Tafsir of At-Tawbah 9:91

{There is no blame} upon the weak—such as the elderly and those possessing a constitutional frailty who lack the strength to set out with the [army]. "Weak" (al-du‘afa’) is the plural of da‘if; it is also said du‘uf and du‘fan, and the plurals di‘af, da‘afah, du‘afa’, and di‘afi have also been cited. {Nor upon the sick}—the plural of marid (which is also pluralized as mirad and marada). It refers to one afflicted with an illness or a constitutional disorder, whether it is transient—as is the case with most diseases—or permanent, such as chronic infirmity. They have also included within this category conditions that do not subside, such as congenital blindness or lameness. Thus, the blind and the lame fall under the category of the "sick." If you dispute this, it is not far-fetched to include them under the "weak." That the blind man is included in one of these two coupled categories is evidenced by what Ibn Abi Hatim and al-Daraqutni recorded in al-Ifrad from Zayd ibn Thabit, who said: "I was scribing for the Messenger of Allah, may Allah exalt him and grant him peace, when Bara’ah (Surah at-Tawbah) was revealed. I had the pen placed behind my ear when we were commanded to fight, and the Messenger of Allah, may Allah exalt him and grant him peace, was observing what was being revealed to him. Then a blind man came to him and said: 'What about me, O Messenger of Allah, for I am blind?' Thereupon, there was revealed: 'There is no blame upon the weak nor upon the sick.'"

{Nor upon those who do not find what they may spend}—that is, the poor who are unable to provide for the journey or for Jihad. It is said they were [the tribes of] Muzaynah, Juhaynah, and Banu ‘Udhrah.

{Any blame}—meaning any sin for staying behind; the origin of the word refers to narrowness, and it has been discussed previously.

{When they are sincere to Allah and His Messenger}—through faith and obedience, both outwardly and inwardly, as a loyal, sincere partisan would act. Sincerity (al-nush) is metaphorically applied here to this. It may also mean that their aforementioned sincerity consists of exerting their utmost effort for the benefit of Islam and the Muslims by looking after their affairs and families, and conveying news to them, so that they might not be like the hypocrites who spread rumors when they stay behind. The root of al-nush in the language is purity; it is said "I gave him counsel" (nashtu-hu) and "I gave counsel for him" (nashtu la-hu). In al-Nihayah, it is stated that "counsel" (al-nasihah) is a term used to express a totality, which is the desire for good for the one to whom the counsel is given; it is not possible to express this meaning with a single word other than this. The factor governing the adverbial phrase, according to Abu al-Baqa’, is the meaning of the speech—that is, they do not go out at that time.

{There is no way against the doers of good}—meaning, there is no way (or grounds for censure) against them. "Doing good" (al-ihsan) here is sincerity to Allah the Exalted and His Messenger, may Allah exalt him and grant him peace. The noun (al-muhsinin) was used in place of their pronoun to highlight their status and to describe them with this noble title. The word "from" (min) was added for emphasis. The sentence is an inauguration that establishes the content of what preceded in the most eloquent manner and subtle structure. It is from the height of eloquent speech, for its meaning is: there is no path for a censurer against them; that is, no censurer shall pass by them, nor shall he have standing in their territory. How far, then, is censure from them! It functions like a proverb. It is also possible that it is a justification for the negation of blame upon them. And "the doers of good" is taken in its general sense—that is, there is no blame upon them because there is no "way" against the category of the doers of good, and they are among that group. Ibn al-Faras said: "One may deduce from the verse that the one who kills a threatening beast is not liable for damages."

{And Allah is Forgiving, Merciful}—a postscript confirming the content of what was mentioned. It contains an indication towards every person who is incapacitated and in need of forgiveness and mercy, for a human being is never free from some shortcoming. Therefore, it cannot be said: "Has the sin been negated for them or not? And if so, what is the need for forgiveness, which implies the existence of a sin?" If the intention is their past sins, then they are included in the term "wrongdoers" by that consideration.