سُوْرَةُ الْاَعْرَافِ
Surah Al-A'raaf (7) — Ayah 117
۞ وَأَوْحَيْنَآ إِلَىٰ مُوسَىٰٓ أَنْ أَلْقِ عَصَاكَ ۖ فَإِذَا هِىَ تَلْقَفُ مَا يَأْفِكُونَ ﴿117﴾
Translation by Dr. Muhammad Muhsin Khan & Dr. Taqi-ud-Din al-Hilali
And We revealed to Mûsâ (Moses) (saying): "Throw your stick," and behold! It swallowed up straight away all the falsehoods which they showed.
Word by Word — Arabic, Transliteration & Meaning
۞ وَأَوْحَيْنَآ
wa-awḥaynā
And We inspired
إِلَىٰ
ilā
to
مُوسَىٰٓ
mūsā
Musa
أَنْ
an
that
أَلْقِ
alqi
Throw
عَصَاكَ ۖ
ʿaṣāka
your staff
فَإِذَا
fa-idhā
and suddenly
هِىَ
hiya
it
تَلْقَفُ
talqafu
swallow(ed)
مَا
mā
what
يَأْفِكُونَ
yafikūna
they (were) falsifying
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.
117. And We revealed to Moses, "Throw your staff." So when he threw it, it immediately swallowed up their false tricks [119].
[119]
Pharaoh's Defeat in the Contest:
This can have two meanings: one is that when Musa ؑ threw his staff, it turned into a serpent and began swallowing the artificial snakes made from the ropes and staffs, and since these artificial snakes were not real but were actually ropes and staffs, and only the people's eyes had been bewitched, whatever Musa's ؑ serpent swallowed was in reality just ropes and staffs. This is the meaning that is apparent from the wording of the verse, and most commentators have inclined towards this. The second meaning could be that wherever the serpent of Musa ؑ reached, the artificial snakes once again appeared as ropes and staffs to the people, and that serpent was merely ending the trickery that the magicians had shown to the people through their spellbinding.
[119]
Pharaoh's Defeat in the Contest:
This can have two meanings: one is that when Musa ؑ threw his staff, it turned into a serpent and began swallowing the artificial snakes made from the ropes and staffs, and since these artificial snakes were not real but were actually ropes and staffs, and only the people's eyes had been bewitched, whatever Musa's ؑ serpent swallowed was in reality just ropes and staffs. This is the meaning that is apparent from the wording of the verse, and most commentators have inclined towards this. The second meaning could be that wherever the serpent of Musa ؑ reached, the artificial snakes once again appeared as ropes and staffs to the people, and that serpent was merely ending the trickery that the magicians had shown to the people through their spellbinding.
