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Al-A'raf 163

Ayah 163 of 206 · Meccan

وَسۡـَٔلۡهُمۡ عَنِ ٱلۡقَرۡيَةِ ٱلَّتِي كَانَتۡ حَاضِرَةَ ٱلۡبَحۡرِ إِذۡ يَعۡدُونَ فِي ٱلسَّبۡتِ إِذۡ تَأۡتِيهِمۡ حِيتَانُهُمۡ يَوۡمَ سَبۡتِهِمۡ شُرَّعٗا وَيَوۡمَ لَا يَسۡبِتُونَ لَا تَأۡتِيهِمۡۚ كَذَٰلِكَ نَبۡلُوهُم بِمَا كَانُواْ يَفۡسُقُونَ ١٦٣

And ask them about the town that was by the sea - when they transgressed in [the matter of] the sabbath - when their fish came to them openly on their sabbath day, and the day they had no sabbath they did not come to them. Thus did We give them trial because they were defiantly disobedient.

Translation: Saheeh International (English)

Word by word

Each word's meaning and sound

  1. وَسۡـَٔلۡهُمۡAnd ask themwasalhum
  2. عَنِaboutʿani
  3. ٱلۡقَرۡيَةِthe townl-qaryati
  4. ٱلَّتِيwhichallatī
  5. كَانَتۡwaskānat
  6. حَاضِرَةَsituatedḥāḍirata
  7. ٱلۡبَحۡرِ(by) the seal-baḥri
  8. إِذۡwhenidh
  9. يَعۡدُونَthey transgressedyaʿdūna
  10. فِيinfī
  11. ٱلسَّبۡتِthe (matter of) Sabbathl-sabti
  12. إِذۡwhenidh
  13. تَأۡتِيهِمۡcame to themtatīhim
  14. حِيتَانُهُمۡtheir fishḥītānuhum
  15. يَوۡمَ(on the) dayyawma
  16. سَبۡتِهِمۡ(of) their Sabbathsabtihim
  17. شُرَّعٗاvisiblyshurraʿan
  18. وَيَوۡمَand (on the) daywayawma
  19. لَاnotlā
  20. يَسۡبِتُونَthey had Sabbathyasbitūna
  21. لَا(they did) notlā
  22. تَأۡتِيهِمۡۚcome to themtatīhim
  23. كَذَٰلِكَThuskadhālika
  24. نَبۡلُوهُمWe test themnablūhum
  25. بِمَاbecausebimā
  26. كَانُواْthey werekānū
  27. يَفۡسُقُونَdefiantly disobeyingyafsuqūna

Tafsir

Ask the Jews about how Allah punished some of the Israelites. Remind them of the story of the town which was near to the sea where they used to overstep the limits of Allah: fishing on the Sabbath after they had been forbidden from doing so. Allah tested them by making the fish come to them so that they could see them clearly on the surface of the sea on Saturday, and then making them disappear from view during the rest of the week. Allah gave them this trial because of their disobedience and wrongdoing. So eventually they decided to fish by setting up their nets thereby using a trick, so that the fish would fall into them on Saturday and they could take them and eat them on Sunday.

Al-Mukhtasar in interpreting the Noble Quran