(p-483) Surah Al-Mumtahana

Its purpose is the disavowal of those who acknowledge faith from those who are characterized by aggression. This indicates the validity of his claim, just as the disbelievers disavowed the believers and denied what came to them of the truth. This is so that they would not be more eager for their falsehood than the believers are for their truth. Its naming as Al-Mumtahana is the clearest thing in it and the most indicative of that. This is because kinship is the greatest bond and the most noble after religion. If it is negated and forbidden, it indicates the greatest severance, as it signifies humiliation due to the disbelief which is the ugliest form of disobedience.

('In the name of Allah, the Most Gracious, the Most Merciful') is sufficient for whoever seeks refuge in Him. Whoever turns to Him, He enriches him from others. ('The Most Gracious') who encompassed with the blessing of existence those whom He brought forth from non-existence and created. His mercy included the one who is surrounded by intellect and cared for. ('The Most Merciful') who specifically granted success to those whom He loves and is pleased with.

* *And when the admonition follows the favor, it is worthy of acceptance. He, glorified and exalted is He, has enacted His divine tradition in that. He admonished His believing servants after the Surah of Al-Fath, the causal one, with the Surah of Al-Hujurat. The Surah of Al-Hashr reminded of the blessing in the conquest of Banu Al-Nadir and informed that there is no ally except Allah. For this reason, He concluded it with the attributes of might and wisdom after He opened it with them. It has been established that among the wisdom is the gathering of creation, and that the allies of Allah are the successful ones, and that His enemies are the losers. Love for Allah and hatred for Allah are the best of deeds and the strongest bonds of faith. For this reason, He, glorified and exalted is He, condemned whoever allied with His enemies and supported them, and called them, along with speaking the word of Islam, hypocrites. This necessarily produces the obligation of disavowal from His enemies and turning towards His service and allegiance. He said, reiterating the admonition after the Surah of Al-Fath upon the People of the Book with a comprehensive Surah that relates to the greatest conquest and the causal conquest: ﴿O you who have believed﴾, calling out with a tool of distance, even if the one for whom it was revealed is from the people of closeness. He expressed in the past tense to establish for whoever allied with the disbelievers a type of allegiance in that place, igniting him and inciting him to rise above it so that it does not detract from his specificity and lower his elevated rank. With kindness towards him, He named him with faith, where He bore witness, glorified is He, against whoever acted towards the like of his action with Banu Al-Nadir with hypocrisy and placed him in the position of the people of division. Thus, He judged upon the hearts in both places, saying there: ﴿Those who were hypocrites﴾ [Al-Hashr: 11] just as He said here: ﴿Those who have believed﴾.

And when there had already been a severe prohibition in Al-Mujadila against the absolute display of affection for the disbelievers, and in Al-Hashr there was a great reprimand against concealing that, the two surahs took charge of prohibiting companionship with their love, whether outwardly or inwardly. Here, it admonished those who are characterized by faith, rebuking them and scolding them for striving in their affection and for making an effort to attain it. For that is a defect in the belief of His uniqueness, glorified and exalted is He, in honor and wisdom. Therefore, He expressed this with the form of causation, saying after the reprimand, with a call using the tool of distance and expressing the least degree of faith: "Do not take." He further emphasized this meaning from two angles: expressing it in a way that conveys enmity towards them, which incites against them, and unifying what is applicable to the group so that it is not assumed that the prohibition is against the collective in terms of association, and indicating that they are united in enmity. Thus, the people of truth are more deserving to be like that in allegiance. He said: "My enemy," meaning, while you claim to be loyal to me. And it is well-known that the one who is in agreement with the enemy is at the lowest level of companionship, so how about that which is above the lowest? It is an intensive form from 'adā. He further emphasized the awakening by saying: "And your enemy," meaning the one who is deeply rooted in enmity towards you as long as you are in opposition to Him in religion.

And when He unified for the sake of the previous indication of the unity of the word, He clarified that what is meant is the collective, saying: "Allies." Then He began to clarify this unity by saying, indicating the utmost urgency and initiative towards that by expressing it with the words: "You throw," meaning all that is in your possession of what you do not aspire to, throwing the heavy thing from a height "to them," despite their distance from you in both a physical and a metaphorical sense "with affection," meaning because of it.

And when the listener anticipated the explicit statement of their opposition in the description with which He called them after hinting at it, He said, inflaming and inciting towards their enmity by reminding them of their opposition to Him in belief, which necessitates belittling them, for it is the most severe opposition. "And indeed," meaning while they have "disbelieved," meaning they have covered all that you have of evidence "because of what" means because of what "has come to you of the truth," meaning the matter that is firmly established, complete in its firmness, which nothing is greater in firmness than it. Then He began to clarify their disbelief in what distances them from absolute affection for them, let alone striving for it, by reminding them of the past state, increasing the aversion from them and portraying it in a way that indicates persistence, that they "expel the Messenger," meaning the one who is complete in messengership, against whom everyone must oppose the one who opposes him, even if he is the closest of people. So how about if he is an enemy? He clarified that the addressee from the beginning of the surah is from the emigrants, and that his mention in the form of the collective is for the purpose of generalization in the prohibition by saying: "And you," meaning from your homes in the honored Mecca.

And when He clarified their disbelief, expressing it in the present tense as an indication of the continuity of their harm to those who believed, which necessitated their expulsion from their homeland, He justified the expulsion by what realizes the meaning of disbelief and enmity. He said: "That they have expelled you from your homelands for the sake of your believing"; meaning to establish the reality of faith with renewal and continuity.

And when belief in Him, glorified and exalted is He, is deserved from the two aspects of essence and description, the address shifted from speaking to the third person to the second person to alert them to both. He said: "In Allah"; meaning the One who is characterized by all attributes of perfection. And when He expressed what made clear that He is deserving of faith for His essence, He followed it with what necessitates the obligation of that due to His kindness. He said: "Your Lord". And when He incited them against their separation from Him due to what they did with them, and the intended alertness by the context of the third person came to an end, He returned to speaking because it is more affectionate, more compelling, and a clearer indication of pleasure. He incited them regarding what was from their side of that [action] not to neglect it. He said, informing them that His guardianship, glorified and exalted is He, is not valid except with faith, and faith does not remain except with its evidence from actions, and actions are not valid except with sincerity, and sincerity cannot be except with separation from the enemies: "If you have gone out"; meaning a firm state when they expelled you from your homelands for the sake of your belief in Me. "You have gone out"; meaning from it, which is the most beloved of lands to you. "Striving"; meaning for the sake of striving. "In My cause"; meaning due to your desire to facilitate the path I have legislated for My servants to follow. "And seeking My pleasure"; meaning for your utmost desire for My pleasure and for every action that has a place for it. And the answer to this condition is omitted due to the indication of "Do not take" regarding it.

And when He finished clarifying the [condition of] the enemy and conditioned the sincerity of the ally, and the estimation was: So do not take them as allies, He built upon that His saying, clarifying: "You conceal"; informing that secrecy to anyone in what benefits him is only a form of affection: "You keep secret"; meaning you create secrecy of all that indicates your advising them and your affection towards them. And He indicated their distance from them by saying: "To them"; emphasizing the reprimand by indicating that they are burdening themselves in that, seeking to convey the news that the Prophet, blessings and peace be upon him, who is supported by revelation, conceals from them in the manner of secrecy for fear of exposure and conveying to the distant place. "With affection"; meaning because of it or due to the informing of news intended by it or from which affection is necessitated.

And when the intended secrecy is to conceal from one who hates that, He said, reproaching those who do it: "And I"; meaning while I "know"; meaning more than anyone else from the very self of the doer "what you have concealed"; meaning of that "and what you have disclosed"; so what benefit is there in your secrecy if you know that I am aware of it? And if you think that I do not know it, then that is the breaking point.

And when the estimation is by what the conjunction has guided to: So whoever among you acts has certainly thought that I do not know the unseen or has acted in a way that necessitates such a thought. He has joined to it [his saying]: ﴿And whoever does it﴾ meaning to establish the taking secretly or openly or to establish secrecy with affection. The declaration is preferable at times, whether past, present, or future. And when the lover may act due to arrogance in a way that deserves reproach, if he is reproached, he thinks that this is not based on its reality because his love is not harmed by anything. And he had concealed the faults by bringing the words out in a general manner. He clarified that this reproach is intended for affection, saying: ﴿From you﴾ and he affirmed the matter and brought it closer by saying: ﴿Indeed, he has gone astray﴾ meaning he has become blind and deviated and erred ﴿from the straight path﴾ meaning the upright, wide path that leads to its goal, its correctness, and its justice. The reason for the revelation of this verse has been narrated from many sources, some of which are in the authentic narrations from Ali, and among them in al-Tabarani from Anas, and among them in the tafsirs: 'That Sarrah, the freed woman of Abu Amr ibn Sayf ibn Hashim ibn Abd Manaf, came to Medina while the Messenger of Allah, blessings and peace be upon him, was preparing for the conquest of Mecca. She was asked what brought her, and she said: My patrons have gone, and I have a pressing need, and you are the family and the tribe and the patrons. So the Messenger of Allah, blessings and peace be upon him, urged Banu Abd al-Muttalib and Banu al-Muttalib, and they gave her and clothed her and carried her. And with her, wrote Hatib ibn Abi Balta'ah, the ally of Banu Asad ibn Abd al-Uzza: 'From Hatib ibn Abi Balta'ah to the people of Mecca that the Messenger of Allah, blessings and peace be upon him, intends you.' So take precautions. And he gave her ten dinars. Then Gabriel, peace be upon him, descended with the news, and the Messenger of Allah, blessings and peace be upon him, sent Umar, Ali, Ammar, al-Zubair, Talhah, al-Miqdad, and Abu Marthad, and they were all knights. He said: 'Go until you reach the garden of Khakh, for there is a woman with her a letter from Hatib to the polytheists. So take it from her and let her go. And if she does not hand it over to you, then strike her neck.' So they set out, their horses racing, and they caught up with her in that place. She denied it and swore by Allah. So they searched her but did not find it, and they were about to return. Ali, may Allah be pleased with him, said: 'He has not lied to us nor have we been lied to,' and he drew his sword and said: 'Bring out the letter or I will surely strip you of your clothes and strike your neck.' She said: 'On the condition that you do not return me.' Then she brought it out from her braid, having wrapped it in her hair. So they let her go. The Messenger of Allah, blessings and peace be upon him, said to Hatib: 'Do you recognize the letter?' He said: 'Yes.' He said: 'What made you do this?' He said: 'Do not rush, O Messenger of Allah. By Allah, I have not disbelieved since I embraced Islam, nor have I deceived since I advised you, nor have I loved them since I parted from them. But there was no one among the emigrants except that he has someone in Mecca who can protect his tribe from Allah. And I was a stranger among them, and my family was among them, so I wanted to take a hand among them that Allah would use to protect my family. And I knew that Allah, the Exalted, would bring down His punishment upon them, and that my letter would not avail them anything.' The Messenger of Allah, blessings and peace be upon him, said to them: 'He has spoken the truth, and do not say anything to him except good.' Umar ibn al-Khattab, may Allah be pleased with him, said: 'Let me, O Messenger of Allah, strike the neck of this hypocrite.' The Messenger of Allah, blessings and peace be upon him, said: 'And what do you know, O Umar, perhaps Allah looked at the people of Badr and said: 'Do what you wish, for I have forgiven you.' Umar's eyes overflowed with tears, and he said: 'Allah and His Messenger know best.' Then Allah revealed: ﴿O you who have believed, do not take My enemy and your enemy﴾.

The verses." Imam Abu Ja'far ibn al-Zubair said: This surah was opened with a counsel to the believers to abandon the alliance with their enemies and to prohibit them from that, and to command them to disassociate from them. This is the meaning indicated in His saying at the conclusion of Al-Mujadila: "You will not find a people who believe in Allah and the Last Day loving those who oppose Allah and His Messenger, even if they were their fathers or their sons" [Al-Mujadila: 22] until the end of the surah. It has been established that the most excellent state of the people of faith and their highest ranks is: "Those are the ones in whose hearts Allah has written faith and supported them with a spirit from Him" [Al-Mujadila: 22]. So He advised His servants at the beginning of Al-Mumtahana to refrain from the alliance with the enemies and admonished them with the story of Ibrahim, blessings and peace be upon him, and those with him in their disassociation from their people and their enmity towards them. The connection in this is clear. It is as if Surah Al-Hashr came as a point of objection, intended to prepare the speech and alert the listener to what completes the benefit of what was mentioned, that the state of the believers is that they do not love those who oppose Allah and His Messenger, even if they are the closest people to them. He objected by purifying them from their wrongdoings, then followed that with what was hastened for them of punishment and retribution. Then the matter returned to the prohibition of alliance with the enemies in general. When the first surah of Al-Mumtahana was revealed concerning Hatib ibn Abi Balta'a, may Allah be pleased with him, and his letter to the disbelievers of Quraysh in Mecca, the story is well-known, and the disbelievers of Mecca are not from the Jews. They sought enmity against all, and for this reason, it was preferred to include what is complete in informing about the state of the Jews. At that time, the speech returned to the counsel concerning their counterparts from the opposing disbelievers. The three surahs are interconnected, and there is much repetition of counsel and covenants in Surah Al-Mumtahana. In this regard, it mentioned the ruling concerning the pledge of women and what is required of them in that. The foundation of the surah is based on the request for fidelity, both at the beginning and the end, according to what has been clarified in the tafsir, to purify the believer from the state of those mentioned in Surah Al-Hashr and at the conclusion of Surah Al-Mujadila - ended.