يَسْأَلُونَكَ عَنِ الْأَنْفَالِ قُلِ الْأَنْفَالُ لِلَّهِ وَالرَّسُولِ فَاتَّقُوا اللَّهَ وَأَصْلِحُوا ذَاتَ بَيْنِكُمْ وَأَطِيعُوا اللَّهَ وَرَسُولَهُ إِنْ كُنْتُمْ مُؤْمِنِينَ
THEY WILL ASK thee about the spoils of war. Say: "All spoils of war belong to God and the Apostle." Remain, then, conscious of God, and keep alive the bonds of brotherhood among yourselves, and pay heed unto God and His Apostle, if you are [truly] believers! (1)
إِنَّمَا الْمُؤْمِنُونَ الَّذِينَ إِذَا ذُكِرَ اللَّهُ وَجِلَتْ قُلُوبُهُمْ وَإِذَا تُلِيَتْ عَلَيْهِمْ آيَاتُهُ زَادَتْهُمْ إِيمَانًا وَعَلَىٰ رَبِّهِمْ يَتَوَكَّلُونَ
Believers are only they whose hearts tremble with awe whenever God is mentioned, and whose faith is strengthened whenever His messages are conveyed unto them, and who in their Sustainer place their trust – (2)
الَّذِينَ يُقِيمُونَ الصَّلَاةَ وَمِمَّا رَزَقْنَاهُمْ يُنْفِقُونَ
those who are constant in prayer and spend on others out of what We provide for them as sustenance: (3)
أُولَٰئِكَ هُمُ الْمُؤْمِنُونَ حَقًّا لَهُمْ دَرَجَاتٌ عِنْدَ رَبِّهِمْ وَمَغْفِرَةٌ وَرِزْقٌ كَرِيمٌ
it is they, they who are truly believers! Theirs shall be great dignity in their Sustainer's sight, and forgiveness of sins, and a most excellent sustenance. (4)
كَمَا أَخْرَجَكَ رَبُّكَ مِنْ بَيْتِكَ بِالْحَقِّ وَإِنَّ فَرِيقًا مِنَ الْمُؤْمِنِينَ لَكَارِهُونَ
EVEN AS thy Sustainer brought thee forth from thy home [to fight] in the cause of the truth, although some of the believers were averse to it, (5)
يُجَادِلُونَكَ فِي الْحَقِّ بَعْدَمَا تَبَيَّنَ كَأَنَّمَا يُسَاقُونَ إِلَى الْمَوْتِ وَهُمْ يَنْظُرُونَ
[so, too,] they would argue with thee about the truth [itself] after it had become manifest – just as if they were being driven towards death and beheld it with their very eyes. (6)
وَإِذْ يَعِدُكُمُ اللَّهُ إِحْدَى الطَّائِفَتَيْنِ أَنَّهَا لَكُمْ وَتَوَدُّونَ أَنَّ غَيْرَ ذَاتِ الشَّوْكَةِ تَكُونُ لَكُمْ وَيُرِيدُ اللَّهُ أَنْ يُحِقَّ الْحَقَّ بِكَلِمَاتِهِ وَيَقْطَعَ دَابِرَ الْكَافِرِينَ
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 – (7)
لِيُحِقَّ الْحَقَّ وَيُبْطِلَ الْبَاطِلَ وَلَوْ كَرِهَ الْمُجْرِمُونَ
so that He might prove the truth to be true and the false to be false, however hateful this might be to those who were lost in sin. (8)
إِذْ تَسْتَغِيثُونَ رَبَّكُمْ فَاسْتَجَابَ لَكُمْ أَنِّي مُمِدُّكُمْ بِأَلْفٍ مِنَ الْمَلَائِكَةِ مُرْدِفِينَ
Lo! You were praying unto your Sustainer for aid, whereupon He thus responded to you: "I shall, verily, aid you with a thousand angels following one upon another!" (9)
وَمَا جَعَلَهُ اللَّهُ إِلَّا بُشْرَىٰ وَلِتَطْمَئِنَّ بِهِ قُلُوبُكُمْ وَمَا النَّصْرُ إِلَّا مِنْ عِنْدِ اللَّهِ إِنَّ اللَّهَ عَزِيزٌ حَكِيمٌ
And God ordained this only as a glad tiding, and that your hearts should thereby be set at rest – since no succour can come from any save God: verily, God is almighty, wise! (10)
- THEY WILL ASK thee about the spoils of war. Say: "All spoils of war belong to God and the Apostle."1 Remain, then, conscious of God, and keep alive the bonds of brotherhood among yourselves,2 and pay heed unto God and His Apostle, if you are [truly] believers!
- 1 The term nafl (of which anfal is the plural) denotes, in its purely linguistic sense, "an accretion or addition received beyond one's due" or "something given in excess of one's obligation" (from which latter meaning the term salat an-nafl - i.e., a "supererogatory prayer" - is derived). In its plural form anfal, which occurs in the Qur'an only in the above verse, this word signifies "spoils of war", inasmuch as such spoils are an incidental accession above and beyond anything that a mujahid ("a fighter in God's cause") is entitled to expect. The statement that "all spoils of war belong to God and the Apostle" implies that no individual warrior has a claim to any war booty: it is public property, to be utilized or distributed by the government of an Islamic state in accordance with the principles laid down in the Qur'an and the teachings of the Prophet. For further details relating to the division of spoils of war, see verse 41 of this surah. - The immediate occasion of this revelation was the question of the booty acquired by the Muslims - in the battle of Badr (an account of which is given in the introductory note to this surah); but the principle enunciated above is valid for all times and circumstances.
- 2 Lit., "set to rights the relationship between yourselves" - i.e., "remain conscious of your brotherhood in faith and banish all discord among yourselves".
- They ask thee1178 concerning (things taken as) spoils of war. Say: "(such) spoils are at the disposal of Allah1179 and the Messenger. So fear Allah, and keep straight the relations between yourselves: Obey Allah and His Messenger, if ye do believe."
- 1178 The occasion was the question of the division of the booty after the battle of Badr. See Introduction to this Surah.
- 1179 Booty taken in a lawful and just war does not belong to any individual. If he fought for such accessory rewards, he fought from wrong motives. It belongs to the Cause, in this case the Cause of Allah, as administered by His Messenger. Any portion given out to individuals are accessory gifts, windfalls from the bounty of the Commander. The chief thing is to remain staunch to the Cause of Allah, and have no differences among those who stand for the Cause. Our internal relations must be kept straight: they must not be disturbed by cupidity or worldly considerations of gain, for any windfalls of this kind should be outside our calculations.
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They ask thee concerning (things taken as) spoils of war. Say: "(such) spoils are at the disposal of Allah and the Messenger: So fear Allah, and keep straight the relations between yourselves: Obey Allah and His Messenger, if ye do believe."
— Abdullah Yusuf Ali -
They ask thee (O Muhammad) of the spoils of war. Say: The spoils of war belong to Allah and the messenger, so keep your duty to Allah, and adjust the matter of your difference, and obey Allah and His messenger, if ye are (true) believers.
— Marmaduke Pickthall -
They ask you about the windfalls. Say: The windfalls are for Allah and the Messenger. So be careful of (your duty to) Allah and set aright matters of your difference, and obey Allah and His Messenger if you are believers.
— M. Habib Shakir -
They ask you (O Muhammad SAW) about the spoils of war. Say: "The spoils are for Allah and the Messenger." So fear Allah and adjust all matters of difference among you, and obey Allah and His Messenger (Muhammad SAW), if you are believers.
— Taqiuddin Hilali and M. Mohsin Khan -
They ask thee concerning the spoils of war. Say thou: the spoils of war are Allah's and the apostle's. So fear Allah, and set right the matter among you, and obey Allah and His apostle if ye are believers.
— Abdul-Majid Daryabadi -
They ask you about the spoils (of war). Say: 'The spoils belong to Allah and the Messenger. Therefore, have fear of Allah and set things right between you.Obey Allah and His Messenger, if you are believers. '
— Hasan Qaribullah and Ahmed Darwish -
They ask thee concerning the spoils. Say, `the spoils belong to God and the Messenger; so fear God and set things right between you; and obey God and His Messenger, if you are Believers'.
— Ayub Khan -
They ask thee concerning the spoils. Say, 'The spoils of war are for God and the Messenger. So fear God, and set things right among yourselves, and obey God and His Messenger, if you are believers.'
— Sher Ali -
THEY WILL ASK thee about the spoils of war. Say: "All spoils of war belong to God and the Apostle." Remain, then, conscious of God, and keep alive the bonds of brotherhood among yourselves, and pay heed unto God and His Apostle, if you are [truly] believers!
— Muhammad Asad -
They will question thee concerning the spoils. Say: The spoils belong to God and the Messenger; so fear you God, and set things right between you, and obey you God and His Messenger, if you are believers.
— Arthur Arberry -
They ask you concerning the spoils of war? Tell them: 'The spoils of war belong to Allah and the Messenger. So fear Allah, and set things right between you, and obey Allah and His Messenger if you are true believers. {{1}}
— Abu'l Ala Maududi