63- Surat Almunafiqun/Tafseer
11 Verses Medinan (revealed in Medina)
A'auzu Bellahi mena alshaiytani alrajeem
I seek refuge in Allah from the accursed Satan
Besmi Ellahi Alrhmani Alraheem
In the name of Allah, the Most Gracious, the Most Merciful
Iza Ja-aka al-munafiquna qalu nashhadu innaka la-rasulu Allahi wa Allahu ya'lamu innaka la-rasuluhu, wa Allahu yashhadu inna al-munafiqeena la-kazibun (1).
When the hypocrites come to You, they say We testify that You are surely the Messenger of Allah, and Allah knows that You are surely His Messenger, and Allah testifies that the hypocrites are liars.
Ittakhazu aymanahum junnatan fa-saddu an sabili ellahi innahum sa-a ma kanu ya'malun (2).
They have taken their oaths as a cover, so they have prevented from the way of Allah, indeed, evil is what they were doing.
Zalika bi-annahum amanu thumma kafaru fa-tubia ala qulubihim fa-hum la yafqahun (3).
That is because they believed, then they disbelieved, so their hearts were sealed over, and they do not understand.
Wa iza ra-aytahum tu'jibuka ajsamuhum wa in yaqulu tasma' li-qawlihim ka-annahum khushubun musannadatun yahsabuna kulla sayhatin alayhim humu al-aduwwu fa-hzarhum qatalahumu Allahu anna you'fakun (4).
And when You see them, their bodies please You, and if they speak, You listen to their speech as if they were propped up pieces of wood, they think that every shout is against them, they are the enemy, so Beware of them, May Allah destroy them, How are they being turned away?.
Wa iza qeela lahum ta-alaww yastaghfir lakum rasulu Allahi lawwaww ru-usahum wa ra-aytahum yasudduna wa hum mustakbirun (5).
And when it is said to them, Come, the Messenger of Allah will ask forgiveness for you, they turn their heads aside, and You see them turning away while they are arrogant.
Sawa-on alayhim astaghfarta lahum am lam tastaghfir lahum lan yaghfira Allahu lahum inna Allaha la yahdi al-qawma al-fasiqeen (6).
It is all the same for them whether You ask forgiveness for them or do not ask forgiveness for them, Allah will not forgive them, indeed, Allah does not guide the disobedient people.
Humu allazina yaquluna la tunfiqu ala man inda rasuli ellahi hatta yanfaddu wa li-llahi khaza-inu alsamawati wa al-ardi wa lakinna al-munafiqeena la yafqahun (7).
They are the ones who say Do not spend on those who are with the Messenger of Allah so that they disperse, and to Allah belong the treasures of the heavens and the earth, but the hypocrites do not understand.
Yaquluna la-in raja'na ila al-madeenati la-youkhrijanna ala-azzu minha al-azalla wa li-llahi al-izzatu wa li-rasulihi wa lil-mu'mineena wa lakinna al-munafiqeena la ya'lamun (8).
They say if we return to Medina, the more honored will surely expel therefrom the more humble, and to Allah belongs the honor, and to His Messenger, and to the believers, but the hypocrites do not know.
Ya-ayyuha allazina amanu la tulhikum amwalukum wa la awladukum an zekri ellahi wa man yaf'al zalika fa-aulaeka humu al-khasirun (9).
O you who believed! Let not your wealth and your children divert you from the remembrance of Allah, and whoever does that, then those are the losers.
Wa anfiqu men ma razaqnakum men qabli an ya'tiya ahadakumu al-mawtu fa-yaqula Rabbi laww-la akhkhartani ila ajalin qareebin fa-assaddaqa wa akun mina al-saliheen (10).
And Spend from what We have provided you before death approaches one of you, and he says, My Lord! If only You would delay me for a near term, so I would give charity, and be among the righteous.
Wa lan you-akhkhira Allahu nafsan iza jaa ajaluha wa Allahu Khabeerun bema ta'malun (11).
And Allah will never delay a soul when its appointed time has come, and Allah is All-Aware of what you do.
Simplified interpretation:
Surat Almunafiqun exposed the hypocrites, foremost among them Abdullah bin Ubayy bin Salul, who claimed to be believers, but in reality fought against Islam and wanted to prevent the call to it. Allah informed His Messenger Muhammad (PBUH) that they were the enemy and told Him what they said and did behind His back and commanded Him to beware of them, and Allah warns the believers against following the path of the hypocrites.
Allah Almighty says in the first three verses (1-3) "When the hypocrites come to You, they say We testify that You are surely the Messenger of Allah, and Allah knows that You are surely His Messenger, and Allah testifies that the hypocrites are liars, they have taken their oaths as a cover, so they have prevented from the way of Allah, indeed, evil is what they were doing, that is because they believed, then they disbelieved, so their hearts were sealed over, and they do not understand", that is, Allah addresses His Messenger (PBUH) saying that the hypocrites used to testify that Muhammad (PBUH) is the Messenger of Allah if they came to Him, but in reality, they were not, thereupon, Allah says that He knows that Muhammad is His Messenger, meaning that although what they say is true, but they are lying in their claim of faith because they say with their tongues the opposite of what their hearts conceal. The hypocrites used to take their oaths as a shield to protect themselves, and as a result of their hypocrisy, they prevented others from the way of Allah, and Allah describes their actions of hypocrisy, false oaths, and preventing others from the way of Allah as evil saying "Evil is what they were doing", and Allah assures that what brought them to this state was that they believed and then disbelieved, so Allah has sealed upon their hearts so that guidance would not reach them, so they are not guided nor do they know what is good for them and what is evil.
Allah Almighty says in the next verse (4) "And when You see them, their bodies please You, and if they speak, You listen to their speech as if they were propped up pieces of wood, they think that every shout is against them, they are the enemy, so Beware of them, May Allah destroy them, How are they being turned away?", that is, Allah addresses His Messenger (PBUH) saying that when He sees the hypocrites, He will be impressed by their bodies, and when they speak, He will listen to their words as if they are propped up pieces of wood, and Zaid bin Arqam said concerning Allah's saying "Propped up pieces of wood" that the hypocrites were the most handsome men (Sahih Albukhari 4903), and Imam Qurtubi said that Allah has likened them to pieces of wood, leaning against a wall, unable to hear or understand, phantoms without souls, bodies without dreams, and it was said that Allah has likened them to a corroded wood propped up by something else, whose contents are unknown, just as is the case of the hypocrites whose hypocrisy is unknown to the believers. So whoever sees the hypocrites will be impressed by their bodies because of their beauty, and whoever hears them will listen to their words because of their eloquence, yet they are extremely weak, anxious, frightened, and coward, as they are afraid of every shout and think that Allah will send down something about them, then Allah tells His Messenger (PBUH) that they are the enemy and ordered Him to beware of them, May Allah destroy them, and Ibn Abbas said "May Allah destroy them" means May Allah curse them, how are they led astray and diverted from guidance to error.
Allah Almighty says in the next two verses (5,6) "And when it is said to them, Come, the Messenger of Allah will ask forgiveness for you, they turn their heads aside, and You see them turning away while they are arrogant, it is all the same for them whether You ask forgiveness for them or do not ask forgiveness for them, Allah will not forgive them, indeed, Allah does not guide the disobedient people", that is, when it was said to the hypocrites Come to the Messenger of Allah, and He will ask forgiveness for you, they nodded their heads in mockery, arrogance, and contempt for what was said to them, as Jabir bin Abdullah narrated: "The Messenger of Allah (PBUH) said who climbed this hill, the hill of Murar, his sins would be obliterated the sins of the Children of Israel, so the first to climb it were the horses of ours, the horses of Banu Khazraj, then there was a ceaseless flow of the people, and Allah's Messenger said all of you are those who have been pardoned except the owner of the red camel, thereupon, we came to him and said to him Come so that Allah's Messenger may seek forgiveness for you, but he said the finding of something lost is dearer to me than seeking forgiveness for me by your companion (Allah's Messenger), and he remained busy in finding out his lost thing" (Sahih Muslim 2780), thereupon Allah says to His Messenger "Whether You ask forgiveness for them or do not ask forgiveness for them, Allah will not forgive them", so Allah affirms that His punishment awaits them, and that they will be deprived of His pardon and forgiveness, and Allah does not guide the disobedient people who oppose Him and His Messenger.
Allah Almighty says in the next two verses (7,8) "They are the ones who say Do not spend on those who are with the Messenger of Allah so that they disperse, and to Allah belong the treasures of the heavens and the earth, but the hypocrites do not understand, they say if we return to Medina, the more honored will surely expel therefrom the more humble, and to Allah belongs the honor, and to His Messenger, and to the believers, but the hypocrites do not know", that is, this verse was revealed concerning Abdullah bin Ubayy bin Salul who said to his companions Do not spend on those who are with Allah's Messenger (PBUH) so that they separate from Him, as Ubaidullah bin Musa narrated from Israel from Abi Ishaaq from Zaid Bin Arqam: "I was with My uncle and I heard Abdullah bin Ubayy bin Salul, saying "Do not spend on those who are with the Messenger of Allah so that they disperse", and "If we return to Medina, the more honored will surely expel therefrom the more humble". I mentioned that to my uncle who, in turn, mentioned it to the Prophet. The Prophet (PBUH) called me and I told Him about that, then He sent for Abdullah bin Ubayy and his companions, and they swore that they did not say so, the Prophet (PBUH) disbelieved my statement and believed theirs. I was distressed as I have never been before, and I remained in my house. My uncle said to me you just wanted the Prophet (PBUH) to consider you a liar and hate you, then Allah revealed "When the hypocrites come to You, they say We testify that You are surely the Messenger of Allah", so the Prophet (PBUH) sent for me and recited it and said Allah has confirmed your statement" (Sahih Albukhari 4904), and in another narration of Zaid also "The Prophet (PBUH) called them that they might ask Allah to forgive them, but they turned their head aside as shown above in Aya 5" (Sahih Albukhari 4903). And in response to what they said, Allah says that the treasures of the heavens and the earth belong to Him alone, so He gives whom He wills whenever He wills, and He does not need their expenditure, but they do not understand.
And Abdullah bin Ubayy bin Salul also said if we return to Medina, the more honored will surely expel therefrom the more humble, and the reason he said that was because a man from the Muhajireen (Immigrants) had kicked a man from the Ansar, as Ali narrated from Sufyan that Amro said I heard Jabir bin Abdullah saying: "We were in a battle (Ghazwa), Sufyan once said in an army, and a man from the emigrants kicked an Ansari man (on the buttocks with his foot), the Ansari man said O the Ansar! i.e. help, and the emigrant said O the emigrants! i.e. help. Allah's Messenger (PBUH) heard that, and said What is this call for, which is characteristic of Aljahiliyah (Pre-Islamic era)?, they said, O Allah's Messenger! A man from the emigrants kicked one of the Ansar (on the buttocks with his foot), Allah's Messenger said Leave it (that call) for it is a detestable thing, Abdullah bin Ubayy heard that and said Have they done so?, By Allah! If we return to Medina, the more honored will surely expel therefrom the more humble. When this statement reached the Prophet (PBUH), Umar got up and said O Allah's Messenger! Let me chop off the head of this hypocrite, the Prophet (PBUH) said "Leave him lest the people say that Muhammad kills His companions". The Ansar were then more in number than the emigrants when the later came to Medina, but later on the emigrants increased" (Sahih Albukhari 4905). Thereupon, Allah affirms that the hypocrites are the more humiliated, and the honor belongs to Allah, to His Messenger, and to the believers, but the hypocrites do not know that.
Allah Almighty says in the next verse (9) "O you who believed! Let not your wealth and your children divert you from the remembrance of Allah, and whoever does that, then those are the losers", that is, Allah warns the believers against following the path of the hypocrites, and commanded them not to let their wealth and their children distract them from the remembrance of Allah, and Allah describes the wealth and the children as a trial in Aya (15) of Surat Altaghabun {Your wealth and your children are but a trial, and Allah has with Him a great reward}, the wealth and the children are a trial because they are not free of the temptation and because of the preoccupation of the heart with them, then Allah assures that whoever is distracted by the adornments of the worldly life, which are wealth and children, will be among the losers on the day of resurrection.
Allah Almighty says in the last two verses (10,11) "And Spend from what We have provided you before death approaches one of you, and he says, My Lord! If only You would delay me for a near term, so I would give charity, and be among the righteous, and Allah will never delay a soul when its appointed time has come, and Allah is All-Aware of what you do", that is, Allah urges the believers to spend in the way of Allah, so Allah commands the believers to expedite spending in the way of Allah, and do not delay it until the death comes to them, and then they will ask Allah to prolong their life so they can give alms, and do righteous deeds, obeying Allah, and fulfilling His obligations. Ibn Abbas said this verse is severe for the people of monotheism, because no one who has good with Allah in the Hereafter wishes to return to the worldly life or delay in it, and Imam Qurtubi said except for the martyr, for he wishes to return to be killed, because of the honor he sees as Allah Messenger said in narration of Anas bin Malik (Sahih Albukhari 2795). Then Allah confirms that He will not delay the term of anyone and Allah says in Ayat (99,100) of Surat Almu'minun {Until when death comes to one of them, he says My Lord Send me back, that I may do righteous deeds in what I have left, nay! Indeed, it is a word he has to say, and behind them there is a barrier until the day they are resurrected}, and Allah is All-Aware of what His servants do of good and evil, and nothing of their deeds is hidden from Him, and He will recompense each for his deeds.