Surat An-Nisa' (71-80)

{يَا أَيُّهَا الَّذِينَ آَمَنُوا خُذُوا حِذْرَكُمْ فَانْفِرُوا ثُبَاتٍ أَوِ انْفِرُوا جَمِيعًا} [النساء: 71]

71- O believers, beware of your enemies and get ready for them by fighting them in groups as well as separately or even in one large group.

{وَإِنَّ مِنْكُمْ لَمَنْ لَيُبَطِّئَنَّ فَإِنْ أَصَابَتْكُمْ مُصِيبَةٌ قَالَ قَدْ أَنْعَمَ اللهُ عَلَيَّ إِذْ لَمْ أَكُنْ مَعَهُمْ شَهِيدًا} [النساء: 72]

72- Verily, some of you lag behind and refuse to engage in Jihad and when the enemy kill some of you or defeat you, they will praise their opinions saying: Indeed, Allah bestowed favor on us when He hindered us so as not to be injured or defeated like them.

Those people are the hypocrites who used to lag behind and refuse to engage in Jihad or they leave the Prophet’s army in the middle of the battle. The same applies to the weak Muslims who are affected with the hypocrites’ speech.

{وَلَئِنْ أَصَابَكُمْ فَضْلٌ مِنَ اللهِ لَيَقُولَنَّ كَأَنْ لَمْ تَكُنْ بَيْنَكُمْ وَبَيْنَهُ مَوَدَّةٌ يَا لَيْتَنِي كُنْتُ مَعَهُمْ فَأَفُوزَ فَوْزًا عَظِيمًا} [النساء: 73]

73- When you gain the battle or restore some booty by the will of Allah, they will feel sorry and regret for lagging behind in Jihad because of the booty they missed. He would say, as if there is no religious connection between you and them: We wish we were with you in fight to take our shares of the booty.

{فَلْيُقَاتِلْ فِي سَبِيلِ اللهِ الَّذِينَ يَشْرُونَ الحَيَاةَ الدُّنْيَا بِالآَخِرَةِ وَمَنْ يُقَاتِلْ فِي سَبِيلِ اللهِ فَيُقْتَلْ أَوْ يَغْلِبْ فَسَوْفَ نُؤْتِيهِ أَجْرًا عَظِيمًا} [النساء: 74]

74- Let the believers fight those disbelievers who sell the everlasting life of the Hereafter for the worldly life. Anyone fights in the way of Allah seeking His Reward and to make the religion of Allah superior then is killed or gains victory, he shall have a great reward in both cases.

{وَمَا لَكُمْ لَا تُقَاتِلُونَ فِي سَبِيلِ اللهِ وَالمُسْتَضْعَفِينَ مِنَ الرِّجَالِ وَالنِّسَاءِ وَالوِلْدَانِ الَّذِينَ يَقُولُونَ رَبَّنَا أَخْرِجْنَا مِنْ هَذِهِ القَرْيَةِ الظَّالِمِ أَهْلُهَا وَاجْعَل لَنَا مِنْ لَدُنْكَ وَلِيًّا وَاجْعَل لَنَا مِنْ لَدُنْكَ نَصِيرًا} [النساء: 75]

75- Why do not you fight your desires in order to obey Allah, seek His Pleasure, and save the weak from the hands of the polytheists in Makkah? They are Muslim captives and weak: men, women, and children whom the infidels prevented to leave or they were weak to migrate and stayed there to receive the harm. They were supplicating: O Allah, give us strength to get out of that village whose people and tyrants oppress us and provide us with a close friend and supporter to protect us from them.

{الَّذِينَ آَمَنُوا يُقَاتِلُونَ فِي سَبِيلِ اللهِ وَالَّذِينَ كَفَرُوا يُقَاتِلُونَ فِي سَبِيلِ الطَّاغُوتِ فَقَاتِلُوا أَوْلِيَاءَ الشَّيْطَانِ إِنَّ كَيْدَ الشَّيْطَانِ كَانَ ضَعِيفًا} [النساء: 76]

76- Verily, the believers only fight for making the words of Allah superior and seeking His pleasure because He is their Wali (supporter, aid, and helper) who will admit them to His Paradise.

The infidels fight for the pleasure of Satan that leads them to disbelief and to Hell-Fire. So, O allies of Allah and the supporters of His Prophet, fight the infidels who took the side of Satan and do not be afraid of its tricks because it is weak and its plot is futile. Indeed, its plots and tricks in compare to Allah’s management is so weak, so do not be afraid of it because Allah is your Supporter and Helper.

{أَلَمْ تَرَ إِلَى الَّذِينَ قِيلَ لَهُمْ كُفُّوا أَيْدِيَكُمْ وَأَقِيمُوا الصَّلَاةَ وَآَتُوا الزَّكَاةَ فَلَمَّا كُتِبَ عَلَيْهِمُ القِتَالُ إِذَا فَرِيقٌ مِنْهُمْ يَخْشَوْنَ النَّاسَ كَخَشْيَةِ اللهِ أَوْ أَشَدَّ خَشْيَةً وَقَالُوا رَبَّنَا لِمَ كَتَبْتَ عَلَيْنَا القِتَالَ لَوْلَا أَخَّرْتَنَا إِلَى أَجَلٍ قَرِيبٍ قُلْ مَتَاعُ الدُّنْيَا قَلِيلٌ وَالآَخِرَةُ خَيْرٌ لِمَنِ اتَّقَى وَلَا تُظْلَمُونَ فَتِيلًا} [النساء: 77]

77- O Prophet, do not you see that some Muslims were asked not to engage in fighting the polytheists and forgive them when they were weak in Makkah? It was said to them at that time: Do your duty in obedience and fight your desires by establishing Salah and keeping to it in submission and give Zakah to the poor and the needy, but they used to ask you to give them permission to fight the infidels because of the harm they received of them.

When they were strong, Jihad was ordained on them, and they were asked to fight the infidels, a group of them feared that Allah inflict them with troubles; that is because of the fear and horror they had. Muslims are different in terms of having strong belief and in fighting the enemy. The people who were afraid said: O our Lord, why now did you ordain fighting on us? Had not you delayed it for a while or for a better time because it is full of blood shedding, killing of fathers and husbands.

O Prophet, tell them: All enjoyable things in the world are too few in compare to the reward resulting from the pious actions in the Hereafter such as Jihad in the cause of Allah. The Hereafter is for those who fight in the cause of Allah and show piety; that would be better than the world and its transient pleasures.

You shall not be oppressed in regard to the actions you do and the more you do pious actions in the world, the more you gain reward in the Hereafter. So, do not turn away from fight, leave the world and its vanities, and proceed to the things that will please you in the Hereafter because they are better for you.

{أَيْنَمَا تَكُونُوا يُدْرِكُكُمُ المَوْتُ وَلَوْ كُنْتُمْ فِي بُرُوجٍ مُشَيَّدَةٍ وَإِنْ تُصِبْهُمْ حَسَنَةٌ يَقُولُوا هَذِهِ مِنْ عِنْدِ اللهِ وَإِنْ تُصِبْهُمْ سَيِّئَةٌ يَقُولُوا هَذِهِ مِنْ عِنْدِكَ قُلْ كُلٌّ مِنْ عِنْدِ اللهِ فَمَالِ هَؤُلَاءِ القَوْمِ لَا يَكَادُونَ يَفْقَهُونَ حَدِيثًا} [النساء: 78]

78- Wherever you are your final destination is death. You must die at the end even if you are in lofty and secure palaces. So, your watchfulness and caution will not prevent you from death whether you fight in the cause of Allah or not because your fate if fixed and every soul will taste death

If sustenance was open for them and fruits, plants bliss, and prosperity came to them, they will say: Such sustenance is coming from Allah. However, when they were afflicted with barrenness, high prices, shortage in fruits, or the death of children or other, they would say to the Messenger (peace be upon him): That happened because of you because we obeyed you and followed your religion! Allah (He may be Glorified) says in such people: "But whenever good came to them, they said: “Ours is this.” And if evil afflicted them, they ascribed it to evil omens connected with Mûsâ (Moses) and those with him." [Surat Al A`raf: 131]. Thus, the hypocrites used to ascribe every bad thing they faced to the Prophet (peace be upon him).

O Messenger, tell them: Everything that takes place is coming from Allah so, good thing and bad thing happen by the will of Allah, grace and infliction are from Him, and His Destiny is applicable to the pious as well as the dissolute, the faithful and the infidel. So, why those Jews and hypocrites were afflicted by misunderstanding, little knowledge, ignorance, and oppression; they can hardly understand what is being said to them ?

{مَا أَصَابَكَ مِنْ حَسَنَةٍ فَمِنَ اللهِ وَمَا أَصَابَكَ مِنْ سَيِّئَةٍ فَمِنْ نَفْسِكَ وَأَرْسَلْنَاكَ لِلنَّاسِ رَسُولًا وَكَفَى بِاللهِ شَهِيدًا} [النساء: 79]

79- O man, the blessings and prosperity that you have are from the bounty and benevolence of Allah, and whatever you do of worship and obedience, they are not equivalent to the blessing of your presence in this world, not to mention the other blessings. Whatever affliction befalls on you, it is because of you and of your actions, faults, and sins even if they are written down at Allah and was sent down by His Permission as a punishment for you. This is the meaning of Allah’s Saying: “And whatever of misfortune befalls you, it is because of what your hands have earned. And He pardons much.” [Surat Ash-Shura: 30],

verily, we had sent you to the people as a messenger to convey to them the Shari`ah of Allah and to explain to them its teachings.

Allah is a sufficient witness on your message, on what you informed them, and on their stance of the Call.

{مَنْ يُطِعِ الرَّسُولَ فَقَدْ أَطَاعَ اللهَ وَمَنْ تَوَلَّى فَمَا أَرْسَلْنَاكَ عَلَيْهِمْ حَفِيظًا} [النساء: 80]

80- He who obeys Prophet Muhammad (peace be upon him), certainly obeys Allah and acts according to His Instructions; that is because he speaks with revelation and conveys the rulings of Islam from Allah.

However, he who turns away from the teachings that you brought and does not follow you, certainly loses gracefully because he had disobeyed Allah and turned away from His Religion. It is not your fault and you are not responsible for them or for what they do. We have not sent you to be watcher over them to count them for their actions or reckon them, but you only have to convey the message.