The Holy Quran with Five Volume Commentary (Vol 1) — Page 203
CH. 2 PT. 1 whoever takes AL-BAQARAH exchange for belief has الْكُفْرَ بِالْإِيْمَانِ فَقَدْ ضَلَّ سَوَاء disbelief in السَّبِيلِ undoubtedly gone astray from the right path. 115 وَدَّ كَثِيرٌ مِّنْ أَهْلِ الْكِتُبِ لَوْ Many of the People of the. 110 يَرُدُّونَكُمْ مِّنْ بَعْدِ اِيْمَانِكُمْ كُفَّارًا ,from their own selves, that Book wish out of sheer envy after you have believed, they "3:101, 150; 4:90. previous revelations. God says that to Him belongs the entire universe, the heavens and the earth, and it was in the fitness of things that finally a revelation meant for the whole of mankind should have made its appearance. In the verse, the Jews are also told that it will be to their own interest to embrace Islam; for otherwise they will have neither friend nor helper against Allah. Commentary: to This verse mentions another artifice which the Jews employed overthrow the mission of the Holy Prophet. They asked him absurd and silly questions as had no bearing on religion. This they did to inoculate Muslims with the same spirit of stupid questioning, so that their hearts might gradually become estranged from the dignity of faith and give way to doubt. In warning Muslims against There is a subtle implication in the such a course, the Quran points out verse, viz. that the Muslims, though despised and persecuted today, will not only receive spiritual favours from God, but will also become masters of large earthly kingdoms as well; for is not Allah the Controller of the heavens and the earth? 115. Important Words: سوی (right) is derived from They sayi. e. his affairs became straight and well. means: (1) the central portion of a thing; (2) equal. means, the straight or right portion of a way; or a straight or right way (Lisān & Aqrab). 203 that the Jews had ruined themselves by putting similar questions to Moses, and that the Muslims should, therefore, beware of following their evil example. In fact, unnecessary and irrelevant questions in religious matters eventually lead one to loss of faith, for they tend to degrade religion to a plaything or a piece of idle philosophy. As to the nature of questions put to Moses by the Israelites, the Quran refers to one in 4:154. Says God: The People of the Book ask thee to cause a Book to descend on them from heaven. They asked Moses a greater thing than this; they said, 'Show us