Al-Baqarah · Madani · ayah 273 of 286

Al-Baqarah 2:273

لِلْفُقَرَآءِ ٱلَّذِينَ أُحْصِرُوا۟ فِى سَبِيلِ ٱللَّهِ لَا يَسْتَطِيعُونَ ضَرْبًا فِى ٱلْأَرْضِ يَحْسَبُهُمُ ٱلْجَاهِلُ أَغْنِيَآءَ مِنَ ٱلتَّعَفُّفِ تَعْرِفُهُم بِسِيمَـٰهُمْ لَا يَسْـَٔلُونَ ٱلنَّاسَ إِلْحَافًا ۗ وَمَا تُنفِقُوا۟ مِنْ خَيْرٍ فَإِنَّ ٱللَّهَ بِهِۦ عَلِيمٌ

“[Charity is] for the poor who have been restricted for the cause of Allāh, unable to move about in the land. An ignorant [person] would think them self-sufficient because of their restraint, but you will know them by their [characteristic] sign. They do not ask people persistently [or at all]. And whatever you spend of good - indeed, Allāh is Knowing of it.”

Saheeh International

Essence

Seek out the poor whose dignity hides their need: the careless think them rich, but the attentive know them by their marks.

A reflection

Three ways of seeing the man in the good suit

At a wedding, the guests admire a cousin's suit. Nobody knows it is the only one he owns, or that he walked four miles to save the bus fare.

The ayah describes three levels of seeing. First, the jāhil: 'the one who does not know thinks them rich, because of their restraint'. A concise commentary specifies: ignorant of their situation. He sees the pressed shirt and the steady smile, and stops there.

Second, 'you': 'you will know them by their mark'. The commentators describe the signs: humility, the traces of strain, need showing on their bodies and clothes. A classical commentator adds that these are what appear to people of insight.

Third, and last: 'whatever good you spend, Allah knows it'. Allah's knowing is not a matter of signs. He knows the cousin's walk, his empty cupboard, his dignity, and the gift that will one day reach him.

Here the ego meets a quiet rebuke. We are confident judges of people. We size them up by cars, clothes and confidence. The ayah calls that confident surface reading by a blunt name: jahl, ignorance. And it sets above all our reading the One whose knowledge has no surface at all.

Someone may ask why the ayah needs to end by reminding us that Allah knows. Is He reassuring Himself? He needs no reassurance. He is free of all need (35:15). The reminder is for the giver. Your quiet gift to someone who never asked is fully seen, even if they never learn your name.

The cousin's suit will last a few more weddings. Someone with eyes might notice the shoes.

The full entry has 7 more reflections, questions to sit with, and "Live it today" - with the words, the roots and the tafsir alongside. Free, no account, works offline.