The Holy Quran 7:116 — Surah Al-A'raf

Arabic text

قَالَ أَلْقُوا۟ ۖ فَلَمَّآ أَلْقَوْا۟ سَحَرُوٓا۟ أَعْيُنَ ٱلنَّاسِ وَٱسْتَرْهَبُوهُمْ وَجَآءُو بِسِحْرٍ عَظِيمٍ

Translation

He (Moosa عليه الصلاة والسلام) said, "You throw (first)." When they threw, they mesmerised the people's eyes (made the people think that the ropes and staffs were snakes), frightened them and displayed wonderful magic (a great illusion).

Tafsir (excerpt) — Tafsir Usmani

The beginning of the contest: that is, since you want this very contest and make the final decision depend on it, then you throw first and test your full strength. For the triumph of the truth that will be witnessed after the full display and trial of strength of falsehood will, it is hoped, be more effective and sink deeper into people's souls.

Preview. The full text opens with JavaScript enabled.