Surah Al-Baqarah 2:40

Translation

Children of Israel, remember how I blessed you. Honour your pledge to Me and I will honour My pledge to you: I am the One you should fear.

English translation: M.A.S. Abdel Haleem.

Meaning and reflection

'O Children of Israel, remember My favour which I bestowed upon you, and fulfill My covenant, and I will fulfill your covenant, and fear Me alone.' Ibn Ashur and al-Saadi note the reciprocal bond, 'awfu bi-'ahdi ufi bi-'ahdikum': keep your side of the covenant and God keeps His. And it opens with 'remember My favour', gratitude as the ground of faithfulness. Ask yourself: the relationship with God is framed as a covenant of kept promises, He is utterly reliable on His side; the variable is mine. And notice the sequence: first remember the favours, then keep the covenant, because ingratitude is what erodes faithfulness. When I fail my commitments to God, it is rarely that He failed His; it is that I forgot His favours first. Am I keeping my side of the covenant, and am I remembering His gifts often enough to want to?

Grounded in classical tafsir: Ibn Ashur, al-Saadi, Ibn Kathir.

Topics that discuss this verse

Surah Al-Baqarah 2:40 is discussed in 14 study guides on Maani. Each guide gathers the key verses, Arabic words and lessons of one Quranic topic.

• Pledges (Ahd) (key verse)
• Intimidation (Tarhib) (key verse)
• Fulfillment (Wafa') (key verse)
• The Covenant (Mithaq)
• Trustworthiness (Amanah)
• Fairness (Insaf)
• Reward (Thawab)
• Awe (Khashyah)
• Treachery (Khiyanah)
• Concealment (Kitman)
• Hastening (Musara'ah)
• Happiness (Sa'adah)
• Intercession (Shafa'ah)
• Responsibility (Mas'uliyyah)

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Reflect on this verse

Open Surah Al-Baqarah 2:40 in Maani to reflect on it through the Five Lenses: its wording, its context, what it means for you, its connections across the Quran and its lessons, grounded in classical tafsir.

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