Surah Al-Mumtahana (60) — Ayah 1

In Surah Al-Hashr, the friendship of the hypocrites with the disbelievers among the People of the Book and its evil consequences was mentioned; in this Surah, friendship with the polytheists is forbidden, especially for those emigrants whose wives, children, or relatives remained in Makkah, and who wished to maintain relations with the polytheists in the hope that the polytheists would take care of their wives, children, and relatives for this reason.
In the 6th year of Hijrah, at the place of Hudaybiyyah, a peace treaty was made between the Messenger of Allah (peace and blessings be upon him) and the disbelievers of Quraysh for ten years. One clause of this treaty was that whichever tribes wished could become allies of the Messenger of Allah (peace and blessings be upon him), and whichever wished could become allies of the disbelievers of Quraysh, and neither party would attack the allies of the other, nor help those who attacked them. Thus, among the tribes living near Makkah, Banu Bakr became allies of Quraysh, and Banu Khuza‘ah became allies of the Messenger of Allah (peace and blessings be upon him). Only about a year and a half had passed since the treaty when Banu Bakr attacked Banu Khuza‘ah, the allies of the Muslims. Quraysh helped them with men and weapons; when they fled to the Haram, they did not spare them even there, but killed them. A delegation from Banu Khuza‘ah came to the Messenger of Allah (peace and blessings be upon him) in Madinah with their complaint. This was a clear breach of the treaty by Quraysh. The Messenger of Allah (peace and blessings be upon him) firmly resolved to punish them and attack Makkah, and began preparations for this secretly. The purpose was that in a sudden attack, the disbelievers would not be able to resist, and there would be no bloodshed. The precious lives of the Muslims would also be saved, and among the disbelievers, those destined for happiness could become Muslims and later participate in the elevation of Islam. Hatib bin Abi Balta‘ah (may Allah be pleased with him) was an emigrant Companion and a participant of Badr; his children and property were in Makkah. He was not originally from Quraysh, but their ally. He wrote a letter to Quraysh to inform them of the Messenger of Allah’s (peace and blessings be upon him) intentions and sent it with a woman.
The details of this are mentioned in Sahih Bukhari. Thus, ‘Ali (may Allah be pleased with him) narrates that the Messenger of Allah (peace and blessings be upon him) sent me, Zubair, and Miqdad, saying: “Go until you reach the garden of Khakh (a garden named Khakh), there will be a woman riding a camel, bring the letter from her.” So we set off at full speed until we reached that garden. We saw the woman riding a camel there. We said to her: “Hand over the letter.” She said: “I have no letter.” We said: “You will hand over the letter, or we will strip your clothes.” So she took the letter out from her braid and gave it to us. We brought it to the Messenger of Allah (peace and blessings be upon him). It was written that this letter was from Hatib bin Abi Balta‘ah to some people in Makkah, who were among the polytheists. In it, he had informed them of some matters concerning the Messenger of Allah (peace and blessings be upon him). The Messenger of Allah (peace and blessings be upon him) said: [ يَا حَاطِبُ! مَا هٰذَا ؟ ] “Hatib! What is this?” He said: “O Messenger of Allah! Do not be hasty with me. I was a man attached to Quraysh, their ally, not originally from them, and those emigrants with you have many relatives there, through whom they protect their families and wealth. So I wished, since I have no blood relation with them, to do them a favor so that they would protect my family. I did not do this out of apostasy from my religion, nor out of preference for disbelief after accepting Islam.” The Messenger of Allah (peace and blessings be upon him) said: [ أَمَا إِنَّهُ قَدْ صَدَقَكُمْ ] “Listen! He has certainly told you the truth.” ‘Umar (may Allah be pleased with him) said: “O Messenger of Allah! Allow me to strike the neck of this hypocrite.” The Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him) said: [ إِنَّهُ قَدْ شَهِدَ بَدْرًا وَمَا يُدْرِيْكَ لَعَلَّ اللّٰهَ اطَّلَعَ عَلٰی مَنْ شَهِدَ بَدْرًا قَالَ اعْمَلُوْا مَا شِئْتُمْ فَقَدْ غَفَرْتُ لَكُمْ ] “He participated in Badr, and what do you know, perhaps Allah looked at the people of Badr and said: ‘Do as you wish, for I have forgiven you.’” So Allah revealed this Surah: « يٰۤاَيُّهَا الَّذِيْنَ اٰمَنُوْا لَا تَتَّخِذُوْا عَدُوِّيْ وَ عَدُوَّكُمْ اَوْلِيَآءَ ........ فَقَدْ ضَلَّ سَوَآءَ السَّبِيْلِ » “O you who have believed! Do not take My enemies and your enemies as friends... then surely he has strayed from the straight path.” [ بخاري، المغازي، باب غزوۃ الفتح : ۴۲۷۴ ]
(Ayah 1) ➊ { يٰۤاَيُّهَا الَّذِيْنَ اٰمَنُوْا لَا تَتَّخِذُوْا عَدُوِّيْ وَ عَدُوَّكُمْ اَوْلِيَآءَ: ’’ عَدُوٌّ ‘‘ ’’عَدَا يَعْدُوْ عَدْوًا وَعَدَاوَةً‘‘} is on the pattern of { ’’ فَعُوْلٌ ‘‘} meaning {’’فَاعِلٌ‘‘ }, enemy. {’’فَعِيْلٌ‘‘} and {’’ فَعُوْلٌ ‘‘} are both forms that can be used for singular, dual, plural, and masculine and feminine, so the translation is “My enemies.” Allah Almighty, instead of saying “Do not befriend the disbelievers and polytheists,” said, “Do not take My enemies and your enemies as friends.” Then {’’ عَدُوِّيْ ‘‘} (My enemies) is mentioned first and {’’ عَدُوَّكُمْ ‘‘} (your enemies) after. This shows that disbelievers and polytheists can never be friends of Muslims, because the basis of their enmity is neither homeland, nor lineage, nor wealth, but they have adopted enmity with Muslims only because of their enmity with Allah Almighty. Enmity with Allah means that they do not accept Allah’s oneness, His religion, or His Messenger, and for this reason, they have adopted severe opposition and enmity. The appropriateness of bringing {’’ عَدُوِّيْ ‘‘} before {’’ عَدُوَّكُمْ ‘‘} seems to be that they are first enemies of Allah’s religion, and then, because of this, they are enemies of the Muslims. In the verse, by referring to the enmity of the disbelievers and polytheists, Muslims are forbidden from befriending them. In many places in the Qur’an, friendship with the disbelievers is forbidden, and along with the prohibition, a reason is also mentioned. See Surah Al ‘Imran (28), Nisa’ (144), Ma’idah (57, 51), and Surah Tawbah (24, 23). The fundamental point in all these reasons is that they are your enemies and the enemies of your religion; as long as you do not become disbelievers, they can never be your friends. See Surah Al-Baqarah (120) and Surah Nisa’ (89).
➋ { تُلْقُوْنَ اِلَيْهِمْ بِالْمَوَدَّةِ:} can have two meanings: one is that {’’اَلْمَوَدَّةُ ‘‘ ’’ تُلْقُوْنَ ‘‘} is the object and the “ba” is for emphasis; in this case, the meaning is that you send a message of friendship to them. The second meaning is that {’’ تُلْقُوْنَ ‘‘} has an omitted object: {’’أَيْ تُلْقُوْنَ إِلَيْهِمُ الْأَخْبَارَ بِالْمَوَدَّةِ‘‘} “That is, because of friendship, you convey information to them (which Allah’s enemies and your enemies should in no way know).”
➌ { وَ قَدْ كَفَرُوْا بِمَا جَآءَكُمْ مِّنَ الْحَقِّ:} means they have refused to accept the truth that has come to you, and you are sending messages of friendship to them.
➍ Before {يُخْرِجُوْنَ الرَّسُوْلَ وَ اِيَّاكُمْ اَنْ تُؤْمِنُوْا بِاللّٰهِ رَبِّكُمْ: ’’ اَنْ تُؤْمِنُوْا بِاللّٰهِ رَبِّكُمْ ‘‘}, “lam” is omitted, meaning they did not suffice with disbelief and minor enmity, but cut off all ties of kinship and love, and caused so much harm to the Messenger and to you that they forced you all to leave Makkah, only because you believe in your Lord. For verses with similar meaning, see Surah Al-Buruj (8) and Surah Al-Hajj (40). {’’ يُخْرِجُوْنَ ‘‘} The use of the present tense means that not only did they expel you, but they are still intent on expelling you and still do not allow you to return to your homes. In this, Muslims are incited to recognize the enmity of the disbelievers: how astonishing it is that they are expelling your Messenger and you, and you are extending a hand of friendship to them.
➎ { اِنْ كُنْتُمْ خَرَجْتُمْ جِهَادًا فِيْ سَبِيْلِيْ … : ’’ جِهَادًا ‘‘} and {’’ ابْتِغَآءَ مَرْضَاتِيْ ‘‘} are both objects of cause (maf'ool lahu) for {’’ خَرَجْتُمْ ‘‘}, and {’’ اِنْ كُنْتُمْ ‘‘} has an omitted result clause, which is understood from the first sentence of the verse {’’ لَا تَتَّخِذُوْا عَدُوِّيْ وَ عَدُوَّكُمْ اَوْلِيَآءَ ‘‘}, i.e., if you have set out for jihad in My way and seeking My pleasure, then do not take My enemies and your enemies as friends.
➏ { تُسِرُّوْنَ اِلَيْهِمْ بِالْمَوَدَّةِ … :} means it is astonishing that you secretly send messages of friendship to them, even though I know better than anyone what you conceal and what you reveal. So you should avoid such actions, considering that your Master is fully aware of all your deeds, and you cannot hide anything from Him in any way.
➐ {وَ مَنْ يَّفْعَلْهُ مِنْكُمْ فَقَدْ ضَلَّ سَوَآءَ السَّبِيْلِ:} means this is not just the matter of Hatib (may Allah be pleased with him) or any emigrant’s friendship with the polytheists of Makkah, but whoever among the Muslims until the Day of Judgment does this, he has surely strayed from the straight path.
➑ In this verse, Allah Almighty’s boundless mercy upon the sincere is also expressed, that even those who committed such a great mistake are addressed with {’’ يٰۤاَيُّهَا الَّذِيْنَ اٰمَنُوْا ‘‘}. From this, it is understood that a person does not become a disbeliever because of any sin or disobedience; therefore, the Messenger of Allah (peace and blessings be upon him) forgave the mistake of Hatib (may Allah be pleased with him). It is also understood that a person’s past life will also be taken into account in his affairs.

O you who have believed! Do not take My enemies and your (own) enemies as friends. 1. You send messages of friendship to them 2. while they deny the truth that has come to you, and drive out the Messenger and yourselves simply because you believe in Allah, your Lord. 3. If you have come out for striving in My way and seeking My pleasure, then do not take them as friends. 4. You secretly send them messages of love, and I know well what you conceal and what you reveal. Whoever among you does this has certainly strayed from the right path. 5.

1. O you who believe! Do not take My enemies and your enemies as friends. You offer them affection, while they have denied the truth that has come to you [1]. They expel the Messenger and yourselves simply because you believe in Allah, your Lord. If you have come out (for the conquest of Makkah) to strive in My way and to seek My pleasure, do you secretly send them messages of friendship [3]? I know well whatever you conceal and whatever you reveal [4]. And whoever among you does so has certainly strayed from the straight path [5].

[1]
The Immediate Cause of the Conquest of Makkah:

According to the second condition of the Treaty of Hudaybiyyah, which Allah declared a manifest victory, the Banu Khuza‘ah had become allies of the Muslims and the Banu Bakr had become allies of the Quraysh. A year and a half after this treaty, a fight broke out between the Banu Khuza‘ah and the Banu Bakr, and the Quraysh of Makkah, in open violation of the treaty, gave full support to the Banu Bakr. When the Banu Khuza‘ah sought refuge in the Haram, they were not spared even there. After this incident, forty camel riders from the Banu Khuza‘ah reached Madinah to seek help. The Prophet ﷺ was deeply grieved and saddened by this breach of trust by the Quraysh. Therefore, the Prophet ﷺ presented the following three conditions to the Quraysh:
(1) Blood money should be paid for those killed from the Banu Khuza‘ah.
(2) The Quraysh should withdraw their support from the 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, and one of their zealous young men, Furt bin ‘Amr, announced on behalf of the Quraysh, “Only the third condition is accepted.” When the envoy left, their excitement cooled and they came to their senses, becoming deeply worried. Consequently, Abu Sufyan was sent to Madinah to renew the treaty. He requested the Prophet ﷺ to renew the treaty, but the Prophet ﷺ gave no reply. Then, in turn, he pleaded with Sayyiduna Abu Bakr ؓ, Sayyiduna ‘Umar ؓ, and even Sayyidah Fatimah (may Allah be pleased with her) to intercede, but all gave the same answer: “We cannot intervene in this matter.” Helpless, he stood in the Prophet’s Mosque and unilaterally announced that he had renewed the Treaty of Hudaybiyyah.

Secrecy in the Campaign of the Conquest of Makkah:

The breach of trust by the Quraysh was, in reality, tantamount to a declaration of war. Furthermore, by accepting only the third condition, there was no room left for further delay. Thus, the Prophet ﷺ began preparations for the campaign against Makkah with utmost secrecy. Even in the messages sent to allied tribes, this secrecy was maintained, and when Abu Sufyan arrived in Madinah, the Prophet ﷺ had already begun the campaign. Therefore, the time for renewing the treaty had passed, which is why the Prophet ﷺ did not respond to him. Never before had the Prophet ﷺ acted with such secrecy as on this occasion. The main reason for this was that Makkah was a sanctuary (Haram), and fighting there was against its sanctity. The Prophet ﷺ wished that the disbelievers of Makkah would not get wind of the campaign, and that he would arrive there with a great army, so that the disbelievers would be overawed and not dare to resist. In other words, the Prophet ﷺ sought to achieve two benefits through this secrecy: first, that Makkah would be conquered, and second, that there would be no bloodshed there.

Hatib bin Abi Balta‘ah Sending a Letter to the Disbelievers of Makkah and the Danger of the Secret Being Exposed:

During these days, a very sincere Muslim, Hatib ibn Abi Balta‘ah, made a grave mistake. His family was in Makkah. He wanted to inform the Quraysh of Makkah of this secret, to do them a favor, so that in return, they would spare his family during this period. A woman named Sarah had come from Makkah to Madinah. Hatib ؓ enlisted her services, wrote a letter addressed to the chiefs of Quraysh, and instructed her to deliver it secretly to a Qurayshi chief. He also gave her ten dinars for this service. In this way, the woman became the envoy of Sayyiduna Hatib ؓ. Since Hatib’s letter would have ruined the entire plan, Allah informed the Prophet ﷺ of this matter through revelation immediately after the woman left Madinah. The action the Prophet ﷺ then took is clarified by the following hadith:

Sending a Delegation to Retrieve the Letter:

Sayyiduna ‘Ali ؓ narrates that the Messenger of Allah ﷺ sent me, Zubair ؓ, and Miqdad—three men—on a mission. He said, “Go to Rawdat Khakh (the name of a place) on the road to Makkah. There you will find a woman (Sarah) riding a camel. She has a letter; bring it back.” So the three of us rode swiftly to Rawdat Khakh, and indeed, we found a woman riding a camel. We said to her, “Hand over the letter you have.” She replied, “I have no letter.” We said, “Hand it over, or else we will strip you of your clothes.” So she took the letter out from her hair braids and gave it to us, and we brought it to the Prophet ﷺ. The contents of the letter were: “From Hatib bin Abi Balta‘ah to some polytheists of Makkah,” and in it, he informed them of the Prophet’s ﷺ plans (the campaign against Makkah).

Interrogation of Hatib bin Balta‘ah:

The Prophet ﷺ asked Hatib ؓ, “Hatib! What is this? (Why did you reveal the war secret?)” Hatib replied, “O Messenger of Allah ﷺ! Do not be hasty with me (and listen to my explanation). I am a man who is not originally from the Quraysh. The other emigrants with you (are original Quraysh); their relatives are among the Quraysh disbelievers, because of whom their homes and property remain safe. I have no blood relation with them, so I wanted to do them a favor to establish a right for myself, so that they would support my relatives.”

The Prophet’s Acceptance of Sayyiduna Hatib’s Excuse:

“I did not do this out of disbelief or apostasy from my religion.” Upon hearing this, the Prophet ﷺ said (to the Muslims), “Hatib has told you the truth.” Sayyiduna ‘Umar ؓ said, “O Messenger of Allah ﷺ, allow me to strike off his head.” The Prophet ﷺ said, “Look! He participated in the Battle of Badr, and you do not know that Allah looked upon the people of Badr (from the highest Throne) and said, ‘(Except for shirk) do whatever you wish, I have forgiven you.’” ‘Amr bin Dinar says that this verse was revealed in this context. [بخاري۔ كتاب التفسير]
[2] That is, the treatment you received from the disbelievers of Makkah was such that they made your life so miserable that you were forced to emigrate, and your treatment towards them is that you reveal war secrets for them, so that they can properly arrange their defense? And in this matter, you are disregarding the collective interests of the Muslims? Moreover, these people forced you to emigrate, even though you had done them no harm. In their eyes, your only crime was that you believed in Allah.
[3] Now, if you are participating in this campaign solely for My pleasure, then did you do this act in accordance with My pleasure or against it? From Allah’s reproach, it is clear that the anger Sayyiduna ‘Umar felt towards Sayyiduna Hatib ؓ, and his request to the Messenger of Allah to execute Sayyiduna Hatib ؓ, was to a great extent justified, because Sayyiduna ‘Umar ؓ was fully aware of the secrets and consequences of war. But the Messenger of Allah ﷺ forgave Hatib because there was no corruption in his intention. Also, Sayyiduna Hatib ؓ was not fully aware of the consequences of revealing such a secret. Therefore, due to his gentle nature, the Prophet ﷺ preferred the aspect of goodness and forgave Sayyiduna Hatib ؓ, especially since Allah had protected the Muslims from the harmful consequences of Hatib’s action.
[4]
What Evidence Is Provided by These Verses?

Do you think that if you secretly sent a letter to the Quraysh of Makkah, Allah would not know about it? And would He let such a grave mistake of yours remain hidden? These verses are among those that provide clear evidence for the existence of Allah, the Prophethood of the Messenger ﷺ, the Quran being from Allah, and Allah being the Knower of the unseen and the seen.

[5]
If a Muslim Deliberately Reveals a Secret, He Is Liable to Execution:

From this verse, it is understood that if a sincere Muslim, by mistake or due to lack of understanding of the consequences, reveals a war secret, he does not become a disbeliever; he remains a Muslim. However, his crime is certainly punishable. But if a Muslim deliberately and knowingly does such a thing, then he is both a hypocrite and a disbeliever, and is liable to execution. Such a crime cannot be forgiven.