81 Preface فَخَسَفنا بِهِ وَبِدارِهِ الأَرضَ فَما كانَ لَهُ مِن فِئَةٍ يَنصُرونَهُ مِن دونِ اللَّهِ وَما كانَ مِنَ المُنتَصِرينَYusuf AliThen We caused the earth1 to swallow up him and his house; and he had not (the least little) party to help him against God, nor could he defend himself.Seen. 3404 above. Cf. also 16:45 and n. 2071. Besides the obvious moral in the literal interpretation of the story, that material wealth is fleeting and may be a temptation and a cause of fall, there are some metaphorical implications that occur to me. (1) Qarun was with Israel in the wilderness, even his material wealth was of no use to him there; he had the mere empty keys; material wealth has no value in itself, but only a relative and local value. (2) In body he was with Israel in the wilderness, but his heart was in Egypt with its fertility and its slavery. Such is the case of many hypocrites, who like to be seen in righteous company but whose thoughts, longings, and doings are inconsistent with such company. (3) There is no good in this life but comes from God. To think otherwise is to set up a false god besides God. Our own merits are so small that they should never be the object of our idolatry. (4) If Qarun on account of his wealth was setting himself up in rivalry with Moses and Aaron, he was blind to the fact that spiritual knowledge is far above any little cleverness in worldly affairs. Mob-leaders have no position before spiritual guides.