Translated by

killed, why do you not continue what your Prophet was doing until you join him?' Allah, exalted is He, then 
revealed (Muhammad is but a messenger, messengers (the like of whom) have passed away before him) up 
to His saying (And with how many a prophet have there been a number of devoted men who fought (beside 
him). They quailed not for aught that befell them in the way of Allah, nor did they weaken… So Allah gave 
them the reward of the world…)”. 
 
[3:151]
 
 
(We shall cast terror into the hearts of those who disbelieve) [3:151]. Said al-Suddi: “After Uhud, Abu 
Sufyan and the idolaters headed toward Mecca. But after they traversed a certain distance, they felt regret, 
saying: ‘Evil is that which we have done! We massacred them such that none of them remained except 
those who fled from the battlefield and then we left them alone. Go back and exterminate them’. But when 
they decided to do so, Allah, exalted is He, cast terror in their hearts which made them decide against what 
they had resolved to do. Allah, exalted is He, then revealed this verse”.  
 
[3:152]
 
 
(Allah verily made good His promise unto you…) [3:152]. Said Muhammad ibn Ka‘b al-Qurazi: “When the 
Messenger of Allah, Allah bless him and give him peace, returned to Medina after that with which they were 
afflicted at Uhud, some of his Companions said: ‘From whence did this come to us when Allah has promised 
us victory?’ And so Allah, exalted is He, revealed this verse (Allah verily made good His promise unto you) up 
to His saying (Some of you desired the world…), i.e. the marksmen who did what they did at Uhud”.  
 
[3:161]
 
 
(It is not for any prophet to embezzle (an yaghilla)…) [3:161]. Muhammad ibn 'Abd al-Rahman al-Mutawwa'i 
informed us> Abu 'Amr Muhammad ibn Ahmad al-Hiri> Abu Ya'la> Abu 'Abd Allah ibn 'Umar ibn Aban> Ibn 
al-Mubarak> Sharik> Khusayf> 'Ikrimah> Ibn 'Abbas who said: “Some red velvet acquired as booty from 
the idolaters at the Battle of Badr was unaccounted for, and some people said: 'Perhaps it is the Prophet, 
Allah, bless him and give him peace, who took it'. And so Allah, exalted is He, revealed (It is not for any 
prophet to embezzle (an yaghulla)). Khusayf asked Sa'id ibn Jubayr: 'Is it (It is not for any prophet to be 
embezzled (an yughalla))?' He answered: 'No, he can be embezzled and even killed' ”. Abu'l-Hasan Ahmad 
ibn Ibrahim al-Najjar> Abu'l-Qasim Sulayman ibn Ayyub al-Tabarani> Muhammad ibn Ahmad ibn Yazid al-
Narsi> Abu 'Amr Hafs ibn 'Umar al-Duri> Abu Muhammad al-Yazidi> Abu 'Amr ibn al-'Ala'> Mujahid> Ibn 
'Abbas who used to object against anyone who read (It is not for any prophet to be embezzled (an 
yughalla)) and used to say: “How could he not be embezzled when he used to be killed? Allah, exalted is He, 
says (… and slew the Prophets wrongfully…) [3:112]. Rather the hypocrites accused the Prophet, Allah bless 
him and give him peace, of taking to himself some of the booty, and Allah, exalted is He, revealed (It is not 
for any prophet to embezzle (an yaghulla))”. Ahmad ibn Muhammad ibn Ahmad al-Asfahani informed us> 
'Abd Allah ibn Ahmad al-Asfahani> Abu Yahya al-Razi> Sahl ibn 'Uthman> Waki'> Salamah> al-Dahhak who 
said: “The Messenger of Allah, Allah bless him and give him peace, sent some men in a reconnaissance 
patrol and he acquired some booty which he distributed on people while denying those who went in that 
reconnaissance patrol. When the latter came they said: 'He has distributed the booty without apportioning 
anything for us', as a result of which this verse was revealed (It is not for any prophet to embezzle (an 
yaghulla)) which was read by al-Dahhak as an yaghalla”. Said Ibn 'Abbas according to the narration of al-
Dahhak: “When the Messenger of Allah, Allah bless him and give him peace, got possession of the booties of 
Hawazin at the Battle of Hunayn, one man cheated him by holding back a needle, and so Allah, exalted is 
He, revealed this verse”. And Qatadah said: “It was revealed when groups from amongst his Companions 
cheated”. Said al-Kalbi and Muqatil: “It was revealed when the marksmen left their positions on the day of 
Uhud because of the booty. They said: 'We fear that the Messenger of Allah, Allah bless him and give him 
peace, would say: whoever takes anything it belongs to him; and does not divide the booty as he did after 
the Battle of Badr'. The Messenger of Allah, Allah bless him and give him peace, said: 'Did you think that we 

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would cheat you and not apportion for you'. Allah, exalted is He, then revealed this verse”. It was also 
reported from Ibn 'Abbas that noble people called upon the Messenger of Allah, Allah bless him and give him 
peace, to apportion for them something from the booty, and so this verse was revealed.  
 
[3:165]
 
 
(And was it so, when a disaster smote you…) [3:165]. Said Ibn 'Abbas: “'Umar ibn al-Khattab related to me, 
saying: 'The following year at the Battle of Uhud, they were punished for taking ransom in exchange for 
releasing the prisoners of the disbelievers. Seventy among them were killed, the Companion of the 
Messenger of Allah, Allah bless him and give him peace, fled from fighting and his molar was broken and his 
skull smashed to the extent that blood flowed over his face. Allah, exalted is He, then revealed (And was it 
so, when a disaster smote you) up to His saying (It is from yourselves…). He said: Because of the ransom 
you took'  
 
[3:169]
 
 
(Think not of those, who are slain in the way of Allah, as dead…) [3:169]. Muhammad ibn Ibrahim ibn 
Muhammad ibn Yahya> Abu Sa'id Isma'il ibn Ahmad al-Khilali> 'Abd Allah ibn Zaydan ibn Yazid al-Bajli> Abu 
Kurayb> 'Abd Allah ibn Idris> Muhammad ibn Ishaq> Isma'il ibn Abi Umayyah> Abu'l-Zubayr> Sa'id ibn 
Jubayr> Ibn 'Abbas who reported that the Messenger of Allah, Allah bless him and give him peace, said: 
“When your brothers were killed at Uhud, Allah placed their spirits inside green birds which go to the rivers 
of Paradise and eat of its fruits and reach to lamps hanging in the shade of the Throne. When they tasted 
the wholesomeness of their food, drink and abode, they said: 'Who would inform our brothers, on our 
behalf, that we are being provided in Paradise, so that they do not shy away from Jihad or shirk away from 
war?' Allah, glorious and majestic is He, said: 'I will inform them on your behalf', and so He revealed (Think 
not of those, who are slain in the way of Allah, as dead. Nay, they are living. With their Lord they have 
provision)”. This was related by al-Hakim in his Sahih from 'Uthman ibn Abi Shaybah. Muhammad ibn 'Abd 
al-Rahman al-Ghazi informed us> Muhammad ibn Ahmad ibn Hamdan> Hamid ibn Muhammad ibn Shu'ayb 
al-Balkhi> 'Uthman ibn Abi Shaybah> 'Abd Allah ibn Idris and he related the narration. This was narrated by 
al-Hakim> 'Ali ibn 'Isa al-Hiri> Musaddid> 'Uthman ibn Abi Shaybah. Abu Bakr al-Harithi informed us> Abu'l-
Shaykh al-Hafiz> Ahmad ibn al-Husayn al-Hadhdha'> 'Ali ibn al-Madini> Musa ibn Ibrahim ibn Bashir ibn al-
Fakih al-Ansari> Talhah ibn Khirash> Jabir ibn 'Abd Allah who said: “The Messenger of Allah, Allah bless him 
and give him peace, once looked at me and said: 'I see that you are worried, what is wrong?' I said: 'My 
father was killed and left behind dependents and debts'. He said: 'Shall I inform you: Allah has never spoken 
to anyone except from behind a veil but has spoken to your father face to face, without a veil or messenger 
in between, and He said to him: 'My slave, ask and you shall be given'. He said: 'I ask you to take me back 
to the life of the world so that I get killed again for Your sake'. Allah said to him: 'It has already been 
decreed that they shall not go back to it'. He said: 'Then inform those whom I have left behind'. And so 
Allah, exalted is He, revealed (Think not of those, who are slain in the way of Allah, as dead)”. Abu 'Amr al-
Qantari informed me among what he narrated to me in writing> Muhammad ibn al-Husayn> Muhammad ibn 
Yahya> Ishaq ibn Ibrahim> Waki'> Sufyan> Salim al-Aftas> Sa'id ibn Jubayr who said regarding the verse 
(Think not of those, who are slain in the way of Allah, as dead. Nay, they are living): “When Hamzah ibn 
'Abd al-Muttalib and Mus'ab ibn 'Umayr were killed at the Battle of Uhud and saw the good with which they 
were provided, they said: 'If only our brothers knew what we were given of good so that that their desire for 
Jihad increases'. And so Allah, exalted is He, said: 'I will inform them on your behalf', and He revealed 
(Think not of those, who are slain in the way of Allah, as dead. Nay, they are living) up to His saying (… and 
that Allah wasteth not the wage of the believers) [3:171]”. Said Abu'l-Duha: “This verse was revealed 
specifically about those who were killed at the Battle of Uhud”. And a group of Qur'anic commentators 
mentioned that this verse was revealed about the martyrs of the Battle of Bi'r Ma'unah whose story is well 
known; it was mentioned by Ibn Ishaq ibn Yasar in his book al-Maghazi. Others have mentioned that 
whenever the families of the martyrs tasted a blessing or sensed happiness, they felt some sorrow, saying: 
'We are enjoying blessings and happiness while our fathers, sons and brothers are in the graves', and so 
Allah, exalted is He, revealed this verse to ease their sorrow and to inform about the state of their killed 
ones.  
 
[3:172]
 

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(As for those who heard the call of Allah and His messenger…) [3:172]. Ahmad ibn Ibrahim al-Muqri' 
informed us> Shu'ayb ibn Muhammad> Makki ibn 'Abdan> Abu'l-Azhar> Rawh> Abu Yunus al-Qushayri> 
'Amr ibn Dinar who reported that the Messenger of Allah, Allah bless him and give him peace, made a 
general call to arms after the Battle of Uhud, when the idolaters had departed, and seventy men answered 
his call and he went after the retreating army of the idolaters. On his way back to Mecca, Abu Sufyan met a 
caravan from Khuza'ah and he said to them: “If you see Muhammad coming after me, tell him that we are in 
great numbers”. When the Prophet, Allah bless him and give him peace, met them and asked them about 
Abu Sufyan, they said to him: “We saw him with a huge army whereas yours is very small; you will not be 
safe with him”. But the Messenger of Allah, Allah bless him and give him peace, refused to listen to them 
and went after him. But Abu Sufyan went ahead of him and entered Mecca. Allah, exalted is He, then 
revealed (As for those who heard the call of Allah and His messenger) up to His saying (Fear them not; fear 
Me, if ye are true believers) [3:175]. 'Amr ibn Abi 'Amr informed us> Muhammad ibn Makki> Muhammad 
ibn Yusuf> Muhammad ibn Isma'il> Muhammad> Abu Mu'awiyah> Hisham ibn 'Urwah> his father> 'A'ishah 
who said to 'Urwah [ibn al-Zubayr] regarding Allah's saying (As for those who heard the call of Allah and His 
messenger): “O my nephew! Your father, al-Zubayr, and grandfather, Abu Bakr, were among them. When 
the Messenger of Allah, Allah bless him and give him peace, suffered that which he suffered at the Battle of 
Uhud, and after the idolaters had left, he feared their return, and so he said: 'Who will go after them?' He 
selected seventy men from amongst them, among whom were Abu Bakr and al-Zubayr”. 
 
[3:173]
 
 
(Those unto whom men said: Lo! the people have gathered against you, therefor fear them…) [3:173]. Abu 
Ishaq al-Tha'alibi informed us> Abu Salih Shu'ayb ibn Muhammad> Abu Hatim al-Tamimi> Ahmad ibn al-
Azhar> Rawh ibn 'Ubadah> Sa'id> Qatadah who said: “This refers to the day of Uhud, following the deaths 
and wounds that the Muslims had suffered and after the idolaters, Abu Sufyan and his company, had left. 
The Prophet, Allah bless him and give him peace, said to his Companions: 'Would a group gather for war for 
Allah's sake and seek their enemy, for this is more prone to cause damage to the enemy and more likely to 
drive them away for a distance?' A group set off, despite of what Allah knew of their extreme exhaustion. 
When they reached Dhu'l-Hulayfah, the Bedouins and other people came to them, saying: 'Abu Sufyan is 
going to attack you', but they only said: 'Allah is Sufficient for us! Most Excellent is He in Whom we trust!' 
And so Allah, exalted is He revealed about them (Those unto whom men said: Lo! the people have gathered 
against you, therefor fear them) [3:173] up to His saying (… and Allah is of Infinite Bounty) [3:174]”. 
 
[3:179]
 
 
(It is not (the purpose) of Allah to leave you in your present state…) [3:179]. Al-Suddi reported that the 
Messenger of Allah, Allah bless him and give him peace, said: “The members of my community were shown 
to me in their forms, as they were shown to Adam, and I was informed about who would believe in me and 
who would disbelieve”. When the hypocrites heard this, they mocked him, saying: “Muhammad claims that 
he knows who would believe in him and who would not. Yet, we are in his midst and he does not know us”, 
and so Allah revealed this verse. Said al-Kalbi: “The people of Quraysh said: ‘O Muhammad! You claim that 
whoever opposes you will go to hellfire and Allah would be angry with him whereas whoever believes in you 
will go to the Garden and Allah will be pleased with him. In that case, inform us about who would believe in 
you and who would not?’ And as a response, Allah, exalted is He, revealed this verse”. And Abu’l-‘Aliyah 
said: “The believers had asked about a sign by means of which they would differentiate between the 
believers and the hypocrites and so Allah. Exalted is He, revealed this verse”.  
 
[3:180]
 
 
(And let not those who hoard up that which Allah hath bestowed upon them of His bounty think…) [3:180]. 
Most Qur’anic commentators are unanimous that this verse was revealed about those who refused to pay 
the poor-due (Zakat). ‘Atiyyah al-‘Awfi also related that Ibn ‘Abbas mentioned that this verse was revealed 
about the Jewish rabbis who concealed the description and prophethood of Muhammad, Allah bless him and 
give him peace. ‘Hoard up’ here means the concealment of knowledge which Allah, exalted is He, had 
bestowed upon them.  

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[3:181]
 
 
(Verily Allah heard the saying of those who said…) [3:181]. ‘Ikrimah, al-Suddi and Muqatil ibn Ishaq related 
that, one day, Abu Bakr al-Siddiq entered a Jewish place of study and found a group of Jewish people 
gathered around one of them called Finhas ibn ‘Azura, who was one of their doctors. Abu Bakr said to 
Finhas: “Fear Allah and embrace Islam, for by Allah you know well that Muhammad is the Messenger of 
Allah who has brought the truth to you from Allah. He is mentioned in your Torah; so believe and accept the 
truth and grant Allah a goodly offering and He will make you enter the Garden and multiply your reward”. 
Finhas responded: “O Abu Bakr, you claim that our Lord is asking us to lend Him our wealth. Yet, it is only 
the poor who borrow from the rich. And if what you say is true, it follows that Allah is poor and we are rich, 
for if He were rich He would not ask us to lend Him our wealth”. Abu Bakr al-Siddiq, may Allah be well 
pleased with him, became very angry and struck the face of Finhas with a mighty blow. He then said to him: 
“By Him in whose Hand is my soul, if it were not for the treaty between us, O enemy of Allah, I would have 
killed you”. Finhas went to the Messenger of Allah, Allah bless him and give him peace, and said: “O 
Muhammad! Look at what your companion has done to me”. The Messenger of Allah, Allah bless him and 
give him peace, asked Abu Bakr: “What has driven you to do what you have done?” He said: “O Messenger 
of Allah, this enemy of Allah has said something very serious. He claimed that Allah is poor and they are 
rich. I therefore got angry for the sake of Allah and hit his face”. But Finhas denied that he ever uttered 
those words, and so Allah, exalted is He, revealed this verse (Verily Allah heard the saying of those who 
said…) to give the lie to Finhas and to confirm that Abu Bakr al-Siddiq said the truth. ‘Abd al-Qahir ibn Tahir 
informed us> Abu ‘Amr ibn Matar> Ja‘far ibn al-Layth al-Ziyadi> Hudhayfah Musa ibn Mas‘ud> Shibl> Ibn 
Abi Najih> Mujahid who said: “This verse was revealed about the Jews; Abu Bakr, may Allah be well pleased 
with him, had struck the face of one of their men who said ‘Allah is poor and we are rich’ ”. Shibl 
commented: “I was informed that this man was Finhas the Jew, and it is also this man who said: (Allah’s 
hand is fettered) [5:64]”.  
 
[3:183]
 
 
((The same are) those who say: Lo! Allah hath charged us…) [3:183]. Said al-Kalbi: “This was revealed 
about Ka‘b al-Ashraf, Malik ibn al-Dayf, Wahb ibn Yahudha, Zayd ibn Tabuh, Finhas ibn ‘Azura and Huyayy 
ibn Akhtab who went to the Messenger of Allah, Allah bless him and give him peace, and said: ‘You claim 
that Allah has sent you to us as a messenger and that He revealed a Scripture to you. Well, Allah has 
charged us in the Torah that we do not believe in any messenger who claims to have been sent by Allah 
until he brings us an offering which is devoured by fire. If you do that, we will believe in you’. And so Allah, 
exalted is He revealed this verse”.  
 
[3:186]
 
 
(… and ye will hear much wrong from those who were given the Scripture before you, and from the 
idolaters…) [3:186]. Abu Muhammad al-Hasan ibn Muhammad al-Farisi informed us> Muhammad ibn 'Abd 
Allah ibn Hamdun> Abu Hamid Ahmad ibn al-Hasan> Muhammad ibn Yahya> Abu'l-Yaman> Shu'ayb> al-
Zuhri> 'Abd al-Rahman ibn 'Abd Allah ibn Ka'b ibn Malik> his father (one of three men whose repentance 
was accepted) who reported that Ka'b al-Ashraf, the Jew, was a poet who used his poetry to satirize the 
Prophet, Allah bless him and give him peace, and incite the disbelievers of Quraysh against him. When the 
Prophet, Allah bless him and give him peace, went to Medina, he wanted to be in good terms with all its 
people who were a mixture of Muslims, idolaters and Jews. The Jews and idolaters, however, used to harm 
him, and his Companions, a great deal. Allah, exalted is He, commanded his Prophet, Allah bless him and 
give him peace, to endure their harm, and it is about them that He, exalted is He, revealed (and ye will hear 
much wrong from those who were given the Scripture before you, and from the idolaters…). 'Amr ibn Abi 
'Amr al-Muzakki informed us> Muhammad ibn Makki> Muhammad ibn Yusuf> Muhammad ibn Isma'il 
Bukhari> Abu'l-Yaman> Shu'ayb> al-Zuhri> 'Urwah ibn al-Zubayr> Usamah ibn Zayd who informed him that 
the Messenger of Allah, Allah bless him and give him peace, mounted a donkey once, using a Fadakian piece 
of velvet as a saddlecloth, and had Usamah ibn Zayd follow behind him. He was going to visit Sa'd ibn 
'Ubadah who was ill, at the Banu'l-Harith ibn al-Khazraj. This was before the Battle of Badr. He passed by an 
assembly which included, among others, 'Abd Allah ibn Ubayy. This was before the latter had accepted 

46
 
Islam. This assembly included a mixture of Muslims, Jews and idolaters, the worshippers of idols. 'Abd Allah 
ibn Rawahah was also in this assembly. When the cloud of dust, stirred by the movement of the beast, 
reached the assembly, 'Abd Allah ibn Ubayy covered his nose with his cloak and said: “Do not cover us with 
dust”. The Messenger of Allah, Allah bless him and give him peace, greeted them with the greeting of peace, 
stopped and climbed down his mount. He called them to Allah and recited to them some of the Qur'an. Then 
'Abd Allah ibn Ubayy said: “O man, there is nothing more beautiful than what you had just said. And if it is 
true, we ask you not to annoy us in these assemblies of ours. Go back to your camp, and if somebody 
comes to you, then relate it to him”. 'Abd Allah ibn Rawahah then said: “No, indeed, come and tell us about 
it in our own assemblies for we love it”. The Muslims, idolaters and Jews then started to throw insults at 
each others until they were on the verge of assaulting one another. The Prophet, Allah bless him and give 
him peace, kept calming them until they stopped. He then mounted his beast and headed toward Sa'd ibn 
'Ubadah. When he entered in on him, he said: “O Sa'd, did you not hear what Abu Hubab (he meant 'Abd 
Allah ibn Ubayy) said. He said this and that”. Sa'd ibn 'Ubadah said: “O Messenger of Allah, forgive him. For 
by Him Who has revealed the Scripture, Allah has brought the truth which he revealed to you, and the 
people of this city had reconciled and come together to support it as one solid bloc. And so when Allah has 
driven away the enmity which existed between people by means of the truth which He bestowed upon you, 
his authority waned and this is why he said what he said”. Upon hearing this, The Messenger of Allah, Allah 
bless him and give him peace, forgave him. Allah, exalted is He, then revealed (and ye will hear much wrong 
from those who were given the Scripture before you, and from the idolaters…). 
 
[3:188]
 
 
(Think not that those who exult in what they have given…) [3:188]. Abu 'Abd al-Rahman Muhammad ibn 
Ahmad ibn Ja'far informed us> Abu'l-Haytham al-Marwazi> Muhammad ibn Yusuf> Muhammad ibn Isma'il 
al-Bukhari> Sa'id ibn Abi Maryam> Muhammad ibn Ja'far> Zayd ibn Aslam> 'Ata' ibn Yasar> Abu Sa'id al-
Khudri who related that a group of hypocrites were in the habit of failing to join the Messenger of Allah, 
Allah bless him and give him peace, whenever he set off for a military expedition. But then they would come 
and apologize to him the moment he came back, swearing to him [about their sincerity] and wishing to be 
praised for that which they had not done. And so this verse (Think not that those who exult in what they 
have given…). This was narrated by Muslim> al-Hasan ibn 'Ali al-Halwani> Ibn Abi Maryam. Abu 'Abd al-
Rahman al-Shadhyani informed us> Muhammad ibn 'Abd Allah ibn Muhammad ibn Zakariyya> Muhammad 
ibn 'Abd al-Rahman al-Daghuli> Muhammad ibn Jahm> Ja'far ibn 'Awf> Hisham ibn Sa'id> Zayd ibn Aslam 
who related that Marwan ibn al-Hakam was one day, whilst he was the governor of Medina, with Abu Sa'id 
al-Khudri, Zayd ibn Thabit and Rafi' ibn Khudayj. He asked: “O Abu Sa'id, regarding the saying of Allah, 
exalted is He, (Think not that those who exult in what they have given) and, by Allah, we do exult in what 
we give and like to be praised for what we have not done!” Abu Sa'id replied: “This was not revealed about 
that. Rather, a group of people at the time of the Prophet, Allah bless him and give him peace, were in the 
habit of failing to join him and his Companions in military expeditions. Whenever a setback or something