“And during the night, rise in prayer with it as an additional devotion for you. Perhaps your Lord will raise you to a praised station.” (79)
His saying, exalted is He, “And during the night, rise in prayer with it,” means: rise after you have slept; for the night vigil prayer is only performed after sleep. One says that a person performed the night vigil when he rose after sleeping, whereas one says he slept when he went to sleep.
What is meant by the verse is rising at night for prayer.
The night prayer was initially obligatory upon the Prophet, may Allah bless him and grant him peace, and upon the Ummah, by virtue of His saying, exalted is He: “O you who are wrapped up, stand in prayer through the night, except for a little” (al-Muzzammil 73:1). Then the concession was revealed, and the obligation was abrogated for the Ummah through the five daily prayers, while its recommended status remained. Allah, exalted is He, said: “So recite what is easy of it” (al-Muzzammil 73:20). ⦗212a⦘ The obligation, however, remained in effect for the Prophet, may Allah bless him and grant him peace. (1)
It is narrated from Aisha, may Allah be pleased with her, that the Prophet, may Allah bless him and grant him peace, said: “Three things are obligatory upon me, while they are sunnah for you: the Witr prayer, [the tooth-stick] (2), and the night prayer.” (3)
His saying, glorified and exalted is He, “as an additional devotion for you,” means: an increase for you—that is, an additional virtue beyond the other obligatory duties that Allah imposed upon you.
Some held that the obligation was abrogated in his case just as it was for the Ummah, so that it became a voluntary prayer. This was the view of Mujahid and Qatadah, because Allah, exalted is He, said, “as an additional devotion for you,” and did not say, “upon you.” (4)
If it is asked: What, then, is the point of specifying him, when it is an additional devotion for all Muslims just as it is for him, may Allah bless him and grant him peace?
The answer is that the distinction lies in the fact that the voluntary devotions of Allah’s servants expiate their sins, whereas the Prophet, may Allah bless him and grant him peace, had been forgiven his past and future sins. Thus, his voluntary devotions do not serve as an expiation for sins; rather, they remain an increase for him in the elevation of his ranks.