Translation of the meanings Ayah 29 Surah At-Tawbah - English Translation - Dr. Waleed Bleyhesh Omary - The Noble Qur'an Encyclopedia

Ayah: 29

قَٰتِلُواْ ٱلَّذِينَ لَا يُؤۡمِنُونَ بِٱللَّهِ وَلَا بِٱلۡيَوۡمِ ٱلۡأٓخِرِ وَلَا يُحَرِّمُونَ مَا حَرَّمَ ٱللَّهُ وَرَسُولُهُۥ وَلَا يَدِينُونَ دِينَ ٱلۡحَقِّ مِنَ ٱلَّذِينَ أُوتُواْ ٱلۡكِتَٰبَ حَتَّىٰ يُعۡطُواْ ٱلۡجِزۡيَةَ عَن يَدٖ وَهُمۡ صَٰغِرُونَ

(29) ^[2068]Fight those who do not Believe in Allah and the Last Day, neither do they deem forbidden what Allah and His Messenger forbade and do not abide by the religion of Truth among those who were given the Book^[2069] until they hand in the jizyah ˹tax˺ while humbled.

[2068] Now that the most dangerous threat had been dealt a blow, especially with the Conquest of Makkah and victory in the Battle of Ḥunayn, and that the land had become subject to Islam, the Believers were directed to yet another no less imminent a threat; the Jews, on the one hand, who sided, right from the start, with the Associators against the Believers despite their pact with the Messenger (ﷺ) which was enshrined in the Madinah Constitution, particularly their treachery in the Battle of Aḥzāb (the Confederates), which would have proven fatal to the Believing community had God not intervened. On the other hand, the Christians, particularly in northern Arabia who were ruled by the Ghassanids, a client state to the Byzantine Empire, who had their eyes open, especially after the Messenger’s (ﷺ) communiqué to Emperor Heraclius, and who were unsettled by this turn of events and were readying themselves for an offensive (cf. Ibn ʿĀshūr). ʿUmar Ibn al-Khaṭṭāb (رضي الله عنه) narrates: “˹…˺ I had a friend among the Helper Companions. When I was not around, he would bring me the news and when he was not around I would bring him the news. In those days we were full of dread of a Ghassanid king who was reported to be preparing to march towards us, causing us much consternation. Suddenly, my friend the Helper knocked on my door saying: “Open! Open!” I replied: “˹What˺ Did the Ghassanid come?”…” (al-Bukhārī: 4913, Muslim: 3765; in another narration: “The word among us was that the Ghassanids were shoeing their horses to attack us”).
[2069] This aya should be read with an eye on the next six ayas which spell out much of what is being alluded to here. The Believers are to fight those of the People of the Book who: do not Believe in God and the Last Day, a true Belief which reflects on their deeds and actions (Ayas 34-35) and leads to worshipping God alone without any form of Association (Ayas 30-31); and do not abide by the commands of God and His Messenger (ﷺ) nor follow the religion of Truth (Aya 33) (cf. al-Rāzī, al-Muyassar, Tafsīr al-Madīnah al-Munawwarah; other interpretations of this aya abound).
That their threat is both combative (cf. the previous note) and disruptive (cf. 3: 98-103), being People of the Book, who were considered with respect and as knowledgeable, fighting is meant to continue until they are no longer a threat to the community (cf. al-Saʿdī) and that they are ‘humbled’. Their ‘humbling’ is indicated by them paying the jizyah tax, which demonstrates them being subject to societal order. The jizyah is taken from only those who can afford it – as much as able Muslims are required to pay the zakah prescribed alms – to enjoy the privileges such as protection, freedom of religion, and fair and equitable treatment (cf. Tafsīr al-Madīnah al-Munawwarah).