An-Nisa · Madani · ayah 32 of 176

An-Nisa 4:32

وَلَا تَتَمَنَّوْا۟ مَا فَضَّلَ ٱللَّهُ بِهِۦ بَعْضَكُمْ عَلَىٰ بَعْضٍ ۚ لِّلرِّجَالِ نَصِيبٌ مِّمَّا ٱكْتَسَبُوا۟ ۖ وَلِلنِّسَآءِ نَصِيبٌ مِّمَّا ٱكْتَسَبْنَ ۚ وَسْـَٔلُوا۟ ٱللَّهَ مِن فَضْلِهِۦٓ ۗ إِنَّ ٱللَّهَ كَانَ بِكُلِّ شَىْءٍ عَلِيمًا

“And do not wish for that by which Allāh has made some of you exceed others. For men is a share of what they have earned, and for women is a share of[180] what they have earned. And ask Allāh of His bounty. Indeed Allāh is ever, of all things, Knowing.”

Saheeh International

Essence

Stop measuring yourself against what Allah gave others: everyone keeps what they earned, and the door to ask Him for more is always open.

A reflection

Quarrelling with the One who distributes

Notice who the ayah says did the distributing: mā faḍḍala Allāhu bihi baʿḍakum ʿalā baʿḍ. What Allah has favoured some of you with over others. The talent, the wealth, the health, the role. Not luck. Not the market. Him.

So coveting is never only a feeling about a person. Underneath, it is a quarrel with the Distributor. When I stare at what you have and resent that it is not mine, I am telling Allah He made a mistake.

The ayah closes with the answer to that quarrel: inna Allāha kāna bi-kulli shayʾin ʿalīmā. Allah has always known everything. One classical commentator spells it out. He knows who is fit for worldly wealth and gives it, and who is better kept in poverty. He knows who is fit for the work of the next life and opens its doors to them. A concise commentary adds that He knows what will set His servants right in what He has apportioned to each.

That is majesty aimed squarely at the ego. The ego is a born comparer. It measures its house against the neighbour's, its children against the cousins', its career against the old classmate's. It believes that if it were in charge, the shares would be fairer, and its own share bigger. The ayah removes it from the committee. The shares were set by the One who knows every life from the inside.

Is it fair that some have more? A sceptic may ask that, and so may a believer on a hard day. The ayah does not deny the inequality. It places it inside knowledge we do not have, and then opens a door the comparer forgets: ask Him of His bounty.

Does Allah need us to accept His distribution? He is the Free of need (35:15). Our resentment takes nothing from Him. It only takes the peace from us. The humble heart says: He knew what He was doing with them, and He knows what He is doing with me.

The full entry has 5 more reflections, questions to sit with, and "Live it today" - with the words, the roots and the tafsir alongside. Free, no account, works offline.