Al-Kashshaf on Saba' 34:38

Surah Saba' 34:38

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ﲶ ﲷ ﲸ ﲹ ﲺ ﲻ ﲼ ﲽ ﲾ

And the ones who strive against Our verses to cause [them] failure - those will be brought into the punishment [to remain].

{37} And it is not your wealth, nor your children, that bring you nearer to Us in position—but it is [by virtue of] he who has believed and done righteousness. For them there will be the double reward for what they did, and they will be, in the upper chambers [of Paradise], safe.

"And it is not your wealth, nor your children, that bring you nearer to Us in position"

He intended: "The collection of your wealth and the collection of your children are not what bring you near." This is because the broken plural—whether for rational beings or non-rational—is treated equally in the rule of feminine agreement.

It is also possible that "the one that" (allatī) refers to "piety" (al-taqwā), which is the only thing that brings one near to Allah in position. That is: "Your wealth is not that which is designated for bringing one near."

Al-Hasan read it as: bi-allātī yuqarribnakum (with those [plural] that bring you near), because they are groups. It was also read as: bi-alladhī yuqarribukum (with that which brings you near), meaning: with the thing that brings you near.

Zulfā and zulfa are like kurbā and kurba. Its grammatical place is the accusative (naṣb), meaning: "They bring you near a proximity," similar to His saying: "And Allah has caused you to grow from the earth a [progressive] growth" (Nūḥ: 17).

"But it is [by virtue of] he who has believed and done righteousness"

This is an exception from the "you" (kum) in "bring you near" (yuqarribukum). The meaning is: Wealth does not bring anyone near except the righteous believer who spends it in the way of Allah; and children do not bring anyone near except those who taught them good, gave them understanding of the religion, and prepared them for righteousness and obedience.

"For them there will be the double reward for what they did"

This is an instance of attributing the verbal noun to the object. Its origin is: "Then they are rewarded the double," then "the reward of the double," then "the double reward." The meaning of "the double reward" is that their good deeds are multiplied for them, one becoming ten.

It was read as: jazā’u al-ḍu‘fi (the reward of the double), based on: "For them is the double as a reward." And jazā’u al-ḍu‘fi (the reward of the double) based on: "That they be rewarded the double." Both jazā’u and al-ḍu‘fu are in the nominative case, with al-ḍu‘fu being a substitute (badal) for jazā’u.

It was also read as: fī al-ghurufāt (in the upper chambers) with the rā’ vocalized with a damma, a fatha, or a sukun, and also as fī al-ghurfa (in the upper chamber).

{38} Say, "Indeed, my Lord extends provision for whom He wills of His servants and restricts [it] for him. But whatever thing you spend [in His cause]—He will compensate it; and He is the best of providers."

Tafsir of Saba' 34:37-38

Al-Kashshaf

{37} And it is not your wealth, nor your children, that bring you nearer to Us in position—but it is [by virtue of] he who has believed and done righteousness. For them there will be the double reward for what they did, and they will be, in the upper chambers [of Paradise], safe.

{38} Say, "Indeed, my Lord extends provision for whom He wills of His servants and restricts [it] for him. But whatever thing you spend [in His cause]—He will compensate it; and He is the best of providers."