English Translation and Tafsir of Surah al-Layl Ayah 1-11
92:1 By the night when it covers,
92:2 By the day when it appears,
92:3 and by Him Who created the male and the female,
92:4 truly, your endeavors are diverse.
92:5 As for he who gives and is God-fearing
92:6 and believes in goodness,
92:7 We shall surely ease him to the way of ease.
92:8 And as for him who is a miser and deems himself self-sufficient
92:9 and disbelieves in goodness,
92:10 We shall surely ease him to the way of hardship.
92:11 And his wealth shall not avail him when he perishes.
Tafsir
92:1 By the night when it covers,
92:2 By the day when it appears,
92:3 and by Him Who created the male and the female,
Allah swears by the night when it covers the universe with its darkness, the day when it appears when the sun rises so that it covers the universe with its light and brightness, and the One Who created the male and the female in the best form, Allah. It is as if Allah says, ‘By the Great Creator, Who created this marvelous universe and nothing can stand before His perfect ability.’
Allah can swear by whatever thing of His creatures, but the created beings can only swear by Allah, Exalted be He.
Qatada, may Allah have mercy on him, said, ‘[92:1 By the night when it covers, 92:2 By the day when it appears,] the night and the day are two great signs that Allah repeats their occurrence for the creatures.’
92:4 truly, your endeavors are diverse.
This is an answer statement to the oath. By the night that covers the day with its darkness, by the day that appears and removes the darkness of the night, and by the One Who created the male and the female, O people, your endeavors are diverse in this world. Some of which are right and some are wrong, some of which are acts of obedience and some are acts of disobedience, and some of which are good and some are evil. Allah will recompense each person according to his deeds, good or evil.
92:5 As for he who gives and is God-fearing
92:6 and believes in goodness,
As for he who gives Allah’s rights by spending on benevolent acts such as helping the needy, he is God-fearing by obeying Allah’s commands and avoiding His prohibitions, and he believes in goodness, namely, believing in all things that one must believe in,
The scholars of Tafsir mention the following meanings for ‘goodness’ mentioned in the ayah: 1) It refers to the declaration of belief, namely, there is no god worthy of worship but Allah and Muhammad is His slave and Messenger. 2) Believing that Allah will recompense the good-doers for their righteous deeds. 3) Paradise. 4) Allah’s blessings on man. 5) Allah’s promise that He will reward the good-doers. 6) It refers to prayer, zakat, and fasting.
After mentioning the opinions of the scholars, Imam Muhammad Ibn Jarir at-Tabari said, ‘The correct opinion is that goodness refers to believing that Allah will recompense the good-doers who spend their wealth on charitable acts for Allah’s sake in this world. That is because the previous ayah [5] refers to one who spends his wealth on charitable acts for Allah’s sake. Thus, the meaning that is more suitable to the context of the ayat is that goodness refers to believing in the fact that Allah will reward the good-doers for their benevolent acts. Abu ad-Darda’, may Allah be pleased with him, narrated that Messenger Muhammad said, ‘The sun will not set in any day except there are two angels beside it, calling while all creatures hear them save human beings and the jinn, ‘O Allah, give every spending person a compensation, and give every withholding person a destruction.’
It is mentioned that ayah [5-6-7] was revealed about Abu Bakr, may Allah be pleased with him. Abdul Allah Ibn az-Zubayr said, ‘Abu Bakr used to emancipate those who embrace Islam. He used to free old people and women when they embrace Islam. Therefore, his father said to him, ‘O my son, I see that you free weak people. If you free strong people, who can help and defend you, it would be better for you.’ Abu said, ‘O father, I only seek Allah’s reward.’’
92:7 We shall surely ease him to the way of ease.
Allah will surely make easy for the person who spends his wealth for His sake the way of ease leading him to comfort, peace of mind, and tranquility by helping him to perform righteous deeds that will guide him to the lasting happiness in Paradise in the Hereafter.
92:8 And as for him who is a miser and deems himself self-sufficient
92:9 and disbelieves in goodness,
As for the person who is a miser, does not fulfill Allah’s obligations on him, does not spend his wealth for Allah’s sake on charitable acts, and deems himself self-sufficient and in no need of Allah’s reward,
This person also is haughty to people because of his wealth and prestige, favors the life of this world and its enjoyment over the Hereafter and its reward, and disbelieves in the goodness that includes belief in Allah’s Oneness, the occurrence of the Day of Judgment, and all that must be believed in,
92:10 We shall surely ease him to the way of hardship.
Allah will surely make easy for the person who disbelieves in Allah’s Oneness and His reward in the Hereafter and does not fulfill Allah’s obligations on him the way of hardship and difficulty. Thus, He will make him favor the path of misguidance over the path of guidance, falsehood over the truth, and stinginess over generosity because of his wrong choices. His end will be loss and destruction.
Reflecting on these ayat, one finds that they mention three beautiful attributes of the believers that are the gathering point of all goodness and the foundation of all virtues. These three beautiful attributes are fear of Allah, belief in all that which must be believed in, and generosity. Those who are characterized by these attributes will be guided to the way of goodness, which will lead them to happiness. On the other hand, the three attributes of the wicked that are mentioned are the foundation of affliction and the origin of corruption. These attributes are disbelief in all that which must be believed in, stinginess, and conceit. Those who are characterized by these attributes will be guided to the way of hardship, which will lead them to failure and destruction.
Ali Ibn Abi Talib, may Allah be pleased with him, said, ‘We were attending a funeral procession in Baqi’ al-Gharqad. Then Messenger Muhammad [peace be upon him] came and sat down and we sat around him. He was carrying a stick and he bent his head down and began to hit the ground with the stick. Then he said, ‘There is no one of you but his place in Hell and Paradise are assigned for him.’ The companions of Messenger Muhammad said, ‘Shall we rely on what is written for us in the records of deeds.’ Messenger Muhammad said, ‘Keep on doing righteous deeds. Everyone will be easily directed to what he has been created.’
92:11 And his wealth shall not avail him when he perishes.
When the miser person who deems himself self-sufficient and does not fulfill Allah’s obligation on him perishes after death, his wealth and prestige in the life of this world will not avail him in the Hereafter. He will fall into the fire of Hell where he will suffer severe and lasting punishment. He will find no one who can help nor protect him against the torment of Hell.
Learned Lessons from Surah al-Layl Ayah 1-11
• Allah, Exalted be He, swears by the night when it covers everything in this universe with its darkness, the day when it appears and brightens the universe with its light, and the One, Who created the male and female, Allah, Exalted be He. Allah can swear by whatever thing of His creatures that He wants, but the created beings can only swear by Allah.
• People’s deeds are different. Some of them are righteous while others are wicked, and some of them please Allah while others displease Him.
• Allah will justly recompense the good-doers and the evildoers on the Day of Judgment.
• Allah will guide those who believe in His Oneness, and fulfill His obligation to the right path and facilitate it for them.
• On the Day of Judgment, Allah will immensely reward those who believe in His Oneness, perform righteous deeds, and spend their wealth for His sake.
• Allah will facilitate the path of misguidance for those who disbelieve in His Oneness because of their wickedness.
• Generosity is a praiseworthy characteristic while stinginess is blameworthy.
• Stinginess will not benefit the miser, who disbelieves in Allah’s Oneness and Reckoning on the Day of Judgment when he falls in the fire of Hell and suffers its severe and lasting punishment.
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