Tafsir of Hud 11:114

{And establish prayer at the two ends of the day} Meaning: the morning and the evening.

{And at the approaches of the night} Meaning: the hours of the night. These are the hours close to the end of the day. It is derived from azlafa (to bring near), as in "he brought it near" and "he drew near to it."

• The morning prayer: The Dawn (Fajr).
• The evening prayers: The Noon (Dhuhr) and Afternoon (‘Asr) prayers, because everything after the sun passes its zenith is considered ‘ashiy (evening).
• The prayers of the approaches (zulaf): The Sunset (Maghrib) and Night (‘Isha’) prayers.

The accusative case of tarafay al-nahar (the two ends of the day) is due to it being an adverb of time (zarf), as they are annexed to the time. It is like saying, "I stayed with him all day," or "I came to him at midday, at its beginning, or at its end." You put all of these in the accusative case by giving the annexed noun (mudaf) the grammatical status of the noun to which it is annexed (mudaf ilayh). Similar to this is the verse: {And at the ends of the day} (Ta-Ha: 130).

There are variant readings: zulufan (with two dammahs), zulfan (with a sukun on the lam), and zulfa (on the pattern of qurba).

• Zuluf is the plural of zulfa, like zulum is the plural of zulma.
• Zulf (with sukun) is like busra and busr.
• Zuluf (with two dammahs) is like busur in busr.
• Zulfa has the same meaning as zulfa, just as qurba has the same meaning as qurba. It refers to what draws near from the night to the end of the day.

It is also said that {and at the approaches of the night} means "and at a time near the night." According to this interpretation, it should be conjoined to "the prayer," meaning: "Establish the prayer at the two ends of the day, and establish [prayers] at the approaches of the night," in the sense of: "Establish a prayer by which you draw near to Allah, the Mighty and Majestic, during some part of the night."

{Indeed, good deeds do away with misdeeds} There are two interpretations:

1. That it refers to the expiation of minor sins through acts of obedience. In the Hadith: "The prayer to the prayer is an expiation for what is between them, as long as the major sins are avoided."
2. That good deeds do away with misdeeds by serving as a deterrent against committing them, similar to His saying: {Recite what has been revealed to you of the Book} (Al-Ankabut: 45).

It is said that this was revealed regarding Abu al-Yusr ‘Amr ibn Ghaziyya al-Ansari. He was selling dates when a woman came to him, and he was taken by her. He said to her, "There are better dates than these in the house." He took her to his house, embraced her, and kissed her. She said to him, "Fear Allah." He left her, feeling remorseful, and went to the Messenger of Allah (ﷺ) and told him what he had done. The Prophet (ﷺ) said, "I am waiting for the command of my Lord." When he prayed the Afternoon (‘Asr) prayer, this verse was revealed. He said, "Yes, go, for it is an expiation for what you have done."

It is narrated that he went to Abu Bakr and told him, and he said, "Conceal yourself and repent to Allah." He went to ‘Umar (may Allah be pleased with him), who said the same. Then he went to the Messenger of Allah (ﷺ), and the verse was revealed. ‘Umar asked, "Is this for him specifically, or for the people in general?" He replied, "Rather, for the people in general."

It is narrated that the Messenger of Allah (ﷺ) said to him: "Perform a proper ablution and pray two rak'ahs."

{That is a reminder for those who remember} Meaning: an admonition for those who take heed.

{And be patient, for indeed, Allah does not allow to be lost the reward of the doers of good.}