يَٰٓأَيُّهَا ٱلَّذِينَ ءَامَنُوٓا۟ أَنفِقُوا۟ مِن طَيِّبَٰتِ مَا كَسَبْتُمْ وَمِمَّآ أَخْرَجْنَا لَكُم مِّنَ ٱلْأَرْضِ وَلَا تَيَمَّمُوا۟ ٱلْخَبِيثَ مِنْهُ تُنفِقُونَ وَلَسْتُم بِـَٔاخِذِيهِ إِلَّآ أَن تُغْمِضُوا۟ فِيهِ وَٱعْلَمُوٓا۟ أَنَّ ٱللَّهَ غَنِىٌّ حَمِيدٌ
“O ye who believe! Spend of the good things which ye have earned, and of that which We bring forth from the earth for you, and seek not the bad (with intent) to spend thereof (in charity) when ye would not take it for yourselves save with disdain; and know that Allah is Absolute, Owner of Praise.” — M. M. Pickthall
Taberî9-10. c.✓ Citation verified
According to Taberî, the mention of Allah's wealth demonstrates that charitable acts benefit the poor, not Allah; Allah has prescribed charity to His servants as mercy, intending thereby to strengthen the poor and give them a great reward in the hereafter. The expression 'Hamîd' means that Allah is praised among His creation on account of the blessings and favors He has given to His servants. Furthermore, it is emphasized that the property to be spent must be 'tayyib' (pure/quality), and one should not give inferior property as charity that one would not accept for oneself.
واعلموا أيها الناس أن الله عز وجل غني عن صدقاتكم وعن غيرها، وإنما أمركم بها، وفرضها في أموالكم، رحمة منه لكم ليغني بها عائلكم، ويقوي بها ضعيفكم، ويجزل لكم عليها في الآخرة مثوبتكم، لا من حاجة به فيها إليكم
Zemahşerî12. c.✓ Citation verified
According to Zemahşerî, the word 'yenbû'a' refers to a spring that flows with water continuously and abundantly, and this word is an adjective form derived from the verb 'naba'a'. He also points out that the phrase 'from the earth' indicates that the idols worshipped are earthly deities; for deities are divided into two categories: earth deities and sky deities. In this context, he gives the example of the slave girl's question 'Where is your Lord?' and her pointing to the sky, explaining that this means rejecting earth deities (idols) and does not mean ascribing place to Allah.
ومعنى نسبتها إلى الأرض : الإيذان بأنها الأصنام التي تعبد في الأرض : لأن الآلهة على ضربين : أرضية وسماوية
Fahreddin er-Râzî12-13. c.✓ Citation verified
According to this exegete, the expression 'tetemmemû/teyemmemû' in the verse means 'you intended, you turned toward', and in Ibn Kesîr's reading, the doubling of the tâ letter actually results from the presence of two tâs (the tâ of direct address and the tâ of the verb) with one being assimilated into the other; other readers pronounced the tâ lightly. Furthermore, the word 'iğmâz' in the verse, based on its original meaning of closing the eye/concealment, here means 'tolerance, turning a blind eye'; when someone is given something bad, one accepts it only with embarrassment and by closing one's eye, and the verse thus condemns giving such inferior properties as charity.
المسألة الثانية : قرأ ابن كثير وحده بتشديد التاء لأنه كان في الأصل تاءان تاء المخاطبة ، وتاء الفعل فأدغم إحداهما في الأخرى ، والباقون بفتح التاء مخففة
Kurtubî13. c.✓ Citation verified
According to Kurtubî, this verse contains three subjects: plants (products subject to zakat), mines, and buried treasure (rikâz). Regarding the phrase in the verse 'do not give the worst of what you have earned as charity', he reports different opinions: one group says this concerns obligatory zakat, while Ibn al-Arabî states it must concern voluntary/optional charity because defective property cannot be taken at all in obligatory zakat. Furthermore, through a hadith reported from the Prophet, it is concluded that mines and buried treasure have different rulings, and one-fifth (khums) will be taken from buried treasure.
قال بن العربي : لو كانت في الفرض لما قال : ولستم بآخذيه لأن الرديء والمعيب لا يجوز أخذه في الفرض بحال لا مع تقدير الإغماض ولا مع عدمه وإنما يؤخذ مع عدم إغماض في النفل
İbn Kesîr14. c.✓ Citation verified
According to Ibn Kesîr, this verse forbids the selection of worthless, low-quality, defective property in charity and expenditure. As the reason for the verse's revelation, he reports the practice of the Ansar taking the best fruit from their date palm gardens and hanging the poor-quality portions (rotten dates/husks) in the mosque and giving them as charity to the poor. Upon this behavior, the verse was revealed, emphasizing that one should not give for Allah's sake something that one would not accept for oneself.
قال نزلت في الأنصار كانت الأنصار إذا كانت أيام جذاذ النخل أخرجت من حيطانها أقناء البسر فعلقوه على حبل بين الاسطوانتين في مسجد رسول الله صلى الله عليه وسلم فيأكل فقراء المهاجرين منه فيعمد الرجل منهم إلى الحشف فيدخله مع أقناء البسر يظن أن ذلك جائز فأنزل الله فيمن فعل ذلك
Beydâvî13. c.✓ Citation verified
According to Beydâvî, the verse commands that the property to be expended must be from the good and lawful things that are earned and extracted from the earth, and that what is bad and worthless should not be selected for expenditure. He states that inferior property that one would not even accept with closed eyes could only be accepted by closing one's eye and turning a blind eye, therefore such a compromise is not appropriate in what is given to Allah. According to a report narrated from Ibn Abbas, the companions were giving the worst and worthless dates as charity, and they were prohibited from doing so.
وعن ابن عباس رضي الله عنه: كانوا يتصدقون بحشف التمر وشراره فنهوا عنه.
Comparison
Common ground
Taberî, Fahreddin er-Râzî, Kurtubî, Ibn Kesîr, and Beydâvî agree that the verse requires that property given as charity/expenditure must be of good quality and of a kind that the person themselves would accept, and that worthless/inferior property should not be given. Most exegetes ground this through narrations from the companions/successors (such as Ibn Abbas) and accounts of the reasons for revelation.
Differences
While Taberî and Beydâvî address the subject more through narration and brief linguistic explanation, Fahreddin er-Râzî conducts in-depth linguistic analysis through differences in reading and grammar (assimilation, the meaning of the word iğmâz). Kurtubî expands the verse's jurisprudential dimension and distinguishes the rulings of zakat, mines, and buried treasure (rikâz); he reports a different opinion from Ibn al-Arabî. Ibn Kesîr, on the other hand, highlights the practice of the Ansar in their date palm gardens by supporting it with detailed hadith narrations. Zemahşerî appears to focus on a different verse in subject matter (yenbû'a/ascribing place to Allah).
Historical context
While Taberî, an early period exegete, remains limited to basic narration and linguistic explanation, with Zemahşerî and er-Râzî the linguistic/rhetorical and theological dimension (rejection of ascribing place to Allah, grammatical subtleties) strengthened; with Kurtubî jurisprudential inferences became systematized; Ibn Kesîr compiled hadith sources more comprehensively; Beydâvî harmonized the previous heritage with a concise synthesis. The fundamental message remained constant while the method and depth diversified according to the period's concerns.
Modern connection
This comparative reading reminds us that the quality of what is given or shared is important as much as the sincerity of intention; keeping purity and quality together in aid can be seen as an attitude that strengthens social solidarity. Moreover, the way different exegetes use linguistic, narration, and jurisprudential methods together presents an example of how rigorous understanding and scholarship can coexist in harmony. This diversity can make one reflect that the ability to look at the same matter from different angles is a richness in terms of learning and tolerance.
AI analysis — not a fatwa or ruling, not yet reviewed by a scholar