سُوْرَةُ الْمُؤْمِنِ
Surah Ghafir (40) — Ayah 37
أَسْبَـٰبَ ٱلسَّمَـٰوَٰتِ فَأَطَّلِعَ إِلَىٰٓ إِلَـٰهِ مُوسَىٰ وَإِنِّى لَأَظُنُّهُۥ كَـٰذِبًا ۚ وَكَذَٰلِكَ زُيِّنَ لِفِرْعَوْنَ سُوٓءُ عَمَلِهِۦ وَصُدَّ عَنِ ٱلسَّبِيلِ ۚ وَمَا كَيْدُ فِرْعَوْنَ إِلَّا فِى تَبَابٍ ﴿37﴾
Translation by Dr. Muhammad Muhsin Khan & Dr. Taqi-ud-Din al-Hilali
"The ways of the heavens, and I may look upon the Ilâh (God) of Mûsâ (Moses): But verily, I think him to be a liar." Thus it was made fair-seeming, in Fir‘aun’s (Pharaoh) eyes, the evil of his deeds, and he was hindered from the (Right) Path; and the plot of Fir‘aun (Pharaoh) led to nothing but loss and destruction (for him).
Word by Word — Arabic, Transliteration & Meaning
أَسْبَـٰبَ
asbāba
(The) ways
ٱلسَّمَـٰوَٰتِ
l-samāwāti
(to) the heavens
فَأَطَّلِعَ
fa-aṭṭaliʿa
so I may look
إِلَىٰٓ
ilā
at
إِلَـٰهِ
ilāhi
(the) God
مُوسَىٰ
mūsā
(of) Musa
وَإِنِّى
wa-innī
and indeed, I
لَأَظُنُّهُۥ
la-aẓunnuhu
[I] surely think him
كَـٰذِبًۭا ۚ
kādhiban
(to be) a liar
وَكَذَٰلِكَ
wakadhālika
And thus
زُيِّنَ
zuyyina
was made fair-seeming
لِفِرْعَوْنَ
lifir'ʿawna
to Firaun
سُوٓءُ
sūu
(the) evil
عَمَلِهِۦ
ʿamalihi
(of) his deed
وَصُدَّ
waṣudda
and he was averted
عَنِ
ʿani
from
ٱلسَّبِيلِ ۚ
l-sabīli
the way
وَمَا
wamā
And not
كَيْدُ
kaydu
(was the) plot
فِرْعَوْنَ
fir'ʿawna
(of) Firaun
إِلَّا
illā
except
فِى
fī
in
تَبَابٍۢ
tabābin
ruin
Tafsir Taiseer ul-Quran — Maulana Abdul Rahman Kilani
Tafsir Taiseer ul-Quran (Facilitation of the Quran) is a comprehensive Quran commentary by Maulana Abdul Rahman Kilani, a renowned Salafi (Ahl al-Hadith) scholar from Pakistan. Known for his eloquent and accessible writing style, Kilani authored this tafsir with a focus on clarity — making Quranic meanings understandable to the common reader. The tafsir provides detailed historical context for verses related to battles and expeditions, and firmly refutes modernist ideologies using strong scriptural evidence. It is widely regarded as an invaluable resource for understanding the Quran and countering deviant interpretations. The tafsir is originally written in Urdu, translated to English by tohed.com.
The pathways of the heavens, so that I may look towards the God of Moses, though I surely think he is a liar [50]. Thus, the evil deeds of Pharaoh were made attractive [51] to him, and he was kept away from the right path. And the plot [52] of Pharaoh led only to his own ruin.
[50]
Pharaoh Telling Haman to Build a Tall Structure:
Pharaoh was not at all affected by the words of that believing man, and with great arrogance, he said to his minister Haman: "Haman! Build a tall structure so that I may see where is that God whom Mosesؑ speaks of, and at what height He resides." [مزيد تفصيل كے لئے سورة قصص كي آيت نمبر 38 كا حاشيه نمبر 50 ديكهئے]
[51] That is, whatever oppression Pharaoh was inflicting upon the Children of Israel and whatever tactics he was using in opposition to Sayyiduna Musaؑ, all of it seemed good to him, and he considered them to be the result of his own clever planning. By continuously committing evil deeds, his mind became so corrupted that he began to perform such ridiculous acts, after which there remained no possibility for him to come to the right path.
[52]
Those Deceitful Schemes of Pharaoh in Which He Himself Became Trapped:
Pharaoh had understood in his heart that Musaؑ was indeed a Messenger of Allah, and he had become convinced of this from the very first day. However, in order to preserve his power and his kingdom, he always resorted to deceitful schemes. His first cunning move was that he tried to give people the impression that the miracles of Musaؑ were nothing but feats of magic. And to put this scheme into action, he staged a contest with magicians. Then, when the magicians themselves admitted that what Musaؑ had brought was not magic but indeed miracles granted by Allah Almighty, and they openly declared their faith in front of the crowd, Pharaoh, in order to protect people from these effects, accused the magicians, saying: "You are secretly allied with Musaؑ; he is your leader and you are his disciples, and I will inflict such and such punishments upon you." But even this threat of Pharaoh had no effect, and people continued to secretly believe in Sayyiduna Musaؑ. Then he announced that whoever believed in Musaؑ, he would kill their sons. After this, he began to devise plans to kill Sayyiduna Musaؑ in order to resolve the matter. During these days, Sayyiduna Musaؑ was commanded to migrate. Now, if he had not pursued Sayyiduna Musaؑ, at most the Children of Israel would have escaped from his grasp; he himself would not have drowned, nor would his kingdom have been lost. But his own schemes kept pushing him towards his destruction.
[50]
Pharaoh Telling Haman to Build a Tall Structure:
Pharaoh was not at all affected by the words of that believing man, and with great arrogance, he said to his minister Haman: "Haman! Build a tall structure so that I may see where is that God whom Mosesؑ speaks of, and at what height He resides." [مزيد تفصيل كے لئے سورة قصص كي آيت نمبر 38 كا حاشيه نمبر 50 ديكهئے]
[51] That is, whatever oppression Pharaoh was inflicting upon the Children of Israel and whatever tactics he was using in opposition to Sayyiduna Musaؑ, all of it seemed good to him, and he considered them to be the result of his own clever planning. By continuously committing evil deeds, his mind became so corrupted that he began to perform such ridiculous acts, after which there remained no possibility for him to come to the right path.
[52]
Those Deceitful Schemes of Pharaoh in Which He Himself Became Trapped:
Pharaoh had understood in his heart that Musaؑ was indeed a Messenger of Allah, and he had become convinced of this from the very first day. However, in order to preserve his power and his kingdom, he always resorted to deceitful schemes. His first cunning move was that he tried to give people the impression that the miracles of Musaؑ were nothing but feats of magic. And to put this scheme into action, he staged a contest with magicians. Then, when the magicians themselves admitted that what Musaؑ had brought was not magic but indeed miracles granted by Allah Almighty, and they openly declared their faith in front of the crowd, Pharaoh, in order to protect people from these effects, accused the magicians, saying: "You are secretly allied with Musaؑ; he is your leader and you are his disciples, and I will inflict such and such punishments upon you." But even this threat of Pharaoh had no effect, and people continued to secretly believe in Sayyiduna Musaؑ. Then he announced that whoever believed in Musaؑ, he would kill their sons. After this, he began to devise plans to kill Sayyiduna Musaؑ in order to resolve the matter. During these days, Sayyiduna Musaؑ was commanded to migrate. Now, if he had not pursued Sayyiduna Musaؑ, at most the Children of Israel would have escaped from his grasp; he himself would not have drowned, nor would his kingdom have been lost. But his own schemes kept pushing him towards his destruction.
