Topic: Al-Basit (Enlarger Of Provisions)

57:12, 19; 64:18.

Important Words:

یقرض (will lend) is derived from اقرض which again is derived from قرض. They say قرض الشیء i.e. he cut or severed the thing.اقرضه means, he gave him a loan. اقرض فلانا means, he cut off for him a portion so that he may requite or recompense it. قرضmeans, the act of giving a loan; a loan itself; any good or evil act which brings reward or punishment (Lane).

یقبض (receives) is derived from قبض. They say قبض الشیء i.e. he got hold of it; he received it. قبض یدہ عنه means, he kept back or withdrew his hand from it. قبض الله رزقه means, God straitened his means and lessened his provision (Aqrab).

Commentary:

This verse gives the second means of national advancement, i.e. free expenditure in nation-saving and nation-building affairs. If a nation desires to rise and prosper, it must spend money freely for national purposes, which include helping the poor and the needy. The Quran speaks of spending money in the cause of Allah as giving a loan to God, meaning thereby that money spent in the cause of God should not be regarded as something wasted or even consumed. It should be considered as something given to God as a loan which He would return to the lender manifold. The word loan, however, should not cause any misunderstanding. God needs no loans, for He is not only Self-Sufficient, but is also the Supporter and Sustainer of all other beings and things. He has used the term to indicate that one who spends in the cause of Allah will receive an ample reward from Him; his money, as it were, will be returned to him, being multiplied many times.

The interrogative form in the clause, Who is it that will lend, is used by way of exhortation, and the words, a goodly loan, have been added to indicate that this money is to be spent with a willing and cheerful heart.

It should be noted that apart from specifically national expenditures, the spending of money to help the poor and the needy also is tantamount to giving a loan to God. The Holy Prophet is reported to have said, "God will say to the sinful man on the Day of Judgement, O son of man, I fell ill, but you paid Me no visit; I asked you for food, but you gave Me no food; I asked you for water but you gave Me no water. The man will say, O my Lord, when didst Thou fall ill that I did not visit Thee? When didst Thou ask for food that I did not give it to Thee? When didst Thou ask for water that I gave it Thee not?' God will say, O son of man, know you not that one of My servants fell ill and you did not pay him a visit, he asked you for food and you did not give it to him; and he asked you for water and you gave him no water" (Muslim, ch. on Birri Was-Silah). This shows that spending money for the poor and the needy is tantamount to giving money to God.

The words, Allah receives and enlarges, signify that God accepts the money spent in His cause and multiplies it exceedingly so that the reward a man gets is out of all proportion to what he spends. The words, and to Him shall you be made to return, have been added to point out that, though virtuous men get their reward even in this life, yet what is in store for them in the next is far greater.

29:63; 30:38; 39:53.

10:8.

Important Words:

فی (as compared with) is a particle used in a vast variety of senses. It denotes inclusion or in-being either in relation to place or time, as in the sentences زید فی الدار i.e. Zaid is in the house, and فی ایام معدودات i.e. during a certain number of days. In many instances it may be rendered as "of" or "concerning" or "in respect of" as in اتحاجوننا فی الله i.e. do you argue with us concerning God. It also denotes concomitance and is sometimes synonymous with مع meaning, "among" as in ادخلو فی امم i.e. enter you with peoples. It also denotes the assigning of a cause, meaning, "on account of or because of" as in the words occurring in a saying of the Prophet ان امرأة دخلت فی النار فی ھرة حبستھا i.e. verily, a woman entered Hell because of a cat she kept confined without food (Muslim, Kitabul-Birr was-Silah). It is also synonymous with الی and علی as well as with من and is sometimes used to denote comparison, as in the sentence ما علمی فی بحرہ الا قطرة i.e. my knowledge is but a drop as compared with his knowledge which is like a sea (Aqrab & Lane).

Commentary:

The verse disabuses the minds of disbelievers of the wrong notion that by accepting Islam they would lose the material benefits they now enjoy and that the bliss of the next world which it promises is but an imaginary thing. By saying that the prosperity or poverty of this life are in the hands of God, the verse implies a subtle hint that God had already decreed that all this prosperity should be transferred from the enemies of the Holy Prophet to his followers and therefore their acceptance of him would not even entail any worldly loss for them. The verse, however, proceeds to say that if even the acceptance of the Prophet led to some loss of worldly good, it would not matter, for his teachings embody abiding and permanent principles and relate to the everlasting life of the Hereafter compared with which the things of this world are of no account. This is what is expressed in the words, the present life is but a temporary enjoyment as compared with that which is to come. Incidentally, the verse enunciates the great principle that intellectual and mental culture are superior to material progress, which always follows in the wake of intellectual advancement.

13:27; 29:63; 30:38; 39:53.

Commentary:

The verse means to say that God grants plenty to some and straitens the means of livelihood for others. He does so that He may see whether those upon whom He has bestowed wealth help those who are poor and needy. The verse teaches the supreme lesson that money spent in helping and serving the poor is money well spent. The enlarging of provision by God and the straitening of it by Him do not imply an arbitrary action but refer to a wise system of divine laws.

It is worthy of note that these commandments regarding the right use of money were given to Muslims in Mecca at a time when they could not earn even as much as to make both ends meet and when many of them were actually starving. Could such commandments be given to a persecuted and starving people by anyone except the All-Powerful God Who knew that the time was soon coming when those very starving Muslims would become wealthy and powerful?

13:27; 29:63; 34:37.

Important Words:

ویکان (Ah).ویک is a compound expression made up of وی and ک and is used for surprise and reproach, وی meaning woe and ک being a letter of address. They say ویک i.e. woe to thee. Some say ویک is ویلک (thy perdition), ل having been omitted. ویک being an expression of surprise or reproach means, oh; ah. وی لزید also means, well done Zaid, bravo Zaid (Aqrab).

13:27; 30:38; 34:37; 39:53; 42:13.

See 29:63.

13:27; 29: 63; 39:53; 42:13.

Commentary:

The verse seems to hold out a promise to those who are looked down upon and are oppressed and exploited, that by accepting the new Message, they will become rich and powerful. In God’s possession lie the treasures of the heavens and earth, and He has decreed that the poor and the downtrodden will now inherit the earth because they have accepted the Divine Message.

13:27; 29:63; 30:38; 34:37; 42:13.

Commentary:

The verse sums up the theme of the foregoing verses, viz. that God has decreed that a people who are poor and weak should now become powerful and prosperous by following the Holy Prophet, and those who are rich and powerful should suffer disgrace and degradation because they have rejected the truth. When this happens it will constitute a great sign to prove the truth of the Holy Prophet.

39:64.

13:27; 29:63; 34:37; 39:53.

15:22.