Tafseer Surah Baqarah Verse 63 | Surah Baqarah explanation in English | Surah Baqarah explained | Surah Baqarah Ayat 63

Tafseer Surah Baqarah Verse 63 | Surah Baqarah explanation in English | Surah Baqarah explained | Surah Baqarah Ayat 63 Translation

Surah Al-Baqarah

Verse 63

2:63 Al-Baqara

وَإِذْ أَخَذْنَا مِيثَاقَكُمْ وَرَفَعْنَا فَوْقَكُمُ الطُّورَ خُذُوا مَا آتَيْنَاكُمْ بِقُوَّةٍ وَاذْكُرُوا مَا فِيهِ لَعَلَّكُمْ تَتَّقُونَ

And (O Children of Israel, remember) when We took your covenant and We raised above you the Mount (saying): "Hold fast to that which We have given you, and remember that which is therein so that you may become Al-Muttaqun (the pious - see V. 2:2).

Tafseer Surah Baqarah Verse 63

☘️In this ayaat, Allah subhanahu wa ta’ala reminds the Children of Israel of the pledges, covenants and promises that He took from them.

☘️While taking this pledge Allah subhanahu wa ta’ala raised the mountain (at-Tur) above their heads, so that they affirm it and abide by it with sincerity and seriousness. This incident is also mentioned in Surah Al-A’raf ayah 171.

“Take what We have given you…” means hold fast to the commands of Torah. They were not simply required to accept the Book but also live by it. They were to keep referring to the Book of Allah in their day-to-day matters. They were not supposed to blindly follow their forefathers or their traditions. They were to know what Allah subhanahu wa ta’ala expects them to do in their daily matters.

☘️As mentioned earlier, Surah Al-Baqarah is not a criticism on the Jews rather it contains lessons for us, the Muslims as well. We start studying the Book as soon as we turn four or when someone embraces Islam. Many of us do lengthy Qur’an courses but when it comes to our routine lives we forget to implement the commands of Allah subhanahu wa ta’ala.

Families are supposed to live in mutual harmony, but how many homes have toxic environments?

We know that we are forbidden to work in a bank or deal with them. But how many of us decline the opportunity when we are offered a job at the bank? How many of us hoard money in saving accounts expecting petty profit rather than depositing it with Allah subhanahu wa ta’ala in the form of charity? How many of us truly understand the concept of being at war with Allah and His Messenger ﷺ? It is mentioned in the Qur’an that the women have a share in the inheritance. How many of us remember to give the daughter, the wife or sister her share?

☘️Why should one adhere to the Book?

Allah subhanahu wa ta’ala says, “…that perhaps you may become righteous…” Taqwa is what is going to save us in this life and the Hereafter. We cannot acquire taqwa if we do not hold fast to the Book. If we don’t study the Book, understand and remember its commands how can we conduct our lives according to how Allah subhanahu wa ta’ala wants?

☘️Learn the Qur’an, understand its meaning, and remember its commands in your routine matters if you wish to enjoy the blessings of Allah subhanahu wa ta’ala in this world and the next.

☘️Qur’an cannot be understood by our personal interpretations. To understand an ayah we first look for similar ayaat in the Qur’an. Then we look at the Prophetic traditions and study how the Prophet ﷺ explained the ayah. We then have the sayings of the Companions radhiAllahu ‘anhum and the exegesis of the Tabi’een and so on. Be careful of your sources of knowledge. Ask Allah subhanahu wa ta’ala to lead you to the truth and protect you from falsehood.

☘️The Qur’an is for each one of us. We should read it. We should understand its meaning. We should not keep the knowledge to ourselves but teach it to others.

☘️Therefore, Allah subhanahu wa ta’ala said,    

خُذُواْ مَآ ءَاتَيْنَـكُم بِقُوَّةٍ

“Hold fast to that which We have given you…”

Not just hold fast to it but…

وَاذْكُرُواْ مَا فِيهِ

“…and remember that which is therein…” 

meaning implement its commands. Remember them whenever you have to take a decision in life.

When it comes to trying out a new recipe we go exactly by the recipe card. When it comes to fixing or setting up a machine we go exactly by the manual, then why is it that we believe we can live our lives without the Manual that Allah subhanahu wa ta’ala has given us?

☘️ASK YOURSELF:

► What do I do all day?

► How much time do I give to the Qur’an? Does the Qur’an even has any portion in my daily routine?

► Do I also try to understand the meaning or is my only focus on completing the recitation?

🔮Some people ask is it obligatory to study the Qur’an daily. Such people should be asked: Is it obligatory to daily check your social media accounts, watch television, WhatsApp or talk to people? Why do we only have to compromise when it comes to the matters of the Deen?

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