And when it was established, glorified is He, that He restrained the hands of the people from you all, He mentioned their ruling if fighting were to occur. He said, affirming His power, in a manner akin to: So if He had willed, He would have enabled you to perform the pilgrimage, emphasizing to exclude those who would exclude that from the Bedouins and others: (p-321) ﴿And if they had fought you﴾ meaning: in this context ﴿those who disbelieved﴾ meaning: those who attributed this description to the people in general, the steadfast in it and those below them, and they are the people of Mecca and those who are with them. They had gathered and assembled the tribes and those who obeyed them, and they had appointed Khalid ibn al-Walid as their vanguard to the place of the battle, and he had not yet embraced Islam. ﴿They would have turned﴾ meaning: with all their effort ﴿their backs﴾ in retreat.

And when their defeat after turning away was also unlikely due to their great number of reinforcements and the strength of their zeal, He said, expressing with a tool of distance: ﴿Then﴾ meaning: after a long time and many supporters ﴿they will not find﴾ at any time ﴿a protector﴾ meaning: one who acts with them in a manner close to care, compassion, and guarding from the great terror that results from that turning away ﴿nor a helper﴾.