“Fight them: Allah will punish them at your hands, disgrace them, grant you victory over them, and heal the hearts of a believing people * and remove the rage from their hearts. Allah accepts the repentance of whomever He wills. Allah is All-Knowing, All-Wise.”

“Fight them: Allah will punish them at your hands” by their being killed, “disgrace them” when Allah grants you victory over them—for they are enemies whose disgrace is desired and eagerly sought—and “grant you victory over them.” This is a promise and glad tidings from Allah, which He has fulfilled.

“And heal the hearts of a believing people and remove * the rage from their hearts.” Their hearts harbor such resentment and rage against them that fighting and killing them will heal the grief and anguish within the believers’ hearts when they see these enemies waging war against Allah and His Messenger and striving to extinguish Allah’s light. It will also remove the rage from their hearts. This demonstrates Allah’s love for His believing servants and His care for their condition, such that He made healing what lies within their hearts and removing their rage among the objectives of the Sacred Law.

Then He said: “Allah accepts the repentance of whomever He wills” from among these combatants by enabling them to enter Islam, making it beautiful in their hearts, and making disbelief, wickedness, and disobedience hateful to them.

“Allah is All-Knowing, All-Wise”: He places all things in their proper places. He knows who is suited for faith and guides him, and who is not suited for it and leaves him in his error and transgression.