يَا أَيُّهَا الَّذِينَ آمَنُوا شَهَادَةُ بَيْنِكُمْ إِذَا حَضَرَ أَحَدَكُمُ الْمَوْتُ حِينَ الْوَصِيَّةِ اثْنَانِ ذَوَا عَدْلٍ مِنْكُمْ أَوْ آخَرَانِ مِنْ غَيْرِكُمْ إِنْ أَنْتُمْ ضَرَبْتُمْ فِي الْأَرْضِ فَأَصَابَتْكُمْ مُصِيبَةُ الْمَوْتِ تَحْبِسُونَهُمَا مِنْ بَعْدِ الصَّلَاةِ فَيُقْسِمَانِ بِاللَّهِ إِنِ ارْتَبْتُمْ لَا نَشْتَرِي بِهِ ثَمَنًا وَلَوْ كَانَ ذَا قُرْبَى وَلَا نَكْتُمُ شَهَادَةَ اللَّهِ إِنَّا إِذًا لَمِنَ الْآثِمِينَ ﴿۱۰۶﴾
﴾106﴿ Yaaa aiyuhal lazeena aamanoo shahaadatu bainikum izaa hadara ahadakumul mawtu heenal wasiyyatis naani zawaa 'adlim minkum aw aakharaani min ghairikum in antum darabtum fil ardi fa asaabatkum museebatul mawt; tahbi soonahumaa mim ba'dis Salaati fa yuqsimaani billaahi inirtabtum laa nashtaree bihee samananw wa law kaana zaa qurbaa wa laa naktumu shahaadatal laahi innaaa izal laminal aasimeen
﴾106﴿ O believers, when death approaches one of you and a bequest is to be made, let two just men from among you act as witnesses—or two others from outside if you are traveling in the land and the disaster of death strikes you. Detain them both after the prayer (of ‘Asr), and let them swear by Allah if you have any doubts (saying): “We do not sell this for any price, even if it concerns a close relative, and we do not hide the testimony of Allah, for then we would surely be among the sinful.”
[106] The connection here is that the previous verse mentioned protection of lives, and now this verse addresses protection of wealth, specifically through wills and oaths.
"O you who believe"—this phrase indicates that resolving financial matters in a Shariah-compliant manner is a requirement of faith.
"Shahādat baynakum"—here, shahāda refers to bringing witnesses at the time of making a will. Some scholars have also interpreted it to mean taking an oath.
"When death approaches one of you"—ḥaḍara means to come near, or it can refer to the signs of death appearing. The latter interpretation is preferred because when death actually arrives, the person can no longer speak.
"At the time of making a will"—this highlights the importance of making a will. However, here the instruction is not about leaving a bequest, but rather about appointing an executor for the estate.
"Two just men from among you"—meaning, the witnesses must be both Muslim and just (ʿadl). Justice here is the opposite of sinfulness (fisq).
"Or two others from outside your community"—scholars have differed on the meaning of "outside your community" (ghayrikum). Most say it refers to non-Muslims, while others say "from among you" (minkum) means your relatives, and "outside your community" (ghayrikum) refers to non-relatives (strangers).
"If you are traveling through the land"—this implies that such necessities arise particularly during travel.
"You detain them"—this suggests that the two witnesses become the accused, and they may try to escape responsibility, which is why the word habasa (detain) is used.
"After the prayer"—this likely refers to the Asr prayer, though some scholars interpret it as any obligatory prayer.
"Then let them both swear by Allah"—meaning, if they are accused of betraying the will and they deny the allegation, and there are no other witnesses, then they must swear an oath. This proves that oaths are exclusively for Allah, even if the witnesses are non-Muslims (Ahl al-Dhimma), they must still swear by Allah.
"If you doubt"—this refers to the accuser making a claim due to suspicion about the execution of the will. It also implies that an oath cannot be taken from the accused without a formal claim against them.
"We will not trade our oath for a worldly price"—this is their oath. Ishtirā’ here means obtaining something in exchange, and thaman refers to a worldly gain. This means, "We are not mentioning Allah’s name to seek worldly benefit, but rather to uphold the truth."
"And we will not conceal the testimony"—referring to the testimony that Allah has given us knowledge of. This emphasizes that witnesses must not withhold their testimony when required by justice.