Finally, Allah revealed a verse to the Prophet (pbuh) which declared that these three men were forgiven:
In the Name of Allah, the Beneficent, the Merciful
“Allah hath turned in mercy to the Prophet, and to the Muhajirin and the Ansar who followed him in the hour of hardship. After the hearts of a party of them had almost swerved aside, then He turned unto them in mercy. Lo! He is full of Pity, Merciful. And to the three also (did He turn in mercy) who were left behind, when the earth, vast as it is, was straitened for them, and their own souls were straitened for them till they understood that there is no refuge from Allah save toward Him. Then He turned unto them in mercy that they (too) might turn (repentant unto Him). Lo! Allah! He is the Relenting, the Merciful. O you who believe! Be careful of your duty to Allah, and be with tile truthful”. (Koran ix.117-119)
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The Farewell Pilgrimage
The Prophet (pbuh) had become the most powerful leader in the whole of Arabia. After the idols in the Ka'bah had been smashed and Quraysh had become Muslim, most of the other tribes of Arabia came to declare their Islam. The year in which they came was later to be called the Year of Deputations. As each tribe joined Islam, the Prophet Muhammad (pbuh) sent his men to teach them about their new religion. Many people also came to Medinah to question the Prophet (pbuh) himself. One tribe sent a man called Dimam, who was large and strong. On arriving in Medinah, he went straight to the mosque, where the Messenger of Allah (pbuh) was sitting with some of his companions, and stood over the Prophet (pbuh). In a loud, rough voice he asked, 'Which of you is the son of 'Abd al-Muttalib?' When the Prophet (pbuh) answered him Dimam went on, 'I am going to ask you a hard question, so do not misunderstand me. I ask you to swear by Allah, your Allah, the Allah of those before you and the Allah of those who will come after you, has He sent you to us as a messenger?' 'Yes, He has', replied the Prophet (pbuh). 'Has Allah instructed you to order us to serve Him; to pray these five prayers; to pay alms; to fast; to make the pilgrimage and to follow the other laws of Islam)?' continued Dimam. When the Prophet (pbuh) answered that Allah had indeed instructed him in this way, Dimam became a Muslim and, as he left, added, 'Then I will do the things we are told to do and avoid the things we are forbidden-no more and no less.` As Dimam mounted his camel to leave, the Prophet(pbuh) told the people around him, 'If this man is sincere, he will go to Paradise.' When Dimam reached his people they all thought he had gone mad but by nightfall, after he had finished speaking, there was not among them that had not accepted Islam.
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When the time came for the yearly pilgrimage, it was proclaimed that the prophet (pbuh) would be going to Mecca. The Muslims flocked to Medinah from all over Arabia to join him on his journey to the Ka’bah. As the tribes arrived they camped around the city until they finally numbered more than thirty thousand.
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