the benefactor who gives charity, the wrong-doer who consumes usury, and the just person who trades lawfully. With respect to property, people are either beneficent, just, or wrong-doers. The foremost is the beneficent one who performs the recommended acts along with the obligatory duties; the wrong-doer is he who devours usury or withholds zakah; while the moderate is the one who pays the obligatory zakah and refrains from usury—and the same applies to similar statements.

Any explanation that singles out one variety covered by the verse is mentioned only to show the listener that the verse includes that variety and, by extension, its counterparts. Defining by example is often easier than defining by an abstract formula, and a sound mind readily grasps the class—just as it does when someone points to a loaf and says, “This is bread.”

For this reason one often hears them say, “This verse was revealed concerning such-and-such,” especially when a particular individual is involved. These are the occasions of revelation cited in the commentaries: they say the verse on zihar was revealed about the wife of Aws ibn al-Samit; the verse on mutual imprecation (liʿan) about ʿUwaymir al-ʿAjlani or Hilal ibn Umayyah; the verse on collateral inheritance (kalalah) about Jabir ibn ʿAbd Allah; that His words, “And judge between them according to what Allah has revealed” (al-Maʾidah 5:49) were revealed concerning Banu Qurayzah and al-Nadir; that His words, “And whoever on that day turns his back to them” (al-Anfal 8:16) were revealed at Badr; that His words, “When death approaches one of you, the testimony between you…” (al-Maʾidah 5:106) were revealed in the case of Tamim al-Dari and ʿAdi ibn Baddaʾ; and that Abu Ayyub said the words, “And do not cast yourselves into ruin with your own hands” (al-Baqarah 2:195) were revealed about us, the Helpers. Similar examples abound: some verses are said to have been revealed about certain Meccan polytheists, others about people of the Scripture—Jews or Christians—or about groups of believers.