Surah An-Nisaa (4) — Ayah 94

(Ayah 94) ➊ {فَتَبَيَّنُوْا وَ لَا تَقُوْلُوْا …:} Ibn Abbas (may Allah be pleased with them both) says that a man was with his few goats, some Muslims passed by there, he said {’’اَلسَّلاَمُ عَلَيْكُمْ‘‘} but the Muslims killed him and took his goats. Upon this, Allah Almighty revealed this verse, in which it is said: «{ تَبْتَغُوْنَ عَرَضَ الْحَيٰوةِ الدُّنْيَا }» "Do you desire the goods of this world?" By this is meant those few goats. [ بخاری، التفسیر، باب : { ولا تقولوا لمن ألقیٰ… }: ۴۵۹۱ ]
➋ {فَتَبَيَّنُوْا :} Here, the command of tabayyun, that is, making investigation, is mentioned along with travel, but here the restriction of travel is for the context of the incident, meaning that the incident regarding which the verse was revealed happened during travel, otherwise the command to investigate is just as applicable in residence as it is in travel. (Qurtubi)
➌ { كَذٰلِكَ كُنْتُمْ مِّنْ قَبْلُ:} That is, this was your own condition before; you used to live in the city of the disbelievers and would conceal your faith, Allah Almighty favored you by making the religion dominant. (Qurtubi)

94. 1. It is mentioned in hadith that some companions were passing through an area where a shepherd was grazing goats. Upon seeing the Muslims, the shepherd greeted them with salam. Some companions thought that perhaps he was pretending to be a Muslim just to save his life. So, without any investigation, they killed him and took the goats (as spoils of war) and presented themselves before the Prophet ﷺ. Upon this, this verse was revealed. In some narrations, it is mentioned that the Prophet ﷺ said that previously in Makkah, you too were compelled to hide your faith like the shepherd. The meaning was that there was no justification for the killing.

94. 2. That is, you obtained a few goats from the slain person, this is nothing; with Allah there are far better blessings than this, which you can receive in this world due to obedience to Allah and His Messenger, and in the Hereafter, their attainment is certain.

94. O you who believe! When you go forth in the cause of Allah, investigate carefully, and do not say to anyone who offers you peace, “You are not a believer,” seeking the goods of worldly life. With Allah are abundant gains [130]. You yourselves were in the same position before, then Allah conferred His favor upon you [131]. So investigate carefully. Surely Allah is well aware of what you do.

[129]
Accidental Killing During War:

In the early days of Islam, the phrase "Assalamu Alaikum" was considered a symbol for Muslims and a sign of both parties being Muslim, because at that time there was no clear distinction between the new Muslims and the disbelievers of Arabia in terms of dress, language, or any other thing by which a Muslim could easily recognize another Muslim. However, during fighting with disbelievers, this complication would arise that someone from the attacked tribe would start saying "Assalamu Alaikum" or "La ilaha illallah," which would make Muslims suspect that he was not truly a Muslim but was only uttering these words to save his life, so based on this assumption, they would kill him and seize his property. Thus, the following hadiths mention two such incidents:

1. Sayyiduna Ibn Abbas ؓ says that a man with a few goats met the Muslims and said "Assalamu Alaikum." The Muslims (considering him an excuse-maker) killed him and took his goats (Usama bin Zaid ؓ killed him). At that time, Allah revealed this verse. [بخاري، كتاب التفسير]

2.
Killing a Disbeliever Who Utters the Kalimah During War is a Grave Crime:

Sayyiduna Usama bin Zaid ؓ says that the Prophet ﷺ sent us towards Harqat (a tribe of Juhaina). We attacked them early in the morning and defeated them. I and an Ansari met one of their men, and when we overpowered him, he said "La ilaha illallah." The Ansari refrained from him, but I struck him with a spear until he died. When we returned, this matter reached the Prophet ﷺ, and he said to me, "Usama! Did you kill him after he said 'La ilaha illallah'?" I said, "O Messenger of Allah ﷺ! He only said it to seek protection." The Prophet ﷺ again said, "Did you kill him after he said «لا اله الا الله»?" The Prophet ﷺ kept repeating these words so many times that I wished I had not accepted Islam before that day.
[بخاری، کتاب الدیات۔ باب قول اللہ ومن احیاھا]

3. Sayyiduna Abdullah bin Umar ؓ narrates that Sayyiduna Khalid bin Walid ؓ (in the battle of Banu Hudbah) started killing the disbelievers (even though they kept saying, "We have changed our religion, we have changed our religion"). When the Messenger of Allah ﷺ heard of this, he said, "O Allah! I am free from what Khalid has done."
[بخاری، کتاب الجہاد، باب اذا قالوا صبانا ولم یحسنوا اسلمنا]

And in some narrations, it is mentioned that the Messenger of Allah ﷺ later paid the blood money for such killed persons from the public treasury (Bayt al-Mal). And in another narration, the Prophet ﷺ asked Sayyiduna Usama ؓ, "Did you cut open his heart to see whether he was saying «لا اله الا الله» only to save his life?"

4. It is narrated from Miqdad bin Aswad ؓ that I asked the Prophet ﷺ: O Messenger of Allah ﷺ! Suppose I fight with a disbeliever and he fights me and cuts off one of my hands with his sword, then he takes refuge behind a tree and says, 'I have accepted Islam for Allah's sake.' After he says this, can I kill him? The Prophet ﷺ said: Do not kill him. I said, O Messenger of Allah ﷺ! He said this after cutting off my hand. Still, should I not kill him? The Prophet ﷺ said: Do not kill him, even if he has caused you pain. Otherwise, he will be in the position you were in before you killed him (i.e., he was the oppressor and you were in the right), and if you kill him after he has said the Kalimah of Islam, then you will be in his position (i.e., you will be the oppressor and he the oppressed).
[مسلم۔ کتاب الایمان۔ باب تحریم قتل الکافر بعد قول لا الہ الا اللہ]

From this hadith, it is also incidentally understood that the rulings of Shariah are based on what is apparent, and the matter of the inner (intentions) is left to Allah. Since such an assumption is incorrect from the Shariah point of view, Allah has commanded a thorough investigation in such cases. If, by leaving the matter without investigation, there is a possibility that a disbeliever may save his life by lying, then by killing, there is also the possibility that an innocent believer may be killed by your hand, and your making a mistake by sparing a disbeliever is far better than making a mistake by killing a believer. Note that in verse 92, Allah has described three situations and their expiations according to the circumstances of accidental killing of a believer:

1. The Muslim killed is among the Muslims. Its expiation is to free a Muslim slave and also pay blood money. If a slave is not found, then fast for two consecutive months.

2. The Muslim killed is living among non-Muslims. Its expiation is only to free a Muslim slave or, as an alternative, to fast; his heirs will not be given blood money because that would only benefit the enemies of Islam.

3. And if the Muslim killed is from among non-Muslims with whom there is a peace treaty, then its expiation will be the same as in case (1). Now see, in all three cases, freeing a Muslim slave is made obligatory because just as he carelessly killed a Muslim, freeing a Muslim slave as expiation is as if he has given life to a Muslim, because slavery removes the attribute of ownership and freedom from a person, which Allah has placed in human nature and which is the requirement of his life, and in this expiation, there is also a favor upon humanity. The second point to clarify is that there are five types of killing:

1.
The Five Types of Killing:

The intentional killing of a Muslim. Its punishment in the Hereafter is mentioned here, and in this world, its punishment is Qisas (retaliation), or as an alternative, blood money and forgiveness from the heirs of the murdered, etc., which has been discussed in detail in the footnotes 222 to 225 of verses 178 and 179 of Surah Al-Baqarah.

2. Accidental killing when the mistake is in understanding, such as killing someone thinking he is a disbeliever, which has been mentioned above.

3. Accidental killing when the mistake is in the act, such as shooting or firing an arrow at some prey, but it hits a Muslim and causes his death.

4. Accidental killing when it happens by coincidence, such as someone dying after being run over by a vehicle.

5. Killing resembling intentional killing (Shibh al-Amad), i.e., if a person dies from something that does not usually cause death, such as being struck with a fist or a stick and dying from it. In these five cases, except for the first, all fall under accidental killing, and in them, there is no Qisas but blood money, which is borne by those relatives of the killer who share in his benefit and loss and are called 'Aqilah,' and the maximum period for paying the blood money is three years.

[130]
Investigation of Killing and Other Crimes is Necessary Whether in Travel or at Home:

In this verse, the command for investigation is related to travel because such an incident happened during a journey of jihad; otherwise, the command for investigation is the same at home as it is during travel. One reason for hastily killing someone who says "Assalamu Alaikum" without investigation could be the desire to seize some spoils of war. Allah said that there will be many occasions for you to obtain abundant spoils of war, so never do such things out of greed for loot.

[131] There was a time when you yourselves, due to the persecution of the disbelievers, used to hide your faith and would reveal your faith to another Muslim only by saying "Assalamu Alaikum." Now, if by Allah's grace you have an Islamic state and are free to practice Islamic rites, then at the very least, you should be considerate of those who are passing through the same stage you once did. Therefore, in such situations, investigation is extremely necessary.