Translation
(After these generations) We sent Moses to the Pharaoh and his chiefs with Our Guidance, but they rejected it; see then the end results of those who spread corruption. Moses said: “O Pharaoh, I am a messenger from the Sustainer of the Universe; I am prepared to say nothing but the truth about God. I have come with guidance from your Sustainer, and you should let the Children of Israel be free to go with me.” He (the Pharaoh) replied: “Produce your evidence that you have come with if you speak the truth.” Moses threw his walking stick, and it turned into a (fearsome) serpent clearly visible. He then spread his hand and it was shining (white with light) to the onlookers (see also Exodus, chapter 4).
The chiefs of the people of the Pharaoh said: “Indeed, Moses is a skilled magician, and he intends to drive us out of our land.” The Pharaoh asked: “What is your advice?” They said: “Let him and his brother (Aaron) wait while we announce throughout the cities and towns and bring all skilled magicians to you.” Once they all came, they asked the Pharaoh: “We sure expect a reward if we prevail over (Moses).” The Pharaoh promised: “Yes, you will be among my favored associates.” They asked Moses: “Will you be the first to cast, or will we?” Moses said: “You go ahead.” So they cast (their spell) and overwhelmed those in attendance with a fearsome display of sorcery and magic. We (God) inspired Moses to cast his stuff, and it overtook all that was on display of deception—thereby verifying the truth and reducing all they did to nothing. This is how they were put in their place, and they were humiliated (for their arrogance and falsehood). All the magicians prostrated (before God) and declared: “We do believe in the Sustainer of the Universe, the Sustainer of (spoken by) Moses and Aaron.” The Pharaoh objected: “How did you offer such submission without my permission? I think it is a plot that you all have hatched in this city to cause commotions among people and drive them out. Be prepared then for the consequence (of such betrayal)—I will cut off your hands and your feet for your rebellion and will crucify you all together.”
They all replied: “It is to our Sustainer God that we turn (for help and succor). It is because of our acceptance of the guidance of God that came to us that you now punish us. O our Sustainer God, enable us to have patience and make us approach (our impending) death with full submission (and reliance on you alone).” 374
The chiefs among the Pharaoh’s people counseled the Pharaoh: “Will you leave Moses and his people alone to cause disruption in our lands and to deny you and your gods?” The Pharaoh said: “We will kill the sons of Israelites and leave their women alone; we have power over them.” Moses advised his people: “Turn to God for help and exercise patience (in this difficult time). The Earth belongs to God, and He makes among his servants whom He wills to inherit the land. In the end those who are conscious (of God) and demonstrate a sense of responsibility (to fellow humans) will have the upper hand.” His people lamented: “We are being persecuted—before you came and since you have been here.” Moses comforted (and cautioned) them: “It may well be that God will destroy your tormentor and give you a hand in overseeing the affairs of the land. God will see how you conduct yourselves then.” 375
Interpretation
374 The story of Moses is repeated twenty-two times in various parts of the Qur’an, and, unlike the Torah and the Bible, which go into a lot of details as narratives, the focus of the Qur’anic narrative is always about moral of the story, lessons to be learned, and to be forward looking. The primary audience of the Qur’an at the time were Arabs who knew many of the stories of the Biblical prophets from the oral traditions of their Jewish and Christian neighbors and Christian monks who were spread in Arabian Peninsula. In a time when sorcery and magic were being practiced on a large scale and were used as instruments by the Pharaoh and his leaders to perpetuate their hegemony and false beliefs over people, God sent Moses with capabilities that overpowered such practices in their own terms so that actual practitioners of these superstitions knew exactly that Moses came from the true God. As we know from the story of Moses, while the Pharaoh was planning to kill all the baby boys of the Israelites, God was planning to raise Moses in the household of the Pharaoh, unbeknownst to him—this is how subtle God’s plan was, and He was the best of planner at the end.
375 The persecution of the people of Israel by the Pharaoh was indeed one of the worst that a community of human beings has ever endured. A similar persecution visited the Jewish people during the Holocaust in our contemporary times. The large-scale persecution of people has been witnessed in many places on earth throughout human history—the waves of Crusades by Christians against Muslims and Jews, the large-scale devastation of lands by the Mongols, the atrocities committed within European nations during World Wars I and II, the prolonged conflict between the Japanese and the Chinese, the atrocities of communist leaders against innocent citizens in Russia and China, and the history of apartheid in South Africa are examples of horrific crimes against humanity committed in the name of power and falsification of real issues and challenges. As God says elsewhere in the Qur’an, unless He empowers one group over another in turns, the human race will destroy itself and disrupt freedom to practice their faith and worship God as they see fit. As Moses alludes to in the above verses, as God makes a weaker nation to assume the upper hand, it will be watched by God to see how it behaves as it is given the opportunity to act freely, which it asked for under dire persecution and horrible human conditions. This is something that Muslims, Christians, and Jews who read the Torah, the Bible, and the Qur’an every day should pay a great deal of attention to, and they should strive to bring the world together and not split it further apart.
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REFLECTION
Moses, as a great teacher and great prophet of Jewish people and of the people of Abrahamic faiths, stands as a torch bearer of human imperatives, as codified in the Ten Commandments. We all need to reflect on his teachings, his guidance, and his deep understanding of human conditions, which have been further corroborated by Jesus and Mohammad in subsequent generations.
ACTION
The time has come for us to bring unity in faith and unity in our common goodness. People of all faiths have to undertake this challenge and prove to God that given the opportunity, we will behave responsibly and not fall victim to the same immoral and unjust world that we have endured and have sought God’s help to overcome.