Thus Allah Most High has decreed woe for those who give less than due. He then explained who those are, saying:

“Those who, when they take a measure from people, take in full; but when they measure for them or weigh for them, they give less. Do such people not think that they will be resurrected for a tremendous Day—the Day when all people will stand before the Lord of the worlds?” (2–6)

“Those who, when they take a measure from people, take in full”: that is, when they take from them. The prepositions “from” and “against” are interchangeable here.

Al-Zajjaj said: The meaning is that when they take a measure from people, they demand the full measure [and weight] (1) from them. [That is, when they buy for themselves, they take full measure and weight.] (2)

“But when they measure for them or weigh for them, they give less”: that is, when they measure out for them or weigh out for them—for the people. One may say, “I weighed out your due for you,” and, “I measured out your food for you,” meaning, “I weighed for you” and “I measured for you,” just as one says, “I advised you” and “I advised for you,” or “I earned for you” and “I earned for you.”

Abu Ubaydah said: Isa ibn Umar regarded them as two separate words: he would pause at “they measure and weigh,” then begin, “they give them less.” Abu Ubaydah said: The preferred reading is the first (3)—meaning that each is a single word—because they wrote it without an alif. Had they been separate, it would have been written, “they measure [and] (4) weigh,” with an alif, like other verbs, such as “they came” and “they said.” The Quranic codices are unanimous in omitting the alif. Moreover, in Arabic one may say, “I measured for you” and “I weighed for you,” just as one says, “I measured out for you” and “I weighed out for you.”

“They give less”: that is, they diminish. Nafi related: Ibn Umar would pass by a seller and say, “Fear Allah, and give full measure and weight, for those who give less than due will be made to stand on the Day of Resurrection until sweat reaches them up to the middle of their ears.”

“Do such people not think”: that is, do they not know with certainty—“those” who do this—“that they will be resurrected for a tremendous Day,” meaning the Day of Resurrection.

“The Day when all people will stand” [from their graves] (5) “before the Lord of the worlds”: that is, for His command, His recompense, and His reckoning.

Abd al-Wahid al-Malihi informed us; Ahmad ibn Abdullah al-Na'imi informed us; Muhammad ibn Yusuf informed us; Muhammad ibn Isma'il narrated to us; Ibrahim ibn al-Mundhir informed us; Ma'n informed us; Malik narrated to me from Nafi, from Abdullah ibn Umar, that the Prophet, peace and blessings be upon him, said: “People will stand before the Lord of the worlds until one of them sinks in his sweat up to the middle of his