Pharaoh, Hāmān and Qārūn Against Mūsā

Occasion: Transcription of a khatira delivered on 20 February 2026 Source: A transcription of a video khatira by Dr. Ahmed Abouseif — [Watch the original video on YouTube](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Rnr6oXUVNf8)

Between encouragement and warning

With the Ḥawāmīm, and in Sūrat Ghāfir: ﴿غَافِرِ الذَّنبِ وَقَابِلِ التَّوْبِ شَدِيدِ الْعِقَابِ﴾ (the Forgiver of sin, the Acceptor of repentance, severe in punishment); in the divine description there is encouragement and warning together. Then come His words, glorified be He: ﴿كَذَّبَتْ قَبْلَهُمْ قَوْمُ نُوحٍ وَالْأَحْزَابُ مِن بَعْدِهِمْ وَهَمَّتْ كُلُّ أُمَّةٍ بِرَسُولِهِمْ لِيَأْخُذُوهُ وَجَادَلُوا بِالْبَاطِلِ لِيُدْحِضُوا بِهِ الْحَقَّ فَأَخَذْتُهُمْ فَكَيْفَ كَانَ عِقَابِ﴾ (The people of Nūḥ denied before them, and the factions after them, and every nation plotted against its messenger to seize him, and they disputed by falsehood to refute the truth thereby; so I seized them, and how was My penalty!).^[1]

In the surah is the scene of the bearers of the Throne of the Most Merciful, glorified be He: glorification of Allah, and seeking forgiveness for the believers. And in Sūrat al-Shūrā is its counterpart: ﴿تَكَادُ السَّمَاوَاتُ يَتَفَطَّرْنَ مِن فَوْقِهِنَّ وَالْمَلَائِكَةُ يُسَبِّحُونَ بِحَمْدِ رَبِّهِمْ وَيَسْتَغْفِرُونَ لِمَن فِي الْأَرْضِ أَلَا إِنَّ اللَّهَ هُوَ الْغَفُورُ الرَّحِيمُ﴾ (The heavens almost break apart from above them, and the angels glorify with the praise of their Lord and ask forgiveness for those on earth. Unquestionably, it is Allah who is the Forgiving, the Merciful).^[2]

And He says, glorified be He: ﴿هُوَ الَّذِي يُرِيكُمْ آيَاتِهِ وَيُنَزِّلُ لَكُم مِّنَ السَّمَاءِ رِزْقًا وَمَا يَتَذَكَّرُ إِلَّا مَن يُنِيبُ﴾ (It is He who shows you His signs and sends down to you from the sky provision, but none will remember except he who turns back in repentance).^[3] And in it is the scene of the Day of Resurrection: ﴿الْيَوْمَ تُجْزَىٰ كُلُّ نَفْسٍ بِمَا كَسَبَتْ لَا ظُلْمَ الْيَوْمَ إِنَّ اللَّهَ سَرِيعُ الْحِسَابِ﴾ (This Day every soul will be recompensed for what it earned; no injustice today! Indeed, Allah is swift in account), ﴿وَأَنذِرْهُمْ يَوْمَ الْآزِفَةِ إِذِ الْقُلُوبُ لَدَى الْحَنَاجِرِ كَاظِمِينَ﴾ (And warn them of the Approaching Day, when hearts are at the throats, filled with distress), then: ﴿يَعْلَمُ خَائِنَةَ الْأَعْيُنِ وَمَا تُخْفِي الصُّدُورُ﴾ (He knows the treachery of the eyes and what the breasts conceal).^[4]

Mūsā between Pharaoh, Hāmān and Qārūn

Then the story of Mūsā, peace be upon him: ﴿وَلَقَدْ أَرْسَلْنَا مُوسَىٰ بِآيَاتِنَا وَسُلْطَانٍ مُّبِينٍ إِلَىٰ فِرْعَوْنَ وَهَامَانَ وَقَارُونَ فَقَالُوا سَاحِرٌ كَذَّابٌ﴾ (And We certainly sent Mūsā with Our signs and a clear authority to Pharaoh, Hāmān and Qārūn; but they said: "A lying magician").^[5] Pharaoh, Hāmān and Qārūn: Qārūn is the financier, who feeds them and puts food in their mouths; and Pharaoh heads the scene. Qārūn is also mentioned alongside Pharaoh in Sūrat al-ʿAnkabūt.^[11]

And they said: "A lying magician." It is the ready-made word of accusation, just as today the word "terrorism" is: if someone does not please them, they brand him with it. And ﴿سُلْطَانٍ مُّبِينٍ﴾ (a clear authority) means the clarifying proof that becomes evident, and it is the nine signs mentioned in another place.

Then: ﴿فَلَمَّا جَاءَهُم بِالْحَقِّ مِنْ عِندِنَا قَالُوا اقْتُلُوا أَبْنَاءَ الَّذِينَ آمَنُوا مَعَهُ وَاسْتَحْيُوا نِسَاءَهُمْ﴾ (And when he brought them the truth from Us, they said: "Kill the sons of those who have believed with him and keep their women alive").^[6] So the killing happened twice: before Mūsā, and it continued after Mūsā, peace be upon him. It is an easy weapon in people's hands, with which they settle their affairs; when it did not work the first time, they carried on in the same way, because they know no other.

And their saying ﴿اقْتُلُوا أَبْنَاءَ الَّذِينَ آمَنُوا مَعَهُ﴾ (Kill the sons of those who have believed with him) requires complete surveillance of those who believed with him: this is the work of intelligence agencies, working so that they may bring in reports, with informants moving right and left, and security gathering names and lists and submitting reports and stories. They are originally very simple people, yet the whole apparatus of the state is set upon them, and the world is turned upside down merely to monitor their movements. Why? Because they are a danger to public security! And what is this story of a danger to public security? That he will change the general mood among the people; great sums of money have been spent, and Qārūn spent on it whatever he spent so that we might steer people in this direction, and then this man comes to change it in five minutes?

And the matter reaches public punishments, as in the story of al-Burūj: ﴿إِذْ هُمْ عَلَيْهَا قُعُودٌ وَهُمْ عَلَىٰ مَا يَفْعَلُونَ بِالْمُؤْمِنِينَ شُهُودٌ وَمَا نَقَمُوا مِنْهُمْ إِلَّا أَن يُؤْمِنُوا بِاللَّهِ الْعَزِيزِ الْحَمِيدِ الَّذِي لَهُ مُلْكُ السَّمَاوَاتِ وَالْأَرْضِ﴾ (When they were sitting near it, and they were witnesses to what they were doing against the believers. And they resented them not except that they believed in Allah, the Exalted in Might, the Praiseworthy, to whom belongs the dominion of the heavens and the earth).^[7] So imagine the matter reaching the stage of a general assault: throw them into the fire.

Why ﴿وَاسْتَحْيُوا نِسَاءَهُمْ﴾ (and keep their women alive)?

The sons are killed, and ﴿اسْتَحْيُوا نِسَاءَهُمْ﴾ (keep their women alive). Why? Because women are a great means of humiliating their husbands. So we are facing a painful reality. ﴿وَمَا كَيْدُ الْكَافِرِينَ إِلَّا فِي ضَلَالٍ﴾ (But the plan of the disbelievers is not except in error).^[8]

﴿ذَرُونِي أَقْتُلْ مُوسَىٰ﴾ (Leave me to kill Mūsā)

﴿وَقَالَ فِرْعَوْنُ ذَرُونِي أَقْتُلْ مُوسَىٰ وَلْيَدْعُ رَبَّهُ إِنِّي أَخَافُ أَن يُبَدِّلَ دِينَكُمْ أَوْ أَن يُظْهِرَ فِي الْأَرْضِ الْفَسَادَ﴾ (And Pharaoh said: "Leave me to kill Mūsā, and let him call upon his Lord. Indeed, I fear that he will change your religion or that he will cause corruption to appear in the land").^[9] "Dharūnī" means "leave me" — as though someone were holding him back! And sometimes we need attempts at persuasion: we persuade people of a truth that does not exist, or make them imagine it, so we magnify a small thing until we convince them that there is a very great danger within society. And the highest leadership itself needs to move; it is not enough to send soldiers.

﴿إِنِّي أَخَافُ أَن يُبَدِّلَ دِينَكُمْ﴾ (Indeed, I fear that he will change your religion): he will change concepts, and we need to preserve them. Hence this sentence is famous throughout the world, in all states, large, small and middle-sized: a change that affects public behavior and the general pattern.

And Mūsā, peace be upon him, said: ﴿إِنِّي عُذْتُ بِرَبِّي وَرَبِّكُم مِّن كُلِّ مُتَكَبِّرٍ لَّا يُؤْمِنُ بِيَوْمِ الْحِسَابِ﴾ (Indeed, I have sought refuge in my Lord and your Lord from every arrogant one who does not believe in the Day of Account).^[10]

--- ^[1]: Editor's documentation: Sūrat Ghāfir: verse 3 for "the Forgiver of sin…", and verse 5 for "The people of Nūḥ denied before them…". The speaker mentioned the first in summary, at roughly this extent. ^[2]: Editor's documentation: Sūrat al-Shūrā, verse 5. The transcript has «من فوقنا»; what is given here is the known wording of the verse. ^[3]: Editor's documentation: Sūrat Ghāfir, verse 13. ^[4]: Editor's documentation: Sūrat Ghāfir, verses 17, 18 and 19. ^[5]: Editor's documentation: Sūrat Ghāfir, verses 23 and 24. ^[6]: Editor's documentation: Sūrat Ghāfir, verse 25. ^[7]: Editor's documentation: Sūrat al-Burūj, verses 6 to 9. ^[8]: Editor's documentation: Sūrat Ghāfir, verse 25 (the end of the verse). ^[9]: Editor's documentation: Sūrat Ghāfir, verse 26. ^[10]: Editor's documentation: Sūrat Ghāfir, verse 27. ^[11]: Editor's documentation: In the words of the Exalted: ﴿وَقَارُونَ وَفِرْعَوْنَ وَهَامَانَ﴾ (And Qārūn, Pharaoh and Hāmān) [al-ʿAnkabūt: 39].