| Answer: Some people argue that only usury (interest at such
an exorbitant rate that it exploits the debtor) was declared unlawful by Islam.
Therefore, normal interest at a mutually acceptable rate can be charged. The
following verse of Sūrah Aal-i-Imran is usually presented to support this point
of view:
‘O believers! Do not devour interest, doubling and
redoubling.’[3:130]
This verse, however, does not support the argument. It
merely indicates the intensity of the sin by pointing out that some people not
only ‘devour’ interest, which God has forbidden, but also charge it at an
exorbitant rate (doubling and redoubling). The Qur’ān uses this style to point
out the heinous nature of a sin where a person not only does something wrong,
but also goes beyond all limits in doing so. As an example of this style,
consider the following verse of Sūrah Noor:
‘Force not your slave-girls to prostitution that you may
seek pleasures of the life of the world, if they would preserve their chastity.’
[24:33]
This verse, of course, does not mean that if the
slave-girls are willing, prostitution may be allowed. It merely points out the
intensity of the sin of those who force such slave-girls to prostitution who
wish to avoid the despicable crime.
The following verses of the Qur’ān clearly point out that
all types of interest, exorbitant and normal, are forbidden:
‘O you who believe! Observe your duty to Allah, and give
up what remains [due to you] from riba [interest], if you are [in truth]
believers.’ [2:278]
‘And if the debtor is in strained circumstances, then
[let there be] postponement to the time of ease...’ [2:280]
These two verses have the same context and, when taken
together, clearly show that interest has not been prohibited merely in cases
where the debtor is in stringent circumstances. The words ‘And if the debtor is
in strained circumstances’ indicate an exceptional case, and point out that the
prohibition in the previous verse (2:278) is of interest at a normal mutually
acceptable rate.
‘He unto whom this admonition comes from his Lord, and
[he] refrains [in obedience to it], he shall keep that which is past, and his
affair is with Allah. As for him who returns [to interest]---such are the
rightful owners of the fire; they will abide therein forever’. [2:275] |