(Commands to Bani Israel in the Quran That Do Not Appear in The 10 Commandments)

We now come to the other side of the discussion. This section is unquestionably more severe than the one before it. If the first section taught us not to accept everything found in The 10 Commandments automatically, then this second section brings us to a heavier question.

Why are there major matters that Allah Himself restated in the Quranic List of Commands to Bani Israel, yet which do not appear in The 10 Commandments as they have been handed down today?

This is certainly not a minor issue. It goes to the very focus of Allah’s covenant with Bani Israel. When an element is explicitly stated by Allah in the restated commands of Surah al-Isra’, verses 22 to 39, yet that element is absent from the well-known form of The 10 Commandments today, we cannot pretend not to see it.

I have to ask, and you have to ask as well. Has that element been lost? Was it reduced at some point? Was it no longer preserved faithfully? Or has the form of The 10 Commandments available today ceased to carry the full structure of the original covenant as Allah restated it in the Quran?

This is where the real danger lies. We are not playing with lists. We are trying to identify why Bani Israel will be punished and why there will be parties who rise to attack them as a punishment from Allah. That is why we must know which commands Allah repeated. If we do not know what Allah commanded, how are we supposed to know what they violated? If we cannot see what has disappeared from the form handed down today, how are we supposed to understand where the cause of that punishment came from? So this section is not ordinary. This is where we begin tracing the causes that lead to that attack.

The Rights of Relatives, the Poor, and Ibn al-Sabil

In the Quranic List of Commands to Bani Israel, Allah does not mention only the major headings of tawhid, killing, and zina. Allah also mentions the rights of relatives, the poor, and ibn al-sabil. This shows that the covenant does not regulate only man’s relationship with God, but also how a people treat the weak, those in need, and those cut off on the road.

This does not appear at all in the well-known The 10 Commandments as they stand today. That is what we need to see. In the form handed down now, this social dimension does not stand clearly within the commands, even though Allah Himself restated it in the Quran.

This is not a small matter, because it is also an obligation. When the rights of relatives are neglected, families begin to fracture. When the rights of the poor are neglected, oppression starts to become normal. When the rights of ibn al-sabil are ignored, compassion begins to die in the soul of that people.

Once all of that is corrupted, a people can still feel that they are upholding religion, while in reality they are building the very justification that draws Allah’s punishment upon themselves.

The Prohibition of Wastefulness

The Quran does not merely command giving. It also prohibits wastefulness. This shows that wealth, within Allah’s covenant, is not something to be spent however one pleases. Wealth has its discipline, its boundaries, and its accountability.

In The 10 Commandments, we do indeed find the prohibition against stealing. But the prohibition against wastefulness does not appear at all in The 10 Commandments as handed down today. Yet wastefulness is also a form of corruption of wealth. It may not be direct theft of another person’s right, but it still corrupts Allah’s trust regarding blessing, wealth, and way of life.

This is where the Quran reopens a more detailed side of the matter. Wealth is not merely about refraining from theft. Wealth must not be squandered, displayed, turned into a tool of self-exaltation, or spent without order until others continue to be crushed.

A people may feel they are still obedient because they do not rob openly, while at the same time they live in extravagance, build power for themselves, magnify the symbols of their group, and leave the weak under continuing oppression. From the outside, it may look like progress. But before Allah, that may be wastefulness growing into a much larger corruption.

Once wealth is no longer seen as a trust, a people begin to drift. They spend for power. They spend for appearance. They spend to reinforce their own position. Meanwhile, the rights of the weak diminish, compassion fades, and fear of Allah weakens. At that point, wastefulness stops being merely a question of money. It becomes a sign that a people are corrupt in the way they use blessing. And once blessings begin to be corrupted, punishment begins to find its way.

The Prohibition of Extreme Miserliness

Within the same sequence of verses, the Quran not only prohibits wastefulness, but also extreme stinginess. Allah depicts the hand as though it were chained to the neck. The meaning is clear: do not become so calculating, so withholding, and so attached to wealth that you withhold even the rights of others.

This does not appear at all in the well-known The 10 Commandments today. Here again we see a major difference. In the Quran, wealth is not simply a matter of not stealing. Wealth must also be managed properly. It cannot be squandered, and it cannot be hoarded in extreme miserliness.

This matters because many people can feel that they are righteous simply because they do not steal. Yet they withhold the rights of others, they are stingy toward family, stingy toward those in need, and live only to accumulate for themselves. Outwardly, they do not appear to be taking anyone’s property. But in reality, they are still corrupting the trust of wealth that Allah has given them.

When a people reach that stage, the corruption is no longer merely financial. It is corruption of the soul. Corruption of compassion. Corruption of responsibility. And once all of that is corrupted, Allah’s punishment is no longer something far away.

The Prohibition of Killing Children Out of Fear of Poverty

This is one of the most serious differences. The Quran explicitly forbids killing children out of fear of poverty. This is not merely a general prohibition of killing. Allah is exposing a deeply foul disease in the human soul, where fear of financial hardship becomes greater than fear of violating the command of God.

This does not appear at all in the well-known The 10 Commandments today. What appears there is only the general prohibition of killing. But the Quran goes deeper. It identifies a form of killing that arises from corrupted reliance upon Allah, corrupted human nature, and a corrupted understanding of Allah’s provision.

And this is not foreign to their own history. Even in their own sources, there are records that some among them sacrificed sons and daughters in fire to their deities. See Jeremiah 32:35 and 2 Kings 23:10. This shows that the killing of children is not something remote from the history of their corruption. The Quran here, however, opens a dimension of immense importance: fear of poverty. Once fear of poverty becomes greater than fear of Allah, human beings can reach the point of killing their own offspring.

This is where the real danger begins to register. When a people reach the point of seeing children as a burden, provision as a threat, and killing as a solution, that is a sign that their corruption has entered the deepest part of their being. That is not merely a crime. It is a sign that a people are severing their connection to mercy, to fitrah, and to trust in Allah. And once it reaches that stage, Allah’s punishment is no longer something strange.

The Prohibition of Approaching the Wealth of the Orphan

In the Quran, Allah does not merely say, do not steal the orphan’s wealth. Allah says, do not even approach it except in the best manner. This is an intensely protective warning. It means that even before matters reach the point of outright seizure, the road leading to it has already been blocked.

This too does not appear at all in the well-known The 10 Commandments today. Here again we see something important. In the Quran, Allah gives particular attention to the vulnerable. The orphan has no father to protect him. So when people dare to meddle with his property, that is already a sign that the heart of that people is deeply corrupted.

So this is not merely a question of money, but of trust. It is a question of whether or not people truly fear Allah. A people may speak grandly about religion, about covenant, or about God’s law. But if they do not protect the property of the orphan, that alone is enough to show that their corruption lies not only in speech, but in conduct and way of life.

And once even the weak are no longer safe, that is a very grave sign. It means compassion has died. Trust has collapsed. Even those unable to defend themselves have their rights devoured. Once matters reach that level, no one should be surprised when Allah’s punishment comes. Because what has become corrupted is not merely one or two individuals. What has become corrupted is the soul of a people.

The Obligation to Fulfill Covenants

In the Quran, Allah explicitly states that the covenant must be fulfilled. This is a major matter, not a minor one. A people do not collapse only because they are ignorant. Many times, a people collapse because they knew, they promised, they agreed, and then they themselves broke what they had agreed to.

This does not appear at all in the well-known The 10 Commandments today. Here we see another major gap. In the Quran, covenant-keeping is placed directly within the commands themselves. That means covenant is not a side issue. It is a measure of whether a people still possess trustworthiness or have already become corrupted from within.

This is very close to the behavior of a group that loves making agreements, loves speaking of terms, loves presenting itself as agreeable, while inwardly carrying another intention altogether. Agreements are made to be broken. Ceasefires are made to be shattered. Peace is made only to buy the right moment. Outwardly, they appear to sit at the negotiating table. Inwardly, they are already searching for a way to violate what they pledged.

That is why the command to fulfill covenants is not a minor one. Once a people lose any sense of gravity toward a promise, what remains of them? The mouth can say anything. Documents can be signed. Terms can be accepted. But all of it becomes empty once the promise itself is made only to be betrayed.

Here we understand why Allah placed this matter within the commands. Once promises become playthings, a people are walking directly toward Allah’s punishment. They may still look strong on the outside. They may still appear clever in their tactics. But before Allah, they are already fractured and broken, ready to receive punishment.

Justice in Measure and Weight

In the Quran, Allah places justice in measure and weight directly within the commands. This shows that questions of value, measurement, and people’s rights in financial dealings are not small matters. It is not merely about ancient markets or physical scales. It is about whether a people are honest or deceptive in the way they determine value.

This too does not appear at all in the well-known The 10 Commandments today. Yet this is one of the major gates of injustice. In earlier times, people cheated by visibly reducing measure and weight. Today the method is far more subtle. The value of money itself can be corrupted. People’s purchasing power can be eroded slowly. The wealth of others can be extracted through usury, systemic manipulation, and inflation that leaves what was once truly valuable reduced to almost empty figures.

This is where we need to understand that reducing measure in the modern age does not necessarily happen through a hand stealing a handful from the scale. It can also happen when the financial system itself is built to erode value, alter standards, and silently transfer wealth from the public to those who hold power. Outwardly, it appears lawful enough. But in reality, people are being paid less than true value, buying with purchasing power that has already been damaged, and living inside a system that cheats without ever touching an old-fashioned scale.

That is why this verse remains profoundly relevant today. Allah is not speaking only about the marketplace. Allah is opening for us a major principle: do not diminish people’s rights through unjust standards. Once the standards of value are corrupted, a people begin to live under oppression they themselves come to treat as normal. From there economic injustice grows, the gap widens, and corruption spreads across society. Once matters reach that stage, Allah’s punishment is no longer something far away.

The Prohibition of Following Without Knowledge

This is one of the strongest differences. In the Quran, Allah does not merely forbid falsehood. Allah forbids following something without knowledge. Hearing, sight, and the heart will all be questioned. The meaning is plain: a people can no longer excuse themselves by saying they merely followed what they heard, what they saw, or what those before them had already done. Blind imitation is not acceptable.

This too does not appear at all in the well-known The 10 Commandments today. Yet this is one of the most dangerous roots of corruption. Once a people become accustomed to following without knowledge and inheriting the thinking of those before them, they will hold falsehood as though it were truth. They will repeat what they hear without checking. They will defend what has been handed down to them even when it has already become distorted.

That is the danger. The knowledge Allah means here is not knowledge for the sake of appearing impressive. It means knowing what is true before following, speaking, judging, or defending something. Once that foundation collapses, a people begin to live on assumptions, inherited stories, generational claims, and accusations that were never truly examined.

That is why this prohibition is so great. Once a people become accustomed to hearing and then believing, seeing and then judging, inheriting and then defending, they will struggle to recognize truth even when it stands before them. Once that condition becomes a culture, falsehood will look like truth, the invalid will look like religion, and the unjust will look like right. Once matters reach that level, Allah’s punishment is no longer drawing near.

The Prohibition of Walking in Arrogance

The Quran also places the prohibition of walking arrogantly within this set of commands. The meaning is not merely about how one moves one’s feet. Allah is striking at the disposition that loves to feel large, superior, and elevated while seeing everyone else as small.

This too does not appear at all in the well-known The 10 Commandments today. That is why we must see that the Quran does not merely regulate outward acts. It also removes the diseases within the soul. Once the heart becomes arrogant, the rest of the corruption follows with it.

Once a group comes to feel that it is special, chosen, nobler, more entitled, and closer to God than others, many other corruptions begin to emerge gradually from that point. They start looking down on outsiders. They begin to feel that proper conduct no longer matters when dealing with those outside their group. The rights of others become easy to dismiss. The blood of others no longer feels weighty. The property of others becomes easier to take. Trust becomes easier to play with.

That is why this prohibition is also great. Arrogance is not a small vice. Once exclusivism and superiority enter the soul of a people, they can carry the same disposition wherever they go. From the outside, they may appear strong. But before Allah, that is one of the most dangerous seeds of corruption. Once that disease rises, a people may continue to believe they are right even while they are walking directly toward punishment.

Notice

Before entering the final two sections, we need to understand that they do not stand at the same level as the commands before them. These two verses are not merely one more item in the list.

From verses 38 and 39, we can understand that both of them come as a closing summary that gathers the entire structure of commands that came before. Verse 38 shows how Allah judges all the evils that were mentioned one by one. Verse 39 then affirms that the entire structure is part of the wisdom that was revealed.

That is why these two sections are greater than ordinary commands. They function as the conclusion, the confirmation, and the safeguard of all the covenantal elements presented earlier. Without these two verses, people might read all the earlier commands as separate rulings. But with these two verses, we understand that all of them are gathered under Allah’s judgment and sealed as Allah’s covenant with Bani Israel.

The Affirmation That All Those Evils Are Hated by Allah

After Allah mentions the commands and prohibitions one by one in Surah al-Isra’, verses 22 to 37, verse 38 closes them all with a very clear affirmation. Allah states that all those evils are hated in His sight. This means that all the violations mentioned before are not light matters, not peripheral matters, and not small mistakes to be brushed aside casually. All of them fall within the sphere of what Allah hates.

Here the Quran does not stop at merely stating the rulings. Allah places His own judgment upon all those evils. That means the reader is not left to treat the earlier commands as an isolated list of proper manners. Allah Himself closes the structure with the ruling that those evils are things that are detested and hated.

In the well-known form of The 10 Commandments today, such a conclusion does not appear in the same form at the end of our comparative framework. That is why verse 38 is so important. It does not add a new command. It gathers all the earlier prohibitions under one decisive divine judgment.

So whoever wants to understand the cause of punishment upon Bani Israel cannot read this list casually. Once Allah Himself says that all those evils are hated in His sight, we are looking at the standard that leads to wrath and punishment.

The Affirmation That All of It Is Revealed Wisdom

After verse 38 clarifies how Allah judges all those evils, verse 39 then clarifies where the entire structure of commands came from. Allah states that all of it is part of the wisdom that was revealed. That is immense in meaning, and it is preserved. It means that all the commands and prohibitions mentioned before are not the result of human arrangement, not life advice, and not moral guidance that can be selected at will. All of it comes from the wisdom of divine revelation.

This is where verse 39 confirms the true identity of the entire structure. It is revelation. It is wisdom. It comes from Allah. With that affirmation, the entire block of verses 22 to 39 can no longer be read as detached fragments of rulings. All of it must be gathered again as one covenantal framework that Allah Himself revealed.

In the well-known form of The 10 Commandments today, such an affirmation does not appear in the same form at the end of our comparative block. That is why verse 39 is so important to this argument. When Allah Himself states that all of this is revealed wisdom, then the absence of these major elements from the well-known form of The 10 Commandments today is no small matter.

It shows that the form available today no longer presents the full structure of the original covenant clearly, as Allah reopened it in the Quran.

So verses 38 and 39 are not merely additions at the end of the list. They are the closing lock upon the entire framework of commands that came before. Verse 38 places Allah’s judgment upon all the evils that were mentioned. Verse 39 affirms that the entire structure comes from the wisdom of revelation. That is why these two verses function as the confirmation of all the earlier commands. One shows how Allah regards those violations. The other shows that all of it comes directly from His revelation. This is where the framework of commands is brought to a close with full decisiveness.