His saying, exalted and majestic is He:

﴿And whatever you have given of usury so that it may increase in the wealth of the people, it does not increase with Allah. And whatever you have given of zakah seeking the face of Allah, those are the ones who will be multiplied.﴾ ﴿Allah is He who created you, then provided for you, then causes you to die, then brings you to life. Is there any of your partners who does anything of that? Glorified and exalted is He above what they associate.﴾ ﴿Corruption has appeared throughout the land and sea by what the hands of people have earned, so He may let them taste part of what they have done, that perhaps they will return.﴾

The majority read: ﴿ "And whatever you have given"﴾ meaning: you have given. And Ibn Kathir read: "And whatever you have done" without elongation, meaning: what you have done, as you say: I have done right and I have done wrong. And they unanimously agreed on the elongation in His saying: ﴿ "And whatever you have given of usury."﴾ And usury is the increase.

The interpreters have differed in the meaning of this verse. Ibn Abbas, Ibn Jubair, Mujahid, and Tawus said: This verse was revealed regarding gifts of reward.

Qadi Abu Muhammad, may Allah have mercy on him, said:

And whatever is similar to it from what a person does to be rewarded for it; like greeting and others, even if there is no sin in it, there is no reward in it nor increase with Allah, blessed and exalted is He.

Ibn Abbas also said, and Ibrahim al-Nakha'i: It was revealed about a people who give to their relatives and brothers with the intention of benefiting them and being generous to them, so that they may increase in their wealth for their own benefit. And al-Sha'bi said: The meaning of the verse is that whatever a person serves someone with, and he does it to benefit himself in this world, then that benefit which is rewarded for the service does not increase with Allah, exalted is He.

Qadi Abu Muhammad, may Allah have mercy on him, said:

And all of this is close to part of the interpretation. It is possible that the meaning of this verse is the prohibition of usury in trade. When the exalted One encouraged benefiting the relatives, the poor, and the traveler, He informed that what a person does of usury to increase his wealth - and his doing that is indeed in the wealth of the people - then that does not increase with Allah, exalted is He, nor does it purify, but rather sin and the loss of blessing are attached to it. And whatever a person gives of zakah to increase his wealth and purify it, seeking thereby the face of Allah, exalted is He, that is what he will be rewarded with multiplied rewards as Allah wills for him.

And al-Suddi said: This verse was revealed regarding the usury of Thaqif; because they used to practice usury and Quraysh practiced it among them.

The majority of the seven reciters read: ﴿ "so that it may increase"﴾ with the ya and attributing the action to usury. And Nafi alone read: "so that you may be increased" with the ta being pronounced and the waw being silent, meaning: that you may be of those who have increases. And this is the reading of Ibn Abbas, may Allah be pleased with him, and the people of Medina, al-Hasan, Qatadah, Abu Rija, and al-Sha'bi. Abu Hatim said: This is our reading. And Abu Malik read: "so that you may increase it" with the feminine pronoun. And "the multiplied" is the one who has multiples of the inheritance, as the author who has thousands, and as you say: it is fertile if it is of fertility, and this is abundant, and from it is the increase of the one who preceded in the reading of the one who read: "so that you may be increased" with the ta being pronounced.

Then he repeated addressing the disbelievers regarding their idols. He mentioned the actions of Allah, the Most High, in which there is no partner for Him. These are creation, provision, causing death, and bringing to life. No rational person can deny this. The disbelievers stood - in the context of confirmation and reproach - asking, "Are there any of their partners who can do anything of that?" This arrangement with "then" indicates the existence of something after something else. From here, the jurists included the child with his father in tracing the lineage when the wording is: "upon their heels, then upon the heels of their heels." Then He glorified and exalted Himself from their saying regarding associating partners with Him. The majority read: "they associate partners" with a 'ya' from below, while Al-Amash and Ibn Wathab read it with a 'ta' from above.

Then He, the Most High, mentioned - in the context of a lesson - what has appeared of corruption due to sins in His saying: "Corruption has appeared in the land and the sea." People differed in the meaning of "the land and the sea" in this verse. Mujahid said: The land is the countries far from the sea, and the sea is the coasts and the cities on the banks of the sea and the great rivers. Qatadah said: The land is the deserts and the places of tribes, and the sea is the cities, plural of Bahr.

Qadi Abu Muhammad, may Allah have mercy on him, said: Among them is the saying of Sa'd ibn Ubadah, may Allah be pleased with him, to the Prophet, blessings and peace be upon him, regarding Abdullah ibn Ubayy ibn Salul: "And indeed, the people of this sea have unanimously agreed to crown him." This is supported by the fact that Ikrimah read: "in the land and the seas," and it has been narrated from Ibn Abbas, may Allah be pleased with them both. Mujahid also said: The appearance of corruption in the land is the killing of one of the sons of Adam by his brother, and in the sea, the taking of ships by force. Some of the worshippers said: The sea is the heart, and the land is the tongue. Al-Hasan said: The land and the sea are the well-known good deeds in the language.

Qadi Abu Muhammad, may Allah have mercy on him, said: This is the correct statement. The appearance of corruption in both is due to the lifting of blessings, the descent of calamities, and the occurrence of trials, and the dominance of a disbelieving enemy. These three exist in the land and the sea.

Ibn Abbas, may Allah be pleased with him, said: The corruption in the sea is the cessation of its catch due to the sins of the children of Adam. Rarely does a virtuous, obedient, and righteous nation exist except that Allah protects it from this. The matter is the opposite for the people of sins and ingratitude for blessings. Likewise, the condition of the land at the time of the Prophet's mission, blessings and peace be upon him, was that oppression had spread across the earth, both land and sea. Allah, the Most High, has made these things to recompense for sins, so He makes the people taste the consequences of their sins, perhaps they may repent and reconsider their insight in obeying Allah, the Most High.

And His saying, the Most High: "Because of what they earned" means: the recompense for what they earned. It is possible that the 'ba' is related to "appeared," meaning: their earning of sins in the land and the sea is the same as the apparent corruption. The hope in "perhaps" is according to our belief and according to our perspective on matters.

And the majority of the reciters and the people read: "to make them taste" with the letter 'ya'. Qunbul read from Ibn Kathir, Al-A'raj, and Abu Abdur-Rahman As-Sulami with the letter 'noon'. Their meanings are clear. Abu Abdur-Rahman also read: "to make them taste" with the letter 'ta' from above.