4-97 (As for) those whom the angels cause to die while they are unjust to themselves, (the angels) will say: What were you doing? They will say: We were weak in the earth. (They will) say: Was not Allah’s earth spacious, so that you could have migrated therein? So these it is whose refuge is hell — and it is an evil resort.a
إِنَّ ٱلَّذِينَ تَوَفَّٮٰهُمُ ٱلۡمَلَـٰٓٮِٕكَةُ ظَالِمِىٓ أَنفُسِہِمۡ قَالُواْ فِيمَ كُنتُمۡۖ قَالُواْ كُنَّا مُسۡتَضۡعَفِينَ فِى ٱلۡأَرۡضِۚ قَالُوٓاْ أَلَمۡ تَكُنۡ أَرۡضُ ٱللَّهِ وَٲسِعَةً۬ فَتُہَاجِرُواْ فِيہَاۚ فَأُوْلَـٰٓٮِٕكَ مَأۡوَٮٰهُمۡ جَهَنَّمُۖ وَسَآءَتۡ مَصِيرًا (٩٧)
4-97a: ظَالِمِىٓ أَنفُسِہِمۡ – Those unjust to themselves can also be those people who sincerely believed the truth of Islam and had the means but did not migrate to join the Muslims. Because of the mastery of the unbelievers, they were not able to express their faith. It can also mean those hypocrites who overtly joined Islam and then also joined with the unbelievers to wage war against Muslims. On the face of it, it appears that it is the first type that is meant.
At the end of the last section, it is stated that waging jihad in the way of Allah is far better than just sitting out the national struggle. For this reason, Quran now addresses those people who because of some weakness considered themselves completely helpless. There were several people in Makkah and in its environs who were Muslims at heart but could not leave their homes and businesses. They had the means to migrate and be of service to the religion of Islam. However, they remained satisfied with their present condition. These people are called unjust to themselves. What is then the condition of those people who have given up hope of the dominance of Islam and are satisfied with their present condition and make no effort to spread Islam?
4-98 Except the weak from among the men and the women and the children who have not the means, nor can they find a way (to escape);a
إِلَّا ٱلۡمُسۡتَضۡعَفِينَ مِنَ ٱلرِّجَالِ وَٱلنِّسَآءِ وَٱلۡوِلۡدَٲنِ لَا يَسۡتَطِيعُونَ حِيلَةً۬ وَلَا يَہۡتَدُونَ سَبِيلاً۬ (٩٨)
4-98a: حِيلَة – It is derived from حَوۡل which means a change or alteration in a thing and its separation from another thing. From the same root is the word حال which is the state in which one finds oneself as a result of changes in his body or his soul etcetera. From the same root is حَوۡل meaning strength as in: لا حول و لا قوۃ and also from it is حَالَ meaning intervening or hindering, as in: حِيلَ بَيۡنَہُمۡ وَبَيۡنَ مَا يَشۡتَہُونَ (a bbarrier is placed between them and that which they desire) (34:54). حِيلَة is also derived from the same root where واؤ has been replaced by یاand its meaning is: ما یُتَوصَّلُ به الی حالة ما فی خفیة (the stratagem under which a secret plan is made to reach a particular state) (R). See 3-54a. The word حِيلَة is used here because it was not possible to migrate openly given the mastery and oppression of the unbelievers.
In the first verse of this section, mention is made of folks who chose not to get out from under the oppression of the unbelievers despite having the ability to do so. This verse mentions those who had neither the ability nor could find a way to get out of the clutches of the unbelievers. By finding a way is meant finding a way to migrate and by وِلۡدَٲنِ is meant children and could also include male and female slaves. See 4-75a. It is recorded that when the revelation of this verse became known in Makkah Jandab bin Zumra who was extremely old and frail told his sons to carry him to Madinah because he was not among those who did not have the ability not to migrate. His sons put him on a cot and started their journey but he died on the way. The spirit in the Companions to comply with the Divine commands was so great that its like cannot be found in any other nation of the world.
4-99 So these, it may be that Allah will pardon them. And Allah is ever Pardoning, Forgiving.
فَأُوْلَـٰٓٮِٕكَ عَسَى ٱللَّهُ أَن يَعۡفُوَ عَنۡہُمۡۚ وَكَانَ ٱللَّهُ عَفُوًّا غَفُورً۬ا (٩٩)
4-100 And whoever flees in Allah’s way, he will find in the earth many a place of escape and abundant resources. And whoever goes forth from his home fleeing to Allah and His Messenger, then death overtakes him, his reward is indeed with Allah. And Allah is ever Forgiving, Merciful.
وَمَن يُہَاجِرۡ فِى سَبِيلِ ٱللَّهِ يَجِدۡ فِى ٱلۡأَرۡضِ مُرَٲغَمً۬ا كَثِيرً۬ا وَسَعَةً۬ۚ وَمَن يَخۡرُجۡ مِنۢ بَيۡتِهِۦ مُهَاجِرًا إِلَى ٱللَّهِ وَرَسُولِهِۦ ثُمَّ يُدۡرِكۡهُ ٱلۡمَوۡتُ فَقَدۡ وَقَعَ أَجۡرُهُ ۥ عَلَى ٱللَّهِۗ وَكَانَ ٱللَّهُ غَفُورً۬ا رَّحِيمً۬ا (١٠٠)
4-100a: مُرَٲغَمً۬ا – The meaning of رغام or رَغۡم is dust or fine dust. Derived from it is the idiom: علیٰ رغم انف by which is meant accepting disgrace. Thus, it is narrated in a hadith that when this verse was revealed Moaqil bin Yassar accepted to marry his sister to her ex-husband who had previously divorced her and remarked: رَغۡم انفی لامر اللّٰه تعلیٰ (I accept disgrace for the sake of Allah, the Most High) (T). Metaphorically مراغمة means to be angry and leave somebody, and مراغم means the place one runs to and the place one goes to and this is what is meant here (T).
The meaning is that when there is actually a need for migration Allah provides a place of refuge as he provided the Muslims a place in Madinah and before that in Abyssinia. When the need for migration arises and there is no alternative to migration, then not doing so because of the idea that there is no place to go to is not the right thing to do. It is then stated that if the migrant dies on the way, the reward of the failed attempt is with Allah. The meaning of this is that the purpose of migration is service of Allah and if the person dies and does not get a chance to serve Islam, Allah will reward him according to his intention.
Migration under present conditions: The edit of Allah has always proven to be true. So, it is impossible that that there is a need for migration but migration has to be abandoned because there is no place to migrate. It is God’s promise that a place would be found. It therefore follows that the prevailing conditions at the time of the movement for migration in India at the end of the First World War were such that they did not warrant a migration. There were at the time four hundred million Muslims in the world and more or less all of them lived in countries that were under the influence of Christian powers. There is no place that four hundred million could migrate to which clearly shows that at the time the solution to the problem of Muslims was not that all of them migrate out of the countries under Christian control. If this was the remedy in the knowledge of Allah, He would have provided the means to do so. The absence of these means is a testimony that the solution to the problem of Muslims is neither migration nor fighting which is not possible without migration. The solution is self-reformation to which Muslims are not paying attention and hence they have to face failure at every step.
Bayan-ul-Quran 