What is the wisdom behind God Almighty’s prohibition of hunting on the Sabbath for people who practice the Sabbath?

• The wisdom behind prohibiting hunting on Saturday:

It is a test of the sincerity of their faith and intention, and a test for them.

• People of the Sabbath: They are a group of Jews from the Children of Israel. They used to live in a town located on the sea, and if they wanted to ask God for something in the affairs of their lives or in their worship, they would ask their Prophet Moses, peace be upon him, to ask God, Blessed and Most High.

Saturday owners

- So they asked their Prophet Moses, peace be upon him, to allocate a day for them to devote themselves to worship, so that this day would be a day of worship and rest at the same time, so that day was Saturday.

- And they were working in fishing, so God wanted to test their faith and honesty, so God Almighty commanded the whales not to approach their beaches on work days, while they become more intense on Saturday, which is the day on which God forbade working.

In order for God to test the sincerity of their intentions, these whales or fish would appear on the water on the Sabbath and appear clearly for everyone to see.

So they started to cheat. They would place barriers and nets on Saturday night and tie them up in order to collect the largest amount of these fish, then they would take them out on Sunday night or day to catch them.

The people of this village were divided into three sections of the Children of Israel:

• Among them are the righteous who responded to the commands of God Almighty and began to warn the disobedient of this fraud and of God’s wrath upon them.

• Some of them disobeyed God Almighty and committed fraud by hunting on Saturday.

• Among them were those who were neutral and did not participate in either preaching or hunting on the day of prohibition.

- So the word of torment was imposed on these disobedient children of Israel, so God Almighty turned them into apes - according to the words of God Almighty: (And you knew those of you who transgressed on the Sabbath, so We said to them, “Be apes, despised.” Surah Al-Baqarah 65).

- And God cursed them in the Almighty’s saying (or will We curse them as We cursed those who followed the Sabbath, and God’s command was in effect) Surah An-Nisa.

 

- Those who were transformed did not remain alive for more than three days, during which they did not eat or drink, and no offspring emerged from them.

- So they were an example for the nations that came after them, and God Almighty saved, by His mercy, the righteous and the believers who were truthful with God Almighty.