Tafseer of The Family of Imraan · Aal-i-Imraan · 3:174
So they returned with favor from Allah and bounty, no harm having touched them. And they pursued the pleasure of Allah, and Allah is the possessor of great bounty.
Important: The Arabic source text is always authoritative. This translation is a study aid and has not been verified by scholars — do not use it as a basis for religious proof or for deriving rulings (ahkam). When in doubt, always consult the Arabic text and a qualified scholar.
The explanation of His word: فَانْقَلَبُوا بِنِعْمَةٍ مِنَ اللَّهِ وَفَضْلٍ لَمْ يَمْسَسْهُمْ سُوءٌ وَاتَّبَعُوا رِضْوَانَ اللَّهِ وَاللَّهُ ذُو فَضْلٍ عَظِيمٍ (174) (So they returned with a favor from Allah and a bounty; no harm touched them, and they followed the good pleasure of Allah, and Allah is the Possessor of tremendous bounty.) (3:174)
Abū Jaʿfar said: The Exalted means by His word "So they returned with a favor from Allah," that those who responded to Allah and the Messenger after the wound had afflicted them turned back from the direction to which they had set out — namely their march in pursuit of their enemy to Ḥamrāʾ al-Asad — "with a favor from Allah," that is: with well-being from their Lord, in that they encountered no enemy thereby. "And a bounty," that is: they gained thereby profits from the trade they conducted, the reward they acquired. "No harm touched them," that is: nothing disagreeable from their enemy befell them thereby, nor any hurt. "And they followed the good pleasure of Allah," by which is meant: that they pleased Allah by doing that, through their following of His Messenger in that to which he summoned them — the pursuit of the enemy's trail — and their obedience. "And Allah is the Possessor of tremendous bounty," that is: and Allah is the Possessor of beneficence and favor toward them — by turning away from them their enemy, who had resolved to launch a new attack upon them, and by other benefactions of His to them and to others — through His favors, which are "tremendous" for that one of His creatures upon whom He bestows them.
* * *
And in agreement with what we have said concerning this, a group of the people of interpretation (taʾwīl) spoke.
* Mention of who said that:
8251 - Muḥammad ibn ʿAmr related to me, he said: Abū ʿĀṣim related to us, on the authority of ʿĪsā, on the authority of Ibn Abī Najīḥ, on the authority of Mujāhid: "So they returned with a favor from Allah and a bounty," he said: and the bounty is what they gained of trade and reward.
8252 - Al-Qāsim related to us, he said: Al-Ḥusayn related to us, he said: Ḥajjāj related to me, on the authority of Ibn Jurayj, on the authority of Mujāhid, he said: they found the market and bought, and that is His word: "So they returned with a favor from Allah and a bounty." He said: the bounty is what they gained of trade and reward. Ibn Jurayj said: what they gained of trade is a favor from Allah and a bounty; they found it unhindered and in complete tranquility, no one contesting it with them. He said: and His word "no harm touched them," he said: that is killing. "And they followed the good pleasure of Allah," he said: obedience to the Prophet ﷺ.
8253 - Ibn Ḥumayd related to us, he said: Salama related to us, on the authority of Ibn Isḥāq: "And Allah is the Possessor of tremendous bounty," because of that which was turned away from them, namely the encounter with their enemy.
8254 - Muḥammad ibn Saʿd related to us, he said: my father related to me, he said: my uncle related to me, he said: my father related to me, on the authority of his father, on the authority of Ibn ʿAbbās, he said: they obeyed Allah and sought after their need, and no one did them harm, "So they returned with a favor from Allah and a bounty; no harm touched them, and they followed the good pleasure of Allah, and Allah is the Possessor of tremendous bounty."
8255 - Muḥammad related to us, he said: Aḥmad related to us, he said: Asbāṭ related to us, on the authority of al-Suddī, he said: to the Messenger of Allah ﷺ — namely when he set out to the battle of Badr al-Ṣughrā (the lesser Badr) — dirhams were given at Badr, with which they made purchases at the fair of Badr and gained trade. That is the word of Allah: "So they returned with a favor from Allah and a bounty; no harm touched them, and they followed the good pleasure of Allah." As for "the favor," that is well-being; and as for "the bounty," that is trade; and "the harm" is killing.
