6.8: Legitimacy of Hagar and
Ishmael (Part 2)
Abraham was eighty six years old when Ishmael was born
(Genesis 16:16). When Abraham reached ninety-nine years of
age, Ishmael was thirteen years old and remained the only
son of Abraham. Now, God promises to establish his covenant
with all of Abraham's "seed" without exception:
"And I will establish my covenant between me and thee
and thy seed after thee in their generations for an
everlasting covenant, to be a God unto thee, and to thy seed
after thee. And I will give unto thee, and to thy seed after
thee, the land wherein thou art a stranger, all the land of
Canaan, for an everlasting possession; and I will be their
God.."
Genesis 17:7-8.
God now informs Abraham that his covenant shall be given
through circumcision, so Abraham immediately circumcises
himself and Ishmael, the father of the Arabs (Genesis
17:23), thus establishing God's covenant with Ishmael.
The significance of circumcision was also noted by
Biblical scholars as being not merely an external act:
"This was His own sign and seal that Israel was a
chosen people. Through it a man's life was linked with great
fellowship whose dignity was it's high consciousness that it
must fulfill the purpose of God"
Interpreter's Bible, p. 613
To this day, all Muslims practice circumcision. The "sign
and seal" (Romans 4:11) of the Abrahamic covenant.
We notice that God's covenant was promised to be with
Abraham's "seed." But if we read Genesis 21:13 we will find
that Ishmael is Abraham's "seed":
"And also of the son of the bondwoman...he is thy
seed."
The same arguments can be made for God's covenant with
Abraham
"the Lord made a covenant with Abram, saying, Unto thy
seed have I given this land, from the river of Egypt unto
the great river, the river Euphrates."
Genesis 15:18
As we can see, this covenant was intended to be of the
same generality as God's covenants with Noah (Genesis
9:8-17), and David (2 Samuel 7; 23:5). God's covenant was
intended to be a covenant with those who are obedient to Him
and follow his command, not a covenant that makes a certain
group of people genetically superior and closer to God even
from before their birth, such that they are his "chosen
children," and God's prophethood and message can only come
from their lineage.
When Abraham reached one hundred years of age, God
blessed him with a second son, Isaac (Genesis 21:5). Isaac
was born to him through his first wife, Sarah. The Bible
tells us that because of Sarah's jealousy that Ishmael may
inherit with her own son Isaac (Genesis 21:10), she had
Abraham cast out Hagar and Ishmael and send them to the
wilderness of "Paran" (genesis 21:21). We are told that she
was particularly angry with what she considered to be a
mockery on the part of Ishmael towards her own son Isaac.
This incident is alleged to have occurred after Isaac was
weaned (remember this) as narrated in Genesis 21:8.
Sarah now allegedly ordered Abraham to cast Hagar and
Ishmael out, (apparently, in Abraham's tribe, children who
mock their brothers and sisters are to be thrown out in the
nearest desert along with their mothers) Abraham obeyed
Sarah and cast the "bondwoman" and her son in the desert and
was blessed by God who told him to "hearken unto her
voice." Abraham gave Hagar provisions and water and put
her child "Ishmael" upon her shoulder and left them in the
wilderness of Beer Sheba in Southern Palestine. When they
ran out of water, an angel appeared and conveyed to her the
words of God: "Arise, lift up the lad, and hold him in
thine hand; for I will make him a great nation." God
then showed her a well of water and they drank. Ishmael
dwelt in the wilderness of "Paran" and begat twelve sons one
of whom was called "Kedar." As mentioned in 6.4, the Arabic
form of the word Paran is Faran or
Pharan. It means "two who migrated." It appears that
the place took it's name from Hagar and Ishmael who came
there as two refugees.
We, as Muslims, have a very similar narration of the same
sequence of events in the Qur'an. However, in the Qur'an,
the details differ from the narration of the Old Testament.
Muslims respect Abraham, Sarah, Hagar, Isaac, and Ishmael
(pbut) as very decent, moral and pious people. Muslims
believe that the prophet Abraham (pbuh) received a
revelation from God to take Hagar and her
BABY, Ishmael, to a barren desert in Northern
Arabia (Paran), more specifically to the future location of
Makkah, and to leave them there. When Abraham began to
leave, Hagar called out to him "where are you leaving us?"
After repeating the question three times she asked him "Did
God command you to do this?" Abraham answered "yes." So
Hagar said: "Then He will not forsake us." When Hagar and
her baby ran out of water she began to fear for her baby's
life and took to running back and forth between the two
hills of "Al-Safa" and "Al-Marwa" in search of water.
Meanwhile, God sent an angel who caused water to gush out of
the earth for them. This became the water of the well of
"Zamzam" which the pilgrims of Makkah drink from today. Once
water was found in this place the Bedouins began to settle
there and it became the city of Makkah. Centuries later,
Muhammad (pbuh), the prophet of Islam, was born to the
descendants of Ishmael. The rites of hastening between the
two hills of "Al-Safa" and "Al-Marwa" have been preserved in
the Muslim's yearly pilgrimage to Makkah even to this
day.
The major differences in the Biblical and the Qur'anic
narrations are that the OT claim that Hagar was (originally)
left in Beer Sheba and not Paran as stated by the Muslims,
and that this occurred when Ishmael was not a baby, but a
fully grown teenager.
This Old Testament narration can be found to contain
obvious modifications from the following analysis: According
to the Bible, Abraham was eighty six years old when Ishmael
was born (Genesis 16:16). He was one hundred years old when
Isaac was born (Genesis 21:5). This makes Ishmael fourteen
years older than Isaac. The above expulsion of Ishmael and
his mother is alleged to have occurred after Isaac was
weaned (Genesis 21:8). Muslims wean their children after two
years. Biblical scholars tell us that babies were weaned
about the age of three. This makes Ishmael at least
seventeen years old at the time of the alleged mockery and
expulsion. The profile of Ishmael in Genesis 21:14-19
however, is one of a small baby and not that of a full grown
teenager of seventeen years. Let us study it.
1) According to the New Revised Standard Version of the
Bible which was compiled from manuscripts more ancient than
those of the King James Version of the Bible, the verse of
Genesis 21:14 reads "..putting [it] on her
shoulder, along with the child." Did Abraham put a
seventeen year old boy on Hagar's shoulder? It would be more
logical for him to put Hagar on Ishmael's shoulder if he
were, as claimed, seventeen years old at the time. So
Ishmael must have been a baby at the time.
2) In Genesis 21:15 we read "and she cast the child
under one of the shrubs." Did Hagar "cast" a seventeen
year old teenager under a shrub? This too is consistent with
a baby and not a full-grown teenager.
3) We read in Genesis 21:16 that Hagar sat far away from
Ishmael so as not to see him die before her own eyes. Is
this the profile of a full-grown teenager who should, more
appropriately be worried about his mother or of a helpless
baby?
4) In Genesis 21:17 we read the angel's command to Hagar:
"Arise, lift up the lad, and hold him in thine hand;"
Who would be more capable of lifting the other up, Hagar or
her seventeen year old teenage son? This too is the profile
of a little baby.
5) Throughout this story we are drawn a picture of Hagar
doing this, and Hagar doing that, and Hagar worrying, and
Hagar weeping, and so on while Ishmael sits where he was
"cast," under the shrub. Would a full grown teenager of
seventeen sit under a shrub and wait for his mother and
himself to die while his mother looked for water for him, or
would he have her sit in the shade while he went in search
of water?
6) Even the angel did not address both of them but only
Hagar, the only one who would understand. Once again the
profile of a baby and not a seventeen year old teenager.
7) Ishmael is always referred to as "the child" and "the
lad" in the story. Do people usually refer to seventeen year
old teenagers as "child" and "lad"?
8) In Genesis 21:20 we read that after this
incident, "God was with the lad; and he grew, and dwelt
in the wilderness, and became an archer." Is this a
profile of a fully developed teenager or a child who is
growing up, learning, and developing?
The above analysis clearly exhibits evidence of human
modification to the text of this story. The claim that
Ishmael mocked Isaac and that this had anything to do with
Hagar's journey is an obvious fabrication since Isaac was
not even born yet when this story occurred (Ishmael was
still a baby). The reason for Hagar's journey was not
Sarah's jealousy, Ishmael's mockery, or the racial
superiority of Sarah. It was only the command of God, pure
and simple. In an effort to keep all prophets of God
Israelites, even God himself is alleged to have submitted
to, and even blessed the alleged jealous whims of Sarah.
Further, if such elaborate additions to the story could be
inserted into the text, then how much simpler to change the
original journey to Paran to take a detour into Beer
Sheba.
The Interpreter's Bible compares the texts of
Genesis 21:14-19 with Genesis 16:1-16 and draws the
following conclusion:
"The inclusion in Genesis of both stories so nearly
alike and yet sufficiently different to be inconsistent, is
one of the many instances of the reluctance of the compilers
to sacrifice any of the traditions which has become
established in Israel."
As damaging and conclusive as this proof of the
modification of the Old Testament is, still, it pales to
insignificance before the much more devastating proof of
this same fact to be found in section 2.3.
Someone may now object: well then, the verses stating
Abraham's age must be the ones which have been
(unintentionally) modified. This is a valid theory, however,
the problem with this theory is that first of all, these
numbers were spelled out in letters and not written
using numerals. Second, the transmitters of the Old
Testament (the Jews) claim that every word and
every letter was faithfully
counted and preserved and thus, they can
confidently claim that it would be impossible for
unintentional errors to creep in, even by accident.
We also notice that even in the New Revised Standard
version of the Bible, Genesis 16:16 and 21:5 state the same
ages mentioned above. Is this not proof of the Qur'an's
claim that the previous books of God were tampered with by
the hands of the unscrupulous few?
It now becomes evident that sometime after God sent down
the Old Testament, someone decided that they did not want
the Arab descendants of Ishmael to be included in God's
covenant with Abraham. They wanted it exclusive to the
Jewish branch of his descendants. Therefore, the Old
Testament was "corrected" in order to show that God's intent
was that His covenant be with the Jews only.
Now that we see that the original covenant of God was
with all of the children of Abraham (pbuh) without
exception, then we are left with another question: The Bible
describes in great detail the fulfillment of God's promise
to Abraham through Isaac which was fulfilled in Jacob,
Joseph, Moses, David, Solomon, and Jesus (pbut). But what of
his promise to Abraham through Ishmael? God does not renege
on his promises, so how was it fulfilled? The Bible is, for
the most part, silent about the promise to the Ishmaelites.
Why? Because just as Jesus (pbuh), during the time of the
Old Testament had not yet come and there were only
prophesies of his coming containing unmistakable signs but
no detailed stories of his life, in the same manner, both
the Old and New Testament contain unmistakable prophesies of
Muhammad (pbuh) but no in-depth analyses and stories. The
Interpreter's Bible admits that the Ishmaelites and
other descendants of Abraham were "somehow participating
in the Abrahamic covenant" (page 616). The coming of
Muhammad (pbuh), the descendant of Ishmael, is the
fulfillment of this promise.
Some people will claim that even though Ishmael was
Abraham's "seed," still, "seed" is a lesser designation than
"son," and only Isaac was Abraham's "son." However, the
Bible also bears witness to the fact that Ishmael was
Abraham's "son":
"And Abraham took Ishmael his son."
Genesis 17:23
Not only that, but the Bible tells us that Ishmael
remained the legitimate son of Abraham until even after his
death,
"Then Abraham gave up the ghost, and died in a good
old age, an old man, and full [of years]; and was
gathered to his people. And his sons Isaac and
Ishmael buried him in the cave of Machpelah"
Genesis 25:8-9
So was Ishmael a lesser "son" than Isaac because Isaac's
mother was Abraham's wife while Hagar was not? Once again,
let us read the Bible:
"And Sarai Abram's wife took Hagar her maid...and
gave her to her husband Abram to be his
wife.."
Genesis 16:3
So the Bible also bears witness that Hagar was Abraham's
legitimate wife. In fact, if this were not the case then we
would be labeling prophet Abraham an adulterer. A serious
accusation indeed.
Once the legitimacy of Hagar as Abraham's wife and
Ishmael as his son has been established, now the objection
of many becomes that Isaac was a better and
truer son of Abraham because he was the son of the
free woman not the bondwoman. However, this claim is
not supported by the law of the Old Testament. According to
this law, the first born son was to have double
portions of honor, and even inheritance, and this right
could not be affected by the status of his mother.
"If a man have two wives, one beloved, and another
hated, and they have born him children, [both] the
beloved and the hated; and [if] the firstborn son be
hers that was hated: Then it shall be, when he maketh his
sons to inherit [that] which he hath, [that]
he may not make the son of the beloved firstborn before the
son of the hated, [which is indeed] the firstborn:
But he shall acknowledge the son of the hated [for]
the firstborn, by giving him a double portion of all that he
hath: for he [is] the beginning of his strength; the
right of the firstborn [is] his."
Deuteronomy 21:15-17
In the same Interpreter's Bible we read the
following comment on the above verses:
"However, the law of the first-born had ancient
sanction, and so long as it was accepted justice demanded
that mere favoritism not be allowed to deprive the eldest
son of his rights."
The Dictionary of the Bible says:
"However deeply rooted [polygany] was before
the exile may be seen from the parable of Ezk. 23, which
represents Yahweh as the husband of two wives. The law of Dt
21:15-17 which is parallel to several Mesopotamian laws,
protects the 'hated' wife and her children especially if she
has borne the firstborn son (hated here means less
loved)..."
The Dictionary of the Bible, John McKenzie, S. J.,
Collier books, p. 549
Abraham was eighty six years old (Genesis 16:16) when
Ishmael was born and was one hundred years old (Genesis
21:5), when he was blessed with a second son, Isaac (pbuh).
So Isaac was fourteen years younger than his older brother
Ishmael, the first-born son of Abraham.
It should further be noted here that a similar occurrence
is narrated in the Old Testament regarding a slave girl
named Ruth and a landowner named Boaz (Ruth, chapters 3 and
4). Ruth, a widowed slave girl, was married to Boaz and gave
him a son named Obed. Obed went on to become the founder of
the royal line of Jews who, according to the Old and New
Testament, were the ancestors of both King David and
Jesus Christ peace be upon them both (for example
Matthew 1:5-16). Not only that, but according to the same
Old Testament, Ruth was a Moabitess (Ruth 2:2). Moabite
women, according to the Old Testament, were women used to
lure Israelite men into immorality and the worship of the
pagan god Baal (for a related story, please read section
5.2).
So, if a slave woman of a nation of such ill repute among
the Jews as the Moabites is given legitimacy among the Jews
and can even go on to become the ancestor and mother of
their greatest prophets and leaders and indeed Jesus Christ
(pbuh) himself, then why is a whole branch of prophet
Abraham's children cast off simply because their mother too
was a slave girl?
Further, it is well known that fully six of the tribes of
Israel trace their ancestry through the second wife of Jacob
(Israel), Rachel, and two of his concubines, Bilhah, and
Zilpah. Nowhere in the Bible is it mentioned that these six
tribes are disqualified from God's covenant simply because
their mother was the "second" wife of Jacob or one of his
concubines.
Jacob M. Myers, a professor at the Lutheran Theological
Seminary and a contributor to Interpreter's Dictionary of
the Bible, is a well recognized leading expert on the
Old Testament. In his book Invitation to The Old
Testament (pp. 26) he states the following regarding the
Nuzi laws of marriage of Abraham's (pbuh) time:
"Archaeological discoveries help us to fill in the
details of the biblical narrative and to explain many of the
otherwise obscure references and strange customs that were
commonplace in Abraham's world and time... A Nuzi
marriage contract provides that a childless wife may take a
woman of the country and marry her to her husband to obtain
progeny But she may not drive out the offspring even if she
later has children of her own. The child born of the
handmaid has the same status as the one born to the wife.
That is why, when Sarah wanted to drive out Hagar and
Ishmael, it was quite objectionable to Abraham -because of
the legal custom of the religion from which he came, he was
reluctant to do so. It required a special divine
dispensation to act contrary to that custom." We have
already seen how the "special divine dispensation" was a
forgery.
Further, while Ishmael was the first begotten son of
Abraham, we notice that Obed was the tenth grandson
of Abraham (The Old and New Testament genealogies differ in
the actual names). So, if Obed is given such legitimacy in
the Old Testament as being a legitimate father in their most
royal line, even though he is the son of a bondwoman, then
Ishamel's claim to this legitimacy is much older and more
pronounced.
Once Ishmael has been proven to be a legitimate son of
Abraham and not only equal to Isaac, but according to the
law of the Jews, deserving of double the portion of honor
and inheritance allotted to Isaac, then the final objection
becomes that Isaac was specifically chosen to be the child
of promise. In A Dictionary of Biblical tradition in
English literature, we read:
"St. Augustine, in De civitate Dei (15.2), equates
Ishmael "born in the course of nature," with the flesh and
Isaac, "born in fulfillment of a promise" with the spirit.
For Augustine, Ishmael exists outside the realm of God's
grace; for this reason, and because of their enforced
wanderings in the desert, he associates Ishmael and Hagar
with Cain."
As we have already seen, God's covenant was with the
"seed" of Abraham (pbuh), among whom was Ishmael. Secondly,
there are many verses which specifically single out Ishmael
for God's blessing. After the birth of Ishmael and before
the birth of Isaac, God repeats his promise to Abraham to
bless all the earth through his progeny.
"As for me, behold, my covenant [is] with
thee, and thou shalt be a father of many nations."
Genesis 17:4
Also, "And also of the son of the bondwoman (Hagar)
will I make a nation, because he [is] thy seed.
... I will make him a great nation."
Genesis 21:13
So, not only is Ishmael a legitimate son of Abraham, but
God Almighty promised to bless Ishmael's descendants just as
he would in the future promise to bless Isaac's descendants.
Further, God's covenant of circumcision with Abraham was
fulfilled in Ishmael long before the birth of Isaac.
As has already been demonstrated in chapters one and two,
the Bible has been modified extensively over the ages to the
point that even conservative scholars now admit that it's
ancient copies contain many thousands of "variant readings"
between one-another. Many examples have been presented. As
seen in chapter two, thirty two conservative Biblical
scholars backed by fifty cooperating denominations bore
witness to the "many" and "serious" errors contained in the
current King James Bible. Even the original ancient
manuscripts themselves contain many differences and
conflictions. Whole passages show up in some "ancient
manuscripts" while being completely missing from older ones.
Even geographical locations are changed from one ancient
copy to the next. All Bibles in existence today are
the result of very extensive cutting and pasting from these
various manuscripts with no single ancient copy being the
definitive reference. Even at that, all Bibles in
existence today still contain countless examples of very
serious contradictions of founding Christian doctrine (see
chapter two, and also chapter one).
In the Interpreter's Bible we read:
"Many Israelites did not want a God who would be
equally the God of all nations on the Earth. They did not
want one who would be impartial Holiness. They wanted a God
who would be partial to them. So we read in Deuteronomy of
the demands for a complete extermination of all
non-Israelite people of Palestine (Deuteronomy 7:2) and as
to the carrying out of that injunction read the harsh
sentences of Deuteronomy 20:10-17."
Is it possible, in light of the overwhelming evidence
beginning to come to light of the modification of the Old
Testament, that the transmitters of this book (Genesis) made
certain modifications to favor their own people? We have
already seen the evidence.
Such verses as Genesis 17:21 and Genesis 21:21 do not
exclude Ishmael from God's covenant as some claim. The
example of this is one who says: "I love my parents" and
then a few days later says "I love my mother." Does this
mean that he does not love his father? Since God had already
consecrated his covenant between Abraham and his son Ishmael
years before the birth of Isaac, and Abraham had already
circumcised Ishmael so that he might receive God's covenant,
therefore, it was necessary to reaffirm that Isaac was not
left out of this covenant even though it was established
after the birth of Ishmael but before his own birth.
Many people point to the verse of Genesis 22:2 as proof
that Isaac was the only legitimate son of Abraham. We
read:
"And he (God) said, Take now thy son, thine only
[son] Isaac, whom thou lovest, and get thee into the
land of Moriah; and offer him there for a burnt offering
upon one of the mountains which I will tell thee of."
Genesis 22:2
What is going on here? On the one hand we have verses
such as Genesis 16:15, Genesis 17:23, Genesis 17:25, Genesis
17:26, and Genesis 25:9...etc. which clearly confirm the
fact that not only was Ishmael the first born son of Abraham
and a legitimate son, but he remained so until the day
Abraham died and was buried. On the other hand we have
Genesis 22:2 which claims that Isaac, Abraham's second son
is the only son of Abraham.
To understand this we need to go back to the Qur'anic
version of this story. In the Qur'an we are told that
Abraham (pbuh) was deprived children until his old age
whereupon he was given Ishmael, his first born
son. Up until this point the Qur'an and the Old Testament
are in agreement. It stands to reason that after having been
deprived an heir for so long Abraham would become extremely
attached to his only begotten son Ishmael. For all he knew
then he very likely might not be blessed with any more
children before his death. We are now told in the Qur'an
that Allah (God) Almighty decided to test Abraham's faith.
He therefore decided to set up a test for Abraham in the one
thing which he held most dear to his heart in all of this
world: His only son. When Ishmael reached the age of
striving, God Almighty showed Abraham a vision wherein he
was to sacrifice his only son Ishmael to God. Abraham went
to Ishmael and asked his opinion on this matter. This was
not an attempt by Abraham to escape the command of God, but
only an attempt to better prepare his son. Ishmael replied
to his father: "O my father, Do as you are commanded. You
shall, by Allah's will, find me to be among the patient."
We are told that the devil then came to Abraham, Hagar,
and Ishmael in turn trying to convince each one to disobey
the command of Allah. Each one in turn did not respond to
him and cast stones at him till they drove him away. This
act is also preserved to this day in the Muslim pilgrimage
to Makkah in the symbolic act of stoning the three pillars
called the "jamarat."
Abraham took his son Ishmael and placed him on the ground
facing down so that he would not have to look at him. Just
when he was about to sacrifice Ishmael God sent an angel to
Abraham to stop him and to provide him with a ram as an
alternate sacrifice in place of his son as a reward for his
sincere intentions. He then further rewarded Abraham with
Isaac, a great and pious prophet as a second son. This story
can be found in the Qur'an. Abraham prayed:
"My Lord! grant me (a son) of the righteous. So We
gave him tidings of a gentle son(Ishmael). And when he was
old enough to strive with him, he said: O my dear son, I
have seen in a dream that I must sacrifice you. So look,
what do you think? He said: O my father! Do that which you
are commanded. Allah willing, you shall find me of the
steadfast. Then, when they had both surrendered (to Allah),
and he had placed him upon his forehead, We called unto him:
O Abraham: You have (already) fulfilled the vision. Lo! thus
do We reward the good. Lo! that verily was a clear test.
Then We ransomed him with a tremendous victim. And We left
for him among the later folk (the salutation):'Peace be unto
Abraham!' Thus do We reward the good. Lo! he is one of Our
believing slaves. And We gave him tidings of the birth of
Isaac, a Prophet of the righteous. And We blessed him and
Isaac. And of their seed are some who do good, and some who
plainly wrong themselves. And We verily gave grace unto
moses and Aaron, And saved them and their people from the
great distress, And helped them so that they became the
victors. And We gave them the clear Scripture And showed
them the right path. And We left for them, among the later
folk (the salutation): 'Peace be unto Moses and Aaron!' Lo!
thus do We reward the good. Lo! they are two of our
believing slaves."
The noble Qur'an in Al-Safat(37): 100-113
We notice that the major difference in the Qur'anic and
Biblical versions is that the Qur'an affirms that it was
Ishmael (The father of the Arabs) who was to be sacrificed,
while the Old Testament claims that Isaac (The father of the
Jews) was the one to be sacrificed. However, if we study the
verse of Genesis 22:2 we will find the words "thy son,
thine only [son]." Isaac was never Abraham's
only son. As we have seen, Ishmael was born before Isaac and
remained (according to the testimony of the Bible) the
legitimate son of Abraham until AFTER his death. As
we have already proven, the story of God's command to cast
out Ishmael and his mother due to Ishmael's alleged mockery
is a fabrication. The only son of Abraham who was ever
Abraham's "only" son was Ishmael. This was during the
fourteen year period after the birth of Ishmael but before
the birth of Isaac. Notice how by changing this one word
from "Ishmael" to "Isaac" an entire branch of Abraham's
descendants (the Arabs) are conveniently excluded from God's
covenant and it becomes exclusive to the Jews? Once Ishmael
is reinstated as the one mentioned in Genesis 22:2 then the
stories in the Bible begin to make sense once again.
In Encyclopedia Judica Jerusalem, volume 9, under
the heading "Ishmael," we read:
"It is related that a renowned traditionalist of
Jewish origin, from Qurayza tribe and another Jewish scholar
who converted to Islam, told Caliph Omar ibn 'Abd al-'Aziz
(717-20) that the Jews were well informed that Ismail
(Ishmael) was the one who was bound, but they concealed this
out of jealousy."
"Verily, those who conceal that which Allah has sent
down of the Book and purchase a small gain therewith, they
eat into their bellies nothing but fire. Allah will not
speak to them on the Day of Resurrection, nor will He purify
them, and theirs will be a painful torment."
The noble Qur'an, Al-Baqarah(2):174
"And (remember) when Abraham and Ishmael were raising
the foundations of the House (the Ka'aba in Makkah),
(praying): Our Lord! Accept from us (this service). Verily!
You, only You, are the Hearer, the Knower. Our Lord! And
make us submissive unto You and of our offspring a nation
submissive unto You, and show us our ways of worship, and
relent toward us. Verily! You, only You, are the Relenting,
the Merciful. Our Lord! And send among them a messenger from
among them who shall recite unto them Your verses, and shall
instruct them in the Book and in wisdom and shall purify
them. Verily! You, only You, are the Mighty, the Wise. And
who desires other than the path of Abraham except he who
befools himself? Truly, We chose him in this world, and
Verily! In the Hereafter he shall be among the righteous.
When his Lord said unto him: Surrender! (literally: Be a
'Muslim') he said: I have surrendered (Literally: I have
become a 'Muslim') to the Lord of creation. The same did
Abraham enjoin upon his sons, and also Jacob, (saying): O my
sons! Verily! Allah hath chosen for you the (true) religion;
therefore die not save as men who have surrendered
(Literally: Have become 'Muslims'). Or were you witnesses
when death came to Jacob? When he said unto his sons: What
will you worship after me? They said: We shall worship your
God and the God of your fathers, Abraham and Ishmael and
Isaac, One God, and unto Him we have surrendered. That was a
nation which has passed away. They shall receive the reward
of that which they earned, and you of what you earned. And
you will not be asked of what they used to do. And they say:
Be Jews or Christians, then you will be rightly guided. Say:
Nay, rather the religion of Abraham, the upright, and he did
not associate partners (with Allah). Say: We believe in
Allah and that which was revealed unto us and that which was
revealed unto Abraham, and Ishmael, and Isaac, and Jacob,
and the twelve sons of Jacob, and that which was given to
Moses and Jesus, and that which the Prophets received from
their Lord. We make no distinction between any of them, and
unto Him we have surrendered. And if they believe in the
like of that which you believe, then they are rightly
guided. But if they turn away, then they are in discord, and
Allah will suffice you against them. He is the Hearer, the
Knower. The religion of Allah!, and which religion can be
better than Allah's? and we are His worshippers. Say (unto
the People of the Scripture): Do you dispute with us
concerning Allah when He is our Lord and your Lord? Ours are
our works and yours your works. And we are sincere in
worship to Him(alone). Or do you say that Abraham, and
Ishmael, and Isaac, and Jacob, and the sons of Jacob were
Jews or Christians? Say: Do you know best, or does Allah?
And who is more unjust than he who hides the testimony which
he has from Allah? And Allah is not unaware of what you do.
That was a nation which has passed away. They shall receive
the reward of that which they earned, and you of what you
earned. And you will not be asked of what they used to do."
The noble Qur'an, Al-Baqarah(2):127-141
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