before it was completed. To fully understand the Qur’an it is important to know Islamic history since many of the verses were given in respect to various situations that the Muslims were faced with at a particular time. For instance, one of the most often maliciously misquoted verses in the west is from Surat at-Tauba, Ch. 9:10 which says, “Then when the sacred months have passed, then kill the non-Muslims wherever you find them, and capture them and besiege them, and lie in wait for them in each and every ambush. But if they repent and perform the prayer and pay charity, then leave their way free. Verily, Allah is Oft Forgiving, Most Merciful.”
If you only read this one verse without taking the context of it, you will think Islam is a barbaric religion which commands Muslims to fight non-Muslims at all times. But, if you go back to the beginning of the chapter to verse 1, you will see that Allah is talking about fighting the Meccans who unilaterally broke the peace treaty that was in place with the Muslims. Therefore, because they broke the peace treaty, they will be given four months to travel the land freely and then they should expect that there will be a war with the Muslims. The next verse is amazing, it continues to say, “And if any of the non-Muslims seek your protection, then grant him protection so that he may hear the Word of Allah, and then escort him to where he can be secure.”
The verse is speaking about war, and a specific war at that. I believe that the most generous military general in the world today might say that if an enemy soldier in the battle field wants to surrender then let him go, but can you imagine any general today that would actually escort the enemy to safety? That is very