Al-Qur'an Surah Al-Anfal Verse 1

Mufti Taqi Usmani

They ask you about the spoils. Say, “The spoils are for Allah and the Messenger.” So, fear Allah, and set your relations right, and obey Allah and His Messenger, if you are believers.

Dr. Mustafa Khattab, the Clear Quran

They ask you ˹O Prophet˺ regarding the spoils of war. Say, “Their distribution is decided by Allah and His Messenger. So be mindful of Allah, settle your affairs, and obey Allah and His Messenger if you are ˹true˺ believers.”

Ruwwad Translation Center

They ask you [O Prophet] about the spoils of war. Say, “The spoils of war belong to Allah and the Messenger. So fear Allah, settle your affairs among yourselves, and obey Allah and His Messenger, if you are [true] believers.”

A. J. Arberry

They will question thee concerning the spoils. Say: 'The spoils belong to God and the Messenger; so fear you God, and set things right between you, and obey you God and His Messenger, if you are believers.'

Abdul Haleem

They ask you [Prophet] about [distributing] the battle gains. Say, ‘That is a matter for God and His Messenger, so be mindful of God and make things right between you. Obey God and His Messenger if you are true believers:

Abdul Majid Daryabadi

They ask thee concerning the spoils of war. Say thou: the spoils of war are Allah's and the apostle's. So fear Allah, and set right the matter among you, and obey Allah and His apostle if ye are believers.

Abdullah Yusuf Ali

They ask thee concerning (things taken as) spoils of war. Say; "(such) spoils are at the disposal of Allah and the Messenger; So fear Allah, and keep straight the relations between yourselves; Obey Allah and His Messenger, if ye do believe."

Abul Ala Maududi

They ask you concerning the spoils of war? Tell them: 'The spoils of war belong to Allah and the Messenger. So fear Allah, and set things right between you, and obey Allah and His Messenger if you are true believers.

Ahmed Ali

THEY ASK YOU of (benefits accruing as) spoils of war. Tell them: "The benefits belong to God and His Messenger." So fulfil your duty to God and keep peace among yourselves. Obey God and the Prophet, If you really believe.

Ahmed Raza Khan

They ask you O dear Prophet (Mohammed – peace and blessings be upon him) concerning the war booty; say, “Allah and the Noble Messenger are the owners of the war booty; so fear Allah and maintain friendship among yourselves; and obey Allah and His Noble Messenger, if you have faith."

Ali Quli Qarai

They ask you concerning the anfaal. Say, ‘The anfaal belong to Allah and the Apostle.’ So be wary of Allah and settle your differences, and obey Allah and His Apostle, should you be faithful.

Ali Ünal

They (the believers) ask you about the war-gains. Say: "The war-gains belong to God and the Messenger (and they distribute them as they will)." So keep from disobedience to God in reverence for Him and piety, and set things right among yourselves to allow no discord; and obey God and His Messenger if you are true believers.

Amatul Rahman Omar

People ask you about the voluntary gifts (for the advancement of the cause of Allâh). Say, `The voluntary gifts are at the disposal of Allâh and His Messenger (to administer). So take Allâh as a shield and reconcile your mutual differences and obey Allâh and His Messenger if you are (true) believers.

English Literal

They ask/question you about the spoils/gifts . Say: "The spoils/gifts (are) to God and the messenger, so fear and obey God and correct/repair that what is between you, and obey God and His messenger, if you were believing."

Faridul Haque

They ask you O dear Prophet (Mohammed - peace and blessings be upon him) concerning the war booty; say, "Allah and the Noble Messenger are the owners of the war booty; so fear Allah and maintain friendship among yourselves; and obey Allah and His Noble Messenger, if you have faith."

Hamid S. Aziz

They will ask you about the spoils of war. Say, "The spoils belong to Allah and the Messenger, so fear (keep your duty to) Allah and keep straight the relationship amongst yourselves; obey Allah and the Messenger if you do believe."

Hilali & Khan

They ask you (O Muhammad SAW) about the spoils of war. Say: "The spoils are for Allah and the Messenger." So fear Allah and adjust all matters of difference among you, and obey Allah and His Messenger (Muhammad SAW), if you are believers.

Maulana Mohammad Ali

Surely those who are with thy Lord are not too proud to serve Him, and they glorify Him and prostrate themselves before Him.

Mohammad Habib Shakir

They ask you about the windfalls. Say: The windfalls are for Allah and the Apostle. So be careful of (your duty to) Allah and set aright matters of your difference, and obey Allah and His Apostle if you are believers.

Mohammed Marmaduke William Pickthall

They ask thee (O Muhammad) of the spoils of war. Say: The spoils of war belong to Allah and the messenger, so keep your duty to Allah, and adjust the matter of your difference, and obey Allah and His messenger, if ye are (true) believers.

Muhammad Sarwar

They (the believers) ask you (Muhammad) about the booty captured (from the enemies) during a war. Tell them, "It belongs to God and the Messengers. If you have faith, have fear of God. Settle the disputes among yourselves and obey God and His Messengers."

Qaribullah & Darwish

They ask you about the spoils (of war). Say: 'The spoils belong to Allah and the Messenger. Therefore, have fear of Allah and set things right between you. Obey Allah and His Messenger, if you are believers'

Safi-ur-Rahman al-Mubarakpuri

They ask you about Al-Anfal (the spoils of war). Say: "Al-Anfal are for Allah and the Messenger." So have Taqwa of Allah and settle all matters of difference among you, and obey Allah and His Messenger, if you are believers.

Wahiduddin Khan

They ask you about the spoils of war. Say, "They belong to God and His Messenger. So fear God, and set things right among yourselves, and obey God and His Messenger, if you are true believers:

Talal Itani

They ask you about the bounties. Say, “The bounties are for God and the Messenger.” So be mindful of God, and settle your differences, and obey God and His Messenger, if you are believers.

Tafsir jalalayn

`They question you, O Muhammad (s), concerning the spoils of war -- the booty -- to whom do they belong? Say, to them; `The spoils of war belong to God, Who places them where He will, and the Messenger, who divides them according to God's command. The Prophet (s) divided these [spoils] between them equally, as reported by al-Hkim in his al-Mustadrak. So fear God and set things right between you, that is, [set right] the reality of that [state of affairs] which is between you, through mutual affection and the refraining from quarrelling; and obey God and His Messenger, if you are, truly, believers'.

Tafseer Ibn Kathir

Allah said,

يَسْأَلُونَكَ عَنِ الَانفَالِ قُلِ الَانفَالُ لِلّهِ وَالرَّسُولِ


They ask you about Al-Anfal (the spoils of war). Say;"Al-Anfal are for Allah and the Messenger."
Meaning of Anfal

Al-Bukhari recorded that Ibn Abbas said,

"Al-Anfal are the spoils of war."

Al-Bukhari also recorded that Sa`id bin Jubayr said,

"I said to Ibn Abbas, `Surah Al-Anfal!'

He said, `It was revealed concerning (the battle of) Badr."'

Ali bin Abi Talhah reported, as Al-Bukhari recorded from Ibn Abbas without a chain of narration, that Ibn Abbas said,

"Al-Anfal are the spoils of war; they were for the Messenger of Allah, and none had a share in them."

Similar was said by Mujahid, Ikrimah, Ata, Ad-Dahhak, Qatadah, Ata Al-Khurasani, Muqatil bin Hayyan, Abdur-Rahman bin Zayd bin Aslam and several others.

It was also said that the Nafl (singular for Anfal) refers to the portion of the spoils of war that the commander gives to some of the fighters after dividing the bulk of the spoils.

It was also said that Anfal refers to the Khumus; one-fifth of the captured goods after four-fifths are divided (between the fighters).

It was also said that the Anfal refers to the Fay', the possessions taken from the disbelievers without fighting, and the animals, servants or whatever other possessions escape from the disbelievers to Muslims.

Ibn Jarir recorded that Ali bin Salih bin Hay said;

"It has reached me that;
يَسْأَلُونَكَ عَنِ الَانفَالِ
(They ask you about Al-Anfal) is about the divisions. This refers to what the Imam gives to some squads in addition to what is divided among the rest of the soldiers."
The Reason behind revealing Ayah 8;1

Imam Ahmad recorded that Sa`d bin Malik said,

"I said, `O Allah's Messenger, Allah has brought comfort to me today over the idolators, so grant me this sword.'

He said,

إِنَّ هَذَا السَّيْفَ لَا لَكَ وَلَا لِي ضَعْه

This sword is neither yours nor mine; put it down.

So I put it down, but said to myself, `The Prophet might give this sword to another man who did not fight as fiercely as I did.'

I heard a man calling me from behind and I said, `Has Allah revealed something in my case?'

The Prophet said,

كُنْتَ سَأَلْتَنِي السَّيْفَ وَلَيْسَ هُوَ لِي وَإِنَّهُ قَدْ وُهِبَ لِي فَهُو لَك

You asked me to give you the sword, but it is not for me to decide about. However, it has been granted to me (by Allah), and I give it to you.

So Allah sent down this Ayah,

يَسْأَلُونَكَ عَنِ الَانفَالِ قُلِ الَانفَالُ لِلّهِ وَالرَّسُولِ

They ask you about Al-Anfal. Say;"Al-Anfal are for Allah and the Messenger."

Abu Dawud, At-Tirmidhi and An-Nasa'i collected this Hadith, At-Tirmidhi said, "Hasan Sahih".
Another Reason behind revealing the Ayah

Imam Ahmad recorded that Abu Umamah said,

"I asked Ubadah about Al-Anfal and he said, `It was revealed about us, those who participated in (the battle of) Badr, when we disputed about An-Nafl and our dispute was not appealing. So Allah took Al-Anfalfrom us and gave it to the Messenger of Allah. The Messenger divided it equally among Muslims."'

Imam Ahmad recorded that Abu Umamah said that Ubadah bin As-Samit said,

"We went with the Messenger of Allah to the battle of Badr. When the two armies met, Allah defeated the enemy and some of us pursued them inflicting utter defeat and casualties. Another group of us came to the battlefield collecting the spoils of war. Another group surrounded the Messenger of Allah, so that the enemy could not attack him suddenly. When it was night and the various army groups went back to our camp, some of those who collected the spoils said, `We collected it, so none else will have a share in it.'

Those who went in pursuit of the enemy said, `No, you have no more right to it than us. We kept the enemy away from the war spoils and defeated them.'

Those who surrounded the Messenger of Allah to protect him said, `You have no more right to it than us, we surrounded the Messenger of Allah for fear that the enemy might conduct a surprise attack against him, so we were busy.'

The Ayah,
يَسْأَلُونَكَ عَنِ الَانفَالِ قُلِ الَانفَالُ لِلّهِ وَالرَّسُولِ فَاتَّقُواْ اللّهَ وَأَصْلِحُواْ ذَاتَ بِيْنِكُمْ
(They ask you about Al-Anfal (the spoils of war). Say;"Al-Anfal are for Allah and the Messenger." So fear Allah and settle all matters of difference among you).

was revealed and the Messenger of Allah divided the Anfal equally between Muslims."'

وَكَانَ رَسُولُ اللهِ صلى الله عليه وسلّم إِذَا أَغَارَ فِي أَرْضِ الْعَدُوِّ نَفَلَ الرُّبُعَ فَإِذَا أَقْبَلَ وَكُلّ النَّاسِ رَاجِعًا نَفَلَ الثُّلُث

And Allah's Messenger would give a fourth for Anfal when there was a surprise attack in the land of the enemy, and when there was a confrontation then a third to the people who returned.

The Prophet used to dislike the Anfal and encouraged strong fighters to give some of their share to weak Muslim fighters.

At-Tirmidhi and Ibn Majah collected a similar narration for this Hadith, and At-Tirmidhi said, "Hasan".

Allah said,

فَاتَّقُواْ اللّهَ وَأَصْلِحُواْ ذَاتَ بِيْنِكُمْ

So have Taqwa of Allah and settle all matters of difference among you,

The Ayah commands, have Taqwa of Allah in all your affairs, settle matters of differences between you, do not wrong each other, do not dispute, and do not differ. Certainly, the guidance and knowledge that Allah has granted you is better than what you are disputing about (such as Al-Anfal),

وَأَطِيعُواْ اللّهَ وَرَسُولَهُ

and obey Allah and His Messenger,

in the division that the Messenger makes according to Allah's order. The Prophet only divided according to what Allah ordained, which is perfectly just and fair.

Ibn Abbas commented on this Ayah,

"This is a command from Allah and His Messenger to the believers, that they should have Taqwa of Allah and settle all matters of differences between them."

A similar statement was reported from Mujahid.

As-Suddi also commented on Allah's statement,
فَاتَّقُواْ اللّهَ وَأَصْلِحُواْ ذَاتَ بِيْنِكُمْ
(So have Taqwa of Allah and settle all matters of difference among you),

meaning "Do not curse each other."

إِن كُنتُم مُّوْمِنِينَ



if you are believers