ترجمة معاني سورة الأنفال
باللغة الإنجليزية من كتاب الترجمة الإنجليزية للمختصر في تفسير القرآن الكريم
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1. Your Companions ask you O Messenger about the gains of war and how to distribute it, and who it should be for. Say to them: 'The gains of war are for Allah and His Messenger to distribute, and it is only incumbent on you to accept and comply in the matter, so be mindful of Allah, following what He instructed and staying away from what He had prohibited, correct disagreements between yourselves and mend bad relations, and develop good terms with each other through treating each other in a good way and forgiving each other. Follow Allah and His Messenger if you are true believers, for surely faith leads to doing good and staying away from disobedience.' This matter came up after the Battle of Badr.
2. The true believers are those who, when Allah is mentioned, feel awe of Him in their hearts, which make them do good actions. When the verses of Allah are read to them they reflect on them and it increases their faith, and they rely on Allah alone to bring them what is in their interests and to protect them from what is bad for them.
3. Those who regularly establish the prayer, as it should be established, and in its set times, and who spend from what Allah has provided-on what is obligatory as well as what is recommended.
4. Such people are true believers, combining the qualities of inner faith and outer surrender. Their reward is in having a high rank with their Lord, forgiveness for their disobedience, and a generous provision, which is the bliss that Allah has prepared for them.
5. Just as Allah took away the decision about the division of the gains of war from the Companions after their disagreement about how to distribute it, and made the decision for Himself and His Messenger (peace be upon him), He also instructed the Messenger (peace be upon him), through inspiration, to go out from Medina to meet the idol worshippers, although a group of the believers disliked this.
6. This group of the believers argued with the Messenger about fighting the idolaters, after it had been made clear to them that it had to happen, as if they were being driven to death, looking at it with open eyes. Their reaction was due to their strong dislike of going out to fight, because they were not prepared or ready for it.
7. Allah reminds the believers who were arguing about when Allah promised them success over one of the groups of the idolaters: either the caravan with its sizeable wealth, so that they could take its bounty, or a group of fighters whom they would encounter and achieve victory over them; but they had wanted it to be the caravan, as this would be easy to take without having to fight. Yet Allah willed for the truth to be established through commanding them to fight, to kill the leaders of the idolaters, and to capture many of them so that the strength of Islam would become clear.
8. This occurred so that Allah may establish the truth by making Islam and its people victorious, and for Him to make clear the error of falsehood, even if the idolaters disliked this.
9. Remember the day of Badr, when the Muslims asked for help from Allah for victory over their enemies, and Allah responded to them, reinforcing and helping them with a thousand angels, following one after another.
10. Allah made the reinforcement of the Muslims with angels a form of good news for them: that He was helping them against their enemies, reassuring their hearts that they would have victory over them. Victory does not come because of having great numbers of fighters, or having large amounts of weapons and preparations; rather, it comes only from Allah, Glory be to Him. Allah is Mighty in His power, no one has power over Him, and He is Wise in His law and His decree.
11. And remember O believers when Allah made you fall asleep on that occasion, giving you a feeling of safety and peace from the fear you had of your enemy. He sent down rain from the sky on you, to purify you, and to remove the evil suggestions of Satan from you and to make your hearts strong, so you would be patient when you met the enemy in battle. It also made your feet firm, by making the sandy ground hard so that your feet would not sink and slip on it.
12. Remember O Prophet when Allah inspired the angels, who He reinforced the believers with in the Battle of Badr, telling the angels: I am with you. aiding you with help and support, so strengthen the determination of the believers in fighting their enemy. I will cast great fear into the hearts of those who disbelieve. Strike then the necks of the disbelievers to kill them and hit their joints and limbs to hinder them from fighting.
13. What happened to the disbelievers, when they were killed and their limbs were struck, was because they went against Allah and His Messenger. They did not follow what they were instructed to do, and did not stop doing what they were told not to do. Those who oppose Allah and His Messenger, Allah is firm with the punishment for them in this world, with death and capture, and in the Afterlife, with the fire of Hell.
14. That is the punishment for you, O you who oppose Allah and His Messenger, so taste it, for it has been hastened to you in the life of this world. In the Afterlife, you will have the punishment of the fire of Hell if you die stubbornly denying the truth.
15. O you who believe in Allah and who follow His Messenger, if you meet the idolaters approaching them in battle, then do not turn your backs to them and run away; but be patient when facing them, and firm when you meet, because Allah is with you with His help and support.
16. And whoever turns their back running away- unless they are withdrawing as a strategy with the intention of turning back to fight, or doing it to join a group of Muslims in order to help them-then certainly, he will earn the anger of Allah, and his place in the Hereafter will be Hell; what a miserable destination and final destiny!
17. For you did not O believers, kill the idolaters on the day of Badr because of your power and might, but rather Allah supported you in that. And you O Prophet did not throw sand at the idolaters, rather it was Allah, Who made what you throw reach them. Allah tested the believers by blessing them with victory over their enemies, despite their small numbers of fighters and weapons, so that they might be thankful to Him. Indeed Allah listens to your prayers and what you say, and He knows what you do, and what is best for you.
18. The killing of the idolaters, your throwing, so that they were defeated, as well as Allah’s kindness to the believers giving them victory over their enemy, was all from Allah. Allah makes weak the plans of those who disbelieve and who plot against Islam.
19. If you ask O idolaters, for the punishment and might of Allah to fall upon the wrongdoers who overstep the limits, then Allah has already made what you asked afflict you, sending down on you what was a lesson for you and for the mindful. If you stop asking for this it would be better for you, so that He might give you time, not giving you what you deserve immediately. But if you return to asking for a judgement and fighting the believers, Allah would also return by afflicting you with punishment and helping the believers. Your people and helpers would not be of any good to you, even if they are many and well prepared and the believers were few in number. Allah is with the believers, helping and supporting them, and whomever Allah assists, then no one will be able to defeat them.
20. O you who believe in Allah and follow His Messenger, obey Allah and His Messenger, following what He instructs and staying away from what He has prohibited, not turning away from Him or going against His laws, and doing what He has forbidden especially whilst you are listening to the verses of Allah being recited to you.
21. And do not be O you believers, like the hypocrites and idolators who when the verses of Allah are recited to them, say that they have heard the Qur’ān that has been recited to them, when they have not listened in a reflective way, learning from it so that they would benefit from what they heard.
22. The worst of creatures on the face of the earth in the sight of Allah are those who are deaf to the truth, not listening to it and accepting it; and dumb, not acknowledging the truth or calling to it, because they do not understand what Allah instructs or forbids.
23. If Allah knew that there was good in these idolaters who reject the truth, He would have made them listen in a way that was beneficial to them, so that they would understand the proof and evidence; but He knows that there is no good in them, and that if He made them hear, they would still turn away stubbornly, rejecting what they heard.
24. O you who have faith in Allah and follow His Messenger, respond to Allah and His Messenger, being dedicated to the instructions and staying away from what is prohibited, since their is life for you in that. And be aware that Allah has power over everything, and He has power over you; so He is able to hinder you from following the truth after you had rejected it. So you should hurry to comply without delay, and be mindful that you will be gathered to Allah alone on the Day of Judgement, and will be rewarded for the actions that you did in this world.
25. Beware of suffering that does not only reach those who do wrong among you, but reaches you and others as well. This is when disobedience becomes widespread and is not prevented. Be sure that Allah is strong with the punishment for those who go against Him, so beware of opposing Him.
26. Remember when the believers were in Makkah, and they were few, and the people of Makkah considered them to be weak and overpowered them. They were scared that their enemies would capture them; but Allah brought them together to a safe place, which was Medina, and made them strong, helping them against their enemies on the battlefields, for example at Badr, and giving them good things, among them the war gains they got from their enemies. This was all so that they might be thankful to Allah for His blessings, that He might increase them, and for them not to be ungrateful so that He removes the blessings from them and punishes them.
27. O you who believe in Allah and follow His Messenger, do not betray Allah and His Messenger by disobeying the commands and failing to stay away from the prohibitions. You must not knowingly betray your trusts, such as debts and so on.
28. Be aware O believers that your wealth and children are a test for you, and your conduct with them may prevent you from performing good actions for your Afterlife, or lead to betraying your trusts. Know that with Allah is a great reward, so be careful not to lose this reward because of becoming engrossed with them, and you cheating the people because of them.
29. O you who believe in Allah and His messengers, know that if you are Mindful, following what He instructs and staying away from what He has prohibited, He will give you the ability to discriminate between truth and falsehood, so you will not be confused as regards to them, and He will erase from you the evil you have committed, and forgive your sins. To Allah belongs immense bounty, and from His great bounty is His Paradise which He has prepared for those who are Mindful among His creation.
30. Remember, O Messenger, when the idolaters joined forces against you, plotting to kill or imprison you, or to drive you out of your homeland to another place. They plotted, and Allah turned their plot upon themselves, and Allah plans, and He is the best of planners.
31. If Allah’s words are recited to them, they say – stubborn against the truth, considering themselves above it, and disbelieving – that they have heard something similar before, and that if they wanted to say something similar to the Qur’ān they could, saying that the Qur’ān is just the fables of earlier peoples.
32. Remember when the idolaters said to Allah that if what Muhammad brought was true, then He should rain rocks down from the sky to destroy them, or bring them a painful punishment. They said this going to extremes in their denial and rejection.
33. But Allah would not punish your nation O Muhammad, with a punishment that destroyed them while you are living among them, for you living among them keeps them safe from this punishment. And Allah would not punish them as long as they asked Him for forgiveness for their sins.
34. What prevents them being punished when they have unjustly stopped people from performing both the circling (ţawāf) and the prayer in the Sacred Mosque – actions deserving of punishment? The idolaters are not Allah’s allies. The allies of Allah are only those who are mindful of Him by fulfilling His instructions and avoiding His prohibitions. Most of the idolaters do not know this, as they claim they are Allah’s allies when they are not.
35. The prayer of the idolaters at the Sacred Mosque was nothing but whistling and clapping. So taste, O idolaters, the punishment of being killed or taken prisoner on the day of Badr because of your disbelief in Allah and rejection of His Messenger.
36. Disbelievers in Allah spend their wealth to prevent people from Allah’s religion, but they will not achieve their goal. The end result of their spending of wealth in this way will be sadness, because they will lose their wealth and fail in their goal; and then they will be defeated by the believers. Disbelievers in Allah will be driven to Hell on the Day of Judgement and will enter it to live there eternally.
37. Disbelievers who spend their wealth to prevent people from the path of Allah will be driven to the fire of Hell, so that Allah may isolate the wicked group of disbelievers from the pure group of believers, and so that He may place bad people, actions and wealth on top of one another in a pile and place them in the fire of Hell. They are the losers, because they will lose their souls and their families on the Day of Judgement.
38. Say, O Messenger, to those of your people who disbelieve in Allah and His Messenger that if they stop disbelieving in Allah and His Messenger and preventing the believers from Allah’s path, then Allah will forgive their past sins, because Islam wipes out what is before it; but if they return to their disbelief, then Allah’s way of dealing with earlier people has already come as a warning: when they rejected and continued in their disbelief, He swiftly punished them.
39. O believers, fight your disbelieving enemies until there is no more idolatry or Muslims being stopped from Allah’s religion, when religion and obedience is for Allah alone without any partner being put alongside Him. If the disbelievers stop their idolatry and preventing Muslims from Allah’s religion, then leave them, because Allah sees what they do and nothing is hidden from Him.
40. If they turn away from the order to leave disbelief and preventing others from Allah’s religion, then be certain, O believers, that Allah will help you against them. What an excellent protector He is for the one He protects, and what an excellent helper He is for the one He helps! Whoever He protects will be successful and whoever He helps will be victorious.
41. Know, O believers, that whatever you take by force from the disbelievers when striving in Allah’s path shall be divided into five. Four-fifths shall be distributed to those who strove in Allah’s path and the remaining fifth shall be further divided into five portions and distributed equally between the following: Allah and His Messenger, to be spent on the general expenses of the Muslims; the relatives of the Prophet (peace be upon him) from the Children of Hāshim and the Children of Al-Muţţalib; orphans; the poor and destitute; and travellers who are stranded. Obey this if you have faith in Allah and what He revealed to His servant, Muhammad (peace be upon him), on the day of the Battle of Badr, when Allah made a clear distinction between truth and falsehood by giving you victory over your enemies.
42. Remember, O believers, when you were on the near side of the valley that was facing Medina, the idolaters were on the far side that was facing Makkah and the caravan was at a spot lower than you facing the Red Sea. If you and the idolaters made an appointment with each other to meet at Badr, neither of you would have kept to it: your lack of numbers as compared to your enemy would have kept you back, and the fear of facing Allah’s Messenger would have kept them back. But Allah, may He be glorified, gathered you at Badr without an appointment, so that He may carry out a matter that was already determined: the victory of the believers and the defeat of the disbelievers – bringing honour to His religion and humiliation to idolatry. This was so that those who died from amongst them would die after evidence was established by the believers’ victory against them, despite their lack of numbers and preparation, and so that those who lived would live with clear evidences that Allah made obvious to them, and no one would have any evidence against Allah that they could use as an argument. Allah hears the statements of everyone and knows their actions. Nothing is hidden from Him and He will repay them for that.
43. Remember, O Messenger, Allah’s favour upon you, and upon the believers, when He showed you a dream in which the idolaters were few in number. You informed the believers about this and they took it as a good sign, and their determination to face the enemy in battle was strengthened. If Allah had shown the idolaters to you to be many, the determination of your Companions would have become weak and they would have become afraid of fighting. But Allah saved you all from that and protected them from losing courage. He therefore made them seem few in number in the eye of His Messenger (peace be upon him). He knows what the hearts contain and what the souls hide.
44. Remember, O believers, when Allah showed the idolaters to you, when you met them, as few and made you bravely go forward towards fighting them; and He made you seem few in their eyes, so that they came forward to fight you, without thinking of leaving. This was so that Allah could bring about a matter that was predetermined by taking retribution from the idolaters by them being killed or taken prisoners, and by favouring the believers with victory and defeat of their enemies. All matters are returned to Allah alone and He will repay the one who does evil for his wrongdoing and the one who does good for his good deeds.
45. O you who have faith in Allah and follow His Messenger, when you fight against a group of disbelievers be patient when you meet them and do not become cowardly. Remember Allah much and call on Him, because He is the One Who can help you against them; and pray to Him to grant you what you desire and protect you from what you fear.
46. Observe Allah’s obedience and the obedience of His Prophet in all of your statements, actions and circumstances. Do not argue with one another because dispute leads to weakness, cowardliness and the diminishing of your strength. Be patient when facing the enemy because Allah supports and assists the patient. Whoever Allah is with will definitely be victorious.
47. Do not be like those idolaters who left Makkah full of pride, showing off to people, and who prevent people from Allah’s religion and stop them from entering into it. Allah is All-Aware of what they do. No action of theirs is hidden from Him and He will repay them for that.
48. Remember, O believers, Allah’s favour on you when Satan made the actions of the idolaters seem good to them and encouraged them to face the Muslims in battle by saying to them, ‘No one can defeat you today because I am your supporter and I will protect you from your enemy’. When the two parties – the believers who had the angels as their support and the idolaters who had Satan who was going to desert them – met, Satan turned back fleeing and said to the idolaters: I have nothing to do with you. I can see the angels who have come to support the believers and I am afraid that Allah will destroy me. Allah’s punishment is harsh and no one is able to bear it.
49. Remember when the hypocrites and those of weak faith were saying: The religion of these people – which promised them victory over their enemies despite their lack of numbers and preparation as compared to the huge number and the strength of their enemies – has deceived them. They have not understood that the person who places reliance upon Allah alone and who has faith in the victory that Allah has promised, Allah will assist such a person and will never desert them no matter how weak they may be. Allah is Mighty and no one can overcome Him. He is Wise in His decree and sacred laws.
50. If only you, O Messenger, could see those who disbelieve in Allah and His messengers at the time when the angels remove their souls, striking their faces when they face towards them and striking their backs when they try to run away, and saying to them: Taste, O disbelievers, the burning punishment! If you had to see that, you would see a serious heart-wrenching sight.
51. The cause of that painful punishment at the time when your souls are taken out and the burning punishment in your graves and in the Afterlife is because of the evil actions you performed in the world. Allah does not wrong people, but passes judgement on them with fairness. He is not unjust to His slaves.
52. These disbelievers were not the only ones to be punished this way; rather, it is Allah’s way of dealing with disbelievers in every time and place. The people of Pharaoh and the communities before them were also punished like this when they disbelieved in Allah’s words. Allah punished them for their sins with His might and power. Allah is Strong and cannot be overpowered or defeated. His punishment for those who go against Him is severe.
53. That severe punishment is because when Allah favours a people, He does not take it away from them until they change themselves from their pure state of faith, righteousness and gratitude to a bad state of disbelief in Allah, sin and ingratitude – Allah hears the statements of His servants and knows about their actions; nothing is hidden from Him.
54. The case of these disbelievers is like that of others who disbelieved in Allah, such as the people of Pharaoh and the communities who rejected Allah before them. They rejected the verses of their Lord so Allah destroyed them because of the sins they committed. Allah destroyed the people of Pharaoh by causing them to drown in the sea. The people of Pharaoh, as well as the communities before them, were all disobedient because of their disbelief in Allah and their association of partners with Him. They therefore deserved the punishment Allah imposed on them.
55. The worst of those who walk on the earth are those who disbelieve in Allah and His messengers, and who would not believe even if every sign was to come to them – they would still persist in disbelief. The means of guidance – such as intellect, hearing and sight – are of no use to these people.
56. Some of these Jewish disbelievers agreed a treaty to not fight against you, O Messenger, nor support any one else in fighting against you. They, then, break this treaty every time you make it with them. They have no fear of Allah so they do not fulfil their oaths and do not honour the promises taken from them.
57. If you, O Messenger, face in battle these people who break their pledges, then make a harsh example of them so that others hear about it, take a lesson from that and become afraid of fighting you and supporting your enemies against you.
58. If you, O Messenger, become afraid, due to a sign that becomes obvious to you, that a people with whom you entered into a treaty will betray you and break the treaty, then inform them that the treaty is cancelled, so that they are not unjustly disadvantaged. Do not attack them suddenly without informing them, because doing so will be treachery on your part and Allah does not love those who are treacherous. Instead, He detests such people, so be careful of treachery.
59. The disbelievers should not think that they have escaped from Allah’s punishment, because they cannot do so. Instead, it will surely fall upon them.
60. Prepare, O believers, whatever numbers and war equipment you are able to, including keeping trained horses to be used in Allah’s path, so you can frighten Allah’s enemies and your enemies from among the disbelievers who are eagerly waiting for you to be afflicted with a disaster. You can also frighten others whom you do not know of and whose hidden hatred you are not aware of. Allah alone knows them and He knows what they keep hidden inside themselves. Any wealth you spend, whether a little or much, Allah will replace it for you in this world and will give you the reward for it in full in the Afterlife without any reduction. So hurry towards spending in His path.
61. If they incline to a truce to give up fighting, then, O Messenger, do the same: enter into a truce with them and place your reliance and faith in Allah, because He will never desert you. He is the One Who hears your statements and knows your intentions and actions.
62. If, by inclining to a truce, their goal is to deceive you, O Messenger, so that they can prepare to fight you, then Allah is sufficient for you against their plot and deception. It is He Who strengthened you with His help and with those Emigrants and Helpers who have faith in you.
63. He brought the hearts of the believers, with whom He assisted you, together after they were disunited. If you had spent all the wealth on earth to bring their disunited hearts together, you would not have been able to do so. But Allah alone brought them together. He is Mighty in His dominion and nothing can overpower Him. He is Wise in His decree, handling of affairs and sacred laws.
64. O Prophet, Allah is sufficient for you against the evil of your enemies and He is sufficient for the believers who are with you. So trust in Allah and rely on Him.
65. O Prophet, urge the believers on to fight and encourage them to do so with words that will strengthen their determination and lift their spirits. If there are among you, O believers, twenty who are patient in fighting against the disbelievers, they will overcome two hundred of the disbelievers. And if there are among you one hundred who are patient, they will overcome one thousand of the disbelievers. That is because the disbelievers are a people who do not understand Allah’s custom of aiding His friends and defeating His enemies. They do not realise the goal of fighting and they therefore only fight in order to gain supremacy in the world.
66. Now Allah has lightened the burden from you, O believers, since He knows your weakness. He has lightened your burden out of His grace and has made it a duty that one of you remains patient against two disbelievers instead of ten. So if there are one hundred among you who remain patient in fighting against the disbelievers, they will defeat two hundred. And if there are one thousand among you who remain patient, they will defeat two thousand of the disbelievers with Allah’s permission. Allah, with His support and assistance, is with those believers who remain patient.
67. It is not right for a prophet to take captives from the disbelievers who fight against him until he kills many of them, so that this makes other disbelievers fear fighting him. By taking captives from Badr, O believers, you want to receive ransom, but Allah wants the Afterlife for you, which is gained by making religion victorious and powerful. Allah is Mighty in His essence, His attributes and in His domination. Nothing can overcome Him. He is Wise in His decree and sacred laws.
68. Were it not for a decree from Allah – in which it had already been decided that He would make the gains of war lawful for you and permit you to ransom captives – a severe punishment from Allah would have afflicted you because of the gains of war and ransom you took from the captives at Badr before the coming of revelation from Allah that permitted it.
69. So consume, O believers, of the gains of war that you take from the disbelievers because it is lawful for you. Be mindful of Allah by following His instructions and avoiding His prohibitions. Allah is Forgiving and Compassionate towards His believing servants.
70. O Prophet, say to those idolater captives who have come into your hands after the Battle of Badr: If Allah knows of any good intentions in your hearts, He will give you something better than the ransom that was taken from you; so do not grieve over what was taken from you. Allah will also forgive your sins because He is Forgiving and Compassionate to those of His servants who repent to Him. This promise of Allah was fullfilled for ‘Abbās, the uncle of the Prophet (peace be upon him), and for others like him who accepted Islam after being captured.
71. If their goal, O Muhammad, is to betray you by the words they utter, then they have betrayed Allah previously and Allah gave you victory over them when some of them were killed and others were taken captive. They should therefore wait for something similar to happen if they return to their evil. Allah knows about His creation and what is best for them, and He is Wise in His handling of affairs.
72. Those who believed in Allah, accepted His Messenger, practised His sacred law, emigrated from the land of disbelief to the land of Islam, or to a place in which they can worship Allah safely, and strived in Allah’s path by spending their wealth and giving their lives to raise Allah’s Word, and those who hosted them in their homes and supported them – those emigrants and those locals who supported them are friends of one another in terms of providing support and assistance. As for those who believed in Allah but did not emigrate from the land of disbelief to the land of Islam, you have no obligation, O believers, to support and protect them until they emigrate in Allah’s path. If the disbelievers oppress them and they seek your help, then help them against their enemies, unless there is a pact between you and their enemy that is still in place. Allah sees what you do. No action of yours is hidden from Him and He will repay you for them.
73. The disbelievers are united in their disbelief and they therefore become friends of one another. A believer should not become friends with them. If you do not become friends with the believers and oppose the disbelievers, the believers will suffer weakness as a result of a lack of support and there will be great corruption on earth as people will be prevented from Allah’s path.
74. Those who believed in Allah and emigrated in His path, and those who provided shelter and assistance to the emigrants in Allah’s path, they are the ones who can be truly described as having faith. They will receive Allah’s forgiveness for their sins and a generous reward: Paradise.
75. Those who believed and accepted the faith amongst the earlier Emigrants and Helpers, who emigrated from the land of disbelief to the land of Islam, and strived in Allah’s path so that Allah’s Word may be the highest and the word of the disbelievers may be the lowest – they are part of you, O believers. They will have the same rights and obligations as you have. Under Allah’s final sacred laws of inheritance, family members are closer to one another than the previous Islamic system of inheritance based on faith and emigration. Allah knows everything. Nothing is hidden from Him. He knows what is best for His servants and legislates what is in their well being.
