'In the name of Allah, the Most Gracious, the Most Merciful' He, the Exalted and Majestic, said: "So We revealed to Musa, 'Strike with your staff the sea.' Then it split, and each part was like a great mountain." "And We brought near there the others." "And We saved Musa and those with him all together." "Then We drowned the others." "Indeed, in that is a sign, and most of them were not believers." "And indeed, your Lord is the Exalted in Might, the Merciful." When the calamity became great upon the Children of Israel, Allah, Blessed and Exalted, commanded Musa, peace be upon him, to strike the sea with his staff. This was because He, the Exalted and Majestic, wanted the sign to be connected to Musa, peace be upon him, and related to an action he performed. Otherwise, striking the staff is not what splits the sea, nor does it help in that by itself, except by what is associated with it from the power of Allah, the Exalted and Majestic, and His creation. When it split, there became twelve paths in it, corresponding to the number of the tribes of the Children of Israel, and the water stood still like a great mountain. And 'the mountain' means 'the great mountain.' It has been narrated from Ibn Jurayj, Al-Suddi, and others that each group of the Children of Israel thought that the other had drowned. So Allah, the Exalted and Majestic, commanded the water to become like walls, and they saw one another and took comfort. "And We brought near" means: We drew near. It was read with a qaf, and Abu Al-Fath attributed it to Abdullah ibn Al-Harith. Al-Hasan and Abu Haywah read: "And We drew near" without an alif. This is because when Pharaoh, may Allah curse him, reached the sea and the Children of Israel had entered it, it was said: He became obstinate and said to his people, 'The sea split by my command,' and he entered upon that. It was said: Rather, he hesitated and intended to turn back, when Jibril, peace be upon him, appeared to him on a horse and a donkey. So he followed it, and Pharaoh's horse followed after it, and he entered in this manner, and the people followed him. It has been narrated that Allah, the Exalted and Majestic, made angels drive his people until they caught up with them in the sea. Then Musa, peace be upon him, and his people exited to the land from those paths. When they felt the pursuit of Pharaoh and his people, they were frightened that he would come after them, so Musa, peace be upon him, intended to mix the sea. At that time, it was said to him: "And leave the sea still." [Al-Dukhan: 24] When Pharaoh's army was complete, and he was leading them out, the sea closed upon them, and they drowned. Musa, peace be upon him, entered the sea sideways and exited on the bank from which he entered after a distance. This occurred on the day of Ashura. Al-Naqqash said: The sea that split for Musa, peace be upon him, is the Nile River. Qadi Abu Muhammad, may Allah have mercy on him, said: This is rejected, if Allah wills. And His saying, the Exalted, "Indeed, in that is a sign" is an indication of the place of reflection. And His saying, "And indeed, your Lord is the Exalted in Might, the Merciful" means: He is Exalted in His punishment against the disbelievers, and He is Merciful to the believers of the nation. Much has been mentioned of what is necessary from the story of Musa, peace be upon him.