Islamic view of Pharaoh

"Fir'aun" (فرعون) is Arabic for "pharaoh". The Quran tells the biblical story of Moses and the Pharaoh, without telling the name of that particular pharaoh.

Qur'anic Narrative

Musa and Harun set off to the Firaun, and when they arrive he is told about their divine mission and that he should let the Israelites go. Firaun rebukes him by saying that the Egyptians looked after him, and he reminds Musa that he has killed an Egyptian. Musa acknowledges this, and says that did that before he received his message from God. Firaun enquires as to who this god of Musa's is. It is GOD (ALLAH in Arabic), he is told, the Creator of everything. At one point Firaun threatens him with prison, as he says there can be no gods other than himself, but he eventually asks Musa for a sign to see if he is telling the truth. Musa throws down his rod and it turns into a huge snake. He then draws forth his hand and it shines with brilliant white light. Pharaoh, however, rejects these signs as 'evident/manifest sorcery'. Firaun's chiefs wonder why they should believe in two men like themselves, and Israelite men at that. Musa is outraged at their reaction to the truth. He warns them to accept God or face the consequences. Firaun discusses the issue with his chiefs. They tell him that Musa's plan is to overthrow the Firaun by turning the people away from their established religion. Firaun tells them to stall Musa and Harun whilst well-versed sorcerers are found. These sorcerers are promised rewards and power. Firaun then arranges with Musa for him to come to the Day of the Festival.

The Sorcerers and Musa

The Day of the Festival arrives, and all the people are there along with the sorcerers and Musa (Moses) and Harun (Aaron), Musa's (Moses') brother. The sorcerers ask Musa who is to go first, and Musa tells them that they are. They throw down some rods and ropes and they appear to move of their own accord, like a snake. Even Musa is slightly scared by this, but he has God's help. He throws down his rod and it 'swallowed up straight away all the falsehoods which they fake'. The sorcerers are stunned, and they bow in adoration to Musa and Harun, proclaiming their belief in their God. Firaun is angered at their belief without his permission. He threatens to cut off their hands and feet and crucify them on a palm-tree cross. The sorcerers are unperturbed, saying that they will only be sent back to their Lord, from whom they ask for forgiveness. They rebuke Firaun for threatening them just because they believe in Musa's signs.

Later, Firaun is with his chiefs. They ask him if he is to let Musa and the Israelites continue to spread mischief in Egypt, turning people away from the Egyptian religion. He decides to slay all the male Israelites but keep the females in order to keep power. Despite Musa's message few believe except the Israelites and a small number of Egyptians, as many are fearful of Firaun.

Musa again speaks out against Firaun, asking who will protect him from God's punishment when it comes. Nevertheless they refuse to recognise God, with Firaun expressly stating that whatever signs Musa brings he will never believe in him. In his arrogance he asks one of his chiefs, Haman (Islam), to make bricks from baked clay in order to build a 'lofty palace' that will reach up to Musa's god. This is despite the fact that Firaun tells Haman that he thinks Musa is a liar.

Plagues Unleashed

God punishes Firaun and the Egyptians with years of drought and crop shortages. During these bad times the Egyptians ask Musa to pray to God to help them and they say that they will release the Israelites, but when times are better they claim that it is due to themselves and they negate on their promises. God also sends down various plagues – 'wholesale death,' locusts, lice, frogs and blood (these are the rest of the nine signs that Musa was told about on Mount Tur). Despite all of this, the Egyptians still refuse to believe. Firaun reminds them that Egypt belongs to him. He is better than Musa, he says. Musa cannot even speak clearly and he doesn't own gold, he adds.

Musa prays once more to God. He is told to depart with the Israelites at night-time towards the sea. Meanwhile the Egyptians hear of this, and Firaun sends heralds to all the cities telling them about the insurrection. Finally, the Egyptans, led by Firaun, appear near the sea bent on destroying the Israelites. Musa strikes the sea with his rod and it parts. He and the Israelites pass through safely, but the Egyptians follow them 'in insolence and spite,' which scares some of the Israelites. However, with them safely across, the sea overwhelms the Egyptians. As he is drowning, Firaun calls out that he believes in the Israelites' god and that he submits himself to God. But it was too late. He is reminded of his evil acts, and God allows his body to be later picked up as a sign for those who do evil. God also levels some of the Egyptian's works and buildings.

Historicity

The current official historical accuracy of Firaun has been questioned because he claims to be the one and only god, while Egyptolopy reports that pharaohs believed in many gods besides themselves, making Firaun a strange exception. In the Qur'an, Firaun says:

* "O Chiefs! no god do I know for you but myself." [Qur'an 28:38]

* "Then he (Firaun) collected (his men) and made a proclamation, Saying, "I am your Lord, Most High". [Qur'an 79:23-24]

According to Encyclopaedia Britannica, "The Egyptians believed their Pharaoh to be a god, identifying him with the sky god Horus and with the sun gods Re, Amon, and Aton." and that "The Pharaoh's divine status was believed to endow him with magical powers: ... he was able to trample thousands of the enemy on the battlefield, and he was all-powerful, knowing everything and controlling nature and fertility." ["Pharaoh" in Encyclopaedia Britannica Ultimate Reference Suite 2004 DVD, © 1994 – 2004 Encyclopaedia Britannica, Inc.] While pharaohs believed they were divine, some of them believed themselves to be higher even than the gods, one of them was Ramesses 2. Only Akhenaten was a monotheist and he believed the only god was Aten, not himself.

Recent discoveries in the tomb of Amenhotep III, the father of Akhenaten have revealed that this pharaoh, in his lifetime, declared himself to be the living embodiment of the entire pantheon of Egyptian Gods. In this statement, the pharaoh does not disregard the other Gods, but declares himself as the embodiment of those Gods - hence no other god do I know for you but myself.

It is also interesting to note that Amenhotep III was the father Akhenaten. An embodiment of the Gods, when in Egyptian myth ascended to the Aten on his death, would make the Aten worthy of Monotheistic worship by Akehaten his son, as the resting place of the entire pantheon of Egyptian Gods.

References

ee also

*Musa
*Harunmusa
*Haman (Islam)