be intenfely heated in the fire of hell, and their foreheads, and their fides
and their backs fhall be ftigmatized therewith; and their tormentors Jhallfay
This is what ye have treafured up for your fouls ; tafte therefore that which
ye have treafured up. Moreover, the complete number of months with God
is twelve months % which were ordained in the book of G o d b, on the dav
whereon he created the heavens and the earth : of thefe, four are facred s
This is the right religion: therefore deal not unjuftly with your felves therein.
But attack the idolaters in all the months, as they attack you in all1; and
know that G o d is with thofe who fear him. Verily the transferring o f a fa-
cred month to another month, is an additional infidelity'. The unbelievers are
led into an error thereby: they allow a month to be violated one year, and
declare it facred another year ', that they may agree in the number of months
which G o d hath commanded to be kept facred; and they allow that which
G od hath forbidden. The evil of their aftions hath been prepated for them:
for G od direð not the unbelieving people. O true believers, what ailed
you, that, when it was Taid unto you, Go forth to fig h i for the religion of
G o d , ye inclined heavily towards the earth8 ? Do ye prefer the prefent life
to that which is to come ? Butthe provifion of this life, in re fp e tto f that which
is to come, is but (lender. Unlefs ye go forth when ye are fummoned to war,
G od will punilh you with a grievous puniihment; and he will place another
people in your fteadh, and ye (hall not hurt him at al l; for G od is almighty.
H |
a The number of months with G od is twelve
months j] According to this paffage, the intercalation
of a month every third or fecond year,
which the Arabs had learned of the Jews, in
order to reduce their lunar years to folar years,
is abfolutely unlawful. For by this means they
fixed the time o f the pilgrimage and.of the faft
of Ramadan to certain feafons of the year, which
ought to be ambulatory I.
hIn the boo} o f G o v ;] viz. The preferred fable.
' c See the Prelim. Dilcourfe.,’ §. VIII.
d Attack the idolaters in all the months,, as they
attack you in alTf] For.it is not realonable that
you fhould obferve the facred months with regard
to thofe who do not acknowledge them to
be facred, but make war againft you therein 2.
e Vwily the transferring of a facred month to
another month is an additional infidelity ;] This
was an invention or innovation of the idolatrous
Arabs, whereby they avoided keeping a facred
month, when it fuited not their conveniency,
by keeping a prophane month, in its Head ; tranf-
ferring, for example, the obfervance of Mohaf
ram to the fucceeding month Safar. The fifft
man who put this in praftice, they fay, was
Jondda Ebn Awf, of the tribe of Kenana 3.
Thefe ordinances relating to the months, were
promulgated by Mohammed himfelf at the pilgrimage
of valedifiion
f xThey allow, a month to he violated one year, and
declare it facred another year;] As did Jondda,
who made.public proclamation at the aifembly
of pilgrims, that' their gods had flowed Mo-
harram to be prophane, whereupon they obferv-
ed it not; but the next year he told them, that
the gods had ordered it to be kept facred \
g When j t was favd unto, you, Go forth to fight
for the religion o f G o d ,, ye inclined heavily towards
theearth, &c.] viz. In the expedition of
Tabuc, a town fituate about half way between
Medina and Damafeus,, which Mohammed undertook
againft the Greeks, with an army of thirty
thoufand men, in the ninth year of the Hejra.
On this expedition, the MoJJems fet out with
great unwillingnefs, becaufe it was undertaken
in the midft of the fummer heats, and at a time
o f great, drought and fcarcity; whereby the
foldiers fuffered fd much,, that this army was
called the- diftrejfed army.: befides, their fruits
were juft ripe, and they had much-rather have
ftard to have gathered them 6.
h sSee chap. 5. p. 90.
. 1 See Paw. life of Mah. p. 6 j, £*. and the Prelim. Difc. IV. and VII. * See chap x.p. ra.
3 Al Be id aw i , Ja l la lo .’ddin . V. Poc. Spec, ^. 323. andihePrvlim. Difc. J. VH. *A-
cu l f . mt. Moh.p. 1.32. 1 -^/He id awi ., 6 idem,: Xht.lalo’ddin . V. A bubfedjfifeff.
Mob. p. 123. .... , j - ... , J
If ye affift not the prophet, verily G od w ill ajfift him, as he a (lifted him formerly,
when the unbelievers drove him out o f M e c c a , the fecond of two1;
when they were both in the cave; when he faid unto his companion, Be
not grieved, for G od is with us b. And G od fent down his fecurityc upon
him, and ftrerigthened him with armies o f angels, whom ye faw not“1. And
he made the word of thofe who believed not, to be abafed, and the word of
God was exalted ; for G od is mighty and wife. Go forth to battle, both light,
and heavy % and employ your fubftance and your perfons for the advancement
of G od’ s religion. This will be better for you ; if ye know it. If it had
been a near advantage, and a moderate journey, they had furely followed
theef; but the way feemed tedious unto them : and yet they will fwear by
God, faying, If we had been able, we had furely gone forth with you. They
deftroy their own fouls ; for G od knoweth that they are liars. G od forgive
thee ! why didft thou give them leave to flay at home*, until they who
fpeak the truth, when they excufe themfehues, had become manifefted unto thee,
and thou hadft known the liars ? They who believe in G od and thelaftday, will
not afk leave of thee, to be excufea from employing their fubftance and their
perfons for the advancement of G o d ’ s true religion; and G od knoweth thofe
who fear him. Verily they only will afk leave of thee to Jlay behind, who be-
| lieve not in G od and the laft day, and whofe hearts doubt concerning the
faith: wherefore they are tolled to. and fro in their doubting. If they had
i been willing to go forth with thee, they had certainly prepared for that pur-
| p fe a provifion o f arms, and neceffaries : but G od was averfe to their going
forth; wherefore he rendred them (lothful, and it was faid unto them, Sit ye
ftill with thofe who fit ftillh. If they had gone forth with you, they had
. only been a burthen unto you, and had run to and fro between you, ftirring
you up to fedition; and there would have been fame among you, who would
[ have given ear unto them: and G od knoweth the wicked. They formerly
fought to raife a fedition1, and they difturbed thy affairs, until the truth
came, and the decree of G od was made manifeft ; although they were averfe
thereto. There is of them who faith unto thee, Give me leave to ftay behind,
X 2 and
1 The fecond of two:] That is, having only
Aba Beer with him.
b See the Prelim. Difc. §. II. p. 51.
f See before, p. 152.net. b.
d And he Jlrengthened him with armies of angels,
&c.J Who, as fome imagine, guarded him in
the cave. Or the words may relate to the fuc-
cours from heaven which Mohammed pretended
to have received in feveral incounters; as at
Bedr, the war of the ditch, and the battle of
Honein.
' Both light and heavy;] i. e. Whether the expedition
be agreeable or not; or whether ye
have fuihcient arms and proviiions or not j or
whether ye be on horfeback or on foot,. fsV.
I If it bad .been a near advantage and a moderate
journey, &c.] That is, had there been no
difficulties to furmount in the expedition of Pa-
buc, and the march thither had been fhort and
eafy, fo that the plunder might have coft them
little or no trouble, they would not have been
fo backward.
s Why didft thou give them have to ftay at home,
&c.] For Mohammed excufed feveral of his men,
on their requeft, from going on this expedition ;
as Abdd-llah-Ebn Qbba, and his hypocritical adherents,
and aifo three of the Anfdrsi for which
he is here reprehended.
h With thofe who fit f t i ll;] i. e. With the
women and children, and other impotent people.
1 They formerly fought to raife a fedition, &c.J
As they did at the battle of Ohed 1.
See chap. 3. f . 50, fsV..