An-Nisa · Madani · ayah 141 of 176

An-Nisa 4:141

ٱلَّذِينَ يَتَرَبَّصُونَ بِكُمْ فَإِن كَانَ لَكُمْ فَتْحٌ مِّنَ ٱللَّهِ قَالُوٓا۟ أَلَمْ نَكُن مَّعَكُمْ وَإِن كَانَ لِلْكَـٰفِرِينَ نَصِيبٌ قَالُوٓا۟ أَلَمْ نَسْتَحْوِذْ عَلَيْكُمْ وَنَمْنَعْكُم مِّنَ ٱلْمُؤْمِنِينَ ۚ فَٱللَّهُ يَحْكُمُ بَيْنَكُمْ يَوْمَ ٱلْقِيَـٰمَةِ ۗ وَلَن يَجْعَلَ ٱللَّهُ لِلْكَـٰفِرِينَ عَلَى ٱلْمُؤْمِنِينَ سَبِيلًا

“Those who wait [and watch] you. Then if you gain a victory from Allāh, they say, "Were we not with you?" But if the disbelievers have a success, they say [to them], "Did we not gain the advantage over you, but we protected you from the believers?" Allāh will judge between [all of] you on the Day of Resurrection, and never will Allāh give the disbelievers over the believers a way [to overcome them].[227]”

Saheeh International

Essence

The hypocrites wait to see who wins and claim a share from the winner; but Allah's verdict on the Day cannot be hedged.

A reflection

The verdict no one can hedge against

Fa-llāhu yaḥkumu baynakum yawma l-qiyāma: Allah will judge between you on the Day of Resurrection.

The root of yaḥkumu has a hard, practical first picture. The ḥakama was the part of a horse's bridle that ran round the jaw. It checked the horse from bolting. From the bridle came the judge, who reins in injustice, and wisdom, which reins in folly.

The hypocrites in this ayah are masters of the hedge. Whichever side wins, they have a sentence ready. Commentators note that in this world they were treated by their outward profession. Their reckoning was deferred, not cancelled. One warns them not to be deceived by that: on the Day, outward appearances will not help.

Picture a manager during a takeover battle. He keeps two emails in his drafts folder. One congratulates the board on fighting off the bid. The other warmly welcomes the new owners. Whichever way the vote goes, he will press send within the hour. He is quietly proud of his cleverness.

The clever ego believes every verdict can be anticipated and managed. This ayah humbles it. There is one Judge whose verdict cannot be drafted for in advance. He sees not just which email was sent, but why both were written. Before Him there is no second draft.

A sceptic may ask why Allah keeps final judgement to Himself. Is that not domineering? But consider who else could do it. Only One who knows every heart can judge between people fairly. He needs nothing from the verdict; He is the Free of need (35:15). Reserving judgement to Him is protection for every wronged person, and warning for every clever one.

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.