The Believers — Verse 96
23:96 · al-Mu`minun
Verse display
ٱدۡفَعۡ بِٱلَّتِی هِیَ أَحۡسَنُ ٱلسَّیِّئَةَۚ نَحۡنُ أَعۡلَمُ بِمَا یَصِفُونَ ٩٦
id'faʿ bi-allatī hiya aḥsanu l-sayi-ata naḥnu aʿlamu bimā yaṣifūn
The Believers / al-Mu`minun (23:96)
Connections 5 multi-source 2 single-source 4 commentators
Multi-source connections cited by 2+ commentators
Single-source mentions (2) cited by only one commentator
By commentator who cites how many verses on this ayah
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Al-Qushairi Tafsir 5 verses 10 mentions total
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Kashani Tafsir 5 verses 10 mentions total
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Kashf Al-Asrar Tafsir 5 verses
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Tafsir Ibn Kathir (abridged) 2 verses
Note: these connections are extracted from numeric S:A references inside the commentary text and are therefore biased toward mufassirun who use that notation. Prose-style references (e.g. "Surat al-Baqarah verse 30") will be added later, which should surface additional multi-source consensus.
Repel evil with good- We are well aware of what they attribute to Us
id'faʿ bi-allatī hiya aḥsanu l-sayi-ata naḥnu aʿlamu bimā yaṣifūn
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Tafsir Commentary
The Command to call on Allah when Calamity strikes, to repel Evil with that which is better, and to seek refuge with Allah
Allah commands His Prophet Muhammad ﷺ to call on Him with this supplication when calamity strikes:
رَّبِّ إِمَّا تُرِيَنِّى مَا يُوعَدُونَ
(My Lord! If You would show me that with which they are threatened.) meaning, `if You punish them while I am witnessing that, then do not cause me to be one of them.' As was said in the Hadith recorded by Imam Ahmad and At-Tirmidhi, who graded it Sahih:
«وَإِذَا أَرَدْتَ بِقَومٍ فِتْنَةً فَتَوفَّنِي إِلَيْكَ غَيْرَ مَفْتُون»
(If You want to test people, then take me to You cause me to die without having to undergo the test.)
وَإِنَّا عَلَى أَن نُّرِيَكَ مَا نَعِدُهُمْ لَقَـدِرُونَ
(And indeed We are able to show you that with which We have threatened them.) means, `if We willed, We could show you the punishment and test that We will send upon them.' Then Allah shows him the best way to behave when mixing with people, which is to treat kindly the one who treats him badly, so as to soften his heart and turn his enmity to friendship, and to turn his hatred to love. Allah says:
ادْفَعْ بِالَّتِى هِىَ أَحْسَنُ السَّيِّئَةَ
(Repel evil with that which is better. ) This is like the Ayah:
ادْفَعْ بِالَّتِى هِىَ أَحْسَنُ فَإِذَا الَّذِى بَيْنَكَ وَبَيْنَهُ عَدَاوَةٌ كَأَنَّهُ وَلِىٌّ حَمِيمٌوَمَا يُلَقَّاهَا إِلاَّ الَّذِينَ صَبَرُواْ
(Repel (the evil) with one which is better, then verily he, between whom and you there was enmity, (will become) as though he was a close friend. But none is granted it except those who are patient) 41:34-35. meaning, nobody will be helped or inspired to follow this advice or attain this quality,
إِلاَّ الَّذِينَ صَبَرُواْ
(except those who are patient) meaning, those who patiently bear people's insults and bad treatment and deal with them in a good manner when they are on the receiving end of bad treatment from them.
وَمَا يُلَقَّاهَآ إِلاَّ ذُو حَظِّ عَظِيمٍ
(and none is granted it except the owner of the great portion) means, in this world and the Hereafter. And Allah says:
وَقُلْ رَّبِّ أَعُوذُ بِكَ مِنْ هَمَزَاتِ الشَّيـطِينِ
(And say: "My Lord! I seek refuge with You from the whisperings of the Shayatin.") Allah commanded him to seek refuge with Him from the Shayatin, because no trick could help you against them and you cannot protect yourself by being kind to them. We have already stated, when discussing Isti`adhah (seeking refuge), that the Messenger of Allah ﷺ used to say,
«أَعُوذُ بِاللهِ السَّمِيعِ الْعَلِيمِ مِنَ الشَّيْطَانِ الرَّجِيمِ مِنْ هَمْزِهِ وَنَفْخِهِ وَنَفْثِه»
(I seek refuge with Allah, the All-Hearing, All-Seeing, from the accursed Shayatin, from his whisperings, evil suggestions and insinuations.) His saying:
وَأَعُوذُ بِكَ رَبِّ أَن يَحْضُرُونِ
("And I seek refuge with You, My Lord! lest they should come near me.") means, in any issue of my life. So we are commanded to mention Allah at the beginning of any undertaking, in order to ward off the Shayatin at the time of eating, intercourse, slaughtering animals for food, etc. Abu Dawud recorded that the Messenger of Allah ﷺ used to say:
«اللَّهُمَّ إِنِّي أَعُوذُ بِكَ مِنَ الْهَرَمِ، وَأَعُوذُ بِكَ مِنَ الْهَدْمِ وَمِنَ الْغَرَقِ، وَأَعُوذُ بِكَ مِنْ أَنْ يَتَخَبَّطَنِي الشَّيْطَانُ عِنْدَ الْمَوْت»
(O Allah, I seek refuge with You from old age, I seek refuge with You from being crushed or drowned, and I seek refuge with you from being assaulted by the Shayatin at the time of death.)
Ward off with that which is better that is to say with the better trait of pardoning and shunning them the evil act the hurt they cause you — this was revealed before the command to fight them. We know best what they allege what they invent of lies and what they say and so We will requite them for it.
Repel the ugly with what is more beautiful. In this verse the generous Lord, the wise and renowned Enactor, commands MuṣṬafā to noble char- acter traits and beautiful habits-a bright face, mild words, a soft heart, and a pleasant character; pardoning the bad-doers, hiding the defects of the defective, and doing good in place of bad. In the tongue of the Tariqah, the more beautiful is for the heart to give fatwas by the Real's dicta- tion. The ugly is for the soul to issue commands by its own caprice. He is saying, “O Master, repel what the soul commands by means of what the Real shows: Repel the ugly with what is more beautiful.” The Prophet always used to say, “'Our Lord, do not entrust us to our souls for the blink of an eye, or less than that.' O God, lift up this curtain of self from before our heart so that the bird of the heart may be completely delivered from the cage of the soul and fly in the air of the Patron's approval! O God, this burden of soul is the burden of selfhood. Lift this burden of selfhood away from us so we may be released from self and turn to You!” O chevalier, take care not to say that his blessed soul was like the souls of others, for if a speck of his soul's shining were to shine forth on the spirits and hearts of the world's sincerely truthful, all of them would go forth to the world of holiness and the gardens of intimacy and settle down in the seat of truthfulness [54:55]. Despite all this, he says, “O Lord, this is our veil on the road of the Haqiqah-lift it up from our road!” The command came, “O MuḤammad, unasked We put Ourself beside you: Did We not expand for thee thy breast and lift from thee thy burden? [94:1-2]. O MuḤammad, We put aside that bur- den of you-ness from you. Our desire took care of your work, Our solicitude lit up your lamp. You did not come by yourself, nor did you come for yourself. You did not come by yourself because We brought you: Who took His servant by night [17:1]. You did not come for yourself because you came as a mercy for the world's folk: We sent thee only as a mercy to the worlds” [21:107].
Repel the ugly with what is more beautiful. In this verse the generous Lord, the wise and renowned Enactor, commands MuṣṬafā to noble char- acter traits and beautiful habits-a bright face, mild words, a soft heart, and a pleasant character; pardoning the bad-doers, hiding the defects of the defective, and doing good in place of bad. In the tongue of the Tariqah, the more beautiful is for the heart to give fatwas by the Real's dicta- tion. The ugly is for the soul to issue commands by its own caprice. He is saying, “O Master, repel what the soul commands by means of what the Real shows: Repel the ugly with what is more beautiful.” The Prophet always used to say, “'Our Lord, do not entrust us to our souls for the blink of an eye, or less than that.' O God, lift up this curtain of self from before our heart so that the bird of the heart may be completely delivered from the cage of the soul and fly in the air of the Patron's approval! O God, this burden of soul is the burden of selfhood. Lift this burden of selfhood away from us so we may be released from self and turn to You!” O chevalier, take care not to say that his blessed soul was like the souls of others, for if a speck of his soul's shining were to shine forth on the spirits and hearts of the world's sincerely truthful, all of them would go forth to the world of holiness and the gardens of intimacy and settle down in the seat of truthfulness [54:55]. Despite all this, he says, “O Lord, this is our veil on the road of the Haqiqah-lift it up from our road!” The command came, “O MuḤammad, unasked We put Ourself beside you: Did We not expand for thee thy breast and lift from thee thy burden? [94:1-2]. O MuḤammad, We put aside that bur- den of you-ness from you. Our desire took care of your work, Our solicitude lit up your lamp. You did not come by yourself, nor did you come for yourself. You did not come by yourself because We brought you: Who took His servant by night [17:1]. You did not come for yourself because you came as a mercy for the world's folk: We sent thee only as a mercy to the worlds” [21:107].
Repel the ugly with what is more beautiful. In this verse the generous Lord, the wise and renowned Enactor, commands MuṣṬafā to noble char- acter traits and beautiful habits-a bright face, mild words, a soft heart, and a pleasant character; pardoning the bad-doers, hiding the defects of the defective, and doing good in place of bad. In the tongue of the Tariqah, the more beautiful is for the heart to give fatwas by the Real's dicta- tion. The ugly is for the soul to issue commands by its own caprice. He is saying, “O Master, repel what the soul commands by means of what the Real shows: Repel the ugly with what is more beautiful.” The Prophet always used to say, “'Our Lord, do not entrust us to our souls for the blink of an eye, or less than that.' O God, lift up this curtain of self from before our heart so that the bird of the heart may be completely delivered from the cage of the soul and fly in the air of the Patron's approval! O God, this burden of soul is the burden of selfhood. Lift this burden of selfhood away from us so we may be released from self and turn to You!” O chevalier, take care not to say that his blessed soul was like the souls of others, for if a speck of his soul's shining were to shine forth on the spirits and hearts of the world's sincerely truthful, all of them would go forth to the world of holiness and the gardens of intimacy and settle down in the seat of truthfulness [54:55]. Despite all this, he says, “O Lord, this is our veil on the road of the Haqiqah-lift it up from our road!” The command came, “O MuḤammad, unasked We put Ourself beside you: Did We not expand for thee thy breast and lift from thee thy burden? [94:1-2]. O MuḤammad, We put aside that bur- den of you-ness from you. Our desire took care of your work, Our solicitude lit up your lamp. You did not come by yourself, nor did you come for yourself. You did not come by yourself because We brought you: Who took His servant by night [17:1]. You did not come for yourself because you came as a mercy for the world's folk: We sent thee only as a mercy to the worlds” [21:107].
Repel the ugly with what is more beautiful. In this verse the generous Lord, the wise and renowned Enactor, commands MuṣṬafā to noble char- acter traits and beautiful habits-a bright face, mild words, a soft heart, and a pleasant character; pardoning the bad-doers, hiding the defects of the defective, and doing good in place of bad. In the tongue of the Tariqah, the more beautiful is for the heart to give fatwas by the Real's dicta- tion. The ugly is for the soul to issue commands by its own caprice. He is saying, “O Master, repel what the soul commands by means of what the Real shows: Repel the ugly with what is more beautiful.” The Prophet always used to say, “'Our Lord, do not entrust us to our souls for the blink of an eye, or less than that.' O God, lift up this curtain of self from before our heart so that the bird of the heart may be completely delivered from the cage of the soul and fly in the air of the Patron's approval! O God, this burden of soul is the burden of selfhood. Lift this burden of selfhood away from us so we may be released from self and turn to You!” O chevalier, take care not to say that his blessed soul was like the souls of others, for if a speck of his soul's shining were to shine forth on the spirits and hearts of the world's sincerely truthful, all of them would go forth to the world of holiness and the gardens of intimacy and settle down in the seat of truthfulness [54:55]. Despite all this, he says, “O Lord, this is our veil on the road of the Haqiqah-lift it up from our road!” The command came, “O MuḤammad, unasked We put Ourself beside you: Did We not expand for thee thy breast and lift from thee thy burden? [94:1-2]. O MuḤammad, We put aside that bur- den of you-ness from you. Our desire took care of your work, Our solicitude lit up your lamp. You did not come by yourself, nor did you come for yourself. You did not come by yourself because We brought you: Who took His servant by night [17:1]. You did not come for yourself because you came as a mercy for the world's folk: We sent thee only as a mercy to the worlds” [21:107].
Repel the ugly with what is more beautiful.In this verse the generous Lord, the wise and renowned Enactor, commands MuṣṬafā to noble char- acter traits and beautiful habits-a bright face, mild words, a soft heart, and a pleasant character; pardoning the bad-doers, hiding the defects of the defective, and doing good in place of bad.In the tongue of the Tariqah, the more beautiful is for the heart to give fatwas by the Real's dicta- tion. The ugly is for the soul to issue commands by its own caprice. He is saying, �O Master, repel what the soul commands by means of what the Real shows: Repel the ugly with what is more beautiful.�The Prophet always used to say, �'Our Lord, do not entrust us to our souls for the blink of an eye, or less than that.' O God, lift up this curtain of self from before our heart so that the bird of the heart may be completely delivered from the cage of the soul and fly in the air of the Patron's approval! O God, this burden of soul is the burden of selfhood. Lift this burden of selfhood away from us so we may be released from self and turn to You!�O chevalier, take care not to say that his blessed soul was like the souls of others, for if a speck of his soul's shining were to shine forth on the spirits and hearts of the world's sincerely truthful, all of them would go forth to the world of holiness and the gardens of intimacy and settle down in the seat of truthfulness [54:55]. Despite all this, he says, �O Lord, this is our veil on the road of the Haqiqah-lift it up from our road!�The command came, �O MuḤammad, unasked We put Ourself beside you: Did We not expand for thee thy breast and lift from thee thy burden? [94:1-2]. O MuḤammad, We put aside that bur- den of you-ness from you. Our desire took care of your work, Our solicitude lit up your lamp. You did not come by yourself, nor did you come for yourself. You did not come by yourself because We brought you: Who took His servant by night [17:1]. You did not come for yourself because you came as a mercy for the world's folk: We sent thee only as a mercy to the worlds� [21:107].
إذا أساء إليك أعداؤك - أيها الرسول - بالقول أو الفعل فلا تقابلهم بالإساءة، ولكن ادفع إساءتهم بالإحسان منك إليهم، نحن أعلم بما يصفه هؤلاء المشركون من الشرك والتكذيب، وسنجازيهم عليه أسوأ الجزاء.
" ادفع بالتي هي أحسن فإذا الذي بينك وبينه عداوة كأنه ولي حميم وما يلقاها إلا الذين صبروا " الآية أي وما يلهم هذه الوصية أو هذه الخصلة أو الصفة " إلا الذين صبروا " أي على أذى الناس فعاملوهم بالجميل مع إسدائهم إليهم القبيح " وما يلقاها إلا ذو حظ عظيم " أي في الدنيا والآخرة.
ثم أمر الله تعالى نبيه صلى الله عليه وسلم بالصبر على أذاهم . وبمقابلة سيئاتهم بالخصال الحسنة ، فقال : ( ادفع بالتي هِيَ أَحْسَنُ السيئة نَحْنُ أَعْلَمُ بِمَا يَصِفُونَ ) .أى : قابل - أيها الرسول الكريم - سيئات هؤلاء المشركين الجاهلين ، بالأخلاق والسجايا التى هى أحسن من غيرها ، كأن تعرض عنهم ، وتصبر على سوء أخلاقهم ، فأنت صاحب الخلق العظيم ، ونحن أعلم منك بما يصفوننا به من صفات باطلة . وما يصفوك به من صفات ذميمة ، وسنجازيهم على ذلك بما يستحقون ، فى الوقت الذى نريده .فالآية الكريمة توجيه حكيم من الله - تعالى - لنبيه - ، وتسلية له عما أصابه من أعدائه ، وشبيه بهذه الآية قوله - تعالى - : ( خُذِ العفو وَأْمُرْ بالعرف وَأَعْرِضْ عَنِ الجاهلين ).
يقول تعالى ذكره لنبيه: ادفع يا محمد بالخلة التي هي أحسن، وذلك الإغضاء والصفح عن جهلة المشركين والصبر على أذاهم، وذلك أمره إياه قبل أمره بحربهم، &; 19-68 &; وعنى بالسيئة: أذى المشركين إياه وتكذيبهم له فيما أتاهم به من عند الله، يقول له تعالى ذكره: اصبر على ما تلقى منهم في ذات الله.وبنحو الذي قلنا في ذلك قال أهل التأويل.*ذكر من قال ذلك:حدثنا القاسم، قال: ثنا الحسين، قال: ثني حجاج، عن ابن جُرَيج، عن مجاهد، قوله: ( ادْفَعْ بِالَّتِي هِيَ أَحْسَنُ السَّيِّئَةَ ) قال: أعرض عن أذاهم إياك.حدثنا ابن عبد الأعلى، قال: ثنا ابن ثور، عن معمر، عن عبد الكريم الجَزَري، عن مجاهد: ( ادْفَعْ بِالَّتِي هِيَ أَحْسَنُ السَّيِّئَةَ ) قال: هو السلام، تُسَلِّمُ عليه إذا لقيته.حدثنا الحسن، قال: أخبرنا عبد الرزاق، عن معمر، عن عبد الكريم، عن مجاهد، مثله.حدثنا ابن بشار، قال: ثنا هوذة، قال: ثنا عوف، عن الحسن، في قوله: ( ادْفَعْ بِالَّتِي هِيَ أَحْسَنُ السَّيِّئَةَ ) قال: والله لا يصيبها صاحبها حتى يكظم غيظا، ويصفح عما يكره.وقوله: ( نَحْنُ أَعْلَمُ بِمَا يَصِفُونَ ) يقول تعالى ذكره: نحن أعلم بما يصفون الله به، وينحَلُونه من الأكاذيب والفِرية عليه، وبما يقولون فيك من السوء، ونحن مجازوهم على جميع ذلك، فلا يحزنك ما تسمع منهم من قبيح القول.
( ادفع بالتي هي أحسن ) أي : ادفع بالخلة التي هي أحسن ، هي الصفح والإعراض والصبر ، ( السيئة ) يعني أذاهم ، أمرهم بالصبر على أذى المشركين والكف عن المقاتلة ، نسختها آية السيف ( نحن أعلم بما يصفون ) يكذبون ويقولون من الشرك .
ادْفَعْ بِالَّتِي هِيَ أَحْسَنُ السَّيِّئَةَ نَحْنُ أَعْلَمُ بِمَا يَصِفُونَ (96)لما أنبأ الله رسوله عليه الصلاة والسلام بما يلمح له بأنه منجز وعيده من الذين كذبوه فعلم الرسولُ والمسلمون أن الله ضمن لهم النصر أعقب ذلك بأن أمره بأن يدفع مكذبيه بالتي هي أحسن وأن لا يضيق بتكذيبهم صدره فذلك دفع السيئة بالحسنة كما هو أدب الإسلام . وسيأتي بيانه في سورة فصلت ( 34 ) عند قوله { ادفع بالتي هي أحسن . } وقوله نحن أعلم بما يصفون } خبر مستعمل كناية عن كون الله يعامل أصحاب الإساءة لرسوله بما هم أحقاء به من العقاب لأن الذي هو أعلم بالأحوال يُجري عمله على مناسب تلك الأحوال بالعدل وفي هذا تطمين لنفس الرسول صلى الله عليه وسلموحذف مفعول { يصفون } وتقديره : بما يصفونك ، أي مما يضيق به صدرك . وذلك تعهد بأنه يجازيهم على ما يعلم منهم قرُب أحد يبدو منه السوء ينطوي ضميره على بعض الخير فقد كان فيهم من يحدب على النبي في نفسه ، ورب أحد هو بعكسه كما قال تعالى : { ومن الناس من يعجبك قوله في الحياة الدنيا ويشهد الله على ما في قلبه وهو ألد الخصام } [ البقرة : 204 ] .و { التي هي أحسن } مراد بها الحسنة الكاملة ، فاسم التفضيل للمبالغة مثل قوله { السجن أحب إليَّ } [ يوسف : 33 ] .والتخلق بهذه الآية هو أن المؤمن الكامل ينبغي له أن يفوض أمر المعتدين عليه إلى الله فهو يتولى الانتصار لمن توكل عليه وأنه إن قابل السيئة بالحسنة كان انتصار الله أشفى لصدره وأرسخ في نصره ، وماذا تبلغ قدرة المخلوق تجاه قدرة الخالق ، وهو الذي هزم الأحزاب بلا جيوش ولا فيالق .وهكذا كان خلُق النبي صلى الله عليه وسلم فقد كان لا ينتقم لنفسه وكان يدعو ربه . وذكر في «المدارك» في ترجمة عبد الله بن غانم : أن رجلاً يقال له ابن زرعة كان له جاه ورئاسة وكان ابن غانم حكم عليه بوجه حق ترتب عليه ، فلقي ابنَ غانم في موضع خال فشتمه فأعرض عنه ابن غانم فلما كان بعد ذلك لقيه بالطريق فسلم ابن زرعة على ابن غانم فرد عليه ابن غانم ورحب به ومضى معه إلى منزله وعمل له طعاماً فلما أراد مفارقته قال لابن غانم : يا أبا عبد الرحمن اغفر لي واجعلني في حل مما كان من خطابي ، فقال له ابن غانم : أما هذا فلست أفعله حتى أوقفك بين يدي الله تعالى ، وأما أن ينالك مني في الدنيا مكروه أو عقوبة فلا .
هذا من مكارم الأخلاق، التي أمر الله رسوله بها فقال: { ادْفَعْ بِالَّتِي هِيَ أَحْسَنُ السَّيِّئَةَ } أي: إذا أساء إليك أعداؤك، بالقول والفعل، فلا تقابلهم بالإساءة، مع أنه يجوز معاقبة المسيء بمثل إساءته، ولكن ادفع إساءتهم إليك بالإحسان منك إليهم، فإن ذلك فضل منك على المسيء، ومن مصالح ذلك، أنه تخف الإساءة عنك، في الحال، وفي المستقبل، وأنه أدعى لجلب المسيء إلى الحق، وأقرب إلى ندمه وأسفه، ورجوعه بالتوبة عما فعل، وليتصف العافي بصفة الإحسان، ويقهر بذلك عدوه الشيطان، وليستوجب الثواب من الرب، قال تعالى: { فَمَنْ عَفَا وَأَصْلَحَ فَأَجْرُهُ عَلَى اللَّهِ } وقال تعالى: { ادْفَعْ بِالَّتِي هِيَ أَحْسَنُ فَإِذَا الَّذِي بَيْنَكَ وَبَيْنَهُ عَدَاوَةٌ كَأَنَّهُ وَلِيٌّ حَمِيمٌ* وَمَا يُلَقَّاهَا } أي: ما يوفق لهذا الخلق الجميل { إِلَّا الَّذِينَ صَبَرُوا وَمَا يُلَقَّاهَا إِلَّا ذُو حَظٍّ عَظِيمٍ } وقوله: { نَحْنُ أَعْلَمُ بِمَا يَصِفُونَ } أي: بما يقولون من الأقوال المتضمنة للكفر والتكذيب بالحق، قد أحاط علمنا بذلك، وقد حلمنا عنهم، وأمهلناهم، وصبرنا عليهم، والحق لنا، وتكذيبهم لنا، فأنت -يا محمد- ينبغي لك أن تصبر على ما يقولون، وتقابلهم بالإحسان، هذه وظيفة العبد في مقابلة المسيء من البشر، وأما المسيء من الشياطين، فإنه لا يفيد فيه الإحسان، ولا يدعو حزبه إلا ليكونوا من أصحاب السعير، فالوظيفة في مقابلته، أن يسترشد بما أرشد الله إليه رسوله
قوله تعالى : ادفع بالتي هي أحسن السيئة نحن أعلم بما يصفونقوله تعالى : ادفع بالتي هي أحسن السيئة أمر بالصفح ومكارم الأخلاق ؛ فما كان منها لهذه الأمة فيما بينهم فهو محكم باق في الأمة أبدا . وما كان فيها من موادعة الكفار وترك التعرض لهم والصفح عن أمورهم فمنسوخ بالقتال . نحن أعلم بما يصفون أي من الشرك والتكذيب . وهذا يقتضي أنها آية موادعة ، والله تعالى أعلم .
When God’s preacher calls for the Truth, it often happens that those whom he addresses, instead of acknowledging it, become his enemies. They make him the target of mischief and spread false propaganda against him. At that time, he has the urge to react. He feels that if he has been maltreated by others, he should also retaliate. He feels that if he keeps quiet, will be encouraged and they will be emboldened to engage in further opposition. But all such thoughts are instigations of Satan. At this critical juncture, Satan confuses the issue with a view to leading man astray. On such occasions, one who is a believer should seek God’s protection, will cast him into manifest error.
ادْفَعْ بِالَّتِي هِيَ أَحْسَنُ السَّيِّئَةَ
Repel evil with that which is best - 23:96
Allah instructs the Holy Prophet ﷺ to counter evil with good, oppression with justice and cruelty with mercy. These virtues of conduct have been taught by Allah to the Holy Prophet ﷺ and are generally observed in settling affairs among the Muslims. Later on these instructions were repealed in so far as the infidels and the unbelievers were concerned when Allah permitted Muslims to embark on (Jihad). Nevertheless even during Jihad the Muslims were told to adopt a humane approach towards the enemy. For example they were forbidden to kill women and children or the priests who did not engage in battle against the Muslims. Similarly, mutilation of the dead bodies of enemies was strictly forbidden. It is for this reason that the Holy Prophet ﷺ is instructed in the next verse to seek protection from Shaitan's evil suggestions even in the battle fields where he may arouse emotions to act against ethics.
(Repel evil with that which is better) repel by means of " there is no god except Allah " the expression of idolatry which is coming from Abu Jahl and his host; and it is also said that this means: repel from yourself their indecent talk through the greeting of peace. (We are best Aware of that which they allege) of lies.