Az-Zukhruf: 52

Ayah

Word by Word

أَمۡ

أَنَا۠

am I

خَيۡرٞ

better

مِّنۡ

than

هَٰذَا

this

ٱلَّذِي

one who

هُوَ

مَهِينٞ

(is) insignificant

وَلَا

and hardly

يَكَادُ

and hardly

يُبِينُ

clear

Translation

"Am I not better than this (Moses), who is a contemptible wretch and can scarcely express himself clearly?

Tafsir

Musa was sent with the Message of Tawhid to Fir`awn and His Chiefs

Allah tells,

وَلَقَدۡ أَرۡسَلۡنَا مُوسَى بِأيَاتِنَا إِلَى فِرۡعَوۡنَ وَمَلَيِهِ فَقَالَ إِنِّي رَسُولُ رَبِّ الۡعَالَمِينَ

فَلَمَّا جَاءهُم بِأيَاتِنَا إِذَا هُم مِّنۡهَا يَضۡحَكُونَ

And indeed We did send Musa with Our Ayat to Fir`awn and his chiefs. He said:Verily, I am a Messenger of the Lord of all that exists.

But when he came to them with Our Ayat, behold, they laughed at them.

Here Allah tells us about His servant and Messenger Musa, peace be upon him, and how He sent him to Fir`awn and his chiefs. That is, his governors, ministers, leaders and followers among the Egyptians and the Children of Israel.

Allah sent him to call them to worship Allah alone, with no partner or associate, and to forbid them from worshipping anything other than Him. He sent him with mighty signs, such as his hand and his staff, other signs such as the flood, locusts, Qummal, frogs and blood, and the loss of their crops and lives. Yet despite all that they remained arrogant and stubbornly refused to follow him; they rejected his message and made fun of it, and laughed at the one who had brought it.

وَمَا نُرِيهِم مِّنۡ ايَةٍ إِلاَّ هِيَ أَكۡبَرُ مِنۡ أُخۡتِهَا

And not an Ayah We showed them but it was greater than its fellow preceding it,

but despite that they would not give up their sin, misguidance, ignorance and confusion.

وَأَخَذۡنَاهُم بِالۡعَذَابِ لَعَلَّهُمۡ يَرۡجِعُونَ

and We seized them with torment, in order that they might turn.

وَقَالُوا

And they said (to Musa):

Every time one of these signs came to them, they would go and implore Musa, saying,

يَا أَيُّهَا السَّاحِرُ

O you sorcerer!...

meaning, expert or knowledgeable one --

this was the view of Ibn Jarir.

The scholars of that time were the sorcerers or magicians, and magic was not regarded as something reprehensible by them at that time, so this was not a slight on their part. They were in a state of need, so it would not have been appropriate for them to insult him. This was a way of honoring him, as they thought.

ادۡعُ لَنَا رَبَّكَ بِمَا عَهِدَ عِندَكَ إِنَّنَا لَمُهۡتَدُونَ

فَلَمَّا كَشَفۡنَا عَنۡهُمُ الۡعَذَابَ إِذَا هُمۡ يَنكُثُونَ

Invoke your Lord for us according to what He has made a pact with you. Verily, We shall guide ourselves.

But when We removed the torment from them, behold, they broke their covenant.

On each occasion, they promised Musa that if the torment was lifted from them, they would believe in him and let the Children of Israel go with him, but on each occasion they went back on their word.

This is like the Ayat:

فَأَرۡسَلۡنَا عَلَيۡهِمُ الطُّوفَانَ وَالۡجَرَادَ وَالۡقُمَّلَ وَالضَّفَادِعَ وَالدَّمَ ءَايَـتٍ مّفَصَّلَتٍ فَاسۡتَكۡبَرُواۡ وَكَانُواۡ قَوۡماً مُّجۡرِمِينَ

وَلَمَّا وَقَعَ عَلَيۡهِمُ الرِّجۡزُ قَالُواۡ يَمُوسَى ادۡعُ لَنَا رَبَّكَ بِمَا عَهِدَ عِندَكَ لَيِن كَشَفۡتَ عَنَّا الرِّجۡزَ لَنُوۡمِنَنَّ لَكَ وَلَنُرۡسِلَنَّ مَعَكَ بَنِى إِسۡرَءِيلَ

فَلَمَّا كَشَفۡنَا عَنۡهُمُ الرِّجۡزَ إِلَى أَجَلٍ هُم بَـلِغُوهُ إِذَا هُمۡ يَنكُثُونَ

So We sent on them:the flood, the locusts, the Qummal, the frogs, and the blood; manifest signs, yet they remained arrogant, and they were of those people who were criminals. And when the punishment struck them, they said:O Musa! Invoke your Lord for us because of His promise to you. If you remove the punishment from us, we indeed shall believe in you, and we shall let the Children of Israel go with you.

But when We removed the punishment from them to a fixed term, which they had to reach, behold! they broke their word! (7:133-135

Fir`awn's Address to His People and how Allah punished Him

Allah informs that;

وَنَادَى فِرۡعَوۡنُ فِي قَوۡمِهِ قَالَ يَا قَوۡمِ

And Fir`awn proclaimed among his people (saying):O my people!

Allah tells us how Fir`awn stubbornly persisted in his rebellion and disbelief. He assembled his people and addressed them in a vainglorious fashion, boasting of his dominion over Egypt.

أَلَيۡسَ لِي مُلۡكُ مِصۡرَ

وَهَذِهِ الاَۡنۡهَارُ تَجۡرِي مِن تَحۡتِي

Is not mine the dominion of Egypt, and these rivers flowing underneath me?

Qatadah said, They had gardens and rivers of flowing water.

أَفَلَ تُبۡصِرُونَ

See you not then?

means, `do you not see my position of might and power' -- implying that Musa and his followers were poor and weak.

This is like the Ayah:

فَحَشَرَ فَنَادَى

فَقَالَ أَنَاۡ رَبُّكُمُ الاٌّعۡلَى

فَأَخَذَهُ اللَّهُ نَكَالَ الاٌّخِرَةِ وَالاٍّوۡلَى

Then he gathered (his people) and cried aloud, saying:I am your lord, most high.

So Allah seized him with punishment for his last and first transgression. (79:23-25)

أَمۡ أَنَا خَيۡرٌ مِّنۡ هَذَا الَّذِي هُوَ مَهِينٌ

Am I not better than this one who is despicable?

As-Suddi said,

He was saying, `indeed I am better than this one, who is despicable'.

Some of the grammarians of Basrah said that Fir`awn -- may the curse of Allah be upon him -- was saying that he was better than Musa, peace be upon him. But this is an obvious lie, may continued curses be upon him until the Day of Resurrection.

By describing Musa as despicable he meant -- as Sufyan said -- insignificant.

Qatadah and As-Suddi said, He meant, weak.

Ibn Jarir said, He meant, he had no power, authority or wealth.

وَلَا يَكَادُ يُبِينُ

and can scarcely express himself clearly.

means, he cannot speak clearly, he stammers and cannot speak well.

Fir`awn's description of Musa as despicable is a lie; rather it is he who was despicable and insignificant, lacking in physical, moral and religious terms, and it is Musa who was noble, truthful, righteous and upright.

وَلَا يَكَادُ يُبِينُ

(and can scarcely express himself clearly).

This was also a lie. Although something happened to Musa's tongue when he was a child, when it was burnt by a coal. He asked Allah to loosen the knot from his tongue (i.e., to correct his speech defect) so that they could understand what he said, and Allah had answered his prayer and said:

قَدۡ أُوتِيتَ سُوۡلَكَ يمُوسَى

You are granted your request, O Musa, (20:36).

It may be the case that some problem remained which he had not asked to be relieved of, as Al-Hasan Al-Basri suggested, and that he had asked only to be relieved of that which stood in the way of his conveying the Message. A person cannot be blamed for physical matters over which he has no control. Even though Fir`awn had the intelligence to understand that, he wanted to confuse and mislead his people, who were ignorant and stupid. So he said

فَلَوۡلَا أُلۡقِيَ عَلَيۡهِ أَسۡوِرَةٌ مِّن ذَهَبٍ

Why then are not golden bracelets bestowed on him...

meaning, adornments which are placed on the arms.

This was the view of Ibn Abbas, may Allah be pleased with him, Qatadah and others.

أَوۡ جَاء مَعَهُ الۡمَلَيِكَةُ مُقۡتَرِنِينَ

or angels sent along with him.

meaning, to serve him and to testify that he is telling the truth. He looked only at outward appearances and did not understand the true inner matters that are clearer than what he focused on, if only he had understood that.

Allah says

فَاسۡتَخَفَّ قَوۡمَهُ فَأَطَاعُوهُ

Thus he fooled his people, and they obeyed him.

meaning, he confused them and invited them to misguidance, and they responded to him.

إِنَّهُمۡ كَانُوا قَوۡمًا فَاسِقِينَ

Verily, they were ever a people who were rebellious.

Then Allah says:

فَلَمَّا اسَفُونَا انتَقَمۡنَا مِنۡهُمۡ فَأَغۡرَقۡنَاهُمۡ أَجۡمَعِينَ

So when they angered Us, We punished them, and drowned them all.

Ali bin Abi Talhah reported that Ibn Abbas, may Allah be pleased with him, said it means:

When they angered Us means, they provoked Our wrath.

Ad-Dahhak said, it means

They made Us angry.

This was also the view of Ibn Abbas, Mujahid, Ikrimah, Sa`id bin Jubayr, Muhammad bin Ka`b Al-Qurazi, Qatadah, As-Suddi and other scholars of Tafsir.

Ibn Abi Hatim recorded that Uqbah bin `Amir, may Allah be pleased with him, said that the Messenger of Allah said:

إِذَا رَأَيۡتَ اللهَ تَبَارَكَ وَتَعَالَى يُعۡطِي الۡعَبۡدَ مَا يَشَاءُ وَهُوَ مُقِيمٌ عَلى مَعَاصِيهِ فَإِنَّمَا ذَلِكَ اسۡتِدۡرَاجٌ مِنۡهُ لَه

When you see that Allah gives a person what he wants even though he is persisting in sin, that means that Allah is enticing him into destruction.

Then he recited:

فَلَمَّا اسَفُونَا انتَقَمۡنَا مِنۡهُمۡ فَأَغۡرَقۡنَاهُمۡ أَجۡمَعِينَ

(So when they angered Us, We punished them, and drowned them all).

It was reported that Tariq bin Shihab said,

I was with Abdullah, may Allah be pleased with him, and the issue of sudden death was mentioned. He said, `It is a relief for the believer and a source of regret for the disbeliever.'

Then he recited the Ayah:

فَلَمَّا اسَفُونَا انتَقَمۡنَا مِنۡهُمۡ فَأَغۡرَقۡنَاهُمۡ أَجۡمَعِينَ

(So when they angered Us, We punished them, and drowned them all).

Umar bin Abdul-Aziz, may Allah be pleased with him, said,

I found that punishment comes with negligence, meaning the Ayah:

فَلَمَّا اسَفُونَا انتَقَمۡنَا مِنۡهُمۡ فَأَغۡرَقۡنَاهُمۡ أَجۡمَعِينَ

(So when they angered Us, We punished them, and drowned them all).

فَجَعَلۡنَاهُمۡ سَلَفًا وَمَثَلً لِلۡخِرِينَ

And We made them a precedent, and an example to later generations.

Abu Mijlaz said,

Precedent for others who do the same as they did.

He and Mujahid said,

An example, i.e., a lesson to those who come after them.

Allah is the One Who guides to the straight path, and unto Him is the final return.