Quote:
{4:153} The People of the Scripture ask you to bring down to them a book from the heaven. But they had asked of Moses [even] greater than that and said, "Show us God outright," so the thunderbolt struck them for their wrongdoing. Then they took the calf [for worship] after clear evidences had come to them, and We pardoned that. And We gave Moses a clear authority.
I suggest,
{4:153} The People of the Book ask you [, O Muhammad,] to bring down upon them a book from the heaven. Well, they did ask Moses [for something] bigger than that and said, "Show us God openly," thus seized them the thunderbolt for their wrongdoing. Then they took for themselves the calf [for worship] after had come to them the clear evidences, and We pardoned that. And We gave Moses a clear authority.Quote:
{4:154} And We raised over them the mount for [refusal of] their covenant; and We said to them, "Enter the gate bowing humbly", and We said to them, "Do not transgress on the sabbath", and We took from them a solemn covenant.
I suggest,
{4:154} And We raised over them the mount by[the terms of] their covenant; and We said to them, "Enter the gate fully prostrating", and We said to them, "Do not trespass during the sabbath", and We took from them a sturdy covenant. Quote:
{4:155} And [We cursed them] for their breaking of the covenant and their disbelief in the signs of God and their killing of the prophets without right and their saying, "Our hearts are wrapped". Rather, God has sealed them because of their disbelief, so they believe not, except for a few.
I prefer modern English, i.e., "do not believe" instead of "believe not". I suggest,
{4:155} Therefore, because of their dismantling of their covenant, their disbelief in the signs of God, their killing of the prophets without right and their saying, "Our hearts are wrapped" [, We cursed them]. Rather, God has sealed upon them because of their disbelief, so they do not believe, except a few.