An-Nisa · Madani · ayah 83 of 176

An-Nisa 4:83

وَإِذَا جَآءَهُمْ أَمْرٌ مِّنَ ٱلْأَمْنِ أَوِ ٱلْخَوْفِ أَذَاعُوا۟ بِهِۦ ۖ وَلَوْ رَدُّوهُ إِلَى ٱلرَّسُولِ وَإِلَىٰٓ أُو۟لِى ٱلْأَمْرِ مِنْهُمْ لَعَلِمَهُ ٱلَّذِينَ يَسْتَنۢبِطُونَهُۥ مِنْهُمْ ۗ وَلَوْلَا فَضْلُ ٱللَّهِ عَلَيْكُمْ وَرَحْمَتُهُۥ لَٱتَّبَعْتُمُ ٱلشَّيْطَـٰنَ إِلَّا قَلِيلًا

“And when there comes to them something [i.e., information] about [public] security or fear, they spread it around. But if they had referred it back to the Messenger or to those of authority among them, then the ones who [can] draw correct conclusions from it would have known about it. And if not for the favor of Allāh upon you and His mercy, you would have followed Satan, except for a few.”

Saheeh International

Essence

News of hope or of fear should travel first to those who can draw out its truth, and only then to the crowd.

A reflection

The man who went and asked

Picture the mosque in Madinah on an ordinary morning. Men sit in small groups, tapping the ground with pebbles, the way people fidget when news is heavy. The word passing between them is that the Messenger of Allah ﷺ has divorced his wives.

ʿUmar ibn al-Khattab hears it. He could have joined the circle and added a detail. He could have carried it home before supper. Instead, as Sahih Muslim records, he says he will find out that very day.

He goes to the Prophet ﷺ himself, waits for permission to enter, and asks plainly: have you divorced them? The answer is no. Then ʿUmar does something just as important. He stands at the door of the mosque and calls out at the top of his voice. The Messenger ﷺ has not divorced his wives.

The same report says this ayah came down about that day. ʿUmar added a line about himself: he was the one who drew that matter out. He used the ayah's own verb.

Look at the two halves of what he did. First he refused to pass the story on. Then, once he knew, he refused to keep the truth to himself. The ayah is not a command to be silent. It is a command about order: first draw out the truth, then let it be heard.

Most of us know the circle with the pebbles. It might be a staff kitchen after a manager's door has stayed shut all morning. It might be a cousins' chat after an uncle is seen leaving a solicitor's office. Everyone has a version, and nobody has asked.

ʿUmar's habit is almost embarrassingly simple. Go to the one person who actually knows. Ask a plain question. Then correct the story as loudly as it was spread.

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.