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Surah al-A`raf (The Elevated Places) 7 : 117

۞ وَأَوْحَيْنَآ إِلَىٰ مُوسَىٰٓ أَنْ أَلْقِ عَصَاكَ ۖ فَإِذَا هِىَ تَلْقَفُ مَا يَأْفِكُونَ

Translations

 
 Muhsin Khan
 Pickthall
 Yusuf Ali
Quran Project
And We inspired to Moses, "Throw your staff," and at once it devoured what they were falsifying.

Qur'an Dictionary

Click word/image to view Qur'an Dictionary
Word Arabic word
(7:117:1)
wa-awḥaynā
And We inspired
(7:117:2)
ilā
to
(7:117:3)
(7:117:4)
(7:117:5)
alqi
Throw
(7:117:6)
ʿaṣāka
your staff
(7:117:7)
(7:117:8)
(7:117:9)
talqafu
swallow(ed)
(7:117:10)
(7:117:11)
yafikūna
they (were) falsifying

1. Lessons/Guidance/Reflections/Gems

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Explanatory Note

But something totally unexpected takes place to surprise Pharaoh and his aides, these sorcerers and the masses gathered in the large square which served as a stage for this contest. Falsehood may appear powerful. It may dazzle people’s eyes, strike fear in their hearts and give the majority of people the impression that it is unstoppable and that it has its own rights. But once it comes into confrontation with the truth, with its intrinsic characteristics of calmness and self confidence, falsehood’s bubble bursts and its fire dies down.

2. Linguistic Analysis

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Frequency of Root words in this Ayat used in this Surah *


3. Surah Overview

4. Miscellaneous Information

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5. Connected/Related Ayat

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6. Frequency of the word

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7. Period of Revelation

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A study of its contents clearly shows that the period of its revelation is about the same as that of Surah 6: al-An’am (The Grazing Livestock), i.e. the last year of the Prophet's life at Makkah, but it cannot be asserted with certainty which of these two were sent down earlier. The manner of its admonition clearly indicates that it belongs to the same period. [Ref: Mawdudi]

It is considered the longest surah revealed during the Makkan period. Some consider this surah to have been revealed after Surah 38: Sad. [Ref: Tafsir al-Maudheei, Dr. Mustafah Muslim, vol. 3, p. 2]

8. Reasons for Revelation

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9. Relevant Hadith

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10. Wiki Forum

Comments in this section are statements made by general users – these are not necessarily explanations of the Ayah – rather a place to share personal thoughts and stories…

11. Tafsir Zone

 

Overview (Verses 117 - 122)

But something totally unexpected takes place to surprise Pharaoh and his aides, these sorcerers and the masses gathered in the large square which served as a stage for this contest: “We then inspired Moses: ‘Throw your staff’ And it swallowed up their false devices. Thus the truth prevailed and all their doings were proved to be in vain. They were defeated there and then, and became utterly humiliated.” (Verses 117-119)

Falsehood may appear powerful. It may dazzle people’s eyes, strike fear in their hearts and give the majority of people the impression that it is unstoppable and that it has its own rights. But once it comes into confrontation with the truth, with its intrinsic characteristics of calmness and self confidence, falsehood’s bubble bursts and its fire dies down. The truth is thus seen to be much weightier, with firmer roots and a more solid foundation. The Qur’ānic expression here makes all these connotations clear as it describes the triumph of the truth as an accomplished fact, solid and stable. Everything else disappears and all the sorcerers’ doings prove to be in vain. Falsehood and its advocates are vanquished, humiliated. This contrasts with the great display they tried to put out: “They were defeated there and then, and became utterly humiliated.” (Verse 119)

But the surprise is not over yet. The scene brings yet another, even greater surprise: “The sorcerers fell down prostrating themselves, and said: `We believe in the Lord of all the worlds, the Lord of Moses and Aaron.’” (Verses 120-122)

How does this happen? It is simply the truth exercising its authority over people’s feelings and consciences. It opens up hearts to prepare them to receive its light and accept its reassurance. The sorcerers are the best people to know how far their skill can go, and they are the best to evaluate the nature of what Moses worked out and whether it was an act of skilful sorcery or something brought about by a power far greater than any human being can have. A learned specialist in any field is the first to acknowledge the truth in that field whenever it appears clearly to him, because he can recognize the truth much quicker than those who have only superficial knowledge of his specialty. This explains how the sorcerers moved from open challenge to total submission, after having recognized the truth with open minds.

12. External Links

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