The Poets — Verse 53
26:53 · ash-Shu`ara`
Verse display
فَأَرۡسَلَ فِرۡعَوۡنُ فِی ٱلۡمَدَاۤىِٕنِ حَـٰشِرِینَ ٥٣
fa-arsala fir'ʿawnu fī l-madāini ḥāshirīn
The Poets / ash-Shu`ara` (26:53)
Connections 5 single-source 2 commentators
Multi-source connections
No verses on this ayah are cited by 2 or more commentators using numeric S:A notation. All extracted references come from a single source's commentary.
Single-source mentions (5) cited by only one commentator
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Q 7:137 (al-A`raf)
cited by
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Q 20:72 (Ta Ha)
cited by
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Q 26:50 (ash-Shu`ara`)
cited by
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Q 28:5 (al-Qasas)
cited by
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Q 28:6 (al-Qasas)
cited by
By commentator who cites how many verses on this ayah
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Tafsir Ibn Kathir (abridged) 3 verses
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Ma'arif-ul-Quran 2 verses
Note: these connections are extracted from numeric S:A references inside the commentary text and are therefore biased toward mufassirun who use that notation. Prose-style references (e.g. "Surat al-Baqarah verse 30") will be added later, which should surface additional multi-source consensus.
Pharaoh sent messengers into the cities, proclaiming
fa-arsala fir'ʿawnu fī l-madāini ḥāshirīn
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Tafsir Commentary
The Exodus of the Children of Israel from Egypt
After Musa stayed in Egypt for a long time, and the proof of Allah was established against Fir`awn and his chiefs, yet they were still arrogant and stubborn, then there was nothing left for them but punishment and vengeance. So Allah commanded Musa, peace be upon him, to take the Children of Israel out of Egypt by night, and take them wherever he would be commanded. So Musa, peace be upon him, did as he was commanded by his Lord, may He be glorified, and he led them forth after they had borrowed an abundance of jewelry from the people of Fir`awn. As more than one of the scholars of Tafsir have said, they left when the moon was rising, and Mujahid, may Allah have mercy on him, said that the moon was eclipsed that night. And Allah knows best. Musa asked about the grave of Yusuf (Prophet Joseph), peace be upon him, and an old woman from among the Children of Israel showed him where it was, so he took the remains with them, and it was said that they were among the things that were carried by Musa himself, may peace be upon them both. It was also said that Yusuf, peace be upon him, had left instructions in his will that if the Children of Israel ever left Egypt, they should take his remains with them. The following morning, when there was nobody to be found in the Israelite quarters, Fir`awn became angry and his anger intensified since Allah had decreed that he was to be destroyed. So he quickly sent his callers to all his cities, i.e., to mobilize his troops and bring them together, and he called out to them:
إِنَّ هَـؤُلآءِ
(Verily, these) meaning, the Children of Israel,
لَشِرْذِمَةٌ قَلِيلُونَ
(indeed are but a small band. ) meaning, a small group.
وَإِنَّهُمْ لَنَا لَغَآئِظُونَ
(And verily, they have done what has enraged us.) means, `every time we have heard anything about them, it has upset us and made us angry.'
وَإِنَّا لَجَمِيعٌ حَـذِرُونَ
(But we are a host all assembled, amply forewarned.) means, `we are constantly taking precautions lest they betray us.' Some of the Salaf read this with the meaning, "we are constantly forewarned and forearmed. And I want to destroy them to the last man, and destroy all their lands and property." So he and his troops were punished with the very things he sought to inflict upon the Children of Israel. Allah says:
فَأَخْرَجْنَـهُمْ مِّن جَنَّـتٍ وَعُيُونٍ - وَكُنُوزٍ وَمَقَامٍ كَرِيمٍ
(So, We expelled them from gardens and springs, treasures, and every kind of honorable place.) meaning, they were thrown out of those blessings and into Hell, and they left behind the honorable places, gardens and rivers, wealth, provision, position and power in this world:
كَذَلِكَ وَأَوْرَثْنَـهَا بَنِى إِسْرَءِيلَ
(Thus and We caused the Children of Israel to inherit them.) This is like the Ayat:
وَأَوْرَثْنَا الْقَوْمَ الَّذِينَ كَانُواْ يُسْتَضْعَفُونَ مَشَـرِقَ الاٌّرْضِ وَمَغَـرِبَهَا الَّتِى بَارَكْنَا فِيهَا
(And We made the people who were considered weak to inherit the eastern parts of the land and the western parts thereof which We have blessed) (7: 137).
وَنُرِيدُ أَن نَّمُنَّ عَلَى الَّذِينَ اسْتُضْعِفُواْ فِى الاٌّرْضِ وَنَجْعَلَهُمْ أَئِمَّةً وَنَجْعَلَهُمُ الْوَارِثِينَ
(And We wished to do a favor to those who were weak in the land, and to make them rulers and to make them the inheritors) The two Ayat thereafter: 28:5-6.
Then Pharaoh having been informed of their night departure sent to the cities — it is said that he ruled a thousand cities and twelve thousand villages — musterers to assemble the army saying
فأرسل فرعون جنده- حين بلغه مسير بني إسرائيل- يجمعون جيشه من مدائن مملكته.
فلما أصبحوا وليس في ناديهم داع ولا مجيب غاظ ذلك فرعون واشتد غضبه على بني إسرائيل لما يريد الله به من الدمار فأرسل سريعا في بلاده حاشرين أي من يحشر الجند ويجمعه كالنقباء والحجاب ونادى فيهم.
والفاء فى قوله - تعالى - : ( فَأَرْسَلَ فِرْعَونُ فِي المدآئن حَاشِرِينَ ) هى الفصيحة ، والحاشرين جمع حاشر : والمراد بهم الذين يحشرون الناس ويجمعونهم فى مكان معين ، لأمر من الأمور الهامة .قالوا : جمعوا له جيشا كبيرا يتكون من مئات الآلاف من الجنود . أى : وعلم فرعون بخروج موسى ومعه بنو إسرائيل . فأرسل جنوده ليجمعوا له الناس من المدائن المتعددة فى مملكته .
يقول تعالى ذكره: فأرسل فرعون في المدائن يحشر له جنده وقومه
( فأرسل فرعون في المدائن حاشرين ) يحشرون الناس يعني : الشرط ليجمعوا السحرة . وقيل : حتى يجمعوا له الجيش ، وذكر بعضهم : أنه كان له ألف مدينة واثنا عشرة ألف قرية .
فَأَرْسَلَ فِرْعَوْنُ فِي الْمَدَائِنِ حَاشِرِينَ (53) ظاهر ترتيب الجمل يقتضي أن الفاء للتعقيب على جملة : { وأوحينا إلى موسى } [ الشعراء : 52 ] وأن بين الجملتين محذوفاً تقديره : فأسرى موسى وخرج بهم فأرسل فرعون حَاشرين ، أي لما خرج بنو إسرائيل خشي فرعون أن ينتشروا في مدائن مصر فأرسل فرعون في المدائن شُرَطاً يحشرون الناس ليلْحقوا بني إسرائيل فيردُّوهم إلى المدينة قاعدة الملك .و { المدائن } : جمع مدينة ، أي البلد العظيم . ومدائن القطر المصري يومئذ كثيرة . منها ( مانوفرى أو منفيس ) هي اليوم ميت رهينة بالجيزة و ( تيبة أو طيبة ) هي بالأقصر و ( أبودو ) وتسمى اليوم العَرابة المدفونة ، و ( ابو ) وهي ( بو ) وهي ادنو ، و ( اون رميسي ) ، و ( أرمنت ) و ( سنَى ) وهي أسناء و ( ساورت ) وهي السيوط ، و ( خمونو ) وهي الاشمونيين ، و ( بامازيت ) وهي البهنسا ، و ( خسوُو ) وهي سخا ، و ( كاريينا ) وهي سد أبي قيرة ، و ( سودو ) وهي الفيوم ، و ( كويتي ) وهي قفط .والتعريف في { المدائن } للاستغراق ، أي في مدائن القطر المصري ، وهو استغراق عرفي ، أي المدائن التي لحكم فرعون أو المظنون وقوعها قرب طريقهم . وكان فرعون وقومه لا يعلمون أين اتجه بنو إسرائيل فأراد أن يتعرض لهم في كل طريق يظن مرورهم به . وكان لا يدري لعلهم توجهوا صوبَ الشام ، أو صوبَ الصحراء الغربية ، وما كان يظن أنهم يقصدون شاطىء البحر الأحمر بحر «القلزم» وكان يومئذ يسمى بحر «سُوف» .
فَأَرْسَلَ فِرْعَوْنُ فِي الْمَدَائِنِ حَاشِرِينَ يجمعون الناس, ليوقع ببني إسرائيل,
فلما أصبح فرعون وعلم بسرى موسى ببني إسرائيل ، خرج في أثرهم ، وبعث إلى مدائن مصر لتلحقه العساكر ، فروي أنه لحقه ومعه مائة ألف أدهم من الخيل سوى سائر الألوان . وروي أن بني إسرائيل كانوا ستمائة ألف وسبعين ألفا . والله أعلم بصحته . وإنما اللازم من الآية الذي يقطع به أن موسى عليه السلام خرج بجمع عظيم من بني إسرائيل وأن فرعون تبعه بأضعاف ذلك . قال ابن عباس : كان مع فرعون ألف جبار كلهم عليه تاج وكلهم أمير خيل .
In spite of the years spent by Moses in spreading the word of God, Pharaoh did not embrace the Faith. At last when Moses had striven his utmost to convey the divine message to Pharaoh, Almighty God instructed Moses to leave Egypt along with the Children of Israel. When Pharaoh came to know that all of the Children of Israel had left Egypt, he pursued them along with his army and courtiers. Obviously, this step taken by Pharaoh was meant to rout the Children of Israel, but as it turned out, it rebounded upon him. Unaware of their impending fate, Pharaoh and his companions left their palatial dwellings and reached the place where they were all destined to be drowned together in the sea. Almighty God deprived Pharaoh and his companions of the royal amenities they had enjoyed in Egypt, because of their oppressive actions. But He blessed the pious people of the Children of Israel by eventually taking them to Palestine and, there, granting them all kinds of favours.
قَالُوا لَا ضَيْرَ ۖ إِنَّا إِلَىٰ رَبِّنَا مُنقَلِبُونَ
They said, "There is no harm. We are to return to our Lord. (26:50)
When the Pharaoh threatened the magicians to kill them, and to cut their limbs and to crucify them, the magicians replied rather indifferently, the gist of their reply was, ` You do whatever you can. We shall lose nothing. Even if we are killed we will go back to our Lord, where there is nothing but comfort'.
It is worth noting here that the magicians who had involved all their lives practicing the sinful sorcery and who believed in the Pharaoh's claim to be a god, rather, used to worship him, pronounced faith in Allah before that tyrant and despotic king and the entire nation. This was in itself something most astonishing and courageous, but it was not just the pronouncement of faith in Allah, but a demonstration of such deep devotion as if they could see the Dooms Day and the Hereafter before their eyes. The blessings and bounties of the Hereafter were within their sight, for which they raised themselves over and above any punishment or torment of this world, and said فَاقْضِ مَا أَنتَ قَاضٍ that is ` You do whatever you are to do (20:72). We are not going back from our faith'. This in fact was also a miracle of Sayyidna Musa (علیہ السلام) which was no less than the miracle of the staff and the luminous hand. Many incidents of similar nature have also occurred with our Holy Prophet ﷺ . In one such incident a drastic change had occurred in a seventy years old infidel in that within a minute he not only converted to Islam, but was ready to lay down his life to become a martyr.
(Then Pharaoh sent into the cities summoners) he summoned his police force,