Surah 8

Surah 8:19

"If you ask for a victory, the victory has already come to you. And if you stop, it will be better for you. But if you return, We shall return (too), and your cohort will be of no use to you, even if it should be numerous. (Know) that God is with the believers."
The Response to the Disbelievers Who ask for a Judgement Verses 8:19
Show Full Scripture Context (8:19) — 1 Verse
Verse 19

إِن تَسۡتَفۡتِحُواْ فَقَدۡ جَآءَكُمُ ٱلۡفَتۡحُۖ وَإِن تَنتَهُواْ فَهُوَ خَيۡرٞ لَّكُمۡۖ وَإِن تَعُودُواْ نَعُدۡ وَلَن تُغۡنِيَ عَنكُمۡ فِئَتُكُمۡ شَيۡـٔٗا وَلَوۡ كَثُرَتۡ وَأَنَّ ٱللَّهَ مَعَ ٱلۡمُؤۡمِنِينَ

If you ask for a victory, the victory has already come to you. And if you stop, it will be better for you. But if you return, We shall return (too), and your cohort will be of no use to you, even if it should be numerous. (Know) that God is with the believers.

19. (O disbelievers) if you ask for a judgement, now has the judgement come unto you; and if you cease (to do wrong), it will be better for you, and if you return (to the attack), so shall We return, and your forces will be of no avail to you, however numerous they be; and verily, Allah is with the believers .

Allah says to the disbeliever,
<If you ask for a judgement>, you invoked Allah for victory, judgement and a decision between you and your believing nemesis, and you got what you asked for. Muhammad bin Ishaq and several others reported from Az-Zuhri from 'Abdullah bin Tha'labah bin Su'ayr who said that Abu Jahl said on the day of Badr, "O Allah! Whichever of the two camps (pagans and Muslims) severed the relation of the womb and brought us what is not familiar, then destroy him this day." This Ayah was later on revealed,
<If you ask for a judgement, then now has the judgement come unto you,>
until the end of the Ayah. Imam Ahmad recorded that 'Abdullah bin Thalabah said, "Abu Jahl asked for (Allah's judgment) when he said upon facing the Muslims, 'O Allah! Those among us who severed the relations of the womb and brought forth what we do not recognize, then destroy him this day.'" This was also recorded by An-Nasa'i in the Book of Tafsir (of his Sunan) and Al-Hakim in his Mustadrak, and he said, "It is Sahih according to the criteria of the Two Shaykhs, and they did not record it." Similar statements were reported from Ibn 'Abbas, Mujahid, Ad-Dahhak, Qatadah, Yazid bin Ruwman and several others. As-Suddi commented, "Before the idolaters left Makkah for Badr, they clung to the curtains covering the Ka'bah and supplicated to Allah for victory, 'O Allah! Give victory to the exalted among the two armies, the most honored among the two groups, and the most righteous among the two tribes.' Allah revealed the Ayah,
<If you ask for a judgement , then now has the judgement come unto you.>
Allah says here, 'I accepted your supplication and Muhammad gained the victory.'"
'Abdur-Rahman bin Zayd bin Aslam said; "This is Allah the Most High's answer to their supplication;
<And (remember) when they said: "O Allah! If this is indeed the truth from you.."> [8:32]
Allah said next.
<and if you cease... > from your disbelief and rejection of Allah and His Messenger,
<it will be better for you>, in this life and the Hereafter. Allah said,
<and if you return, so shall We return... > This is similar to another Ayah,
<but if you return (to sins), We shall return (to Our punishment).> [17:8]
meaning, 'if you persist in your disbelief and misguidance, We shall repeat the defeat that you suffered,'
<and your forces will be of no avail to you, however numerous they be...>
for even if you gather whatever forces you can, then know that those whom Allah is with cannot be defeated,
<and verily, Allah is with the believers.>
in reference to the Prophet's group, the side of the chosen Messenger.

— from Tafsir Ibn Kathir (batch_021)

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.