Surah Al-Munaafiqoon (63) — Ayah 1

Abu Hurairah (may Allah be pleased with him) narrates that the Messenger of Allah (peace and blessings be upon him) used to recite Surah Al-Jumu’ah and Surah Al-Munafiqun in the Friday prayer. [ مسلم، الجمعۃ، باب ما یقرأ في صلاۃ الجمعۃ : ۸۷۷ ]

(Ayah 1) ➊ {اِذَا جَآءَكَ الْمُنٰفِقُوْنَ: ’’ الْمُنٰفِقُوْنَ ‘‘ ’’اَلنَّافِقَاءُ‘‘} is derived from 'al-Nāfiqāʾu', which is an entrance to the burrow of a 'yarbūʿ' (a wild animal similar to a mouse), which it makes in such a way that only a thin layer of soil remains so that if it strikes its head, it opens up; it keeps this entrance hidden and makes the other entrance visible. Since a hypocrite also hides his disbelief and shows faith, this is why this name is given. This is a purely Islamic term, and by it is meant Abdullah bin Ubayy and his companions.

➋ Shortly before the arrival of the Messenger of Allah (peace and blessings be upon him) in Madinah, in the battle of Bu’ath between the Aws and Khazraj, their major chiefs were killed. They were considering appointing a mutually agreed leader, and had even decided to formally crown Abdullah bin Ubayy as their chief. Meanwhile, a few fortunate ones went to Makkah for Hajj and became Muslim at the invitation of the Messenger of Allah (peace and blessings be upon him). In the next two years, more people went and pledged allegiance, and finally, they invited the Messenger of Allah (peace and blessings be upon him) to come to Madinah. During these years, Islam had reached every house in Madinah, and upon the arrival of the Messenger of Allah (peace and blessings be upon him), the majority, including the influential people of Aws and Khazraj, became Muslim. Because of the Messenger of Allah (peace and blessings be upon him), the hopes of leadership for Abdullah bin Ubayy and his supporters were dashed, so they became severe enemies of the Messenger of Allah (peace and blessings be upon him). For some time, they openly expressed their enmity, but after the great victory of Badr, they had no choice but to become Muslim in order to remain in Madinah, so they became Muslim, even Abdullah bin Ubayy became Muslim. However, their Islam was only to save their lives and to gain the benefits that Muslims received in the form of honor, power, victory, and spoils. These people would pray, fast, give zakat, and even participate in jihad where there was hope of spoils, but in their hearts, they still did not believe; rather, at every opportunity, they deceived and harmed the Muslims. In the battle of Uhud, these people took a third of the army and withdrew from the battlefield. They incited Banu Nadir, Banu Qurayzah, and the people of Khaybar to war and to stand firm against the Muslims, maintained collusion with the disbelievers at Khandaq and other occasions, and whenever they got the chance, they would make disrespectful remarks about the Messenger of Allah (peace and blessings be upon him), the Muslims, and Islam, as will be mentioned in the following verses. But when such things came to light and they were questioned, they would swear oaths that they were Muslims and believed the Messenger of Allah (peace and blessings be upon him) to be the Messenger of Allah. The Messenger of Allah (peace and blessings be upon him) overlooked their insolence, because these people had recited the kalimah and become Muslim, and were also relatives and close ones of sincere Muslims. If he had killed them, there was a fear of many suspicions arising, so he endured everything, until finally, due to the patience, restraint, forgiveness, and forbearance of the Messenger of Allah (peace and blessings be upon him), their reality became clear to everyone, and they became completely worthless in the eyes of sincere Muslims, and no trust remained in them. Their situation has already been mentioned in Surah Al-Baqarah (8–20), Al Imran, An-Nisa, Al-Ma’idah, At-Tawbah, Al-Ahzab, and other places.

➌ {قَالُوْا نَشْهَدُ اِنَّكَ لَرَسُوْلُ اللّٰهِ: ’’إِنَّ‘‘} and “lam of emphasis” usually come in response to an oath and give the effect of oath-like emphasis. Shahadah means to inform of something with certainty from the heart. It was the habit of the hypocrites to try to assure their loyalty by swearing oaths, whereas sincere Muslims had no need for this. See also the tafsir of Surah An-Nisa (62), At-Tawbah (96, 74, 62, 56), and Surah Al-Mujadilah (18).

➍ {وَ اللّٰهُ يَعْلَمُ اِنَّكَ لَرَسُوْلُهٗ … :} This is not the statement of the hypocrites but the statement of Allah Almighty, so if one is to pause, it should be at {’’ اِنَّكَ لَرَسُوْلُ اللّٰهِ ‘‘}; starting the verse and pausing at {’’ اِنَّكَ لَرَسُوْلُهٗ ‘‘} gives the impression that both sentences are the words of the hypocrites. Here is a question: when Allah Almighty confirmed that you are indeed the Messenger of Allah, then why did He say that Allah bears witness that these hypocrites are certainly liars, and in what way are the hypocrites liars? The answer is that their statement is not a lie that you are the Messenger of Allah; rather, this is true, and Allah Almighty confirmed this by saying {’’ وَ اللّٰهُ يَعْلَمُ اِنَّكَ لَرَسُوْلُهٗ ‘‘} meaning Allah knows that you are indeed His Messenger. The hypocrites are called liars because they said, “We bear witness that you are the Messenger of Allah,” whereas they do not bear witness to this; rather, they only say this with their tongues, but in their hearts, they do not accept you as His Messenger. They would be truthful in their testimony if they acknowledged your messengership with both heart and tongue.

Zamakhshari said that if the sentence {’’ وَ اللّٰهُ يَعْلَمُ اِنَّكَ لَرَسُوْلُهٗ ‘‘} was not in between, the speech would have been like this: {’’إِذَا جَاءَكَ الْمُنَافِقُوْنَ قَالُوْا نَشْهَدُ إِنَّكَ لَرَسُوْلُ اللّٰهِ وَ اللّٰهُ يَشْهَدُ إِنَّ الْمُنَافِقِيْنَ لَكَاذِبُوْنَ‘‘} “When the hypocrites come to you, they say, ‘We bear witness that you are indeed the Messenger of Allah,’ and Allah bears witness that these hypocrites are certainly liars.” But this could give the impression that Allah Almighty is calling them liars in their statement that you are the Messenger of Allah, so in between, it is said that Allah knows that you are indeed the Messenger of Allah, then it is said, and Allah bears witness that these hypocrites are liars, meaning their statement that “we bear witness” is a lie.