The Meaning of the Saying of Allah the Exalted: "Indeed, alms are..."

The Shaykh : We begin first by discussing the word "innama," which is a particle of restriction according to the scholars of rhetoric. The meaning of restriction is affirming the ruling for the one mentioned and denying it for everything else. So, if I say, for example, "Innama Zayd is standing," here I have restricted the state of Zayd to what? To standing. And if I say, "Innama the one standing is Zayd," I have restricted standing to Zayd. "Innama alms are for the poor" means that alms are restricted to the poor and those conjoined with them. This is a benefit that a student of knowledge should understand: when restriction is present, its implication is affirming the ruling for the one mentioned and denying it for everything else. The poor, the needy, those who work on them, and those whose hearts are to be reconciled—these are four categories who are entitled to zakah in the same way, being equal in their entitlement to it.