Moses (Arabic موسى Musa ) (1526BC - 1406BC)is considered a prophet in Islam(Quran 20:13). According to the Muslim creed, all Muslims must have faith in all Prophets and Messengers mentioned in the Qur'an, which includes Moses. Moses is often referred to by the title Kalim Allah meaning "He who spoke with God." The Qur'an mentions him more frequently than any other prophet . It is traditionally believed that Moses lived to the age of 120 years.

Early years

According to Islamic tradition, Moses was born into a family of Israelites living in Egypt. The ruling Pharaoh, on the advice of his soothsayers, ordered the killing of all new-born Israelite males. To protect her son, Moses' mother put him in a basket and set him adrift on the Nile. He was discovered by the Pharaoh's wife, Asiya, who adopted him.

Moses grew up as a member of the Pharaoh's household. However, this changed when, in rescuing an Israelite from an abusive Egyptian, he accidentally killed the Egyptian. As a result of this incident, Moses was deemed a criminal and was to be punished, but escaped into the desert. After traveling in the desert for a long time, he arrived at a place called Midian and came into the company of a man, possibly the prophet Shoaib (Jethro, in Biblical traditions), who recognized Moses as a man of God. Shoaib arranged a marriage between Moses and his daughter Safoorah (Zipporah in Biblical and Hebrew tradition) and then Moses worked for him for either eight or ten years.