Appearance
Verses 17–24
This passage of the Qur’an explains that a person’s deeds are only alive and pleasing to God if they emanate from genuine belief in God, the Messenger, and the Last Day. If they do not, then they are futile and will not convey the one who does them to happiness. And one of the requirements of true faith is to only give your loyalty, love, and affection for the sake of God and His Messenger.
The connectedness of the verses that make up this passage with one another is evident. However, their connection to the previous section of verses is not as clear, and the theories proposed by commentators concerning the connection between the two passages are often somewhat forced.
مَا كَانَ لِلْمُشْرِكِينَ أَنْ يَعْمُرُوا مَسَاجِدَ اللَّهِ شَاهِدِينَ عَلَىٰ أَنْفُسِهِمْ بِالْكُفْرِ ۚ أُولَٰئِكَ حَبِطَتْ أَعْمَالُهُمْ وَفِي النَّارِ هُمْ خَالِدُونَ ١٧
(9:17) It is not for the polytheists to maintain Allah’s mosques while they are witness to their own unfaith. Their works have failed, and they shall remain in the Fire.
The verb ʿamāra (to maintain, make prosperous, or dwell in) is the opposite of kharāb (to ruin). One would say ʿamara al-arḍ (he developed the land) if someone erected a structure upon it and ʿamara al-bayt (he maintained the house) if he looked after the part of it for which he was responsible. The verb taʿmīr is derived from the same root and carries the same meaning. Meanwhile, the cognate ʿumr (life) signifies the maintenance of the body by the spirit, while ʿumra (a pilgrimage to Mecca) denotes a visit to the House of God, because such pilgrimages cause Mecca to flourish and prosper.
Meanwhile, masjid (mosque) is a noun of place (ism makān) that denotes a place in which prostration (sajda) is performed. For example, a house which is built for people to bow down to God inside of it is a masjid, as are the parts of the body that are placed against the ground when people prostrate—the forehand, the palms, the knees, and the toes.
The phrase, it is not for the polytheists… (mā kāna li al-mushrikīn), denies the idolaters the right to maintain the places in which God is worshipped. The use of the verb kāna (lit. ‘was’) shows that, in fact, they never had the right to maintain them, renovate them, or visit them. This phrasing is similar to the verses: It is not for a prophet to take captives… () and it is not for a prophet to breach his trust ().
The verb ʿamāra in this verse denotes maintenance, meaning carrying out repairs and renovations to a structure as needed in order to keep it in functioning order, rather than ʿamāra in the sense of visitation or pilgrimage. Equally, the term mosques refers to the Holy Sanctuary in Mecca and every other place dedicated to the worship of God. Hence, we know that ʿamāra here refers to maintenance, because there is no ʿumra pilgrimage to any mosque besides the Holy Sanctuary, and because the terms ʿumra and ziyāra are not used in the Qur’an to describe visiting a mosque for the purpose of worshipping God therein, instead it opts for the verb dukhūl (to enter).
We can further see that the intended meaning of ʿamāra is maintaining the physical structure of the Holy Sanctuary rather than pilgrimage to it, because we read in the subsequent verse: Do you regard the providing of water to Hajj pilgrims and the maintenance of the Holy Mosque… (). At the same time, the mosques referred to in this verse are any houses that are built for the sake of God and used as venues for his worship. However, the context of the verse suggests that it is focused specifically on the Holy Sanctuary, as indicated by the alternate recitation (qirāʾa): ‘To maintain God’s mosque,’ with mosque appearing in the singular rather than the plural.
There is no problem with the Qur’an using the plural form while the primary intent of the verse is to explain the ruling for a particular case within that category, because the criteria for this ruling are general in scope and the rationale for the ruling given in the verse is not particular to the Holy Sanctuary. Therefore, the meaning is: ‘It is not for them to maintain the Holy Sanctuary, because it is a mosque, and this is a rule that applies to all mosques.’
…while they are witness to their own unfaith: Their being witness to their own faith means to openly acknowledge it in word or deed, for example by verbally stating their disbelief or by worshipping idols and making a show of their disbelief. All of this bears witness to their unfaith.
Therefore, the meaning of the verse is: ‘The idolaters are not permitted, and nor do they have any right, to carry out repairs on the Holy Sanctuary, just as they are not allowed for any other mosque, so long as they testify to their own disbelief in word or deed.
Their works have failed, and they shall remain in the Fire: This provides the underlying rationale for the above injunction, which is why it appears as a separate statement.
Their works have failed means that their deeds are futile and ineffective. Anyone who performs an action does so in order to achieve some desired outcome; if their works have failed, this means that will not produce the desired outcome, therefore there is no reason to allow them to perform them anymore. This is because acts of worship, such as maintaining God’s mosques, are performed in order to win God’s pleasure and attain paradise, and failed works will never lead to paradise or eternal bliss.
…and they shall remain in the Fire shows that their ultimate destination is not happiness or paradise, but hell. This is as if to say: ‘Those are the ones whose acts of worship will never convey them to paradise, rather they will be in hell eternally. They will never attain happiness, but will only be given everlasting misery.’
This verse highlights two subtle principles about divine legislation:
First, a permissible act (jāʾiz) in its most general sense—encompassing obligatory (wājib), recommended (mustaḥabb), and legally neutral (mubāḥ) acts—is an action that has a beneficial effect on its doer. After all, no law is promulgated arbitrarily or without reason in the religion of Islam. This principle is both supported by reason and the natural law that operates throughout the world that no deed is done save for a benefit it brings to its doer.
Second, that an action is considered permissible because God has already given the right to the doer to perform it and has not expressly prohibited it.
إِنَّمَا يَعْمُرُ مَسَاجِدَ اللَّهِ مَنْ آمَنَ بِاللَّهِ وَالْيَوْمِ الْآخِرِ وَأَقَامَ الصَّلَاةَ وَآتَى الزَّكَاةَ وَلَمْ يَخْشَ إِلَّا اللَّهَ ۖ فَعَسَىٰ أُولَٰئِكَ أَنْ يَكُونُوا مِنَ الْمُهْتَدِينَ ١٨
(9:18) Only those shall maintain Allah’s mosques who believe in Allah and the Last Day, and maintain the prayer and give the zakāt, and fear no one except Allah. They, hopefully, will be among the guided.
Based on the context of the verse, the marker of exclusivity innamā (only) is used here to signify a separating restriction (qaṣr al-ifrād)—in that it restricts the right to maintain God’s mosques to people with the qualities specified—as if someone imagined that both believers and idolaters had the right to maintain God’s mosques. The verse restricts this to only the believers. While the statement, only those shall maintain…, is phrased as a declarative sentence, it is evidently meant as a speech act (inshāʾ) to legislate a right and a permission. Hence, God has stipulated that the right and permission to maintain His mosques only belongs to those who believe in Him and the Last Day. This excludes the idolaters, as while they believe in God (even though they associate partners with Him), they do not believe in the Last Day. Therefore, this verse establishes the right to maintain God’s mosques exclusively for the faithful.
To this, He also adds the requirement, and maintain the prayer and give the zakāt, and fear no one except Allah. This is because this verse was revealed in the context of explaining who will benefit from their deeds and, therefore, who has the right to maintain God’s mosques. Anyone who abandons the practical requirements (furūʿ) of the religion, especially the two pillars of prayer and zakāt, has disbelieved in God’s signs and will not benefit from his professed belief in God and the Last Day, even if he is a Muslim and does not deny the teachings of Islam with his tongue. Of course, if he denies the teachings of Islam with his tongue, he is a disbeliever and not a Muslim.
The reason that God singles out prayer and zakāt for mention here is because they are two pillars of Islam that can never be neglected for any reason.
From what we have said about the context of the verse, it also becomes apparent why God adds the stipulation that they fear no one except Allah. This is because fear (khashya) in the religious sense is worship, as opposed to fear in the instinctive sense, which is something only those intimate servants brought nearest to God, like the Prophets, do not experience. God says: such as deliver the messages of Allah and fear Him, and fear no one except Allah ().
The reason why God refers to worship (ʿibāda) as fear (khashya) is that people most commonly worship and venerate a deity for two reasons: Fear of their wrath and hope for their mercy. And hope for their mercy translates into fear of being denied it, which would be because of their wrath. Therefore, anyone who worships God or worships an idol has been drawn to worship them because they are afraid of their wrath or afraid of being denied their blessings and mercy. This means that worship is a symbol of fear and fear is the embodiment of worship, such that fear and worship both imply the existence of the other. This is why God uses the word fear to signify worship. Hence, the meaning of this phrase is: ‘and worship no deity except God.’
They, hopefully, will be among the guided: Meaning that those who believe in God and the Last Day and do not worship anyone except God, it is hoped that they will be rightly guided. Now, this hope inheres either in the souls of those described in the verse or in the audience who are hearing this description; it does not inhere in God, because hope is a concept that cannot be applied to God, as hope can only emanate from a state of ignorance about the future and whether or not the thing hoped for will come to pass.
Now, anyone who truly believes in God and the Last Day and then confirms this belief through their acts of worship has assuredly been guided. So, why does the Qur’an treat their guidance as hoped for rather than as a certainty? This is because being guided once or twice does not mean that the person is ‘among the guided’ (min al-muhtadīn) in the sense that they are in a permanent state of being guided and adhering to guidance. After all, just because someone displays a trait once or twice, this does not mean that this trait has become part of who they are. Those who believe in God and the Last Day and do good deeds have all been guided, but it is still hoped that this guidance will become an integral part of who they are, for this has not yet come to pass.
Therefore, from this verse we can see that there is no right or permission to maintain God’s mosques for anyone who is not a Muslim. This is because the idolaters do not truly believe in God and do not believe in the Last Day at all, while the belief of the People of the Book in God is not recognized as genuine belief by the Qur’an: Those who disbelieve in Allah and His apostles and seek to separate Allah from His apostles, and say, ‘We believe in some and disbelieve in some’ and seek to take a way in between—it is they who are truly faithless (4:150–51), and: Fight those who do not have faith in Allah nor believe in the Last Day, nor forbid what Allah and His Apostle have forbidden, nor practise the true religion, from among those who were given the Book ().
أَجَعَلْتُمْ سِقَايَةَ الْحَاجِّ وَعِمَارَةَ الْمَسْجِدِ الْحَرَامِ كَمَنْ آمَنَ بِاللَّهِ وَالْيَوْمِ الْآخِرِ وَجَاهَدَ فِي سَبِيلِ اللَّهِ ۚ لَا يَسْتَوُونَ عِنْدَ اللَّهِ ۗ وَاللَّهُ لَا يَهْدِي الْقَوْمَ الظَّالِمِينَ ١٩
(9:19) Do you regard the providing of water to Hajj pilgrims and the maintenance of the Holy Mosque as similar in worth to someone who has faith in Allah and believes in the Last Day and strives in the way of Allah?
Key Debate: Water for the Pilgrims and the Holy Mosque →
The verbal noun siqāya (providing water) follows the same vowel pattern as the words ḥikāya (story), jināya (crime), and nikāya (spite). It is conjugated saqā, yasqī, siqāya.
Siqāya can also be used to signify the place into which water is poured and the container from which it is poured. For example, see the verse from the story of Joseph: he put the drinking-cup (siqāya) into his brother’s saddlebag ().
According to the historical reports that have come down to us, providing water to the Hajj pilgrims was a source of pride and distinction in the pre-Islamic era. These reports say that Quṣayy ibn Kilāb (one of the Prophet’s ancestors) brought fresh water from the wells by camel and stored it in leather basins that were kept in the shadow of the Kaʿba, from which they would distribute it to pilgrims. When Quṣayy passed away, he entrusted this responsibility to his son ʿAbd Manāf, and it was handed down from one generation to the next until it was inherited by the Prophet’s uncle, ʿAbbās ibn ʿAbd al-Muṭṭalib. Even now, the place from whence ʿAbbās would distribute water to the pilgrims in both the pre-Islamic and Islamic periods is known as Siqāyat al-ʿAbbās. It is located about forty cubits to the south of the Well of Zamzam, and today a structure has been erected upon it that is also known by this name.
In any case, the meaning of the term siqāya in the above verse is ‘to give water,’ and this is reflected in the fact that it is mentioned alongside the maintenance of the Holy Mosque in Mecca.
This verse appears to compare the roles of maintaining the Holy Mosque and giving water to the pilgrims with someone who believes in God and the Last Day and who strives in His way. However, it is meaningless to argue about whether or not a person is equal to an action, like maintaining the mosque or giving water, as you must compare like with like: a person with a person or a deed with a deed. Therefore, commentators have had to argue that what the verse contains an implicit meaning, namely: ‘Do you regard those who provide water to Hajj pilgrims and maintain the Holy Mosque as similar in worth to someone who has faith in Allah and believes in the Last Day and strives in the way of Allah?’ In this way, they resolve this apparent disparity.
However, we would argue that it is more appropriate to look at the conditions being set in the course of this comparison. On the one hand are giving water to the pilgrims and maintaining the Holy Mosque. These are mentioned by themselves and independent of any additional condition being stipulated. On the other hand are belief in God and the Last Day and striving in the way of God. Or, to put it another way: Striving in the way of God, while believing in Him.
This comparison suggests that what the verse wishes to call attention to—‘providing of water to Hajj pilgrims and the maintenance of the Holy Mosque’—is the performance of these deeds without believing in God. This reading is supported by the verse’s coda: and Allah does not guide the wrongdoing lot, which now sounds like a hint directed at those who give water to pilgrims and maintain the mosque rather than one aimed at those who consider the two groups equal.
This shows, first of all, that those who considered these two groups equal were, in fact, equating pre-Islamic deeds empty of faith in God and the Last Day, such as giving water to pilgrims and maintaining the mosque (without these being predicated upon a person’s faith), with religious deeds performed out of a person’s belief in God and the Last Day, like striving in the way of God because of one’s faith. In other words, they considered the outward form of an act that was devoid of life as equal to a beneficial living deed. For this, God repudiates them.
Second, this shows that those who considered these two kinds of action equal were actually from the camp of the faithful. They were comparing those actions they had performed before converting or that they saw idolaters performing now with the deeds of those who believed sincerely in God. This is evident both from the context of the verse and the different levels of belief and action mentioned in it.
Moreover, the fact that the deeds of giving water to the pilgrims and maintaining the Holy Mosque are mentioned without indicating who is doing them suggests that the ones doing these acts were also believers, but that God did not mention them explicitly to preserve their dignity and to prevent them from being identified with the wrongdoers (ẓālimīn) mentioned in the verse’s coda.
In fact, what God says in the subsequent verse about the reward of those who strive in His way because of their faith— Those who have believed and migrated and strived in the way of Allah ()—shows that both parties mentioned in the comparison—the providing of water to Hajj pilgrims and the maintenance of the Holy Mosque as similar in worth to someone who has faith in Allah—are actually inhabitants of Mecca, and that one of the two parties, those who believed in God and strived, are those who converted and emigrated, while the other party converted but did not emigrate. This is why God mentions faith (īmān) and striving (jihād) on the one hand, then adds emigration (hijra) to that when He mentions it again. On the other hand, He mentions giving water to the pilgrims and maintaining the mosque, but He does not add anything to that whether the first or second time around. This is an example of the subtle eloquence to be found in God’s speech.
This all supports what has been related concerning this verse’s occasion of revelation (sabab al-nuzūl), namely that it was revealed concerning ʿAbbās and Shayba on the one hand and ʿAlī on the other: When ʿAbbās boasted that he gave water to the pilgrims and Shayba that he maintained the Holy Mosque, ʿAlī responded by saying that he had believed in God and strived in His way, so God revealed this verse. We shall discuss this report in our treatment of the narrations, below.
In any case, this verse and those that follow it show that the only works with lasting value are those that are giving life by the spirit of faith, and that faith without works is like a body without an animating spirit; it has no life and neither weighs anything on the scales of deeds nor fetches any price in the marketplace of spiritual goods. Therefore, the faithful should not only consider the outward form of deeds when they wish to know which are virtuous and means of attaining nearness to God, but must also see whether or not these deeds are given life by faith and dedication.
This explains the connection between God’s words in the present verse, do you regard the providing of water to Hajj pilgrims and the maintenance of the Holy Mosque…, and the verses following it with the previous two verses, namely: It is not for the polytheists to maintain Allah’s mosques while they are witness to their own unfaith… ().
In addition, this shows, first of all, that when God says, Allah does not guide the wrongdoing lot, this is an adverbial sentence that is intended to explain why they are wrong to equate the two sets of deeds mentioned at the beginning of the verse: Do you regard the providing of water to Hajj pilgrims and the maintenance of the Holy Mosque as similar in worth to someone who has faith in Allah…
Second, it shows that the wrongdoing (ẓulm) mentioned here refers to the idolatrous beliefs they followed while they were giving water to the pilgrims and maintaining the mosque, not to their equating giving water to the pilgrims and maintaining the mosque to striving in the way of God based on one’s faith.
Third, this verse negates any benefit coming to them from these deeds in the form of being guided to eternal happiness, which is nothing other than success, mercy, divine satisfaction, and paradise.
الَّذِينَ آمَنُوا وَهَاجَرُوا وَجَاهَدُوا فِي سَبِيلِ اللَّهِ بِأَمْوَالِهِمْ وَأَنْفُسِهِمْ أَعْظَمُ دَرَجَةً عِنْدَ اللَّهِ ۚ وَأُولَٰئِكَ هُمُ الْفَائِزُونَ ٢٠
(9:20) Those who have believed and migrated and strived in the way of Allah with their possessions and persons have a greater rank near Allah, and it is they who are the triumphant.
This verse shows how God sees the reality of the situation after denying that the two parties are equal; that the one who believed, emigrated, and strived in the way of God to the best of his ability by giving whatever he had of his person and possessions is of greater rank in the eyes of God. The plural form—those who have believed—is used here to show that the criterion for this distinction is the trait rather than the person.
We have already discussed how these verses show that deeds that do not emanate from faith in God add no merit and no value to their doer in the eyes of God. This means that when the verse says that those who believed, migrated, and strived ‘have a greater rank,’ this comparison should not be taken to mean that both groups share some ranks in common in the eyes of God and that those who migrated and strived merely occupy a rank above those who give water to pilgrims and maintain the mosque. On the contrary, the relationship being portrayed here is between one who is superior and one who has no merit whatsoever, akin to comparing the most with the least. This would suggest the existence of an intermediate level between the two of them, which would mean that there are three levels: One level is intermediate, sitting between the other two and, of these, one is higher than it and the other is lower. And, if we were to compare the highest with the lowest, we would be comparing something with all the height to something with no height whatsoever.
So, when the Qur’an says they have a greater rank near Allah, this is in comparison to those who have no rank with Him whatsoever, which makes this phrase a subtle allusion to the fact that there really is no comparison between the two groups, because one of them enjoys a standing lofty beyond compare, while the other has no standing whatsoever.
This is also indicated by the phrase, and it is they who are the triumphant, as it signifies that only the latter group have triumphed and that this state of triumph is lasting and established for them.
يُبَشِّرُهُمْ رَبُّهُمْ بِرَحْمَةٍ مِنْهُ وَرِضْوَانٍ وَجَنَّاتٍ لَهُمْ فِيهَا نَعِيمٌ مُقِيمٌ ٢١ خَالِدِينَ فِيهَا أَبَدًا ۚ إِنَّ اللَّهَ عِنْدَهُ أَجْرٌ عَظِيمٌ ٢٢
(9:21-22) Their Lord gives them the good news of a mercy from Him and a satisfaction, and gardens for them in which there is lasting bliss, to remain therein forever. With Allah indeed is a great reward.
Based on the context in which it occurs, this enumeration of the blessings that await the faithful explains the nature of the triumph (fawz) they were said to have attained in the previous verse. This is presented in the form of glad tidings about what is to come.
Therefore, the meaning is: Their Lord gives them—those faithful who have believed, emigrated, and strived in His way—glad tidings of a mercy from Him—that is too magnificent to be described—and a satisfaction—that is likewise such—and gardens for them in which—in those gardens—is lasting bliss—that will never fade and never pass away—to remain therein forever—their lives in these gardens will have no limits and no expiration.
This verse is intended to convey something astonishing, because it gives glad tidings of something more magnificent than anything ever seen in this world—something which, therefore, must seem unbelievable to human minds. However, this tension is resolved with the verse’s coda: With Allah indeed is a great reward.
And we will provide a full elaboration of the meanings of God’s mercy (raḥma) and satisfaction (riḍwān) later in our commentary, and we have already touched on this previously.
يَا أَيُّهَا الَّذِينَ آمَنُوا لَا تَتَّخِذُوا آبَاءَكُمْ وَإِخْوَانَكُمْ أَوْلِيَاءَ إِنِ اسْتَحَبُّوا الْكُفْرَ عَلَى الْإِيمَانِ ۚ وَمَنْ يَتَوَلَّهُمْ مِنْكُمْ فَأُولَٰئِكَ هُمُ الظَّالِمُونَ ٢٣
(9:23) O you who have faith! Do not take your fathers and brothers as allies if they prefer faithlessness to faith. Those of you who make allies of them—it is they who are the wrongdoers.
This verse forbids the faithful from making allies of the disbelievers, even if those disbelievers are one’s own kith and kin. This criterion is general. The subsequent verse forbids taking any of them as allies, although the apparent meaning of the verse is to prohibit taking one’s fathers and brothers as allies if they prefer faithlessness (kufr) to faith (īmān).
Fathers and brothers are mentioned here rather than sons and spouses, even though both of these are no less dear to people than their parents and siblings, because to take someone as an ally (walī) means to allow them to interfere in your affairs and involve themselves in some aspects of your life. This is the unacceptable scenario that the prohibition on taking disbelievers as allies is intended to forestall, so that the disbelievers will not interfere in the believer’s personal affairs or sway their hearts so that they will refrain from doing things that the disbelievers dislike or that will be harmful to their interests. Evidently, it is not expected that wives and children will have this same effect on the faithful unless they are used an intermediary. This is why the prohibition on taking allies in this verse singles out fathers and brothers, because they are the ones most able to involve themselves in the lives of the faithful and interfere in their affairs.
The prohibition on taking the faithless as allies appears in numerous places throughout the Qur’an. We have already seen some of these in Sūrah al-Māʾida, Āl ʿImrān, al-Nisāʾ, and al-Aʿrāf, and many of them issue stern warnings and harsh reprimands to the believers. For example: Any of you who allies with them is indeed one of them (); …and whoever does that Allah will have nothing to do with him… Allah warns you to beware of Him (); Do you wish to give Allah a clear sanction against yourselves? ()
In the present verse, God warns the faithful with the words: Those of you who make allies of them—it is they who are the wrongdoers. Note that He does not say: ‘Those of you who make allies of them, you are from them,’ as a listener might imagine that he is already ‘from them’ because they are his father and brothers, in which case the divine threat will not have the desired impact in encouraging him to reject their patronage.
In any case, the phrase, those of you who make allies of them—it is they who are the wrongdoers, contains a number of devices of emphasis. For example, it is a nominal sentence rather than a verbal one, the predicate (‘it is they who are the wrongdoers’) includes both the definite article (the wrongdoers, Ar. al-ẓālimūn) and a separating pronoun (they, Ar. ulāʾika). This shows that, in addition to the wrongness of the act itself, by doing this, wrongdoing becomes a fixed trait of theirs. Moreover, God has repeatedly said that he does not guide the wrongdoers or wrongdoing peoples. For example, on this topic in Sūrah al-Māʾida, He says: Any of you who allies with them is indeed one of them. Indeed Allah does not guide the wrongdoing lot (). Therefore, in doing this, they will become those who are deprived of divine guidance, which means that their good deeds will be of no use in obtaining everlasting happiness for them, and neither will they attain triumph or success.
قُلْ إِنْ كَانَ آبَاؤُكُمْ وَأَبْنَاؤُكُمْ وَإِخْوَانُكُمْ وَأَزْوَاجُكُمْ وَعَشِيرَتُكُمْ وَأَمْوَالٌ اقْتَرَفْتُمُوهَا وَتِجَارَةٌ تَخْشَوْنَ كَسَادَهَا وَمَسَاكِنُ تَرْضَوْنَهَا أَحَبَّ إِلَيْكُمْ مِنَ اللَّهِ وَرَسُولِهِ وَجِهَادٍ فِي سَبِيلِهِ فَتَرَبَّصُوا حَتَّىٰ يَأْتِيَ اللَّهُ بِأَمْرِهِۗ وَاللَّهُ لَا يَهْدِي الْقَوْمَ الْفَاسِقِينَ ٢٤
(9:24) Say, ‘If your fathers and your sons, your brethren, your spouses, and your kinsfolk, the possessions that you have acquired, the business you fear may suffer, and the dwellings you are fond of, are dearer to you than Allah and His Apostle and to striving in His way, then wait until Allah issues His edict, and Allah does not guide the transgressing lot.
This verse opens with a transition (iltifāt) from addressing the believers to addressing the Prophet, as if to indicate that he should turn away from them. This is because it is clear from their behavior that their hearts are inclined towards taking their disbelieving fathers and brothers as allies, and that prohibiting them from this will be of no use. Nor will any amount of admonition motivate them to pay attention to the commands of God and His Messenger or to strive for the sake of God by fighting the disbelievers, even if these disbelievers are their own kith and kin.
What prevents them from obeying God’s commands is their love of things beside God and His Messenger and striving in God’s way. Hence, in this verse, God enumerates the objects of their selfish affection amongst the ornaments of the life of this world, namely their fathers, sons, brothers, spouses, and tribes, as these are the natural communities that people are born into and to which they are bound by familial ties, whether by blood or marriage, close or distant. Also in this category is the wealth that they earn and amass, the trade whose loss they fear, and the homes which they enjoy, as these represent the second level of social stability after the bonds of kinship.
God warns them that if they make allies out of the enemies of the faith and prioritize their status and position over the love of God, His Messenger, and striving in His way, then they should be ready for God to issue his edict and know that He does not guide a wrongdoing people.
From the context, it is evident that the conditional statement, if your fathers…, conveys the meaning of: ‘If you do not desist from what God has prohibited to you, namely taking your disbelieving fathers and brothers as allies by relying on them, this will cause you to turn your back on God’s summons and forget the very purpose of the religion, which is to strive for the sake of God.’
Therefore, the ‘edict’ (amr) mentioned in the consequent of this conditional statement, namely, then wait until Allah issues His edict, can mean one of two things. Either this edict refers to something that will compensate for the damage caused to the faith by their failure to abide by God’s commands or a punishment that will descend upon them as a result of their disobeying God and the Messenger and turning their back on the divine struggle.
This is in addition to the coda, and Allah does not guide the transgressing lot, which intimates to them that should they not abide by God’s commands, they will have gone out from under the umbrella of divine servanthood (ʿubūdiyya) and become transgressors (fāsiqūn) against God and His Messenger. As a result, God will no longer guide them in their actions or grant them the blessing of supporting God and His Messenger by raising the slogan of the true faith and erasing all traces of idolatry.
This coda shows that the ‘edict’ that they are told to expect earlier in the verse refers to God’s command to help the religion and raise up its message. Therefore, this is similar in meaning to the verse in Sūrah al-Māʾida, which also concerns taking the disbelievers as allies: O you who have faith! Should any of you desert his religion, Allah will soon bring a people whom He loves and who love Him, (who will be) humble towards the faithful, stern towards the faithless, striving in the way of Allah, not fearing the blame of any blamer. That is Allah’s grace which He grants to whomever He wishes, and Allah is all-bounteous, all-knowing (). Taking into account this verse’s particularities and conditions, it is clear that it conveys the same meaning as the verse presently under consideration.
Therefore, the overall meaning of the verse is: ‘If you take them as allies and refuse to obey God and His Messenger and to strive in His way, then be prepared for God’s edict. He will send a people that love only Him and will not take His enemies as friends. They will support the religion of truth and strive in His way in the best manner possible. Then you will be transgressors, for whom the religion will be of no benefit, and God will not guide any of your deeds towards the goal of truth and eternal happiness.
Some commentators have suggested that the phrase, then wait until Allah issues His edict, refers to the conquest of Mecca. However, this is not a sound reading, because this verse is addressed to the believers from both the Emigrants and the Helpers, but especially the Emigrants, who were actually involved in the conquest of Mecca. Therefore, it does not make any sense to address them and say: ‘If your fathers and your sons are dearer to you than God, His Messenger, and striving in His way, and you take them as allies and refuse to obey God and His Messenger or strive in His way, then be prepared for God to subdue Mecca with your hands, and God does not guide the wrongdoing lot’ or ‘…then just wait until God subdues Mecca, and God does not guide the wrongdoing lot’ or ‘…then just wait until God subdues Mecca, and God will not guide you because of your sinfulness.’ This should be evident upon reflection.
Examining Narrations
- In Tafsīr al-Burhān, concerning the verse: Do you regard the providing of water to Hajj pilgrims (), it is narrated from the Amālī of Shaykh al-Ṭūsī via a chain of narrators leading to al-Aʿmash, from Sālim ibn Abī al-Jaʿad, via an incomplete chain (marfūʿ) from Abū Dharr, in a tradition about the Council (Shūrā) detailing ʿAlī’s argument to those assembled. He told them: ‘Is there any amongst you about whom this verse was revealed: Do you regard the providing of water to Hajj pilgrims and the maintenance of the Holy Mosque as similar in worth to someone who has faith in Allah and believes in the Last Day and strives in the way of Allah? Is there any aside from me?’ They said: ‘No.’
- In Tafsīr al-Qummī, it is narrated via Abū al-Jārūd from Imām al-Bāqir: ‘This verse was revealed about ʿAlī ibn Abī Ṭālib: Those who have believed and migrated and strived in the way of Allah with their possessions and persons have a greater rank near Allah, and it is they who are the triumphant (). Then God described what He has in store for ʿAlī in the Hereafter: Their Lord gives them the good news of a mercy from Him and a satisfaction, and gardens for them in which there is lasting bliss ()’.
- In Majmaʿ al-Bayān, it is narrated from al-Ḥākim Abū al-Qāsim al-Ḥasakānī via a chain of narrators from Abū Burayda, from his father: ‘Shayba and ʿAbbās were vying with each another to see who had more merit as ʿAlī was passing by. He stopped and asked them: “Of what do you boast?”
‘ʿAbbās answered him: “I have been favoured like no other with the honor of giving water to the Hajj pilgrims!”
‘Shayba said: “I have been entrusted with maintaining the Holy Mosque!”
‘ʿAlī said: “I tell you both, I was given something, in spite of my young age, that neither of you have been given.”
‘They asked: “What were you given, O ʿAlī?”
‘He said: “Striking both of your noses with my sword until you believed in God Almighty and His Messenger!”
‘Upon hearing this, ʿAbbās stood up angrily and went, dragging his robes on the ground, to the Messenger of God. He told him: “Do you not see how ʿAlī answered me?”
‘He said: ‘Call ʿAlī for me.”
‘So ʿAlī came and the Prophet asked him: “Why did you answer your uncle in this way, ʿAlī?”
‘He said: “O Messenger of God, I spoke the truth. It is up to him whether he is happy or not.”
‘Then Gabriel came and said: “O Muḥammad, your Lord sends peace upon you and says: ‘Recite to them Do you regard the providing of water to Hajj pilgrims and the maintenance of the Holy Mosque as similar in worth to someone who has faith in Allah and believes in the Last Day… With Allah indeed is a great reward’”’ ().
- In Tafsīr al-Ṭabarī, it is narrated from Muḥammad ibn Kaʿb al-Quraẓī: ‘Ṭalḥa ibn Shayba, ʿAbbās, and ʿAlī were vying with one another to see who was superior. Ṭalḥa said: “I am the keeper of God’s House and I have its key!” ʿAbbās said: “I am responsible for bringing water and distributing it to the pilgrims.” ʿAlī said: “I do not know what the two of you are talking about. I prayed towards the qibla for six months before anyone else, and I strove in God’s way.” Then God revealed the verse Do you regard the providing of water to Hajj pilgrims….’
- In al-Durr al-Manthūr, al-Fāryābī narrates from Ibn Sīrīn that ʿAlī ibn Abī Ṭālib came to Mecca and said to ʿAbbās: ‘O Uncle, will you not emigrate to Medina and join the Messenger of God?’ He replied: ‘I maintain God’s House and clothe it.’ So, God revealed the verse: Do you regard the providing of water to Hajj pilgrims. Then he called other people by name and asked them: ‘Will you not emigrate to Medina and join the Messenger of God?’ They said: ‘We will stay with our brethren, our tribes, and our homes.’ So God revealed the verse Say, ‘If your fathers…’ ().
- In the same source, Ibn Jarīr, Ibn Mundhir, and Ibn Abī Ḥātim narrate from Ibn ʿAbbās: When ʿAbbās was captured at the Battle of Badr, he said: ‘Even if you have preceded us in Islam, emigration, and striving in God’s way, it is we who maintained the Holy Mosque, gave water to the Hajj pilgrims, and freed the prisoners!’ In response, God revealed Do you regard the providing of water to Hajj pilgrims… meaning that all of this was done while they were idolaters, so God will not accept it from them.
- In the same source, Muslim, Abū Dāwūd, Ibn Jarīr, Ibn al-Mundhir, Ibn Abī Ḥātim, Ibn Ḥibbān, al-Ṭabarānī, Abū Shaykh, and Ibn Marduwayh narrate from al-Nuʿmān ibn Bashīr: ‘I was beside the pulpit of God’s Messenger in a group of the Companions, when one of them said: “I don’t understand why I don’t perform any practice after Islam except giving water to the Hajj pilgrims.” Another said: “Or maintaining the Holy Mosque.” Another said: “Or struggling in the way of God, it is better than both of those!”
‘So ʿUmar rebuked them and said: “Do not raise your voices at the pulpit of the Messenger of God!”—as this was on a Friday—“but when you have offered Friday prayers, God to the Messenger of God and ask him about this disagreement of yours!” So God revealed the verse: Do you regard the providing of water to Hajj pilgrims… and Allah does not guide the wrongdoing lot.’
Author’s comments: In his Tafsīr al-Manār, after presenting these last four traditions, he says: ‘The most reliable of these traditions is that of al-Nuʿmān because of the strength of its chain of narrators and the agreement of its text with the contents of the verse, which rejects the notion that looking after the House of God and its pilgrims—which is an enjoyable good deed—is equivalent to having faith in God, striving in His way using one’s own wealth and person, and emigrating for His sake—when these are some of the hardest acts of worship in terms of their demands upon a person’s body, wealth, and life.’
As for his claim that the narration of al-Nuʿmān is to be given preference over the others because of the strength of its chain of narrators: First of all, the narration of al-Quraẓī is also in agreement with the meaning of the verse and has a strong chain of narrators, as it is narrated by al-Ḥākim al-Nīshābūrī in his Mustadrak and he considers it sound (ṣaḥīḥ).
Second, that these exegetical narrations are all solitary (akhbār āḥād) and, therefore, are not considered authoritative unless they agree with the contents of the verses. The extent of such narrations’ authoritativeness is detailed in the science of the principles of jurisprudence (uṣūl): Solitary narrations are considered authoritative in legal matters but in other topics, such as narrations on the stories of the Prophets and exegesis, where there is no legal question to be resolved, these solitary narrations are not deemed authoritative. This is also a rational question, because, after all of the tampering and forgery that has taken place within the tradition literature, especially in the genres of Prophetic stories and Qur’anic exegesis—as the author of al-Manār has himself acknowledged elsewhere, citing Aḥmad ibn Ḥanbal, who described such narrations as ‘baseless’ (lā aṣl lahā)—it is only possible to rely on narrations that have been established as authentic beyond all doubt. One criterion for this is that its text should agree with the apparent meaning of the Qur’an’s verses.
Therefore, when studying non-legal traditions, the researcher must examine them to see if they accord with the apparent meaning of the Qur’an’s verses. If they are in agreement with the apparent meaning, then this is a mark of the tradition’s reliability, regardless of its chain of narrators (an authentic chain, in this case, is more ornamental). If, on the other hand, they do not agree with the apparent meaning of the Qur’an’s verses, then they are worthless and cannot be treated as authoritative, even with an authentic chain.
In practice, we find that many commentators on the Qur’an focus on authenticating chains of narration rather than examining whether or not the contents of the narration are in accord with the meaning of the verses in question. Then, if the chain is authentic, they impose the meaning of the tradition on the Book of God. However, this is not a valid method of exegesis and there is no evidence for its reliability.
Returning to Rashīd Riḍā’s preference for the narration of al-Nuʿmān vis-à-vis the other traditions cited on the basis that its text is in agreement with the verse, which according to Riḍā, is about the relative value of different good deeds: Namely, whether serving the House of God and its pilgrims (which is a pleasant good deed to perform) is equivalent to believing in God, striving in His way, and emigrating for His sake (which is a truly difficult undertaking)—a thesis rejected in the verses.
We respond as follows: First of all, all of the narrations mentioned according with the meaning of the verse is as explained by Rashīd Riḍā.
Let us look at the narration of Ibn ʿAbbās, which situates the exchange after ʿAbbās was captured during the Battle of Badr and the Muslims rebuked him. In it, an explicit comparison is made between conversion, emigration, and striving in God’s way on the one hand and between giving water to the pilgrims, maintaining the Holy Mosque, and freeing prisoners on the other.
Now, let us examine the narration of Ibn Sīrīn, which says the debate took place between ʿAlī and ʿAbbās in Mecca, when the latter called on him to emigrate and join the Prophet in Medina and ʿAbbās responded: ‘I maintain God’s House and clothe it.’ A narration with a similar meaning is transmitted by Ibn Mardawayh from al-Shaʿbī. In it, ʿAbbās said to ʿAlī: ‘I am the uncle of the Prophet, you are the son of his uncle. I give water to the Hajj pilgrims and maintain the Holy Mosque.’ Then God revealed the verse: Do you regard the providing of water to Hajj pilgrims….
Ibn Abī Shayba, Abū al-Shaykh, and Ibn Mardawayh also transmit an account from ʿAbdallāh ibn ʿUbayda in which ʿAbbās tells ʿAlī: ‘Am I not already doing something better than emigrating? Am I not giving water to the Hajj pilgrims and maintaining the Holy Mosque?’ Then God revealed the above verse.
In any case, the fact of the matter is that this narration also compares giving water to the pilgrims and maintaining the Holy Mosque to emigrating in the way of God, joining the Prophet in Medina, and everything that accompanies that, such as striving in the way of God and other meritorious acts of faith.
We will now turn to the narration of al-Quraẓī, the similar narration transmitted and authenticated by al-Ḥākim al-Nīshābūrī in his Mustadrak, in addition to the report ʿAbd al-Razzāq narrates from Ḥasan, that this verse was revealed about ʿAlī, ʿAbbās, ʿUthmān, and Shayba when they were discussing this topic. This is in the same vein as the narration of al-Nuʿmān cited above, where there was a debate taking place about whether giving water to the pilgrims, maintaining the Holy Mosque, or having faith in God and striving in His way was superior. Both of these are clear in their agreement with the basic meaning of the Qur’anic verse. Therefore, why should Rashīd Riḍā give priority to the narration of al-Nuʿmān over all of the others or claim that it alone matches the contents of the verse? This is the first issue with the interpretation presented in Tafsīr al-Manār.
As for the second issue, namely that the comparison is between good deeds that were easy and pleasant—like giving water to the Hajj pilgrims and clothing the Kaʿba—on the one hand and between good deeds that were difficult and demanding—like believing in God, emigrating, and striving in His way—on the other, this does not agree with the apparent meaning of the verse. As we have already discussed, the apparent meaning of the verse compares the outward form of deeds that are devoid of the spirit of faith—and, therefore, are not good deeds at all—with deeds that are living because they are imbued with the spirit of faith, like emigrating or struggling based on one’s faith in God and the Last Day.
Therefore, this verse shows that those being addressed were equating deeds such as giving water to the pilgrims and maintaining the Holy Mosque that were not rooted in faith to deeds such as struggling for the sake of God or emigrating in His way (or even preferring the former to the latter). So how can this verse be read as comparing easy righteous acts with difficult ones? Unless, of course, he means to argue that these deeds performed by ʿAbbās while he was yet an idolater were still good deeds (as ʿAbbās himself seems to claim in the account). However, the verses admonish ʿAbbās that he is mistaken in his assumptions, as does the end of the narration from Ibn ʿAbbās. Therefore Rashīd Riḍā’s reading is to be discounted.
Taking into account the specific criteria they present, the verses are very clear in their meaning. Recall that they explicitly predicate struggling in God’s way upon a person’s faith in God and the Last Day, while they do not attach any such conditions of faith to giving water to the pilgrims or maintaining the Holy Mosque. Then, God says: They are not equal with Allah, and Allah does not guide the wrongdoing lot. This refutes the notion that this is a comparison between the good deeds of different believers, because why would God describe them as wrongdoers (ẓālimīn) if what they were doing was basically good, and why would He deny them the blessing of His guidance?
If one were to argue that ‘wrongdoers’ here refers to those who consider the two kinds of deeds to be equal or who give preference to providing water to the pilgrims and maintaining the Holy Mosque over striving in the way of God, this would not solve the problem either. After all, such a mistake would hardly make them deserving of being called wrongdoers or being denied God’s guidance.
The third issue with Rashīd Riḍā’s interpretation in Tafsīr al-Manār is his claim that the statement, as similar in worth to someone who has faith in Allah and believes in the Last Day and strives in the way of Allah? They are not equal with Allah shows that the person who this part of the verse was about was also subject to the verse’s rebuke.
If a perceptive reader ponders on the meaning of the verse and what we have already said about it, they will see that the narration that is furthest from the contents of the verse and the least applicable to it is none other than that of al-Nuʿmān ibn Bashīr, because its meaning is not actually in harmony with the meaning of the verse.
The next weakest narration in terms of its meaning is that of Ibn Sīrīn, as it indicates that ʿAbbās was actually called to emigrate when he was already a Muslim, but then he said that giving water to the pilgrims and clothing the House of God meant that he did not need to emigrate. However, the verses in question do not support such an account, as we have already seen. After all, the narration has ʿAbbās mention giving water to the pilgrims and clothing the House of God, when, in fact, ʿAbbās was only responsible for the first of these and not the second.
The next weakest narration after this is that of Ibn ʿAbbās, as it suggests that the comparison was only drawn between different deeds, when the verse makes clear that this was about faith as well. Furthermore, in this account, Ibn ʿAbbās mentions giving water to the pilgrims, maintaining the Holy Mosque, and freeing prisoners. However, if that is what he said, then freeing prisoners would have also been mentioned in the verse.
There is a similar narration from Ibn Jarīr and Abū al-Shaykh via al-Ḍaḥḥāk, which reads: The Muslims came forth to ʿAbbās and his companions who they had captured at the Battle of Badr and they rebuked them for their idolatry. ʿAbbās responded by saying: ‘By God, we were the ones who maintained the Holy Mosque, freed the prisoners, covered the House of God, and gave water to the pilgrims. Then God revealed the verse: Do you regard the providing of water to Hajj pilgrims. Because this narration also mentions covering the House of God and freeing the prisoners, it is in the same position as that of Ibn ʿAbbās.
Therefore, the soundest of the narrations on this topic and the one that chimes best with the contents of the verses themselves is the report of al-Quraẓī and other reports with the same meaning, such as those of al-Ḥākim al-Nīshābūrī in his Mustadrak, the narration of ʿAbd al-Razzāq from al-Ḥasan, and the narrations of Abū Naʿīm al-Iṣfahānī and Ibn ʿAsākir from Anas, presented below, for the reasons we have already outlined.
- In al-Durr al-Manthūr, it is narrated from Abū Naʿīm’s Faḍāʾil al-Ṣaḥāba and Ibn ʿAsākir from Anas that ʿAbbās and Shayba, the keeper of the House of God, were sat vying with one another for status. ʿAbbās said: ‘I am nobler than you, for I am the uncle of the Messenger of God and his father’s successor and the one who gives water to the Hajj pilgrims!’ To this, Shayba responded: ‘It is I who is nobler than you, for I am the one God has entrusted to look after His House and its treasures. Else, why did he not trust you with it as he trusted me?’
ʿAlī heard what they had said and told them: ‘I am nobler than both of you, for I was the first to believe and emigrate.’ So, the three of them went to the Prophet and told him of their dispute. He did not give them any answer, so they went away. Then, after a few days, he received a revelation about this, so he summoned them and recited: Do you regard the providing of water to Hajj pilgrims and the maintenance of the Holy Mosque… and the nine verses that came after it.
- In Tafsīr al-Qummī, ʿAlī ibn Ibrāhīm narrates from his father, from Ṣafwān, from Ibn Muskān, from Abū Baṣīr, from Imām al-Bāqir, about this verse: ‘It was revealed about ʿAlī, ʿAbbās, and Shayba. ʿAbbās said: “I am superior because I give water to the Hajj pilgrims with my own hands!” Shayba said: “I am superior, because I clothe the House of God with my own hands!” ʿAlī said: “I am superior, because I believed before both of you, and emigrated, and strived in the way of God.” So they submitted their dispute for the Messenger of God to adjudicate, whereat God sent down the verses: Do you regard the providing of water to Hajj pilgrims and the maintenance of the Holy Mosque… With Allah indeed is a great reward ()’.
Author’s comments: And al-ʿAyyāshī has also narrated a similar tradition from Abū Baṣīr from Imām al-Ṣādiq, except that ʿUthmān ibn Abī Shayba is mentioned in place of Shayba.
- In al-Kāfī, it is narrated from Abū ʿAlī al-Ashʿarī, from Muḥammad ibn ʿAbd al-Jabbār, from Ṣafwān ibn Yaḥyā, from Ibn Muskān, from Abū Baṣīr, from either Imām al-Ṣādiq or Imām al-Bāqir, about the verse, Do you regard the providing of water to Hajj pilgrims and the maintenance of the Holy Mosque as similar in worth to someone who has faith in Allah and believes in the Last Day: ‘It was revealed about Ḥamza, ʿAlī, Jaʿfar, ʿAbbās, and Shayba. They (ʿAbbās and Shayba) spoke proudly about giving water to the pilgrims and clothing the House of God, so God revealed this verse about them. ʿAlī, Ḥamza, and Jaʿfar were the ones who believed in God and the Last Day and strove in the way of God. They are not equal in the eyes of God.’
Author’s comments: Al-ʿAyyāshī also narrates this in his Tafsīr from Abū Baṣīr from either Imām al-Ṣādiq or Imām al-Bāqir. However, this verse does not accord with what has been definitively transmitted, as Ḥamza was one of the first to emigrate for the sake of God’s Messenger, then he attained martyrdom at the Battle of Uḥud in the year 3 A.H., while Jaʿfar emigrated to Abyssinia before the Prophet’s emigration to Medina, then he returned to Medina shortly at around the time of the conquest of Khaybar, and Ḥamza had already been martyred by this point. Therefore, it is impossible that the five of them could have gathered together and vied with one another in the way the tradition describes, as this could have only taken place before the Prophet emigrated, in which case the following phrase is meaningless: ‘ʿAlī, Ḥamza, and Jaʿfar were the ones who believed in God and the Last Day and strove in the way of God.’
If the tradition means that this verse was revealed about them in the sense that its meaning could also apply to them by extension (jarī), then ʿAbbās too would be included in their number, because he converted when he was captured at the Battle of Badr, then he participated in some of the battles of the Prophet.
- In Tafsīr al-Burhān, it is narrated from al-Jamʿ bayn al-Ṣiḥāḥ al-Sitta by al-ʿAbdī, from the second part of al-Nasāʾī’s collection, via his chain of narrators, that Ṭalḥa ibn Shayba of the Banū ʿAbd al-Dār, ʿAbbās ibn ʿAbd al-Muṭṭalib, and ʿAlī ibn Abī Ṭālib were vying with one another for superiority. Ṭalḥa said: ‘I have the keys to the House of God. If I wanted to, I could sleep in there!’ ʿAbbās said: ‘I am the one who brings the water and distributes it to the pilgrims, and if I wanted to, I could sleep in the Holy Mosque.’ ʿAlī said: ‘I do not know what the two of you are talking about. I prayed towards the qibla six months before the rest of the people, and I am the one who strove in the way of God.’ Then God revealed the verse: Do you regard the providing of water to Hajj pilgrims and the maintenance of the Holy Mosque….
Author’s comments: By praying towards the qibla for six months before the rest of the people, based on the contents of the verse, ʿAlī is referring to his priority in believing in God, or else the verse should have mentioned prayer explicitly. The narration replaces Shayba with Ṭalḥa ibn Shayba, while other traditions we have already examined identify the third person as Shayba and others still say ʿUthmān ibn Abī Shayba.
- In Tafsīr al-Burhān, it is narrated from Ibn Shahrāshūb, from Abū Ḥamza, from Imām al-Bāqir, concerning the verse, O you who have faith! Do not take your fathers and brothers as allies if they prefer faithlessness to faith (): ‘Faith is the wilāya of ʿAlī ibn Abī Ṭālib.’
Author’s comments: This is an example of the inner meaning (bāṭin) of the Qur’an, which rests on an analysis of the meaning of faith (īmān) and its different levels of perfection.
- In Tafsīr al-Qummī, we read: When the Commander of the Faithful announced that no idolater would be permitted to enter the Holy Mosque after this year, the Quraysh became extremely anxious. They said: ‘Our business is ruined, our families will perish, and our prosperity is at an end!’ So, God revealed in response to that: ‘O Muḥammad! Say to them “If your fathers and your sons, your brethren, your spouses, and your kinsfolk… and Allah does not guide the transgressing lot”’ ().
Author’s comments: Based on this tradition, one could interpret wait until Allah issues His edict () as saying that while they might lose some opportunities, others will be opened to them as a result. A similar message is conveyed by the subsequent verse: O you who have faith! The polytheists are indeed unclean: so let them not approach the Holy Mosque after this year. Should you fear poverty, Allah will enrich you out of His grace, if He wishes. Indeed Allah is all-knowing, all-wise (). In fact, this would mean that both verses are addressing the same set of concerns. However, the friendly and gracious form of address in the latter verse, O you who have faith…, means that it cannot be directed at the same people as the harsh rebuke of the former, if your fathers and your sons, your brethren… and Allah does not guide the transgressing lot.
Moreover, this verse mentions their love of their fathers, brothers, kinsmen, and the wealth they have amassed, none of which are mentioned in the narration found in Tafsīr al-Qummī. And if the Quraysh were not concerned by the loss of these, then why does the verse mention them or threaten them with punishment if they chose their love of these things over their love of God and His Messenger? Also, if this were the case, what would be the meaning of striving in God’s way in the verse?
- In al-Durr al-Manthūr, Aḥmad ibn Ḥanbal and al-Bukhārī narrate from ʿAbdallāh ibn Hishām: ‘We were with the Messenger of God while he took hold of the arm of ʿUmar ibn al-Khaṭṭāb, who said: “By God, surely you are dearer to me than anything else except myself, O Messenger of God!” To which the Prophet replied: “None of you will have believed until I am dearer to you than yourself.”’