وَكُلُوا۟ مِمَّا رَزَقَكُمُ ٱللَّهُ حَلَـٰلًا طَيِّبًا ۚ وَٱتَّقُوا۟ ٱللَّهَ ٱلَّذِىٓ أَنتُم بِهِۦ مُؤْمِنُونَ 88
Translations
And eat of what Allāh has provided for you [which is] lawful and good. And fear Allāh, in whom you are believers.
Transliteration
Wa-kulū mimma razaqakumu Allāhu halālan tayyiban, wa-attaqū Allāha alladhī antum bihi mu'minūn
Tafsir (Explanation)
This ayah commands believers to consume only what Allah has provided that is both lawful (halal) and pure/wholesome (tayyib), while maintaining God-consciousness and piety. Classical scholars like Al-Qurtubi and Ibn Kathir emphasize that 'tayyib' encompasses not only permissible foods but also those that are clean, nutritious, and obtained through lawful means, reflecting the Islamic principle that the lawfulness of sustenance affects one's spiritual state and the acceptance of one's deeds.
Revelation Context
Surah Al-Ma'idah (Chapter 5) is a Medinan surah that addresses the Muslim community's legal and social matters. This particular ayah appears in a section discussing permissible and impermissible foods and conduct, reinforcing the concept of ritual purity and ethical consumption that characterizes Islamic law.
Related Hadiths
The Prophet Muhammad (peace be upon him) said: 'O people, indeed Allah is good and accepts only that which is good' (Sahih Muslim 1015). Additionally, 'The flesh that grows from haram is more deserving of the Fire' (Jami' at-Tirmidhi 614), emphasizing the spiritual consequences of consuming unlawful sustenance.
Themes
Key Lesson
Believers must exercise conscious discernment not merely about what is technically permitted, but about the quality, source, and spiritual impact of their consumption, understanding that true piety requires both outer compliance with Islamic law and inner consciousness of Allah's presence in all our choices.
Related Ayahs
لَئِنۢ بَسَطتَ إِلَىَّ يَدَكَ لِتَقْتُلَنِى مَآ أَنَا۠ بِبَاسِطٍ يَدِىَ إِلَيْكَ لِأَقْتُلَكَ ۖ إِنِّىٓ أَخَافُ ٱللَّهَ رَبَّ ٱلْعَـٰلَمِينَ
If you should raise your hand toward me to kill me - I shall not raise my hand toward you to kill you. Indeed, I fear Allāh, Lord of the worlds.
وَكَيْفَ يُحَكِّمُونَكَ وَعِندَهُمُ ٱلتَّوْرَىٰةُ فِيهَا حُكْمُ ٱللَّهِ ثُمَّ يَتَوَلَّوْنَ مِنۢ بَعْدِ ذَٰلِكَ ۚ وَمَآ أُو۟لَـٰٓئِكَ بِٱلْمُؤْمِنِينَ
But how is it that they come to you for judgement while they have the Torah, in which is the judgement of Allāh? Then they turn away, [even] after that; but those are not [in fact] believers.
إِنَّمَا جَزَٰٓؤُا۟ ٱلَّذِينَ يُحَارِبُونَ ٱللَّهَ وَرَسُولَهُۥ وَيَسْعَوْنَ فِى ٱلْأَرْضِ فَسَادًا أَن يُقَتَّلُوٓا۟ أَوْ يُصَلَّبُوٓا۟ أَوْ تُقَطَّعَ أَيْدِيهِمْ وَأَرْجُلُهُم مِّنْ خِلَـٰفٍ أَوْ يُنفَوْا۟ مِنَ ٱلْأَرْضِ ۚ ذَٰلِكَ لَهُمْ خِزْىٌ فِى ٱلدُّنْيَا ۖ وَلَهُمْ فِى ٱلْـَٔاخِرَةِ عَذَابٌ عَظِيمٌ
Indeed, the penalty for those who wage war against Allāh and His Messenger and strive upon earth [to cause] corruption is none but that they be killed or crucified or that their hands and feet be cut off from opposite sides or that they be exiled from the land. That is for them a disgrace in this world; and for them in the Hereafter is a great punishment,
قَدْ سَأَلَهَا قَوْمٌ مِّن قَبْلِكُمْ ثُمَّ أَصْبَحُوا۟ بِهَا كَـٰفِرِينَ
A people asked such [questions] before you; then they became thereby disbelievers.