'In the name of Allah, the Most Gracious, the Most Merciful'

Tafsir of Surah At-Tawbah

This surah is Medinan except for two verses: "Indeed, a messenger has come to you" [At-Tawbah: 128] to its end. It is called Surah At-Tawbah, as mentioned by Hudhayfah and others. It is also called Al-Fadihah, as stated by Ibn Abbas, may Allah be pleased with him. It is called Al-Hafirah because it has dug into the hearts of the hypocrites. Ibn Abbas, may Allah be pleased with him, said: It kept being revealed: "And among them, and among them" until it was thought that no one would remain. Hudhayfah said: It is the surah of punishment. Ibn Umar, may Allah be pleased with him, said: We used to call it Al-Muqashqishah. Al-Harith ibn Yazid said: It was called Al-Mubaththirah, and it is said to be Al-Muthirah, and it is said to be Al-Buhuth.

Abu Malik Al-Ghifari said: The first verse revealed from Bara'ah was "March forth, light and heavy" [At-Tawbah: 41]. Sa'id ibn Jubair said: Bara'ah was like Surah Al-Baqarah in length.

There is a disagreement regarding why the line ( 'In the name of Allah, the Most Gracious, the Most Merciful' ) was omitted from its beginning. Uthman ibn Affan, may Allah be pleased with him, said: Its meanings resembled the meanings of Al-Anfal, and it was called the two companions during the time of the Messenger of Allah, blessings and peace be upon him. Therefore, they were paired together, and I did not write ( 'In the name of Allah, the Most Gracious, the Most Merciful' ), and I placed it in the seven long surahs. Ali ibn Abi Talib said to Ibn Abbas, may Allah be pleased with him: ( 'In the name of Allah, the Most Gracious, the Most Merciful' ) is a security and good news, and "Bara'ah" was revealed with the sword and the repudiation of treaties, so it did not begin with security.

The judge Abu Muhammad, may Allah have mercy on him, said:

This saying is attributed to Al-Mubarrid and it is for Ali ibn Abi Talib, may Allah be pleased with him. This is like how an angry addressee begins: "As for what follows," without praise or an opening with glorification. It has been narrated that the scribes of the Mushaf during the time of Uthman, may Allah be pleased with him, disagreed about Al-Anfal and Bara'ah, whether they are one surah or two surahs. They left a separation between them, taking into account the saying of those who said: They are two surahs, and they did not write ( 'In the name of Allah, the Most Gracious, the Most Merciful' ) taking into account the saying of those among them who said: They are one. So all of them agreed on that.

The judge Abu Muhammad, may Allah have mercy on him, said:

This saying is weakened by the consideration that there would be such disagreement in the Book of Allah. It has been narrated from Ubayy ibn Ka'b that he said: "The Messenger of Allah, blessings and peace be upon him, used to command us to place ( 'In the name of Allah, the Most Gracious, the Most Merciful' ) at the beginning of every surah, and he did not command us in this matter with anything, so we did not place it ourselves." It has been narrated from Malik that he said: It reached us that it was similar to Surah Al-Baqarah, then it was abrogated and much of it was raised, and in it was the Basmala. So they did not see after that to place it in any other position.

And Surah Bara'ah is among the last that was revealed to the Prophet, blessings and peace be upon him. Imran ibn Judayr narrated that a Bedouin heard Surah Bara'ah and said: I think this is among the last that Allah revealed to His Messenger. It was said to him: Why do you say that? He said: I see things being nullified and treaties being repudiated.

His saying, the Exalted and Majestic:

'A declaration from Allah and His Messenger to those with whom you made a covenant among the polytheists. So travel in the land for four months and know that you cannot escape Allah, and that Allah will disgrace the disbelievers. And a proclamation from Allah and His Messenger to the people on the Day of the Greater Hajj that Allah is free from the polytheists and His Messenger. So if you repent, it is better for you; but if you turn away, then know that you cannot escape Allah. And give tidings to those who disbelieve of a painful punishment. (p-253) 'A declaration' is in the nominative as a subject of an implied beginning, the meaning of which is: these verses are a declaration. It is also correct for it to be in the nominative with the beginning and the predicate in His saying: 'to those.' It is permissible to begin with the indefinite noun because it is described, thus it became defined in some way, and it is permissible to inform about it. And 'Isa ibn Umar read: 'a declaration' in the accusative, meaning: adhere to a declaration, thus it has the meaning of incitement. And 'a declaration' means: a release and disavowal from the covenants that exist between you and the disbelievers who began to breach them. You say: I disavow you from such and such, so Allah, glorified and exalted is He, and His Messenger disavowed by this verse from the disbelievers of those covenants that were made and breached by the disbelievers. And the people of Najran read: 'from Allah' with a kasra on the noon. This verse is a ruling from Allah, the Mighty and Majestic, regarding the breach of the covenants and agreements that were between the Messenger of Allah, blessings and peace be upon him, and the groups of polytheists from whom there appeared or was suspected a breach. And since the covenant of the Messenger of Allah, blessings and peace be upon him, was binding for his nation, it was appropriate for him to say: 'you made a covenant.' Ibn Ishaq and other scholars said: The Arabs had made a general covenant with the Messenger of Allah, blessings and peace be upon him, that no one would be turned away from the Sacred House, and similar agreements. This was breached by this verse, and he granted all of them four months. So whoever had a specific covenant with the Prophet, blessings and peace be upon him, and less than four months remained of it, he would complete it. And whoever had a term longer than four months would complete his covenant, except for those from whom a breach was suspected, for it was limited to four months. And whoever did not have a specific covenant was prescribed four months in which he could travel in the land, meaning he could go safely as water flows, which is the flowing and spreading. And from this is the saying of Tarafa ibn al-Abd: 'If I feared this from you, I would not have attained you until I see horses before me flowing.' This indicates that the Messenger of Allah, blessings and peace be upon him, sensed from the disbelievers a breach and plotting against him except from the exempted group. And Ibn Abbas, may Allah be pleased with him, said: The first of the four months is Shawwal, and at that time the verse was revealed, and its end is at the conclusion of the sacred months, which is the end of Muharram after the day of the proclamation (p-254) by fifty days. So the term for those who have a covenant was four months from the day of the revelation of the verse, and the term for the other polytheists was fifty nights from the day of the proclamation. The judge Abu Muhammad, may Allah have mercy on him, said:

This was objected to by saying that the term of grace is only required from the day it was heard. It is possible that the declaration was heard from the first of Shawwal, then its announcement was repeated with the call to prayer on the day of the greater pilgrimage. Al-Suddi and others said: Rather, its beginning is the day of the call to prayer and its end is the twentieth of Rabi' al-Akhir. It is the sacred months, and the name was borrowed for it due to this sanctity and the specific security that Allah has ordained and made obligatory in it. It is the term for all who have a covenant and have sensed a breach from it, and for those who do not have a covenant. Al-Dahhak and others among the scholars said: "There were among the Arabs those who had no covenant between them and the Messenger of Allah, blessings and peace be upon him, at all, and there were among them those who had a covenant and sensed a breach from them, and there were among them those who had a covenant and did not breach it. So His saying, the Exalted, 'So travel in the land for four months' is a term set for those who had a covenant with them and sensed a breach from them. The beginning of this term is the day of the call to prayer, and its end is the conclusion of the first ten days of Rabi' al-Akhir. And His saying, the Exalted, 'And when the sacred months have passed, then kill the polytheists' [At-Tawbah: 5] is a ruling distinct from the first ruling made concerning the polytheists who have no covenant whatsoever. Thus, the term of their security came to be fifty days, the beginning of which is the day of the call to prayer and the end of which is the conclusion of Muharram. And His saying, 'To those with whom you made a covenant' refers to those who have a covenant and have not breached it nor sensed a breach from them. They are - according to what has been narrated - the Banu Dimrah from Kinana, to whom Al-Muhassir ibn Khuwailid made a covenant, and there remained from their covenant on the day of the call to prayer nine months. Al-Tabari narrated from a group that they said: The term of Allah is four months for whoever's covenant expires at its conclusion or before it. The meaning is: So say to them, O Muhammad: Travel. As for those who have a covenant that extends beyond the four months, they are those whom Allah has commanded to fulfill their covenant. And His saying, the Exalted, 'And know that you are not able to frustrate Allah' means: And know that you cannot overpower Allah nor escape from His punishment. Then He informed them of His ruling regarding the disgrace of the disbelievers, and that is a decree either in this world or in the Hereafter. And His saying, the Exalted, 'And a declaration from Allah and His Messenger to the people' - the verse. And 'declaration' means: announcement and proclamation, and 'the people' here is general for all of creation, and 'day' is in the accusative case as a circumstance, and the doer in it is 'declaration.' Even though it has been described, the essence of the action remains, and it acts in the circumstance. It has been said that this is not permissible since the source has been described, and the power of the action has been removed from it. It is valid for an implied action to act in it as necessitated by the words, and it has been said that the doer in it is the attribute of the declaration, and it has been said that the doer in it is 'disgraceful.' Al-Qadi Abu Muhammad, may Allah have mercy on him, said: And this is far-fetched.

'And the Day of the Greater Hajj.' Umar, Ibn Umar, Ibn al-Musayyib, and others said: It is the Day of Arafah. Ali, may Allah be pleased with him, also said this. It has been narrated from him that it is the Day of Nahr (sacrifice). This has also been narrated from Abu Hurairah and a group. It has been narrated from the Prophet, blessings and peace be upon him. Al-Mundhir ibn Sa'id and others said: The people were divided on the Day of Arafah, as the Hums stood at Muzdalifah. The gathering was on the Day of Nahr at Mina. For this reason, they called it 'the Greater Hajj,' meaning: from the smaller one in which they are divided. The judge Abu Muhammad, may Allah have mercy on him, said: This was the case in the Hajj of Abu Bakr, may Allah be pleased with him, because no one stood at Muzdalifah. Al-Mahdawi mentioned that the Hums and those who followed them stood at Muzdalifah in the Hajj of Abu Bakr, may Allah be pleased with him. The hadiths that support this meaning indicate that Ali, may Allah be pleased with him, announced that verse on the Day of Arafah following the sermon of Abu Bakr. Then he saw that he did not inform the people about the announcement, so he followed them with the announcement on the Day of Nahr. On that day, Abu Bakr sent with him someone to assist him in the announcement, like Abu Hurairah, may Allah be pleased with him, and others. They also followed the markets of the Arabs, like Dhul-Majaz and others. From here, the saying of Sufyan is preferred: that 'Day' in this verse means 'days,' for this reason a group said: The Day of the Greater Hajj is Arafah, where the first announcement occurred. Another group said: It is the Day of Nahr, where the completion of the announcement occurred. They also argued that whoever misses standing on the Day of Arafah, then standing on the Night of Nahr suffices for him. Thus, the Day of Arafah - according to this - is not the Day of the Greater Hajj. The judge Abu Muhammad, may Allah have mercy on him, said: There is no evidence for this. Sufyan ibn Uyaynah said: What is meant is all the days of Hajj, just as you say the Day of Siffin and the Day of the Camel, intending all its days. Mujahid said: The Day of the Greater Hajj is all the days of Mina, and the gatherings of the polytheists where they were at Dhul-Majaz and Ukaz when it was announced to them that Muslims and polytheists should not gather after this year. The judge Abu Muhammad, may Allah have mercy on him, said: This is as Uthman said to Umar when he proposed to him the marriage of Hafsah: 'I have seen that I will not marry today.' And as Sibawayh mentioned: You say to a man: 'What is your business today?' and you mean in these days of yours. There is a difference regarding why it is described as the Greater. Al-Hasan ibn Abi al-Hasan and Abdullah ibn al-Harith ibn Nawfal said: Because that year the Muslims and polytheists performed Hajj, and it also coincided with the festival of the Jews and Christians. The judge Abu Muhammad, may Allah have mercy on him, said: This is weak, that Allah would describe it in His Book as the Greater for this reason. Al-Hasan also said: It was called Greater because Abu Bakr performed Hajj in it, and treaties were nullified in it.

And this is the saying that resembles the view of Al-Hasan. Its explanation is that that day was the beginning with truth and the leadership of Islam by the appointment of the Messenger of Allah, blessings and peace be upon him. The covenants were discarded in it, and the religion was honored while polytheism was humiliated. And this did not occur in the year of eight when the Messenger of Allah, blessings and peace be upon him, appointed Attab bin Usayd for the pilgrimage. Rather, it was the matter of the Arabs at its beginning. So every pilgrimage after the pilgrimage of Abu Bakr, may Allah be pleased with him, is based upon it. Therefore, its right is that it should be called the greatest.

And Ata bin Abi Rabah and others said: The pilgrimage is greater in relation to the lesser pilgrimage, which is the Umrah. And Al-Sha'bi said: In relation to the Umrah in Ramadan, for it is the lesser pilgrimage. And Mujahid said: The greater pilgrimage is the qiran, and the lesser is the ifrad. And this is not from the verse in anything. And what was mentioned by Mundhir bin Sa'id has preceded. It is appropriate to describe it as the greater in the sense of praise, not in relation to a specific lesser one. Rather, the meaning would be: the greatest of all days. So reflect upon it.

And the summary of what this verse needs, according to what Mujahid and others have mentioned about the state of that situation, is that the Messenger of Allah, blessings and peace be upon him, opened Mecca in the year of eight. He appointed Attab bin Usayd over it, and he dealt with the matter of Hunayn and Ta'if and then returned to Medina. He remained there until he went out to Tabuk. Then he returned from Tabuk in Ramadan of the year of nine. He intended to perform the pilgrimage. Then he considered that the polytheists were performing pilgrimage that year and circumambulating naked, so he said: I do not want to see that. He commanded Abu Bakr, may Allah be pleased with him, to lead the pilgrimage with the people and sent him. Then he followed him with Ali bin Abi Talib, may Allah be pleased with him, on his she-camel Al-Adhba. He commanded him to announce to the people four things, which are: "No polytheist shall perform pilgrimage after this year, and no one shall enter Paradise except a believing soul - and in some narrations: and no disbeliever shall enter Paradise - and no one shall circumambulate the House naked. And whoever has a covenant with the Messenger of Allah, blessings and peace be upon him, it is for him until its term." And in some narrations: "And whoever has a covenant between him and the Messenger of Allah, blessings and peace be upon him, his term is four months in which he may roam. When they have passed, then indeed Allah is free from the polytheists and His Messenger."

The judge Abu Muhammad, may Allah have mercy on him, said: And I say: They were calling out all of this. This is for those who have a covenant and it is suspected that it has been violated, and the extension is for those who have not been informed of any violation.

And Al-Tabari mentioned that the Arabs said on that day: We disavow your covenant and the covenant of your cousin except for the stabbing and striking. So some of them blamed others and said: What are you doing when Quraysh has embraced Islam? So they all embraced Islam and none remained.

And at that time, the people entered the religion of Allah in crowds. The Messenger of Allah, blessings and peace be upon him, had commanded Ali to recite to the people the first forty verses of Surah Al-Bara'ah. It was said: thirty, and it was said: twenty. In some narrations: ten verses, and in others: nine verses. Al-Naqqash mentioned them. Suleiman ibn Musa Al-Shami said: That is twenty-eight verses. So Ali caught up with Abu Bakr, may Allah be pleased with both of them, on the way. Abu Bakr, may Allah be pleased with him, said to him: Are you a leader or one who is led? He said: Rather, I am one who is led. They both proceeded until they reached the season. When Abu Bakr, may Allah be pleased with him, delivered a sermon at Arafah, he said: Stand up, O Ali, and deliver the message of the Messenger of Allah, blessings and peace be upon him. Ali, may Allah be pleased with him, stood up and did so. He said: Then it occurred to me that all the people did not witness Abu Bakr's sermon, so I began to follow the tents on the day of sacrifice.

The majority of the people read: "Indeed, Allah is free from" with the opening of the alif, on the assumption of: that Allah is. Al-Hasan and Al-A'raj read: "Indeed, Allah" with the kasra on the alif, as the adhan is in the meaning of the saying. The majority of the people read: "and His Messenger" with the raising, on the beginning and the omission of the news, and its estimation is: and His Messenger is free from them. This is according to our Sheikh, the jurist, the teacher Abu Al-Hasan ibn Al-Badhish, may Allah have mercy on him, meaning the conjunction in the position, that is, it is joined to the first sentence which is from a beginning and news, so this sentence is joined to it. It was said: it is joined to the position of what was written before the entry of "that" which does not change the meaning of the beginning but rather confirms it, and "since" has been read with the kasra, because it is not joined to the position of "that" with the opening, and look at it, for it is different in its permissibility, because the ruling of "that" is the raising of the ruling of the beginning except in this position and similar to it. This is the saying of Abu Al-Abbas and Abu Ali, may Allah have mercy on them. The doctrine of the teacher is according to the words of Sibawayh that there is no position for what "that" has entered upon, as it is an inflected word in which the action of the doer has appeared, and because there is no difference between "that" and "if only" and "perhaps", and the consensus is that there is no position for what has entered upon this. It was said that it is a conjunction to the raised pronoun in "free from", and what made that good is that the genitive has taken the place of the confirmation, just as "and not" has taken in His saying, the Exalted: "We have not associated partners, nor have our fathers" [Al-An'am: 148]. Ibn Abu Ishaq and Isa ibn Umar read: "His Messenger" with the accusative, joining it to the wording of what was written. With this verse, Muawiyah tested Abu Al-Aswad until he established grammar, as he made a reader read with the lowering of "and His Messenger". The meaning in this verse is: free from their covenants and religions, a general freedom that necessitates confrontation and the use of the sword.

And His saying, the Exalted: "So if you repent" means: from disbelief, and He promised them with the condition of repentance, and He warned them with the condition of turning away. It is permissible for the good news to enter into the disliked when it comes explicitly, raising the ambiguity.