9. Surah At Tawbah

The Quranic Text & Ali’s Version:

وَمِنْهُم مَّن يَلْمِزُكَ فِي الصَّدَقَاتِ...   

9: 58.  And among them are men who slander thee in the matter of (the distribution of) the alms.

C1318. Sadaqah: aims, that which is given in Allah's name, mainly to the poor and needy, and for the cognate purposes specified in the next verse but one:

Zakah is the regular and obligatory charity in an organized Muslim community, usually 2 1/2 per cent, of merchandise and 10 per cent, on the fruits of the earth. There is a vast body of literature on this subject. The main points may be studied in the Hidaya filfuru of Sheikh Burhan ud din Ali.

As against Zakah the term sadaqah has a much wider connotation, and is inclusive of Zakah as in the verse 60 of this Surah. (R).

...فَإِنْ أُعْطُواْ مِنْهَا رَضُواْ وَإِن لَّمْ يُعْطَوْاْ مِنهَا إِذَا هُمْ يَسْخَطُونَ ﴿٥٨﴾

If they are given part thereof, they are pleased, but if not, behold! they are indignant!

وَلَوْ أَنَّهُمْ رَضُوْاْ مَا آتَاهُمُ اللّهُ وَرَسُولُهُ...   

9: 59.  If only they had been content with what Allah and His Messenger gave them,

...وَقَالُواْ حَسْبُنَا اللّهُ سَيُؤْتِينَا اللّهُ مِن فَضْلِهِ وَرَسُولُهُ...

and had said,

"Sufficient unto us is Allah! Allah and His Messenger will soon give us of His bounty:

...إِنَّا إِلَى اللّهِ رَاغِبُونَ ﴿٥٩﴾

to Allah do we turn our hopes!"

(That would have been the right course.)

C1319. Selfish men think that charitable funds are fair game for raids, but the Islamic standards on this subject are very high. The enforcement of such standards is always unpopular, and even the Holy Prophet was subjected to obloquy and slander for his strictness to principle.

In doubtful cases, claimants who are disappointed should not blame the principles or those who enforce them, but put their trust in Allah, whose bounties are unbounded, and are given to all, whether rich or poor, according to their needs and their deserts. For every one it is excellent advice to say: deserve before you desire.

Other Versions:

9: 58

Asad And among them are such as find fault with thee [O Prophet] concerning [the distribution of] the offerings given for the sake of God [note 81]: if they are given something thereof, they are well-pleased [note 81];……..they are consumed with anger.

Pickthall And of them is he who defameth thee in the matter of the alms. If they are given thereof they are content, and if they are not given thereof, behold! they are enraged.

Transliteration Wa minhum may yalmizuka fis sadaqa_t(i), fa in u'tu_ minha_ radu_ wa illam yu'tau minha_ iza_ hum yaskhatu_n(a).

[[ Asad’s note 81-- Since there is no English equivalent for the term ‘sadaqat’ {sing. sadaqah), I am rendering it here as “offerings given for the sake of God”. This comprises everhthing that a believer freely gives to another person, out of love or compassion, as well as what he is morally or legally obliged to give, without expecting any worldly return: that is, charitable gifts and deeds of every description (which is the privary meaning of sadaqat – e.g., 2:263 and 264), as well as the obligaroty tas called ‘zakah’ (“the purifying dues”, because its payment purifies, as it were, a person’s property from the taint of selfighness). In the context of the above verse, this term refers to the funds thus collected and administered by the Muslim community or state. When these funds are disbursed for the purposes stipulated in verse 60, they assume once more – this time in relation to the recipients – the aspect of “charitable gifts”.]]

9: 59

Asad And yet, if they were to content themselves with what God has given them and [caused] His Apostle [ note 82], …………

Pickthall (How much more seemly) had they been content with that which Allah and His messenger had given them and had said: Allah sufficeth us. Allah will give us of His bounty, and (also) His messenger. Unto Allah we are suppliants.

Transliteration Wa lau annahum radu_ ma_ a_ta_humulla_hu wa rasu_luh(u_), wa qa_lu_ hasbunalla_hu sayu'tinalla_hu min fadlihi wa rasu_luhu_ inna_ ilalla_hi ra_gibu_n(a).

[[ Asad’s note 82 – Lit., “what God has given them, and His Apostle”: a typically Quranic construction meant to bring out the fact that the real given is God, and the Apostle is His instrument. Although this passage relates, primarily, to the hypocrites at Medina and the historical situation obtaining at the time of the expedition to Tabuk, the import of these verse goes beyond the historical occasion of their revelation, describing as it does “ the attitude and mentality of hypocrites of all times, and everywhere” (Manar X, 567). Consequently, we may assume that the reference, in this context, to “God’s Apostle” is not confined to the person of the Prophet Muhammad but implies, metonymically, the Law of Islam as revealed through him – and, thus, to every government that holds authority by virtue of that Law and rules in accordance with it.]]