4-92 And a believer would not kill a believer except by mistake. And he who kills a believer by mistake should free a believing slave, and blood-money should be paid to his people unless they remit it as alms.a But if he be from a tribe hostile to you and he is a believer, the freeing of a believing slave (suffices). And if he be from a tribe between whom and you there is a covenant, the blood-money should be paid to his people along with the freeing of a believing slave; but he who has not the means should fast for two months successively: a penance from Allah. And Allah is ever Knowing, Wise.
وَمَا كَانَ لِمُؤۡمِنٍ أَن يَقۡتُلَ مُؤۡمِنًا إِلَّا خَطَـًٔ۬اۚ وَمَن قَتَلَ مُؤۡمِنًا خَطَـًٔ۬ا فَتَحۡرِيرُ رَقَبَةٍ۬ مُّؤۡمِنَةٍ۬ وَدِيَةٌ۬ مُّسَلَّمَةٌ إِلَىٰٓ أَهۡلِهِۦۤ إِلَّآ أَن يَصَّدَّقُواْۚ فَإِن كَانَ مِن قَوۡمٍ عَدُوٍّ۬ لَّكُمۡ وَهُوَ مُؤۡمِنٌ۬ فَتَحۡرِيرُ رَقَبَةٍ۬ مُّؤۡمِنَةٍ۬ۖ وَإِن ڪَانَ مِن قَوۡمِۭ بَيۡنَڪُمۡ وَبَيۡنَهُم مِّيثَـٰقٌ۬ فَدِيَةٌ۬ مُّسَلَّمَةٌ إِلَىٰٓ أَهۡلِهِۦ وَتَحۡرِيرُ رَقَبَةٍ۬ مُّؤۡمِنَةٍ۬ۖ فَمَن لَّمۡ يَجِدۡ فَصِيَامُ شَهۡرَيۡنِ مُتَتَابِعَيۡنِ تَوۡبَةً۬ مِّنَ ٱللَّهِۗ وَكَانَ ٱللَّهُ عَلِيمًا حَڪِيمً۬ا (٩٢)
4-92a: دِيَةٌ۬ – Its root is وَدِی یَدِی and the meaning of وَدۡی is to flow. From the same root is the word وادی which is a place where water flows. ھا Has been brought in in exchange of واؤ in دِيَة (T). دِيَة is blood money that is paid to the heirs of a murdered person.
A Muslim killing a Muslim by mistake: After discussing the situation with hypocrites, this section now turns to some other conditions of a like nature. Sometimes people were killed in a situation of doubt. For example, a person may say that he is a Muslim, but it may be that he is just trying to deceive and a Muslim thinking that this is an enemy trying to deceive may kill him. The section is started by first saying that a believer will never purposely kill another believer, but it did sometimes happen that by mistake a believer killed a believer. For example, a tribe was an enemy and fighting against Muslims but one person from the tribe became a Muslim but another did not recognize him as a Muslim brother or the intention was to kill someone else but by mistake killed him. Sometimes such a happening may occur by mistake in the exercise of judgment when fighting erupts between believers and one party thinks the right is on their side and the other thinks it is on their side. This happened in the dispute between Caliph Ali and Muawiyah and the subsequent killing in battle was a shade of killing believers by mistake but a more detailed treatment of this subject will come later in Surah Hujurat where there is a discussion of fighting between two groups of believers.
4-93 And whoever kills a believer intentionally, his punishment is hell, abiding therein; and Allah is wroth with him and He has cursed him and prepared for him a grievous chastisement.
وَمَن يَقۡتُلۡ مُؤۡمِنً۬ا مُّتَعَمِّدً۬ا فَجَزَآؤُهُ ۥ جَهَنَّمُ خَـٰلِدً۬ا فِيہَا وَغَضِبَ ٱللَّهُ عَلَيۡهِ وَلَعَنَهُ ۥ وَأَعَدَّ لَهُ ۥ عَذَابًا عَظِيمً۬ا (٩٣)
4-93a: Killing a believer intentionally: A narration states that this verse was revealed when a believer killed another believer and then the murderer reverted to disbelief. However, the words are general and the discussion here has been about whether the repentance of such a person can lead to forgiveness. It is generally accepted from the wordings of this verse that forgiveness will not be granted but this has not been stated specifically. However, the Quran has established a rule that repentance is accepted for every action: وَإِنِّى لَغَفَّارٌ۬ لِّمَن تَابَ (And surely I am Forgiving towards him who repents…) (20:82) and specifically about killing a person, it is stated: إِلَّا مَن تَابَ وَءَامَنَ (Except him who repents and believes…) (25:70). The Holy Prophet himself forgave those unbelievers who had killed Muslims and they subsequently became Muslims. Hence the claim that the repentance of a killer is not accepted is not sustainable in the light of the Quran and Sunnah.
It is true though that it appears from the words that a deliberate killer of a believer falls in the category of an unbeliever. Just as the Quran has put the murderer of a believer in the category of an unbeliever, the Hadith has put a person who calls a believer as an unbeliever in the category of an unbeliever. The hadith in Bukhari that states this reads: ایما رجل قال لاخیه یا کافر فقد باء بہا احد ھما (He who calls his Muslim brother an unbeliever then that unbelief surely falls on one of the two of them).
خلود – Its meaning has been explained in 2-25b. Commentators have accepted its meaning here as a long period: و المراد بالخلود المکث الطویل (Bd).
4-94 O you who believe, when you go forth (to fight) in Allah’s way, make investigation, and say not to any one who offers you salutation, Thou art not a believer, seeking the good of this world’s life. But with Allah there are abundant gains. You too were such before, then Allah conferred a benefit on you; so make investigation.a Surely Allah is ever Aware of what you do.b
يَـٰٓأَيُّہَا ٱلَّذِينَ ءَامَنُوٓاْ إِذَا ضَرَبۡتُمۡ فِى سَبِيلِ ٱللَّهِ فَتَبَيَّنُواْ وَلَا تَقُولُواْ لِمَنۡ أَلۡقَىٰٓ إِلَيۡڪُمُ ٱلسَّلَـٰمَ لَسۡتَ مُؤۡمِنً۬ا تَبۡتَغُونَ عَرَضَ ٱلۡحَيَوٰةِ ٱلدُّنۡيَا فَعِندَ ٱللَّهِ مَغَانِمُ ڪَثِيرَةٌ۬ۚ كَذَٲلِكَ ڪُنتُم مِّن قَبۡلُ فَمَنَّ ٱللَّهُ عَلَيۡڪُمۡ فَتَبَيَّنُوٓاْۚ إِنَّ ٱللَّهَ كَانَ بِمَا تَعۡمَلُونَ خَبِيرً۬ا (٩٤)
4-94a: Killing allowed only in fighting and not for disbelief: This verse lays down that even though Muslims are surrounded by enemies on all sides, a person is not to be killed unless it is proven that he is an enemy combatant. It is obvious from the last section and also from other parts of the Quran that it is permissible to kill an unbeliever only when he is a combatant in a force fighting against Muslims. Hence it is stated in simple words that investigation should be made to determine if a person is an enemy combatant or not and only the enemy combatant should be killed and not a noncombatant.
4-94b: By سلام is meant the Islamic salutation of اسلام علیکم which is a manifest sign of Islam, and this enables a Muslim to immediately recognize if the person addressing him is a Muslim or not.
مَغَانِم – It is the plural of مَغۡنم . Both terms مایُغۡنَمُ and غَنَم mean goats. These words do not have a singular and instead شاۃ is used for singular (T). غَنۡم which is a verbal noun from it means to find the goats and to take them after being victorious. This word is also used for whatever else is obtained from an enemy, that is spoils of war (R). However, غنم has also been used only in the sense of الفوز بالشئ (to win a thing) (AH and Rz), and in support of this, some verses have been cited and also a hadith which states: الصوم فی الشتاء الغنیمة الباردۃ (Fasting during the winter is an easy reward) in which غنیمة has been used in a wider sense of reward. In another hadith غُنم has been used in the sense of abundance of things (N). Here too مَغَانِم is used in a wider sense.
Command regarding a person from an enemy tribe who says اسلام علیکم : Mention is made here of a problematic issue which arises when a tribe as a whole is an enemy but one person from the tribe converts to Islam. In such a situation, saying اسلام علیکم is a sufficient proof of a person’s Muslim faith and he should not be killed even if he belongs to an enemy tribe. Some such incidents did occur. When a Muslim made an excuse before the Holy Prophet that his victim had merely said اسلام علیکم to save his life, The Holy Prophet said: ھلّا شققت قلبه (Did you tear his heart to look into it). The statement كَذَٲلِكَ ڪُنتُم مِّن قَبۡلُ is meant to convey that just as reciting the shahadah is enough to admit you into Islam, the same is good enough for another person.
Killing a person for getting spoils of war: The second thing that is stated here is that a person must not be killed out of greed for getting spoils of war. Allah has created better ways to achieve the objective. The spoils of war are here called provisions of this world and in this way, Muslims have been informed that he who is motivated to fight for spoils of war does not fight in the way of Allah.
اسلام علیکم is the sign of Islam: The Quran states here that a person who says اسلام علیکم is not to be called a nonbeliever. However, the state of Muslims today is such that even if a person has all the requirements of a Muslim, there is no guarantee that he would not be called an unbeliever by some in the Muslim community. This is in total disregard of what the Holy Prophet has said: Did you open his heart to see what is in it. Their excuse for disregarding is that the person they are labelling as an unbeliever is a hypocrite and is pretending to be a Muslim. Quran has prescribed the simple test of اسلام علیکم to be a sufficient test to identity a Muslim but the state of the Muslim scholar’s is such that they take a person’s statement and dissect it in all manner of ways and only stop when they declare the person to be a nonbeliever.
4-95 The holders-back from among the believers, not disabled by injury, and those who strive hard in Allah’s way with their property and their persons, are not equal. Allah has made the strivers with their property and their persons to excel the holders-back a (high) degree. And to each Allah has promised good. And Allah has granted to the strivers above the holders-back a mighty reward —a
لَّا يَسۡتَوِى ٱلۡقَـٰعِدُونَ مِنَ ٱلۡمُؤۡمِنِينَ غَيۡرُ أُوْلِى ٱلضَّرَرِ وَٱلۡمُجَـٰهِدُونَ فِى سَبِيلِ ٱللَّهِ بِأَمۡوَٲلِهِمۡ وَأَنفُسِہِمۡۚ فَضَّلَ ٱللَّهُ ٱلۡمُجَـٰهِدِينَ بِأَمۡوَٲلِهِمۡ وَأَنفُسِہِمۡ عَلَى ٱلۡقَـٰعِدِينَ دَرَجَةً۬ۚ وَكُلاًّ۬ وَعَدَ ٱللَّهُ ٱلۡحُسۡنَىٰۚ وَفَضَّلَ ٱللَّهُ ٱلۡمُجَـٰهِدِينَ عَلَى ٱلۡقَـٰعِدِينَ أَجۡرًا عَظِيمً۬ا (٩٥)
4-95a: With the ever-existing danger that one may accidently kill a Muslim during fighting, some people concluded that in such a condition it is better to sit at home rather than to wage jihad. Hence it is stated that jihad is an admirable thing and Allah has given excellence to those who wage jihad over those who do not. The Shia sect has made an error by restricting the meaning of jihad to only fighting and on that basis have concluded that since Caliph Ali took part in more battles than Caliph Abu Bakr the former was more excellent than the latter. The meaning of jihad is much wider. Even the Holy Prophet did not take part in all of the wars but his work far excelled mere waging wars. Caliph Abu Bakr’s services to Islam are far greater than that of Caliph Ali and those services constitute a mighty jihad.
Non participation in jihad is not disobeying God: This verse shows that not participating in jihad is not disobeying God because God has promised good even for those who do not take part in jihad. There will be both type of people in the Islamic community. First, people of high excellence who are continually engaged in jihad along with performing their worldly duties. However, their state is such that they are never unmindful of upholding the commands of Allah. Their wealth and their life is dedicated to the service of the religion of Islam. Their means of livelihood is also part of the service to the faith. Second, those people who are more absorbed in the business of the world but discharge their religious obligations and pay the required amount from their wealth. Both are promised a good end but there is no comparison between the high status of the first group as compared with the second group. This is a description of normal conditions. However, under special conditions of national emergency, it is sometimes necessary for the entire community to wage jihad. In such a condition laggards earn the displeasure of God and the community. For example in the Tabuk campaign, those who stayed behind without a good reason incurred Divine displeasure because they did not care for the order of the Holy Prophet. There is no doubt though that in verse 4-84 only the Holy Prophet is made responsible for the fighting while the other believers are only to be urged to reach those excellent levels that come with waging jihad. They should not be satisfied with an inferior level.
غَيۡرُ أُوْلِى ٱلضَّرَرِ – ضرر سوء means being in a bad state or in a loss whether it is because of a deficiency in a person’s education, or advantage or virtuosity or whether because of a missing bodily part or from lack of wealth or rank (R).
Contextual meaning of أُوْلِى ٱلضَّرَرِ and the order: What is meant here by أُوْلِى ٱلضَّرَرِ is being physically handicapped and not having necessary resources, that is persons who on account of being blind or lame or having some other bodily defects are unable to go out for jihad and those who do not have the necessary equipment to fight. Taking the more general meaning of jihad, the definition can also include people who lack knowledge. It is not stated here that أُوْلِى ٱلضَّرَرِ have an equivalence with the holy warriors because there are different reasons for being in أُوْلِى ٱلضَّرَرِ . This category can include those who lost a limb in a previous war or have fallen sick in the service of Islam. In the eyes of God it is as if these persons are continuing with the actions that debilitated them. Then there are those who sincerely would like to be with the holy warriors but lack the equipment to fight. They are at least better than those who sit out the campaign and they will earn a reward based on their intention, just as a people mentioned in the Quran who could not go to war because they lacked mounts but their intention is made known by their actions: تَوَلَّواْ وَّأَعۡيُنُهُمۡ تَفِيضُ مِنَ ٱلدَّمۡعِ حَزَنًا أَلَّا يَجِدُواْ مَا يُنفِقُونَ (with their eyes overflowed with tears of grief that they could not find aught to spend) (9:92).
4-96 (High) degrees from Him and protection and mercy. And Allah is ever Forgiving, Merciful.
دَرَجَـٰتٍ۬ مِّنۡهُ وَمَغۡفِرَةً۬ وَرَحۡمَةً۬ۚ وَكَانَ ٱللَّهُ غَفُورً۬ا رَّحِيمًا (٩٦)
Bayan-ul-Quran 