Cairo, Asharq Al-Awsat- Even though I have written extensively on religious narratives and what has been stated in the Torah and in the Noble Quran regarding history, Pharaonic antiquities, and the Prophets of God who visited or lived in Egypt, this topic is still very interesting and exciting and warrants more research and deliberation.

We are still unsure about the identity of the Pharaoh of the Exodus who declared himself an enemy to Moses and his people, and fought them until they fled the country, even though ‘Moses’ is a typical Egyptian name meaning ‘infant’ and it is likely that the Pharaoh’s wife herself was the one who gave him this name after she saw him being carried by the eternal Nile river.

There is also the story of Prophet Joseph (may peace be upon him) and the age in which he lived. In the Quran the ruler of Egypt is referred to as the “king” [al Malik] in the story of Joseph whilst he is referred to as “Pharaoh” when it talks about Moses and his people. The miracle here is that Egyptian antiquities have shown us that the title ‘nswt’ meaning king, was the title given to the king of Egypt before the modern state, whilst the title became ‘pr-’3’ which later became ‘Fir’oun’ in Arabic.

The choice of the East as the place where monotheistic religions were revealed came about as a result of divine wisdom and is linked to the geographical location of this land and its status to God. Prophets and messengers graced the land of Egypt, which was always held in high esteem by them and this was emphasized in the Quran. On top of this list of prophets and messengers is the father of the prophets, Abraham, known as Friend of Allah [Khalil Allah] who came to Egypt and married there. Since then, the Egyptians entered an alliance through marriage with Prophet Abraham’s offspring such as Ismail, the last of whom was Prophet Mohammed (peace and blessings upon him). Some scientists believe that Prophet Abraham arrived in Egypt in the late 19th century BC when he fled from the land of the Chaldeans to Haran between the two rivers in northern Iraq out of fear of King Zamis, son of Ninus, who wanted to worship idols. Then he moved to Egypt.

Evidence suggests that Prophet Abraham was leading a convoy that was carrying gifts to King Senusret II, the fourth king of the Twelfth Dynasty of Egypt. Some believe that he used to be called ‘Ibsha,’ and I do not share this belief as there is a big difference between ‘Abram’ and ‘Ibsha’.

Joseph, son of Jacob (may peace be upon him), had come to Egypt as a slave and was purchased by a man known as Al Aziz Misr who took him in to his home. The rest of the story is well known and Joseph invited his father and brothers to Egypt to live.

Moses was born and raised in Egypt before he fled to Median after repenting for having killed an Egyptian. After he received the message from heaven, Moses came to Egypt to guide his people after they had spent 210 years suffering at the hands of the Pharaoh and his servants.

Finally, the monotheistic religions narrate that Prophet Jesus came to Egypt as a child with his mother Mary and Joseph the Carpenter, and passed by several areas in Egypt after fleeing the Romans in a journey that came to be known as the ‘journey of the Holy family’. This topic is still being researched by scientists and is preoccupying the minds of researchers and the general public in various parts of the world.