The Life of the Prophet Muhammad by Ibn Kathir - Volume 3 of 4

IMAM ABU AL-FIDA' ISMA'IL IBN KATHfR 163
him; if he had come to me, I would have sought forgiveness for him. Since he
has now done what he has, I will not move hi from where he is until God
decrees His will upon him."'
Ibn Lahi'a related this thus, from Aba al-Aswad, from Wrwa. Muhammad b.
Is@q recounted this in this way in his work on the magh~zi, in the same line of
authorities as Miisa b. Wqba, from d-Zuhri, and (it appears) similarly in the
account given by Abii d-Aswad from Wrwa.
Ibn Ishaq stated, "The Messenger of God (SAAS) made camp at one of the
wells of Banii Qurayp; called the Anna well; it was among properties they
owned. He besieged them for 25 days, by which time the siege was causing them
great hardship and much anxiety.
"Huyayy b. Akhtab had joined them in their fortress when @raysb and
Ghayafin had withdrawn, thus fulfilling the pact he had made with Ka'b b. Asad.
When they were sure that the Messenger of God (SAAS) had no intention of
departing before he had utterly defeated them, Ka'b b. Asad addressed Bann
Qurayza. He told them, 'You well know the crisis you face. I suggest three
alternatives; choose the one you like best.' 'What are they?' they asked. He
replied, 'First, that we follow and believe this man. I swear, it is clear to you
now that he is a prophet who has been sent, and that it is he whom you find
mentioned in your scripture. You should give him control over your lives,
properties, children and women.' They replied, 'We will never abandon the law
of the Torah, nor exchange it for another!'
"He then said, 'If you refuse me this, let us kill our children and our women
and then go forth to Muhammad and his companions with our swords drawn;
that way we will not leave any responsibilities behind us, and God will decide
between us and Muhammad. If we perish, we perish; but we won't be leaving
behind any children to worry about. And if we are victorious, we'll certainly
acquire other women and children.'
"They replied, 'Shall we kii these unfortunates? What good would there be
in living on after them?'
"He continued, 'If you refuse this, then tonight it is the sabbath. It may well
be that Muhammad and his men feel secure now. Let's go forth and seek to take
Muhammad and his men by surprise.'
"They replied, 'Should we desecrate our sabbath; if we do, there will befall
that metamorphosis" you well know has always befallen those who have done so.'
"He commented, 'Not one of you men has ever, since the day you were born,
acted decisively.'
"They then sent to the Messenger of God (SAAS), asking him to dispatch
to them for consultations Abii Lubaba b. 'Abd al-Mundhir, a brother of Banii
'Amr b. 'Awf who were allies of al-Aws.
39. An allusion to the references in several places in the to those who profaned the
sabbath. See, for example, sarat ol-Baqnra; 11, v.63.