Tafseer of The Romans · Ar-Room · 30:39
And whatever you give for interest to increase within the wealth of people will not increase with Allah. But what you give in zakah, desiring the countenance of Allah - those are the multipliers.
Important: The Arabic source text is always authoritative. This translation is a study aid and has not been verified by scholars — do not use it as a basis for religious proof or for deriving rulings (ahkam). When in doubt, always consult the Arabic text and a qualified scholar.
The discourse on the explanation of His statement, the Exalted: وَمَا آتَيْتُمْ مِنْ رِبًا لِيَرْبُوَ فِي أَمْوَالِ النَّاسِ فَلا يَرْبُو عِنْدَ اللَّهِ وَمَا آتَيْتُمْ مِنْ زَكَاةٍ تُرِيدُونَ وَجْهَ اللَّهِ فَأُولَئِكَ هُمُ الْمُضْعِفُونَ (30:39) (And whatever you give of ribā so that it may increase within the wealth of people will not increase with Allah; but whatever you give of zakāh, while you desire the Face of Allah — those are the ones whose reward is multiplied.)
The Exalted, whose remembrance is exalted, says: And whatever you give one another, O people, of a gift, so that its recompense may return and increase within the wealth of people, to the one who gave it — فَلا يَرْبُو عِنْدَ اللهِ (that will not increase with Allah), He says: that will not increase with Allah, for the one who did it gave it to the one to whom he gave it not out of desire for His Face. وَما آتَيْتمْ مِنْ زَكاةٍ (and whatever you give of zakāh), He says: and whatever you give of a charity by which you desire the Face of Allah, فَأُوْلَئِكَ (those are the ones) — He means: those who give charity from their wealth, thereby seeking the Face of Allah — هُمُ المُضْعِفُونَ (whose reward is multiplied), He says: they are the ones to whom the manifold of reward and recompense is due. This is according to the usage of the Arabs: «aṣbaḥa al-qawm musminīna muʿṭishīna» (the people came to possess fat and thirsty camels) when their camels have become fat and have become thirsty.
And in accordance with what we have said about this, the exegetes have spoken.
* Mention of those who said that:
Muḥammad ibn Saʿd related to me, saying: my father related to me, saying: my uncle related to me, saying: my father related to me, on the authority of his father, on the authority of Ibn ʿAbbās concerning His statement: وَما آتَيْتُمْ مِنْ رِبا لِيَرْبُوَ فِي أمْوَالِ النَّاسِ فَلا يَرْبُو عِنْدَ اللهِ (and whatever you give of ribā so that it may increase within the wealth of people will not increase with Allah). He said: it is what people give one another mutually; one gives the other a gift, desiring that more than that be given to him.
Ibn Bashshār related to us, saying: ʿAbd al-Raḥmān related to us, saying: Sufyān related to us, on the authority of Manṣūr ibn Ṣafiyya, on the authority of Saʿīd ibn Jubayr: وَما آتَيْتُمْ مِنْ رِبا لِيَرْبُوَ فِي أمْوالِ النَّاسِ (and whatever you give of ribā so that it may increase within the wealth of people). He said: it is the man who gives another a gift so that the latter may reward him for it.
He said: Yaḥyā related to us, saying: Sufyān related to us, on the authority of Manṣūr ibn Ṣafiyya, on the authority of Saʿīd ibn Jubayr, the same.
Ibn Wakīʿ related to us, saying: my father related to me, on the authority of Sufyān, on the authority of Manṣūr ibn Ṣafiyya, on the authority of Saʿīd ibn Jubayr: وَما آتَيْتُمْ مِنْ رِبا لِيَرْبُوَ فِي أموَال النَّاس فَلا يَرْبُو عِنْدَ اللهِ (and whatever you give of ribā so that it may increase within the wealth of people will not increase with Allah). He said: the man who gives so that he may be rewarded for it.
Ibn Bashshār related to us, saying: Yaḥyā ibn Saʿīd related to us, saying: Sufyān related to us, on the authority of Ibn Abī Najīḥ, on the authority of Mujāhid: وَما آتَيْتُمْ مِنْ رِبا لِيَرْبُو فِي أمْوَال النَّاسِ (and whatever you give of ribā so that it may increase within the wealth of people). He said: gifts.
Ibn Wakīʿ related to us, saying: my father related to me, saying: Sufyān related to us, on the authority of Ibn Abī Najīḥ, on the authority of Mujāhid, he said: they are the gifts.
Muḥammad ibn ʿAmr related to me, saying: Abū ʿĀṣim related to us, saying: ʿĪsā related to us; and al-Ḥārith related to me, saying: al-Ḥasan related to us, saying: Warqāʾ related to us — both on the authority of Ibn Abī Najīḥ, on the authority of Mujāhid: وَما آتَيْتُمْ مِنْ رِبا لِيَرْبُو فِي أمْوَالِ النَّاسِ (and whatever you give of ribā so that it may increase within the wealth of people). He said: he gives his wealth while desiring something better than that.
Ibn Wakīʿ related to us, saying: Ibn Fuḍayl related to us, on the authority of Ibn Abī Khālid, on the authority of Ibrāhīm, he said: it is the man who bestows a gift upon another, so that the latter may reward him with something better than it.
He said: Muḥammad ibn Ḥumayd al-Maʿmarī related to us, on the authority of Maʿmar, on the authority of Ibn Ṭāwūs, on the authority of his father: it is the man who gives a gift and bestows a present, so that he may be rewarded with something better than it; in this there is neither reward nor sin.
Bishr related to us, saying: Yazīd related to us, saying: Saʿīd related to us, on the authority of Qatāda: وَما آتَيْتُمْ مِنْ رِبا لِيرْبُوَ فِي أمْوَالِ النَّاس فَلا يَرْبُو عِنْدَ اللهِ (and whatever you give of ribā so that it may increase within the wealth of people will not increase with Allah). He said: whatever you give of something while desiring a reward in this world and a recompense from people — that is the ribā that Allah does not accept and for which He does not reward.
It was related to me on the authority of al-Ḥusayn, he said: I heard Abū Muʿādh saying: ʿUbayd informed us, saying: I heard al-Ḍaḥḥāk saying concerning His statement: وَما آتَيْتُمْ مِنْ رِبا لِيَرْبُوَ فِي أمْوَالِ النَّاسِ (and whatever you give of ribā so that it may increase within the wealth of people): that is what people hand to one another mutually and give one another as a present; the man gives the gift so that he may obtain from him something better than it, and this applies to people in general.
As for His statement: وَلا تَمْنُنْ تَسْتَكْثِرُ (and do not confer a favor to gain more in return), that applies to the Prophet ﷺ in particular: it was not permitted for him to give anything except for the sake of Allah, and he would not give so that more than that be given to him.
Others said: rather, what is intended by this man is: he gives his wealth to a man so that the latter may assist him with his person, serve him, and be of benefit to him — not to seek a reward from Allah.
* Mention of those who said that:
Ibn Wakīʿ related to us, saying: my father and Muḥammad ibn Fuḍayl related to us, on the authority of Zakariyyā, on the authority of ʿĀmir: وَما آتَيْتُمْ مِنْ رِبا لِيَرْبُوَ فِي أمْوَال النَّاسِ (and whatever you give of ribā so that it may increase within the wealth of people). He said: it is the man who attaches himself to another, places himself at his service and serves him, and travels with him; for that the latter assigns him a share of the profit of a portion of his wealth in order to reward him — but he gave it only out of desire for the latter's help, and did not intend the Face of Allah.
Others said: it is that the man gives his wealth so that thereby the wealth of the one to whom he gave it may increase — not out of seeking Allah's reward.
* Mention of those who said that:
Ibn Ḥumayd related to us, saying: Jarīr related to us, on the authority of Mughīra, on the authority of Abū Ḥaṣīn, on the authority of Ibn ʿAbbās: وَما آتَيْتُمْ مِنْ رِبًا لِيَرْبُوَ فِي أمْوَال النَّاسِ (and whatever you give of ribā so that it may increase within the wealth of people). He said: do you not see how the man says to another: I will make you rich — and then he gives him? This does not increase with Allah, for he gives it to him for the sake of something other than Allah, to increase the latter's wealth.
He said: ʿAmr ibn ʿAbd al-Ḥamīd al-Āmulī related to us, saying: Marwān ibn Muʿāwiya related to us, on the authority of Ismāʿīl ibn Abī Khālid, he said: I heard Ibrāhīm al-Nakhaʿī saying concerning His statement: وَما آتَيْتُمْ مِنْ رِبًا لِيَرْبُوَ فِي أمْوَال النَّاسِ فَلا يَرْبُو عِندَ اللهِ (and whatever you give of ribā so that it may increase within the wealth of people will not increase with Allah). He said: this was in the Jāhiliyya (the age of ignorance); one of them would give a kinsman the wealth, in order thereby to increase the latter's wealth.
Others said: that applies to the Prophet ﷺ in particular; for others than him, however, it is permitted.
* Mention of those who said that:
Ibn Wakīʿ related to us, saying: my father related to us, on the authority of Abū Rawwād, on the authority of al-Ḍaḥḥāk: وَما آتَيْتُمْ مِنْ رِبا لِيَرْبُوَ فِي أمْوَال النَّاسِ فَلا يَرْبُو عِنْدَ اللهِ (and whatever you give of ribā so that it may increase within the wealth of people will not increase with Allah). This applies to the Prophet ﷺ; this is the permitted ribā.
We chose the view that we have preferred in this matter only because it is the clearest of its meanings.
The reciters differed concerning the reading of it. Most of the reciters of Kūfa and Baṣra and a part of the people of Mecca read it: لِيَرْبُو (li-yarbuwa) with a fatḥa on the yāʾ of «yarbū», with the meaning: and whatever you give of ribā so that that ribā may increase within the wealth of people. And most of the reciters of the people of Medina read it: لِتَرْبُوا (li-tarbū) with the tāʾ of «tarbū» and with a ḍamma upon it, with the meaning: and whatever you give of ribā so that you yourselves may increase within the wealth of people.
The correct view concerning this, according to our opinion, is that they are both well-known readings among the reciters of the regions, with meanings closely related to one another; for when the possessors of the wealth cause the wealth to increase, then the wealth increases, and when the wealth increases, then it is through the increasing by its possessors that it has increased. And since that is so, the reciter is correct with whichever of the two readings he recites it.
As for His statement: وَما آتَيْتُمْ مِنْ زَكاةٍ تُرِيدُونَ وَجْهَ اللهِ فَأُولَئِكَ هُمُ المُضعِفُونَ (and whatever you give of zakāh while you desire the Face of Allah — those are the ones whose reward is multiplied) — the exegetes have said, in explaining it, something in the manner of what we have said.
* Mention of those who said that:
Bishr related to us, saying: Yazīd related to us, saying: Saʿīd related to us, on the authority of Qatāda concerning His statement: وَما آتَيْتُمْ مِنْ زَكاةٍ تُرِيدون وَجْهَ اللهِ فَأُولَئِكَ هُمُ المُضْعِفُونَ (and whatever you give of zakāh while you desire the Face of Allah — those are the ones whose reward is multiplied). He said: this is what Allah accepts and what He multiplies for them — tenfold of it, and more than that.
It was related to us on the authority of ʿAbd al-Razzāq, he said: Maʿmar informed us, on the authority of Qatāda, he said: Ibn ʿAbbās said concerning His statement: وَما آتيتُمْ مِنْ رِبا ليَرْبُوَ فِي أمْوَالِ النَّاسِ فَلا يَرْبُو عِنْدَ اللهِ (and whatever you give of ribā so that it may increase within the wealth of people will not increase with Allah). He said: it is the bestowal; he bestows the thing while wanting to be rewarded for it with something better than it — that is what does not increase with Allah; the one who did it is not rewarded for it, nor does any sin rest upon him. وَما آتَيْتُمْ مِنْ زَكاةٍ (and whatever you give of zakāh). He said: it is the charity by which you desire the Face of Allah. فَأُولَئِكَ هُمُ المُضْعِفونَ (those are the ones whose reward is multiplied). Maʿmar said: Ibn Abī Najīḥ said, on the authority of Mujāhid, the same.
