Verses and Translation
لِّيُدۡخِلَ ٱلۡمُؤۡمِنِينَ وَٱلۡمُؤۡمِنَـٰتِ جَنَّـٰتٍ۬ تَجۡرِى مِن تَحۡتِہَا ٱلۡأَنۡہَـٰرُ خَـٰلِدِينَ فِيہَا وَيُڪَفِّرَ عَنۡهُمۡ سَيِّـَٔاتِہِمۡۚ وَكَانَ ذَٲلِكَ عِندَ ٱللَّهِ فَوۡزًا عَظِيمً۬ا (٥)
“[And] that He may admit the believing men and the believing women to gardens beneath which rivers flow to abide therein eternally and remove from them their misdeeds – and ever is that, in the sight of Allah, a great attainment.”
Commentary
Consistently, when the Quran refers to battle, it doesn’t only mention men but also mentions women. As the men go to battle, the women are also being tested in their patience and faith. Having misdeeds removed and being admitted to these special gardens, then, is the ultimate success compared to mere victory on Earth. [NAK]
In the Qur’an generally mention of the rewards for the believers is made collectively and separate mention is not made of the rewards for the men and the women But here, since the general mention of giving the rewards could cause the doubt that this reward may perhaps be only meant for the men. Allah has made a separate mention of the believing women, saying that they too would be equal partners in this reward with the believing men. The reason is obvious. Those God-fearing women who encouraged their husbands, sons, brothers and fathers to proceed on the dangerous journey instead of stopping them from it and discouraging them by crying and wailing, who looked after their houses, their properties, their honor and children in their absence faithfully, who did not even feel the alarm lest at the sudden departure of 1,400 of the Companions the disbelievers and hypocrites of the surrounding areas would attack the city, should certainly have become equal partners with their men in the reward of Jihad although they stayed behind in their homes.
That is, that He may pardon whatever errors they might have committed because of human weaknesses, remove every trace and mark of the errors from them before admitting them into Paradise so that they may enter Paradise absolutely free from every evil that may cause them embarrassment. [Maududi]