SURAH AL-BAQARAH (AYAH 71 to 80)

قَالَ إِنَّهُ يَقُولُ إِنَّهَا بَقَرَةٌ لَا ذَلُولٌ تُثِيرُ الْأَرْضَ وَلَا تَسْقِي الْحَرْثَ مُسَلَّمَةٌ لَا شِيَةَ فِيهَا ۚ قَالُوا الْآنَ جِئْتَ بِالْحَقِّ ۚ فَذَبَحُوهَا وَمَا كَادُوا يَفْعَلُونَ {2:71}

[Q2:71] Qaala innahoo yaqoolu innahaa baqaratul laa zaloolun tuseerul arda wa laa tasqil harsa musallamatullaa shiyata feehaa; qaalul 'aana jita bilhaqq; fazabahoohaa wa maa kaado yaf'aloon. [Q2:71] Musa said: He says, Surely she is a cow not made submissive that she should plough the land, nor does she irrigate the tilth; sound, without a blemish in her. They said: Now you have brought the truth; so they sacrificed her, though they had not the mind to do (it).

[Q2:71] Nabi Musa menjawab: “Bahawasanya ALLAH (SwT) berfirman: Sebenarnya (lembu yang dikehendaki itu) ialah lembu betina yang tidak pernah digunakan untuk membajak tanah (sawah bendang), dan tidak pula (digunakan mengangkut air) untuk menyiram tanaman; ia juga tidak cacat dan tidak ada belang pada warnanya”. Mereka berkata: “Sekarang baharulah engkau dapat menerangkan sifat-sifatnya yang sebenar”. Maka mereka pun menyembelih lembu yang tersebut, dan hampir-hampir mereka tidak dapat menunaikan (perintah ALLAH (SwT)) itu.

 (see commentary for verse 67)

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(2:71) Moses answered, "Allah says that she should be a cow which has not been yoked nor has ploughed the land nor watered the fields; which is sound and whole, without belemish. " Then they cried out, "Now you have given an accurate description." Then they sacrificed her but they did not appear to be doing this willingly. *84

*84. Through contact with neighbouring peoples, the Israelites had become infested with the attitude of sanctifying the cow, in fact they had even become accustomed to cow-worship. In order to disabuse the Jews of this, they were ordered to slaughter the cow. Their professed belief that God alone was worthy of worship could be tested only by making them slaughter with their own hands what they had formerly worshipped. This test was indeed a hard one since their hearts were not fully imbued with faith. Hence, they tried to shelve the issue by resorting to enquiries about the kind of animal they were required to slaughter. But the more they enquired, the narrower the strait became for them, until the indications were as obvious as if someone had put his finger precisely on the particular animal they were required to slaughter - the animal which had for so long been an object of their worship. The Old Testament also mentions the incident, but there is no reference to the manner in which the Jews tried to evade the matter. (See Numbers 19: 1-10.) 

SECTION 9

The Hard-heartedness of the Israelites-Perverting the Revealed Word of ALLAH (SWT)

The quarrels among the children of Israel---Their hard-heartedness---Their perverting the revealed Word of ALLAH (SWT)---Concealing the truth---and the prophecies---The ignorance of the masses---The punishment to the wicked and the reward to the virtous.

وَإِذْ قَتَلْتُمْ نَفْسًا فَادَّارَأْتُمْ فِيهَا ۖ وَاللَّهُ مُخْرِجٌ مَا كُنْتُمْ تَكْتُمُونَ {2:72}

[Q2:72] Wa iz qataltum nafsan faddaara'tum feehaa wallaahu mukrijum maa kuntum taktumoon.
[Q2:72] And when you killed a man, then you disagreed with respect to that, and ALLAH (SWT) was to bring forth that which you were going to hide.

[Q2:72] Dan (ingatlah), ketika kamu membunuh seorang manusia, kemudian kamu tuduh-menuduh sesama sendiri tentang pembunuhan itu, padahal ALLAH (SwT) tetap melahirkan apa yang kamu sembunyikan.

 (see commentary for verse 67)

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(2:72) You should also recall to mind another incident: You slew a man and began to dispute about the murder and accuse one another of it, but Allah had decreed that what you were trying to hide should be disclosed.

فَقُلْنَا اضْرِبُوهُ بِبَعْضِهَا ۚ كَذَٰلِكَ يُحْيِي اللَّهُ الْمَوْتَىٰ وَيُرِيكُمْ آيَاتِهِ لَعَلَّكُمْ تَعْقِلُونَ {2:73}

[Q2:73] Faqulnad riboohu biba'dihaa; kazaalika yuhyil laa hul mawtaa wa yureekum aayaatihee la'allakum ta'qiloon.
[Q2:73] So We said: Strike the (dead body) with part of the (Sacrificed cow), thus ALLAH (SWT) brings the dead to life, and He shows you His signs so that you may understand.

[Q2:73] Maka Kami (ALLAH (SwT)) berfirman: “Pukulah si mati dengan sebahagian anggota lembu yang kamu sembelih itu” (Mereka pun memukulnya dan ia kembali hidup). Demikianlah ALLAH (SwT) menghidupkan orang-orang yang telah mati, dan memperlihatkan kepada kamu tanda-tanda kekuasaanNya, supaya kamu memahaminya.

(see commentary for verse 67)

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(2:73) So We commanded, "Strike the corpse of the murdered man with a part of the sacrificed cow. See how Allah brings the dead to life and shows you His Signs, so that you may understand". *85

*85. At least one thing becomes clear from this statement: that the slain person was restored to life at least long enough to indicate his assassins. But the actual words in which the order 'smite the corpse with a part of it' is couche tend to create a measure of ambiguity. Nevertheless, the meaning inferred by the early Qur'anic commentators - that the order was to smite the slain man's body with some part of the slaughtered cow - seems to me plausible. Two birds were thus killed with one stone: first, they were made to behold a sign of God's power; and second, the notion that the cow possessed any holiness or sanctity was shattered. For if the of the object of their worship - the cow - had any supernatural power, some calamity should have visited them as a consequence of slaughtering it. But no calamity took place. On the contrary, killing the cow seemed to be beneficial insofar as striking a dead man with a part of it brought him back to life. 

ثُمَّ قَسَتْ قُلُوبُكُمْ مِنْ بَعْدِ ذَٰلِكَ فَهِيَ كَالْحِجَارَةِ أَوْ أَشَدُّ قَسْوَةً ۚ وَإِنَّ مِنَ الْحِجَارَةِ لَمَا يَتَفَجَّرُ مِنْهُ الْأَنْهَارُ ۚ وَإِنَّ مِنْهَا لَمَا يَشَّقَّقُ فَيَخْرُجُ مِنْهُ الْمَاءُ ۚ وَإِنَّ مِنْهَا لَمَا يَهْبِطُ مِنْ خَشْيَةِ اللَّهِ ۗ وَمَا اللَّهُ بِغَافِلٍ عَمَّا تَعْمَلُونَ {2:74}

[Q2:74] Summa qasat quloobukum mim ba'di zaalika fahiya kalhijaarati aw-ashaadu qaswah; wa inna minal hijaarati lamaa yatafajjaru minhul anhaar; wa inna minhaa lamaa yash shaqqaqu fayakhruju minhul maaa'; wa inna minhaa lamaa yahbitu min khashyatil laa; wa mal laahu bighaafilin 'ammaa ta'maloon.

[Q2:74] Then your hearts hardened after that, so that they were like rocks, rather worse in hardness; and surely there are some rocks from which streams burst forth, and surely there are some of them which split asunder so water issues out of them, and surely there are some of them which fall down for fear of ALLAH (SWT), and ALLAH (SWT) is not at all heedless of what you do.
[Q2:74] Kemudian sesudah itu, hati kamu juga menjadi keras seperti batu, bahkan lebih keras lagi. Padahal di antara batu-batu itu ada yang terpancar dan mengalir air sungai daripadanya; dan ada pula di antaranya yang pecah-pecah terbelah lalu keluar mata air daripadanya; dan ada juga di antaranya yang jatuh ke bawah kerana takut kepada ALLAH (SwT); sedang ALLAH (SwT) tidak sekali-kali lalai daripada apa yang kamu kerjakan.

Even after witnessing the soul-stirring event the Bani Israil lost no time in reverting to disbelief. THEY WERE LIKE STONES, WORSE THAN STONES, BECAUSE EVEN A STONE FOLLOWS ITS NATURE. It does not rebel. In the thin layers of stones water is stored, which can be drawn out. Springs issues out of them.

     THE NATURE OF QALB (HEART) IS TO TURN - TO CHANGE OLD HABITS AND BE INTIMATE WITH TRUTH; LIVE, AND DIE FOR THE TRUTH. IF a man has the required degree of faith in ALLAH (SWT) and develops the strength of conviction, he can make use of nature around him, BECAUSE by native volition every object yields to the laws operative under the will of ALLAH (SWT). THEREFORE the messengers of ALLAH (SWT) and the representatives of ALLAH (SWT) had demonstrated extraordinary events (miracles) to prove that on account of the divine endowments in them, they could make the material phenomena yield to their will in complete submission to the will of ALLAH (SWT).

THE QUR’AN REPEATEDLY DECLARES THAT EVERYTHING, EVEN INANIMATE OBJECTS, WHICH SEEM TO BE FIXED AND IMMOVABLE AND UNABLE TO DO ANYTHING OF THEIR OWN ACCORD, VOLUNTEER AND SURRENDER TO THEIR CREATOR. And there is none in the universe who does not sing or celebrate the glory of the Lord. See verse 17:44 of Bani Israil.

Ø  So to deny "there are some of them which fall down for fear of ALLAH (SWT)" under the cover of allusive symbolism is a guessing game of the Ahmadi and other of its kind theoreticians, who are apparently ignorant of the latest scientific findings.

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(2:74) But even after seeing these Signs your hearts hardened and became as hard as rocks; nay, even harder than rocks. For there are some rocks out of which springs gush forth, and others which split open, and water issues out of them; then there are some which tumble down for fear of Allah. And Allah is not unaware of what you are doing.

أَفَتَطْمَعُونَ أَنْ يُؤْمِنُوا لَكُمْ وَقَدْ كَانَ فَرِيقٌ مِنْهُمْ يَسْمَعُونَ كَلَامَ اللَّهِ ثُمَّ يُحَرِّفُونَهُ مِنْ بَعْدِ مَا عَقَلُوهُ وَهُمْ يَعْلَمُونَ {2:75}

[Q2:75] Afatatma'oona ai yu'minoo lakum wa qad kaana fareequm minhum yasma'oona Kalaamal laahi summa yuharri foonahoo mim ba'di maa'aqaloohu wa hum ya'lamoon.
[Q2:75] Do you then hope that they would believe in you, and a party from among them indeed used to hear the Word of ALLAH (SWT), then altered it after they had understood it, and they know (this).

[Q2:75] (Sesudah kamu – wahai Muhammad dan pengikut-pengikutmu – mengetahui tentang kerasnya hati orang-orang Yahudi itu) maka bolehkah kamu menaruh harapan bahawa mereka akan beriman kepada seruan Islam yang kamu sampaikan itu, padahal sesungguhnya telah ada satu puak dari mereka yang mendengar Kalam ALLAH (SwT) (Taurat), kemudian mereka mengubah dan memutarkan maksudnya sesudah mereka memahaminya, sedang mereka mengetahui (bahawa perbuatan itu salah)?

PEOPLE WHO ARE NOT AWARE OF THE TRUTH READILY BECOME BELIEVERS WHEN THEY SEE THE LIGHT OF TRUTH, BUT THOSE who know the truth and yet deny it remain disbelievers.

Ø  The Jews and the Christians of Arabia were expecting the advent of the Holy Prophet (ALLAHuma sali ala Muhammad wa ala ali Muhammad), in view of the prophecies made by Musa, Isa and other Prophets, (see Baqarah 2:40), therefore, they used to warn the pagans:

"Wait! The promised one comes and punishes you all for your wickedness".

Their attitude towards Islam, before hijrat, was not hostile, if not friendly, BUT AS the influence and the power of the Muslims increased, they stopped talking about the prophecies mentioned in their scriptures and prevented others from referring to them.

µ  Though yuharrifunahu here means misinterpretation and not any material change in the wording, YET IT IS PROVED that the pre-Islamic scriptures had been misinterpreted (tahrif ma-nawi) as well as tampered with by *omission, *addition, and *substitution of letters, words and sentences (tahrif lafzi), as mentioned in the Encyclopaedia Brittanica and the periodicals published by the Watch Tower Society. What has been discovered today after extensive research by independent scholars has been disclosed by the Qur’an in this verse.

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(2:75) O Muslims, do you then expect that these people will accept your invitation and become believers? *86 whereas there have always been among them some who have been hearing the Word of God, understanding it well and then perverting and tampering with it knowingly. *87

*86. This is addressed to the converts of Madina, who had then lately embraced the faith of the Arabian Prophet. These people had some vague notions about Prophethood, Heavenly Scriptures, Angels, the After-life, Divine Law and so on, and for this they were indebted to their Jewish neighbours. It was from these same Jewish neighbours that they had heard that another Prophet was about to appear, and that his followers would prevail over the rest of the world.
It was partly because of this background that when the people of Madina heard about the Prophet, they readily turned towards him and embraced Islam in large numbers. They naturally expected that those who already followed Prophets and Divine Scriptures, and who, by introducing them to these ideas had contributed to their embracing the true faith, would not only join the ranks of the true believers, but would even be amongst their vanguard. As a result of these expectations the enthusiastic Muslim converts approached their Jewish friends and neighbours and invited them to embrace Islam. When the Jews flatly declined to do so, this negative reply was exploited by the hypocrites and other enemies of Islam as an argument for creating doubts about the truth of Islam.
If Muhammad was the true Prophet, they argued, how was it conceivable that the Jewish scholars and divines would deliberately turn away from him since, if he was a true Prophet, such a behaviour would be tantamount to ruining their After-life? Here the simple-hearted Muslims learn of the historical record of the Jews, a record which is replete with perversion and corruption. This was designed to make them realize that they ought not to expect too much of a people with so dark a past, for if they were not realistic in their expectations about them they would be utterly disappointed when their call failed to penetrate their hardened and stony hearts. Their chronic decadence had a history of several centuries. For a long time they had treated those verses of the Scriptures which made sincere believers tremble in awe as objects of jest and play. They had tailored religion to suit their base desires and it was around such a perverted view of religion that all their hopes of salvation were centred. It was futile to hope that such people would flock to the call of Truth the moment it was proclaimed.
*87. 'A party of them' refers to the scholars and religious doctors of the Jewish community. The'Word of God' here signifies the Torah, the Psalms (Zabur) and other Scriptures which the Jews had received through the Prophets. 'Distortion' denotes the attempt to twist a text in such a manner as to make it signify something different from its real meaning, and may also denote tampering with the text of the Scriptures. The Israelite scholars had subjected the Scriptures to distortions of both kinds. 

وَإِذَا لَقُوا الَّذِينَ آمَنُوا قَالُوا آمَنَّا وَإِذَا خَلَا بَعْضُهُمْ إِلَىٰ بَعْضٍ قَالُوا أَتُحَدِّثُونَهُمْ بِمَا فَتَحَ اللَّهُ عَلَيْكُمْ لِيُحَاجُّوكُمْ بِهِ عِنْدَ رَبِّكُمْ ۚ أَفَلَا تَعْقِلُونَ {2:76}

[Q2:76] Wa izaa laqul lazeena aamanoo qaalooo aamannaa wa izaakhalaa ba'duhum ilaa ba'din qaalooo atuhaddisoonahum bimaa fatahal laahu 'alaikum liyuhaajjookum bihee 'inda rabbikum; afalaa ta'qiloon.
[Q2:76] And when they meet those who believe they say: We believe, and when they are alone one with another they say: Do you talk to them of what ALLAH (SWT) has disclosed to you that they may contend with you by this before your Lord? Do you not then understand?

[Q2:76] Dan apabila mereka (orang-orang Yahudi pada zaman Rasulullah) bertemu dengan orang-orang yang beriman, mereka berkata: “Kami telah beriman”; dan apabila mereka berjumpa sesama sendiri, mereka berkata: “Patutkah kamu ceritakan kepada mereka (orang-orang Islam) dengan apa yang telah diterangkan oleh ALLAH (SwT) kepada kamu (di dalam Kitab Taurat mengenai kebenaran Nabi Muhammad) untuk menjadikannya hujah (bukti) yang dapat mengalahkah kamu di sisi Tuhan kamu? Tidakkah kamu berakal?”

Those Jews, who only pretended to have accepted Islam, had close relations with the rabbis. In their meetings, the clever rabbis, as stated in the commentary of Baqarah 2:42, reprimanded the less-careful converts for their unscrupulous utterings about the prophecies written in their scriptures regarding the advent of the Holy Prophet (ALLAHuma sali ala Muhammad wa ala ali Muhammad). They were afraid of giving the believers, through such disclosures, an upper hand at the time of argumentation, which could make the true seekers of the truth among them go into the fold of Islam in sincerity.

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(2:76) When they meet those who believe in Muhammad, they say, "We also believe in him." But when they meet one another in private, they say, "Have you got no sense that you disclose to them those things which Allah has revealed to you so that they might bring them as a proof against you before your Lord? *88

*88. When the Jews talked among themselves they asked their co-religionists to disclose to the Muslims neither the prophesies about the Prophet, nor those verses of the Scriptures on the basis of which they could be reproached for their evil conduct; they thought that the Muslims would make use of scriptural arguments against them before God, and would thus have them pronounced guilty. These were the depths to which Jewish relivious decadence had sunk. They were convinced that if they could succeed in concealing their guilt in this world, they would be saved from censure in the Next. For this reason they were asked if they considered God to be unaware of their deeds, either apparent or hidden.

أَوَلَا يَعْلَمُونَ أَنَّ اللَّهَ يَعْلَمُ مَا يُسِرُّونَ وَمَا يُعْلِنُونَ {2:77}

[Q2:77] Awalaa ya'lamoona annal laaha ya'lamu maa yusirroona wa maa yu'linoon.
[Q2:77] Do they not know that ALLAH (SWT) knows what they keep secret and what they make known?

[Q2:77] (Mereka berani berkata demikian) dan tidakkah mereka ketahui bahawasanya ALLAH (SwT) mengetahui apa yang mereka rahsiakan dan apa yang mereka lahirkan?

In continuation of verses 75 and 76 of this surah this verse says that the truth will prevail in spite of the false notion of the Jews THAT IF they do not make known the prophecies about the advent of Muhammad (ALLAHuma sali ala Muhammad wa ala ali Muhammad), the last prophet of ALLAH (SWT), the people will never accept Islam.

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(2:77) Do they really not know that Allah is fully aware of what they hide and what they disclose?

وَمِنْهُمْ أُمِّيُّونَ لَا يَعْلَمُونَ الْكِتَابَ إِلَّا أَمَانِيَّ وَإِنْ هُمْ إِلَّا يَظُنُّونَ {2:78}

[Q2:78] Wa minhum ummiyyoona laa ya'lamoonal kitaaba illaaa amaaniyya wa in hum illaa yazunnoon.
[Q2:78] And there are among them illiterates who know not the Book but only lies, and they do but conjecture.

[Q2:78] Dan di antara mereka pula ada orang-orang yang buta huruf, mereka tidak mengetahui akan isi Kitab Taurat selain dari penerangan-penerangan bohong (dari ketua-ketua mereka), dan mereka hanyalah berpegang kepada sangkaan-sangkaan sahaja.

THE CRAFTY SCHOLARS, AMONG THE JEWS, KEPT THE KNOWLEDGE OF THE SCRIPTURES EXCLUSIVELY TO THEMSELVES and told only lies in front of the illiterates in order to exert and maintain power over those of them who did not know the books. IT IS A WARNING to mankind in general that the illiterate, as opposed to the scheming scholar, is the innocent victim of priest-class falsehood and tyranny. BARRING THE COMMON PEOPLE FROM ACCESS TO MEANS OF GAINING KNOWLEDGE, the clever set successfully maintains exclusive control and power, deliberately keeping others deprived, and in darkness.

The word ummi generally means one who can neither write nor read. Here it is used for those Jews who could neither read nor write. In many places the Qur’an addresses the Arabs as ummies. 

Ì  WITH REFERENCE TO THE USE OF UMMI FOR THE HOLY PROPHET (ALLAHuma sali ala Muhammad wa ala ali Muhammad), commentators say that it is EITHER BECAUSE the Holy Prophet (ALLAHuma sali ala Muhammad wa ala ali Muhammad) [1] could neither write nor read, or because [2] he was one of the Arabs, or because [3] he was the inhabitant of the city of Makka known as the Ummul-Qura.

UMMI CAN ALSO BE DERIVED FROM THE WORD UMM---the mother. Ummi means the person who remains the same in his native endowments as was born, without receiving any education or training from any (outside) source. THE HOLY PROPHET (ALLAHUMA SALI ALA MUHAMMAD WA ALA ALI MUHAMMAD) DID NOT RECEIVE KNOWLEDGE OR EDUCATION FROM ANY MORTAL BUT BY ALLAH (SWT) HIMSELF. HE WAS BORN WITH DIVINELY ENDOWED WISDOM AND REMAINED THE SAME, WITHOUT LETTING ANY WORLDLY AGENCY INFLUENCE HIS SELF, TUTORED AND PERFECTED BY ALLAH (SWT) HIMSELF.

ALLAH (SWT) has revealed to you the book and the wisdom and taught you what you did not know. Great has been the grace of ALLAH (SWT) on you. (NISA 4:113)

Please refer to verse 36:12 of Ya Sin, verses 55:1 to 4 of al Rahman and verses 53:4 and 5 of al Najm.

It is He who raised among the ummies a messenger from amongst them, who recites His signs to them, reforms them and teaches them the book and the wisdom (JUMU-AH 62:2),

SO IT IS ABSURD TO BELIEVE THAT ALLAH (SWT) HAD SENT AN ILLITERATE TO TEACH THE BOOK AND THE WISDOM TO THE ILLITERATES.

Ø  Imam Jafar bin Muhammad al Sadiq has said that the conscience of every human being tells him not to follow blindly any one who pretends to be a guide without having the necessary merits, therefore, he cannot wholly blame others for being ignorant of the divine guidance because of the trickery of the false guides he chooses to follow.

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(2:78) Then there are among them some un-lettered people who have no knowledge of the Book but depend upon empty hopes and are guided by mere conjecture and guess-work. *89

*89. This was the state of the Jewish masses. They were ignorant of the Scriptures, unaware of the principles of faith as enunciated by God in His Book, unaware of the rules of conduct that He had laid down, and of the teachings which are of fundamental importance for man's salvation. Because they lacked this knowledge, they fabricated a whole religion out of their desires and fancies, living in a paradise built on false hopes and illusions. 

فَوَيْلٌ لِلَّذِينَ يَكْتُبُونَ الْكِتَابَ بِأَيْدِيهِمْ ثُمَّ يَقُولُونَ هَٰذَا مِنْ عِنْدِ اللَّهِ لِيَشْتَرُوا بِهِ ثَمَنًا قَلِيلًا ۖ فَوَيْلٌ لَهُمْ مِمَّا كَتَبَتْ أَيْدِيهِمْ وَوَيْلٌ لَهُمْ مِمَّا يَكْسِبُونَ {2:79}

[Q2:79] Fawailul lillazeena yaktuboonal kitaaba bi aydeehim summa yaqooloona haazaa min 'indil laahi liyashtaroo bihee samanan qaleelan fawilul lahum mimaa katabat aydeehim wa wailul lahum mimmaa yaksiboon.
[Q2:79] Woe, then, to those who write the book with their hands and then say: This is from ALLAH (SWT), so that they may take for it a small price; therefore woe to them for what their hands have written and woe to them for what they earn.

[Q2:79] Kecelakaan besar bagi orang-orang yang menulis Kitab Taurat dengan tangan mereka (lalu mengubah Kalam ALLAH (SwT) dengan rekaan-rekaan mereka), kemudian mereka berkata: “Ini ialah dari sisi ALLAH (SwT)”, supaya mereka dengan perbuatan itu dapat membeli keuntungan dunia yang sedikit. Maka kecelakaan besar bagi mereka disebabkan apa yang ditulis oleh tangan mereka, dan kecelakaan besar bagi mereka dari apa yang mereka usahakan itu.

IN ORDER TO CONFUSE THE PEOPLE SO THAT THEY COULD NOT SEE IN THE HOLY PROPHET (ALLAHUMA SALI ALA MUHAMMAD WA ALA ALI MUHAMMAD) THE QUALITIES MENTIONED IN THEIR BOOKS AND RIGHTLY IDENTIFY HIM AS THE PROMISED PROPHET, they had made alterations in the holy scriptures. By corrupting the books they had corrupted themselves.

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(2:79) So woe to their learned people, who write the law with their own hands and then say to the people, "This is from Allah," so that they might gain some paltry worldly end. *90 (They do not see that) this writing of their hands will bring woe to them and what they gain thereby will lead to their ruin.

*90. These observations relate to their rabbis. They were not content with misinterpreting the Word of God. They also interjected into it their readings of the Scriptures and their explanatory comments thereof, stories from their national history, superstitious ideas and fancies, philosophical doctrines and legal rules. The result was that the Divine and the human became inextricably mixed. They claimed, nevertheless, that the entire thing was divine! Every historical anecdote, the interpretation of every commentator, the doctrine of every theologian, and the legal deduction of every jurist that managed to find its way into the Bible became the 'Word of God'. It was thus obligatory to believe in all that, and every deviation from it became tantamount to deviation from the true faith.

وَقَالُوا لَنْ تَمَسَّنَا النَّارُ إِلَّا أَيَّامًا مَعْدُودَةً ۚ قُلْ أَتَّخَذْتُمْ عِنْدَ اللَّهِ عَهْدًا فَلَنْ يُخْلِفَ اللَّهُ عَهْدَهُ ۖ أَمْ تَقُولُونَ عَلَى اللَّهِ مَا لَا تَعْلَمُونَ {2:80}

[Q2:80] Wa qaaloo lan tamassanan Naaru illaaa ayyaamam ma'doo dah; qul attakhaztum 'indal laahi 'ahdan falai yukhlifal laahu 'ahdahooo am taqooloona 'alal laahi maa laa ta'lamoon.

[Q2:80] And they say: Fire shall not touch us but for a few days. Say: Have you received a promise from ALLAH (SWT), then ALLAH (SWT) will not fail to perform His promise, or do you speak against ALLAH (SWT) what you do not know?
[Q2:80] Dan mereka berkata: “Kami tidak sekali-kali akan disentuh oleh api neraka kecuali beberapa hari yang tertentu”. Katakanlah (wahai Muhammad): “Adakah kamu sudah mendapat janji dari ALLAH (SwT) supaya (dengan itu) ALLAH (SwT) tidak akan menyalahi janjiNya, atau hanya kamu mengatakan atas nama ALLAH (SwT) sesuatu yang tidak kamu mengetahuinya?”

According to George Sale, "the Jews believe that no person, be he ever so wicked, or of whatever sect, shall remain in hell above eleven months or at the most a year except Dathan or Abiram, the atheists who will be tormented there to all eternity ."

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(2:80) They also say, "The fire of Hell is not going to touch us, and even if it does at all, it will be only for a few days". *91 Say, "Have you obtained a promise from Allah which He would not break? Or, do you attribute to Allah things you do not know? Why will not the fire of Hell touch you?

*91. This is a misconception entertained by all Jews, laymen as well as rabbis. They felt sure that no matter what they did, they would remain immune from hell-fire just by virtue of being Jews! The worst they could conceive of was the possibility of a transient punishment before they were transported to heaven.