Indeed, war with such a pure motive as to establish the principle of religious liberty was truly a jihad, a struggle carried on simply with the object that truth may prosper and that freedom of conscience may be maintained. Here again the condition is plainly laid down that the Muslims shall not be the first to attack. The misconception is due to the fact that the words are taken out of their context and a significance is forced on them which the context cannot bear. But if they repent and keep up prayer and pay the poor-rate, leave their way free. It is asserted that this verse offers to the disbelievers the alternative of the sword or the Quran.
Nothing is farther from the truth.
As the title of this chapter and the opening verses show, the Muslims are granted 'Immunity' from their obligations with such of the idolatrous tribes as had repeatedly broken their engagements with the Muslims and repeatedly dealt telling blows to the Muslims whenever they had an opportunity of doing so. The injunction in the fifth verse to wage war is clearly against these idolators who repeatedly violated their agreements with the Muslims, while clear exceptions are made with regard to those idolatrous tribes who adhered to their treaties and those who sought the protection of the Muslims. The latter were to be conveyed the message of Islam but in case they did not accept it, they were to be safely conveyed to their homes. This clearly shows that the reason why the Muslims were fight against the idolators, as mentioned in v. 5, was not because they were idolators but because they repeatedly violated the trust of the Muslims and invited them to war. Nowhere does the Quran give the Muslims permission to enter on an unprovoked war against the whole world.