وَلَا تَحْسَبَنَّ ٱلَّذِينَ قُتِلُوا۟ فِى سَبِيلِ ٱللَّهِ أَمْوَٰتًۢا بَلْ أَحْيَآءٌ عِندَ رَبِّهِمْ يُرْزَقُونَ
Wa lā taḥsabanna'lladhīna qutilū fī sabīli'llāhi amwātā, bal aḥyāʾun ʿinda rabbihim yurzaqūn · Fariḥīna bimā ātāhumu'llāhu min faḍlihī wa yastabshirūna bi'lladhīna lam yalḥaqū bihim min khalfihim allā khawfun ʿalayhim wa lā hum yaḥzanūn · Yastabshirūna bi-niʿmatin mina'llāhi wa faḍlin wa anna'llāha lā yuḍīʿu ajra'l-muʾminīn
"Do not suppose those killed in the way of God to be dead. Rather they are alive, provided for with their Lord. · They rejoice in what God has given them of His bounty, and they rejoice for those who have not yet joined them from behind: no fear shall be upon them, and they shall not grieve. · They rejoice in a favour and a bounty from God; and God does not let the reward of the believers go to waste."
This verse must be read together with 2/154 in al-Baqara, and the difference between the two verses is the point this commentary draws attention to.
At 2/154 in al-Baqara this verse was already named and a table was drawn up. I rely on that treatment and widen the table:
| al-Baqara 2/154 | Āl ʿImrān 3/169 | |
|---|---|---|
| Mood | Wa lā taqūlū — "do not say" | Wa lā taḥsabanna — "do not suppose" |
| What is intervened in | Speech | Supposition |
| The addressee | Plural — the community | Singular — with the nūn of emphasis |
| The verb | Li-man yuqtalu — imperfect, ongoing | Alladhīna qutilū — perfect, accomplished |
| The close | Wa lākin lā tashʿurūn — "you do not perceive" | ʿInda rabbihim yurzaqūn — "they are provided for" |
| What is given | The limit of knowledge | A part of the knowledge |
And it was recorded in al-Baqara:
"One states the limit of the knowledge, the other gives a part of the knowledge. The verse in al-Baqara breaks off without saying anything about the nature of that life."
One. The prohibition is laid not on speech but on supposition. Al-Baqara says lā taqūlū (do not say); here it says lā taḥsabanna (do not suppose). The two are separate fields: one language, the other judgement.
I record this as my own reading, and its ground is the difference between the two verbs: al-Baqara was intervening in the naming; Āl ʿImrān intervenes in the appraisal behind the naming. And the order is meaningful — first the word was corrected, then the conviction.
The root ر-ز-ق: what is brought regularly to someone. And the verb is passive: the giver is not spoken of, the state of receiving is conveyed.
I record this as an observation about the word: al-Baqara says "they are alive" and stops. Āl ʿImrān adds a verb — and the verb added is the most everyday mark of life: being fed. That is, the presence of life is shown not by an adjective but by a verb.
Three. And I keep the limit here as well. This was recorded in al-Baqara and holds exactly:
"I do not say what the text does not say about what kind of life this is, where it goes on, or in what form."
Āl ʿImrān says ʿinda rabbihim (with their Lord) and yurzaqūn (they are provided for); and in verses 170-171 it adds two more verbs: fariḥīn (they rejoice) and yastabshirūn (they receive good news / they rejoice). I go no further than these.
And the word order of the two verses must be recorded, because rejoicing is named twice and about two different things:
| Verse | Verb | The object of the rejoicing |
|---|---|---|
| 170 | Fariḥīna bimā ātāhumu'llāh | What has been given to them |
| 170 | Wa yastabshirūna bi'lladhīna lam yalḥaqū bihim | Those left behind |
| 171 | Yastabshirūna bi-niʿmatin mina'llāhi wa faḍl | Favour and bounty |
And the middle one is worth recording: part of the rejoicing is not for themselves but for those who have not yet come.
I record this as an observation about the word order: while telling of a loss the verse turns the gaze to those left behind. And the word spoken is given not in their mouths but about them: allā khawfun ʿalayhim wa lā hum yaḥzanūn.
And this construction is one that occurs often in the Qurʾān and was treated at 2/38, 2/62 and 2/112 in al-Baqara. I rely on those treatments.
بشر — root ب-ش-ر: the outer surface of the skin; and from this, joy showing on the face. The root was treated in Maryam and Hūd. And in Form X (yastabshirūn) the seeking or the mutual showing of joy is conveyed.