The Holy Quran with Five Volume Commentary (Vol 2) — Page 726
CH. 9 AT-TAUBAH PT. 10 الْمُؤْمِنُونَ should the believers put their trust. '1207 قُلْ هَلْ تَرَبَّصُونَ بِنَا إِلَّا إِحْدَى Say, “You do not await for. 52 us anything except one of the two good things; while as regards you, we await that Allah will afflict you with a or at our hands. Wait then; we also are waiting with you. '1208 الْحُسْنَيَيْنِ وَنَحْنُ نَتَرَبَّصُ بِكُمْ أَنْ يُصِيبَكُمُ اللَّهُ بِعَذَابٍ مِنْ عِنْدِةٍ أَوْ بِأَيْدِينَا فَتَرَبَّصُوا إِنَّا مَعَكُمْ punishment either from Himself متَرَبَّصُونَ قُلْ أَنْفِقُوا طَوْعًا أَوْ كَرْهًا أَنْ يُتَقَبَّلَ مِنْكُمْ إِنَّكُمْ كُنْتُمْ قَوْمًا فَسِقِيْنَ 53. Say, 'Spend willingly or unwillingly, it shall not be accepted from you. You are indeed a disobedient people. '1209 1207. Commentary: The expression, save that which Allah has ordained for us, means that victory as ordained by God will always be attained, however great the intervening difficulties. The words that follow, viz. He is our Protector, support this interpretation and also 58:22 which says, Allah has decreed: Of a certainty I will prevail, and My Messengers. 1208. Commentary: The "two good things" referred to in this verse are martyrdom and victory. Only one of these two things I can fall to the lot of believers in a war. Either they win and triumph or they die on the battlefield and become martyrs. Hence, the evil desires which the disbelievers and hypocrites entertained concerning the Muslims could never be fulfilled. The verse thus purports to say that true believers can never suffer a defeat; they either die fighting and thus win martyrdom or they return victorious from the field of battle, 1166 1209. Commentary: The expression, it shall not be accepted from you, means that if the hypocrites offered to pay the Zakāh or any other subscription, it should not be accepted from them in expiation of their non-participation in the expedition. The nature of the punishment meted out to the hypocrites is worthy of special notice. No fine was levied on them, nor were they imprisoned nor subjected to a punishment generally inflicted for offences of this nature. They were simply told that as, by disobeying the command of God and refusing to serve Islam at a time of great danger,