Tawba 97-99

Tawba 97-99 

97- THE BEDWINS ARE WORSE IN DISBELIEVING AND HYPOCRISY, AND ARE MORE LIKELY NOT TO KNOW ALLAH’S BOUNDARIES WHICH HE SENT DOWN UPON HIS MESSENGER, AND ALLAH IS MOST KNOWING AND MOST WISE.

98- AND OF THE BEDWINS THOSE WHO CONSIDER WHAT THEY SPEND IN THE CAUSE OF ALLAH TO BE THEIR LOSS, AND HOPE FOR BAD THINGS TO HAPPEN TO YOU, BUT BAD THINGS WILL HAPPEN TO THEM FOR ALLAH HEARS AND KNOWS ALL THINGS.

99- BUT OF THE BEDWINS, THERE ARE THOSE WHO BELIEVE IN ALLAH AND THE LAST DAY AND CONSIDER WHAT THEY SPEND IN THE CAUSE OF ALLAH TO BE A WAY OF BRINGING THEM CLOSE TO ALLAH, ALSO THE PRAYERS OF THE MESSENGER, INDEED IT BRINGS THEM NEARER TO ALLAH, ALLAH WILL EMBRACE THEM WITH HIS MERCY, FOR ALLAH IS MOST FORGIVING AND MOST COMPASSIONATE.

The Bedouins are the desert dwellers of the Arabs, they are also travelling people. Although they may settle down in the same area for a while, they tend to travel looking for water and grazing for their animals. I suppose that every country or society has its travelling people. Their life tends to be rough, different from the city dwellers and they tend to live in relative isolation.

On the other hand, the of Bedouins of that time, enjoyed healthier living and their Arabic tongue tended to be purer as they did not mix much with the non-Arabs, therefore their tongue was not contaminated with foreign languages. The better off city dwelling Arab families used to send their newly born to be wet nursed with the Bedouins in order to enjoy a healthy desert air and the purer Arab tongue.

Allah's messenger, prayer and peace upon him, said: “Whoever lives in the desert is going to be harsh, and whoever follows the hunt would observe other things, and whoever goes to the ruler, will be tempted”.  (A: 1:357 & Da: Sayd & T: Sayd)

Allah the highest sent His prophets and messengers from among the city dwellers, He said: “WHOM WE SENT BEFORE YOU ARE BUT MEN, WE SEND REVELATIONS TO MEN OF THE TOWN DWELLERS”.  (S: 12 A: 109)

Allah’s prophets and messengers had to deal with many people and therefore had to be gentle and able to deal with people from various backgrounds.

Among the Bedouins at the time there were: 

1. Many disbelievers and hypocrites who did not know or want to know Allah’s rules and limits.  Those of them, who spent in the cause of Allah, did not seek Allah’s pleasure with their spending, but felt that they were wasting their money.  They in fact hoped and waited for something bad to happen to the Muslims.
2. There were on the other hand, those who believed in Allah the Highest and His messenger, prayer and peace upon him, and hoped to please Allah the Highest and to be closer to Him via their spending in his cause.  Allah the Highest promised to embrace them with His Mercy and Forgiveness.

We should learn from this that things are not always what they seem, and that only Allah the Highest knows what is in people’s hearts and their intentions.