وَلَمَّا وَقَعَ عَلَيْهِمُ ٱلرِّجْزُ قَالُوا۟ يَـٰمُوسَى ٱدْعُ لَنَا رَبَّكَ بِمَا عَهِدَ عِندَكَ ۖ لَئِن كَشَفْتَ عَنَّا ٱلرِّجْزَ لَنُؤْمِنَنَّ لَكَ وَلَنُرْسِلَنَّ مَعَكَ بَنِىٓ إِسْرَٰٓءِيلَ 134
Translations
And when the punishment descended upon them, they said, "O Moses, invoke for us your Lord by what He has promised you. If you [can] remove the punishment from us, we will surely believe you, and we will send with you the Children of Israel."
Transliteration
Wa-lammā waqaʿa ʿalayhim al-rijz qālū yā Mūsā ʾidʿu lanā rabbaka bi-mā ʿahida ʿindak, la-in kashafta ʿannā al-rijz la-nu'minanna lak wa-la-nursilanna maʿaka banī Isrāʾīl
Tafsir (Explanation)
When the plague (rijz) befell the Egyptians, they pleaded with Musa to invoke his Lord based on the covenant Allah had made with him, promising belief and the release of the Israelites if the punishment were lifted. According to Ibn Kathir and Al-Tabari, the Egyptians made this conditional promise out of desperation from the severe plagues, yet their pledge was insincere—they sought temporary relief rather than genuine faith. This ayah illustrates the human tendency to turn to God only in times of crisis, with hollow promises made under duress.
Revelation Context
This ayah is part of the narrative of the ten plagues visited upon Egypt during the time of Prophet Musa (Moses) and Pharaoh. The context follows Pharaoh's repeated rejection of Musa's message, with each plague serving as a sign from Allah. The Egyptians, suffering under the rijz (plague, pestilence, or torment), appealed to Musa to intercede, though their sincerity remained questionable as they had witnessed previous signs without believing.
Related Hadiths
While no specific hadith directly quotes this ayah, the concept of false oaths made under distress is addressed in various traditions. Related is the theme found in Sahih Muslim regarding insincere repentance: those who promise to reform under hardship but return to sin once relief comes exemplify the attitude described here.
Themes
Key Lesson
This ayah teaches us to examine the sincerity of our intentions when we turn to Allah—true faith and repentance must come from the heart, not merely from fear of consequences. It reminds us that genuine commitment to God's covenant cannot be conditional or temporary, but must reflect a lasting transformation of the soul.