Tafsir of At-Tawbah 9:52

Say: "Do you await for us" (the interrogative is for the sake of detachment from the ruling of the first command, even if it is a command to a third party. According to the view of the group [of exegetes], the repetition is to demonstrate the utmost concern regarding what is commanded).

Tarabbus means waiting and pausing; one of the two tā’s is elided, and the ba’ is for transitivity. That is, you do not await for us except one of the two excellent things. Meaning, one of the two outcomes—each of which is better than all other outcomes besides the other, or better than all the outcomes of the disbelievers—or each is better than what is other than it from a certain perspective. What is intended by them are victory and martyrdom. The gist is that what you await for us cannot be void of one of these two matters, and both have an excellent outcome, unlike what you falsely claim: that what befalls us of killing in battle is an evil, which is why you rejoiced in it.

It has been authentically reported in a hadith from Abu Hurayrah, from the Prophet (may Allah exalt his mention and grant him peace), that he said: "Allah the Exalted has guaranteed for whoever strives in His way—moved by nothing but Jihad in His way and belief in His word—that He will either admit him into Paradise or return him to the dwelling from which he emerged, along with whatever reward or spoils he has attained."

"And we await for you": one of the two evil outcomes. Either "that Allah strikes you with a punishment from Him," thereby destroying you as He did with the past nations before you. The prepositional phrase [from Him] is an attribute of "punishment," and its being "from His presence" is a metonymy for it coming from Him, the Glorified, without the mediation of humans. This is made clear by the contrast in His saying, the Glorified: "or by our hands," meaning, or with a punishment occurring by our hands, such as being killed for disbelief. The conjunction is linked to the attribute of "punishment," so it is also an attribute, not that there is a [second] implied punishment. The restriction of killing to "for disbelief" is because killing without it is martyrdom. In this, there is an indication that they are not killed unless they manifest disbelief and persist in it, for they are hypocrites, and the hypocrite is not killed initially.

"So await": the fa’ denotes an implied condition (fasiha), meaning: if the matter is as such, then await for us what our outcome will be. "We are waiting with you" (52) for what your outcome will be. Thus, when each of us and you encounters what is awaited, we will witness nothing but what dismays you, and you will witness nothing but what pleases us.

What we mentioned regarding the object of tarabbus (waiting) is the apparent meaning. Perhaps this is what is returned to by what was narrated from al-Hasan, meaning: So await the promises of Satan, while we await the promises of Allah the Exalted regarding the manifestation of His religion and the eradication of those who opposed Him. The intent behind the command is a threat.