The story of the miracle of Prophet Musa uncovering a murder case through the slaughter of a heifer from Bani Isra'il, according to surah Al-Baqarah verses 67-73, which demonstrates Allah's power to resurrect the dead.
The Story of the Heifer of the Children of Israel in Islamic History
The Story of the Heifer of Bani Isra'il
One of the several miracles that Allah gave to Prophet Musa was the slaughter of a heifer, known as the heifer of Bani Isra'il.
It is narrated that there was a young man, the only son of a wealthy person, who inherited a great fortune left by his deceased father, leaving no other heir except this only son.
The cousins of this sole heir became jealous and wanted to gain control of the great fortune or at least a part of it. And because according to the law prevailing at that time, which did not give them any right to obtain even a part of the inheritance from their uncle, they conspired to kill this heir, so that if he died, the large inheritance would fall to them.
The murder of this legitimate heir was carried out according to a well-organized plan, then they came to Prophet Musa and reported that they had found their cousin dead, killed by someone whose identity and whereabouts were unknown. They hoped that Prophet Musa could reveal the veil covering the murder incident and identify who the murderer was.
The Story of the Heifer of the Children of Israel in Islamic History
For this purpose, Prophet Musa sought help from Allah, who immediately revealed to him a command to slaughter a heifer and use its tongue to strike the victim's corpse, which by Allah's permission would come back to life and tell who had actually murdered him.
When Prophet Musa conveyed to his people the method revealed by Allah, he was mocked and ridiculed because their minds could not accept that such a thing could happen. They forgot that Allah had repeatedly shown His power through miracles given to Musa which were sometimes even more extraordinary and more difficult for the human mind to accept compared to the miracle they were facing in this murder case.
They said to Musa mockingly: 'Do you intend to make us a laughingstock with this method you are proposing? If what you propose is truly revelation, then ask your Lord what kind of heifer it should be - female or male? What are its characteristics and color so we do not make a mistake in choosing the heifer we should slaughter?'
Musa replied: 'According to Allah's guidance, the one that should be slaughtered is a yellow heifer of middle age, which has never been used for plowing land or watering plants, is not defective and has no spots.'
Then people were sent to the remote villages and countryside searching for the heifer in question, which was finally found in the possession of an orphan boy who owned it as his sole inheritance from his deceased father and as his only means of livelihood. The father of the orphan boy was a poor but pious man, devoted in his worship, who as his death approached, prayed to Allah asking for protection for his only son who could not be left with any inheritance except this heifer. By the blessing of the righteous father's prayer, the orphan's heifer was sold for many times its normal price because it met the requirements and characteristics specified by Musa for slaughter.
The Story of the Heifer of the Children of Israel in Islamic History
After slaughtering the heifer bought from the orphan boy, Prophet Musa took its tongue and struck it against the victim's body, whereupon by Allah's permission he came back to life and told Prophet Musa and his followers how he had been killed by his own cousins.
Thus was yet another of Allah's miracles shown to the stubborn and hardened people of Bani Isra'il, but this did not erase their arrogance and rebelliousness, nor could it remove the seeds of polytheism and disbelief that still clung to their chests and hearts.
The verses of the Qur'an that narrate the above story are found in surah 'Al-Baqarah verses 67 to 73 as follows:
'67 And [remember] when Musa said to his people, 'Indeed, Allah commands you to slaughter a cow.' They said, 'Do you take us in ridicule?' He said, 'I seek refuge in Allah from being among the ignorant.'
68 They said, 'Call upon your Lord to make clear to us what it is.' [Musa] said, '[Allah] says, 'It is a cow which is neither old nor virgin, but [something] between that.' So do what you are commanded.'
69 They said, 'Call upon your Lord to show us what is her color.' [Musa] said, '[Allah] says, 'It is a yellow cow, bright in color that pleases those who look at her.'
70 They said, 'Call upon your Lord to make clear to us what it is. Indeed, to us the cows look much alike, and indeed, if Allah wills, we will be guided.'
71 [Musa] said, 'It is a cow not trained to plow the land or irrigate the field, one free from fault with no spot upon her.' They said, 'Now you have come with [the] truth.' So they slaughtered her, but they could hardly do it.'
72 And [remember] when you slew a man and disputed over it, but Allah was to bring out that which you were concealing.'
73 So We said, 'Strike him with part of it.' Thus does Allah bring the dead to life, and He shows you His signs that perhaps you will use reason.' (Al-Baqarah: 67-73)
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