The Jews of Madeenah were stunned with fear and terror throughout the interval between the murder of Ka‘b bin Al-Ashraf and the Battle of Uhud which took place in Shawwaal, 3 A.H. However, the Muslims’ defeat in the Battle of Uhud revived the hope of the polytheists and hypocrites to get what they were aspiring for, and the Jews were no longer apprehensive about their fate as their relief had been reinforced by the murder of Muslims at Ar-Rajee‘ water and the well of Ma‘oonah. Thus, no sooner had the Jews gotten rid of their fear than they readopted their methods of evil scheming and deceit. They rushed to equip their forts with war gear to attack the Muslims and their state. Then, they were determined to treacherously murder the Prophet .
First: History and Causes of the Battle
A. A history of the battle
Specialist historians hold that the Battle of Banu An-Nadheer took place after the Battle of Uhud in Rabee‘ Al-Awwal, in the fourth year of Hijrah (emigration). Ibn Al-Qayyim answered those who claimed that the Battle of Banu An-Nadheer occurred six months after the Battle of Badr, saying:
“Muhammad bin Shihaab Az-Zuhri claimed that the Battle of Banu An-Nadheer was six months after the Battle of Badr, but he was either mistaken or driven to such a delusion. Without any doubt, the Battle of Banu An-Nadheer took place after the Battle of Uhud. It was the Battle of Banu Qaynuqaa‘ that took place six months after the Battle of Badr; the Battle of Banu Quraythah took place after the Battle of Al-Khandaq [the Trench]; and the Battle of Khaybar took place after the Treaty of Al-Hudaybiyah.”
Ibn Al-‘Arabi said, “The soundest view is that the Battle of Banu An-Nadheer took place after the Battle of Uhud, and this was also the opinion of Ibn Katheer .”
B. Causes of the battle
There were several reasons that made the Prophet invade Banu An-Nadheer and evict them:
1. Banu An-Nadheer breached their covenant under which they should not have housed the enemies of Islam. Moreover, they guided the enemies to the points of weakness of Madeenah.
This took place after the Battle of As-Saweeq wherein Abu Sufyaan, after returning to Makkah from the Battle of Badr, vowed not to wash from Janaabah (post sexual intercourse impurity) until he had invaded Madeenah. When he set out with two hundred riders heading for Madeenah, the leader of Banu An-Nadheer, Sallaam bin Mishkam, hosted him and conveyed to him the secrets of the Muslims. The Islamic intelligence was not heedless of that.
In this regard, Moosaa bin ‘Uqbah who authored Al-Maghaazi, said, “Banu An-Nadheer played the role of intelligence to Quraysh in their fight against the Messenger . They urged them to fight him, and guided them to the vulnerable spots.”
2. An assassination attempt: The Prophet set out along with some of his Companions taking the Qubaa’ route towards Banu An-Nadheer, seeking their contribution to the blood-money of the two men from Banu ‘Aamir who were mistakenly killed by ‘Amr bin Umayyah Al-Dhamri, may Allah be pleased with him, while under the protection of the Prophet . Their contribution was sought owing to the pact which they had made with the Prophet about paying blood money, and in conformity with the treaties and alliances between them and Banu ‘Aamir.
Banu An-Nadheer paid the Prophet and his Companions a cheerful reception. Then, they privately consulted each other about killing him. It seems that they decided to drop a rock on the Prophet from above a wall next to which he was sitting. As he was protected by Allah The Almighty, the Prophet realized their intention and left quickly to Madeenah upon learning about their evil scheme from heaven. Shortly after that, the Companions departed too.
The conspiracy of Banu An-Nadheer that was foiled by Allah The Almighty not only targeted the Messenger but also the Islamic state in Madeenah and the Islamic Da‘wah (call) as a whole. Thus, the Prophet was determined to fight them for breaching the covenant and oaths they had made with him, and he ordered the Companions to prepare themselves to proceed and fight them.
These and other reasons led to the Battle of Banu An-Nadheer. The Noble Quran reminds the believers of that great blessing when Allah The Almighty saved His Prophet from the conspiracy of Banu An-Nadheer, Saying (what means): {O you who have believed, remember the favor of Allah upon you when a people determined to extend their hands [in aggression] against you, but He withheld their hands from you; and fear Allah. And upon Allah let the believers rely.} [Quran 5:11]
The scholars of Tafseer (Quranic exegesis) mentioned several narrations as to the reason why this verse was revealed, including the following:
It is narrated on the authority of Yazeed bin Ziyaad that the Messenger went to Banu An-Nadheer seeking their help with the blood-money of two of his Companions, and he was accompanied by Abu Bakr, ‘Umar and ‘Ali, may Allah be pleased with them, saying, “Help me to pay the blood-money of my Companions.” Banu An-Nadheer said, “Yes, Abu Al-Qaasim. It is about time you came to us and asked for something. Sit down while we serve you food and give you what you have asked for.” The Messenger and the Companions waited.
The leader of Banu An-Nadheer, who spoke those words to the Prophet approached his people and said, “You will never find him closer to you than this. So drop rocks on him to kill him, and you will never see evil again.” Hence, the Jews came near a large millstone to drop it over the Prophet but Allah The Almighty withheld them until Jibreel (Gabriel), may Allah exalt his mention, inspired the Prophet of their intention and told him to leave. Then, Allah The Almighty revealed (what means): {O you who have believed, remember the favor of Allah upon you when a people determined to extend their hands [in aggression] against you, but He withheld their hands from you; and fear Allah. And upon Allah let the believers rely.} [Quran 5:11] With this, Allah The Almighty informed the Prophet of their intentions. [At-Tabari]
Muhammad bin Is’haaq, Mujaahid and ‘Ikrimah, may Allah be pleased with him, as well as other scholars mentioned that the verse was revealed about Banu An-Nadheer when they wanted to drop the millstone over the head of the Messenger who had come asking them for help with the blood-money of two men from Banu ‘Aamir. They assigned ‘Amr bin Jihaash to drop it. However, Allah The Almighty informed the Prophet of their scheming, so he returned to Madeenah followed by his Companions. Then, Allah The Almighty revealed this verse.
According to Ibn Jareer At-Tabari the verse was possibly revealed about the scheming and evil thoughts that Banu An-Nadheer harbored regarding the Prophet and his Companions. He said, “The interpretation that is more likely to be sound is that the “blessing” in the verse refers to the favor that Allah The Almighty bestowed on the believers when He saved their Prophet and his Companions from the assassination that Banu An-Nadheer planned when he approached them for help with the blood-money of the two killed men from Banu ‘Aamir. We construct soundness of this view upon the fact that the following verses expose the Jews’ foul deeds and treachery against Allah The Almighty and His Prophets.”
Dr. Muhammad Aal ‘Aabid agreed with the preference of At-Tabari saying, “It is possible that the noble verse was revealed after all the incidents had occurred, as the scholars are of the view that one verse would be revealed concerning a variety of events.”
In essence, the verse addresses the believers to remember the Divine favor that was greatly highlighted by preventing the Jews from harming the Prophet . When the Jews were about to carry out their wicked conspiracy, Allah The Almighty frustrated their attempt and saved the Prophet from their evils. Then, Allah The Almighty ordered the believers to fear Him and rely on Him, saying (what means): {And fear Allah. And upon Allah let the believers rely.} [Quran 5:11]
The verse concludes by addressing the believers to fear Allah The Almighty and thank Him perfectly for His favors upon them, as He has shown them His power; and to rely on Him alone as the believers’ attitude should be, for it is He that takes care of them.