Surah 9. Al-Tawba

BEHOLD, God has bought of the believers their lives and their possessions, promising them paradise in return, [and so] they fight in God's cause, and slay, and are slain: a promise which in truth He has willed upon Himself in [the words of] the Torah, and the Gospel, and the Qur'an. And who could be more faithful to his covenant than God? Rejoice, then, in the bargain which you have made with Him: for this, this is the triumph supreme!

  - Mohammad Asad

Indeed Allah has purchased from the believers their persons and their wealth and in return has promised them paradise; they fight in the cause of Allah and slay and are slain. This is a true promise which is binding on Him mentioned in Taurat (Torah), the Injeel (Gospel) and the Qur'an; and who is more true in fulfilling his promise than Allah? Rejoice, therefore, in the bargain which you have made, and that is a mighty achievement.

  - Muhammad Farooq-i-Azam Malik

Lo! Allah hath bought from the believers their lives and their wealth because the Garden will be theirs: they shall fight in the way of Allah and shall slay and be slain. It is a promise which is binding on Him in the Torah and the Gospel and the Quran. Who fulfilleth His covenant better than Allah? Rejoice then in your bargain that ye have made, for that is the supreme triumph.

  - Marmaduke Pickthall

[It is a triumph of] those who turn [unto God] in repentance [whenever they have sinned], and who worship and praise [Him], and go on and on [seeking His goodly acceptance],¹⁴⁷ and bow down [before Him] and prostrate themselves in adoration, and enjoin the doing of what is right and forbid the doing of what is wrong, and keep to the bounds set by God. And give thou [O Prophet] the glad tiding [of God's promise] to all believers.

  - Mohammad Asad

Most of the commentators attribute to the expression as-sa'ihun (lit., "those who wander") the meaning of as-sa'imun, i.e., "those who fast", since he who fasts deprives himself, temporarily, of worldly enjoyments similar to one who wanders about the earth (Sufyan ibn 'Uyaynah, as quoted by Razi); and they justify this metaphorical equation of siyahah ("wandering") with siyam ("fasting") by the fact that several Companions and some of their successors have thus interpreted the term as-sa'ihun in the above context (see Tabari). Other authorities, however, (e.g., Abu Muslim, as quoted by Razi) prefer the original significance of this term and explain it as more or less synonymous with al-muhajirun ("those who forsake the domain of evil"). To my mind, the expression as-sa'ihun is best rendered as "those who go on and on [seeking God's goodly acceptance]", thus combining the literal and metonymical connotations of the term siyahah.

Those that turn to Allah in repentance, serve Him, praise Him, move about in the land for His sake, make Rakuh (bow down in prayer) and Sajud (prostrate themselves in prayer), enjoin what is good and forbid what is evil, and observe the limits (permissions and prohibitions) set by Allah (they are the ones who make such a bargain with Allah). O Prophet, proclaim the good news to such believers.

  - Muhammad Farooq-i-Azam Malik

(Triumphant) are those who turn repentant (to Allah), those who serve (Him), those who praise (Him), those who fast, these who bow down, those who fall prostrate (in worship), those who enjoin the right and who forbid the wrong and those who keep the limits (ordained) of Allah And give glad tidings to believers!.

  - Marmaduke Pickthall

IT DOES NOT behove the Prophet and those who have attained to faith to pray that they who ascribed divinity to aught beside God be forgiven [by Him] - even though they happened to be [their] near of kin¹⁴⁸ - after it has been made clear unto them that those [dead sinners] are destined for the blazing fire.

  - Mohammad Asad

As is obvious from the sequence, this prohibition relates to the dead among such sinners - i.e., those who have died without repentance (Zamakhshari, Razi) - and not to those who are still living: for "a prayer for forgiveness in respect of a living [sinner]...amounts to asking God that He grace him with His guidance...and this is permissible" (Manar XI, 60).

It is not proper for the Prophet and those who believe that they should beg forgiveness for the mushrikin, even though they be their relatives, after it has been explained to them that they are the inmates of hellfire.

  - Muhammad Farooq-i-Azam Malik

It is not for the Prophet, and those who believe, to pray for the forgiveness of idolaters even though they may be near of kin (to them) after it hath become clear that they are people of hell fire.

  - Marmaduke Pickthall

And Abraham's prayer that his father be forgiven was but due to a promise which he had given the latter [in his lifetime];¹⁴⁹ but when it was made clear unto him that he had been God's enemy, [Abraham] disavowed him - [although,] behold, Abraham was most tender-hearted, most clement.

  - Mohammad Asad

Abraham's promise to his father is mentioned in {19:47-48} and 60:4 ; for the actual prayer, see {26:86-87}.

Ibrahim (Abraham) prayed for his father's forgiveness only to fulfill a promise he had made to him. But when it became clear to him that he was an enemy of Allah he disassociated himself from him. The fact is that Ibrahim was tenderhearted, forbearing.

  - Muhammad Farooq-i-Azam Malik

The prayer of Abraham for the forgiveness of his father was only because of a promise he had promised him, but when it had become clear unto him that he (his father) was an enemy to Allah he (Abraham) disowned him. Lo! Abraham was soft of heart, long-suffering.

  - Marmaduke Pickthall

And God would never - after having invited them to His guidance - condemn people for going astray¹⁵⁰ ere He has made [entirely] clear unto them of what they should beware. Verily, God has full knowledge of everything.¹⁵¹

  - Mohammad Asad

Lit., "it is not for God" - i.e., it is not compatible with God's omniscience and majesty -"that He should cause people to go astray after He has guided them". My rendering of the phrase "that He should cause people to go astray" as "condemn people for going astray" is based on the interpretation given to it by some of the greatest classical commentators (e.g., Tabari, Razi). As regards the phrase, "after He has guided them", Razi interprets it as meaning "after He has invited them to the way of rectitude (ar-rushd)".

Most of the commentators assume that the people referred to are the believers who, before the revelation of {verse 113}, used to pray to God that He grant His forgiveness to their relatives and friends who had died in the state of shirk ("ascribing divinity to aught beside God"): in other words, the believers need not fear to be taken to task for something which they did before the prohibition laid down in verse {113} was revealed (i.e., "ere He has made clear unto them of what they should beware"). However, Razi advances also an alternative interpretation of verse {115}, suggesting that it is meant to explain the severity with which the whole of this surah condemns the deniers of the truth and the hypocrites who are going astray after God "has made clear unto them of what they should beware". (See in this connection {6:131-132} and the corresponding notes.) This interpretation is, to my mind, the more plausible of the two, and particularly so in view of the sequence (verse {116}).

It is not the way of Allah to confound people after He has guided them, until He makes clear to them what they should guard against; surely Allah has the knowledge of everything.

  - Muhammad Farooq-i-Azam Malik

It was never Allah's (part) that he should send a folk astray after He had guided them until He had made clear unto them what they should avoid. Lo! Allah is Aware of all things.

  - Marmaduke Pickthall

Verily, God's alone is the dominion over the heavens and the earth; He [alone] grants life and deals death; and there is none besides God who could protect you or bring you succour.

  - Mohammad Asad

Surely it is Allah to Whom belongs the kingdom of the heavens and the earth. He gives life and causes to die. You have none besides Allah to protect or to help.

  - Muhammad Farooq-i-Azam Malik

Lo! Allah! Unto Him belongeth the sovereignty of the heavens and the earth. He quickeneth and He giveth death. And ye have, instead of Allah, no protecting friend nor helper.

  - Marmaduke Pickthall

INDEED, God has turned in His mercy unto the Prophet, as well as unto those who have forsaken the domain of evil and those who have sheltered and succoured the Faith¹⁵² - [all] those who followed him in the hour of distress, when the hearts of some of the other believers had well-nigh swerved from faith.¹⁵³ And once again:¹⁵⁴ He has turned unto them in His mercy - for, behold, He is compassionate towards them, a dispenser of grace.

  - Mohammad Asad

See note [132] above.

Lit., "after the hearts of a group of them had well-nigh swerved [from faith]": a reference to the believers who - without valid excuse - failed to respond to the Prophet's call when he was setting out on the expedition to Tabuk, and who afterwards repented.

See surah {6}, note [31]. According to Zamakhshari and Razi, the particle thumma has here the meaning given in my rendering, and serves to emphasize the statement that "God has turned in His mercy unto the Prophet...and all those who followed him in the hour of distress".

Allah forgave the Prophet and those Muhajir and the Ansar who stood by him in the time of distress, when some were on the point of losing heart. He turned to them in mercy. Surely to them He is Most Kind, Most Merciful.

  - Muhammad Farooq-i-Azam Malik

Allah hath turned in mercy to the Prophet, and to the Muhajirin and the Ansar who followed him in the hour of hardship. After the hearts of a party of them had almost swerved aside, then turned He unto them in mercy. Lo! He is Full of Pity, Merciful for them.

  - Marmaduke Pickthall

And [He turned in His mercy, too,] towards the three [groups of believers] who had fallen prey to corruption,¹⁵⁵ until in the end - after the earth, despite all its vastness, had become [too] narrow for them and their souls had become [utterly] constricted - they came to know with certainty that there is no refuge from God other than [a return] unto Him; and thereupon He turned again unto them in His mercy, so that they might repent: for, verily, God alone is an acceptor of repentance, a dispenser of grace.¹⁵⁶

  - Mohammad Asad

Or: "had been left behind", i.e., at the time of the expedition to Tabuk. My rendering of alladhina khullifu as "those who had fallen prey to corruption" is based on the tropical meaning of the verb khalufa or khullifa, "he was [or "became"] altered [for the worse]", or "he became corrupt" in the moral sense (see Asas, Nihayah, Lisan al-'Arab, Qamus, Taj al-'Arus). This interpretation of alladhina khullifu - applying, in the above context, to those who remained behind under false pretences - has the support of some of the most outstanding Arab philologists, e.g., 'Abd al-Malik al-Asma'i (as quoted by Razi, in his commentary on verse {83} of this surah). - As regards "the three who had fallen prey to corruption", the clasical commentators assume that it is a reference to three persons - namely, Ka'b ibn Malik, Mararah ibn ar-Rabi' and Hilal ibn Umayyah (all of them from among the ansar) - who abstained from the campaign and were thereafter ostracized by the Prophet and his Companions until the revelation of the above verse. But while it is historically established that these three Companions were indeed among the believers who thus failed in their duty (the relevant Traditions will be found in extenso in Tabari's and Ibn Kathir's commentaries on this verse), it seems to me that the context does not warrant such a restriction of its meaning to three particular persons, and that by "the three" are meant three groups of erring believers: (1) those who had advanced equivocal excuses and were thereupon permitted by the Prophet to remain at home (as has been alluded to in verses {43-46} as well as in the first sentence of verse {90}); (2) those who absented themselves without permission, but afterwards spontaneously repented their sin (verses {102-105}); and (3) those whose cases were at first "deferred" (verse {106}), and who repented shortly after the Prophet's return from Tabuk (at which time verse {118} was revealed).

In its wider implication - as contrasted with a purely historical allusion - the above verse relates to all believers who temporarily deviate from the right path and then, after having realized - either spontaneously or in consequence of outside reprobation - that they had "fallen prey to corruption", sincerely repent their sin.

He also turned in mercy to the three, the decision of whose case was deferred. So despondent were they that the earth, with all its vastness, and their own souls, seemed to close in upon them. They knew for certain that there was no refuge from Allah except in Him. Then He turned to them in mercy so that they could repent. Surely Allah is the One Who is Oft-Returning, the Merciful.

  - Muhammad Farooq-i-Azam Malik

And to the three also (did He turn in mercy) who were left behind: when the earth, vast as it is, was straitened for them, and their own souls were straitened for them till they bethought them that there is no refuge from Allah save toward Him. Then turned He unto them in mercy that they (too) might turn (repentant unto Him). Lo! Allah! He is the Relenting, the Merciful.

  - Marmaduke Pickthall

O YOU who have attained to faith! Remain conscious of God, and be among those who are true to their word!

  - Mohammad Asad

O believers! Have fear of Allah and be with those who are truthful in word and deed.

  - Muhammad Farooq-i-Azam Malik

O ye who believe! Be careful of your duty to Allah, and be with the truthful.

  - Marmaduke Pickthall

It does not behove the people of the [Prophet's] City and the bedouin [who live] around them to hold back from following God's Apostle, or to care for their own selves more than for him¹⁵⁷ - for, whenever they suffer from thirst or weariness or, hunger in God's cause, and whenever they take any step which confounds¹⁵⁸ those who deny the truth, and whenever there comes to them from the enemy whatever may be destined for them¹⁵⁹ - [whenever anything thereof comes to pass,] a good deed is recorded in their favour.¹⁶⁰ Verily, God does not fail to requite the doers of good!

  - Mohammad Asad

Although this and the following verses relate, on the face of it, to "the people of the Prophet's City" (see note [133] above) and to "the bedouin who live around them", their purport is obviously general, and applies to all believers at all times. The specific reference to "the Prophet's City" is due to the fact that it was the place where the revelation of the Qur'an was completed and Islam came to its full fruition under the Prophet's guidance.

Lit., "causes wrath to".

Lit., "[whenever] they get from the enemy whatever they get" - i.e., victory or death or injury.

In its original construction, this sentence reads thus: "and neither thirst afflicts them..., nor do they take any step..., nor do they get from the enemy..., without that a good deed is recorded in their behalf". The same construction is applied to the next verse.

It is not proper for the people of Madinah and the beduin Arabs of the neighborhood to forsake the Rasool of Allah or to jeopardize his life so as to safeguard their own: because they do not suffer any thirst or hunger or any ordeal for the sake of Allah, or take any step which may provoke the unbelievers, or receive any injury from an enemy, but shall be written down as a good deed to their account; for Allah does not waste the reward of the righteous.

  - Muhammad Farooq-i-Azam Malik

It is not for the townsfolk of Al-Madinah and for those around them of the wandering Arabs to stay behind the messenger of Allah and prefer their lives to his life. That is because neither thirst nor toil nor hunger afflicteth them in the way of Allah, nor step they any step that angereth the disbelievers, nor gain they from the enemy a gain, but a good deed is recorded for them therefor. Lo! Allah loseth not the wages of the good.

  - Marmaduke Pickthall

And whenever they spend anything [for the sake of God], be it little or much, and whenever they move on earth¹⁶¹ [in God's cause] - it is recorded in their favour, and God will grant them the best reward for all that they have been doing.

  - Mohammad Asad

Lit., "cross a valley". As Zamakhshari rightly points out in his commentary on this verse, the term wadi ("valley" or "river-bed") is often used in classical Arabic to denote "the earth" - a usage which even in our days is familiar to the bedouin of the Arabian Peninsula, especially when combined with the verb qata'a (lit., "he cut") in its connotation of "cutting across" or "traversing [a distance]" or "advancing [on a journey]". Thus, the above Qur'anic phrase may be suitably rendered as "whenever they move on earth". (As regards the construction of this sentence, see preceding note.)

Likewise, they do not spend anything for the cause of Allah, be it small or large, or cut across a valley in Jihad, but is written down to their credit; so that Allah may reward them based on the best of their deeds.

  - Muhammad Farooq-i-Azam Malik

Nor spend they any spending, small or great, nor do they cross a valley, but it is recorded for them, that Allah may repay them the best of what they used to do.

  - Marmaduke Pickthall

With all this, it is not desirable that all of the believers take the field [in time of war]. From within every group in their midst, some shall refrain from going forth to war, and shall devote themselves [instead] to acquiring a deeper knowledge of the Faith, and [thus be able to] teach their homecoming brethren, so that these [too] might guard themselves against evil.¹⁶²

  - Mohammad Asad

Lit., "admonish their people when they come back to them, so that they might be on their guard". Although the above injunction mentions specifically religious knowledge, it has a positive bearing on every kind of knowledge - and this in view of the fact that the Qur'an does not draw any dividing-line between the spiritual and the worldly concerns of life but, rather, regards them as different aspects of one and the same reality. In many of its verses, the Qur'an calls upon the believer to observe all nature and to discern God's creative activity in its manifold phenomena and "laws", as well as to meditate upon the lessons of history with a view to gaining a deeper insight into man's motivations and the innermost springs of his behaviour; and, thus, the Qur'an itself is characterized as addressed to "those who think". In short, intellectual activity as such is postulated as a valid way to a better understanding of God's will and - if pursued with moral consciousness - as a valid method of worshipping God. This Qur'anic principle has been emphasized in many well-authenticated sayings of the Prophet, for instance, "Striving after knowledge is a sacred duty (faridah) for every man and woman who has surrendered himself or herself to God (muslim wa-muslimah)" (Ibn Majah); or, "The superiority (fadl) of a learned man over a [mere] worshipper [i.e., one who merely prays, fasts, etc.] is like the superiority of the full moon over all the stars" (Tirmidhi, Abu Da'ud, Ibn Majah, Ibn Hanbal, Darimi). Consequently, the obligation of the believers to "devote themselves to acquiring a deeper knowledge of the Faith" (li-yatafaqqahu fi 'd-din) and to impart its results to their fellow-believers relates to every branch of knowledge as well as to its practical application.

It is not proper that the believers should go forth all together. Therefore, why not a squadron from each division stay behind so that they may obtain the understanding of Deen (Al-Islam), and admonish the people when they return to them so that they may refrain from un-Islamic conduct!

  - Muhammad Farooq-i-Azam Malik

And the believers should not all go out to fight. Of every troop of them, a party only should go forth, that they (who are left behind) may gain sound knowledge in religion, and that they may warn their folk when they return to them, so that they may beware.

  - Marmaduke Pickthall

O you who have attained to faith! Fight against those deniers of the truth who are near you, and let them find you adamant;¹⁶³ and know that God is with those who are conscious of Him.

  - Mohammad Asad

I.e., uncompromising with regard to ethical principles. For the general circumstances in which war is permitted, see {2:190-194}, 22:39 , {60:8-9}, and the corresponding notes, as well as notes [7] and [9] on verse {5} of this surah. The reference to "those deniers of the truth who are near you" may arise from the fact that only "those who are near" can be dangerous in a physical sense or, alternatively, that - having come from afar - they have already approached the Muslim country with an aggressive intent.

O believers! Fight the unbelievers who hem you in, to let them know how tough you are; you should know that Allah is on the side of the Godfearing.

  - Muhammad Farooq-i-Azam Malik

O ye who believe! Fight those of the disbelievers who are near to you, and let them find harshness in you, and know that Allah is with those who keep their duty (unto Him).

  - Marmaduke Pickthall

YET WHENEVER a surah [of this divine writ] is bestowed from on high, some of the deniers of the truth are prone to ask,¹⁶⁴ "Which of you has this [message] strengthened in his faith?" Now as for those who have attained to faith, it does strengthen them in their faith, and they rejoice in the glad tiding [which God has given them].¹⁶⁵

  - Mohammad Asad

Lit., "there are among them such as say". The "saying" that follows is perhaps an oblique, sarcastic reference to 8:2 , which speaks of the believers "whose faith is strengthened whenever His messages are conveyed unto them".

A reference to the promise of paradise expressed in verse {111} above.

Whenever a Surah is revealed, some of them ask: "Whose faith from among you has increased by this?" Certainly the faith of the believers is increased and they do rejoice.

  - Muhammad Farooq-i-Azam Malik

And whenever a surah is revealed there are some of them who say: Which one of you hath thus increased in faith? As for those who believe, it hath increased them in faith and they rejoice (therefor).

  - Marmaduke Pickthall

But as for those in whose hearts is disease, each new message but adds another [element of] disbelief to the disbelief which they already harbour,¹⁶⁶ and they die while [still] refusing to acknowledge the truth.

  - Mohammad Asad

Lit., "it but adds [another] loathsome evil to their loathsome evil" - i.e., makes them more stubborn in their denying the truth of God's messages because they are a priori determined to deny everything that is incompatible with their refusal to admit the existence of anything that is beyond the reach of human perception (al-ghayb - see surah {2}, note [3]).

As for those whose hearts contain malice, it will add filth to their existing filth, and they will die while they are still disbelievers.

  - Muhammad Farooq-i-Azam Malik

But as for those in whose hearts is disease, it only addeth wickedness to their wickedness, and they die while they are disbelievers.

  - Marmaduke Pickthall