Sūrah Al-Muṭaffifīn The Defrauders
المطففين
36 verses, Makkī (some say Madanī). Woe to those who give short measure when they receive from people, they demand full measure; when they give to others, they give less. They do not believe in the Day of Judgement. The book of the wicked is in Sijjīn. The righteous will drink of a sealed nectar. The wicked used to laugh at the believers today the believers laugh at them.
Surah Overview
Key Themes from Ibn Kathīr
The fraud of short measure (83:1–3): "Woe to the defrauders those who, when they take measure from people, take in full but when they give by measure or weight, they give less." Ibn Kathīr: the surah was revealed about the merchants of Madīnah (according to some scholars) who were known for short-changing customers. The principle is universal: taking full and giving short is an act of theft embedded in commerce. It contradicts the divine command to establish the balance (57:25).
The two cosmic registers (83:7–9, 18–21): Sijjīn is the register of the wicked decreed and inscribed. ʿIlliyyūn is the register of the righteous witnessed by those brought near to Allah. Ibn Kathīr: Sijjīn is below the seventh earth (a prison hence the name); ʿIlliyyūn is above the seventh heaven, in the presence of the angels who witness it. The soul's destination after death is registered in one of these two books.
- Do they not think they will be resurrected? (83:4–6): "Do they not think that they will be resurrected for a tremendous Day the Day when people will stand before the Lord of the worlds?" Ibn Kathīr: commercial fraud as a theological problem the cheat does not truly believe in accountability. The honest businessman believes in the Day of Judgement; the fraudster acts as if there is none.
- The rust on the heart (83:14): "Rather their hearts have been covered with rust from what they used to do." Ibn Kathīr: the Ḥadīth "When a servant sins, a black dot appears on his heart. If he repents, it is polished away. If he sins again, another appears until his heart is sealed." This is the Qurʾānic description of gradual spiritual death through repeated sin without repentance.
- The laughter reversed (83:34): "So today those who believed are laughing at the disbelievers." Ibn Kathīr: the complete reversal those who were mocked for faith in the dunya are honoured in the hereafter; those who mocked are now the objects of righteous joy. Not cruelty, but divine justice made visible.
- On thrones, observing (83:23): "Upon adorned couches, observing." Ibn Kathīr: the believers in Paradise will look out and see possibly observing the entire scene of the Day of Judgement from positions of safety and honour. The vantage point of Paradise over the events below.
- Saqā (sealed nectar) mixed with Tasnīm (83:27): "And in its mixture is from Tasnīm a spring from which those brought near to Allah drink." Ibn Kathīr: Tasnīm is the highest spring of Paradise the forerunners (sābiqūn) drink it pure; others receive it mixed into their drink. The highest rank has the most direct share of the highest source.