whereupon Shahrayaraz said, “My brother and I were the ones who devastated your cities through our stratagem and courage. Kisra envied us and wanted me to kill my brother, but I refused. He then ordered my brother to kill me. So we have both deposed him, and we shall fight him alongside you.”
Caesar said, “You are right.” Then one of them signalled to the other that a secret is confined to two people, but once it passes beyond two, it becomes divulged. So they killed the interpreter together with their knives. At that point, the Romans gained the upper hand over the Persians, pursued them, and slaughtered them. Kisra died, and the news reached the Messenger of Allah, may Allah bless him and grant him peace, on the day of al-Hudaybiyyah; he and those with him rejoiced (1).
This is the meaning of His words, exalted is He: “Alif-Lam-Mim. The Romans have been defeated in the nearest land”—that is, in the part of Syria nearest to the land of Persia. Ikrimah said, “It was Adhru'at and Kaskar.” Mujahid said, “The land of al-Jazirah.” Muqatil said, “Jordan and Palestine.” “Yet after their defeat, they shall be victorious”: that is, after the Persians had defeated them—the Romans. Both ghalab and ghalabah mean “victory.” “They shall defeat” Persia.
“Within a few years. The command belongs to Allah, before and after. On that day the believers will rejoice (4) in Allah’s help. He helps whomsoever He wills, and He is the Almighty, the Most Merciful (5).”
“Within a few years”: biḍʿ denotes between three and seven years; [it is also said: between three and nine] (2). It is also said to mean fewer than ten years. Abd Allah ibn Umar, Abu Sa'id al-Khudri, al-Hasan, and Isa ibn Umar recited it as “ghalabat,” with the ghayn and lam carrying fatḥah, and “sayughlabun,” with ḍammah on the ya’ and fatḥah on the lam. They said that it was revealed when the Prophet, may Allah bless him and grant him peace, informed of the Romans’ defeat of Persia. The meaning of the verse, according to this recitation, is: “Alif-Lam-Mim. The Romans defeated Persia in the nearest land to you; and after defeating them, the Muslims shall defeat them within a few years.” At the end of this period, the Muslims began their jihad against the Romans (3).
The first interpretation is sounder, and it is the view of most Quran commentators. “The command belongs to Allah, before and after”: that is, before the Romans’ ascendancy over Persia and after it. Whichever of the two sides gains victory, it is by Allah’s command ⦗70a⦘ or His decree and predestination. “On that day the believers will rejoice” “in Allah’s help”—that is, His granting victory to the Romans over Persia. Al-Suddi said: The Prophet, may Allah bless him and grant him peace, and the believers rejoiced at their victory over