7-130 And certainly We overtook Pharaoh’s people with droughts and diminution of fruits that they might be mindful.a
وَلَقَد أَخَذنا آلَ فِرعَونَ بِالسِّنينَ وَنَقصٍ مِنَ الثَّمَراتِ لَعَلَّهُم يَذَّكَّرونَ (۱۳۰)
7-130a: سِنين – It is the plural of سنة which means years, but it is mostly used for years of famine (R) and ultimately, the word got so associated with famine that it became the primary meaning of the word.
7-131 But when good befell them they said: This is due to us. And when evil afflicted them, they attributed it to the ill-luck of Moses and those with him. Surely their evil fortune is only from Allah, but most of them know not.a
فَإِذا جاءَتهُمُ الحَسَنَةُ قالوا لَنا هٰذِهِ ۖ وَإِن تُصِبهُم سَيِّئَةٌ يَطَّيَّروا بِموسىٰ وَمَن مَعَهُ ۗ أَلا إِنَّما طائِرُهُم عِندَ اللَّهِ وَلٰكِنَّ أَكثَرَهُم لا يَعلَمونَ (۱۳۱)
7-131a: يَطَّيَّروا – طائرہ – It is from طیر meaning a bird and تَطَیَّر and طَبَّر means taking an omen from birds. Then its use has become common for all kinds of ill-omens and bad predictions based on occult (R). If the birds flew off to the left, Arabs considered it an ill omen (T). The طائر in طائرھم stands for their ill luck that they were trying to avoid by following the omen. طائر is actually a person’s action, good or bad because it flies away from him once done, as in: كُلَّ إِنسانٍ أَلزَمناهُ طائِرَهُ في عُنُقِهِ (And We have made every man’s actions to cling to his neck) (17:13). Abu Ubaida says that this word applies to whatever one gets in his fortune (T). The meaning of طائِرُهُم عِندَ اللَّهِ is that whatever misfortune has befallen them is from Allah, that is it is a punishment for their evil actions.
The tribulations of Muslims and the Reformer of the fourteenth century: When a righteous person comes to the world and calls people to a goodly path and stops them from their wicked ways, people generally reject him and consequently get embroiled in tribulations. Instead of reforming themselves and accepting the path of truth, people begin to say that the calamities that befall them are because of that person. Attention is drawn in this verse that the afflictions are not because of the caller to the truth but because of their own actions. The Muslims today are in a similar situation. When a Mujaddid came at the beginning of the fourteenth century hijra and informed the Muslims that their success lay in reforming themselves and propagating Islam, instead of accepting the genuine advice they started opposing him and persisted in their ways. When their adversities increased, they started saying that their misfortunes increased even more because of his coming. Would that the Muslims learn some lessons from the Quran.
7-132 And they said: Whatever sign thou mayest bring to us to charm us therewith — we shall not believe in thee.a
وَقالوا مَهما تَأتِنا بِهِ مِن آيَةٍ لِتَسحَرَنا بِها فَما نَحنُ لَكَ بِمُؤمِنينَ (۱۳۲)
7-132a: مَهما – It is comprised of مه and ما and مَه is a verbal noun with the meaning of refrain and ما is a conditional particle, or it is comprised of ما ما where the first ما is conditional and the second ما is for generalization or universalization. The purport is that your miracles are merely a deception and that we will not believe even after seeing them.
7-133 So We sent upon them widespread death, and the locusts and the lice and the frogs and the blood — clear signs. But they behaved haughtily and they were a guilty people.a
فَأَرسَلنا عَلَيهِمُ الطّوفانَ وَالجَرادَ وَالقُمَّلَ وَالضَّفادِعَ وَالدَّمَ آياتٍ مُفَصَّلاتٍ فَاستَكبَروا وَكانوا قَومًا مُجرِمينَ (۱۳۳)
7-133a: طوفان – It is derived from طوف which means to revolve around something, and طوفان is any calamity that surrounds a person from all sides (R). This is the reason why the word is used to mean a big flood. The meaning of طوفان given in Bukhari is widespread death.
جَرادَ – It means a locust because it deprives the earth of greenery (R). جَرَدَ means to peel something.
قُمَّلَ – It means, lice, fleas, tics and similar vermin.
ضَّفادِعَ – It is the plural of ضَفۡدَعۡ which means a frog.
The signs shown by Moses: The following signs are mentioned in the Bible: River water turning into blood, the calamities of frogs, lice, gnats, death of livestock, boils, hail, locusts, and darkness. The calamities mentioned in the Quran are seven. Five are mentioned here and two more in verse 7:130 which are famine and diminution of fruit. If with these seven signs, the two signs of the staff and white hand are added then that makes nine signs as is mentioned elsewhere in verse17:101.
7-134 And when the plague fell upon them, they said: O Moses, pray for us to thy Lord as He has made promise with thee. If thou remove the plague from us, we will certainly believe in thee and will let the Children of Israel go with thee.
وَلَمّا وَقَعَ عَلَيهِمُ الرِّجزُ قالوا يا موسَى ادعُ لَنا رَبَّكَ بِما عَهِدَ عِندَكَ ۖ لَئِن كَشَفتَ عَنَّا الرِّجزَ لَنُؤمِنَنَّ لَكَ وَلَنُرسِلَنَّ مَعَكَ بَني إِسرائيلَ (۱۳۴)
7-135 But when We removed the plague from them till a term which they should attain, lo! they broke (their promise).a
فَلَمّا كَشَفنا عَنهُمُ الرِّجزَ إِلىٰ أَجَلٍ هُم بالِغوهُ إِذا هُم يَنكُثونَ (۱۳۵)
7-135a: يَنكُثونَ – نکۡث means to beak something that is spun or knitted and metaphorically for breach of covenant (R). Exodus chapters 8 to 11 gives a detailed account of the signs and the promises made by Pharaoh and their breach by him.
7-136 So We exacted retribution from them and drowned them in the sea, because they rejected Our signs and were heedless of them.
فَانتَقَمنا مِنهُم فَأَغرَقناهُم فِي اليَمِّ بِأَنَّهُم كَذَّبوا بِآياتِنا وَكانوا عَنها غافِلينَ (۱۳۶)
7-137 And We made the people who were deemed weak to inherit the eastern lands and the western ones which We had blessed. And the good word of thy Lord was fulfilled in the Children of Israel — because of their patience. And We destroyed what Pharaoh and his people had wrought and what they had built.a
وَأَورَثنَا القَومَ الَّذينَ كانوا يُستَضعَفونَ مَشارِقَ الأَرضِ وَمَغارِبَهَا الَّتي بارَكنا فيها ۖ وَتَمَّت كَلِمَتُ رَبِّكَ الحُسنىٰ عَلىٰ بَني إِسرائيلَ بِما صَبَروا ۖ وَدَمَّرنا ما كانَ يَصنَعُ فِرعَونُ وَقَومُهُ وَما كانوا يَعرِشونَ (۱۳۷)
7-137a: الأَرضِ – By الأَرضِ is meant the Holy Land, that is the land of Syria, and the Israelites were made the masters of its east and west, that is they were made inheritors of the whole of the Holy Land. This, however, happened much later.
تَمَّت كَلِمَتُ رَبِّكَ الحُسنىٰ – تمام or to reach its climax means fulfilment, and كَلِمَتُ الحُسنىٰ or the good word is the promise that was given to them that they would inherit the Holy Land; or the indication is to the promise stated above عَسىٰ رَبُّكُم أَن يُهلِكَ عَدُوَّكُم (It may be that your Lord will destroy your enemy) (7:129).
يَعرِشونَ – Abu Ubaida has given its meaning as یبنون that is the buildings they constructed (R), or the meaning could be gardens.
The success of the Muslims is not going to be by the sword: The success of the Bani Israel is credited to their patience. Hassan has narrated that if people are patient and pray for help when some difficulty afflicts them from their king, it will not be long before Allah removes that difficulty. However, if they become alarmed and take recourse to the sword, then those who live by the sword will die by the sword. In another narration, he states that whatever the Bani Israel got was because of their patience, and if the Muslim nation runs for the sword, the result will not be good (RM). After citing these narrations, the authors of Ruh al-Maani state that they had studied people over the past 1248 years and found that whenever people took recourse to the sword, they did not gain anything. They neither had any benefit nor was their wish fulfilled, nor did they accomplish any praiseworthy act.
7-138 And We took the Children of Israel across the sea. Then they came to a people who were devoted to their idols. They said: O Moses, make for us a god as they have gods. He said: Surely you are an ignorant people!a
وَجاوَزنا بِبَني إِسرائيلَ البَحرَ فَأَتَوا عَلىٰ قَومٍ يَعكُفونَ عَلىٰ أَصنامٍ لَهُم ۚ قالوا يا موسَى اجعَل لَنا إِلٰهًا كَما لَهُم آلِهَةٌ ۚ قالَ إِنَّكُم قَومٌ تَجهَلونَ (۱۳۸)
7-138a: أَصنامٍ – It is the plural of صنم and is defined as a body made out of silver, brass, wood etcetera. The image so created was worshipped because of a belief that that this brought them closer to God. Some have taken صنم to mean everything that is taken من دون اللّٰه (other than Allah) to be worshipped. In fact, anything that takes one away from Allah (R).
The influence of the Egyptians on Bani Israel: The Egyptians worshipped everything. Having stayed in proximity with such an idol worshipping nation, idol worshipping had permeated the customs and manners of Bani Israel as well. That is why, time and again they would incline towards idol worship. In India too, under the influence of their neighboring nation, polytheistic practices such as grave worship, worship of pirs etcetera have spread among them, and all kinds of polytheistic customs and traditions have taken hold among the Muslims.
7-139 (As to) these, that wherein they are engaged shall be destroyed and that which they do is vain.a
إِنَّ هٰؤُلاءِ مُتَبَّرٌ ما هُم فيهِ وَباطِلٌ ما كانوا يَعمَلونَ (۱۳۹)
7-139a: مُتَبَّرٌ – تِبۡر is gold or other mineral occurring as particles mixed with dirt, and the meaning of تَبَرَّہٗ is broke and destroyed a thing. So the meaning of مُتَبَّرٌ is it will be broken and destroyed, and تبار is destruction, as in: وَلا تَزِدِ الظّالِمينَ إِلّا تَبارًا (And increase not the wrongdoers in aught but destruction) (71:28) وَكُلًّا تَبَّرنا تَتبيرًا (and each did We destroy with utter destruction) (25:39).
ما هُم فيهِ – It means the matter in which they are engaged, that is idol worship, or their thinking that these idols are a way to bring them closer to God. The purport is that idol worshipping will ultimately get erased from the world. The testimony of world history so far shows that with the spread of education, belief in idol worshipping has been weakening. The time is definitely coming when idol worship will get completely eliminated and the worship of the One God will be established throughout the world.
7-140 He said: Shall I seek for you a god other than Allah, while He has made you excel (all) created things?a
قالَ أَغَيرَ اللَّهِ أَبغيكُم إِلٰهًا وَهُوَ فَضَّلَكُم عَلَى العالَمينَ (۱۴۰)
7-140a: This verse provides testimony that appeals to human nature against polytheism. It is stated that God has made humans to excel everything He has created. Then should something be selected for worship from this creation and human nature made to humble itself before a thing over which it excels.
7-141 And when We delivered you from Pharaoh’s people, who subjected you to severe torment, killing your sons and sparing your women. And therein was a great trial from your Lord.
وَإِذ أَنجَيناكُم مِن آلِ فِرعَونَ يَسومونَكُم سوءَ العَذابِ ۖ يُقَتِّلونَ أَبناءَكُم وَيَستَحيونَ نِساءَكُم ۚ وَفي ذٰلِكُم بَلاءٌ مِن رَبِّكُم عَظيمٌ (۱۴۱)
Bayan-ul-Quran 