The Holy Quran with Five Volume Commentary (Vol 1) — Page 149
PT. 1 AL-BAQARAH not provided, and commit iniquity in the earth, creating disorder. '67 sound alike and afforded a playful opportunity to the mischief-minded among the Israelites. But as already said, the word substituted is not material. What matters is that they, i. e. many of them as the Quran hints, disobeyed the Lord and made religion a plaything. Hence the punishment. 67. Important Words: (rod). means, he beat the man with a rod. means, he brought together the people, or he made them agree on some matter of common concern. means: (1) a rod strong enough to support the weight of a man; (2) communal and family life; (3) a community; (4) the shin-bone (Aqrab). i. e. it prevented حجر rock) is from) الحجر or resisted. ✓ means, a stone; a great mass of stone; a rock (Lane). Commentary: This verse mentions another favour bestowed on the Israelites. When once they were hard pressed by thirst and no water was procurable in the desert, God saved them by revealing to Moses the knowledge of a rock from which water flowed out when struck with a rod. The demand of the Israelites for water and their being supplied with it is mentioned at two places in the Bible. At one place mention is made of the twelve springs of Elim, but nothing is said there of Moses' 149 CH. 2 وَلَا تَعْثَوْا فِي الْأَرْضِ مُفْسِدِينَ striking the rock with his rod (Exod. 15:27). At the other place, Moses, by divine command, struck the rock Horeb with his rod, and there flowed out abundant water with which the Israelites and their animals slaked their thirst (Exod. 17:1-7 Numb. 20:2- 11). Here no mention is made of the number of springs. It appears that the Quran refers to the occurrence relating to the rock of Horeb because, with the only difference that the Bible does not give the number of springs whereas the Quran gives a definite number, almost all the details narrated in the Bible concur with the narrative of the Quran. As for the slight difference with regard to the number of springs, reason favours the narrative of the Quran. The Israelites numbered several thousands besides riding animals and beasts of burden, and one spring was certainly insufficient for such a large number, especially when Iwe take into consideration the fact that the thirsty Israelites were, according to the Bible, in a state of extreme exasperation at that time and were prepared even to stone Moses to death. It is possible, however, that at the source there was only one mouth of the spring, but it divided into twelve channels as it flowed down the rock, the number being in conformity with the number of the Israelite tribes. If at present there is no trace of the twelve springs at that spot, it is no