JUZ FOUR
A central theme that flows throughout the fourth juz of the Qur’an is unity. These verses were revealed shortly after the Battle of Uḥud, during which the Muslims encountered their first military defeat due to a moment of disunity. Many of these verses address the aftermath of that battle, reminding the believers that victory is from Allah, and that disunity gets in the way of Divine Assistance.
Disunity is written in the destiny of this great ummah. The Prophet صلى الله عليه وسلم said, “I asked my Lord for three things, and He has granted me two but has withheld one. I begged my Lord that my ummah should not be destroyed because of famine and He granted me this. And I begged my Lord that my ummah should not be destroyed by drowning [by deluge] and
He granted me this. And I begged my Lord that there should be no bloodshed among the people of my ummah, but He did not grant it.”
It is interesting to note that the previous three juz focused on the mistakes of past nations, yet this juz focuses primarily on the mistakes of Muslims, with our biggest weakness being our disunity. Disunity has always been a problem for the Muslim world. Internal problems continue to plague us even today, and the external enemies simply take advantage of this and utilize it to harm the ummah. The following verses in this surah all
address different aspects of unity.
O you who believe! Revere God with due reverence, and do not die except as Muslims. And hold fast to the rope of God, altogether, and do not become divided. And remember God’s blessings upon you; how you were enemies, and He reconciled your hearts, and by His grace you became brethren. And you were on the brink of a pit of fire, and He saved you from it. God thus clarifies His revelations for you, so that you may be guided. And let there be among you a community calling to virtue, and advocating righteousness, and deterring from evil. These are the successful. And do not be like those who separated and disputed after the clear proofs came to them; for them is a great punishment.
These verses implore us to unite and work together, to call towards good and deter evil. This is emphasized further in the following verse in which Allah describes the best of this nation. “You are the best community that ever emerged for humanity: you advocate what is moral, and forbid what is immoral, and believe in God. Had the People of the Scripture believed, it would have been better for them. Among them are the believers, but most of them are sinners.”
In this verse, we are informed that we are indeed the best of nations if we fulfill the obligations Allah has put upon us. Fulfilling these obligations requires unity and sincerity.
The verses of unity are followed by a series of verses describing the Battle of Uḥud and what went wrong at this battle. The primary focus is on the lessons from this battle.
These lessons include the following:
• The victory of Muslims is not because of numbers, it is dependent on the Assistance of Allah. We should never rely on numbers alone in battle.
• Allah grants us victory when we are united.
• Allah’s Mercy descends when we are united.
• When we are disunited, we are our own worst enemies.
• We are commanded to strive for Allah; even if the Prophet صلى الله عليه وسلم passed away, the struggle for Islam continues.
The juz ends with a reminder that those who made mistakes at Uḥud were already forgiven by Allah. Allah did not reveal these verses to humiliate them. He revealed these verses so that we can reflect on these events and derive lessons from them. “Those of you who turned back on the day when the two armies clashed—it was Satan who caused them to backslide, on account of some of what they had earned. But God has forgiven them.
God is Forgiving and Prudent.”
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