قَالَ فَٱذْهَبْ فَإِنَّ لَكَ فِى ٱلْحَيَوٰةِ أَن تَقُولَ لَا مِسَاسَ ۖ وَإِنَّ لَكَ مَوْعِدًا لَّن تُخْلَفَهُۥ ۖ وَٱنظُرْ إِلَىٰٓ إِلَـٰهِكَ ٱلَّذِى ظَلْتَ عَلَيْهِ عَاكِفًا ۖ لَّنُحَرِّقَنَّهُۥ ثُمَّ لَنَنسِفَنَّهُۥ فِى ٱلْيَمِّ نَسْفًا 97
Translations
[Moses] said, "Then go. And indeed, it is [decreed] for you in [this] life to say, 'No contact.' And indeed, you have an appointment [in the Hereafter] you will not fail to keep. And look at your 'god' to which you remained devoted. We will surely burn it and blow it [i.e., its ashes] into the sea with a blast.
Transliteration
Qala fathhab fa-inna laka fi al-hayati an taqula la misas wa-inna laka maw'idan lan tukhlafahu wa-andhur ila ilahika alladhi dhalta 'alayhi 'akifan lanuharriqqannahu thumma lannasfannahu fi al-yammi nasfan
Tafsir (Explanation)
Allah's command to Samiri (the one who crafted the golden calf) to depart, with a dual punishment: in this life, he will be afflicted with leprosy and isolation ("la misas" - 'do not touch'), and in the Hereafter, he will face accountability on the Day of Judgment. Moses then affirms that the golden calf, the false god they worshipped, will be burned and scattered into the sea, emphasizing the futility of idolatry. Classical scholars like Ibn Kathir and Al-Tabari emphasize this ayah as a demonstration of divine justice and the inevitable destruction of false deities.
Revelation Context
This ayah occurs within the narrative of Surah Taha (a Meccan surah) recounting the story of Prophet Moses and the incident of the golden calf. After the Children of Israel fashioned the calf as an idol during Moses' absence on Mount Sinai, Allah revealed the incident to Moses. This ayah records Allah's judgment upon Samiri, the craftsman responsible for creating the false idol, serving as a warning against idolatry.
Related Hadiths
While no single hadith directly quotes this ayah, the theme relates to Sahih Muslim's collection on the prohibition of idolatry and the Prophet's ﷺ statement regarding the destruction of false gods. Thematically connected to hadiths in Sahih Bukhari regarding the rejection of polytheism and the unity of worship.
Themes
Key Lesson
This ayah teaches that those who lead others astray through falsehood and idol-worship face both immediate worldly consequences and ultimate accountability before Allah on the Day of Judgment. It reinforces that no false deity—whether physical or conceptual—can withstand divine truth, encouraging believers to remain steadfast in monotheism and reject all forms of spiritual deviation.
Related Ayahs
يُضَـٰعَفْ لَهُ ٱلْعَذَابُ يَوْمَ ٱلْقِيَـٰمَةِ وَيَخْلُدْ فِيهِۦ مُهَانًا
Multiplied for him is the punishment on the Day of Resurrection, and he will abide therein humiliated -
وَلَوْ أَنَّ قُرْءَانًا سُيِّرَتْ بِهِ ٱلْجِبَالُ أَوْ قُطِّعَتْ بِهِ ٱلْأَرْضُ أَوْ كُلِّمَ بِهِ ٱلْمَوْتَىٰ ۗ بَل لِّلَّهِ ٱلْأَمْرُ جَمِيعًا ۗ أَفَلَمْ يَا۟يْـَٔسِ ٱلَّذِينَ ءَامَنُوٓا۟ أَن لَّوْ يَشَآءُ ٱللَّهُ لَهَدَى ٱلنَّاسَ جَمِيعًا ۗ وَلَا يَزَالُ ٱلَّذِينَ كَفَرُوا۟ تُصِيبُهُم بِمَا صَنَعُوا۟ قَارِعَةٌ أَوْ تَحُلُّ قَرِيبًا مِّن دَارِهِمْ حَتَّىٰ يَأْتِىَ وَعْدُ ٱللَّهِ ۚ إِنَّ ٱللَّهَ لَا يُخْلِفُ ٱلْمِيعَادَ
And if there was any Qur’ān [i.e., recitation] by which the mountains would be removed or the earth would be broken apart or the dead would be made to speak, [it would be this Qur’ān], but to Allāh belongs the affair entirely. Then have those who believed not accepted that had Allāh willed, He would have guided the people, all of them? And those who disbelieve do not cease to be struck, for what they have done, by calamity - or it will descend near their home - until there comes the promise of Allāh. Indeed, Allāh does not fail in [His] promise.
فَقَدْ كَذَّبُوكُم بِمَا تَقُولُونَ فَمَا تَسْتَطِيعُونَ صَرْفًا وَلَا نَصْرًا ۚ وَمَن يَظْلِم مِّنكُمْ نُذِقْهُ عَذَابًا كَبِيرًا
So they will deny you, [disbelievers], in what you say, and you cannot avert [punishment] or [find] help. And whoever commits injustice among you - We will make him taste a great punishment.
إِذْ هُمْ عَلَيْهَا قُعُودٌ
When they were sitting near it.