Al-W¥^idÏ's Asb¥b al-Nuz‰l - The Royal Islamic Strategic Studies ...

Asbab al-Nuzul
(And if thou ask them (O Muhammad) they will say: We did but talk and jest…) [9:65].
Said Qatadah: “As the Messenger of Allah, Allah bless him and give him peace, was heading for the Battle
of Tabuk, a hypocrite, who was ahead of him, said: ‘Does this man really hope to conquer the castles and
fortresses of Syria, far be it! Far be it’. Allah, exalted is He, informed His Prophet about what they said,
and so the Prophet, Allah bless him and give him peace, ordered the troops to stop marching. He went to
those hypocrites and informed them of what they said. They said to him in reply: ‘O Messenger of Allah,
we were just engaging in idle talk and jesting’. Allah, exalted is He, then revealed this verse”. 19
Zayd ibn Aslam and Muhammad ibn Ka‘b said: “One of the hypocrites said at the Battle of Tabuk: ‘I
have never seen anyone whose belly is more hungry, whose tongue lies more or who is more cowardly in
fighting than these reciters of ours’, meaning the Messenger of Allah, Allah bless him and give him peace,
and his Companions. ‘Awf ibn Malik said to him: ‘You lie; rather, you are a hypocrite! I will inform the
Messenger of Allah, Allah bless him and give him peace, of what you have just said’. But ‘Awf found that
the Qur’an had already informed him. The man went to the Messenger of Allah, Allah bless him and give
him peace, when he had already mounted his camel and set off, and said to him: ‘O Messenger of Allah!
We were but talking idly and jesting; we were talking the way riders do to make our travelling easy’ ”. 20
Abu Nasr Muhammad ibn Muhammad ibn ‘Abd Allah al-Jawzaqi informed us> Bishr ibn Ahmad ibn
Bishr> Abu Ja‘far Muhammad ibn Musa al-Halwani> Muhammad ibn Maymun al-Khayyat> Isma‘il ibn
Dawud al-Mihrajani> Malik ibn Anas> Nafi‘> Ibn ‘Umar who said: “I saw ‘Abd Allah ibn Ubayy walking
in front of the Prophet, Allah bless him and give him peace, while being hit by stones [as a result of the
galloping of horses], and saying: ‘O Messenger of Allah, we were only talking idly and jesting’, and the
Prophet, Allah bless him and give him peace, responded: ‘(Was it at Allah and His revelations and His
messenger that ye did scoff )’ ”.
(They swear by Allah that they said nothing (wrong)…) [9:74].
Said al-Dahhak: “The hypocrites set off with the Messenger of Allah for Tabuk. But whenever they met
alone with each other, they insulted the Messenger of Allah, Allah bless him and give him peace, and his
Companions and discredited the religion. Then Hudhayfah reported what they said to the Messenger of
Allah, Allah bless him and give him peace. The Messenger of Allah, Allah bless him and give him peace,
said to them: ‘O hypocrites, what is this that I hear you have said’ They swore to him that they said nothing
wrong, and so Allah, exalted is He, revealed this to give them the lie”. 21
Said Qatadah: “It was mentioned to us that a man from Juhaynah had a fight with another man from
Ghifar and the latter had the upper hand. When he saw this, ‘Abd Allah ibn Ubayy cried: ‘O Banu Aws,
help your brother for, by Allah, the like of us and the like of Muhammad is as it was said: fatten your
dog and he will eat you. By Allah, once we enter Medina, the mighty among us will drive out the lowly’.
A Muslim man heard this and informed the Messenger of Allah, Allah bless him and give him peace.
When he sent for ‘Abd Allah ibn Ubayy, the latter swore by Allah that he did not say it. Allah, exalted is
He, revealed this to give him the lie”. 22
(And they purposed that which they could not attain…) [9:74].
Al-Dahhak said: “They were planning to push the Prophet, Allah bless him and give him peace, off his
mount on the night of the steep road. These were men who agreed to kill the Messenger of Allah, Allah
bless him and give him peace, while they were with him. They waited for an opportunity to take him by
19
Tabari, :172; Durr, :229-230.
20
Durr, :230; Tabari, :172.
21
Cf. Durr, :241-242.
22
Tabari, :186; Durr, :241; Qurtubi, :206.
124