Intermediate History & Lessons Surah: Al-Baqarah (102)

Quranic context: Al-Baqarah 102

Context: The two angels Harut and Marut were sent down to Babylon as a trial and test. They taught people magic but always preceded it with an explicit warning: "We are only a trial — do not disbelieve." Yet people learned it seeking to cause division between spouses.

Lesson:

• Allah tested through the two angels those who chose falsehood after knowing the truth
• Magic is inherently harmful — the verse states this plainly without justification
• Clarity of warning does not remove responsibility — "they could not harm anyone except by Allah's leave"
• This trial distinguished those who preferred the world over faith: "They knew that whoever bought it would have no share in the Hereafter"

Note: Harut and Marut are angels according to the majority of scholars; detailed narrations about them are Isra'iliyyat — neither accepted nor rejected as fact.

Source: Al-Tabari (2/415); Ibn Kathir (1/297); Al-Qurtubi (2/50)

Tags: هاروت وماروتالسحرالفتنةالابتلاءبابلالملائكة