Pharaoh in Islam

Pharaoh watches a serpent devour a demon in the presence of Moses; from a manuscript of Qisas al-Anbiya, c. 1540.

The story of Moses in Islam includes his interaction with the ruler of Egypt, named Pharaoh (Arabic: فرعون, romanized: fir'aun). The earlier story of Joseph in Islam refers to the Egyptian ruler as a king (Arabic: ملك, romanized: malik).[1] The story of Pharaoh is revealed in various passages throughout the Quran. He is first mentioned in Q2:49:

۝[2]Remember when we delivered you from the people of Pharaoh, who grievously oppressed you, they slew your male children, and let your females live: Therein was a great trial from your Lord.[3]

In the Quran, Pharaoh drowned, but God said that he preserved the pharaoh's body as an example for generations to come (or made an example for coming generations). Pharaoh is last mentioned in Q89:13.

  1. ^ al-Tabari, Muhammad ibn Jarir (Translated by William Brinner) (1987). The History of al-Tabari Vol. 2: Prophets and Patriarchs. SUNY. pp. 161–163.
  2. ^ Arabic script in Unicode symbol for a Quran verse, U+06DD, page 3, Proposal for additional Unicode characters
  3. ^ Q2:49, George Sale Translation