Praise be to Allah, and peace and blessings be upon the Messenger of Allah. To proceed:
There is no contradiction between interpreting Allah’s statement, “Rather, both His Hands are outstretched,” as referring to generosity, bounty, and abundant giving, and affirming the Attribute of two Hands for Allah Almighty. The verse indicates both meanings together: it affirms two Hands for Allah in a manner befitting His Majesty, while describing them as outstretched in this context indicates the perfection of His generosity and the abundance of His giving. This is the meaning explained by al-Tabari and other scholars.
The two Hands of Allah Almighty are affirmed in a number of texts from the Qur’an and Sunnah.
Allah Almighty says:
“Rather, both His Hands are outstretched; He spends however He wills.”
And He said to Iblis:
“What prevented you from prostrating to that which I created with My two Hands?”
[Sad 38:75]
The Sunnah also contains several hadiths affirming the Hand and the Right Hand. Among them is the statement of the Prophet ﷺ:
“Allah’s Hand is full and is not diminished by spending; it is abundantly giving by night and day.”
[Reported by al-Bukhari and Muslim]
In the hadith of intercession, people will say to Adam (peace be upon him):
“Allah created you with His Hand.”
[Reported by al-Bukhari and Muslim]
For this reason, the Imams of Ahl as-Sunnah used these texts as evidence for affirming two Hands for Allah Almighty in a manner befitting Him, without likening Him to His creation and without asking how.
They did not mean that Allah’s Hand was literally bound. Rather, they intended to accuse Allah Almighty of miserliness and withholding expenditure.
It is reported from Ibn ‘Abbas (may Allah be pleased with him and his father) that he explained this by saying:
“They do not mean that Allah’s Hand is actually bound; rather, they say that He is miserly and withholds what He possesses.”
This usage is known in the Arabic language.
If it is said of a person that “his hand is chained” in the context of spending, it means that he is miserly and withholding.
If it is said that “his hand is outstretched,” it means that he is generous and gives abundantly.
Therefore, Allah responded:
“May their hands be chained, and may they be cursed for what they said. Rather, both His Hands are outstretched; He spends however He wills.”
Thus, in context, the meaning is that Allah is vast in generosity and giving and spends however He wills.
No.
This is the central point in understanding the verse.
When we say of someone, “So-and-so is open-handed,” the expression indicates generosity and liberality according to the context. But this does not mean denying that the person actually has a hand.
Both meanings can therefore coexist:
affirming the Hand as real, while understanding its being outstretched in this context as indicating generosity and abundant giving.
Shaykh al-Islam Ibn Taymiyyah explained this meaning. He stated that when we describe someone as “open-handed,” it is understood that the person actually has a hand, while the outstretching of the hand simultaneously conveys generosity and giving, because giving is commonly expressed through the image of extending the hand.
Imam al-Tabari himself, who transmitted the report from Ibn ‘Abbas, explained that describing the Hands as outstretched indicates generosity and bounty, because the Arabs associate the outstretching of the hand with abundant giving.
He explained that Allah addressed the Arabs in language familiar to them. Thus, the Jews’ statement, “The Hand of Allah is chained,” meant accusing Him of miserliness, and the divine response affirmed the perfection of His generosity and giving.
However, al-Tabari did not understand this to mean that the Hand itself was merely a metaphor for generosity or blessing. Rather, in the same discussion, he affirmed the two Hands as an Attribute of Allah Almighty.
Thus, there is no contradiction between Ibn ‘Abbas’s explanation and al-Tabari’s affirmation of the Attribute of two Hands.
One of the important points cited by scholars is that the verse uses the dual form:
“Rather, both His Hands are outstretched.”
If “hand” merely meant “blessing,” then Allah’s blessings are countless and cannot be restricted to two.
For this reason, al-Tabari and other scholars cited the dual form as evidence that the verse affirms two Hands as an Attribute of Allah, while describing them as outstretched in this context indicates generosity and bounty.
This is further confirmed by Allah’s statement concerning the creation of Adam:
“What prevented you from prostrating to that which I created with My two Hands?”
[Sad 38:75]
Ibn Taymiyyah explained that the dual expression “with My two Hands” cannot properly be interpreted as “power,” because power is one, nor as “blessings,” because Allah’s blessings are innumerable.
No.
Affirming two Hands for Allah Almighty does not mean that His Hands resemble human hands.
The principle of Ahl as-Sunnah is to affirm what Allah has affirmed for Himself while denying any likeness to creation and refraining from asking how His Attributes are.
Al-Tabari also affirmed in his writings on creed the Hands, the Right Hand, and the fingers, while denying that Allah’s Attributes resemble the limbs of created beings.
Affirming an Attribute is one matter; likening its nature to the attributes of created beings is another.
The reconciliation is straightforward when we distinguish between the Hand itself and the description of the Hand as chained or outstretched.
The Jews’ statement:
“The Hand of Allah is chained”
means in context that they accused Allah of miserliness and withholding.
Allah’s statement:
“Rather, both His Hands are outstretched”
means, with regard to being outstretched, that He is vast in generosity and giving.
At the same time, the expression “both His Hands” affirms two Hands for Allah Almighty in a manner befitting Him.
Therefore, there is no need to choose between “affirming the Hands” and “affirming generosity,” because the verse indicates both.
Allah’s statement, “Rather, both His Hands are outstretched,” combines the affirmation of the Attribute of two Hands for Allah Almighty with an explanation of the perfection of His generosity and bounty.
Ibn ‘Abbas’s interpretation of the Jews’ statement “The Hand of Allah is chained” as meaning that they accused Him of miserliness does not negate the Attribute of the Hand. Rather, it explains what was intended by describing the Hand as chained in that context.
Likewise, “outstretched” indicates generosity and abundant giving in context, while the wording “both His Hands” continues to affirm the two Hands.
For this reason, al-Tabari saw no contradiction between the two meanings. He transmitted Ibn ‘Abbas’s interpretation while also affirming that the two Hands are an established Attribute of Allah Almighty, without likening Him to His creation or asking how.
And Allah knows best.