wamā kunta bijānibi l-gharbiyi idh qaḍaynā ilā mūsā l-amra wamā kunta mina l-shāhidīna
Translation
And you, [O Muḥammad], were not on the western side [of the mount] when We revealed to Moses the command, and you were not among the witnesses [to that].
Verse 44 of Surah Al-Qasas (28:44), a Meccan surah, is in juz 20, on page 391 of the mushaf. Read it in Arabic with its transliteration, translations and tafsir, and listen to it recited by 73 reciters.
Listen to verse 44 of Surah Al-Qasas
79 recitations by 73 reciters: pick one and it plays in the player.
All voices (79)
Tafsir of verse 44
Al-Mukhtasar
O Messenger! You were not present on the western side of the mountain from Moses’s perspective, when I completed the matter of sending Moses as a Messenger to Pharaoh and his people. You were not present to know of that incident so you could relate it to people, so what you do relate to them is only due to Allah’s revelation to you.
You were not [O Prophet] on the western side [of the mountain] when We gave Moses Our commandment, nor did you witness that event18.
Notes
[18] The pagans of Makkah are recurrently reminded in the Quran that the Prophet (ﷺ) did not witness any of these events that happened centuries before his birth. See 12:102, 3:44, 11:49. So the only logical way of knowing about these stories is the divine revelation.
And you (O Muhammad صلى الله عليه وسلم) were not on the western side (of the Mount), when We made clear to Mûsâ (Moses) the commandment, and you were not among the witnesses.
And thou (Muhammad) wast not on the western side (of the Mount) when We expounded unto Moses the commandment, and thou wast not among those present;
Thou wast not on the Western side when We decreed the Commission to Moses, nor wast thou a witness (of those events).
And you were not on the western side when We revealed to Musa the commandment, and you were not among the witnesses;
And in no way were you (i.e., Muhammad) beside the western (Mount) as We decreed to Musa (Moses) the Command, and in no way were you of the ones witnessing.
That is from the news of the unseen which We reveal to you, [O Muḥammad]. And you were not with them when they cast their pens as to which of them should be responsible for Mary. Nor were you with them when they disputed.
That is from the news of the unseen which We reveal to you, [O Muḥammad]. You knew it not, neither you nor your people, before this. So be patient; indeed, the [best] outcome is for the righteous.
That is from the news of the unseen which We reveal, [O Muḥammad], to you. And you were not with them when they put together their plan while they conspired.