Rasulullah ﷺ menetap di Madinah, tempat beliau segera mulai menerapkan hukum-hukum Islam dalam masyarakat. Pada masa inilah turun wahyu yang berkaitan dengan penetapan hukum. Beliau ﷺ memperkuat landasan Negara Islam dan membangun masyarakat di atas dasar Islam beserta sistem-sistemnya. Beliau ﷺ menciptakan persaudaraan di antara kaum Muslimin, dan saat itulah Islam hidup sebagai sebuah sistem yang berlandaskan Syari'ah, dianut oleh suatu masyarakat yang mengemban tugas menyebarkan risalahnya. Jumlah kaum Muslimin bertambah secara signifikan, dan mereka menjadi kekuatan yang diperhitungkan. Setiap hari, baik individu maupun kelompok memeluk Islam, di antaranya orang-orang Yahudi dan lainnya.

The Messenger of Allah (pbuh) settled in Madinah, where he at once began to implement the Islamic rules in the society. It was at this time that the Revelation concerning legislation descended. He (pbuh) strengthened the fundamentals of the Islamic State and built the society on the basis of Islam and its systems. He (pbuh) created a brotherhood amongst the Muslims and it was then that Islam came to life as a system based on the Shari’ah, adopted by a society that took on the task of spreading its Message. The number of Muslims substantially increased and they became a force to be reckoned with, individuals and groups alike embraced Islam every other day, amongst them Jews and others.

Setelah Rasulullah ﷺ merasa yakin akan kedudukan Islam di Madinah, beliau mulai memikirkan untuk menyebarkan risalah ke luar, ke seluruh Semenanjung Arab. Namun, beliau mengetahui bahwa Quraisy merupakan penghalang besar di jalan dakwah, suatu rintangan material yang membuat sarana diskusi intelektual akan sia-sia belaka. Oleh karena itu, rintangan tersebut harus diatasi dengan kekuatan.

Once the Messenger of Allah (pbuh) was confident about the status of Islam in Madinah, he began to think about spreading the Message outside to the rest of the Arabian Peninsula. However, he knew that Quraysh formed a formidable obstacle in the way of the Da’wah, a material obstacle where the means of intellectual discussion would fall on deaf ears. Therefore, the obstacle would have to be overwhelmed by force.

Rasulullah ﷺ tidak mampu menyingkirkan rintangan material ini ketika beliau berada di Makkah, karena Islam belum memiliki sebuah Negara yang mampu menghasilkan kekuatan material yang diperlukan untuk menyingkirkan rintangan tersebut. Namun, sejak berdirinya Negara Islam, Rasulullah ﷺ dapat berupaya menyingkirkan rintangan-rintangan material seperti itu dengan sarana yang cukup besar yang kini berada di tangan beliau. Dengan sarana untuk menegakkan kebijakan semacam itu kini tersedia baginya, yang harus beliau lakukan hanyalah mempersiapkan pasukan dan peperangan, serta mengadopsi kebijakan baru untuk menyebarkan dakwah. Inilah alasan mengapa beliau ﷺ memulai ekspedisi dan serangan, sebagian di antaranya beliau ikut serta secara langsung, sehingga beliau dapat menantang Quraisy dengan unjuk kekuatan. Ekspedisi terakhir adalah ekspedisi Abdullah bin Jahsy, yang menjadi pendahuluan bagi Perang Badar.

The Messenger of Allah (pbuh) was unable to remove this material obstacle when he was in Makkah because Islam did not have a State capable of generating the required material force necessary to remove that obstacle. However, since the establishment of the Islamic State, the Messenger of Allah (pbuh) was able to work to remove such material obstacles by considerable means now at his disposal. With the means to enforce such a policy now available to him, all he (pbuh) had to do was to prepare the army and war, and adopting a new policy to spread the Da’wah. This is the reason why he (pbuh) initiated expeditions and raids, some of which he took part in personally, so as to defy Quraysh with a show of force. The last expedition was that of ‘Abdullah ibn Jahsh which served as an introduction to the battle of Badr.

Rasulullah ﷺ mengutus ‘Abdullah bin Jahsy bersama sekelompok kaum Muhajirin pada bulan Rajab di tahun kedua Hijrah. Beliau ﷺ menulis surat untuknya dan memerintahkan agar ia tidak membukanya sampai ia telah berjalan selama dua hari, lalu setelah itu ia harus melaksanakan isinya, tetapi ia tidak boleh memaksa salah seorang sahabatnya. Ketika ‘Abdullah telah berjalan selama dua hari, ia membuka surat itu dan membacanya. Isinya berbunyi, “Apabila engkau telah membaca suratku ini, teruslah berjalan hingga engkau sampai di Nakhlah, yang terletak di antara Makkah dan Ta’if. Berjagalah di sana untuk orang-orang Quraisy dan cari tahu untuk kami apa yang mereka rencanakan.” Ia pun memberitahukan kepada para sahabatnya tentang surat itu dan tugas yang dibebankan kepadanya, dan ia juga menyampaikan perintah Rasulullah ﷺ agar tidak memaksa seorang pun.

The Messenger of Allah (pbuh) sent ‘Abdullah ibn Jahsh out with a group of Muhajireen during the month of Rajab in the second year of Hijra. He (pbuh) wrote him a letter, and ordered him not to look at it until he had journeyed for two days whereupon he should act on its instructions, but he should not put pressure on any of his companions. When ‘Abdullah had traveled for two days he opened the letter and read it, this is what it said, “When you have read this letter of mine, proceed until you reach Nakhlah between Makkah and Ta’if. Lie there for the Quraysh and find out for us what they are up to.” He told his companions about the letter and the task assigned to him, he also informed them about Allah’s Messenger’s instructions not to put any pressure on anyone.

Mereka semua sepakat untuk melanjutkan, lalu ia berangkat bersama para sahabatnya. Mereka berjalan bersama sebagai satu rombongan hingga Sa'd bin Abi Waqqas az-Zuhri dan 'Utbah bin Ghazwan terpisah ketika mereka pergi mencari unta mereka yang hilang. Akhirnya mereka berdua jatuh menjadi tawanan kaum Quraisy. 'Abdullah bin Jahsy berkemah di Nakhlah sambil mengawasi kaum Quraisy, dan selama di sana, salah satu kafilah mereka yang membawa barang dagangan lewat. 'Abdullah dan para sahabatnya bermusyawarah untuk memutuskan apa yang harus dilakukan, karena hari itu adalah hari terakhir bulan Rajab yang suci, sedangkan Rasulullah ﷺ belum mengeluarkan instruksi apa pun tentang berperang. Mereka berkata satu sama lain, "Demi Allah, jika kalian membiarkan mereka malam ini, mereka akan memasuki tanah suci dan aman dari kalian, dan jika kalian membunuh mereka, berarti kalian membunuh mereka di bulan suci." Pada mulanya mereka ragu dan takut menyerang mereka. Kemudian mereka saling menguatkan dan memutuskan untuk berperang. Salah seorang kaum Muslimin memanah pemimpin kafilah, 'Amr bin al-Hadrami, dan membunuhnya. Kaum Muslimin menawan dua orang dan mengawal kafilah itu ke Madinah.

They all agreed to continue and so he proceeded with his companions. They traveled together as a group until Sa’d ibn Abi Waqqas al-Zuhri and ‘Utbah ibn Ghazwan became separated when they went to look for the camel they had lost. Eventually they were to fall prisoners to the Quraysh. ‘Abdullah ibn Jahsh camped in Nakhlah watching out for the Quraysh and while there one of their caravans carrying merchandise passed by. ‘Abdullah and his companions took council among themselves to decide what to do because this was the last day of the sacred month of Rajab and Allah’s Messenger (pbuh) had not issued any instructions about fighting. They said to each other, “By Allah, if you leave them alone tonight they will get into the sacred area and will be safe from you, and if you kill them, you will kill them in the sacred month.” At first they were hesitant and feared to attack them. Then they encouraged each other and decided to fight. One of the Muslims shot the leader of the caravan ‘Amr ibn al Hadrami and killed him. The Muslims took two prisoners and escorted the caravan to Madinah.

Ketika mereka datang kepada Rasulullah ﷺ, beliau bersabda kepada mereka, "Aku tidak memerintahkan kalian untuk berperang di bulan haram." Kemudian beliau ﷺ menangguhkan urusan kafilah dan dua tawanan tersebut, serta menolak menerima apa pun dari mereka. Itulah akhir dari ekspedisi 'Abdullah bin Jahsy yang oleh Rasulullah ﷺ dikirim untuk mengintai orang-orang Quraisy, tetapi justru berujung pada pertempuran, pembunuhan, penawanan sebagian dari mereka, dan perampasan kafilah sebagai harta rampasan pada bulan haram. Maka apakah hukum Islam atas tindakan ini? Inilah yang menjadi keprihatinan Rasulullah ﷺ, dan karena itulah beliau menahan para tawanan dan harta rampasan tersebut, menunggu keputusan dari Allah (SWT) mengenai perkara ini. Orang-orang Quraisy memanfaatkan peristiwa ini sebagai sarana propaganda melawan Islam dan Muhammad ﷺ. Mereka menyebarkan ke seluruh bangsa Arab bahwa Muhammad ﷺ dan para sahabatnya telah melanggar kehormatan bulan haram, menumpahkan darah, merampas harta, dan memenjarakan orang. Terjadi perdebatan di Makkah antara kaum Quraisy dengan kaum Muslimin yang masih tinggal di sana, dan kaum Muslimin menjawab bahwa saudara-saudara mereka menyerang kafilah itu pada bulan Sya'ban, bukan Rajab. Namun jawaban itu tidak cukup dan gagal meredam propaganda yang digalakkan kaum Quraisy terhadap Islam. Orang-orang Yahudi pun ikut serta dalam kampanye tersebut dan mulai mencela serta memfitnah tindakan 'Abdullah bin Jahsy. Propaganda itu membebani kaum Muslimin, sementara Rasulullah ﷺ tetap diam menanti Wahyu dan keputusan Allah (SWT) atas perkara ini, hingga Allah (SWT) menurunkan dalam Surah al-Baqarah:

When they came to the Messenger of Allah (pbuh) he said to them, “I did not order you to fight in the sacred month.” Then he (pbuh) put on hold the issue of the caravan and the two prisoners refusing to take anything from them. That was the conclusion of ‘Abdullah ibn Jahsh’s expedition whom the Messenger of Allah (pbuh) had sent to watch the Quraysh, but instead had led to fighting, killing, and imprisoning some of thier men and taking the caravan as booty during the sacred month. So what would be the Islamic verdict on this action? This is what concerned Allah’s Messenger (pbuh) and hence that is the reason why he held the prisoners and the booty in suspense, to wait for the verdict from Allah (swt) on the matter. The Quraysh grabbed the opportunity of using the issue as a source of propaganda against Islam and Muhammad (pbuh). They trumpeted among all the Arabs that Muhammad (pbuh) and his Sahabah had violated the sacred month, shed blood, seized properties and imprisoned people. Arguments arose in Makkah between the Quraysh and the Muslims who had remained there, and in reply the Muslims said that their brothers had attacked the caravan in Sha’ban and not Rajab, but their response was not enough and failed to quell the propaganda launched by the Quraysh against Islam. The Jews picked up on the campaign as well and began disgracing and slandering ‘Abdullah ibn Jahsh’s action. The propaganda took its toll on the Muslims, meanwhile Allah’s Messenger (pbuh) kept silent awaiting the Revelation and Allah’s verdict on the affair until Allah (swt) revealed in Surah al-Baqarah:

"Mereka bertanya kepadamu tentang berperang di bulan-bulan haram. Katakanlah, “Berperang pada bulan itu adalah dosa besar, tetapi menghalangi manusia dari jalan Allah, kafir kepada-Nya, menghalangi (orang) ke Masjidil Haram, dan mengusir penduduknya, itu lebih besar dosanya di sisi Allah; dan fitnah itu lebih kejam daripada pembunuhan.” Dan mereka tidak henti-hentinya memerangi kamu sampai mereka (dapat) mengembalikan kamu dari agamamu (Islam), seandainya mereka sanggup.” [Al-Baqarah, 2:217]."

“They ask you concerning fighting in the sacred months. Say, “Fighting therein is a great (transgression) but a greater (transgression) in the sight of Allah is to prevent mankind from following the way of Allah, to disbelieve in Him, to prevent access to Al-Masjid-al-Haram, and to drive out its inhabitants, and ‘Al-Fitnah’ is worse than killing. And they will never cease fighting you until they turn you back from your deen (Islam) if they can.” [Al-Baqarah, 2:217].

Ketika ayat ini turun, kaum Muslimin bersukacita, dan Rasulullah ﷺ kemudian membagi harta rampasan dari kafilah itu serta menukar dua tawanan dengan Sa'd ibn Abi Waqqas al-Zuhri dan 'Utbah ibn Ghazwan. Ayat-ayat ini menjadi tamparan bagi propaganda kaum Quraisy terhadap Islam. Al-Qur'an menjawab pertanyaan kaum Quraisy tentang berperang di bulan haram, dengan menyatakan bahwa berperang memang dosa, tetapi menghalangi manusia dari jalan Masjidil Haram dan mengusir penduduknya darinya jauh lebih besar dosanya daripada berperang dan membunuh di bulan haram.

When this verse was revealed the Muslims rejoiced and Allah’s Messenger (pbuh) then proceeded to distribute the booty from the caravan and exchange the two prisoners for Sa’d ibn Abi Waqqas al-Zuhri and ‘Utbah ibn Ghazwan. These verses came as a slap in the face of the Quraysh’s propaganda against Islam. The Qur’an answered the Quraysh’s question concerning fighting in the sacred month, agreeing that fighting is a sin, but keeping people back from the way of the sacred Masjid and driving its people away from it was far more serious than fighting and killing in the sacred month.

Perbuatan kaum Quraisy yang menindas kaum Muslimin karena agama mereka, dengan mengancam, menyiksa, dan menganiaya mereka, jauh lebih buruk daripada berperang dan membunuh di bulan haram, ataupun di bulan lain mana pun. Kaum Quraisy telah memerangi mereka tanpa henti dengan tujuan memalingkan mereka dari agama mereka. Oleh karena itu, kaum Muslimin berhak memerangi kaum Quraisy di bulan haram, dan tidak ada yang bisa dipersalahkan atas mereka. Justru kaum Quraisy-lah yang melakukan pelanggaran yang lebih berat, karena mereka menghalangi dakwah Islam, menghalangi manusia dari jalan Allah, kafir kepada Allah, mengusir penduduk dari Masjidil Haram, dan menganiaya kaum Muslimin. Mereka pantas diperangi di setiap bulan, baik bulan haram maupun bukan. Maka peperangan yang dimulai oleh 'Abdullah bin Jahsy terhadap kaum Quraisy itu tidak mencoreng dirinya maupun kaum Muslimin.

The Quraysh’s actions of oppressing the Muslims for their Deen by threatening, torturing and persecuting them was far worse than fighting and killing in the sacred month, or any other month for that matter. The Quraysh had relentlessly fought them in an attempt to turn them back from their Deen, therefore the Muslims were entitled to fight the Quraysh in the sacred month and nothing could be held against them. It was the Quraysh who were committing the graver offense by standing in the way of the Islamic Da’wah, by keeping people back from the way of Allah, by disbelieving in Allah, driving out the people from the sacred Masjid and persecuting the Muslims. They deserved to be fought in any and every month, sacred or otherwise. The fight that ‘Abdullah ibn Jahsh initiated against the Quraysh was therefore neither a disgrace to him nor to the Muslims.

Dengan demikian, ekspedisi ‘Abdullah ibn Jahsh menjadi titik balik dalam sejarah Islam. Ekspedisi ini menandai perubahan kebijakan yang mendalam dalam cara dakwah Islam harus dijalankan. Waqid ibn ‘Abdullah al-Tamimi memanah pemimpin kafilah tersebut hingga tewas. Inilah darah pertama yang ditumpahkan kaum Muslimin di jalan Allah (SWT). Sebelum turunnya ayat-ayat jihad yang memerintahkan kaum Muslimin untuk berperang, pertempuran bersenjata di bulan-bulan haram belum diizinkan. Sejak saat itu, namun, aturannya berbeda. Dengan demikian, larangan sebelumnya untuk berperang di bulan-bulan haram dihapus (di-naskh) oleh kekhususan ayat yang disebutkan di atas.

Thus, the expedition of ‘Abdullah ibn Jahsh was a turning point in the history of Islam. It marked a profound change of policy in the way that the Islamic Da’wah was to be conducted. Waqid ibn ‘Abdullah al-Tamimi shot the leader of the caravan and killed him. This was the first blood the Muslims shed in the way of Allah (swt). Until the verses of Jihad were revealed commanding the Muslims to fight; armed combat during the sacred months had been unauthorized. From that time on though the rules were different. Thus the previous prevention against fighting in the sacred months was abrogated by the specificity of the above mentioned verse.