“Thus Allah sets forth their respective examples for mankind,” for He has made clear to them the people of good and the people of evil, describing each group by qualities through which they may be recognized and distinguished, “so that whoever perishes may perish upon clear proof, and whoever lives may live upon clear proof.”
⦗785⦘
﴿4-6﴾ “When you meet those who disbelieve in battle, strike their necks until you have thoroughly subdued them, then bind the captives firmly. Thereafter, either release them graciously or for ransom, until the war lays down its burdens. So shall it be. Had Allah willed, He could have exacted retribution from them Himself, but He intends to test some of you through others. As for those who are killed in the way of Allah, He will never let their deeds go to waste. He will guide them, set their condition aright, and admit them into Paradise, which He has made known to them.”
Allah—directing His servants to what will set their affairs aright and grant them victory over their enemies—says: “When you meet those who disbelieve” in war and battle, fight them resolutely and strike their necks until you have thoroughly subdued them, broken their strength, and put an end to their aggression. Once you have done so, and you deem taking prisoners preferable and more beneficial, “bind the captives firmly”; that is, secure their bonds. This is a precaution to keep them from escaping. Once they are firmly bound, the Muslims are safe from their escape and their harm.
When they are in your custody, you may choose either to show them grace and release them without payment or ransom, or to ransom them by withholding their release until they buy their own freedom, their people purchase their freedom with money, or they are exchanged for a Muslim prisoner in their hands.
This command remains in force “until the war lays down its burdens”; that is, until war has ceased and you remain in a state of peace and truce. Every situation calls for an appropriate response, and every circumstance has its own ruling. The situation described above applies only when fighting and war are taking place. If, at certain times and for whatever reason, there is no war, then there is neither killing nor taking of prisoners.
“So shall it be”: this is the aforementioned ruling concerning Allah’s testing the believers through the disbelievers, alternating the fortunes of victory between them, and granting each side victory over the other. “Had Allah willed, He could have exacted retribution from them Himself.” He has power over all things and could ensure that the disbelievers never prevailed anywhere, until the Muslims eradicated them completely.
“But He intends to test some of you through others,” so that jihad may be waged, the true condition of His servants may become evident, and the truthful may be distinguished from the liar. Thus, whoever believes may do so with sound faith and clear insight, rather than with faith founded upon merely following those who hold the upper hand. Such faith is extremely weak and scarcely endures when its possessor faces trials and tribulations.
“As for those who are killed in the way of Allah,” theirs is an abundant reward and a gracious recompense. They are those who fought the people whom they were commanded to fight so that the word of Allah would be supreme.
Allah will never let the deeds of such people go to waste; that is, He will neither nullify nor invalidate them. Rather, He will accept them, multiply them for their sake, and bring their fruits to light in this world and the Hereafter.
“He will guide them” to follow the path leading to Paradise, “and set their condition aright”; that is, their state and all their affairs. Their reward will be perfect and wholesome, entirely free from hardship or anything that might diminish its enjoyment.
“And admit them into Paradise, which He has made known to them.” That is, He first made it known to them by awakening their longing for it, describing it to them, and informing them of the deeds that lead to it—including being killed in His way. He enabled them to fulfill what He commanded and encouraged them to pursue. Then, when they enter Paradise, He will show them their dwellings and all that it contains of everlasting bliss and a life free of every affliction.