سُوْرَةُ الْاَنْفَالِ
Surah Al-Anfaal (8) — Ayah 60
وَأَعِدُّوا۟ لَهُم مَّا ٱسْتَطَعْتُم مِّن قُوَّةٍ وَمِن رِّبَاطِ ٱلْخَيْلِ تُرْهِبُونَ بِهِۦ عَدُوَّ ٱللَّهِ وَعَدُوَّكُمْ وَءَاخَرِينَ مِن دُونِهِمْ لَا تَعْلَمُونَهُمُ ٱللَّهُ يَعْلَمُهُمْ ۚ وَمَا تُنفِقُوا۟ مِن شَىْءٍ فِى سَبِيلِ ٱللَّهِ يُوَفَّ إِلَيْكُمْ وَأَنتُمْ لَا تُظْلَمُونَ ﴿60﴾
Translation by Dr. Muhammad Muhsin Khan & Dr. Taqi-ud-Din al-Hilali
And make ready against them all you can of power, including steeds of war (tanks, planes, missiles, artillery) to threaten the enemy of Allâh and your enemy, and others besides whom, you may not know but whom Allâh does know. And whatever you shall spend in the Cause of Allâh shall be repaid unto you, and you shall not be treated unjustly.
Word by Word — Arabic, Transliteration & Meaning
وَأَعِدُّوا۟
wa-aʿiddū
And prepare
لَهُم
lahum
for them
مَّا
mā
whatever
ٱسْتَطَعْتُم
is'taṭaʿtum
you able (to)
مِّن
min
of
قُوَّةٍۢ
quwwatin
force
وَمِن
wamin
and of
رِّبَاطِ
ribāṭi
tethered
ٱلْخَيْلِ
l-khayli
horses
تُرْهِبُونَ
tur'hibūna
(to) terrify
بِهِۦ
bihi
therewith
عَدُوَّ
ʿaduwwa
(the) enemy
ٱللَّهِ
l-lahi
(of) Allah
وَعَدُوَّكُمْ
waʿaduwwakum
and your enemy
وَءَاخَرِينَ
waākharīna
and others
مِن
min
from
دُونِهِمْ
dūnihim
besides them
لَا
lā
not
تَعْلَمُونَهُمُ
taʿlamūnahumu
(do) you know them
ٱللَّهُ
l-lahu
(but) Allah
يَعْلَمُهُمْ ۚ
yaʿlamuhum
knows them
وَمَا
wamā
And whatever
تُنفِقُوا۟
tunfiqū
you spend
مِن
min
from
شَىْءٍۢ
shayin
(any) thing
فِى
fī
in
سَبِيلِ
sabīli
(the) way
ٱللَّهِ
l-lahi
(of) Allah
يُوَفَّ
yuwaffa
it will be fully repaid
إِلَيْكُمْ
ilaykum
to you
وَأَنتُمْ
wa-antum
and you
لَا
lā
(will) not
تُظْلَمُونَ
tuẓ'lamūna
be wronged
Tafsir Taiseer ul-Quran — Maulana Abdul Rahman Kilani
Tafsir Taiseer ul-Quran (Facilitation of the Quran) is a comprehensive Quran commentary by Maulana Abdul Rahman Kilani, a renowned Salafi (Ahl al-Hadith) scholar from Pakistan. Known for his eloquent and accessible writing style, Kilani authored this tafsir with a focus on clarity — making Quranic meanings understandable to the common reader. The tafsir provides detailed historical context for verses related to battles and expeditions, and firmly refutes modernist ideologies using strong scriptural evidence. It is widely regarded as an invaluable resource for understanding the Quran and countering deviant interpretations. The tafsir is originally written in Urdu, translated to English by tohed.com.
60. And prepare against them whatever force you can and steeds of war, by which you may terrify [62] the enemy of Allah and your enemy and others besides them whom you do not know but Allah knows them. And whatever you spend in the way of Allah will be repaid to you in full, and you will not be wronged.
[62]
Encouragement for Military Equipment and Martial Skills:
That is, Muslims should always be prepared for war, not only in normal circumstances but also to face any sudden attack from a treacherous treaty-breaker, and as far as possible, they should keep war weapons ready. Another benefit of this is that all your open and hidden enemies will remain overawed by you, and whatever you spend for this purpose will all be counted as spent in the way of Allah, and you will receive a full reward for it from Allah Almighty. In the time of the Messenger of Allah ﷺ, the weapons of war included arrows, spears, swords, and war horses. Defensive equipment included shields, armor, and helmets, etc., and in terms of military training, archery held the first place. The interest of the Messenger of Allah ﷺ in the arrangement of Muslim armies, the use and provision of military equipment, can be gauged from the following hadiths:
1. Uqbah bin Amir ؓ says that the Prophet ﷺ recited this verse from the pulpit and said that by "strength" is meant archery. He ﷺ repeated this three times and said: Listen! Allah Almighty will grant you victory in the land and will suffice you through your efforts. Therefore, none of you should be negligent in playing with his arrows. [ترمذي، ابواب التفسير]
2. The Prophet ﷺ also said: "Whoever learned archery and then abandoned it, he is not from us, or he has disobeyed." [مسلم، كتاب الامارة، باب فضل الرمي والحث عليه الخ]
3. Salamah bin Akwa ؓ says that the Prophet ﷺ passed by a group of the tribe of Aslam who were practicing archery. The Messenger of Allah ﷺ said: "O Bani Ismail! Practice archery, for your father was a great archer, and I am with Bani so-and-so." At this, the other party stopped their hands. The Prophet ﷺ said: "Why do you not shoot?" They said: "How can we shoot when you are with them?" The Prophet ﷺ said: "Shoot, for I am with all of you." [ بخاري۔ كتاب الجهاد۔ باب التحريص على الرمي]
4. Abdullah bin Umar ؓ says that for the horses prepared for racing, the Prophet ﷺ fixed the race from Hafya to Thaniyyat al-Wada, and for those not prepared, he fixed the race up to the mosque of Bani Zuraiq, and I was among those who raced horses. [بخاري۔ كتاب الصلوة، باب هل يقال مسجد بني فلاں]
5. Sayyidah Aisha ؓ says that on one (Eid) day, I saw the Prophet ﷺ at the door of my chamber, and the Abyssinians were playing in the mosque with their weapons, and the Prophet ﷺ was covering me with his cloak, and I was also watching their play. [بخاري۔ كتاب الصلوة۔ باب اصحاب الحراب فى المسجد]
But today is not the era of arrows and swords. Rather, it is the era of Kalashnikovs, missiles, and bombs. Therefore, today Muslims should be fully aware of these modern weapons and trained in their use. The extent to which Muslims are negligent in this matter today is the same extent to which they are dependent on other nations and humiliated before them.
Jihad and American Policy:
Today, the fervor of faith among Muslims has cooled. Their trust in Allah has vanished. With their tongues, they say hundreds of times daily in their prayers that Allah is the Greatest, but in reality, they consider America to be the greatest, and the fear of America's displeasure is greater for them than the fear of Allah. Therefore, they consider their success to lie in increasing friendship with America. However, according to the clear statement of the Quran, America can never be a friend of Muslims. Even under the guise of this friendship, it will only deceive and ruin the Muslims. Allah Almighty has granted Muslim countries immense material resources. But their greatest misfortune is that they do not unite, and all of them have become dependent on America and loyal to it, and for the solution of their problems, they do not turn to Allah, that is, to the Book and Sunnah, but rather turn to America. And America is only pleased with those countries that completely eliminate the spirit of jihad from their lands. Those countries that have the capability to make atomic bombs are made to completely destroy such plans. For the mujahideen, it has coined a new term, "terrorist," and Muslim countries are always afraid that America the Brave might declare them terrorists. In other words, America the Brave wants to eliminate both the spirit of jihad and military strength from Muslim countries, for which Muslims are being given a strict command in this verse, and if Muslim countries continue this behavior, it clearly means that their days of misfortune are not yet over.
[62]
Encouragement for Military Equipment and Martial Skills:
That is, Muslims should always be prepared for war, not only in normal circumstances but also to face any sudden attack from a treacherous treaty-breaker, and as far as possible, they should keep war weapons ready. Another benefit of this is that all your open and hidden enemies will remain overawed by you, and whatever you spend for this purpose will all be counted as spent in the way of Allah, and you will receive a full reward for it from Allah Almighty. In the time of the Messenger of Allah ﷺ, the weapons of war included arrows, spears, swords, and war horses. Defensive equipment included shields, armor, and helmets, etc., and in terms of military training, archery held the first place. The interest of the Messenger of Allah ﷺ in the arrangement of Muslim armies, the use and provision of military equipment, can be gauged from the following hadiths:
1. Uqbah bin Amir ؓ says that the Prophet ﷺ recited this verse from the pulpit and said that by "strength" is meant archery. He ﷺ repeated this three times and said: Listen! Allah Almighty will grant you victory in the land and will suffice you through your efforts. Therefore, none of you should be negligent in playing with his arrows. [ترمذي، ابواب التفسير]
2. The Prophet ﷺ also said: "Whoever learned archery and then abandoned it, he is not from us, or he has disobeyed." [مسلم، كتاب الامارة، باب فضل الرمي والحث عليه الخ]
3. Salamah bin Akwa ؓ says that the Prophet ﷺ passed by a group of the tribe of Aslam who were practicing archery. The Messenger of Allah ﷺ said: "O Bani Ismail! Practice archery, for your father was a great archer, and I am with Bani so-and-so." At this, the other party stopped their hands. The Prophet ﷺ said: "Why do you not shoot?" They said: "How can we shoot when you are with them?" The Prophet ﷺ said: "Shoot, for I am with all of you." [ بخاري۔ كتاب الجهاد۔ باب التحريص على الرمي]
4. Abdullah bin Umar ؓ says that for the horses prepared for racing, the Prophet ﷺ fixed the race from Hafya to Thaniyyat al-Wada, and for those not prepared, he fixed the race up to the mosque of Bani Zuraiq, and I was among those who raced horses. [بخاري۔ كتاب الصلوة، باب هل يقال مسجد بني فلاں]
5. Sayyidah Aisha ؓ says that on one (Eid) day, I saw the Prophet ﷺ at the door of my chamber, and the Abyssinians were playing in the mosque with their weapons, and the Prophet ﷺ was covering me with his cloak, and I was also watching their play. [بخاري۔ كتاب الصلوة۔ باب اصحاب الحراب فى المسجد]
But today is not the era of arrows and swords. Rather, it is the era of Kalashnikovs, missiles, and bombs. Therefore, today Muslims should be fully aware of these modern weapons and trained in their use. The extent to which Muslims are negligent in this matter today is the same extent to which they are dependent on other nations and humiliated before them.
Jihad and American Policy:
Today, the fervor of faith among Muslims has cooled. Their trust in Allah has vanished. With their tongues, they say hundreds of times daily in their prayers that Allah is the Greatest, but in reality, they consider America to be the greatest, and the fear of America's displeasure is greater for them than the fear of Allah. Therefore, they consider their success to lie in increasing friendship with America. However, according to the clear statement of the Quran, America can never be a friend of Muslims. Even under the guise of this friendship, it will only deceive and ruin the Muslims. Allah Almighty has granted Muslim countries immense material resources. But their greatest misfortune is that they do not unite, and all of them have become dependent on America and loyal to it, and for the solution of their problems, they do not turn to Allah, that is, to the Book and Sunnah, but rather turn to America. And America is only pleased with those countries that completely eliminate the spirit of jihad from their lands. Those countries that have the capability to make atomic bombs are made to completely destroy such plans. For the mujahideen, it has coined a new term, "terrorist," and Muslim countries are always afraid that America the Brave might declare them terrorists. In other words, America the Brave wants to eliminate both the spirit of jihad and military strength from Muslim countries, for which Muslims are being given a strict command in this verse, and if Muslim countries continue this behavior, it clearly means that their days of misfortune are not yet over.
