The Holy Quran with Five Volume Commentary (Vol 4) — Page 243
PT. 17 AL-HAJJ CH. 22 Lord is Allah'-"And if Allah did not repel some people by الَّذِينَ أُخْرِجُوا مِنْ دِيَارِهِمْ بِغَيْرِ حَةٍ Those who have been driven. 41 out from their homes unjustly إِلَّا أَنْ يَقُولُوا رَبُّنَا اللهُ وَلَوْلَا دَفْعُ اللَّهِ only because they said, Our النَّاسَ بَعْضَهُمْ بِبَعْضٍ لَّهُدِّمَتْ صَوَامِعُ وَبِيَعٌ وَصَلَوتُ وَمَسْجِدُ means of others, there would يُذْكَرُ فِيهَا اسْمُ اللهِ كَثِيرًا وَلَيَنْصُرَنَّ churches and اللهُ مَنْ يَنْصُرُهُ إِنَّ اللَّهَ لَقَوِيٌّ عَزِيزُ mosques surely have been destroyed cloisters and churches and synagogues and wherein the name of Allah is oft "2:252. scholarly opinion this is the first verse which gave Muslims permission to take up arms in self- defence. The verse was revealed very early in Medina. "It is much more reasonable," says Wherry, to suppose with Muir that this command emanated from Medina. Nöldeke also relegated this command to Medina" (Wherry's Commentary). according to which Muslims can wage a defensive war, and clearly sets forth the reasons which led a handful of Muslims, without arms and other material means, to fight in self- defence after they had suffered at Mecca ceaseless persecution for years and had been pursued with relentless hatred to Medina and were harassed and harried there too. The first and foremost reason given is that "they had been wronged. " The Muslims had suffered untold persecution and war was actually forced upon them. The verse incidentally shows that the Muslims were also very weak in numbers, means and material when the permission to fight in self-defence was granted to them as the comforting and encouraging words, "And Allah indeed has power to help them," indicate. These words also implied a prophecy that though the Muslims were weak and their enemy was proud and powerful, yet as they were fighting in the cause of truth God would help them and they would The next verse also lends support to this inference. It states that the permission to fight was given after the Muslims had been driven out of their hearths and homes. If, as some commentators of the Quran hold, the verse was revealed at Mecca, it must have been revealed immediately before Hijrah when most of the Muslims had already migrated to Medina and the Holy Prophet with only a very few Muslims had remained behind in Mecca and their cup of hardships and privations had become full to the brim. But the former view seems to be more akin to fact and reality. The verse lays down principles be victorious. 2157