The Qur'an (Oxford World's Classics)

118
The Quran 9: 21
strove hard in God’s way with their possessions and their persons,
are in God’s eyes much higher in rank; it is they who will triumph;
21 and their Lord gives them the good news of His mercy and pleasure,
Gardens where they will have lasting bliss 22 and where they will
remain for ever: truly, there is a tremendous reward with God.
23 Believers, do not take your fathers and brothers as allies a if they
prefer disbelief to faith: those of you who do so are doing wrong.
24 Say [Prophet], ‘If your fathers, sons, brothers, wives, tribes, the
wealth you have acquired, the trade which you fear will decline, and
the dwellings you love are dearer to you than God and His Messenger
and the struggle in His cause, then wait until God brings about
His punishment.’ God does not guide those who break away. 25 God
has helped you [believers] on many battlefields, even on the day of
the Battle of Hunayn. b You were well pleased with your large numbers,
but they were of no use to you: the earth seemed to close in on
you despite its spaciousness, and you turned tail and fled. 26 Then
God sent His calm down to His Messenger and the believers, and
He sent down invisible forces. He punished the disbelievers – this
is what the disbelievers deserve – 27 but God turns in His mercy to
whoever He will. God is most forgiving and merciful.
28 Believers, those who ascribe partners to God are truly unclean:
do not let them come near the Sacred Mosque after this year. If you
are afraid you may become poor, [bear in mind that] God will enrich
you out of His bounty if He pleases: God is all knowing and wise.
29 Fight those of the People of the Book who do not [truly] c believe
in God and the Last Day, who do not forbid what God and His
Messenger have forbidden, who do not obey the rule of justice, d
until they pay the tax e and agree to submit. f 30 The Jews said, ‘Ezra is
a Against the Muslims. Cf. 4: 144.
b This took place in a valley between Mecca and Taif in the year ah 8/630 ce.
c ‘Truly’ is implied, as it is in many other statements in the Quran, e.g. 2: 32; 8: 41;
and 65: 3.
d The main meaning of the Arabic dana is ‘he obeyed’. It also means ‘behave’, and
‘follow a way of life or religion’ (Qamus and Lane).
e Etymologically, jizya means ‘payment in return’, related to jaza meaning ‘reward’,
i.e. in return for the protection of the Muslim state with all the accruing benefits and
exemption from military service, and such taxes on Muslims as zakah. This tax was
levied only on able-bodied free men who could afford it, and monks were exempted.
The amount was generally low (e.g. one dinar per year).
f Commentators in the past generally understood wa hum saghirun to mean they
should be humiliated when paying. However, it is clear from the context that they were
unwilling to pay, and the clause simply means they should submit to paying this tax.