﴿ وَدُّوا۟ لَوْ تَكْفُرُونَ كَمَا كَفَرُوا۟ فَتَكُونُونَ سَوَآءًۭ ۖ فَلَا تَتَّخِذُوا۟ مِنْهُمْ أَوْلِيَآءَ حَتَّىٰ يُهَاجِرُوا۟ فِى سَبِيلِ ٱللَّهِ ۚ فَإِن تَوَلَّوْا۟ فَخُذُوهُمْ وَٱقْتُلُوهُمْ حَيْثُ وَجَدتُّمُوهُمْ ۖ وَلَا تَتَّخِذُوا۟ مِنْهُمْ وَلِيًّۭا وَلَا نَصِيرًا ﴾

“They would love to see you deny the truth even as they have denied it, so that you should be like them. Do not, therefore, take them for your allies until they forsake the domain of evil for the sake of God; and if they revert to [open] enmity, seize them and slay them wherever you may find them. And do not take any of them for your ally or giver of succour,”

During difficult times the only guarantee of keeping alive the message of the Truth is for the dayee, despite trying conditions, to remain firm in his commitment and carry on his mission, even if there happens to be no one to support him. In such circumstances, the determination of the dayee makes him eligible for God’s special reward. During the second expedition of Badr, which took place only one month after the battle of Uhud, the state of affairs in Madinah was so gloomy that only seventy men came forward to fight along with the Prophet. This small troop, however, received special succour from God, filling the Makkans with awe, making them retreat without fighting, thus averting what could have been a disastrous encounter. God’s resolve is to weaken the non-believers, but this resolve is expressed only when the standard bearers of His own religion, though deprived of means and support, step forward to counter the enemy onslaught.