Page 100 - General Knowledge from the Qur'an

98 GENERAL KNOWLEDGE FROM THE QUR'AN

Ask them about the town which was by the sea when they broke the
Sabbath – when their fish came to them near the surface on their Sab-
bath day but did not come on the days which were not their Sabbath. In
this way We put them to the test because they were deviators. When a
group of them said, 'Why do you rebuke a people whom Allah is going
to destroy or severely punish?' they said, 'So that we have an excuse to
present to your Lord, and so that hopefully they will guard against
evil.' Then when they forgot what they had been reminded of, We res-
cued those who had forbidden the evil and seized those who did
wrong with a harsh punishment because they were deviators. When
they were insolent about what they had been forbidden to do, We said
to them, 'Be apes, despised, cast out!' Then your Lord announced that
He would send against them until the Day of Rising people who would
inflict an evil punishment on them. Your Lord is Swift in Retribution.
And He is Ever-Forgiving, Most Merciful. (Surat al-A'raf, 163-167)
You are well aware of those of you who broke the Sabbath. We said
to them, 'Be apes, despised, cast out.' (Surat al-Baqara, 65)
Allah's Command to the Tribe of Israel to Sacrifice a Cow
And when Musa said to his people, 'Allah commands you to sacrifice
a cow,' they said, 'What! Are you making a mockery of us?' He said, 'I
seek refuge with Allah from being one of the ignorant!' They said, 'Ask
your Lord to make it clear to us what it should be like.' He said, 'He
says it should be a cow, not old or virgin, but somewhere between the
two. So do as you have been told.' They said, 'Ask your Lord to make it
clear to us what colour it should be.' He said, 'He says it should be a
brignt yellow cow, a pleasure to all who look.' They said, 'Ask your
Lord to make it clear to us what it should be like. Cows are all much the
same to us. Then, if Allah wills, we will be guided.' He said, 'He says it
should be a cow not trained to plough or irrigate the fields – completely
sound, without a blemish on it.' They said, 'Now you have brought the
truth.' So they sacrificed it – but they almost did not do it. Remember
when you killed someone and violently accused each other of it, and
Allah brought out what you were hiding. We said, 'Hit him with part of
it!' In that way Allah gives life to the dead and He shows you His Signs
so that hopefully you will understand. (Surat al-Baqara, 67-73)