Fight then against them till all strife be at an end, and the religion be all
of it God'sSura Al-Anfal (viii) 40.1
The timid are referred to in the verse:
The believers say, 'Oh, would that a Sura were sent down; but when a
peremptory Sura is revealed, whose burden is war, thou mayest see the diseased
of heart look toward thee, with a look of one on whom the shadows of death have
fallen.
Be not faint-hearted then: and invite not the infidels to peace when ye have the
upper hand. Sura Muhammad (xlvii) 22, 37.
Thus was the ground prepared and the inhabitants of Madina stirred up to take
their part for the first time in an aggressive war. The distress in Madina was
very great at this time, and supplies had to be obtained from some source.2
The immediate cause of the battle of Badr (A.D. 624) was the desire of Muhammad
to capture a rich caravan known to be on its way from Syria to Mecca.3
It was escorted