Al-Baqarah · Madani · ayah 274 of 286

Al-Baqarah 2:274

ٱلَّذِينَ يُنفِقُونَ أَمْوَٰلَهُم بِٱلَّيْلِ وَٱلنَّهَارِ سِرًّا وَعَلَانِيَةً فَلَهُمْ أَجْرُهُمْ عِندَ رَبِّهِمْ وَلَا خَوْفٌ عَلَيْهِمْ وَلَا هُمْ يَحْزَنُونَ

“Those who spend their wealth [in Allāh's way] by night and by day, secretly and publicly - they will have their reward with their Lord. And no fear will there be concerning them, nor will they grieve.”

Saheeh International

Essence

Those who give by night and by day, in secret and in the open, whenever need appears, have their reward with their Lord.

A reflection

Every hour, every state

A night-shift taxi driver keeps a cool bag of sandwiches on the passenger seat. Whenever he passes someone sleeping in a doorway, he pulls over. He has been doing it for six years. Nobody at the rank knows.

The ayah paints its givers in two pairs: 'by night and by day, secretly and openly'. A classical commentator draws out the meaning. They cover every time and every state with charity, out of eagerness for good. Whenever a needy person's need came to them, they hurried to meet it. They did not delay it or excuse themselves by the hour or the circumstance. Another classical commentator calls this the best explanation.

The pairs are deliberately complete. Night and day cover the clock. Secret and open cover the manner. There is no time and no setting in which these people do not give. Giving is not an event in their lives. It is a texture.

The commentators also preserve reports about who first fit the description. One says ʿAlī owned only four dirhams. He gave one by night, one by day, one in secret and one openly. Another says Abu Bakr gave a fortune in the same four ways. Whatever the occasion, the portrait is clear.

A classical commentator notices one more detail. Night comes before day, and secret before open, in the ayah's order. He takes it as a hint that secret giving holds the higher place, echoing two ayat before.

The taxi driver would not call himself generous. Giving has simply become part of how he drives through the night.

The full entry has 6 more reflections, questions to sit with, and "Live it today" - with the words, the roots and the tafsir alongside. Free, no account, works offline.