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wa-ʾidh ʾakhadhnā mīthāqakum lā tasfikūna dimāʾakum wa-lā tukhrijūna ʾanfusakum min diyārikum thumma ʾaqrartum wa-ʾantum tashhadūna
And when We took a pledge from you, [saying]: ‘You shall not shed your [own people’s] blood, and you shall not expel your folks from your homes,’ you pledged, and you testify [to this pledge of your ancestors].
— Ali Quli Qarai
Surah Al-Baqarah, Verses 83-86
And (remember) when We made a covenant with the Children of Israel (instructing): ‘You shall not worship any but Allah; and (you shall do) good to (your) parents, and to the near of kin and to the orphans, and the needy, and speak kind words to people, keep up the prayer, and pay the poor-rates (zakat)’. Then you turned away, except a few of you, and you backslide (even now) (2:83)
And (remember) when We made a covenant with you: ‘You shall not shed your blood, nor expel one another from your dwellings’ then you confirmed it while you bore witness. (2:84)
Yet you kill one another and expel a group of your people from their dwellings, helping others against them in sin and enmity, and if they come to you as captives, you ransom them - yet their very expulsion was forbidden for you. Do you then believe in part of the Book, and disbelieve in (another) part? What shall be the recompense of those of you who do that, but disgrace, in the life of this world, and on the Day of Resurrection to be consigned to the most terrible punishment? And Allah is not heedless of what you do. (2:85)
Those are they who have bought the life of this world at the price of the Hereafter; for them the punishment shall not be lightened, nor shall they be helped. (2:86)
The Breachers of The Covenant!
In a few of the verses mentioned before, the covenant of the Children of Israel was hinted at, but no details were given about it. Through the verses under discussion, Allah reminds them of some of the items of this covenant. Most of these items - or all of them - should be counted as the fundamental principles and permanent laws of the Divine religions, because this same covenant and these instructions, in some form or other, are comprehensively found in every religion.
In these verses, the Qur’an severely scorns and blames the Jews because they broke their covenant and threatens them with disgrace in the life of this world and the most grievous punishment in the Hereafter. This covenant, that the Children of Israel were witnesses of and confessed to, contains the following items:
Monotheism and worshipping Allah, as the verse says:
And (remember) when We made a covenant with the Children of Israel (instructing): ‘You shall not worship any but Allah… (2:83)
…and (you shall do) good to (your) parents… (2:83)
…and to the near of kin and to the orphans, and the needy… (2:83)
…and speak kind words to people, … (2:83)
…keep up the prayer,… (2:83)
…and pay the poor-rates (zakat)’. Then you turned away, except a few of you, and you backslide (even now). (2:83)
And (remember) when We made a covenant with you: ‘You shall not shed your blood... (2:84)
…nor expel one another from your dwellings’… (2:84)
…then you confirmed it while you bore witness. (2:84) (This item of the covenant is perceived from the sentence: Do you then believe in part of the Book, and disbelieve in (another) part? (2:85))
But you disregarded many of these aspects of your covenant with Allah.
Yet you kill one another and expel a group of your people from their dwellings, helping others against them in sin and enmity… (2:85)
All of these deeds you did are a breach of the covenant you had taken with Allah.
…and if they come to you as captives, you ransom them - yet their very expulsion was forbidden for you. (2:85)
It is surprising that you, in paying ransom, and setting your captives free, comply with the ordinances of the Torah and the Divine Covenant:
…Do you then believe in part of the Book, and disbelieve in (another) part? What shall be the recompense of those of you who do that, but disgrace, in the life of this world, and on the Day of Resurrection to be consigned to the most terrible punishment? And Allah is not heedless of what you do. (2:85)
Then, He, the Just, will take all of them into account and will judge upon you according to your deeds in the Divine Court of Justice. The last of the verses under discussion, in fact, states their main motive for doing these contradictory actions. It says:
Those are they who have bought the life of this world at the price of the Hereafter… (2:86)
For this reason:
…for them the punishment shall not be lightened, nor shall they be helped. (2:86)
Explanation: The Best Strategy for the Survival of Nations
These verses have been revealed about the Children of Israel, but they contain a series of universal laws for the whole human race throughout the world. These laws consist of some advice for those nations who wish to survive and to exist successfully, as well as the secrets of failure and destruction. From the viewpoint of the Qur’an, nations will be happy and able to continue living when the individuals of that nation, avoiding sins, attach themselves to the greatest Power and rely on that Everlasting Source for help in all conditions.
It is obvious that this Origin can be none but Allah, the Exalted. Therefore, they should obey Allah and bow only to Him, i.e. being sincere unto Him alone in obedience. If nations follow this law, they will be afraid of none. Genuine sincerity and perfect intentions of a believer in the way of Allah, do not tolerate the yielding of himself, in any regard, to anything or anybody else other than the One and Only True God, Allah. For it will mean the individual’s surrender to his self which is nothing more than surrender to Satan which is the equivalent of worshipping him.
As it was already pointed out, the means of salvation, i.e. for a nation to survive and endure successfully, is firm adherence of its members to the Divine Covenant and their faithful and loyal attachment to the divinely commissioned guides. It is obvious that misdeeds or sins weaken faith, adherence, and the love of goodness, and the excess of it may result in the total severance of the Holy connection, and in the individuals becoming totally lost in the darkness of infidelity, hence eternal punishment and no salvation in either this world or the coming world will be the result for such a nation.
These verses of the Holy Qur’an, if studied properly and judged dispassionately almost suffice to illustrate what is meant by the religion Islam and what kind of life Islam invites its believers, or all nations to live. And if the members of nations act upon these commandments, I how peaceful, pleasant, and enjoyable will be the life here on earth. These are on one side, but on the other side, the secret of the failure and defeat of nations, which finally leads to their destruction and abolishment, lies in the existence of hate and enmity between them and between the members inside each nation, i.e. being heedless to the above-mentioned commandments.
Such a nation will soon perish because of disregarding Allah’s covenant by not relying on Him, by not respecting and helping their parents, family members, kindreds, neighbours, and all fellow men, by shedding blood and by not observing the rights of others by expelling them out of their houses or lands in order to occupy their properties:
…You shall not shed your blood, nor expel one another from your dwellings… (2:84)
And, finally, one of the factors of the destruction of nations is unjust discrimination in the execution of laws, i.e. when they observe those laws which protect their personal profits but neglect what is beneficial for the society.
…Do you then believe in part of the Book, and disbelieve in (another) part? (2:85)
And these are some of the causes of either the development or failure of nations from the viewpoint of the Qur’an.