The Quran

Preface

وَإِذ قالَت طائِفَةٌ مِنهُم يا أَهلَ يَثرِبَ لا مُقامَ لَكُم فَارجِعوا ۚ وَيَستَأذِنُ فَريقٌ مِنهُمُ النَّبِيَّ يَقولونَ إِنَّ بُيوتَنا عَورَةٌ وَما هِيَ بِعَورَةٍ ۖ إِن يُريدونَ إِلّا فِرارًا

Yusuf Ali

Behold! A party among them said: “Ye men of Yathrib! ye cannot stand (the attack)! therefore go back!” And a band of them ask for leave of the Prophet, saying, “Truly our houses¹ are bare and exposed,” though they were not exposed: they intended nothing but to run away.

All the fighting men of Medīna had come out of the City and camped in the open space between the City and the Trench that had been dug all round. The disaffected Hypocrites sowed defeatist rumours and pretended to withdraw for the defence of their homes, though their homes were not exposed, and were fully covered by the vigilant defensive forces inside the Trench.