Prophets Yūshaʿ and Dāwūd: Ṭālūt’s River and the Making of a King
Section 8 of 28 · Lives of the Prophets
He Is Not Noble and Not Rich
They asked for a king; they asked for a leader; and Allah (swt) provided them with one. Their nabī said:
وَقَالَ لَهُمْ نَبِيُّهُمْ إِنَّ ٱللَّهَ قَدْ بَعَثَ لَكُمْ طَالُوتَ مَلِكًا ۚ قَالُوٓا۟ أَنَّىٰ يَكُونُ لَهُ ٱلْمُلْكُ عَلَيْنَا وَنَحْنُ أَحَقُّ بِٱلْمُلْكِ مِنْهُ وَلَمْ يُؤْتَ سَعَةً مِّنَ ٱلْمَالِ ۚ قَالَ إِنَّ ٱللَّهَ ٱصْطَفَىٰهُ عَلَيْكُمْ وَزَادَهُۥ بَسْطَةً فِى ٱلْعِلْمِ وَٱلْجِسْمِ ۖ وَٱللَّهُ يُؤْتِى مُلْكَهُۥ مَن يَشَآءُ ۚ وَٱللَّهُ وَٰسِعٌ عَلِيمٌ
“Their prophet said to them: “Allah has appointed Tālūt as a king for you.” They said: “How could he have kingship over us when we are more entitled to the kingship than him? He has not been given affluence in wealth.” He said: “Allah has chosen him over you and has increased his stature in knowledge and physique, and Allah gives His kingship to whom He wills. Allah is All-Embracing, All-Knowing.’” (2:247)
Allah (swt) has sent you Ṭālūt as a king. Allah has appointed a king for you, and he is Ṭālūt. Now these people, who asked to fight for the sake of Allah, were the first ones to argue with the command of their nabī. They came to the nabī and said: we want a leader. And when they were provided with a leader, they started arguing and said: we do not want him. They are asking for a king; Allah (swt) provides them with a leader; and then they say: we do not want him. Why?
They gave two reasons why they disagreed with the appointment of Ṭālūt as king. Number one: he is not from the nobility; he is not from the noble families. Number two: he is not wealthy. These are the two reasons. How can he be a king when he does not belong to the high class? And how can he be a king when he is not wealthy?
And this is the nature of Banū Isrāʾīl. What they consider to be success in life is the status of the class you come from, because they always use race as an issue. Banū Isrāʾīl, the Jews — it is an issue for them: we are the chosen people, we are the special people, you are the Gentiles, you are lower class. So race is important to them. And then the second issue: money. These are the criteria they use — race and money.
And this is a disease in the hearts of the children of Israel, and it is also a disease that exists somewhat among us. We consider people to be successful according to how much money they have. What do they say? How much is he worth? How much is he worth? So we judge the person according to how much money he has. When you say how much the person is worth, what are you talking about? His money. He is worth a billion; he is worth a million. If he does not have any money, he is worth nothing. His īmān does not matter; his ṣalāh does not matter; his dīn does not matter. If he does not have money, he is worth nothing.