The Duʿāʾ Before the Victory

The Messenger of Allah (peace be upon him), after he did his best in terms of preparation, in terms of arranging the army, in terms of choosing the location, in terms of making shūrā — when he had exhausted all of the worldly means — what did he do next? The next thing he did was put his trust in Allah, Mighty and Majestic, and make duʿāʾ. This is what taqwā means: doing the best in terms of the worldly means, exhausting them to the limit, and then throwing the matter into the hands of Allah, Mighty and Majestic, leaving it to Him. So the Messenger of Allah (peace be upon him), after he did his best, went aside and raised his hand and started making duʿāʾ, and he was so involved in that duʿāʾ, and it took him so long, and he was saying: O Allah, I appeal to Your pact and to Your oath — if You wish it, You won't be worshipped ever again after this day; because if the Muslims are killed, who will worship You? And he went on and on making duʿāʾ to Allah, Mighty and Majestic, and Abū Bakr was feeling sorry for the Messenger of Allah (peace be upon him). He went to him and held him by the hand and said: that's enough, O Messenger of Allah — it's enough of asking your Lord. Ibn Kathīr explains why Abū Bakr said that: by saying these words, he was in effect asking, why are you so exhausting yourself? Allah has made you a promise of help. Abū Bakr, Allah bless him, was a tender-hearted man, with great empathy and compassion for the Messenger of Allah (peace be upon him).

Then the Messenger of Allah (peace be upon him) went outside of his shelter, walking vigorously, in his armour, speaking the verse: the force will be defeated, they will retreat; the Hour will come, and it will be most bitter. So Allah, Mighty and Majestic, had promised the Messenger of Allah (peace be upon him) victory after his long supplication. Allah, Mighty and Majestic, says in Sūrat al-Anfāl:

Remember when you asked help of your Lord, and He answered you: indeed, I will reinforce you with a thousand from the angels, following one another. So this was the response that came back to the Messenger of Allah (peace be upon him) after his duʿāʾ: I am sending you a thousand angels. Now, one angel would be enough — Jibrīl (peace be upon him) destroyed the people of Lūṭ with the tip of his wing, so one angel is enough. Why a thousand? The point here is to give comfort to the Messenger of Allah (peace be upon him); Allah, Mighty and Majestic, with kun fa-yakūn, can destroy the entire army — but here Allah, Mighty and Majestic, is giving tathbīt, giving comfort to the Muslims, and steadfastness. Allah, Mighty and Majestic, says:

And already had Allah given you victory at Badr while you were weak — meaning few in number — then fear Allah, perhaps you will be grateful.

Remember when you said to the believers: is it not sufficient for you that your Lord should reinforce you with three thousand angels sent down — previously it was said to be a thousand, so that was the minimum number Allah, Mighty and Majestic, could have sent them, but the number could be three thousand, or it could be more, like five thousand. And Allah says: yes, if you remain patient and conscious of Allah, and the enemy come upon you attacking in rage, your Lord will reinforce you with five thousand angels having marks of distinction. And Allah made it not except as a sign of good tidings for you, and to reassure your hearts thereby, and victory is not except from Allah — meaning, you don't really need the angels; this was a sign of good tidings for you and to reassure your hearts, and victory is not except from Allah, the Exalted, the Wise.