Translation of the meanings Ayah 79 Surah At-Tawbah - English Translation - Dr. Waleed Bleyhesh Omary - The Noble Qur'an Encyclopedia

Ayah: 79

ٱلَّذِينَ يَلۡمِزُونَ ٱلۡمُطَّوِّعِينَ مِنَ ٱلۡمُؤۡمِنِينَ فِي ٱلصَّدَقَٰتِ وَٱلَّذِينَ لَا يَجِدُونَ إِلَّا جُهۡدَهُمۡ فَيَسۡخَرُونَ مِنۡهُمۡ سَخِرَ ٱللَّهُ مِنۡهُمۡ وَلَهُمۡ عَذَابٌ أَلِيمٌ

(79) ^[2181]Those who snide at the ˹generously˺ benefacting among the Believers regarding alms, as well as ˹the sincere˺ who can find nothing ˹to give˺ but their own effort – they ridicule them – may Allah Ridicule them^[2182] and theirs is a painful Punishment.

[2181] The hypocrites do not only practise what they preach themselves (“…enjoin what is unacceptable and advise against virtue, and clinch their fists…” (Aya 67 above)), they hate to see others doing otherwise (cf. al-Biqāʿī, Naẓm al-Durar). Abū Masʿūd (رضي الله عنه) narrated: “When we were bade to give charity, ˹having nothing to give˺ we went on to work as porters ˹in the market, to secure the money for charity˺. Abū ʿAqīl came with half a bucket ˹of palm dates as charity˺, another person came with more than that, and the hypocrites said: “Allah is in no need of this one’s charity ˹meaning Abū ʿAqīl˺, and this other one only did it to show off”. Then the aya came down: “Those who snide at the benefacting among the Believers regarding alms as well as ˹the sincere˺ who can find nothing ˹to give˺ but their own effort …”” (al-Bukhārī: 4668, Muslim: 1018). They hurtle sneering comments on both the well-off who give generously, saying that they do so to show off, and those who can only help out with the very little that they have, and deride them for it (c.f. al-Ṭabarī, al-Wāḥidī, al-Basīṭ, al-Saʿdī).
[2182] “When they meet those who Believe, they say: “We Believe!”, but when they are alone with their devils, they say: “Surely we are with you. We are but mocking”. *Allah mocks them and slackens the reins for them to wander aimlessly in their blindness” (2: 14-15).