Al-Bidayah wa an-Nihayah - Ibn Kathir - (2/119)

Al-Bidayah wa an-NihayahIbn Kathir

from beneath the tunic, leaving the garment in Yūshaʿ’s hands.

When Yūshaʿ returned with the tunic, the Children of Israel seized him and said, “Have you killed the Prophet of Allah?” He replied, “By Allah, I did not kill him; he slipped away from me.” They refused to believe him and resolved to kill him. He said, “If you will not believe me, then postpone the matter for three days.” He supplicated Allah, and every man who had been on guard saw in his sleep that Yūshaʿ had not killed Moses, and that We had raised him up to Us. So they released him. None of those who had refused to enter the city of the giants with Moses remained alive; they all died and did not witness the conquest (1).

Some parts of this account are objectionable and strange; Allah knows best.

We have already mentioned that no one emerged from the wilderness who had been with Moses except Yūshaʿ ibn Nūn and Kālib ibn Yūqnā—Maryam’s husband, the sister of Moses and Aaron. These are the two men referred to earlier who counseled the assembly of the Children of Israel to enter the land.

Wahb ibn Munabbih related that Moses  passed by a group of angels who were digging a grave, the most beautiful, verdant, and delightful he had ever seen. He asked, “O angels of Allah, for whom are you digging this grave?” They replied, “For an honored servant of Allah. If you would like to be that servant, enter this grave, lie down in it, face your Lord, and breathe the easiest of breaths.” He did so, and died—may Allah’s blessings and peace be upon him. The angels then performed the funeral prayer over him and buried him (2).

The People of the Scripture and others state that he died at the age of one hundred and twenty years.

Imām Aḥmad (3) said: Umayyah ibn Khālid and Yūnus told us: Ḥammād ibn Salamah told us, from ʿAmmār ibn Abī ʿAmmār, from Abū Hurayrah, from the Prophet ﷺ—Yūnus said he raised this report to the Prophet ﷺ—who said:

“The Angel of Death used to come to people openly. He came to Moses , and Moses struck him, gouging out his eye. The angel returned to his Lord and said, ‘My Lord, Your servant Moses has gouged out my eye; were it not for the honor in which You hold him, I would have reproached him.’ ” (4)

Yūnus added: “He said, ‘I would have made the matter difficult for him.’ ”

[Allah] said to him: “Go to My servant and tell him to place his hand upon the hide (or skin) of a bull; for every hair that his hand covers he shall be granted one year of life.” The angel went to him and conveyed this. Moses asked, “And after that?” He replied, “Death.” Moses said, “Then let it be now.” So the Angel of Death inhaled near him and seized his soul.

Yūnus added: “Allah restored his eye, and thereafter the angel would come to people unseen.”

Ibn Jarīr (5) likewise narrated it from Abū Kurayb, from Muʿṣab ibn al-Miqdām, from Ḥammād ibn Salamah with the same chain, and he raised it as well (6).

(1) al-Tabari’s History (vol. 1, pp. 432–433). (2) al-Tabari’s History (vol. 1, p. 433). (3) In al-Musnad (vol. 2, p. 533). (4) This reading is found in al-Usul and in Musnad Ahmad as “la‘anniftu bihi,” which is preferable. (5) In his History (vol. 1, p. 434). (6) In this hadith there are two issues: first, scholars differ on whether it should be considered marfu (attributed to the Prophet) or mawquf (stopped at the Companion); second, the unusual phrase “the Angel of Death used to approach people visibly,” which appears uniquely in the report of Hammad ibn Salama from Ammar ibn Abi Ammar. Each of these narrators has certain criticisms against him, as is well known from their biographical evaluations.

من تحت القميص، وترك القميص في يدي يوشع. فلما جاء يوشع بالقميص أخذته بنو إسرائيل وقالوا: قتلت نبي الله؟ فقال: لا والله ما قتلته ولكنه استل مني. فلم يصدّقوه وأرادوا قتله، قال: فإذا لم تصدقوني فأخّروني ثلاثة أيام، فدعا الله، فأُتي كلّ رجلٍ ممن كان يحرسه في المنام، فأُخبر أن يوشع لم يقتل موسى، وإنّا قد رفعناه إلينا، فتركوه ولم يبق أحد ممن أبى أن يدخل قرية الجبارين مع موسى إلا مات، ولم يشهد الفتح (١) . وفي بعض هذا السياق نكارة وغرابة والله أعلم. وقد قدّمنا أنه لم يخرج أحد من التيه ممن كان مع موسى سوى يوشع بن نون، وكالب بن يوقنا، وهو زوج مريم أخت موسى وهارون، وهما الرجلان المذكوران فيما تقدم، اللذان أشارا على ملأ بني إسرائيل بالدخول عليهم. وذكر وهب بن منبه أن موسى (عليه السلام) مرّ بملأٍ من الملائكة يحفرون قبراً، فلم يَرَ أحسن منه، ولا أنضر، ولا أبهج، فقال: يا ملائكةَ الله لمن تحفرون هذا القبر؟ فقالوا: لعبد من عباد الله كريم، فإن كنت تحب أن تكون هذا العبد فادخل هذا القبر، وتمدد فيه، وتوجّه إلى ربك، وتنفَّس أسهل تنفسٍ، ففعل ذلك فمات صلوات الله وسلامه عليه فَصَلَّتْ عليه الملائكة ودفنوه (٢) . وذكر أهل الكتاب وغيرُهم أنه مات وعمره مئة وعشرون سنةً. وقد قال الإمام أحمد (٣) : حدّثنا أمية بن خالد ويونس قالا: حدّثنا حمّاد بن سلمة، عن عمار بن أبي عمار، عن أبي هريرة، عن النبي ﷺ قال يونس: رفع هذأ الحديث إلى النبي ﷺ قال: "كان مَلَكُ الموتِ يأتي الناسَ عِيانًا، قال: فأتى مُوسَى (عليه السلام) ، فَلَطمَهُ فَفَقَأَ عَيْنَهُ، فأتى رَبَّه فقال: يا رَبّ عَبْدُك مُوسَى فَقَأ عَيْني ولولا كَرامَتُهُ عَلَيْكَ لَعَتِبْتُ عَلَيْه (٤) " . وقال يونس: "لشققتُ عليه" . قال له: "اذْهَب إلى عَبدي، فَقُلْ لَه فَلْيَضَع يَدَه على جلد (أو مسْك) ثور فَلَه بكُل شَعْرَةٍ وَارَتْ يَدُهُ سَنَةٌ، فأتاه فقال له، فقال: ما بعد هذا؟ قال: الموت. قال: فالآن. قال: فشمه شمة فَقَبَضَ رُوْحَه" . قال يونس: فردّ الله عليه عينه، وكان يأتي الناس خفية. وكذا رواه ابن جرير (٥) عن أبي كريب عن مُصعب بن المقدام عن حمّاد بن سلمة، به، فرفعه أيضًا (٦) .

(١) تاريخ الطبري (١/ ٤٣٢ - ٤٣٣). (٢) تاريخ الطبري (١/ ٤٣٣). (٣) في المسند (٢/ ٥٣٣). (٤) هكذا في الأصول، وفي مسند أحمد: "لعَنَّفْتُ به" وهو أحسن. (٥) في تاريخه (١/ ٤٣٤). (٦) في هذا الحديث مقال من وجهين: الأول أنه قد اختلف في رفعه ووقفه، والثاني: نكارة عبارة: "كان ملك الموت يأتي الناس عيانًا" وهي مما تفرد بها حماد بن سلمة عن عمار بن أبي عمار، ولكل من هذين الراويين بعض ما يُستنكر كما هو معروف من ترجمتيهما.