Surah Al-Baqarah 2:59
سُورَةُ البَقَرَةِ · Medinan · Verse 59 of 286
فَبَدَّلَ ٱلَّذِينَ ظَلَمُوا۟ قَوْلًا غَيْرَ ٱلَّذِى قِيلَ لَهُمْ فَأَنزَلْنَا عَلَى ٱلَّذِينَ ظَلَمُوا۟ رِجْزًۭا مِّنَ ٱلسَّمَآءِ بِمَا كَانُوا۟ يَفْسُقُونَ
Translation
But the wrongdoers substituted a different word from the one they had been given. So, because they persistently disobeyed, We sent a plague down from the heavens upon the wrongdoers.
English translation: M.A.S. Abdel Haleem.
Meaning and reflection
'But those who wronged changed the word to other than that which was said to them, so We sent down upon them a punishment from the sky for their defiant disobedience.' al-Saadi and Ibn Kathir note the astonishing perversity, given one humble word to say for forgiveness, they altered it, mocking the very act of repentance, unwilling to submit even that much. Ask yourself: the ego's resistance to submission is so deep that it will corrupt even the smallest, easiest act of humility rather than perform it sincerely. They could not bring themselves to say one word plainly; they had to twist it. It exposes how the proud heart sabotages its own rescue, refusing the tiny surrender that would save it. Where do I do a version of this, going through a religious motion but subtly altering it to protect my pride, doing repentance on my own terms rather than God's, unwilling to make even the small, plain submission that forgiveness asks?
Grounded in classical tafsir: al-Saadi, Ibn Kathir, Ibn Ashur.
Topics that discuss this verse
Surah Al-Baqarah 2:59 is discussed in 5 study guides on Maani. Each guide gathers the key verses, Arabic words and lessons of one Quranic topic.
Reflect on this verse
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