Surah Al-Isra 17:101

The Nine Signs of Musa

Allah tells us that He sent Musa with nine clear signs, which provided definitive proof that his prophethood was real and that what he was conveying from the One Who had sent him to Fira`wn was true. These clear signs were: his staff, his hand, the years of famine, the sea, the flood, the locusts, the lice, the frogs and the blood. This was the view of Ibn `Abbas. Muhammad bin Ka`b said, "They were his hand and his staff, the five signs mentioned in Al-A`raf, and destruction of wealth and the rock." Ibn `Abbas, Mujahid, `Ikrimah, Ash-Sha`bi and Qatadah said: "They are his hand, his staff, the years of famine, the failure of the crops, the flood, the locusts, the lice, the frogs and the blood."

(Yet they remained arrogant, and they were of those people who were criminals,) 7:133 meaning, despite all these signs and their witnessing of them, they disbelieved them and belied them wrongfully and arrogantly, although they were themselves were convinced of them, so they did not have any effect on them. By the same token, (Allah tells His Messenger here,) `if We were to respond to what these people are asking you for, who have said that they will not believe in you until you cause springs to gush forth throughout the land for them, they would not respond or believe except if Allah willed.' As Fira`wn said to Musa, even though he had witnessed the signs which he brought,

("O Musa! I think you are indeed bewitched. ") It was said that this meant he thought he was a sorcerer, but Allah knows best. These nine signs which were mentioned by the Imams (scholars) quoted above are what is referred to here, and in the Ayah :

("And throw down your stick!" But when he saw it moving as if it were a snake, he turned in flight, and did not look back. (It was said:) "O Musa ! Fear not.") until His saying,

(among the nine signs (you will take) to Fir`awn and his people. Verily, they are a people who are rebellious.) 27:10-12 These Ayat include mention of the stick and the hand, and the rest of the nine signs are mentioned in detail in Surat Al-A`raf. Musa was also given many other signs, such as striking the rock with his staff and water flowing from it, their being shaded with clouds, manna and quails, and other signs which were bestowed upon the Children of Israel after they had left the land of Egypt. But here Allah mentions the nine signs which were witnessed by his people in Egypt. These became evidence against them, because they stubbornly rejected them out of disbelief. So Musa said to Fira`wn:

("Verily, you know that these signs have been sent down by none but the Lord of the heavens and the earth. ) meaning, as proof and evidence of the truth of what I have brought to you.

(And I think you are indeed, O Fir`awn, doomed to destruction!) i.e., bound to be destroyed. This was the view of Mujahid and Qatadah. Ibn `Abbas said: "It means cursed." Ibn `Abbas and Ad-Dahhak said:

(doomed to destruction.) means defeated. As Mujahid said, "doomed" includes all of these meanings.

The Destruction of Fir`awn and His People

(So he resolved to turn them out of the land.) means, he wanted to expel them and drive them out.

(But We drowned him and all who were with him. And We said to the Children of Israel after him: "Dwell in the land...") This is good news for Muhammad , a foretelling of the conquest of Makkah, even though this Surah was revealed in Makkah before the Hijrah. Similarly, the people of Makkah wanted to expel the Prophet from the city, as Allah says in two Ayat:

(And verily, they were about to frighten you so much as to drive you out from the land...) 17:76-77 Hence Allah caused His Messenger to inherit Makkah, so he entered it by force, according to the better-known of the two opinions, and he defeated its people then out of kindness and generosity, he let them go, just as Allah caused the Children of Israel, who had been oppressed, to inherit the land, east and west, and to inherit the land of Fir`awn's people, with its farmland, crops and treasures. As Allah said,

(thus We caused the Children of Israel to inherit them. ) (26:59). Here Allah says:

(And We said to the Children of Israel after him: "Dwell in the land, then, when the final and the last promise comes near, We shall bring you altogether as mixed crowd.") meaning, all of you, you and your ene mies. Ibn `Abbas, Qatadah and Ad-Dahhak said, "It means all together."

Ayat ini menerangkan bahwa Allah swt telah memberikan sembilan macam mukjizat kepada Musa a.s. sebagai bukti kerasulannya, ketika diutus kepada Fir'aun dan kaumnya. Namun demikian, Fir'aun dan kaumnya tetap menolak seruan Nabi Musa untuk beriman pada Allah Sang Pencipta. Dalam ayat yang lain diterangkan bagaimana Fir'aun dan kaumnya mengingkari seruan Musa.

Allah swt berfirman:

Dan mereka mengingkarinya karena kezaliman dan kesombongannya, padahal hati mereka meyakini (kebenaran)-nya. Maka perhatikanlah bagaimana kesudahan orang-orang yang berbuat kerusakan. (an-Naml/27: 14)

Para mufasir berbeda pendapat tentang maksud dari sembilan ayat tersebut di atas. Menurut Ibnu Abbas, sebagaimana diriwayatkan oleh 'Abd Razzaq, Sa'id bin Manshur, Ibnu Jarir ath-thabari, dan Ibnu Mundzir, bahwa sembilan ayat tersebut adalah tongkat, tangan, topan, belalang, kutu, katak, darah, musim kemarau, dan kekurangan buah-buahan. Pendapat ini disetujui oleh jumhur ulama.

Mufasir yang lain, seperti ar-Razi, berpendapat bahwa yang dimaksud dengan sembilan ayat tersebut di atas adalah berbagai larangan. Ia mendasar-kan pendapatnya dengan hadis Nabi saw yang diriwayatkan oleh Ahmad, at-Tirmidzi, al-Baihaqi, Ath-thabrani, an-Nasa'i, dan Ibnu Majah dari shafwan bin Asal al-Muradi, ketika beliau ditanya oleh orang Yahudi, bahwa yang dimaksud dengan sembilan ayat di sini ialah sembilan macam larangan, yaitu: jangan mempersekutukan Allah, jangan membunuh jiwa kecuali dengan hak, jangan berzina, jangan mencuri, jangan menyihir, jangan makan riba, jangan memfitnah orang yang tidak bersalah kepada penguasa, jangan menuduh wanita yang baik berzina, dan melanggar aturan pada hari Sabat. Ibnu Syihab Al-Khafaji mengatakan, "Inilah tafsir yang diikuti dalam menafsirkan ayat ini."

Allah memerintahkan Nabi Muhammad saw agar menanyakan tentang kisah Musa kepada orang-orang Yahudi yang hidup di masanya, seperti Abdullah bin Salam dan lain-lain, niscaya mereka akan membenarkannya. Pengakuan mereka terhadap kebenaran risalah Nabi Musa akan menambah iman dan keyakinannya. Hal itu juga bertujuan agar Nabi saw yakin bahwa kisah itu juga terdapat dalam kitab mereka.

Tanyakanlah kepada orang-orang Yahudi, tentu mereka akan menerangkan bahwa Musa a.s. telah datang kepada Fir'aun membawa agama tauhid dan mengemukakan berbagai mukjizatnya. Akan tetapi, Fir'aun mengingkarinya, bahkan mengatakan bahwa Musa adalah orang yang rusak akalnya, sehingga mengaku-ngaku sebagai seorang rasul Allah.