A sermon on the punishment of the one who withholds zakah.

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The Shaykh : Then Allah made easy for you from provision what you did not expect. So stand up, O Muslims, to give thanks for this blessing and to pay what Allah has made obligatory upon you in it, so that you may clear your consciences, purify your wealth, and perfect your character. And beware of stinginess and miserliness; beware of stinginess and miserliness with what Allah has made obligatory upon you, for that is your destruction and the removal of blessing from your wealth.
O Muslims: All Muslims know that the religion of Islam is built upon five pillars: the testimony that there is no god but Allah and that Muhammad is the Messenger of Allah, the establishment of prayer, the giving of zakah, the fasting of Ramadan, and the pilgrimage to the House of Allah the Sacred. So zakah is the third pillar of Islam, and it is the companion of prayer in the clear Qur'an.
And there came a severe warning regarding its withholding and being miserly with it. Allah the Mighty and Majestic said:

And let not those who [greedily] withhold what Allah has given them of His bounty ever think that it is better for them. Rather, it is worse for them. Their necks will be encircled by what they withheld on the Day of Resurrection. And to Allah belongs the heritage of the heavens and the earth. And Allah, with what you do, is [fully] Acquainted.

ولا يحسبن الذين يبخلون بما آتاهم الله من فضله هو خيرا لهم بل هو شر لهم سيطوقون ما بخلوا به يوم القيامة ولله ميراث السماوات والأرض والله بما تعملون خبير

[Ali 'Imran 3:180]

The Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him) said, clarifying the meaning of this verse:

Whoever is made wealthy by Allah and does not pay the Zakat of his wealth, then on the Day of Resurrection his wealth will be made like a baldheaded

من أتاه الله مالًا فلم يؤد زكاته مثّل له شجاعا أقرع

Sahih al-Bukhari 1403

The shuja' is the large snake, and al-aqr' is the one who has no hair on his head, and that is because of the abundance of its venom, refuge with Allah.
And regarding this shuja', the Messenger of Allah (peace and blessings be upon him) said:

with two poisonous glands in its mouth and it will encircle itself round his neck and bite him over his cheeks

له زبيبتان يطوَّقُه يوم القيامة يأخذ بلهزمتيه

Sahih al-Bukhari 4565

meaning its jaws. It says:

I am your wealth, I am your treasure.

أنا مالك أنا كنزك

Sahih al-Bukhari 1403

O Muslims, the two grapes are two glands full of venom, so that its pain is severe for its owner. And this is physical pain. As for the spiritual pain, it says to him:

I am your wealth, I am your treasure

أنا مالك أن كنزك

meaning that he treasured it in this world, but he was tormented by it in the Hereafter.
And Allah the Mighty and Majestic said:

And those who hoard gold and silver and spend it not in the way of Allah - give them tidings of a painful punishment. ⁽³⁵⁾ The Day when it will be heated in the fire of Hell and seared therewith will be their foreheads, their flanks, and their backs, [it will be said], "This is what you hoarded for yourselves, so taste what you used to hoard."

والذين يكنزون الذهب والفضة ولا ينفقونها في سبيل الله فبشرهم بعذاب أليم يوم يحمى عليها في نار جهنم فتكوى بها جباههم وجنوبهم وظهورهم هذا ما كنزتم لأنفسكم فذوقوا ما كنتم تكنزون

[At-Tawbah 9:34-35]

Source alathar.net

The Arabic text is copied verbatim from the original source, without any edits.

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