Surah Al-Baqara (2) — Ayah 114

(Ayah 114) ➊ All those who consider their own group to be upon the truth and everyone else to be wrong should reflect that everyone agrees on the unlawfulness of oppression, so who can be a greater wrongdoer than the one who prevents Allah’s name from being mentioned in His mosques and strives to ruin them? This was done by the polytheists of Makkah, who first expelled the Muslims from Makkah, then barred their entry into Makkah, even for Hajj and Umrah. Before them, during the time of Titus, the Christians seized Bayt al-Maqdis and barred the Jews from entering it. What kind of truthfulness is this?

➋ { اِلَّا خَآئِفِيْنَ:} That is, such wrongdoers should not only be disqualified from being custodians of Allah’s mosques, but even their entry should be in fear, lest if they commit any mischief, they will not escape punishment. For them, there is disgrace even in this world. Allah’s statement proved true: Jews, Christians, and polytheists all received the punishment for their deeds, and the custodianship of the Ka‘bah and Bayt al-Maqdis came into the hands of the Muslims. Since mosques belong to Allah and the right is that only Allah’s name be mentioned in them, all polytheists were barred from approaching Masjid al-Haram, whether they were idol worshippers or worshippers of ‘Uzayr or the Messiah, because they do not worship Allah alone. Now, the same polytheistic beliefs and actions of the previous nations have spread among the Muslims, and by becoming corrupt in their actions, they abandoned jihad, so Bayt al-Maqdis slipped from their hands again. May Allah guide the Muslims once more to tawhid, sunnah, and jihad in the way of Allah, and grant them the honor of custodianship of Bayt al-Maqdis.

114. 1. Who are those people who prevented the remembrance of Allah in the mosques? There are two opinions among the commentators regarding them. One opinion is that it refers to the Christians, who, along with the Roman king, prevented the Jews from praying in Bayt al-Maqdis and participated in its destruction. However, Hafiz Ibn Kathir disagreed with this and considered its application to be the polytheists of Makkah, who not only forced the Prophet ﷺ and his companions to leave Makkah, thus preventing the Muslims from worshipping in the Ka'bah, but also repeated this behavior at the time of the Treaty of Hudaybiyyah, saying that they would not allow the killers of their forefathers to enter Makkah, even though there was neither permission nor precedent for preventing anyone from worshipping in the Ka'bah.

114. 2. Destruction and ruin is not only that it is demolished and the building is damaged, but also preventing Allah's worship and remembrance in them, forbidding the establishment of Shariah and the purification from manifestations of shirk, is also destruction and ruining of Allah's houses.

114. 3. These words are in the form of information, but what is meant is the desire that when Allah grants you courage and dominance, then do not allow these polytheists to stay there without a treaty or jizyah. Thus, when Makkah was conquered in 8 AH, the Prophet ﷺ announced that in the coming year, no polytheist would be allowed to perform Hajj in the Ka'bah or to perform tawaf naked, and whoever has a treaty, he will be allowed to stay here until the end of the treaty period. Some have said that this is glad tidings and a prophecy that soon the Muslims will gain dominance and these polytheists will enter the Ka'bah in fear, thinking that for the excesses they committed against the Muslims, they will be punished or killed in retaliation. Thus, this glad tidings was soon fulfilled.

114. And who is more unjust than the one who prevents Allah’s name from being mentioned in His mosques and strives for their ruin [134]? Such people should not have entered them except in fear. For them is disgrace in this world, and a great punishment in the Hereafter.

[134] When the Christians prevailed over the Jews, they prevented the Jews from entering Bayt al-Maqdis and from worshipping there. Similarly, during the time of the Prophet ﷺ, the polytheists of Makkah used to prevent the Messenger of Allah ﷺ and the Muslims from performing prayer in the Ka'bah. On the occasion of the Treaty of Hudaybiyyah, they were prevented from performing 'Umrah. In this way, these people, instead of enhancing and populating the mosques of Allah, sought to ruin them, and this is a great injustice, which Allah Almighty absolutely does not tolerate. Thus, after the conquest of Makkah, this restriction of the polytheists of Makkah was lifted, and Bayt al-Maqdis was liberated from the Christians by the Muslims during the era of 'Umar Farooq ؓ.

The Qualities of the Custodians of Mosques:

The intention of Allah Almighty with this command is that the custodians of places of worship should be those who worship Allah Almighty sincerely and fear only Him, so that if wicked people enter there, they should fear that if they commit mischief, they will be punished. However, those who enter the mosques with sincerity of intention for worship should never be prevented from entering the mosques at any time, because preventing someone from the worship of Allah is a very great sin.