Surah 3

Surah 3:28

"Let not the believers take the disbelievers as allies, rather than the believers – whoever does that, he has nothing from God – unless you guard (yourselves) against them as a precaution. God warns you to beware of Him. To God is the (final) destination."
The Prohibition of Supporting the Disbelievers Verses 3:28
Show Full Scripture Context (3:28) — 1 Verse
Verse 28

لَّا يَتَّخِذِ ٱلۡمُؤۡمِنُونَ ٱلۡكَٰفِرِينَ أَوۡلِيَآءَ مِن دُونِ ٱلۡمُؤۡمِنِينَۖ وَمَن يَفۡعَلۡ ذَٰلِكَ فَلَيۡسَ مِنَ ٱللَّهِ فِي شَيۡءٍ إِلَّآ أَن تَتَّقُواْ مِنۡهُمۡ تُقَىٰةٗۗ وَيُحَذِّرُكُمُ ٱللَّهُ نَفۡسَهُۥۗ وَإِلَى ٱللَّهِ ٱلۡمَصِيرُ

Let not the believers take the disbelievers as allies, rather than the believers – whoever does that, he has nothing from God – unless you guard (yourselves) against them as a precaution. God warns you to beware of Him. To God is the (final) destination.

Allah prohibited His believing servants from becoming supporters of the disbelievers, or to take them as comrades with whom they develop friendships, rather than the believers. Allah warned against such behavior when He said,
iAnd whoever does that, will never be helped by Allah in any way }
meaning, whoever commits this act that Allah has prohibited, then Allah will discard him. Similarly, Allah said,
[40 you who believe! Take not My enemies and your enemies as friends, shozving affection toioards them }, until,
4Atid whosoever of you does that, then indeed he has gone astray from the straight path.} 60:1]. Allah said.
iO you who believe! Take not for friends disbelievers instead of believers. Do you wish to offer Allah a manifest proof against yourselves ?) [4:144], and.
<0 you who believe! Take not the Jews and the Christians as friends, they are but friends of each other. And ivhoever befriends than, then surely, he is one of them.) [5:51],
Allah said, after mentioning the fact that the faithful believers gave their support to the faithful believers among the Muhajirfn, Ansar and Bedouins,
iAnd those who disbelieve are allies of one another, (and) if you do not behave the same, there will be Fitnah and oppression on the earth, and a great mischief and corruption.) [8:73].
Allah said next,
i unless you indeed fear a danger from than)
meaning, except those believers who in some areas or times fear for their safety from the disbelievers. In this case, such believers are allowed to show friendship to the disbelievers outwardly, but never inwardly. For instance, Al-Bukhari recorded that Abu Ad-Darda’ said, “We smile in the face of some people although our hearts curse them.” 111 Al-Bukhari said that Al-Hasan said, “The Tuqyah l2] is allowed until the Day of Resurrection.” Allah said,
iAnd Allah warns you against Himself.) meaning, He warns you against His anger and the severe torment He prepared for those who give their support to His enemies, and those who have enmity with His friends,
^Anrf to AZ/a/j is the final return ^
meaning, the return is to Him and He will reward or punish each person according to their deeds.

About this Source & Scholarly Authority (Tafsir Ibn Kathir)

Universal Sunni Consensus: Tafsir al-Qur'an al-Azim by Hafiz Ibn Kathir (701–774 AH / 1301–1373 AD) is universally regarded across all major schools of Sunni Islam (traditional, Salafi, Ash'ari) as the most authoritative classical exegesis. It is prized because it relies on Tafsir bil-Ma'thur—interpreting the Quran using the Quran itself, authentic Hadiths of Prophet Muhammad, and recorded statements of the early Companions (Sahabah).

Standard English Edition: This text is from the standard 10-volume English abridgment published by Dar-us-Salam Publications (supervised by Shaykh Safiur-Rahman Al-Mubarakpuri), which is the official, most widely distributed English Quranic commentary in mosques and Islamic libraries worldwide today.