and permitted. Had He wished to take it away from them without wronging them, He could have done so. If, then, He shows them kindness by taking it as a loan to give to another servant, and shows kindness to the lender through the reward He grants him for it, how can this not be a loan?

The fifth point: This question is the very question raised by the Jews who said, “Allah is poor, and we are rich.” [Āl ‘Imrān 181] For when Allah Most High revealed this verse, some of the Jews said, “Only the poor borrow, so Allah is poor, and we are the rich ones.”

The sixth point: It may be said that the meaning of His words, “Who is it that will lend Allah a goodly loan?” [al-Baqarah 245] is plain and agreed upon, involving neither ambiguity nor dispute. Everyone who hears this address knows that what is meant is drawing nearer to Allah by spending wealth in His cause. The most that some people can say in this matter is that calling this