How Did the Children of Israel Meet the Blessings of Allah Upon Them, Which Included Manna and Quail?
كيف قابل بنو إسرائيل نعم الله عليهم بإخراج الماء وإنزال المن والسلوى؟
They said to their Prophet, out of discontent and contempt for Allah's blessings, that they could not be patient eating one kind of food, and wanted another kind, one that grows from the earth, neither birds nor trees standing on a trunk. This was obstinacy in the extreme. They asked for cucumber, garlic, lentils, and onions instead.
Moses's answer to them was: Do you ask for other kinds of food when what you have been given, manna and quail, is better than them? Such a request does not befit someone who recognizes Allah's blessings, since these foods you ask for exist in every land you might settle in. This is why he told them, "go down to any village," meaning wherever they settled, they would find these foods.
(And ˹remember˺ when you said, "O Moses! We cannot endure the same meal ˹every day˺. So ˹just˺ call upon your Lord on our behalf, He will bring forth for us some of what the earth produces of herbs, cucumbers, garlic, lentils, and onions." Moses scolded ˹them˺, "Do you exchange what is better for what is worse? ˹You can˺ go down to any village and you will find what you have asked for." They were stricken with disgrace and misery, and they invited the displeasure of Allah for rejecting Allah's signs and unjustly killing the prophets. This is ˹a fair reward˺ for their disobedience and violations.) Al-Baqarah 2:61
Allah the Almighty punished them with humiliation that appeared on their faces and bodies, and with misery in their hearts. Their souls were not honorable; rather, their souls were abased, content with what is low and base, and they had no lofty aspirations, only abject souls, weak bodies and ugly faces. Allah sent down His wrath and displeasure upon them, and the reason for that was their denial of the blessings of Allah, the Mighty and Majestic.
قالوا لنبيهم على وجه التململ من نعم الله والاحتقار لها: لن نصبر على أكل جنس واحد من الطعام، نريد جنسًا آخر، وهذا الجنس يخرج من الأرض، لا يكون طيرًا ولا شجرًا يقوم على الساق، وهذا في غاية التعنت. فطلبوا من تلك الأصناف: الخيار والثوم والعدس والبصل.
فكان جواب نبي الله موسى لهم: أتطلبون الأطعمة المذكورة وما أعطيتموه من المن والسلوى أفضل منها؟ مثل ذلك لا يليق بمن عرف نعم الله، لأن هذه الأطعمة موجودة في كل بلد تنزلون فيه، ولذلك قال لهم: "اهبطوا مصرًا" أي بلدٍ تنزلون فيه تجدون فيه هذا الطعام.
(وَإِذْ قُلْتُمْ يَا مُوسَىٰ لَن نَّصْبِرَ عَلَىٰ طَعَامٍ وَاحِدٍ فَادْعُ لَنَا رَبَّكَ يُخْرِجْ لَنَا مِمَّا تُنبِتُ الْأَرْضُ مِن بَقْلِهَا وَقِثَّائِهَا وَفُومِهَا وَعَدَسِهَا وَبَصَلِهَا قَالَ أَتَسْتَبْدِلُونَ الَّذِي هُوَ أَدْنَىٰ بِالَّذِي هُوَ خَيْرٌ اهْبِطُوا مِصْرًا فَإِنَّ لَكُم مَّا سَأَلْتُمْ وَضُرِبَتْ عَلَيْهِمُ الذِّلَّةُ وَالْمَسْكَنَةُ وَبَاءُوا بِغَضَبٍ مِّنَ اللَّـهِ ذَٰلِكَ بِأَنَّهُمْ كَانُوا يَكْفُرُونَ بِآيَاتِ اللَّـهِ وَيَقْتُلُونَ النَّبِيِّينَ بِغَيْرِ الْحَقِّ ذَٰلِكَ بِمَا عَصَوا وَّكَانُوا يَعْتَدُونَ) البقرة 2: 61
فعاقبهم الله تعالى بالذلة التي تظهر على وجوههم وأبدانهم، والمسكنة في قلوبهم، فلم تكن أنفسهم عزيزة، بل أنفسهم ذليلة يرتضون بالدون والهون من الأشياء، وليس لهم همم عالية، بل أنفس مهينة، وأبدان ضعيفة، ووجوه قبيحة، وأنزل الله عليهم غضبه وسخطه، وسبب ذلك كفرهم بنعم الله عز وجل.
1. Discontent With a Miraculous, Ready-Made Provision | جحودٌ لعطاء إعجازي جاهز
The manna and quail were themselves a miraculous, sustained provision requiring no labor from the people, yet they grew tired of it and demanded to trade it for ordinary vegetables. How that provision reached them is told in Where Did Moses' People Get Their Food and Water While Wandering in the Desert? The answer calls their demand the height of obstinacy, since the complaint was directed at a gift rather than at any genuine hardship.
كان المن والسلوى في ذاتهما رزقا معجزا مستمرا لا يتطلب من القوم أي جهد، ومع ذلك سئموا هذا الرزق وطلبوا استبداله بخضراوات عادية. ويصف الجواب طلبهم بأنه في غاية التعنت، إذ كانت الشكوى موجهة إلى عطاء لا إلى مشقة حقيقية.
2. "Do You Exchange What Is Better for What Is Worse?" | "أتستبدلون الذي هو أدنى بالذي هو خير؟"
Musa's rebuke names their request precisely as a downgrade, trading something better for something worse, rather than treating it as a neutral preference. This framing rejects the premise of their complaint outright, refusing to accept that ordinary vegetables were an improvement over what they had already been given.
يصف توبيخ موسى طلبهم بدقة بأنه نزول من الأعلى إلى الأدنى، واستبدال للأسوأ بالأفضل، لا مجرد تفضيل محايد. وهذه الصياغة ترفض أصل شكواهم رفضا قاطعا، فلا تسلّم بأن الخضراوات العادية خير مما أُعطوه بالفعل.
3. "Go Down to Any Village": A Pointed Dismissal | "اهبطوا مصرًا": ردٌّ لاذع
Musa's instruction to simply go down to any village highlights how ordinary their request truly was: these foods were available anywhere, unlike the manna and quail provided to them by Allah in the desert. The comment underscores the absurdity of demanding that a miracle be replaced by something commonplace. Their water in the desert was a miracle too, as told in how twelve springs gushed out for Moses and his people.
يُبرز أمر موسى لهم بأن يهبطوا أي بلد مدى عادية طلبهم: فهذه الأطعمة متاحة في كل مكان، بخلاف المن والسلوى اللذين رزقهم الله إياهما في الصحراء. ويؤكد هذا التعليق سخف المطالبة باستبدال معجزة بشيء مألوف. وقد كان ماؤهم في الصحراء معجزة كذلك.
4. Punishment Made Visible on the Body Itself | عقوبةٌ ظاهرة على الجسد نفسه
The answer describes the resulting disgrace as appearing on their faces and bodies, with misery cast into their hearts, so the punishment was not an inner state alone. This physical dimension made the consequence of their rejection outwardly visible, a lasting mark rather than a hidden condition.
يصف الجواب الذلة الناتجة بأنها ظاهرة على وجوههم وأبدانهم، مع مسكنة في قلوبهم، فلم تكن العقوبة حالا باطنة فحسب. وقد جعل هذا البعد الحسي عاقبة رفضهم ظاهرة للعيان، علامة دائمة لا حالا خفية.
5. A Small Complaint Tied to a Much Larger Pattern | شكوى صغيرة تُربط بنمطٍ أكبر بكثير
The Ayah closes by linking this specific complaint about food to a far graver pattern, denying Allah's signs and unjustly killing prophets, describing both as consequences of the same underlying disobedience. This connection frames the food dispute not as an isolated incident but as one expression of a deeper, recurring unwillingness to accept what they were given.
تختم الآية بربط هذه الشكوى المحددة من الطعام بنمط أخطر بكثير، هو الكفر بآيات الله وقتل النبيين بغير الحق، وتصف ذلك كله بأنه ثمرة العصيان نفسه. ويجعل هذا الربط الخلاف حول الطعام لا حادثة منفردة، بل مظهرا من مظاهر نفور أعمق ومتكرر من قبول ما أُعطوه.
Frequently Asked Questions | الأسئلة الشائعة
What did the Children of Israel complain about regarding the manna and quail?
They grew tired of eating them and demanded ordinary vegetables like cucumber, garlic, lentils, and onions instead.
How did Moses respond to their request?
He rebuked them for trading something better for something worse, and told them to go down to any village where such foods were freely available.
What punishment does the verse mention?
Disgrace and misery, which the verse ties to rejecting Allah's signs and unjustly killing the prophets.
What larger pattern does the verse connect this complaint to?
Denying Allah's signs and unjustly killing prophets, presented as consequences of the same underlying disobedience.