Tafseer of Ornaments of gold · Az-Zukhruf · 43:54
So he bluffed his people, and they obeyed him. Indeed, they were [themselves] a people defiantly disobedient [of Allah].
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 explanation of the statement of the Exalted: فَاسْتَخَفَّ قَوْمَهُ فَأَطَاعُوهُ إِنَّهُمْ كَانُوا قَوْمًا فَاسِقِينَ (Thus he made his people lightheaded, and they obeyed him; truly, they were a defiantly disobedient people) (43:54).
The Exalted, whose remembrance is exalted, says: Pharaoh made a group of his people, from the Copts, lightheaded with his words — those words of which Allah, blessed and exalted is He, has reported that he spoke them to them — and they accepted that from him and obeyed him, and they declared Moses a liar. Allah says: and they merely obeyed and gave heed to that to which the enemy of Allah called them, namely to hold him to be truthful and to declare Moses a liar, because they were a people standing outside of obedience to Allah, through His forsaking them and through His sealing of their hearts.
