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qālū ʾūdhīnā min qabli ʾan taʾtiyanā wa-min baʿdi mā jiʾtanā qāla ʿasā rabbukum ʾan yuhlika ʿaduwwakum wa-yastakhlifakum fī l-ʾarḍi fa-yanẓura kayfa taʿmalūna
They said, ‘We were tormented before you came to us and [also] after you came to us.’ He said, ‘Maybe your Lord will destroy your enemy and make you successors in the land, and then He will see how you act.’
— Ali Quli Qarai
Surah al-‘Araf – Verse 129
129 . “They said: ‘We have been hurt before you came to us and (also) after you came to us.’ He said: ‘Maybe that your Lord will destroy your enemy and will make you successors in the earth, then He observes how you act.”
The Children of Israel expected all the affairs be promptly corrected in one night after the raise of Moses (as), and the country of Egypt, with all its facilities, could be in their authority, and the Pharaonic people would be annihilated. That was why they claimed that the raise of Moses (as) did not bring confort for them.
The reply of Allah (s.w.t.) is that triumph needs some conditions, such as patience, struggle, and reliance. When these conditions are supplied, there is a hope to the help of Allah.
It was thus that the divine leaders were sometimes criticized by some friends who were of little capacity and of little tolerance. The verse says:
Most of people imagine that happiness and felicity is found in comfort and tranquility. They suppose that the lack of them is as a failure to obtain their desires. They are neglectful that the Divine religions have come to correct the ways of lives, not to efface their difficulties. A leader should hearken to critics and send some hope-giving messages. The verse continues saying:
An Islamic government is a means of trial not a means of seeking pleasure. Then, the verse concludes as follows: