059 - Sūrat al-Hashr

In the name of Allah (who is) Rahmān (and) Rahīm.

[For explanation, see Sūrat al-Fātiha: 1]

1

All that is in the heavens and all that is in the earth glorifies Allahu ta’ālā, that is to say, [all that is in them] exalts Him as being transcendent (the lām [of li'llāhi, 'Allahu ta’ālā'] is extra; the use of mā [instead of the personal min] is meant to indicate a predominance [of non-rational beings in the heavens and the earth]). And He is the Mighty, the Wise, in His Sovereignty and [in] His actions [respectively].

2

It is He Who expelled those who disbelieved of the People of the Scripture, namely, the Jews of the Banū al-Nadīr, from their homelands, [from] their dwellings at Medina, at the first exile, that is, their exile to Syria, the last [exile] being their banishment to Khaybar by ‘Umar during his caliphate. You did not think, O believers, that they would go forth, and they thought that they would be protected (māni'atuhum is the predicate of an, 'that') by their fortresses (husūnuhum, the agent of the verb [māni'atuhum], with which the predication is completed) from Allahu ta’ālā, from His chastisement. But Allahu ta’ālā, His command and His chastisement, came at them from whence they had not reckoned, [from whence] had never occurred to them, from the part of the believers, and He cast terror (ru'b or ru'ub) into their hearts, by having their chief Ka'b b. al-Ashraf slain, destroying [as they did] (read yukharribūna; or yukhribūna, [derived] from [4th form] akhraba) their houses, in order to take away with them what they valued of wood and so on, with their own hands and the hands of the believers. So take heed, O you who have eyes!

3

And had Allahu ta’ālā not prescribed, [had He not] decreed, banishment for them, departure from their homeland, He would have chastised them in this world, by having them killed or taken captive, as He did with the Jews of [Banū] Qurayza, and in the Hereafter there is for them the chastisement of the Fire.

That is because they defied, they opposed, Allahu ta’ālā and His Messenger (rasūl); and whoever defies Allahu ta’ālā, indeed Allahu ta’ālā is severe in retribution, against him.

Whatever palm-trees you cut down, O Muslims, or left standing on their roots, it was by Allah’s leave: He gave you the choice in this matter, and in order that, by giving [you] leave to cut them down, He might disgrace those who are immoral, the Jews, in return for their objection that the cutting down of productive trees was [deliberate] spoiling [of the land].

And whatever spoils Allahu ta’ālā has given to His Messenger (rasūl) from these, you did not, O Muslims, spur for it any (min is extra) horses or camels, that is to say, you did not suffer any hardship in [securing] it, but Allahu ta’ālā gives His messengers (rusul) sway over whomever He will, and Allahu ta’ālā has power over all things: hence you have no right to any of this [booty], rather it is exclusively for the Prophet "sallallahu 'alayhi wa sallam" and those of the four categories mentioned with him in the next verse, [to be dispensed] in accordance with the way in which he used to divide it up, such that each would receive a fifth of the fifth and the rest being the Prophet's "sallallahu 'alayhi wa sallam", for him to do with as he pleases - thus he gave of it to the Emigrants and three from among the Helpers, on account of their poverty.

Whatever spoils Allahu ta’ālā has given to His Messenger (rasūl) from the people of the towns, such as al-Safrā', Wādī al-Qurā and Yanbu', belong to Allahu ta’ālā, dispensing with it as He wishes, and to the Messenger (rasūl) and to the near of kin, the Prophet's kin, from among the Banū Hāshim and the Banū al-Muttālib, and the orphans, the [orphaned] children of Muslims, those whose parents have died and who are impoverished, and the needy, those Muslims in need, and the traveller, the Muslim who may be cut off [from all resources] on a remote journey: in other words, they [these spoils] are the due of the Prophet "sallallahu 'alayhi wa sallam" and [those of] the four categories, divided up in the way that he used to, where each category received a fifth of the fifth, with the rest being his [the Prophet's], so that these, the spoils - this being the justification for the division of these [spoils] in this way, do not (kay-lā: kay functions like lā with a following implied an [sc. an-lā]) become a thing circulating, handed round, between the rich among you. And whatever the Messenger (rasūl) gives you, of spoils or otherwise, take it; and whatever he forbids you, abstain [from it]. And fear Allahu ta’ālā. Surely Allahu ta’ālā is severe in retribution.

[At] the poor Emigrants (li'l-fuqarā'i is semantically connected to an omitted [verb], that is to say, a-'ajibū, 'What! Do they marvel [at the poor Emigrants]') who have been driven away from their homes and their possessions that they should seek bounty from Allahu ta’ālā and beatitude and help Allahu ta’ālā and His Messenger (rasūl)? Those - they are the sincere, in their faith.

And those who had settled in the hometown, that is, Medina, and [had abided] in faith, that is to say, [those who] had embraced it with enthusiasm - these being the Helpers, before them, love those who have emigrated to them, and do not find in their breasts any need, any envy, of that which those [others] have been given, that is to say, of what the Prophet "sallallahu 'alayhi wa sallam" had given the Emigrants from the [seized] possessions of the Banū al-Nadīr, [a share which was] exclusively theirs; but prefer [others] to themselves, though they be in poverty, in need of that which they prefer for [those] others [to have]. And whoever is saved from the avarice of his own soul, its covetousness for [acquiring] possessions, those - they are the successful.

And those who will come after them, after the Emigrants and the Helpers, up to the Day of Resurrection, say, 'Our Rabb, forgive us and our brethren who preceded us in [embracing] the faith, and do not place any rancour, any spite, in our hearts toward those who believe. Our Rabb, You are indeed Kind, Merciful!'.

Have you not considered, [have you not] seen, the hypocrites who say to their brethren who disbelieve from among the People of the Scripture, namely, the Banū al-Nadīr, their brethren in disbelief, 'If (la-in: the lām is for oaths in all four instances) you are expelled, from Medina, we will assuredly go forth with you, and we will never obey anyone against you, to forsake you. And if you are fought against (wa-in qūtiltum: the prefatory lām [of la-in] has been omitted), we will certainly help you.' And Allahu ta’ālā bears witness that they are truly liars.

[For] indeed if they are expelled, they would not go forth with them, and if they are fought against, they would not help them. And even if they were to help them, that is to say, even if they came to help them, they would surely turn their backs [to flee] (the implied response to the oath suffices in place of the response to the conditional, in all five instances) - then they, the Jews, would not be helped.

You indeed arouse greater awe, fear, in their hearts, that is, [the hearts of] the hypocrites, than Allahu ta’ālā - [but only] because He has deferred His chastisement [to the Hereafter]. That is because they are a people who do not comprehend.

They, that is, the Jews, will not fight against you together, [all] in a [single] body, except in fortified towns or from behind some wall (jidār: a variant reading has [plural] judur, 'walls'), some [kind of protective] fence. Their might, their belligerence, is great among themselves. You [would] suppose them to be all together, united as a [single] body, but their hearts are disunited, scattered, contrary to supposition. That is because they are a people who have no sense;

their likeness in relinquishing faith is, as the likeness of those who, recently before them, a short time before - these being the idolaters from among those [who fought] at Badr - tasted the evil consequences of their conduct, the punishment for it in this world, by being killed or otherwise. And for them there will be a painful chastisement, in the Hereafter.

In addition, their likeness in heeding the [words of the] hypocrites and their forsaking of them is, like Satan when he says to man, 'Disbelieve!'; so that when he [man] disbelieves, he says, 'Lo! I am absolved of you. Indeed I fear Allahu ta’ālā, the Rabb of the Worlds', out of mendacity and dissimulation on his part.

So the sequel for both will be, that is, [the sequel for both] the one who leads astray and the one led astray (a variant reading for ['āqibatahumā] has the nominative 'āqibatuhumā, as the subject of kāna, 'will be'), that they are in the Fire, therein abiding. And that is the requital of the evildoers, that is, the disbelievers.

O you who believe, fear Allahu ta’ālā and let every soul consider what it has sent ahead for tomorrow, for the Day of Resurrection. And fear Allahu ta’ālā. Allahu ta’ālā is indeed Aware of what you do.

And do not be like those who forget Allahu ta’ālā, [those who] neglect obedience to Him, so that He makes them forget their own souls, [to forget] to send ahead good deeds for its sake. Those - they are the immoral.

Not equal are the inhabitants of the Fire and the inhabitants of Paradise. It is the inhabitants of Paradise who are the winners.

Had We sent down this Qur'ān upon a mountain, and had it [the mountain] been endowed with a faculty of discernment like man, you would have surely seen it humbled, rent asunder by the fear of Allahu ta’ālā. And such similitudes, as those mentioned - do We strike for mankind, that perhaps they may reflect, and so become believers.

He is Allah, than Whom there is no other god, Ālim/Knower of the unseen and the visible, what is secret and what is proclaimed,

He is al-Rahmān [Wishes goodness andrahmah(mercy) for His creation.],

al-Rahīm [Has great mercy; Rewards those who acknowledge and believe Him and use the benefactions He gave them in good ways with greater and endless benefactions.].

He is Allah than Whom there is no other god. [The most exalted name ofAllahu ta’ālā; all of His names are gathered in it. He is One and unique in Hisdhāt(self), His attributes, and His actions. He is unique; so He is not like anything. He isqadīm[eternal, His existence does not have a beginning] andbāqī (everlasting, His existence is without end). He has not given birth (to a child) and was not born (from a mother or any other being). He does not have a mate, a son, or a daughter. He is not at amakān(place, location).];

al-Malik / the Sovereign Lord [the Ruler of everything, the ruler who does not need anybody else.];

al-Quddūs / the Holy, the One sanctified from what does not befit Him. [Exalted beyond and free from all imperfections and defects, completely flawless.];

as-Salām / the Peace, unblemished by any defects. [The One without any flaws, The One who leads Hisabdsfrom dangers tosalāmah(safety), The One who givessalām[greetings] to Hisabds in paradise. (Abdmeans created and living being who worships, obeys, and serves. It is usually used for “human being”).];

al-Mu’min / the Securer, the One Who confirms the sincerity of His messengers (rusul) by creating miracles for them. [The One who attests to the truth of His promise to Hismu’minabds (believers), The One who protects them from punishment; The One who declares His own unity.];

al-Muhaymin/ the Guardian [derives] from haymana, yuhayminu, meaning that one is watcher over something, in other words, the One Who is Witness to the deeds of His servants. [The Guardian, The Protector, The One who is trustworthy.];

al-Azīz/ the Mighty, the Strong.[The Victor that cannot be defeated.];

al-Jabbār/ the Compeller, compelling His creatures to what He wishes. [The One who corrects and removes deficiencies, The One who is able to enforce what He wishes];

al-Mutakabbir / the Exalted, above what does not befit Him.[The One who manifests His greatness in everything and every action.];

Glorified be Allah - He is declaring His transcendence - above what partners they ascribe!, to Him.

He is Allah, al-Khāliq / the Creator [The One who foreordains and creates the states of everything, The One who creates everything from nothing.];

al-Bārī / the Maker, the Originator from nothing[The One who creates matter and parts of everything compatible with each other and in a harmonious state.];

al-Musawwir / the Shaper [The fashioner of forms;The One who gives everything its shape and properties.];

To Him belong the, ninety nine, Most Beautiful Names, cited in hadīth (al-husnā is the feminine of al-ahsan). All that is in the heavens and the earth glorify Him,

and He is al-Azīz/ the Mighty [The Victor that cannot be defeated.]

al-Hakīm / the Wise [His orders and all His actions are perfectly ordered, faultless, and have wisdom. There are countless benefits and protective aspects in His acts.]- already explained at the beginning of this [sūra.].

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