وَأَوْرَثْنَا الْقَوْمَ الَّذِينَ كَانُوا يُسْتَضْعَفُونَ مَشَارِقَ الْأَرْضِ وَمَغَارِبَهَا الَّتِي بَارَكْنَا فِيهَا وَتَمَّتْ كَلِمَتُ رَبِّكَ الْحُسْنَى عَلَى بَنِي إِسْرَائِيلَ بِمَا صَبَرُوا وَدَمَّرْنَا مَا كَانَ يَصْنَعُ فِرْعَوْنُ وَقَوْمُهُ وَمَا كَانُوا يَعْرِشُونَ ﴿۱۳۷﴾ وَجَاوَزْنَا بِبَنِي إِسْرَائِيلَ الْبَحْرَ فَأَتَوْا عَلَى قَوْمٍ يَعْكُفُونَ عَلَى أَصْنَامٍ لَهُمْ قَالُوا يَا مُوسَى اجْعَلْ لَنَا إِلَهًا كَمَا لَهُمْ آلِهَةٌ قَالَ إِنَّكُمْ قَوْمٌ تَجْهَلُونَ ﴿۱۳۸﴾

﴾137﴿ Wa awrasnal qawmal lazeena kaanoo yustad'afoona mashaariqal ardi wa maghaari bahal latee baaraknaa feehaa wa tammat kalimatu Rabbikal husnaa 'alaa Baneee Israaa'eela bimaa sabaroo wa dammarnaa maa kaana yasna'u Fir'awnu wa qawmuhoo wa maa kaanoo ya'rishoon
﴾138﴿ Wa jaawaznaa bi Banneee Israaa'eelal bahra fa ataw 'alaa qawminy ya'kufoona 'alaaa asnaamil lahum; qaaloo yaa Moosaj'al lanaa ilaahan kamaa lahum aalihah; qaala innakum qawmun tajhaloon

﴾137﴿ And We gave to the people who had been oppressed (in Egypt) the eastern and western parts of the land, that land in which We had placed blessings. And the good word of your Lord was fulfilled for the Children of Israel because they had been patient. And We destroyed all that Pharaoh and his people had built and all that they had raised up (in gardens and structures).
﴾138﴿ And We made the Children of Israel cross the sea, and they came upon a people who were devoted to their idols. They said, “O Moses, make for us a god just as they have gods.” Moses said, “Indeed, you are a people behaving ignorantly.”

[137] The land referred to here is Sham (Greater Syria), which is full of both worldly and spiritual blessings.
The Children of Israel were first made heirs of the land of Sham, and later, during the times of Dawud (peace be upon him) and Sulayman (peace be upon him), they also became heirs to Egypt.
(يُسْتَضْعَفُونَ) refers to them being turned into slaves, their children being slaughtered, others being spared for servitude, subjected to hard labor, and humiliated. This is also mentioned in verses (4–5) of Surah Al-Qasas.
(مَشَارِقَ) and (مَغَارِبَ) refer to all directions, and since east and west exist separately in each region, they are mentioned in the plural form.
(الْأَرْضِ) refers to the territory stretching from the Euphrates to the Red Sea (Bahr al-Qulzum). This is mentioned by Al-Biqa'i in Surah Al-Ma'idah.
This land is also referred to in verses (71, 81) of Surah Al-Anbiya and in verse (1) of Surah Al-Isra.
[138] This is the fourth stage, continuing up to verse (141). It discusses the weakness in belief among the Children of Israel and how Musa (peace be upon him) guided them.
It is indicated here that even during the lifetime of their prophet, their faith had begun to weaken.
(وَجَاوَزْنَا) – This crossing (referring to the salvation) happened on the Day of ‘Ashura, and for this reason, they used to fast on that day. In this Ummah, fasting on this day is also Sunnah.
(عَلَى قَوْمٍ) – This refers to the tribe of Lakhm, who had made an idol in the shape of a cow and used to worship it.
Some of the ignorant among Bani Israel made a similar request because of their long-standing habits or due to their newfound faith, not fully understanding monotheism yet.
A similar thing happened in the Battle of Hunayn, when some newly converted Muslims asked the Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him) to appoint a tree for them to hang their weapons on for blessings—just like the polytheists had a tree called Dhāt Anwāṭ.
The Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him) rebuked them, saying, “You are saying just what the Children of Israel said.”
(يَعْكُفُونَ) – ‘Ukoof means to remain devoted to something, to stay with it consistently, and to show it reverence or worship.