Surah Al-Hajj (22) — Ayah 19

(Ayah 19) ➊ { هٰذٰنِ خَصْمٰنِ اخْتَصَمُوْا فِيْ رَبِّهِمْ :} Here, among the two disputing parties, one group is the Muslims and the other group consists of those five groups who were mentioned in the previous verse after the believers, and who are called disbelievers in this verse. Disputing about the Lord means that the Muslims believe in the oneness of Allah, and all these people have various ideas about monotheism, which are different forms of disbelief. The inevitable result of this opposition is jihad from the Muslims. The first battle in which there was face-to-face combat in the presence of the Messenger of Allah (peace be upon him) was the Battle of Badr, in which the first to come out to the field were Hamzah bin Abdul Muttalib, Ubaidah bin Harith, and Ali bin Abi Talib (may Allah be pleased with them), who came out against their closest relatives Utbah bin Rabi’ah, Shaybah bin Rabi’ah, and Walid bin Utbah. Thus, the foremost application of this verse is to these three noble companions (may Allah be pleased with them). About Abu Dharr Ghifari (may Allah be pleased with him), it is mentioned: [ أَنَّهٗ كَانَ يُقْسِمُ قَسَمًا إِنَّ هٰذِهِ الْآيَةَ : «هٰذٰنِ خَصْمٰنِ اخْتَصَمُوْا فِيْ رَبِّهِمْ » نَزَلَتْ فِيْ حَمْزَةَ وَصَاحِبَيْهِ وَعُتْبَةَ وَصَاحِبَيْهِ يَوْمَ بَرَزُوْا فِيْ يَوْمِ بَدْرٍ ] [ بخاري، التفسیر، باب: « ھذان خصمان …» : ۴۷۴۳۔ مسلم : ۳۰۳۳ ] “He used to swear that this verse: «{ هٰذٰنِ خَصْمٰنِ اخْتَصَمُوْا فِيْ رَبِّهِمْ }» was revealed about those six men—Hamzah and his two companions, and ‘Utbah and his two companions—who came out against each other on the Day of Badr.” And Ali bin Abi Talib (may Allah be pleased with him) said: “I am the first person who will sit on his knees before the Most Merciful on the Day of Resurrection for this dispute and present my case.” [ بخاري، التفسیر، باب: « ھٰذان خصمان اختصموا في ربھم » : ۴۷۴۴ ] After these three, all those mujahideen who, until the Day of Resurrection, fought or will fight against the disbelievers for the sake of monotheism are also included in this verse.

➋ {فَالَّذِيْنَ كَفَرُوْا قُطِّعَتْ لَهُمْ ثِيَابٌ مِّنْ نَّارٍ:} That is, garments of fire have been cut out for the disbelievers. Here, the event of the Day of Resurrection is described with a past tense verb, meaning this matter is so certain that it is as if it has already happened. These garments of fire will be in the form of shirts, as He said: «{ سَرَابِيْلُهُمْ مِّنْ قَطِرَانٍ }» [ إبراھیم : ۵۰ ] “Their shirts will be of sulfur.” And also in the form of bedding and coverings above and below, as He said: «{ لَهُمْ مِّنْ جَهَنَّمَ مِهَادٌ وَّ مِنْ فَوْقِهِمْ غَوَاشٍ }» [الأعراف : ۴۱ ] “For them will be bedding from Hell and coverings above them.”

➌ {يُصَبُّ مِنْ فَوْقِ رُءُوْسِهِمُ الْحَمِيْمُ : ’’ الْحَمِيْمُ ‘‘} Extremely hot (boiling) water. See also Surah Ad-Dukhan (44:48).

19. 1. ھذان خصمن — these are dual forms. Some have taken this to mean the aforementioned misguided sects, and in contrast, the other group refers to the Muslims. These two dispute concerning their Lord; the Muslims affirm His oneness and His power over resurrection, while the others are involved in various misguidances regarding Allah. In this context, the Muslims and disbelievers who fought in the Battle of Badr are also included, at the beginning of which, on the Muslim side, were Hazrat Hamza, Hazrat Ali, and Hazrat Ubaidah (may Allah be pleased with them), and on the other side, among the disbelievers, were Utbah, Shaibah, and Walid bin Utbah. (Imam Ibn Kathir states that both these meanings are correct and in accordance with the verse.)

19. These are two groups who have disputed concerning their Lord [26]. As for those who disbelieved, garments of fire will be cut out for them [27], and boiling water will be poured over their heads from above.

[26] That is, among the two disputing and fighting parties, one party is of Allah’s obedient servants and Muslims, and the other is of the disbelievers. And in this party of disbelievers, all those groups are included which have been mentioned above, i.e., Jews, Sabians, Christians, Magians, polytheists, and besides them, those people who are not mentioned in this verse, such as Hindus, Sikhs, Buddhists, deniers of the existence of Allah, i.e., naturalists and atheists, etc.—all are included in this second party. The cause of dispute between these two parties is the Being and Attributes of Allah Almighty. The first party accepts Allah’s attributes exactly as Allah Himself has described them. Then they remain obedient to Allah and prostrate before Him. The second party includes all kinds of people, and sometimes they even form alliances against the first party. Then, these parties do not only confront each other in debate and argument, but the same situation occurs in the field of jihad and fighting as well. And Hazrat Aliؓ even says that this verse was revealed specifically about those people who became opponents in the Battle of Badr, as is made clear by the following hadith. Qais bin ‘Abad says that Hazrat Aliؓ said: “On the Day of Resurrection, I will be the first to kneel before the Lord and present my case.” Qais says that this verse was revealed about those people who came out for single combat on the Day of Badr, i.e., (from the Muslims) Aliؓ, Hamzaؓ, and ‘Ubaidah bin Harith, and (from the disbelievers) Shaibah bin ‘Utbah, ‘Utbah bin Rabi‘ah, and Walid bin ‘Utbah. [بخاري۔ كتاب التفسير]

The Challenge to Single Combat at Badr:

In this hadith, there is a brief mention of the single combat at the field of Badr, the details of which are as follows: When the army of the disbelievers learned that the trade caravan had safely reached Makkah, a serious faction among the chiefs of Quraysh was of the opinion that now there was no benefit in fighting, because the purpose for which they had set out had been achieved. ‘Utbah bin Rabi‘ah and Hakim bin Hizam were among such people. One of the causes of this war was also the killing of a Hadrami, who had been killed by the Muslims in the incident of Wadi Nakhlah. Hakim bin Hizam went to ‘Utbah bin Rabi‘ah and said, “I have an idea in mind. If you wish, you can save people from war and bloodshed and earn a great virtue.” ‘Utbah asked, “What is that idea?” Hakim bin Hizam (who later accepted Islam and became a distinguished Companion) said, “If you yourself pay the blood money for that Hadrami, the agitation for retaliation that has spread among the people will subside on its own.” ‘Utbah gladly accepted this suggestion. Then both of them went to Abu Jahl regarding the cessation of war, who was an arrogant, rebellious, and hot-tempered chief. He did not like this opinion at all. He said to ‘Utbah, “You want to avoid war because your son has become a Muslim and now you are showing cowardice?” ‘Utbah could not tolerate this taunt of cowardice and said, “Tomorrow it will become clear who is the coward!” On the other hand, Abu Jahl incited the tribe of the Hadrami, the result of which was that a general atmosphere of war arose in the army of the disbelievers and the possibility of avoiding war ended. The next day, when both armies faced each other, this very ‘Utbah bin Rabi‘ah came out with his brother Shaibah bin ‘Utbah and his son Walid bin ‘Utbah and shouted, “Is there anyone who will come out for single combat?” Three Ansari Companions came out from the Muslim army to face them, so ‘Utbah shouted and asked «من انتم؟ من القوم؟» (i.e., who are you people and from which tribe are you?). They told their names, so ‘Utbah said, “You are not our equals; we have not come to fight you.” Then he shouted, “O Muhammad!ﷺ Do not insult us. We have not come to fight these farmers. Send forth those who are our equals and our peers.” And in one narration, it is mentioned that at this occasion, ‘Utbah’s Muslim son and Abu Hudhayfah wanted to come out against his father, but the Messenger of Allahﷺ stopped them. Then Hazrat Hamzaؓ, Hazrat Aliؓ, and Hazrat ‘Ubaidah bin Harithؓ came out for the combat. Hazrat Hamzaؓ quickly dispatched ‘Utbah, and Hazrat Aliؓ sent Shaibah to Hell. But Hazrat ‘Ubaidah bin Harithؓ had a fierce duel with Walid bin ‘Utbah. Both struck each other simultaneously with deadly blows. Hazrat Abu ‘Ubaidah’s legs were cut and he fell, so Hazrat Hamzaؓ and Hazrat Aliؓ advanced, finished off Walid, and carried Abu ‘Ubaidah, who was dying, back. He said, “Take me to the Messenger of Allahﷺ.” When he reached there, he asked, “What is your command regarding me?” The Prophetﷺ said, “You will surely attain Paradise.” Upon hearing this, his face brightened and he said, “If only Abu Talib were alive today, he would have seen that I have fulfilled my word and sacrificed my life for the Messenger of Allahﷺ.”
[27]
The Garments, Food, and Other Punishments of the People of Hell:

That is, for the second party who chose the path of disbelief and rebellion, their garments will also be made of some inflammable material. As Allah Almighty has said at another place: ﴿سَرَابِيْلُهُمْ مِّنْ قَطِرَانٍ﴾ [50: 14] These garments will flare up and cling to their bodies, and when boiling water is poured over their heads, it will not extinguish this fire but will rather intensify it. Their skins will rot and fall off, and immediately new skin will be created so that there is no reduction in their punishment. Then this same boiling water will enter their bodies through their brains, causing all their intestines to be cut to pieces. Furthermore, they will be beaten with iron rods. When they try to escape from Hell, the angels will beat them with rods and push them back into Hell, telling them that this is the recompense for their own deeds. Why do you try to escape now, and you will have to taste this everlasting punishment.