Transliteration:( Fantalaqaa hattaaa izaaa atayaaa ahla qaryatinis tat'amaaa ahlahaa fa abaw any yudaiyifoohumaa fawajadaa feehaa jidaarany yureedu any yanqadda fa aqaamah; qaala law shi'ta lattakhazta 'alaihi ajraa )
"Again both went on until they came to the people of a village [171]. They asked the villagers for food [172], but they refused [173] to entertain them. Then they found a wall about to collapse [174], and he set it right. Musa said, 'If you had wished, you could have taken a wage for it [175].'"
The village mentioned here was Intakia, a large city at that time. This verse shows that in Arabic, even a city can be referred to as "Qarya" (village).
We also learn that hospitality should not depend on familiarity—a guest, whether known or not, has inherent rights and privileges. Whoever comes seeking shelter or food is to be respected and served, as part of Islamic ethical conduct.
When Hazrat Musa and Hazrat Khizr (peace be upon them) asked for food, it was not out of personal neediness, nor did it lower their status. It was a legitimate request, grounded in the right of a guest.
This teaches that guests may respectfully ask for their due, and such a request is not dishonorable—especially when made by those of noble status, like Prophets.
The people of Intakia refused hospitality, displaying ingratitude and arrogance. According to Tafseer Roohul Bayaan, upon the revelation of this verse, the people of Intakia brought gold to the Holy Prophet ﷺ, asking him to change the letter "Ba" in the word "Abwa" to "Ta", to make the verse suggest they had offered hospitality.
The Holy Prophet ﷺ refused, saying that doing so would distort the words of Allah, as revealed in the Holy Qur’an—emphasizing the uncompromising sanctity of divine revelation.
The wall was reportedly 100 feet high and on the verge of collapse. Hazrat Khizr (on whom be peace) straightened it miraculously, simply by pointing his hand.
Allah used the singular verb "aqāma" (he set it right), indicating that only Hazrat Khizr performed the repair. If both he and Hazrat Musa had worked on it physically, the dual verb would have been used, further highlighting the miraculous nature of this act.
Hazrat Musa (on whom be peace), seeing the hostility and ingratitude of the villagers, remarked that they could have taken a wage for their effort, especially since they were hungry.
His suggestion was rooted in the apparent logic of compensation—why show kindness to those who have shown none in return? Yet, this was another test of divine wisdom versus outward reasoning, which Hazrat Khizr would soon explain.
77. Then they both proceeded till when they came to the people of a town, they asked them for food, but they refused to entertain them. Then they found therein a wall about to collapse and he set it up straight. (Musa) said: “If you had wished, surely you could have taken wages for it!” 78. He said: “This is the parting between you and I, I will tell you the interpretation of (those) things over which you were not able to be patient.”
(they both proceeded) after the first two instances,
(till when they came to the people of a town,) Ibn Jarir narrated from Ibn Sirin that this was Al-Aylah. According to the Hadith;
(When they came there, the people of the town were mean.) i.e., miserly
(they asked them for food, but they refused to entertain them. Then they found therein a wall about to collapse and he (Khidr) set it up straight.) means, he fixed it so it was standing upright properly. We have already seen in the Hadith quoted above that he set it up with his own hands, supporting it until it was standing straight again, which is something extraordinary. At this point Musa said to him:
(If you had wished, surely you could have taken wages for it!) meaning, because they did not entertain us as guests, you should not have worked for them for free.
(He said: “This is the parting between you and I) meaning, because you said after the boy was killed that if you asked me anything after that, you would not accompany me any further. So this is the parting of the ways between me and you.
(I will tell you the interpretation) meaning explanation,
(of (those) things over which you were not able to be patient.)
(18:77) Then the two went forth until when they came to a town, they asked its people for food, but they refused to play host to them. They found in that town a wall that was on the verge of tumbling down, and he buttressed it, whereupon Moses said: “If you had wished, you could have received payment for it.”
There is no commentary by Abul Maududi available for this verse.
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