Some people channel their wealth into forbidden passions and illicit pleasures that only drive them farther from Allah; such a person’s money becomes a source of misery for him—Allah’s protection is sought.

Others spend in pursuit of Allah’s Countenance, on whatever draws them nearer to Him and in accordance with His law; for them, their wealth is pure goodness.

Still others pour their money into things that carry no benefit—neither prohibited nor prescribed. Their wealth is simply wasted, and the Prophet ﷺ forbade squandering resources.

When a believer does spend in ways that please Allah, he must be confident in the divine promise, for Allah says: “Whatever you spend, He will replace it, and He is the best of providers.” (Sabaʾ 34:39). The phrase “He will replace it” (fa-huwa yukhlifuhu) means: He grants you something in its stead.

It does not read fa-huwa yakhlufuhu, for that would imply that Allah becomes a “successor,” which is not the intended meaning. Rather, yukhlifuhu—pronounced with a ḍammah on the first radical—signifies that He supplies you with a replacement for what you spent.

The same refinement appears in the supplication: “O Allah, reward me in my calamity and grant me something better in exchange” (allāhumma ajirnī fī muṣībatī wa-’kh-lif lī khayran minhā). One should not say wakhluf lī khayran minhā; instead, the correct wording, wa-’kh-lif (“grant me a replacement”), asks Allah to provide something better in place of what was lost.

Thus, Allah—exalted be He—has promised in His Book that whatever a person spends, He will recompense him with something in return. The Prophet’s words cited by the author clarify this, such as his statement: “Each morning when the servants awaken, two angels descend. One of them says, ‘O Allah, give a substitute to the one who spends,’ while the other says:”