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How do the eloquence and inimitability of the Quran manifest in the employment of conditional tools in the verse, "But when a good thing came to them, they said, 'This is ours,' and if a bad thing befell them, they augured ill by Musa and those with him"?

1 min readAlso available in العربية

The verse shows a rhetorical miracle in the use of conditional particles. "If/When" (إذا) is used with good fortune to indicate the certainty of its occurrence, because blessings are numerous and continuous upon them. As for "If" (إن), it is used with misfortune to indicate hesitation and doubt in its occurrence, due to the rarity of calamities compared to blessings. This points to the abundance of God's blessings upon them, their turning away from gratitude, and their considering misfortunes to be a result of Moses and those with him. Thus, they were caught between ingratitude for blessings and injustice towards Moses.

Summarized from the full answer at Ftawy · reviewed Sep 2, 2026

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