Tafseer of The Stories · Al-Qasas · 28:44
And you, [O Muhammad], were not on the western side [of the mount] when We revealed to Moses the command, and you were not among the witnesses [to that].
Important: The Arabic source text is always authoritative. This translation is a study aid and has not been verified by scholars — do not use it as a basis for religious proof or for deriving rulings (ahkam). When in doubt, always consult the Arabic text and a qualified scholar.
The word of Allah, the Exalted: وَمَا كُنْتَ بِجَانِبِ الْغَرْبِيِّ إِذْ قَضَيْنَا إِلَى مُوسَى الأَمْرَ وَمَا كُنْتَ مِنَ الشَّاهِدِينَ (44)
Allah, the Exalted, says to His Prophet Muḥammad, may Allah bless him and grant him peace: وَمَا كُنْتَ — O Muḥammad, بِجَانِبِ — the western side of the mountain, إِذْ قَضَيْنَا إِلَى مُوسَى الأمْرَ — that is to say: when We proclaimed to Mūsā the decree concerning the obligations We imposed upon him and his people, and We had him enter into Our covenant. وَمَا كُنْتَ مِنَ الشَّاهِدِينَ — that is to say: and you were not among the eyewitnesses to that.
In accordance with what we have said about this, the exegetes spoke.
Mention of who said that:
Bishr related to us, saying: Yazīd related to us, saying: Saʿīd related to us, on the authority of Qatāda, concerning his word: وَمَا كُنْتَ — O Muḥammad, بِجَانِبِ الْغَرْبِيِّ — that is to say: the western side of the mountain, إِذْ قَضَيْنَا إِلَى مُوسَى الأمْرَ .
Al-Qāsim related to us, saying: al-Ḥusayn related to us, saying: Ḥajjāj related to me, on the authority of Ibn Jurayj, who said: "the western side of the mountain."
Ibn Bashār related to us, saying: al-Ḍaḥḥāk ibn Makhlad related to us, saying: Sufyān related to us, on the authority of al-Aʿmash, on the authority of ʿAlī ibn Mudrrik, on the authority of Abū Zurʿa ibn ʿAmr, who said: "You — the community of Muḥammad, may Allah bless him and grant him peace — answered before you were asked." And he recited: وَمَا كُنْتَ بِجَانِبِ الْغَرْبِيِّ إِذْ قَضَيْنَا إِلَى مُوسَى الأمْرَ .
