Surah Al-Imran Ayat 28 in Arabic Text
English Translation
Here you can read various translations of verse 28
Let not believers take disbelievers as allies rather than believers. And whoever [of you] does that has nothing with Allah, except when taking precaution against them in prudence. And Allah warns you of Himself, and to Allah is the [final] destination.
Let not the believers Take for friends or helpers Unbelievers rather than believers: if any do that, in nothing will there be help from Allah: except by way of precaution, that ye may Guard yourselves from them. But Allah cautions you (To remember) Himself; for the final goal is to Allah.
The believers may not take the unbelievers for their allies in preference to those who believe. Whoever does this has nothing to do with Allah unless he does so in order to protect himself from their wrong-doing. Allah warns you to beware of Him for it is to Allah that you will return.
Let not the believers take the disbelievers as Auliya (supporters, helpers, etc.) instead of the believers, and whoever does that will never be helped by Allah in any way, except if you indeed fear a danger from them. And Allah warns you against Himself (His Punishment), and to Allah is the final return.
Let not the believers take disbelievers for their friends in preference to believers. Whoso doeth that hath no connection with Allah unless (it be) that ye but guard yourselves against them, taking (as it were) security. Allah biddeth you beware (only) of Himself. Unto Allah is the journeying.
The believers should not take to themselves the disbelievers for constant patrons, apart from (i.e. rather than) the believers; and he who performs that, (then) he has nothing (to look to) from Allah, excepting that you may protect yourselves against them (in manner) of protection. And Allah bids you beware Himself; and to Allah is the Destiny.
The believers should not make the disbelievers their allies rather than other believers- anyone who does such a thing will isolate himself completely from God- except when you need to protect yourselves from them. God warns you to beware of Him: the Final Return is to God.
مومنوں کو چاہئے کہ ایمان والوں کو چھوڑ کر کافروں کو اپنا دوست نہ بنائیں اور جوایسا کرے گا وه اللہ تعالیٰ کی کسی حمایت میں نہیں مگر یہ کہ ان کے شر سے کسی طرح بچاؤ مقصود ہو، اور اللہ تعالیٰ خود تمہیں اپنی ذات سے ڈرا رہا ہے اور اللہ تعالیٰ ہی کی طرف لوٹ جانا ہے
Quran 3 Verse 28 Explanation
For those looking for commentary to help with the understanding of Surah Imran ayat 28, we’ve provided two Tafseer works below. The first is the tafseer of Abul Ala Maududi, the second is of Ibn Kathir.
Ala-Maududi
(3:28) The believers may not take the unbelievers for their allies in preference to those who believe. Whoever does this has nothing to do with Allah unless he does so in order to protect himself from their wrong-doing.[25] Allah warns you to beware of Him for it is to Allah that you will return.[26]
25. This means that it is lawful for a believer, helpless in the grip of the enemies of Islam and in imminent danger of severe wrong and persecution, to keep his faith concealed and to behave in such a manner as to create the impression that he is on the same side as his enemies. A person whose Muslim identity is discovered is permitted to adopt a friendly attitude owards the unbelievers in order to save his life. If he considers himself incapable of enduring the excesses to which he may be subjected, he may even state that he is not a believer.
26. One should not be overwhelmed by the fear of other human beings to the extent of losing the fear of God. Human beings can harm a man but the most they can do is to ruin his transient, earthly life. God, on the other hand, can subject him to everlasting torment. If one is constrained in extraordinary circumstances to resort to a prudent concealment of faith (taqiyah) in order to save one’s life, this concealment should remain within reasonable limits. The most one is permitted to do is to protect one’s life and property without jeopardizing either the interests of Islam or of the Muslim community as a whole, and without causing loss of life and property to other Muslims. One must never allow saving one’s own life to lead to the propagation of unbelief at the expense of Islam and to the dominance of unbelievers over Muslims. Here the believers are warned that, no matter how dangerous the circumstances surrounding them, they cannot escape God’s reproach if they give substantial aid to those rebelling against Him, and cause any harm to God’s chosen religion, to the community of believers or to any individual believer. For, it is to God that one will ultimately return for reckoning.
Ibn-Kathir
28. Let not the believers take the disbelievers as friends instead of the believers, and whoever does that, will never be helped by Allah in any way, unless you indeed fear a danger from them. And Allah warns you against Himself, and to Allah is the final return.
Allah prohibited His believing servants from becoming supporters of the disbelievers, or to take them as comrades with whom they develop friendships, rather than the believers. Allah warned against such behavior when He said,
(And whoever does that, will never be helped by Allah in any way) meaning, whoever commits this act that Allah has prohibited, then Allah will discard him. Similarly, Allah said,
(O you who believe! Take not My enemies and your enemies as friends, showing affection towards them), until,
(And whosoever of you does that, then indeed he has gone astray from the straight path.) ﴿60:1﴾. Allah said,
(O you who believe! Take not for friends disbelievers instead of believers. Do you wish to offer Allah a manifest proof against yourselves) ﴿4:144﴾, and,
(O you who believe! Take not the Jews and the Christians as friends, they are but friends of each other. And whoever befriends them, then surely, he is one of them.) ﴿5:51﴾.
Allah said, after mentioning the fact that the faithful believers gave their support to the faithful believers among the Muhajirin, Ansar and Bedouins,
(And those who disbelieve are allies of one another, (and) if you do not behave the same, there will be Fitnah and oppression on the earth, and a great mischief and corruption.) ﴿8:73﴾.
Allah said next,
(unless you indeed fear a danger from them) meaning, except those believers who in some areas or times fear for their safety from the disbelievers. In this case, such believers are allowed to show friendship to the disbelievers outwardly, but never inwardly. For instance, Al-Bukhari recorded that Abu Ad-Darda’ said, “We smile in the face of some people although our hearts curse them.” Al-Bukhari said that Al-Hasan said, “The Tuqyah is allowed until the Day of Resurrection.” Allah said,
(And Allah warns you against Himself.) meaning, He warns you against His anger and the severe torment He prepared for those who give their support to His enemies, and those who have enmity with His friends,
(And to Allah is the final return) meaning, the return is to Him and He will reward or punish each person according to their deeds.
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