by way of destruction. These people had not gone out to harvest; rather, they were deprived of power over it—namely, full power. That power ceased because the object upon which it could act no longer existed, not because of any weakness in the agent. In that account, He said:

“With firm resolve, possessing power.”

He did not say, “Possessing power in their own estimation.” If it is as those who interpret it as “in their own estimation” say, the meaning is the same. If, however, their being capable means that there was nothing within themselves incompatible with power, such as illness or weakness, but that the object of their power had ceased to exist, then this is like someone who can pay and provide sustenance but has nothing at his disposal.

Allah, exalted is He, says:

“The deeds of those who disbelieve in their Lord are like ashes swept violently by the wind on a stormy day. They have no power over anything they have earned. That is far-reaching error.”

In this condition, they have no power over anything they have earned. This indicates that in other circumstances they do have power over what they have earned. Likewise, others have power over what they have earned. What is meant by that which is earned is earned wealth.

Allah, exalted is He, also says:

“Allah presents an example: an owned slave who has no power over anything, and someone whom We have granted good provision from Us, from which he spends secretly and openly.”

When He states that the owned slave has no power over anything, His point is that the other man is not like that: rather, he has power over what this slave has no power over. This establishes that good provision is something over which its possessor has power, and that its possessor has power over it. This is how people of sound reason generally speak. They say, “So-and-so has power over such-and-such, and so-and-so has power over such-and-such; this person’s power is less than that person’s.”