(Woe unto the defrauders) [83:1]. Abu Isma‘il ibn al-Hasan ibn Muhammad ibn al-Husayn al-Naqib> his grandfather Muhammad ibn al-Husayn> Ahmad ibn Muhammad ibn al-Husayn al-Hafiz> ‘Abd al-Rahman ibn Bashir> ‘Ali ibn al-Husayn ibn Waqid> his father> Yazid al-Nahwi> ‘Ikrimah> Ibn ‘Abbas who said: “When the Prophet, Allah bless him and give him peace, first moved to Medina, its inhabitants were the worst kind of defrauders, and so Allah, exalted is He, revealed (Woe unto the defrauders: Those who when they take the measure from mankind demand it full). After the revelation of this verse, they became honest in their weighing”. Al-Qurazi said: “There were some merchants in Medina who defrauded others. Their transaction were like gambling: buying by means of throwing a pebble on a specific merchandises (Munabadhah) without stipulating any terms or agreeing a contract or by touching the merchandise without looking at it (Mulamasah) or engaging in transactions which involve the risk of losing on both sides (Mukhatarah). And so Allah, exalted is He, revealed this verse. The Messenger of Allah, Allah bless him and give him peace, went then to the marketplace and recited it”. Al-Suddi said: “When the Messenger of Allah arrived at Medina, there was there a man called Abu Juhaynah. This man had two scales: he used one scale when he sold things to people and the other when he bought from them. And so Allah, exalted is He, revealed this verse”.
Asbab Al-Nuzul by Al-Wahidi , trans. Mokrane Guezzou
