Transliteration:( Wa maa kaana li Nabiyyin ai yaghull; wa mai yaghlul ya'tibimaa ghalla Yawmal Qiyaamah; summa tuwaffaa kullu nafsim maa kasabat wa hum laa yuzlamoon )
“It cannot be thought of any prophet that he hides away something [364] (of the booty). But whoso conceals anything, on the Day of Resurrection, He will bring it to light. Then every soul shall be paid in full what it had earned [365], and there shall be no injustice done unto them [366].”
The phrase “hides away” refers to breach of trust in handling war booty.
Reason for Revelation: During one battle, a sheet was lost from the collected war booty, and the hypocrites began implying that the Holy Prophet ﷺ might have taken it. To counter this slander, Allah Himself revealed this verse.
From this, four essential points emerge:
Breach of trust before distribution of war booty is a serious crime in Islamic law.
Prophets are sinless—the relationship between sin and prophethood is like darkness and light: they do not coexist.
Doubting a Prophet’s integrity is the trait of hypocrites, and such suspicions lead to disbelief.
Allah Himself defends His Prophets, clearing their names from false allegations and establishing their innocence beyond question.
Prophets are sent to guide and rescue others from evil. If they themselves were to fall into sin, who would lead the misguided back to the path? Hence, breach of trust or deception is absolutely impossible for a Prophet. Their mission demands absolute moral perfection.
By “no injustice” is meant that Allah will never reduce the reward of anyone’s good deeds, nor increase punishment beyond what is deserved. Moreover, no one will be punished without having committed a wrong. Every soul will receive precisely what it earned, in full fairness and justice.
The tafsir of Surah Imran verse 161 by Ibn Kathir is unavailable here.
Please refer to Surah Imran ayat 159 which provides the complete commentary from verse 159 through 164.
(3:161) It is not for a Prophet to defraud;[114] and whoever defrauds shall bring with him the fruits of his fraud on the Day of Resurrection, when every human being shall be paid in full what he has earned, and shall not be wronged.
114. When the archers, whom the Prophet had posted to defend the army against any attack from the rear, saw that the spoils of the enemy were being collected, they feared that the spoils might fall in their entirety to the lot of the soldiers who were then collecting them, and that they might, therefore, be deprived of their share. It was this idea which had impelled them to leave their posts. When the Prophet returned to Madina after the battle he asked them to explain the cause of their disobedience. When he had heard their unconvincing stories he told them: ‘You thought that we would act dishonestly and would not deliver you your share.’ (See Alusi. Ruh al-Ma’ani, commentary on this verse – Ed.) The verse alludes to this here. The purpose is to impress upon them that the Messenger of God himself was the commander of their army and that all their affairs were in his hands alone. What made them feel that their interests were not secure even in the hands of God’s Messenger? Did they think that a division of spoils under the direct supervision of the Prophet Would be made in any manner other than that dictated by absolute honesty, trustworthiness and justice?
For a faster and smoother experience,
install our mobile app now.
Related Ayat(Verses)/Topics