Surah 28. Al-Qasas, Ayah 6
| وَنُمَكِّنَ لَهُمْ فِي الْأَرْضِ وَنُرِيَ فِرْعَوْنَ وَهَامَانَ وَجُنُودَهُمَا مِنْهُمْ مَا كَانُوا يَحْذَرُونَ |
| Asad | : | and to establish them securely on earth, and to let Pharaoh and Haman6 and their hosts experience through those [children of Israel] the very thing against which they sought to protect themselve.7 |
| Malik | : | establish them in the land, and show Fir'on, Haman and their warriors at their hands the same which they feared. |
| Pickthall | : | And to establish them in the earth, and to show Pharaoh and Haman and their hosts that which they feared from them. |
| Yusuf Ali | : | To establish a firm place for them in the land and to show Pharaoh Haman and their hosts at their hands the very things against which they were taking precautions. 3331 3332 |
| Transliteration | : | Wanumakkina lahum fee alardi wanuriya firAAawna wahamana wajunoodahuma minhum ma kanoo yahtharoona |
Note - 6This Haman, who is mentioned several times in the Qur'an
as Pharaoh's chief adviser, is not to be confused with
the Persian Haman of the Old Testament (The Book of
Esther iii ff.). Most probably, the word "Haman" as used
in the Qur'an is not a proper name at all but the
Arabicized echo of the compound designation Ha-Amen given
to every high priest of the Egyptian god Amon. Since at
the time in question the cult of Amon was paramount in
Egypt, his high priest held a rank second only to that of
the reigning Pharaoh. The assumption that the person
spoken of in the Qur'an as Haman was indeed the high
priest of the cult of Amon is strengthened by Pharaoh's
demand (mentioned in verse {38} of this surah as well as
in {40:36-37}) that Haman erect for him "a lofty tower"
from which he could "have a look at [or "ascend to"] the
god of Moses": which may be, among other things, an
allusion to the hieratic purpose of the great pyramids of
Egypt and to the function of the high priest as their
chief architect. (But see also note [37].)
|
Note - 7The Egyptians - obviously remembering the earlier, alien
Hyksos dynasty that had invaded Egypt and subsequently
allied itself with the Hebrews (see surah {12}, note
[44]) - feared that the latter might in the future, too,
make common cause with foreign invaders (cf. Exodus i,
10): and to protect themselves against this danger, they
decided - as mentioned in several places in the Qur'an as
well as in the Bible - to have every male Hebrew child
killed.
|
Note - 3331Haman was evidently Pharaoh's minister, not to be
confounded with a Haman who is mentioned in the Old
Testament (Esther iii.1), as a minister of Ahasuerus
(Xerxes) King of Persia, the same who invaded Greece, and
ruled from B.C. 485 to 464.
|
Note - 3332Pharaoh was trying to kill the Israelites. Instead, the
Plagues of Egypt, invoked by Moses, killed thousands of
Egyptians (vii. 133, and notes 1091-92), because "they
were steeped in arrogance,-a people given to sin." In
pursuing the Israelites in their flight, Pharaoh and his
army were themselves overwhelmed in the sea.
|
Share your thoughts about this with others by posting a comment. Visit our FAQ for some ideas.
Filter Comments 
 |
This Haman, who is mentioned several times in the Qur'an as Pharaoh's chief adviser, is not to be confused with the Persian Haman of the Old Testament (The Book of Esther iii ff.). Most probably, the word "Haman" as used in the Qur'an is not a proper name at all but the Arabicized echo of the compound designation Ha-Amen given to every high priest of the Egyptian god Amon. Since at the time in question the cult of Amon was paramount in Egypt, his high priest held a rank second only to that of the reigning Pharaoh. The assumption that the person spoken of in the Qur'an as Haman was indeed the high priest of the cult of Amon is strengthened by Pharaoh's demand (mentioned in verse {38} of this surah as well as in {40:36-37}) that Haman erect for him "a lofty tower" from which he could "have a look at [or "ascend to"] the god of Moses": which may be, among other things, an allusion to the hieratic purpose of the great pyramids of Egypt and to the function of the high priest as their chief architect. (But see also note [37].) |
| |
The Egyptians - obviously remembering the earlier, alien Hyksos dynasty that had invaded Egypt and subsequently allied itself with the Hebrews (see surah {12}, note [44]) - feared that the latter might in the future, too, make common cause with foreign invaders (cf. Exodus i, 10): and to protect themselves against this danger, they decided - as mentioned in several places in the Qur'an as well as in the Bible - to have every male Hebrew child killed. |
| |
Haman was evidently Pharaoh's minister, not to be confounded with a Haman who is mentioned in the Old Testament (Esther iii.1), as a minister of Ahasuerus (Xerxes) King of Persia, the same who invaded Greece, and ruled from B.C. 485 to 464. |
| |
Pharaoh was trying to kill the Israelites. Instead, the Plagues of Egypt, invoked by Moses, killed thousands of Egyptians (vii. 133, and notes 1091-92), because "they were steeped in arrogance,-a people given to sin." In pursuing the Israelites in their flight, Pharaoh and his army were themselves overwhelmed in the sea. |
