Tafsir of Al-Qasas 28:7

"And We inspired to the mother of Musa." It is said that she is Mahyanah, daughter of Yitsahar son of Levi; it is also said she is Yukhābidh; others say Yarkha, or Yarkhat, and there are other opinions. The apparent meaning is that the inspiration to her was through the sending of an angel. This does not contradict the report by Abu Hayyan regarding the consensus on her not being a prophet, for the angels—peace be upon them—may be sent to non-prophets and speak to them. Qutrub and a group went with this view. Muqatil among them said: The angel sent to her was Jibril, peace be upon him. From Ibn Abbas and Qatadah, it is reported that it was an inspiration (ilham), and the words of the Exalted, "Indeed, We will return him to you and make him [one] of the messengers," do not reject this; indeed, it is more consistent with the first view.

Some said: It was a truthful dream in which his affair—peace be upon him—was described to her, and Allah the Exalted instilled certainty in her heart. It is narrated from al-Jubba’i that she saw this in a dream, so she related it to those she trusted among the scholars of the Children of Israel, who interpreted it for her. It is also said that it was through a prophet of her time informing her.

The apparent view is that this inspiration occurred after the birth, and there are reports that support this. Thus, there is an elliptical phrase in the discourse, and the estimation—and Allah the Exalted knows best—is: "His mother gave birth to Musa during the time of the slaughtering, and she did not know what to do regarding his affair, so We inspired to her, 'Nurse him.'" It is also said it was before the birth, and that the "an" (أن) is either explanatory (tafsīriyyah) or verbal (masdariyyah), meaning: nurse him for as long as you can conceal him. Umar ibn Abd al-Wahid and Umar ibn Abd al-Aziz recited "an-dirḍi'hi" with a kasrah on the nūn after omitting the hamzah, which is irregular, because the regular form would be to transfer its vowel—which is the fathah—to the nūn, as in the recitation of Warsh.

"But when you fear for him" from the spies of Pharaoh and his agents who kill the male children, or from the neighbors and those like them, that they might betray you, "then cast him into the river," meaning the sea, and what is intended is the Nile; it is called a sea, even if [the term] usually predominates for non-fresh water. "And do not fear" for him loss or hardship from his lack of nursing during the nursing age, "and do not grieve" over your separation from him. "Indeed, We will return him to you" soon, such that you will be secure regarding him; the context gestures toward [the meaning of] proximity. It is said that the expression using the active participle denotes the present tense, and this is considered in His, the Glorified's, saying: "and make him [one] of the messengers." The disparity between the two proximities does not matter.

The sentence is a justification for the prohibition against fear and grief. The preference for the nominal sentence and its initiation with the particle of affirmation (inna) is for the purpose of emphasizing the realization of its content; meaning, We will certainly cause his return and his appointment as one of the messengers without fail. Al-Asma'i deemed a woman from the Arabs eloquent when she recited poetry, then said: "After the saying of Allah the Exalted, 'And We inspired to the mother of Musa'..." (the verse), for it possesses eloquence, having combined two commands, two prohibitions, two pieces of information, and two glad tidings.