Tafsir of Al-Baqarah 2:49

(And [recall] when We saved you from the people of Pharaoh, who were afflicting you with the worst of punishment). This is syntactically connected to "(remember) My favor," with the estimation of the word "remember" (udhkuru), so that it does not necessitate the separation of two conjoined items by a foreign element, which is "fear" (ittaqu). That which is of no benefit here has preceded it. It was recited as anjaynakum and anjaytukum, the first of which is attributed to an-Nakha'i.

Regarding Al (people/family), it is said: it means ahl (kin/household), and that its alif is a substitute for the letter ha', and that its diminutive is uhayl. Some have held that its alif is a substitute for a quiescent hamzah, and that hamzah is a substitute for the ha'. It is also said: it is not synonymous with ahl, because ahl refers to close kin, while al refers to those who "turn to you" (ya’ulu ilayka) in kinship, opinion, or creed; thus its alif is a substitute for a waw. This is why Yunus said regarding its diminutive: uwayl, and al-Kisa’i reported this as a literal text from the Arabs.

Abu Amr Ghulam Tha'lab narrated that ahl is kinship, whether one has followers or not, whereas al is kinship with followers; thus, it is more specific than ahl. They have also restricted it to those of high status; therefore, it is not attributed to non-rational beings, nor to those among them who possess no status. One does not say "the al of Kufa" nor "the al of the cupper." Some have added the condition of masculinity; thus, one does not say "the al of Fatimah." Perhaps all of this is applicable in most cases, otherwise, examples to the contrary have appeared, such as Al-A'waj (the name of a horse), Al-Madinah, Al-Ni'am, Al-Salib, and Aluka. It is also used without being genitive-linked, like the word khalu (maternal uncle). It is pluralized like ahl, so one says alun.

Pharaoh is a title for whoever ruled the Amalekites, like Chosroes (Kisra) for the ruler of the Persians, Caesar (Qaysar) for the ruler of the Romans, Khaqan for the ruler of the Turks, Tubba' for the ruler of Yemen, and Najashi for the ruler of the Abyssinians. al-Suhayli said: It is a name for everyone who ruled the Copts and Egypt. It is diptote (ghayr munsarif) due to being a proper noun and foreign. Words have been derived from it regarding what it implies, so it is said: tafarra'a (he acted like a Pharaoh) when a man behaves tyranically and insolently. This Pharaoh was al-Walid ibn Mus'ab; this was stated by Ibn Ishaq and most exegetes. It is also said he was his father, Mus'ab ibn Rayyan, as narrated by Ibn Jarir, or Qantus, as narrated by Muqatil. Wahb ibn Munabbih mentioned that the People of the Two Scriptures said his name was Qabus, and his kunyah (agnomen) was Abu Murrah, and he was a Copt. Others say he was from the Banu 'Amaliq or 'Imlaq ibn Lawidh ibn Iram ibn Sam ibn Nuh, peace be upon him; these were nations scattered throughout the lands. It is narrated that he was from the people of Istakhr, went to Egypt, and became its king. Others say he was a perfumer in Isfahan, overwhelmed by debt, who entered Egypt, and his affair ended as it did—the story of the watermelon is well-known, and Mawlana the Mufti of the Rum lands recorded it in his commentary. The correct view is that he is not the Pharaoh of Yusuf, peace be upon him. According to the most famous opinion, that one’s name was al-Rayyan ibn al-Walid, and he believed in Yusuf and died during his lifetime; he is among the ancestors of the aforementioned Pharaoh according to one opinion. Supporting their difference is that between the arrival of Yusuf and the arrival of Musa, peace be upon them both, there are more than four hundred years.

The intent by "people of Pharaoh" here is the people of Egypt, or his household in particular, or his followers in his religion. By "We saved you" is meant: We saved your fathers, and likewise with its counterparts; there is no argument therein for reincarnation. This is common in the speech of the Arabs, as Hassan said: "And we killed you at Badr, so your armies became among the dead (roaming)."

Yasumunakum (they afflict you) is from sawm, which originally means going to seek something; it is used for going alone—hence sa’imah (grazing livestock)—and for seeking—hence sawm (bargaining) in trade. It is said: samahu (he burdened him) with arduous work. Su’ (worst/evil) is the verbal noun of sa’a, yasu’u, and it refers to that which is evil; it is used for everything that is ugly, such as "I seek refuge in Allah, the Exalted, from su’ al-khuluq (bad character)."

Su’ al-'adhab (the worst of punishment) is the most hideous and severe of it compared to the rest. It is in the accusative case as the object of yasumunakum, either with the elision of the preposition or without it. The sentence is potentially a commencement, which is a narration of a past state, or it is in the position of a state (hal) from the pronoun in anjaynakum or min ali fir’awn, the latter being more likely. The meaning is: they impose upon you or charge you with arduous works and atrocious matters, or they dispatch you to them and direct you therein, or they seek for you the worst of punishment, which is explained by what follows. It has been narrated that Pharaoh made the Children of Israel servants and subjects and categorized them in tasks: one group building, one group tilling, and one group serving. Whoever among them was not in a task, he placed a jizyah (tribute) upon him to be paid every day; and whoever the sun set upon before he paid it, his hand was shackled to his neck for a month. He made the women spin flax and weave.

(Slaughtering your sons) is a circumstantial (hal) or commencement sentence, as if it were said: "What was it that they afflicted them with?" and he replied: "(Slaughtering) etc." It is also permissible that it is an instance of substituting a verb for a verb, as in His saying: "(He will meet) athaman (punishment), (the punishment will be doubled for him)." It is also said to be by conjunction with the omission of the conjunction particle, due to the verse in Ibrahim. The researchers differentiate between them and interpret "the worst of punishment" there as arduous tasks other than slaughter, and conjoined for the sake of distinction; they considered it there, but not here, according to their opinion, because "And remind them of the days of Allah" precedes it, which necessitates enumeration, whereas there is nothing here that necessitates it.

Al-abna' (sons) are the male children. It is said they were the men. They were called abna' in consideration of what they were before. In some reports, it is stated that he killed forty thousand boys. It is narrated that he used to kill the men whom he feared might revolt and gather to corrupt his affair. The most famous view is to interpret al-abna' as the children, which is the appropriate and immediate understanding. There are various opinions and stories regarding the reason for this, most of which indicate that Pharaoh feared the loss of his kingdom at the hands of a newborn from the Children of Israel, so he did what he did. "(And the command of Allah is a destiny predestined)."

al-Zuhri and Ibn Muhaysin recited yudhabbihuna (slaughtering) in the light form, and Abdullah recited yaqtuluna (killing) in the emphatic form.

(And sparing your women) is conjoined to "slaughtering," meaning: they kept your daughters alive and left them living. It is also said: they would inspect their haya' (private parts) to see if they were pregnant, for haya' is the farj (genital area), because one feels shame (yastahi) to uncover it. Al-nisa' (women) is the plural of mar’ah. In al-Bahr, it is a broken plural of niswah, which is of the fi'lah pattern, a plural of few. Ibn al-Sarraj claimed it is a collective noun. According to both opinions, its singular is not uttered from its own root. In its origin, it refers to adult women, not the young. Thus, according to the first viewpoint, it is a metaphor in consideration of the end-state, to indicate that sparing them was so they would become women for their service. According to the second, it involves the dominance of the adults over the young. According to the third, it is literal. The slaughter was mentioned first because it is the most difficult and arduous of matters to people, even if that sparing was greater than killing in the eyes of the jealous.

(And in that was a great trial from your Lord). This is a reference to the slaughtering and the sparing, or to the salvation. The pronoun is plural for the addressed. It is permissible that "that" refers to the entire sentence. The essence of bala’ (trial) is testing, and when it is attributed to the Exalted, it is meant in the sense of what is synonymous with it among the servants, according to the well-known view. Sometimes it is by blessings so that they may be grateful, and sometimes by hardships so that they may be patient, and sometimes by both so that they may yearn and fear. If the reference is interpreted according to the first meaning, then bala’ means affliction; if according to the second, it means favor; and if according to the third, it means the common capacity, like the examination prevalent between them. The first is supported by immediate understanding; the second is that it is in the context of showing favor; and the third is the grace of combining yearning and fear. The meaning of "from your Lord" is: from His side, the Exalted, either by inciting them against you, or by sending Musa, peace be upon him, and granting him success to liberate you, or by both together. "Great" is an adjective for bala’, and the use of the indefinite for both is for magnification. The greatness is relative to the addressed and the listener, not relative to Him, the Exalted, for He is the Great, and He does not view anything as great.

(Slaughtering your sons), which are the spiritual powers—from the theoretical powers, which are the right eye of the heart, and the practical powers, which are the left eye of it, and the understanding, which is its hearing, and the secret, which is its heart. (And sparing) your natural powers so they may use them and prevent them from their appropriate actions. In that salvation is a great favor from your Lord, who elevates you from station to station and from vision to vision, until you reach Him and cast your luggage before Him. Or, in the totality of that is a trial for you, and a manifestation of the different effects of the Names upon you; so be grateful and be patient, for everything is from Him, and everything done by the Beloved is beloved.