Surah Ash-Shu'ara

Ta'awwudh · Seeking Refuge

أَعُوذُ بِاللَّهِ مِنَ الشَّيْطَانِ الرَّجِيمِ

A'udhu billahi min ash-shaytani ar-rajim. I seek refuge in Allah from Satan, the accursed.

The Name · Bismillah

بِسْمِ اللَّهِ الرَّحْمَٰنِ الرَّحِيمِ

Bismillahi ar-Rahmani ar-Rahim. In the name of Allah, the Most Gracious, the Most Merciful.

أَعُوذُ بِاللَّهِ مِنَ الشَّيْطَانِ الرَّجِيمِ

✦

بِسْمِ اللَّهِ الرَّحْمَٰنِ الرَّحِيمِ

The Surah · Verses 1 to 68

﴾١﴿ طسٓمٓ

Ta Sin Mim

Ta Sin Mim.

﴾٢﴿ تِلْكَ ءَايَٰتُ ٱلْكِتَٰبِ ٱلْمُبِينِ

Tilka Aayaatul Kitaabil Mubin

These are the verses of the clear Book.

﴾٣﴿ لَعَلَّكَ بَٰخِعٌۭ نَّفْسَكَ أَلَّا يَكُونُوا۟ مُؤْمِنِينَ

La'allaka baakhi'un nafsaka allaa yakunu mu'minin

Perhaps you will destroy yourself with grief because they do not believe.

﴾٤﴿ إِن نَّشَأْ نُنَزِّلْ عَلَيْهِم مِّنَ ٱلسَّمَآءِ ءَايَةًۭ فَظَلَّتْ أَعْنَٰقُهُمْ لَهَا خَٰضِعِينَ

In nashaa nunazzil 'alaihim minas samaa'i Aayatan fazallat a'naaquhum lahaa khaadi'in

If We willed, We could send down upon them a sign from the sky, and their necks would remain bowed to it.

﴾٥﴿ وَمَا يَأْتِيهِم مِّن ذِكْرٍۢ مِّنَ ٱلرَّحْمَٰنِ مُحْدَثٍ إِلَّا كَانُوا۟ عَنْهُ مُعْرِضِينَ

Wa maa yaatihim min zikrim minar Rahmaani muhdasin illaa kaanu 'anhu mu'ridin

No new reminder comes to them from the Most Gracious except that they turn away from it.

﴾٦﴿ فَقَدْ كَذَّبُوا۟ فَسَيَأْتِيهِمْ أَنۢبَٰٓؤُا۟ مَا كَانُوا۟ بِهِۦ يَسْتَهْزِءُونَ

Faqad kazzabu fasa yaatihim ambaa'u maa kaanu bihi yastahzi'un

They have denied, so news of what they used to mock will come to them.

﴾٧﴿ أَوَلَمْ يَرَوْا۟ إِلَى ٱلْأَرْضِ كَمْ أَنۢبَتْنَا فِيهَا مِن كُلِّ زَوْجٍۢ كَرِيمٍ

Awa lam yaraw ilal ardi kam ambatnaa fihaa min kulli zawjin karim

Have they not looked at the earth, how many noble kinds We have caused to grow in it?

﴾٨﴿ إِنَّ فِى ذَٰلِكَ لَءَايَةًۭ ۖ وَمَا كَانَ أَكْثَرُهُم مُّؤْمِنِينَ

Inn fi zaalika la Aayah; wa maa kaana aksaruhum mu'minin

In that is a sign, but most of them are not believers.

﴾٩﴿ وَإِنَّ رَبَّكَ لَهُوَ ٱلْعَزِيزُ ٱلرَّحِيمُ

Wa inna Rabbaka la Huwal 'Azizur Rahim

Your Lord is the Mighty, the Merciful.

﴾١٠﴿ وَإِذْ نَادَىٰ رَبُّكَ مُوسَىٰٓ أَنِ ٱئْتِ ٱلْقَوْمَ ٱلظَّٰلِمِينَ

Wa iz naadaa Rabbuka Musaa ani'-til qawmaz zaalimin

And when your Lord called Musa: "Go to the wrongdoing people,

﴾١١﴿ قَوْمَ فِرْعَوْنَ ۚ أَلَا يَتَّقُونَ

Qawma Fir'awn; alaa yattaqun

the people of Pharaoh. Will they not be mindful of Allah?"

﴾١٢﴿ قَالَ رَبِّ إِنِّىٓ أَخَافُ أَن يُكَذِّبُونِ

Qaala Rabbi inni akhaafu ai yukazzibun

He said, "My Lord, I fear they will deny me.

﴾١٣﴿ وَيَضِيقُ صَدْرِى وَلَا يَنطَلِقُ لِسَانِى فَأَرْسِلْ إِلَىٰ هَٰرُونَ

Wa yadiqu sadri wa laa yantaliqu lisaani fa arsil ilaa Haarun

My chest tightens and my tongue does not move freely, so send for Harun.

﴾١٤﴿ وَلَهُمْ عَلَىَّ ذَنۢبٌۭ فَأَخَافُ أَن يَقْتُلُونِ

Wa lahum 'alaiya zambun fa akhaafu ai yaqtulun

They have a charge against me, and I fear they will kill me."

﴾١٥﴿ قَالَ كَلَّا ۖ فَٱذْهَبَا بِـَٔايَٰتِنَآ ۖ إِنَّا مَعَكُم مُّسْتَمِعُونَ

Qaala kallaa fazhabaa bi Aayaatinaa innaa ma'akum mustami'un

He said, "No. Go, both of you, with Our signs. We are with you, listening.

﴾١٦﴿ فَأْتِيَا فِرْعَوْنَ فَقُولَآ إِنَّا رَسُولُ رَبِّ ٱلْعَٰلَمِينَ

Faatiyaa Fir'awna faqulaa innaa Rasulu Rabbil 'aalamin

Come to Pharaoh and say, We are the messengers of the Lord of the worlds,

﴾١٧﴿ أَنْ أَرْسِلْ مَعَنَا بَنِىٓ إِسْرَٰٓءِيلَ

An arsil ma'anaa Bani Israa'il

so send the Children of Israel with us."

﴾١٨﴿ قَالَ أَلَمْ نُرَبِّكَ فِينَا وَلِيدًۭا وَلَبِثْتَ فِينَا مِنْ عُمُرِكَ سِنِينَ

Qaala alam nurabbika finaa walidanw wa labista finaa min 'umurika sinin

He said, "Did we not raise you among us as a child, and you stayed among us for years of your life?

﴾١٩﴿ وَفَعَلْتَ فَعْلَتَكَ ٱلَّتِى فَعَلْتَ وَأَنتَ مِنَ ٱلْكَٰفِرِينَ

Wa fa'alta fa'latakal lati fa'alta wa anta minal kaafirin

And you did the deed you did, and you were among the ungrateful."

﴾٢٠﴿ قَالَ فَعَلْتُهَآ إِذًۭا وَأَنَا۠ مِنَ ٱلضَّآلِّينَ

Qaala fa'altuhaa izanw wa ana minad daalin

He said, "I did it then, while I was among those who were lost.

﴾٢١﴿ فَفَرَرْتُ مِنكُمْ لَمَّا خِفْتُكُمْ فَوَهَبَ لِى رَبِّى حُكْمًۭا وَجَعَلَنِى مِنَ ٱلْمُرْسَلِينَ

Fafarartu minkum lam maa khiftukum fawahaba li Rabbi hukmanw wa ja'alani minal mursalin

So I fled from you when I feared you. Then my Lord granted me judgment and made me one of the messengers.

﴾٢٢﴿ وَتِلْكَ نِعْمَةٌۭ تَمُنُّهَا عَلَىَّ أَنْ عَبَّدتَّ بَنِىٓ إِسْرَٰٓءِيلَ

Wa tilka ni'matun tamun nuhaa 'alaiya an 'abbatta Bani Israa'il

Is this a favor you hold over me, that you enslaved the Children of Israel?"

﴾٢٣﴿ قَالَ فِرْعَوْنُ وَمَا رَبُّ ٱلْعَٰلَمِينَ

Qaala Fir'awnu wa maa Rabbul 'aalamin

Pharaoh said, "And what is the Lord of the worlds?"

﴾٢٤﴿ قَالَ رَبُّ ٱلسَّمَٰوَٰتِ وَٱلْأَرْضِ وَمَا بَيْنَهُمَآ ۖ إِن كُنتُم مُّوقِنِينَ

Qaala Rabbus samaawaati wal ardi wa maa bainahumaa in kuntum muqinin

He said, "The Lord of the heavens and the earth and what is between them, if you would be certain."

﴾٢٥﴿ قَالَ لِمَنْ حَوْلَهُۥٓ أَلَا تَسْتَمِعُونَ

Qaala liman hawlahu alaa tastami'un

He said to those around him, "Do you not hear?"

﴾٢٦﴿ قَالَ رَبُّكُمْ وَرَبُّ ءَابَآئِكُمُ ٱلْأَوَّلِينَ

Qaala Rabbukum wa Rabbu aabaa'ikumul awwalin

He said, "Your Lord and the Lord of your first fathers."

﴾٢٧﴿ قَالَ إِنَّ رَسُولَكُمُ ٱلَّذِىٓ أُرْسِلَ إِلَيْكُمْ لَمَجْنُونٌۭ

Qaala inna Rasulakumul lazi ursila ilaikum lamajnun

He said, "This messenger of yours who has been sent to you is mad."

﴾٢٨﴿ قَالَ رَبُّ ٱلْمَشْرِقِ وَٱلْمَغْرِبِ وَمَا بَيْنَهُمَآ ۖ إِن كُنتُمْ تَعْقِلُونَ

Qaala Rabbul mashriqi wal maghribi wa maa baina humaa in kuntum ta'qilun

He said, "The Lord of the east and the west and what is between them, if you would reason."

﴾٢٩﴿ قَالَ لَئِنِ ٱتَّخَذْتَ إِلَٰهًا غَيْرِى لَأَجْعَلَنَّكَ مِنَ ٱلْمَسْجُونِينَ

Qaala la'init takhazta ilaahan ghairi la aj'alannaka minal masjunin

He said, "If you take a god other than me, I will put you among the imprisoned."

﴾٣٠﴿ قَالَ أَوَلَوْ جِئْتُكَ بِشَىْءٍۢ مُّبِينٍۢ

Qaala awalw ji'tuka bishai'im mubin

He said, "Even if I brought you something clear?"

﴾٣١﴿ قَالَ فَأْتِ بِهِۦٓ إِن كُنتَ مِنَ ٱلصَّٰدِقِينَ

Qaala faati bihi in kunta minas saadiqin

He said, "Then bring it, if you are truthful."

﴾٣٢﴿ فَأَلْقَىٰ عَصَاهُ فَإِذَا هِىَ ثُعْبَانٌۭ مُّبِينٌۭ

Fa alqaa 'asaahu fa izaa hiya su'baanum mubin

So he threw down his staff, and it was a clear serpent.

﴾٣٣﴿ وَنَزَعَ يَدَهُۥ فَإِذَا هِىَ بَيْضَآءُ لِلنَّٰظِرِينَ

Wa naza'a yadahu faizaa hiya baidaa'u linnaa zirin

And he drew out his hand, and it was white to those who looked.

﴾٣٤﴿ قَالَ لِلْمَلَإِ حَوْلَهُۥٓ إِنَّ هَٰذَا لَسَٰحِرٌ عَلِيمٌۭ

Qaala lilmala-i hawlahu inna haazaa lasaahirun 'alim

He said to the chiefs around him, "This is a learned magician.

﴾٣٥﴿ يُرِيدُ أَن يُخْرِجَكُم مِّنْ أَرْضِكُم بِسِحْرِهِۦ فَمَاذَا تَأْمُرُونَ

Yuridu ai yukhrijakum min ardikum bisihrihi famaazaa taamurun

He wants to drive you out of your land by his magic, so what do you command?"

﴾٣٦﴿ قَالُوٓا۟ أَرْجِهْ وَأَخَاهُ وَٱبْعَثْ فِى ٱلْمَدَآئِنِ حَٰشِرِينَ

Qaalu arjih wa akhaahu wab'as filmadaa'ini haashirin

They said, "Delay him and his brother, and send gatherers into the cities

﴾٣٧﴿ يَأْتُوكَ بِكُلِّ سَحَّارٍ عَلِيمٍۢ

Yaatuka bikulli sah haarin 'alim

to bring you every learned magician."

﴾٣٨﴿ فَجُمِعَ ٱلسَّحَرَةُ لِمِيقَٰتِ يَوْمٍۢ مَّعْلُومٍۢ

Fa jumi'as saharatu limiqaati Yawmim ma'lum

So the magicians were assembled for the appointment of a known day,

﴾٣٩﴿ وَقِيلَ لِلنَّاسِ هَلْ أَنتُم مُّجْتَمِعُونَ

Wa qila linnaasi hal antum mujtami'un

and it was said to the people, "Will you assemble,

﴾٤٠﴿ لَعَلَّنَا نَتَّبِعُ ٱلسَّحَرَةَ إِن كَانُوا۟ هُمُ ٱلْغَٰلِبِينَ

La'allanaa nattabi'us saharata in kaanu humul ghaalibin

so that we may follow the magicians, if they are the victors?"

﴾٤١﴿ فَلَمَّا جَآءَ ٱلسَّحَرَةُ قَالُوا۟ لِفِرْعَوْنَ أَئِنَّ لَنَا لَأَجْرًا إِن كُنَّا نَحْنُ ٱلْغَٰلِبِينَ

Falammaa jaa'as saharatu qaalu li Fir'awna a'inna lanaa la ajjran in kunnaa nahnul ghaalibin

When the magicians came, they said to Pharaoh, "Will there be a reward for us if we are the victors?"

﴾٤٢﴿ قَالَ نَعَمْ وَإِنَّكُمْ إِذًۭا لَّمِنَ ٱلْمُقَرَّبِينَ

Qaala na'am wa innakum izal laminal muqarrabin

He said, "Yes, and you will then be among those brought near."

﴾٤٣﴿ قَالَ لَهُم مُّوسَىٰٓ أَلْقُوا۟ مَآ أَنتُم مُّلْقُونَ

Qaala lahum Musaa alqu maa antum mulqun

Musa said to them, "Throw what you are going to throw."

﴾٤٤﴿ فَأَلْقَوْا۟ حِبَالَهُمْ وَعِصِيَّهُمْ وَقَالُوا۟ بِعِزَّةِ فِرْعَوْنَ إِنَّا لَنَحْنُ ٱلْغَٰلِبُونَ

Fa alqaw hibaalahum wa 'isiyyahum wa qaalu bi'izzati Fir'awna innaa lanahnul ghaalibun

So they threw their ropes and their staffs and said, "By the might of Pharaoh, we are the victors."

﴾٤٥﴿ فَأَلْقَىٰ مُوسَىٰ عَصَاهُ فَإِذَا هِىَ تَلْقَفُ مَا يَأْفِكُونَ

Fa alqaa Musaa 'asaahu fa izaa hiya talqafu maa yaafikun

Then Musa threw his staff, and it swallowed what they had faked.

﴾٤٦﴿ فَأُلْقِىَ ٱلسَّحَرَةُ سَٰجِدِينَ

Fa ulqiyas saharatu saajidin

So the magicians fell down in prostration.

﴾٤٧﴿ قَالُوٓا۟ ءَامَنَّا بِرَبِّ ٱلْعَٰلَمِينَ

Qaalu aamannaa bi Rabbil 'aalamin

They said, "We believe in the Lord of the worlds,

﴾٤٨﴿ رَبِّ مُوسَىٰ وَهَٰرُونَ

Rabbi Musaa wa Haarun

the Lord of Musa and Harun."

﴾٤٩﴿ قَالَ ءَامَنتُمْ لَهُۥ قَبْلَ أَنْ ءَاذَنَ لَكُمْ ۖ إِنَّهُۥ لَكَبِيرُكُمُ ٱلَّذِى عَلَّمَكُمُ ٱلسِّحْرَ فَلَسَوْفَ تَعْلَمُونَ ۚ لَأُقَطِّعَنَّ أَيْدِيَكُمْ وَأَرْجُلَكُم مِّنْ خِلَٰفٍۢ وَلَأُصَلِّبَنَّكُمْ أَجْمَعِينَ

Qaala aamantum lahu qabla an aazana lakum innahu lakabirukumul lazi 'alla makumus sihra falasawfa ta'lamun; la uqatti'anna aidiyakum wa arjulakum min khilaafinw wa la usallibanna kum ajma'in

He said, "You believed him before I gave you permission. He is your chief who taught you magic. You will come to know. I will cut off your hands and your feet on opposite sides, and I will crucify you all."

﴾٥٠﴿ قَالُوا۟ لَا ضَيْرَ ۖ إِنَّآ إِلَىٰ رَبِّنَا مُنقَلِبُونَ

Qaalu la daira innaa ilaa Rabbinaa munqallibun

They said, "No harm. We are returning to our Lord.

﴾٥١﴿ إِنَّا نَطْمَعُ أَن يَغْفِرَ لَنَا رَبُّنَا خَطَٰيَٰنَآ أَن كُنَّآ أَوَّلَ ٱلْمُؤْمِنِينَ

Innaa natma'u ai yaghfira lanaa Rabbunna khataa yaanaa an kunnaa awwalal mu'minin

We hope our Lord will forgive us our sins, since we are the first of the believers."

﴾٥٢﴿ ۞ وَأَوْحَيْنَآ إِلَىٰ مُوسَىٰٓ أَنْ أَسْرِ بِعِبَادِىٓ إِنَّكُم مُّتَّبَعُونَ

Wa awhainaa ilaa Musaa an asri bi'ibaadi innakum muttaba'un

And We inspired Musa: travel by night with My servants. You will be pursued.

﴾٥٣﴿ فَأَرْسَلَ فِرْعَوْنُ فِى ٱلْمَدَآئِنِ حَٰشِرِينَ

Fa arsala Fir'awnu filmadaa'ini haashirin

So Pharaoh sent gatherers into the cities.

﴾٥٤﴿ إِنَّ هَٰٓؤُلَآءِ لَشِرْذِمَةٌۭ قَلِيلُونَ

Inna haa'ulaa'i lashir zimatun qalilun

"These are a small band,

﴾٥٥﴿ وَإِنَّهُمْ لَنَا لَغَآئِظُونَ

Wa innahum lanaa laghaa'izun

and they have enraged us,

﴾٥٦﴿ وَإِنَّا لَجَمِيعٌ حَٰذِرُونَ

Wa innaa lajami'un haazirun

and we are all on guard."

﴾٥٧﴿ فَأَخْرَجْنَٰهُم مِّن جَنَّٰتٍۢ وَعُيُونٍۢ

Fa akhrajnaahum min Jannaatinw wa 'uyun

So We drove them out of gardens and springs,

﴾٥٨﴿ وَكُنُوزٍۢ وَمَقَامٍۢ كَرِيمٍۢ

Wa kunuzinw wa ma qaamin karim

and treasures and a noble station.

﴾٥٩﴿ كَذَٰلِكَ وَأَوْرَثْنَٰهَا بَنِىٓ إِسْرَٰٓءِيلَ

Kazaalika wa awrasnaahaa Bani Israa'il

So it was, and We made the Children of Israel inherit it.

﴾٦٠﴿ فَأَتْبَعُوهُم مُّشْرِقِينَ

Fa atba'uhum mushriqin

They pursued them at sunrise.

﴾٦١﴿ فَلَمَّا تَرَٰٓءَا ٱلْجَمْعَانِ قَالَ أَصْحَٰبُ مُوسَىٰٓ إِنَّا لَمُدْرَكُونَ

Falammaa taraa'al jam'aani qaala as haabu Musaa innaa lamudrakun

When the two groups saw one another, the companions of Musa said, "We are going to be caught."

﴾٦٢﴿ قَالَ كَلَّآ ۖ إِنَّ مَعِىَ رَبِّى سَيَهْدِينِ

Qaala kallaa inna ma'iya Rabbi sa yahdin

He said, "No. My Lord is with me. He will guide me."

﴾٦٣﴿ فَأَوْحَيْنَآ إِلَىٰ مُوسَىٰٓ أَنِ ٱضْرِب بِّعَصَاكَ ٱلْبَحْرَ ۖ فَٱنفَلَقَ فَكَانَ كُلُّ فِرْقٍۢ كَٱلطَّوْدِ ٱلْعَظِيمِ

Fa awhainaa ilaa Musaa anidrib bi'asaakal bahra fanfalaqa fakaana kullu firqin kattawdil 'azim

So We inspired Musa: strike the sea with your staff. It parted, and each part was like a great mountain.

﴾٦٤﴿ وَأَزْلَفْنَا ثَمَّ ٱلْءَاخَرِينَ

Wa azlafnaa sammal aakharin

And We brought the others near, there.

﴾٦٥﴿ وَأَنجَيْنَا مُوسَىٰ وَمَن مَّعَهُۥٓ أَجْمَعِينَ

Wa anjainaa Musaa wa mam ma'ahu ajma'in

And We saved Musa and all those with him.

﴾٦٦﴿ ثُمَّ أَغْرَقْنَا ٱلْءَاخَرِينَ

Summa aghraqnal aakharin

Then We drowned the others.

﴾٦٧﴿ إِنَّ فِى ذَٰلِكَ لَءَايَةًۭ ۖ وَمَا كَانَ أَكْثَرُهُم مُّؤْمِنِينَ

Inna fi zaalika la Aayaah; wa maa kaana aksaru hu mu'minin

In that is a sign, but most of them were not believers.

﴾٦٨﴿ وَإِنَّ رَبَّكَ لَهُوَ ٱلْعَزِيزُ ٱلرَّحِيمُ

Wa inna Rabbaka la Huwal 'Azizur Rahim

Your Lord is the Mighty, the Merciful.

The Tafsir · The Breakdown

What This Part Means

Overview

The Grief of the One Delivering It.

Part One opens on the messenger rather than the message. Verse 3 addresses the Prophet, peace be upon him, with a sentence that reads like concern for a man who is burning himself down. Perhaps you will destroy yourself with grief because they do not believe. Ba'khi'un nafsak, working yourself to ruin. The surah's first correction is aimed at the one carrying the truth, not the ones refusing it. Then it turns to Musa, and shows a man who received the same assignment and said out loud that he did not want it. What follows is a full account of the confrontation, and inside it two sentences that sit exactly opposite each other. In verse 44 the magicians swear by the might of Pharaoh. In verse 62 Musa says his Lord is with him. The part ends with the sea, and with the refrain that will now repeat seven more times.

Verses 1 to 9

Do Not Destroy Yourself Over Them.

Verse 4 answers the question every caller eventually asks, which is why Allah does not simply compel belief. If We willed, We could send down upon them a sign from the sky, and their necks would remain bowed to it. The capacity exists and it is deliberately unused, because a bowed neck under a forced sign is not what was being asked for. Verse 5 describes the actual pattern. No new reminder comes to them from the Most Gracious except that they turn away from it. Muhdath, newly arrived. It is not the content they object to. It is the arrival. Verse 7 then points at something growing. Have they not looked at the earth, how many noble kinds We have caused to grow in it. The argument does not escalate. It gets quieter, and points at a plant. Verses 8 and 9 close the opening with the two lines that will end every account in this surah. In that is a sign, but most of them are not believers. Your Lord is the Mighty, the Merciful. Both names together. The power to compel and the mercy that does not.

Verses 10 to 51

The Objection, and the Afternoon That Changed Everything.

Verses 12 through 14 are the most honest response to a calling recorded anywhere. Musa gives three reasons, in order. I fear they will deny me. My chest tightens and my tongue does not move freely. They have a charge against me and I fear they will kill me. Reputation, capacity, and a criminal record. He does not dress up any of it. Verse 15 answers all three with one sentence, and it does not fix a single one of them. No. Go, both of you, with Our signs. We are with you, listening. The objections were valid and were not the deciding factor. Innaa ma'akum mustami'un, We are with you, listening, which is a different promise from We will make it easy. Verse 18 shows Pharaoh reaching immediately for the oldest tool a benefactor has. Did we not raise you among us as a child. Verse 19 adds the crime. Verse 20 is Musa's answer, and it is a model for how a man handles his own history in public. I did it then, while I was among those who were lost. He concedes the fact and refuses the interpretation. Then verse 22 turns the debt around in one line. Is this a favor you hold over me, that you enslaved the Children of Israel? Verse 23 is Pharaoh's real question, and note how he asks it. And what is the Lord of the worlds? Ma, what, not who, an object rather than a person. Musa answers three times in verses 24, 26 and 28, each answer larger than the last, and each ending with a challenge to a faculty. If you would be certain. If you would reason. Verse 29 is where the argument stops, and it stops the way it always stops. If you take a god other than me, I will put you among the imprisoned. Then the afternoon. The magicians arrive negotiating a fee in verse 41. They throw first, swearing by the might of Pharaoh in verse 44. Minutes later, in verse 46, they are on the ground. Verse 49 is Pharaoh threatening amputation and crucifixion, and verse 50 is their answer, two words in Arabic. La dayr. No harm. Men who walked in that morning asking about payment were, by sundown, indifferent to being crucified. That is what it looks like when a man actually sees something. Verse 51 gives their only concern, and it is not the pain. We hope our Lord will forgive us our sins, since we are the first of the believers.

Verses 52 to 68

No. My Lord Is With Me.

Verse 61 is the moment every believer recognizes. The two groups see each other. The sea is in front and the army is behind, and the companions of Musa say the obvious thing. We are going to be caught. It is not cowardice. It is arithmetic, and the arithmetic is correct. Verse 62 is the answer, and it is worth memorizing in the form it arrives. Kalla. No. Inna ma'iya Rabbi sayahdin. My Lord is with me. He will guide me. Three moves in one breath. He rejects the conclusion, states the fact he is standing on, and then makes a claim about the future in the imperfect tense, sayahdin, He will guide me, without saying how. He did not have a plan. He had a Lord. The instruction to strike the sea comes in verse 63, after the statement of certainty, not before it. Compare verse 44 one more time. By the might of Pharaoh, we are the victors. The two sentences have identical structure and opposite objects, and the surah puts eighteen verses between them so the reader can hold both. Verses 57 and 58 note what was left behind: gardens, springs, treasures, and a noble station. Everything Pharaoh had accumulated was inherited by the people he had enslaved, which is verse 59. The part closes on the refrain again, the same two lines, and by now they are doing their work. Most of them were not believers, even after the sea opened.

Structural Summary

Verses One to Sixty-Eight. No. My Lord Is With Me.

The opening turns first to the one carrying the message and tells him not to destroy himself over people who refuse it. Then Musa, who listed three real objections and was answered with presence rather than relief. Pharaoh reaches for the debt of a childhood, then for the old crime, then for prison, in that order, and every one of them fails. Magicians who arrived negotiating a fee were on the ground by evening and indifferent to crucifixion. And at the edge of the water, with the arithmetic against him, one man rejected the conclusion and stated who was standing with him before he was told what to do.

The Practice

Take It Into the Week

Verse 20. Take the thing from your past that gets used against you. Practice saying it the way Musa did: the fact conceded, the interpretation refused.

Verse 62. When the next situation looks arithmetically closed, say the sentence before you have a plan. My Lord is with me. He will guide me.

Verse 3. Name the person whose refusal you have been carrying too heavily. Keep making the case. Put down the grief.

آمِين

Prepared with discipline · Ameen

Verse-By-Verse · Test Yourself

The Quiz

Two questions per verse. Translation and a key Arabic word. Walk through it slow. The goal is comprehension, not speed.

Verse 31 / 10

The Verse

What does verse 3 warn the Prophet, peace be upon him, about?