The Bee — Verse 127

The Command for Equality in Punishment Allah commands justice in punishment and equity in settling the cases of rights. `Abdur-Razzaq recorded that, concerning the Ayah, فَعَاقِبُواْ بِمِثْلِ مَا عُوقِبْتُمْ بِهِ (then punish them with the like of that with which you were afflicted.) Ibn Sirin said, "If a man among you takes something from you, then you should take something similar from him." This was also the opinion of Mujahid, Ibrahim, Al-Hasan Al-Basri, and others. Ibn Jarir also favored this opinion. Ibn Zayd said: "They had been commanded to forgive the idolators, then some men became Muslim who were strong and powerful. They said, `O Messenger of Allah, if only Allah would give us permission, we would sort out these dogs!' Then this Ayah was revealed, then it was latter abrogated by the command to engage in Jihad." وَاصْبِرْ وَمَا صَبْرُكَ إِلاَّ بِاللَّهِ (And be patient, and your patience will not be but by the help of Allah.) This emphasizes the command to be patient and tells us that patience cannot be acquired except by the will, help, decree and power of Allah. Then Allah says: وَلاَ تَحْزَنْ عَلَيْهِمْ (And do not grieve over them,) meaning, those who oppose you, for Allah has decreed that this should happen. وَلاَ تَكُ فِى ضَيْقٍ (and do not be distressed) means do not be worried or upset. مِّمَّا يَمْكُرُونَ (by their plots.) meaning; because of the efforts they are putting into opposing you and causing you harm, for Allah is protecting, helping, and supporting you, and He will cause you to prevail and defeat them. إِنَّ اللَّهَ مَعَ الَّذِينَ اتَّقَواْ وَّالَّذِينَ هُم مُّحْسِنُونَ (Truly, Allah is with those who have Taqwa, and the doers of good.) meaning; He is with them in the sense of supporting them, helping them and guiding them. This is a special kind of "being with", as Allah says elsewhere: إِذْ يُوحِى رَبُّكَ إِلَى الْمَلَـئِكَةِ أَنِّي مَعَكُمْ فَثَبِّتُواْ الَّذِينَ ءَامَنُواْ ((Remember) when your Lord revealed to the angels, "Verily, I am with you, so support those who believe.") 8:12 And Allah said to Musa and Harun: لاَ تَخَافَآ إِنَّنِى مَعَكُمَآ أَسْمَعُ وَأَرَى (Fear not, verily I am with you both, hearing and seeing.) 20:46 The Prophet said to (Abu Bakr) As-Siddiq when they were in the cave: «لَا تَحْزَنْ إِنَّ اللهَ مَعَنَا» (Do not worry, Allah is with us.") The general kind of "being with" some one, or something is by means of seeing, hearing and knowing, as Allah says: وَهُوَ مَعَكُمْ أَيْنَ مَا كُنتُمْ وَاللَّهُ بِمَا تَعْمَلُونَ بَصِيرٌ (And He is with you wherever you may be. And Allah sees whatever you do.) 57:4 أَلَمْ تَرَ أَنَّ اللَّهَ يَعْلَمُ مَا فِى السَّمَـوَتِ وَمَا فِى الاٌّرْضِ مَا يَكُونُ مِن نَّجْوَى ثَلَـثَةٍ إِلاَّ هُوَ رَابِعُهُمْ وَلاَ خَمْسَةٍ إِلاَّ هُوَ سَادِسُهُمْ وَلاَ أَدْنَى مِن ذَلِكَ وَلاَ أَكْثَرَ إِلاَّ هُوَ مَعَهُمْ أَيْنَ مَا كَانُواْ (Have you not seen that Allah knows whatever is in the heavens and whatever is on the earth There is no secret counsel of three but He is their fourth, - nor of five but He is their sixth, - nor of less than that or more, but He is with them wherever they may be.) 58:7 وَمَا تَكُونُ فِى شَأْنٍ وَمَا تَتْلُواْ مِنْهُ مِن قُرْءَانٍ وَلاَ تَعْمَلُونَ مِنْ عَمَلٍ إِلاَّ كُنَّا عَلَيْكُمْ شُهُودًا (You will not be in any circumstance, nor recite any portion of the Qur'an, nor having done any deeds, but We are witnessing you.) 10:61 وَالَّذِينَ اتَّقَواْ (those who have Taqwa) means, they keep away from that which is forbidden. وَّالَّذِينَ هُم مُّحْسِنُونَ (and the doers of good. ) meaning they do deeds of obedience to Allah. These are the ones whom Allah takes care of, He gives them support, and helps them to prevail over their enemies and opponents. This is end of the Tafsir of Surat An-Nahl. To Allah be praise and blessings, and peace and blessings be upon Muhammad and his family and Companions.

So be patient and your patience is only by the help of God only by His assistance. And do not grieve for them that is for the disbelievers if they do not believe despite your eagerness that they believe nor be in distress because of that which they scheme in other words do not be concerned with their scheming for I God will make victorious over them.

So be patient, and your patience is only by [the help of] God: know that patience is of several types: patience for God, patience in God, patience with God, patience away from God and patience by God. Patience for God is one of the concomitants of faith and the first degree for the people of Islam. The Prophet, blessings and peace be upon him: 'Faith consists of two halves: half is patience and half is gratitude'. This [kind of patience] is to restrain the soul from anxiety when a desired thing has eluded [it] or when something undesirable has befallen [it], and this is one of the most excellent of character traits bestowed [as gift] from the bounty of God for the folk of His religion and His obedience, and is [the patience] that entails the plenteous reward. Patience in God is to remain firm in wayfaring along the path of the Truth and to habituate the soul to spiritual struggle voluntarily and to refraining from familiars and pleasures and to [train it to] endure afflictions and [to exercise] strong resolve in orienting itself to the source of perfections, and this is a station belonging to the wayfarers which God bestows [as gift] upon whomever He will from among the people of the [spiritual] path out of His bounty. Patience with God is for the people of the Presence and the Unveiling upon [their] disengagement from the garments of the acts and the attributes and [upon their] exposure to the self-disclosures of the Beauty and the Majesty and the flow of the inrushes of intimacy and awe - thus this [type of patience] comes with presence of the heart, for the one who has a heart and with guarding against forgetfulness and absence during variegations resulting from the manifestation of the soul, which is more exacting upon the soul than being beaten on the head, even if it be extremely pleasurable. Patience away from God is for the people of crudeness and of the veil, whether it be luminous or dark, and this [type] is very loathsome and the person in question is deservedly blameworthy; and the more that he exercises this [kind of] patience the worse and the more remote that his state becomes, and the more that he is vehement therein the more blameworthy and the cruder he is; or it is for the people of the eyewitnessing and the witnessing from among the fervent lovers and the yearners who are turned about between the various stages of the self-disclosure and the self-concealment and who shun the human realm and are illumined by the light of the divine realm, subsisting without a heart and without a description.

So be patient, and your patience is only by [the help of] God: know that patience is of several types: patience for God, patience in God, patience with God, patience away from God and patience by God. Patience for God is one of the concomitants of faith and the first degree for the people of Islam. The Prophet, blessings and peace be upon him: 'Faith consists of two halves: half is patience and half is gratitude'. This [kind of patience] is to restrain the soul from anxiety when a desired thing has eluded [it] or when something undesirable has befallen [it], and this is one of the most excellent of character traits bestowed [as gift] from the bounty of God for the folk of His religion and His obedience, and is [the patience] that entails the plenteous reward. Patience in God is to remain firm in wayfaring along the path of the Truth and to habituate the soul to spiritual struggle voluntarily and to refraining from familiars and pleasures and to [train it to] endure afflictions and [to exercise] strong resolve in orienting itself to the source of perfections, and this is a station belonging to the wayfarers which God bestows [as gift] upon whomever He will from among the people of the [spiritual] path out of His bounty. Patience with God is for the people of the Presence and the Unveiling upon [their] disengagement from the garments of the acts and the attributes and [upon their] exposure to the self-disclosures of the Beauty and the Majesty and the flow of the inrushes of intimacy and awe - thus this [type of patience] comes with presence of the heart, for the one who has a heart and with guarding against forgetfulness and absence during variegations resulting from the manifestation of the soul, which is more exacting upon the soul than being beaten on the head, even if it be extremely pleasurable. Patience away from God is for the people of crudeness and of the veil, whether it be luminous or dark, and this [type] is very loathsome and the person in question is deservedly blameworthy; and the more that he exercises this [kind of] patience the worse and the more remote that his state becomes, and the more that he is vehement therein the more blameworthy and the cruder he is; or it is for the people of the eyewitnessing and the witnessing from among the fervent lovers and the yearners who are turned about between the various stages of the self-disclosure and the self-concealment and who shun the human realm and are illumined by the light of the divine realm, subsisting without a heart and without a description.

واصبر -أيها الرسول- على ما أصابك مِن أذى في الله حتى يأتيك الفرج، وما صبرك إلا بالله، فهو الذي يعينك عليه ويثبتك، ولا تحزن على مَن خالفك ولم يستجب لدعوتك، ولا تغتم مِن مكرهم وكيدهم؛ فإن ذلك عائد عليهم بالشر والوبال.

وقوله تعالى "واصبر وما صبرك إلا بالله" تأكيد للأمر بالصبر وإخبار بأن ذلك لا ينال إلا بمشيئة الله وإعانته وحوله وقوته; ثم قال تعالى "ولا تحزن عليهم" أي على من خالفك فإن الله قدر ذلك "ولا تك في ضيق" أي غم "مما يمكرون" أي مما يجهدون أنفسهم في عداوتك وإيصال الشر إليك فإن الله كافيك وناصرك ومؤيدك ومظهرك ومظفرك بهم.

ثم أمر - سبحانه - بالصبر أمرا صريحا ، بعد أن بين حسن عاقبته فقال : ( واصبر وَمَا صَبْرُكَ إِلاَّ بالله . . . ) .أى : : واصبر - أيها الرسول الكريم - على أذى قومك ، وما صبرك فى حال من الأحوال بمؤت ثماره المرجوة منه إلا بتوفيق الله - تعالى - لك ، وبتثبيته إياك ، وما دام الأمر كذلك فالجأ إليه وحده ، واستعن به - سبحانه - فى كل أمورك ، فالاستثناء مفرغ من أعم الأحوال .ثم نهاه - سبحانه - عن الحزن بسبب كفر الكافرين ، فإن الهداية والإِضلال بقدرة الله وحده فقال - تعالى - : ( وَلاَ تَحْزَنْ عَلَيْهِمْ وَلاَ تَكُ فِي ضَيْقٍ مِّمَّا يَمْكُرُونَ ) .أى ولا تحزن بسبب كفر الكافرين ، وإصرارهم على ذلك ، وإعراضهم عن دعوتك ، ولا يضق صدرك بمكرهم ، فإن الله - تعالى - ناصرك عليهم ، ومنجيك من شرورهم .

يقول تعالى ذكره لنبيه محمد صلى الله عليه وسلم: واصبر يا محمد على ما أصابك من أذى في الله.( وَمَا صَبْرُكَ إِلا بِاللَّهِ ) يقول: وما صبرك إن صبرت إلا بمعونة الله ، وتوفيقه إياك لذلك ( وَلا تَحْزَنْ عَلَيْهِمْ ) يقول: ولا تحزن على هؤلاء المشركين الذين يكذّبونك وينكرون ما جئتهم به في آن ولوا عنك وأعرضوا عما أتيتهم به من النصيحة ( وَلا تَكُ فِي ضَيْقٍ مِمَّا يَمْكُرُونَ ) يقول: ولا يضق صدرك بما يقولون من الجهل ، ونسبتهم ما جئتهم به إلى أنه سحر أو شعر أو كهانة ، مما يمكرون: مما يحتالون بالخدع في الصّد عن سبيل الله ، من أراد الإيمان بك ، والتصديق بما أنـزل الله إليك.واختلفت القرّاء في قراءة ذلك، فقرأته عامَّة قرّاء العراق ( وَلا تَكُ فِي ضَيْقٍ ) بفتح الضَّاد في الضيق على المعنى الذي وصفت من تأويله. وقرأه بعض قرّاء أهل المدينة ( وَلا تَكُ فِي ضِيقٍ ) بكسر الضاد.وأولى القراءتين بالصواب في ذلك عندنا قراءة من قرأه في ضَيْقٍ ، بفتح الضاد، لأن الله تعالى إنما نهى نبيه صلى الله عليه وسلم أن يَضيق صدره مما يلقى من أذى المشركين على تبليغه إياهم وحي الله وتنـزيله، فقال له فَلا يَكُنْ فِي صَدْرِكَ حَرَجٌ مِنْهُ لِتُنْذِرَ بِهِ وقال: فَلَعَلَّكَ تَارِكٌ بَعْضَ مَا يُوحَى إِلَيْكَ وَضَائِقٌ بِهِ صَدْرُكَ أَنْ يَقُولُوا لَوْلا أُنْـزِلَ عَلَيْهِ كَنْـزٌ أَوْ جَاءَ مَعَهُ مَلَكٌ إِنَّمَا أَنْتَ نَذِيرٌ ، وإذ كان ذلك هو الذي نهاه تعالى ذكره، ففتح الضاد هو الكلام المعروف من كلام العرب في ذلك المعنى ، تقول العرب: في صدري من هذا الأمر ضيق، وإنما تكسر الضاد في الشيء المعاش ، وضيق المسكن ، ونحو ذلك ؛ فإن وقع الضَّيق بفتح الضاد في موضع الضِّيق بالكسر. كان على الذي يتسع أحيانا ، ويضيق من قلة أحد وجهين، إما على جمع الضيقة، كما قال أعشى بني ثعلبة:فَلَئِـــنْ رَبُّــكَ مِــنْ رَحْمَتِــهِكَشَــف الضَّيْقَــةَ عَنَّــا وَفسَـحْ (3)والآخر على تخفيف الشيء الضَّيِّق، كما يخفف الهيِّن اللَّيِّن، فيقال: هو هَيْن لَيْن.------------------------الهوامش:(3) البيت في ديوان أعشى بني ثعلبة ميمون بن قيس (طبع القاهرة ص 237 ) من قصيدة يمدح بها إياس بن قبيصة الطائي، وهو الرابع في القصيدة. وفي (اللسان: ضيق ): الضيق: الشك يكون في القلب من قوله تعالى: (ولا تك في ضيق مما يمكرون): وقال الفراء: الضيق ما ضاق عنه صدرك. والضيق (بالكسر) ما يكون في الذي يتسع ويضيق، مثل الدار والثوب. وإذا رأيت الضيق (بالفتح ) قد وقع في موضع الضيق (بالكسر) كان على أحد أمرين: أحدهما أن يكون جمعا للضيقة كما قال الأعشى: فلئن ربك ... الخ البيت. والوجه الآخر: أن يراد به شيء ضيق، فيكون ضيق مخففا، وأصله التشديد، ومثله: هين ولين.

( واصبر وما صبرك إلا بالله ) أي : بمعونة الله وتوفيقه ، ( ولا تحزن عليهم ) في إعراضهم عنك ، ( ولا تك في ضيق مما يمكرون ) أي : فيما فعلوا من الأفاعيل .قرأ ابن كثير هاهنا وفي النمل ( ضيق ) بكسر الضاد وقرأ الآخرون بفتح الضاد ، قال أهل الكوفة : هما لغتان مثل رطل ورطل .وقال أبو عمرو : " الضيق " بالفتح : الغم ، وبالكسر : الشدة .وقال أبو عبيدة : " الضيق " بالكسر في قلة المعاش وفي المساكن ، فأما ما كان في القلب والصدر فإنه بالفتح .وقال ابن قتيبة : الضيق تخفيف ضيق مثل هين وهين ، ولين ولين ، فعلى هذا هو صفة ، كأنه قال : ولا تكن في أمر ضيق من مكرهم .

خص النبي صلى الله عليه وسلم بالأمر بالصبر للإشارة إلى أن مقامه أعلى ، فهو بالتزام الصبر أولى ، أخذاً بالعزيمة بعد أن رخّص لهم في المعاقبة .وجملة { وما صبرك إلا بالله } معترضة بين المتعاطفات ، أي وما يحصل صبرك إلا بتوفيق الله إيّاك . وفي هذا إشارة إلى أن صبر النبي صلى الله عليه وسلم عظيم لقي من أذى المشركين أشدّ مما لقيه عموم المسلمين . فصبره ليس كالمعتاد ، لذلك كان حصوله بإعانة من الله .وحذره من الحزن عليهم أن لم يؤمنوا كقوله : { لعلّك باخع نفسك ألا يكونوا مؤمنين } [ سورة الشعراء : 3 ].ثم أعقبه بأن لا يضيق صدره من مكرهم ، وهذه أحوال مختلفة تحصل في النفس باختلاف الحوادث المسببة لها ، فإنهم كانوا يعاملون النبي مرة بالأذى علناً ، ومرة بالإعراض عن الاستماع إليه وإظهارِ أنهم يغيظُونه بعدم متابعته ، وآونة بالكيد والمكر له وهو تدبير الأذى في خفاء .والضيق بفتح الضّاد وسكون الياء مصدر ضاق ، مثل السّير والقَول . وبها قرأ الجمهور .ويقال : الضِيق بكسر الضاد مثل : القيل . وبها قرأ ابن كثير .وتقدم عند قوله : { وضائق به صدرك } [ سورة هود : 12 ]. والمراد ضيق النفس ، وهو مستعار للجزع والكدر ، كما استعير ضدّه وهو السعة والاتّساع للاحتمال والصبر . يقال : فلان ضيق الصدر ، قال تعالى في آخر الحجر { ولقد نعلم أنك يضيق صدرك بما يقولون } [ سورة الحجر : 97 ]. ويقال سعة الصدر .والظرفية في { ضيق } مجازية ، أي لا يلابسك ضيق ملابسة الظرف للحال فيه .و { ما } مصدرية ، أي من مكرهم . واختير الفعل المنسبك إلى مصدر لما يؤذن به الفعل المضارع من التجدّد والتكرّر .

ثم أمر رسوله بالصبر على دعوة الخلق إلى الله والاستعانة بالله على ذلك وعدم الاتكال على النفس فقال: { وَاصْبِرْ وَمَا صَبْرُكَ إِلَّا بِاللَّهِ } هو الذي يعينك عليه ويثبتك. { وَلَا تَحْزَنْ عَلَيْهِمْ } إذا دعوتهم فلم تر منهم قبولا لدعوتك، فإن الحزن لا يجدي عليك شيئا. { وَلَا تَكُ فِي ضَيْقٍ } أي: شدة وحرج { مِمَّا يَمْكُرُونَ } فإن مكرهم عائد إليهم وأنت من المتقين المحسنين.

قوله تعالى : واصبر وما صبرك إلا بالله ولا تحزن عليهم ولا تك في ضيق مما يمكرونفيه مسألة واحدة - قال ابن زيد : هي منسوخة بالقتال . وجمهور الناس على أنها محكمة . أي اصبر بالعفو عن المعاقبة بمثل ما عاقبوا في المثلة .ولا تحزن عليهم أي على قتلى أحد فإنهم صاروا إلى رحمة الله .ولا تك في ضيق مما يمكرون ضيق جمع ضيقة ; قال الشاعر :كشف الضيقة عنا وفسحوقراءة الجمهور بفتح الضاد . وقرأ ابن كثير بكسر الضاد ، ورويت عن نافع ، وهو غلط ممن رواه . قال بعض اللغويين : الكسر والفتح في الضاد لغتان في المصدر . قال الأخفش : الضيق والضيق مصدر ضاق يضيق . والمعنى : لا يضيق صدرك من كفرهم . وقال الفراء : الضيق ما ضاق عنه صدرك ، والضيق ما يكون في الذي يتسع ويضيق ; مثل الدار والثواب . وقال ابن السكيت : هما سواء ; يقال : في صدره ضيق وضيق . القتبي : ضيق مخفف ضيق ; أي لا تكن في أمر ضيق فخفف ; مثل هين وهين . وقال ابن عرفة : يقال ضاق الرجل إذا بخل ، وأضاق إذا افتقر .

The preacher’s call to the Truth is a process which emerges out of intense feelings of sincerity, seriousness and well-wishing. The realization of a man that he is answerable to God forces him to issue such a call to the subjects of God. He does so because he thinks that if he does not, he himself will be caught on the Day of Judgement. The natural result of such thinking is that the preacher speaks words of wisdom, gives good advice and engages in serious discussion. Exhortations to accept the Truth can be effective only when they are supported by argument and reasoning, and when they take into account the mentality of the addressees. A reasoned discourse should readily convince them of the reality of things but if it ignores their intellectual capacity, it will miss the mark and will do nothing to bolster the status of the preacher. Sympathy is a characteristic which develops in a discourse due to a well-wishing mentality (al-mu‘izah al-hasanah). When the preacher whose personality has been radically transformed by his realization of God’s majesty and glory speaks about God, the majesty of God will definitely shine through his discourse. The messenger of God who, after seeing heaven and hell, comes forward to show them to others will certainly in his discourse give glimpses of the joys of heaven and the terror of hell. The combination of these features will make his discourse so effective that it will melt hearts and bring tears to the eyes. Wisdom and good counselling are the staff of dawah work. However there are always those addressees who indulge in pointless discussions with the intention, who have no desire to understand the message but they only want to complicate matters. In such a case, the preacher must respond with gentleness; in the face of harsh words he must resort to reasoning and analysis and, in response to provocation, he must exercise patience. The eye of one who calls on others to the Truth is not on his audience but on God, who transcends all. Therefore, he utters such statements as prove to be true in God’s eyes rather than in man’s assessment.

Causing Pain to a Man of Da'wah: Revenge is Permissible, but Patience is Better. The next three verses (126, 127, 128) carry another important instruction for those who present the message of Truth before people. It tells them about what they have to do in unusual conditions. There are occasions when they have to face people who are hard-hearted and very ignorant. No matter how softly and politely one explains things to them and no matter how much goodwill one has for them in his heart, they would, even then, go in a fit of anger, use bad language and cause pain. There are times when they would go beyond that and hurt the preacher physically or would not even mind killing. So, a remedial measure was in order. For this purpose, by saying: وَإِنْ عَاقَبْتُمْ (And if you were to harm them in retaliation, harm them to the measure you were harmed. And if you opt for patience, it is definitely much better for those who are patient - 126), these noble workers in the way of Allah were given the legal right that it was permissible for them to retaliate against injustice done to them. But, this was to be subject to the condition that retaliation should not exceed the measure of injustice done. In other words, assess the injustice inflicted on you, retaliate only to that measure and ensure that no excess occurs. And at the end of the verse, given there is the advice: Though, you do have the right to retaliate, but be patient and do not retaliate. It is better. The Background in which this Verse was Revealed and How it was Implemented by the Holy Prophet ﷺ and his noble Sahabah ؓ According to the majority of commentators, this verse is Madani. It was revealed in relation to the shahadah of seventy sahabah and about the event in which Sayyidna Hamzah ؓ was killed and his body was subjected to post-killing mutilations (muthlah). The narration in Sahih al-Bukhari is in accordance with it. Darqutni has reported from Sayyidna Ibn ` Abbas ؓ as follows: "In the battle of Uhud when the Mushriks marched back, the dead bodies of seventy leading sahabah were found. Also included there was Sayyidna Hamzah ؓ ، the revered uncle of the Holy Prophet ﷺ . Since the Mushriks were particularly angry with him, therefore, once he was killed by them, they took out their anger on his dead body. His nose, ears and other parts of the body were cut and the abdomen was slit open. The very sight of it shocked the Holy Prophet ﷺ and he said that, to avenge Hamzah, he would have seventy men from the Mushriks subjected to a 'muthlah' similar to what they have done to Hamzah. It was in the background of this event that these three verses were revealed (126, 127, 128) ". (Tafsir Qurtubi) It appears in some narrations that these cruel people had meted out the same treatment of 'muthlah' (mutilation) in the case of other sahabah as well. (As reported by al-Tirmidhi, Ahmad, and Ibn Khuzaimah and Ibn Hibban in their Sahihs from Sayyidna Ubaiyy ibn Ka` b ؓ In this matter, being extremely grieved, the Holy Prophet ﷺ had declared his determination to subject seventy Mushriks in retaliation for his sahabah irrespective of their exact number, and this was not in accord with the principle of justice and equity Allah Ta` ala intended to stand established in this world through him. Therefore, two things were done. (1) He was alerted and told that the right of retaliation was there but it had to match the measure of injustice done. Retaliating against seventy for a few, irrespective of their number, is not right. (2) Then, he was to be the model of morals at their best. Therefore, given to him was the good counsel: Though, you are allowed to retaliate evenly but, should you set aside this option and be patient and generous to the unjust, that would be much better. Thereupon, the Holy Prophet ﷺ said, "Now, patient we shall be. We shall not take any revenge from anyone" - and he paid out a kaffarah (expiation) for his oath. (Mazhari from al-Baghawi) When, on the eve of the Conquest of Makkah, having all those Mushriks of Makkah under his control, it was certainly the time to do what he had declared on the battlefield of Uhud that he would do. But, it was precisely at the time of the revelation of the cited verses that the Holy Prophet ﷺ had forsaken his earlier intention and had, instead, decided to observe patience. Therefore, at the time of the Conquest of Makkah, the course of patience was taken in accordance with the imperative of these verses. Perhaps, it is on this basis that it has been mentioned in some narration that these verses were revealed at the time of the Conquest of Makkah. And it is also not too far out to believe that the revelation of these verses was repeated, that is, initially they were revealed at the battle of 'Uhud and then, when came the Conquest of Makkah, they were revealed again. (as narrated by al-Mazhari from Ibn al-Hassar) RULING: This verse has told us about the Law of Even Retaliation when avenging. Therefore, Muslim jurists say that in the event a person kills someone, the killed will be avenged by killing the killer. One who inflicts injury will have an even injury inflicted on him. Against one who cuts off someone's hand and feet, and then kills him, the guardian of the killed will be given the right that he too should first cut off the killer's hands and feet and then kill him. Yes, if someone kills someone else by hitting him with a rock, or kills him by injuring him with arrows, then, it is not possible to determine the correct measure of the way of killing, that is, how many strikes did it take to make this killing take place, and how much pain has been inflicted on the person killed. In this matter, there is no measure of determining real equalization. Therefore, he will have to be killed invariably with a sword. (AI-Jassas) RULING: Though the verse has been revealed in relation to physical pain and loss, but its words are general which includes the inflicting of financial loss. Therefore, Muslim jurists have said that a person who usurps مَال mal (money, property etc.) belonging to another person, then, this other person has the right to forcibly take away from him his mal in accordance with his right, or take it by stealth on condition that the مَال mal taken is from the genus of his right, for example, if cash has been taken, then, he can take, in lieu of it, the same amount of cash from him, by usurpation or theft. If things usurped are like grains, corn or cloth, then, similar grains, corn or cloth can be taken back. But, one cannot take another kind in lieu of the kind taken from him, for example, one cannot forcibly take cloth or some other article of use in lieu of cash. However, some fuqaha.' (Muslim jurists) have permitted it unconditionally - whether it be from the entitled kind or from some other. Some details of these rules have been covered by al-Qurtubi in his Tafsir while more comprehensive details appear in books of Fiqh. Mentioned in verse 126: وَإِنْ عَاقَبْتُمْ , (And if you were to harm...) was the general law in which avenging harm done with even harm was declared to be permissible for all Muslims, but taking the option of patience was recommended as definitely much better. And in the next verse (127), the Holy Prophet ﷺ has been addressed in a special manner and prompted to be patient because, in view of his great dignity and high station, the later response was certainly more appropriate and becoming for him as compared with others. Therefore, it was said: وَاصْبِرْ‌ وَمَا صَبْرُ‌كَ إِلَّا بِاللَّـهِ (And be patient. And your patience is bestowed by none but Allah). It means: 'As for you, you just do not even contemplate a revenge. Take to Sabr (patience) as your only option.' And then, he was also told that his Sabr will come with the help of Allah alone, that is, observing Sabr will be made easy for him.

(Endure thou patiently) their harm, O Muhammad. (Thine endurance is only by (the help of) Allah) by Allah's given success. (Grieve not for them) grieve not for the destruction of those who derided you, (and be not in distress because of that which they devise) because of what they say about you and do to you.

So be patient: and your patience is only by [the help of] God�Sahl said:Be patient and know that there is no helper (muʿīn) in your affairs except God, Exalted is He. ⸢And God, Exalted is He, knows best⸣. His words, Exalted is He: