Indexed OCR Text

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Surah Al-Ma'idah : 5: 19
coming with their missions without any gap. To Bani Isra'il alone, one
thousand prophets were sent during this period - not included in
which are prophets who appeared among peoples other than Bani
Isra'il. Then comes the period of only five hundred years between the
birth of Sayyidna 'Isa WJI ul and the appearance of the Holy Prophet
as the Last Prophet. During this period, the usual chain صلى الله عليه وسلم
of prophets remained discontinued. Therefore, this period is known as
Fatrah or Gap. Before this, a longer period has never remained unvis-
ited by prophets. (Qurtubi, with some explanation from the author)
There are other reports regarding the period of time between Sayy-
idna Musa and Sayyidna 'Isa WJIL+Je, and that which is between
Sayyidna 'Isa )JI ale and the Last Prophet, Sayyidna Muhammad al-
Mustafa صلى الله عليه وسلم.The period of time indicated in these reports is
either more, or less, but that does not affect the real purpose.
Imam al-Bukhari reports on the authority of Sayyidna Salman al-
Farisi ar Ml +, that there was a period of six hundred years between
صلى الله and the Last among Prophets عليه السلام the time of Sayyidna 'Isa
duy qde. During this entire period, no prophet was sent as confirmed by
a Hadith in Mishkat, appearing there with reference to the Sahihs of
al-Bukhari and Muslim, which reports that the Holy Prophet de Jul
'.that is, 'Among people, I am the closest to 'Isa أنا أَوْلَى النَّاسِ بِعِيسَى: said وسلم
He explained the meaning of his remark later in the Hadith when he
said: 24 wyr puf that is, 'No prophet was sent between the two of us.'
As for the three messengers mentioned in Surah Ya Sin (36), they
were messengers sent by Sayyidna 'Isa WILL who have been called
messengers (bearers of a message) in the literal sense.
About the appearance of Khalid ibn Sinan al-'Arabi during this gap
as reported by some chroniclers, Tafsir Ruh al-Ma'ani says with refer-
ence to Shihab that his being a prophet is correct, but the period in
which he came was earlier than Sayyidna 'Isa, WJI ale not after him.
Rulings concerning the Gap
Obviously, the verse seems to indicate the fate of the group of peo-
ple who were not visited by any messenger or prophet or their depu-
ties, nor did they have the religious laws of past prophets preserved
with them; such people will be considered excusable and will deserve

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Surah Al-Ma'idah : 5: 19
no punishment on the condition that such people should have not com-
mitted Shirk, the grave sin of ascribing partners in the Divinity of Al-
lah. Therefore, Muslim jurists differ about rulings which apply to the
people of Fatrah (gap), particularly about whether or not they will be
forgiven.
The majority tilts towards the hope that they will be forgiven if
they had kept adhering to the religion which had survived with them
as originating from Sayyidna Musa or Sayyidna 'Isa WJI L+L irrespec-
tive of its authenticity - again, subject to the condition that they had
not been hostile to the principle of Tauhid, the Oneness of Allah, and
had nothing to do with the practice of Shirk. The reason is that the
Principle of Tauhid needs no reported proof. Any human being who
ponders over it could himself reason it out.
A Question and its Answer
A question may arise here that the Jews and Christians, the people
of the Book, who are being addressed in this verse did have the Torah
and the Evangile and their sages and scholars with them even if no
messengers reached them during this gap. How then could they come
up with the excuse on the Day of Judgement that they had received no
guidance? The answer is that by the time of the Holy Prophet the
original Torah and the Evangile had gone extinct. There were altera-
tions in texts and additions of false narratives. Thus, the availability
of non-original scriptures were no better than its extinction. The likeli-
hood of an original manuscript surviving at some unknown place with
someone would not be contrary to the assertion made. In fact, some
scholars including Ibn Taymiyyah have written that the original cop-
ies of the Torah and Evangile were present at some places.
The Unique Perfection of the Last among Prophets g
When, by addressing the people of the Book in this verse, it was
said that 'Our Messenger, Muhammad al-Mustafa & has come after a
long gap,' there emerges a subtle hint towards the need that people
who have been honoured with his presence among them should consid-
er this as a matchless blessing and a supreme asset because the line of
prophets had remained suspended since a long time and it has been
opened for them once again.
Yet another indication given here is towards the fact that the

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Surah Al-Ma'idah : 5 : 20 - 26
world has been blessed with his presence in an age and at a place
which lacked the light of knowledge and faith. The creation of God had
lost its link with God only to be immersed in the worship of self-made
idols. In the backdrop of a time such as this, the mission of reviving a
people so lost was no easy task. This time was the notorious Jahiliyy-
ah, commonly identified as the Age of Ignorance, and the people from
it who were entrusted with the Prophet of Islam were spoiled, self-
centered and uncompromising. Yet, such was the bliss of his company
and so bracing was the light of his mission that this very set of people
became, in a very short time, role models and teachers for the whole
world in all departments of life - in knowledge, deed, morals, dealings,
social living, to name only a few. This, then, becomes a widely wit-
nessed and authentically verified proof that he was a Prophet and
Messenger of Allah and that his prophetic teachings were the most ef-
fective and the most surpassing among those coming from all past
prophets. Imagine the mission of a physician who treats a hopeless pa-
tient and does it at a place which lacks medical instruments, and med-
icines too, yet he succeeds in his effort to treat the patient to the limit
that this patient, not simply that he rises from his death-bed to be-
come a healthy person, but that he goes way ahead and himself turns
into an expert physician and healer as well - if so, who can doubt the
perfection of the master healer!
With this in view, we can see that following the long gap when dis-
belief in and disobedience to God reigned supreme everywhere, his
teaching and training spread out the kind of universal light which re-
mains unparalleled by any age previous to it. In short, out of all mira-
cles, this one miracle alone could compel human beings to have faith in
him.
Verses 20 - 26
وَإِذْ قَالَ مُؤْسَى لِقَوْمِهِ يُقَوْمِ اذْكُرُوا نِعْمَةَ اللهِ عَلَيْكُمُ إِذُ جَعَلَ
فِيُكُمُ اَنْبِيَاءَ وَجَعَلَكُمْ تُلُكَا، وَأَتُّكُمْ مَّالَمْ يُؤْتِ آَحَدًّا ◌ِنَ
الْعُلَمِيْنَ ﴿٢﴾ نِقَوْمِ ادْخُلُوا الْآَرْضَ الْمُقَدَّسَةَ الَّتِى كَتَبَ اللَّهُ
لَكُمْ وَلَا تَرْ تَدُّوا عَلَى أَدْبَارِكُمْ فَتَنْقَلِبُوا خُسِرِيْنَ ﴿٢١﴾ قَالُوْا

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Surah Al-Ma'idah : 5 : 20- 26
يُمُوسَى إِنَّ فِيْهَا قَوْمًا جَبَّارِيْنَ، وَإِنَّا لَنْ تَّدُخُلَهَا حَتَّى يَخُوُجُوْا
مِنْهَا ، فَإِنْ يَخْرُجُوْا مِنْهَا فَإِنَّا دُخِلُونَ ﴿٢٢﴾ قَالَ رَجُلْنِ مِنَ
الَّذِينَ يَخَافُونَ أَنْعَمَ اللَّهُ عَلَيْهِمَا إِدُخُلُوا عَلَيْهِمُ الْبَابَ ، فَإِذَا
دَخَلْتُمُوْهُ فَإِنَّكُمْ غْلِبُوْنَ ، وَعَلَى اللهِ فَتَوَكَّلُؤَّا إِنْ كُنْتُمْ تُوُّمِنِيْنَ
﴿٢٣﴾ قَالُؤْا يُمُؤْسَنَى إِنَّا لَنْ تَدُخُلَهَا أَبَدًّا مَّادَامُوْا فِيُهَا فَاذْهَبُ
أَنْتَ وَرَبُّكَ فَقَاتِلاَ إِنَّا هُهُنَا فْعِدُونَ ﴿٢٤﴾ قَالَ رَتٍ إِنّى لََّ أَهْلِكُ
إِلَّ نَفُسِىُ وَآَخِئُ فَافُرُقُ بَيْكَنَا وَبَيْنَ الْقَوْمِ الْفُسِقِيْنَ ﴿٢٥﴾ قَالَ
فَإِنَّهَا مُحَرَّمَةٌ عَلَيْهِمْ أَرْبَعِيْنَ سَنَّةٌ " يَتِيُّهُوُنَ فِى الْأَرْضِ، فَلَ
تَأْسَ عَلَى الْقَوْمِ الْفُسِقِيْنَ ﴿٢٦﴾
And when Musa said to his people, "O my people, re-
member the blessing of Allah upon you when He made
prophets from among you, made you kings and gave
you what He did not give to anyone in the worlds. [20]
O my people, enter the Holy Land which Allah has des-
tined for you, and do not turn back, for then you will
turn losers." [21]
They said, "O Musa, there is a nation of tyrants over
there and we shall never go in there until they get out
of it. If they do get out of it, we are ready to go in." [22]
Said two men from among the God-fearing, on whom
Allah had bestowed His favour, "Enter the gate
(charging) upon them. And once you have entered it,
you are the ones to overcome. And in Allah you must
place your trust, if you are believers." [23]
They said, "O Musa, we shall never enter it, in any case,
so long as they are there. So go, you and your Lord, and
fight. As for us, we are sitting right here." [24]
He said, "O my Lord, I have no control except over my-
self and my brother. So, make a separation between us
and the sinning people." [25]
He (Allah) said, "This (land) is prohibited to them for

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Surah Al-Ma'idah : 5 : 20 - 26
forty years. They shall be wandering around the earth.
So, do not grieve for the sinning people." [26]
Commentary
Previous to the verses cited above, a pledge was mentioned in
which the Bani Isra'il were bound to obey Allah and His Messenger.
Mentioned along with it was their customary breach of trust, and its
punishment. Taken up in the verses appearing above there is a partic-
ular event which shows such a breach.
That event goes back to the time when Pharaoh and his army were
drowned in the sea and Sayyidna Musa >JILL and his people, the
Bani Isra'il, once delivered from the slavery of the Pharaoh, became
the masters of Egypt. Then, to bless them with His added reward, and
to let them repossess their ancestral land of Syria, Allah Ta'ala com-
manded them through Sayyidna Musa >JILL that they should enter
the Holy Land, that is, Syria, with the intention of Jihad. And along-
with it, they were given the good news that victory will be all theirs in
this Jihad - as Allah had made that holy land their destiny and they
were bound to have it. But, the Bani Isra'il had their peculiar traits of
character. They saw the blessings of Allah with their own eyes, they
saw the spectacle of the drowning of Pharaoh and the conquest of
Egypt, yet they failed, once again, to stand by the solemn pledges they
had given and elected to sit out the Jihad of Syria squarely against
this Divine command. The punishment they received for it was in the
form of a forty-year confinement to a limited area where, strangely
enough, there were no walls or fences around them, nor were they in
chains. Instead, they were free to move in an open area and actually
travelled every day, right from the morning through the evening, with
the intention of returning to Egypt, their homeland. But, when came
the evening, they would find themselves exactly at the spot from
where they had started in the morning. During this period, Sayyidna
Musa and Sayyidna Harun WI Lee left this mortal world and these
people kept wandering in the wilderness of Tih. It was after that, that
Allah Ta'ala sent other prophets for their guidance.
Thus, after the passage of full forty years, those who survived from
among them resolved to take up the Jihad of Syria and Baytul-Maqdis
under the leadership of the prophet of their time and the promise of

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Surah Al-Ma'idah : 5 : 20 - 26
Allah that the Holy Land had been destined for them was thus ful-
filled. This is a summary of the event referred to in the verses cited
above. Let us now see its details in the words of the Qur'an.
When Sayyidna Musa >JI ul received the instruction to call his
people to Jihad in order to conquer Baytul-Maqdis and Syria, he acted
very much in accordance with his prophetic wisdom so crucial in giv-
ing good counsel. Therefore, before announcing the Divine command to
his people, he reminded them of the many blessings bestowed upon
them upto that time. He said:
اذْكُرُوا نِعُمَةَ اللّهِ عَلَيْكُمْ إِذْ جَعَلَ فِيْكُمُ اَنْبِيَاءَ وَجَعَلَكُمْ تُلُوْكًا وَاتْكُمُ مَّالَمْ
يُؤْتٍ أَحَدًا مِنَ الْعُلَمِيْنَ
O my people, remember the blessings of Allah upon you when
He made prophets from among you, made you kings and gave
you what He did not give to anyone in the worlds.
Recounted here are three blessings. The first of these is a spiritual
blessing, that is, many prophets were sent to them continuously, a
spiritual honour which can hardly be matched. It has been reported in
Tafsir Mazhari that no other community has had such a large number
of prophets as compared to Bani Isra'il.
Hadith authority, Ibn Abi Hatim, reports on the basis of a narra-
tion from A'mash that in only one single period, the last period of the
people of Bani Isra'il which extends from Sayyidna Musa Wul ude to
Sayyidna 'Isa >JI de, one thousand prophets were sent to Bani Isra'il.
The second blessing mentioned in the verse quoted immediately above
is a material blessing, that is, they were made masters and wielders of
power. The hint given here is that the people of Bani Isra'il who were
the oppressed slaves of the Pharaoh and his people for many ages saw
how Allah Ta'ala destroyed their enemies and how they themselves
were made masters and kings. Noteworthy here is the statement
about prophets where it was said: Les jes (He made prophets from
among you) which carries the sense that the whole people were not
prophets, and this is the truth as prophets are only a few while the
large body of people follows them. But, when it comes to the subject of
temporal power on countries and states, said there was: Gul Lles (and
made you kings) the outward sense of which is that they (all) were

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Surah Al-Ma'idah : 5 : 20 - 26
made kings. The Arabic word, 'muluk' used in the text is the plural of
malik which means a king in common usage. Obviously, when a whole
people cannot be all prophets, no people of a country can be all kings.
What happens is that authority in a country rests in the hands of an
individual or some individuals while the rest of the people are subordi-
nate to them. But, here the words of the Qur'an are attributing king-
ship to all of them.
One reason for this is what has been stated by Maulana Ashraf 'Ali
Thanavi with reference to some righteous elders in his Tafsir Bayan al-
Qur'an, that is, the sovereignty of the 'king' of a country is customarily
attributed to his entire people, for example, during the midde centu-
ries of Islam, the government was called as that of Ummaiyyids and
'Abbasids. Similarly, the rule of Ghaznavis and Ghauris, then, that of
Mughals, and after that, the rule of the British in India was attributed
to all individuals of entire people of that country. Therefore, a whole
people having a ruler are known (by proxy) to be rulers of that coun-
try. .
It was according to this usage that the Qur'an has attributed king-
ship to the whole people of Bani Isra'il. In this, there may be a hint
that an Islamic state is really run by a government of the people. It is
the people who have the right to elect their Amir (Imam, leader or rul-
er) and it is once again, the right of the people who can, by their collec-
tive will, remove the holder of that office. Therefore, when seen out-
wardly, a ruler rules as one individual, but, in reality, that rule is that
of the people.
The second reason as reported from some elders by Ibn Kathir, Ma-
zhari and others is that the sense of 'malik' is more general than that
of a king. In common usage, this word is also applied to a person who
is well-to-do, has a home, owns property and employs help. In the light
of this sense, that was a time when every individual from the Bani
Isra'il was like a king of his castle. That explains the attribution of
kingship to the entire Bani Isra'il.
The third blessing mentioned in this verse is a combination of both,
the spiritual and the material. It was said: ◌َوَأَتُكُمْ مَّالَمْ يُؤْتِ آَحَدًا مِّنَ الْعُلَمِيْن that
is, they were given the kind of blessings which were not given to any-
one else in all the worlds. Included under these blessings is spiritual

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Surah Al-Ma'idah : 5 : 20 - 26
distinction highlighted by the station of prophethood and, along with
it, the more obvious temporal power, authority, domain and wealth
too. However, a question may arise here regarding the belief that the
Muslim Ummah, the large body of believers in the Last among Proph-
ets صلى الله عليه وسلم, is the most distinct among all Communities as sup-
ported by the textual authority of the Holy Qur'an, such as: 2 2's
كَذَلِكَ :You are the best Ummah raised for mankind - 3:110) and) أُخْرِجَتُ لِلنَّاسِ
Us Elkis (And in the same way, We made you a moderate Ummah -
2:143) prove it, as do the many narrations from the Prophet's living
Traditions. The answer is that the people of the world being men-
tioned in this verse are the people who were living in the particular
period of Bani Isra'il which was marked by the presence of Sayyidna
Musa WJI Je among them. That was the time when no one in all the
worlds was as blessed as were the Bani Isra'il. That any other commu-
nity in times to come could be blessed more than them should not be
considered contrary to this.
The saying of Sayyidna Musa >JI ul in the first verse (20) was his
introductory remark to the Divine command which appears in the fol-
lowing verse (21) in the words:ْيُقَوْمِ ادْخُلُوا الْآَرْضَ الْمُقَدَّسَةَ الَّتِىِ كَتَبَ اللّهُ لَكُم (Omy peo-
ple, enter the Holy Land which Allah has destined for you ... ).
Which land is the Holy Land?
Apparently, commentators differ about it. Some say that it means
Baytus-Maqdis (Jerusalem). Some identify the city of Quds and Eliah
as fitting the description of the Holy Land. Still others point out to the
city of Ariha which was located between the Jordan river and Baytul-
Maqdis and was reported to be one of the oldest cities of the world. In
fact, it is still there. Unusual statements portraying its grandeur and
vastness have been reported historically. Some narrations say that the
city was divided over one thousand wards or counties and every such
section had some one thousand public gardens each. Then, there are
other narrations which indicate that the Holy Land means Damascus
and Palestine, or Jordan, according to some others. And Sayyidna Qa-
tadah has said that the entire land of Syria is the Holy Land. Sayyid-
na Ka'b al-Abar has said that he has seen in the Book of Allah
(perhaps, the Torah) that the country of Syria is a special treasure of
Allah on this entire earth and there are in it Allah's very special and

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Surah Al-Ma'idah : 5 : 20 - 26
very dear servants. This land has been called 'holy' because it has been
home to the blessed prophets of Allah. According to some narrations,
on a day when Sayyidna Ibrahim Wul de climbed a mountain in Leba-
non, Allah Ta'ala said: O Ibrahim, look from here and as far as you will
see, that land We have made the Holy Land. All narrations cited here
have been taken from Tafsir Ibn Kathir and Tafsir Mazhari and the
truth of the matter is that there is not much of a contradiction in these
sayings. According to later narrations, the whole country of Syria is
the Holy Land - it is just that some narrators have described a certain
part of the country of Syria while some others have identified the
whole of it.
Looking at verse 22 which begins with the words: : pju (They
said, O Musa ... ), it will be recalled that, in the verse previous to it (21),
Allah Ta'ala had commanded the Bani Isra'il through Sayyidna Musa
that they should wage a Jihad against the Amalkites and conquer Syr-
ia - given along with it was the good news that the land of Syria has
been destined for them, therefore, their victory is certain.
The present verse (22) tells us that, despite the Divine command
and assurance, the Bani Isra'il, because of their well-known contumacy
and crookedness, just did not obey that command as well. Instead of
doing that, they said: 'O Musa, there is a nation of tyrants over there,
and we shall never go in there until they get out of it. If they do get out
of it, then, we are ready to go in.'
The actual event as reported from the masters of Tafsir (Exegesis),
Sayyidna 'Abdullah ibn 'Abbas, 'Ikrimah, 'Ali ibn Abi Talhah and oth-
ers is that it was a time when the Amalkites ruled Syria and Baytul-
Maqdis. They were an offshoot of the people of 'Ad, unusually big in
height and size and very ferocious in looks and behavior. They were
the people Sayyidna Musa WILL and his community were asked to
fight against and go on to conquer Baytul-Maqdis.
To carry out the Divine command, Sayyidna Musa WI -le marched
towards Syria in the company of his people, the Bani Isra'il. Baytul-
Maqdis was their first destination. After crossing the Jordan river,
when they reached Ariha, the oldest city of the world, they made a
stopover. We have already read about the appointment of twelve chiefs
to administer the affairs of Bani Isra'il in the previous verses of the

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Surah Al-Ma'idah : 5 : 20 - 26
Holy Qur'an. The same chiefs were asked to go on an advance fact-
finding mission into enemy territory. Their duty was to gather intelli-
gence on local conditions, the battle front and about the people who
control Baytul-Maqdis and against whom they have to wage the Jihad.
When these chiefs reached Baytul-Maqdis, they were stopped by an
Amalkite man right outside the gate of the city. He, all alone, put
them under arrest and took them to his king reporting to him that
these people had come to fight them. The king went into consultation
with his courtiers. Their decision was that all of them should either be
killed or punished in some other way. Finally, they agreed upon the
proposal that they should be allowed to go free so that they could re-
turn to their people and become walking eye witnesses of the great
power and grandeur of the Amalkites against which they would never
dare to think of marching.
At this point in most books of Tafsir, reported there are tall tales
from Isra'ilite narrations which give the name of the person who ac-
costed these chiefs as 'Awj ibn 'Unuq. His extra-ordinary height and
size and his power and strength has been described there with such
exaggeration that a sensible person would find it too thick even to just
pass it onwards.
Tafsir authority, Ibn Kathir has said: Tales reported in such
Isra'ilite narrations can neither be accepted by reason nor do they have
any justification in the Shari'ah. In fact, all this is a bundle of lies and
imputations. The truth of the matter is no more than that there are
the people called the Amalkites. Since they are the remnants of the
people of 'Ad whose awesome height and size has been mentioned by
the Holy Qur'an itself, so, their huge size and unusual strength were
proverbial. One of their men proved strong enough to arrest and take
away twelve men from the people of Bani Isra'il.
However, freed by the Amalkites, the twelve chiefs of Bani Isra'il
returned to their people at Ariha. They told Sayyidna Musa WILL
about these unusual people and how unbelievable was their power and
grandeur. Whatever they said to him left his heart unmoved because
Allah Ta'ala had already given him the good news of victory over them
through revelation.
So, despite having heard about the power of his enemy, he stood

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Surah Al-Ma'idah : 5 : 20 - 26
like a rock making preparations for the Jihad initiative. But, he had
realized the danger that, should the Bani Isra'il come to hear about
this unusual strength of their adversary, they would cringe and back
out. Therefore, he instructed those twelve chiefs not to talk about the
Amalkites before their people, in fact, he asked them to keep this as a
guarded secret. But, what actually happened was that everyone from
among them passed on the information to their respective friends pri-
vately. There were only two of them, Yusha' ibn Nun and Kalib ibn
Yu'qina, who strictly followed the instructions of Sayyidna Musa Je
JI and did not disclose the secret to anyone.
When ten out of the twelve chiefs let the secret out, it was only
natural that the secret became public knowledge. Hit by the news of
conditions prevailing in the enemy country, they were all upset. Wail-
ing and protesting, they said: It would have been much better if we too
had been drowned in the Nile like the people of the Pharaoh! Now
those who saved us there have brought us here to be killed at the
hands of those tyrants! It was under these conditions that the Bani
Isra'il said the following words:
يُمْوُسَى إِنَّ فِيْهَا قَوْمًا جَبَّارِيُنَ وَإِنَّا لَنْ تَدْخُلَهَا حَتّى يَخْرُجُوا مِنْهَا
They said, "O Musa, there is a nation of tyrants over there and
we shall never go in there until they get out of it. If they do
get out of it, we are ready to go in."
It appears in the next verse (23) that two persons, God-fearing and
blessed by Allah, hearing the remarks made by the Bani Isra'il, gave
them some good counsel by saying: Why are you so scared of death
much before it has come? Just take a few steps. The gate of the city of
Baytul-Maqdis is not far. Take heart and make your move. Only this
much of your action, we believe, will become the cause of your victory.
Once you enter the gate of Baytul-Maqdis, you will overcome your ene-
my who would run in defeat. These two persons mentioned in this
verse are, according to most commentators, the same two of the twelve
chiefs who had faithfully acted upon the advice given by Sayyidna
Musa WJIul and had abstained from telling the Bani Isra'il every-
thing about the Amalkites - that is, Yusha' ibn Nun and Kalib ibn
Yu'qina.

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At this place, the Holy Qur'an has particularly mentioned two at-
tributes of these two elders: (1) : 3404 @Jf, that is, 'those who fear.' Not
said here is as to who it is that they fear. The hint thus given is that
there is only one Being in this whole world who deserves to be feared,
that is, Allah Jalla Sha'nuhu , because He is the Absolute Master of
this entire universe. No one can, without His will and permission,
bring the least benefit to anyone, nor cause any harm - and when only
one Being is deserving of being feared, and that is already determined,
then, there remains no need to redetermine it.
The second attribute of these two elders pointed to by the Holy
Qur'an is: (2): musí, that is, 'Allah had blessed them.' The hint giv-
en here is that whoever has any excellence in him anywhere, that is
nothing but the blessing and favour of Allah Ta'ala - otherwise, these
twelve chiefs were all blessed with similar outward gifts of hands, feet,
eyes and ears with reason and sense on the inside, along with the for-
tunate company of Sayyidna Musa WJI . They had all the strengths
on their side, yet they all slipped except these two who stood firm on
their committment. This tells us that real guidance does not depend
upon one's strength of inward and outward faculties or his effort or
deed. Instead, it is a reward from Allah Ta'ala. However, to become de-
serving of this reward, effort and deed are, no doubt, a condition.
The standard rule of conduct we learn from here is that a person
whom Allah Ta'ala has blessed with reason, intelligence and smart-
ness should not wax proud over these personal strengths while con-
ducting the business of his life. The best course for him is to seek good
guidance in all matters of his life from Allah alone.
In short, these two elders advised their people that they should not
feel nervous about the apparent power of the Amalkites. If they would
place their trust in Allah, just walk upto the gate of Baytul-Maqdis,
victory shall be theirs. As for the decisive statement of these elders
that once they reach the city gate, they will overcome and the enemy
will run away defeated, it could have been based on a close assessment
of the Amalkites, that they were, no doubt, unusually huge in built
and strength, but were also weak at heart as a result of which, once
they hear about the surprise attack, they would be unable to stay
there. And it is also possible that their total faith in the Divine decree

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Surah Al-Ma'idah : 5: 20 - 26
which they had heard from Sayyidna Musa WI ule as a glad tiding was
the basis on which they said so.
But the Bani Isra'il who had not listened to their own prophet
Sayyidna Musa WJIule would have hardly listened to these elders.
They gave them the same response, even in a manner which was more
uncouth and grotesque. They said: ◌َفَاذْهَبُ أَنْتَ وَرَبُّكَ فَقَاتِلاَ إِنَّا مُهُنَا فُعِدُون (So go, you
and your Lord, and fight. As for us, we are sitting right here). Had this
remark of the Bani Isra'il been by way of mockery, it would have been
open blasphemy (Kufr). After that, the fact of Sayyidna Musa JI de
living with them and praying for them in the wilderness of Tih which
finds mention in the next verse would have not been possible.
Therefore, the sense of this statement given by leading
commentators is: 'You go and fight them. Your Lord will help you. As
for us, we cannot help you.' Given this sense, their statement cannot
be taken as blasphemy, though the response given by them remains
grotesque and hurtful. This is why this statement of the Bani Isra'il
became proverbial.
Let us recollect a related episode from the early period of Islam.
This is the Battle of Badr. An army contingent of a thousand strong
youngmen starts marching against Muslims, who are hungry and al-
صلى الله عليه وسلم most unarmed. Seeing this happen, the Holy Prophet
started praying before his Lord. Then, a Şahabi, Sayyidna Miqdad ibn
al-Aswad me Ul, stepped forward and said: 'Ya Rasul Allah , we
swear by Allah we shall never say what was said to Sayyidna Musa de
So go, you and) فَاذْهَبُ أَنْتَ وَرَبُّكَ فَقَاتِلاَ إِنَّا هُهُنَا فُعِدُونَ : by his people, that is السلام
your Lord, and fight. As for us, we are sitting right here). Instead of
that, we shall defend you from your right and left and from the front
and rear. Please feel free of any concern and go ahead with your battle
plan.
When he heard this, the Holy Prophet صلى الله عليه وسلم was very
pleased, and his Companions too were fired with a renewed zeal for Ji-
had. Sayyidna 'Abdullah ibn Mas'ud as Ul, always used to say: 'I
really envy this feat of Miqdad ibn al-Aswad. I wish I too had this good
fortune.'
In gist, the people of Sayyidna Musa WJule, by giving him a flat

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response at such a crucial time, broke all pledges they had made.
The Determination of Sayyidna Musa WJI ul against the Treach-
ery of his People
The prayer of Sayyidna Musa قَالَ رَبِّ إِنِّيٌ لاَ آَمُلِكُ إِلَّ نَفْسِىُ: عليه السلام (He said,
"O My Lord, I have no control except over myself" should be seen in
the perspective of the events in the life of the people of Bani Isra'il, the
favours of Allah bestowed upon them and the conduct of their prophet,
Sayyidna Musa WJI u in their case. An impartial observer would not
fail to notice that the people of Bani Isra'il had been suffering from all
sorts of pain and disgrace as slaves and serfs of the Pharaohs for cen-
turies. It was the teaching of Sayyidna Musa WJI ule, and his barakah
by virtue of which Allah Ta'ala blessed them with unprecedented sta-
tions. With their own eyes, they saw so many manifestations of the
most perfect power of Allah Jalla Sha'nuhu . The Pharaoh and the peo-
ple of Pharaoh were defeated on their own grounds, in the Court con-
frontation summoned by them at the hands of Sayyidna Musa and
Sayyidna Harun, peace be upon both of them. The magicians they had
trusted were the magicians who placed their trust in Sayyidna Musa
lule and elected to stay by his side. Then, there was the Pharaoh,
the one who claimed to be God, and alongwith him, there were so
many members of his family who lived in luxury in the royal palace.
And then, their eyes saw how the great subduing power of Allah, the
Mighty, the Exalted, made all of them vacate all palaces and mansions
they lived in and leave behind all they once owned, all simultaneously,
in a single sweep of time. And how He drowned the Pharaoh in the sea
with Bani Isra'il looking on the spectacle and how did He make the
miracle of Bani Isra'il themselves cross the river. And finally, how was
the wealth, over which the Pharaoh waxed proud by saying: 22 Její
Is it not that this land of Egypt is for me and) مِصْرَ وَ هذِهِ أُلاَنُهُوْ تَجْرِىُ مِنْ تَحْتِى
these are rivers which flow from beneath me?) given out by Allah
Ta'ala, the entire country and the entire wealth, without any fighting
or killing, to the Bani Isra'il !
These were great happenings. These people were direct witnesses
to the manifestations of Allah's supreme power to subdue. No less was
the good done to them by Sayyidna Musa >JI _ who first delivered
them from heedlessness and ignorance and then freed them from the

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slavery of the Pharaoh facing unbearable hardships in that process.
After all that, when these very people were commanded to mount a Ji-
had on Syria, of course with assurances of Divine help and promises of
rewards, they betrayed their mean nature and said: jus deres3
@ (So go, you and your Lord, and fight. As for us, we are sitting
right here). Let the greatest possible reformer in the world stop for a
while, cross his hand over his heart and think what effect such low at-
titudes demonstrated by the people he was working for would have
produced on him. But, here we are talking about a highly determined
Rasul of Allah who stands there as an immovable model of steadfast-
ness, despite all odds, and pursuing his goal relentlessly.
Now that he was made helpless by repeated breaches of trust com-
mitted by his people, he turns to his Lord and to Him he says only this
much : إنّى لاَ امُلِكُ إِلَّ نَفُسِى وَآَخِى (I have no control except over myself and my
brother). And the problem was how could he now carry out the Jihad
expedition against the Amalkites? Also worth noticing is the fact that
there were at least two chiefs of the Bani Isra'il, Yusha' ibn Nun and
Kalib ibn Yu'qina, who had proved themselves to have been faithful
followers of Sayyidna Musa >JI de and had made consistent efforts
with him to give good counsel to their people and bring them to the
right path. Still at this time, he made no mention of them as well. He
simply talked about himself and his brother, Sayyidna Harun WILLe.
It had no other cause but the same treachery and disobedience of the
people of Bani Isra'il. Sayyidna Harun >JI Lle, being a prophet was the
only one Divinely protected there. That he would stand firm by the
truth in word and deed was certain. As for the two chiefs, they were
not so protected and infallible. So, being in pain and anger, he men-
tioned only those he was certain would stand firm on truth - 'I have no
control except over myself and my brother.'
فَافُرُقٌ :made after that was عليه السلام The prayer that Sayyidna Musa
So, make a separation between us and the sinning) بَيْنَنَا وَبَيْنَ الْقَوْمِ الْفُسِقِيْنَ
people). The substance of this prayer, according to an explanation giv-
en by Sayyidna 'Abdullah ibn 'Abbas _ July»), was that 'the punish-
ment these people deserved should be given to them; and whatever we
are found to be deserving of should be awarded to us.'
The manner in which Allah Ta'ala answered this prayer was: Qu

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Surah Al-Ma'idah : 5 : 20 - 26
This [land] is prohibited to them for forty) مُحَرَّمَةٌ عَلَيْهِمْ آَرُبَعِيْنَ سَنَّةٌ، يَتِيُهُوُنَ فِى الْأَرْضِ
years. They shall be wandering around the earth). It means that the
land of Syria was forbidden for them for forty years. They shall not go
there, even if they wanted to. And not simply that they would be un-
able to go to the land of Syria, they would also be unable to return
back to their homeland of Egypt, if they thought of going there. In-
stead of that, they shall be detained in this wilderness.
For punishments that come from Allah Almighty who needs the po-
lice and their handcuffs or the high and strong walls and iron-gates of
prisons? When He intends to detain anyone, He needs none of these
formal arrangements. He can put one under arrest even on grounds
open from all sides. The reason is obvious. The whole universe is at
His command. It was created by Him and from Him it takes its orders.
When the universe is served with Divine orders to put someone under
arrest, the air and the atmosphere and the earth and the space become
the jailor for the condemned.
So, this open land area located between Egypt and Baytul-Maqdis
is comparatively small. Its measurement, according to the Tafsir of
Sayyidna Muqatil At , is thirty Farsakh in length and nine Farsakh
in width. If one Farsakh is taken to be equal to three miles, it comes to
be a total area of ninty miles in length and twenty seven miles in
width. And according to some narrations, the whole area is thirty by
eighteen miles. Thus, Allah Ta'ala detained a whole people whose total
number, according to the statement of Sayyidna Muqatil Jul , was
six hundred thousand, restricting them within this small open ground
in a manner that they kept struggling for full forty years to somehow
get out of this open land area and return back to Egypt, or go forward
and reach Baytul-Maqdis. But, what actually happened was that by
the time came evening after a whole day's journey, they discovered
that they have been as if moving in a circle having returned to the
same spot from where they had started in the morning.
Authentic scholars of Tafsir say that the punishment Allah Jalla
Sha'nuhu gives to a people is in proportion to their evil deed. Since
these disobedient people had uttered the words: 3 ( G) (we are sit-
ting right here), Allah Ta'ala had them detained right there for forty
years in punishment. Historical accounts in this matter differ. Some

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Surah Al-Ma'idah : 5 : 20 - 26
say that during these forty years, the present generation which had
disobeyed was totally destroyed. Their next generation survived and it
was this generation which, after having been delivered from this forty-
year detention, entered Baytul-Maqdis; or, there were some people
from the earlier generation who were still surviving. However, there
was that promise of the Holy Qur'an: Ritu css (that is, Allah has des-
tined the Holy Land of Syria for the Bani Isra'il). That promise had to
be fulfilled, that the Bani Isra'il should take it over and rule the land.
But, the people of Bani Isra'il present during that time elected to ig-
nore this Divine award for which they were duly punished: il
segí that is, they were deprived of victory over the Holy Land for
forty years. Then, it was at the hands of their next generation, that
this country was conquered, and the promise of Allah Ta'ala stood ful-
filled.
In this wilderness of Tih, Sayyidna Musa and Harun ,WJI L+ were
with their people for whom this wilderness was nothing but detention
and punishment, while, for these two blessed souls, it was the fountain
head of Divine blessings. This is why this period of forty years during
which the Bani Isra'il were condemned was still full of many silver lin-
ings. Such was the barakah of the presence of Sayyidna Musa and Ha-
run WILL among them, that Allah Ta'ala showered on them bless-
ings of many kinds. When they became helpless against the scorching
sun over their heads in an open field, Allah Ta'ala, answering the
prayer of Sayyidna Musa >LJI ule, stretched out a canopy of clouds over
their heads. Wherever they went, these clouds would follow them with
their shade. When they complained of thirst and the shortage of water,
Allah Ta'ala gave Sayyidna Musa WJI Le a special stone which went
with him wherever he went, and when they needed water, Sayyidna
Musa WI _ would strike it with his staff and twelve streams would
gush forth from it. When they were hit by hunger, the heavenly food of
Mann and Salva was sent to them. And when they complained about
the darkness during nights, Allah Ta'ala provided for them a tower of
light under the light of which they did what they had to do.
To sum up, this wilderness of Tih was not full of condemned people
only. In fact, there were two dear prophets of Allah Ta'ala and with
them two favoured elders, Yusha' ibn Nun and Kalib ibn Yu'qina, as

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well. It was for their sake that, even during this period of detention
and punishment, blessings kept coming to them. And since Allah
Ta'ala is the Most Merciful of all those merciful, it is possible that
these once disobedient people from the Bani Isra'il, after having wit-
nessed the happenings around them, may have repented from their
sins and may be it was in return for their act of repentance that they
were being blessed with these rewards.
According to authentic narrations, it was during this period of forty
years that Sayyidna Harun JI died. Then, after a year or six
month, came the death of Sayyidna Musa >JILL. After them, Allah
Ta'ala appointed the revered elder, Yusha' ibn Nun as a prophet and
gave him the mission of guiding the Bani Isra'il. When the period of
forty years of detention was over, the remaining people of Bani Isra'il
got together under the leadership of Sayyidna Yusha' ibn Nun and
marched towards Baytul-Maqdis on this mission of Jihad. True to the
promise of Allah Ta'ala, they conquered Syria and the wealth of the
land they inherited was unimaginable.
That it has been said: ◌َفَلاَ تَأْسَ عَلَى الْقَوْمِ الْفُسِقِيْن (so do not grieve for the
sinning people) at the end of verse 26 has a basis, for the blessed
prophets, may peace be upon them all, are endowed with a natural dis-
position which makes it impossible for them to bear by the pain and
hardship of their people. Even if they are punished, the prophets too
are affected emotionally. Therefore, Sayyidna Musa >.JILL has been
comforted here that he should not grieve over the punishment given to
those people.
Verses 27 - 32
وَاتْلُ عَلَيْهِمْ نَبَّاَ ابْنَىْ ادَمَ بِالْحَقِّ ، إِذْ قَرَّبَا قُرْبَانًا فَتُقُتِّلَ مِنْ
أَحَدِهِمَا وَلَمْ يُتَقَبَّلُ مِنَ الْآخِرِ ، قَالَ لَاَ قُلَنَّكَ ﴾ قَالَ إِنَّا يَتَقَبَّلُ
اللهُ مِنَ الْتَّقِّيْنَ ﴿٢٧﴾ لَئِنْ بَسَطْتَّ إِلَىَّ يَدَكَ لِتَقْتُلَنِىْ مَآ أَنَا
بِبَاسِطٍ تَدِىَّ إِلَيْكَ لِأَ قُتُلَكَ إِنِّىَ آَخَافُ اللّهَ رَبِّ الْعُلَمِيْنَ
﴿٢٨﴾ إِنِّى أُرِيْدُ أَنْ تَبُوْاَ بِإِنِّمِىٌ وَإِثْمِكَ فَتَكُوْنَ مِنْ أَصُحبٍ

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Surah Al-Ma'idah : 5 : 27 - 32
الثَّارِ، وَ ذَلِكَ جَؤًا الظُّلِمِيْنَ ﴿٢٩﴾ فَطَوَّعَتْ لَهُ نَفْسُهُ قَتْلَ
اَخِيْهِ فَقَتَلَهُ فَأَصْبَحَ مِنَ الْخُسِرِيْنَ ﴿٣٠﴾ فَبَعَثَ اللّهُ غُرَابًا
◌َتَّبْحَثُ فِى الْأَرْضِ لِيُرِيَةً كَيُفَ يُوَارِئْ سَوْءَةَ آَخِيْهٍ، قَالَ
يُوَ يُلَثَى أَجَزْتُ أَنْ آَكُوُنَ مِثْلَ هُذَا الْغُرَابٍ فَأُوَارِىَ سَوْءَةً
آَخِىُّ فَأَصْبَحَ مِنَ التُّدِمِيْنَ ﴿٣٢) مِنْ آَجُلٍ ذَلِكَ أَ كْتَبْنَا عَلَى
بَنِىَ إِسْرَائِجْلَ أَنَّهْ مَنْ قَتَلَ نَفْسًا، بِغَيْرِ نَفْسٍ أَوْ فَسَادٍ فِى
الْأَرْضِ فَكَتَمَا قَتَلَ النَّاسَ جَمِيعًا ، وَمَنْ أَحْيَاهَا فَكََّ آَخُيَا
النَّاسَ جَمِيْعًا، وَلَقَدْ جَآءَتْهُمُ رُسُلُنَا بِالْبَيِّئْتِ، ثُمَّ إِنَّ كَغِيْرًا
مِنْهُمُ بَعْدَ ذَلِكَ فِى الْأَرْضِ لَسْرِفُونَ ﴿٣٢﴾
And recite to them the story of the two sons of Adam
truthfully. When they both offered a sacrifice, then it
was accepted from one of them and was not accepted
from the other. He said, "I will kill you." He said, "Allah
accepts only from the God-fearing. [27] If you stretch
your hand towards me to kill me, I am not going to
stretch my hand towards you to kill you. Of course, I
fear Allah, the Lord of the worlds. [28] I would rather
have you earn my sin and your sin and then become
one of the people of the Fire. And that is the punish-
ment of the unjust." [29]
His self, however, prompted him to kill his brother, so
he killed him and became one of the losers. [30] Then,
Allah sent a crow who was scratching the earth to
show him how he should hide the corpse of his brother.
He said, "Alas! Was I not even able to be like this crow
so that I could hide the corpse of my brother? So, he
stood regretful. [31]
For this reason, We prescribed for the children of Isra'il
that whoever kills a person not (to retaliate) for a per-
son killed nor (to punish) for spreading disorder in the
earth, is as if he has killed the whole mankind, and
whoever saves the life of a person is as if he has saved
the life of the whole mankind. And certainly, Our mes-

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sengers have come to them with clear signs. Then, after
all that, many of them are there to commit excesses on
the earth. [32]
Commentary
The Story of Habil (Abel) and Qabil (Cain)
In these verses, Allah Ta'ala has instructed the Holy Prophet Ji
duy ude that he should relate the story of the two sons of Adam truthful-
ly to the people of the Book, or to the whole Ummah.
People who are blessed with insight into the Holy Qur'an know
that it is no book of folklore, fiction or history where the purpose is to
relate an event from the beginning to the end. But, events of the past
and accounts of earlier peoples carry many lessons and wise counsels
within their fold. That is the real essence of history. Then, in them,
there are such conditions and circumstances as form the basis of dif-
ferent religious injunctions. In view of these very beneficial considera-
tions, the Qur'an employs a methodology of its own throughout the
text. It would, when the occasion warrants, narrate an event. Most of-
ten, it would not narrate the whole event in one sequence and at one
place. In fact, preference is given to narrating a particular segment
from it which bears some element of purpose and is relevant at the
given place.
This story of the two sons of Adam ->Jude is being narrated here in
the same style. It has many lessons and good counsels for the present
and future generations; and under them, mention has been made of
many religious injunctions.
We shall proceed by explaining the words used in the text of the
Qur'an following which you will have an idea of the main story, and af-
ter that we shall be talking about injunctions and rulings contained
therein.
In the previous verses, mentioned there was the command of Jihad
given to the Bani Isra'il and how cowardly and evasive they turned out
to be in response. Set in contrast, the present story condemns unjust
killing and the destruction it brings in its wake. The purpose is to
bring the people to adhere to moderation and balance in this matter,
for the way it is an error to cringe and back out from fighting and kill-