Tafheem ul Quran

Surah 43 Az-Zukhruf, Ayat 52-52

اَمۡ اَنَا خَيۡرٌ مِّنۡ هٰذَا الَّذِىۡ هُوَ مَهِيۡنٌ ۙ وَّلَا يَكَادُ يُبِيۡنُ‏  ﴿43:52﴾

(43:52) Am I better or this contemptible man47 who is scarcely able to express himself?48


Notes

47. Who is despicable: the person who has neither wealth, nor power, nor authority. This same objection had been raised by the disbelieving Quraish against the Prophet Muhammad (peace be upon him).

48. Some commentators have expressed the opinion that Pharaoh referred to the impediment of speech from which the Prophet Moses (peace be upon him) suffered since childhood. But this is not a correct opinion. As has been mentioned in Surah TaHa above, when the Prophet Moses (peace be upon him) was being appointed to Prophethood, he had implored Allah Almighty to remove the defect from his tongue so that the people might understand his speech and at that very time his request had also been granted along with his other requests (verse 27-36). Moreover, orations of the Prophet Moses (peace be upon him) that have been cited at different places in the Quran, point to his perfect eloquence and fluency. Therefore, the basis of Pharaoh’s objection was not any impediment of speech from which Moses (peace be upon him) might be suffering but what he meant was: This person talks confusedly, at least I have never been able to understand what he says.