Musa

A baby on the river

Pharaoh ruled Egypt as a tyrant. He split its people into groups and crushed the Children of Israel, putting their baby boys to death. When Musa was born among them, his mother feared for him. Then Allah (﷾) inspired her: Qur’an 28:4

She put him in a chest on the river, and Pharaoh's household picked him up. Pharaoh's wife loved him at once and asked them not to kill him: perhaps they would adopt him as a son. The Qur'an holds her up as an example for believers, and the Prophet (ﷺ) named her, Asiya, among the women who reached perfection. Qur’an 20:39Qur’an 28:8–9Qur’an 66:11Sahih al-Bukhari 3411↗

His mother's heart ached, and Allah (﷾) made it firm. His sister followed him from a distance. The baby refused every nurse, until his sister offered to show them a family who would care for him. So Allah (﷾) returned Musa to his mother, and showed her that His promise is true. Qur’an 28:10–13

Leaving Egypt, and kindness at a well

Musa grew up strong, and Allah (﷾) gave him wisdom and knowledge. One day he found two men fighting, one from his own people and one from Pharaoh's. The man from his people called on him for help. Musa struck the other man once with his fist, and the man died. Scholars explain that he had not meant to kill him. Musa called it the work of Satan and at once asked Allah's (﷾) forgiveness, and Allah (﷾) forgave him. This was years before Allah (﷾) made him a messenger. Qur’an 28:14–16Qur’an 26:20–21Tafsir al-Jalalayn, on Qur'an 28:15

Then a man came running to warn him that the chiefs were plotting to kill him. Musa left Egypt alone and afraid, and set out towards Madyan, hoping his Lord would guide him on the right path. Qur’an 28:20–22

At the water of Madyan, shepherds crowded round, while two young women held their flocks back. Their father was very old, and they had to wait. Musa watered their flocks for them. Then, tired, far from home and with nothing, he sat in the shade and prayed: Qur’an 28:23

His prayer was soon answered. One of the women came back, walking modestly, to invite him to her father, who told him he was safe now. The father offered Musa one of his daughters in marriage, for eight or ten years of work. Musa stayed in Madyan until the term was done. Qur’an 28:25–28Qur’an 28:29

The fire in the valley of Tuwa

Then Musa set out with his family. On the way he saw a fire, and went to it, hoping to bring back a burning brand or find someone to guide them. There a voice called him by name. It was his Lord. Allah (﷾) told him to take off his shoes, for he stood in the sacred valley of Tuwa, and that He had chosen him: Qur’an 20:9–13Qur’an 28:29–30

The Qur'an says that Allah (﷾) spoke to Musa directly. That is why Muslims call him Kalimullah: the one to whom Allah (﷾) spoke. Qur’an 4:164Qur’an 19:52Sahih al-Bukhari 4476↗

The staff and the hand

Allah (﷾) asked what was in his right hand. His staff, Musa said, which he leaned on and used for his sheep. Allah (﷾) told him to throw it down, and it became a moving snake. Allah (﷾) told him to take hold of it and not be afraid, and it became a staff again. Then his hand, drawn to his side, came out shining white, without harm: two of Allah's (﷾) great signs. Qur’an 20:17–23

Then came the mission: go to Pharaoh, for he has gone beyond all bounds. Musa did not ask to be spared. He asked for help: Qur’an 20:24

He also asked for his brother Harun, who spoke more fluently, to share the task. Allah (﷾) granted everything he asked, and made Harun a prophet too. Qur’an 20:29–36Qur’an 28:34–35Qur’an 19:53

Before Pharaoh, and through the sea

Pharaoh claimed to be his people's lord, most high. Allah (﷾) sent the two brothers to him, and told them how to speak: Qur’an 79:24Qur’an 20:43

Even to a tyrant, a prophet speaks gently, hoping he will turn back. When the brothers feared what Pharaoh might do, Allah (﷾) told them that He was with them, hearing and seeing everything. So they asked Pharaoh to let the Children of Israel go, and to stop tormenting them. Qur’an 20:45–47

The magicians who believed

Pharaoh called Musa's signs magic, and gathered his magicians on a festival day, before all the people. Their ropes and staffs seemed to move. Musa threw his staff, and it swallowed up what they had faked. The magicians knew at once that this was no trick. They fell down in prostration and said: Qur’an 20:57–69

Pharaoh threatened them with terrible punishment for believing without his permission. But faith had changed them in a moment. They answered: Qur’an 20:71

The sea

At last Allah (﷾) told Musa to leave by night with the believers, and Pharaoh's army followed. With the sea ahead, Musa's people cried out that they would be caught. Musa answered: Qur’an 26:52Qur’an 26:60–61

Allah (﷾) told Musa to strike the sea with his staff. It split, each side like a great mountain, and Allah (﷾) saved Musa and all who were with him. Pharaoh's army, following them in, was drowned. The Qur'an says that Allah (﷾) kept Pharaoh's body as a sign for those who came after. Qur’an 26:63–67Qur’an 10:92What does the Qur'an say about Pharaoh's body?

When the Prophet (ﷺ) came to Medina, he found the Jews fasting on Ashura. They told him it was the day Allah (﷾) saved the Children of Israel from their enemy, and that Musa had fasted it. He said the Muslims had the stronger tie to Musa, and he fasted that day and told the Muslims to fast it. Many Muslims still fast it, in thanks. Sahih al-Bukhari 2004↗

The Torah, the calf, and a patient heart

After the rescue, Allah (﷾) called Musa to meet Him for forty nights, while Harun looked after the people. There Allah (﷾) gave him the Torah, written on tablets: laws and guidance in every matter. Qur’an 7:142Qur’an 7:144–145Sahih al-Bukhari 4476↗

The calf

While Musa was away, a man called al-Samiri led the people astray. At his suggestion they threw their gold ornaments into the fire, and he brought out the figure of a calf that made a lowing sound. This, he told them, was their god, and Musa's god too. Allah (﷾) told Musa: Qur’an 20:87–88

Harun did not make the calf. He warned the people that this was a test, and told them to follow him and worship the Most Gracious. They would not listen, and they nearly killed him. Qur’an 20:90–91Qur’an 7:150

Musa came back angry and grieved. He burned the calf and scattered it in the sea, and reminded them that their only god is Allah (﷾). The people saw their error and asked for mercy, and Musa prayed for himself and his brother: Qur’an 20:86Qur’an 20:97–98Qur’an 7:149

Patience with his people

Musa's people tested him again and again. Allah (﷾) gave them water from a rock and food in the desert, yet many were ungrateful. Told to enter the holy land, they were afraid and refused, though two God-fearing men among them urged them to trust Allah (﷾). Still Musa stayed with them, calling them back to Allah (﷾). The Qur'an also says that among Musa's people are some who guide others by the truth and act justly by it. Once, the Prophet Muhammad (ﷺ) was hurt by a man's unfair words. He said: may Allah (﷾) have mercy on Musa, who was hurt with worse than this, and was patient. Qur’an 7:160Qur’an 5:20–26Qur’an 7:159Qur’an 61:5Sahih al-Bukhari 3405↗

The journey to learn

The Prophet (ﷺ) told how this journey began. Musa was once asked who was the most learned of people, and he said that he was. Allah (﷾) taught him that knowledge belongs to Allah (﷾). At the meeting of the two seas there was a servant of His who knew things Musa did not. Sahih al-Bukhari 3401↗

So Musa set out with a young helper, ready to travel for years. At the meeting of the seas he found the servant to whom Allah (﷾) had given mercy, and knowledge from Himself. The Prophet (ﷺ) gave his name: al-Khidr. Musa, a great prophet, asked him humbly: Qur’an 18:60–65Sahih al-Bukhari 3401↗

Al-Khidr warned that Musa would not have the patience, and asked him to ask no questions. Along the way he did things that troubled Musa, and each time Musa spoke out. Once he made a hole in the boat of poor men who had carried them for free. Another time he rebuilt a falling wall, without pay, in a town that had refused them food. Qur’an 18:67–77Sahih al-Bukhari 3401↗

Then al-Khidr explained. A king was seizing every good boat, so a damaged boat would be left to its poor owners. Under the wall lay a treasure belonging to two orphans whose father had been a righteous man, kept safe until they grew up. None of it, he said, was his own decision. Qur’an 18:78–82

On the boat, the Prophet (ﷺ) said, a small bird dipped its beak into the sea. Al-Khidr told Musa that their knowledge took no more from Allah's (﷾) knowledge than the bird took from the sea. The Prophet (ﷺ) wished Musa had been patient a little longer, so that we would have heard more of their story. Sahih al-Bukhari 3401↗

A messenger of firm resolve

The Qur'an speaks of the messengers of firm resolve (ulu al-'azm), patient through the greatest trials. Most scholars count five: Nuh (Noah), Ibrahim (Abraham), Musa, Isa (Jesus) and Muhammad (ﷺ). The Qur'an names them together when it speaks of the solemn promise Allah (﷾) took from His prophets. Qur’an 46:35Qur’an 33:7Qur’an 42:13Which prophets are named in the Qur'an?

On the Night Journey, fifty daily prayers were first ordered. Musa urged the Prophet (ﷺ) again and again to ask Allah (﷾) for less, for the sake of his followers. In the end they became five, with the reward of fifty. Sahih al-Bukhari 349↗

The Torah also records a promise made to Musa: Allah (﷾) would raise up a prophet like him. Muslims believe that prophet is Muhammad (ﷺ). Who is the prophet like Moses in Deuteronomy 18:18?

How the Bible tells it differently

The Bible tells Musa's story too, in the books of Exodus to Deuteronomy. Muslims believe that Allah (﷾) revealed the Torah to Musa, and the Injil to Isa: the Gospel Jesus himself preached in his lifetime. The Injil is not the New Testament. The four New Testament Gospels, Matthew, Mark, Luke and John, were written by others, decades after Jesus was raised up. None of them names its author: the names were attached later. And the Torah we have today is not exactly as it was revealed. So where the Bible tells a story just as the Qur'an does, we believe it. Where it differs from the Qur'an or contradicts it, we do not. Where the Qur'an says nothing, we neither believe it nor deny it, as the Prophet (ﷺ) taught. Here are some of the differences. Qur’an 5:48Qur’an 5:46Which of the four Gospels did Jesus preach from?Who wrote the Gospels?Sahih al-Bukhari 4485↗How should a Muslim read the Bible?

Who took him in. In Exodus, Pharaoh's daughter finds the baby by the river, and he becomes her son. In the Qur'an, it is Pharaoh's wife who asks to keep him. Exodus 2:5-10 (KJV)Qur’an 28:9

The call. In Exodus, Moses asks God (﷾) to send someone else, and God (﷾) is angry with him before naming Aaron as his spokesman. In the Qur'an, Musa asks Allah (﷾) to ease his task and to send Harun as his helper, and Allah (﷾) grants his prayer. Exodus 4:10-16 (KJV)Qur’an 20:25–36

The calf. In Exodus, Aaron collects the people's gold earrings and makes the calf himself. In the Qur'an, al-Samiri makes it, and Harun, a prophet of Allah (﷾), warns the people against it. Exodus 32:2-4 (KJV)Qur’an 20:85–94Were the prophets sinless?

Pharaoh at the sea. Exodus says the waters covered all of Pharaoh's army, and Israel saw the Egyptians dead on the shore. It records no last words from Pharaoh, and says nothing of his own body. The Qur'an says that as the water overwhelmed him he declared his belief, too late, and that Allah (﷾) kept his body as a sign. Exodus 14:26-31 (KJV)Qur’an 10:90–92

Musa's death. The Qur'an does not tell of Musa's death. The last chapter of Deuteronomy does: it tells of his death and burial, and says that “no man knoweth of his sepulchre unto this day”. Musa did not write that: even the Talmud records the teaching that Joshua wrote the last eight verses of the Torah. It is one sign that the Torah we have today is not exactly as Allah (﷾) revealed it to Musa. This site looks at how those books came to be written on its own page. Deuteronomy 34:5-6 (KJV)Babylonian Talmud, Bava Batra 15a↗Did Moses write the Torah?