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AL-BAQARAH · JUZ 1 · QUR'AN TAFSEER

Tafseer Al-Baqarah Ayaat 67 –

68
July 24, 2015 · Verse By Verse Quran Study Circle

ِ ‫ـن الر‬
ِ ‫حيم‬ % ِ ‫الر ْح َم‬ ْ ‫ِب‬
% ِ%.‫سم ِ ا‬

In the Name of Allah, the Most Gracious, the

Most Merciful

The Story of the Murdered Israeli

Man and the Cow

An Israeli man had been killed and there was no

information about the murderer. While the
people were arguing Allah subhanahu wa ta’ala
sent a command to Musa ‘alayhi salaam to instruct
his people to slaughter a cow. The slaughtering of
the cow was a mean for discovering the identity
of the murderer.

"And[recall]whenMusasaidtohispeople,'Indeed,Allah
commandsyoutoslaughteracow.'Theysaid,'Doyoutakeus
inridicule?'Hesaid,'IseekrefugeinAllahfrombeingamong
theignorant.'Theysaid,'CalluponyourLordtomakeclearto
uswhatitis.'[Musa]said,'[Allah]says:Itisacowwhichis
neitheroldnorvirgin,butmedianbetweenthat,sodowhat
youarecommanded.'"[Al-Bagarah2:67-68]

Ibn Abi Hatim recorded ‘Ubaydah As-Salmani

saying, “There was a man from among the
Children of Israel who was impotent. He had
substantial wealth, and only a nephew who
would inherit from him. So his nephew killed him
and moved his body at night, placing it at the
doorstep of a certain man. The next morning, the
nephew cried out for revenge, and the people
took up their weapons and almost fought each
other. The wise men among them said, ‘Why
would you kill each other, while the Messenger of
Allah is still among you?’ So they went to Musa
and mentioned the matter to him and Musa
(‘alayhi salaam) said, ‘Indeed, Allah commands
you to slaughter a cow.’”

The Children of Israel asked if he was making fun

of them. Prophet Musa replied that was not of
the ignorant or the foolish. They disputed and
asked unnecessary questions, hoping that by
doing so perhaps they would no more be
required to carry out the command. But no!
Because of their asking unnecessary questions
the matter was made more difficult for them.

‘Ubaydah As-Salmani said, “Had they not

disputed, it would have been sufficient for them
to slaughter any cow. However, they disputed,
and the matter was made more difficult for them,
until they ended up looking for the specific cow
that they were later ordered to slaughter. They
found the designated cow only with a man who
owned that cow. He said, ‘By Allah! I will only sell
it for its skin’s fill of gold.’ So they paid the cow’s
fill of its skin in gold, slaughtered it and touched
the dead man with a part of it. He stood up, and
they asked him, ‘Who killed you?’ He said, ‘That
man,’ and pointed to his nephew. He died again,
and his nephew was not allowed to inherit him.
Thereafter, whoever committed murder for the
purpose of gaining inheritance was not allowed
to inherit.” And Allah knows best.

The Stubbornness of the Jews

The Children of Israel asked too many questions

from their messengers. When they were
commanded to do something they would not
carry out the command right away, rather they
asked unnecessary questions. Because of their
stubbornness, Allah subhanahu wa ta’ala made the
tasks difficult for them. Had they slaughtered any
cow, it would have been sufficient for them.

Their stubbornness also led them to disobey or

misbehave with the Prophets of Allah. When
Musa ‘alayhi salaam conveyed them the command
of Allah subhanahu wa ta’ala, they asked if he was
making fun of them. Prophets and Messengers of
Allah subhanahu wa ta’ala do not make fun of their
people. Then why did the Children of Israel say
such a thing? It is because they had lived under
the slavery of the Egyptians who worshiped idols.
One of their idols was cow. Living with the
Egyptians, the reverence of the cows had seeped
into the hearts of the Children of Israel.
Therefore, they could not accept slaughtering
something that they revered.

LESSONS:

■ Become serious in the study of

Deen. It is not play and
amusement. True believers are
those who hear a command of
Allah subhanahu wa ta’ala and
humbly submit. They do not ask:
Why Allah? Why should I do it?
Accepting hijab, leaving haram
jobs and relationships, spending
in the way of Allah subhanahu
wa ta’ala becomes easy for them.

■   A Da’ee (caller to Allah

subhanahu wa ta’ala and His
religion) must be a serious and
mature person. His
responsibility is to educate
people. He should not make fun
of, taunt or criticize the people
coming to his gatherings. People
from all backgrounds attend
Islamic lectures and gatherings,
the Da’ee should not look at how
they are dressed, how they talk,
the questions they ask, etc. He
should be patient, forgiving and
a good listener. Parents too
should be careful about how
they speak to their children.
Sometimes parents shatter the
confidence by laughing at or
criticizing the questions that the
children ask. Understand your
role as an adult and a leader.

■   Those who laugh at others,

judge or criticize others,
especially those who are lesser in
knowledge or status, are actually
foolish and ignorant themselves.
A knowledgeable person fears
Allah subhanahu wa ta’ala, has
taqwa and wishes well for all
people.

[Mass Marketing and “Edu-tainment”]

Ayah 68 – Asking Unnecessary

Questions

The Children of Israel started asking unnecessary

questions hoping that they will not be asked to
do what they were being told. It is similar to
someone asking us for water and we ask, “Do you
want it in a glass or a jug?” The person answers.
Then we ask, “Do you want it in metal glass or
China glass?” Then we ask, “Do you want it hot or
cold?” The person only asked for water, why ask
so many questions?

Also notice how the Children of Israel addressed

Musa ‘alayhi salaam. Each time they asked a
question, they said, “Call upon your Lord…”
[‫ َك‬%‫]رب‬
َ they didn’t even acknowledge Allah
subhanahu wa ta’ala as their Lord.

And this is how many people handle the du’as.

They ask others to make du’as for them claiming
that they are too sinful to have their du’as
answered or just out of negligence because they
do not offer Salah. Who could be lazier than a
person who cannot even make du’a for himself?

Our Teacher’s Note:

Learn to make d’ua for yourself

because Allah subhanahu wa
ta’ala loves to hear His servant
invoke Him. When you learn how
to make d’ua and build a regular
relationship with Him, you no
longer have to ask people to pray
for you. People just look at you
or meet you and Allah
subhanahu wa ta’ala inspires
them to make du’a for you.

Why?

Because, by praying to Him you

have shown you love Him. And
when a servant loves the
Creator, not only does He love
you back, but He inspires the
creation to love you too.  

The Jews’ way: Rabbaka [‫ب َك‬% ‫]ر‬

َ “Your Lord…”

The Muslims’ way: Rabbana [‫نَا‬%‫]رب‬

َ “Our Lord…”

The Children of Israel said, “Call upon your

Lord to make clear to us what it is,” meaning
make its description clear to us. The word
yubayyin [65 َ‫ ]يُب‬is from the root ba-ya-noon.
Bayyan means ‘to explicitly tell something, to
make something apparent, plain or clear’.

Musa ‘alayhi salaam replied that it should be

neither too old nor too young rather it should be
in between the two stages meaning at an age
when it is the strongest and fittest. Right after
this Musa ‘alayhi salaam says, “…so do what you
are commanded,” meaning stop asking
unnecessary questions and honor the command.

LESSONS:

■   Talking too much hinders one

from taking action. Sometimes
we share our plans with others
and get so exhausted talking
that we no more have the energy
to actually do it. The time that
could have been spent on the
project has been wasted in
talking. Prioritize your life. Do
what’s more important, first. 

■ Talking too much also deprives

us of khushu’ in the prayer. The
conversations in our head keep
distracting us. Talking too much
also hardens hearts. Sometimes
we utter statements that we
regret later. We must learn to
talk less and engage our tongues
more in the remembrance of
Allah subhanahu wa ta’ala. A
person must speak only when
spoken to and say that which is
true and beneficial.

[The Do Plan]

Four Situations when it is prohibited to talk:

1. During Prayer.
2. While listening to the Qur’an recitation (see
Surah Al-A’raf 204).
3. During the call to the prayer (Athan). We
should be focusing on what the mauzzin is saying
and repeat after him.
4. Gatherings of knowledge (esp. during Friday
Khutbah).

These are the occasions when there is more

chance of our supplications to be accepted.
Therefore, we must sit quietly and be really
focused while being connected to Allah
subhanahu wa ta’ala in our hearts.

Tests done since 1933 show that

people who talk about their
intentions are less likely to make
them happen.

Announcing your plans to others

satisfies your self-identity just
enough that you’re less
motivated to do the hard work
needed.

In 1933, W. Mahler found that if

a person announced the solution
to a problem, and was
acknowledged by others, it was
now in the brain as a ‘social
reality’, even if the solution
hadn’t actually been achieved.

NYU psychology professor  Peter

Gollwitzer has been studying this
since his 1982 book  “Symbolic
Self-Completion”  – and recently
published results of new tests in
a research article,  “When
Intentions Go Public: Does Social
Reality Widen the Intention-
Behavior Gap?”

Four different tests of 63 people

found that those who kept their
intentions private were more
likely to achieve them than those
who made them public and were
acknowledged by others.

Once you’ve told people of your

intentions, it gives you a
‘premature sense of
completeness.’

You have ‘identity symbols’ in

your brain that make your self-
image. Since both actions and
talk create symbols in your
brain, talking satisfies the brain
enough that it ‘neglects the
pursuit of further symbols.’

It may seem unnatural to keep

your intentions and plans
private, but try it.

[SOURCE: Lifehacker]

DOWNLOAD PDF: Tafseer Al-Baqarah Ayaat

67-68

‫الس ِميعُ ا ْل َعلِيم‬

% ‫نت‬َ َ ‫ َك أ‬%‫ا ۖ إِن‬%‫ ْل ِمن‬%‫نَا تَ َقب‬%‫َرب‬
“Our Lord, accept [this] from us. Indeed You are
the Hearing, the Knowing.” [Al-Baqarah 2: 127]

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AL-BAQARAH

ASKING UNNECESSARY QUESTIONS

CHILDREN OF ISRAEL MADINAN SURAHS

MOSES PROPHET MUSA

QUR’AN TAFSEER TALKING TOO MUCH

THE INCIDENT OF THE COW

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