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Quran Talk BlogOur World Cannot Stand the Physical Presence of God (7:142 – 7:145)Moses asks to see God in 7:142 to 7:145, and the mountain crumbles when God manifests Himself to it, showing that our world cannot stand His physical presence. The article draws a lesson that God can crumble our problems like mountains. It also ties the passage to the greatness of the Quran, God being beyond all visions, and the tablets given to Moses.March 28, 2016

Quran Talk BlogThe Golden Calf (7:148 – 7:155)Study notes on Quran 7:148 to 7:155, the golden calf made while Moses was away, his anger at Aaron, and God's forgiveness for those who repent. The notes ask why the Samarian built the calf despite God's signs, explain that believers are inspired by God and disbelievers by the devil according to past deeds, and compare Moses' strength with Aaron's eloquence.March 28, 2016

Quran Talk BlogThe Inevitable Retribution (7:136 – 7:137)God's retribution against Pharaoh and his people in 7:136 and 7:137, drowned for rejecting His signs while the oppressed Children of Israel inherit the land. The article asks when the Children of Israel were steadfast, reads harvest as everything earned, linking it to zakat in 6:141, and considers what the annihilation of Pharaoh's works meant for Egypt, warning of the ego that wakes when conditions change.March 28, 2016

Quran Talk BlogThe Plagues (7:130 – 7:132)Pharaoh's people are afflicted with drought and shortage of crops so that they may take heed, as told in verses 7:130 through 7:132. When good comes they claim to deserve it, and when hardship strikes they blame Moses and those with him, though their omens are decided only by God. They vow never to believe, whatever sign is shown them.March 28, 2016

Quran Talk BlogThe Truth Recognized by the Experts (7:118 – 7:129)Pharaoh's magicians recognize the truth of Moses' signs, fall prostrate, and believe in the Lord of Moses and Aaron despite Pharaoh's threats of crucifixion, praying to die as submitters. Verses 7:118 through 7:129 then show Pharaoh vowing to kill the sons of Moses' people, and Moses urging them to seek God's help and persevere, since the earth belongs to God.March 28, 2016

Quran Talk BlogThe Warnings Go Unheaded (7:133 – 7:135)The plagues God sent upon Pharaoh's people in Quran 7:133 to 7:135, the flood, locusts, lice, frogs, and blood, and why God may have chosen these particular signs. The people plead with Moses for relief and promise to believe and free the Children of Israel, then break their pledge once each plague lifts. The article also considers habituation and how people grow used to relief.March 28, 2016

Quran Talk BlogLot: Homosexuality Condemned (7:80 – 7:84)Lot's condemnation of his people's homosexuality is traced through 7:80 to 7:84, 27:54 to 27:58, 29:28 to 29:32 and 11:81, ending in the rescue of his family but not his wife. The article asks how tolerating bad behavior differs from freedom of expression, citing 8:25 on collective retribution. Appendix 36 lists the traits of a nation that upholds God's laws.March 14, 2016

Quran Talk BlogSaaleh (7:73 – 7:74)Saaleh's mission to Thamoud in verses 7:73 and 7:74, and whether GOD's camel was a miracle, a test, or both. Related verses show messengership itself as an essential test, the camel's water rights and slaying, and the people calling their messengers bad omens. Links on homes carved from rock, including Petra, accompany the verses about mansions carved from mountains.March 14, 2016

Quran Talk BlogShu`aib: Cheating, Dishonesty Condemned (7:85 – 7:93)Shu`aib's mission to Midyan in 7:85 to 7:93 calls his people to worship God alone, give full weight and measure, and stop cheating others out of their rights, until the quake destroys those who reject him. The study asks what not corrupting the earth after it has been set straight means and compares 11:84 to 11:95 and 83:1 to 83:3. Videos on eminent domain, civil forfeiture, money, and inflation follow.March 14, 2016

Quran Talk BlogThe Message: Proof of Messengership (7:75 – 7:79)Saaleh's story in Quran 7:75 to 7:79 shows that the message, not the miracle, is what makes believers. Study notes ask whether the advice in 7:79 differs from the message, why Thamoud slaughtered God's camel and demanded retribution, and how a quake and lightning both struck them, with parallel verses from Suras 11, 26, 27 and 51 showing that God protects the believers.March 14, 2016

Quran Talk BlogHud (7:65 – 7:69) &; Following the Parents Blindly: A Human Tragedy (7:70 – 7:72)Hood's mission to `Aad in 7:65 to 7:72 and their refusal to abandon what their parents worshiped, read alongside 2:170 on blindly following parents. Using Appendix 2, the article lists the Quran's criteria for telling God's messenger from a false messenger. It also takes up whether a sincere misreading of the Quran makes one an innovator, citing 3:7, 16:119, David's repentance, and 9:11.March 7, 2016

Quran Talk BlogNoah (7:59 – 7:64)Noah's mission to his people in 7:59 to 7:64 frames the question of how someone without education can tell God's messenger from a false one. Recognizing the truth depends on sincerity, not intellect, and is likened to the difference between seeing and blindness. Verses from Suras 26, 56, 2, and 6 show that only the sincere can grasp the Quran.March 7, 2016

Quran Talk BlogQuran: Fully Detailed (7:52 – 7:58)A study of Quran 7:52 to 7:58 presents the Quran as a fully detailed scripture holding all we need for salvation, with cross references to related verses. It discusses the allegorical six days of creation and their 19 based count, how to worship God publicly under oppression, and the good and bad land as an image of our works and of appreciative people.March 7, 2016

Quran Talk BlogBy God’s Grace (7:43 – 7:47)A reflection on verses 7:43 to 7:47, where God removes all jealousy from the hearts of Paradise's dwellers, who credit their guidance to God alone. It asks why jealousy, of all traits, is singled out, drawing on 2:105 and 15:47, and also covers the exchange between Paradise and Hell and the people of the Purgatory.February 29, 2016

Quran Talk BlogMessengers From Among You (7:35 – 7:37)Messengers sent from among the people to recite God's revelations, and the disbelievers who reject them and later bear witness against themselves, drawn from 7:35 to 7:37 with related verses. Angels as messengers at death, idols disowning their worshipers, and hidden arrogance follow, with Abraham's opponents and Pharaoh's magicians as examples of how God guides those who choose guidance.February 29, 2016

Quran Talk BlogMutual Blaming (7:38 – 7:39)Quranic verses on the mutual blaming between followers and leaders in Hell, centered on 7:38 and 7:39, where each generation curses its predecessors and asks God to double their retribution. Related passages from 38:61, 14:21, and 47:34 describe the followers pleading with their leaders on the Day of Resurrection and God's refusal to forgive those who die as disbelievers.February 29, 2016

Quran Talk BlogRejecting God’s Revelations: An Unforgivable Offence (7:40 – 7:42)Verses 7:40 to 7:42 warn that those who arrogantly reject God's revelations will never enter Paradise, while believers who lead a righteous life abide in it forever. Supporting verses address idol worship nullifying all works, idolatry as the sin God does not forgive, and God never burdening a soul beyond its means. The piece asks what it means that the gates of the sky will never open for them.February 29, 2016

Quran Talk BlogThe Majority Doomed (7:48 – 7:51)The Purgatory and its dwellers take the lead, through verses 7:48 to 7:51 and 9:102, which describe people who mixed good deeds with bad and are finally admitted into Paradise. Excerpts from Dr. Khalifa's appendices explain that descriptions of Heaven and Hell are allegorical, how the High Heaven differs from the Lower Heaven, and how souls are stratified on the Day of Resurrection.February 29, 2016

Quran Talk BlogBeware: They Believe that They Are Guided (7:30)Self examination for believers, since even those who stray believe they are guided, as verse 7:30 warns. Drawing on the Quran, the article explains that following anything other than the word of God means following the devil, describes the self deception of the hypocrites, and answers how one can know he is on the right path: God guides the sincere, and only the sincere can grasp the Quran.February 23, 2016

Quran Talk BlogDress Nicely For the Masjid (7:31)Verse 7:31 of the Quran instructs the children of Adam to be clean and dress nicely when going to the masjid, and to eat and drink moderately because God does not love the gluttons. A short reflection draws from it that God wants believers to be in good shape and well dressed.February 23, 2016

Quran Talk BlogExamine All Inherited Information (7:28 – 7:29)Quran 7:28 and 7:29 frame a study of blindly following parents' traditions, with verses on God never advocating sin and the duty to verify information using the hearing, eyesight, and brain God gave. It also asks whether one may pray in an idol worshiper's home, how to tell steadfastness from stubbornness, and covers the messenger's kindness, fair weather believers, ridiculed messengers, and traits of the righteous.February 23, 2016

Quran Talk BlogInnovated Prohibitions Condemned (7:32 – 7:34)Verses 7:32 through 7:34 of the Quran condemn prohibitions people invent, affirming that the good provisions God created are for believers to enjoy. The article lists the five things God does prohibit in 7:33, including setting up idols beside God and saying about God what one does not know. It also asks whether a righteous community's predetermined life span still ends, or whether it first turns unrighteous.February 23, 2016

Quran Talk BlogChapter 7: Purgatory (7:1 – 7:11)Verses 7:1 to 7:11 of the Quran are studied through questions they raise: whether every community receives a messenger, and whether we are born with instinctive knowledge of God. The study holds that those who deliver the message answer for its accuracy, not its outcome, and that leaders and teachers bear greater responsibility. It also asks whether the angels prostrated before Adam's body or soul.February 15, 2016

Quran Talk BlogThe Test Begins (7:12 – 7:27)Satan's refusal to prostrate, his arrogance and racism, and his vow to mislead humanity open a study of verses 7:12 to 7:27, with Adam and his wife duped into eviction from Paradise. Ingratitude is named as the reason people fall for Satan, his belief in power independent of God is called idol worship, and his methods are compared to a con artist's confidence, alongside 14:22 and Isaiah 14.February 15, 2016

Quran Talk BlogMathematics: The Ultimate Proof (6:157)The Quran's mathematical code is presented as the proven scripture of 6:157, with the verse number plus the gematrical value of Rashad Khalifa giving 1387, or 19×73. Verses 29:48 to 52 follow, explaining why God separated the Quran from its mathematical miracle by 1400 years and revealed it in the computer age through His Messenger of the Covenant, so that Muhammad would not be idolized.February 8, 2016

Quran Talk BlogReligious Sects Condemned (6:159 – 6:165)Verses 6:159 to 6:165 condemn dividing into religious sects and affirm devotion of the contact prayers, life, and death to God alone. Related verses on believers holding fast to God's rope, multiplied rewards for righteous works, eternal Heaven and Hell, and individual accountability accompany the passage. It closes by asking how submitters can fulfill 6:162.February 8, 2016

Quran Talk BlogRequirements of the Test (6:158)Belief in God alone does not guarantee redemption, as 6:158 and Pharaoh's last minute declaration in 10:90 to 10:91 show. Drawing on Appendix 15, the article presents the religious duties, beginning with the contact prayers Abraham asked for, as God's gift that nourishes and develops the soul so it can survive God's presence on the Day of Judgment and attain certainty.February 8, 2016

Quran Talk BlogThe Major Commandments (6:151 – 6:156)The commandments God lays out in 6:151 to 6:156 are listed one by one and set beside the parallel commandments of 17:22 to 17:38: worship God alone, honor parents, protect life and orphans' money, trade equitably, verify information, and fulfill the covenant with God. Related verses address intoxicants and gambling, orphans' property, God's covenant with the Children of Israel, and the scripture given to Moses.February 8, 2016

Quran Talk BlogThe Most Powerful Argument (6:149 – 6:150)God's most powerful argument, according to verses 6:149 and 6:150, is the Quran's mathematical code, a tangible proof that the Quran is His message. The article draws on Appendix One to explain the mathematical composition of suras, verses, words and letters that exposes any distortion. It adds verses on God's overwhelming evidence, His teachings sent through messengers, and the error of following opinions without His guidance.February 8, 2016

Quran Talk BlogAbusing God’s Provisions & Religious Innovations Condemned (6:136 – 6:140)Verses 6:136 to 6:140 serve as the basis for a study of how idol worship nullifies works set aside for God, illustrated with verses on nullified deeds and a simple example of a divided gift. Discussion follows on whether human innovations can prohibit what God made lawful, sincere intent in righteous works, child sacrifice, witchcraft, and whether aborting a fetus diagnosed with genetic disease violates 6:151.February 3, 2016

Quran Talk BlogInnovated Dietary Prohibitions Condemned (6:143 – 6:144)Verses 6:143 and 6:144 condemn inventing dietary prohibitions and attributing them to God, naming eight kinds of livestock: sheep, goats, camels and cattle, male and female. Questions follow on whether animals such as bison, horses and donkeys count as livestock, whether pigs do, and whether pig's milk is prohibited, drawing on 5:1, 22:30, 51:49 and 53:45 and one person's stated opinion.February 3, 2016

Quran Talk BlogThe Only Dietary Prohibitions (6:145 – 6:148)The Quran prohibits only four foods: carrion, running blood, the meat of pigs, and animals dedicated to other than God, as shown in 6:145, 16:115, 2:173 and 5:3. The article contrasts these with the Jewish prohibitions of 6:146, holds that added dietary prohibitions amount to idol worship, and compares the idol worshipers' claim in 6:148 to Satan's words in 7:16 and 15:39.February 3, 2016

Quran Talk BlogZakat Must Be Given “On The Day of Harvest” (6:141 – 6:142)Zakat charity, based on verses 6:141 and 6:142, must be given on the day income is received rather than once a year. The footnote notes that God restricts His mercy to those who give Zakat (7:156) and that the proportion handed down through Abraham is 2.5% of net income. The verses also command eating from God's provisions, avoiding waste, and not following Satan.February 3, 2016

Quran Talk BlogChance to Remember God: Mention God’s Name Before You Eat (6:119 – 6:123)Mentioning God's name before eating anchors this study of 6:119 to 6:123, which treats following dietary prohibitions not instituted by God as idol worship. It holds that failing to say God's name, or saying another name, is the abomination rather than the food itself. Related verses on the two deaths and two lives, the souls bearing witness before birth, and deprivation for unappreciative communities follow.January 26, 2016

Quran Talk BlogQuestioning God’s Wisdom (6:124)Jealousy and ego lead people to question God's wisdom in choosing His messengers, as 6:124 describes and as Muslim scholars did with the messenger of the covenant. The article explains why God lets criminals scheme, ties it to freedom of choice, and notes that most messengers were rejected. It distinguishes understanding from questioning God's commands while urging readers to verify information for themselves.January 26, 2016

Quran Talk BlogQuranic Knowledge Far Ahead of Human Progress* (6:125 – 6:135)Verses 6:125 to 6:135 describe the disbeliever's chest as straitened like one climbing toward the sky, which the footnote reads as foreknowledge that oxygen diminishes with altitude, supported by linked videos on high altitude breathing. The passage also covers the jinns and their human companions on the Day of Judgment, and ranks commensurate with deeds, illustrated with 3:155.January 26, 2016

Quran Talk BlogA Consequence of Their Own Decision (6:111)Verse 6:111 teaches that no angel, speaking dead, or miracle can make people believe unless God wills it. Belief follows a person's own choice: whoever chooses God sees the miracles, while those who refuse God stay blind to the miracles right in front of them. A video of Bill Bryson on the four most remarkable things he knows accompanies the reflection.January 18, 2016

Quran Talk BlogHadith & Sunna: Fabrications by the Prophet’s Enemies (6:112)Hadith and Sunna are presented as fabrications by the Prophet's enemies, human and jinn devils, permitted by God to test believers (6:112). Drawing on Appendix 19, the article argues they defy the Quran's completeness, blaspheme the Prophet, and create false doctrines. It rejects accepting Hadith that agree with the Quran and cites the mathematical miracle as evidence that the Quran alone is the source of religious teaching.January 18, 2016

Quran Talk BlogImportant Criterion (6:113)The Quran's criteria for telling whether one truly believes in the Hereafter, drawn from 6:113, 17:45 to 46, and 39:45. Those who disbelieve in the Hereafter accept fabrications, cannot understand the Quran, run away when the Lord is preached using the Quran alone, and shrink with aversion when God alone is mentioned. Upholding any source beside the Quran reflects disbelief in it.January 18, 2016

Quran Talk BlogQuran: Fully Detailed (6:114 – 6:118)A study of verses 6:114 to 6:118 on the Quran as the fully detailed and only source of law, weighing civil law, verification of information, and disputed readings of verses. It warns against following the majority, who mostly do not believe, and asks how to pronounce God's name before eating, linking that remembrance to the contact prayer and Appendices 20 and 27.January 18, 2016

Quran Talk BlogFalse Messengers Condemned (6:93 – 6:94) & Greatness of God (6:95 – 101)Verses 6:93 to 6:101 of the Quran condemn those who falsely claim divine inspiration and describe their death, then turn to God's greatness shown in seeds, dawn, stars, rain and fruit. Commentary explains humanity's creation from one person through Adam and Eve, how God decided each person's path, and the idolizing of jinns, citing voodoo as a modern example alongside 37:158 and 34:40 to 41.January 11, 2016

Quran Talk BlogGod 6:102 – 6:110Verses 6:102 through 6:110 of the Quran proclaim God as the sole Creator to be worshiped alone, forbid cursing the idols of others, and answer those who demand miracles. A commentary explains what 6:103 means by no vision encompassing God: He created time and space, so humans cannot perceive Him, while He sees through all perceptions and knows everything in the universe.January 11, 2016

Quran Talk BlogGod’s Messages to the World (6:91 – 6:92)A study of verses 6:91 and 6:92 on valuing God as He should be valued, through obeying His commandments, making Him our top priority, and choosing the Hereafter over worldly life. It affirms that the Torah and the Gospel came from God though some were lost or tampered with, presents the Quran as confirming and superseding them, and names America as today's most important community.January 11, 2016

Quran Talk BlogAbraham Debates with Idol Worshipers (6:74 – 6:81)Abraham's debate with his father Azar and his people over idol worship, as told in 6:74 to 6:81. The article asks why Abraham, already blessed with certainty, calls a planet, the moon, and the sun his Lord, and answers that he was giving his people an example. It then contrasts knowledge with wisdom, which only comes from God, citing 2:269 and related verses.January 10, 2016

Quran Talk BlogPerfect Security for Believers (6:82 – 6:90)Verses 6:82 through 6:90 promise perfect security to believers who do not pollute their belief with idol worship, and recall the argument God gave Abraham against his people. The passage names the prophets God guided, from Noah to Jesus, warns that idolatry would nullify their works, and calls readers to follow in their footsteps. Links to videos on the Book of Daniel and on Elisha follow.January 10, 2016

Quran Talk BlogRespect for the Word of God (6:68 – 6:73)Verses 6:68 to 6:73 show that a submitting society allows freedom of speech, and that the response to those who mock God's revelations is to leave their company rather than force them. Believers remind, lead by example, and do not coerce belief. Further topics include God's command Be, describing one's religion as Submission, the religion of Abraham, and idols who invent religious laws never authorized by God.January 10, 2016

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