Surah Ibrahim (14) — Ayah 5

(Ayah5) ➊ {وَ لَقَدْ اَرْسَلْنَا مُوْسٰى بِاٰيٰتِنَاۤ …:} At the beginning of the Surah, Allah Almighty mentioned the Book revealed to our Prophet (peace be upon him) and stated its purpose: that you may bring people out from darkness into light. Now, the efforts of previous prophets to bring their nations from darkness into light and the behavior of their nations are mentioned. First, the mention of Musa (Moses), then other nations and their messengers. Allah Almighty granted Musa (peace be upon him) some cosmic signs, that is, miracles contrary to the usual order of the universe, which the enemy was unable to match. Some of these were related to Pharaoh and his people, such as the staff of Musa, the shining hand (Ta-Ha: 17–22), famine, shortage of fruits, storm, locusts, lice, frogs, and blood. (A’raf: 133) All these miracles were given as proof of prophethood, because the addressee, Pharaoh, was extremely stubborn, rebellious, claimed divinity, and was very merciless. Whereas our Noble Prophet (peace be upon him) was given only one miracle as proof of prophethood, the “Qur’an”; all other miracles were for blessing and to increase the faith of the believers. Many of Musa’s miracles were related to the Children of Israel, such as the splitting of the sea, salvation from Pharaoh, the shade of clouds, the descent of manna and quails, the gushing forth of twelve springs, the mountain being uprooted and a covenant being taken, the dead coming to life by touching the flesh of a cow, etc., and some were verses of divine revelation, which are called “revelatory verses.” The very first revelation to Musa (peace be upon him) came long before the Torah, on his return from Madyan, and then continued to come for years without taking the form of a book. Pharaoh was drowned because of his disobedience to the commands of this revelation. Then Allah Almighty called Musa (peace be upon him) to the Mount and granted him the Torah. In short, Musa (peace be upon him) was given many signs besides the Torah, because the enemy was extremely severe and his own people, due to their slave mentality, were very fickle, influenced by unbelieving beliefs and customs, and repeatedly made demands. Above, about seventeen signs (miracles) have been mentioned; the purpose of all was to bring Pharaoh and his people from the darkness of disbelief to the light of faith.

➋ {وَ ذَكِّرْهُمْ بِاَيّٰىمِ اللّٰهِ … : ’’أَيَّامٌ‘‘} refers to those days in which some rare event occurred in the form of calamity or blessing, such as the Day of Badr, etc. By attributing {’’أَيَّامٌ‘‘} to Allah, their importance is greatly increased. In the next verse, a few {’’أَيَّامٌ‘‘} are mentioned, but only those who are very patient and very grateful take heed from these events, because the foundation of every good deed is patience, and gratitude is also granted only to those who are patient; those who complain and are impatient, how can they be granted the ability to be grateful?

5. 1 That is, just as O Muhammad ﷺ, We have sent you to your people and revealed the Book so that you may bring your people out from the darkness of disbelief and polytheism into the light of faith, in the same way We sent Musa (Moses) ؑ with miracles and proofs to his people, so that he may bring them out from the darkness of disbelief and grant them the light of faith. By "Ayat" are meant those miracles that were granted to Musa ؑ, or the nine miracles mentioned in Surah Bani Isra'il.
5. 2 By "Ayyam Allah" are meant those favors of Allah that were bestowed upon Bani Isra'il, the details of which have already been mentioned several times before. Or "Ayyam" is in the meaning of events, that is, remind them of those incidents through which they have passed, in which Allah's special blessings were bestowed upon them. Some of these are also mentioned here.
5. 3 Patience and gratitude are two great virtues, and the foundation of faith rests upon them; that is why only these two are mentioned here. Both are in the intensive form: "Sabbar" means one who is very patient, "Shakoor" means one who is very grateful. Patience is mentioned before gratitude because gratitude is the result of patience. In the hadith, it is stated that the Messenger of Allah ﷺ said, "The affair of the believer is indeed amazing. Allah decides whatever matter for him, it is better for him. If he is afflicted with hardship and he is patient, that is also better for him, and if he is granted happiness and he is grateful to Allah for it, that is also better for him." (Sahih Muslim)

5. And We sent Moses with Our signs, saying, "Bring your people out of darkness into light, and remind them of the Days of Allah." Surely in these are signs for every patient and grateful person. [6][7]

[6]
What is Meant by the Reminder of the Days of Allah?

The literal meaning of "Ayyam Allah" is "the days of Allah," and by this are meant those days which become memorable in human history, whether they are days of happiness or of calamity. In fact, the same day can be a day of happiness for one group and a day of calamity for another. For example, on the 10th of Muharram, Pharaoh and his army were drowned in the sea. Now, this very day was an extremely joyous day for the Children of Israel, as they were saved from the oppression of Pharaoh’s people, and in this happiness, they used to fast every year on the 10th of Muharram. Yet, this same day was a day of calamity for Pharaoh’s people. The same is the case with the 17th of Ramadan, 2 AH. The polytheists of Makkah suffered a crushing defeat in the Battle of Badr. This day was an extremely joyous day for the Muslims, while for the Quraysh of Makkah, it was a day of great calamity. Similarly, the punishments that descended upon the previous sinful nations are also called the Days of Allah. And the reminder of the Days of Allah means to take heed from such memorable days, and this is a special subject of the Noble Quran, which has been repeated in countless places. The real purpose of the Quran in mentioning the conditions and stories of the Prophets and previous nations is the Days of Allah.

[7]
The Virtue of Patience and Gratitude:

Patience and gratitude are two such qualities that encompass the entire life of a believer. That is why Allah Almighty has used the words "Sabbar" and "Shakoor" instead of "Sabir" and "Shakir," and both are intensive forms, meaning that the life of a believer is such that when he faces any pain, hardship, or calamity, he exercises patience, and when days of prosperity come to him or he attains any happiness or goodness, he expresses gratitude to Allah. And this remains his practice throughout his life. In contrast, the life of a worldly person or a disbeliever is completely opposite; when he faces any pain or days of hardship, he starts complaining about Allah and becomes restless, and when he attains any happiness or days of prosperity, he becomes so ungrateful that he forgets Allah altogether. That is, only those people take heed from the Days of Allah who are adorned with the qualities of patience and gratitude.