Believers do no leave a congregation without permission

Surah 24, An-Nur, Medina 102

The Quranic Text & Ali’s Translation:

إِنَّمَا الْمُؤْمِنُونَ الَّذِينَ آمَنُوا بِاللَّهِ وَرَسُولِهِ...

24:62. Only those are Believers who believe in God and His Messenger:

...وَإِذَا كَانُوا مَعَهُ عَلَى أَمْرٍ جَامِعٍ لَمْ يَذْهَبُوا حَتَّى يَسْتَأْذِنُوهُ...

when they are with him on a matter requiring collective action, they do not depart until they have asked for his leave:

...إِنَّ الَّذِينَ يَسْتَأْذِنُونَكَ أُوْلَئِكَ الَّذِينَ يُؤْمِنُونَ بِاللَّهِ وَرَسُولِهِ...

those who ask for thy leave are those who believe in God and His Messenger;

...فَإِذَا اسْتَأْذَنُوكَ لِبَعْضِ شَأْنِهِمْ فَأْذَن لِّمَن شِئْتَ مِنْهُمْ ...

so when they ask for thy leave, for some business of theirs, give leave to those of them whom thou wilt,

... وَاسْتَغْفِرْ لَهُمُ اللَّهَ...

and ask God for their forgiveness:

...إِنَّ اللَّهَ غَفُورٌ رَّحِيمٌ ﴿٦٢﴾

for God is Oft-Forgiving, Most Merciful.

لَا تَجْعَلُوا دُعَاء الرَّسُولِ بَيْنَكُمْ كَدُعَاء بَعْضِكُم بَعْضًا...

24:63. Deem not the summons of the Messenger among yourselves like the summons of one of you to another:

...قَدْ يَعْلَمُ اللَّهُ الَّذِينَ يَتَسَلَّلُونَ مِنكُمْ لِوَاذًا...

God doth know those of you who slip away under shelter of some excuse:

...فَلْيَحْذَرِ الَّذِينَ يُخَالِفُونَ عَنْ أَمْرِهِ أَن تُصِيبَهُمْ فِتْنَةٌ ...

then let those beware who withstand the Messenger's order lest some trial befall them,

... أَوْ يُصِيبَهُمْ عَذَابٌ أَلِيمٌ ﴿٦٣﴾

or a grievous Penalty be inflicted on them.

Other Translations:

24:62

Asad

[TRUE BELIEVERS are only they who have attained to faith in God and His Apostle, and who, whenever they are [engaged] with him upon a matter of concern to the whole community do not depart [from whatever has been decided upon] unless they have sought [and obtained] his leave. Verily, those who [do not abstain from the agreed upon action unless they] ask leave of thee - it is [only] they who [truly] believe in God and His Apostle! Hence, when they ask leave of thee for some [valid] reason of their own, grant thou this leave to whomsoever of them thou choose [to grant it], and ask God to forgive them: for, behold, God is much-forgiving, a dispenser of grace!

Pickthall

They only are the true believers who believe in Allah and His messenger and, when they are with him on some common errand, go not away until they have asked leave of him. Lo! those who ask leave of thee, those are they who believe in Allah and His messenger. So, if they ask thy leave for some affair of theirs, give leave to whom thou wilt of them, and ask for them forgiveness of Allah. Lo! Allah is Forgiving, Merciful.

T.B. Irving

Believers are merely those who believe in God and His messenger. Whenever they are with the latter on some collective errand, they should not leave until they have asked him for permission to do so. Those who do ask you for such permission are the ones who believe in God and His messenger. Whenever they ask you for permission [to attend] to some affair of their own, then give anyone of them you may wish, leave to do so, and seek forgiveness from God for them. God is Forgiving, Merciful.

**************************************

Asad’s comments:

88 Lit., "a uniting [or "collective"] matter" (amr jami'). The personal pronoun in "with him" relates to the Apostle and, by analogy, to every legitimate leader (imam) of the Muslim community acting in accordance with the spirit of the Qur'an and the Prophet's life-example.

89 I.e., his permission to abstain, for valid reasons, from participating in a course of action or a policy agreed upon by the majority of the community ('amma ijtama'u lahu min al-amr: Tabari).

In a logical development of this principle we arrive at something like the concept of a "loyal opposition", which implies the possibility of dissent on a particular point of communal or state policy combined with absolute loyalty to the common cause. (But see also note 91.)