سُورَةُ غَافِرٍ

How Fir`awn mocked the Lord of Musa Allah tells us of the arrogant and hostile defiance of Fir`awn and his rejection of Musa, when he commanded his minister Haman to build him a tower, i.e., a tall, high, strong fortress. He built it of bricks made from baked clay, as Allah says: فَأَوْقِدْ لِى يَهَـمَـنُ عَلَى الطِّينِ فَاجْعَل لِّى صَرْحاً (So kindle for me (a fire), O Haman, to bake (bricks out of) clay, and set up for me a lofty tower) (28:38). لَّعَـلِّى أَبْلُغُ الاٌّسْبَـبَأَسْبَـبَ السَّمَـوَتِ (that I may arrive at the ways -- the ways of the heavens,) Sa`id bin Jubayr and Abu Salih said, "The gates of the heavens." Or it was said, the ways of the heavens. فَأَطَّلِعَ إِلَى إِلَـهِ مُوسَى وَإِنِّى لاّظُنُّهُ كَـذِباً (and I may look upon the God of Musa, but verily, I think him to be a liar.) Because of his disbelief and defiance, he did not believe that Allah had sent Musa to him. Allah says: وَكَـذَلِكَ زُيِّنَ لِفِرْعَوْنَ سُوءُ عَمَلِهِ وَصُدَّ عَنِ السَّبِيلِ (Thus it was made fair seeming, in Fir`awn's eyes, the evil of his deeds, and he was hindered from the path;) means, this act of his building the tower, by means of which he wanted to deceive his people and make them think that he could prove that Musa was lying. Allah says: وَمَا كَـيْدُ فِرْعَوْنَ إِلاَّ فِى تَبَابٍ (and the plot of Fir`awn led to nothing but loss and destruction.) Ibn `Abbas and Mujahid said, "Meaning nothing but ruin."

وقال فرعون مكذِّبًا لموسى في دعوته إلى الإقرار برب العالمين والتسليم له: يا هامان ابْنِ لي بنًاء عظيمًا؛ لعلي أبلغ أبواب السماوات وما يوصلني إليها، فأنظر إلى إله موسى بنفسي، وإني لأظن موسى كاذبًا في دعواه أن لنا ربًا، وأنه فوق السماوات، وهكذا زُيَّن لفرعون عمله السيِّئ فرآه حسنًا، وصُدَّ عن سبيل الحق؛ بسبب الباطل الذي زُيِّن له، وما احتيال فرعون وتدبيره لإيهام الناس أنه محق، وموسى مبطل إلا في خسار وبوار، لا يفيده إلا الشقاء في الدنيا والآخرة.