حَدَّثَنَا عَبْدُ اللَّهِ بْنُ عَبْدِ الرَّحْمَنِ أَخْبَرَنَا عُبَيْدُ اللَّهِ بْنُ مُوسَی عَنْ إِسْرَائِيلَ عَنْ السُّدِّيِّ عَنْ أَبِي مَالِکٍ عَنْ الْبَرَائِ وَلَا تَيَمَّمُوا الْخَبِيثَ مِنْهُ تُنْفِقُونَ قَالَ نَزَلَتْ فِينَا مَعْشَرَ الْأَنْصَارِ کُنَّا أَصْحَابَ نَخْلٍ فَکَانَ الرَّجُلُ يَأْتِي مِنْ نَخْلِهِ عَلَی قَدْرِ کَثْرَتِهِ وَقِلَّتِهِ وَکَانَ الرَّجُلُ يَأْتِي بِالْقِنْوِ وَالْقِنْوَيْنِ فَيُعَلِّقُهُ فِي الْمَسْجِدِ وَکَانَ أَهْلُ الصُّفَّة لَيْسَ لَهُمْ طَعَامٌ فَکَانَ أَحَدُهُمْ إِذَا جَاعَ أَتَی الْقِنْوَ فَضَرَبَهُ بِعَصَاهُ فَيَسْقُطُ مِنْ الْبُسْرِ وَالتَّمْرِ فَيَأْکُلُ وَکَانَ نَاسٌ مِمَّنْ لَا يَرْغَبُ فِي الْخَيْرِ يَأْتِي الرَّجُلُ بِالْقِنْوِ فِيهِ الشِّيصُ وَالْحَشَفُ وَبِالْقِنْوِ قَدْ انْکَسَرَ فَيُعَلِّقُهُ فَأَنْزَلَ اللَّهُ تَبَارَکَ تَعَالَی يَا أَيُّهَا الَّذِينَ آمَنُوا أَنْفِقُوا مِنْ طَيِّبَاتِ مَا کَسَبْتُمْ وَمِمَّا أَخْرَجْنَا لَکُمْ مِنْ الْأَرْضِ وَلَا تَيَمَّمُوا الْخَبِيثَ مِنْهُ تُنْفِقُونَ وَلَسْتُمْ بِآخِذِيهِ إِلَّا أَنْ تُغْمِضُوا فِيهِ قَالَ لَوْ أَنَّ أَحَدَکُمْ أُهْدِيَ إِلَيْهِ مِثْلُ مَا أَعْطَاهُ لَمْ يَأْخُذْهُ إِلَّا عَلَی إِغْمَاضٍ أَوْ حَيَائٍ قَالَ فَکُنَّا بَعْدَ ذَلِکَ يَأْتِي أَحَدُنَا بِصَالِحِ مَا عِنْدَهُ قَالَ أَبُو عِيسَی هَذَا حَدِيثٌ حَسَنٌ غَرِيبٌ صَحِيحٌ وَأَبُو مَالِکٍ هُوَ الْغِفَارِيُّ وَيُقَالُ اسْمُهُ غَزْوَانُ وَقَدْ رَوَی سُفْيَانُ الثَّوْرِيُّ عَنْ السُّدِّيِّ شَيْئًا مِنْ هَذَا
جامع ترمذی · Hadith 2987
Narrated Abu Malik: from Al-Bara (regarding): And do not aim at that which is bad to spend from it (2:267) - he said: It was revealed about us, the people of the Ansar who were date-palm owners. A man would bring the amount of dates that he would from his date-palms, either a lot or a little. A man would bring a cluster or two and hang it in the Masjid. The people of As-Suffah did not have food, so one of them would go up to the cluster and hit it with his stick, and unripe and ripe dates would fall, and he would eat. Some people did not hope for good, so a man would bring a cluster with pitless and hard dates, and a cluster with damaged dates, and hang it. So Allah, Blessed and Most High, revealed: O you who believe! Spend of the good things which you have earned, and of that which We have produced from the earth for you, and do not aim at that which is bad to spend from it (2:267). They said: 'If one of you were given similar to what he gave, he would take it except bashfully with your eyes closed.' So after that, one of us would bring the best that we had.
Translated by Dr. Muhammad Muhsin Khan · Reviewed by Islamic University of Madinah · Published March 2020