وَمِنْهُمُ ٱلَّذِينَ يُؤْذُونَ ٱلنَّبِىَّ وَيَقُولُونَ هُوَ أُذُنٌۭ ۚ قُلْ أُذُنُ خَيْرٍۢ لَّكُمْ يُؤْمِنُ بِٱللَّهِ وَيُؤْمِنُ لِلْمُؤْمِنِينَ وَرَحْمَةٌۭ لِّلَّذِينَ ءَامَنُوا۟ مِنكُمْ ۚ وَٱلَّذِينَ يُؤْذُونَ رَسُولَ ٱللَّهِ لَهُمْ عَذَابٌ أَلِيمٌۭ
And among them are those who abuse the Prophet and say, "He is an ear." Say, "[It is] an ear of goodness for you that believes in Allah and believes the believers and [is] a mercy to those who believe among you." And those who abuse the Messenger of Allah - for them is a painful punishment.
Introduction
This is āyah 61 of Sūrat At-Tawba (The Repentance), the 113th sūrah in the traditional order of revelation. It was revealed in the Medinan period and sits within Juzʾ 10. Medinan verses often address community life, law, and the building of society.
This introduction is a starting point — the community and Bilal will enrich it over time.
Revelation & occasion
- Period
- Medinan
- Order revealed
- 113 of 114
- Surah
- At-Tawba (9)
(And of them are those who vex the Prophet and say: He is only a hearer�) [9:61-62]. This was revealed about a group of hypocrites who used to harm the Messenger of Allah, Allah bless him and give him peace, by saying about him things that should not be said. One of them said: �Do not do this, for we fear that what we say might reach him and he will punish us�. Al-Julas ibn Suwayd said: �We will say whatever we wish to say and when we go to him he will believe whatever we tell him, for Muhammad is nothing but a hearer�, and so Allah, exalted is He, revealed this verse. Muhammad ibn Ishaq ibn Yasar and others said: �This verse was revealed about one hypocrite whose name is Nabtal ibn al-Harith. This man was dark-skinned, red-eyed, burned in the cheeks and deformed. It is this man about whom the Prophet, Allah bless him and give him peace, said: �Whoever wants to look at the devil, let him look at Nabtal ibn al-Harith�. This man was a tale-bearer; he related the words of the Prophet, Allah bless him and give him peace, to the hypocrites. And when he was told to stop doing this, he said: �Indeed, Muhammad is but a hearer, he believes everything that people tell him. We say whatever we like and then we go to him and swear that we never said it and he believes us�. And so Allah, exalted is He, revealed this verse�. Al-Suddi said: �A group of hypocrites, including Julas ibn Suwayd ibn al-Samit and Wadi�ah ibn Thabit, gathered and wanted to speak ill of the Prophet, Allah bless him and give him peace. They had with them a boy from the Helpers by the name of �Amir ibn Qays. These hypocrites mocked the Prophet and then spoke and said �By Allah, if what Muhammad (s)ays is true, then we are worse than asses�. The boy got angry and said: �By Allah, what Muhammad (s)ays is true and you are worse than asses�. The boy then went to the Prophet, Allah bless him and give him peace, and informed him about what they said. The Prophet summoned them and when he asked them they swore that �Amir was a liar. �Amir also swore that they were liars. �Amir then prayed: �O Allah, do not make us disperse until you show who is lying and who s telling the truth�. And so this verse was revealed about them (And of them are those who vex the Prophet and say: He is only a hearer) and He also revealed (They swear by Allah to you (Muslims) to please you�) [9:62]�.
Tafsir
Hafiz Ibn Kathir
Chains of transmission
Oral — isnād
- ~610–632 CERevelation & memorisation
Received by the Prophet ﷺ and preserved by the ḥuffāẓ (memorisers) among the Companions.
- 1st century AHMutawātir transmissionawaiting curation
Carried by mass-transmission through the generations of qurrāʾ.
- TodayLiving chainsawaiting curation
Continuous ijāzah chains link reciters today back to the Prophet ﷺ.
Verified isnād chains for this āyah will be added by curators.
Written — the manuscript record
- ~650 CEʿUthmānic codicesawaiting curation
The standardised muṣḥaf sent to the great cities (e.g. the Topkapı and Samarqand codices).
- 8th–10th c.Early Ḥijāzī & Kūfic foliosawaiting curation
Surviving leaves in Birmingham, Sanaa, Paris (BnF) and beyond.
- Modern printModern printawaiting curation
The 1924 Cairo edition → today: the standard printed muṣḥaf used worldwide.
A curated chain of manuscript images for this exact āyah — roughly one per century — is coming. Help us source and verify them.
And now — what do you think?
The text, its history and the classical commentary are laid out above. Share your own understanding, ask a question, or reason with others.
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