Surah Al-Qasas (28) — Ayah 54

(Ayah 54) ➊ { اُولٰٓىِٕكَ يُؤْتَوْنَ اَجْرَهُمْ مَّرَّتَيْنِ :} That is, those among the People of the Book who believed in the Noble Prophet (peace be upon him) will receive a double reward, because these people first believed in the previous Messenger, and then also believed in him (peace be upon him). Abu Musa Ash'ari (may Allah be pleased with him) narrates that the Messenger of Allah (peace be upon him) said: [ ثَلَاثَةٌ لَهُمْ أَجْرَانِ : رَجُلٌ مِنْ أَهْلِ الْكِتَابِ آمَنَ بِنَبِيِّهِ وَ آمَنَ بِمُحَمَّدٍ صَلَّی اللّٰهُ عَلَيْهِ وَسَلَّمَ، وَالْعَبْدُ الْمَمْلُوْكُ إِذَا أَدّٰی حَقَّ اللّٰهِ وَ حَقَّ مَوَالِيْهِ وَ رَجُلٌ كَانَتْ عِنْدَهُ أَمَةٌ يَطَؤُهَا فَأَدَّبَهَا فَأَحْسَنَ تَأْدِيْبَهَا وَ عَلَّمَهَا فَأَحْسَنَ تَعْلِيْمَهَا ثُمَّ أَعْتَقَهَا فَتَزَوَّجَهَا فَلَهُ أَجْرَانِ ] [بخاري، العلم، باب تعلیم الرجل أمتہ و أھلہ : ۹۷ ] "Three types of people will have a double reward: one is a person from the People of the Book who believed in his Prophet and then believed in Muhammad (peace be upon him); the second is a slave who is owned by someone, and when he fulfills the right of Allah and the rights of his masters; and the third is a man who had a slave-girl with whom he had relations, then he taught her manners and taught her well, and educated her and educated her well, then set her free and married her, so for him there are two rewards."

➋ { بِمَا صَبَرُوْا:} Patience is of three kinds: patience in obedience, patience in refraining from sin, and patience in the face of calamity. That is, first, after believing in one Messenger (peace be upon him), they remained patient and steadfast, then after believing in the second Messenger (peace be upon him), they remained steadfast upon that. Similarly, they remained steadfast against the desires of the self, and were patient over the trials and calamities that befell them after accepting Islam.

➌ { وَ يَدْرَءُوْنَ بِالْحَسَنَةِ السَّيِّئَةَ : ’’دَرَأَ يَدْرَأُ‘‘} means to repel, remove, or push away. This verse has two meanings: one is that if someone treats them badly, they do not respond with evil, but rather respond in the best possible way, as He said: «{ وَ لَا تَسْتَوِي الْحَسَنَةُ وَ لَا السَّيِّئَةُ اِدْفَعْ بِالَّتِيْ هِيَ اَحْسَنُ فَاِذَا الَّذِيْ بَيْنَكَ وَ بَيْنَهٗ عَدَاوَةٌ كَاَنَّهٗ وَلِيٌّ حَمِيْمٌ }» [ حٰم السجدۃ : ۳۴ ] "And not equal are the good deed and the bad. Repel [evil] by that [deed] which is better; then behold, the one between whom and you there was enmity will become as though he was a devoted friend." And see Surah Ra'd (22). The second meaning is that if they themselves commit a wrong, they try to erase its effect later by doing good deeds, as He said: «{ وَ اَقِمِ الصَّلٰوةَ طَرَفَيِ النَّهَارِ وَ زُلَفًا مِّنَ الَّيْلِ اِنَّ الْحَسَنٰتِ يُذْهِبْنَ السَّيِّاٰتِ }» [ ھود : ۱۱۴ ] "And establish prayer at the two ends of the day and at the approach of the night. Indeed, good deeds do away with misdeeds."

➍ { وَ مِمَّا رَزَقْنٰهُمْ يُنْفِقُوْنَ:} Sometimes, responding to evil with good, or erasing evil with good deeds, is not possible unless one spends (in charity), so their quality is mentioned that they spend out of what We have given them. This includes obligatory and recommended rights, obligatory zakah, and voluntary charity—all are included. In {’’ رَزَقْنٰهُمْ ‘‘}, He also reminds them of His favor and that if they spend, they are not spending anything of their own, but rather what Allah has given them, so they should not hesitate to spend.

54-1. By patience is meant to remain steadfast in faith in the prophets and the Divine Book under all circumstances. When the first book came, they believed in it; after that, they believed in the second one. They believed in the first prophet, and when the second prophet came, they believed in him as well. For them, there is a double reward; this virtue of theirs has also been mentioned in the hadith. The Noble Prophet ﷺ said, "There are three people for whom there is a double reward; among them is the person from the People of the Book who believed in his prophet and then believed in me."

54-2. That is, they do not respond to evil with evil, but rather forgive and act with forbearance.

54. These are the ones who will be given their reward twice, because of their perseverance [72], and they repel evil with good [73], and spend out of what We have provided them [74].

[72]
Double Reward for Those Among the People of the Book Who Believe:

By steadfastness is meant, firstly, that perseverance which does not become an obstacle in the path of accepting the truth. The constant spirit of obedience to Allah that existed in their hearts was what encouraged them to believe in this Prophet. Secondly, it means that when changing their religion and initially accepting a new faith, these Muslims had to face various difficulties and hardships. They endured such hardships with patience and perseverance. For such people, there is a double reward: one for believing in the book of the previous prophet, and one for believing in the other prophet and his book. Thus, Hazrat Abu Musa Ash'ariؓ states that the Messenger of Allahﷺ mentioned three types of people who will receive a double reward, among them is the Jew or Christian who first believed in his own prophets and then, by believing in the Messenger of Allahﷺ, became a Muslim. [بخاري۔ كتاب الجهاد والسير۔ باب فضل من اسلم من اهل الكتابين]

[73] Here, the word ﴿يَدْرَءُوْنَ﴾ is used. And the meaning of ﴿وَرَءَ﴾ is to repel, remove, or push away. In this regard, this verse has two meanings: one is that if someone treats them badly or causes them harm, they do not respond with evil or harm, but rather treat them even better. The second meaning is that if they themselves commit a wrong, they later perform good deeds to remove the effect of that wrong.

[74] When sustenance is attributed to Allah Almighty, it always means pure and lawful sustenance, because even charity is not accepted from unlawful earnings. And spending means spending in the way of Allah as well as on lawful matters, that is, on oneself, on the necessities of life for one's family and dependents, etc., and in this matter, they are not miserly.