{"id":2217,"date":"2016-08-21T17:46:16","date_gmt":"2016-08-21T17:46:16","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/nogodbutallah.org\/?page_id=2217"},"modified":"2017-11-02T16:12:58","modified_gmt":"2017-11-02T16:12:58","slug":"109-verses-of-quran-about-war","status":"publish","type":"page","link":"https:\/\/nogodbutallah.org\/?page_id=2217","title":{"rendered":"Qur’an-109 Verses of Qur’an about war"},"content":{"rendered":"

In the name of All\u0101h,<\/span>
\n the Beneficent, the Merciful.<\/span>
\n Peace and Blessings of All\u0101h on Mohammad.<\/span>
\n DEDICATED TO<\/span>
\n All\u0101h\u2013the Glorious and the High,<\/span>
\n Lord of the worlds<\/span>
\n AND TO<\/span>
\n Mohammad\u2013who brought the world<\/span>
\n to our feet and eternity to our arms<\/span>
\n*<\/span><\/p>\n

\u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0109 VERSES OF THE QUR\u2019AN ABOUT WAR<\/span>
\n(See also Atheist-Muslim debate, Is Islam peaceful<\/a><\/span>)
\nOne party on the Internet<\/em> notes:<\/p>\n

    \n
  1. That \u201cat least 109 verses of the Qur\u2019an call Muslims to war with nonbelievers for the sake of Islamic rule.\u201d<\/span><\/li>\n<\/ol>\n

    ANSWER:<\/span>
    \nIs that all? Only 109 verses?
    \nHow many verses of the Bible are about war? With some exaggeration, the Old Testament is more about war, sex and intrigue than about the glory of God. And the New Testament, as Matthew, Mark, Luke and John penned, is mainly about miracles (which cannot now be substantiated \u2013see<\/span>     Christianity-a make-believe religion<\/span><\/a>),\u00a0fire and brimstone to the Jews and the people of Capernaum, Chorazin and Bethsaida;\u00a0<\/span>absurd doctrines<\/span><\/a>,\u00a0 and a legacy of fire, sword, division and hate to mankind to the Resurrection (see Jesus and Mohammad-cures & war<\/span><\/a>).<\/p>\n

    To restate: That \u201cat least 109 verses of the Qur\u2019an call Muslims to war with nonbelievers for the sake of Islamic rule.\u201d<\/span>
    \nThough Islam does not call on Muslims to war with nonbelievers for the sake of “Islamic rule.\u201d
    \nConsidering that from day one of his 22-year mission Mohammad was stoked into war, and had to undertake 65 campaigns as the atheist starkly noted, and considering that the Qur\u2019an contains some 6,666 verses, then it is a tremendous blessing and mercy from Allah that only 109 verses (a mere 1.7%) of the Qur\u2019an and not the entire Qur\u2019an is about war. It is hardly credible that a general at war would instruct his soldiers on the future of pork bellies and soya beans than on the art of vanquishing the opponent.<\/p>\n

    Incidentally, Huston Smith points out in his book The Illustrated World\u2019s Religions: \u201cAllah\u2019s compassion and mercy are cited 192 times in the Koran as against 17 references to his wrath and vengeance\u201d (p. 157).<\/span>
    \nAnd whereas punishment is equal to the crime, the reward for doing good is manifold:
    \n\u201cWhoever brings a good deed will have tenfold like it, and whoever brings an evil deed, will be recompensed only with the like of it, and they shall not be wronged\u201d\u2013(Qur\u2019an 6:161);
    \n\u201cIf anyone of you improves his Islamic religion then his good deeds will be rewarded ten times to seven hundred times for each good deed and a bad deed will be recorded as it is\u201d\u2013(Bokhari, Vol. 1, chapter 32 and #40).<\/p>\n

    The Qur\u2019an does NOT \u201ccall Muslims to war with nonbelievers for the sake of “Islamic rule.\u201d
    \nThe Qur\u2019an calls on Muslims to fight persecution and occupation \u2013to drive out those who drove you out of your land.<\/span>
    \n\u201cPermission (to fight) is given to those on whom war is made, because they are oppressed\u2026.Those who are driven from their homes without a just cause except that they say: Our Lord is Allah\u201d\u2013Qur\u2019an 22:39). This shows that Muslims were victims of persecution and war was first made on them.<\/span><\/p>\n

    Regarding Qur’an 2:190-193:
    \n2:190:<\/span> \u201cAnd fight in the way of Allah against those who fight against you<\/span> but be not aggressive.<\/span> Surely Allah loves not the aggressors.
    \n2:191:<\/span> \u201cAnd kill them wherever you find them, and drive them out from where they drove you out, and persecution is worse than slaughter.<\/span> And fight not with them at the Sacred Mosque until they fight with you<\/span> in it; so if they fight you (in it), slay them. Such is the recompense of the disbelievers.
    \n2:192:<\/span> But if they desist,<\/span> then surely Allah is Forgiving, Merciful.
    \n2:193:<\/span> And fight them until there is no persecution,<\/span> and religion is only for Allah. But if they desist, then there should be no hostility except against the oppressors.\u201d<\/span><\/p>\n

    2:190<\/span> clearly shows that Muslims were allowed to fight only a defensive war against those who first took up arms against Muslims. This is made even clearer in Qur\u2019an 22:39 which states: \u201cPermission (to fight) is given to those on whom war is made because they are oppressed.\u201d
    \n<\/span>2:191<\/span> refers only to those who fight Muslims; not to all disbelievers everywhere.
    \n2:192<\/span> makes it even clearer that not all disbelievers everywhere are to be killed, and for fighting to be stopped if the disbelievers cease fighting, as shown in the words \u201cBut if they desist,<\/span> then surely Allah is Forgiving, Merciful\u201d to them.
    \n2:193<\/span> makes the matter clearer yet that only oppressors are to be fought against as shown in the words \u201cBut if they desist, then there should be no hostility except against the oppressors.\u201d
    \n<\/span>Again, 2:193 states: \u201cAnd fight them until there is no persecution, and religion is only for Allah.<\/span> But if they desist, then there should be no hostility except against the oppressors.\u201d
    \nThis is proof enough that the Qur\u2019an does not \u201ccall Muslims to war with nonbelievers for the sake of Islamic rule.\u201d<\/span><\/p>\n

      \n
    1. \u201cUnlike nearly all of the Old Testament verses of violence, the verses of violence in the Quran are mostly open-ended, meaning that they are not restrained by the historical context of the surrounding text. They are part of the eternal, unchanging word of Allah.\u201d<\/span><\/li>\n<\/ol>\n

      Qur’an is \u201copen-ended\u201d.\u00a0<\/span>Absolutely!<\/span>
      \nUnlike the Bible \u2013Old and New Testaments\u2013<\/span> and all other Scriptures, which were restricted to their respective people and for a limited time, until the advent of (the\u00a0      Comforter<\/a><\/span>)\u00a0 Mohammad, the Qur\u2019an is for all people to the Resurrection. Whenever the situation arises the verses become applicable.<\/p>\n

        \n
      1. \u201cUnfortunately, there are very few verses of tolerance and peace to abrogate or even balance out the many that call for nonbelievers to be fought and subdued until they either accept humiliation, convert to Islam, or are killed. Muhammad’s own martial legacy – and that of his companions – along with the remarkable stress on violence found in the Quran have produced a trail of blood and tears across world history.\u201d<\/span><\/li>\n<\/ol>\n

        ANSWER:
        \n<\/span>That \u201cthere are very few verses of tolerance and peace to abrogate or even balance out the many that call for nonbelievers to be fought and subdued until they either accept humiliation, convert to Islam, or are killed.\u201d
        \nAs shown above Muslims fighting is restricted to a defensive fighting to end persecution and to reclaim their property\/land.
        \nApart from Qur\u2019an 2:190-193 quoted above, the other Qur\u2019anic verses critics quote to substantiate their charge that Islam calls for the subjugation and conversion are Qur\u2019an 9:5 and 9:29.<\/p>\n

        Qur\u2019an 9:5 states: “So when the sacred months have passed, slay the idolaters, wherever\u00a0you find them, and take them captive\u00a0and besiege them and lie in wait for\u00a0them in every ambush. But if they\u00a0repent and keep up prayer and pay the\u00a0poor-rate, leave their way free. Surely All\u00e5h is Forgiving, Merciful.”
        \nMuslims were fully justified to\u00a0pursue, besiege etc; and slay the enemies wherever they were found. You do not allow enemies bent on annihilating you the opportunity to regroup and even fortify their efforts against you. Not even modern nations allow this. (Not even transgressors and occupiers allow this).
        \n<\/span>In completely routing the enemies\u00a0Muslims had, in the words of Muhammad Ali, “the sanction of civilized\u00a0warfare, ancient as well as modern.\u201d<\/p>\n

        However, \u201cSlay the idolaters wherever you find them,\u201d does not refer to all idolaters. Muhammad Ali explains:
        \n\u201cThe clear exception of the last verse (9:4) \u2013(which states: \u201cExcept those of the idolaters with whom you made an agreement, then they have not failed you in anything and have not backed up anyone against you; so fulfil their agreement to the end of their term. Surely Allah loves those who keep their duty\u201d)<\/span>\u2013 shows that by the idolaters here are meant, not all idolaters or polytheists wherever they may be found in the world, not even all idolaters of Arabia, but only those idolatrous tribes of Arabia assembled at the pilgrimage who had at first made agreements with the Muslims and then violated them.<\/p>\n

        The exception here has given rise to much misconception. It is thought that it offers to the disbelievers the alternative of the sword or the Qur\u2019an. Nothing is farther from the truth. The injunction contained in the first part of the verse establishes the fact that the whole verse relates to certain idolatrous Arab tribes who had broken their engagements with the Muslims, and who had now been apprised of a similar repudiation by the Muslims. The order to kill them and to make them prisoners and to besiege them and ambush them amounts clearly to an order to fight against them, as it is in war only that all these things are made lawful. They had so often broken their word that they could no more be trusted.\u2026.The subject is further clarified in the next verse and the following section.\u201d\u00a0(And the next verse says: \u201cAnd if anyone of the idolaters seek thy protection, protect him till he hears the word of Allah, then convey him to his place of safety. This is because they are a people who know not\u201d (9:6).<\/span><\/p>\n

        \u201cThis verse leaves no doubt that the Prophet was never ordered to kill anyone on account of his religion. \u201cYou shall give him a safe conduct that he may return home again securely in case he shall not think fit to embrace Muhammadanism\u201d (Sale).\u201d (Comm.1033-1035).<\/span><\/p>\n

        As noted further on the Prophet’s duty was only to deliver the message of the Qur’an not to enforce it.<\/p>\n

        Regarding Qur’an 9:29:\u00a0“Fight those who believe not in All\u00e5h, nor in the Last Day, nor forbid\u00a0that which All\u00e5h and His Messenger\u00a0have forbidden, nor follow the\u00a0Religion of Truth, out of those who\u00a0have been given the Book, until they pay the tax in acknowledgement of superiority and they are in a state of subjection.”
        \nMuhammad Ali explains:<\/p>\n

        \u201cThe last word on the wars with the idolaters of Arabia having been said, this verse introduces the subject of fighting with the followers of the Book. Though the Jews had for a long time assisted the idolatrous Arabians in their struggle to uproot Islam, the great Christian power, the Roman Empire, had only just mobilized its forces for the subjection of the new religion, and the Tabuk expedition followed, which constitutes the subject-matter of a large portion of what follows in this chapter. As the object of this Christian power was simply the subjection of the Muslims, the words in which their final vanquishment by the Muslims is spoken of are different from those dealing with the final vanquishment of the idolatrous Arabians. The Qur\u2019an neither required that the idolaters should be compelled to accept Islam, nor was it in any way its object to bring the Christians into subjection. On the other hand, the idolaters wanted to suppress Islam by the sword, and the Christians first moved themselves to bring Muslim Arabia under subjection. The fate of each was, therefore, according to what it intended for the Muslims. The word\u00a0jizyah\u00a0is derived from\u00a0 jaza, meaning\u00a0 he gave satisfaction, and means, according to LL,\u00a0 the tax that is taken from the free non-Muslim subjects of the Muslim Government whereby they ratify the compact that ensures them protection; or, according to AH,\u00a0because it is a compensation for the protection which is guaranteed them, the non-Muslim subjects being free from military service.<\/p>\n

        The phrase\u00a0\u2018an yad-in\u00a0has been explained variously. The word\u00a0yad\u00a0(lit.,\u00a0hand) stands for\u00a0power\u00a0or\u00a0superiority, the use of the\u00a0hand\u00a0being the real source of the superiority of man over all other animals, and the apparent meaning of the phrase is\u00a0in acknowledgement of your superiority in protecting their lives, etc.\u00a0(AH). It may also be added that the permission to fight, as given to the Muslims, is subject to the condition that the enemy should first take up the sword,\u00a0Fight in the way of Allah against those who fight against you\u00a0(2:190). The Holy Prophet never overstepped this limit, nor did his followers. He fought against the Arabs when they took up the sword to destroy the Muslims, and he led an expedition against the Christians when the Roman Empire first mobilized its forces with the object of subjugating the Muslims. And so scrupulous was he that, when he found that the enemy had not yet taken the initiative, he did not attack the Roman Empire, but returned without fighting. Later on, however, the Roman Empire, like the Persians, helped the enemies of Islam and fomented trouble against the newly established Muslim Kingdom, as a result of which both these empires came into conflict with the Muslims and, notwithstanding the fact that both the Persians and the Romans were very powerful nations with unlimited resources and strong military organizations, and that they both tried at one and the same time to subjugate Islam, the result was what is predicted here in clear words \u2014 they were both reduced to a state of subjection by an insignificant nation like the Arabs.\u201d
        \nHad the enemies not militated to annihilate Muslims they would not have been \u201creduced to a state of subjection.\u201d<\/span><\/p>\n

        Whereas striving with the \u201csword\u201d is necessary to overcome aggression, occupation and oppression, striving with the Qur\u2019an is known as the \u201cgreat\u201d Jihad \u2013Jihad kabiran, (Qur\u2019an 25:52).
        \nThat the Prophet\u2019s duty was only to deliver the Message of the Qur\u2019an and NOT enforce it is cemented in the following \u00a0verses from All\u0101h:<\/p>\n