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Did you not consider those who went out of their houses in thousands, fearing death? So Allah said to them, “Die,” then He brought them (back) to life, Allah is certainly Gracious to human beings but the majority of human beings is not grateful. (Al Quran, Surah Al Baqarah, Chapter 2: Verse 243)
Summarized Commentary:
“various incidences are cited in connection with the interpretation of Verse 243 and there is no unanimity. It appears that fearing death i.e. to avoid death (whatever could have been the dreaded cause, disease, war etc.) thousands of people of a particular community had left their houses. Allah (SWT) wanted to demonstrate to them that it is only by His order that people die and not due to the apparent causes like disease, war etc. therefore He ordered them to die and then brought them back to life. Allah (SWT) is Gracious to human beings in teaching them lessons through such events but most of them do not acknowledge this. With this firm belief that life and death are in the hands of Allah (SWT) and no one or nothing else, believers are ordered to fight in His way to establish a kingdom based on His laws. Fighting for such a cause needs effort as well as money, it is therefore classified that the efforts and money spent on this cause will be multiplied and returned to them. People may restrain from spending due to the fear of poverty therefore it is further clarified that it is again Allah (SWT) who makes whomever He will rich or poor. if one does not spend for His cause, he may lose money in some other way.”