Why Did Allah Order the Children of Israel to Slaughter the Cow in Surah Al-Baqarah?
لماذا أمر الله أن يذبحوا بقرة في الآية “إِذْ قَالَ مُوسَى لِقَوْمِهِ إِنَّ اللّهَ يَأْمُرُكُمْ أَنْ تَذْبَحُواْ بَقَرَةً”؟
So that they hit the dead man with a part of the cow, and he rose from the dead and pointed at his killer. Allah the Almighty says: (So We instructed, “Strike the dead body with a piece of the cow.” This is how ˹easily˺ Allah brings the dead to life, showing you His signs so that you may understand.) Al-Baqarah 2:73
Among the Children of Israel there was a wealthy man who had no children, and his only heir was his nephew. The nephew grew impatient for the inheritance and killed his uncle, then carried him and threw him at the door of one of their men, and accused the owner of the house of killing him. The people took up arms and rose against one another until evil was about to break out between them. Then the people of sound judgment among them called on them to go to Moses and ask his opinion, and Moses said to them: Allah commands you to slaughter a cow. After he described the cow to them, they bought it. Then Allah the Almighty commanded them to strike the dead man with any part of the cow He had commanded them to slaughter, and they did. The miracle took place, breaking the natural order: Allah brought the dead man to life, he named his killer, and then Allah caused him to die, and the strife subsided after Allah had exposed the killer. And thus Allah gives life to the dead.
كي يضربوا الميت بجزء من البقرة فيحيا ويدلهم الميت على قاتله. قال الله تعالى: (فَقُلْنَا اضْرِبُوهُ بِبَعْضِهَا ۚ كَذَٰلِكَ يُحْيِي اللَّهُ الْمَوْتَىٰ وَيُرِيكُمْ آيَاتِهِ لَعَلَّكُمْ تَعْقِلُونَ) البقرة 2: 73
كَانَ فِي بَني إِسْرَائِيلَ رَجُلٌ كَثِيرُ المَالِ وَلاَ وَلَدَ لَهُ، وَكَانَ وَارِثَهُ الَوحِيدَ ابْنُ أَخِيهِ، فَاسْتَعْجَلَ ابْنُ الأَخِ المِيرَاثَ. وَقَتَلَ عَمَّهُ، ثُمَّ حَمَلَهُ وَأَلْقَاهُ عَلَى بَابِ رَجُل مِنْهُمْ. وَادَّعَى عَلَى صَاحِبِ البَيْتِ أَنَّهُ قَاتِلُهُ، وَتَسَلَّحَ النَّاسُ، وَتَثَاوَرُوا حَتَّى كَادَ الشَّرُّ أَنْ يَقَعَ بَيْنَهُمْ. فَدَعَاهُمْ ذَوُو الرَّأْيِ فِيهِمْ أَنْ يَذْهَبُوا إِلى مُوسَى يَسْأَلُونَهُ الرَّأْيَ، فَقَالَ لَهُمْ مُوسَى: إِنَّ اللهَ يَأْمُرُكُمْ أَنْ تَذْبَحُوا بَقَرَةً. وبعد أن وصف لهم البقرة، اشتروها. فَأَمَرَهُمُ اللهُ تَعَالَى بِضَرْبِ المَيْتِ بِأَيِّ جُزْءٍ مِنْ أَجْزَاءِ البَقَرَةِ التِي أَمَرَهُمُ اللهُ بِذَبْحِهَا فَفَعَلُوا، وَحَصَلَتِ المُعْجِزَةُ بِخَرْقِ العَادَةِ، فَأَحْيَا اللهُ المَيْتَ، وَذَكَرَ اسْمَ قَاتِلِهِ، ثُمَّ أَمَاتَهُ اللهُ فَسَكَنَتِ الفِتْنَةُ، بَعْدَ أَنْ كَشَفَ اللهُ القَاتِلَ. وَهَكَذَا يُحْيِي اللهُ المَوْتَى.
1. A Murder Committed for Inheritance | جريمة قتل من أجل الميراث
According to reports transmitted by Ibn Kathir from ‘Ubaydah al-Salmani and others, the story behind the command begins not with the cow itself but with a nephew’s greed: his uncle was wealthy and childless, making the nephew sole heir, so he killed him and dumped the body at another man’s door to escape blame. Ibn Kathir notes that these reports appear to come from the books of the Children of Israel: they may be narrated, but they are neither affirmed nor denied. This background matters because the cow was never the point, it was the means to an end already set in motion by a real crime.
بحسب روايات نقلها ابن كثير عن عبيدة السلماني وغيره، لا تبدأ القصة وراء الأمر بالبقرة نفسها، بل بطمع ابن أخ: كان عمه غنيا ولا ولد له، مما جعل ابن أخيه الوريث الوحيد، فقتله وألقى جثته عند باب رجل آخر للإفلات من التهمة. ويذكر ابن كثير أن هذه الروايات مأخوذة على الظاهر من كتب بني إسرائيل، فتُروى ولا تُصدَّق ولا تُكذَّب. ولهذه الخلفية أهميتها لأن البقرة لم تكن الهدف قط، بل كانت وسيلة لغاية سبق أن حركتها جريمة حقيقية.
2. A Community on the Edge of Conflict | مجتمعٌ على حافة الصراع
In the same reports, with no evidence against the accused man beyond the body’s placement, people armed themselves and were close to open fighting before wiser voices among them proposed asking Musa for a solution. This detail shows how urgent the situation had become, a false accusation was on the verge of causing bloodshed within the community itself.
وفي الروايات نفسها، دون أي دليل على الرجل المتهم سوى مكان الجثة، تسلح الناس واقتربوا من قتال مفتوح قبل أن يقترح أصحاب الرأي منهم اللجوء إلى موسى لإيجاد حل. ويظهر هذا التفصيل مدى إلحاح الموقف، إذ كانت تهمة زائفة على وشك التسبب في سفك دماء داخل المجتمع نفسه.
3. A Resolution Through a Divine Sign | حلٌّ بآية من الله
Once the cow was found and slaughtered as commanded, Allah instructed the people to strike the dead man with a piece of it, and Allah revived him. Ibn Kathir explains that he named his killer, as the verse says: “Allah revealed what you concealed” (2:72). The case was resolved through a sign from Allah. The cow’s description is explained in what the cow the Children of Israel were told to slaughter was like.
بعد أن وُجدت البقرة وذُبحت كما أُمروا، أمر الله الناس أن يضربوا الميت بجزء منها، فأحياه الله، وذكر ابن كثير أنه سمّى قاتله، كما قال تعالى: “والله مخرج ما كنتم تكتمون” (البقرة: 72). فجاء حل القضية بآية من الله.
4. A Sign Meant to Be Understood, Not Merely Witnessed | آيةٌ للفهم لا للمشاهدة فقط
The Ayah closes by stating the purpose directly: Allah brings the dead to life and shows His signs “so that you may understand.” This phrasing frames the miracle as an instructive sign about Allah’s power over life and death, not simply a dramatic event to resolve one case and be forgotten.
تختتم الآية ببيان الغاية مباشرة: “كذلك يحيي الله الموتى ويريكم آياته لعلكم تعقلون”. وتؤطر هذه الصياغة المعجزة آية تعليمية عن قدرة الله على الحياة والموت، لا مجرد حدث مثير يحل قضية واحدة ثم يُنسى.
Frequently Asked Questions | الأسئلة الشائعة
Why did Allah order the Children of Israel to slaughter a cow?
So that a murdered man could be struck with a piece of it and revived, Allah revealing what they had concealed (Surah Al-Baqarah 2:72-73); Ibn Kathir explains that he named his killer.
Who was the victim, and why was he killed?
The Quran does not name him. Reports transmitted by Ibn Kathir describe a wealthy, childless man killed by his nephew for the inheritance, who then accused someone else; Ibn Kathir says these reports appear to come from the books of the Children of Israel.
Why did the people need Musa’s guidance at all?
The Quran says they disputed over who the killer was (2:72); the reports transmitted by Ibn Kathir add that the false accusation brought the community to the brink of fighting.
What happened when they struck the body with a piece of the cow?
Allah revived him; Ibn Kathir explains that he named his killer, and the reports add that he then died again.
What is the stated purpose of this miracle in the Ayah?
That Allah brings the dead to life and shows His signs so that people may understand.