The Story of Prophet Musa and Pharaoh: The Complete Story from the Quran

The Musa and Pharaoh story is the account of Prophet Musa (Moses), peace be upon him, and the tyrant king of Egypt who claimed to be a god. No prophet is named in the Quran more often than Musa, and no story is told in as many places: Surah al-Qasas, Surah Taha, Surah al-A'raf, Surah ash-Shu'ara and Surah Yunus each tell part of it, from a different angle and with a different lesson.

This article puts those passages in order, from the birth of Musa to the drowning of Pharaoh. Every quotation of the Quran below is taken word for word from the Arabic text, with the Saheeh International translation, and every explanation names its source: Ibn Kathir, al-Tabari, al-Sa'di or al-Tafsir al-Muyassar. Where the Quran is silent, we say so, rather than filling the gap with stories that cannot be confirmed.

Allah Himself introduces the story at the opening of Surah al-Qasas as true news “for a people who believe” (Quran 28:3):

These four ayat are the map of everything that follows. A ruler who “exalted himself in the land” (Quran 28:4), a people crushed beneath him, and a promise from Allah to “make them leaders and make them inheritors” (Quran 28:5). The rest of the story is how that promise came true.

Egypt under Pharaoh: why Musa was born in danger

Musa was born in danger because Pharaoh was killing the newborn sons of the Children of Israel. The Quran describes a king who split his people into classes, chose one group to oppress, slaughtered their baby boys and kept their women alive. It ends with a plain verdict: “Indeed, he was of the corrupters.” (Quran 28:4)

The Quran also names Pharaoh's minister, Haman, and their soldiers. In the next ayah Allah says He would show them “that which they had feared” (Quran 28:6). Al-Tafsir al-Muyassar explains that what they feared was the loss of their kingdom at the hands of a boy born among the Children of Israel. In other words, the very thing Pharaoh tried to prevent was exactly what Allah had decreed.

The Quran does not give this Pharaoh a personal name, and it does not tell us which dynasty he belonged to. Many guesses circulate online, but none of them is established, and none of them is needed. The Quran tells the story for its meaning, not for a museum label.

Baby Musa and the river

Allah inspired the mother of Musa to nurse her baby and, when she feared for him, to place him in the river. This is one of the most moving scenes in the Quran, and it begins with a command that would seem impossible to any mother:

She was told “do not fear and do not grieve” (Quran 28:7), and she was given two promises at once: her son would come back to her, and he would one day be a messenger. Al-Sa'di calls this one of the greatest glad tidings, given first so that her heart would be calm before she acted. In Surah Taha Allah adds that she was to place him in a chest, and that the river would carry it to the bank where an enemy of Allah would take him (20:39).

The baby was picked up by the family of Pharaoh, the very household that was killing boys like him. The Quran says this happened “so that he would become to them an enemy and a [cause of] grief” (Quran 28:8). They thought they were rescuing a child. In reality they were raising the one through whom their kingdom would end.

Then Pharaoh's wife spoke. She called the baby “a comfort of the eye” (Quran 28:9) and asked that he not be killed. The Quran calls her only the wife of Pharaoh; Ibn Kathir names her Asiyah. The ayah ends with a short, heavy phrase: “And they perceived not.” (Quran 28:9) They had no idea what they had just taken into their home.

In Surah Taha, Allah tells Musa that He placed love for him in people's hearts “that you would be brought up under My eye” (Quran 20:39). That is the secret of this whole chapter: the baby was never alone in the river.

Musa returned to his mother

Allah returned Musa to his mother by making him refuse every wet nurse until his sister guided the palace to their family. The Quran describes what happened in the mother's heart and how the plan unfolded:

Ibn Kathir explains that "empty" means her heart was emptied of everything except her son, and he reports this meaning from Ibn 'Abbas, Mujahid, Qatadah and others. She almost revealed her secret, but Allah strengthened her heart so that she would remain among the believers.

She sent Musa's sister to follow him, and the girl watched from a distance without being noticed. The Quran does not name the sister. Meanwhile, Allah had already caused the baby to refuse every nurse brought to him. When the household did not know what to do, the sister offered to show them a family that would care for him sincerely.

So Musa came home. The Quran gives the reason in its own words: “that she would know that the promise of Allāh is true” (Quran 28:13). The first promise of 28:7 was now fulfilled before her eyes. The second, that he would be a messenger, was still to come.

Growing up, the fight in the city and the flight to Madyan

Musa grew up strong and wise, then left Egypt after a fight in which a man died by his hand. The Quran says that when he reached maturity, “We bestowed upon him judgement and knowledge” (Quran 28:14).

One day he entered the city and found two men fighting: one from his own people and one from his enemies. When his kinsman called for help, Musa struck the other man, and the man died. Al-Tafsir al-Muyassar notes that this was unintentional and happened before his prophethood. Musa immediately said it was the work of Shaytan and turned to Allah:

His first words were “My Lord, indeed I have wronged myself, so forgive me” (Quran 28:16), and the Quran tells us straight away that Allah forgave him. A man then came running from the far side of the city to warn him that the chiefs were planning to kill him. Musa left, afraid and watchful, praying “My Lord, save me from the wrongdoing people.” (Quran 28:21)

He headed toward Madyan with nothing but trust, saying “Perhaps my Lord will guide me to the sound way.” (Quran 28:22) At the well of Madyan he saw shepherds watering their flocks and two women holding theirs back, waiting until the men had finished, because their father was an old man.

Musa watered their flock for them, then went to sit in the shade and made one of the most beautiful du'as in the Quran: “My Lord, indeed I am, for whatever good You would send down to me, in need.” (Quran 28:24) It is the prayer of a stranger with no home, no work and no family, and Allah answered it almost at once.

One of the two women came back, walking shyly, to say that her father wanted to reward him. When Musa told the old man his story, he reassured him that he was now safe from the wrongdoers. One of the daughters said of Musa that “the best one you can hire is the strong and the trustworthy” (Quran 28:26). The father offered Musa marriage to one of his daughters in return for eight years of work, or ten if he chose to complete them (28:27-28).

The Quran does not name the old man of Madyan or his daughters, and the scholars of tafsir differed about who he was. What the Quran wants us to see is the character of Musa: strength used to help the weak, and honesty in his work.

The call at the valley of Tuwa: the fire, the staff and the hand

At the end of his years in Madyan, Musa saw a fire near the mountain while travelling with his family, and there Allah spoke to him and made him a messenger. Surah Taha tells it like this:

Ibn Kathir notes from the wording of the Quran that the night was cold and dark: Musa hoped to bring back a burning brand so his family could warm themselves, or to find someone at the fire who could show them the way. Instead he found the greatest guidance of all.

He was told to “remove your sandals” (Quran 20:12) because he was in the blessed valley of Tuwa. Ibn Kathir reports two explanations from the early scholars: that the sandals were made from the skin of an animal that had not been slaughtered, or that removing them was a sign of respect for the blessed ground. Al-Tafsir al-Muyassar adds that it was a preparation for Musa's conversation with his Lord. Surah al-Qasas adds that the call came “from the right side of the valley in a blessed spot - from the tree” (Quran 28:30).

Then came the two signs that Musa would carry to Pharaoh:

Allah asked Musa what was in his right hand. Musa answered with real detail, “It is my staff; I lean upon it” (Quran 20:18), and he used it to bring down leaves for his sheep. Then he threw it and it became a moving snake. He was told to pick it up without fear, and it returned to what it was. Next, his hand came out white, “without disease” (Quran 20:22). In Surah al-Qasas these are called “two proofs from your Lord to Pharaoh and his establishment” (Quran 28:32).

Musa's du'a and his brother Harun

Musa asked Allah to open his heart, ease his task, loosen his tongue and send his brother Harun with him, and Allah granted all of it. He knew exactly what he was being sent into: back to the king he had fled, as the one wanted for a man's death.

The du'a “And untie the knot from my tongue” (Quran 20:27) is followed by its reason: “That they may understand my speech.” (Quran 20:28) Ibn Kathir points out that Musa did not ask for more than he needed for his mission; he asked only to be understood. A popular story about a burning coal in his childhood is mentioned in some books of tafsir, but it is not in the Quran, and nothing in this story depends on it.

In Surah al-Qasas Musa explains that Harun “is more fluent than me in tongue” (Quran 28:34). Allah answered “You have been granted your request, O Moses.” (Quran 20:36) and promised, “We will strengthen your arm through your brother” (Quran 28:35). Harun became a prophet alongside his brother, and from this point the Quran speaks of the two of them together.

Before they left, Allah gave them an instruction that surprises many readers:

Allah told them to “speak to him with gentle speech” (Quran 20:44). Ibn Kathir draws the lesson clearly: Pharaoh was among the most arrogant of people, and Musa was the chosen servant of Allah at that time, yet he was still commanded to speak gently, because gentle words reach the heart. When the brothers said they feared Pharaoh would harm them, Allah answered: “Indeed, I am with you both; I hear and I see.” (Quran 20:46)

Musa and Harun before Pharaoh

Musa and Harun went to Pharaoh, told him they were messengers from the Lord of the worlds, and asked him to let the Children of Israel go. Surah al-A'raf records the scene in a few lines:

Pharaoh did not answer the message; he attacked the messenger. In Surah ash-Shu'ara he reminds Musa of his childhood: “Did we not raise you among us as a child” (Quran 26:18), and of the man who died. Musa answers honestly that it happened before Allah gave him wisdom, and then turns the "favour" back on Pharaoh: was it really a favour, “that you have enslaved the Children of Israel” (Quran 26:22)?

Pharaoh then asked who this "Lord of the worlds" was. Musa's answers in Surah Taha and ash-Shu'ara are short and deep. “Our Lord is He who gave each thing its form and then guided” (Quran 20:50) every creature to its purpose. He is the Lord of the heavens and the earth, of the east and the west, and of Pharaoh's own forefathers. Pharaoh had no answer, so he threatened prison instead: “If you take a god other than me, I will surely place you among those imprisoned.” (Quran 26:29) In Surah al-Qasas he even says to his chiefs, “I have not known you to have a god other than me” (Quran 28:38).

Then Musa showed the two signs. The staff became “a serpent, manifest” (Quran 7:107), and his hand came out white for everyone to see. Pharaoh's chiefs had only one explanation ready: this man must be a skilled magician who wanted to drive them out of their land.

Musa and the magicians of Pharaoh

Pharaoh gathered the best magicians of his kingdom to defeat Musa in public, but Musa's staff swallowed what they had made, and the magicians fell down in prostration and believed. This is the scene shown in the QASAS story "Musa and the Magicians".

The chiefs advised Pharaoh to delay Musa and Harun and send gatherers to every city to bring “every learned, skilled magician” (Quran 26:37). The Quran does not say how many came, and the numbers found in some books are not established. Musa chose the time himself: “the day of the festival when the people assemble at mid-morning” (Quran 20:59), so that the whole population would see the result in broad daylight.

The magicians first asked Pharaoh about their pay, and he promised them reward and a place close to him (7:113-114). Then they faced Musa:

The ropes and staffs only “seemed to him from their magic” (Quran 20:66) to be moving. Surah al-A'raf says “they bewitched the eyes of the people and struck terror into them” (Quran 7:116). It was an illusion, but a terrifying one, and Musa felt fear within himself. Allah reassured him: “Fear not. Indeed, it is you who are superior.” (Quran 20:68)

Musa threw his staff and it swallowed everything they had crafted. Al-Tafsir al-Muyassar describes this as the great moment in which Allah separated truth from falsehood. Surah al-A'raf sums it up: “So the truth was established, and abolished was what they were doing.” (Quran 7:118)

The magicians understood better than anyone what had happened. They knew the limits of their craft, and they knew this was not magic. They fell down in prostration and declared their faith in the Lord of Harun and Musa. Al-Tafsir al-Muyassar puts their reasoning simply: if this had been magic, they would not have been defeated.

Watch this story in QASASMusa and the MagiciansThe staff became a serpent and swallowed their tricks.Open on Google Play →

Pharaoh was furious. He accused them of plotting with Musa, and threatened to cut off their hands and feet on opposite sides and crucify them (7:123-124). Their answer is one of the bravest speeches in the Quran:

Men who had come that morning for Pharaoh's reward now told him “You can only decree for this worldly life.” (Quran 20:72) In Surah al-A'raf they pray “Our Lord, pour upon us patience and let us die as Muslims” (Quran 7:126). Ibn Kathir reports from Ibn 'Abbas and others among the early scholars that the magicians began that day as sorcerers and ended it as martyrs. The Quran itself does not describe what Pharaoh did to them; it records their faith and their words, and that is what it wants us to remember.

The signs and plagues sent on Pharaoh's people

After the magicians, Allah sent a series of signs and hardships on Pharaoh's people so that they might return to Him, but every time they broke their promise. Musa first told his own frightened people: “Seek help through Allāh and be patient.” (Quran 7:128) Then the signs began:

First came years of famine and a shortage of fruits. When things were good, Pharaoh's people said it was theirs by right, and when things were bad, “they saw an evil omen in Moses” (Quran 7:131) and those with him. Then came the flood, locusts, lice, frogs and blood, each a distinct sign.

Ibn Kathir reports what the early scholars said about each one: the flood as heavy rain that ruined their crops (or, in another report from Ibn 'Abbas, widespread death); the locusts eating their fields; the qummal explained as weevils in the grain or small insects; frogs filling their homes and food; and their water turning to blood. Al-Tafsir al-Muyassar adds that they could find no clean water to drink.

Each time a punishment fell, they came to Musa and asked him to pray, promising to believe and to release the Children of Israel. Each time Allah lifted it, “then at once they broke their word” (Quran 7:135).

Elsewhere the Quran says Musa was given “nine evident signs” (Quran 17:101). The Quran does not list the nine in one place. Ibn Kathir reports from Ibn 'Abbas that they were the staff, the hand, the years of famine, the sea, the flood, the locusts, the lice, the frogs and the blood, and he also mentions other early lists that differ slightly. So the number nine is Quranic; the exact list is a matter of tafsir.

The exodus: leaving Egypt by night

Allah commanded Musa to leave Egypt by night with the believers, and Pharaoh chased them with his army. The Quran says:

“Travel by night with My servants; indeed, you will be pursued.” (Quran 26:52) Pharaoh sent gatherers through his cities and mocked the believers as “those are but a small band” (Quran 26:54). In Surah Taha Allah had already promised Musa that he would “strike for them a dry path through the sea” (Quran 20:77), without fear of being caught.

Allah then took Pharaoh and his people away from the gardens, springs and treasures they had enjoyed (26:57-58). Ibn Kathir notes that a large force of chiefs and soldiers came out with Pharaoh, and they reached the believers at sunrise.

The parting of the sea

When the believers reached the sea with Pharaoh's army behind them, Musa struck the sea with his staff and it split into walls like great mountains, leaving a dry path. This is the moment of the story most people remember:

The companions of Musa cried out “Indeed, we are to be overtaken!” (Quran 26:61). By every human measure they were right: the sea in front, an army behind. Musa's answer is the heart of the whole story: “Indeed, with me is my Lord; He will guide me.” (Quran 26:62) Al-Sa'di explains that Musa was speaking from certainty in his Lord's promise, and that the guidance he expected was the way of rescue for himself and for them.

Only then came the command to strike the sea. It parted, and “each portion was like a great towering mountain” (Quran 26:63). Ibn Kathir reports from Ibn 'Abbas that the sea opened into twelve paths, one for each tribe, and al-Tafsir al-Muyassar and al-Sa'di mention the same. Allah saved Musa and everyone with him, all together, and then drowned the others.

Pharaoh's drowning and his belief that came too late

As the sea closed over him, Pharaoh declared his belief in the God of the Children of Israel, but it was too late to be accepted. Surah Yunus records his last words and the answer he received:

At the very moment of drowning he said “I believe that there is no deity except that in whom the Children of Israel believe” (Quran 10:90). The reply was “Now? And you had disobeyed [Him] before and were of the corrupters?” (Quran 10:91)

Ibn Kathir explains that Pharaoh believed at a time when belief could no longer benefit him, and he links it to another ayah that states the rule: “But never did their faith benefit them once they saw Our punishment.” (Quran 40:85) Al-Tafsir al-Muyassar says the same: repentance does not help at the moment of death, once death and punishment are seen. Years of signs had come to him while there was still time, and he refused every one.

Pharaoh's body preserved as a sign

Allah brought Pharaoh's lifeless body out of the sea so that it would be a sign for those after him. The ayah says “So today We will save you in body that you may be to those who succeed you a sign.” (Quran 10:92)

Ibn Kathir reports from Ibn 'Abbas and others among the early scholars that some of the Children of Israel doubted that Pharaoh had really died, so Allah commanded the sea to cast his body onto higher ground, without a soul, so they could see it. Al-Tabari explains this saving as placing him on raised ground, and says the mention of his body makes clear that he was saved as a lifeless body, not alive. Al-Sa'di adds that the people had feared him so deeply that they could hardly believe he was gone.

You will find claims online that a particular mummy in a museum is this Pharaoh's body. The Quran does not say that, and the classical tafsir do not say it either, so we do not repeat it as fact. What the Quran does say is that the sign is real and that “many among the people, of Our signs, are heedless” (Quran 10:92).

Watch this story in QASASPharaoh's Last WordsAt the moment of drowning he said: I believe.Open on Google Play →

Timeline of the Musa and Pharaoh story

Lessons from the story of Musa and Pharaoh

The lessons of this story are about trust, courage and the end of every tyrant. Here are ten that the ayat themselves point to.

1. Allah's promise is true. The mother of Musa was promised her son's return, and the Quran says she got him back so she would know Allah's promise is true (28:13).
2. No plan can stop Allah's decree. Pharaoh killed boys to prevent his downfall, and then raised the boy who would bring it about in his own palace.
3. Turn to Allah immediately after a mistake. Musa's first words after the man died were a request for forgiveness, and he was forgiven (28:16).
4. Ask Allah for what you need, however small. The du'a under the tree in Madyan teaches that a believer admits his need to Allah before anyone else (28:24).
5. Strength and honesty belong together. The daughter of Madyan praised Musa for being strong and trustworthy, two qualities every worker and leader needs (28:26).
6. Speak to people gently, even to a tyrant. If Musa was told to speak gently to Pharaoh, then gentleness is the default in every call to good (20:44).
7. Good helpers are a blessing. Musa asked for his brother's help, and Allah granted it, so asking for support is not a weakness.
8. Truth defeats illusion. The magicians' ropes only seemed to move; the staff was real, and falsehood disappeared before it (7:118).
9. Faith can change a person in a moment. The magicians came for a reward and left with a faith no threat could shake (20:72-73).
10. Repentance has a time limit. Pharaoh's declaration of belief came when death had already arrived, and it was not accepted (10:91, 40:85).

How to tell the story of Musa to children

The story of Prophet Musa for kids works best when it is told as a story of a mother's trust, a brave messenger and a sea that opened by Allah's command. Children love the river, the staff that becomes a serpent, and the path through the sea, and each scene carries a simple lesson.

For young children, keep the frightening parts brief: say that a cruel king was hurting the families of the Children of Israel, without dwelling on details. For the man who died in the city, it is enough to say that Musa made a mistake, was very sorry, asked Allah to forgive him, and Allah forgave him. That is a lesson children can live by.

Focus on three moments: the mother placing her baby in the river because she trusted Allah; Musa saying “Indeed, with me is my Lord” (Quran 26:62) when the sea was in front and the army behind; and the magicians who changed their hearts when they saw the truth. Ask children what they would feel in each moment, and what helped Musa not to be afraid.

Older children can read the ayat with you and talk about Pharaoh's last words: why do they think belief at the last second did not count? It is a natural way to talk about doing good while there is time. Islamic stories for kids are most powerful when the child hears the actual words of the Quran, not only a retelling.

Read and watch it in QASAS

QASAS is a free prophet stories app that tells these scenes as short cinematic stories you can watch, or read page by page, with a quiz at the end for children. "Musa and the Magicians" shows the staff swallowing the ropes before Pharaoh's palace, and "Pharaoh's Last Words" follows the chase into the sea and the crown sinking beneath the waves. There is also a third Musa story, "Musa and al-Khidr", the journey told in Surah al-Kahf, which is a separate story from the one with Pharaoh (see our article on the People of the Cave, the other great story of al-Kahf).

The same Quran stories app includes a full mushaf with tafsir (al-Muyassar and Ibn Kathir), recitation and translation, so you can open Surah Taha or al-Qasas and read every ayah quoted here. It also has prayer times, the qibla direction and a 3D tasbih. It is free, with no ads and no account, on Android through Google Play, with the iPhone version coming soon.

If you enjoyed this story, read the story of Prophet Yusuf, another prophet who was taken from his family and raised in the house of Egypt's powerful, and the story of Prophet Nuh and the Ark, where Allah also saved the believers by water and drowned those who refused.

Sources

Quran: Surah al-Qasas 28:3-38, Surah Taha 20:9-79, Surah al-A'raf 7:103-137, Surah ash-Shu'ara 26:10-68, Surah Yunus 10:75-92, with 17:101 and 40:84-85. Arabic text from the QASAS mushaf; English translation Saheeh International. Tafsir: Ibn Kathir (Tafsir al-Quran al-'Azim), al-Tabari (Jami' al-Bayan), al-Sa'di (Taysir al-Karim al-Rahman) and al-Tafsir al-Muyassar (King Fahd Complex).

Updated: 25 October 2026 · By QASAS