{"collection":"Islam","html_url":"https://unchartedknowledge.5gfusion.net/browse/isl/pro/mos13.htm","path":"isl/pro/mos13.htm","source_url":"https://sacred-texts.com/isl/pro/mos13.htm","text":"Sacred Texts\u00a0\nIslam\u00a0\nIndex\u00a0\nPrevious\u00a0\nNext\u00a0\nThe Exit of The Israelites From Egypt to Palestine\nGod said: And verily We inspired Moses, saying: Take away My slaves by\nnight and strike for them a dry path in the sea, fearing not to be overtaken,\nneither being afraid (of the sea)(TaHa:77). What is mentioned in Torah\nin brief is that the pharaoh permitted for the Israelites to go out with\nMoses to get rid of the adversities that came over him and his people because\nof them and to answer the requests of Moses, and not because that the pharaoh\nbelieved in Moses. When the pharaoh permitted that he regretted and so\nhe gathered armies from all the cities and followed them to get them back\ninto slavery, and the reasons for his regret as they attributed are all\nsilly that do not deserve to be mentioned. The Israelites reached the shores\nof the red sea over the gulf of Suez, so he (the pharaoh) followed them\nwith the sun rising, so the people of Moses knew that they are destroyed\nand the pharaoh will kill them, so Moses calmed them down and stroke the\nsea with his staff as God commanded him and so it was splitted so that\nits floor appeared and he commanded the Israelites to pass over and so\nthey did from the western coast to the eastern coast and the pharaoh arrived\nto the place that they passed from and saw a road through the sea that\nis not rugged and the Israelites passed from it and were not hurt, so he\ngot into the road running after the Israelites, so when all of the israelites\nwere out of the sea and the pharaoh were in the middle, the sea then closed\ntogether and the pharaoh was drawned with his soldiers and no one of them\nescaped, and when he was sure of the destruction he said:\u00a0 believe\nthat there is no Allah save Him in Whom the Children of Israel believe,\nand I am of those who surrender (unto Him)(Younus:90).\nAbdul-Wah\u00e2b Al-Najj\u00e2r said about this matter what is in\nbrief: the pharaoh did not believe in the content of his word but he just\nwanted to be saved from being destroyed and it is like the other miracles\nthat he saw from him (Moses) but did not believe in because of his tyranny,\nand they usedto say for Moses (PUH): O Moses! Pray for us unto thy Lord,\nbecause He hath a covenant with thee. If thou removest the terror from\nus we verily will trust thee..etc, and also said to him: O wizard! Entreat\nthy Lord for us by the pact that He hath made with thee. Lo! we verily\nwill walk aright, so then God used to relief them of the adversities and\nthey get back to what they used to do before for they thought that they\nwould be saved as before. Some claim that the pharaoh was saved for he\nbelieved in God at the end and they use clues that should never be listened\nto, and God says: The forgiveness is not for those who do ill-deeds until,\nwhen death attendeth upon one of them, he saith: Lo! I repent now..etc(Al-Nis\u00e2':18),\nand also God did say: What! Now! When hitherto thou hast rebelled and been\nof the wrong-doers? But this day We save thee in thy body that thou mayst\nbe a portent for those after thee..etc(Younus:91-92).\nAs it is attributed to Al-Ridh\u00e2 (PUH) in his answer to someone\nasked him about the reason for the destruction of the pharaoh and he believed\nin God before his death, so he (PUH) said: for he believed when he saw\nthe power, and being faithful when looking at power is something not accepted,\nand this is the judgement of God in previous nations and all the creations,\nand God did say: Then, when they saw Our doom, they said: We believe in\nAllah only and reject (all) that we used to associate (with Him). But their\nfaith could not avail them when they saw Our doom(Gh\u00e2fir:84-85),\nthus when the pharaoh was about to be destroyed he said: I believed..etc.\nThe pharaoh was covered with iron shields from the top of his head to his\ntoes and when he was drawned, God did make his body on a high ground to\nbe a sermon for people after him, thus when they see him with all his heavy\nweight because of the shields in a high place they would reckon about the\nmeanings. We've pointed out that there is a confusion between historians\nand interpreters about the reason for destroying the pharaoh after showing\nfaith, and they answered this in many ways and the best of all is what\nwe just mentioned above. They did differ also in the place of the miracle\nof Moses so some said: it was in the place that is called Birkat Fir`un\n(the lake of the pharaoh), and they say the passing over began from there,\nand also said: their passing was to the north of the place called `Uyun\nMus\u00e2 (springs of Moses) which is in the Asian lands and it is not\nfar away from Suez, and some said: their passing was between Suez and Al-Buhayrah\nAl-Murrah (The Bitter Lake) at a time when both of them were connected\ntogether. They say that the width of the bay, that Moses did strike with\nhis staff and splitted apart, was four leagues, twelve miles, forty eight\nthousand cubits as measured by the arm.\nIt is mentioned in Torah that God sent an eastern wind to the sea and\nremoved water until the land appeared and then the Israelites passed over\nand the pharaoh followed them and he was drawned, and by meditating there\nis no doubt that a thoughtful man would have about this matter and it is\na miracle for Moses and to save his people and the destruction of the pharaoh\nand his people. The road in the sea was created either by a wind blow or\nby striking it with a staff as it is mentioned in Quran, and all of that\nwas done by God's care and will, so the miracle is obvious for Moses either\na muslim looked at it in his Quran or a jew looked at it in his Torah,\nbut the atheists look into the Torah and say that Moses had no proof for\nit (to be as a miracle for him), and it is not a miracle, and no one either\na muslim or a book-owner [book-owner is a general expression that denotes\njews and christians for they have holy heavenly-revealed books] should\nlook at it as a miracle for Moses. The answer to these false imaginations\nis obvious from what we pointed out before for the miracle is done by any\nsuggested way because the wind was not believed to do such a great effect\nbefore Moses or after him, and if it had such an effect then they can bring\nthat matter as a clue for their false claims. We've pointed out before\nalso that the muslim interpreters for the holy quran agreed that the road\nthat the Israelites passed through the sea from was splitted into twelve\ndry roads, as much as the tribes of the Israelites. It is mentioned in\nthe chapter of Al-A`r\u00e2f: Therefore We took retribution from them;\ntherefore We drowned them in the sea: because they denied Our revelations\nand were heedless of them. And We caused the folk who were despised to\ninherit the eastern parts of the land and the western parts thereof which\nWe had blessed. And the fair word of thy Lord was fulfilled for the Children\nof Israel because of their endurance; and We annihilated (all) that Pharaoh\nand his folk had done and that they had contrived(Al-A`r\u00e2f:136-137).\nThis meaning is found in many chapters like: Younus, Al-Isr\u00e2', TaHa,\nAl-Shu`ar\u00e2', Al-Qasas, Al-Zokhrof, Al-Dukh\u00e2n, Al-\u00d0\u00e2riy\u00e2t,\nand all had what is related to this matter, so read them and you will get\nthe knowledgement.\nWhat is known for us that if what was in Torah differs from that what\nis in Quran then Quran is to be taken and depended on for it was revealed\nwith truth and confirming which was before it. In Torah it is mentioned\nwhat is in brief that the Israelites announced the happiness and their\nvoices got high with sanctifications for God when they passed the sea and\nwere saved from the pharaoh, and their women took the tambours and played\nand danced for their saving and the death of their enemy, and this is not\nsomething to be denied, and no doubt that their happiness was great for\nbeing saved in such weird way and for the destruction of the pharaoh with\nhis soldiers in the sea and being sermons for others for all times. That\nwas what the enemy of God faced because of his pride and in the after-life\nhe would be taken to hell and the painful torture, and God said in the\nchapter of Hud: And verily We sent Moses with Our revelations and a clear\nwarrant Unto Pharaoh and his chiefs, but they did follow the command of\nPharaoh, and the command of Pharaoh was no right guide. He will go before\nhis people on the Day of Resurrection and will lead them to the Fire for\nwatering-place. Ah, hapless is the watering-place (whither they are) led.\nA curse is made to follow them in the world and on the Day of Resurrection.\nHapless is the gift (that will be) given (them)(Hud:96-99). In the chapters\nof Al-Qasas, Gh\u00e2fir and Al-Dukh\u00e2n there are phrases details\nof debates beetween the people of the hell and explaining the types of\ntorture and humiliation that they will face and so on of things that make\nthe heart of a believer shake, and the hypocrites would mock at.\nIt is told in some narrations that the death of the pharaoh was on\nWednesday as it is mentioned that a man from the lands of Shem asked the\nprince of believers (PUH) about Wednesdays and about being afraid of such\nday, he (PUH) answered: on the last Wednesday of the month the pharaoh\nwas destroyed, and on Wednesday the pharaoh asked for Moses to kill him,\nand on Wednesday the pharaoh ordered to slay the scholars [maybe the author\nmeans here the wizards that believed in Moses] and on Wednesday the punishment\nwas revealed on the pharaoh and his people, and it is mentioned before\nthat the name of the pharaoh was Al-Waleed ben Mus`ab and he was called\nAb\u00e2-Mus`ab (Father of Mus`ab), and he lived for four hundred years\nand was one of the giants, and Al-S\u00e2diq (PUH) was asked about the\ninterpretation of God's saying: And with Pharaoh, firm of might(Al-Fajr:10)\n[notice that the translation of Pickthall is not exactly word by word,\nthe Arabic meaning of the phrase would more like: And the pharaoh of the\nwedges], so he (PUH) said: this is because when the pharaoh wanted to torture\na man he would make him lay on the flood over his face and then would order\nto extend his arms and legs and nail them with wedges into the floor and\nleave him like that until he dies.\nNext: The Wife of The Pharaoh, \u00c2siyyah bent Muz\u00e2him","title":"The Prophets, Their Lives and Their Stories: Moses: The Exit of The Israelites From Egypt to Palestine","type":"page"}