63al-MunāfiqūnThe Dual-Loyalistsسُورَةُ المنافقون

Madinan · 11 ayat · 104th in order of revelation

بِسۡمِ ٱللَّهِ ٱلرَّحۡمَٰنِ ٱلرَّحِيمِ

Muslim political hypocrites: the most sordid of characters

إِذَا جَآءَكَ ٱلۡمُنَٰفِقُونَ قَالُواْ نَشۡهَدُ إِنَّكَ لَرَسُولُ ٱللَّهِۗ وَٱللَّهُ يَعۡلَمُ إِنَّكَ لَرَسُولُهُۥ وَٱللَّهُ يَشۡهَدُ إِنَّ ٱلۡمُنَٰفِقِينَ لَكَٰذِبُونَ 

When the [muslim] political hypocrites come to you [O Prophet], they say, “We bear witness that you are indeed the Apostle of Allah!” But Allah knows that you are indeed His Apostle; and Allah bears witness that the political hypocrites are surely lying [in their testimony of faith].

ٱتَّخَذُوٓاْ أَيۡمَٰنَهُمۡ جُنَّةٗ فَصَدُّواْ عَن سَبِيلِ ٱللَّهِۚ إِنَّهُمۡ سَآءَ مَا كَانُواْ يَعۡمَلُونَ 

They use their oaths as a camouflage [for their false allegations], accordingly they obstruct [other people] from Allah’s course [of action]. Malevolent, indeed, is what they have been doing:

ذَٰلِكَ بِأَنَّهُمۡ ءَامَنُواْ ثُمَّ كَفَرُواْ فَطُبِعَ عَلَىٰ قُلُوبِهِمۡ فَهُمۡ لَا يَفۡقَهُونَ 

That [they do] because they [pretentiously assert] they have committed themselves [to Allah and His Apostle], whereas [in reality] they object [to Allah and His Prophet] — and thus, an [impenetrable] seal has been affixed to their hearts so that they can no longer relate knowledge to reality.

۞ وَإِذَا رَأَيۡتَهُمۡ تُعۡجِبُكَ أَجۡسَامُهُمۡۖ وَإِن يَقُولُواْ تَسۡمَعۡ لِقَوۡلِهِمۡۖ كَأَنَّهُمۡ خُشُبٞ مُّسَنَّدَةٞۖ يَحۡسَبُونَ كُلَّ صَيۡحَةٍ عَلَيۡهِمۡۚ هُمُ ٱلۡعَدُوُّ فَٱحۡذَرۡهُمۡۚ قَٰتَلَهُمُ ٱللَّهُۖ أَنَّىٰ يُؤۡفَكُونَ 

And when you look at them you may be impressed by their physique; and when they speak you may be inclined to lend an ear to what they say. [But in reality] they are like hollow beams [not useful for any structure — so consumed with self-doubt that] they have become paranoid. They are the [real] enemies [of the committed muslims], so be wary of them [and know that] Allah will take them on whenever and however they pervert the truth.

Evidence substantiating the lies of polit ical hypocrites and their double-dealing

وَإِذَا قِيلَ لَهُمۡ تَعَالَوۡاْ يَسۡتَغۡفِرۡ لَكُمۡ رَسُولُ ٱللَّهِ لَوَّوۡاْ رُءُوسَهُمۡ وَرَأَيۡتَهُمۡ يَصُدُّونَ وَهُم مُّسۡتَكۡبِرُونَ 

And if they are told, “Come, let the Apostle of Allah ask for your forgiveness,” they turn their heads away [in a sneering way], and you see them declining [the gracious offer of forgiveness] because they are arrogant [to boot].

سَوَآءٌ عَلَيۡهِمۡ أَسۡتَغۡفَرۡتَ لَهُمۡ أَمۡ لَمۡ تَسۡتَغۡفِرۡ لَهُمۡ لَن يَغۡفِرَ ٱللَّهُ لَهُمۡۚ إِنَّ ٱللَّهَ لَا يَهۡدِي ٱلۡقَوۡمَ ٱلۡفَٰسِقِينَ 

For them it is all the same: [regardless of] whether you ask [Allah] to forgive them or you do not ask [Allah] to forgive them, Allah will not forgive them — for, surely, Allah does not guide folks who are degenerate.

هُمُ ٱلَّذِينَ يَقُولُونَ لَا تُنفِقُواْ عَلَىٰ مَنۡ عِندَ رَسُولِ ٱللَّهِ حَتَّىٰ يَنفَضُّواْۗ وَلِلَّهِ خَزَآئِنُ ٱلسَّمَٰوَٰتِ وَٱلۡأَرۡضِ وَلَٰكِنَّ ٱلۡمُنَٰفِقِينَ لَا يَفۡقَهُونَ 

It is they who say [among themselves], “Do not spend anything on those who are with Allah’s Apostle, until they become detached from each other.” Just the same, to Allah belong the treasures of the heavens and the earth: but this truth the political hypocrites cannot relate to reality.

يَقُولُونَ لَئِن رَّجَعۡنَآ إِلَى ٱلۡمَدِينَةِ لَيُخۡرِجَنَّ ٱلۡأَعَزُّ مِنۡهَا ٱلۡأَذَلَّۚ وَلِلَّهِ ٱلۡعِزَّةُ وَلِرَسُولِهِۦ وَلِلۡمُؤۡمِنِينَ وَلَٰكِنَّ ٱلۡمُنَٰفِقِينَ لَا يَعۡلَمُونَ 

[And] they say, “Indeed, when we return to Madinah [from our military accompaniment], [we], the ones who are superior [the political hypocrites] will most certainly drive out the ones who are inferior [the committed muslims]!” To Allah belongs [all] honorable superiority, and to His Apostle and to the committed muslims: but the political hypocrites do not understand [this].

Committed muslims are warned of the behavior of the political hypocrites and are told to spend in the direction of goodness

يَٰٓأَيُّهَا ٱلَّذِينَ ءَامَنُواْ لَا تُلۡهِكُمۡ أَمۡوَٰلُكُمۡ وَلَآ أَوۡلَٰدُكُمۡ عَن ذِكۡرِ ٱللَّهِۚ وَمَن يَفۡعَلۡ ذَٰلِكَ فَأُوْلَٰٓئِكَ هُمُ ٱلۡخَٰسِرُونَ 

O you who are divinely committed! Let not your [greed for] assets nor your [affection for] self-centered solidarities distract you from a conscientizing of Allah: for whoever does that — it is they, they who shall lose.

وَأَنفِقُواْ مِن مَّا رَزَقۡنَٰكُم مِّن قَبۡلِ أَن يَأۡتِيَ أَحَدَكُمُ ٱلۡمَوۡتُ فَيَقُولَ رَبِّ لَوۡلَآ أَخَّرۡتَنِيٓ إِلَىٰٓ أَجَلٖ قَرِيبٖ فَأَصَّدَّقَ وَأَكُن مِّنَ ٱلصَّٰلِحِينَ 

And spend [now on the needy] out of what We have provided you [in this immediate world] before one of you is visited by death, whereupon he will lament, “O my Sustainer! If only You would defer me [from dying] for a short while, so that I could spend [from what is available to me] on the indigent and, thus, become included among the righteous!”

وَلَن يُؤَخِّرَ ٱللَّهُ نَفۡسًا إِذَا جَآءَ أَجَلُهَاۚ وَٱللَّهُ خَبِيرُۢ بِمَا تَعۡمَلُونَ 

But never will Allah postpone a living being’s death once its term has come; and Allah is very well acquainted with what you do.