What Happened to Moses (PBUH) Upon Arriving in Midian, and How Did That Affect His Social Life?
ما هو اول حدث وقع لموسى عند دخوله مدين؟ و كيف أثر ذلك في حياته الاجتماعية؟
Allah’s Prophet Moses listened to the advice of the man who advised him to leave Egypt, (And there came a man, rushing from the farthest end of the city. He said, “O Moses! The chiefs are actually conspiring against you to put you to death, so leave ˹the city˺. I really advise you ˹to do so˺.”) Al-Qasas 28:20
When he came to Midian, he was confused by what happened before his eyes: He found a well where people watered their livestock, and he found two women preventing their livestock from reaching that well. Moses asked the two women about the reason for refraining from bringing their cattle to the well to drink like other animals. They replied that they were weak and unwilling to crowd out men and mix with them, so they did not water until everyone was finished. They said that there was no man in the house who could perform such a difficult task of pushing men.
Moses, peace be upon him, helped the two women by watering for them. He raised a giant rock at the well to allow the animals to go in, away from crowding people. Then he sat in the shade, praying to his Lord, as Allah the Almighty narrates: (“My Lord! I am truly in ˹desperate˺ need of whatever provision You may have in store for me.”) Al-Qasas 28:24
After this Du’a and helping people, Moses, peace be upon him, was given three gifts from Allah the Almighty: The first, Allah the Almighty made him safe from what he was afraid of. The second, Allah the Almighty provided him with a wife, and he was not the one who proposed to her; rather, the wife’s father proposed to him. Third, he found a ten-year job in that country.
(Then one of the two women came to him, walking bashfully. She said, “My father is inviting you so he may reward you for watering ˹our animals˺ for us.” When Moses came to him and told him his whole story, the old man said, “Have no fear! You are ˹now˺ safe from the wrongdoing people.” One of the two daughters suggested, “O my dear father! Hire him. The best man for employment is definitely the strong and trustworthy ˹one˺.” The old man proposed, “I wish to marry one of these two daughters of mine to you, provided that you stay in my service for eight years. If you complete ten, it will be ˹a favour˺ from you, but I do not wish to make it difficult for you. Allah willing, you will find me an agreeable man.” Moses responded, “˹Then˺ it is ˹settled˺ between you and I. Whichever term I fulfill, there will be no ˹further˺ obligation on me. And Allah is a Witness to what we say.”) Al-Qasas 28:25-28
The father of the two daughters wanted to reward Moses, after he had done a favor for his daughters. One of the two daughters admired him, so she asked her father to let him work for them. The father proposed to Moses to marry his daughter, and asked him to work for them at the same time.
استجاب نبي الله موسى-عليه السلام-إلى نصيحة من نصحه بمغادرة مصر. (قَالَ يَا مُوسَىٰ إِنَّ الْمَلَأَ يَأْتَمِرُونَ بِكَ لِيَقْتُلُوكَ فَاخْرُجْ إِنِّي لَكَ مِنَ النَّاصِحِينَ) القصص 28: 20
ولما وصل إلى مدين رأى مشهدًا غريبًا: وجد بئرًا يسقي الناس عنده أنعامهم، ووجد امرأتين تمنعان ماشيتهما من الوصول إلى ذلك البئر. سأل موسى المرأتين عن سبب الامتناع، فأجابتا أنهما لضعفهما وعدم رغبتهما في مزاحمة الرجال والاختلاط بهم، لا يسقيان حتى ينتهي الجميع، وليس في البيت رجل يمكنه القيام بهذه المهمة الشاقة من مدافعة الرجال.
فساعد موسى عليه السلام المرأتين بأن سقى لهما، فقد رفع صخرة عملاقة عند البئر ليسمح للبهائم بالورود بعيدًا عن مزاحمة الناس. وبعد ذلك جلس في الظل داعيا ربه قائلاً: (رَبِّ إِنِّي لِمَا أَنزَلْتَ إِلَيَّ مِنْ خَيْرٍ فَقِيرٌ) القصص 28: 24
وبعد هذا الدعاء وذلك العمل في مساعدة الناس أعطي موسى-عليه السلام- من الله عز وجل ثلاث عطايا: الأولى، أن الله عز وجل أمنه مما هو خائف منه. الثانية، أن الله رزقه زوجة، ولم يكن هو الخاطب وإنما العكس. الثالثة، وجد عقد عمل في تلك البلاد لمدة عشر سنوات.
(فَجَاءَتْهُ إِحْدَاهُمَا تَمْشِي عَلَى اسْتِحْيَاءٍ قَالَتْ إِنَّ أَبِي يَدْعُوكَ لِيَجْزِيَكَ أَجْرَ مَا سَقَيْتَ لَنَا فَلَمَّا جَاءَهُ وَقَصَّ عَلَيْهِ الْقَصَصَ قَالَ لَا تَخَفْ نَجَوْتَ مِنَ الْقَوْمِ الظَّالِمِينَ قَالَتْ إِحْدَاهُمَا يَا أَبَتِ اسْتَأْجِرْهُ إِنَّ خَيْرَ مَنِ اسْتَأْجَرْتَ الْقَوِيُّ الْأَمِينُ قَالَ إِنِّي أُرِيدُ أَنْ أُنكِحَكَ إِحْدَى ابْنَتَيَّ هَاتَيْنِ عَلَىٰ أَن تَأْجُرَنِي ثَمَانِيَ حِجَجٍ فَإِنْ أَتْمَمْتَ عَشْرًا فَمِنْ عِندِكَ وَمَا أُرِيدُ أَنْ أَشُقَّ عَلَيْكَ سَتَجِدُنِي إِن شَاءَ اللَّـهُ مِنَ الصَّالِحِينَ قَالَ ذَٰلِكَ بَيْنِي وَبَيْنَكَ أَيَّمَا الْأَجَلَيْنِ قَضَيْتُ فَلَا عُدْوَانَ عَلَيَّ وَاللَّـهُ عَلَىٰ مَا نَقُولُ وَكِيلٌ) القصص 28: 25-28
أراد الأب أن يكافئ الرجل الذي صنع لبنتيه معروفًا، وهو نبي الله موسى، ومن ثم أعجبت به إحدى البنتين فقالت لأبيها اجعله أجيرًا عندنا، فوافق الأب بأن يكون زوجًا أجيرا في ذات الوقت.
1. A Scene of Quiet Vulnerability at the Well | مشهد ضعف هادئ عند البئر
Musa arrives to find two women holding their flock back from a crowded well, unwilling to compete physically with the men already there. Their explanation, that no man in their household could take on this task, reveals a household without male protection, not simple shyness, and explains exactly why the situation had gone unresolved before Musa’s arrival.
يصل موسى ليجد امرأتين تمنعان غنمهما عن بئر مزدحم، غير راغبتين في منافسة الرجال هناك جسديا. ويكشف تفسيرهما، أنه لا رجل في بيتهما يمكنه القيام بهذه المهمة، عن بيت بلا حماية رجولية، لا مجرد خجل، ويفسر بالضبط لماذا ظل الموقف دون حل قبل وصول موسى.
2. Help Given Before Any Request for Reward | مساعدةٌ قبل أي طلب مقابل
Musa waters the flock himself, moving a heavy stone at the well without being asked and without any expectation of payment. This act, performed by someone who had just fled his own country as a fugitive with nothing, sets up everything that follows, since it is precisely this unrequested kindness that reaches the women’s father.
يسقي موسى الغنم بنفسه، رافعا صخرة ثقيلة عند البئر دون أن يُطلب منه ذلك ودون توقع أي مقابل. وهذا الفعل، الصادر عن شخص فرّ للتو من بلده هاربا لا يملك شيئا، يمهد لكل ما يلي، إذ إن هذا اللطف غير المطلوب بالضبط هو ما يصل إلى والد المرأتين.
3. A Private Prayer Admitting Total Need | دعاءٌ خاص يعترف بالحاجة الكاملة
Once alone in the shade, Musa prays, “My Lord, I am truly in desperate need of whatever provision You may have in store for me,” a stark admission of vulnerability from someone who had just helped two strangers with real generosity. Scholars point to this moment as a model of asking Allah directly and specifically, immediately after doing good, rather than relying on his own effort as sufficient.
وحين يخلو بنفسه في الظل، يدعو موسى: “رب إني لما أنزلت إلي من خير فقير”، وهو اعتراف صريح بالضعف من شخص ساعد للتو غريبين بكرم حقيقي. ويشير العلماء إلى هذه اللحظة نموذجا لسؤال الله مباشرة وتحديدا، فور فعل الخير، بدلا من الاعتماد على جهده الخاص باعتباره كافيا.
4. Three Gifts Following the Prayer | ثلاث عطايا عقب الدعاء
What follows is described as three distinct provisions: safety from what he had feared, a wife whose father proposed the match rather than Musa seeking her out, and a place of employment for years to come. Presenting all three as a direct outcome of the well scene and the prayer frames this entire episode as a turning point, not a series of unrelated coincidences.
ويُوصف ما يلي بأنه ثلاث عطايا متمايزة: الأمان مما كان يخافه، وزوجة اقترح أبوها الزواج بدلا من أن يسعى موسى إليها، ووظيفة لسنوات قادمة. وتقديم الثلاث بوصفها نتيجة مباشرة لمشهد البئر والدعاء يؤطر هذه الحادثة بأكملها بوصفها نقطة تحول، لا سلسلة مصادفات منفصلة.
5. A Contract Sealed With Allah as Witness | عقدٌ يُختم بشهادة الله
The daughter’s recommendation, that the best hire is one who is strong and trustworthy, leads directly to her father’s offer of marriage tied to eight or ten years of service, and Musa’s own careful reply sets his own condition, that whichever term he completes will fully discharge his obligation, invoking Allah as witness to the agreement. The clarity of these terms, negotiated openly on both sides, marks the start of a settled, honest arrangement after years of upheaval.
توصية الابنة، بأن خير من يُستأجر هو القوي الأمين، تقود مباشرة إلى عرض أبيها الزواج المرتبط بثماني أو عشر سنوات من الخدمة، ويضع رد موسى المتأني شرطه الخاص، أن أيا من الأجلين أتمه يُبرئ ذمته، مستحضرا الله شاهدا على الاتفاق. ووضوح هذه الشروط، المتفاوض عليها علنا من الطرفين، يمثل بداية ترتيب مستقر وصادق بعد سنوات من الاضطراب.
Frequently Asked Questions | الأسئلة الشائعة
What happened to Moses upon arriving in Midian?
He helped two women water their flock at a well, then prayed to Allah in his own need, and was granted safety, a wife, and a ten-year position in her father’s household.
Why couldn’t the two women water their own flock?
They were unwilling to compete physically with the crowding men, and had no male relative in the household to do it for them.
What did Moses pray after helping them?
“My Lord, I am truly in desperate need of whatever provision You may have in store for me.”
What three gifts did Moses receive afterward?
Safety from what he feared, a wife proposed to him by her father, and a ten-year job in Midian.
What were the terms of the marriage and employment agreement?
Eight years of service for marriage to one daughter, with an optional two more years as a personal favor, agreed to openly with Allah invoked as witness.