Al-Mizan

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Verses 103–126 ​

Chapter 7: Al-Aʿrāf (Elevations) · Printed edition: Volume 16, pp. 25–43

ثُمَّ بَعَثْنا مِنْ بَعْدِهِمْ مُوسى‏ بِآياتِنا إِلى‏ فِرْعَوْنَ وَ مَلائِهِ فَظَلَمُوا بِها فَانْظُرْ كَيْفَ كانَ عاقِبَةُ الْمُفْسِدِينَ ١٠٣ وَ قالَ مُوسى‏ يا فِرْعَوْنُ إِنِّي رَسُولٌ مِنْ رَبِّ الْعالَمِينَ ١٠٤ حَقِيقٌ عَلى‏ أَنْ لا أَقُولَ عَلَى اللَّهِ إِلاَّ الْحَقَّ قَدْ جِئْتُكُمْ بِبَيِّنَةٍ مِنْ رَبِّكُمْ فَأَرْسِلْ مَعِيَ بَنِي إِسْرائِيلَ ١٠٥ قالَ إِنْ كُنْتَ جِئْتَ بِآيَةٍ فَأْتِ بِها إِنْ كُنْتَ مِنَ الصَّادِقِينَ ١٠٦ فَأَلْقى‏ عَصاهُ فَإِذا هِيَ ثُعْبانٌ مُبِينٌ ١٠٧ وَ نَزَعَ يَدَهُ فَإِذا هِيَ بَيْضاءُ لِلنَّاظِرِينَ ١٠٨ قالَ الْمَلَأُ مِنْ قَوْمِ فِرْعَوْنَ إِنَّ هذا لَساحِرٌ عَلِيمٌ ١٠٩ يُرِيدُ أَنْ يُخْرِجَكُمْ مِنْ أَرْضِكُمْ فَما ذا تَأْمُرُونَ ١١٠ قالُوا أَرْجِهْ وَ أَخاهُ وَ أَرْسِلْ فِي الْمَدائِنِ حاشِرِينَ ١١١ يَأْتُوكَ بِكُلِّ ساحِرٍ عَلِيمٍ ١١٢ وَ جاءَ السَّحَرَةُ فِرْعَوْنَ قالُوا إِنَّ لَنا لَأَجْراً إِنْ كُنَّا نَحْنُ الْغالِبِينَ ١١٣ قالَ نَعَمْ وَ إِنَّكُمْ لَمِنَ الْمُقَرَّبِينَ ١١٤ قالُوا يا مُوسى‏ إِمَّا أَنْ تُلْقِيَ وَ إِمَّا أَنْ نَكُونَ نَحْنُ الْمُلْقِينَ ١١٥ قالَ أَلْقُوا فَلَمَّا أَلْقَوْا سَحَرُوا أَعْيُنَ النَّاسِ وَ اسْتَرْهَبُوهُمْ وَ جاؤُ بِسِحْرٍ عَظِيمٍ ١١٦ وَ أَوْحَيْنا إِلى‏ مُوسى‏ أَنْ أَلْقِ عَصاكَ فَإِذا هِيَ تَلْقَفُ ما يَأْفِكُونَ ١١٧ فَوَقَعَ الْحَقُّ وَ بَطَلَ ما كانُوا يَعْمَلُونَ ١١٨ فَغُلِبُوا هُنالِكَ وَ انْقَلَبُوا صاغِرِينَ ١١٩ وَ أُلْقِيَ السَّحَرَةُ ساجِدِينَ ١٢٠ قالُوا آمَنَّا بِرَبِّ الْعالَمِينَ ١٢١ رَبِّ مُوسى‏ وَ هارُونَ ١٢٢ قالَ فِرْعَوْنُ آمَنْتُمْ بِهِ قَبْلَ أَنْ آذَنَ لَكُمْ إِنَّ هذا لَمَكْرٌ مَكَرْتُمُوهُ فِي الْمَدِينَةِ لِتُخْرِجُوا مِنْها أَهْلَها فَسَوْفَ تَعْلَمُونَ ١٢٣ لَأُقَطِّعَنَّ أَيْدِيَكُمْ وَ أَرْجُلَكُمْ مِنْ خِلافٍ ثُمَّ لَأُصَلِّبَنَّكُمْ أَجْمَعِينَ ١٢٤ قالُوا إِنَّا إِلى‏ رَبِّنا مُنْقَلِبُونَ ١٢٥ وَ ما تَنْقِمُ مِنَّا إِلاَّ أَنْ آمَنَّا بِآياتِ رَبِّنا لَمَّا جاءَتْنا رَبَّنا أَفْرِغْ عَلَيْنا صَبْراً وَ تَوَفَّنا مُسْلِمِينَ ١٢٦

  1. Then after them We sent Moses with Our signs to Pharaoh and his elite, but they wronged them. So observe the fate of the agents of corruption!
  2. And Moses said, “O Pharaoh, I am indeed a messenger from the Lord of all worlds.
  3. It behooves me to not ascribe anything to Allah except the truth. I certainly bring you a manifest proof from your Lord. So let the Children of Israel go with me.”
  4. He said, “If you have brought a sign, produce it, if you are truthful.”
  5. Thereat he threw down his staff, and behold, it became a manifest python.
  6. Then he drew out his hand, and behold, it was white to the onlookers.
  7. The elite of Pharaoh’s people said, “This is indeed an expert magician;
  8. he seeks to expel you from your land.” “So what do you advise?”
  9. They said, “Put him and his brother off for a while, and send heralds to the cities,
  10. to bring you every expert magician.”
  11. And the magicians came to Pharaoh. They said, “We shall indeed have a reward if we were to be the victors?”
  12. He said, “Of course! And indeed you shall be among those near [to me].”
  13. They said, “O Moses, will you throw [first], or shall we throw?”
  14. He said, “Throw [yours].” So when they threw, they bewitched the people’s eyes and overawed them, producing a tremendous magic.
  15. And We signaled to Moses that: “Throw down your staff.” And behold, it was swallowing what they had faked.
  16. So the truth set in, and what they had wrought was reduced to naught.
  17. Thereat they were vanquished, and they retreated, humiliated.
  18. And the magicians were cast down in prostration.
  19. They said, “We have believed in the Lord of all worlds,
  20. the Lord of Moses and Aaron.”
  21. Pharaoh said, “Do you profess faith in Him before I permit you? It is indeed a plot you have devised in the city to expel its people from it. Soon you will know [the consequences]!
  22. Surely I will cut off your hands and feet on opposite sides, and then I will surely crucify all of you.”
  23. They said, “Indeed we shall return to our Lord.
  24. You are vindictive toward us only because we have believed in the signs of our Lord, when they came to us.” “Our Lord! Pour patience upon us, and let us die as submitters.”

Introduction ​

Here the chapter starts a series of stories about Prophet Moses. The current set of verses describe when he first went to Pharaoh and announced his mission to deliver the Children of Israel. He showed Pharaoh the two miracles that God had given him on the first night when He talked to him on Mount Ṭūr. The next set of verses briefly discuss his stay in Egypt among the Children of Israel, as part of his mission to save them, as well as the calamities which befell Pharaoh’s people, up to when God delivers the Israelites. The chapter then talks about the revelation of the Torah, and the worship of the calf by the Children of Israel. Then we shall read some miscellaneous stories about the Israelites, all meant as a lesson for the vigilant reader.

Commentary ​

ثُمَّ بَعَثْنَا مِنْ بَعْدِهِمْ مُوسَىٰ بِآيَاتِنَا إِلَىٰ فِرْعَوْنَ وَمَلَئِهِ فَظَلَمُوا بِهَا ۖ فَانْظُرْ كَيْفَ كَانَ عَاقِبَةُ الْمُفْسِدِينَ ١٠٣

(7:103) Then after them We sent Moses with Our signs to Pharaoh and his elite, but they wronged them. So observe the fate of the agents of corruption!

Moses is introduced differently than the previous prophets in this chapter. This shows special attention and emphasis, since he was among the Resolute Messengers (ūlū al-ʿazm), meaning that he had a scripture with a divine code of law (shariah). The evolution of divine religions entered a new stage of elaboration with Moses’ mission, following the missions of Noah and Abraham. We can infer these stages of transformation from the wording of the verses in this chapter. God introduces Prophet Noah by saying: Certainly (la-qad) We sent Noah to his people (). Then He introduces Prophets Hūd and Ṣāliḥ by saying: And to [the people of] ʿĀd, Hūd (); And to [the people of] Thamūd, Ṣāliḥ (). These two prophets are introduced in a similar manner because they propagated Noah’s religion. Then we see a change when Prophet Lot is introduced, because he belonged to Abraham’s religion, which marked a new stage of religion: And Lot, when he said to his people (). Then Prophet Shuʿayb is introduced in the same manner [as Prophets Hūd and Ṣāliḥ: And to [the people of] Midian, Shuʿayb ()]. And here we see another change when Prophet Moses is introduced: Then after them We sent Moses with Our signs to Pharaoh and his elite ().

Moses was the third Resolute Messenger, who brought a new scripture and legal code. In reality, there is only one divine religion, and there is no contradiction or opposition between the different divine codes of law. Their only difference is in terms of concision, elaboration, addition and perfection. And these differences are based on humankind’s gradual growth of the capacity to receive divine teachings over the ages. The potentialities of humankind constantly evolve from limitation to perfection, until they reach their highest stage of intellectual development. At that point, God’s scripture and laws become established forever, and divine messengership and prophethood are sealed. Then there shall no longer be a new scripture or legal code. Humanity will still have to grow gradually toward perfection, but their growth will be through practicing and spreading this religion within their societies, and coming under its umbrella completely. Our development is through realizing the truth of divine teachings, and advancing in knowledge and practice as promoted by the Book of God and His legal code. The earth indeed belongs to Allah, and He gives its inheritance to whomever He wills of His servants, and the outcome will be in favor of the Godwary ().

Then after them We sent Moses with Our signs…: This verse involves a concise reference to Moses’ story overall. Then the next verse starts a detailed account of it: And Moses said, “O Pharaoh…” (). While we classified the stories in this chapter as the story of Moses, the story of Noah, the story of Hūd, and so on, they are in fact the stories of the people and nations to whom these noble prophets were sent. The central theme of these stories is to describe how the people met God’s messengers with rejection and denial, and how they ended being destroyed with a divine punishment that exterminated them entirely. That is why one can see that all these stories end with a massive punishment that took the lives of the people.

The reader should also remember what we said at the beginning of this chapter: the message of the chapter is to discuss how the people have kept up with the divine covenant which God has made with them all. This is a warning for all people in general, and a reminder for the believers in particular. These two points—warning and reminder—are the common theme and purpose between chapters with start with alif-lām-mīm [Chapters 2, 3, 29, 30, 31, 32] and Sūrah Ṣād [Chapter 38].

Then after them…: That is, after the above mentioned prophets: Noah, Hūd, Ṣāliḥ, Lot and Shuʿayb.

… We sent Moses with Our signs to Pharaoh and his elite …: He was sent to the king of Egypt and his prominent courtiers. Firʿawn (Pharaoh) was a general title for the rulers of Egypt, much like qayṣar (Caesar), kasrá (Chosroes, Khosrau) and faghfūr (Huangdi) in Rome, Persia and China, respectively. The Qur’an has not mentioned the specific name of this Pharaoh to whom Moses was sent, and whom God drowned through Moses’ hand.

… with Our signs…: This apparently refers to the miracles of Moses, including what he brought at the beginning of his call—turning his staff into a python, and drawing his hand from his armpit white—as well as the afflictions that God sent upon them later: flood and locusts, lice, frogs and blood, as distinct signs (). The miracles of no other prophet in the Qur’an amounts to those of Moses in abundance.

… but they wronged them…: They wronged the signs of God, as we shall see in the verses below. Wronging anything would be in accordance to that thing. Wronging the signs of God means rejecting and denying them.

… So observe the fate of the agents of corruption: The verse turns our attention to the end result of their corruption so that we may learn a lesson. They used to make mischief in the earth and oppress the Children of Israel. Part of Moses’ message, when he met Pharaoh, was: So let the Children of Israel go with me (). Elsewhere the Qur’an narrates from him: Let the Children of Israel go with us, and do not torture them ().

وَقَالَ مُوسَىٰ يَا فِرْعَوْنُ إِنِّي رَسُولٌ مِنْ رَبِّ الْعَالَمِينَ ١٠٤

(7:104) And Moses said, “O Pharaoh, I am indeed a messenger from the Lord of all worlds.”

Here the chapter starts an elaborate account of Moses’ mission, as we said above. Moses introduced himself as a “messenger” in order to prepare the grounds for describing the purpose of his mission. In confronting the polytheists, it is most appropriate to refer to God as the Lord of all worlds. This counters their view that there is an independent lord for every aspect or part of the universe, and each community has its own god.

حَقِيقٌ عَلَىٰ أَنْ لَا أَقُولَ عَلَى اللَّهِ إِلَّا الْحَقَّ ۚ قَدْ جِئْتُكُمْ بِبَيِّنَةٍ مِنْ رَبِّكُمْ فَأَرْسِلْ مَعِيَ بَنِي إِسْرَائِيلَ ١٠٥

(7:105) “It behooves me to not ascribe anything to Allah except the truth. I certainly bring you a manifest proof from your Lord. So let the Children of Israel go with me.”

Here Moses emphasizes his truthfulness in his mission. He says, “It is most befitting of me to speak the truth, and not to ascribe to God anything that He has not charged me with, in my mission from Him to you.”

… I certainly bring you a manifest proof from your Lord…: This sentence serves to justify all the previous claims of Moses. One could also say that the sentence justifies his first and foremost claim: I am indeed a messenger from the Lord of all worlds (). That was his main message, from which his other statements are derived.

It behooves me to (ḥaqīq ʿalá)…: Ḥaqīq is synonymous with ḥarī (behooving, befitting, worthy, appropriate). Linguistically speaking, the word ḥaqīq is used with the letter bāʾ before its object. For instance, to say that someone is respectable, one would say, “So-and-so is ḥaqīq bil-ikrām.” In this verse, however, it is used with the preposition ʿalá (on, upon, over). Perhaps this usage is meant to convey the meaning of being very eager and anxious about something. That is: “I am very concerned about…”

The verse has also been recited as ḥaqīq ʿalayya, with a stress on the letter yāʾ. This is based on the usage of the verb ḥaqqa as wajaba (it is incumbent, it is obligatory). The meaning would be: “It is incumbent on me (ʿalayya) to not ascribe anything to Allah except the truth.” This makes the word ḥaqīq (behooving, befitting) the predicate of the sentence. The subject would be: to not ascribe anything… The rest of the meaning should be clear.

قَالَ إِنْ كُنْتَ جِئْتَ بِآيَةٍ فَأْتِ بِهَا إِنْ كُنْتَ مِنَ الصَّادِقِينَ ١٠٦

(7:106) He said, “If you have brought a sign, produce it, if you are truthful.”

There are two conditions in this verse. The first condition—If you have brought a sign—challenges Moses to demonstrate his truthfulness about having brought a sign. Then the second condition at the end of the verse shows that Pharaoh did not belief in Moses’ truthfulness with respect to his claim that he has brought a sign. The effective meaning is: “If you have brought a sign, then produce it, but I do not think that you are truthful in what you say.” Hence, the two conditions in the verse are not repetitive.

فَأَلْقَىٰ عَصَاهُ فَإِذَا هِيَ ثُعْبَانٌ مُبِينٌ ١٠٧

(7:107) Thereat he threw down (fa-alqá) his staff, and behold, it became a manifest python (thuʿbān).

As the exegetes have pointed out, the letter fāʾ at the beginning of this verse is called jawābiyyah (responding, responsive). It means: “Moses responded to him by throwing down his staff.” This type of fāʾ is a subdivision of the general fāʾ which indicates tafrīʿ (consequence, conclusion). The aspect of “response” is understood from its particular application in a given context.

Thuʿbān means “a huge snake.” Elsewhere God says: when he saw it wriggling as if it were a snake (jānn), he turned his back [to flee] (). The word jānn means “a small snake.” As some exegetes have explained, there is no contradiction between these verses, because they pertain to different stories. The small snake appeared upon Moses’ first conversation with God at the night in Mount Ṭūr. The Qur’an also calls it “snake” (ḥayyah) in general when recounting the same story elsewhere: So he threw it down, and behold, it was a snake, moving swiftly (). The large snake, however, occurred when he went to Pharaoh, and Pharaoh demanded him to produce miracles.

وَنَزَعَ يَدَهُ فَإِذَا هِيَ بَيْضَاءُ لِلنَّاظِرِينَ ١٠٨

(7:108) Then he drew out his hand, and behold, it was white to the onlookers.

That is, he drew out his hand from his armpit, as mentioned in these verses: Now clasp your hand to your armpit: it will emerge white, without any fault (); Insert your hand into your armpit. It will emerge white, without any fault ().

According to some narrations, his hand would shine like the sun whenever he produced this miracle. But the Qur’an only describes it as being white to the viewers. Nevertheless, it was such whiteness that the viewers would recognize it as a supernatural phenomenon.

قَالَ الْمَلَأُ مِنْ قَوْمِ فِرْعَوْنَ إِنَّ هَٰذَا لَسَاحِرٌ عَلِيمٌ ١٠٩

(7:109) The elite of Pharaoh’s people said, “This is indeed an expert magician.”

God does not narrate what Pharaoh said at this point, but He narrates the conversation that broke out amongst his chiefs and attendants. It is as though they had a council where they would discuss what was up for decision-making. One would offer his view to others to approve, and then they would present Pharaoh with whatever they agreed upon, so that he could execute it.

In this setting, they discussed the case of Moses and the miracles that they observed from him with one another. They said: “This is indeed a knowledgeable magician, but he is lying about his mission from God. He is using sorcery to demand the Israelites to be freed from bondage. This way, they will join and support him, and he will lead them outside of your land and abolish your excellent tradition []. So what do you suggest in order to cancel his scheme and extinguish this fire which he has kindled? Should he be killed? Should he be crucified? Should he be imprisoned? Or should he be challenged with another magician like himself?” They agreed on the last view, and offered it to Pharaoh: Put him and his brother off for a while, and send heralds to the cities, to bring you every expert magician ().

So what do you advise? () is something that elite of Egypt said among each other, and Put him… () is what they suggested to Pharaoh as their collective decision. What is narrated from the elite in these verses [] is narrated from Pharaoh elsewhere in the Qur’an: He said to the elite [who stood] around him, “This is indeed an expert magician who seeks to expel you from your land with his magic. So what do you advise?” They said, “Put him and his brother off for a while, and send heralds to the cities to bring you every expert magician” (). Putting these verses together, we can deduce that first Pharaoh brought up the issue, then his courtiers consulted with each other about it. They agreed with Pharaoh’s opinion, and suggested that it is best to defeat Moses’ magic with magic. Moreover, the Qur’an narrates that Pharaoh made the same statement [as in verse ] and his elite’s decision [as in verses ] to Moses: He said, “Have you come to us, Moses, to expel us from our land with your magic? Yet we [too] will bring you a magic like it” (). The current verses are perhaps a summary of the story, saying that the council suggested this to Pharaoh, and he then announced it himself to Moses.

Pharaoh’s elite also had another consultation session once the magicians rallied around Pharaoh. There they discussed the matter with one another privately, as God says: So they disputed their matter among themselves, and kept their confidential talks secret. They said, “These two are indeed magicians who intend to expel you from your land with their magic, and to abolish your excellent tradition” ().

In short: First Pharaoh raised the issue for his elites to discuss and counsel about. He asked for their opinion on what to do. They consulted with one another, confirmed Pharaoh’s view, and advised him to keep Moses and Aaron in custody, and to gather around the magicians to challenge him. Pharaoh accepted this advice, and announced it to Moses. Then the elite gathered once again for a private consultation upon the arrival of the magicians. They agreed that the magicians must unanimously oppose Moses with all the magic that they could produce, as a single army.

يُرِيدُ أَنْ يُخْرِجَكُمْ مِنْ أَرْضِكُمْ ۖ فَمَاذَا تَأْمُرُونَ ١١٠

(7:110) “He seeks to expel you from your land.” “So what do you advise?”

He wants to find assistance from the Children of Israel in order to take hold of Egypt, destroy your independence, and drive you out of your land. It was common in the ancient times for one nation to attack another, defeat them, occupy their land and homes, and then expel them from there into exile.

قَالُوا أَرْجِهْ وَأَخَاهُ وَأَرْسِلْ فِي الْمَدَائِنِ حَاشِرِينَ ١١١ يَأْتُوكَ بِكُلِّ سَاحِرٍ عَلِيمٍ ١١٢

(7:111-112) They said, “Put him and his brother off (arjih) for a while, and send heralds to the cities, to bring you every expert magician.”

His brother refers to Aaron. The word arjih is an imperative derived from irjāʾ, which means “to postpone, to put off.” The meaning is: Put him and his brother off; do not hasten to something evil like killing them at this point, lest you may be accused of injustice, cruelty and the like. Instead, dispatch some emissaries from your army to the towns to mobilize the magicians and bring them to you. Then counter the sorcery of Moses with the sorcery of the magicians.

The letter hāʾ at the end of arjih should be pronounced with sukūn (no vowel). It introduces a pause (sakt) at the end of the word. The word has also been recited as arjihi (with a kasrah on the letter hāʾ). This is based on the original term being arjiʾhu, where the letter hāʾ is a masculine pronoun, referring to Moses. The letter hamzah was then changed to a yāʾ, and then it was omitted.

وَجَاءَ السَّحَرَةُ فِرْعَوْنَ قَالُوا إِنَّ لَنَا لَأَجْرًا إِنْ كُنَّا نَحْنُ الْغَالِبِينَ ١١٣

(7:113) And the magicians came to Pharaoh. They said, “We shall indeed have a reward if we were to be the victors?”

Part of the story is omitted here for concision. What is meant is that Pharaoh dispatched heralds, summoned the magicians, and then the magicians came.

… We shall indeed have a reward…: They asked for a reward in the form of a declarative statement, in order to emphasize their request. It is rather common to express a prescriptive or non-assertive statement (inshāʾ) in the form of a declarative or assertive statement (ikhbār). It could also be that the sentence is in fact a question, where the inquisitive particle (adāt al-suʾāl) is omitted. This is how Ibn ʿĀmir has recited the verse: They said, “Shall we (a-inna lanā) indeed have a reward…?”

قَالَ نَعَمْ وَإِنَّكُمْ لَمِنَ الْمُقَرَّبِينَ ١١٤

(7:114) He said, “Of course! And indeed you shall be among those near [to me].”

Pharaoh responded positively to their request, and added to their incentive by promising them nearness to himself.

قَالُوا يَا مُوسَىٰ إِمَّا أَنْ تُلْقِيَ وَإِمَّا أَنْ نَكُونَ نَحْنُ الْمُلْقِينَ ١١٥

(7:115) They said, “O Moses, will you throw [first], or shall we throw?”

They said this in a state of having prepared themselves for competition. They gave Moses the choice and let him decide who should go first. The meaning is: If you want, you can go first and throw your staff; and if you want, we will throw our ropes and staffs first.

This statement implies a sense of self-confidence and defiance. It shows that they did not care whether Moses were to perform before them or after them. Either way they would have no fear of him; they were assured of their victory. Nevertheless, giving an option to the other side is also an expression of courtesy in and of itself.

قَالَ أَلْقُوا ۖ فَلَمَّا أَلْقَوْا سَحَرُوا أَعْيُنَ النَّاسِ وَاسْتَرْهَبُوهُمْ وَجَاءُوا بِسِحْرٍ عَظِيمٍ١١٦

(7:116) He said, “Throw [yours].” So when they threw, they bewitched (saḥarū) the people’s eyes and overawed them (istarʿabūhum, from istirʿāb), producing a tremendous magic (bi-siḥr ʿaẓīm).

God has described their magic as great and tremendous. In this context, siḥr (magic, sorcery, witchcraft, bewitchment) is a way of influencing the senses of the other side, such that they would observe something without any external reality. We discussed this under the verse: And they followed what the devils pursued during Solomon’s reign… (). Istirʿāb is “to frighten someone.” The rest of the meaning should be clear.

وَأَوْحَيْنَا إِلَىٰ مُوسَىٰ أَنْ أَلْقِ عَصَاكَ ۖ فَإِذَا هِيَ تَلْقَفُ مَا يَأْفِكُونَ ١١٧

(7:117) And We signaled to Moses that (an): “Throw down your staff.” And behold, it was swallowing (talqafu, from laqf) what they had faked (yaʾfikūna, from ifk).

The Arabic particle an (that) is descriptive. Laqf and laqafān mean “swallowing something quickly.” Ifk means “twisting something away from its original form.” That is why it sometimes means a lie. The verse clearly involves some omissions for the purpose of concision. The implied meaning is: After they threw their things, We signaled [or revealed] to Moses to “Throw down your staff.” He threw it, whereby it suddenly turned into a snake, and immediately swallowed up what they had faked.

فَوَقَعَ الْحَقُّ وَبَطَلَ مَا كَانُوا يَعْمَلُونَ ١١٨

(7:118) So the truth set in (fa-waqaʿa), and what they had wrought was reduced to naught.

What they had wrought refers to their sorcery and bewitchment. The verb waqaʿa means “to land, to drop, to be established, to befall.” This could be a metaphorical expression. It is as though the truth is something suspended in the air, and it is uncertain what will happen to it: Will it be established on the earth by landing on it and staying there, or not? The verse confirms that indeed it the truth landed and was established.

فَغُلِبُوا هُنَالِكَ وَانْقَلَبُوا صَاغِرِينَ ١١٩

(7:119) Thereat (hunālika) they were vanquished, and they retreated, humiliated.

Pharaoh and his team were defeated. Hunālika is a demonstrative pronoun that is used for objects at a distance. Here it refers to the great congregation where people had gathered and were watching from all sides.

… and they retreated, humiliated: The came back abased; they were embarrassed.

وَأُلْقِيَ السَّحَرَةُ سَاجِدِينَ ١٢٠ قَالُوا آمَنَّا بِرَبِّ الْعَالَمِينَ ١٢١ رَبِّ مُوسَىٰ وَهَارُونَ ١٢٢

(7:120-122) And the magicians were cast down in prostration. They said, “We have believed in the Lord of all worlds, the Lord of Moses and Aaron.”

The first verse is expressed in the passive voice: were cast down. It was obviously the magicians who threw themselves down in prostration, but the subject is not mentioned in the sentence. This way of expression is to show the extent to which they were influenced by Moses’ miracle. They were completely awestruck and helpless as they observed this magnificent sign, such that they lost sense of themselves, and fell down immediately in prostration. It was such a spontaneous reaction that they did not realize who cast them down.

The miracle of Moses left them no choice but to prostrate themselves on the earth, and to believe in the Lord of all worlds, in whom Moses and Aaron believed. Naming Moses and Aaron here indicates that they not only believed in God as the Lord of all worlds, but also in Moses and Aaron [as God’s messengers].

According to some exegetes, the magicians added the Lord of Moses and Aaron () as an interpretation for the Lord of all worlds () in order to clarify that they do not mean Pharaoh, who used to claim that he was the Lord of all worlds. However, this interpretation is not quite accurate, because the concept of “Lord of all worlds” was not defined in its real sense for the polytheists and pagans. They did not recognize anyone as a central authority who owns all worlds, who supports their existence, and who directs the affairs of all their constituents. Instead, they believed that the world of existence, with all its different parts and aspects, is divided between a myriad of lords. Among them, they believed God to be only at the top of the chain, as the Lord of the other lords and the God of the other gods. They did not believe God to be the Lord of everyone, including the lower lords and their subjects.

Pharaoh’s claim, as narrated by God, was: I am your supreme lord (). The exclusive superiority intended here is with respect to fulfilling the needs of the people, meaning the Egyptians in particular, based on his proximity and connection to them. It does not mean that he directed the affairs of all worlds as their lord. Nonetheless, polytheism has been surrounded by so much superstition that it would not be a surprise if they believed Pharaoh to be the lord of all worlds, even though it would certainly contravene the principles of their religion.

قَالَ فِرْعَوْنُ آمَنْتُمْ بِهِ قَبْلَ أَنْ آذَنَ لَكُمْ ۖ إِنَّ هَٰذَا لَمَكْرٌ مَكَرْتُمُوهُ فِي الْمَدِينَةِ لِتُخْرِجُوا مِنْهَا أَهْلَهَا ۖ فَسَوْفَ تَعْلَمُونَ ١٢٣

(7:123) Pharaoh said, “Do you profess faith in Him before I permit you? It is indeed a plot you have devised in the city to expel its people from it. Soon you will know [the consequences]!”

Pharaoh said this to the magicians out of hubris and contempt. It is a declarative sentence which implies rebuke and censure based on the context. It could also be a rhetorical question which implies a negation or rebuke, with the inquisitive particle omitted from the verse.

… It is indeed a plot you have devised in the city…: Pharaoh accused them of conspiracy and collusion in the city. The reason why he specified in the city was that prior to coming to the capital, the magicians were dispersed across the country, and had not met Moses. Therefore, if they had agreed over something, it must have occurred after their gathering in the city. They met Moses for the first time in Pharaoh’s capital after they were summoned by Pharaoh’s heralds. Their charge, according to Pharaoh, was that they plotted against him and his crew. They wanted to take hold of the capital and drive away its people.

First Pharaoh rebuked them for their belief: Do you profess faith in Him before I permit you? Then he accused them of a collective conspiracy to expel the residents of the city from it: It is indeed a plot… This means that they are guilty of causing mischief in the land (ifsād fī al-arḍ), which gives Pharaoh the justification to treat and penalize them with the most excruciating punishments.

… Soon you will know: This is an expression of threat.

لَأُقَطِّعَنَّ أَيْدِيَكُمْ وَأَرْجُلَكُمْ مِنْ خِلَافٍ ثُمَّ لَأُصَلِّبَنَّكُمْ أَجْمَعِينَ ١٢٤

(7:124) “Surely I will cut off your hands and feet on opposite sides, and then I will surely crucify all of you.”

Pharaoh’s threat here is emphasized in multiple ways. He first threatened to cut off their hands and feet on opposite sides, meaning the right hand and the left foot, or the left hand and the right foot. That is, cutting off one of each limb on a different side than the other limb.

His second threat was to crucify them. When they crucified a criminal, they would first torture him, then they would fix him on a piece of wood, and would raise it on its base on the ground so that everyone would see him and learn a lesson. We discussed this in detail under the story of Prophet Jesus in Sūrah Āl-i ʿImrān.

قَالُوا إِنَّا إِلَىٰ رَبِّنَا مُنْقَلِبُونَ ١٢٥ وَمَا تَنْقِمُ مِنَّا إِلَّا أَنْ آمَنَّا بِآيَاتِ رَبِّنَا لَمَّا جَاءَتْنَا ۚ رَبَّنَا أَفْرِغْ عَلَيْنَا صَبْرًا وَتَوَفَّنَا مُسْلِمِينَ ١٢٦

(7:125-126) They said, “Indeed we shall return to our Lord. You are vindictive toward us only because we have believed in the signs of our Lord, when they came to us.” “Our Lord! Pour patience upon us, and let us die as submitters.”

This is the magicians’ response to Pharaoh, where they render his scheme void, and disarm him of any further argument. They said: You threaten us with punishment because of our faith in our Lord, which is what you resent about us. You suppose that your punishment is bad for us because we will lose our life through torture and pain. But this is not bad for us, because we will be returning to our Lord, to live a happy life in His proximity. We have no fault except what you suppose to be our fault, which is believing in our Lord. Hence, there is only good expecting us.

They said, “Indeed we shall return to our Lord”: This shows their belief in afterlife.

You are vindictive (tanqimu, from naqm) toward us only because we have believed in the signs of our Lord, when they came to us”…: They described the staff in the plural: the signs of our Lord. This shows that they found each aspect of Moses’ miracle as a separate sign of God: it first turned into a python, then swallowed their ropes and staffs one by one, and then turned back to its original form.

Naqm means “dislike, resentment, enmity.” When one dislikes and resents someone, it is said naqima minu. Its plural forms are yanqimu and yanqamu.

Instead of feeling intimidated and fretful by Pharaoh’s threats, the magicians were taken into a spiritual rapture through their attraction to the divine. They resorted to their Lord in response to Pharaoh’s decision to torture and kill them.

… Our Lord! Pour patience upon us…: Grant us the strength to bear the severe punishment that he is intending to inflict upon us.

… and let us die as submitters: In case he ends up killing us.

… Pour (afrigh, from ifrāgh) patience upon us…: Their prayer involves a metaphor. It is as though they are containers, and patience is water which is to be poured down upon them. Ifrāgh is to pour down a liquid into a container to the brim. They made this request so that God might bless them with such patience that would enable them to handle any pain or punishment that may befell them, without any anxiety or disturbance.

They demonstrated the most astonishing feat and miracle in the way they directly spoke up to Pharaoh. We are talking about a ruthless tyrant who used to claim, I am your supreme lord (), and who was worshiped by the entire kingdom of Egypt. The magicians saw his magnificent power and influence, but they did not budge. Instead, they voiced their argument freely and courageously, with peaceful hearts, dignified souls, strong determinations, solid faith, profound knowledge, and expressive speech. It would be very instructive for the reader to closely examine this part of their story—where they talk to Pharaoh directly—as described in this sūrah, and also in Sūrah Ṭā-Hā and Sūrah al-Shuʿarāʾ. What God has narrated from them in these verses would reveal abundant knowledge, sublime spiritual states, and noble moral virtues. If it were not beyond the scope of this work, I would have discussed some of these points here. But the reader should wait a while.

Examining Narrations ​

The above verses comprise a brief account of the following main elements of Prophet Moses’ mission:

  1. He was appointed as a messenger, along with his brother Aaron, and dispatched to Pharaoh.
  2. He was given the two miracles of the staff and the white hand, which he showed Pharaoh.
  3. Pharaoh gathered the magicians and put up their sorcery against Moses.
  4. God made Moses’ miracle triumph over the magicians’.
  5. The magicians believed in Moses.

These points are reflected in the narrations, reported through both Shia and Sunni chains of transmission. However, the narrations also include some unusual accounts that are not found in the Qur’an. For instance, it is said:

  1. The staff of Moses was from an Ās tree (myrtle) in paradise.
  2. His staff was initially Adam’s. It was passed down until it reached Shuʿayb, and he gave it to Moses.
  3. It was Adam’s staff. An angel gave it to Moses when he set out for Midian. At night it used to glow [and show him the way]. During the day, he would strike the earth with it, and it would give him food.
  4. The staff used to speak whenever Moses wanted it to speak.
  5. When it turned into a snake before Pharaoh, the distance between its two jaws was 12 cubits. Other narrations say 40 or 80 cubits.
  6. The snake could rise one mile toward the sky.
  7. When it opened its mouth, one side of its lips would be on the ground, and the other side would extend to the roof of Pharaoh’s palace.
  8. It grasped Pharaoh’s court with its fangs, and attacked the people. As they rushed to escape, 25,000 of them died.
  9. The snake was 80 cubits long.
  10. It was as large as the city.
  11. When Pharaoh saw the snake, he soiled his clothes out of terror. According to some narrations, he excreted 400 times that day.
  12. Pharaoh contracted chronic diarrhea [or a stomachache] until he drowned.
  13. When Moses drew out his hand from his armpit, its light would override sunlight.

There are also a myriad of accounts concerning the magicians:

  1. Concerning their number, it is said that they were 70, 600 to 900, 12,000, 15,000, 17,000, 19,000, over 30,000, 70,000, or 80,000.
  2. They learnt magic from two Magians (Zoroastrians) from Nineveh.
  3. The name of their leader was Simon (Shamʿūn). Other narrations say John (Yūḥannā).
  4. They had four main leaders named: Sābūr [or Sātūr], ʿĀzūr [or ʿĀdhūr], Ḥuṭḥuṭ and Miṣfá.

Concerning Pharaoh, it is said:

  1. His name was Walīd b. al-Muṣʿab b. al-Rayyān. He was originally from Iṣṭakhr in Persia. Other accounts say that he was Egyptian.
  2. The Pharaoh at the time of Prophet Moses was the same Pharaoh who ruled Egypt at the time of Prophet Joseph. He lived 400 years, without getting old, and without any hair of his turning white.
  3. He built several nested cities and citadels to safeguard himself against Moses. He made groves and woods between them and filled them with lions to protect him from Moses. When God sent Moses to Pharaoh, he entered the first city and the lions saw him, but they wagged their tail in docility and turned away. As he came to the walls of each subsequent city, the gate opened for him, until he reached the palace where Pharaoh was residing. Moses sat there at his gate, while he was wearing a woolen cloak and holding his staff. When the porter came out, Moses told him, “Ask permission for me to enter and meet Pharaoh.” The porter ignored him. Moses explained, “I am the messenger of the Lord of the worlds,” but the porter still ignored him. Moses waited there as long as God willed, and kept asking the porter to get permission for him to enter. As he insisted on his request, the porter said, “Didn’t the Lord of all the worlds find anyone other than you to send [as His messenger]?” There Moses became angry. He struck the door with his staff, whereby all the doors between him and Pharaoh opened. Pharaoh saw him from his seat and said, “Let him in!” Moses went in, while Pharaoh was reclining on a very high couch, 80 cubits above the ground. “I have been sent to you as the messenger of the Lord of the worlds.” “Produce a sign, if you are among the truthful,” Pharaoh demanded. So Moses threw his staff, which had two branches. It suddenly turned into a snake, with one branch positioned on the ground, and the other branch extending above Pharaoh’s court. Pharaoh looked at its stomach, and saw fire flaming inside. As the snake moved toward him, Pharaoh lost control of his bowels and screamed, “Restrain it Moses!”

There are other strange accounts found in the narrations concerning this story. Most of them are things that are not found in the Qur’an. Rejecting them would be based on unlikelihood, and accepting them would be based on naïve optimism about anything that is narrated. These accounts are not mass-transmitted (mutawātir). Nor are they supported by definite evidence surrounding them. Rather, most of them are weak (ḍaʿīf) in one way or another, such as being mursal (with an incomplete chain of transmission), mawqūf (terminating with the Companions, without connecting to the Prophet), and so on. Not to mention the internal contradiction between them, which one can see in our summary above. Hence, we better disregard them.

  1. See the author’s “Introduction” to the chapter, at the very beginning of volume 15 of the English translation. (Trans.) ↩︎

  2. In the context of this verse, ʿalá can be translated as “about.” This is a positive sense of ḥirṣ (greed, concern, preoccupation), as also attributed to the Prophet Muḥammad in verse . (Trans.) ↩︎

  3. The meaning would be: “Not ascribing anything to God except the truth is obligatory on me.” (Trans.) ↩︎

  4. In other words, the two conditions serve two different purposes. The first condition challenges him to show his miracle. The second condition expresses Pharaoh’s suspicion and incredulity. (Trans.) ↩︎

  5. There are two alternative ways to reconcile these verses: (1) It first appeared as a small snake, and then grew into a large one. (2) It was like a small snake in terms of swiftness, and like a large one in terms of size. (Trans.) ↩︎

  6. This letter hāʾ is called hāʾ al-sakt, which is neither part of the word’s root, nor a pronoun. It is added to manifest the vowel of the letter before it. It is originally meant for the reciter to pause upon it, albeit briefly. (Trans.) ↩︎

  7. The kasrah vowel on the letter hāʾ would indicate this omission. It should be noted that the common recitation—arjih—would also involve an omission of a pronoun referring to Moses, in order to be consistent with the addition of his brother. Therefore, the two versions are apparently two ways of reciting the same word. (Trans.) ↩︎

  8. There is an additional hamzah at the beginning of their statement in this case, which indicates a yes-no question. There are other recitations, besides Ibn ʿĀmir’s, with this addition, and it is also the common recitation of verse . Either way, the verse implies a question, and the meaning would be the same. (Trans.) ↩︎

  9. In certain professions and sports, it is common for its practitioners to observe certain forms of courtesy even toward their opponents. (Trans.) ↩︎

  10. See volume 2 (1st ed.), pp. 28ff of the English translation. (Trans.) ↩︎

  11. The particle’s function is to show that the following statement clarifies what was signaled to Moses. (Trans.) ↩︎

  12. The inquisitive particle “do” at the beginning of Pharaoh’s statement (an additional hamzah in Arabic) is not mentioned explicitly in the text of the verse, but it is implied. The above English translation of the verse is based on this interpretation. If we do not assume the “do” to be implied, it means that Pharaoh told them, with a tone of rebuke and disgust: “You have professed faith in Him before…” Either way, the meaning is the same. (Trans.) ↩︎

  13. See the author’s last footnote on volume 6 (1st ed.), pp. 186-187 of the English translation, under verses . (Trans.) ↩︎

  14. See verses and . (Trans.) ↩︎

  15. See volume 27, pp. 251ff, and volume 30, p. 42 of the English translation. (Trans.) ↩︎

  16. This means suspending judgment about them, and not concerning ourselves with them. (Trans.) ↩︎