لَئِنْ أُخْرِجُوا۟ لَا يَخْرُجُونَ مَعَهُمْ وَلَئِن قُوتِلُوا۟ لَا يَنصُرُونَهُمْ وَلَئِن نَّصَرُوهُمْ لَيُوَلُّنَّ ٱلْأَدْبَـٰرَ ثُمَّ لَا يُنصَرُونَ 12
Translations
If they are expelled, they will not leave with them, and if they are fought, they will not aid them. And [even] if they should aid them, they will surely turn their backs; then [thereafter] they will not be aided.
Transliteration
La-in ukhrijū lā yakhrujūn ma'ahum wa la-in qūtilū lā yansurūnhum wa la-in nasarūhum layuwallunna l-adbāra thumma lā yunsarūn
Tafsir (Explanation)
This ayah describes the hypocrites' broken covenants and false promises to the Jewish tribe of Banu Nadir during their expulsion from Medina. The verse employs a rhetorical structure of conditional statements (lā'im) to expose their treachery: they swore they would not abandon the Banu Nadir if exiled, would fight alongside them if attacked, and would help them if needed—yet they did none of these things. Ibn Kathir notes this demonstrates how the hypocrites' oaths were meaningless, as they prioritized their own safety over their pledged alliances, exemplifying the characteristic weakness and duplicity of those who harbor disbelief while outwardly claiming faith.
Revelation Context
This ayah is part of the historical narrative of Surah Al-Hashr regarding the expulsion of Banu Nadir (a Jewish tribe in Medina) in the year 4 AH. The hypocrites (munafiqūn) of Medina had made covenants with Banu Nadir to defend them militarily and politically, but when the Prophet besieged their fortress, these hypocrites abandoned their promises entirely. The surah chronicles this broken covenant as a sign of the hypocrites' fundamental untrustworthiness and weakness of faith.
Related Hadiths
While no single hadith directly quotes this verse, Surah Al-Hashr's entire context relates to the historical event of Banu Nadir's expulsion mentioned in multiple hadith collections. Sahih Bukhari and Sahih Muslim contain narrations about the events of Banu Nadir's expulsion that provide the historical backdrop for understanding these verses.
Themes
Key Lesson
This ayah teaches believers to be wary of those whose actions contradict their words, and to recognize that hypocrisy ultimately leads to disgrace and defeat. For modern readers, it serves as a reminder to examine our own sincerity in commitments and to avoid the trap of making promises we cannot or will not keep, as such duplicity invites divine displeasure.
Related Ayahs
وَمِمَّنْ حَوْلَكُم مِّنَ ٱلْأَعْرَابِ مُنَـٰفِقُونَ ۖ وَمِنْ أَهْلِ ٱلْمَدِينَةِ ۖ مَرَدُوا۟ عَلَى ٱلنِّفَاقِ لَا تَعْلَمُهُمْ ۖ نَحْنُ نَعْلَمُهُمْ ۚ سَنُعَذِّبُهُم مَّرَّتَيْنِ ثُمَّ يُرَدُّونَ إِلَىٰ عَذَابٍ عَظِيمٍ
And among those around you of the bedouins are hypocrites, and [also] from the people of Madīnah. They have persisted in hypocrisy. You, [O Muḥammad], do not know them, [but] We know them. We will punish them twice [in this world]; then they will be returned to a great punishment.
لَا تَعْتَذِرُوا۟ قَدْ كَفَرْتُم بَعْدَ إِيمَـٰنِكُمْ ۚ إِن نَّعْفُ عَن طَآئِفَةٍ مِّنكُمْ نُعَذِّبْ طَآئِفَةًۢ بِأَنَّهُمْ كَانُوا۟ مُجْرِمِينَ
Make no excuse; you have disbelieved [i.e., rejected faith] after your belief. If We pardon one faction of you - We will punish another faction because they were criminals.
وَإِذَآ أُنزِلَتْ سُورَةٌ أَنْ ءَامِنُوا۟ بِٱللَّهِ وَجَـٰهِدُوا۟ مَعَ رَسُولِهِ ٱسْتَـْٔذَنَكَ أُو۟لُوا۟ ٱلطَّوْلِ مِنْهُمْ وَقَالُوا۟ ذَرْنَا نَكُن مَّعَ ٱلْقَـٰعِدِينَ
And when a sūrah was revealed [enjoining them] to believe in Allāh and to fight with His Messenger, those of wealth among them asked your permission [to stay back] and said, "Leave us to be with them who sit [at home]."
وَمَا مَنَعَهُمْ أَن تُقْبَلَ مِنْهُمْ نَفَقَـٰتُهُمْ إِلَّآ أَنَّهُمْ كَفَرُوا۟ بِٱللَّهِ وَبِرَسُولِهِۦ وَلَا يَأْتُونَ ٱلصَّلَوٰةَ إِلَّا وَهُمْ كُسَالَىٰ وَلَا يُنفِقُونَ إِلَّا وَهُمْ كَـٰرِهُونَ
And what prevents their expenditures from being accepted from them but that they have disbelieved in Allāh and in His Messenger and that they come not to prayer except while they are lazy and that they do not spend except while they are unwilling.