48:8 Al-Fath (The Victory)

أي: { إِنَّا أَرْسَلْنَاكَ } أيها الرسول الكريم { شَاهِدًا } لأمتك بما فعلوه من خير وشر، وشاهدا على المقالات والمسائل، حقها وباطلها، وشاهدا لله تعالى بالوحدانية والانفراد بالكمال من كل وجه، { وَمُبَشِّرًا } من أطاعك وأطاع الله بالثواب الدنيوي والديني والأخروي، ومنذرا من عصى الله بالعقاب العاجل والآجل، ومن تمام البشارة والنذارة، بيان الأعمال والأخلاق التي يبشر بها وينذر، فهو المبين للخير والشر، والسعادة والشقاوة، والحق من الباطل.

قال الإمام أحمد حدثنا موسى بن داود حدثنا فليح بن سليمان حدثنا هلال بن علي عن عطاء بن يسار قال لقيت عبدالله بن عمرو بن العاص رضي الله عنهما فقلت أخبرني عن صفة رسول الله صلى الله عليه وسلم في التوراة قال أجل والله إنه لموصوف في التوراة ببعض صفته في القرآن "يا أيها النبي إنا أرسلناك شاهدا ومبشرا ونذيرا "وحرزا للأميين فأنت عبدي ورسولي سميتك المتوكل ليس بفظ ولا غليظ ولا سخاب في الأسواق ولا يدفع السيئة بالسيئة ولكن يعفو ويصفح ويغفر ولن يقبضه الله حتى يقيم به الملة العوجاء بأن يقولوا لا إله إلا الله فيفتح بها أعينا عميا وآذانا صما وقلوبا غلفا وقد رواه البخاري في البيوع عن محمد بن سنان عن فليح بن سليمان عن هلال بن علي به ورواه في التفسير عن عبدالله قيل ابن رجاء وقيل ابن صالح عن عبدالعزيز بن أبي سلمة عن هلال عن عطاء بن يسار عن عبدالله بن عمرو به ورواه ابن أبي حاتم عن أبيه عن عبدالله بن رجاء عن عبدالعزيز بن أبي سلمة الماجشون به وقال البخاري في البيوع وقال سعيد عن هلال عن عطاء عن عبدالله بن سلام رضي الله عنه وقال وهب بن منبه إن الله تعالى أوحى إلى نبي من أنبياء بني إسرائيل يقال له شعياء: أن قم في قومك بني إسرائيل فإني منطق لسانك بوحي وأبعث أميا من الأمين أبعثه ليس بفظ ولا غليظ ولا سخاب في الأسواق لو يمر إلى جنب سراج لم يطفئه من سكينته ولو يمشي على القصب لم يسمع من تحت قدميه أبعثه مبشرا ونذيرا لا يقول الخنا أفتح به أعينا كمها وآذانا صما وقلوبا غلفا أسدده لكل أمر جميل وأهب له كل خلق كريم وأجعل السكينة لباسه والبر شعاره والتقوى ضميره والحكمة منطقة والصدق والوفاء طبيعته والعفو والمعروف خلقه والحق شريعته والعدل سيرته والهدى إمامه والإسلام ملته وأحمد اسمه أهدي به بعد الضلال وأعلم به بعد الجهالة وأرفع به بعد الخمالة وأعرف به بعد النكرة وأكثر به بعد القلة وأغني به بعد العيلة وأجمع به بعد الفرقة وأؤلف به بين أمم متفرقة وقلوب مختلفة وأهواء متشتتة وأستنقذ به فئاما من الناس عظيمة من الهلكة وأجعل أمته خير أمة أخرجت للناس يأمرون بالمعروف وينهون عن المنكر موحدين مؤمنين مخلصين مصدقين لما جاءت به رسلي ألهمهم التسبيح والتحميد والثناء والتكبير والتوحيد في مساجدهم ومجالسهم ومضاجعهم ومنقلبهم ومثواهم يصلون لي قياما وقعودا ويقاتلون في سبيل الله صفوفا وزحوفا ويخرجون من ديارهم ابتغاء مرضاتي ألوفا يظهرون الوجوه والأطراف ويشدون الثياب في الأنصاف قربانهم دماؤهم وأنا جيلهم فى صدورهم رهبان بالليل ليوث بالنهار وأجعل في أهل بيته وذريته السابقين والصديقين والشهداء والصالحين أمته من بعده يهدون بالحق وبه يعدلون وأعز من نصرهم وأيد من دعا لهم وأجعل دائرة السوء على من خالفهم أو بغى عليهم أو أراد أن ينتزع شيئا مما في أيديهم أجعلهم ورثة لنبيهم والداعية إلى ربهم يأمرون بالمعروف وينهون عن المنكر ويقيمون الصلاة ويؤتون الزكاة ويوفون بعهدهم أختم بهم الخير الذي بدأته بأولهم ذلك فضلي أؤتيه من أشاء وأنا ذو الفضل العظيم هكذا رواه ابن أبي حاتم عن وهب بن منبه اليماني رحمه الله ثم قال ابن أبي حاتم حدثنا أبي حدثنا عبدالرحمن بن صالح حدثنا عبدالرحمن بن محمد بن عبيد الله القرشي عن شيبان النحوي أخبرني قتادة عن عكرمة عن ابن عباس رضي الله عنهما قال: لما نزلت "يا أيها النبي إنا أرسلناك شاهدا ومبشرا ونذيرا "وقد كان أمر عليا ومعاذا رضي الله عنهما أن يسيرا إلى اليمن فقال انطلقا فبشرا ولا تنفرا ويسرا ولا تعسرا إنه قد أنزل علي "يا أيها النبي إنا أرسلناك شاهدا ومبشرا ونذيرا "ورواه الطبراني عن محمد بن نصر بن حميد البزار البغدادي عن عبدالرحمن بن صالح الأزدي عن عبدالرحمن بن محمد بن عبيد الله العرزمي بإسناده مثله وقال في آخره فإنه قد أنزل علي يا أيها النبي إنا أرسلناك شاهدا على أمتك ومبشرا بالجنة ونذيرا من النار وداعيا إلى شهادة أن لا إله إلا الله بإذنه وسراجا منيرا بالقرآن فقوله تعالى: "شاهدا "أي لله بالوحدانية وأنه لا إله غيره وعلى الناس بأعمالهم يوم القيامة وجئنا بك على هؤلاء شهيدا كقوله: "لتكونوا شهداء على الناس ويكون الرسول عليكم شهيدا "وقوله عز وجل "ومبشرا ونذيرا "أي بشيرا للمؤمنين بجزيل الثواب ونذيرا للكافرين من وبيل العقاب.

Qualities of the Messenger of Allah ﷺ

Allah the Exalted says to His Prophet, Muhammad ﷺ,

إِنَّآ أَرْسَلْنَـكَ شَاهِداً

(Verily, We have sent you as a witness,) of the creation,

وَمُبَشِّراً

(as a bearer of glad tidings,) to the believers,

وَنَذِيرًا

(and as a warner.) to the disbelievers. We explained these meanings in the Tafsir of Surat Al-Ahzab. Allah said,

لِّتُؤْمِنُواْ بِاللَّهِ وَرَسُولِهِ وَتُعَزِّرُوهُ

(In order that you may believe in Allah and His Messenger, and that you Tu`azziruh) or you honor him, according to `Abdullah bin `Abbas and several others,

وَتُوَقِّرُوهُ

(and Tuwaqqiruh), where Tawqir means, respect, honor and high regard,

وَتُسَبِّحُوهُ

(and that you Tusabbihuh), glorify Allah's praises,

بُكْرَةً وَأَصِيلاً

(Bukrah and Asila), the early and late part of the day.

The Pledge of Ar-Ridwan

Allah the Exalted and Most Honored honors, regards and praises His Messenger by saying,

إِنَّ الَّذِينَ يُبَايِعُونَكَ إِنَّمَا يُبَايِعُونَ اللَّهَ

(Verily, those who give pledge to you, they are giving pledge to Allah.) Allah the Exalted and Most High said in another Ayah,

مَّنْ يُطِعِ الرَّسُولَ فَقَدْ أَطَاعَ اللَّهَ

(He who obeys the Messenger, has indeed obeyed Allah.) (4:80) Allah said, next,

يَدُ اللَّهِ فَوْقَ أَيْدِيهِمْ

(The Hand of Allah is over their hands.) meaning, He is with them, hearing their statements and witnessing their stand, having full knowledge of them inwardly and outwardly. Therefore, Allah the Exalted was indeed taking the pledge from them through His Messenger ,

إِنَّ اللَّهَ اشْتَرَى مِنَ الْمُؤْمِنِينَ أَنفُسَهُمْ وَأَمْوَلَهُمْ بِأَنَّ لَهُمُ الّجَنَّةَ يُقَـتِلُونَ فِى سَبِيلِ اللَّهِ فَيَقْتُلُونَ وَيُقْتَلُونَ وَعْدًا عَلَيْهِ حَقًّا فِي التَّوْرَاةِ وَالإِنجِيلِ وَالْقُرْءانِ وَمَنْ أَوْفَى بِعَهْدِهِ مِنَ اللَّهِ فَاسْتَبْشِرُواْ بِبَيْعِكُمُ الَّذِى بَايَعْتُمْ بِهِ وَذَلِكَ هُوَ الْفَوْزُ الْعَظِيمُ

(Verily, Allah has purchased of the believers their lives and their properties for which theirs shall be the Paradise. They fight in Allah's cause, so they kill and are killed. It is a promise in truth, binding on Him in the Tawrah and the Injil and the Qur'an. And who is truer to his covenant than Allah Then rejoice in the bargain you have concluded. That is the supreme success.)(9:111) Allah said,

وَمَنْ أَوْفَى بِمَا عَـهَدَ عَلَيْهِ اللَّهَ فَسَيُؤْتِيهِ أَجْراً عَظِيماً

(...and whosoever fulfills what the covenants he makes with Allah, He will bestow on him a great reward.) a generous reward. The pledge mentioned here is the pledge of Ar-Ridwan which was pledged under a tree, a Samurah, in the area of Al-Hudaybiyyah. The number of the Companions who gave their pledge to Allah's Messenger ﷺ at that time was either 1,300, 1,400 or 1,500. However, 1,400 is the better choice.

Hadiths about the Pledge at Al-Hudaybiyyah

Al-Bukhari recorded that Jabir bin `Abdullah, may Allah be pleased with him, said, "We numbered one thousand and four hundred on the day of Hudaybiyyah." Muslim also collected this Hadith. The Two Sahihs recorded that Jabir said; "We numbered one thousand and four hundred at that time. The Messenger placed his hand in the water and it started gushing forth from between his fingers until everyone had quenched their thirst." This is a short form of the story. Another narration of it mentioned that the Companions became thirsty on the day of Al-Hudaybiyyah and the Messenger of Allah ﷺ gave them an arrow from his quiver. They took the arrow, placed it in the well of Al-Hudaybiyyah and the water gushed out until they all satisfied their thirst. Jabir was asked how many of them there were on that day and he said, "We were one thousand and four hundred. And had we been a hundred thousand, that water would still have been sufficient to satisfy us all." In another narration collected in the Two Sahihs, Jabir bin `Abdullah said that they were one thousand and five hundred at the time. Al-Bukhari recorded that Sa`id bin Al-Musayyib was asked by Qatadah, "How many were present for the pledge of Ar-Ridwan" Sa`id said, "One thousand and five hundred." Qatadah posed, "Jabir bin `Abdullah, may Allah be pleased with them both, said that they were one thousand and four hundred." Sa`id said, "He forgot. He told me that they were one thousand and five hundred." However, Al-Bayhaqi commented, "This narration testifies that Jabir used to state that they were one thousand and five hundred, but later on remembered the true number and said that they were one thousand and four hundred."

The Reason behind conducting the Pledge of Ar-Ridwan

Muhammad bin Ishaq bin Yasar said in his book on Sirah: "The Messenger of Allah ﷺ beckoned `Umar bin Al-Khattab in order to send him to Makkah, so that he could inform the chiefs of Quraysh of the Prophet's intent (to perform `Umrah at Makkah). `Umar said, `O Allah's Messenger! I fear the Quraysh for my being. There are no longer any chiefs from the tribe of Bani `Adi bin Ka`b remaining in Makkah who would protect me, in addition, the Quraysh know my enmity and harshness against them. However, I could tell you about a man who is mightier than I in Makkah: `Uthman bin `Affan. We should send him to Abu Sufyan and the chiefs of the Quraysh informing them that you did not come to fight them, but to visit this House and to honor its holiness.' `Uthman left to Makkah. He met Aban bin Sa`id bin Al-`As upon entering Makkah or just before that. As a result, Aban took `Uthman with him and extended his protection to him so he could deliver the message of Allah's Messenger ﷺ. `Uthman indeed went to Abu Sufyan and the chiefs of Quraysh and imparted the Prophet's message that he was sent with. When `Uthman finished delivering the Prophet's message to them they said to him, `If you wish, you can perform Tawaf around the House.' `Uthman replied, `I would not do that before the Messenger of Allah ﷺ gets the chance to perform Tawaf around it.' So the Quraysh kept `Uthman waiting in Makkah. However, the Messenger of Allah ﷺ and the Muslims were told that `Uthman had been killed." Ibn Ishaq continued, "I was told by `Abdullah bin Abu Bakr that when news of `Uthman's death was conveyed to him, the Messenger of Allah ﷺ said,

«لَا نَبْرَحُ حَتْى نُنَاجِزَ الْقَوْم»

(We will not leave until we fight the people.)" Ibn Ishaq continued, "The Messenger of Allah ﷺ called the Muslims to give a pledge of allegiance, resulting in the pledge of Ar-Ridwan being conducted under the tree. Later, people used to say that the Messenger of Allah ﷺ took the pledge from them to die. However, Jabir bin `Abdullah said, `The Messenger of Allah ﷺ did not ask us to give a pledge to die (or be victorious), but that we would not run away (from battle).' The Muslims gave their pledge and none among them held back from giving it, except Al-Jadd bin Qays from the tribe of Bani Salamah. Jabir used to say afterwards, `By Allah, it is as if I am looking at him now next to the shoulder of his camel taking refuge behind it, so that the people did not see him.' Soon afterwards, news came to the Messenger of Allah ﷺ that the story of `Uthman's death was not true." Al-Bukhari recorded that Nafi` said, "People said that `Abdullah bin `Umar embraced Islam before `Umar, but this is not true. What happened is that on the Day of Hudaybiyyah, `Umar sent `Abdullah to bring his horse that he kept with a man from Al-Ansar, so he could use it to fight. The Messenger of Allah ﷺ was then taking the pledge from the Muslims under the tree while `Umar was unaware. So, `Abdullah conducted his pledge and fetched the horse and brought it to `Umar, who was wearing his armor in preparation for battle. `Abdullah told `Umar that the Messenger of Allah ﷺ was accepting the pledge under the tree. `Umar proceeded with `Abdullah and gave his pledge to the Messenger of Allah ﷺ. This is why some people thought that `Abdullah bin `Umar embraced Islam before `Umar, may Allah be pleased with them both." Al-Bukhari also recorded Ibn `Umar saying that, the people who were with the Messenger of Allah ﷺ scattered under the shade of trees. Suddenly, the people gathered around the Prophet and `Umar said, "O `Abdullah! Investigate why the people are gathering around Allah's Messenger ﷺ." Ibn `Umar found the people giving their pledge. He gave his pledge, then went back and told `Umar, who also went and gave his pledge. In a Hadith collected by Muslim, Jabir bin `Abdullah said, "On the day of Al-Hudaybiyyah, we were one thousand and four hundred. We gave the pledge of allegiance to the Prophet while `Umar was holding the Prophet's hand under the tree, which was a Samurah (a kind of thorny tree). We gave the pledge to him not to run away (from battle). We did not give the pledge to die." Muslim recorded that Ma`qil bin Yasar, may Allah be pleased with him, said, "On the day of the Tree, while the Prophet was taking the pledge from the people, I was holding a branch of that tree away from his head. We were fourteen hundred. We did not give him our pledge to die, but gave the pledge not to run from battle." However, Al-Bukhari recorded that Salamah bin Al-Akwa`, may Allah be pleased with him, said, "I gave the pledge to the Messenger of Allah ﷺ under the tree." Yazid asked him, "O Abu Maslamah, to what did you pledge at that time" Salamah said, "To die!" Al-Bukhari also collected a Hadith from Salamah bin Al-Akwa` that he said, "I gave my pledge to the Messenger of Allah ﷺ on the day of Hudaybiyyah. I stood to the side and the Messenger ﷺ said,

«يَا سَلَمَةُ أَلَا تُبَايِعُ؟»

(Why not give the pledge, O Salamah) and I said, `I did.' He said,

«أَقْبِلْ فَبَايِع»

(Come and give pledge). I went close to him and gave him my pledge."' Salamah was asked, "What was the pledge that you gave then, O Salamah" Salamah said, "To die." Muslim collected this Hadith as well, while Al-Bukhari collected from `Abbad bin Tamim that the pledge they gave was to die. Al-Bayhaqi recorded that Salamah bin Al-Akwa`, may Allah be pleased with him said, "We went to Al-Hudaybiyyah with the Messenger of Allah ﷺ, and we numbered fourteen hundred at that time. We reached the well and found around fifty sheep drinking from it, but its water was barely sufficient for them. The Messenger of Allah ﷺ sat on its rim, invoked Allah and spat in the well and its water gushed out. We made our animals drink from it and also drank from it. Next, the Messenger of Allah ﷺ called the people to give the pledge when he was under the tree, and I was among the first to give the pledge to him. The remaining people then started giving the pledge. When about half the people have given the pledge, the Messenger ﷺ said to me,

«بَايِعْنِي يَا سَلَمَة»

(Give me the pledge, O Salamah!) I said, `O Allah's Messenger! I have already pledged my pledge in the first group of people.' He said,

«وَأَيْضًا»

(Do it again.) So I pledged my pledge again. He also saw that I was not wearing any armor and gave me some. He went on accepting the pledge from the people. When they were about to finish, he said,

«أَلَا تُبَايِـــعُ يَا سَلَمَةُ؟»

(Will you not give me your pledge, O Salamah!) I said, `O Allah's Messenger! I have given you the pledge in the beginning and the middle. ' He said,

«وَأَيْضًا»

(Do it again,) I gave him my pledge for a third time. The Messenger of Allah ﷺ asked me,

«يَا سَلَمَةُ أَيْنَ حَجَفَتُكَ أَوْ دَرَقَتُكَ الَّتِي أَعْطَيْتُكَ؟»

(Where is the armor that I gave you O Salamah) I said, `O Allah's Messenger! `Amir met me and I found that he did not have a shield, so I gave it to him.' The Messenger of Allah ﷺ laughed and said to me,

«إِنَّكَ كَالَّذِي قَالَ الْأَوَّلُ اللْهُمَّ أَبْغِنِي حَبِيبًا هُوَ أَحَبُّ إِلَيَّ مِنْ نَفْسِي»

(You are just like the man of old times who said, `O Allah! Give me a dear person who is dearer to me than myself!') Then the idolators of Makkah sent a delegation asking for a peace treaty, and we agreed to make peace. I used to work for Talhah bin `Ubaydullah, may Allah be pleased with him, by providing water for his horse. For taking care of it, Talhah gave me a portion of his food. I had left my family and wealth and migrated to Allah and His Messenger (so I was poor). After the people of Makkah and us conducted peace and were freely mingling with each other, I went by a tree, removed its thorny branches and rested under its shade. Four of the idolators of Makkah stood close to me and started mentioning the Messenger of Allah ﷺ in an improper way and I hated being close to them. So, I moved under the shade of another tree. They hanged their weapons and rested under it. Meanwhile, a caller shouted these words from the bottom of the valley, `O Emigrants! Ibn Zunaym was killed,' so I held my sword and went after the four idolators. They were asleep, so I took possession of their weapons and held them in my hand, saying, `By He Who has honored the face of Muhammad ﷺ, if any one of you raises his head, I will strike that which holds his eyes!' I brought them to the Messenger of Allah ﷺ, while my uncle `Amir brought another man, an idolator, whose name was Mikraz, and I and my uncle brought the men to the Messenger of Allah ﷺ. The number of captured idolators swelled to seventy. The Messenger of Allah ﷺ looked at them and said,

«دَعُوهُمْ يَكُنْ لَهُمْ بَدْءُ الْفُجُورِ وَثِنَاه»

(Let them go, for theirs will be the initiation of hostilities and its burden.) The Messenger of Allah ﷺ forgave them and Allah the Exalted and Most Honored said,

وَهُوَ الَّذِى كَفَّ أَيْدِيَهُمْ عَنكُمْ وَأَيْدِيَكُمْ عَنْهُم بِبَطْنِ مَكَّةَ مِن بَعْدِ أَنْ أَظْفَرَكُمْ عَلَيْهِمْ

(And He it is Who has withheld their hands from you and your hands from them in the midst of Makkah, after He had made you victors over them.)48:24" Muslim collected a narration that is the same or similar. The Two Sahihs recorded that Sa`id bin Al-Musayyib said, "My father was among those who gave the pledge to the Messenger of Allah ﷺ under the tree. He said, `In the following year, we went for Hajj and we could not find the tree.' Therefore, if you know where that tree is, then you have more knowledge!" Abu Bakr Al-Humaydi recorded that Jabir said, "When the Messenger of Allah ﷺ called the people to the pledge, we found a man from our tribe whose name is Al-Jadd bin Qays, hiding under the shoulder of his camel." Muslim collected this Hadith. Al-Humaydi also recorded that `Amr said that he heard Jabir say, "On the day of Hudaybiyyah, we were one thousand and four hundred and the Messenger of Allah ﷺ said to us,

«أَنْتُمْ خَيْرُ أَهْلِ الْأَرْضِ الْيَوْم»

(Today, you are the best people on the earth.)" Jabir went on saying, "If I still had my sight, I would have shown you the tree." Sufyan commented that the Companions later on differed over the location of the tree of Al-Hudaybiyyah; the Two Sahihs collected this statement from him. Imam Ahmad recorded that Jabir said that the Messenger of Allah ﷺ said,

«لَا يَدْخُلُ النَّارَ أَحَدٌ مِمَّنْ بَايَعَ تَحْتَ الشَّجَرَة»

(None among those who gave the pledge under the tree shall enter Hellfire.) `Abdullah bin Imam Ahmad recorded that Jabir said that the Messenger of Allah ﷺ said,

«مَنْ يَصْعَدُ الثَّنِيَّةَ ثَنِيَّةَ الْمُرَارِ فَإِنَّهُ يُحَطُّ عَنْهُ مَا حُطَّ عَنْ بَنِي إِسْرَائِيل»

(He who ascends Thaniyyah (i.e. a mountainous pass), the Thaniyyah of Al-Murar, will have as much of his sins relieved for him as the sins that were relieved from the Children of Israel.) The first to ascend that hill were the horsemen of (the Ansar tribe of) Banu Al-Khazraj, then the Muslims followed suit. The Prophet said,

«كُلُّكُمْ مَغْفُورٌ لَهُ إِلَّا صَاحِبَ الْجَمَلِ الْأَحْمَر»

(All of you will be forgiven, except the owner of the red camel.) We said to him, "Come, let the Messenger of Allah ﷺ invoke Allah to forgive you," but he said, "By Allah! Finding my lost camel is dearer to me than having your companion invoke Allah to forgive me. " That man was only looking for his lost camel. Muslim collected this Hadith from Ubaydullah (from Jabir). Muslim also recorded that Abu Az-Zubayr heard Jabir say, "Umm Mubashshir told me that she heard the Messenger of Allah ﷺ saying, while he was with Hafsah,

«لَا يَدْخُلُ النَّارَ إِنْ شَاءَ اللهُ تَعَالَى مِنْ أَصْحَابِ الشَّجَرَةِ الَّذِينَ بَايَعُوا تَحْتَهَا، أَحَد»

(Allah willing, none of the Companions of the tree, who gave the pledge under it, will ever enter Hellfire.) She said, `No, O Allah's Messenger.' The Prophet rebuked her but Hafsah said,

وَإِن مِّنكُمْ إِلاَّ وَارِدُهَا

(There is not one of you but will pass over it (Hell))(19:71) but the Prophet responded,

«قَدْ قَالَ اللهُ تَعَالَى:

ثُمَّ نُنَجِّى الَّذِينَ اتَّقَواْ وَّنَذَرُ الظَّـلِمِينَ فِيهَا جِثِيّاً »

(Allah the Exalted said next, (Then We shall save those who had Taqwa and We shall leave the wrongdoers therein on their knees.))(19:71)" Muslim also narrated that Jabir said, "A slave of Hatib bin Abi Balta`ah came to the Messenger complaining against Hatib and saying, `O Allah's Messenger! Hatib shall surely enter Hell.' The Messenger of Allah ﷺ replied,

«كَذَبْتَ لَا يَدْخُلُهَا فَإِنَّهُ قَدْ شَهِدَ بَدْرًا وَالْحُدَيْبِيَّة»

(You lie, he shall never enter the Fire; he participated in Badr and Al-Hudaybiyyah.) This is why Allah the Exalted said while praising these Companions,

Indeed We have sent you as a witness against your community at the Resurrection and a bearer of good tidings to them in this world and a warner to threaten those in it who do evil with the punishment of the Fire;

Injunctions and Related Considerations

In the preceding verses, Allah referred to the favours he bestowed generously upon the Holy Prophet ﷺ and his Ummah, especially upon those who participated in the pledge of Ridwan. The Bestower of the favours is Allah and the medium is the Holy Prophet ﷺ . Therefore, in the current set of verses, the right of the Holy Prophet ﷺ and the obligation of the Ummah to honour and revere him is entrenched. First, three attributes of the Holy Prophet ﷺ are referred to: shahid, mubashshir, nadhir. Shahid means 'witness' and its sense here is the same as that of shahid which occurs in [ 4:41].

. فَكَيْفَ إِذَا جِئْنَا مِن كُلِّ أُمَّةٍ بِشَهِيدٍ وَجِئْنَا بِكَ عَلَىٰ هَـٰؤُلَاءِ شَهِيدًا

"How would it, then, be when We shall bring a witness from every community and shall bring you over them as a witness.

Both forms of the word mean "a witness". Every Prophet (علیہ السلام) will bear testimony to the fact that he has delivered Allah's message to his particular community - some accepted and others rejected. See Ma` ariful Qur'an, Vol 2/pp 442-3 for details. Likewise the Holy Prophet ﷺ will bear witness for his community. Qurtubi writes under [ 4:41] that the prophets' testimony will be for the people of their respective time as to who accepted their call to the Truth and who defied it. Likewise the Holy Prophet's ﷺ testimony will be for the people of his particular time. Other scholars express the view that the Holy Prophet ﷺ will bear witness to the entire community's good and bad works, and to its obedience and defiance, because, according to some versions, angels present to the Holy Prophet ﷺ morning and evening the works of the community. Thus he is aware of the entire community's works.

Mubashshir and Nadhir: Mubashshir connotes bearer of good tidings and nadhir means a warner. That is to say, he gives glad tidings of Paradise to the believing and obedient sector of the community. On the other hand, he is a Warner to those who rejected the message - making them aware of the punishment of such defiance. Further, the purpose of sending the Messenger has been indicated - that is, to believe in Allah and his Messenger ﷺ . In addition, it is mentioned that the believers must be characterized by three more qualities:

[ 1] that they should "support him"

[ 2] "and revere him"; and

[ 3] "pronounce His (Allah's) purity morning and evening."

The first phrase contains a verb which is derived from the infinitive or verbal noun ta’ zir which denotes to help or support. Punishment is also called to ta’ zir because the idea underlying punishment is to give real help to the criminal by punishing him (Raghib: Mufradatul Qur’ an). The second phrase contains a verb which is derived from the infinitive or verbal noun tawqir which means to show reverence. The third phrase contains a verb which is derived from the infinitive or verbal noun tasbih which connotes to declare the purity of Allah. In this phrase, the third person anaphoric pronoun attached to the verb refers, by consensus of Qur'anic grammarians, to "Allah", and there can be no other possibility. Therefore, most of them believe that the third person anaphoric pronouns attached to the respective verbs of the first two phrases also refer to "Allah". From this point of view, the three phrases mean: believe in Allah and help His religion and His Messenger ﷺ ، revere Him and pronounce His purity.

Other scholars refer the third person anaphoric pronouns attached to the verbs of the first two phrases to the "Messenger". From this point of view, the phrases mean: Help the Messenger and revere him; and pronounce the purity of Allah. However, there is a third group of scholars who feel that in this interpretation there is intishar-ud-dama'ir or unconcentrated distribution of pronouns - leading to pronominal ambiguity and vagueness, and making it difficult to follow the meaning of the constructions which is not in conformity with the rules of Arabic rhetoric or ` ilm-ul-balaghah. Allah knows best.

After that, there is reference to the pledge of Ridwan which was narrated in part [ 10] of the story of Hudaibiyah. The purpose of the believers in entering into the pledge at the hands of the Holy Prophet ﷺ was to act upon the command of Allah and to receive His good pleasure. Therefore, when the blessed Companions ؓ placed their hands on the hand of the Holy Prophet ﷺ it was tantamount to taking the pledge at the hands of Allah. 'Allah's hand' is in any case something falling in the category of mutashabihat the correct nature of which is cannot be known to us, nor should we attempt to investigate its reality. The significance of the pledge of Ridwan is described later in the Surah. The word bai'ah, lexically, connotes a pledge to do some particular work. The ancient and traditional method of this pledge is for the pledging parties to place their hands upon each other, although the placing of hands is not a necessary condition. Nevertheless once the pledge is consummated, juristically it is binding, and its violation is unlawful. Therefore, it is later laid down that whoever violates the pledge will cause loss to himself. It will not cause loss to Allah and His Messenger ﷺ . Whoever fulfils the terms of the pledge will receive a mighty reward from Allah.