The Quran

248

Preface

وَقالَ لَهُم نَبِيُّهُم إِنَّ آيَةَ مُلكِهِ أَن يَأتِيَكُمُ التّابوتُ فيهِ سَكينَةٌ مِن رَبِّكُم وَبَقِيَّةٌ مِمّا تَرَكَ آلُ موسىٰ وَآلُ هارونَ تَحمِلُهُ المَلائِكَةُ ۚ إِنَّ في ذٰلِكَ لَآيَةً لَكُم إِن كُنتُم مُؤمِنينَ

Ahmed Ali

Their prophet said to them: “The sign of his kingship will be that you will come to have a heart¹ full of peace and tranquility from your Lord and the legacy left by Moses’ and Aaron’s family supported by angels. This shall be a token for you if you really believe.”

The word tabut has generally been translated as ‘ark’, being taken,’ perhaps under Rabbinical influences, for the Ark of the Covenant mentioned in the Old Testament of the Bible. Raghib, however, says it also means ‘heart’ and ‘breast’. Lisan al-‘Arab supports this view, and Zamakhshari and Baidawi also offer this meaning. The context and the next two verses (249 and 250) bear out the validity of adopting this translation.