وَإِنْ أَحَدٌ مِّنَ ٱلْمُشْرِكِينَ ٱسْتَجَارَكَ فَأَجِرْهُ حَتَّىٰ يَسْمَعَ كَلَٰمَ ٱللَّهِ ثُمَّ أَبْلِغْهُ مَأْمَنَهُۥ
Wa in aḥadun mina'l-mushrikīna'stajāraka fa-ajirhu ḥattā yasmaʿa kalāma'llāhi thumma ablighhu maʾmanah; dhālika bi-annahum qawmun lā yaʿlamūn
"And if one of the mushrikūn asks you for protection, grant him protection — so that he may hear the word of God. Then bring him to the place where he will be safe. That is because they are a people who do not know."
This is a fact decisive for the reading of the block, and it can be verified from the text: immediately behind the verse that carries the harshest command, a ruling of protection has been placed for a single individual from the other side.
I record this as my own reading, and its ground is the order of the two verses: at the very place where it issues the ruling, the text also opens the door that leads out of it. And the side that opens the door is the side that issued the ruling.
| Derivative | Meaning |
|---|---|
| جَار (jār) | Neighbour; one who is under another's protection |
| أَجَارَ (ajāra) | He protected, he took under his protection |
| ٱسْتَجَارَ (istajāra) | Form X — he sought protection, he took refuge |
| جِوَار (jiwār) | Neighbourhood; protection |
The root was treated in al-Mulk, al-Muʾminūn, al-Naḥl and al-Jinn. The occurrence of the word in al-Anfāl at 8/48 must be recorded separately: there Satan's words were wa innī jārun lakum ("I am beside you / your protector"), and he did not keep his word.
| Place | Who says it | Outcome |
|---|---|---|
| al-Anfāl 8/48 | Satan: innī jārun lakum | Nakaṣa ʿalā ʿaqibayh — he drew back |
| al-Tawba 9/6 | The command: fa-ajirhu | Thumma ablighhu maʾmanah — he is brought to a place of safety |
I record this as my own reading, and its ground is the presence of the same root in two separate verses: in one, protection is promised and then abandoned; in the other, protection is commanded and required to be carried through to the end.
| Stage | Wording | Obligation |
|---|---|---|
| 1 | فَأَجِرْهُ | Grant protection — do not refuse the request |
| 2 | حَتَّىٰ يَسْمَعَ كَلَٰمَ ٱللَّهِ | Enable him to hear — the purpose of the protection |
| 3 | ثُمَّ أَبْلِغْهُ مَأْمَنَهُۥ | Bring him to his place of safety — even when the protection is over |
And the verb is abligh: "bring him through." That is, not merely "let him go" — an obligation to deliver is laid down.
I record this as my own reading, and its ground is the particle thumma together with the transitivity of the verb: whether or not the hearing has borne fruit — no condition of acceptance is laid down — the verse places the person's safety in this side's charge.
And this note is important: ḥattā yasmaʿa kalāma'llāh is a condition of hearing, not a condition of acceptance. The verse does not say "until he believes"; it says "until he hears". And what is to be done afterwards is to take him to a place of safety even if he has not accepted.
I record this as an observation: the verse ties the ground of the protection to not knowing. The other side's position, that is, is explained not by enmity but by ignorance — and the remedy for not knowing is that the chance to hear be given.
The same measure was recorded in Muḥammad at 47/16: the verse issues no ruling against one who does not know. I rely on that treatment.