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Al-A'raf 148

Ayah 148 of 206 · Meccan

وَٱتَّخَذَ قَوۡمُ مُوسَىٰ مِنۢ بَعۡدِهِۦ مِنۡ حُلِيِّهِمۡ عِجۡلٗا جَسَدٗا لَّهُۥ خُوَارٌۚ أَلَمۡ يَرَوۡاْ أَنَّهُۥ لَا يُكَلِّمُهُمۡ وَلَا يَهۡدِيهِمۡ سَبِيلًاۘ ٱتَّخَذُوهُ وَكَانُواْ ظَٰلِمِينَ ١٤٨

And the people of Moses made, after [his departure], from their ornaments a calf - an image having a lowing sound. Did they not see that it could neither speak to them nor guide them to a way? They took it [for worship], and they were wrongdoers.

Translation: Saheeh International (English)

Word by word

Each word's meaning and sound

  1. وَٱتَّخَذَAnd tookwa-ittakhadha
  2. قَوۡمُ(the) peopleqawmu
  3. مُوسَىٰ(of) Musamūsā
  4. مِنۢfrommin
  5. بَعۡدِهِۦafter himbaʿdihi
  6. مِنۡfrommin
  7. حُلِيِّهِمۡtheir ornamentsḥuliyyihim
  8. عِجۡلٗاa calf ʿij'lan
  9. جَسَدٗاan imagejasadan
  10. لَّهُۥ[for] itlahu
  11. خُوَارٌۚ(had) a lowing soundkhuwārun
  12. أَلَمۡDid notalam
  13. يَرَوۡاْthey seeyaraw
  14. أَنَّهُۥthat itannahu
  15. لَا(could) notlā
  16. يُكَلِّمُهُمۡspeak to themyukallimuhum
  17. وَلَاand notwalā
  18. يَهۡدِيهِمۡguide themyahdīhim
  19. سَبِيلًاۘ(to) a waysabīlan
  20. ٱتَّخَذُوهُThey took it (for worship)ittakhadhūhu
  21. وَكَانُواْand they werewakānū
  22. ظَٰلِمِينَwrongdoersẓālimīna

Tafsir

After Moses had gone to meet with his Lord, his people took to worshipping a statue of a calf made from their ornaments, not possessing any soul, but which made a sound. Did they not know that this calf could not speak to them or guide them to any good way, material or spiritual, and that it could not bring anything of benefit to them or remove anything harmful from them? But they took to worshipping it and wronged themselves by doing so.

Al-Mukhtasar in interpreting the Noble Quran