English Translation and Tafsir of Surah Al-Mujadilah
Ayah 8-10
Punishment of Those Who Make Evil Consultation
58:8 Have you not seen those who were forbidden from secret consultation, then they return to what they were forbidden? And they counsel secretly for sinning, hostility, and disobedience of the Messenger. And when they come to you, they greet you with what Allah has not greeted you. And they say within themselves, ‘Why does not Allah punish us for what we say?’ Sufficient for them is Hell wherein they shall be burnt. How an evil end it is!
58:9 O you who believe, when you counsel secretly one another, counsel not for sinning, hostility, and disobedience of the Messenger, and counsel one another for piety and fear of Allah. And fear Allah to whom you shall be gathered.
58:10 Secret counsel is only from Satan that he may cause grief to the believers, and he will not harm them in the least except by the leave of Allah. And in Allah, let the believers put their trust.
Relationship with the Previous Part
The previous part mentions that Allah knows all things and nothing is hidden from His perfect knowledge. Then, this part refers to those who were prohibited from making secret consultations, namely, the Jews and the hypocrites. It mentions that they return to doing what they were prohibited to do. In addition, they used to greet Messenger Muhammad with evil greetings.
Tafsir
58:8 Have you not seen those who were forbidden from secret consultation, then they return to what they were forbidden? And they counsel secretly for sinning, hostility, and disobedience of the Messenger. And when they come to you, they greet you with what Allah has not greeted you. And they say within themselves, ‘Why does not Allah punish us for what we say?’ Sufficient for them is Hell wherein they shall be burnt. How an evil end it is!
The condition of some people is strange. They favor misguidance over guidance; they are advised, but they ignore the advice; they are warned of committing wrongdoing, but they insist on committing it.
58:8 Have you not seen those who were forbidden from secret consultation, then they return to what they were forbidden? And they counsel secretly for sinning, hostility, and disobedience of the Messenger.
O noble Messenger Muhammad, ‘If you want to be astonished, you should be astonished by the condition of the Jews and the hypocrites. They are prohibited from secret consultation that causes worry and irritation to the believers, but they ignore the command. They have returned to what they were forbidden and continued making evil secret consultation against the Messenger of Allah and the believers.’
Imam Ibn Kathir, may Allah have mercy on him, wrote, ‘Mujahid said, ‘There was a treaty between Messenger Muhammad [peace be upon him] and the Jews. They used to make secret consultations whenever a companion of Messenger Muhammad would pass by them, which would make the believer think that they were talking about killing or something that he disliked. Thus, the believers would fear them and leave the road where the Jews were sitting. Therefore, Messenger Muhammad forbade the Jews from making such a secret consultation, but they returned to making it. Thus, this ayah was revealed: [58:8 Have you not seen those who were forbidden from secret consultation, then they return to what they were forbidden? And they counsel secretly for sinning, hostility, and disobedience of the Messenger.]
The ayah mentions that the Jews and the hypocrites returned to making secret consultations even after they were forbidden from doing it. Their conduct reveals that advice does not affect them. They only hear the advice, they act as if nothing happened, and do what they were forbidden to do.
The secret consultation of the Jews and the hypocrites was about hostility against Messenger Muhammad and the believers, as well as sinning. This shows that their secret consultation includes all types of evil and wickedness. They make secret consultations by talking about evil plans and words, uttering unjust and hostile statements against the believers, and doing acts that are disobedience to Messenger Muhammad.
The Jews and the hypocrites did not only make secret consultations though they were prohibited from doing it, but also spoke evil words to Messenger Muhammad [peace be upon him], which indicates their wicked intention.
And when they come to you, they greet you with what Allah has not greeted you.
O noble Messenger Muhammad, when the Jews and the hypocrites come to you and greet you, they greet you with a greeting that Allah has not greeted you with and has not approved.
Aisha, may Allah be pleased with her, said, ‘Some Jews came to Messenger Muhammad, and said, ‘As-sam be upon you, abu al-Qasim (may death be upon you).’ Therefore, I said, ‘As-sam on you, and may Allah punish you and punish you.’ Thereupon, Messenger Muhammad said, ‘O Aisha, ‘Verily, Allah does not like wicked speech.’ Aisha said, ‘O Messenger of Allah, do you not see what they say?’ Messenger Muhammad said, ‘Do you not see that I reciprocated against them what they said to me? I replied by saying, ‘And to you too.’’ Thus, the following ayah was revealed about this matter. [ And when they come to you, they greet you with what Allah has not greeted you. And they say within themselves, ‘Why does not Allah punish us for what we say?’]
And they say within themselves, ‘Why does not Allah punish us for what we say?’
O noble Messenger Muhammad, when the Jews and the hypocrites greet you with a greeting that Allah does not approve, they say within themselves, ‘Why does not Allah punish us for what we say if Muhammad was truly His Prophet and Messenger? In other words, they deny the prophet-hood of Messenger Muhammad as they believe that Allah will punish them for their wickedness and evil greeting if he is truly His Messenger.
Allah, Exalted be He, refutes their evil thought and assured the heart of His beloved Messenger Muhammad.
Sufficient for them is Hell wherein they shall be burnt. How an evil end it is!
O noble Messenger Muhammad, do not be sad because of the mannerless behavior of the Jews and the hypocrites with you and your companions. Sufficient for them is Hell with its severe punishment. They will burn therein forever. How an evil end Hell is if they know!
58:9 O you who believe, when you counsel secretly one another, counsel not for sinning, hostility, and disobedience of the Messenger, and counsel one another for piety and fear of Allah. And fear Allah to whom you shall be gathered.
The ayah addresses the believers and instructs them to comply with certain ethics that lead to attaining the pleasure of Allah and generating affinity among them.
O you who believe, when you counsel secretly one another, do not counsel for sinning, hostility, and disobedience of the Messenger. Do not act like the hypocrites, who make secret consultations about what displeases Allah and His Messenger. O who believe, your consultation should be about what pleases Allah and His Messenger, and piety, and fear of Allah.
And fear Allah to whom you shall be gathered.
O who believe, you should fear Allah in all your conditions as you shall be gathered and return to Allah on the Day of Judgment for reckoning and recompense for all your deeds.
58:10 Secret counsel is only from Satan that he may cause grief to the believers, and he will not harm them in the least except by the leave of Allah. And in Allah, let the believers put their trust.
Qatada, may Allah be pleased with him, narrated, ‘The hypocrites used to make secret consultation among them, which would sadden the believers. Therefore, Allah, Exalted be He, revealed the following Ayah, [58:10 Secret counsel is only from Satan that he may cause grief to the believers…].’
Secret consultation done by the hypocrites for sinning and hostility is only from Satan. He incites the hypocrites to make such a secret counsel to sadden the believers by making them think that the secret consultation of the hypocrites is against them. However, Satan or the secret consultation incited by Satan will not harm the believers in the least except by the leave of Allah.
And in Allah, let the believers put their trust.
The believers should not worry about the secret counsel of the hypocrites and the Jews. They should put their trust in Allah, Exalted be He. He will take care of them and protect them against whatever plot that their enemies may plan to harm them.
The Learned Lessons from Surah Al-Mujadilah Ayah 8-10
• The enemies of Islam do their best to plan against Muslims and sadden them.
• The Jews used to greet Prophet Muhammad by saying, ‘As-sam be upon you, namely, death be upon you.’ And Messenger Muhammad used to reply to their greeting by saying, ‘And to you too,’ which would reciprocate their evil greeting against them.
• Allah, Exalted be He, has commanded the believers to make their secret counsel for commanding piety and fear of Allah, and He has prohibited them to make secret counsel for sinning and disobedience of Messenger Muhammad.
• All people will be gathered to Allah for reckoning and recompense on the Day of Judgment.
• Satan incites the enemies of Islam to make secret counsel to sadden the believers, but their secret consultation will not harm the believers in the least except by the leave of Allah.
• The believers should put their trust in Allah and firmly believe that nothing will happen except by His will.
• Islam prohibits making secret counsel between two people to the exclusion of the third one to prevent any negative thoughts that such counsel may cause.
