قَالَ فَإِنَّهَا مُحَرَّمَةٌ عَلَيْهِمْ ۛ أَرْبَعِينَ سَنَةً ۛ يَتِيهُونَ فِى ٱلْأَرْضِ ۚ فَلَا تَأْسَ عَلَى ٱلْقَوْمِ ٱلْفَـٰسِقِينَ 26
Translations
[Allāh] said, "Then indeed, it is forbidden to them for forty years [in which] they will wander throughout the land. So do not grieve over the defiantly disobedient people."
Transliteration
Qāla fa-innahā muharramatun 'alayhim arba'īna sanatan yatīhūna fī al-ardi falā ta'as 'alā al-qawm al-fāsiqīn
Tafsir (Explanation)
Allah's statement that the Promised Land was forbidden to the Israelites for forty years as punishment for their rebellion and refusal to enter it despite Moses' command. During this period, they wandered in the desert, and an entire generation died before their descendants could inherit the land. The ayah concludes with consolation to Prophet Muhammad (peace be upon him) not to grieve over the disbelievers, as their rejection mirrors the historical pattern of human rebellion against divine guidance. Classical scholars like Ibn Kathir and Al-Tabari emphasize this as a consequence of kufr (disbelief) and 'isyān (disobedience).
Revelation Context
This ayah is part of the narrative recounting the story of the Israelites' exodus from Egypt and their refusal to enter the land of Canaan (Surah Al-Ma'idah, verses 20-26). It directly follows the account of the ten spies who were sent to scout the land and returned with a fearful report, which caused the people to lose faith. The context addresses the punishment for their rejection of Allah's command and serves as a historical lesson for the Muslim community.
Related Hadiths
Sahih Bukhari and Sahih Muslim contain hadiths regarding the Children of Israel's forty years of wandering (Tih in the desert). Additionally, hadiths in these collections discuss the Israelites' disobedience and the consequent punishment, reinforcing the Quranic narrative.
Themes
Key Lesson
This ayah teaches that persistent rejection of Allah's guidance leads to prolonged separation from blessings, and that the consequences of communal disobedience affect entire generations. For believers, it serves as a reminder to obey Allah's commands promptly and to recognize that witnessing others' rejection of truth should strengthen rather than weaken one's own faith.
Related Ayahs
إِنَّآ أَنزَلْنَا ٱلتَّوْرَىٰةَ فِيهَا هُدًى وَنُورٌ ۚ يَحْكُمُ بِهَا ٱلنَّبِيُّونَ ٱلَّذِينَ أَسْلَمُوا۟ لِلَّذِينَ هَادُوا۟ وَٱلرَّبَّـٰنِيُّونَ وَٱلْأَحْبَارُ بِمَا ٱسْتُحْفِظُوا۟ مِن كِتَـٰبِ ٱللَّهِ وَكَانُوا۟ عَلَيْهِ شُهَدَآءَ ۚ فَلَا تَخْشَوُا۟ ٱلنَّاسَ وَٱخْشَوْنِ وَلَا تَشْتَرُوا۟ بِـَٔايَـٰتِى ثَمَنًا قَلِيلًا ۚ وَمَن لَّمْ يَحْكُم بِمَآ أَنزَلَ ٱللَّهُ فَأُو۟لَـٰٓئِكَ هُمُ ٱلْكَـٰفِرُونَ
Indeed, We sent down the Torah, in which was guidance and light. The prophets who submitted [to Allāh] judged by it for the Jews, as did the rabbis and scholars by that with which they were entrusted of the Scripture of Allāh, and they were witnesses thereto. So do not fear the people but fear Me, and do not exchange My verses for a small price [i.e., worldly gain]. And whoever does not judge by what Allāh has revealed - then it is those who are the disbelievers.
إِنَّمَا جَزَٰٓؤُا۟ ٱلَّذِينَ يُحَارِبُونَ ٱللَّهَ وَرَسُولَهُۥ وَيَسْعَوْنَ فِى ٱلْأَرْضِ فَسَادًا أَن يُقَتَّلُوٓا۟ أَوْ يُصَلَّبُوٓا۟ أَوْ تُقَطَّعَ أَيْدِيهِمْ وَأَرْجُلُهُم مِّنْ خِلَـٰفٍ أَوْ يُنفَوْا۟ مِنَ ٱلْأَرْضِ ۚ ذَٰلِكَ لَهُمْ خِزْىٌ فِى ٱلدُّنْيَا ۖ وَلَهُمْ فِى ٱلْـَٔاخِرَةِ عَذَابٌ عَظِيمٌ
Indeed, the penalty for those who wage war against Allāh and His Messenger and strive upon earth [to cause] corruption is none but that they be killed or crucified or that their hands and feet be cut off from opposite sides or that they be exiled from the land. That is for them a disgrace in this world; and for them in the Hereafter is a great punishment,
وَيَقُولُ ٱلَّذِينَ ءَامَنُوٓا۟ أَهَـٰٓؤُلَآءِ ٱلَّذِينَ أَقْسَمُوا۟ بِٱللَّهِ جَهْدَ أَيْمَـٰنِهِمْ ۙ إِنَّهُمْ لَمَعَكُمْ ۚ حَبِطَتْ أَعْمَـٰلُهُمْ فَأَصْبَحُوا۟ خَـٰسِرِينَ
And those who believe will say, "Are these the ones who swore by Allāh their strongest oaths that indeed they were with you?" Their deeds have become worthless, and they have become losers.
وَإِذْ قَالَ مُوسَىٰ لِقَوْمِهِۦ يَـٰقَوْمِ ٱذْكُرُوا۟ نِعْمَةَ ٱللَّهِ عَلَيْكُمْ إِذْ جَعَلَ فِيكُمْ أَنۢبِيَآءَ وَجَعَلَكُم مُّلُوكًا وَءَاتَىٰكُم مَّا لَمْ يُؤْتِ أَحَدًا مِّنَ ٱلْعَـٰلَمِينَ
And [mention, O Muḥammad], when Moses said to his people, "O my people, remember the favor of Allāh upon you when He appointed among you prophets and made you possessors and gave you that which He had not given anyone among the worlds.