(57:10) How is it that you do not expend in the Way of Allah when to Allah belongs the inheritance of the heavens and the earth? *13 Those who spent their wealth and took part in fighting before the Victory cannot be equated (with those who spent their wealth and took part in fighting afterwards). They are higher in rank than those who spent and fought afterwards. *14 But to each Allah has promised a good reward. Allah is well aware of all that you do. *15

---

---

*13) This has two meanings: (1) "Your wealth is not going to stay with you for ever. One day you will leave it behind; then Allah alone will inherit it. Thus the best thing would be that you should spend it yourself in the cause of Allah so that. your reward for it is guaranteed with Allah. If you do not spend it yourself, it will in any case return to Allah, but then you will not be entitled to any reward from Him. " (2) "You should have no fear of indigence and poverty when you spend it in the cause of Allah, because Allah for Whose sake you would spend your wealth, is the Owner of aII the treasures of the heavens and the earth. He possessed not only what He has bestowed on you today but has much more to bestow on you tomorrow. " This same thing bas been expressed at another place, thus
"O Prophet, say to there: `My Lord gives abundantly to whomever of His servants He wills and sparingly to whomever He wills. Whatever you spend, He replenishes it by other provisions: He is the best of Providers'." (Saba: 39)
*14) That is, "Although both are entitled to the reward, yet the former are necessarily higher in rank than the latter, for they faced greater risks for the sake of Allah in difficult circumstances, which the latter not. They spent their wealth at a time when there appeared no remote chance of victory that would compensate for their expenditure, and they fought the disbelieves at a critical tune when there was an ever present apprehension that the enemy might overpower and crush the followers of Islam completely." Mujahid, Qatadah and Zaid bin Aslam, from among the commentators, say that the word 'victory" in this verso has been used for the Conquest of Makkah, and `Amir Sha'bi says that it refers to the Truce of Hudaibiyah. The former view has been adopted by most of the commentators, and in support of the latter this tradition from Hadrat Abu Sa'id Khudri is presented: "During the time when the Truce of Hudaibiyah was concluded, the Holy Prophet (upon whom be Allah's peace) said to us: `In the near future there will appear the people, whose deeds will make you look upon your own deeds as mean and trifling, but even if one of them possessed a mountain of gold and he expended all of it in the cause of Allah, he would not attain to your spending two pounds, or even one pound of it." (Ibn Jarir, Ibn Abi Hatim, Ibn Marduyah, Abu Nu'aim Isfahani). Further. more, it is also supported by the ,Hadith which Imam Ahmad has related on the authority of Hadrat Anas. He says: "Once a dispute arose between Hadrat Khalid bin Walid and Hadrat `Abdur Rahman bin `Auf, in the course of which Hadrat Khalid said w Hadrat `Abdur Rahman: "You people assume your superiority over us on account of your past services. ` When this thing came to the Holy Prophet's notice, he said: `By God in whose hand is my lift, even if you people spent gold equal (in weight) to Mount Uhud, or equal to other mountains, you would not attain to the deeds of these people." From this it is argued that in this verse "victory" refers to the Truce of Hudaibiyah, for Hadrat Khalid bin Walid had embraced Islam after this Truce and had participated in the Conquest of Makkah. However, whether "victory" in this particular case is taken to imply the Truce of Hudaibiyah or the Conquest of Makkah, in any case the verse dces not mean that the distinction of the ranks is confined to this one victory alone, but as a general principle it shows that those who fight and spend in the cause of Islam at the time when disbelief and disbelievers appear to be dominant and Islam seems to have no remote chance of victory, are far superior in rank to those who make sacrifices after the conflict between Islam and paganism has been decided in favour of Islam."
*15) That is, "Allah dces not bestow His favours blindly. Ho sees who has performed what deeds, under what kind of circumstances, and with what motive and then determines the rank and the reward of the deed of each person with full justice and awareness,"