their sites into mosques where Allah’s name is frequently remembered, that would be a benefit and a reform.

This verse was cited in the context of granting the Muslims permission to wage jihad, in His—exalted is He—saying:
“Permission [to fight] has been given to those who are being fought, because they have been wronged; and indeed Allah is able to grant them victory” (al-Hajj 39).

This is the first verse revealed concerning jihad, and for that reason He went on to say,
“those who were driven from their homes without right, only because they said, ‘Our Lord is Allah’” (al-Hajj 40),
then continued,
“Were it not that Allah repels some people by means of others…” (al-Hajj 40).

Thus Allah repels the unbelievers by means of the believers, and He repels the worse of the two factions by means of the better of the two—just as He repelled the Magians by means of the Romans, the Christians, and later repelled the Christians by means of the believers, the community of Muhammad—may Allah bless him and grant him peace.

This is exactly as He—exalted is He—states in Surat al-Baqarah:
“David killed Goliath, and Allah gave him sovereignty and wisdom and taught him of what He willed. Were it not that Allah repels people, some by means of others, the earth would surely be corrupted; but Allah is gracious to all creation” (al-Baqarah 251).

As for the sequence of wording, it is sometimes arranged so as to move from the lesser to the greater, as in His—exalted is He—saying:
“Say, ‘My Lord has only forbidden indecencies, open and hidden, sin, wrongful oppression without right, that you associate with Allah that for which He has sent down no authority, and that you say about Allah what you do not know’” (al-Aʿrāf 33).