Tarikh (al-Tabari) 953
The Detachment of ʿAbd Allāh b. Jaḥsh ᴿᴬ (the Detachment of Nakhla)
[ نُكْرَانُ الرَّسُولِ ﷺ عَلَى ابْنِ جَحْشٍ قِتَالَهُ فِي الشَّهْرِ الْحَرَامِ ] ثُمَّ سَارَ عَبْدُ اللَّهِ بِالْعِيرِ وَالْأَسِيرَيْنِ إِلَى الْمَدِينَةِ، فَلَمَّا قَدِمَ عَلَى رَسُولِ اللَّهِ ﷺ قَالَ: «مَا أَمَرْتُكُمْ بِقِتَالٍ فِي الشَّهْرِ الْحَرَامِ». فَأَوْقَفَ الْعِيرَ وَالْأَسِيرَيْنِ وَأَبَى أَنْ يَأْخُذَ مِنْ ذَلِكَ شَيْئًا. وَيُقَالُ أَنَّ رَسُولَ اللَّهِ ﷺ أَوْقَفَ غَنَائِمَ أَهْلِ نَخْلَةَ حَتَّى رَجَعَ مِنْ بَدْرٍ فَقَسَّمَهَا مَعَ غَنَائِمِ أَهْلِ بَدْرٍ، وَأَعْطَى كُلَّ قَوْمٍ حَقَّهُمْ. فَلَمَّا قَالَ رَسُولُ اللَّهِ ﷺ ذَلِكَ سَقَطَ فِي أَيْدِي الْقَوْمِ وَظَنُّوا أَنَّهُمْ قَدْ هَلَكُوا وَعَنَّفَهُمْ إِخْوَانُهُمْ مِنَ الْمُسْلِمِينَ فِيمَا صَنَعُوا. وَقَالَتْ قُرَيْشٌ: «قَدِ اسْتَحَلَّ مُحَمَّدٌ وَأَصْحَابُهُ الشَّهْرَ الْحَرَامَ، وَسَفَكُوا فِيهِ الدِّمَاءَ، وَأَخَذُوا فِيهِ الْأَمْوَالَ، وَأَسَرُوا فِيهِ الرِّجَالَ». فَقَالَ: «مَنْ يَرِدُ عَلَيْهِمْ مِنَ الْمُسْلِمِينَ مِمَّنْ كَانَ بِمَكَّةَ، إِنَّمَا أَصَابُوا مَا أَصَابُوا فِي شَعْبَانَ» ؟ وَقَالَ يَهُودُ تَفَاءَلُ بِذَلِكَ عَلَى رَسُولِ اللَّهِ ﷺ: «عَمْرُو بْنُ الْحَضْرَمِيِّ قَتَلَهُ وَاقِدُ بْنُ عَبْدِ اللَّهِ: عَمْرٌو، عُمِرَتِ الْحَرْبُ، وَالْحَضْرَمِيُّ حَضَرَتِ الْحَرْبُ، وَوَاقِدُ بْنُ عَبْدِ اللَّهِ، وَقَدَتِ الْحَرْبُ». فَجَعَلَ اللَّهُ تَعَالَى ذَلِكَ عَلَيْهِمْ لَا لَهُمْ. [ نُزُولُ الْقُرْآنِ فِي فِعْلِ ابْنِ جَحْشٍ وَإِقْرَارُ الرَّسُولِ لَهُ ﷺ فِي فِعْلِهِ ] فَلَمَّا أَكْثَرَ النَّاسُ فِي ذَلِكَ أَنْزَلَ اللَّهُ تَعَالَى عَلَى رَسُولِهِ ﷺ: يَسْأَلُونَكَ عَنِ الشَّهْرِ الْحَرَامِ قِتَالٍ فِيهِ، قُلْ قِتَالٍ فِيهِ كَبِيرٌ وَصَدٌّ عَنِ سَبِيلِ اللَّهِ وَكُفْرٌ بِهِ وَالْمَسْجِدِ الْحَرَامِ وَإِخْرَاجُ أَهْلِهِ مِنْهُ أَكْبَرُ عِنْدَ اللَّهِ وَالْفِتْنَةُ أَكْبَرُ مِنَ الْقَتْلِ [الْبَقَرَةُ 217]. أَيْ إِنْ كُنْتُمْ قَتَلْتُمْ فِي الشَّهْرِ الْحَرَامِ فَقَدْ صَدُّوكُمْ عَنْ سَبِيلِ اللَّهِ مَعَ الْكُفْرِ بِهِ وَعَنِ الْمَسْجِدِ الْحَرَامِ وَإِخْرَاجِكُمْ مِنْهُ، وَأَنْتُمْ أَهْلُهُ أَكْبَرُ عِنْدَ اللَّهِ مِنْ قَتْلِ مَنْ قَتَلْتُمْ مِنْهُمْ. وَالْفِتْنَةُ أَكْبَرُ مِنَ الْقَتْلِ وَقَدْ كَانُوا يَفْتِنُونَ الْمُسْلِمَ فِي دِينِهِ حَتَّى يَرُدُّوهُ إِلَى الْكُفْرِ بَعْدَ إِيمَانِهِ؛ فَذَلِكَ أَكْبَرُ عِنْدَ اللَّهِ مِنَ الْقَتْلِ. فالْفِتْنَةِ الَّتِي حَصَلَتْ مِنْكُمْ بِهِ أَكْبَرُ عِنْدَ اللَّهِ مِنْ قِتَالِهِمْ فِي الشَّهْرِ الْحَرَامِ، وَأَكْثَرُ السَّلَفِ فَسَّرُوا الْفِتْنَةَ هَاهُنَا بِالشِّرْكِ كَقَوْلِهِ تَعَالَى: ( وَقَاتِلُوهُمْ حَتَّى لَا تَكُونَ فِتْنَةٌ ) [ الْبَقَرَةِ: 193 ]. وَيَدُلُّ عَلَيْهِ قَوْلُهُ: ( ثُمَّ لَمْ تَكُنْ فِتْنَتُهُمْ إِلَّا أَنْ قَالُوا وَاللَّهِ رَبِّنَا مَا كُنَّا مُشْرِكِينَ ) [ الْأَنْعَامِ: 23 ] أَيْ: لَمْ يَكُنْ مَآلُ شِرْكِهِمْ وَعَاقِبَتُهُ، وَآخِرُ أَمْرِهِمْ، إِلَّا أَنْ تَبَرَّءُوا مِنْهُ وَأَنْكَرُوهُ. وَحَقِيقَتُهَا: أَنَّهَا الشِّرْكُ الَّذِي يَدْعُو صَاحِبُهُ إِلَيْهِ وَيُقَاتِلُ عَلَيْهِ، وَيُعَاقِبُ مَنْ لَمْ يَفْتَتِنْ بِهِ، وَلِهَذَا يُقَالُ لَهُمْ وَقْتَ عَذَابِهِمْ بِالنَّارِ وَفِتْنَتِهِمْ بِهَا: ( ذُوقُوا فِتْنَتَكُمْ ) قَالَ ابْنُ عَبَّاسٍ: تَكْذِيبَكُمْ. وَحَقِيقَتُهُ ذُوقُوا نِهَايَةَ فِتْنَتِكُمْ، وَغَايَتَهَا، وَمَصِيرَ أَمْرِهَا، كَقَوْلِهِ: ( ذُوقُوا مَا كُنْتُمْ تَكْسِبُونَ ) [ الزُّمَرِ: 24 ]، وَكَمَا فَتَنُوا عِبَادَهُ عَلَى الشِّرْكِ، فُتِنُوا عَلَى النَّارِ، وَقِيلَ لَهُمْ: ذُوقُوا فِتْنَتَكُمْ، وَمِنْهُ قَوْلُهُ تَعَالَى: ( إِنَّ الَّذِينَ فَتَنُوا الْمُؤْمِنِينَ وَالْمُؤْمِنَاتِ ثُمَّ لَمْ يَتُوبُوا ) [ الْبُرُوجِ: 10 ]، فُسِّرَتِ الْفِتْنَةُ هَاهُنَا بِتَعْذِيبِهِمُ الْمُؤْمِنِينَ، وَإِحْرَاقِهِمْ إِيَّاهُمْ بِالنَّارِ، وَاللَّفْظُ أَعَمُّ مِنْ ذَلِكَ، وَحَقِيقَتُهُ: عَذِّبُوا الْمُؤْمِنِينَ لِيَفْتَتِنُوا عَنْ دِينِهِمْ، فَهَذِهِ الْفِتْنَةُ الْمُضَافَةُ إِلَى الْمُشْرِكِينَ. وَأَمَّا الْفِتْنَةُ الَّتِي يُضِيفُهَا اللَّهُ سُبْحَانَهُ إِلَى نَفْسِهِ، أَوْ يُضِيفُهَا رَسُولُهُ إِلَيْهِ كَقَوْلِهِ: ( وَكَذَلِكَ فَتَنَّا بَعْضَهُمْ بِبَعْضٍ )، وَقَوْلِ مُوسَى: ( إِنْ هِيَ إِلَّا فِتْنَتُكَ تُضِلُّ بِهَا مَنْ تَشَاءُ وَتَهْدِي مَنْ تَشَاءُ ) [ الْأَعْرَافِ: 155 ] فَتِلْكَ بِمَعْنًى آخَرَ، وَهِيَ بِمَعْنَى الِامْتِحَانِ، وَالِاخْتِبَارِ، وَالِابْتِلَاءِ مِنَ اللَّهِ لِعِبَادِهِ بِالْخَيْرِ وَالشَّرِّ، بِالنِّعَمِ وَالْمَصَائِبِ، فَهَذِهِ لَوْنٌ، وَفِتْنَةُ الْمُشْرِكِينَ لَوْنٌ، وَفِتْنَةُ الْمُؤْمِنِ فِي مَالِهِ وَوَلَدِهِ وَجَارِهِ لَوْنٌ آخَرُ، وَالْفِتْنَةُ الَّتِي يُوقِعُهَا بَيْنَ أَهْلِ الْإِسْلَامِ كَالْفِتْنَةِ الَّتِي أَوْقَعَهَا بَيْنَ أَصْحَابِ علي ومعاوية، وَبَيْنَ أَهْلِ الْجَمَلِ وَصِفِّينَ، وَبَيْنَ الْمُسْلِمِينَ حَتَّى يَتَقَاتَلُوا، وَيَتَهَاجَرُوا لَوْنٌ آخَرُ، وَهِيَ الْفِتْنَةُ الَّتِي قَالَ فِيهَا النَّبِيُّ ﷺ: ( سَتَكُونُ فِتْنَةٌ الْقَاعِدُ فِيهَا خَيْرٌ مِنَ الْقَائِمِ، وَالْقَائِمُ فِيهَا خَيْرٌ مِنَ الْمَاشِي، وَالْمَاشِي فِيهَا خَيْرٌ مِنَ السَّاعِي ). وَأَحَادِيثُ الْفِتْنَةِ الَّتِي أَمَرَ رَسُولُ اللَّهِ ﷺ فِيهَا بِاعْتِزَالِ الطَّائِفَتَيْنِ، هِيَ هَذِهِ الْفِتْنَةُ. وَقَدْ تَأْتِي الْفِتْنَةُ مُرَادًا بِهَا الْمَعْصِيَةُ كَقَوْلِهِ تَعَالَى: ( وَمِنْهُمْ مَنْ يَقُولُ ائْذَنْ لِي وَلَا تَفْتِنِّي ) [ التَّوْبَةِ: 49 ]، يَقُولُهُ الجد بن قيس، لَمَّا نَدَبَهُ رَسُولُ اللَّهِ ﷺ إِلَى تَبُوكَ، يَقُولُ: ائْذَنْ لِي فِي الْقُعُودِ وَلَا تَفْتِنِّي بِتَعَرُّضِي لِبَنَاتِ بَنِي الْأَصْفَرِ، فَإِنِّي لَا أَصْبِرُ عَنْهُنَّ، قَالَ تَعَالَى: ( أَلَا فِي الْفِتْنَةِ سَقَطُوا ) [ التَّوْبَةِ: 49 ] أَيْ: وَقَعُوا فِي فِتْنَةِ النِّفَاقِ، وَفَرُّوا إِلَيْهَا مِنْ فِتْنَةِ بَنَاتِ الْأَصْفَرِ. وَالْمَقْصُودُ: أَنَّ اللَّهَ سُبْحَانَهُ حَكَمَ بَيْنَ أَوْلِيَائِهِ وَأَعْدَائِهِ بِالْعَدْلِ وَالْإِنْصَافِ، وَلَمْ يُبَرِّئْ أَوْلِيَاءَهُ مِنِ ارْتِكَابِ الْإِثْمِ بِالْقِتَالِ فِي الشَّهْرِ الْحَرَامِ، بَلْ أَخْبَرَ أَنَّهُ كَبِيرٌ وَأَنَّ مَا عَلَيْهِ أَعْدَاؤُهُ الْمُشْرِكُونَ أَكْبَرُ وَأَعْظَمُ مِنْ مُجَرَّدِ الْقِتَالِ فِي الشَّهْرِ الْحَرَامِ ، فَهُمْ أَحَقُّ بِالذَّمِّ وَالْعَيْبِ وَالْعُقُوبَةِ، لَا سِيَّمَا وَأَوْلِيَاؤُهُ كَانُوا مُتَأَوِّلِينَ فِي قِتَالِهِمْ ذَلِكَ، أَوْ مُقَصِّرِينَ نَوْعَ تَقْصِيرٍ يَغْفِرُهُ اللَّهُ لَهُمْ فِي جَنْبِ مَا فَعَلُوهُ مِنَ التَّوْحِيدِ وَالطَّاعَاتِ، وَالْهِجْرَةِ مَعَ رَسُولِهِ، وَإِيثَارِ مَا عِنْدَ اللَّهِ، فَهُمْ كَمَا قِيلَ: وَإِذَا الْحَبِيبُ أَتَى بِذَنْبٍ وَاحِدٍ جَاءَتْ مَحَاسِنُهُ بِأَلْفِ شَفِيعِ فَكَيْفَ يُقَاسُ بِبَغِيضِ عَدُوٍّ جَاءَ بِكُلِّ قَبِيحٍ، وَلَمْ يَأْتِ بِشَفِيعٍ وَاحِدٍ مِنَ الْمَحَاسِنِ. فَلَمَّا نَزَلَ الْقُرْآنُ بِهَذَا الْأَمْرِ، وَفَرَّجَ اللَّهُ تَعَالَى عَنِ الْمُسْلِمِينَ مَا كَانُوا فِيهِ مِنَ الشَّفَقِ قَبَضَ رَسُولُ اللَّهِ ﷺ الْغَنِيمَةَ أَوْ خُمْسَهَا وَالْأَسِيرَيْنِ. وَبَعَثَ إِلَيْهِ قُرَيْشٌ فِي فِدَاءِ الْأَسِيرَيْنِ فَقَالَ رَسُولُ اللَّهِ ﷺ: «لَا نَفْدِيكُمُوهَا حَتَّى يَقْدُمَ صَاحِبَانَا- يَعْنِي سَعْدَ بْنَ أَبِي وَقَّاصٍ وَعُتْبَةَ بْنَ غَزْوَانَ- فَإِنَّا نَخْشَاكُمْ عَلَيْهِمَا، فَإِنْ تَقْتُلُوهُمَا نَقْتُلْ صَاحِبَيْكُمْ». فَقَدِمَ سَعْدٌ وَعُتْبَةُ، فَأَفْدَى رَسُولُ اللَّهِ ﷺ الْأَسِيرَيْنِ عِنْدَ ذَلِكَ بِأَرْبَعِينَ أُوقِيَّةً كُلَّ أَسِيرٍ، فَأَمَّا الْحَكَمُ بْنُ كَيْسَانَ، فَأَسْلَمَ وَحَسُنَ إِسْلَامُهُ، وَأَقَامَ عِنْدَ رَسُولِ اللَّهِ ﷺ حَتَّى قُتِلَ يَوْمَ بِئْرِ مَعُونَةَ شَهِيدًا. وَأَمَّا عُثْمَانُ بْنُ عَبْدِ اللَّهِ فَلَحِقَ بِمَكَّةَ فَمَاتَ كَافِرًا.
Translation
✧ [The Messenger’s ﷺ disapproval of Ibn Jaḥsh’s fighting in the sacred month] Then ʿAbd Allāh travelled with the caravan and the two captives to Madinah. When he came to the Messenger of Allah ﷺ, he said: “I did not command you to fight in the sacred month.” He detained the caravan and the two captives and refused to take anything from that. It is said that the Messenger of Allah ﷺ detained the spoils of the people of Nakhla until he returned from Badr, then divided them together with the spoils of the people of Badr and gave every people their due. When the Messenger of Allah ﷺ said that, the people were dismayed and thought that they had perished, and their Muslim brothers reproached them for what they had done. Quraysh said: “Muḥammad and his companions have made the sacred month lawful, shed blood in it, seized property in it, and taken men captive in it.” He said: “Which of the Muslims who were in Makkah will answer them? They only achieved what they achieved in Shaʿbān.” And the Jews took this as an evil omen against the Messenger of Allah ﷺ: “ʿAmr b. al-Ḥaḍramī was killed by Wāqid b. ʿAbd Allāh: ʿAmr – war has flourished (ʿumirat al-ḥarb); al-Ḥaḍramī – war has come (ḥaḍarat al-ḥarb); and Wāqid b. ʿAbd Allāh – war has been kindled (waqadat al-ḥarb).” But Allah, exalted is He, made that against them, not for them. [The revelation of the Qur’an concerning the action of Ibn Jaḥsh and the Messenger’s ﷺ confirmation of his action] When the people spoke much about that, Allah, exalted is He, sent down upon His Messenger ﷺ: “They ask you about the sacred month – fighting in it. Say, ‘Fighting in it is great, but averting from the way of Allah and disbelief in Him and the Sacred Mosque, and expelling its people from it, is greater in the sight of Allah. And fitnah is greater than killing’” [al-Baqarah 217]. That is, if you killed in the sacred month, they had averted you from the way of Allah along with disbelief in Him and from the Sacred Mosque, and expelled you from it while you were its people – that is greater in the sight of Allah than killing those of them whom you killed. And fitnah is greater than killing: they used to tempt the Muslim in his religion until they turned him back to disbelief after his faith; that is greater in the sight of Allah than killing. So the fitnah that came from them upon you is greater in the sight of Allah than your fighting them in the sacred month. Most of the early scholars interpreted fitnah here as shirk, as in His saying, exalted is He: “And fight them until there is no fitnah” [al-Baqarah: 193]. This is indicated by His saying: “Then their fitnah was only that they said, ‘By Allah, our Lord, we were not polytheists’” [al-Anʿām: 23], meaning: the outcome of their shirk and its end and their final state was only that they disowned it and denied it. Its reality is that it is the shirk to which its adherent calls and for which he fights, and punishes whoever is not tempted by it. Therefore it is said to them at the time of their punishment with the Fire and their fitnah with it: “Taste your fitnah.” Ibn ʿAbbās said: your denial. Its reality is: taste the end of your fitnah, its goal, and the final outcome of its affair, as in His saying: “Taste what you used to earn” [al-Zumar: 24]. Just as they tempted His servants to shirk, they are tempted with the Fire, and it is said to them: “Taste your fitnah.” And from this is His saying, exalted is He: “Indeed those who tempted the believing men and believing women and then did not repent” [al-Burūj: 10]. Fitnah here is explained as their torturing the believers and burning them with fire. The word is broader than that, and its reality is: they tortured the believers to turn them away from their religion. This is the fitnah attributed to the polytheists. As for the fitnah that Allah, glorified is He, attributes to Himself, or that His Messenger attributes to Him, such as His saying: “And thus We have tempted some of them by others,” and Moses’ saying: “It is only Your fitnah by which You mislead whom You will and guide whom You will” [al-Aʿrāf: 155], that has another meaning: it means testing, trial, and examination by Allah of His servants with good and evil, with blessings and calamities. This is one kind; the fitnah of the polytheists is another kind; the fitnah of the believer in his wealth, child, and neighbor is another kind; and the fitnah that occurs between the people of Islam, like the fitnah that occurred between the companions of ʿAlī and Muʿāwiyah, and between the people of the Camel and Ṣiffīn, and between the Muslims until they fight one another and abandon one another, is another kind. This is the fitnah about which the Prophet ﷺ said: “There will be a fitnah in which the one sitting is better than the one standing, and the one standing is better than the one walking, and the one walking is better than the one striving.” And the ḥadīths of fitnah in which the Messenger of Allah ﷺ commanded staying away from the two parties refer to this fitnah. Fitnah may also mean disobedience, as in His saying, exalted is He: “And among them is he who says, ‘Permit me and do not tempt me’” [al-Tawbah: 49], said by al-Jadd b. Qays when the Messenger of Allah ﷺ summoned him to Tabūk. He says: permit me to stay behind and do not tempt me by exposing me to the daughters of the Yellow Ones, for I cannot be patient with them. He, exalted is He, said: “Unquestionably, into fitnah they have fallen” [al-Tawbah: 49], meaning: they fell into the fitnah of hypocrisy and fled to it from the fitnah of the daughters of the Yellow Ones. The point is that Allah, glorified is He, judged between His allies and His enemies with justice and fairness. He did not absolve His allies of committing sin by fighting in the sacred month; rather, He informed that it is great, and that what His enemies the polytheists are upon is greater and more enormous than mere fighting in the sacred month. They are more deserving of blame, fault, and punishment, especially since His allies were interpreting in that fighting of theirs, or were deficient in a way that Allah forgives them in light of what they did of monotheism, acts of obedience, emigration with His Messenger, and preference for what is with Allah. They are as was said: And when the beloved commits a single sin, His good qualities come with a thousand intercessors. How then can he be compared to a hateful enemy who came with every evil and did not bring a single intercessor among good qualities? When the Qur’an was sent down concerning this matter and Allah, exalted is He, relieved the Muslims of the anxiety they were in, the Messenger of Allah ﷺ took the booty or its fifth and the two captives. Quraysh sent to him regarding the ransom of the two captives. The Messenger of Allah ﷺ said: “We will not ransom them to you until our two companions arrive – meaning Saʿd b. Abī Waqqāṣ and ʿUtbah b. Ghazwān – for we fear you regarding them. If you kill them, we will kill your two companions.” Then Saʿd and ʿUtbah arrived, and the Messenger of Allah ﷺ ransomed the two captives for forty ounces each. As for al-Ḥakam b. Kaysān, he became Muslim and his Islam was good, and he stayed with the Messenger of Allah ﷺ until he was killed as a martyr on the day of Biʾr Maʿūnah. As for ʿUthmān b. ʿAbd Allāh, he joined Makkah and died a disbeliever.
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