Verses 1–14
The aim of this sūrah is to convey a beautiful, hope-inspiring promise to the believers while they were still in Mecca before the migration to Medina. This was at a time when the believers were a small group of people whom the tyrants from the tribe of Quraysh oppressed, persecuted, and behaved arrogantly towards. Those were the days of acute hardship, difficulty, and trial for the believers. The promise that this sūrah aimed to convey to the believers in Mecca was that God would bestow favors on them, make them leaders and heirs, strengthen them, and grant them power while the oppressive tyrants from their people would witness from them that which they feared.
Thus, in this sūrah God narrates to the persecuted Meccan believers a portion of the story of Moses and the Pharaoh, in that He created Moses at a time when the Pharaoh was at the apogee of his power. The Pharaoh used to behave arrogantly towards the Children of Israel, persecuting them. This involved slaughtering their sons while sparing their daughters. Thus He had Moses raised and nurtured in the very lap of the enemy till he grew up and attained maturity, which is when He rescued him and brought him out from the midst of the Pharaoh and his people towards Midian. Thereafter He returned Moses to them as a messenger from Himself coupled with clear authority up until the time when He drowned Pharaoh and his army altogether, rendering the Children of Israel heirs. Additionally, He sent the Torah to Moses as guidance, endowed with insight for the believers.
Thus the destiny of the persecuted believers would follow this course, and in this, there was a promise for the believers in Mecca of dominance, honor, integrity, and authority, and a promise to the Prophet of an ultimate successful return.
Thereafter God shifts from the story of Moses and the Pharaoh, and proceeds to explain that it is imperative in God’s wisdom that He should reveal a book from Himself that calls to the truth. Thereafter He mentions the unbelievers’ vilifying contention regarding the Qur’an’s call by quoting their words: Why is he not given the like of what was given to Moses? () following them up with a rejoinder from Himself. He also mentions their excuse for not believing in the Qur’an’s call by quoting what they said: If we follow the guidance with you, we shall be carried off from our country (28: 57) following it up with a rejoinder (from Himself). Finally, the narrative contains a warning in the form of the story of Korah and his humiliating destruction, which took place by him being swallowed up.
This sūrah is of Meccan provenance as attested to by the context of its verses. What we have cited of its verses here-below is a section from the story of Moses and the Pharaoh from the day Moses was born till he reached maturity.
Commentary
طسم ١ تِلْكَ آيَاتُ الْكِتَابِ الْمُبِينِ ٢
(28:1-2) Ṭāʾ sīn mīm. These are the verses of the Book that makes [things] clear.
An explanation for these two verses has already been made previously, in the commentary of similar verses.
نَتْلُو عَلَيْكَ مِنْ نَبَإِ مُوسَىٰ وَفِرْعَوْنَ بِالْحَقِّ لِقَوْمٍ يُؤْمِنُونَ ٣
(28:3) We recite to you from the account of Moses and the Pharaoh with truth for people who believe.
The meaning intended to be conveyed is: “We are reciting to you a recital that is enveloped—or encompassed or covered and clad—with the truth. Thus it is a recital from Us and a revelation from Us without the devils interfering or intervening in its recital or delivery.”
Another possible meaning is: “The state and condition of the account which We are reciting to you is that it is covered with the truth, and therefore there is no doubt in it.”
As for the part of this verse () that reads for people who believe, the meaning intended to be conveyed is: “We are reciting to you a portion of their account (that is, the account of Moses and the Pharaoh) for the sake of or for the benefit of a people who believe in Our signs.”
Hence the meaning obtained is: “We are reciting to you, O Muḥammad, some of—or a portion of—the account of Moses and the Pharaoh. It is a recital that is covered with the truth, so that these people who believe in Our signs and are from those who follow and obey you, who are a humble and abject group, and are persecuted at the hands of the tyrants of the Quraysh, may consider and reflect on it and thereby ascertain and realize with certainty that God in whom and in whose messenger they believe, and for whose sake they have borne all kinds of hardship and harm, is the same God who nurtured and raised Moses in order to enliven the truth, save the Children of Israel, and strengthen and consolidate them after they had experienced that ignominious humiliation and servility where the Pharaoh slaughtered their sons while sparing their daughters. This was at a time when the Pharaoh had exalted himself in the land and had sunk into the Children of Israel the talons of his overbearing reign making it all-pervasive, thereby encompassing them with his tyranny and injustice.”
Thus God nurtured and brought Moses up during those times—dark times indeed, which were devoid of any scope for hope or aspiration, yet He raised Moses in the very lap of his enemy and then brought him out of Egypt, subsequently returning him to them with authority. Then He rescued the Children of Israel and destroyed Pharaoh and his army by means of Moses, thereby rendering the Pharaoh and his army a mere illusion, a mere story, and a dream.
Thus it is God relating the story of Moses, Pharaoh, and the Children of Israel to His Prophet, designating the Prophet and his followers as a people who believe, in that He shall deal with the tyrants from the Quraysh in a manner similar to the way He dealt with the Pharaoh and his army, and that He shall bestow favors on the oppressed and persecuted believers of Mecca, making them leaders and heirs in a manner similar to how He did with the Children of Israel.
إِنَّ فِرْعَوْنَ عَلَا فِي الْأَرْضِ وَجَعَلَ أَهْلَهَا شِيَعًا يَسْتَضْعِفُ طَائِفَةً مِنْهُمْ يُذَبِّحُ أَبْنَاءَهُمْ وَيَسْتَحْيِي نِسَاءَهُمْ ۚ إِنَّهُ كَانَ مِنَ الْمُفْسِدِينَ ٤
(28:4) Surely Pharaoh exalted himself in the land and made its people into parties, weakening one party from among them; he slaughtered their sons and let their women live; he was one of the mischief makers.
The mention of “exaltation in the land” that occurs in surely Pharaoh exalted himself in the land () means “to demonstrate one’s strength and power and to behave with arrogance.” The term shiyaʿan that occurs in this verse is the plural of the term shīʿa. The latter term means “a party” (firqa, also meaning “a group” or “a band”). The plural noun shiyaʿ is defined in (the Qur’anic commentary) Majmaʿ al-Bayān as follows:
It means “parties, groups” (firaq), and every party or group is called shīʿa. They are called thus because they (that is, those who constitute its members) follow one another.
“Rendering the people of the land into parties” is a reference to the people of Egypt. The definite particle al (“the” in the land) has the effect of rendering the word definite and specific: it specifies that the land in question is Egypt. Thus the intended meaning of and made its people into parties () is “to cast differences between and among them” so that they could not unite or agree on one position and so that they would not be able to revolt against the Pharaoh and reverse the situation against him. This is the practice of kings in their effort to expand their power and strengthen their authority. “Letting their women live” () means “to spare their lives and to let them live.”
Hence the meaning obtained is that the Pharaoh exalted himself in the land and dominated it by extending his authority over the people and entrenching his power among them. He divided the inhabitants of the land into different groups and parties so that their position on any matter would not be a united one. As a result, he undermined their general ability to resist him in the face of his own power and weakened their capability to stop him from entrenching his will.
He persecuted a party from among them, which was the party of the Children of Israel who were the progeny of Jacob. They had dwelt in Egypt ever since Joseph brought his father and brothers there and out from their previous place of domicile. Thus they had settled there and had procreated till their numbers reached the thousands.
This pharaoh, who was the king of Egypt and a contemporary of Moses, used to treat them like captive slaves. He increased his persecution of them till he reached a point in his persecution where he ordered their sons to be slaughtered while sparing their daughters. Through this policy, he aimed to annihilate their menfolk by killing their male offspring, thereby wiping out the community.
The reason for that was that he was one of those who wrought mischief in the land and spread corruption in it. Creation in general, which brought forth humanity, did not discriminate between one group of humanity and another on the plane of existence. It prepared them all by guiding them to a social life based on enjoying the goods of this earthly life while everyone has a standing which equals their worth in society, and which equals their significance in social cooperation and collaboration.
This is the peaceful and reformed state of affairs that creation advocates, whilst transgressing against this principle by rendering one group of people free and others slaves and allowing one group to enjoy that which it does not deserve while denying others that which they do deserve is a type of corruption that leads humanity to destruction.
Thus this verse contains a description of the times during which Moses was born: a time-period during which destructive factors had surrounded, encompassed, and overwhelmed the Children of Israel from all sides, and which aimed to destroy and annihilate Moses.
وَنُرِيدُ أَنْ نَمُنَّ عَلَى الَّذِينَ اسْتُضْعِفُوا فِي الْأَرْضِ وَنَجْعَلَهُمْ أَئِمَّةً وَنَجْعَلَهُمُ الْوَارِثِينَ ٥ وَنُمَكِّنَ لَهُمْ فِي الْأَرْضِ وَنُرِيَ فِرْعَوْنَ وَهَامَانَ وَجُنُودَهُمَا مِنْهُمْ مَا كَانُوا يَحْذَرُونَ ٦
(28:5-6) While We desired to bestow a favor upon those who were oppressed in the land, and to make them the Imams, and to make them the heirs. And to grant them power in the land, and to make Pharaoh and Hāmān and their hosts see from them what they feared.
Here is what we can deduce from al-Rāghib al-Iṣfahānī:
The verbal noun al-mann originally means “something that is significant, heavy, and weighty.”
From this, the thing with which something is weighed is called mannun, while the term al-minna means a blessing or favor that is significant and weighty, and therefore the sentence: manna ʿalayhi mannan means: “He granted him a significant and weighty blessing or favor.” Such a bestowal of favors may be said to take place in two ways. The first is by means of an act, an example of which is this verse under discussion: While We desired to bestow a favor upon those who were oppressed (). This means: “We shall grant them favors and blessings, which shall prove significant and weighty for them.”
The second manner by which a bestowal of favors may be said to take place is by means of speech. An example of this is verse 49:17: They think that they lay you under an obligation by becoming Muslims (yamunnūna ʿalayka an aslamū). Such an attitude [of obliging someone for favors done] is reprehensible except in cases of manifest ingratitude for blessings bestowed. That is when a person falsely denies having had been granted a blessing, thereby manifesting their ingratitude.
And to grant them power in the land () means “granting them a place and an abode in the land which they would own and in which they would settle.”
The implied meaning is: “Pharaoh oppressed a party (ṭāʾifa) from among them (that is, from among his subjects). He persecuted them while (the actual state of affairs in respect of this persecuted party was that) We (that is, God) intended to bestow favors on those oppressed who were subjected to persecution.”
It is also suggested that this verse () serves as a conjunction to His speech in the previous verse, which reads: Surely Pharaoh exalted himself in the land… (); however, the first interpretation is more apparent.
And to make them the Imams () serves as a conjunction to and We desired to bestow a favor… (), and the same explanation applies to the sentences that follow.
Hence the meaning obtained is that the situation obtained at that time was one during which the Pharaoh exulted in the land by demonstrating his strength and power and behaving with arrogance. He divided the people into parties and persecuted the Children of Israel, attempting to exterminate and annihilate them while the actual state of affairs was that God intended to bestow favors on these who were oppressed and who were subjected to persecution from all sides—favors that would prove significant and weighty for them. This would transpire by Him making them leaders who would serve as exemplars. Therefore, they would be followed after they had been followers, and it would transpire by Him making them heirs, inheriting the land, after it was in the possession of others. God intended to consolidate them in the land in the sense of granting them a place and an abode in which they would settle and which they would own after they had had no place of their own save what others intended to lodge them in and what others endorsed for them. In addition, God intended to show Pharaoh, who was the king of Egypt, and Hāmān who was his minister, and their people, what they feared from these who were persecuted which was that the Children of Israel would overcome them and take away their kingdom, wealth, and mode of life just as the Pharaoh and his people accused Moses and his brother of when they both were sent to them as warners. This is described in: They said: These are most surely two magicians who wish to turn you out from your land by their magic and to take away your best traditions. ()
Thus these two verses describe what lay latent beneath this frightful time period, a time period that had decreed that no [male] breathing soul from among the Children of Israel would remain alive, nor one who could ignite the flames of revolt or the sparks of rebellion. This was also the time when the tyrannical power of the Pharaoh had encompassed and overwhelmed the Children of Israel thoroughly while his fear and awe had filled their lives and existence, in that he persecuted them till he decreed destruction and annihilation for them. This was the apparent state of affairs, while what lay latent beneath it was the divine intent relating to the rescue and salvation of the Children of Israel from the Pharaoh and his people, and the transfer of the significant blessings from the people of the Pharaoh who were powerful and elevated in the land to the Children of Israel who were humble and persecuted. This included an alteration in the factors detrimental to the Children of Israel, which would be transferred to the Pharaoh and his people, while the positive factors that were in favor of the latter would be transferred to the former, for surely God decides and nothing rescinds His decision.
وَأَوْحَيْنَا إِلَىٰ أُمِّ مُوسَىٰ أَنْ أَرْضِعِيهِ ۖ فَإِذَا خِفْتِ عَلَيْهِ فَأَلْقِيهِ فِي الْيَمِّ وَلَا تَخَافِي وَلَا تَحْزَنِي ۖ إِنَّا رَادُّوهُ إِلَيْكِ وَجَاعِلُوهُ مِنَ الْمُرْسَلِينَ ٧
(28:7) And We revealed (awḥaynā, from al-īḥāʾ) to Moses’ mother: Give him suck, then when you fear for him, cast him (fa al-qīhi, from al-ilqāʾ) into the river and do not fear nor grieve; We will bring him back to you and make him one of the messengers.
The verbal noun al-īḥāʾ means “a secret address.” It is used in the Qur’an with respect to God’s communication with some of His creatures by means of inspiration, and casting an instruction into the heart, as is mentioned in: Because your Lord had inspired her [the earth] (bi-anna rabbaka awḥā lahā) () as well as in: And your Lord revealed to the bee… (wa awḥā rabbuka ilā al-naḥli) (), and in this verse under discussion: And We revealed to Moses’ mother… (wa awḥāynā ilā ummi Mūsā…) (). From another perspective, it is also used to describe God’s communication with the prophets and messengers. As regards to the usage of this term with respect to a secret address from a being other than God, it appears in and most surely the satans suggest to their friends… (inna al-shayāṭīna layūḥūna ilā awliyāʾihim, ). As for the verbal noun al-ilqāʾ, it means “to cast something,” while the word al-yamm means “a sea” or “a big river.”
And We revealed to Moses’ mother… () has been rendered concise and abridged, and the abridgement is due to an elision. The implied meaning therefore is: “Moses’ mother conceived him in such circumstances as these—circumstances of severe and acute hardship—and then she gave birth to him, which is when We inspired her.”
Thus the meaning obtained is: “We communicated with the mother of Moses by means of a type of inspiration when she gave him birth, saying: Breast-feed him so long as you do not fear harm for him from the Pharaoh; however, when and if you fear harm for him in that the people of the Pharaoh would come to know of him and therefore seize and kill him, then cast him into the river—which is the river Nile, as has been transmitted in a tradition—and then do not fear that he will be killed nor be sad or distraught upon losing him or upon being separated from him. We shall return him to you subsequently and make him a messenger. Thus he shall become a messenger sent to the people of the Pharaoh and the Children of Israel.”
The phrase We will bring him back to you… () serves as justification for the prohibition and do not grieve that occurs (earlier) in this verse. This justification is also attested to in: So We gave him back to his mother that her eye might be refreshed, and that she might not grieve… ().
The difference between “fear” (al-khawf) and “grief” (al-ḥuzn) in this context is that “fear” is with respect to something unfortunate that might happen, whereas “grief” refers to something unfortunate that will certainly happen.
فَالْتَقَطَهُ آلُ فِرْعَوْنَ لِيَكُونَ لَهُمْ عَدُوًّا وَحَزَنًا ۗ إِنَّ فِرْعَوْنَ وَهَامَانَ وَجُنُودَهُمَا كَانُوا خَاطِئِينَ ٨
(28:8) And Pharaoh’s family took him up (fa iltaqaṭahu, from al-iltiqāṭ) that he might be an enemy and a grief for them; Pharaoh and Hāmān and their hosts were erroneous.
The verbal noun al-iltiqāṭ means “coming across or stumbling upon something unexpectedly without seeking it, and then picking it up.” From it is derived the noun al-luqṭa which means “something that is found.” What is actually meant by the word ḥazanan (“grief”) in this verse is “the cause of grief,” where the application of the word ḥazanan to Moses is in the nature of exaggeration in light of the fact that it is he who would be the cause of their grief.
The difference between the active participles al-khāṭiʾu and al-mukhṭiʾu, according to al-Rāghib al-Isfahānī, is that:
The former active participle is applied to a person who undertakes an act but does not do it well and yet carries it out [and therefore errs]. God reprimands: to kill them is a great error (inna qatlahum kāna khiṭʾan kabīra, ), and He narrates [the speech of the brothers of Joseph]: and we were certainly erroneous (in kunnā lakhāṭʾīna, ), while the latter active participle is applied to a person who undertakes an act and does it well; however, something contrary to what he intended happens from him. The verbal noun for the former is al-khaṭaʾu with two fatḥas (on the letters kh and ṭ respectively). An example of the usage of this noun (that is, al-khaṭaʾu) occurs in the verse and whoever kills a believer by error (wa man qatala muʾminan khaṭaʾan, ). Therefore a comprehensive meaning of this word is “to deviate” or “to veer away from the (intended) course” or “to err.”
Hence, Pharaoh and Hāmān and their hosts were erroneous () means that the violence they were perpetrating against the Children of Israel and Moses in order to thwart the destruction of their kingdom, and in fear of the loss of their authority at the hands of the Children of Israel, was tantamount to intending to alter destiny from running its course. Therefore they murdered a very large number of the male offspring when they had no right to do so, and left Moses alive whence they found him and raised him in their own laps while it was by means of him and at his hands that their kingdom was to be destroyed and pass away.
Consequently, the meaning obtained is that the people of the Pharaoh stumbled across Moses and picked him up from the river where the intended consequence (al-ʿāqiba) of that was that he should prove to be an adversary for them and a cause of grief for them. The Pharaoh, Hāmān and their people grossly erred in murdering the male offspring of the Children of Israel while letting Moses live, in that they planned to kill the one who was to destroy them but ended up striving to safeguard him and to look after him, making diligent efforts at raising him. Therefore here, the inappropriateness of the interpretation of some who explain the khaṭaʾ of the Pharaoh and his people to mean that they were sinful and therefore God punished them in that God made them raise their own enemy becomes manifestly clear from this explanation.
وَقَالَتِ امْرَأَتُ فِرْعَوْنَ قُرَّتُ عَيْنٍ لِي وَلَكَ ۖ لَا تَقْتُلُوهُ عَسَىٰ أَنْ يَنْفَعَنَا أَوْ نَتَّخِذَهُ وَلَدًا وَهُمْ لَا يَشْعُرُونَ ٩
(28:9) And Pharaoh’s wife said: A refreshment of the eye to me and to you; do not slay him; maybe he will be useful to us, or we may take him for a son, and they did not perceive.
This verse describes the intercession of the wife of the Pharaoh in favor of Moses. She was present besides Pharaoh when they brought forth Moses, a child picked up from the river. She addresses the Pharaoh with the words: A refreshment of the eye to me and to you (), meaning “he is the delight of our eyes” She continues: Do not slay him () [using a second person plural verb in the jussive mood]. This statement indicates that those who would participate in the murder of Moses were many, including the cause, the one who would directly supervise the murder, the one who would give the order [of killing], and the one who would carry out the order.
She said what she did because God cast love from Himself in favor of Moses into her heart; thus, she became one who could not help herself from averting murder from him, and therefore she clasped him to herself. This favor that God had bestowed on Moses is described in verse 20:39: And I cast down upon you love from Me, and that you might be brought up before My eyes.
As for her statement in this verse: maybe he will be useful to us, or we may take him for a son (), she uttered these words when she witnessed the signs of greatness and divine charisma on Moses’ face, while her words or we may take him for a son () indicate that she and the Pharaoh had no son of their own. Thus the meaning obtained is that the Pharaoh’s wife said what she did, and interceded in favor of Moses and endeavored to avert his murder while the people did not perceive what they were doing, nor did they perceive the reality of the situation and its ultimate consequence.
وَأَصْبَحَ فُؤَادُ أُمِّ مُوسَىٰ فَارِغًا ۖ إِنْ كَادَتْ لَتُبْدِي بِهِ لَوْلَا أَنْ رَبَطْنَا عَلَىٰ قَلْبِهَا لِتَكُونَ مِنَ الْمُؤْمِنِينَ ١٠
(28:10) And the heart of Moses’ mother was free [from anxiety]. She would have almost disclosed (tubdī, from al-ibdāʾ) it had We not strengthened (rabaṭnā, from al-rabṭ) her heart so that she might be of the believers.
The verbal noun al-ibdāʾ means “to disclose or reveal something or to make it manifest, to expose,” while the verbal noun al-rabṭ means “to bind,” “to make fast,” “to tie,” thereby serving to denote the sense of strengthening, fortifying, and consolidating something.
The part of this verse which reads the heart of Moses’ mother was free () means her heart became free of fear and sadness. A necessary consequence of such a state of freedom from fear and sadness is that the heart is not convulsed by a succession of confused thoughts and conflicting illusions due to which the heart becomes unsettled, worried, perturbed, and confused. This latter state of anxiety and confusion would have made Moses’ mother anxious, apprehensive, and alarmed, and consequently, she would have disclosed what she was supposed to hide and keep a secret regarding her son’s existence.
Thus the meaning that comes across from the apparent context of this verse is that the reason she did not disclose the matter of her son was because her heart was free of anxiety and worry while the reason her heart was free of anxiety and worry was because of the strengthening and fortifying of her heart where the cause of that strengthening and fortification of the heart lay in God’s inspiration to her by His words: And do not fear nor grieve; We will bring him back to you and make him one of the messengers ().
In she would have almost disclosed it had We not strengthened her heart, the particle in is a contracted form or a lighter version of its heavier form inna (truly, certainly). This means “she was certainly on the verge of disclosing the secret of Moses’ birth had We not fortified her heart by strengthening it and making it able to endure.” So that she might be of the believers () means “so that she may be confident, convinced, and assured of God’s protection of Moses, and so that thereby she may be patient and leave off worrying about him so that his matter may remain a secret.”
The part of this verse which reads: She would have almost disclosed it had We not strengthened her heart so that she might be of the believers () serves as an explanation for the beginning part of this verse, which reads: And the heart of Moses’ mother was free [from anxiety] (). Hence the meaning of the verse is that the heart of the mother of Moses became devoid of fear and grief as a result of our revealed inspiration, for otherwise, fear and grief would have certainly led to the disclosure of his birth. And had We not strengthened and fortified her heart by means of inspiration so that she may rest assured of God’s protection of Moses she would have been on the verge of disclosing his existence to the Pharaoh and his people because of her worry and anxiety for him.
From the preceding explanation, the weakness and futility of what some have suggested as an explanation for this verse becomes self-evident, such as their interpretation of the part of the verse that reads and the heart of Moses’ mother was free () in that it means she lost her mind due to what had overwhelmed her of fear and confusion when she heard of her child falling into the hands of the Pharaoh! Similarly weak is the opinion of those who suggest that it means her mind became devoid of the divine inspiration that had been made to her due to forgetfulness on her part, as well as the suggestion that her mind became devoid of everything save the thought of Moses, in that her mind became solely preoccupied with him. All these opinions as explanations for this part of the verse are perspectives which the context does not support.
Similarly weak is their opinion that the apodosis of the particles law-lā is elided where the implied meaning is: “Had We not strengthened her heart she would have disclosed him (law lā an rabaṭnā ʿalā qalbihā la-abdathu wa aẓharathu).” The reason for them considering this to be the implied meaning is due to the suggestion that the particles law-lā resemble the conditional particles. These have a protasis (the statement containing the condition) and an apodosis (the statement containing the response to the condition, expressing what will result from the condition) while it is claimed that the apodosis does not precede the protasis. The deliberation regarding this issue has already been presented in the commentary of: And certainly, she made for him, and he would have made for her, were it not that he had seen the manifest evidence of his Lord ().
وَقَالَتْ لِأُخْتِهِ قُصِّيهِ ۖ فَبَصُرَتْ بِهِ عَنْ جُنُبٍ وَهُمْ لَا يَشْعُرُونَ ١١
(28:11) And she said to his sister: Follow him (quṣṣīhi, from al-qaṣṣ). So she watched him from a distance while they did not perceive.
The verbal noun al-qaṣṣ is defined in Majmaʿ al-Bayān as “following someone’s tracks, to track someone [unobtrusively].” From this noun is derived the noun al-qaṣaṣ which means “a narrative,” “a spoken story” since in it there is a succession of different words and ideas, the second following in the wake of the first, and so on. Majmaʿ al-Bayān also says:
The meaning of the sentence in this verse is: “The sister of Moses watched him from a distance or from afar (ʿan buʿdin).”
Hence the meaning obtained is that the mother of Moses said to his sister: “Follow and track Moses till you see where he and his matter end up.” So Moses’ sister watched him from afar and witnessed the servants of the Pharaoh picking him up while they did not know that she was following and observing him.
وَحَرَّمْنَا عَلَيْهِ الْمَرَاضِعَ مِنْ قَبْلُ فَقَالَتْ هَلْ أَدُلُّكُمْ عَلَىٰ أَهْلِ بَيْتٍ يَكْفُلُونَهُ لَكُمْ وَهُمْ لَهُ نَاصِحُونَ ١٢
(28:12) And We ordained that he would refuse to suck any other foster mother, so she said: Shall I point out to you the people of a house who will take care of him for you, and they will be benevolent to him?
The prohibition to suck milk mentioned in this verse was at the creational level rather than at the legislative level. The meaning of the verse is that God rendered Moses such that he refused the breast of a wet-nurse, abstaining from accepting her milk, while the phrase min qablu (from before) that occurs in this verse means: “before the arrival of Moses’ sister there and her approaching the Pharaoh and his people.” The word al-marāḍiʾu that occurs in this verse is said to be the plural noun of the word murḍiʾatun (wet-nurse or foster mother or breast-feeder).
So she said: Shall I point out to you the people of a house who will take care of him for you, and they will be benevolent to him? This occurs as a concomitant to what has gone before although the literary context of the verses indicates an elision having had taken place as if it were said: “We forbade Moses from accepting the milk of any wet-nurse save his mother’s before his sister’s arrival.” Thus every time they brought forth a wet nurse for him so that she could breast feed him, he would refuse her milk. Subsequently, when his sister arrived and saw the situation, she suggested at that moment to the people of the Pharaoh: Shall I point out to you the people of a house who will take care of him for your benefit, and they will be benevolent to him? ()
فَرَدَدْنَاهُ إِلَىٰ أُمِّهِ كَيْ تَقَرَّ عَيْنُهَا وَلَا تَحْزَنَ وَلِتَعْلَمَ أَنَّ وَعْدَ اللَّهِ حَقٌّ وَلَٰكِنَّ أَكْثَرَهُمْ لَا يَعْلَمُونَ ١٣
(28:13) So We gave him back to his mother that her eye might be refreshed, and that she might not grieve, and that she might know that the promise of Allah is true, but most of them do not know.
Again this verse occurs as a concomitant to what has preceded of the narrative along with an implied elision that the literary context indicates. Thus the meaning obtained is that Moses’ sister suggested: “Shall I lead you to the people of such and such a house?” and they acceded to her suggestion. Consequently, she led them to the mother of Moses to whom they turned him over. Hence so We gave him back to his mother () is a consequence of the progression of these events.
That her eye might be refreshed, and that she might not grieve, and that she might know that the promise of Allah is true: This serves as justification for the return of Moses to his mother, while and that she might know (, in the same verse) means the certainty that comes about from physically seeing and witnessing the fulfilment of a prophecy. This is because she knew from before that the promise of God is true for she was a believer; however, the intent of returning Moses to his mother was so that she would know for certain by literally seeing and witnessing the fulfilment of the prophecy that the promise of God is true while what is meant by the promise of God being true is the absolute, unrestricted promise of God without exception. This is evidenced by but most of them do not know (), meaning that most people do not believe with certainty in God’s promises. They doubt His promises, their souls refusing to repose trust in them. Thus the meaning obtained is that a person should expect and anticipate by this true observation which God had promised the mother of Moses that the promises of God, in the absolute, unrestricted sense, and without exception, are true. Perhaps it may be said that what is meant by the “promise of God” is specifically the promise mentioned in We will bring him back to you and make him one of the messengers (). However but most of them do not know () does not agree with such a restricted meaning and interpretation, as has been explained above.
وَلَمَّا بَلَغَ أَشُدَّهُ وَاسْتَوَىٰ آتَيْنَاهُ حُكْمًا وَعِلْمًا ۚ وَكَذَٰلِكَ نَجْزِي الْمُحْسِنِينَ١٤
(28:14) And when he attained his maturity and became full grown (istawā), We granted him wisdom and knowledge; and thus do We reward those who do good [to others].
The mention of “attaining maturity” that occurs in this verse, which reads and when he attained his maturity (), refers to the stage in life in which the human being’s strength and powers intensify and he becomes strong and robust. This stage is generally considered to be actualized by the age of eighteen years. As for the verbal noun al-istiwāʾ, it means “straightness,” “erectness,” “stability,” and “firmness.” The application of this word to human life (istiwāʾ al-ḥayāt) means the quality of stability that the human being achieves in matters pertaining to his life. The point in time at which this quality is attained differs among individuals, but in most cases, it is considered actualized after attaining maturity.
With regards to the meaning of the terms al-ḥukm (wisdom), al-ʿilm (knowledge), and their granting by God to Moses, as well as the meaning of the term al-iḥsān (those who do good), all these terms have been explained at numerous places in this commentary.
Examining Narrations
- Regarding and We desired to bestow a favor upon those who were oppressed in the land (), it is narrated that ʿAlī ibn Abī Ṭālib said: (It refers to) Joseph and his progeny.
Author’s comment: Perhaps his intent was the Children of Israel. If not, then it is evident that the apparent meaning of this verse is contrary to this identification.
- It is narrated from al-Mufaḍḍal:
Imam al-Ṣādiq said: “The Messenger of God looked at ʿAlī, al-Ḥasan, and al-Ḥusayn, wept, and said: You are those who shall be oppressed and shall be persecuted after me.”
I [al-Mufaḍḍal] asked: “What is the meaning of that?”
He replied: “The Prophet meant: You (in the plural) are the leaders after me. God says: And We desired to bestow a favor upon those who were oppressed in the land, and to make them the Imams, and to make them the heirs (). Thus this verse applies to us till the Day of Resurrection.”
Author’s comment: Traditions transmitted via Shiʿa chains of transmission that identify this verse as alluding to the Imams of the Ahl al-Bayt are numerous, and it is apparent on the basis of this tradition that this and all such traditions are examples of applying the verse to them (al-jary wa al-taṭbīq).
- It is narrated from Imam ʿAlī:
“The world shall certainly incline to us after its intransigent recalcitrance, just as a protective she-camel fiercely inclines to its young [in order to defend it].”
Thereafter he recited (): And We desired to bestow a favor upon those who were oppressed in the land, and to make them the Imams, and to make them the heirs.
- It is narrated from Imam al-Bāqir regarding And We revealed to Moses’ mother… ():
When his mother conceived him, her pregnancy did not show, becoming apparent only at the moment of his birth. The Pharaoh had charged Coptic women to watch over the women of the Children of Israel. That was because what the Children of Israel were saying had reached him; namely, that they were claiming that “a man would be born among us whose name shall be Moses son of ʿImrān. The destruction of the Pharaoh and his people shall take place at his hands.”
Thus, due to that, the Pharaoh said: “I shall certainly kill their male offspring till what they hope for and anticipate fails to occur.”
Consequently, he separated the men and the women, imprisoning the men in the prisons. Thus when Moses’ mother gave him birth, she looked at him with grief and sadness, and wept, saying: “He shall be slaughtered this moment.” However God made the heart of the Coptic woman entrusted to keep watch over Moses’ mother incline favorably towards Moses, and so she said to his mother: “What is the matter with you that the color of your face has grown sallow?”
Moses’ mother replied: “I fear for my child, in that he shall be slaughtered,” whereupon the Coptic woman said: “Do not fear.” This was because Moses was such that everyone who saw him loved him. This is described in and I cast down upon you love from Me… ().
Consequently, the Coptic woman entrusted to keep watch over Moses’ mother grew to love him. Then God sent down a casket to the mother of Moses and she was called upon to place him in the casket and cast the casket in the river, which was the sea, and [told]: Do not fear nor grieve; We will bring him back to you and make him one of the messengers (). So she placed him in the casket and closed it over him and thereafter cast it into the Nile.
The Pharaoh had a recreational palace on the shore of the Nile. He looked out from his palace to the black object which the waves of the Nile were raising up while the winds were striking it till they brought it to the gate of the palace of the Pharaoh, and with him was Āsiya his wife. The Pharaoh ordered that the casket be picked up, and so it was picked up and brought up to him. When he opened it, he found therein a baby boy and exclaimed: “This is an Israelite!” However, God cast a powerful love in favor of Moses in the heart of the Pharaoh and likewise in the heart of his wife. Nevertheless, the Pharaoh intended to kill him but Āsiya said: Do not slay him; maybe he will be useful to us, or we may take him for a son, and they did not perceive () that it was Moses.
- It is narrated from the Prophet about: And Pharaoh’s wife said: A refreshment of the eye to me and to you; do not slay him ():
I swear by the Being who is sworn by, had the Pharaoh admitted that he [Moses] was a joy for him just as his wife admitted to that, God would have guided him through Moses just as He guided her; however he disdained to do so due to the wretchedness which God had destined for him.
- It is narrated from Imam al-Ṣādiq about And when he attained his maturity and became full grown ():
His “attaining maturity” was at eighteen years of age, while “becoming fully grown” means he grew a beard.
The preposition min that occurs in this verse (natlū ʿalayka min nabaʾi Mūsā wa firʿawna, with min translated as “from”) is used to give the meaning of “a portion of” something rather than the whole (al-tabʿīḍ), while the phrase bi al-ḥaqq in this verse (natlū ʿalayka min nabaʾi Mūsā wa firʿawna bi al-ḥaqq, translated as “with the truth”) relates to the (first person plural imperfect tense) verb natlū (that occurs at the very beginning of this verse and which is translated as “We recite”). Thus the phrase bi al-ḥaqq qualifies it by describing its state. (Auth.) ↩︎
In this case, the phrase bi al-ḥaqq pertains to the word nabaʾ that occurs in this verse (“account”); it qualifies nabaʾ rather than the verb natlū. (Auth.) ↩︎
The letter lām here is known as lām al-taʿlīl. This part of the verse relates to the verb natlū (“We recite”). (Auth.)
The letter lām with this particular identification serves to indicate that the speech following the letter explains the purpose and justification for the speech that preceded it and therefore the letter lām here has the meaning of “for the benefit of” and “for the sake of.” (Trans.) ↩︎
Sayyid Ṭabātabāʾi intends to explain that the phrase “the land” (al-arḍ) implies a possessive construct that is shortened. The implied possessive construct is (fī) arḍ-i miṣr, translated as “in the land of Egypt”; however, the genitive (miṣr—Egypt) has been dropped while only its noun (arḍ, land) has been retained, thereby shortening the possessive construct, and consequently the definite article al- is prefixed to the noun of the implied possessive construct, it being ipso facto definite. This renders it al-arḍ (the land), which is definite, and therefore indicates a specific land, Egypt. (Trans.) ↩︎
Al-Khalīl says: The term al-makān is modelled on the pattern of al-mafʿal. The term al-makān is derived from (the verbal noun) al-kawn; however, due to excessive usage of this term in speech, it evolved from the form mafʿal (makwan) into the form faʿāl (makān). Thus, examples are tamakkana (“he gained influence, prestige, and power,” “he became consolidated and well-established”) and tamaskana (“he became calm, tranquil, and sedate”) in the sense of tamanzala (meaning “to be settled,” “to be lodged”). (Auth.) ↩︎
As for While We desired to bestow a favor (), it is more appropriate that it be considered as denoting the state and condition (al-ḥāl) for the word ṭāʾifa (“a party,” mentioned in ). (Auth.)
Therefore verse is grammatically identified as a verbal ḥāl verse meaning that it consists of a verbal sentence that describes the state or condition of ṭāʾifa—“a party,” a state which was obtained for it at the time when the action of the verb yastaḍʿifu (translated as: ‘to weaken’), which occurs in the previous verse, took place. Therefore the letter wāw at the beginning of this verse is identified as the wāw of ḥāl better translated as “while.” It joins two verses or two sentences such that the second verse or sentence denotes the state and condition of the subject or object of a verb in the previous verse or sentence. In this case it denotes the state and condition of the word ṭāʾifa (“a party”) which occurs as the grammatical object of the verb yastaḍʿifu in . (Trans.) ↩︎
In any case, the verb nurīdu (translated as We intend) intends to relate a past continuous state [implying that while the Pharaoh persecuted the Children of Israel, God intended to bestow favors on them]. (Auth.) ↩︎
The letter lām (“that”) which occurs in this verse has its function suggested as lām al-ʿāqiba. As for the word ḥazanan (“grief”) that occurs in this verse then whether it occurs with two fatḥas (on the letters ḥ and z, respectively as it does in this verse) or with a fatḥa and a sukūn (on the letters ḥ and z, respectively, that is ḥaznan), it means one and the same, and is similar (in form) to the words al-saqam and al-saqm (which mean “illness, sickness”). (Auth.)
The letter lām with this particular identification serves to indicate that the speech following it denotes “the outcome or the consequence of something that has gone before—al-ʿāqiba.” In this case, it serves to indicate the outcome of the verb iltaqaṭa which is translated as “took him up.” (Trans.) ↩︎
As for the word al-khāṭiʾīna that occurs in this verse and which is the active participle for the verb khaṭaʾa yakhṭaʾu khaṭaʾan. This is similar [in terms of derived verbal forms] to the verbs ʿalima yaʿlamu ʿilman.The word al-mukhṭiʾu is the active participle for the verb akhṭʾa yukhṭiʾu ikhṭāʾun. (Auth.) ↩︎
Hence translating the active participle al-khāṭiʾīna as “sinners” or “wrong-doers” rather than as “erroneous” is a mistake. (Trans.) ↩︎
And they did not perceive () is a sentence that is grammatically identified as jumlatun ḥāliyyatun (a sentence that describes a state and a condition). (Auth.) ↩︎
There are two types of conditions in the Arabic language: unlikely and likely. A negative unlikely condition begins with the particles law-lā as is the case here. These particles form the protasis while the apodosis follows, more often than not beginning with the particle of emphasis la. Ideally, in a conditional sentence, the apodosis follows the protasis in sequence; however, sometimes the apodosis is elided and in such cases it must be understood from the context. Apparently, this explanation has been suggested by some commentators as applying to the conditional sentence in verse but the author of this commentary rejects it as a weak explanation. At others, the apodosis precedes the protasis in a case of reversed condition. It appears that such an explanation is not favored by grammarians, nevertheless it occurs. The conditional sentence in verse appears to be a case of a reversed condition and is considered by the author of this commentary to be similar to . However, most probably due to the unease that grammarians feel with having an apodosis precede its protasis in a conditional sentence, the author of this commentary explains or names the supposedly preceding apodosis in as being not an apodosis proper but rather a sentence that is instead of, or in place of, or in the meaning of an apodosis. A similar explanation would therefore apply here, in , where the sentence in kādat la-tubdī bihi—“She would have almost disclosed it”—which is the supposedly preceding apodosis, would in effect be considered as being in the meaning of an apodosis but not the apodosis proper. Nevertheless, notwithstanding whichever of the two grammatical explanations is favored for identifying the grammatical apodosis for the conditional sentence in , the meaning of the verse and the meaning of the conditional sentence is not affected. The meaning is as explained by the author of this commentary in the text. (Trans.) ↩︎
Al-Durr al-Manthūr, on the authority of Ibn Abī Shayba, Ibn al-Mundhir, and Ibn Abī Ḥātim. ↩︎
Maʿānī al-Akhbār, via its chain of narration on the authority of Muḥammad b. Sinān, on the authority of al-Mufaḍḍal b. ʿUmar who heard it from the Imam. ↩︎
Nahj al-Balāgha. ↩︎
Tafsīr al-Qummī, on the authority of my father (that is, al-Qummī’s father), on the authority of al-Ḥasan b. Maḥbūb, on the authority of ʿAlā b. Razīn, on the authority of Muḥammad b. Muslim. ↩︎
Majmaʿ al-bayān. ↩︎
Al-Maʿānī, via its chain of transmission on the authority of Muḥammad b. Nuʾmān al-Aḥwāl. ↩︎