The people of Madinah were notoriously corrupt in giving short weights and measures just before the Emigration. Acting as a prologue to the Prophet’s (ﷺ) entry, these 36 verses served to purify the city's commercial practices. Placed 86th in revelation order between Sūrat al-ʿAnkabūt and al-Baqarah, the text draws its titles—including al-Taṭfīf (The Fraud) and Waylun li-l-muṭaffifīn (Woe to the Defrauders)—from its opening denunciation.

The warning moves rapidly from the marketplace to the Day of Judgment, establishing that cheating a buyer stems directly from denying ultimate accountability. The verses then split into a stark contrast between two ledgers. The actions of the wicked are bound in the lowly record of Sijjīn alongside their promised torment, while the righteous have their deeds preserved in the high ranks of ‘Illiyyūn.

The worldly scorn and laughter that polytheists once directed at the believers is entirely overturned on the Day of Resurrection. From their elevated stations of bliss, the righteous look down to mock the disbelievers facing their severe reckoning.