"'Adi bin Thabit and 'Ata bin As-Sa'ib informed me, from Sa'eed bin Jubair, from Ibn 'Abbas - and one of them mentioned that it was from the Prophet ﷺ - that he mentioned that Jibra'il began shoving clay in the mouth of Fir'awn out of fear that he would say La Ilaha Illallah and Allah would have mercy upon him - or fearing that Allah would have mercy upon him."
عَنِ النَّبِيِّ ﷺ أَنَّهُ ذَكَرَ أَنَّ جِبْرِيلَ ﷺ جَعَلَ يَدُسُّ فِي فِي فِرْعَوْنَ الطِّينَ خَشْيَةَ أَنْ يَقُولَ لاَ إِلَهَ إِلاَّ اللَّهُ فَيَرْحَمَهُ اللَّهُ أَوْ خَشْيَةَ أَنْ يَرْحَمَهُ اللَّهُ