الآية رقم (110) - وَأَقِيمُواْ الصَّلاَةَ وَآتُواْ الزَّكَاةَ وَمَا تُقَدِّمُواْ لأَنفُسِكُم مِّنْ خَيْرٍ تَجِدُوهُ عِندَ اللّهِ إِنَّ اللّهَ بِمَا تَعْمَلُونَ بَصِيرٌ

(110) - “And establish prayer and give zakah, and whatever good you put forward for yourselves - you will find it with Allah. Indeed, Allah is All-Seeing of what you do.”

The response against the Jews, as well as others besides them, with regards to their attempt to make the Muslims renounce their faith, is to command them to prayer and zakat. Prayer and zakat are both mentioned as they are of the pillars of the religion.

وَأَقِيمُوا الصَّلاةَ ﴿ “And establish the prayer”

Prayer is the support pillar of the religion. Whosoever establishes it, establishes the religion. And whosoever demolishes it, demolishes the religion. Acts of worship in Islam are not all pillars though in every act in which the pleasure of Allah U is sought, is an act of obedience. As for pillars, they are only five. And the first of them after the testimony of faith is the prayer. The prayer is a proclamation of the continuous devotion to Allah throughout the hours of the day and night by the five prayer times in a day. As Allah says:

وَأَقِمْ الصَّلاةَ طَرَفِي النَّهَارِ وَزُلَفاً مِنْ اللَّيْلِ﴿

“And establish prayer at the two ends of the day and at the approach of the night.” [Surah Hud: 114] and He said:

وَأَقِمْ الصَّلاةَ لِذِكْرِي﴿

“and establish prayer for My remembrance.” [Surah Taha: 14] and:

أَقِمْ الصَّلاةَ لِدُلُوكِ الشَّمْسِ إِلَى غَسَقِ اللَّيْلِ وَقُرْآنَ الْفَجْرِ إِنَّ قُرْآنَ الْفَجْرِ كَانَ مَشْهُوداً﴿

“Establish prayer at the decline of the sun [from its meridian] until the darkness of the night and [also] the Qur’an of dawn. Indeed, the recitation of dawn is ever witnessed.” [Surah Al-Isra’: 78].