The Quran

103

خُذ مِن أَموالِهِم صَدَقَةً تُطَهِّرُهُم وَتُزَكّيهِم بِها وَصَلِّ عَلَيهِم ۖ إِنَّ صَلاتَكَ سَكَنٌ لَهُم ۗ وَاللَّهُ سَميعٌ عَليمٌ

Muhammad Asad

[Hence, O Prophet,] accept that [part] of their possessions which is offered for the sake of God,¹ so that thou mayest cleanse them thereby and cause them to grow in purity, and pray for them: behold, thy prayer will be [a source of] comfort to them - for God is all-hearing, all-knowing.

Lit., "take out of their possessions an offering for the sake of God (sadagah)". For the meaning of this term, see note 81 above. In this context, it primarily denotes the tax called zakah ("the purifying dues") incumbent on every Muslim enjoying a certain minimum of property and/or income. Since an acceptance of zakah by the head of state (or of the community) amounts to a recognition of the giver as a "Muslim" in the Qur'anic sense of this term, the Prophet refused to accept it from all whose behaviour had made it obvious that they were hypocrites; the above verse, however, authorizes him (and, by implication, the authorities of an Islamic state at all times) to accept the payment of zakah from those who express their repentance by deeds as well as by words.