The Madinan Period, Part 2: The Masjid, the Brotherhood and the Covenant
Section 18 of 23 · The Life of the Prophet Muhammad: The Madinan Period
Severing the Old Alliances
The situation in Madīnah was a complicated one: there were Arab pagan worshippers, and there were Arab Muslims, and then there were Jews. This multi-faith and multi-ethnic society was causing disputes, conflicts going on. As recounted earlier, there is the example of when the Messenger of Allah (peace be upon him) went to give naṣīḥah in a gathering of men in Madīnah, and ʿAbdullāh ibn Ubayy complained and said: don't come and bother us with your stories — war was almost going to break out. So the Messenger of Allah (peace be upon him) was now building a nation, an Ummah, based on īmān; therefore the former relationships needed to be dissolved. So the ayāt of the Qurʾān were being revealed to break down the former alliances.
يَـٰٓأَيُّهَا ٱلَّذِينَ ءَامَنُوا۟ لَا تَتَّخِذُوٓا۟ ءَابَآءَكُمْ وَإِخْوَٰنَكُمْ أَوْلِيَآءَ إِنِ ٱسْتَحَبُّوا۟ ٱلْكُفْرَ عَلَى ٱلْإِيمَـٰنِ ۚ وَمَن يَتَوَلَّهُم مِّنكُمْ فَأُو۟لَـٰٓئِكَ هُمُ ٱلظَّـٰلِمُونَ
“O you who believe, do not take your fathers and your brothers as your friends, if they prefer infidelity to Faith. Those of you who have friendship with them are the wrongdoers.” (9:23)
Allah (swt) is now telling the Muslims that the relationships of loyalty they have with their tribes need to be terminated if the tribes are not Muslim. And Allah (swt) says:
يَـٰٓأَيُّهَا ٱلَّذِينَ ءَامَنُوا۟ لَا تَتَّخِذُوا۟ عَدُوِّى وَعَدُوَّكُمْ أَوْلِيَآءَ تُلْقُونَ إِلَيْهِم بِٱلْمَوَدَّةِ وَقَدْ كَفَرُوا۟ بِمَا جَآءَكُم مِّنَ ٱلْحَقِّ يُخْرِجُونَ ٱلرَّسُولَ وَإِيَّاكُمْ ۙ أَن تُؤْمِنُوا۟ بِٱللَّهِ رَبِّكُمْ إِن كُنتُمْ خَرَجْتُمْ جِهَـٰدًا فِى سَبِيلِى وَٱبْتِغَآءَ مَرْضَاتِى ۚ تُسِرُّونَ إِلَيْهِم بِٱلْمَوَدَّةِ وَأَنَا۠ أَعْلَمُ بِمَآ أَخْفَيْتُمْ وَمَآ أَعْلَنتُمْ ۚ وَمَن يَفْعَلْهُ مِنكُمْ فَقَدْ ضَلَّ سَوَآءَ ٱلسَّبِيلِ
“O you who believe, do not take My enemies and your enemies for friends, expressing love with them, while they have rejected the Truth that has come to you, expelling the Messenger and your selves (from Makkah) merely because you have faith in Allah who is your Lord, if you have set out to do Jihād (struggle) in My way, and to seek My pleasure. You express love with them secretly, while I know what you have concealed and what you have revealed. Any of you who does this has missed the straight path.” (60:1)
إِن يَثْقَفُوكُمْ يَكُونُوا۟ لَكُمْ أَعْدَآءً وَيَبْسُطُوٓا۟ إِلَيْكُمْ أَيْدِيَهُمْ وَأَلْسِنَتَهُم بِٱلسُّوٓءِ وَوَدُّوا۟ لَوْ تَكْفُرُونَ
“Should they have access to you, they will become your enemies, and will stretch their hands and tongues towards you with evil; and they desire that you should reject the (true) faith.” (60:2)
لَن تَنفَعَكُمْ أَرْحَامُكُمْ وَلَآ أَوْلَـٰدُكُمْ ۚ يَوْمَ ٱلْقِيَـٰمَةِ يَفْصِلُ بَيْنَكُمْ ۚ وَٱللَّهُ بِمَا تَعْمَلُونَ بَصِيرٌ
“Neither your womb-relations nor your children will benefit you on the Day of Judgment. He will decide between you, and Allah is watchful of what you do.” (60:3)
Believers are told: do not take My enemies and your enemies as allies, extending to them affection, while they have disbelieved in what came to you of the truth, having driven out the Prophet and yourselves because you believe in Allah, your Lord — if you have come out for jihad in Allah's cause and seeking His approval, take them not as friends, confiding to them affection, but Allah is most knowing of what is concealed and what is declared, and whoever does it has certainly strayed from the soundness of the way. If they gain dominance, they would be enemies, extending their hands and their tongues with evil, wishing the believers would disbelieve; neither relatives nor children will benefit anyone on the Day of Resurrection, when Allah will judge between them. So now there are new rules: these former alliances, the loyalty once given to the tribe, need to end.