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English translation
5407. It was narrated from Sâlim that his father said: "The Prophet ﷺ sent Khâlid bin Al-Walîd to Banu Jadhîmah. He called them to Islam but they could not say Aslamna (we submitted, i.e., became Muslim) so they started to say Şaba'na (we changed our religion). Khâlid starting killing and taking prisoners, and he gave a prisoner to each man. The next day Khâlid bin Al-Walîd issued orders that each man among us kill his prisoner." Ibn 'Umar said: "I said: 'By Allâh, I will not kill my prisoner, and no one (among my
companions) will kill his prisoner.’ We came to the Prophet ﷺ, and he was told of what Khâlid had done. The Prophet ﷺ said: ‘I disavow what Khâlid has done,’ twice.” (Sahîh)
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Commentary
1. The disbelievers used to nickname Muslims Sābi, the one who emerges from his religion. They used to consider them irreligious. The expression Sabāna is derived from it. The motive of Bani Jadhimah was, ‘We have emerged from our ancestral religion, and have embraced Islam’. But they employed the expression which the disbelievers sacrosanctly employed against Muslims. This misled Khalid bin Al-Walid ؓ. He thought they were still adhering to their disbelief, and were satirizing the Muslims. It was, however, not the case. Khalid ؓ took disciplinary measures. Since it was his deducible error, Allāh’s Messenger ﷺ merely absolved himself, and did not punish him.
2. The author’s argumentation is upon the course of action adopted by Ibn ‘Umar ؓ and his Companions that they did not accept the order of the one in command. In this case, Ibn ‘Umar, the narrator himself, was sure that they intended that they accept Islam. The Hadīth, recorded by Muslim 4765, Al-Bukhārī 7257, and others, supports Ibn ‘Umar’s behavior: “There is no obedience in disobedience.” And Allāh’s Messenger ﷺ also supported them.
