The Ocean of the Quran

A verse by verse explanation of The Ultimate Scripture

Al-Mujādilah – Verse 22

لا تَجِدُ قَومًا يُؤمِنونَ بِاللَّهِ وَاليَومِ الآخِرِ يُوادّونَ مَن حادَّ اللَّهَ وَرَسولَهُ وَلَو كانوا آباءَهُم أَو أَبناءَهُم أَو إِخوانَهُم أَو عَشيرَتَهُم ۚ أُولٰئِكَ كَتَبَ في قُلوبِهِمُ الإيمانَ وَأَيَّدَهُم بِروحٍ مِنهُ ۖ وَيُدخِلُهُم جَنّاتٍ تَجري مِن تَحتِهَا الأَنهارُ خالِدينَ فيها ۚ رَضِيَ اللَّهُ عَنهُم وَرَضوا عَنهُ ۚ أُولٰئِكَ حِزبُ اللَّهِ ۚ أَلا إِنَّ حِزبَ اللَّهِ هُمُ المُفلِحونَ

You will not find a people believing in Allah and the Last Day endearing those who oppose Allah and His Apostle even though they were their own parents, or children, or brothers, or kinsfolk. [For] such, He has written faith into their hearts and strengthened them with a spirit from Him. He will admit them into gardens with streams running in them, to remain in them [forever], Allah is pleased with them, and they are pleased with Him. They are Allah’s confederates. Look! The confederates of Allah are indeed felicitous!

EXEGESIS

The term yuwāddūna is a plural imperfect tense verb which means those who are on good and friendly terms with someone,‎[1] those who exchange cordialities with someone,‎[2] those who support and stand by someone by means of help, love, and affection,‎[3] thereby endearing themselves to the latter. Here it is a reference to those hypocritical Muslims who were friendly and cordial with God’s and His Prophet’s opponents, who supported and stood by them by means of help, love, and affection.‎[4]

The term ayyada is a perfect tense verb meaning to support, to bolster, to strengthen, to aid.‎[5] Here it occurs in reference to God strengthening and aiding the believers who are described in praiseworthy terms in the verse.

The term alā at the end of the verse is described as an attention drawing particle (ḥarf tanbīh)‎[6] and can be translated as: indeed, surely, alas,‎[7] or hearken. It is also serves to strengthen the meaning of the sentence following it.‎[8]

EXPOSITION

The negation in this verse of finding a people such as those described therein means that true and sincere faith in God and the Last Day do not come together with love and friendship for those who stubbornly oppose God and His Messenger, and are inimical to them.‎[9] Indeed it is impossible, for how can that be when God clearly says Allah has not put two hearts within any man (33:4)? This is even if close and strong bonds of love and affection are involved such as the bond of parenthood, the bond of offspring, the bond of brotherhood, or any of the different kinds of relationships and bonds as the next part of this long verse says (even though they were their own parents, or children, or brothers, or kinsfolk).‎[10] This is because faith in God and in His Messenger and love for the opponents and enemies of God and His Messengers are antithetical to each other and do not come together in one heart.‎[11]

Rather, a believer is not a believer with complete faith and merit if he befriends or loves those who oppose the limits of God even if such were his close relatives. Whichever Muslim does that is not a disbeliever (kāfir) but he is immoral, degraded (fāsiq),‎[12] a sinner,‎[13] and his attitude could be an indication of hypocrisy.‎[14] Such a person would be included among the party of Satan and not among the party of God, despite being a Muslim.‎[15]

It is patently clear that even though they were their own parents, or children, or brothers, or kinsfolk indicates the causes or reasons of love and friendship in an absolute sense, while the verse specifies the love of kinship, by mentioning it specifically because it is the strongest or most enduring cause or reason of love from the perspective of firmness and constancy.‎[16]

The next part of this verse enumerates several Godly blessings accruing to those believers who believe in God and the Last Day and who refuse to befriend and love God and His Prophet’s opponents irrespective of close kinship ties, thereby rendering their faith, love, and allegiance to God and His Messenger sincere and pure.‎[17] The first is [For] such, He has written faith into their hearts; God has inscribed and firmly established faith in their hearts such that it does not alter or disappear.‎[18] The perfect tense verb kataba in this verse, translated as He has written, means God has established, sustained, and confirmed faith in their hearts, such that it does not change or disappear.‎[19] Thus this is an explicit attestation that the people described are true believers.‎[20]

The second blessing is and strengthened them with a spirit from Him, meaning: God has strengthened and fortified them with a spirit from Himself. Such a rendering of this part of the verse means that the preposition min with its pronominal suffix hu (minhu) translated as from Him is understood to mean that the spirit is from God (rūḥ min allāh).‎[21] However, it is also suggested that the pronominal suffix hu refers to faith, mentioned in the immediately preceding section of this very verse rather than to God (He has written faith into their hearts), in which case the meaning of this part of the verse is: God has strengthened them with a spirit from the category of faith (rūḥ min al-īmān).‎[22] He enlivens their hearts by it, and such an interpretation is also valid,‎[23] and indeed both interpretations can be taken as mutually inclusive for the spirit from the category of faith (rūḥ min al-īmān) is obviously a spirit from God and His bestowal (rūḥ min allāh).

The two blessings mentioned thus far in this verse pertain to this world. A person in whose heart God has written faith and has strengthened him with a spirit from Himself or a spirit from the category of faith finds it easier to confront God’s opponents and therefore these two blessings also represent instances of God’s help and His granting success to such believers due to their resolve not to befriend God and His Messenger’s opponents.

The next two blessings pertain to the hereafter. The third blessing is He will admit them into gardens with streams running in them, to remain in them [forever], meaning that they will stay there forever getting neither annihilated nor leaving it, such being their state.‎[24] This is a beautiful promise to the believers and a description of their blissful eternal life.‎[25]

The fourth blessing is Allah is pleased with them, and they are pleased with Him. This serves as a continuation of the previous statement and occurs as a justifying explanation for it in that the reason God shall make them enter paradise is because He is satisfied with them and they with Him. God’s satisfaction with them means His mercy and grace for them because they rendered their faith, obedience, and worship sincerely for Him, while their satisfaction with Him and their joy and delight is due to what He had blessed them with of a good life and paradise.‎[26] Verses 5:119, 9:100, 89:28, and 98:8 reiterate the theme of a section of the believers being blessed with the third and fourth blessings together as a result of their good deeds and obedience.

The fifth blessing, with which this verse concludes, is They are Allah’s confederates. Look! The confederates of Allah are indeed felicitous, which occurs as an honourable accolade for these sincere ones in their faith in that they are of the party of God (ḥizb allāh) just as those hypocrites who befriend and love the enemies of God are of the party of Satan (ḥizb al-shayṭān). The former are prosperous just as the latter are losers.‎[27] Thus this part of the verse serves as a clear contrast to the latter half of verse 19, and it could be taken to apply to this world and to the hereafter together in that such believers are recognised as belonging to the party of God in this world and will enjoy prosperity here in the form of triumph just as is promised in the previous verse as well as in 5:56, which incidentally is the second of two verses in the Quran where the phrase ḥizb allāh occurs, and they shall undoubtedly be prosperous in the hereafter too, as mentioned in this verse.

Hence, in conclusion, it is impossible for a person to combine God’s satisfaction and pleasure with that of His opponents, for if he were to satisfy one he would antagonise the other. This is while it is impossible that God’s antagonists would ever be satisfied and pleased with a person unless he conformed to them and became one of them. The following corroborative verse is a good example: Never will the Jews be pleased with you, nor the Christians, unless you followed their creed (2:120).

INSIGHTS FROM HADITH

  1. Imam Ali (a) describes the earliest Muslims, the companions of Prophet Muhammad (s), in the following words: ‘We were with the Messenger of God (s) [and] we fought our fathers, sons, brothers, and paternal uncles. That only increased us in faith, submission, patience in the face of pain, and earnestness in fighting the enemy. A man from our side and one from the enemy side would pounce upon each other like energetic men, contesting as to who would kill the other; sometimes our man triumphed over his adversary and sometimes the enemy triumphed over ours. When God witnessed our sincerity, He sent down ignominy to our enemy and succour to us until Islam got established.’‎[28]
  2. The Messenger of God prayed thus: ‘O God! Do not let me be indebted to a dissolute, immoral person [for a favour he may have done me] due to which my heart would incline towards him, and love him, for I have surely found in what You have revealed to me, You will not find a people believing in Allah and the Last Day endearing those who oppose Allah and His Apostle even though they were their own parents, or children, or brothers, or kinsfolk. [For] such, He has written faith into their hearts and strengthened them with a spirit from Him. He will admit them into gardens with streams running in them, to remain in them [forever], Allah is pleased with them, and they are pleased with Him. They are Allah’s confederates. Look! The confederates of Allah are indeed felicitous.’‎[29]
  3. While this verse emphasises the prohibition of heartfelt love for God and His Messenger’s opponents, the following report goes a step further and prohibits even the desire that a believing creditor may harbour for an oppressive debtor (who opposes God and His Messenger through his oppression and tyranny) to remain alive till he discharges his debt to him. It is for this reason that Ṣafwān al-Jammāl was prohibited from renting out his camels to the Abbasid tyrant Hārūn al-Rashīd. Ṣafwān al-Jammāl narrates that Imam al-Kāẓim (a) said to him: ‘Everything you do is good and beautiful except for one thing.’ I asked: ‘What is that?’ He said: ‘It is your renting out your camels to this one,’ meaning thereby Hārūn al-Rashīd, up until he said: ‘Ṣafwān, is your rent due on them?’ I replied in the affirmative. He asked: ‘Do you desire that they remain alive till the rent is discharged?’ I replied in the affirmative, whereupon he said: ‘Whoever desires their continued existence is from them, and whoever is from them shall end up in the fire.’ Ṣafwān said: ‘I went and sold all my camels to the very last one!’‎[30]
  4. Imam al-Ṣādiq (a) said: ‘A man does not render his faith in God pure till God is more beloved to him than his own self, his father, his mother, his child, his family, his wealth, and all of mankind.’‎[31]
  5. Imam al-Ṣādiq (a) said: ‘If you wish to learn whether there is goodness in you then look at your heart. If it loves those who obey God, the mighty and glorious, and hates those who disobey Him, then there is goodness in you and God loves you. But if it hates those who obey God and loves those who disobey Him then there is no goodness in you and God hates you. This is while a man is with one whom he loves.’‎[32]
  6. Barāʾ ibn ʿĀzib narrates: ‘The Messenger of God (s) said: “The most reliable handle of faith is to love for the sake of God and to hate for the sake of God.”’‎[33]
  7. The Messenger of God (s) said: “The love of the believer for the believer, for God’s sake, is from the greatest ramifications of faith.’‎[34]      

The following are a sample of reports which identify the spirit (rūḥ) mentioned in this verse as faith or spirit of faith:

  1. Abū Ḥamzah asked Imam al-Bāqir (a)‎[35] and Jamīl asked Imam al-Ṣādiq (a)‎[36] about the part of this verse which says and strengthened them with a spirit from Him. Both Imams answered by identifying it as: ‘It is faith (huwa al-īmān).’

Note: Subḥānī notes that the equivalence of the spirit (rūḥ) with faith (īmān) in this verse probably means that the spirit here represents a sublime degree of faith which would be capable of distinguishing between truth and falsehood. He then cites 8:29.‎[37]

  1. Imam al-Ṣādiq (a) said: ‘There are two ears for every believer’s heart, which are located inside him; an ear into which the doubt-causing Satan spits or blows, and an ear into which the angel blows. Thus God aids and strengthens the believer by means of the angel and that is the meaning of His speech, and strengthened them with a spirit from Him.’‎[38]

Note: Tabatabai writes: ‘The report’s meaning is not to interpret the rūḥ with the angel; rather the angel accompanies the rūḥ and works with it. God says, He sends down the angels with the spirit of His command (16:2).’‎[39] However, Makārim Shīrāzī understands this report in its apparent sense and does not engage in any interpretive exercise for it. Thus he understands spirit to refer to the angel just as the report does, and concludes that this proves the wide scope in meaning for the term rūḥ.‎[40]

  1. Imam al-Bāqir (a) explained the Prophetic utterance, ‘When a man commits adultery the spirit of faith abandons him,’ as follows: ‘That is with regards to His speech, and strengthened them with a spirit from Him. That is the spirit which abandons him.’‎[41]
  2. Abū Khadijah said: ‘I once visited Abū al-Hasan al-Kāẓim (a) who told me: “God, the blessed and exalted, has aided and strengthened the believer with a spirit [from Himself].‎[42] It is present with him every time he does a good deed and is God-conscious, while it disappears from him every time he sins and violates [God’s teachings]. Thus it is present with him, elated and trembling with joy when he does good, while it sinks into the earth [in dismay] when he does evil. So take care and look after your blessings, O servants of God, by reforming your souls, [and] you shall increase in certainty and shall win a precious and costly thing. May God have mercy on a man who intends to do good and carries it out, or intends to do evil but refrains from it.” Then he said: “We aid and strengthen the spirit by means of obedience to God and working for Him.”’‎[43]

Note: Tabatabai writes the following comment to this report: ‘It has become clear from the foregoing, in the context of the verse (58:22) that this spirit is from the categories of the human spirit, which a believer obtains when he perfects his faith. It does not leave him just as the vegetative, animal, and human spirits shared between the believer and the disbeliever are from the categories of his spirit, which do not leave him. Nevertheless, it produces a beautiful form in the soul which perhaps fades when it confronts an evil form which is its opposite. Thereafter it returns when the antithetical obstacles fade till it settles, stabilises, and takes root, and the soul is moulded and fashioned by it, which is when it endures and abides and does not change or alter. From this it become apparent that the meaning of the Imam’s statement, “[the spirit] is present with him” and his statement, “it is with him” means the presence of its form; the presence of its form which is capable of fading and vanishing, while the meaning of the Imam’s statement, “it sinks into the earth” means the fading of its form, as a figure of speech. Similar is the statement of the Messenger of God (s) in the previous report where he says, “the spirit of faith abandons him”.’‎[44]

  1. Imam al-Ṣādiq (a) said the following to Suwayd when the latter asked him: ‘What is it that establishes faith in a person?’ He replied: ‘That which establishes it in him is piety (waraʿ) while that which removes it from him is greed (ṭamaʿ).’‎[45]
  2. Imam al-Ṣādiq (a) said: ‘The least due to which a person leaves faith is that he sits with one who exaggerates [in religion], listens to his speech, and attests to it.’‎[46]
  3. Aḥmad ibn Isḥāq says: ‘I said to Imam Abū Muhammad al-Hasan ibn Ali [al-ʿAskarī] (a) [in astonishment] when he mentioned that the disappearance of the Qāʾim would prolong: “Will his disappearance [really] prolong?!” He replied: “Yes indeed, by my Lord! Till most of those who professed belief in this matter will go back on it, and none shall remain [on it] save one from whom God had taken his covenant regarding our love, and had inscribed faith in his heart, and had strengthened him with a spirit from Himself.”’‎[47]
  4. Al-Hasan ibn Muhammad ibn Ṣāliḥ al-Bazzāz said that Imam al-ʿAskarī (a) said: ‘Surely my son shall be al-Qāʾim after me. He is the one in whom the conventions of the prophets shall come to pass. This will be by means of longevity and disappearance till the hearts shall harden due to the prolonged period [of disappearance]. Thus none shall affirm faith in him save one in whose heart God, the mighty and glorified, had inscribed faith and had strengthened him with a spirit from Himself.’‎[48]
  5. Imam Ali (a) said: ‘The ninth from your progeny, Husayn, shall be the one who shall rise with the truth, manifest the religion, and set forth justice.’ Al-Husayn (a) said: ‘I said: “Amīr al-Muʾminīn, will that really happen?” He replied: “Yes indeed! And I swear [to that] by the One who sent forth Muhammad with prophethood and chose him over creation. However, that will happen after disappearance and confusion during which none shall abide by his faith save the sincere ones, in direct contact with the spirit of certainty; those from whom God, the mighty and glorious, will have taken their covenant in favour of our love, and inscribed faith in their hearts, and strengthened them with a spirit from Himself.”’‎[49]
  6. Imam Ali (a) said: ‘Salmān al-Fārsī addressed me: “Abū al-Hasan, I did not come across the Messenger of God (s) [while you were with him] save that he would gently tap me between my shoulders and say: ‘This one [meaning Ali] and his party are undoubtedly the prosperous ones.’”’‎[50]

REVIEW OF TAFSĪR LITERATURE

Spirit (rūḥ) mentioned in this verse has evoked debate in the exegetical literature with regards to its nature and identity. Several different meanings have been suggested for it such as proofs, evidences, and arguments.‎[51] Thus it means God has strengthened them with the light of proofs, evidences, and arguments till they are rightly guided by it and act according to it.‎[52] This is understood as being corroborated by 14:27 which mentions God strengthening or establishing the believers by means of a sure and firm word (al-qawl al-thābit).‎[53]

Another identity suggested for the rūḥ is that it means the spirit of the category of faith (rūḥ min al-īmān)‎[54] or the light of faith (nūr al-īmān).‎[55] This is understood from this very verse (see the Exposition) as well as understood from 42:52,‎[56] which mentions God’s revelation of a spirit to the Prophet which acquainted him with the book. This particular meaning also comes across in several reports.

Yet another meaning for rūḥ is that it means revelation and the Quran, both of which enliven the heart with knowledge and faith and draw away from ignorance and unfaith.‎[57] This identification for the rūḥ is also understood from 42:52, which mentions God’s revelation of a spirit which acquainted the Prophet with the book.

Other identifications for the rūḥ are Gabriel (19:17, 26:193) by whom God helped the Muslims on different occasions with victory and defence.‎[58]

Finally the rūḥ is also identified with divinely aided triumph for the Muslims over their enemies.‎[59] This divinely aided triumph over enemies is called rūḥ because by it the cause of the Muslims is enlivened.‎[60]

The term rūḥ occurs in the Quran with several different meanings such as the soul (17:85), breath, spirit (66:12), the holy spirit (2:87), revelation (42:52), and Gabriel/the trustworthy spirit (19:17, 26:193), and it is obvious some of these meanings are reflected in the suggestions of the exegetes for the meaning of rūḥ in this verse.

However, Tabatabai is unconvinced that the rūḥ in this verse refers to proofs, arguments, revelation, Quran, Gabriel, or divinely aided triumph, writing that all these meanings are weak and have no evidence to substantiate them from the apparent perspective of this verse.‎[61] Rather, his opinion is that the rūḥ here, which is from God, is a special kind of spirit, which is from the category of faith. He writes extensively as follows: ‘The “spirit”, on the basis of what comes to mind of its meaning, is the origin of life from which exudes power and consciousness. Upholding the apparent connotation of the part of this verse that says … and strengthened them with a spirit from Him … means that the believers possess another spirit, one in addition to the human spirit; the latter being a spirit which a believer shares with a disbeliever. The additional spirit is one which exudes onto the believers another life and is accompanied by a new power and consciousness. It is to this that the following verse points: Is he who was lifeless, then We gave him life and provided him with a light by which he walks among the people, like one who dwells in a manifold darkness which he cannot leave? (6:122), and the verse: Whoever acts righteously, [whether] male or female, should he be faithful, We shall revive him with a good life and pay them their reward by the best of what they used to do (16:97). What 16:97 mentions of a good life means the accompaniment of the goodness of its effect, which is power and consciousness, which are the concomitants or the consequences of righteous deeds. Power and consciousness are expressed as light in 6:122, and similar to it is the verse: O you who have faith! Be wary of Allah and have faith in His Apostle. He will grant you a double share of His mercy and give you a light to walk by, and forgive you, and Allah is all-forgiving, all-merciful (57:28). This is a special, noble life. It has special effects which necessarily lead to the eternal happiness of mankind, and is in addition to the life shared between a believer and disbeliever, which in turn has shared effects. The former life has a special origin, which is the spirit of faith which the verse mentions, and is in addition to the spirit shared between the believer and disbeliever.’‎[62]

Several different occasions for the revelation of this verse are suggested, such as that it was revealed in regard to Ḥāṭib ibn Abī Baltaʿah, when he secretly wrote to the Meccans informing them of the Prophet’s intent to make a surprise march on Mecca and conquer it. This was while the Prophet was keeping this plan a secret. When Ḥāṭib ibn Abī Baltaʿah was admonished for what he had done, he gave the excuse that his family was in Mecca and he desired to render the Meccans under his obligation to help him protect his family. This is when God revealed this verse in respect of him.‎[63]

Another suggested occasion for this verse’s revelation is that it was revealed regarding ʿAbd-Allāh ibn Ubayy and his son, ʿUbayd-Allāh. The latter was a sincere and faithful believer while the former was a known hypocrite. One day, when ʿUbayd-Allāh was with the Prophet, he saw the Prophet drinking water from a vessel. He requested the Prophet to leave some of the water in the vessel so that he could give it to his father to drink, thereby hoping that God would purify his heart in favour of the Muslim faith. The Prophet acquiesced and gave him the remainder of the water. ʿUbayd-Allāh came to his father with it. When ʿAbd-Allāh ibn Ubayy asked him what he had brought with him, he replied that it was the leftover of the Prophet’s drink which he had brought over so that he (ʿAbd-Allāh) may drink it and perhaps God would purify and cleanse his heart in favour of sincere faith in Islam. ʿAbd-Allāh ibn Ubayy retorted: ‘Why not bring your mother’s urine?!’ ʿUbayd-Allāh returned to the Prophet and asked him to permit him to kill his father but the Prophet denied him permission and instead asked him to be lenient and indulgent with him.‎[64]

Yet another suggested occasion of revelation for this verse is that it was revealed regarding Abū ʿUbaydah ibn al-Jarrāḥ who killed his father, ʿAbd-Allāh, in the Battle of Badr,‎[65] and regarding ʿUmar ibn al-Khaṭṭāb who killed his maternal uncle, al-ʿĀṣ ibn Hishām ibn al-Mughīrah, in the Battle of Badr,‎[66] and Abū Bakr who called out his son for a duel in the Battle of Badr,‎[67] and Muṣʿab ibn ʿUmayr who killed his brother, ʿUbayd ibn ʿUmayr, and Ali ibn Abī Ṭālib (a) and ʿUbaydah who killed ʿUtbah, Shaybah, and Walīd ibn ʿUtbah in the Battle of Badr.‎[68] Thus this verse informs that these individuals did not love or prefer their close relatives and tribesmen to God and His faith, and this was because of the indignation and fury they felt for the sake of God and His faith.‎[69]  

It is also transmitted in a report that this verse was revealed In respect of Abū Bakr, where his father insulted the Prophet whereupon Abū Bakr hit him and he fell to the ground. Abū Bakr later recounted the incident to the Prophet and the Prophet expressed astonishment‎[70] and instructed him not to repeat the deed again.‎[71] Abū Bakr swore: ‘By God! Had there been a sword at hand I would have struck him with it!’ and this verse descended,‎[72] or as in the case of ʿAbd al-Raḥmān ibn Thābit ibn Qays ibn al-Shammās, who sought the Prophet’s permission to visit his maternal uncle who was a polytheist. He was granted permission but when he was about to set off, the Prophet recited this verse to him and to those around him.‎[73]

These multiple suggestions for the occasion of the revelation of this verse are indeed perplexing. With regards to the first suggestion, which is that this verse was revealed in respect of Ḥāṭib ibn Abī Baltaʿah and his attempt at sabotaging the Prophet’s plan, it is claimed that most of the scholars are agreed that this was the occasion and incident which precipitated the descent of this verse.‎[74] However, this claim is strange, for the incident pertaining to Ḥāṭib ibn Abī Baltaʿah and his grave misdemeanour is actually and famously claimed to have precipitated the revelation of 60:1.‎[75] Admittedly, verse 22 of this surah and 60:1 are very similar in content and it is perhaps possible to appreciate how one and the same incident can be used as an example for both.

The second suggested occasion of revelation for this verse could be argued to have some relevance to the verse, and it perhaps could be understood as a kind of example for it.

Perhaps the third suggested occasion of revelation for this verse, which is that it was revealed in favour of a host of individuals (such as Abū ʿUbaydah ibn al-Jarrāḥ, ʿUmar ibn al-Khaṭṭāb, Abū Bakr, Muṣʿab ibn ʿUmayr, Ali ibn Abī Ṭālib (a), and ʿUbaydah) who fought their near relatives for the sake of God, His Prophet, and His faith in the Battle of Badr, has greater relevance to this verse than the other purported suggestions, but all these individuals allegedly fought their near relatives in the Battle of Badr while this surah is understood to have been revealed several years subsequent to the Battle of Badr. This is while there does not appear to exist evidence that this verse had descended earlier to the entirety of the surah. Thus it is difficult to envision this being the occasion of revelation for this verse, however it could be said that these individuals fighting their near relatives can serve as an apt example for this verse.

The anecdote of Abū Bakr striking his father for insulting the Prophet again appears to have a degree of relevance to the verse, and finally, although the case of ʿAbd al-Raḥmān ibn Thābit ibn Qays ibn al-Shammās has some relevance to the verse under consideration, yet it seems more likely that the Prophet recited out this verse to him in the form of a warning, cautioning him to be vigilant and not to allow kinship ties to overcome his faith sensibilities. It also seems that sectarian incentives have been at work to attract the praises offered in this verse to certain favoured individuals.

In light of the multiplicity of suggestions for the occasion of revelation of this verse, the absence of a specific favourite, and the varying degrees to which each suggestion has a relevance to the verse, it is perhaps better to maintain, as suggested by Tabatabai, that these suggestions are examples for the verse, that is, examples of applied exegesis. This is where the verse’s meaning is applied to the incident as an example for it (taṭbīq al-āyah).‎[76]

INSIGHTS FROM OTHER TRADITIONS

  1. Do not suppose that I have come to bring peace to the earth. I did not come to bring peace, but a sword. For I have come to turn a man against his father, a daughter against her mother, a daughter-in-law against her mother-in-law. A man’s enemies will be the members of his own household. Anyone who loves their father or mother more than me is not worthy of me; anyone who loves their son or daughter more than me is not worthy of me.‎[77]
  2. I have come to bring fire on the earth, and how I wish it were already kindled! But I have a baptism (to undergo), and what constraint I am under until it is completed! Do you think I came to bring peace on earth? No, I tell you, but division. From now on there will be five in one family divided against each other, three against two and two against three. They will be divided, father against son and son against father, mother against daughter and daughter against mother, mother-in-law against daughter-in-law and daughter-in-law against mother-in-law.‎[78]

Note: It needs to be appreciated here that the Gospel passage is concerned with devotion to Christ, whereas this Quranic verse is concerned with utmost devotion to God and His Messenger.

  1. But this shall be the covenant that I will make with the house of Israel; after those days, said the Lord, I will put my law in their inward parts, and write it in their hearts; and will be their God, and they shall be my people.‎[79]
  2. I delight to do your will, O my God: yes, your law is within my heart.‎[80]
  3. You show that you are a letter from Christ, the result of our ministry, written not with ink but with the Spirit of the living God, not on tablets of stone but on tablets of human hearts.‎[81]
  4. But this is the new covenant I will make with the people of Israel on that day, says the Lord: I will put my laws in their minds, and I will write them on their hearts. I will be their God, and they will be my people.‎[82]
  5. This is the covenant I will make with them after that time, says the Lord. I will put my laws in their hearts, and I will write them on their minds.‎[83] 
[1] Arabic-English Dictionary of Quranic Usage, p. 1016.
[2] Arabic-English Dictionary of Quranic Usage, p. 1016; Kashif, 7/277.
[3] Tibyan, 9/556.
[4] Kashif, 7/277.
[5] Arabic-English Dictionary of Quranic Usage, p. 66.
[6] Arabic-English Dictionary of Quranic Usage, p. 35; Tabrisi, 9/383; Kashif, 7/277.
[7] Arabic-English Dictionary of Quranic Usage, p. 35.
[8] Arabic-English Dictionary of Quranic Usage, p. 35.
[9] Tabrisi, 9/383; Mizan, 19/196; Razi, 29/499.
[10] Mizan, 19/196.
[11] Tabrisi, 9/383; Mizan, 19/196.
[12] Tibyan, 9/557.
[13] Razi, 29/499.
[14] Razi, 29/499.
[15] Fadlallah, 22/90.
[16] Mizan, 19/196; Razi, 29/499.
[17] Tibyan, 9/557; Mizan, 19/196; Razi, 29/499.
[18] Tabrisi, 9/383; Mizan, 19/196; Munyah, 28/89.
[19] Mizan, 19/196; Munyah, 28/89.
[20] Mizan, 19/196.
[21] Mizan, 19/196; Baydawi, 2/463.
[22] Tabrisi, 9/383; Baydawi, 2/463; Mizan, 19/196; Razi, 29/500.
[23] Mizan, 19/196.
[24] Tibyan, 9/557.
[25] Mizan, 19/197.
[26] Tibyan, 9/557; Tabrisi, 9/383; Mizan, 19/197.
[27] Mizan, 19/197.
[28] Nahj, sermon 56.
[29] Razi, 29/500; Furqan, 28/223; Suyuti, 6/187.
[30] Rijāl al-Kashshī, 2/740, cited in Munyah, 28/88.
[31] Safinah, 1/201, cited in Amthal, 18/153.
[32] Safinah, 1/201, cited in Amthal, 18/153.
[33] Suyuti, 6/187.
[34] Kafi, cited in Amthal, 18/153.
[35] Daqaiq, 13/149.
[36] Daqaiq, 13/150; Nur, 5/269.
[37] Munyah, 28/89.
[38] Mizan, 19/198.
[39] Mizan, 19/198.
[40] Amthal, 18/154.
[41] Mizan, 19/198.
[42] Safi, 5/152.
[43] Mizan, 19/199; Safi, 5/152.
[44] Mizan, 19/199.
[45] Daqaiq, 13/152.
[46] Daqaiq, 13/152.
[47] Daqaiq, 13/152.
[48] Daqaiq, 13/152-153.
[49] Daqaiq, 13/153.
[50] Daqaiq, 13/153-154.
[51] Tibyan, 9/557; Tabrisi, 9/383; Kashif, 7/277.                                                                 
[52] Tibyan, 9/557; Tabrisi, 9/383.
[53] Kashif, 7/277.
[54] Razi, 29/500; Baydawi, 2/463; Mizan, 19/196.
[55] Tabrisi, 9/383.
[56] Tabrisi, 9/383.
[57] Tabrisi, 9/383; Baydawi, 2/463; Razi, 29/500.
[58] Tibyan, 9/557; Tabrisi, 9/383.
[59] Razi, 29/500; Baydawi, 2/463.
[60] Razi, 29/500.
[61] Mizan, 19/197.
[62] Mizan, 19/197.
[63] Tibyan, 9/556; Tabrisi, 9/383; Razi, 29/500.
[64] Tabrisi, 9/383.
[65] Suyuti, 6/186; Mizan, 19/198.
[66] Razi, 29/499.
[67] Razi, 29/499.
[68] Razi, 29/499.
[69] Razi, 29/499.
[70] Zamakhshari, 4/497; Suyuti, 6/186; Mizan, 19/198.
[71] Zamakhshari, 4/497.
[72] Zamakhshari, 4/497; Suyuti, 6/186; Mizan, 19/198.
[73] Suyuti, 6/186; Mizan, 19/198.
[74] Razi, 29/500.
[75] See the Quran commentary literature for this verse.
[76] Mizan, 19/198.
[77] Matthew 10:34-37.
[78] Luke 12:49-53.
[79] Jeremiah 31:33.
[80] Psalms 40:8.
[81] 2 Corinthians 3:3.
[82] Hebrews 8:10.
[83] Hebrews 10:16.