36 Preface وَقالَ فِرعَونُ يا هامانُ ابنِ لي صَرحًا لَعَلّي أَبلُغُ الأَسبابَYusuf AliPharaoh said: “O Haman! Build me a lofty palace,1 that I may attain the ways and means-Cf. 28:38, and n. 3371. There are two points to be noted here. (1) Pharaoh, in the arrogance of his materialism, thinks of the Kingdom of Heaven like a kingdom on earth; he thinks of spiritual things in terms of palaces and ladders: notice that the word asbab (ways and means) is emphasised by repetition. (2) His sarcasm turns Moses and God to ridicule. Really he does not believe in anything spiritual, and he frankly states that 'for his part he thinks Moses is a liar', though other men less lofty than he (Pharaoh) may be deceived by the Clear Signs of Moses.