Verse 52
Ta-Ha • makkah
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Commentary:
Moses’s reply to Pharaoh’s query contained in the previous verse seemed to have entirely confounded him (Pharaoh), so he adroitly turned away from the subject which he himself started and presented Moses with a new question. He asked Moses whether his God knew anything about the former generations who were dead and gone, meaning how they would fare when they had not had the benefit of receiving guidance from him (Moses). Thus, in a subtle manner Pharaoh sought to incite his people against Moses by making an oblique hint that he (Moses) regarded their forefathers as bereft of heavenly guidance and therefore deserving of Divine punishment.
Moses’s reply to Pharaoh’s query contained in the previous verse seemed to have entirely confounded the latter, so he adroitly turned away from the subject which he himself had started and put Moses a new question, asking him whether his God knew anything about the former generations who were dead and gone, meaning how they would fare when they had not had the benefit of receiving guidance from him (Moses). Thus in a subtle manner Pharaoh sought to incite his people against Moses by making an oblique hint that he (Moses) had insinuated that their forefathers were bereft of heavenly guidance and, therefore, were deserving of Divine punishment.