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Fatwa CenterMeaning of Quran [4:97-99]
Question
I want please to know the explanation of Ayah Number 99, page 84 in Surah An-Nisaa'. In addition to reasons for stating this Ayah.
Answer
All perfect praise be to Allaah, The Lord of the Worlds. I testify that there is none worthy of worship except Allaah, and that Muhammad is His slave and Messenger. We ask Allaah to exalt his mention as well as that of his family and all his companions.
Allaah Says (what means): {Indeed, those whom the angels take [in death] while wronging themselves — [the angels] will say, “In what [condition] were you?” They will say, “We were oppressed in the land.” They [the angels] will say, “Was not the Earth of Allaah spacious [enough] for you to emigrate therein?” For those, their refuge is Hell — and what an evil destination! Except the weak ones among men, women, and children who cannot devise a plan nor are they directed to a way—For those it is expected that Allaah will pardon them, and Allaah is ever Oft-Pardoning, Oft-Forgiving.}[Quran 4:97-99]. Allaah informs us, in this verse, that those who wronged themselves by residing with the non-Muslims and not migrating to Muslim countries, the angels will ask them in a blaming manner at the time of their death: “In what [condition] were you?”, meaning: “How were you in regard to your religion?” They will say while apologising: “We were oppressed in the land.”, i.e. “Unable to establish our religion”. Thereupon the angels would ask them in a condemning manner: “Was not the Earth of Allaah spacious [enough] for you to migrate from the land of the non-Muslims to another country as others did before you?” Allaah then revealed (what means): {For those, their refuge is Hell — and what an evil destination!}. However, Allaah exempted the weak ones among men, women, and children who are not able to migrate, and have no financial means [for this purpose] and do not know the way to migrate.
Ibn Katheer
said about the above verse: 'This verse is revealed on every person who resides among the polytheist while being able to migrate and who is not able to establish his religion. Such a person has wronged himself and committed a sin according to the consensus of all the scholars
and based on the text of the above verse.'
As regards the reason why the above verse was revealed, Ibn Abu Haatem and Al-Bukhari reported that Ibn ‘Abbaas 
said: “A group of people from Makkah embraced Islam but were concealing their conversion, and the non-Muslims took them with them on the day of the battle of Badr, so some of them were killed by the Muslims. So the Muslims said: “These people who were forced to go out with the non-Muslims, were Muslims, so we should seek forgiveness for them; thereupon Allaah revealed the verse: {Indeed, those whom the angels take [in death] while wronging themselves…} ‘Ikrimah said: “So, it is written [by this verse] on the Muslims who did not migrate that they have no excuse.”
Allaah Knows best.
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