Surah Al-'Adiyat, Ayah 4

Which was revealed in Makkah

بِسْمِ اللَّهِ الرَّحْمَـنِ الرَّحِيمِ

(In the Name of Allah, the Most Gracious, the Most Merciful.

Swearing by the Horses of War about the Ungratefulness of Man and His Zeal for Wealth

Allah swears by the horses when they are made to gallop into battle in His path (i.e., Jihad), and thus they run and pant, which is the sound that is heard from the horse when it runs.

فَالمُورِيَـتِ قَدْحاً

(Striking sparks of fire.) meaning, the striking of their hooves on the rocks, which causes sparks of fire to fly from them.

فَالْمُغِيرَتِ صُبْحاً

(And scouring to the raid at dawn.) meaning, the raid that is carried out in the early morning time. This is just as the Messenger of Allah ﷺ used to perform raids in the early morning. He would wait to see if he heard the Adhan (call to prayer) from the people. If he heard it he would leave them alone, and if he didn't hear it he would attack. Then Allah says,

Verse [ 100:5] فَوَسَطْنَ بِهِ جَمْعًا (then enter, at the same time, into the centre of the [ opposing ] host) In other words, they penetrate into the centre of the enemy forces without the least degree of fear.

The word kanud, (100:6) according to Hasan Basri (رح) ، refers to the one who counts the calamities that befall him, and forgets Allah's favours. Abu Bakr Wasiti said that kanud is the one who spends the bounties of Allah for sinful purposes. Tirmidhi said that kanud is the one who looks at the bounty, and not at the Bounteous Lord. In short, all these interpretations lead to the sense of 'ungratefulness to favours and bounties' and hence the expression kanud means 'ungrateful'.