MESSAGE OF THE QUR’AN

 

 Translation and Brief Elucidation

Dr. Israr Ahmad

 

Surah Al-A'raf

(The Heights)

(Recap of verses 100 – 126 of Surah,7, Al-A'raf, and exposition of Verses 127 – 141 of the same Surah, inclusive)

Translator’s note:

For the sake of continuity and coherent explanation, most of the general discourse has been made by employing the ‘male’ as a prototype, which is in no way meant to be diminutive of the opposite gender or to disrespect the status of women. Moreover, each verse (Verse) has been kept as a continuum in order to prevent the misrepresentation of meanings, which may occur when the verses are broken up and the translation of those verses becomes kaput when done in bits and pieces. Cross-references taken from other parts of the Qur’an and the Hadith of the Messenger of Allah (SAAW) are provided in italics. The Translation of the Holy Qur’an done by the Message International – USA (www.FreeQuran.com) and edited by Saheeh International – UK, Dar Al Mountada – Saudi Arabia and Al Qummah – Egypt has been used in order to synchronize the use of modern English Language, which we believe will give a more accomplished sense of understanding to Today’s mind.

  

Recap of verses 100 – 126 (inclusive) of Surah 7, Al-A'raf

Verses 100 through 102 enunciate that those people who derive no lesson from history, who thoughtlessly pass over the ruins of the past, remaining engrossed in heedlessness, are deprived by Allah (SWT) of the capacity to think correctly and to pay due attention to the counsel of well-wishers. That, in the Qur’anic terminology, is called a seal on the heart. It is further elucidated that most human beings are not faithful to the primordial covenant which they made with Allah (SWT) which is binding on every mortal as Allah’s (SWT) servant and creature. Moreover, most of the human beings are not faithful to the collective covenant which is binding on every human being as a member of the human fraternity. Nor are men generally faithful to the commitments which they make to Allah (SWT) in hours of distress or in moments when their moral instincts are awake and astir. Violation of any of these covenants has been termed fisq (transgression). The stories narrated in the Qur'an bring home unmistakably the point that people who reject Allah’s (SWT) Message are not spared; rather they are destroyed.

Starting from verse 103 of the Surah, an extensive discourse related to an important chapter in the history of Bani Israel and the enormous battle of Prophet Moses (AS), along with his brother Haroon(AS) and the believers against Pharoah is provided. Prophet Moses(AS) was sent to Pharaoh to invite him (give dawah) to two things; first, to surrender himself to Allah (SWT) (i.e. Islam); and second, to release the Israelites - who were already Muslims - from his oppressive bondage. Prophet Moses (AS) was granted two miraculous signs to provide testimony to his being a Messenger of Allah, the creator and sovereign of the universe. When he threw down his staff, it became a serpent – manifest and clear. When he drew forth his hand from his bosom, it was white (radiant) for all the beholders. The fact is that Prophet Moses’s (AS) claim to prophethood implied the call to total change, obviously, including political change. For if a person claims to be Allah's (SWT) Messenger, it implies that people obey him unreservedly. It is this which explains why Pharaoh and his coterie felt threatened by an all-out revolution - political, economic, and social - when Prophet Moses (AS) came forth with his call. This caused the chieftains and courtiers of Pharoah to panic. They sought to buy time and made a mischievous plan.

Hence, they dubbed Prophet Moses (AS) a sorcerer to refute his claim to prophethood. Professional magicians and sorcerers were amassed from all over the land to challenge Prophet Moses (AS). Pharoah gave the magicians his blessings and promised them positions of great authority and status. The ‘competition’ began. The magicians and sorcerers started their magic, which bewitched the people’s sight as all their ropes, strings and other items appeared to be snakes running wildly on the ground. Allah (SWT) revealed unto Prophet Moses(AS) to throw his staff and it started swallowing all the falsehood that the magicians had conjured up. Thus, the truth was established before the whole crowd. The magicians and sorcerers, and their benefactors including Pharoah and his chieftains and courtiers, were all proven false. The magicians and sorcerers all fell into prostration and declared that they had come to believe in The Lord (SWT) of the worlds, The Lord (SWT) of Prophets Moses (AS) and Haroon (AS). Pharoah was a tyrant and a false claimant to godhead. He was livid with the adverse outcome of his plan and arrogantly chided the magicians, who had now become Muslim, for coming to believe in an entity besides himself. He cunningly tried to make it a conspiracy hatched between them and Prophet Moses (AS) to rob him of his dominion and authority over Egypt and a plot to expel him from the city. He ordered the harshest punishment for the magicians who turned Muslims by decreeing that their hands and feet be cut in the opposite directions. He then ordered them to be crucified. Pharaoh then gave up all pretence to follow truth and justice and brazenly resorted to persecution instead. The sorcerers turned Muslims prayed to Allah (SWT) for patience and forbearance in that hour of trial and beseeched Allah’s (SWT) help to remain steadfast and die as Muslims. When true faith illumined their hearts, they displayed such resoluteness of will and love for the truth that they contemptuously turned down Pharaoh's offer.

======================================

Exposition of verses 127 – 141 of Surah Al-A'raf

Verse 127

وَقَالَ الْمَلَاُ مِنْ قَوْمِ فِرْعَوْنَ اَتَذَرُ مُوْسٰی وَقَوْمَہٗ لِیُفْسِدُوْا فِی الْاَرْضِ وَیَذَرَکَ وَاٰلِھَتَکَ      ۭ قَالَ سَنُقَتِّلُ اَبْنَاۗءَھُمْ وَنَسْتَحْیٖ نِسَاۗءَھُمْ ۚ وَاِنَّا فَوْقَھُمْ قٰھِرُوْنَ(۱۲۷)

And the eminent among the people of Pharaoh said, "Will you leave Moses and his people to cause corruption in the land and abandon you and your gods?" [Pharaoh] said, "We will kill their sons and keep their women alive; and indeed, we are subjugators over them."

When the magicians and sorcerers, and their benefactors including Pharoah and his chieftains and courtiers, had been defeated, and the truth established before the whole crowd, the chieftains and courtiers of Pharoah said to him that would he allow Prophet Moses (AS) and his followers to make mischief in the land, by denying him as ‘the sovereign god’ and the other deities, including the sun god, that they primarily worshipped. History is a testament to the fact that when a new ideology that is robust in its essence is introduced in a decaying civilization, it becomes a great threat to the status quo and may lead to a potential civil war. Thus, they counseled Pharoah to take stern action against the Muslims.

It must be noted that according to historians, this particular Pharoah, had been very close to Prophet Moses (AS) since early childhood, as he was there when Prophet Moses (AS) arrived in the palace of the Pharoah in his infancy. When Prophet Moses (AS) was born, the ordinance passed by the Pharoah was in place that any male child born to an Israeli woman must be put to death. The mother of Prophet Moses (AS) knew that with the birth of a son, the King’s people will come, take away the child and kill him. Allah (SWT) inspired her to put the infant in a box and cast that box in the river Nile to save him and that he shall be reunited with his mother, in due course (Al- Qasas,28: 7-13).The current of the river Nile took the box to the palace of the Pharoah. The Pharoah of that time was the father of the Pharoah to whom Prophet Moses (AS) was later sent with the message of Allah (SWT). Exegeses of the Quran say that the Pharoah was issueless. His wife was from Bani Israel. She recognized the infant Prophet Moses(AS) in the box as an Israelite child and to save him persuaded her husband, the Pharoah, to take the child as their adopted son. Hence, Prophet Moses (AS) was raised in the house of the King. Later, Pharoah had a biological son, who grew up and turned out to be the Pharoah towards whom Prophet Moses (AS) brought the message of Allah (SWT). Both were raised under the same roof and they were brought up like foster siblings. The Pharoah, hence, did not kill Prophet Moses (AS) and his followers but reinstated the ordinance of his father, whereby any male offspring born to an Israeli woman was killed. Therefore, there were two periods of persecution. The first period took place before Prophet Moses’s (AS) birth, whereas the second period of persecution started after Prophet Moses’s (AS) assumption of the office of prophethood. Common to both periods is the killing of the male issue of Israelites while the female was spared. It was a calculated design to rob the Israelites of their identity, reduce their numbers and bring about their forcible assimilation, thus nipping the ‘evil’ in the bud.

Verse 128

قَالَ مُوْسٰی لِقَوْمِہِ اسْتَعِیْنُوْا بِاللّٰہِ وَاصْبِرُوْا     ۚ اِنَّ الْاَرْضَ لِلّٰہِ       ڐ یُوْرِثُھَا مَنْ یَّشَاۗءُ مِنْ عِبَادِہٖ       ۭ وَ الْعَاقِبَۃُ لِلْمُتَّقِیْنَ (۱۲۸)

Said Moses to his people, "Seek help through Allah and be patient. Indeed, the earth belongs to Allah. He causes to inherit it whom He wills of His servants. And the [best] outcome is for the righteous."

The Persecution of Bani Israel in Egypt was a great trial for the followers of Prophet Moses (AS). Prophet Moses (AS) directed his people to seek the help of Allah (SWT). He (AS) told them to have patience. Allah (SWT) tests His (SWT) servants with trials. Indeed, those who are successful are rewarded by Allah (SWT). Prophet Moses (AS) told his (AS) people that the earth and its dominion belong to Allah (SWT) alone and He (SWT) bestows the inheritance of the land and its dominion to whoever He (SWT) wills. Pharoah and his nation may have respite but only until the time decreed by Allah (SWT). Surely, the final victory is for those who have true faith and who have Taqwa (fear of Allah SWT), and they will be successful in the Hereafter.

Verse 129

قَالُوْٓا اُوْ ذِیْنَا مِنْ قَبْلِ اَنْ تَاْتِیَنَا وَمِنْۢ بَعْدِ مَا جِئْتَنَا ۭ قَالَ عَسٰی رَبُّکُمْ اَنْ یُّھْلِکَ عَدُوَّکُمْ وَیَسْتَخْلِفَکُمْ فِی الْاَرْضِ فَیَنْظُرَ کَیْفَ تَعْمَلُوْنَ(۱۲۹)

They said, "We have been harmed before you came to us and after you have come to us." He said, "Perhaps your Lord will destroy your enemy and grant you succession in the land and see how you will do."

The people of Prophet Moses (AS) said that we were being persecuted before he (AS) came to them and that persecution has not stopped even after his (AS) arrival. Bani Israel in Egypt were subject to devastating torments. Their male offspring were put to death, and the female offspring were kept alive. Prophet Moses (AS) said to his people that they must keep faith in Allah (SWT). Allah (SWT) will destroy their enemy when He (SWT) wills. Allah (SWT) will make them His (SWT) vicegerents on earth. Allah (SWT) will then judge them according to their deeds.

This verse has a special significance concerning the history of the Indian subcontinent. The Muslims of the Indian subcontinent feared the Hindu majority and prayed to Allah (SWT) for deliverance. They promised that if Allah (SWT) gave them freedom from the Colonial Britishers and the Hindus, they would establish the Deen (Islam) in their independent land. Allah (SWT) bestowed to us Pakistan as a miracle. Now the trial of the Muslims of the nascent state of Pakistan started. We had created this country based on Islam and when we did not fulfill our promise made to Allah (SWT) and did not enforce the Deen (Islam) here, the wrath of Allah (SWT) befell us. One half of the country was truncated in 1971, after suffering a humiliating defeat at the hands of India. Almost 34,000 of our soldiers were taken prisoner by the Indian army. It was actually a punishment from Allah (SWT). When a nation makes a promise to Allah (SWT) and breaks that promise, Allah (SWT) sends His (SWT) punishment.

Verse 130

وَلَقَدْ اَخَذْنَآ اٰلَ فِرْعَوْنَ بِالسِّنِیْنَ وَنَقْصٍ مِّنَ الثَّمَرٰتِ لَعَلَّھُمْ یَذَّکَّرُوْنَ (۱۳۰)

And We certainly seized the people of Pharaoh with years of famine and a deficiency in fruits that perhaps they would be reminded of.

Pharaoh and his nation were seized by drought. That resulted in years of famine. There was no rain for years, so the nation of Pharoah had little or no agricultural produce. There was a severe dearth of crops and fruits. Allah (SWT) sends His (SWT) wrath as a punishment and as a sign of reminder for the nation of Pharoah so that they may repent and revert to the Truth.

Verse 131

فَاِذَا جَاۗءَتْھُمُ الْحَسَنَۃُ قَالُوْا لَنَا ھٰذِہٖ    ۚ وَاِنْ تُصِبْھُمْ سَیِّئَۃٌ یَّطَّیَّرُوْا بِمُوْسٰی وَمَنْ مَّعَہٗ     ۭ اَلَآ اِنَّمَا طٰۗئِرُھُمْ عِنْدَ اللہِ وَلٰکِنَّ اَکْثَرَھُمْ لَا یَعْلَمُوْنَ (۱۳۱)

But when good [i.e., provision] came to them, they said, "This is ours [by right]." And if a bad [condition] struck them, they saw an evil omen in Moses and those with him. Unquestionably, their fortune is with Allah, but most of them do not know.

However, the nation of Pharoah had deviated to such a degree that they were arrogant and disbelieving. Their behaviour in response to Allah’s (SWT) signs was such that whenever something good came to them, they said, this is our entitlement. However, whenever they were hit by a calamity, they used to attribute it to the ‘evil omens’ of Prophet Moses (AS) and his(AS)  followers. The verse also elucidates that whatever good is received or whatever harm comes is all from Allah (SWT). The calamities that befall someone may be a punishment or a sign of reminder from Allah (SWT). The provisions that someone gets may be a trial or a reward from Allah (SWT). The truth is that nothing can occur without the permission of Allah (SWT). However, most people are oblivious to this Truth.

Verse 132

وَقَالُوْا مَھْمَا تَاْتِنَا بِہٖ مِنْ اٰیَۃٍ لِّتَسْحَرَنَا بِھَا     ۙ فَمَا نَحْنُ لَکَ بِمُؤْمِنِیْنَ (۱۳۲)

And they said, "No matter what sign you bring us with which to bewitch us, we will not be believers in you."

According to the general rule of Allah (SWT), whenever a Messenger (AS) was sent to a nation and they refuted and rejected him (AS), they were caught by smaller afflictions and trails so that they may wake from their devious slumber and revert to the right path.

It is clear that Pharaoh's courtiers, and following them the rest of Pharoah’s nation, obstinately persisted in branding Prophet Moses’s (AS) signs as sorcery although they knew well that sorcery had nothing in common with the miraculous signs granted to him (AS) by Allah (SWT). Even a fool would not be ready to believe that the country-wide famine and the consistent decrease in agricultural output could have been caused by magic. They rejected those signs out of iniquity and arrogance even though they were inwardly convinced of the Truth.

Verse 133

فَاَرْسَلْنَا عَلَیْھِمُ الطُّوْفَانَ وَالْجَرَادَ وَالْقُمَّلَ وَالضَّفَادِعَ وَالدَّمَ اٰیٰتٍ مُّفَصَّلٰتٍ        ۣ  فَاسْتَکْبَرُوْا وَکَانُوْا قَوْمًا مُّجْرِمِیْنَ (۱۳۳)

So We sent upon them the flood and locusts and lice and frogs and blood as distinct signs, but they were arrogant and were a criminal people.

The nation of Pharoah did not mend its ways following the decline in agricultural produce and famine caused by the drought. They continued to reject the message of Allah (SWT). They were caught by further divine afflictions in the form of flood, locusts, lice, frogs, and blood. These were clear signs from Allah (SWT) for the disbelievers to submit to Him (SWT) and heed the message of Prophet Moses (AS). However, they were a guilty people and obstinately persisted in their disbelief due to their iniquity and arrogance.

Verse 134

وَلَمَّا وَقَعَ عَلَیْھِمُ الرِّجْزُ قَالُوْا یٰمُوْسَی ادْعُ لَنَا رَبَّکَ بِمَا عَھِدَ عِنْدَکَ ۚ لَئِنْ کَشَفْتَ عَنَّا الرِّجْزَ لَنُؤْمِنَنَّ لَکَ وَلَنُرْسِلَنَّ مَعَکَ بَنِیْٓ اِسْرَاۗئِیْلَ (۱۳۴)

And when the punishment descended upon them, they said, "O Moses, invoke for us your Lord by what He has promised you. If you [can] remove the punishment from us, we will surely believe you, and we will send with you the Children of Israel."

The verse elucidates that whenever hit by the plague, the arrogance of the nation of Pharoah turned into a pleading for respite. Whenever they were caught by afflictions, they would come begging to Prophet Moses(AS) and beseech him(AS) to call upon his(AS) Lord(SWT), based on the covenant that he (AS) had with Him (SWT), to remove the tribulation and provide them salvation. They vowed to let the Bani Israel leave with Prophet Moses (AS) if he (AS) would help them get deliverance from the affliction. It indicates that deep in their hearts, Pharoah, his courtiers and chieftains, and the rest of his nation believed that Prophet Moses(AS) was indeed the messenger of Allah (SWT).

Verse135

فَلَمَّا کَشَفْنَا عَنْھُمُ الرِّجْزَ اِلٰٓی اَجَلٍ ھُمْ بٰلِغُوْہُ اِذَا ھُمْ یَنْکُثُوْنَ(۱۳۵)

But when We removed the punishment from them until a term which they were to reach, then at once they broke their word.

However, as soon as Allah (SWT) removed their affliction, they broke their covenant with Allah (SWT) and his messenger Moses (AS). They would refuse to honour their commitment and return to their deviant ways. The verse also shows that Allah (SWT) gave the nation of Pharoah respite, time and again, and they broke their promise on every occasion. Once they would go back on their word, they would be caught by another affliction. They were given many opportunities to get redemption, yet they continued to transgress and were caught by the final affliction that cut off their roots.

Verse 136

فَانْتَقَمْنَا مِنْھُمْ فَاَغْرَقْنٰھُمْ فِی الْیَمِّ بِاَنَّھُمْ کَذَّبُوْا بِاٰیٰتِنَا وَکَانُوْا عَنْھَا غٰفِلِیْنَ(۱۳۶)

So We took retribution from them, and We drowned them in the sea because they denied Our signs and were heedless of them.

Allah (SWT) took retribution from the nation of Pharoah. Prophet Moses (AS) led his people out of Egypt, on Allah’s (SWT) command and the forces of Pharoah followed them to the sea. The entire army and the nation of Pharoah were drowned. Allah (SWT) saved Prophet Moses (AS) and his (AS) people. Hence, those who rejected Allah (SWT) and His (SWT) messenger Moses (AS) the ones who were iniquitous, who obstinately rejected Allah’s (SWT) signs, who were the transgressors and who paid no attention to the message of Allah (SWT) and His (SWT) messenger Moses (AS ), were drowned and their roots cut off.

Verse 137

وَاَوْرَثْنَا الْقَوْمَ الَّذِیْنَ کَانُوْا یُسْتَضْعَفُوْنَ مَشَارِقَ الْاَرْضِ وَمَغَارِبَھَا الَّتِیْ بٰرَکْنَا فِیْھَا ۭوَ تَمَّتْ کَلِمَتُ رَبِّکَ الْحُسْنٰی عَلٰی بَنِیْٓ اِسْرَاۗئِیْلَ ڏ بِمَا صَبَرُوْا ۭوَدَمَّرْنَا مَا کَانَ یَصْنَعُ فِرْعَوْنُ وَقَوْمُہٗ وَمَا کَانُوْا یَعْرِشُوْنَ(۱۳۷)

And We caused the people who had been oppressed to inherit the eastern regions of the land and the western ones, which We had blessed. And the good word [i.e., decree] of your Lord was fulfilled for the Children of Israel because of what they had patiently endured. And We destroyed [all] that Pharaoh and his people were producing and what they had been building.

The Bani Israel had been oppressed in Egypt probably for hundreds of years. They endured the oppression with great patience. They followed Prophet Moses (AS) with perseverance. Ultimately, when the decreed time arrived, the entire army and the nation of Pharoah were drowned and their roots were cut off. Allah (SWT) granted the Children of Israel the promised deliverance from the tyranny of Pharoah. The East and the West of the land in this verse refer to the blessed land of Palestine (The Holy Land or Al-Ard Al Muqaddas). The Israelites were made the inheritors of Palestine. The evidence in the Qur’an and Ahadith as well as historical and archaeological accounts show that the Bani Israel were eventually able to enter as victors in the Holy Land, years after the death of Prophet Moses (AS) and they established their kingdom in Palestine. As for Egypt, all the grand structures and buildings built by the nation of Pharoah and whatever riches they produced were all destroyed by Allah (SWT).

Verse 138

وَجٰوَزْنَا بِبَنِیْٓ اِسْرَاۗئِیْلَ الْبَحْرَ فَاَتَوْا عَلٰی قَوْمٍ یَّعْکُفُوْنَ عَلٰٓی اَصْنَامٍ لَّھُمْ ۚ قَالُوْا یٰمُوْسَی اجْعَلْ لَّنَآ اِلٰھًا کَمَا لَھُمْ اٰلِھَۃٌ ۭ قَالَ اِنَّکُمْ قَوْمٌ تَجْھَلُوْنَ (۱۳۸)

And We took the Children of Israel across the sea; then they came upon a people intent in devotion to [some] idols of theirs. They [the Children of Israel] said, "O Moses, make for us a god just as they have gods." He said, "Indeed, you are a people behaving ignorantly.

On their way to the Holy Land of Palestine from Egypt, at some point, the Israelites encountered a nation that was involved in idol-worshipping. Passing by these places, the people of Israel, who had been subservient to the Egyptians for a long time and were thus considerably ‘Egyptianized’ in their outlook, felt the desire to indulge in idol worship. This evidently showed the extent to which the Israelites had become degenerated as a result of their slavery in Egypt.

The word ‘‘یَعْکُفُوْنَ’’ in the verse refers to meditation in front of idols. This notion was once explained by Dr. Sarvepalli Radhakrishnan, a renowned Indian philosopher, who also served as the second President of India from 1962 to 1967. Dr. Radhakrishnan was the contemporary of the famous British philosopher and mathematician Bertrand Russel. While Burtand Russel was a logical positivist and denied everything except matter, Dr. Radhakrishnan was one of the most renowned Hindu spiritualists of that age. In his book “The Philosophy of Hinduism”, Dr. Radhakrishnan described his take on the philosophy of the worship of idols. Dr. Radhakrishnan wrote that because it is difficult for people to pray to God directly, as God is unseen, Hindus place some form of visible and palpable object as a deity before them and then pray before that as a “means to approach” God. However, that convoluted ideology holds no water at all. In truth, Dr. Radhakrishnan’s account was nothing more than an apology for idolatry, as the fact remains that those who pray in front of idols made of stone or some other physical and palpable object (or a non-physical deity other than Allah SWT) are, in fact, worshiping these idols, and making them shareholders in the Sovereignty of Allah (SWT). These philosophies are deviant to the core and based on clear transgression and polytheism. They are only practiced by those ignorant of the Truth.

Verse 139

وَجٰوَزْنَا بِبَنِیْٓ اِسْرَاۗئِیْلَ الْبَحْرَ فَاَتَوْا عَلٰی قَوْمٍ یَّعْکُفُوْنَ عَلٰٓی اَصْنَامٍ لَّھُمْ ۚ قَالُوْا یٰمُوْسَی اجْعَلْ لَّنَآ اِلٰھًا کَمَا لَھُمْ اٰلِھَۃٌ ۭ قَالَ اِنَّکُمْ قَوْمٌ تَجْھَلُوْنَ (۱۳۸)

Indeed, those [worshippers] – destroyed is that in which they are [engaged], and worthless is whatever they were doing."

Those who take others as deities besides Allah (SWT) are destined to be destroyed. Their beliefs and their polytheistic deeds are all in vain and they do not have any foundation in Truth.

Verse 140

قَالَ اَغَیْرَ اللہِ اَبْغِیْکُمْ اِلٰھًا وَّھُوَ فَضَّلَکُمْ عَلَی الْعٰلَمِیْنَ (۱۴۰)

He said, "Is it other than Allah I should desire for you as a god while He has preferred you over the worlds?"

Prophet Moses (AS) chided the Children of Israel for their want to transgress and said that how could he desire any deity for worship other than Allah (SWT) for them when it was a clear deviation from the right path. Allah (SWT) had given him (AS) prophethood to call them to the Truth and made the Bani Israel His (SWT)  vicegerents and granted them exaltation over all the nations of the world.

Verse 141

وَاِذْ اَنْجَیْنٰکُمْ مِّنْ اٰلِ فِرْعَوْنَ یَسُوْمُوْنَکُمْ سُوْۗءَ الْعَذَابِ ۚ یُقَتِّلُوْنَ اَبْنَاۗءَکُمْ وَیَسْتَحْیُوْنَ نِسَاۗءَکُمْ ۭ وَفِیْ ذٰلِکُمْ بَلَاۗءٌ مِّنْ رَّبِّکُمْ عَظِیْمٌ(۱۴۱)

And [recall, O Children of Israel], when We saved you from the people of Pharaoh, [who were] afflicting you with the worst torment – killing your sons and keeping your women alive. And in that was a great trial from your Lord.

Prophet Moses (AS) told his (AS)  people, the Children of Israel, to remember how Allah (SWT) had saved them from the oppression and afflictions of the Pharoah. Pharoah had subjected them to the worst form of punishment, by killing their male offspring and keeping their female offspring alive, so that they would never gain power and hence remain in his slavery and keep serving his evil desires. Indeed, it was a great trail from Allah (SWT).

==================================

 

And Allah (SWT) Knows Best!