Surah An-Nahl 16:41

The Reward of the Muhajirin

Allah tells us about the reward of those who migrated for His sake, seeking His pleasure, those who left their homeland behind, brothers and friends, hoping for the reward of Allah. This may have been revealed concerning those who migrated to Ethiopia, those whose persecution at the hands of their own people in Makkah was so extreme that they left them and went to Ethiopia so that they would be able to worship their Lord. Among the most prominent of these migrants were `Uthman bin `Affan and his wife Ruqayyah, the daughter of the Messenger of Allah ﷺ, Ja`far bin Abi Talib, the cousin of the Messenger ﷺ, and Abu Salamah bin `Abdul-Asad, among a group of almost eighty sincere and faithful men and women, may Allah be pleased with them. Allah promised them a great reward in this world and the next. Allah said:

لَنُبَوِّئَنَّهُمْ فِى الدُّنْيَا حَسَنَة

(We will certainly give them good residence in this world,) Ibn `Abbas, Ash-Sha`bi and Qatadah said: (this means) "Al-Madinah." It was also said that it meant "good provision". This was the opinion of Mujahid. There is no contradiction between these two opinions, for they left their homes and wealth, but Allah compensated them with something better in this world. Whoever gives up something for the sake of Allah, Allah compensates him with something that is better for him than that, and this is what happened. He gave them power throughout the land and caused them to rule over the people, so they became governors and rulers, and each of them became a leader of the pious. Allah tells us that His reward for the Muhajirin in the Hereafter is greater than that which He gave them in this world, as He says:

وَلاّجْرُ الاٌّخِرَةِ أَكْبَرُ

(but indeed the reward of the Hereafter will be greater) meaning, greater than that which We have given you in this world.

لَوْ كَانُواْ يَعْلَمُونَ

(if they but knew!) means, if those who stayed behind and did not migrate with them only knew what Allah prepared for those who obeyed Him and followed His Messenger . Then Allah describes them as:

الَّذِينَ صَبَرُواْ وَعَلَى رَبِّهِمْ يَتَوَكَّلُونَ

(those who remained patient, and put their trust in their Lord.) (16:42), meaning, they bore their people's persecution with patience, putting their trust in Allah Who made their end good in this world and the Hereafter.

Allah swt menjelaskan bahwa orang-orang yang hijrah meninggal-kan kaum kerabat yang dicintai dan kampung halamannya semata-mata mengharapkan pahala dan keridaan Allah, pasti akan diberi tempat yang baik di sisi-Nya. Yang dimaksud dengan hijrah dalam ayat ini ialah hijrah kaum Muslimin dari Mekah ke Habasyah, hijrah pertama yang dilakukan 83 orang Muslimin. Pengertian ini didasarkan pada pendapat yang mengatakan bahwa ayat ini adalah ayat Makkiyyah, dan dikuatkan pula oleh riwayat dari Abdullah bin Humaid, Ibnu Jarir ath-thabari, dan Ibnu Munzir dari Qatadah yang mengatakan bahwa para sahabat Nabi saw teraniaya oleh penduduk Mekah. Mereka diusir dari kampung halamannya, sehingga sebagian dari mereka ikut hijrah ke negeri Habasyah. Sesudah itu, Allah menyuruh mereka mempersiapkan diri hijrah ke Medinah, lalu kota itu dijadikan kota hijrah dan mereka diberi penolong-penolong yang terdiri dari penduduk Medinah yang beriman.

Kemudian mereka dijanjikan kemenangan atas orang-orang yang telah menganiaya mereka dan tempat yang baik di dunia. Semua itu diperoleh karena mereka rela meninggalkan tempat tinggal dan harta benda mereka, semata-mata hanya mengharapkan keridaan Allah. Janji kemenangan yang diberikan kepada kaum Muslimin itu ialah mereka akan diberi tempat yang bebas dari kekuasaan orang-orang musyrik dan mereka dapat mengatur tata kemasyarakatan sendiri. Mereka akan menjadi pemimpin-pemimpin yang takwa dan memerintah orang-orang yang takwa pula.

Di samping itu, mereka dijanjikan pula pahala akhirat yang lebih besar. Apabila mereka mengetahui, tentu mereka akan mengatakan bahwa pahala akhirat itulah yang lebih utama bila dibandingkan dengan kebahagiaan yang mereka rasakan di dunia. Ibnu Jarir ath-thabari meriwayatkan dari Umar bin Khaththab bahwa apabila seorang Ansar memberi suatu pemberian kepada seorang laki-laki dari golongan Muhajirin, ia berkata, "Terimalah pemberian ini, semoga Allah memberikan berkah kepadamu dalam menikmatinya. Ini yang telah Allah janjikan untukmu di dunia, sedang di akhirat kamu akan mendapatkan yang lebih baik lagi".