Surah Al-Baqarah 2:93
سُورَةُ البَقَرَةِ · Medinan · Verse 93 of 286
وَإِذْ أَخَذْنَا مِيثَٰقَكُمْ وَرَفَعْنَا فَوْقَكُمُ ٱلطُّورَ خُذُوا۟ مَآ ءَاتَيْنَٰكُم بِقُوَّةٍۢ وَٱسْمَعُوا۟ ۖ قَالُوا۟ سَمِعْنَا وَعَصَيْنَا وَأُشْرِبُوا۟ فِى قُلُوبِهِمُ ٱلْعِجْلَ بِكُفْرِهِمْ ۚ قُلْ بِئْسَمَا يَأْمُرُكُم بِهِۦٓ إِيمَٰنُكُمْ إِن كُنتُم مُّؤْمِنِينَ
Translation
Remember when We took your pledge, making the mountain tower above you, and said, ‘Hold on firmly to what We have given you, and listen to [what We say].’ They said, ‘We hear and we disobey,’ and through their disbelief they were made to drink [the love of] the calf deep into their hearts. Say, ‘How evil are the things your belief commands you to do, if you really are believers!’
English translation: M.A.S. Abdel Haleem.
Meaning and reflection
Wording
The Stern Covenant
This powerful verse takes us back to a defining moment for the Children of Israel. Allah reminds them of the solemn pledge, the "مِيثَٰقَكُمْ" (your covenant), they made to uphold the Torah brought by Prophet Musa. To underscore the gravity of this covenant, Allah recounts how Mount Tur was raised "فَوْقَكُمُ ٱلطُّورَ" (above you, the Mount), a terrifying, undeniable sign of divine authority. The command was clear: "خُذُوا۟ مَآ ءَاتَيْنَاكُم بِقُوَّةٍۢ" (Take what We have given you with firmness and resolve), and "وَٱسْمَعُوا۟" (and listen, meaning obey). This "strength" (قُوَّةٍ) wasn't just physical; al-Jalalayn clarifies it meant "seriousness and diligence" in their commitment.
A Striking Rejection
Yet, their response was astounding in its defiance: "قَالُوا۟ سَمِعْنَا وَعَصَيْنَا" (They said, 'We heard and we disobeyed'). Ibn Ashur and al-Zamakhshari highlight the stark contradiction. While "اسمعوا" (listen) implied both hearing and accepting, their reply bluntly fulfilled the literal hearing ("سمعنا") but immediately countered it with outright rebellion ("وعصينا"). This phrase powerfully conveys the depth of their insolence; perhaps spoken directly, or, as al-Razi suggests, their actions spoke louder than words, expressing "disobedience" through their conduct.
Love Ingrained in the Heart
The verse then uses a profound metaphor to explain their actions: "وَأُشْرِبُوا۟ فِى قُلُوبِهِمُ ٱلْعِجْلَ بِكُفْرِهِمْ" (And the calf was made to drink into their hearts because of their disbelief). This isn't just about worshipping the calf; it describes how the *love* for the calf, and all it represented, permeated their hearts. Scholars like al-Zamakhshari, al-Razi, and Ibn Ashur explain "أُشْرِبُوا۟" (they were made to drink) as love entering their hearts and spreading deeply, like dye saturating cloth or water flowing through the body. It signifies an overwhelming infatuation, almost as if it was poured into them, so deeply rooted that it became part of their very being due to their existing "كُفْرِهِمْ" (disbelief). This powerful imagery shows how idols can consume a heart if disbelief is allowed to settle.
A Faith That Commands Evil?
The verse concludes with Allah instructing the Prophet: "قُلْ بِئْسَمَا يَأْمُرُكُم بِهِۦٓ إِيمَٰنُكُمْ إِن كُنتُم مُّؤْمِنِينَ" (Say: Evil is what your faith commands you, if you are believers!). This is a sharp, biting rebuke. Al-Zamakhshari and al-Razi describe this as sarcasm (tahakkum). True faith, especially the divinely revealed Torah they claimed to believe in, would never command idolatry or rebellion. The phrase "إن كنتم مؤمنين" (if you are believers) then exposes the hollowness of their claim. As Ibn Ashur explains, the word 'إن' (if) here casts serious doubt on their very declaration of faith, pushing them to confront the contradiction between their professed belief and their heinous actions. It is a challenge, not to prove their faith, but to recognize its utter absence, for genuine faith can only lead to goodness.
The verse, through these vivid words and rhetorical choices, paints a powerful picture of obstinate defiance and a faith corrupted from within, serving as a timeless warning against hypocrisy and hollow claims of belief.
Sources: al-Zamakhshari (al-Kashshaf), al-Razi (Mafatih al-Ghayb), al-Jadwal fi I'rab al-Quran (Mahmud Safi), al-Jalalayn, Ibn Ashur (al-Tahrir wa al-Tanwir)
Topics that discuss this verse
Surah Al-Baqarah 2:93 is discussed in 10 study guides on Maani. Each guide gathers the key verses, Arabic words and lessons of one Quranic topic.
Reflect on this verse
Open Surah Al-Baqarah 2:93 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.