Musa (AS) in Madian

Musa (AS) walked and walked out of fear that he was being chased. He had no camel or anything to ride, nor did he have any food or water. Eventually, after maybe a week of walking, he reached the land of Madian, the nearest populated land to Egypt. There he found a watering hole where a number of shepherds were watering their flocks.

All of a sudden, he noticed two sisters standing a little distance behind the shepherds. They also had a flock that they needed to water, but they were waiting for the men to finish. Musa (AS) approached them and asked them what they were doing, as it was unusual for women to be watering flocks as this was usually a man’s job.

The older sister of the two replied that they needed to water their flock but could not until the men had finished. She explained that their father was a very old man who could not go outside because of his health, and that’s why they were doing the shepherding.

When Musa (AS) heard this, he took the flock and watered the sheep himself, before returning them to the sisters. Then he walked away and sat under the shade of a tree to rest. He knew no one, he was a hunted man, he was in a strange land, he had no money and was both hungry and thirsty. The situation was desperate. While he sat, Musa (AS) turned to Allah, the only One who could help him in his situation, and made du’a. He himself didn’t know what he needed, but he knew that Allah knew better than him and so his request was simple, ‘O Allah, I am in need of whatever good you give me.’

Soon after this du’a, one of the two sisters returned. When their father had heard about what Musa (AS) had done for them, he was very pleased and wanted to call Musa (AS) back to his house to reward him. So the woman approached Musa (AS) and gave him the invite from her father. When Musa (AS) heard that their father wanted to invite him back home, he realised this was the help from Allah, and he accepted it. Out of modesty, he told the woman to walk behind him and direct him from there so his eyes wouldn’t be on her while he walked.

Musa (AS) arrived at the home and told his story to the father of the two women. Some scholars even say that the father was prophet Shuaib (AS) himself, who was the prophet of Madian, but this is not something we know in the Quran. When the father saw the modesty and honesty of Musa (AS), he invited him to stay. One of his daughters also advised him to hire Musa (AS) because of how strong and trustworthy he was. So the father made a deal with Musa (AS): if he worked for him for 8 years he would marry one of his daughters to him. But if Musa (AS) completed the 10 years, it would be a favour from him. Musa (AS) accepted these terms and remained in Madian as a shepherd for the next 10 years.