The Situation of the True Believer and the Sick-Hearted when the Command for Jihad was revealed

Allah mentions that the believers were hoping that Jihad would be legislated. But when Allah ordained it, many of the people turned back, as Allah says,

أَلَمْ تَرَ إِلَى الَّذِينَ قِيلَ لَهُمْ كُفُّواْ أَيْدِيَكُمْ وَأَقِيمُواْ الصَّلَوةَ وَءَاتُواْ الزَّكَوةَ فَلَمَّا كُتِبَ عَلَيْهِمُ الْقِتَالُ إِذَا فَرِيقٌ مِّنْهُمْ يَخْشَوْنَ النَّاسَ كَخَشْيَةِ اللَّهِ أَوْ أَشَدَّ خَشْيَةً وَقَالُواْ رَبَّنَا لِمَ كَتَبْتَ عَلَيْنَا الْقِتَالَ لَوْلا أَخَّرْتَنَا إِلَى أَجَلٍ قَرِيبٍ قُلْ مَتَـعُ الدُّنْيَا قَلِيلٌ وَالاٌّخِرَةُ خَيْرٌ لِّمَنِ اتَّقَى وَلاَ تُظْلَمُونَ فَتِيلاً

Commentary

سُورَ‌ةٌ مُّحْكَمَةٌ (an operative surah): The word مُّحْكَمَةٌ muhkamah lexically means "firm". In this lexical sense, every surah is muhkam, but here it is used in its technical sense. In the technical parlance of the sacred law, the term muhkam is used as an antonym of mansukh, ("abrogated" ). Here the word Surah has been qualified by the adjective muhkamah so that the eagerness of the believers for a new Surah is understandable only when it embodies an operative divine commandment that is not abrogated. Qatadah, says that all Surahs which contain the injunctions of Jihad and Qital are operative and not abrogated. As the main objective of this Surah is to enjoin fighting and to persuade people to carry out the injunction, the adjectival phrase is: Surah muhkamah - indicating the injunction of Jihad. (Qurtubi)