53 – ʿAbd Allāh narrated to us; he said: “Al-Ḥusayn ibn ʿAbd al-Raḥmān … … … from ʿAbd Allāh ibn Jaʿfar, who recited the following two lines:
⦗53⦘
A benefaction is no benefaction at all
 until it strikes the road of the one in need.
So when you extend a kindness, aim it
 toward God, your kinsfolk—or else withhold it.

ʿAbd Allāh ibn Jaʿfar then remarked, “These two verses encourage people to be miserly. Rather, let benevolence fall like rain: if it reaches the noble, they prove worthy of it; and if it reaches the ignoble, you yourself remain worthy for having given.”