The Holy Quran with Five Volume Commentary (Vol 1) — Page 357
PT. 2 AL-BAQARAH CH. 2 mixed or joined with him in his the addressee-this verse follows in affairs; he became co-partner with the wake of the verses dealing with him. . means, anxiety | war خالط قلبه هم pervaded his heart (Aqrab & Lane). (put you to hardship) is derived from which means, he fell into difficulty or hardship. ac means, he put him to hardship; he burdened him with a task that was beyond his power (Aqrab). Commentary: The opening words of this verse apparently seem to be misplaced, for they are connected not with the following words of the verse in which they are placed, but with the concluding words of the previous one. The complete sentence, therefore, should read like this, "thus Allah makes His commandments clear to you that you may reflect upon this world and the next". If read like this, the clause would mean that God has refrained from issuing a definite commandment with regard to war expenditure and has simply ordered you to retain such portion of your possessions as you may require for your worldly needs and spend the balance in the cause of religion so that you may be trained to think over and judge the comparative value of this world and the next and act accordingly. The words, "upon this world and the next" have been separated from the preceding words to provide a pause with the object of impressing the importance of the matter on the mind of the listener or reader. As Quranic verses follow a natural order an order prompted and followed by the innermost nature of 357 be most As the war leaves behind orphans, this verse lays down basic instructions as to how they should be treated and looked after. Muslims are told that the bringing up of orphans is a very delicate affair and an important social duty. Orphans should brought up in the manner conducive to their greatest good, i. e. their physical, moral and spiritual welfare. They should be treated as members of the family; and their property properly looked after and steps taken to augment it. The words, and if you intermix with them, they are your brethren, signify not only The permission but exhortation. exhortation lies in the word "brethren" which is meant to point to Muslims to allow orphans to live as members of their family, this being not only wise and humane but also based on considerations of convenience. If orphans had been directed to be kept aloof and their property managed on a strictly legal basis, it would have, in most cases, entailed a good deal of unnecessary inconvenience and trouble for both parties concerned. The words, Allah knows the mischief-maker from the reformer, serve as a stern warning to the guardians of orphans. Anything they do is sure to come to the knowledge of God. Nay, God knows even the hidden things of the human heart. So they should beware of playing the part of mischief-makers in the garb of reformers. God's attributes of "Powerful" and "Wise" placed at the end of the verse