The Holy Quran with Five Volume Commentary (Vol 4) — Page 215
The Holy Prophet has met with long and hard opposition and has endured untold hardships with great patience and fortitude. Now the time has arrived that he be granted permission to fight his opponents in self-defence. Islam does not believe in non-resistance of evil under all conditions and circumstances. God will grant the Holy Prophet succour and bestow success on him. His end will be like that of other great Divine Messengers. All Divine Prophets were opposed, and satanic people placed all sorts of obstacles and impediments in their way. But God removed all those obstacles and the cause of truth ultimately triumphed. It has happened in the time of every Prophet and it will happen again in the time of the Holy Prophet and God will give him victory and Islam will prevail against all religions. Defensive warfare is not only permissible, but is commendable and Divine succour comes to those who fight in the defence of truth. Had it not been so, truth would have failed in obtaining its very object. Divine teaching, like fresh rain, gives new life and new vigour to a spiritually dead world and therefore it is bound to succeed. This cycle of a new revelation taking the place of an old one goes on. But when a particular teaching has completed its allotted span of life and has served its intended purpose and outlived its utility, then a new teaching takes its place. This constitutes an infallible sign that the old teaching has been subject to human interference and has therefore ceased to satisfy the needs and requirements of the new age and consequently become deprived of Divine aid. But its followers labouring under the misconception that because their religion had once received Divine help, it must always continue to do so. In their ignorance and perversity, they foolishly seek to persecute the followers of the new revelation and to nip the new message in the bud, but they fail in their nefarious designs. Thus, when a teaching which was once attended with Divine assistance becomes deprived of it, a new faith becomes the vehicle of Divine will and purpose. The Surah ends with the theme that Divine help will now come to the Holy Prophet because he is the Promised Reformer. His followers should, therefore, give him full and unconditional allegiance. This is the only way to success and victory. The Muslims should bear in mind that not only is the Holy Prophet the Promised Teacher, but they too are a Promised People and consequently are bound to succeed. 2129