'In the name of Allah, the Most Gracious, the Most Merciful'

Tafsir of Surah Al-Mutaffifin

It is Makki according to a group of the mufassirun. They argued for the mention of legends. This is based on the fact that this cheating in measuring and weighing occurred in Mecca, as it does in every nation, especially with their disbelief. Ibn Abbas, Al-Suddi, Al-Naqqash, and others said: The surah is Madani. Al-Suddi said: There was in Medina a man nicknamed Abu Juhaynah, who had two measures; he would take the full measure and give the lesser one. The surah was revealed because of him. It is said that it is the first surah revealed in Medina. Ibn Abbas, may Allah be pleased with him, also said - in what has been narrated from him - that some of it was revealed in Mecca, and the matter of cheating was revealed in Medina; because they were the most corrupt people in this regard, so Allah, the Exalted, reformed them.

With this surah, others said: The surah was revealed between Mecca and Medina, and that is so that Allah, the Exalted, may reform. Al-Qadi Abu Muhammad, may Allah have mercy on him, said:

And the matter of measuring and weighing is very serious. Its manipulation in cities is necessary regarding wealth that is unlawfully obtained. Corruption in it is a major sin, and there is no benefit in it except for repentance. One can only be freed by returning the wronged rights to their owners. Malik ibn Dinar said: A neighbor of mine was dying, and he kept saying: Two mountains of fire. I said to him: What is this? He said: O Abu Yahya, I had two measures; I would take the full measure and give the lesser one. And Ikrimah said: I bear witness against every measurer or weightman that he is in the fire. Some of the Arabs said: Do not seek honor from one whose honor is in the heads of measures and the tongues of scales.

His saying, the Exalted:

﴿Woe to those who give less﴾ ﴿Who when they take by measure from people demand full measure﴾ ﴿But when they give by measure or by weight to them, they cause loss﴾ ﴿Do they not think that they will be resurrected﴾ ﴿For a great day﴾ ﴿The day when mankind will stand before the Lord of the worlds﴾

His saying, exalted is He, "Woe" means: destruction, sorrow, and everlasting misery. It has been narrated from Ibn Mas'ud and others that there is a valley in Hell called "Woe." And "Woe" is raised in the beginning, and it is raised in the meaning: it has been established for them and settled. What is in the realm of supplication and anticipation is in the accusative, similar to their saying: (p-557) "pasture and watering." And "the one who gives less" is the one who diminishes the rights of the people. And "giving less" means deficiency; its origin is from something small, which is the insignificant. The one who gives less only takes something insignificant by the scale. Salman said: Prayer is a measure; whoever fulfills it will be rewarded, and whoever gives less, you know what Allah, exalted is He, said about those who give less. Some scholars said: Giving less can occur in every act of speech. Among them is the saying of Umar, may Allah be pleased with him: "Giving less" means: the reward and the deed have been diminished. For this reason, Malik, may Allah have mercy on him, said: Everything has fulfillment and giving less, thus he brought forth the two opposites. Some people have gone to say that giving less is exceeding the limit in fulfillment or deficiency, and the meaning and the evidence according to the saying clarify the intended meaning. And this, in my opinion, is a correct limit. Allah, exalted is He, has clarified that giving less here refers to the matter of weighing and measuring.

"And they measure out to the people" means: they take from them. And "they measured to them" means: they took from them. It is said: I measured from you and I took from you. It is said: I measured you and I measured for you. When the lam was omitted, the verb became transitive. Al-Farra' and Al-Akhfash said, and Abu Zayd recited:

And I have indeed harvested for you the ripe fruits and the unripe ones ∗∗∗ And I have indeed forbidden you from the daughters of the camels.

And according to this meaning is the reading of the majority. And 'Isa ibn Umar used to make it two letters, stopping at "they measured" or "they weighed" and beginning with "they are losing." That is: when they measure or weigh, (p-558) and I narrated from Hamzah, so His saying, exalted is He, "they" is an affirmation of the pronoun. The apparent meaning of this verse implies that the measuring and weighing is upon the seller, and this is not clear. The beginning of the verse is directed at the buyers, as He has preceded them by stating that they seek to fulfill and dispute in that, as they cannot increase beyond fulfillment because the seller protects himself. This is the extent of their ability to abandon the virtue and the recommended generosity. Then Allah, exalted is He, mentioned that when they sell, they are able to commit injustice and give less, as they take charge of the measuring for the buyer from them, and that they are in a state of losing the seller if he is able. And "they are losing" is transitive with the hamzah; it is said: the man lost, and he caused another to lose, and the object of "they measured" is omitted.

Then He, exalted is He, reminded them of the Day of Resurrection and mentioned it to them. This supports that it was revealed in Medina to a group of believers, and it was intended - along with that - from outside this nation. And it is presumed here to mean something that is realized and known. And "the great day" is the Day of Resurrection, and "the day" is an adverb in which a verb is implied, "you will be resurrected" and similar to it. Al-Farra' said: it is a substitute for "a great day," but it is built. The Basri scholars reject that because it is added to a noun that is inflected.

'And the people will stand before the Lord of the worlds.' The people will differ in this according to their ranks. It has been narrated from Abdullah ibn Amr from the Prophet, blessings and peace be upon him, 'That it will last for fifty thousand years.' This is according to the severity of it. It has also been said: three hundred years, as stated by the Prophet, blessings and peace be upon him. Ibn Umar said: one hundred years. It has been said: eighty years. Ibn Mas'ud said: forty years, raising their heads to the sky, not commanded and not spoken to. Other opinions have been mentioned, and all of these are narrated reports. The meaning is that each duration is for a people according to their condition and the severity of their matter. It has been narrated that the standing for the believer is from noon until the afternoon. It has been narrated from some people according to the amount of a prescribed prayer. In this standing, it is a restraint of sweat for the people. This is also a matter of disagreement. It is narrated from the Prophet, blessings and peace be upon him, through Uqbah ibn Amir that it restrains the disbeliever severely. It is narrated that some people will be in it up to their shins, some of them higher, and some of them lower.