91. " when it is said to them: ` believe in what allah has sent down ',
they said: ` we believe (only) in what was sent down to us (before) '.
but they disbelieve in what is beyond that,
while it is the truth confirming what is with them. say:
` why then were you slaying the prophets of allah in former times,
if you were (indeed) faithful ?' "
92. " and, also, moses came to you with clear signs; yet you took to worship
of the calf after him (in his absence) and
you were (willful) wrongdoers. "
93. " and (remember) when we made a covenant with you,
and raised the mount, above you, (saying):
` hold you fast that which we have given you with the strength,
and hear (our commandments) '. they said:
` we hear and disobey '; and they were made to imbibe (the love of )
the calf into their hearts because of their disbelief.
say: ` evil is what your faith bids you if you be, indeed, faithful '."

commentary:

racial bigotries of the jews

in commenting on the previous verses, it was said that the jews
tolerated a lot of trouble and toil on the path of reaching the prophet
(p.b.u.h.) that the turah had promised, but when he (p.b.u.h.) came,
they did not believe in him, because of envy, or for the reason that this
prophet (p.b.u.h.) was not from the children of israel, or because their
personal interests were in danger.

now, through the verses under discussion, the qur'an refers to
the racial bigotries of the jews by which they are known throughout the
world. it says:

" when it is said to them:` believe in what allah has sent down ', they
said:` we believe (only) in what was sent down to us (before) '. but they
disbelieve in what is beyond that, ..."

the jews believed neither in the evangel (ingil) nor in the
qur'an, but they paid attention only to the racial aspects and their
personal benefits.

the jews said that they believed in what had been revealed to
them, i.e. to the israeli prophets (a.s.) and they would not believe in
anything revealed to a non-israeli prophet (i.e. the holy prophet
mohammad (p.b.u.h.)). the reply to this arrogance is given in this
verse saying that that which has been sent down to the holy prophet
(p.b.u.h.) is truth verifying that which is in the book with them,
referring to the prophecy proclaimed in duet. 18: 15-18. and, now, the
qur'an says:

"... while it is the truth confirming what is with them. ..."

then, the holy qur'an uncovers their falsehood and says that
their excuse for their disbelief is that prophet muhammad (p.b.u.h.) is
not from among them :

" ...say: ` why then were you slaying the prophets of allah in former times,
if you were (indeed) faithful ? ' "

if they truly believed in the turah, the divine book in which
murder is considered a major sin, they would not slay the great
prophets of allah.

furthermore, this statement that they say: " we believe (only) in
what was sent down to us (before) ", is a clear deviation from the path of
monotheism, or, in other words, it is, in itself, blasphemy. this is a kind
of arrogance and selfishness whether it be in the form of a personal
issue or racial one.

the purpose of monotheism is to eradicate these disgraceful
habits from the unity of human beings so that they accept allah's
commandments merely because they are issued from that origin.

in other words, if the acceptance of the divine instructions is only
on the condition that they be sent down to us, it is, in fact, ` disbelief '
rather than ` belief ', or it is infidelity rather than ` faithfulness ' in
islam. the acceptance of such instructions is not at all true evidence of
faith.

it is worthy to note that when the above verse says: " when it is
said to them: ` believe in what allah has sent down,'... " it refers neither to
muhammad (p.b.u.h.) nor to moses (a.s.) nor to jesus (a.s.). it merely says:

" believe in what allah has sent down." 

to make their falsehood clearer, in the next verse, the quran
provides further evidence against them. it says:

" and, also, moses came to you with clear signs; yet you took to worship
of the calf after him (in his absence) and
you were (willful) wrongdoers. "

the qur'an tells the jews that if you are true and you believe in
your prophet, why did you worship the calf after those clear signs and
that monotheistic evidence ? what kind of faith is it that when moses
(a.s.) goes to the mount, in his absence, it escapes from your hearts and
immediately infidelity is substituted therein; or the calf takes the place
of monotheism ?

yes, with this wrong action, you committed an injustice both to
yourselves and your society, and to your coming generations. 

in the subsequent verse, the holy qur'an cites another example
proving the meagreness of their claim. it refers to the covenant of
mount sinai and says:

" and (remember) when we made a covenant with you,
and raised the mount, above you, (saying):
` hold you fast that which we have given you with the strength,
and hear (our commandments) '. they said:
` we hear and disobey '; ..."
"... and they were made to imbibe (the love of) the calf into their hearts
because of their disbelief. ..."

yes, blasphemy and mammonism, whose symbol was the love of
the golden samaritan calf, had influenced their hearts and took root
throughout their souls. that was why they forgot their lord.
strange! what sort of faith is it that condones both the slaying of
prophets and the worshipping of the calf, but neglects the observance
of firm divine covenants ?

yes, "... say: ` evil is what your faith bids you if you be, indeed,
faithful '."