CHAPTER I: Political Life in Ancient Egypt as Seen through the Quranic Verses

Firstly: the word (Egypt/Misr) in the Quranic text:

(A) The word ''Egypt'' (or Misr in Arabic) is mentioned five times in five different verses in the Quranic text as follows:-

[1] "And We inspired Moses and his brother, "Settle your people in Egypt/Misr, and make your homes places of worship, and perform the prayer, and give good news to the believers."" (10:87).

[2] "The man who bought him said to his wife in Egypt/Misr, "Take good care of him; he may be useful to us, or we may adopt him as a son." We thus established Joseph in the land, to teach him the interpretation of events. God has control over His affairs, but most people do not know." (12:21). 

[3] "Then, when they entered into the presence of Joseph, he embraced his parents, and said, "Enter Egypt/Misr, God willing, safe and secure."" (12:99). 

[4] "Pharaoh proclaimed among his people, saying, "O my people, do I not own the Kingdom of Egypt/Misr, and these rivers flow beneath me? Do you not see?" (43:51). 

[5] "And recall when you said, "O Moses, we cannot endure one kind of food, so call to your Lord to produce for us of what the earth grows: of its herbs, and its cucumbers, and its garlic, and its lentils, and its onions." He said, "Would you substitute worse for better? Go down to Egypt/Misr, where you will have what you asked for." They were struck with humiliation and poverty, and incurred wrath from God. That was because they rejected God's revelations and wrongfully killed the prophets. That was because they disobeyed and transgressed." (2:61).

   Personally, we think that the first four quoted verses refer to Egypt in the geographical sense as a country; moreover, we do not believe that in the last quoted verse, 2:61, that ''Misr'' meant the geographical Egypt per se, but the Quranic term ''Misr'' in 2:61 means any civilized city anywhere. The Arabic grammatical grounds for this view is that the term ''Misr'' in 2:61 used with different Arabic grammatical inflection, making it an indefinite Arabic word not the definite foreign word ''Egypt'' itself. As for the rest of the four quoted verses, the term ''Misr'' is without grammatical inflection at all, because it is a non-Arab word as far as its linguistic root or etymological origin is concerned, and it definitely means the country called Egypt. This linguistic differentiation shows that the word ''Misr'' has two meanings as follows.       

* ''Misr'' as a foreign, non-Arabic geographical proper name indicating a homeland situated in Africa (and therefore, without being grammatically inflected) in the Quran means the country or homeland where Egyptians live, and this meaning is repeated in four Quranic verses: 10:87, 12:21, 12:99, and 43:51. 

* "Misr" as mentioned in 2:61 means any civilized big city or town, because it is inflected as an Arabic singular noun. Most old lexicons and dictionaries of the Arabic tongue written during the Middle Ages assert that the Arabic word ''Misr'' is a singular noun that indicates a big town that is outstanding in comparison to nomad environment or communities and in comparison to small towns and villages, and its plural form is the word "Amsar": big towns, city-states, or civilized governorates within an empire or caliphate, and its dual form is ''Misran'', the term used to describe the two biggest cities in Iraq at the time: Basra and Kufa. This linguistic information indicates the historical fact that Egypt is the mother of world civilization; civilized communities began for the first time in Egypt, before the rest of the world. This is why the Arabic word ''Misr'' means a civilized big city. Even this is indicated in the words of Joseph when he said to his family after he made them come to Egypt in safety from the wilderness or Bedouin environment: "…Father, this is the fulfillment of my vision of long ago. My Lord has made it come true. He has blessed me, when he released me from prison, and brought you out of the wilderness…" (12:100). This means that the civilized cities of Egypt were so great in comparison to all other areas in the Levant, Arabia, Iraq, and in North Africa, during the era of Joseph. This means that the borders of the East of Egypt (after Sinai) was a desert environment of Bedouin primitive nature and lifestyle that raised and grazed animals and cattle etc. This is also indicated in the words of Moses when he addressed his people in 2:61, as he said to them "… Would you substitute worse for better? Go down to Egypt/Misr, where you will have what you asked for …". Though he meant probably any big cities, linguistically, to call big cities by the term Mist shows the importance and magnificence of Egypt and its location and influence all over the ancient world during the era of Moses, as the most ancient civilization of the whole planet. This indicates that the term ''Egypt'' or ''Misr'' means the great, big state or country as well. This is why Arabic words used the name of this great country to denote civilization and civilized societies in general, even in other locations away from River Nile, as we deduce from the inflected noun (hence, it is not a proper name)''Misr'' in the Quranic verse 2:61.               

(B) The Quranic text refers to Egypt as "the earth":-

   Another importance to Egypt and its stature and prominence in the ancient world is added by the Quranic text, as Egypt is referred to in Quranic stories as ''the earth''; this description is used with other locations in other Quranic stories, denoting that the powerful, mighty people in a given country, homeland, or area imagined themselves as the controllers of earth and no one on the planet was mightier than they were. We discern this from this Quranic verse about the Aad people: "As for Aad, they turned arrogant on earth, and opposed justice, and said, "Who is more powerful than us?" Have they not considered that God, who created them, is more powerful than they?…" (41:15). Thus, Egypt is likewise described and referred to as ''the earth'' because it remained a very mighty and powerful ancient country/nation for centuries, feared by the rest of the nations, especially during the era of the Ramses dynasty pharaohs, the one that probably witnessed the story of Moses. Let us quote other Quranic verses supporting our view; let us begin with the Quranic Chapter 28: "Pharaoh exalted himself on the earth…" (28:4); "But We desired to favor those who were oppressed on the earth…" (28:5); "And to establish them on the earth…" (28:6); "…You only want to be a bully on the earth, and do not want to be a peacemaker." (28:19); "He and his troops acted arrogantly on the earth…" (28:39). Let us quote verses from the Quranic Chapter 7 tackling the Quranic story of Moses, and we see how Egypt is referred to as ''the earth'' again: "…Will you let Moses and his people cause trouble on the earth…" (7:127); "Moses said to his people, "Seek help in God, and be patient. The earth belongs to God. He gives it in inheritance to whomever He wills of His servants…" (7:128); "…"Perhaps your Lord will destroy your enemy, and make you successors on the earth; then He will see how you behave." (7:129); "And We made the oppressed people inherit the eastern and western parts of the earth, which We had blessed…" (7:137). In 7:137, we see the greatest description of Egypt by God as a blessed land, prominent among all locations on the planet. Likewise, within the Quranic story of Joseph, we see Egypt referred to as the earth yet again: "…"Put me in charge of the storehouses of the earth…" (12:55); "And thus We established Joseph on the earth…" (12:56). This means that  Egypt was the storehouses of the whole ancient world at the time, and that the high stature of Joseph as a powerful governor of Egypt, granted to him by God via the Hyksos king at the time, made him control the neighboring countries, or most of them in the ancient world. Hence, the Quran reflects how the ancient Egyptians felt  regarding their homeland as the center location of the whole earth at the time and the center of civilization and civilized world in general, at the time when European people lived in caves within primitive ways. Another reference to Egypt as the earth, denoting control of the ancient world at the time, is found in this verse as well that contain the warning words of the believing man among the retinue of Moses' Pharaoh: "O my people! Yours is the dominion today, supreme on the earth; but who will help us against God's might, should it fall upon us?…" (40:29). Moses' Pharaoh felt that the call of Moses would cause the collapse of the Egyptian civilization: "Pharaoh said, "Leave me to kill Moses, and let him appeal to his Lord. I fear he may change your religion, or spread corruption on the earth."" (40:26). The Quranic text reflects how Egyptians loved their homeland very much and took pride in it, as they said the following about Moses and Aaron: "They said, "These two are magicians who want to drive you out of your earth with their magic, and to abolish your exemplary way of life." (20:63), and the following about Moses: "…Did you come to us to drive us out of our earth with your magic, O Moses?" (20:57). We notice here that the ancient Egyptians had said that their country is the earth (in the sense of one's turf, territory, and homeland), as they loved their country very much and saw it as dominating over the whole planet, or all countries around them in the ancient world. Finally, we assert here that when the Quran describes Egypt as ''the earth'', this shows another miraculous feature of the Quranic text in its meticulous recording of some facts of history, in addition to other miracles of cosmic verses that refer to scientific facts and to its eloquence in style in the Arabic tongue. Hence, the Quran registers in its text, revealed by God to Muhammad many centuries before Egyptologists could tell us about Ancient Egypt through hieroglyphics, how ancient Egyptians loved their homeland and took pride in it as the greatest nation and country in the ancient world. Egyptologists who deciphered the symbols and characters of hieroglyphics tell us that the ancient Egyptians named their country as "Tumeri" in hieroglyphic language, which means "The Beloved Land", and using this term to refer to Egypt means that they loved it very much; another hieroglyphic term was the one referring to deserts and unknown territories that were never interesting to them: "Akhet", which means the far horizon or the wilderness. We hope that one day Egyptologists and archeologists be guided in their discoveries and researches by what the Quran tells us about ancient Egypt.                   

Secondly: Quranic indications about features of the Ancient Egyptian State during the era of Joseph:

1- We have written above about the greatness, power, and influence of the Ancient Egyptian State millennia ago, and how the Quran registers this aspect of Ancient Egypt by referring to it by the term ''the earth''. It I natural that this worldly glory was manifested basically in the political ruling system that gave the Ancient Egyptian State its supreme power and might. This Ancient Egyptian State (3200-2250 BCE) began by uniting the Egyptian lands and territories that shared a common language, by a great Pharaoh called Menes or Narmer who founded the first Pharaonic dynasty in history. Of course, the Egyptian State during the Pharaonic Era for centuries flourished and collapsed many times, and within times of collapse that were followed by flourishing times later on, no outside enemy forces dared to occupy Egypt during internal degeneration periods (before the Hyksos kings). It is a consensus now that Joseph entered Egypt during the Hyksos occupation, because in the Quranic Chapter 12, titles "Joseph", the ruler of Egypt at the time is described using the word ''King'' five times and is NEVER referred to by the word ''Pharaoh''. In contrast, within the Quranic story of Moses, the word ''Pharaoh'' is mentioned 74 times to describe ruler of Egypt at the time, and he is never described by the word ''King''.   

2- Historians of Ancient Egypt assert that the Hyksos never left any monuments in Egypt that could be studied to know about how the Hyksos ruled Egypt as occupiers; the Quranic reference to the ''King'' in the Quranic Chapter 12 within the story of Joseph is the only reliable source that assert the fact that Hyksos kings were no pharaohs. We bear in mind that the Quran as God's Word tells the Absolute Truth, and this include all historical events and words of characters/figures of history recorded in it, of course. We can draw features of the character and type of rule of the Hyksos king from the Quranic story of Joseph in the Quranic Chapter 12; he was a king that had his retinue of councilors for consultation, but such retinue or group of trusted followers/advisors were never like the very close relation and dependence that existed between Moses' Pharaoh and his retinue/feudal soldiers; as Moses' Pharaoh expected and found full support and blind obedience from his retinue, whereas the Hyksos king in the story of Joseph did find any enthusiasm from his retinue members when he told them about his dreams/visions that needed to be interpreted: "The king said, "I see seven fat cows being eaten by seven lean ones, and seven green spikes, and others dried up. O people, explain to me my vision, if you are able to interpret visions." They said, "Jumbles of dreams, and we know nothing of the interpretation of dreams."" (12:43-44). By studying closely the Quranic verses mentioning the very close relation between Moses' Pharaoh and his retinue members, we see the contrast between them and the retinue members of the Hyksos king; if Pharaoh were the one to tell them about a dream/vision, they would have readily vied for offering their interpretations with full zeal and enthusiasm, in a way that would please Pharaoh, or would have brought into the palace all magicians, sorcerers, and fortunetellers to help Pharaoh at once. In contrast, retinue members of the Hyksos king told him languidly in 12:44 that they know nothing about interpretation of dreams. Yet, the Hyksos king was not weak in character or in reasoning, as he had good sense, true insight, intuition, and discernment about how to judge and know statures of erudite men: as he chose Joseph to appoint him in his retinue as a powerful man or deputy, after he thought it over and tested him, as per the Quranic story. The Hyksos king felt disappointed when his retinue failed to help him interpret his visions; when the king's wine cup-bearer told him about his prison cell inmate, Joseph, as they both were imprisoned together at one time, with the cup-bearer released and Joseph remained imprisoned up to this point, the cup-bearer was sent to Joseph in his cell to know from him the interpretation of the king's dreams. Undoubtedly, the Hyksos king realized that the interpretation conveyed to him by the cup-bearer from Joseph indicated no mere empty words; rather, they were serious warnings about future times that will bring famine and needs firm plans to face such hard years and feed the entire population as well as to help the neighboring countries. This wise Hyksos king thought the matter over and realized that the best solution was to bring Joseph in his place, after releasing him from prison, so as to benefit from his advice and consultation. This was a very positive aspect in the character of the Hyksos king; he consulted experts in all serious matters and issues that were of vital importance to the people he ruled. We discern from the Quran that the Hyksos king sent a special messenger/envoy to Joseph in prison, an action denoting his being honored in prison by the king, which was something unexpected by any prisoner in such ancient times. Yet, Joseph apparently insisted on leaving his prison cell only after clearing his name and be declared innocent of the guilt of which he was unjustly accused. This piqued the interest of the Hyksos king more about the true character of Joseph; no doubt that the cup-bearer told the king more about Joseph and why he was imprisoned. Hence, the Hyksos king was resolved to investigate himself the case of Joseph and why he was put to prison years ago; the king sent for the women and interrogated them by accusing them first of making sexual advances to Joseph, and this indicates that the king never accused Joseph of trying to seduce the women, as he defended him in fact. Of course, we know from the Quran that the women has cleared Joseph's name before their king and even the Potiphar's wife did the same and confessed that she was the guilty party in the whole affair. After this unique situation and as joseph was declared innocent, he was brought willingly before the king in his palace, after being asked to attend an audience with the king, and Joseph agreed after he was proven innocent as he desired. The dialogue that the king wished for with Joseph had eventually took place, and before it the king had said: "…Bring him to me, and I will reserve him for myself…" (12:54). After the dialogue between Joseph and the Hyksos king, the king was more convinced of Joseph and admired his character immensely, granting him a high position and stature in his palace. Joseph asked to be appointed as the higher supervisor and controller of all storehouses of the Egyptian kingdom, as he had the required expertise to assume such a position within the critical years to come. Thus, we deduce such historical facts about the Hyksos king from the Quranic Chapter 12, facts never mentioned in books and accounts of human history at all.                                                 

3- Historians of Ancient Egypt surmise that the Hyksos kings adopted cruelty and violence in dealing with Egyptians, but they found no evidence to support this view so far; yet, the Quran provides evidence to support such point: an innocent person like Joseph was thrown into prison cell to cover up or to hush the scandal of the Potiphar's wife and the other affluent women who admired and desired Joseph, whose only 'guilt' was that he adhered to chastity, despite being threatened by imprisonment: "Then it occurred to them, after they had seen the signs, to imprison him for a while." (12:35). Hence, the Hyksos authority might have forgotten all about Joseph in prison for the rest of his life, if it had not been for Providence when a succession  of events took place to the Hyksos king. Moreover, we discern that poorer classes in Egypt at the time paid the heavy price/bill of the affluent, profligate, degenerate class of Hyksos rulers; Joseph who preserved his chastity and never obliged the carnal lusts of the Potiphar's wife and the rest of the rich aristocratic women lost his freedom as a result. We discern as well another situation that assert how the Hyksos treated Egyptians unkindly and unjustly; the story of the two men imprisoned in the same cell with Joseph, as they were imprisoned at the same time like him. One of both men was a baker and the other was a wine cup-bearer, and they befriended their cell inmate Joseph, as we deduce from the following verse: "Two youths entered the prison with him. One of them said, "I see myself pressing wine." The other said, "I see myself carrying bread on my head, from which the birds are eating. Tell us their interpretation - we see that you are one of the righteous."" (12:36). This means that both men had seen visions/dreams derived from their original jobs, and the succession  of events makes us discern they belonged to two different classes; the wine cup-bearer was pardoned soon enough and appointed at the king's palace and became nearer to him that he participated in the king's discussion with his retinue about the visions. This means that he had high stature and belonged to the upper classes in the Hyksos society, and once he returned to his familiar affluent world, he forgot all about his promise to joseph to intercede on his behalf to the king to release him because he was innocent. The cup-bearer knew of course that Joseph was innocent and that he could have helped him as he saw the king on a daily basis. Yet, the cup-bearer forgot about Joseph and prison life once he retrieved his former life of palaces, upper classes, and affluence. This cup-bearer remembered Joseph only when the occasion came up and he felt that Joseph was urgently needed to serve the Hyksos king. "The one who was released said, having remembered after a time, "I will inform you of its interpretation, so send me out." (12:45). Hence, the cup-bearer that belonged to the ruling classes was released soon from prison and found an excellent job in the royal palace, whereas the poor baker was put to death by crucifixion; this baker, as per his job, belonged to the lower classes and his 'crime might be that he stole some flour or bread, as we may discern from his dream that reflected his guilt: "…I see myself carrying bread on my head, from which the birds are eating…" (12:36). Yet, he was put to death for theft because he was a poor person with no one to help him from the upper classes.                  

4- Being imprisoned was the first stage for the poor baker before he was crucified. It is noteworthy that prisons had special importance throughout the history of Ancient Egypt; the words ''prison'' and its related words derived from it are mentioned in the Quranic text only in relation to events that had occurred in Egypt. We know that the Potiphar's wife had threatened to imprison Joseph on two separate occasions: before her husband: "…"What is the penalty for him who desired to dishonor your wife, except imprisonment or a painful punishment?"" (12:25); and before the affluent aristocratic women: "…But if he does not do what I tell him to do, he will be imprisoned, and will be one of the humiliated ." (12:32). We know from the Quran, of course, that Joseph preferred being imprisoned to committing a major sin with those women and the Potiphar's wife: "…My Lord, prison is more desirable to me than what they call me to…" (12:33). This strong influence of prison life was inside the psyche of Joseph, as we discern from the way he addressed his inmates inside the prison cell: "O My fellow inmates, …" (12:39). We deduce from the Quran as well that the influence of the imprisonment experience remained engraved inside Joseph's memory, even when he was on top of all authority and power as the governor of Egypt: "…Father, this is the fulfillment of my vision of long ago. My Lord has made it come true. He has blessed me, when he released me from prison…" (12:100). The Egyptian prison at the time was associated with physical torture and psychological suffering, as we discern from the words of the Potiphar's wife: "… except imprisonment or a painful punishment?" (12:25); "…he will be imprisoned, and will be one of the humiliated." (12:32). The cruelty of the prison life in Ancient Egypt at the time made Joseph urge the cup-bearer who will be released to plead his case to the king and tell him that he was innocent and should be released: "…Mention me to your master…" (12:42), but the cup-bearer forgot all about Joseph and he lingered more years in his prison cell: "…so he remained in prison for several years." (12:42). We know for sure from the Quran that the Egyptian prison in Ancient Egypt remained for long eras a source of terror and used as a threat by those in power; within the story of Moses, Pharaoh threatened to imprison Moses: "…If you accept any god other than me, I will make you among the prisoners." (26:29).    

5- Apart from the Hyksos king, we notice that a high-rank position was the governor of Egypt. The title ''Potiphar'' is mentioned twice in the Quran when tackling the Potiphar's wife seducing joseph, and twice more about Joseph as he became himself the Potiphar of Egypt, and he assumed this highest position in the Egyptian government headed by the Hyksos king. The Quran expresses in the following verses how the Potiphar, who cared for Joseph in his house, was dwarfed and overshadowed by his lustful wife, indicating that he had a weak character: "Some ladies in the city said, "The Potiphar's wife is trying to seduce her servant…" (12:30); "…The Potiphar's wife then said, "Now the truth is out…" (12:51). In contrast, the Quran expresses how Joseph had a strong character when he assumed the position of governor of Egypt, as his brothers never knew him when they were brought before him: "And Joseph's brothers came, and entered into his presence. He recognized them, but they did not recognize him." (12:58). These brothers were taken aback with the awe of Joseph as they pleaded him to spare their youngest brother from being taken from them by force: "They said, "O Potiphar, he has a father, a very old man, so take one of us in his place…" (12:78). Their being submissive to him as the Potiphar, without knowing he was their brother, is mentioned in this verse as well: "…"O Potiphar, adversity has befallen us, and our family. We have brought scant merchandise. But give us full measure, and be charitable towards us-God rewards the charitable."" (12:88). Reading about acts done by Joseph the Potiphar of Egypt, we discern that his missions includes the complete and full supervision of Egypt agricultural and economic affairs, and thus, God had established Joseph on the earth, participating in the rule of the Egyptian kingdom at the time, as we discern from this verse, when Joseph thanked the Lord: ""My Lord, You have given me authority…" (12:101). The position of the Potiphar/governor of Egypt is mentioned in the Quran as: (Aziz Misr), (literally, the Honored One of Egypt) and it might be the title even in the ancient Egyptian language used at the time. This is similar to the title of honor in the Turkish language in Egypt centuries ago: (izzetlu) which meant literally ''the honorable one'', and it is similar to the term used in classical Arabic tongue in the 19^th and 20^th centuries: (Sahib Al-Izzat), which meant literally also "'the honorable one''. 

6- We discern as well from the Quranic text that Egypt during the era of the Hyksos had its eastern borders in Sinai heavily guarded; this was a vital unprecedented step in Ancient Egypt, introduced by the Hyksos occupiers so as to welcome certain Asian guests (like Jacob's sons and the whole family later on) and to ward off unwanted raids of nomads and any foreign belligerent tribes coming from Asia. We discern from the following verse, that quotes Jacob, that crossing this Sinai borders was a matter that needed preparation: "…"O my sons, do not enter by one gate, but enter by different gates. I cannot avail you anything against God. The decision rests only with God. On Him I rely, and on Him let the reliant rely."" (12:67). The sons of Jacob applied to the letter the advice of their father: "And when they entered as their father had instructed them, it did not avail them anything against God; it was just a need in the soul of Jacob, which he carried out…" (12:68). Thus, we know that the eastern Egyptian borders had many gates and they were heavily guarded, and Jacob feared that his sons might arouse the suspicion of these guards who might harm his sons; this was the reason behind his advice to them. Later on, when Joseph told his brothers: "…And bring your whole family to me." (12:93), he traveled to wait for their arrival, with their families, at the Sinai borders, and he met his parents, his relatives, as well as his brothers and their wives, and they traveled to Egyptian capital without being afraid, as there was no cause or room for fear like the fear of Jacob over his sons when they crossed the borders in the first time: "Then, when they entered into the presence of Joseph, he embraced his parents, and said, "Enter Egypt, God willing, safe and secure."" (100:99). This means that the Egyptian capital at the time was named ''Egypt'', in the way Egyptians, in their vernacular Egyptian dialect of Arabic, until now refer to their present capital, Cairo, as ''Egypt''. The heavily guarded borders used to keep off any possible threat or danger coming from Bedouins and their raids and troops, as anyone coming from the desert would be suspected for a while, and guards had to make sure before letting anyone inside Sinai, the Eastern gate of Egypt within all eras. Hence, upon the safe arrival, Joseph was thankful to the Lord: "…Father, this is the fulfillment of my vision of long ago. My Lord has made it come true. He has blessed me, when he released me from prison, and brought you out of the wilderness…" (12:100). Indeed, this indicates that Egypt has been the mother of the civilized world and the most prominent country in the ancient world. The sons of Jacob/Israel lived inside Egypt, and came to be called as the Hebrews and the Israelites, forming twelve tribes, until the exodus with Moses. By the way, those Israelites has nothing to do (in terms of race and origin) with the white Jews in modern Israel now, as the white Israelis of today have descended from the Khazar tribes that embraced Judaism during the Middle Ages and immigrated to Europe for a while before their descendants would come to Palestine in the 20^th century.                  

Thirdly: Quranic indications about the Egyptian State during the era of Moses: between the king of the Hyksos and Moses' Pharaoh:

1- We derive the notion from the Quran that the Hyksos rulers cared for the family and sons of Jacob/Israel, as Joseph met them at the eastern borders in Sinai and "…embraced his parents, and said, "Enter Egypt, God willing, safe and secure."" (12:99). This means that even after the death of Jacob/Israel and Joseph, the Hyksos kings later on nurtured and cared for the Israelites who came from the east into Egypt, and both the Israelites and the Hyksos were foreigners who were hated by Egyptian nationals. In the Old testament, we read the following about how the Hyksos king cared for the family of Joseph: (And Israel dwelt in the land of Egypt, in the country of Goshen; and they had possessions therein, and grew, and multiplied exceedingly. And Jacob lived in the land of Egypt seventeen years…) (Genesis 47:27-28) [Source: KJV online on this link: https://en.wikisource.org/wiki/Bible_(King_James)]; (And Joseph dwelt in Egypt, he, and his father's house…) (Genesis 50:22); (And Joseph died, and all his brethren, and all that generation. And the children of Israel were fruitful, and increased abundantly, and multiplied, and waxed exceeding mighty; and the land was filled with them.) (Exodus 1:6-7).   

2- Historians of Ancient Egypt tell us that the Egyptians at one point in time revolted against the Hyksos rule, defeated them militarily, and drove them out of Egypt until beyond the Levant. Thus, it was expected that the fortune of the Israelites would change drastically; after riches and lands they owned during the Hyksos rule, they were deprived of every right and persecuted by the Pharaonic Egyptian rulers, who were bent on taking revenge from all those who aided the foreign occupiers. We find that change of status and conditions echoed in the Old Testament: ( Now there arose up a new king over Egypt, which knew not Joseph.)  (Exodus 1:8).   

Who was Moses' Pharaoh?

1- Historians never agree on defining and naming Moses' Pharaoh; some of them surmise that he might have been either Thutmose I, Seti I, Amenhotep I, Ramses II, or Ramses III. Such conjectures lack proofs of course. Some other historians claim that the Pharaoh who persecuted the Israelites might have been Ramses II, while the one drowning in the Red Sea might have been his successor Merneptah. Yet, there is a consensus that Moses' Pharaoh was one ruler among the ones within three centuries from Thutmose I (1539-1501 BCE) and the exodus of the Israelites (circa 1213 BCE). Until now, no historian is definite about the identity of Moses' Pharaoh and no one has come with evidence or proof to support their view about who was Moses' Pharaoh within the Pharaonic rulers of these three centuries.  

2- It is a fact known about the Pharaohs that the never liked to record in writing any setbacks and defeats, while the Pharaonic rulers used to remove names of their predecessors and ascribe their feats and achievements to themselves. This casts doubts upon how Pharaonic history was registered by the Pharaonic Era scribes; this applies in particular to the story of Moses' Pharaoh and how he was drowned in the lifetime of Moses. Hence, the Quran records a historical fact never mentioned by historians at all; namely, the Israelites inherited for a while the rule of Egypt after the death of Moses' Pharaoh, the collapse of his dynasty, and the destruction of all edifices and monuments that he erected: "So We took vengeance on them, and drowned them in the sea-because they rejected Our signs, and paid no heed to them. And We made the oppressed people inherit the eastern and western parts of the land, which We had blessed. Thus the fair promise of your Lord to the Israelites was fulfilled, because of their endurance. And We destroyed what Pharaoh and his people had built, and what they had harvested." (7:136-137).  This rule over Egypt by Israelites was temporary and for a short time; as they had to obey the divine command to go into the East. God says the following about Moses' Pharaoh and his family, henchmen, followers, and soldiers: "How many gardens and fountains did they leave behind? And plantations, and splendid buildings. And comforts they used to enjoy. So it was; and We passed it on to another people." (44:25-28). The ''people'' mentioned in 44:28 was the Israelites. We conclude also the fact that despite the tyranny and self-deification of Moses' Pharaoh, he turned Egypt into a place of gardens, fountains plantations, splendid buildings, and other enjoyable comforts, and the temporary inheritors of that who ruled Egypt for a while after the death of Moses' Pharaoh were the Israelites as per the Quran: "So We drove them out of gardens and springs. And treasures and noble dwellings. So it was. And We made the Israelites inherit them." (26:57-59). It is natural that scribes of the Pharaonic Era would ignore recording such events, but eh Quran asserts and registers them.     

3- The question about the real identity of Moses' Pharaoh will be debated for a long time, and the Quran never mentions his name. we have asserted before that the Quranic methodology in narrating history is to disregard and omit most names in the Quranic stories. Even some of the names of evil/disbelieving figures mentioned in the Quranic text have been turned into symbols to make Quran-believing people, in all eras and locations, learn useful lessons to avoid the evil ways; for instance, Abou Lahab (mentioned in the Quranic Chapter 111, and ancient interpreters assume that this was the name of Muhammad's paternal uncle, who died as disbeliever in the Quran) and Azar (mentioned in the Quranic text in 6:74 and ancient interpreters assume that this was the name of Abraham's father) are symbolic names of losers and disbelievers who will descend into Hell, despite being relatives of prophets. By the way, this refutes the claim of some Shiites and Sunnites that they are 'holy' untouchable and infallible descendants of Muhammad's daughter Fatima, who was wife of Ali. Moses' Pharaoh's name is never mentioned in the Quran, and the term "Pharaoh" was a political title and never a proper name. this historical figure is a symbol in the Quran of any tyrannical self-deified ruler that goes the whole way against God until his miserable death and waiting for his fate in Hell for eternity, as a well-deserved punishment. The Quranic indications may help about deciding who was the real Moses' Pharaoh; by the way, we assert here the Quranic fact that Moses' Pharaoh was one person who raised the child Moses in his palace, persecuted the Israelites, and drowned in the Red Sea, and not two phrenic rulers as the Old Testament suggests and some historians. We discern this Quranic fact from these Quranic verses; the Israelites said to Moses and he replied as follows: "They said, "We were persecuted before you came to us, and after you came to us." He said, "Perhaps your Lord will destroy your enemy, and make you successors in the land; then He will see how you behave."" (7:129). God says the following about Moses' Pharaoh and his retinue and followers: "Pharaoh exalted himself on the earth, and divided its people into factions. He persecuted a group of them, slaughtering their sons, while sparing their daughters. He was truly a corrupter. But We desired to favor those who were oppressed on the earth, and to make them leaders, and to make them the inheritors. And to establish them in the land; and to show Pharaoh, Haman, and their troops, the very thing they feared. " (28:4-6); "Pharaoh's household picked him up, to be an opponent and a sorrow for them. Pharaoh, Haman, and their troops were sinners." (28:8). Hence, we conclude from this Quranic context that the very same Pharaoh who persecuted the Israelites was the one who cared for the child Moses and the one who was drowned along with his vizier Haman, family members, soldiers, and retinue members in the Red Sea. Moses' Pharaoh said to Moses: "…Did we not raise you among us as a child, and you stayed among us for many of your years?" (26:18). Thus, it should never be expected or surmised that Ramses II might be Moses' Pharaoh, as Ramses II was the great Pharaoh who defeated the Hittite Empire in the battle of Kadesh, in the Levant, forcing them to sign  peace treaty, assumed to be the first one in ancient history. Why are we asserting here based on the Quran, that Ramses II was NOT Moses' Pharaoh? Because Ramses II controlled the Levant, and we know from the Quran that Moses fled Egypt for a while, after killing an Egyptian man, to Madian, located near the Levant, and how come that Moses would flee to a territory controlled by Pharaoh? Hence, Moses fled to Madian when the Levant was not occupied by the Egyptians, and since Ramses II occupied the Levant at the time, he cannot possibly be Moses' Pharaoh. This indicates that if Moses' Pharaoh might be one of the Ramses dynasty, he could never have been Ramses II, but rather one of his descendants that lost control over the Levant, and hence, Moses felt safe while hiding in Madian, located south of the Levant and north-west of Arabia. We conclude also that Moses' Pharaoh never engaged himself into outside expansions or military conquests; we understand from the Quran that Moses' Pharaoh was preoccupied with internal affairs that included using his army and troops to quell weak faction inside Egypt, the Israelites, and to stop them from increasing in number, and he kept busy delivering speeches in his conferences (more on that later in this book). This indicates that Moses' Pharaoh was never busy conquering nations outside Egypt or waging military wars, as he focused only in internal affairs, and the Quran shows nothing about any activities of him outside Egypt, and no archeological evidence support that the Ramses dynasty successors engaged into outside wars after Ramses II. Let us remember that the Israelites refused to obey Moses to enter Palestine because it had tyrannical people: "They said, "O Moses, there are tyrannical people in it; we will not enter it until they leave it. If they leave it, we will be entering." Two men of those who feared, but whom God had blessed, said, "Go at them by the gate; and when you have entered it, you will prevail. And put your trust in God, if you are believers."" (5:22-23). This means that there was a strong state in the Levant, with gates, walls, guards, strong rulers, etc. that had nothing to do with Egyptian rule, and the Israelites feared to leave Sinai to enter Palestine. This means that this strong state in the Levant became mightier after the collapse of the Pharaonic rule and regime. Thus, the pharaohs that succeeded Ramses II probably allowed a measure of autonomy to their occupied regions in the Levant, whose people gained full control over their lands and achieved self-rule later on. Such indications show that Moses' Pharaoh (if he might have been one of the descendants of Ramses II) did not care about the fact that people of the Levant achieved  autonomy and got rid of Egyptian control. Because the Israelites were reluctant to enter Palestine, God punished them by wandering for 40 years in the deserts until this corrupt disbelieving generation would die and a new one would emerge that deserved to enter Palestine. Moses died before the end of this 40-year period, or so we are told in the Old testament. We know from the Quran that after the era of Moses, God sent another prophet/messenger (whose name is not mentioned in the Quran) to the Israelites, who was inspired by God to choose for them a king named Talut in the Quran: "When Talut set out with the troops … And when they confronted Goliath and his troops … And they defeated them by God's leave, and David killed Goliath, and God gave him sovereignty and wisdom, and taught him as He willed …" (2:249-251). The kingdom of the Israelites was thus established in the Levant by David. We conclude then that the Egyptian Empire outside Egyptian borders was no longer there in the era of Moses and after him as the Israelites made their kingdom and no longer feared Egyptians on their borders in Sinai. Hence, we ourselves surmise that the Moses' Pharaoh might have been a descended of Ramses III, who was in his turn murdered by one of his wives. After the death of Ramses III, there were successive rulers in the same dynasty named Ramses, and little is mentioned about them, as per what historians of Ancient Egypt tell us. Moses' Pharaoh might have been one of those eight rulers named Ramses. What reinforces this surmise is the fact that in the era after Moses, weak Egyptians rulers ruled Egypt and collapse, divisions, and degeneration dominated, and even later on Nubians and Libyans ruled Egypt and then later on Assyrians and Persians. This means that Moses' Pharaoh was most probably the last strong Pharaonic ruler, and after he was drowned, the curse had befallen his successors who followed his footsteps of tyranny. The Quran asserts this as Moses and Aaron invoked God's wrath against Pharaoh and God granted him his wish: "Moses said, "Our Lord, you have given Pharaoh and his chiefs splendor and wealth in the worldly life. Our Lord, for them to lead away from Your path. Our Lord, obliterate their wealth, and harden their hearts, they will not believe until they see the painful torment." He said, "Your prayer of both of you has been answered, so go straight, and do not follow the path of those who do not know."" (10:88-89). Hence, God punished the Pharaohs and made their rule and kingdom collapse; and this might have been repeated in the subsequent Pharaonic history if another ruler had emerged and proclaimed himself as a self-deified being: "…I am your Lord, the most high." (79:24).                                                            

Moses' Pharaoh: features of his character:

1- The proclaimed self-deification of Moses' Pharaoh is the most prominent feature in his character, and from which he derived his absolute power and hegemony over the Egyptians. This very feature drove him to persecute the Israelites and their religion that contained no deification, sanctification, and worship of Pharaoh. It is certain that Moses' Pharaoh had imposed his being worshipped, as a deity most high, on the Israelites, and he and his family, soldiers, retinue members, seniors, nobles, and followers were surprised by the call of Moses and Aaron because the Israelites were forced to worship Pharaoh as a deity: "They said, "Are we to believe in two mortals like us, and their people worship us?"" (23:47). Undoubtedly, Moses' Pharaoh had bragged before Moses of this and reminded him that the Israelites were merely his slaves, and Moses had said to him: "Is that the favor you taunt me with that you have enslaved the Israelites?" (26:22). The call of Moses drove Pharaoh to fear that his religion of worshipping Pharaoh as god, on which his absolute power was based, would be lost, and he told his retinue: "… I fear he may change your religion or spread corruption on the earth." (40:26). Indeed, Moses' Pharaoh used to hold conferences and the masses were mobilized to attend them along with his retinue members, and he would proclaim himself as their supreme god: "And gathered and proclaimed. He said, "I am your Lord, the most high."" (79:23-24). Moses' Pharaoh went on in his hubris in the religion he fashioned and declared in public the following: "… O nobles, I know of no god for you other than me. So fire-up the bricks for me, O Haman, and build me an edifice, that I may ascend to the God of Moses…" (28:38). Because all Egyptians at that era worshipped Pharaoh as a deity, they used to mention his name to gain benediction before they perform any important task, as the magicians did to confront Moses with their magic in the palace of Pharaoh: "So they threw their ropes and their sticks, and said, "By the majesty of Pharaoh, we will be the winners."" (26:44).            

2- What we read in the Quran about ancient Egyptians gaining benediction from Moses' Pharaoh's name is discovered by Egyptologists, who assert in their books that Egyptians in tournaments mentioned the name of any pharaoh as a deity or a demi-god. One rival would say, for instance, ''We stand before the great, almighty Pharaoh, for him long life and power!'', and another would say, "By the might of our good Pharaoh, I will smash you into pieces before his sight!" or "Pharaoh the great, my lord, is with me against you! For him long life and power forever!".     

3- God says the following about the stance of Moses' Pharaoh when the magicians believed in God because of the miracle of Moses: "Pharaoh said, "Did you believe in Him before I have given you permission? …" (7:123); "He said, "Did you believe in Him before I have given you permission? …" (26:49). This means that Moses' Pharaoh considered himself as a lord/god dominant over hearts of his subjects, to the extent that they were not to believe in any creed except after asking for his permission! This shows to us how Moses' Pharaoh used to hold both political/temporal and religious authority, as an owner of land/earth and people on it. this is the highest level possible of tyranny typical of self-deified mortals. Historians of ancient Egyptian civilization mention that the Pharaonic Modern Era – especially the Ramses dynasty – had witnessed centralized dominance, power, and authority in the hands of Pharaoh. Those historians maintain that this tradition began earlier by the pharaoh named Ahmose I, in the 18^th Pharaonic dynasty, who conspired against feudal lords and confiscated their possessions and lands as Pharaoh's property. Hence, within the era of the 18^th Pharaonic dynasty, it became a tradition to make all wealth, power, and authority in the hands of any pharaoh in a central system of administration, and this enabled Egyptians to form a modern, well-trained, strong military troops at the time. Thus, the era of feudal lords owning lands inside Egyptian regions/governorates within de-centralized system came to an end, and a centralized mighty and powerful government in the Egyptian capital controlled and dominated over everything. What historians have explained in volumes has been expressed briefly in verses about Moses' Pharaoh, especially the one about the speech delivered by him to his people, showing his self-deification and absolute power and dominance: "Pharaoh proclaimed among his people, saying, "O my people, do I not own the Kingdom of Egypt, and these rivers flow beneath me? Do you not see?" (43:51). This verse shows how all power was in the hands of Moses' Pharaoh on top of the centralized ruling system at the time, and as the owner of the whole of Egypt. This verse shows that the basis of political tyranny of pharaoh as an assumed owner of lands is the River Nile, which gushes forth in its way through the desert and makes Egyptians dwell at its fertile banks to seek shelter, irrigation, agriculture, and stability. A long river like the Nile entailed a centralized powerful government to oversee irrigation and agricultural processes and a very strong military army to defend the Nile Valley against any invasion. The Egyptians as residents of the Nile Valley Egypt were used to live in peace while enjoying excellent climate and rich bounties of the lush gardens and fruitful and plentiful farms; this led them to accept easily to bear patiently with tyranny and injustices of any pharaoh/ruler as long as he undertook the supervision and overseeing of all internal affairs and the defense of Egypt against any marauders and invaders. Hence, Moses' Pharaoh controlled the Nile and residents of the Nile Valley and all of their life aspects Egypt (as an assumed deity), and this was the source of his dominance and arrogance we perceive in 43:51. The one controlled and owned the River Nile was controlling all of Egypt, as Egypt was the gift of the Nile, as the Greek historian Herodotus used to assert.                    

4- Political, historical, and geographical factors were combined together to make absolute despotism of any pharaoh as the main feature of Ancient Egypt, and pharaoh became symbol of the Egyptian State; thus, any opposing stance or view would threaten the regime and centralized authority that might collapse as a result. This entailed that Moses' Pharaoh and his retinue members and his soldiers, cronies, and family members would side wholeheartedly with any views adopted by Pharaoh against any opposing views. This was the reason that led Moses' Pharaoh and his retinue stand against Moses and his call, which posed a threat to their existence and a challenge to their authority, as we discern from these verses containing words of Moses' Pharaoh: "He said, "Did you come to us to drive us out of our land with your magic, O Moses?" (20:57); "He said to the retinue members around him, "This is a skilled magician." He intends to drive you out of your land with his magic, so what do you recommend?" (26:34-35). The same sentiments were repeated and echoed by the retinue of Moses' Pharaoh: "They disagreed among themselves over their affair, and conferred secretly. They said, "These two are magicians who want to drive you out of your land with their magic, and to abolish your exemplary way of life. So settle your plan, and come as one front. Today, whoever gains the upper hand will succeed."" (20:62-64). Even after the Egyptian magicians followed the faith in God with Moses after watching in amazement the miracles of God through Moses, Moses' Pharaoh said to them: "…"Did you believe in Him before I have given you permission? This is surely a conspiracy you schemed in the city, in order to expel its people from it. You will surely know."" (7:123). This shows that the logic of Moses' Pharaoh and his men that lived off him, with him, and for him that the earth/land was theirs and their control, dominance, and hegemony over it were based on certain social and political norms as well as religious notions that assert the superiority and dominance of Moses' Pharaoh and his opinions; any opposing views would be threatening to the regime and all its figures and cronies. Therefore, Moses' Pharaoh hated any opposition and could never stand it when being talked to, and 26:34-35 shows that he never consulted his retinue members, as their existence was directly linked to his and he knew that very well. This shows that when he condescendingly said to his retinue members: "…so what do you recommend?'' (26:35), he was not consulting anyone; rather, he wanted them to flatter him by saying what he desired and expected to hear, and they proposed what he himself had proposed earlier anyway. Moses' Pharaoh was indeed a dictatorial tyrant, and this is showed in the Quran when Moses' Pharaoh ignored to talk to the believing man among the Pharaonic people/retinue who used to hide his faith had advised them, but Moses' Pharaoh addressed the rest of the retinue with his point of view instead of talking/responding to the believing man: "O my people! Yours is the dominion today, supreme in the land; but who will help us against God's might, should it fall upon us?" Pharaoh said, "I do not show you except what I see, and I do not guide you except to the path of prudence."" (40:29). This shows that Moses' Pharaoh never could stand any opposing views and that he expected unanimous agreement from anyone around him.          

5- The main feature of the Egyptian character throughout history has been inclined to make ample use of ridicule and mocking. Moses' Pharaoh was no exception to his rule while he talked to Moses, in his court and before his retinue, but he would threaten Moses readily in earnest and seriously once the dialogue turned toward the religion of self-deified Pharaoh. The Quran depicts a vivid image or portrait of such dialogue/repartee between Moses and Pharaoh in these verses: "Pharaoh said, "And what is the Lord of the Worlds?" He said, "The Lord of the heavens and the earth, and everything between them, if you are aware." He said to those around him, "Do you not hear?" He said, "Your Lord and the Lord of your ancestors of old times." He said, "This messenger of yours, who is sent to you, is crazy." He said, "Lord of the East and the West, and everything between them, if you understand." He said, "If you accept any god other than me, I will make you a prisoner."" (26:23-29). The Ancient Egyptians knew God/Allah – more details on this topic are mentioned later on in this book – and this means that when Pharaoh said to Moses: "…"And what is the Lord of the Worlds?"" (26:23), he meant to mock Moses, and he mocked him the more when he said to his retinue: "…"Do you not hear?"" (26:25). At such a question aiming to deride Moses, we assume that the retinue in court laughed loudly in order to flatter and gratify Pharaoh. When Moses responded to Pharaoh seriously, Pharaoh taunted Moses by asserting to his retinue that Moses was crazy. Moses defied everyone and Pharaoh by repeating the same response, while asserting that they did not want to understand. This means that Moses' defiance was to urge them to be reasonable and not to deny God. at that point, Pharaoh stopped ridiculing Moses and began to threaten him with imprisonment, as Moses posed a veritable threat or danger to Pharaonic rule. The ridicule of Moses by Pharaoh went on in conferences/gatherings, as Pharaoh compared between his high stature, supreme power and dominance, and eloquence and Moses who was poor, humble, and inarticulate: ""Pharaoh proclaimed among his people, saying, "O my people, do I not own the Kingdom of Egypt, and these rivers flow beneath me? Do you not see?" Am I not better than this miserable wretch, who can barely express himself? Why are bracelets of gold not dropped on him, or the angels would come with him in procession?"" (43:51-53). The query raised now is as follows: since this self-deified Pharaoh thought himself superior to everyone else, why he made a comparison between himself and Moses? The answer might be that Pharaoh wanted to remind his people/retinue of his high stature and that he owned them and owned the lands/earth and all riches and rivers on it, in contrast to Moses who owned nothing at all. Such a reminder was needed by Pharaoh because his kingdom and dominance were based on certain social and political norms as well as religious notions to which Egyptians adhered and that were threatened by Moses as he defied Pharaoh's authority. Thus, as long as people at the time adhered to the notion that Pharaoh as a deity, this made him deserved his high stature and political/religious power that enabled him to own Egypt. As the call of Moses opposed all this, this posed a veritable threat to the very foundations of the kingship and kingdom of Pharaoh. Hence, Pharaoh had to ridicule and deride Moses so as not to allow his call to God to spread among the Egyptians if they saw him being mocked and belittled. Indeed, retinue of Pharaoh echoed and imitated Pharaoh as they derided Moses and his call and actually laughed at him: "But when he showed them Our signs, they started laughing at them." (43:47). This shows that Pharaoh controlled the minds, mentality, and norms of his people at the time, and the Quran tells us the following about Pharaoh's retinue and people: "Thus he fooled his people, and they obeyed him. They were wicked people." (43:54).   

6- The dictatorial tendency of a despot like Moses' Pharaoh was asserted the more within the military aspect of his kingdom. Historians of Ancient Egypt assert that the Ramses dynasty pharaohs were heads of state and the military armies as well simultaneously. This means that each pharaoh used to be the military leader of all Egyptian troops in all battles and in all military councils. Indeed, the Quranic verses link Moses' Pharaoh to a military context as a leader followed by his soldiers and troops, when he chased the Israelites: "And We delivered the Israelites across the sea, Pharaoh and his troops pursued them, defiantly and aggressively…" (10:90), and when he was too arrogant because of his military might and troops: "He and his troops acted arrogantly on the earth with no justification. They thought they would not be returned to Us." (28:39). Moreover, the Quran tells us that Haman was Moses' Pharaoh's grand vizier and a higher military leader as well, as we discern from this context: "And to establish them on the earth; and to show Pharaoh, Haman, and their troops, the very thing they feared… … Pharaoh, Haman, and their troops were sinners." (28:6-8). We read also the following about the death of Moses' Pharaoh and his troops: "So We seized him, and his troops, and We threw them into the sea. Observe, therefore, what was the end of the oppressors." (28:40). In the following verse, God describes Moses' Pharaoh as one of the warring military soldiers: "And cross the sea quickly; they are an army to be drowned."" (44:24); this is repeated in these verses: "Has there come to you the story of the soldiers? Of Pharaoh and Thamood?" (85:17-18). Thus, this means that the case of Moses' Pharaoh was of religious despotism coupled with military tyranny that drove him to proclaim self-deification as a supreme deity; he was made as an example to warn nations against submitting to all sorts of tyranny, as tyrants are bad omens for their followers as they re-trace and follow the footsteps of Moses' Pharaoh into perdition and into Hell.             

Fourthly: Moses' Pharaoh retinue/people:

1- After Ahmose I removed the system of local feudal lords in Egyptian regions and cities, a new class of aristocrats emerged that included royal employees and officials who were atop of the military, managerial, and administrative systems in Egypt. Pharaohs used to grant those high-rank employees and officials money, gifts, farms, etc., and any Pharaoh was declared as the sole owner of the land, while peasants would cultivate it for the benefit of Pharaoh, overseen and supervised by these royal employees and officials, who formed the retinue of Pharaoh. Those retinue members were very much loyal to Pharaoh and were directly linked to him in terms of authority and wealth; this is discerned from the Quranic verses that always associate them directly to Moses' Pharaoh. These verses that we quote below assert the fact that the call of Moses and Aaron was not addressed to the unarmed and impecunious Egyptian nation or peasants at all; rather, it was addressed to the Israelites as well as Moses' Pharaoh and his retinue members: "Then, after them, We sent Moses with Our miracles to Pharaoh and his retinue…" (7:103); "…We sent Moses and Aaron with Our proofs to Pharaoh and his retinue…" (10:75); "And We sent Moses with Our signs…to Pharaoh and his retinue…" (11:96-97); " Then We sent Moses and his brother Aaron, with Our signs and a clear authority…to Pharaoh and his retinue…" (23:45-46); "…These are two proofs from your Lord, to Pharaoh and his retinue. They are truly sinful people." (28:32); "We sent Moses with Our Signs to Pharaoh and his retinue…" (43:46); "But none believed in Moses except some children of his people, for fear that Pharaoh and his retinue members would persecute them. Pharaoh was high and mighty in the land. He was a tyrant." (10:83). These retinue members used to be leaders on top of the hierarchical pyramid of followers of Pharaoh's people, as we conclude from these two verses: "The retinue among Pharaoh's people said,…" (7:109); "The retinue among Pharaoh's people said,…" (7:127). The Quran has named to us two chief persons who were within this retinue of Moses' Pharaoh: Haman and Quaroon. By studying and analyzing all what the Quran says about both of them, we can get to know how a person would be among the closest cronies/chiefs among this nearest circle of retinue of Moses' Pharaoh or indeed any Pharaoh in his palace court.              

2- Haman used to have high and supreme military authority, second only to Moses' Pharaoh, and also he had civil authority. We deduce this from God's ascribing soldiers to both Moses' Pharaoh and Haman in this verse: "…Pharaoh, Haman, and their troops were sinners." (28:8). This means that Moses' Pharaoh was the supreme military leader of the armed troops while Haman was the highest military general under Pharaoh. As for the civil authority of Haman, it is inferred from these verses: "And Pharaoh said, "O Haman, build me an edifice , that I may reach the pathways of the heavens…" (40:36-37); "…So fire-up the bricks for me O Haman, and build me an edifice, that I may ascend to the God of Moses…" (28:38). Hence, we conclude that Haman's high military rank allowed him to undertake civil construction projects; indeed, in military regimes, military men perform most tasks in the civil society. We deduce as well that the military prowess was the most important criterion to reach the top class/rank of the retinue of Moses' Pharaoh or any Pharaonic palace court.         

3- Another criterion to reach the top class/rank of the Pharaonic retinue among the non-military people was the economic and political prowess as well; for instance, Quaroon reached the highest class of the retinue of Moses' Pharaoh despite his being among the persecuted minority of the Israelites. In the Quran, we notice that Quaroon is mentioned in two verses linked with Haman and Pharaoh, and this means that Quaroon was a high-rank retinue member in the Pharaonic palace court and he disbelieved in the message of Moses: "And Quaroon, and Pharaoh, and Haman - Moses went to them with clear arguments…" (29:39); "We sent Moses with Our signs, and a clear authority. To Pharaoh, Haman, and Quaroon. But they said, "A lying sorcerer."" (40:23-24). This means that Quaroon is included, without mentioning his name, in the words uttered by the retinue of Pharaoh: "Then, when he came to them with the truth from Us, they said, "Kill the sons of those who have believed with him, and spare their daughters." But the scheming of the unbelievers can only go astray." (40:25). Quran is mentioned in the following verse, for he oppressed the Israelites as well: "Quaroon belonged to the people of Moses, but he oppressed them…" (28:76). This means that Quaroon the Israelite man betrayed his people and thus became a powerful retinue member in the palace court of Moses' Pharaoh. This is why we perceive from the previous Quranic verses that Quaroon sided wholeheartedly with Haman and Pharaoh against Moses and the Israelites. The Quran mentions that Quaroon had assumed the same stance as Moses' Pharaoh, when he and Haman advised Pharaoh to kill those who believed with Moses, but Quaroon – as any traitor of his people – thought only of himself, as he preferred not to follow his master, Pharaoh, when he chased Moses and Israelites, leaving Pharaoh and his retinue members and soldiers drown in the Red Sea while he remained behind in the Egyptian capital. Hence, Quaroon was not drowned with them, and he was saved only from the fate of Moses' Pharaoh, only for a while. After the collapse of the Pharaonic rule, Quaroon made advantage of the situation as he knew the hiding places of treasures of the Egyptians who drowned, and he confiscated all such immense wealth to himself. Such unimagined wealth led Quaroon to be too proud and he never heeded the advice of Israelite believers and some of the Israelites who had little faith envied Quaroon, tempted by his immense wealth and power, and they wished to be in his shoes, until Quaroon was punished by God as earth gulped him down, along with his mansion and treasures. Some of the Israelites drew a useful lesson of these events, as we read in the Quran: "Quaroon belonged to the people of Moses, but he oppressed them. We had given him treasures, the keys of which would weigh down a group of strong men. His people said to him, "Do not exult; God does not love the exultant. But seek, with what God has given you, the Home of the Hereafter, and do not neglect your share of this world. And be charitable, as God has been charitable to you. And do not seek corruption in the land. God does not like the seekers of corruption." He said, "I was given all this on account of knowledge I possess." Did he not know that God destroyed many generations before him, who were stronger than he, and possessed greater riches? But the guilty will not be asked about their sins. And he went out before his people in his splendor. Those who desired the worldly life said, "If only we possessed the likes of what Quaroon was given. He is indeed very fortunate." But those who were given knowledge said, "Woe to you! The reward of God is better for those who believe and do righteous deeds." Yet none attains it except the steadfast. So We caused the earth to cave in on him and his mansion. He had no company to save him from God, and he could not defend himself. Those who had wished they were in his position the day before were saying, "Indeed, it is God who spreads the bounty to whomever He wills of His servants, and restricts it. Had God not been gracious to us, He would have caved in on us. No wonder the ungrateful disbelievers never prosper." That Home of the Hereafter-We assign it for those who seek no superiority on earth, nor corruption. And the outcome is for the pious." (28:76-83). Undoubtedly, Quaroon was very intelligent, and this helped him to join retinue of Pharaoh despite his being an Israelite/ a Hebrew and he was one of the tools used by Pharaoh to oppress and tyrannize over the weak Israelites. Once Moses' Pharaoh and his retinue members/soldiers are out of the picture, the sharp intelligence of Quaroon allowed him to confiscate all their treasures and possessions, and when the wise believing ones among the Israelites advised him, he proudly told them that he obtained such immense wealth through the knowledge he possessed (see 28:78). Indeed, Quaroon boasted of his knowledge and wealth in pride and hubris, while disregarding God as he did when he joined forces with the unjust ones and oppressed his weak people. This is why he was cursed by God and punished; hence, when Moses and Aaron invoked God's wrath against Pharaoh and his retinue members, God granted them their wish in two stages: "Moses said, "Our Lord, you have given Pharaoh and his chiefs splendor and wealth in the worldly life. Our Lord, for them to lead away from Your path. Our Lord, obliterate their wealth, and harden their hearts, they will not believe until they see the painful torment." He said, "Your prayer of both of you has been answered, so go straight, and do not follow the path of those who do not know."" (10:88-89). Their prayers were answered in two stages: firstly when Pharaoh and his cronies and retinue member drowned in the Red Sea, and secondly, when Quaroon was punished as he vanished into the earth that opened an orifice on its surface and gulped him down along with his stolen Pharaonic treasures.                              

4- Hence, Quaroon used to talk while adopting the same logic of Moses' Pharaoh and his retinue members in the Pharaonic Palace, by asserting his reliance on ''knowledge'', a word that meant in those ancient times as ''magic'' or ''sorcery''. Let us not forget that Moses' Pharaoh felt the urgency to face miracles of God made through Moses by fetching every ''learned'' magician, as knowledge at the time means the adroitness and skill/ability to deceive with talents of sorcery, and being experienced in such things was the gate to be nearer to Pharaoh and his retinue members. Hence, those retinue members had advised Pharaoh this way: "They said, "Delay him and his brother, and send recruiters to the cities. To bring you every experienced learned magician."" (26:36-37). And when those ''learned'' ones or sorcerers came to stand before Pharaoh in his palace, they desired at first to join the retinue to get nearer to power and authority circles: "When the magicians arrived, they said to Pharaoh, "Is there a reward for us, if we are the winners?" He said, "Yes, and you will be among those favored."" (26:41-42). When the magicians let Pharaoh down and believed with Moses in the message he brought, Pharaoh had them killed. This means that those near Moses' Pharaoh who incurred his fury would suffer dire consequences; this was part of the religion to which adhered retinue members of Pharaoh. Thus, only the talented and gifted ones could get nearer to the inner circle around Pharaoh, or wriggle their way inside it while worshipping Pharaoh as a supreme deity, and if they had bad luck anytime, they were doomed to be killed.  

5- The Quranic word ''retinue'' comes only one time in the Quranic Chapter 12 in the story of Joseph, when the Hyksos king failed to get interpretations for his visions/dreams from his retinue members who were ignorant and reluctant to help him. In contrast, in the story of Moses and Pharaoh, the term ''retinue'' is often synonymous with the word ''Pharaoh'', in a Quranic indication that the retinue members were natural extensions to Moses' Pharaoh; his views were theirs and their views were his. Indeed, the expressions "his retinue'' (mentioned six times) and ''his retinues'' (mentioned once) in the Quranic text come only in association with Moses' Pharaoh, and this shows how he actually owned and fully controlled his retinue members. The term ''his retinues'' is mentioned in the following verse: "But none believed in Moses except some children of his people, for fear that Pharaoh and his retinues would persecute them. Pharaoh was high and mighty in the land. He was a tyrant." (10:83). We infer from this verse that the retinue of Moses' Pharaoh had its own classes and groups, like the many circles of power that vary in degree and nearness to the tyrannical ruler, with tails of every circle in all cities and villages to control and oversee everything. Thus, when Moses killed the Egyptian man, news spread fast to the local circle of retinue, who conspired and plotted to have Moses killed. No doubt that this local circle of retinue watched closely everything that occurred in the capital of Egypt at the time of Pharaoh, while Pharaoh himself did not know about this in the same day, and when a man in the outskirts of the capital got news of such plotting to get rid of Moses, he came to warn him: "And a man came from the farthest part of the city running. He said, "O Moses, the authorities are considering killing you, so leave; I am giving you good advice."" (28:20). If those members of this local retinue circle had been near Pharaoh, they would have told him about the matter immediately and would have arrested and murdered Moses in the same day, before news of such plotting would come to this man who came from the outskirts of the city to warn Moses. This indicates that retinue of Moses' Pharaoh had its hierarchy and classes that vary in ranks and nearness to Pharaoh, but all of its members were fully controlled by commands of Pharaoh, and obeying him led them to their perdition in this world and the next: "To Pharaoh and his retinue members, but they followed the command of Pharaoh, and the command of Pharaoh was not wise. He will precede his people on the Day of Resurrection, and will lead them into the Fire. Miserable is the place he placed them in." (11:97-98).             

6- The Quranic text has its unique way of showing the exact similarity between views of Pharaoh and those of his retinue members, by showing how those members echo and copy the same views of Pharaoh, like parrots, and how they only voiced views that would please Pharaoh and his whims; hence, the same views are ascribed to both Pharaoh and his retinue members together, or to each side by itself. Hence, the retinue members were natural extensions to Moses' Pharaoh himself. God says in the Quran: "The retinue members of Pharaoh's people said, "Will you let Moses and his people cause trouble on earth and forsake you and your gods?" He said, "We will kill their sons, and spare their women. We have absolute power over them."" (7:127). We see here how the retinue members were more keen than Pharaoh on preserving their power by retaining Pharaoh as a ruler and keeping his power/monarchy that served their purposes and interests; thus, they were more 'royalist' than the 'king', as the idiomatic expression goes. They indeed voiced this very view of Pharaoh, mentioned in 7:127, as we read in the following verse: "Then, when he came to them with the truth from Us, they said, "Kill the sons of those who have believed with him, and spare their daughters."" (40:25). Hence, such a type of retinue members pave the way to their own perdition and that of any tyrannical/Pharaonic ruler as well.         

Moses' Pharaoh's soldiers were his people as well:

1- We should bear in mind that the Quranic term ''people of Moses' Pharaoh" was not confined to retinue members (courtiers), as it included them along with soldiers, high-rank officials, dignitaries,  and notables, viziers, officers, overseers, spies, employees, and scribes in the Egyptian capital at the time and in other cities all over the  regions/governorates of Egypt.  Of course, the soldiers/troops were the herd being gathered from all cities and villages to follow Pharaoh and his retinue members in any battle. Hence, both troops/soldiers and retinue members were drowned in the Red Sea when they chased Moses and the Israelites. God says the following in the Quran about the people of Moses' Pharaoh: "Thus he fooled his people, and they obeyed him. They were wicked people. And when they provoked Our wrath, We took retribution from them, and We drowned them all." (43:54-55). This means that all Pharaoh's people (i.e., retinue members + soldiers/troops) were drowned in the Red Sea. God says the following in the Quran about the troops of Moses' Pharaoh: "He and his troops acted arrogantly on the earth with no justification. They thought they would not be returned to Us. So We seized him, and his troops, and We threw them into the sea. Observe, therefore, what was the end of the oppressors." (28:39-40). This means that all Pharaoh's troops/soldiers were drowned in the Red Sea as well, as they were part of Pharaoh's people.     

2- Historians of the Ramses dynast era assert in their writings that troops of soldiers of that era never learned or were ever trained in anything but to carry arms and use them, as a job traditionally bequeathed to them from their fathers, and all of them owned vast stretches of lands in Egypt, and this means that they were also feudal lords who supervise Egyptian peasants who cultivated lands for Pharaoh, who was deemed as a supreme deity owning lands and all people living on it as well.    

The military feudal system in Pharaonic Egypt:

1- This means that in Pharaonic Egypt at the time, a military feudal system was based on making military leaders and soldiers of the troops of Pharaoh oversee the cultivation of agricultural lands of Egypt, while imposing unpaid forced labor (i.e., corvée) on Egyptian peasants, who received only food barely enough to make them able to work. Indeed, this military feudal system went on in Egypt in later eras, such as the Mameluke Era (1250-1517 A.D.). we know from history that the military feudal system went on for a long time in Europe during the Middle Ages as well, but its first time in human history was during the Ramses dynasty era.

2- The Quran sheds light on this military feudal system within the agricultural lands of Pharaonic Egypt; this is shown in the use of the verb ''mobilize'' several times as related to Moses' Pharaoh. This verb refers to the fact that Pharaoh used to easily and swiftly mobilize and gather all his followers, soldiers, and troops from everywhere all over Egypt to come to him at a certain time and location as per his commands. We read in the Quran how God describes this Pharaonic military mobilization that includes all cities and villages: "Pharaoh sent heralds to all cities, to mobilize and gather. "These are a small gang. And they are enraging us. But we are a vigilant multitude."" (26:53-56). This means that Moses' Pharaoh sent his written decrees to all military leaders all over Egyptian cities and villages to mobilize their troops and gather before the sight of Pharaoh in his capital city, asserting that the small gatherings of the Israelites who fled were enraging Pharaoh and he urged all leaders to be vigilant and gather to chase them. Of course, these soldiers and military leaders left their verdant, fertile gardens in their feudal lands they oversaw and supervised, as well as all their wealth and treasures, to follow Pharaoh and obey his commands: "So We drove them out of gardens and springs. And treasures and noble dwellings. So it was. And We made the Israelites inherit them." (26:57-58). This meaning is repeated elsewhere in the Quran: "How many gardens and fountains did they leave behind? And plantations, and splendid buildings. And comforts they used to enjoy. So it was; and We passed it on to another people." (44:25-28).    

3- Such swift military mobilization was unique and unprecedented at the time, coming from all over Egyptian cities and villages to converge in one central point: Moses' Pharaoh and his capital city. One may surmise that such an established system of military mobilization existed even since long time before the Ramses dynast era; as princes of provinces, regions, and governorates in Egypt used to share a measure of rule alongside with pharaohs of Egypt in  decentralized rule system in Egypt, but the new element here in the story of Moses' Pharaoh is that centralized rule system that made Pharaoh a self-deified despot/tyrant dominating and controlling everything related to rule, as governors were his loyal minions and followers (and Pharaoh could appoint, dismiss, or even murder them). Another new element here on which the Quran sheds light is the Pharaoh ensured that there was a strong, flexible means of communication between him and those feudal lords/military leaders, so that they are mobilized in no time at the capital upon Pharaoh's command. Hence, this was the case in Egypt, like in any other centralized power/authority of tyrannical regimes that control fully even the peripheries of the State. Hence, there are Quranic indications from which we infer this feature regarding excellent, swift means of communications in Pharaonic Egypt, within steady, firmly established, ongoing means of contact between Pharaoh and all troops and military leaders all over Egyptian soil to be mobilized in no time once Moses' Pharaoh would wish them at his command. This is what happened when Pharaoh decided at once to chase Moses and the Israelites. The Quran provides us with two examples of the meticulousness, distinction, and minuteness of the Pharaonic system of mobilization and gathering; within the civil aspect, all magicians gathered from all over Egypt to attend at a certain time the confrontation with Moses: "He said to the retinue members around him, "This is a skilled magician. He intends to drive you out of your land with his magic, so what do you recommend?" They said, "Delay him and his brother, and send recruiters to the cities. To bring you every experienced learned magician." So the magicians were gathered for the appointment on a specified day. And it was said to the people, "Are you all gathered? That we may follow the magicians, if they are the winners."" (26:34-40). This means that heralds and messengers of Pharaoh went to all cities and villages to gather all skilled and learned magicians/sorcerers to make them convene at the capital at a certain time and location, while other secret groups loyal to Pharaoh were commanded to make people attend this confrontation and support the potential winners, as we infer from the sense of competition inculcated into people in 26:40. God says the following in the Quran about Moses' Pharaoh after he saw miracles of God through Moses: "He said, "Did you come to us to drive us out of our land with your magic, O Moses? We will produce for you magic like it; so make an appointment between us and you, which we will not miss-neither us, nor you-in a central place." He said, "Your appointment is the day of the festival, so let the people be gathered together at mid-morning." Pharaoh turned away, put together his scheming plan, and then came back." (20:57-60). We notice here how Pharaoh talked in over self-confidence, asking Moses to set the date, time and place beforehand, and because Moses knew of the mobilizing ability and means of swift communications of Pharaoh, he said what we read in 20:59. Indeed, Pharaoh acted speedily using all his abilities to gather people and making them convene, as we discern from 20:60. Hence, the Quran describes Pharaoh's way of influencing the masses and controlling them in mobilization as ''scheming plan'', and this shows the idea of secret agents/apparatuses that serve fully a dominant, absolute despot. The other example of mobilization and gathering was within the military aspect; as per the military feudal system in Pharaonic Egypt explained above, all soldiers of Pharaonic troops oversaw cultivation of lands on behalf of Pharaoh in all governorates, and all of them were in direct contact with Pharaoh within advanced, swift means of communications, by levels of these ancient times, with the palace of Pharaoh as the center of all these communications. It is natural to assume that the military mobilization was the most important type and done to perfection and swifter in time; once Moses' Pharaoh got news of the exodus of the Israelites, he mobilized his troops, soldiers, and military leaders, and his retinue members from all over Egyptian governorates so swiftly that they almost caught up with the Israelites to massacre them, if it had not been for the divine intervention, as the Israelites passed the Red Sea and their chasers drowned in it. "And We inspired Moses: "Travel with My servants by night. You will be followed." Pharaoh sent heralds to the cities. "These are a small gang. And they are enraging us. But we are a vigilant multitude." So We drove them out of gardens and springs. And treasures and noble dwellings. So it was. And We made the Israelites inherit them." (26:52-59).                    

4- There is an element that is absent, yet always present, in the topic within the story of Moses' Pharaoh: namely,  the secret apparatuses serving Pharaoh. It is natural that a ruler like Pharaoh would have secret agents serving him, but history never tells us this, and the only indications about that are found in the Quran as the only source of this piece of information, as far as we know. We infer from the Quran the work of such secret apparatuses, as had to influences the masses (see 26:40 and how we explain it above). One may surmise that among the secret agents was the man in the outskirts of the capital that knew of the plot to have Moses murdered and came to Moses to warn him and to advise him to flee: "And a man came from the farthest part of the city running. He said, "O Moses, the authorities are considering killing you, so leave; I am giving you good advice."" (28:20). Maybe this man was a secret agent serving under the local retinue members of lower ranks. Maybe this man was an Israelite who feared that those murderous elite retinue members would scheme to get rid of Moses, and he readily warned Moses. Moreover, we never exclude the possibility that Quaroon was an agent serving Pharaoh within the secret apparatuses that used to spy and watch the Israelites closely. But the most dangers secret agents indeed were those police officers, overseers, and those military soldiers whose job was to terrorize ordinary Egyptians (i.e., peasants) and the enslaved Israelites. Hence, those secret agents and spies used to watch every single person among the Israelites during the era of Moses, and yet, the Israelites (including Moses and Aaron) never felt the existence of, or the spying done by, those secret agents of this Pharaonic secret apparatuses; this is why we read in the Quran that God inspired Moses to be warned against those spies before the timing of their exodus from Egypt to the East: "And We inspired Moses: "Travel with My servants by night. You will be followed."" (26:52); ""Set out with My servants by night-you will be followed." (44:23). We infer from these two verses that the Israelites were followed by agents/spies of Pharaoh wherever they went, despite the fact that they began their flight by night, and yet, the secret agents of Pharaoh speedily found out about the exodus and notified Pharaoh who swiftly mobilized and gathered his forces by his decree from all over Egyptian cities and villages: "And We inspired Moses: "Travel with My servants by night. You will be followed." Pharaoh sent heralds to the cities." (26:52-53). We deduce from the Quran as well that this secret espionage apparatus of Pharaoh had its varying degrees of secrecy: "And We inspired Moses and his brother, "Settle your people in Egypt, and make your homes places of worship, and perform the prayer, and give good news to the believers."" (10:87). This means that God commanded the Israelites to specify secret houses for the sake of worship and prayers in Egypt, and we infer that this indicates how they were too frightened from Pharaoh to pray in peace and piety, as a previous verse in the same Quranic Chapter 10 show that few Israelites believed truly in the message of Moses and trusted him, seeking to rely on God to bear the severe persecution inflicted by Pharaoh: "But none believed with Moses except some children of his people, for fear that Pharaoh and his retinues would persecute them. Pharaoh was high and mighty on the earth, and he was an absolute tyrant." (10:83). We thus conclude that secret agents of Pharaonic terror surrounded the Israelites as well as overt police officers known to them and preventing them from praying devoutly (or from praying at all), and even when they performed prayers in secret houses, secret agent watched them closely. This is why God had warned Moses against such diabolical secret apparatuses. Eventually, the scheming of God was mightier and quicker than that of Pharaoh who drowned and died in the Red Sea.                    

5- Because the Pharaonic rule regime was a too-much centralized one, especially regarding the military feudal system that made soldiers as landlords who supervise cultivation of lands and oversee all the military, civil, and economic aspects of Egyptian life while serving Pharaoh, all of them (military leaders, soldiers, retinue members, members of Pharaoh's family, viziers, courtiers, etc.) had followed Moses' Pharaoh in his 'nice military journey' to discipline and punish the Israelites for trying to flee from his terrorism and tyranny. Hence, we can assert that all members of the Pharaonic ruling regime/system were drowned in the Red Sea, while the Egyptian peasants remained behind working in farms and fields, and also remained with them Quaroon the shrewd one who knew the hiding places of all treasures of those who drowned, and he confiscated the treasures to himself.    

Does the Quranic term "Pharaoh's people" include all Egyptians at the time?:

1- The answer is no. Pharaoh's people did not include ordinary Egyptian peasants who never got near circles of rule like the retinue members, notable landlords, nobility, and dignitaries. We discern from the Quran Pharaoh's people are his followers, retinue members, viziers, feudal landlords, and military leaders and soldiers, as those were the ones attending Moses' Pharaoh's conferences and to be gathered and mobilized under commands and by decrees of Pharaoh to chase and fight foes, and all of them drowned, leaving behind the fertile, verdant, lush lands of Egypt, with its vast gardens and its treasures. This means that Egyptian peasants did not have anything to do with Pharaonic politics. It is never plausible that those peasants would leave their cultivated fields to attend Pharaoh's conferences in his capital, and they were never qualified or trained to engage into military operations. Thus, they could have never chased the Israelites along with Moses' Pharaoh; indeed, the Egyptian peasants at the time (and sadly in all eras until now) were persecuted, oppressed, and suppressed and suffered forced labor, tyranny, and many injustices (like the Israelites), and they agreed to such humiliation willingly and felt content (!), and thus, they never drowned like Pharaoh and his followers, because they did not participate in the chase after Moses and the Israelites in the first place.         

2- Historians of the Ramses dynasty era assert that peasants were the at the base of the hierarchy in the Pharaonic society at the time and that peasants suffered harsh, despicable conditions and harm inflicted by their masters, and many of them died while toiling in the land. Indeed, peasants at the time suffered many injustices as they were manipulated by their masters the landlords as well as by tax-collectors, and the latter would readily take the peasants' wives and children as hostages until taxes would be paid, and such an unjust system was always imposed by any tyrannical regime in many eras and many countries later on. As per many historians, during the Ramses dynasty era (and later on, the Mameluke and Ottoman eras, and maybe until recently in modern times), peasants at harvest times would see scribes, tax-collectors, police officers, etc. gathered to measure and weigh the harvested crops and confiscate them as due taxes for the State, while punishing peasants who had hidden any measure of crops to himself. All confiscated crops would be stored in pyramidal storehouses.     

3- During all the past eras, Egyptian peasants had chosen to bear patiently with injustices, and this made them immortalized within worldly existence as symbolic figures along with the immortal River Nile and the Egyptian fertile soil, whereas the tyrannical Pharaonic  rulers paid a heavy price (from their authority, wealth, and lives) for their injustices, but any worldly loss is never comparable to their real loss as they will be cursed and dwell in Hell for eternity: "And We sent Moses with Our signs and a clear mandate. To Pharaoh and his retinue members, but they followed the command of Pharaoh, and the command of Pharaoh was not wise. He will precede his people on the Day of Resurrection, and will lead them into the Fire. Miserable is the place he placed them in. They were followed by a curse in this, and on the Day of Resurrection. Miserable is the path they followed." (11:96-99). Hence, Moses' Pharaoh ruled with absolute tyranny and terrorism and he persecuted the weaker parties, as part of the main features of his internal policies. This means that Egyptians in the era of Moses' Pharaoh had no middle class; rather, they were divided into two classes (excluding Israelite/Hebrew slaves): the first class comprised Pharaoh, his viziers, retinue members, agents, land lords, etc. and the second class was the toiling Egyptian peasants in cultivated fields and poor penniless workers in peripheries and outskirts of cities and villages, while creating events, activities, and changes, causing much ado, and committing injustices came from Pharaoh and his people/retinue circles, whereas the rest of the Egyptian population remained submissive, oppressed, and toiling for the sake of producing all crops and goods, to Pharaoh and his retinue members. We venture to assert here that such state of affairs remains the same until now.         

Fifthly: Moses' Pharaoh's internal policies (tyranny and terrorism + the motto: divide and conquer):

1- It is clear that Moses' Pharaoh focused only on internal affairs, not outside conquests, expeditions, and expansions beyond Egyptian borders. This means that he used his military mighty armies and troops to fully control Egypt and Egyptians and to terrorize the weaker parties or anyone whom he distrusted inside Egypt. It is clear that Moses' Pharaoh used elements of his power and authority to the fullest degree, especially regarding mobilizing his troops and holding conferences, as we deduce from Quranic verses about him. we discern from these verses as well that Moses' Pharaoh fully understood and controlled the Egyptian population. When he mocked Moses, he knew that Egyptians forget pains of toil and humiliation when the unjust ruler would jest or tell a joke, as we discern from these verses: "Pharaoh proclaimed among his people, saying, "O my people, do I not own the Kingdom of Egypt, and these rivers flow beneath me? Do you not see? Am I not better than this miserable wretch, who can barely express himself? Why are bracelets of gold not dropped on him, or they angels came with him in procession?" Thus he fooled his people, and they obeyed him. They were wicked people." (43:51-54). Moses most probably felt keenly that Pharaoh's eloquence and ability to debate verbally were so great that he felt afraid of stammering and stuttering before him, and that is why he implored the Lord to help him by sending Aaron with him as a prophet. We surmise that Moses' long years of staying in Madian might have diminished his linguistic abilities regarding the Pharaonic Egyptian tongue, apart from his deep fear from the tyranny and cruelty of Pharaoh. We read the following verses in the Quran in relation to the above: "He said, "My Lord, I have killed one of them, and I fear they will kill me. And my brother Aaron, he is more eloquent than me, so send him with me, to help me, and to confirm my words, for I fear they will reject me."" (28:33-34); "He said, "My Lord, I fear they will reject me. And I become stressed, and my tongue is not fluent, so send Aaron too. And they have a charge against me, so I fear they will kill me."" (26:12-14); "He said, "My Lord, put my heart at peace for me. And ease my task for me. And untie the knot from my tongue. So they can understand my speech. And appoint an assistant for me, from my family. Aaron, my brother. Strengthen me with him. And have him share in my mission." (20:25-32).   

2- Indeed, Moses' Pharaoh found ideal circumstances and conditions to go to extremes regarding reinforcing and fortifying his internal power and authority, by strengthening his military troops that is steadfastly and staunchly loyal to him, along with the retinues that think obsequiously only of what would satisfy him and address his pride. God says the following about the power and authority of Moses' Pharaoh in Egypt: "Pharaoh exalted himself on the earth, and divided its people into factions. He persecuted a group of them, slaughtering their sons, while sparing their daughters. He was truly a corrupter." (28:4). We notice in 28:4 that the Quran makes the Israelites dwelling in Egypt at the time as a faction of its population and among the Egyptian people, because Hebrews lived inside Egypt for centuries before the coming of Moses' Pharaoh as ruler. We discern from 28:4 that it was part of Pharaoh's internal policies to divide the Egyptian population into groups/classes and that he persecuted the weaker ones among them.     

3- Moreover, we infer from 28:4 that Moses' Pharaoh planned and executed many ways and means to oppress and weaken the Israelites using all his might, so that his might would be increased from their being weakened as his slaves. This means that he would murder many of their men and spared their women. Had the Hebrews been stronger, Pharaoh would not dare to think to do such heinous crime; tyrants usually persecute only the weaker, helpless party, with no one at all that would be able to stop him at all in such grave injustice and transgression. When Moses' Pharaoh persecuted, enslaved, and weakened the Israelites for long, God had lent victory to those weak, wronged ones over the unjust tyrant, and they inherited his wealth, treasures, lands, and rule, for a while: "And We made the oppressed people inherit the eastern and western parts of the earth, which We had blessed. Thus the fair promise of your Lord to the Israelites was fulfilled, because of their endurance. And We destroyed what Pharaoh and his people had built, and what they had harvested." (7:137). Later on, the Israelites committed the same sin as they considered Aaron as weak person and oppressed him during the absence of Moses by worshipping the calf made of gold. We discern this from what the Quran tells us about how Aaron excused himself to Moses: "…Son of my mother, the people have overpowered me, and were about to kill me…" (7:150).     

4- Moses' Pharaoh's persecution of the Israelites continued even after Moses was sent to him, and to the Hebrews, by God: "Moses said to his people, "Seek help in God, and be patient. The earth belongs to God. He gives it in inheritance to whomever He wills of His servants, and the future belongs to the righteous." They said, "We were persecuted before you came to us, and after you came to us."…" (7:128-129). Indeed, the message of Moses incited Pharaoh to increase his persecution of the Israelites: "Then, when he came to them with the Truth from Us, they said, "Kill the sons of those who have believed with him, and spare their daughters."…" (40:25). This severe persecution resulted in the fact that most of the Israelites feared to join Moses or to get near him in public: "But none believed in Moses except some children of his people, for fear that Pharaoh and his chiefs would persecute them…" (10:83).  

5- But the query raised here is as follows: did Moses suffer persecution as he moved against Pharaoh inside the country owned by Pharaoh? We infer from the Quran that Moses, in the first place, feared very much the idea of returning to Egypt and to meet Pharaoh to try to call him to follow guidance of God and to set free the Israelites. This expression of his fear to face Pharaoh is repeated in the Quran: "He said, "My Lord, I fear they will reject me." (26:12); "And they have a charge against me, so I fear they will kill me." (26:14); "He said, "My Lord, I have killed one of them, and I fear they will kill me. And my brother Aaron, he is more eloquent than me, so send him with me, to help me, and to confirm my words, for I fear they will reject me."" (28:33-34).  Even after God has sent Aaron as a prophet with Moses, both brothers were overpowered by fear and they supplicated God, Who brought to them glad tidings that He will be always with both of them: "Go to Pharaoh. He has tyrannized. But speak to him nicely. Perhaps he will remember, or have some fear." They said, "Lord, we fear he may persecute us, or become violent." He said, "Do not fear, I am with you, I hear and I see." (20:43-46). These verses show how Pharaoh was such a criminal cruel tyrant very much feared by everyone, but God guarded Moses and Aaron and made Pharaoh fear both of them; Pharaoh desired to have Moses murdered, but could not, as he suggested to his retinue members, and he, the terrible and mighty Pharaoh, 'feared' that Moses would change religion of the people. after expressing his desire and fear, we read about the believing man among the retinue members who opposed Pharaoh: "Pharaoh said, "Leave me to kill Moses, and let him appeal to his Lord. I fear he may change your religion, or spread corruption on the earth." Moses said, "I have sought the protection of my Lord and your Lord, from every tyrant who does not believe in the Day of Account." A believing man from Pharaoh's people, who had concealed his faith, said, "Are you going to kill a man for saying, `My Lord is God,' and he has brought you clear proofs from your Lord? …" (40:26-28). Moses sought refuge in God to be protected from the tyranny and evil of Pharaoh, and God preserved and protected Moses and Aaron, as He promised them, from the evil scheming and harm of Pharaoh: "He said, "We will strengthen your arm with your brother, and We will give you authority, so they will not touch you…" (28:35). This divine promise was fulfilled, as Pharaoh could not harm both brothers despite his deep hatred toward them and his tyranny and might and in spite of the fact that Moses challenged him inside his country that he owned and controlled, posing a threat to his dominance. "God has control over His affairs, but most people do not know." (12:21).     

6- The terrorism caused by Pharaoh and his authorities and cronies was widespread all over Egyptian cities and villages, and he imposed himself as a supreme deity to all Egyptians. We infer such dominance of terror in how the figures in the story of Moses moved and talked. For instance, God tells us the following about Moses' mother and sister after the infant Moses was found in the River Nile near the palace of Pharaoh: "She said to his sister, "Trail him." So she watched him from afar, and they were unaware." (28:11). This means that Moses' sister kept watch over the basket that contained the baby Moses as it moved through the River Nile, while making sure no one was seeing her, especially that the basket reached Pharaoh's palace, and she had to hide so as not to allow anyone inside or near this palace see her. Of course, this story ends in Pharaoh's wife adopting Moses as her own son, whereas the biological mother became his wet-nurse: "Thus We returned him to his mother, that she may be comforted, and not grieve, and know that God's promise is true. But most of them do not know. And when he reached his maturity, and became established, We gave him wisdom and knowledge. Thus do We reward the good ones. Once he entered the city, unnoticed by its people…" (28:13-15).  We discern from these verses that Moses was brought up by his own folks until he reached the primes of youth, under the care and protection of the palace of Pharaoh and Pharaoh's wife. Later on, Moses entered the city of Pharaoh, or rather moved stealthily into it unnoticed by its people. We deduce that Moses, as a young man, never lived inside the Palace of Pharaoh, or else, he would enter the city of Pharaoh as a prince with flourish and in public, or as a man with some measure of authority as a well-known figure. We infer from 28:15 that the city of Pharaoh was like a military barrack that would not be entered by any stranger unless in stealth, and those who stealthily entered it from among the non-Egyptians would be persecuted or punished severely. Accordingly, when Moses witnessed a quarrel inside the city between one of Pharaoh's men, their enemies, and the Israelite man of Moses' faction who lived with Moses in the same district where Israelites lived, Moses interfered. The Egyptian man of this quarrel represented the Pharaonic authority that enabled him to persecute and inflict harm/injustice on the Israelite/Hebrew man. Hence, Moses acted in legitimate self-defense, and when Moses used all his might and was driven by his hatred of injustice, he dealt just one blow to his foe, who died as a result: "Once he entered the city, unnoticed by its people. He found in it two men fighting-one of his own sect, and one from his enemies. The one of his sect solicited his assistance against the one from his enemies; so Moses punched him, and put an end to him…" (28:15). Thus, Moses knew from the very first moment who was from his sect/faction and who was his foe, and we deduce here that this killed Egyptian was among the retinue ranks/classes who specialized in harming and persecuting the Israelites. This is why the other retinue members plotted to have Moses murdered, after the news of Moses killing that Egyptian man spread in the city. Perhaps these retinue members investigated the matter and heard the words of another Egyptian man who shouted at Moses the next day: "…O Moses, do you intend to kill me, as you killed someone yesterday? …" (28:19). Thus, another man came to warn Moses, and we surmise that he was an Egyptian man who knew about the plot to have Moses murdered: "And a man came from the farthest part of the city running. He said, "O Moses, the authorities are considering killing you, so leave; I am giving you good advice."" (28:20).         

7- In eras of tyranny, oppression, and injustices, very few real men are fond among human males in a given society. The Quran describes this warner of Moses as a ''man'', without mentioning his name, so as to turn him into a symbol of manhood (in the sense of chivalry and heroism). The Quran does the same with another ''man'', within another Quranic story, who uttered the word of truth and was harmed and persecuted because of saying it: "Then a man came running from the remotest part of the city. He said, "O my people, follow the messengers." (36:20). The Quran describes the real believers as ''men'', who were around Muhammad during the ordeal of the disbelieving confederates that attacked early believers: "Of the believers are men who are true to what they pledged to God. Some of them have fulfilled their vows; and some are still waiting, and never wavering." (33:23). Whereas the Quran describes males among the people of Lot as lacking ''one reasonable man'', as not all male humans are ''real men'': "…So fear God, and do not embarrass me before my guests. Is there not one reasonable man among you?" (11:78).  

8- Hence, this manly chivalrous Egyptian man who warned Moses deserved the fact that the Quran records his heroic stance. We conclude then that Egyptians never lacked real men even in the worst eras of tyranny. Moses stealthily got out of the city, which was like military barracks by Pharaonic terror, after being warned by the Egyptian man, and the city of the unjust ones and the frightened Moses are described in this verse: "So he left, fearful and vigilant. He said, "My Lord, deliver me from the unjust people."" (28:21). This means that the Egyptian killed accidentally by Moses (i.e., within  manslaughter) was among the unjust people, who were tools serving the unjust, tyrannical Pharaoh as part of the unjust retinue  members. This killed Egyptian was using his unjust authority in public to attack a weak person, and this weak person tried to defend himself and could not, and this was why he sought Moses' help. It is not a crime to resist injustice and to engage into self-defense; it is not a crime that Moses helped the  wronged party who suffered injustice at such a situation and tried to defend himself, even if this self-defense resulted into the killing of the unjust person, like what happened to the unjust person at the hands of Moses.          

9- Fear is contagious as we all know; the circle of fear widened at that era because of the terror caused by Pharaoh, even to those who were near him in his palace court within the retinue members; the believing man was manly enough to defend Moses, but he was hiding his faith/belief in God before that, as he feared the tyranny of Pharaoh: "A believing man from Pharaoh's people, who had concealed his faith, said, "Are you going to kill a man for saying, `My Lord is God,'…" (40:28). Despite his earlier fear, he preached to his people a long speech, whose details are mentioned in the Quran, to urge them to accept the Truth. The Quran tells us that the high-stature of this man as retinue member of the highest class (since he was in the palace court of Pharaoh) did not prevent the other retinue members to plot and scheme conspiracies against him, but they failed to harm him because God had protected him; at the end of his long speech, he told them in despair: "You will remember what I am telling you, so I commit my case to God. God is Observant of the servants."" (40:44). "So God protected him from the evils of their scheming, while a terrible torment besieged Pharaoh's people." (40:45). This means that we see here a model of another good Egyptian  man who was not among the marginalized ones of the outskirts or peripheries of the city, but from inside the palace of Pharaoh.     

10- The circle of deep-seated fear of the Pharaonic terror included the wife of Pharaoh herself, as we read how she sought refuge in God to deliver her from the evil injustice of Pharaoh: "…the wife of Pharaoh, when she said, "My Lord, build for me, with you, a house in Paradise, and save me from Pharaoh and his works, and save me from the unjust people."" (66:11).

11- Eventually, the circle of fear was completed by the frightened Pharaoh himself; the unjust rulers like him harbor the worst deep-seated fear of the consequences of the injustices committed by them, and the more they feel frightened, the more they increase their injustices to protect themselves from illusions and phantoms dominating their minds and imagination, as the memories of the victims continue to haunt them, until the unjust ones die or get killed. Moses' Pharaoh feared very much the peaceful call of Moses that entailed the Israelites being allowed a safe exist from Egypt. If Pharaoh were reasonable, he would have realized that there would be no danger/threat at all to get rid of those whom he hated and were made weak by his oppression. Yet, Pharaoh's illusions and fears that the Israelites might take revenge from him one day, after long years of Pharaonic oppression and tyranny inflicted on them, led him to refuse to let them go and to consider the peaceful call of Moses as a plot threatening his regime which was based on terror and absolutism. Pharaoh thought that the remedy to allay his fears was to murder more victims to that he might feel safe: "Pharaoh said, "Leave me to kill Moses, and let him appeal to his Lord. I fear he may change your religion, or spread corruption on the earth.""  (40:26). Thus, this deep-seated fear inside Moses' Pharaoh drove him to feel enraged and furious as the Israelites fled his hell and took flight to the east; see 26:53-56. Moses' Pharaoh's persecution and tyranny reached the extremes of chasing the Hebrews seeking to massacre them, until his hubris and tyranny made him meet his end.          

12- Fear inside the wronged persons who suffered injustices turns into deep faith, as they rely on God and feel safe eventually. In contrast, dear inside the unjust ones make them enslaved to the devils, feeling incessantly frightened till they die; God says in the Quran: "We will throw terror into the hearts of those polytheists who disbelieve, because they attribute to God partners for which He revealed no proof. Their lodging is the Hell-Fire. Miserable is the lodging of the evildoers." (3:151). God teaches us in the Quran to fear no one but God so that we feel safe; otherwise, the devils will make us fear anyone and indeed anything: "That is only Satan frightening his partisans; so do not fear them, but fear Me, if you are believers." (3:175). Therefore, the devils controlled Moses' Pharaoh and made him needlessly fear the Israelites and exceed all limits in oppressing and persecuting them and to remain a disbeliever: "…Thus Pharaoh's evil deeds were made to appear good to him, and he was averted from the Path. Pharaoh's guile resulted only in defeat." (40:37).

13- We know from the Quran the means that Moses' Pharaoh adopted to persecute his foes. Imprisonment and crucifixion were punishments used by the Hyksos kings in Egypt as we know from the Quranic Chapter 12 in the Quranic story of Joseph. Moses' Pharaoh added to these two punishments cutting off the victims' limbs, when he wanted to prove the magicians that his punishment and his reign/rule would be more enduring than those of the God of Moses: "He said, "Did you believe in him before I have given you permission? He must be your chief, who has taught you magic. I will cut off your hands and your feet on alternate sides, and I will crucify you on the trunks of the palm-trees. Then you will know which of us is more severe in punishment, and more lasting."" (20:71). We conclude then that Moses' Pharaoh was keen on torturing the magicians in a most painful manner while they were punished by being put to death, because he wanted to assert his own godhead and, tyranny, and absolutism, as he tried to defy God. in addition to these punishments, Moses' Pharaoh used to imprison people and to stone them to death, and he murdered males and spared females of the Israelites. "He said, "If you accept any god other than me, I will make you a prisoner."" (26:29). Moses feared very much being stoned and he said the following to the Pharaoh's retinue members: "I have taken refuge in my Lord and your Lord, lest you stone me. But if you do not believe in me, keep away from me."" (44:20-21); thus, Moses indeed felt very much that their mere leaving him alone was a dear wish to him. Moses' Pharaoh persecuted and tortured the Israelites in many ways that included murdering males and sparing females to make them serve Pharaoh and his people. indeed, Pharaoh weakened the Israelites and lessened their progeny by that most cruel way, beside torturing and tormenting them in various ways of persecution, as we infer from the following verse: " Moses said to his people, "Remember God's blessings upon you, as He delivered you from the people of Pharaoh, who inflicted on you terrible suffering, slaughtering your sons while sparing your daughters…" (14:6).

14- Undoubtedly, Moses' Pharaoh felt that he was wrong in not to exterminate each one of the Israelites, and this drove him to chase them while they were running away, hoping to massacre them all, but he realized how he was wrong all his life while he was dying, after it was too late for him to repent: "And We delivered the Israelites across the sea. Pharaoh and his troops pursued them, defiantly and aggressively. Until, when he was about to drown, he said, "I believe that there is no God except the One the Israelites believe in, and I am of those who submit." Now? When you have rebelled before, and been of the corrupt mischief-makers? Today We will preserve your body, so that you become a sign for those after you. But most people are heedless of Our signs." (10:90-92).       

15- "… But most people are heedless of Our signs." (10:92). Indeed, God says nothing but the Truth.