Surah Taha, Ayah 46

Musa's fear of Fir`awn and Allah's strengthening Him

Allah, the Exalted, informs that Musa and Harun pleaded to Allah, expressing their grievance to him:

إِنَّنَا نَخَافُ أَن يَفْرُطَ عَلَيْنَآ أَوْ أَن يَطْغَى

(Verily, we fear lest he should hasten to punish us or lest he should transgress.) They meant that Fir`awn might seize them unexpectedly with a punishment, or transgress against them by tormenting them, when they actually did not deserve it. Ad-Dahhak reported from Ibn `Abbas that he said that transgress here means, "To exceed the bounds."

قَالَ لاَ تَخَافَآ إِنَّنِى مَعَكُمَآ أَسْمَعُ وَأَرَى

(He (Allah) said: "Fear not, verily, I am with you both, hearing and seeing.") meaning; "Do not fear him (Fir`awn), for verily, I am with you and I hear your speech and his speech as well. I see your place and I see his place as well. Nothing is hidden from Me of your affair. Know that his forehead is in My Hand, and he does not speak, breathe, or use any force, except by My leave and after My command. I am with you by My protection, My help and My support."

Allah said,إِنَّنِي مَعَكُمَا أَسْمَعُ وَأَرَ‌ىٰ "I am surely with you both. I hear and I see." - 20:46) Here the word "with you" is used in the sense of divine help and support which human senses cannot perceive.

Sayyidna Musa (علیہ السلام) called upon the Pharaoh to embrace the True Faith and also to deliver the Bani Isra'il from bondage

This shows that the prophets have the duty of guiding mankind towards their salvation as well as to liberate their people from worldly and economic bondages. Therefore, in this verse Sayyidna Musa (علیہ السلام) is reminded of both these duties.

God created everything; and everything is performing the functions assigned to it by Him

This point calls for some elucidation which is given in the following lines. The guidance which Allah gives to the prophets and which is in the nature of a duty imposed upon them is a special kind of guidance which is addressed only to human beings and Jinns who are gifted with intellect. There is also another kind of guidance known as guidance of Takwin (creation) which every created thing possesses. Allah has given to fire, water, earth and air, and their compounds a special kind of feeling and perception which are not of the same nature as given to human beings and Jinns. This is the reason why the laws governing things which are permissible and those which are forbidden do not apply to them. Through this feeling and perception Allah has assigned duties to all created things and in obedience to this command of Takwin and guidance, the earth, the sky and every other created thing is busy performing its allotted tasks. Air, water, fire and earth are all fulfilling the purpose for which they were created. They do not deviate from their destined course except by the command of Allah. And when He so commands the fire turns into a bed of flowers (as for Sayyidna Ibrahim علیہ السلام), and water acts as fire as for the people of Sayyidna Nuh أُغْرِ‌قُوا فَأُدْخِلُوا نَارً‌ا - 71:25). Who has taught a newly born baby to draw milk from its mother's breast or to cry when hungry or in pain? It is this same Divine guidance which every created thing receives without any formal training.

In brief, every created thing has been programmed, by Allah, with a guidance of Takwin (creation) which it is genetically bound to follow and deviating from the same is beyond its power. The other kind of guidance which is given to the human beings and to Jinns is not inherent in the nature and thus, is not compulsory but optional. It is this freedom of choice which renders them liable to reward for good deeds and to punishment for their sins. The verse

When, after a series of testing experiences, Moses reached the final stage of maturity, God assigned to him prophethood, so that he might communicate the divine message to man. Moses was given two pieces of advice—that he should never be remiss in the remembrance of God and that he should never be coercive in the performance of the mission of communicating the message of God to man. Remembrance of God means belief in God being so all-pervasive that the thought of God comes to mind, time and time again. Every observation a man makes and every incident in his life should, coupled with his God-consciousness, be the cause of awakening for him. While ordinary people live on material food, the preacher of Truth lives on the remembrance of God. Remembrance of God is an asset to the faithful (mu’min) and to the missionary alike. The second essential element is the adoption of a lenient approach in the communication of divine message to man. The very fact that Moses was so instructed when he had to approach such an arrogant person as Pharaoh shows that a tactful and considerate attitude in mission work is an absolute requirement in all cases. Even arrogance or harsh behaviour on the part of those who are the addressees, does not give the missionary any right to deviate from being kind and understanding in his approach.