۞ Indeed Allah was truly pleased with the believers when they swore allegiance to you beneath the tree – so He knew what was in their hearts – He therefore sent down peace upon them, and rewarded them with an imminent victory. 18 and they took many spoils, and Allah is the Almighty, and the Wise. 19 God had promised you many spoils that you would capture; so He gave this soon enough to you, and stayed the hands of men from you that it may serve as a sign for believers, and guide you on the straight path; 20 And other gains (there are), which are not within your power, but which Allah has compassed: and Allah has power over all things. 21 And if those [Makkans] who disbelieve had fought you, they would have turned their backs [in flight]. Then they would not find a protector or a helper. 22 That hath been the dispensation of Allah with those who passed away aforetime; and thou shalt not find in the dispensation of Allah any change. 23 And it is He Who has restrained their hands from you and your hands from them in the midst of Makka, after that He gave you the victory over them. And Allah sees well all that ye do. 24 It was the disbelievers who kept you from the Sacred Mosque and prevented your sacrificial offering from reaching its proper place. God would not have kept you from fighting the disbelievers, had there not been believing men and women (among them) whom you did not know and whom you might have unknowingly harmed. God did this because He grants mercy to whomever He wants. Had they been distinguishable from the believers, We would certainly have punished them with a painful torment. 25 And when the unbelievers established in their hearts fierce bigotry, the fierce bigotry of ignorance, Allah sent down His tranquility on His Messenger and the believers and firmly fastened to them the Word of 'taqwa' (there is no god except Allah, and Muhammad is His Messenger, as it is the cause of righteousness) to which they have better right and are worthy of it. Allah has knowledge of all things. 26