۞ INDEED, well-pleased was God with the believers when they pledged their allegiance unto thee [O Muhammad] under that tree, for He knew what was in their hearts; and so He bestowed inner peace upon them from on high, and rewarded them with [the glad tiding of] a victory soon to come 18 And many gains will they acquire (besides): and Allah is Exalted in Power, Full of Wisdom. 19 Allah has promised you plenty of booty which you will take, and has bestowed this to you quickly, and restrained peoples’ hands from you; and in order that it may be a sign for the believers, and to guide you on the Straight Path. 20 And [He promises] other [victories] that you were [so far] unable to [realize] which Allah has already encompassed. And ever is Allah, over all things, competent. 21 Had the disbelievers fought against you, they would have run away from the battle and would have found no guardian or helper. 22 This is the law of God, effective as before: You will not find any change in the law of God. 23 It is He who kept peace between you and the people of the valley of Mecca after having given you a victory over them. God is Well Aware of what you 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 While those who deny the truth made it a prestige issue [in their hearts], the bigotry of the days of ignorance, God sent His tranquillity down on to His Messenger and believers and firmly established in them the principle of righteousness, for they were indeed better entitled to it and more worthy of it. God has full knowledge of all things. 26