Tafsir of Yunus 10:87

"And We inspired Moses..."

"Tabawwa'a" (to settle/prepare) a place: To take it as a maba'ah (a dwelling/resort), just as you say "tawattana" (to settle) when one takes a place as a homeland.

The meaning is: "Prepare for your people in Egypt houses as a dwelling and a place of return, to which they may retreat for worship and prayer."

"And make your houses"—those very houses—"a Qiblah": That is, mosques facing the Qiblah, which is the Kaaba. Moses and those with him used to pray facing the Kaaba. In the beginning, they were commanded to pray in their houses in secret, away from the disbelievers, so that the latter would not discover them and harm them or tempt them away from their religion—just as the believers were in the early days of Islam in Mecca.

If you ask: How is the address varied, shifting from the dual, to the plural, and finally to the singular?

I reply: Moses and Aaron (peace be upon them) were addressed to prepare houses for their people and to select them for worship, as this is a matter delegated to the Prophets. Then, the address was directed generally to both of them and their people regarding the taking of mosques and praying in them, because that is an obligation upon the masses. Finally, Moses (peace be upon him) was singled out with the glad tidings—which is the primary purpose—to honor both the tidings and the one receiving them.

"And Moses said, 'Our Lord, indeed You have given Pharaoh and his establishment splendor and wealth in the worldly life, our Lord, that they may lead [men] astray from Your way. Our Lord, obliterate their wealth and harden their hearts so that they will not believe until they see the painful punishment.'"