Exegesis of the saying of Allah the Exalted: [Go to Pharaoh, for he has transgressed] to His saying: [Are you more difficult to create, or the sky which He constructed?]

The Shaykh : Praise be to Allah, Lord of the worlds, and may Allah send prayers and blessings upon our Prophet Muhammad, and upon his family and his Companions, and upon those who follow them with excellence until the Day of Judgment.
As for what follows:
This gathering is the fourth meeting of this month, the month of Jumada al-Akhirah, in the year 1413, on Thursday, the twenty-third of this month. We ask Allah the Exalted to make it a blessed and beneficial meeting.
At the beginning of this meeting, we speak about the remaining verses in Surat al-Naziat, at the point where Allah the Exalted addresses Musa (peace be upon him): So Allah commanded His Prophet Musa to go to Pharaoh, and this is the message. He clarified the reason for this, which is the transgression of this man—meaning Pharaoh. In Surat Ta-Ha, He said: There is no contradiction between the two verses, because Allah the Exalted sent Musa first, then Musa (peace be upon him) asked his Lord to strengthen his back with his brother Harun, so Allah sent Harun with Musa, and thus both Musa and Harun became messengers to Pharaoh.
And His saying: means: he exceeded his limit, because transgression is excess. From this comes His saying: "transgressed," meaning: exceeded. And from this comes the term "taghut," because it involves exceeding the limit. So here, the Mighty and Majestic says: .
: The interrogation here is for the purpose of provoking, provoking Pharaoh to purify himself from the evil and corruption he is in.
The original meaning of zakat is growth and increase, and it is used to mean Islam and the oneness of Allah. From this comes His saying: And from this comes His saying: .
means: Shall I guide you to the religion of Allah the Mighty and Majestic, which leads to Allah?
means: Do you fear Allah with knowledge on your part? Because khushu' (fear) is fear accompanied by knowledge. If there is no knowledge, it is mere fear. This is the difference between khushu' and fear.
The difference between them is that khushu' is based on knowledge. Allah the Exalted said: As for fear, it is mere fear, a panic that occurs in a person even without knowledge. For this reason, a person may fear something he imagines; he may see a phantom in the dark night that has no reality and fear it. This is panic based on illusion, but khushu' is based on knowledge.
means: So Musa (peace and blessings be upon him) went and said to Pharaoh what Allah commanded him to say: Since humans do not believe or accept the claim of a person that he is a messenger except with a sign, as is apparent, a person does not accept anyone's claim except with proof, Allah the Exalted and Sublime made a sign with every messenger that indicates his truthfulness. Here He said: What is this sign?
The sign is that he had a staff made of wood from the branches of trees, as is known. When he placed it on the ground, it became a living snake moving about. Then he would pick it up, and it would return to being a staff. This is among the signs of Allah, that an inanimate object, when placed on the ground, becomes a living snake moving about, and when picked up from the ground, it immediately returns to its original state, which is that it is a staff among the staffs. .
He (peace and blessings be upon him) was sent with this sign and with the fact that he would put his hand in his sleeve and it would come out white, without any defect, meaning: without any blemish, meaning: white with a whiteness that is not the whiteness of leprosy, but a whiteness that Allah made a sign. He was sent by Allah with this—the staff and the hand—because in the time of Musa, magic was widespread and common. So Allah the Exalted sent him with something that resembles magic but is not truly magic, in order to overcome the magicians who stood against Musa (peace be upon him).
The scholars said: In the time of 'Isa (peace and blessings be upon him), medicine spread greatly. So 'Isa came with a matter that baffled the doctors, which is that he would not touch one afflicted with a disease except that he would be cured. When a person with a disease—whatever the disease might be—was brought to him, he would wipe him with his hand, and he would be cured by the permission of Allah. He would cure the blind and the lepers, even though leprosy has no cure, but he would cure the lepers by the permission of Allah the Mighty and Majestic, and he would cure the blind who were created without eyes.
More severe and greater than this is that he brings the dead to life by the permission of Allah. The dead are brought to him, and he speaks to them, and then life returns to them.
And more severe and more eloquent than that is that he brings out the dead by the permission of Allah. He brings them out from where?
From their graves. He stands over the grave and calls the owner of the grave, and he comes out of the grave alive. This is something that no medicine can achieve. For this reason, the sign of 'Isa was perfectly appropriate to the state of the people at that time.
The scholars said: As for the Messenger of Allah Muhammad (peace and blessings be upon him), he came to the Arabs while they were boasting of eloquence and considering eloquence the greatest virtue for a person. So Muhammad (peace and blessings be upon him) came with this great Qur'an that baffled the masters of eloquence, and they were unable to bring forth anything like it. Allah the Exalted said: meaning: Even if some of them were to help others, they would not be able to bring forth anything like it.
At that point, we say: Musa (peace be upon him) showed Pharaoh the greatest sign, but did he benefit from the signs?
No, , : So those who have no readiness in their hearts for guidance will not be guided, even if every sign were to come—seeking refuge in Allah.
For this reason, He said: : He lied about the news and disobeyed the command. Meaning, he said to Musa: You are not a messenger. Rather, he said: And he disobeyed the command, so he did not obey the command of Musa and did not submit to his law.
: "Adbara" means: he turned away, retreating and striving diligently.

Seeking refuge in Allah, he said to his people: I am your supreme Lord. Meaning: No one is above me, because "al-A'la" (the Supreme) is a superlative name derived from "uluww" (height). So look at how this man became arrogant and claimed for himself what is not his in his saying: .
And he used to boast of the rivers and the vast kingdom. He said to his people, among the many things he said to them: So what happened?
Allah the Mighty and Majestic drowned him with the water he used to boast of, and Allah made the kingdom of Egypt the inheritance of the Children of Israel, whom he used to weaken. Allah the Exalted said: Meaning: He punished him in the Hereafter and in the first life, so he became a lesson in his time and a lesson after his time until the Day of Resurrection. Everyone who reads the Book of Allah and reads what Allah did to Pharaoh takes that as a lesson and draws a moral from it.
And how did Allah destroy him despite this great kingdom, this tyranny, and this transgression? He became easier for Allah the Exalted than anything easy.
The Mighty and Majestic says: "In that" means: In what occurred of the sending of Musa to Pharaoh, his dialogue with him, Pharaoh's mockery of him, and his arrogance in refusing to submit to him, there is a lesson. A lesson for one who fears: meaning: who fears Allah the Mighty and Majestic.
So whoever has fear of Allah and reflects on what happened to Musa with Pharaoh and the result that was for this one and that one, he takes a lesson and draws a moral from it. The lessons in the story of Musa are many. If one of you were to volunteer to collect the story from the verses in every Surah, and then deduce the lessons that occurred in this story, it would be good. Is there anyone among you who will do that?
The student: In four days, if Allah wills?

The Shaykh : Yes, you have fifteen days.
The student: After the fifteen days, during the break, if Allah wills.

The Shaykh : During the vacation? In any case, if we find someone before you, that is better, otherwise it is yours. Fine, the one who comes first is the one who gets it.
The student: Will he bring the phrase, O Shaykh?

The Shaykh : That is, he brings the entire story in all the verses, because some surahs contain things that others do not. So if he gathers them and says, for example, "The following lessons are drawn from this great story," and then lists them—meaning, not the obligatory legal or jurisprudential rulings, for I do not want that from you, as that could get lengthy—but the lessons: How did Allah the Exalted send [Moses] to Pharaoh? How did He say: even though he was arrogant and wicked? And what was the outcome? And how was it that Moses (peace be upon him) left Egypt, fearful for his life and watching for danger, just as the Messenger (peace and blessings be upon him) left Mecca, watching for danger? And what was the final outcome for the Messenger (peace and blessings be upon him) and for Moses? But the outcome for the Messenger (peace and blessings be upon him) was brought about by the Messenger and his companions; Allah tormented their enemies at their hands. And the outcome for Moses was brought about by Allah the Exalted. So a person draws lessons from this. I do not want jurisprudential rulings, no, I want lessons by which a person takes heed, and by which he gladdens his soul and his heart, so that the matter becomes clear.
The student : Do we mention the words of the scholars?

The Shaykh : In any case, mentioning the words of the scholars is good, because the words of the scholars are a means to understanding the meaning and the issue.
And we stop at His saying, the Exalted: , and I think we have spoken about it, but repetition is not a problem if there is benefit in it. And here end these words, which I ask Allah the Exalted to make sincere for His sake and beneficial for us all. And we now begin with the questions. Do you have a question?

The questioner : No, I am just listening.

The Shaykh : May Allah bless you. Yes, listen, and if Allah wills, you will benefit.

The questioner : May Allah reward you.

The Shaykh : May Allah greet you.