أَوَلَم يَعلَموا أَنَّ اللَّهَ يَبسُطُ الرِّزقَ لِمَن يَشاءُ وَيَقدِرُ ۚ إِنَّ في ذٰلِكَ لَآياتٍ لِقَومٍ يُؤمِنونَ
Do they not know that Allah expands the provision for whomever He wishes and tightens it [for whomever He wishes]? There are indeed signs in that for a people who have faith.
EXEGESIS
Do they not know … is a rhetorical question, indicating that what is being said here is obvious and known to everyone. The verse counters the claim that I was given it by virtue of [my] knowledge (verse 49) by saying: Rather, God is the one who expands and contracts one’s livelihood, implying that it is not a matter of your knowledge and expertise. This is more or less evident as an overall claim, given many intelligent, educated, and/or hard-working individuals who struggle with their livelihoods, versus many unintelligent, ignorant, and/or lazy people who happen to be very well off. These differences prove the presence of numerous factors that affect one’s sustenance but are beyond one’s knowledge and control. Everyone admits, overall, the existence of these differences and factors; thus the rhetorical question at the beginning of the verse. Likewise is the case of other factors such as the day or month in which one was born, or the family or country in which one was raised: differences in material well-being cannot be attributed to any of these alone, because of all of them have counter examples.
Once one admits the clear presence of unaccountable differences between the provisions of people, he might inquire about the real cause between these differences. This verse says that it is God who brings about these differences, according to His will. And the purpose and wisdom behind His will in these differences was mentioned in verse 49: Rather, it is a test. This wisdom is also mentioned in 42:27 and 43:32. According to these verses, God distributes provision based on a hidden wisdom, and when the people see these differences amongst them it becomes a test for them. Thus, they either believe in that wisdom and turn to God or think otherwise and turn away from God.
Note that this verse does not concern only the unexplainable differences in provision. It is not about some supernatural factors that affect one’s provision at times. It is claiming more than this. The article al- before rizq (provision, sustenance, livelihood) indicates the genus (jins) of rizq, which includes all sustenance, exhaustively and comprehensively (istighrāq). Hence, beyond the common sense that there are other forces in effect overall, there is a more advanced meaning that all expansion and contraction of provision is by God. This advanced meaning is not subject to the rhetorical question at the beginning of the verse, but is a sign for a people who have faith.
EXPOSITION
This verse corresponds to verse 49: the tightening of provision is a distress, the expansion of provision is a blessing, and both are tests by God: Rather, it is a test, but most of them do not know. The verse negates the illusion that I was given it by virtue of [my] knowledge. This is a wrong impression which is an example of They know just an outward aspect of the life of the world (30:7). This verse says that contrary to your impression, God is the one who expands and contracts. Therefore, one’s share of worldly sustenance is not a matter of one’s knowledge and intelligence. As discussed in Exegesis, the verse holds God responsible for every expansion and contraction in provision.
This, in its unconditional form, is counter-intuitive and against what apparently seems to be the case. A possible explanation for this apparent contradiction is the concept of unicity in actions, introduced in the Exposition of verse 42. According to this explanation, the verses do not deny the role of one’s skills, efforts, and connections with regards to provision altogether, but they deny their independent role and impact. They deny the idea that ‘I alone and independently earn my livelihood’ and correct it by saying that ‘any impact by your knowledge or planning is rooted in God’s existential will, which is His creation of these means and instruments’.
The above explanation is certainly true, and very appropriate, useful, and insightful for making sense of pluralities, means, and instruments. There are indeed signs in that for a people who have faith.
These expansions and contractions are signs through which the believers see God’s hand directing their affairs. They see how their Lord is present in their lives and how He tests them by ease and hardship. These trials are signs of His infinite power, wisdom, and mercy. The reason why these are signs for believers in particular is that the wisdom behind them is unknown to people, otherwise they would not be tests. Hence, one should first have faith in the unseen so that these trials and tribulations become meaningful to him. It is exactly for this reason that this verse – which the Quran has repeated with slight differences in eight other places (13:26, 17:30, 28:82, 29:62, 30:37, 34:36, 34:39, 42:12) – cannot be proven logically or experimentally, but should be realised and experienced individually.
If you want to hear
What is said here,
Sell the donkey’s ear
And buy another ear.
The verse says that the expansion and contraction of provision is according to God’s wish, as opposed to mankind’s wish, that he can go about planning for it by virtue of his knowledge (verse 49). Indeed, Allah does whatever He wishes (14:27), but His wish is governed by His infinite wisdom. He knows when and whom to test by wealth, and when and whom to test by poverty (17:30, 29:62, 42:12).
Elsewhere the Quran says: It is We who have dispensed among them their livelihood in the present life, and raised some of them above others in rank, so that some may take others into service (43:32). This shows that human life is a collective project and people should fill in this collective picture like a jigsaw puzzle. It is God who is in charge of this project and decides who should fit in where.
Overall, these verses tell us to avoid both Korah’s mentality, and the Jewish belief that Allah’s hand is tied up, because Rather, His hands are wide open: He bestows as He wishes (5:64).
TOPICAL ARTICLES
See Topical Article: Test and Trial.
[1] Mizan, 17/275; Furqan, 25/356-357.
[2] Razi, 26/459-460.
[3] Rūmī, Mathnawī, v. 1, line 1034.
[4] Mizan, 17/275.