Al-Baqarah · Madani · ayah 216 of 286

Al-Baqarah 2:216

كُتِبَ عَلَيْكُمُ ٱلْقِتَالُ وَهُوَ كُرْهٌ لَّكُمْ ۖ وَعَسَىٰٓ أَن تَكْرَهُوا۟ شَيْـًٔا وَهُوَ خَيْرٌ لَّكُمْ ۖ وَعَسَىٰٓ أَن تُحِبُّوا۟ شَيْـًٔا وَهُوَ شَرٌّ لَّكُمْ ۗ وَٱللَّهُ يَعْلَمُ وَأَنتُمْ لَا تَعْلَمُونَ

“Battle has been enjoined upon you while it is hateful to you. But perhaps you hate a thing and it is good for you; and perhaps you love a thing and it is bad for you. And Allāh knows, while you know not.”

Saheeh International

Essence

Some duties are hard and the Quran says so; what you dislike may be good for you, for Allah knows and you do not.

A reflection

Ten metres of fog, and the whole ridge on a screen

A hiker is caught in thick fog on a ridge. She can see ten metres in front of her. On the radio, the mountain rescue team can see her position and the whole ridge on their screen. They tell her to turn left, though every instinct says right.

'Allah knows, and you do not know'. Four Arabic words close the ayah, and they place every human judgement in its true size. A classical commentator explains that He knows the outcomes of things better than you. He knows what is good for you in this world and the next, so respond to Him.

This is one of the Quran's most humbling sentences for the ego. We make our decisions on what we can see: the next metres, the next months, this year's feelings. We call it judgement. The ayah calls it partial sight. The One who sees the whole ridge is speaking.

That is not an insult to the intellect. It is a description of its range. The hiker's eyes worked perfectly. They simply could not see through fog.

Does Allah need us to admit the limits of our knowledge? No. He is free of all need (35:15). The admission is for us. It lets us stop pretending we can see the whole ridge, and start listening to the One who can.

The hiker turned left. Twenty metres to the right, the ground fell away into nothing.

The full entry has 6 more reflections, questions to sit with, and "Live it today" - with the words, the roots and the tafsir alongside. Free, no account, works offline.