Tafseer of The Clans · Al-Ahzaab · 33:13
And when a faction of them said, "O people of Yathrib, there is no stability for you [here], so return [home]." And a party of them asked permission of the Prophet, saying, "Indeed, our houses are unprotected," while they were not exposed. They did not intend except to flee.
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 the word of the Exalted: And when a faction of them said: O people of Yathrib, there is no abode for you, so return. And a party of them asked permission of the Prophet, saying: Our houses are exposed — though they were not exposed; they wished for nothing but to flee (33:13)
The Exalted, whose praise is exalted, means by His word: And when a faction of them said: O people of Yathrib, there is no abode for you — and when some of them said: O people of Yathrib. Yathrib is the name of a region, and it is said that the city of the Messenger of Allah, may Allah bless him and grant him peace, lies in a district of Yathrib. And His word: there is no abode for you, so return — with a fatḥa on the mīm of "maqām." He says: there is no place for you where you can remain standing. As the poet said:
"So whoever of me and whoever of you was the worse, he was carried off to the abode (al-maqāma) and will not see it." (14)
His word: so return — He says: so return to your dwellings. He commanded them to flee from the army camp of the Messenger of Allah, may Allah bless him and grant him peace, and to flee away from him and to abandon the Messenger of Allah, may Allah bless him and grant him peace. It is said that this was a statement of Aws ibn Qayẓī and those who agreed with his opinion.
* Mention of who said that:
Ibn Ḥumayd related to us, saying: Salama related to us, on the authority of Ibn Isḥāq, who said: Yazīd ibn Rūmān related to me: And when a faction of them said: O people of Yathrib ... up to to flee, he says: Aws ibn Qayẓī and those of his people who held this opinion. And the recitation is with a fatḥa on the mīm of His word: there is no maqām for you, with the meaning: there is no place of standing for you. That is the recitation in deviation from which I do not consider it permissible to recite, on account of the consensus of the authoritative reciters concerning it. And it has been reported of Abū ʿAbd al-Raḥmān al-Sulamī that he recited this as there is no muqām for you with a ḍamma on the mīm, that is: there is no place of residing for you.
And His word: And a party of them asked permission of the Prophet, saying: Our houses are exposed — though they were not exposed — the Exalted, whose praise is exalted, says: and some of them asked the Messenger of Allah, may Allah bless him and grant him peace, for permission to withdraw from him to their dwelling, but in reality he wished to flee and to run away from the army camp of the Messenger of Allah, may Allah bless him and grant him peace.
And in accordance with what we have said concerning this, the people of interpretation have spoken.
* Mention of who said that:
Muḥammad ibn Saʿd related to me, saying: my father related to me, saying: my uncle related to me, saying: my father related to me, on the authority of his father, on the authority of Ibn ʿAbbās, concerning His word: And a party of them asked permission of the Prophet ... up to His word: then to flee — he said: it is the Banū Ḥāritha; they said: our houses stand unguarded, we fear theft from them.
Muḥammad ibn ʿAmr related to me, saying: Abū ʿĀṣim related to us, saying: ʿĪsā related to us; and al-Ḥārith related to me, saying: al-Ḥasan related to us, saying: Warqāʾ related to us; both on the authority of Ibn Abī Najīḥ, on the authority of Mujāhid, concerning His word: Our houses are exposed — he said: we fear theft from them.
Bishr related to us, saying: Yazīd related to us, saying: Saʿīd related to us, on the authority of Qatāda, concerning His word: And a party of them asked permission of the Prophet, saying: Our houses are exposed — though they were not exposed — and they lie on the side adjoining the enemy, and we fear the thieves from them. Then the Prophet, may Allah bless him and grant him peace, sent [someone] there, and he found no enemy there. Allah said: they wished for nothing but to flee — He says: their statement Our houses are exposed was only [intended], they wished by it for nothing but flight.
Muḥammad ibn Sinān al-Qazzāz related to us, saying: ʿUbayd Allāh ibn Ḥumrān related to us, saying: ʿAbd al-Salām ibn Shaddād Abū Ṭālūt related to us, on the authority of his father, concerning this verse: Our houses are exposed — though they were not exposed — he said: abandoned/undefended.
