Surah At-Tawbah (9): Verse 106

"And others are deferred for the command of Allah..."

Issues in the Verse:

There are two readings for the word مرجون (deferred):

1. Without Hamza (مُرْجَوْنَ): Read this way by Hamzah, Nafi', Al-Kisā'ī, and Ḥafṣ from 'Āṣim.
2. With Hamza (مُرْجَؤُنَ): Read this way by the rest of the reciters.

Both forms are linguistically valid, stemming from the root أَرْجَأَ (with hamza) or رَجَأَ (without hamza), both meaning "to postpone" or "to delay" the matter.

The Murji'ah sect is named this because they do not definitively pronounce judgment on the forgiveness of the repentant, but rather postpone it to the will of Allah. Al-Awzā'ī stated that they are named this because they postpone action (amal) from faith (īmān).

Allah (Exalted is He) divided those who stayed behind from the Jihad into three categories:

1. The Hypocrites (Munāfiqūn): Those who were deeply entrenched in hypocrisy.
2. The Repentant: Those referred to by the verse: $\text{{And others who have confessed their sins...}} (9:102), indicating that Allah accepted their repentance.
3. Those Whose Case is Deferred (Mawqūfūn): These are the ones mentioned in this current verse (مرجون لأمر الله).

The difference between the second and third groups is that the second group hastened to repent, while the third group did not hasten to do so.

Narration regarding the context: Ibn 'Abbās (may Allah be pleased with him) said this verse was revealed concerning Ka'b ibn Mālik, Murārah ibn Al-Rabī', and Hilāl ibn Umayyah. Ka'b said, "I am the most capable man in Medina with respect to my camel, so whenever you wish, I can catch up with the Messenger." He delayed for a few days, then despaired of catching up and regretted his action, as did his two companions.

When the Messenger of Allah (PBUH) returned, Ka'b was told to apologize for his conduct. He replied, "No, by Allah, until my repentance is revealed." His companions apologized, and the Prophet (PBUH) asked them, "What kept you back from me?" They replied, "We have no excuse except sin." Then this verse was revealed: \text{{And others are deferred for the command of Allah...}}

The Messenger then stopped them after this verse was revealed, forbade people from sitting with them, and ordered them to isolate themselves from their wives, sending the wives back to their families. Hilāl's wife came asking permission to bring him food, as he was an old man; permission was granted specifically for this. A messenger came from Syria to Ka'b encouraging him to join them, but Ka'b said, "My sin has reached such a degree that the polytheists are hoping for me [to join them]!" He said, "The earth became tight upon me, despite its vastness." Hilāl ibn Umayyah wept so much that his eyesight was feared to be lost.

After fifty days, their repentance was revealed in the verses: \text{{Allah has certainly turned in forgiveness to the Prophet...}} (9:117) and \text{{And upon the three who were left behind, until when the earth became tight upon them...}} (9:118).

Alternative Interpretations: Al-Ḥasan said that \text{{And others are deferred for the command of Allah...}} refers to a group of hypocrites whom the Messenger of Allah (PBUH) kept away from his presence. Al-Aṣamm said it refers to the hypocrites, similar to the verse: \text{{And among those around you of the wandering Arabs are hypocrites...}} (9:101). He argued that Allah deferred them (did not reveal their hypocrisy) but warned them in this verse that if they do not repent, a Quranic verse might be revealed concerning them.

Then Allah said: \text{{Either He will punish them, or He will forgive them...}}

Further Issues Arising from the Conclusion:

Someone might object: The words إما (either) and أما (as for) imply doubt, and Allah is exalted above doubt.

The Answer: What is intended is that their situation should remain in a state of fear and hope. Some people would say, "They are doomed," if no excuse was revealed for them, while others would say, "Perhaps Allah will forgive them."

It is certain that these people were remorseful for staying behind from the expedition and abandoning the Messenger (PBUH). However, Allah did not rule that they were repentant; rather, He said: \text{{Either He will punish them, or He will forgive them...}} This indicates that remorse alone is not sufficient for the validity of repentance.

Objection: What are the necessary conditions (for valid repentance)?

Answer: Perhaps their initial remorse was motivated by fear of the Messenger's punishment or fear of shame and disgrace. If this is the case, their repentance was not valid or accepted. The non-acceptance of their repentance continued until their circumstances changed regarding people's praise and criticism. At that point, they regretted the sin because it was a sin in itself, and only then did their repentance become valid.

Al-Jubbā'ī used this verse as proof that Allah does not forgive anyone except the repentant. His reasoning is that Allah stated regarding these sinners: \text{{Either He will punish them, or He will forgive them...}} This implies that there are only two outcomes: punishment or repentance leading to forgiveness. Forgiveness of the sin without repentance would be a third category, which Allah omitted mentioning, proving it to be invalid and not considered.

The Answer: We cannot definitively state that forgiveness is granted to all sinners, but we can affirm that forgiveness occurs in general. As for every specific individual, that remains uncertain. Do you not see that Allah says: \text{{And He forgives what is less than that for whom He wills}} (4:48)? He affirmed forgiveness for sins other than Shirk, but not for every single person, only for whom He wills. Therefore, the lack of mention of forgiveness for these specific people (without repentance) does not imply the absolute non-existence of forgiveness without repentance.

Furthermore, the omission of mention does not imply non-existence. Do you not see that Allah says: \text{{Some faces, that Day, will be radiant, laughing, rejoicing}} (80:38-39) (the believers), and \text{{And other faces, that Day, will be covered with dust, overspread with darkness, those are the disbelieving, wicked ones}} (80:40-41)? Here, only believers and disbelievers are mentioned. Al-Jubbā'ī did not conclude that the third category (those who are neither purely one nor the other) was negated here, so the same logic applies to the verse in question.

Regarding the conclusion of the verse: \text{{And Allah is All-Knowing, Wise}}$:

• All-Knowing (Al-'Alīm): He knows what is in the hearts of these believers.
• Wise (Al-Ḥakīm): He is wise in what He decrees and judges concerning them.

Verse 107

"And those who took a mosque for harm and disbelief, and to cause division among the believers, and as an ambush for those who warred against Allah and His Messenger before, and they will surely swear: 'We intended nothing but good.' And Allah bears witness that they are indeed liars."