Tafsir of Al Imran 3:144

When Abdullah ibn Qami'ah al-Harithi struck the Messenger of Allah (ﷺ) with a stone, breaking his incisor and wounding his face, he advanced intending to kill him. Mus'ab ibn Umayr—the standard-bearer at Badr and Uhud—defended him until Ibn Qami'ah killed him, thinking he was the Messenger of Allah (ﷺ). He then cried out, "I have killed Muhammad!"

A crier shouted, "Indeed, Muhammad has been killed!" (It is said the crier was Satan). The news of his death spread among the people, and they retreated. The Messenger of Allah (ﷺ) began calling out, "To me, O servants of Allah!" until a group of his companions gathered around him. He rebuked them for fleeing, and they replied, "O Messenger of Allah, may our fathers and mothers be sacrificed for you! The news of your death reached us, our hearts were filled with terror, and we turned back in flight." Then this verse was revealed.

It is narrated that when the crier shouted, some Muslims said, "If only Abdullah ibn Ubayy could secure us a guarantee of safety from Abu Sufyan." Some hypocrites said, "If he were a prophet, he would not have been killed. Return to your brethren and your religion."

Anas ibn al-Nadr, the uncle of Anas ibn Malik, said, "O people! If Muhammad has been killed, the Lord of Muhammad is Living and does not die. What will you do with life after the Messenger of Allah (ﷺ)? Fight for what he fought for, and die for what he died for!" Then he said, "O Allah, I apologize to You for what these people say, and I disassociate myself from what they have brought." He then charged with his sword and fought until he was killed.

Some of the Emigrants passed by an Ansar man covered in his own blood and said, "O so-and-so, do you realize that Muhammad has been killed?" He replied, "If he has been killed, he has delivered the message. Fight for your religion!"

The Meaning: "And Muhammad is not but a messenger. [Other] messengers have passed on before him." He will pass on just as they passed on. Just as their followers remained steadfast in their religion after they passed, you must remain steadfast in his religion after he passes. The purpose of sending messengers is to deliver the message and establish the proof, not for him to remain physically among his people.

"So if he were to die..." The fa (so) connects the conditional sentence to the preceding one, indicating causality. The hamza (interrogative) is for denouncing them; it implies that the passing of previous messengers and the survival of their religions should be a reason to hold fast to Muhammad’s religion, not to turn back from it.

If you ask: Why is "killing" mentioned when it was known he would not be killed? I reply: Because it was a possibility in the minds of those addressed.

If you ask: Did they not know of the verse, "And Allah will protect you from the people" (Al-Ma'idah: 67)? I reply: This was known only to the scholars and those with insight among them. Do you not see that they heard the news of his death and fled? It is possible that "protection" refers to protection from the trials of the people and their humiliation.

"Turning back on your heels" means retreating from the jihad and other duties the Messenger of Allah (ﷺ) was undertaking. Some say it means apostasy, though no Muslim apostatized that day except for the words of the hypocrites. It may also be a stern rebuke for their fleeing, abandoning the Messenger of Allah (ﷺ), and leaving him exposed.

"He will not harm Allah at all." He only harms himself, for it is impossible for harm or benefit to reach Allah.

"And Allah will reward the grateful." Those who did not turn back, like Anas ibn al-Nadr and his peers. He called them "grateful" because they showed gratitude for the blessing of Islam through their actions.

The meaning is that the death of souls cannot occur except by the will of Allah. It is phrased as an action that no one should undertake unless Allah permits it, as a metaphor. Since the Angel of Death is entrusted with this, he cannot seize a soul except by Allah's permission.

This serves two purposes:

1. Encouraging them to jihad: By informing them that caution is of no avail and no one dies before their appointed time, even if they plunge into perils and battlefields.
2. Recounting what Allah did for His Messenger: When the enemy prevailed, surrounded him, and his people left him exposed, Allah provided protection, guardianship, and the postponement of his appointed time.