Today’s Reflection (Ayah 41-43 Surah Al Baqarah)

 وَآمِنوا بِما أَنزَلتُ مُصَدِّقًا لِما مَعَكُم وَلا تَكونوا أَوَّلَ كافِرٍ بِهِ ۖ وَلا تَشتَروا بِآياتي ثَمَنًا قَليلًوَإِيّايَ فَاتَّقونِ 

   And believe in that which I have sent down confirming that which is with you, and do not be the first ones to defy it, and do not sell My signs for a paltry gain, and be wary of Me [alone]. (2:41)

                                      وَلا تَلبِسُوا الحَقَّ بِالباطِلِ وَتَكتُمُوا الحَقَّ وَأَنتُم تَعلَمونَ   

 And do not mix the truth with falsehood, nor conceal the truth while you know.(2:42)

                                   وَأَقيمُوا الصَّلاةَ وَآتُوا الزَّكاةَ وَاركَعوا مَعَ الرّاكِعينَ

And maintain the prayer, and give the zakāt, and bow along with those who bow [in prayer].(2:43)

As we read earlier about the blessings Allah has bestowed upon the Bani Israel, Allah continues to command them, all the people of bani Israel, you believe in the Quran as it also confirms what was sent to you before this Quran, i.e. the Injil and the torah. It was mentioned in the torah that the last messenger will come and his description was already given, if you believe in the torah , you must believe in the prophet Muhammed (saw) as well. Allah then says do not be first from the disbelievers, the disbelievers who believe in one book send by me but not the other.

 

In this Ayah Allah further says that do not barter my ayahs for a little price, the scholars of the bani Israel would misinterpret or conceal the ayah for a petty price. They were scared if people recognize the messenger we would loose our supremacy so they would hide, change or misinterpret especially those ayahs from the torah which would mention about the prophet Muhammed(saw).

 

Then Allah says fear only me. Here Allah is reminding them to fear Allah alone as they are displeasing Allah just to gain the worldly benefit which is so petty compared to the rewards of the aakhira. This is some thing very important to ponder upon. No matter how much you are getting in this duniya do not take it if it displeases your Rabb, it is nothing compared to the what Allah has in store for those who believe. We cannot be proud of our  possessions in this duniya. If Allah wills he can take it away from us in a blink of an eye. Then what is the worth of the worldly benefit if it cannot even last with us even for a day compared to the displeasure of Allah (the anger of Allah). It happens so often nowadays that when we are in a gathering we think what would they think if I leave the gathering and go to pray, and we end up missing the salah. Here we can relate, we are displeasing Allah just to gain the temporary worldly benefit of being accepted in a group. This is just an example, there are many such situations we come across every other day.

 

The next ayah Allah says do not conceal the truth while you know it.  This ayah refers to the bani Israel as they would conceal the truth about our prophet from people. When we have the knowledge of something we should not conceal it, if some one asks you some thing and if you know it, do not conceal it, as that knowledge may help the person. Do no hide the truth intentionally.

 

The next ayah says establish the prayer and you all give zakat and do ruku (bow down) with those who do ruku. Again Allah is saying this to the people of bani Israel, but this command is for All of us, establish the prayer, it means establish the prayer in the most appropriate manner, following all the obligations, with full sincerity and conviction. Salah is the key to success in this duniya and aakhira, it is the link between us and Allah. We should never make the connection weak by missing out on salah. The next part of the ayah says You all give zakat (charity). Charity in Islam is giving away any of your possession in the way of Allah for seeking only His pleasure and not expecting any return from anyone else. AS mentioned in Surah al Layl Ayah 17-21:

[He] who gives [from] his wealth to purify himself,

 And not [giving] for anyone who has [done him] a favor to be rewarded,

But only seeking the countenance of his Lord, Most High.

And he is going to be satisfied.

 

SubhanAllah these ayahs were revealed regarding Abu Bakr Assiddeeq (companion of Prophet Muhammed (Saw)) He would free the slaves that were being tortured for accepting Islam and he would do this only to seek the pleasure of Allah and not for any worldly benefit. 

 

When ever we give charity in any manner our only motive should be to please Allah and we should not be even expecting any thank you or gestures from the recipients as we should be hoping reward only from Allah. As soon as we expect sone thing in return from people it does not mean charity it is exchange or business. Remember charity does not always have to be monitory help it can any good done by you, it can even be a smile.

 

Then Allah says do ruku with those who do ruku. It shows the emphasis of praying in jamaa (congregation) and also enlightens us with kind of company we should have i.e. those who do ruku. Be around people who will remember Allah and follow all our obligations on its specified time especially the Salah (ruku). We should make friends those who remind us of our deen and not those who divert us from it.