Surah Al-Hujuraat (49) — Ayah 14

(Ayah 14) ➊ For the explanation of { قَالَتِ الْاَعْرَابُ: ’’ الْاَعْرَابُ ‘‘}, see the commentary of Surah At-Tawbah (9:97). Here, the "al" in {’’ الْاَعْرَابُ ‘‘} is not for genus but for a specific reference, and it does not mean all Bedouins, because among them were many sincere believers as well. (See Tawbah: 99) Rather, it refers to those particular Bedouins who lived around Madinah and had accepted Islam after witnessing its strength. They did not deny it in their hearts to be called hypocrites, but there was still some hesitation left, and faith and conviction had not fully entered their hearts yet. That is why they did not go with the Messenger of Allah (peace be upon him) for the Umrah of Hudaybiyyah. Their mention has also passed earlier in Surah Al-Fath, Ayah (11): « سَيَقُوْلُ لَكَ الْمُخَلَّفُوْنَ مِنَ الْاَعْرَابِ».

➋ { اٰمَنَّا:} At the beginning of the Surah, there is mention of those Bedouins who had newly embraced Islam and were not yet fully acquainted with the manners of the Messenger of Allah (peace be upon him) and other rulings of Islam. Thus, Allah Almighty instructed them in these manners and rulings and forbade the pride and arrogance of the age of ignorance and the evils arising from it. In this context, it was made clear that a person has no right to boast over others, because the honor that gives superiority over others is only attained through taqwa, which is related to the heart, and only the All-Knowing, All-Aware knows the state of the heart. From here, by mentioning some of the claims of these Bedouins, through which they expressed their pride, their refutation was made. First of all, by mentioning their claim that "we have believed," its negation was stated.

➌ { قُلْ لَّمْ تُؤْمِنُوْا وَ لٰكِنْ قُوْلُوْۤا اَسْلَمْنَا:} Allah Almighty said, say to them that you have not believed, but rather say that we have submitted. It should be clear that in the Qur'an and Hadith, generally, iman (faith) and Islam are used in the same sense, which includes both conviction of the heart and outward obedience, as the Messenger of Allah (peace be upon him) explained iman to the tribe of Abdul Qais, saying that iman is the testimony of faith, prayer, fasting, zakah, hajj, and giving a fifth of the spoils of war, and Allah Almighty said {’’ اِنَّ الدِّيْنُ عِنْدَ اللّٰهِ الْاِسْلَامُ ‘‘}, declaring the religion of Islam as valid in His presence, and obviously, only that religion is valid there which is from the conviction of the heart; mere outward actions have no value there. Sometimes, Islam refers to adherence to outward rulings and iman refers to conviction of the heart, as in the Hadith of Jibril. Here, it is also like that, but this does not mean that iman always means conviction of the heart and Islam always means outward actions; rather, sometimes Islam means to accept with the heart, as He said: « فَمَنْ يُّرِدِ اللّٰهُ اَنْ يَّهْدِيَهٗ يَشْرَحْ صَدْرَهٗ لِلْاِسْلَامِ » [الأنعام: ۱۲۵] "So whomever Allah wills to guide, He opens his chest to Islam." Just as sometimes iman means only verbal declaration, as He said: « يٰۤاَيُّهَا الَّذِيْنَ اٰمَنُوْۤا اٰمِنُوْا بِاللّٰهِ وَ رَسُوْلِهٖ » [النساء:۱۳۶] "O you who have believed! (i.e., those who have declared faith) believe (i.e., accept with your hearts)." Here, He said, say to them that you have not believed, but rather say that we have submitted. That is, we have entered Islam by reciting the testimony and have started acting upon its outward rulings. Pay attention to the words here: Allah Almighty did not say {’’ قُلْ لَمْ تُؤْمِنُوْا وَ لٰكِنْ أَسْلَمْتُمْ ‘‘} "Say to them that you have not believed, but you have become Muslims." Rather, He said: «لَمْ تُؤْمِنُوْا وَ لٰكِنْ قُوْلُوْۤا اَسْلَمْنَا » "You have not believed, but rather say that we have submitted." That is, after negating their being believers, Allah did not accept their being Muslims, but said that you may claim to have submitted, because with Allah, only that person is accepted as Muslim who is also a believer. With Him, if there is no conviction in the heart, even outward actions have no value. However, outwardly adhering to Islamic rulings, Allah Almighty has allowed such a person to claim Islam.

➍ { وَ لَمَّا يَدْخُلِ الْاِيْمَانُ فِيْ قُلُوْبِكُمْ:} "And faith has not yet entered your hearts"—from this sentence it is clear that although these people were not firm believers, they were not hypocrites either, because they did not consider the Messenger of Allah (peace be upon him) a liar in their hearts. Their faith was negated due to their doubt, and in the next verse, believers are described as those who believed and then did not doubt. The word {’’ لَمَّا ‘‘} shows that although they had not yet believed, there was hope that faith would enter their hearts in the future.

➎ {وَ اِنْ تُطِيْعُوا اللّٰهَ وَ رَسُوْلَهٗ لَا يَلِتْكُمْ …:’’ لاَ يَلِتْ ‘‘} Originally it was {’’ لاَ يَلِيْتُ ‘‘}, but because {’’ وَ اِنْ تُطِيْعُوْا ‘‘} is the answer to a conditional clause, a sukoon came on the "ta," so with both "ya" and "ta" being silent together, the "ya" was dropped. {’’لَاتَ يَلِيْتُ‘‘} means to decrease in someone's right. That is, if you obey Allah and His Messenger, Allah will not decrease anything from your deeds. Obviously, the first condition for obeying both is to have sincere faith and conviction in them. In this, they are encouraged towards sincerity and conviction, meaning that hope for reward on the rulings of Islam can only be when there is obedience to Allah and His Messenger both outwardly and inwardly. Here, it is noteworthy that after obedience to Allah and His Messenger, giving full reward for deeds and not decreasing it is only the work of Allah, not the Messenger. Therefore, in {’’لاَ يَلِتْ‘‘}, the singular form is used.

➏ { اِنَّ اللّٰهَ غَفُوْرٌ رَّحِيْمٌ:} That is, after obedience, Allah will forgive previous shortcomings, because He is extremely covering of sins and most merciful.

14. 1. According to some commentators, by these Bedouins are meant the hypocrites of Banu Asad and Khuzaymah, who, during the time of famine, expressed Islam verbally only for the sake of receiving charity or out of fear of being killed or taken captive. Their hearts were devoid of true faith, correct belief, and sincerity of intention (Fath al-Qadeer). However, according to Imam Ibn Kathir, by these are meant those Bedouins who had newly embraced Islam and faith had not yet become firmly established in them, but they claimed a level of faith higher than their actual state. For this reason, they were taught this etiquette that it is not correct to claim faith at the very first stage; gradually, after progress, you will reach the stage of faith.

14. The Bedouins say, "We have believed [23]." Say, "You have not believed; rather, say, 'We have submitted,' for faith has not yet entered your hearts. But if you obey Allah and His Messenger, He will not diminish anything from your deeds. Surely, Allah is Most Forgiving, Most Merciful."

[23]
What Was the Islam of the Bedouin Hypocrite Tribes Like?

These Bedouins were the same people who belonged to the tribes of Ghifar, Muzaynah, Juhaynah, Aslam, and Ashja‘, and due to their hypocrisy, they did not participate in the expedition of Hudaybiyyah. When youﷺ returned from this expedition, they started making excuses and pleading for forgiveness for themselves. Their mention has already passed in Surah Al-Ahzab, verses 11 to 16. These people had become Muslims by reciting the testimony of faith and also performed the pillars of Islam. However, faith had not become firmly rooted in their hearts. They were content with an easy and sweet Islam, but they were not ready to make any financial or physical sacrifice or to endure hardships for it.

The Difference Between Islam and Iman:

From this verse, it is clear that iman (faith) is one thing and Islam is another. This is also proven by the Hadith of Jibril. When Jibrilؑ asked you what is iman, you replied, “Iman is that you believe in Allah, His angels, His books, and His messengers, and also in the fact that after death, you will be brought back to life.” And when Jibril asked what is Islam, youﷺ said, “That you worship Allah alone and do not associate any partner with Him, establish prayer, pay zakat, and fast in Ramadan.” [بخاری۔ کتاب الایمان۔ باب سؤال جبریل النبیﷺ ]
From this hadith, it is understood that iman is related to the actions of the heart, and Islam is related to outward actions. This is the aspect of difference between them, and the aspect of similarity is that if the pillars of Islam are performed regularly and with sincerity, then iman increases, and with the increase of iman, there is beauty in outward actions. In this respect, iman and Islam become supportive and inseparable from each other. The deficiency in the hypocrites is that there is neither sincerity in their actions nor beauty of deeds; therefore, their iman does not go beyond the verbal declaration of the testimony of faith, meaning that faith or conviction does not become firmly rooted in their hearts. Allah has considered this as equivalent to not having faith.

[24] That is, even now if you correct your attitude and wholeheartedly obey Allah and His Messenger, then Allah will grant you the reward of your previous deeds. He will not reduce anything from it. And He will also forgive your previous mistakes.