ﱁ ﱂ ﱃ ﱄ ﱅ ﱆ ﱇ ﱈ ﱉ ﱊ ﱋ ﱌ ﱍ ﱎ ﱏ ﱐ ﱑ ﱒ ﱓ ﱔ
And [mention] when We raised the mountain above them as if it was a dark cloud and they were certain that it would fall upon them, [and Allah said], "Take what We have given you with determination and remember what is in it that you might fear Allah."
Tafsir
Verse range: 7:171
On the meaning of Naṭaqnā (نَتَقْنَا):
Abu 'Ubaydah said: The root of naṭq (نتق) is to pluck something from its place and throw it. It is said: nataqa mā fī al-jirāb (he emptied the contents of the pouch by throwing them out). A woman who gives birth frequently is called nātiq (ناتق) and muntāq (منتاق) because she throws forth her offspring repeatedly.
Therefore, the meaning of {Naṭaqnā al-jabal} (We shook/plucked the mountain) is that We plucked it from its foundation and held it above them.
On the meaning of ka'annahu ẓullah (كأنه ظلة):
Ibn 'Abbas said: It was like a canopy (saqīfah). Ẓullah (ظلة) is anything that shades you, whether it is the roof of a house, a cloud, or the edge of a wall. Its plural forms are ẓulal (ظلل) and ẓilāl (ظلال). This story is mentioned in Surah Al-Baqarah.
On the meaning of wa ẓannū annahu wāqiʿun bihim (وظنوا أنه واقع بهم) [And they thought it was going to fall upon them]:
The exegetes said: They knew and were certain. The scholars of meaning (Ahl al-Ma'ānī) said: It became strong in their souls that it would fall upon them if they disobeyed it. This is the more apparent meaning of ẓann (ظن). The discussion regarding this has already passed concerning the verse {Those who think that they will meet their Lord} (Al-Baqarah: 46).
It is narrated that they refused to accept the rulings of the Torah due to its harshness and weight. So, Allah raised the Mount Sinai above their heads, covering the area of their encampment, which was a distance of one farsakh by one farsakh. They were told: If you accept it with all that is in it, otherwise it will fall upon you. When they looked at the mountain, every one of them prostrated himself on his left eyebrow while looking with his right eye, fearing its fall. This is why you do not see a Jew prostrating except on his left eyebrow while looking with his right eye, and they say this is the prostration by which the punishment was lifted from us.
On the command: {Take what We have given you with strength} (خذوا ما ءاتيناكم بقوة):
This means We said: Take what We have given you—the Book—with strength and resolve to bear its difficulties and obligations.
And remember what is in it (واذكروا ما فيه):
Meaning, remember what is in it of commands and prohibitions, or remember what is in it of reward and punishment. It is also possible that it means: Take this great sign (the mountain) with strength, if you are capable of it, like His saying: {If you can penetrate the regions of the heavens and the earth, then penetrate them} (Ar-Rahman: 33). And remember what is in it of evidence for the manifest Power, so that you may become righteous (i.e., guard yourselves against error).
{And when your Lord took from the children of Adam from their loins their progeny and made them testify of themselves, "Am I not your Lord?" They said, "Yes, we testify." Lest you should say on the Day of Resurrection, "Indeed, we were heedless of this."}
{Or say, "It was only that our fathers associated others with Allah before, and we were but descendants after them. Will You destroy us for what the falsifiers did?"}
{Thus do We detail the verses, that perhaps they will return [to the truth].}
This verse establishes the covenant taken from the progeny of Adam. Allah took their descendants from their loins and made them testify concerning themselves: "Am I not your Lord?" They responded, "Yes, we testify."
This testimony was taken so that on the Day of Resurrection, they could not claim:
Thus do We detail the verses, that perhaps they will return [to the truth]. This is how Allah clarifies the signs so that they might return to repentance and the correct path.
