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2:93 - And remember We took your Covenant and We raised above you (the towering height) of
Mount (Sinai) (saying): "Hold firmly to what We have given you and hearken (to the Law)";
they said: "We hear and we disobey"; and they had to drink into their hearts (of the taint) of the
calf because of their faithlessness. Say: "Vile indeed are the behests of your faith if ye have
any faith!" 979899
97 Cf. the introductory words of ii. 63 which are the same as the introductory words here but the argument is developed
in a different direction in the two places. In ii. 63, after they are reminded of the solemn Covenant under the towering
height of Mount Sinai they are told how they broke the Covenant in after ages. Here, after they are reminded of the
same solemn Covenant, they are told that even then they never meant to observe it. Their thought is expressed in
biting words of sarcasm. They said in words: "All that the Lord hath spoken we will do" But they said in their hearts:
"We shall disobey". (2.93)
98 What they should have said was: "We hear and we obey" this is the attitude of the true men of Faith (ii. 285). (2.93)
99 After the Commandments and the Law had been given at Mount Sinai, and the people had solemnly given their
Covenant, Moses went up to the Mount, and in his absence, the people made the golden calf. When Moses
returned, his anger waxed hot. "He took the Calf which they had made, and burnt it in the fire, and ground it to
powder, and strewed it upon the water, and made the children of Israel drink of it." (Exod. xxxii. 20). This incident is
interpreted in the Qur-an allegorically. The Calf is the symbol of disobedience, rebellion, want of faith. It was like a
taint of poison. Their punishment was to swallow the taint of poison which they had themselves produced. They
swallowed it not into their stomachs, but into their hearts, their very being. They had to mortify and humble
themselves in the sight of God, as was shown in another allegory based on the Jewish narrative (see ii. 54 and note,
above). (2.93)
2:104 - O ye of Faith! say not (to the Apostle) words of ambiguous import but words of respect; and
hearken (to him); to those without faith is a grievous punishment. 105
105 What the evil ones learnt from Harut and Marut (see last note) they turned to evil. When mixed with fraud and
deception, it appeared as charms and spells of love potions. They did nothing but cause discord between the sexes.
But of course their power was limited to the extent to which God permitted the evil to work, for His grace protected all
who sought His guidance and repented and returned to Him. But apart from the harm that these false pretenders
might do to others, the chief harm which they did was to their own souls. They sold themselves into slavery to the Evil
One, as is shown in the allegory of Goethe's Faust. That allegory dealt with the individual soul. Here the tragedy is
shown to occur not only to individuals but to whole groups of people, for example, the People of the Book. Indeed the
story might be extended indefinitely. (2.104)
46:31 - "O our people hearken to the one who invites (you) to Allah and believe in him: He will
forgive you your faults and deliver you from a Penalty Grievous. 4810
4810 The one who invites all to Allah is the holy Prophet. He invites us to Allah: if we believe in Allah and His Prophet, Allah
will forgive us our sins on our repentance and amendment of our lives, and save us the Penalty of the future life.
(46.31)
46:32 - "If any does not hearken to the one who invites (Us) to Allah he cannot frustrate (Allah's
Plan) on earth and no protectors can he have besides Allah such men (wander) in manifest
error." 4811
4811 If a person refuses to believe the Truth, or opposes it, it has not the least effect on Allah's holy Plan, which will go on
to its completion; but it will deprive him of Grace and of any protection whatever; he will wander about as an outlaw in
manifest helplessness. (46.32)
59:11 - Hast thou not observed the Hypocrites say to their misbelieving brethren among the
People of the Book? "If ye are expelled We too will go out with you and we will never hearken
to anyone in your affair; and if ye are attacked (in fight) we will help you." But Allah is witness
that they are indeed liars. 53865387
5386 The Jews of the Banu Nadhir had been assured by the Hypocrites of Madinah of their support to their cause. They
had thought that their defection from the Prophet's Cause would so weaken that cause that they would save their
friends. But they never intended to undertake any act involving self-sacrifice on their part; if they had helped their
Jewish friends, it was not likely that they would have succeeded; and if they had actually gone to the fight; they had
neither valour nor fervour to support them, and they would have fled ignominiously before the discipline, earnestness,
and Faith of the men of Islam. (59.11)
5387 For this actually happened. They never stirred a finger for the Jews, and they never intended to do so. And Allah
knows all their motives and secrets: cf. xlvii. 26, n. 4850. (59.11)
68:8 - So hearken not to those who deny (the Truth). 5598
5598 The enemies of Allah's truth are sometimes self-deceived. But quite often they have a glimmering of the truth in spite
of their desire to shut their eyes. Then they compromise, and they would like the preachers of inconvenient truths to
compromise with them. On those terms there would be mutual laudation. This easy path of making the best of both
worlds is a real danger or temptation to the best of us, and we must be on our guard against it if we would really enter
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