ؕ وَ لَوۡ لَا دَفۡعُ اللّٰہِ النَّاسَ بَعۡضَہُمۡ بِبَعۡضٍ ۙ لَّفَسَدَتِ الۡاَرۡضُ وَ لٰکِنَّ اللّٰہَ ذُوۡ فَضۡلٍ عَلَی الۡعٰلَمِیۡنَ ﴿۲۵۱

And if Allah did not repel some people by means of others, the earth would have been corrupted — but Allah is full of bounty to all the worlds.”

 “ؕ وَ لَوۡ لَا دَفۡعُ اللّٰہِ النَّاسَ بَعۡضَہُمۡ بِبَعۡضٍ لَّہُدِّمَتۡ صَوَامِعُ وَ بِیَعٌ وَّ صَلَوٰتٌ وَّ مَسٰجِدُ یُذۡکَرُ فِیۡہَا اسۡمُ اللّٰہِ کَثِیۡرًا ؕ

 ‘And if Allah did not repel some people by means of others, there would have been demolished monasteries, churches, synagogues, and mosques in which the name of Allah is much mention’

Q:

Sharing the following from above. It’s hard to understand. Can you comprehend with help of verses like this in other places, explanations of theses verses by other scholars. Dont have to be in word or html documents.
“And if Allah did not repel some people by means of others, the earth would have been corrupted — but Allah is full of bounty to all the worlds.”
“Footnote 82 (Al-Hajj)
The original Arabic uses the words sawāmi’, biya’, and salawāt. A ṣawma’ah refers to a place where monks, ascetics, and world-renouncing devotees reside. Bī’ah is the Arabic term for a Christian place of worship. Ṣalawāt refers to the Jewish place of prayer — called ṣalūtā in Aramaic. It is not unlikely that the English words salute and salutation may have derived from this root, passing through Latin before entering English.
Footnote 83 (Al-Hajj)
That is, it is Allah’s great grace that He has not granted any one group or nation a permanent deed of sovereignty; rather, He continually repels one group through another at appropriate times. For if a single group had ever been given such a permanent deed, not only would fortresses, palaces, seats of power, and centres of industry and commerce have been destroyed — even the houses of worship would not have been spared from their depredations. In Surah Al-Baqarah, this same theme is expressed thus: “And if Allah did not repel some people by means of others, the earth would have been corrupted — but Allah is full of bounty to all the worlds.” (Verse 251)”

A:

This is a profound and important Quranic concept. Let me break it down comprehensively.

The Core Concept: Daf’ — Divine Repulsion as Cosmic Balance
The verse appears in two places:
∙ Al-Baqarah 2:251 — in the context of the story of Saul, Goliath, and David
∙ Al-Hajj 22:40 — in the context of the first permission granted to Muslims to fight back against oppression
The repetition itself is significant — it signals a universal principle, not merely a historical observation.

What Does “Repelling Some by Others” Actually Mean?
The Arabic word is دَفْع (daf’) — to push back, to repel, to ward off. Allah is saying that He has built into the structure of human civilization a self-correcting mechanism: no single power is allowed to dominate permanently and absolutely.
Think of it as a divine check-and-balance system embedded in history itself.

Why Two Different Contexts?
This is crucial to understand, and most readers miss it.
In Al-Baqarah (2:251), the verse comes after the story of David and Goliath. The lesson there is:
A small, faithful group defeated a massive, arrogant army — and if such correction did not happen, the earth would be corrupted.
The corruption referenced here (fasād) is political and social — tyranny going unchecked, oppression becoming permanent.
In Al-Hajj (22:40), the same principle is invoked but the stakes are described more specifically:
”…there would have been demolished monasteries, churches, synagogues, and mosques in which the name of Allah is much mentioned.”
Here the corruption is religious and spiritual — the extinction of all sincere worship of God from the earth.
So Mawdudi’s footnote 83 is pointing out that the same divine law operates on two levels simultaneously — political order AND the preservation of religious life on earth.

What Other Scholars Say
Ibn Kathir
Ibn Kathir in his Tafsir on Al-Baqarah 2:251 explains this as Allah’s wisdom in creating tawāzun — balance — among human groups. He notes that if one nation were given eternal dominion, its corruption would be total and irreversible. The rise and fall of nations is itself a mercy, not merely a punishment.
On Al-Hajj 22:40, Ibn Kathir makes a remarkable point: Allah mentions the protection of non-Muslim houses of worship — synagogues, churches, monasteries — alongside mosques. This shows that the divine principle of daf’ protects all sincere worship, not just Muslim worship. It is a universal mercy.
Al-Tabari
Al-Tabari emphasizes the linguistic dimension — that law (لَوْلَا — “if not for”) signals a counterfactual of mercy. Allah is saying: look at what the world would look like without this law operating. The fact that houses of worship still stand, that tyrannies eventually fall, that the oppressed eventually find relief — these are not accidents of history. They are signs (āyāt) of divine management.
Sayyid Qutb (Fi Zilal al-Quran)
Qutb brings the most emotionally powerful reading. Writing while himself imprisoned, he says this verse is a direct address to the Muslim community in every age of weakness:
The believers are never truly alone. The very structure of history is on their side — not because they are powerful, but because Allah has ordained that no falsehood holds the field forever.
He connects it to the broader Quranic theme that truth and falsehood are in permanent struggle, and Allah has guaranteed that falsehood, however dominant temporarily, carries within it the seeds of its own defeat.
Al-Zamakhshari (Al-Kashshaf)
Al-Zamakhshari, approaching from a linguistic and rational angle, stresses the word فَضْل (fadl — bounty/grace) at the end of the verse. He argues that calling this divine management fadl rather than ’adl (justice) is deliberate — it is not merely that Allah is fair in balancing powers, but that He goes beyond fairness into active grace and generosity toward His creation by ensuring no single tyrant extinguishes all light from the earth.

The Mention of Non-Muslim Worship Places — Why?
Footnote 82 highlights something remarkable that deserves its own attention. The verse in Al-Hajj lists in order:
1. Sawāmi’ — hermitages/monasteries (Christian and possibly others)
2. Biya’ — churches
3. Salawāt — synagogues
4. Masājid — mosques
This sequence, moving from the oldest to the newest form of Abrahamic worship, carries a powerful message: the divine law of daf’ protects all sincere remembrance of Allah across religious communities. Scholars like Ibn ’Ashur (Al-Tahrir wal-Tanwir) note this is one of the clearest Quranic statements of what we might today call freedom of conscience — Allah Himself is the guarantor of religious space for sincere worshippers across traditions.

The Historical Pattern This Describes
The Quranic principle maps onto what historians observe again and again:
∙ The Persian Empire checked by the Greeks; the Greeks by Rome; Rome by the rising Christian kingdoms; those kingdoms checked by Islam; the Islamic caliphate eventually challenged from within and without — no single power held forever.
∙ Every time one power seemed to have permanent dominance, something arose to check it.
The Quran is not merely describing this — it is naming it as Allah’s active governance of history.

The Deepest Point: Fadl, Not Just Justice
Both verses end with:
“But Allah is full of bounty (fadl) to all the worlds.”
This ending is striking. One might expect: “And Allah is All-Powerful” or “All-Knowing.” Instead: bounty.
The message is: this ongoing struggle, this constant repulsion of one people by another, the rise and fall of civilizations — it is not merely the cold mechanics of justice. It is an act of mercy and generosity toward humanity. Without it, the earth would have been handed over to permanent darkness long ago.

Summary in Simple Terms Question Answer from the Verse Why do empires fall? Because Allah does not permit permanent tyranny Why do the weak sometimes defeat the strong? Because Allah repels some through others Who benefits from this law? All of humanity — even non-Muslims What would happen without it? All places of worship — of every tradition — would be destroyed What does Allah call this? Not justice alone — but fadl (grace and bounty)

This is one of the most quietly profound verses in the Quran — a divine theory of history, embedded in a story about David and Goliath, then repeated in the context of the earliest permission for the oppressed to defend themselves. The repetition tells us: this is not circumstantial. It is a law of how Allah governs the world.

Q: Can you please pull verses of Quran which are alleged to be discriminatory between treatment of sexes, based on faith and their rebuttal from Quran and tafaseer

A:1. https://voiceofquran5.com/discriminations-in-islam-allegations-q-a/

A:2. https://voiceofquran5.com/discrimination-in-the-quran-between-believers-and-non-believers/

A:3

Quranic Verses Alleged to be Discriminatory — With Arabic Text, Translation & Rebuttal

1. 📖 AN-NISA 4:34 — Qawwamiyyah
   Arabic:
   ٱلرِّجَالُ قَوَّٰمُونَ عَلَى ٱلنِّسَآءِ بِمَا فَضَّلَ ٱللَّهُ بَعْضَهُمْ عَلَىٰ بَعْضٍ وَبِمَآ أَنفَقُوا۟ مِنْ أَمْوَٰلِهِمْ ۚ فَٱلصَّٰلِحَٰتُ قَٰنِتَٰتٌ حَٰفِظَٰتٌ لِّلْغَيْبِ بِمَا حَفِظَ ٱللَّهُ ۚ وَٱلَّٰتِى تَخَافُونَ نُشُوزَهُنَّ فَعِظُوهُنَّ وَٱهْجُرُوهُنَّ فِى ٱلْمَضَاجِعِ وَٱضْرِبُوهُنَّ ۖ فَإِنْ أَطَعْنَكُمْ فَلَا تَبْغُوا۟ عَلَيْهِنَّ سَبِيلًا ۗ إِنَّ ٱللَّهَ كَانَ عَلِيًّا كَبِيرًا
   Translation:
   “Men are qawwamun (custodians/maintainers) over women, because Allah has made some of them excel over others and because they spend out of their possessions. The righteous women are devoutly obedient, guarding in the husband’s absence what Allah would have them guard. As for those women from whom you fear rebellion, admonish them, and forsake them in bed, and strike them. Then if they obey you, seek no means against them. Surely Allah is Most High, Most Great.”
   The Allegation: Establishes permanent male superiority; the word idribuhunna (strike) is especially contested.
   Rebuttal from Quran & Tafaseer:
   ∙ Qawwam is custodianship, not dominion:* Mawdudi’s Tafheem explains that qawwam or qayyim is a person responsible for administering and supervising the affairs of either an individual or an organization — for protecting and safeguarding them and taking care of their needs. It is a role of financial responsibility, not ontological superiority.
   ∙ Fadl refers to functional differentiation:* Mawdudi clarifies the verb faddala is not used to mean some people have been invested with superior honour and dignity — it refers to differentiation of complementary roles.
   ∙ Idribuhunna — linguistic and contextual nuance:* Classical lexicographers note that daraba in Arabic has over twenty meanings including: to set forth, to separate, to cite an example, to travel. Ibn Abbas (RA), the greatest Companion-exegete, said the strike, if at all, should be ghayr mubarrih — not leaving a mark. The Prophet ﷺ himself said: “The best of you are those who are best to their wives” (Tirmidhi).
   ∙ Egalitarian baseline — Al-Ahzab 33:35:
   إِنَّ ٱلْمُسْلِمِينَ وَٱلْمُسْلِمَٰتِ وَٱلْمُؤْمِنِينَ وَٱلْمُؤْمِنَٰتِ…
   “Indeed, the Muslim men and Muslim women, the believing men and believing women…” — promising identical divine reward to both.
2. 📖 AL-BAQARAH 2:282 — Two Women Witnesses
   Arabic:
   وَٱسْتَشْهِدُوا۟ شَهِيدَيْنِ مِن رِّجَالِكُمْ ۖ فَإِن لَّمْ يَكُونَا رَجُلَيْنِ فَرَجُلٌ وَٱمْرَأَتَانِ مِمَّن تَرْضَوْنَ مِنَ ٱلشُّهَدَآءِ أَن تَضِلَّ إِحْدَىٰهُمَا فَتُذَكِّرَ إِحْدَىٰهُمَا ٱلْأُخْرَىٰ
   Translation:
   “And call to witness two witnesses from among your men; and if two men are not available, then one man and two women from those whom you accept as witnesses — so that if one of them errs, the other may remind her.”
   The Allegation: A woman’s testimony is worth half a man’s — implying inferior intellect or reliability.
   Rebuttal from Quran & Tafaseer:
   ∙ Ishhad vs Shahadah — a critical distinction:* Scholar Muhammad ʿImārah distinguishes between shahādah (formal court testimony) and ishhād (contract attestation). 2:282 pertains only to the latter — a procedural memory safeguard in financial documentation, not a blanket ruling on women’s legal testimony.
   ∙ The tadillu clause is practical, not ontological: An tadilla (lest she err/forget) addresses a specific context — women in 7th-century Arabia were largely excluded from commercial transactions and thus less practiced in them. The second woman’s role is corrective assistance, not independent testimony.
   ∙ A revolutionary step forward: In pre-Islamic Arabia, women had no legal standing as witnesses whatsoever. The Quran’s inclusion was a foundational reform.
   ∙ The Quran accepts a single woman’s testimony elsewhere: In Surah An-Nur 24:6–9, a wife’s single oath (li’an) carries full legal weight equal to her husband’s — demonstrating that gender alone is never the absolute criterion.
3. 📖 AN-NISA 4:11 — Inheritance
   Arabic:
   يُوصِيكُمُ ٱللَّهُ فِىٓ أَوْلَٰدِكُمْ ۖ لِلذَّكَرِ مِثْلُ حَظِّ ٱلْأُنثَيَيْنِ ۚ فَإِن كُنَّ نِسَآءً فَوْقَ ٱثْنَتَيْنِ فَلَهُنَّ ثُلُثَا مَا تَرَكَ ۖ وَإِن كَانَتْ وَٰحِدَةً فَلَهَا ٱلنِّصْفُ
   Translation:
   “Allah commands you regarding your children: the share of the male will be twice that of the female. If there are more than two daughters, they will get two-thirds of what the deceased leaves; if there is only one daughter, she will get half.”
   The Allegation: Women receive half the male inheritance share — economic subordination.
   Rebuttal from Quran & Tafaseer:
   ∙ Financial obligations offset the differential: Mawdudi’s Tafheem explains that since Islamic law imposes greater financial obligations on men — mahr, wife’s full maintenance, children’s expenses — and relieves women of these obligations entirely, justice demands the proportional difference. A woman’s inheritance is hers alone to retain and invest.
   ∙ A revolutionary reform: Ibn Kathir notes that the people of Jahiliyyah gave males but not females any share in inheritance. The Quran mandated a fixed, inviolable female share for the first time in world legal history.
   ∙ Phrasing prioritises women: Instead of saying “for two females, the share of one male,” the Quran says “for the male, the share of two females” — foregrounding the female share as the reference point.
   ∙ Net wealth often favours women: When factoring in mahr (received, not spent), exemption from all maintenance obligations, and full retention of earnings and inheritance, classical scholars like Ibn al-Qayyim argue women frequently accumulate greater disposable wealth.
   ∙ Women can receive more in other scenarios: A sole-daughter heir takes half the estate independently. In kalalah (no direct descendants), brothers and sisters share equally (4:176). The 2:1 ratio is situational, not universal.
4. 📖 AL-BAQARAH 2:228 — Men Have a Darajah
   Arabic:
   وَلَهُنَّ مِثْلُ ٱلَّذِى عَلَيْهِنَّ بِٱلْمَعْرُوفِ ۚ وَلِلرِّجَالِ عَلَيْهِنَّ دَرَجَةٌ ۗ وَٱللَّهُ عَزِيزٌ حَكِيمٌ
   Translation:
   “And women have rights similar to the rights against them, in a just manner — but men have a degree (darajah) above them. And Allah is Exalted in Might and Wise.”
   The Allegation: Men are granted a higher status over women categorically.
   Rebuttal from Quran & Tafaseer:
   ∙ Darajah is contextual — divorce law, not metaphysics:* This verse occurs within the context of divorce (talaq) proceedings. The darajah is universally interpreted by classical mufassireen — Tabari, Zamakhshari, Razi, Ibn Kathir — as referring specifically to the husband’s unilateral initiation of talaq, which comes with the corresponding obligations of ’iddah support and deferred mahr payment. It is a degree of legal responsibility and financial liability.
   ∙ The preceding clause negates blanket superiority: “وَلَهُنَّ مِثْلُ ٱلَّذِى عَلَيْهِنَّ” — “Women have rights similar to those against them” — is one of the most sweeping mutual-rights declarations in any 7th-century text.
5. 📖 The Quranic Rebuttals — Verses of Absolute Spiritual Equality
   Al-Hujurat 49:13:
   يَٰٓأَيُّهَا ٱلنَّاسُ إِنَّا خَلَقْنَٰكُم مِّن ذَكَرٍ وَأُنثَىٰ وَجَعَلْنَٰكُمْ شُعُوبًا وَقَبَآئِلَ لِتَعَارَفُوٓا۟ ۚ إِنَّ أَكْرَمَكُمْ عِندَ ٱللَّهِ أَتْقَىٰكُمْ
   “O mankind! We created you from a male and a female, and made you into nations and tribes so that you may know one another. Verily the most honourable of you in the sight of Allah is the most righteous among you.” — No gender qualifier whatsoever.
   Al-Imran 3:195:
   فَٱسْتَجَابَ لَهُمْ رَبُّهُمْ أَنِّى لَآ أُضِيعُ عَمَلَ عَٰمِلٍ مِّنكُم مِّن ذَكَرٍ أَوْ أُنثَىٰ ۖ بَعْضُكُم مِّنۢ بَعْضٍ
   “Their Lord responded to them: I will not let the deeds of any worker among you go to waste, whether male or female — you are of one another.”
   An-Nahl 16:97:
   مَنْ عَمِلَ صَٰلِحًا مِّن ذَكَرٍ أَوْ أُنثَىٰ وَهُوَ مُؤْمِنٌ فَلَنُحْيِيَنَّهُۥ حَيَوٰةً طَيِّبَةً
   “Whoever does righteous deeds, male or female, while being a believer — We will grant them a good life.”
   An-Nisa 4:124:
   وَمَن يَعْمَلْ مِنَ ٱلصَّٰلِحَٰتِ مِن ذَكَرٍ أَوْ أُنثَىٰ وَهُوَ مُؤْمِنٌ فَأُو۟لَٰٓئِكَ يَدْخُلُونَ ٱلْجَنَّةَ
   “Whoever does righteous deeds — male or female — while being a believer, it is they who will enter Paradise.”

Overarching Conclusion
The Islamic scholarly tradition — from Ibn Kathir and Tabari through Mawdudi and contemporary scholars — consistently interprets the verses above as addressing functional and legal differentiation within a complementary system, not declarations of ontological or spiritual inferiority. The Quran’s own repeated affirmations of equal spiritual standing, equal divine accountability, and equal reward for righteous deeds for both sexes form the interpretive framework within which all other verses must be read.

Surah Az-Zumar (39:67-70) from Tafheem-ul-Quran (Towards Understanding the Quran) by Syed Abul Ala Maududi

Verse 39:67

Arabic: وَ مَا قَدَرُوا اللّٰهَ حَقَّ قَدْرِهٖ ۖۗ وَ الْاَرْضُ جَمِیْعًا قَبْضَتُهٗ یَوْمَ الْقِیٰمَةِ وَ السَّمٰوٰتُ مَطْوِیّٰتٌۢ بِیَمِیْنِهٖ ؕ سُبْحٰنَهٗ وَ تَعٰلٰی عَمَّا یُشْرِكُوْنَ 

Translation: They did not recognise the true worth of Allah. (Such is Allah’s power that) on the Day of Resurrection the whole earth will be in His grasp, and the heavens shall be folded up in His Right Hand. Glory be to Him! Exalted be He from all that they associate with Him.

Tafseer: The unbelievers are unaware of God’s glory and greatness. They have never fully appreciated His exalted status that makes the deities they worship pale into absolute insignificance. Astonishingly, however, such people look upon the objects which they themselves have made into God’s associates and partners and then consider them to be worthy objects of worship. In order to emphasize God’s absolute control over the heavens and the earth, the Qur’an has recourse to the metaphor ‘and the heavens shall be folded up in His Right Hand’. Just as it is easy for someone to hold a ball in his palm, and doing so does not weary him, so it will be on the Day of Judgement when the heavens and the earth will be rolled up in God’s Hand. This image is especially presented to the unbelievers who are ignorant of God’s greatness and glory so as to impress on them that for God the universe is no greater than a ball or a handkerchief. We find traditions in Ahmad ibn Hanbal, Bukhari, Muslim, Nasa‘i, Ibn Majah and Ibn Jarir al-Tabari on the authority of ‘Abd Allah ibn ‘Umar and Abu Hurayrah to the effect that once when the Prophet (peace be on him) was delivering a sermon from the pulpit he recited this particular verse, adding: God will rotate the heavens and the earths [that is, planets] in His palm, as a child rotates a ball. He will pronounce: ‘I am the One God. I am the King. I am the Irresistible. All greatness belongs to Me. Where are the earthly kings? Where are the tyrants? Where are the mighty ones?’ While recounting these words, the Prophet (peace be on him) shook so violently that the Companions feared that he would collapse on the pulpit. (Bukhari, Kitab Tafsir al-Qur’an, Bab Qawlihi: ‘Wa al-ard jamian qabdatuhu’; Muslim, Kitab Sifat al-Qiyamah wa al-Jannah wa al-Nar; Ahmad ibn Hanbal, Musnad, narrated by ‘Abd Allah ibn ‘Umar; Tabari, Tafsir, comments on Surah al-Zumar 39: 67.) On the one hand is God’s infinite glory. Just bear that in mind and then bring to mind the pettiness of holding other objects as associates with Him in His Godhead. 9

Verse 39:68

Arabic: وَ نُفِخَ فِی الصُّوْرِ فَصَعِقَ مَنْ فِی السَّمٰوٰتِ وَ مَنْ فِی الْاَرْضِ اِلَّا مَنْ شَآءَ اللّٰهُ ؕ ثُمَّ نُفِخَ فِیْهِ اُخْرٰی فَاِذَا هُمْ قِیَامٌ یَّنْظُرُوْنَ 

Translation: And the Trumpet shall be blown and all who are in the heavens and the earth shall fall down dead save those whom Allah wills. Then the Trumpet shall be blown again, and lo! all of them will be standing and looking on.

Tafseer: For an elaboration of the Trumpet, see al-An’‘am 6, n. 48, Towards Understanding the Qur’an, vol. II, p. 244; Ibrahim 14, n. 57, vol. IV, pp. 276-7; Ta Ha 20, n. 78, vol. V, pp. 223-4; and al-Hajj 22, n. 1, vol. VI pp. 5-6. The present verse states that the Trumpet will be blown twice. In Surah al-Naml 27: 58, however, there is reference to a blowing of the Trumpet preceding which all creatures will fall dead with dread and awe. Ahadith, therefore, speak of the blowing of the Trumpet thrice: (i) The first such occasion will fill everyone with awe and dread. (ii) The second will cause everyone’s death. (iii) The third will bring about resurrection. All the dead will rise from their graves to appear before their Lord. 9

Verse 39:69

Arabic: وَ اَشْرَقَتِ الْاَرْضُ بِنُوْرِ رَبِّهَا وَ وُضِعَ الْكِتٰبُ وَ جِایْٓءَ بِالنَّبِیّٖنَ وَ الشُّهَدَآءِ وَ قُضِیَ بَیْنَهُمْ بِالْحَقِّ وَ هُمْ لَا یُظْلَمُوْنَ 

Translation: The earth shall shine with the light of its Lord, and the Scroll (of deeds) shall be set in place, and the Prophets and all witnesses shall be brought, and judgement shall be justly passed among them, and they shall not be wronged;

Tafseer: Included in this are those witnesses who will testify that they had conveyed God’s message to mankind. There will also be those witnesses who will bear testimony to the deeds of people. These latter witnesses may not necessarily be human beings. The angels, the jinn, the animals the limbs of a person’s own body, the physical environment and the trees and stones may also testify to men’s deeds, each in its peculiar manner. 9

Verse 39:70

Arabic: وَ وُفِّیَتْ كُلُّ نَفْسٍ مَّا عَمِلَتْ وَ هُوَ اَعْلَمُ بِمَا یَفْعَلُوْنَ۠

Translation: and everyone shall be paid in full for all that he did. Allah is best aware of all that they do.

Surah Az-Zumar (39:67-70) from Tafheem-ul-Quran by Sayyid Abul Ala Maududi

Verse 67

Arabic Text:
وَمَا قَدَرُواْ اللّهَ حَقَّ قَدْرِهِ وَالأَرْضُ جَمِيعًا قَبْضَتُهُ يَوْمَ الْقِيَامَةِ وَالسَّمَاوَاتُ مَطْوِيَّاتٌ بِيَمِينِهِ سُبْحَانَهُ وَتَعَالَى عَمَّا يُشْرِكُونَ

English Translation:
They did not recognise the true worth of Allah. (Such is Allah’s power that) on the Day of Resurrection the whole earth will be in His grasp, and the heavens shall be folded up in His Right Hand. Glory be to Him! Exalted be He from all that they associate with Him. 12

Tafseer (Commentary):
That is, they have no conception of the greatness and glory of Allah; they have never tried to understand how high is the position of the Lord of the Universe and how insignificant are the beings whom these foolish people have made associates in Godhead and worthy of their worship. This is a figurative way of describing the complete control and authority of Allah over the earth and heavens. Just as a man encloses a small ball in the hollow of his hand with perfect ease, or a person rolls up an handkerchief in his hand without any difficulty, so will all men (who fail to conceive the greatness and glory of Allah) see with their own eyes, on the Day of Resurrection, that the earth and the heavens are like an ordinary ball and a small scroll in the hand of Allah. Traditions have been related in Musnad Ahmad, Bukhari, Muslim, Nasai, Ibn Majah, Ibn Jarir and others, on the authority of Abdullah bin Umar and Abu Hurairah, that once during a sermon the Prophet (peace be upon him) recited this verse and then said: Allah will hold the heavens and the earths (i.e. the planets) in His grasp and will roll them about in such a way as a child rolls a ball, and will say: I am God, the One: I am the King: I am the All-Mighty, Owner of glory: Where are the kings of the world? Where are the tyrants? Where are the arrogant? Saying these words he started so shaking that we feared that he might topple over along with the pulpit. That is, there is no comparison whatever between Allah’s greatness and glory and the insignificance of those who are associated with Him in Godhead. 12

Verse 68

Arabic Text:
وَنُفِخَ فِي الصُّورِ فَصَعِقَ مَن فِي السَّمَاوَاتِ وَمَن فِي الْأَرْضِ إِلَّا مَن شَاءَ اللَّهُ ثُمَّ نُفِخَ فِيهِ أُخْرَى فَإِذَا هُمْ قِيَامٌ يَنظُرُونَ

English Translation:
And the Trumpet shall be blown and all who are in the heavens and the earth shall fall down dead save those whom Allah wills. Then the Trumpet shall be blown again, and lo! all of them will be standing and looking on. 12

Tafseer (Commentary):
For the explanation of Thoor (Trumpet), see (Surah Al- Anaam, Ayat 73); (Surah Ibrahim, Ayat 48); (Surah Al-Kahf, Ayat 99); (Surah TaHa, Ayats 102-103); (Surah Al-Hajj, Ayat 1); (Surah Al-Momioon, Ayat 101); (Surah An-Naml, Ayat 87) and the E,Ns thereof. Here, mention has been made of the Turmpet’s being blown only twice. Besides, in Surah An-Naml there is the mention of another blowing of the Trumpet before these two, on hearing which everything in the earth and the heavens will be struck with terror (verse 87). On this very basis, the Ahadith mention that the Trumpet will be blown thrice: (1) Nafakhat al-Fazaon, hearing which everything will be struck with terror. (2) Nafakhat as-Saaq, on which everyone will fall down dead, (3) Nafakhat al-qiyam li-Rabbit-alamin, i.e. the Trumpet on the blowing of which all dead men will return to life and arise from their graves to present themselves before their Lord. 12

Verse 69

Arabic Text:
وَأَشْرَقَتِ الْأَرْضُ بِنُورِ رَبِّهَا وَوُضِعَ الْكِتَابُ وَجِيءَ بِالنَّبِيِّينَ وَالشُّهَدَاءِ وَقُضِيَ بَيْنَهُم بِالْحَقِّ وَهُمْ لَا يُظْلَمُونَ

English Translation:
The earth shall shine with the light of its Lord, and the Scroll (of deeds) shall be set in place, and the Prophets and all witnesses shall be brought, and judgement shall be justly passed among them, and they shall not be wronged; 12

Tafseer (Commentary):
“The witnesses”: those who will bear witness to the effect that the Message of Allah had been conveyed to the people as well as those who will bear witness to the acts and deeds of the people. It is not necessary that these witnesses will be only human beings. The angels, the jinns, the beasts, men’s own limbs, their dwelling places and the trees and stones, will all be included among the witnesses. 12

Verse 70

Arabic Text:
وَوُفِّيَتْ كُلُّ نَفْسٍ مَّا عَمِلَتْ وَهُوَ أَعْلَمُ بِمَا يَفْعَلُونَ

English Translation:
and everyone shall be paid in full for all that he did. Allah is best aware of all that they do. 12

Tafseer (Commentary):
No specific additional commentary provided for this verse in the source. 12

Surah Ar-Ra’d (13:14)

Arabic Text

لَهُۥ دَعۡوَةُ ٱلۡحَقِّۚ وَٱلَّذِينَ يَدۡعُونَ مِن دُونِهِۦ لَا يَسۡتَجِيبُونَ لَهُم بِشَيۡءٍ إِلَّا كَبَٰسِطِ كَفَّيۡهِ إِلَى ٱلۡمَآءِ لِيَبۡلُغَ فَاهُ وَمَا هُوَ بِبَٰلِغِهِۦۚ وَمَا دُعَآءُ ٱلۡكَٰفِرِينَ إِلَّا فِي ضَلَٰلٖ

English Translation (by Abul Ala Maududi)

To Him alone should all prayer be addressed, for those to whom they do address their prayers beside Him are altogether powerless to respond to them. The example of praying to any other than Allah is that of a man who stretches out his hands to water, asking it to reach his mouth, although water has no power to reach his mouth. The prayers of the unbelievers are a sheer waste. 8

Tafseer (Explanation by Abul Ala Maududi)

To invoke Him alone is the right thing. As regards the other deities whom they invoke apart from Him, they cannot give any answer to their prayers. 8

Footnote 23: “For Him is the supplication of truth,” for Allah alone has the power and the authority to give help and remove difficulties. 8

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Tafseer ibn katheer

Surah Ar-Ra’d (13:14)

Comparison with Tafheem-ul-Quran (by Abul Ala Maududi)

The Tafheem-ul-Quran provides a concise interpretation, emphasizing that true invocation belongs solely to Allah, as other deities are powerless to respond. It uses the parable of a man stretching his hands to water that cannot reach his mouth to illustrate the futility of praying to false gods, describing such prayers as a “sheer waste.” The tafseer reinforces that only Allah can answer prayers and remove difficulties, aligning with the concept of Tawhid (monotheism).

Ibn Kathir’s Tafsir

English Translation

To Him [alone] is the supplication of truth. And those they call upon besides Him do not respond to them with a thing, except as one who stretches his hands toward water [from afar, calling it] to reach his mouth, but it will not reach it [thus]. And the supplication of the disbelievers is not but in error [i.e., futility]. 10

Tafsir Explanation

This verse presents a parable highlighting the weakness of the false gods worshiped by polytheists. The phrase “For Him is the supplication of truth” refers to Tawhid (the oneness of Allah), as explained by Ali bin Abi Talib, and is equated with “La ilaha illallah” (There is no god but Allah) by scholars like Ibn Abbas, Qatadah, and Malik (narrated from Muhammad bin Al-Munkadir). 10

Those who invoke deities besides Allah receive no response, likened to someone stretching their hands toward water from afar, hoping it will reach their mouth—but it never does. Ali bin Abi Talib elaborated that this is like a person at the edge of a deep well, extending their hand, yet unable to reach the water below. Mujahid added that it’s akin to calling or pointing at the water verbally, but it remains unresponsive. 10

The core message is that idolaters gain no benefit from these false deities in this life or the Hereafter, rendering their supplications nothing but misguidance and error. 10

Key Similarities and Differences

• Similarities: Both tafseers stress the exclusivity of supplication to Allah and the ineffectiveness of calling upon others. The central parable of stretching hands to unreachable water is identical, symbolizing futility. They agree that only Allah possesses the power to respond and provide aid, underscoring monotheism.
• Differences: Ibn Kathir’s explanation is more detailed and scholarly, incorporating references to early Islamic figures (e.g., Ali bin Abi Talib, Ibn Abbas) and explicit links to “La ilaha illallah,” which Maududi implies but does not elaborate on as extensively. Ibn Kathir expands the analogy with additional interpretations (e.g., the well scenario) and concludes by labeling the disbelievers’ prayers as “misguidance,” while Maududi focuses on them being a “waste” and keeps the tafseer briefer, with a footnote on Allah’s authority. Overall, Ibn Kathir offers deeper historical and interpretive layers, whereas Maududi is more straightforward and accessible.

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Verse from Al Baqara on same topic

Surah Al-Baqarah (2:186)

Arabic Text

وَإِذَا سَأَلَكَ عِبَادِي عَنِّي فَإِنِّي قَرِيبٌ ۖ أُجِيبُ دَعْوَةَ الدَّاعِ إِذَا دَعَانِ ۖ فَلْيَسْتَجِيبُوا لِي وَلْيُؤْمِنُوا بِي لَعَلَّهُمْ يَرْشُدُونَ

English Translation (by Abul Ala Maududi)

And if My servants ask you, O Prophet, concerning Me, tell them that I am quite near to them. I hear and answer the prayer of the suppliant, when he calls to Me. So let them respond to My call and believe in Me. Convey this to them, O Prophet; perhaps they may be guided aright. 13

Tafseer (Explanation by Abul Ala Maududi)

Even though people can neither see God nor subject Him to any other form of sense perception this should not make them feel that God is remote from them. On the contrary, He is so close to each and every person that whenever any person so wishes he can communicate with his Lord. So much so that God hears and responds even to the prayers which remain unspoken and move only in the hearts of the people. 16

This verse outlines what one is required to believe in and what should be the distinguishing characteristics of one’s conduct. They consist of the following: belief in God, in His angels, in His Books, in all His Messengers (instead of some rather than others), and in the fact that ultimately one will have to stand before God’s judgement. These beliefs ought to be reflected in a person’s conduct. If one’s conduct is not such that these beliefs are not borne out by it, it means that the person concerned has not truly believed. 20

Comparison with Ibn Kathir’s Tafsir

English Translation

And when My servants ask you, [O Muhammad], concerning Me – indeed I am near. I respond to the invocation of the supplicant when he calls upon Me. So let them respond to Me [by obedience] and believe in Me that they may be [rightly] guided. 2

Tafsir Explanation

This Ayah is a call from Allah to His servants to supplicate and invoke Him, informing them of His nearness. Here, Allah the Exalted and Most Honored encourages His servants to invoke Him, testifying to His nearness and that He hears their supplication even if it is silent. This is why He says, “I respond to the invocation of the supplicant when he calls upon Me.” This means He answers the requests of those who ask, attaching no blame in the manner they ask, demonstrating the magnificence of His generosity, kindness, and His bounty. For this reason, it is recommended to supplicate after praising Allah.

Al-Bukhari recorded that Anas bin Malik said: “Once in cold weather, I heard Allah’s Messenger ﷺ invoking Allah saying, ‘O Allah! All praise is due to You; there is no deity worthy of worship except You, the Most Generous Giver, O Originator of the heavens and earth! O Living One, O Eternal One.'” In another narration: “By Your might, I seek refuge with Your pleasure from Your anger, and with Your pardon from Your punishment, and with You from You. I cannot count Your praise as You have praised Yourself.”

He thus loses interest and abandons supplicating (to Allah). Three Persons Whose Supplication will not be rejected: In the Musnad of Imam Ahmad and the Sunans of At-Tirmidhi, An-Nasa’i and Ibn Majah it is recorded that Abu Hurayrah narrated that Allah’s Messenger ﷺ said: “Three whose supplication is not rejected: A just ruler, a fasting person until he breaks his fast, and the supplication of the oppressed person, for Allah raises it above the clouds on the Day of Resurrection, and the gates of heaven are opened for it, and Allah says, ‘By My might! I will certainly aid you, even if it be after a while.'”

According to Ibn Kathir, a visitor from a village asked the Holy Prophet ﷺ: “Tell me if our Lord is near us, then we shall pray in a lowered voice; and if He is far, we shall call Him with raised voices.” Thereupon, this verse was revealed. 4

This is why the blessed Companion, Abdullah ibn Umar would assemble his family members around him at the time of iftar and would pray.

Key Similarities and Differences

• Similarities: Both tafseers emphasize Allah’s nearness to His servants and His readiness to answer supplications, encouraging believers to call upon Him with faith and obedience. The verse is placed in the context of fasting (Ramadan injunctions), highlighting divine mercy and accessibility. They stress that true response comes with belief and following Allah’s commands, promoting guidance (rushd).
• Differences: Maududi’s tafseer (Tafheem-ul-Quran) is more concise and philosophical, focusing on the psychological aspect of feeling God’s closeness despite His invisibility, and tying it to broader beliefs in monotheism and accountability. It avoids extensive hadith references, aiming for accessibility. Ibn Kathir’s is more detailed and traditional, incorporating multiple hadiths (e.g., from Abu Hurayrah, Anas bin Malik) about the virtues of supplication, specific times (like iftar), and categories of accepted prayers. It includes scholarly narrations and elaborates on the revelation’s background, providing a deeper exegetical and historical layer. Overall, Ibn Kathir is narrative-rich, while Maududi is interpretive and reflective.

Here is a comprehensive compilation of the key Quranic verses related to the covenant (میثاق — Mīthāq) that Allah ﷻ took from human beings:

🌟 The Primordial Covenant (عالَمِ ذَرّ / Ālamud-Dharr)
Surah Al-A’rāf 7:172–173 (The Central Verse — آيةُ الميثاق)
وَإِذْ أَخَذَ رَبُّكَ مِن بَنِي آدَمَ مِن ظُهُورِهِمْ ذُرِّيَّتَهُمْ وَأَشْهَدَهُمْ عَلَىٰ أَنفُسِهِمْ أَلَسْتُ بِرَبِّكُمْ ۖ قَالُوا بَلَىٰ ۛ شَهِدْنَا…
“And remember when your Lord brought forth from the loins of the children of Adam their descendants and had them testify regarding themselves. Allah asked: ‘Am I not your Lord?’ They replied: ‘Yes, You are! We testify.’ — lest you say on the Day of Judgment: ‘We were unaware of this.’” (7:172)
“Or lest you say: ‘It was only our forefathers who associated partners with Allah, and we were merely their descendants. Will You then destroy us for what those falsifiers did?’” (7:173)
This is considered the cornerstone of the covenant theme in the Quran — Allah summoned all the souls of Adam’s descendants, the entire human race, before their earthly lives, and they all testified to His Lordship. 

📜 The Covenant of the Trust (الأمانة)
Surah Al-Ahzāb 33:72
إِنَّا عَرَضْنَا الْأَمَانَةَ عَلَى السَّمَاوَاتِ وَالْأَرْضِ وَالْجِبَالِ فَأَبَيْنَ أَن يَحْمِلْنَهَا وَأَشْفَقْنَ مِنْهَا وَحَمَلَهَا الْإِنسَانُ ۖ إِنَّهُ كَانَ ظَلُومًا جَهُولًا
“Indeed, We offered the Trust to the heavens and the earth and the mountains, but they declined to bear it and were afraid of it; but man undertook it. Indeed, he was unjust and ignorant.”
This verse refers to the covenant of moral responsibility and accountability (تکلیف) that mankind voluntarily accepted.

📜 The Covenant with the Prophets (ميثاق النبيين)
Surah Āl-’Imrān 3:81
وَإِذْ أَخَذَ اللَّهُ مِيثَاقَ النَّبِيِّينَ لَمَا آتَيْتُكُم مِّن كِتَابٍ وَحِكْمَةٍ ثُمَّ جَاءَكُمْ رَسُولٌ مُّصَدِّقٌ لِّمَا مَعَكُمْ لَتُؤْمِنُنَّ بِهِ وَلَتَنصُرُنَّهُ…
“And remember when Allah took the covenant of the prophets, saying: ‘Whatever I give you of Scripture and wisdom — then there comes to you a messenger confirming what is with you — you must believe in him and support him.’”
This is one of only two places where the Quran uses the term Mīthāq Ghalīẓ (a solemn, weighty covenant) — here for the pact taken from the Prophets (33:7), and also for the marriage contract (4:21). 

📜 The Covenant with Banī Isrā’īl
Surah Al-Baqarah 2:63, 2:83–84, 2:93
“And remember when We took your covenant and raised the mountain above you: ‘Hold firmly to what We have given you and remember what is in it, so that you may become righteous.’” (2:63)
“And remember when We took the covenant of the Children of Israel: ‘Worship none but Allah; be good to parents, relatives, orphans, and the poor; speak kindly to people; establish prayer; and give zakāh…’” (2:83)
These verses document the specific covenant taken from the Israelites regarding worship, moral conduct, and social justice.

📜 The Universal Covenant of Tawhīd — Reaffirmed in Surah Yā-Sīn
Surah Yā-Sīn 36:60–61
أَلَمْ أَعْهَدْ إِلَيْكُمْ يَا بَنِي آدَمَ أَن لَّا تَعْبُدُوا الشَّيْطَانَ ۖ إِنَّهُ لَكُمْ عَدُوٌّ مُّبِينٌ ۝ وَأَنِ اعْبُدُونِي ۚ هَٰذَا صِرَاطٌ مُّسْتَقِيمٌ
“Did I not enjoin upon you, O Children of Adam, that you should not worship Shaytān — for he is your clear enemy — and that you should worship Me alone? That is the straight path.”
This verse echoes the primordial covenant directly, reminding mankind on the Day of Judgment of the pledge they made.

📜 The Covenant to Fulfill Obligations
Surah Al-Mā’idah 5:1
يَا أَيُّهَا الَّذِينَ آمَنُوا أَوْفُوا بِالْعُقُودِ…
“O you who believe! Fulfill all contracts/covenants…”
Surah An-Naḥl 16:91
وَأَوْفُوا بِعَهْدِ اللَّهِ إِذَا عَاهَدتُّمْ…
“And fulfill the covenant of Allah when you have taken it…”

🔑 Summary of the Three Levels of Covenant Level Verse Nature Primordial (Ālamud-Dharr) 7:172–173 All souls testified to Allah’s Lordship before creation Trust of Moral Responsibility 33:72 Mankind accepted the Amānah (accountability) Prophetic & Communal Covenants 3:81, 2:63, 2:83 Taken from Prophets and specific communities Ongoing Covenant in this life 5:1, 16:91, 36:60 Believers must honor their pledge through worship and obedience

Scholars connect the primordial covenant of “Am I not your Lord?” with the concept of Fitrah — the innate, God-given nature instilled in every human soul. Every child is born in this state of natural recognition of Allah, which is why even in moments of extreme crisis, the deepest instinct of the human heart turns toward its Creator.
Q: “I made a covenant with Allah before I was born — yet I have no conscious memory of it. How can I be held accountable for something I cannot remember?”

A:

🌟 The Core Paradox

Allah ﷻ Himself anticipated this very question — which is why He concluded the verse (7:173) with the words:
أَن تَقُولُوا يَوْمَ الْقِيَامَةِ إِنَّا كُنَّا عَنْ هَٰذَا غَافِلِينَ
“Lest you say on the Day of Judgment: ‘We were unaware of this.’”
The very fact that Allah ﷻ preemptively closed this argument tells us He knew this question would arise in every human heart.

📚 How Scholars Explain This

1. The Covenant Was Not Meant to Be Remembered — It Was Meant to Be Felt
   Imam Al-Ghazālī and many classical scholars explain that the Mīthāq was never intended to function as a conscious memory — rather, it was embedded into the very structure of the human soul as the Fitrah (فطرة).
   Think of it this way: You do not remember learning to feel love, grief, or justice — yet these are real and operative within you. Similarly, the recognition of Allah ﷻ was not stored as a memory but as an instinct deeper than memory.
2. The Fitrah Is the Covenant in Disguise
   The Prophet ﷺ said:
   كُلُّ مَوْلُودٍ يُولَدُ عَلَى الْفِطْرَةِ
   “Every child is born upon the Fitrah.” (Bukhari & Muslim)
   Scholars like Ibn Taymiyyah, Ibn al-Qayyim, and Mawdudi رحمهم الله explain that:
   ∙ The Mīthāq in عالَم الذرّ became the Fitrah in this world
   ∙ The covenant was translated from a spoken testimony into an innate disposition woven into your conscience
   ∙ This is why — even without being taught — human beings universally feel:
   ∙ That there is something greater than themselves
   ∙ That injustice is wrong
   ∙ That gratitude is owed to a Creator
   ∙ That death is not the end
3. Mawdudi’s Explanation — The Wisdom of Forgetting
   Mawdudi رحمه الله in Tafheem ul-Quran on Surah Al-A’rāf explains that the forgetting was part of the divine design — not a flaw:
   Had humans retained full conscious memory of the covenant, their worship and obedience in this world would not constitute a genuine test (امتحان). The entire purpose of this life is that man, without the advantage of direct memory, rediscovers his Lord through:
   ∙ Reflection (تفكر)
   ∙ The Fitrah pulling him inward
   ∙ The guidance of Prophets pulling him from outside
   ∙ And his own moral conscience
   The test would be meaningless if the answer were already consciously known.
4. Ibn al-Qayyim’s Beautiful Insight — The Soul Recognizes What the Mind Forgot
   Ibn al-Qayyim رحمه الله writes in Kitāb al-Rūh that:
   The soul recognises divine truth the way a person recognises a familiar face they cannot quite place — there is an inexplicable pull, a sense of this is right, this is home. When a person hears the Quran, or contemplates the universe, or faces death — the soul stirs, because something deep within it knows, even when the conscious mind does not remember.
   This is why so many people, across all cultures, describe turning to Allah ﷻ in moments of crisis as feeling like a return — not a new discovery.
5. The Two Witnesses Allah Appointed
   Since the memory was removed, Allah ﷻ in His infinite justice appointed two external reminders to substitute for what was forgotten:

Reminder Nature The Fitrah Internal — the innate pull toward truth, embedded in the soul The Prophets & Scripture External — sent precisely because the memory was veiled

Surah Al-Baqarah 2:213 tells us:
كَانَ النَّاسُ أُمَّةً وَاحِدَةً فَبَعَثَ اللَّهُ النَّبِيِّينَ…
“Mankind was one community, then Allah sent the Prophets as bearers of glad tidings and warners…”
The sending of Prophets is itself the proof that Allah ﷻ did not abandon humanity after the veil of forgetfulness descended.

6. Your Very Question Is Itself Proof of the Covenant
   Perhaps the most moving insight from scholars is this:
   The fact that you — educated, rational, modern — are sitting and feeling the weight of this question, feeling a sense of obligation and accountability toward Allah ﷻ, feeling that the covenant should matter even though you cannot remember it…
   …is itself the Fitrah speaking.
   A person with no Fitrah would not feel this tension at all. The very discomfort you feel is your soul honouring what your conscious mind cannot recall.

💎 In Summary Question Scholarly Answer Why can’t I remember it? Forgetting was intentional — to make this life a genuine test How am I accountable then? The covenant became the Fitrah — it lives in you as instinct, not memory What substitutes for the memory? Fitrah internally + Prophets & Scripture externally Is this just? Yes — Allah sent guidance precisely because the memory was veiled What is the proof it happened? Your own conscience, your pull toward truth, your sense of moral obligation

This question you have raised is not doubt — it is the soul in dialogue with itself. The scholars would say: this very questioning is the Fitrah at work, honouring the covenant it cannot consciously remember.
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Profound implications of this covenant, risks and benefits associated with it….scary

Q: Now I believe it’s like any other covenant between two parties, I have to acknowledge the oneness, the sovereignty of our only creator abide by its implications and non compliance would have consequences in this world and the world hereafter. Some verses also warn about partial obedience of instructions … can share this understanding supported by verses of Quran please

A: Let me support this comprehensively with Quranic verses.

🌟 The Covenant as a Binding Contract — Its Four Pillars
Pillar 1: Acknowledgment of Oneness & Sovereignty (التوحيد والسيادة)
Surah Al-Baqarah 2:163
وَإِلَٰهُكُمْ إِلَٰهٌ وَاحِدٌ ۖ لَّا إِلَٰهَ إِلَّا هُوَ الرَّحْمَٰنُ الرَّحِيمُ
“Your God is One God — there is no deity worthy of worship except Him, the Most Gracious, the Most Merciful.”
Surah Al-An’am 6:57
إِنِ الْحُكْمُ إِلَّا لِلَّهِ
“Sovereignty and judgment belong to none but Allah.”
Surah Yusuf 12:40
مَا تَعْبُدُونَ مِن دُونِهِ إِلَّا أَسْمَاءً سَمَّيْتُمُوهَا أَنتُمْ وَآبَاؤُكُم ۖ مَّا أَنزَلَ اللَّهُ بِهَا مِن سُلْطَانٍ ۚ إِنِ الْحُكْمُ إِلَّا لِلَّهِ
“You worship nothing besides Him except names you and your forefathers have invented. Allah has sent down no authority for this. Sovereignty belongs to Allah alone.”
These verses establish that acknowledging the covenant means accepting Allah’s absolute and exclusive sovereignty — not merely in worship but in all spheres of life.

Pillar 2: Abiding by the Implications — Full Submission (الاستسلام الكامل)
Surah Al-Baqarah 2:208 (The Central Verse on Partial Obedience)
يَا أَيُّهَا الَّذِينَ آمَنُوا ادْخُلُوا فِي السِّلْمِ كَافَّةً وَلَا تَتَّبِعُوا خُطُوَاتِ الشَّيْطَانِ ۚ إِنَّهُ لَكُمْ عَدُوٌّ مُّبِينٌ
“O you who believe! Enter into Islam completely and wholeheartedly, and do not follow the footsteps of Shaytān — indeed he is your clear enemy.”
This is perhaps the most direct verse against partial obedience. The word كَافَّةً (kāffah) means entirely, completely, without exception. You cannot pick and choose which parts of the covenant to honour.
Surah An-Nisa 4:65
فَلَا وَرَبِّكَ لَا يُؤْمِنُونَ حَتَّىٰ يُحَكِّمُوكَ فِيمَا شَجَرَ بَيْنَهُمْ ثُمَّ لَا يَجِدُوا فِي أَنفُسِهِمْ حَرَجًا مِّمَّا قَضَيْتَ وَيُسَلِّمُوا تَسْلِيمًا
“But no, by your Lord! They will not truly believe until they make you the judge in all disputes among them, then find no discomfort in their hearts regarding your decision, and submit completely.”
Three levels of submission are demanded here:
∙ External compliance — accepting the ruling
∙ Internal contentment — no resentment in the heart
∙ Complete surrender — تَسْلِيمًا (total submission)

Pillar 3: Warning Against Partial Obedience (التحذير من الطاعة الجزئية)
Surah Al-Baqarah 2:85 (The Sharpest Warning)
أَفَتُؤْمِنُونَ بِبَعْضِ الْكِتَابِ وَتَكْفُرُونَ بِبَعْضٍ ۚ فَمَا جَزَاءُ مَن يَفْعَلُ ذَٰلِكَ مِنكُمْ إِلَّا خِزْيٌ فِي الْحَيَاةِ الدُّنْيَا ۖ وَيَوْمَ الْقِيَامَةِ يُرَدُّونَ إِلَىٰ أَشَدِّ الْعَذَابِ
“Do you believe in part of the Scripture and reject the rest? What is the recompense for those among you who do this except disgrace in this worldly life? And on the Day of Judgment they will be pushed to the most severe punishment.”
This verse explicitly names the dual consequences you identified:
∙ This world — خِزْيٌ (disgrace, humiliation, social and moral collapse)
∙ Hereafter — أَشَدِّ الْعَذَابِ (the severest punishment)
Surah Muhammad 47:33
يَا أَيُّهَا الَّذِينَ آمَنُوا أَطِيعُوا اللَّهَ وَأَطِيعُوا الرَّسُولَ وَلَا تُبْطِلُوا أَعْمَالَكُمْ
“O you who believe! Obey Allah and obey the Messenger, and do not render your deeds worthless.”
Partial obedience — obeying selectively — can nullify even the good deeds already performed.
Surah Al-Ma’idah 5:44
وَمَن لَّمْ يَحْكُم بِمَا أَنزَلَ اللَّهُ فَأُولَٰئِكَ هُمُ الْكَافِرُونَ
“And whoever does not judge by what Allah has revealed — those are the disbelievers.”
Followed in 5:45: …فَأُولَٰئِكَ هُمُ الظَّالِمُونَ — ”…those are the wrongdoers.”
And in 5:47: …فَأُولَٰئِكَ هُمُ الْفَاسِقُونَ — ”…those are the defiantly disobedient.”
Three escalating verdicts — Kāfir, Ẓālim, Fāsiq — for failing to uphold the full implications of the covenant.

Pillar 4: Consequences of Non-Compliance (العواقب في الدنيا والآخرة)
In This World (الدنيا):
Surah Ar-Ra’d 13:11
إِنَّ اللَّهَ لَا يُغَيِّرُ مَا بِقَوْمٍ حَتَّىٰ يُغَيِّرُوا مَا بِأَنفُسِهِمْ
“Indeed Allah will not change the condition of a people until they change what is within themselves.”
Collective violation of the covenant leads to collective decline — moral, social, political.
Surah Al-A’raf 7:96
وَلَوْ أَنَّ أَهْلَ الْقُرَىٰ آمَنُوا وَاتَّقَوْا لَفَتَحْنَا عَلَيْهِم بَرَكَاتٍ مِّنَ السَّمَاءِ وَالْأَرْضِ
“Had the people of the towns believed and been God-fearing, We would have opened upon them blessings from the heavens and earth.”
The opposite is equally true — non-compliance closes the doors of divine blessing.
Surah Ta-Ha 20:124
وَمَنْ أَعْرَضَ عَن ذِكْرِي فَإِنَّ لَهُ مَعِيشَةً ضَنكًا
“And whoever turns away from My remembrance — indeed he will have a constricted, narrow life.”
In the Hereafter (الآخرة):
Surah Az-Zumar 39:15
قُلْ إِنَّ الْخَاسِرِينَ الَّذِينَ خَسِرُوا أَنفُسَهُمْ وَأَهْلِيهِمْ يَوْمَ الْقِيَامَةِ
“Say: Indeed the true losers are those who have lost themselves and their families on the Day of Judgment.”
Surah Al-Baqarah 2:27
الَّذِينَ يَنقُضُونَ عَهْدَ اللَّهِ مِن بَعْدِ مِيثَاقِهِ وَيَقْطَعُونَ مَا أَمَرَ اللَّهُ بِهِ أَن يُوصَلَ وَيُفْسِدُونَ فِي الْأَرْضِ ۚ أُولَٰئِكَ هُمُ الْخَاسِرُونَ
“Those who break the covenant of Allah after ratifying it, sever what Allah has ordered to be joined, and spread corruption in the earth — those are the true losers.”
This verse describes the three marks of covenant-breakers:
∙ Breaking the pledge with Allah
∙ Severing relationships and responsibilities Allah commanded
∙ Spreading fasād (corruption) on earth

🔑 Your Framework — Confirmed by the Quran Your Understanding Quranic Confirmation Acknowledge Oneness & Sovereignty 2:163, 6:57, 12:40 Abide by its full implications 2:208 (كَافَّةً), 4:65 Partial obedience is warned against 2:85, 47:33, 5:44–47 Consequences in this world 13:11, 7:96, 20:124 Consequences in the Hereafter 2:27, 39:15

💎 The Profound Insight of Mawdudi رحمه الله
On Surah Al-Baqarah 2:208, Mawdudi explains that Islam (الإسلام) itself literally means complete surrender — and the command to enter Islam كَافَّةً is essentially saying:
“The covenant you made was total — your response must be total. A partial covenant is no covenant at all. A soldier who obeys only the orders he likes is not a soldier — he is a rebel.”

Your understanding is not just theologically sound — it is the very essence of what Dīn means. The covenant is not a menu to choose from — it is a complete contract, with defined obligations, and defined consequences for breach.
May Allah ﷻ grant us all the tawfīq to honour our covenant fully. آمين 🤲
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Chapter Bani Israel: Lessons of Eternity
April 9, 2026 | ForOneCreator

In the name of Allah, the Most Gracious, the Most Merciful

Verses 1–10 (Surah Al-Isra)
[1] Glory be to Him who took His servant on a journey by night from the Sacred Mosque to the Farthest Mosque, whose surroundings We have blessed, so that We might show him some of Our signs. Indeed, He is the All-Hearing, the All-Seeing.
[2] And We gave Moses the Book and made it a guidance for the Children of Israel, with the firm command: do not take any guardian other than Me.
[3] You are the descendants of those whom We carried with Noah — and he was indeed a grateful servant.
[4] And We decreed for the Children of Israel in the Book: you will surely cause corruption in the land twice, and you will surely rise to great arrogance.
[5] So when the time of the first of the two came, We sent against you Our servants of mighty power, and they swept through the very heart of your lands. This was a promise that had to be fulfilled.
[6] Then We gave you back the upper hand over them, and aided you with wealth and children, and made you greater in number.
[7] If you did good, you did good for yourselves; and if you did evil, it was against yourselves. Then when the second promise came, We sent others to make your faces downcast, and to enter the Mosque just as they entered it the first time, and to destroy whatever they had overcome, utterly.
[8] It may be that your Lord will have mercy on you. But if you return to corruption, We will return to punishment — and We have made Hell a prison for the disbelievers.
[9] Indeed, this Quran guides to what is most upright, and gives glad tidings to the believers who do righteous deeds that theirs shall be a great reward,
[10] and warns that for those who do not believe in the Hereafter, We have prepared a painful punishment.

Urdu Translation of the Verses (Mawdudi):
Glorified is He who took His servant by night from the Sacred Mosque to the Farthest Mosque, whose surroundings We have blessed, so that We might show him some of Our signs. He is indeed the All-Hearing, the All-Seeing.
We had given Moses the Book and made it a guidance for the Children of Israel, with the command: do not take any guardian other than Me. You are the descendants of those whom We carried with Noah in the Ark — and Noah was indeed a grateful servant. Then in Our Book We forewarned the Children of Israel: you will surely cause great corruption in the land twice and will rise to mighty arrogance.
When the time of the first came, O Children of Israel, We raised against you Our servants of fierce strength, and they spread throughout the land. It was a promise that was to be fulfilled. Then We gave you the upper hand over them, and helped you with wealth and offspring, and made you more numerous than before.
Know this: if you did good, it was good for your own souls; if you did evil, it too was against your own souls. Then when the second promise came, We raised others against you to disfigure your faces, and to enter the Mosque (Bayt al-Maqdis) just as the earlier enemies had entered it, and to destroy utterly whatever fell into their hands. It may be that your Lord will now show you mercy — but if you return to your former conduct, We will return with Our punishment. And We have made Hell a prison for those who are ungrateful.
The truth is: this Quran shows the way that is perfectly straight. It gives glad tidings to those who believe and do righteous deeds that a great reward awaits them. And it warns those who do not believe in the Hereafter that a painful punishment has been prepared for them.

Footnote 1 — Surah Bani Israel
This is the event known in Islamic terminology as the Mi’raj (Ascension) and Isra (Night Journey). According to the most reliable and widely-transmitted narrations, it occurred one year before the Hijra. Detailed accounts have been transmitted from approximately 25 Companions, including Anas ibn Malik, Malik ibn Sa’sa’ah, Abu Dharr al-Ghifari, and Abu Hurayrah. Additional accounts were narrated by Umar, Ali, Ibn Mas’ud, Ibn Abbas, Abu Sa’id al-Khudri, Hudhayfah ibn al-Yaman, Aisha, and several others.
The Quran here explicitly mentions the journey from the Sacred Mosque (the Ka’bah) to the Farthest Mosque (Bayt al-Maqdis), and states its purpose: that Allah wished to show His servant some of His signs. No further detail is given in the Quran itself. According to the hadith, the summary is as follows: Jibril took the Prophet on Buraq from the Sacred Mosque to the Farthest Mosque by night. There, the Prophet led the prophets in prayer. Then he was taken upward through the heavens, where he met various prophets of high rank at different levels. Finally, he reached the highest realm and was received in the presence of his Lord, where — among other important matters — the obligation of the five daily prayers was ordained. He then returned to Bayt al-Maqdis and from there back to the Sacred Mosque. Many narrations also record that he was shown Paradise and Hell. Reliable narrations further state that when the Prophet mentioned this event the following morning, the disbelievers of Mecca mocked it greatly, and the faith of some Muslims was shaken.
These additional details from hadith do not contradict the Quran — they supplement it. Something that supplements the Quranic account cannot be rejected on the grounds of contradiction. However, if someone declines to accept certain hadith details, that does not render them a disbeliever. But to deny what the Quran explicitly affirms is an act of disbelief.
As for the nature of this journey — was it a dream, a vision, or a physical bodily experience? The Quran’s own words answer this. The opening Subhana alladhi asra (Glory be to Him who took) signals that this was a remarkable, extraordinary event accomplished by the unlimited power of Allah. A dream or a spiritual vision is not of sufficient magnitude to require such an opening declaration. Furthermore, the words “He took His servant by night” leave no room for interpreting this as a purely spiritual experience — it was a physical journey and a direct, firsthand witnessing.
If traveling from Mecca to Bayt al-Maqdis and back in one night without an airplane was within Allah’s power, why should the additional hadith details be dismissed as impossible? The question of possibility only arises when a creation acts by its own volition. When the subject is what Allah does, only one who doubts His omnipotence would raise the question of possibility.
Of the various objections raised by hadith rejectors, only two carry any weight:
First objection: That this implies Allah is located in a specific place, for otherwise why would the servant need to travel to a particular location to be in His presence?
Second objection: How could the Prophet witness Hell and people being punished when the cases of mankind have not yet been decided — judgment being reserved for after the Day of Resurrection?
Both objections, however, are the result of shallow reflection.
The first is incorrect because Allah in His own essence is absolute and unconstrained. But in His dealings with creation, He employs bounded means — not due to any limitation in Himself, but due to the limitations of the created being. For instance, when He speaks to creation, He uses the limited mode of speech that a human being can hear and understand, although His speech in itself is of an absolute nature. Likewise, when He wishes to show His servant the magnificent signs of His kingdom, He takes him through them, showing each thing in its place — because the servant cannot behold the entire cosmos simultaneously as Allah does. Allah requires no journey to witness anything; the servant does. The same applies to the audience with the Creator: Allah is not located in any one place, but the servant, in his limitedness, requires a focal point — a place where divine manifestations are concentrated for him. Without this, the servant in his finite nature could not encounter the Absolute.
The second objection is answered by recognizing that many of the visions shown to the Prophet during the Mi’raj were symbolic representations of realities. For example, the representation of a seditious act by showing a large bull emerge from a small crack but being unable to return through it; the representation of adulterers as those who, though fresh and wholesome meat is available to them, choose to eat rotten flesh. In the same way, the punishments shown to him were symbolic, advance glimpses of the punishments of the Hereafter — not the actual execution of judgment.
The essential point to understand about the Mi’raj is this: every prophet was shown the dominion of the heavens and the earth by Allah in a manner befitting their mission, with the veils of the material world drawn aside so that they could witness with their own eyes the realities to which they were calling people to believe in the unseen. This distinguished a prophet absolutely from a philosopher. A philosopher speaks from speculation and conjecture; if he were honest about his own standing, he would never testify to the truth of his opinions. But prophets speak from direct knowledge and direct witness, and they can testify before humanity: “We know these things — these are realities we have seen with our own eyes.”

Footnote 2 — Surah Bani Israel
At first glance, the abrupt transition from the mention of the Mi’raj in a single sentence to a lengthy discourse about the Children of Israel might seem disjointed. But once the purpose of the Surah is properly understood, the connection becomes clear. The primary aim of the Surah is to warn the disbelievers of Mecca. The Mi’raj is mentioned at the outset only to establish to the audience that the person addressing them has just returned from witnessing the magnificent signs of Allah. Following this, the history of the Children of Israel is presented as a lesson: when a nation entrusted with the Book of Allah rises in defiance against Him, see how painful a punishment descends upon them.

Footnote 3 — Surah Bani Israel
Wakeel means the one in whom complete trust and reliance is placed; the one to whom one’s affairs are entrusted; the one to whom one turns for guidance and support.

Footnote 4 — Surah Bani Israel
That is: as descendants of those who, by making Allah alone their Wakeel, were saved from the devastation of the flood, it befits you to do the same — to take none other than Allah as your guardian and trustee.

Footnote 5 — Surah Bani Israel
The word “Book” here does not refer specifically to the Torah, but to the collective body of revealed scriptures, for which the Quran uses the term al-Kitab as a technical designation in several places.

Footnote 6 — Surah Bani Israel
These warnings appear at various places in the biblical corpus. The first corruption and its consequences were foretold in Psalms, Isaiah, Jeremiah, and Ezekiel. The second corruption and its severe punishment were foretold by Jesus (peace be upon him), as recorded in the Gospels of Matthew and Luke. The relevant passages are quoted below so that the Quranic account may be fully corroborated.
The first warning regarding the first corruption was given by David (peace be upon him):
“They did not destroy the peoples as the Lord had commanded them, but mingled with the nations and learned their practices. They served their idols, which became a snare to them. They sacrificed their sons and daughters to demons and shed innocent blood… Therefore the wrath of the Lord was kindled against His people, and He abhorred His heritage; He gave them into the hands of the nations, so that those who hated them ruled over them.” (Psalms 106:34–41)
Note: These future events are described in the past tense — a distinctive feature of prophetic writing in scripture.
When the first great corruption came to pass, the prophet Isaiah announced the coming destruction:
“Ah, sinful nation, people laden with iniquity, offspring of evildoers, children who deal corruptly! They have forsaken the Lord, despised the Holy One of Israel, and are utterly estranged. Why will you still be struck down? Why will you continue to rebel?” (Isaiah 1:4–5)
“How the faithful city has become a whore! She was full of justice; righteousness lodged in her — but now murderers… Your princes are rebels and companions of thieves. Everyone loves a bribe and runs after gifts. They do not bring justice to the fatherless, and the widow’s cause does not come to them. Therefore the Lord declares… ‘I will take vengeance on my enemies and avenge myself on my foes.’” (Isaiah 1:21–24)
“Their land is filled with the customs of the east; they strike hands with the foreigners’ children… Their land is filled with idols; they bow down to the work of their hands.” (Isaiah 2:6–8)
“Because the daughters of Zion are haughty and walk with outstretched necks, glancing wantonly with their eyes, mincing along as they go, tinkling with their feet, therefore the Lord will strike with a scab the heads of the daughters of Zion… Your men shall fall by the sword… and her gates shall lament and mourn; empty, she shall sit on the ground.” (Isaiah 3:16–26)
“Behold, the Lord is bringing up against them the waters of the River, mighty and many — the king of Assyria and all his glory — and it will overflow all its channels and go over all its banks.” (Isaiah 8:7)
“These are a rebellious people, lying children, children unwilling to hear the instruction of the Lord; who say to the seers, ‘Do not see,’ and to the prophets, ‘Do not prophesy to us what is right; speak to us smooth things, prophesy illusions’… therefore this iniquity shall be to you like a breach in a high wall… He will shatter it ruthlessly, and in its shattering not a fragment shall be found.” (Isaiah 30:9–14)
Then, as the flood was on the verge of breaking all bounds, the voice of Jeremiah arose:
“What wrong did your fathers find in Me that they went far from Me, and went after worthlessness, and became worthless?… I brought you into a plentiful land to enjoy its fruits and its good things. But when you came in, you defiled My land and made My heritage an abomination… Long ago you broke your yoke and burst your bonds; and you said, ‘I will not serve.’ Yes, on every high hill and under every green tree you bowed down like a whore… As a thief is shamed when caught, so the house of Israel shall be shamed… who say to a tree, ‘You are my father,’ and to a stone, ‘You gave me birth.’ For they have turned their back to Me… But where are your gods that you made for yourself? Let them arise, if they can save you in your time of trouble.” (Jeremiah 2:5–28)
“Go up and down the streets of Jerusalem, look around and consider, search through her squares. If you can find but one person who deals honestly and seeks the truth, I will forgive this city… How can I pardon you? Your children have forsaken Me and sworn by those who are not gods. I fed them to the full, but they committed adultery and trooped to the houses of whores. They were well-fed, lusty stallions, each neighing for his neighbor’s wife. Shall I not punish them for these things? declares the Lord; shall I not avenge Myself on a nation such as this?” (Jeremiah 5:1–9)
*“Behold, I am bringing a nation against you from afar, O house of Israel, declares the Lord. It is an enduring nation, it is an ancient nation, a nation whose language you do not know, nor can you understand what they say. Their quiver is like an open tomb… They shall eat up your harvest and your food; they shall eat up your sons and your daughters; they shall eat up your flocks and your herds; they shall eat up your vines and your fig trees; they shall destroy with the sword your fortified cities in which you trust

Surah Bani Isra’il — Footnote No. 7
This refers to the devastating destruction that befell the Israelites at the hands of the Assyrians and the Babylonians. To understand its historical background, the passages we have already quoted above from the books of the Prophets are not sufficient alone — a brief historical account is also necessary, so that a student may grasp all the causes by which Allah Almighty brought down a nation that was the bearer of His Book from the position of leadership among nations, reducing it to a defeated, enslaved, and deeply backward people.
After the death of Prophet Musa, when the Israelites entered Palestine, various nations were settled there — the Hittites, Amorites, Canaanites, Perizzites, Hivites, Jebusites, Philistines, and others. Among these nations, the worst form of polytheism prevailed. Their chief deity was called El, whom they regarded as the father of the gods, and who was commonly represented in the form of a bull. His wife was named Asherah, and from her descended an entire lineage of gods and goddesses numbering up to seventy. Among his offspring, the most powerful was Baal, who was considered the god of rain and fertility, and the lord of heaven and earth. In the northern regions his wife was called Anath, and in Palestine, Ashtaroth. Both of these female figures were goddesses of love and reproduction. Beyond these, one deity was lord of death, another governed health, yet another was granted authority over plague and famine — and thus the entire divine dominion was divided among many deities. These gods and goddesses were attributed with such vile qualities and deeds that even the most morally depraved human being would be ashamed to be associated with them. It is therefore self-evident that people who made such base beings their gods and worshipped them could not possibly be saved from sinking into the lowest moral degradation. This is why the conditions of these peoples, as revealed through archaeological excavations, bear witness to severe moral collapse. Child sacrifice was common among them. Their temples had become dens of fornication. Placing women in sanctuaries as sacred prostitutes and committing immoral acts with them was considered part of worship. And many other such moral corruptions were widespread among them.
In the Torah, through Prophet Musa, the Israelites had been given clear instructions: you shall destroy these nations, take the land of Palestine from their control, and guard yourselves against living among them and falling into their moral and doctrinal corruption.
But when the Israelites entered Palestine, they forgot these directives. They established no unified state. They were mired in tribal factionalism. Each tribe preferred to take a portion of the conquered territory and go its own way. Due to this fragmentation, no single tribe was strong enough to completely purge its region of the polytheists. Eventually they were forced to tolerate the polytheists living among them. Not only that, but throughout their conquered territories there remained numerous small city-states of those polytheist nations that the Israelites had been unable to subdue. This very complaint is found in the passage from the Psalms that we quoted at the beginning of Footnote No. 6.
The first consequence the Israelites suffered for this was that polytheism crept into their midst through these nations, and gradually other moral corruptions began to find their way in as well. This complaint is recorded in the biblical Book of Judges as follows:
“And the children of Israel did evil in the sight of the Lord, and served Baalim. And they forsook the Lord God of their fathers, who brought them out of the land of Egypt, and followed other gods, of the gods of the people that were round about them, and bowed themselves unto them, and provoked the Lord to anger. And they forsook the Lord, and served Baal and Ashtaroth: and the anger of the Lord was hot against Israel.”
(Chapter 2, Verses 11–13)
Then came the second consequence: the city-states they had left intact, along with the Philistines — whose entire territory had remained unconquered — formed a united front against the Israelites, launched successive attacks, and expelled them from large parts of Palestine, even seizing from them the Ark of the Covenant of the Lord. Finally, the Israelites felt the need to establish a unified kingdom under a single ruler, and at their request, Prophet Samuel appointed Saul (Talut) as their king in 1020 BCE. (The details of this are discussed in Surah Al-Baqarah, section 32.)
This united kingdom had three rulers: Saul (Talut) (1020–1004 BCE), Prophet Dawud (David) (1004–965 BCE), and Prophet Sulayman (Solomon) (965–926 BCE). These rulers completed the task that the Israelites had left unfinished after Prophet Musa. Only the Phoenician states on the northern coast and the Philistine states on the southern coast remained — they could not be subjugated and were merely made to pay tribute.
After Prophet Sulayman, the love of this world again gained a powerful hold over the Israelites, and they fought amongst themselves and split into two separate kingdoms. In northern Palestine and Transjordan arose the Kingdom of Israel, whose capital eventually became Samaria. And in southern Palestine and the region of Edom arose the Kingdom of Judah, whose capital remained Jerusalem. Between these two kingdoms, intense rivalry, conflict, and strife began from the very start and continued to the end.
The rulers and inhabitants of the Kingdom of Israel were the first and most deeply influenced by the polytheistic beliefs and moral corruption of neighbouring nations. This situation reached its peak when the king of Israel, Ahab, married the polytheist Phoenician princess Jezebel. From that point, through the power and resources of the state, polytheism and moral corruption began to spread like a flood among the Israelites. Prophet Elijah (Ilyas) and Prophet Elisha (Al-Yasa’) made the utmost effort to stem this tide, but this nation did not turn back from the decline it was heading toward. At last, the wrath of Allah turned toward the Kingdom of Israel in the form of the Assyrians, and from the ninth century BCE onward, successive Assyrian invasions of Palestine began. During this period, Prophet Amos (787–747 BCE) and then Prophet Hosea (747–735 BCE) arose and delivered repeated warnings to the Israelites — but the intoxication of heedlessness in which they were steeped only grew sharper at the tartness of those warnings. So much so that the king of Israel ordered Prophet Amos to leave the country and banned him from prophesying within the borders of the Kingdom of Samaria. Thousands upon thousands of Israelites were put to the sword, more than 27,000 prominent Israelites were deported and scattered across the eastern provinces of the Assyrian Empire, and non-Israelite peoples from other regions were brought and settled in the land of Israel — living among whom, the remaining Israelite element became increasingly estranged from its own national civilization and culture day by day.
The second Israelite state, established in southern Palestine under the name of Judah, also fell quickly into polytheism and moral corruption after Prophet Sulayman, though compared to the Kingdom of Israel its doctrinal and moral decline was slower — and so it was also given a somewhat longer respite. Although the Assyrians launched successive attacks against it as well, devastated its cities, and besieged its capital, this state was not destroyed at Assyrian hands — it merely became a tribute-paying vassal. Then, when despite the sustained efforts of Prophet Isaiah and Prophet Jeremiah the people of Judah would not desist from idol worship and moral depravity, in 598 BCE the Babylonian king Nebuchadnezzar conquered the entire Kingdom of Judah including Jerusalem, and the king of Judah remained in his custody as a prisoner. Even this did not put an end to the wrongdoings of the Jews — and instead of mending their ways as Prophet Jeremiah advised, they attempted to change their fate by rebelling against Babylon. Finally, in 587 BCE, Nebuchadnezzar launched a devastating assault, reducing every city and town of Judah to rubble, razing Jerusalem and the Temple of Solomon so completely that not a single wall was left standing, expelling a vast number of Jews from their land and scattering them across various countries, and those Jews who remained in their land were also badly humiliated and trampled underfoot by the neighbouring nations.
This was the first corruption of which the Israelites had been forewarned, and this was the first punishment that was given to them in its consequence.

Surah Bani Isra’il — Footnote No. 8
This is a reference to the respite granted to the Jews (i.e., the people of Judah) after their release from Babylonian captivity. As for the people of Samaria and Israel — they, having sunk into the depths of moral and doctrinal decline, never rose again. But among the inhabitants of Judah there existed an element that was steadfast upon good and calling others to good. They continued their work of reform among those who had remained behind in Judah, and also encouraged repentance and turning back to God among those who had been exiled to Babylon and other regions. At last, the mercy of Allah came to their aid. The Babylonian empire went into decline. In 539 BCE, the Persian conqueror Cyrus (Khurus/Khusraw) conquered Babylon, and in the very next year he issued a decree granting the Israelites general permission to return to their homeland and resettle there. Accordingly, caravan after caravan of Jews began making their way back toward Judah, a process that continued for a long time. Cyrus also gave permission for the rebuilding of the Temple of Solomon, but for some time the neighbouring nations who had settled in that region continued to obstruct this. Finally, Darius (Dara) I in 522 BCE appointed Zerubbabel — grandson of the last king of Judah — as governor of Judah, and under his leadership, with the supervision of Prophet Haggai, Prophet Zechariah, and the high priest Joshua, the Holy Temple was rebuilt anew. Then in 457 BCE, Prophet Ezra (’Uzayr) arrived in Judah with a group of returning exiles, and the Persian king Artaxerxes (Arta Kserxes / Ardeshir) issued a decree authorising him to:
”…appoint magistrates and judges who may judge all the people beyond the river, all such as know the laws of your God; and those who do not know them, you shall teach. Whoever will not do the law of your God and the law of the king, let judgment be executed on him with all diligence, whether for death, or for banishment, or for confiscation of goods, or for imprisonment.”
(Ezra, Chapter 8, Verses 25–26)
Taking advantage of this decree, Prophet Ezra accomplished the great work of renewing the Mosaic religion. He gathered all the righteous and upright people of the Jewish nation from every direction and established a firm order. He compiled and published the Five Books of the Bible — which contained the Torah — organised religious education for the Jews, enforced the laws of the Shari’ah, began removing the doctrinal and moral evils that had crept into the Israelites through the influence of foreign nations, had all polytheist women divorced whom Jewish men had married, and took from the Israelites a renewed covenant of servitude to God and adherence to His law.
In 445 BCE, another group of exiles returned to Judah under the leadership of Nehemiah, and the Persian king appointed Nehemiah as governor of Jerusalem, granting him permission to rebuild its city walls. In this way, after a hundred and fifty years, Bayt al-Maqdis (Jerusalem) was again inhabited and became the centre of Jewish religion and civilization. However, the Israelites of northern Palestine and Samaria derived no benefit from Ezra’s reform and renewal. Instead, they constructed a rival religious centre on Mount Gerizim in competition with Bayt al-Maqdis, and attempted to make it the qiblah of the People of the Book. This further widened the gulf between the Jews and the Samaritans.
With the decline of the Persian Empire, the conquests of Alexander the Great, and then the rise of the Greeks, the Jews suffered a severe blow for a period. After Alexander’s death, when his empire was divided among three kingdoms, the region of Syria fell to the Seleucid Kingdom whose capital was Antioch, and its ruler Antiochus III conquered Palestine in 198 BCE. These Greek conquerors — who were polytheists in religion and libertines in morality — found Jewish religion and civilization deeply distasteful. They began promoting Greek culture through political and economic pressure, and a sizable element from within the Jews themselves became their instruments. This foreign interference created a schism within the Jewish nation. One group adopted Greek dress, Greek language, Greek social customs, and Greek sports; another group remained firmly attached to their own civilization. In 175 BCE, when Antiochus IV — whose title was Epiphanes, meaning “manifestation of God” — ascended the throne, he employed full tyrannical force in an attempt to uproot Jewish religion and civilization. He forcibly placed idols in the Temple of Bayt al-Maqdis and compelled the Jews to prostrate before them. He stopped the sacrifices at the altar. He ordered the Jews to offer sacrifices at polytheist altars. He prescribed the death penalty for all who kept a copy of the Torah in their homes, observed the Sabbath, or had their children circumcised. But the Jews were not overcome by this oppression — a powerful movement arose among them, known in history as the Maccabean Revolt. Although the Hellenised Jews gave all their sympathies to the Greeks in this struggle and actively aided the tyrants of Antioch in crushing the Maccabean revolt, the spirit of religiosity breathed into the common Jews by Prophet Ezra was so powerfully effective that they all stood with the Maccabees — and ultimately they expelled the Greeks and established their own independent religious state, which survived until 67 BCE. The borders of this state gradually expanded to encompass the entire territory that had once been under the kingdoms of Judah and Israel, and even a large part of Philistia came under its control — a region that had not been subdued even in the time of Prophets Dawud and Sulayman.
It is to these events that the Quranic verse under commentary alludes.

Surah Bani Isra’il — Footnote No. 9
The historical background of this second corruption and its punishment is as follows:
The moral and religious spirit with which the Maccabean movement had risen gradually vanished, replaced by pure worldliness and lifeless outward formalism. Eventually, a split occurred among them — and they themselves invited the Roman conqueror Pompey into Palestine. Accordingly, Pompey turned his attention to the country in 63 BCE, seized Bayt al-Maqdis, and brought the independence of the Jews to an end. But the consistent policy of the Roman conquerors was to prefer extracting their benefit through local rulers rather than directly administering conquered territories themselves. So they established a native state in Palestine under their patronage, which ultimately in 40 BCE came into the hands of a shrewd Jew named Herod — known as Herod the Great. His rule extended over all of Palestine and Transjordan from 40 BCE to 4 BCE. On one hand he kept the Jews pleased by patronising their religious leaders, and on the other he earned the goodwill of Caesar by promoting Roman civilisation and demonstrating maximum loyalty to the Roman Empire. During this period, the religious and moral condition of the Jews had sunk to the absolute nadir of decline.
After Herod, his realm was divided into three parts.
His son Archelaus became ruler of Samaria, Judah, and northern Idumea, but in 6 CE, Caesar Augustus deposed him and placed his entire kingdom under a Roman governor, an arrangement that continued until 41 CE. This was the very era in which Prophet Isa (Jesus) arose to reform the Israelites, and all the religious leaders of the Jews conspired against him and attempted to have him sentenced to death by the Roman governor Pontius Pilate.
Herod’s second son, Herod Antipas, became ruler of the Galilean region of northern Palestine and Transjordan — and it is this man who, at the request of a dancing girl, had Prophet Yahya (John the Baptist) beheaded and presented his head to her.
His third son, Philip, became ruler of the territory from Mount Hermon to the Yarmouk River, and he was even more deeply immersed in Roman and Greek civilization than his father and brothers. In his territory, there was even less room for any good word to take root than there was in the other regions of Palestine.
In 41 CE, the Romans appointed Herod Agrippa — grandson of Herod the Great — as ruler over all the territories that Herod the Great had governed in his time. After coming to power, this man subjected the followers of Prophet Isa to the utmost persecution, and devoted all his strength to crushing the movement of God-consciousness and moral reform that was proceeding under the leadership of the Apostles.
To properly assess the condition of the common Jews and their religious leaders during this era, one should study the critiques that Prophet Isa levelled against them in his sermons — all of which are found in the Four Gospels. Moreover, it is sufficient to note this fact alone: before the very eyes of this nation, a pure and holy man like Prophet Yahya was beheaded, yet not a single voice was raised against this great injustice. The religious leaders of the entire nation demanded the death sentence for Prophet Isa, and apart from a small number of righteous individuals, there was no one left to mourn this calamity. To such an extent that when Pontius Pilate asked those ill-fated people, “Today is your festival, and according to custom I am authorised to release one person condemned to death — tell me, shall I release Jesus or Barabbas?” the entire assembled crowd said with one voice: “Release Barabbas.” This was, in effect, the final conclusive proof established by Allah Almighty against this nation.
Not much time passed after this before a severe struggle broke out between the Jews and the Romans, and between 64 and 66 CE the Jews openly revolted. Both Herod Agrippa II and the Roman procurator Florus failed to suppress this rebellion. At last, the Roman Empire crushed the revolt with a harsh military operation, and in 70 CE Titus conquered Jerusalem by force of arms. During the massacre on that occasion, 133,000 people were killed, 67,000 were captured and enslaved, thousands were sent off to work in the Egyptian mines, thousands were seized and dispatched to various cities to be thrown to wild beasts in amphitheatres and coliseums or used as fodder for the gladiatorial games. All tall and beautiful girls were selected for the victors, and the city of Jerusalem and the Temple were demolished and razed to the ground. After this, Jewish power and influence was so thoroughly erased from Palestine that for two thousand years it had no opportunity to raise its head again, and the Holy Temple of Jerusalem was never rebuilt. Later, Emperor Hadrian resettled the city, but now its name was Aelia, and for a very long time Jews were not permitted to enter it.
This was the punishment that the Israelites received as a consequence of their second great corruption.

Surah Bani Isra’il — Footnote No. 10
From this, one should not assume that the addressees throughout this entire discourse are the Israelites. The actual addressees are the disbelievers of Makkah. However, since a few instructive examples from the history of the Israelites had been presented here in order to warn them, a few sentences were addressed to the Israelites parenthetically — as an interpolated statement — so as to serve as a prelude to those discourses of reform which were to come just one year later in Madinah.

Surah Bani Isra’il — Footnote No. 11
The intent here is that any person, group, or nation that does not come to the straight path through the warning and admonition of this Quran should be prepared for the same punishment that the Israelites had to endure.​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​