Those who bear the Qur'an have great virtue and a high status and reward with Allah.
Who are the حملة القرآن (Bearers of the Qur'an)?
حملة is the noun and يحمل/حمل is the verb.
The scholars said, "They aren't those who merely memorise the letters they are those who act upon the Qur'an and whoever establishes the letters perfectly, uttering it's word while wasting it's limits he will not be considered one of the bearers of the Qur'an"
They concluded this from (62:5):
مثل الذين حملوا التوراة
They were commanded to act upon, follow and practice it's legal rulings.
ثم لم يحملوها
They didn't act upon it.
They are like a donkey who carries أسفارا (scriptures). It doesn't understand what it's carrying.
Allah is warning us from being like that.
بئس is a severe word.
الحمل = العمل
The bearers of the Qur'an are the اهل الله.
In (11:45-46):
Allah promised Nuh that he would save his family. Allah tells Nuh that his son is not of his family because his work was not righteous. The action of a person makes them a member of a family.
Thus, the أهل القرآن are those who follow the teachings of the Qur'an. They took care of the Qur'an علم + عمل. They understood and acted upon it.
Ex. There's a person who memorise the verses of Tawheed yet when he invokes, he invokes saints.
Allah commands them to join the relation between his kith and kin, be dutiful to his parents, and he memorises these verses yet does not keep relation between them and is undutiful to his parents. He is not considered one of the people of the Qur'an. They are not considered people of the Qur'an. We need to judge ourselves.
To be a special person of Allah is something that needs to be worked hard for.
HADITH: The Prophet said, "On the Day of Judgement the Qur'an will be brought and it's people" (Muslim)
"Therefore the people of the Quran are those who act upon it, even if they didn't memorise it. And as for him who memorised it and didn't act or understand it is not considered one of the people of the Qur'an. There are people who recite the Quran perfectly without dropping one letter from it and they are not from the people of the Qur'an" - Ibn AlQayyim (Za'd AlMaadh)
The companions did not go past 10 verses until they acted upon it.
This should be of concern to the believer. Ask yourself if you act upon and understand the verses. The matter is not how much you memorise the Quran, but how much you act and understand.
Show Allah your truthfulness, even if you didn't attain your goal, at least you'll receive the reward for this intention.
Ex. Allah said the Qur'an is a شفاء.
There are people who turn away from using it as a healing and there are those who don't know.
(3:17)
-Exhortation, Encouragement-
الصابرين و الصادقين والقانتين و المنفقين والمستغفرين بالأسحار
The السياق (Verse 14-17)
Allah beautified the desire in the heart of the people. The greatest of the desires are women, children, gold, silver, branded horses, cattle, fertile land.
All these are متاع الحياة الدنيا.
Allah has with him an excellent return. This is like a consolation for those who don't have and for those who have to not be deceived. It is just temporary and will vanish with the Dunya. All what you see is just the delight of the world, but with Allah is the eternal life.
Then Allah tells us what is better than everything in the previous verse. For those who are pious, they will have with Allah GARDENS and will live there forever. They will have pure spouses and top of all that the pleasure of Allah. Allah knows everyone's actions and will reward them accordingly.
These متقين (they act upon the command of Allah and abstain from what He prohibited) they say: ربنا اننا آمنا فاغفر لنا ذنوبنا و قنا عذاب النار
They are pious yet they look at their sins. They don't see themselves as pious or better than others. They have this fear in their heart.
Then in Verse 17 Allah mentions their descriptions in detail. He tells us what they did in this world that made them deserve that reward.
الصابرين when doing good deeds, abstaining from evil and during calamities.
الصادقين in their faith, in their statements, etc.
القانتيت they are obedient
والمنفقين they spend publicly and private, obligatory and voluntary
والمستغفرين الأسحار
We need to check ourselves. Do we do these acts of worship?
الإيمان is joined with أنفاق
We have to make Jihad An-Nafs to attain this. With the help of Allah you can be one of them, you need to trust Allah and be truthful. Show Allah your truthfulness and Allah will help you. Think and expect good from Allah.
والذين جاهدوا فينا ليهدينهم سبلنا
(3:92)
-Intimidation-
"لن تنالوا البر حتى تنفقوا مما تحبون و ما تنفقوا من شئ فان الله به عليم"
البر = Every good that leads a person Paradise
A person will not reach that until they give from what they love.
We spend, but do we spend from that which we love? That which our heart is attached to? This is a high level of spending.
How can I spend from what I love?
-> By spending it when you are in need of that money but that person is in more in need than you.
-> By spending on someone when you are healthy.
HADITH: The companions asked the Prophet, "Which charity had the greatest reward?" the Prophet said, "To spend while you are healthy, while your self tells you to be stingy (الشحيح), while you fear poverty and you are collecting for something"
-> By spending the most precious and valuable of what you have. This indicates that you are preferring what Allah has over what you have.
Ibn Umar freed a Slave he was attached to in order to apply this verse.
When Allah ends the verse with عليم know that the reward is with Allah. He knows what state you have given this, how hard you strove to spend it, etc.
The knowledge of Allah here refers to His reward.
(3:134)
-Exhortation-
"الذين ينفقون في السرا و الضرا و الكاظمين الغيظ و العافين عن الناس والله يحب المحسنين"
The previous verse:
"و سارعوا الى مغفرة من ربكم و جنة عرضها السماوات والأرض أعدت للمتقين"
Allah is commanding us to hasten towards forgiveness from our Lord and Paradise that is the width of the heavens and the earth. It is prepared for the متقين.
They are those who:
- Spend in adversity and prosperity
- Surpress their anger
- Pardoning people
Whoever does this is considered one of the محسنين and Allah loves them.
Allah is repeating the description of انفاق with the متقين. The متقين spends, and spending makes a person a متقي.
(4:38-39)
Surah Baqarah talks about مغضوب اليهم, Surah aal Imran talks about الضالين and Surah An-Nisa talks about المنافقين.
In verse 36:
Allah is commanding us to worship Him alone without associates, to be good to the different types of people and fulfil their rights.
He ends the verse with:
ان الله لا يحب من كان مختالا فخور
The relation between the beginning and end of the verse: Allah is warning us. The people who are arrogant and self conceited see themselves as high and don't give people their rights.
Verse 37:
They are يبخل, hold their wealth from spending and command the people not to spend. They hide and conceal the knowledge which Allah granted them. They don't spend from the money nor the knowledge.
This is why Allah called them الكافر. It is as if they are covering the blessing of Allah.
مهينا means disgraceful. Because they were arrogant, Allah will punish them with a humiliating, disgraceful punishment.
Every word in the Qur'an has been put their for a reason.
Verse 38:
Whoever has the Shaytan as an intimate friend, then this is the worst قرين. They are following the Shaytan.
Verse 39:
Allah is rebuking them. What would they lose if they believed in Allah, the Judgement day and spent?
This is an intimidation from رياء. And not everyone who spends will have his charity accepted. We don't know what was behind it from the actions of the heart.
The hypocrites are meant by this verse.
Don't be deceived by your spending, ask Allah the acceptance and forgiveness. Your dua indicates your sincerity.
One of the descriptions of the hypocrites is that they are miserly and don't spend for the sake of Allah. Also, they order the people not to spend for the sake of Allah.
(8:3)
"الذين يقيمون الصلاة و مما رزقناهم ينفقون"
In verse 2:
إنما = أذاة حصر (Restriction)
The believers are ONLY those who:
-> When Allah is mentioned their hearts tremble with fear
-> When they hear the verses of the Qur'an their faith increases
-> They rely on Allah
-> They establish the prayers
-> Spend from what Allah provided them
The prayer is joined with giving many times in the Qur'an.
(8:60)
وأعدوا لهم ما استطعتم من قوة و من رباط الخيل ترهبون به عدو لله و عدوكم وآخرين من دونهم لا تعلمونهم الله يعلمهم و ما تنفقوا من شي في السبيل الا
(9:91)
In Surah Tawbah Allah mainly talks about two categories of people:
1) The truthful believers and their spending
2) The hypocrites and their spending
ليس على الضعفاء و لا على المرضى و لا على الذين لا يجدون ما ينفقون حرج اذا نصحو لله و رسوله ماعلى المحسنين من سبيل و الله غفور رحيم
حرج has many meanings: blame, sin, hardship. It is mentioned different times in the Quran, each time meaning something different.
At the time, whoever wanted to join Jihad had to spend using their own money for the mount, their provisions, weapons, etc.
Allah says if they don't have, or are weak, there is no blame on them if that didn't go for Jihad if they were sincere and truthful (نصحوا) to Allah.
There can be no means of complaint against the doers of good. The jurists took this part of the verse as a juristical ruling.
If the person intended to do something good and did it and this good thing he did harmed someone else, here we can say "ما على المحسنين من سبيل"
Ex. Someone intended to dig a well for the people to benefit but on the side of the road. A person fell in this well. The one who built it isn't blamed, he intended something good.
However, if someone dug a well in the middle of the road this person isn't considered a good doer. He dug it in the middle of the road.
There are many true believers that when the gate of charity is opened, he sees many spending and he doesn't have to spend. So he feels حرج in his heart. This indicates their truthfulness and Eeman they have. They want to but they don't have. Allah tells them not to feel this constriction or blame.
This verse indicates exhortation in meaning. Only the true, sincere believer who is complete in faith will feel حرج in his heart.
HADITH: A group of companions came to the Prophets and said, "The rich are gaining more reward with us. They pray like us, observe fast like us, they spend and we can't spend"
In Verse 92:
تفيض من الدمع
فيضان = Flood
Their eyes were overflowing, they were crying intensely, because they wanted to go but there was no ride for them.
There is no blame on them but they felt bad.
Look at these believers who are perfect in their faith. When the opportunity to spend came to them they felt حرج and they wept. They had such intensive grief.
This is a very high level of spending.
How many of us really cried because the gate of goodness was opened and we couldn't do it? One should feel with shyness to Allah if you are able and healthy and the gate of goodness is open and you don't spend. These people didn't have and we have yet we didn't give.
The person who doesn't spend and doesn't feel with خرج has weak faith. When Eeman increases the spending will increase.
Feelings are so important in Islam. They didn't spend but they were rewarded because of how they felt.
What is your feeling when you spend and what is your feeling when you don't find anything to spend?