Strive has been Prescribed by God

 

Fighting was ordained but some people feared (L-570)

أَلَمْ تَرَ إِلَى ٱلَّذِينَ قِيلَ لَهُمْ كُفُّوٓا۟ أَيْدِيَكُمْ وَأَقِيمُوا۟ ٱلصَّلَوٰةَ وَءَاتُوا۟ ٱلزَّكَوٰةَ فَلَمَّا كُتِبَ عَلَيْهِمُ ٱلْقِتَالُ إِذَا فَرِيقٌ مِّنْهُمْ  يَخْشَوْنَ ٱلنَّاسَكَ خَشْيَةِ ٱللَّهِ أَوْ أَشَدَّ خَشْيَةً وَقَالُوا۟ رَبَّنَا لِمَ كَتَبْتَ عَلَيْنَا ٱلْقِتَالَ لَوْلَآ أَخَّرْتَنَآ إِلَىٰٓ أَجَلٍ قَرِيبٍ 77a.

77a.  ‘Alam  tara  ‘ilal-laziina  qiila  lahum  kuffuuu  ’aydi-yakum  wa  ‘aqiimus-Salaata wa  ‘aatuz-Zakaah.  Falammaa  kutiba  ‘alay-himul-qitaalu  ‘izaa  farii-qum-minhum  yakh-shaw-nan-naasa  ka-khashya-Tillaahi  ‘aw  ‘ashadda  khashyah.  Wa    qaaluu  Rabbanaa  lima  katabta  ‘alaynal-qitaal.  Law-laaa  ‘akh-Khartanaaa  ‘ilaaa  ‘ajalin- qariib.

77a.  Have you not considered those who were told, “Restrain your hands, and perform your prayers, and spend in regular charity”? But when fighting was ordained for them, a faction of them feared the people as God is ought to be feared, or even more. And they said, “Our Lord, why did You ordain fighting for us? If only You would postpone it for us for a short while.

Kutiba  ‘alay-him – (prescribed for them),it has been described earlier that if the word ‘alaa comes before the word katab, then it will be meant “to fix, to prescribe, to adjudge”.

‘Izaa – generally it means “when”. It also means “suddenly, all at once, abruptly etc.” it is used at such occasions, where something happens which was not expected.

‘Akh-Kharta – (giving respite, to delay, to keep giving up), the words taakhiir and mu-‘akh-khir have also been derived from the same origin which means postponement, posterior respectively.

When some people embraced Islam in Makkah, the infidels and idolaters began to vex and tyrannize them in different ways. Due to this strait-ness, the Muslims used to come to the Messenger of God (ﷺ) and say that they should be permitted to strive, but they were replied that they had not been permitted so far to fight. Till then; there was only commandment to establish worship and pay the poor-due from the wealth. It has been described in this verse that when the permission was given to fight after flight (Hijrat) from Makkah to Madinah, then terror spread over the persons, who were weak in their Belief. They began to tremble due to fear and were frightened from the people (the creature), more than the fear of  (the Creator). They began to say, “Our Lord! Why have You ordained fighting for us? If only You would have given us respite still a while, then it were better”. In Makkah, the Muslims were not permitted to fight but they were being prepared for war, because it was not acceptable to take revenge from the oppressors immediately. Such fight like savages was not acceptable to Islam. Therefore, the Muslims were commanded in Makkah that they should withhold their hands (for having patience from fighting), remain busy in establishing prayers and paying the poor-due, so that they might become habituated to sacrifice their lives and wealth, and they might know, “How to bear troubles and difficulties”. https://youtu.be/kfp6-mT-CG8