"And among men there is one whose words, in this life, attract you; he even makes Allah his witness on what is there in his heart, while he is so stiff-necked when quarreling. And once he turns back, he runs about in the earth trying to spread disorder therein, and to destroy the tillage and the stock; and Allah does not like disorder. When it is said to him, "Fear Allah", he is over­come by the arrogance (he has) for sin. The hell is then enough for him, and it is, indeed an evil bed to rest. And among men there is one who sells his very self to seek the pleasure of Allah. And Allah is compassionate to His servants." (2:204-207)

In the previous verses, it was said that there are two kinds of those who make prayers. Some wish to have everything right here in this world, others pray for the good of both worlds, the mortal and the eternal. In the present verse, the same two kinds have been identified as those who are hypocritical and those who are sincere.

Verses 204-206 refer to a hypocrite, Akhnas ibn Shurayq known for his eloquence. He would come to the Holy Prophet Sallallahu 'Alayhi Wasallam: Peace be upon him. and try to impress him with his sworn allegiance to Islam, but no sooner did he walk out of his company than he would get busy with his anti-Muslim mischief-making. Any effort to make such a person fear Allah takes him to the other extreme when he pleases his pride through sin. So, 'the Hell is enough for him.'

Commentary

The last verse (207) portrays the true, the sincere Muslim who would stake his very life to achieve the good pleasure of Allah Almighty. This verse has been revealed to honour the sincere Companions who offered unmatched sacrifices in the way of Allah. It has been reported by Hakim, Ibn Jarir and Ibn Abi Hatim, with sound authorities, that this verse was revealed in connection with a particular event relating to the blessed Companion Suhayb al-Rumi. It has been reported that soon after he left Makkah on his emigration route to Madinah, he was accosted on his way by a group of disbelievers of the Quraysh. Seeing this, Companion Suhayb dismounted, took position, pulled out all the arrows from his quiver and said to the group: 'O tribe of Quraysh, you all know that I am far better in archery than any of you here. My arrow never misses its target. Now, I swear by Allah that you shall not reach me until there remains even one arrow in my quiver. Then, after arrows, I shall use my sword as long as I can. Only after that you can do what you can. However, if you want to make a deal, I can tell you where my money is in Makkah. You go and take that and let me go my way.'

The confronting group of Quraysh agreed to do so. When Companion Suhayb reached Madinah, safe and unharmed, he went to the Holy Prophet Sallallahu 'Alayhi Wasallam: Peace be upon him, and told him everything about the incident. Upon this, he said twice: "Profitable was your deal Abu Yahya, profitable was your deal Abu Yahya!"

The revelation of the verse under reference in connection with this particular event confirms the blessed comment made by the Holy Prophet Sallallahu 'Alayhi Wasallam: Peace be upon him.

However, some commentators cite similar events relating to other noble Companions as the background of the verse's revelation (Mazhari).

» Posted by Seifeddine-M on 5th July 2011

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