Surah Baqarah Ayat 271 in Arabic Text
English Translation
Here you can read various translations of verse 271
If you disclose your charitable expenditures, they are good; but if you conceal them and give them to the poor, it is better for you, and He will remove from you some of your misdeeds [thereby]. And Allah, with what you do, is [fully] Acquainted.
“If ye disclose (acts of) charity, even so it is well, but if ye conceal them, and make them reach those (really) in need, that is best for you: It will remove from you some of your (stains of) evil. And Allah is well acquainted with what ye do.
If you practise charity publicly, it is good; but if you give charity secretly to the needy, it is much better for you, for this will expiate many of your sins. Anyhow, Allah is well aware of whatever you do.
If you disclose your Sadaqat (alms-giving), it is well, but if you conceal it, and give it to the poor, that is better for you. (Allah) will forgive you some of your sins. And Allah is Well-Acquainted with what you do.
If ye publish your almsgiving, it is well, but if ye hide it and give it to the poor, it will be better for you, and will atone for some of your ill-deeds. Allah is Informed of what ye do.
In case you display (your) donations, then how favored (you are) by them, and in case you conceal them and bring them to the poor, then it is more charitable for you; and He will expiate for you (some) of your odious (deeds); and Allah is Ever-Cognizant of whatever you do.
If you give charity openly, it is good, but if you keep it secret and give to the needy in private, that is better for you, and it will atone for some of your bad deeds: God is well aware of all that you do.
اگر تم صدقے خیرات کو ﻇاہر کرو تو وه بھی اچھا ہے اور اگر تم اسے پوشیده پوشیده مسکینوں کو دے دو تو یہ تمہارے حق میں بہتر ہے، اللہ تعالیٰ تمہارے گناہوں کو مٹا دے گا اور اللہ تعالیٰ تمہارے تمام اعمال کی خبر رکھنے واﻻ ہے،
Quran 2 Verse 271 Explanation
For those looking for commentary to help with the understanding of Surah Baqarah ayat 271, we’ve provided two Tafseer works below. The first is the tafseer of Abul Ala Maududi, the second is of Ibn Kathir.
Ala-Maududi
(2:271) If you dispense your charity publicly, it is well; but if you conceal it and pay it to the needy in secret, it will be even better for you.[311] This will atone for several of your misdeeds.[312] Allah is well aware of all that you do.
311. If charity is of an obligatory nature it is preferable to dispense it openly. Non-obligatory charity should preferably be dispensed secretly. This principle applies to all acts. As a rule, it is more meritorious to perform obligatory acts openly and non-obligatory acts of goodness, secretly .
312. The performance of good deeds in secret leads to the continual improvement of one’s life and character. One’s good qualities develop fully and one’s bad qualities gradually wither away. This makes a man so acceptable to God that He pardons the sins that he might have committed.
Ibn-Kathir
270. And whatever you spend for spendings (e.g., in Sadaqah) or whatever vow you make, be sure Allah knows it all. And for the wrongdoers there are no helpers. 271. If you disclose your Sadaqat (almsgiving), it is well; but if you conceal them and give them to the poor, that is better for you. (Allah) will expiate you some of your sins. And Allah is Well-Acquainted with what you do.
Allah states that He has perfect knowledge of the good deeds performed by all of His creation, such as charity and various vows, and He rewards tremendously for these deeds, provided they are performed seeking His Face and His promise. Allah also warns those who do not work in his obedience, but instead disobey His command, reject His revelation and worship others besides Him:
(And for the wrongdoers there are no helpers.) meaning, who will save them from Allah’s anger and torment on the Day of Resurrection.
Allah said,
(If you disclose your Sadaqat, it is well) meaning, “It is well if you make known the charity that you give away.”
Allah’s statement,
(But if you conceal them and give them to the poor, that is better for you.) this indicates that concealing charity is better than disclosing it, because it protects one from showing off and boasting. However, if there is an apparent wisdom behind disclosing the charity, such as the people imitating this righteous act, then disclosing it becomes better than concealing it. The Messenger of Allah said,
(He who utters aloud Qur’anic recitation is just like he who discloses charity acts. He who conceals Qur’anic recitation is just like he who conceals charity acts.)
The Ayah indicates that it is better that acts of charity be concealed, as reiterated by the Hadith that the Two Sahihs recorded from Abu Hurayrah that the Messenger of Allah said,
(Allah will give shade to seven on the Day when there will be no shade but His. (They are a just ruler, a youth who has been brought up in the worship of Allah, two persons who love each other only for Allah’s sake who meet and part in Allah’s cause only, a man whose heart is attached to the Masjids from the time he departs the Masjid until he returns to it, a person who remembers Allah in seclusion and his eyes are then flooded with tears, a man who refuses the call of a charming woman of noble birth for illicit intercourse with her and says, `I fear Allah, Lord of the worlds’, and a man who gives charitable gifts so secretly that his left hand does not know what his right hand has given.)
Allah’s statement,
((Allah) will expiate you some of your sins) means, in return for giving away charity, especially if it was concealed. Therefore, you will gain goodness by your rank being raised, and your sins being forgiven.
Allah’s statement,
(And Allah is Well-Acquainted with what you do) means, “No good deed that you perform escapes His knowledge, and He shall reward for it.”
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