7:140 Al-A'raaf (The Heights)

قَالَ أَغَيْرَ اللَّهِ أَبْغِيكُمْ إِلَهًا أي: أأطلب لكم إلها غير اللّه المألوه، الكامل في ذاته، وصفاته وأفعاله. وَهُوَ فَضَّلَكُمْ عَلَى الْعَالَمِينَ فيقتضي أن تقابلوا فضله، وتفضيله بالشكر، وذلك بإفراده وحده بالعبادة، والكفر بما يدعي من دونه.

يذكرهم موسى عليه السلام نعم الله عليهم من إنقاذهم من أسر فرعون وقهره وما كانوا فيه من الهوان والذلة وما صاروا إليه من العزة والاشتفاء من عدوهم والنظر إليه في حال هوانه وهلاكه وغرقة ودماره وقد تقدم تفسيرها في البقرة.

Reminding the Children of Israel of Allah's Blessings for Them

Musa reminded the Children of Israel of Allah's blessings, such as saving them from Fir`awn, his tyranny and the humiliation and disgrace they suffered. He reminded them of the glory and revenge against their enemy, when they watched them suffering in disgrace, destroyed by drowning and meeting utter demise. We mentioned this subject in the Tafsir of Surat Al-Baqarah.

He said ‘Shall I seek other than God as a god for you to worship abghīkum ‘shall I seek for you’ is originally abghī lakum when He has favoured you above all the worlds?’ of your time in the ways He has mentioned in His sayings?

After the miraculous victory of the Israelites over Pharaoh and his people, and having a life of ease and comfort, they started to show the signs of ignorance as people of wealth show when given a life of luxury and opulence. The first impertinent request they made was to the prophet Musa (علیہ السلام) to make for them a god like the gods of the people they saw being worshipped on their way. They (the Israelites) said, يَا مُوسَى اجْعَل لَّنَا إِلَـٰهًا كَمَا لَهُمْ آلِهَةٌ "0 Musa make a god for us like their gods." He said, قَالَ إِنَّكُمْ قَوْمٌ تَجْهَلُونَ "You are really an ignorant people." The prophet Musa (علیہ السلام) was greatly annoyed by their ignorance and said that the labour of worship of those people was to go waste. How could he think of making for them a god other than Allah while he had given to them excellence over the people of all the worlds. That is, the people who believed in the prophet Musa (علیہ السلام) were superior to all the people of that age.

The next verses remind them of their pitiable condition and their persecutions at the hands of Pharaoh when their sons were killed and their daughters were saved to serve them as their maid-servants. Allah relieved them of this disgraceful chastisement through His prophet. Shall they be as ungrateful to their Lord as to take the abject stones as gods and make them partners with Allah? They must repent to Allah for their transgression.