Tarikh (al-Tabari) 215
The story of Moses the one who spoke with Allah (peace and blessings be upon him)
قِصَّةَ بِلْعَامَ بْنِ بَاعُورَاءَ ، الَّذِي قَالَ تَعَالَى فِيهِ: وَاتْلُ عَلَيْهِمْ نَبَأَ الَّذِي آتَيْنَاهُ آيَاتِنَا فَانْسَلَخَ مِنْهَا فَأَتْبَعَهُ الشَّيْطَانُ فَكَانَ مِنَ الْغَاوِينَ وَلَوْ شِئْنَا لَرَفَعْنَاهُ بِهَا وَلَكِنَّهُ أَخْلَدَ إِلَى الْأَرْضِ وَاتَّبَعَ هَوَاهُ فَمَثَلُهُ كَمَثَلِ الْكَلْبِ إِنْ تَحْمِلْ عَلَيْهِ يَلْهَثْ أَوْ تَتْرُكْهُ يَلْهَثْ ذَلِكَ مَثَلُ الْقَوْمِ الَّذِينَ كَذَّبُوا بِآيَاتِنَا فَاقْصُصِ الْقَصَصَ لَعَلَّهُمْ يَتَفَكَّرُونَ سَاءَ مَثَلًا الْقَوْمُ الَّذِينَ كَذَّبُوا بِآيَاتِنَا وَأَنْفُسَهُمْ كَانُوا يَظْلِمُونَ [ الْأَعْرَافِ: 175 - 177 ]. وَأَنَّهُ كَانَ فِيمَا قَالَهُ ابْنُ عَبَّاسٍ، وَغَيْرُهُ، يَعْلَمُ الِاسْمَ الْأَعْظَمَ، وَأَنَّ قَوْمَهُ سَأَلُوهُ أَنْ يَدْعُوَ عَلَى مُوسَى وَقَوْمِهِ، رَوَى مُحَمَّدُ بْنُ إِسْحَاقَ، عَنْ سَالِمِ بْنِ أَبِي النَّضْرِ، أَنَّهُ حَدَّثَ أَنَّ مُوسَى لَمَّا نَزَلَ فِي أَرْضِ كَنْعَانَ مِنْ أَرْضِ الشَّامِ، وَكَانَ بِلْعَامُ بِقَرْيَةٍ مِنْ قُرَى الْبَلْقَاءِ، فَأَتَى قَوْمُ بَلْعَمٍ إِلَى بَلْعَمٍ، فَقَالُوا لَهُ: هَذَا مُوسَى بْنُ عِمْرَانَ فِي بَنِي إِسْرَائِيلَ، قَدْ جَاءَ يُخْرِجُنَا مِنْ بِلَادِنَا وَيَقْتُلُنَا وَيُحِلُّهَا بَنِي إِسْرَائِيلَ وَيَسْكُنُهَا، وَإِنَّا قَوْمُكَ وَلَيْسَ لَنَا مَنْزِلٌ، وَأَنْتَ رَجُلٌ مُجَابُ الدَّعْوَةِ فَادْعُ اللَّهَ عَلَيْهِمْ. فَقَالَ: وَيَلْكُمْ! نَبِيُّ اللَّهِ مَعَهُ الْمَلَائِكَةُ وَالْمُؤْمِنُونَ فَكَيْفَ أَدْعُو عَلَيْهِمْ وَأَنَا أَعْلَمُ مِنَ اللَّهِ [مَا أَعْلَمُ]. قَالُوا: مَا لَنَا مِنْ مَنْزِلٍ، فَلَمْ يَزَالُوا بِهِ يُرَقِّقُونَهُ وَيَتَضَرَّعُونَ إِلَيْهِ حَتَّى فَتَنُوهُ فَافْتَتَنَ فَرَكِبَ حِمَارَهُ مُتَوَجِّهًا إِلَى الْجَبَلِ الَّذِي يُطْلِعُهُ عَلَى عَسْكَرِ بَنِي إِسْرَائِيلَ، فَمَا سَارَ عَلَيْهَا غَيْرَ قَلِيلٍ حَتَّى رَبَضَتْ بِهِ، فَنَزَلَ عَنْهَا فَضَرَبَهَا حَتَّى أَذْلَقَهَا وَأَذِنَ اللَّهُ لَهَا فَكَلَّمَتْهُ، فَقَالَتْ: وَيْحَكَ يَا بَلْعَمُ! أَيْنَ تَذْهَبُ؟! أَلَا تَرَى الْمَلَائِكَةَ أَمَامِي تَرُدُّنِي [عَنْ] وَجْهِي هَذَا، أَتَذْهَبُ إِلَى نَبِيِّ اللَّهِ وَالْمُؤْمِنِينَ تَدْعُو عَلَيْهِمْ! فَلَمْ يَنْزِعْ عَنْهَا يَضْرِبُهَا، فَخَلَّى اللَّهُ سَبِيلَهَا حِينَ فَعَلَ بِهَا ذَلِكَ. فَانْطَلَقَتْ حَتَّى إِذَا أَشْرَفَتْ بِهِ عَلَى عَسْكَرِ مُوسَى وَبَنَى إِسْرَائِيلَ جَعَلَ لَا يَدْعُو لِقَوْمِهِ بِخَيْرٍ إِلَّا صُرِفَ لِسَانُهُ إِلَى بَنِي إِسْرَائِيلَ. قَالَ: فَقَالَ قَوْمُهُ: أَتَدْرِي يَا بَلْعَمُ مَا تَصْنَعُ إِنَّمَا تَدْعُو لَهُمْ وَتَدْعُو عَلَيْنَا، قَالَ: فَهَذَا مَا لَا أَمْلِكُ، هَذَا شَيْءٌ قَدْ غَلَبَ اللَّهُ عَلَيْهِ، فَانْدَلَعَ لِسَانُهُ فَوَقَعَ عَلَى صَدْرِهِ، فَقَالَ لَهُمْ: قَدْ ذَهَبَتِ الْآنَ مِنِّي الدُّنْيَا وَالْآخِرَةُ، فَلَمْ يَبْقَ إِلَّا الْمَكْرُ وَالْحِيلَةُ، فَسَأَحْتَالُ لَكُمْ. جَمِّلُوا النِّسَاءَ وَأَعْطُوهُنَّ السِّلَعَ، ثُمَّ أَرْسَلُوهُنَّ إِلَى الْعَسْكَرِ يَبِعْنَهَا فِيهِ، وَأْمُرُوهُنَّ أَنْ لَا تَمْنَعَ امْرَأَةٌ نَفْسَهَا مِنْ رَجُلٍ أَرَادَهَا، فَإِنَّهُ إِنْ زَنَى رَجُلٌ وَاحِدٌ مِنْهُمْ كُفِيتُمُوهُمْ. فَزَيَّنُوا نِسَاءَهُمْ وَبَعَثُوهُنَّ إِلَى الْمُعَسْكَرِ، فَمَرَّتِ امْرَأَةٌ مِنْهُمُ اسْمُهَا كَسْتَى بِرَجُلٍ مِنْ عُظَمَاءِ بَنِي إِسْرَائِيلَ، وَهُوَ زِمْرِيُّ بْنُ شَلُومَ، يُقَالُ إِنَّهُ كَانَ رَأْسَ سِبْطِ بَنِي شَمْعُونَ بْنِ يَعْقُوبَ. فَدَخَلَ بِهَا قُبَّتَهُ، فَلَمَّا خَلَا بِهَا أَرْسَلَ اللَّهُ الطَّاعُونَ عَلَى بَنِي إِسْرَائِيلَ، فَجَعَلَ يَجُوسُ فِيهِمْ، فَلَمَّا بَلَغَ الْخَبَرُ إِلَى فِنْحَاصَ بْنِ الْعَيْزَارِ بْنِ هَارُونَ، أَخَذَ حَرْبَتَهُ، وَكَانَتْ مِنْ حَدِيدٍ فَدَخَلَ عَلَيْهِمَا الْقُبَّةَ، فَانْتَظَمَهُمَا جَمِيعًا فِيهَا، ثُمَّ خَرَجَ بِهِمَا عَلَى النَّاسِ وَالْحَرْبَةِ فِي يَدِهِ، وَقَدِ اعْتَمَدَ عَلَى خَاصِرَتِهِ وَأَسْنَدَهَا إِلَى لِحْيَتِهِ، وَرَفْعَهُمَا نَحْوَ السَّمَاءِ وَجَعَلَ يَقُولُ: اللَّهُمَّ هَكَذَا نَفْعَلُ بِمَنْ يَعْصِيكَ. وَرَفَعَ الطَّاعُونَ، فَكَانَ جُمْلَةُ مَنْ مَاتَ فِي تِلْكَ السَّاعَةِ سَبْعِينَ أَلْفًا، وَالْمُقَلِّلُ يَقُولُ: عِشْرِينَ أَلْفًا. وَكَانَ فِنْحَاصُ بِكْرَ أَبِيهِ الْعَيْزَارِ بْنِ هَارُونَ، فَلِهَذَا يَجْعَلُ بَنُو إِسْرَائِيلَ لِوَلَدِ فِنْحَاصَ مِنَ الذَّبِيحَةِ الْقِبَةَ وَالذِّرَاعَ وَاللَّحْيَ، وَلَهُمُ الْبِكْرُ مِنْ كُلِّ أَمْوَالِهِمْ وَأَنْفُسِهِمْ. وَقَدْ قِيلَ: إِنَّ بِلْعَامَ لَمَّا دَعَا عَلَى قَوْمِ مُوسَى تَاهُوا، وَإِنَّ مُوسَى دَعَا عَلَيْهِ ثُمَّ حَارَبَ أَهْلَ بَلَدِهِ بَعْدَ خُرُوجِهِ مِنَ التِّيهِ، فَأَسَرَهُ وَقَتَلَهُ، وَحَارَبَ الْكَنْعَانِيِّينَ، وَقَتَلَ عُوجَ، وَحَارَبَ مُوسَى الْيُونَانِيِّينَ وَالْمَدْيَانِيِّينَ وَالْأُمَمَ الْكَافِرَةَ.
Translation
✧ The story of Bilʿām b. Bāʿūrāʾ, about whom Allah Almighty said: “And recite to them the news of the one to whom We gave Our signs, but he detached himself from them; so Satan pursued him, and he became of the deviators. And if We had willed, We could have elevated him thereby, but he adhered to the earth and followed his desire. His example is like that of the dog: if you drive it away, it pants, or if you leave it, it pants. That is the example of the people who denied Our signs. So relate the stories that perhaps they will reflect. Evil is the example of the people who denied Our signs and were wronging themselves.” [al-Aʿrāf: 175–177]. And according to what Ibn ʿAbbās and others said, he knew the Greatest Name, and his people asked him to invoke against Moses and his people. Muḥammad b. Isḥāq narrated from Sālim b. Abī al-Naḍr that he related that when Moses encamped in the land of Canaan in Syria, Bilʿām was in a village of al-Balqāʾ. Bilʿām’s people came to Bilʿām and said to him: “This is Moses b. ʿImrān among the Children of Israel; he has come to expel us from our lands, kill us, and settle the Children of Israel in them and have them dwell there. We are your people and we have no dwelling, and you are a man whose supplication is answered, so invoke Allah against them.” He said: “Woe to you! He is a prophet of Allah, with him are the angels and the believers, so how can I invoke against them when I know from Allah what I know?” They said: “We have no dwelling.” They kept softening him and entreating him until they tempted him, and he was tempted. He mounted his donkey, heading toward the mountain that would overlook the camp of the Children of Israel. He had traveled only a little on it before it lay down with him. He dismounted and beat it until he exhausted it, and Allah gave it permission to speak, and it said: “Woe to you, Bilʿām! Where are you going? Do you not see the angels in front of me, turning me back from this direction of mine? Will you go to the prophet of Allah and the believers to invoke against them?” He did not desist from beating it, so Allah let it proceed when he had done that to it. It went on until it brought him overlooking the camp of Moses and the Children of Israel, and he began not to invoke good for his people except that his tongue was turned to the Children of Israel. He said: His people said: “Do you know, Bilʿām, what you are doing? You are only invoking for them and invoking against us.” He said: “This is what I do not control; this is something Allah has prevailed over.” His tongue lolled out and fell upon his chest, and he said to them: “Now the world and the hereafter have gone from me; nothing remains but cunning and stratagem, so I will devise a stratagem for you. Adorn the women, give them goods, then send them to the camp to sell them there, and command them that no woman should withhold herself from any man who wants her, for if one man among them commits fornication, you will be spared of them.” So they adorned their women and sent them to the camp. One of their women named Kastā passed by a man of the notables of the Children of Israel, who was Zimrī b. Shalūm. It is said that he was the head of the tribe of the sons of Simeon b. Jacob. He entered his tent with her, and when he was alone with her, Allah sent the plague upon the Children of Israel, and it began to sweep through them. When the news reached Phinehas b. Eleazar b. Aaron, he took his spear, which was of iron, entered the tent upon them both, and impaled them both together with it. Then he brought them out to the people with the spear in his hand, leaning it against his waist and supporting it against his beard, raising them toward the sky and saying: “O Allah, thus do we do to those who disobey You.” The plague was lifted. The total number of those who died at that hour was seventy thousand, and the one who minimizes says: twenty thousand. Phinehas was the firstborn of his father Eleazar b. Aaron, and for this reason the Children of Israel give to the descendants of Phinehas from the sacrifice the breast, the foreleg, and the jaw, and to them belongs the firstborn of all their wealth and their persons. It has also been said that when Bilʿām invoked against the people of Moses, they wandered, and that Moses invoked against him, then fought the people of his land after his departure from the wandering, captured him, and killed him, and fought the Canaanites and killed Og, and Moses fought the Greeks, the Midianites, and the disbelieving nations.
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