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An-Nisa (The Women)

Verse 153of 176

يَسْـَٔلُكَ أَهْلُ ٱلْكِتَٰبِ أَن تُنَزِّلَ عَلَيْهِمْ كِتَٰبًۭا مِّنَ ٱلسَّمَآءِ ۚ فَقَدْ سَأَلُوا۟ مُوسَىٰٓ أَكْبَرَ مِن ذَٰلِكَ فَقَالُوٓا۟ أَرِنَا ٱللَّهَ جَهْرَةًۭ فَأَخَذَتْهُمُ ٱلصَّٰعِقَةُ بِظُلْمِهِمْ ۚ ثُمَّ ٱتَّخَذُوا۟ ٱلْعِجْلَ مِنۢ بَعْدِ مَا جَآءَتْهُمُ ٱلْبَيِّنَٰتُ فَعَفَوْنَا عَن ذَٰلِكَ ۚ وَءَاتَيْنَا مُوسَىٰ سُلْطَٰنًۭا مُّبِينًۭا﴿١٥٣

Translation (Sahih International)

The People of the Scripture ask you to bring down to them a book from the heaven. But they had asked of Moses [even] greater than that and said, "Show us Allah outright," so the thunderbolt struck them for their wrongdoing. Then they took the calf [for worship] after clear evidences had come to them, and We pardoned that. And We gave Moses a clear authority.

Word-by-word meaning

يَسْـَٔلُكَyasalukaAsk you
أَهْلُahlu(the) People
ٱلْكِتَـٰبِl-kitābi(of) the Book
أَنanthat
تُنَزِّلَtunazzilayou bring down
عَلَيْهِمْʿalayhimto them
كِتَـٰبًۭاkitābana book
مِّنَminafrom
ٱلسَّمَآءِ ۚl-samāithe heaven
فَقَدْfaqadThen indeed
سَأَلُوا۟sa-alūthey (had) asked
مُوسَىٰٓmūsāMusa
أَكْبَرَakbaragreater
مِنminthan
ذَٰلِكَdhālikathat
فَقَالُوٓا۟faqālūfor they said
أَرِنَاarināShow us
ٱللَّهَl-lahaAllah
جَهْرَةًۭjahratanmanifestly
فَأَخَذَتْهُمُfa-akhadhathumuso struck them
ٱلصَّـٰعِقَةُl-ṣāʿiqatuthe thunderbolt
بِظُلْمِهِمْ ۚbiẓul'mihimfor their wrongdoing
ثُمَّthummaThen
ٱتَّخَذُوا۟ittakhadhūthey took
ٱلْعِجْلَl-ʿij'lathe calf (for worship)
مِنۢminfrom
بَعْدِbaʿdiafter
مَا[what]
جَآءَتْهُمُjāathumucame to them
ٱلْبَيِّنَـٰتُl-bayinātuthe clear proofs
فَعَفَوْنَاfaʿafawnāthen We forgave them
عَنʿanfor
ذَٰلِكَ ۚdhālikathat
وَءَاتَيْنَاwaātaynāAnd We gave
مُوسَىٰmūsāMusa
سُلْطَـٰنًۭاsul'ṭānanan authority
مُّبِينًۭاmubīnanclear

Commentary (Tafsir Ibn Kathir)

The Stubbornness of the JewsMuhammad bin Ka`b Al-Qurazi, As-Suddi and Qatadah said that the Jews asked the Messenger of Allah ﷺ to cause a book to come down to them from heaven, just as the Tawrah was sent down to Musa. Ibn Jurayj said that the Jews asked the Messenger to cause books to come down to them addressed to so-and-so among them, testifying to the truth of what he was sent with. The Jews only asked for this because of their stubbornness, defiance, rejection and disbelief.

Source: Tafsir Ibn Kathir — abridged excerpt

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