And [recall] when We saved you [i.e., your forefathers] from the people of Pharaoh, who afflicted you with the worst torment, slaughtering your [newborn] sons and keeping your females alive. And in that was a great trial from your Lord.
Sahih International
Grammar, phrase by phrase
وَإِذْ نَجَّيْنَـٰكُم
(And [recall] when We saved you)
Root نجو — to save, deliver, rescue; secret/private conversation · 84 times in the Quran
وَإِذْword 1
Conjunction · حرف عطفA conjunction is a small joining word like 'and' that ties one statement to another. The prefix وَ joins this remembrance to the reminders before it. L4 · R4
Time Adverb · ظرف زمانA time adverb is a naming word that anchors a sentence to the time its action happens. إِذْ means 'when — back then', pointing to a moment already past: the day of the saving. L16 · R9
نَجَّيْنَـٰكُمword 2
Verb · فعلA verb is a word for an action tied to a time. نَجَّيْ names an action — saving, delivering — from the root نجو, to save, deliver, rescue. L1 · R7
Past Tense Verb · فعل ماضٍA past tense verb describes an action already completed, and who did it is shown by an ending added to the verb. The ending نَٰ — the 'We' marker — sits on نَجَّيْنَٰكُم: 'We saved', an act already done. L8 · R2
Weak Verb · فعل معتلA weak verb has و or ي among its root letters, and those weak letters love to change shape or vanish. The root of نَجَّيْ is نجو: its final weak letter does not appear as و here — it surfaces as the يْ before the ending. L24 · R2
Form II Verb · فَعَّلَA Form II verb doubles its middle root letter with the shaddah ـّ — the small w-shaped doubling mark. نَجَّيْ shows that shaddah on its middle root letter ج, marking the shape that makes the action happen to others: We made you reach safety. L12 · R1
Attached Pronoun · ضمير متصلAn attached pronoun is a mini-word glued onto the end of another word. Two are stacked on this verb: نَٰ standing for 'We' and كُم standing for 'you all' — one written word carries both who acted and whom the act reached. L3 · R7
Doer (Fa'il) · فاعلThe doer is the one performing the action, so it stands in the nominative — the doer's form, usually shown by a ḍammah ـُ, a small curl above the last letter. The ending نَٰ on نَجَّيْنَٰكُم is that doer, 'We'; an attached pronoun keeps one fixed shape, so no ḍammah appears, but the role it fills is the nominative one. L9 · R4
Direct Object · مفعول بهThe direct object is the one the action lands on, standing in the accusative — the landed-on form, usually shown by a fathah ـَ, a small stroke above the letter. The ending كُم 'you all' is what the saving landed on; a pronoun's written shape is fixed, so no fathah appears — the accusative is the role it fills. L9 · R5
'When We delivered you from Pharaoh's people' means, 'I — Allah — saved you from them and delivered you from their hands in the company of Musa, after they subjected you to horrible torture.'
Ibn Kathir (abridged), on 2:49
مِّنْ ءَالِ فِرْعَوْنَ
(…from the people of Pharaoh,)
Root اول — to interpret, first, people of understanding · 170 times in the Quran
مِّنْword 3
Particle · حرفA particle is a small helper word with no meaning standing alone; it takes no ending and does not name or act. مِّنْ is such a helper word here. L1 · R8
Preposition · حرف جرA preposition is a little word that relates one thing to another and pulls the naming word after it into the genitive — the after-preposition ending, usually a kasrah ـِ, a small stroke below the last letter. مِنْ 'from' is one of the common prepositions: saved 'from' the people of Pharaoh. L4 · R2
ءَالِword 4
Noun · اسمA word whose final vowel mark changes with its job in the sentence is a noun, a naming word. ءَالِ names a people — the family and followers — and carries the changing ending on its last letter. L1 · R5
Masculine Noun · اسم مذكرArabic treats every naming word as grammatically 'he' or 'she'. This word carries no feminine marker such as a ة at its end, so it falls to the default and is treated as 'he': a masculine noun. L2 · R3
Genitive · مجرورThe genitive is the ending a naming word takes after a preposition, shown by a kasrah ـِ — a small slanted stroke below the last letter. ءَالِ ends in that kasrah ـِ because مِّنْ stands before it. L2 · R12
فِرْعَوْنَword 5
Noun · اسمA noun names a person, place, thing, or idea — including proper names. فِرْعَوْنَ is the proper name of the ruler of Egypt, Pharaoh. L1 · R6
Genitive · مجرورThe genitive is the owner-or-after-preposition ending, usually a kasrah ـِ — a small stroke below the last letter. فِرْعَوْنَ is a non-Arabic proper name, one of the partially flexible nouns that never take tanwīn and show their genitive with a fathah ـَ — a small stroke above the letter — instead of the kasrah; that fathah is what is written on its end here. L2 · R14
Possessive (Idafa) · مضاف إليهA possessive (iḍāfah) chains two naming words into an 'of' phrase, and the owner comes second, taking the genitive — the owner's ending, usually a kasrah ـِ below the last letter. فِرْعَوْنَ is that second, owner word: 'the people OF Pharaoh' — on this foreign name the genitive shows itself as a fathah ـَ rather than the usual kasrah. L5 · R5
So far: “And [recall] when We saved you [i.e., your forefathers] from the people of Pharaoh,”
يَسُومُونَكُمْ سُوٓءَ ٱلْعَذَابِ
(…who afflicted you with the worst torment,)
Root سوم — to mark, brand; to afflict, graze · 15 times in the Quran
Root سوا — evil, bad, wicked · 167 times in the Quran
Root عذب — to punish, torture; punishment, torment · 373 times in the Quran
يَسُومُونَكُمْword 6
Verb · فعلA verb is a word for an action tied to a time. يَسُومُ names an action — afflicting, driving into suffering — from the root سوم. L1 · R7
Present Tense Verb · فعل مضارعA present tense verb is identified by one of the four prefix letters remembered as أَنَيْتُ. يَسُومُونَكُمْ opens with the prefix ي, always standing before the root letters — it paints the tormenting as ongoing, happening again and again back then. L8 · R3
The Five Verbs · الأفعال الخمسةThe Five Verbs are the five present tense shapes ending in نَ, where that نَ itself shows the mood: kept in the normal mood, dropped after trimming words. يَسُومُونَ is the 'they do' shape with its نَ kept — a plain ongoing statement. L10 · R10
Weak Verb · فعل معتلA weak verb has و or ي among its root letters. In the past tense such 'hollow' verbs hide their middle letter behind a long alif, but the present tense reveals it: يَسُومُ shows the root's true middle letter و standing plainly — the root is سوم. L24 · R4
Attached Pronoun · ضمير متصلAn attached pronoun is a mini-word glued onto the end of another word. Two are stacked here: the ونَ standing for 'they' and كُمْ standing for 'you all' — one written word carries the tormentors and the tormented. L3 · R7
Doer (Fa'il) · فاعلThe doer is the one performing the action, standing in the nominative — the doer's form, usually a ḍammah ـُ, a small curl above the last letter. The و in the ending ونَ names the doers, 'they' — Pharaoh's people; a pronoun keeps one fixed shape, so no ḍammah appears, but the role it fills is the nominative one. L9 · R4
Direct Object · مفعول بهThe direct object is the one the action lands on, standing in the accusative — the landed-on form, usually a fathah ـَ, a small stroke above the letter. The ending كُمْ 'you all' is whom the afflicting landed on; a pronoun's written shape is fixed, so no fathah appears — the accusative is the role it fills. L9 · R5
سُوٓءَword 7
Noun · اسمA word whose final vowel mark changes with its job in the sentence is a noun, a naming word. سُوٓءَ names the horrible, the evil — from the root سوا, evil, bad, wicked. L1 · R5
Masculine Noun · اسم مذكرArabic treats every naming word as grammatically 'he' or 'she'. This word carries no feminine marker such as a ة at its end, so it falls to the default and is treated as 'he': a masculine noun. L2 · R3
Accusative · منصوبThe accusative is the ending a naming word takes when the action lands on it, shown by a fathah ـَ — a small slanted stroke above the letter. سُوٓءَ ends in that fathah ـَ. L2 · R11
Direct Object · مفعول بهThe direct object is the thing the action lands on, standing in the accusative — the landed-on form, here the fathah ـَ above its last letter. 'The worst of torment' is what the afflicting drove them into. L9 · R3
ٱلْعَذَابِword 8
Definite Article · أل التعريفThe definite article is the prefix ال attached to the front of a naming word to mean 'the' — one specific, known one. ٱلْعَذَابِ wears that prefix: 'the torment', the known one they suffered. L2 · R9
Noun · اسمA word that accepts ال — the prefix meaning 'the' — is a noun, a naming word. عَذَابِ names torment, from the root عذب, to punish, torture; punishment, torment. L1 · R1
Masculine Noun · اسم مذكرArabic treats every naming word as grammatically 'he' or 'she'. This word carries no feminine marker such as a ة at its end, so it falls to the default and is treated as 'he': a masculine noun. L2 · R3
Genitive · مجرورThe genitive is the ending a naming word takes as the owner in an 'of' phrase, shown by a kasrah ـِ — a small slanted stroke below the last letter. عَذَابِ ends in that kasrah ـِ. L2 · R12
Possessive (Idafa) · مضاف إليهA possessive (iḍāfah) chains two naming words into an 'of' phrase, and the second word — the owner — always takes the genitive, shown by the kasrah ـِ below its last letter. ٱلْعَذَابِ is that second word: 'the worst OF the torment'. L5 · R5
'Who were afflicting you' means, 'They humiliated you,' as Abu 'Ubaydah stated; it was also said to mean, 'They used to exaggerate in tormenting you,' according to Al-Qurtubi.
Ibn Kathir (abridged), on 2:49
يُذَبِّحُونَ أَبْنَآءَكُمْ
(…slaughtering your [newborn] sons)
Root ذبح — to slaughter, cut the throat, sacrifice · 9 times in the Quran
Root بني — yes · 184 times in the Quran
يُذَبِّحُونَword 9
Verb · فعلA verb is a word for an action tied to a time. يُذَبِّحُ names an action — slaughtering — from the root ذبح, to slaughter, cut the throat, sacrifice. L1 · R7
Present Tense Verb · فعل مضارعA present tense verb is identified by one of the four prefix letters remembered as أَنَيْتُ. يُذَبِّحُونَ opens with the prefix ي, always standing before the root letters — the slaughtering pictured as it kept happening. L8 · R3
The Five Verbs · الأفعال الخمسةThe Five Verbs are the five present tense shapes ending in نَ, where that نَ itself shows the mood: kept in the normal mood, dropped after trimming words. يُذَبِّحُونَ is the 'they do' shape with its نَ kept. L10 · R10
Form II Verb · فَعَّلَA Form II verb doubles its middle root letter with the shaddah ـّ, the small w-shaped doubling mark; in the present tense Forms II, III, and IV are also marked by a ḍammah ـُ — a small curl — on the prefix letter. يُذَبِّحُ shows both: the ḍammah on its يُ and the doubled بِّ carrying the shaddah. L12 · R7
Attached Pronoun · ضمير متصلAn attached pronoun is a mini-word glued onto the end of a verb. The ending ونَ on يُذَبِّحُونَ is such a suffix, standing for 'they'. L3 · R7
Doer (Fa'il) · فاعلThe doer is the one performing the action, standing in the nominative — the doer's form, usually a ḍammah ـُ, a small curl above the last letter. The و in the ending ونَ names the doers of the slaughtering, 'they'; a pronoun keeps one fixed shape, so no ḍammah appears — the nominative is the role it fills. L9 · R4
أَبْنَآءَكُمْword 10
Noun · اسمA word whose final vowel mark changes with its job in the sentence is a noun, a naming word. أَبْنَآءَ names sons. L1 · R5
Masculine Noun · اسم مذكرArabic treats every naming word as grammatically 'he' or 'she'. This word carries no feminine marker such as a ة at its end, so it falls to the default and is treated as 'he': a masculine noun. L2 · R3
Plural Noun · جمعA plural noun refers to three or more, made either by adding an ending or by reshaping the word from the inside — a 'broken' plural. أَبْنَآءَ is such a reshaped plural: 'sons', many of them, with no added plural ending. L2 · R6
Accusative · منصوبThe accusative is the ending a naming word takes when the action lands on it, shown by a fathah ـَ — a small slanted stroke above the letter. أَبْنَآءَ ends in that fathah ـَ. L2 · R11
Direct Object · مفعول بهThe direct object is the one the action lands on, standing in the accusative — the landed-on form, here the fathah ـَ above the ء. The sons are whom the slaughtering fell upon. L9 · R3
Attached Pronoun · ضمير متصلAn attached pronoun is a mini-word glued onto the end of another word. The ending كُمْ on أَبْنَآءَكُمْ is such a suffix, standing for 'your': YOUR sons. L3 · R7
Possessive (Idafa) · مضاف إليهA possessive (iḍāfah) chains two naming words into an 'of' phrase, and the owner comes second, taking the genitive — the owner's ending, usually a kasrah ـِ, a small stroke below the last letter. The ending كُمْ fills that owner slot: 'the sons OF you'; a pronoun keeps one fixed written shape, so no kasrah appears — the genitive is the role it fills. L5 · R5
The torment here refers to killing the male infants: after Pharaoh's dream that his kingship would be toppled by a man among the Children of Israel, he ordered that every newborn male among them be killed and that the girls be left alone.
Ibn Kathir (abridged), on 2:49
وَيَسْتَحْيُونَ نِسَآءَكُمْ ۚ
(…and keeping your females alive.)
Root حيي — to live, give life, revive; life, living · 184 times in the Quran
Root نسو — women, wives · 59 times in the Quran
وَيَسْتَحْيُونَword 11
Conjunction · حرف عطفA conjunction is a small joining word like 'and' that ties one action to another. The prefix وَ joins the letting-live to the slaughtering — two halves of one cruel policy. L4 · R4
Verb · فعلA verb is a word for an action tied to a time. يَسْتَحْيُ names an action — keeping alive — from the root حيي, to live, give life, revive. L1 · R7
Present Tense Verb · فعل مضارعA present tense verb is identified by one of the four prefix letters remembered as أَنَيْتُ. يَسْتَحْيُونَ opens with the prefix يَ, always standing before the root letters. L8 · R3
The Five Verbs · الأفعال الخمسةThe Five Verbs are the five present tense shapes ending in نَ, where that نَ itself shows the mood: kept in the normal mood, dropped after trimming words. يَسْتَحْيُونَ is the 'they do' shape with its نَ kept. L10 · R10
Weak Verb · فعل معتلA weak verb has و or ي among its root letters. The root of يَسْتَحْيُ is حيي — the weak letter ي is among its root letters, and one ي stands written before the ending. L24 · R2
Doubled Verb · فعل مضاعفA doubled verb is one whose second and third root letters are the same letter. The root of يَسْتَحْيُ is حيي — its second and third letters are both ي; in this shape only a single ي is written on the page. L24 · R10
Form X Verb · اِسْتَفْعَلَA Form X verb adds اِسْتَـ to the front of the root. In this present-tense shape that marker stands as the سْتَ right after the tense prefix يَ of يَسْتَحْيُونَ — the form built on the root's meaning of living: they kept your women alive. L13 · R6
Attached Pronoun · ضمير متصلAn attached pronoun is a mini-word glued onto the end of a verb. The ending ونَ on يَسْتَحْيُونَ is such a suffix, standing for 'they'. L3 · R7
Doer (Fa'il) · فاعلThe doer is the one performing the action, standing in the nominative — the doer's form, usually a ḍammah ـُ, a small curl above the last letter. The و in the ending ونَ names the doers, 'they'; a pronoun keeps one fixed shape, so no ḍammah appears — the nominative is the role it fills. L9 · R4
نِسَآءَكُمْ ۚword 12
Noun · اسمA word whose final vowel mark changes with its job in the sentence is a noun, a naming word. نِسَآءَ names women, from the root نسو — women, wives. L1 · R5
Feminine Noun · اسم مؤنثA feminine noun is a naming word Arabic treats as 'she'. نِسَآء 'women' carries no visible marker like ة, yet it is among the words simply known to be feminine — it must be memorized. L2 · R2
Plural Noun · جمعA plural noun refers to three or more, made either by adding an ending or by reshaping the word from the inside — a 'broken' plural. نِسَآءَ is such a reshaped plural: 'women', with no added plural ending. L2 · R6
Accusative · منصوبThe accusative is the ending a naming word takes when the action lands on it, shown by a fathah ـَ — a small slanted stroke above the letter. نِسَآءَ ends in that fathah ـَ. L2 · R11
Direct Object · مفعول بهThe direct object is the one the action lands on, standing in the accusative — the landed-on form, here the fathah ـَ above the ء. The women are whom the keeping-alive fell upon. L9 · R3
Attached Pronoun · ضمير متصلAn attached pronoun is a mini-word glued onto the end of another word. The ending كُمْ on نِسَآءَكُمْ is such a suffix, standing for 'your': YOUR women. L3 · R7
Possessive (Idafa) · مضاف إليهA possessive (iḍāfah) chains two naming words into an 'of' phrase, and the owner comes second, taking the genitive — the owner's ending, usually a kasrah ـِ, a small stroke below the last letter. The ending كُمْ fills that owner slot: 'the women OF you'; a pronoun keeps one fixed written shape, so no kasrah appears — the genitive is the role it fills. L5 · R5
So far: “And [recall] when We saved you [i.e., your forefathers] from the people of Pharaoh, who afflicted you with the worst torment, slaughtering your [newborn] sons and keeping your females alive.”
وَفِى ذَٰلِكُم بَلَآءٌۭ
(And in that was a trial…)
Root بلو — to test, try, trial · 38 times in the Quran
وَفِىword 13
Resumptive Particle · حرف استئنافA resumptive particle is a وَ or فَ that begins a fresh statement after a pause or shift. The prefix وَ here turns from recounting the events to weighing them: 'And in that…'. L14 · R1
Particle · حرفA particle is a small helper word with no meaning standing alone; it takes no ending and does not name or act. فِى is such a helper word here. L1 · R8
Preposition · حرف جرA preposition is a little word that relates one thing to another and pulls the naming word after it into the genitive — the after-preposition ending, usually a kasrah ـِ, a small stroke below the last letter. فِي 'in' is one of the common prepositions: 'IN that' lay a trial. L4 · R2
ذَٰلِكُمword 14
Demonstrative Pronoun · اسم إشارةA demonstrative pronoun is a pointing word that singles out a specific thing, near or far. ذَٰلِكُم points from afar to 'that' — the saving and all that surrounded it — with an ending shaped for addressing 'you all'; pointing words keep one fixed shape whatever their role. L3 · R8
بَلَآءٌۭword 15
Noun · اسمA word that accepts tanwīn — the doubled end-vowel marks ـٌ ـً ـٍ — is a noun, a naming word. بَلَآءٌ ends in the doubled ḍammah ـٌ and names a trial, from the root بلو, to test, try; trial. L1 · R2
Masculine Noun · اسم مذكرArabic treats every naming word as grammatically 'he' or 'she'. This word carries no feminine marker such as a ة at its end, so it falls to the default and is treated as 'he': a masculine noun. L2 · R3
Indefinite Noun · نكرةAn indefinite noun means 'a' — no particular one named — and shows this with tanwīn, the doubled end-vowel mark. بَلَآءٌ ends in the doubled ḍammah ـٌ: 'a trial'. L2 · R8
Nominative · مرفوعThe nominative is the ending a naming word takes as the subject or main topic of its sentence, shown by a ḍammah ـُ — a small curl above the last letter — doubled to tanwīn ـٌ when the word is indefinite. بَلَآءٌ ends in that doubled ḍammah ـٌ. L2 · R10
Subject (Mubtada') · مبتدأThe subject is the naming word a statement talks about — its topic — standing in the nominative, shown here by the doubled ḍammah ـٌ on بَلَآءٌ. 'A trial' is what the sentence is about; the telling part, 'in that', stands before it. L6 · R2
مِّن رَّبِّكُمْ عَظِيمٌۭ
(…from your Lord — a great one.)
Root ربب — Lord, Sustainer, Nourisher, Regulator, Perfector · 980 times in the Quran
Root عظم — to be great, mighty, tremendous; bones · 128 times in the Quran
مِّنword 16
Particle · حرفA particle is a small helper word with no meaning standing alone; it takes no ending and does not name or act. مِّن is such a helper word here. L1 · R8
Preposition · حرف جرA preposition is a little word that relates one thing to another and pulls the naming word after it into the genitive — the after-preposition ending, usually a kasrah ـِ, a small stroke below the last letter. مِنْ 'from' is one of the common prepositions: a trial 'from' your Lord. L4 · R2
رَّبِّكُمْword 17
Noun · اسمA word whose final vowel mark changes with its job in the sentence is a noun, a naming word. رَّبِّ names the Lord — from the root ربب: Lord, Sustainer, Nourisher, Regulator, Perfector. L1 · R5
Masculine Noun · اسم مذكرArabic treats every naming word as grammatically 'he' or 'she'. This word carries no feminine marker such as a ة at its end, so it falls to the default and is treated as 'he': a masculine noun. L2 · R3
Genitive · مجرورThe genitive is the ending a naming word takes after a preposition, shown by a kasrah ـِ — a small slanted stroke below the last letter. رَّبِّ carries that kasrah ـِ because مِّن stands before it. L2 · R12
Attached Pronoun · ضمير متصلAn attached pronoun is a mini-word glued onto the end of another word. The ending كُمْ on رَّبِّكُمْ is such a suffix, standing for 'your': YOUR Lord. L3 · R7
Possessive (Idafa) · مضاف إليهA possessive (iḍāfah) chains two naming words into an 'of' phrase, and the owner comes second, taking the genitive — the owner's ending, usually a kasrah ـِ, a small stroke below the last letter. The ending كُمْ fills that owner slot: 'the Lord OF you all'; a pronoun keeps one fixed written shape, so no kasrah appears — the genitive is the role it fills. L5 · R5
عَظِيمٌۭword 18
Noun · اسمA word that accepts tanwīn — the doubled end-vowel marks ـٌ ـً ـٍ — is a noun, a naming word. عَظِيمٌ ends in the doubled ḍammah ـٌ and names greatness — 'great' — from the root عظم, to be great, mighty, tremendous. L1 · R2
Indefinite Noun · نكرةAn indefinite noun means 'a' — no particular one named — and shows this with tanwīn, the doubled end-vowel mark. عَظِيمٌ ends in the doubled ḍammah ـٌ, matching the 'a trial' it describes. L2 · R8
Nominative · مرفوعThe nominative is the ending a naming word takes as the subject or main topic of its sentence, shown by a ḍammah ـُ — a small curl above the last letter — doubled to tanwīn ـٌ when the word is indefinite. عَظِيمٌ ends in that doubled ḍammah ـٌ, the same ending as the trial it describes. L2 · R10
Adjective · صفةAn adjective is a describing word that comes after its naming word and copies its gender, number, ending, and 'the'-ness. عَظِيمٌ 'great' describes بَلَآءٌ 'a trial': both are 'he'-words, both singular in sense, both indefinite with tanwīn, and both carry the doubled ḍammah ـٌ — a great trial. L7 · R1
Ibn Jarir commented that this part of the Ayah means, 'Our saving your fathers from the torment that they suffered by the hand of Pharaoh is a great blessing from your Lord' — and in the blessing there is a test, the same as with hardship.
Ibn Kathir (abridged), on 2:49
So far: “And [recall] when We saved you [i.e., your forefathers] from the people of Pharaoh, who afflicted you with the worst torment, slaughtering your [newborn] sons and keeping your females alive. And in that was a great trial from your Lord.”