Quran Universe
34:2

يَعۡلَمُ مَا يَلِجُ فِي ٱلۡأَرۡضِ وَمَا يَخۡرُجُ مِنۡهَا وَمَا يَنزِلُ مِنَ ٱلسَّمَآءِ وَمَا يَعۡرُجُ فِيهَاۚ وَهُوَ ٱلرَّحِيمُ ٱلۡغَفُورُ

YaAAlamu ma yaliju fee alardi wama yakhruju minha wama yanzilu mina alssamai wama yaAAruju feeha wahuwa alrraheemu alghafooru

He knows what penetrates into the earth and what emerges from it and what descends from the heaven and what ascends therein. And He is the Merciful, the Forgiving.

Word by word
  1. يَعۡلَمُHe knows
  2. مَاwhat
  3. يَلِجُpenetrates
  4. فِيin
  5. ٱلۡأَرۡضِthe earth
  6. وَمَاand what
  7. يَخۡرُجُcomes out
  8. مِنۡهَاfrom it
  9. وَمَاand what
  10. يَنزِلُdescends
  11. مِنَfrom
  12. ٱلسَّمَآءِthe heaven
  13. وَمَاand what
  14. يَعۡرُجُascends
  15. فِيهَاۚtherein
  16. وَهُوَAnd He
  17. ٱلرَّحِيمُ(is) the Most Merciful
  18. ٱلۡغَفُورُthe Oft-Forgiving
Saba · 34:2Makkah

He knows every raindrop that sinks and every deed that rises.

Nothing moves unseen by Him

Four movements He knows
into the earthrain, seeds
out of the earthwhat grows
down from the skyrain, provision
up to the skygood deeds
My small deeds
too small to notice
known as they riseby the Merciful

Ibn Kathir explains that Allah knows the number of raindrops that sink into the earth and the seeds that are sown, and what comes down from the sky and what rises to it, including righteous deeds. He is Merciful and does not rush to punish, and forgives those who repent.

You helped someone carry groceries. You said a quiet dua for a stranger in the hospital waiting room. Nobody saw. Every one of those rose to Him, known as surely as each drop of rain.

My small, unseen good deeds probably do not count for much.

Allah knows every deed that rises to Him, however small or hidden.

Try this

Do one small good deed today that no one will ever know about.

Simplified reflection. Read the tafsir for scholarship.draft
Tafsir Ibn Kathir (shared passage from 34:1)

بِسْمِ اللَّهِ الرَّحْمَٰنِ الرَّحِيمِ

In the Name of Allah, the Most Gracious, the Most Merciful.

الْحَمْدُ لِلَّهِ الَّذِي لَهُ مَا فِي السَّمَاوَاتِ وَمَا فِي الْأَرْضِ وَلَهُ الْحَمْدُ فِي الْآخِرَةِ ۚ وَهُوَ الْحَكِيمُ الْخَبِيرُ - يَعْلَمُ مَا يَلِجُ فِي الْأَرْضِ وَمَا يَخْرُجُ مِنْهَا وَمَا يَنْزِلُ مِنَ السَّمَاءِ وَمَا يَعْرُجُ فِيهَا ۚ وَهُوَ الرَّحِيمُ الْغَفُورُ

(1. All praise is due to Allah, to Whom belongs all that is in the heavens and all that is on the earth. His is all praise in the Hereafter, and He is the All-Wise, the All-Aware.)(2. He knows that which goes into the earth and that which comes forth from it, and that which descends from the heaven and that which ascends to it. And He is the Most Merciful, the Oft-Forgiving.)

All Praise and the Knowledge of the Unseen belong to Allah Alone

Allah tells us that all praise belongs to Him alone in this world and in the Hereafter, because He is the Giver and Bestower who gives to the people of this world and the Hereafter, the Sovereign and Controller of all. Allah says:

وَهُوَ اللَّهُ لَا إِلَٰهَ إِلَّا هُوَ ۖ لَهُ الْحَمْدُ فِي الْأُولَىٰ وَالْآخِرَةِ ۖ وَلَهُ الْحُكْمُ وَإِلَيْهِ تُرْجَعُونَ 

(And He is Allah; none has the right to be worshipped but He, all praise is due to Him (both) in the first (i.e., in this world) and in the last (the Hereafter). And for Him is the decision, and to Him shall you (all) be returned.)(28:70). Allah says:

الْحَمْدُ لِلَّهِ الَّذِي لَهُ مَا فِي السَّمَاوَاتِ وَمَا فِي الْأَرْضِ

(All praise is due to Allah, to Whom belongs all that is in the heavens and all that is in the earth.) meaning, all of it is His dominion and is enslaved by Him and subject to His control, as Allah says:

وَإِنَّ لَنَا لَلْآخِرَةَ وَالْأُولَىٰ

(And truly, unto Us (belong) the last (Hereafter) and the first (this world))(92:13). Then Allah says:

وَلَهُ الْحَمْدُ فِي الْآخِرَةِ

(His is all praise in the Hereafter,) for He is the One Who will be worshipped forever and praised for eternity.

وَهُوَ الْحَكِيمُ

and He is the All-Wise, means, in all that He says and does, legislates and decrees.

الْخَبِيرُ 

the All-Aware. from Whom nothing at all is hidden or concealed. Malik narrated that Az-Zuhri said, He is All-Aware of His creation, All-Wise in His commands. Allah says:

يَعْلَمُ مَا يَلِجُ فِي الْأَرْضِ وَمَا يَخْرُجُ مِنْهَا

(He knows that which goes into the earth and that which comes forth from it,) meaning, He knows the number of raindrops that sink into the depths of the earth, and the seeds that have been sown, and the things that are hidden in it, and He knows what comes forth from that, how many they are, how they grow and what they look like.

وَمَا يَنْزِلُ مِنَ السَّمَاءِ

(and that which descends from the heaven) means, of raindrops and provision, and what ascends into it, i.e., righteous deeds and other things.

وَهُوَ الرَّحِيمُ الْغَفُورُ

(And He is the Most Merciful, the Oft-Forgiving.) means, He is Most Merciful to His servants; He does not hasten to punish them, and He forgives the sins of those who repent to Him and put their trust in Him.