Surah At-Tawbah English Translation & Transliteration

¹This is a warning/an ultimatum, a final notice, from Allah and His Messenger, who conveys Allah's messages, to the polytheists (mushrikun) with whom you made a pact/treaty:

²From now on you may move about freely in this land for four more months; but know well that you will never be able to evade Allah, and that Allah will bring disgrace and humiliation upon the disbelievers.

³And this is a proclamation to the people from Allah and His Messenger, who conveys Allah's messages, on the day of the greatest pilgrimage: Allah and His Messenger no longer have any ties with the polytheists. If from now on you turn back in repentance, that will be better for you. But if you turn away, know well that you will never evade Allah. And inform those who disbelieve of an agonizing punishment!

⁴Excepted from this, however, are those polytheists who have not violated the terms of the treaty you made with them, who have kept to it fully, and who have not collaborated with others against you. Abide by the terms of your treaty with them until its term expires, for Allah loves those who fulfill their responsibility.

⁵When the inviolable sacred months stipulated in your treaty have passed, kill the polytheists wherever you find them. Seize them, arrest and imprison them. Lie in wait for them at every lookout point. But if they repent and turn back from their wrong, perform the prayer and give the zakat, then set them free. Surely Allah is matchless in forgiveness and an infinite source of mercy.

⁶If any of the polytheists seeks refuge with you, grant his request for refuge, so that he may hear the word of Allah, the Quran. Then convey him to a place where he will be safe. That is because they are a people who do not know the truth.

⁷How can a treaty with the polytheists (who do not keep their word) have any value in the sight of Allah and His Messenger? Except for those with whom you made a treaty near the Sacred Mosque (al-Masjid al-Haram). So long as they keep their pact/word, keep your pact/word too. For Allah loves those who act responsibly.

⁸How can their treaties have any value, when, had they gained the upper hand over you, they would have kept faith neither with the oaths they swore nor with the pact/treaty they made? While they try to please you with their tongues, inwardly they are nursing a grudge against you; and indeed most of them are transgressors who have strayed from the path.

⁹They have traded Allah's verses for a paltry gain. Moreover, they have barred others from His path. Truly, what wretched things they do!

¹⁰Where a believer is concerned, they respect neither treaty nor oath. It is they who have no regard for right or law.

¹¹But if they repent and turn back from their wrong, perform the prayer and give the zakat, then they become your brothers in religion. We explain Our verses in detail for a people who want to know.

¹²But if they break their oaths after making a treaty and revile your religion, then fight the ringleaders of disbelief. For their oaths count for nothing. Perhaps they will put an end to this behavior.

¹³Will you still not fight this people who did not abide by their pact/treaty, did everything to drive the Messenger out of his homeland, and were the first to launch an attack against you? If you are afraid, it is Allah who truly deserves to be feared, if you are really believers.

¹⁴Fight them, so that Allah may punish them at your hands, disgrace them, and grant you help and victory against them, and so bring healing to the hearts of a people who believe,

¹⁵and so that He may thus quench the anger in your hearts. And Allah accepts the repentance of anyone who so wishes. Allah knows all things and puts everything in its proper place.

¹⁶Or did you think that you would be left to yourselves before Allah has brought to light those among you who strive with all their might and take no one but Allah, His Messenger, and the believers as close friends and confidants? Allah is surely aware of everything you do.

¹⁷The polytheists have no right to maintain Allah's mosques while they themselves keep bearing witness to their own disbelief. The deeds of such people have come to nothing, and in the Fire they will remain.

¹⁸Only those who believe and trust in Allah and the Last Day, perform the prayer, give the zakat, and fear none but Allah can maintain Allah's mosques. It is such people who, it may be hoped, are on the right path.

¹⁹Do you hold providing water for the pilgrims and maintaining the Sacred Mosque to be equal to the one who believes in Allah and the Last Day and strives with all his might in Allah's way? They are never equal in Allah's sight. Surely Allah does not let a people of wrongdoers, who displace values from their rightful place, reach their goal.

²⁰Those who have believed, emigrated for the sake of their faith, and striven hard in Allah's way, putting their wealth and their lives at stake, hold the highest rank in Allah's sight. It is they who have attained salvation.

²¹Their Lord gives them good news of mercy and good pleasure from Him, and of gardens filled with never-ending blessings!

²²There they will remain forever. Surely with Allah there are many more magnificent rewards.

²³O you who believe! If they prefer disbelief to faith, do not take them as awliya/friends, even if they are your fathers and your brothers. Whoever among you takes them as friends, it is they who are the wrongdoers.

²⁴Say: —If your fathers, your children, your brothers, your spouses, your relatives, the wealth you have amassed, the trade you fear may decline, and the homes you are pleased with are dearer and more important to you than Allah, His Messenger, who conveys Allah's messages, and striving (jihad) in Allah's way, then wait until Allah's command comes! For Allah does not let a people of transgressors who have strayed from the path reach their goal.

²⁵Indeed, Allah helped you in many battles, and especially on the day of Hunayn. Recall that you had relied on your great numbers, but your numbers availed you nothing; indeed, that day the earth, for all its vastness, felt too narrow for you, and you began to turn your backs and flee.

²⁶Then Allah sent down a feeling of security and tranquility into the hearts of His Messenger and the believers, reinforced you with armies you did not see, and punished the disbelievers. Such is the punishment of the disbelievers.

²⁷Even after this, Allah accepts the repentance of anyone who so wishes. For Allah is most forgiving and most merciful.

²⁸O you who believe! The polytheists are truly unclean. So from this year on, let them not come near the Sacred Mosque. If you fear economic loss, know that the day will come when Allah, if He sees fit, will enrich you out of His bounty. Surely Allah knows all things, and His every judgment is right.

²⁹Fight those among the people who were given the Book who do not believe in Allah and the Last Day, who do not recognize the prohibitions of Allah and the prohibitions made known by His Messenger, and who do not adopt the religion of truth as their religion, until they acknowledge your supremacy, submit, and pay the security tax (jizya) with their own hands!

³⁰The Jews said: "Ezra ('Uzayr) is the son of Allah." And the Christians said: "The Messiah is the son of Allah." These are claims they mouth, imitating the baseless words invented by disbelieving peoples before them. May Allah destroy them; how they keep making things up!

³¹Placing them between themselves and Allah, they have taken their rabbis and their monks (their men of religion) and the Messiah son of Mary as lords (makers of religious law). Yet they were commanded to serve none but the One God. For there is no god but Allah. He is far above, and exalted beyond, all the partners they associate with Him.

³²They want to put out Allah's light with their mouths, yet Allah will perfect His light/the religion of tawhid, however much the disbelievers may dislike it.

³³It is Allah who has sent His Messenger with the religion of truth and the Quran, the guide to the right path, to bring the true religion of tawhid fully to light in all its aspects, however much the polytheists may dislike it.

³⁴O you who believe! Know well that many of the scholars and men of religion lead people astray from Allah's path and devour people's wealth by false means/by ways that have no place in Allah's religion. Inform those who hoard gold and silver and do not spend it in Allah's way of an agonizing punishment.

³⁵On that day these will be heated in the fire of Hell, and their foreheads, chests, and backs branded with them, and it will be said: "This is what you hoarded for yourselves; now taste the fruits of your hoarding!"

³⁶In Allah's Book/law, the number of months has been twelve since the day He created the heavens and the earth. Four of them are sacred months (in which fighting is forbidden). That is the right law and calendar. So do not wrong yourselves by waging war in those months! But if the polytheists wage all-out war against you, then wage all-out war against them too. Know well that Allah is with those who respect the law.

³⁷Tampering with the order of the months and years is the very height of disbelief. The disbelievers count a month as sacred one year and as ordinary the next, so as to make up the number of months Allah has made sacred. In this way they trample underfoot what Allah has declared inviolable; their evil deeds seem attractive to them. For Allah does not let a people of disbelievers attain what they hope for.

³⁸O you who believe! What is the matter with you that, when you are told, "Set out to fight in Allah's way!", you stay rooted to the ground as if nailed down? Have you, then, abandoned the Hereafter and contented yourselves with the fleeting life of this world? Yet the pleasures of this world's life are as nothing beside the blessings of the Hereafter.

³⁹If you do not set out to fight, Allah will punish you with an agonizing punishment and bring another people in your place, and you will not harm Him in the least. For Allah sets a measure for all things.

⁴⁰If you do not help him, know well that Allah will certainly help him. Recall when the disbelievers drove him out of Mecca, the second of two, and while the two of them were in the cave he was saying to his companion, "Do not grieve; Allah is with us." At that moment Allah gave him tranquility and a sense of security from His presence and supported him with armies you did not see. Thus Allah brought low the cause of the disbelievers. As for Allah's cause, it is the most exalted! For Allah has supreme power and decides rightly in His every judgment.

⁴¹Set out to fight all together, whether lightly or heavily equipped! Strive (jihad) in Allah's way with your wealth and your lives! That is better for you, if only you knew.

⁴²Had it been a matter of easy spoils and a short, easy campaign, they would certainly have followed you and joined it. But this hard and lengthy campaign daunted them. And they will destroy themselves by swearing by Allah, "Had we been able, we would certainly have set out with you." Allah knows that they are liars.

⁴³May Allah pardon you! Why did you give them leave not to take part in the fighting before it had become clear to you who was telling the truth and before you had learned who the liars were?

⁴⁴Those who believe and trust in Allah and the Last Day do not ask you for leave, for they want to strive with their wealth and their lives. Allah knows well those who act responsibly.

⁴⁵The only ones who ask you for leave not to take part in the fighting are those who do not believe and trust in Allah and the Last Day, whose hearts are full of deep doubts and who keep wavering in those doubts.

⁴⁶Had they truly wanted to join the fighting, they would have made some preparation for it. But because of their reluctance and insincerity, Allah did not look favorably on their taking part and held them back, and they were told: "Sit at home with those who sit at home, like the helpless!"

⁴⁷Besides, had they set out with you, they would have done nothing but stir up discord and mischief among you; and moreover there are some among you who would listen to them and spy on their behalf. Allah knows these spying wrongdoers well.

⁴⁸They had already tried to stir up discord before, and had hatched various plots against you, until Allah's promise of victory was fulfilled and so Allah's religion prevailed and grew strong, however much the disbelievers disliked it.

⁴⁹Among them are some who say: —Give me leave, and do not lead me into temptation/sin. Be aware that they have already fallen into the pit of temptation. Hell will surround these disbelievers on every side.

⁵⁰If a victory comes to you, it vexes them and they feel sick at heart. But if a defeat befalls you, they say, "How fortunate that we took our precautions beforehand," and go away rejoicing.

⁵¹Say: —Nothing will befall us but the victory or martyrdom that Allah has written for us. For He is our Patron (Mawla)/Protector. So let the believers put their trust and rely on Allah alone!

⁵²Say: —Are you waiting for anything to befall us other than one of the two good things, victory or martyrdom? We, on the other hand, are waiting for Allah to strike you with a calamity from Himself or to punish you at our hands. So wait, then; we too shall wait and see along with you.

⁵³Say: —Whether you spend willingly or unwillingly, it will never be accepted from you. For you are a people of transgressors who have strayed from the path.

⁵⁴The reason their spending is not accepted is that they are ungrateful to Allah and His Messenger, who conveys Allah's messages, that they come to the prayer only lazily, and that they give only grudgingly.

⁵⁵Do not let the abundance of their wealth and children excite your admiration. For Allah means to make them suffer by these in the life of this world, and to have their souls depart while they are disbelievers.

⁵⁶They swear by Allah with all their might that they are of you, yet they are not of you. Rather, they are a cowardly lot.

⁵⁷If they could find a shelter, a cave, or a hole to crawl into, they would flee there in a panic.

⁵⁸Among them are some who find fault with you concerning the distribution of the alms (sadaqat). If they are given some, they are pleased and fall silent; but if they are not given any, they at once grow angry and keep grumbling.

⁵⁹If only they had been pleased with what Allah and His Messenger gave them, and had said: "Allah's gift is enough for us; Allah will give us abundantly from His bounty in the future, and so will His Messenger. We seek only what Allah has ordained for us," it would have been better for them.

⁶⁰The alms (sadaqat), by Allah's definitive ruling, belong only to the poor, the destitute, those who work at collecting them, those whose hearts are to be won over to Islam, slaves, those crushed under the burden of debt, those who fight in Allah's way, and travelers left stranded. Allah knows all things, and His every judgment is right.

⁶¹Among the two-faced hypocrites, who pretend to believe when they do not, there are some who hurt the Prophet by saying: —He is all ears, listening to everyone. Say: "He is all ears for what is good for you, for he believes and trusts in Allah and trusts the believers, and he is a mercy for those of you who believe and trust." For those who hurt Allah's Messenger there is a most painful punishment.

⁶²They keep swearing to you by Allah in order to please you; yet, if they truly believe, Allah and His Messenger are more deserving of being pleased.

⁶³Do they not know that for those who defy Allah and His Messenger, who conveys Allah's messages, there is Hell, where they will remain? That is a terrible disgrace.

⁶⁴The two-faced hypocrites, who pretend to believe when they do not, fear that a surah may be sent down revealing what is in their hearts. Say: —Mock away; Allah will in any case bring to light what you fear.

⁶⁵If you ask them why they were mocking, they say: "We were only joking and amusing ourselves." Say: —Is it Allah, His verses, and His Messenger that you were mocking and making fun of?

⁶⁶Do not make up excuses in vain, for after (declaring) your faith you have (by this mocking attitude) revealed your disbelief. Even if We pardon some of you, We will certainly punish the others for persisting in sin.

⁶⁷The two-faced hypocrites, who pretend to believe when they do not, men and women alike, are all the same. They all encourage evil and try to obstruct good. They are tight-fisted too. They have forgotten Allah, and Allah has left them to be forgotten. Truly the two-faced are transgressors who have strayed from the path.

⁶⁸Allah has promised the two-faced men and the two-faced women, and the disbelievers who openly declare their disbelief, Hell, where they will remain. That is what they deserve. Allah has shut them out of His mercy, and for them there is punishment.

⁶⁹(O hypocrites,) you are just like the disbelievers who came and went before you. Moreover, they were superior to you in strength and power, and greater than you in wealth and numbers. They enjoyed themselves with their share of worldly goods, and you are enjoying yourselves in this world with your share, just as those before you enjoyed themselves; and just as they fell into the swamp of falsehood, you too have sunk into the swamp of falsehood. What such people have done in this world has come to nothing in the Hereafter, and it is they who are truly the losers.

⁷⁰Has the news not reached them of those who came and went before them: the people of Noah, the peoples of 'Ad and Thamud, the people of Abraham, the people of Midian, and the people of the cities that were overturned? Their messengers brought them clear proofs. Allah did not wrong them, but they wronged themselves and brought ruin upon themselves.

⁷¹The believing men and the believing women are each other's awliya/friends and helpers. They encourage what is good and right and prevent what is evil and wrong. They perform the prayer properly and give the zakat gladly. They obey Allah and His Messenger, who conveys His messages. It is these to whom Allah will show mercy. Surely Allah possesses supreme power and might, and puts everything in its proper place.

⁷²Allah has promised the believing men and the believing women gardens beneath which rivers flow, where they will remain, and pleasant, beautiful dwellings in the Gardens of Adn (Eden). But Allah's good pleasure is greater than everything. That is the magnificent triumph.

⁷³O Prophet, strive against the two-faced hypocrites, who pretend to believe when they do not, and the disbelievers! Be uncompromising toward them and show them no leniency! Their abode is Hell. What an evil journey's end it is!

⁷⁴The two-faced hypocrites swear by Allah that they did not say that word; yet they most certainly did utter that word of disbelief, fell into disbelief after having become Muslims, and set about something they could never achieve. The only reason for their anger and resentment was that, through Allah's grace, His Messenger had enriched the believers. Even so, if they repent, it will be good for them. But if they turn away, Allah will punish them with a painful punishment in this world and the Hereafter. And on earth they have no wali/friend or helper at all.

⁷⁵Among them are some who made a pledge/promise to Allah, saying: "If Allah gives us abundant wealth and possessions, we will surely give alms and be among the righteous."

⁷⁶But when Allah gave them the wealth and possessions they had asked for, they became miserly. Thus they went back on the word they had given. They are, after all, people who go back on their word.

⁷⁷Because they broke the promise they made to Allah and because they lied, the hypocrisy in their hearts will remain until the day they die.

⁷⁸Do they not know that Allah knows their secrets and their secret, closed-door meetings, and that Allah knows all hidden things?

⁷⁹The rich find fault with and ridicule the poor believers who voluntarily give more in alms than is due from them and have no income but the labor of their own hands. Allah will turn their ridicule back upon their own heads, and a painful punishment awaits them.

⁸⁰Whether you seek forgiveness (istighfar)/ask pardon for them or not makes no difference. Even if you ask forgiveness for them seventy times, Allah will still not forgive them. That is because they have been ungrateful to Allah and His Messenger. For Allah does not let a people of transgressors who have strayed from the path reach their goal.

⁸¹Those who stayed behind and sat at home instead of answering the call of His Messenger, who conveys Allah's messages, were pleased with this, and had no liking at all for fighting in Allah's way with their wealth and their lives. They even discouraged others, saying, "Do not go out to fight in this heat." Say: —The fire of Hell is hotter still; if only they could grasp this!

⁸²From now on, because of the sins they have earned, they will laugh little and weep much.

⁸³If, on your return from battle, Allah brings you face to face with a group of them, and they ask your leave to set out on campaign, say: —You will never set out on campaign with me, and you will never fight any enemy alongside me. For from the start you chose to stay sitting at home. So go on, sit now with those who stay behind!

⁸⁴And if any of them dies, never perform the funeral prayer over him, nor stand at his grave! For they were ungrateful to Allah and His Messenger, who conveys Allah's messages, defied them, and died as transgressors who had strayed from the path.

⁸⁵Do not let the abundance of either their wealth or their children excite your admiration. Allah means to punish them with these in this world, and to take their souls while they are sunk in disbelief.

⁸⁶When a surah is sent down saying, "Believe in Allah and strive (jihad) together with His Messenger," even the men of means among them ask your leave, saying: "Let us be with those who stay at home!"

⁸⁷Yes, rather than take part in the fighting, they were content to be with those who stayed behind; and so a seal was set on their hearts, and now they cannot grasp the truth.

⁸⁸But the Messenger and the believers with him fought in Allah's way with their wealth and their lives. All good things are theirs. And it is they who will attain what they hope for.

⁸⁹Allah has prepared for them gardens beneath which rivers flow, where they will remain. That is the magnificent triumph.

⁹⁰The desert Arabs who made excuses came asking to be given leave. And those who had lied to Allah and His Messenger simply stayed at home. A painful punishment will strike those of them who disbelieve.

⁹¹As long as they show sincere devotion to Allah and His Messenger, the weak, the sick, and those who have nothing to spend for the fighting will not be held responsible. There is no reason to reproach those who are sincere in the cause of faith. For Allah is matchless in forgiveness and possesses infinite mercy.

⁹²Nor is there any sin or reproach on those who, when they came to you to provide them with mounts and you said, "I cannot provide mounts for you," turned back with their eyes overflowing with tears of grief because they could find nothing to spend.

⁹³Responsibility in this matter lies only on those who, though wealthy, ask your leave, inventing all kinds of excuses not to take part in the fighting. They were content to be with those who stayed behind, and so, because they closed their hearts to Allah's commands, they cannot understand.

⁹⁴When you return from battle and meet them, they will reel off a whole string of excuses to you. Say: —Do not invent excuses in vain, for we will never believe you; Allah has already informed us about you. From now on Allah and His Messenger will see and assess what you do. Then you will be brought before Him who knows everything hidden and open, and He will inform you, one by one, of what you did.

⁹⁵When you return from the campaign and meet them, they will swear to you by Allah so that you leave them alone. Do not indulge them! For they are filth, and in the end their destination, as the recompense for what they have done, is Hell.

⁹⁶They keep swearing to you so that you may be pleased with them; but even if you are pleased with them, Allah will never be pleased with this people of transgressors who have strayed from the path.

⁹⁷Some of the Arabs are very hard in disbelief and hypocrisy, and more inclined not to recognize the limits of the order Allah has sent down to His Messenger; and Allah knows all things, and His every judgment is right.

⁹⁸Some of these Arabs regard what they spend in Allah's way as a loss, and they wait for calamities to befall you. May the worst of calamities befall them! Allah hears all and knows all.

⁹⁹But among these Arabs there are also some who believe and trust in Allah and the Last Day, and regard what they spend as a means of drawing near to Allah and of gaining the Messenger's prayers and support. Yes, this spending is for them a means of nearness to Allah; when the time comes, Allah will envelop them in His mercy. For Allah is matchless in forgiveness and possesses infinite mercy.

¹⁰⁰Allah is well pleased with the first forerunners in faith and loyalty among the Emigrants (Muhajirun) and the Helpers (Ansar), and with the believers who followed in their footsteps on the path of goodness, and they are well pleased with Allah; and for them gardens have been prepared beneath which rivers flow, where they will remain forever. That is the great salvation.

¹⁰¹Among the Arabs around you there are two-faced hypocrites, who pretend to believe when they do not; and among the people of the city there are some who have gone to extremes in hypocrisy. You do not know them; We know them. We will make them suffer punishment upon punishment in this world, and in the Hereafter they will meet a terrible punishment.

¹⁰²And there is another group who have confessed their sins. They have mixed good deeds with bad. It may be that Allah will accept their repentance, for Allah is matchless in forgiveness and possesses infinite mercy.

¹⁰³Take from their wealth a portion as alms to purify them, and support them with your prayers! For your prayers and support are a source of inner peace for them. Allah hears all and knows all.

¹⁰⁴Do they not know that it is Allah, yes, He Himself, who accepts the repentance of His servants and takes and accepts their alms, and that Allah is ever accepting of repentance and merciful?

¹⁰⁵Say: —From now on, whatever you do, Allah will see and assess your deeds, and so will His Messenger and the believers. Then you will be brought before Him who knows everything hidden and open, and He will inform you, one by one, of what you did.

¹⁰⁶And there is yet another group whose case rests with Allah's decree: He will either punish them or accept their repentance, as He wills. For Allah knows all things and puts everything in its proper place.

¹⁰⁷And there are those who have built a mosque (or rather a building under that name) to harm the believers, to spread disbelief, to sow discord and strife among the believers, and to give aid and shelter to those who had earlier fought against Allah and His Messenger. They swear, "We only wanted to build it for a good purpose; we had no ill intent." Allah bears witness that they are most certainly liars.

¹⁰⁸Never be with them there! The mosque that was founded from the very first on tawhid and reverence for Allah is more fitting for you to be in. In it are people who love to be cleansed of sins, and Allah loves those who cleanse themselves.

¹⁰⁹Who is better: the one who lays the foundations of his building on reverence for Allah and the seeking of His good pleasure, or the one who builds on the edge of a cliff on the verge of collapse, and tumbles with it into the fire of Hell? Allah does not let such wrongdoers, who work against the believers, attain their aims.

¹¹⁰This building, which they have built on the doubt in their hearts, will stand only until their hearts are torn to pieces by anguish and distress. Allah knows all things and puts everything in its proper place.

¹¹¹Allah has bought from the believers who fight in His way, killing and being killed, their lives and their wealth in return for Paradise. This is a promise Allah has undertaken to fulfill, in the Torah, the Gospel, and the Quran. And who is truer to his word than Allah in fulfilling his pledge? So rejoice in this bargain you have made with Allah. That is the magnificent triumph.

¹¹²They are those who turn to Allah in repentance, who serve Him alone, who praise and glorify Him, who travel, who bow (ruku)/submit, who prostrate, who encourage good and prevent evil, and who guard the limits Allah has set. Give good news to these believers!

¹¹³It is not fitting for the Prophet or for those who believe to ask forgiveness for the polytheists, who associate partners with Allah, even if they are close relatives, once it has become clear that they are people of Hell.

¹¹⁴Abraham's asking forgiveness for his father was only because of a promise he had made to him earlier. But when it became quite clear to him that his father was an enemy of Allah, he distanced himself from him. Abraham was truly most sensitive of soul and tender-hearted.

¹¹⁵Nor will Allah, after showing a people His right path, count them as being in error before He has made clear to them what they must guard against. Allah knows all things.

¹¹⁶Sovereignty over the heavens and the earth surely belongs to Allah. It is He who gives life and He who causes death. You have no wali (protecting friend) or helper besides Allah.

¹¹⁷Allah has accepted the repentance of the Prophet, and likewise the repentance of the Emigrants and the Helpers who stood loyally by the Prophet at a moment, in the hardest hours of that campaign, when the hearts of a group among them were on the point of wavering. Then He turned to them with His mercy and forgiveness. For Allah is most kind and merciful toward them.

¹¹⁸And as for the three who stayed behind and did not take part in the fighting, their consciences so tormented them that the earth, for all its vastness, became too narrow for them, and they realized that there was no refuge from Allah except in Allah Himself. Then, because they turned to Allah in repentance, Allah accepted their repentance. Surely Allah, yes, He is the One who accepts repentance and is merciful.

¹¹⁹O you who believe! Guard yourselves against defying Allah's commands, and be with those who are true in heart and word!

¹²⁰It is not fitting for the people of Medina, nor for the desert Arabs around them, to stay behind Allah's Messenger and to care more for their own lives than for his. For every thirst, weariness, and severe hunger they suffer in Allah's way, every move that enrages the disbelievers, and every victory won against the enemy will be recorded for them as a righteous deed. For Allah does not let the reward of those who do good go to waste.

¹²¹Likewise, whatever they spend in Allah's way, small or great, and the hardships they endure in crossing valleys and hills, are recorded for them, so that Allah may reward them according to the best of what they did.

¹²²It is not necessary for the believers to go out to fight all together. It is more proper that a group from every tribe should not join the fighting, so as to gain a deep understanding of the religion, in order to warn and instruct their people when they return to them. Perhaps they will then beware of violating the limits.

¹²³O you who believe! Fight the disbelievers who are near you (and who pose an open threat to you), so that they may realize how firm and resilient you are. Know well that Allah is with those who fulfill their responsibility.

¹²⁴Whenever a surah is sent down, some of them at once say: "Whose faith among you has this increased?" Yes, it increases the faith of those who believe, and they give one another the good news of it.

¹²⁵But as for those in whose hearts there is sickness, their filth has only increased. And they have died as disbelievers.

¹²⁶Do they not see that they are tested with hardships once or several times every year? Yet they neither repent and turn back nor take heed.

¹²⁷Whenever a surah is sent down, they look at one another, saying, "Is anyone watching you?", and slink away. Because they are a people unwilling to understand the truth, they have closed their hearts to Allah's commands.

¹²⁸Indeed, there has come to you from among yourselves a most honorable messenger. Any hardship you suffer weighs heavily upon him; he cares deeply for you, and toward the believers above all he is full of kindness and mercy.

¹²⁹If, in spite of this, they turn away, say: —Allah is enough for me. For there is no god but Him; I have relied and put my trust in Him, for He is the Lord of the exalted Throne/the Owner of the seat of absolute sovereignty.