يَٰٓأَيُّهَا ٱلَّذِينَ ءَامَنُوٓا۟ إِذَا نَٰجَيْتُمُ ٱلرَّسُولَ فَقَدِّمُوا۟ بَيْنَ يَدَىْ نَجْوَىٰكُمْ صَدَقَةًۭ ۚ ذَٰلِكَ خَيْرٌۭ لَّكُمْ وَأَطْهَرُ ۚ فَإِن لَّمْ تَجِدُوا۟ فَإِنَّ ٱللَّهَ غَفُورٌۭ رَّحِيمٌ
O you who have believed, when you [wish to] privately consult the Messenger, present before your consultation a charity. That is better for you and purer. But if you find not [the means] - then indeed, Allah is Forgiving and Merciful.
Introduction
This is āyah 12 of Sūrat Al-Mujaadila (The Pleading Woman), the 105th sūrah in the traditional order of revelation. It was revealed in the Medinan period and sits within Juzʾ 28. Medinan verses often address community life, law, and the building of society.
This introduction is a starting point — the community and Bilal will enrich it over time.
Revelation & occasion
- Period
- Medinan
- Order revealed
- 105 of 114
- Surah
- Al-Mujaadila (58)
O you who have faith, when you whisper with the Messenger, offer charity before you whisper. It is narrated that the Commander of the Faithful ʿAlī said that when this verse came down, he gave one dinar in charity and asked ten questions from God's Messenger. He said, “'O Messenger of God! How should I supplicate God?': How should I call upon God and worship Him?” The Messenger answered, “'With truthfulness and loyalty': Be loyal to the covenant that was made with Him on the Day of Alast and be truthful in your speaking and doing. Have what you show, do what you say, and be whence you call out.” ʿAlī said, “What should I ask for from God?” He answered, “'For safety in this world and the next:' In this world and the next the safety of the heart from the blights of mortal nature and the well-being of the body in the varieties of trial.” ʿAlī said, “'What should I make ready for my salvation?': What should I do so that in the gathering place of the resurrection I may be delivered, secure from the terrors of the resurrection and arrived at the degrees of the Garden?” He answered, “'Eat the permitted and speak with truthfulness': When you eat something, eat the permitted, and when you speak, speak with truthfulness. Do not give the forbidden access to yourself, for the forbidden has a bad outcome. Avoid lying, for anyone who lies will have a bad name in the two worlds.” He said, “'What is the stratagem?': What stratagem should I use so that things will come out as I want?” He answered, “'The stratagem is to abandon stratagems': Let go of stratagems and know that everything is as God wants and that the stratagems and governance of the servant will never over- come God's predetermination.” He said, “'What must I do?': What are the rules that I must discharge?” He answered, “'The command of God and His Messenger': Everything mandatory and oblig- atory commanded by God, and everything set down as Sunnah and recommended by the Mes- senger.” He said, “'What is ease?': What is ease and comfort?” He answered, “'The Garden': Ease is that you settle down in paradise and its blessings and that you stay secure from hell and its punishment.
Tafsir
Hafiz Ibn Kathir
Chains of transmission
Oral — isnād
- ~610–632 CERevelation & memorisation
Received by the Prophet ﷺ and preserved by the ḥuffāẓ (memorisers) among the Companions.
- 1st century AHMutawātir transmissionawaiting curation
Carried by mass-transmission through the generations of qurrāʾ.
- TodayLiving chainsawaiting curation
Continuous ijāzah chains link reciters today back to the Prophet ﷺ.
Verified isnād chains for this āyah will be added by curators.
Written — the manuscript record
- ~650 CEʿUthmānic codicesawaiting curation
The standardised muṣḥaf sent to the great cities (e.g. the Topkapı and Samarqand codices).
- 8th–10th c.Early Ḥijāzī & Kūfic foliosawaiting curation
Surviving leaves in Birmingham, Sanaa, Paris (BnF) and beyond.
- Modern printModern printawaiting curation
The 1924 Cairo edition → today: the standard printed muṣḥaf used worldwide.
A curated chain of manuscript images for this exact āyah — roughly one per century — is coming. Help us source and verify them.
And now — what do you think?
The text, its history and the classical commentary are laid out above. Share your own understanding, ask a question, or reason with others.
Community resources
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