The Madinan Period, Part 8: The Jewish Tribes of Madīnah
Section 4 of 13 · The Life of the Prophet Muhammad: The Madinan Period
Why Would You Disbelieve, While the Verses of Allah Are Recited to You
Allah (swt) says:
قُلْ يَـٰٓأَهْلَ ٱلْكِتَـٰبِ لِمَ تَكْفُرُونَ بِـَٔايَـٰتِ ٱللَّهِ وَٱللَّهُ شَهِيدٌ عَلَىٰ مَا تَعْمَلُونَ قُلْ يَـٰٓأَهْلَ ٱلْكِتَـٰبِ لِمَ تَصُدُّونَ عَن سَبِيلِ ٱللَّهِ مَنْ ءَامَنَ تَبْغُونَهَا عِوَجًا وَأَنتُمْ شُهَدَآءُ ۗ وَمَا ٱللَّهُ بِغَـٰفِلٍ عَمَّا تَعْمَلُونَ
“Say, “O people of the Book, why do you reject the verses of Allah while Allah is witness to what you do?” Say, “O people of the Book, why do you hinder the believers from the way of Allah, trying to create crookedness in it, while you yourselves are witnesses (to its being the right way)? Allah is not oblivious of what you do.”” (3:98–99)
And, concerning what Shās ibn Qays had tried to do, Allah (swt) says:
يَـٰٓأَيُّهَا ٱلَّذِينَ ءَامَنُوٓا۟ إِن تُطِيعُوا۟ فَرِيقًا مِّنَ ٱلَّذِينَ أُوتُوا۟ ٱلْكِتَـٰبَ يَرُدُّوكُم بَعْدَ إِيمَـٰنِكُمْ كَـٰفِرِينَ وَكَيْفَ تَكْفُرُونَ وَأَنتُمْ تُتْلَىٰ عَلَيْكُمْ ءَايَـٰتُ ٱللَّهِ وَفِيكُمْ رَسُولُهُۥ ۗ وَمَن يَعْتَصِم بِٱللَّهِ فَقَدْ هُدِىَ إِلَىٰ صِرَٰطٍ مُّسْتَقِيمٍ يَـٰٓأَيُّهَا ٱلَّذِينَ ءَامَنُوا۟ ٱتَّقُوا۟ ٱللَّهَ حَقَّ تُقَاتِهِۦ وَلَا تَمُوتُنَّ إِلَّا وَأَنتُم مُّسْلِمُونَ وَٱعْتَصِمُوا۟ بِحَبْلِ ٱللَّهِ جَمِيعًا وَلَا تَفَرَّقُوا۟ ۚ وَٱذْكُرُوا۟ نِعْمَتَ ٱللَّهِ عَلَيْكُمْ إِذْ كُنتُمْ أَعْدَآءً فَأَلَّفَ بَيْنَ قُلُوبِكُمْ فَأَصْبَحْتُم بِنِعْمَتِهِۦٓ إِخْوَٰنًا وَكُنتُمْ عَلَىٰ شَفَا حُفْرَةٍ مِّنَ ٱلنَّارِ فَأَنقَذَكُم مِّنْهَا ۗ كَذَٰلِكَ يُبَيِّنُ ٱللَّهُ لَكُمْ ءَايَـٰتِهِۦ لَعَلَّكُمْ تَهْتَدُونَ وَلْتَكُن مِّنكُمْ أُمَّةٌ يَدْعُونَ إِلَى ٱلْخَيْرِ وَيَأْمُرُونَ بِٱلْمَعْرُوفِ وَيَنْهَوْنَ عَنِ ٱلْمُنكَرِ ۚ وَأُو۟لَـٰٓئِكَ هُمُ ٱلْمُفْلِحُونَ وَلَا تَكُونُوا۟ كَٱلَّذِينَ تَفَرَّقُوا۟ وَٱخْتَلَفُوا۟ مِنۢ بَعْدِ مَا جَآءَهُمُ ٱلْبَيِّنَـٰتُ ۚ وَأُو۟لَـٰٓئِكَ لَهُمْ عَذَابٌ عَظِيمٌ
“O you who believe, if you obey a group from those who have been given the Book (i.e. the Christians and the Jews), they will turn you into infidels after you have embraced the faith. How could you disbelieve while you are the ones to whom the verses of Allah are recited, and present amidst you is His Messenger? Whoever holds on to Allah, is surely led to the straight path. O you who believe, fear Allah, as He should be feared, and let not yourself die save as Muslims. Hold fast, all of you, to the cord of Allah, and be not divided. Remember the blessing of Allah upon you: When you were enemies to each other, and He brought your hearts together, so that, you became brothers through His blessing. You were at the brink of a pit of Fire, then He saved you from it. This is how Allah makes His signs clear to you, so that you may take the right path. There has to be a group of people from among you who call towards the good, and bid the Fair and forbid the Unfair. And it is these who are successful. Do not be like those who became divided and fell into disputes after the clear signs had come to them. Those are the ones for whom there is a grave punishment” (3:100–105)
So Allah is saying there is only one result of following the People of the Book, and that is that it will make one revert back to disbelief — this is a warning to the Muslims from following Ahl al-Kitāb, the People of the Book. And how do they disbelieve, following the People of the Book being a one-way road that ends in disbelief, while the verses of Allah are recited to them and His Messenger is among them? Whoever holds fast to Allah is guided to a straight path. The believers are commanded to fear Allah as He should be feared, and not to die except as Muslims, and to hold fast to the rope of Allah altogether and not become divided — because Shās ibn Qays wanted to cause division among them, and Allah (swt) is warning them here. They are told to remember the favour of Allah upon them, when they were enemies, and He brought their hearts together, and they became, by His favour, brothers, and they were on the edge of a pit of the Fire, and He saved them from it; thus does Allah make His verses clear to them, so that they may be guided. Let there be, from among them, a nation inviting to all that is good, enjoining what is right and forbidding what is wrong — these are the successful ones. And they are not to be like those who became divided and differed after the clear proofs had come to them, for those will have a great punishment.