The previous verses contained an account of the warnings from Allah to the people of Pharaoh. The present verses speak of their ignominious end, and of the success of the Israelites. The verse 137 said, "And We made the people, who were taken to be weak, the inheritors of the land, of easts and wests which We had blessed." The verse did not say, the people who were weak, rather it said, those who were taken as weak. It implies that those having Allah as their support can never be weak in the real sense of the word, though they may seem so from their apparent condition. People finally come to realise that they are not weak. It is because dignity and honour all belong to Allah. The verse has used the term inheritance for their domination in the land to indicate that like a son who deserves to be a real inheritor of his father's land and possessions, the Israelites were the real inheritors of the land and wealth of Pharaoh's people.
The words 'east' and 'west' have been used in plural perhaps to denote the different points of sunset and sunrise in winter and summer time. The word 'land', according to all experts in exegesis, refers to the land of Egypt and Syria which was brought under the domination of the Israelites after the people of Pharaoh and the Amaleks were destroyed. The phrase 'Which We had blessed' refers to the lands of Syria and Egypt. The Holy Qur'an has referred to Syria as the land of Barakah (blessing). Similarly the land of Egypt has been referred to as the land of blessing in a number of Traditions. The Caliph 'Umar ibn al-Khattab ؓ has referred to river Nile as the prince of all rivers. The Companion ` Abdullah Ibn ` Umar ؓ said that Egypt has nine parts of blessing out of ten. The tenth part has been divided throughout the earth. (Al-Bahr-a-Muhit)
In short, the verse has to say that the people who were considered weak and abject were made the rulers of the land possessed by those who showed arrogance. It shows how the promise made by Allah and His Messenger came out true as it always does. The verse said, 'The sublime word of your Lord was fulfilled.' The promise in this verse either refers to the promise made by the prophet Musa (علیہ السلام) with his people mentioned in verse 129 which said, 'It is very likely that our Lord will destroy your enemy and make you successor in the earth.' Or it refers to the promise made by Allah to the Israelites in a verse of Surah Al-Qasas (the Stories) It said, "
وَنُرِيدُ أَن نَّمُنَّ عَلَى الَّذِينَ اسْتُضْعِفُوا فِي الْأَرْضِ وَنَجْعَلَهُمْ أَئِمَّةً وَنَجْعَلَهُمُ الْوَارِثِينَ ﴿5﴾ وَنُمَكِّنَ لَهُمْ فِي الْأَرْضِ وَنُرِيَ فِرْعَوْنَ وَهَامَانَ وَجُنُودَهُمَا مِنْهُم مَّا كَانُوا يَحْذَرُونَ ﴿6﴾
"And it was Our will that We favour those considered weak in the earth and make them leaders, and make them the inheritors, and give them power in the land, and show Pharaoh, Haman and their armies, the very thing they dreaded." (28:5-6)
In fact, both the above promises are one and the same. The promise made by the prophet Musa (علیہ السلام) .1t obviously was derived by the promise of Allah. This favour of Allah upon the people of Israel was the reward of their patience, as the …
