Alam tara ila allatheena qeela lahum kuffoo aydiyakum waaqeemoo alssalata waatoo alzzakata falamma kutiba AAalayhimu alqitalu itha fareequn minhum yakhshawna alnnasa kakhashyati Allahi aw ashadda khashyatan waqaloo rabbana lima katabta AAalayna alqitala lawla akhkhartana ila ajalin qareebin qul mataAAu alddunya qaleelun waalakhiratu khayrun limani ittaqa wala tuthlamoona fateelan
English
Ahmed Ali
Have you not seen the people who were told: "Hold back your hands (from attacking), observe your devotional obligations and pay the zakat?" But when they were commanded to fight, behold, a section among them were filled with fear of men as though it were the fear of God and even more, and said: "O Lord, why did you make war compulsory for us? Why did you not allow us to live a little more?" Say to them: "How short-lived is the commerce of this world; but that of the next is best for those who fear God; and you will not be wronged the breadth of a thread."
77
Tafseer
'Abdullāh Ibn 'Abbās / Muḥammad al-Fīrūzabādī
تفسير : allah then mentioned their dislike of joining the prophet on the lesser badr, saying: (hast thou not seen) have you not been informed, o muhammad, about (those unto whom it was said) those to whom you said in mecca, referring to 'abd al-rahman ibn 'awf al-zuhri, sa'd ibn abi waqqas al-zuhri, qudamah ibn maz'un al-jumahi, miqdad ibn al-aswad al-kindi and talhah ibn 'abdullah al-tamimi: (withhold your hands) from killing and beating, for i have not ordered the initiation of fighting, (establish worship) establish the five daily prayers in full with their bowings and prostrations and that which is obligated therein of their appointed times (and pay the poor-due) give the poor their due from your wealth, (but when fighting) jihad in the way of allah (was prescribed) obligated (for them) in medina (behold, a party of them) among them talhah ibn 'abdullah (fear mankind) the people of mecca (even as their fear of allah or with greater fear, and say: our lord!) o our lord! (why hast thou ordained fighting for us?) why have you obligated on us jihad in your way? (if only thou wouldst give us respite yet a while!) if only you would keep us safe for a short while before death. (say) to them, o muhammad: (the comfort of this world) the benefit of this world (is scant) in the hereafter; (the hereafter) the reward of the hereafter (will be better for him who wardeth off (evil)) who ward off disbelief, idolatry and indecencies; (and ye will not be wronged the down upon a date stone) their good deeds will not be diminished even if it be as much as the down on a date stone.
Jalāl al-Dīn al-Maḥallī
تفسير : have you not seen those to whom it was said, ‘restrain your hands, from fighting the disbelievers when they desired it at mecca, because of the harm the disbelievers had inflicted upon them — and these were a group from among the companions — and establish the prayer, and pay the alms’? then, as soon as fighting was prescribed, was made obligatory, for them, lo, a party of them fear people, the disbelievers, that is, [they fear] punishment at their hands through death, as they would fear, the punishment of, god, or with more fear, than their fear of him (ashadda, ‘more’, is in the accusative because it is a circumstantial qualifier; the response to the lammā, ‘as soon as’, is indicated by idhā, ‘lo’, and what follows), in other words, they are taken aback by fear, and they said, frightened of death, ‘our lord, why have you prescribed fighting for us? why not (lawlā is [to be understood as] hallā) defer us to a near term?’ say, to them: ‘the enjoyment of this world, that which is enjoyed therein, or enjoying it [the world], is trifling, it will end up by perishing; and the hereafter, paradise, is better for him who fears god’s punishment by avoiding disobedience to him; and you shall not be wronged (lā tuzlamūna, may also be read lā yuzlamūna, ‘they shall not be wronged’) you shall not be diminished of your deeds, a single date-thread, as much as the peel on a date-stone, so struggle [in the way of god].
Ali ibn Ahmad al-Wahidi
تفسير : (hast thou not seen those unto whom it was said: withhold your hands…) [4:77].
said al-kalbi: “this verse was revealed about some companions of the messenger of allah, allah bless him and give him peace, among whom were ‘abd al-rahman ibn ‘awf, al-miqdad ibn al-aswad, qudamah ibn maz‘un and sa‘d ibn abi waqqas. these companions were subjected to a lot of harm from the idolaters. they used to say: ‘o messenger of allah, allow us to fight them’, but his answer was always: ‘keep your hands off them, for i have not been commanded to fight them’. when the messenger of allah, allah bless him and give him peace, migrated to medina and allah, exalted is he, commanded them to fight the idolaters, some of them disliked fighting and found it very hard. and so allah, exalted is he, revealed this verse”.
sa‘id ibn muhammad ibn ahmad al-‘adl informed us> abu ‘amr hamdan> al-hasan ibn sufyan> muhammad ibn ‘ali> his father> al-husayn ibn waqid> ‘amr ibn dinar> ‘ikrimah> ibn ‘abbas who related that ‘abd al-rahman ibn ‘awf and some of his fellow companions went to the prophet, allah bless him and give him peace, in mecca and said: “o prophet of allah, we were mighty when we were idolaters but now that we are believers we became humiliated”. he said to them: “i am commanded to pardon, do not fight these people”. but when allah, exalted is he, made him move to medina, he commanded him to fight, they withheld their hands, and so allah, exalted is he, revealed (hast thou not seen those unto whom it was said: withhold your hands…).
Sahl al-Tustari
تفسير : say: ‘the enjoyment of this world is trifling…’he [sahl] was asked, ‘what is this world?’ to which he replied:this whole world consists of ignorance except for where knowledge is to be found. all knowledgeis a testimony against [the one who possesses it], except for that which is acted upon. all action is futile except for that which is done with sincerity (ikhlāṣ), and sincerity is not achieved except through adherence to the sunna.then he said:your world is your lower self (nafs). thus, if you annihilate it, there will be no world for you. his words, exalted is he:
