3-144 And Muhammad is but a messenger — messengers have already passed away before him. If then he dies or is killed, will you turn back upon your heels?a And he who turns back upon his heels will do no harm at all to Allah. And Allah will reward the grateful.
وَما مُحَمَّدٌ إِلّا رَسولٌ قَد خَلَت مِن قَبلِهِ الرُّسُلُ ۚ أَفَإِن ماتَ أَو قُتِلَ انقَلَبتُم عَلىٰ أَعقابِكُم ۚ وَمَن يَنقَلِب عَلىٰ عَقِبَيهِ فَلَن يَضُرَّ اللَّهَ شَيئًا ۗ وَسَيَجزِي اللَّهُ الشّاكِرينَ (۱۴۴)
3-144a: مُحَمَّد – The root of Muhammad is حمد and it is the most well-known name of our Holy Prophet. It means: الذی کثرت الخصالة المحمودۃ (whose qualities of nature are very praiseworthy) (LA). Muhammad and Ahmad are among the names of our Prophet (LA). Lisan al Arab mentions seven things which in the Period of Ignorance were named Muhammad. One narration states that the Prophet’s grandfather Abd al-Muttalib named him, and he said that he had been told this name in a dream (RM). In an authentic hadith, it is stated: انا محمد و انا احمد (I am Muhammad and I am Ahmad). Another hadith states: الم ترکیف صرف اللّٰه تعالٰی عنی لَعَن قریشٍ و شتمھم یشتمون مذمّمًاً و انا محمد (Do you not see how Allah has turned back from me the curse and abuses of the Quraish? They abuse a Mudhammam and I am Muhammad.?
خَلَت – The meaning of خلا is explained in 2-14a and 2-134a but when خلا is used in connection with a person, it means the person’s death. Accordingly, Lisan Al-Arab narrates Ibn Arabi as stating: خلا فلان اذ خلاا مات and this meaning is obvious because a person’s passing away is the transfer from this world to the next and the gateway for this to occur is death. Further by juxtaposing خَلَت with ماتَ and قُتِلَ it is made clear that there are just two ways of passing away, that is either by way of natural death or being killed. Hence it is stated that the passing away of Muhammad, the Messenger of Allah, when it occurs will be by one of these two methods. But, the term, قَد خَلَت مِن قَبلِهِ الرُّسُلُ also proves that messengers before the Holy Prophet passed away, either by natural death or by being killed. If a third way of passing away exists, it would be mentioned in juxtaposition with خَلَت just as ماتَ is mentioned. The rumor started about the Holy Prophet was that he had been killed in the Battle of Uhad. So, the addition of ماتَ to قُتِلَ أَفَإِن means the intention of the verse was to more broadly mention the demise of all messengers. If that was not the case then قُتِلَ أَفَإِن would have been sufficient and there was no need to add ماتَ.
مات و قتل – The meaning of موت is natural death while قتل is death by injury to a critical part of the body.
انقَلَبتُم – انقَلَاب – is derived from قَلَب which means turning a thing from one direction to another, and the meaning of انقَلَاب is انصراف that is, to turn away (R).
أَعقابِ – is the plural of عَقِب and عَقِب means heel. The meaning of رَجَعَ علٰی عَقِبَيهِ is interpreted as:انثنیٰ رَاجِعاً (turned back) (R). The meaning of انقلب عَلىٰ عَقِبَيهِ is also the same, and the connotation is the same as the phrase turned back on his heels. In أَفَإِن ماتَ أَو قُتِلَ انقَلَبتُم عَلىٰ أَعقابِكُم the hamza is meant to negate انقلاب عَلىٰ الا عقابِكُم that is, it cannot be that you will apostatize. Some take انقلاب عَلىٰ الا عقابِكُم to mean merely fleeing from the battlefield. In that case, the reference is to the few individuals who had deserted the battlefield. Some others take انقلاب عَلىٰ الا عقابِكُم to mean merely showing lack of firmness in belief because fleeing the battlefield is a manifestation of lack of faith. As this verse mentions the death of the Holy Prophet, the reference could be to those who apostatized when the Holy Prophet died.
Rumor of the Prophet’s death on the day of Uhad: This verse recounts the critical juncture in the Battle of Uhad when the Muslim archers deserted their position and the cavalry of the unbelievers under Khalid attacked the Muslims from behind. Then the main body of the enemy who was fleeing turned around and reengaged the disorganized Muslims. The Muslim army was now in a precarious condition. In this situation, the Holy Prophet, to gather the fragmented Muslim force, started calling out in a loud voice: الیّ عباد اللّٰه انا رسول اللّٰه (O the servants of Allah. Come to me; I am the Messenger of Allah). On hearing the Prophet’s voice, the unbelievers directed their attack towards him and Ibn Qayyima al- Harihri threw a large boulder at the Prophet which struck him on the face, knocking out his front teeth and injuring him on his head and causing him to fall. Ibn Qayyima then advanced to kill the Prophet but a Companion Musab ibn Umayr stood in front of him and stopped him from reaching the Prophet. In the process, the companion gave up his own life but saved the Prophet. Gradually, the Companions gathered around the Prophet and formed a wall. Even though Ibn Qayyima was unable to kill the Prophet, he still shouted out that the Prophet had been killed and this shout was amplified by others and spread throughout the army. It is to this event that this verse refers when it states: وَما مُحَمَّدٌ إِلّا رَسولٌ قَد خَلَت مِن قَبلِهِ الرُّسُلُ ۚ أَفَإِن ماتَ أَو قُتِلَ انقَلَبتُم عَلىٰ أَعقابِكُم . Still, the Companions did not falter even as they heard the enemy shouting this news except for a few individuals who had been separated from the main body of Muslims and had run away. Even amongst this group there were some who said: ان کان محمّد قد قتل فان ربّ محمّد حیّ لا یموت …فقاتلوا علٰی ما قاتل علیه (If Muhammad has been killed; the Lord of Muhammad is alive who will never die. So, fight then for what the Holy Prophet fought for).
This verse وَما مُحَمَّدٌ إِلّا رَسولٌ قَد خَلَت مِن قَبلِهِ الرُّسُلُ also throws light on another important issue. This is the verse with which Abu Bakr addressed the congregants on the demise of the Holy Prophet and assuaged the Companions. When the news about the demise of the Holy Prophet spread, the Muslims did not want to believe that it was true. The Companions loved the Prophet so much that they did not want to even imagine such an eventuality. Umar announced in the gathered congregants that he would behead anyone who said that the Prophet was dead. When Abu Bakr arrived, he went straight to Ayesha’s apartment and on lifting the sheet off the Prophet’s head saw that his soul had left to meet the Maker. He went back to the mosque and addressed the congregants: ایھا النّاس من کان یعبد محمّد اقد مات و من کان یعبد اللّٰه تعالٰی فان اللّٰه حیٌّ لا یموت (O People! Whoever worshipped Muhammad know that Muhammad has died, and whoever worships Allah know that Allah is alive and never dies). Then he recited this verse of the Quran: وَما مُحَمَّدٌ إِلّا رَسولٌ قَد خَلَت مِن قَبلِهِ الرُّسُلُ (And Muhammad is but a messenger — messengers have already passed away before him). He argued based on this verse that the Holy Prophet had passed away and the murmuring of disbelief ceased among the gathering. It is obvious that this argument could only be effective if Abu Bakr and the Companions believed that all previous prophets had died. If there were among the former prophets some who had not died, then this verse could not be proof of the death of the Prophet. If some prophets had died and some had not, then why was the Holy Prophet not among the prophets who did not die? However, if all the prophets have died then there can be no objection to the death of the Holy Prophet. The silent acceptance of Abu Bakr’s argument by the Companions shows convincingly that they considered all prophets before the Holy Prophet to have passed away. Thus, there was a consensus among the Companions that all prophets before Prophet Muhammad had passed away. Commentators concede that this proves that all prophets have died and admit that all prophets described in the Quran as خَلَا have died, either naturally or were killed. Accordingly, Baidawi explains the verse: وَما مُحَمَّدٌ إِلّا رَسولٌ قَد خَلَت مِن قَبلِهِ الرُّسُلُ as: فسیخلوا کما خلوا بالموت یو القتل (So, the Holy Prophet will also pass away as those passed away either by natural death or by being killed as is proven for previous prophets who died or were killed). In the commentary of Ghraib ul Quran, two arguments are made while commenting on: وَما مُحَمَّدٌ إِلّا رَسولٌ قَد خَلَت مِن قَبلِهِ الرُّسُلُ , the second argument is explained in the following words: و ثانیھما القیاس علےٰ موت سائر الانبییاء او قتلھم (the second thing is that there is a presumption that all prophets died or were killed. The commentary in Ruh al-Maani on this verse states: و تبین ان حکم النبی صلی اللّٰه تعالٰی علیه و سلم حکم من سبق من الانبیاء صلوٰت اللّٰه تعالیٰ وسلامه علیہم اجمعین فی انہم ماتوا و بقی اتبا عہم متمسکین بدینہم (Allah has clearly stated here that the verdict regarding the Holy Prophet is the verdict of previous prophets who have passed away, may Allah’s blessings and mercy be upon them, that they have all died and their followers stayed believers in their faith). Further it is stated: فتکون جملة قد خلت الخ صفۃ لرسول منبئة عن کونه صلی اللّٰه تعالٰی علیه و سلم فی شرف الخلوفان خلو مشارکیه فی منصب الرسالة من شواھد خلوہ لا محالة کانه قیل قد خلت من قبله امثاله فسیخلوا کما خلوا (In this case, قد خلت will be an attribute of رسول giving the news that the Holy Prophet has the honor of passing away because the passing away of those who are his companions in prophethood is a testimony to his passing away. In other words, it is said that his like before him have passed away. Just as they have passed away, so too will he pass away).
In addition, if this verse is compared with another verse of the Quran where the same words are used for Jesus, one comes to the same conclusion that all the prophets preceding the Holy Prophet passed away before the revelation of this verse. The similarly worded verse is as follows: مَا المَسيحُ ابنُ مَريَمَ إِلّا رَسولٌ قَد خَلَت مِن قَبلِهِ الرُّسُلُ (The Messiah, son of Mary, was only a messenger; messengers before him had indeed passed away) (5:75). There is no doubt that this verse is a testimony to the death of the Messiah for it states that just as prophets before him have passed away, he too has passed away. There is widespread agreement that قَد خَلَت مِن قَبلِهِ الرُّسُلُ means that all prophets before the Messiah have passed away. It is very strange that this verse is accepted as a testimony that all prophets before Jesus died, but the same statement ما مُحَمَّدٌ إِلّا رَسولٌ قَد خَلَت مِن قَبلِهِ الرُّسُلُ is not accepted to mean that all prophets before Prophet Muhammad have died. To state the contradiction most Muslims believe in even more clearly, they believe مَا المَسيحُ ابنُ مَريَمَ إِلّا رَسولٌ قَد خَلَت مِن قَبلِهِ الرُّسُلُ proves the death of all prophets before the Messiah but the same verse in respect of the Holy Prophet: ما مُحَمَّدٌ إِلّا رَسولٌ قَد خَلَت مِن قَبلِهِ الرُّسُلُ does not even prove the death of one prophet, the Messiah, because the death of other prophets was already established by the verse for the Messiah.
3-145 And no soul can die but with Allah’s permission — the term is fixed.a And whoever desires the reward of this world, We give him of it, and whoever desires the reward of the Hereafter, We give him of it. And We shall reward the grateful.b
وَما كانَ لِنَفسٍ أَن تَموتَ إِلّا بِإِذنِ اللَّهِ كِتابًا مُؤَجَّلًا ۗ وَمَن يُرِد ثَوابَ الدُّنيا نُؤتِهِ مِنها وَمَن يُرِد ثَوابَ الآخِرَةِ نُؤتِهِ مِنها ۚ وَسَنَجزِي الشّاكِرينَ (۱۴۵)
3-145a: بِإِذنِ اللَّهِ – The meaning of إِذنِ is permission and it is standard to ask for إِذنِ before departure. It is also used in the sense of علم or knowledge. See note 2-97a. Abu Muslim takes the meaning of إِذنِ here to be امر (command) (G) while some others take its meaning to be تخلیة or اطلاق that is, to release or turn loose. They interpret the verse ما كانَ لِنَفسٍ أَن تَموتَ إِلّا بِإِذنِ اللَّهِ to mean that no one can be killed except that Allah leaves the killer to kill the one killed (G). Thus, this verse indicates that Allah did not permit these people to overcome the Prophet. Though, the situation had become quite serious, Allah did not allow them to complete their design.
كِتابًا مُؤَجَّلًا – کتاب – is a verbal noun which is brought in here to emphasize the decree. کتب الموت and مُؤَجَّل means that for which an اجل is appointed and اجل is a fixed term determined for a thing. It is most often used for the life term of a person. These words are directed towards those who had spread the rumor that the Prophet had been killed and particularly to those hypocrites who were voicing the idea that they would beg Abu Sufyan for peace (although Abu Sufyan was well on his way back to Makkah by then). It is for this reason that Allah states that no one dies without the permission of Allah, and although all the circumstances came together for the Prophet to be killed, Allah’s permission for it to happen was not there. While the words are general, the real intention is to direct attention to the safety accorded to the Holy Prophet. There is no doubt that the battle had taken a turn such that without the protection of Allah, the Prophet would have been killed. But since Allah promised that He would make His Prophet overcome his opponents, He fulfilled His promise and safeguarded the Prophet. Broadening the meaning to apply generally, it is conveyed that it behooves not for any person to flee from duty even if the situation becomes deadly and there is risk of loss of life. Allah has the power to save a person even in situations with a high likelihood of getting killed.
3-145b: ثَوابَ – is derived from ثَوب which has two meanings. The first is return of a thing to its previous condition. It is in this sense that the word is used in: ثاب فلان الیٰ دارہ (So and so person returned towards his house). The second meaning is: الشئ الیٰ الحالة المقدَّرۃ بالفکرۃ (The return of a thing to a situation which was rationally and intellectually decreed for it). In this sense clothes are called ثَوب because the spinning of yarn is for weaving the cloth, and in the same sense ثَوابِ is deeds that is, the thing that returns to a person in return for his actions. Reward or the return of a favor is also called ثَوابِ because the act itself is taken as the real thing. Accordingly, in certain places in the Quran, the person’s action itself is termed as the reward, as in: مَن يَعمَل مِثقالَ ذَرَّةٍ خَيرًا يَرَهُ (He who does an atom’s weight of good will see it) (99:7). The wording here doesn’t have to explicitly include the idea that it is the reward of the good deed that he will see. (R).
The philosophy behind doing deeds: By using the word ثَوابِ as the reward for a deed, attention is drawn to the philosophy behind the doing of deeds. When one does a good or a bad deed, the doing of it is not the end of the matter, although one may think that what is done is done. From the same perspective, a deed in another place in the Quran is called طائر (bird) because in the perception of the doer, the done deed has flown away. The Quran, however, states that it does not fly away but فی عنقه sticks to their neck, that is it becomes integrally associated with the person, and stays with to them in some form. So the consequences that reverberate from that deed are in fact forms of the same deed.
The word ثَوابِ may be used both for good and bad deeds although it is primarily used for good deeds.
Two groups: In this part of the verse, there is a mention of two groups: one مَن يُرِد ثَوابَ الدُّنيا and the other مَن يُرِد ثَوابَ الآخِرَةِ . Commentators generally take the first group to refer to those archers in the Battle of Uhad who deserted their post to gather the spoils of war in contravention of the Holy Prophet’s command. In my opinion, the reference is actually to the hypocrites who, when the rumor of the Holy Prophet’s supposed death in battle reached Madinah, were elated that they were not part of the battle and had escaped the casualties suffered by the Muslims. They are told that it is the law of Allah that those who seek the benefits of this world, Allah gives them that. Those who desire the benefits of Hereafter, Allah gives them that. But for the seekers of the Hereafter, it may be necessary to bear some hardships initially. The seekers after this world are successful here but suffer in the Hereafter.
3-146 And how many a prophet has fought, with whom were many worshippers of the Lord.a So they did not lose heart on account of that which befell them in Allah’s way, nor did they weaken, nor did they abase themselves. And Allah loves the steadfast.b
وَكَأَيِّن مِن نَبِيٍّ قاتَلَ مَعَهُ رِبِّيّونَ كَثيرٌ فَما وَهَنوا لِما أَصابَهُم في سَبيلِ اللَّهِ وَما ضَعُفوا وَمَا استَكانوا ۗ وَاللَّهُ يُحِبُّ الصّابِرينَ (۱۴۶)
3-146a: كَأَيِّن – According to some commentators, the نون is essential and this word is primarily suitable for this meaning. It is generally said that it is a compound word from the letter کاف which stands for a simile and ایٍّ which is used for an ambiguity and the nunation تنوین of ایٍّ has taken the shape of نون . An example of a similar word structure is کذا that is a compound word of ك and ذا . كَأَيِّن is in the meaning of کَم that is, how many.
رِبِّيّونَ – is the plural of ربَّی . According to Imam Raghib, ربَّی and رَبّانی have the same meaning for which see note 3-79a. According to Lisan al-Arab, ربَّی is attributed to الی الرب , that is ربَّی and رَبّانی have the same meaning. However, Ibn Abbas defines it as جموع that is parties (RM), and so do Farah and Zajjaj (G). In this case it is derived from رِبة or ربوۃ which means a party, and Dahak in particular associates it with one thousand. But the intention here is not to indicate a specific number, mentioned separately as کثیر or many. The intention is to convey that the wars that the prophets had to wage accompanied by many scholars, jurists and righteous men were fraught with difficulties which they had to bear but this did not weaken their resolve.
3-146b: وَهَنوا – The meaning of وَهَن was already explained, that is ضعف خُلق and a narration in hadith states: لا واھنا فی عزمٍ which means ضعیفا فی رای (LA) and because ضعف is mentioned separately, the meaning here is weakness of intention or becoming lazy in pursuing the intention. Lisan al-Arab explains the meaning of فَما وَهَنوا as ما فتروا و ما جَبُنُوا من قتال عدوھم (In the fight against the enemy, they neither had an intermission nor did they show cowardice).
استَكانوا – There is a difference of opinion with regards to derivation. In Al-Mufradat, the derivation is said to be from کان in the class استفعال and it means to be humble. In Lisan al-Arab, its root is سکن or سکون and its meaning is خضع و ذل which translates to humility and obedience and the connection to the literal meaning is obvious. Further, Lisan al-Arab states that it was actually استکنوا but by an elongation of the vowel sound it became استَكانوا . In another place, it is stated in the Quran: فَمَا استَكانوا لِرَبِّهِم (but they were not submissive to their Lord). The Ghraib ul Quran states that وھن is that weakness which is associated with the heart while ضعف is weakness of the entire body and استَكانة is the manifestation of this humility and weakness.
The three words used here indicate three different levels of weakness. The first one is وھن which is to show laziness and weakness of intention when confronted with the preparation of the enemy, its amassing of a large force and its armament. The second level is ضعف which is weakness resulting from loss of life and injuries and the third level is استَكانة which is weakness and humility resulting from an enemy’s transitory victory. In short, a person should stay firm and steadfast when faced with an enemy and should not get overwhelmed.
3-147 And their cry was only that they said: Our Lord, grant us protection from our sins and our extravagance in our affair, and make firm our feet and grant us victory over the disbelieving people.
وَما كانَ قَولَهُم إِلّا أَن قالوا رَبَّنَا اغفِر لَنا ذُنوبَنا وَإِسرافَنا في أَمرِنا وَثَبِّت أَقدامَنا وَانصُرنا عَلَى القَومِ الكافِرينَ (۱۴۷)
3-147a: إِسرافَنا – إِسرافَ – is derived from سَرَف . Every action that a person does if carried to an excess is called سَرَف or إِسرافَ . (R). The use of the word is more commonly associated with wealth.
ثَبِّت أَقدامَنا – The literal meaning is make firm our feet, but the real sense is to remove fear from our hearts and keep away all evil thoughts from our breasts (G). There is a strong connection between firm feet and a strong heart.
The lesson here is to ask Allah for the treatment of one’s weaknesses and for forgiveness of faults and to seek help in combating the enemy. If one is not able to triumph over the weaknesses in one’s own self, what is the benefit of triumphing over the enemy.
3-148 So Allah gave them the reward of the world and a good reward of the Hereafter. And Allah loves the doers of good (to others).
فَآتاهُمُ اللَّهُ ثَوابَ الدُّنيا وَحُسنَ ثَوابِ الآخِرَةِ ۗ وَاللَّهُ يُحِبُّ المُحسِنينَ (۱۴۸)
3-148a: There is a promise in this verse that those who strive in the way of Allah and sacrifice this world for their faith, Allah certainly gives them a reward in this world but an even better reward awaits them in the Hereafter. Such people have been referred to as محسن whose definition from hadith is: تعبد اللّٰه کانك تراہ (Who worship Allah as if he is seeing Him). A person who sacrifices his worldly benefits to the extent of giving his life or is ready to give his life in the way of Allah certainly comes within the ambit of this definition.
Bayan-ul-Quran 