The confrontation between Musa and Pharaoh is told repeatedly in the Quran, and the sharpest moment belongs not to Musa but to the magicians. Pharaoh assembles them to out-perform the staff-into-serpent; they see what happens, and they prostrate on the spot, declaring belief in the Lord of Musa and Harun. Pharaoh, humiliated, threatens to cut off their hands and feet on opposite sides and crucify them on palm trunks. Their answer is that he can only decree for this present life, and that they are returning to their Lord regardless. The Quran gives them the best speech in the passage. It is the tradition's founding scene of conscientious refusal, quoted constantly in modern political sermons across the Arab world and Iran, and it is notable that the converts are professional illusionists who recognise real power because they know exactly how fakery works.