Surah Al-Hashr
Chapter 59 · Verse 3 · Revealed in Madinah
“And if not that Allah had decreed for them evacuation, He would have punished them in [this] world, and for them in the Hereafter is the punishment of the Fire.”
Translation: Saheeh International
Listen to recitation
Mishary Rashid Alafasy
Reflection — Ibn Kathir
Which was revealed in Al-Madinah
Ibn `Abbas used to call this chapter, `Surah Bani An-Nadir.' Sa`id bin Mansur recorded that Sa`id bin Jubayr said, "I asked Ibn `Abbas about Surat Al-Hashr and he said, `It was revealed about Bani An-Nadir."' Al-Bukhari and Muslim recorded it using another chain of narration from Ibn `Abbas. Al-Bukhari also recorded it from Abu `Awanah, from Abu Bishr from Sa`id bin Jubayr, who said, "I asked Ibn `Abbas, `Surat Al-Hashr' He said, `Surah Bani An-Nadir."'
بِسْمِ اللَّهِ الرَّحْمَـنِ الرَّحِيمِ
Reflection — Maarif ul Quran
(1) The original word used in the text is 'hashr' which means 'gathering' or 'mustering' and after which this Surah is named. In the present context, it may be interpreted in two different ways. One, that it refers to the gathering of the Muslims who ordered the Jews to leave Madinah due to their constant conspiracies and breaches of the treaty they had with the Muslims. According to this interpretation, the verse means that the Jews of Bani Nadir were made to leave the city at the first gathering of the Muslims without fighting and without any further attempt to attack them. The second interpretation is that it refers to the gathering of the Jews for the purpose of emigration. In this case the verse indicates that it was their first exile before which they did not face such a situation. It has another subtle indication to the fact that this was their first exile which will be followed by another one, i.e. the exile faced by the Jews in the days of Sayyidna ` Umar . (Muhammad Taqi Usmani)
لِأَوَّلِ الْحَشْرِ (...at the time of the first gathering...59:2). The word hashr means 'to rise'. One reason for referring to it as the 'first mustering' is given by Maulana Thanawi (رح) in his Tafsir. They were settled at one place since ancient times. This event of banishment took place for the first time in their life. The second reason could be that all the non-Muslims of the Arabian peninsula would have to be evacuated in future, so that the peninsula might become a strong fortress of Islam. As a result, a second banishment was to take place at some later time. This happened during the caliphate of ` Umar ؓ ، the Holy Prophet's Second Successor. He banished all the Jews who had settled in Khaibar. He ordered all the Jews to leave the Arabian peninsula. From this point of view, Banu Nadir's banishment is the 'first banishment' and the 'second banishment' took place in the time of Sayyidna ` Umar ؓ .
What does this verse bring up for you today?