Transliteration:( Yaaa ayyuhal lazeena aamanoo laa tubtiloo sadaqaatikum bilmanni wal azaa kallazee yunfiqu maalahoo ri'aaa'an naasi wa laa yu'minu billaahi wal yawmil aakhiri famasaluhoo kamasali safwaanin 'alaihi turaabun fa asaabahoo waabilun fatara kahoo saldaa; laa yaqdiroona 'alaa shai'im mimmaa kasaboo; wallaahu laa yahdil qawmal kaafireen )
691.In this there is a hint that if giving charity publicly may cause any disgrace to the beggar, it should be given without any publicity to obviate this. Under such circumstances publicizing charity becomes part of 'injure'.
692. Some great sages are of the opinion that one should not hope for reward from man for imparting religious education nor taunt him because this, too, is a charity of education.
693. This is the condition of the charity of hypocrites who spend their wealth not to gain the pleasure of Allah but to gain publicity which is rendered null and void by their taunts and bragging. It should be remembered that if the purpose of giving charity publicly is to show off, it is an evil act, but if it is given to encourage others, it is a good act. Says Allah Almighty "If you give charity openly then what a good thing it is" (S2: V271).
694. The heart of a hypocrite is like a block of stone and his worships, especially, charities and donations for show are the dust and environsfallen on that block from which no growth of seeds can be expected. Allah Almighty's rejection of their worships can be compared to that water which washes away top soil. Hence this comparison is very effective.
695. From this it should be understood that the foundation of outer worships is based on sincerity and sound intentions - the greater the sincere, the bigger their firmness and their fruits of reward.
696. The non-believer does not receive guidance. For doing pious deeds, because the acceptance of piety is dependent on Faith. If he were to find the path of piety he would have repented from his apostasy and engaged himself in doing pious deeds. It could also mean that those who are to remain non-believers by Allah will not find guidance towards Faith i.e. coming in the fold of Islam. Other than that, many non-believers have already come into the fold of Islam and Allah has accepted their faith.
The tafsir of Surah Baqarah verse 263 by Ibn Kathir is unavailable here.
Please refer to Surah Baqarah ayat 262 which provides the complete commentary from verse 262 through 264.
(2:264) Believers! Do not nullify your acts of charity by stressing your benevolence and causing hurt as does he who spends his wealth only to be seen by people and does not believe in Allah and the Last Day.[303] The example of his spending is that of a rock with a thin coating of earth upon it: when a heavy rain smites it, the earth is washed away, leaving the rock bare;[304] such people derive no gain from their acts of charity. Allah does not set the deniers of the Truth on the Right Way.[305]
303. The desire to display one’s good deeds itself proves that the person concerned does not truly believe in God and the Hereafter. One who does good merely in order to impress people with his righteousness clearly regards those persons as his god. Such a person neither expects reward from God nor is he concerned that his good deeds will some day be reckoned to his credit.
304. In this parable, ‘heavy rain’ signifies charity, and ‘rock’ the wicked intent and motive which lie behind external acts of charity. The expression, with a thin coating of earth upon it’ signifies the external aspect of charity which conceals the wicked intent and motive of a man. These explanations make the significance and purport of the parable clear. The natural effect of rainfall should be the growth of plants and harvest. But if the earth, which is the repository of fertility, is insignificant in quantity, for example only a coating of it on some rock, the result will be that instead of yielding any beneficial result the rainfall may even prove harmful. Similarly, charity has the capacity to generate goodness and benevolence in human beings. Man’s potential for goodness, however, is conditional on sincerity. Devoid of that charity leads to sheer loss and waste.
305. Here the term kafir is used in the sense of the ungrateful person who refuses to acknowledge benevolence. People who either make use of the bounties of God in order to seek the gratitude of God’s creatures rather than God’s good pleasure, or who spend on others and then hurt them by stressing their acts of benevolence and kindness, are ungrateful to God for His bounties and favours. Since such people do not seek to please God, God does not care to direct them to the way that leads to His good pleasure.
Related Ayat(Verses)/Topics