Surah Aal-i-Imraan (3) — Ayah 100

(Ayah 100) ➊ {اِنْ تُطِيْعُوْا فَرِيْقًا …:} In the previous two verses, a warning was given to the People of the Book who were leading people astray; now, from here, Muslims are being advised to be cautious of them and not to follow their words in any way, otherwise they will go astray.

➋ {يَرُدُّوْكُمْ بَعْدَ اِيْمَانِكُمْ … :} Included in being turned into disbelievers after having faith is also the fact that their work is to make you fight among yourselves. If you follow their words, you will be deprived of mutual unity and love. The Messenger of Allah (peace and blessings be upon him) said: "Do not become disbelievers after me, striking the necks of one another." [ بخاری، المغازی، باب حجۃ الوداع : ۴۴۰۳، عن ابن عمر رضی اللہ عنہما ] Remember, the disbelief meant here is disbelief while remaining within Islam, not apostasy. Because Allah Almighty has declared both fighting groups of Muslims as believers and commanded reconciliation between them. For details, see Surah Al-Hujurat (9, 10).

10. 1. After mentioning the deceit and cunning of the Jews and their reprehensible attempts to mislead the Muslims, the Muslims are being warned that you too should beware of their conspiracies, and despite the recitation of the Qur'an and the presence of the Messenger of Allah ﷺ, do not get caught in the trap of the Jews. The background of this is described in the exegetical narrations as follows: The two tribes of the Ansar, Aws and Khazraj, were sitting together in a gathering and conversing with each other when Shas bin Qais, a Jew, passed by them and, seeing their mutual affection, became enraged. Previously, they were bitter enemies of each other, but now, due to the blessing of Islam, they had become united. He assigned a young man the task of mentioning the Battle of Bu'ath, which had taken place between them shortly before the Hijrah. They had recited war poetry against each other; he was to recite these to them. Accordingly, he did so, which inflamed the emotions between the two tribes, and they began to abuse each other, to the extent that they started calling for weapons and were on the verge of fighting each other. At that moment, the Prophet ﷺ arrived and reasoned with them, and they refrained. Upon this, this verse and those that follow were revealed (Ibn Kathir).

O you who believe! If you obey a group [89] from among those who were given the Book, they will turn you back to disbelief [90] after you have believed.

[89]
The Jews’ Attempt to Incite Fighting Among the Muslims:

In this verse, the group referred to is the Jews of Madinah. They could not tolerate seeing the Ansar of Madinah (the tribes of Aws and Khazraj) sitting together like brothers and being united in harmony, and they wished to incite them to fight each other again and sow enmity among them. When Allah granted the Muslims a great victory in the Battle of Badr, the Jews’ hostility increased even more. An old Jew, Shamas bin Qais, was greatly distressed by this. He ordered a young Jew to go to the gatherings of the Ansar and bring up the topic of the Battle of Bu’ath, and to recite the poems that had been composed by both sides during that conflict. The young man went and carried out this scheme. What happened next? Arguments began, and it escalated to the point where one party said to the other, “If you wish, we can revive that war again.” The sounds of weapons being drawn were heard, the field of Harrah was agreed upon for the confrontation, and people set out in this manner. It was very close to becoming a terrible war. At that moment, someone informed the Messenger of Allah ﷺ about the incident. He immediately went to the scene with a few Muhajirin, and upon arrival, he said: “O Muslims! This call of ignorance in my presence! Allah has guided you to Islam and joined your hearts together. So what is this matter now?” Upon hearing the words of the Messenger of Allah ﷺ, the eyes of the Ansar were opened, and they realized how they had fallen into a satanic trap, and that the ones who had ensnared them were these very oppressive Jews. Then the people of Aws and Khazraj embraced each other and began to weep. In this way, Allah Almighty foiled the Jews’ plot and saved the Muslims from destruction. [ابن هشام، 555-556]

[90] This verse has two meanings, and both are correct. One is that if you begin to listen to the Jews, they will not rest until they have turned you away from Islam and made you apostates. The second is that they will incite you to fight among yourselves and thus turn you into disbelievers, as it is established from authentic hadith that fighting among Muslims is disbelief (kufr). During the Farewell Sermon, the Prophet ﷺ addressed the great gathering of Muslims and said: “Behold! Your lives, your wealth, and your honor are as sacred to one another as the sanctity of this day, this month, and this city. Behold! After me, do not turn into disbelievers by striking each other’s necks.”
[بخاری، کتاب الفتن، باب قول النبی لاترجعوا بعدی کفارا۔۔۔ الخ]