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Surah Al-Baqarah, Verse 54

سورة البقرة، الآية ٥٤

2:54 Juz 1 Hizb 1 Page 8 of the mushaf Medinan surah

Text of verse 2:54

وَإِذْ قَالَ مُوسَىٰ لِقَوْمِهِۦ يَٰقَوْمِ إِنَّكُمْ ظَلَمْتُمْ أَنفُسَكُم بِٱتِّخَاذِكُمُ ٱلْعِجْلَ فَتُوبُوٓا۟ إِلَىٰ بَارِئِكُمْ فَٱقْتُلُوٓا۟ أَنفُسَكُمْ ذَٰلِكُمْ خَيْرٌ لَّكُمْ عِندَ بَارِئِكُمْ فَتَابَ عَلَيْكُمْ إِنَّهُۥ هُوَ ٱلتَّوَّابُ ٱلرَّحِيمُ ۝٥٤

Transliteration

wa-idh qāla mūsā liqawmihi yāqawmi innakum ẓalamtum anfusakum bi-ittikhādhikumu l-ʿij'la fatūbū ilā bāri-ikum fa-uq'tulū anfusakum dhālikum khayrun lakum ʿinda bāri-ikum fatāba ʿalaykum innahu huwa l-tawābu l-raḥīmu

Translation

And [recall] when Moses said to his people, "O my people, indeed you have wronged yourselves by your taking of the calf [for worship]. So repent to your Creator and kill yourselves [i.e., the guilty among you]. That is best for [all of] you in the sight of your Creator." Then He accepted your repentance; indeed, He is the Accepting of Repentance, the Merciful.

Translation in another language
Mahmoud Khalil Al-Hussary Read in the surah

Verse 54 of Surah Al-Baqarah (2:54), a Medinan surah, is in juz 1, on page 8 of the mushaf. Read it in Arabic with its transliteration, translations and tafsir, and listen to it recited by 69 reciters.

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Tafsir of verse 54

Al-Mukhtasar

Also, remember that Allah’s allowing you to ask His forgiveness for worshipping the calf, when Moses (peace be upon him) told you that you had wronged yourselves by taking the calf as a god and worshipping it, were from the blessings of Allah. Moses told you to ask for forgiveness and repent to your Creator by some of you killing others, because turning to Him in this way was better for you than persisting in disbelief, which would lead to an eternity in the fire of Hell. So, you did this with Allah’s approval, and He forgave you, for He is Forgiving and Merciful with His servants.

Tafsir of the whole Surah Al-Baqarah

Other translations of verse 54

And [remember] when Moses said to his people, “O my people, you have wronged yourselves by taking the calf [for worship]. So repent to your Creator and kill yourselves [i.e., the guilty among you]; that is best for you with your Creator.” Then He accepted your repentance, for He is the Accepter of Repentance, the Most Merciful.

And (remember) when Mûsâ (Moses) said to his people: "O my people! Verily, you have wronged yourselves by worshipping the calf. So turn in repentance to your Creator and kill yourselves (the innocent kill the wrongdoers among you), that will be better for you with your Creator." Then He accepted your repentance. Truly, He is the One Who accepts repentance, the Most Merciful.

And when Moses said unto his people: O my people! Ye have wronged yourselves by your choosing of the calf (for worship) so turn in penitence to your Creator, and kill (the guilty) yourselves. That will be best for you with your Creator and He will relent toward you. Lo! He is the Relenting, the Merciful.

And remember Moses said to his people: "O my people! Ye have indeed wronged yourselves by your worship of the calf: So turn (in repentance) to your Maker, and slay yourselves (the wrong-doers); that will be better for you in the sight of your Maker." Then He turned towards you (in forgiveness): For He is Oft-Returning, Most Merciful.

And when Musa said to his people: O my people! you have surely been unjust to yourselves by taking the calf (for a god), therefore turn to your Creator (penitently), so kill your people, that is best for you with your Creator: so He turned to you (mercifully), for surely He is the Oft-returning (to mercy), the Merciful.

And (remember) as Musa (Moses) said to his people, "O my people, surely you have done injustice to yourselves by taking the Calf to yourselves. So repent to your Initiator (and) so kill yourselves. (i.e., the unburdening of their sins; forgiveness) That (Literally: these "killings") is most charitable for you in the Providence of your Initiator; so He relented towards you. Surely He, Ever He, is The Superbly Relenting, The Ever-Merciful".

Verse 54 word by word

  1. وَإِذْ wa-idh And when
  2. قَالَ qāla said ق و ل
  3. مُوسَىٰ mūsā Musa
  4. لِقَوْمِهِۦ liqawmihi to his people ق و م
  5. يَٰقَوْمِ yāqawmi O my people ق و م
  6. إِنَّكُمْ innakum Indeed, you
  7. ظَلَمْتُمْ ẓalamtum [you] have wronged ظ ل م
  8. أَنفُسَكُم anfusakum yourselves ن ف س
  9. بِٱتِّخَاذِكُمُ bi-ittikhādhikumu by your taking أ خ ذ
  10. ٱلْعِجْلَ l-ʿij'la the calf ع ج ل
  11. فَتُوبُوٓا۟ fatūbū So turn in repentance ت و ب
  12. إِلَىٰ ilā to
  13. بَارِئِكُمْ bāri-ikum your Creator ب ر أ
  14. فَٱقْتُلُوٓا۟ fa-uq'tulū and kill ق ت ل
  15. أَنفُسَكُمْ anfusakum yourselves ن ف س
  16. ذَٰلِكُمْ dhālikum That
  17. خَيْرٌ khayrun (is) better خ ي ر
  18. لَّكُمْ lakum for you
  19. عِندَ ʿinda with ع ن د
  20. بَارِئِكُمْ bāri-ikum your Creator ب ر أ
  21. فَتَابَ fatāba Then He turned ت و ب
  22. عَلَيْكُمْ ʿalaykum towards you
  23. إِنَّهُۥ innahu Indeed He
  24. هُوَ huwa He
  25. ٱلتَّوَّابُ l-tawābu (is) the-returning ت و ب
  26. ٱلرَّحِيمُ l-raḥīmu the Most Merciful ر ح م

Verses related to verse 54

Cited by Ibn Kathir in his explanation of this verse

  • Al-A’raf 7:149

    وَلَمَّا سُقِطَ فِىٓ أَيْدِيهِمْ وَرَأَوْا۟ أَنَّهُمْ قَدْ ضَلُّوا۟ قَالُوا۟ لَئِن لَّمْ يَرْحَمْنَا رَبُّنَا وَيَغْفِرْ لَنَا لَنَكُونَنَّ مِنَ ٱلْخَٰسِرِينَ

    And when regret overcame them and they saw that they had gone astray, they said, "If our Lord does not have mercy upon us and forgive us, we will surely be among the losers."

Verses with similar wording

They share a sequence of words with this verse: useful for telling them apart when memorising.

  • Al-Ma’idah 5:20

    وَإِذْ قَالَ مُوسَىٰ لِقَوْمِهِۦ يَٰقَوْمِ ٱذْكُرُوا۟ نِعْمَةَ ٱللَّهِ عَلَيْكُمْ إِذْ جَعَلَ فِيكُمْ أَنۢبِيَآءَ وَجَعَلَكُم مُّلُوكًا وَءَاتَىٰكُم مَّا لَمْ يُؤْتِ أَحَدًا مِّنَ ٱلْعَٰلَمِينَ

    And [mention, O Muḥammad], when Moses said to his people, "O my people, remember the favor of Allāh upon you when He appointed among you prophets and made you possessors and gave you that which He had not given anyone among the worlds.

  • As-Saf 61:5

    وَإِذْ قَالَ مُوسَىٰ لِقَوْمِهِۦ يَٰقَوْمِ لِمَ تُؤْذُونَنِى وَقَد تَّعْلَمُونَ أَنِّى رَسُولُ ٱللَّهِ إِلَيْكُمْ فَلَمَّا زَاغُوٓا۟ أَزَاغَ ٱللَّهُ قُلُوبَهُمْ وَٱللَّهُ لَا يَهْدِى ٱلْقَوْمَ ٱلْفَٰسِقِينَ

    And [mention, O Muḥammad], when Moses said to his people, "O my people, why do you harm me while you certainly know that I am the messenger of Allāh to you?" And when they deviated, Allāh caused their hearts to deviate. And Allāh does not guide the defiantly disobedient people.

  • Al-Baqarah 2:37

    فَتَلَقَّىٰٓ ءَادَمُ مِن رَّبِّهِۦ كَلِمَٰتٍ فَتَابَ عَلَيْهِ إِنَّهُۥ هُوَ ٱلتَّوَّابُ ٱلرَّحِيمُ

    Then Adam received from his Lord [some] words, and He accepted his repentance. Indeed, it is He who is the Accepting of Repentance, the Merciful.

  • Al-Baqarah 2:67

    وَإِذْ قَالَ مُوسَىٰ لِقَوْمِهِۦٓ إِنَّ ٱللَّهَ يَأْمُرُكُمْ أَن تَذْبَحُوا۟ بَقَرَةً قَالُوٓا۟ أَتَتَّخِذُنَا هُزُوًا قَالَ أَعُوذُ بِٱللَّهِ أَنْ أَكُونَ مِنَ ٱلْجَٰهِلِينَ

    And [recall] when Moses said to his people, "Indeed, Allāh commands you to slaughter a cow." They said, "Do you take us in ridicule?" He said, "I seek refuge in Allāh from being among the ignorant."

  • Ibrahim 14:6

    وَإِذْ قَالَ مُوسَىٰ لِقَوْمِهِ ٱذْكُرُوا۟ نِعْمَةَ ٱللَّهِ عَلَيْكُمْ إِذْ أَنجَىٰكُم مِّنْ ءَالِ فِرْعَوْنَ يَسُومُونَكُمْ سُوٓءَ ٱلْعَذَابِ وَيُذَبِّحُونَ أَبْنَآءَكُمْ وَيَسْتَحْيُونَ نِسَآءَكُمْ وَفِى ذَٰلِكُم بَلَآءٌ مِّن رَّبِّكُمْ عَظِيمٌ

    And [recall, O Children of Israel], when Moses said to his people, "Remember the favor of Allāh upon you when He saved you from the people of Pharaoh, who were afflicting you with the worst torment and were slaughtering your [newborn] sons and keeping your females alive. And in that was a great trial from your Lord.

All similar verses of Surah Al-Baqarah

The names of Allah in this verse

Name mentioned in this verse

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