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The Exit of The Israelites From Egypt to Palestine
God said: And verily We inspired Moses, saying: Take away My slaves by
night and strike for them a dry path in the sea, fearing not to be overtaken,
neither being afraid (of the sea)(TaHa:77). What is mentioned in Torah
in brief is that the pharaoh permitted for the Israelites to go out with
Moses to get rid of the adversities that came over him and his people because
of them and to answer the requests of Moses, and not because that the pharaoh
believed in Moses. When the pharaoh permitted that he regretted and so
he gathered armies from all the cities and followed them to get them back
into slavery, and the reasons for his regret as they attributed are all
silly that do not deserve to be mentioned. The Israelites reached the shores
of the red sea over the gulf of Suez, so he (the pharaoh) followed them
with the sun rising, so the people of Moses knew that they are destroyed
and the pharaoh will kill them, so Moses calmed them down and stroke the
sea with his staff as God commanded him and so it was splitted so that
its floor appeared and he commanded the Israelites to pass over and so
they did from the western coast to the eastern coast and the pharaoh arrived
to the place that they passed from and saw a road through the sea that
is not rugged and the Israelites passed from it and were not hurt, so he
got into the road running after the Israelites, so when all of the israelites
were out of the sea and the pharaoh were in the middle, the sea then closed
together and the pharaoh was drawned with his soldiers and no one of them
escaped, and when he was sure of the destruction he said: believe
that there is no Allah save Him in Whom the Children of Israel believe,
and I am of those who surrender (unto Him)(Younus:90).
Abdul-Wahâb Al-Najjâr said about this matter what is in
brief: the pharaoh did not believe in the content of his word but he just
wanted to be saved from being destroyed and it is like the other miracles
that he saw from him (Moses) but did not believe in because of his tyranny,
and they usedto say for Moses (PUH): O Moses! Pray for us unto thy Lord,
because He hath a covenant with thee. If thou removest the terror from
us we verily will trust thee..etc, and also said to him: O wizard! Entreat
thy Lord for us by the pact that He hath made with thee. Lo! we verily
will walk aright, so then God used to relief them of the adversities and
they get back to what they used to do before for they thought that they
would be saved as before. Some claim that the pharaoh was saved for he
believed in God at the end and they use clues that should never be listened
to, and God says: The forgiveness is not for those who do ill-deeds until,
when death attendeth upon one of them, he saith: Lo! I repent now..etc(Al-Nisâ':18),
and also God did say: What! Now! When hitherto thou hast rebelled and been
of the wrong-doers? But this day We save thee in thy body that thou mayst
be a portent for those after thee..etc(Younus:91-92).
As it is attributed to Al-Ridhâ (PUH) in his answer to someone
asked him about the reason for the destruction of the pharaoh and he believed
in God before his death, so he (PUH) said: for he believed when he saw
the power, and being faithful when looking at power is something not accepted,
and this is the judgement of God in previous nations and all the creations,
and God did say: Then, when they saw Our doom, they said: We believe in
Allah only and reject (all) that we used to associate (with Him). But their
faith could not avail them when they saw Our doom(Ghâfir:84-85),
thus when the pharaoh was about to be destroyed he said: I believed..etc.
The pharaoh was covered with iron shields from the top of his head to his
toes and when he was drawned, God did make his body on a high ground to
be a sermon for people after him, thus when they see him with all his heavy
weight because of the shields in a high place they would reckon about the
meanings. We've pointed out that there is a confusion between historians
and interpreters about the reason for destroying the pharaoh after showing
faith, and they answered this in many ways and the best of all is what
we just mentioned above. They did differ also in the place of the miracle
of Moses so some said: it was in the place that is called Birkat Fir`un
(the lake of the pharaoh), and they say the passing over began from there,
and also said: their passing was to the north of the place called `Uyun
Musâ (springs of Moses) which is in the Asian lands and it is not
far away from Suez, and some said: their passing was between Suez and Al-Buhayrah
Al-Murrah (The Bitter Lake) at a time when both of them were connected
together. They say that the width of the bay, that Moses did strike with
his staff and splitted apart, was four leagues, twelve miles, forty eight
thousand cubits as measured by the arm.
It is mentioned in Torah that God sent an eastern wind to the sea and
removed water until the land appeared and then the Israelites passed over
and the pharaoh followed them and he was drawned, and by meditating there
is no doubt that a thoughtful man would have about this matter and it is
a miracle for Moses and to save his people and the destruction of the pharaoh
and his people. The road in the sea was created either by a wind blow or
by striking it with a staff as it is mentioned in Quran, and all of that
was done by God's care and will, so the miracle is obvious for Moses either
a muslim looked at it in his Quran or a jew looked at it in his Torah,
but the atheists look into the Torah and say that Moses had no proof for
it (to be as a miracle for him), and it is not a miracle, and no one either
a muslim or a book-owner [book-owner is a general expression that denotes
jews and christians for they have holy heavenly-revealed books] should
look at it as a miracle for Moses. The answer to these false imaginations
is obvious from what we pointed out before for the miracle is done by any
suggested way because the wind was not believed to do such a great effect
before Moses or after him, and if it had such an effect then they can bring
that matter as a clue for their false claims. We've pointed out before
also that the muslim interpreters for the holy quran agreed that the road
that the Israelites passed through the sea from was splitted into twelve
dry roads, as much as the tribes of the Israelites. It is mentioned in
the chapter of Al-A`râf: Therefore We took retribution from them;
therefore We drowned them in the sea: because they denied Our revelations
and were heedless of them. And We caused the folk who were despised to
inherit the eastern parts of the land and the western parts thereof which
We had blessed. And the fair word of thy Lord was fulfilled for the Children
of Israel because of their endurance; and We annihilated (all) that Pharaoh
and his folk had done and that they had contrived(Al-A`râf:136-137).
This meaning is found in many chapters like: Younus, Al-Isrâ', TaHa,
Al-Shu`arâ', Al-Qasas, Al-Zokhrof, Al-Dukhân, Al-Ðâriyât,
and all had what is related to this matter, so read them and you will get
the knowledgement.
What is known for us that if what was in Torah differs from that what
is in Quran then Quran is to be taken and depended on for it was revealed
with truth and confirming which was before it. In Torah it is mentioned
what is in brief that the Israelites announced the happiness and their
voices got high with sanctifications for God when they passed the sea and
were saved from the pharaoh, and their women took the tambours and played
and danced for their saving and the death of their enemy, and this is not
something to be denied, and no doubt that their happiness was great for
being saved in such weird way and for the destruction of the pharaoh with
his soldiers in the sea and being sermons for others for all times. That
was what the enemy of God faced because of his pride and in the after-life
he would be taken to hell and the painful torture, and God said in the
chapter of Hud: And verily We sent Moses with Our revelations and a clear
warrant Unto Pharaoh and his chiefs, but they did follow the command of
Pharaoh, and the command of Pharaoh was no right guide. He will go before
his people on the Day of Resurrection and will lead them to the Fire for
watering-place. Ah, hapless is the watering-place (whither they are) led.
A curse is made to follow them in the world and on the Day of Resurrection.
Hapless is the gift (that will be) given (them)(Hud:96-99). In the chapters
of Al-Qasas, Ghâfir and Al-Dukhân there are phrases details
of debates beetween the people of the hell and explaining the types of
torture and humiliation that they will face and so on of things that make
the heart of a believer shake, and the hypocrites would mock at.
It is told in some narrations that the death of the pharaoh was on
Wednesday as it is mentioned that a man from the lands of Shem asked the
prince of believers (PUH) about Wednesdays and about being afraid of such
day, he (PUH) answered: on the last Wednesday of the month the pharaoh
was destroyed, and on Wednesday the pharaoh asked for Moses to kill him,
and on Wednesday the pharaoh ordered to slay the scholars [maybe the author
means here the wizards that believed in Moses] and on Wednesday the punishment
was revealed on the pharaoh and his people, and it is mentioned before
that the name of the pharaoh was Al-Waleed ben Mus`ab and he was called
Abâ-Mus`ab (Father of Mus`ab), and he lived for four hundred years
and was one of the giants, and Al-Sâdiq (PUH) was asked about the
interpretation of God's saying: And with Pharaoh, firm of might(Al-Fajr:10)
[notice that the translation of Pickthall is not exactly word by word,
the Arabic meaning of the phrase would more like: And the pharaoh of the
wedges], so he (PUH) said: this is because when the pharaoh wanted to torture
a man he would make him lay on the flood over his face and then would order
to extend his arms and legs and nail them with wedges into the floor and
leave him like that until he dies.
Next: The Wife of The Pharaoh, Âsiyyah bent Muzâhim