وَقَـٰتِلُوهُمْ حَتَّىٰ لَا تَكُونَ فِتْنَةٌ وَيَكُونَ ٱلدِّينُ لِلَّهِ ۖ فَإِنِ ٱنتَهَوْا۟ فَلَا عُدْوَٰنَ إِلَّا عَلَى ٱلظَّـٰلِمِينَ 193
Translations
Fight them until there is no [more] fitnah and [until] religion [i.e., worship] is [acknowledged to be] for Allāh. But if they cease, then there is to be no aggression [i.e., assault] except against the oppressors.
Transliteration
Wa qatiluhum hatta la takuna fitnah wa yakun al-din lillah fa-in intahaw fa-la udwan illa ala al-zalimin
Tafsir (Explanation)
This ayah commands fighting the disbelievers until fitnah (persecution/oppression) ceases and the deen (religion) is established for Allah alone. Ibn Kathir and Al-Tabari interpret 'fitnah' as the persecution of Muslims and the prevention of religious freedom, not merely non-belief itself. The ayah establishes the just cause for fighting while the final clause provides the crucial condition: if the enemy ceases hostilities, aggression should stop except against those who persist in oppression.
Revelation Context
Revealed in Medina during the period of defensive warfare against the Quraysh and pagan Arab tribes who persecuted Muslims. This ayah is part of the broader context (2:190-194) that legislated fighting in Islam for the first time, permitting self-defense after years of persecution in Mecca. It addresses the specific conditions under which fighting becomes permissible and obligatory.
Related Hadiths
Sahih Bukhari 4494: The Prophet (ﷺ) said, 'I have been commanded to fight the people until they testify that there is no deity except Allah.' Sunan Abu Dawud 2635: The Prophet forbade killing monks and those who do not fight, emphasizing that fighting is only against those who fight Muslims.
Themes
Key Lesson
Muslims are commanded to combat oppression and persecution to safeguard religious freedom, not to force conversion or achieve territorial conquest, and must immediately cease hostilities when the enemy stops fighting. This principle teaches that Islamic warfare has defined objectives centered on justice and freedom of conscience, with strict ethical boundaries that transcend mere military victory.
Related Ayahs
وَإِذَا قِيلَ لَهُمْ لَا تُفْسِدُوا۟ فِى ٱلْأَرْضِ قَالُوٓا۟ إِنَّمَا نَحْنُ مُصْلِحُونَ
And when it is said to them, "Do not cause corruption on the earth," they say, "We are but reformers."
وَقَالَ ٱلَّذِينَ ٱتَّبَعُوا۟ لَوْ أَنَّ لَنَا كَرَّةً فَنَتَبَرَّأَ مِنْهُمْ كَمَا تَبَرَّءُوا۟ مِنَّا ۗ كَذَٰلِكَ يُرِيهِمُ ٱللَّهُ أَعْمَـٰلَهُمْ حَسَرَٰتٍ عَلَيْهِمْ ۖ وَمَا هُم بِخَـٰرِجِينَ مِنَ ٱلنَّارِ
Those who followed will say, "If only we had another turn [at worldly life] so we could disassociate ourselves from them as they have disassociated themselves from us." Thus will Allāh show them their deeds as regrets upon them. And they are never to emerge from the Fire.
أُو۟لَـٰٓئِكَ ٱلَّذِينَ ٱشْتَرَوُا۟ ٱلضَّلَـٰلَةَ بِٱلْهُدَىٰ وَٱلْعَذَابَ بِٱلْمَغْفِرَةِ ۚ فَمَآ أَصْبَرَهُمْ عَلَى ٱلنَّارِ
Those are the ones who have exchanged guidance for error and forgiveness for punishment. How patient they are for [i.e., in pursuit of] the Fire!
يَـٰٓأَيُّهَا ٱلَّذِينَ ءَامَنُوا۟ كُلُوا۟ مِن طَيِّبَـٰتِ مَا رَزَقْنَـٰكُمْ وَٱشْكُرُوا۟ لِلَّهِ إِن كُنتُمْ إِيَّاهُ تَعْبُدُونَ
O you who have believed, eat from the good [i.e., lawful] things which We have provided for you and be grateful to Allāh if it is [indeed] Him that you worship.