In the Name of Allah, the Most Gracious, the Most Merciful.
Increasing and decreasing in the Measure and Weight will be a Cause for Regret and Loss
An-Nasa'i and Ibn Majah both recorded from Ibn `Abbas that he said, "When the Prophet came to Al-Madinah, the people of Al-Madinah were the most terrible people in giving measurement (i.e., they used to cheat). Thus, Allah revealed,
وَيْلٌ لِّلْمُطَفِّفِينَ
(Woe to Al-Mutaffifin.) After this, they began to give good measure." The meaning of the word Tatfif here is to be stingy with measurement and weight, either by increasing it if it is due from the others, or decreasing it if it is a debt. Thus, Allah explains that the Mutaffifin those whom He has promised loss and destruction, whom are meant by "Woe" are
According to Sayyidna ` Abdullah Ibn Masud ؓ ، Surah Tatfif was revealed in Makkah. Therefore, most of the copies of the Qur'an refer to it as the Makki Surah. According to Sayyidna Ibn ` Abbas ؓ ، Qatadah, Muqatil and Dahhak رحمۃ اللہ علیہم ، it is a Madani Surah, but only about eight verses are Makki. Imam Nasa'i (رح) transmits a narrative from Sayyidna Ibn ` Abbas ؓ that when the Holy Prophet ﷺ arrived in Madinah, the people of Madinah whose most transactions were based on measurements used to cheat and short measure. For this reason, Allah revealed the Surah. It is reported from Sayyidna Ibn ` Abbas ؓ that this is the first Surah that was revealed as soon as the Holy Prophet ﷺ arrived at Madinah. The reason is that it was a common practice in Madinah that the people used to be very strict in measuring when they had to receive something from others, but when they sold something, they used to cheat the buyers. After the revelation of this Surah, all of them abandoned this bad custom totally, and mended themselves in a way that they are now well-known in their honesty in weighing and measuring. (Reported by Hakim, Nasa'i, and Ibn Majah, with sound chain of narrators)
