What Was Allah's First Mission for Moses After Naming Him a Prophet?
ما هي أول مهمةٍ كلّف الله بها موسى بعد نبوته؟
Allah charged His Prophet with two messages to Pharaoh.
The first message: to call Pharaoh to believe in Allah and to purify himself.
(Has the story of Moses reached you, O Prophet? His Lord called him in the sacred valley of Tuwa, commanding, "Go to Pharaoh, for he has truly transgressed all bounds. And say, 'Would you be willing to purify yourself, and let me guide you to your Lord so that you will be in awe of Him?'") (An-Nazi'at 79:15-19)
The second message: to allow the Children of Israel to go with them to where Allah the Almighty had ordered, and to stop killing their sons, leaving their women alive and using them in the worst, most inferior, and most vile work. (Note: the original answer said 'their men'; the Quran says that Pharaoh's people slaughtered their sons and spared their women (2:49), so it has been corrected.)
("So go to him and say, 'Indeed we are both messengers from your Lord, so let the Children of Israel go with us, and do not oppress them. We have come to you with a sign from your Lord.'") (Ta-Ha 20:47)
حمّل الله نبيه رسالتين إلى فرعون. الرسالة الأولى: تدعو فرعون إلى الإيمان وتزكية النفس.
(هَلْ أَتَاكَ حَدِيثُ مُوسَى إِذْ نَادَاهُ رَبُّهُ بِالْوَادِ الْمُقَدَّسِ طُوًى اذْهَبْ إِلَىٰ فِرْعَوْنَ إِنَّهُ طَغَىٰ فَقُلْ هَل لَّكَ إِلَىٰ أَن تَزَكَّىٰ وَأَهْدِيَكَ إِلَىٰ رَبِّكَ فَتَخْشَىٰ) النازعات 79: 15-19
الرسالة الثانية: أرسل معنا بني إسرائيل لنخرج بهم حيث أمر الله، ولا تقتل أبناءهم وتستحيي نساءهم (ملاحظة: ورد في الجواب الأصلي "رجالهم"، ولفظ القرآن: "يذبحون أبناءكم ويستحيون نساءكم" (البقرة 2: 49)، فصُحّح.) وتستعملهم في أسوأ الأعمال وأحطها وأبخسها.
(فَأْتِيَاهُ فَقُولَا إِنَّا رَسُولَا رَبِّكَ فَأَرْسِلْ مَعَنَا بَنِي إِسْرَائِيلَ وَلَا تُعَذِّبْهُمْ قَدْ جِئْنَاكَ بِآيَةٍ مِّن رَّبِّكَ) طه 20: 47
1. Two Messages, Two Dimensions of the Mission | رسالتان، بُعدان للمهمة
The pairing of these two messages is itself instructive: the first addresses Pharaoh's own soul directly, an invitation to purify himself, while the second addresses the injustice done to an entire enslaved people. Musa's mission from its very start combined a call to individual faith with a demand for justice, not one at the expense of the other. Why Pharaoh was the first to be addressed is told in why Allah sent Moses to Pharaoh as his first mission, and the manner Musa was ordered to use in the method Moses was ordered to follow in calling Pharaoh.
اقتران هاتين الرسالتين معنى بحد ذاته: الأولى تخاطب نفس فرعون مباشرةً، دعوةً لتزكية نفسه، والثانية تخاطب الظلم الواقع على شعبٍ مستعبد بأكمله. جمعت مهمة موسى منذ بدايتها بين دعوة الإيمان الفردي والمطالبة بالعدل، لا أحدهما على حساب الآخر.
2. The Fuller Encounter This Command Set in Motion | اللقاء الكامل الذي حرّكه هذا الأمر
Before this mission, Allah had told Musa to listen to what is revealed, to worship Him alone and to establish prayer for His remembrance (20:13-14). The command was part of a larger exchange at Mount Tur that also included Musa's own personal requests before setting out, covered in full in what Allah said to Moses at Mount Tur.
وقبل هذه المهمة أمر الله موسى أن يستمع لما يوحى، وأن يعبده وحده، وأن يقيم الصلاة لذكره (طه 20: 13-14). وكان هذا الأمر جزءًا من حوارٍ أوسع عند جبل طور شمل أيضًا طلبات موسى الشخصية قبل انطلاقه.
Frequently Asked Questions | الأسئلة الشائعة
What was Allah's first mission for Moses?
His first mission was to go to Pharaoh with two messages: an invitation to believe and purify himself, and a demand to free the Children of Israel. Before it, Allah told him to listen to what is revealed, to worship Him and to establish prayer (20:13-14).
What was Pharaoh doing to the Children of Israel?
Killing their sons, sparing their women, and subjecting the Children of Israel to the worst kinds of labor.