8. Al-Anfaal

‘They question you O Muhammad (s) concerning the spoils of war — the booty — to whom do they belong? Say to them ‘The spoils of war belong to God Who places them where He will and the Messenger who divides them according to God’s command. The Prophet s divided these spoils between them equally as reported by al-Hākim in his al-Mustadrak. So fear God and set things right between you that is set right the reality of that state of affairs which is between you through mutual affection and the refraining from quarrelling; and obey God and His Messenger if you are truly believers’.

Those who observe the prayers performing them as they ought to be performed and who expend in obedience to God from that with which We have provided them.

Those described in the way mentioned are the true the real believers without doubt. For them are ranks stations in Paradise with their Lord and forgiveness and generous provision in Paradise.

As your Lord brought you forth from your home with the truth bi’l-haqq is semantically connected to akhraja ‘He brought forth’ and indeed a party of the believers were averse to going forth the last sentence is a circumstantial qualifier referring to the suffixed pronoun kāf in akhrajaka ‘He brought you forth’; kamā ‘as’ is the predicate of an omitted subject in other words their aversion to this state of affairs of the booty being God’s and the Prophet’s is similar to their aversion when you were brought forth to fight which had actually been better for them likewise is this state of affairs better for them. It happened that Abū Sufyān was returning from Syria with a caravan. The Prophet s and his followers went forth to plunder it; but Quraysh became aware of this and so Abū Jahl and some Meccan fighters rode out to defend it — these constituted the ‘band’. Abū Sufyān drove the caravan via the coastal route and it managed to escape. Abū Jahl was then advised to return but he refused and marched on towards Badr. The Prophet s consulted with his followers saying to them ‘God has promised me one of the two parties’. So they agreed with him to attack the Meccan band but some of them were averse to this complaining ‘We have not come prepared for this!’ as God exalted be He says

They dispute with you concerning the truth the order to fight after it had become clear after it had become evident to them as though they were being driven to death while they looked at it death with their very eyes utterly averse to it.

And remember when God promised you one of the two parties either the caravan or the band of Meccan fighters that it should be yours and you longed you were wishing that other than the armed one that is other than the fighting one with the weapons in other words you longed that the caravan should be yours because it had fewer men and less reinforcements than the band of Mecca fighters; but God willed that the truth be realised He willed to manifest it by His preceding words that Islam should triumph; and to cut the root of the disbelievers to the very last man by extirpating them and so He commanded you to fight against the band.

And that He might cause the truth to be realised and annul efface falsehood disbelief however much the sinners the idolaters were averse to that.

When you sought help from your Lord asking Him to help you by granting you victory over them and He answered you saying ‘I shall reinforce you I shall assist you with a thousand angels rank upon rank’ one rank following after the next God promised them this number at first but it then became three thousand and then five thousand as stated in sūrat Āl ‘Imrān Q. 3124-125 a variant reading of alf ‘thousand’ has the plural āluf ‘thousands’ similar in pattern to aflus ‘coins’.

And God appointed it that is the reinforcement only as good tidings and that your hearts might thereby be reassured. Victory comes only from God surely God is Mighty Wise.