۞ إِذْ تُصْعِدُونَ وَلَا تَلْوُۥنَ عَلَىٰٓ أَحَدٍ وَٱلرَّسُولُ يَدْعُوكُمْ فِىٓ أُخْرَىٰكُمْ فَأَثَـٰبَكُمْ غَمًّۢا بِغَمٍّ لِّكَيْلَا تَحْزَنُوا۟ عَلَىٰ مَا فَاتَكُمْ وَلَا مَآ أَصَـٰبَكُمْ ۗ وَٱللَّهُ خَبِيرٌۢ بِمَا تَعْمَلُونَ 153
Translations
[Remember] when you [fled and] climbed [the mountain] without looking aside at anyone while the Messenger was calling you from behind. So Allāh repaid you with distress upon distress so you would not grieve for that which had escaped you [of victory and spoils of war] or [for] that which had befallen you [of injury and death]. And Allāh is [fully] Aware of what you do.
Transliteration
Idh tusAAidoona wa lā talwoona AAalā ahadinw war-rasoolu yadAAoukum fee okhrāakum faathābakum ghammam bighammil likayla tahzanoo AAalā mā fātakum wa lā mā asābakum wallaahu khabeerun bimā taAAmalooon
Tafsir (Explanation)
This ayah refers to the Battle of Uhud (3 AH) when the Muslim army retreated in disarray after initial success, with believers fleeing without looking back at the Prophet (ﷺ) who was calling them to return. According to Ibn Kathir and Al-Tabari, Allah replaced their grief over lost lives and spoils with renewed sorrow (grief upon grief), as a Divine mercy—for this emotional turmoil prevented them from becoming arrogant or despairing entirely, and Allah assured them that He is fully aware of their deeds and intentions. Al-Qurtubi emphasizes that the successive griefs served as spiritual discipline and purification for the believers.
Revelation Context
This ayah was revealed in the aftermath of the Battle of Uhud, a pivotal Medinan military engagement where Muslims initially prevailed but suffered a devastating reversal when archers abandoned their positions. The context addresses the believers' emotional and spiritual state during this trial, part of a broader Quranic discourse (3:140-180) about divine wisdom in military defeats and the testing of faith.
Related Hadiths
Anas ibn Malik reported that on the Day of Uhud, seventy of the Ansar were killed, and the Prophet (ﷺ) said, 'I am displeased with what the people did to them' (Sunan an-Nasa'i). Additionally, the hadith in Sahih Muslim describes how the Prophet (ﷺ) was wounded at Uhud and the believers' desperate attempts to protect him, illustrating the context of their retreat.
Themes
Key Lesson
Apparent hardships and successive sorrows in life are often Divine mercy in disguise, preventing spiritual complacency and refining character; believers should trust that Allah's awareness of their sincere efforts transcends their visible failures or losses.