سُوْرَةُ هُوْدٍ
Surah Hud (11) — Ayah 110
وَلَقَدْ ءَاتَيْنَا مُوسَى ٱلْكِتَـٰبَ فَٱخْتُلِفَ فِيهِ ۚ وَلَوْلَا كَلِمَةٌ سَبَقَتْ مِن رَّبِّكَ لَقُضِىَ بَيْنَهُمْ ۚ وَإِنَّهُمْ لَفِى شَكٍّ مِّنْهُ مُرِيبٍ ﴿110﴾
Translation by Dr. Muhammad Muhsin Khan & Dr. Taqi-ud-Din al-Hilali
Indeed, We gave the Book to Mûsâ (Moses), but differences arose therein, and had it not been for a Word that had gone forth before from your Lord, the case would have been judged between them, and indeed they are in grave doubt concerning it (this Qur’ân).
Word by Word — Arabic, Transliteration & Meaning
وَلَقَدْ
walaqad
And verily
ءَاتَيْنَا
ātaynā
We gave
مُوسَى
mūsā
Musa
ٱلْكِتَـٰبَ
l-kitāba
the Book
فَٱخْتُلِفَ
fa-ukh'tulifa
but differences arose
فِيهِ ۚ
fīhi
therein
وَلَوْلَا
walawlā
And if not
كَلِمَةٌۭ
kalimatun
(for) a Word
سَبَقَتْ
sabaqat
(that) preceded
مِن
min
from
رَّبِّكَ
rabbika
your Lord
لَقُضِىَ
laquḍiya
surely would have been judged
بَيْنَهُمْ ۚ
baynahum
between them
وَإِنَّهُمْ
wa-innahum
And indeed, they
لَفِى
lafī
surely (are) in
شَكٍّۢ
shakkin
doubt
مِّنْهُ
min'hu
concerning it
مُرِيبٍۢ
murībin
suspicious
Tafsir al-Quran al-Karim — Hafiz Abdus Salam Bin Muhammad Bhutvi
Tafsir al-Quran al-Karim is a 4-volume Quran commentary by Hafiz Abdus Salam bin Muhammad Bhutvi, a renowned Salafi (Ahl al-Hadith) scholar and Sheikh ul-Hadith from Pakistan. Based on over 45 years of teaching and research, this tafsir follows the methodology of Tafsir bil-Ma'thur — interpreting the Quran through authentic Hadith, statements of the Companions, and the understanding of the early generations (Salaf). It is distinguished by its complete avoidance of Israeliyyat (Judeo-Christian narratives) and unverified reports. The tafsir is originally written in Urdu, translated to English by tohed.com.
(Ayah 110) ➊ { وَ لَقَدْ اٰتَيْنَا مُوْسَى الْكِتٰبَ فَاخْتُلِفَ فِيْهِ:} Surah Hud is the only surah in which the mention of a single messenger occurs twice. Previously, it was mentioned that Musa (peace be upon him) was commanded to go to Pharaoh and his chiefs, present signs and a clear authority, and as mentioned in Surah Ta-Ha, the demand from him was that he should stop tormenting the Children of Israel and set them free to go with me. Although the invitation to monotheism and prophethood was also there, but he did not become a Muslim for detailed laws to be revealed for him. At that time, all the commands were verbal, the Torah had not been revealed, so along with it, his end was also mentioned: «{ يَقْدُمُ قَوْمَهٗ يَوْمَ الْقِيٰمَةِ فَاَوْرَدَهُمُ النَّارَ }» [ ہود : ۹۸ ] that he will lead his people on the Day of Resurrection, walking ahead of them, and will bring them into Hell.
The second mission of Musa (peace be upon him) was for the Children of Israel. Thus, after gaining freedom and safely crossing the sea, Allah made him observe a retreat of forty nights at Mount Tur, and after that, He granted him the Torah. Now, Pharaoh or his chiefs were not with Musa (peace be upon him); with him were the Children of Israel or a few young men from the people of Pharaoh who had come from Egypt. Thus, Allah said: «{ وَ لَقَدْ اٰتَيْنَا مُوْسَى الْكِتٰبَ }» that We gave Musa (peace be upon him) the Book (Torah), but during his lifetime and after him, there was disagreement about it. Some accepted, some denied, or some accepted some commands and not others, to the extent that the overwhelming majority of the Children of Israel flatly refused to go out for jihad to acquire the Holy Land (Syria) at the command of Musa (peace be upon him), and said, "You and your Lord go and fight, we will sit here." See Surah Al-Ma'idah (24). Then, after the death of Musa (peace be upon him), many eras came upon them, sometimes they prevailed, such as the era of Yusha bin Nun (peace be upon him), the era of Dawud and Sulaiman (peace be upon them), sometimes they were subdued, then gradually they differed in the Book of Allah so much that, according to the statement of the Messenger of Allah (peace and blessings be upon him), they split into seventy-two (72) sects. They altered the meanings of the Book of Allah according to their desires, made wrong interpretations, changed the meanings, then even altered the words, as He said: «{ يُحَرِّفُوْنَ الْكَلِمَ عَنْ مَّوَاضِعِهٖ }» [ المائدۃ : ۱۳ ] "They distort the words from their places." Then they seated their scholars and monks (ulama and ascetics) on the throne of Allah. They gave such status to their jurisprudence and their statements and fatwas that if they declared something forbidden as lawful, they would consider it lawful, and if they declared something lawful as forbidden, they would consider it forbidden. He said: «{ اِتَّخَذُوْۤا اَحْبَارَهُمْ وَ رُهْبَانَهُمْ اَرْبَابًا مِّنْ دُوْنِ اللّٰهِ وَ الْمَسِيْحَ ابْنَ مَرْيَمَ}» [ التوبۃ : ۳۱ ] "They took their scholars and monks as lords besides Allah, and also the Messiah, son of Maryam." Their worldly scholars, while reciting the Book of Allah to the people, would twist their tongues in such a way that people would think they were reciting the Book of Allah, while it would not be the Book of Allah, then they would openly claim that this is a command of the Shariah from Allah, while it would not be from Allah, He said: «{ وَ اِنَّ مِنْهُمْ لَفَرِيْقًا يَّلْوٗنَ اَلْسِنَتَهُمْ بِالْكِتٰبِ لِتَحْسَبُوْهُ مِنَ الْكِتٰبِ وَ مَا هُوَ مِنَ الْكِتٰبِ وَ يَقُوْلُوْنَ هُوَ مِنْ عِنْدِ اللّٰهِ وَ مَا هُوَ مِنْ عِنْدِ اللّٰهِ وَ يَقُوْلُوْنَ عَلَى اللّٰهِ الْكَذِبَ وَ هُمْ يَعْلَمُوْنَ }» [ آل عمران : ۷۸ ] "And indeed, among them are surely some who twist their tongues with the Book so that you may think it is from the Book, while it is not from the Book, and they say, 'It is from Allah,' while it is not from Allah, and they speak a lie against Allah while they know." Then there were some unfortunate ones who wrote fatwas with their own hands and said this is the command of Allah, while all of it was written to fulfill some worldly desire of theirs, it would never be the command of Allah, and knowingly they would attribute lies to Allah, He said: «{ فَوَيْلٌ لِّلَّذِيْنَ يَكْتُبُوْنَ الْكِتٰبَ بِاَيْدِيْهِمْ ثُمَّ يَقُوْلُوْنَ هٰذَا مِنْ عِنْدِ اللّٰهِ لِيَشْتَرُوْا بِهٖ ثَمَنًا قَلِيْلًا فَوَيْلٌ لَّهُمْ مِّمَّا كَتَبَتْ اَيْدِيْهِمْ وَ وَيْلٌ لَّهُمْ مِّمَّا يَكْسِبُوْنَ }» [ البقرۃ : ۷۹ ] "So woe to those who write the Book with their own hands, then say, 'This is from Allah,' so that they may gain a small price for it. So woe to them for what their hands have written and woe to them for what they earn."
Yes, some people remained steadfast on the straight path. These were those who remained firm on the Book and Sunnah of Musa (peace be upon him) without any change or alteration. These were the ones who attained salvation, but many of their people became disobedient to the commands of Allah and became those who committed the above-mentioned manipulations, or became followers of those who did such manipulations. Allah said: «{ مِنْهُمْ اُمَّةٌ مُّقْتَصِدَةٌ وَ كَثِيْرٌ مِّنْهُمْ سَآءَ مَا يَعْمَلُوْنَ }» [ المائدۃ : ۶۶ ] "Among them is a group that is moderate, and many of them—evil is what they do." If you want to see this whole picture with your own eyes today, you can see it in our Muslim Ummah.
➋ After mentioning the state of the felicitous and the wretched above, at the end, the Messenger of Allah (peace and blessings be upon him) is consoled that if today these people are making all sorts of statements about the Book, the Qur'an, revealed to you, then do not be disheartened, this is nothing new, people have already done the same with the Torah before.
➌ {وَ لَوْ لَا كَلِمَةٌ سَبَقَتْ مِنْ رَّبِّكَ …:} Before Musa (peace be upon him), there was no command for jihad, so upon disobedience to the Messenger, punishment would descend from the sky. After Pharaoh was drowned, the command for jihad was given, now either the disbelievers would be punished at the hands of the Muslims, as He said: «{ قَاتِلُوْهُمْ يُعَذِّبْهُمُ اللّٰهُ بِاَيْدِيْكُمْ }» [ التوبۃ : ۱۴ ] "Fight them, Allah will punish them at your hands." Thus, the jihads of Yusha bin Nun, Talut, Dawud, and Sulaiman (peace be upon them) and others are proof of this. If punishment did not occur at the hands of the Muslims, then it will be in the Hereafter. If this matter had not been decided, then punishment would have already come upon them like the previous nations. Yes, on a limited scale, the scourge of Allah's punishment can still strike, as it struck the "People of the Sabbath," and according to the statement of the Messenger of Allah (peace and blessings be upon him), such incidents will also occur in our Ummah. Shah Abdul Qadir (may Allah have mercy on him) writes: "If it were not that in the world, truth and falsehood are not to be clearly distinguished." (Muwadhih)
➍ {وَ اِنَّهُمْ لَفِيْ شَكٍّ مِّنْهُ مُرِيْبٍ :} Some commentators have interpreted this as meaning that the people of Musa (peace be upon him) are in a disturbing doubt about the Torah, neither are they certain of its truth nor its falsehood, and this is the state of those who deny the truth, that their hearts accept it as true, but worldly desires do not allow them to accept it, and in this hesitation, they pass away from the world upon disbelief. Some have interpreted it that in the time of the Messenger of Allah (peace and blessings be upon him), those who did not believe were in a disturbing doubt about the Qur'an. But the first interpretation seems more correct, because the mention is of Musa (peace be upon him), the Torah, and his people. (And Allah knows best)
The second mission of Musa (peace be upon him) was for the Children of Israel. Thus, after gaining freedom and safely crossing the sea, Allah made him observe a retreat of forty nights at Mount Tur, and after that, He granted him the Torah. Now, Pharaoh or his chiefs were not with Musa (peace be upon him); with him were the Children of Israel or a few young men from the people of Pharaoh who had come from Egypt. Thus, Allah said: «{ وَ لَقَدْ اٰتَيْنَا مُوْسَى الْكِتٰبَ }» that We gave Musa (peace be upon him) the Book (Torah), but during his lifetime and after him, there was disagreement about it. Some accepted, some denied, or some accepted some commands and not others, to the extent that the overwhelming majority of the Children of Israel flatly refused to go out for jihad to acquire the Holy Land (Syria) at the command of Musa (peace be upon him), and said, "You and your Lord go and fight, we will sit here." See Surah Al-Ma'idah (24). Then, after the death of Musa (peace be upon him), many eras came upon them, sometimes they prevailed, such as the era of Yusha bin Nun (peace be upon him), the era of Dawud and Sulaiman (peace be upon them), sometimes they were subdued, then gradually they differed in the Book of Allah so much that, according to the statement of the Messenger of Allah (peace and blessings be upon him), they split into seventy-two (72) sects. They altered the meanings of the Book of Allah according to their desires, made wrong interpretations, changed the meanings, then even altered the words, as He said: «{ يُحَرِّفُوْنَ الْكَلِمَ عَنْ مَّوَاضِعِهٖ }» [ المائدۃ : ۱۳ ] "They distort the words from their places." Then they seated their scholars and monks (ulama and ascetics) on the throne of Allah. They gave such status to their jurisprudence and their statements and fatwas that if they declared something forbidden as lawful, they would consider it lawful, and if they declared something lawful as forbidden, they would consider it forbidden. He said: «{ اِتَّخَذُوْۤا اَحْبَارَهُمْ وَ رُهْبَانَهُمْ اَرْبَابًا مِّنْ دُوْنِ اللّٰهِ وَ الْمَسِيْحَ ابْنَ مَرْيَمَ}» [ التوبۃ : ۳۱ ] "They took their scholars and monks as lords besides Allah, and also the Messiah, son of Maryam." Their worldly scholars, while reciting the Book of Allah to the people, would twist their tongues in such a way that people would think they were reciting the Book of Allah, while it would not be the Book of Allah, then they would openly claim that this is a command of the Shariah from Allah, while it would not be from Allah, He said: «{ وَ اِنَّ مِنْهُمْ لَفَرِيْقًا يَّلْوٗنَ اَلْسِنَتَهُمْ بِالْكِتٰبِ لِتَحْسَبُوْهُ مِنَ الْكِتٰبِ وَ مَا هُوَ مِنَ الْكِتٰبِ وَ يَقُوْلُوْنَ هُوَ مِنْ عِنْدِ اللّٰهِ وَ مَا هُوَ مِنْ عِنْدِ اللّٰهِ وَ يَقُوْلُوْنَ عَلَى اللّٰهِ الْكَذِبَ وَ هُمْ يَعْلَمُوْنَ }» [ آل عمران : ۷۸ ] "And indeed, among them are surely some who twist their tongues with the Book so that you may think it is from the Book, while it is not from the Book, and they say, 'It is from Allah,' while it is not from Allah, and they speak a lie against Allah while they know." Then there were some unfortunate ones who wrote fatwas with their own hands and said this is the command of Allah, while all of it was written to fulfill some worldly desire of theirs, it would never be the command of Allah, and knowingly they would attribute lies to Allah, He said: «{ فَوَيْلٌ لِّلَّذِيْنَ يَكْتُبُوْنَ الْكِتٰبَ بِاَيْدِيْهِمْ ثُمَّ يَقُوْلُوْنَ هٰذَا مِنْ عِنْدِ اللّٰهِ لِيَشْتَرُوْا بِهٖ ثَمَنًا قَلِيْلًا فَوَيْلٌ لَّهُمْ مِّمَّا كَتَبَتْ اَيْدِيْهِمْ وَ وَيْلٌ لَّهُمْ مِّمَّا يَكْسِبُوْنَ }» [ البقرۃ : ۷۹ ] "So woe to those who write the Book with their own hands, then say, 'This is from Allah,' so that they may gain a small price for it. So woe to them for what their hands have written and woe to them for what they earn."
Yes, some people remained steadfast on the straight path. These were those who remained firm on the Book and Sunnah of Musa (peace be upon him) without any change or alteration. These were the ones who attained salvation, but many of their people became disobedient to the commands of Allah and became those who committed the above-mentioned manipulations, or became followers of those who did such manipulations. Allah said: «{ مِنْهُمْ اُمَّةٌ مُّقْتَصِدَةٌ وَ كَثِيْرٌ مِّنْهُمْ سَآءَ مَا يَعْمَلُوْنَ }» [ المائدۃ : ۶۶ ] "Among them is a group that is moderate, and many of them—evil is what they do." If you want to see this whole picture with your own eyes today, you can see it in our Muslim Ummah.
➋ After mentioning the state of the felicitous and the wretched above, at the end, the Messenger of Allah (peace and blessings be upon him) is consoled that if today these people are making all sorts of statements about the Book, the Qur'an, revealed to you, then do not be disheartened, this is nothing new, people have already done the same with the Torah before.
➌ {وَ لَوْ لَا كَلِمَةٌ سَبَقَتْ مِنْ رَّبِّكَ …:} Before Musa (peace be upon him), there was no command for jihad, so upon disobedience to the Messenger, punishment would descend from the sky. After Pharaoh was drowned, the command for jihad was given, now either the disbelievers would be punished at the hands of the Muslims, as He said: «{ قَاتِلُوْهُمْ يُعَذِّبْهُمُ اللّٰهُ بِاَيْدِيْكُمْ }» [ التوبۃ : ۱۴ ] "Fight them, Allah will punish them at your hands." Thus, the jihads of Yusha bin Nun, Talut, Dawud, and Sulaiman (peace be upon them) and others are proof of this. If punishment did not occur at the hands of the Muslims, then it will be in the Hereafter. If this matter had not been decided, then punishment would have already come upon them like the previous nations. Yes, on a limited scale, the scourge of Allah's punishment can still strike, as it struck the "People of the Sabbath," and according to the statement of the Messenger of Allah (peace and blessings be upon him), such incidents will also occur in our Ummah. Shah Abdul Qadir (may Allah have mercy on him) writes: "If it were not that in the world, truth and falsehood are not to be clearly distinguished." (Muwadhih)
➍ {وَ اِنَّهُمْ لَفِيْ شَكٍّ مِّنْهُ مُرِيْبٍ :} Some commentators have interpreted this as meaning that the people of Musa (peace be upon him) are in a disturbing doubt about the Torah, neither are they certain of its truth nor its falsehood, and this is the state of those who deny the truth, that their hearts accept it as true, but worldly desires do not allow them to accept it, and in this hesitation, they pass away from the world upon disbelief. Some have interpreted it that in the time of the Messenger of Allah (peace and blessings be upon him), those who did not believe were in a disturbing doubt about the Qur'an. But the first interpretation seems more correct, because the mention is of Musa (peace be upon him), the Torah, and his people. (And Allah knows best)
