سُوْرَةُ الْاَعْرَافِ
Surah Al-A'raaf (7) — Ayah 163
وَسْـَٔلْهُمْ عَنِ ٱلْقَرْيَةِ ٱلَّتِى كَانَتْ حَاضِرَةَ ٱلْبَحْرِ إِذْ يَعْدُونَ فِى ٱلسَّبْتِ إِذْ تَأْتِيهِمْ حِيتَانُهُمْ يَوْمَ سَبْتِهِمْ شُرَّعًا وَيَوْمَ لَا يَسْبِتُونَ ۙ لَا تَأْتِيهِمْ ۚ كَذَٰلِكَ نَبْلُوهُم بِمَا كَانُوا۟ يَفْسُقُونَ ﴿163﴾
Translation by Dr. Muhammad Muhsin Khan & Dr. Taqi-ud-Din al-Hilali
And ask them (O Muhammad صلى الله عليه وسلم) about the town that was by the sea; when they transgressed in the matter of the Sabbath (i.e. Saturday): when their fish came to them openly on the Sabbath day, and did not come to them on the day they had no Sabbath. Thus We made a trial of them, for they used to rebel against Allâh’s Command (disobey Allâh) [see the Qur’ân: V.4:154 and its footnote].
Word by Word — Arabic, Transliteration & Meaning
وَسْـَٔلْهُمْ
wasalhum
And ask them
عَنِ
ʿani
about
ٱلْقَرْيَةِ
l-qaryati
the town
ٱلَّتِى
allatī
which
كَانَتْ
kānat
was
حَاضِرَةَ
ḥāḍirata
situated
ٱلْبَحْرِ
l-baḥri
(by) the sea
إِذْ
idh
when
يَعْدُونَ
yaʿdūna
they transgressed
فِى
fī
in
ٱلسَّبْتِ
l-sabti
the (matter of) Sabbath
إِذْ
idh
when
تَأْتِيهِمْ
tatīhim
came to them
حِيتَانُهُمْ
ḥītānuhum
their fish
يَوْمَ
yawma
(on the) day
سَبْتِهِمْ
sabtihim
(of) their Sabbath
شُرَّعًۭا
shurraʿan
visibly
وَيَوْمَ
wayawma
and (on the) day
لَا
lā
not
يَسْبِتُونَ ۙ
yasbitūna
they had Sabbath
لَا
lā
(they did) not
تَأْتِيهِمْ ۚ
tatīhim
come to them
كَذَٰلِكَ
kadhālika
Thus
نَبْلُوهُم
nablūhum
We test them
بِمَا
bimā
because
كَانُوا۟
kānū
they were
يَفْسُقُونَ
yafsuqūna
defiantly disobeying
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.
163. 1. In "وسئلہم", the pronoun (ھم) refers to the Jews. That is, ask them. In this, it is also intended to inform the Jews that the Prophet ﷺ also has knowledge of this incident, which is a proof of his ﷺ's truthfulness. Because without revelation from Allah, he ﷺ could not have knowledge of this incident. (2) There is a difference of opinion regarding the identification of this town; some say its name was Eila, some Tabariyyah, some Ilya, and some say it was a town in Syria near the sea. The majority of commentators lean towards Eila, which was on the shore of the Red Sea between Madyan and Mount Tur. (3) "حیتان" is the plural of "حوت" (fish). "شرعا" is the plural of "شارع". The meaning is those that come up to the surface of the water. This refers to the incident of the Jews in which they were forbidden to catch fish on the Sabbath. But as a test, on the Sabbath, fish would come in abundance and appear on the surface of the water, inviting them to catch. And when that day passed, they would not come like that. Eventually, the Jews devised a trick and transgressed the command of Allah by digging pits so that the fish would get trapped in them, and when the Sabbath passed, they would catch them.
