah, from the same root as istamta’), as confirmed by the narrations. The difference between it and permanent marriage is that it is limited to a specific period—long or short—so that when the period is up it is automatically annulled, whereas the annulment of a permanent marriage requires divorce and suchlike. That the verse concerns temporary marriage (mut’ah) is strengthened by the use of the word istimta’, which apparently denotes mut’ah, and by the mention of wages, as the term ‘wage’ (ajr) brings to mind the taking pleasure that is temporary marriage, and not permanent marriage. And there is no problem about the matters preceding this ayah being general and including both temporary and permanent marriage, and this ayah being particularly about temporary marriage, for it is often that the particular is mentioned after the universal. Thus the temporary marriage is an instance covered by ‘as safeguarders and not as fornicators.’ And in fact it expresses a subtle point, in that the ayah carries the warning that there is no need for fornication, given that temporary marriage is one of the available options.

…—an obligation…. It means that the wages are obligatory, and it is not permitted for a man to refrain from giving the wages to the woman with whom he has derived the pleasure of a temporary marriage.

…And there is no stain upon ye… It means those who enter into a temporary marriage.

…for what you mutually consent upon,… It refers to the amount upon which they agree.

…after the obligation…. ‘The obligation’ means the dower previously agreed upon. Therefore, when they agree to increase the period by another contract, or to shorten it by his releasing her from it as a gift, by adding to the dower or by reducing it, this is permissible for them. Overall, the import is that what was given is the obligation which must be observed, save when there is a new agreement.

…Indeed Allah is knowing, wise. Allah is knowing of the best interests and wise in the laws He legislates—and among these is the temporary marriage which benefits the travellers, as well as those living away from home and those unable to have a permanent marriage. It preserves the society against fornication, sodomy, lesbianism and the like which all arise when there is no mut’ah, or temporary marriage. 

And whoso among ye is unable in resources to marry a safeguarding, believeress—so a believing lass owned by your right hands. And Allah knows better about your faith—some of ye are of others. So marry them with the permission of their folk, and give them their wages in honour as safeguarded ones and not as fornicatresses and not as the takers of friends.

And when they are protected, if they then bring an indecency, theirs is the half of what is for safeguarded ones in chastisement. That is for whoso among ye fears hardship; and that ye constrain is better for ye, and Allah is forgiving, merciful.

(25)

And whoso among ye is unable in resources to marry a safeguarding, believeress… It refers to the circumstances when a Muslim has not the wealth sufficient to marry a free believing woman. She is called ‘safeguarding’ (muhsanah) as she safeguards herself from vice, as He says, glorified be He, ‘…and Maryam daughter of ‘Imran, who safeguarded her private opening…’  (Tahrim, 66:13). Therefore a chaste woman is both a safeguarder and safeguarded. Overall, the meaning is that when a man is too poor to afford the dower of a free woman and to meet her expenses, then it is for him to marry a slave girl:

…—so one of the believing lasses owned by your right hands:… It means a slave girl owned by his brother Muslim, as the dower of a slave-girl is less and the responsibilities in her regard are lighter.  ‘Lasses’ is given for fatayat, the plural of fatat, meaning a young woman. Here it means a slave-girl, as we have it from the Messenger, may Allah condescend upon him and his House, not to refer to them as ‘my slave’ (‘abdi)  or ‘my slave-girl’ (ammati), but to call them ‘my lad’ (fata.i) and ‘my lass’ (ammati), so as to restore their feelings.

…And Allah knows better about your faith… It means that it is not necessary to investigate the sincerity of their faith, the manifestation of belief is sufficient. As for whether faith is held deeply at heart, there is no road to that—Allah knows better about such faith.

…—some of ye are of others….A free man is not better in faith than a believing slave-girl; rather the believers whether they are slaves or free are a single community, some of them from others, from the highest level and from the other levels. The legislation of the rules concerning slaves and slave-women is for particular benefits, just as the differing legislation laid down for men and women is for particular benefits.

…So marry them with the permission of their folk,… It means marry the slave-girls with the permission of their owners, for it is not permissible to marry them without the permission of their owners.  

…and give them their wages… This means the meeting of their expenses, although the owner has a right to the dower.

…in honour… It means without delay and without causing them harm.

…as safeguarded ones,… The marriage to them is with the permission of their owners, in circumstances that the slave-women themselves are chaste.

…and not as fornicatresses… This condition is added because in Arabic, the term marriage (nikah) applies both to fornication and to the contract of marriage. He says in His word, ‘...the fornicator marries none but the fornicatress or the partneress, and the fornicatress marries none but the fornicator or the partnerist…’, meaning that they fornicate together. During the pre-Islamic ignorance there were those who compelled their slave-girls to fornicate, and so the ‘marriage’ or sexual act was with a wage with the permission of their folk. This is referred by His word, ‘Compel not your lasses unto prostitution, when they wish to be safeguarded…’ (al-Nur [21]; 34). And it is likely that this ayah complements His word, glorified be He, on relations with the free women, ‘as safeguarders, and not as fornicators.’

…and not as the takers of friends…. The ‘lasses’ to be sought in marriage are to be chaste and not fornicatresses and not ‘friends’ with any man, for some slave-girls were like that during the ignorance, and Allah made marriage to them forbidden.  

…So when they are safeguarded,… It means when they are married and safeguarded by their husbands.

…if they then bring an indecency,… That is, fornication.

…theirs is the half of what is for safeguarded ones in chastisement…. Their punishment is half the punishment of a free woman who fornicates—fifty lashes as against one hundred. It is a part of the wisdom of Islam that those captured while battling against the Muslims are held as slaves, rather than being killed or imprisoned, so as to deter enemies from waging war against the Muslims, or at least lose their zeal for warfare—for although many can stand the thought of death or prison, who enjoys being a slave? Thereupon Islam legislates special laws for slaves, sometimes more severe and sometimes milder, so that the severe be countered by the mild. Also, they have a general pattern particular to themselves by which they are distinguished from the free. For the rational of the two types refer to the specialised books. It is to be pointed out firstly that the legislation in respect to the slaves male and female, is sufficient to give ‘slavery’ a whole different definition in Islam from slavery in the West; and secondly, that Islam’s laws of slavery will stand until the day of judgement, like all of Islam’s laws.  

…That is for whoso among ye fears hardship;… To marry a slave-girl is the path for whoso fears that he will be in hardship unless he marries, or fears that he will succumb to fornication due to the strength of his sexual desires.

…and that ye constrain is better for ye,… It is better to be restrained and not marry the slave-women, as it will mean that free women may be left without husbands, for the burden of a slave is less than that of a  free woman.

The issue of male and female slaves and the secondary laws is not limited to a particular period of history, as is the opinion of those who are influenced by the West. If that were permissible with regard to this law then it would be permissible for every one of Islam’s laws, and Islam would be no more than wax in the hands of those who would shape it how they liked.

…and Allah is forgiving, merciful. He forgives the sins and is merciful to His servants, and therefore we should not despair if we have committed a prohibition of this type, but should repent in the hope of His mercy and forgiveness.

He then explains that these prohibitions are for the good of mankind, and are not arbitrary, in His word:

Allah wants to clarify for ye, and guide ye the ways of those before ye, and relent to ye; and Allah is knowing, wise.

(26)

Allah wants to clarify for ye,… That is, as to the laws of the religion and of the world.

…and guide ye the ways of those before ye… It means the paths of the Messengers, the Prophets and  the righteous servants of Allah.

…and relent to ye,… That is, restore to them His grace and favour for their acting in His obedience, after their acting in sin and disobedience during the period of ignorance. It means that He explains the Laws for them to act accordingly so that He returns to them.

…and Allah is knowing,… He is knowing of the best-interests.

…wise. His commands and prohibitions are on the basis of His wisdom.

And Allah wishes to relent unto ye, while those who follow the appetites wish that ye incline, a huge inclination.

(27)

And Allah wishes to relent unto ye,… It is a repetition for the sake of positing it in contrast to that which follows.

…while those who follow the appetites… That is, with regard to all women, whether permitted or banned, and without regard to the best interests.

…wish that ye incline,… That is, away from the truth.

… a huge inclination. To commit one of the prohibitions of marriage is a major sin, and although the ayah applies in general to every offence and every deviation, yet the context makes it particular to that which we have stated.

And Allah wishes to lessen for ye, and the human was created feeble.

(28)

And Allah wishes to lessen for ye,… His intention is to make things easy for us in the affairs of our religion and in our worldly lives, and so all women are permitted for men save such marriages as will cause harm. And He accepts our repentance, whereas if He wanted to be severe He would not accept it. Then too He would have banned other women, as He says, ‘So for a wrong by those judaized, We banned for them wholesome things…’

This indicates that the prohibitions are not due to His severity, but due to His lightening things for us. Sometimes His lightening the load is in respect of a thing itself, and sometimes it is in respect to its consequence, and the given prohibitions are His lightening things for us in respect to their consequences, for the forbidden things comprise unhealthy consequences in the world and the hereafter, such as the weakness of procreation through the prohibited marriages, as confirmed by modern medicine.

…and the human was created feeble. A man is not inclined to restrain himself before his appetites, and wishes to commit the sins of fornication, such as will harm him in the world and the hereafter.

Having explained these prohibitions regarding women, which ultimately are matters concerning the vagina (faraj), He now explains, glorified be He, the prohibitions concerning the stomach. It is narrated from the Household, bliss be upon them, that whoever guards against the evil of the two hollows, guards against evil in its entirety—and what is meant by the ‘two hollows’ is the stomach and the vagina. He says, glorified be He:

O ye who believe, eat not your wealth among ye in falsehood—save that it be a transaction by consent among ye. And kill not yourselves. Indeed Allah is merciful towards ye. 

(29)

O ye who believe,… It has been explained that the ruling that follows this term is non-specific and universal and not restricted to the believer, and is addressed to the believers as it is only the believers who will pay it any attention.

…consumenot your wealth among ye in falsehood… ‘Consume’ is given for akl, meaning to eat, to consume. It means all forms of consumption. ‘Among ye’ is given for bainiakum, which indicates that the harm of consuming wealth ‘in falsehood’ affects the society as a whole. So the consuming would not be of the wealth of others, rather they would be consuming their wealth that is among themselves, and the harm of it will return to affect all of them as a social unit. ‘Falsehood’ (batil) is the opposite of ‘true’ or ‘truth’ (haqq), and is what the Legislation and reason disallow. As for the taking of khums and zakat and the other obligations of wealth, these are not ‘consuming in falsehood’. 

—save that it be a transaction…. The exception given as ‘save’ (illa) is conjunctive, a way of linking two sufficient phrases with complete meanings in themselves—for such transactions are clearly not an instance of consumption in falsehood. Many instances of the use of this kind of exceptions have the purpose of declaring the facts where the listener is expecting an exception. It is said, for example, ‘Sit not with the foul, save the righteous’ meaning ‘sit with the righteous’, and, ‘Eat not what is harmful, save the beneficial’, meaning ‘Eat only the beneficial.’ 

…by consent among ye… It shows that transactions made under duress and compulsion without the consent of both bands are forbidden.

…And kill not yourselves…. It means that some should not kill others, for although a murder is committed against an enemy, yet it is also committed against the human species. The connection between consumption and murder is that Allah forbids the violation of honour, and futile consumption, and bloodshed. Since the first two were mentioned, He then mentions the third.

…Indeed Allah is merciful towards ye. And part of His mercy towards us is that He gives sanctity to our women-folk, our wealth and our blood, so that others are not permitted to interfere with them.

So whoso does that in enmity and wronging, We shall burn him by fire. And that for Allah is easy.

(30)

So whoso does that…  It refers to murder, or to consuming wealth and to murder, or to the violation of honour and to consuming wealth and to murder. The general context suggests the third of these, though the immediate contexts supports the first.

…in enmity and wronging,… It is a violation of the limits and wrongful towards oneself and towards others. This excludes instances of heedlessness, forgetfulness and error.

…We shall burn him by fire…. He shall be put in the fire in the hereafter.

…And that for Allah is easy. Nothing can prevent Him from doing it, and no one will ask Him to account for what He has done.

Man is such that he cannot help instances of disobedience, and since the disobediences are divided into major, like murder, and minor, like white lies and suchlike, Allah, glorified be He, therefore concludes these verses of warning about the given prohibitions, with His word:

If ye shun the greater of that from which ye are forbidden, We shall cover your evils and enter ye into a noble entrance.

(31)

If ye shun the greater of that from which ye are forbidden,… Things such as incest (intihak al-‘arad), consuming people’s wealth in falsehood, and spilling innocent blood.

…We shall cover your evils… ‘Cover’ (kaffar) means to veil them and to forgive them. In other words, He forgives our other evils, and will not punish man for the things that man cannot help but do in life.

…and enter ye into a noble entrance. It means a beautiful, wholesome place that is an honour for the person who occupies it. ‘Noble’ (given for karim) is a condition of persons, used for a place on the strength of the connection between the person and the place. The ‘noble entrance’ is the Garden.

Having dealt with consuming people’s wealth in falsehood, the thread now turns to a finer point, the yearning of some to possess that possessed by others. This yearning can be accompanied by the desire for the blessings of others to be negated—this is envy (hasad), which is objectionable and banned by this ayah. Or the yearning can be the desire to have what his brother has, and this is ‘minor envy’ (ghibta) which is bad manners—in respect to worldly affairs—in that it reveals a paucity of spirit, but not banned. In Majm’a al-Bayyan it is given that a group of ladies approached Allah’s Messenger, may Allah condescend upon him and his House, and said, ‘O Messenger of Allah, is Allah not the Master of men and of women, and you the Messenger of Allah to all of them? What is for us, when Allah mentions men but does not mention us? We fear that there is no good in us, and that Allah has no need of us.’ And so the ayah was sent down.

And it is said that Umm Salma said, ‘O Messenger of Allah, men wage war while women do not wage war, and in inheritance we have only the half; we wish we were men so that we could battle and acquire what men acquire.’ And so the ayah was sent down.

It is also said that when the ayat of inheritance were sent down, some men said that they hoped they would be distinguished over women in the joys of the Garden just as they were distinguished over them in inheritance, and that their reward would be twice the reward of the women. The women said they hoped they would have half the burdens of men in the hereafter just as they have half the inheritance in the world. And so the ayah was sent down.

In any case, there was a case of yearning by one of the two bands, and so Allah forbade this in His word:

And yearn not for that by which Allah has distinguished some of ye over others. For men is a share of what they earn, and for women is a share of what they earn. And ask Allah from His profusion, indeed Allah is of every thing knowing.

(32)

And yearn not for that by which Allah has distinguished some of ye over others:… Such yearning is not only fruitless, but also displays a lowliness of spirit and a failure to appreciate things the way they are, for the creation of men and women and the other social divisions make such distinctions necessary on the part of the Knowing, the Wise. So no one should say, ‘I wish I had what so and so has in the way of wealth and position.’

The legislation is for both sides:

…For the men have a share of what they earn,… It means wealth, position and profession.

…and the women have a share of what they earn…. That is, of the same things. Not everything that a person earns belongs to that person, rather a part of it is Allah’s, glorified be He, that must be dispensed in His path, whether it is wealth, position or capability. That is why the term is ‘of what they earn’. The portion as allotted by Allah, glorified be He, for each of them is what is best and most appropriate for them, and neither category should expect what the other category has.

…And ask Allah from His profusion,… We are to ask Him to grant us what we want, and we are not to yearn in envy for the blessings of others to be stripped from them and transferred to us. It is Allah, glorified be He, who is the Apportioner, the Bestower.

…indeed Allah is of every thing knowing. He is knowing of the yearning and envy that is concealed; or of the intention held in our hearts of relying upon Him, glorified be He, to increase us in the deficiencies we want and which others have.  

It seems that the words, ‘…For men is a share…’ , show that the yearning was for the things that are earned, not things to do with the differences in creation.

He has mentioned, glorified be He, that ‘for men is a share of what they earn, and for women is a share of what they earn’, but as for the remainder of what men and women earn, that is part of the share of the heir. This is not a matter of a legal obligation, but rather a fact of nature, in that nature is such that generally a person will enjoy some of what he earns and will leave some of it to his heirs:

And for all We have put deputies—from what the parents leave and those close. And those whom your right-hands possess, give them their portion. Indeed Allah is over all things a witness.

(33)

And for all… For both men and women.

…We have put deputies… ‘Deputy’ is put for mawali, the plural of mawla, from wala, yali, meaning to be next in line to (a person or thing), to be directly alongside a thing with no intervention. It means that Allah has put for each of the two categories persons as heirs, who have the right to take possession of the legacies that each category leaves. These heirs inherit:    

…—from what the parents leave and those close… Each has a specified share of the legacy in the legislation of Allah, and so both men and women have an entitlement in what they earn and an entitlement in the legacies, and neither should yearn to have what is with the other, for Allah has made it so.    

…And those whom your right-hands possess, give them their portion.… Perhaps the meaning is those with whom you have contracted yourselves by oath to provide a share of your estate. Then they would have to be given their legitimate share from less than a third of the deceased’s estate if the contract was not binding, and from over the third if the contract was binding. [The contract would be binding if something was received in return.] Whatever, they have no inheritance, as everyone has particular deputies who inherit particular shares, and these are not increased by agreements. 

…Indeed Allah is over all things a witness. He is ever-present, ever-witnessing. Therefore we are not to contravene His commands by putting as heirs those who are not heirs, or by not giving to those our right-hands possess their lawful portion as determined in the Legislation. 

As it has been given that there is a particular share for men and for women, He now clarifies, glorified be He, the reason for men having a greater share of the inheritance and a greater share in bidding and forbidding than women, in His word:

Men are in charge over women, as Allah has distinguished some of them over others, and as they dispense their wealth. So the virtuous women are subservient, protectors while unseen as Allah protects. 

And as for those whose recalcitrance ye fear, admonish them and forgo them in the chambers and strike them—then if they obey ye, reach not for a path unto them. Indeed Allah is high, mighty.

(34)

Men are in charge over women,… ‘In charge’ is given for qawwamun, the plural of qawwam, meaning a person charged with an affair, with total control over it. It is clear that the meaning is general, not that every related man is in charge of every woman of his relatives.

…as Allah has distinguished some of them over others,… The reason that men are in charge over women is that Allah has distinguished men above women in reason, physical strength and endurance, as confirmed by modern science. This differentiation is not haphazard, but simply because woman is created for a different purpose than that for which man is created. They are like two vehicles, a small one carrying passengers, and a large one carrying a load of lumber and steel.

…and as they dispense their wealth…. The second reason is because the expenses of a wife must be met by her husband, and it is clear that the husband must accrue some right in return for this obligation, and so the husband is put in charge of his wife along with the obligation of meeting her expenses. And the same applies to the bride-portion.

…So the virtuous women are subservient, protectors while unseen… Having established that men are in charge, it is for virtuous, good women to protect the tranquillity and peace of mind of their husbands and protect the state of harmony between them, and it is for them to refrain from disharmony, from disobedience, from seeking superiority, from transgressing the limits and from recalcitrance. ‘Subservient’ (qanitat) means obedient. They are obedient to their husbands, protecting them in their presence and their absence as is fitting given that their husbands are their providers. ‘While unseen’ (bi ‘’l-ghaib) means when their husbands are absent away from the house, on a journey and suchlike, and they do not betray them with their bodies or their wealth and so forth.

…as Allah protects…. It means that they are to protect their husbands because He has protected them by giving them honour and rights. Or it means that they should shelter themselves in Allah’s protection, for the human cannot protect a thing unless Allah protects it. Or it means in return for Allah’s protection, in that Allah’s protection is in return for their protecting their husbands.

As for the women who is not subservient and wishes to exalt herself over her husband without regard to a man’s rights, they have a special ruling that He explains, glorified be He, in His word:   

…And as for those whose recalcitrance ye fear,… The word ‘recalcitrance’ is given for nushuz, that at root means to rise, to ascend. It means disobedient. It is as if a recalcitrant woman lifts herself above the limit that is put for her.

…admonish them… It means advise them, council them, guide them and suchlike.

…and forego them in the chambers… This applies when the admonishing proves fruitless. ‘Chambers’ is put for madaji’,  meaning the place of sleep where a man has his bed. To ‘forgo’ them is by turning one’s back on them or by removing one’s bed away from her bed.

…and strike them… In some narrations we have it that they are to be struck by a  toothbrush. It is to be realised that these are gradual levels, though not indicated by the waw or ‘and’. Similarly, many are the women who are reformed through being ignored or by a light blow, for these raise in woman affection for her husband, and they are the means for her to beautify her behaviour, so that her husband’s heart can return to her.

…—then if they obey ye,… Her obedience is established in the Legislation as being obligatory upon her only as far as her not departing from the house without her husband’s permission, and compliance in the sexual pleasures whenever he wishes.

…reach not for a path unto them…. It means not pursuing any measures against them, by harming them or not being kind to them or not forgiving them on the part of the husband. Rather, the husband is to be tolerant and forbearing with them. The Messenger, may Allah condescend upon him and upon his House, has said, ‘Indeed, among the rights of a woman over a man is that he forgive her when she is ignorant.’

…Indeed Allah is high,… No one is higher than Him and no power is greater than His.

…mighty. No one is greater.

And if ye fear schism between the two, so raise an arbitrator from his folk and an arbitrator from her folk. If they wish rectitude, Allah will make agreement between them. Indeed Allah is knowing, informed.

(35)

And if ye fear schism between the two,… That is, if those around the husband and wife fear discord and enmity between the couple, as if each is in a separate rut, at a separate pole.

…so raise an arbitrator from his folk and an arbitrator from her folk.…

Such arbitrators, knowing of the intimate details of the couple, are more able to settle the affair in the most beautiful manner. The purpose of the two arbitrators is to repair the situation; they cannot make a divorce without the agreement of the husband or without him having granted them the power of attorney (wikalat).

…If they wish rectitude,… It refers to the two arbitrators, or perhaps it could be said that it refers to the couple.

…Allah will make agreement between them. Indeed Allah is knowing, informed. He is knowing of the interests of His servants, informed of the hearts of the arbitrators and what they do in repairing or worsening the crisis.

Here the discourse turns from the family system to general relations with close relatives and others, linking the two subjects through worship of Allah, glorified be He. And so He clarifies the human’s obligations before the Creator and before the created:

And worship Allah and partner not unto Him a thing, and towards the parents beautifully, and towards the holders of kinship, and the orphans, the destitute, the neighbour holding kinship, the unrelated neighbour, the side-companion, the son of the path and what your right hands possess. Indeed Allah loves not the swaggerer, the boastful,

(36)

And worship Allah… The meaning of worship is the utmost humility as is fitting for a slave before his master, for ‘worship’ (‘ibadah) and slave (‘abd) are from the same root.

…and partner not unto Him a thing,… Allah is not to be assigned a partner—not of stone nor of clay, neither inanimate nor animate, and neither human nor angelic; for He is Allah, the One, for whom there is no partner.

…and towards the parents beautifully,… It means work beauty towards them beautifully. It is parents who are the intermediary in our creation, and this linking of doing good to one’s parents is often linked to the worship of Allah in the noble Quran, emphasising the necessity of doing good to parents.

…and towards the holders of kinship,… That is, work beauty to the relatives beautifully. So, we are to work beauty to our parents in particular, and to our relatives in general.

…and the orphans,… ‘Orphans’ (yatama) means those whose fathers have died, or it is general and includes those whose mothers have died.

…the destitute,… The poor, in general.

…the neighbour holding kinship,… These have two rights to be treated with beautiful behaviour, the right of being related and the right of being a neighbour. 

…the unrelated neighbour,… ‘Unrelated’ is put for junub, meaning to be a stranger. The word also suggests that a man and his neighbour are on the two sides of a single direction.

…the side-companion,… ‘Side-companion’ (al-sahib bi ‘l-janb) means the companion or colleague at one’s side, whether at school, in the shop or office, on a trip or wherever.

…the son of the path… It means the person who is away from home, whether wealthy or poor. Such a person is called ‘son of the road’ as nothing is known of him but that he is journeying; people are called sons of the road, sons of the land, sons of labour and so forth as applicable.

…and what your right hands possess…. Slaves. Allah, glorified be He, has set our kindness to be towards all of these so as to universalise our kindness so that it includes all the categories. And Islam emphasises kindness and goodness to these in conformity with its universal spirit of cementing human relations, and uniting people in love and affection. 

…Indeed Allah loves not the swaggerer, the boastful,… This phrase is given here on account of how when Allah commands to kindness and generosity to the given categories, many are those who are insolent and arrogant, and so do not humble themselves to be kind—as we witness even today. So Allah forbids this after having commanded to kindness so as to emphasise both the command and the forbidding.

Now, since kindness often requires giving wealth, He turns to criticise, glorified be He, those who refuse to give their wealth in Allah’s path, in His word:

Those who are miserly and bid the people to miserliness, and conceal what Allah has granted them from His profusion—We have prepared for the disbelievers a debasing chastisement.

(37)

Those who are miserly… This is descriptive of those who are ‘swaggerers, boastful’. They are miserly and do not dispense their wealth in the path of Allah, glorified be He.

…and bid the people to miserliness,… This describes a necessary characteristic of miserliness, in that the miser, having the propensity towards the love of wealth, cannot bear to see others dispensing their wealth. This tendency becomes so strong that the miser cannot bear to see dispensing even upon himself, so that when a person dispenses upon him, he forbids him and commands him to refrain.

…and conceal what Allah has granted them from His profusion… Misers conceal the fact of their wealth so that others do not come to know of it, for then they would blame them for not dispensing it in the recognised ways. Of course, the recognised virtue expressed in ‘I will conceal your gold, your departure and your route’ is in instances of fear, and is not a universal.

—We have prepared for the disbelievers… It means those who disbelieve in the blessings of Allah and fail to act in dispensing their wealth as Allah has commanded them.

…a debasing chastisement. It is a chastisement that will reduce them, humiliate them and break their arrogance, for they were proud in the world and in their conceit fail to do good to those to whom it was obligatory for them to do good.

Another description that is also a necessary characteristic of not dispensing to those mentioned, is that the boastful miser who fails to do good—whatever dispensing he does do will be in show for the people and for his renown, as his arrogance compels him to adulterate his dispensing with whatever will enhance his reputation. Thus He says:

And those who dispense their wealth in show for the people, and believe not in Allah and not in the last day; and for whoso the devil is a cohort—what a bad cohort!

(38)

And those who dispense their wealth in show for the people,… This is conjunctive to ‘those who are miserly’. The meaning is that their dispensing is only that they be seen to be dispensing, so that they are made to feel grand among the people and are praised for being kindly and beneficent. “Seen’ (ri.a.) is put as an example, for otherwise hearing (or ‘reputation’ [sam’a]) is the same.

…and believe not in Allah…'font-size: 12.0pt;font-family:Arial;font-style:normal; '> How could their dispensing be prompted by the command of Allah and the will to receive His satisfaction, when they do not believe in Allah?

…and not in the last day;… Nor is their dispensing motivated by hope of reward and fear of punishment, for they do not believe in the last day. Of course, the absence of faith is often seen as meaning the absence of perfect faith, and not the absence of any faith at all, or as the absence of faith in a particular area though there is faith in the remaining areas. Perfect faith or faith in every area requires that the motivation of every action and every inaction be faith alone. It is like a person saying that a boy is not obedient to his father, when he has not obeyed him perfectly, or has not obeyed him in every way. It does not mean that the boy never obeys his father at all, but that his obedience is deficient in some way or area. 

…and for whoso the devil is a cohort—… A constant companion whose suggestions he obeys in miserliness and ostentation and in failing to believe.

…what a bad cohort! He bids his companions to the disobedience that ruins their religion and their world.

And what would be upon them were they to believe in Allah and in the last day, and dispense from what Allah has provisioned them? And Allah is of them knowing.

(39)

And what would be upon them were they to believe in Allah and in the last day, and dispense from what Allah has provisioned them?… It means what harm would they suffer were they to believe and dispense in the way Allah has commanded them. Contrary to their view that faith and dispensing lead to harm and difficulty, faith actually brings about peace and tranquillity and confidence and goodness in both worlds, while dispensing brings about the progress and development of the society and its flourishing, so that the dispenser benefits more than what he dispenses. 

…And Allah is of them knowing. He is knowing, glorified be He, as to whether they dispense and believe or not, and will recompense them for their deeds—if good then good, and if bad then bad.

Indeed Allah wrongs not the amount of a speck, and if it is beauty He increases it and gives from His presence a magnificent wage.

(40)

Indeed Allah wrongs not the amount of a speck,… ‘Amount’ is given for mithqal, meaning a unit of weight. ‘Speck’ is given for dharra, the tiny items that are seen in a beam of sunlight. He who dispenses should not think that his dispensing will vanish like specks, for Allah, glorified be He, will recompense him for his dispensing and will not wrong him in the slightest—not even the amount of a speck.

…and if it is beauty… That is, if the speck that has been dispensed by the servant is done in goodness.

…He increases it… He who produces a work of beauty has it increased for him ten times its like.

…and gives from His presence a magnificent wage. ‘From His presence’ (min ladunhu) signifies the sincerity of the promise and its importance, for it is from the very presence of the Truthful, the Noble and Generous. The magnificent wage is the eternal reward for ever and ever.

So how, when We bring from every nation a witness, and We bring thee as a witness over these?

(41)

So how,… Given that Allah, glorified be He, in rewarding is both knowing and just, what then will be the position and condition of the people who deviate from the path and disbelieve and are miserly and disobedient, on that day when:

…when We bring from every nation a witness,… A witness who will testify as to their deeds, and the witness means the Prophets and whoever Allah has placed as intermediaries between Himself and a people in delivering and establishing the message and in ruling.

…and We bring thee as a witness over these? The address is to the Messenger; He was the witness over those he was among. He shall testify as to their deeds at that terrifying time.

On the day those who disbelieve and disobey the Messenger would love it for the ground to level them, and they conceal not from Allah any talk.

(42)

On the day… It means the day when we stand again, the resurrection.

…those who disbelieve and disobey the Messenger would love it… The ‘and’ (waw) raises two possibilities: either it means that both types would love it, or that the disobedient disbeliever would love it.

…for the ground to level them,… It means that they be as dust, level with the ground, as He says, glorified be He, ‘…and the disbeliever says, ‘O, that I were dust!’.

…and they conceal not from Allah any account. On that day they will not be able to conceal from Allah the account of any affair, rather their tongues and their limbs will testify against them as to all they have done—their disbelief, their faults and their evils. So, in contrast to their arrogance and haughtiness in the world, upon that day they will wish to be swallowed up by the earth. And whereas in the world they concealed the truth, upon that day they will be unable to conceal anything.

The command to worship was given above, and so now the thread returns to some instances of worship, namely the prayer and the washing:

O ye who believe, approach not the prayer while ye are drunk, until ye know what ye say.

And not soiled, save as traversers of a path, until ye bathe. And if ye are ill or upon a journey, or one of ye comes from the privy, or ye have touched women, and then ye find no water, so intend on wholesome ground and wipe your faces and your hands. Indeed Allah is pardoning, forgiving.

(43)

O ye who believe, approach not the prayer while ye are drunk,… The prohibition concerns the matter itself, namely the prayer; the device of saying ‘do not even come near the prayer while drunk’  is to emphasise the prohibition and to convey its gravity. It is as Allah says, ‘…approach not the property of orphans.’ ‘Drunk’ is given for sukara, the plural of sakran, meaning a person who is drunk. It is clear that there is no contradiction between light drunkenness and the prayer, and that it is heavy drunkenness which takes away one’s reason that cannot combine with the prayer.

…until ye know what ye say….  The prayer has been legislated as a means of paying attention to Allah, whereas the drunk knows not what he says, and his heart is not in attendance to the words of his tongue. ‘Until’ (hatta), here, denotes the cause of the ruling and its purpose, for when a person drinks alcohol, Allah forbid, he pays no attention to the prayer until the effects of the alcohol wear off and he knows what he says. 

…And not soiled,… ‘Soiled’ is given for junub, meaning soiled through sex or ejaculation.

…save as traversers of a path,… It means being on a journey. Usually, in pre-modern times, the traveller would not be able to find water, and so he would pray while soiled by tayammum (cleansing through the ground), as the tayammum does not cleanse completely, and when water is found the tayammum is invalidated and it becomes necessary to bathe (ghusl).  

…until ye bathe…. That is, approach not the prayer while soiled until ye bathe. Bathe (ghusl), here, means to wash the head and neck, firstly, then the right side of the body and then the left, with the intention. Or one can immerse the whole of the body in water at once, with the intention. 

…And if ye are ill… ‘Ill’ means an illness that is aggravated by water, even if it is a wound or suchlike.

…or upon a journey,… It means travelling. The term ‘upon’ (‘ala) is used as normally one travels upon a mount or conveyance. Travelling itself does not make tayammum permissible, and the reason it is given here is because of the difficulty of obtaining water on most journeys. 

…or one of ye comes from the privy… ‘The privy’ is given for al-gha.it, meaning a depression in the ground after which that which is deposited there (that is, faeces) takes its name. The sense is that of a person meeting his toilet need and then wishing to pray.

…or ye have touched women… It means when you have had sex with them, for ‘touching’ is used in the sense of sex.

…and then ye find no water,… The ruling applies to the three categories of the traveller, the one who has come from the toilet, and the one who has had sex.

…so intend on wholesome ground… ‘Intend’ is the literal sense of tayammum, but in the Legislation (shari’ah) it was used so much for the special cleansing routine (involving earth) that it came to be used just for that.  ‘Ground’ is given for sa’id, which includes that upon which there is soil and that upon which there is no soil. ‘Wholesome’ (tayyib) means that it should be pure and permitted, for both the unclean and the usurped are impure and unwholesome.

…and wipe your faces and your hands…. It is ascertained in the Legislation that the way of doing this is to strike both hands simultaneously on ground, and ground means that which is called ground and not such as is not called ‘ground’ due to being mined and suchlike. The palms are then wiped across the forehead, from the normal hairline to the start of the nose, and then the left palm is wiped across the back of the right hand, from the wrist to the fingertips, and then the right palm is wiped across the back of the left hand from the wrist to the fingertips—and there is a precaution to strike the ground a second time before wiping the hands. And it has been proven by modern science that soil cleanses microbes a degree less than water, and so it is an instance of the divine wisdom that He has established it as a cleanser by walking on it and rubbing it in the case of external impurities (al-khabith), and by tayammum in the case of intrinsic impurity (hadith).

…Indeed Allah is pardoning,… He pardons those who have wounds from using water—and the beauty of pardoning reveals itself when His rulings are compared to those of rulers and governments and leaders who care little for the people and seek the implementation of their commands and laws whatever their conditions.

…forgiving. He forgives the sins that people commit in their obligations, and this is a kind of encouragement for those from whom sins issue, so that they do not lose hope of His forgiveness, glorified be He.

Now the thread returns to those who disbelieve and disobey the Messenger, may Allah condescend upon him and upon his House, and to the fact that a party of them—the book-folk—have sold themselves for deviation and alter the words of truth and persecute the Messenger, may Allah condescend upon him and upon his House:

Have thou not looked to those given a portion of the book, their purchasing the straying and wishing to send astray from the path?

(44)

Have thou not looked to… It means: Have thou not considered, O Messenger of Allah, and been amazed by.

…those given a portion of the book,… A part of the book. They were the Jews, whom Allah granted the Torah. They are said be given ‘a portion’ as they did not receive the book, meaning the Laws, in full, and the remainder was left to the Masih and the Messenger, may Allah condescend upon him and upon his House.

…their purchasing the straying… They sold themselves for deviation and going astray, and instead of spending their lives and their energies for the sake of guidance and belief in the Messenger and in the virtuous acts, they sold themselves and their energies in return for disbelief and evil acts—all this while they had the book and knew the truth.

…and wishing to send astray… That is, send the Muslims astray.

…from the path? They sought to misdirect them away from the path of guidance to the contorted path that leads todestruction and ruin.

And Allah is more knowing of your enemies, and Allah suffices as a patron and Allah suffices as a succourer.

(45)

And Allah is more knowing of your enemies,… He knows who are our enemies better than we do, and so it is for us not to take them as friends and influences in the supposition that they have friendship for us; we are not to be deceived by their show of affection, nor imagine that they would support us from behind.

…and Allah suffices as a patron… ‘Patron’ is put for wali. The patronage of Allah makes us needless of the patronage of the disbelievers.

…and Allah suffices as a succourer. His succour and support in the battle makes us needless of the succour and support of the disbelievers.

Of those judaised—they alter the words from their places. And they say, ‘We hear and disobey’ and, ‘Hear, unhearing’ and ‘Graze us’—distorting with their tongues and defaming the religion. And had they said, ‘We hear and we obey,’ and ‘Hear’ and ‘Regard us’, it would have been good for them and more upstanding. But Allah has cursed them for their disbelief, and so they believe not, save for a few.

(46)  

Of those judaised… Those who took Judaism as their religion.

…—they alter the words… ‘Words’ (kalim) here, means the Laws of Allah, glorified be He.

…from their places,… They put the permitted in the place of the banned, and the banned in the place of the permitted.

…and they say, ‘We hear and disobey’… They would say, ‘We hear and listen to your words and your arguments, O Muhammad, and we disobey your commands, because we do not believe that you are a true Prophet.’ It is not remote that what is meant is their practical disobedience, rather than anything verbal, as by ‘word’ both speech and actions can be meant, as in ‘He said with his hand such and such’, meaning that he indicated it with his hand.   

…and,… The Jews would also say to the Messenger, may Allah condescend upon him and upon his House:

…‘Hear, unhearing’… By this they meant a supplication for the Messenger to the effect that he would not be able to hear, just as it is commonly said, ‘Hear, may God not hear you (if you don’t listen).’ They said these words in abuse and as a prayer against him, while pretending that they meant something else, namely, ‘Listen while not commanded to listen’, which is said to a grand person out of respect and to show that he is not being commanded to listen, but merely asked, as he is above being commanded.

…and… The Jews would also say to the Messenger, may Allah condescend upon him and his House:  

…‘Graze us’… They would say, ‘ ra ‘ina ’, and this too was seen as an insult among themselves, while to others it seemed an expression of courtesy, meaning ‘tend to us’.

…—distorting with their tongues… Such distorting with the tongue can be outward and verbal, or it can be inward, so that the speaker intends to mean by the words other than what they seem to mean.

…and defaming the religion…. To defame the leader of a religion is to defame the religion itself. 

…And had they said, ‘We hear and we obey,’… That is, had the Jews said this on account of their accepting the religion of Islam.

…and ‘Hear’… without adding ‘unhearing.’

…and ‘Regard us’,… This would have signified their faith, manners and uprightness.

…it would have been good for them… It would have been good for them in the world, as they would have been blessed with the ease and fortune of the Muslims and their progress, while in the hereafter they would have ascended to the gardens of delight.   

…and more upstanding…. It would have been more just and more upright.  

…But Allah has cursed them… That is, He has removed them from His grace, His mercy and His profusion.

…for their disbelief,… When a person refuses to believe after having recognised the truth, Allah removes him from His profusion, just as a father who sees his son acting against his advice removes that son from the orbit of his kindness.

…and so they believe not, save for a few. Save for people like ‘Abd Allah b. Salam and his companions. The exception here is not to those whom Allah has cursed, but to the original ‘those given a portion of the book’. However, it is possible that the curse arouse their consciences so that they redirect themselves from inadvertence to the truth.

O ye who are given the book, believe in that We have sent down, confirming that with ye, before We wipe out faces then reset them backwards—or We curse them like We cursed the companions of the sabbath, and Allah’s command is enacted.

(47)

O ye who are given the book,… That is, the heavenly book was sent down upon their Prophet and they lived by it. The command to believe is universal; they are addressed in particular because they are at the centre of the discourse.  

…believe in that We have sent down,… The Discernment or Furqan, sent down upon His Messenger Muhammad, may Allah condescend upon him and his House.

…confirming that with ye,… The sacred Quran confirms the previous heavenly books.

…before We wipe out faces then reset them backwards… ‘Wipe out’ is given for tams, meaning to remove all the traces of a thing. It seems that the meaning of the ayah is that on the day of resurrection, the faces of some will be erased, so that all their features are entirely flat, with no protrusions on them. Then the faces will be reversed, as is given in some hadith and some narrations, in that they blanked their faces to the guidance and turned them back to front in deviation.

…—or We curse them… In the world, before the day of resurrection, and they shall be turned into apes and pigs. 

…like We cursed the companions of the sabbath,… They were a group of Jews who agreed to hunt for fish on the Sabbath: ‘…So We said to them, be apes, outcast.’ (al-Baqara, 66). In narrations we have it that during the final age, some of the perverted will be transformed—we shelter in Allah!

…and Allah’s command is enacted. It is enacted in reality, so it should not be thought that it would never happen and it is merely a warning.

The book-folk should not imagine that if they remain on their disbelief and partnerism until they die, they will be included in Allah’s forgiveness, glorified be He, and so they can remain in disbelief and partnerism:

Indeed Allah forgives not that unto Him He be partnered, and He forgives all other than that for whom He wills—and whoso partners unto Allah has definitely forged a mighty sin.

(48)

Indeed Allah forgives not that unto Him He be partnered,… When a person dies as a partnerist, there is no release for him.

…and He forgives all other than that… He forgives other disobedience and sins, but not partnerism.

…for whom He wills… That is, for those who are deserving and suitable for forgiveness. So partnerism is not to be compared to other disobedience and sins.

…—and whoso partners unto Allah… That is, whoever sets up partners with Allah.

…has definitely forged a mighty sin. It is a forgery against the divinity, in that Allah has a partner, and what sin could be more grievous than that.

Have thou not looked to those who call themselves pure—Nay, Allah purifies whom He wills, and they shall not be wronged a date-thread.

(49)

Have thou not looked… The address is to the Messenger, may Allah condescend upon him and his House, and is an expression of surprise and indignation.

…to those who call themselves pure… It means the Jews who praised themselves and flattered themselves for their purity and sanctity. They said of themselves that they were chaste and were the sons of God and His favourites.

…—Nay, Allah purifies whom He wills,… Purity is in Allah’s hands, so He forgives the sins of whom He wills, and sanctifies the faults of whom He wills. As for whom He wills not, He forgives not their sins and so they remain in the impurity of disobedience. It is Allah who selects a nation and selects not a nation.

…and they shall not be wronged a date-thread. It means that Allah does not wrong them in the slightest when He does not purify them. Rather, His not purifying them is due to their disbelief and disobedience.

Regard how they forge unto Allah the lie—it suffices as a clear sin.

(50)

Regard… The command is addressed to the Messenger, may Allah condescend upon him and his House. ‘Regard’ is given for unzur, meaning ‘look’. But it can mean look with the eyes or with the other senses, as it does here. In other words, it means ‘consider’.

…how they forge… How those Jews forge.

…unto Allah the lie… In saying that they were God’s children, that they are God’s chosen race and His favourites, that the fire would only touch them for a few days, and that they were purified by Him, and in altering His laws, they forged manifest lies against Allah, glorified be He.

—it suffices as a clear sin. Their forging their lies unto Allah, glorified be He, constitute a clear, that is to say a grievous, sin and the height of insolence before Allah, glorified be He. 

The Jews held the partnerists in higher regard than they held the Muslims, and one of their leaders, Ka’ab, said to Abu Sufyan, ‘By Allah, your path is more guided than that which Muhammad is on.’ And so He sent down His word:

Have thou not looked to those given a portion of the book, their believing in ‘Jibt’ and  ‘Taghut’, and their saying to those who disbelieve that they are more guided as to a path than those who believe?

(51)

Have thou not looked… The address is to the Messenger, may Allah condescend upon him and upon his House, and is meant to convey outrage.

…to those given a portion of the book,… It means the Jews, upon whose Prophet Allah sent down the book, some of which remained with them.

…their believing in ‘Jibt’ and  ‘Taghut’,… These were two of the idols of the Quraish at Makkah, before whom Ka’ab prostrated in seeking to win over the partnerists’ hearts.

…and their saying to those who disbelieve… That is, to Abu Sufyan and his colleagues.

…that they… That is, the partnerists.

…are more guided as to a path than those who believe? Ka’ab said that the path of the partnerists was better than the path of , may Allah condescend upon him and upon his House, and his companions, for his rancour and hatred for Islam forced him to give distinction to the partnerists, who did not even acknowledge Musa, bliss be upon him, over the Muslims who agreed with them in many principles and practices.

Those are they whom Allah has cursed; and whomso Allah curses—never will thou find for him a succourer.

(52)

Those are they whom Allah has cursed;… That is, He has distanced them from His mercy, and cast them away from goodness.

…and whomso Allah curses—never will thou find for him a succourer. No one will be able to succour him in warding off Allah’s curse, nor save him from punishment on the day of resurrection.

The Jews who judged that the partnerists were more guided than those who believed—their verdict carried no weight and no value, for they themselves had no distinction, let alone be able to give distinction to the disbelievers over the believers. Even supposing that they had possessed some paltry worldly things, then they would have deprived everyone of the smallest of things:

Or is theirs a portion of the dominion? Were it so they would not give to the people a jot.

(53)

Or is theirs a portion of the dominion?… The interrogative is for denial, denying that they have any authority or dominion.

…Were it so they would not give to the people a jot. Even supposing that they did possess something, they would not let anyone have any of it. ‘Jot’ is put for naqir, meaning the little depression found on the surface of a date-stone.

Now the thread turns to show that their giving distinction to the partnerists was nothing but envy of the Messenger, may Allah condescend upon him and upon his House, and his companions:

Or are they jealous of the people over what Allah has granted them from His profusion? For We gave the House of Ibrahim the book and the wisdom and We gave them a huge dominion.

(54)

Or are they jealous of the people… It means jealous of the Messenger and his companions the believers.

…over what Allah has granted them from His profusion?… It refers to His choosing the Messenger for the messengership and guiding the believers to the faith—matters that do not call for jealousy, in that He grants His profusion to whom He wills, and previously He favoured Ibrahim (bliss be upon him) and the house of Ibrahim not simply with prophethood alone, but with dominion and prophethood.

…For We gave the house of Ibrahim… It has been clarified that the term ‘house of’ (al) includes both the person himself and his descendants. 

…the book and the wisdom… The ‘wisdom’ (al-hikmah) is the knowledge of the Legislation such as gives benefit in the world and the hereafter, and includes ‘the book’.

…and We gave them a huge dominion. Allah bestowed upon them the reins of life and made them kings and Prophets.

So among them is he who believes in him, and among them is he who bars from him; and hell suffices as a blaze.

(55)

So among them… It means among the people, as is clear from the discourse, as He says, ‘…for his two parents, for each of them a sixth…’. Or it means among the house of Ibrahim (bliss be upon him).

…is he who believes in him,… That is, believes in Ibrahim (bliss beupon him), confirming his prophethood, and ‘the house of Ibrahim’, assuming the pronoun to refer to them, means his people for whom he was raised, or his kin and descendants.

…and among them is he who bars from him;… They barred from faith or from Ibrahim (bliss be upon him), and the contemporary Jews were just like them—some believed in the Messenger while others barred from him.

…and hell suffices as a blaze. It means that the hell is sufficient for those who barred.

Then the fate of both those who bar and those who confirm is given:

Indeed those who disbelieve in Our signs— shortly We shall burn them by a fire. The more their skins are consumed, We substitute for them another skin, that they taste the chastisement. Indeed Allah is grand, wise.

(56)

Indeed those who disbelieve in Our signs… That is, in His arguments and proofs that He set up through His Messenger and in that which he brought.

…—shortly We shall burn them by a fire…. Meaning that they will be thrown into the fire. ‘Shortly’ is given for sawfa.

…The more their skins are consumed,… Consumed and burned by the fire.

…We substitute for them another skin,… A new skin is given the place of the burned skin.

…that they taste the chastisement…. And their chastisement will not cease. As for their new skin, it is the same skin as before, in that when a thing is burned its particles dissipate in the atmosphere, and He will bring it all back together again and give it the appearance of skin once more. Furthermore, if He wanted to create for them a new skin that would not be a problem, as that which feels the pain is the spirit, and so it cannot be objected as to why the new skin is being tormented.

…Indeed Allah is grand,… Nothing can escape Him and nothing can deny Him, for grandeur encompasses both power and dominance.

…wise. He makes everything according to His wisdom, and puts things in their places. Therefore, the punishment of these persons is neither beyond His power, nor opposed to wisdom and the best interests.

And those who believe and do the virtuous deeds, soon We shall enter them into gardens, rivers flowing beneath them, eternal in them, forever. Theirs in them are cleansed spouses. And We shall enter them in shade, shaded.

(57)

And those who believe… That is, in Allah and His Messenger and that which he brought.

…and do the virtuous deeds, soon We shall enter them… ‘Soon’ (sa) as opposed to ‘shortly’ (sawfa) above, is to show that the garden is nearer to the believers than hell is to the disbelievers, in that they must first endure the barzakh or purgatory which is painful for them and so the period is lengthy, whereas the believers spend their period in barzakh in joy, and when a person is in happiness the time seems to pass very quickly.

…into gardens, rivers flowing beneath them,… A paradise with villas or palaces, beneath the trees of which rivers flow.

…eternal in them, forever…. They are eternal in the gardens just as the disbelievers are eternal in the fire, and whenever their skin is burned away another is substituted.

…Theirs in them are cleansed spouses…. In the gardens are spouses cleansed of the physical defects and also of  personality and character defects.

…And We shall enter them in shade, … They shall be shaded from the light of the sun and suchlike.

…shaded. There it is never hot nor cold. Or the repetition is to emphasise that the shade is the most beautiful shade.

Indeed Allah commands ye that ye restore the trusts to their folk, and when ye arbitrate among the people, that ye arbitrate with justice. Indeed Allah—fine is that to which He admonishes ye.

Indeed Allah is hearing, observing.

(58)

Indeed Allah commands ye…O ye the people.

…that ye restore the trusts to their folk,… They are to be restored in full, with no deficiencies. Perhaps the link between this ayah and those that preceded it is that the book-folk disobeyed what they were commanded to do, and also betrayed the divine trust, as He says, glorified be He, ‘…Indeed We offered the trust to the skies and the earth and the mountains…’ while Allah commands to restore the worldly trusts, let alone that most magnificent of spiritual trusts. Similarly, they gave an unjust verdict when they said that the partnerists were better guided than the believers, while Allah commands to justice.

…and when ye arbitrate among the people,… That is, whether in religious affairs or worldly affairs.

…that ye arbitrate with justice…. They are not to incline to one side away from the other for the sake of their desires or for a bribe or affection and suchlike.

…Indeed Allah—fine is that to which He admonishes ye…. How beautiful is that to which we are admonished, the restoring of trusts and arbitrating in justice.

…Indeed Allah is hearing, observing. He hears all our words and sees our movements and actions. So, when they betray the trusts or give unjust verdicts, it is not lost upon the Hearing, the Observing.

Now that Allah, glorified be He, has clarified what is obligatory upon the ruler, namely justice, He clarifies what is obligatory upon the nation in respect to the just ruler, namely obedience, in His word:

O ye who believe, obey Allah and obey the Messenger and the Owners of the Affair among ye. Then if ye dispute in a thing, refer it to Allah and the Messenger, if ye believe in Allah and the last day. That is better, and more beautiful in the primacy.

(59)

O ye who believe, obey Allah… That is, by implementing His orders and observing His restrictions.

…and obey the Messenger… It has been explained that obedience to the Messenger is obedience to Allah, and the two are mentioned together as an honour to the Messenger, and to show that his commands are as the commands of Allah. 

…and… That is, and obey.

…the Owners of the Affair among ye…. It means those  of authority, in whose hands is the control of affairs. ‘The Owners of the Affair’ (uwli ‘l-amr) have been specified in several sayings of the Messenger as being the twelve Imams (Allah’s benedictions be upon them), namely ‘Ali, Commander of the believers, Hasan, Husain, ‘Ali, Muhammad, Ja’far, Musa, ‘Ali, Muhammad, ‘Ali, Hasan and the Mahdi (Allah’s benedictions be upon them). As for obedience to the major scholars, that is obedience to the Owners of the Affair as they are their deputies.

Now, as for those who suppose that the meaning of ‘the owners of the affair’ is every ruler—this causes contradiction, for how could the rule of one who sells alcohol not contradict the rule of Allah who forbids it? and so on. This is why the Shi’ah have limited this to the Messenger and the protected Imams, and the just scholars.    

…Then if ye dispute in a thing,… That is, if dispute and argument breaks out.

…refer it to Allah and the Messenger,… That is, so as to discover which side is confirmed by the Quran and the Sunnah; and it is a great blessing that the nation has no need in any area or direction which is not met by the Book and the Sunnah, either directly and particularly or indirectly and in general. And it is clear that referring to the traditions of the sacred household, bliss be upon them, is referring to the Messenger, may Allah condescend upon him and upon his House, just as referring to the scholars who are their deputies is referring to them, as he has said, bliss be upon him, ‘As for new events, refer about them to the narrators of our sayings, for they are my proof over you, while I am Allah’s proof.’   

…if ye believe in Allah and the last day…. So, to refer to other than them is one of the things that is tantamount to disbelief, just as He says, glorified be He, ‘And whoso judges not by what Allah has sent down—those, they are the disbelievers.’

…That is better,… Referring to Allah and the Messenger in cases of disagreement is better, due to their guidance and verdicts being beneficial for the affairs of the religion and the world.

…and more beautiful in the primacy. ‘Primacy’ is given for ta.wil, meaning the primary purpose or consequences, as the consequences of truth are better than the consequences of falsehood. And it is possible that the meaning is that referring to them is better than the interpretations we would come to ourselves. 

Having clarified the obligation of referring to the ruling of Allah and the Messenger, He then manifests surprise at those who claim to believe but then refer in their disagreements to rulings opposed to those of Allah and His Messenger, in His word:

Have thou not looked to those who think that they believe in that sent down to thee and that sent down before thee, their wanting to be arbitrated by the transgressorer, while they were commanded to disbelieve in it? And the devil wants to deviate them, a distant deviation.

(60)

Have thou not looked… The address is to the Messenger.

…to those who think that they believe in that sent down to thee… They counted themselves as being among the Muslims.

…and that sent down before thee,… They manifested belief in all of Allah’s messengers and books, in conformity to His word, ‘…and that sent down upon Ibrahim…’. It is to emphasise that they are among the believers in all aspects of belief. 

…their wishing to be arbitrated… That is, they wish to present their difficulties and issues of disagreement to be decided:

…by the transgressorer,… ‘Transgressorer’ is given for taghut, from tagha, meaning to rebel, to be inordinate, and means one who is highly inordinate. Every ruling that is not the ruling of Allah, glorified be He, is from the ‘transgressorer’, for the rulings of Allah are justice, while all else is deviation, straying and transgression. So, they were pretending to the name of belief while walking the path of other than faith, and were doing so in pursuit of the advancement of their appetites, manifesting belief so as to preserve their blood, their position and their wealth, while referring to the transgressorer so that the ruling would serve them, as they knew that justice would not favour them—them being on falsehood. 

…while they were commanded to disbelieve in it?… As He has said, glorified be He, ‘So whoso disbelieves in the transgressorer and believes in Allah, has definitely laid hold of the firmest handle; it does not break off…’ (al-Baqarah [2]; 257).

…And the devil wants… He seeks, through his device of making things seem beautiful.

…to deviate them, a distant deviation. He seeks to distance them from the truth, since referring to the transgressorer is deviation.

In Majma’ we have it that there occurred a dispute between a man from the Jews and a man from the hypocrites; the Jew proposed that they have their affair arbitrated by Muhammad, may Allah condescend upon him and upon his House, since he knew that he was a Messenger and impartial and never took bribes, but the hypocrite declined, and instead proposed that they turn to Ka’ab b. al-Ashraf, as he knew that Ka’ab would take a bribe—and so the ayah was sent down.

And when it is said to them, ‘Come to what Allah has sent down and to the Messenger,’ thou see the hypocrites barring from thee, barring.

(61)

And when it is said to them, ‘Come… That is, come for arbitration.

…to what Allah has sent down… The laws and rulings.

…and to the Messenger,’ … For arbitration.

…thou see the hypocrites barring from thee,… They barred themselves, they turned away.

…barring. It is for emphasis.

So how: when an affliction afflicts them for what their hands sent forth, they then come to thee swearing by Allah, ‘Indeed we wished but working beauty, and success.’

(62)

So how:… That is, what will the hypocrites’ condition be.

…when… When they are obliged to refer to the Messenger. How will they have the face to turn to thee, O Messenger, to resolve their difficulties, after they had turned away from thee in their disputes? And this they will need to do on that day when:

…an affliction afflicts them for what their hands sent forth,… That is, the affliction occurs as a result of their own deeds, for evil deeds leave a legacy of affliction.

…they then come to thee… That is, they would come to the Messenger, may Allah condescend upon him and upon his House, seeking his assistance and admitting that they had referred to a transgressorer. 

…swearing by Allah, ‘Indeed we wished… That is, they would swear that they had no motivation in turning to the transgressorer, save:

…but working beauty,… They said that they were partly motivated by their concern for not bothering the Messenger and not taking his time.

…and success.’  They said that they also sought the success of their affair, and had no motive in turning away from the Messenger.

Those are they—Allah knows what is in their hearts, so turn away from them and admonish them, and say to them in their souls an eloquent word.

(63)

Those… It means the hypocrites.

…are they—Allah knows what is in their hearts,… He knows that their motivation was not working beauty and success, and that they turned away from the Messenger because he would judge in truth and not take bribes.

…so turn away from them… The Messenger was not to show that their repentance had been accepted, for then they would have increased in their transgression, and would have supposed that they had been able to deceive him.   

…and admonish them,… It means explain the error of their ways.

…and say to them in their spirits… It means speak to them in a way that penetrates their spirits (anfus). Some words are spoken and penetrate to the heart, due to the absence of fiery fanaticism in the speech so that the heart can hold it. Other words are spoken and penetrate the soul, for the soul is the depository of the word.

…an eloquent word. It is eloquent (baligh) when it reaches (balagha) the spirit.

And We sent no Messenger save that he be obeyed by Allah’s permission. And if when they wronged themselves they had come to thee and sought Allah’s forgiveness and the Messenger had sought Allah’s forgiveness for them, they would have found Allah relenting, merciful.

(64)

And We sent no Messenger save that he be obeyed by Allah’s permission…. The Messenger was not simply their admonisher, so that they were free to refer to him when they wanted and to turn to another arbitrator when they did not want the Messenger’s arbitration. No, the Messenger was sent for the people to obey him in all their affairs, for he is permitted by Allah to be obeyed, and it is not for anyone to follow anyone save when he has authority from Allah and His permission. Otherwise, how can one have authority over another, when it is known that all things are the dominion of Allah.

Yet Allah does not cut His connection with the hypocrites, but gives them the opportunity to repent and return:

…And if when they wronged themselves… Those hypocrites wronged themselves through hypocrisy and disobedience, as the harm of disobedience returns to the disobedient.

…they had come to thee… That is, in repentance and apologetic.

…and sought Allah’s forgiveness and the Messenger had sought Allah’s forgiveness for them,… Had they sought Allah’s forgiveness and pardon, and the Messenger had found them befitting his seeking God’s forgiveness for them.

…they would have found Allah relenting,… ‘Relenting’ is put for tawwab, a superlative in turning in forgiveness. It has been given that Allah is relenting to His disobedient servant the more the servant turns to Him in repentance.

…merciful. He would have extended mercy to them and forgiven their sins.

Here the objection could be raised as to how can it be that they are disbelievers, when they profess belief in Allah and His Messenger and the last day, and observe the Legislation of Islam like the prayer, the zakat and the fast. This is discounted, in His word:

So nay, by thy Master, they will not believe until they have thee judge in what breaks out between them, and thereupon find within themselves no distress as to what thou decree, and they submit to thee submissively.

(65)

So nay, by thy Master,… Nay, an oath to the effect that they are not believers.

…they will not believe… They will not be believers in the sense of their belief being such as Allah is pleased with and which He has commanded and of which He has apportioned the garden and the rewards.

…until they have thee judge… That is, until they appoint the Messenger as their arbitrator.

…in what breaks out between them,… That is, in their disputes.

…and thereupon find within themselves no distress as to what thou decree,… That is, they find no rebellion in their hearts at the Messenger’s verdict, such as is common among those defeated in law suits, who do not accept the decree that goes against them with ease, and consider that the judge has neglected their rights.

…and they submit to thee submissively. That is, they implement the Messenger’s verdict absolutely, with no hardship and no distress, not even in their souls.

From the Imam al-Sadiq, bliss be upon him, we have it that ‘were a tribe to worship Allah and establish the prayer, pay the zakat, fast the month of Ramadan and perform the hajj of the house, and then say of a thing the Messenger performed, “Did he not perform other than that?” or found some distress within themselves at it, they would be partnerists’—and he then recited this ayah.

In some elucidations it is given that the ayah was sent down over Talha and Ibn Abi Balth‘ah who disputed and the Messenger ruled in favour of Zubair, and they left. Then Ibn Abi Balth‘ah said of the Messenger, may Allah condescend upon him and upon his House, that he ruled in favour of his cousin. A Jew then reproached them for that, and said, ‘How do you believe he is Allah’s Messenger, and then abuse him in issuing a judgement?’

How could they be distressed by a judgement of the Messenger, may Allah condescend upon him and upon his House, when it is obligatory to obey the Messenger in everything, even if he had commanded them to slay themselves—as Musa commanded his people (‘…so repent unto your Originator and kill yourselves…’), who then repented and did as they were commanded:

And were We to write over them that ‘Ye must kill yourselves and depart from your homes,’ they would not have done it save a few of them. And had they done that to which they were admonished, it would have been good for them, and firmer in consolidation,

(66)

And were We to write over them… That is, make obligatory for those who were distressed by the Messenger’s judgement.

…that ‘You must kill yourselves… That is, that some of them kill others; or that each must kill himself.

…and depart from your homes,’… That is, leave their homes and migrate to a strange land, like the people of Musa who migrated into the wilderness from their homes in Egypt.

…they would not have done it save a few of them…. Most would not have done it, in avoidance of destruction and difficulty.

…And had they done that to which they were admonished,… ‘That to which they were admonished’ was the absence of distress at the judgements of Allah’s Messenger, and obedience to his commands.

…it would have been good for them,… It would have been good for their world and their hereafter.

…and firmer, much firmer. The more a person is obedient the more fixed becomes his religion and the stronger becomes the faculty of faith, for faith is such that it is strengthened by being reasoned upon, called to mind, and obeyed. That to which they were admonished was less onerous than killing themselves or migrating from their homes, and yet much better for them and would strengthen their faith, the avenue to every felicity.

And then We would have definitely granted them from Our presence a magnificent wage,

(67)

And then We would have definitely granted them from Our presence… ‘From Our presence’ (min ludunna) indicates the strength of Allah’s promise. Allah the Most High is not too weak to be able to keep His promise, nor is He mean or treacherous—there is no reason why He should not keep His promise.

…a magnificent wage, In narrations we have it that the blessings of the garden are such as no eye has seen, and no ear heard, and no human heart perceived.’

And We would definitely have guided them a straight road.

(68)

And We would definitely have guided them a straight road. It means that they would have been fixed on the straight road. In Surah al-Hamd (‘…guide usthe straight road,’ ) it was given that the meaning of fixed is much as has been given. Or it might refer to their being guided to the road (al-sirat) on the day of resurrection that crosses over hell.

Here the thread concludes with a general principle that leads to the good of the world and the good of the hereafter:

And whoso obeys Allah and the Messenger—so they are with those upon whom Allah has blessed: the Prophets and the truthful and the martyrs and the virtuous; and beautiful are these as friends.

(69)

And whoso obeys Allah and the Messenger… That is, by implementing their commands and observing their prohibitions.

…—so they are with those whom Allah has blessed upon:… The blessings in the world of a high place in people’s hearts, a lofty remembrance and succour and victory, just as He says, ‘Indeed We succour in the worldly life Our Messengers and those who believe.’  

…the Prophets and the truthful… The ‘truthful’ (al-siddiq) is one who is always with truthfulness in words and actions. Or it is he who is constant in verifying just as he is obliged to do so by the truth.

…and the martyrs… ‘Martyrs’ (shuhada) are those martyred in Allah’s path; they are called shuhada, literally meaning ‘testifiers’ or ‘witnesses’, as the angels and people witness that they are people of the garden.

…and the virtuous;… It means those who are constant in performing the virtuous acts.

…and beautiful are these as friends. These are the best companions for those who obey Allah and the Messenger.

That is the profusion from Allah, and Allah is sufficient in knowledge.

(70)

That… It means the success of the obedience that means that one’s friends will be the Prophets and the others mentioned.

…is the profusion from Allah,… It is a profusion by which He distinguishes those guided in that way.

…and Allah is sufficient in knowledge. Allah is sufficient in knowing the good and evil the human commits, and when He knows a thing He institutes its effects.

As the thread has concluded with the necessity of absolute obedience to Allah and the Messenger, so now it turns to a branch of the Islamic Legislation, warfare, so as to acclimatise the believers to this onerous task, and to affirm its being obligatory upon them:

O ye who believe, take your stances and sally forth in companies or sally forth all-together.

(71)

O ye who believe,… It has been given that though the address is particular, in that it is the believers who will benefit, the rule is nevertheless universal.

…take your stances… It is given for khudhu hidhrakum, literally ‘take (up) your guards’, ‘be wary’. It means ‘be ready to meet an unfavourable, unpleasant thing.’ Or it means ‘take up your weapons’, which is a metaphorical usage as it is with weapons that one takes one’s stance, in that they are the means of taking-up positions of caution and wariness.  

…and sally forth in companies… It means ‘go forth for jihad’ in groups, one company or detachment after the other, some in this direction and others in that direction. 

…or sally forth all-together. It means to go forth in one large troop.

And indeed among ye is whoso definitely hangs back, so if an affliction afflicts ye he will say, ‘Truly Allah blessed over me when I was not with them a witness.’

(72)

And indeed among ye…Among the Muslims.

…is whoso definitely hangs back,… It means those who delay going out for jihad, finding it burdensome, and always ready to flee. This was the condition of the hypocrites; they did not want jihad and tarried with the hope of fleeing.

…so if an affliction afflicts ye… A defeat, or that some were killed.

…he will say,… The tardy hypocrite will say, in gaiety and exuberance.

…‘Truly Allah blessed over me when I was not with them a witness.’ It means that they did not witness, and were not present, in the battle, so as to be afflicted by what afflicted the others. This is continually the condition of the hypocrites in every movement, hanging back so that others go forth, and then seeking out information, so that when they find that the others have suffered in some way, they rejoice that they themselves were far from the battle.

And if profusion from Allah strikes ye, he will definitely say, as if there was no love between ye and him, ‘O how I wish I had been with them, and achieved a magnificent achievement.’

(73)

And if profusion from Allah strikes ye,… When the Muslims receive Allah’s grace and profusion in the sense of victory and spoils.

…he will definitely say,… That hanger back will say, in regret.

…as if there was no love between ye and him,… This explains the condition of those who hang back, in that they want nothing but their interests and the material benefits, and have no sincerity for the religion and the call.

…‘O how I wish I had been with them,… They wish that they had been at the battle, to have received the wealth and glory.

…and achieved a magnificent achievement.’ Their wish to have been present is not that they might have strengthened and succoured the Muslims’ forces, but for their own selfish ends of the glory of jihad and the spoils of the victors.   

Having explained the condition of the hypocrites who hang back from battle, He now explains, glorified be He, the Muslim’s obligation in respect to this important issue:

So those who sell the worldly life for the hereafter should battle in Allah’s path; and whoso battles in Allah’s path and is killed or triumphs—We shall soon grant him a magnificent wage.

(74)

So those who sell the worldly life for the hereafter should battle in Allah’s path;… Those who sell the lower, worldly, finite life in return for the eternal life of the hereafter are to battle for the sake of Allah’s command and the furtherance of His word. Those who are forward in readiness for battle—it is as if they have sold themselves and everything they possess in favour of the hereafter.

…and whoso battles in Allah’s path… His battling was for the sake of raising Allah’s command and spreading His authority.

…and is killed… He is martyred.

…or triumphs… He triumphs over the enemy.

…—We shall soon grant him a magnificent wage. So he is between two beautiful futures: martyrdom and the garden, or victory and triumph.

And what is with ye that ye battle not in the path of Allah and of the oppressed—the men, the women and the children, such as who say, ‘Our Master, deliver us from this township, its folk wrongful, and put for us from Thy presence a patron, and put for us from Thy presence a succourer.

(75)

And what is with ye… The address is to the Muslims.

…that ye battle not in the path of Allah… It means for the sake of raising His word and establishing His regime in the land.

…and of the oppressed… It means for the sake of delivering succour to the oppressed by freeing them from the clutches of the tyrant rulers and the wronging leaders.

—the men, the women and the children,… They are oppressed in that they remain in the hands of the tyrants. It is for the Muslim to battle for either of these two reasons, and he is not to battle for the reasons of spreading one’s domain, exploitation and leadership, for which those who make war normally battle.

…such as who say, ‘Our Master, deliver us from this township, its folk wrongful,… It means the town which they are in, and from which they find no refuge. They are unable to leave, owing to their weakness and the prevention of the wrongful, and nor do they have the power to prevent the wrongful from wronging them. 

…and put for us from Thy presence a patron,… They pray that Allah grant them from Himself a patron (wali) to oversee their affairs and implement among themselves justice and beneficence.

…and put for us from Thy presence a succourer. And they pray that He grant them one who will succour them to victory over the wrongful.

Then He encourages, glorified be He, the combatants, in that they are stronger than their enemies, in His word: 

Those who believe battle in Allah’s path, while those who disbelieve battle in the path of the transgressorer, so battle the devil’s protégés; indeed the plotting of the devil is weak.

(76)

Those who believe battle in Allah’s path,… They are ready for jihad for the sake of His contentment and of raising His word.

…while those who disbelieve battle in the path of the transgressorer,… ‘Transgressorer’ (al-taghut), here, means one who transgresses the limits. The disbelievers want nothing from battling but wrongfulness, transgression, the continuance of the system of corruption, enmity and spurious imitation.

…so battle the devil’s protégés;… The believers are to battle the devil’s protégés, his associates and supporters.

…indeed the plotting of the devil is weak. The devil’s stratagems and plots to preserve his interests and strengthen his forces shall be overcome by the succouring of Allah and patronage for the believers. There is no place for questions of how it is that the disbelievers appear so often to be victorious, as the answer to such objections is that the necessary conditions for battling are not met and not consummated by the believers. Allah does not promise His support and succour unconditionally, but on the condition that ‘they prepareagainst them what power they can’, and that they be sincere in jihad, and that they be persistent, and more. Yes, with the implementation of the necessary conditions, the unity and numbers of the enemies will not help them—as proven through experience.

The Muslims while at Makkah had sought from the Prophet, may Allah condescend upon him and upon his House, permission to battle against the disbelievers as they had been persecuted by them. Yet when at Madina the permission was granted to them, some of them turned away. This is a consistent characteristic of people generally, in that they urge their leaders to a course of action, and then, when they adopt that course, they are the first to desert:

Have thou not looked to those to whom it was said, ‘Stay your hands, and establish the prayer and pay the zakat; so, as soon as battling was written upon them, a division of them feared the people like the fear of Allah, or more severe in fear, and they said, ‘Our Master, why wrote Thee battling upon us, and delayed us not until a near term?’

Say, ‘The enjoyment of the world is slight, while the hereafter is better for whoso fears, and ye shall not be wronged a date-thread.’

(77)

Have thou not looked… The address is to the Messenger, may Allah condescend upon him and upon his House, and the interrogative is one of amazement and outrage. 

…to those… It means those Muslims.

…to whom it was said,… That is, by the Messenger , may Allah condescend upon him and upon his House, while at Makkah.

…‘Stay your hands,… That is, restrain them and keep them away from battling.

…and establish the prayer and pay the zakat;… This was what was obligatory upon them at the time, not jihad. The forbidding of jihad was due to their small numbers and their inability to stand up against the enemy, for had they fought they would have been destroyed and Islam wiped out. Moreover, it helped to establish faith in their hearts, for when a person faces difficulties and afflictions, his essence shines and his soul becomes smooth.

…so as soon as battling was written upon them,… That is, when in Madina the command of jihad came down and battling became obligatory.

…a division of them… Some of the Muslims who had sought permission to battle.

…feared the people… They feared the disbelievers would kill them when they went out against them.

…like the fear of Allah,… They feared them like they feared Allah would make them die.

…or more severe in fear,… Generally people fear death less than they fear being killed. Being killed excites dread and terror, in a way that death does not.

…and they said,… That party of the Muslims said.

…‘Our Master, why wrote Thee battling upon us,… That is: what is the reason for warfare being obligatory upon us now?

…and delayed us not until a near term?’… That is: why was the command to battle not delayed for a short while, so that we might be better prepared? In some commentaries we have it that this relates to the battle of Badr, when some of the Muslims were reluctant on account of their lack of preparation and they sought a delay for a while to allow them to prepare.

…Say,… The Messenger was to say to them that if their fear of the battle was due to the likelihood of them being killed, what would have been the good of remaining in the world, when:

…‘The enjoyment of the world is slight,… All pleasures gained in the world are paltry for they are finite and after a while they terminate.

…while the hereafter is better for whoso fears,… It is better for those who fear the acts of disobedience, and perform the obligations.

…and ye shall not be wronged a date-thread.’ That is, they shall not be wronged the amount of a date-thread, and were they to be killed their obedience and deeds would not be wasted.

The question is then presented as to why should one flee from battling—on account of the fear of death? But death is unavoidable:

‘Wherever ye are, death will catch ye, even if ye be in imposing castles.’ And if a beauty befalls them they say, ‘This is from alongside Allah,’ while if an evil befalls them, they say, ‘This is from alongside thee.’ Say, ‘All is from alongside Allah.’ So what is with this tribe that they are not near to understanding a talk?

(78)

‘Wherever ye are, death will catch ye,… No matter where a person is located, death will come to him.

…even if ye be in imposing castles.’… ‘Castles’ is given for buruj, imposing fortified buildings from which one can observe all comings and goings of the enemy. They are ‘imposing’ (mushayyadah) in the sense of being extremely firm and strong. The meaning is that death has no fear of castles and forts and battlements and so forth.

Then He, glorified be He, describes those Muslims of weak faith who asked  ‘…why wrote Thee battling upon us?’ in that their interiors were wavering and did not remain fixed in a single direction with established faith:

…And if a beauty befalls them… ‘Beauty’ is given for hasanah, such as growth, progress, blessings, success in war, health and suchlike.

…they say, ‘This is from alongside Allah.’… They admit that the blessings that befall them are from Allah.

…while if an evil befalls them,… Such as rising prices, drought, underdevelopment, illness and suchlike.

…they say, ‘This is from alongside thee.’  They would tell the Messenger that it was all his fault, that the difficulty befell them due to him, just as Allah relates about those before them: And when an evil befell them they would rush to Musa and those with him….

…Say,… The Messenger was to tell them:

…‘All is from alongside Allah.’… It is He who makes things barren and it is He who makes things flourish, it is He who makes people ill and it is He who cures, and so on, and so it is not the Messenger (Allah condescend upon him and his House) who is the source of disasters.

…So what is with this tribe… What is wrong with these Muslims of weak faith?

…that they are not near to understanding an account. They are remote and distant from understanding the noble Quran which they are recited.

Now, since it is explained that the source of blessings and disasters is Allah, the question remains of what is the purpose of the disasters. Why does Allah try man with evil, when He wants for His servants nothing but goodness? The answer:

What befalls thee of beauty—it is from Allah. And what befalls thee of evil—it is from thyself.

And We sent thee to the people as a Messenger, and Allah suffices as a witness.

(79)

What befalls thee… Here the address is to the individual human being.

…of beauty… Such as success, fruition, health and wealth.

…—it is from Allah…. He bestows it without reason, though some of it is on account of good deeds.

…And what befalls thee… O human being.

…of evil—so it is from thyself…. Drought, price-rises, illnesses and so on are on account of evil deeds that cause these trials and tribulations.

…And We sent thee… O Messenger.

…to the people as a Messenger,… The Messenger was to deliver the message to mankind, there was no connection between his existence and the difficulties, as they believed. In fact, it was the opposite: he was the source of goodness and the grounds for guidance and goodness. 

…and Allah suffices as a witness. Allah is sufficient in witnessing the Prophet’s message. There is no place for questioning how to prove that Allah is a witness over the messengership of the Messenger, may Allah condescend upon him and his House, in that such a thing has not been heard of Allah, glorified be He, for He is a witness existentially, in that He sets miracles on his blessed hands, and that is the greatest kind of witnessing. 

Whoso obeys the Messenger—he has indeed obeyed Allah. And whoso turns away—We have not sent thee over them as a protector.

(80)

Whoso obeys the Messenger… In his commands and prohibitions, among which is the order to perform jihad, as mentioned in the preceding verses.

…—he has indeed obeyed Allah…. The command of the Messenger, may Allah condescend upon him and his House, is the command of Allah, glorified be He, as He says, ‘He speaks not from desire, it is nought but revelation revealed…’

…And whoso turns away… That anyone turns away from the commands of the Messenger, was not to trouble him or distress him.

…—We have not sent thee over them as a protector. The Messenger was not sent to protect them from disobedience and from turning away, as He says in another verse, ‘So remind (for Thou are but a reminder; Thou are not empowered over them)…’

There now follows an account of the conditions of the hypocrites, who have already been partially described as hanging back from jihad, and saying ‘why did Thou not delay us for a short while’ and as rushing to the Messenger whenever they were struck by evil:

And they say, ‘Obedience.’ But when they go forth from alongside thee, a company of them spend the night other than as thou say—Allah records their spending the night. So turn from them and rely upon Allah, and Allah suffices as a trustee.

(81)

And they say, ‘Obedience.’… They say that the Messenger’s command will be met by obedience, that they submit to it and will prepare for its implementation.

…But when they go forth from alongside thee, a company of them spend the night other than as thou say… When they left the Messenger’s presence, a group of those hypocrites would go away and spend the night in deliberations contrary to the Messenger’s words. That is, they would advise themselves during the night to oppose the Messenger and breach his command.

…—Allah records their spending the night…. He writes down how they spend the night in plotting to violate the Messenger’s command, and they shall be recompensed for their opposition and disobedience.

…So turn from them… The singular form reveals that the address is to the Messenger, may Allah condescend upon him and his House. He was not to pursue them for their deeds, for that would split the Muslims’ ranks.

…and rely upon Allah,…  Allah is the Messenger’s succour and assistance in his jihad against the enemies.

…and Allah suffices as an trustee. ‘Trustee’ is put for wakil, one in whose hands another entrusts his affairs. Whoso resigns his affairs to Allah, glorified be He—his affairs will be brought to a beautiful fruition, and a most perfect perfection.

Did those disobedient hypocrites who opposed the Messenger and who ‘spent the night other than as he said’ imagine that the Messenger commanded and prohibited for himself, and that his words were not the words of revelation? Did they think that his words were his own words and not the words of Allah? Is it for this reason that they thought so little of disobeying him? If this was their belief, then they were in total error. The Quran recited by the Messenger, may Allah condescend upon him and his House, was but from Allah, no less. It was not the Messenger’s own words:

Do they not deliberate on the Quran? If it were from alongside other than Allah, they would truly find in it many contradictions.

(82)

Do they not deliberate on the Quran?… Have they not subjected it to a profound examination, so as to realise that it is above the words of man, and that no man can devise its like?

…If it were from alongside other than Allah,… Even if it were the word of the Messenger, may Allah condescend upon him and his House, with all his magnificence.

…they would truly find in it many contradictions. However gifted and talented a person might be, still his expressions will conflict and his ideas will vary over time and with changes in his surroundings. The absence of contradiction in the Quran, from whichever angle the issue is examined, is the clearest proof that it is not the speech of man, but of a wise God.

Here the thread returns to the conditions of those hypocrites, some of whose characteristics have been given:

And when a matter of security or fear comes to them, they publicise it, and had they referred it to the Messenger and to the Owners of the Affair among them, those who deduced it from them would have known it. And were it not for Allah’s profusion upon ye and His mercy, ye would have followed the devil, save a few.

(83)

And when a matter of security or fear comes to them,… That is, when something conveying security, like the appearance of vast numbers of believers, or fear, like the Muslims being defeated in battle, and whatever conveys security or fear, comes to those weak-hearted Muslims.  

…they publicise it,… They spread it around. Many differing reports were circulating around Madina, some in favour of the Muslims and some against them. Those of weak faith would seize upon them and would immediately take them up and spread them, regardless of the consequences, and of whether the reports were correct or not. And among the necessary matters for the movement is that all its reports are reviewed by the leadership, so that it can be seen whether it would be useful for those reports to be spread, or harmful. Many such reports are false, while often the spread of a reassuring report, even though true, would be detrimental at a time when it is necessary to be prepared and on guard; while on the other hand the spread of a frightening report, even though true, would be detrimental at a time when reassurance and confidence is required in order for the people not to be too afraid to prepare themselves and move.

…and had they referred it to the Messenger and to the Owners of the affair among them,… Had they referred the report they heard to the Messenger and the Imam. ‘The Owners of the affair’ means the cleansed Imams, and those nominated by the Messenger and the Imams (bliss be upon them); there is no other person ‘of authority’ save them, as has been given.

…those who deduced it from them would have known it…. It means that those who received the report from those of authority would have known it in the sense of knowing whether it was true or false, and of whether it should be spread about or not. Then the report would not have been in doubt as to its accuracy, nor about the benefit or harm of its being spread, and there would have been no place for imagination and supposition, and the lies would not thereafter circulate, for they would be closely controlled.   

...And were it not for Allah’s profusion upon ye and His mercy,… Allah’s guidance made the Muslims aware of the pitfalls of abjection and the chasms of error.

…ye would have followed the devil,… They would have been receptive to his darts that would have caused confusion among their ranks, and the break-up of their unity.

…save a few. A few with strong minds would not have followed the devil’s lines, even when such a person was not a Messenger—like during the ignorance when some people did not follow the devil on account of the power of reason that had been granted them and their levelheadedness. So, it does not mean Allah’s universal grace and profusion, but His particular grace and profusion.

As the Quran has clarified the paths of the nation in jihad, and that it is Allah who bestows His profusion and grace upon the believers, the thread now directs itself to the Messenger, may Allah condescend upon him and his House, saying:

So battle in Allah’s path, thou are not charged save for thyself; and incite the believers, Allah might avert the violence of those who disbelieve. And Allah is more severe in violence, and more severe in punishing.

(84)

So battle… The command is in the singular, addressed to the Messenger, may Allah condescend upon him and his House.

…in Allah’s path,… For the sake of raising His word and spreading His rule.

…thou are not charged save for thyself;… The Messenger, may Allah condescend upon him and his House, would not be harmed by the hypocrites’ works and their rumours and the trouble they caused, for he was not responsible for their deeds, just as he was not responsible for the believers save to the extent of delivering the message and guiding. 

…and incite the believers,… That is: encourage them.

…Allah might avert… That is, it might be that by the Messenger’s going to war, Allah will avert.

…the violence of those who disbelieve…. It means their severity and their force, with the inference that Allah will make the Messenger, may Allah condescend upon him and his House, victorious over the disbelievers, so that they return disappointed.

…And Allah is more severe in violence,… The Messenger, may Allah condescend upon him and his House, was proceeding with the power of Allah and His force, which is more severe and more extreme than that of the disbelievers.

…and more severe in punishing. That is, He is more powerful and more extreme in punishing.

Now, since it has been given that the Messenger, may Allah condescend upon him and his House, was only responsible for himself, the matter develops here to clarify that it does not mean that an interceding person has nothing to do with those for whom he intercedes, but that:

Whoso mediates with a beautiful mediation—he has a portion from it. And whoso mediates with an evil mediation—he has a segment of it. And Allah is over all things a provider.

(85)

Whoso mediates with a beautiful mediation… He mediates with his fellow in goodly affairs, and a person is a mediator through intercession, or encouragement and incitement, or through guidance.

…—he has a portion from it…. It means that a share of that beautiful deed will accrue to the mediator, as ‘he who summons to a deed is as he who performs it.’

…And whoso mediates with an evil mediation… That is, by mediating in an evil affair or encouraging it or prompting it.

—he has a segment of it…. The mediator, here, has a portion of the evil deed, as he has co-operated unto sin and enmity. 

…And Allah is over all things a provider. He is able to give the mediator a share of the beautiful or evil deed. ‘Provider’ is given for muqit. It may mean that He will recompense both matters.

The discourse about battling and jihad is met now by a discourse about peace and the relinquishing of animosity, so as to balance the two matters. The current is general and not limited to peace in the sense of the absence of war, but embraces the general peace of giving the ‘salam’. Thus He says:

So when ye are greeted with a beautiful greeting, greet with more beautiful than it, or return it. Indeed Allah is over all things a reckoner.

(86)

So when ye are greeted… When the Muslims are greeted.

…with a beautiful greeting,… The beautiful greeting is the salam, that is, to say, ‘al-salam ‘alaikum.’

…greet with more beautiful than it,… It means to give a better reply than the original greeting. The verse is general and includes all forms of greeting. It is stated in the commentary Majam’ al-Bayyan that when Allah, glorified be He, gave the order for jihad, he followed it up by saying that should anyone be inclined towards peace of his own soul and greeted the Muslims kindly, they should accept it from him.   

…or return it…. That is, return it like for like. When someone says, ‘al-salam ‘alaikum’, the better, more beautiful response is to say, ‘al-salam ‘alaikum wa rahmatullah,’ while the even response is to say, ‘al-salam ‘alaikum.’

…Indeed Allah is over all things a reckoner. He knows the reckoning of how the Muslims respond, whether more beautifully or whether on a par, and will recompense accordingly.

Allah! There is no god but He. He shall definitely gather ye unto the day of resurrection – no doubt about it. And who is more truthful than Allah in a talk.

(87)

Allah! There is no god but He…. He is the Absolute Owner, possessing all the attributes of perfection. 

…He shall definitely gather ye… All of us will be raised after death and mustered.

…unto the day of resurrection… That is, unto the station of reckoning so as to be recompensed for our actions. Whatever we do in the world, including war and peace, we will be judged there.

…– no doubt in it…. There is no place for doubt, regardless of how much those of falsehood open themselves to doubt about it. In respect to reality there is no place for doubt, since it is a real and inevitable event.

…And who is more truthful than Allah in an account. The accounts He gives are true and cannot be broken. All will definitely be brought forth on the resurrection day and will be recompensed for their actions in the world.

Now the thread returns to jihad and the disagreements and divisions to which it gives rise. Allah reminds the believers that it is not fitting for them to disagree over jihad against the disbelievers and hypocrites on feeble excuses: 

So what is with ye: two bands over the hypocrites, while Allah demotes them for what they have earned? Do ye wish to guide whomso Allah has sent astray. And whomso Allah sends astray – thou will not find for him a path.

(88)

So what is with ye: two bands over the hypocrites,… That is, why, O Muslims, have ye become two bands over the hypocrites. A party sought to battle them on the grounds that they were in reality disbelievers, while a party of them did not support this view on the grounds that they had manifested Islam for a while.

…while Allah demotes them… That is, He reduces them to the status of disbelievers.

…for what they have earned?… It refers to their efforts in hypocrisy and spreading dissent among the Muslims.

…Do ye wish to guide whomso Allah has sent astray…. That is, were the Muslims wishing to guide those apostates, even though Allah had sent them astray? It has been given that Allah’s sending people astray means that He leaves them with their deviation, after they had recognised the truth but turned away from it.

And whomso Allah sends astray… Whomsoever Allah leaves in a condition of disbelief and disobedience.

—thou will not find for him a path. It means a path by which to save such a person. How could such persons be saved, when they are obstinately opposed, and deliberately blind their eyes to the truth? From Imam Baqir (bliss be upon him) we have it that the ayah was sent down in connection with a tribe who had come to Madina from Makkah and manifested Islam to the Muslims. Then they returned to Makkah, and from there they travelled with some of the partnerists to Yamama, where the Muslims wanted to attack them. But the Muslims disagreed about them, some saying that they were believers and others saying that they were partnerists. And so Allah sent down the ayah.

It is a constant universal in many movements that a party of the believers will turn back, and then the others will disagree about them, as to whether they have really gone out of the religion or not. The ayah clarifies the necessity of remaining united before them after apostasy has manifested among them.

It should not be overlooked that the verse mentioning the hypocrites does not show that they were not disbelievers, since hypocrisy comprises disbelief. It is likely that the ayah'font-size: 12.0pt;font-family:Arial;font-style:normal; '> is meant to clarify the obligation of maintaining united ranks before the hypocrites, so that they dwell apart. This is nearer to the apparent sense of the ayah with regard to the rulings about the hypocrites that have preceded. On the other hand, the plain sense of the context and the apparent sense of the following ayah, ‘They love that ye would disbelieve…’ suggests the first meaning, that what is meant by hypocrisy is disbelief.

They love that ye would disbelieve as they disbelieve, then ye would be level. So take not friends from them until they migrate in Allah’s path. So if they turn away, seize them and kill them wherever ye find them. And take from them no patron and no succourer.

(89)

They love… That is, those hypocrites who apostatised and manifested partnerism would love it.

…that ye would disbelieve as they disbelieve,… They would love for the Muslims to apostatise as they themselves had apostatised.

…then ye would be level…. They would be of the same rank and level as disbelievers. Such people should not be a cause for the Muslims becoming divided into two groups about them.

…So take not friends from them… The Muslims were not to make friends with any of them, since the Muslim does not take the disbeliever as a friend, as He says, glorified be He: Thou shall not find a tribe believing in Allah and the last day befriending anyone who contravenes Allah and His Messenger. (al-Mujadilah [58], 23).

…until they migrate in Allah’s path…. Until they migrate from the realm of disbelief to the realm of Islam. Such a migration must entail belief, for there will be no migration unless preceded by belief.

…So if they turn away,… That is, from the faith that would necessitate migration.

…seize them and kill them wherever ye find them…. It means that the battle may take place anywhere, on sacred ground or non-sacred ground, as there is no problem about battling the delinquent on sacred ground. Or what is meant is ‘wherever they are on the earth.’

…And take not from them no patron and no succourer. The Muslims are not to take a patron from among them and nor are they to take from among them one who will succour them against their enemies. This is because the disbeliever does not give succour to the Muslims even though he may seem to succour them, as the Muslims will never be safe from his evil.

Then He, glorified be He, makes an exception to the obligation of battling them for those who are covered by a treaty with a tribe between whom and the Muslims is a covenant. By their being covered by such a treaty their blood is safe, as are those among them who wish not to battle the Muslims but to enter into an agreement with them. Thus He says, glorified be He, in making an exception to His word, ‘seize them and kill them wherever ye find them…’ :

Save those who join unto a tribe between whom and yourselves is a pact, or they come to ye their breasts restricted at battling ye or battling their tribe. And had Allah wished He would have prevailed them over ye; then they would definitely have fought ye. So if they withdraw from ye and battle ye not and cast unto ye peace, Allah has put no path for ye against them.

(90)

Save those who join unto a tribe… It means that they are connected, related, to a tribe through a treaty.

…between whom and yourselves is a pact,… There is also a pact or treaty between that tribe and the Muslims. In traditions we have it that Hilal b. ‘Uwaimir al-Salmi made a treaty with Allah’s Messenger, may Allah condescend upon him and his House, that he would not relinquish anyone who came over to him from the Muslims, while the Messenger would not relinquish anyone who came to him from Hilal. Thus Allah sent down the ayah forbidding the Muslims from harming anyone who went over to Hilal.

…or they come to ye their breasts restricted… It signifies a tightness of the chest due to the importance of an affair causing the lungs to fully inflate so as to draw in the maximum amount of air. This puts pressure on the heart and blood-circulation, and so the chest feels tight on account of the expansion of the lungs.   

…at battling ye or battling their tribe…. The affair putting pressure on their chests is that they want to battle neither the Muslims nor their own tribe, and are neither with the Muslims nor against them. In the commentary Majma’ al-Bayyan we have it that this is about some warriors who came to Madina as a group of seven-hundred led by one Ma’ud b. Dakhila. The Messenger, may Allah condescend upon him and his House, went out to meet them carrying dates for the reception of guests, saying, ‘How beautiful is a gift to those who need it.’ Then he asked them what had brought them, and they said that they had come because of their proximity to the Messenger, may Allah condescend upon him and his House, and because they did not wish to battle him and did not wish to battle their tribe, by whom they meant the Bani Hamza with whom they had a treaty that they would battle with them. And they said that they had come to enter into a treaty with him. The Messenger, may Allah condescend upon him and his House, accepted this and made a treaty with them and they returned home. 

…And Allah had wished He would have prevailed them over ye,… He would have made those disbelievers prevail and dominate over the Muslims, by not casting dread of the Muslims into their hearts, and then they would not have feared the Muslims and would not have made peace with them. It was the grace of Allah that the Muslims were feared in this way, while their numbers and equipment did not merit that. And were it not for such grace:

…then they would definitely have fought ye…. But as Allah, glorified be He, blessed the Muslims in that way, so they were not to extend against them the hand of war.

…So if they withdraw from ye… That is, if those who have been mentioned turn away, and they are those ‘who join a tribe’ and those who ‘come to ye.’

…and battle ye not and cast unto ye peace,… That is, they are ready to make peace with the Muslims.

…Allah has not put for ye against them a path. That is, their lives, their wealth and their dignity—all must be respected by the Muslims. In some commentaries we have it that this ayah is abrogated, but the reasoning behind this view is not clear, as the first phrase does not admit of abrogation, as treaties last for as long as their terms, while the second phrase is about a particular instance, such as does not admit of being abrogated.

Ye shall find others wishing that they be secure of ye and secure of their tribe. Whenever they return to intrigue, languishing in it—so if they withdraw not from ye, nor cast peace unto ye and nor stay their hands, seize them and kill them wherever ye find them. And those—We have put for ye over them a clear authority.

(91)

Ye shall find others… The Muslims will find others among those who manifest Islam while they are disbelievers within.

…wishing that they be secure of ye… That is, they wished to be in safety from the Muslims.

…and secure of their tribe…. They wanted to be safe with their tribe of disbelievers.

…Whenever they return to intrigue,… Whenever those who came to the Muslims manifesting Islam then return to their tribe and summon them to disbelief—which is the meaning of ‘intrigue’ (fitnah) here. 

…languishing in it—…. That is, they remain in it and apostatise from their Islam. Islam does not condone such people, and if their like threaten the security of the Muslims, they are to be severely warned about their position. If they announce peace and withdraw from sharing in the movement against the Muslims, and take no part in the war against them, they have security from the Islamic authority. But when they battle against the Muslims with the rest of the disbelievers, they have no distinction and no special status.

…so if they withdraw not from ye,… If those disbelievers do not withdraw from their war against the Muslims.

…nor cast peace unto ye… They do not make peace with the Muslims and do not enter into cordial relations with them.

…and nor stay their hands,… It means that they do not refrain from taking part in the war against the Muslims and do not refrain from inciting others against them.

…seize them… That is, make captives of them, and do not be deceived by their hypocrisy and their manifestation of Islam.

…and kill them wherever ye find them.… They are to be fought to the death, wherever they are to be found.

…And those… Those who vacillate and oscillate.

…—We have put for ye over them a clear authority. The Muslims have a clear proof over them. So there is nothing between withdrawal and war; if they take the way of withdrawal then fair enough, but if they take the path of war, they are to be treated just like the other disbelievers.

It is likely that the meaning of  ‘that they be secure of ye ’ is not their manifesting Islam, but their manifesting good relations and peace. In that case, the evident meaning of the ayah is supported by some of the commentaries, which state that one ‘Aynayh b. Hasin of the al-Ghazari tribe came to the Messenger, may Allah condescend upon him and his House, when their lands were affected by drought, and agreed with him that he would remain in a single place and would not attack him. But he was an accursed hypocrite and it was he whom the Messenger, may Allah condescend upon him and his House termed as ‘the obeyed idiot’ (al-ahmaq al-mut’a). Accordingly, the difference between this and that given on at battling ye or battling their tribe is that the former came in sincerity and benevolence, whereas the latter came in hypocrisy and intrigue. So the former were to be accepted, while the latter were not.

This has been about the Muslims confronting the non-Muslims, and the ruling about bloodshed between the two sides. As for Muslims amongst themselves, no one has the right to spill a drop of blood of any other:

And it is not for a believer to kill a believer save by mistake. And whoso kills a believer by mistake—the freeing of a believing neck and compensation submitted to his folk, save that they give charity.

So if he is from an enemy tribe to ye, and he is a believer—the freeing of a believing neck.

And if he is from a tribe between whom and yourselves is a pact—compensation submitted to his folk and the freeing of a believing neck.

And whoso finds not, fasting for two consecutive months.

A relenting from Allah, and Allah is knowing, wise.

(92)

And it is not for a believer to kill a believer save by mistake…. It is not permissible for a believer to kill another believer, unless it be by mistake, such as when a man hunts an animal but his shot misses the animal and hits and kills a believer, and suchlike.

…And whoso kills a believer by mistake… He must pay the penalty of:

…—the freeing of a believing neck… He must free a human slave who is a believer. The slave is called a ‘neck’ in line with the principle of knowing the whole by the name of a part, just as a spy is called an ‘eye’.

…and… He must also pay:

…compensation submitted to his folk,… ‘Compensation’ is put for diya, meaning the payment of money in return for blood, and it is obligatory that it be submitted to the deceased’s kinsmen entire, without shortcoming. The meaning of the compensation being obligatory upon him is the general obligation of the compensation, not that he must pay it all himself. For in accidental homicide it is for the family or tribe, and the compensation itself is divided among the deceased’s next of kin.

…save that they give charity. That is, that the deceased’s next of kin charitably waive their right to compensation from the killer, and do not take it from him. ‘Give charity’ is put for yassaddaqu, a diminution of yatasaddaqu.

…So if he is from an enemy tribe to ye,… That is, the victim was from a tribe that was at war with the Muslims, in that they were ‘hostile disbelievers’ (kuffar muharibin).

…and he is a believer… The deceased was a believer, and the killer killed him by mistake.

…—the freeing of a believing neck. In such circumstances this is the sole penalty, and there is no compensation to be paid as the deceased had no Muslim kinsmen, and it is well-known that the hostile disbeliever does not inherit from the Muslim.

…And if he is … That is, the deceased was not a Muslim but he was:

…from a tribe between whom and yourselves is a pact… The deceased was a member of a tribe with whom the Muslims are bound by treaty and agreement, and the Muslim’s killing him was a mistake.

…—compensation submitted to his folk… To be paid to the deceased’s next of kin.

…and the freeing of a believing neck…. It is not permitted to kill a person bound by treaty just as it is not permitted to kill a believer.

…And whoso finds not,… He hasn’t a slave and hasn’t the price of one.

…fasting for two consecutive months. He should fast for two months and it is not permissible for him to pause between the days of the two months, but when he has fasted for a month and a day, the condition of being consecutive is met, and it is permissible for him to fast the remainder after a while without them being connected to the first.

…A relenting from Allah,… That is, this legislation concerning killing comes as a relenting and return on the part of Allah, glorified be He, towards His servant who has killed. The killer, although his homicide was a mistake and therefore does not accrue a sin upon himself, is nevertheless naturally distanced from the divine by this ugly deed. Some acts have irremovable effects, just as one who mistakenly drinks wine will become drunk and suffer all the ailments that come with wine drinking.

…and Allah is knowing,… He knows man’s best interests.

…wise. He is wise in His commanding and forbidding.

This was the ruling in respect to accidental homicide. As for deliberate homicide:

And whoso kills a believer deliberately, his requital is hell, eternal in it, and Allah is angry with him and curses him and prepares for him a grievous chastisement.

(93)

And whoso kills a believer deliberately,… The apparent sense of the ayah  suggests that the killing took place intentionally, in contrast to the killing which was an accident.

…his requital is hell, eternal in it,… The fire, forever and ever, unless he receives mediation or forgiveness. This exception is on the grounds of His word, ’Indeed Allah forgives not that unto Him He be partnered, and He forgives all other than that, to whomso He wills.’

 …and Allah is angry with him… What is meant by such attributes is the result of the act, for otherwise Allah is not subject to transitory moods.

…and curses him… He casts him off from His mercy.

…and prepares for him a grievous chastisement. In another ayah we have it that ‘Whoso kills a soul, other than for a soul or for making corruption in the earth—it is as if he has killed the people, altogether.’

The wise Quran then indicates some precautions necessary for the combatants, for them not to kill a Muslim by mistake. This was the consequence of an event that took place, in that Usama b. Zaid and some companions were dispatched by the Messenger, may Allah condescend upon him and his House, as a squadron, and they came upon a man who had retired with some spoils that he was taking up a mountainside. He greeted them by saying, ‘ Al-salam ‘alaikum; la ilaha illa ‘llah, Muhammadur rasulu ‘llah (‘Bliss be upon you; there is no god but Allah, Muhammad is Allah’s Messenger’). Yet Usama attacked him and killed him and took his spoils. When they returned to the Messenger, may Allah condescend upon him and his House, and he was informed about it, he said, ‘How did you pierce the covering of his heart? You neither accepted what he said with his tongue, nor knew what was in his soul!’ And this ayah was sent down:

O ye who believe, when ye strike out in Allah’s path, ascertain. And say not unto whoso delivers unto ye the salam, ‘Thou are not a believer.’

Ye reach for the goods of the worldly life, so alongside Allah are many spoils.

That is how ye were beforehand, then Allah favoured ye, so ascertain. Indeed Allah of what ye do is knowing.

(94)

O ye who believe, when ye strike out in Allah’s path,… That is, when the Muslims go forth for jihad in order to raise the word of Islam. “Strike out’ is given for darb, meaning safar (to travel) as the traveller strikes the ground with his feet.

…ascertain…. That is, discriminate between the disbeliever and the Muslim, so that the Muslims’ dealings be open and clear, and nothing be done before checking and clarification.

…And say not unto whoso delivers unto ye the salam,… That is, greets by saying, al-salam ‘alaikum, the greeting of Islam, manifesting his Islam and withdrawing and not battling the Muslims.

…‘Thou are not a believer.’ That is, a real believer, at heart, and that it is all just words to save your life.

…Ye reach for the goods of the worldly life,… That is, is it that ye are seeking wealth and spoils, and so denying the Islam of those who greet you with the ‘salam’. The sense is one of a rebuking interrogative, meaning: why do ye kill those who manifest Islam for the sake of their spoils which are finite and perish as part of the worldly life? Or the interrogative is not rebuking but is literal, meaning: if ye are seeking wealth: 

…so alongside Allah are many spoils. It means the worldly spoils that the Muslims were to wrest from the disbelievers.

…That is how ye were beforehand,… They had all been disbelievers like the man who greeted them with the salam.

…then Allah favoured ye,… He guided them to faith; and just as it is not permissible to say ‘your faith is due to fear’, so it is not permissible to say that the faith of anyone who greets with the salam is due to fear.

And now that you have learned of your mistake in this area:

,,,so ascertain…. From thence forward. The word is repeated here for emphasis, and because its use here follows the reasoning. So whereas the former was a simple command, here it follows the proof of it being a rational necessity.

…Indeed Allah of what ye do is knowing. He is knowing of all our actions and their motivations, and so we should observe Him in everything we do.

The thread then turns to clarifying the distinction of the combatants, so as to encourage the jihad and to prompt those who sat to stand up:

Not equal are the seated among the believers—other than those of disability—and the combatants in Allah’s path with their wealth and their lives. Allah has distinguished the combatants with their wealth and their lives over the seated in degree, and for both Allah has promised beauty. And Allah has distinguished the combatants over the seated in a magnificent wage.

(95)

Not equal are the seated among the believers… It means those who sat in their places instead of rising to battle the enemies.

…—other than those of disability—… Those who sat at home without some disability that prevented them from taking part in the jihad, like the blind, the lame and so forth. Those with such a disability were excused, with no stain upon them. Perhaps the ayah means to convey that those disabled whose souls were such that they would have fought had they not been disabled, earned the reward of those who fought—in accordance with the hadith that ‘the believer’s intention is better than his deed.’

…and the combatants in Allah’s path with their wealth and their lives…. They dispense their wealth for jihad and bring themselves to meet the disbelievers in the path of raising the word of Islam. Jihad is called ‘jihad’ because of the struggle (jahd) and difficulties it entails—and sacrificing one’s wealth and one’s life is the greatest of difficulties.

…Allah has distinguished the combatants with their wealth and their lives over the seated in degree,… The combatant has the distinction and merit of jihad, after both the combatant and the non-combatant are distinguished by the distinctions of belief, the prayer, the fast and the rest of the Islamic Legislation.

…and for both Allah has promised beauty…. Both the combatant and the non-combatant have the beautiful reward for their deeds. Jihad is a community obligation, in that when it is met by some the obligation is removed from the others. Thus it is that both the combatant and the non-combatant are promised beauty in goodness and felicity, though the combatant is superior.

In the commentary al-Asfa we have the hadith:

‘Ye have left behind ye in Madina a group, and you have not travelled or crossed any valley but that they have been with you. They are those whose intentions are valid and whose breasts tremble and hearts long for jihad, but they are prevented from jihad by a disability or other than that.’

That was during the expedition of Tabuk.

…And Allah has distinguished the combatants over the seated in a magnificent wage. In narrations we have it that  ‘above every righteousness is a righteousness, except jihad in Allah’s path.’ And we have it that the ‘reward is to the amount of the difficulty’ and ‘all the righteous actions are no more in comparison to jihad than a drop of spittle in a fathomless ocean.’ ‘Distinguished’ (faddala) wards off the idea that might arise from the earlier in degree, that if it is only a matter of degree it is not important in comparison to the difficulties involved in jihad.

Then He clarifies the ‘magnificent wage’ by saying that that wage is:

Degrees from Him, and forgiveness and mercy, and Allah is forgiving, merciful.

(96)

Degrees from Him,… ‘From Him’ denotes its greatness. Were the degrees from other than Him, glorified be He, they would have been negligible, as the world is accidental and finite, whereas what is from Him, glorified be He, is magnificent and eternal. In the hadith we have it that ‘Allah distinguishes the combatants over those who sit by seventy degrees, and between each pair of degrees is the distance covered through seventy autumns by a trained charger.’

…and forgiveness… The sins of the combatant are forgiven.

…and mercy,… Allah will mercy the combatant by granting him numerous blessings.

…and Allah is forgiving, merciful. He forgives the combatant his previous sins and is merciful to him from His extensive mercy.

Some say that the first mention of ‘degrees’ indicates a position of closeness to Him, just as it is said that one person is closer in degree to the ruler than another, and that the second indicates their location in the garden, by which the believers will be distinguished.

The thread now turns to others who sit but whom Allah does not promise beauty, but rather promises them the chastisement, for their being the cause of their own oppression by the disbelievers, and of the disbelievers devouring their rights:

Indeed those whom the angels take while they are wronging themselves—they say, ‘What were ye in?’

They say, ‘We were enfeebled in the earth.’

They say, ‘Was not Allah’s earth expansive, for ye to migrate in it?’

Those, their abode is hell, and how bad it is an outcome!

(97)

Indeed those whom the angels take… The angels take their souls, for the angel of death has assistants, as we have it from the sunnah, and confirmed by this ayah.

…while they are wronging themselves… That is, their condition on being taken by the angels is that they are oppressing themselves, in that they remained in the realm of abasement as the disbelievers imposed chastisement upon them and prevented them from believing in Allah and the Messenger. It was possible for them to migrate to the realm of belief and believe. Perhaps the ayah covers these and also those who remain in the realm of disbelief where they are unable to manifest the obligations of Islam and act according to that which Allah has made obligatory.

…—they say,… The angels say to them when they take their souls.

…‘What were ye in?’… That is, they are asked as to the condition of their religious life. The interrogative is for determination and for criticism.

…They say, ‘We were enfeebled in the earth.’… They blame the  partnerists for oppressing them in their homes and not letting them believe, or not letting them act according to Islam.

…They say,… The angels say to them.

…‘Was not Allah’s earth expansive, for ye to migrate in it?’… They should have left the authority of the disbelievers, so as to be able to accept Islam or implement its Legislation.

…Those, their abode is hell, and how bad it is an outcome! Those thus described are on an evil path for their destination is hell with all its chastisement and terrors.

Then He, glorified be He, makes an exception for those who are unable to migrate, for they are not held accountable, and their affair is up to Allah, glorified be He:

Save the enfeebled—men women and children unable in strength and not guided a path.

(98)

Save the enfeebled… Those whom the disbelievers oppress in their homelands.

…—men… It means men who are weak and disabled.

…women and children… By nature these two groups are too weak to flee and migrate.

…unable in strength… They are unable to resolve their situation by removing themselves from the authority of the disbelievers.

…and not guided a path. That is, a way of escape and migration.

So those—perhaps Allah will pardon them, and Allah is pardoning, forgiving.

(99)

So those… It means those of the oppressed who are weak and unable to flee.

…—perhaps Allah will pardon them,… Perhaps Allah will forgive them their sin. The use of the word ‘perhaps’ (given for ‘asa) in such ayat is to show that the matter is in the hands of Allah, glorified be He, and that He has the power to issue them a command that would give them difficulty, like the obligation of their leaving and manifesting their religion whatever happens to them. There is no place to say, ‘If by ‘the oppressed’ are meant the disbelievers, then how can it be that Allah will forgive their disbelief?' as both rational and narrated proofs show that the weak, the disabled and the simple will be examined in the hereafter. And that is in contrast to the obstinate disbeliever whose destination is definitely the fire.

…and Allah is pardoning,… He pardons whom He wills.

…forgiving. He forgives the sins. Perhaps the difference between ‘pardoning’ (‘afw) and ‘forgiving’ (ghafr) is that to ‘pardon’ means to forgive without concealing the sin, whereas to ‘forgive’ is to pardon and also to conceal, as the absence of punishment does not entail concealment.

One of the things that prevented migration was the fear of being unable to find the means of habitation and income in the new land. This was nothing but imagination, for the world is extensive and an income is possible in every place:

And whoso migrates in Allah’s path will find in the earth many stations, and expansiveness. And whoso departs from his house migrating unto Allah and His Messenger, and then death catches him, for sure his wage is established upon Allah. And Allah is forgiving, merciful.

(100)

And whoso migrates in Allah’s path… For His sake.

…will find in the earth many stations,…‘Stations’ is given for muragham, meaning a temporary abode, from ragham, meaning earth.

…and expansiveness…. That is, ease and plenty in income and the other provisions of life.

…And whoso departs from his house migrating… That is, whoso migrates from his home and homeland, cutting himself off from it.

…unto Allah and His Messenger,… Migrating to Allah means to the realm of His commands, and migrating to the Messenger is either literal, as during the time of his own life, may Allah condescend upon him and his House, or it is metaphorical, as in the case of one who migrates to the realm of Islam according to the command of the Messenger.

…and then death catches him,… It means that he dies on his journey.

…for sure his wage is established upon Allah…. He left in His path and in accordance to His command, and so He, glorified be He, will deliver him his wage and his reward.

…And Allah is forgiving,… He forgives the sins of those who migrate.

…merciful. He mercifully gives them their reward. In the hadith we have it that ‘whoever flees for his religion from place to place, even the distance of the span of a hand, the garden becomes obligatory for him, and he will accompany Ibrahim and Muhammad, Allah’s benedictions be upon them.

In some commentaries it is given that the occasion of the descent tf his ayah was that when the ayat commanding migration came down, a Muslim of Makkah called Jundab b. Hamza swore by Allah that he was not among those for whom Allah had made an exception, in that he had would find the strength and knew the route. But he was ill and his illness was serious, yet he said to his son, ‘By Allah, I will not spend a night in Makkah until I leave it, for I fear that I will die in it.’ So they left carrying him on a stretcher, and when they reached Tan’im he died. And so the ayah was sent down.

Having given the commands of jihad and migration, He now clarifies, glorified be He, the manner of the prayer while on a journey or in circumstances of a fear. It comes as a kindness to the nation and a mercy and a distinction. Although the ayah appears to be about prayer in conditions of fear, yet the condition given as ‘if ye fear…’ is a superfluous condition alluding to the circumstances of the time in which the ayah was sent down. That which counts is the term ‘and when ye strike out in the earth.’ These ‘superfluous conditionals’ (shart ghalibi) occur frequently in the wise Quran, as in the ayah, ‘…and your foster daughters in your care…’ (above, 24) where being ‘in their care’ is not a condition. And like His word, ‘…and compel not your lasses unto prostitution if they seek decency…’ and suchlike.

And when ye strike out in the earth, there is no stain on ye that ye shorten from the prayer, if ye fear that those who disbelieve will try ye. Indeed the disbelievers are for ye a clear enemy.

(101)

And when ye strike out in the earth,… When the Muslims travel. It is clear that there are other conditions for the journey, which are mentioned in the books of fiqh.

…there is no stain on ye that ye shorten from the prayer,… The phrase ‘there is no stain on ye’ does not indicate permissibility, as it apparently suggests, but wards off the thought that the prayer when travelling is as the prayer when at home. It is like His word, glorified be He, ‘So whoso intends hajj of the house or visits—no blame is on him for circulating in them’  when this ‘circulating’ (tawaf) is obligatory. The case was that the full prayer was obligatory, and in travelling too, given that the suspicion was that it remained obligatory, and so Allah, glorified be He, negated the obligation of the full prayer and made it known that the shortened prayer was permitted. That does not conflict with the obligation of the shortened prayer, given that the proofs confirm this.

The meaning of a shortened prayer is that the four-cycle prayers are halved, so that the noon or zuhr, afternoon or ‘asr and evening or ‘isha prayers are performed as two-cycle (rak’atain) prayers, and after the midway testifying (tashshahud), the salams are given and the prayer is over, without standing to perform the third and fourth cycles. As for the morning or fajr and sunset or maghrib prayers, these stay the same.

…if ye fear that those who disbelieve will try ye…. When in fear of the trials (fitnah) imposed by the disbelievers. ‘Trials’ means chastisement, murder and suchlike. When the Muslims wanted to perform four-cycles, they were engaged for a lengthy period, and it was possible for the disbelievers to attack them and chastise them or kill them, and so Allah favoured them by the shortening so that their period of prayer would be reduced and the disbelievers would not have the opportunity—during battle—to attack. The prayer of the journey, of fear and of pursuit has particulars given in the books of fiqh.

…Indeed the disbelievers are… ‘Are’ is given for kanu, which does not indicate the past tense, but is a simple connective, as in ‘Allah is (kana) knowing’ and suchlike.

…for ye a clear enemy. Their enmity towards the Muslims was clear and open. Had the prayer not been shortened they could take the opportunity presented by the Muslims’ lengthy preoccupation to try them.

Now He clarifies, glorified be He, how the prayer in fear (salat al-khawf) is performed in congregation. The combatants divide into two groups: one group follows the imam, while the other remains in the battlefield. When the imam has performed the two prostrations of the first cycle (rak’at), those following him stand and perform the second cycle individually and give the testifying and the salams. The imam delays his second bowing (ruku’) until the first group have gone to their battle stations and the second group have come and begun to follow the imam in his second cycle. Then, when the imam sits for the testifying, they stand and perform their second cycle individually, and they rejoin the imam in the testifying and complete the prayer with him. Thus the imam prolongs his prayer to the extent of the prayer of the two groups.

And when thou are among them and thou have established for them the prayer, a party of them should stand with thee and they should take their arms. Then, when they have prostrated, they should be behind ye, and another group who have not prayed should come and pray with thee, and they should be on their guard and take their arms. Those who disbelieve would love it were ye to neglect your arms and your equipment; then they would incline towards ye with a single inclination.

And there is no stain on ye, if there is a trouble upon ye from rain, or ye are ill, that ye place your arms and be on your guard. Indeed Allah has prepared for the disbelievers an abasing chastisement.

(102)

And when thou are among them… The address is to the Messenger, may Allah condescend upon him and his House, and means when he is among those who strike out in the earth for jihad. It is clear that the ruling is not particular to the Messenger, may Allah condescend upon him and his House, and universally applies to every imam among combatants who wish to perform the prayer in congregation.

…and thou have established for them the prayer, a party of them should stand with thee… When the imam establishes the prayer a group stand with him and follow him in the prayer in congregation. The other group remain in their places facing the enemy. 

…and they should take their arms…. It means those who are performing the prayer in congregation. They should hold on to their arms so as not to become an easy target for the enemy to attack, for being unarmed would endanger their position. These circumstances are an exception to the general ruling that to bear arms during the prayer is loathsome (makruh). No mention is made of the other battling group carrying their weapons, because it is obvious.

…Then, when they have prostrated,… That is, when they have completed the first cycle and the imam has stood for his second—they complete their prayer individually and go to take the place of those battling. This is the meaning of:

…they should be behind ye,… He, glorified be He, uses the plural ‘behind ye’ and not ‘behind thee’ on account of the second group praying with the imam. This does not conflict with his word, ‘another group … should come’, as what is meant is their being behind those praying in the first sense. 

…and another group who have not prayed… It is the group who remained in their battle-stations.

…should come and pray with thee, and they should be on their guard and take their arms…. They should remain on their guard in a state of readiness for combat, keeping hold of the weapons. Perhaps the additional mention of them being ‘on their guard’ in contrast to the former phrase is that the likelihood of the enemy attacking them is greater than the danger of their attacking the first group, as the simple division of the force into two with one group withdrawing for the prayer would not be noticed by the enemy, who would not then muster all its force for a single attack, for they would still suppose that all the Muslims remained engaged in the battle. However, with their absence becoming lengthy it would become clear that a number of the Muslims had stayed their hands from the battle for the sake of the prayer. 

…Those who disbelieve would love it… It means those battling the Muslims.

…were ye to neglect your arms and your equipment;… They wish that they would leave their weapons aside at a far remove from themselves.

…then they would incline towards ye with a single inclination... They would mount a single attack on the Muslim force while engaged in prayer, and would finish them off. They would strike at the Muslims in their unguarded state, without a weapon to defend themselves nor any equipment to help them. Thus the Muslims are commanded to divide into two groups at the time of the prayer and to carry their weapons with them while at prayer.

…And there is no stain on ye,… That is, they will not be held to account, and to carry weapons is not obligatory:

…if there is a trouble… A troublesome difficulty, hardship.

…upon ye… Upon those combatants who wish to perform the prayer in congregation.

…from rain, or ye are ill, that ye place your arms… That is, it is permissible to take a rest from carrying their weapons for the duration of their prayer. It is clear that for the sick to carry weapons is onerous and troublesome. As for rain, a heavy downpour is indeed heavy for a person, and this together with the weight of the weapons can be troublesome. This relates to muddy armour or chain mail during prostration, and suchlike.

…and… This has the meaning of ‘however’, for it means ‘and when you have put off your weapons due to the difficulty.’

…be on your guard…. That is, be wary of an attack by the enemy, so that if they do attack the Muslims are ready for them, and they are not taken unawares.

…Indeed Allah has prepared for the disbelievers an abasing chastisement. He has made ready for them a chastising abasement in the world at the Muslims’ hands, and in the hereafter by the fire and the inferno.  

In Majma’ al-Bayyan we have it that the ayah is a proof of the sincerity of the Messenger, may Allah condescend upon him and his House, and the validity of his messengership, in that it was sent down while the Prophet was at ‘Isfan and the disbelievers were at Dajnan, and the Prophet and his companions prayed the noon prayer with all its bows and prostrations. At this the disbelievers decided to attack them, some of them saying, ‘They have another prayer that is dearer to them than this, they call it salat al-‘asr’. So Allah sent down to him these ayat, and so he prayed with them the afternoon prayer as a ‘prayer in fear’. 

So when ye have consummated the prayer, recall Allah standing and sitting and upon your sides. And when ye are confident, establish the prayer—indeed the prayer upon the believers is a timed ordinance.

(103)

So when ye have consummated the prayer,… That is, when the combatants

have performed the prayer in fear.

…so recall Allah standing and sitting… That is, while sitting and while standing.

…and upon your sides…. While reclining.

…And when ye are confident,… The conditions of fear have gone.

…so establish the prayer… It means perform the prayer in full to the extent of its limits and with all its conditions.

…—indeed the prayer upon the believers is a timed ordinance. That is, it is written upon them in the sense that it is obligatory upon them. It is ‘timed’ (mawqut) in the sense of having a particular time in which it is to be performed.

Then He, glorified be He, again urges the necessity of jihad, saying:

And languish not in reaching for the tribe—if ye are pained, indeed they are pained as ye are pained, and ye hope from Allah what they hope not, and Allah is knowing, wise.

(104)

And languish not… It means that they are not to give way to weakness.

…in reaching for the tribe… That is, in seeking the disbelievers and battling them.

…—if ye are pained, indeed they are pained as ye are pained,… Whatever hardships and dangers affect the Muslims in warfare, affect equally the disbelievers.

…and ye hope from Allah… The believers had hope in victory and triumph and reward from alongside Allah, glorified be He.

…what they hope not,… The Muslims are more deserving and more likely to seek them and strive in battling them than the disbelievers. They have no promise from Allah of succour and reward.

…and Allah is knowing,… He is knowing of what happens to the Muslims, and the Muslims are in the knowledge of Allah, glorified be He, and believe this, while the disbelievers are also in His knowledge, but they do not know it.

…wise. His commands and His prohibitions are on the basis of policy and wisdom.

It is narrated that on the day of Uhad the Muslims said to the partnerists, ‘There is no equality: our dead are in the garden while your dead are in the fire.’ At this Abu Sufyan said, ‘We have lineage but ye have no lineage.’ So the Messenger, may Allah condescend upon him and his House, told the Muslims, ‘Say: Allah is our Patron but you have no patron.’ Abu Sufyan said, ‘I raise Hubul,’ and he lifted it above his horse and showed it to those around him. So the Messenger, may Allah condescend upon him and his House, told the Muslims, ‘Say: Allah is higher and more splendid.’

Al-Qummi narrates that the ayah was sent down after the Messenger, may Allah condescend upon him and his House, returned from Uhad: arriving back in Madina the angel Jibra.ịl, bliss be upon him, came to him, Allah condescend upon him and his House,  and said, ‘O Muhammad, indeed Allah has commanded thee to depart in pursuit of the tribe, and that no one should depart with thee save those who are wounded, so they should turn to dressing their wounds and treating them.’ And then they went out again regardless of their wounds and pains.  

Having mentioned some of the rulings related to war and jihad, the thread returns to the previous topic of the necessity of justice in judgements, as He says, glorified be He, ‘Indeed Allah commands ye that ye restore the trusts to their folk, and when ye arbitrate among the people, that ye arbitrate with justice.’ (above, 59). The jihad is legislated solely for justice, and the Messenger, may Allah condescend upon him and his House, was raised only to establish justice:

Indeed We sent down the book upon thee in truth, that thou judge among the people as Allah has shown thee. And be not to the traitors an advocate.

(105)

Indeed We sent down the book upon thee in truth,… The Quran was sent down to the Messenger, may Allah condescend upon him and his House, in truth and justice. Something might come down in falsehood when it comes from one who is not proper or to one who is not proper, or when the content is not proper.

…that thou judge among the people as Allah has shown thee…. That is, in accordance to the Legislation of justice.

…And be not… The address is to the Messenger, may Allah condescend upon him and his House.

…to the traitors an advocate. It means that he was not to find in favour of the traitors against the innocent, and not take the side of the traitors against the innocent, so that the guilty be favoured.

And seek forgiveness from Allah, indeed Allah is forgiving, merciful.

(106)

And seek forgiveness from Allah,… This is a reminder for the nation as far as it seeks judgements. Judgements require Allah’s covering the faults so that the judge does not err. 

…indeed Allah is forgiving, merciful. He conceals the faults and is merciful towards those seeking mercy.

On the circumstances of the sending down of this, the previous and the following ayah, we have it that, in brief, three sons of Ubayriq, named Bashir, Bishr and Mubashshir, all of them hypocrites, passed by the uncle of Qatada b. al-Nu’man and took away food, a sword and armour. Qatada complained to the Messenger, may Allah condescend upon him and his House, and this led Ubayriq’s sons to say that Lubaid b. Sahl was to blame. Lubaid, a believer, went out against them with a sword, and said to them, ‘Do you accuse me of theft, when you are more fitting for it than I? And you are hypocrites, you lampoon the Messenger, may Allah condescend upon him and his House, and attribute the lampoons to the Quraish.’ They placated him and turned him around, and then a man from one of their groups who was logical and eloquent went to the Messenger, may Allah condescend upon him and his House, and said, ‘Qatada had intended evil for an honourable household among us who have status and lineage, and he has accused them of theft.’ This saddened the Messenger, Allah condescend upon him and his House, and he severely censured Qatada; this in turn saddened Qatada who had fought at Badr. And so the ayat  were sent down, vindicating Qatada and declaring the debt of Ubayriq’s sons. News reached Bashir of what had been sent down about him in the Quran—for he is ‘the traitor’—and he deserted to Makkah and apostatised as a disbeliever.

And wrangle not with those who betray themselves, indeed Allah is not fond of any extreme betrayer, sinner.

(107)

And wrangle not… The address is to the Messenger, may Allah condescend upon him and his House, and this does not conflict with his faultlessness, since all prohibitions are directed towards him just as they are directed at the rest of the Muslims, and the commands pertain to him just as they pertain to others.

…with those who betray themselves,… A person who engages his soul or psyche in disobedience betrays himself, in that the soul is a trust that must be returned, and to return the trust of the psyche is to engage it in obedience, one instance after another, until finally one’s time elapses and one’s period is over.

…indeed Allah is not fond of any extreme betrayer, sinner. ‘Extreme betrayer’ is given for khawwan, the superlative of kha.in, meaning ‘betrayer’. A ‘sinner’ (athim) is one who is disobedient. The meaning of ‘not loving’ is to dislike, to find repugnant. There is nothing in between: the disobedient is disliked, the obedient is loved.

They would hide from the people, while they cannot hide from Allah; and He is with them when they spend the night on speech that is not contenting. And Allah of what they do is encompassing.

(108)

They would hide… They hide and conceal evil deeds.

…from the people,… The thieves in the account of the sons of Ubayriq concealed their deed from the people in fear of being disgraced.

…while they cannot hide from Allah;… They do not conceal their criminal deeds from Allah, glorified be He. To conceal from Allah means not to commit the act, rather than to commit the act in secret, as nothing is hidden from him, glorified be He. The term here is used for contradistinction, as in His word, ‘Thou know what is in my spirit and I know not what is in Thy spirit.’

…and He is with them… They commit their deeds while Allah the Most High is with them in the sense of surrounding them and knowing all about them. He knows their words and their deeds.

…when they spend the night… It refers to nocturnal deliberations.

…on speech that is not contenting…. Ubayriq’s sons spent the night in deliberation about what to say and rehearsing how they would say it, so as to present those words to the Messenger, may Allah condescend upon him and his House, and the Muslims.

…And Allah of what they do is encompassing. He is knowing of their words and encompasses their deeds. The meaning of ‘encompassing’ (muhit) is knowledge such that every thing is included. 

Ha, ye are those who wrangle for them over the worldly life—so who will wrangle with Allah for them on the day of resurrection? Or who will be for them an trustee?

(109)

Ha,… ‘Ha’ is given for the Arabic ha, a word of warning.

…ye are those who wrangle for them… It refers to those criminals who stole.

…over the worldly life… It is here in the world that secrets are concealed and disputes arise, in that people suppose to be true things which in reality are false.

…—so who will wrangle with Allah for them on the day of resurrection? The interrogative is for censure and criticism. It means that there is none who will wrangle on their behalf in the just presence of Allah, glorified be He, for He knows all the secrets and all the events.  

…Or who will be for them an trustee? No one will take their part and save them from the deeds they secretly committed. Here the interrogative is for the effect of denial, and the phrase means that there will be no one there to defend them. Perhaps the difference between ‘who will wrangle…’ and ‘who will be for them…’ is that to wrangle on another’s behalf does not necessitate the wrangler being a trustee (wakil), for an trustee is one who is appointed to defend him, whereas someone may wrangle for another without being asked.

Then He clarifies, glorified be He, that there is no reason to despair of Allah’s grace, and the sinner should not suppose that there is no door open to him, as the door of repentance is open:

And whoso does an evil or wrongs himself and then seeks forgiveness from Allah—He finds Allah forgiving, merciful.

(110)

And whoso does an evil… It means an instance of disobedience that affects others, like fornication or theft.

…or wrongs himself… An instance of disobedience that does not affect another, like drinking alcohol or missing the prayer. It is clear that every wrong is against oneself, and every evil is a wrong, but as they are ranged separately we have distinguished between them in this way as suggested by the context.

…and then seeks forgiveness from Allah… He seeks His forgiveness in the way that He has commanded, by repenting an making amends, if the disobedience is such that amends can be made.

…—He finds Allah forgiving, merciful. He forgives his sin and graces him with mercy and favour.

And whoso earns a sin, he but earns it for himself; and Allah is knowing, wise.

(111)

And… And the sinner should not suppose that he has harmed another but not himself, for it is the opposite, as:

…whoso earns a sin, he but earns it for himself;… Just as whatever good a person does returns to himself, so too every disobedience he commits will return to himself, as He says, ‘ye shall only be recompensed for what ye have done.’

…and Allah is knowing,… He is knowing of what the human being earns in the way of good and evil.

…wise. He is wise in His punishing and rewarding, putting all things in their proper places. No one should suppose that he can sin and then escape Allah’s justice, nor wonder why he should do good when it will have no benefit for himself. He, glorified be He, is wise, and it has been given that wisdom means putting all things in their proper places.

And whose earns a mistake or a sin and then casts it at an innocent—truly he has burdened himself a slander and a clear sin.

(112)

And whose earns a mistake or a sin… Perhaps the difference between these is that the first is committed unintentionally, whereas the second is committed deliberately. This difference only applies where the two are ranged against each other, for otherwise the word ‘mistake’ applies to every sin.

…and then casts it at an innocent… He commits a sin and then attributes it to someone who is innocent, as given in the account of the sons of Ubayriq.

…—truly he has burdened himself a slander… ‘Slander’ is given for buhtan, meaning to say of someone something that is untrue.

…and a clear sin. He has therefore burdened himself with two sins: the sin of the deed and the sin of slander. This does not contradict that which we gave about ‘mistake’, as a mistake becomes a sin when it is followed by persistence and not making amends.

In some commentaries it is given that a delegation from the Thaqif tribe came to the Messenger, may Allah condescend upon him and his House, and said, ‘O Muhammad, we have come to pay you allegiance although we will not smash our idols with our hands, and will continue as we are for a year.’ The Messenger, may Allah condescend upon him and his House, did not accept their request, and was only ready to accept Islam from them in its entirety. And so Allah, glorified be He, sent down:

And were it not for Allah’s profusion upon thee and His mercy, a group of them would surely have determined upon sending thee astray, while they send none astray but themselves, and they harm thee not a thing. Allah has sent down on thee the book and the wisdom, and has taught thee what thou would not have learned; and Allah’s profusion upon thee is magnificent.

(113)

And were it not for Allah’s profusion upon thee and His mercy,… Were it not for Allah’s endorsing him and fixing him on the valid and true.

…a group of them would surely have determined… Some of ‘those’ would have intended.

…upon sending thee astray,… By permitting for them what they wanted. And it is said that the ayah completes the account of the sons of Ubayriq, and the attempt to vindicate the thieves and slander the innocent.

…while they send none astray but themselves,… The consequences of their words return to themselves, in that they deviate from the truth and so destroy themselves. They do not deviate and destroy any other, and certainly not the Messenger, may Allah condescend upon him and his House.

The meaning of ‘were it not’ negates their effectiveness with regard to the Messenger, may Allah condescend upon him and his House, it does not negate their intention to do so. Accordingly, the meaning is ‘were it not for Allah’s profusion they would have sent thee astray’ and not ‘were it not for Allah’s profusion they would have determined.’

…and they harm thee not a thing…. They could not harm the Messenger, may Allah condescend upon him and his House, with their plots in the world as Allah was succouring him, and nor in the hereafter.

…Allah has sent down on thee… Upon the Messenger, may Allah condescend upon him and his House.

…the book and the wisdom,… That is, the knowledge of putting things in their rightful places and to measure things with their true measure. He had knowledge of things and wisdom in applying them, so how could he be sent astray in the way they intended. Only those can be sent astray who have no knowledge of things or cannot put things in their proper places.

…and has taught thee what thou would not have learned;… This means things outside the range of the Book, in that the Book is particular to the knowledge of certain matters and things, apparently.

…and Allah’s profusion upon thee is magnificent. The grace and favour of Allah upon the Messenger, may Allah condescend upon him and his House, is magnificent.

The connection between this ayah and those preceding it in the first view—that it concerns a delegation of the Thaqif—is that the two accounts concern the same reality: Allah’s protecting the Messenger, may Allah condescend upon him and his House, in the affair of the thieves and the affair of the delegation, so that in both cases he spoke not and acted not save in truth.

As the discourse has concerned conspiracies that take place in secret and which are hatched in a huddle by those who plot at night, and as such matters are bound to involve much huddling in drawing up criticism, refutation and defamation, therefore the wise Quran now deals with huddling, and that:

There is no good in much of their huddling – save whoso bids to a charity or to an honourable or to rectitude among the people.

And whoso does that reaching for Allah’s contentment – We shall soon grant him a magnificent wage.

(114)

There is no good in much of their huddling… ‘Huddling’ (najwa) means some speaking to others in secret. The mention of ‘much of’ is either to indicate particular instances, as in the instances cited there is much huddling, or to show that in many instances of huddling there is no goodness, whereas a little huddling which is necessary for everyone in that everyone has some secret which it is not necessary to divulge and proclaim, does not present a problem. The first interpretation is the clearest, and accords to the meaning of ‘huddle’ as He says, ‘Indeed the huddling of the devil…’ (al-Mujadilah [58], 11).

…—save whoso bids to a charity… It means any type of charity, such as giving wealth to the poor, endowments or beneficence.

…or to an honourable… It means a form of righteousness recognised as honourable by people, as opposed to the dishonourable (munkar) which the people dislike.

…or to rectitude among the people…. In such affairs secrecy is generally necessary.

…And whoso does that… It means huddling in secrecy in such affairs. Or it means doing one of these things.

…reaching for Allah’s contentment… That is, seeking the pleasure of Allah.

…—We shall soon… On the day of resurrection.

…grant him a magnificent wage. A wage such that no eye has seen nor an ear heard, nor even imagined in the heart of man. And the same is true of all obedience.

As the two affairs show the opposition of the two groups to the Messenger,may Allah condescend upon him and his House, in their goals, He now clarifies, glorified be He, the consequences of such opposition:

And whoso contravenes the Messenger after the guidance has become clear for him and follows other than the path of the believers—We turn him back to what he has turned to, and We burn him in hell, and how bad it is an outcome!

(115)

And whoso contravenes the Messenger… That is, whoso opposes him, may Allah condescend upon him and his House. ‘Contravenes’ is given for shaqqa, implying that each of the two sides is in a distinct and separate chasm.

…after the guidance has become clear for him… That is, after the truth has become clear for him and that the Messenger, may Allah condescend upon him and his House, speaks and acts only in truth. As for before this clarification, such contravening is excusable, in that the argument is not finalised for him. 

…and follows other than the path of the believers… It means a path other than that of the believers, which is their religion. This includes the path of contravening, although to oppose the religion amounts to contravening the Messenger, may Allah condescend upon him and his House.

…—We turn him back to what he has turned to,… That is, Allah does not come between him and his belief and his actions, not compelling him to return. The world is for examination and trial, and such compulsion would negate that. It is as He says, ‘No compulsion in the religion…’.

…and We burn him in hell,… He shall be cast into the fire. He shall be left to himself in the world and cast into hell because of it in the hereafter.

…and how bad it is an outcome.  Hell is a foul place for the guilty to head for.

In keeping with the topic of contravening the Messenger, may Allah condescend upon him and his House, He now clarifies, glorified be He, that there is no reason to despair of Allah’s mercy. Whoso repents will find that Allah is forgiving. So when a person errs, it is for him to return to Allah the Most High for Him to forgive him his sin and relent unto him:

Indeed Allah forgives not that unto Him He be partnered, and He forgives other than that for whom He wills. And whoso partners unto Allah—truly he has strayed a distant straying.

(116)

Indeed Allah forgives not that unto Him He be partnered,… It means when a person dies as a partnerist—as proven by the proofs.

…and He forgives other than that… Other than partnerism.

…for whom He wills…. If he repents or even if he does not repent—it all depends on the divine will; and His will, glorified be He, is not arbitrary, but accords to the condition of the person’s psyche or soul, his actions, the extent to which he deserves it and suchlike.

…And whoso partners unto Allah… Whoso set up a partner for Allah.

…—truly he has strayed a distant straying. He has strayed far from the path of the truth.

Then He explains, glorified be He, the reason for the deviation of the partnerists:

They call upon nothing other than He but females, and they call on nothing but a rejected devil.

(117)

They call upon nothing… They call upon and worship none.

…other than He… Other than Allah, glorified be He.

…but females,… They used to worship al-Lat, al-‘Izya, Munat, Isaf, Na.ila and each tribe had its idol which they worshipped, and every idol was given a feminine name, so that they were called the ‘female of the Quraish’, ‘the female of the Tamim’ and so on. And occasionally the devil would speak to them through them. And some too would worship the angels saying that they were Allah’s daughters, as he relates about them: ‘And they put the angels who are the slaves of the Compassionate as female (idols).’ 

…and they call on nothing but a rejected devil. Their worshipping of the idols was at once the worship of the devil, in that they were the devil’s work and his command—so there is no place to wonder how they could do both.

Allah cursed him, and he said: ‘I shall surely take from Thy servants a definite portion.

(118)

Allah cursed him,… It means that He cast him away from His mercy and closeness. Thus they were worshipping and obeying one rejected from the mercy of Allah, glorified be He.

…and he said:… The devil said to Allah, when he was rejected.

…‘I shall surely take from Thy slaves a definite portion.The devil said that he would take a clear portion of Allah’s creatures, meaning that he would deviate them and lead them astray and lure them away from faith and virtuous deeds. The devil knew this when Allah told him, ‘And whoso follows thee of them…’ and, ‘I shall surely fill hell with thee and whoso follows thee.’

‘And I shall surely send them astray, and I shall surely make them yearn, and I shall surely bid them so that they shall surely cut the ears, and I shall surely bid them so that they shall surely transform the creation of Allah.’

And whoso takes the devil as a patron instead of Allah – truly he has lost with a clear losing.

(119)

‘And I shall surely send them astray,… From the path of guidance. This is either conjunctive to the ‘I shall surely take…’ of the pervious ayah, or the meaning of ‘I shall surely take’ is that he shall choose a group from among His servants and send them astray. 

…and I shall surely make them yearn,… He shall make them long to remain in the world and love leadership and wealth, which will lead them to be disobedient.

…and I shall surely bid them… Through the medium of satanic ‘whisperings’ (waswas) and casting ideas into the hearts.

…so that they shall surely cut the ears,… The partnerists would cut the ears of cattle to show that they were not to be used for riding or eating and that their milk was not to be drunk. This was banned as it is mutilation, and the Messenger, may Allah condescend upon him and his House, has said, ‘There should be no mutilation, even of a voracious dog.’ Similarly, such banning was an innovation and a forbidden law. 

…and I shall surely bid them so that they shall surely transform the creation of Allah.’  It means forbidden transformations, such as the castrating of slaves, gouging the eyes of riding animals and suchlike. And from this ayah it is deduced that all transformations in the creation are forbidden save those transformations undertaken in accordance to a proof (dalil).

Having explained some of the types of the devil’s commands that were current in those times and have remained so until our own times, He sets them, glorified be He, into a general framework so as to bring the general ruling which applies to each of its parts, in His word:

…And whoso takes the devil as a patron… Undertaking his affairs and obeying his commands.

…instead of Allah… This is explanatory, and does not imply that it is possible to take both the devil and Allah, glorified be He.

…—truly he has lost with a clear losing. His loss is obvious and manifest.

He promises them and makes them yearn, and the devil promises not save in deception.

(120)

He promises them… The devil promises his associates success and felicity if they follow him.

…and makes them yearn,… False, invalid hopes and cravings, so as to lead them to depend on the world and turn away from the hereafter, and to prefer the desires over virtuous deeds.

…and the devil promises not save deceptively. All of his promises amount to deception and falsehoods by which he deceives the simple-minded and the inadvertent. 

Those, their abode is hell, and from it they find no quarter.

(121)

Those,… Those who take the devil as their patron and their succourer.

…their abode… The place to which they return and in which they will abide.

…is hell, and from it they find no quarter. They find no relief, no way of fleeing.

This has concerned those who take the devil as their patron, but now the thread takes up the issue of those who take the Compassionate as their patron:

And those who believe and do the virtuous deeds, We shall enter them in gardens, rivers flowing beneath them, eternal in them, forever, a real promise from Allah; and who is more truthful than Allah in speech?

(122)

And those who believe… That is, in the sense of believing in all that is demanded by faith, meaning the principles of religion (usul al-din).

…and do the virtuous deeds,… They perform the beautiful works.

…We shall enter them,… ‘Shall’ is given for sa, as opposed to sawfa. Some say that these two have the same meaning, while others say that sa indicates the near future, and that the use of the two words in relation to the garden is on the basis of two considerations: where the consideration is that everything in the future is near, the word sa is used, whereas where the consideration is that the intermediary period in purgatory (barzakh) is lengthy, it is the word sawfa that is used.

…in gardens… ‘Gardens’ is given for jannat, plural of jinnah, from janna meaning to conceal. The name comes about because the gardens are concealed by trees.

…rivers flowing beneath them,… Rivers flow under the trees and villas of the garden.

…eternal in them, forever,... There is no termination and no decay.

…a real promise from Allah;… Allah makes this promise and His promise is real, without contradiction and without falsehood.

…and who is more truthful than Allah in speech? He is the most truthful of speakers, in being informed and in informing. The interrogative is to indicate negation, so that the meaning is that there is none more truthful than Allah, glorified be He. However truthful a person may be, there are things of which he has no knowledge and there are things of which he has not the full measure, and so he errs. But Allah is pure and above all of that, glorified be He.

Here the thread turns to clarify a general truism about deeds and their reward, after having explained what accrues to the partnerist and what accrues to the believer. So he says, glorified be He:

It is not by your wishes and not by the wishes of the book-folk—whoso does evil is requited for it, and he finds for himself instead of Allah no patron and no succourer.

(123)

It is not… The issue of reward and punishment, felicity and loss is not.

…by your wishes… No one attains to goodness merely by wishing for it when his actions contradict his wishes. The address is to the Muslims.

…and not by the wishes of the book-folk…  In Majma’ we have it that the Muslims were competing with the book-folk in causes for pride (tafakhur); the book-folk were saying that their Prophet was before the Muslims’ Prophet and their book was before the book of the Muslims, and that they were nearer to Allah than them. The Muslims said that their Prophet was the Seal of the Prophets, and that their book made other books redundant, and that their religion was Islam. And so the ayah came down. Then the book-folk said that they were equal, and so Allah sent down the following ayah ‘And whoso performs the virtuous deeds…’, and the Muslims rejoiced.

…—whoso does evil is requited for it,… That which is useful before Allah are the virtuous acts, and relationships and suchlike are only beneficial to the extent that they affect a person’s deeds—as the Messenger, Allah condescend upon him and his House, has said: ‘a man is preserved in his son.’ Therefore, whoever acts out an evil will be recompensed for that evil.

…and he finds for himself… That is, whoso acts out an evil cannot find.

…instead of Allah… Other than Allah, glorified be He.

…no patron and no succourer. There is no one to oversee his affairs and no one to succour him.

As it could be supposed that the book-folk were not covered by the pervious ayah, in that they were not necessarily doing deeds that were obviously evil, He now gives the reminder that among the conditions for the acceptance of good deeds is full faith:

And whoso performs of the virtuous deeds – male or female – while a believer: those shall enter the garden, and they shall not be wronged a jot.

(124)

And whoso performs of the virtuous deeds… It means some of the virtuous deeds, as it is not possible to perform all of them.

…—male or female—… Perhaps this provision is to indicate universality, and to remove the suspicion remaining from the period of ignorance that it was for men to consume the fruits of the good deeds of women, along with the denial of women’s rights.

…while a believer,… In the fullness of this word, without believing in some of the principles of faith and disbelieving in others.

…those… That is, those believers who perform the virtuous deeds.

…shall enter the garden, and they shall not be wronged a jot. It means that they shall not be wronged in the slightest, not even to the extent of a jot. ‘Jot’ is given for naqir, meaning a tiny depression upon the back of a date-stone from which the shoot issues.

He then clarifies, glorified be He, the benefits of faith, and that it is better than all paths and directions:

And who is more beautiful in religion than him who submits his face to Allah while he is a worker of beauty, and follows the community of Ibrahim, upward—Allah took Ibrahim as a beloved.

(125)

And who is more beautiful in religion… ‘Religion’ is given for din, which is the path a person travels in life so as to attain his salvation. The interrogative is for negation, so that the meaning is that no one’s path is better.

…than him who submits… ‘Submits’ is given for aslama.

…his face to Allah… ‘Face’ (wajh) means his soul or essence. The word is used as the submission of a person’s face denotes the submission of his soul. ‘Submitting the face to Allah’ means believing in Allah, glorified be He, by acknowledging Him and submitting to Him.

…while he is a worker of beauty,… He works beauty in following the commands and prohibitions, and truly no one is more beautiful in religion than such a person, since faith is to acknowledge the greatest reality, while working beauty is to carry out what is most beneficial, and that which is instituted by the wise God is more beautiful than what is instituted by man the ignorant, the fickle and foolish. 

…and follows the community of Ibrahim,… It means that he follows his path.

…upward… ‘Upward’ is given for hanif, meaning that Ibrahim, bliss be upon him, was upright in the path of belief and action, and so the command is to belief, beautiful deeds and following the valid path. The necessity of following Ibrahim, bliss be upon him, is often repeated in the book and the sunnah, since his religion was not penetrated by distortions in the way that the two books of Musa and ‘Ịsa, bliss be upon him, were penetrated. Moreover, Musa, bliss be upon him, and ‘Ịsa, bliss be upon him, came after Ibrahim, bliss be upon him, who was as the father of the ‘Arab Muslims, and so the mention of him, bliss be upon him, was to encourage them to believe, in that it was the path of their grandfather, as He says, ‘…the community of your father, Ibrahim.’

—and Allah took Ibrahim as a beloved. By his obedience to Allah, Ibrahim, bliss be upon him, became ‘Allah’s beloved’ (khalilullah). Accordingly, what was preventing the people from following the path of Ibrahim so as to attain to the love of Allah and His satisfaction?

Finally, a part of working beauty is to follow the path of the God to whom belong all things, and who is of all things aware:

And Allah’s is that in the heavens and that in the earth; and Allah is over all things embracing.

(126)

And Allah’s is that in the heavens and that in the earth;… He is the Owner of all things, and so when a person wants to follow a path in order to benefit, he should follow the path of Him to whom all benefits belong.

…and Allah is over all things embracing. His knowledge embraces and encompasses all things and nothing escapes Him, and likewise His power is embracing and encompassing of all things.

His word above was ‘Indeed We sent down the book upon thee in truth, that thou judge among the people as Allah has shown thee’ and the ayat that followed dealt with this issue, as well as some digression. Now the thread clarifies some of the laws concerning women, for that is a part of judging among the people as he was shown by Allah, glorified be He: 

And they seek clarification of thee concerning women. Say: ‘Allah will clarify for ye about them, and what is recited to ye in the book about the orphans of women (such as ye give not what is written for them while ye reach to marry them) and about the enfeebled – the children, and that ye establish for the orphans in fairness.’ And what good ye do – indeed Allah is of it knowing.

(127)

And they seek clarification of thee… The address is to the Messenger, may Allah condescend upon him and his House.

…concerning women…. ‘Seeking clarification’ is given for istifta, meaning that they requested clarification (a fatwa) about a legal problem. The Messenger, may Allah condescend upon him and his House, was asked about the obligations due to them and from them, and the mode of associating with them.

…Say: ‘Allah will clarify for ye about them,… That is, about women. This attributing the reply to Allah, glorified be He, is to emphasise that legal rulings are only valid when they issue from Allah, glorified be He, and that it is not for others to issue them. Similar questions that do not touch upon the laws receive replies without being attributed to Allah in this way, like ‘They ask thee concerning the spirit. Say, ‘The spirit is of my Master’s affairs’ and ‘They ask thee what they should dispense…’ and ‘They ask thee of the new moons…’ and so forth.

…and what is recited to ye in the book… It is a conjunct going back to ‘Allah clarifies for ye…’. It means that the legal clarification concerns that which is given in this ayah as well as that which is given elsewhere in the Quran, for it was given at the beginning of this surah that ‘…And if ye fear that ye not be fair with the orphans, then marry what women are wholesome for ye,’ and ‘And give the orphans their property, and substitute not the foul for the wholesome, and consume not their property unto your property.’  The result is that the clarification of the issues concerning women is in regard to what now comes and to that which is already given.

…about the orphans of women,… It means young orphan girls.

…(such as ye give not what is written for them… It means their rights. During the period of ignorance men would not give female orphans their right. So His word, ‘about the orphans ’ relates to ‘what is recited to ye’ , meaning that the legal clarification is taken from Allah in relation to the matter of women and about that which was previously revealed concerning female orphans who were deprived of their dowers.

…while ye reach to marry them)… It refers to their wishing to marry them so as to consume their wealth. The term ‘what is recited to ye’ indicates consistency, and not the future tense.

…and about… And that which is recited to ye concerning:

…the enfeebled—the children;… It means that which was given about the matter of orphans, namely ‘And give the orphans their property,…’  for this is general and includes female orphans. 

…and that… And that which was given to the effect that:

…ye establish for the orphans in fairness’…. That is, justice, as was given in His word, ‘…And if ye fear that ye not be fair with the orphans,…’. Accordingly, from ‘…and what is recited to ye’ until ‘…in fairness’ is a single sentence, conjunctive to ‘Allah’. Therefore, the meaning is that ‘Allah clarifies the legality for ye and that which has been given in the Quran about the orphans clarifies for ye.’ This is then summed up by Allah, glorified be He, in His word:

…And what good ye do… The address is to the believers, and refers to justice and benevolence towards women.

…—indeed Allah is of it knowing. He knows it and shall recompense it with the beautiful reward.

Here the thread turns to a part of the rules concerning women, in conformity to His word, ‘Say: Allah will clarify for ye about them…’. It is the ruling concerning the fear of recalcitrance (nushuz). The case came up concerning the daughter of one Muhammad b. Salma who was with Rafi’ b. Khadij and was advancing in age, while he had another wife who was young. So he divorced the older wife, until when there was only a little of the ‘iddah period left he asked her whether she wanted him to return to her, provided she sacrificed her interests, or leave her. She said that she wanted him to return to her, and she would bear with the necessary sacrifices. And then this ayah was sent down:

And if a woman fears from her husband recalcitrance or desertion, so there is no stain on the two that they compromise between themselves some compromise. Reconciliation is better, while the souls present meanness. And if ye work beauty and be guardful—indeed Allah of what ye do is informed.

(128)

And if a woman fears from her husband recalcitrance… ‘Recalcitrance’ iis given for nushuz, meaning that he does not behave with her with the behaviour of man towards his wife, but treats her as if he is superior to her.

…or desertion,… That is, that he turns away from her in general, or through divorce, and she fears that he will do that due to the appearance of the indications.

…so there is no stain on the two… That is, on the couple.

…that they compromise between themselves some compromise. It means that they make some permitted compromise, in that the wife gives up some of her rights so that the marriage remains in force and the separation does not take place, and suchlike.

…Reconciliation is better,… Reconciliation, so that the marriage and harmonious relations between them remain, is better than separation and divorce.

…while the souls present meanness…. ‘Meanness’ is given for al-shuhh, meaning miserliness and the refusal to forego some of the rights. It means that such miserliness becomes mixed with the soul, with the effect that the wife is not ready to forego some of her rights for the preservation of the union, and the husband is not prepared to treat her with proper behaviour so that the matter does not lead to divorce.

…And if ye work beauty… It is an encouragement for each of the two bands to treat the other in the best manner.

…and be guardful… By not doing anything that will result in Allah’s anger. Generally in such cases one of the two bands commits an act that is forbidden, giving rise to the conflict between them.  

…—indeed Allah of what ye do is informed. And accordingly He requites and recompenses. This does not mean that if we do not work beauty Allah is not informed of it, but rather the phrase is in order to promote and encourage.

He then mentions, glorified be He, the law of multiple-wives, and that it is not possible to treat them evenly in love and affection. So when the heart inclines in a particular direction, still it is necessary to maintain justice between the wives, so that none of them remain as if divorced:

And never will ye be able to be just between women, though ye be eager. So incline not towards every inclination, that ye leave them as suspended. And if ye work rectitude and be guardful—indeed Allah is forgiving, merciful.

(129)

And never will ye be able to be just between women,… The address is to men in general, and means that they will never ever be able to totally just in love and affection, for these are not things that are n men’s hands. It is unavoidable that some women are closer to a man’s heart than others.

…though ye be eager…. That is, however much men may desire for their hearts to feel the same way about different women.

…So incline not towards every inclination,… That is, towards one of the wives, to the detriment of the others.

…that ye leave them as suspended…. ‘Suspended’ is given mu’allaqah, meaning that she has neither the comport of having a husband and nor the comfort of being without a husband, but is in hardship and distress. Although men are unable to be just and maintain a parity in their hearts, yet they are able not to totally incline towards any one of them. It is narrated from the Messenger, may Allah condescend upon him and his House, that he used to share things between his wives, and would pray, ‘O Allah, this is how I divide among those I possess, so do not make me incline to that which I possess not but which Thou possess.’

And it is narrated that Imam al-Sadiq, bliss be upon him, was asked about the reconciliation of this ayah with the ayah  ‘So if ye fear that ye cannot be just, then one…’ He said, ‘As for “if ye fear that ye cannot be just,…”, it means in (providing) expenses, while as for His word, “…and never will ye be able to be just…”, it means in affection, for no one is able to be just to two women in affection.’

…And if ye work rectitude… It means in affecting parity and sharing and providing in the way that these two are obligatory.

…and be guardful… By abstaining from the prohibitions, which is to say by refraining from a single, total  inclination in accordance to Allah’s interdiction.

…—indeed Allah is forgiving,… He will forgive the sins that are committed.

…merciful. He will be merciful by His grace and shall bestow His profusion.

And if the two divide, Allah will enrich them from His expanse, and Allah is expansive, wise.

(130)

And if the two divide,...It means that because the couple cannot be reconciled, due to the wife seeking all her rights and the husband inclining totally towards another wife, she has the choice between divorce and foregoing some of her rights, and she chooses divorce and they separate, and the separation is finalised.

…Allah will enrich them from His expanse,… He, glorified be He, will enrich both of them from the expanse of His profusion and mercy. The door of His mercy is not confined to either of the two bands; rather the man is made needless of the wife by another woman and another relationship, while the woman is made needless of the man by another man and by the accompanying happiness and satisfaction. The phrase comes to repair the broken hearts of the two bands, as it is clear that both bands are distressed and broken-hearted by the separation, even if that one was the cause of the separation.

…and Allah is expansive,… In His profusion.

…wise. He is wise in His commands and interdictions, and in what He does and what He wants. Ascribing ‘expansiveness’ (sa’at) unto Him is metaphorical and alludes to the expansiveness of His profusion.

He then declares, glorified be He, that He is in possession of all things, and so is able to enrich the couple from His profusion:

And Allah’s is that in the heavens and that in the earth; and We definitely  recommended to those given the book before ye, and to yourselves, ‘Be guardful of Allah; and if ye disbelieve—Allah’s is that in the heavens and that in the earth, and Allah is rich, lauded.’

(131)

And Allah’s is that in the heavens and that in the earth;… It has already been given that what is meant by ‘that in’ (ma fi) includes both the vessel and that which it contains. 

…and We definitely recommended to those given the book… That is, to the Jews and the Christians and the Zoroastrians and others.

…before ye,… This is an indication that this recommendation has ever been a constant.

…and to yourselves,… To the Muslims.

…‘Be guardful of Allah;… That is, fear His punishments, and act in accordance to His commands and interdictions.

…and if ye disbelieve… That is, disbelief in terms of faith by denying the principles, or disbelief in terms of the requisites (furu’) by disobedience.

…—Allah’s is that in the heavens and that in the earth,… The sense is that He is not harmed by disbelief and not benefited by belief and good deeds.

…and Allah is rich,… He is no need of our believing in Him or of our deeds, rather we are in need of that.

…lauded. It means that He necessitates being praised by His beautiful works.

He now emphasises, glorified be He, His richness and the fact that all things are His, in His word:

And Allah’s is that in the heavens and that in the earth, and Allah suffices as an trustee.

(132)

And Allah’s is that in the heavens and that in the earth,… None of it belongs to anyone else. When He cuts His mercy off from us there is no possibility that we will obtain what we desire through any other.

…and Allah suffices as an trustee. He is the most beautiful trustee and the most sufficient trustee. We have no need of any other trustee when we make Him the trustee of our affairs. Regarding the three-fold repetition in these ayat it is said that the first indicates that He has no need of our obedience, in that obedience towards the possessor is obligatory on the part of the possessed; while the second shows that the created are in need of Him while He is absolute in His deserving praise, for this is only true of one who possesses all things; and that the third indicates the sufficiency of His agency, in absolute terms, which again is only true of one who possesses all things.

If He wills, He will remove ye, O ye the people, and bring others. And Allah of that is in power.

(133)

If He wills, He will remove ye, O ye the people,… He has no need of us, and His power over us includes that of annihilating us and making us exist. If He wills He will do away with us, annihilate us, destroy us. 

…and bring others…. Another human species created from nothing.

…And Allah of that is in power. He is able to do that.

The hypocrites followed the Messenger, may Allah condescend upon him and his House, for the spoils and to preserve their worldly interests, and since it has been given that everything in the heavens and the earth belongs to Allah, He reminds them that obedience leads to the good of the world and of the hereafter—so why do they not get themselves to move along in its path:

Whoso wishes the reward of the world—alongside Allah is the reward of the world and the hereafter. And Allah is hearing, observing.

(134)

Whoso wishes the reward of the world… ‘Reward’ is the meaning of thawab, from thaba meaning ‘return’. Thawab is the recompense of an action a person performs, which returns to him. Here it means the world’s benefits.

…—alongside Allah is the reward of the world and the hereafter. … Because He possesses it all and control of fit all is in His hands.

…And Allah is hearing,… Of speech.

…observing. Of deeds.

Having given that the rewards of the heavens and the earth are His to distribute, He follows this, glorified be He, by commanding to justice, so as to attain both worlds. His command to justice was previously given in His word, ‘…when ye arbitrate among the people, that ye arbitrate with justice.’ Here He says:

O ye who believe, be upholders of fairness, witnesses for Allah even against yourselves or the parents and relatives. If he is rich or poor – Allah is in priority over both, so follow not the desires, lest ye swerve. So if ye turn back or turn away, indeed Allah of what ye do is informed.

(135)

O ye who believe,… It has been given that this address is particular to the believers because it is they who will benefit and it is they who will listen. Otherwise the ruling it delivers is universal and is applicable to everyone.

…be upholders of fairness,… ‘Upholders’ is given for qawwamin, the plural of qawwam, meaning a person exemplary in standing or upstanding. ‘Fairness’ is given for qist, meaning ‘justice’ (‘adl). The meaning of the command is that we are to be constant in implementing justice, to the extent that it becomes our habit to be just in words and in deeds. Perhaps the phrase alludes to a common habit among people, that they always swerve and deviate from justice with the passing of time, and this we see in the cases of many rulers who are unstained by tyranny at the beginning of their reigns, but then with the passing of time swerve and deviate.

…witnesses for Allah even against yourselves… They give testimony in truth, because it is Allah’s command and to acquire His satisfaction. And they do this even when it is detrimental to themselves and in favour of another.

…or the parents and relatives,… When the truth is detrimental to the parents or relatives and beneficial to others, still they do not swerve from the truth. We are not to deviate from the truth for our own whims, and not in consideration for our parents, and nor for our relatives. 

…If he… The person in whose favour or against whom the testimony is given.

…is rich or poor – … We are neither to testify in favour of the rich nor in favour of the poor, out of sympathy for them.

…Allah is in priority over both,… He, glorified be He, is more deserving to be considered than the rich and the poor and all other people. And He, glorified be He, has commanded that we testify truthfully and so we must observe His command, rather than consider the rich on account of his wealth, or the poor out of sympathy.

…so follow not the desires,… The desires of the spirit in an oppressive ruling.

…lest ye swerve…. We are not to let our desires lead us into swerving from the truth.

…So if ye turn back,… It means deviate from the truth. The believers are not to forsake the truth when testifying.

…or turn away,… From the truth. Perhaps the difference between these is that the former is a slight deviation, whereas the latter is total.

…indeed Allah of what ye do is informed. Aware of deviation and turning back, He recompenses accordingly, just as He is aware of those who are upholders of justice.

Having explained the necessity of upholding justice, He now explains, glorified be He, the necessity of genuine belief from the heart, since to uphold justice is only possible when such belief is established in the heart:

O ye who believe, believe in Allah and His Messenger and the book that is sent down upon His Messenger and the book that was sent down beforehand. And whoso disbelieves in Allah and His angels and His books and His Messengers and the last day, has truly strayed a distant straying.

(136)

O ye who believe,… The address is to all those who profess that there is no god but Allah, and that Muhammad is Allah’s Messenger. It is clear that many of those were believers only in name.

…believe… That is, with a firm, deep belief that is both intellectual and held in the heart.

…in Allah and His Messenger… Muhammad, mayAllah condescend upon him and his House.

…and the book that is sent down upon His Messenger… The Sacred Quran.

…and the book that was sent down beforehand. … It means the book in the special sense that includes all the books that He sent down, as it is a condition of belief that we believe in all His books.  

…And whoso disbelieves in Allah and His angels… By denying them, or opposing them or giving them a place less than that which they deserve.

…and His books and His Messengers… Even by denying one book or one Messenger.

…and the last day,… By denying or doubting the hereafter.

…has truly strayed a distant straying. From the truth. They are like one who strays off the path and then becomes distant from it, as opposed to one who commits a sin, for he strays without becoming distant from the path.

Having explained the necessity of genuine faith, He now explains, glorified be He, the condition of those who only believe superficially, for which reason they incline in whatever direction is strong. When Islam is strong they believe, and when Islam is weak they disbelieve, and in this way they alternate between faith and disbelief until they die as disbelievers, due to the prevalence of the psychological conditions of disbelief within them. He says:

Indeed those who believe and then disbelieve and then believe and then disbelieve and then increase in disbelief, Allah will not be forgiving them, and He guides them not to a path.

(137)

Indeed those who believe and then disbelieve… Their disbelief is either in words or in the heart. Many of those who come to faith come to it superficially, and as soon as a strong wind blows they disbelieve at heart, even though apparently they remain believers.

…and then believe and then disbelieve… This is given in example, for otherwise there is nothing particular about the number of times they do this—it could be two, it could be four, it could be six or whatever.

…and then increase in disbelief,… Their hearts become sealed with disbelief, and so they do not believe.

…Allah is not to forgive them,… It is because they remained disbelievers, as He says, ‘…indeed Allah forgives not that unto Him He be partnered.’

…and He guides them not to a path. The path to the garden and relief, as He says, glorified be He, ‘…and He guides them not to a path, save the path to hell.’  Perhaps the meaning is that He deserts them in the world and withdraws from them His profusion, as a consequence of their disbelief, and does not guide them to the truth after their alternating between faith and disbelief.

Give glad tidings to the hypocrites, that theirs is a painful chastisement;

(138)

Give glad tidings… The Messenger, may Allah condescend upon him and his House, is addressed here, for he was to give the tidings.

…to the hypocrites,… Those who profess Islam while maintaining disbelief within, as opposed to His earlier, ‘O ye who believe, believe…’. The term ‘glad tidings’ here is metaphorical, a form of mockery. 

…that theirs is a painful chastisement; Painful for their bodies and their souls. This perhaps signifies that the previous ayah was to explain something about the hypocrites, and that the meaning of disbelief there is disbelief at heart which alternates between compliance and rejection, while preserving the outward appearance of faith.

On the subject of hypocrisy (nifaq), He now mentions, glorified be He, the clearest distinguishing marks of the hypocrite, saying:

Such as take the disbelievers as friends instead of the believers. Are they reaching for grandeur among them? Indeed the grandeur is Allah’s entirely.

(139)

Such as take the disbelievers as friends… As friends and intimates held in the depths of their hearts. 

…instead of the believers…. They do not take the believers as their friends. Their relationships with them are merely superficial so as to live safely, while their hearts are with the disbelievers along with their inclinations.  

…Are they reaching for… That is, seeking.

…grandeur… Worldly grandeur. Hypocrites generally enter into hypocrisy to preserve their world, their prestige and grandeur (‘izzat) which they suppose they will find under the auspices of disbelief and by befriending the disbelievers.

…among them?… Among the disbelievers.

…Indeed the grandeur is Allah’s entirely. The world and everything in it is in His hands. Had they genuinely believed, they would have had grandeur that would not be attained by the hypocrites, as their worldly lives would flourish to the extent of their prestige among the believers, whereas the hypocrite is despised with no prestige among the body of believers.

Now He mentions, glorified be He, another characteristic of the hypocrites, for they would sit with the book-folk, who would mock the Quran and the Messenger, while the hypocrites would sit and say nothing, as their hearts were in agreement with what was being said. The believers on the other hand—those of them from the book-folk—would answer them then and there. This is a general characteristic of hypocrites in every age:

And definitely sent down upon ye in the book is that when ye hear Allah’s signs being disbelieved and mocked: sit not with them until they immerse into another talk. Then ye would be as them. Indeed Allah gathers the hypocrites and the disbelievers into hell, all-together.

(140)

And definitely sent down upon ye in the book… In the Quran, in Surah al-An’am (6), where He says, ‘And when thou see those who immerse into Our signs, turn away from them until they immerse into another account.’

…is that when ye hear… When the Muslims hear.

…Allah’s signs being disbelieved and mocked,… The difference between these is clear, for to disbelieve in them is to reject them, while to mock them is to make fun of them.

…sit not with them… Rather we must stand and go.

…until they immerse into another talk…. To immerse (khawd), is to enter like immersing into water. ‘Until’ (hatta) is to show the objective, not a part of the meaning. The sense is that we are allowed to sit with them when they are immersed in an account or conversation that is not disbelief in the ayat  and not mockery of them.

…Then ye… The Muslims, when sitting with the disbelievers while they reject and mock.

…would be as them. That is, when we do not criticise them though able to do so. Whoso is happy with a tribe at heart or in appearance—he is one of them.

…Indeed Allah gathers the hypocrites… Such as are disbelievers within.

…and the disbelievers… Such as manifest their disbelief.

…into hell, together. That is because both are disbelievers, even though the laws of Islam are apparently applicable to the hypocrite.

He then describes, glorified be He, the hypocrites by another clear sign that is true of them in every place and every time:

Those who are in expectancy over ye – if yours is a victory from Allah, they say, ‘Were we not with ye?’ And if for the disbelievers is some portion, they say, ‘Had we not the better of ye, and did we not defend ye from the believers?’ So Allah will judge between ye on the day of resurrection; and Allah never puts for the disbelievers a path against the believers.

(141)

Those who are in expectancy over ye –…. Being in expectancy over the Muslims (tarabbus bihim) means that they constantly keep an eye on the Muslims’ affairs and their conditions.

…if yours is a victory from Allah,… Victory and glory and spoils.

…they say,… The hypocrites say.

…‘Were we not with ye?’… They say that they were believers and had fought and had prayed and had acted under the banner of Islam. In doing so they sought to defend their worldly interests as equals among the believers in prestige and in the receipt of spoils.

…And if for the disbelievers is some portion,… Whenever the disbelievers make some advance, or the Muslims find themselves restricted.

…they say,… The hypocrites say to the disbelievers who have the portion.

…‘Had we not the better of ye,… Did we not have dominion over ye and guide you as to your best interests.

…and did we not defend ye from the believers?’… That is, from the severity of the believers, by guiding them in the positions of jeopardy, and by putting dread of them into the hearts of the believers. And they say that the disbelievers only got what they got through them.

…So Allah will judge between ye… The Muslims will be judged as to which among them is sincere and which of them is a hypocrite.

…on the day of resurrection;… That is when the Muslims will be categorised and each will receive His recompense. But the Muslims should not imagine that the hypocrites are able to use their hypocrisy to create a breach among them, for the disbeliever will never overcome the believer—not in argument and not in other than that—for as long as the believers remain bound to the conditions of faith, in belief and in action. 

…and Allah never puts for the disbelievers a path against the believers. Yes, but when the believers depart from the conditions of faith in belief or in action, there becomes for the disbelievers a path. And we see in the development of history that the disbelievers have never got the better of the Muslims except when they have departed from the obedience of Allah and His Messenger, like in the battle of Uhad when the archers deserted their places. This does not deny that some disbelieving individuals will overcome some believing individuals, as ‘never puts’ indicates a general fact of nature like other such terms.

As He, glorified be He, has given that the hypocrites hover between the believers and the disbelievers seeking to please both and to secure a happy life whichever way fortune flows, He now explains that their double-crossing does not deceive Allah, glorified be He:

Indeed the hypocrites double-cross Allah while He is their double-crosser. And when they stand for the prayer they stand as laggards, showing the people, and they recall not Allah save a little.

(142)

Indeed the hypocrites double-cross Allah,… They manifested belief so as to preserve their wealth, their lives and their interests, all the while they were in reality disbelievers.

…while He is their double-crosser.… It refers to His binding them to the laws of Islam while in the world, and recompensing them as disbelievers in the hereafter.

…And… And among the qualities of their hypocrisy is that:

…when they stand for the prayer they stand as laggards,… They stand as if weighed down, for they are not committed to the prayer so as to stand for it with joy and enthusiasm, like the believers stand for it.

…showing the people,… The principle behind their worship is that they want to maintain an appearance and show to the believers that they are Muslims. Their prayer is not for the sake of Allah, and so when they are able to abandon it they abandon it.

…and they recall not Allah save a little. They only remember Him in dire and distressing circumstances, as He says, ‘…when they mount a ship they call Allah sincerely.’ The believers, by contrast, are committed to Allah and remember Him always.

Wavering between that, not towards those and not towards those. And whomso Allah sends astray, thou will not find for him a path.

(143)

Wavering… It is put for mudhbadh, meaning that they return from one to the other.

…between that,… They move from one section of the society to the other, from the believer to the disbeliever.

…not towards those… Not towards the believers. They are not wholly with them.

…and not towards those. … Not towards the disbelievers. ‘Towards’ (ila) is given in consideration of the fact that whoever is with a people will settle in that people and his movement and settlement will be with them, whereas the hypocrite is in the middle and his movements do not come to an end with either of them.    

…And whomso Allah sends astray,… His sending them astray is by withdrawing from them His particular grace, after having shown them the way and their not following it. And the meaning of Allah’s sending astray has been given.

…thou find not for him a path. It means a path unto the truth, for his heart bears what he has earned in the way of the evils and turning away from belief in Allah and in the virtuous deeds.

O ye who believe, take not the disbelievers as patrons instead of the believers. Wish ye to put for Allah against ye a clear authority?

(144)

O ye who believe, take not the disbelievers as patrons… As helpers and intimates guiding your interests.

…instead of the believers.… Giving the place of the believers to the disbelievers.

…Wish ye to put for Allah against ye a clear authority?  ‘Authority’ (sultan) means proof, and the sense is that He shall make an exemplary punishment of them for their deviation from the path of truth towards the path of the disbelievers. It is the hypocrites who take the disbelievers as friends, so the believers are not to be like them, or otherwise the proof will be finalised and the punishment valid, for it shall follow upon the clarification and the warning. The interrogative, here, is for denial, meaning that the believers are not to put for Allah against themselves an authority. 

Indeed the hypocrites are at the lowest level of the fire; and thou find for them no succourer;

(145)

Indeed the hypocrites are at the lowest level of the fire;… They are at the bottom, most severe level of hell. That is because the hypocrite is worse than the disbeliever, for he is at once a disbeliever while he is also among the Muslims and aware of their intimacies and in accord with the enemy against them. In another ayah He has said, glorified be He, about the hypocrites, ‘They are the enemy, so beware of them…’ indicating exclusivity, as if they are the only enemy.

Perhaps the reason for accepting the hypocrite after knowing his inner condition is the hope that his hypocrisy will decline, and that were this matter given to human hands many of the believers would be taken for hypocrites.

…and thou find for them no succourer;  Even the Messenger, may Allah condescend upon him and his House, would not be able to find any deliverance for the hypocrites to save them from the severity of Allah and His punishments.

Save those who repent and rectify and hold firm to Allah and purify their religion for Allah. So those are with the believers, and Allah will soon bring the believers to a magnificent wage.

(146)

Save those who repent… That is, they renounce and repent their hypocrisy.

…and rectify… They reform their intentions and deeds like the rest of the believers.

…and hold firm to Allah and purify their religion for Allah…. Giving up their ties to His enemies they make their path sincerely the path of Allah, rather than as the hypocrites do, sometimes of the path of Allah, glorified be He, and for Him, and sometimes on the path of idols.

…So those are with the believers,… In the world and the hereafter.

…and Allah will soon… In the hereafter.

…bring the believers to a magnificent wage. Permanent delights and joys that do not fade and do not wither.

As He has given, glorified be He, that the hypocrites are at the lowest level, He explains that He does not need to chastise anyone, but that it is the consequence of their own works, and so they had better transform their works:

Why does Allah chastise ye? If ye are thankful and believe—Allah is thankful, knowing.

(147)

Why does Allah chastise ye?  The interrogative is for denial, meaning that Allah has no need to chastise, as He is not benefited by it, just as He would not be harmed if He were not to chastise.

…If ye are thankful… For His blessings.

…and believe… With a valid belief.

…—Allah is thankful,… He is grateful to those who thank Him. The meaning of Him being thankful is that He acts as the grateful acts in giving a warm reception to those who thank Him.

…knowing. He knows all about us and our actions, and nothing of that escapes Him, glorified be He.

Given that the previous discourse concerned hypocrisy which is an evil, it is likely that people will err about it, for which reason we see that some people often accuse others of being hypocrites, and so Allah, glory be His, clarifies that it is not permissible for a person to manifestly say evil things about another, unless he has been openly wronged, when it is permissible for him to openly announce his being wronged. No one has the right to manifest the private matters of others, even when he knows about them—let alone when he only suspects or imagines. In another ayah we have it that, ‘…avoid many suspicions, for some suspicion is a sin…’

Allah loves not an open word of evil, save whoso is wronged, and Allah is hearing, knowing.

(148)

Allah loves not an open word of evil,… It refers to saying an evil thing of another, publicly before the crowd. The meaning of His not loving it is that He finds it repugnant.

…save whoso is wronged,… Such a person has the right to speak out in public about his being wronged.

…and Allah is hearing,… He hears the evil words that are spoken publicly by one person about another.

…knowing. He is knowing of the truthfulness of the truthful and the lies of the liars, and He shall recompense everyone accordingly.

Now that He has mentioned, glorified be He, the permissibility of speaking an evil word in public by those who are wronged, He now states that to manifest goodness and to conceal evil is better. That is because such is the practice of Allah, glorified be He, the Pardoning, the Powerful, in that He pardons though He has the power to do otherwise:

If ye manifest a goodness or ye hide it, or ye pardon an evil—indeed Allah is pardoning, powerful.

(149)

If ye manifest a goodness… It means speaking out about the goodness of another.

…or ye hide it,… It means refraining from speaking out about another person’s goodness, or it means quietly determining upon goodness—and perhaps this second meaning is more likely.

…or ye pardon an evil… It means not seeking revenge against one who works evil against you, though you are able to take revenge. In short, not manifesting an evil word in regards to one who has wronged you.

…—indeed Allah is pardoning,… He is oft-pardoning of His creatures who do evil and wrong.

…powerful. He has the power to take revenge from them—so it is fitting for the creatures to adopt the attribute of the Creator.

And having mentioned, glorified be He, the condition of the hypocrites in the previous ayat, He completes the discourse in the ayat that follow by describing the conditions of the disbelievers and the believers. For the position is such that the people is divided by the new call into the believers, the disbelievers and between them the hypocrites. Thus He says:

Indeed those who disbelieve in Allah and His messengers and wish to make a division between Allah and His messengers and say, ‘We believe in some and disbelieve in some,’ while they wish to take a path between that:

(150)

Indeed those who disbelieve in Allah and His messengers… Even though they may disbelieve in a single Messenger. Their disbelieving would be by denial and suchlike.

…and wish to make a division between Allah and His messengers… They are another group, acknowledging Allah but refusing to acknowledge the Prophets. In this, the separation and division they are making is between Allah by believing, and the Prophets by disbelieving.

…and say, ‘We believe in some and disbelieve in some,’… So there are those who deny everything, those who do not deny Allah but deny all of His Prophets, and those who deny some of the Prophets.

…while they wish to take a path between that: They wish to take a path that is neither absolute denial nor absolute compliance. They do that out of selfish interests and simple-minded imitation.

Those—they really are the disbelievers, and We have prepared for the disbelievers a debasing chastisement. 

(151)

Those—they really are the disbelievers,… ‘Really’ is given for haqqan, meaning that they are genuinely disbelievers, for their belief in a part does not take them out of the category of disbelievers, just as their departing from some of what the disbelievers deny does not mean that they are believers. Disbelief is the denial of one of the principles of faith, and belief is admitting all of them.

…and We have prepared for the disbelievers a debasing chastisement. A chastisement has been made ready for them that will debase them and humiliate them.

And those who believe in Allah and His messengers and make not a division between either of them: those—We shall shortly grant them their wages; and Allah is forgiving, merciful.

(152)

And those who believe in Allah and His messengers… That is, in all His Messengers.

…and make not a division between either of them: those—We shall shortly grant them their wages;… In the hereafter.

…and Allah is forgiving,… He forgives the sins they commit.

…merciful. He will bestow upon them His mercy and bliss.

The discourse has been about those who believe in some and disbelieve in some, while the clearest personifications of this are the book-folk who believed in the earlier Prophets, but refused to believe in Muhammad, may Alllah condescend upon him and upon his House, on the grounds of feeble excuses. For this reason the narrative turns to explain that they are false in their claim to follow Musa bliss be upon him, for they burdened him with futile questions, demands and works:

The book-folk ask thee that thou send down to them a book from the sky. And truly Musa was asked greater than that, for they said, ‘Show us Allah openly,’ and so the bolt took them for their wrongfulness; then they took the calf after the clarifications had come to them. Then We pardoned that and We granted Musa a clear authority.

(153)

The book-folk… Here it means the Jews.

…ask thee… The address is to the Messenger, Alllah condescend upon him and upon his House.

…that thou send down to them a book from the sky…. They asked for a book resembling the Torah that had been to Musa, bliss be upon him,as a written whole, not that it should come in the form of ‘inspiration’ (wahy). In some commentaries we have it that Ka’b al-Ashraf along with a group of Jews said, ‘O Muhammad, if you are a Prophet then bring us a book from the heaven as a whole just as the Torah came to Musa as a whole.’ At this the ayah came down.

…And truly Musa was asked greater than that,… Did they believe in Musa, bliss be upon him, after a book had come to them from the heaven? Nay, they asked for something exceeding that.

…for they said,… To Musa bliss be upon him.

…‘Show us Allah openly,’… It  is given for jahratan. It means with their eyes.

…and so the bolt took them for their wrongfulness;… Because of their wrongfulness and their slighting the holiness of Allah and His majesty, the bolt took them and made them all die—as given in Surah Baqarah.

…then they took the calf… They took it as a god and worshipped it instead of Allah.

…after the clarifications had come to them…. The clarifications (al-bayyinat) were the clear proofs of His Mastership and of the prophethood, the freeing of the sons of Isra.il and the parting of the water, and of what they had seen of the miracles of the staff and so forth. 

…Then We pardoned that… Just as was given in Surah Baqarah, they were commanded that some should kill others—but even this did not benefit them and they remained obstinately opposed and course and rude.

…and We granted Musa a clear authority. ‘Authority’ (sultan), here, means the clear proofs clarifying that he was genuinely a Prophet—and still they did not believe.

And We elevated the Ţur above them for their pact. And We said to them, ‘Enter the gate prostrating,’ and We said to them, ‘Violate not the sabbath,’ and We took from them a firm pact.

(154) 

And We raised the Ţur above them… Mount Tur. A part of the mountain was plucked off and raised above the heads of the sons of Isra.il, so as to frighten them in order that they would adopt the Laws and accept the teachings.

…for their pact. And We said to them, ‘Enter the gate… The gate of a city.

…prostrating,’… They were to enter the gate while in prostration—‘prostrate and enter’.

…and We said to them, ‘Violate not the sabbath,’… They were ordered not to transgress the sabbath by hunting fish, for that was banned for them.

…and We took from them a firm pact. The book-folk previously mentioned made a firm pact that they would listen to the commands and uphold the prohibitions. This has been dealt with in the related topics in Surah Baqarah.

Then He mentions, glorified be He, that by their ugly deeds the Jews deserved punishment in the world and punishment in the hereafter. Their punishment in the world was that certain wholesome things were banned for them; in the hereafter their punishment was the fire that is prepared for them:

So for their breaking their pact and their disbelief in the signs of Allah, and their killing the Prophets without right, and their saying ‘Our hearts are wrapped’—nay, Allah sealed over them for their disbelief, and so they believe not, save a few;

(155)

So for their breaking their pact… The Jews broke their compact with Allah, glorified be He, to the effect that they would implement all the Laws that came to them in the Torah, for they did not implement most of its Laws, both in principles (usul) and derivative obligations (furu’).

…and their disbelief in the signs of Allah,… The signs that He had set up of the truth of His Prophets, like their disbelief in the proofs of the prophethood of ‘Ịsa bliss be upon him.

…and their killing the Prophets without right,… Whenever a Messenger came to them with what their souls disliked they either killed him or belied him. The word, ‘without right’ is not for emphasis, but to increase the gravity of their crime, for it is never ever right to kill a Prophet.

…and their saying ‘Our hearts are wrapped’… They would say, ‘Our hearts are wrapped against thy summons, O Muhammad, and we understand not what thou say.’ Like a thing wrapped up so that nothing from outside its wrapping reaches it. They would say this to the Messenger, Alllah condescend upon him and upon his House, so that he would not call them to the guidance.

…—nay, Allah sealed over them for their disbelief,… This interjection is a refutation of their word that their hearts were wrapped. When a person sees the truth but denies it, and repeatedly commits the acts of disobedience, his heart is withdrawn from the truth and his denial becomes habitual. He then recognises the truth while he sees it, but still denies it, not because he doesn’t see it, but because his heart is so remote from the truth that it is as covered.

…and so they believe not, save a few; The more denial becomes an ingrained habit, the more they are kept from the truth. Attributing to Allah the Most High their being sealed is either because He created the heart such that repetition leads to habituation, or the attribution is metaphorical, meaning that He leaves them to themselves.

And for their disbelief and their saying of Maryam a grievous dishonesty;

(156)

And for their disbelief… It means their disbelieving in ‘Ịsa, bliss be upon him, or is general, repeated here preparatory to His word, ‘and their saying of Maryam…’ so that the sense is that they became disbelievers due to the slander against her grandeur.

…and their saying of Maryam… Maryam the truthful, the protected from error, mother of the Masih, bliss be upon him.

…a grievous dishonesty; They ascribed fornication to her as ‘Ịsa, bliss be upon him, was born to her without a father. From al-Kalbi we have it that ‘Ịsa, bliss be upon him, passed by a group some of whom said to others, ‘The sorcerer son of the witch has come to you, and the acting son of the acting woman’ and they abused him. So ‘Ịsa heard that and said, ‘O Allah, Thou are my Master, Thou created me and I did not create myself;…O Allah, curse whoever reviles me and reviles my mother.’ So Allah answered his prayer and turned them into pigs.

And their saying, ‘Indeed we killed the Masih, son of Maryam,’ Allah’s messenger—and they killed him not and crucified him not, but it seemed so for them. And indeed those who disagree about him are in doubt about him—they have no knowledge of it, save following suspicions, and they certainly killed him not;

(157)

And their saying, ‘Indeed we killed the Masih, son of Maryam,’… This expression brought Allah’s anger, for ‘Ịsa, bliss be upon him,  was His messenger.

…Allah’s messenger… This was either the word of the Jews, in derision and mockery, or it is the word of Allah here and not their word at all, or it was an acknowledgement by them that he was a Messenger, just as the people of Kufa acknowledged Husain as the imam and yet killed him for their selfish desires. Allah then refutes their word thus:

…—and they killed him not and crucified him not,… They said that they had killed him by crucifying him.

…but it seemed so for them…. Someone was made to seem to some of the Jews to be just like ‘Ịsa, bliss be upon him, and they killed the one who resembled him, not the Masih himself. 

…And indeed those who disagree about him… About the Masih, bliss be upon him, whether they killed him or not.

…are in doubt about him… They split into two groups over the issue, some saying that they had killed him and some saying that they had not killed him but had killed one resembling him. But even these latter were not sure, but spoke from a position of doubt and uncertainty.

…—they… It means those who maintained that they had killed him.

…have no knowledge of it, save following suspicions,… It means that all they had was suppositions; their psychic or spiritual condition in this regard was that they were no more than following suspicions. So, those who said they killed him spoke only on the basis of a doubt, a supposition, and not from a position of knowledge. ‘Doubt’ is given for shakk  which literally means an inclination towards one of two possibilities, rather than meaning that the strength of both sides was the same. It does not then contradict suspicion, which means the inclination towards one of the two sides.

…and they certainly killed him not;… It is certain and sure and definite that they did not kill ‘Ịsa, bliss be upon him.

Nay, Allah elevated him to Himself, and Allah is grand, wise.

(158)

Nay, Allah elevated him to Himself,… It means that he was raised to a position of being honoured, and that is the sky or heaven (sama). Theology has proven that Allah, glorified be He, does not occupy any location or place. That He raised him to the heaven may mean that he was lifted to a star, for in some hadith we have it that the stars are inhabited just like our cities.

…and Allah is grand,… His grandeur and authority makes possible all that He wants.

…wise. Putting things in their proper places, and His works are on the basis of wisdom and perception.

And there is none of the book-folk but that they will surely believe in him before his death, and on the day of resurrection he will be over them a witness.

(159)

And there is none of the book-folk but that… It means that every one of the book-folk, meaning the Jews.

…they will surely believe in him… In ‘Ịsa, bliss be upon him.

…before his death,… That is, before the death of ‘Ịsa, bliss be upon him. It is narrated that before he dies he will be sent down from the sky and will perform the prayer behind the Imam al-Mahdi, bliss be upon him, when all the Jews will believe in him. It is clear that what is meant is all the Jews at that time, not all the Jews of the world who die before that. It is a vernacular way of speech.

…and on the day of resurrection he… ‘Ịsa, bliss be upon him.  

…will be over them… Over the Jews.

…a witness. He will be a witness to the fact that he delivered the messages of his Master and that they persecuted him and rejected him and accepted nothing from him.

There is a possibility that ‘they will surely believe in him’ means ‘believe in Muhammad, Allah condescend upon him and upon his House, for he was at the centre of the dispute with the disbelievers, while ‘before his death’ means before the death of each individual member of the book-folk. Then the meaning will be that that every book person will believe in the Messenger before dying at the approach of death, when the reality is unveiled for him.

Having mentioned the Jews, He says, glorified be He:

So for the wronging of those judaised, We banned for them some wholesomenesses that were permitted for them, and for their barring many from the path of Allah;

(160)

So for the wronging of those judaised,… That is, due to the Jews’ wronging their Prophets, themselves and others, in the ways that have been recounted.

…We banned for them wholesomenesses that were permitted for them,… Some wholesome things were permitted for them and then, when they wronged, those same wholesome things were banned for them as a recompense for their deeds: ‘And upon those Judaized We banned all those with claws, and of the cattle and sheep… to the end of the ayah.

…and for their barring many from the path of Allah; This is a conjunct to ‘for the wronging…’. They used to bar from the path of Allah and prevent people from believing in the religion of the Masih and Muhammad Allah condescend upon him and upon his House, just as they distorted the Torah according to their inclinations and desires.

And their taking usury—and truly they were forbidden from it—and their consuming the wealth of the people in falsehood. And We have prepared for the disbelievers among them a painful chastisement.

(161)

And… That is, and due to:

…their taking usury… ‘Usury’ (riba) is taking extra from ones debtor over and above the amount of the principal sum. It was banned even in their own Legislation, but they did not heed the Legislation.

…—and truly they were forbidden from it… They had been forbidden from taking interest.

…—and… That is, and due to:

…their consuming the wealth of the people in falsehood…. They would take bribes in judgements, and would acquire the wealth of others through trickery and force.

…And We have prepared for the disbelievers among them… Those who disbelieved in the Messenger, Allah condescend upon him and upon his House,.

…a painful chastisement. Painful both for their skins and for their souls.

As He, glorified be He, has spoken of the disbelievers among them, it is understood that some of them were not like that, and He clarifies this in His word:

But the rooted in knowledge among them and the believers believe in that sent down to thee and that sent down before thee. And the establishers of the prayer and the payers of the zakat, the believers in Allah and the last day, those—We shall soon grant them a magnificent wage.

(162)

But the rooted in knowledge among them… Like ‘Abdullah b. Salam and his fellows who were rooted in knowledge and were acquainted with knowledge in the way that is fitting.

…and the believers… It means the followers of the Messenger Allah condescend upon him and upon his House, though it is likely that it means the followers of Musa, bliss be upon him, who really believed in him, as opposed to the rest of the Jews whose faith in him was false and spurious. 

…believe in that sent down to thee… The Quran sent down to Muhammad, Allah condescend upon him and upon his House.

…and that sent down before thee;… The books of Musa and ‘Ịsa bliss be upon them. These book-folk are distinct from those who did not believe at all, and whose belief in the Torah was a lie, as He says, ‘What those burdened with the Torah and then carried it not are like is the donkey carrying tomes…’

Here this question is put by some: If it is given that it is in the nature of the Jews to go astray as is well-known among people and apparent from His word, ‘…so they are like stones, or harder than that…’ and ‘Thou shall find the most severe of the people in enmity towards those who believe to be the Jews…’ and in their treatment of their Prophets and of Musa in particular, how then can they depart from this nature and how can they be accepted when they become Muslims, and is it possible to discriminate among them, as Allah says, ‘But those rooted in knowledge among them…’  The answer is that the Jews deviate in two ways. The first is their petrified natures; the second is their invalid religion that commands them to every dishonour and their foolish imitation of elders. It is clear that when a Jewish person submits to Islam his nature is satisfied and refined by Islam. He is like the coward who continually encourages his psyche until courage becomes habitual for him, and the corrupt person who sticks to the path of virtue until he acquires the habit of justice. In the same way, the Jew who submits to Islam casts off his practice of imitation and his deviating religion. So there is no place for accusing him of crimes and vices—and in any case that deviation is not a part of anyone’s nature proper, but has rather overcome it, as is clear.

…and the establishers of the prayer… This is a conjunct to ‘those rooted in knowledge…’ It means those of the Jews who implement the prayer, for every religion has its prayer. The establishment of the prayers regularly is one of the strongest actions arising from belief in the Messenger, may Alllah condescend upon him and upon his House,  for it is a continual remembrance that instils the wholesome qualities until they become habitual. 

…and the payers of the zakat,… Every religion has made it obligatory to pay the zakat  in the general sense.

…the believers in Allah and the last day,… It means those who believe with a genuine belief, and not merely formal as was the case with the majority of the Jews.

…those,… That is, those having the recounted attributes.

…—We shall soon… In the hereafter.

…grant them a magnificent wage. In gardens of delight in which is everything the heart could long for, and they are in them eternal.

It is possible that the phrase from ‘and the establishers…’ is to show that it is those ‘rooted in knowledge’ among the Jews and the believers who establish the prayer, among the Muslims, who are granted the magnificent wage. Accordingly, from ‘and the establishers…’, it is not that the attributes of the Jews rooted in knowledge are given. Perhaps this is strengthened by the conjunct of ‘and the establishers’ being such that it seems to be almost the beginning of a new topic distinct from that which preceded it.

He then mentions, glorified be He, the vain disputes of the Jews, and the fact that the Messenger, Allah condescend upon him and upon his House, received his revelations just as the earlier Prophets had received inspiration. They spoke about a book being sent down to them, whereas the previous Prophets had mostly received inspiration (wahy). So He says: 

Indeed We inspired unto thee just as We inspired unto Nuĥ and the Prophets after him; and We inspired unto Ibrahim and Isma’il and Ishaq and Ya’qub and the grandsons and Ayyub and Yunus and Harun and Sulaiman, and We granted Da’ud law-scripture.

(163)

Indeed We inspired unto thee… That is, unto the Messenger, Allah condescend upon him and upon his House. ‘Inspired’ is put for wahy, which is the casting of a thing into the heart by means of an angel, or creating it there without an angel, while awake or asleep.

…just as We inspired unto Nuĥ and the prophets after him;… The Prophets after Nuĥ, bliss be upon him. Here some of the Prophets are named, as a distinction for them, although they were already included in the word ‘…the prophets after him’.

…and We inspired unto Ibrahim and Isma’ịl and Isĥaq… Isma.il is mentioned before Isĥaq because he has a higher station in faith.

…and Ya’qub… Ya’qub (Jacob) was the grandson of Ibrahim, the son of Ishaq and forefather of the Jews, just as Isma.il was the forefather of the Messenger, Allah condescend upon him and upon his House.

…and the grandsons… It means the Prophets raised from among the descendants of Ya’qub, for which reason they are called ‘the grandsons’ (al-asbat)—like Yusuf and others, bliss be upon them all.

…and ‘Ịsa and Ayyub and Yunus and Harun and Sulaiman,… Musa, bliss be upon him, is not mentioned because he had been sent a book from the heaven in the way that they now demanded.

…and We granted Da’ud a law-scripture. ‘Law-scripture’ is put for zabur, meaning things one after the other. These Prophets were not sent a complete book, but rather they either received disparate inspirations or, like Da’ud (David), bliss be upon him, a part of a book at a time.

And Messengers whom We have related to thee beforehand, and messengers whom We have not related to thee—and Allah spoke to Musa in words.

(164)

...And… That is, ‘And We sent:

…Messengers… They received revelation.

…whom We have related to thee beforehand,… Like Yunis, bliss be upon him.

…and messengers whom We have not related to thee… The generally accepted view is that their number was one hundred and forty-two thousand.

…—and Allah spoke to Musa in words. It was not that everything Musa, bliss be upon him, who is the centre of this discourse, received was in the form of a book, for Allah, glorified be He, spoke to him, and ‘speech’ (kalam) is a form of revelation (wahy). It should not be missed that Allah’s ‘speaking’ is His creating a sound in the atmosphere, for He is above being corporal and all that goes with it.

Messengers as givers of glad tidings and as warners, so that there be for the people over Allah no argument after the messengers, and Allah is grand, wise.

(165)

Messengers as givers of glad tidings… For those who believed and were obedient, glad tidings of the reward.

…and as warners,… For those who disbelieved and were disobedient, warnings of the punishment.

…so that there be for the people over Allah no argument after the messengers,… That is, after His sending the Messengers, it is Allah who has the proven argument (hujjah) over the people. ‘The people’ (al-nas) means the majority of them, as some of them are not reached by the call, as is naturally obvious and expressly confirmed by some hadith.

…and Allah is grand,… He is able both to reward and to punish.

… wise. He does what He does out of wisdom and because it is best.

If the Jews testify as to the prophethood of the Messenger, Allah condescend upon him and upon his House, for various reasons, nevertheless:

But Allah testifies as to what He has sent down unto thee—He sent it down in His knowledge. And the angels testify, and Allah suffices as a witness.

(166)

But Allah testifies as to what He has sent down unto thee… Allah’s testifying is that He sets miracles upon the hands of the Messenger, and no one can do that but Allah, alone. The difference between miracles and magic is that magic achieves its aims through a set of means, even if those means are extraordinary, like seals and chants, whereas miracles are the disruption in the norms of nature through no more than the will of the Messenger and whoever Allah has given this to. It is only those of discernment who can distinguish between the two: the Messenger can restore life to the dead but the magician cannot do that, and so forth. 

…—He sent it down in His knowledge…. It means that He knew that the Messenger was worthy of prophethood, or that He sent it down such that it was combined with knowledge from Him, or that the sending down was within the ambit of His knowledge, unlike ordinary commanders who command while ignorant, heedless, forgetful or foolish. The first of these is the most likely.

…And the angels testify,… They testify as to the genuineness of that sent down. It seems the angels are mentioned in a legislative way, in that their testifying is real though it is without effect, or the effect is their succouring, as was seen on the day of Badr, while some works are the effect of their being sent down.

…and Allah suffices as a witness. He is sufficient in testifying to the prophethood of the Messenger, Allah condescend upon him and upon his House.

He then recounts how the disbelievers met the Messenger, Allah condescend upon him and upon his House, in His word:

Indeed those who disbelieve and bar from Allah’s path stray by a distant straying.

(167)

Indeed those who disbelieve and bar from Allah’s path… They stop people from believing and prevent the progress of Islam.

…stray by a distant straying. They have strayed far from the even path of truth.

Indeed those who disbelieve and wrong—Allah is not that He will forgive them, and He guides them not to a path;

(168)

Indeed those who disbelieve… That is, in Allah and His Messengers and what they brought.

…and wrong… They wrong themselves by their disobedience, and they wrong other people by depriving them from the true path.

…—Allah is not that He will forgive them,… That is, when they die in disbelief, as is clear from other ayat.

…and He guides them not to a path; It means the path to the garden.

Save the path to hell—eternal in it, forever. And that for Allah is easy.

(169)

Save the path to hell… It is the recompense for their disbelief and wronging.

…—eternal in it, forever…. There is no end to the chastisement and no decay. Some have wondered why it is that the punishments of deeds are eternal when the deeds themselves are finite and quickly over. The answer is that the deeds are mere manifestations of an inner evil, which is perpetual—as He says, ‘Were they to be returned, they would return to that which they were forbidden from…’

…And that for Allah is easy. His power is perfect and His authority absolute.

He then calls all people to the obligation of belief and of turning away from the path of disbelief, saying:

O ye the people, the messenger has truly come to ye with the truth from your Master, so believe—better for ye. And if ye disbelieve—indeed Allah’s is that in the heavens and the earth, and Allah is knowing, wise.

(170)

O ye the people, the Messenger… That is, Muhammad, may Allah condescend upon him and his House.

…has truly come to ye with the truth… He has brought the truth, the religion Allah has chosen for His slaves.

…from your Master,… This indicates the source of the message, and emphasises that it is to be accepted.

…so believe… That is: believe in the principles he has brought.

…—better for ye…. The good of it, the benefit, is for the people themselves.

…And if ye disbelieve… We should not imagine that our not believing will harm Allah in any way, glorified be He, since:

…—indeed Allah’s is that in the heavens and the earth,… He is not any way confined or limited by disbelief.

…and Allah is knowing,… He knows what is good for us and what is bad for us, and the Messenger was sent for our own good.

…wise. He is wise in His commands and prohibitions, in His deliberations and management.

Here the narrative returns to the book-folk, the Christians, in His word:

O ye the book-folk, exaggerate not in your religion, and say not of Allah save the truth: the Masih, ‘Ịsa son of Maryam, was Allah’s messenger and His word that He cast into Maryam, and a spirit from Him. So believe in Allah and His messengers and say not ‘Three.’ Desist—better for ye; Allah is but a single god. Glory be His above Him having a son. His is that in the heavens and that in the earth, and Allah suffices as an trustee.

(171)

O ye the book-folk, exaggerate not in your religion,… ‘Exaggerate’ is given for ghalw, meaning to transgress the limit, especially with regard to the boundaries of religion. The Christians maintained a multiplicity in divinity, with god the father and god the son and god the holy ghost.

…and say not of Allah… That is, do not forge lies and ascribe them to Allah, by saying that Allah had ordered them to worship three gods. Or, do not say things about Allah that contradict His magnificence, like their saying that He has a partner.

…save the truth:… And the truth is that His is no partner, and that alone is what He orders.

…the Masih, ‘Ịsa son of Maryam, was merely Allah’s messenger…It is said that he is called the Masih on account of how he stroked (masaha) the earth and roved through the land. The phrase ‘Ịsa son of Maryam, is in explanation of themasih, clarifying that he is not the son of Allah.

…and His word… This is a metaphor set against divinity and prophethood. When a speaker speaks something occurs in the external world, as if something is hurled into it. And Allah causes things to occur in the external world, and in this sense those things are called His ‘words’. In fact, the whole of creation is called the ‘words of Allah.’

…that He cast into Maryam,… That is, He caused him to form in her purified womb without marriage and nearness with a male.

…and a spirit from Him…. Glorified be He. ‘Spirit’ (ruh) is power, potency, that moves and is moved. ‘Ịsa (Jesus) is a spirit from alongside Allah, and thus he is called Ruhullah, or ‘Allah’s spirit’. This connection is clearly one of honour, as is ‘Allah’s house’  (Bait Allah) for the Ka’ba.

…So believe in Allah and His messengers… That is, with a valid, correct belief that submits to His oneness, and to the fact that His is no partner and no son, and that the Masih is an honoured Messenger.  

…and say not… Say not, O Christians, the God is

...‘Three.’… God the father and god the son and god the holy ghost.

…Desist… Leave aside such false and vain words, for that would be:

…—better for ye;… Better in the world and the hereafter.

…Allah is but a single god…. His is no partner; ‘Ịsa is not His partner in divinity. Whoever has a partner is of necessity a composite, which would entail being created, for every composite of necessity has components that existed before itself, and whatever is preceded by something else is not God. 

…Glory be His … The term subhanallah means that the speaker declares His purity and holiness.

…above that His be a son…. Allah is pure of a son in the way said of Him, glorified be He, by the Christians, for if they have in mind the normal meaning which would entail birth, such things are attributes of contingent things and not of Allah, glorified be He, for no change can come to Him. And if they have in mind a legislative paternity in the way an important man may say of someone he wishes to honour, that he is ‘my son’, this is not permitted in relation to Allah, glory be His, as He does not allow it. It may be said that someone is ‘Allah’s friend’ but He has not permitted that it be said that someone is His son. The ayah refers to the first meaning.

…His is that in the heavens and that in the earth,… When everything belongs to Him, how can one of those things be His son? A son is a part, and a part is not owned, as the condition of the owner being separate and distinct from the owned is not realised. 

…and Allah suffices as an trustee. It means as the trustee of the Messenger, Allah condescend upon him and upon his House, in the implementation of his work. It is a warning to those who maintain the trinity.

Here He recounts, glorified be He, that the Masih, bliss be upon him, that he is Allah’s slave, so how do they sat that he is Allah’s son or His partner?

The Masih never disdained at being a slave of Allah, and nor the angels brought near. And whoso disdains from His bondage and is arrogant—He shall muster them unto Him all together.

(172)

The Masih never disdained at being a slave of Allah,… ‘Ịsa, bliss be upon him,  was never too proud to admit that he was Allah’s slave, but rather acknowledged it at the time of his birth, ‘Indeed I am Allah’s slave, He granted me the book…’

…and nor the angels brought near…. It means the angels whom He brings near to His grace. Perhaps it is in effect a refutation of those who claimed that they were his offspring, as He recounts in His word, ‘And they placed the angels who are the Compassionate’s slaves as daughters…’

…And whoso disdains from His bondage and is arrogant… Such people see themselves as being too great to acknowledge Allah’s mastership.

…—He shall muster them unto Him all together. He shall gather all of them on the day of resurrection so as to requite them for their arrogance. ‘Unto Him’ does not signify location, for He is free of that and above it; rather it signifies the place of His judgement and His reward.

But as for those who believe and do the virtuous deeds, they shall be met their wage in full, and He shall increase them from His profusion.

But as for those who disdain and are haughty, He shall chastise them a painful chastisement, and they shall not find for themselves apart from Allah a patron and not a succourer.

(173)

But as for those who believe… With a real, valid belief.

…and do the virtuous deeds, they shall be met their wage in full,… They shall receive the exact reward promised to them by Allah.

…and He shall increase them from His profusion. They shall receive more than they were promised for their beautiful deeds, as a grace from Him and an honour.

…But as for those who disdain and are haughty,… As for those too proud and arrogant to worship and obey.

…He shall chastise them a painful chastisement, and they shall not find for themselves apart from Allah a patron and not a succourer. They shall find none to rescue them and deliver them from Allah’s chastisement.

O ye the people, a proof has truly come to ye from your Master, and We have sent down to ye a clear light.

(174)

O ye the people, a proof has truly come to ye from your Master,… The truth is fully proven by the proof that He has sent, glorified be He.

…and We have sent down to ye a clear light. A clear light: the Quran. Just as a light guides us along a path in the darkness of the night and suchlike, so the Quran guides us the paths of the darkness of life, and this is the meaning of ‘Allah is the light of the heavens and the earth…’.

So as for those who believe in Allah and cling to Him, He shall enter them into mercy from Him and profusion, and guide them unto Him a straight road.

(175)

So as for those who believe in Allah… With a correct, valid belief, as required by reason and the Legislation.

…and cling to Him,… That is, they cling and hold fast to Allah in their affairs. Perhaps the pronoun given as ‘Him’ applies to the light of the previous ayah.

…He shall enter them… On the day of resurrection.

…into mercy from Him… He shall mercy them in mercy and grace them with the garden.

…and profusion,… Grace and bounty more than they deserve.

…and guide them unto Him… He shall guide them unto Himself, as He says, ‘…those who take the guidance, they shall increase in guidance…’

…a straight road. Their path is straight and direct. They reach the realities and felicities by a straight road, for they followed the summons and answered the caller. The purport of the ayah is that those who disbelieve in Allah and cling to other than Him—He shall enter them into hell, and whenever it dies down it shall be made fiery again. And He shall send them astray with a distant straying.

Some narrations have interpreted the light as being the Commander of the believers and the cleansed Imams, bliss be upon them—this is because they are the clearest embodiments, as has been explained.

In a tradition narrated by Jabir b. ‘Abdullah al-Ansari we have it that when he was ill he was visited by the Messenger, Allah condescend upon him and upon his House, and so he asked him, Allah condescend upon him and upon his House, about his sisters and how he should deal with them in regard to inheritance, and so this ayah was sentdown:

They seek a pronouncement of thee. Say, ‘Allah pronounces for ye about the siblings: if a man perishes without having a son and he has a sister, so hers is the half of what he leaves, and he inherits from her if she has no son. So if they are two, theirs are the two-thirds of what he leaves. And if they are siblings, men and women, the male has the portion like unto the two.’

Allah clarifies for ye, lest ye stray. And Allah is of all things knowing.

(176)

They seek a pronouncement of thee…. They sought a legal ruling, or fatwa. This ayah  is related to the earlier ruling concerning siblings,  ‘And if a man is inherited by siblings…’ (above, 13).

…Say, ‘Allah pronounces for ye … That is, He explains the ruling.

…about the siblings: if a man perishes… It means when he dies. ‘Perishes’ is given for halaka, which is used here in the wider sense of dying, rather than its common sense of meeting an evil end. It is used in this sense of the Prophet Yusuf, bliss be upon him, ‘…until when he perished…’( (al-Ghafir, The Forgiver [40]; 34).

…without having a son… And without leaving a parent, so that no one survives him from the first category of his relatives, as proven by texts (al-nass) and unanimity.

…and he has a sister,… One sister.

…so hers is the half of what he leaves,… Half of his estate goes to the sister as her share, the other half also goes to her as there is no one else for it to go to.

…and he inherits from her… The brother inherits from his sister when she dies and he is still alive, and he inherits her entire estate, and this is obligatory.

…if she has no son…. And if she has no parents. And all this is overlooking widows and widowers, for these inherit their shares first, and then the rest is for the siblings.

…So if they are two,… If the deceased leaves two sisters.

…theirs are the two-thirds of what he leaves…. That is their obligatory share, and the other third also goes to them as the sole relatives.

…And if they are siblings,… That is, they are more than two.

…men and women,… Some of them brothers and some of them sisters.

…the male has the portion like unto the two.’  Two shares for every brother and one share for every sister. All this applies to siblings on both sides, or from the father's side. As for siblings on the mother’s side only, their ruling was given at the beginning of the surah.

…Allah clarifies for ye, lest ye stray. He clarifies the ruling so that His servants do not go astray, or in repugnance that they go astray, in the sense of making a mistake about the inheritance of siblings.

…And Allah is of all things knowing. He knows what is good and what is bad, and for this reason His commands and prohibitions and decisions are on the basis of His wisdom and our best interests.

In the commentary Majma’ al-Bayyan we have it that the ayat that Allah sent down at the beginning of the surah comprised an explanation of the inheritance of the son and the father, and that the ayat which followed explained the inheritance of the husband and the wife and the brothers and sisters on the mother’s side, while this ayah which concludes the surah comprises an explanation of the inheritance of the brothers and sisters on both sides and of the brothers and sisters on the father’s side when there are no siblings on both sides. And His word, ‘…and those of the wombs—some of them are the dependants of others in the book of Allah…’ (al-Anfal [8]; 76) shows that it is proximity which is the factor in inheritance, so that whoever is closer through the womb and in proximity to the deceased is more deserving to inherit than those more distant. Allah knows.

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