Lesson 13: The Final Days of Musa

Imam Bukhari reported on the authority of Abu Hurayrah, who said:

“The angel of death was sent to Musa. When he came to him, Musa punched him. So the angel went back to his Lord, and said, ‘You sent me to a slave who does not want to die.’ Allah said, ‘Go back to him and tell him to put his hand on the back of an ox and whatever his hand touches the hair of that ox, he will be granted a year for every hair.’ Musa said, ‘O my Lord, then what will happen?’ He replied, ‘Death.’ So Musa said, ‘Then now.’ Then Musa asked Allah to make him die near the Holy Land (Jerusalem), at a distance of a stone throw from it.”

In another narration Imam Ahmad reported on the authority of Abu Hurayrah that,

“The angel of death came to Musa to take his soul. He said to Musa, ‘Obey to your Lord.’ But Musa slapped him and blinded the eye of the angel of death. So he returned to Allah and said, ‘Verily, You sent me to a slave of Yours who does not want to die. He slapped me and blinded me.’ Then Allah made his eye normal again and said, ‘Return to My slave and ask him, ‘Do you want to live? If you want to live, then place your hand on the back of an Ox and the number of hair your hand touches on its back, you will live that many more years.’ So Musa asked, ‘Then what after those years?’ He said, ‘Death.’ At that, Musa said, ‘Then now, O my Lord, I want death.”

But Musa had only hit the angel of death because he had come to him in the form of a man so he didn't know that this was an angel sent by Allah and he thought this was simply an intruder.

Ibn Hibban narrated on the authority of Abu Hurayrah that the Messenger of Allah ﷺ said:

“When the angel of death went to Musa, he did not know it was the angel of death, since he did not come in his normal form by which Musa may have recognized him as an angel. This is similar to how Jibreel once came in the form of a Bedouin and the angels went to Prophets Ibrahim and Lut as young men. Neither of them recognized the angels for the first time. Similarly, Musa did not recognize him, slapped him and blinded him, as the angel had entered his house without his permission. This is in accordance with our Shariah, wherein we are allowed to do this to someone who looks into our house without our permission.”

It is quite possible that Musa did not recognize him and thus slapped him since he was expecting to carry out many tasks before his death, such as taking the Israelites out of their wandering and to make them enter the Holy Land. However, it was decreed by Allah that Musa will die, after Harun, leaving the children of Israel in their state of wandering.

Some scholars claim that it was Musa who took Israelites out of their wandering and entered the Holy Land with them. However, this is against the opinion of the people of earlier Scriptures and also against what the majority of Muslims hold as true.

Summary of Lesson

This lesson you have learnt that:

Musa was visited by the angel of death.

Musa did not recognize him because he came in the form of a man.

Musa then accepted death when he was told that death would come after the extra years anyway.

Musa asked Allah to let him die near the Holy Land.

Musa died before Bani Israel entered the Holy Land.

Key Lessons

The angels can come in the form of men - Musa did not recognize the angel of death because he came in the form of a man. This is similar to Jibreel and the angels who came to Ibrahim and Lut .

Musa only struck him because he thought he was an intruder - this shows that Musa did not knowingly strike an angel sent by Allah, rather he reacted to someone entering upon him in the form of a man.

Death is inevitable - when Musa was told that even after extra years there would still be death, he chose to meet his Lord then rather than delay what was certain.