Surah 47. Muhammad, Ayah 20

I am rendering the term surah here and in the next sentence as "a revelation", for whereas there is no surah as such which deals exclusively with questions of war, there are numerous references to it in various surahs; and this is evidently the meaning of this term in the present context as well as in 9:86 . - There is no doubt that this verse precedes the revelation, in the year 1 H., of 22:39 , which states categorically - and for the first time - that the believers are allowed to wage war whenever "war is wrongfully waged" against them (see in this connection note [57] on 22:39 ).

This is a reference to {22:39-40}. For an explanation of the expression muhkamah ("clear in and by itself"), see note [5] on 3:7 . (As in the preceding sentence, the term surah has been rendered here, exceptionally, as " revelation".)

The men of faith and loyalty are eager and anxious to get a command to serve the Cause even if it be at the sacrifice of their lives. Not so the Hypocrites, "those in whose hearts is a disease". They are mortally afraid as mentioned below.

Cf. iii. 7, and n. 347. The defence of truth and righteousness at all sacrifice, when a definite and categorical command issues from the ruler of an Islamic state is a fundamental condition of enlistment in the cause of Allah. It is true that Punishment and Judgment belong to Allah alone; but our mettle and fidelity have to be tested, (see verse 4 above), and Allah uses human agency in human affairs.

Cf. ii. 10. The disease is hypocrisy, disloyalty to the Cause, want of courage and of the spirit of self-sacrifice, want of true understanding.