ثُمَّ تَوَلَّيْتُم مِّنۢ بَعْدِ ذَٰلِكَ ۖ فَلَوْلَا فَضْلُ ٱللَّهِ عَلَيْكُمْ وَرَحْمَتُهُۥ لَكُنتُم مِّنَ ٱلْخَـٰسِرِينَ 64
Translations
Then you turned away after that. And if not for the favor of Allāh upon you and His mercy, you would have been among the losers.
Transliteration
Thumma tawallaytum min ba'di dhalika falaula fadlullahi alaikum wa rahmatuh lakuntum minal khasirin
Tafsir (Explanation)
This ayah addresses the Children of Israel's betrayal after witnessing the miraculous parting of the sea and receiving the Torah. Allah reminds them that despite their turning away from His covenant, only His grace (fadl) and mercy (rahma) prevented them from being among the losers. Ibn Kathir notes this refers to their worship of the calf and subsequent disobedience, emphasizing that divine mercy alone preserves believers from ruin and disgrace.
Revelation Context
This ayah is part of the historical narrative of Surah Al-Baqarah (verses 40-103) that recounts the Bani Isra'il's covenant with Allah and their subsequent violations. It specifically follows the incident of the Golden Calf, establishing the pattern of their promise-breaking and Allah's continued forbearance through His mercy rather than immediate punishment.
Related Hadiths
The concept relates to Hadith Qudsi: 'My mercy precedes My wrath' (Sahih Bukhari 7405). Also relevant is the hadith in Sahih Muslim about Allah's ninety-nine attributes of mercy, emphasizing that His mercy encompasses all things.
Themes
Key Lesson
This ayah teaches us that our spiritual survival and success depend entirely on Allah's grace and mercy rather than our own strength or righteousness. It should inspire deep gratitude for His forbearance with our failings and sincere repentance, recognizing that turning away from divine guidance leads only to loss and regret.
Related Ayahs
وَٱقْتُلُوهُمْ حَيْثُ ثَقِفْتُمُوهُمْ وَأَخْرِجُوهُم مِّنْ حَيْثُ أَخْرَجُوكُمْ ۚ وَٱلْفِتْنَةُ أَشَدُّ مِنَ ٱلْقَتْلِ ۚ وَلَا تُقَـٰتِلُوهُمْ عِندَ ٱلْمَسْجِدِ ٱلْحَرَامِ حَتَّىٰ يُقَـٰتِلُوكُمْ فِيهِ ۖ فَإِن قَـٰتَلُوكُمْ فَٱقْتُلُوهُمْ ۗ كَذَٰلِكَ جَزَآءُ ٱلْكَـٰفِرِينَ
And kill them [in battle] wherever you overtake them and expel them from wherever they have expelled you, and fitnah is worse than killing. And do not fight them at al-Masjid al-Ḥarām until they fight you there. But if they fight you, then kill them. Such is the recompense of the disbelievers.
وَلَوْ أَنَّهُمْ ءَامَنُوا۟ وَٱتَّقَوْا۟ لَمَثُوبَةٌ مِّنْ عِندِ ٱللَّهِ خَيْرٌ ۖ لَّوْ كَانُوا۟ يَعْلَمُونَ
And if they had believed and feared Allāh, then the reward from Allāh would have been [far] better, if they only knew.
لِّلَّذِينَ يُؤْلُونَ مِن نِّسَآئِهِمْ تَرَبُّصُ أَرْبَعَةِ أَشْهُرٍ ۖ فَإِن فَآءُو فَإِنَّ ٱللَّهَ غَفُورٌ رَّحِيمٌ
For those who swear not to have sexual relations with their wives is a waiting time of four months, but if they return [to normal relations] - then indeed, Allāh is Forgiving and Merciful.
وَٱسْتَعِينُوا۟ بِٱلصَّبْرِ وَٱلصَّلَوٰةِ ۚ وَإِنَّهَا لَكَبِيرَةٌ إِلَّا عَلَى ٱلْخَـٰشِعِينَ
And seek help through patience and prayer; and indeed, it is difficult except for the humbly submissive [to Allāh]