Generally Accepted Translations of the Meaning
Muhammad Asad
It is not for thee [O Prophet] to make people follow the right path, since it is God [alone] who guides whom He wills. And whatever good you may spend on others is for your own good, provided that you spend only out of a longing for God's countenance: for, whatever good you may spend will be repaid unto you in full, and you shall not be wronged
M. M. Pickthall
The guiding of them is not thy duty (O Muhammad), but Allah guideth whom He will. And whatsoever good thing ye spend, it is for yourselves, when ye spend not save in search of Allah's Countenance; and whatsoever good thing ye spend, it will be repaid to you in full, and ye will not be wronged
Yusuf Ali (Saudi Rev. 1985)
It is not required of thee (O Messenger), to set them on the right path, but Allah sets on the right path whom He pleaseth. Whatever of good ye give benefits your own souls, and ye shall only do so seeking the "Face" of Allah. Whatever good ye give, shall be rendered back to you, and ye shall not Be dealt with unjustly
The Clear Quran, Dr. Mustafa Khattab
You are not responsible for people’s guidance ˹O Prophet˺—it is Allah Who guides whoever He wills. Whatever you ˹believers˺ spend in charity, it is for your own good—as long as you do so seeking the pleasure of Allah. Whatever you donate will be paid back to you in full, and you will not be wronged.
Safi Kaskas
It is not for you to guide them. God guides whoever wants to be guided. What charity you give benefits you when you contribute only to please God. Your contributions will be paid back to you, and you will not be cheated.
Wahiduddin Khan
It is not your responsibility to make them follow the right path; God guides whomever He pleases. Whatever wealth you spend is to your own benefit, provided that you spend only to seek the favour of God. Whatever wealth you spend [for God's cause] shall be repaid to you in full and you shall not be wronged
Shakir
To make them walk in the right way is not incumbent on you, but Allah guides aright whom He pleases; and whatever good thing you spend, it is to your own good; and you do not spend but to seek Allah's pleasure; and whatever good things you spend shall be paid back to you in full, and you shall not be wronged
Dr. Laleh Bakhtiar
Their guidance is not on thee. But God guides whomever He wills. And whatever of good you spend, it is for yourselves. And spend not but looking for the Countenance of God. And whatever of good you spend, your account will be paid to you in full and you will not be wronged.
T.B.Irving
Guiding them is not your duty, but God guides anyone He wishes to. Any (tax] money you may spend is for your own good and whatever you spend is only through a craving to see God´s face. Any money you spend will be repaid you, and you will not be harmed.
Abdul Hye
Not upon you (O Muhammad) is their guidance, but Allah guides whom He wills. Whatever good you spend, it is for yourselves, you don’t spend except seeking the pleasure of Allah. Whatever good you spend, it will be repaid back to you in full, and you will not be wronged.
The Study Quran
Thou art not tasked with their guidance, but God guides whomsoever He will. Whatever good you spend, it is for yourselves, when you spend only seeking the Face of God. And whatever good you spend shall be paid to you in full, and you shall not be wronged
Talal Itani & AI (2024)
Their guidance isn’t your responsibility, but God guides whom He wills. What you spend of good is for yourselves. All acts of charity should be done seeking God’s favor. Whatever good you give will be returned to you in full, and you won’t be wronged.
Talal Itani (2012)
Their guidance is not your responsibility, but God guides whom He wills. Any charity you give is for your own good. Any charity you give shall be for the sake of God. Any charity you give will be repaid to you in full, and you will not be wronged
Dr. Kamal Omar
Their (attaining) guidance is not your responsibility, but Allah will guide whom He will think proper. And whatever you spend out of wealth, then it benefits your own souls. And you spend not (in good) except (when) seehead of state the attention of Allah. And whatever you spend out of wealth shall be rendered back to you; and you shall not be dealt unjustly
O Prophet, you are not responsible for their guidance, it is Allah Who guides whom He pleases. Whatever wealth you spend in charity, it is to your own advantage; provided you give to seek the pleasure of Allah. Whatever wealth you spend for the sake of Allah, will be paid back to you in full, and you will not be wronged
Muhammad Mahmoud Ghali
Their guidance is not upon you, but Allah guides whomever He decides. And whatever charity (benefit) you do expend, (then) it is for yourselves; and whatever you expend (should be) for nothing except for your seeking the Face of Allah; and whatever charity you do expend will be (paid) to you in full, and you will not be done an injustice
Muhammad Sarwar
(Muhammad), you do not have to guide them. God guides whomever He wants. Whatever you spend for the cause of God is for your own good, provided you do not spend anything but to please God. For anything good that you may give for the cause of God, you will receive sufficient reward and no injustice will be done to you
Muhammad Taqi Usmani
It is not for you to put them on the right path. Rather, Allah puts on the right path whom He wills. Whatever good you spend is for your own selves, and you shall not spend but to seek the pleasure of Allah, and whatever good thing you spend shall be repaid to you in full, and you shall not be wronged
Shabbir Ahmed
Your responsibility (O Messenger!) is only to show them the Right Way (and not to make them walk it). He has established Rules for attaining Guidance.(4:88). (O People!) Whatever good you give benefits your own "Self" when you spend for the sake of Allah. Any charity you give will be repaid to you, without the least injustice
Dr. Munir Munshey
It is not upon you to grant them guidance. Allah guides whom He wants! Whatever good (money) you spend is only for your own good. If you spend to seek the pleasure of Allah, then whatever good (money) you spend would be returned to you to the fullest extent. You would not be wronged at all
Syed Vickar Ahamed
It is not required for you (O Prophet!), to set them on the right path, but Allah sets on the right path anyone He pleases. Whatever good you give benefits your own souls, and you shall only do so hoping for the (Divine) Face of Allah. Whatever good you give, shall be brought back to you and you shall not be dealt with unjustly
Not upon you, [O Muhammad], is [responsibility for] their guidance, but Allah guides whom He wills. And whatever good you [believers] spend is for yourselves, and you do not spend except seeking the countenance of Allah . And whatever you spend of good - it will be fully repaid to you, and you will not be wronged
[The Monotheist Group] (2011 Edition)
You are not responsible for their guidance, but it is God who will guide whoever He wishes. And whatever you spend out of goodness is for your own souls. And anything you spend should be in seeking God's presence. And whatever you spend out of goodness will be retuned to you, and you will not be wronged
Abdel Haleem
It is not for you [Prophet] to guide them; it is God who guides whoever He will. Whatever charity you give benefits your own soul, provided you do it for the sake of God: whatever you give will be repaid to you in full, and you will not be wronged
Abdul Majid Daryabadi
Not on thee is their guidance, but Allah guideth whomsoever He listeth. And whatsoever ye expend of good it is for your own souls, and ye expend not save to seek Allah's countenance and whatsoever ye expend of good shall be repaid to you, and ye shall not be wronged
Ahmed Ali
It is not for you to guide them: God guides whom He will. Whatever you spend you will do so for yourself, for you will do so to seek the way that leads to God; and what you spend in charity you will get back in full, and no wrong will be done to you
Aisha Bewley
You are not responsible for their guidance, but Allah guides whomever He wills. Whatever good you give away is to your own benefit, when you give desiring only the Face of Allah. Whatever good you give away will be repaid to you in full. You will not be wronged.
Ali Ünal
(O Messenger! Your mission is to communicate all such commandments, so) it is not your duty to secure their guidance (in every matter); but God guides whomever He wills. (O people,) whatever good you spend (in charity and other good causes) is to your own benefit, and (as believers) you do not spend but in search of God’s "Face" (seeking to be worthy of His favor). Whatever good you spend will be repaid to you in full, and you will not be wronged
Ali Quli Qara'i
It is not up to you to guide them; rather it is Allah who guides whomever He wishes. And whatever wealth you spend, it is for your own benefit, as you do not spend but to seek Allah’s pleasure, and whatever wealth you spend will be repaid to you in full, and you will not be wronged
Hamid S. Aziz
It is not your duty (O Muhammad) to guide them; but Allah guides whom He will; and whatever good you expend it is for yourselves when you spend not save for Allah´s sake. And what you spend of good, it shall be repaid you in full, and you shall not
Ali Bakhtiari Nejad
Guiding them is not your responsibility, but God guides whom He wants. And anything good you spend is for (the benefit of) yourselves, and spend only looking for God's pleasure (and His attention). And anything good you spend will be paid back to you (in full), and you will not be wronged.
A.L. Bilal Muhammad et al (2018)
It is not required of you to guide them, but God guides whom He pleases. Whatever good you give, benefits your own souls, but you should only do so seeking the Face of God. Whatever good you give, will be repaid to you, and you will not be dealt with unjustly
Musharraf Hussain
It is not for you, Muhammad , to guide them, rather Allah guides anyone who wants to be guided. Whatever good things you give in charity will benefit yourselves; that is, if you give, seeking only Allah’s pleasure. Whatever good things you give in charity will be rewarded, and you will be not short-changed in the least
Maududi
O Prophet, you are not responsible for their guidance; Allah Himself shows guidance to anyone He pleases. And whatever wealth you spend in charity, it is for your own good. As you spend of your wealth to win Allah´s pleasure, you will be given full reward for whatever you spend and you will not be deprived in the least of your rightful due
[The Monotheist Group] (2013 Edition)
You are not responsible for their guidance, but it is God who will guide whoever He wishes. And whatever you spend out of goodness is for your own souls. And anything you spend should be in seeking the face of God. And whatever you spend out of goodness will be returned to you, and you will not be wronged.
Mohammad Shafi
Guiding them is not your responsibility, but Allah guides whom He pleases. And whatever wealth you spend, it is for your own benefit. And you spend not, but to seek Allah's pleasure. And the wealth, you spend, shall be recompensed to you, and you will not be wronged
Controversial or status undetermined works
Ahmed Raza Khan (Barelvi)
To guide them is not your responsibility; yes Allah guides whomsoever He pleases. And whatsoever good thing you give it is for your own good, and it is not proper for you to spend but for seeking pleasure of Allah and whatever of wealth you give, you will get back in full and you shall not be wronged.
You are not responsible for guiding anyone. GOD is the only one who guides whoever chooses (to be guided). Any charity you give is for your own good. Any charity you give shall be for the sake of GOD. Any charity you give will be repaid to you, without the least injustice.
Hasan Al-Fatih Qaribullah
It is not for you (Prophet Muhammad to cause) their guidance. Allah guides whom He will. Whatever good you spend is for yourselves, provided that you give it desiring the Face of Allah. And whatever good you spend shall be repaid to you in full, you shall not be harmed
Maulana Muhammad Ali
Their guidance is not thy duty, but Allah guides whom He pleases. And whatever good thing you spend, it is to your good. And you spend not but to seek Allah's pleasure. And whatever good thing you spend, it will be paid back to you in full, and you will not be wronged
Muhammad Ahmed & Samira
Their guidance (is) not on you, and but God guides whom he wills/wants, and what you spend from goodness/wealth , so it is for yourselves, and you do not spend, except asking/desiring God's face/direction , and what you spend from goodness/wealth is fulfilled/completed to you, and you are not being caused injustice to/oppressed
Bijan Moeinian
It is not your job (O Mohammad) to make believers out of people. Only God will guide the ones who deserve to be guided. Anything you spend on charity is for your own good, if you do it to please the Lord. Whatever you spend on the cause of God will be paid back to you in full and you will not face any injustice
Faridul Haque
It is not your duty (O dear Prophet Mohammed - peace and blessings be upon him) to make them accept guidance - but Allah guides whomever He wills; and whatever good thing you spend is beneficial for yourselves; and it is not right for you to spend except to seek Allah’s pleasure; and whatever you spend will be repaid to you in full, and you will not be wronged.
Sher Ali
It is not thy responsibility to make them follow the right path; But ALLAH guides whosoever HE pleases. And whatever of wealth you spend, the benefit will of it will be for yourselves, for, you spend not but to seek the favour of ALLAH. And whatever of wealth you spend, it shall be paid back to you in full and you shall not be wronged
Dr. Mohammad Tahir-ul-Qadri
Their (acceptance) of guidance is not your responsibility. It is Allah Who awards guidance to whom He wills. And whatever wealth you give away (as charity donation) goes to your own benefit. It is not appropriate for you to spend but for Allah’s pleasure alone. And whatever you spend of your wealth, (its reward) will be paid back to you in full and you shall not be treated unjustly
Amatul Rahman Omar
You are not responsible for their guidance to the right path but Allah guides (him) who wishes (to be guided). (Believers!) whatever wealth you spend (in doing good) will be fully credited to you and you shall not be treated unjustly
Muhsin Khan & Muhammad al-Hilali
Not upon you (Muhammad SAW) is their guidance, but Allah guides whom He wills. And whatever you spend in good, it is for yourselves, when you spend not except seeking Allahs Countenance. And whatever you spend in good, it will be repaid to you in full, and you shall not be wronged
New, Partial, or In Progress Translations
Fode Drame
Their guidance is not up to you but Allah guides whom He pleases and whatever you spend of good is for the benefit of your own souls and you will not spend except to seek the face of Allah and whatever you spend of good it will be paid back to you in full and you will not be cheated.
Munir Mezyed
It is not incumbent upon you to make people yield to the knowledge of the truth. It is Allah who truly inspires whomever He pleases to embrace the Truth. Whatever good thing you spend, it is for your own benefit. So do not spend except for craving for the countenance of Allâh. Whatever good thing you spend, it will be repaid to you in full and you will not be wronged.
Sahib Mustaqim Bleher
Their guidance is not up to you, but Allah guides whom He pleases, and any good you spend is for your own selves, and you only spend to seek the presence of Allah, and any good you spend will be repaid to you, and you will not be wronged.
Linda “iLHam” Barto
It is not required of you to save (sinners), but Allah saves whom He pleases. Whatever good you give benefits your own souls, and you will only do so if you are seeking the face of Allah. Whatever good you give will be returned to you, and you will not suffer injustice.
Fadel Soliman, Bridges‘ Translation
Their guidance is not yoursg responsibility, but Allah guides whomever He wills. And whatever good youpl spend is to your own benefit. And whatever good you spend shall be to seek Allah's Countenance. And whatever good youpl spend will be repaid to you in full, for you will not be done injustice.
Irving & Mohamed Hegab
Guiding them is not your duty, but Allah (God) guides anyone He wishes to. Any [charity] money you may spend is for your own good and whatever you spend is only through a craving to see Allah (God)'s face. Any money you spend will be repaid you, and you will not be harmed.
Samy Mahdy
Their guidance is not upon you, but Allah guides whom He wills. And whatever you are spending from goodness, so it is for yourselves. And you are not spending except for seeking Allah’s face. And what you spend among goodness will be fulfilled to you and you will not be oppressed.
Ahmed Hulusi
It is not your responsibility to make them find the right path (realize the reality of their essence)! Allah guides (enables this realization) to whom He wills (as this entails the expression of the Name Hadi within one’s essence, not some form of external guidance)! Whatever you spend in charity it is for your own good, as you do not but give for the sake of Allah (knowing and seeing the face of Allah). Whatever good you give, it will be fully repaid to you and you will never be wronged.
Sayyed Abbas Sadr-Ameli
It is not upon you to guide them (O' Muhammad) , but Allah guides aright whomsoever He wills. And whatever of good you spend in charity shall be for your own selves; and you do not spend except seeking the pleasure of Allah; and whatever of good you spend shall be repaid to you in full and you shall not be dealt with unjustly
It is not your responsibility, Muhammad, to guide the strayed to the path of righteousness but it is Allah Who touches the hearts of whom He will with His divine hand opening their minds’ eyes to His path of righteousness. And whatever you spend in divine service reflects piety in your deeds and it is but an advantage to you, that is if what you spend is truly intended to fulfil your obligation to Allah and to satisfy your conscience and hearts. And whatever you spend in benevolence shall be reimbursed in your favour and you shall not be wronged
Mir Aneesuddin
It is not your (responsibility) to guide them, but Allah guides whom He wills. And whatever you spend of good, then (the benefit of) it is for yourselves; and do not spend but to seek the Attention of Allah, and whatever you spend of good it will be repaid to you in full and injustice will not be done to you.
The Wise Quran
Not upon you, is their guidance; but God guides whom He wills; and whatever of good you expend then it is for yourselves, and do not expend except seeking the face of God. And what you expend of good, it shall be repaid to you in full, and you shall not be wronged, -