Remember when Moses said to his people, ‘God commands you to sacrifice a cow.’ They said, ‘Are you making fun of us?’ He answered, ‘God forbid that I should be so ignorant.’

They said, ‘Call on your Lord for us, to show us what sort of cow it should be.’ He answered, ‘God says it should be neither too old nor too young, but in between, so do as you are commanded.’

They said, ‘Call on your Lord for us, to show us what colour it should be.’ He answered, ‘God says it should be a bright yellow cow, pleasing to the eye.’

They said, ‘Call on your Lord for us, to show us [exactly] what it is: all cows are more or less alike to us. With God’s will, we shall be guided.’

He replied, ‘It is a perfect and unblemished cow, not trained to till the earth or water the fields.’ They said, ‘Now you have brought the truth,’ and so they slaughtered it, though they almost failed to do so.

وَإِذْ قَالَ مُوسَىٰ لِقَوْمِهِۦٓ إِنَّ ٱللَّهَ يَأْمُرُكُمْ أَن تَذْبَحُوا۟ بَقَرَةࣰۖ قَالُوٓا۟ أَتَتَّخِذُنَا هُزُوࣰاۖ قَالَ أَعُوذُ بِٱللَّهِ أَنْ أَكُونَ مِنَ ٱلْجَٰهِلِينَ

قَالُوا۟ ٱدْعُ لَنَا رَبَّكَ يُبَيِّن لَّنَا مَا هِيَۚ قَالَ إِنَّهُۥ يَقُولُ إِنَّهَا بَقَرَةࣱ لَّا فَارِضࣱ وَلَا بِكْرٌ عَوَانُۢ بَيْنَ ذَٰلِكَۖ فَٱفْعَلُوا۟ مَا تُؤْمَرُونَ

قَالُوا۟ ٱدْعُ لَنَا رَبَّكَ يُبَيِّن لَّنَا مَا لَوْنُهَاۚ قَالَ إِنَّهُۥ يَقُولُ إِنَّهَا بَقَرَةࣱ صَفْرَآءُ فَاقِعࣱ لَّوْنُهَا تَسُرُّ ٱلنَّٰظِرِينَ

قَالُوا۟ ٱدْعُ لَنَا رَبَّكَ يُبَيِّن لَّنَا مَا هِيَ إِنَّ ٱلْبَقَرَ تَشَٰبَهَ عَلَيْنَا وَإِنَّآ إِن شَآءَ ٱللَّهُ لَمُهْتَدُونَ

قَالَ إِنَّهُۥ يَقُولُ إِنَّهَا بَقَرَةࣱ لَّا ذَلُولࣱ تُثِيرُ ٱلْأَرْضَ وَلَا تَسْقِي ٱلْحَرْثَ مُسَلَّمَةࣱ لَّا شِيَةَ فِيهَاۚ قَالُوا۟ ٱلْـَٰٔنَ جِئْتَ بِٱلْحَقِّۚ فَذَبَحُوهَا وَمَا كَادُوا۟ يَفْعَلُونَ

Then, when you [Israelites] killed someone and started to blame one another- although God was to bring what you had concealed to light-

We said, ‘Strike the [body] with a part of [the cow]’: thus God brings the dead to life and shows His signs so that you may understand.

وَإِذْ قَتَلْتُمْ نَفْسࣰا فَٱدَّٰرَٰ͏ْٔتُمْ فِيهَاۖ وَٱللَّهُ مُخْرِجࣱ مَّا كُنتُمْ تَكْتُمُونَ

فَقُلْنَا ٱضْرِبُوهُ بِبَعْضِهَاۚ كَذَٰلِكَ يُحْيِ ٱللَّهُ ٱلْمَوْتَىٰ وَيُرِيكُمْ ءَايَٰتِهِۦ لَعَلَّكُمْ تَعْقِلُونَ