سُوْرَةُ البَقَرَةِ
Surah Al-Baqara (2) — Ayah 54
وَإِذْ قَالَ مُوسَىٰ لِقَوْمِهِۦ يَـٰقَوْمِ إِنَّكُمْ ظَلَمْتُمْ أَنفُسَكُم بِٱتِّخَاذِكُمُ ٱلْعِجْلَ فَتُوبُوٓا۟ إِلَىٰ بَارِئِكُمْ فَٱقْتُلُوٓا۟ أَنفُسَكُمْ ذَٰلِكُمْ خَيْرٌ لَّكُمْ عِندَ بَارِئِكُمْ فَتَابَ عَلَيْكُمْ ۚ إِنَّهُۥ هُوَ ٱلتَّوَّابُ ٱلرَّحِيمُ ﴿54﴾
Translation by Dr. Muhammad Muhsin Khan & Dr. Taqi-ud-Din al-Hilali
And (remember) when Mûsâ (Moses) said to his people: "O my people! Verily, you have wronged yourselves by worshipping the calf. So turn in repentance to your Creator and kill yourselves (the innocent kill the wrongdoers among you), that will be better for you with your Creator." Then He accepted your repentance. Truly, He is the One Who accepts repentance, the Most Merciful.
Word by Word — Arabic, Transliteration & Meaning
وَإِذْ
wa-idh
And when
قَالَ
qāla
said
مُوسَىٰ
mūsā
Musa
لِقَوْمِهِۦ
liqawmihi
to his people
يَـٰقَوْمِ
yāqawmi
O my people
إِنَّكُمْ
innakum
Indeed, you
ظَلَمْتُمْ
ẓalamtum
[you] have wronged
أَنفُسَكُم
anfusakum
yourselves
بِٱتِّخَاذِكُمُ
bi-ittikhādhikumu
by your taking
ٱلْعِجْلَ
l-ʿij'la
the calf
فَتُوبُوٓا۟
fatūbū
So turn in repentance
إِلَىٰ
ilā
to
بَارِئِكُمْ
bāri-ikum
your Creator
فَٱقْتُلُوٓا۟
fa-uq'tulū
and kill
أَنفُسَكُمْ
anfusakum
yourselves
ذَٰلِكُمْ
dhālikum
That
خَيْرٌۭ
khayrun
(is) better
لَّكُمْ
lakum
for you
عِندَ
ʿinda
with
بَارِئِكُمْ
bāri-ikum
your Creator
فَتَابَ
fatāba
Then He turned
عَلَيْكُمْ ۚ
ʿalaykum
towards you
إِنَّهُۥ
innahu
Indeed He
هُوَ
huwa
He
ٱلتَّوَّابُ
l-tawābu
(is) the-returning
ٱلرَّحِيمُ
l-raḥīmu
the Most Merciful
Tafsir Ahsan al-Bayan — Hafiz Salahuddin Yusuf
Tafsir Ahsan al-Bayan is a well-known Quran commentary by Hafiz Salahuddin Yusuf, a renowned Salafi (Ahl al-Hadith) scholar from Pakistan. This tafsir explains the meanings of the Quran in accordance with the methodology of the Salaf (early righteous generations), relying on authentic sources and straightforward language. Due to its reliability and adherence to sound Islamic scholarship, the Saudi government publishes and distributes this tafsir among the Hujjaj (pilgrims) visiting the Haramain. The tafsir is originally written in Urdu, translated to English by tohed.com.
54. 1. When Musa (AS) warned against shirk, then they felt the need for repentance. The method of repentance was prescribed as killing. (فَاقْتُلُوْٓا اَنْفُسَكُمْ) 2:54 (kill yourselves) has been interpreted in two ways: one is that all were divided into two rows and they killed each other; the second is that those who committed shirk were made to stand, and those who were safe from it were ordered to kill them. Thus, they killed them. The number of those killed is stated to be seventy thousand (Ibn Kathir and Fath al-Qadeer).
