(2-67-71) (2-55-56)(7-155)
Moses had brought
guidance from God and it was not easy for the Israelites to act on it. They were used to working under threats and
fear; as a free nation in the desert they had to act spontaneously, but they
had no desire to act according to the law of God. They told Moses, “You are saying these laws
are given by God, but we are not going to act upon them unless we see God with
our eyes. You have been going to Mount Sinai
frequently; we also want to go there and see God.”
Moses chose
seventy individuals from his nation and took them to the mountain to fulfill
their desire. When they reached the
mountain an earthquake was waiting for them.
The earth rumbled, and the cloud-covered mountain thundered with
lightning. The Israelites were so
frightened that they fainted. They could
not bear the thundering clouds with lightning and the rumbling of the earth. Before that they had been boasting and wanted
to see God face to face. Moses prayed to
God, “Please forgive us for what some foolish folk did among us. If you wanted to finish us you would have
done so much earlier. Have mercy on us
because You are the best of all who show forgiveness.” After the revival, the
Israelites made no demand to see God.
The Egyptians
believed that the gods descended to the earth in the shape of animals. Their god Taurus was worshipped as a heavenly
bull and the bull cult was very popular in Egypt; even their goddess Astarte or
Ashtoreth was shown as a young woman with cow’s horns on top of her head. In ancient Egypt, the wearing of cattle horns
implied great power as ruler and prince; the horns themselves represented a god
and goddess.
The bull
worship had been prevalent in Egypt for centuries; the Israelites were affected
by these practices. The Quran says that
the love of calf had nestled in their unconscious minds, so in order to get rid
of this notion God ordered them to sacrifice a bull. When Moses delivered this message to the
Israelites they were flabbergasted.
“What! God wants us to kill a bull? Are you sure or is this a joke?” Moses replied, “What do you expect? Can I even think of misinterpreting the
message of God almighty?” The Israelites had no heart to sacrifice a bull, but
they could not refuse Moses, so they started making excuses and applying
delaying tactics. They said, “Please ask
God what kind of bull is to be sacrificed.” The answer was the bull should be
of mature age, not too young or old.
Moreover, the Israelites should not dilly-dally in carrying out an
order.
They said,
“No, we are not delaying the matter; we are not sure about the color of the
bull.” The Israelites were told that the
color of the bull should be deep yellow.
However, they said, “We are not absolutely clear; we require further
elaboration about it, so that we may comply with the order.” They were told the bull should be sound and
unmarked and it should never have been used for tilling the land or drawing
water.” There was no chance for any more quibbling; the matter was crystal
clear. Although they were reluctant to kill a bull, they did it.
There was no need for a hair-splitting
discussion for a simple order. The
Israelites were ordered to sacrifice a bull, so they should have gotten a bull
and sacrificed it. However, they did not
comply with a simple order and kept asking unnecessary questions to delay
it. In the end a special type of bull,
which was used in Egypt for worship, was pointed out for them, which was even
harder for them to slaughter.
