In the name of God, the Merciful, the Beneficent
He it is who has made the earth your cradle, and has traced on it paths for you to walk on, and who sends down waters from the sky with which We bring forth diverse pairs of plants. Eat, then, and graze your cattle. In all this there are signs for those who are endowed with reason.
Out of this (earth) have We created you, and into it shall We return you, and out of it shall We bring you forth once again. And, indeed, We showed Pharaoh all Our signs, but he called them lies and refused (to take heed).
He said: “Have you, Moses, come to drive us out of our land with your magic?”
(Ta Ha: 20: 53-57)
We discussed over the last couple of weeks the narrative made in this Surah of the encounter between Moses, supported by his brother Aaron, and Pharaoh, as they went to him in fulfillment of God’s orders. As instructed, they spoke to him gently in the hope that he would respond favorably. He sought to belittle their beliefs, asking them who was their Lord. To this Moses gave a straightforward answer to which Pharaoh had no reply: “Our Lord is He who gives every thing (that exists) its distinctive nature and form, and further guides them.”
Hence, Pharaoh sought to divert the course of the discussion, but Moses went back to it, calling on him anew to respond to God’s message. Indeed, Moses continues to draw Pharaoh’s attention to some of the results of God’s action in the universe and how these results affect human life. He chooses results seen close by, well-known in Egypt with its rich soil, abundant water, and plentiful crops and cattle: “He it is who has made the earth your cradle, and has traced on it paths for you to walk on, and who sends down waters from the sky with which We bring forth diverse pairs of plants. Eat, then, and graze your cattle. In all this there are signs for those who are endowed with reason.”
The whole earth is a cradle for mankind at all places and in all times. It is indeed the same as a child’s cradle; for human beings are the children of the earth in whose lap they grow up and on whose produce they feed. At the same time, it has been leveled to them so that they could walk on it, pursue their life affairs, cultivate it and benefit by its treasures. God has made it so on the day when He gave their nature and forms to all His creatures. Thus, He gave the earth its structure which enables it to sustain the type of life He assigned to prosper on it. Similarly, He gave human beings their nature and form which make them able to live on the earth He made a cradle for them. The two senses imparted by the verse are closely interlinked.
Both the cradle image and the quality of being level are most clearly seen in Egypt, with its highly fertile valley which requires only the minimum effort of its people to yield its rich produce. The whole valley of Egypt is like a warm cradle cuddling a lovely child.
The wise Creator who has leveled the earth has also opened up on it paths for people to travel and sent down waters from the sky. It is from the rain pouring from the sky that rivers form and run to provide irrigation. One of these is, of course, the Nile running close to Pharaoh and his palace. With such plentiful water, plants are brought forth in a great variety of pairs. Again, Egypt is perhaps the clearest example of agricultural produce for people to feed and animals to graze.
God in His wisdom has willed that, like all living things, plants should grow in pairs. Indeed this duality is a consistent phenomenon that applies to all living creatures. In most cases, plants carry the male and female cells in the same shoot, but there are types where one shoot has only male cells and another female, in the same way as in most animal species. This provides perfect harmony that applies to all living things. Hence, the comment: “In all this there are signs for those who are endowed with reason.” Indeed, no sound mind could reflect on such phenomena without concluding that it is the work of the wise Creator who has given every living thing its nature and form, and guided them all.
The Surah continues the reporting of what Moses said, but uses the form of a direct address by God Himself: “Out of this (earth) have We created you, and into it shall We return you, and out of it shall We bring you forth once again. And, indeed, We showed Pharaoh all Our signs, but he called them lies and refused (to take heed).” It is from this earth, made as a cradle for mankind, and which supports cultivation of a great diversity of plants for food and grazing — it is from this very earth that mankind are created, and to it they shall return and then from it again they are resurrected after death.
Man is certainly created from the same substance as this earth. All the components of his body are largely the same as the components of the earth. Furthermore, he eats of its produce, drinks its waters, breathes its air, and benefit by it as his cradle. Then, he goes back to it a dead corpse, when his remains become part of its soil and atmosphere. From the earth he is resurrected again for his life to come, just as he is created for the life of this world.
This reminder of the relationship between man and the earth is highly fitting with the scene of the exchange between Moses and Pharaoh, the tyrant who arrogantly claims a godly position when he has originated from the earth and to it he certainly returns. He is no more than any object God has created on earth and guided to fulfill its assigned role. “We showed Pharaoh all Our signs, but he called them lies and refused to take heed.” God has showed him all sorts of signs in the great universe, and Moses pointed these out to him. The two signs of Moses’ staff and hand are not specified here since they are included among God’s signs. The signs in the universe are far greater and more permanent. It is implied that Pharaoh has already been shown these special signs. His reply to all God’s signs is mentioned in detail, and we realize that he is actually referring to these two signs: “Have you, Moses, come to drive us out of our land with your magic? In that case, we shall most certainly produce for you magic to match it. Set, then, for us an appointment which neither we nor you shall fail to keep, at a suitable place.”
Pharaoh is thus trying to stall the argument, knowing that he is no match to Moses. However, we will leave comment on this reply by Pharaoh till next week, God willing.
