Tafseer of The Heights · Al-A'raaf · 7:152
Indeed, those who took the calf [for worship] will obtain anger from their Lord and humiliation in the life of this world, and thus do We recompense the inventors [of falsehood].
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 statement concerning the interpretation of His word: إِنَّ الَّذِينَ اتَّخَذُوا الْعِجْلَ سَيَنَالُهُمْ غَضَبٌ مِنْ رَبِّهِمْ وَذِلَّةٌ فِي الْحَيَاةِ الدُّنْيَا وَكَذَلِكَ نَجْزِي الْمُفْتَرِينَ ("Truly, those who took the calf as a god, the wrath of their Lord will overtake them, and humiliation in the worldly life; and thus do We requite the fabricators") (7:152).
Abū Jaʿfar said: The Exalted, whose praise is mentioned, says: "Truly, those who took the calf" as a god = "the wrath (ghaḍab) of their Lord will overtake them," in that Allah brings that upon them swiftly = "and humiliation (dhilla)," and that is disgrace, as a punishment from Allah upon them on account of their disbelief in their Lord = "in the worldly life," in the near part of the worldly life, before that which is to come of the Hereafter.
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Ibn Jurayj used to say concerning this what follows:
15147 - Al-Qāsim related to us, he said: Al-Ḥusayn related to us, he said: Ḥajjāj related to me, on the authority of Ibn Jurayj, concerning His word: "Truly, those who took the calf, the wrath of their Lord will overtake them, and humiliation in the worldly life; and thus do We requite the fabricators," he said: this applies to whoever of those who took the calf as a god died before Mūsā – peace be upon him – returned, and to whoever of them fled when Mūsā commanded them to kill one another.
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Abū Jaʿfar said: What Ibn Jurayj has said – although it is a statement that has a certain basis – is contrary to the manifest meaning of the Book of Allah, together with the interpretation of the majority of the scholars of interpretation. For Allah made the report general concerning all those who took the calf as a god, that the wrath of their Lord would overtake them and humiliation in the worldly life. And the reports of the scholars of interpretation among the Companions (ṣaḥāba) and the Followers (tābiʿūn) corroborate one another that, when Mūsā – peace be upon him – returned to the Children of Israel, Allah forgave the worshippers of the calf for their deed by means of that concerning which He reported regarding the statement of Mūsā – peace be upon him – in His Book, namely His word: وَإِذْ قَالَ مُوسَى لِقَوْمِهِ يَا قَوْمِ إِنَّكُمْ ظَلَمْتُمْ أَنْفُسَكُمْ بِاتِّخَاذِكُمُ الْعِجْلَ فَتُوبُوا إِلَى بَارِئِكُمْ فَاقْتُلُوا أَنْفُسَكُمْ ("And when Mūsā said to his people: O my people, truly you have wronged yourselves by taking the calf as a god, so turn in repentance to your Creator and kill yourselves") [Surah Al-Baqarah: 54], and they did what their prophet – may Allah bless him and grant him peace – commanded them. The command of Allah to them with that which He commanded them, namely that one should kill the other, was on account of His wrath upon them because of their worship of the calf. And the killing of one by another was a disgrace and humiliation with which Allah humiliated them in the worldly life, and likewise a repentance from them to Allah which He accepted from them. And it is not permissible for anyone to restrict a report that has come in the Book with its general scope to something particular of that which the manifest meaning generally encompasses, without a proof from a transmitted argument or from reason. And we know of no report that has come with the obligation of transferring the manifest meaning of His word "Truly, those who took the calf, the wrath of their Lord will overtake them" to a hidden, particular meaning = nor is there from reason any indication of that, such that it would be obligatory to convert its manifest meaning into its hidden meaning.
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And by His word "and thus do We requite the fabricators" He means: and just as I requited these who took the calf as a god, by causing the wrath to descend upon them and by the humiliation in the worldly life on account of their disbelief in their Lord and their apostasy (ridda) from their religion after their belief in Allah, so do We requite everyone who fabricates against Allah, thus lying about Him, and acknowledges the divinity of another than Him, and worships something besides Him of the idols, after his acknowledgment of the oneness of Allah, and after his belief in Him and in His prophets and messengers and the affirmation thereof, if he does not repent of his disbelief before he is killed.
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And in accordance with what we have said concerning this, a group of the scholars of interpretation spoke.
* Mention of who said that:
15148 - Muḥammad ibn ʿAbd al-Aʿlā related to us, he said: Muḥammad ibn Thawr related to us, on the authority of Maʿmar, on the authority of Ayyūb, he said: Abū Qilāba recited: "the wrath of their Lord will overtake them, and humiliation in the worldly life," the verse, and he said: this is the requital for every fabricator that there will be until the Day of Resurrection: that Allah, mighty and exalted, humiliates him.
15149 - Al-Muthannā related to me, he said: Abū al-Nuʿmān ʿĀrim related to us, he said: Ḥammād ibn Zayd related to us, on the authority of Ayyūb, he said: Abū Qilāba recited one day this verse: "Truly, those who took the calf, the wrath of their Lord will overtake them, and humiliation in the worldly life; and thus do We requite the fabricators," and he said: it applies, by Allah, to every fabricator until the Day of Resurrection.
15150 - ... He said: Ḥajjāj related to us, he said: Ḥammād related to us, on the authority of Thābit and Ḥumayd: that Qays ibn ʿUbād and Jāriya ibn Qudāma entered upon ʿAlī ibn Abī Ṭālib – may Allah be pleased with him – and said: "What is your opinion of this matter in which you find yourself and to which you call: is it a charge that the Messenger of Allah – may Allah bless him and grant him peace – entrusted to you, or an opinion that you yourself have formed?" He said: "What have you to do with this? Turn away from it!" They said: "By Allah, we will not turn away from this until you inform us of it!" He said: "The Messenger of Allah – may Allah bless him and grant him peace – entrusted nothing to me except a writing in the sheath of this sword of mine!" Then he drew it and took the writing out of the sheath of his sword, and in it was: "There has been no prophet but that he had a sacred precinct (ḥaram), and truly, I have made Medina a sacred precinct just as Ibrāhīm – peace be upon him – made Mecca a sacred precinct: no weapon may be borne therein for battle. Whoever commits a crime therein or gives shelter to a criminal, upon him is the curse of Allah, the angels, and all mankind together; from him no ransom nor compensation is accepted." When they went out, one of them said to his companion: "Do you not see this writing?" Thereupon they returned and abandoned it (their insistence), and said: "We have heard Allah saying: 'Truly, those who took the calf, the wrath of their Lord will overtake them,' the verse, and truly, these people have fabricated a fabrication, and I know of nothing other than that humiliation will descend upon them."
15151 - Al-Muthannā related to me, he said: Isḥāq related to us, he said: ʿAbd Allāh ibn al-Zubayr related to us, on the authority of Ibn ʿUyayna, concerning His word: "and thus do We requite the fabricators," he said: every adherent of a reprehensible innovation (bidʿa) is humiliated.
