Surah Al-Israa (17) — Ayah 101

(Ayah 101) ➊ {وَ لَقَدْ اٰتَيْنَا مُوْسٰى تِسْعَ اٰيٰتٍۭ …:} That is, We had already given Musa (Moses) nine (9) such miracles which were clear signs of his prophethood. In this, there is comfort for the Messenger of Allah (peace be upon him) and a response to the demand of the Quraysh, who had said to the Prophet (peace be upon him) that they would not believe in him until he performed these acts. The meaning is that you have been asked for six miracles, but We gave Musa (peace be upon him) nine miracles, yet those who refused to believe still did not accept. The mention of these nine (9) miracles is in Surah Al-A'raf, verses (107, 108, 130, 133). Some have interpreted these as the nine (9) legal rulings of the Shariah, which were established in all the laws, but the correct view is that here the nine (9) miracles are meant. Those nine rulings are actually the nine commandments mentioned in the Torah, which were given to the Children of Israel, and they have no connection with the miracles presented before Pharaoh. The evidence for this is in Surah An-Naml, verses (10 to 12), in which Allah Almighty, after mentioning the staff of Musa and the shining hand, said: «فِيْ تِسْعِ اٰيٰتٍ اِلٰى فِرْعَوْنَ وَ قَوْمِهٖ » [ النمل : ۱۲ ] That is, these two miracles were among the nine (9) miracles with which Musa (peace be upon him) was sent to Pharaoh and his people. Musa (peace be upon him) was given other miracles as well, such as twelve springs gushing forth from the rock, the dead being brought to life by striking with a part of the cow, manna and quails, the shade of clouds, the mountain being uprooted and raised above them, etc., but these were for the Children of Israel.

➋ { اِنِّيْ لَاَظُنُّكَ يٰمُوْسٰى مَسْحُوْرًا :} This is exactly the same kind of accusation that the disbelievers of Makkah used to make against you (peace be upon him), as is mentioned in the Qur'an: «اِنْ تَتَّبِعُوْنَ اِلَّا رَجُلًا مَّسْحُوْرًا » [ بني إسرائیل : ۴۷ ] "You follow only a man who has been bewitched." In every era, those who follow falsehood, after hearing irrefutable arguments, say such things about those who follow the truth.

11. 1. These are the nine miracles: the hand, the staff, famine, deficiency of fruits, the storm, locusts, lice, frogs, and blood. Imam Hasan Basri says that famine and deficiency of fruits are one and the same thing, and the ninth miracle is the staff swallowing the magic tricks of the magicians. Prophet Musa ﷺ was given other miracles as well, such as striking the staff on the stone, from which twelve springs gushed forth, the shading of clouds, manna and quails, etc. But here, by "Ayat-e-Tis'ah" (the nine signs), only those nine miracles are meant which were witnessed by Pharaoh and his people. That is why Ibn Abbas ؓ has also counted the splitting of the sea (the sea parting to make a way) among these nine miracles, and has counted famine and deficiency of fruits as one miracle. In a narration of Tirmidhi, the details of the nine signs are stated differently, but that narration is weak in chain, so by "Ayat-e-Tis'ah" these mentioned miracles are meant.

And We certainly gave Moses [119] clear signs, so ask the Children of Israel when he came to them, and Pharaoh said to him, "O Moses! I think you are bewitched [120]."

[119]
The Nine Miracles of Sayyiduna Musa (Moses) ؑ:

These nine clear signs or miracles are mentioned in Surah Al-A'raf in the Noble Quran, and they are: the staff of Musa, the shining hand, the public defeat of the magicians in a full assembly, the occurrence of famine throughout the land, and, one after another, the plagues of the flood, locusts, lice, frogs, and blood. These were such clear miracles that they were evident proofs of the prophethood of Sayyiduna Musa ؑ and were also sufficient for their inner conviction, but still they did not believe. The reason for this is the same as mentioned in the above footnote. The reason for this is the same as mentioned in the above footnote. The condition of the Quraysh was also the same. They had already seen some miracles but did not believe. The point being made here is that even if the miracles they demand are shown to them, they too will never turn towards faith, just like the people of Pharaoh. In addition, regarding these nine clear signs, there is a hadith in Tirmidhi which is as follows: It is narrated from Safwan bin Assal Muradi that a Jew said to another, "Come, let us go to this Prophet and ask him something." The other said, "Do not call him a Prophet; if he hears this, his eyes will shine." So both of them came to the Prophet ﷺ and asked, "Which nine clear signs were given to Musa ؑ?" The Prophet ﷺ replied: "That you do not associate anyone with Allah, do not commit adultery, do not kill a soul whom Allah has forbidden to be killed except by right, do not steal, do not practice magic, do not bring an innocent person before the ruler so that he kills him, do not slander a chaste woman, do not flee from the battlefield." The narrator Shu'bah is in doubt whether the ninth thing the Prophet ﷺ said was: "O Jews! The ninth thing is specifically for you, that you do not transgress on the Sabbath." They said, "We bear witness that you ﷺ are Allah's Prophet." The Prophet ﷺ asked, "Then what prevents you from accepting Islam?" They said, "Dawud ؑ prayed that the Prophet should be from his descendants. Also, we fear that if we become Muslims, the Jews will kill us." [ترمذي ابواب التفسير]

Hafiz Ibn Kathir has declared this narration weak due to the narrator Abdullah bin Muslima and has suggested that perhaps the Jews had asked about those ten commandments which are written at the beginning of the Torah as instructions.

[120] In the eyes of Pharaoh, the bewitchment or madness of Sayyiduna Musa ؑ was that he openly demanded the freedom of the Children of Israel and asked to take them with him. Because Pharaoh considered himself such a sovereign who had become the master of all the affairs of his subjects, and out of arrogance, he regarded the claim of prophethood and this demand of Sayyiduna Musa ؑ as madness. Some people have taken "bewitched" here to mean "magician," as Pharaoh wanted to convince his subjects of this very thing.