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Number of wives of Moosa, may Allaah exalt his mention

Question

Assalaamu alaykum. It would be kind of you if you do not refer me to other fatwas. I want to know how many times Prophet Moses, may Allaah exalt his mention, married and how many children he had.

Answer

All perfect praise be to Allaah, The Lord of the worlds. I testify that there is none worthy of worship except Allaah and that Muhammad  sallallaahu  `alayhi  wa  sallam ( may  Allaah exalt his mention ) is His slave and Messenger.

We have not come across any absolute evidence that deals with the issue of the number of Prophet Moosa's (Moses)  may  Allaah  exalt  his  mention wives and children in detail, but it is Islamically confirmed that he married the daughter of the man of Madyan (Midian), as Allaah says when mentioning this story (what means): {He said: Indeed, I wish to wed you one of these, my two daughters, on [the condition] that you serve me for eight years; but if you complete ten, it will be [as a favor] from you. And I do not wish to put you in difficulty. You will find me, if Allaah wills, from among the righteous.} [Quran 28:27]

Some interpreters of the Quran mentioned that this marriage yielded a son; for instance, Tafseer Al-Qurtubi reads, Wahb ibn Munabbih said, 'Moosa asked permission from Shu‘ayb to return to his mother, so he gave him permission and he set out with his wife and his sheep. On their way, a son was born to him in a freezing and snowy night, and he lost his way and his cattle dispersed, and Moosa set fire but the fire did not ignite, then he saw a fire far away on the left-side of the road, and then he said to his wife, 'Stay here; indeed, I have perceived a fire.''

Also, the Tafseer of Muqaatil reads, “Moosa  may  Allaah  exalt  his  mention left his wife and his son in the wilderness between Egypt and Madyan, then he set out with the Message, and his wife settled there in her place for 30 years in the wilderness with her son and her sheep. Then a shepherd passed by and he recognized her while she was sad and crying; so he took her to her father.

However, some interpreters of the Quran mentioned that Moosa  may  Allaah  exalt  his  mention did not leave children; At-Tahreer wat-Tanweer by Ibn ‘Aashoor, reads, “What is meant by the household of Moosa and Haaroon (Aaron) is the family in their home from the children of Haaroon, because Moosa did not leave any children.

Finally, we advise you to avoid such questions that do not benefit you, neither in your religion nor in your worldly matters. You should rather be concerned with what benefits you.

Allaah knows best.

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