ثم بدلنا مكان السيئة الحسنة ) يعني : مكان البأساء والضراء الحسنة ، يعني : النعمة والسعة والخصب والصحة ، ( حتى عفوا ) أي : كثروا وازدادوا ، وكثرت أموالهم ، يقال : عفا الشعر إذا كثر . قال مجاهد : كثرت أموالهم وأولادهم ( وقالوا ) من غرتهم وغفلتهم بعد ما صاروا إلى الرخاء ، ( قد مس آباءنا الضراء والسراء ) أي : هكذا كانت عادة الدهر قديما لنا ولآبائنا ، ولم يكن ما مسنا من الضراء عقوبة من الله ، فكونوا على ما أنتم عليه كما كان آباؤكم فإنهم لم يتركوا دينهم لما أصابهم من الضراء ، قال الله تعالى : ( فأخذناهم بغتة ) فجأة آمن ما كانوا ( وهم لا يشعرون ) بنزول العذاب .
After trying them with suffering and illness Allah improved their situation and turned their suffering into well-being and safety, until they became many and their wealth increased, and they said that the bad and good that they had experienced was a normal part of life and that the same thing had happened to their ancestors before them. They did not recognise that there was a lesson to be learned in the difficulties that occurred to them and that there was a test for them in the good that they were given. Then Allah overtook them suddenly with the punishment, while they were unaware of it and did not expect it.