فَأَتْبَعَهُمْ فِرْعَوْنُ بِجُنُودِهِۦ فَغَشِيَهُم مِّنَ ٱلْيَمِّ مَا غَشِيَهُمْ 78
Translations
So Pharaoh pursued them with his soldiers, and there covered them from the sea that which covered them,
Transliteration
Fa-atba'ahum fir'awnu bijunudihi fa-ghashiyahum mina al-yammi ma ghashiyahum
Tafsir (Explanation)
This ayah describes how Pharaoh pursued Moses and the Children of Israel with his armies, and the sea overwhelmed them (Pharaoh and his soldiers) with what it had overwhelmed them with—referring to their complete drowning. Classical scholars like Ibn Kathir and Al-Tabari emphasize that this verse demonstrates Allah's perfect justice: Pharaoh, who had arrogantly pursued the believers intending their destruction, met his own destruction in the same waters through which the believers had safely passed. The phrase 'what it had overwhelmed them with' underscores the symmetry of divine retribution.
Revelation Context
This ayah is part of Surah Taha, a Meccan chapter that narrates the story of Moses and Pharaoh as a source of comfort to Prophet Muhammad during the early persecution in Mecca. The broader context describes the miraculous parting of the Red Sea for the Israelites and the subsequent drowning of Pharaoh's army, illustrating Allah's power to save His servants and punish the transgressors.
Related Hadiths
The story of Pharaoh's drowning is corroborated in Surah Al-Maidah (5:78) and other surahs. While no single hadith directly explains this ayah, Sahih Bukhari and Sahih Muslim contain hadiths about the final hour and signs of the Day of Judgment where similar themes of divine justice appear.
Themes
Key Lesson
This ayah teaches believers that those who oppress the faithful and rebel against Allah will ultimately face certain punishment, while the righteous will be protected and saved. It provides reassurance that no tyrant's power is beyond Allah's reach, and that justice, though sometimes delayed, is ultimately inevitable.
Related Ayahs
وَكَذَٰلِكَ أَخْذُ رَبِّكَ إِذَآ أَخَذَ ٱلْقُرَىٰ وَهِىَ ظَـٰلِمَةٌ ۚ إِنَّ أَخْذَهُۥٓ أَلِيمٌ شَدِيدٌ
And thus is the seizure of your Lord when He seizes the cities while they are committing wrong. Indeed, His seizure is painful and severe.
يَوْمَ يَغْشَىٰهُمُ ٱلْعَذَابُ مِن فَوْقِهِمْ وَمِن تَحْتِ أَرْجُلِهِمْ وَيَقُولُ ذُوقُوا۟ مَا كُنتُمْ تَعْمَلُونَ
On the Day the punishment will cover them from above them and from below their feet and it is said, "Taste [the result of] what you used to do."
فَأَصَابَهُمْ سَيِّـَٔاتُ مَا كَسَبُوا۟ ۚ وَٱلَّذِينَ ظَلَمُوا۟ مِنْ هَـٰٓؤُلَآءِ سَيُصِيبُهُمْ سَيِّـَٔاتُ مَا كَسَبُوا۟ وَمَا هُم بِمُعْجِزِينَ
And the evil consequences of what they earned struck them. And those who have wronged of these [people] will be struck [i.e., afflicted] by the evil consequences of what they earned; and they will not cause failure.
وَأَصْحَـٰبُ مَدْيَنَ ۖ وَكُذِّبَ مُوسَىٰ فَأَمْلَيْتُ لِلْكَـٰفِرِينَ ثُمَّ أَخَذْتُهُمْ ۖ فَكَيْفَ كَانَ نَكِيرِ
And the inhabitants of Madyan. And Moses was denied, so I prolonged enjoyment for the disbelievers; then I seized them, and how [terrible] was My reproach.