Why Mūsā, and Why Out of Order

Then begins the story of Mūsā (peace be upon him):

Has the story of Mūsā (peace be upon him) come to you? With this the story opens, and several different incidents in the life of Mūsā (peace be upon him) are related — though not necessarily in order. There is no linear approach here, as there was with Yūsuf (peace be upon him), whose story ran from the beginning, from his young age, and carried on from there. Here one thing is told, then the narrative goes back and shows an earlier scene, and then it carries on again. It is done very effectively, because its purpose is to draw reminders and lessons from the events.

The verses cannot all be given here, since the story runs through the whole sūrah, beginning at verse 9. What follows instead is an outline of the different incidents that the reader will meet on reading it, in shāʾ Allāh, for himself, after which certain verses will be singled out.

Why, once more, is Mūsā (peace be upon him) so prominently featured through so many sūrahs of the Qur'an? The reason is that he was the one who underwent so many extraordinary and unique experiences — very rich experiences, one may say, and very difficult ones as well, with his own people. Anybody who ponders the story of Mūsā (peace be upon him) with an open mind, an open heart and sincerity will learn a great deal for their akhlāq and their character, and about how to conduct themselves towards their faith and their prophets.

The second reason is that much of it concerns Pharaoh. Pharaoh plays a very large part in the story of Mūsā (peace be upon him), and throughout history there will always be a Pharaoh, a Pharaoh of some type. This is not to name anybody a Pharaoh; but anybody who displays those traits is like a Pharaoh. The story is a real one, yet it also furnishes an archetype of the contest between good and evil, between truth and falsehood, between the oppressed and the oppressor. It shows that there will always be success for those who hold fast to the faith, that there will always be assistance for those who are oppressed, and that there will also be punishment for the oppressors. That, in sum, is what is to be learnt from it.