ثُمَّ بَعَثْنَا مِنْ بَعْدِهِ رُسُلًا إِلَى قَوْمِهِمْ فَجَاءُوهُمْ بِالْبَيِّنَاتِ فَمَا كَانُوا لِيُؤْمِنُوا بِمَا كَذَّبُوا بِهِ مِنْ قَبْلُ كَذَلِكَ نَطْبَعُ عَلَى قُلُوبِ الْمُعْتَدِينَ ﴿۷۴﴾ ثُمَّ بَعَثْنَا مِنْ بَعْدِهِمْ مُوسَى وَهَارُونَ إِلَى فِرْعَوْنَ وَمَلَئِهِ بِآيَاتِنَا فَاسْتَكْبَرُوا وَكَانُوا قَوْمًا مُجْرِمِينَ ﴿۷۵﴾ فَلَمَّا جَاءَهُمُ الْحَقُّ مِنْ عِنْدِنَا قَالُوا إِنَّ هَذَا لَسِحْرٌ مُبِينٌ ﴿۷۶﴾

﴾74﴿ Thumma ba'asnaa min ba'dihee Rusulan ilaa qawmihim fajaaa'oohum bil baiyinaati famaa kaanoo liyu'minoo bimaa kazzaboo bihee min qabl; kazaalika natba'u 'alaa quloobil mu'tadeen
﴾75﴿ Thumma ba'asnaa min ba'dihim Moosaa Wa Haaroona ilaa Fir'awna wa mala'ihee bi aayaatinaa fastakbaroo wa kaanoo qawman mujrimeen
﴾76﴿ Falammaa jaaa'ahumul haqqu min 'indinaa qaalooo inna haazaa la sihrun mubeen

﴾74﴿ And We sent many messengers after him to his people, and they brought them clear proofs. But they did not believe, because they had denied the truth before. Thus, We seal the hearts of the wrongdoers
﴾75﴿ Then We sent after them Moses and Aaron, with Our signs, to Pharaoh and the chiefs of his people, but they acted arrogantly and were a criminal people
﴾76﴿ Therefore, when the truth came to them from Us, they said, ‘This is indeed obvious sorcery

[74] In this verse, there is a general summary of the reports of earlier prophets (دلیل نقلی اجمالی), and it outlines three levels of denial by the disbelievers:
1. تَكذيب (Denial)
2. عدم إيمان (Lack of faith)
3. خَتم بر قلوب (Sealing of hearts)

(بِمَا كَذَّبُوا) – This phrase has two interpretations:
First Interpretation:
The pronouns “لِيُؤْمِنُوا” and “كَذَّبُوا” refer to the same people. The meaning: They initially rejected the truth, and due to that rejection, they were deprived of faith. So the sealing of the heart was a consequence of their first denial.
Second Interpretation:
“لِيُؤْمِنُوا” refers to the later generations (the followers or descendants), While “كَذَّبُوا” refers to the earlier people, like the people of Nūḥ (peace be upon him).
Within this second view, there are two possibilities:
1. The bāʼ (بـ) is causal (باء سببيه): meaning the later ones were deprived of faith due to the earlier ones’ rejection, i.e., they imitated their forefathers in disbelief.
2. The bāʼ is a connector (باء صله) to “لِيُؤْمِنُوا”: meaning the later people did not believe in what the earlier ones had denied.
(كَذَلِكَ) – Here, kāf means “for the reason of” (لام علّیه)—i.e., “for this very reason, Allah seals the hearts of the disbelievers”.
This verse emphasizes that persistent rejection, whether directly or through blind following, leads to spiritual sealing, blocking the path of guidance.
[75] This verse is a narration (dalīl naqlī) from the story of Mūsā (peace be upon him), and its purpose is to warn the deniers about worldly punishment, while also highlighting the bravery of Mūsā and his companions.
(بِآيَاتِنَا) – Refers to the nine miracles granted to Mūsā (peace be upon him), as previously detailed in Surah Al-A‘rāf.
(فَاسْتَكْبَرُوا) – They arrogantly rejected the message of Tawḥīd and Prophethood, considering themselves superior. Their denial was not due to lack of evidence, but due to pride.
(مُجْرِمِينَ) – They were openly committing sins and crimes, showing no remorse or concealment.
In the three verses that follow, the Qur'an elaborates on their arrogance (استكبار) and criminal behavior (إجرام), reinforcing the warning that those who follow the same path are liable to meet the same fate.
[76] In this verse, the arrogance (استكبار) of Pharaoh is described, and the phrase “الحق” (the truth) refers to the miracles of Mūsā (peace be upon him).
Despite witnessing clear signs and undeniable proofs, Pharaoh rejected them out of pride and arrogance—not due to lack of clarity or evidence.