Surah Al-Fath (48) — Ayah 21

(Ayah 21) ➊ This is an attribute of { وَ اُخْرٰى لَمْ تَقْدِرُوْا عَلَيْهَا … : ’’ اُخْرٰى ‘‘ ’’مَغَانِمَ‘‘} which is omitted here, and its conjunction is with {’’ مَغَانِمَ كَثِيْرَةً ‘‘}. That is, in addition to those spoils of war mentioned above, Allah has promised many other spoils of war over which you have not yet gained power, but Allah has encompassed them. By this, the foremost reference is to the conquest of Makkah, which was the greatest conquest. The Muslims were not able to achieve it in the year of Hudaybiyyah and the following year, but in Allah’s knowledge, its decision had already been made, and thus the Treaty of Hudaybiyyah itself became its prelude. One of the conditions of this treaty was that any tribe could become an ally of the Muslims, and any could become an ally of the Quraysh of Makkah, and no one would fight against the other or against the ally of the other. On this occasion, Banu Khuza‘ah became the allies of the Messenger of Allah (peace be upon him), and Banu Bakr became the allies of the Quraysh of Makkah. The polytheists remained committed to the treaty for only two years after the agreement, then their allied tribe, Banu Bakr, attacked the allies of the Messenger of Allah (peace be upon him), Banu Khuza‘ah, in which the Quraysh helped them with weapons and men, and even killed them despite their taking refuge in the Ka‘bah. When the Messenger of Allah (peace be upon him) was informed of their breaking the treaty, he secretly set out towards Makkah with ten thousand noble Companions, and Allah granted the conquest of Makkah. Due to the generality of the word, all those conquests after the conquest of Makkah are included in {’’ وَ اُخْرٰى لَمْ تَقْدِرُوْا عَلَيْهَا ‘‘} which the Muslims achieved afterwards, including the conquest of Thaqif and Hawazin, and the conquest of Tabuk and others. Also included are the lands of Rome and Persia, Egypt and Syria, India and Sindh, and all the countries of the east and west of the earth that were to come under Muslim control until the Day of Judgment.

➋ {قَدْ اَحَاطَ اللّٰهُ بِهَا وَ كَانَ اللّٰهُ عَلٰى كُلِّ شَيْءٍ قَدِيْرًا:} This is the answer to the question that could arise here: how could these fourteen or fifteen hundred people of Madinah, who lacked weapons and other necessities, even food supplies, achieve such great conquests and spoils of war, when the whole of Arabia was against them, possessing abundance of men, weapons, and equipment? It is said that these people indeed could not achieve those conquests and spoils of war, but when Allah has encompassed them and intends to grant them to the Muslims, then who can prevent Him? And Allah has always been fully capable of everything.

21. 1. This is a reference to the later conquests and the spoils of war obtained from them.

And (He will grant) another (victory) which you have not yet been able to achieve [32], but Allah has encompassed it, and Allah is Powerful over all things.

[32]
How Did the Treaty of Hudaybiyyah Become a Prelude to the Conquest of Makkah?

This refers to the conquest of Makkah, for which the Treaty of Hudaybiyyah itself became the prelude. And Allah knew exactly how this treaty was going to become the prelude to the conquest of Makkah. According to the second condition of the treaty, the Banu Khuza‘ah became allies of the Muslims and the Banu Bakr became allies of the Quraysh. A year and a half after the treaty, a fight broke out between Banu Khuza‘ah and Banu Bakr, in which the Quraysh openly helped Banu Bakr, and when Banu Khuza‘ah sought refuge in the Haram, they were not spared even there. Afterwards, forty camel riders from Banu Khuza‘ah reached Madinah to seek help. The Prophet ﷺ was deeply grieved by this breach of covenant by the Quraysh. Therefore, the Prophet ﷺ presented three conditions to the Quraysh, asking them to accept any one of them:
(1) Blood money should be paid for those killed from Banu Khuza‘ah.
(2) The Quraysh should withdraw their support from Banu Bakr.
(3) It should be announced that the Treaty of Hudaybiyyah is terminated.
When the envoy presented these conditions to the Quraysh, their youth became enraged. One of them, Furt bin ‘Umar, announced on behalf of the Quraysh that only the third condition was accepted. When the envoy left, their fervor cooled and they came to their senses, and deep concern overtook them. Consequently, Abu Sufyan was sent to renew the treaty. He reached Madinah and requested the Messenger of Allah ﷺ to renew the treaty, but the Prophet ﷺ gave no reply. Then, in turn, he requested intercession from Sayyiduna Abu Bakr as-Siddiq رضی اللہ عنہ, Sayyiduna ‘Umar ؓ, and even Sayyida Fatimah رضی اللہ عنہا. But when all refused, he himself stood in the Prophet’s Mosque and unilaterally announced that he had renewed the Treaty of Hudaybiyyah. This breach of covenant by the Quraysh, and then their acceptance of only the third condition, was in fact tantamount to a declaration of war. Thus, the Prophet ﷺ began the campaign for the conquest of Makkah, and when Abu Sufyan arrived there, the time for renewing the treaty had already passed. Therefore, the Prophet ﷺ was in no position to give him any response.