Why the Attack in Verse 5 Begins with the Covenant in Verse 4

Series: Malaysia Is About to Be Attacked, Because This Is the Land of Bani Israel

Required Reading Before Continuing This Article

Before continuing, you are required to read the foundational article below first:

Essential Foundations That Must Be Understood Before Reading This Article

This article must not be read in isolation from that foundation. Do not continue reading this article with a mind already filled with assumptions. Do not read it through an old framework that has become used to locking Surah al-Isra’ into interpretations that may not necessarily be placed correctly.

Is Verse 5 a Direct Continuation of the Divine Decree Concerning the Fasad and Uluww of the Children of Israel in Verse 4?

Yes.

Verse 5 is not a new account that appears separately from the previous verse. It is a direct continuation of verse 4. It is the execution of a promise after Allah mentions a major decree concerning the Children of Israel, namely that they would commit fasad on earth twice and that they would rise with great uluww.

Verse 4 states:

وَقَضَيْنَا إِلَىٰ بَنِي إِسْرَائِيلَ فِي الْكِتَابِ لَتُفْسِدُنَّ فِي الْأَرْضِ مَرَّتَيْنِ وَلَتَعْلُنَّ عُلُوًّا كَبِيرًا

Meaning:

We decreed to the Children of Israel in the Book: You will surely commit corruption on earth twice and you will surely rise with a great elevation.

Then verse 5 continues:

فَإِذَا جَاءَ وَعْدُ أُولَاهُمَا بَعَثْنَا عَلَيْكُمْ عِبَادًا لَّنَا أُولِي بَأْسٍ شَدِيدٍ فَجَاسُوا خِلَالَ الدِّيَارِ ۚ وَكَانَ وَعْدًا مَّفْعُولًا

Meaning:

So when the promise of the first of the two came, We raised against you servants belonging to Us, possessing severe might. They then penetrated through the midst of the dwellings. The promise was one that was carried out.

Here, verse 5 does not begin with the name of a location, a city, a king or a kingdom. It also does not begin with Jerusalem, Palestine, Babylon or Rome. Verse 5 begins with:

فَإِذَا

That is the key. Verse 5 opens with a relationship of cause, timing and the execution of a promise.

What Is the Function of فَـ at the Beginning of Verse 5?

Verse 5 begins with:

فَإِذَا

Its first letter is:

فَـ

The letter فَـ here functions to connect verse 5 with the verse before it.

Verse 4 has already mentioned two major elements within that decree:

The Children of Israel would commit fasad on earth twice.

The Children of Israel would commit great uluww.

Then verse 5 says:

So when the promise of the first of the two came...

This means that فَـ binds verse 5 to verse 4.

Without فَـ, verse 5 could appear like the beginning of a new story, a new context or a new block. However, the Qur’an places فَـ before إِذَا to show that what is mentioned in verse 5 comes as a continuation of what has already been mentioned in verse 4.

So this is the structure:

Allah decreed upon the Children of Israel in the Book.

They would commit corruption on earth twice.

They would rise with a great elevation.

So when the first promise of the two came, Allah raised against them His servants who possessed severe might.

Does فَـ Indicate a Direct Consequence?

Yes, certainly. The فَـ at the beginning of verse 5 indicates a very close relationship of consequence.

Verse 4 mentions the major cause:

لَتُفْسِدُنَّ فِي الْأَرْضِ مَرَّتَيْنِ
You will surely commit corruption on earth twice.

Then it states:

وَلَتَعْلُنَّ عُلُوًّا كَبِيرًا
And you will surely rise with a great elevation.

After that comes:

فَإِذَا جَاءَ وَعْدُ أُولَاهُمَا
So when the promise of the first of the two came...

This is a sequence through which the Qur’an builds a framework for us to understand the order:

Fasad occurs.

Uluww occurs.

The promise of punishment arrives.

A mighty force is raised.

Their dwelling places are entered.

The promise of Allah truly takes place.

Thus, فَـ shows that the attack in verse 5 is not merely an event of conflict or an ordinary political crisis. It is not simply a story about one power attacking one people. It is a consequence of the fasad and uluww that were already mentioned in verse 4.

This is where many of us make a mistake. We immediately jump to the questions:

Who was the attacker?

Or:

Where was the location?

Yet the Qur’an begins with the cause:

What was the wrongdoing of the Children of Israel?

It is clear that the Qur’an does not begin with “Babylon” or “Jerusalem” or “Temple” or “Mosque”. The Qur’an begins with fasad and uluww.

Therefore, our mind as readers must be shifted toward the correct reading. Not this:

A kingdom attacked the Children of Israel.

The more accurate reading should be:

The Children of Israel committed fasad and uluww. Then, when the first promise of punishment arrived, Allah raised a severe and mighty force against them.

This makes a major difference in understanding. One reading turns the verse into an ordinary historical account. The other reading turns the verse into a law of history from Allah.

What Is the Relationship Between لَتُفْسِدُنَّ فِي الْأَرْضِ مَرَّتَيْنِ and وَعْدُ أُولَاهُمَا?

The phrase in verse 4 is:

لَتُفْسِدُنَّ فِي الْأَرْضِ مَرَّتَيْنِ

It means:

You will surely commit corruption on earth twice.

Then the phrase in verse 5 is:

وَعْدُ أُولَاهُمَا

It means:

the promise of the first of the two.

Thus, the relationship between these two phrases is very close.

Verse 4 mentions:

مَرَّتَيْنِ
twice.

Verse 5 mentions:

أُولَاهُمَا
the first of the two.

So let us ask:

The first of which two?

The answer returns to verse 4:

Two instances of fasad.

Therefore, وَعْدُ أُولَاهُمَا does not stand on its own. It is tied to مَرَّتَيْنِ. Verse 5 is speaking about the promise of punishment for the first fasad out of the two instances of fasad mentioned in verse 4.

The structure of meaning is as follows:

You will commit corruption on earth twice. So when the promise for the first corruption out of the two corruptions comes...

Here, وَعْد carries the meaning of a promise that will surely be fulfilled. In the context of this verse, it is not a promise of blessing. Rather, it is a promise of punishment. This is clear because after that phrase, Allah says:

بَعَثْنَا عَلَيْكُمْ عِبَادًا لَّنَا أُولِي بَأْسٍ شَدِيدٍ

Meaning:

We raised against you servants belonging to Us, possessing severe might.

So the framework is this:

The first fasad occurs.

The first promise of punishment arrives.

Allah raises a mighty force against them.

With this, وَعْدُ أُولَاهُمَا must be read through لَتُفْسِدُنَّ فِي الْأَرْضِ مَرَّتَيْنِ. Otherwise, verse 5 becomes cut off from its cause.

Conclusion

From the structure of these verses, it is clear that Surah al-Isra’ verse 5 cannot be read as a historical account separated from verse 4. It begins with فَإِذَا, a wording that binds this verse to the decree mentioned before it.

The Qur’an does not teach us to immediately jump to the question of location. The Qur’an first teaches us to look at the cause. What was their wrongdoing? What form did their corruption take? What form did their uluww take? Why did the promise of punishment arrive?

If verse 5 is read merely as a story of one kingdom attacking the Children of Israel, then this verse becomes an ordinary historical account. However, when verse 5 is read together with verse 4, it becomes a law of history from Allah. Fasad occurs. Uluww occurs. The promise of punishment arrives. Allah raises a mighty force against them.

Through this method, we are not rejecting one location merely to promote another. We are rejecting a rushed method of reading the verse.

Therefore, before anyone concludes that this verse refers to Jerusalem, Palestine, Babylon, Rome, Nusantara, the Malay Peninsula, Malacca or any other location, the first obligation is to return to the structure of the verse.

We cannot accept Jerusalem merely because it is widely held. We also cannot accept Nusantara merely because it appears to fit a new research framework. Every location must be tested against the wording of the Qur’an.

This verse begins with cause, timing and the execution of a promise.

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