Sūrat al-Ḥajj
Section 18 of 18 · Surah Studies · Mufti Abdul Rahman Mangera
What a Patron, What a Helper
Finally, Allah (swt) sets out a number of further proofs of His qudrah — His ability, His awesome power — and rejects many of their idols and their other objects of worship. He urges ṣalāh once more, and zakāh, and with that He brings the sūrah to its close.
Few other verses remain to be singled out; the substance of the sūrah has been covered. There remains only the last verse, with which He ends it:
وَجَـٰهِدُوا۟ فِى ٱللَّهِ حَقَّ جِهَادِهِۦ ۚ هُوَ ٱجْتَبَىٰكُمْ وَمَا جَعَلَ عَلَيْكُمْ فِى ٱلدِّينِ مِنْ حَرَجٍ ۚ مِّلَّةَ أَبِيكُمْ إِبْرَٰهِيمَ ۚ هُوَ سَمَّىٰكُمُ ٱلْمُسْلِمِينَ مِن قَبْلُ وَفِى هَـٰذَا لِيَكُونَ ٱلرَّسُولُ شَهِيدًا عَلَيْكُمْ وَتَكُونُوا۟ شُهَدَآءَ عَلَى ٱلنَّاسِ ۚ فَأَقِيمُوا۟ ٱلصَّلَوٰةَ وَءَاتُوا۟ ٱلزَّكَوٰةَ وَٱعْتَصِمُوا۟ بِٱللَّهِ هُوَ مَوْلَىٰكُمْ ۖ فَنِعْمَ ٱلْمَوْلَىٰ وَنِعْمَ ٱلنَّصِيرُ
“Struggle for (seeking the pleasure of) Allah, a struggle that is owed to Him. He has chosen you and did not impose any hardship on you in the religion, the faith of your father Ibrāhīm. He (Allah) named you as Muslims earlier and also in this (Qur’ān), so that the Messenger becomes a witness to you, and you become witnesses to (other) people. So establish Salāh, pay Zakāh and hold fast to Allah. He is your patron. So, how excellent He is as a patron, and how excellent as a supporter!” (22:78)
Fa-aqīmū al-ṣalāta wa-ātū al-zakāta wa-ʿtaṣimū bi-llāh: establish the prayer, give zakāh, and hold fast to Allah. Huwa mawlākum: He is your patron, the One who can accomplish whatever you need. Fa-niʿma al-mawlā wa-niʿma al-naṣīr.
This is the sister formula to ḥasbunā Allāhu wa-niʿma al-wakīl, and here it stands on its own: niʿma al-mawlā — what a wonderful patron He is — wa-niʿma al-naṣīr — and what a wonderful helper is He. Such is Allah (swt). May Allah be our helper. With this the seventeenth juzʾ is complete, al-ḥamdu li-llāh. May Allah (swt) accept it from us.