slaughtering your [newborn] sons and keeping your females alive
يذبحون أبناءكم ويستحيون نساءكم
In this verse, Allah mentions the Children of Israel, saying: “When We delivered you from the family of Pharaoh.” Benefits or explanation? Benefits, benefits or interpretation? Explanation, benefits, yes.
He said:
And in that was a great trial from your Lord.
وفي ذلكم بلاء من ربكم عظيم
meaning that what occurred was a great trial from Allah the Exalted. And Allah, Glorified and Exalted is He, tests whom He wills, either with good or with evil, as Allah the Exalted said:
And We test you with evil and with good as trial; and to Us you will be returned.
ونبلوكم بالشر والخير فتنة وإلينا ترجعون
And the believer—and praise be to Allah, may Allah make me and you among the believers—the believer, when tested with this or that, attains the highest ranks
If good befalls him, he is grateful, and if hardship befalls him, he is patient
إن أصابته سراء شكر وإن أصابته ضراء صبر and it is better for him in both cases. But some people, when tested with hardship, fall back—may Allah protect us from that—as Allah the Exalted said:
And of the people is he who worships Allah on an edge
ومن الناس من يعبد الله علي حرف
meaning on the edge
If he is touched by good, he is reassured by it; but if he is struck by trial, he turns on his face [to the other direction]. He has lost [this] world and the Hereafter. That is what is the manifest loss.
فإن أصابه خير اطمئن به وإن أصابته فتنة انقلب على وجهه خسر الدنيا والآخرة ذلك هو الخسران المبين
So Allah the Exalted tests man with this and that. So you must be patient and await relief, for Allah the Exalted may test, and He, Glorified and Exalted is He, is the Most Wise with His servants.
And His saying:
immense
عظيم
, Allah the Exalted magnified it because it is truly immense that an enemy was empowered over them who slaughtered their sons and spared their women, leaving the women widows and the men who defended them facing slaughter at times and killing at times.
