40:29 Ghafir (The Forgiver)

ثم حذر قومه ونصحهم، وخوفهم عذاب الآخرة، ونهاهم عن الاغترار بالملك الظاهر، فقال: { يَا قَوْمِ لَكُمُ الْمُلْكُ الْيَوْمَ } أي: في الدنيا { ظَاهِرِينَ فِي الْأَرْضِ } على رعيتكم، تنفذون فيهم ما شئتم من التدبير، فهبكم حصل لكم ذلك وتم، ولن يتم، { فَمَنْ يَنْصُرُنَا مِنْ بَأْسِ اللَّهِ } أي: عذابه { إِنْ جَاءَنَا } ؟ وهذا من حسن دعوته، حيث جعل الأمر مشتركًا بينه وبينهم بقوله: { فَمَنْ يَنْصُرُنَا } وقوله: { إِنْ جَاءَنَا } ليفهمهم أنه ينصح لهم كما ينصح لنفسه، ويرضى لهم ما يرضى لنفسه.فـ { قَالَ فِرْعَوْنُ } معارضًا له في ذلك، ومغررًا لقومه أن يتبعوا موسى: { مَا أُرِيكُمْ إِلَّا مَا أَرَى وَمَا أَهْدِيكُمْ إِلَّا سَبِيلَ الرَّشَادِ } وصدق في قوله: { مَا أُرِيكُمْ إِلَّا مَا أَرَى } ولكن ما الذي رأى؟رأى أن يستخف قومه فيتابعوه، ليقيم بهم رياسته، ولم ير الحق معه، بل رأى الحق مع موسى، وجحد به مستيقنًا له.وكذب في قوله: { وَمَا أَهْدِيكُمْ إِلَّا سَبِيلَ الرَّشَادِ } فإن هذا قلب للحق، فلو أمرهم باتباعه اتباعًا مجردًا على كفره وضلاله، لكان الشر أهون، ولكنه أمرهم باتباعه، وزعم أن في اتباعه اتباع الحق وفي اتباع الحق، اتباع الضلال.

ثم قال المؤمن محذرا قومه زوال نعمة الله عنهم وحلول نقمة الله بهم "يا قوم لكم الملك اليوم ظاهرين في الأرض" أي قد أنعم الله عليكم بهذا الملك والظهور في الأرض بالكلمة النافذة والجاه العريض فراعوا هذه النعمة بشكر الله تعالى وتصديق رسوله صلى الله عليه وسلم واحذروا نقمة الله إن كذبتم رسوله "فمن ينصرنا من بأس الله إن جاءنا" أي لا تغني عنكم هذه الجنود وهذه العساكر ولا ترد عنا شيئا من بأس الله إن أرادنا بسوء "قال فرعون" لقومه رادا على ما أشار به هذا الرجل الصالح البار الراشد الذي كان أحق بالملك من فرعون "ما أريكم إلا ما أرى" أي ما أقول لكم وأشير عليكم إلا ما أراه لنفسي وقد كذب فرعون فإنه كان يتحقق صدق موسى عليه السلام فيما جاء به من الرسالة "قال لقد علمت ما أنزل هؤلاء إلا رب السماوات والأرض بصائر" وقال الله تعالى "وجحدوا بها واستيقنتها أنفسهم ظلما وعلوا" فقوله "ما أريكم إلا ما أرى" كذب فيه وافترى وخان الله تبارك وتعالى ورسوله صلى الله عليه وسلم ورعيته فغشهم وما نصحهم وكذا قوله "وما أهديكم إلا سبيل الرشاد" أي وما أدعوكم إلا إلى طريق الحق والصدق والرشد وقد كذب أيضا في ذلك وإن كان قومه قد أطاعوه واتبعوه. قال الله تبارك وتعالى "فاتبعوا أمر فرعون وما أمر فرعون برشيد" وقال جلت عظمته "وأضل فرعون قومه وما هدى" وفي الحديث "ما من إمام يموت يوم يموت وهو غاش لرعيته إلا لم يرح رائحة الجنة وإن ريحها ليوجد من مسيرة خمسمائة عام". والله سبحانه وتعالى الموفق للصواب.

Musa was supported by a believing Man from Fir`awn's Family

The well-known view is that this believing man was a Coptic (Egyptian) from the family of Fir`awn. As-Suddi said, he was a cousin son of the paternal uncle of Fir`awn. And it was said that he was the one who was saved along with Musa, peace be upon him. Ibn Jurayj reported that Ibn `Abbas, may Allah be pleased with him, said "No one from among the family of Fir`awn believed apart from this man, the wife of Fir`awn, and the one who said,

يمُوسَى إِنَّ الْمَلاّ يَأْتَمِرُونَ بِكَ لِيَقْتُلُوكَ

("O Musa! Verily, the chiefs are taking counsel together about you, to kill you.")" (28:20) This was narrated by Ibn Abi Hatim. This man concealed his Faith from his people, the Egyptians, and did not reveal it except on this day when Fir`awn said,

ذَرُونِى أَقْتُلْ مُوسَى

(Leave me to kill Musa,) The man was seized with anger for the sake of Allah, and the best of Jihad is to speak a just word before an unjust ruler, as is stated in the Hadith. There is no greater example of this than the words that this man said to Fir`awn:

أَتَقْتُلُونَ رَجُلاً أَن يَقُولَ رَبِّىَ اللَّهُ

(Would you kill a man because he says: `My Lord is Allah,) Al-Bukhari narrated a similar story in his Sahih from `Urwah bin Az-Zubayr, may Allah be pleased with him, who said: "I said to `Abdullah bin `Amr bin Al-`As, may Allah be pleased with him: `Tell me, what was the worst thing the idolators did to the Messenger of Allah ﷺ ' He said, `While the Messenger of Allah ﷺ was praying in the courtyard of the Ka`bah, `Uqbah bin Abi Mu`it came and grabbed the shoulder of the Messenger of Allah ﷺ and started twisting his garment so that it strangled him. Abu Bakr, may Allah be pleased with him, came and grabbed `Uqbah's shoulder and pushed him away from the Prophet , then he said,

أَتَقْتُلُونَ رَجُلاً أَن يَقُولَ رَبِّىَ اللَّهُ وَقَدْ جَآءَكُمْ بِالْبَيِّنَـتِ مِن رَّبِّكُمْ

(Would you kill a man because he says: `My Lord is Allah,' and he has come to you with clear signs from your Lord)."' This was recorded by Al-Bukhari. Allah's saying;

وَقَدْ جَآءَكُمْ بِالْبَيِّنَـتِ مِن رَّبِّكُمْ

(and he has come to you with clear signs from your Lord) means, "how can you kill a man just because he says, `My Lord is Allah,' and he brings proof that what he is saying is the truth" Then, for the sake of argument, he went along with them and said,

وَإِن يَكُ كَـذِباً فَعَلَيْهِ كَذِبُهُ وَإِن يَكُ صَـدِقاً يُصِبْكُمْ بَعْضُ الَّذِى يَعِدُكُمْ

(And if he is a liar, upon him will be (the sin of) his lie; but if he is telling the truth, then some of that (calamity) wherewith he threatens you will befall on you. ) meaning, `if you do not believe in what he is saying, then it is only common sense to leave him alone and not harm him; if he is lying, then Allah will punish him for his lies in this world and in the Hereafter. If he is telling the truth and you harm him, then some of what he is warning about will happen to you too, because he is threatening you with punishment in this world and in the Hereafter if you go against him. It is possible that he is telling the truth in your case, so you should leave him and his people alone, and not harm them.' Allah tells us that Musa asked Fir`awn and his people to leave them in peace, as Allah says:

وَلَقَدْ فَتَنَّا قَبْلَهُمْ قَوْمَ فِرْعَوْنَ وَجَآءَهُمْ رَسُولٌ كَرِيمٌ - أَنْ أَدُّواْ إِلَىَّ عِبَادَ اللَّهِ إِنِّى لَكُمْ رَسُولٌ أَمِينٌ

وَأَن لاَّ تَعْلُواْ عَلَى اللَّهِ إِنِّى ءَاتِيكُمْ بِسُلْطَانٍ مُّبِينٍ - وَإِنِّى عُذْتُ بِرَبِّى وَرَبِّكُمْ أَن تَرْجُمُونِ - وَإِن لَّمْ تُؤْمِنُواْ لِى فَاعْتَزِلُونِ

(And indeed We tried before them Fir`awn's people, when there came to them a noble Messenger, saying: "Deliver to me the servants of Allah. Verily, I am to you a Messenger worthy of all trust. And exalt not yourselves against Allah. Truly, I have come to you with a manifest authority. And truly, I seek refuge with my Lord and your Lord, lest you should stone me. But if you believe me not, then keep away from me and leave me alone.") (44:17-21). Similarly, the Messenger of Allah ﷺ told the Quraysh to leave him alone and let him call the servants of Allah to Allah; he asked them not to harm him, and to uphold the ties of kinship that existed between him and them, by not harming him. Allah says:

قُل لاَّ أَسْـَلُكُمْ عَلَيْهِ أَجْراً إِلاَّ الْمَوَدَّةَ فِى الْقُرْبَى

(Say: "No reward do I ask of you for this except to be kind to me for my kinship with you.") (42:23), meaning, `do not harm me, because of the ties of kinship that exist between me and you; so do not harm me, and let me address my call to the people.' This was the basis of the truce agreed upon on the day of Al-Hudaybiyah, which was a manifest victory.

إِنَّ اللَّهَ لاَ يَهْدِى مَنْ هُوَ مُسْرِفٌ كَذَّابٌ

(Verily, Allah guides not one who is a transgressor, a liar!) means, `if the one who claims to have been sent by Allah is a liar, as you say, this would be obvious to everyone from his words and deeds, for they would be inconsistent and self-contradictory. But we can see that this man is upright and what he says is consistent. If he was a sinner and a liar, Allah would not have guided him and made his words and actions rational and consistent as you see them.' Then this believer warned his people that they would lose the blessings Allah bestowed upon them and that the vengeance of Allah would befall them:

يقَومِ لَكُمُ الْمُلْكُ الْيَوْمَ ظَـهِرِينَ فِى الاٌّرْضِ

(O my people! Yours is the kingdom today, you being dominant in the land.) means, `Allah has blessed you with this kingdom, dominance in the land, power and authority, so take care of this blessing by giving thanks to Allah and believing in his Messenger, and beware of the punishment of Allah if you reject His Messenger.'

فَمَن يَنصُرُنَا مِن بَأْسِ اللَّهِ إِن جَآءَنَا

(But who will save us from the torment of Allah, should it befall us) means, `these soldiers and troops will not avail you anything and will not ward off the punishment of Allah, if He decides to punish us.' Fir`awn said to his people, in response to the advice of this righteous man who was more deserving of kingship than Fir`awn:

مَآ أُرِيكُمْ إِلاَّ مَآ أَرَى

(I show you only that which I see,) meaning, `I only tell you and advise you to do that which I think is good for myself, too.' But Fir`awn lied, because he knew that Musa was telling the truth concerning the Message which he brought.

قَالَ لَقَدْ عَلِمْتَ مَآ أَنزَلَ هَـؤُلاءِ إِلاَّ رَبُّ السَّمَـوَتِ وَالاٌّرْضِ بَصَآئِرَ

(Musa said: "Verily, you know that these signs have been sent down by none but the Lord of the heavens and the earth.") (17:102)

وَجَحَدُواْ بِهَا وَاسْتَيْقَنَتْهَآ أَنفُسُهُمْ ظُلْماً وَعُلُوّاً

(And they belied them (those Ayat) wrongfully and arrogantly, though they were themselves convinced thereof) (27:14)

مَآ أُرِيكُمْ إِلاَّ مَآ أَرَى

(I show you only that which I see,) -- Fir`awn uttered a lie and a fabrication; he betrayed Allah and His Messenger, and cheated his people by not advising them sincerely.

وَمَآ أَهْدِيكُمْ إِلاَّ سَبِيلَ الرَّشَادِ

(and I guide you only to the path of right policy!) means, `and I am only calling you to the path of truth, sincerity and guidance.' This was also a lie, but his people obeyed him and followed him. Allah says:

فَاتَّبَعُواْ أَمْرَ فِرْعَوْنَ وَمَآ أَمْرُ فِرْعَوْنَ بِرَشِيدٍ

(they followed the command of Fir`awn, and the command of Fir`awn was no right guide) (11:97).

وَأَضَلَّ فِرْعَوْنُ قَوْمَهُ وَمَا هَدَى

(And Fir`awn led his people astray, and he did not guide them.) (20:79) According to a Hadith:

«مَا مِنْ إِمَام يَمُوتُ يَوْمَ يَمُوتُ وَهُوَ غَاشٌّ لِرَعِيَّتِهِ، إِلَّا لَمْ يَرَحْ رَائِحَةَ الْجَنَّةِ، وَإِنَّ رِيحَهَا لَيُوجَدُ مِنْ مَسِيرَةِ خَمْسِمِائَةِ عَام»

(There is no leader who dies having cheated his people, but he will never smell the fragrance of Paradise, and its fragrance can be detected from a distance of a five-hundred year journey.)" And Allah is the Guide to the straight path.

O my people! Today the kingdom is yours you are dominant prevailing zāhirīna a circumstantial qualifier in the land the land of Egypt. But who will help us against the might of God against His chastisement if you resolve to slay His friends should it reach us?’ In other words we would have no helper. Pharaoh said ‘I only point out to you what I see to be best that is to say I only suggest to you what I suggest to myself and that is to kill Moses would be best; and I am only guiding you to the path of rectitude’ to the correct way.

In verse 28, it was said: يَكْتُمُ إِيمَانَهُ (who had kept his faith secret). This tells us that a person who does not declare his 'iman (faith) before people, yet remains staunch in his faith by heart, then, this person is a believer. But, it stands proved from clear textual authority (of the Qur'an and Hadith) that, for 'iman to be acceptable, the simple certitude of the heart is not enough, instead, it is subject to the condition of a verbal confession and declaration. Unless the person concerned declares it verbally, he or she will not be regarded as a believer. However, making this verbal declaration before people publicly is not necessary. The only reason why it is needed is that unless people come to know about the person's 'iman, they would remain unable to interact with him or her in the same way as they do with Muslims. (Qurtubi)

Earlier in the verse, by saying: مُّؤْمِنٌ مِّنْ آلِ فِرْ‌عَوْنَ (a believing man from the House of the Pharaoh), it is virtually demonstrated that the believer, in his ensuing dialogue with Pharaoh and his people, invited them toward truth and faith as well as restrained them from killing Sayyidna Musa (علیہ السلام) .