In the name of Allah, the Most Gracious, the Most Merciful.
A summary of the Tafsir of al-Tabari.
Abridged by Dr. Aqil Ibn Salim al-Shammari.
Surah al-A'raf.
In the name of Allah, the Most Gracious, the Most Merciful.
“And when We did appoint for Moses thirty nights (of solitude), and added to them ten, and he completed the whole time appointed by his Lord of forty nights; and Moses said unto his brother, Aaron: Take my place among the people. Do right, and follow not the way of mischief-makers.” (7:142)
And We completed them with ten.
And We completed them with ten.
“And when We did appoint for Moses thirty nights (of solitude), and added to them ten, and he completed the whole time appointed by his Lord of forty nights; and Moses said unto his brother, Aaron: Take my place among the people. Do right, and follow not the way of mischief-makers.” (7:142)
“And when We did appoint for Moses thirty nights (of solitude), and added to them ten, and he completed the whole time appointed by his Lord of forty nights; and Moses said unto his brother, Aaron: Take my place among the people. Do right, and follow not the way of mischief-makers.” (7:142)
“And when We did appoint for Moses thirty nights (of solitude), and added to them ten, and he completed the whole time appointed by his Lord of forty nights; and Moses said unto his brother, Aaron: Take my place among the people. Do right, and follow not the way of mischief-makers.” (7:142)
“And when We did appoint for Moses thirty nights (of solitude), and added to them ten, and he completed the whole time appointed by his Lord of forty nights; and Moses said unto his brother, Aaron: Take my place among the people. Do right, and follow not the way of mischief-makers.” (7:142)
And We appointed for Musa a time for Our communion of thirty nights.
And We completed the thirty nights.
With ten nights, the period was completed to forty nights.
Thus, the time Allah promised Musa was completed to forty nights, and he reached it.
“And when We did appoint for Moses thirty nights (of solitude), and added to them ten, and he completed the whole time appointed by his Lord of forty nights; and Moses said unto his brother, Aaron: Take my place among the people. Do right, and follow not the way of mischief-makers.” (7:142)
Be my successor among them until I return.
And reform them by leading them to the obedience and worship of Allah.
And do not follow the path of those who spread corruption on earth by disobeying their Lord.
But follow the path of those who obey their Lord.
“And when Moses came to Our appointed tryst and his Lord had spoken unto him, he said: My Lord! Show me (Thy Self), that I may gaze upon Thee. He said: Thou wilt not see Me, but gaze upon the mountain! If it stand still in its place, then thou wilt see Me. And when his Lord revealed (His) glory to the mountain He sent it crashing down. And Moses fell down senseless. And when he woke he said: Glory unto Thee! I turn unto Thee repentant, and I am the first of (true) believers.” (7:143)
He said, "My Lord, show me [Yourself] that I may look at You."
“And when Moses came to Our appointed tryst and his Lord had spoken unto him, he said: My Lord! Show me (Thy Self), that I may gaze upon Thee. He said: Thou wilt not see Me, but gaze upon the mountain! If it stand still in its place, then thou wilt see Me. And when his Lord revealed (His) glory to the mountain He sent it crashing down. And Moses fell down senseless. And when he woke he said: Glory unto Thee! I turn unto Thee repentant, and I am the first of (true) believers.” (7:143)
“And when Moses came to Our appointed tryst and his Lord had spoken unto him, he said: My Lord! Show me (Thy Self), that I may gaze upon Thee. He said: Thou wilt not see Me, but gaze upon the mountain! If it stand still in its place, then thou wilt see Me. And when his Lord revealed (His) glory to the mountain He sent it crashing down. And Moses fell down senseless. And when he woke he said: Glory unto Thee! I turn unto Thee repentant, and I am the first of (true) believers.” (7:143)
“And when Moses came to Our appointed tryst and his Lord had spoken unto him, he said: My Lord! Show me (Thy Self), that I may gaze upon Thee. He said: Thou wilt not see Me, but gaze upon the mountain! If it stand still in its place, then thou wilt see Me. And when his Lord revealed (His) glory to the mountain He sent it crashing down. And Moses fell down senseless. And when he woke he said: Glory unto Thee! I turn unto Thee repentant, and I am the first of (true) believers.” (7:143)
“And when Moses came to Our appointed tryst and his Lord had spoken unto him, he said: My Lord! Show me (Thy Self), that I may gaze upon Thee. He said: Thou wilt not see Me, but gaze upon the mountain! If it stand still in its place, then thou wilt see Me. And when his Lord revealed (His) glory to the mountain He sent it crashing down. And Moses fell down senseless. And when he woke he said: Glory unto Thee! I turn unto Thee repentant, and I am the first of (true) believers.” (7:143)
“And when Moses came to Our appointed tryst and his Lord had spoken unto him, he said: My Lord! Show me (Thy Self), that I may gaze upon Thee. He said: Thou wilt not see Me, but gaze upon the mountain! If it stand still in its place, then thou wilt see Me. And when his Lord revealed (His) glory to the mountain He sent it crashing down. And Moses fell down senseless. And when he woke he said: Glory unto Thee! I turn unto Thee repentant, and I am the first of (true) believers.” (7:143)
And when Musa came at the time We had promised him to meet Us.
And his Lord spoke to him, Musa said to his Lord, "Show me [Yourself] that I may look at You."
Allah said to him in response, "You will not see Me, but look at the mountain."
“And when Moses came to Our appointed tryst and his Lord had spoken unto him, he said: My Lord! Show me (Thy Self), that I may gaze upon Thee. He said: Thou wilt not see Me, but gaze upon the mountain! If it stand still in its place, then thou wilt see Me. And when his Lord revealed (His) glory to the mountain He sent it crashing down. And Moses fell down senseless. And when he woke he said: Glory unto Thee! I turn unto Thee repentant, and I am the first of (true) believers.” (7:143)
When the Lord manifested His glory to the mountain, Allah leveled the mountain to the ground.
And Musa fell unconscious.
And when Musa, peace be upon him, recovered from his unconsciousness, he said:
"Exalted are You, my Lord, and I declare You free from the possibility that anyone in this world could see You."
"I repent to You for my request to You, for what I asked of seeing You."
"And I am the first of the believers among the Children of Israel from my people."
"No one in this world can see You and survive."
“He said: O Moses! I have preferred thee above mankind by My messages and by My speaking (unto thee). So hold that which I have given thee, and be among the thankful.” (7:144)
[Allah said], "With My messages and My speech, so take what I have given you and be among the grateful."
Allah said to Musa:
"O Musa, I have chosen you over the people with My messages to My creation."
"I have sent you with them to them, and with My speech."
"And I spoke to you and held communion with you, unlike any other of My creation."
"So take what I have given you of My commands and prohibitions, and hold fast to it."
"And be among those grateful to Allah for what He has given you of His message."
“And We wrote for him, upon the tablets, the lesson to be drawn from all things and the explanation of all things, then (bade him): Hold it fast; and command thy people (saying): Take the better (course made clear) therein. I shall show thee the abode of evil-livers.” (7:145)
“And We wrote for him, upon the tablets, the lesson to be drawn from all things and the explanation of all things, then (bade him): Hold it fast; and command thy people (saying): Take the better (course made clear) therein. I shall show thee the abode of evil-livers.” (7:145)
"I will show you the home of the defiantly disobedient."
And We wrote for Musa on the tablets a reminder and an admonition regarding the greatness of Allah.
An instruction for his people and an explanation of everything regarding the commands and prohibitions of Allah.
And We said to Musa, "Take the tablets with determination."
And command your people, the Children of Israel, to act upon the best of what they find in them.
Take them with seriousness and diligence in acting upon what is within them.
For whoever among them or others associates partners with Me.
I will show him in the Hereafter the home of the defiantly disobedient.
And it is the Fire of Allah which He has prepared for His enemies.
Allah informed that He will turn away from His proofs and signs those who are arrogant on earth without right, regarding the truth of what He commanded His servants.
And every existing thing of His creation is one of His signs.
And the Qur'an is also one of His signs.
He will turn away from His signs those who are arrogant on earth without right.
And they denied Our signs and were heedless of them.
Allah informed that He will turn away from His proofs and signs those who are arrogant on earth without right, regarding the truth of what He commanded His servants.
And if these people who are arrogant on earth without right see:
Every proof of Allah regarding His oneness and His Lordship.
They do not believe that this sign is evidence for what it is intended to prove.
And if they see the path of guidance and rectitude.
They do not follow it nor take it as a path for themselves.
Out of ignorance and confusion on their part.
And if they see the path of destruction.
They follow it and take it as a path for themselves.
Because Allah turned them away from His signs.
That is a punishment from Us for them for their denial of Our signs.
And they were heedless of Our signs, not reflecting upon them.
They are distracted from them, not taking heed from them.
Are they recompensed except for what they used to do?
And the Children of Israel, the people of Musa, took:
After Musa had departed from them.
Proceeding to his Lord.
And they were wrongdoers.
And the Children of Israel, the people of Musa, took:
After Musa had departed from them.
Proceeding to his Lord for his communion.
From their ornaments, a calf—a body that had the sound of a cow.
And they worshipped it.
Did they not see, those who devoted themselves to the calf, worshipping it:
That the calf could not speak to them nor guide them to any path?
They took the calf as a god.
And by taking it as a worshipped lord, they were:
Wronging themselves.
By worshipping other than the One who alone deserves worship.
When they realized their error and saw that they had gone astray, they said, "If our Lord does not have mercy upon us and forgive us, we will surely be among the losers."
And when those who worshipped the calf felt remorse upon Musa's return to them, and they submitted to Musa and his judgment regarding them, and saw that they had deviated from the right path and disbelieved in their Lord, they said:
"If our Lord does not show us compassion through repentance and His mercy, and cover our sins with it, we will surely be among the ruined whose deeds have come to nothing."
And when Musa returned to his people, angry and grieved, he said, "How wretched is that which you have done in my place after me."
“And when Moses returned unto his people, angry and grieved, he said: Evil is that (course) which ye took after I had left you. Would ye hasten on the judgment of your Lord? And he cast down the tablets, and he seized his brother by the head, dragging him toward him. He said: Son of my mother! Lo! the folk did judge me weak and almost killed me. Oh, make not mine enemies to triumph over me and place me not among the evil-doers.” (7:150)
“And when Moses returned unto his people, angry and grieved, he said: Evil is that (course) which ye took after I had left you. Would ye hasten on the judgment of your Lord? And he cast down the tablets, and he seized his brother by the head, dragging him toward him. He said: Son of my mother! Lo! the folk did judge me weak and almost killed me. Oh, make not mine enemies to triumph over me and place me not among the evil-doers.” (7:150)
And when Musa returned to his people among the Children of Israel, he returned angry and grieved because Allah had informed him that He had tested his people and that the Samiri had led them astray.
Musa said, "How wretched is the deed you have done after my departure from you; you have hastened the command of your Lord in your own souls and turned away from it."
And Musa threw down the tablets out of his anger at his people for their worship of the calf, and he seized his brother by the head, dragging him toward him.
Due to his resentment toward his brother Harun for failing to follow him.
Harun said, appealing to his compassion for him by the kinship of his mother, "O son of my mother, the people who devoted themselves to the worship of the calf weakened me and were about to kill me."
"So do not let the enemies rejoice over me, nor include me among the wrongdoers, for I did not disobey your command; rather, the one who disobeyed you and violated your order and worshipped the calf after you has wronged himself."
“He said: My Lord! Have mercy on me and on my brother; bring us into Thy mercy, Thou the Most Merciful of all who show mercy.” (7:151)
Musa said, "My Lord, forgive me," seeking forgiveness for his action toward his brother, "and [forgive] my brother," for any past fault between him and Allah, "cover our sins with a veil from You, and have mercy upon us with Your vast mercy, for You are the most merciful of those who show mercy to Your servants."
“Lo! Those who chose the calf (for worship), terror from their Lord and humiliation will come upon them in the life of the world. Thus do We requite those who invent a lie.” (7:152)
Indeed, those who took the calf as a god will be struck by anger from their Lord, as Allah hastens that for them, and they will be struck by humiliation for their disbelief in their Lord in the immediate life of this world before the deferred life of the Hereafter.
And just as We recompensed those who took the calf as a god, so do We recompense everyone who fabricates lies against Allah, affirming the divinity of another and worshipping something other than Him among the idols, if he does not repent from his disbelief.
But those who committed evil deeds, then repented after them and believed—indeed, your Lord, after that, is Forgiving and Merciful.
He covers their evil deeds for them and does not expose them for them; He is merciful to them and to everyone who is like them.
“Then, when the anger of Moses abated, he took up the tablets, and in their inscription there was guidance and mercy for all those who fear their Lord.” (7:154)
And when Musa's anger subsided, he took the tablets, and in what was written in them was guidance and mercy for those who fear Allah and dread His punishment for His disobedience.
“And Moses chose of his people seventy men for Our appointed tryst and, when the trembling came on them, he said: My Lord! If Thou hadst willed Thou hadst destroyed them long before, and me with them. Wilt thou destroy us for that which the ignorant among us did? It is but Thy trial (of us). Thou sendest whom Thou wilt astray and guidest whom Thou wilt: Thou art our Protecting Friend, therefore forgive us and have mercy on us, Thou, the Best of all who show forgiveness.” (7:155)
“And Moses chose of his people seventy men for Our appointed tryst and, when the trembling came on them, he said: My Lord! If Thou hadst willed Thou hadst destroyed them long before, and me with them. Wilt thou destroy us for that which the ignorant among us did? It is but Thy trial (of us). Thou sendest whom Thou wilt astray and guidest whom Thou wilt: Thou art our Protecting Friend, therefore forgive us and have mercy on us, Thou, the Best of all who show forgiveness.” (7:155)
And Musa chose seventy men from his people for the time and term that Allah had promised him to meet Him, for repentance for what the foolish among them had done regarding the matter of the calf.
And when He caused them to die, taking away their understanding, Musa stood calling upon his Lord, "My Lord, what shall I say to the Children of Israel when I come to them, having destroyed their best?"
"If You had willed, You could have destroyed them before, and me. Would You destroy us for what the foolish among us have done by worshipping the one who worshipped the calf?"
"This act which my people committed is nothing but a trial from You, by which You test them to make clear who goes astray from the truth and who is guided. So forgive us our sins by withholding Your punishment for them, and show us compassion with Your mercy, for You are the best of those who pardon a crime and cover a sin."
"Withhold Your punishment for them, and show compassion with mercy, and mercy is safety."