Surah Aal-i-Imraan (3) — Ayah 92

(Ayah 92) ➊ {لَنْ تَنَالُوا الْبِرَّ … :} { ”الْبِرَّ“ } "Perfect righteousness," {”مِمَّا تُحِبُّوْنَ“} (spend from that which you love) is general, meaning it includes life and wealth, children and relatives, status and honor—in short, everything. This address is to both Muslims and Jews. The relevance of addressing Muslims seems to be that in the previous verse it was stated that spending by a disbeliever will not benefit him at all, and now in this verse, the manner of spending for believers is explained, by which they will benefit in the Hereafter.
➋ {وَ مَا تُنْفِقُوْا مِنْ شَيْءٍ … :} The purpose is that whatever a person spends in the way of Allah, whether little or much, it is in the knowledge of Allah Almighty, and the person (provided he is a Muslim and spends with sincerity) will surely receive its reward. Therefore, one should not consider spending even a small thing as shameful. But to attain the perfect level in righteousness, it is necessary to spend the most beloved thing. After hearing this verse, here are one or two examples of the actions of the Companions, may Allah be pleased with them. Anas, may Allah be pleased with him, narrates that when this verse was revealed, Abu Talha Ansari, may Allah be pleased with him, came to the service of the Messenger of Allah, peace and blessings be upon him, and said: "O Messenger of Allah! Of my property, the most beloved to me is the garden of {’’بَيْرُحَاء‘‘ } (which was right in front of the Prophet’s Mosque; the Prophet, peace and blessings be upon him, used to go there and drink its pure water), and O Messenger of Allah! Allah Almighty has said: «لَنْ تَنَالُوا الْبِرَّ حَتّٰى تُنْفِقُوْا مِمَّا تُحِبُّوْنَ » so I give it in charity in the way of Allah and hope for its reward; you may decide about it as you wish."
[ بخاری، الزکوٰۃ، باب الزکوٰۃ علی الأقارب … : ۱۴۶۱، مختصرًا ] Umar ibn al-Khattab, may Allah be pleased with him, said: "O Messenger of Allah! Of what I received from Khaybar, I have never acquired any wealth more precious than that, and I have intended to give it in charity." The Prophet, peace and blessings be upon him, said: "Keep the principal with you and distribute its fruits in the way of Allah." So Umar, may Allah be pleased with him, made it a waqf (endowment). [ بخاری، الشروط، باب الشروط فی الوقف : ۲۷۳۷۔ ابن ماجہ :۲۳۹۶، ۲۳۹۷ ]
➌ In the case of addressing the Jews, Shah Abdul Qadir, may Allah have mercy on him, writes: "Perhaps this verse is mentioned in the context of the Jews because their leadership was very dear to them, and in order to maintain it, they would not follow the Prophet, peace and blessings be upon him. So as long as they do not give that up, they will not attain the rank of faith in the way of Allah." (Mawdhih)
➍ {مِمَّا تُحِبُّوْنَ:} See the grace of Allah: He did not ask His servants for all of their beloved things, but declared spending some of it as perfect righteousness.

92. 1. By "Birr" (goodness, virtue) is meant righteous deeds or Paradise (Fath al-Qadeer). In the hadith, it is mentioned that when this verse was revealed, Hazrat Abu Talha Ansari ؓ, who was among the wealthy companions of Madinah, came to the service of the Prophet ﷺ and said, "O Messenger of Allah ﷺ! The garden of Bairuha is the most beloved to me, and I give it in charity for the pleasure of Allah." The Prophet ﷺ said, "That is a very profitable property. My opinion is that you distribute it among your relatives." So, following his ﷺ advice, he distributed it among his relatives and cousins. To give a good thing in charity is the way to attain the highest and most complete rank. This does not mean that giving a lesser thing, or something surplus to one's needs, or a used old thing in charity is not allowed or will not be rewarded. Giving such things in charity is certainly permissible and rewardable, although perfection and superiority lie in spending what is beloved.

92. 2. Whatever you spend, whether good or bad, Allah knows it, and He will reward accordingly.

You will never attain true righteousness until you spend in the way of Allah from that which you love [81]. And whatever you spend, Allah surely knows it well.

[81]
The Virtue of Spending Beloved Wealth:

Although the previous subject pertains to the Jews, the address of this verse is to the Jews, Christians, Muslims, and all of humanity, and love for wealth is inherent in human nature. When spending in the way of Allah, a kind of constriction arises in the heart, and if one is compelled to spend due to someone’s insistence, he wishes to give only a little or something insignificant to be relieved of the obligation. However, Allah Almighty says that unless you spend in the way of Allah from that wealth which is beloved and preferred to you, you cannot attain the vastness of righteousness. The Companions ؓ were greatly influenced by this verse. Hazrat Anas bin Malik ؓ narrates: Among the Ansar, Hazrat Abu Talha ؓ had the most gardens. Of these, the garden of Bairuha was dearest to him. It was situated in front of Masjid Nabawi. He used to go to this garden and drink its excellent, sweet water. When this verse was revealed, Abu Talha ؓ said to the Messenger of Allah ﷺ: “Of all my property, the garden of Bairuha is most beloved to me. I give this garden in charity in the way of Allah, hoping for reward and treasure with Allah. Please use it wherever you deem appropriate.” The Prophet ﷺ said: “Excellent! This wealth is, after all, perishable.” In another narration, it is stated: Wealth is indeed very beneficial. Now do this: distribute it among your poor relatives. Abu Talha ؓ replied: Very well! O Messenger of Allah ﷺ, I will do so. Thus, Abu Talha ؓ distributed this garden among his relatives and paternal cousins.
[بخاری، کتاب التفسیر نیز کتاب الزکوٰۃ، باب الزکوٰۃ علی الاقارب]
And especially, the primary addressees of this verse are the Jews, because the verses before and after it are addressed to them. Due to usury and consuming what is unlawful, miserliness had become ingrained in their nature. For religious sanctity and recognition, they had adopted only a few outward symbols as the standard, and under the guise of this sanctity, all their vices were concealed, among which one vice was miserliness and intense love for wealth.