Chapter 8, Verse 6

Important Words:

The particle کما (as) ordinarily meaning "just as" or "like unto" is also sometimes used in the sense of "as" or "since" or "because." The Arabs say کما تطیع اللّٰہ ید خلك الجنة i.e. as you obey Allah, so He will make you enter Heaven (Muhit).

Commentary:

There has been much difference of opinion about the significance of the word کما (as) occurring in the beginning of this verse and briefly treated under Important Words above. Preferably the word has been used here in the sense of "as" or "since" in which case the words نصرك علی اعدائك (therefore He helped thee against thy enemies) would be taken to be understood at the end of the verse, as shown in the text. If, however, the word is taken in its ordinary sense of "just as," then the verse would be interpreted as providing an illustration of how God grants victories to His servants and bestows spoils and honourable provision on them (see the promises contained in 8:2, 5 above). In this case the verse could be rendered as: "God grants victories and spoils to His servants and bestows on them honourable provision just as He did when He brought thee forth from thy house, etc."

The expression بالحق (rightfully) refers to the fact that it was by Divine command, and under Divine revelation, that the Holy Prophet went forth from Medina to meet the enemy.

The verse thus signifies that, as the Holy Prophet had come forth by God’s own command, and under His special revelation, therefore God could not forsake him; so He helped him against the enemy.

The verse relates to the Battle of Badr. When Muslims came forth from Medina, they did not know that they would have to fight a Meccan army. So they did not come fully prepared for battle. Hence, when, on the way, the Holy Prophet revealed to them the fact that they would have to fight the Meccan army, they asked him why he had not told them so at Medina, so that they might have come prepared to meet the enemy. Their anxiety was not for themselves but for the Holy Prophet, whom they loved more than their lives. Hence, in their condition of unpreparedness, they were unwilling to expose him to danger. That the Muslims were anxious for the sake of the Holy Prophet and not for themselves and that it was his going forth that they did not like is clear from the verse itself which uses the words "brought thee forth" and not "brought you forth." The verse thus implies that when the Companions of the Holy Prophet were so anxious about their beloved Master—God, Whose Messenger he was—could not leave him unprotected; His love for him was certainly greater than that of his Companions.

The particle kama ordinarily meaning "just as" or "like unto" is also sometimes used in the sense of "as" or "since" or "because" (Muhit). If, the particle is taken in its ordinary sense of "just as," then the verse could be rendered as: "God grants victories and spoils to His servants and bestows on them honourable provision just as He did when He brought thee forth from thy house, etc."

Bil Haqqi means, for a righteous purpose. The verse relates to the Battle of Badr.

When Muslims marched out from Medina, as they did not know that they would have to fight a well-equipped Meccan army, they did not come fully prepared for fighting. So when on the way they learnt that they would have to fight the Meccan army they anxiously asked the Holy Prophet why he had not informed them of the real state of affairs so that they should have come fully prepared to meet the enemy. Thus their anxiety was not for their own sake but for the safety of the Holy Prophet. In their unpreparedness they were averse to exposing him to danger. This is clear from the verse "brought thee forth" and not "brought you forth," which signifies that God, in pursuance of Whose command the Holy Prophet had not informed the believers of the encounter with the Meccan army, would not leave him unprotected. The Muslims were not afraid of fighting. They were averse to it because they did not like to shed human blood and because also the person of the Holy Prophet had become exposed to danger.