Al-Munafiqun: 10

Ayah

Word by Word

وَأَنفِقُواْ

And spend

مِن

from

مَّا

what

رَزَقۡنَٰكُم

We have provided you

مِّن

from

قَبۡلِ

before

أَن

[that]

يَأۡتِيَ

comes

أَحَدَكُمُ

(to) one of you

ٱلۡمَوۡتُ

the death

فَيَقُولَ

and he says

رَبِّ

My Lord

لَوۡلَآ

Why not

أَخَّرۡتَنِيٓ

You delay me

إِلَىٰٓ

for

أَجَلٖ

a term

قَرِيبٖ

near

فَأَصَّدَّقَ

so I would give charity

وَأَكُن

and be

مِّنَ

among

ٱلصَّـٰلِحِينَ

the righteous

Translation

and spend something (in charity) out of the substance which We have bestowed on you, before Death should come to any of you and he should say, "O my Lord! why didst Thou not give me respite for a little while? I should then have given (largely) in charity, and I should have been one of the doers of good".

Tafsir

The Importance of not being too concerned with the Matters of the Worldly Life, and being Charitable before Death

Allah says,

يَا أَيُّهَا الَّذِينَ امَنُوا لَاا تُلۡهِكُمۡ أَمۡوَالُكُمۡ وَلَاا أَوۡلَاادُكُمۡ عَن ذِكۡرِ اللَّهِ

O you who believe! Let not your properties or your children divert you from the remembrance of Allah.

Allah the Exalted orders His faithful servants to remember Him frequently and to refrain from being distracted from His remembrance by indulging in their properties and children excessively.

وَمَن يَفۡعَلۡ ذَلِكَ فَأُوۡلَيِكَ هُمُ الۡخَاسِرُونَ

And whosoever does that, then they are the losers.

Allah informs them that those who engage in this life, its delights and attributes and were busied from the obedience and remembrance of Allah, for which they were created, will be among the losers. They will lose themselves and their families on the Day of Resurrection.

Allah encourages the believers to spend in His cause,

وَأَنفِقُوا مِن مَّا رَزَقۡنَاكُم مِّن قَبۡلِ أَن يَأۡتِيَ أَحَدَكُمُ الۡمَوۡتُ

فَيَقُولَ رَبِّ لَوۡلَا أَخَّرۡتَنِي إِلَى أَجَلٍ قَرِيبٍ فَأَصَّدَّقَ وَأَكُن مِّنَ الصَّالِحِينَ

And spend of that with which We have provided you before death comes to one of you, and he says:

My Lord! If only You would give me respite for a little while, then I should give Sadaqah from my wealth, and be among the righteous.

Surely, every person who fell into shortcomings will regret it by the time of his death and will ask for respite, even a short period, so that he does better and attains what he missed.

No, rather what occurred, has occurred and what is coming, shall indeed come. Each will be held accountable for his mistakes.

As for the disbelievers, they will be as Allah said about them,

وَأَنذِرِ النَّاسَ يَوۡمَ يَأۡتِيهِمُ الۡعَذَابُ فَيَقُولُ الَّذِينَ ظَلَمُواۡ رَبَّنَأ أَخِّرۡنَأ إِلَى أَجَلٍ قَرِيبٍ نُّجِبۡ دَعۡوَتَكَ وَنَتَّبِعِ الرُّسُلَ أَوَلَمۡ تَكُونُواۡ أَقۡسَمۡتُمۡ مِّن قَبۡلُ مَا لَكُمۡ مِّن زَوَالٍ

And warn mankind of the Day when the torment will come unto them; then the wrongdoers will say:

Our Lord! Respite us for a little while, we will answer Your call and follow the Messengers!

(It will be said):

Had you not sworn aforetime that you would not leave. (14:44),

and,

حَتَّى إِذَا جَأءَ أَحَدَهُمُ الۡمَوۡتُ قَالَ رَبِّ ارۡجِعُونِ

لَعَلِّى أَعۡمَلُ صَـلِحاً فِيمَا تَرَكۡتُ كَلَّ إِنَّهَا كَلِمَةٌ هُوَ قَأيِلُهَا وَمِن وَرَايِهِمۡ بَرۡزَخٌ إِلَى يَوۡمِ يُبۡعَثُونَ

Until, when death comes to one of them, he says:

My Lord! send me back. So that I may do good in that which I have left behind!

No! It is but a word that he speaks; and behind them is Barzakh (a barrier) until the Day when they will be resurrected. (23:99-100)

Then Allah said

وَلَن يُوَخِّرَ اللَّهُ نَفۡسًا إِذَا جَاء أَجَلُهَا

And Allah grants respite to none when his appointed time comes. And Allah is All-Aware of what you do.

meaning, when the time of death comes, no one will be granted respite.

Allah said,

وَاللَّهُ خَبِيرٌ بِمَا تَعۡمَلُونَ

And Allah is All-Aware of what you do.

This is the end of the Tafsir of Surah Al-Munafiqun. All praise and thanks are due to Allah, and all success and immunity from error come from Him.