269 He grants wisdom to whom He pleases. And whoever is granted wisdom, he indeed is given a great good. And none mind but men of understanding.
270 And whatever alms you give or (whatever) vow you vow, Allah surely knows it. And the wrongdoers shall have no helpers.
271 If you manifest charity, how excellent it is! And if you hide it and give it to the poor, it is good for you. And it will do away with some of your evil deeds; and Allah is Aware of what you do.
272 Their guidance is not thy duty, but Allah guides whom He pleases. And whatever good thing you spend, it is to your good. And you spend not but to seek Allah’s pleasure. And whatever good thing you spend, it will be paid back to you in full, and you will not be wronged.
273 (Charity) is for the poor who are confined in the way of Allah, they cannot go about in the land; the ignorant man thinks them to be rich on account of (their) abstaining (from begging). Thou canst recognize them by their mark — they beg not of men importunately. And whatever good thing you spend, surely Allah is Knower of it.
SECTION 38: Usury Prohibited
274 Those who spend their wealth by night and day, privately and publicly, their reward is with their Lord; and they have no fear, nor shall they grieve.
275 Those who swallow usury cannot arise except as he arises whom the devil prostrates by (his) touch. That is because they say, Trading is only like usury. And Allah has allowed trading and forbidden usury. To whomsoever then the admonition has come from his Lord, and he desists, he shall have what has already passed. And his affair is in the hands of Allah. And whoever returns (to it) — these are the companions of the Fire: therein they will abide.
276 Allah will blot out usury, and He causes charity to prosper. And Allah loves not any ungrateful sinner.
277 Those who believe and do good deeds and keep up prayer and pay the poor-rate — their reward is with their Lord; and they have no fear, nor shall they grieve.
278 O you who believe, keep your duty to Allah and relinquish what remains (due) from usury, if you are believers.
279 But if you do (it) not, then be apprised of war from Allah and His Messenger;and if you repent, then you shall have your capital. Wrong not, and you shall not be wronged.
280 And if (the debtor) is in straitness, let there be postponement till (he is in) ease. And that you remit (it) as alms is better for you, if you only knew.
281 And guard yourselves against a day in which you will be returned to Allah. Then every soul will be paid in full what it has earned, and they will not be wronged.
SECTION 39: Contracts and Evidence
282 O you who believe, when you contract a debt for a fixed time, write it down. And let a scribe write it down between you with fairness; nor should the scribe refuse to write as Allah has taught him, so let him write. And let him who owes the debt dictate, and he should observe his duty to Allah, his Lord, and not diminish anything from it. But if he who owes the debt is unsound in understanding or weak, or (if) he is not able to dictate himself, let his guardian dictate with fairness. And call to witness from among your men two witnesses; but if there are not two men, then one man and two women from among those whom you choose to be witnesses, so that if one of the two errs, the one may remind the other. And the witnesses must not refuse when they are summoned. And be not averse to writing it whether it is small or large along with the time of its falling due. This is more equitable in the sight of Allah and makes testimony surer and the best way to keep away from doubts. But when it is ready merchandise which you give and take among yourselves from hand to hand, there is no blame on you in not writing it down. And have witnesses when you sell one to another. And let no harm be done to the scribe or to the witnesses. And if you do (it), then surely it is a transgression on your part. And keep your duty to Allah. And Allah teaches you. And Allah is Knower of all things.
283 And if you are on a journey and you cannot find a scribe, a security may be taken into possession. But if one of you trusts another, then he who is trusted should deliver his trust, and let him keep his duty to Allah, his Lord. And conceal not testimony. And whoever conceals it, his heart is surely sinful. And Allah is Knower of what you do.
SECTION 40: Muslims Shall be Made Victorious
284 To Allah belongs whatever is in the heavens and whatever is in the earth. And whether you manifest what is in your minds or hide it, Allah will call you to account according to it. So He forgives whom He pleases and chastises whom He pleases. And Allah is Possessor of power over all things.
285 The Messenger believes in what has been revealed to him from his Lord, and (so do) the believers. They all believe in Allah and His angels and His Books and His messengers. We make no difference between any of His messengers. And they say: We hear and obey; our Lord, Thy forgiveness (do we crave), and to Thee is the eventual course.
286 Allah imposes not on any soul a duty beyond its scope. For it, is that which it earns (of good), and against it that which it works (of evil). Our Lord, punish us not if we forget or make a mistake. Our Lord, do not lay on us a burden as Thou didst lay on those before us. Our Lord, impose not on us (afflictions) which we have not the strength to bear. And pardon us! And grant us protection! And have mercy on us! Thou art our Patron, so grant us victory over the disbelieving people.
Chapter 3
Al ‘Imran: The Family of Amran
(Revealed at Madinah: 20 sections; 200 verses)
The name of this chapter is taken from the mention of ‘Imran in v. 33. ‘Imran is the same as Amran, the father of Moses and Aaron. It is an appropriate title as the chapter deals with the departure of prophethood from the Mosaic dispensation.
The chapter opens with a statement relating to the Divine origin of the Holy Qur’an as well as the Torah and the Gospel. It then gives a rule of interpretation, neglect of which has led to numerous errors in religious beliefs. This rule of interpretation, which must be borne in mind in interpreting all Divine books, is that every allegorical statement must be interpreted in such a manner that it may not contradict any of the clear principles laid down by Divine revelation. As the Christian religion is based really on the wrong interpretation of certain allegorical statements, the rule is appropriately laid down as a preliminary to a discusson of the Christian religion.
The preliminary remarks of the first section are followed in the second by an assertion of the Unity of Allah, which is laid down as the clear basis of all religions, and its ultimate triumph is predicted. The third section refers to the departure from the house of Israel of the spiritual kingdom which was now being granted to another people; and the last chosen members of the Israelite race are mentioned in the fourth. Among these is Jesus, various misconceptions regarding whom necessitate rather a lengthy discussion in the two sections that follow. The seventh section continues the controversy with the Jews and the Christians, while the eighth deals with their machinations to discredit Islam. The ninth speaks of the testimony of previous Books and prophets to the truth of Islam, while the tenth mentions the overwhelming testimony afforded by the Ka‘bah, the new spiritual centre of the world. This is followed by an exhortation in the following section to the Muslims to remain united if they would achieve triumph, and in view of the coming conflicts they are told in the next to have guarded relations with the Jews, who, while outwardly friendly, were inwardly hostile to the Muslims. The incidents of the battle of Uhud, the causes of the misfortune experienced in it, and how triumph can be obtained are the points discussed from section thirteen to the eighteenth. The nineteenth speaks of the carpings of the People of the Book, while the twentieth deals with the ultimate triumph of the faithful.
The importance of the connection of this with the preceding chapter may be judged from the fact that, taken together, they are termed zahrawan (meaning