48:1. Verily We have granted you [O Muhammad, in the Treaty of al-Hudaybiyah] a manifest victory,^{1This refers to the Treaty of al-Hudaybiyah. In 6 AH, the Prophet (*^2) and his Companions set out to perform ‘umrah, but were prevented by Quraysh from reaching Makkah. The ensuing negotiations led to the Treaty of al-Hudaybiyah, in which the Muslims agreed to return to Madinah without performing ‘umrah, but would be allowed to come back and do so the following year, and hostilities between the two sides would cease. The Muslims initially objected to this treaty, as they felt that its terms were unfair, but its ultimate consequences were good. The cessation of fighting allowed people from both sides to talk and get to know one another, which led to more people becoming Muslim.}

48:2. so that Allah may forgive you your past and future sins, complete His blessings upon you, and guide you on a straight path;

48:3. and so that Allah may bestow upon you mighty support.

The victory mentioned is the Treaty of al-Hudaybiyah, when the polytheists barred the way to the Messenger of Allah (ﷺ) when he came to do ‘umrah. It is a long story, which ended with their making a treaty with the Messenger of Allah (ﷺ), agreeing to a cessation of war between him and them for ten years; that he would do ‘umrah the following year; that whoever wanted to join the treaty on the side of Quraysh and join their alliance might do so, and whoever wanted to join the treaty on the side of the Messenger of Allah (ﷺ) might do so.

As a result of that, once the people were safe from one another, the opportunities for calling people to the religion of Allah expanded, and any believer in any place in those regions was able to call people to Islam.

Anyone who wanted to find out about what Islam really is, was able to do so, and during that period the people entered the religion of Allah in crowds. Therefore Allah called it a victory and described it as a manifest - that is, clear and obvious - victory. That is because the purpose of conquering the lands of the polytheists was to make the religion of Allah supreme and cause the Muslims to have the upper hand. This happened as a result of this victory, and Allah caused this victory to lead to many positive consequences.

﴾jso that Allah may forgive you your past and future sins﴿ that - and Allah knows best - is because of what happened as a result of many acts of worship and many people becoming Muslim, and because of what the Prophet (ﷺ) had to put up with of conditions that no one could bear except the Messengers of strong will. This is one of his greatest attributes and virtues, and that is why Allah forgave him his past and future sins.

﴾complete His blessings upon you﴿ by making your religious commitment strong, causing you to prevail over your enemies and making your call go further afield﴾and guide you on a straight path﴿ by which you will attain eternal happiness and success.

﴾and so that Allah may bestow upon you mighty support﴿ that is, strong support, because of which Islam can never be shaken; rather it will attain complete victory and will suppress, humiliate and weaken the disbelievers, whilst sparing the strength of the Muslims and causing them to increase in numbers and their wealth to grow.

Then Allah mentions the consequences of this victory for the believers:

48:4. It is He Who sent down reassurance to the hearts of the believers so that they might increase in faith. To Allah belong the hosts of the heavens and the earth. And Allah is All-Knowing, Most Wise.

48:5. So that He may admit the believing men and women to gardens through which rivers flow, to abide therein forever, and absolve them of their bad deeds, and that, before Allah, is a great triumph.

48:6. And so that He may punish the hypocrites, men and women, and the polytheists, men and women, who harbour evil thoughtsabout Allah.^{1The hypocrites thought that when the Prophet (5i|) and his Companions set out to perform ‘umrah, they would never return to Madinah, as the polytheists would eradicate them and disbelief would prevail over Islam.} An evil turn of fortune will befall them; Allah is angry with them and has cursed them; He has prepared hell for them - an evil journey’s end.

Here Allah (سبحانه وتعالى) tells us of the blessing that He bestowed upon the believers when he sent down reassurance to their hearts, which is peace of mind, tranquillity and steadfastness when faced with disconcerting trials and difficult circumstances that make people worried, distract their thoughts and weaken their resolve.

By His blessings to His slave in such circumstances He makes him steadfast, strengthens his resolve and gives him a sense of peace, so that he may meet those difficulties with steadfastness and focus of mind, and thus he will be prepared to comply with the commands of Allah in such circumstances and thereby increase in faith and certainty.

When the Messenger of Allah (ﷺ) agreed on the deal between him and the polytheists, on the basis of those conditions which appeared to be unfair to them, it seemed to undermine the status of the Companions and appeared to be an insult such that people can hardly tolerate. But when they bore it with patience and decided to accept it, that increased them in faith.

﴾jTo Allah belong the hosts of the heavens and the earthy that is, all of them are under His dominion and control, so the polytheists should not think that Allah will not support His religion and His Prophet (ﷺ). Rather Allah (سبحانه وتعالى) is All-Knowing, Most Wise, and His wisdom dictates that people’s fortunes should alternate and that the victory of the believers should sometimes be delayed until another time.

﴾So that He may admit the believing men and women to gardens through which rivers flow, to abide therein forever, and absolve themof their bad deeds﴿. For this is the greatest thing that they could achieve, to attain what they hope for by entering those gardens and be protected from what they fear, by means of the absolution of their bad deeds.

﴾fand that﴿ namely the reward of the believers mentioned here ﴾before Allah, is a great triumph﴿. This is what the believers gained through that manifest victory.

As for the hypocrites, men and women, and the polytheists, men and women, Allah punished them by means of that and showed them that which caused them distress. For their aim had been to humiliate the believers, and they thought ill of Allah, supposing that He would not support His religion or make His word supreme, and that the followers of falsehood would gain the upper hand against the followers of truth. But Allah made their evil thoughts backfire on them, and the evil turn of fortune befell them in this world.

﴾AUah is angry with them﴿ because of their opposition to Him and His Messenger (ﷺ)

﴾and has cursed them﴿ that is, He has cast them far away from His mercy, and ﴾He has prepared hell for them - an evil journey’s end﴿.

48:7. To Allah belong the hosts of the heavens and the earth. And Allah is Almighty, Most Wise.

Allah repeats the statement that to Him belongs the dominion of the heavens and the earth, and all that they contain of hosts, so that people will know that it is He Who honours and humiliates, and it is He Who grants victory to His hosts who are attributed to Him, as He says elsewhere:

And it is surely Our troops who will be the victors.﴿ (as-Saffat 37. / 73)

﴾And Allah is Almighty!﴿ that is, strong, prevalent, subduer of all things. In addition to being Almighty and strong, He is also ﴾Most Wise﴿ in His creation and control, and He controls things in a manner dictated by His perfect wisdom.

48:8. Verily We have sent you [O Muhammad] as a witness, a bringer of glad tidings, and a warner,

48:9. so that you [O people] may believe in Allah and His Messenger, and support and honour him, and glorify Allah morning and afternoon.

﴾Verily We have sent you [O Muhammad] as a witness﴿ to your Ummah of all that they do, both good and evil, and as a witness of what is said and various issues, true and false, to testify to Allah’s oneness and perfection in all ways.

﴾a bringer of glad tidings﴿ to those who obey you and obey Allah, of reward both worldly and spiritual, and in the hereafter, and as a warner to those who disobey Allah of punishment in this world and the hereafter.

Part of bringing glad tidings and warning is explaining the deeds and behaviour that are subject to the glad tidings and warnings. The Prophet is the one who explains what is good and what is evil, what leads to happiness and what leads to doom, what is true and what is false.

Hence Allah followed that by saying: ﴾fso that you [O people] may believe in Allah and His Messenger﴿ that is, because of theMessenger’s call to you, and his teaching of that which will benefit you. We sent him so that you may believe in Allah and His Messenger (ﷺ), which requires you to obey them in all your affairs.

﴾fand support and honour him﴿ that is, support the Messenger (ﷺ) ﴾and honour him﴿ that is, venerate him, respect him and fulfil his rights, because you owe him a great deal.

﴾fand glorify Allah morning and afternoon﴿, at the beginning and end of the day. In this verse, Allah mentions the right that is shared between Allah and His Messenger (ﷺ), which is to believe in them both; the right which is exclusive to the Messenger which is veneration and honour; and the right which is exclusive to Allah, which is to glorify and worship Him, by prayer and otherwise.

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48:10. Verily those who swear allegiance to you are in fact swearing allegiance to Allah; the Hand of Allah is over their hands. Whoever breaks his oath does so only to his own detriment, but whoever fulfils the covenant he has made with Allah, He will grant him an immense reward.

The allegiance to which Allah refers here is Bay ‘at ar-Ridwan, in which the Companions (رضي الله عنهم) swore allegiance to the Messenger of Allah (ﷺ), pledging not to desert him on the battlefield. This was a specific covenant, one of the conditions of which was that they would not flee from battle, even if only a few of them were left, and even if things reached the point at which it is ordinarily permissible to flee.

Allah (tfe) says here: those who swore allegiance to you were in fact ﴾swearing allegiance to Allah﴿ and making their covenant with Him. So as to emphasise this idea, Allah says: ﴾the Hand of Allah is over their hands﴿ that is, it is as if they were swearing allegiance to Allah and putting their hands in His Hand in this instance. All of this serves to emphasise the importance of that oath and motivate them to fulfil it. Hence He says: ﴾Whoever breaks his oath﴿ and does not fulfil the pledge he made to Allah

﴾does so only to his own detriment﴿ that is, the consequences of that will affect him and the punishment thereof will befall him.

﴾but whoever fulfils the covenant he has made with Allah﴿ that is, fulfils it completely

﴾He will grant him an immense reward﴿ - no one knows how great it is except the One Who will bestow it upon him.

48:11. Those of the Bedouin who lagged behind^{1These Bedouin stayed behind when the Prophet (^) set out for Makkah to perform ‘umrah.} will say to you: We were preoccupied with [looking after] our wealth and families, so pray for forgiveness for us. They say with their tongues what is not in their hearts. Say: Who has any power at all [to intervene]

on your behalf with Allah if it be His will to do you harm or benefit you? Verily Allah is well aware of all that you do.

48:12. Rather you thought that the Messenger and the believers would never return to their families, and that was made fair-seeming in your hearts. You harboured evil thoughts, for you are people devoid of good and doomed.

48:13. Whoever does not believe in Allah and His Messenger, verily We have prepared for the disbelievers a raging fire.

Here Allah (سبحانه وتعالى) criticises those who lagged behind and did not join His Messenger (ﷺ) in striving in His cause, such as the Bedouin whose faith was weak and in whose hearts was a disease and who thought ill of Allah (سبحانه وتعالى). They would make excuses and say that they were distracted by their property and their families from going out for jihad.

They asked the Messenger of Allah (ﷺ) to pray for forgiveness for them. But Allah (سبحانه وتعالى) said: tfThey say with their tongues what is not in their hearts﴿. The request for prayers for forgiveness from the Messenger of Allah (ﷺ) may have been indicative of regret and may have been an admission of their sin, for their lagging behind required repentance and prayers for forgiveness. If this is what was in their hearts, then the Messenger’s prayers for forgiveness would benefit them, because they had repented and regretted it. But what was really in their hearts was that they only lagged behind because they thought ill of Allah.

They thought ﴾that the Messenger and the believers would never return to their families﴿ that is, they thought that they would be killed or eradicated, and this notion became fair-seeming in their hearts and they were content with it, until it became deeply rooted in their hearts. There were two reasons for that:

1- They were people who were ﴾devoid of good and doomed﴿ that is, there was nothing good in them, for if there had beenanything good in them, this notion would not have taken root in their hearts.

2- They were lacking in faith and certainty of the promise of Allah that His religion would eventually be victorious and His word would become supreme. Hence Allah says: ﴾Whoever does not believe in Allah and His Messenger﴿, and therefore is a disbeliever who is deserving of punishment, ﴾verily We have prepared for the disbelievers a raging fire﴿.

48:14. To Allah belongs the dominion of the heavens and the earth. He forgives whomever He wills and punishes whomever He wills, and Allah is Oft-Forgiving, Most Merciful.

That is. He is the only One Who possesses sovereignty in the heavens and on earth; He controls them as He wills, in accordance with the divine decree, religious decree and rulings of requital. Hence He mentions the requital that has to do with shar‘i obligations:

﴾He forgives whomever He wills﴿ - this refers to those who carry out what Allah commands

﴾and punishes whomever He wills﴿ of those who neglect the commands of Allah.

﴾and Allah is Oft-Forgiving, Most Merciful﴿ that is, His constant attributes that are never separated from Him are forgiveness and mercy.

At all times He forgives the sinners and pardons those who err; He accepts the repentance of the penitent and sends down abundant goodness by night and day.

48:15. Those who lagged behind will say, when you set out to collect the spoils: Allow us to follow you. They want to change the word [promise] of Allah. Say: You shall not follow us; Allah has already decreed that. They will say: You begrudge us [a share of the spoils] out of jealousy. Rather they understand only a little.^{1Allah (-fe) promised the spoils of Khaybar exclusively to the Muslims who were present at al-Hudaybiyah, but those who had lagged behind wanted to join the Khaybar campaign in hope of acquiring a share of the spoils. Hence in this verse He states that this will not be allowed.}

Having mentioned and criticised those who lagged behind, Allah (سبحانه وتعالى) now mentions their worldly punishment: when the Messenger of Allah (ﷺ) and his Companions set out to collect the spoils, for which there was no fighting involved in seizing them, these people asked to be allowed to join them and have a share, saying: ﴾Allow us to follow you. They want﴿ thereby ﴾to change the word [promise] of Allah﴿, as He decreed punishment for them, and that only the believing Companions should get a share of those spoils, as Allah decreed that in terms of both religious rulings and the divine decree.

﴾Say﴿ to them: ﴾You shall not follow us; Allah has already decreed that﴿ - you are to be deprived of it because you wronged yourselves and because you failed to fight the first time.

﴾They will say﴿ in response to these words by which they are prevented from going out: ﴾You begrudge us [a share of the spoils] outof jealousy﴿. This is the best that they can come up with concerning this matter. If they were mature enough, they would have realised that their being deprived of a share was because of their sin, and that sins have consequences in both worldly and spiritual terms. Hence Allah says: ﴾Rather they understand only a little﴿.

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48:16. Say to the Bedouin who lagged behind: You will be called upon to fight a people formidable in warfare, and you will fight them unless they submit. Then if you obey, Allah will grant you a goodly reward; but if you turn away as you did before, He will afflict you with a painful punishment.

48:17. There is no blame on the blind nor any blame on the lame nor any blame on the sick [if they do not go forth to fight]. Whoever obeys Allah and His Messenger, He will admit him to gardens through which rivers flow; but whoever turns away, He will afflict him with a painful punishment.

Having mentioned those Bedouin who lagged behind from jihad in His cause, and who gave invalid excuses, and asked to go out with the Muslims when there was no fighting involved, just for the purpose of getting a share of the spoils, Allah said to them, by way of testing them:﴾Say to the Bedouin who lagged behind: You will be called upon to fight a people formidable in warfare﴿ that is, the Messenger (ﷺ) and those who take his place among the Rightly-Guided Caliphs and rulers will call you to fight.

Those people who they were to be called upon to fight were the Persians, Romans and others of their ilk.

﴾and you will fight them unless they submit﴿ that is, either one or the other will happen. This describes the real situation, for when they engaged them and fought them, as these people were still formidable in warfare, in that situation they did not accept to pay the jizyah\ rather they would either enter Islam or fight in defence of their religion to which they chose to adhere.

But when the Muslims defeated them and they grew weak and submitted, they lost their strength. Therefore their options were either to become Muslim or pay the jizyah.

﴾Then if you obey﴿ the one who calls you to fight these people ﴾Allah will grant you a goodly reward﴿ which is the reward that Allah and His Messenger (ﷺ) have connected to jihad in Allah’s cause.

﴾but if you turn away as you did before﴿ when you turned away from fighting those whom the Messenger (ﷺ) called you to fight ﴾He will afflict you with a painful punishment﴿. This verse is indicative of the virtue of the Rightly-Guided Caliphs who called for jihad against people who were formidable in warfare, and that it was obligatory to obey them in that regard.

Then Allah mentions valid reasons that excuse a person from going out for jihad, as He says: ﴾There is no blame on the blind nor any blame on the lame nor any blame on the sick [if they do not go forth to fight]﴿ that is, there is no blame on them for staying behind from jihad, because they have excuses that prevent them from doing so.

﴾Whoever obeys Allah and His Messenger﴿ by complying with their commands and heeding their prohibitions,

﴾He will admit him to gardens through which rivers flow﴿, in which there is all that their souls may desire and that may delight their eyes. ﴾but whoever turns away﴿ from obedience to Allah and His Messenger (ﷺ),

﴾He will afflict him with a painful punishment﴿. All happiness is in obeying Allah and all misery is in disobeying Him and going against His commands.

48:18. Allah was well pleased with the believers when they swore allegiance to you [O Muhammad] under the tree.^{1The Prophet (^) had sent ‘Uthman (c^e) to Makkah to speak with Quraysh and tell them that the Muslims had come in peace for the sole purpose of performing 'umrah, but they detained him for so long that the Muslims thought that they might have murdered him, which would constitute an act of war. Hence the Prophet (J^p, standing under a tree, accepted their oaths of allegiance and pledge to fight, if need be, and never flee.} He knew what was in their hearts, so He sent down reassurance to them, and He rewarded them with [the glad tidings of] a victory soon to come

48:19. and abundant spoils that they would seize. And Allah is Almighty, Most Wise.

48:20. Allah has promised you abundant spoils that you will seize and has hastened this^{2This refers to the spoils of Khaybar; immediately after their return to Madinah from al-Hudaybiyah, the Muslims set out on the campaign to Khaybar.} for you, and He has restrained people’s hands from [harming] you, so that it may be a sign for the believers and so that He may guide you to a straight path.

48:21. And there are other spoils that you have not yet been able to seize; Allah has earmarked them for you, for Allah has power over all things.

Here Allah (سبحانه وتعالى) tells us of His grace and mercy, and that He was pleased with the believers when they swore that oath of allegiance to the Messenger (ﷺ) that led to their triumph, and by means of which they attained happiness in this world and the hereafter.

The reason for that oath of allegiance - which was called Bay‘at ar-Ridwan (the oath of divine pleasure) because Allah was pleased with the believers because of it; it is also known as the oath of the people of the tree - was that when negotiations took place between the Messenger of Allah (ﷺ) and the polytheists on the Day of al-Hudaybiyah concerning the reasons for his coming, and he stated that he had not come to fight anyone and that he had only come to visit and venerate the sacred House, the Messenger of Allah (ﷺ) sent ‘Uthman ibn ‘ Affan (radiya Allahu 'anhu - may Allah be pleased with him) to Makkah with that message. Then there came false news that the polytheists had killed ‘Uthman, so the Messenger of Allah (ﷺ) gathered together the believers who were with him, of whom there were approximately fifteen hundred, and they swore allegiance to him beneath a tree, pledging to fight the polytheists and swearing that they would not flee until they died.

So Allah stated that He was pleased with the believers in that situation, which was one of the greatest acts of obedience and means of drawing close to Him. f[He knew what was in their hearts﴿ of faith ﴾so He sent down reassurance to them﴿ in appreciation of what was in their hearts and so as to increase them in guidance.

He also knew what was in their hearts of distress at the conditions imposed by the polytheists on His Messenger (ﷺ), so he sent down reassurance to them in order to make them steadfast and give them peace of mind.

﴾and He rewarded them with [the glad tidings of) a victory soon to corned which was the conquest of Khaybar, at which no one was present but those who had been at al-Hudaybiyah.

They alone were present at Khaybar, the booty of which was for them alone, as appreciation for what they had done of obeying Allah (dg) and seeking His pleasure.

﴾fand abundant spoils that they would seize. And Allah is Almighty, Most Wise﴿ that is, He possesses might and power by which He subjugates all things. If He so willed. He would have defeated the disbelievers in every battle that took place between them and the believers. But He is also Most Wise; He tests some by means of others, and He tests the believers by means of the disbelievers.

Allah has promised you abundant spoils that you will seize﴿ - this includes all the booty that the Muslims will seize until the Day of Resurrection

﴾and has hastened this﴿ namely the spoils of Khaybar ﴾for you﴿, so do not think that this is all there is; rather it will be followed by much more.

﴾and﴿ give thanks to Allah, for ﴾He has restrained people’s hands from [harming] you﴿ when they came to fight you and were eager to do so. This is a blessing by means of which He made things easier for you.

﴾so that it﴿ namely this blessing ﴾may be a sign for the believers﴿ by means of which they see proof of the promise of Allah and know that His promise is true, and so that they may be certain of His reward for the believers, and that the One Who decreed that this should happen may decree other booty for them.

﴾and so that He may guide you﴿ by means of what He makes available to you

﴾to a straight path﴿ of knowledge, faith and good deeds.

﴾And there are other spoils﴿ that is. He has promised you other spoils

﴾that you have not yet been able to seize﴿ at the time when these words were first spoken.

﴾Allah has earmarked them for you﴿ that is, as He has control over them and they are subject to His sovereignty, and He has promised them to you. What He has promised will inevitably come to pass, because of the perfect might of Allah (سبحانه وتعالى). Hence He says: ﴾for Allah has power over all things﴿.

48:22. If those who disbelieve had fought you [at al-Hudaybiyah], they would have turned and fled, and they would not have found any protector or helper.

48:23. Such was the way of Allah in the past. And you will find no change in the way of Allah.

These are glad tidings from Allah to His believing slaves of their victory over the disbelieving enemies, and that if they had confrontedthem in battle and fought them, ﴾they would have turned and fled, and they would not have found any protector﴿ to take care of them ﴾or helper﴿ to help them and support them in fighting you; rather they would have failed and been defeated. This is the way of Allah in dealing with the previous nations, that it is the troops of Allah who will be the victors. ﴾And you will find no change in the way of Allah﴿.

48:24. It is He Who restrained their hands from [harming] you and your hands from [harming] them inside Makkah, after giving you the upper hand over them. And Allah sees well all that you do.

48:25. It is they who disbelieved and barred you from the Sacred Mosque, and prevented the offerings from reaching their place of sacrifice. Were it not for believing men and believing women [in Makkah] of whom you were unaware, whom you might have trampled underfoot and thus unwittingly incurred a burden of sin [Allah would have commanded you to fight the disbelievers. But He ordained it thus] so that He might admit whomever He will to His mercy. If they [believers and disbelievers] had been distinct from one another. We would surely have afflicted those among them who disbelieved with a painful punishment.

Here Allah (سبحانه وتعالى) reminds His slaves of how He blessed them by saving them from the evil of the disbelievers and from having to fight them, as He says:

﴾It is He Who restrained their handsthat is, the hands of the people of Makkah ﴾from [harming] you and your hands from [harming] them inside Makkah, after giving you the upper hand over them﴿ that is, after you gained the upper hand over them and they came under your control, without any peace deal or covenant. They were approximately eighty men who charged at the Muslims, hoping to catch them unawares, but they found the Muslims alert and ready, so they seized them, then they let them go and did not kill them, out of mercy from Allah towards the believers, because it was not in their interests to kill them.

﴾And Allah sees well all that you do)9 and He will requite each person for his deeds, and He takes care of you as He is the best to do that.

Then Allah (سبحانه وتعالى) mentions the reasons that encourage the Muslims to fight the polytheists, which is their disbelief in Allah and His Messenger (ﷺ), and their barring the Messenger of Allah (ﷺ) and the believers with him from going to the Sacred House to visit it and venerate it by performing Hajj and ‘umrah.

It is also they who ﴾prevented the offerings from reaching their place of sacrifice ﴿, which is the place where they are to be slaughtered, namely Makkah. They prevented them from reaching it wrongfully and out of enmity. All of these matters are reasons to fight them.

But then there was a reason not to fight them, which was the presence of believing men and women among the polytheists; they were not living apart from them in a separate place, such that harm would not reach them. Were it not for these believing men and women, whom the Muslims did not know, and whom they might have ﴾trampled underfoot﴿ - in other words, were it not for fear that they might be trampled underfoot, ﴾and thus unwittingly incurreda burden of sin﴿ that would result from fighting them and causing them harm and injury, Allah would have commanded you to fight the disbelievers.

There is also another benefit from not fighting, which is so that Allah might admit to His mercy whomever He willed, and bless them with faith after disbelief, and guidance after misguidance. Therefore He prevented them from fighting them for this reason.

﴾flf they [believers and disbelievers] had been distinct from one another﴿ that is, if the believers had been separate from the disbelievers,

﴾(We would surely have afflicted those among them who disbelieved with a painful punishment﴿ by making it permissible for you to fight them, giving you permission to do that, and granting you victory over them.

48:26. [Remember] when those who disbelieved harboured bigotry in their hearts - the bigotry of ignorance^{1When drawing up the treaty document at al-Hudaybiyah, the disbelievers refused to include the phrases “in the name of Allah, the Most Gracious, the Most Merciful” and “the Messenger of Allah} - then Allah sent down His reassurance to His Messenger and to the believers, and caused them to adhere to the word of piety,^{2The word of piety is “/a ilaha ilia Allah (there is no god but Allah)”, which forms the basis of piety and righteousness.} for they were more deserving and worthy of it. And Allah has knowledge of all things.

[Remember] when those who disbelieved harboured bigotry in their hearts - the bigotry of ignorance﴿ as they refused to write the words “In the name of Allah, the Most Gracious, the Most Merciful”, and they refused to let the Messenger of Allah (ﷺ) and the believers enter Makkah that year, lest the people say: They entered Makkah in spite of Quraysh.

These and similar matters of ignorance still remained in their hearts, and that led them to commit many sins.

﴾then Allah sent down His reassurance to His Messenger (ﷺ) and to the believers﴿ so that anger did not make them respond in kind to the polytheists; rather they showed patience and self-restraint in obedience to the ruling of Allah, and they adhered to the conditions that involved respecting the sacred limits of Allah, no matter what the conditions were, and they did not care about anyone who blamed or criticised them.

﴾and caused them to adhere to the word of piety﴿ which is “/a ilaha ilia Allah (there is no god but Allah)” and the duties dictated by it. He caused them to adhere to that, so they adhered to it and carried out the duties dictated thereby.

﴾for they were more deserving and worthy of it﴿ than others, because of what Allah knew of their character and what was in their hearts of goodness. Hence Allah said: ﴾And Allah has knowledge of all things﴿.

48:27. Indeed Allah will fulfil the dream of His Messenger in truth: you will surely enter the Sacred Mosque, if Allah wills, in peace and safety, and you will shave your heads or cut your hair, without any fear. He knew what you did not know and He granted, before that,^{1That is, before they were to enter Makkah to perform ‘umrah the following year. The victory referred to here is the conquest of Khaybar.} a victory soon to come.

48:28. It is He Who has sent His Messenger with guidance and the religion of truth, so that He may cause it to prevail over all other religions; and sufficient is Allah as a witness.

﴾Indeed Allah will fulfil the dream of His Messenger in truths - the Messenger of Allah (ﷺ) had seen a dream in Madinah and had told his Companions about it; the dream said that they would enter Makkah and circumambulate the Kaaba. But when, as a result of the Treaty of al-Hudaybiyah, they went back without having entered Makkah, they had a great deal to say about that, to the extent that they said to the Messenger of Allah (ﷺ): Did you not tell us that we would come to the Kaaba and circumambulate it? He said:

«Did I tell you that it would be this year?» (Bukhari)

They said: No. He said:

«You will surely come to it and circumambulate it.» (Bukhari)

- and Allah says here: ﴾Indeed Allah will fulfil the dream of His Messenger in truth﴿ that is, it will inevitably come to pass and be fulfilled, and whether it comes sooner or later, that does not undermine the promise.

﴾you will surely enter the Sacred Mosque, if Allah wills, in peace and safety, and you will shave your heads or cut your hair﴿ that is, you will enter it for the purpose of venerating this sacred House, and you will perform and complete your rituals by shaving your heads or cutting your hair, without any fear.

﴾He knew﴿, of what was in your best interests,

﴾what you did not know and He granted, before that﴿ that is, before entering Makkah in the manner described,

﴾a victory soon to come﴿.

Because this incident caused some distress to some of the believers, as they did not understand the wisdom behind it, Allah explained the wisdom behind it and the benefits thereof. The same applies to all of His shar‘i rulings; they are all guidance and mercy. Allah explained the matter in general terms that apply to all rulings, as He said: ﴾It is He Who has sent His Messenger with guidance﴿ which is beneficial knowledge that guides people away from misguidance and shows the paths of good and evil.

﴾and the religion of truth﴿ that is, the religion that is based on truth, and is justice, kindness and mercy.

This refers to every righteous deed that purifies the heart, cleanses the soul, guides to good characteristics and raises one in status.

﴾fso that He may cause it to prevail over all other religions﴿ on the basis of proof and evidence, and subdue the disbelievers.

48:29. Muhammad is the Messenger of Allah, and those who are with him are firm and unyielding towards the disbelievers, compassionate towards one another. You see them bowing andprostrating [in prayer], seeking the grace and pleasure of Allah. Their mark is on their faces from the effects of prostration. Such is their description in the Torah, and their likeness in the Gospel is that of a seed which sends forth its shoot, then makes it strong; then it grows thick and stands straight on its stem, delighting the sowers - so that He may infuriate the disbelievers through them.^{1The likeness of the seed describes the Sahabah, who were few in number and weak in the beginning, but gradually increased in numbers and strength until they reached a level of strength that infuriated the disbelievers.} Allah has promised those among them who believe and do righteous deeds forgiveness and an immense reward.

Here Allah tells us about His Messenger and his Companions, both Muhajireen and Ansar, describing them with the most perfect attributes and in the most sublime situation (namely bowing and prostrating).

And He tells us that they are ﴾firm and unyielding towards the disbelievers﴿ that is, they are serious and strive hard in opposing them, putting their utmost effort into achieving that. Hence the disbelievers saw nothing of them except harshness and toughness, therefore their enemies submitted and yielded to them, and the Muslims subdued them.

﴾compassionate towards one another﴿ that is, loving one another, showing mercy and kindness to one another, like a single body; each of them loves for his brother what he loves for himself. This is how they treat one another.

As for their interactions with their Creator, ﴾You see them bowing and prostrating [in prayer]﴿ that is, their main characteristic is that they pray a great deal, and the most important part of the prayer is bowing and prostration.

﴾seeking﴿ by means of this act of worship﴾the grace and pleasure of Allah﴿ that is, this is their aim, to attain the pleasure of their Lord and His reward.

﴾Their mark is on their faces from the effects of prostration﴿ that is, the act of worship - as a result of their doing it a great deal and doing it well - has left its mark on their faces, which shine brightly. Just as the prayer illuminated their hearts, it has also illuminated their faces.

﴾Such﴿ that is, what is described here ﴾is their description in the Torah﴿ that is, this description of them that is given by Allah is also mentioned in the Torah.

As for their likeness in the Gospel, they are described in a different way: in their perfection and cooperation, they are like ﴾a seed which sends forth its shoot, then makes it strong; then it grows thick and stands straight on its stem, delighting the sowers﴿ with its perfection, upright growth, beauty and reaching maturity.

The Companions (رضي الله عنهم) are like such plants in that they benefit people and people need them. Strength of faith and righteous deeds are like the strong roots and stem of the plant.

The fact that the minor Companions and those who came to Islam later joined the senior Companions and helped and supported them in their endeavours to establish the religion of Allah and call people to it is like the seed which sends forth its shoot, then makes it strong; then it grows thick and stands straight on its stem.

Hence Allah says: ﴾so that He may infuriate the disbelievers through them﴿ when they see the believers’ unity and firm adherence to their religion, and when they confront one another in the battlefield.

﴾Allah has promised those among them who believe and do righteous deeds forgiveness and an immense reward﴿. The Companions (Jsfyb) combined faith and righteous deeds, so Allah combined for them forgiveness that results in protection from the evils of this world and the hereafter with great reward in this world and the hereafter.

Here we will tell the story of al-Hudaybiyah at length, as narrated by Imam Shams ad-Deen Ibn al-Qayyim in al-Hadi an-Nabawi, as this will help us to understand this soorah which speaks of this event. He (may Allah have mercy on him) said:

Naff said that it occurred in Dhul-Qa‘dah 6 AH, which is the correct view. This is the view of az-Zuhri, Qatadah, Moosa ibn ‘Uqbah, Muhammad ibn Is-haq, and others.

Hisham ibn ‘Urwah said, narrating from his father (radiya Allahu ‘anhuma - may Allah be pleased with both of them), that the Messenger of Allah (ﷺ) set out for al-Hudaybiyah in Ramadan, but in fact it was in Shawwal. This is a mistake on his part; it was the conquest of Makkah that occurred in Ramadan.

Abul-Aswad said, narrating from ‘Urwah, that it occurred in Dhul- Qa'dah, according to the correct view.

In as-Saheehayn it is narrated from Anas that the Prophet performed ‘umrah four times, all of them in Dhul-Qa'dah, and he mentioned the ‘umrah of al-Hudaybiyah as one of them, when he was accompanied by fifteen hundred believers. This was also narrated in as-Saheehayn from Jabir; in the same books it was narrated from ‘Abdullah ibn Abi Awfa that they were thirteen hundred.

Qatadah said: I said to Sa'eed ibn al-Musayyab: How many were the people who were present at Bay‘at ar-Ridwan? He said: Fifteen hundred. I said: Jabir ibn ‘Abdullah said that they were fourteen hundred. He said: May Allah have mercy on him; he must be mistaken, for it was he who told me that they were fifteen hundred. I said: Both views are narrated soundly from Jabir, and it was narrated soundly from him that in the year of al-Hudaybiyah they slaughtered seventy camels, and one camel may be sacrificed on behalf of seven people. It was said to him: How many were you? He said: Fourteen hundred, on horseback and on foot.

One feels more at ease with this view (namely that they were fourteen hundred), and this is the view of al-Bara’ ibn ‘Azib, Ma‘qil ibn Yasar, Salamah ibn al-Akwa‘ (according to the more sound of the two reports, and al-Musayyab ibn Hazan. Shu‘bah said, narrating from Qatadah, from Sa'eed ibn al-Musayyab, from his father: We were with the Messenger of Allah (ﷺ) beneath the tree, fourteen hundred men. Those who say that they were seven hundred are clearly mistaken. The reason for their mistake is that on that day they slaughtered seventy camels, and it was stated that a camel is sufficient for seven or ten men, but this is not in harmony with what he stated concerning their number, because he stated that a camel was slaughtered during this campaign on behalf of seven, so if the seventy camels were for all of them, they would have been four hundred and ninety men. But at the end of the same hadith, he said that they were fourteen hundred.

When they were in Dhul-Hulayfah the Messenger of Allah (ﷺ) garlanded and marked his sacrificial camel, and entered ihram for ‘umrah. He sent a spy from Khuza'ah ahead of him, to find out about Quraysh for him, and when they were near ‘Usfan, the spy came and said: I have just left Ka‘b ibn Lu’ayy; they have gathered the Ahabeesh (some Arab tribes) and many others against you, and they want to fight you and bar you from reaching the Kaaba. The Prophet (ﷺ) consulted his Companions, and asked them:

«Do you think we should attack the land of these people who are supporting Quraysh, or should we head towards the House, and whoever tries to bar us from it, we should fight them?»

Abu Bakr said: Allah and His Messenger know best. Rather we have come to perform ‘umrah and we have not come to fight anyone, but whoever prevents us from reaching the House, we should fight them. So the Prophet said:

«Then let us move on.»

So they moved on, until when they were partway there, the Prophet (ﷺ) said:

«Khalid ibn ai-Waleed is in al-Ghumaym with the cavalry of Quraysh; go to the right.»

(The narrators said:) By Allah, Khalid did not realise that they were there until he saw the dust of the oncoming army. So he rushed to warn Quraysh.

The Prophet (ﷺ) continued on until, when he was in the mountain pass from which he would come down upon them, his mount sat down. The people said: Move, move! But it would not move. Then they said: Al-Qaswa’ is being obstinate. The Prophet (ﷺ) said:

«A1-Qa§wa’ is not being obstinate, for that is not her nature. What is restraining her is the same thing that restrained the elephant.»

Then he said:

«By the One in Whose Hand is my soul, they will not ask me for any deal that is based on venerating what Allah has made sacred, but I will agree to it.»

He prodded his camel and she jumped up, and he turned back and camped in the furthest part of al-Hudaybiyah, beside a well that had a little water. The people took the water a little at a time, but they soon used it up, and they complained of thirst to the Messenger of Allah (ﷺ).

He took an arrow from his quiver, and instructed them to put it in the well. By Allah, it kept flowing with what they needed of water until they moved on.

Quraysh got worried because of his coming down towards them, so the Messenger of Allah (ﷺ) wanted to send one of his Companions to them. He summoned ‘Umar ibn al-Khattab in order to send him, but ‘Umar said: O Messenger of Allah, there is no one of Banu Ka‘b in Makkah who could defend me if they want to harm me; send ‘Uthman ibn ‘Affan instead, for his clan is there and he will be able to tell them whatever you want.

So the Messenger of Allah (ﷺ) summoned ‘Uthman ibn ‘ Affan and sent him to Quraysh, saying:

«Tell them that we have not come to fight; we have only come to perform ‘umrah. And call them to Islam.»

He instructed him to go to some believing men and women in Makkah, and give them the glad tidings of victory and tell them that Allah (سبحانه وتعالى) would cause His religion to prevail in Makkah, so that no one would have to conceal his faith in the city. ‘Uthman set out, and passed by Quraysh in Baldah. They said: Where are you going? He said: The Messenger of Allah (ﷺ) has sent me to call you to Allah and to Islam, and to tell you that we have not come to fight; rather we have come to perform ‘umrah. They said: We have heard what you say; you may carry on.

Aban ibn Sa‘eed ibn al-‘As stood up to welcome him. He put a saddle on his horse and seated ‘Uthman on the horse, declaring that he was under his protection, then Aban rode behind ‘Uthman, until they came to Makkah. Before ‘Uthman came back, the Muslims said: ‘Uthman is the first one of us to reach the Kaaba and circumambulate it. But the Messenger of Allah (ﷺ) said:

«I do not think he will circumambulate the Kaaba when we are detained (and prevented from doing so).»

They said: What is there to prevent him from doing that, O Messenger of Allah, when he has reached it? He said:

«That is what I think: he will not circumambulate the Kaaba unless we circumambulate it with him.»

And the Muslims approached the polytheists to discuss a peace deal.

A man from one of the two groups threw something at a man from the other side, and a skirmish took place in which they shot arrows and threw stones at one another, and the two groups shouted at one another and detained whomever they found of the other party. TheMessenger of Allah heard that ‘Uthman had been killed, so he called the Muslims to swear allegiance to him.

The Muslims rushed to the Messenger of Allah (ﷺ), who was beneath a tree, and swore allegiance to him, pledging not to flee. Then the Messenger of Allah (ﷺ) took hold of his own hand and said:

«This is on behalf of‘Uthman.»

When the oath of allegiance was complete, ‘Uthman came back and the Muslims said to him: Have you had your fill, O Abu ‘Abdullah, of circumambulating the Kaaba? He said: How ill you think of me! By the One in Whose Hand is my soul, even if I stayed there for a year, and the Messenger of Allah (ﷺ) stayed in al-Hudaybiyah, I would not circumambulate it until the Messenger of Allah (ﷺ) did so. Quraysh invited me to circumambulate the Kaaba, but I refused. The Muslims said: The Messenger of Allah is the most knowledgeable of us about Allah and the most positive in thinking.

‘Umar had taken the hand of the Messenger of Allah (ﷺ) to swear allegiance to him under the tree, and all the Muslims swore allegiance except al-Jadd ibn Qays. Ma‘qil ibn Yasar held a branch up away from the Messenger of Allah (ﷺ). The first one to swear allegiance to him was Abu Sinan al-Asadi. Salamah ibn al-Akwa‘ swore allegiance to him three times, among the first group of people, the middle group and the last group.

Whilst they were like that, Budayl ibn Warqa’ al-Khuza‘i came with a group of Khuza'ah, who were sincere advisers to the Messenger of Allah (ﷺ), from among the people of Tihamah, and said: I have just seen Ka‘b ibn Lu’ayy and ‘Amir ibn Lu’ayy, camped by the profuse water of al-Hudaybiyah. They have milch-camels with them, and they intend to fight you and bar you from reaching the Kaaba.

The Messenger of Allah (ﷺ) said:

«We have not come to fight anyone; rather we have come to perform ‘umrah. War has weakened Quraysh and they have suffered greatlosses. If they wish I will conclude a truce with them and they must refrain from interfering between me and the people (and if I prevail), then they may decide whether they want to enter Islam as the people have done. If not, they will have rested and regained their strength, and will be able to resume fighting me. Then, by the One in Whose Hand is my soul, I will surely fight them in defence of this cause of mine, until I am killed or Allah causes His religion to prevail.»

Budayl said: I will convey your words to them. He set out until he came to Quraysh and said to them: I have come to you from this man, and I heard him say something. If you wish, I will tell you about it. The foolish ones among them said: We have no need for you to tell us anything about him. But the wise ones among them said: Tell us what you heard. He said: I heard him say such and such. ‘Urwah ibn Mas‘ood ath-Thaqafi said: This man has offered you a reasonable proposal, so accept it and let me go and talk to him. They said: Go to him.

So he came to him and began talking to him, and the Prophet (ﷺ) said to him something similar to what he had said to Budayl, whereupon ‘Urwah said: O Muhammad, do you want to eradicate your own people? Have you ever heard of anyone among the Arabs who destroyed his own people? If you insist on fighting, then by Allah, I am looking at the people’s faces and I see a collection of riffraff, the type who would flee and abandon you. Abu Bakr said: Suck the teat of al-Lat! Do you think we would flee and abandon him? He said: Who is this? He said: Abu Bakr. He said: By the One in Whose Hand is my soul, were it not for a favour that I still owe you and have not yet returned, I would have answered you.

Every time the Prophet (ﷺ) started speaking, ‘Urwah reached out for his beard. Al-Mugheerah ibn Shu'bah was beside the Prophet (ﷺ), and had a sword with him and was wearing a helmet. Every time ‘Urwah reached out to grab the Prophet’s beard, al-Mugheerah struck his hand with the handle of his sword and said: Keep your handaway from the beard of the Messenger of Allah (ﷺ)! ‘Urwah raised his head and said: Who is this? He said: Al-Mugheerah ibn Shu‘bah. He said: O betrayer! Am I not still striving to protect you from the consequences of your treachery?

Al-Mugheerah had accompanied some people during the jahiliyah, then he had killed them and taken their property, then he came and entered Islam. The Prophet (ﷺ) said:

«As for your Islam, I accept it; as for the property, I do not want anything of it.»

Then ‘Urwah started watching the Companions of the Messenger of Allah (ﷺ), and by Allah, the Prophet (ﷺ) did not spit but it fell into the hand of one of them, and he rubbed it on his skin and face.

If he instructed them to do something, they hastened to obey his command. When he did wudoo ’, they almost fought over his leftover water. When he spoke, they lowered their voices in his presence, and they refrained from looking at him, out of respect.

‘Urwah went back to his companions and said: O people, by Allah, I have visited kings, Chosroes and Caesar and the Negus, but, by Allah, I have never seen any king whose companions venerated him as the Companions of Muhammad venerate Muhammad. By Allah, he does not spit but it falls in the hand of one of them, and he rubs his face and skin with it. If he instructs them to do something, they hasten to obey his command. When he does wudoo’, they almost fight over his leftover water. When he speaks, they lower their voices in his presence, and they refrain from looking at him, out of respect. He has offered you a reasonable proposal, so accept it.

A man from Banu Kinanah said: Let me go to him. So they said: Go to him.

When he approached the Prophet (ﷺ), the Messenger of Allah (ill) said:«This is So-and-so; he is from a people who venerate the sacrificial camels, so send them in his direction.))

So they sent them, and the people met him reciting the talbiyah. When he saw that, he said: Glory be to Allah! These people should not be prevented from reaching the Kaaba.

He went back to his companions and said: I saw that the sacrificial camels have been garlanded and marked, and I do not think that they should be barred from reaching the Kaaba.

Mikraz ibn Hafs stood up and said: Let me go to him. So they said: Go to him.

When he approached them, the Prophet said:

«This is Mikraz ibn Hafs; he is a vicious man.»

He started speaking to the Messenger of Allah (ﷺ), and whilst he was speaking to him, Suhayl ibn ‘Amr came and the Prophet

«Now the matter has become easy.»^{2This was an optimistic remark based on the man’s name, because the name Suhayl is derived from the same root as the word sahl (easy).}

He said: Come, let us have a deal written down between us and you. He called for the scribe and said:

«Write: In the name of Allah, the Most Gracious, the Most Merciful.»

Suhayl said: As for the Most Gracious, by Allah we do not know what this is. Rather write: “In Your name, O Allah”, as you used to write.

The Muslims said: By Allah, we will not write anything except: “In the name of Allah, the Most Gracious, the Most Merciful”.

The Prophet (ﷺ) said:

«Write: In Your name, O Allah.»

Then he said:«Write: This is what has been agreed to by Muhammad the Messenger of Allah.»

Suhayl said: By Allah, if we knew that you were the Messenger of Allah, we would not have barred you from reaching the Kaaba and we would not have fought you. Rather write: “Muhammad ibn ‘Abdullah”. The Prophet (ﷺ) said:

«I am indeed the Messenger of Allah, even if you deny me. Write: Muhammad ibn ‘Abdullah.»

Then the Prophet (ﷺ) said:

«That you will allow us to go to the Kaaba and circumambulate it.»

Suhayl said: By Allah, we do not want the Arabs to say that we yielded to pressure, but you can have that next year. So he wrote it down.

Suhayl said: No man of ours will come to you, even if he follows your religion, but you will return him to us.

The Muslims said: Subhan Alldh\ How can he be returned to the polytheists, when he has come as a Muslim?

Whilst they were like that, Abu Jandal ibn Suhayl came, dragging his chains, having escaped from the other side of Makkah, and went to the Muslims, seeking their protection. Suhayl said: This is the first one I ask you to return on the basis of our deal. The Prophet (ﷺ) said:

«We have not concluded the deal yet.»

Suhayl said: Then in that case I will not make any deal with you. The Prophet (ﷺ) said:

«Let him off for my sake.»

He said: I will not let him off. He said:

«Do it!»

He said: I will not do it.

Abu Jandal said: O Muslims, am I be returned to the polytheists when I have come as a Muslim? Do you not see what I havebeen suffering? For he had been tortured severely for the sake of Allah.

‘Umar ibn al-Khattab said: I never had any doubts since I became Muslim, except on that day. I came to the Prophet (ﷺ) and said: O Messenger of Allah, are you not the Prophet of Allah? He said:

I said: Are we not following the truth and our enemies following falsehood? He said:

I said: How can we accept a deal that is humiliating for our religion, and go back before Allah decides between us and our enemy? He said:

«Verily I am the Messenger of Allah, and He will cause me to prevail, and I will not disobey Him.»

I said: Did you not tell us that we would come to the Kaaba and circumambulate it? He said:

«Indeed I did, but did I tell you that you would come to it this year?» I said: No. He said:

«You will surely come to it and circumambulate it.»

Then I went to Abu Bakr and said to him what I had said to the Messenger of Allah (ﷺ), and Abu Bakr replied exactly as the Messenger of Allah (ﷺ) had replied, and he added: So stay close to him until you die, for by Allah he is on the path of truth. ‘Umar said:

I did many good deeds in hope of expiating that.

When he had finished writing the treaty, the Messenger of Allah

«Get up and offer your sacrifices, then shave your heads.»

By Allah, not one man among them got up even after he had said that three times.

When none of them got up, he got up and went to Umm Salamah (radiya Allahu 'anha - may Allah be pleased with her), and told her how the people had responded. She said: O Messenger of Allah, do you want that to be done? Go out and do not say a word to anyone until you slaughter your camel and call your barber to shave your head. So he got up and went out, and he did not speak to anyone among them until he had done that: he slaughtered his camel and called his barber to shave his head.

When the people saw that, they got up and slaughtered their camels, and they started shaving one another’s heads, to the point that some of them almost killed one another out of distress.

Then some believing women came, and Allah (سبحانه وتعالى) revealed the words:

you who believe, when believing women come to you as migrants, test their sincerity, although Allah knows best as to [the sincerity of] their faith. Then if you determine that they are sincere believers, do not send them back to the disbelievers; they are not lawful [wives] for the disbelievers nor are the disbelievers lawful [husbands] for them... .Do not hold on to marriage ties with disbelieving women... (al-Mumlahanah 60: 10)

On that day ‘Umar divorced two wives of his who were polytheists; Mu‘awiyah married one of them and Safwan ibn Umayyah married the other.

Then the Prophet (ﷺ) returned to Madinah.

On the way back, Allah revealed to him the words: ﴾Verily We have granted you [O Muhammad, in the Treaty of al-Hudaybiyah] a manifest victory﴿ (48:1). ‘Umar said: Is it a victory, O Messenger of Allah? He said:

«Yes.»

The Companions said: Congratulations to you, O Messenger of Allah, but what about us?

Then Allah (tfe) revealed the words: ﴾flt is He Who sent down reassurance to the hearts of the believers so that they might increase

This is the end of the commentary on Soorat al-Fath.

All praise and thanks are for Allah, and may the blessings and peace of Allah be upon Prophet Muhammad (ﷺ), his family, and his Companions abundantly until the Day of Judgement.