Maulana Wahiduddin Khan
Surah Muhammad
Surah 47 · Muhammad · verse 4 of 38

Quran 47:4 · Muhammad

فَإِذَا لَقِيتُمُ ٱلَّذِينَ كَفَرُواْ فَضَرۡبَ ٱلرِّقَابِ حَتَّىٰٓ إِذَآ أَثۡخَنتُمُوهُمۡ فَشُدُّواْ ٱلۡوَثَاقَ فَإِمَّا مَنَّۢا بَعۡدُ وَإِمَّا فِدَآءً حَتَّىٰ تَضَعَ ٱلۡحَرۡبُ أَوۡزَارَهَاۚ ذَٰلِكَۖ وَلَوۡ يَشَآءُ ٱللَّهُ لَٱنتَصَرَ مِنۡهُمۡ وَلَٰكِن لِّيَبۡلُوَاْ بَعۡضَكُم بِبَعۡضٖۗ وَٱلَّذِينَ قُتِلُواْ فِي سَبِيلِ ٱللَّهِ فَلَن يُضِلَّ أَعۡمَٰلَهُمۡ

So when you meet those who disbelieve [in battle], strike [their] necks until, when you have inflicted slaughter upon them, then secure their bonds, and either [confer] favor afterwards or ransom [them] until the war lays down its burdens. That [is the command]. And if Allah had willed, He could have taken vengeance upon them [Himself], but [He ordered armed struggle] to test some of you by means of others. And those who are killed in the cause of Allah - never will He waste their deeds

Translation: Sahih International
Maulana’s commentary · Tazkirul Quran

Here, disbelievers or rejectors refers to those who did not embrace the Faith despite compelling arguments having been put forward in its favour. Moreover, they unjustifiably waged war against the Prophet Muhammad and thus compelled the Prophet to take defensive steps. As regards such people, it has been ordained that in case of confrontation with them, they should be fought against and crushed, so that they should not be able to place impediments in the way of the mission of Truth. It has ever been the rule of God that those who rejected their Prophet would be destroyed after the conclusion of arguments. But in case of the last prophet, it was the will of God that, through him and his companions, the age of polytheism should be brought to an end and a new era of history should be brought into existence on the strength of the oneness of God. For this, epoch-making men were needed and their selection could be done only under the most trying circumstances: this purpose was achieved by sending the companions of the Prophet of God into the war waged by his opponents. Paradise is the most familiar and best known concept for a believer. He not only hears about it from the Prophet, but also, by means of his developed inner knowledge (ma‘rifah), gains an intuitive understanding of it. It is still this deep understanding of the unseen, hidden Paradise that inspires and encourages man to seek it, regardless of the sacrifices to be made. Had it not been so, nobody would have sacrificed today’s world in the hopes of entering tomorrow’s Paradise.

Maulana Wahiduddin Khan, Tazkirul Quran

In the lectures

Maulana does not cite this verse in the lectures indexed so far. The verses of this surah Maulana does cite →