Surah Baqarah ayat 271 Tafsir Quran 2:271

﴿إِن تُبْدُوا الصَّدَقَاتِ فَنِعِمَّا هِيَ ۖ وَإِن تُخْفُوهَا وَتُؤْتُوهَا الْفُقَرَاءَ فَهُوَ خَيْرٌ لَّكُمْ ۚ وَيُكَفِّرُ عَنكُم مِّن سَيِّئَاتِكُمْ ۗ وَاللَّهُ بِمَا تَعْمَلُونَ خَبِيرٌ﴾
[ البقرة: 271]

2:271 If you disclose your charitable expenditures, they are good; but if you conceal them and give them to the poor, it is better for you, and He will remove from you some of your misdeeds [thereby]. And Allah, with what you do, is [fully] Acquainted.

If you proclaim make manifest your voluntary almsgivings that is your supererogatory deeds it is a fine thing to show them; but if you conceal them and give them to the poor that is even better for you than making them manifest or giving it to the rich. As regards the obligatory almsgiving it is better to make it manifest so that it serves as an example and so that one is not accused falsely of not giving; as regards giving it to the poor this is obligatory; and it will absolve you of some of your evil deeds read yukaffir ‘it will absolve’ or nukaffir ‘We will absolve’ either in apocopated form with no final vowel yukaffir nukaffir being a supplement to the locus of fa-huwa ‘that is’ or with nominative inflection yukaffiru nukaffiru indicating the beginning of a new sentence. God is aware of what you do knowing its inner and outer aspects nothing of it being hidden from Him.

If you perform benevolent acts openly with good will and a clean heart, it is meritorious. But if you conceal your charitable acts when you offer in benevolence to the needy, it is better for you; such acts expiate some of your wrongs by benefits, and Allah is Alimun of All that you do

Allah states that He has perfect knowledge of the good deeds performed by all of His creation, such as charity and various vows, and He rewards tremendously for these deeds, provided they are performed seeking His Face and His promise.
Allah also warns those who do not work in his obedience, but instead disobey His command, reject His revelation and worship others besides Him: وَمَا لِلظَّـلِمِينَ مِنْ أَنصَارٍ ( And for the wrongdoers there are no helpers. ) meaning, who will save them from Allah's anger and torment on the Day of Resurrection. The Virtue of Disclosing or Concealing Charity Allah said, إِن تُبْدُواْ الصَّدَقَـتِ فَنِعِمَّا هِىَ ( If you disclose your Sadaqat, it is well ) meaning, "It is well if you make known the charity that you give away." Allah's statement, وَإِن تُخْفُوهَا وَتُؤْتُوهَا الْفُقَرَآءَ فَهُوَ خَيْرٌ لَّكُمْ ( But if you conceal them and give them to the poor, that is better for you. ) this indicates that concealing charity is better than disclosing it, because it protects one from showing off and boasting.
However, if there is an apparent wisdom behind disclosing the charity, such as the people imitating this righteous act, then disclosing it becomes better than concealing it.
The Messenger of Allah ﷺ said,
«الْجَاهِرُ بِالْقُرْآنِ كَالْجَاهِرِ بِالصَّدَقَةِ، وَالْمُسِرُّ بِالْقُرآنِ كَالْمُسِرِّ بِالصَّدَقَة»
( He who utters aloud Qur'anic recitation is just like he who discloses charity acts.
He who conceals Qur'anic recitation is just like he who conceals charity acts. ) The Ayah indicates that it is better that acts of charity be concealed, as reiterated by the Hadith that the Two Sahihs recorded from Abu Hurayrah that the Messenger of Allah ﷺ said,
«سَبْعَةٌ يُظِلُّهُمُ اللهُ فِي ظِلِّهِ يَوْمَ لَا ظِلَّ إلَّا ظِلُّهُ: إِمَامٌ عَادِلٌ، وَشَابٌّ نَشَأَ فِي عِبَادَةِ اللهِ، وَرَجُلَانِ تَحَابَّا فِي اللهِ،اجْتَمَعَا عَلَيْهِ وَتَفَرَّقَا عَلَيْهِ، وَرَجُلٌ قَلْبُهُ مُعَلَّقٌ بِالْمَسْجِدِ، إِذَا خَرَجَ مِنْهُ حَتَّى يَرْجِعَ إِلَيْهِ، وَرَجُلٌ ذَكَرَ اللهَ خَالِيًا فَفَاضَتْ عَيْنَاهُ، وَرَجُلٌ دَعَتْهُ امْرَأَةٌ ذَاتُ مَنْصِبٍ وَجَمَالٍ، فَقَالَ: إِنِّي أَخَافُ اللهَ رَبَّ الْعَالَمِينَ، وَرَجُلٌ تَصَدَّقَ بِصَدَقَةٍ فَأَخْفَاهَا، حَتَّى لَا تَعْلَمَ شِمَالُهُ مَا تُنْفِقُ يَمِينُه»
( Allah will give shade to seven on the Day when there will be no shade but His.
(They are: ) a just ruler, a youth who has been brought up in the worship of Allah, two persons who love each other only for Allah's sake who meet and part in Allah's cause only, a man whose heart is attached to the Masjids from the time he departs the Masjid until he returns to it, a person who remembers Allah in seclusion and his eyes are then flooded with tears, a man who refuses the call of a charming woman of noble birth for illicit intercourse with her and says, `I fear Allah, Lord of the worlds', and a man who gives charitable gifts so secretly that his left hand does not know what his right hand has given.) Allah's statement, وَيُكَفِّرُ عَنكُم مِّن سَيِّئَاتِكُمْ ( (Allah ) will expiate you some of your sins) means, in return for giving away charity, especially if it was concealed.
Therefore, you will gain goodness by your rank being raised, and your sins being forgiven. Allah's statement, وَاللَّهُ بِمَا تَعْمَلُونَ خَبِيرٌ ( And Allah is Well-Acquainted with what you do ) means, "No good deed that you perform escapes His knowledge, and He shall reward for it."

(2:271) If you practise charity publicly, it is good; but if you give charity secretly to the needy, it is much better for you, *311 for this will expiate many of your sins. *312 Anyhow, Allah is well aware of whatever you do.

If you disclose your charitable expenditures, they meaning

*311).
If charity is of an obligatory nature it is preferable to dispense it openly.
Non-obligatory charity should preferably be dispensed secretly.
This principle applies to all acts.
As a rule, it is more meritorious to perform obligatory acts openly and non-obligatory acts of goodness, secretly .

*312).
The performance of good deeds in secret leads to the continual improvement of one's life and character.
One's good qualities develop fully and one's bad qualities gradually wither away.
This makes a man so acceptable to God that He pardons the sins that he might have committed.

 

Allah states that He has perfect knowledge of the good deeds performed by all of His creation, such as charity and various vows, and He rewards tremendously for these deeds, provided they are performed seeking His Face and His promise.
Allah also warns those who do not work in his obedience, but instead disobey His command, reject His revelation and worship others besides Him: وَمَا لِلظَّـلِمِينَ مِنْ أَنصَارٍ ( And for the wrongdoers there are no helpers. ) meaning, who will save them from Allah's anger and torment on the Day of Resurrection. The Virtue of Disclosing or Concealing Charity Allah said, إِن تُبْدُواْ الصَّدَقَـتِ فَنِعِمَّا هِىَ ( If you disclose your Sadaqat, it is well ) meaning, "It is well if you make known the charity that you give away." Allah's statement, وَإِن تُخْفُوهَا وَتُؤْتُوهَا الْفُقَرَآءَ فَهُوَ خَيْرٌ لَّكُمْ ( But if you conceal them and give them to the poor, that is better for you. ) this indicates that concealing charity is better than disclosing it, because it protects one from showing off and boasting.
However, if there is an apparent wisdom behind disclosing the charity, such as the people imitating this righteous act, then disclosing it becomes better than concealing it.
The Messenger of Allah ﷺ said, «الْجَاهِرُ بِالْقُرْآنِ كَالْجَاهِرِ بِالصَّدَقَةِ، وَالْمُسِرُّ بِالْقُرآنِ كَالْمُسِرِّ بِالصَّدَقَة» ( He who utters aloud Qur'anic recitation is just like he who discloses charity acts.
He who conceals Qur'anic recitation is just like he who conceals charity acts. ) The Ayah indicates that it is better that acts of charity be concealed, as reiterated by the Hadith that the Two Sahihs recorded from Abu Hurayrah that the Messenger of Allah ﷺ said, «سَبْعَةٌ يُظِلُّهُمُ اللهُ فِي ظِلِّهِ يَوْمَ لَا ظِلَّ إلَّا ظِلُّهُ: إِمَامٌ عَادِلٌ، وَشَابٌّ نَشَأَ فِي عِبَادَةِ اللهِ، وَرَجُلَانِ تَحَابَّا فِي اللهِ،اجْتَمَعَا عَلَيْهِ وَتَفَرَّقَا عَلَيْهِ، وَرَجُلٌ قَلْبُهُ مُعَلَّقٌ بِالْمَسْجِدِ، إِذَا خَرَجَ مِنْهُ حَتَّى يَرْجِعَ إِلَيْهِ، وَرَجُلٌ ذَكَرَ اللهَ خَالِيًا فَفَاضَتْ عَيْنَاهُ، وَرَجُلٌ دَعَتْهُ امْرَأَةٌ ذَاتُ مَنْصِبٍ وَجَمَالٍ، فَقَالَ: إِنِّي أَخَافُ اللهَ رَبَّ الْعَالَمِينَ، وَرَجُلٌ تَصَدَّقَ بِصَدَقَةٍ فَأَخْفَاهَا، حَتَّى لَا تَعْلَمَ شِمَالُهُ مَا تُنْفِقُ يَمِينُه» ( Allah will give shade to seven on the Day when there will be no shade but His.
(They are: ) a just ruler, a youth who has been brought up in the worship of Allah, two persons who love each other only for Allah's sake who meet and part in Allah's cause only, a man whose heart is attached to the Masjids from the time he departs the Masjid until he returns to it, a person who remembers Allah in seclusion and his eyes are then flooded with tears, a man who refuses the call of a charming woman of noble birth for illicit intercourse with her and says, `I fear Allah, Lord of the worlds', and a man who gives charitable gifts so secretly that his left hand does not know what his right hand has given.) Allah's statement, وَيُكَفِّرُ عَنكُم مِّن سَيِّئَاتِكُمْ ( (Allah ) will expiate you some of your sins) means, in return for giving away charity, especially if it was concealed.
Therefore, you will gain goodness by your rank being raised, and your sins being forgiven. Allah's statement, وَاللَّهُ بِمَا تَعْمَلُونَ خَبِيرٌ ( And Allah is Well-Acquainted with what you do ) means, "No good deed that you perform escapes His knowledge, and He shall reward for it."

Allah then mentions almsgiving that is done in the open and that which is done secretly because they asked about it, saying: ( If ye publish ) if you show ( your almsgiving ) which is obligated upon you, ( it is well, but if ye hide it ) the supererogatory almsgiving ( and give it to the poor ) the folk of the Platform ( ashab al-Suffah ), ( it will be better for you ) than giving it in the open, but both are accepted from you, ( and will atone for some of your ill deeds ) in proportion of your almsgiving. ( Allah is Informed of what ye do ). He knows of the alms that you give.

If you disclose your Sadaqat (alms-giving), it is well, but if you conceal it, and give it to the poor, that is better for you. (Allah) will forgive you some of your sins. And Allah is Well-Acquainted with what you do.

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