247 – ʿAbd Allah narrated to us; he said: ʿUbayd Allah ibn Saʿd narrated to us; he said: my uncle narrated to us; he said: my father narrated to us, from Abu Ishaq; he said: Muhammad ibn Kaʿb al-Qurazi narrated to me, from ʿAbd Allah ibn Shaddad ibn al-Had, who said:

“I was informed that when the Children of Israel had all gone in and not one of them was left behind, Pharaoh approached, mounted on a stallion of his that had come down from the hillside, until he halted at the very brink of the sea while it still stood parted. The horse was afraid to move forward. Then Gabriel, peace be upon him, appeared on a slender mare; he brought her close, and the stallion sniffed her. Once he had done so, he followed her, and the horse advanced with her while Pharaoh remained mounted upon it. When Pharaoh’s troops saw that he had entered, they entered along with him.

Gabriel, peace be upon him, rode in front with Pharaoh following, while Michael was on a horse behind the people, urging them on and calling out, “Catch up!” ⦗167⦘ When Gabriel had reached the other shore of the sea with no one beside him, and Michael had halted on the opposite side with no one behind him, the sea closed in upon them. Pharaoh cried out—when he witnessed the dominion and power of Allah what he witnessed—‘I believe that there is no deity but the One in whom the Children of Israel have believed, and I am of those who submit!’ (Yunus 10:90).

Allah, majestic and exalted, said: ‘Now?—when you had disobeyed before and were of the corrupters? Today We shall save you in your body so that you may be a sign for those who come after you.’ (Yunus 10:92) That is: an object lesson and a clear proof that you were not what you claimed for yourself.

It used to be said: Had Allah, exalted be He, not brought out his body so that the people could recognize him, some would have doubted whether it was really he.”