Surah Aal-i-Imraan

Chapter 3 · Verse 147 · Revealed in Madinah

وَمَا كَانَ قَوْلَهُمْ إِلَّآ أَن قَالُوا۟ رَبَّنَا ٱغْفِرْ لَنَا ذُنُوبَنَا وَإِسْرَافَنَا فِىٓ أَمْرِنَا وَثَبِّتْ أَقْدَامَنَا وَٱنصُرْنَا عَلَى ٱلْقَوْمِ ٱلْكَٰفِرِينَ

And their words were not but that they said, "Our Lord, forgive us our sins and the excess [committed] in our affairs and plant firmly our feet and give us victory over the disbelieving people."

Translation: Saheeh International

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Mishary Rashid Alafasy

Reflection — Ibn Kathir

The Rumor that the Prophet was Killed at Uhud

When Muslims suffered defeat in battle at Uhud and some of them were killed, Shaytan shouted, "Muhammad ﷺ has been killed." Ibn Qami'ah went back to the idolators and claimed, "I have killed Muhammad." Some Muslims believed this rumor and thought that the Messenger of Allah ﷺ had been killed, claiming that this could happen, for Allah narrated that this occurred to many Prophets before. Therefore, the Muslims' resolve was weakened and they did not actively participate in battle. This is why Allah sent down to His Messenger His statement,

وَمَا مُحَمَّدٌ إِلاَّ رَسُولٌ قَدْ خَلَتْ مِن قَبْلِهِ الرُّسُلُ

Reflection — Maarif ul Quran

Connected with previous verses where Muslims were admonished for some of their shortcomings during the battle of Uhud, the present verses cite examples set by men of Allah from earlier communities showing how steadfast they were on the battlefield, something which should be emulated by the present addressees.

The explanation of some words:

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