سورة الاٴنفَال
Surah Al-Anfâl 8:7
The Voluntary Gifts · Verse 7 of 75
وَإِذْ يَعِدُكُمُ اللَّهُ إِحْدَى الطَّائِفَتَيْنِ أَنَّهَا لَكُمْ وَتَوَدُّونَ أَنَّ غَيْرَ ذَاتِ الشَّوْكَةِ تَكُونُ لَكُمْ وَيُرِيدُ اللَّهُ أَنْ يُحِقَّ الْحَقَّ بِكَلِمَاتِهِ وَيَقْطَعَ دَابِرَ الْكَافِرِينَ
Abdul Mannan Omar
And (O Companions of the Prophet! recall the time) when Allâh promised you (victory over) one of the two (enemy) parties; (the well-equipped Makkan army and the other ill-equipped caravan from Syria), that it should be yours (for fighting against), while you wanted the unarmed party to fall into your hands (to get an easy victory), but Allâh wanted to establish the truth by fulfilling His words (of prophecy) and to cut off the very root of the disbelievers;
Abdullah Yusuf Ali
Behold! Allah promised you one of the two (enemy) parties, that it should be yours: Ye wished that the one unarmed should be yours, but Allah willed to justify the Truth according to His words and to cut off the roots of the Unbelievers;-
Ahmed Ali
Though God promised that one of two columns (would fall to you), you desired the one that was not armed. But God wished to confirm the truth by His words, and wipe the unbelievers out to the last,
12 more translations
Ali Unal
Even when God had promised you that one of the two hosts (the trade caravan and the Makkan army approaching) would fall to you, you still wished that other than the powerful, armed one should fall into your hands – whereas God willed to prove the truth to be true by His decrees and make it triumphant, and uproot the unbelievers (by causing their leaders to die).
Daryabadi
And recall what time Allah was promising you one of the two parties that it should be yours, and ye would fain to have that the one without; Whilst Allah besought arms were yours to justify the truth by His words and to cut off the root of the infidels.
Faridul Haque
And remember when Allah promised you that one of the two groups (of enemies) is for you, and you wished to get the one that posed no danger, and Allah willed to prove the truth with His Words, and to cut the origins of the disbelievers.
Maulana Muhammad Ali
And when Allah promised you one of the two parties that it should be yours, and you loved that the one not armed should be yours, and Allah desired to establish the Truth by His words, and to cut off the root of the disbelievers --
Maulvi Sher Ali
And remember when ALLAH promised you one of the two parties that it should be yours, and you wished that the one unarmed should be yours, but ALLAH desired to establish the Truth by HIS words and to cut off the root of the disbelievers,
Muhammad Asad
And, lo, God gave you the promise that one of the two [enemy] hosts would fall to you: and you would have liked to seize the less powerful one, whereas it was God's will to prove the truth to be true in accordance with His words, and to wipe out the last remnant of those who denied the truth-
Muhammad Musin Khan
And (remember) when Allah promised you (Muslims) one of the two parties (of the enemy i.e. either the army or the caravan) that it should be yours, you wished that the one not armed (the caravan) should be yours, but Allah willed to justify the truth by His Words and to cut off the roots of the disbelievers (i.e. in the battle of Badr).
Muhammad Pickthall
And when Allah promised you one of the two bands (of the enemy) that it should be yours, and ye longed that other than the armed one might be yours. And Allah willed that He should cause the Truth to triumph by His words, and cut the root of the disbelievers;
Muhammad Sarwar
When God promised to grant you (believers) victory over either one of the two groups, you wished to have control over the unarmed one. God decided to prove (to you) the truth of His promises and to destroy the unbelievers
Muhammed ali Shakir
And when Allah promised you one of the two parties that it shall be yours and you loved that the one not armed should he yours and Allah desired to manifest the truth of what was true by His words and to cut off the root of the unbelievers.
Rashad Khalifa
Recall that GOD promised you victory over a certain group, but you still wanted to face the weaker group. It was GOD's plan to establish the truth with His words, and to defeat the disbelievers.
Shabbir Ahmed
God promised you engagement and victory against one of the two groups. You preferred to face the unarmed group, but God willed the truth to prevail according to His Words and soundly defeat the aggressive disbelievers.
Commentary 8:7Tâiftaynالطَّائِفَتَيْنِ “the two parties” refer to the caravan of the Quraish coming from Syria under the leadership of Abû Sufyân and the armed force of…
وَإِذْ يَعِدُكُمُ اللَّهُ إِحْدَى الطَّائِفَتَيْنِ أَنَّهَا لَكُمْ وَتَوَدُّونَ أَنَّ غَيْرَ ذَاتِ الشَّوْكَةِ تَكُونُ لَكُمْ وَيُرِيدُ اللَّهُ أَن يُحِقَّ الْحَقَّ بِكَلِمَاتِهِ وَيَقْطَعَ دَابِرَ الْكَافِرِينَ
8:7Tâiftaynالطَّائِفَتَيْنِ “the two parties” refer to the caravan of the Quraish coming from Syria under the leadership of Abû Sufyân and the armed force of the infidels of Makkah under the command of Abû Jahl. Two years after Hijrah, Abû Jahl raised an army of 1000 Makkans with the intention of eradicating the small Muslim community of Madînah. The Muslims were forced to encounter the advancing force at the time when no resources for war had been organized. They had two alternatives: either to look for resources to equip themselves or to fight as things stood. Their own trade caravan was on their way back from Syria, but still two thirds of the distance away from Madînah. At the same time a richly laden Makkan Caravan lead by Abû Sufyân with 40 men was also on its way back, not very far from north of Madînah. A number of the Muslims wished to attack the Makkan caravan first, seize the riches, and equip their army. Plundering this caravan would have been an easy, safe and lucrative solution; however, the Holy Prophet (pbuh) did not agree with such an attack.
Badr, where the encounter with the Makkan forces took place, lies at a distance of six days journey or about 150 miles from Makkah, and two days journey or about 50 miles from Madînah. Non-Muslim historians insist that it was the Muslims who were aggressors. However, they overlook certain facts: the place of encounter was south of Madînah, and not to the north where the caravan of the Makkans was on its way. On the other hand, the Makkans were already advancing towards Madînah and were at a distance of a few days journey from Madînah. If the Holy Prophet (pbuh) had prepared for attacking the caravan, he would have taken a route towards the north from where the caravan of Abû Sufyân was coming. Any intention of the army of Abû Jahl to supply an escort for the caravan is in contradiction with the fact that the Makkan army stayed at Badr after the caravan of Abû Sufyân crossed Madînah in safety and had left the city of the Holy Prophet (pbuh) far behind.
The Holy Prophet (pbuh) and his Companions decided to meet the enemy outside Madînah in order not to put in danger the lives of the innocents. Companions of the Holy Prophet (pbuh) made speeches to encourage Muslims to take up arms against the enemy. Miqdâd bin Amar announced, “O Prophet of Allâh! We are with you. We will never say to you as the people of Moses said to him, Go you and your Lord and fight, you two, while we sit here and watch, we will fight your enemy in front of you and your rear and on your right side and on your left side and they cannot reach you without marching on our dead bodies” (Bukhârî, Abû Muslim). Sad bin Ma‘âdz said, “March out with your decision (O Prophet!). By Allâh! If you would jump in the ocean of the enemy, we will be with you” (Bukhârî, Abû Muslim). These speeches indicate that the aim of the Muslims was not to attack and plunder the caravan, but to save themselves from being overwhelmed by the Makkan forces.