Sūrat al-Ḥadīd: The Two Wings of Faith and Strength

Occasion: Transcription of a Fajr khatira delivered on 7 December 2025 Source: A transcription of a video khatira by Dr. Ahmed Abouseif — Watch the original video on YouTube

I had prepared a topic on the educational lessons of terms in the litany that is repeated in prayer, but one of the brothers captured the core of my heart with Sūrat al-Ḥadīd. The first question that occurred to my mind was: why does this verse come in this sūrah? ﴿أَلَمْ يَأْنِ لِلَّذِينَ آمَنُوا أَنْ تَخْشَعَ قُلُوبُهُمْ لِذِكْرِ اللَّهِ﴾ (Has the time not come for those who believe that their hearts should humble themselves at the remembrance of Allah?)^[1] Had this verse appeared in a sūrah that speaks about the Resurrection, and about matters of faith in a deeper way, I would have found it quite acceptable. But in Sūrat al-Ḥadīd in particular, what is the connection?

What Is Sūrat al-Ḥadīd About?

If someone asked you: what is the subject of Sūrat al-Ḥadīd? How would you answer? The first thing that catches your attention is the name of the sūrah, for the answer is clear from its title. So look at the title: al-Ḥadīd, iron. What comes to your mind when you hear the word "iron"? Is it a soft, comfortable, simple life? Or do we need something of severity, strength and might?

The other dimension is that the urging to spend is greatly concentrated in this sūrah. If we compare the size of the sūrah with the level of discussion of charity, we find the ratio and proportion here greater even than in Sūrat al-Baqarah. In Sūrat al-Baqarah there are many verses about spending and giving charity, and the parable of those who spend their wealth in the way of Allah; beginning with His words, Exalted is He: ﴿يَا أَيُّهَا الَّذِينَ آمَنُوا أَنْفِقُوا مِمَّا رَزَقْنَاكُمْ مِنْ قَبْلِ أَنْ يَأْتِيَ يَوْمٌ لَا بَيْعٌ فِيهِ وَلَا خُلَّةٌ وَلَا شَفَاعَةٌ وَالْكَافِرُونَ هُمُ الظَّالِمُونَ﴾ (O you who believe, spend from what We have provided you before a Day comes in which there is no trade, no friendship and no intercession; and it is the disbelievers who are the wrongdoers.)^[2] passing through Āyat al-Kursī, and moving on to the story of Ibrāhīm, upon our Prophet and upon him be blessings and peace, with Nimrod, and so on, until we reach "It is not righteousness." That is a great quantity, but compared with Sūrat al-Baqarah you may find the ratio and proportion in Sūrat al-Ḥadīd greater.

So I have two very important dimensions: the dimension of iron, and the dimension of wealth. And what is it that we need? What is our subject in which we need iron and wealth?

Then Allah, Blessed and Exalted, says: ﴿إِنَّ الْمُصَّدِّقِينَ وَالْمُصَّدِّقَاتِ وَأَقْرَضُوا اللَّهَ قَرْضًا حَسَنًا يُضَاعَفُ لَهُمْ وَلَهُمْ أَجْرٌ كَرِيمٌ﴾ (Indeed, the men and women who give charity and have lent Allah a goodly loan, it will be multiplied for them, and they will have a noble reward.)^[3] Then the verse after it: ﴿وَالَّذِينَ آمَنُوا بِاللَّهِ وَرُسُلِهِ أُولَٰئِكَ هُمُ الصِّدِّيقُونَ وَالشُّهَدَاءُ عِنْدَ رَبِّهِمْ لَهُمْ أَجْرُهُمْ وَنُورُهُمْ﴾ (And those who believe in Allah and His messengers, it is they who are the truthful and the witnesses with their Lord; they will have their reward and their light.)^[4] And when the term "witnessing" (shahādah) appears, there is a believing community that needs something to protect it, and there is continuous, tireless defense to preserve this community.

The Bird with Two Wings

So it is as though Sūrat al-Ḥadīd is speaking about this bird that flies with its two wings: the first wing is faith, and the second wing is strength. And strength is embodied in two dimensions: a financial dimension and an iron dimension. And these means, if they are available without faith, do not do their work; as evidenced by the fact that the means at Uḥud were stronger than the means at Badr, but what happened? A flaw occurred in the system of following that points to the system of faith, and accordingly the superiority at Uḥud was not like the superiority at Badr.

So I have faith, which the Lord of the worlds, glory be to Him, the Exalted, indicates as a fundamental requirement, saying, Majestic is He on high: ﴿آمِنُوا بِاللَّهِ وَرَسُولِهِ وَأَنْفِقُوا مِمَّا جَعَلَكُمْ مُسْتَخْلَفِينَ فِيهِ﴾ (Believe in Allah and His Messenger, and spend from that in which He has made you successors.)^[5] Then: ﴿فَالَّذِينَ آمَنُوا مِنْكُمْ وَأَنْفَقُوا لَهُمْ أَجْرٌ كَبِيرٌ﴾ (And those of you who believe and spend, for them will be a great reward), the two together. And the choice of words has its significance; the expression "great" here is an indication of the target. And what is the target for you? That you have before you a wider space of those who glorify Allah, Mighty and Majestic. Note, my brothers: we are not talking about land or the wealth of countries, but about minds and hearts joining the procession of the message, joining in the acknowledgment that Allah, Mighty and Majestic, is the All-Powerful, the one and only object of worship, none other than Him deserving worship, glory be to Him, the Exalted. And then my Lord, glory be to Him, says: ﴿وَمَا لَكُمْ لَا تُؤْمِنُونَ بِاللَّهِ وَالرَّسُولُ يَدْعُوكُمْ لِتُؤْمِنُوا بِرَبِّكُمْ﴾ (And what is the matter with you that you do not believe in Allah, while the Messenger invites you to believe in your Lord?)^[6] So the fullest aim of the existence of the message is da'wah.

The Opening of the Sūrah

And as we speak about Sūrat al-Ḥadīd now, we find ourselves before a great system of address. You notice the openings of the Qur'anic sūrahs. So look at how the opening in Sūrat al-Ḥadīd was formulated: ﴿سَبَّحَ لِلَّهِ مَا فِي السَّمَاوَاتِ وَالْأَرْضِ وَهُوَ الْعَزِيزُ الْحَكِيمُ﴾ (Whatever is in the heavens and the earth glorifies Allah, and He is the Almighty, the All-Wise.) When you hear this sentence as a believer, you say in utter simplicity: whatever is in the heavens and the earth glorifies Allah, except me? As if the exception here is me. So why this glorification?

Then consider the share of the self in this. You say: I want my share! And the answer comes to you: ﴿لَهُ مُلْكُ السَّمَاوَاتِ وَالْأَرْضِ﴾ (To Him belongs the dominion of the heavens and the earth), everything is with Him. You say: but for the future and for planning? ﴿يُحْيِي وَيُمِيتُ﴾ (He gives life and causes death). You say: there are difficult places in the world? ﴿وَهُوَ عَلَى كُلِّ شَيْءٍ قَدِيرٌ﴾ (and He has power over all things). You say: but for the sake of the means? ﴿هُوَ الْأَوَّلُ وَالْآخِرُ وَالظَّاهِرُ وَالْبَاطِنُ وَهُوَ بِكُلِّ شَيْءٍ عَلِيمٌ﴾ (He is the First and the Last, the Manifest and the Hidden, and He has knowledge of all things). You say: give me a simple sign? ﴿خَلَقَ السَّمَاوَاتِ وَالْأَرْضَ فِي سِتَّةِ أَيَّامٍ ثُمَّ اسْتَوَى عَلَى الْعَرْشِ يَعْلَمُ مَا يَلِجُ فِي الْأَرْضِ وَمَا يَخْرُجُ مِنْهَا وَمَا يَنْزِلُ مِنَ السَّمَاءِ وَمَا يَعْرُجُ فِيهَا وَهُوَ مَعَكُمْ أَيْنَ مَا كُنْتُمْ﴾ (He created the heavens and the earth in six days, then established Himself on the Throne. He knows what penetrates the earth and what comes out of it, and what descends from the heaven and what ascends into it; and He is with you wherever you are.) All of this is an introduction.

And the introduction ends with: ﴿لَهُ مُلْكُ السَّمَاوَاتِ وَالْأَرْضِ ۚ وَإِلَى اللَّهِ تُرْجَعُ الْأُمُورُ﴾ (To Him belongs the dominion of the heavens and the earth, and to Allah all matters are returned.)^[7] Wouldn't it be natural to say "and to Him you will be returned," considering that I am the one being addressed? But He said: no, I look first at the deeds that issue from you because they are what moves society, negatively or positively, so be careful. Then: ﴿يُولِجُ اللَّيْلَ فِي النَّهَارِ وَيُولِجُ النَّهَارَ فِي اللَّيْلِ وَهُوَ عَلِيمٌ بِذَاتِ الصُّدُورِ﴾ (He causes the night to enter into the day and causes the day to enter into the night, and He is Knowing of what is in the breasts.) Why does He stress these concepts? Because He wants to reach, in the depths of your heart and self, a specific point: the point of faith.

The Wealth Is Not Yours

Then: ﴿آمِنُوا بِاللَّهِ وَرَسُولِهِ وَأَنْفِقُوا﴾ (Believe in Allah and His Messenger and spend). And I say: I cannot give my money, this is my money, I toiled for it and earned it with great difficulty, this is the sleeplessness of days and nights, this is the effort of months and years, this is traveling the earth right and left. And you are told: and spend it, not from your money; we did not ask you for anything from your money: ﴿وَأَنْفِقُوا مِمَّا جَعَلَكُمْ مُسْتَخْلَفِينَ فِيهِ﴾ (and spend from that in which He has made you successors). This money you have is a trust. And you say: no, I am the one who brought it! Haven't you looked at Qārūn? He had a point of view as he said: ﴿إِنَّمَا أُوتِيتُهُ عَلَىٰ عِلْمٍ عِنْدِي﴾ (I was only given it because of knowledge I have.)^[8] And he, even though we see it as a mistake, is a man convinced of that; he sees that he toiled until he earned this wealth.

And you are asked: how much do you have now? You say: I have a lot of money. Excellent. How long did you toil? Ten years. Are you the only one who toiled for ten years? No, very many people toiled ten years and twenty years and do not have what you have. So who chose you, to give you this money in return for ten years, and tested those others, who spent years, more than ten years, and took nothing? So the matter of earning money is not an intrinsic advantage in individuals; rather, it consists of gifts from the Lord of the worlds, glory be to Him, the Exalted.

And look at an example from our lives: you are engineering graduates, and it seems there are distinguished engineers among you. When you entered the colleges, how large was the class? How many entered the college? A thousand, say, and in the second year how many remained? More or fewer? Then the third year, until we graduated, and the graduation projects we put effort into: who was distinguished and who got the grades? And when we joined postgraduate studies, and you gentlemen are great professors, mashā'Allāh, was the number who entered on the first day the same as the number who joined postgraduate studies? Impossible. And was it the same as the number who obtained the doctorate and stood in the beautiful gown with the whole world rejoicing? Impossible. Do you imagine that others did not exert effort like yours? But Allah, Blessed and Exalted, granted and chose some people to place them in the ranks of the outstanding, because you have with the Lord of the worlds a provision that He did not write for others. So if you are asked to spend, know that its philosophy is not giving but merely returning.

Spending Is a Return, Not an Initiation

So the concept of giving and charity is not the initiation of a gift from you; it is merely returning the wealth to Allah, glory be to Him, the Exalted, and likewise returning health, and likewise returning intellect, and the surplus of intellect. When I ask you about a subject and say to you: advise me, my brother, give me your counsel, and you give it to me, where do you get the ideas you have? That is why the one who conceals knowledge is condemned. Why is he condemned? Because he withheld what is not his. So wealth, health, mental strength and capabilities of all kinds, patterns and forms are in fact the property of the Lord of the worlds, glory be to Him, the Exalted.

In Sūrat al-Ḥadīd our Lord asks a question of utmost simplicity and clarity: ﴿وَمَا لَكُمْ أَلَّا تُنْفِقُوا فِي سَبِيلِ اللَّهِ﴾ (And what is the matter with you that you do not spend in the cause of Allah?) And you say: but the children, and the generations to come, and the daughter I will leave alone, and the project I set up in such-and-such a place, and the little ones and school and the universities! My son, understand: ﴿وَلِلَّهِ مِيرَاثُ السَّمَاوَاتِ وَالْأَرْضِ﴾ (while to Allah belongs the inheritance of the heavens and the earth).^[9] That is, it is a matter of redistributing the resources of the heavens and the earth that the Lord of the worlds, glory be to Him, the Exalted, created from the beginning. You take from here what your brother needs now, and then you return.

That is why our Lord, glory be to Him, says: ﴿قُلْ لَوْ أَنْتُمْ تَمْلِكُونَ خَزَائِنَ رَحْمَةِ رَبِّي﴾ (Say: "If you possessed the treasuries of my Lord's mercy…")^[10] Very many people talk about money and people's cash, but the verse says otherwise: it says "my Lord's mercy." My people, we only need to think: the Qur'an brings very wondrous words. Why? Because it is originally a gift; because provisions are originally a mercy from the Lord of the worlds, glory be to Him, the Exalted, and the deposited treasuries that He created, for which He arranged the causes and decreed their measures and forms, were all made under the eye of Allah's mercy, which suits the needs of human beings.

So you see one of the people who has taken nothing of the share of wealth, and you say: where is the mercy of Allah, Blessed and Exalted, with this poor, wretched person? Yet if wealth came to him it would corrupt him, so Allah, the Exalted, grants him, in place of wealth, health in his body. That is why you find the world, as we always say, never complete. Sit and reflect on the days of youth and the days of university: we hop about and run and tumble, and we have only a little with us, we hang on to the buses to go anywhere without paying, and we take care that the ticket collector does not see us! As if there were money in those days. I ask you by Allah, had you had abundant money at that time, with that tumbling about, what would you have done with it? You would have crashed into a wall by now. So may Allah, the Exalted, have mercy on a servant to whom health came and not wealth, and another who will not have a share of health to the extent he wishes, so he is granted something of wealth as compensation for himself and his person.

The Close of the Sūrah

We have taken a long time with you, but listen. The Lord of the worlds, glory be to Him, the Exalted, said at the close of the blessed sūrah, as He tells us about its fullest purpose: ﴿سَابِقُوا إِلَىٰ مَغْفِرَةٍ مِنْ رَبِّكُمْ وَجَنَّةٍ عَرْضُهَا كَعَرْضِ السَّمَاءِ وَالْأَرْضِ﴾ (Race toward forgiveness from your Lord and a Garden whose width is like the width of the heavens and the earth.)^[11] It came after the Lord of the worlds spoke about this worldly life and people's amusement in it. So understand from this that the sūrah wanted the community of Muslims to be a strong community to the fullest extent. And what are the causes of that? Faith that attaches the heart to the heavens and ties it to the Lord of the earth and the heavens, and means in life that are means in the hands only, and the means of the hands are wealth that is spent and equipment with which that community prepares itself. That is why His words, Exalted is He, come at the close of the noble sūrah: ﴿يَا أَيُّهَا الَّذِينَ آمَنُوا اتَّقُوا اللَّهَ وَآمِنُوا بِرَسُولِهِ يُؤْتِكُمْ كِفْلَيْنِ مِنْ رَحْمَتِهِ وَيَجْعَلْ لَكُمْ نُورًا تَمْشُونَ بِهِ﴾ (O you who believe, have taqwā of Allah and believe in His Messenger; He will give you a double share of His mercy and will make for you a light by which you walk.)^[12] For guidance is only from Allah, and people's holding fast to the firm rope of Allah is their way to rescue their entire lives.

I ask Allah, Blessed and Exalted, to give us insight into what is before us, to make faith the pillar of our whole lives, and not to turn our hearts or minds away from His remembrance or from living in the precincts of His Qur'an. O Allah, amen, O Lord of the worlds.

--- ^[1]: Editor's documentation: Al-Ḥadīd: 16. ^[2]: Editor's documentation: Al-Baqarah: 254. ^[3]: Editor's documentation: Al-Ḥadīd: 18. The speaker's recitation of the verse was garbled in the transcript, and it is given here in its well-known text. ^[4]: Editor's documentation: Al-Ḥadīd: 19. The speaker gave the verse up to "and their light." ^[5]: Editor's documentation: Al-Ḥadīd: 7, including "And those of you who believe and spend, for them will be a great reward." ^[6]: Editor's documentation: Al-Ḥadīd: 8. ^[7]: Editor's documentation: Al-Ḥadīd: 1–5, and the following verses of the opening up to "He causes the night to enter into the day…" (Al-Ḥadīd: 6). ^[8]: Editor's documentation: Al-Qaṣaṣ: 78. ^[9]: Editor's documentation: Al-Ḥadīd: 10. ^[10]: Editor's documentation: Al-Isrā': 100. The speaker cut the verse off at "my Lord's mercy." ^[11]: Editor's documentation: Al-Ḥadīd: 21. ^[12]: Editor's documentation: Al-Ḥadīd: 28.