Explanation

‘Amr ibn Taghlib (may Allah be pleased with him) reports to us that an amount of money or a number of war captives were brought to the Prophet (may Allah's peace and blessings be upon him) and he distributed that. He gave to some men in order to reconcile their hearts with Islam, and left others because he trusted them, due to the strong faith and certitude which Allah granted to them. He was then informed that those whom he did not give anything spoke words of reproach about him among themselves, thinking that the Messenger of Allah (may Allah's peace and blessings be upon him) had given certain people because of they were more religious. Thereupon, the Prophet (may Allah's peace and blessings be upon him) gathered them and stood up to speak. He praised Allah and glorified Him with words that befit His Majesty, and then said: "By Allah! I give some men and leave others, and the ones I do not give are dearer to me than those whom I give." He meant that giving to some people and leaving the others did not mean that he loved the former more than the latter. Rather, he actually loved those who did not receive anything more than those to whom he gave. He then explained the reason for this, saying: "However, I give to those I see in their hearts fear and anxiety," meaning that he gave them because of the dissatisfaction and annoyance they would have felt if they had not received some of the spoils of war. So he gave them in order to gain their loyalty and appease their anxiety. He added: "…and as for the ones whom I do not give anything, I leave them with the richness and good that Allah has put in their hearts," meaning that I left them and did not give them, leaving them with what Allah has given them, which is contentedness and richness of the soul. When he said "good" he meant strength of faith and certainty. he then said that ‘Amr ibn Taghlib was one of those people, meaning that he was one of those whom he did not give because of the strength of his faith and certitude. According to another narration, the Messenger of Allah (may Allah's peace and blessings be upon him) said: "Verily, I give to a man while another is dearer to me than him, fearing that he (the former) would be thrown into the Fire upon his face" [Muslim]. ‘Amr (may Allah be pleased with him) said after hearing the Messenger of Allah (may Allah's peace and blessings be upon him) praising him: By Allah! I would not exchange the praise that I just heard from the Prophet (may Allah's peace and blessings be upon him) with anything, even if I were given, in exchange, the most expensive item of wealth that the Arabs possessed, which was red camels.