مَتاعًا لَكُم وَلِأَنعامِكُم

As a sustenance for you and your livestock.

EXEGESIS

Matāʿ (sustenance) originally denotes anything that provides beneficial utility or enjoyable service encompassing possessions that fulfil practical needs or offer comfort (istimtāʿ).^{‎[1]Tibyan, 6/165.}
Here, it means the bountiful provisions and nourishing delights that sustain both humankind and their livestock, reflecting God’s boundless grace and meticulous care.

EXPOSITION

The previous verses listed different plants, some of them eaten by people, others by their cattle. In either case mankind benefits, either directly or indirectly. This enumeration of God’s blessings reminds man that such a noble and generous Creator and Sustainer deserves to be worshipped and obeyed.^{‎[2]Razi, 31/61.}
Enjoyment is not exempt from reckoning, and the blessings that God gives us also bring responsibility and accountability.

Note also the shift to the second-person address, which serves to make the reminder more impactful and personal to the reader.^{‎[3]Mizan, 20/210.}
These blessings have been created for us specifically, Do you not see that Allah has disposed for you whatever there is in the heavens and whatever there is in the earth and He has showered upon you His blessings, the outward and the inward (31:20).

Paying close attention to the phrase sustenance for you and your livestock, we notice that it gently reminds us that even the cattle we presume to own are ultimately nourished by God’s grace. This subtlety dismantles our illusions of ownership. What we call our property is in truth sustained by God’s continuous grace (see also 56:64).

Ālūsī points out that the word matāʿ inherently implies things which are temporary enjoyments. Because of that, when the next verse transitions to the Day of Judgement, it begins with the consequential fa to indicate how fleeting they are.^{‎[4]Alusi, 15/251.}

REVIEW OF TAFSĪR LITERATURE

Rāzī argues that since these verses act as a reminder of God’s blessings and motivate man to worship and obey Him, the next verses transition to a description of the Day of Judgement, which also serves to instil a trepidation in man that motivates him to preparation and obedience.^{‎[5]Razi, 31/61.}

INSIGHTS FROM OTHER TRADITIONS

1. ‘He makes grass grow for the cattle, and plants for people to cultivate – bringing forth food from the earth.’^{‎[6]Psalms 104:14.}
   

[1] Tibyan, 6/165.
[2] Razi, 31/61.
[3] Mizan, 20/210.
[4] Alusi, 15/251.
[5] Razi, 31/61.
[6] Psalms 104:14.