Al-Qur'an Surah Taha Verse 66

Mufti Taqi Usmani

He said, “Rather, you throw.” Then, suddenly their ropes and sticks seemed to him, due to their magic, as if they were running.

Dr. Mustafa Khattab, the Clear Quran

Moses responded, “No, you go first.” And suddenly their ropes and staffs appeared to him—by their magic—to be slithering.

Ruwwad Translation Center

He said, “No; you throw first.” Suddenly their ropes and staffs appeared to him, owing to their magic, as if they were slithering.

A. J. Arberry

'No,' said Moses. 'Do you cast!' And lo, it seemed to him, by their sorcery, their ropes and their staffs were sliding;

Abdul Haleem

‘You throw,’ said Moses, and––lo and behold!––through their sorcery, their ropes and staffs seemed to him to be moving.

Abdul Majid Daryabadi

He said: nay, cast ye down. And lo! their cords and their staves were made to appear to him by their magic as though they were running.

Abdullah Yusuf Ali

He said, "Nay, throw ye first!" Then behold their ropes and their rods-so it seemed to him on account of their magic - began to be in lively motion!

Abul Ala Maududi

Moses replied: "No, let it be you to throw first." Then suddenly it appeared to Moses, owing to their magic, as if their ropes and staffs were running.

Ahmed Ali

Moses said: "No. You cast it first" Then it seemed to Moses that by their magic their cords and rods were flying;

Ahmed Raza Khan

He said, “Rather, you may throw”; thereupon their cords and their staves, by the strength of their magic, appeared to him as if they were (serpents) moving fast.

Ali Quli Qarai

He said, ‘No, you throw first.’ Thereupon, behold, their ropes and staffs appeared to him by their magic to wriggle swiftly.

Ali Ünal

He said: "No, you throw first!" And there and then, by their sorcery, their ropes and their staffs seemed to him to be slithering.

Amatul Rahman Omar

(Moses) said, `Nay, you present first what you have.´ (Accordingly they were the first to present. No sooner did they present them) lo! their cords and their staves, appeared to him (- Moses) by their trickstery only as though they ran about.

English Literal

He said: "Rather you throw ." So then their ropes/ties and their sticks/canes is imagined/believed to him from their magic/sorcery that it hastens/moves quickly .

Faridul Haque

He said, "Rather, you may throw"; thereupon their cords and their staves, by the strength of their magic, appeared to him as if they were (serpents) moving fast.

Hamid S. Aziz

Said they, "O Moses! Either you must throw first, or let us throw first."

Hilali & Khan

[Musa (Moses)] said: "Nay, throw you (first)!" Then behold, their ropes and their sticks, by their magic, appeared to him as though they moved fast.

Maulana Mohammad Ali

They said: O Moses, wilt thou cast, or shall we be the first to cast down?

Mohammad Habib Shakir

He said: Nay! cast down. then lo! their cords and their rods-- it was imaged to him on account of their magic as if they were running.

Mohammed Marmaduke William Pickthall

He said: Nay, do ye throw! Then lo! their cords and their staves, by their magic, appeared to him as though they ran.

Muhammad Sarwar

Moses said, "You throw first." When they did, their ropes and staffs through their magic seemed to be moving.

Qaribullah & Darwish

Moses replied: 'No, you throw first' And by their sorcery it seemed to him that their ropes and staffs were sliding.

Safi-ur-Rahman al-Mubarakpuri

[Musa] said: "Nay, throw you (first)!" Then behold! their ropes and their sticks, by their magic, appeared to him as though they moved fast.

Wahiduddin Khan

Moses said, "You throw down first." Suddenly their ropes and staffs appeared to him, by their magic, to be moving about rapidly,

Talal Itani

He said, “You throw.” And suddenly, their ropes and sticks appeared to him, because of their magic, to be crawling swiftly.

Tafsir jalalayn

He said, `Nay, you cast!', and so they cast, and lo! their ropes and their staffs (`isiyyihim; derives from `iswwun, but the two ww [letters] have been changed into two y' [letters], with the kasra vowelling applied to both the `ayn and the sd) appeared to him by [the effect of] their sorcery as though they were, snakes, gliding swiftly, on their bellies.

Tafseer Ibn Kathir

قَالَ بَلْ أَلْقُوا



"...or we be the first to throw!"

(Musa) said;"Nay, throw you (first)!"

This means, `you magicians should go first so that we can see what magic you are going to perform and so that the true state of their affair will become obvious to the people.'

فَإِذَا حِبَالُهُمْ وَعِصِيُّهُمْ يُخَيَّلُ إِلَيْهِ مِن سِحْرِهِمْ أَنَّهَا تَسْعَى



Then behold! their ropes and their sticks, by their magic, appeared to him as though they moved fast.

In another Ayah it says that when they threw,

وَقَالُواْ بِعِزَّةِ فِرْعَونَ إِنَّا لَنَحْنُ الْغَـلِبُونَ

Then said;"By the might of Fir`awn, it is we who will certainly win!" (26;44)

And Allah, the Exalted, says,

سَحَرُواْ أَعْيُنَ النَّاسِ وَاسْتَرْهَبُوهُمْ وَجَأءُو بِسِحْرٍ عَظِيمٍ

They bewitched the eyes of the people, and struck terror into them, and they displayed a great magic. (7;116)

Here, He says in this Surah,

فَإِذَا حِبَالُهُمْ وَعِصِيُّهُمْ يُخَيَّلُ إِلَيْهِ مِن سِحْرِهِمْ أَنَّهَا تَسْعَى


Then behold! their ropes and their sticks, by their magic, appeared to him as though they moved fast.

They were a large numbered group and each one of them threw a stick and a rope until the valley became full of snakes piled on top of each other.

Concerning Allah's statement,

فَأَوْجَسَ فِي نَفْسِهِ خِيفَةً مُّوسَى