Page 76 - Miracles of the Qur'an

Moses was not the only prophet who lived in the lands of Egypt in the
history of ancient Egypt. The Prophet Joseph had lived in Egypt long before
the time of Moses.
We encounter a certain parallel while reading about the stories of Moses

and Joseph. While addressing the Egyptian ruler at the time of Joseph, the
work "malik" (the King) is used in the Qur'an:

”The King (malik) said, 'Bring him (Joseph) to me straight away! so I
may draw him very close to me.' When he had spoken with him, he
declared, 'Today you are trusted, established in our sight.'„

(The Qur'an, 12:54)

In contrast, the ruler at Moses' time is referred to as the "Pharaoh":

”We gave Moses nine Clear Signs. Ask the tribe of Israel about
when he came to them and Pharaoh said to him, 'Moses, I think
you are bewitched.'„

(The Qur'an, 17:101)

Historical records available today show us the reason for the different
nomenclature of these rulers. The word "pharaoh" was originally the name
given to the royal palace in ancient Egypt. The rulers of the old dynasty did not
use the title. The use of the word pharaoh as the title of the ruler did not start
until the "New Kingdom" era of Egyptian history. This period started with the
18th dynasty (1539-1292 BC), and by the 20th dynasty (945-730 BC) the word

"pharaoh" was adopted as title of respect.
Therefore the miraculous nature of the Qur'an is manifested here once
again: Joseph lived at the time of the Old Kingdom, and hence the word
"malik" was used for the Egyptian ruler rather than "pharaoh". On the contrary,
since Moses lived at the time of the New Kingdom, the ruler of Egypt is
addressed as "pharaoh".

76 Miracles of the Qur'an