Quran Garden

What if the people who seem most powerful are actually the most spiritually bankrupt?  Today, we dive into a powerful verse that strips away illusions about the true value of leadership and wealth.  Let's begin.

Session 638

Chapter 4

Verse 53

Do they have any share of what He possesses?  If they did, they would not give away so much as the groove of a date pit. (Chapter 4:Verse 53)

God describes those who oppose Islam as extremely stingy; it is almost as if they possess nothing at all, neither in this world nor in God's kingdom.  All authority belongs to God alone; He gives power to whomever He chooses and takes it away from whomever He wills.  Even if such people were granted a portion of His authority, they would not use it to benefit anyone else.  God says,

Say: "If you possessed the treasures of my Lord's Mercy, still you would surely hold them back for fear of spending.  Indeed, man is ever grudging. (17:100)

Even with their immense wealth, they would not spend it, fearing it might diminish.  Why does God tell us this?  So we may understand the mindset of such people.  Whether it was the disbelievers of Quraysh or the leaders of the Jews, they were only focused on preserving their worldly power and wealth.  They did not want a society where everyone had a fair chance to succeed.  Had they shown people kindness, generosity, and support, things would have been different.  Instead, they chose to hold tightly to what they had.

When power and wealth become the ultimate goals of life, people in privilege often do not share them.  Human nature clings to control because control brings influence and access to riches.  The affluent often lose sight of the true meaning of faith.  Faith teaches us that true goodness is not about having more wealth or power, but about creating a legacy of justice and compassion that lives on beyond our lifetimes.  Yet many people act as though they will live forever, even though no one is guaranteed tomorrow.  One of the most beautiful aspects of the Hereafter is that good endures forever.  God says,

Never cut off, never forbidden.  (56:33)

If your status, power, and influence are so important to you, then they should produce more than personal gain.  Do others benefit from your position, or does it serve only you?  Every privilege carries an obligation, and every blessing is a test of how it is used.  Power and wealth find their highest purpose when they serve more than the individual who possesses them.  What good are blessings if they never reach those who need them most?

At the very least, allow others to benefit from what you have been entrusted with.  We ask: Do you expect Allah to perpetuate His gifts of wealth and power while you withhold them from others?  That is not possible.  Listen to the following Ayat from Surah Al-Fajr: 

And for man, when his Lord tries him by bestowing favors on him, says: "My Lord has honored me." but when He tries him through the restriction of his provision, he says, "My Lord has humiliated me." Not at all! (89:15-16)

Take note that Allah answered both: the person who claims that wealth and power are a sign of God's pleasure, and the one who claims that poverty in this world is a sign of God's displeasure, with the same answer: "Not at all!" Indeed, you are wrong if you consider God's provision a reward, and wrong if you consider the deprivation of bounties an insult.  God's provisions are a blessing only if you honor their right and use them for good to help others.  His bounties should bring you closer to him in gratitude and appreciation, not distract you.  Likewise, the lack of provisions is a blessing if it gets you closer to your Lord in prayer and humility, rather than making you angry at the world.  

Pay close attention to the reasons Allah gave.  The Almighty continues,

No indeed!  You do not honor orphans, you do not urge one another to feed the poor, you consume inheritance greedily, and you love wealth with a great passion. (89:17-20)

You have wealth, yet you do not help the orphan or feed the poor!  Instead of being a source of honor, your wealth stands as evidence against you, a witness to your neglect, and, worst of all, a cause of your punishment.  God says,

Those who are tight-fisted with the bounty God has given them should not think that that is better for them.  No, indeed, it is worse for them!  What they were tight-fisted with will be hung around their necks on the Day of Rising.  It is God who will inherit the heavens and earth: God is well aware of everything you do.  (3:180)

We ask, is wealth an honor if it brings you calamity?  Wouldn't having no wealth be better for you?  If you take God's privilege and ignore the responsibility, there is a price to pay.  The more you hoard and withhold from others, the thicker the chain around your neck will be in the Hereafter. 

This brings us back to the verse under study.  We discussed how the Jewish tribes of Medina betrayed their treaty with Prophet Muhammad and allied themselves with the idolators of Quraysh in Mecca.  Why did they do that?  Why did they abandon faith, the Torah, and say to idol worshippers: 'You are better guided on God's path than Muhammad!'?  The answer is simple: wealth and worldly power.  The Jews of Medina were among the wealthiest; they controlled finance and extended usurious loans to the Arab tribes; they had fortresses, manufactured weapons, and were highly educated.  All that gave them power and riches.  When the Messenger, peace be upon him, arrived, all these privileges came under threat.  The Arab tribes stopped fighting each other and started trading.  The poor got help, not loans, and so on. 

Likewise, the disbelievers of Quraysh were the supreme political and trading power; they held sovereignty over the entire Arabian Peninsula.  No one dared attack a caravan of Quraysh.  During the Hajj season, all the tribes would go to Mecca, pay homage, and enjoy Quraysh's protection.  More importantly, they had sovereignty over the Sacred House that Allah preserved and guarded.  A few decades before Islam, the army of Abraha, with its magnificent elephants, was defeated by a supernatural disaster.  God says,

Have you not considered how your Lord dealt with the owners of the elephant?  Did He not make their plan go wrong, and send against them flights of birds, pelting them with stones of tar sand, and make them like devoured straw?  (105)

Allah gives us the reason behind His actions in chapter 106.  He says,

To make the Quraysh feel secure, secure in their winter and summer journeys. 

Really!?  Would God do that?  Why?  The Almighty answers,

So let them worship the Lord of this House, who provides them with food to ward off hunger and safety to ward off fear.

God's sacred house should be for His worship alone.  Without it, Quraysh would be just an average tribe being attacked by others with no security or trade to speak of.  Glory be to Him who gave them sovereignty, might, security, and brought them the fruits from all corners of Arabia.  God asks,

Do they have any share of what He possesses?  If they did, they would not give away so much as the groove of a date pit. (Chapter 4:Verse 53)