Verse 20
إِنَّ رَبَّكَ يَعْلَمُ أَنَّكَ تَقُومُ أَدْنَىٰ مِنْ ثُلُثَيِ اللَّيْلِ وَنِصْفَهُ وَثُلُثَهُ وَطَائِفَةٌ مِنَ الَّذِينَ مَعَكَ ۚ وَاللَّهُ يُقَدِّرُ اللَّيْلَ وَالنَّهَارَ ۚ عَلِمَ أَنْ لَنْ تُحْصُوهُ فَتَابَ عَلَيْكُمْ ۖ فَاقْرَءُوا مَا تَيَسَّرَ مِنَ الْقُرْآنِ ۚ عَلِمَ أَنْ سَيَكُونُ مِنْكُمْ مَرْضَىٰ ۙ وَآخَرُونَ يَضْرِبُونَ فِي الْأَرْضِ يَبْتَغُونَ مِنْ فَضْلِ اللَّهِ ۙ وَآخَرُونَ يُقَاتِلُونَ فِي سَبِيلِ اللَّهِ ۖ فَاقْرَءُوا مَا تَيَسَّرَ مِنْهُ ۚ وَأَقِيمُوا الصَّلَاةَ وَآتُوا الزَّكَاةَ وَأَقْرِضُوا اللَّهَ قَرْضًا حَسَنًا ۚ وَمَا تُقَدِّمُوا لِأَنْفُسِكُمْ مِنْ خَيْرٍ تَجِدُوهُ عِنْدَ اللَّهِ هُوَ خَيْرًا وَأَعْظَمَ أَجْرًا ۚ وَاسْتَغْفِرُوا اللَّهَ ۖ إِنَّ اللَّهَ غَفُورٌ رَحِيمٌ ٢٠
(73:20) Indeed your Lord knows that you stand vigil nearly two thirds of the night—or [at times] a half or a third of it—along with a group of those who are with you. Allah measures the night and the day. He knows that you cannot span it, and so He was lenient toward you. So recite as much of the Qur’an as is feasible. He knows that some of you will be sick, while others will travel in the land seeking Allah’s grace, and yet others will fight in the way of Allah. So recite as much of it as is feasible, and maintain the prayer and pay the zakāt and lend Allah a good loan. Whatever you send ahead for your souls of good, you will find it with Allah [in a form] that is better and greater with respect to reward. And plead to Allah for forgiveness; indeed Allah is Ever-Forgiving, Ever-Merciful.
Introduction & Commentary
The Prophet was ordered to observe night vigil at the beginning of the chapter; a command that was generalized to all believers in the last verse: This is indeed a reminder… (). The current verse lightens their burden and reduces their obligation to as much of the Qur’an as is feasible, without necessarily abrogating the initial command. In other words, the verse does not prohibit them from praying two thirds, half or one third of the night.
There are several accounts which say that this verse was revealed in Mecca eight months, one year, or ten years following the rest of the sūrah. However, one should note that the verse talks about zakāt alongside the ritual prayer (ṣalāh) and supererogatory charity: maintain the prayer and pay the zakāt and lend Allah a good loan. This suggests that what is meant by zakāt in the verse is the specific religious due which was legislated after the Prophet’s migration to Medina. Some have suggested that zakāt was ordained in Mecca with unspecified limits; then its limits were clarified in Medina. However, there is no evidence to corroborate this view. Others have said that the verse mentions an obligation which was legislated later with a delay. This view is also unfounded.
Furthermore, the verse mentions jihad: and yet others will fight in the way of Allah. Yet, given the circumstances prevailing in Mecca, it was not in the interest of the Prophet’s call to endorse jihad in any way whatsoever. Therefore, the verse is apparently Medinan, not Meccan. Some exegetes have favored this view.
This verse is addressed to the Prophet. Referring to God as your Lord conveys a sense of divine mercy and grace. Similarly, saying that He knows that you stand is an expression of God’s gratitude toward His servants. He says elsewhere: and your endeavour is well-appreciated (). .
… nearly (adná) two thirds of the night…: Adná (nearly, almost, approximately) is a comparative adjective that is derived from dunuww, which is synonymous with qurb (nearness, proximity, vicinity). Meanwhile, in common usage it implies being below and less than something. For instance, if it is said, “Their number is adná (close, near) to ten” it implies that they are nine, not eleven. Hence, the verse’s expression would mean slightly less than two thirds of the night.
… or [at times] a half or a third of it…: The conjunction “or” pertains to all nights. The meaning is: “He knows that sometimes you stand vigil close to two thirds of the night, sometimes half of the night, and sometimes one third of the night.”
… along with a group of (min) those who are with you…: They are with you in terms of īmān (belief, faith). The preposition min (of, from) is partitive. This means that some of the believers used to observe the night vigil in the same manner as the Prophet. Some exegetes have suggested that the preposition min is descriptive. The problem with this should be obvious.
… Allah measures the night and the day…: This expression explains and justifies the expression, your Lord knows. The meaning is: “How could God not know this when He is the One Who has created and apportioned everything?” Since He has encompassed the night and the day entirely, He has also encompassed two thirds, half and one third of them. The verse has used the name Allah instead of Lord or other names here because God’s taqdīr (measurement, ordainment, allotment) is a branch of His creation, and creation is in the hands of Allah, Who is the Source of everything.
… He knows that you cannot span it (tuḥṣūhu, from iḥṣāʾ), and so He was lenient toward you. So recite as much of the Qur’an as is feasible…: Iḥṣāʾ means “to grasp the full extent, count, and measure of something.” The pronoun “it” in cannot span it refers to “measurement” [implied by Allah measures the night and the day]. It could also refer to the act of keeping vigil one third, half or nearly two thirds of the night. Being able to cover this amount of night vigil is very difficult for the majority of the people, especially given that the night’s duration constantly alters throughout the year. It is even more difficult if one sleeps first, and then wakes up for one of the three measures—unless one keeps vigil for the entire duration of the night out of precaution, or finds some other solution that serves this purpose.
… He knows that you cannot span it…: That is, God knows that most believers cannot fulfill the span of night vigil that they are instructed.
… so He was lenient (fa-tāba, from tawbah) toward you…: What is meant by God’s tawbah (returning, repenting) is directing His mercy toward them through a reduction of their obligation. God takes the initiative to make tawbah toward His servants by spreading His mercy over them. The impact of this first divine tawbah manifest in several ways: (1) The servants will succeed in also returning and repenting toward their Lord. (2) They will succeed in obeying Him in general. (3) He removes or reduces part of their obligations. The Qur’an says: Then He turned clemently toward them so that they might be penitent (). Once they repent to their Lord, then God has a second tawbah toward His servants. The impact of that is the remission of their sins. We have already discussed this.
… So recite as much of the Qur’an as is feasible…: This expression lightens the obligation of keeping vigil at night for all believers through reducing its extent. The letter fāʾ (so, then, therefore) shows that this statement is made as a conclusion to God’s knowledge that they cannot span it. The subtle usage of the letter fāʾ here shows that the current verse does not abrogate the initial obligation in the sūrah, but only lowers the expectation. Abrogation would mean that standing vigil for one third, half, or nearly two thirds of the night would be an unlawful innovation in religion. If that level of worship were not possible for anyone whatsoever, it would not have been legislated to begin with, because Allah does not task any soul beyond its capacity (). What is not reasonable is to expect that from every individual. The letter fāʾ shows that God’s knowledge about the ability of all believers to meet this obligation has resulted in a reduction of its stringency to the extent that all believers can endure.
Moreover, the verse acknowledges that the Prophet and some believers in particular stood vigil for one third, a half, or nearly two thirds of the night. Yet, it says in a general tone: you cannot span it, where the pronoun “you” includes the abovementioned group and other believers. This shows that the obligation was not burdensome for every single person, but it was burdensome for them as a whole. That is why God reduced the requirement by saying: So recite as much of the Qur’an as is feasible. The law was lightened for the general audience so that everyone can have some share of it, without negating the original law mentioned at the outset of the chapter. The first command is still applicable to anyone who has the ability and willpower to span these periods of the night. It should also be noted that while the command addressed to the Prophet at the beginning of the verse apparently implies an obligatory act, it is a supererogatory ritual for the rest of the believers, as we explained above.
Exegetes have diverging views concerning a number of issues here: (1) Whether standing vigil means the night prayer, or reciting the Qur’an outside the ritual prayer. (2) Whether the night prayer is obligatory for everyone, supererogatory for everyone, or obligatory for the Prophet but supererogatory for the believers. (3) Whether the initial command was abrogated by reducing it to a lesser requirement in this verse, or it was abrogated by replacing the night prayer with recitation of what is feasible from the Qur’an. However, there is not much benefit to address and discuss their opinions.
… He knows that some of you will be sick, while others will travel in the land seeking Allah’s grace, and yet others will fight in the way of Allah…: This sentence provides another reason for reducing the initial command to keep vigil for one third, half, or nearly two thirds of the night. The first reason was that such level of worship is burdensome for the majority of the believers. Here it adds that spanning and fulfilling this level of night vigil is very challenging for those who are ill, the travelers, and fighters in the way of God, given their circumstances.
… while others will travel in the land seeking Allah’s grace…: What is meant here is travelling from one place to another in order to earn a living through trade.
… So recite as much of it as is feasible…: This sentence confirms the abovementioned reduction of the burden by reiterating it. The antecedent of the pronoun “it”—in of it—is the Qur’an. What is meant is to observe as much night vigil as one’s time and conditions permit.
… and maintain the prayer and pay the zakāt and lend Allah a good loan…: The prayer and the zakāt here refer to the obligatory rituals. If the verse is Medinan, then the prayer would be the five daily prayers. If it is Meccan, it would be any form of prayer that was prescribed at that time. To lend Allah a good loan pertains to financial charities in the way of God other than the ritual zakāt (poor-rate, almsgiving).
Adding these injunctions shows that the other religious obligations remain valid and applicable as they were. One should continue to observe them diligently as obligatory acts. In other words, the reduction of the burden with respect to the night vigil does not extend to all obligations. In this respect, the verse can be compared to the Verse of Whispering: So, as you did not do it, and Allah was lenient toward you, maintain the prayer and pay the zakāt, and obey Allah and His Messenger ().
… Whatever you send ahead for your souls of good, you will find it with Allah [in a form] that is (huwa) better and greater with respect to reward…: What is meant by good here is any act of obedience, whether obligatory or supererogatory. There are two possible interpretations for the pronoun huwa (that, it): (1) It is an explicit repetition of the pronoun “it” in you will find it, mentioned for emphasis. (2) It indicates that what follows is a predicate for what is before it.
The meaning is: “Any act of obedience that you send ahead for yourselves—that is, for your eternal life in the hereafter—you will find it preserved with God—that is, on the day of meeting Him—in a way that is more rewarding and better than anything that you did [of wholesome actions] or anything that you avoided [of unwholesome pleasures].”
… And plead to Allah for forgiveness; indeed Allah is Ever-Forgiving, Ever-Merciful…: The verse closes by ordering the believers to seek forgiveness from God. The two divine attributes mentioned at the end of the verse are a promising indication that they shall indeed qualify for God’s forgiveness and mercy. It is plausible to say that “seeking God’s forgiveness” here includes any act of obedience, because all such acts are instruments for reaching divine forgiveness. Hence, observing any act of obedience can be called pleading to Him for forgiveness (istighfār).
Examining Narrations
- Concerning Indeed your Lord knows that you stand vigil nearly two thirds of the night () Imam al-Bāqir said: The Prophet acted upon this instruction [as outlined at the beginning of the sūrah], and encouraged the people to do likewise, but that was difficult for them.
Concerning He knows that you cannot span it () he said: Some Companions used to stand vigil without knowing if they had done a half or two thirds of the night. Some of them would keep vigil until the morning, lest they should miss the obligatory prayer. Then God revealed: Indeed your Lord knows that you stand vigil… He knows that you cannot span it (), meaning [that you do not know when is] the midway or one third through the night. Thus the initial instruction was abrogated by the command: So recite as much of the Qur’an as is feasible (). Know that every prophet that was sent [by God] used to seclude himself for the night prayer, but no prophet performed the night prayer at the beginning of the night.
Author’s comment: In short, this narration suggests that the opening verse of the chapter prescribed the night prayer, while the last verse abrogated that obligation. Similar narrations to this are reported through the Sunni chains of transmission, from Ibn ʿAbbās and others. We discussed this view [of abrogation] above.
- Concerning along with a group of those who are with you () Ibn ʿAbbās said: This refers to ʿAlī and Abū Dharr.
- Concerning So recite as much of it as is feasible () Imam al-Ṣādiq said: “What is feasible of it is the amount [that you would recite] with the humbleness of the heart and the purity of the soul.”
- Concerning So recite as much of it as is feasible () the Prophet said: That is a hundred verses.
- The Messenger of God said: “Anyone who imports some food into a Muslim city and sells it based on the current market rates will have the rank of a martyr before God.” Then he recited: while others will travel in the land seeking Allah’s grace, and yet others will fight in the way of Allah ().
- Once Imam [al-Ṣādiq] was asked about the statement: and lend Allah a good loan (). He explained: This refers to charities and donations other than the ritual zakāt.
- Imam ʿAlī said: Plead frequently to God for forgiveness, so that you may attract sustenance [in abundance]. Send ahead good deeds as much as you can, so that you may find it tomorrow.
Author’s comment: The last part of this hadith is deduced from the verse: Whatever you send ahead for your souls of good, you will find it with Allah [in a form] that is better and greater with respect to reward ().
The meaning would be: “Along with a group, which are those who are with you.” This is against the apparent meaning of the text and also the subsequent part of the verse. (Trans.) ↩︎
See the author’s exposition of verse . (Trans.) ↩︎
This narrow definition of abrogation (naskh) stems from how the concept is addressed in principles of jurisprudence (uṣūl). Since they are steeped in this discipline, the author—and many other scholars—are very sensitive to this topic, and are reluctant to admit the abrogation of any verse in the Qur’an. However, naskh is defined much more broadly in the Qur’an than in uṣūl. In fact, the author’s interpretation of the verse matches the Qur’anic sense of abrogation. The abrogation of a verse does not mean that it is of no use anymore whatsoever, but it means that its legislative requirements and practical implications are no longer applicable. The verse still remains as a word of God which was revealed provisionally in certain circumstances. The existence of naskh in the Qur’an, as explicitly stated in verses and , is clear evidence that the injunctions of the shariah should not be viewed as immutable laws forever, nor the practice of early Muslims (salaf) as a standard for the later generations. (Trans.) ↩︎
Verse abrogated the requirement of giving alms before whispering to the Messenger of God. Yet, it clarifies that this abrogation does not extend to the other obligations such as praying, giving zakāt, and obeying God and His messenger. (Trans.) ↩︎
Of good is a descriptive apposition for whatever. (Auth.)
The meaning is: “Whatever good deed you send ahead.” (Trans.) ↩︎
The meaning would be: “And that certainly is better” or “And that is exactly what is best.” (Trans.) ↩︎
The meaning would be: “Whatever you send ahead for your souls of good, you will find it in a better form, resting with Allah.” The pronoun huwa is added because of the interruption created between the subject and the predicate by the introduction of with Allah. Another possibility is that huwa marks the subject of a new sentence. Hence, the verse is making two statements: (i) “Whatever good you send ahead will be preserved for you.” (ii) “Whatever good you send ahead will be better for you.” All these meanings are very similar. (Trans.) ↩︎
Tafsīr al-Qummī, on the authority of Abū Jārūd. ↩︎
Majmaʿ al-bayān, on the authority of Ḥākim Abū al-Qāsim Ibrāhīm al-Ḥaskānī, via its chain of narration, on the authority of al-Kalbī, on the authority of Abū Ṣāliḥ. ↩︎
Majmaʿ al-bayān, narrated from Imam al-Riḍā, from his father. ↩︎
Al-Durr al-manthūr, on the authority of Ibn Abī Ḥātim, al-Ṭabarānī and Ibn Mardawayh, on the authority of Ibn ʿAbbās. ↩︎
Al-Durr al-manthūr, on the authority of Ibn Mardawayh, on the authority of ʿAbd-Allāh b. Masʿūd. ↩︎
Tafsīr al-Qummī, via its chain of narration, on the authority of Zurʿah, on the authority of Samāʿah. ↩︎
Al-Khiṣāl, part of the hadith of 400. ↩︎