Light (Al-Nur)

Commentary

(c) If a preacher is really treading the path of Truth, then any false propaganda issued against him in fact proves useful to him, because the Truth is ultimately bound to prevail. And when the reality becomes clear, it becomes even more evident that the preacher is on the right path, so that those wavering on this score enter the realm of certainty. They come to realize that indeed the opponents of God’s envoy have nothing to offer except false allegations and baseless accusations. (d) The main active participant in the campaign to vilify ‘A’ishah was the notorious hypocrite, ‘Abdullah ibn Ubayy. But he was not given any punishment whatsoever He died a natural death, but severe punishment in the Hereafter was announced for him in the Quran. After the incident mentioned above, ‘Umar suggested to the Prophet Muhammad that he, (‘Abdullah ibn Ubayy), be put to death. The Prophet replied, ‘Oh, ‘Umar! What would happen if people started saying that Muhammad killed his own Companions?’ We gather from this that policy considerations sometimes warrant even major criminals being spared the punishment they deserve in this world, leaving their ultimate fate to be decided in the Hereafter.