The 365 · Verses · Day 91 · Family
Allah commands kindness and justice toward non-Muslims who have not fought you in religion. The Prophet ﷺ told Asmāʾ to honor her pre-Islamic mother. The verse is direct.
Qur'an Q 60:7-8
۞ عَسَى ٱللَّهُ أَن يَجْعَلَ بَيْنَكُمْ وَبَيْنَ ٱلَّذِينَ عَادَيْتُم مِّنْهُم مَّوَدَّةً ۚ وَٱللَّهُ قَدِيرٌ ۚ وَٱللَّهُ غَفُورٌ رَّحِيمٌ
“God may still bring about affection between you and your present enemies, God is all powerful, God is most forgiving and merciful, and He does not forbid you to deal kindly and justly with anyone who has not fought you for your faith or driven you out of your homes: God loves the just. (Abdel Haleem)”
Svenska: Kanske skall Gud i Sin allmakt låta vänskap uppstå mellan er och dem som ni nu ser som era fiender; Gud är ständigt förlåtande, barmhärtig. Gud förbjuder er inte att visa godhet mot dem som inte bekämpar er på grund av [er] tro och inte driver ut er ur era hem. (Knut Bernström)
The story
The verse is the foundation for the Prophet's ﷺ practice with non-Muslim Makkans during ḥudaybiyyah, with the Madinan Jews of the Charter, with the Arab Christians of Najrān who were hosted in his masjid, and famously with Asmāʾ bint Abī Bakr's pre-Islamic mother who came to visit her after the Hijrah; Asmāʾ asked the Prophet ﷺ if she should receive her, and he said yes (Bukhārī 5978, asbāb al-nuzūl tradition for this verse).
In the language
تَبَرُّوهُمْ (tabarrūhum, 'to be kind to them') is from b-r-r, the same root as birr al-wālidayn (kindness to parents). The Quran is using the parental word for the believer's posture toward non-combatant non-Muslims. تُقْسِطُوا (tuqsiṭū, 'to deal justly') is from q-s-ṭ, the root of qisṭ (equity, balance). The verb is paired with birr: not just justice, but the warmer, more committed justice that flows from kindness. Allah loves the muqsiṭīn.
Why this verse
Q 60:7-8 establishes the Quran's structural principle for dealing with non-Muslim relatives, neighbors, colleagues, and society. Toward those who have not fought you in religion and have not driven you from your homes, the Quran does not just permit kindness, it commands birr (kindness) and qisṭ (justice). The verse closes: 'Allah loves those who are equitable.'
Bring it into today
Identify one non-Muslim person in your life whom you have been distant with. A neighbor, a colleague, a relative through marriage, a former friend. Reverse the distance. Make a phone call, pay a visit, send a gift. The Quran's word is birr, the same as for parents. Practice it.
A reflection to carry
The verse is one of the most misread passages of the Quran by both ends of the spectrum. Some Muslims invent prohibitions on dealing with non-Muslims that the Quran does not impose; some non-Muslims claim the Quran prohibits friendship with their kind, despite the verse's explicit permission. The text is precise: Allah does not forbid birr (kindness) and qisṭ (justice) with those who do not fight you in religion and do not expel you. The category is large: most non-Muslim relatives, neighbors, colleagues, and fellow citizens. The duty is birr, the same word used for parents.
Read the longer reflection
The Sīrah operationalizes this verse with extraordinary clarity. Asmāʾ bint Abī Bakr's pre-Islamic mother came to visit her in Madinah; the Prophet ﷺ instructed Asmāʾ to receive her and treat her with warmth (Bukhārī 5978). The Christian delegation from Najrān was hosted inside the Prophet's ﷺ own masjid for several days; he allowed them to perform their prayers facing east. The Madinan Jewish tribes were full citizens of the Charter, with property rights, judicial independence, and military protection. The pattern is structural: where there is no combat, there is birr and qisṭ. The verse 60:7 also opens a door of hope: ʿasā Allāhu an yajʿal baynakum wa-bayna alladhīna ʿādaytum minhum mawaddah. Allah may bring about mawaddah between you and those you currently consider enemies. The closing verb ʿasā (may, perhaps) is the Quran's hopeful particle.
Sources: Ibn Kathir. The Qur'an and its translation are verified; the scholarship is retold faithfully in our own words and credited to its sources, never reproduced verbatim.
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