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Title: The Koran
Translator: George Sale
Release Date: February, 2005 [EBook #7440]
[This file was first posted on April 30, 2003]
[Most recently updated September 26, 2004]
Edition: 09
Language: English
*** START OF THE PROJECT GUTENBERG EBOOK, THE KORAN ***
Note: This eBook still needs better formatting, especially for
extensive footnotes, so is posted as version 09 rathern than 10. See
Project Gutenberg's eBooks #3434 and 2800 for other translations of
The Koran.
Thanks to Brett Zamir for work on this eBook.
THE KORAN:
COMMONLY CALLED THE
ALKORAN OF MOHAMMED.
Translated into English from the Original Arabic,
WITH EXPLANATORY NOTES TAKEN FROM THE MOST
APPROVED COMMENTATORS.
TO WHICH IS PREFIXED
A PRELIMINARY DISCOURSE,
BY GEORGE SALE.
TO THE
RIGHT HON. JOHN LORD CARTERET.
ONE OF THE LORDS OF HIS MAJESTY'S MOST HONOURABLE PRIVY COUNCIL.
____________
MY LORD,
NOTWITHSTANDING the great honour and respect generally and deservedly paid to
the memories of those who have founded states, or obliged a people by the
institution of laws which have made them prosperous and considerable in the
world, yet the legislator of the Arabs has been treated in so very different a
manner by all who acknowledge not his claim to a divine mission, and by
Christians especially, that were not your lordship's just discernment
sufficiently known, I should think myself under a necessity of making an
apology for presenting the following translation.
The remembrance of the calamities brought on so many nations by the
conquests of the Arabians may possibly raise some indignation against him who
formed them to empire; but this being equally applicable to all conquerors,
could not, of itself, occasion all the detestation with which the name of
Mohammed is loaded. He has given a new system of religion, which has had
still greater success than the arms of his followers, and to establish this
religion made use of an imposture; and on this account it is supposed that he
must of necessity have been a most abandoned villain, and his memory is become
infamous. But as Mohammed gave his Arabs the best religion he could, as well
as the best laws, preferable. at least, to those of the ancient pagan
lawgivers, I confess I cannot see why he deserves not equal respect-though not
with Moses or Jesus Christ, whose laws came really from Heaven, yet, with
Minos or Numa, notwithstanding the distinction of a learned writer, who seems
to think it a greater crime to make use of an imposture to set up a new
religion, founded on the acknowledgment of one true God, and to destroy
idolatry, than to use the same means to gain reception to rules and
regulations for the more orderly practice of heathenism already established.
To be acquainted with the various laws and constitutions of civilized
nations, especially of those who flourish in our own time, is, perhaps, the
most useful part of knowledge: wherein though your lordship, who shines with
so much distinction in the noblest assembly in the world, peculiarly excels;
yet as the law of Mohammed, by reason of the odium it lies under, and the
strangeness of the language in which it is written, has been so much
neglected. I flatter myself some things in the following sheets may be new
even to a person of your lordship's extensive learning; and if what I have
written may be any way entertaining or acceptable to your lordship, I shall
not regret the pains it has cost me.
I join with the general voice in wishing your lordship all the honour and
happiness your known virtues and merit deserve, and am with perfect respect,
MY LORD,
Your lordship's most humble
And most obedient servant,
GEORGE SALE.
A SKETCH
OF THE
LIFE OF GEORGE SALE.
_________
OF the life of GEORGE SALE, a man of extensive learning, and considerable
literary talent, very few particulars have been transmitted to us by his
contemporaries. He is said to have been born in the county of Kent, and the
time of his birth must have been not long previous to the close of the
seventeenth century. His education he received at the King's School,
Canterbury. Voltaire, who bestows high praise on the version of the Korân,
asserts him to have spent five-and-twenty years in Arabia, and to have
acquired in that country his profound knowledge of the Arabic language and
customs. On what authority this is asserted it would now be fruitless to
endeavour to ascertain. But that the assertion is an erroneous one, there can
be no reason to doubt; it being opposed by the stubborn evidence of dates and
facts. It is almost certain that Sale was brought up to the law, and that he
practised it for many years, if not till the end of his career. He is said,
by a co-existing writer, to have quitted his legal pursuits, for the purpose
of applying himself to the study of the eastern and other languages, both
ancient and modern. His guide through the labyrinth of the oriental dialects
was Mr. Dadichi, the king's interpreter. If it be true that he ever
relinquished the practice of the law, it would appear that he must have
resumed it before his decease; for, in his address to the reader, prefixed to
the Korân, he pleads, as an apology for the delay which had occurred in
publishing the volume, that the work "was carried on at leisure times only,
and amidst the necessary avocations of a troublesome profession." This alone
would suffice to show that Voltaire was in error. But to this must be added,
that the existence of Sale was terminated at an early period, and that, in at
least his latter years, he was engaged in literary labours of no trifling
magnitude. The story of his having, during a quarter of a century, resided in
Arabia, becomes, therefore, an obvious impossibility, and must be dismissed to
take its place among those fictions by which biography has often been
encumbered and disgraced.
Among the few productions of which Sale is known to be the author is a part
of "The General Dictionary," in ten volumes, folio. To the translation of
Bayle, which is incorporated with this voluminous work, he is stated to have
been a large contributor.
When the plan of the Universal History was arranged, Sale was one of those
who were selected to carry it into execution. His coadjutors were Swinton,
eminent as an antiquary, and remarkable for absence of mind; Shelvocke,
originally a naval officer; the well informed, intelligent, and laborious
Campbell; that singular character, George Psalmanazar; and Archibald Bower,
who afterwards became an object of unenviable notoriety. The portion of the
history which was supplied by Sale comprises "The Introduction, containing the
Cosmogony, or Creation of the World;" and the whole, or nearly the whole, of
the succeeding chapter, which traces the narrative of events from the creation
to the flood. In the performance of his task, he displays a thorough
acquaintance with his subject; and his style, though not polished into
elegance, is neat and perspicuous. In a French biographical dictionary, of
anti-liberal principles, a writer accuses him of having adopted a system
hostile to tradition and the Scriptures, and composed his account of the
Cosmogony with the view of giving currency to his heretical opinions. Either
the accuser never read the article which he censures, or he has wilfully
misrepresented it; for it affords the fullest contradiction to the charge, as
does also the sequent chapter; and he must, therefore, be contented to choose
between the demerit of being a slanderer through blundering and reckless
ignorance, or through sheer malignity of heart.
Though his share in these publications affords proof of the erudition and
ability of Sale, it probably would not alone have been sufficient to preserve
his name from oblivion. His claim to be remembered rests principally on his
version of the Korân, which appeared in November, 1734, in a quarto volume,
and was inscribed to Lord Carteret. The dedicator does not disgrace himself
by descending to that fulsome adulatory style which was then too frequently
employed in addressing the great. As a translator, he had the field almost
entirely to himself; there being at that time no English translation of the
Mohammedan civil and spiritual code, except a bad copy of the despicable one
by Du Ryer. His performance was universally and justly approved of, still
still remains in repute, and is not likely to be superseded by any other of
the kind. It may, perhaps, be regretted, that he did not preserve the
division into verses, as Savary has since done, instead of connecting them
into a continuous narrative. Some of the poetical spirit is unavoidably lost
by the change. But this is all that can be objected to him. It is, I
believe, admitted, that he is in no common degree faithful to his original;
and his numerous notes, and Preliminary Discourse, manifest such a perfect
knowledge of Eastern habits, manners, traditions, and laws, as could have been
acquired only by an acute mind, capable of submitting to years of patient
toil.
But, though his work passed safely through the ordeal of criticism, it has
been made the pretext for a calumny against him. It has been declared, that
he puts the Christian religion on the same footing with the Muhammedan; and
some charitable persons have even supposed him to have been a disguised
professor of the latter. The origin of this slander we may trace back to the
strange obliquity of principles, and the blind merciless rage which are
characteristic of bigotry. Sale was not one of those who imagine that the end
sanctifies the means, and that the best interests of mankind can be advanced
by violence, by railing, or by deviating form the laws of truth, in order to
blacken an adversary. He enters into the consideration of the character of
Mohammed with a calm philosophic spirit; repeatedly censuring his imposture,
touching upon his subterfuges and inventions, but doing justice to him on
those points on which the pretended prophet is really worthy of praise. The
rules which, in his address to the reader, he lays down for the conversion of
Mohammedans, are dictated by sound sense and amiable feelings. They are,
however, not calculated to satisfy those who think the sword and the fagot to
be the only proper instruments for the extirpation of heresy. That he places
Islamism on an equality with Christianity is a gross falsehood. "As
Mohammed," says he, "gave his Arabs the best religion he could, preferable, at
least, to those of the ancient pagan lawgivers, I confess I cannot see why he
deserves not equal respect, though not with Moses or Jesus Christ, whose laws
came really from heaven, yet with Minos or Numa, notwithstanding the
distinction of a learned writer, who seems to think it a greater crime to make
use of an imposture to set up a new religion, founded on the acknowledgment of
one true God, and to destroy idolatry, than to use the same means to gain
reception to rules and regulations for the more orderly practice of heathenism
already established." This, and no more, is "the very head and front of his
offending;" and from this it would, I think, be difficult to extract any proof
of his belief in the divine mission of Mohammed. If the charge brought
against him be not groundless, he must have added to his other sins that of
being a consummate hypocrite, and that, too, without any obvious necessity; he
having been, till the period of his decease, a member of the Society for the
Promoting of Christian Knowledge.
In 1736 a society was established for the encouragement of learning. It
comprehended many noblemen, and some of the most eminent literary men of that
day. Sale was one of the founders of it, and was appointed on the first
committee. The meetings were held weekly, and the committee decided upon what
works should be printed at the expense of the society, or with its assistance,
and what should be the price of them. When the cost of printing was repaid,
the property of the work reverted to the author. This establishment did not,
I Imagine, exist for any length of time. The attention of the public has been
recently called to a plan of a similar kind.
Sale did not long survive the carrying of this scheme into effect. He died
of a fever, on the 13th of November, 1736, at his house in Surrey-street,
Strand, after an illness of only eight days, and was buried at St. Clement
Danes. He was under the age of forty when he was thus suddenly snatched from
his family, which consisted of a wife and five children. Of his sons, one was
educated at New College, Oxford, of which he became Fellow, and he was
subsequently elected to a Fellow-ship in Winchester College. Sale is
described as having had "a healthy constitution, and a communicative mind in a
comely person." His library was valuable, and contained many rare and
beautiful manuscripts in the Persian, Turkish, Arabic, and other languages; a
circumstance which seems to show that poverty, so often the lot of men whose
lives are devoted to literary pursuits, was not one of the evils with which he
was compelled to encounter.
R. A. DAVENPORT.
[from 1891 version]
INTRODUCTION
THERE is surely no need to-day to insist on the importance of a close study of
the Korân for all who would comprehend the many vital problems connected with
the Islamic World; and yet few of us, I imagine, among the many who possess
translations of this book have been at pains to read it through. It must,
however, be borne in mind that the Korân plays a far greater rôle among the
Muhammadans than does the Bible in Christianity in that it provides not only
the canon of their faith, but also the text-book of their ritual and the
principles of their Civil Law.
It was the Great Crusades that first brought the West into close touch
with Islam, but between the years 1096 and 1270 we only hear of one attempt to
make known to Europe the Sacred Book of the Moslems, namely, the Latin version
made in 1143, by Robert of Retina (who, Sale tells us, was an Englishman), and
Hermann of Dalmatia, on the initiative of Petrus Venerabilis, the Abbot of
Clugny, which version was ultimately printed by T. Bibliander in Basel in
1543, nearly a hundred years after the fall of Constantinople.
During the seventeenth and eighteenth centuries, several translations
appeared both in Latin and in French, and one of the latter, by André du Ryer,
was translated into English by Alexander Ross in 1649. But by far the most
important work on the Korân was that of Luigi Marracci which was published in
Padua in 1698.
George Sale's translation first appeared in November, 1734, in a quarto
volume; in 1764 it was first printed in medium octavo, and the reprint of 1825
contained the sketch of Sale's life by Richard Alfred Davenant which has been
utilized in the article on Sale in the Dictionary of National Bibliography.
The Chandos Classics edition in crown octavo was first issued in 1877.
Soon after the death of the Prophet, early Muhammadan theologians began
to discuss, not only the correct reading of the text itself, but also to work
out on the basis of first-hand reports the story connected with the revelation
of each chapter. As the book at present stands in its original form the
chapters are arranged more or less according to their respective length,
beginning with the longest; except in the case of the opening chapter, which
holds a place by itself, not only in the sacred book of Islam, corresponding
as it does in a manner to our Pater Noster, but also in its important
ceremonial usages. The presumed order in which the various chapters were
revealed is given in the tabular list of Contents, but it may be mentioned
that neither Muhammadan theologians, nor, in more recent times, European
scholars, are in entire agreement upon the exact chronological position of all
the chapters.
It is well for all who study the Korân to realize that the actual text
is never the composition of the Prophet, but is the word of God addressed to
the Prophet; and that in quoting the Korân the formula is "He (may he be
exalted) said" or some such phrase. The Prophet himself is of course quoted
by Muhammadan theologians, but such quotations refer to his traditional
sayings known as "Hadîs," which have been handed down from mouth to mouth with
the strictest regard to genealogical continuity.
It would probably be impossible for any Arabic scholar to produce a
translation of the Korân which would defy criticism, but this much may be said
of Sale's version: just as, when it first appeared, it had no rival in the
field, it may be fairly claimed to-day that it has been superseded by no
subsequent translations. Equally remarkable with his translation is the
famous Preliminary Discourse which constitutes a tour de force when we
consider how little critical work had been done in his day in the field of
Islamic research. Practically the only works of first-class importance were
Dr. Pocock's Specimen Historio Arabum, to which, in his original Address to
the Reader, Sale acknowledges his great indebtedness, and Maracci's Korân.
In spite of the vast number of eminent scholars who have worked in the
same field since the days of George Sale, his Preliminary Discourse still
remains the best Introduction in any European language to the study of the
religion promulgated by the Prophet of Arabia; but as Wherry says: "Whilst
reading the Preliminary Discourse as a most masterly, and on the whole
reliable, presentation of the peculiar doctrines, rites, ceremonies, customs,
and institutions of Islam, we recognize the fact that modern research has
brought to light many things concerning the history of the ancient Arabs which
greatly modify the statements made in the early paragraphs."
For many centuries the acquaintance which the majority of Europeans
possessed of Muhammadanism was based almost entirely on distorted reports of
fanatical Christians which led to the dissemination of a multitude of gross
calumnies. What was good in Muhammadanism was entirely ignored, and what was
not good, in the eyes of Europe, was exaggerated or misinterpreted.
It must not, however, be forgotten that the central doctrine preached by
Muhammad to his contemporaries in Arabia, who worshipped the Stars; to the
Persians, who acknowledged Ormuz and Ahriman; the Indians, who worshipped
idols; and the Turks, who had no particular worship, was the unity of God, and
that the simplicity of his creed was probably a more potent factor in the
spread of Islam than the sword of the Ghazis.
Islam, although seriously affecting the Christian world, brought a
spiritual religion to one half of Asia, and it is an amazing circumstance that
the Turks, who on several occasions let loose their Central Asian hordes over
India, and the Middle East, though irresistible in the onslaught of their
arms, were all conquered in their turn by the Faith of Islam, and founded
Muhammadan dynasties.
The Mongols of the thirteenth century did their best to wipe out all
traces of Islam when they sacked Baghdad, but though the Caliphate was
relegated to obscurity in Egypt the newly founded Empires quickly became
Muhammadan states, until finally it was a Turk who took the title of Caliph
which has been held by the house of Othman ever since.
Thus through all the vicissitudes of thirteen hundred years the Korân
has remained the sacred book of all the Turks and Persians and of nearly a
quarter of the population of India. Surely such a book as this deserves to be
widely read in the West, more especially in these days when space and time
have been almost annihilated by modern invention, and when public interest
embraces the whole world.
It is difficult to decide to what extent Sale's citations in the notes
represent first-hand use of the Arabic commentators, but I fear that the
result of a close inquiry only points to very little original research on his
part. He says himself in his Address to the Reader: "As I have no opportunity
of consulting public libraries, the manuscripts of which I have made use
throughout the whole work have been such as I had in my own study, except only
the Commentary of Al Baidhâwi" . . . which "belongs to the library of the
Dutch Church in Austin Friars."
Now with regard to these manuscripts which Sale had in his "own study"
we happen to possess first-hand information, for a list of them was printed by
the executor of his will under the following title: "A choice collection of
most curious and inestimable manuscripts in the Turkish, Arabic and Persian
languages from the library of the late learned and ingenious Mr. George Sale.
Which books are now in the possession of Mr. William Hammerton Merchant in
Lothbury where they may be seen on Wednesdays and Fridays till either they are
sold or sent abroad. N.B. These MSS. are to be sold together and not
separately." They were purchased in the first instance by the Rev. Thomas
Hunt of Oxford for the Radcliffe Library, and they are now permanently housed
in the Bodleian Library.
The British Museum possesses a copy of this list which is drawn up in
English and French on opposite pages and comprises eighty-six works in all.
The list contains very few Arabic works of first-rate importance, but is rich
in Turkish and Persian Histories. What is most significant, however, is the
fact that it contains hardly any of the Arabic works and none of the
Commentaries which are referred to on every page of Sale's translation of the
Korân.
I have therefore been forced to the conclusion that with the exception
of Al-Baidhâwi, Sale's sources were all consulted at second hand; and an
examination of Marracci's great work makes the whole matter perfectly clear.
Sale says of Marracci's translation that it is "generally speaking very exact;
but adheres to the Arabic idiom too literally to be easily understood . . . by
those who are not versed in the Muhammadan learning. The notes he has added
are indeed of great use; but his refutations, which swell the work to a large
volume, are of little or none at all, being often unsatisfactory, and
sometimes impertinent. The work, however, with all its faults is very
valuable, and I should be guilty of ingratitude, did I not acknowledge myself
much obliged thereto; but still being in Latin it can be of no use to those
who understand not that tongue."
Such is Sale's own confession of his obligation to Marracci-but it does
not go nearly far enough. A comparison of the two versions shows that so much
had been achieved by Marracci that Sale's work might almost have been
performed with a knowledge of Latin alone, as far as regards the quotations
from Arabic authors. I do not wish to imply that Sale did not know Arabic,
but I do maintain that his work as it stands gives a misleading estimate of
his original researches, and that his tribute to Marracci falls far short of
his actual indebtedness.
It must be mentioned that Marracci not only reproduced the whole of the
Arabic text of the Korân but furthermore gives the original text and the
translation of all his quotations from Arabic writers. It is indeed a
profoundly learned work and has never received the recognition it deserves.
Marracci had at his disposal rich collections of MSS. belonging to the
Libraries of Italy. How he learnt his Arabic we do not know. Voltaire says
he was never in the East. He was confessor to Pope Innocent XI, and his work
which appeared in Padua in 1698 is dedicated to the Holy Roman Emperor Leopold
I. By way of Introduction to his Korân Marracci published a companion folio
volume called Prodromus which contains practically all that was known in his
day regarding Muhammad and the Religion of Islam.
It may in any case be claimed that the present work presents to the
Western student all the essentials of a preliminary study of Islam: for Sale's
translation and footnotes will give him as clear an idea as can be obtained,
without laborious years of study in Arabic, of what is regarded by so many
millions of men from Fez to the Far East as the revealed word of God and the
unshakable basis of their faith.
George Sale was born about 1697 and died in 1736. Every biography calls
attention to the statement made by Voltaire in his Dictionnaire Philosophique
to the effect that Sale spent over twenty years among the Arabs. I think this
must have been a lapsus calami on Voltaire's part, because it is unlikely that
he would have invented such a story. Sale must also have been well versed in
Hebrew, both biblical and post-biblical, as his numerous allusions to
Rabbinical writings testify.
Two years after the publication of his great work Sale died in Surrey
Street, Strand, his age being then under forty. In 1720 he had been admitted
a student of the Inner Temple-son of Samuel Sale, citizen and merchant of
London-and the same year the Patriarch of Antioch had sent Solomon Negri
(Suleiman Alsadi) to London from Damascus to urge the Society for Promoting
Christian Knowledge, then established in the Middle Temple, to issue an Arabic
New Testament for the Syrian Christians. It is surmised that Negri was Sale's
first instructor in Arabic, though Dadichi, the King's Interpreter, a learned
Greek of Aleppo, guided him, we are told, "through the labyrinth of oriental
dialects."
Whatever Sale may have known before-and he certainly had the gift of
languages-it is on the Society's records that on August 30, 1726, he offered
his services as one of the correctors of the Arabic New Testament and soon
became the chief worker on it, besides being the Society's solicitor and
holding other honorary offices. That translation of the New Testament into
Arabic was followed by the translation of the Korân into English.
In this edition the proper names have been left for the most part as in
the original, but the reader must understand that in Sale's day there was a
freedom in regard to oriental orthography that allowed of many variations. In
spite, however, of the want of a scientific system, Sale's transcription is on
the whole clear, and far less confusing than those adopted by contemporary
Anglo-Indian scholars, who utterly distorted Muhammadan names-including place
names in India-by rendering the short a by u and so forth. As a few examples
of names spelled in more than one way, the correct modern way being given
first, we have Al-Qor'án, Coran, Korân, etc.; Muhammad, Mohammed, Mahomet,
etc.; Al-Baidhâwi, Al-Beidâwi; Muttalib, Motalleb, Motaleb, etc.; Jalâl ud-
Dîn, Jallâlo'ddîn; Anas, Ans; Khalîfa, Caliph, Khalif, etc.
It is only within quite recent times that scholars have troubled to
render each letter of the Arabic alphabet by an equivalent and distinct letter
of the Roman alphabet-and although no particular system has been universally
adopted by European orientalists, every writer has some system by which any
reader with a knowledge of Arabic is able to turn back every name into the
original script. The chief advantage of any such system is that a distinction
is made between the two varieties of s, k, and t, and the presence of the
illusive Arabic letter 'ayn is always indicated.
E. DENISON ROSS.
Sir Edward Denison Ross
C.I.E., Ph.D., ETC.
[Written apparently sometime after 1877]
TO THE READER.
_______
I IMAGINE it almost needless either to make an apology for publishing the
following translation, or to go about to prove it a work of use as well as
curiosity. They must have a mean opinion of the Christian religion, or be but
ill grounded therein, who can apprehend any danger from so manifest a forgery:
and if the religious and civil institutions of foreign nations are worth our
knowledge, those of Mohammed, the lawgiver of the Arabians, and founder of an
empire which in less than a century spread itself over a greater part of the
world than the Romans were ever masters of, must needs be so; whether we
consider their extensive obtaining, or our frequent intercourse with those who
are governed thereby. I shall not here inquire into the reasons why the law
of Mohammed has met with so unexampled a reception in the world (for they are
greatly deceived who imagine it to have been propagated by the sword alone),
or by what means it came to be embraced by nations which never felt the force
of the Mohammedan arms, and even by those which stripped the Arabians of their
conquests, and put an end to the sovereignty and very being of their Khalîfs:
yet it seems as if there was something more than what is vulgarly imagined in
a religion which has made so surprising a progress. But whatever use an
impartial version of the Korân may be of in other respects, it is absolutely
necessary to undeceive those who, from the ignorant or unfair translations
which have appeared, have entertained too favourable an opinion of the
original, and also to enable us effectually to expose the imposture; none of
those who have hitherto undertaken that province, not excepting Dr. Prideaux
himself, having succeeded to the satisfaction of the judicious, for want of
being complete masters of the controversy. The writers of the Romish
communion, in particular, are so far from having done any service in their
refutations of Mohammedism, that by endeavouring to defend their idolatry and
other superstitions, they have rather contributed to the increase of that
aversion which the Mohammedans in general have to the Christian religion, and
given them great advantages in the dispute. The Protestants alone are able to
attack the Korân with success; and for them, I trust, Providence has reserved
the glory of its overthrow. In the meantime, if I might presume to lay down
rules to be observed by those who attempt the conversion of the Mohammedans,
they should be the
same which the learned and worthy Bishop Kidder* has prescribed for the
conversion of the Jews, and which may, mutatis mutandis, be equally applied to
the former, notwithstanding the despicable opinion that writer, for want of
being better acquainted with them, entertained of those people, judging them
scarce fit to be argued with. The first of these rules is, To avoid
compulsion; which, though it be not in our power to employ at present, I hope
will not be made use of when it is. The second is, To avoid teaching
doctrines against common sense; the Mohammedans not being such fools (whatever
we may think of them) as to be gained over in this case. The worshipping of
images and the doctrine of transubstantiation are great stumbling-blocks to
the Mohammedans, and the Church which teacheth them is very unfit to bring
those people over. The third is, To avoid weak arguments: for the Mohammedans
are not to be converted with these, or hard words. We must use them with
humanity, and dispute against them with arguments that are proper and cogent.
It is certain that many Christians, who have written against them, have been
very defective this way: many have used arguments that have no force, and
advanced propositions that are void of truth. This method is so far from
convincing, that it rather serves to harden them. The Mohammedans will be apt
to conclude we have little to say, when we urge them with arguments that are
trifling or untrue. We do but lose ground when we do this; and instead of
gaining them, we expose ourselves and our cause also. We must not give them
ill words neither; but must avoid all reproachful language, all that is
sarcastical and biting: this never did good from pulpit or press. The softest
words will make the deepest impression; and if we think it a fault in them to
give ill language, we cannot be excused when we imitate them. The fourth rule
is, Not to quit any article of the Christian faith to gain the Mohammedans.
It is a fond conceit of the Socinians, that we shall upon their principles be
most like to prevail upon the Mohammedans: it is not true in matter of fact.
We must not give up any article to gain them: but then the Church of Rome
ought to part with many practices and some doctrines. We are not to design to
gain the Mohammedans over to a system of dogma, but to the ancient and
primitive faith. I believe nobody will deny but that the rules here laid down
are just: the latter part of the third, which alone my design has given me
occasion to practise, I think so reasonable, that I have not, in speaking of
Mohammed or his Korân, allowed myself to use those opprobrious appellations,
and unmannerly expressions, which seem to be the strongest arguments of
several who have written against them. On the contrary, I have thought myself
to treat both with common decency, and even to approve such
* In his Demonstr. of the Messias, Part III. chap. 2.
particulars as seemed to me to deserve approbation: for how criminal soever
Mohammed may have been in imposing a false religion on mankind, the praises
due to his real virtues ought not to be denied him; nor can I do otherwise
than applaud the candour of the pious and learned Spanhemius, who, though he
owned him to have been a wicked impostor, yet acknowledged him to have been
richly furnished with natural endowments, beautiful in his person, of a subtle
wit, agreeable behaviour, showing liberality to the poor, courtesy to every
one, fortitude against his enemies, and above all a high reverence for the
name of GOD; severe against the perjured, adulterers, murderers, slanderers,
prodigals, covetous, false witnesses, &c., a great preacher of patience,
charity, mercy, beneficence, gratitude, honouring of parents and superiors,
and a frequent celebrator of the divine praises.*
Of the several translations of the Korân now extant, there is but one
which tolerably represents the sense of the original; and that being in Latin,
a new version became necessary, at least to an English reader. What
Bibliander published for a Latin translation of that book deserves not the
name of a translation; the unaccountable liberties therein taken and the
numberless faults, both of omission and commission, leaving scarce any
resemblance of the original. It was made near six hundred years ago, being
finished in 1143, by Robertus Retenensis, an English-man, with the assistance
of Hermannus Dalmata, at the request of Peter, Abbot of Clugny, who paid them
well for their pains.
From this Latin version was taken the Italian of Andrea Arrivabene,
notwithstanding the pretences in his dedication of its being done immediately
from the Arabic;? wherefore it is no wonder if the transcript be yet more
faulty and absurd than the copy.?
About the end of the fifteenth century, Johannes Andreas, a native of
Xativa in the kingdom of Valencia, who from a Mohammedan doctor became a
Christian priest, translated not only the Korân, but also its glosses, and the
seven books of the Sonna, out of Arabic into the Arragonian tongue, at the
command of Martin Garcia,§ Bishop of Barcelona and Inquisitor of Arragon.
Whether this translation were ever published or not I am wholly ignorant: but
it may be presumed to have been the better done for being the work of one bred
up in the
* Id certum, naturalibus egregiè dotibus instructum Muhammedera, forma
præstanti, ingenio calido, moribus facetis, ac præ se ferentem liberalitatem
in egenos. comitatem in singulos, fortitudinem in hostes, ac præ cæteris
reverentiam divini nominis.-Severus fuit in perjuros, adulteros, homicidas,
obtrectatores, prodigos, avaros, falsos testes, &c. Magnus idem patientiæ,
charitatis, misericordiæ, beneficentiæ, gratitudinis, honoris in parentes ac
superiores præco, ut et divinarum laudum. Hist. Eccles. Sec. VII. c. 7, lem.
5 and 7.
? His words are: Questo libro, che già havevo à commune utilità di
molti fatto dal proprio testo Arabo tradurre nella nostra volgar lingua
Italiana, &c. And afterwards; Questo è l'Alcorano di Macometto, il quale,
come ho gia detto, ho fatto dal suo idioma tradurre, &c.
? Vide Jos. Scalig. Epist. 361 et 362; et Selden. de Success. ad Leges
Ebræor. p. 9.
§ J. Andreas, in Præf. ad Tractat. suum de Confusione Sectæ Mahometanæ.
Mohammedan religion and learning; though his refutation of that religion,
which has had several editions, gives no great idea of his abilities.
Some years within the last century, Andrew du Ryer, who had been consul
of the French nation in Egypt, and was tolerably skilled in the Turkish and
Arabic languages, took the pains to translate the Korân into his own tongue:
but his performance, though it be beyond comparison preferable to that of
Retenensis, is far from being a just translation; there being mistakes in
every page, besides frequent transpositions, omissions, and additions,* faults
unpardonable in a work of this nature. And what renders it still more
incomplete is, the want of Notes to explain a vast number of passages, some of
which are difficult, and others impossible to be understood, without proper
explications, were they translated ever so exactly; which the author is so
sensible of that he often refers his reader to the Arabic commentators.
The English version is no other than a translation of Du Ryer's, and
that a very bad one; for Alexander Ross, who did it, being utterly
unacquainted with the Arabic, and no great master of the French, has added a
number of fresh mistakes of his own to those of Du Ryer; not to mention the
meanness of his language, which would make a better book ridiculous.
In 1698, a Latin translation of the Korân, made by Father Lewis
Marracci, who had been confessor to Pope Innocent XI., was published at Padua,
together with the original text, accompanied by explanatory notes and a
refutation. This translation of Marracci's, generally speaking, is very
exact; but adheres to the Arabic idiom too literally to be easily understood,
unless I am much deceived, by those who are not versed in the Mohammedan
learning. The notes he has added are indeed of great use; but his
refutations, which swell the work to a large volume, are of little or none at
all, being often unsatisfactory, and sometimes impertinent. The work,
however, with all its faults, is very valuable, and I should be guilty of
ingratitude, did I not acknowledge myself much obliged thereto; but still,
being in Latin, it can be of no use to those who understand not that tongue.
Having therefore undertaken a new translation, I have endeavoured to do
the original impartial justice; not having, to the best of my knowledge,
represented it, in any one instance, either better or worse than it really is.
I have thought myself obliged, indeed, in a piece which pretends to be the
Word of GOD, to keep somewhat scrupulously close to the text; by which means
the language may, in some places, seem to express the Arabic a little too
literally to be elegant English: but this, I hope, has not happened often; and
I flatter myself that the
* Vide Windet. de Vitâ Functorum statu, Sect. IX.
style I have made use of will not only give a more genuine idea of the
original than if I had taken more liberty (which would have been much more for
my ease), but will soon become familiar: for we must not expect to read a
version of so extraordinary a book with the same ease and pleasure as a modern
composition.
In the Notes my view has been briefly to explain the text, and
especially the difficult and obscure passages, from the most approved
commentators, and that generally in their own words, for whose opinions or
expressions, where liable to censure, I am not answerable; my province being
only fairly to represent their expositions, and the little I have added of my
own, or from European writers, being easily discernible. Where I met with any
circumstance which I imagined might be curious or entertaining, I have not
failed to produce it.
The Preliminary Discourse will acquaint the reader with the most
material particulars proper to be known previously to the entering on the
Korân itself, and which could not so conveniently have been thrown into the
Notes. And I have taken care, both in the Preliminary Discourse and the
Notes, constantly to quote my authorities and the writers to whom I have been
beholden; but to none have I been more so than to the learned Dr. Pocock,
whose Specimen Historiæ Arabum is the most useful and accurate work that has
been hitherto published concerning the antiquities of that nation, and ought
to be read by every curious inquirer into them.
As I have had no opportunity of consulting public libraries, the
manuscripts of which I have made use throughout the whole work have been such
as I had in my own study, except only the Commentary of al Beidâwi and the
Gospel of St. Barnabas. The first belongs to the library of the Dutch church
in Austin Friars, and for the use of it I have been chiefly indebted to the
Reverend Dr. Bolten, one of the ministers of that church: the other was very
obligingly lent me by the Reverend Dr. Holme, Rector of Hedley in Hampshire;
and I take this opportunity of returning both those gentlemen my thanks for
their favours. The merit of al Beidâwi's commentary will appear from the
frequent quotations I have made thence; but of the Gospel of St. Barnabas
(which I had not seen when the little I have said of it in the Preliminary
Discourse,* and the extract I had borrowed from M. de la Monnoye and M.
Toland,? were printed off), I must beg leave to give some further account.
The book is a moderate quarto, in Spanish, written in a very legible
hand, but a little damaged towards the latter end. It contains two hundred
and twenty-two chapters of unequal length, and four hundred
* Sect. IV. p. 58. ? In not. ad cap. 3, p. 38
and twenty pages; and is said, in the front, to be translated from the
Italian, by an Arragonian Moslem, named Mostafa de Aranda. There is a preface
prefixed to it, wherein the discoverer of the original MS., who was a
Christian monk, called Fra Marino, tells us that having accidentally met with
a writing of Irenæus (among others), wherein he speaks against St. Paul,
alleging, for his authority, the Gospel of St. Barnabas, he became exceeding
desirous to find this gospel; and that GOD, of His mercy, having made him very
intimate with Pope Sixtus V., one day, as they were together in that Pope's
library, his Holiness fell asleep, and he, to employ himself, reaching down a
book to read, the first he laid his hand on proved to be the very gospel he
wanted: overjoyed at the discovery, he scrupled not to hide his prize in his
sleeve, and on the Pope's awaking, took leave of him, carrying with him that
celestial treasure, by reading of which he became a convert to Mohammedism.
This Gospel of Barnabas contains a complete history of Jesus Christ from
His birth to His ascension; and most of the circumstances in the four real
Gospels are to be found therein, but many of them turned, and some artfully
enough, to favour the Mohammedan system. From the design of the whole, and
the frequent interpolations of stories and passages wherein Mohammed is spoken
of and foretold by name, as the messenger of God, and the great prophet who
was to perfect the dispensation of Jesus, it appears to be a most barefaced
forgery. One particular I observe therein induces me to believe it to have
been dressed up by a renegade Christian, slightly instructed in his new
religion, and not educated a Mohammedan (unless the fault be imputed to the
Spanish, or perhaps the Italian translator, and not to the original compiler);
I mean the giving to Mohammed the title of Messiah, and that not once or twice
only, but in several places; whereas the title of the Messiah, or, as the
Arabs write it, al Masîh, i.e., Christ, is appropriated to Jesus in the Korân,
and is constantly applied by the Mohammedans to Him, and never to their own
prophet. The passages produced from the Italian MS. by M. de la Monnoye are
to be seen in this Spanish version almost word for word.
But to return to the following work. Though I have freely censured the
former translations of the Korân, I would not therefore be suspected of a
design to make my own pass as free from faults: I am very sensible it is not;
and I make no doubt that the few who are able to discern them, and know the
difficulty of the undertaking, will give me fair quarter. I likewise flatter
myself that they, and all considerate persons, will excuse the delay which has
happened in the publication of this work, when they are informed that it was
carried on at leisure times only, and amidst the necessary avocations of a
troublesome profession.
CONTENTS.
_________
A TABLE
OF THE
SECTIONS OF THE PRELIMINARY DISCOURSE
_________
SECTION Page
I.-Of the Arabs before Mohammed; or, as they express it, in the Time of
Ignorance; their History, Religion, Learning, and Customs 1
II.-Of the State of Christianity, particularly of the Eastern Churches, and of
Judaism, at time of Mohammed's appearance; and of the methods taken
by him for the establishing his Religion, and the circumstances which
concurred thereto 25
III.-Of the Korân itself, the Peculiarities of that Book; the manner of its
being
written and published, and the General Design of it 44
IV.-Of the Doctrines and positive Precepts of the Korân which relate to Faith
and
Religious Duties 54
V.-Of certain Negative Precepts in the Korân 95
VI.-Of the Institutions of the Korân in Civil Affairs 103
VII.-Of the Months commanded by the Korân to be kept Sacred; and of the
setting
apart of Friday for the especial service of God 114
VIII.-Of the principal Sects among the Mohammedans; and of those who have pre-
tended to Prophecy among the Arabs, in or since the time of Mohammed
117
A TABLE OF THE CHAPTERS
OF
THE KORAN.
______________
CHAPTER Page
1. Entitled, The Preface, or Introduction; containing 7 verses 1
2. Entitled, The Cow; containing 286 verses 2
3. Entitled, The Family of Imrân; containing 200 verses 32
4. Entitled, Women; containing 175 verses 53
5. Entitled, The Table; containing 120 verses 73
6. Entitled, Cattle; containing 165 verses 89
7. Entitled, Al Araf; containing 206 verses 105
8. Entitled, The Spoils; containing 76 verses 125
9. Entitled, The Declaration of Immunity; containing 139 verses 134
10. Entitled, Jonas; containing 109 verses 150
11. Entitled, Hud; containing 123 verses 158
12. Entitled, Joseph; containing 111 verses 169
13. Entitled, Thunder; containing 43 verses 181
14. Entitled, Abraham; containing 52 verses 186
15. Entitled, Al Hejr; containing 99 verses 191
16. Entitled, The Bee; containing 128 verses 195
17. Entitled, The Night Journey; contianing 110 verses 206
18. Entitled, The Cave; containing 111 verses 216
19. Entitled, Mary; containing 80 verses 227
20. Entitled, T. H.; containing 134 verses 233
21. Entitled, The Prophets; containing 112 verses 242
22. Entitled, The Pilgrimage; containing 78 verses 250
23. Entitled, The True Believers; containing 118 verses 257
24. Entitled, Light; containing 74 verses 262
25. Entitled, Al Forkan; containing 77 verses 271
26. Entitled, The Poets; containing 227 verses 276
27. Entitled, The Ant; containing 93 verses 283
28. Entitled, The Story; containing 87 verses 289
29. Entitled, The Spider; containing 69 verses 297
30. Entitled, The Greeks; containing 60 verses 302
31. Entitled, Lokmân; containing 34 verses 306
32. Entitled, Adoration; containing 29 verses 309
33. Entitled, The Confederates; containing 73 verses 312
34. Entitled, Saba; containing 54 verses 321
35. Entitled, The Creator; containing 45 verses 326
36. Entitled, Y. S; containing 83 verses 330
CHAPTER Page
37. Entitled, Those who rank themselves in Order; containing 182 verses 334
38. Entitled, S.; containing 86 verses 339
39. Entitled, The Troops; containing 75 verses 344
40. Entitled, The True Believer; containing 85 verses 350
41. Entitled, Are distinctly explained; containing 54 verses 355
42. Entitled, Consultation; containing 53 verses 359
43. Entitled, The Ornaments of Gold; containing 89 verses 362
44. Entitled, Smoke; containing 57 verses 367
45. Entitled, The Kneeling; containing 36 verses 369
46. Entitled, Al Ahkaf; containing 35 verses 371
47. Entitled, Mohammed; containing 38 verses 374
48. Entitled, The Victory; containing 29 verses 377
49. Entitled, The Inner Apartments; containing 18 verse 381
50. Entitled, K.; containing 45 verses 383
51. Entitled, The Dispersing; containing 60 verses 385
52. Entitled, The Mountain; containing 48 verses 387
53. Entitled, The Star; containing 61 verses 389
54. Entitled, The Moon; containing 55 verses 391
55. Entitled, The Merciful; containing 78 verses 394
56. Entitled, The Inevitable; containing 99 verses 396
57. Entitled, Iron; containing 29 verses 399
58. Entitled, She who disputed; containing 22 verses 402
59. Entitled, The Emigration; containing 24 verses 404
60. Entitled, She who is tried; containing 13 verses 407
61. Entitled, Battle Array; containing 14 verses 409
62. Entitled, The Assembly; containing 11 verses 410
63. Entitled, The Hypocrites; containing 11 verses 412
64. Entitled, Mutual Deceit; contianing 18 verses 413
65. Entitled, Divorce; containing 12 verses 414
66. Entitled, Prohibition; containing 12 verses 415
67. Entitled, The Kingdom; containing 30 verses 418
68. Entitled, The Pen; containing 52 verses 419
69. Entitled, The Infallible; containing 52 verses 421
70. Entitled, The Steps; containing 44 verses 423
71. Entitled, Noah; containing 28 verses 424
72. Entitled, The Genii; containing 28 verses 426
73. Entitled, The Wrapped up; containing 19 verses 427
74. Entitled, The Covered; containing 55 verses 429
75. Entitled, The Resurrection; containing 40 verses 431
76. Entitled, Man; containing 31 verses 432
77. Entitled, Those which are sent; containing 50 verses 434
78. Entitled, The News; containing 40 verses 435
79. Entitled, Those who tear forth; containing 46 verses 436
80. Entitled, He Frowned; containing 42 verses 437
81. Entitled, The Folding up; containing 29 verses 438
82. Entitled, The Cleaving in Sunder; containing 19 verses 439
83. Entitled, Those who give Short Measure or Weight; containing 36 verses
440
84. Entitled, The Rending in Sunder; containing 23 verses 441
85. Entitled, The Celestial Signs; containing 22 verses 442
86. Entitled, The Star which appeareth by Night; containing 17 verses 443
87. Entitled, The Most High; containing 19 verses 443
88. Entitled, The Overwhelming; containing 26 verses 444
CHAPTER Page
89. Entitled, The Daybreak; containing 30 verses 445
90. Entitled, The Territory; containing 20 verses 447
91. Entitled, The Sun; containing 15 verses 447
92. Entitled, The Night; containing 21 verses 448
93. Entitled, The Brightness; containing 11 verses 448
94. Entitled, Have we not Opened; containing 8 verses 449
95. Entitled, The Fig; containing 8 verses 449
96. Entitled, Congealed Blood; containing 19 verses 450
97. Entitled, Al Kadr; containing 5 verses 451
98. Entitled, The Evidence; containing 8 verses 451
99. Entitled, The Earthquake, containing 8 verses 452
100. Entitled, The War Horses which run swiftly; containing 11 verses 453
101. Entitled, The Striking; containing 10 verses 453
102. Entitled, The Emulous Desire of Multiplying; containing 8 verses 454
103. Entitled, The Afternoon; containing 3 verses 454
104. Entitled, The Slanderer; containing 9 verses 454
105. Entitled, The Elephant; containing 5 verses 455
106. Entitled, Koreish; containing 4 verses 456
107. Entitled, Necessaries; containing 7 verses 457
108. Entitled, Al Cawthar; containing 3 verses 457
109. Entitled, The Unbelievers; containing 6 verses 458
110. Entitled, Assistance; containing 3 verses 458
111. Entitled, Abu Laheb; containing 5 verses 459
112. Entitled, The Declaration of God's Unity; containing 4 verses 459
113. Entitled, The Daybreak; containing 5 verses 460
114. Entitled, Men; containing 6 verses 460
THE
PRELIMINARY DISCOURSE
SECTION I.
OF THE ARABS BEFORE MOHAMMED; OR, AS THEY EXPRESS IT, IN THE TIME
OF IGNORANCE; THEIR HISTORY, RELIGION, LEARNING, AND CUSTOMS
THE Arabs, and the country they inhabit, which themselves call Jezîrat al
Arab, or the Peninsula of the Arabians, but we Arabia, were so named from
Araba, a small territory in the province of Tehâma;1 to which Yarab the son of
Kahtân, the father of the ancient Arabs, gave his name, and where, some ages
after, dwelt Ismael the son of Abraham by Hagar. The Christian writers for
several centuries speak of them under the appellation of Saracens; the most
certain derivation of which word is from shark, the east, where the
descendants of Joctan, the Kahtân of the Arabs, are placed by Moses,2 and in
which quarter they dwelt in respect to the Jews.3
The name of Arabia (used in a more extensive sense) sometimes comprehends
all that large tract of land bounded by the river Euphrates, the Persian Gulf,
the Sindian, Indian, and Red Seas, and part of the Mediterranean: above two-
thirds of which country, that is, Arabia properly so called, the Arabs have
possessed almost from the Flood; and have made themselves masters of the rest,
either by settlements or continual incursions; for which reason the Turks and
Persians at this day call the whole Arabistân, or the country of the Arabs.
But the limits of Arabia, in its more usual and proper sense, are much
narrower, as reaching no farther northward than the Isthmus, which runs from
Aila to the head of the Persian Gulf, and the borders of the territory of
Cûfa; which tract of land the Greeks nearly comprehended under the name of
Arabia the Happy. The eastern geographers make Arabia Petræa to belong partly
to Egypt, and partly to Shâm or Syria, and the desert Arabia they call the
deserts of Syria.4
Proper Arabia is by the oriental writers generally divided into five
provinces,5 viz., Yaman, Hejâz, Tehâma, Najd, and Yamâma; to which
1 Pocock, Specim. Hist. Arab. 33. 2 Gen. x. 30. 3 See Pocock,
Specim. 33, 34. 4 Golius ad Alfragan. 78, 79.
5 Strabo says Arabia Felix was in his time divided into five kingdoms, l. 16,
p. 1129.
some add Bahrein, as a sixth, but this province the more exact make part of
Irák;6 others reduce them all to two, Yaman and Hejâz, the last including the
three other provinces of Tehâma, Najd, and Yamâma.
The province of Yaman, so called either from its situation to the right
hand, or south of the temple of Mecca, or else from the happiness and verdure
of its soil, extends itself along the Indian Ocean from Aden to Cape Rasalgat;
part of the Red Sea bounds it on the west and south sides, and the province of
Hejâz on the north.1 It is subdivided into several lesser provinces, as
Hadramaut, Shihr, Omân, Najrân, &c., of which Shihr alone produces the
frankincense.2 The metropolis of Yaman is Sanaa, a very ancient city, in
former times called Ozal, and much celebrated for its delightful situation;
but the prince at present resides about five leagues northward from thence, at
a place no less pleasant, called Hisn almawâheb, or the Castle of delights.3
This country has been famous from all antiquity for the happiness of its
climate, its fertility and riches,4 which induced Alexander the Great, after
his return from his Indian expedition, to form a design of conquering it, and
fixing there his royal seat; but his death, which happened soon after,
prevented the execution of this project.5 Yet, in reality, great part of the
riches which the ancients imagined were the produce of Arabia, came really
from the Indies and the coasts of Africa; for the Egyptians, who had engrossed
that trade, which was then carried on by way of the Red Sea, to themselves,
industriously concealed the truth of the matter, and kept their ports shut to
prevent foreigners penetrating into those countries, or receiving any
information thence; and this precaution of theirs on the one side, and the
deserts, unpassable to strangers, on the other, were the reason why Arabia was
so little known to the Greeks and Romans. The delightfulness and plenty of
Yaman are owing to its mountains; for all that part which lies along the Red
Sea is a dry, barren desert, in some places ten or twelve leagues over, but in
return bounded by those mountains, which being well watered, enjoy an almost
continual spring, and, besides coffee, the peculiar produce of this country,
yield great plenty and variety of fruits, and in particular excellent corn,
grapes, and spices. There are no rivers of note in this country, for the
streams which at certain times of the year descend from the mountains, seldom
reach the sea, being for the most part drunk up and lost in the burning sands
of that coast.1
The soil of the other provinces is much more barren than that of Yaman; the
greater part of their territories being covered with dry sands, or rising into
rocks, interspersed here and there with some fruitful spots, which receive
their greatest advantages from their water and palm trees.
The province of Hejâz, so named because it divides Najd from Tehâma, is
bounded on the south by Yaman and Tehâma, on the west by the Red Sea, on the
north by the deserts of Syria, and on the east by the province of Najd.2 This
province is famous for its two chief cities, Mecca and Medina, one of which is
celebrated for its temple, and having given birth to Mohammed; and the other
for being the
6 Gol. ad Alfragan. 79. 1 La Roque, Voyage de l'Arab, heur. 121. 2
Gol. ad Alfragan. 79, 87. 3 Voyage de l'Arab, heur. 232. 4
Vide Dionys. Perieges. v. 927, &c. 5 Strabo, l. 16, p. 1132. Arrian, 161.
1 Voy. de l'Arab. heur. 121, 123, 153. 2 Vide Gol. ad Alfrag. 98.
Abulfeda Descr. Arab. p. 5.
place of his residence for the last ten years of his life, and of his
interment.
Mecca, sometimes also called Becca, which words are synonymous, and signify
a place of great concourse, is certainly one of the most ancient cities of the
world: it is by some3 thought to be the Mesa of the scripture,4 a name not
unknown to the Arabians, and supposed to be taken form one of Ismael's sons.5
It is seated in a stony and barren valley, surrounded on all sides with
mountains.6 The length of Mecca from south to north is about two miles, and
its breadth from the foot of the mountain Ajyad, to the top of another called
Koaikaân, about a mile.7 In the midst of this space stands the city, built of
stone cut from the neighbouring mountains.8 There being no springs at Mecca,9
at least none but what are bitter and unfit to drink,10 except only the well
Zemzem, the water of which, though far the best, yet cannot be drank of any
continuance, being brackish, and causing eruptions in those who drink
plentifully of it,11 the inhabitants are obliged to use rain-water which they
catch in cisterns.1 But this not being sufficient, several attempts were made
to bring water thither from other places by aqueducts; and particularly about
Mohammed's time, Zobair, one of the principal men of the tribe of Koreish,
endeavoured at a great expense to supply the city with water from Mount
Arafat, but without success; yet this was effected not many years ago, being
begun at the charge of a wife of Solimân the Turkish emperor.2 But long
before this, another aqueduct had been made from a spring at a considerable
distance, which was, after several years' labour, finished by the Khalîf al
Moktader.3
The soil about Mecca is so very barren as to produce no fruits but what are
common in the deserts, though the prince or Sharîf has a garden well planted
at his castle of Marbaa, about three miles westward from the city, where he
usually resides. Having therefore no corn or grain of their own growth, they
are obliged to fetch it from other places;4 and Hashem, Mohammed's great-
grandfather, then prince of his tribe, the more effectually to supply them
with provisions, appointed two caravans to set out yearly for that purpose,
the one in summer, and the other in winter: 5 these caravans of purveyors are
mentioned in the Korân. The provisions brought by them were distributed also
twice a year, viz., in the month of Rajeb, and at the arrival of the pilgrims.
They are supplied with dates in great plenty from the adjacent country, and
with grapes from Tayef, about sixty miles distant, very few growing at Mecca.
The inhabitants of this city are generally very rich, being considerable
gainers by the prodigious concourse of people of almost all nations at the
yearly pilgrimage, at which time there is a great fair or mart for all kinds
of merchandise. They have also great numbers of cattle, and particularly of
camels: however, the poorer sort cannot but live very indifferently in a place
where almost every necessary of life must be purchased with money.
Notwithstanding this great sterility
3 R. Saadias in version. Arab. Pentat. Sefer Juchasin. 135. b. 4
Gen. x. 30. 5 Gol. ad Alfrag. 82 See Gen. xxv. 15.
6 Gol. ib. 98. See Pitts' Account of the religion and manners of the
Mohammedans, p. 96. 7 Sharif al Edrisi apud Poc. Specim. 122.
8 Ibid. 9 Gol. ad Alfragan. 99. 10 Sharif al Edrisi ubi
supra, 124. 11 Ibid. and Pitts ubi supra, p. 107. 1 Gol. ad Alfrag.
99. 2 Ibid. 3 Sharif al Edrisi ubi supra. 4 Idem ib.
5 Poc. Spec. 51
near Mecca, yet you are no sooner out of its territory than you meet on all
sides with plenty of good springs and streams of running water, with a great
many gardens and cultivated lands.6
The temple of Mecca, and the reputed holiness of this territory, will be
treated of in a more proper place.
Medina, which till Mohammed's retreat thither was called Yathreb, is a
walled city about half as big as Mecca,7 built in a plain, salt in many
places, yet tolerably fruitful, particularly in dates, but more especially
near the mountains, two of which, Ohod on the north, and Air on the south, are
about two leagues distant. Here lies Mohammed interred1 in a magnificent
building, covered with a cupola, and adjoining to the east side of the great
temple, which is built in the midst of the city.2
The province of Tehâma was so named from the vehement heat of its sandy
soil, and is also called Gaur from its low situation; it is bounded on the
west by the Red Sea, and on the other sides by Hejâz and Yaman, extending
almost from Mecca to Aden.3
The province of Najd, which word signifies a rising country, lies between
those of Yamâma, Yaman, and Hejâz, and is bounded on the east by Irak.4
The province of Yamâma, also called Arûd from its oblique situation, in
respect of Yaman, is surrounded by the provinces of Najd, Tehâma, Bahrein,
Omân, Shihr, Hadramaut, and Saba. The chief city is Yamâma, which gives name
to the province: it was anciently called Jaw, and is particularly famous for
being the residence of Mohammed's competitor, the false prophet Moseilama.5
The Arabians, the inhabitants of this spacious country, which they have
possessed from the most remote antiquity, are distinguished by their own
writers into two classes, viz., the old lost Arabians, and the present.
The former were very numerous, and divided into several tribes, which are
now all destroyed, or else lost and swallowed up among the other tribes, nor
are any certain memoirs or records extant concerning them;6 though the memory
of some very remarkable events and the catastrophe of some tribes have been
preserved by tradition, and since confirmed by the authority of the Korân.
The most famous tribes amongst these ancient Arabians were Ad, Thamûd,
Tasm, Jadîs, the former Jorham, and Amalek.
6 Sharif al Edrisi ubi supra, 125. 7 Id. Vulgò Geogr. Nubiensis, 5.
1 Though the notion of Mohammed's being buried at Mecca has been so long
exploded, yet several modern writers, whether through ignorance or negligence
I will not determine, have fallen into it. It shall here take notice only of
two; one is Dr. Smith, who having lived some time in Turkey, seems to be
inexcusable: that gentleman in his Epistles de Moribus ac Institutis Turcarum,
no less than thrice mentions the Mohammedans visiting the tomb of their
prophet at Mecca, and once his being born at Medina-the reverse of which is
true (see Ep. I, p. 22, Ep. 2, p. 63 and 64). The other is the publisher of
the last edition of Sir J. Mandevile's Travels, who on his author's saying
very truly (p. 50) that the said tomb was at Methone, i.e., Medina, undertakes
to correct the name of the town, which is something corrupted, by putting at
the bottom of the page, Mecca. The Abbot de Vertot, in his History of the
Order of Malta (vol. i. p. 410, ed. 8vo.), seems also to have confounded these
two cities together, though he had before mentioned Mohammed's sepulchre at
Medina. However, he is certainly mistaken, when he says that one point of the
religion, both of the Christians and Mohammedans, was to visit, at least once
in their lives, the tomb of the author of their respective faith. Whatever
may be the opinion of some Christians, I am well assured the Mohammedans think
themselves under no manner of obligation in that respect.
2 Gol. ad Alfragan. 97, Abulfeda Descr. Arab. p. 40. 3 Gol. ubi sup. 95.
4 Ibid. 94. 5 Ibid. 95.
6 Abulfarag, p. 159.
The tribe of Ad were descended from Ad, the son of Aws,1 the son of Aram,2
the son of Sem, the son of Noah, who, after the confusion of tongues, settled
in al Ahkâf, or the winding sands in the province of Hadramaut, where his
posterity greatly multiplied. Their first king was Shedâd the son of Ad, of
whom the eastern writers deliver many fabulous things, particularly that he
finished the magnificent city his father had begun, wherein he built a fine
palace, adorned with delicious gardens, to embellish which he spared neither
cost nor labour, proposing thereby to create in his subjects a superstitious
veneration of himself as a god.3 This garden or paradise was called the
garden of Irem, and is mentioned in the Korân,4 and often alluded to by the
oriental writers. The city, they tell us, is still standing in the deserts of
Aden, being preserved by providence as a monument of divine justice, though it
be invisible, unless very rarely, when GOD permits it to be seen, a favour one
Colabah pretended to have received in the reign of the Khalîf Moâwiyah, who
sending for him to know the truth of the matter, Colabah related his whole
adventure; that as he was seeking a camel he had lost, he found himself on a
sudden at the gates of this city, and entering it saw not one inhabitant, at
which, being terrified, he stayed no longer than to take with him some fine
stones which he showed the Khalîf.5
The descendants of Ad in process of time falling from the worship of the
true God into idolatry, GOD sent the prophet Hûd (who is generally agreed to
be Heber6) to preach to and reclaim them. But they refusing to acknowledge
his mission, or to obey him, GOD sent a hot and suffocating wind, which blew
seven nights and eight days together, and entering at their nostrils passed
through their bodies.7 and destroyed them all, a very few only excepted, who
had believed in Hûd and retired with him to another place.8 That prophet
afterwards returned into Hadramaut, and was buried near Hasec, where there is
a small town now standing called Kabr Hûd, or the sepulchre of Hûd. Before
the Adites were thus severely punished, GOD, to humble them, and incline them
to hearken to the preaching of his prophet, afflicted them with a drought for
four years, so that all their cattle perished, and themselves were very near
it; upon which they sent Lokmân (different from one of the same name who lived
in David's time) with sixty others to Mecca to beg rain, which they not
obtaining, Lokmân with some of his company stayed at Mecca, and thereby
escaped destruction, giving rise to a tribe called the latter Ad, who were
afterward changed into monkeys.1
Some commentators on the Korân2 tell us these old Adites were of prodigious
stature, the largest being 100 cubits high, and the least 60; which
extraordinary size they pretend to prove by the testimony of the Korân.3
The tribe of Thamûd were the posterity of Thamûd the son of Gather4 the son
of Aram, who falling into idolatry, the prophet Sâleh was sent to bring them
back to the worship of the true GOD. This prophet lived between the time of
Hûd and of Abraham, and therefore cannot be the
1 Or Uz. Gen. x. 22, 23. 2 Vide Kor. c. 89. Some make Ad the son
of Amalek, the son of Ham; but the other is the received opinion. See
D'Herbel. 51. 3 Vide Eund. 498. 4 Cap. 89. 5 D'Herbel. 51.
6 The Jews acknowledge Heber to have been a great prophet. Seder Olam.
p. 2. 7 Al Beidâwi. 8 Poc. Spec. 35, &c. 1 Ibid, 36.
2 Jallâlo'ddin et Zamakhshari. 3 Kor. c. 7. 4 Or Gether, vide
Gen. x. 23.
same with the patriarch Sâleh, as Mr. d'Herbelot imagines.5 The learned
Bochart with more probability takes him to be Phaleg.6 A small number of the
people of Thamûd hearkened to the remonstrances of Sâleh, but the rest
requiring, as a proof of his mission, that he should cause a she-camel big
with young to come out of a rock in their presence, he accordingly obtained it
of GOD, and the camel was immediately delivered of a young one ready weaned;
but they, instead of believing, cut the hamstrings of the camel and killed
her; at which act of impiety GOD, being highly displeased, three days after
struck them dead in their houses by an earthquake and a terrible noise from
heaven, which, some7 say, was the voice of Gabriel the archangel crying aloud,
"Die, all of you." Sâleh, with those who were reformed by him, were saved
from this destruction; the prophet going into Palestine, and from thence to
Mecca,8 where he ended his days.
This tribe first dwelt in Yaman, but being expelled thence by Hamyar the
son of Sâba,9 they settled in the territory of Hejr in the province of Hejâz,
where their habitations cut out of the rocks, mentioned in the Korân,10 are
still to be seen, and also the crack of the rock whence the camel issued,
which, as an eye-witness11 hath declared, is 60 cubits wide. These houses of
the Thamûdites being of the ordinary proportion, are used as an argument to
convince those of a mistake who who this people to have been of a gigantic
stature.12
The tragical destructions of these two potent tribes are often insisted on
in the Korân, as instances of GOD'S judgment on obstinate unbelievers.
The tribe of Tasm were the posterity of Lûd the son of Sem, and Jadîs of
the descendants of Jether.1 These two tribes dwelt promiscuously together
under the government of Tasm, till a certain tyrant made a law that no maid of
the tribe of Jadîs should marry unless first defloured by him;2 which the
Jadisians not enduring, formed a conspiracy, and inviting the king and chiefs
of Tasm to an entertainment, privately hid their swords in the sand, and in
the midst of their mirth fell on them and slew them all, and extirpated the
greatest part of that tribe; however, the few who escaped obtaining aid of the
king of Yaman, then (as is said) Dhu Habshân Ebn Akrân,3 assaulted the Jadîs
and utterly destroyed them, there being scarce any mention made from that time
of either of these tribes.4
The former tribe of Jorham (whose ancestor some pretend was one of the
eighty persons saved in the ark of Noah, according to a Mohammedan tradition5)
was contemporary with Ad, and utterly perished.6 The tribe of Amalek were
descended from Amalek the son of Eliphaz the son of Esau 7, though some of the
oriental authors say Amalek was the son of Ham the son of Noah,8 and others
the son of Azd the son of Sem.9 The posterity of this person rendered
themselves very powerful,10 and before the time of Joseph conquered the lower
Egypt under
5 D'Herbel. Bibl. Orient. 740. 6 Bochart Geogr. Sac. 7 See D'Herbel.
366. 8 Ebn Shohnah
9 Poc. Spec. 57. 10 Kor. c. 15. 11 Abu Musa al Ashari. 12. Vide
Poc. Spec. 37. 1 Abulfeda.
2 A like custom is said to have been i n some manors in England, and also in
Scotland, where it was called "culliage," having been established by K. Ewen,
and abolished by Malcolm III. See Bayle's Dict. Art. Sixte IV., Rem. H.
3 Poc. Spec. 60. 4 Ibid. 37, &c. 5 Ibid. p. 38. 6 Ebn Shohnah.
7 Gen. xxxvi. 12. 8 Vide D'Herbelot, p. 110.
9 Ebn Shohnah 10 Vide Numb. xxiv. 20.
their king Walîd, the first who took the name of Pharaoh, as the eastern
writers tell us;11 seeming by these Amalekites to mean the same people which
the Egyptian histories call Phoenician shepherds.12 But after they had
possessed the throne of Egypt for some descents, they were expelled by the
natives, and at length totally destroyed by the Israelites.13
The present Arabians, according to their own historians, are sprung from
two stocks, Kahtân, the same with Joctan the son of Eber,14 and Adnân
descended in a direct line from Ismael the son of Abraham and Hagar; the
posterity of the former they call al Arab al Ariba,15 i.e., the genuine or
pure Arabs, and those of the latter al Arab al mostáreba, i.e., naturalized or
institious Arabs, though some reckon the ancient lost tribes to have been the
only pure Arabians, and therefore call the posterity of Kahtân also Mótareba,
which word likewise signifies insititious Arabs, though in a nearer degree
than Mostáreba; the descendants of Ismael being the more distant graff.
The posterity of Ismael have no claim to be admitted as pure Arabs, their
ancestor being by origin and language an Hebrew; but having made an alliance
with the Jorhamites, by marrying a daughter of Modad, and accustomed himself
to their manner of living and language, his descendants became blended with
them into one nation. The uncertainty of the descents between Ismael and
Adnân is the reason why they seldom trace their genealogies higher than the
latter, whom they acknowledge as father of their tribes, the descents from him
downwards being pretty certain and uncontroverted.1
The genealogy of these tribes being of great use to illustrate the Arabian
history, I have taken the pains to form a genealogical table from their most
approved authors, to which I refer the curious.
Besides these tribes of Arabs mentioned by their own authors, who were all
descended from the race of Sem, others of them were the posterity of Ham by
his son Cush, which name is in scripture constantly given to the Arabs and
their country, though our version renders it Ethiopia; but strictly speaking,
the Cushites did not inhabit Arabia properly so called, but the banks of the
Euphrates and the Persian Gulf, whither they came form Chuzestân or Susiana,
the original settlement of their father.2 They might probably mix themselves
in process of time with the Arabs of the other race, but the eastern writers
take little or no notice of them.
The Arabians were for some centuries under the government of the
descendants of Kâhtan; Yárab, one of his sons, founding the kingdom of Yaman,
and Jorham, another of them, that of Hejâz.
The province of Yaman, or the better part of it, particularly the provinces
of Saba and Hadramaut, was governed by princes of the tribe of Hamyar, though
at length the kingdom was translated to the descendants of Cahlân, his
brother, who yet retained the title of king of Hamyar, and had all of them the
general title of Tobba, which signifies successor, and was affected to this
race of princes, as that of
11 Mirât Caïnât. 12 Vide Joseph. cont. Apion. l. i. 13 Vide
Exod. xvii. 18, &c.; I Sam. xv. 2, &c.; ibid. xxvii. 8, 9; I Chron. iv. 43.
14 R. Saad. in vers. Arab. Pentat. Gen. x. 25. Some writers make
Kahtân a descendant of Ismael, but against the current of oriental historians.
See Poc. Spec. 39. 15 An expression something like that of St.
Paul, who calls himself "an Hebrew of the Hebrews," Philip. iii. 5.
1 Poc. Spec. p. 40. 2 Vide Hyde Hist. Rel. veter. Persar. p. 37,
&c.
Cæsar was to the Roman emperors, and Khalîf to the successors of Mohammed.
There were several lesser princes who reigned in other parts of Yaman, and
were mostly, if not altogether, subject to the king of Hamyar, whom they
called the great king, but of these history has recorded nothing remarkable or
that may be depended upon.1
The first great calamity that befell the tribes settled in Yaman was the
inundation of Aram, which happened soon after the time of Alexander the Great,
and is famous in the Arabian history. No less than eight tribes were forced
to abandon their dwellings upon this occasion, some of which gave rise to the
two kingdoms of Ghassân and Hira. And this was probably the time of the
migration of those tribes or colonies which were led into Mesopotamia by three
chiefs,Becr, Modar, and Rabîa, from whom the three provinces of that country
are still named Diyar Becr, Diyar Modar, and Diyar Rabîa.2 Abdshems, surnamed
Saba, having built the city from him called Saba, and afterwards Mareb, made a
vast mound, or dam,3 to serve as a basin or reservoir to receive the water
which came down from the mountains, not only for the use of the inhabitants,
and watering their lands, but also to keep the country they had subjected in
greater awe by being masters of the water. This building stood like a
mountain above their city, and was by them esteemed so strong that they were
in no apprehension of its ever failing. The water rose to the height of
almost twenty fathoms, and was kept in on every side by a work so solid, that
many of the inhabitants had their houses built upon it. Every family had a
certain portion of this water, distributed by aqueducts. But at length, GOD,
being highly displeased at their great pride and insolence, and resolving to
humble and disperse them, sent a mighty flood, which broke down the mound by
night while the inhabitants were asleep, and carried away the whole city, with
the neighbouring towns and people.4
The tribes which remained in Yaman after this terrible devastation still
continued under the obedience of the former princes, till about seventy years
before Mohammed, when the king of Ethiopia sent over forces to assist the
Christians of Yaman against the cruel persecution of their king, Dhu Nowâs, a
bigoted Jew, whom they drove to that extremity that he forced his horse into
the sea, and so lost his life and crown,5 after which the country was governed
by four Ethiopian princes successively, till Selif, the son of Dhu Yazan, of
the tribe of Hamyar, obtaining succours from Khosrû Anushirwân, king of
Persia, which had been denied him by the emperor Heraclius, recovered the
throne and drove out the Ethiopians, but was himself slain by some of them who
were left behind. The Persians appointed the succeeding princes till Yaman
fell into the hands of Mohammed, to whom Bazan, or rather Badhân, the last of
them, submitted, and embraced this new religion.1
This kingdom of the Hammyarites is said to have lasted 2,020 years,2 or as
others say above 3,000;3 the length of the reign of each prince being very
uncertain.
It has been already observed that two kingdoms were founded by those who
left their country on occasion of the inundation of Aram:
1 Poc. Spec. p. 65, 66. 2 Vide Gol. ad Alfrag. p. 232. 3
Poc. Spec. p. 57. 4 Geogr. Nubiens. p. 52.
5 See Prideaux's Life of Mahomet, p. 61. 1 Poc. Spec. p. 63, 64. 2
Abulfeda. 3 Al Jannâbi and Ahmed Ebn Yusef.
they were both out of the proper limits of Arabia. One of them was the
kingdom of Ghassân. The founders of this kingdom were of the tribe of Azd,
who, settling in Syria Damascena near a water called Ghassân, thence took
their name, and drove out (the Dajaamian Arabs of the tribe of Salîh, who
before possessed the country;4 where they maintained their kingdom 400 years,
as others say 600, or as Abulfeda more exactly computes, 616. Five of these
princes were named Hâreth, which the Greeks write Aretas: and one of them it
was whose governor ordered the gates of Damascus to be watched to take St.
Paul.5 This tribe were Christians, their last king being Jabalah the son of
al Ayham, who on the Arabs' successes in Syria professed Mohammedism under the
Khalîf Omar; but receiving a disgust from him, returned to his former faith,
and retired to Constantinople.6
The other kingdom was that of Hira, which was founded by Malec, of the
descendants of Cahlân7 in Chaldea or Irâk; but after three descents the throne
came by marriage to the Lakhmians, called also the Mondars (the general name
of those princes), who preserved their dominion, notwithstanding some small
interruption by the Persians, till the Khalîfat of Abubecr, when al Mondar al
Maghrûr, the last of them, lost his life and crown by the arms of Khaled Ebn
al Walîd. This kingdom lasted 622 years eight months.8 Its princes were
under the protection of the kings of Persia, whose lieutenants they were over
the Arabs of Irâk, as the kings of Ghassân were for the Roman emperors over
those of Syria.9
Jorham the son of Kahtân reigned in Hejâz, where his posterity kept the
throne till the time of Ismael; but on his marrying the daughter of Modad, by
whom he had twelve sons, Kidar, one of them, had the crown resigned to him by
his uncles the Jorhamites,1 though others say the descendants of Ismael
expelled that tribe, who retiring to Johainah, were, after various fortune, at
last all destroyed by an inundation.2
Of the kings of Hamyar, Hira, Ghassân, and Jorham, Dr. Pocock has given us
catalogues tolerably exact, to which I refer the curious.3
After the expulsion of the Jorhamites, the government of Hejâz seems not to
have continued for many centuries in the hands of one prince, but to have been
divided among the heads of tribes, almost in the same manner as the Arabs of
the desert are governed at this day. At Mecca an aristocracy prevailed, where
the chief management of affairs till the time of Mohammed was in the tribe of
Koreish, especially after they had gotten the custody of the Caaba from the
tribe of Khozâah.4
Besides the kingdoms which have been taken notice of, there were some other
tribes which in latter times had princes of their own, and formed states of
lesser note, particularly the tribe of Kenda:5 but as I am not writing a just
history of the Arabs, and an account of them would be of no great use ot my
present purpose, I shall waive any further mention of them.
After the time of Mohammed, Arabia was for about three centuries under the
Khalîfs his successors. But in the year 325 of the Hejra,
4 Poc. Spec. p. 76. 5 2 Cor. xi. 32; Acts ix. 24. 6 Vide Ockley's
History of the Saracens, vol. i. p. 174. 7 Poc. Spec. p. 66.
8 Ibid. p. 74. 9 Ibid. and Procop. in Pers. apud Photium. p. 71, &c.
1 Poc. Spec. p. 45. 2 Ibid. p. 79.
3 Ibid. p. 55, seq. 4 Vide ibid. p. 41, and Prideaux's Life of Mahomet,
p. 2. 5 Vide Poc. Spec. p. 79, &c.
great part of that country was in the hands of the Karmatians,6 a new sect who
had committed great outrages and disorders even in Mecca, and to whom the
Khalîfs were obliged to pay tribute, that the pilgrimage thither might be
performed: of this sect I may have occasion to speak in another place.
Afterwards Yaman was governed by the house of Thabateba, descended from Ali
the son-in-law of Mohammed, whose sovereignty in Arabia some place so high as
the time of Charlemagne. However, it was the posterity of Ali, or pretenders
to be such, who reigned in Yaman and Egypt so early as the tenth century. The
present reigning family in Yaman is probably that of Ayub, a branch of which
reigned there in the thirteenth century, and took the title of Khalîf and
Imâm, which they still retain.7 They are not possessed of the whole province
of Yaman,8 there being several other independent kingdoms there, particularly
that of Fartach. The crown of Yaman descends not regularly from father to
son, but the prince of the blood royal who is most in favour with the great
ones, or has the strongest interest, generally succeeds.9
The governors of Mecca and Medina, who have always been of the race of
Mohammed, also threw off their subjection to the Khalîfs, since which time
four principal families, all descended from Hassan the son of Ali, have
reigned there under the title of Sharîf, which signifies noble, as they reckon
themselves to be on account of their descent. These are Banu Kâder, Banu Mûsa
Thani, Banu Hashem, and Banu Kitâda;1 which last family now is, or lately was,
in the throne of Mecca, where they have reigned above 500 years. The reigning
family at Medina are the Banu Hashem, who also reigned at Mecca before those
of Kitâda.2
The kings of Yaman, as well as the princes of Mecca and Medina, are
alsolutely independent3 and not at all subject to the Turk, as some late
authors have imagined.4 These princes often making cruel wars among
themselves, gave an opportunity to Selim I. and his son Solimân, to make
themselves masters of the coasts of Arabia on the Red Sea, and of part of
Yaman, by means of a fleet built at Sues: but their successors have not been
able to maintain their conquests; for, except the port of Jodda, where they
have a Basha whose authority is very small, they possess nothing considerable
in Arabia.5
Thus have the Arabs preserved their liberty, of which few nations can
produce so ancient monuments, with very little interruption, from the very
Deluge; for though very great armies have been sent against them, all attempts
to subdue them were unsuccessful. The Assyrian or Median empires never got
footing among them.6 The Persian monarchs, though they were their friends,
and so far respected by them as to have an annual present of frankincense,7
yet could never make them tributary;8 and were so far from being their
masters, that Cambyses, on his expedition against Egypt, was obliged to ask
their leave to pass through their territories;9 and when Alexander had subdued
that mighty empire, yet the Arabians had so little apprehension of him, that
they alone, of
6 Vide Elmacin. in vita al Râdi. 7 Voyage de l-Arab. heur. p. 255.
8 Ibid. 153, 273. 9 Ibid. 254. 1 Ibid. 143. 2
Ibid. 145. 3 Ibid. 143, 148. 4 Vide D'Herbel. Bibl. Orient. p.
477. 5 Voy. de l'Arab. heur. p. 148. 6 Diodor. Sic. 1. 2, p. 131.
7 Herodot. 1 3, c. 97. 8 Idem ib. c. 91. Diodor. ubi sup.
9 Herodot. 1. 3, c. 8 and 98.
all the neighbouring nations, sent no ambassadors to him, either first or
last; which, with a desire of possessing so rich a country, made him form a
design against it, and had he not died before he could put it in execution,10
this people might possibly have convinced him that he was not invincible: and
I do not find that any of his successors, either in Asia or Egypt, ever made
any attempt against them.1 The Romans never conquered any part of Arabia
properly so called; the most they did was to make some tribes in Syria
tributary to them, as Pompey did one commanded by Sampsiceramus or
Shams'alkerâm, who reigned at Hems or Emesa;2 but none of the Romans, or any
other nations that we know of, ever penetrated so far into Arabia as Ælius
Gallus under Augustus Cæsar;3 yet he was so far from subduing it, as some
authors pretend,4 that he was soon obliged to return without effecting
anything considerable, having lost the best part of his army by sickness and
other accidents.5 This ill success probably discouraged the Romans from
attacking them any more; for Trajan, notwithstanding the flatteries of the
historians and orators of his time, and the medals struck by him, did not
subdue the Arabs; the province of Arabia, which it is said he added to the
Roman empire, scarce reaching farther than Arabia Petræa, or the very skirts
of the country. And we are told by one author,6 that this prince, marching
against the Agarens who had revolted, met with such a reception that he was
obliged to return without doing anything.
The religion of the Arabs before Mohammed, which they call the state of
ignorance, in opposition to the knowledge of GOD'S true worship revealed to
them by their prophet, was chiefly gross idolatry; the Sabian religion having
almost overrun the whole nation, though there were also great numbers of
Christians, Jews, and Magians among them.
I shall not here transcribe what Dr. Prideaux7 has written of the original
of the Sabian religion; but instead thereof insert a brief account of the
tenets and worship of that sect. They do not only believe one GOD, but
produce many strong arguments for His unity, though they also pay an adoration
to the stars, or the angels and intelligences which they suppose reside in
them, and govern the world under the Supreme Deity. They endeavour to perfect
themselves in the four intellectual virtues, and believe the souls of the
wicked men will be punished for nine thousand ages, but will afterwards be
received to mercy. They are obliged to pray three times8 a day; the first,
half an hour or less before sunrise, ordering it so that they may, just as the
sun rises, finish eight adorations, each containing three prostrations;9 the
second prayer they end at noon, when the sun begins to decline, in saying
which they perform five such adorations as the former: and in the same they do
the third time, ending just as the sun sets. They fast three times a year,
the first time thirty days, the next nine days, and the last seven. They
offer many sacrifices, but eat no part of them, burning them all. They
abstain from beans, garlic, and some other pulse and vegetables.1 As
10 Strabo, l. 16, p. 1076, 1132. 1 Vide Diodor. Sic. ubi
supra. 2 Strabo, l. 16, p. 1092. 3 Dion Cassius, l. 53, p. m.
516 4 Huet, Hist. du Commerce et de la Navigation des Anciens, c. 50.
5 See the whole expedition described at large by Strabo, l. 16,
p. 1126, &c. 6 Xiphilin. epit. 7 Connect. of the Hist.
of the Old and New Test. p. 1, bk. 3. 8 Some say seven. See
D'Herbelot, p. 726, and Hyde de Rel. Vet. Pers. p. 128
9 Others say they use no incurvations or prostrations at all; vide Hyde ibid.
1 Abulfarag, Hist. Dynast. p. 281, &c.
to the Sabian Kebla, or part to which they turn their faces in praying,
authors greatly differ; one will have it to be the north,2 another the south,
a third Mecca, and a fourth the star to which they pay their devotions:3 and
perhaps there may be some variety in their practice in this respect. They go
on pilgrimage to a place near the city of Harran in Mesopotamia, where great
numbers of them dwell, and they have also a great respect for the temple of
Mecca, and the pyramids of Egypt;4 fancying these last to be the sepulchres of
Seth, and of Enoch and Sabi his two sons, whom they look on as the first
propagators of their religion; at these structures they sacrifice a cock and a
black calf, and offer up incense.5 Besides the book of Psalms, the only true
scripture they read, they have other books which they esteem equally sacred,
particularly one in the Chaldee tongue which they call the book of Seth, and
is full of moral discourses. This sect say they took the name of Sabians from
the above-mentioned Sabi, though it seems rather to be derived from Saba,6 or
the host of heaven, which they worship.7 Travellers commonly call them
Christians of St. John the Baptist, whose disciples also they pretend to be,
using a kind of baptism, which is the greatest mark they bear of Christianity.
This is one of the religions, the practice of which Mohammed tolerated (on
paying tribute), and the professors of it are often included in that
expression of the Korân, "those to whom the scriptures have been given," or
literally, the people of the book.
The idolatry of the Arabs then, as Sabians, chiefly consisted in
worshipping the fixed stars and planets, and the angels and their images,
which they honoured as inferior deities, and whose intercession they begged,
as their mediators with GOD. For the Arabs acknowledged one supreme GOD, the
Creator and LORD of the universe, whom they called Allah Taâla, the most high
GOD; and their other deities, who were subordinate to him, they called simply
al Ilahât, i.e., the goddesses; which words the Grecians not understanding,
and it being their constant custom to resolve the religion of every other
nation into their own, and find out gods of their to match the others', they
pretend that the Arabs worshipped only two deities, Orotalt and Alilat, as
those names are corruptly written, whom they will have to be the same with
Bacchus and Urania; pitching on the former as one of the greatest of their own
gods, and educated in Arabia, and on the other, because of the veneration
shown by the Arabs to the stars.1
That they acknowledged one supreme GOD, appears, to omit other proof, from
their usual form of addressing themselves to him, which was this, "I dedicate
myself to thy service, O GOD! Thou hast no companion, except thy companion of
whom thou art absolute master, and of whatever is his."2 So that they
supposed the idols not to be sui juris, though they offered sacrifices and
other offerings to them, as well as to GOD, who was also often put off with
the least portion, as Mohammed upbraids them. Thus when they planted fruit
trees, or sowed a field, they divided it by a line into two parts, setting one
apart
2 Idem ibid. 3 Hyde ubi supr. p. 124, &c. 4 D'Herbel. ubi
supr. 5 See Greaves' Pyramidogr. p. 6, 7. 6 Vide Poc. Spec. p.
138. 7 Thabet Ebn Korrah, a famous astronomer, and himself a Sabian,
wrote a treatise in Syriac concerning the doctrines, rites, and ceremonies of
this sect; from which, if it could be recovered, we might expect much better
information than any taken from the Arabian writers; vide Abulfarag, ubi sup.
1 Vide Herodot. 1. 3, c. 8; Arrian, p. 161, 162, and Strab. l. 16.
2 Al Shahrestani.
for their idols, and the other for GOD; if any of the fruits happened to fall
from the idol's part into GOD'S, they made restitution; but if from GOD'S part
into the idol's, they made no restitution. So when they watered the idol's
grounds, if the water broke over the channels made for that purpose, and ran
on GOD'S part, they damned it up again; but if the contrary, they let it run
on, saying, they wanted what was GOD'S, but he wanted nothing.3 In the same
manner, if the offering designed for GOD happened to be better than that
designed for the idol, they made an exchange, but not otherwise.4
It was from this gross idolatry, or the worship of inferior deities, or
companions of GOD, as the Arabs continue to call them, that Mohammed reclaimed
his countrymen, establishing the sole worship of the true GOD among them; so
that how much soever the Mohammedans are to blame in other points, they are
far from being idolaters, as some ignorant writers have pretended.
The worship of the stars the Arabs might easily be led into, from their
observing the changes of weather to happen at the rising and setting of
certain of them,5 which after a long course of experience induced them to
ascribe a divine power to those stars, and to think themselves indebted to
them for their rains, a very great benefit and refreshment to their parched
country: this superstition the Korân particularly takes notice of.1
The ancient Arabians and Indians, between which two nations was a great
conformity of religions, had seven celebrated temples, dedicated to the seven
planets; one of which in particular, called Beit Ghomdân, was built in Sanaa,
the metropolis of Yaman, by Dahac, to the honour of al Zoharah or the planet
Venus, and was demolished by the Khalîf Othman;2 by whose murder was fulfilled
the prophetical inscription set, as is reported, over this temple, viz.,
"Ghomdân, he who destroyeth thee shall be slain.3 The temple of Mecca is also
said to have been consecrated to Zohal, or Saturn.4
Though these deities were generally reverenced by the whole nation, yet
each tribe chose some one as the more peculiar object of their worship.
Thus as to the stars and planets, the tribe of Hamyar chiefly worshipped
the sun; Misam,5 al Debarân, or the Bull's-eye; Lakhm and Jodâm, al Moshtari,
or Jupiter; Tay, Sohail, or Canopus; Kais, Sirius, or the Dog-star; and Asad,
Otâred, or Mercury.6 Among the worshippers of Sirius, one Abu Cabsha was very
famous; some will have him to be the same with Waheb, Mohammed's grandfather
by the mother, but others say he was of the tribe of Khozâah. This man used
his utmost endeavours to persuade the Koreish to leave their images and
worship this star; for which reason Mohammed, who endeavoured also to make
them leave their images, was by them nicknamed the son of Abu Cabsha.7 The
worship of this star is particularly hinted at in the Korân.8
Of the angels or intelligences which they worshipped, the Korân,9 makes
mention only of three, which were worshipped under female names;10 Allat, al
Uzza, and Manah. These were by them called
3 Nodhm al dorr. 4 Al Beidâwi. 5 Vide Post. 1
Vide Poc. Spec. p. 163. 2 Shahrestani. 3 Al Jannâbi.
4 Shahrestani. 5 This name seems to be corrupted, there being no
such among the Arab tribes. Poc. Spec. p. 130. 6 Abulfarag, p. 160.
7 Poc. Spec. p. 132. 8 Cap. 53.
9 Ibid. 10 Ibid.
goddesses, and the daughters of GOD; an appellation they gave not only to the
angels, but also to their images, which they either believed to be inspired
with life by GOD, or else to become the tabernacles of the angels, and to be
animated by them; and they gave them divine worship, because they imagined
they interceded for them with GOD.
Allât was the idol of the tribe of Thakîf who dwelt at Tayef, and had a
temple consecrated to her in a place called Nakhlah. This idol al Mogheirah
destroyed by Mohammed's order, who sent him and Abu Sofiân on that commission
in the ninth year of the Hejra.1 The inhabitants of Tayef, especially the
women, bitterly lamented the loss of this their deity, which they were so fond
of, that they begged of Mohammed as a condition of peace, that it might not be
destroyed for three years, and not obtaining that, asked only a month's
respite; but he absolutely denied it.2 There are several derivations of this
word which the curious may learn from Dr. Pocock:3 it seems most probably to
be derived from the same root with Allah, to which it may be a feminine, and
will then signify the goddess.
Al Uzza, as some affirm, was the idol of the tribes of Koreish and
Kenânah,4 and part of the tribe of Salim:5 others6 tell us it was a tree called
the Egyptian thorn, or acacia, worshipped by the tribe of Ghatfân, first
consecrated by one Dhâlem, who built a chapel over it, called Boss, so
contrived as to give a sound when any person entered. Khâled Ebn Walîd being
sent by Mohammed in the eighth year of the Hejra to destroy this idol,
demolished the chapel, and cutting down this tree or image, burnt it: he also
slew the priestess, who ran out with her hair dishevelled, and her hands on
her head as a suppliant. Yet the author who relates this, in another place
says, the chapel was pulled down, and Dhâlem himself killed by one Zohair,
because he consecrated this chapel with design to draw the pilgrims thither
from Mecca, and lessen the reputation of the Caaba. The name of this deity is
derived from the root azza, and signifies the most mighty.
Manah was the object of worship of the tribes of Hodhail and Khazâah,7 who
dwelt between Mecca and Medina, and, as some say,8 of the tribes of Aws,
Khazraj, and Thakîf also. This idol was a large stone,9 demolished by one
Saad, in the eighth year of the Hejra, a year so fatal to the idols of Arabia.
The name seems derived from mana, to flow, from the flowing of the blood of
the victims sacrificed to the deity; whence the valley of Mina,10 near Mecca,
had also its name, where the pilgrims at this day slay their sacrifices.1
Before we proceed to the other idols, let us take notice of five more,
which with the former three are all the Korân mentions by name, and they are
Wadd, Sawâ, Yaghûth, Yäûk, and Nasr. These are said to have been antediluvian
idols, which Noah preached against, and were afterwards taken by the Arabs for
gods, having been men of great merit and piety in their time, whose statues
they reverenced at first with a
1 Dr. Prideaux mentions this expedition, but names only Abu Sofiân, and
mistaking the name of the idol for an appellative, supposes he went only to
disarm the Tayefians of their weapons and instruments of war. See his Life of
Mahomet, p. 98.
2 Abulfeda, Vit Moham. p. 127 3 Spec. p. 90 4 Al
Jauhari, apud eund. p. 91. 5 Al Shahrestani, ibid. 6 Al
Firauzabâdi, ibid. 7 Al Jauhari. 8 Al Shahrestani, Abulfeda,
&c. 9 Al Beidâwi, al Zamakhshari. 10 Poc. Spec. 91, &c. 1 Ibid.
civil honour only, which in process of time became heightened to a divine
worship.2
Wadd was supposed to be the heaven, and was worshipped under the form of a
man by the tribe of Calb in Daumat al Jandal.3
Sawâ was adored under the shape of a woman by the tribe of Hamadan, or, as
others4 write, of Hodhail in Rohat. This idol lying under water for some time
after the Deluge, was at length, it is said, discovered by the devil, and was
worshipped by those of Hodhail, who instituted pilgrimages to it.5
Yaghûth was an idol in the shape of a lion, and was the deity of the tribe
of Madhaj and others who dwelt in Yaman.6 Its name seems to be derived from
ghatha, which signifies to help.
Yäûk was worshipped by the tribe of Morâd, or, according to others, by that
of Hamadan,7 under the figure of a horse. It is said he was a man of great
piety, and his death much regretted; whereupon the devil appeared to his
friends in a human form, and undertaking to represent him to the life,
persuaded them, by way of comfort, to place his effigies in their temples,
that they might have it in view when at their devotions. This was done, and
seven others of extraordinary merit had the same honours shown them, till at
length their posterity made idols of them in earnest.8 The name Yäûk probably
comes from the verb âka, to prevent or avert.9
Nasr was a deity adored by the tribe of Hamyar, or at Dhû'l Khalaah in
their territories, under the image of an eagle, which the name signifies.
There are, or were, two statues at Bamiyân, a city of Cabul in the Indies,
50 cubits high, which some writers suppose to be the same with Yaghûth and
Yäûk, or else with Manah and Allât; and they also speak of a third standing
near the others, but something less, in the shape of an old woman, called
Nesrem or Nesr. These statues were hollow within, for the secret giving of
oracles;10 but they seem to have been different from the Arabian idols. There
was also an idol at Sûmenat in the Indies, called Lât or al Lât, whose statue
was 50 fathoms high, of a single stone, and placed in the midst of a temple
supported by 56 pillars of massy gold: this idol Mahmûd Ebn Sebecteghin, who
conquered that part of India, broke to pieces with his own hands.1
Besides the idols we have mentioned, the Arabs also worshipped great
numbers of others, which would take up too much time to have distinct accounts
given of them; and not being named in the Korân, are not so much to our
present purpose: for besides that every housekeeper had his household god or
gods, which he last took leave of and first saluted at his going abroad and
returning home,2 there were no less than 360 idols,3 equalling in number the
days of their year, in and about the Caaba of Mecca; the chief of whom was
Hobal,4 brought from Belka in Syria into Arabia by Amru Ebn Lohai, pretending
it would procure them rain when they wanted it.5 It was the statue of a man,
made of agate, which having by some accident lost a hand, the
2 Kor. c. 71. Comment. Persic. Vide Hyde de Rel. Vet. Pers. p. 133.
3 Al Jauhari, al Sharestani. 4 Idem, al Firauzabâdi, and
Safio'ddin. 5 Al Firauzab. 6 Shahrestani. 7 Al
Jauhari.
8 Al Firauzab. 9 Poc. Spec. 94. 10 See Hyde de Rel. Vet.
Pers. p. 132. 1 D'Herbelot, Bibl. Orient. p. 512. 2 Al
Mostatraf. 3 Al Jannâb. 4 Abulfed, Shahrest. &c.
5 Poc. Spec. 95.
Koreish repaired it with one of gold: he held in his hand seven arrows without
heads or feathers, such as the Arabs used in divination.6 This idol is
supposed to have been the same with the image of Abraham,7 found and destroyed
by Mohammed in the Caaba, on his entering it, in the eighth year of the Hejra,
when he took Mecca,8 and surrounded with a great number of angels and
prophets, as inferior deities; among whom, as some say, was Ismael, with
divining arrows in his hand also.9
Asâf and Nayelah, the former the image of a man, the latter of a woman,
were also two idols brought with Hobal from Syria, and placed the one on Mount
Safâ, and the other on Mount Merwa. They tell us Asâf was the son of Amru,
and Nayelah the daughter of Sahâl, both of the tribe of Jorham, who committing
whoredom together in the Caaba, were by GOD converted into stone,10 and
afterwards worshipped by the Koreish, and so much reverenced by them, that
though this superstition was condemned by Mohammed, yet he was forced to allow
them to visit those mountains as monuments of divine justice.11
I shall mention but one idol more of this nation, and that was a lump of
dough worshipped by the tribe of Hanîfa, who used it with more respect than
the Papists do theirs, presuming not to eat it till they were compelled to it
by famine.12
Several of their idols, as Manah in particular, were no more than large
rude stones, the worship of which the posterity of Ismael first introduced;
for as they multiplied, and the territory of Mecca grew too strait for them,
great numbers were obliged to seek new abodes; and on such migrations it was
usual for them to take with them some of the stones of that reputed holy land,
and set them up in the places where they fixed; and these stones they at first
only compassed out of devotion, as they had accustomed to do the Caaba. But
this at last ended in rank idolatry, the Ismaelites forgetting the religion
left them by their father so far as to pay divine worship to any fine stone
they met with.1
Some of the pagan Arabs believed neither a creation past, nor a
resurrection to come, attributing the origin of things to nature, and their
dissolution to age. Others believed both, among whom were those who, when
they died, had their camel tied by their sepulchre, and so left, without meat
or drink, to perish, and accompany them to the other world, lest they should
be obliged, at the resurrection, to go on foot, which was reckoned very
scandalous.2 Some believed a metem-psychosis, and that of the blood near the
dead person's brain was formed a bird named Hâmah, which once in a hundred
years visited the sepulchre; though others say this bird is animated by the
soul of him that is unjustly slain, and continually cries, Oscûni, Oscûni,
i.e., "give me to drink"-meaning of the murderer's blood-till his death be
revenged, and then it flies away. This was forbidden by the Korân to be
believed.3
I might here mention several superstitious rites and customs of the ancient
Arabs, some of which were abolished and others retained by Mohammed; but I
apprehend it will be more convenient to take notice
6 Safio'ddin. 7 Poc. Spec. 97. 8 Abulfeda. 9 Ebn
al Athir. al Jannab. &c.
10 Poc. Spec. 98. 11 Kor. c. 2. 12 Al Mostatraf, al
Jauhari. 1 Al Mostatraf, al Jannâbi.
2 Abulfarag, p. 160. 3 Vide Poc. Spec. p. 135.
of them, hereafter occasionally, as the negative or positive precepts of the
Korân, forbidding or allowing such practices, shall be considered.
Let us now turn our view from the idolatrous Arabs, to those among them who
had embraced more rational religions.
The Persians had, by their vicinity and frequent intercourse with the
Arabians, introduced the Magian religion among some of their tribes,
particularly that of Tamim,4 a long time before Mohammed, who was so far from
being unacquainted with that religion, that he borrowed many of his own
institutions from it, as will be observed in the progress of this work. I
refer those who are desirous to have some notion of Magism, to Dr. Hyde's
curious account of it,5 a succinct abridgment of which may be read with much
pleasure in another learned performance.6
The Jews, who fled in great numbers into Arabia from the fearful
destruction of their country by the Romans, made proselytes of several tribes,
those of Kenânah, al Hareth Ebn Caaba, and Kendah1 in particular, and in time
became very powerful, and possessed of several towns and fortresses there.
But the Jewish religion was not unknown to the Arabs, at least above a century
before; Abu Carb Asad, taken notice of in the Korân,2 who was king of Yaman,
about 700 years before Mohammed, is said to have introduced Judaism among the
idolatrous Hamyarites. Some of his successors also embraced the same
religion, one of whom, Yusef, surnamed Dhu Nowâs,3 was remarkable for his zeal
and terrible persecution of all who would not turn Jews, putting them to death
by various tortures, the most common of which was throwing them into a glowing
pit of fire, whence he had the opprobrious appellation of the Lord of the Pit.
This persecution is also mentioned in the Korân.4
Christianity had likewise made a very great progress among this nation
before Mohammed. Whether St. Paul preached in any part of Arabia, properly so
called,5 is uncertain; but the persecutions and disorders which happened in
the eastern church soon after the beginning of the third century, obliged
great numbers of Christians to seek for shelter in that country of liberty,
who, being for the most part of the Jacobite communion, that sect generally
prevailed among the Arabs.6 The principal tribes that embraced Christianity
were Hamyar, Ghassân, Rabiâ, Taghlab, Bahrâ, Tonûch,7 part of the tribes of
Tay and Kodâa, the inhabitants of Najrân, and the Arabs of Hira.8 As to the
two last, it may be observed that those of Najrân became Christians in the
time of Dhu Nowâs,9 and very probably, if the story be true, were some of
those who were converted on the following occasion, which happened about that
time, or not long before. The Jews of Hamyar challenged some neighbouring
Christians to a public disputation, which was held sub dio for three days
before the king and his nobility and all the people, the disputants being
Gregentius, bishop of Tephra (which I take to be Dhafâr) for the Christians,
and Herbanus for the Jews. On the third day, Herbanus, to end the dispute,
de-
4 Al Mostatraf. 5 In his Hist. Relig. Vet. Persar. 6 Dr.
Prideaux's Connect. of the Hist. of the Old and New Test. part i. book 4.
1 Al Mostatraf. 2 Chap. 50. 3 See before, p. 8, and
Baronii annal. ad sec. vi. 4 Chap. 85. 5 See Galat. i.
17. 6 Abulfarag, p. 149. 7 Al Mostatraf. 8 Vide Poc. Spec.
p. 137. 9 Al Jannab, apud Poc. Spec. p. 63.
manded that Jesus of Nazareth, if he were really living and in heaven, and
could hear the prayers of his worshippers, should appear from heaven in their
sight, and they would then believe in him; the Jews crying out with one voice,
"Show us your Christ, alas! and we will become Christians." Whereupon, after
a terrible storm of thunder and lightning, Jesus Christ appeared in the air,
surrounded with rays of glory, walking on a purple cloud, having a sword in
his hand, and an inestimable diadem on his head, and spake these words over
the heads of the assembly: "Behold I appear to you in your sight, I, who was
crucified by your fathers." After which the cloud received him from their
sight. The Christians cried out, "Kyrie eleeson," i.e., "Lord, have mercy
upon us;" but the Jews were stricken blind, and recovered not till they were
all baptized.1
The Christians at Hira received a great accession by several tribes, who
fled thither for refuge from the persecution of Dhu Nowâs. Al Nooman,
surnamed Abu Kabûs, king of Hira, who was slain a few months before Mohammed's
birth, professed himself a Christian on the following occasion. This prince,
in a drunken fit, ordered two of his intimate companions, who overcame with
liquor had fallen asleep, to be buried alive. When he came to himself, he was
extremely concerned at what he had done, and to expiate his crime, not only
raised a monument to the memory of his friends, but set apart two days, one of
which he called the unfortunate, and the other the fortunate day; making it a
perpetual rule to himself, that whoever met him on the former day should be
slain, and his blood sprinkled on the monument, but he that met him on the
other day should be dismissed in safety, with magnificent gifts. On one of
those unfortunate days there came before him accidentally an Arab, of the
tribe of Tay, who had once entertained this king, when fatigued with hunting,
and separated from his attendants. The king, who could neither discharge him,
contrary to the order of the day, nor put him to death, against the laws of
hospitality, which the Arabians religiously observe, proposed, as an
expedient, to give the unhappy man a year's respite, and to send him home with
rich gifts for the support of his family, on condition that he found a surety
for his returning at the year's end to suffer death. One of the prince's
court, out of compassion, offered himself as his surety, and the Arab was
discharged. When the last day of the term came, and no news of the Arab, the
king, not at all displeased to save his host's life, ordered the surety to
prepare himself to die. Those who were by represented to the king that the
day was not yet expired, and therefore he ought to have patience till the
evening: but in the middle of their discourse the Arab appeared. The king,
admiring the man's generosity, in offering himself to certain death, which he
might have avoided by letting his surety suffer, asked him what was his motive
for his so doing? to which he answered, that he had been taught to act in that
manner by the religion he professed; and al Nooman demanding what religion
that was, he replied, the Christian. Whereupon the king desiring to have the
doctrines of Christianity explained to him, was baptized, he and his subjects;
and not only pardoned the man and his surety, but
1 Vide Gregentii disput. cum Herbano Judæo.
abolished his barbarous custom.1 This prince, however, was not the first
king of Hira who embraced Christianity; al Mondar, his grandfather, having
also professed the same faith, and built large churches in his capital.2
Since Christianity had made so great a progress in Arabia, we may
consequently suppose they had bishops in several parts, for the more orderly
governing of the churches. A bishop of Dhafâr has been already named, and we
are told that Najrân was also a bishop's see.3 The Jacobites (of which sect
we have observed the Arabs generally were) had two bishops of the Arabs
subject to their Mafriân, or metropolitan of the east; one was called the
bishop of the Arabs absolutely, whose seat was for the most part at Akula,
which some others make the same with Cûfa,4 others a different town near
Baghdâd.5 The other had the title of bishop of the Scenite Arabs, of the
tribe of Thaalab in Hira, or Hirta, as the Syrians call it, whose seat was in
that city. The Nestorians ahd but one bishop, who presided over both these
dioceses of Hira and Akula, and was immediately subject to their patriarch.6
These were the principal religions which obtained among the ancient Arabs;
but as freedom of thought was the natural consequence of their political
liberty and independence, some of them fell into other different opinions.
The Koreish, in particular, were infected with Zendicism,7 an error supposed
to have very near affinity with that of the Sadducees among the Jews, and,
perhaps, not greatly different from Deism; for there were several of that
tribe, even before the time of Mohammed, who worshipped one GOD, and were free
from idolatry,8 and yet embraced none of the other religions of the country.
The Arabians before Mohammed were, as they yet are, divided into two sorts,
those who dwell in cities and towns, and those who dwell in tents. The former
lived by tillage, the cultivation of palm trees, breeding and feeding of
cattle, and the exercise of all sorts of trades,1 particularly merchandising,2
wherein they were very eminent, even in the time of Jacob. The tribe of
Koreish were much addicted to commerce, and Mohammed, in his younger years,
was brought up to the same business; it being customary for the Arabians to
exercise the same trade that their parents did.3 The Arabs who dwelt in
tents, employed themselves in pasturage, and sometimes in pillaging of
passengers; they lived chiefly on the milk and flesh of camels; they often
changed their habitations, as the convenience of water and of pasture for
their cattle invited them, staying in a place no longer than that lasted, and
then removing in search of other.4 They generally wintered in Irâk and the
confines of Syria. This way of life is what the greater part of Ismael's
posterity have used, as more agreeable to the temper and way of life of their
father; and is so well described by a late author,5 that I cannot do better
than refer the reader to his account of them.
1 Al Meidani and Ahmed Ebn Yusef, apud Poc. Spec. p. 72. 2
Abulfeda ap. eund. p. 74. 3 Safio'ddin apud Poc. Spec. p. 137.
4 Abulfarag in Chron. Syriac, MS. 5 Abulfeda in descr. Iracæ.
6 Vide Assemani Bibl. Orient. T. 2. in Dissert. de Monophysitis, and p.
459. 7 Al Mostatraf, apud Poc. Spec. p. 136.
8 Vide Reland. de Relig. Moham. p. 270, and Millium de Mohammedismo ante
Moham. p. 311. 1 These seem to be the same whom M. La Roque calls
Moors. Voy. dans la Palestine, p 110. 2 See Prideaux's Life of
Mahomet, p. 6. 3 Strabo, l. 16, p. 1129. 4 Idem ibid. p.
1084. 5 La Roque, Voy. dans la Palestine, p. 109, &c.
The Arabic language is undoubtedly one of the most ancient in the world,
and arose soon after, if not at, the confusion of Babel. There were several
dialects of it, very different from each other: the most remarkable were that
spoken by the tribes of Hammyar and the other genuine Arabs, and that of the
Koreish. The Hamyaritic seems to have approached nearer ot the purity of the
Syriac, than the dialect of any other tribe; for the Arabs acknowledge their
father Yarab to have been the first whose tongue deviated from the Syriac
(which was his mother tongue, and is almost generally acknowledged by the
Asiatics to be the most ancient) to the Arabic. The dialect of the Koreish is
usually termed the pure Arabic, or, as the Korân, which is written in this
dialect, calls it, the perspicuous and clear Arabic; perhaps, says Dr. Pocock,
because Ismael, their father, brought the Arabic he had learned of the
Jorhamites nearer to the original Hebrew. But the politeness and elegance of
the dialect of the Koreish, is rather to be attributed to their having the
custody of the Caaba, and dwelling in Mecca, the centre of Arabia, as well
more remote from intercourse with foreigners, who might corrupt their
language, as frequented by the Arabs from the country all around, not only on
a religious account, but also for the composing of their differences, from
whose discourse and verses they took whatever words or phrases they judged
more pure and elegant; by which means the beauties of the whole tongue became
transfused into this dialect. The Arabians are full of the commendations of
their language, and not altogether without reason; for it claims the
preference of most others in many respects, as being very harmonious and
expressive, and withal so copious, that they say no man without inspiration
can be a perfect master of it in its utmost extent; and yet they tell us, at
the same time, that the greatest part of it has been lost; which will not be
thought strange, if we consider how late the art of writing was practised
among them. For though it was known to Job,1 their countryman, and also the
Hamyarites (who used a perplexed character called al Mosnad, wherein the
letters were not distinctly separate, and which was neither publicly taught,
nor suffered to be used without permission first obtained) many centuries
before Mohammed, as appears from some ancient monuments, said to be remaining
in their character; yet the other Arabs, and those of Mecca in particular,
were, for many ages, perfectly ignorant of it, unless such of them as were
Jews or Christians:2 Morâmer Ebn Morra of Anbar, a city of Irâk, who lived not
many years before Mohammed, was the inventor of the Arabic character, which
Bashar the Kendian is said to have learned from those of Anbar, and to have
introduced at Mecca but a little while before the institution of Mohammedism.
These letters of Marâmer were different from the Hamyaritic; and though they
were very rude, being either the same with, or very much like the Cufic,3
which character is still found in inscriptions and some ancient books, yet
they were those which the Arabs used for many years, the Korân itself being at
first written therein; for the beautiful character they now use was first
formed from the Cufic by Ebn Moklah, Wazir (or Visir) to the Khalîfs al
Moktader, al Kâher, and al Râdi, who lived
1 Job xix. 23, 24. 2 See Prideaux's Life of Mahomet, p. 29, 30.
3 A specimen of the Cufic character may be seen in Sir J. Chardin's
Travels, vol. iii, p. 119.
about three hundred years after Mohammed, and was brought to great perfection
by Ali Ebn Bowâb,4 who flourished in the following century, and whose name is
yet famous among them on that account; yet, it is said, the person who
completed it, and reduced it to its present form, was Yakût al Mostásemi,
secretary to al Mostásem, the last of the Khalîfs of the family of Abbâs, for
which reason he was surnamed al Khattât, or the Scribe.
The accomplishments the Arabs valued themselves chiefly on, were, 1.
Eloquence, and a perfect skill in their own tongue; 2. Expertness in the use
of arms, and horsemanship; and 3. Hospitality.1 The first they exercised
themselves in, by composing of orations and poems. Their orations were of two
sorts, metrical, or prosaic, the one being compared to pearls strung, and the
other to loose ones. They endeavoured to excel in both, and whoever was able,
in an assembly, to persuade the people to a great enterprise, or dissuade them
from a dangerous one, or gave them other wholesome advice, was honoured with
the title of Khâteb, or orator, which is now given to the Mohammedan
preachers. They pursued a method very different from that of the Greek and
Roman orators; their sentences being like loose gems, without connection, so
that this sort of composition struck the audience chiefly by the fulness of
the periods, the elegance of the expression, and the acuteness of the
proverbial sayings; and so persuaded were they of their excelling in this way,
that they would not allow any nation to understand the art of speaking in
public, except themselves and the Persians; which last were reckoned much
inferior in that respect to the Arabians.2 Poetry was in so great esteem
among them, that it was a great accomplishment, and a proof of ingenuous
extraction, to be able to express one's self in verse with ease and elegance,
on any extraordinary occurrence; and even in their common discourse they made
frequent applications to celebrated passages of their famous poets. In their
poems were preserved the distinction of descents, the rights of tribes, the
memory of great actions, and the propriety of their language; for which
reasons an excellent poet reflected an honour on his tribe, so that as soon as
any one began to be admired for his performances of this kind in a tribe, the
other tribes sent publicly to congratulate them on the occasion, and
themselves made entertainments, at which the women assisted, dressed in their
nuptial ornaments, singing to the sound of timbrels the happiness of their
tribe, who had now one to protect their honour, to preserve their genealogies
and the purity of their language, and to transmit their actions to posterity;3
for this was all performed by their poems, to which they were solely obliged
for their knowledge and instructions, moral and economical, and to which they
had recourse, as to an oracle, in all doubts and differences.1 No wonder,
then, that a public congratulation was made on this account, which honour they
yet were so far from making cheap, that they never did it but on one of these
three occasions, which were reckoned great points of felicity, viz., on the
birth of a boy, the rise of a poet, and the
4 Ebn Khalicân. Yet others attribute the honour of the invention of this
character to Ebn Moklah's brother, Abdallah al Hasan; and the perfecting of it
to Ebn Amîd al Kâteb, after it had been reduced to near the present form by
Abd'alhamîd. Vide D'Herbel. Bibl. Orient. p. 590, 108, and 194. 1
Poc. Orat. ante Carmen Tograi, p. 10. 2 Poc. Spec. 161.
3 Ebn Rashik, apud Poc. Spec. 160. 1 Poc. Orat. præfix. Carm. Tograi,
ubi supra.
fall of a foal of generous breed. To keep up an emulation among their poets,
the tribes had, once a year, a general assembly at Ocadh,2 a place famous on
this account, and where they kept a weekly mart or fair, which was held on our
Sunday.3 This annual meeting lasted a whole month, during which time they
employed themselves, not only in trading, but in repeating their poetical
compositions, contending an vieing with each other for the prize; whence the
place, it is said, took its name.4 The poems that were judged to excel, were
laid up in their kings' treasuries, as were the seven celebrated poems, thence
called al Moallakât, rather than from their being hung upon the Caaba, which
honour they also had by public order, being written on Egyptian silk, and inn
letters of gold; for which reason they had also the name of al Modhahabât, or
the golden verses.5
The fair and assembly at Ocadh were suppressed by Mohammed, in whose time,
and for some years after, poetry seems to have been in some degree neglected
by the Arabs, who were then employed in their conquests; which being
completed, and themselves at peace, not only this study was revived,6 but
almost all sorts of learning were encouraged and greatly improved by them.
This interruption, however, occasioned the loss of most of their ancient
pieces of poetry, which were then chiefly preserved in memory; the use of
writing being rare among them, in their time of ignorance.7 Though the Arabs
were so early acquainted with poetry, they did not at first use to write poems
of a just length, but only expressed themselves in verse occasionally; nor was
their prosody digested into rules, till some time after Mohammed;8 for this
was done, as it is said, by al Khalîl Ahmed al Farâhîdi, who lived in the
reign of the Khalîf Harûn al Rashîd.9
The exercise of arms and horsemanship they were in a manner obliged to
practise and encourage, by reason of the independence of their tribes, whose
frequent jarrings made wars almost continual; and they chiefly ended their
disputes in field battles, it being a usual saying among them that GOD had
bestowed four peculiar things on the Arabs-that their turbans should be to
them instead of diadems, their tents instead of walls and houses, their swords
instead of entrenchments, and their poems instead of written laws.1
Hospitality was so habitual to them, and so much esteemed, that the
examples of this kind among them exceed whatever can be produced from other
nations. Hatem, of the tribe of Tay,2 and Hasn, of that of Fezârah,3 were
particularly famous on this account; and the contrary vice was so much in
contempt, that a certain poet upbraids the inhabitants of Waset, as with the
greatest reproach, that none of their men ad the heart to give, nor their
women to deny.4
2 Idem, Spec. p. 159. 3 Geogr. Nub. p. 51. 4 Poc.
Spec. 159. 5 Ibid, and p. 381. Et in calce Notar. in Carmen Tograi,
p. 233. 6 Jallalo'ddin al Soyûti, apud Poc. Spec. p. 159, &c.
7 Ibid. 160.
8 Ibid. 161. Al Safadi confirms this by a story of a grammarian named Abu
Jaafar, who sitting by the Mikyas or Nilometer in Egypt, in a year when the
Nile did not rise to its usual height, so that a famine was apprehended, and
dividing a piece of poetry into its parts or feet, to examine them by the
rules of art, some who passed by not understanding him, imagined he was
uttering a charm to hinder the rise of the river, and pushed him into the
water, where he lost his life. 9 Vide Clericum de Prosod. Arab. p.
2.
1 Pocock, in calce Notar. ad Carmen Tograi. 2 Vide. Gentii Notas in
Gulistan Sheikh Sadi, p. 486, &c. 3 Poc. Spec. p. 48. 4 Ebn al
Hobeirah, apud Poc. in not. ad Carmen Tograi, p. 107.
Nor were the Arabs less propense to liberality after the coming of Mohammed
than their ancestors had been. I could produce many remarkable instances of
this commendable quality among them,5 but shall content myself with the
following. Three men were disputing in the court of the Caaba, which was the
most liberal person among the Arabs. One gave the preference to Abdallah, the
son of Jaafar, the uncle of Mohammed; another to Kais Ebn Saad Ebn Obâdah; and
the third gave it to Arâbah, of the tribe of Aws. After much debate, one that
was present, to end the dispute, proposed that each of them should go to his
friend and ask his assistance, that they might see what every one gave, and
form a judgment accordingly. This was agreed to; and Abdallah's friend, going
to him, found him with his foot in the stirrup, just mounting his camel for a
journey, and thus accosted him: "Son of the uncle of the apostle of GOD, I am
travelling and in necessity." Upon which Abdallah alighted, and bid him take
the camel with all that was upon her, but desired him not to part with a sword
which happened to be fixed to the saddle, because it had belonged to Ali, the
son of Abutâleb. So he took the camel, and found on her some vests of silk
and 4,000 pieces of gold; but the thing of greatest value was the sword. The
second went to Kais Ebn Saad, whose servant told him that his master was
asleep, and desired to know his business. The friend answered that he came to
ask Kais's assistance, being in want on the road. Whereupon the servant said
that he had rather supply his necessity than wake his master, and gave him a
purse of 7,000 pieces of gold, assuring him that it was all the money then in
the house. He also directed him to go to those who had the charge of the
camels, with a certain token, and take a camel and a slave, and return home
with them. When Kais awoke, and his servant informed him of what he had done,
he gave him his freedom, and asked him why he did not call him, "For," says
he, "I would have given him more." The third man went to Arâbah, and met him
coming out of his house in order to go to prayers, and leaning on two slaves,
because his eyesight failed him. The friend no sooner made known his case,
but Arâbah let go the slaves, and clapping his hands together, loudly lamented
his misfortune in having no money, but desired him to take the two slaves,
which the man refused to do, till Arâbah protested that if he would not accept
of them he gave them their liberty, and leaving the slaves, groped his way
along by the wall. On the return of the adventurers, judgment was
unanimously, and with great justice, given by all who were present, that
Arâbah was the most generous of the three.
Nor were these the only good qualities of the Arabs; they are commended by
the ancients for being most exact to their words,1 and respectful to their
kindred.2 And they have always been celebrated for their quickness of
apprehension and penetration, and the vivacity of their wit, especially those
of the desert.3
As the Arabs have their excellencies, so have they, like other nations,
their defects and vices. Their own writers acknowledge that they have
5 Several may be found in D'Herbelot's Bibl. Orient., particularly in the
articles of Hasan the son of Ali, Maan, Fadhel, and Ebn Yahya. 1
Herodot. l.3, c. 8. 2 Strabo, l. 16, p. 1129. 3 Vide
D'Herbel. Bibl. Orient. p. 121.
a natural disposition to war, bloodshed, cruelty, and rapine, being so much
addicted to bear malice that they scarce ever forget an old grudge; which
vindictive temper some physicians say is occasioned by their frequent feeding
on camel's flesh (the ordinary diet of the Arabs of the desert, who are
therefore observed to be most inclined to these vices), that creature being
most malicious and tenacious of anger,4 which account suggests a good reason
for a distinction of meats.
The frequent robberies committed by these people on merchants and
travellers have rendered the name of an Arab almost infamous in Europe; this
they are sensible of, and endeavour to excuse themselves by alleging the hard
usage of their father Ismael, who, being turned out of doors by Abraham, had
the open plains and deserts given him by GOD for his patrimony, with
permission to take whatever he could find there; and on this account they
think they may, with a safe conscience, indemnify themselves as well as they
can, not only on the posterity of Isaac, but also on everybody else, always
supposing a sort of kindred between themselves and those they plunder. And in
relating their adventures of this kind, they think it sufficient to change the
expression, and instead of "I robbed a man of such or such a thing," to say,
"I gained it."1 We must not, however, imagine that they are the less honest
for this among themselves, or towards those whom they receive as friends; on
the contrary, the strictest probity is observed in their camp, where
everything is open and nothing ever known to be stolen.2
The sciences the Arabians chiefly cultivated before Mohammedism, were
three; that of their genealogies and history, such a knowledge of the stars as
to foretell the changes of weather, and the interpretation of dreams.3 They
used to value themselves excessively on account of the nobility of their
families, and so many disputes happened on that occasion, that it is no wonder
if they took great pains in settling their descents. What knowledge they had
of the stars was gathered from long experience, and not from any regular
study, or astronomical rules.4 The Arabians, as the Indians also did, chiefly
applied themselves to observe the fixed stars, contrary to other nations,
whose observations were almost confined to the planets, and they foretold
their effects from their influences, not their nature; and hence, as has been
said, arose the difference of the idolatry of the Greeks and Chaldeans, who
chiefly worshipped the planets, and that of the Indians, who worshipped the
fixed star. The stars or asterisms they most usually foretold the weather by,
were those they called Anwâ, or the houses of the moon. These are 28 in
number, and divide the zodiac into as many parts, through one of which the
moon passes every night;5 as some of them set in the morning, others rise
opposite to them, which happens every thirteenth night; and from their rising
and setting, the Arabs, by long experience, observed what changes happened in
the air, and at length, as has been said, came to ascribe divine power to
them; saying, that their rain was from such or such a star: which expression
Mohammed condemned, and absolutely forbade them to use it in the old sense;
4 Vide Poc. Spec. p. 87, Bochart, Hierozoic. l. 2, c. I. 1
Voyage dans la Palest. p. 220, &c. 2 Ibid. p. 213, &c. 3 Al
Shahrestani, apud Pocock Orat. ubi sup. p. 9, and Spec. 164. 4
Abulfarag, p. 161.
5 Vide Hyde, in not. ad Tabulas stellar. fixar. Ulugh Beigh, p. 5.
unless they meant no more by it, than that GOD had so ordered the seasons,
that when the moon was in such or such a mansion or house, or at the rising or
setting of such and such a star, it should rain or be windy, hot or cold.1
The old Arabians therefore seem to have made no further progress in
astronomy, which science they afterwards cultivated with so much success and
applause, than to observe the influence of the stars on the weather, and to
give them names; and this it was obvious for them to do, by reason of their
pastoral way of life, lying night and day in the open plains. The names they
imposed on the stars generally alluded to cattle and flocks, and they were so
nice in distinguishing them, that no language has so many names of stars and
asterisms as the Arabic; for though they have since borrowed the names of
several constellations from the Greeks, yet the far greater part are of their
own growth, and much more ancient, particularly those of the more conspicuous
stars, dispersed in several constellations, and those of the lesser
constellations which are contained within the greater, and were not observed
or named by the Greeks.2
Thus have I given the most succinct account I have been able, of the state
of the ancient Arabians before Mohammed, or, to use their expression, in the
time of ignorance. I shall now proceed briefly to consider the state of
religion in the east, and of the two great empires which divided that part of
the world between them, at the time of Mohammed's setting up for a prophet,
and what were the conducive circumstances and accidents that favoured his
success.
_______
SECTION II.
OF THE STATE OF CHRISTIANITY, PARTICULARLY OF THE EASTERN
CHURCHES, AND OF JUDAISM, AT THE TIME OF MOHAMMED'S
APPEARANCE; AND OF THE METHODS TAKEN BY HIM FOR THE
ESTABLISHING OF HIS RELIGION, AND THE CIRCUMSTANCES WHICH
CONCURRED THERETO.
IF WE look into the ecclesiastical historians even from the third century, we
shall find the Christian world to have then had a very different aspect from
what some authors have represented; and so far from being endued with active
graces, zeal, and devotion, and established within itself with purity of
doctrine, union, and firm profession of the faith,1 that on the contrary, what
by the ambition of the clergy, and what by drawing the abstrusest niceties
into controversy, and dividing and subdividing about them into endless schisms
and contentions, they had so destroyed that peace, love, and charity from
among
1 Vide Poc. Spec. p. 163, &c. 2 Vide Hyde ubi sup. p. 4.
1 Ricaut's State of the Ottoman Empire, p. 187.
them, which the Gospel was given to promote; and instead thereof continually
provoked each other to that malice, rancour, and every evil work; that they
had lost the whole substance of their religion, while they thus eagerly
contended for their own imaginations concerning it; and in a manner quite
drove Christianity out of the world by those very controversies in which they
disputed with each other about it.2 In these dark ages it was that most of
those superstitions and corruptions we now justly abhor in the church of Rome
were not only broached, but established; which gave great advantages to the
propagation of Mohammedism. The worship of saints and images, in particular,
was then arrived at such a scandalous pitch that it even surpassed whatever is
now practised among the Romanists.3
After the Nicene council, the eastern church was engaged in perpetual
controversies, and torn to pieces by the disputes of the Arians, Sabellians,
Nestorians, and Eutychians: the heresies of the two last of which have been
shown to have consisted more in the words and form of expression than in the
doctrines themselves;4 and were rather the pretences than real motives of
those frequent councils to and from which the contentious prelates were
continually riding post, that they might bring everything to their own will
and pleasure.1 And to support themselves by dependants and bribery, the
clergy in any credit at court undertook the protection of some officer in the
army, under the colour of which justice was publicly sold, and all corruption
encouraged.
In the western church Damasus and Ursicinus carried their contests at Rome
for the episcopal seat so high, that they came to open violence and murder,
which Viventius the governor not being able to suppress, he retired into the
country, and left them to themselves, till Damasus prevailed. It is said that
on this occasion, in the church of Sicininus, there were no less than 137
found killed in one day. And no wonder they were so fond of these seats, when
they became by that means enriched by the presents of matrons, and went abroad
in their chariots and sedans in great state, feasting sumptuously even beyond
the luxury of princes, quite contrary to the way of living of the country
prelates, who alone seemed to have some temperance and modesty left.2
These dissensions were greatly owing to the emperors, and particularly to
Constantius, who, confounding the pure and simple Christian religion with
anile superstitions, and perplexing it with intricate questions, instead of
reconciling different opinions, excited many disputes, which he fomented as
they proceeded with infinite altercations.3 This grew worse in the time of
Justinian, who, not to be behind the bishops to the fifth and sixth centuries
in zeal, thought it no crime to condemn to death a man of a different
persuasion from his own.4
This corruption of doctrine and morals in the princes and clergy, was
necessarily followed by a general depravity of the people;5 those of all
conditions making it their sole business to get money by any means,
2 Prideaux's preface to his Life of Mahomet. 3 Vide La Vie de
Mahommed, par Boulainvilliers, p. 219, &c.
4 Vide Simon, Hist. Crit. de la Créance, &c. des Nations du Levant.
1 Ammian. Marcellin. l. 2I. Vide etiam Euseb. Hist. Eccles. l. 8, c.
I. Sozom. l. I, c. 114, &c. Hilar. and Sulpic. Sever. in Hist. Sacr. p. 112,
&c. 2 Ammian. Marcellin. lib. 27.
3 Idem, l. 2I. 4 Procop. in Anecd. p. 60. 5 See an instance
of the wickedness of the Christian army, even when they were under the terror
of the Saracens, in Ockley's Hist. of the Sarac., vol. i. p. 239.
and then to squander it away when they had got it in luxury and debauchery.6
But, to be more particular as to the nation we are now writing of, Arabia
was of old famous for heresies;7 which might be in some measure attributed to
the liberty and independency of the tribes. Some of the Christians of that
nation believed the soul died with the body, and was to be raised again with
it at the last day:1 these Origen is said to have convinced.2 Among the Arabs
it was that the heresies of Ebion, Beryllus, and the Nazaræns,3 and also that
of the Collyridians, were broached, or at least propagated; the latter
introduced the Virgin Mary for GOD, or worshipped her as such, offering her a
sort of twisted cake called collyris, whence the sect had its name.4
This notion of the divinity of the Virgin Mary was also believed by some at
the council of Nice, who said there were two gods besides the Father, viz.,
Christ and the Virgin Mary, and were thence named Mariamites.5 Others
imagined her to be exempt from humanity, and deified; which goes but little
beyond the Popish superstition in calling her the complement of the Trinity,
as if it were imperfect without her. This foolish imagination is justly
condemned in the Korân6 as idolatrous, and gave a handle to Mohammed to attack
the Trinity itself.
Other sects there were of many denominations within the borders of Arabia,
which took refuge there from the proscriptions of the imperial edicts; several
of whose notions Mohammed incorporated with his religion, as may be observed
hereafter.
Though the Jews were an inconsiderable and despised people in other parts
of the world, yet in Arabia, whither many of them fled from the destruction of
Jerusalem, they grew very powerful, several tribes and princes embracing their
religion; which made Mohammed at first show great regard to them, adopting
many of their opinions, doctrines, and customs; thereby to draw them, if
possible, into his interest. But that people, agreeably to their wonted
obstinacy, were so far from being his proselytes, that they were some of the
bitterest enemies he had, waging continual war with him, so that their
reduction cost him infinite trouble and danger, and at last his life. This
aversion of theirs created at length as great a one in him to them, so that he
used them, for the latter part of his life, much worse than he did the
Christians, and frequently exclaims against them in his Korân; his followers
to this day observe the same difference between them and the Christians,
treating the former as the most abject and contemptible people on earth.
It has been observed by a great politician,7 that it is impossible a person
should make himself a prince and found a state without opportunities. If the
distracted state of religion favoured the designs of Mohammed on that side,
the weakness of the Roman and Persian monarchies might flatter him with no
less hopes in any attempt on those once formidable empires, either of which,
had they been in their full vigour, must have crushed Mohammedism in its
birth; whereas nothing nourished it more than the success the Arabians met
with in
6 Vide Boulainvill. Vie de Mahom. ubi sup. 7 Vide Sozomen. Hist.
Eccles. l. r, c. 16, 17. Sulpic. Sever. ubi supra.
1 Euseb. Hist. Eccles. l. 6, c. 33. 2 Idem ibid. c. 37.
3 Epiphan. de Hæresi. l, I; Hær. 40.
4 Idem ibid. l. 3; Hæres. 75, 79. 5 Elmacin. Eutych.
6 Cap. 5.
7 Machiavelli, Princ. c. 6, p. 19.
their enterprises against those powers, which success they failed not to
attribute to their new religion and the divine assistance thereof.
The Roman empire declined apace after Constantine, whose successors were
for the generality remarkable for their ill qualities, especially cowardice
and cruelty. By Mohammed's time, the western half of the empire was overrun
by the Goths; and the eastern so reduced by the Huns on the one side, and the
Persians on the other, that it was not in a capacity of stemming the violence
of a powerful invasion. The emperor Maurice paid tribute to the Khagân or
king of the Huns; and after Phocas had murdered his master, such lamentable
havoc there was among the soldiers, that when Heraclius came, not above seven
years after, to muster the army, there were only two soldiers left alive, of
all those who had borne arms when Phocas first usurped the empire. And though
Heraclius was a prince of admirable courage and conduct, and had done what
possibly could be done to restore the discipline of the army, and had had
great success against the Persians, so as to drive them not only out of his
own dominions, but even out of part of their own; yet still the very vitals of
the empire seemed to be mortally wounded; that there could no time have
happened more fatal to the empire or more favourable to the enterprises of the
Arabs, who seem to have been raised up on purpose by GOD, to be a scourge to
the Christian church, for not living answerably to that most holy religion
which they had received.1
The general luxury and degeneracy of manners into which the Grecians were
sunk, also contributed not a little to the enervating their forces, which were
still further drained by those two great destroyers, monachism and
persecution.
The Persians had also been in a declining condition for some time before
Mohammed, occasioned chiefly by their intestine broils and dissensions; great
part of which arose from the devilish doctrines of Manes and Mazdak. The
opinions of the former are tolerably well known: the latter lived in the reign
of Khosru Kobâd, and pretended himself a prophet sent from GOD to preach a
community of women and possessions, since all men were brothers and descended
from the same common parents. This he imagined would put an end to all feuds
and quarrels among men, which generally arose on account of one of the two.
Kobâd himself embraced the opinions of this impostor, to whom he gave leave,
according to his new doctrine, to lie with the queen his wife; which
permission Anushirwân, his son, with much difficulty prevailed on Mazdak not
to make use of. These sects had certainly been the immediate ruin of the
Persian empire, had not Anushirwân, as soon as he succeeded his father, put
Mazdek to death with all his followers, and the Manicheans also, restoring the
ancient Magian religion.2
In the reign of this prince, deservedly surnamed the Just, Mohammed was
born. He was the last king of Persia who deserved the throne, which after him
was almost perpetually contended for, till subverted by the Arabs. His son
Hormûz lost the love of his subjects by his excessive cruelty; having had his
eyes put out by his wife's brothers, he was
1 Ockley's Hist. of the Saracens, vol. i. p. 19, &c. 2 Vide Poc. Spec.
p. 70.
obliged to resign the crown to his son Khosrû Parvîz, who at the instigation
of Bahrâm Chubîn had rebelled against him, and was afterwards strangled.
Parvîz was soon obliged to quit the throne to Bahrâm; but obtaining succours
of the Greek emperor Maurice, he recovered the crown: yet towards the latter
end of a long reign he grew so tyrannical and hateful to his subjects, that
they held private correspondence with the Arabs; and he was at length deposed,
imprisoned, and slain by his son Shirûyeh.1 After Parvîz no less than six
princes possessed the throne in less than six years. These domestic broils
effectually brought ruin upon the Persians; for though they did rather by the
weakness of the Greeks, than their own force, ravage Syria, and sack Jerusalem
and Damascus under Khosrû Parvîz; and, while the Arabs were divided and
independent, had some power in the province of Yaman, where they set up the
four last kings before Mohammed; yet when attacked by the Greeks under
Heraclius, they not only lost their new conquests, but part of their own
dominions; and no sooner were the Arabs united by Mohammedism, than they beat
them in every battle, and in a few years totally subdued them.
As these empires were weak and declining, so Arabia, at Mohammed's setting
up, was strong and flourishing; having been peopled at the expense of the
Grecian empire, whence the violent proceedings of the domineering sects forced
many to seek refuge in a free country, as Arabia then was, where they who
could not enjoy tranquility and their conscience at home, found a secure
retreat. The Arabians were not only a populous nation, but unacquainted with
the luxury and delicacies of the Greeks and Persians, and inured to hardships
of all sorts; living in a most parsimonious manner, seldom eating any flesh,
drinking no wine, and sitting on the ground. Their political government was
also such as favoured the designs of Mohammed; for the division and
independency of their tribes were so necessary to the first propagation of his
religion, and the foundation of his power, that it would have been scarce
possible for him to have effected either, had the Arabs been united in one
society. But when they had embraced his religion, the consequent union of
their tribes was no less necessary and conducive to their future conquests and
grandeur.
This posture of public affairs in the eastern world, both as to its
religious and political state, it is more than probably Mohammed was well
acquainted with; he having had sufficient opportunities of informing himself
in those particulars, in his travels as a merchant in his younger years: and
though it is not to be supposed his views at first were so extensive as
afterwards, when they were enlarged by his good fortune, yet he might
reasonably promise himself success in his first attempts from thence. As he
was a man of extraordinary parts and address, he knew how to make the best of
every incident, and turn what might seem dangerous to another, to his own
advantage.
Mohammed came into the world under some disadvantages, which he soon
surmounted. His father Abd'allah was a younger son2 of Abd'almotalleb, and
dying very young and in his father's lifetime, left
1 Vide Teixeira, Relaciones de los Reyes de Persia, p. 195, &c.
2 He was not his eldest son, as Dr. Prideaux tells us, whose
reflections built on that foundation must necessarily fail (see his Life of
Mahomet, p. 9); nor yet his youngest son, as M. De Boulainvilliers (Vie de
Mahommed, p. 182, &c) supposes; for Hamza and al Abbâs were both younger than
Abd'allah.
his widow and infant son in very mean circumstances, his whole substance
consisting but of five camels and one Ethiopian she-slave.1 Abd'almotalleb
was therefore obliged to take care of his grandchild Mohammed, which he not
only did during his life, but at his death enjoined his eldest son Abu Tâleb,
who was brother to Abd'allah by the same mother, to provide for him for the
future; which he very affectionately did, and instructed him in the business
of a merchant, which he followed; and to that end he took him with him into
Syria when he was but thirteen, and afterward recommended him to Khadîjah, a
noble and rich widow, for her factor, in whose service he behaved himself so
well, that by making him her husband she soon raised him to an equality with
the richest in Mecca.
After he began by this advantageous match to live at his ease, it was that
he formed the scheme of establishing a new religion, or, as he expressed it,
of replanting the only true and ancient one, professed by Adam, Noah, Abraham,
Moses, Jesus, and all the prophets,2 by destroying the gross idolatry into
which the generality of his countrymen had fallen, and weeding out the
corruptions and superstitions which the latter Jews and Christians had, as he
thought, introduced into their religion, and reducing it to its original
purity, which consisted chiefly in the worship of the one only GOD.
Whether this was the effect of enthusiasm, or only a design to raise
himself to the supreme government of his country, I will not pretend to
determine. The latter is the general opinion of the Christian writers, who
agree that ambition, and the desire of satisfying his sensuality, were the
motives of his undertaking. It may be so; yet his first views, perhaps, were
not so interested. His original design of bringing the pagan Arabs to the
knowledge of the true GOD, was certainly noble, and highly to be commended;
for I cannot possibly subscribe to the assertion of a late learned writer,3
that he made the nation exchange their idolatry for another religion
altogether as bad. Mohammed was no doubt fully satisfied in his conscience of
the truth of his grand point, the unity of GOD, which was what he chiefly
attended to; all his other doctrines and institutions being rather accidental
and unavoidable, than premeditated and designed.
Since then Mohammed was certainly himself persuaded of his grand article of
faith, which, in his opinion, was violated by all the rest of the world; not
only by the idolaters, but by the Christians, as well those who rightly
worshipped Jesus as GOD, as those who superstitiously adored the Virgin Mary,
saints, and images; and also by the Jews, who are accused in the Korân of
taking Ezra for the son of GOD;4 it is easy to conceive that he might think it
a meritorious work to rescue the world from such ignorance and superstition;
and by degrees, with the help of a warm imagination, which an Arab seldom
wants,5 to suppose himself destined by providence for the effecting that great
reformation. And this fancy of his might take still deeper root in his mind,
during the solitude he thereupon affected, usually retiring for a month in the
year to a cave in Mount Hara, near Mecca. One thing which may be probably
urged against the enthusiasm of this prophet of
1 Abulfeda, Vit. Moham. p. 2. 2 See Kor. c. 2. 3
Prideaux's Life of Mahomet, p. 76. 4 Kor. c. 9. 5 See
Casaub. of Enthusiasm, p. 148.
the Arabs, is the wise conduct and great prudence he all along showed in
pursuing his design, which seem inconsistent with the wild notions of a hot-
brained religionist. But though all enthusiasts or madmen do not behave with
the same gravity and circumspection that he did, yet he will not be the first
instance, by several, of a person who has been out of the way only quoad hoc,
and in all other respects acted with the greatest decency and precaution.
The terrible destruction of the eastern churches, once so glorious and
flourishing, by the sudden spreading of Mohammedism, and the great successes
of its professors against the Christians, necessarily inspire a horror of that
religion in those to whom it has been so fatal; and no wonder if they
endeavour to set the character of its founder, and its doctrines, in the most
infamous light. But the damage done by Mohammed to Christianity seems to have
been rather owing to his ignorance than malice; for his great misfortune was,
his not having a competent knowledge of the real and pure doctrines of the
Christian religion, which was in his time so abominably corrupted, that it is
not surprising if he went too far, and resolved to abolish what he might think
incapable of reformation.
It is scarce to be doubted but that Mohammed had a violent desire of being
reckoned an extraordinary person, which he could attain to by no means more
effectually, than by pretending to be a messenger sent from GOD, to inform
mankind of his will. This might be at first his utmost ambition; and had his
fellow-citizens treated him less injuriously, and not obliged him by their
persecutions to seek refuge elsewhere, and to take up arms against them in his
own defence, he had perhaps continued a private person, and contented himself
with the veneration and respect due to his prophetical office; but being once
got at the head of a little army, and encouraged by success, it is no wonder
if he raised his thoughts to attempt what had never before entered his
imagination.
That Mohammed was, as the Arabs are by complexion,1 a great lover of women,
we are assured by his own confession; and he is constantly upbraided with it
by the controversial writers, who fail not to urge the number of women with
whom he had to do, as a demonstrative argument of his sensuality, which they
think sufficiently proves him to have been a wicked man, and consequently an
impostor. But it must be considered that polygamy, though it be forbidden by
the Christian religion, was in Mohammed's time frequently practised in Arabia
and other parts of the east, and was not counted an immorality, nor was a man
worse esteemed on that account; for which reason Mohammed permitted the
plurality of wives, with certain limitations, among his own followers, who
argue for the lawfulness of it from several reasons, and particularly from the
examples of persons allowed on all hands to have been good men; some of whom
have been honoured with the divine correspondence. The several laws relating
to marriages and divorces, and the peculiar privileges granted to Mohammed in
his Korân, were almost all taken by him from the Jewish decisions, as will
appear hereafter; and therefore he might think those
1 Ammian. Marcell. l. 14, c. 4.
institutions the more just and reasonable, as he found them practised or
approved by the professors of a religion which was confessedly of divine
original.
But whatever were his motives, Mohammed had certainly the personal
qualifications which were necessary to accomplish his undertaking. The
Mohammedan authors are excessive in their commendations of him, and speak much
of his religious and moral virtues; as his piety, veracity, justice,
liberality, clemency, humility, and abstinence. His charity, in particular,
they say, was so conspicuous, that he had seldom any money in his house,
keeping no more for his own use than was just sufficient to maintain his
family; and he frequently spared even some part of his own provisions to
supply the necessities of the poor; so that before the year's end he had
generally little or nothing left:1 "GOD," says al Bokhâri, "offered him the
keys of the treasures of the earth, but he would not accept them." Though the
eulogies of these writers are justly to be suspected of partiality, yet thus
much, I think, may be inferred from thence, that for an Arab who had been
educated in Paganism, and had but a very imperfect knowledge of his duty, he
was a man of at least tolerable morals, and not such a monster of wickedness
as he is usually represented. And indeed it is scarce possible to conceive,
that a wretch of so profligate a character should ever have succeeded in an
enterprise of this nature; a little hypocrisy and saving of appearances, at
least, must have been absolutely necessary; and the sincerity of his
intentions is what I pretend not to inquire into.
He had indisputably a very piercing and sagacious wit, and was thoroughly
versed in all the arts of insinuation.2 The eastern historians describe him
to have been a man of an excellent judgment, and a happy memory; and these
natural parts were improved by a great experience and knowledge of men, and
the observations he had made in his travels. They say he was a person of few
words, of an equal cheerful temper, pleasant and familiar in conversation, of
inoffensive behaviour towards his friends, and of great condescension towards
his inferiors.3 To all which were joined a comely agreeable person, and a
polite address; accomplishments of no small service in preventing those in his
favour whom he attempted to persuade.
As to acquired learning, it is confessed he had none at all; having had no
other education than what was customary in his tribe, who neglected, and
perhaps despised, what we call literature; esteeming no language in comparison
with their own, their skill in which they gained by use and not by books, and
contenting themselves with improving their private experience by committing to
memory such passages of their poets as they judged might be of use to them in
life. This defect was so far from being prejudicial or putting a stop to his
design, that he made the greatest use of it; insisting that the writings which
he produced as revelations from GOD, could not possibly be a forgery of his
own; because it was not conceivable that a person who could neither write nor
read should be able to compose a book of such excellent doctrine, and in so
elegant a style; and thereby obviating
1 Vide Abulfeda Vit. Moham. p. 144, &c. 2 Vide Prid. Life of
Mahomet, p. 105. 3 Vide Abulfed. ubi sup.
an objection that might have carried a great deal of weight.1 And for this
reason his followers, instead of being ashamed of their master's ignorance,
glory in it, as an evident proof of his divine mission, and scruple not to
call him (as he is indeed called in the Korân itself2) the "illiterate
prophet."
The scheme of religion which Mohammed framed, and the design and artful
contrivance of those written revelations (as he pretended them to be) which
compose his Korân, shall be the subject of the following sections: I shall
therefore in the remainder of this relate, as briefly as possible, the steps
he took towards the effecting of his enterprise, and the accidents which
concurred to his success therein.
Before he made any attempt abroad, he rightly judged that it was necessary
for him to begin by the conversion of his own household. Having therefore
retired with his family, as he had done several times before, to the above-
mentioned cave in Mount Hara, he there opened the secret of his mission to his
wife Khadîjah; and acquainted her that the angel Gabriel had just before
appeared to him, and told him that he was appointed the apostle of GOD: he
also repeated to her a passage3 which he pretended had been revealed to him by
the ministry of the angel, with those other circumstances of his first
appearance, which are related by the Mohammedan writers. Khadîjah received
the news with great joy,1 swearing by him in whose hands her soul was, that
she trusted he would be the prophet of his nation, and immediately
communicated what she had heard to her cousin, Warakah Ebn Nawfal, who, being
a Christian, could write in the Hebrew character, and was tolerably well
versed in the scriptures;2 and he as readily came into her opinion, assuring
her that the same angel who had formerly appeared unto Moses was now sent to
Mohammed.3 This first overture the prophet made in the month of Ramadân, in
the fortieth year of his age, which is therefore usually called the year of
his mission.
Encouraged by so good a beginning, he resolved to proceed, and try for some
time what he could do by private persuasion, not daring to hazard the whole
affair by exposing it too suddenly to the public. He soon made proselytes of
those under his own roof, viz., his wife Khadîjah, his servant Zeid Ebn
Hâretha (to whom he gave his freedom4 on that occasion, which afterwards
became a rule to his followers), and his cousin and pupil Ali, the son of Abu
Tâleb, though then very young: but this last, making no account of the other
two, used to style himself the "first of believers." The next person Mohammed
applied to was Abdallah Ebn Abi Kohâfa, surnamed Abu Becr, a man of great
authority among the Koreish, and one whose interest he well knew would be of
great service to him, as it soon appeared, for Abu Becr being gained over,
prevailed also on Othmân Ebn Affân, Abd'alrahmân Ebn Awf, Saad Ebn Abi Wakkâs,
al Zobeir Ebn al Awâm, and Telha Ebn Obeid'allah, all principal men in Mecca,
to follow his example.
1 See Kor. c. 29. Prid. Life of Mahomet, p. 28, &c. 2 Chap. 7.
3 This passage is generally agreed to be the first five verses of the
96th chapter. 1 I do not remember to have read in any eastern
author, that Khadîjah ever rejected her husband's pretences as delusions, or
suspected him of any imposture. Yet see Prideaux's Life of Mahomet, p. 11,
&c. 2 Vide Poc. Spec. p. 157. 3 Vide Abulfed. Vit.
Moham. p. 16, where the learned translator has mistaken the meaning of this
passage. 4 For he was his purchased slave, as Abulfeda expressly
tells us, and not his cousin-german, as M. de Boulainvill. asserts (Vie de
Mah. p. 273).
These men were the six chief companions, who, with a few more, were converted
in the space of three years, at the end of which, Mohammed having, as he
hoped, a sufficient interest to support him, made his mission no longer a
secret, but gave out that GOD had commanded him to admonish his near
relations;5 and in order to do it with more convenience and prospect of
success, he directed Ali to prepare an entertainment, and invite the sons and
descendants of Abd'almotalleb, intending then to open his mind to them; this
was done, and about forty of them came; but Abu Laheb, one of his uncles,
making the company break up before Mohammed had an opportunity of speaking,
obliged him to give them a second invitation the next day; and when they were
come, he made them the following speech: "I know no man in all Arabia who can
offer his kindred a more excellent thing than I now do you. I offer you
happiness, both in this life and in that which is to come. GOD Almighty hath
commanded me to call you unto him; who therefore among you will be assisting
to me herein, and become my brother and my vicegerent?" All of them
hesitating, and declining the matter, Ali at length rose up and declared that
he would be his assistant, and vehemently threatened those who should oppose
him. Mohammed upon this embraced Ali with great demonstrations of affection,
and desired all who were present to hearken to and obey him as his deputy, at
which the company broke out into great laughter, telling Abu Tâleb that he
must now pay obedience to his son.
This repulse however was so far from discouraging Mohammed, that he began
to preach in public to the people, who heard him with some patience, till he
came to upbraid them with the idolatry, obstinacy, and perverseness of
themselves and their fathers, which so highly provoked them that they declared
themselves his enemies, and would soon have procured his ruin had he not been
protected by Abu Tâleb. The chief of the Koreish warmly solicited this person
to desert his nephew, making frequent remonstrances against the innovations he
was attempting, which proving ineffectual, they at length threatened him with
an open rupture if he did not prevail on Mohammed to desist. At this, Abu
Tâleb was so far moved that he earnestly dissuaded his nephew from pursuing
the affair any farther, representing the great danger he and his friends must
otherwise run. But Mohammed was not to be intimidated, telling his uncle
plainly "that if they set the sun against him on his right hand, and the moon
on his left, he would not leave his enterprise;" and Abu Tâleb, seeing him so
firmly resolved to proceed, used no further arguments, but promised to stand
by him against all his enemies.6
The Koreish, finding they could prevail neither by fair words nor menaces,
tried what they could do by force and ill-treatment, using Mohammed's
followers so very injuriously that it was not safe for them to continue at
Mecca any longer: whereupon Mohammed gave leave to such of them as had not
friends to protect them, to seek for refuge elsewhere. And accordingly, in
the fifth year of the prophet's mission, sixteen of them, four of whom were
women, fled into Ethiopia; and among them Othmân Ebn Affân and his wife
Rakîah, Mohammed's
5 Kor. c. 74. See the notes thereon. 6 Abulfeda ubi
supra.
daughter. This was the first flight; but afterwards several others followed
them, retiring one after another, to the number of eighty-three men and
eighteen women, besides children.1 These refugees were kindly received by the
Najâshi,2 or king of Ethiopia, who refused to deliver them up to those whom
the Koreish sent to demand them, and, as the Arab writers unanimously attest,
even professed the Mohammedan religion.
In the sixth year of his mission3 Mohammed had the pleasure of seeing his
party strengthened by the conversion of his uncle Hamza, a man of great valour
and merit, and of Omar Ebn al Khattâb, a person highly esteemed, and once a
violent opposer of the prophet. As persecution generally advances rather than
obstructs the spreading of a religion, Islamism made so great a progress among
the Arab tribes, that the Koreish, to suppress it effectually, if possible, in
the seventh year of Mohammed's mission,4 made a solemn league or covenant
against the Hashemites and the family of al Motalleb, engaging themselves to
contract no marriages with any of them, and to have no communication with
them; and to give it the greater sanction, reduced it into writing, and laid
it up in the Caaba. Upon this the tribe became divided into two factions; and
the family of Hashem all repaired to Abu Tâleb, as their head; except only
Abd'al Uzza, surnamed Abu Laheb, who, out of his inveterate hatred to his
nephew and his doctrine, went over to the opposite party, whose chief was Abu
Sofiân Ebn Harb, of the family of Ommeya.
The families continued thus at variance for three years; but in the tenth
year of his mission, Mohammed told his uncle Abu Tâleb that GOD had manifestly
showed his disapprobation of the league which the Koreish had made against
them, by sending a worm to eat out every word of the instrument except the
name of GOD. Of this accident Mohammed had probably some private notice; for
Abu Tâleb went immediately to the Koreish and acquainted them with it;
offering, if it proved false, to deliver his nephew up to them; but in case it
were true, he insisted that they ought to lay aside their animosity, and annul
the league they had made against the Hashemites. To this they acquiesced, and
going to inspect the writing, to their great astonishment found it to be as
Abu Tâleb had said; and the league was thereupon declared void.
In the same year Abu Tâleb died, at the age of above fourscore; and it is
the general opinion that he died an infidel, though others say that when he
was at the point of death he embraced Mohammedism, and produce some passages
out of his poetical compositions to confirm their assertion. About a month,
or as some write, three days after the death of this great benefactor and
patron, Mohammed had the additional mortification to lose his wife Khadîjah,
who had so generously made his fortune. For which reason this year is called
the year of mourning.5
On the death of these two persons the Koreish began to be more troublesome
than ever to their prophet, and especially some who had formerly been his
intimate friends; insomuch that he found himself
1 Idem, Ebn Shohnah. 2 Dr. Prideaux seems to take this word
for a proper name, but it is only the title the Arabs give to every king of
this country. See his Life of Mahomet, p. 55 3 Ebn Shohnah
4 Al Jannâbi.
1 Abulfed. p. 28. Ebn Shohnah.
obliged to seek for shelter elsewhere, and first pitched upon Tâyet, about
sixty miles east from Mecca, for the place of his retreat. Thither therefore
he went, accompanied by his servant Zeid, and applied himself to two of the
chief of the tribe of Thakîf, who were the inhabitants of that place; but they
received him very coldly. However, he stayed there a month; and some of the
more considerate and better sort of men treated him with a little respect: but
the slaves and inferior people at length rose against him, and bringing him to
the wall of the city, obliged him to depart and return to Mecca, where he put
himself under the protection of al Motáam Ebn Adi.2
This repulse greatly discouraged his followers: however, Mohammed was not
wanting to himself, but boldly continued to preach to the public assemblies at
the pilgrimage, and gained several proselytes, and among them six of the
inhabitants of Yathreb of the Jewish tribe of Khazraj, who on their return
home failed not to speak much in commendation of their new religion, and
exhorted their fellow-citizens to embrace the same.
In the twelfth year of his mission it was that Mohammed gave out that he he
had made his night journey from Mecca to Jerusalem and thence to heaven,3 so
much spoken of by all that write of him. Dr. Prideaux4 thinks he invented it
either to answer the expectations of those who demanded some miracle as a
proof of his mission, or else, by pretending to have conversed with GOD, to
establish the authority of whatever he should think fit to leave behind by way
of oral tradition, and make his sayings to serve the same purpose as the oral
law of the Jews. But I do not find that Mohammed himself ever expected so
great a regard should be paid to his sayings, as his followers have since
done; and seeing he all along disclaimed any power of performing miracles, it
seems rather to have been a fetch of policy to raise his reputation, by
pretending to have actually conversing with GOD in heaven, as Moses had
heretofore done in the mount, and to have received several institutions
immediately from him, whereas before he contented himself with persuading them
that he had all by the ministry of Gabriel.
However, this story seemed so absurd and incredible, that several of his
followers left him upon it, and it had probably ruined the whole design, had
not Abu Becr vouched for his veracity, and declared that if Mohammed affirmed
it to be true, he verily believed the whole. Which happy incident not only
retrieved the prophet's credit, but increased it to such a degree, that he was
secure of being able to make his disciples swallow whatever he pleased to
impose on them for the future. And I am apt to think this fiction,
notwithstanding its extravagance, was one of the most artful contrivances
Mohammed ever put in practice, and what chiefly contributed to the raising of
his reputation to that great height to which it afterwards arrived.
In this year, called by the Mohammedans the accepted year, twelve men of
Yathreb or Medina, of whom ten were of the tribe of Khazraj, and the other two
of that of Aws, came to Mecca, and took an oath of fidelity to Mohammed at al
Akaba, a hill on the north of that city. This oath was called the women's
oath, not that any women were pre-
2 Ebn Shohnah. 3 See the notes on the 17th chapter of the
Korân. 4 Life o Mahomet, p. 41, 51, &c.
sent at this time, but because a man was not thereby obliged to take up arms
in defence of Mohammed or his religion; it being the same oath that was
afterwards exacted of the women, the form of which we have in the Korân,1 and
is to this effect, viz.: "That they should renounce all idolatry; that they
should not steal, nor commit fornication, nor kill their children (as the
pagan Arabs used to do when they apprehended they should not be able to
maintain them2), nor forge calumnies; and that they should obey the prophet in
all things that were reasonable." When they had solemnly engaged to do all
this, Mohammed sent one of his disciples, named Masáb Ebn Omair, home with
them, to instruct them more fully in the grounds and ceremonies of his new
religion.
Masáb, being arrived at Medina, by the assistance of those who had been
formerly converted, gained several proselytes, particularly Osaid Ebn Hodeira,
a chief man of the city, and Saad Ebn Moâdh, prince of the tribe of Aws;
Mohammedism spreading so fast, that there was scarce a house wherein there
were not some who had embraced it.
The next year, being the thirteenth of Mohammed's mission, Masáh returned
to Mecca, accompanied by seventy-three men and two women of Medina, who had
professed Islamism, besides some others who were as yet unbelievers. On their
arrival, they immediately sent to Mohammed, and offered him their assistance,
of which he was now in great need, for his adversaries were by this time grown
so powerful in Mecca, that he could not stay there much longer without
imminent danger. Wherefore he accepted their proposal, and met them one
night, by appointment, at al Akaba above mentioned, attended by his uncle al
Abbas, who, though he was not then a believer, wished his nephew well, and
made a speech to those of Medina, wherein he told them, that as Mohammed was
obliged to quit his native city, and seek an asylum elsewhere, and they had
offered him their protection, they would do well not to deceive him; and that
if they were not firmly resolved to defend and not betray him, they had better
declare their minds, and let him provide for his safety in some other manner.
Upon their protesting their sincerity, Mohammed swore to be faithful to them,
on condition that they should protect him against all insults, as heartily as
they would their own wives and families. They then asked him what recompense
they were to expect if they should happen to be killed in his quarrel; he
answered, Paradise. Whereupon they pledged their faith to him, and so
returned home;3 after Mohammed had chosen twelve out of their number, who were
to have the same authority among them as the twelve apostles of Christ had
among his disciples.4
Hitherto Mohammed had propagated his religion by fair means, so that the
whole success of his enterprise, before his flight to Medina, must be
attributed to persuasion only, and not to compulsion. For before this second
oath of fealty or inauguration at al Akaba, he had no permission to use any
force at all; and in several places of the Korân, which he pretended were
revealed during his stay at Mecca,
1 Cap. 60. 2 Vide Kor. c. 6. 3 Abulfeda. Vit.
Moham. p. 40, &c. 4 Ebn Ishâk.
he declares his business was only to preach and admonish; that he had no
authority to compel any person to embrace his religion; and that whether
people believed, or not, was none of his concern, but belonged solely unto
GOD. And he was so far from allowing his followers to use force, that he
exhorted them to bear patiently those injuries which were offered them on
account of their faith; and when persecuted himself, chose rather to quit the
place of his birth and retire to Medina, than to make any resistance. But
this great passiveness and moderation seems entirely owing to his want of
power, and the great superiority of his opposers for the first twelve years of
his mission; for no sooner was he enabled, by the assistance of those of
Medina, to make head against his enemies, than he gave out, that GOD had
allowed him and his followers to defend themselves against the infidels; and
at length as his forces increased, he pretended to have the divine leave even
to attack them, and to destroy idolatry, and set up the true faith by the
sword; finding by experience that his designs would otherwise proceed very
slowly, if they were not utterly overthrown, and knowing on the other hand
that innovators, when they depend solely on their own strength, and can
compel, seldom run any risk; from whence, the politician observes, it follows,
that all the armed prophets have succeeded, and the unarmed ones have failed.
Moses, Cyrus, Theseus, and Romulus would not have been able to establish the
observance of their institutions for any length of time had they not been
armed.1 The first passage of the Korân which gave Mohammed the permission of
defending himself by arms, is said to have been that in the twenty-second
chapter; after which a great number to the same purpose were revealed.
That Mohammed had a right to take up arms for his own defence against his
unjust persecutors, may perhaps be allowed; but whether he ought afterwards to
have made use of that means for the establishing of his religion is a question
I will not here determine. How far the secular power may or ought to
interpose in affairs of this nature, mankind are not agreed. The method of
converting by the sword, gives no very favourable idea of the faith which is
so propagated, and is disallowed by everybody in those of another religion,
though the same persons are willing to admit of it for the advancement of
their own; supposing that though a false religion ought not to be established
by authority, yet a true one may; and accordingly force is almost as
constantly employed in these cases by those who have the power in their hands,
as it is constantly complained of by those who suffer the violence. It is
certainly one of the most convincing proofs that Mohammedism was no other than
human invention, that it owed its progress and establishment almost entirely
to the sword; and it is one of the strongest demonstrations of the divine
original of Christianity, that it prevailed against all the forces and powers
of the world by the mere dint of its own truth, after having stood the
assaults of all manner of persecutions, as well as other oppositions, for 300
years together and at length made the Roman emperors themselves submit
thereto;2 after which time, indeed, this proof seems to fail, Christianity
being
1 Machiavelli, Princ. c. 6. 2 See Prideaux's Letter
to the Deists, p. 220, &c.
then established and Paganism abolished by public authority, which has had
great influence in the propagation of the one and destruction of the other
ever since.1 But to return.
Mohammed having provided for the security of his companions as well as his
own, by the league offensive and defensive which he had now concluded with
those of Medina, directed them to repair thither, which they accordingly did;
but himself with Abu Becr and Ali stayed behind, having not yet received the
divine permission, as he pretended, to leave Mecca. The Koreish, fearing the
consequence of this new alliance, began to think it absolutely necessary to
prevent Mohammed's escape to Medina, and having held a council thereon, after
several milder expedients had been rejected, they came to a resolution that he
should be killed; and agreed that a man should be chosen out of every tribe
for the execution of this design, and that each man should have a blow at him
with his sword, that the guilt of his blood might fall equally on all the
tribes, to whose united power the Hashemites were much inferior, and therefore
durst not attempt to revenge their kinsman's death.
This conspiracy was scarce formed when by some means or other it came to
Mohammed knowledge, and he gave out that it was revealed to him the angel
Gabriel, who had now ordered him to retire to Medina. Whereupon, to amuse his
enemies, he directed Ali to lie down in his place and wrap himself up in his
green cloak, which he did, and Mohammed escape miraculously, as they pretend,2
to Abu Becr's house, unperceived by the conspirators, who had already
assembled at the prophet's door. They in the meantime, looking through the
crevice and seeing Ali, whom they took to be Mohammed himself, asleep,
continued watching there till morning, when Ali arose, and they found
themselves deceived.
From Abu Becr's house Mohammed and he went to a cave in Mount Thur, to the
south-east of Mecca, accompanied only by Amer Ebn Foheirah, Abu Becr's
servant, and Abd'allah Ebn Oreikat, an idolater, whom they had hired for a
guide. In this cave they lay hid three days to avoid the search of their
enemies, which they very narrowly escaped, and not without the assistance of
more miracles than one; for some say that the Koreish were struck with
blindness, so that they could not find the cave; others, that after Mohammed
and his companions were got in, two pigeons laid their eggs at the entrance,
and a spider covered the mouth of the cave with her web,3 which made them look
no farther.4 Abu Becr, seeing the prophet in such imminent danger, became
very sorrowful, whereupon Mohammed comforted him with these words, recorded in
the Korân:5 "Be not grieved, for GOD is with us." Their enemies being
retired, they left the cave and set out for Medina, by a by-road, and having
fortunately, or as the Mohammedans tell us, miraculously, escaped some who
were sent to pursue them,
1 See Bayle's Dict. Hist. Art. Mahomet, Rem. O. 2 See the notes
to chap. 8 and 36. 3 It is observable that the Jews have a
like tradition concerning David, when he fled from Saul into the cave; and the
Targum paraphrases these words of the second verse of Psalm lvii., which was
composed on occasion of that deliverance: "I will pray before the most high
GOD that performeth all things for me, in this manner; I will pray before the
most high GOD, who called a spider to weave a web for my sake in the mouth of
the cave." 4 Al Beidâwi in Kor. c. 9. Vide D'Herbel. Bibl.
Orient p. 445. 5 Cap. 9.
arrived safely at that city; whither Ali followed them in three days, after he
had settled some affairs at Mecca.4
The first thing Mohammed did after his arrival at Medina, was to build a
temple for his religious worship, and a house for himself, which he did on a
parcel of ground which had before served to put camels in, or as others tell
us, for a burying-ground, and belonged to Sahal and Soheil the sons of Amru,
who were orphans.5 This action Dr. Prideaux exclaims against, representing it
as a flagrant instance of injustice, for that, says he, he violently
dispossessed these poor orphans, the sons of an inferior artificer (whom the
author he quotes6 calls a carpenter) of this ground, and so founded the first
fabric of his worship with the like wickedness as he did his religion.7 But
to say nothing of the improbability that Mohammed should act in so impolitic a
manner at his first coming, the mohammedan writers set this affair ina quite
different light; one tells us that he treated with the lads about the price of
the ground, but they desired he would accept it asa present;8 however, as
historians of good credit assure us, he actually bought it,9 and the money was
paid by Abu Becr.1 Besides, had Mohammed accepted it as a present, the
orphans were in circumstances sufficient to have afforded it; for they were of
a very good family, of the tribe of Najjâr, one of the most illustrious among
the Arabs, and not the sons of a carpenter, as Dr. Prideaux's author writes,
who took the word Najjâr, which signifies a carpenter, for an appellative,
whereas it is a proper name.2
Mohammed being securely settled at Medina, and able not only to defend
himself against the insults of his enemies, but to attack them, began to send
out small parties to make reprisals on the Koreish; the first party consisting
of no more than nine men, who intercepted and plundered a caravan belonging to
that tribe, and in the action took two prisoners. But what established his
affairs very much, and was the foundation on which he built all his succeeding
greatness, was the gaining of the battle of Bedr, which was fought in the
second year of the Hejra, and is so famous in the Mohammedan history.3 As my
design is not to write the life of Mohammed, but only to describe the manner
in which he carried on his enterprise, I shall not enter into any detail of
his subsequent battles and expeditions, which amounted to a considerable
number. Some reckon no less than twenty-seven expeditions wherein Mohammed
was personally present, in nine of which he gave battle, besides several other
expeditions in which he was not present:4 some of them, however, will be
necessarily taken notice of in explaining several passages of the Korân. His
forces he maintained partly by the contributions of his followers for this
purpose, which he called by the name of Zacât or alms, and the paying of which
he very artfully made one main article of his religion; and partly by ordering
a fifth part of the plunder to be brought into the public treasury for that
purpose, in which manner he likewise pretended to act by the divine direction.
4 Abulfeda. Vit. Moh. p. 50, &c. Ebn Shohnah. 5 Abulfeda, ib.
p. 52, 53. 6 Disputatio Christiani contra Saracen. c. 4.
7 Prideaux's Life of Mahomet, p. 58. 8 Al Bokhâri in
Sonna.
9 Al Jannâbi 1 Ahmed Ebn Yusef. 2 Vide Gagnier, not. in
Abulfed. de Vit. Moh. p. 52, 53.
3 See the notes on the Korân, chap. 3. 4 Vide Abulfed. Vit.
Moh. p. 158.
In a few years by the success of his arms (notwithstanding he sometimes
came off by the worst) he considerably raised his credit and power. In the
sixth year of the Hejra he set out with 1,400 men to visit the temple of
Mecca, not with any intent of committing hostilities, but in a peaceable
manner. However, when he came to al Hodeibiya, which is situate partly within
and partly without the sacred territory, the Koreish sent to let him know that
they would not permit him to enter Mecca, unless he forced his way; whereupon
he called his troops about him, and they all took a solemn oath of fealty or
homage to him, and he resolved to attack the city; but those of Mecca sending
Araw Ebn Masúd, prince of the tribe of Thakîf, as their ambassador to desire
peace, a truce was concluded between them for ten years, by which any person
was allowed to enter into league either with Mohammed or with the Koreish as
he thought fit.
It may not be improper, to show the inconceivable veneration and respect
the Mohammedans by this time had for their prophet, to mention the account
which the above-mentioned ambassador gave the Koreish, at his return, of their
behaviour. He said he had been at the courts both of the Roman emperor and of
the king of Persia, and never saw any prince so highly respected by his
subjects as Mohammed was by his companions; for whenever he made the ablution,
in order to say his prayers, they ran and catched the water that he had used;
and whenever he spit, they immediately licked it up, and gathered up every
hair that fell from him with great superstition.1
In the seventh year of the Hejra, Mohammed began to think of propagating
his religion beyond the bounds of Arabia, and sent messengers to the
neighbouring princes with letters to invite them to Mohammedism. Nor was this
project without some success. Khosrû Parvîz, then king of Persia, received
his letter with great disdain, and tore it in a passion, sending away the
messenger very abruptly; which when Mohammed heard, he said, "GOD shall tear
his kingdom." And soon after a messenger came to Mohammed from Badhân, king
of Yaman, who was a dependant on the Persians,2 to acquaint him that he had
received orders to send him to Khosrû. Mohammed put off his answer till the
next morning, and then told the messenger it had been revealed to him that
night that Khosrû was slain by his son Shirûyeh; adding that he was well
assured his new religion and empire should rise to as great a height as that
of Khosrû; and therefore bid him advise his master to embrace Mohammedism.
The messenger being returned, Badhân in a few days received a letter from
Shirûyeh informing him of his father's death, and ordering him to give the
prophet no further disturbance. Whereupon Badhân and the Persians with him
turned Mohammedans.3
The emperor Heraclius, as the Arabian historians assure us, received
Mohammed's letter with great respect, laying it on his pillow, and dismissed
the bearer honourably. And some pretend that he would have professed this new
faith, had he not been afraid of losing his crown.4
Mohammed wrote to the same effect to the king of Ethiopia, though he had
been converted before, according to the Arab writers; and to
1 Abulfeda Vit. Moh. p. 85. 2 See before, p. 8. 3
Abulfeda, Vit. Moh. p. 92, &c. 4 Al Jannâbi.
Mokawkas, governor of Egypt, who gave the messenger a very favourable
reception, and sent several valuable presents to Mohammed, and among the rest
two girls, one of which, named Mary,1 became a great favourite with him. He
also sent letters of the like purport to several Arab princes, particularly
one to al Hareth Ebn Abi Shamer,2 king of Ghassân, who, returning for answer
that he would go to Mohammed himself, the prophet said, "May his kingdom
perish;" another to Hawdha Ebn Ali, king of Yamâma, who was a Christian, and
having some time before professed Islamism, had lately returned to his former
faith; this prince sent back a very rough answer, upon which Mohammed cursing
him, he died soon after; and a third to al Mondar Ebn Sâwa, king of Bahrein,
who embraced Mohammedism, and all the Arabs of that country followed his
example.3
The eighth year of the Hejra was a very fortunate year to Mohammed. In the
beginning of it Khâled Ebn al Walîd and Amru Ebn al As, both excellent
soldiers, the first of whom afterwards conquered Syria and other countries,
and the latter Egypt, became proselytes of Mohammedism. And soon after the
prophet sent 3,000 men against the Grecian forces, to revenge the death of one
of his ambassadors, who being sent to the governor of Bosra on the same errand
as those who went to the above-mentioned princes, was slain by an Arab of the
tribe of Ghassân at Mûta, a town in the territory of Balkâ in Syria, about
three days' journey eastward from Jerusalem, near which town they encountered.
The Grecians being vastly superior in number (for, including the auxiliary
Arabs, they had an army of 100,000 men), the Mohammedans were repulsed in the
first attack, and lost successively three of their general, viz., Zeid Ebn
Hâretha, Mohammed's freedman, Jaafar, the son of Abu Tâleb, and Abdâllah Ebn
Rawâha; but Khâled Ebn al Walîd, succeeding to the command, overthrew the
Greeks with a great slaughter, and brought away abundance of rich spoil;4 on
occasion of which action Mohammed gave him the honourable title of Seif min
soyûf Allah, One of the Swords of GOD.5
In this year also Mohammed took the city of Mecca, the inhabitants whereof
had broken the truce concluded on two years before. For the tribe of Becr,
who were confederates of the Koreish, attacking those of Khozâah, who were
allies of Mohammed, killed several of them, being supported in the action by a
party of the Koreish themselves. The consequence of this violation was soon
apprehended, and Abu Sofiân himself made a journey to Medina on purpose to
heal the breach and renew the truce,6 but in vain, for Mohammed, glad of this
opportunity, refused to see him; whereupon he applied to Abu Becr and Ali, but
they giving him no answer, he was obliged to return to Mecca as he came.
Mohammed immediately gave orders for preparations to be made, that he might
surprise the Meccans while they were unprovided to receive him; in a little
time he began his march thither, and by the
1 It is, however, a different name from that of the Virgin Mary, which the
Orientals always write Maryam, or Miriam-whereas this is written Mâriya.
2 This prince is omitted in Dr. Pocock's list of the kings of Ghassân,
Spec. p. 77.
3 Abulfeda, bui sup. p. 94, &c. 4 Idem ib. p. 99, 100, &c.
5 Al Bokhâri in Sonna.
6 This circumstance is a plain proof that the Koreish had actually broken the
truce, and that it was not a mere pretence of Mohammed's as Dr. Prideaux
insinuates. Life of Mahomet, p. 94.
time he came near the city his forces were increased to 10,000 men. Those of
Mecca being not in a condition to defend themselves against so formidable an
army, surrendered at discretion, and Abu Sofiân saved his life by turning
Mohammedan. About twenty-eight of the idolaters were killed by a party under
the command of Khâled; but this happened contrary to Mohammed's orders, who,
when he entered the town, pardoned all the Koreish on their submission, except
only six men and four women, who were more obnoxious than ordinary (some of
them having apostatized), and were solemnly proscribed by the prophet himself;
but of these no more than three men and one woman were put to death, the rest
obtaining pardon on their embracing Mohammedism, and one of the women making
her escape.1
The remainder of this year Mohammed employed in destroying the idols in and
round about Mecca, sending several of his generals on expeditions for that
purpose, and to invite the Arabs to Islamism: wherein it is no wonder if they
now met with success.
The next year, being the ninth of the Hejra, the Mohammedans call "the year
of embassies," for the Arabs had been hitherto expecting the issue of the war
between Mohammed and the Koreish; but so soon as that tribe-the principal of
the whole nation, and the genuine descendants of Ismael, whose prerogatives
none offered to dispute-had submitted, they were satisfied that it was not in
their power to oppose Mohammed, and therefore began to come in to him in great
numbers, and to send embassies to make their submissions to him, both to
Mecca, while he stayed there, and also to Medina, whither he returned this
year.2 Among the rest, five kings of the tribe of Hamyar professed
Mohammedism, and sent ambassadors to notify the same.3
In the tenth year Ali was sent into Yaman to propagate the Mohammedan faith
there, and as it is said, converted the whole tribe of Hamdân in one day.
Their example was quickly followed by all the inhabitants of that province,
except only those of Najrân, who, being Christians, chose rather to pay
tribute.4
Thus was Mohammedism established and idolatry rooted out, even in
Mohammed's lifetime (for he died the next year), throughout all Arabia, except
only Yamâma, where Moseilama, who set up also for a prophet as Mohammed's
competitor, had a great party, and was not reduced till the Khalîfat of Abu
Becr. And the Arabs being then united in one faith and under one prince,
found themselves in a condition of making those conquests which extended the
Mohammedan faith over so great a part of the world.
______
1 Vide Abulfed. ubi sup. c. 51, 52. 2 Vide Gagnier,
not. ad Abulfed. p. 121.
3 Abulfed. ubi sup. p. 128. 4 Ibid. p. 129.
SECTION III
OF THE KORAN ITSELF, THE PECULIARITIES OF THAT BOOK; THE MANNER OF
ITS BEING WRITTEN AND PUBLISHED, AND THE GENERAL DESIGN OF IT.
THE word Korân, derived from the verb karaa, to read, signifies properly in
Arabic, "the reading," or rather, "that which ought to be read;" by which name
Mohammedans denote not only the entire book or volume of the Korân, but also
any particular chapter or section of it: just as the Jews call either the
whole scripture or any part of it by the name of Karâh, or Mikra,1 words of
the same origin and import; which observation seems to overthrow the opinion
of some learned Arabians, who would have the Korân so named because it is a
collection of the loose chapters or sheets which compose it-the verb karaa
signifying also to gather or collect:2 and may also, by the way, serve as an
answer to those who object3 that the Korân must be a book forged at once, and
could not possibly be revealed by parcels at different times during the course
of several years, as the Mohammedans affirm, because the Korân is often
mentioned and called by that name in the very book itself. It may not be
amiss to observe, that the syllable Al in the word Alkoran is only the Arabic
article, signifying the, and therefore ought to be omitted when the English
article is prefixed.
Beside this peculiar name, the Korân is also honoured with several
appellations, common to other books of scripture: as, al Forkân, from the verb
faraka, to divide or distinguish; not, as the Mohammedan doctor say, because
those books are divided into chapters or sections, or distinguish between good
and evil; but in the same notion that the Jews use the word Perek, or Pirka,
from the same root, to denote a section or portion of scripture.4 It is also
called al Moshaf, the volume, and al Kitab, the book, by way of eminence,
which answers to the Biblia of the Greeks; and al Dhikr, the admonition, which
name is also given to the Pentateuch and Gospel.
The Korân is divided into 114 larger portions of very unequal length, which
we call chapters, but the Arabians Sowar, in the singular Sûra, a word rarely
used on any other occasion, and properly signifying a row, order, or regular
series; as a course of bricks in building, or a rank of soldiers in an army;
and is the same in use and import with the Sûra, or Tora, of the jews, who
also call the fifty-three sections of the Pentateuch Sedârim, a word of the
same signification.5
These chapters are not in the manuscript copies distinguished by their
numerical order, though for the reader's ease they are numbered
1 This name was at first given to the Pentateuch only, Nehem. viii. Vide
Simon. hist. Crit. du Vieux Test. l. r, c. 9. 2 Vide Erpen. not. ad Hist.
Joseph. p. 3. 3 Marracc. de Alcor. p. 41. 4 Vide Gol. in
append. ad Gram. Arab. Erpen. 175. A chapter or subdivision of the Massictoth
of the Mishna is also called Perek. Maimon. præf. in Seder Zeraim, p. 57.
5 Vide Gol. ubi sup. 177. Each of the six grand divisions of the Mishna is
also called Seder. Maimon. ubi sup. p. 55.
in this edition, but by particular titles, which (except that of the first,
which is the initial chapter, or introduction to the rest, and by the one
Latin translator not numbered among the chapters) are taken sometimes from a
particular matter of, or person mentioned therein; but usually from the first
word of note, exactly in the same manner as the Jews have named their Sedârim:
though the words from which some chapters are denominated be very far distant,
towards the middle, or perhaps the end of the chapter; which seems ridiculous.
But the occasion of this seems to have been, that the verse or passage wherein
such word occurs, was, in point of time, revealed and committed to writing
before the other verses of the same chapter which precede it in order: and the
title being given to the chapter before it was completed, or the passages
reduced to their present order, the verse from whence such title was taken did
not always happen to begin the chapter. Some chapters have two or more
titles, occasioned by the difference of the copies.
Some of the chapters having been revealed at Mecca, and others at Medina,
the noting this difference makes a part of the title; but the reader will
observe that several of the chapters are said to have been revealed partly at
Mecca, and partly at Medina; and as to others, it is yet a dispute among the
commentators to which place of the two they belong.
Every chapter is subdivided into smaller portions, of very unequal length
also, which we customarily call verses; but the Arabic word is Ayât, the same
with the Hebrew Ototh, and signifies signs, or wonders; such as are the
secrets of GOD, his attributes, works, judgments, and ordinances, delivered in
those verses; many of which have their particular titles also, imposed in the
same manner as those of the chapters.
Notwithstanding this subdivision is common and well known, yet I have never
yet seen any manuscript wherein the verses in each chapter is set down after
the title, which we have therefore added in the table of the chapters. And
the Mohammedans seem to have some scruple in making an actual distinction in
their copies, because the chief disagreement between their several editions of
the Korân, consists in the division and number of the verses: and for this
reason I have not taken upon me to make any such division.
Having mentioned the different editions of the Korân, it may not be amiss
here to acquaint the reader, that there are seven principal editions, if I may
so call them, or ancient copies of that book; two of which were published and
used at Medina, a third at Mecca, a fourth at Cufa, a fifth at Basra, a sixth
in Syria, and a seventh called the common or vulgar edition. Of these
editions, the first of Medina makes the whole number of the verses 6,000; the
second and fifth, 6,214; the third, 6,219; the fourth, 6,236; the sixth,
6,226; and the last, 6,225. But they are all said to contain the same number
of words, namely, 77,639;1 and the same number of letters, viz., 323,015:2 for
the Mohammedans have in this also imitated the Jews, that they have
superstitiously numbered the very words and letters of their law; nay, they
have
1 Or as others reckon them, 99, 464. Reland. de Rel. Moh. p. 25.
2 Or according to another computation, 330,113. Ibid. Vide Gol. ubi
sup. p. 178. D'Herbelot, Bibl. Orient. p. 87.
taken the pains to compute (how exactly I know not) the number of times each
particular letter of the alphabet is contained in the Korân.1
Besides these unequal divisions of chapter and verse, the Mohammedans have
also divided their Korân into sixty equal portions, which they call Ahzâb, in
the singular Hizb, each subdivided into four equal parts; which is also an
imitation of the Jews, who have an ancient division of their Mishna into sixty
portions, called Massictoth:2 but the Korân is more usually divided into
thirty sections only, named Ajzâ, from the singular Joz, each of twice the
length of the former, and in the like manner subdivided into four parts.
These divisions are for the use of the readers of the Korân in the royal
temples, or in the adjoining chapels where the emperors and great men are
interred. There are thirty of these readers belonging to every chapel, and
each reads his section every day, so that the whole Korân is read over once a
day.3 I have seen several copies divided in this manner, and bound up in as
many volumes; and have thought it proper to mark these divisions in the margin
of this translation by numeral letters.
Next after the title, at the head of every chapter, except only the ninth,
is prefixed the following solemn form, by the Mohammedans called the
Bismillah, "In the name of the most merciful GOD;" which form they constantly
place at the beginning of all their books and writings in general, as a
peculiar mark or distinguishing characteristic of their religion, it being
counted a sort of impiety to omit it. The Jews for the same purpose make use
of the form, "In the name of the LORD," or, "In the name of the great GOD:"
and the eastern Christians, that of "In the name of the Father, and of the
Son, and of the Holy Ghost." But I am apt to believe Mohammed really took
this form, as he did many other things, from the Persian Magi, who used to
begin their books in these words, Benâm Yezdân bakhshaïshgher dâdâr; that is,
"In the name of the most merciful, just GOD."4
This auspicatory form, and also the titles of the chapters, are by the
generality of the doctors and commentators believed to be of divine original,
no less than the text itself; but the more moderate are of opinion they are
only human additions, and not the very word of GOD.
There are twenty-nine chapters of the Korân, which have this peculiarity,
that they begin with certain letters of the alphabet, some with a single one,
others with more. These letters the Mohammedans believe to be the peculiar
marks of the Korân, and to conceal several profound mysteries, the certain
understanding of which, the more intelligent confess, has not been
communicated to any mortal, their prophet only excepted. Notwithstanding
which, some will take the liberty of guessing at their meaning by that species
of Cabbala called by the jews, Notarikon,1 and suppose the letters to stand
for as many words expressing the names and attributes of GOD, his works,
ordinances, and decrees; and therefore these mysterious letters, as well as
the verses themselves, seem in the Korân to be called signs. Others explain
the intent of these letters from their nature or organ, or else from their
value in numbers, according to another species of the Jewish Cabbala
1 Vide Reland. de Relig. oh. p. 25. 2 Vide Gol. ubi sup. p.
178. Maimon. præf. in Seder Zeraim, p. 57.
3 Vide Smith, de Moribus et Instit. Turcar. p. 58. 4 Hyde, His. Rel.
Vet. Pers. p. 14. 1 Vide Buxtorf. Lexicon Rabbin.
called Gematria;2 the uncertainty of which conjectures sufficiently appears
from their disagreement. Thus, for example, five chapters, one of which is
the second, begin with these letters, A.L.M., which some imagine to stand for
Allah latîf magîd; "GOD is gracious and to be glorified;" or, Ana li minni,
"to me and from me," viz., belongs all perfection, and proceeds all good; or
else for Ana Allah âlam, "I am the most wise GOD," taking the first letter to
mark the beginning of the first word, the second the middle of the second
word, and the third the last of the third word: or for "Allah, Gabriel,
Mohammed," the author, revealer, and preacher of the Korân. Others say that
as the letter A belongs to the lower part of the throat, the first of the
organs of speech; L to the palate, the middle organ; and M to the lips, which
are the last organs; so these letters signify that GOD is the beginning,
middle, and end, or ought to be praised in the beginning, middle, and end of
all our words and actions: or, as the total value of those three letters in
numbers is seventy-one, they signify that in the space of so many years, the
religion preached in the Korân should be fully established. The conjecture of
a learned Christian3 is, at least, as certain as any of the former, who
supposes those letters were set there by the amanuensis, for Amar li Mohammed,
i.e., "at the command of Mohammed," as the five letters prefixed to the
nineteenth chapter seem to be there written by a Jewish scribe, for Cob yaas,
i.e., "thus he commanded."
The Korân is universally allowed to be written with the utmost elegance and
purity of language, in the dialect of the tribe of Koreish, the most noble and
polite of all the Arabians, but with some mixture, though very rarely, or
other dialects. It is confessedly the standard of the Arabic tongue, and as
the more orthodox believe, and are taught by the book itself, inimitable by
any human pen (though some sectaries have been of another opinion),1 and
therefore insisted on as a permanent miracle, greater than that of raising the
dead,2 and alone sufficient to convince the world of its divine original.
And to this miracle did Mohammed himself chiefly appeal for the
confirmation of his mission, publicly challenging the most eloquent men in
Arabia, which was at that time stocked with thousands whose sole study and
ambition it was to excel in elegance of style and composition,3 to produce
even a single chapter that might be compared with it.4 I will mention but one
instance out of several, to show that this book was really admired for the
beauty of its composure by those who must be allowed to have been competent
judges. A poem of Labîd Ebn Rabîa, one of the greatest wits in Arabia in
Mohammed's time, being fixed up on the gate of the temple of Mecca, an honour
allowed to none but the most esteemed performances, none of the other poets
durst offer anything of their own in competition with it. But the second
chapter of the Korân being fixed up by it soon after, Labîd
2 Vide Ibid. See also Schickardi Bechinat happerushim, p. 62, &c.
3 Golius in append. ad Gram. Erp. p. 182.
1 See after. 2 Ahmed Abd'alhalim, apud Marracc. de Alc. p. 43.
3 A noble writer therefore mistakes the question when he says
these eastern religionists leave their sacred writ the sole standard of
literate performance by extinguishing all true learning. For though they were
destitute of what we call learning, yet they were far from being ignorant, or
unable to compose elegantly in their own tongue. See L. Shaftesbury's
Characteristics, vol. iii. p. 235. 4 Al Ghazâli, apud Poc. Spec. 191.
See Kor. c. 17, and also c. 2, p. 3, and c. II, &c.
himself (then an idolater) on reading the first verses only, was struck with
admiration, and immediately professed the religion taught thereby, declaring
that such words could proceed from an inspired person only. This Labîd was
afterwards of great service to Mohammed, in writing answers to the satires and
invectives that were made on him and his religion by the infidels, and
particularly by Amri al Kais,5 prince of the tribe of Asad,6 and author of one
of those seven famous poems called al Moallakât.7
The style of the Korân is generally beautiful and fluent, especially where
it imitates the prophetic manner and scripture phrases. It is concise and
often obscure, adorned with bold figures after the eastern taste, enlivened
with florid and sententious expressions, and in many places, especially where
the majesty and attributes of GOD are described, sublime and magnificent; of
which the reader cannot but observe several instances, though he must not
imagine the translation comes up to the original, notwithstanding my
endeavours to do it justice.
Though it be written in prose, yet the sentences generally conclude in a
long continued rhyme, for the sake of which the sense is often interrupted,
and unnecessary repetitions too frequently made, which appear still more
ridiculous in a translation, where the ornament, such as it is, for whose sake
they were made, cannot be perceived. However, the Arabians are so mightily
delighted with this jingling, that they employ it in their most elaborate
compositions, which they also embellish with frequent passages of, and
allusions to, the Korân, so that it is next to impossible to understand them
without being well versed in this book.
It is probable the harmony of expression which the Arabians find in the
Korân might contribute not a little to make them relish the doctrine therein
taught, and give an efficacy to arguments which, had they been nakedly
proposed without this rhetorical dress, might not have so easily prevailed.
Very extraordinary effects are related of the power of words well chosen and
artfully placed, which are no less powerful either to ravish or amaze than
music itself; wherefore as much has been ascribed by the best orators to this
part of rhetoric as to any other.1 He must have a very bad ear who is not
uncommonly moved with the very cadence of a well-turned sentence; and Mohammed
seems not to have been ignorant of the enthusiastic operation of rhetoric on
the minds of men; for which reason he has not only employed his utmost skill
in these his pretended revelations, to preserve the dignity and sublimity of
style, which might seem not unworthy of the majesty of that Being, whom he
gave out to be the author of them; and to imitate the prophetic manner of the
Old Testament; but he has not neglected even the other arts of oratory;
wherein he succeeded so well, and so strangely captivated the minds of his
audience, that several of his opponents thought it the effect of witchcraft
and enchantment, as he sometimes complains.2
"The general design of the Korân" (to use the words of a very learned
person) "seems to be this. To unite the professors of the
5 D'Herbel. Bibl. Orient. p. 512, &c. 6 Poc. Spec. p. 80.
7 See before, p. 22. 1 See Casaubon, of Enthusiasm, c. 4.
2 Kor. c. 15, 21, &c.
three different religions then followed in the populous country of Arabia, who
for the most part lived promiscuously, and wandered without guides, the far
greater number being idolaters, and the rest Jews and Christians, mostly of
erroneous and heterodox belief, in the knowledge and worship of one eternal,
invisible GOD, by whose power all things were made, and those which are not,
may be, the supreme Governor, Judge, and absolute Lord of the creation;
established under the sanction of certain laws, and the outward signs of
certain ceremonies, partly of ancient and partly of novel institution, and
enforced by setting before them rewards and punishments, both temporal and
eternal; and to bring them all to the obedience of Mohammed, as the prophet
and ambassador of GOD, who after the repeated admonitions, promises, and
threats of former ages, was at last to establish and propagate GOD'S religion
on earth by force of arms, and to be acknowledged chief pontiff in spiritual
matters, as well as supreme prince in temporal."1
The great doctrine then of the Korân is the unity of GOD; to restore which
point Mohammed pretended was the chief end of his mission; it being laid down
by him as a fundamental truth, that there never was nor ever can be more than
one true orthodox religion. For though the particular laws or ceremonies are
only temporary, and subject to alteration according to the divine direction,
yet the substance of it being eternal truth, is not liable to change, but
continues immutably the same. And he taught that whenever this religion
became neglected, or corrupted in essentials, GOD had the goodness to re-
inform and re-admonish mankind thereof, by several prophets, of whom Moses and
Jesus were the most distinguished, till the appearance of Mohammed, who is
their seal, no other being to be expected after him. And the more effectually
to engage people hearken to him, great part of the Korân is employed in
relating examples of dreadful punishments formerly inflicted by God on those
who rejected and abused his messengers; several of which stories of some
circumstances of them are taken from the Old and New Testament, but many more
from the apocryphal books and traditions of the Jews and Christians of those
ages, set up in the Korân as truths in opposition to the scriptures, which the
Jews and Christians are charged with having altered; and I am apt to believe
that few or none of the relations or circumstances in the Korân were invented
by Mohammed, as is generally supposed, it being easy to trace the greater part
of them much higher, as the rest might be, were more of the books extant, and
it was worth while to make the inquiry.
The other part of the Korân is taken up in giving necessary laws and
directions, in frequent admonitions to moral and divine virtues, and above all
to the worshipping and reverencing of the only true GOD, and resignation to
his will; among which are many excellent things intermixed not unworthy even a
Christian's perusal.
But besides these, there are a great number of passages which are
occasional, and relate to particular emergencies. For whenever anything
happened which perplexed and gravelled Mohammed, and
1 Golius. in appen. ad Gram. Erp. p. 176.
which he could not otherwise get over, he had constant recourse to a new
revelation, as an infallible expedient in all nice cases; and he found the
success of this method answer his expectation. It was certainly an admirable
and politic contrivance of his to bring down the whole Korân at once to the
lowest heaven only, and not to the earth, as a bungling prophet would probably
have done; for if the whole had been published at once, innumerable objections
might have been made, which it would have been very hard, if not impossible,
for him to solve: but as he pretended to have received it by parcels, as GOD
saw proper that they should be published for the conversion and instruction of
the people, he had a sure way to answer all emergencies, and to extricate
himself with honour from any difficulty which might occur. If any objection
be hence made to that eternity of the Korân, which the Mohammedans are taught
to believe, they easily answer it by their doctrine of absolute
predestination; according to which all the accidents for the sake of which
these occasional passages were revealed, were predetermined by GOD from all
eternity.
That Mohammed was really the author and chief contriver of the Korân is
beyond dispute; though it be highly probably that he had no small assistance
in his design from others, as his countrymen failed not to object to him;1
however, they differed so much in their conjectures as to the particular
persons who gave him such assistance,2 that they were not able, it seems, to
prove the charge; Mohammed, it is to be presumed, having taken his measures
too well to be discovered. Dr. Prideaux3 has given the most probably account
of this matter, though chiefly from Christian writers, who generally mix such
ridiculous fables with what they deliver, that they deserve not much credit.
However, it be, the Mohammedans absolutely deny the Korân was composed by
their prophet himself, or any other for him; it being their general and
orthodox belief that it is of divine original, any, that it is eternal and
uncreated, remaining, as some express it, in the very essence of GOD; that the
first transcript has been from everlasting by GOD'S throne, written on a
tablet of vast bigness, called the preserved table, in which are also recorded
the divine decrees past and future: that a copy from this table, in one volume
on paper, was by the ministry of the angel Gabriel sent down to the lowest
heaven, in the month of Ramadân, on the night of power;4 from whence Gabriel
revealed it to Mohammed by parcels, some at Mecca, and some at Medina, at
different times, during the space of twenty-three years, as the exigency of
affairs required; giving him, however, the consolation to show him the whole
(which they tell us was bound in silk, and adorned with gold and precious
stones of paradise) once a year; but in the last year of his life he had the
favour to see it twice. They say that few chapters were delivered entire, the
most part being revealed piecemeal, and written down form time to time by the
prophet's amanuenses in such or such a part of such or such a chapter till
they were completed, according to the directions of the angel.1 The first
parcel that was
1 Vide Kor. c. 16, and c. 25. 2 See the notes on those passages.
3 Life of Mahomet, p. 31, &c.
4 Vide Kor. c. 97, and note ibid. 1 Therefore it is a mistake of Dr.
Prideaux to say it was brought him chapter by chapter. Life of Mahomet, p. 6.
The Jews also say the Law was given to Moses by parcels. Vide Millium, de
Mohammedismo ante Moham. p. 365.
revealed, is generally agreed to have ben the first five verses of the ninety-
sixth chapter.2
After the new revealed passages had been from the prophet's mouth taken
down in writing by his scribe, they were published to his followers, several
of whom took copies for their private use, but the far greater number got them
by heart. The originals when returned were put promiscuously into a chest,
observing no order of time, for which reason it is uncertain when many
passages were revealed.
When Mohammed died, he left his revelations in the same disorder I have
mentioned, and not digest into the method, such as it is, which we now find
them in. This was the work of his successor, Abu Becr, who considering that a
great number of passages were committed to the memory of Mohammed's followers,
many of whom were slain in their wars, ordered the whole to be collected, not
only from the palm-leaves and skins on which they had been written, and which
were kept between two boards or covers, but also from the mouths of such as
had gotten them by heart. And this transcript when completed he committed to
the custody of Hafsa the daughter of Omar, one of the prophet's widows.3
From this relation it is generally imagined that Abu Becr was really the
compiler of the Korân; though for aught appears to the contrary, Mohammed left
the chapters complete as we now have them, excepting such passages as his
successor might add or correct from those who had gotten them by heart; what
Abu Becr did else being perhaps no more than to range the chapters in their
present order, which he seems to have done without any regard to time, having
generally placed the longest first.
However, in the thirtieth year of the Hejra, Othmân being then Khalîf, and
observing the great disagreement in the copies of the Korân in the several
provinces of the empire-those of Irak, for example, following the reading of
Abu Musa al Ashari, and the Syrians that of Macdâd Ebn Aswad-he, by advice of
the companions, ordered a great number of copies to be transcribed from that
of Abu Becr, in Hafsa's care, under the inspection of Zeid Ebn Thabet,
Abd'allah Ebn Zobair, Saïd Ebn al As, and Abd'alrahmân Ebn al Hâreth, the
Makhzumite; whom he directed that wherever they disagreed about any word, they
should write it in the dialect of the Koreish, in which it was first
delivered.1 These copies when made were dispersed in the several provinces of
the empire, and the old ones burnt and suppressed. Though many things in
Hafsa's copy were corrected by the above-mentioned supervisors, yet some
various readings still occur; the most material of which will be taken notice
of in their proper places.
The want of vowels2 in the Arabic character made Mokrîs, or readers whose
peculiar study and profession it was to read the Korân with its proper vowels,
absolutely necessary. But these differing in their
2 Not the whole chapter, as Golius says. Append. ad Gr. Erp. p. 180.
3 Elmacin. in Vita Abu Becr. Abulfeda.
1 Abulfeda, in Vitis Abubecr and Othmân. 2 The characters or marks of
the Arabic vowels were not used till several years after Mohammed. Some
ascribe the invention of them to Yahya Ebn Yâmer, some to Nasr Ebn Asam,
surnamed al Leithi, and others to Abu'laswad al Dîli-all three of whom were
doctors of Basra, and immediately succeeded the companions. See D'Herbel.
Bibl. Orient. p. 87.
manner of reading, occasioned still further variations in the copies of the
Korân, as they are now written with the vowels; and herein consist much the
greater part of the various readings throughout the book. The readers whose
authority the commentators chiefly allege, in admitting these various
readings, are seven in number.
There being some passages in the Korân which are contradictory, the
Mohammedan doctors obviate any objection from thence by the doctrine of
abrogation; for they say, that GOD in the Korân commanded several things which
were for good reasons afterwards revoked and abrogated.
Passages abrogated are distinguished into three kinds: the first where the
letter and the sense are both abrogated; the second, where the letter only is
abrogated, but the sense remains; and the third, where the sense is abrogated,
though the letter remains.
Of the first kind were several verses, which, by the tradition of Malec Ebn
Ans, were in the prophet's lifetime read in the chapter of Repentance, but are
not now extant, one of which, being all he remembered of them, was the
following: "If a son of Adam had two rivers of gold, he would covet yet a
third; and if he had three, he would covet yet a fourth (to be added) unto
them; neither shall the belly of a son of Adam be filled, but with dust. GOD
will turn unto him who shall repent." Another instance of this kind we have
from the tradition of Abd'allah Ebn Masûd, who reported that the prophet gave
him a verse to read which he wrote down; but the next morning looking in his
book, he found it was vanished, and the leaf blank: this he acquainted
Mohammed with, who assured him the verse was revoked the same night.
Of the second kind is a verse called the verse of stoning, which, according
to the tradition of Omar, afterwards Khalîf, was extant while Mohammed was
living, though it be not now to be found. The words are these: "Abhor not
your parents, for this would be ingratitude in you. If a man and woman of
reputation commit adultery, ye shall stone them both; it is a punishment
ordained by GOD; for GOD is mighty and wise."
Of the last kind are observed several verses in sixty-three different
chapters, to the number of 225. Such as the precepts of turning in prayer to
Jerusalem; fasting after the old custom; forbearance towards idolaters;
avoiding the ignorant, and the like.1 The passages of this sort have been
carefully collected by several writers, and are most of them remarked in their
proper places.
Though it is the belief of the Sonnites or orthodox that the Korân is
uncreated and eternal, subsisting in the very essence of GOD, and Mohammed
himself is said to have pronounced him an infidel who asserted the contrary,2
yet several have been of a different opinion; particularly the sect of the
Mótazalites,3 and the followers of Isa Ebn Sobeih Abu Musa, surnamed al
Mozdâr, who struck not to accuse those who held the Korân to be uncreated of
infidelity, as asserters of two eternal beings.4
This point was controverted with so much heat that it occasioned
1 Abu Hashem Hebatallah, apud Marracc. de Alc. p. 42. 2 Apud Poc.
Spec. 220. 3 See after, in Sect. VIII. 4 Vide Poc. Spec. p.
219, &c.
many calamities under some of the Khalîfs of the family of Abbâs, al Mamûn5
making a public edict declaring the Korân to be created, which was confirmed
by his successors Al Mótasem6 and Al Wâthek,7 who whipped, imprisoned, and put
to death those of the contrary opinion. But at length Al Motawakkel,1 who
succeeded Al Wâthek, put an end to these persecutions, by revoking the former
edicts, releasing those that were imprisoned on that account, and leaving
every man at liberty as to his belief in this point.2
Al Ghazâli seems to have tolerably reconciled both opinions, saying, that
the Korân is read and pronounced with the tongue, written in books, and kept
in memory; and is yet eternal, subsisting in GOD'S essence, and not possible
to be separated thence by any transmission into men's memories or the leaves
of books;3 by which he seems to mean no more than that the original idea of
the Korân only is really in GOD, and consequently co-essential and co-eternal
with him, but that the copies are created and the work of man.
The opinion of Al Jahedh, chief of a sect bearing his name, touching the
Korân, is too remarkable to be omitted: he used to say it was a body, which
might sometimes be turned into a man,4 and sometimes into a beast;5 which
seems to agree with the notion of those who assert the Korân to have two
faces, one of a man, the other of a beast;6 thereby, as I conceive, intimating
the double interpretation it will admit of, according to the letter or the
spirit.
As some have held the Korân to be created, so there have not been wanting
those who have asserted that there is nothing miraculous in that book in
respect to style or composition, excepting only the prophetical relations of
things past, and predictions of things to come; and that had GOD left men to
their natural liberty, and not restrained them in that particular, the
Arabians could have composed something not only equal, but superior to the
Korân in eloquence, method, and purity of language. This was another opinion
of the Mótazalites, and in particular of al Mozdâr, above mentioned, and al
Nodhâm.7
The Korân being the Mohammedans' rule of faith and practice, it is no
wonder its expositors and commentators are so very numerous. And it may not
be amiss to take notice of the rules they observe in expounding it.
One of the most learned commentators1 distinguishes the contents of the
Korân into allegorical and literal. The former comprehends the more obscure,
parabolical, and enigmatical passages, and such as
5 Anno Hej. 218. Abulfarag, p. 245, v. etiam Elmacin. in Vita al Mamûn.
6 In the time of al Mótasem, a doctor named Abu Harûn Ebn al Baca found
out a distinction to screen himself, by affirming that the Korân was ordained,
because it is said in that book, "And I have ordained thee the Korân." He
went still farther to allow that what was ordained was created, and yet he
denied it thence followed that the Korân was created. Abulfarag, p. 253.
7 Ibid. p. 257. 1 Anno Hej. 242. 2 Abulfarag, p. 262.
3 Al Ghazâli, in prof. fid. 4 The Khalîf al Walîd Ebn Yazîd,
who was the eleventh of the race of Emmeya, and is looked on by the
Mohammedans as a reprobate, and one of no religion, seems to have treated this
book as a rational creature; for, dipping into it one day, the first words he
met with were these: "Every rebellious perverse person shall not prosper."
Whereupon he stuck it on a lance, and shot it to pieces with arrows, repeating
these verses: "Dost thou rebuke every rebellious perverse person? Behold, I
am that rebellious, perverse person. When thou appearest before thy LORD on
the day of resurrection, say, O LORD, al Walîd has torn me thus." Ebn
Shohnah. v. Poc. Spec. p. 223.
5 Poc. Spec. p. 222. 6 Herbelot, p. 87. 7 Abulfeda,
Shahrestani, &c. apud Poc. Spec. p. 222, et Marracc. de Kor. p. 44.
1 Al Kamakhshari. Vide Kor. c. 3.
are repealed or abrogated; the latter those which are plain, perspicuous,
liable to no doubt, and in full force.
To explain these severally in a right manner, it is necessary from
tradition and study to know the time when each passage was revealed, its
circumstances, state, and history, and the reasons or particular emergencies
for the sake of which it was revealed.2 Or, more explicitly, whether the
passage was revealed at Mecca, or at Medina; whether it be abrogated, or does
itself abrogate any other passage; whether it be anticipated in order of time,
or postponed; whether it be distinct from the context, or depends thereon;
whether it be particular or general; and, lastly, whether it be implicit by
intention, or explicit in words.3
By what has been said the reader may easily believe this book is in the
greatest reverence and esteem among the Mohammedans. They dare not so much as
touch it without being first washed or legally purified;4 which, lest they
should do by inadvertence, they write these words on the cover or label, "Let
none touch it but they who are clean." They read it with great care and
respect, never holding it below their girdles. They swear by it, consult it
in their weighty occasions,5 carry it with them to war, write sentences of it
on their banners, adorn it with gold and precious stones, and knowingly suffer
it not to be in the possession of any of a different persuasion.
The Mohammedans, far from thinking the Korân to be profaned by a
translation, as some authors have written,6 have taken care to have their
scriptures translated not only into the Persian tongue, but into several
others, particularly the Javan and Malayan,7 though out of respect to the
original Arabic, these versions are generally (if not always) intermediary.
______
SECTION IV.
OF THE DOCTRINES AND POSITIVE PRECEPTS OF THE KORAN, WHICH
RELATE TO FAITH AND RELIGIOUS DUTIES.
IT has been already observed more than once, that the fundamental position on
which Mohammed erected the superstructure of his religion was, that from the
beginning to the end of the world there has been, and for ever will be, but
one true orthodox belief; consisting, as to matter of faith, in the
acknowledging of the only true GOD, and the believing in and obeying such
messengers or prophets as he should from time to time send, with proper
credential, to reveal his will to
2 Ahmed Ebn Moh. al Thalebi, in Princip. Expos. Alc. 3 Yahya Ebn
al Salâm al Basri, in Princep. Expos. Alc.
4 The Jews have the same veneration for their law; not daring to touch it
with unwashed hands, nor then neither without a cover. Vide Millium, de
Mohammedismo ante Moh. p. 366. 5 This they do by dipping into it,
and taking an omen from the words which they first light on: which practise
they also learned of the Jews, who do the same with the scriptures. Vide
Millium, ubi sup.
6 Sionita, de Urb. Orient. p. 41, et Marracc. de Alc. p. 33. 7
Reland. de Rel. Moh. p. 265.
mankind; and as to matter of practice, in the observance of the immutable and
eternal laws of right and wrong, together with such other precepts and
ceremonies as GOD should think fit to order for the time being, according to
the different dispensations in different ages of the world: for these last he
allowed were things indifferent in their own nature, and became obligatory by
GOD'S positive precept only; and were therefore temporary, and subject to
alteration according to his will and pleasure. And to this religion he gives
the name of Islâm, which word signifies resignation, or submission to the
service and commands of GOD;1 and is used as the proper name of the Mohammedan
religion, which they will also have to be the same at bottom with that of all
the prophets from Adam.
Under pretext that this eternal religion was in his time corrupted, and
professed in its purity by no one sect of men, Mohammed pretended to be a
prophet sent by GOD to reform those abuses which had crept into it, and to
reduce it to its primitive simplicity; with the addition, however, of peculiar
laws and ceremonies, some of which had been used in former times, and others
were now first instituted. And he comprehended the whole substance of his
doctrine under these two propositions, or articles of faith; viz., that there
is but one GOD, and that himself was the apostle of GOD; in consequence of
which latter article, all such ordinances and institutions as he thought fit
to establish must be received as obligatory and of divine authority.
The Mohammedans divide their religion, which, as I just now said, they call
Islâm, into two distinct parts: Imân, i.e., faith, or theory, and Dîn, i.e.,
religion, or practice; and teach that it is built on five fundamental points,
one belonging to faith, and the other four to practice.
The first is that confession of faith which I have already mentioned; that
"there is no god but the true GOD; and that Mohammed is his apostle." Under
which they comprehend six distinct branches; viz., 1. Belief in GOD; 2. In
his angels; 3. In his scriptures; 4. In his prophets; 5. In the
resurrection and day of judgment; and, 6. In GOD'S absolute decree and
predetermination both of good and evil.
The four points relating to practice are: 1. Prayer, under which are
comprehended those washings or purifications which are necessary preparations
required before prayer; 2. Alms; 3. Fasting; and, 4. The pilgrimage to
Mecca. Of each of these I shall speak in their order.
That both Mohammed and those among his followers who are reckoned orthodox,
had and continue to have just and true notions of GOD and his attributes
(always excepting their obstinate and impious rejecting of the Trinity),
appears so plain from the Korân itself and all the Mohammedan divines, that it
would be loss of time to refute those who suppose the GOD of Mohammed to be
different from the true GOD, and only a fictitious deity or idol of his own
creation.2 Nor shall I enter into any of the Mohammedan controversies
concerning the divine nature and attributes, because I shall have a more
proper opportunity of doing it elsewhere.3
1 The root Salama, from whence Islâm is formed, in the first and fourth
conjugations, signifies also to be saved, or to enter into a state of
salvation; according to which, Islâm may be translated the religion or state
of salvation: but the other sense is more approved by the Mohammedans, and
alluded to in the Korân itself. See c. 2 and c. 3.
2 Marracc. in Alc. p. 102. 3 Sect VIII.
The existence of angels and their purity are absolutely required to be
believed in the Korân; and he is reckoned an infidel who denies there are such
beings, or hates any of them,4 or asserts any distinction of sexes among them.
They believe them to have pure and subtle bodies, created of fire;5 that they
neither eat nor drink, nor propagate their species; that they have various
forms and offices; some adoring GOD in different postures, others singing
praises to him, or interceding for mankind. They hold that some of them are
employed in writing down the actions of men; others in carrying the throne of
GOD and other services.
The four angels whom they look on as more eminently in GOD'S favour, and
often mention on account of the offices assigned them, are Gabriel, to whom
they give several titles, particularly those of the holy spirit,1 and the
angel of revelations,2 supposing him to be honoured by GOD with a greater
confidence than any other, and to be employed in writing down the divine
decrees;3 Michael, the friend and protector of the Jews;4 Azraël, the angel of
death, who separates men's souls from their bodies;5 and Israfîl, whose office
it will be to sound the trumpet at the resurrection.6 The Mohammedans also
believe that two guardian angels attend on every man, to observe and write
down his actions,7 being changed every day, and therefore called al Moakkibât,
or the angels who continually succeed one another.
This whole doctrine concerning angels Mohammed and his disciples have
borrowed from the Jews, who learned the names and offices of those beings from
the Persians, as themselves confess.8 The ancient Persians firmly believed
the ministry of angels, and their superintendence over the affairs of this
world (as the Magians still do), and therefore assigned them distinct charges
and provinces, giving their names to their months and the days of their
months. Gabriel they called Sorûsh and Revân bakhsh, or the giver of souls,
in opposition to the contrary office of the angel of death, to whom among
other names they gave that of Mordâd, or the giver of death; Michael they
called Beshter, who according to them provides sustenance for mankind.9 The
Jews teach that the angels were created of fire;10 that they have several
offices;11 that they intercede for men,12 and attend them.13 The angel of death
they name Dûma, and say he calls dying persons by their respective names at
their last hour.14
The devil, whom Mohammed names Eblîs from his despair, was once one of
those angels who are nearest to GOD'S presence, called Azazîl,15 and fell,
according to the doctrine of the Korân, for refusing to pay homage to Adam at
the command of GOD.16
Besides angels and devils, the Mohammedans are taught by the
4 Kor. c. 2, p. 13. 5 Ibid. c. 7 and 38. 1 Ibid. c. 2, p.
12. 2 See the notes, Ibid, p. 13.
3 Vide Hyde, Hist. Rel. Vet. Pers. p. 262. 4 Vide Ibid. p. 271,
and not. in Kor. p. 13. 5 Vide not. Ibid. p. 4. 6 Kor. c.
6, 13, and 86. The offices of these four angels are described almost in the
same manner in the apocryphal gospel of Barnabas, where it is said that
Gabriel reveals the secrets of GOD, Michael combats against his enemies,
Raphael receives the souls of those who die, and Uriel is to call every one to
judgment on the last day. See the Menagiana, tom. iv. p. 333.
7 Kor. c. 10. 8 Talmud Hieros. in Rosh hashan. 9
Vide Hyde, ubi sup. c. 19 and 20.
10 Gemar. in Hagig. and Bereshit rabbah, &c. Vide Psalm civ. 4. 11
Yalkut hadash. 12 Gemar. in Shebet, and Bava Bathra, &c.
13 Midrash, Yalkut Shemûni. 14 Gemar. Berachoth. 15
Vide Reland. de Rel. Moh. p. 189, &c. 16 Kor. c. 2. See also c.7,
38, &c.
Korân to believe an intermediate order of creatures, which they call Jin or
Genii, created also of fire,17 but of a grosser fabric than angels; since they
eat and drink, and propagate their species, and are subject to death.1 Some
of these are supposed to be good, and others bad, and capable of future
salvation or damnation, as men are; whence Mohammed pretended to be sent for
the conversion of genii as well as men.2 The orientals pretend that these
genii inhabited the world for many ages before Adam was created, under the
government of several successive princes, who all bore the common name of
Solomon; but falling at length into an almost general corruption, Eblîs was
sent to drive them into a remote part of the earth, there to be confined: that
some of that generation still remaining, were by Tahmûrath, one of the ancient
kings of Persia, who waged war against them, forced to retreat into the famous
mountains of Kâf. Of which successions and wars they have many fabulous and
romantic stories. They also make different ranks and degrees among these
beings (if they be not rather supposed to be of a different species), some
being called absolutely Jin, some Peri or fairies, some Div or giants, others
Tacwîns or fates.3
The Mohammedan notions concerning these genii agree almost exactly with
what the Jews write of a sort of demons, called Shedîm, whom some fancy to
have been begotten by two angels named Aza and Azaël, on Naamah the daughter
of Lamech, before the Flood.4 However, the Shedîm, they tell us, agree in
three things with the ministering angels; for that, like them, they have
wings, and fly from one end of the world to the other, and have some knowledge
of futurity; and in three things they agree with men, like whom they eat and
drink, are propagated, and die.5 They also say that some of them believe in
the law of Moses, and are consequently good, and that others of them are
infidels and reprobates.6
As to the scriptures, the Mohammedans are taught by the Korân that GOD, in
divers ages of the world, gave revelations of his will in writing to several
prophets, the whole and every word of which it is absolutely necessary for a
good Moslem to believe. The number of these sacred books were, according to
them, 104. Of which ten were given to Adam, fifty to Seth, thirty to Edrîs or
Enoch, ten to Abraham; and the other four, being the Pentateuch, the Psalms,
the Gospel, and the Korân, were successively delivered to Moses, David, Jesus,
and Mohammed; which last being the seal of the prophets, those revelations are
now closed, and no more are to be expected. All these divine books, except
the four last, they agree to be now entirely lost, and their contents unknown;
though the Sabians have several books which they attribute to some of the
antediluvian prophets. And of those four the Pentateuch, Psalms, and Gospel,
they say, have undergone so many alterations and corruptions, that though
there may possibly be some part of the true word of GOD therein, yet no credit
is to be given to the present copies in the hands of the Jews and Christians.
The Jews in particular are frequently reflected on in the Korân for falsifying
and corrupting their copies of their law; and some instances of such pre-
17 Kor. c. 55. See the notes there. 1 Jallalo'ddin, in Kor. c. 2
and 18. 2 Vide Kor. c. 55, 72, and 74.
3 See D'Herbelot, Bibl. Orient. p. 369, 820, &c. 4 In libro Zohar.
5 Gemara, in Hagiga.
6 Igrat Baale hayyim. c. 15.
tended corruptions, both in that book and the two others, are produced by
Mohammedan writers, wherein they merely follow their own prejudices, and the
fabulous accounts of spurious legends. Whether they have any copy of the
Pentateuch among them different from that of the Jews or not, I am not
entirely satisfied, since a person who travelled into the east was told that
they had the books of Moses, though very much corrupted;1 but I know nobody
that has ever seen them. However, they certainly have and privately read a
book which they call the Psalms of David, in Arabic and Persian, to which are
added some prayers of Moses, Jonas, and others.2 This Mr. Reland supposes to
be a translation from our copies (though no doubt falsified in more places
than one); but M. D'Herbelot says it contains not the same Psalms which are in
our Psalter, being no more than an extract from thence mixed with other very
different pieces.3 The easiest way to reconcile these two learned gentlemen,
is to presume that they speak of different copies. The Mohammedans have also
a Gospel in Arabic, attributed to St. Barnabas, wherein the history of Jesus
Christ is related in a manner very different from what we find in the true
Gospels, and correspondent to those traditions which Mohammed has followed in
his Korân. Of this Gospel the Moriscoes in Africa have a translation in
Spanish;4 and there is in the library of Prince Eugene of Savoy, a manuscript
of some antiquity, containing an Italian translation of the same Gospel,5
made, it is to be supposed, for the use of renegades. This book appears to be
no original forgery of the Mohammedans, though they have no doubt interpolated
and altered it since, the better to serve their purpose; and in particular,
instead of the Paraclete or Comforter,6 they have in this apocryphal gospel
inserted the word Periclyte, that is, the famous or illustrious, by which they
pretend their prophet was foretold by name, that being the signification of
Mohammed in Arabic:1 and this they say to justify that passage of the Korân,2
where Jesus Christ is formally asserted to have foretold his coming, under his
other name of Ahmed; which is derived from the same root as Mohammed, and of
the same import. From these or some other forgeries of the same stamp it is
that the Mohammedans quote several passages, of which there are not the least
footsteps in the New Testament. But after all we must not hence infer that
the Mohammedans, much less all of them, hold these copies of theirs to be the
ancient and genuine scriptures themselves. If any argue, from the corruption
which they insist has happened to the Pentateuch and Gospel, that the Korân
may possibly be corrupted also; they answer, that GOD has promised that he
will take care of the latter, and preserve it from any addition or
diminution;3 but that he left the two other to the care of men. However, they
confess there are some various readings in the Korân,4 as has been observed.
Besides the books above mentioned, the Mohammedans also take notice of the
writings of Daniel and several other prophets, and even
1 Terry's Voyage to the East Indies, p. 277. 2 De Rel. Moham.
p. 23. 3 A copy of this kind, he tells us, is in the library of
the Duke of Tuscany, Bibl. Orient. p. 924. 4 Reland, ubi sup.
5 Menagian, tom. iv. p. 321, &c. 6 John xiv. 16, 26, xv. 26,
and xvi. 7 , compared with Luke xxiv. 49. 1 See Toland's
Nazarenus, the first eight chapters. 2 Cap. 61. 3
Kor. c. 15.
4 Reland, ubi sup. p. 24, 27.
make quotations thence; but these they do not believe to be divine scripture,
or of any authority in matters of religion.5
The number of the prophets, which have been from time to time sent by GOD
into the world, amounts to no less than 224,000, according to one Mohammedan
tradition, or to 124,000, according to another; among whom 313 were apostles,
sent with special commissions to reclaim mankind from infidelity and
superstition; and six of them brought new laws or dispensations, which
successively abrogated the preceding: these were Adam, Noah, Abraham, Moses,
Jesus, and Mohammed. All the prophets in general the Mohammedans believe to
have been free from great sins and errors of consequence, and professors of
one and the same religion, that is Islâm, notwithstanding the different laws
and institutions which they observed. They allow of degrees among them, and
hold some of them to be more excellent and honourable than others.6 The first
place they give to the revealers and establishers of new dispensations, and
the next to the apostles.
In this great number of prophets, they not only reckon divers patriarchs
and persons named in scripture, but not recorded to have been prophets
(wherein the Jewish and Christian writers have sometimes led the way1), as
Adam, Seth, Lot, Ismael, Nun, Joshua, &c., and introduce some of them under
different names, as Enoch, Heber, and Jethro, who are called in the Korân,
Edrîs, Hûd, and Shoaib; but several others whose very names do not appear in
scripture (though they endeavour to find some persons there to fix them on),
as Saleh, Khedr, Dhu'lkefl, &c. Several of their fabulous traditions
concerning these prophets we shall occasionally mention in the notes on the
Korân.
As Mohammed acknowledged the divine authority of the Pentateuch, Psalms,
and Gospel, he often appeals to the consonancy of the Korân with those
writings, and to the prophecies which he pretended were therein concerning
himself, as proofs of his mission; and he frequently charges the Jews and
Christians with stifling the passages which bear witness to him.2 His
followers also fail not to produce several texts even from our present copies
of the Old and New Testament, to support their master's cause.3
The next article of faith required by the Korân is the belief of a general
resurrection and a future judgment. But before we consider the Mohammedan
tenets in those points, it will be proper to mention what they are taught to
believe concerning the intermediate state, both of the body and of the soul,
after death.
When a corpse is laid in the grave, they say he is received by an angel,
who gives him notice of the coming of the two examiners; who are two black
livid angels, of a terrible appearance, named Monker and Nakîr. These order
the dead person to sit upright, and examine him concerning his faith, as to
the unity of GOD, and the mission of Mohammed: if he answer rightly, they
suffer the body to rest in peace, and it is refreshed by the air of paradise;
but if not, they beat him on the temples with iron maces, till he roars out
for anguish so loud, that
5 Idem, ibid. p. 41. 6 Kor. c 2, p. 27, &c. 1 Thus
Heber is said to have been a prophet by the Jews (Seder Olam. p. 2), and Adam
by Epiphanius (Adv. Hæres. p. 6). See also Joseph. Ant. l. I, c. 2.
2 Kor. c. 2, p. 5, 10, 16; c. 3, &c. 3 Some of these texts
are produced by Dr. Prideaux at the end of his Life of Mahomet, and more by
Marracci in Alcor. p. 26, &c.
he is heard by all from east to west, except men and genii. Then they press
the earth on the corpse, which is gnawed and stung till the resurrection by
ninety-nine dragons, with seven heads each; or as others say, their sins will
become venomous beasts, the grievous ones stinging like dragons, the smaller
like scorpions, and the others like serpents: circumstances which some
understand in a figurative sense.4
The examination of the sepulchre is not only founded on an express
tradition of Mohammed, but is also plainly hinted at, though not directly
taught, in the Korân,1 as the commentators agree. It is therefore believed by
the orthodox Mohammedans in general, who take care to have their graves made
hollow, that they may sit up with more ease while they are examined by the
angels;2 but is utterly rejected by the sect of the Mótazalites, and perhaps
by some others.
These notions Mohammed certainly borrowed from the Jews, among whom they
were very anciently received.3 They say that the angel of death coming and
sitting on the grave, the soul immediately enters the body and raises it on
its feet; that he then examines the departed person, and strikes him with a
chain half of iron and half of fire; at the first blow all his limbs are
loosened, at the second his bones are scattered, which are gathered together
again by the angels, and the third stroke reduces the body to dust and ashes,
and it returns into the grave. This rack or torture they call Hibbût
hakkeber, or the beating of the sepulchre, and pretend that all men in general
must undergo it, except only those who die on the evening of the sabbath, or
have dwelt in the land of Israel.4
It it be objected to the Mohammedans that the cry of the persons under such
examination has been never heard; or if they be asked how those can undergo it
whose bodies are burnt or devoured by beasts or birds, or otherwise consumed
without burial; they answer, that it is very possible notwithstanding, since
men are not able to perceive what is transacted on the other side the grave;
and that it is sufficient to restore to life any part of the body which is
capable of understanding the questions put by the angels.5
As to the soul, they hold that when it is separated from the body by the
angel of death, who performs his office with ease and gentleness towards the
good, and with violence towards the wicked,6 it enters into that state which
they call Al Berzakh,7 or the interval between death and the resurrection. If
the departed person was a believer, they say two angels meet it, who convey it
to heaven, that its place there may be assigned, according to its merit and
degree. For they distinguish the souls of the faithful into three classes:
the first of prophets, whose souls are admitted into paradise immediately; the
second of martyrs; whose spirits, according to a tradition of Mohammed, rest
in the crops of green birds which eat of the fruits and drink of the rivers of
paradise; and the third of other believers, concerning the state of whose
souls before the resurrection there are various opinions. For, I. Some say
they stay near the sepulchres, with liberty, however, of going wherever they
please; which they confirm with Mohammed's manner of saluting
4 Al Ghazâli. Vide Poc. not. in Port. Mosis, p. 241, &c. 1
Cap. 8 and 47, &c. 2 Smith, de Morib. et Instit. Turcar. Ep. 2, p.
57. 3 Vide Hyde, in Notisad Bobov. de Visit. Ægrot. p. 19.
4 R. Elias, in Tishbi. See also Buxtorf. Synag. Judaic. and Lexic.
Talmud. 5 Vide Poc. ubi sup. 6 Kor. c. 79. The Jews say
the same, in Nishmat bayim. f. 77. 7 Vide Kor. c. 23, and not. ib.
them at their graves, and his affirming that the dead heard those salutations
as well as the living, though they could not answer. Whence perhaps proceeded
the custom of visiting the tombs of relations, so common among the
Mohammedans.1 2. Others imagine they are with Adam, in the lowest heaven;
and also support their opinion by the authority of their prophet, who gave out
that in his return from the upper heavens in his pretended night journey, he
saw there the souls of those who were destined to paradise on the right hand
of Adam, and of those who were condemned to hell on his left.2 3. Others
fancy the souls of believers remain in the well Zemzem, and those of infidels
in a certain well in the province of Hadramaut, called Borhût; but this
opinion is branded as heretical. 4. Others say they stay near the graves for
seven days; but that whither they go afterwards is uncertain. 5. Others that
they are all in the trumpet whose sound is to raise the dead. And, 6. Others
that the souls of the good dwell in the forms of white birds, under the throne
of GOD.3 As to the condition of the souls of the wicked, besides the opinions
that have been already mentioned, the more orthodox hold that they are offered
by the angels to heaven, from whence being repulsed as stinking and filthy,
they are offered to the earth, and being also refused a place there, are
carried down to the seventh earth, and being also refused a place there, are
carried down to the seventh earth, and thrown into a dungeon, which they call
Sajîn, under a green rock, or according to a tradition of Mohammed, under the
devil's jaw,4 to be there tormented, till they are called up to be joined
again to their bodies.
Though some among the Mohammedans have thought that the resurrection will
be merely spiritual, and no more than the returning of the soul to the place
whence it first came (an opinion defended by Ebn Sina,5 and called by some the
opinion of the philosophers6); and others, who allow man to consist of body
only, that it will be merely corporeal; the received opinion is, that both
body and soul will be raised, and their doctors argue strenuously for the
possibility of the resurrection of the body, and dispute with great subtlety
concerning the manner of it.7 But Mohammed has taken care to preserve one
part of the body, whatever becomes of the rest, to serve for a basis of the
future edifice, or rather a leaven for the mass which is to be joined to it.
For he taught that a man's body was entirely consumed by the earth, except
only the bone called al Ajb, which we name the os coccygis, or rump-bone; and
that as it was the first formed in the human body, it will also remain
uncorrupted till the last day, as a seed from whence the whole is to be
renewed: and this he said would be effected by a forty days' rain which GOD
should send, and which would cover the earth to the height of twelve cubits,
and cause the bodies to sprout forth like plants.1 Herein also is Mohammed
also beholden to the Jews, who say the same things of the bone Luz,2 excepting
that what he attributes to a great rain, will be effected according to them by
a dew, impregnating the dust of the earth.
The time of the resurrection the Mohammedans allow to be a perfect
1 Poc. ubi sup. p. 247. 2 Ibid. p. 248. Consonant hereto are the
Jewish notions of the souls of the just being on high, under the throne of
glory. Vide ibid. p. 156. 3 Ibid. p. 250. 4 Al Beidâwi.
Vide Poc. ubi sup. p. 252.
5 Or, as we corruptly name him, Avicenna. 6 Kenz al afrâr.
7 Vide Poc. ubi sup. p. 254.
1 Idem, ibid. p. 255, &c. 2 Bereshit. rabbah, &c. Vide Poc. ubi
sup. p. 117, &c.
secret to all but GOD alone: the angel Gabriel himself acknowledging his
ignorance on this point when Mohammed asked him about it. However, they say
the approach of that day may be known from certain signs which are to precede
it. These signs they distinguish into two sorts-the lesser and the greater-
which I shall briefly enumerate after Dr. Pocock.3
The lesser signs are: I. They decay of faith among men.4 2. The
advancing of the meanest persons to eminent dignity. 3. That a maid-servant
shall become the mother of her mistress (or master); by which is meant either
that towards the end of the world men shall be much given to sensuality, or
that the Mohammedans shall then take many captives. 4. Tumults and
seditions. 5. A war with the Turks. 6. Great distress in the world, so
that a man when he passes by another's grave shall say "Would to GOD I were in
his place." 7. That the provinces of Irâk and Syria shall refuse to pay
their tribute. And, 8. That the buildings of Medina shall reach to Ahâb, or
Yahâb.
The greater signs are:
1. The sun's rising in the west: which some have imagined it originally
did.5
2. The appearance of the beast, which shall rise out of the earth, in the
temple of Mecca, or on Mount Safâ, or in the territory of Tâyef, or some other
place. This beast they say is to be sixty cubits high: though others, not
satisfied with so small a size, will have her reach to the clouds and to
heaven when her head only is out; and that she will appear for three days, but
show only a third part of her body. They describe this monster, as to her
form, to be a compound of various species, having the head of a bull, the eyes
of a hog, the ears of an elephant, the horns of a stag, the neck of an
ostrich, the breast of a lion, the colour of a tiger, the back of a cat, the
tail of a ram, the legs of a camel, and the voice of an ass. Some say this
beast is to appear three times in several places, and that she will bring with
her the rod of Moses and the seal of Solomon; and being so swift that none can
overtake or escape her, will with the first strike all the believers on the
face and mark them with the word Mûmen, i.e., believer; and with the latter
will mark the unbelievers, on the face likewise, with the word Câfer, i.e.,
infidel, that every person may be known for what he really is. They add that
the same beast is to demonstrate the vanity of all religions except Islâm, and
to speak Arabic. All this stuff seems to be the result of a confused idea of
the beast in the Revelations.6
3. War with the Greeks, and the taking of Constantinople by 70,000 of the
posterity of Isaac, who shall not win that city by force of arms, but the
walls shall fall down while they cry out, "There is no god but GOD: GOD is
most great!" As they are dividing the spoil, news will come to them of the
appearance of the Antichrist, whereupon they shall leave all, and return back.
4. The coming of Antichrist, whom the Mohammedans call al Masîh al Dajjâl,
i.e., the false or lying Christ, and simply al Dajjâl. He is to be one-eyed,
and marked on the forehead with the letters C.F.R., signifying Câfer, or
infidel. They say that the Jews give him the name of Messiah
3 Ibid. p. 258, &c. 4 See Luke xviii. 8. 5 See Whiston's
Theory of the Earth, bk. ii. p. 98, &c.
6 Chap. xiii.
Ben David, and pretend he is to come in the last days and to be lord both of
land and sea, and that he will restore the kingdom to them. According to the
traditions of Mohammed, he is to appear first between Irâk and Syria, or
according to others, in the province of Khorasân; they add that he is to ride
on an ass, that he will be followed by 70,000 Jews of Ispahân, and continue on
earth forty days, of which one will be equal in length to a year, another to a
month, another to a week, and the rest will be common days; that he is to lay
waste all places, but will not enter Mecca or Medina, which are to be guarded
by angels; and that at length he will be slain by Jesus, who is to encounter
him at the gate of Lud. It is said that Mohammed foretold several Anti-
christs, to the number of about thirty, but one of greater note than the rest.
5. The descent of Jesus on earth. They pretend that he is to descend near
the white tower to the east of Damascus, when the people are returned from the
taking of Constantinople; that he is to embrace the Mohammedan religion, marry
a wife, get children, kill Antichrist, and at length die after forty years',
or, according to others, twenty-four years',1 continuance on earth. Under him
they say there will be great security and plenty in the world, all hatred and
malice being laid aside; when lions and camels, bears and sheep, shall live in
peace, and a child shall play with serpents unhurt.2
6. War with the Jews; of whom the Mohammedans are to make a religious
slaughter, the very trees and stones discovering such of them as hide
themselves, except only the tree called Gharkad, which is the tree of the
Jews.
7. The eruption of Gog and Magog, or, as they are called in the east,
Yâjûj and Mâjûj; of whom many things are related in the Korân,3 and the
traditions of Mohammed. These barbarians, they tell us, having passed the
lake of Tiberias, which the vanguard of their vast army will drink dry, will
come to Jerusalem, and there greatly distress Jesus and his companions; till
at his request GOD will destroy them, and fill the earth with their carcasses,
which after some time GOD will send birds to carry away, at the prayers of
Jesus and his followers. Their bows, arrows, and quivers the Moslems will
burn for seven years together;4 and at last GOD will send a rain to cleanse
the earth, and to make it fertile.
8. A smoke, which shall fill the whole earth.5
9. An eclipse of the moon. Mohammed is reported to have said that there
would be three eclipses before the last hour; one to be seen in the east,
another in the west, and the third in Arabia.
10. The returning of the Arabs to the worship of Allât and al Uzza, and
the rest of their ancient idols; after the decrease of every one in whose
heart there was faith equal to the grain of mustard-seed, none but the very
worst of men being left alive. For GOD, they say, will send a cold
odoriferous wind, blowing from Syria Damascena, which shall sweep away the
souls of all the faithful, and the Korân itself, so that men will remain in
the grossest ignorance for a hundred years.
1 Al Thalabi, in Kor. c. 4. 2 See Isaiah xi. 6, &c.
3 Cap. 18 and 21. 4 See Ezek. xxxix. 9; Rev. xx. 8. 5 See
Kor. c. 44, and the notes thereon. Compare also Joel ii. 30, and Rev. ix. 2.
11. The discovery of a vast heap of gold and silver by the retreating of
the Euphrates, which will be the destruction of many.
12. The demolition of the Caaba, or temple of Mecca, by the Ethiopians.1
13. The speaking of beasts and inanimate things.
14. The breaking out of fire in the province of Hejâz; or, according to
others, in Yaman.
15. The appearance of a man of the descendants of Kahtân, who shall drive
men before him with his staff.
16. The coming of the Mohdi, or director; concerning whom Mohammed
prophesied that the world should not have an end till one of his own family
should govern the Arabians, whose name should be the same with his own name,
and whose father's name should also be the same with his father's name; and
who should fill the earth with righteousness. This person the Shiites believe
to be now alive, and concealed in some secret place, till the time of his
manifestation; for they suppose him to be no other than the last of the twelve
Imâms, named Mohammed Abu'lkasem, as their prophet was, and the son of Hassan
al Askeri, the eleventh of that succession. He was born at Sermanrai in the
255th year of the Hejra.2 From this tradition, it is to be presumed, an
opinion pretty current among the Christians took its rise, that the
Mohammedans are in expectation of their prophet's return.
17. A wind which shall sweep away the souls of all who have but a grain of
faith in their hearts, as has been mentioned under the tenth sign.
These are the greater signs, which, according to their doctrine, are to
precede the resurrection, but still leave the hour of it uncertain: for the
immediate sign of its being come will be the first blast of the trumpet; which
they believe will be sounded three times. The first they call the blast of
consternation; at the hearing of which all creatures in heaven and earth shall
be struck with terror, except those whom GOD shall please to exempt from it.
The effects attributed to this first sound of the trumpet are very wonderful:
for they say the earth will be shaken, and not only all buildings, but the
very mountains levelled; that the heavens shall melt, the sun be darkened, the
stars fall, on the death of the angels, who, as some imagine, hold them
suspended between heaven and earth, and the sea shall be troubled and dried
up, or, according ot others, turned into flames, the sun, moon, and stars
being thrown into it: the Korân, to express the greatness of the terror of
that day, adds that women who give suck shall abandon the care of their
infants, and even the she-camels which have gone ten months with young (a most
valuable part of the substance of that nation) shall be utterly neglected. A
farther effect of this blast will be that concourse of beasts mentioned in the
Korân,1 though some doubt whether it be to precede the resurrection or not.
They who suppose it will precede, think that ll kinds of animals, forgetting
their respective natural fierceness and timidity, will run together into one
place, being terrified by the sound of the trumpet and the sudden shock of
nature.
The Mohammedans believe that this first blast will be followed by a second,
which they call the blast of examination,2 when all creatures, both in heaven
and earth, shall die or be annihilated, except those which GOD shall please to
exempt from the common fate;3 and this, they say, shall happen in the
twinkling of an eye, nay, in an instant; nothing surviving except GOD alone,
with paradise and hell, and the inhabitants of those two places, and throne of
glory.4 The last who shall die will be the angel of death.
Forty years after this will be heard the blast of resurrection, when the
trumpet shall be sounded the third time by Israfîl, who, together with Gabriel
and Michael, will be previously restored to life, and standing on the rock of
the temple of Jerusalem,5 shall, at GOD'S command, call together all the dry
and rotten bones, and other dispersed parts of the bodies, and the very hairs,
to judgment. This angel having, by the divine order, set the trumpet to his
mouth, and called together all the souls from all parts, will throw them into
his trumpet, from whence, on his giving the last sound, at the command of GOD,
they will fly forth like bees, and fill the whole space between heaven and
earth, and then repair to their respective bodies, which the opening earth
will suffer to arise; and the first who shall so arise, according to a
tradition of Mohammed, will be himself. For this birth the earth will be
prepared by the rain above mentioned, which is to fall continually for forty
years,6 and will resemble the seed of a man, and be supplied from the water
under the throne of GOD, which is called living water; by the efficacy and
virtue of which the dead bodies shall spring forth from their graves, as they
did in their mother's womb, or as corn sprouts forth by common rain, till they
become perfect; after which breath will be breathed into them, and they will
sleep in their sepulchres till they are raised to life at the last trump.
As to the length of the last day of judgment the Korân in one place tells
us that it will last 1,000 years,1 and in another 50,000.2 To reconcile this
apparent contradiction, the commentators use several shifts: some saying they
know not what measure of time GOD intends in those passages; others, that
these forms of speaking are figurative and not to be strictly taken, and were
designed only to express the terribleness of that day, it being usual for the
Arabs to describe what they dislike as of long continuance, and what they
like, as the contrary; and others suppose them spoken only in reference to the
difficulty of the business of the day, which, if GOD should commit to any of
his creatures, they would not be able to go through it in so many thousand
years; to omit some other opinions which we may take notice of elsewhere.
Having said so much in relation to the time of the resurrection, let us now
see who are to be raised from the dead, in what manner and
2 Several writers, however, make no distinction between this blast and the
first, supposing the trumpet will sound but twice. See the notes to Kor. c.
39. 3 Kor. c 39. 4 To these some add the spirit who bears
the waters on which the throne is placed, the preserved table, wherein the
decrees of GOD are registered, and the pen wherewith they are written; all
which things the Mohammedans imagine were created before the world.
5 In this circum-cumstance the Mohammedans follow the Jews, who also
agree that the trumpet will sound more than once. Vide R. Bechai in Biur
hattorah, and Otioth shel R. Akiba. 6 Elsewhere (see before p. 61) this
rain is said to continue only forty days; but it rather seems that it is to
fall during the whole interval between the second and third blasts.
1 Kor. c. 32. 2 Ibid. c. 70.
form they shall be raised, in what place they shall be assembled, and to what
end, according to the doctrine of the Mohammedans.
That the resurrection will be general, and extend to all creatures both
angels, genii, men, and animals, is the received opinion, which they support
by the authority of the Korân, though that passage which is produced to prove
the resurrection of brutes be otherwise interpreted by some.3
The manner of their resurrection will be very different. Those who are
destined to be partakers of eternal happiness will arise in honour and
security; and those who are doomed to misery, in disgrace and under dismal
apprehensions. As to mankind, they say that they will be raised perfect in
all their parts and members, and in the same state as they came out of their
mother's wombs, that is, barefooted, naked, and uncircumcised; which
circumstances when Mohammed was telling his wife Ayesha, she, fearing the
rules of modesty might be thereby violated, objected that it would be very
indecent for men and women to look upon one another in that condition; but he
answered her, that the business of the day would be too weighty and serious to
allow them the making use of that liberty. Others, however, allege the
authority of their prophet for a contrary opinion as to their nakedness, and
pretend he asserted that the dead should arise dressed in the same clothes in
which they died;1 unless we interpret these words, as some do, not so much of
the outward dress of the body, as the inward clothing of the mind; and
understand thereby that every person will rise again in the same state as to
his faith or infidelity, his knowledge or ignorance, his good or bad works.
Mohammed is also said to have farther taught, by another tradition, that
mankind shall be assembled at the last day, distinguished into three classes.
The first, of those who go on foot; the second, of those who ride; and the
third, of those who creep groveling with their faces on the ground. The first
class is to consist of those believers whose good works have been few; the
second of those who are in greater honour with GOD, and more acceptable to
him; whence Ali affirmed that the pious when they come forth from their
sepulchres, shall find ready prepared for them white-winged camels, with
saddles of gold; wherein are to be observed some footsteps of the doctrine of
the ancient Arabians;2 and the third class, they say, will be composed of the
infidels, whom GOD shall cause to make their appearance with their faces on
the earth, blind, dumb, and deaf. But the ungodly will not be thus only
distinguished; for, according to a tradition of the prophet, there will be ten
sorts of wicked men on whom GOD shall on that day fix certain discretory
marks. The first will appear in the form of apes; these are the professors of
Zendicism: the second in that of swine; these are they who have been greedy of
filthy lucre, and enriched themselves by public oppression: the third will be
brought with their heads reversed and their feet distorted; these are the
usurers: the fourth will wander about blind; these are unjust judges: the
fifth will be deaf, dumb, and blind, understanding nothing; these are they
3 See the notes to Kor. c. 81, and the preceding page. 1 In this
also they follow their old guides, the Jews, who say that if the wheat which
is sown naked rise clothed, it is no wonder the pious who are buried in their
clothes should rise with them. Gemar. Sanhedr. fol. 90. 2 See
before, Sect. I. p. 16.
who glory in their own works: the sixth will gnaw their tongues, which will
hang down upon their breasts, corrupted blood flowing from their mouths like
spittle, so that everybody shall detest them; these are the learned men and
doctors, whose actions contradict their sayings: the seventh will have their
hands and feet cut off; these are they who have injured their neighbours: the
eighth will be fixed to the trunks of palm trees or stakes of wood; these are
the false accusers and informers: the ninth will stink worse than a corrupted
corpse; these are they who have indulged their passions and voluptuous
appetites, but refused GOD such part of their wealth as was due to him: the
tenth will be clothed with garments daubed with pitch; and these are the
proud, the vainglorious, and the arrogant.
As to the place where they are to be assembled to judgment, the Korân and
the traditions of Mohammed agree that it will be on the earth, but in what
part of the earth it is not agreed. Some say their prophet mentioned Syria
for the place; others, a white and even tract of land, without inhabitants or
any signs of buildings. Al Ghazâli imagines it will be a second earth, which
he supposes to be of silver; and others, an earth which has nothing in common
with ours but the name; having, it is possible, heard something of the new
heavens and new earth mentioned in scripture: whence the Korân has this
expression, "on the day wherein the earth shall be changed into another
earth."1
The end of the resurrection the Mohammedans declare to be, that they who
are so raised may give an account of their actions, and receive the reward
thereof. And they believe that not only mankind, but the genii and irrational
animals also,2 shall be judged on this great day; when the unarmed cattle
shall take vengeance on the horned, till entire satisfaction shall be given to
the injured.3
As to mankind, they hold that when they are all assembled together, they
will not be immediately brought to judgment, but the angels will keep them in
their ranks and order while they attend for that purpose; and this attendance
some say is to last forty years, others seventy, others 300, nay, some say no
less than 50,000 years, each of them vouching their prophet's authority.
During this space they will stand looking up to heaven, but without receiving
any information or orders thence, and are to suffer grievous torments, both
the just and the unjust, though with manifest difference. For the limbs of
the former, particularly those parts which they used to wash in making the
ceremonial ablution before prayer, shall shine gloriously, and their
sufferings shall be light in comparison, and shall last no longer than the
time necessary to say the appointed prayers; but the latter will have their
faces obscured with blackness, and disfigured with all the marks of sorrow and
deformity. What will then occasion not the least of their
1 Cap. 14. 2 Kor. c. 6. Vide Maimonid. More Nev. part iii. c.
17. 3 This opinion the learned Greaves supposed to have taken its
rise from the following words of Ezekiel, wrongly understood: "And as for ye,
O my flock thus saith the LORD GOD, Behold I, even I, will judge between the
fat cattle, and between the lean cattle; because ye have thrust with side and
with shoulder, and pushed all the diseased with your horns, till ye have
scattered them abroad; therefore will I save my flock, and they shall no more
be a prey, and I will judge between cattle and cattle," &c. Ezek. xxxiv. 17,
20, 21, 22. Much might be said concerning brutes deserving future reward and
punishment. See Bayle, Dict. Hist. Art. Rorarius, Rem. D. &c.
pain, is a wonderful and incredible sweat, which will even stop their mouths,
and in which they will be immersed in various degrees according to their
demerits, some to the ankles only, some to the knees, some to the middle, some
so high as their mouth, and others as their ears. And this sweat, they say,
will be provoked not only by that vast concourse of all sorts of creatures
mutually pressing and treading on one another's feet, but by the near and
unusual approach of the sun, which will be then no farther from them than the
distance of a mile, or, as some translate the word, the signification of which
is ambiguous, than the length of a bodkin. So that their skulls will boil
like a pot,1 and they will be all bathed in sweat. From this inconvenience,
however, the good will be protected by the shade of GOD'S throne; but the
wicked will be so miserably tormented with it, and also with hunger, and
thirst, and a stifling air, that they will cry out, "Lord, deliver us from
this anguish, though thou send us into hell fire."2 What they fable of the
extraordinary heat of the sun on this occasion, the Mohammedans certainly
borrowed from the Jews, who say, that for the punishment of the wicked on the
last day, that planet shall be drawn from its sheath, in which it is now put
up, lest it should destroy all things by its excessive heat.3
When those who have risen shall have waited the limited time, the
Mohammedans believe GOD will at length appear to judge them; Mohammed
undertaking the office of intercessor, after it shall have been declined by
Adam, Noah, Abraham, and Jesus, who shall beg deliverance only for their own
souls. They say that on this solemn occasion GOD will come in the clouds,
surrounded by angels, and will produce the books wherein the actions of every
person are recorded by their guardian angels,4 and will command the prophets
to bear witness against those to whom they have been respectively sent. Then
every one will be examined concerning all his words and actions, uttered and
done by him in this life; not as if GOD needed any information in those
respects, but to oblige the person to make public confession and
acknowledgment of GOD'S justice. The particulars of which they shall give an
account, as Mohammed himself enumerated them, are-of their time, how they
spent it; of their wealth, by what means they acquired it, and how they
employed it; of their bodies, wherein they exercised them; of their knowledge
and learning, what use they made of them. It is said, however, that Mohammed
has affirmed that no less than 70,000 of his followers should be permitted to
enter paradise without any previous examination, which seems to be
contradictory to what is said above. To the questions we have mentioned each
person shall answer, and make his defence in the best manner he can,
endeavouring to excuse himself by casting the blame of his evil deeds on
others, so that a dispute shall arise even between the soul and the body, to
which of them their guilt ought to be imputed, the soul saying, "O Lord, my
body I received from thee; for thou createdst me without a hand to lay hold
with, a foot to walk with, an eye to see with, or an understanding to
apprehend with, till I came and entered into this body; therefore, punish it
eternally, but deliver me." The body , on the other
1 Al Ghazâli. 2 Idem. 3 Vide Pocock, not. in Port. Mosis,
p. 277. 4 See before, p. 56.
side, will make this apology:-"O Lord, thou createdst me like a stock of wood,
having neither hand that I could lay hold with, nor foot that I could walk
with, till this soul, like a ray of light, entered into me, and my tongue
began to speak, my eye to see, and my foot to walk; therefore, punish it
eternally, but deliver me." But GOD will propound to them the following
parable of the blind man and the lame man, which, as well as the preceding
dispute, was borrowed by the Mohammedans from the Jews:5 A certain king,
having a pleasant garden, in which were ripe fruits, set two persons to keep
it, one of whom was blind and the other lame, the former not being able to see
the fruit nor the latter to gather it; the lame man, however, seeing the
fruit, persuaded the blind man to take him upon his shoulders; and by that
means he easily gathered the fruit, which they divided between them. The lord
of the garden, coming some time after, and inquiring after his fruit, each
began to excuse himself; the blind man said he had no eyes to see with, and
the lame man that he had no feet to approach the trees. But the king,
ordering the lame man to be set on the blind, passed sentence on and punished
them both. And in the same manner will GOD deal with the body and the soul.
As these apologies will not avail on that day, so will it also be in vain for
any one to deny his evil actions, since men and angels and his own members,
nay, the very earth itself, will be ready to bear witness against him.
Though the Mohammedans assign so long a space for the attendance of the
resuscitated before their trial, yet they tell us the trial itself will be
over in much less time, and, according to an expression of Mohammed, familiar
enough to the Arabs, will last no longer than while one may milk an ewe, or
than the space between the two milkings of a she-camel.1 Some, explaining
those words so frequently used in the Korân, "GOD will be swift in taking an
account," say that he will judge all creatures in the space of half a day, and
others that it will be done in less time than the twinkling of an eye.2
At this examination they also believe that each person will have the book,
wherein all the actions of his life are written, delivered to him; which books
the righteous will receive in their right hand, and read with great pleasure
and satisfaction; but the ungodly will be obliged to take them against their
wills in their left,3 which will be bound behind their backs, their right hand
being tied up to their necks.4
To show the exact justice which will be observed on this great day of
trial, the next thing they describe is the balance, wherein all things shall
be weighted. They say it will be held by Gabriel, and that it is of so vast a
size, that its two scales, one of which hangs over paradise, and the other
over hell, are capacious enough to contain both heaven and earth. Though some
are willing to understand what is said in the Korân concerning this balance,
allegorically, and only as a figurative representation of GOD'S equity, yet
the more ancient and orthodox opinion is that it is to be taken literally; and
since words and actions, being mere accidents, are not capable of being
themselves
5 Gemara, Sanhed. c. II. R. Jos. Albo, Serm. iv. c. 33. See also
Epiphan. in Ancorat. sect. 89. 1 The Arabs use, after they have
drawn some milk from the camel, to wait a while and let her young one suck a
little, that she may give down her milk more plentifully at the second
milking. 2 Pocock, not. in Port. Mosis, p. 278-282. See also Kor.
c. 2, p. 21.
3 Kor. c. 17, 18, 69, and 84. 4 Jallalo'ddin.
weighed, they say that the books wherein they are written will be thrown into
the scales, and according as those wherein the good or the evil actions are
recorded shall preponderate, sentence will be given; those whose balance laden
with their good works shall be heavy, will be saved, but those whose balances
are light will be condemned.5 Nor will any one have cause to complain that
GOD suffers any good action to pass unrewarded, because the wicked for the
good they do have their reward in this life, and therefore can expect no
favour in the next.
The old Jewish writers make mention as well of the books to be produced at
the last day, wherein men's actions are registered,6 as of the balance wherein
they shall be weighed;7 and the scripture itself seems to have given the first
notion of both.8 But what the Persian Magi believe of the balance comes
nearest to the Mohammedan opinion. They hold that on the day of judgment two
angels, named Mihr and Sorûsh, will stand on the bridge we shall describe by-
and-bye, to examine every person as he passes; that the former, who represents
the divine mercy, will hold a balance in his hand, to weigh the actions of
men; that according to the report he shall make thereof to GOD, sentence will
be pronounced, and those whose good works are found more ponderous, if they
turn the scale but by the weight of a hair, will be permitted to pass forward
to paradise; but those whose good works shall be found light, will be by the
other angel, who represents GOD'S justice, precipitated from the bridge into
hell.1
This examination being passed, and every one's works weighed in a just
balance, that mutual retaliation will follow, according to which every
creature will take vengeance one of another, or have satisfaction made them
for the injuries which they have suffered. And since there will then be no
other way of returning like for like, the manner of giving this satisfaction
will be by taking away a proportionable part of the good works of him who
offered the injury, and adding it to those of him who suffered it. Which
being done, if the angels (by whose ministry this is to be performed) say,
"Lord, we have given to every one his due; and there remaineth of this
person's good works so much as equalleth the weight of an ant," GOD will of
his mercy cause it to be doubled unto him, that he may be admitted into
paradise; but if, on the contrary, his good works be exhausted, and there
remain evil works only, and there be any who have not yet received
satisfaction from him, GOD will order that an equal weight of their sins be
added unto his, that he may be punished for them in their stead, and he will
be sent to hell laden with both. This will be the method of GOD'S dealing
with mankind. As to brutes, after they shall have likewise taken vengeance of
one another, as we have mentioned above, he will command them to be changed
into dust;2 wicked men being reserved to more grievous punishment: so that
they shall cry out, on hearing this sentence passed on the brutes, "Would to
GOD that we were dust also." As to the genii, many Mohammedans are of opinion
that such of them as are true believers will undergo the same fate as the
irrational animals, and
5 Kor. c. 23, 7, &c. 6 Midrash, Yalkut Shemuni, f. 153, c. 3.
7 Gemar. Sanhedr. f. 91, &c.
8 Exod. xxxii. 32, 33, Dan. vii. 10, Revel. xx. 12, &c., and Dan. v. 27.
1 Hyde, de Rel. Vet. Pers. p. 245, 401, &c.
2 Yet they say the dog of the seven sleepers, and Ezra's ass, which was
raised to life, will, by peculiar favour, be admitted into paradise. See Kor.
c. 18, and c. 3.
have no other reward than the favour of being converted into dust; and for
this they quote the authority of their prophet. But this, however, is judged
not so very reasonable, since the genii, being capable of putting themselves
in the state of believers as well as men, must consequently deserve, as it
seems, to be rewarded for their faith, as well as to be punished for
infidelity. Wherefore some entertain a more favourable opinion, and assign
the believing genii a place near the confines of paradise, where they will
enjoy sufficient felicity, though they be not admitted into that delightful
mansion. But the unbelieving genii, it is universally agreed, will be
punished eternally, and be thrown into hell with the infidels of mortal race.
It may not be improper to observe, that under the denomination of unbelieving
genii, the Mohammedans comprehend also the devil and his companions.1
The trials being over and the assembly dissolved, the Mohammedans hold that
those who are to be admitted into paradise will take the right-hand way, and
those who are destined to hell fire will take the left; but both of them must
first pass the bridge, called in Arabic al Sirât, which they say is laid over
the midst of hell, and described to be finer than a hair, and sharper than the
edge of a sword: so that it seems very difficult to conceive how any one shall
be able to stand upon it: for which reason most of the sect of the Mótazalites
reject it as a fable, though the orthodox think it a sufficient proof of the
truth of this article, that it was seriously affirmed by him who never
asserted a falsehood, meaning their prophet; who to add to the difficulty of
the passage, has likewise declared that this bridge is beset on each side with
briars and hooked thorns; which will, however, be no impediment to the good,
for they shall pass with wonderful ease and swiftness, like lightning or the
wind, Mohammed and his Moslems leading the way; whereas the wicked, what with
the slipperiness and extreme narrowness of the path, the entangling of the
thorns, and the extinction of the light, which directed the former to
paradise, will soon miss their footing, and fall down headlong into hell,
which is gaping beneath them.2
This circumstance Mohammed seems also to have borrowed from the Magians,
who teach that on the last day all mankind will be obliged to pass a bridge
which they call Pûl Chînavad, or Chînavar, that is, the straight bridge,
leading directly into the other world; on the midst of which they suppose the
angels, appointed by GOD to perform that office, will stand, who will require
of every one a strict account of his actions, and weigh them in the manner we
have already mentioned.3 It is true the Jews speak likewise of the bridge of
hell, which they say is no broader than a thread; but then they do not tell us
that any shall be obliged to pass it, except the idolaters, who will fall
thence into perdition.1
As to the punishment of the wicked, the Mohammedans are taught that hell is
divided into seven stories, or apartments, one below another, designed for the
reception of as many distinct classes of the damned.2 The first which they
call Jehennam, they say, will be the receptacle of those who acknowledged one
GOD, that is, the wicked Mohammedans,
1 Vide Kor. c. 18. 2 Pocock. ubi sup. p. 282-289. 3
Hyde, de Rel. Vet. Pers. p. 245, 402, &c.
1 Midrash, Yalkut Reubeni. § Gehinnom. 2 Kor. c. 15.
who after having there been punished according to their demerits, will at
length be released. The second, uamed Ladhâ, they assign to the Jews; the
third, named al Hotama, to the Christians; the fourth named al Säir, to the
Sabians; the fifth, named Sakar, to the Magians; the sixth, named al Jahîm, to
the idolaters; and the seventh, which is the lowest and worst of all, and is
called al Hâwiyat, to the hypocrites, or those who outwardly professed some
religion, but in their hearts were of none.3 Over each of these apartments
they believe there will be set a guard of angels,4 nineteen in number;5 to
whom the damned will confess the just judgment of GOD, and beg them to
intercede with him for some alleviation of their pain, or that they may be
delivered by being annihilated.6
Mohammed has, in his Korân and traditions, been very exact in describing
the various torments of hell, which, according to him, the wicked will suffer
both from intense heat and excessive cold. We shall, however, enter into no
detail of them here, but only observe that the degrees of these pains will
also vary, in proportion to the crimes of the sufferer, and the apartment he
is condemned to; and that he who is punished the most lightly of all will be
shod with shoes of fire, the fervour of which will cause his skull to boil
like a cauldron. The condition of these unhappy wretches, as the same prophet
teaches, cannot be properly called either life or death; and their misery will
be greatly increased by their despair of being ever delivered from that place,
since, according to that frequent expression in the Korân, "they must remain
therein for ever." It must be remarked, however, that the infidels alone will
be liable to eternity of damnation, for the Moslems, or those who have
embraced the true religion, and have been guilty of heinous sins, will be
delivered thence after they shall have expiated their crimes by their
sufferings. The contrary of either of these opinions is reckoned heretical;
for it is the constant orthodox doctrine of the Mohammedans that no unbeliever
or idolater will ever be released, nor any person who in his lifetime
professed an believed the unity of GOD be condemned to eternal punishment. As
to the time and manner of the deliverance of those believers whose evil
actions shall outweigh their good, there is a tradition of Mohammed that they
shall be released after they shall have been scorched and their skins burnt
black, and shall afterwards be admitted into paradise; and when the
inhabitants of that place shall, in contempt, call them infernals, GOD will,
on their prayers, take from them that opprobrious appellation. Others say he
taught that while they continue in hell they shall be deprived of life, or (as
his words are otherwise interpreted) be cast into a most profound sleep, that
they may be the less sensible of their torments; and that they shall
afterwards be received into paradise, and there revive on their being washed
with the water of life; though some suppose they will
3 Others fill these apartments with different company. Some place in the
second, the idolaters; in the third, Gog and Magog, &c.; in the fourth, the
devils; in the fifth, those who neglect alms and prayers; and crowd the Jews,
Christians, and Magians together in the sixth. Some, again, will have the
first to be prepared for the Dahrians, or those who deny the creation, and
believe the eternity of the world; the second, for the Dualists, or Manichees,
and the idolatrous Arabs; the third, for the Bramins of the Indies; the
fourth, for the Jews; the fifth, for the Christians; and the sixth, for the
Magians. But all agree in assigning the seventh to the hypocrites. Vide
Millium, de Mohammedismo ante Moham. p. 412; D'Herbel. Bibl. Orient. p. 368,
&c. 4 Kor. c. 40, 43, 74, &c.
5 Ibid. c. 74. 6 Ibid. c. 40, 43.
be restored to life before they come forth from their place of punishment,
that at their bidding farewell to their pains, they may have some little taste
of them. The time which these believers shall be detained there, according to
a tradition handed down from their prophet, will not be less than 900 years,
nor more than 7,000. And as to the manner of their delivery, they say that
they shall be distinguished by the marks of prostration on those parts of
their bodies with which they used to touch the ground in prayer, and over
which the fire will, therefore, have no power; and that being known by this
characteristic, they will be relieved by the mercy of GOD, at the intercession
of Mohammed and the blessed; whereupon those who shall have been dead will be
restored to life, as has been said; and those whose bodies shall have
contracted any sootiness or filth from the flames and smoke of hell, will be
immersed in one of the rivers of paradise, called the river of life, which
will wash them whiter than pearls.1
For most of these circumstances relating to hell and the state of the
damned, Mohammed was likewise, in all probability, indebted to the Jews, and
in part to the Magians; both of whom agree in making seven distinct apartments
in hell,2 though they vary in other particulars. The former place an angel as
a guard over each of these infernal apartments, and suppose he will intercede
for the miserable wretches there imprisoned, who will openly acknowledge the
justice of GOD in their condemnation.1 They also teach that the wicked will
suffer a diversity of punishments, and that by intolerable cold2 as well as
heat, and that their faces shall become black;3 and believe those of their own
religion shall also be punished in hell hereafter, according to their crimes
(for they hold that few or none will be found so exactly righteous as to
deserve no punishment at all), but will soon be delivered thence, when they
shall be sufficiently purged from their sins, by their father Abraham, or at
the intercession of him or some other of the prophets.4 The Magians allow but
one angel to preside over all the seven hells, who is named by them Vanánd
Yezád, and, as they teach, assigns punishments proportionate to each person's
crimes, restraining also the tyranny and excessive cruelty of the devil, who
would, if left to himself, torment the damned beyond their sentence.5 Those
of this religion do also mention and describe various kinds of torments,
wherewith the wicked will be punished in the next life; among which though
they reckon extreme cold to be one, yet they do not admit fire, out of
respect, as it seems, to that element, which they take to be the
representation of the divine nature; and, therefore, they rather choose to
describe the damned souls as suffering by other kinds of punishments: such as
an intolerable stink, the stinging and biting of serpents and wild beasts, the
cutting and tearing of the flesh by the devils, excessive hunger and thirst,
and the like.6
Before we proceed to a description of the Mohammedan paradise, we must not
forget to say something of the wall or partition which they imagine to be
between that place and hell, and seems to be copied
1 Poc. not. in Port. Mosis, p. 289-291. 2 Nishmat hayim, f. 32;
Gemar. in Arubin, f. 19; Zohar. ad Exod. xxvi. 2, &c.; and Hyde, de Rel. Vet.
Pers. p. 245. 1 Midrash, Yalkut Shemuni, part II, f. 116. 2
Zohar. ad Exod. xix.
3 Yalkut Shemuni, ubi sup. f. 86. 4 Nishmat hayim, f. 83; Gemar.
Arubin, f. 19. Vide Kor. c. 2, p. 10, and 3, p. 34, and notes there.
5 Hyde, de Rel. Vet. Pers. p. 182. 6 Vide Eundem, ibid. p.
from the great gulf of separation mentioned in scripture.7 They call it al
Orf, and more frequently in the plural, al Arâf, a word derived from the verb
arafa, which signifies to distinguish between things, or to part them; though
some commentators give another reason for the imposition of this name,
because, they say, those who stand on this partition will know and distinguish
the blessed from the damned, by their respective marks or characteristics:8
and others say the word properly intends anything that is high raised or
elevated, as such a wall of separation must be supposed to be.9 The
Mohammedan writers greatly differ as to the persons who are to be found on al
Arâf. Some imagine it to be a sort of limbo for the patriarchs and prophets,
or for the martyrs and those who have been most eminent for sanctity, among
whom, they say, there will be also angels in the form of men. Others place
here such whose good and evil works are so equal that they exactly
counterpoise each other, and, therefore, deserve neither reward nor
punishment; and these, they say, will, on the last day, be admitted into
paradise, after they shall have performed an act of adoration, which will be
imputed to them as a merit, and will make the scale of their good works to
overbalance. Others suppose this intermediate space will be a receptacle for
those who have gone to war without their parents' leave, and therein suffered
martyrdom; being excluded paradise for their disobedience, and escaping hell
because they are martyrs. The breadth of this partition wall cannot be
supposed to be exceeding great, since not only those who shall stand thereon
will hold conference with the inhabitants both of paradise and of hell, but
the blessed and the damned themselves will also be able to talk to one
another.1
If Mohammed did not take his notions of the partition we have been
describing from scripture, he must at least have borrowed it at second-hand
from the Jews, who mention a thin wall dividing paradise form hell.2
The righteous, as the Mohammedans are taught to believe, having surmounted
the difficulties, and passed the sharp bridge above mentioned, before they
enter paradise will be refreshed by drinking at the pond of their prophet, who
describes it to be an exact square, of a month's journey in compass: its
water, which is supplied by two pipes from al Cawthar, one of the rivers of
paradise, being whiter than milk or silver and more odoriferous than musk,
with as many cups set around it as there are stars in the firmament, of which
water, whoever drinks will thirst no more for ever.3 This is the first taste
which the blessed will have of their future and now near-approaching felicity.
Though paradise be so very frequently mentioned in the Korân, yet it is a
dispute among Mohammedans whether it be already created, or be to be created
hereafter: the Mótazalites and some other sectaries asserting that there is
not at present any such place in nature, and that the paradise which the
righteous will inhabit in the next life, will be different form that form
which Adam was expelled. However, the orthodox profess the contrary,
maintaining that it was created even
7 Luke xvi. 26. 8 Jallalo'ddin. Vide Kor. c.7. 9 Al
Beidâwi. 1 Kor. ubi sup Vide D'Herbel. Bibl. Orient. p. 121, &c.
2 Midrash. Yalkut Sioni. f. II. 3 Al Ghazâli.
before the world, and describe it, from their prophet's traditions, in the
following manner.
They say it is situate above the seven heavens (or in the seventh heaven)
and next under the throne of GOD: and to express the amenity of the place,
tell us that the earth of it is of the finest wheat flour, or of the purest
musk, or, as others will have it, of saffron; that its stones are pearls and
jacinths, the walls of its buildings enriched with gold and silver, and that
the trunks of all its trees are of gold, among which the most remarkable is
the tree called Tûba, or the tree of happiness. Concerning this tree they
fable that it stands in the palace of Mohammed, though a breach of it will
reach to the house of every true believer;1 that it will be laden with
pomegranates, grapes, dates, and other fruits of surprising bigness, and of
tastes unknown to mortals. So that if a man desire to eat of any particular
kind of fruit, it will immediately be presented him, or if he choose flesh,
birds ready dressed will be set before him according to his wish. They add
that the boughs of this tree will spontaneously bend down to the hand of the
person who would gather of its fruits, and that it will supply the blessed not
only with food, but also with silken garments, and beasts to ride on ready
saddled and bridled, and adorned with rich trappings, which will burst forth
from its fruits; and that this tree is so large, that a person mounted on the
fleetest horse would not be able to gallop from one end of its shade to the
other in a hundred years.2
As plenty of water is one of the greatest additions to the pleasantness of
any place, the Korân often speaks of the rivers of paradise as a principal
ornament thereof; some of these rivers, they say, flow with water, some with
milk, some with wine, and others with honey, all taking their rise from the
roof of the tree Tûba: two of which rivers, named al Cawthar and the river of
life, we have already mentioned. And lest these should not be sufficient, we
are told this garden is also watered by a great number of lesser springs and
fountains, whose pebbles are rubies and emeralds, their earth of camphire,
their beds of musk, and their sides of saffron, the most remarkable among them
being Salsabîl and Tasnîm.
But all these glories will be eclipsed by the resplendent and ravishing
girls of paradise, called, from their large black eyes, Hûr al oyûn, the
enjoyment of whose company will be a principal felicity of the faithful.
These, they say, are created not of clay, as mortal women are, but of pure
musk: being, as their prophet often affirms in his Korân, free from all
natural impurities, defects, and inconveniences incident to the sex, of the
strictest modesty, and secluded from public view in pavilions of hollow
pearls, so large, that, as some traditions have it, one of them will be no
less than four parasangs (or, as others say, sixty miles) long, and as many
broad.
The name which the Mohammedans usually give to this happy mansion, is al
Jannat, or the garden; and sometimes they call it, with an addition, Jannat al
Ferdaws, the garden of paradise, Jannet Aden, the garden of Eden (though they
generally interpret the word Eden, not according to its acceptation in Hebrew,
but according to its meaning in their
1 Yahya, in Kor.c. 13. 2 Jallal'oddin, ibid.
own tongue, wherein it signifies a settled or perpetual habitation), Jannat al
Máwa, the garden of abode, Jannat al Naïm, the garden of pleasure, and the
like; by which several appellations some understand so many different gardens,
or at least places of different degrees of felicity (for they reckon no less
than a hundred such in all), the very meanest whereof will afford its
inhabitants so many pleasures and delights, that one would conclude they must
even sink under them, had not Mohammed declared, that in order to qualify the
blessed for a full enjoyment of them, GOD will give to every one the abilities
of a hundred men.
We have already described Mohammed's pond, whereof the righteous are to
drink before their admission into this delicious seat; besides which some
authors1 mention two fountains, springing from under a certain tree near the
gate of paradise, and say, that the blessed will also drink of one of them, to
purge their bodies and carry off all excrementitious dregs, and will wash
themselves in the other. When they are arrived at the gate itself, each
person will there be met and saluted by the beautiful youths appointed to
serve and wait upon him, one of them running before, to carry the news of his
arrival to the wives destined for him; and also by two angels, bearing the
presents sent him by GOD, one of whom will invest him with a garment of
paradise, and the other will put a ring on each of his fingers, with
inscriptions on them alluding to the happiness of his condition. By which of
the eight gates (for so many they suppose paradise to have) they are
respectively to enter, is not worth inquiry; but it must be observed that
Mohammed has declared that no person's good works will gain him admittance,
and that even himself shall be saved, not by his merits, but merely by the
mercy of GOD. It is, however, the constant doctrine of the Korân, that the
felicity of each person will be proportioned to this deserts, and that there
will be abodes of different degrees of happiness; the most eminent degree
being reserved for the prophets, the second for the doctors and teachers of
God's worship, the next for the martyrs, and the lower for the rest of the
righteous, according to their several merits. There will also some
distinction be made in respect to the time of their admission; Mohammed (to
whom, if you will believe him, the gates will first be opened) having
affirmed, that the poor will enter paradise five hundred years before the
rich: nor is this the only privilege which they will enjoy in the next life;
since the same prophet has also declared, that when he took a view of
paradise, he saw the majority of its inhabitants to be the poor, and when he
looked down into hell, he saw the greater part of the wretches confined there
to be women.
For the first entertainment of the blessed on their admission, they fable
that the whole earth will then be as one loaf of bread, which GOD will reach
to them with his hand, holding it like a cake; and that for meat they will
have the ox Balâm, and the fish Nûn, the lobs of whose livers will suffice
70,000 men, being, as some imagine to be set before the principal guests,
viz., those who, to that number, will be admitted into paradise without
examination;2 though others suppose that a definite number is here put for an
indefinite, and that
1 Al Ghazâli, Kenz al Afrâr 2 See before, p.
68.
nothing more is meant thereby, than to express a great multitude of people.
From this feast every one will be dismissed to the mansion designed for
him, where (as has been said) he will enjoy such a share of felicity as will
be proportioned to his merits, but vastly exceed comprehension or expectation;
since the very meanest in paradise (as he who, it is pretended, must know
best, has declared) will have eighty thousand servants, seventy-two wives of
the girls of paradise, besides the wives he had in this world, and a tent
erected for him of pearls, jacinths, and emeralds, of a very large extent;
and, according to another tradition, will be waited on by three hundred
attendants while he eats, will be served in dishes of gold, whereof three
hundred shall be set before him at once, containing each a different kind of
food, the last morsel of which will be as grateful as the first; and will also
be supplied with as many sorts of liquors in vessels of the same metal: and,
to complete the entertainment, there will be no want of wine, which, though
forbidden in this life, will yet be freely allowed to be drunk in the next,
and without danger, since the wine of paradise will not inebriate, as that we
drink here. The flavour of this wine we may conceive to be delicious without
a description, since the water of Tasnîm and the other fountains which will be
used to dilute it, is said to be wonderfully sweet and fragrant. If any
object to these pleasures, as an impudent Jew did to Mohammed, that so much
eating and drinking must necessarily require proper evacuations, we answer, as
the prophets did, that the inhabitants of paradise will not need to ease
themselves, nor even to blow their nose, for that all superfluities will be
discharged and carried off by perspiration, or a sweat as odoriferous as musk,
after which their appetite shall return afresh.
The magnificence of the garments and furniture promised by the Korân to the
godly in the next life, is answerable to the delicacy of their diet. For they
are to be clothed in the richest of silks and brocades, chiefly of green,
which will burst forth from the fruits of paradise, and will be also supplied
by the leaves of the tree Tûba; they will be adorned with bracelets of gold
and silver, and crowns set with pearls of incomparable lustre; and will make
use of silken carpets, litters of a prodigious size, couches, pillows, and
other rich furniture embroidered with gold and precious stones.
That we may the more readily believe what has been mentioned of the
extraordinary abilities of the inhabitants of paradise to taste these
pleasures in their height, it is said they will enjoy a perpetual youth; that
in whatever age they happen to die, they will be raised in their prime and
vigour, that is, of about thirty years of age, which age they will never
exceed (and the same they say of the damned); and that when they enter
paradise they will be of the same stature with Adam, who, as they fable, was
no less than sixty cubits high. And to this age and stature their children,
if they shall desire any (for otherwise their wives will not conceive), shall
immediately attain; according to that saying of their prophet, "If any of the
faithful in paradise be desirous of issue, it shall be conceived, born, and
grown up within the space of an hour." And in the same manner, if any one
shall have a fancy to employ himself in agriculture (which rustic pleasure may
suit
the wanton fancy of some), what he shall sow will spring up and come to
maturity in a moment.
Lest any of the senses should want their proper delight, we are told the
ear will there be entertained, not only with the ravishing songs of the angel
Israfîl, who has the most melodious voice of all GOD'S creatures, and of the
daughters of paradise; but even the trees themselves will celebrate the divine
praises with a harmony exceeding whatever mortals have heard; to which will be
joined the sound of the bells hanging on the trees, which will be put in
motion by the wind proceeding from the throne of GOD, so often as the blessed
wish for music: nay, the very clashing of the golden-bodied trees, whose
fruits are pearls and emeralds, will surpass human imagination; so that the
pleasures of this sense will not be the least of the enjoyments of paradise.
The delights we have hitherto taken a view of, it is said, will be common
to all the inhabitants of paradise, even those of the lowest order. What
then, think we, must they enjoy who shall obtain a superior degree of honour
and felicity? To these, they say, there are prepared, besides all this, "such
things as eye hath not seen, nor hath ear heard, nor hath it entered into the
heart of man to conceive;" an expression most certainly borrowed from
scripture.1 That we may know wherein the felicity of those who shall attain
the highest degree will consist, Mohammed is reported to have said, that the
meanest of the inhabitants of paradise will see his gardens, wives, servants,
furniture, and other possessions take up the space of a thousand years'
journey (for so far and farther will the blessed see in the next life); but
that he will be in the highest honour with GOD, who shall behold his face
morning and evening: and this favour al Ghazâli supposes to be that additional
or superabundant recompense, promised in the Korân,2 which will give such
exquisite delight, that in respect thereof all the other pleasures of paradise
will be forgotten and lightly esteemed; and not without reason, since, as the
same author says, every other enjoyment is equally tasted by the very brute
beast who is turned loose into luxuriant pasture.3 The reader will observe,
by the way, that this is a full confutation of those who pretend that the
Mohammedans admit of no spiritual pleasure in the next life, but make the
happiness of the blessed to consist wholly in corporeal enjoyments.4
Whence Mohammed took the greatest part of his paradise it is easy to show.
The Jews constantly describe the future mansion of the just as a delicious
garden, and make it also reach to the seventh heaven.5 They also say it has
three gates,6 or, as others will have it, two,7 and four rivers (which last
circumstance they copied, to be sure, from those of the garden of Eden8),
flowing with milk, wine, balsam, and honey.1 Their Behemoth and Leviathan,
which they pretend will be slain for the entertainment of the blessed,2 are so
apparently the Balâm and Nûn of Mohammed, that his followers themselves
confess he is obliged to them for both.3 The Rabbins likewise mention seven
different
1 Isaiah lxiv. 4; I Cor. ii. 9. 2 Cap. 10, &c. 3 Vide Poc.
in not. ad Port. Mosis, p. 305.
4 Vide Reland, de Rel. Moh. l. 2, § 17. 5 Vide Gemar. Tânith, f. 25,
Beracoth, f. 34, and Midrash sabboth, f. 37.
6 Megillah, Amkoth, p. 78. 7 Midrash, Yalkut Shemuni.
8 Gen. ii. 10, &c.
1 Midrash, Yalk. Shem. 2 Gemar. Bava Bathra. f. 78; Rashi, in Job i.
3 Vide Poc. not. in Port. Mosis, p. 298.
degrees of felicity,4 and say that the highest will be of those who
perpetually contemplate the face of GOD.5 The Persian Magi had also an idea
of the future happy estate of the good, very little different from that of
Mohammed. Paradise they called Behisht, and Mînu, which signifies crystal,
where they believe the righteous shall enjoy all manner of delights, and
particularly the company of the Hurâni behisht, or black-eyed nymphs of
paradise,6 the care of whom, they say, committed to the angel Zamiyâd;7 and
hence Mohammed seems to have taken the first hint of his paradisiacal ladies.
It is not improbable, however, but that he might have been obliged, in some
respect, to the Christian accounts of the felicity of the good in the next
life. As it is scarce possible to convey, especially to the apprehensions of
the generality of mankind, an idea of spiritual pleasures without introducing
sensible objects, the scriptures have been obliged to represent the celestial
enjoyments by corporeal images; and to describe the mansion of the blessed as
a glorious and magnificent city, built of gold and precious stones, with
twelve gates; through the streets of which there runs a river of water of
life, and having on either side the tree of life, which bears twelve sorts of
fruits, and leaves of a healing virtue.8 Our Saviour likewise speaks of the
future state of the blessed as of a kingdom where they shall eat and drink at
his table.9 But then these descriptions have none of those puerile
imaginations10 which reign throughout that of Mohammed, much less any the most
distant intimation of sensual delights, which he was so fond of; on the
contrary, we are expressly assured, that "in the resurrection they will
neither marry nor be given in marriage, but will be as the angels of GOD in
heaven."11 Mohammed, however, to enhance the value of paradise with his
Arabians, chose rather to imitate the indecency of the Magians than the
modesty of the Christians in this particular, and lest his beatified Moslems
should complain that anything was wanting, bestows on them wives, as well as
the other comforts of life; judging, it is to be presumed, from his own
inclinations, that like Panurgus's ass,1 they would think all the other
enjoyments not worth their acceptance if they were to be debarred from this.
Had Mohammed, after all, intimated to his followers, that what he had told
them of paradise was to be taken, not literally, but in a metaphorical sense
(as it is said the Magians do the description of Zoroaster's2), this might,
perhaps make some atonement; but the contrary is so evident from the whole
tenour of the Korân, that although some
4 Nishmat hayim, f. 32. 5 Midrash, Tehillim, fl. II. 6
Sadder, porta 5. 7 Hyde, de Rel. Vet. Pers. p. 265. 8 Rev. xxi.
10, &c., and xxii. I, 2. 9 Luke xxii. 29, 30, &c.
10 I would not, however, undertake to defend all the Christian writers in
this particular; witness that one passage of Irenæus, wherein he introduces a
tradition of St. John that our LORD should say, "The days shall come, in which
there shall be vines, which shall have each ten thousand branches, and every
of those branches shall have ten thousand lesser branches, and every of these
branches shall have ten thousand twigs, and every one of these twigs shall
have ten thousand clusters of grapes, and in every one of these clusters there
shall be ten thousand grapes, and every one of these grapes being pressed
shall yield two hundred and seventy-five gallons of wine; and when a man shall
take hold of one of these sacred bunches, another bunch shall cry out, I am a
better bunch: take me, and bless the LORD by me," &c. Iren. l. 5, c. 33.
11 Matth. xxii. 30. 1 Vide Rabelais, Pantagr. l. 5, c. 7. A
better authority than this might, however, be alleged in favour of Mohammed's
judgment in this respect; I mean that of Plato, who is said to have proposed,
in his ideal commonwealth, as the reward of valiant men and consummate
soldiers, the kisses of boys and beauteous damsels. Vide Gell. Noct. Att. l.
18, c. 2. 2 Vide Hyde. de Rel. Vet. Pers. p. 266.
Mohammedans, whose understandings are too refined to admit such gross
conceptions, look on their prophet's descriptions as parabolical, and are
willing to receive them in an allegorical or spiritual acceptation,3 yet the
general and orthodox doctrine is, that the whole is to be strictly believed in
the obvious and literal acceptation; to prove which I need only urge the oath
they exact from Christians (who they know abhor such fancies) when they would
bind them in the most strong and sacred manner; for in such a case they make
them swear that if they falsify their engagement, they will affirm that there
will be black-eyed girls in the next world, and corporeal pleasures.4
Before we quite this subject it may not be improper to observe the
falsehood of a vulgar imputation on the Mohammedans, who are by several
writers5 reported to hold that women have no souls, or, if they have, that
they will perish, like those of brute beasts, and will not be rewarded in the
next life. But whatever may be the opinion of some ignorant people among
them, it is certain that Mohammed had too great a respect for the fair sex to
teach such a doctrine; and there are several passages in the Korân which
affirm that women, in the next life, will not only be punished for their evil
actions, but will also receive the rewards of their good deeds, as well as the
men, and that in this case GOD will make no distinction of sexes.6 It is
true, the general notion is, that they will not be admitted into the same
abode as the men are, because their places will be supplied by the
paradisiacal females (though some allow that a man will there also have the
company of those who were his wives in this world, or at least such of them as
he shall desire1); but that good women will go into a separate place of
happiness, where they will enjoy all sorts of delights;2 but whether one of
those delights will be the enjoyment of agreeable paramours created for them,
to complete the economy of the Mohammedan system, is what I have nowhere found
decided. One circumstance relating to these beatified females, conformable to
what he had asserted of the men, he acquainted his followers with in the
answer he returned to an old woman, who, desiring him to intercede with GOD
that she might be admitted into paradise, he told her that no old woman would
enter that place; which setting the poor woman a-crying, he explained himself
by saying that GOD would then make her young again.3
The sixth great point of faith, which the Mohammedans are taught by the
Korân to believe, is GOD'S absolute decree, and predestination both of good
and evil. For the orthodox doctrine is, that whether it be bad, proceedeth
entirely from the divine will, and is irrevocably fixed and recorded from all
eternity in the preserved table;4 GOD having secretly predetermined not only
the adverse and prosperous fortune of every person in this world, in the most
minute particulars, but also his faith or infidelity, his obedience or
disobedience, and con
3 Vide Eund. in not. ad Bobov. Lit. Turcar. p. 21. 4 Poc. ad
Port. Mos. P. 305. 5 Hornbek, Sum. Contr. p. 16. Grelot,
Voyage de Constant. p. 275. Ricaut's Present State of the Ottoman Empire, l.
2, c. 21.
6 See Kor. c. 3, p. 52, c. 4, p. 67; and also c. 13, 16, 40, 48, 57, &c.
Vide etiam Reland. de Rel. Moh. l. 2, § 18; and Hyde, in not. ad Bobov. de
Visit. ægr. p. 21. 1 See before, p. 77. 2 Vide Chardin,
Voy. tom. ii. p. 328, and Bayle, Dict. Hist. Art. Mahomet, Rem. Q.
3 See Kor. c. 56, and the notes there; and Gagnier. not. in Abulfeda
Vit. Moh p. 145.
4 See before, p. 50.
sequently his everlasting happiness or misery after death; which fate or
predestination it is not possible, by any foresight or wisdom, to avoid.
Of this doctrine Mohammed makes great use in his Korân for the advancement
of his designs; encouraging his followers to fight without fear, and even
desperately, for the propagation of their faith, by representing to them that
all their caution could not avert their inevitable destiny, or prolong their
lives for a moment;5 and deterring them from disobeying or rejecting him as an
impostor, by setting before them the danger they might thereby incur of being,
by the just judgment of GOD, abandoned to seduction, hardness of heart, and a
reprobate mind, as a punishment for their obstinacy.6
As this doctrine of absolute election and reprobation has been thought by
many of the Mohammedan divines to be derogatory to the goodness and justice of
GOD, and to make GOD the author of evil, several subtle distinctions have been
invented, and disputes raised, to explicate or soften it; and different sects
have been formed, according to their several opinions or methods of explaining
this point: some of them going so far as even to hold the direct contrary
position of absolute free will in man, as we shall see hereafter.1
Of the four fundamental points of religious practice required by the Korân,
the first is prayer, under which, as has been said, are also comprehended
those legal washings or purifications which are necessary preparations
thereto.
Of these purifications there are two degrees, one called Ghosl, being a
total immersion or bathing of the body in water; and the other called Wodû (by
the Persians, Abdest), which is the washing of their faces, hands, and feet,
after a certain manner. The first is required in some extraordinary cases
only, as after having lain with a woman, or been polluted by emission of seed,
or by approaching a dead body; women also being obliged to it after their
courses or childbirth. The latter is the ordinary ablution in common cases
and before prayer, and must necessarily be used by every person before he can
enter upon that duty.2 It is performed with certain formal ceremonies, which
have been described by some writers, but are much easier apprehended by seeing
them done than by the best description.
These purifications were perhaps borrowed by Mohammed of the Jews; at least
they agree in a great measure with those used by that nation,3 who in process
of time burdened the precepts of Moses in this point, with so many
traditionary ceremonies, that whole books have been written about them, and
who were so exact and superstitious therein, even in our Saviour's time, that
they are often reproved by him for it.4 But as it is certain that the pagan
Arabs used lustrations of this kind5 long before the time of Mohammed, as most
nations did, and still do in the east, where the warmth of the climate
requires a greater nicety and degree of cleanliness than these colder parts;
perhaps Mohammed only recalled his countrymen to a more strict observance of
those purifying rites, which had been probably neglected by them, or at least
performed in a careless and perfunctory manner.
5 Kor. c. 3, c. 4, &c. 6 Ibid. c. 4, c. 2, &c. passim.
1 Sect. VIII. 2 Kor. c. 4, and c. 5 Vide Reland. de Rel. Moh.
l. i., c. 8. 3 Poc. not in Port. Mosis, p. 356, &c. 4
Mark vii. 3, &c.
5 Vide Herodot. l. 3, c. 198.
The Mohammedans, however, will have it that they are as ancient as Abraham,1
who, they say, was enjoined by GOD to observe them, and was shown the manner
of making the ablution by the angel Gabriel, in the form of a beautiful
youth.2 Nay, some deduce the matter higher, and imagine that these ceremonies
were taught our first parents by the angels.3
That his followers might be the more punctual in this duty, Mohammed is
said to have declared, that "the practice of religion is founded on
cleanliness," which is the one-half of the faith, and the key of prayer,
without which it will not be heard by GOD.4 That these expressions may be the
better understood, al Ghazâli reckons four degrees of purification; of which
the first is, the cleansing of the body from all pollution, filth, and
excrements; the second, the cleansing of the members of the body from all
wickedness and unjust actions; the third, the cleansing of the heart from all
blamable inclinations and odious vices; and the fourth, the purging a man's
secret thoughts from all affections which may divert their attendance on GOD:
adding, that the body is but as the outward shell in respect to the heart,
which is as the kernel. And for this reason he highly complains of those who
are superstitiously solicitous in exterior purifications, avoiding those
persons as unclean who are not so scrupulously nice as themselves, and at the
same time have their minds lying waste, and overrun with pride, ignorance, and
hypocrisy.5 Whence it plainly appears with how little foundation the
Mohammedans have been charged, by some writers,6 with teaching or imagining
that these formal washings alone cleanse them for their sins.7
Lest so necessary a preparation to their devotions should be omitted,
either where water cannot be had, or when it may be of prejudice to a person's
health, they are allowed in such cases to make use of fine sand or dust in
lieu of it;8 and then they perform this duty by clapping their open hands on
the sand, and passing them over the parts, in the same manner as if they were
dipped in water. But for this expedient Mohammed was not so much indebted to
his own cunning,1 as to the example of the Jews, or perhaps that of the
Persian Magi, almost as scrupulous as the Jews themselves in their
lustrations, who both of them prescribe the same method in cases of
necessity;2 and there is a famous instance, in ecclesiastical history, of sand
being used, for the same reason, instead of water, in the administration of
the Christian sacrament of baptism, many years before Mohammed's time.3
Neither are the Mohammedans contented with bare washing, but
1 Al Jannâbi in Vita Abrah. Vide Poc. Spec. p. 303.
2 Herewith agrees the spurious Gospel of St. Barnabas, the Spanish
translation of which (cap. 29) has these words: Dixo Abraham, Que harè yo para
servir al Dios de los sanctos y prophetas? Respondiò el angel, Ve e aquella
fuente y lavate, porque Dios quiere hablar contigo. Dixo Abraham, Come tengo
de lavarme? Luego el angel se le appareciò como uno bello mancebo, y se lavò
en la fuente, y le dixo, Abraham, haz como yo. Y Abraham se lavò, &c.
3 Al Kessâï. Vide Reland. de Rel. Mohamm. p. 81. 4 Al Ghazâli, Ebn
al Athîr. 5 Vide Poc. Spec. p. 302, &c.
6 Barthol. Edessen, Confut. Hagaren. p. 360. G. Sionita and J. Hesronita, in
Tract. de Urb. and Morib. Orient. ad Calcem Geogr. Nubiens. c. 15. Du Ryer,
dans le Sommaire de la Rel. des Turcs, mis à la tête de sa version de l'Alcor.
St. Olon, Descr. du Royaume de Maroc, c. 2. Hyde, in not. ad Bobov. de Prec.
Moh. p. I; Smith, de Morib. et Instit. Turcar. Ep. I, p. 32. 7
Vide Reland. de Rel. Moh. l. 2, c. II. 8 Kor. c. 3, p. 59 and 5, p.
74. 1 Vide Smith, ubi sup. 2 Gemar. Berachoth. c 2. Vide Poc.
not. ad Port Mosis, p. 380. Sadder, porta 84. 3 Cedren. p. 250.
think themselves obliged to several other necessary points of cleanliness,
which they make also parts of this duty; such as combing the hair, cutting the
beard, paring the nails, pulling out the hairs of their armpits, shaving their
private parts, and circumcision;4 of which last I will add a word or two, lest
I should not find a more proper place.
Circumcision, though it be not so much as once mentioned in the Korân, is
yet held by the Mohammedans to be an ancient divine institution, confirmed by
the religion of Islâm, and though not so absolutely necessary but that it may
be dispensed with in some cases,5 yet highly proper and expedient. The Arabs
used this rite for many ages before Mohammed, having probably learned it from
Ismael, though not only his descendants, but the Hamyarites,6 and other
tribes, practised the same. The Ismaelites, we are told,7 used to circumcise
their children, not on the eighth day, as is the custom of the Jews, but when
about twelve or thirteen years old, at which age their father underwent that
operation:8 and the Mohammedans imitate them so far as not to circumcise
children before they be able, at least, distinctly to pronounce that
profession of their faith, "There is no GOD but GOD, Mohammed is the apostle
of GOD;"9 but pitch on what age they please for the purpose, between six and
sixteen or thereabouts.10 Though the Moslem doctors are generally of opinion,
conformably to the scripture, that this precept was originally given to
Abraham, yet some have imagined that Adam was taught it by the angel Gabriel,
to satisfy an oath he had made to cut off that flesh which, after his fall,
had rebelled against his spirit; whence an odd argument has been drawn for the
universal obligation of circumcision.1 Though I cannot say the Jews led the
Mohammedans the way here, yet they seem so unwilling to believe any of the
principal patriarchs or prophets before Abraham were really uncircumcised,
that they pretend several of them, as well as some holy men who lived after
his time, were born ready circumcised, or without a foreskin, and that Adam,
in particular, was so created;2 whence the Mohammedans affirm the same thing
of their prophet.3
Prayer was by Mohammed thought so necessary a duty, that he used to call it
the pillar of religion and the key of paradise; and when the Thakifites, who
dwelt at Tâyef, sending in the ninth year of the Hejra to make their
submission to that prophet, after the keeping of their favourite idol had been
denied them,4 begged, at least, that they might be dispensed with as to their
saying of the appointed prayers, he answered, "That there could be no good in
that religion wherein was no prayer."5
4 Vide Poc. Spec. p. 303. 5 Vide Bobov. de Circumcis. p. 22.
6 Philostorg. Hist. Eccl. l. 3.
7 Joseph. Ant. l. I, c. 23. 8 Gen. xvii. 25. 9 Vide Bobov. ubi
sup. and Poc. Spec. p. 319.
10 Vide Reland. de Rel. Moh. l. I, p. 75.
1 This is the substance of the following passage of the Gospel of Barnabas
(cap. 23), viz.,Entonces dixo Jesus; Adam el primer hombre aviendo comido por
eñgano del demonio la comida prohibida por Dios en el parayso, se le rebelò su
carne à su espiritu; por lo qual jurò diziendo, Por Dios que yo te quiero
cortar; y rompiendo una piedra tomò su carne para cortarla con el corte de la
piedra. Por loqual fue reprehendido del angel Gabriel, y el le dixo; Yo he
jurado por Dios que lo he de cortar, y mentiroso no lo serè jamas. Ala hora
el angel le enseño la superfluidad de su earne, y a quella cortò. De manera
que ansi como todo hombre toma carne de Adam, ansi esta obligado a complir
aquello que Adam con juramento prometiò. 2 Shalshel. hakkabala. Vide
Poc. Spec. p. 320; Gagnier not. in Abulfed. Vit. Moh. p. 2. 3 Vide Poc.
Spec. p. 304. 4 See before, p. 14. 5 Abulfed. Vit. Moh. p.
127
That so important a duty, therefore, might not be neglected, Mohammed
obliged his followers to pray five times every twenty-four hours, at certain
state times; viz., I. In the morning, before sunrise; 2. When noon is past,
and the sun begins to decline form the meridian; 3. In the afternoon, before
sunset; 4. In the evening, after sunset, and before day be shut in; and 5.
After the day is shut in, and before the first watch of the night.6 For this
institution he pretended to have received the divine command from the throne
of GOD himself, when he took his night journey to heaven; and the observing of
the stated times of prayer is frequently insisted on in the Korân, though they
be not particularly prescribed therein. Accordingly, at the aforesaid times,
of which public notice is given by the Muedhdhins, or Criers, from the
steeples of their mosques (for they use no bell), every conscientious Moslem
prepares himself for prayer, which he performs either in the mosque or any
other place, provided it be clean, after a prescribed form, and with a certain
number of phrases or ejaculations (which the more scrupulous count by a string
of beads) and using certain postures of worship; all which have been
particularly set down and described, though with some few mistakes, by other
writers,1 and ought not to be abridged, unless in some special cases; as on a
journey, on preparing for battle, &c.
For the regular performance of the duty of prayer among the Mohammedans,
besides the particulars above mentioned, it is also requisite that they turn
their faces, while they pray, towards the temple of Mecca;2 the quarter where
the same is situate being, for that reason, pointed out within their mosques
by a niche, which they call al Mehrâb, and without, by the situation of the
doors opening into the galleries of the steeples: there are also tables
calculated for the ready finding out their Kebla, or part towards which they
ought to pray, in places where they have no other direction.3
But what is principally to be regarded in the discharge of this duty, say
the Moslem doctors, is the inward disposition of the heart, which is the life
and spirit of prayer;4 the most punctual observance of the external rites and
ceremonies before mentioned being of little or no avail, if performed without
due attention, reverence, devotion, and hope:5 so that we must not think the
Mohammedans, or the considerate part of them at least, content themselves with
the mere opu. operatum, or imagine their whole religion to be placed therein.6
I had like to have omitted two things which in my mind deserve mention on
this head, and may, perhaps, be better defended than our contrary practice.
One is, that the Mohammedans never address themselves to GOD in sumptuous
apparel, though they are obliged to be decently clothed; but lay aside their
costly habits and pompous ornaments, if they wear any, when they approach the
divine presence, lest they should seem proud and arrogant.7 The other is,
that they admit not their women to pray with them in public; that sex being
6 Vide Ibid. p. 38, 39. 1 Vide Hotting. Hist. Eccles. tom. viii.
p. 470-529; Bobov. in Liturg. Turcic p. I, &c.; Grelot, Voyage de Constant. p.
253-264; Chardin, Voy. de Perse, tom. ii. p. 388, &c.; and Smith, de Moribus
ac Instit. Turcar. Ep. I, p. 33, &c.
2 Kor. c. 2, p. 16. See the notes there. 3 Vide Hyde, de Rel.
Vet. Pers. p. 8, 9, and 126. 4 Al Ghazâli.
5 Vide Poc. Spec. p. 305. 6 Vide Smith, ubi sup. p. 40.
7 Reland. de Rel. Moh. p. 96. See Kor. c.7. p. 107.
obliged to perform their devotions at home, or if they visit the mosques, it
must be at a time when the men are not there: for the Moslems are of opinion
that their presence inspires a different kind of devotion from that which is
requisite in a place dedicated to the worship of GOD.8
The greater part of the particulars comprised in the Mohammedan institution
of prayer, their prophet seems to have copied from others, and especially the
Jews; exceeding their institutions only in the number of daily prayer.1 The
Jews are directed to pray three times a day,2 in the morning, in the evening,
and within night; in imitation of Abraham,3 Isaac,4 and Jacob;5 and the
practice was as early, at least, as the time of Daniel.6 The several postures
used by the Mohammedans in their prayers are also the same with those
prescribed by the Jewish Rabbins, and particularly the most solemn act of
adoration, by prostrating themselves so as to touch the ground with their
forehead;7 notwithstanding, the latter pretend the practice of the former, in
this respect, to be a relic of their ancient manner of paying their devotions
to Baal-Peor.8 The Jews likewise constantly pray with their faces turned
towards the temple of Jerusalem,9 which has been their Kebla from the time it
was first dedicated by Solomon;10 for which reason Daniel, praying in Chaldea,
had the windows of his chamber open towards that city:11 and the same was the
Kebla of Mohammed and his followers for six or seven months,12 and till he
found himself obliged to change it for the Caaba. The Jews, moreover, are
obliged by the precepts of their religion to be careful that the place they
pray in, and the garments they have on when they perform their duty, be
clean:13 the men and women also among them pray apart (in which particular
they were imitated by the eastern Christians); and several other conformities
might be remarked between the Jewish public worship and that of the
Mohammedans.14
The next point of the Mohammedan religion is the giving of alms, which are
of two sorts, legal and voluntary. The legal alms are of indispensable
obligation, being commanded by the law, which directs and determines both the
portion which is to be given, and of what things it ought to be given; but the
voluntary alms are left to every one's liberty, to give more or less, as he
shall see fit. The former kind of alms some think to be properly called
Zacât, and the latter Sadakat;
8 A Moor, named Ahmed Ebn Abdalla, in a Latin epistle by him, written to
Maurice, Prince of Orange, and Emanuel, Prince of Portugal, containing a
censure of the Christian religion (a copy of which, once belonging to Mr.
Selden, who has thence transcribed a considerable passage in his treatise De
Synedriis vett. Ebræor. l. I, c. 12, is now in the Bodleian Library), finds
great fault with the unedifying manner in which mass is said among the Roman
Catholics, for this very reason, among others. His words are: Ubicunque
congregantur simul viri et fomino, ibi mens non est intenta et devota: nam
inter celebrandum missam et sacrificia, fomino et viri mutuis aspectibus,
signis, ac nutibus accendunt pravorum appetitum, et desideriorum suorum ignes:
et quando hoc non fieret, saltem humana fragilitas delectatur mutuo et
reciproco aspectu; et ita non potest esse mens quieta, attenta, et devota.
1 The Sabians, according to some, exceed the Mohammedans in this point,
praying seven times a day. See before, p. 11.
2 Gemar. Berachoth. 3 Gen. xix. 27. 4 Gen. xxiv. 63.
5 Gen. xxviii. II, &c.
6 Dan. vi. 10. 7 Vide Millium, de Mohammedismo ante Moham. p. 427,
&c., and Hyde, de Rel. Vet. Pers. p. 5, &c.
8 Maimonid. in Epist. ad Proselyt. Relig. Vide Poc. Spec. p. 306.
9 Gemar. Bava Bathra, and Berachoth.
10 I Kings viii. 29, &c. 11 Dan. vi. 10. 12 Some say
eighteen months. Vide Abulfed. Vit. Moh. p. 54.
13 Maimon. in Halachoth Tephilla, c.9, § 8, 9. Menura hammeor, fol. 28, 2.
14 Vide Millium, ubi supra, p. 424, et seq.
though this name be also frequently given to the legal alms. They are called
Zacât, either because they increase a man's store, by drawing down a blessing
thereon, and produce in his soul the virtue of liberality,1 or because they
purify the remaining part of one's substance from pollution, and the soul from
the filth of avarice;2 and Sadakat, because they are a proof of a man's
sincerity in the worship of GOD. Some writers have called the legal alms
tithes, but improperly, since in some cases they fall short, and in others
exceed that proportion.
The giving of alms is frequently commanded in the Korân, and often
recommended therein jointly with prayer; the former being held of great
efficacy in causing the latter to be heard of GOD: for which reason the Khalîf
Omar Ebn Abd'alaziz used to say, "that prayer and alms carries us half-way to
GOD, fasting brings us to the door of his palace, and alms procures us
admission."3 The Mohammedans, therefore, esteem almsdeeds to be highly
meritorious, and many of them have been illustrious for the exercise thereof.
Hasan, the son of Ali, and grandson of Mohammed, in particular is related to
have thrice in his life divided his substance equally between himself and the
poor, and twice to have given away all he had:4 and the generality are so
addicted to the doing of good, that they extend their charity even to brutes.5
Alms, according to the prescriptions of the Mohammedan law, are to be given
of five things-I. Of cattle, that is to say, of camels, kine, and sheep. 2.
Of money. 3. Of corn. 4. Of fruits, viz., dates and raisins. And 5. Of wares
sold. Of each of these a certain portion is to be given in alms, usually one
part in forty, or two and a half per cent of the value. But no alms are due
for them, unless they amount to a certain quantity or number; nor until a man
has been in possession of them eleven months, he not being obliged to give
alms thereout before the twelfth month is begun: nor are alms due for cattle
employed in tilling the ground, or in carrying of burdens. In some cases a
much larger portion than the before-mentioned is reckoned due for alms: thus
of what is gotten out of mines, or the sea, or by any art or profession over
and above what is sufficient for the reasonable support of a man's family, and
especially where there is a mixture or suspicion of unjust gain, a fifth part
ought to be given in alms. Moreover, at the end of the fast of Ramadân, every
Moslem is obliged to give in alms for himself and for every one of his family,
if he has any, a measure1 of wheat, barley, dates, raisins, rice, or other
provisions commonly eaten.2
The legal alms were at first collected by Mohammed himself, who employed
them as he thought fit, in the relief of his poor relations and followers, but
chiefly applied them to the maintenance of those who served in his wars, and
fought, as he termed it, in the way of GOD. His successors continued to do
the same, till, in the process of time, other taxes and tributes being imposed
for the support of the government,
1 Al Beidâwi. See Kor. c. 2, p. 29. 2 Idem. Compare this with
what our Saviour says (Luke xi. 41), "Give alms of such things as ye have; and
behold, all things are clean unto you." 3 D'Herbel. Bibl.
Orient. p. 5. 4 Ibid. p. 422. 5 Vide Busbeq. Epist. 3, p.
178. Smith, de Morib. Turc. Ep. I, p. 66, &c. Compare Eccles. xi. I. and
Prov. xii. 10.
1 This measure is a Saá, and contains about six or seven pounds weight.
2 Vide Reland. de Rel. Mahommed. lib. i., p. 99, &c. Chardin, Voy. de
Perse. tom. 2, p. 415, &c.
they seem to have been weary of acting as almoners to their subjects, and to
have left the paying them to their consciences.
In the foregoing rules concerning alms, we may observe also footsteps of
what the Jews taught and practised in respect thereto. Alms, which they also
call Sedaka, i.e., justice, or righteousness,3 are greatly recommended by
their Rabbins, and preferred even to sacrifices;4 as a duty, the frequent
exercise whereof will effectually free a man from hell fire,5 and merit
everlasting life:6 wherefore, besides the corners of the field, and the
gleanings of their harvest and vineyard, commanded to be left for the poor and
the stranger by the law of Moses,7 a certain portion of their corn and fruits
is directed to be set apart for their relief, which portion is called the
tithes of the poor.8 The Jews likewise were formerly very conspicuous for
their charity. Zaccheus gave the half of his goods to the poor;9 and we are
told that some gave their whole substance: so that their doctors, at length,
decreed that no man should give above a fifth part of his goods in alms.10
There were also persons publicly appointed in every synagogue to collect and
distribute the people's contributions.11
The third point of religious practice is fasting; a duty of so great
moment, that Mohammed used to say it was "the gate of religion," and that "the
odour of the mouth of him who fasteth is more grateful to GOD than that of
musk;" and al Ghazâli reckons fasting one-fourth part of the faith. According
to the Mohammedan divines, there are three degrees of fasting: I. The
restraining the belly and other parts of the body from satisfying their lusts;
2. The restraining the ears, eyes, tongue, hands, feet, and other members from
sin; and 3. The fasting of the heart from worldly cares, and refraining the
thoughts from everything besides GOD.1
The Mohammedans are obliged, by the express command of the Korân, to fast
the whole month of Ramadân, from the time the new moon first appears, till the
appearance of the next new moon; during which time they must abstain from
eating, drinking, and women, from daybreak till night,2 or sunset. And this
injunction they observe so strictly, that while they fast they suffer nothing
to enter their mouths, or other parts of their body, esteeming the fast broken
and null if they smell perfumes, take a clyster or injection, bathe, or even
purposely swallow their spittle; some being so cautious that they will not
open their mouths to speak, lest they should breathe the air too freely:3 the
fast is also deemed void if a man kiss or touch a woman, or if he vomit
designedly. But after sunset they are allowed to refresh themselves, and to
eat and drink, and enjoy the company of their wives till daybreak;4
3 Hence alms are in the New Testament termed [Greek text]. Matth. vi. I
(Ed. Steph.), and 2 Cor. ix. 10. 4 Gemar. in Bava Bathra.
5 Ibid. in Gittin. 6 Ibid. in Rosh hashana. 7
Levit. xix. 9, 10; Deut. xxiv. 19, &c. 8 Vide Gemar. Hierosol. in
Peah, and Maimon. in Halachoth matanoth Aniyyim. c.6. Confer Pirke Avoth, v.
9.
9 Luke xix. 8. 10 Vide Reland. Ant. Sacr. Vet. Hebr. p. 402.
11 Vide Ibid. p. 138.
1 Al Ghazâli, Al Mostatraf. 2 Kor. c. 2, p. 19, 20. 3 Hence we
read that the Virgin Mary, to avoid answering the reflections cast on her for
bringing home a child, was advised by the angel Gabriel to feign she had vowed
a fast, and therefore she ought not to speak. See Kor. c. 19.
4 The words of the Korân (cap. 2, p. 20) are: "Until ye can distinguish a
white thread from a black thread by the daybreak"-a form of speaking borrowed
by Mohammed from the Jews, who determine the time when they are to begin their
morning lesson, to be so soon as a man can discern blue form white, i.e., the
blue threads from the white threads in the fringes of their garments. But
this explication the commentators do not approve, pretending that by the white
though the more rigid begin the fast again at midnight.5 This fast is
extremely rigorous and mortifying when the month of Ramadân happens to fall in
summer, for the Arabian year being lunar,6 each month runs through all the
different seasons in the course of thirty-three years, the length and heat of
the days making the observance of it much more difficult and uneasy then than
in winter.
The reason given why the month of Ramadân was pitched on for this purpose
is, that on the month the Korân was sent down from heaven.1 Some pretend that
Abraham, Moses, and Jesus received their respective revelations in the same
month.2
From the fast of Ramadân none are excused, except only travellers and sick
persons (under which last denomination the doctors comprehend all whose health
would manifestly be injured by their keeping the fast; as women with child and
giving suck, ancient people, and young children); but then they are obliged,
as soon as the impediment is removed, to fast an equal number of other days:
and the breaking the fast is ordered to be expiated by giving alms to the
poor.3
Mohammed seems to have followed the guidance of the Jews in his ordinances
concerning fasting, no less than in the former particulars. That nation, when
they fast, abstain not only from eating and drinking, but from women, and from
anointing themselves,4 from daybreak until sunset, and the stars begin to
appear;5 spending the night in taking what refreshments they please.6 And
they allow women with child and giving suck, old persons, and young children
to be exempted from keeping most of the public fasts.7
Though my design here be briefly to treat of those points only which are of
indispensable obligation on a Moslem, and expressly required by the Korân,
without entering into their practice as to voluntary and supererogatory works;
yet to show how closely Mohammed's institutions follow the Jewish, I shall add
a word or two of the voluntary fasts of the Mohammedans. These are such as
have been recommended either by the example or approbation of their prophet;
and especially certain days of those months which they esteem sacred: there
being a tradition that he used to say, That a fast of one day in a sacred
month was better than a fast of thirty days in another month; and that the
fast of one day in Ramadân was more meritorious than a fast of thirty days in
a sacred month.8 Among the more commendable days is that of Ashûra, the tenth
of Moharram; which, though some writers tell us it was observed by the Arabs,
and particularly the tribe of Koreish, before Mohammed's time,9 yet, as others
assure us, that prophet borrowed both the name and the fast from the Jews; it
being with them the tenth of
thread and the black thread are to be understood the light and dark streaks of
the daybreak; and they say the passage was at first revealed without the words
"of the daybreak;" but Mohammed's followers, taking the expression in the
first sense, regulated their practice accordingly, and continued eating and
drinking till they could distinguish a white thread from a black thread, as
they lay before them-to prevent which for the future, the words "of the
daybreak" were added as explanatory of the former. Al Beidâwi. Vide Pocock.
not. in Carmen Tograi, p. 89, &c. Chardin, Voy. de Perse, tom. 2, p. 423.
5 Vide Chardin, ib. p. 421, &c. Reland. de Relig. Moh. p. 109, &c.
6 See hereafter, Sect. VI. 1 Kor. c. 2, p. 19. See also c.
97. 2 Al Beidâwi, ex Trad. Mohammedis. 3 See Kor. c. 2, p. 20.
4 Siphra, f. 252, 2. 5 Tosephoth ad Gemar. Yoma, f. 34. 6
Vide Gemar. Yoma, f. 40, and maimon. in Halachoth Tánioth, c. 5, § 5.
7 Vide Gemar. Tánith, f. 12, and Yoma, f. 83, and Es Hayim, Tánith, c.
I. 8 Al Ghazâli. 9 Al Bârezi in Comment. ad Orat. Ebn
Nobâtæ.
the seventh month, or Tisri, and the great day of expiation commanded to be
kept by the law of Moses.1 Al Kazwîni relates that when Mohammed came to
Medina, and found the Jews there fasted on the day of Ashûra, he asked them
the reason of it; and they told him it was because on that day Pharaoh and his
people were drowned, Moses and those who were with him escaping: whereupon he
said that he bore a nearer relation to Moses than they, and ordered his
followers to fast on that day. However, it seems afterwards he was not so
well pleased in having imitated the Jews herein; and therefore declared that,
if he lived another year, he would alter the day, and fast on the ninth,
abhorring so near an agreement with them.2
The pilgrimage to Mecca is so necessary a point of practice that, according
to a tradition of Mohammed, he who dies without performing it, may as well die
a Jew or a Christian;3 and the same is expressly commanded in the Korân.4
Before I speak of the time and manner of performing this pilgrimage, it may be
proper to give a short account of the temple of Mecca, the chief scene of the
Mohammedan worship; in doing which I need be the less prolix, because that
edifice has been already described by several writers,5 though they, following
different relations, have been led into some mistakes, and agree not with one
another in several particulars: nor, indeed, do the Arab authors agree in all
things, one great reason whereof is their speaking of different times.
The temple of Mecca stands in the midst of the city, and is honoured with
the title of Masjad al alharâm, i.e., the sacred or inviolable temple. What
is principally reverenced in this place, and gives sanctity to the whole, is a
square stone building, called the Caaba, as some fancy, from its height, which
surpasses that of the other buildings in Mecca,6 but more probably from its
quadrangular form, and Beit Allah, i.e., the house of GOD, being peculiarly
hallowed and set apart for his worship. The length of this edifice, from
north to south, is twenty-four cubits, its breadth from east to west twenty-
three cubits, and its height twenty-seven cubits: the door, which is on the
east side, stands about four cubits from the ground; the floor being level
with the bottom of the door.7 In the corner next this door is the black
stone, of which I shall take notice by-and-bye. On the north side of the
Caaba, within a semicircular enclosure fifty cubits long, lies the white
stone, said to be the sepulchre of Ismael, which receives the rain-water that
falls off the Caaba by a spout, formerly of wood,1 but now of gold. The Caaba
has a double roof, supported within by three octangular pillars of aloes wood;
between which, on a bar of iron, hang some silver lamps. The outside is
covered with rich black damask, adorned with an embroidered band of gold,
which is changed every year, and was formerly sent by the Khalîfs, afterwards
by the Soltâns of Egypt, and is now provided by the Turkish emperors. At a
small distance from the Caaba, on the east side, is the Station or Place of
Abraham, where is another stone
1 Levit. xvi. 29, and xxiii. 27. 2 Ebn al Athîr. Vide Poc.
Spec. p. 309. 3 Al Ghazâli.
4 Cap. 3, p. 42. See also c. 22, p. 252 and c. 2, p. 14, &c. 5
Chardin, Voy. de Perse, t. 2, p. 428, &c.; Bremond, Descrittioni dell' Eitto,
&c., l. r, c. 29; Pitts' Account of the Rel. &c. of the Mohammedans, p. 98,
&c.;and Boulainvilliers, Vie de Mahomed, p. 54, &c., which last author is the
most particular. 6 Ahmed Ebn Yusef. 7 Sharif al Edrisi, and
Kitab Masalec, apud Poc. Spec. p. 125, &c. 1 Sharif al Edrisi,
ibid.
much respected by the Mohammedans, of which something will be said hereafter.
The Caaba, at some distance, is surrounded but not entirely, by a circular
enclosure of pillars, joined towards the bottom by a low balustrade, and
towards the top by bars of silver. Just without this inner enclosure, on the
south, north, and west sides of the Caaba, are three buildings, which are the
oratories, or places where three of the orthodox sects assemble to perform
their devotions (the fourth sect, viz., that of al Shâfeï, making use of the
station of Abraham for that purpose), and towards the south-east stands the
edifice which covers the well Zemzem, the treasury, and cupola of al Abbas.2
All these buildings are enclosed, a considerable distance, by a magnificent
piazza, or square colonnade, like that of the Royal Exchange in London, but
much larger, covered with small domes or cupolas, from the four corners
whereof rise as many minârets or steeples, with double galleries, and adorned
with gilded spires and crescents, as are the cupolas which cover the piazza
and the other buildings. Between the pillars of both enclosures hang a great
number of lamps, which are constantly lighted at night. The first foundations
of this outward enclosure were laid by Omar, the second Khalîf, who built no
more than a low wall to prevent the court of the Caaba, which before lay open,
from being encroached on by private buildings; but the structure has been
since raised, by the liberality of many succeeding princes and great men, to
its present lustre.3
This is properly all that is called the temple, but the whole territory of
Mecca being also Harâm, or sacred, there is a third enclosure, distinguished
at certain distances by small turrets, some five, some seven, and others ten
miles distant from the city.1 Within this compass of ground it is not lawful
to attack an enemy, or even to hunt or fowl, or cut a branch from a tree:
which is the true reason why the pigeons at Mecca are reckoned sacred, and not
that they are supposed to be of the race of that imaginary pigeon which some
authors, who should have known better, would persuade us Mohammed made pass
for the Holy Ghost.2
The temple of Mecca was a place of worship, and in singular veneration with
the Arabs from great antiquity, and many centuries before Mohammed. Though it
was most probably dedicated at first to an idolatrous use,3 yet the
Mohammedans are generally persuaded that the Caaba is almost coeval with the
world: for they say that Adam, after his expulsion from paradise, begged of
GOD that he might erect a building like that he had seen there, called Beit al
Mámûr, or the frequented house, and al Dorâh, towards which he might direct
his prayers, and which he might compass, as the angels do the celestial one.
Whereupon GOD let down a representation of that house in curtains of light,4
and set it in Mecca, perpendicularly under its original,5 order-
2 Idem, ibid 3 Poc. Spec. p. 116. 1 Gol. not. in Alfrag.
p. 99. 2 Gab. Sionita, et Joh. Hesronita, de nonnullis Orient.
urbib. ad calc. Geogr. Nub. p. 21. Al Mogholtaï, in his Life of Mohammed,
says the pigeons of the temple of Mecca are of the breed of those which laid
their eggs at the mouth of the cave where the prophet and Abu Becr hid
themselves, when they fled from that city. See before, p. 39. 3 See
before, p. 13. 4 Some say that the Beit al Mámûr itself was the
Caaba of Adam, which, having been let down to him from heaven, was, at the
Flood, taken up again into heaven, and is there kept. Al Zamakh. in Kor. c.
2. 5 Al
ing the patriarch to turn towards it when he prayed, and to compass it by way
of devotion.6 After Adam's death, his son Seth built a house in the same form
of stones and clay, which being destroyed by the Deluge, was rebuilt by
Abraham and Ismael,7 at GOD'S command, in the place where the former had
stood, and after the same model, they being directed therein by revelation.8
After this edifice had undergone several reparations, it was, a few years
after the birth of Mohammed, rebuilt by the Koreish on the old foundation,1
and afterwards repaired by Abd'allah Ebn Zobeir, the Khalîf of Mecca, and at
length again rebuilt by al Hejâj Ebn Yûsof, in the seventy-fourth year of the
Hejra, with some alterations, in the form wherein it now remains.2 Some years
after, however, the Khalîf Harûn al Rashîd (or, as others write, his father al
Mohdi, or his grandfather al Mansûr) intended again to change what had been
altered by al Hejâj, and to reduce the Caaba to the old form in which it was
left by Abd'allah, but was dissuaded from meddling with it, lest so holy a
place should become the sport of princes, and being new modelled after every
one's fancy, should lose that reverence which was justly paid it.3 But
notwithstanding the antiquity and holiness of this building, they have a
prophecy, by tradition from Mohammed, that in the last times the Ethiopians
shall come and utterly demolish it, after which it will not be rebuilt again
for ever.4
Before we leave the temple of Mecca, two or three particulars deserve
further notice. One is the celebrated black stone, which is set in silver,
and fixed in the south-east corner of the Caaba, being that which looks
towards Basra, about two cubits and one-third, or, which is the same thing,
seven spans from the ground. This stone is exceedingly respected by the
Mohammedans, and is kissed by the pilgrims with great devotion, being called
by some the right hand of GOD on earth. They fable that it is one of the
precious stones of paradise, and fell down to the earth with Adam, and being
taken up again, or otherwise preserved at the Deluge, the angel Gabriel
afterwards brought it back to Abraham when he was building the Caaba. It was
at first whiter than milk, but grew black long since by the touch of a
menstruous woman, or, as others tell us, by the sins of mankind,5 or rather by
the touches and kisses of so many people, the superficies only being black,
and the inside still remaining white.6 When the Karmatians,7 among other
profanations by them offered to the temple of Mecca, took away this stone,
they could not be prevailed on, for love or money, to restore it, though those
of Mecca offered no less than five thousand pieces of gold for it.8 How-
Jûzi, ex. trad. Ebn Abbas. It has been observed that the primitive Christian
church held a parallel opinion as to the situation of the celestial Jerusalem
with respect to the terrestrial: for in the apocryphal book of the revelations
of St. Peter (cap. 27), after Jesus has mentioned unto Peter the creation of
the seven heavens-whence, by the way, it appears that this number of heavens
was not devised by Mohammed-and of the angels, begins the description of the
heavenly Jerusalem in these words: "We have created the upper Jerusalem above
the waters, which are above the third heaven, hanging directly over the lower
Jerusalem," &c. Vide Gagnier, not. ad Abulfed. Vit. Moh. p. 28.
6 Al Shahrestani. 7 Vide Kor. c. 2, p. 15. 8 Al
Jannâbi, in Vita Abraham. 1 Vide Abulfed. Vit. Moh. p. 13.
2 Idem, in Hist. Gen. al Jannâbi, &c. 3 Al Jannâbi. 4
Idem, Ahmed Ebn Yusef. Vide Poc. Spec. p. 115, &c. 5 Al Zamakh. &c.
in Kor. Ahmed Ebn Yusef. 6 Poc. Spec. p. 117, &c. 7
These Carmatians were a sect which arose in the year of the Hejra 278, and
whose opinions overturned the fundamental points of Mohammedism. See
D'Herbel. Bibl. Orient Art. Carmath. and hereafter § viii. 8 D'Herbel.
p. 40.
ever, after they had kept it twenty-two years, seeing they could not thereby
draw the pilgrims from Mecca, they sent it back of their own accord; at the
same time bantering its devotees by telling them it was not the true stone:
but, as it is said, it was proved to be no counterfeit by its peculiar quality
of swimming on water.1
Another thing observable in this temple is the stone in Abraham's place,
wherein they pretend to show his footsteps, telling us he stood on it when he
built the Caaba,2 and that it served him for a scaffold, rising and falling of
itself as he had occasion,3 though another tradition says he stood upon it
while the wife of his son Ismael, whom he paid a visit to, washed his head.4
It is now enclosed in an iron chest, out of which the pilgrims drink the water
of Zemzem,5 and are ordered to pray at it by the Korân.6 The officers of the
temple took care to hide this stone when the Karmatians took the other.7
The last thing I shall take notice of in the temple is the well Zemzem, on
the east side of the Caaba, and which is covered with a small building and
cupola. The Mohammedans are persuaded it is the very spring which gushed out
for the relief of Ismael, when Hagar his mother wandered with him in the
desert;8 and some pretend it was so named from her calling to him, when she
spied it, in the Egyptian tongue, Zem, zem, that is, "Stay, stay,"9 though it
seems rather to have had the name from the murmuring of its waters. The water
of this will is reckoned holy, and is highly reverenced, being not only drunk
with particular devotion by the pilgrims, but also sent in bottles, as a great
rarity, to most parts of the Mohammedan dominions. Abd'allah, surnamed al
Hâfedh, from his great memory, particularly as to the traditions of Mohammed,
gave out that he acquired that faculty by drinking large draughts of Zemzem
water,10 to which I really believe it as efficacious as that of Helicon to the
inspiring of a poet.
To this temple every Mohammedan, who has health and means sufficient11
ought once, at least, in his life to go on pilgrimage; nor are women excused
from the performance of this duty. The pilgrims meet at different places near
Mecca, according to the different parts from whence they come,12 during the
months of Shawâl and Dhu'lkaada, being obliged to be there by the beginning of
Dhu'lhajja, which month, as its name imports, is peculiarly set apart for the
celebration of this solemnity.
At the places above mentioned the pilgrims properly commence such; when the
men put on the Ihrâm, or sacred habit, which consists only of two woolen
wrappers, one wrapped about the middle to cover their privities, and the other
thrown over their shoulders, having their heads bare, and a kind of slippers
which cover neither the heel nor the instep, and so enter the sacred territory
in their way to Mecca. While they have this habit on they must neither hunt
nor fowl1 (though they are allowed to fish2), which precept is so punctually
observed, that they will not kill even a louse or a flea, if they find them on
their bodies: there are some noxious animals, however, which they have
permission to kill during the pilgrimage, as kites, ravens, scorpions, mice,
and dogs
1 Ahmed Ebn Yusef, Abulfeda. Vide Poc. Spec. p. 119. 2 Abulfed.
3 Vide Hyde, de Rel. Vet. Pers. p. 35. 4 Ahmed Ebn Yusef,
Safio'ddin. 5 Ahmed Ebn Yusef. 6 Cap. 2, p. 14.
7 Vide Poc. Spec. p. 120, &c. 8 Gen. xxi. 19. 9 G.
Sionit. et J. Hesr. de nonnull. urb. Orient. p. 19.
10 D'Herbel. p. 5. 11 See Kor. c. 3, p. 43, and the notes thereon.
12 Vide Bobov. de Peregr. Mecc. p. 12, &c. 1 Kor. c.
5, p. 85. 2 Ibid.
given to bite.3 During the pilgrimage it behoves a man to have a constant
guard over his words and actions, and to avoid all quarrelling or ill
language, and all converse with women and obscene discourse, and to apply his
whole intention to the good work he is engaged in.
The pilgrims, being arrived at Mecca, immediately visit the temple, and
then enter on the performance of the prescribed ceremonies, which consist
chiefly in going in procession round the Caaba, in running between the Mounts
Safâ and Merwâ, in making the station on Mount Arafat, and slaying the
victims, and shaving their heads in the valley of Mina. These ceremonies have
been so particularly described by others,4 that I may be excused if I but just
mention the most material circumstances thereof.
In compassing the Caaba, which they do seven times, beginning at the corner
where the black stone is fixed, they use a short, quick pace the three first
times they go round it, and a grave, ordinary pace, the four last; which, it
is said, was ordered by Mohammed, that his followers might show themselves
strong and active, to cut off the hopes of the infidels, who gave out that the
immoderate heats of Medina had rendered them weak.5 But the aforesaid quick
pace they are not obliged to use every time they perform this piece of
devotion, but only at some particular times.6 So often as they pass by the
black stone, they either kiss it, or touch it with their hand, and kiss that.
The running between Safâ and Merwâ1 is also performed seven times, partly
with a slow pace, and partly running:2 for they walk gravely till they come to
a place between two pillars; and there they run, and afterwards walk again;
sometimes looking back, and sometimes stopping, like one who has lost
something, to represent Hagar seeking water for her son:3 for the ceremony is
said to be as ancient as her time.4
On the ninth of Dhu'lhajja, after morning prayer, the pilgrims leave the
valley of Mina, whither they come the day before, and proceed in a tumultuous
and rushing manner to Mount Arafat,5 where they stay to perform their
devotions till sunset: then they go to Mozdalifa, an oratory between Arafat
and Mina, and there spend the night in prayer and reading the Korân. The next
morning, by daybreak, they visit al Mashér al harâm, or the sacred monument,6
and departing thence before sunrise, haste by Batn Mohasser to the valley of
Mina, where they throw seven stones7 at three marks, or pillars, in imitation
of Abraham, who, meeting the devil in that place, and being by him disturbed
in his devotions, or tempted to disobedience, when he was going to sacrifice
his son, was commanded by GOD to drive him away by throwing stones at him;8
though others pretend this rite to be as old as Adam, who also put the devil
to flight in the same place and by the same means.9
3 Al Beid. 4 Bobov. de Peregr. Mecc. p. II, &c. Chardin, Voy.
de Perse, t. 2, p. 440, &c. See also Pitts' Account of the Rel. &c. of the
Mohammedans, p. 92, &c.; Gagnier, Vie de Moh. t. 2, p. 258, &c.; Abulfed. Vit.
Moh. p. 130, &c.; and Reland. de Rel. Moh. p. 113, &c. 5 Ebn al
Athîr. 6 Vide Poc. Spec. p. 314. 1 See before, p. 16.
2 Al Ghazâli. 3 Reland. de Rel. Moh. p. 121. 4 Ebn al
Athîr. 5 See Kor. c. 2, p. 21.
6 See Ibid. M. Gagnier has been twice guilty of a mistake in confounding
this monument with the sacred enclosure of the Caaba. Vide Gagn. not. ad
Abulfed. Vit. Moh. p. 131, and Vie de Moh. tom. 2, p. 262. 7 Dr.
Pocock, from al Ghazâli, says seventy, at different times and places. Spec.
p. 315. 8 Al Ghazâli, Ahmed Ebn Yusef. 9 Ebn al
Athîr.
This ceremony being over, on the same day, the tenth of Dhu'lhajja, the
pilgrims slay their victims in the said valley of Mina; of which they and
their friends eat part, and the rest is given to the poor. These victims must
be either sheep, goats, kine, or camels; males, if of either of the two former
kinds, and females if of either of the latter, and of a fit age.10 The
sacrifices being over, they shave their heads and cut their nails, burying
them in the same place; after which the pilgrimage is looked on as
completed:11 though they again visit the Caaba, to take their leave of that
sacred building.
The above-mentioned ceremonies, by the confession of the Mohammedans
themselves, were almost all of them observed by the pagan Arabs many ages
before their prophet's appearance; and particularly the compassing of the
Caaba, the running between Safâ and Merwâ, and the throwing of the stones in
Mina; and were confirmed by Mohammed, with some alterations in such points as
seemed most exceptionable: thus, for example, he ordered that when they
compassed the Caaba they should be clothed;1 whereas, before his time, they
performed that piece of devotion naked, throwing off their clothes as a mark
that they had cast off their sins,2 or as signs of their disobedience towards
GOD.3
It is also acknowledged that the greater part of these rites are of no
intrinsic worth, neither affecting the soul, nor agreeing with natural reason,
but altogether arbitrary, and commanded merely to try the obedience of
mankind, without any further view; and are therefore to be complied with; not
that they are good in themselves, but because GOD has so appointed.4 Some,
however, have endeavoured to find out some reason for the arbitrary
injunctions of this kind; and one writer,5 supposing men ought to imitate the
heavenly bodies, not only in their purity, but in their circular motion, seems
to argue the procession round the Caaba to be therefore a rational practice.
Reland6 has observed that the Romans had something like this in their worship,
being ordered by Numa to use a circular motion in the adoration of the Gods,
either to represent the orbicular motion of the world, or the perfecting the
whole office of prayer to that GOD who is maker of the universe, or else in
allusion to the Egyptian wheels, which were hieroglyphics of the instability
of human fortune.7
The pilgrimage to Mecca, and the ceremonies prescribed to those who perform
it, are, perhaps, liable to greater exception than other of Mohammed's
institutions; not only as silly and ridiculous in themselves, but as relics of
idolatrous superstition.8 Yet whoever seriously considers how difficult it is
to make people submit to the abolishing of ancient customs, how unreasonable
soever, which they are fond of, especially where the interest of a
considerable party is also concerned,
10 Vide Reland. ubi sup. p. 117. 11 See Kor. c. 2, p. 21
1 Kor. c. 7, p. 106, 107.
2 Al Faïk, de Tempore Ignor. Arabum, apud Millium de Mohammedismo ante Moh.
p. 322. Compare Isa. lxiv. 6. 3 Jallal. al Beid. This notion comes very
near, if it be not the same with that of the Adamites. 4 Al
Ghazâli. Vide Abulfar. Hist. Dyn p. 171. 5 Abu Jáafar Ebn Tafail, in
Vita Hai Ebn Yokdhân, p. 151. See Mr. Ockley's English translation thereof,
p. 117.
6 De Rel. Mah. p. 123. 7 Plutarch. in Numa. 8 Maimonides (in
Epist. ad Prosel. Rel.) pretends that the worship of Mercury was performed by
throwing of stones, and that of Chemosh by making bare the head, and putting
on unsewn garments.
and that a man may with less danger change many things than one great one,9
must excuse Mohammed's yielding some points of less moment, to gain the
principal. The temple of Mecca was held in excessive veneration by all the
Arabs in general (if we except only the tribes of Tay, and Khatháam, and some
of the posterity of al Hareth Ebn Caab,1 who used not to go in pilgrimage
thereto), and especially by those of Mecca, who had a particular interest to
support that veneration; and as the most silly and insignificant things are
generally the objects of the greatest superstition, Mohammed found it much
easier to abolish idolatry itself, than to eradicate, the superstitious
bigotry with which they were addicted to that temple, and the rites performed
there; wherefore, after several fruitless trials to wean them therefrom,2 he
thought it best to compromise the matter, and rather than to frustrate his
whole design, to allow them to go on pilgrimage thither, and to direct their
prayers thereto; contenting himself with transferring the devotions there paid
from their idols to the true GOD, and changing such circumstances therein as
he judged might give scandal. And herein he followed the example of the most
famous legislators, who instituted not such laws as were absolutely the best
in themselves, but the best their people were capable of receiving: and we
find GOD himself had the same condescendence for the Jews, whose hardness of
heart he humoured in many things, giving them therefore statutes that were not
good, and judgments whereby they should not live.3
_______
SECTION V.
OF CERTAIN NEGATIVE PRECEPTS IN THE KORÂN.
HAVING in the preceeding section spoken of the fundamental points of the
Mohammedan religion, relating both to faith and to practice, I shall in this
and the two following discourses, speak in the same brief method of some other
precepts and institutions of the Korân which deserve peculiar notice, and
first of certain things which are thereby prohibited.
The drinking of wine, under which name all sorts of strong and inebriating
liquors are comprehended, is forbidden in the Korân in more places than one.1
Some, indeed, have imagined that excess therein is only forbidden, and that
the moderate use of wine is allowed by two passages in the same book:2 but the
more received opinion is, that to drink any strong liquors, either in a lesser
quantity, or in a greater, is absolutely unlawful; and though libertines3
indulge them-
9 According to the maxim, Tutius est multa mutare quàm unum magnum.
1 Al Shahrestani. 2 See Kor. c. 2, p. 16. 3
Ezek. xx. 25. Vide Spencer de Urim et l'hummim, c. 4 § 7. 1 See c. 2,
p. 23, and c. 5, p. 84. 2 Cap. 2, p. 23, and c. 16, p. 200. Vide
D'Herbel. Bibl. Orient. p. 696. 3 Vide Smith, de Morib. et Instit.
Turcar Ep. 2, p. 28, &c.
selves in a contrary practice, yet the more conscientious are so strict,
especially if they have performed the pilgrimage to Mecca,4 that they hold it
unlawful not only to taste wine, but to press grapes for the making of it, to
buy or to sell it, or even to maintain themselves with the money arising by
the sale of that liquor. The Persians, however, as well as the Turks, are
very fond of wine; and if one asks them how it comes to pass that they venture
to drink it, when it is so directly forbidden by their religion, they answer,
that it is with them as with the Christians, whose religion prohibits
drunkenness and whoredom as great sins, and who glory, notwithstanding, some
in debauching girls and married women, and others in drinking to excess.5
It has been a question whether coffee comes not under the above-mentioned
prohibition,6 because the fumes of it have some effect on the imagination.
This drink, which was first publicly used at Aden in Arabia Felix, about the
middle of the ninth century of the Hejra, and thence gradually introduced into
Mecca, Medina, Egypt, Syria, and other parts of the Levant, has been the
occasion of great disputes and disorders, having been sometimes publicly
condemned and forbidden, and again declared lawful and allowed.7 At present
the use of coffee is generally tolerated, if not granted, as is that of
tobacco, though the more religious make a scruple of taking the latter, not
only because it inebriates, but also out of respect to a traditional saying of
their prophet (which, if it could be made out to be his, would prove him a
prophet indeed), "That in the latter days there should be men who should bear
the name of Moslems, but should not be really such; and that they should smoke
a certain weed, which should be called TOBACCO." However, the eastern nations
are generally so addicted to both, that they say, "A dish of coffee and a pipe
of tobacco are a complete entertainment;" and the Persians have a proverb that
coffee without tobacco is meat without salt.1
Opium and beng (which latter is the leaves of hemp in pills or conserve)
are also by the rigid Mohammedans esteemed unlawful, though not mentioned in
the Korân, because they intoxicate and disturb the understanding as wine does,
and in a more extraordinary manner: yet these drugs are now commonly taken in
the east; but they who are addicted to them are generally looked upon as
debauchees.2
Several stories have been told as the occasion of Mohammed's prohibiting
the drinking of wine:3 but the true reasons are given in the Korân, viz.,
because the ill qualities of that liquor surpass its good ones, the common
effects thereof being quarrels and disturbances in company, and neglect, or at
least indecencies, in the performance of religious duties.4 For these reasons
it was that the priests were, by the Levitical law, forbidden to drink wine or
strong drink when they entered the tabernacle,5 and that the Nazarites6 and
Rechabites,7 and
4 Vide Chardin, ubi supra, p. 212. 5 Chardin, ubi sup. p. 344.
6 Abd'alkâder Mohammed al Ansâri has written a treatise
concerning Coffee, wherein he argues for its lawfulness. Vide D'Herbel. Art.
Cahvah.
7 Vide Le Traité Historique de l'Origine et du Progrès du Café, à la fin du
Voy. de l'Arabie heur. de la Roque. 1 Reland. Dissert. Miscell. t. 2,
p. 280. Vide Chardin, Voy. de Perse, t. 2, p. 14 and 66. 2 Vide
Chardin, ibid. p. 68, &c., and D'Herbel. p. 200. 3 Vide Prid. Life
of Mah. p. 82, &c.; Busbeq. Epist. 3, p. 255; and Maundeville's Travels, p. I,
c.
4 Kor. c. 2, p. 23, c. 5, p. 84, and c. 4, p. 59. See Prov. xxiii 29, &c.
5 Levit. x. 9. 6 Numb. vi. 2. 7 Jerem. xxxv. 5
&c.
many pious persons among the Jews and primitive Christians, wholly abstained
therefrom; nay, some of the latter went so far as to condemn the use of wine
as sinful.8 But Mohammed is said to have had a nearer example than any of
these, in the more devout persons of his own tribe.9
Gaming is prohibited by the Korân10 in the same passages, and for the same
reasons, as wine. The word al Meisar, which is there used, signifies a
particular manner of casting lots by arrows, much practised by the pagan
Arabs, and performed in the following manner. A young camel being bought and
killed, and divided into ten or twenty-eight parts, the persons who cast lots
for them, to the number of seven, met for that purpose; and eleven arrows were
provided, without heads or feathers, seven of which were marked, the first
with one notch, the second with two, and so on, and the other four had no mark
at all.11 These arrows were put promiscuously into a bag, and then drawn by
an indifferent person, who had another near him to receive them, and to see he
acted fairly; those to whom the marked arrows fell won shares in proportion to
their lot, and those to whom the blanks fell were entitled to no part of the
camel at all, but were obliged to pay the full price of it. The winners,
however, tasted not of the flesh, any more than the losers, but the whole was
distributed among the poor; and this they did out of pride and ostentation, it
being reckoned a shame for a man to stand out, and not venture his money on
such an occasion.1 This custom, therefore, though it was of some use to the
poor and diversion to the rich, was forbidden by Mohammed2 as the source of
great inconveniences, by occasioning quarrels and heart-burnings, which arose
from the winners insulting of those who lost.
Under the name of lots the commentators agree that all other games
whatsoever, which are subject to hazard or chance, are comprehended and
forbidden, as dice, cards, tables, &c. And they are reckoned so ill in
themselves, that the testimony of him who plays at them, is by the more rigid
judged to be of no validity in a court of justice. Chess is almost the only
game which the Mohammedan doctors allow to be lawful (though it has been a
doubt with some),3 because it depends wholly on skill and management, and not
at all on chance: but then it is allowed under certain restrictions, viz.,
that it be no hindrance to the regular performance of their devotions, and
that no money or other thing be played for or betted; which last the Turks and
Sonnites religiously observe, but the Persians and Mogols do not.4 But what
Mohammed is supposed chiefly to have dislike in the game of chess, was the
carved pieces, or men, with which the pagan Arabs played, being little figures
of men, elephants, horses, and dromedaries;5 and these are thought, by some
commentators, to be truly meant by the images prohibited in one of the
passages of the Korân6 quoted above.
8 This was the heresy of those called Encratitæ, and Aquarij. Khwâf, a
Magian heretic, also declared wine unlawful; but this was after Mohammed's
time. Hyde, de Rel. Vet. Pers. p. 300. 9 Vide Reland. de Rel. Moh.
p. 271. 10 Cap. 2, p. 23, c. 5, p. 84. 11 Some writers, as al
Zamakh. and al Shirâzi, mention but three blank arrows. 1
Auctores Nodhm al dorr, et Nothr al dorr, al Zamakh. al Firauzabâdi, al
Shirâzi in Orat. al Hariri, al Beidâwi, &c. Vide Poc. Spec. p. 324, &c.
2 Kor. c. 5, p. 73. 3 Vide Hyde, de Luchs Oriental. in
Prolog. ad Shahiludium.
4 Vide eund. ibid. 5 Vide eundem, ibid. and in Hist.
Shahiludij, p. 135, 6 Cap. 5, p. 84.
That the Arabs in Mohammed's time actually used such images for chess-men
appears from what is related, in the Sonna, of Ali, who passing accidentally
by some who were playing at chess, asked, "What images they were which they
were so intent upon?"7 for they were perfectly new to him, that game having
been but very lately introduced into Arabia, and not long before into Persia,
whither it was first brought from India in the reign of Khosrû Nûshirwân.8
Hence the Mohammedan doctors infer that the game was disapproved only for the
sake of the images: wherefore the Sonnites always play with plain pieces of
wood or ivory; but the Persians and Indians, who are not so scrupulous,
continue to make use of the carved ones.1
The Mohammedans comply with the prohibition of gaming much better than they
do with that of win; for though the common people among the Turks more
frequently, and the Persians more rarely, are addicted to play, yet the better
sort are seldom guilty of it.2
Gaming, at least to excess, has been forbidden in all well-ordered states.
Gaming-houses were reckoned scandalous places among the Greeks, and a gamester
is declared by Aristotle3 to be no better than a thief: the Roman senate made
very severe laws against playing at games of hazard,4 except only during the
Saturnalia; though the people played often at other times, notwithstanding the
prohibition: the civil law forbad all pernicious games;5 and though the laity
were, in some cases, permitted to play for money, provided they kept within
reasonable bounds, yet the clergy were forbidden to play at tables (which is a
game of hazard), or even to look on while others played.6 Accursius, indeed,
is of opinion they may play at chess, notwithstanding that law, because it is
a game not subject to chance,7 and being but newly invented in the time of
Justinian, was not then known in the western parts. However, the monks for
some time were not allowed even chess.8
As to the Jews, Mohammed's chief guides, they also highly disapprove
gaming: gamesters being severely censured in the Talmud, and their testimony
declared invalid.9
Another practice of the idolatrous Arabs forbidden also in one of the
above-mentioned passages,10 was that of divining by arrows. The arrows used
by them for this purpose were like those with which they cast lots, being
without heads or feathers, and were kept in the temple of some idol, in whose
presence they were consulted. Seven such arrows were kept at the temple of
Mecca;11 but generally in divination they made use of three only, on one of
which was written, "My LORD hath commanded me," on another, "My LORD hath
forbidden me," and the third was blank. If the first was drawn, they looked
on it as an approbation of the enterprise in question; if the second, they
made a contrary conclusion; but if the
7 Sokeiker al Dimishki, and Auctor libri al Mostatraf, apud Hyde, ubi sup.
p. 8. 8 Khondemir. apud eund. ibid. p. 41.
1 Vide Hyde, ubi sup. p. 9. 2 Vide eundem, in Proleg. and Chardin,
Voy. de Perse, t. 2, p. 46. 3 Lib. iv. ad Nicom. 4 Vide
Horat. l. 3. Carm. Od. 24. 5 ff. de Aleatoribus. Novell. Just. 123,
&c. Vide Hyde, ubi sup. in Hist. Aleæ, p. 119. 6 Authent.
interdicimus, c. de episcopis. 7 In com. ad Legem Præd.
8 Du Fresne, in Gloss. 9 Bava Mesia, 84, I; Rosh hashana and Sanhedr.
24, 2. Vide etiam Maimon. in Tract. Gezila. Among the modern civilians,
Mascardus thought common gamesters were not to be admitted as witnesses, being
infamous persons. Vide Hyde, ubi sup. in Proleg. et in Hist. Aleæ, § 3.
10 Kor. c. 5. 11 See before, p. 16.
third happened to be drawn, they mixed them and drew over again, till a
decisive answer was given by one of the others. These divining arrows were
generally consulted before anything of moment was undertaken; as when a man
was about to marry, or about to go a journey, or the like.1 This
superstitious practice of divining by arrows was used by the ancient Greeks,2
and other nations; and is particularly mentioned in scripture,3 where it is
said, that "the king of Babylon stood at the parting of the way, at the head
of the two ways, to use divination; he made his arrows bright" (or, according
to the version of the Vulgate, which seems preferable in this place, "he mixed
together, or shook the arrows"), "he consulted with images," &c.; the
commentary of St. Jerome on which passage wonderfully agrees with what we are
told of the aforesaid custom of the old Arabs: "He shall stand," says he, "in
the highway, and consult the oracle after the manner of his nation, that he
may cast arrows into a quiver, and mix them together, being written upon or
marked with the names of each people, that he may see whose arrow will come
forth, and which city he ought first to attack."4
A distinction of meats was so generally used by the eastern nations, that
it is no wonder that Mohammed made some regulations in that matter. The
Korân, therefore, prohibits the eating of blood, and swine's flesh, and
whatever dies of itself, or is slain in the name or in honour of any idol, or
is strangled, or killed by a blow, or a fall, or by any other beast.5 In
which particulars Mohammed seems chiefly to have imitated the Jews, by whose
law, as is well known, all those things are forbidden; but he allowed some
things to be eaten which Moses did not,6 as camels' flesh7 in particular. In
cases of necessity, however, where a man may be in danger of starving, he is
allowed by the Mohammedan law to eat any of the said prohibited kinds of
food;8 and the Jewish doctors grant the same liberty in the same case.9
Though the aversion to blood and what dies of itself may seem natural, yet
some of the pagan Arabs used to eat both: of their eating of the latter some
instances will be given hereafter; and as to the former, it is said they used
to pour blood, which they sometimes drew from a live camel, into a gut, and
then broiled it in the fire, or boiled it, and ate it:1 this food they called
Moswadd, from Aswad which signifies black; the same nearly resembling our
black puddings in name as well as composition.2 The eating of meat offered to
idols I take to be commonly practised by all idolaters, being looked on as a
sort of communion in their worship, and for that reason esteemed by
Christians, if not absolutely unlawful, yet as what may be the occasion of
great scandal:3 but the Arabs were particularly superstitious in this matter,
killing what they ate on stones erected on purpose around the Caaba, or near
their own houses, and calling, at the same time, on the name of some idol.4
Swine's flesh, indeed, the old Arabs seem not to have eaten; and their
prophet, in
1 Ebn al Athîr, al Zamakh. and al Beid. in Kor. c. 5. Al Mostatraf, &c.
Vide poc. Spec. p. 327, &c., and D'Herbel. Bibl. Orient. Art Acdâh.
2 Vide Potter, Antiq. of Greece, vol. i. p. 334. 3 Ezek.
xxi. 21. 4 Vide Poc. Spec. p. 329, &c. 5 Cap. 2, p. 18;
c. 5, p. 73; c. 6; and c. 16. 6 Lev. xi. 4. 7 See Kor. c. 3,
p. 37 and 42, and c. 6. 8 Kor. c. 5, p. 74, and in the other passages
last quoted. 9 Vide Maimon. in Halachoth Melachim. c. 8, § i., &c.
1 Nothr al dorr, al Firauz., al Zamakh., and al Beid.
2 Poc. Spec. p. 320.
3 Compare Acts xv. 29 with I Cor. viii. 4, &c. 4 See the fifth chapter
of the Kor. p. 73, and the notes there.
prohibiting the same, appears to have only confirmed the common aversion of
the nation. Foreign writers tell us that the Arabs wholly abstained from
swine's flesh,5 thinking it unlawful to feed thereon,6 and that very few, if
any, of those animals are found in their country, because it produces not
proper food for them;7 which has made one writer imagine that if a hog were
carried thither, it would immediately die.8
In the prohibition of usury9 I presume Mohammed also followed the Jews, who
are strictly forbidden by their law to exercise it among one another, though
they are so infamously guilty of it in their dealing with those of a different
religion: but I do not find the prophet of the Arabs has made any distinction
in this matter.
Several superstitious customs relating to cattle, which seem to have been
peculiar to the pagan Arabs, were also abolished by Mohammed. The Korân10
mentions four names by them given to certain camels or sheep, which for some
particular reasons were left at free liberty, and were not made use of as
other cattle of the same kind. These names are Bahîra, Sâïba, Wasîla, and
Hâmi: of each whereof in their order.
As to the first, it is said that when a she-camel, or a sheep, had borne
young ten times, they used to slit her ear, and turn her loose to feed at full
liberty; and when she died, her flesh was eaten by the men only, the women
being forbidden to eat thereof: and such a camel or sheep, from the slitting
of her ear, they called Bahîra. Or the Bahîra was a she-camel, which was
turned loose to feed, and whose fifth young one, if it proved a male, was
killed and eaten by men and women promiscuously; but if it proved a female,
had its ear slit, and was dismissed to free pasture, none being permitted to
make use of its flesh or milk, or to ride on it; though the women were allowed
to eat the flesh of it when it died: or it was the female young of the Sâïba,
which was used in the same manner as its dam; or else an ewe, which had yeaned
five times.1 These, however, are not all the opinions concerning the Bahîra:
for some suppose that name was given to a she-camel, which, after having
brought forth young five times, if the last was a male, had her ear slit, as a
mark thereof, and was let go loose to feed, none driving her from pasture or
water, nor using her for carriage;2 and others tell us, that when a camel had
newly brought forth, they used to slit the ear of her young one, saying, "O
GOD, if it live, it shall be for our use, but if it die, it shall be deemed
rightly slain;" and when it died, they ate it.3
Sâïba signifies a she-camel turned loose to go where she will. And this
was done on various accounts: as when she had brought forth females ten times
together; or in satisfaction of a vow; or when a man had recovered from
sickness, or returned safe from a journey, or his camel had escaped some
signal danger either in battle or otherwise. A camel so turned loose was
declared to be Sâïba, and, as a mark of it, one of the vertebræ or bones was
taken out of her back, after which none might drive her from pasture or water,
or ride on her.4 Some say that the Sâïba, when she had ten times together
brought forth females, was suffered to go at liberty, none being allowed to
ride on her, and
5 Solin. de Arab. c. 33. 6 Hieronym. in Jovin. l. 2, c. 6.
7 Idem, ibid.
8 Solinus, ubi supra. 9 Kor. c. 2, p. 33, 34. 10 Cap. 5,
p. 86. 1 Al Zamakh., al Beidâwi, al Mostatraf. 3 Ebn al
Athîr. 4 Al Firauzab., al Zamakh.
that her milk was not to be drank by any but her young one, or a guest, till
she died; and then her flesh was eaten by men as well as women, and her last
female young one had her ear slit, and was called Bahîra, and turned loose as
her dam had been.5
This appellation, however, was not so strictly proper to female camels, but
that it was given to the male when his young one had begotten another young
one:6 nay, a servant set at liberty and dismissed by his master, was also
called Sâïba;7 and some are of opinion that the word denotes an animal which
the Arabs used to turn loose in honour of their idols, allowing none to make
uses of them, thereafter, except women only.1
Wasîla is, by one author,2 explained to signify a she-camel which had
brought forth ten times, or an ewe which had yeaned seven times, and every
time twin; and if the seventh time she brought forth a male and a female, they
said, "Wosilat akhâha," i.e., "She is joined," or, "was brought forth with her
brother," after which none might drink the dam's milk, except men only; and
she was used as the Sâïba. Or Wasîla was particularly meant of sheep; as when
an ewe brought forth a female, they took it to themselves, but when she
brought forth a male, they consecrated it to their gods, but if both a male
and a female, they said, "She is joined to her brother," and did not sacrifice
that male to their gods: or Wasîla was an ewe which brought forth first a
male, and then a female, on which account, or because she followed her
brother, the male was not killed; but if she brought forth a male only, they
said, "Let this be an offering to our gods."3 Another4 writes, that if an ewe
brought forth twins seven times together, and the eighth time a male, they
sacrificed that male to their gods; but if the eighth time she brought both a
male and a female, they used to say, "She is joined to her brother," and for
the female's sake they spared the male, and permitted not the dam's milk to be
drunk by women. A third writer tell us, that Wasîla was an ewe, which having
yeaned seven times, if that which she brought forth the seventh time was a
male, they sacrificed it, but if a female, it was suffered to go loose, and
was made use of by women only; and if the seventh time she brought forth both
a male and a female, they held them both to be sacred, so that men only were
allowed to make any use of them, or to drink the milk of the female: and a
fourth5 describes it to be an ewe which brought forth ten females at five
births one after another, i.e., every time twins, and whatever she brought
forth afterwards was allowed to men, and not to women, &c.
Hâmi was a male camel used for a stallion, which, if the females had
conceived ten times by him, was afterwards freed from labour, and let go
loose, none driving him from pasture or from water; nor was any allowed to
receive the least benefit from him, not even to shear his hair.6
These things were observed by the old Arabs in honour of their false gods,1
and as part of the worship which they paid them, and were ascribed to the
divine institution; but are all condemned in the Korân, and declared to be
impious superstitions.2
5 Al Jawhari, Ebn al Athîr. 6 Al Firauz. 7 Idem, al
Jawhari, &c. 1 Nothr al dorr and Nodhm al dorr. 2 Al
Firauz. 3 Idem, al Zamakh. 4 Al Jawhari. 5 Al
Motarrezi.
6 Al Firauz., al Jawhari. 1 Jallal. in Kor. 2 Kor. c.
5, p. 86, and c. 6. Vide Poc. Spec. p. 330-334.
The law of Mohammed also put a stop to the inhuman custom which had been long
practised by the Pagan Arabs, of burying their daughters alive, lest they
should be reduced to poverty by providing for them, or else to avoid the
displeasure and the disgrace which would follow, if they should happen to be
made captives, or to become scandalous by their behaviour;3 the birth of a
daughter being, for these reasons, reckoned a great misfortune,4 and the death
of one as a great happiness.5 The manner of their doing this is differently
related: some say that when an Arab had a daughter born, if he intended to
bring her up, he sent her, clothed in a garment of wool or hair, to keep
camels or sheep in the desert; but if he designed to put her to death, he let
her live till she became six years old, and then said to her mother, "Perfume
her, and adorn her, that I may carry her to her mothers;" which being done,
the father led her to a well or pit dug for that purpose, and having bid her
to look down into it, pushed her in headlong, as he stood behind her, and then
filling up the pit, levelled it with the rest of the ground; but others say,
that when a woman was ready to fall in labour, they dug a pit, on the brink
whereof she was to be delivered, and if the child happened to be a daughter,
they threw it into the pit, but if a son, they saved it alive.6 This custom,
though not observed by all the Arabs in general, was yet very common among
several of their tribes, and particularly those of Koreish and Kendah; the
former using to bury their daughters alive in Mount Abu Dalâma, near Mecca.7
In the time of ignorance, while they used this method to get rid of their
daughters, Sásaá, grandfather to the celebrated poet al Farazdak, frequently
redeemed female children from death, giving for every one two she-camels big
with young, and a he-camel; and hereto al Farazdak alluded when, vaunting
himself before one of the Khalîfs of the family of Omeyya, he said, "I am the
son of the giver of life to the dead;" for which expression being censured, he
excused himself by alleging the following words of the Korân,8 "He who saveth
a soul alive, shall be as if he had saved the lives of all mankind."1 The
Arabs, in thus murdering of their children, were far from being singular; the
practice of exposing infants and putting them to death being so common among
the ancients, that it is remarked as a thing very extraordinary in the
Egyptians, that they brought up all their children;2 and by the laws of
Lycurgus3 no child was allowed to be brought up without the approbation of
public officers. At this day, it is said, in China, the poorer sort of people
frequently put their children, the females especially, to death with
impunity.4
This wicked practice is condemned by the Korân in several passages;5 one of
which, as some commentators6 judge, may also condemn
3 Al Beidâwi, al Zamakh., al Mostatraf. 4 See Kor. c. 16.
5 Al Meidâni. 6 Al Zamakh.
7 Al Mostatraf. 8 Cap. 5, p. 77. 1 Al Mostatraf. Vide Ebn
Khalekân, in Vita al Farazdak, and Poc Spec. p. 334. 2 Strabo, l. 17.
Vide Diodor. Sic. l. I, c. 80. 3 Vide Plutarch, in Lycurgo.
4 Vide Pufendorf, de Jure Nat. et Gent. l. 6, c. 7, § 6. The Grecians
also treated daughters especially in this manner-whence that saying of
Posidippus:
[Greek text],-i.e.,
"A man, tho' poor, will not expose his son;
But if he's rich, will scarce preserve his daughter."-
See Potter's Antiq. of Greece, vol. ii. p. 333. 5 Cap. 6, p. 101, 103;
c. 16; and c. 17. See also chap. 81.
6 Al Zamakh., al Beid.
another custom of the Arabians, altogether as wicked, and as common among
other nations of old, viz., the sacrificing of their children to their idols;
as was frequently done, in particular, in satisfaction of a vow they used to
make, that if they had a certain number of sons born, they would offer one of
them in sacrifice.
Several other superstitious customs were likewise abrogated by Mohammed,
but the same being of less moment, and not particularly mentioned in the
Korân, or having been occasionally taken notice of elsewhere, I shall say
nothing of them in this place.
______
SECTION VI.
OF THE INSTITUTIONS OF THE KORAN IN CIVIL AFFAIRS.
THE Mohammedan civil law is founded on the precepts and determinations of the
Korân, as the civil laws of the Jews were on those of the Pentateuch; yet
being variously interpreted, according to the different decisions of their
civilians, and especially of their four great doctors, Abu Hanîfa, Malec, al
Shâfeï, and Ebn Hanbal,7 to treat thereof fully and distinctly in the manner
the curiosity and usefulness of the subject deserves, would require a large
volume; wherefore the most that can be expected here, is a summary view of the
principal institutions, without minutely entering into a detail of
particulars. We shall begin with those relating to marriage and divorce.
That polygamy, for the moral lawfulness of which the Mohammedan doctors
advance several arguments,1 is allowed by the Korân, every one knows, though
few are acquainted with the limitations with which it is allowed. Several
learned men have fallen into the vulgar mistake that Mahommed granted to his
followers an unbounded plurality; some pretending that a man may have as many
wives,2 and others as many concubines,3 as he can maintain: whereas, according
to the express words of the Korân,4 no man can have more than four, whether
wives or concubines;5 and if a man apprehend any inconvenience from even that
number of ingenuous wives, it is added, as an advice (which is generally
followed by the middling and inferior people),6 that he marry one only, or, if
he cannot be contented with one, that he take up with his she-slaves, not
exceeding, however, the limited number;7 and this
7 See Sect. VIII. 1 See before, Sect. II., p. 31. 2
Nic.Cusanus, in Cribrat. Alcor. l. 2, c. 19. Olearius, in Itinerar. P. Greg.
Thoslosanus, in Synt. Juris, l. 9, c. 2, § 22. Septemcastrensis (de Morib.
Turc. p. 24) says the Mohammedans may have twelve lawful wives, and no more.
Ricaut falsely asserts the restraint of the number of their wives to be no
precept of their religion, but a rule superinduced on a politic consideration.
Pres. State of the Ottoman Empire, bk. iii, c. 21.
3 Marracc. in Prodr. ad Refut. Alcor. part iv. p. 52 and 71. Prideaux, Life
of Mah. p. 114. Chardin, Voy. de Perse, t. i. p. 166. Du Ryer, Sommaire de
la Rel. des Turcs, mis à la tête de sa version de l'Alcor. Ricaut, ubi supra.
Pufendorf, de Jure Nat. et Gent. l. 6, c. I, § 18. 4 Cap. 4, p. 53.
5 Vide Gagnier, in Notis and Abulfedæ Vit. Moh. p. 150 Reland. de Rel.
Moh. p. 243, &c., and Selden, Ux. Hebr. l. r, c. 9. 6 Vide Reland ubi
sup. p. 244. 7 Kor. c. 4, p. 53.
is certainly the utmost Mohammed allowed his followers: nor can we urge as an
argument against so plain a precept, the corrupt manners of his followers,
many of whom, especially men of quality and fortune, indulge themselves in
criminal excesses;8 nor yet the example of the prophet himself, who had
peculiar privileges in this and other points, as will be observed hereafter.
In making the above-mentioned limitation, Mohammed was directed by the
decision of the Jewish doctors, who, by way of counsel, limit the number of
wives to four,9 though their law confines them not to any certain number.10
Divorce is also well known to be allowed by the Mohammedan law, as it was
by the Mosaic, with this difference only, that, according to the latter, a man
could not take again a woman whom he had divorced, and who had been married or
betrothed to another;1 whereas Mohammed, to prevent his followers from
divorcing their wives on every light occasion, or out of an inconstant humour,
ordained that, if a man divorced his wife the third time (for he might divorce
her twice without being obliged to part with her, if he repented of what he
had done), it should not be lawful for him to take her again until she had
been first married and bedded by another, and divorced by such second
husband.2 And this precaution has had so good an effect that the Mohammedans
are seldom known to proceed to the extremity of divorce, notwithstanding the
liberty given them, it being reckoned a great disgrace so to do; and there are
but few, besides those who have little or no sense of honour, that will take a
wife again on the condition enjoined.3 It must be observed that, though a man
is allowed by the Mohammedan, as by the Jewish law,4 to repudiate his wife
even on the slightest disgust, yet the women are not allowed to separate
themselves from their husbands, unless it be for ill-usage, want of proper
maintenance, neglect of conjugal duty, impotency, or some cause of equal
import; but then she generally loses her dowry,5 which she does not if
divorced by her husband, unless she has been guilty of impudicity or notorious
disobedience.6
When a woman is divorced she is obliged, by the direction of the Korân, to
wait till she hath had her courses thrice, or, if there be a doubt whether she
be subject to them or not, by reason of her age, three months, before she
marry another; after which time expired, in case she be found not with child,
she is at full liberty to dispose of herself as she pleases; but if she prove
with child, she must wait till she be delivered; and during her whole term of
waiting she may continue in the husband's house, and is to be maintained at
his expense, it being forbidden to turn the woman out before the expiration of
the term, unless she be guilty of dishonesty.7 Where a man divorces a woman
8 Sir J. Maundeville (who, excepting a few silly stories he tells from
hearsay, deserves more credit than some travellers of better reputation),
speaking of the Alcoran, observes, among several other truths, that Mahomet
therein commanded a man should have two wives, or three, or four; though the
Mahometans then took nine wives, and lemans as many as they might sustain.
Maundev. Travels, p. 164. 9 Maimon. in Halachoth Ishoth. c. 14.
10 Idem, ibid. Vide Selden, Uxor. Hebr. l. r, c. 9.
1 Deut. xxiv. 3-4. Jerem. iii. I. Vide Selden, ubi sup. l. r. c. II.
2 Kor. c. 2, p. 24. 3 Vide Selden, ubi sup. l. 3, c. 21, and
Ricaut's State of the Ottom. Empire, bk. ii. c. 21. 4 Deut. xxiv I.
Leo Modena, Hist. de gli Riti hebr. part i. c. 6. Vide Selden, ubi sup.
5 Vide Busbeq. Ep. 3, p. 184; Smith, de Morib. ac Instit. Turcar. Ep.
2, p. 52; and Chardin, Voy. de Perse, t. I, p. 169. 6 Kor. c. 4, p.
55. 7 Kor. c. 2, p. 24, and c. 65.
before consummation, she is not obliged to wait any particular time,8 nor is
he obliged to give her more than one-half of her dower.9 If the divorced
woman have a young child, she is to suckle it till it be two years old; the
father, in the meantime, maintaining her in all respects: a widow is also
obliged to do the same, and to wait four months and ten days before she marry
again.1
These rules ar also copied form those of the Jews, according to whom a
divorced woman, or a widow, cannot marry another man, till ninety days be
past, after the divorce or death of the husband:2 and she who gives suck is to
be maintained for two years, to be computed from the birth of the child;
within which time she must not marry, unless the child die, or her milk be
dried up.3
Whoredom, in single women as well as married, was, in the beginning
Mohammedism, very severely punished; such being ordered to be shut up in
prison till they died: but afterwards it was ordained by the Sonna, that an
adulteress should be stoned,4 and an unmarried woman guilty of fornication
scourged with a hundred stripes, and banished for a year.5 A she-slave, if
convicted of adultery, is to suffer but half the punishment of a free woman,6
viz., fifty stripes, and banishment for six months; but is not to be put to
death. To convict a woman of adultery, so as to make it capital, four
witnesses are expressly required,7 and those, as the commentators say, ought
to be men: and if a man falsely accuse a woman of reputation of whoredom of
any kind, and is not able to support the charge by that number of witnesses,
he is to receive fourscore stripes, and his testimony is to be held invalid
for the future.8 Fornication, in either sex, is by the sentence of the Korân
to be punished with a hundred stripes.9
If a man accuse his wife of infidelity, and is not able to prove it by
sufficient evidence, and will swear four times that it is true, and the fifth
time imprecate GOD'S vengeance on him if it be false, she is to be looked on
as convicted, unless she will take the like oaths, and make the like
imprecation, in testimony of her innocency; which is she do, she is free from
punishment, though the marriage ought to be dissolved.10
In most of the last-mentioned particulars the decisions of the Korân also
agree with those of the Jews. By the law of Moses, adultery, whether in a
married women or a virgin betrothed, was punished with death; and the man who
debauched them was to suffer the same punishment.1 The penalty of simple
fornication was scourging, the
8 Ibid. c. 33. 9 Ibid. c. 2, p. 25. 1 Ibid. c. 2, p.
25, and c. 65. 2 Mishna, tit. Yabimoth, c. 4. Gemar. Babyl. ad
eund. tit. Maimon. in Halach. Girushin, Shylhan Aruch, part iii. 3 Mishna,
and Gemara, and Maimon. ubi supra. Gem. Babyl. ad tit. Cetuboth, c. 5, and
Jos. Karo, in Shylhân Aruch, c. 50, § 2. Vide Selden, Ux. Hebr. l. 2, c. II,
and l. 3, c. 10, in fin.
4 And the adulterer also, according to a passage once extant in the Korân,
and still in force, as some suppose. See the notes to Kor. c. 3, p. 34, and
the Prel. Disc. p. 52. 5 Kor. c. 4, p. 55. See the notes there.
6 Ibid. p. 57.
7 Ibid. p. 55. 8 Ibid. c. 24. 9 Ibid. This law relates
not to married people, as Selden supposes; Ux. Heb. l. 3, c. 12. 10
Ibid. p. 288. See the notes there.
1 Levit. xx. 10; Deut. xxii. 22. The kind of death to be inflicted on
adulterers, in common cases being not expressed, the Talmudists generally
suppose it to be strangling, which they think is designed wherever the phrase
"shall be put to death," or "shall die the death," is used, as they imagine
stoning is by the expression, "his blood shall be upon him;" and hence it has
been concluded by some that the woman taken in adultery mentioned in the
Gospel (John viii.) was a betrothed maiden, because such a one and her
accomplice were plainly ordered to be stoned (Deut. xxii. 23, 24). But the
ancients seem to have been of a different opinion,
general punishment in cases where none is particularly appointed: and a
betrothed bondmaid, if convicted of adultery, underwent the same punishment,
being exempted from death, because she was not free.2 By the same law no
person was to be put to death on the oath of one witness:3 and a man who
slandered his wife was also to be chastised, that is scourged, and fined one
hundred shekels of silver.4 The method of trying a woman suspected of
adultery where evidence was wanting, by forcing her to drink the bitter water
of jealousy,5 though disused by the Jews long before the time of Mohammed,6
yet, by reason of the oath of cursing with which the woman was charged, and to
which she was obliged to say "Amen," bears great resemblance to the expedient
devised by that prophet on the like occasion.
The institutions of Mohammed relating to the pollution of women during
their courses,7 the taking of slaves to wife,8 and the prohibiting of marriage
within certain degrees,9 have likewise no small affinity with the institutions
of Moses;10 and the parallel might be carried farther in several other
particulars.
As to the prohibited degrees, it may be observed, that the pagan Arabs
abstained from marrying their mothers, daughters, and aunts both on the
father's side and on the mother's, and held it a most scandalous thing to
marry two sister, or for a man to take his father's wife;11 which last was,
notwithstanding, too frequently practised,12 and is expressly forbidden in the
Korân.13
Before I leave the subject of marriages, it may be proper to take notice of
some peculiar privileges in relation thereto, which were granted by GOD to
Mohammed, as he gave out, exclusive of all other Moslems. One of them was,
that he might lawfully marry as many wives and have as many concubines as he
pleased, without being confined to any particular number;1 and this he
pretended to have been the privilege of the prophets before him. Another was,
that he might alter the turns of his wives, and take such of them to his bed
as he thought fit, without being tied to that order and equality which others
are obliged to observe.2 A third privilege was, that no man might marry any
of his wives,3 either such as he should divorce during his lifetime, or such
as he should leave widows at his death: which last particular exactly agrees
with what the Jewish doctors have determined concerning the wives of their
princes; it being judged by them to be a thing very indecent, and for that
reason unlawful, for another to marry either the divorced wife or the widow of
a king;4 and Mohammed, it seems, thought an equal respect, at least, due to
the prophetic as to the regal dignity, and therefore ordered that his relicts
should pass the remainder of their lives in perpetual widowhood.
and to have understood stoning to be the punishment of adulterers in general.
Vide Selden, Ux. Hebr. l. 3, c. 11 and 12.
2 Levit. xix. 20. 3 Deut. xix. 15, xvii. 6, and Numb. xxxv. 30.
4 Deut. xxii. 13-19. 5 Numb. v. 11, &c. 6 Vide
Selden, ubi sup. l. 3, c. 15, and Leon. Modena, de' Riti Hebraici, parte iv.
c. 6. 7 Kor. c. 2, p. 23. 8 Ibid. c. 4, p. 53 and 57, &c.
9 Ibid. p. 56 10 See Levit. xv. 24, xviii. 19, and xx. 18;
Exod. xxi. 8-11; Deut. xxi. 10-14; Levit. xviii. and xx. 11
Abulfed. Hist. Gen. al Shahrestani, apud Poc. Spec. p. 321 and 338.
12 Vide Poc. ibid. p. 337, &c. 13 Cap. 4, p. 56. 1
Kor. c. 33. See also c. 66, and the notes there. 2 Kor. c. 33.
See the notes there. 3 Ibid. 4 Mishna, tit. Sanhedr. c. 2,
and Gemar, in eund. tit. Maimon. Halachoth Melachim, c. 2. Vide Selden, Ux.
Hebr. l. I, c. 10. Prid. Life of Mah. p. 118.
The laws of the Korân concerning inheritances are also in several respects
conformable to those of the Jews, though principally designed to abolish
certain practices of the pagan Arabs, who used to treat widows and orphan
children with great injustice, frequently denying them any share in the
inheritance of their fathers or their husbands, on pretence that the same
ought to be distributed among those only who were able to bear arms, and
disposing of the widows, even against their consent, as part of their
husbands' possessions.5 To prevent such injuries for the future, Mohammed
ordered that women should be respected, and orphans have no wrong done them;
and in particular that women should not be taken against their wills, as by
right of inheritance, but should themselves be entitled to a distributive part
of what their parents, husbands, and near relations should leave behind them,
in a certain proportion.6
The general rule to be observed in the distribution of the deceased's
estate is, that a male shall have twice as much as a female:1 but to this rule
there are some few exceptions; a man's parents, for example, and also his
brothers and sisters, where they are entitled not to the whole, but a small
part of the inheritance, being to have equal shares with one another in the
distribution thereof, without making any difference on account of sex.2 The
particular proportions, in several cases, distinctly and sufficiently declare
the intention of Mohammed; whose decisions expressed in the Korân3 seem to be
pretty equitable, preferring a man's children first, and then his nearest
relations.
If a man dispose of any part of his estate by will, two witnesses, at the
least, are required to render the same valid; and such witnesses ought to be
of his own tribe, and of the Mohammedan religion, if such can be had.4 Though
there be no express law to the contrary, yet the Mohammedan doctors reckon it
very wrong for a man to give away any part of his substance from his family,
unless it be in legacies for pious uses; and even in that case a man ought not
to give all he has in charity, but only a reasonable part in proportion to his
substance. On the other hand, though a man make no will, and bequeath nothing
for charitable uses, yet the heirs are directed, on the distribution of the
estate, if the value will permit, to bestow something on the poor, especially
such as are of kin to the deceased, and to the orphans.5
The first law, however, laid down by Mohammed touching inheritances, was
not very equitable; for he declared that those who had fled with him from
Mecca, and those who had received and assisted him at Medina, should be deemed
the nearest of kin, and consequently heirs to one another, preferably to and
in exclusion of their relations by blood; nay, though a man were a true
believer, yet if he had not fled his country for the sake of religion and
joined the prophet, he was to be looked on as a stranger:6 but this law
continued not long in force, being quickly abrogated.7
It must be observed that among the Mohammedans the children of their
concubines or slaves are esteemed as equally legitimate with those
5 See c. 4, p. 53, 54, and 56, and the notes there. Vide etiam Poc. Spec.
p. 337. 6 Kor. c. 4, ubi supra.
1 Ibid. p. 54 and 72. Vide Chardin, Voy. de Perse, t. 2, p. 293.
2 Kor. ibid. p. 54. 3 Ibid. and p. 72.
4 Kor. c. 5, p. 86. 5 Kor. c. 4, p. 54. 6 Cap. 8.
7 Ibid. and c. 33
of their legal and ingenuous wives; none being accounted bastards, except such
only as are born of common women, and whose fathers are unknown.
As to private contracts between man and man, the conscientious performance
of them is frequently recommended in the Korân.1 For the preventing of
disputes, all contracts are directed to be made before witnesses,2 and in case
such contracts are not immediately executed, the same ought to be reduced into
writing in the presence of two witnesses3 at least, who ought to be Moslems
and of the male sex; but if two men cannot be conveniently had, then one man
and two women may suffice. The same method is also directed to be taken for
the security of debts to be paid at a future day; and where a writer is not to
be found, pledges are to be taken.4 Hence, if people trust one another
without writing, witnesses, or pledge, the party on whom the demand is made is
always acquitted if he denies the charge on oath, and swears that he owes the
plaintiff nothing, unless the contrary be proved by very convincing
circumstances.5
Wilful murder, though forbidden by the Korân under the severest penalties
to be inflicted in the next life,6 is yet, by the same book, allowed to be
compounded for, on payment of a fine to the family of the deceased, and
freeing a Moslem from captivity; but it is in the election of the next of kin,
or the revenger of blood, as he is called in the Pentateuch, either to accept
of such satisfaction, or to refuse it; for he may, if he pleases, insist on
having the murderer delivered into his hands, to be put to death in such
manner as he shall think fit.7 In this particular Mohammed has gone against
the express letter of the Mosaic law, which declare that no satisfaction shall
be taken for the life of a murderer;8 and he seems, in so doing, to have had
respect to the customs of the Arabs in his time, who, being of a vindictive
temper, used to revenge murder in too unmerciful a manner,9 whole tribes
frequently engaging in bloody wars on such occasions, the natural consequence
of their independency, and having no common judge of superior.
If the Mohammedan laws seem light in case of murder, they may perhaps be
deemed too rigorous in case of manslaughter, or the killing of a man
undesignedly, which must be redeemed by fine (unless the next of kin shall
think fit to remit it out of charity), and the freeing of a captive: but if a
man be not able to do this, he is to fast two months together, by way of
penance.1 The fine for a man's blood is set in the Sonna at a hundred
camels,2 and is to be distributed among the relations of the deceased,
according to the laws of inheritances; but it must be observed that, though
the person slain be a Moslem, yet if he be of a nation or party at enmity, or
not in confederacy with those to whom the slayer belongs, he is not then bound
to pay any fine at all, the redeeming a captive being, in such case, declared
a sufficient penalty.3 I
1 Cap. 5, p. 73; c. 17; c. 2, p. 31, &c. 2 Cap. 2, p. 31.
3 The same seems to have been required by the Jewish law, even in cases
where life was not concerned. See Deut. xix. 15, Matth. xviii. 16, John viii.
17, 2 Cor. xiii. I.
4 Kor. c. 2, p. 30, 31. 5 Vide Chardin, Voy. de Perse, t. 2, p.
294, &c., and the notes to Kor. c. 5, p. 86.
6 Kor. c. 4, p. 64. 7 Cap. 2, p. 18, 19; c. 17. Vide Chardin, ubi
sup. p. 299, &c. 8 Numb. xxxv. 31.
9 This is particularly forbidden in the Korân, c. 17. 1 Kor. c.
4, p. 64. 2 See the notes to c. 37
3 Kor. c. 4, p. 64.
imagine that Mohammed, by these regulations, laid so heavy a punishment on
involuntary manslaughter, not only to make people beware incurring the same,
but also to humour, in some degree, the revengeful temper of his countrymen,
which might be with difficulty, if at all, prevailed on to accept a lighter
satisfaction. Among the Jews, who seem to have been no less addicted to
revenge than their neighbours, the manslayer who had escaped to a city of
refuge was obliged to keep himself within that city, and to abide there till
the death of the person who was high priest at the time the fact was
committed, that his absence and time might cool the passion and mitigate the
resentment of the friends of the deceased; but if he quitted his asylum before
that time, the revenger of blood, if he found him, might kill him without
guilt;4 nor could any satisfaction be made for the slayer to return home
before the prescribed time.5
Theft is ordered to be punished by cutting off the offending part, the
hand,6 which, at first sight, seems just enough; but the law of Justinian,
forbidding a thief to be maimed,7 is more reasonable; because, stealing being
generally the effect of indigence, to cut off that limb would be to deprive
him of the means of getting his livelihood in an honest manner.8 The Sonna
forbids the inflicting of this punishment, unless the thing stolen be of a
certain value. I have mentioned in another place the further penalties which
those incur who continue to steal, and of those who rob or assault people on
the road.9
As to injuries done to men in their persons, the law of retaliation, which
was ordained by the law of Moses,10 is also approved by the Korân:1 but this
law, which seems to have been allowed by Mohammed to his Arabians for the same
reasons as it was to the Jews, viz., to prevent particular revenges, to which
both nations were extremely addicted,2 being neither strictly just nor
practicable in many cases, is seldom put in execution, the punishment being
generally turned into a mulct or fine, which is paid to the party injured.3
Or rather Mohammed designed the words of the Korân relating thereto should be
understood in the same manner as those of the Pentateuch most probably ought
to be; that is, not of an actual retaliation, according to the strict literal
meaning, but of a retribution proportionable to the injury: for a criminal had
not his eyes put out, nor was a man mutilated, according to the law of Moses,
which, besides, condemned those who had wounded any person, where death did
not ensue, to pay a fine only,4 the expression "eye for eye and tooth for
tooth" being only a proverbial manner of speaking, the sense whereof amounts
to this, that every one shall be punished by the judges according to the
heinousness of the fact.5
In injuries and crimes of an inferior nature, where no particular
punishment is provided by the Korân, and where a pecuniary compensation will
not do, the Mohammedans, according to the practice of the
4 See Numb. xxxv. 26, 27, 28. 5 Ibid. v. 32. 6 Kor. c.
5, p. 78. 7 Novell. 134, c. 13.
8 Vide Pufendorf, de Jure Nat. et Gent. l. 8, c. 3, § 26. 9 See the
notes to c. 5, p. 78. 10 Exod. xxi. 24, &c., Levit. xxiv. 20, Deut.
xix. 21. 1 Cap. 5, p. 79. 2 Vide Grotium , de Jure Belli et
Pacis, l. I, c. 2, § 8.
3 Vide Chardin, t. 2, p. 299. The talio, likewise established among the old
Romans by the laws of the twelve tables, was not to be inflicted, unless the
delinquent could not agree with the person injured. Vide A. Gell. Noct.
Attic. l. 20, c. I, and Festum, in voce Talio.
4 See Exod. xxi. 18, 19, and 22. 5 Barbeyrac, in Grot. ubi supra.
Vide Cleric. in Exod. xxi. 24, and Deut. xix. 21.
Jews in the like case,6 have recourse to stripes or drubbing, the most common
chastisement used in the east at this day, as well as formerly; the cudgel,
which for its virtue and efficacy in keeping their people in good order, and
within the bounds of duty, they say came down from heaven, being the
instrument wherewith the judge's sentence is generally executed.7
Notwithstanding the Korân is by the Mohammedans in general regarded as the
fundamental apart of their civil law, and the decisions of the Sonna among the
Turks, and of the Imâms among those of the Persian sect, with the explications
of their several doctors, are usually followed in judicial determinations, yet
the secular tribunals do not think themselves bound to observe the same in all
cases, but frequently give judgment against those decisions, which are not
always consonant to equity and reason; and therefore distinction is to be made
between the written civil law, as administered in the ecclesiastical courts,
and the law of nature or common law (if I may so call it) which takes place in
the secular courts, and has the executive power on its side.1
Under the head of civil laws may be comprehended the injunction of warring
against infidels, which is repeated in several passages of the Korân,2 and
declared to be of high merit in the sight of GOD, those who are slain fighting
in defence of the faith being reckoned martyrs, and promised immediate
admission into paradise.3 Hence this duty is greatly magnified by the
Mohammedan divines, who call the sword the key of heaven and hell, and
persuade their people that the least drop of blood spilt in the way of GOD, as
it is called, is most acceptable unto him, and that the defending the
territories of the Moslems for one night is more meritorious than a fast of
two months:4 on the other hand, desertion, or refusing to serve in these holy
wars, or to contribute towards the carrying them on, if a man has ability, is
accounted a most heinous crime, being frequently declaimed against in the
Korân.5 Such a doctrine, which Mohammed ventured not to teach till his
circumstances enabled him to put it in practice,6 it must be allowed, was well
calculated for his purpose, and stood him and his successors in great stead:
for what dangers and difficulties may not be despised and overcome by the
courage and constancy which these sentiments necessarily inspire? Nor have
the Jews and Christians, how much soever they detest such principles in
others, been ignorant of the force of enthusiastic heroism, or omitted to
spirit up their respective partisans by the like arguments and promises. "Let
him who has listed himself in defence of the law," says Maimonides,7 "rely on
him who is the hope of Israel, and the saviour thereof in the time of
trouble;8 and let him know that he fights for the profession of the divine
unity: wherefore let him put his life in his hand,9 and think neither of wife
nor children, but banish the memory of them from his heart, having his mind
wholly fixed on the war. For if he should begin to waver in his thoughts, he
would not only confound himself, but sin against the law;
6 See Deut. xxv. 2, 3. 7 Vide Grelot, Voy. de Constant. p. 220,
and Chardin, ubi supra, p. 302. 1 Vide Chardin, ubi supra, p. 290,
&c. 2 Cap. 22; c. 2, p. 20; c . 4, p. 62, &c.; c. 8; c. 9; c. 47 and
c. 61, &c. 3 Cap. 2, p. 17; c. 3, p. 47; c. 47; c. 61. 4
Reland. de Jure Milit. Moham. p. 5, &c. 5 Vide c. 9; c. 3, p. 47, &c.
6 See before, p. 37. 7 Halach. Melachim, c. 7. 8
Jerem. xiv. 8. 9 Job xiii. 14.
nay, the blood of the whole people hangeth on his neck; for if they are
discomfited, and he has not fought stoutly with all his might, it is equally
the same as if he had shed the blood of them all; according to that saying,
let him return, lest his brethren's heart fail as his own."1 To the same
purpose doth the Kabala accommodate that other passage, "Cursed be he who doth
the work of the LORD negligently, and cursed be he who keepeth back his sword
from blood.2 On the contrary, he who behaveth bravely in battle, to the
utmost of his endeavour, without trembling, with intent to glorify GOD'S name,
he ought to expect the victory with confidence, and to apprehend no danger or
misfortune, but may be assured that he will have a house built him in Israel,
appropriated to him and his children for ever; as it is said, GOD shall
certainly make my lord a sure house, because he hath fought the battles of the
LORD, and his life shall be bound up in the bundle of life with the LORD his
GOD."3 More passages of this kind might be produced from the Jewish writers;
and the Christians come not far behind them. "We are desirous of knowing,"
says one4 writing to the Franks engaged in the holy war, "the charity of you
all; for that every one (which we speak not because we wish it) who shall
faithfully lose his life in this warfare, shall be by no means denied the
kingdom of heaven." And another5 gives the following exhortation: "Laying
aside all fear and dread, endeavour to act effectually against the enemies of
the holy faith, and the adversaries of all religions: for the Almighty
knoweth, if any of you die, that he dieth for the truth of the faith, and the
salvation of his country, and the defence of Christians; and therefore he
shall obtain of him a celestial reward." The Jews, indeed, had a divine
commission, extensive and explicit enough, to attack, subdue, and destroy the
enemies of their religion; and Mohammed pretended to have received one in
favour of himself and his Moslems, in terms equally plain and full; and
therefore it is no wonder that they should act consistently with their avowed
principles: but that Christians should teach and practise a doctrine so
opposite to the temper and whole tenour of the Gospel, seems very strange; and
yet the latter have carried matters farther, and shown a more violent spirit
of intolerance than either of the former.
The laws of war, according to the Mohammedans, have been already so exactly
set down by the learned Reland,6 that I need say very little of them. I
shall, therefore, only observe some conformity between their military laws and
those of the Jews.
While Mohammedism was in its infancy, the opposers thereof taken in battle
were doomed to death, without mercy; but this was judged too severe to be put
in practice when that religion came to be sufficiently established, and past
the danger of being subverted by its enemies.1 The same sentence was
pronounced not only against the seven Canaanitish nations,2 whose possessions
were given to the Israelites, and without whose destruction, in a manner, they
could not have settled themselves in the country designed them, but against
the
1 Deut. xx. 8. 2 Jerem. xlviii. 10. 3 I Sam. xxv. 28,
29. 4 Nicolaus, in Jure Canon. c. omnium, 23, quæst. 5. 5 Leo
IV. ibid. quæst. 8. 6 In his treatise De Jure Militari
Mohammedanor. in the third vol. of his Dissertationes Miscellanæe.
1 See Kor. c. 47. and the notes there; and c. 4, p. 64; c. 5, p. 77.
2 Deut. xx. 16-18.
Amalekites3 and Midianites,4 who had done their utmost to cut them off in
their passage thither. When the Mohammedans declare war against people of a
different faith, they give them their choice of three offers, viz., either to
embrace Mohammedism, in which case they become not only secure in their
persons, families, and fortunes, but entitled to all the privileges of other
Moslems; or to submit and pay tribute,5 by doing which they are allowed to
profess their own religion, provided it be not gross idolatry or against the
moral law; or else to decide the quarrel by the sword, in which last case, if
the Moslems prevail, the women and children which are made captives become
absolute slaves, and the men taken in the battle may either be slain, unless
they turn Mohammedans, or otherwise disposed of at the pleasure of the
prince.6 Herewith agree the laws of war given to the Jews, which relate to
the nations not devoted to destruction;7 and Joshua is said to have sent even
to the inhabitants of Canaan, before he entered the land, three schedules, in
one of which was written, "Let him fly, who will;" in the second, "Let him who
surrender, who will;" and in the third, "Let him fight, who will;"8 though
none of those nations made peace with the Israelites (except only the
Gibeonites, who obtained terms of security by stratagem, after they had
refused those offered by Joshua), "it being of the LORD to harden their
hearts, that he might destroy them utterly."9
On the first considerable success of Mohammed in war, the dispute which
happened among his followers in relation to the dividing of the spoil,
rendered it necessary for him to make some regulation therein; he therefore
pretended to have received the divine commission to distribute the spoil among
his soldiers at his own discretion,1 reserving thereout, in the first place,
one-fifth part2 for the uses after mentioned; and, in consequence hereof, he
took himself to be authorized on extraordinary occasions, to distribute it as
he thought fit, without observing an equality. Thus he did, for example, with
the spoil of the tribe of Hawâzen taken at the battle of Honein, which he
bestowed by way of presents on the Meccans only, passing by those of Medina,
and highly distinguishing the principal Korashites, that he might ingratiate
himself with them, after he had become master of their city.3 He was also
allowed in the expedition against those of al Nadîr to take the whole booty to
himself, and to dispose thereof as he pleased, because no horses or camels
were made use of in that expedition,4 but the whole army went on foot; and
this became thenceforward a law:5 the reason of which seems to be, that the
spoil taken by a party consisting of infantry
3 Ibid. c. xxv. 17-19. 4 Numb. xxxi. 17. 5 See c. 9,
and the notes there. 6 See the notes to c. 47. 7 Deut. xx.
10-15. 8 Talmud Hierosol. apud Maimonid. Halach. Melachim, c. 6,
§ 5. R. Bechai, ex. lib. Siphre. Vide Selden, de Jure Nat. et Gent. Sec.
Hebr. l. 6, c. 13 and 14; and Schickardi Jus Regium Hebr. c. 5, Theor. 16.
9 Josh. xi. 20. The Jews, however, say that the Girgashites, believing
they could not escape the destruction with which they were threatened by GOD,
if they persisted to defend themselves, fled into Africa in great numbers.
(Vide Talm. Hieros. ubi sup.) And this is assigned as the reason why the
Girgashites are not mentioned among the other Canaanitish nations who
assembled to fight against Joshua (Josh. ix. I0, and who were doomed to utter
extirpation (Deut. xx. 17). But it is observable, that the Girgashites are
not omitted by the Septuagint in either of those texts, and that their name
appears in the latter of them in the Samaritan Pentateuch: they are also
joined with the other Canaanites as having fought against Israel, in Josh.
xxiv. II. 1 Kor. c. 8.
2 Ibid. 3 Abulfed. in Vit. Moh. p. 118, &c. Vide Kor. c. 9. and
the notes there. 4 Kor. c. 59, see the notes there. 5 Vide
Abulfed. ubi sup. p. 91.
only, should be considered as the more immediate gift of GOD,6 and therefore
properly left to the disposition of his apostle. According to the Jews, the
spoil ought to be divided into two equal parts, one to be shared among the
captors, and the other to be taken by the prince,7 and by him employed for his
own support and the use of the public. Moses, it is true, divided one-half of
the plunder of the Midianites among those who went to battle, and the other
half among all congregation:8 but this, they say, being a peculiar case, and
done by the express order of GOD himself, must not be looked on as a
precedent.9 It should seem, however, from the words of Joshua to the two
tribes and a half, when he sent them home into Gilead after the conquest and
division of the land of Canaan , that they were to divide the spoil of their
enemies with their brethren, after their return:10 and the half which was in
succeeding times taken by the king, was in all probability taken by him as
head of the community, and representing the whole body. It is remarkable that
the dispute among Mohammed's men about sharing the booty at Bedr,11 arose on
the same occasion as did that among David's soldiers in relation to the spoils
recovered from the Amalekites;1 those who had been in the action insisting
that they who tarried by the stuff should have no part of the spoil; and that
the same decision was given in both cases, which became a law for the future,
to wit, that they should part alike.
The fifth part directed by the Korân to be taken out of the spoil before it
be divided among the captors, is declared to belong to GOD, and to the apostle
and his kindred, and the orphans, and the poor, and the traveller:2 which
words are variously understood. al Shâfeï was of opinion that the whole ought
to be divided into five parts; the first, which he called GOD'S part, to go to
the treasury, and be employed in building and repairing fortresses, bridges,
and other public works, and in paying salaries to magistrates, civil officers,
professors of learning, ministers of public worship, &c.: the second part to
be distributed among the kindred of Mohammed, that is, the descendants of his
grandfather Hâshem, and of his great-uncle al Motalleb,3 as well the rich as
the poor, the children as the adult, the women as the men; observing only to
give a female but half the share of a male: the third part to go to the
orphans: the fourth part to the poor, who have not wherewithal to maintain
themselves the year round, and are not able to get their livelihood: and the
fifth part to travellers, who are in want on the road, notwithstanding they
may be rich men in their own country.4 According to Malec Ebn Ans the whole
is at the disposition of the Imâm or prince, who may distribute the same at
his own discretion, where he sees most need.5 Abu'l Aliya wen according to
the letter of the Korân, and declared his opinion to be that the whole should
be divided into six parts, and that GOD'S part should be applied to the
service of the Caaba: while others supposed GOD'S part and the apostle's to be
one and the same.6 Abu Hanîfa thought that the share of Mohammed and his
kindred sank at that prophet's death, since which the whole
6 Vide Kor. c. 59, ubi supra. 7 Gemar. Babyl. ad tit. Sanhedr. c.
2. Vide Selden, de Jure Nat. et Gent. Sec. Hebr. lib. 6, c. 16. 8
Numb. xxxi. 27. 9 Vide Maim. Halach, Melach. c. 4. 10 Josh. xxii. 8.
11 See Kor. c. 8., and the notes there. 1 I Sam. xxx. 21-25. 2
Kor. c. 8. 3 Note, al Shâfeï himself was descended from this latter.
4 Al Beid. Vide Reland. de Jure Milit. Moham. p. 42, &c.
5 Idem. 6 Idem.
ought to be divided among the orphans, the poor, and the traveller.7 Some
insist that the kindred of Mohammed entitled to a shire of the spoils are the
posterity of Hâshem only; but those who think the descendants of his brother
al Motalleb have also a right to a distributive part, allege a tradition in
their favour purporting that Mohammed himself divided the share belonging to
his relations among both families, and when Othmân Ebn Assân and Jobeir Ebn
Matám (who were descended from Abdshams and Nawfal the other brothers of
Hâshem) told him, that though they disputed not the preference of the
Hâshemites, they could not help taking it ill to see such difference made
between the family of al Motalleb and themselves, who were related to him in
an equal degree, and yet had no part in the distribution, the prophet replied
that the descendants of al Motalleb had forsaken him neither in the time of
ignorance, nor since the revelation of Islâm; and joined his fingers together
in token of the strict union between them and the Hâshemites.8 Some exclude
none of the tribe of Koreish from receiving a part in the division of the
spoil, and make no distinction between the poor and the rich; though,
according to the more reasonable opinion, such of them as are poor only are
intended by the text of the Korân, as is agreed in the case of the stranger:
and others go so far as to assert that the whole fifth commanded to be
reserved belongs to them only, and that the orphans, and the poor, and the
traveller, are to be understood of such as are of that tribe.9 It must be
observed that immovable possessions, as lands, &c., taken in war, are subject
to the same laws as the movable; excepting only that the fifth part of the
former is not actually divided, but the income and profits thereof, or of the
price thereof, if sold, are applied to public and pious uses, and distributed
once a year, and that the prince may either take the fifth part of the land
itself, or the fifth part of the income and produce of the whole, as he shall
make his election.
_______
SECTION VII.
OF THE MONTHS COMMANDED BY THE KORAN TO BE KEPT SACRED; AND
OF THE SETTING APART OF FRIDAY FOR THE ESPECIAL SERVICE OF
GOD.
IT was a custom among the ancient Arabs to observe four months in the year as
sacred, during which they held it unlawful to wage war, and took off the heads
from their spears, ceasing from incursions and other hostilities. During
those months whoever was in fear of his enemy lived in full security; so that
if a man met the murderer of his
7 Idem. 8 Idem. 9 Idem.
father or his brother, he durst not offer him any violence:1 A great
argument," says a learned writer, "of a humane disposition in that nation; who
being by reason of the independent governments of their several tribes, and
for the preservation of their just rights, exposed to frequent quarrels with
one another, had yet learned to cool their inflamed breasts with moderation,
and restrain the rage of war by stated times of truce."2
This institution obtained among all the Arabian tribes, except only those
of Tay and Khatháam, and some of the descendants of Al Hareth Ebn Caab (who
distinguished no time or place as sacred),3 and was so religiously observed,
that there are but few instances in history (four, say some, six, say
others),4 of its having been transgressed; the wars which were carried on
without regard thereto being therefore termed impious. One of those instances
was in the war between the tribes of Koreish and Kais Ailân, wherein Mohammed
himself served under his uncles, being then fourteen,5 or, as others say,
twenty6 years old.
The months which the Arabs held sacred were al Moharram, Rajeb. Dhu'lkaada,
and Dhu'lhajja; the first, the seventh, the eleventh, and the twelfth in the
year.7 Dhu'lhajja being the month wherein they performed the pilgrimage to
Mecca, not only that month, but also the preceding and the following, were for
that reason kept inviolable, that every one might safely and without
interruption pass and repass to and from the festival.8 Rajeb is said to have
been more strictly observed than any of the other three,9 probably because in
that month the pagan Arabs used to fast;10 Ramadân, which was afterwards set
apart by Mohammed for that purpose, being in the time of ignorance dedicated
to drinking in excess.11 By reason of the profound peace and security enjoyed
in this month, one part of the provisions brought by the caravans of purveyors
annually set out by the Koreish for the supply of Mecca,12 was distributed
among the people; the other part being, for the like reason, distributed at
the pilgrimage.1
The observance of the aforesaid months seemed so reasonable to Mohammed,
that it met with his approbation; and the same is accordingly confirmed and
enforced by several passages of the Korân,2 which forbid war to be waged
during those months against such as acknowledge them to be sacred, but grant,
at the same time, full permission to attack those who make no such
distinction, in the sacred months as well as in the profane.3
One practice, however, of the pagan Arabs, in relation to these sacred
1 Al Kazwîni, apud Golium in notis ad Alfrag. p. 4, &c. Al Shahrestani,
apud Poc. Spec. p. 311. Al Jawhari, al Firauzab.
2 Golius, ubi supra, p. 5. 3 Al Shahrestani, ubi supra. See before,
p. 95. 4 Al Mogholtaï.
5 Abulfeda, Vit. Moh. p. II. 6 al Kodâï, al Firauz. apud Poc. Spec. p.
174. Al Mogholtaï mentions both opinions.
7 Mr. Bayle (Dict. Hist. et Crit. Art. la Mecque, Rem. F.) accuses Dr.
Prideaux of an inconsistency for saying in one place (Life of Mahomet, p. 64)
that these sacred months were the first, the seventh, the eleventh, and the
twelfth, and intimating in another place (ibid. p. 89) that three of them were
contiguous. But this must be mere absence of mind in Mr Bayle; for are not
the eleventh, the twelfth, and the first months contiguous? The two learned
professors, Golius and Reland, have also made a small slip in speaking of
these sacred months, which, they tell us, are the two first and the two last
in the year. Vide Golii Lex. Arab. col. 601, and Reland. de Jure Milit.
Mohammed anor. p. 5. 8 Vide Gol. in Alfrag. p. 9. 9 Vide
ibid. p. 6. 10 Al Makrîzi, apud Poc ubi supra. 11 Idem, and Auctor
Neshk al Azhâr, ibid. 12 See Kor. c. 106.
1 A. Edrîsi apud Poc. Specim. p. 127. 2 Cap. 9; c. 2, p. 20; c. 5,
p. 73; c. 5, p. 85, &c. 3 Cap. 9; c. 2, p. 20.
months, Mohammed thought proper to reform: for some of them, weary of sitting
quiet for three months together, and eager to make their accustomed incursions
for plunder, used, by way of expedient, whenever it suited their inclinations
or conveniency, to put off the observing of al Moharram to the following month
Safar,4 thereby avoiding to keep the former, which they supposed it lawful for
them to profane, provided they sanctified another month in lieu of it, and
gave public notice thereof at the preceding pilgrimage. This transferring the
observation of a sacred month to a profane month, is what is truly meant by
the Arabic word al Nasî, and is absolutely condemned, and declared to be an
impious innovation, in a passage of the Korân5 which Dr. Prideaux,6 misled by
Golius,7 imagines to relate to the prolonging of the year, by adding an
intercalary month thereto. It is true, the Arabs, who imitated the Jews in
their manner of computing by lunar years, had also learned their method of
reducing them to solar years, by intercalating a month sometimes in the third,
and sometimes in the second year;8 by which means they fixed the pilgrimage of
Mecca (contrary to the original institution) to a certain season of the year,
viz., to autumn, as most convenient for the pilgrims, by reason of the
temperateness of the weather, and the plenty of provisions;9 and it is also
true that Mohammed forbade such intercalation by a passage in the same chapter
of the Korân; but then it is not the passage above mentioned, which prohibits
a different thing, but one a little before it, wherein the number of months in
the year, according to the ordinance of GOD, is declared to be twelve;10
whereas, if the intercalation of a month were allowed, every third or second
year would consist of thirteen, contrary to GOD'S appointment.
The setting apart of one day in the week for the more peculiar attendance
on GOD'S worship, so strictly required by the Jewish and Christian religions,
appeared to Mohammed to be so proper an institution, that he could not but
imitate the professors thereof in that particular; though, for the sake of
distinction, he might think himself obliged to order his followers to observe
a different day form either. Several reasons are given why the sixth day of
the week was pitched on for this purpose;1 but Mohammed seems to have
preferred that day chiefly because it was the day on which the people used to
be assembled long before his time,2 though such assemblies were had, perhaps,
rather on a civil than a religious account. However it be, the Mohammedan
writers bestow very extraordinary encomiums on this day, calling it the prince
of day, and the most excellent day on which the sun rises;3 pretending also
that it will be the day whereon the last judgment will be solemnized;4 and
they esteem it a peculiar honour to Islâm, that GOD has been pleased to
appoint this day to be the feast-day of the Moslems, and granted them the
advantage of having first observed it.5
Though the Mohammedans do not think themselves bound to keep their day of
public worship so holy as the Jews and Christians are cer-
4 See the notes to c. 9, ubi sup. 5 Cap. 9, ibid. 6
Life of Mah. p. 66.
7 In Alfrag. p. 12. 8 See Prid. Preface to the first vol. of his
Connect. p. vi., &c. 9 Vide Gol. ubi supra.
10 Kor. c. 9. See also c. 2, . 20. 1 See c. 63, and the notes
there. 2 Al Beidâwi.
3 Ebn al Athîr et al Ghazâli, apud Poc. Spec. p. 317. 4
Vide Ibid. 5 Al Ghazâli, ibid.
tainly obliged to keep theirs, there being a permission, as is generally
supposed, in the Korân,6 allowing them to return to their employments or
diversion after divine service is over; yet the more devout disapprove the
applying of any part of that day to worldly affairs, and require it to be
wholly dedicated to the business of the life to come.7
Since I have mentioned the Mohammedan weekly feast, I beg leave just to
take notice of their two Beirâms,8 or principal annual feasts. The first of
them is called, in Arabic, Id al fetr, i.e., The feast of breaking the fast,
and begins the first of Shawâl, immediately succeeding the fast of Ramadân;
and the other is called Id al korbân, or Id al adhâ, i.e., The feast of the
sacrifice, and begins on the tenth of Dhu'lhajja, when the victims are slain
at the pilgrimage of Mecca.9 The former of these feasts is properly the
lesser Beirâm, and the latter, the greater Beirâm:1 but the vulgar, and most
authors who have written of the Mohammedan affairs,2 exchange the epithets,
and call that which follows Ramadân the greater Beirâm, because it is observed
in an extraordinary manner, and kept for three days together at Constantinople
and in other parts of Turkey, and in Persia for five or six days, by the
common people, at least, with great demonstrations of public joy, to make
themselves amends, as it were, for the mortification of the preceding month;3
whereas, the feast of sacrifices, though it be also kept for three days, and
the first of them be the most solemn day of the pilgrimage, the principal act
of devotion among the Mohammedans is taken much less notice of by the
generality of people, who are not struck therewith, because the ceremonies
with which the same is observed are performed at Mecca, the only scene of that
solemnity.
_______
SECTION VIII.
OF THE PRINCIPAL SECTS AMONG THE MOHAMMEDANS; AND OF THOSE
WHO HAVE PRETENDED TO PROPHECY AMONG THE ARABS, IN OR
SINCE THE TIME OF MOHAMMED.
BEFORE we take a view of the sects of the Mohammedans, it will be necessary to
say something of the two sciences by which all disputed questions among them
are determined, viz., their Scholastic and Practical Divinity.
Their scholastic divinity is a mongrel science, consisting of logical,
metaphysical, theological, and philosophical disquisitions, and built on
6 Cap. 63, ubi supra. 7 Al Ghazâli, ubi sup. p. 318.
8 The word Beirâm is Turkish, and properly signifies a feast-day or
holiday. 9 See c. 9, and before, Sect. IV. p. 94. 1 Vide
Reland. de Relig. Moh. p. 109, and D'Herbel. Bibl. Orient. Art. Beirâm.
2 Hyde, in notis ad Bobov. p. 16; Chardin, Voy. de Perse, tom. ii. p.
450; Ricaut's State of the Ottoman Empire, l. 2. c. 24, &c. 3 Vide
Chardin and Ricaut, ubi supra.
principles and methods of reasoning very different from what are used by those
who pass among the Mohammedans themselves for the sounder divines or more able
philosophers,1 and, therefore, in the partition of the sciences this is
generally left out, as unworthy a place among them.2 The learned Maimonides3
has laboured to expose the principles and systems of the scholastic divines,
as frequently repugnant to the nature of the world and the order of the
creation, and intolerably absurd.
This art of handling religious disputes was not known in the infancy of
Mohammedism, but was brought in when sects sprang up, and articles of religion
began to be called in question, and was at first made use of to defend the
truth o those articles against innovators;1 and while it keeps within those
bounds is allowed to be a commendable study, being necessary for the defence
of the faith: but when it proceeds farther, out of an itch of disputation, it
is judged worthy of censure.
This is the opinion of al Ghazâli,2 who observes a medium between those who
have too high a value for this science, and those who absolutely reject it.
Among the latter was al Shâfeï, who declared that, in his judgment, if any man
employed his time that way, he deserved to be fixed to a stake, and carried
about through all the Arab tribes, with the following proclamation to be made
before him: 'This is the reward of him who, leaving the Korân and the Sonna,
applied himself to the study of scholastic divinity."3 Al Ghazâli, on the
other hand, thinks that as it was introduced by the invasion of heresies, it
is necessary to be retained in order to quell them: but then in the person who
studies this science he requires three things, diligence, acuteness of
judgment, and probity of manners; and is by no means for suffering the same to
be publicly explained.4 This science, therefore, among the Mohammedans, is
the art of controversy, by which they discuss points of faith concerning the
essence and attributes of GOD, and the conditions of all possible things,
either in respect to their creation, or final restoration, according to the
rules of the religion of Islâm.5
The other science is practical divinity or jurisprudence, and is the
knowledge of the decisions of the law which regard practice, gathered from
distinct proofs.
Al Ghazâli declares that he had much the same opinion of this science as of
the former, its original being owing to the corruption of religion and
morality; and therefore judged both sciences to be necessary, not in
themselves, but by accident only, to curb the irregular imaginations and
passions of mankind (as guards become necessary in the highways by reason of
robbers), the end of the first being the suppressing of heresies, and of the
other the decision of legal controversies, for the quiet and peaceable living
of mankind in this world, and for the preserving the rule by which the
magistrate may prevent one man from injuring another, by declaring what is
lawful and what is unlawful, by determining the satisfaction to be given, or
punishment to be
1 Poc. Spec. p. 196. 2 Apud Ebn Sina, in Libello de Divisione
Scientiar, et Nasiro'ddin al Tûsi, in Præfat. ad Ethic.
3 More Nevoch. l. I, c. 71 and 73. 1 Al Ghazâli, apud Poc. ubi supra.
2 Ibid.
3 Vide Poc. ibid. p. 197. 4 Al Ghazâli, ibid. 5 Ebn
al Kossá apud eund. ibid. p. 198.
inflicted, and by regulating other outward actions; and not only so, but to
decide of religion itself, and its conditions, so far as relates to the
profession made by the mouth, it not being the business of the civilian to
inquire into the heart:1 the depravity of men's manners, however, has made
this knowledge of the laws so very requisite, that it is usually called the
Science, by way of excellence, nor is any man reckoned learned who has not
applied himself thereto.2
The points of faith, subject to the examination and discussion of the
scholastic divines, are reduced to four general heads, which they call the
four bases, or great fundamental articles.3
The first basis relates to the attributes of GOD, and his unity consistent
therewith. Under this head are comprehended the questions concerning the
eternal attributes, which are asserted by some, and denied by others; and also
the explication of the essential attributes, and attributes of action; what is
proper for GOD to do, and what may be affirmed of him, and what it is
impossible for him to do. These things are controverted between the
Ashárians, the Kerâmians, the Mojassemians or Corporalists, and the
Mótazalites.4
The second basis regards predestination, and the justice thereof: which
comprises the questions concerning GOD'S purpose and decree, man's compulsion
or necessity to act, and his co-operation in producing actions, by which he
may gain to himself good or evil; and also those which concern GOD'S willing
good and evil, and what things are subject to his power, and what to his
knowledge; some maintaining the affirmative, and others the negative. These
points are disputed among the Kadarians, the Najarians, the Jabarians, the
Ashárians, and the Kerâmians.5
The third basis concerns the promises and threats, the precise acceptation
of names used in divinity, and the divine decisions; and comprehends questions
relating to faith, repentance, promises, threats, forbearance, infidelity, and
error. The controversies under this head are on foot between the Morgians,
the Waïdians, the Mótazalites, the Ashárians, and the Kerâmians.1
The fourth basis regards history and reason, that is, the just weight they
ought to have in matters belonging to faith and religion; and also the mission
of prophets, and the office of Imâm, or chief pontiff. Under this head are
comprised all casuistical questions relating to the moral beauty or turpitude
of actions; inquiring whether things are allowed or forbidden by reason of
their own nature, or by the positive law; and also questions concerning the
preference of actions, the favour or grace of GOD, the innocence which ought
to attend the prophetical office, and the conditions requisite in the office
of Imâm; some asserting it depends on right of succession, others on the
consent of the faithful; and also the method of transferring it with the
former, and of confirming it with the latter. These matters are the subjects
of dispute between the Shiites, the Mótazalites, the Kerâmians, and the
Ashárians.2
The different sects of Mohammedans may be distinguished into two
1 Al Ghazâli. Vide ibid. p. 198-204. 2 Vide ibid. p. 204.
3 Vide Abulfarag, Hist. Dynast. p. 166.
4 Al Shahrestani, apud Poc. ubi. sup. p. 204, &c. 5 Idem, ibid.
p.205. 1 Idem, ibid. p. 206.
2 Idem, ibid.
sorts; those generally esteemed orthodox, and those which are esteemed
heretical.
The former, by a general name, are called Sonnites or Traditionists;
because they acknowledge the authority of the Sonna, or collection of moral
traditions of the sayings and actions of their prophet, which is a sort of
supplement to the Korân, directing the observance of several things omitted in
that book, and in name, as well as design, answering to the Mishna of the
Jews.3
The Sonnites are subdivided into four chief sects, which, notwithstanding
some differences as to legal conclusions in their interpretation of the Korân,
and matters of practice, are generally acknowledge to be orthodox in radicals,
or matters of faith, and capable of salvation, and have each of them their
several stations or oratories in the temple of Mecca.4 The founders of these
sects are looked upon as the great masters of jurisprudence, and are said to
have been men of great devotion and self-denial, well versed in the knowledge
of those things which belong to the next life and to man's right conduct here,
and directing all their knowledge to the glory of GOD. This is al Ghazâli's
encomium of them, who thinks it derogatory to their honour that their names
should be used by those who, neglecting to imitate the other virtues which
make up their character, apply themselves only to attain their skill, and
follow their opinions in matters of legal practice.1
The first of the four orthodox sects is that of the Hanefites, so named
from their founder, Abu Hanîfa al Nómân Ebn Thâbet, who was born at Cufa, in
the 80th year of the Hejra, and died in the 150th, according to the more
preferable opinion as to the time.2 He ended his life in prison at Baghdâd,
where he had been confined because he refused to be made Kâdi or judge;3 on
which account he was very hardly dealt with by his superiors, yet could not be
prevailed on, either by threats or ill-treatment, to undertake the charge,
"choosing rather to be punished by them than by GOD," says Al Ghazâli; who
adds, that when he excused himself from accepting the office by alleging that
he was unfit for it, being asked the reason, he replied, "If I speak the
truth, I am unfit; but if I tell a lie, a liar is not fit to be a judge." It
is said that he read the Korân in the prison where he died, no less than 7,000
times.4
The Hanefites are called by an Arabian writer5 the followers of reason, and
those of the three other sects, followers of tradition; the former being
principally guided by their own judgment in their decisions, and the latter
adhering more tenaciously to the traditions of Mohammed.
The sect of Abu Hanîfa heretofore obtained chiefly in Irâk,6 but now
generally prevails among the Turks and Tartars: his doctrine was brought into
great credit by Abu Yûsof, chief justice under the Khalîfs al Hâdi and Harûn
al Rashîd.7
3 Vide Poc. Spec. p. 298. Prid. Life of Mahomet, p. 51, &c. Reland. de
Rel. Moh. p. 68, &c. Millium, de Mohammedismo ante Moh. p. 368, 369.
4 See before, p. 90. 1 Vide Poc. Spec. p. 293. 2 Ebn
Khalecân.
3 This was the true cause of his imprisonment and death, and not his
refusing to subscribe to the opinion of absolute predestination, as D'Herbelot
writes (Bibl. Orient. p. 21), misled by the dubious acceptation of the word
"kadâ," which signifies not only GOD'S decree in particular, but also the
giving sentence as a judge in general; nor could Abu Hanîfa have been reckoned
orthodox had he denied one of the principal articles of faith. 4
Poc. Spec. p. 297, 298. 5 Al Shahrestani, ibid.
6 Idem. 7 Vide D'Herbel. Bibl. Orient. p. 21 and 22.
The second orthodox sect is that of Mâlec Ebn Ans, who was born at Medina,
in the year of the Hejra 90, 93, 94,8 or 95,9 and died there in 177,10 178,11 or
17912 (for so much do authors differ). This doctor is said to have paid great
regard to the traditions of Mohammed.13 In his last illness, a friend going
to visit him found him in tears, and asking him the reason of it, he answered,
"How should I not weep? and who has more reason to weep than I? Would to GOD
that for every question decided by me according to my own opinion, I had
received so many stripes! then would my accounts be easier. Would to GOD I
had never given any decision of my own!"1 Al Ghazâli thinks it a sufficient
proof of Malec's directing his knowledge to the glory of GOD, that being once
asked his opinion as to forty-eight questions, his answer to thirty-two of
them was, that he did not know; it being no easy matter for one who has any
other view than God's glory to make so frank a confession of his ignorance.2
The doctrine of Malec is chiefly followed in Barbary and other parts of
Africa.
The author of the third orthodox sect was Mohammed Ebn Edrîs al Shâfeï,
born either at Gaza or Ascalon, in Palestine, in the year of the Hejra 150,
the same day (as some will have it) that Abu Hanîfa died, and was carried to
Mecca at two years of age, and there educated.3 He died in 204,4 in Egypt,
whither he went about five years before.5 This doctor is celebrated for his
excellency in all parts of learning, and was much esteemed by Ebn Hanbal his
contemporary, who used to say that "he was as the sun to the world, and as
health to the body." Ebn Hanbal, however, had so ill an opinion of al Shâfeï
at first, that he forbad his scholars to go near him; but some time after one
of them, meeting his master trudging on foot after al Shâfeï, who rode on a
mule, asked him how it came about that he forbad them to follow him, and did
it himself? to which Ebn Hanbal replied, "Hold thy peace; if thou but attend
his mule thou wilt profit thereby."6
Al Shâfeï is said to have been the first who discoursed of jurisprudence,
and reduced that science into a method;7 one wittily saying, that the relators
of the traditions of Mohammed were asleep till al Shâfeï came and waked them.8
He was a great enemy to the scholastic divines, as has been already observed.9
Al Ghazâli tells us that al Shâfeï used to divide the night into three parts,
one for study, another for prayer, and the third for sleep. It is also
related of him that he never so much as once swore by GOD, either to confirm a
truth, or to affirm a falsehood; and that being once asked his opinion, he
remained silent for some time, and when the reason of his silence was
demanded, he answered, "I am considering first whether it be better to speak
or to hold my tongue." The following saying is also recorded of him, viz.,
"Whoever pretends to love the world and its Creator at the same time, is a
liar."1 The followers of this doctor are from him called Shâfeïtes, and were
formerly spread into Mâwara'lnahr and other parts eastward, but are now
chiefly of Arabia and Persia.
8 Abulfeda. 9 Ebn Khalecân. 10 Idem. 11
Abulfeda. 12 Elmacinus, p. 114. 13 Ebn Khalec. Vide Poc.
Spec. p. 294. 1 Idem, apud eund. ibid. 2 Al Ghazâli, ibid.
3 Ebn Khalecân. 4 Yet Abulfeda says he lived fifty-eight years.
5 Ebn Khalecân.
6 Idem. 7 Idem. 8 Al Záfarâni, apud Poc. Spec. p. 296.
9 See before, p. 118.
1 Vide Poc. Spec. 295-297.
Ahmed Ebn Hanbal, the founder of the fourth sect, was born in the year of
the Hejra 164; but as to the place of his birth there are two traditions: some
say he was born at Merû in Khorasân, of which city his parents were, and that
his mother brought him from thence to Baghdâd at her breast; while others
assure us that she was with child of him when she came to Baghdâd, and that he
was born there.2 Ebn Hanbal in process of time attained a great reputation on
account of his virtue and knowledge; being so well versed in the traditions of
Mohammed, in particular, that it is said he could repeat no less than a
million of them.3 He was very intimate with al Shâfeï, from whom he received
most of his traditionary knowledge, being his constant attendant till his
departure for Egypt.4 Refusing to acknowledge the Korân to be created,5 he
was, by order of the Khalîf al Mótasem, severely scourged and imprisoned.6
Ebn Hanbal died at Baghdâd, in the year 241, and was followed to his grave by
eight hundred thousand men, and sixty thousand women. It is relate, as
something very extraordinary, if not miraculous, that on the day of his death
no less than twenty thousand Christians, Jews, and Magians, embraced the
Mohammedan faith.7 This sect increased so fast, and became so powerful and
bold, that in the year 323, in the Khalîfat of al Râdi, they raised a great
commotion in Baghdâd, entering people's houses, and spilling their wine, if
they found any, and beating the singing-women they met with, and breaking
their instruments; and a severe edict was published against them, before they
could be reduced to their duty:8 but the Hanbalites at present are not very
numerous, few of them being to be met with out of the limits of Arabia.
The heretical sects among the Mohammedans are those which hold heterodox
opinions in fundamental, or matters of faith.
The first controversies relating to fundamentals began when most of the
companions of Mohammed were dead:9 for in their days was no dispute, unless
about things of small moment, if we except only the dissensions concerning the
Imâms, or rightful successors of their prophet, which were stirred up and
fomented by interest and ambition; the Arabs' continual employment in the
wars, during that time, allowing them little or no leisure to enter into nice
inquiries and subtle distinctions: but no sooner was the ardour of conquest a
little abated than they began to examine the Korân more nearly; whereupon
differences in opinion became unavoidable, and at length so greatly
multiplied, that the number of their sects, according to the common opinion,
are seventy-three. For the Mohammedans seem ambitious that their religion
should exceed others even in this respect; saying, that the Magians are
divided into seventy sects, the Jews into seventy-one, the Christians into
seventy-two, and the Moslems into seventy-three, as Mohammed had foretold;1 of
which sects they reckon one to be always orthodox, and entitled to salvation.2
The first heresy was that of the Khârejites, who revolted from Ali in the
thirty-seventh year of the Hejra; and not long after, Mábad a.
2 Ebn Khalecân. 3 Idem. 4 Idem.
5 See before, Sect. III. p. 53, &c.
6 Ebn Khalecân, Abulfarag, Hist. Dyn. p. 252, &c. 7 Ebn Khalecân.
8 Abulfar. ubi sup. p. 301, &c.
9 Al Shahrestani, apud Poc. Spec. p. 194. Auctor Sharh al Mawâkef, apud
eund. p. 210. 1 Vide Poc. ibid.
2 Al Shahrestani, apud eund. p. 211.
Johni, Ghailân of Damascus, and Jonas al Aswâri broached heterodox opinions
concerning predestination, and the ascribing of good and evil unto GOD; whose
opinions were followed by Wâsel Ebn Atâ.3 This latter was the scholar of
Hasan of Basra, in whose school a question being proposed, whether he who had
committed a grievous sin was to be deemed an infidel or not, the Khârejites
(who used to come and dispute there) maintaining the affirmative, and the
orthodox the negative, Wâsel, without waiting his master's decision, withdrew
abruptly, and began to publish among his fellow-scholars a new opinion of his
own, to wit, that such a sinner was in a middle state; and he was thereupon
expelled the school; he and his followers being thenceforth called
Mótazalites, or Separatists.4
The several sects which have arisen since this time are variously
compounded and decompounded of the opinions of four chief sects, the
Mótazalites, the Sefâtians, the Khârejites, and the Shiites.5
I. The Mótazalites were the followers of the before-mentioned Wâsel Ebn
Atâ. As to their chief and general tenets, I. They entirely rejected all
eternal attributes of GOD, to avoid the distinction of persons made by the
Christians; saying that eternity is the proper or formal attribute of his
essence; that GOD knows by his essence, and not by his knowledge;1 and the
same they affirmed of his other attributes2 (though all the Mótazalites do not
understand these words in one sense); and hence this sect were also named
Moattatlites, from their divesting GOD of his attributes:3 and they went so
far as to say, that to affirm these attributes is the same thing as to make
more eternals than one, and that the unity of GOD is inconsistent with such an
opinion;4 and this was the true doctrine of Wâsel their master, who declared
that whoever asserted an eternal attribute, asserted there were two GODS.5
This point of speculation concerning the divine attributes was not ripe at
first, but was at length brought to maturity by Wâsel's followers, after they
had read the books of the philosophers.6 2. They believed the word of GOD to
have been created in subjecto (as the schoolmen term it), and to consist of
letters and sound; copies thereof being written in books to express or imitate
the original. They also went farther, and affirmed that whatever is created
in subjecto is also an accident, and liable to perish.7 3. They denied
absolute predestination, holding that GOD was not the author of evil, but of
good only; and that man was a free agent:8 which being properly the opinion of
the Kadarians, we defer what may be farther said thereof till we come to speak
of that sect. On account of this tenet and the first, the Móta-
3 Idem, and Auctor Sharh al Mawâkef, ubi sup. 4 Idem, ibid. p.
211, 212, and Ebu Khalecân, in Vita Waseli.
5 Al Shahrestani, who also reduces them to four chief sects, puts the
Kadarians in the place of the Mótazalites. Abulfaragius (Hist. Dyn. p. 166)
reckons six principal sects, adding the Jabarians and the Morgians; and the
author of Sharh al Mawâkef eight, viz., the Mótazalites, the Shiites, the
Khârejites, the Morgians, the Najarians, the Jabarians, the Moshabbehites, and
the sect which he calls al Nâjia, because that alone will be saved, being
according to him the sect of the Asharians. Vide Poc. Spec. p. 209.
1 Maimonides teaches the same, not as the doctrine of the Mótazalites, but
his own. Vide More Nev. l. I, c. 57. 2 Al Shahrestani, apud Poc.
Spec. p. 214. Abulfarag, p. 167. 3 Vide Poc. Spec. 224. 4
Sharh al Mawâkef, and al Shahrest. apud Poc. p. 216. Maimonides (in Proleg ad
Pirke Aboth. § 8) asserts the same thing. 5 Vide Poc. ibid.
6 Al Shahrest. ibid. p. 215. 7 Abulfarag, and al Shahrest. ubi sup. p.
217. See before, Sect. III, p. 112
8 Vide Poc. Spec. p. 240.
zalites look on themselves as the defenders of the unity and justice of GOD.9
4. They held that if a professor of the true religion be guilty of a grievous
sin, and die without repentance, he will be eternally damned, though his
punishment will be lighter than that of the infidels.10 5. They denied all
vision of GOD in paradise by the corporeal eye, and rejected all comparisons
or similitudes applied to GOD.11
This sect are said to have been the first inventors of scholastic
divinity,11 and are subdivided into several inferior sects, amounting, as some
reckon, to twenty, which mutually brand one another with infidelity:13 the
most remarkable of them are:-
I. The Hodeilians, or followers of Hamdân Abu Hodeil, a Mótazalite doctor,
who differed something from the common form of expression used by this sect,
saying that GOD knew by his knowledge, but that his knowledge was his essence;
and so of the other attributes: which opinion he took from the philosophers,
who affirm the essence of GOD to be simple and without multiplicity, and that
his attributes are not posterior or accessory to his essence, or subsisting
therein, but are his essence itself: and this the more orthodox take to be
next kin to making distinctions in the deity, which is the thing they so much
abhor in the Christians.1 As to the Korân's being created, he made some
distinction; holding the word of GOD to be partly not in subjecto (and
therefore uncreated), as when he spake the word Kûn, i.e., Fiat, at the
creation, and partly in subjecto, as the precepts, prohibitions, &c.2
Marracci3 mentions an opinion of Abu Hodeil's concerning predestination, from
an Arab writer,4 which being by him expressed in a manner not very
intelligible, I choose to omit.
2. The Jobbâïans, or followers of Abu Ali Mohammed Ebn Abd al Wahhâb,
surnamed al Jobbâï, whose meaning when he made use of the common expression of
the Mótazalites, that "GOD knows by his essence," &c., was, that GOD'S being
knowing is not an attribute, the same with knowledge, nor such a state as
rendered his being knowing necessary.5 He held GOD'S word to be created in
subjecto, as in the preserved table, for example, the memory of Gabriel,
Mohammed, &c.6 This sect, if Marracci has given the true sense of his author,
denied that GOD could be seen in paradise without the assistance of corporeal
eyes; and held that man produced his acts by a power superadded to health of
body and soundness of limbs; that he who was guilty of a mortal sin was
neither a believer nor an infidel, but a transgressor (which was the original
opinion of Wâsel), and if he died in his sins, would be doomed to hell for
eternity; and that GOD conceals nothing of whatever he knows from his
servants.7
3. The Hashemians, who were so named from their master Abu Hâshem Abd al
Salâm, the son of Abu Ali al Jabbâï, and whose tenets nearly agreed with those
of the preceding sect.8 Abu Hâshem took the Mótazalite form of expression,
that "GOD knows by his essence," in a different sense from others, supposing
it to mean that GOD hath or
9 Al Shahrest. and Sharh al Mawâkef. apud Poc, ubi sup. p. 214.
10 Marracc. Prodr. ad ref. Alcor. part iii. p. 74.
11 Idem, ibid. 12 Vide Poc. Spec. p. 213, and D'Herbel. Art.
Motazelah. 13 Auctor al Mawâkef, apud Poc. ibid. 1 Al
Shahrestani, apud Poc. p. 215, 216, 217. 2 Idem, apud eund. p. 217,
&c.
3 In Prodr. part iii. p. 74. 4 Al Shahrest. 5 Idem, apud Poc.
Spec. p. 215. 6 Idem, and Auctor al Mawâkef, ibid. p. 218.
7 Marracci, ubi sup. p. 75, ex al Shahrest. 8 Vide eund.
ibid.
is endued with a disposition, which is a known property, or quality, posterior
or accessory to his existence.1 His followers were so much afraid of making
GOD the author of evil that they would not allow him to be said to create an
infidel; because, according to their way of arguing, an infidel is a compound
of infidelity and man, and GOD is not the creator of infidelity.2 Abu Hâshem,
and his father Abu Ali al Jobbâï, were both celebrated for their skill in
scholastic divinity.3
4. The Nodhâmians, or followers of Ibrahim al Nodhâm, who having read
books of philosophy, set up a new sect, and imagining he could not
sufficiently remove GOD from being the author of evil, without divesting him
of his power in respect thereto, taught that no power ought to be ascribed to
GOD concerning evil and rebellious actions: but this he affirmed against the
opinion of his own disciples, who allowed that GOD could do evil, but did not,
because of its turpitude.4 Of his opinion as to the Korân's being created we
have spoken elsewhere.5
5. The Hâyetians, so named from Ahmed Ebn Hâyet, who had been of the sect
of the Nodhâmians, but broached some new notions on reading the philosophers.
His peculiar opinions were-I. That Christ was the eternal Word incarnate, and
took a true and real body, and will judge all creatures in the life to come:6
he also farther asserted that there are two GODS or Creators-the one eternal,
viz., the most high GOD, and the other not eternal, viz., Christ7-which
opinion, though Dr. Pocock urges the same as an argument that he did not
rightly understand the Christian mysteries8 is not much different from that of
the Arians and Socinians. 2. That there is successive transmigration of the
soul from one body into another; and that the last body will enjoy the reward
or suffer the punishment due to each soul:9 and, 3. That GOD will be seen at
the resurrection, not with the bodily eyes, but those of the understanding.10
6. The Jâhedhians, or followers of Amru Ebn Bahr, surnamed al Jâhedh, a
great doctor of the Mótazalites, and very much admired for the elegance of his
composures;11 who differed from his brethren in that he imagined the damned
would not be eternally tormented in hell, but would be changed into the nature
of fire, and that the fire would of itself attract them, without any necessity
of their going into it.1 He also taught that if a man believed GOD to be his
Lord, and Mohammed the apostle of GOD, he became one of the faithful, and was
obliged to nothing farther.2 His peculiar opinion as to the Korân has been
taken notice of before.3
7. The Mozdârians, who embraced the opinions of Isa Ebn Sobeih al Mozdâr,
and those very absurd ones: for, besides his notions relating to the Korân,4
he went so directly counter to the opinion of those who abridged GOD of the
power to do evil, that he affirmed it possible for GOD to be a liar and
unjust.5 He also pronounced him to
1 Al Shahrest. apud Poc. p. 215. 2 Idem, ibid. p. 242.
3 Ebn Khalecân, in Vitis Eorum.
4 Al Shahrest. ubi sup. p. 241, 242. Vide Marracc. Prod. part iii. p. 74.
5 See before, Sect. III. p. 53.
6 Al Shahrest. ubi sup. p. 218. Abulfarag, p. 167. 7 Al Shahrest. al
Mawâkef, et Ebn Kossá, apud Poc. ubi sub. p. 219.
8 Vide Poc. ibid 9 Marracc. et al Shahrest. ubi sup. 10
Marracc. ibid. p. 75.
11 Vide D'Herbel. Bibl. Orient. Art. Giahedh. 1 Al Shahrest. ubi sup.
p. 260. 2 Marracc. ubi sup.
3 Sect. III. p. 53. 4 Vide ibid. and p. 52. 5 Al
Shahrest. apud Poc. p. 241.
be an infidel who thrust himself into the supreme government:6 nay, he went so
far as to assert men to be infidels while they said "There is no GOD but GOD,"
and even condemned all the rest of mankind as guilty of infidelity; upon which
Ibrahim Ebn al Sendi asked him whether paradise, whose breadth equals that of
heaven and earth, was created only for him and two or three more who thought
as he did? to which it is said he could return no answer.7
8. The Basharians, who maintained the tenets of Bashar Ebn Mótamer, the
master of al Mozdâr,8 and a principal man among the Mótazalites. He differed
in some things from the general opinion of that sect, carrying man's free
agency to a great excess, making it even independent: and yet he thought God
might doom an infant to eternal punishment, but granted he would be unjust in
so doing. He taught that God is not always obliged to do that which is best,
for, if he pleased, he could make all men true believers. These sectaries
also held that if a man repent of a mortal sin, and afterwards return to it,
he will be liable to suffer the punishment due to the former transgression.9
9. The Thamamians, who follow Thamâma Ebn Bashar, a chief Mótazalite.
Their peculiar opinions were-I. That sinners should remain in hell for ever.
2. That free actions have no producing author. 3. That at the resurrection
all infidels, idolaters, atheists, Jews, Christians, Magians, and heretics
shall be reduced to dust.10
10. The Kadarians, which is really a more ancient name than that of
Mótazalites, Mábad al Johni and his adherents being so called, who disputed
the doctrine of predestination before Wâsel quitted his master:1 for which
reason some use the denomination of Kadarians as more extensive than the
other, and comprehend all the Mótazalites under it.2 This sect deny absolute
predestination, saying that evil and injustice ought not to be attributed to
GOD, but to man, who is a free agent, and may therefore be rewarded or
punished for his actions, which GOD has granted him power either to do or to
be let alone.3 And hence it is said they are called Kadarians, because they
deny al Kadr, or GOD'S absolute decree; though others, thinking it not so
proper to come from Kadr, or Kodrat, i.e., power, because they assert man's
power to act freely.4 Those, however, who give the name of Kadarians to the
Mótazalites are their enemies, for they disclaim it, and give it to their
antagonists the Jabarians, who likewise refuse it as an infamous appellation,5
because Mohammed is said to have declared the Kadarians to be the Magians of
his followers.6 But what the opinion of these Kadarians in Mohammed's time
was, is very uncertain: the Mótazalites say the name belongs to those who
assert predestination, and make GOD the author of good and evil,7 viz., the
Jabarians; but all the other Mohammedan sects agree to fix it on the
Mótazalites, who, they say, are like the Magians in establishing two
principles, light, or GOD, the author of good; and darkness, or the devil, the
author of evil: but this cannot absolutely be said of the Mótazalites,
6 Marracc. ubi sup. p. 75. 7 Al Shahrest. ubi sup. p. 220.
8 Poc. Spec. p. 221 9 Marracc. ubi sup.
10 Idem, ibid. 1 Al Shahrest. 2 Al Firauzab. Vide Poc.
Spec. p. 231, 232, and 214.
3 Al Shahrest. Vide Poc. Spec. p. 235 and 240, &c. 4 Vide Poc. ibid.
p. 238. 5 Al Motarrezi, al Shahrest. Vide ibid. p. 232.
6 Idem, &c. ibid. 7 Idem, ibid.
for they (at least the generality of them) ascribe men's good deeds to GOD,
but their evil deeds to themselves; meaning thereby that man has a free
liberty and power to do either good or evil, and is master of his actions; and
for this reason it is that the other Mohammedans call them Magians, because
they assert another author of actions besides GOD.8 And, indeed, it is a
difficult matter to say what Mohammed's own opinion was in this matter; for on
the one side the Korân itself is pretty plain for absolute predestination, and
many sayings of Mohammed are recorded to that purpose,9 and one in particular,
wherein he introduces Adam and Moses disputing before GOD in this manner:
"Thou," says Moses, "art Adam; whom GOD created, and animated with the breath
of life, and caused to be worshipped by the angels, and placed in paradise,
from whence mankind have been expelled for thy fault:" whereto Adam answered,
"Thou art Moses; whom GOD chose for his apostle, and entrusted with his word,
by giving thee the tables of the law, and whom he vouchsafed to admit to
discourse with himself: how many years dost thou find the law was written
before I was created?" Says Moses, "Forty." "And dost thou not find," replied
Adam, "these words therein: 'And Adam rebelled against his Lord and
transgressed'?" which Moses confessing, "Dost thou therefore blame me,"
continued he, "for doing that which GOD wrote of me that I should do forty
years before I was created? nay, for what was decreed concerning me fifty
thousand years before the creation of heaven and earth?" In the conclusion of
which dispute Mohammed declared that Adam had the better of Moses.1 On the
other side, it is urged in the behalf of the Mótazalites, that Mohammed
declaring that the Kadarians and Morgians had been cursed by the tongues of
seventy prophets, and being asked who the Kadarians were, answered, "Those who
assert that GOD predestinated them to be guilty of rebellion, and yet punishes
them for it:" al Hasan is also said to have declared, that GOD sent Mohammed
to the Arabs while they were Kadarians, or Jabarians, and laid their sins upon
GOD: and to confirm the matter, this sentence of the Korân is quoted:2 "When
they commit a filthy action, they say, We found our fathers practising the
same, and GOD hath commanded us so to do: Say, Verily GOD commandeth not
filthy actions."3
11. The Sefâtians held the opposite opinion to the Mótazalites in respect
to the eternal attributes of GOD, which they affirmed; making no distinction
between the essential attributes and those of operation: and hence they were
named Sefâtians, or Attributists. Their doctrine was that of the first
Mohammedans, who were not yet acquainted with these nice distinctions: but
this sect afterwards introduced another species of declarative attributes, or
such as were necessarily used in historical narration, as hands, face, eyes,
&c., which they did not offer to explain, but contented themselves with saying
they were in the law, and that they called them declarative attributes.4
However, at length, by giving various explications and interpretations of
these attributes they divided into many different opinions: some, by taking
the words
8 Vide Poc. ibid. p. 233, &c. 9 Vide ibid. p. 237. 1 Ebn
al Athîr, al Bokhari, apud Poc. p. 236.
2 Cap. 7, p. 107. 3 Al Motarrezi, apud eund. p. 237, 238.
4 Al Shahrest. apud Poc. Spec. p. 223.
in the literal sense, fell into the notion of a likeness or similitude between
GOD and created beings; to which it is said the karaïtes among the Jews, who
are for the literal interpretation of Moses's law, had shown them the way:5
others explained them in another manner, saying that no creature was like GOD,
but that they neither understood nor thought i necessary to explain the
precise signification of the words which seem to affirm the same of both; it
being sufficient to believe that GOD hath no companion or similitude. Of this
opinion was Malec Ebn Ans, who declared as to the expression of GOD'S sitting
on his throne, in particular, that though the meaning is known, yet the manner
is unknown; and that it is necessary to believe it, but heresy to make any
questions about it.1
The sects of the Sefâtians are:
I. The Ashárians, the followers of Abu'l Hasan al Ashári, who was first a
Mótazalite, and the scholar of Abu Ali al Jobbâï, but disagreeing from his
master in opinion as to GOD'S being bound (as the Mótazalites assert) to do
always that which is best or most expedient, left him, and set up a new sect
of himself. The occasion of this difference was the putting a case concerning
three brothers, the first of whom lived in obedience to GOD, the second in
rebellion against him, and the third died an infant. Al Jobbâi being asked
what he thought would become of them, answered, that the first would be
rewarded in paradise, the second punished in hell, and the third neither
rewarded nor punished: "But what," objected al Ashári, "if the third say, O
LORD, if thou hadst given me longer life, that I might have entered paradise
with my believing brother, it would have been better for me?" to which al
Jobbâï replied, "That GOD would answer, I knew that if thou hadst lived
longer, thou wouldst have been a wicked person, and therefore cast into hell."
"Then," retorted al Ashári, "the second will say, O LORD, why didst thou not
take me away while I was an infant, as thou didst my brother, that I might not
have deserved to be punished for my sins, nor to be cast into hell?" To which
al Jobbâï could return no other answer than that GOD prolonged his life to
give him an opportunity of obtaining the highest degree of perfection, which
was best for him: but al Ashári demanding farther, why he did not for the same
reason grant the other a longer life, to whom it would have been equally
advantageous, al Jobbâï was so put to it, that he asked whether the devil
possessed him? "No," says al Ashári, "but the master's ass will not pass the
bridge;"2 i.e., he is posed.
The opinions of the Ashárians were-I. That they allowed the attributes of
GOD to be distinct from his essence, yet so as to forbid any comparison to be
made between GOD and his creatures.3 This was also the opinion of Ahmed Ebn
Hanbal, and David al Ispahâni, and others, who herein followed Malec Ebn Ans,
and were so cautious of any assimilation of GOD to created beings, that they
declared whoever moved his hand while he read these words, "I have created
with my hand," or "stretched forth his finger," in repeating this saying of
Mohammed, "The heart of the believer is between two fingers of the
5 Vide Poc. ibid. p. 224. 1 Vide eund. ibid. 2 Auctor al
Mawâkef, et al Safadi, apud Poc. ubi sup. p. 230, &c. Ebn Khalec. in Vita al
Jabbâï. 3 Al Shahrest. apud Poc. Spec. p. 230.
Merciful," ought to have his hand and finger cut off;1 and the reasons they
gave for not explaining any such words were, that it is forbidden in the
Korân, and that such explications were necessarily founded on conjecture and
opinion, from which no man ought to speak of the attributes of GOD, because
the words of the Korân might by that means come to be understood differently
form the author's meaning: nay, some have been so superstitiously scrupulous
in this matter as not to allow the words hand, face, and the like, when they
occur in the Korân, to be rendered into Persian or any other language, but
require them to be read in the very original words, and this they call the
safe way.2 2. As to predestination, they held that GOD hath one eternal will
which is applied to whatsoever he willeth, both of his own actions and, those
of men, so far as they are created by him, but not as they are acquired or
gained by them; that he willeth both their good and their evil, their profit
and their hurt, and as he willeth and knoweth, he willeth concerning men that
which he knoweth, and hath commanded the pen to write the same in the
preserved table: and this is his decree, and eternal immutable counsel and
purpose.3 They also went so far as to say, that it may be agreeable to the
way of GOD that man should be commanded what he is not able to perform.4 But
while they allow man some power, they seem to restrain it to such a power as
cannot produce anything new; only GOD, say they, so orders his providence that
he creates, after, or under, and together with every created or new power, an
action which is ready whenever a man will sit, and sets about it: and this
action is called Casb, i.e., Acquisition, being in respect to its creation,
from GOD, but in respect to its being produced, employed, and acquired, from
man.5 And this being generally esteemed the orthodox opinion, it may not be
improper farther to explain the same in the words of some other writers. The
elective actions of men, says one, fall under the power of GOD alone; nor is
their own power effectual thereto; but GOD causeth to exist in man power and
choice; and if there be no impediment, he causeth his action to exist also,
subject to his power, and joined with that and his choice; which action, as
created, is to be ascribed to GOD, but as produced, employed, or acquired, to
man. So that by the acquisition of an action is properly meant a man's
joining or connecting the same with his power and will, yet allowing herein no
impression or influence on the existence thereof, save only that it is subject
to his power.1 Others, however, who are also on the side of al Ashári, and
reputed orthodox, explain the matter in a different manner, and grant the
impression or influence of the created power of man on his action, and that
this power is what is called Acquisition.2 But the point will be still
clearer if we hear a third author, who rehearses the various opinions, or
explications of the opinion of this sect, in the following words, viz.: Abu'l
Hasan al Ashári asserts all the actions of men to be subject to the power of
GOD, being created by him, and that the power of man hath no influence at all
on that which he is empowered to do; but that both the power, and what is
subject thereto, fall under the power of GOD:
1 Idem, apud eund. p. 228, &c. 2 Vide Poc. ibid.
3 Al Shahrest. apud eund. p. 245, &c.
4 Idem, ibid. p. 246. 5 Al Shahrest. apud Poc. p. 245, &c.
1 Auctor Sharh al Mawâkef, apud eund. p. 247.
2 Al Shahrest. ibid. p. 248.
al Kâdi Abu Becr says that the essence or substance of the action is the
effect of the power of GOD, but its being either an action of obedience, as
prayer, or an action of disobedience, as fornication, are qualities of the
action, which proceed from the power of man: Abd'almalec, known by the title
of Imâm al Haramein, Abu'l Hosein of Basra, and other learned men, held that
the actions of men are effected by the power which GOD hath created in man,
and that GOD causeth to exist in man both power and will, and that this power
and will do necessarily produce that which man is empowered to do: and Abu
Ishâk al Isfarâyeni taught that that which maketh impression, or hath
influence on an action, is a compound of the power of GOD and the power of
man.3 The same author observes that their ancestors, perceiving a manifest
difference between those things which are the effects of the election of man
and those things which are the necessary effects of inanimate agents,
destitute both of knowledge and choice, and being at the same time pressed by
the arguments which prove that GOD is the Creator of all things, and
consequently of those things which are done by men, to conciliate the matter,
chose the middle way, asserting actions to proceed from the power of GOD, and
the acquisition of man; GOD'S way of dealing with his servants being, that
when man intendeth obedience, GOD createth in him an action of obedience, and
when he intendeth disobedience, he createth in him an action of disobedience;
so that man seemeth to be the effective producer of his action, though he
really be not.1 But this, proceeds the same writer, is again pressed with its
difficulties, because the very intention of the mind is the work of GOD, so
that no oman hath any share in the production of his own actions; for which
reason the ancients disapproved of too nice an inquiry into this point, the
end of the dispute concerning the same being, for the most part, either the
taking away of all precepts positive as well as negative, or else the
associating of a companion with GOD, by introducing some other independent
agent besides him. Those, therefore, who would speak more accurately, use
this form: there is neither compulsion nor free liberty, but the way lies
between the two; the power and will in man being both created by GOD, though
the merit or guilt be imputed unto man. Yet, after all, it is judged the
safest way to follow the steps of the primitive Moslems, and, avoiding subtle
disputations and too curious inquiries, to leave the knowledge of this matter
wholly unto GOD.2 3. As to mortal sin, the Ashárians
3 Auctor Sharh al Tawâlea, apud eund. ibid. p. 248, &c. 1 Idem,
ibid. p. 249, 250.
2 Idem, ibid. p. 250, 251. I trust the reader will not be offended if, as
a farther illustration of what has been said on this subject (in producing of
which I have purposely kept to the original Mohammedan expressions) I
transcribe a passage or two from a postscript subjoined to the epistle I have
quoted above (§4, p. 85), in which the point of free will is treated ex
professo. Therein the Moorish author, having mentioned the two opposite
opinions of the Kadarians, who allow free will, and the Jabarians, who make
man a necessary agent (the former of which opinions, he says, seems to
approach nearest to that of the greater part of Christians and of the Jews),
declares the true opinion to be that of the Sonnites, who assert that man hath
power and will to choose good and evil, and can moreover know he shall be
rewarded if he do well, and shall be punished if he do ill; but that he
depends, notwithstanding, on GOD'S power, and shall be punished if he do ill;
but that he depends, notwithstanding, on GOD'S power, and willeth, if GOD
willeth, but not otherwise. Then he proceeds briefly to refute the two
extreme opinions, and first to prove that of the Kadarians, though it be
agreeable to GOD'S justice, inconsistent with his attributes of wisdom and
power: "Sapientia enim Dei," says he, "comprehendit quicquid fuit et futurum
est ab æternitate in finem usque mundi et postea. Et ita novit ab æterno
omnia opera creaturarum, sive bona, sive mala, quæ fuerint creata cum potentia
Dei, et ejus libera et determinate voluntate, sicut ipsi visum fuit. Denique
novit eum qui futurus
taught, that if a believer guilty of such sin die without repentance, his
sentence is to be left with GOD, whether he pardon him out of mercy, or
whether the prophet intercede for him (according to that saying recorded of
him, "My intercession shall be employed for those among my people who shall
have been guilty of grievous crimes"), or whether he punish him in proportion
to his demerit, and afterwards, through his mercy, admit him into paradise:
but that it is not to be supposed he will remain for ever in hell with the
infidels, seeing it is declared that whoever shall have faith in his heart but
of the weight of an ant, shall be delivered from hell fire.1 And this is
generally received for the orthodox doctrine in this point, and is
diametrically opposite to that of the Mótazalites.
These were the more rational Sefâtians, but the ignorant part of them, not
knowing how otherwise to explain the expressions of the Korân relating to the
declarative attributes, fell into most gross and
erat malus, et tamen creavit: neque negari potest quin, si ipsi libuisset,
potuisset omnes creare bonos: placuit tamen Deo creare bonos et malos, cùm Deo
soli sit absoluta et libera voluntas, et perfecta electio, et non homini. Ita
enim Salomon in suis proverbiis dixit. Vitam et mortem, bonum et malum,
divitias et paupertatem, esse et venire à Deo. Christiani etiam dicunt S.
Paulum dixisse in suis epistolis; Dicet etiam lutum figulo, quare facis unum
vas ad honorem, et aliud vas ad contumeliam? Cum igitur miser homo fuerit
creatus à voluntate Dei et potentia, nihil aliud potest tribui ipsi quàm ipse
sensus cognoscendi et sentiendi an bene vel male faciat. Quæ unica causa (id
est, sensus cognoscendi) erit ejus gloriæ vel ponæ causa: per talem enim
sensum novit quid boni vel mali adversus Dei præcepta fecerit." The opinion
of the Jabarians, on the other hand, he rejects as contrary to man's
consciousness of his own power and choice, and inconsistent with GOD'S
justice, and his having given mankind laws, to the observing or transgressing
of which he was annexed rewards and punishments. After this he proceeds to
explain the third opinion in the following words: "Tertia opinio Zunis (i.e.,
Sonnitarum) quæ vera est, affirmat homini potesttatem esse, sed limitatem à
sua causa, id est, dependentem à Dei potentia et voluntate, et proper illam
cognitionem qua deliberat benè vel malè facere, esse dignum pona vel præmio.
Manifestum est in æternitate non fuisse aliam potentiam præter Dei nostri
omnipotentis, e cujus potentia pendebant omnia possibilia, id est, quæ
poterant esse, cum ab ipso fuerint creata. Sapientia verò Dei novit etiam quæ
non sunt futura; et potentia ejus, etsi non creaverit ea, potuit tamen, si ita
Deo placuisset. Ita novit sapientia Dei quæ erant impossibilia, id est, quæ
non poterant esse; quæ tamen nullo pacto pendent ab ejus potentia: ab ejus
enim potentia mulla pendent nisi possibilia.-Dicimus enim à Dei potentia non
pendere creare Deum alium ipsi similem, nec creare aliquid quod moveatur et
quiescat simul eodem tempore, cùm hæc sint ex impossibilibus: comprehendit
tamen suâ sapientiâ tale aliquid non pendere ab ejus potentiâ.-A potentiâ
igitur Dei pendet solùm quod potest esse, et possibile est esse; quæ semper
parata est dare esse possibilibus. Et si hoc penitus cognoscamus,cognoscemus
pariter omne quod est, seu futurum est, sive sint opera nostra, sive quidvis
aliud, pendere à sola potentia Dei. Et hoc non privatim intelligitur, sed in
genere de omni eo quod est et movetur, sive in colis sive in terrâ; et nec
aliquâ potentiâ potest impediri Dei potentia, cùm nulla alia potentia absoluta
sit, præter Dei; potentia verò nostra non est à se, nisi à Dei potentia: et
cum potentia nostra dicitur esse a causa sua, ideo dicimus potentiam nostram
esse straminis comparatam cum potentia Dei: eo enim modo quo stramen movetur à
motu maris, ita nostra potentia et voluntas à Dei potentia. Itaque Dei
potentia semper est parata etiam ad occidendum aliquem; ut si quis hominem
occidat, non dicimus potentiâ hominis id factum, sed æterna potentia Dei:
error enim est id tribuere potentiæ hominis. Potentia enim Dei, cùm semper
sit parata, et ante ipsum hominem, ad occidendum; si solâ hominis potentiâ id
factum esse diceremus, et moreretur, potentia sanè Dei (quæ antè erat) jam ibi
esset frustra: quia post mortem non potest potentia Dei eum iterum occidere;
ex quo sequeretur potentiam Dei impediri à potentia hominis, et potentiam
hominis anteire et antecellere potentiam Dei; quod est absurdum et
impossibile. Igitur Deus est qui operatur æternâ suâ potentiâ: si verò homini
injiciatur culpa, sive in tali homicidio, sive in aliis, hoc est quantùm ad
præcepta et legem. Homini tribuitur solùm opus externè, et ejus electio, quæ
est a voluntate ejus et potentia; non verò internè.-Hoc est punctum illud
indivisibile et secretum, quod à paucissimis capitur, ut sapientissimus Sidi
Abo Hamet Elgaceli (i.e., Dominus Abu Hâmed al Ghazâli) affirmat (cujus
spiritui Deus concedat gloriam, Amen!) Sequentibus verbis: Ita abditum et
profundum et abstrusum est intelligere punctum illud Liberi Arbitrii, ut neque
characteres ad scribendum, neque ullæ rationes ad exprimendum sufficiant, et
omnes, quotquot de hac re locuti sunt, hæserunt confusi in ripa tanti et tam
spaciosi maris."
1 Al Shahrest. apud Poc. Spec. p. 258.
absurd opinions, making GOD corporeal, and like created beings.2 Such were-
2. The Moshabbehites, or Assimilators; who allowed a resemblance between
GOD and his creatures,3 supposing him to be a figure composed of members or
parts, either spiritual or corporeal, and capable of local motion, of ascent
and descent, &c.1 Some of this sect inclined to the opinion of the Holûlians,
who believed that the divine nature might be united with the human in the same
person; for they granted it possible that GOD might appear in a human form, as
Gabriel did: and to confirm their opinion they allege Mohammed's words, that
he saw his LORD in a most beautiful form, and Moses talking with GOD face to
face.2 And
3. The Kerâmians, or followers of Mohammed Ebn Kerâm, called also
Mojassemians, or Corporalists; who not only admitted a resemblance between GOD
and created beings, but declared GOD to be corporeal.3 The more sober among
them, indeed, when they applied the word body to GOD, would be understood to
mean, that he is a self-subsisting being, which with them is the definition of
body: but yet some of them affirmed him to be finite, and circumscribed,
either on all sides, or on some only (as beneath, for example), according to
different opinions;4 and others allowed that he might be felt by the hand, and
seen by the eye. Nay, one David al Jawâri went so far as to say, that his
deity was body composed of flesh and blood, and that he had members, as
hands, feet, a head, a tongue, eyes, and ears; but that he was a body,
however, not like other bodies, neither was he like to any created being: he
is also said farther to have affirmed that from the crown of the head to the
breast he was hollow, and from the breast downward solid, and that he had
black curled hair.5 These most blasphemous and monstrous notions were the
consequence of the literal acceptation of those passages in the Korân which
figuratively attribute corporeal actions to GOD, and of the words of Mohammed,
when he said, that GOD created man in his own image, and that himself had felt
the fingers of GOD, which he laid on his back, to be cold: besides which, this
sect are charged with fathering on their prophet a great number of spurious
and forged traditions to support their opinion, the greater part whereof they
borrowed from the Jews, who are accused as naturally prone to assimilate GOD
to men, so that they describe him as weeping for Noah's flood till his eyes
were sore.6 and, indeed, though we grant the Jews may have imposed on
Mohammed and his followers in many instances, and told them as solemn truths
things which themselves believed not or had invented, yet many expressions of
this kind are to be found in their writings; as when they introduce GOD
roaring like a lion at every watch of the night, and crying, "Alas! that I
have laid waste my house, and suffered my temple to be burnt, and sent my
children into banishment among the heathen," &c.1
4. The jabarians-who are the direct opponents of the Kadarians-denying
free agency in man, and ascribing his actions wholly unto
2 Vide Poc. ibid. p. 255, &c. Abulfar. p. 167, &c. 3 Al
Mawâkef, apud Poc. ibid. 1 Al Shahrest. apud eund. ibid. p. 226.
2 Vide Marracc. Prodr. part iii. p. 76. 3 Al Shahrest. ubi sup.
4 Idem, ibid. p. 225.
5 Idem, ibid. p. 226, 227. 6 Idem, ibid. p. 227, 228. 1 Talm.
Berachoth, c. I. Vide Poc. ubi supra, p 228.
GOD.2 They take their denomination from al Jabr, which signifies necessity,
or compulsion; because they hold man to be necessarily and inevitably
constrained to act as he does, by force of GOD'S eternal and immutable
decree.3 This sect is distinguished into several species; some being more
rigid and extreme in their opinion, who are thence called pure Jabarians, and
others more moderate, who are therefore called middle Jabarians. The former
will not allow men to be said either to act, or to have any power at all,
either operative or acquiring; asserting that man can do nothing, but produces
all his actions by necessity, having neither power, nor will, nor choice, any
more than an inanimate agent: they also declare that rewarding and punishing
are also the effects of necessity; and the same they say of the imposing of
commands. This was the doctrine of the Jahmians, the followers of Jahm Ebn
Safwân, who likewise held that paradise and hell will vanish, or be
annihilated, after those who are destined thereto respectively shall have
entered them, so that at last there will remain no existing being besides
GOD;4 supposing those words of the Korân which declare that the inhabitants of
paradise and of hell shall remain therein for ever, to be hyperbolical only,
and intended for corroboration, and not to denote an eternal duration in
reality.5 The moderate Jabarians are those who ascribe some power to man, but
such a power as hath no influence on the action: for as to those who grant the
power of man to have a certain influence on the action, which influence is
called Acquisition, some6 will not admit them to be called Jabarians; though
others reckon those also to be called middle Jabarians, and to contend for the
middle opinion between absolute necessity and absolute liberty, who attribute
to man acquisition, or concurrence in producing the action, whereby he gaineth
commendation or blame (yet without admitting it to have any influence on the
action), and, therefore, make the Ashárians a branch of this sect.7 Having
again mentioned the term Acquisition, we may, perhaps, have a clearer idea of
what the Mohammedans mean thereby, when told, that it is defined to be an
action directed to the obtaining of profit, or the removing of hurt, and for
that reason never applied to any action of GOD, who acquireth to himself
neither profit nor hurt.1 Of the middle or moderate Jabarians were the
Najârians and the Derârians. The Najârians were the adherents of al Hasan Ebn
Mohammed al Najâr, who taught that GOD was he who created the actions of men,
both good and bad, and that man acquired them, and also that man's power had
an influence on the action, or a certain co-operation, which he called
acquisition; and herein he agreed with al Ashári.2 The Derârians were the
disciples of Derâr Ebn Amru, who held also that men's actions are really
created by GOD, and that man really acquired them.3 The Jabarians also say,
that GOD is absolute Lord of his creatures, and may deal with them according
to his own pleasure, without rendering account to any, and that if he should
admit all men, without distinction, into paradise, it would be no
impartiality, or if he should cast them all into hell it would
2 Vide Abulfarag, p. 168. 3 Al Shahrest. al Mawâkef, et Ebn al
Kossá, apud Poc. ibid. p. 238, &c. 4 Al Shahrest. al Motarezzi, et Ebn
al Kossá, apud eund. p. 239, 243, &c. 5 Idem, ibid. p. 260. 6 Al
Shahrest.
7 Ebn al Kossá, et al Mawâkef. 1 Ebn al Kossá apud Poc. ubi sup.
p. 240. 2 Al Shahrest. apud eund. p. 245.
3 Idem, ibid.
be no injustice.4 And in this particular, likewise, they agree with the
Ashárians, who assert the same,5 and say that reward is a favour from GOD, and
punishment a piece of justice; obedience being by them considered as a sign
only of future reward, and transgression as a sign of future punishment.6
5. The Morgians; who are said to be derived from the Jabarians.7 These
teach that the judgment of every true believer, who hath been guilty of a
grievous sin, will be deferred till the resurrection; for which reason they
pass no sentence on him in this world, either of absolution or condemnation.
They also hold that disobedience with faith hurteth not; and that, on the
other hand, obedience with infidelity profiteth not.1 As to the reason of
their name the learned differ, because of the different significations of its
root, each of which they accommodate to some opinion of the sect. Some think
them so called because they postpone works to intention, that is, esteem works
to be inferior in degree to intention and profession of the faith;2 others,
because they allow hope, by asserting that disobedience with faith hurteth
not, &c.; others take the reason of the name to be, their deferring the
sentence of the heinous sinner till the resurrection;3 and others, their
degrading of Ali, or removing him from the first degree to the fourth:4 for
the Morgians, in some points relating to the office of Imâm, agree with the
Khârejites, the Kadarians, or the Jabarians, are distinguished as Morgians of
those sects, and the fourth is that of the pure Morgians; which last species
is again subdivided into five others.5 The opinions of Mokâtel and Bashar,
both of a sect of the Morgians called Thaubanians, should not be omitted. The
former asserted that disobedience hurts not him who professes the unity of
GOD, and is endued with faith; and that no true believer shall be cast into
hell: he also taught that GOD will surely forgive all crimes besides
infidelity; and that a disobedient believer will be punished, at the day of
resurrection, on the bridge6 laid over the midst of hell, where the flames of
hell fire shall catch hold on him, and torment him in proportion to his
disobedience, and that he shall then be admitted into paradise.7 The latter
held that if GOD do cast the believers guilty of grievous sins into hell, yet
they will be delivered thence after they shall have been sufficiently
punished; but that it is neither possible nor consistent with justice that
4 Abulfarag, p. 168, &c. 5 Al Shahrestani, ubi sup. p. 252, &c.
6 Sharh al Tawâlea, ibid. To the same effect writes the Moorish author
quotes above, from whom I will venture to transcribe the following passage,
with which he concludes his Discourse on Freewill. "Intellectus ferè lumine
naturali novit Deum esse rectum judicem et justum, qui non aliter afficit
creaturam quàm juste: etiam Deum esse absolutum Dominum, et hanc orbis
machinam esse ejus, et ab eo creatam; Deum mullis debere rationem reddere, cùm
quicquid agat, agat jure proprio sibi: et ita absolute poterit afficere præmio
vel pona quem vult, cùm omnis creatura sit ejus, nec facit cuiquam injuriam,
etsi eam tormentis et ponis æternis afficiat: plus enim boni et commodi
accepit creatura quando accepit esse a suo creatore, quàm incommodi et damni
quando ab eo damnata est et affecta tormentis et ponis. Hoc autem
intelligitur si Deus absolute id faceret. Quando enim Deus, pietate et
misericordia motus, eligit aliquos ut ipsi serviant, Dominus Deus gratiâ suâ
id facit ex infinitâ bonitate; et quando aliquos derelingquit, et ponis et
tormentis afficit, ex justitia et rectitudine. Et tandem dicimù omnes ponas
esse justas quæ a Deo Veniunt, et nostrâ tantùm culpâ, et omnia bona esse à
pietate et misericordia ejus infinita." 7 Al Shahrest. ubi sup. p.
256. 1 Abulfar. p. 169.
2 Al Firauz. 3 Ebn al Athîr, al Motarrezi. 4 Al
Shahrest. ubi sup. p. 254, &c. 5 Idem, ibid. 6 See
before, Sect. IV. p. 71. 7 al Shahrest. ubi sup. p. 257.
they should remain therein for ever; which, as has been observed, was the
opinion of al Ashári.
III. The Khârejites are they who depart or revolt from the lawful prince
established by public consent; and thence comes their name, which signifies
revolters or rebels.8 The first who were so called were twelve thousand men
who revolted from Ali, after they had fought under him at the battle of
Seffein, taking offence at his submitting the decision of his right to the
Khalîfat, which Moâwiyah disputed with him, to arbitration, though they
themselves had first obliged him to it.1 These were also called Mohakkemites,
or Judiciarians; because the reason which they gave for their revolt was, that
Ali had referred a matter concerning the religion of GOD to the judgment of
men, whereas the judgment, in such case, belonged only unto GOD.2 The heresy
of the Khârejites consisted chiefly in two things. I. In that they affirmed
a man might be promoted to the dignity of the Imâm, or prince, though he was
not of the tribe of Koreish, nor even a freeman, provided he was a just and
pious person, and endued with the other requisite qualifications; and also
held that if the Imâm turned aside from the truth, he might be put to death or
deposed; and that there was no absolute necessity for any Imâm at all in the
world. 2. In that they charged Ali with sin, for having left an affair to
the judgment of men, which ought to have been determined by GOD alone; and
went so far as to declare him guilty of infidelity, and to curse him on that
account.3 In the 38th year of the Hejra, which was the year following the
revolt, all these Khârejites who persisted in their rebellion, to the number
of four thousand, were cut to pieces by Ali, and, as several historians4
write, even to a man: but others say nine of them escaped, and that two fled
into Omân, two into Kermân, two into Sejestân, two into Mesopotamia, and one
to Tel Mawrûn; and that these propagated their heresy in those places, the
same remaining there to this day.5 The principal sects of the Khârejites,
besides the Mohakkemites above mentioned, are six; which, though they greatly
differ among themselves in other matters, yet agree in these, viz., that they
absolutely reject Othmân and Ali, preferring the doing of this to the greatest
obedience, and allowing marriages to be contracted on no other terms; that
they account those who are guilty of grievous sins to be infidels; and that
they hold it necessary to resist the Imâm when he transgresses the law. One
sect of them deserves more particular notice, viz.-
The Waïdians, so called from al Waïd, which signifies the threats denounced
by GOD against the wicked. These are the antagonists of the Morgians, and
assert that he who is guilty of a grievous sin ought to be declared an infidel
or apostate, and will be eternally punished in hell, though he were a true
believer:6 which opinion of theirs, as has been observed, occasioned the first
rise of the Mótazalites. One Jaafar Ebn Mobashshar, of the sect of the
Nodhâmians, was yet more severe than the Waïdians, pronouncing him to be a
reprobate and an apostate who steals but a grain of corn.1
8 Idem, ibid. p. 269. 1 See Ockley's Hist. of the Sarac. vol.
i. p. 60, &c. 2 Al Shahrest. ubi sup. p. 270.
3 Idem, ibid. 4 Abulfeda, al Jannâbi, Elmacinus, p. 40.
5 Al Shahrestani. See Ockley's Hist. of the Saracens, ubi sup. p. 63.
6 Abulfar. p. 169. Al Shahrest. apud Poc. Spec. p. 256. 1
Vide Poc. ibid. p. 257
IV. The Shiites are the opponents of the Khârejites: their name properly
signifies sectaries or adherents in general, but is peculiarly used to denote
those of Ali Ebn Tâleb; who maintain him to be lawful Khalîf and Imâm, and
that the supreme authority, both in spirituals and temporals, of right belongs
to his descendants, notwithstanding they may be deprived of it by the
injustice of others, or their own fear. They also teach that the office of
Imâm is not a common thing, depending on the will of the vulgar, so that they
may set up whom they please; but a fundamental affair of religion, and an
article which the prophet could not have neglected, or left to the fancy of
the common people:2 nay, some, thence called Imâmians, go so far as to assert,
that religion consists solely in the knowledge of the true Imâm.3 The
principal sects of the Shiites are five, which are subdivided into an almost
innumerable number; so that some understand Mohammed's prophecy of the seventy
odd sects, of the Shiites only. Their general opinions are-I. That the
peculiar designation of the Imâm, and the testimonies of the Korân and
Mohammed concerning him, are necessary points. 2. That the Imâms ought
necessarily to keep themselves free from light sins as well as more grievous.
3. That every one ought publicly to declare who it is that he adheres to, and
from whom he separates himself, by word, deed, and engagement; and that herein
there should be no dissimulation. But in this last point some of the
Zeidians, a sect so named from Zeid, the son of Ali surnamed Zein al âbedîn,
and great-grandson of Ali, dissented from the rest of the Shiites.4 As to
other articles, wherein they agreed not, some of them came pretty near to the
notions of the Mótazalites, others to those of the Moshabbehites, and others
to those of the Sonnites.5 Among the latter of these Mohammed al Bâker,
another son of Zein al âbedîn's, seems to claim a place: for his opinion as to
the will of GOD was, that GOD willeth something in us, and something from us,
and that what he willeth from us he hath revealed to us; for which reason he
thought it preposterous that we should employ our thoughts about those things
which GOD willeth in us, and neglect those which he willeth from us: and as to
GOD'S decree, he held that the way lay in the middle, and that there was
neither compulsion nor free liberty.1 A tenet of the Khattâbians, or
disciples of one Abu'l Khattab, is too peculiar to be omitted. These
maintained paradise to be no other than the pleasures of this world, and hell
fire to be the pains thereof, and that the world will never decay: which
proposition being first laid down, it is no wonder they went farther, and
declared it lawful to indulge themselves in drinking wine and whoring, and to
do other things forbidden by the law, and also to omit doing the things
commanded by the law.2
Many of the Shiites carried their veneration for Ali and his descendants so
far, that they transgressed all bounds of reason and decency; though some of
them were less extravagant than others. The Gholâïtes, who had their name
from their excessive zeal for their Imâms, were so highly transported
therewith, that they raised them above the degree of created beings, and
attributed divine properties to them; trans-
2 Al Shahrest. ibid. p. 261. Abulfar. p. 169. 3 Al Shahrest.
ibid. p. 262. 4 Idem, ibid. Vide D'Herbel. Bibl. Orient. Art.
Schiah. 5 Vide Poc. ibid. 1 Al Shahrest. ibid. p.
263. 2 Idem. et Ebn al Kossá, ibid. p. 260, &c.
gressing on either hand, by deifying of mortal men, and by making GOD
corporeal: for one while they liken one of their Imâms to GOD, and another
while they liken GOD to a creature.3 The sects of these are various, and have
various appellations in different countries. Abd'allah Ebn Saba (who had been
a Jew, and had asserted the same thing of Joshua the son of Nun) was the
ringleader of one of them. This man gave the following salutation to Ali,
viz., "Thou art Thou," i.e., Thou art GOD: and hereupon the Gholâïtes became
divided into several species; some maintaining the same thing, or something
like it, of Ali, and others of some of one of his descendants; affirming that
he was not dead, but would return again in the clouds, and fill the earth with
justice.4 But howmuchsoever they disagreed in other things, they unanimously
held a metempsychosis, and what they call al Holûl, or the descent of GOD on
his creatures; meaning thereby that GOD is present in every place, and speaks
with every tongue, and appears in some individual person:5 and hence some of
them asserted their Imâms to be prophets, and at length gods.6 The Nosairians
and the Ishâkians taught that spiritual substances appear in grosser bodies;
and that the angels and the devil have appeared in this manner. They also
assert that GOD hath appeared in this manner. They also assert that GOD hath
appeared in the form of certain men; and since, after Mohammed, there hath
been no man more excellent than Ali, and, after him, his sons have excelled
all other men, that GOD hath appeared in their form, spoken with their tongue,
and made use of their hands; for which reason, say they, we attribute divinity
to them.1 And to support these blasphemies, they tell several miraculous
things of Ali, as his moving the gates of Khaibar,2 which they urge as a plain
proof that he was endued with a particle of divinity and with sovereign power,
and that he was the person in whose form GOD appeared, with whose hands he
created all things, and with whose tongue he published his commands; and
therefore they say he was in being before the creation of heaven and earth.3
In so impious a manner do they seem to wrest those things which are said in
scripture of CHRIST by applying them to Ali. These extravagant fancies of the
Shiites, however, in making their Imâms in laying claim thereto, are so far
from being peculiar to this sect, that most of the other Mohammedan sects are
tainted with the same madness; there being many found among them, and among
the Sûfis especially, who pretend to be nearly related to heaven, and who
boast of strange revelations before the credulous people.4 It may not be
amiss to hear what al Ghazâli has written on this occasion. "Matters are come
to that pass," says he, "that some boast of an union with GOD, and of
discoursing familiarly with him, without the interposition of a veil, saying,
'It hath been thus said to us,' and 'We have thus spoken;' affecting to
imitate Hosein al Hallâj, who was put to death for some words of this kind
uttered by him, he having said (as was proved by credible witnesses), 'I am
the Truth,'5 or Abu Yazîd al Bastâmi, of whom it is related that he often used
the expression,
3 Idem, ibid. 4 Idem, ibid. p. 264. Vide Marracc. Prodr. part iii.
p. 80, &c. 5 Idem, ibid. p. 265.
6 Vide D'Herbel. Bibl. Or. Art. Hakem Beamrillah. 1 Idem, ibid.
Abulfar. p. 169. 2 See Prid. Life of Mah. p. 93.
3 Al Shah. ubi sup. p. 266. 4 Poc. Spec. p. 267. 5 Vide
D'Herbel. Bibl. Orient. Art. Hallage.
'Sobhâni,' i.e., 'Praise be unto me!'6 But this way of talking is the cause
of great mischief among the common people; insomuch that husbandmen,
neglecting the tillage of their land, have pretended to the like privileges;
nature being tickled with discourses of this kind, which furnish men with an
excuse for leaving their occupations, under pretence of purifying their souls,
and attaining I know not what degrees and conditions. Nor is there anything
to hinder the most stupid fellows from forming the like pretensions and
catching at such vain expressions: for whenever what they say is denied to be
true, they fail not to reply that our unbelief proceeds from learning and
logic; affirming learning to be a veil, and logic the work of the mind;
wherein what they tell us appears only within, being discovered by the light
of truth. But this is that truth the sparks whereof have flown into several
countries and occasioned great mischiefs; so that it is more for the advantage
of GOD'S true religion to put to death one of those who utter such things than
to bestow life on ten others."1
Thus far have we treated of the chief sects among the Mohammedans of the
first ages, omitting to say anything of the more modern sects, because the
same are taken little or no notice of by their own writers, and would be of no
use to our present design.2 It may be proper, however, to mention a word or
two of the great schism at this day subsisting between the Sonnites and the
Shiites, or partisans of Ali, and maintained on either side with implacable
hatred and furious zeal. Though the difference arose at first on a political
occasion, it has, notwithstanding, been so well improved by additional
circumstances and the spirit of contradiction, that each party detest and
anathematize the other as abominable heretics, and farther from the truth than
either the Christians or the Jews.3 The chief points wherein they differ are-
I. That the Shiites reject Abu Becr, Omar, and Othmân, the three first
Khalîfs, as usurpers and intruders; whereas the Sonnites acknowledge and
respect them as rightful Imâms. 2. The Shiites prefer Ali to Mohammed, or,
at least, esteem them both equal; but the Sonnites admit neither Ali nor any
of the prophets to be equal to Mohammed. 3. The Sonnites charge the Shiites
with corrupting the Korân and neglecting its precepts, and the Shiites retort
the same charge on the Sonnites. 4. The Sonnites receive the Sonna, or book
of traditions of their prophet, as of canonical authority; whereas the Shiites
reject it as apocryphal and unworthy of credit. And to these disputes, and
some others of less moment, is principally owing to the antipathy which has
long reigned between the Turks, who are Sunnites, and the Persians, who are of
the sect of Ali. It seems strange that Spinosa, had he known of no other
schism among the Mohammedans, should yet never have heard of one so publicly
notorious as this between the Turks and Persians; but it is plain he did not,
or he would never have assigned it as the reason of his preferring the order
of the Mohammedan church to that of the Roman, that there have arisen no
schisms in the former since its birth.4
6 Vide Ibid. Art. Bastham. 1 Al Ghazâli, apud Poc. ubi sup.
2 The reader may meet with some account of them in Ricaut's State of
the Ottom. Empire, l. 2, c. 12. 3 Vide ibid. c. 10, and Chardin,
Voy. de Perse, t. ii. p. 169, 170, &c.
4 The words of the Spinosa are: "Ordinem Romanæ ecclesiæ-politicum et
plurimis lucrosum esse fateor; nec ad decipiendam plebem, et hominum animos
coercendrum commo-
As success in any project seldom fails to draw in imitators, Mohammed's
having raised himself to such a degree of power and reputation by acting the
prophet, induced others to imagine they might arrive at the same height by the
same means. His most considerable competitors in the prophetic office were
Moseilama and al Aswad, whom the Mohammedans usually call the two liars.
The former was of the tribe of Honeifa, who inhabited the province of
Yamâma, and a principal man among them. He headed an embassy sent by his
tribe to Mohammed in the ninth year of the Hejra, and professed himself a
Moslem:1 but on his return home, considering that he might possibly share with
Mohammed in his power, the next year he set up for a prophet also, pretending
to be joined with him the commission to recall mankind from idolatry to the
worship of the true GOD;2 and he published written revelations, in imitation
of the Korân, of which Abulfargius3 has preserved the following passage, viz.:
"now hath GOD been gracious unto her that was with child, and hath brought
forth from her the soul, which runneth between the peritonæum and the bowels."
Moseilama, having formed a considerable party among those of Honeifa, began to
think himself upon equal terms with Mohammed, and sent him a letter, offering
to go halves with him,4 in these words: "From Moseilama the apostle of GOD, to
Mohammed the apostle of GOD. Now let the earth be half mine, and half thine."
But Mohammed, thinking himself too well established to need a partner, wrote
him this answer: "From Mohammed the apostle of GOD, to Moseilama the liar.
The earth is GOD'S: he giveth the same for inheritance unto such of his
servants as he pleaseth; and the happy issue shall attend those who fear
him."5 During the few months which Mohammed lived after this revolt,
Moseilama rather gained than lost ground, and grew very formidable; but Abu
Becr, his successor, in the eleventh year of the Hejra, sent a great army
against him, under the command of that consummate general, Khâled Ebn al
Walîd, who engaged Moseilama in a bloody battle, wherein the false prophet,
happening to be slain by Wahsha, the negro slave who had killed Hamza at Ohod,
and by the same lance,6 the Moslems gained an entire victory, ten thousand of
the apostates being left dead on the spot, and the rest returning to
Mohammedism.7
Al Aswad, whose name was Aihala, was of the tribe of Ans, and governed that
and the other tribes of Arabs descended from Madhhaj.1 This man was likewise
an apostate from Mohammedism, and set up for himself the very year that
Mohammed died.2 He was surnamed Dhu'lhemâr, or the master of the ass, because
he used frequently to say, "The master of the ass is coming unto me;"3 and
pretended to receive his revelations from two angels, named Sohaik and
Shoraik.4 Having a good hand at legerdemain, and a smooth tongue, he gained
mightily on the multitude by the strange feats which he showed them,
diorem isto crederem, ni ordo Mahumedanæ ecclesiæ esset, qui longè eundem
antecellit. Nam à quo tempore hæc superstitio incepit, nulla in eorum
ecclesia schismata orta sunt." Opera Posth. p. 613. 1 Abulfed. p.
160. 2 Idem, Elmac. p. 9.
3 Hist. Dynast. p. 164. 4 Abulfed. ubi sup. 5 Al
Beidâwi, in Kor. c. 5. 6 Abulfed. ubi sup.
7 Idem, ibid. Abulfarag, p. 173. Elmac. p. 16, &c. See Ockley's Hist. of the
Saracens, vol. i. p. 15, &c. 1 Al Soheili, apud Gagnier. in not. ad
Abulf. Vit. Moh. p. 158. 2 Elmac. p. 9. 3 Abulfed ubi
sup. 4 Al Soheili, ubi sup.
and the eloquence of his discourse:5 by these means he greatly increased his
power, and having made himself master of Najrân, and the territory of al
Tâyef,6 on the death of Badhân, the governor of Yaman for Mohammed, he seized
that province also, killing Shahr, the son of Badhân, and taking to wife his
widow, whose father, the uncle of Firûz the Deilamite, he had also slain.7
These news being brought to Mohammed, he sent to his friends, and to those of
Hamdân, a party of whom, conspiring with Kais Ebn Abd'al Yaghûth, who bore Al
Aswad a grudge, and with Firûz, and al Aswad's wife, broke by night into his
house, where Firûz surprised him and cut off his head. While he was
dispatching he roared like a bull; at which his guards came to the chamber
door, but were sent away by his wife, who told them the prophet was only
agitated by the divine inspiration. This was done the very night before
Mohammed died. The next morning the conspirators caused the following
proclamation to be made, viz.: "I bear witness that Mohammed is the apostle of
GOD, and that Aihala is a liar;" and letters were immediately sent away to
Mohammed, with an account of what had been done: but a messenger from heaven
outstripped them, and acquainted the prophet with the news, which he imparted
to his companions but a little before his death; the letters themselves not
arriving till Abu Becr was chosen Khalîf. It is said that Mohammed, on this
occasion, told those who attended him that before the day of judgment thirty
more impostors, besides Moseilama and al Aswad, should appear, and every one
of them set up for a prophet. The whole time, from the beginning of al
Aswad's rebellion to his death, was about four months.8
In the same eleventh year of the Hejra, but after the death of Mohammed, as
seems most probable, Toleiha Ebn Khowailed set up for a prophet, and Sejâj
Bint al Mondar1 for a prophetess.
Toleiha was of the tribe of Asad, which adhered to him, together with great
numbers of the tribes of Ghatfân and Tay. Against them likewise was Khâled
sent, who engaged and put them to flight, obliging Toleiha, with his shattered
troops, to retire into Syria, where he stayed till the death of Abu Becr: then
he went to Omar and embraced Mohammedism in his presence, and, having taken
the oath of fidelity to him, returned to his own country and people.2
Sejâj, surnamed Omm Sâder, was of the tribe of Tamîm, and the wife of Abu
Cahdala, a soothsayer of Yamâma. She was followed not only by those of her
own tribe, but by several others. Thinking a prophet the most proper husband
for her, she went to Moseilama, and married him; but after she had stayed with
him three days, she left him and returned home.3 What became of her
afterwards I do not find. Ebn Shohnah has given us part of the conversation
which passed at the interview between those two pretenders to inspiration; but
the same is a little too immodest to be translated.
In succeeding ages several impostors from time to time started up most of
whom quickly came to nothing: but some made a considerable figure, and
propagated sects which continued long after their decease.
5 Abulfed. ubi sup. 6 Idem, et Elmac. ubi sup. 7
Idem, al Jannâbi, ubi sup. 8 Idem, ibid. 1 Ebn Shohnah and
Elmacinus call her the daughter of al Hareth. 2 Elmac, p. 16, al
Beidâwi, in Kor. c. 5. 3 Ebn Shohnah. Vide Elmac. p. 16.
I shall give a brief account of the most remarkable of them, in order of time.
In the reign of al Mohdi, the third Khalîf of the race of al Abbâs, one
Hakem Ebn Hâshem4, originally of Merû, in Khorasân, who had been an under-
secretary to Abu Moslem, the governor of that province, and afterwards turned
soldier, passed thence into Mawarâlnahr, where he gave himself out for a
prophet. He is generally named by the Arab writers al Mokanna, and sometimes
al Borkaí, that is, "the veiled," because he used to cover his face with a
veil, or a gilded mask, to conceal his deformity, having lost an eye in the
ward, and being otherwise of a despicable appearance; though his followers
pretended he did it for the same reasons as Moses did, viz., lest the
splendour of his countenance should dazzle the eyes of the beholders. He made
a great many proselytes at Nakhshab and Kash, deluding the people with several
juggling performances, which they swallowed for miracles, and particularly by
causing the appearance of a moon to rise out of a well, for many nights
together; whence he was also called, in the Persian tongue, Sâzendeh mah, or
the moonmaker. This impious impostor, not content with being reputed a
prophet, arrogated divine honours to himself, pretending that the deity
resided in his person: and the doctrine whereon he built this was the same
with that of the Gholâïtes above mentioned, who affirmed a transmigration or
successive manifestation of the divinity through and in certain prophets and
holy men, from Adam to these latter days (of which opinion was also Abu Moslem
himself);1 but the particular doctrine of al Mokanna was, that the person in
whom the deity had last resided was the aforesaid Abu Moslem, and that the
same had, since his death, passed into himself. The faction of al Mokanna,
who had made himself master of several fortified places in the neighbourhood
of the cities above mentioned, growing daily more and more powerful, the
Khalîf was at length obliged to send an army to reduce him; at the approach
whereof al Mokanna retired into one of his strongest fortresses, which he had
well provided for a siege, and sent his emissaries abroad to pursuade people
that he raised the dead to life, and knew future events. But, being straitly
besieged by the Khalîf's forces, when he found there was no possibility for
him to escape, he gave poison, in wine, to his whole family, and all that were
with him in the castle; and when they were dead he burnt their bodies,
together with their clothes, and all the provisions and cattle; and then, to
prevent his own body's being found, he threw himself into the flames, or, as
others say, into a tub of aqua fortis, or some other preparation, which
consumed every part of him, except only his hair: so that when the besiegers
entered the place, they found no creature in it, save one of al Mokanna's
concubines, who, suspecting his design, had hid herself, and discovered the
whole matter. This contrivance, however, failed not to produce the effect
which the impostor designed among the remaining part of his followers; for he
had promised them that his soul should transmigrate into the form of a grey-
headed man riding on a greyish beast, and that after so many years he would
return
4 Or Ebn Atâ, according to Ebn Shohnan. 1 This explain a doubt
of Mr. Bayle concerning a passage of Elmacinus, as translated by Erpenius, and
corrected by Bespier. Vide Bayle, Dic. Hist. Art. Abumuslimus, vers la fin,
et Rem. B.
to them, and give them the earth for their possession: the expectation of
which promise kept the sect in being for several ages after under the name of
Mobeyyidites, or, as the Persians call them, Sefid jâmehghiân, i.e., the
clothed in white, because they wore their garments of that colour, in
opposition, as is supposed, to the Khalîfs of the family of Abbâs, whose
banners and habits were black. The historians place the death of al Mokanna
in the 162nd or 163rd year of the Hejra.2
In the year of the Hejra 201, Bâbec, surnamed al Khorremi, and Khorremdîn,
either because he was of a certain district near Ardebîl in Adherbijân, called
Khorrem, or because he instituted a merry religion, which is the signification
of the word in Persian, began to take on him the title of a prophet. I do not
find what doctrine he taught; but it is said he professed none of the
religions then known in Asia. He gained a great number of devotees in
Adherbijân and the Persian Irâk, and grew powerful enough to wage war with the
Khalîf al Mámún, whose troops he often beat, killing several of his generals,
and one of them with his own hand; and by these victories he became so
formidable that al Mótasem, the successor of al Mámûn, was obliged to employ
the forces of the whole empire against him. The general sent to reduce Bâbec
was Afshîd, who having overthrown him in battle, took his castles one after
another with invincible patience, notwithstanding the rebels gave him great
annoyance, and at last shut up the impostor in his principal fortress; which
being taken, Bâbec found means to escape thence in disguise, with some of his
family and principal followers; but taking refuge in the territories of the
Greeks, was betrayed in the following manner. Sahel, an Armenian officer,
happening to know Bâbec, enticed him, by offers of service and respect, into
his power, and treated him as a mighty prince, till, when he sat down to eat,
Sahel clapped himself down by him; at which Bâbec being surprised, asked him
how he dared to take that liberty unasked? "It is true, great king," replied
Sahel, "I have committed a fault; for who am I, that I should sit at your
majesty's table?" And immediately sending for a smith, he made use of this
bitter sarcasm, "Stretch forth your legs, great king, that this man may put
fetters on them." After this Sahel sent him to Afshîd, though he had offered
a large sum for his liberty, having first served him in his own kind, by
causing his mother, sister, and wife to be ravished before his face; for so
Bâbec used to treat his prisoners. Afshîd, having the arch-rebel in his
power, conducted him to al Mótasem, by whose order he was put to an
ignominious and cruel death. This man had maintained his ground against the
power of the Khalîfs for twenty years, and had cruelly put to death above two
hundred and fifty thousand people; it being his custom never to spare man,
woman, or child, either of the Mohammedans or their allies.3 The sectaries of
Bâbec which remained after his death seem to have been entirely dispersed,
there being little or no mention made of them by historians.
1 They were a sect in the days of Abulfaragius, who lived about five
hundred years after this extraordinary event; and may, for aught I know, be so
still. 2 Ex Abulfarag, Hist. Dyn. p. 226. Lobb al Tawârikh, Ebn
Shohnah, al Tabari, and Khondamir. Vide D'Herbel. Bibl. Orient. Art. Hakem
Ben Haschem. 3 Ex Abulfarag, p. 252, &c. Elmacin. p. 141,
&c., and Khondamir. Vide D'Herbel. Art Bâbec.
About the year 235, one Mahmûd Ebn Faraj pretended to be Moses
resuscitated, and played his part so well that several people believed on him,
and attended him when he was brought before the Khalîf al Motawakkel. That
prince, having been an ear-witness of his extravagant discourses, condemned
him to receive ten buffets from every one of his followers, and then to be
drubbed to death; which was accordingly executed; and his disciples were
imprisoned till they came to their right minds.4
The Karmatians, a sect which bore an inveterate malice against the
Mohammedans, began first to raise disturbances in the year of the Hejra 278,
and the latter end of the reign of al Mótamed. Their origin is not well
known; but the common tradition is, that poor fellow, whom some call Karmata,
came from Khûzistân to the villages near Cûfa, and there feigned great
sanctity and strictness of life, and that GOD had enjoined him to pray fifty
times a day, pretending also to invite people to the obedience of a certain
Imâm of the family of Mohammed: and this way of life he continued till he had
made a very great party, out of whom he chose twelve, as his apostles, to
govern the rest, and to propagate his doctrines. But the governor of the
province, finding men neglected their work, and their husbandry in particular,
to say those fifty prayers a day, seized the fellow, and having put him into
prison, swore that he should die; which being overheard by a girl belonging to
the governor, she, pitying the man, at night took the key of the dungeon from
under her master's head as he slept, and having let the prisoner out, returned
the key to the place whence she had it. The next morning the governor found
the bird flown; and the accident being publicly known, raised great
admiration, his adherents giving it out that GOD had taken him into heaven.
Afterwards he appeared in another province, and declared to a great number of
people he had got about him that it was not in the power of any to do him
hurt; notwithstanding which, his courage failing him, he retired into Syria,
and was not heard of any more. His sect, however, continued and increased,
pretending that their master had manifested himself to be a true prophet, and
had left them a new law, wherein he had change the ceremonies and form of
prayer used by the Moslems, and introduced a new kind of fast; and that he had
also allowed them to drink wine, and dispensed with several things commanded
in the Korân. They also turned the precepts of that book into allegory;
teaching that prayer was the symbol of obedience to their Imâm, and fasting
that of silence, or concealing their dogmas from strangers: they also believed
fornication to be the sin of infidelity; and the guilt thereof to be incurred
by those who revealed the mysteries of their religion, or paid not a blind
obedience to their chief. They are said to have produced a book, wherein was
written (among other things), "In the name of the most merciful GOD. Al Faraj
Ebn Othmân of the town of Nasrâna, saith that Christ appeared unto him in a
human form, and said, 'Thou art the invitation: thou art the demonstration:
thou art the camel: thou art the beast: thou art John the son of Zacharias:
thou art the Holy Ghost.'"1 From the year above mentioned the
4 Ebn Shohnah. Vide D'Herbel. p. 537. 1 Apud Abulfar.
p. 275.
Karmatians, under several leaders, gave almost continual disturbance to the
Khalîfs and their Mohammedan subjects for several years; committing great
disorders and outrages in Chaldea, Arabia, Syria, and Mesopotamia, and at
length establishing a considerable principality, the power whereof was in its
meridian in the reign of Abu Dhâher, famous for his taking of Mecca, and the
indignities by him offered to the temple there, but which declined soon after
his time and came to nothing.2
To the Karmatians the Ismaelians of Asia were very near of kin, if they
were not a branch of them. For these, who were also called al Molâhedah, or
the Impious, and by the writers of the history of the holy wars, Assassins,
agreed with the former in many respects; such as their inveterate malice
against those of other religions, and especially the Mohammedan, their
unlimited obedience to their prince, at whose command they were ready for
assassinations, or any other bloody and dangerous enterprise, their pretended
attachment to a certain Imâm of the house of Ali, &c. These Ismaelians in the
year 483 possessed themselves of al Jebâl, in the Persian Irâk, under the
conduct of Hasan Sabah; and that prince and his descendants enjoyed the same
for a hundred and seventy-one years, till the whole race of them was destroyed
by Holagu the Tartar.1
The Bâtenites, which name is also given to the Ismaelians by some authors,
and likewise to the Karmatians,2 were a sect which professed the same
abominable principles, and were dispersed over several parts of the east.3
The word signifies Esoterics, or people of inward or hidden light or
knowledge.
Abu'l Teyyeb Ahmed, surnamed al Motanabbi, of the tribe of Jófa, is too
famous on another account not to claim a place here. He was one of the most
excellent poets among the Arabians, there being none besides Abu Temâm who can
dispute the prize with him. His poetical inspiration was so warm and exalted
that he either mistook it or thought he could persuade others to believe it to
be prophetical, and therefore gave himself out to be a prophet indeed; and
thence acquired his surname, by which he is generally known. His
accomplishments were too great not to have some success; for several tribes of
the Arabs of the deserts, particularly that of Kelâb, acknowledged him to be
what he pretended. But Lûlû, governor in those parts for Akhshîd king of
Egypt and Syria, soon put a stop to the further progress of this new sect by
imprisoning their prophet and obliging him to renounce his chimerical dignity;
which having done, he regained his liberty, and applied himself solely to his
poetry, by means whereof he got very considerable riches, being in high esteem
at the courts of several princes. Al Motanabbi lost his life, together with
his son, on the bank of the Tigris, in defending the money which had been
given him by Adado'ddawla, soltân of Persia, against some Arabian robbers who
demanded it of him, with which money he was returning to Cûfa, his native
city. This accident happened in the year 354.4
2 Ex Abulfar. ibid. Elmacino, p. 174, &c. Ebn Shohnah, Khondamir. Vide
D'Herbel. Art. Carmath. 1 Vide Abulfar. p. 505, &c. D'Herbel. p. 104,
437, 505, 620, and 784. 2 Vide Elmacin. p. 174 and 286. D'Herb. p.
194.
3 Vide Abulfar. p. 361, 374, 380, 483. 4 Præf. in opera Motannabbis
MS. Vide D'Herbel. p. 638, &c.
The last pretender to prophecy I shall now take notice of is one who
appeared in the city of Amasia, in Natolia, in the year 638, and by his
wonderful feats seduced a great multitude of people there. He was by nation a
Turkmân, and called himself Bâba, and had a disciple named Isaac, whom he sent
about to invite those of his own nation to join him. Isaac accordingly,
coming to the territory of Someisat, published his commission, and prevailed
on many to embrace his master's sect, especially among the Turkmâns; so that
at last he had six thousand horse at his heels, besides foot. With these Baba
and his disciple made open war on all who would not cry out with them, "There
is no GOD but GOD; Bâba is the apostle of GOD:" and they put great numbers of
Mohammedans, as well as Christians, to the sword in those parts; till at
length both Mohammedans and Christians, joining together, gave them battle,
and having entirely routed them, put them all to the sword, except their two
chiefs, who being taken alive, had their heads struck off by the executioner.1
I could mention several other impostors of the same kind, which have arisen
among the Mohammedans since their prophet's time, and very near enough to
complete the number foretold by him: but I apprehend the reader is by this
time tired as well as myself, and shall therefore here conclude this
discourse, which may be thought already too long for an introduction.
1 Abulfar. p. 479. Ebn Shohnah, D'Herb. Art. Bâba
AL KORAN.
________
CHAPTER I.
ENTITLED, THE PREFACE, OR INTRODUCTION;a REVEALED AT MECCA.
IN THE NAME OF THE MOST MERCIFUL GOD
PRAISE be to GOD, the LORD of all creatures;b
the most merciful,
the king of the day of judgment.
Thee do we worship, and of thee do we beg assistance.
Direct us in the right way,
in the way of those to whom thou hast been gracious; not of those against
whom thou art incensed, nor of those who go astray.c
a In Arabic al Fâtihat. This chapter is a prayer, and held in great
veneration by the Mohammedans, who give it several other honourable titles; as
the chapter of prayer, of praise, of thanksgiving, of treasure, &c. They
esteem it as the quintessence of the whole Korân, and often repeat it in their
devotions both public and private, as the Christians do the Lord's Prayer.1
b The original words are, Rabbi 'lâlamîna, which literally signify Lord
of the worlds; but âlamîna in this and other places of the Korân properly mean
the three species of rational creatures, men, genii, and angels. Father
Marracci has endeavoured to prove from this passage that Mohammed believed a
plurality of worlds, which he calls the error of the Manichees, &c.:2 but this
imputation the learned Reland has shown to be entirely groundless.3
c This last sentence contains a petition, that GOD would lead the
supplicants into the true religion, by which is meant the Mohammedan, in the
Korân often called the right way; in this place more particularly defined to
be, the way of those to whom GOD hath been gracious, that is, of the prophets
and faithful who preceded Mohammed; under which appellations are also
comprehended the Jews and Christians, such as they were in the times of their
primitive purity, before they had deviated from their respective institutions;
not the way of the modern Jews, whose signal calamities are marks of the just
anger of GOD against them for their obstinacy and disobedience: nor of the
Christians of this age, who have departed from the true doctrine of Jesus, and
are bewildered in a labyrinth of error.4
This is the common exposition of the passage; though al Zamakhshari, and
some others, by a different application of the negatives, refer the whole to
the true believers; and then the sense will run thus: The way of those to whom
thou hast been gracious, against whom thou art not incensed, and who have not
erred. Which translation the original will very well bear.
1 Vide Bobovium de Precib. Mohammed. p. 3, et seq. 2 In
Prodromo ad Refut. Alcorani part iv. p. 76, et in notis ad Alc. c. I.
3 De Religion. Mohammed. p. 262 1 Jallalo'ddin. Al Beidawi, &c.
CHAPTER II.
ENTITLED, THE COW;d REVEALED PARTLY AT MECCA, AND PARTLY AT MEDINA.
IN THE NAME OF THE MOST MERCIFUL GOD.
A. L. M.e There is no doubt in this book; it is a direction to the
pious,
who believe in the mysteriesf of faith, who observe the appointed times
of prayer, and distribute alms out of what we have bestowed on them,
and who believe in that revelation, which hath been sent down unto thee
and that which hath been sent down unto the prophets before thee,g and have
firm assurance of the life to come:h
these are directed by their LORD, and they shall prosper.
As for the unbelievers, it will be equal to them whether thou admonish
them, or do not admonish them; they will not believe.
GOD hath sealed up their hearts and their hearing; a dimness covereth
their sight, and they shall suffer a grievous punishment.
There are some who say, We believe in GOD, and the last day; but are not
really believers:
they seek to deceive GOD, and those who do believe, but they deceive
themselves only, and are not sensible thereof.
There is an infirmity in their hearts, and GOD hath increased that
infirmity;i and they shall suffer a most painful punishment, because they have
disbelieved.
10 When one saith unto them, Act not corruptlyk in the earth; they reply,
Verily we are men of integrity.l
Are not they themselves corrupt doers? but they are not sensible thereof.
And when one saith unto them, Believe ye as othersm believe; they answer,
Shall we believe as fools believe? Are not they themselves fools? but they
know it not.
When they meet those who believe, they say, We do believe: but when they
retire privately to their devils,n they say, We really hold with you, and only
mock at those people:
d This title was occasioned by the story of the red heifer, mentioned
p. 9.
e As to the meaning of these letters, see the Preliminary Discourse,
Sect. III.
f The Arabic word is gheib, which properly signifies a thing that is
absent, at a great distance, or invisible, such as the resurrection, paradise,
and hell. And this is agreeable to the language of scripture, which defines
faith to be the evidence of things not seen.1
g The Mohammedans believe that GOD gave written revelations not only to
Moses, Jesus, and Mohammed, but to several other prophets;2 though they
acknowledge none of those which preceded the Korân to be now extant, except
the Pentateuch of Moses, the Psalms of David, and the Gospel of Jesus; which
yet they say were even before Mohammed's time altered and corrupted by the
Jews and Christians; and therefore will not allow our present copies to be
genuine.
h The original word al-âkherhat properly signifies the latter part of
anything, and by way of excellence the next life, the latter or future state
after death; and is opposed to al-donya, this world; and al-oula, the former
or present life. The Hebrew word ahharith, from the same root, is used by
Moses in this sense, and is translated latter end.3
i Mohammed here, and elsewhere frequently, imitates the truly inspired
writers, in making GOD by operation on the minds of reprobates to prevent
their conversion. This fatality or predestination, as believed by the
Mohammedans, hath been sufficiently treated of in the Preliminary Discourse.
k Literally corrupt not in the earth, by which some expositors
understand the sowing of false doctrine, and corrupting people's principles.
l According to the explication in the preceding note, this word must be
translated reformers, who promote true piety by their doctrine and example.
m The first companions and followers of Mohammed.4
n The prophet, making use of the liberty zealots of all religions have,
by prescription, of giving ill language, bestows this name on the Jewish
rabbins and Christian priests; though he seems chiefly to mean the former,
against whom he had by much the greater spleen.
1 Heb. xi. I. See also Rom. xxiv. 25; 2 Cor. iv. 18 and v. 7.
2 Vide Reland. de Relig. Moham. p. 34 and Dissert. de Samaritanis, p.
34, &c. 3 Numb. xxiv. 20; Deut. viii. 16. 4 Jallalo'ddin.
GOD shall mock at them, and continue them in their impiety; they shall
wander in confusion.
There are the the men who have purchased error at the price of true
direction: but their traffic hath not been gainful, neither have they been
rightly directed.
They are like unto one who kindleth a fire,o and when it hath enlightened
all around him,p GOD taketh away their lightq and leaveth them in darkness,
they shall not see;
they are deaf, dumb, and blind, therefore will they not repent.
Or like a stormy cloud from heaven, fraught with darkness, thunder, and
lightning,r they put their fingers in their ears because of the noise of the
thunder, for fear of death; GOD encompasseth the infidels:
the lightning wanteth but little of taking away their sight; so often as
it enlighteneth them, they walk therein, but when darkness cometh on them,
they stand still; and if GOD so pleased, he would certainly deprive them of
their hearing and their sight, for GOD is almighty. O men of Mecca, serve
your LORD who hath created you, and those who have been before you:
peradventure ye will fear him;
20 who hath spread the earth as a bed for you, and the heaven as a
covering, and hath caused water to descend from heaven, and thereby produced
fruits for your sustenance. Set not up therefore any equals unto GOD, against
your own knowledge.
If ye be in doubt concerning that revelation which we have sent down unto
our servant, produce a chapter like unto it, and call upon your witnesses
besides GOD,s if ye say truth.
But if ye do it not, nor shall ever be able to do it; justly fear the
fire whose fuel is men and stones, prepared for the unbelievers.
But bear good tidings unto those who believe, and do good works, that
they shall have gardens watered by rivers; so often as they eat of the fruit
thereof for sustenance, they shall say, this is what we have formerly eaten
of; and they shall be supplied with several sorts of fruit having a mutual
resemblance to one another.t There shall they enjoy wives subject to no
impurity, and there shall they continue forever.
o In this passage, Mohammed compares those who believed not on him, to
a man who wants to kindle a fire, but as soon as it burns up, and the flames
give a light, shuts his eyes, lest he should see. As if he had said, You, O
Arabians, have long desired a prophet of your own nation, and now I am sent
unto you, and have plainly proved my mission by the excellence of my doctrine
and revelation, you resist conviction, and refuse to believe in me; therefore
shall God leave you in your ignorance.
p The sense seems to be here imperfect, and may be completed by adding
the words, He turns from it, shuts his eyes, or the like.
q That is of the unbelievers, to whom the word their being in the
plural, seems to refer; though it is not unusual for Mohammed, in affectation
of the prophetic style, suddenly to change the number against all rules of
grammar.
r Here he compares the unbelieving Arabs to people caught in a violent
storm. To perceive the beauty of this comparison, it must be observed, that
the Mohammedan doctors say, this tempest is a type or image of the Korân
itself: the thunder signifying the threats therein contained; the lightning,
the promises; and the darkness, the mysteries. The terror of the threats
makes them stop their ears, unwilling to hear truths so disagreeable; when the
promises are read to them, they attend with pleasure; but when anything
mysterious or difficult of belief occurs, they stand stock still, and will not
submit to be directed.
s i.e., Your false gods and idols.
t Some commentators1 approve of this sense, supposing the fruits of
paradise, though of various tastes, are alike in colour and outward
appearance: but others2 think the meaning to be, that the inhabitants of that
place will find there fruits of the same or the like kinds as they used to eat
while on earth.
1 Jallalo'ddin. 2 Al Zamakhshari.
Moreover, GOD will not be ashamed to propound in a parable a gnat, or
even a more despicable thing:u for they who believe will know it to be the
truth from their LORD; but the unbelievers will say, What meaneth GOD by this
parable? he will thereby mislead many, and will direct many thereby: but he
will not mislead any thereby, except the transgressors,
who make void the covenant of GOD after the establishing thereof, and cut
in sunder that which GOD hath commanded to be joined, and act corruptly in the
earth; they shall perish.
How is it that ye believe not in GOD? Since ye were dead, and he gave
you life;x he will hereafter cause you to die, and will again restore you to
life; then shall ye return unto him.
It is he who hath created for you whatsoever is on earth, and then set
his mind to the creation of heaven, and formed it into seven heavens; he
knoweth all things.
When thy LORD said unto the angels, I am going to place a substitute on
earth;y they said, Wilt thou place there one who will do evil therein, and
shed blood? but we celebrate thy praise, and sanctify thee. GOD answered,
Verily I know that which ye know not;
and he taught Adam the names of all things, and then proposed them to the
angels, and said, Declare unto me the names of these things if ye say truth.
30 They answered, Praise be unto thee; we have no knowledge but what thou
teachest us, for thou art knowing and wise.
GOD said, O Adam, tell them their names. And when he had told them their
names, GOD said, Did I not tell you that I know the secrets of heaven and
earth, and know that which ye discover, and that which ye conceal?z
And when we said unto the angels, Worshipa Adam, they all worshipped him,
except Eblis, who refused, and was puffed up with pride, and became of the
number of unbelievers.b
u This was revealed to take off an objection made to the Korân by the
infidels, for condescending to speak of such insignificant insects as the
spider, the pismire, the bee, &c.3
x i.e., Ye were dead while in the loins of your fathers, and he gave
you life in your mothers wombs; and after death ye shall be again raised at
the resurrection.4
y Concerning the creation of Adam, here intimated, the Mohammedans have
several peculiar traditions. They say the angels, Gabriel, Michael, and
Israfil, were sent by God, one after another, to fetch for that purpose seven
handfuls of earth from different depths, and of different colours (whence some
account for the various complexion of mankind5); but the earth being
apprehensive of the consequence, and desiring them to represent her fear to
God that the creature he designed to form would rebel against him, and draw
down his curse upon her, they returned without performing God's command;
whereupon he sent Azraïl on the same errand, who executed his commission
without remorse, for which reason God appointed that angel to separate the
souls from the bodies, being therefore called the angel of death. The earth
he had taken was carried into Arabia, to a place between Mecca and Tayef,
where, being first kneaded by the angels, it was afterwards fashioned by God
himself into a human form, and left to dry6 for the space of forty days, or,
as others say, as many years, the angels in the meantime often visiting it,
and Eblis (then one of the angels who are nearest to God's presence,
afterwards the devil) among the rest; but he, not contented with looking on
it, kicked it with his foot till it rung and knowing God designed that
creature to be his superior, took a secret resolution never to acknowledge him
as such. After this, God animated the figure of clay and endued it with an
intelligent soul, and when he had placed him in paradise, formed Eve out of
his left side.7
z This story Mohammed borrowed from the Jewish traditions, which say
that the angels having spoken of man with some contempt when God consulted
them about his creation, God made answer that the man was wiser than they; and
to convince them of it, he brought all kinds of animals to them, and asked
them their names; which they not being able to tell, he put the same question
to the man, who named them one after another; and being asked his own name and
God's name, he answered very justly, and gave God the name of JEHOVAH1. The
angels' adoring of Adam is also mentioned in the Talmud.2
a The original word signifies properly to prostrate one's self till the
forehead touches the ground, which is the humblest posture of adoration, and
strictly due to GOD only; but it is sometimes, as in this place, used to
express that civil worship or homage, which may be paid to creatures.3
b This occasion of the devil's fall has some affinity with an opinion
which has been pretty much entertained among Christians,4 viz., that the
angels being informed of GOD'S intention to create man after his own image,
and to dignify human nature by CHRIST'S assuming it, some of them, thinking
their glory to be eclipsed thereby, envied man's happiness, and so revolted.
3 Yahya. 4 Jallalo'ddin. 5 Al Termedi, from a
tradition of Abu Musa al Ashari 6 Kor. c. 55. 7
Khondamir. Jallalo'ddin. Comment. in Korân, &c. Vide D'Herbelot, Biblioth.
Orient. p. 55. 1 Vide Rivin. Serpent. seduct. p. 56. 2 R.
Moses Haddarshan, in Bereshit rabbah. 3 Jallalo'ddin. 4
Irenæus, Lact. Greg. Nyssen. &c.
And we said, O Adam, dwell thou and thy wife in the garden,c and eat of
the fruit thereof plentifully wherever ye will; but approach not this tree,d
lest ye become of the number of the transgressors.
But Satan caused them to forfeit paradise,e and turned them out of the
state of happiness wherein they had been; whereupon we said, Get ye down,f the
one of you an enemy unto the other; and there shall be a dwelling-place for
you on earth, and a provision for a season.
And Adam learned words of prayer from his LORD, and GOD turned unto him,
for he is easy to be reconciled and merciful.
We said, Get ye all down from hence; hereafter shall there come unto you
a direction from me,g and whoever shall follow my direction, on them shall no
fear come, neither shall they be grieved;
but they who shall be unbelievers, and accuse our signsh of falsehood,
they shall be the companions of hell fire, therein shall they remain forever.
O children of Israeli, remember my favor wherewith I have favored you;
and perform your covenant with me, and I will perform my covenant with you;
and revere me: and believe in the revelation which I have sent down,
confirming that which is with you, and be not the first who believe not
therein, neither exchange my signs for a small price; and fear me.
c Mohammed, as appears by what presently follows, does not place this
garden or paradise on earth, but in the seventh heaven.5
d Concerning this tree or the forbidden fruit, the Mohammedans, as well
as the Christians, have various opinions. Some say it was an ear of wheat;
some will have it to have been a fig-tree, and others a vine.6 The story of
the Fall is told, with some further circumstances, in the beginning of the
seventh chapter.
e They have a tradition that the devil offering to get into paradise to
tempt Adam, was not admitted by the guard; whereupon he begged of the animals,
one after another, to carry him in, that he might speak to Adam and his wife;
but they all refused him except the serpent, who took him between two of his
teeth, and so introduced him. They add that the serpent was then of a
beautiful form, and not in the shape he now bears.7
f The Mohammedans say that when they were cast down from paradise, Adam
fell on the isle of Ceylon or Serendib, and Eve near Joddah (the port of
Mecca) in Arabia; and that after a separation of 200 years, Adam was, on his
repentance, conducted by the angel Gabriel to a mountain near Mecca, where he
found and knew his wife, the mountain being thence named Arafat; and that he
afterwards retired with her to Ceylon, where they continued to propagate their
species.8
It may not be improper here to mention another tradition concerning the
gigantic stature of our first parents. Their prophet, they say, affirmed Adam
to have been as tall as a high palm-tree;9 but this would be too much in
proportion, if that were really the print of his foot, which is pretended to
be such, on the top of a mountain in the isle of Ceylon, thence named Pico de
Adam, and by the Arab writers Rahûn, being somewhat above two spans long10
(though others say it is 70 cubits long, and that when Adam set one foot here,
he had the other in the sea)11; and too little, if Eve were of so enormous a
size, as is said, when her head lay on one hill near Mecca, her knees rested
on two others in the plain, about two musket-shots asunder.12
g GOD here promises Adam that his will should be revealed to him and
his posterity; which promise the Mohammedans believe was fulfilled at several
times by the ministry of several prophets, from Adam himself, who was the
first, to Mohammed, who was the last. The number of books revealed unto Adam
they say was ten.1
h This word has various significations in the Korân; sometimes, as in
this passage, it signifies divine revelation, or scripture in general;
sometimes the verses of the Korân in particular, and at other times visible
miracles. But the sense is easily distinguished by the context.
i The Jews are here called upon to receive the Korân, as verifying and
confirming the Pentateuch, particularly with respect to the unity of God and
the mission of Mohammed.2 And they are exhorted not to conceal the passages
of their law which bear witness to those truths, nor to corrupt them by
publishing false copies of the Pentateuch, for which the writers were but
poorly paid.3
5 Vide Marracc. in Alc. p. 24. 6 Vide ibid. p. 22.
7 Vide ibid. 8 D'Herbelot, Bib. Orient. p. 55.
9 Yahya. 10 Moncony's Voyage, part i. p. 372, &c. See Knox's
Account of Ceylon. 11 Anciennes Relations des Indes, &c. p. 3.
12 Moncony's, ubi sup. 1 Vide Hottinger Hist. Orient. p. 11. Reland.
de Relig. Mohammed, p. 21. 2 Yahya.
3 Jallalo'ddin.
Clothe not the truth with vanity, neither conceal the truth against your
own knowledge;
40 observe the stated times of prayer, and pay your legal alms, and bow
down yourselves with those who bow down.
Will ye command men to do justice, and forget your own souls? yet ye
read the book of the law: do ye not therefore understand?
Ask help with perseverance and prayer; this indeed is grievous unless to
the humble,
who seriously think they shall meet their LORD and that to him they shall
return.
O children of Israel, remember my favor wherewith I have favored you, and
that I have preferred you above all nations;
dread the day wherein one soul shall not make satisfaction for another
soul, neither shall any intercession be accepted from them, nor shall any
compensation be received, neither shall they be helped.
Remember when we delivered you from the people of Pharaoh, who grievously
oppressed you, they slew your male children, and let your females live:
therein was a great trial from your LORD.
And when we divided the sea for you and delivered you, and drowned
Pharaoh's people while ye looked on.k
And when we treated with Moses forty nights; then ye took the calfl for
your God, and did evil;
yet afterwards we forgave you, that peradventure ye might give thanks.
50 And when we gave Moses the book of the law, and the distinction between
good and evil, that peradventure ye might be directed.
And when Moses said unto his people, O my people, verily ye have injured
your own souls, by your taking the calf for your God; therefore be turned unto
your Creator, and slay those among you who have been guilty of that crime;m
this will be better for you in the sight of your Creator: and thereupon he
turned unto you, for he is easy to be reconciled, and merciful.
And when ye said, O Moses, we will not believe thee, until we see GOD
manifestly; therefore a punishment came upon you, while ye looked on;
then we raised you to life after ye had been dead, that peradventure ye
might give thanks.n
k See the story of Moses and Pharaoh more particularly related, chapter
vii. and xx. &c.
l The person who cast this calf, the Mohammedans say, was (not Aaron
but) al Sâmeri, one of the principal men among the children of Israel, some of
whose descendants it is pretended still inhabit an island of that name in the
Arabian Gulf.4 It was made of the rings5 and bracelets of gold, silver, and
other materials, which the Israelites had borrowed of the Egyptians; for
Aaron, who commanded in his brother's absence, having ordered al Sâmeri to
collect those ornaments from the people, who carried on a wicked commerce with
them, and to keep them together till the return of Moses; al Sâmeri,
understanding the founder's art, put them altogether into a furnace to melt
them down into one mass, which came out in the form of a calf.1 The
Israelites, accustomed to the Egyptian idolatry, paying a religious worship to
this image, al Sâmeri went farther, and took some dust from the footsteps of
the horse of the angel Gabriel, who marched at the head of the people, and
threw it into the mouth of the calf, which immediately began to low, and
became animated;2 for such was the virtue of that dust.3 One writer says that
all the Israelites adored this calf, except only 12,000.4
m In this particular, the narration agrees with that of Moses, who
ordered the Levites to slay every man his brother:5 but the scripture says,
there fell of the people that day about 3,000 (the Vulgate says 23,000) men;6
whereas the commentators of the Korân make the number of the slain to amount
to 70,000; and add, that GOD sent a dark cloud which hindered them from seeing
one another, lest the sight should move those who executed the sentence to
compassion.7
n The persons here meant are said to have been seventy men, who were
made choice of by Moses and heard the voice of GOD talking with him. But not
being satisfied with that, they demanded to see GOD; whereupon they were all
struck dead by lightning, and on Moses's intercession restored to life.8
4 Geogr. Nubiens. p. 45. 5 Kor. c. 7. 1 See
Exod. xxxii. 24. 2 Kor. c. 7.
3 Jallalo'ddin. Vide D'Herbelot, Bibl. Orient. p. 650. 4 Abulfeda.
5 Exod. xxxii. 26, 27. 6 Ibid. 28.
7 Jallalo'ddin, &c. 8 Ismael Ebn Ali.
And we caused clouds to overshadow you, and manna and quailso to descend
upon you, saying, Eat of the good things which we have given you for food: and
they injured not us, but injured their own souls.
And when we said, Enter into this city,p and eat of the provisions
thereof plentifully as ye will; and enter the gate worshipping, and say,
Forgiveness!q we will pardon you your sins, and give increase unto the well-
doers.
But the ungodly changed the expression into another,r different from what
had been spoken unto them; and we sent down upon the ungodly indignation from
heaven,s because they had transgressed.
And when Moses asked drink for his people, we said, Strike the rockt with
thy rod; and there gushed thereout twelve fountainsu according to the number
of the tribes, and all men knew their respective drinking-place. Eat and
drink of the bounty of GOD, and commit not evil on the earth, acting unjustly.
And when ye said, O Moses, we will by no means be satisfied with one kind
of food; pray unto thy LORD therefore for us, that he would produce for us of
that which the earth bringeth forth, herbs and cucumbers, and garlic, and
lentils, and onions;x Moses answered, Will ye exchange that which is better,
for that which is worse? Get ye down into Egypt, for there shall ye find what
ye desire: and they were smitten with vileness and misery, and drew on
themselves indignation from GOD. This they suffered, because they believed
not in the signs of GOD, and killed the prophets unjustly; this, because they
rebelled and transgressed.
o The eastern writers say these quails were of a peculiar kind, to be
found nowhere but in Yaman, from whence they were brought by a south wind in
great numbers to the Israelites' camp in the desert.9 The Arabs call these
birds Salwâ, which is plainly the same with the Hebrew Salwim, and say they
have no bones, but are eaten whole.10
p Some commentators suppose it to be Jericho, others Jerusalem.
q The Arabic word is Hittaton, which some take to signify that
profession of the unity of GOD so frequently used by the Mohammedans, La ilâha
illa 'llaho, There is no god but GOD.
r According to Jallalo'ddin, instead of Hittaton, they cried Habbat fi
shaïrat-i.e., a grain in an ear of barley; and in ridicule of the divine
command to enter the city in an humble posture, they indecently crept in upon
their breech.
s A pestilence which carried off near 70,000 of them.11
t The commentators say this was a stone which Moses brought from Mount
Sinai, and the same that fled away with his garments which he laid upon it one
day while he washed; they add that Moses ran after the stone naked, till he
found himself, ere he was aware, in the midst of the people, who, on this
accident, were convinced of the falsehood of a report which had been raised of
their prophet, that he was bursten, or, as others write, an hermaphrodite.1
They describe it to be a square piece of white marble, shaped like a
man's head; wherein they differ not much from the accounts of European
travellers, who say this rock stands among several lesser ones, about 100
paces from Mount Horeb, and appears to have been loosened from the
neighbouring mountains, having no coherence with the others; that it is a huge
mass of red granite, almost round on one side, and flat on the other, twelve
feet high, and as many thick, but broader than it is high, and about fifty
feet in circumference.2
u Marracci thinks this circumstance looks like a Rabbinical fiction, or
else that Mohammed confounds the water of the rock at Horeb with the twelve
wells at Elim;3 for he says several who have been on the spot affirm there are
but three orifices whence the water issued.4 But it is to be presumed that
Mohammed had better means of information in this respect than to fall into
such a mistake; for the rock stands within the borders of Arabia, and some of
his countrymen must needs have seen it, if he himself did not, as it is most
probable he did. And in effect he seems to be in the right. For one who went
into those parts in the end of the fifteenth century tells us expressly that
the water issued from twelve places of the rock, according to the number of
the tribes of Israel; egressæ sunt aquæ largissimæ in duodecim locis petræ,
juxta numerum duodecim tribuum Israel.5 A late curious traveller6 observes
that there are twenty-four holes in the stone, which may be easily counted-
that is to say, twelve on the flat side, and as many on the opposite round
side, every one being a foot deep, and an inch wide; and he adds, that the
holes on one side do not communicate with those on the other, which a less
accurate spectator not perceiving (for they are placed horizontally, within
two feet of the top of the rock), might conclude they pierced quite through
the stone, and so reckon them to be but twelve.
x See Numb. xi. 5, &c.
9 See Psalm lxxviii. 26. 10 Vide D'Herbelot, Bibl. Orient.
p. 477. 11 Jallalo'ddin.
1 Jallalo'ddin, Yahya. 2 Breydenbach, Itinerar. Chartâ m. p. 1.
Sicard, dans les Mémoires des Missions, vol. vii. p. 14. 3 Exod. xv.
27; Numb. xxxiii. 9. 4 Marracc. Prodr. part iv. p. 80. 5
Breydenbach, ubi sup. 6 Sicard, ubi sup.
Surely those who believe, and those who Judaize, and Christians, and
Sabians,y whoever believeth in GOD, and the last day, and doth that which is
right, they shall have their reward with their LORD; there shall come no fear
on them, neither shall they be grieved.
60 Call to mind also when we accepted your covenant, and lifted up the
mountain of Sinai over you,z saying, Receive the law which we have given you,
with a resolution to keep it, and remember that which is contained therein,
that ye may beware.
After this ye again turned back, so that if it had not been for GOD's
indulgence and mercy towards you, ye had certainly been destroyed. Moreover
ye know what befell those of your nation who transgressed on the sabbath day;a
We said unto them, Be ye changed into apes, driven away from the society of
men.
And we made them an example unto those who were contemporary with them,
and unto those who came after them, and a warning to the pious.
y From these words, which are repeated in the fifth chapter, several
writers7 have wrongly concluded that the Mohammedans hold it to be the
doctrine of their prophet that every man may be saved in his own religion,
provided he be sincere and lead a good life. It is true, some of their
doctors do agree this to be the purport of the words;1 but then they say the
latitude hereby granted was soon revoked, for that this passage is abrogated
by several others in the Korân, which expressly declare that none can be saved
who is not of the Mohammedan faith, and particularly by those words of the
third chapter, Whoever followeth any other religion than Islâm (i.e., the
Mohammedan) it shall not be accepted of him, and at the last day he shall be
of those who perish.2 However, others are of opinion that this passage is not
abrogated, but interpret it differently, taking the meaning of it to be that
no man, whether he be a Jew, a Christian, or a Sabian, shall be excluded from
salvation, provided he quit his erroneous religion and become a Moslem, which
they say is intended by the following words, Whoever believeth in GOD and the
last day, and doth that which is right. And this interpretation is approved
by Mr. Reland, who thinks the words here import no more than those of the
apostle, In every nation he that feareth GOD, and worketh righteousness, is
accepted with him;3 from which it must not be inferred that the religion of
nature, or any other, is sufficient to save, without faith in Christ.4
z The Mohammedan tradition is, that the Israelites refusing to receive
the law of Moses, GOD tore up the mountain by the roots, and shook it over
their heads, to terrify them into a compliance.5
a The story to which this passage refers, is as follows: In the days
of David some Israelites dwelt at Ailah, or Elath, on the Red Sea, where on
the night of the sabbath the fish used to come in great numbers to the shore,
and stay there all the sabbath, to tempt them; but the night following they
returned into the sea again. At length some of the inhabitants, neglecting
GOD'S command, catched fish on the sabbath, and dressed and ate them; and
afterward cut canals from the sea, for the fish to enter, with sluices, which
they shut on the sabbath, to prevent their return to the sea. The other part
of the inhabitants, who strictly observed the sabbath, used both persuasion
and force to stop this impiety, but to no purpose, the offenders growing only
more and more obstinate; whereupon David cursed the sabbath-breakers, and God
transformed them into apes. It is said that one going to see a friend of his
that was among them, found him in the shape of an ape, moving his eyes about
wildly; and asking him whether he was not such a one, the ape made a sign with
his head that it was he; whereupon the friend said to him, Did not I advise
you to desist? at which the ape wept. They add that these unhappy people
remained three days in this condition, and were afterwards destroyed by a wind
which swept them all into the sea.6
7 Selden, de Jure Nat. et Gent. sec. Hebr. l. 6, c. 12. Angel, a St.
Joseph. Gazophylac. Persic. p. 365. Nic. Cusanus in Cribratione Alcorani, l.
3, c. 2, &c. 1 See Chardin's Voyages, vol. ii. p. 326, 331.
2 Abu'lkasem Hebatallah de abrogante et abrogato. 3 Acts x.
35. 4 Vide Reland. de Rel. Moham. p. 128, &c. 5
Jallalo'ddin. 6 Abulfeda.
And when Moses said unto his people, Verily GOD commandeth you to
sacrifice a cow;b they answered, Dost thou make a jest of us! Moses said, GOD
forbid that I should be one of the foolish. They said, Pray for us unto thy
LORD, that he would show us what cow it is. Moses answered, He saith, She is
neither an old cow, nor a young heifer, but of a middle age between both: do
ye therefore that which ye are commanded.
They said, Pray for us unto thy LORD, that he would show us what colour
she is of. Moses answered, He saith, She is a red cow,c intensely red, her
colour rejoiceth the beholders.
They said, Pray for us unto thy LORD, that he would further show us what
cow it is, for several cows with us are like one another, and we, if GOD
please, will be directed.
Moses answered, He saith, She is a cow not broken to plough the earth, or
water the field, a sound one, there is no blemish in her. They said, Now hast
thou brought the truth. Then they sacrificed her; yet they wanted but little
of leaving it undone.d
And when ye slew a man, and contended among yourselves concerning him,
GOD brought forth to light that which ye concealed.
For we said, Strike the dead body with part of the sacrificed cow:e so
GOD raiseth the dead to life, and showeth you his signs, that peradventure ye
may understand.
Then were your hearts hardened after this, even as stones, or exceeding
them in hardness: for from some stones have rivers bursted forth, others have
been rent in sunder, and water hath issued from them, and others have fallen
down for fear of GOD. But GOD is not regardless of that which ye do.
70 Do ye therefore desire that the Jews should believe you? yet a part of
them heard the word of GOD, and then perverted it, after they had understood
it, against their own conscience.
And when they meet the true believers, they say, We believe: but when
they are privately assembled together, they say, Will ye acquaint them with
what GOD hath revealed unto you, that they may dispute with you concerning it
in the presence of your LORD? Do ye not therefore understand?
Do not they know that GOD knoweth that which they conceal as well as that
which they publish?
b The occasion of this sacrifice is thus related. A certain man at his
death left his son, then a child, a cow-calf, which wandered in the desert
till he came to age; at which time his mother told him the heifer was his, and
bid him fetch her, and sell her for three pieces of gold. When the young man
came to the market with his heifer, an angel in the shape of a man accosted
him, and bid him six pieces of gold for her; but he would not take the money
till he had asked his mother's consent; which when he had obtained, he
returned to the market-place, and met the angel, who now offered him twice as
much for the heifer, provided he would say nothing of it to his mother; but
the young man refusing, went and acquainted her with the additional offer.
The woman perceiving it was an angel, bid her son go back and ask him what
must be done with the heifer; whereupon the angel told the young man that in a
little time the children of Israel would buy that heifer of him at any price.
And soon after it happened that an Israelite, named Hammiel, was killed by a
relation of his, who, to prevent discovery, conveyed the body to a place
considerably distant from that where the fact was committed. The friends of
the slain man accused some other persons of the murder before Moses; but they
denying the fact, and there being no evidence to convict them, God commanded a
cow, of such and such particular marks, to be killed; but there being no other
which answered the description except the orphan's heifer, they were obliged
to buy her for as much gold as her hide would hold; according to some, for her
full weight in gold, and as others say, for ten times as much. This heifer
they sacrificed, and the dead body being, by divine direction, struck with a
part of it, revived, and standing up, named the person who had killed him;
after which it immediately fell down dead again.1 The whole story seems to be
borrowed from the red heifer, which was ordered by the Jewish law to be burnt,
and the ashes kept for purifying those who happened to touch a dead corpse;2
and from the heifer directed to be slain for the expiation of an uncertain
murder. See Deut. xxi. 1-9.
c The epithet in the original is yellow; but this word we do not use in
speaking of the colour or cattle.
d Because of the exorbitant price which they were obliged to pay for
the heifer.
e i.e., Her tongue, or the end of her tail.3
1 Abulfeda. 2 Numb. xix. 3
Jallalo'ddin.
But there are illiterate men among them, who know not the book of the
law, but only lying stories, although they think otherwise. And woe unto
them, who transcribe corruptly the book of the lawf with their hands, and then
say, This is from GOD: that they may sell it for a small price. Therefore woe
unto them because of that which their hands have written; and woe unto them
for that which they have gained.
They say, The fire of hell shall not touch us but for a certain number of
days.g Answer, Have ye received any promise from GOD to that purpose? for GOD
will not act contrary to his promise: or do ye speak concerning GOD that which
ye know not?
Verily whoso doth evil,h and is encompassed by his iniquity, they shall
be the companions of hell fire, they shall remain therein forever:
but they who believe and do good works, they shall be the companions of
paradise, they shall continue therein forever.
Remember also, when we accepted the covenant of the children of Israel,
saying, Ye shall not worship any other except GOD, and ye shall show kindness
to your parents and kindred, and to orphans, and to the poor, and speak that
which is good unto men, and be constant at prayer, and give alms. Afterwards
ye turned back, except a few of you, and retired afar off.
And when we accepted your covenant, saying, Ye shall not shed your
brother's blood nor dispossess one another of your habitations; then ye
confirmed it, and were witnesses thereto.
Afterwards ye were they who slew one another,i and turned several of your
brethren out of their houses, mutually assisting each other against them with
injustice and enmity; but if they come captives unto you, ye redeem them: yet
it is equally unlawful for you to dispossess them. Do ye therefore believe in
part of the book of the law, and reject other part thereof? But whoso among
you doth this, shall have no other reward than shame in this life, and on the
day of resurrection they shall be sent to a most grievous punishment; for GOD
is not regardless of that which ye do.
80 These are they who have purchased this present life, at the price of
that which is to come; wherefore their punishment shall not be mitigated,
neither shall they be helped.
We formerly delivered the book of the law unto Moses, and caused apostles
to succeed him, and gave evident miracles to Jesus the son of Mary, and
strengthened him with the holy spirit.k Do ye therefore, whenever an apostle
cometh unto you with that which your souls desire not, proudly reject him, and
accuse some of imposture, and slay others?
f Mohammed again accuses the Jews of corrupting their scripture.
g That is, says Jallalo'ddin, forty; being the number of days that
their forefathers worshipped the golden calf; after which they gave out that
their punishment should cease. It is a received opinion among the Jews at
present, that no person, be he ever so wicked, or of whatever sect, shall
remain in hell above eleven months, or at most a year; except Dathan and
Abiram, and atheists, who will be tormented there to all eternity.1
h By evil in this place the commentators generally understand
polytheism or idolatry; which sin the Mohammedans believe, unless repented of
in this life, is unpardonable and will be punished by eternal damnation; but
all other sins they hold will at length be forgiven. This therefore is that
irremissible impiety, in their opinion, which in the New Testament is called
the sin against the Holy Ghost.
i This passage was revealed on occasion of some quarrels which arose
between the Jews of the tribes of Koreidha, and those of al Aws, al Nadhîr,
and al Khazraj, and came to that height that they took arms and destroyed one
another's habitations, and turned one another out of their houses; but when
any were taken captive, they redeemed them. When they were asked the reason
of their acting in this manner, they answered, That they were commanded by
their law to redeem the captives, but that they fought out of shame, lest
their chiefs should be despised.2
k We must not imagine Mohammed here means the Holy Ghost in the
Christian acceptation. The commentators says this spirit was the angel
Gabriel, who sanctified Jesus and constantly attended on him.1
1 Vide Bartoloccii Biblioth. Rabbinic. tom. ii. p. 128, et tom. iii. p.
421. 2 Jallalo'ddin. 1 Jallalo'ddin.
The Jews say, Our hearts are uncircumcised: but GOD hath cursed them with
their infidelity; therefore few shall believe.
And when a book came unto them from GOD, confirming the scriptures which
were with them, although they had before prayed for assistance against those
who believed not,l yet when that came unto them which they knew to be from
God, they would not believe therein: therefore the curse of GOD shall be on
the infidels.
For a vile price have they sold their souls, that they should not believe
in that which GOD hath sent down;m out of envy, because GOD sendeth down his
favors to such of his servants as he pleaseth: therefore they brought on
themselves indignation on indignation; and the unbelievers shall suffer an
ignominious punishment.
When one saith unto them, Believe in that which GOD hath sent down; they
answer, We believe in that which hath been sent down unto us:n and they reject
what hath been revealed since, although it be the truth, confirming that which
is with them. Say, Why therefore have ye slain the prophets of GOD in times
past, if ye be true believers?
Moses formerly came unto you with evident signs, but ye afterwards took
the calf for your god and did wickedly.
And when we accepted your covenant, and lifted the mountain of Sinai over
you,o saying Receive the law which we have given you, with a resolution to
perform it, and hear; they said, We have heard, and have rebelled: and they
were made to drink down the calf into their heartsp for their unbelief. Say,
A grievous thing hath your faith commanded you, if ye be true believers?q
Say, if the future mansion with GOD be prepared peculariarly for you,
exclusive of the rest of mankind, wish for death, if ye say truth;
but they will never wish for it, because of that which their hands have
sent before them;r GOD knoweth the wicked-doers;
90 and thou shalt surely find them of all men the most covetous of life,
even more than the idolaters: one of them would desire his life to be
prolonged a thousand years, but none shall reprieve himself from punishment,
that his life may be prolonged: GOD seeth that which they do.
Say, Whoever is an enemy to Gabriels (for he hath caused the Koran to
descend on thy heart, by the permission of GOD, confirming that which was
before revealed, a direction, and good tidings to the faithful);
l The Jews in expectation of the coming of Mohammed (according to the
tradition of his followers) used this prayer, O God, help us against the
unbelievers by the prophet who is to be sent in the last times.2
m The Korân.
n The Pentateuch.
o See before p. 8.
p Moses took the calf which they had made, and burnt it in the fire,
and ground it to powder, and strewed it upon the water (of the brook that
descended from the mount), and made the children of Israel drink of it.3
q Mohammed here infers from their forefathers' disobedience in
worshipping the calf, at the same time that they pretended to believe in the
law of Moses, that the faith of the Jews in his time was as vain and
hypocritical, since they rejected him, who was foretold therein, as an
impostor.4
r That is, by reason of the wicked forgeries which they have been
guilty of in respect to the scriptures. An expression much like that of St.
Paul, where he says, that some men's sins are open beforehand, going before to
judgment.5
s The commentators say that the Jews asked what angel it was that
brought the divine revelations to Mohammed; and being told that it was
Gabriel, they replied that he was their enemy, and the messenger of wrath and
punishment; but if it had been Michael, they would
2 Idem. 3 Exod. xxxii. 20; Deut. ix. 21. 4
Jallalo'ddin, Yahya, al Beidâwi. 5 1 Tim. v. 24.
whosoever is an enemy to GOD, or his angels, or his apostles, or to
Gabriel, or Michael, verily GOD is an enemy to the unbelievers.
And now we have sent down unto thee evident signs,t and none will
disbelieve them but the evil-doers.
Whenever they make a covenant, will some of them reject it? yea, the
greater part of them do not believe.
And when there came unto them an apostle from GOD, confirming that
scripture which was with them, some of those to whom the scriptures were given
cast the book of GOD behind their backs, as if they knew it not:
and they followed the device which the devils devised against the kingdom
of Solomon;u and Solomon was not an unbeliever; but the devils believed not,
they taught men sorcery, and that which was sent down to the two angels at
Babel, Harût and Marût:v yet those two taught no man until they had said,
Verily we are a temptation, therefore be not an unbeliever. So men learned
from those two a charm by which they might cause division between a man and
his wife; but they hurt none thereby, unless by GOD'S permission, and they
learned that which would hurt them, and not profit them; and yet they knew
that he who bought that art should have no part in the life to come, and woful
is the price for which they have sold their souls, if they knew it.
But if they had believed, and feared GOD, verily the reward they would
have had from GOD would have been better, if they had known it.
have believed on him, because that angel was their friend, and the messenger
of peace and plenty. And on this occasion, they say, this passage was
revealed.1
That Michael was really the protector or guardian angel of the Jews, we
know from scripture;2 and it seems that Gabriel was, as the Persians call him,
the angel of revelations, being frequently sent on messages of that kind;3 for
which reason it is probable Mohammed pretended he was the angel from whom he
received the Korân.
t i.e., the revelations of this book.
u The devils having, by GOD'S permission, tempted Solomon without
success, they made use of a trick to blast his character. For they wrote
several books of magic, and hid them under that prince's throne, and after his
death, told the chief men that if they wanted to know by what means Solomon
had obtained his absolute power over men, genii, and the winds, they should
dig under his throne; which having done, they found the aforesaid books, which
contained impious superstitions. The better sort refused to learn the evil
arts therein delivered, but the common people did; and the priests published
this scandalous story of Solomon, which obtained credit among the Jews, till
GOD, say the Mohammedans, cleared that king by the mouth of their prophet,
declaring that Solomon was no idolater.4
v Some say only that these were two magicians, or angels sent by GOD to
teach men magic, and to tempt them.5 But others tell a longer fable; that the
angels expressing their surprise at the wickedness of the sons of Adam, after
prophets had been sent to them with divine commissions, GOD bid them choose
two out of their own number to be sent down to be judges on earth. Whereupon
they pitched upon Harût and Marût, who executed their office with integrity
for some time, till Zohara, or the planet Venus, descended and appeared before
them in the shape of a beautiful woman, bringing a complaint against her
husband (though others say she was a real woman). As soon as they saw her,
they fell in love with her, and endeavoured to prevail on her to satisfy their
desires; but she flew up again to heaven, whither the two angels also
returned, but were not admitted. However, on the intercession of a certain
pious man, they were allowed to choose whether they would be punished in this
life, or in the other; whereupon they chose the former, and now suffer
punishment accordingly in Babel, where they are to remain till the day of
judgment. They add that if a man has a fancy to learn magic, he may go to
them, and hear their voice, but cannot see them.1
This story Mohammed took directly from the Persian Magi, who mention two
rebellious angels of the same names, now hung up by the feet, with their heads
downwards, in the territory of Babel.2 And the Jews have something like this,
of the angel Shamhozai, who, having debauched himself with women, repented,
and by way of penance hung himself up between heaven and earth.3
1 Jallalo'ddin; al Zamakh. Yahya. 2 Dan. xii. I. 3
Ibid.. c. viii. 16, and ix. 21; Luke i. 19, 26. See Hyde de Rel. Vet. Persar.
p. 263. 4 Yahya, Jallalo'ddin. 5 Jallalo'ddin. 1
Yahya, &c. 2 Vide Hyde, ubi sup. c. 12.
O true believers, say not to our apostle, Raïna; but say Ondhorna;x and
hearken: the infidels shall suffer a grievous punishment.
It is not the desire of the unbelievers, either among those unto whom the
scriptures have been given, or among the idolaters, that any good should be
sent down unto you from your LORD: but GOD will appropriate his mercy unto
whom he pleaseth; for GOD is exceeding beneficent.
100 Whatever verse we shall abrogate, or cause thee to forget, we will bring
a better than it, or one like unto it. Dost thou not know that God is
almighty?
Dost thou not know that unto GOD belongeth the kingdom of heaven and
earth? neither have ye any protector or helper except GOD.
Will ye require of your apostle according to that which was formerly
required of Moses?y but he that hath exchanged faith for infidelity, hath
already erred from the straight way.
Many of those unto whom the scriptures have been given, desire to render
you again unbelievers, after ye have believed; out of envy from their souls,
even after the truth is become manifest unto them; but forgive them, and avoid
them, till GOD shall send his command; for GOD is omnipotent.
Be constant in prayer, and give alms; and what good ye have sent before
for your souls, ye shall find it with GOD; surely GOD seeth that which ye do.
They say, Verily none shall enter paradise, except they who are Jews or
Christians:z this is their wish. Say, Produce your proof of this, if ye speak
truth.
Nay, but he who resigneth himselfa to GOD, and doth that which is right,b
he shall have his reward with his LORD: there shall come no fear on them,
neither shall they be grieved.
The Jews say, The Christians are grounded on nothing;c and the Christians
say, The Jews are grounded on nothing; and the Christians say, The Jews are
grounded on nothing; yet they both read the scriptures. So likewise say they
who know not the scripture, according to their saying. But GOD shall judge
between them on the day of the resurrection, concerning that about which they
now disagree.
Who is more unjust than he who prohibiteth the temples of GOD,d that his
name should be remembered therein, and who hasteth to destroy them? Those men
cannot enter therein, but with fear: they shall have shame in this world, and
in the next a grievous punishment.
To GOD belongeth the east and the west; therefore whithersoever ye turn
yourselves to pray, there is the face of GOD; for GOD is omnipresent and
omniscient.
x Those two Arabic words have both the same signification, viz., Look
on us; and are a kind of salutation. Mohammed had a great aversion to the
first, because the Jews frequently used it in derision, it being a word of
reproach in their tongue.4 They alluded, it seems, to the Hebrew verb [Hebrew
Text] ruá, which signifies to be bad or mischievous.
y Namely, to see GOD manifestly.5
z This passage was revealed on occasion of a dispute which Mohammed had
with the Jews of Medina, and the Christians of Najrân, each of them asserting
that those of their religion only should be saved.6
a Literally, resigneth his face, &c.
b That is, asserteth the unity of GOD.7
c The Jews and Christians are here accused of denying the truth of each
other's religion, notwithstanding they read the scriptures. Whereas the
Pentateuch bears testimony to Jesus, and the Gospel bears testimony to Moses.1
d Or hindereth men from paying their adorations to GOD in those sacred
places. This passage, says Jallalo'ddin, was revealed on news being brought
that the Romans had spoiled the temple of Jerusalem; or else when the
idolatrous Arabs obstructed Mohammed's visiting the temple of Mecca, in the
expedition of al Hodeibiya, which happened in the sixth year of the Hejra.2
3 Bereshit rabbah, in Gen. vi. 2. 4 Jallalo'ddin. 5 See
before, p. 7. 6 Jallalo'ddin.
7 Idem. 1 Idem. 2 Vide Abulfeda. Vit. Moham. p. 84, &c.
110 They say, GOD hath begotten children:e GOD forbid! To him belongeth
whatever is in heaven, and on earth; all is possessed by him,
the Creator of heaven and earth; and when he decreeth a thing, he only
saith unto it, Be, and it is.
And they who know not the scriptures say, Unless GOD speak unto us, or
thou show us a sign, we will not believe. So said those before them,
according to their saying: their hearts resemble each other. We have already
shown manifest signs unto people who firmly believe;
we have sent thee in truth, a bearer of good tidings and a preacher; and
thou shalt not be questioned concerning the companions of hell.
But the Jews will not be pleased with thee, neither the Christians, until
thou follow their religion; say, The direction of GOD is the true direction.
And verily if thou follow their desires, after the knowledge which hath been
given thee, thou shalt find no patron or protector against GOD.
They to whom we have given the book of the Koran, and who read it with
its true reading, they believe therein; and whoever believeth not therein,
they shall perish.
O children of Israel, remember my favor wherewith I have favored you, and
that I have preferred you before all nations;
and dread the day wherein one soul shall not make satisfaction for
another soul, neither shall any compensation be accepted from them, nor shall
any intercession avail, neither shall they be helped.
Remember when the LORD tried Abraham by certain words,f which he
fulfilled: GOD said, Verily I will constitute thee a model of religiong unto
mankind; he answered, And also of my posterity; GOD said, My covenant doth not
comprehend the ungodly.
And when we appointed the holy househ of Mecca to be a place of resort
for mankind, and a place of security; and said, Take the station of Abrahami
for a place of prayer; and we covenanted with Abraham for a place of prayer;
and we covenanted with Abraham and Ismael, that they should cleanse my house
for those who should compass it, and those who should be devoutly assiduous
there, and those who should bow down and worship.
120 And when Abraham said, LORD make this a territory of security, and
bounteously bestow fruits on its inhabitants, such of them as believe in GOD
and the last day; GOD answered, And whoever believeth not, I will bestow on
him little; after wards I will drive him to the punishment of hell fire; an
ill journey shall it be!
And when Abraham and Ismael raised the foundations of the house, saying,
LORD, accept it from us, for thou art he who heareth and knoweth:
LORD, make us also resignedk unto thee, and of our posterity a people
resigned unto thee, and show us our holy ceremonies, and be turned unto us,
for thou art easy to be reconciled, and merciful:
e This is spoken not only of the Christians and of the Jews (for they
are accused of holding Ozair, or Ezra, to be the Son of GOD), but also the
pagan Arabs, who imagined the angels to be the daughters of GOD.
f GOD tried Abraham chiefly by commanding him to leave his native
country, and to offer his son. But the commentators suppose the trial here
meant related only to some particular ceremonies, such as circumcision,
pilgrimage to the Caaba, several rites of purification, and the like.3
g I have rather expressed the meaning, than truly translated the Arabic
word Imâm, which answers to the Latin Antistes. This title the Mohammedans
give to their priests, who begin the prayers in their mosques, and whom all
the congregation follow.
h That is, the Caaba, which is usually called, by way of eminence, the
House. Of the sanctity of this building, and other particulars relating to
it, see the Preliminary Discourse, Sect. IV.
i A place so called within the inner enclosure of the Caaba, where they
pretend to show the print of his foot in a stone.4
k The Arabic word is Moslemûna, in the singular Moslem, which the
Mohammedans take as a title peculiar to themselves. The Europeans generally
write and pronounce it Musulman.
3 Jallalo'ddin. 4 See the Prelim. Disc.,
Sect. IV.
LORD, send them likewise an apostle from among them, who may declare thy
signs unto them, and teach them the book of the Koran and wisdom, and may
purify them; for thou art mighty and wise.
Who will be averse to the religion of Abraham, but he whose mind is
infatuated? Surely we have chosen him in this world, and in that which is to
come he shall be one of the righteous.
When his LORD said unto him, Resign thyself unto me; he answered, I have
resigned myself unto the LORD of all creatures.
And Abraham bequeathed this religion to his children, and Jacob did the
same, saying, My children, verily GOD hath chosen this religion for you,
therefore die not, unless ye also be resigned.
Were ye present when Jacob was at the point of death? when he said to his
sons, Whom will ye worship after me? They answered, We will worship thy GOD,
and the GOD of thy fathers Abraham, and Ismael, and Isaac, one GOD, and to him
will we be resigned.
That people are now passed away, they have what they have gained,l and ye
shall have what ye gain; and ye shall not be questioned concerning that which
they have done.
They say, Become Jews or Christians that ye may be directed. Say, Nay we
follow the religion of Abraham the orthodox, who was no idolater.
130 Say, We believe in GOD, and that which hath been sent down unto us, and
that which hath been sent down unto Abraham, and Ismael, and Isaac, and Jacob,
and the tribes, and that which was delivered unto Moses, and Jesus, and that
which was delivered unto the prophets from their LORD: We make no distinction
between any of them, and to GOD are we resigned.
Now if they believe according to what ye believe, they are surely
directed, but if they turn back, they are in schism. GOD shall support thee
against them, for he is in the hearer, the wise.
The baptism of GODm have we received, and who is better than GOD to
baptize? him do we worship.
Say, Will ye dispute with us concerning GOD,n who is our LORD, and your
LORD? we have our works, and ye have your works, and unto him are we sincerely
devoted.
Will ye say, truly Abraham, and Ismael, and Isaac, and Jacob, and the
tribes were Jews or Christians? Say, are ye wiser, or GOD? And who is more
unjust than he who hideth the testimony which he hath received from GOD?o But
GOD is not regardless of that which ye do.
That people are passed away, they have what they have gained, and ye
shall have what ye gain, nor shall ye be questioned concerning that which they
have done.
l Or deserved. The Mohammedan notion, as to the imputation of moral
actions to man, which they call gain, or acquisition, is sufficiently
explained in the Preliminary Discourse.
m By baptism is to be understood the religion which GOD instituted in
the beginning; because the signs of it appear in the person who professes it,
as the signs of water appear in the clothes of him that is baptized.1
n These words were revealed because the Jews insisted that they first
received the scriptures, that their Keblah was more ancient, and that no
prophets could arise among the Arabs; and therefore if Mohammed was a prophet,
he must have been of their nation.2
o The Jews are again accused of corrupting and suppressing the
prophecies in the Pentateuch relating to Mohammed.
1 Jallalo'ddin. 2 Idem.
The foolish men will say, What hath turned them from their Keblah,
towards which they formerly prayed?p Say unto GOD belongeth the east and the
west: he directeth whom he pleaseth into the right way.
Thus have we placed you, O Arabians, an intermediate nation,q that ye may
be witness against the rest of mankind, and that the apostle may be a witness
against you.
We appointed the Keblah, towards which thou didst formerly pray, only
that we might know him who followeth the apostle, from him who turneth back on
the heels;r though this change seem a great matter, unless unto those whom GOD
hath directed. But GOD will not render your faith of none effect;s for GOD is
gracious and merciful unto man.
We have seen thee turn about thy face towards heaven with uncertainty,
but we will cause thee to turn thyself towards a Keblah that will please thee.
Turn, therefore, thy face towards the holy temple of Mecca; and wherever ye
be, turn your faces towards that place. They to whom the scripture hath been
given, know this to be truth from their LORD. GOD is not regardless of that
which ye do.
140 Verily although thou shouldest show unto those to whom the scripture
hath been given all kinds of signs, yet they will not follow thy Keblah,
neither shalt thou follow their Keblah; nor will one part of them follow the
Keblah of the other. And if thou follow their desires, after the knowledge
which hath been given thee, verily thou wilt become one of the ungodly.
They to whom we have given the scripture know our apostle, even as they
know their own children, but some of them hide the truth, against their own
knowledge.
Truth is from thy LORD, therefore thou shalt not doubt.
Every sect hath a certain tract of heaven to which they turn themselves
in prayer; but do ye strive to run after good things; wherever ye be, GOD will
bring you all back at the resurrection, for GOD is almighty.
And from what place soever thou comest forth, turn thy face towards the
holy temple, for this is truth from thy LORD; neither is GOD regardless of
that which ye do.
From what place soever thou comest forth, turn thy face towards the holy
temple; and wherever ye be, thitherward turn your faces, lest men have matter
of dispute against you; but as for those among them who are unjust doers, fear
them not, but fear me, that I may accomplish my grace upon you, and that ye
may be directed.
As we have sent unto you an apostle from among you,t to rehearse our
signs unto you, and to purify you, and to teach you the book of the Koran and
wisdom, and to teach you that which ye knew not:
therefore remember me, and I will remember you, and give thanks unto me,
and be not unbelievers.
O true believers, beg assistance with patience and prayer, for GOD is
with the patient.
p At first, Mohammed and his followers observed no particular rite in
turning their faces towards any certain place, or quarter of the world, when
they prayed; it being declared to be perfectly indifferent.3 Afterwards, when
the prophet fled to Medina, he directed them to turn towards the temple of
Jerusalem (probably to ingratiate himself with the Jews), which continued to
be their Keblah for six or seven months; but either finding the Jews too
intractable, or despairing otherwise to gain the pagan Arabs, who could not
forget their respect to the temple of Mecca, he ordered that prayers for the
future should be towards the last. This change was made in the second year of
the Hejra,4 and occasioned many to fall from him, taking offence at his
inconstancy.5
q This seems to be the sense of the words; though the commentators6
will have the meaning to be that the Arabians are here declared to be a most
just and good nation.
r i.e., Returneth to Judaism.
s Or will not suffer it to go without its reward, while ye prayed
towards Jerusalem.
t That is, of your own nation.
3 See before, p. 13. 4 Vide Abulfeda, Vit. Moham. p. 54.
5 Jallalo'ddin. 6 Idem. Yahya, &c.
And say not of those who are slain in fight for the religion of GOD,u
that they are dead; yea, they are living:x but ye do not understand.
150 We will surely prove you by afflicting you in some measure with fear,
and hunger, and decrease of wealth, and loss of lives, and scarcity of fruits:
but bear good tidings unto the patient,
who, when a misfortune befalleth them, say, We are GOD'S and unto him
shall we surely return.y
Upon them shall be blessings from their LORD and mercy, and they are the
rightly directed.
Moreover Safa and Merwah are two of the monuments of God: whoever
therefore goeth on pilgrimage to the temple of Mecca or visiteth it, it shall
be no crime in him, if he compass them both.z And as for him who voluntarily
performeth a good work; verily GOD is grateful and knowing.
They who conceal any of the evident signs, or the direction which we have
sent down, after what we have manifested unto men in the scripture, GOD shall
curse them; and they who curse shall curse them.a
But as for those who repent and amend, and make known what they
concealed, I will be turned unto them, for I am easy to be reconciled and
merciful.
Surely they who believe not, and die in their unbelief, upon them shall
be the curse of GOD, and of the angels, and of all men;
they shall remain under it forever, their punishment shall not be
alleviated, neither shall they be regarded.b
Your GOD is one GOD; there is no GOD but He, the most merciful.
Now in the creation of heaven and earth, and the vicissitude of night and
day, and in the ship which saileth in the sea, loaden with what is profitable
for mankind, and in the rain water which GOD sendeth from heaven, quickening
thereby the dead earth, and replenishing the same with all sorts of cattle,
and in the change of winds, and the clouds that are compelled to do servicec
between heaven and earth, are signs to people of understanding:
u The original words are literally, who are slain in the way of GOD; by
which expression, frequently occurring in the Korân, is always meant war
undertaken against unbelievers for the propagation of the Mohammedan faith.
x The souls of martyrs (for such they esteem those who die in battle
against infidels), says Jallalo'ddin, are in the crops of green birds, which
have liberty to fly wherever they please in paradise, and feed on the fruits
thereof.
y An expression frequently in the mouths of the Mohammedans, when under
any great affliction, or in any imminent danger.
z Safâ and Merwâ are two mountains near Mecca, whereon were anciently
two idols, to which the pagan Arabs used to pay a superstitious veneration.1
Jallalo'ddin says this passage was revealed because the followers of Mohammed
made a scruple of going round these mountains, as the idolaters did. But the
true reason of his allowing this relic of ancient superstition seems to be the
difficulty he found in preventing it. Abul Kâsem Hebato'llah thinks these
last words are abrogated by those other, Who will reject the religion of
Abraham, except he who hath infatuated his souls?2 So that he will have the
meaning to be quite contrary to the letter, as if it had been, it shall be no
crime in him if he do not compass them. However, the expositors are all
against him3, and the ceremony of running between these two hills is still
observed at the pilgrimage.4
a That is, the angels, the believers, and all things in general.5 But
Yahya interprets it of the curses which will be given to the wicked, when they
cry out because of the punishment of the sepulchre,6 by all who hear them,
that is, by all creatures except men and genii.
b Or, as Jallalo'ddin expounds it, GOD will not wait for their
repentance.
c The original word signifies properly that are pressed or compelled to
do personal service without hire; which kind of service is often exacted by
the eastern princes of their subjects, and is called by the Greek and Latin
writers, Angaria. The scripture often mentions this sort of compulsion by
force.7
1 See the Prelim. Disc. Sect. I. 2 See before, p. 15.
3 Vide Marracci in Alc. p. 69, &c 4 See the Prelim. Disc. Sect.
IV. 5 Jallalo'ddin. 6 See Prelim. Disc. Sect. IV 7
Matth. v. 41; xxvii. 32, &c.
160 yet some men take idols beside GOD, and love them as with the love due
to GOD; but the true believers are more fervent in love towards GOD. Oh that
they who act unjustly did perceive,d when they behold their punishment, that
all power belongeth unto GOD, and that he is severe in punishing!
When those who have been followed shall separate themselves from their
followers,e and shall see the punishment, and the cords of relation between
them shall be cut in sunder;
the followers shall say, If we could return to life, we would separate
ourselves from them, as they have now separated themselves from us. So GOD
will show them their works; they shall sigh grievously, and shall not come
forth from the fire of hell.
O men, eat of that which is lawful and good on the earth; and tread not
in the steps of the devil, for he is your open enemy.
Verily he commandeth you evil and wickedness, and that ye should say that
of GOD which ye know not.
And when it is said unto them who believe not, Follow that which GOD hath
sent down; they answer, Nay, but we will follow that which we found our
fathers practise. What? though their fathers knew nothing, and were not
rightly directed?
The unbelievers are like unto one who crieth aloud to that which heareth
not so much as his calling, or the sound of his voice. They are deaf, dumb,
and blind, therefore do they not understand.
O true believers, eat of the good things which we have bestowed on you
for food, and return thanks unto GOD, if ye serve him.
Verily he hath forbidden you to eat that which dieth of itself, and blood
and swine's flesh, and that on which any other name but GOD'S hath been
invocated.f But he who is forced by necessity, not lusting, nor returning to
transgress, it shall be no crime in him if he eat of those things, for GOD is
gracious and merciful.
Moreover they who conceal any part of the scripture which GOD hath sent
down unto them, and sell it for a small price, they shall swallow into their
bellies nothing but fire; GOD shall not speak unto them on the day of
resurrection, neither shall he purify them, and they shall suffer a grievous
punishment.
170 These are they who have sold direction for error, and pardon for
punishment: but how great will their suffering be in the fire!
This they shall endure, because GOD sent down the book of the Koran with
truth, and they who disagree concerning that book are certainly in a wide
mistake.
It is not righteousness that ye turn your faces in prayer towards the
east and the west, but righteousness is of him who believeth in GOD and the
last day, and the angels, and the scriptures, and the prophets; who giveth
money for GOD'S sake unto his kindred, and unto orphans, and the needy, and
the stranger, and those who ask, and for redemption of captives; who is
constant at prayer, and giveth alms; and of those who perform their covenant,
when they have covenanted, and who behave themselves patiently in adversity,
and hardships, and in time of violence; these are they who are true, and these
are they who fear GOD.
d Or it may be translated, Although the ungodly will perceive, &c. But
some copies instead of yara, in the third person, read tara, in the second;
and then it must be rendered, Oh if thou didst see when the ungodly behold
their punishment, &c.
e That is, when the broachers or heads of new sects shall at the last
day forsake or wash their hands of their disciples, as if they were not
accomplices in their superstitions.
f For this reason, whenever the Mohammedans kill any animal for food,
they always say, Bismi llah, or In the name of GOD; which, if it be neglected,
they think it not lawful to eat of it.
O true believers, the law of retaliation is ordained you for the slain:
the free shall die for the free, and the servant for the servant, and a woman
for a woman:g but he whom his brother shall forgive may be prosecuted, and
obliged to make satisfaction according to what is just, and a fine shall be
set on himh with humanity.
This is indulgence from your LORD, and mercy. And he who shall
transgress after this, by killing the murderer, shall suffer a grievous
punishment.
And in this law or retaliation ye have life, O ye of understanding, that
peradventure ye may fear.
It is ordained you, when any of you is at the point of death, if he leave
any goods, that he bequeath a legacy to his parents, and kindred, according to
what shall be reasonable.i This is a duty incumbent on those who fear GOD.
But he who shall change the legacy, after he hath heard it bequeathed by the
dying person, surely the sin thereof shall be on those who change it, for GOD
is he who heareth and knoweth.
Howbeit he who apprehendeth from the testator any mistake or injustice,
and shall compose the matter between them, that shall be no crime in him, for
GOD is gracious and merciful.
O true believers, a fast is ordained you, as it was ordained unto those
before you, that ye may fear GOD.
A certain number of days shall ye fast: but he among you who shall be
sick, or on a journey, shall fast an equal number of other days. And those
who cank keep it, and do not, must redeem their neglect by maintaining of a
poor man.l And he who voluntarily dealeth better with the poor man than he is
obliged, this shall be better for him. But if ye fast, it will be better for
you, if ye knew it.
180 The month of Ramadan shall ye fast, in which the Koran was sent down
from heaven,n a direction unto men, and declarations of direction, and the
distinction between good and evil. Therefore, let him among you who shall be
present in this month, fast the same month; but he who shall be sick, or on a
journey, shall fast the like number of other days. GOD would make this an
ease unto you, and would not make it a difficulty unto you; that ye may fulfil
the number of days, and glorify GOD, for that he hath directed you, and that
ye may give thanks.
g This is not to be strictly taken; for according to the Sonna, a man
also is to be put to death for the murder of a woman. Regard is also to be
had to difference in religion, so that a Mohammedan, though a slave, is not to
be put to death for an infidel, though a freeman.1 But the civil magistrates
do not think themselves always obliged to conform to this last determination
of the Sonna.
h This is the common practice in Mohammedan countries, particularly in
Persia,2 where the relations of the deceased may take their choice, either to
have the murderer put into their hands to be put to death, or else to accept
of a pecuniary satisfaction.
i That is, the legacy was not to exceed a third part of the testator's
substance, nor to be given where there was no necessity. But this injunction
is abrogated by the law concerning inheritances.
k The expositors differ much about the meaning of this passage,
thinking it very improbable that people should be left entirely at liberty
either to fast or not, on compounding for it in this manner. Jallalo'ddin,
therefore, supposes the negative particle not to be understood, and that this
is allowed only to those who are not able to fast, by reason of age or
dangerous sickness; whether they would fast or maintain a poor man, which
liberty was soon after taken away, and this passage abrogated by the
following, Therefore let him who shall be present in this month, fast the same
month. Yet this abrogation, he says, does not extend to women with child or
that give suck, lest the infant suffer.
Al Zamakhshari, having first given an explanation of Ebn Abbâs, who, by
a different interpretation of the Arabic word Yotikûnaho, which signifies can
or are able to fast, renders it, Those who find great difficulty therein, &c.,
adds an exposition of his own, by supposing something to be understood,
according to which the sense will be, Those who can fast and yet have a legal
excuse to break it, must redeem it, &c.
l According to the usual quantity which a man eats in a day and the
custom of the country.3
m See the Prelim. Disc. Sect. IV.
n i.e., At home, and not in a strange country, where the fact cannot be
performed, or on a journey.
1 Jallalo'ddin. 2 Vide Chardin Voyage de Perse, t. ii. p. 299,
&c. 3 Jallalo'ddin.
When my servants ask thee concerning me, Verily I am near; I will hear
the prayer of him that prayeth, when he prayeth unto me: but let them hearken
unto me, and believe in me, that they may be rightly directed.
It is lawful for you, on the night of the fast, to go in unto your
wives;o they are a garmentp unto you, and ye are a garment unto them. GOD
knoweth that ye defraud yourselves therein, wherefore he turneth unto you, and
forgiveth you. Now, therefore, go in unto them; and earnestly desire that
which GOD ordaineth you, and eat and drink, until ye can plainly distinguish a
white thread from a black thread by the daybreak: then keep the fast until
night, and go not in unto them, but be constantly present in the places of
worship. These are the prescribed bounds of GOD, therefore draw not near them
to transgress them. Thus GOD declareth his signs unto men, that ye may fear
him.
Consume not your wealth among yourselves in vain; nor present it unto
judges, that ye may devour part of men's substance unjustly, against your own
consciences.
They will ask thee concerning the phases of the moon: Answer, They are
times appointed unto men, and to show the season of the pilgrimage to Mecca.
It is not righteousness that ye enter your houses by the back parts thereof,q
but righteousness is of him who feareth GOD. Therefore enter your houses by
their doors; and fear GOD, that ye may be happy.
And fight for the religion of GOD against those who fight against you;
but transgress not by attacking them first, for GOD loveth not the
transgressors.
And kill them wherever ye find them, and turn them out of that whereof
they have dispossessed you; for temptation to idolatry is more grievous than
slaughter; yet fight not against them in the holy temple, until they attack
you therein; but if they attack you, slay them there. This shall be the
reward of infidels.
But if they desist, GOD is gracious and merciful.
Fight therefore against them, until there be no temptation to idolatry,
and the religion be GOD'S; but if they desist, then let there be no hostility,
except against the ungodly.
A sacred month for a sacred month,r and the holy limits of Mecca, if they
attack you therein, do ye also attack them therein in retaliation; and whoever
transgresseth against you by so doing, do ye transgress against him in like
manner as he hath transgressed against you, and fear GOD, and know that GOD is
with those who fear him.
190 Contribute out of your substance toward the defence of the religion of
GOD, and throw not yourselves with your own hands into perdition;s and do
good, for GOD loveth those who do good.
o In the beginning of Mohammedism, during the fast, they neither lay
with their wives, nor ate nor drank after supper. But both are permitted by
this passage.1
p A metaphorical expression, to signify the mutual comfort a man and
his wife find in each other.
q Some of the Arabs had a superstitious custom after they had been at
Mecca (in pilgrimage, as it seems), on their return home, not to enter their
house by the old door, but to make a hole through the back part for a passage,
which practice is here reprehended.
r As to these sacred months, wherein it was unlawful for the ancient
Arabs to attack one another, see the Prelim. Disc. Sect. VII.
s i.e., Be not accessory to your own destruction, by neglecting your
contributions towards the wars against infidels, and thereby suffering them to
gather strength.
1 Jallalo'ddin.
Perform the pilgrimage of Mecca, and the visitation of GOD; and, if ye be
besieged, send that offering which shall be the easiest; and shave not your
heads,t until your offering reacheth the place of sacrifice. But, whoever
among you is sick, or is troubled with any distemper of the head, must redeem
the shaving his head, by fasting, or alms, or some offering.u When ye are
secure from enemies, he who tarrieth in the visitation of the temple of Meccax
until the pilgrimage, shall bring that offering which shall be the easiest.
But he who findeth not anything to offer, shall fast three days in the
pilgrimage, and seven when ye are returned: they shall be ten days complete.
This is incumbent on him whose family shall not be present at the holy temple.
And fear GOD, and know that GOD is severe in punishing.
The pilgrimage must be performed in the known months:y whosoever
therefore purposeth to go on pilgrimage therein, let him not know a woman, nor
transgress, nor quarrel in the pilgrimage. The good which ye do, GOD knoweth
it. Make provision for your journey; but the best provision is piety and fear
me, O ye of understanding.
It shall be no crime in you, if ye seek an increase from your LORD, by
trading during the pilgrimage. And when ye go in processionz from Arafat,a
remember GOD near the holy monument;b and remember him for that he hath
directed you, although ye were before this of the number of those who go
astray.
Therefore go in procession from whence the people go in procession, and
ask pardon of GOD, for GOD is gracious and merciful.
And when ye have finished your holy ceremonies, remember GOD, according
as ye remember your fathers, or with a more reverent commemoration. There are
some men who say, O LORD, give us our portion in this world; but such shall
have no portion in the next life:
and there are others who say, O LORD, give us good in this world and also
good in the next world, and deliver us from the torment of hell fire.
They shall have a portion of that which they have gained: GOD is swift in
taking an account.c
Remember GOD the appointed number of days:d but if any haste to depart
from the valley of Mina in two days, it shall be no crime in him. And if any
tarry longer, it shall be no crime in him, in him who feareth GOD. Therefore
fear GOD, and know that unto him ye shall be gathered.
t For this was a sign they had completed their vow, and performed all
the ceremonies of the pilgrimage.1
u That is, either by fasting three days, or feeding six poor people, or
sacrificing a sheep.
x This passage is somewhat obscure. Yahya interprets it of him who
marries a wife during the visitation, and performs the pilgrimage the year
following. But Jallalo'ddin expounds it of him who stays within the sacred
enclosures, in order to complete the ceremonies which (as it should seem) he
had not been able to do within the prescribed time.
y i.e., Shawâl, Dhu'lkaada, and Dhu'lhajja. See the Preliminary
Discourse, Sect. IV.
z The original word signifies to rush forward impetuously; as the
pilgrims do when they proceed from Arafat to Mozdalifa.
a A mountain near Mecca, so called because Adam there met and knew his
wife, after a long separation.2 Yet others say that Gabriel, after he had
instructed Abraham in all the sacred ceremonies, coming to Arafat, there asked
him if he knew the ceremonies which had been shown him; to which Abraham
answering in the affirmative, the mountain had thence its name.3
b In Arabic, al Masher al harâm. It is a mountain in the farther part
of Mozdalifa, where it is said Mohammed stood praying and praising God, till
his face became extremely shining.4 Bobovious calls it Farkh5, but the true
name seems to be Kazah; the variation being occasioned only by the different
pointing of the Arabic letters.
c For he will judge all creatures, says Jallalo'ddin, in the space of
half a day.
d i.e., Three days after slaying the sacrifices.
1 Jallalo'ddin. 2 See before, p. 5, note f. 3 Al Hasan.
4 Jallalo'ddin.
5 Bobov. de Peregr. Meccana, p. 15.
There is a man who causeth thee to marvele by his speech concerning this
present life, and calleth God to witness that which is in his heart, yet he is
most intent in opposing thee;
200 and when he turneth away from thee, he hasteth to act corruptly in the
earth, and to destroy that which is sown, and springeth up:f but GOD loveth
not corrupt doing.
And if one say unto him, Fear GOD; pride seizeth him, together with
wickedness; but hell shall be his reward, and an unhappy couch shall it be.
There is also a man who selleth his soul for the sake of those things
which are pleasing unto GOD;g and GOD is gracious unto his servants.
O true believers, enter into the true religion wholly, and follow not the
steps of Satan, for he is your open enemy.
If ye have slipped after the declarations of our will have come unto you,
know that GOD is mighty and wise.
Do the infidels expect less than that GOD should come down to them
overshadowed with clouds, and the angels also? but the thing is decreed, and
to GOD shall all things return.
Ask the children of Israel how many evident signs we have showed them;
and whoever shall change the grace of GOD after it shall have come unto him,
verily GOD will be severe in punishing him.
The present life was ordained for those who believe not, and they laugh
the faithful to scorn; but they who fear GOD shall be above them, on the day
of the resurrection: for GOD is bountiful unto whom he pleaseth without
measure.
Mankind was of one faith, and GOD sent prophets bearing good tidings, and
denouncing threats and sent down with them the scripture in truth, that it
might judge between men of that concerning which they disagreed: and none
disagreed concerning it, except those to whom the same scriptures were
delivered, after the declarations of GOD'S will had come unto them, out of
envy among themselves. And GOD directed those who believed, to that truth
concerning which they disagreed, by his will: for GOD directeth whom he
pleaseth into the right way.
Did ye think ye should enter paradise, when as yet no such thing had
happened unto you, as hath happened unto those who have been before you? They
suffered calamity, and tribulation, and were afflicted; so that the apostle,
and they who believed with him, said: When will the help of GOD come? Is not
the help of GOD nigh?
210 They will ask thee what they shall bestow in alms: Answer, The good
which ye bestow, let it be given to parents, and kindred, and orphans, and the
poor and the stranger. Whatsoever good ye do, GOD knoweth it.
War is enjoined you against the Infidels; but this is hateful unto you:
yet perchance ye hate a thing which is better for you, and perchance ye
love a thing which is worse for you: but GOD knoweth and ye know not.
e This person was al Akhnas Ebn Shoraik, a fair-spoken dissembler, who
swore that he believed in Mohammed, and pretended to be one of his friends,
and to contemn this world. But GOD here reveals to the prophet his hypocrisy
and wickedness.1
f Setting fire to his neighbour's corn, and killing his asses by
night.2
g The person here meant was one Soheib, who being persecuted by the
idolaters of Mecca, forsook all he had, and fled to Medina.3
1 Jallalo'ddin. 2 Idem. 3 Idem.
They will ask thee concerning the sacred month, whether they may war
therein: Answer, To war therein is grievous; but to obstruct the way of GOD,
and infidelity towards him, and to keep men from the holy temple, and to drive
out his people from thence, is more grievous in the sight of GOD, and the
temptation to idolatry is more grievous than to kill in the sacred months.
They will not cease to war against you, until they turn you from your
religion, if they be able: but whoever among you shall turn back from his
religion, and die an infidel, their works shall be vain in this world, and the
next; they shall be the companions of hell fire, they shall remain therein
forever.
But they who believe, and who fly for the sake of religion, and fight in
GOD's cause, they shall hope for the mercy of GOD; for GOD is gracious and
merciful.
They will ask thee concerning wineh and lots:i Answer, In both there is
great sin, and also some things of use unto men;k but their sinfulness is
greater than their use. They will ask thee also what they shall bestow in
alms:
Answer, What ye have to spare. Thus GOD showeth his signs unto you, that
peradventure ye might seriously think
of this present world, and of the next. They will also ask thee
concerning orphans: Answer, To deal righteously with them is best;
and if ye intermeddle with the management of what belongs to them, do
them no wrong; they are your brethren: GOD knoweth the corrupt dealer from the
righteous; and if GOD please, he will surely distress you,l for GOD is mighty
and wise.
Marry not women who are idolaters, until they believe: verily a maid-
servant who believeth, is better than an idolatress, although she please you
more. And give not women who believe in marriage to the idolaters, until they
believe: for verily a servant who is a true believer, is better than an
idolater, though he please you more.
220 They invite unto hell fire, but GOD inviteth unto paradise and pardon
through his will, and declareth his signs unto men, that they may remember.
They will ask thee also concerning the courses of women: Answer, They are
a pollution: therefore separate yourselves from women in their courses, and go
not near them, until they be cleansed. But when they are cleansed, go in unto
them as GOD hath commanded you,m for GOD loveth those who repent, and loveth
those who are clean.
Your wives are your tillage, go in therefore unto your tillage in what
manner soever ye will:n and do first some act that may be profitable unto your
souls;o and fear GOD, and know that ye must meet him; and bear good tidings
unto the faithful.
h Under the name of wine all sorts of strong and inebriating liquors
are comprehended.1
i The original word, al Meiser, properly signifies a particular game
performed with arrows, and much in use with the pagan Arabs. But by lots we
are here to understand all games whatsoever, which are subject to chance or
hazard, as dice, cards, &c.2
k From these words some suppose that only drinking to excess and too
frequent gaming are prohibited.3 And the moderate use of wine they also think
is allowed by these words of the 16th chapter, And of the fruits of palm-trees
and grapes ye obtain inebriating drink, and also good nourishment. But the
more received opinion is, that both drinking wine or other strong liquors in
any quantity, and playing at any game of chance, are absolutely forbidden.4
l viz., By his curse, which shall certainly bring to nothing what ye
shall wrong the orphans of.
m But not while they have their courses, nor by using preposterous
venery.1
n It has been imagined that these words allow that preposterous lust,
which the commentators say is forbidden by the preceding; but I question
whether this can be proved.2
o i.e., Perform some act of devotion or charity.
1 See the Prelim. Disc. Sect. V. 2 See ibid. 3
Vide Jallalo'ddin et al Zamakhshari. 4 See the Prelim. Disc. ubi
sup. 1 Ebn Abbas, Jallalo'ddin. 2 Jallalo'ddin, Yahya, al
Zamakhshari Vide Lucret. de Rer. Nat. l. 4, v. 1258, &c.
Make not GOD the object of your oaths,p that ye will deal justly, and be
devout, and make peace among men;q for God is he who heareth and knoweth.
GOD will not punish you for an inconsiderate wordr in your oaths; but he
will punish you for that which your hearts have assented unto: GOD is merciful
and gracious.
They who vow to abstain from their wives, are allowed to wait four
months:s but if they go back from their vow, verily GOD is gracious and
merciful;t
and if they resolve on a divorce, GOD is he who heareth and knoweth.
The women who are divorced shall wait concerning themselves until they
have their courses thrice,u and it shall not be lawful for them to conceal
that which GOD hath created in their wombs,x if they believe in GOD and the
last day; and their husbands will act more justly to bring them back at this
time, if they desire a reconciliation. The women ought also to behave towards
their husbands in like manner as their husbands should behave towards them,
according to what is just: but the men ought to have a superiority over them.
GOD is mighty and wise.
Ye may divorce your wives twice; and then either retain them with
humanity, or dismiss them with kindness. But it is not lawful for you to take
away anything of what ye have given them, unless both fear that they cannot
observe the ordinances of GOD.y And if ye fear that they cannot observe the
ordinance of GOD, it shall be no crime in either of them on account of that
for which the wife shall redeem herself.z These are the ordinances of GOD;
therefore transgress them not; for whoever transgresseth the ordinances of
GOD, they are unjust doers.
But if the husband divorce her a third time, she shall not be lawful for
him again, until she marry another husband. But if he also divorce her, it
shall be no crime in them if they return to each other, if they think they can
observe the ordinances of GOD, and these are the ordinances of GOD, he
declareth them to people of understanding.
p So as to swear frequently by him. The word translated object,
properly signifies a butt to shoot at with arrows.3
q Some commentators4 expound this negatively, That ye will not deal
justly, nor be devout, &c. For such wicked oaths, they say, were customary
among the idolatrous inhabitants of Mecca; which gave occasion to the
following saying of Mohammed: When your swear to do a thing, and afterwards
find it better to do otherwise, do that which is better, and make void your
oath.
r When a man swears inadvertently, and without design.
s That is, they may take so much time to consider; and shall not, by a
rash oath, be obliged actually to divorce them.
t i.e., If they be reconciled to their wives within four months, or
after, they may retain them, and GOD will dispense with their oath.
u This is to be understood of those only with whom the marriage has
been consummated; for as to the others there is no time limited. Those who
are not quite past childbearing (which a woman is reckoned to be after her
courses cease, and she is fifty-five lunar years, or about fifty-three solar
years old), and those who are too young to have children, are allowed three
months only; but they who are with child must wait till they be delivered.5
x That is, they shall tell the real truth, whether they have their
courses, or be with child, or not; and shall not, by deceiving their husband,
obtain a separation from him before the term be accomplished: lest the first
husband's child should, by that means, go to the second; or the wife, in case
of the first husband's death, should set up her child as his heir, or demand
her maintenance during the time she went with such child, and the expenses of
her lying-in, under pretence that she waited not her full prescribed time.6
y For if there be a settled aversion on either side, their continuing
together may have very ill, and perhaps fatal consequences.
z i.e., If she prevail on her husband to dismiss her, by releasing part
of her dowry.
3 Jallalo'ddin. 4 Idem. Yahya. 5 Jallalo'ddin.
6 Yahya.
230 But when ye divorce women, and they have fulfilled their pre-scribed
time, either retain them with humanity, or dismiss them with kindness; and
retain them not by violence, so that ye transgress;a for he who doth this
surely injureth his own soul. And make not the signs of GOD a jest: but
remember GOD'S favor towards you, and that he hath sent down unto you the book
of the Koran, and wisdom admonishing you thereby; and fear GOD, and know that
GOD is omniscient.
But when ye have divorced your wives, and they have fulfilled their
prescribed time, hinder them not from marrying their husbands, when they have
agreed among themselves according to what is honourable. This is given in
admonition unto him among you who believeth in GOD, and the last day. This is
most righteous for you, and most pure. GOD knoweth, but ye know not.
Mothers after they are divorced shall give suck unto their children two
full years, to him who desireth the time of giving suck to be completed; and
the father shall be obliged to maintain them and clothe them in the mean time,
according to that which shall be reasonable. No person shall be obliged
beyond his ability. A mother shall not be compelled to what is unreasonable
on account of her child nor a father on account of his child. And the heir of
the father shall be obliged to do in like manner. But if they choose to wean
the child before the end of two years, by common consent, and on mutual
consideration, it shall be no crime in them. And if ye have a mind to provide
a nurse for your children, it shall be no crime in you, in case ye fully pay
what ye offer her, according to that which is just. And fear GOD, and know
that GOD seeth whatsoever ye do.
Such of you as die, and leave wives, their wives must wait concerning
themselves four months and ten days,b and when they shall have fulfilled their
term, it shall be no crime in you, for that which they shall do with
themselves,c according to what is reasonable. GOD well knoweth that which ye
do.
And it shall be no crime in you, whether ye make public overtures of
marriage unto such women, within the said four months and ten days, or whether
ye conceal such your designs in your minds: GOD knoweth that ye will remember
them. But make no promises unto them privately, unless ye speak honourable
words;
and resolve not on the knot of marriage until the prescribed time be
accomplished; and know that GOD knoweth that which is in your minds, therefore
beware of him and know that GOD is gracious and merciful.
It shall be no crime in you, if ye divorce your wives, so long as ye have
not touched them, nor settled any dowry on them. And provide for them (he who
is at his ease must provide according to his circumstances) necessaries,
according to what shall be reasonable. This is a duty incumbent on the
righteous.
But if ye divorce them before ye have touched them, and have already
settled a dowry on them, ye shall give them half of what ye have settled,
unless they release any part, or he release part in whose hand the knot of
marriage is;d and if ye release the whole, it will approach nearer unto piety.
And not forget liberality among you, for GOD seeth that which ye do.
a viz., By obliging them to purchase their liberty with part of their
dowry.
b That is to say, before they marry again; and this, not only for
decency sake, but that it may be known whether they be with child by the
deceased or not.
c That is, if they leave off their mourning weeds, and look out for new
husbands.
d i.e., Unless the wife agree to take less than half her dowry, or
unless the husband be so generous as to give her more than half, or the whole,
which is here approved of as most commendable.
Carefully observe the appointed prayers, and the middle prayer,e and be
assiduous therein, with devotion towards GOD.
But if ye fear any danger, pray on foot or on horseback; and when ye are
safe remember GOD, how he hath taught you what as yet ye knew not.
240 And such of you as shall die and leave wives ought to bequeath their
wives a year's maintenance, without putting them out of their houses: but if
they go out voluntarily, it shall be no crime in you, for that which they
shall do with themselves, according to what shall be reasonable; GOD is mighty
and wise.
And unto those who are divorced, a reasonable provision is also due; this
is a duty incumbent on those who fear GOD.
Thus GOD declareth his signs unto you, that ye may understand.
Hast thou not considered those, who left their habitations, (and they
were thousands,) for fear of death?f And GOD said unto them, Die; then he
restored them to life, for GOD is gracious towards mankind; but the greater
part of men do not give thanks.
Fight for the religion of GOD, and know that GOD is he who heareth and
knoweth.
Who is he that will lend unto GOD on good usury?g verily he will double
it unto him manifold; for GOD contracteth and extendeth his hand as he
pleaseth, and to him shall ye return.
Hast thou not considered the assembly of the children of Israel, after
the time of Moses; when they said unto their prophet Samuel, Set a king over
us, that we may fight for the religion of GOD. The prophet answered, If ye
are enjoined to go to war, will ye be near refusing to fight? They answered,
And what should ail us that we should not fight for the religion of GOD,
seeing we are dispossessed of our habitations, and deprived of our children?
But when they were enjoined to go to war, they turned back, except a few of
them: and GOD knew the ungodly.
And their prophet said unto them, Verily GOD hath set Talût,h king over
you: they answered, How shall he reign over us, seeing we are more worthy of
the kingdom than he, neither is he possessed of great riches? Samuel said,
Verily GOD hath chosen him before you, and hath caused him to increase in
knowledge and stature, for GOD giveth his kingdom unto whom he pleaseth; GOD
is bounteous and wise.
e Yahya interprets this from a tradition of Mohammed, who, being asked
which was the middle prayer, answered, The evening prayer, which was
instituted by the prophet Solomon. But Jallalo'ddin allows a greater
lattitude, and supposes it may be the afternoon prayer, the morning prayer,
the noon prayer, or any other.
f These were some of the children of Israel, who abandoned their
dwellings because of a pestilence, or, as others say, to avoid serving in a
religious war; but, as they fled, God struck them all dead in a certain
valley. About eight days or more after, when their bodies were corrupted, the
prophet Ezekiel, the son of Buzi, happening to pass that way, at the sight of
their bones wept; whereupon God said to him, Call to them, O Ezekiel, and I
will restore them to life. And accordingly on the prophet's call they all
arose, and lived several years after; but they retained the colour and stench
of dead corpses as long as they lived, and the clothes they wore changed as
black as pitch, which qualities they transmitted to their posterity.1 As to
the number of these Israelites the commentators are not agreed; they who
reckon least say they were 3,000, and they who reckon most, 70,000. This
story seems to have been taken from Ezekiel's vision of the resurrection of
dry bones.2
Some of the Mohammedan writers will have Ezekiel to have been one of the
judges of Israel, and to have succeeded Othoniel the son of Caleb. They also
call this prophet Ebn al ajûz, or the son of the old woman; because they say
his mother obtained him by her prayers in her old age.3
g viz., By contributing towards the establishment of his true religion.
h So the Mohammedans name Saul.
1 Jallalo'ddin, Yahya, Abulfeda, &c. 2 Ezek. xxxvii. 1-10.
3 Al Thalabi, Abu Ishak, &c.
And their prophet said unto them, Verily the sign of his kingdom shall
be, that the ark shall come unto you:i therein shall be tranquility from your
LORD,k and the relicsl which have been left by the family of Moses and the
family of Aaron; the angels shall bring it. Verily this shall be a sign unto
you, if ye believe.
And when Talut departed with his soldiers he said, Verily GOD will prove
you by the river: for he who drinketh thereof, shall not be on my side (but he
who shall not taste thereof he shall be on my side), except he who drinketh a
draught out of his hand. And they drank thereof, except a few of them.m And
when they had passed the river, he and those who believed with him, they said,
We have no strength to-day, against Jalutn and his forces. But they who
considered that they should meet GOD at the resurrection, said, How often hath
a small army discomfited a great one, by the will of GOD! and GOD is with
those who patiently persevere.
250 And when they went forth to battle against Jalut and his forces, they
said, O LORD, pour on us patience, and confirm our feet, and help us against
the unbelieving people.
Therefore they discomfited them, by the will of GOD, and David slew
Jalut. And GOD gave him the kingdom and wisdom, and taught him his will;o and
if GOD had not prevented men, the one by the other, verily the earth had been
corrupted: but GOD is beneficent towards his creatures.
These are the signs of GOD: we rehearse them unto thee with truth, and
thou art surely one of those who have been sent by GOD.
These are the apostles; we have preferred some of them before others;
some of them hath GOD spoken unto, and hath exalted the degree of others of
them. And we gave unto Jesus the son of Mary manifest signs, and strengthened
him with the holy spirit.p And if GOD had pleased, they who came after those
apostles would not have contended among themselves, after manifest signs had
been shown unto them. But they fell to variance; therefore some of them
believed, and some of them believed not; and if GOD had so pleased, they would
not have contended among themselves; but GOD doth what he will.
i This ark, says Jallalo'ddin, contained the images of the prophets,
and was sent down from heaven to Adam, and at length came to the Israelites,
who put great confidence therein, and continually carried it in the front of
their army, till it was taken by the Amalekites. But on this occasion the
angels brought it back, in the sight of all the people, and placed it at the
feet of Talût; who was thereupon unanimously acknowledged for their king.
This relation seems to have arisen from some imperfect tradition of the
taking and sending back the ark by the Philistines.4
k That is, because of the great confidence the Israelites placed in it,
having won several battles by its miraculous assistance. I imagine, however,
that the Arabic word Sakînat, which signifies tranquillity or security of
mind, and is so understood by the commentators, may not improbably mean the
divine presence or glory, which used to appear on the ark, and which the Jews
express by the same word Shechinah.
l These were the shoes and rod of Moses, the mitre of Aaron, a pot of
manna, and the broken pieces of the two tables of the law.5
m The number of those who drank out of their hands was about 313.1 It
seems that Mohammed has here confounded Saul with Gideon, who by the divine
direction took with him against the Midianites such of his army only as lapped
water out of their hands, which were 300 men.2
n Or Goliath.
o Or what he pleased to teach him. Yahya most rationally understands
hereby the divine revelations which David received from GOD; but Jallalo'ddin
the art of making coats of mail (which the Mohammedans believe was that
prophet's peculiar trade), and the knowledge of the language of birds.
p See before p. 10, note k.
4 I Sam. iv. v. and vi. 5 Jallalo'ddin. 1 Idem,
Yahya. 2 Judges vii.
O true believers, give alms of that which we have bestowed unto you,
before the day cometh wherein there shall be no merchandizing, nor friendship,
nor intercession. The infidels are unjust doers.
GOD! there is no GOD but he;q the living, the self-subsisting: neither
slumber nor sleep seizeth him; to him belongeth whatsoever is in heaven, and
on earth. Who is he than can intercede with him, but through his good
pleasure? He knoweth that which is past, and that which is to come unto them,
and they shall not comprehend anything of his knowledge, but so far as he
pleaseth. His throne is extended over heaven and earth,r and the preservation
of both is no burden unto him. He is the high, the mighty.
Let there be no violence in religion.s Now is right direction manifestly
distinguished from deceit: whoever therefore shall deny Tagut,t and believe in
GOD, he shall surely take hold on a strong handle, which shall not be broken;
GOD is he who heareth and seeth.
GOD is the patron of those who believe; he shall lead them out of
darkness into light:
but as to those who believe not, their patrons are Tagut; they shall lead
them from the light into darkness; they shall be the companions of hell fire,
they shall remain therein forever.
Hast thou not considered him who disputed with Abraham concerning his
LORD,u because GOD had given him the kingdom? When Abraham said, My LORD is
he who giveth life, and killeth: he answered, I give life, and I kill.
Abraham said, Verily GOD bringeth the sun from the east, now do thou bring it
from the west. Whereupon the infidel was confounded; for GOD directeth not
the ungodly people.
260 Or hast thou not considered how he behaved who passed by a city which
had been destroyed, even to her foundations?x He said, How shall GOD quicken
this city, after she hath been dead? And GOD caused him to die for an hundred
years, and afterwards raised him to life. And GOD said, how long hast thou
tarried here? He answered, A day, or part of a day. GOD said, Nay, thou hast
tarried here a hundred years. Now look on thy food and thy drink, they are
not yet corrupted; and look on thine ass: and this have we done that we might
make thee a sign unto men. And look on the bones of thine ass, how we raise
them, and afterwards clothe them with flesh. And when this was shown unto
him, he said, I know that GOD is able to do all things.
q The following seven lines contain a magnificent description of the
divine majesty and providence; but it must not be supposed the translation
comes up to the dignity of the original. This passage is justly admired by
the Mohammedans, who recite it in their prayers; and some of them wear it
about them, engraved on an agate or other precious stone.3
r This throne, in Arabic called Corsi, is by the Mohammedans supposed
to be God's tribunal, or seat of justice; being placed under that other called
al Arsh, which they say is his imperial throne. The Corsi allegorically
signifies the divine providence, which sustains and governs the heaven and the
earth, and is infinitely above human comprehension.4
s This passage was particularly directed to some of Mohammed's first
proselytes, who, having sons that had been brought up in idolatry or Judaism,
would oblige them to embrace Mohammedism by force.1
t This word properly signifies an idol, or whatever is worshipped
besides GOD-particularly the two idols of the Meccans, Allât and al Uzza; and
also the devil, or any seducer.
u This was Nimrod, who, as the commentators say, to prove his power of
life and death by ocular demonstration, caused two men to be brought before
him at the same time, one of whom he slew, and saved the other alive. As to
this tyrant's persecution of Abraham, see chapter 21, and the notes thereon.
x The person here meant was Ozair or Ezra, who riding on an ass by the
ruins of Jerusalem, after it had been destroyed by the Chaldeans, doubted in
his mind by what means God could raise the city and its inhabitants again;
whereupon God caused him to die, and he remained in that condition 100 years;
at the end of which God restored him to life, and he found a basket of figs
and a cruse of wine he had with him not in the least spoiled or corrupted; but
his ass was dead, the bones only remaining, and these, while the prophet
looked on, were raised and clothed with flesh, becoming an ass again, which
being inspired with life, began immediately to bray.2
This apocryphal story may perhaps have taken its rise from Nehemiah's
viewing of the ruins of Jerusalem.3
3 Vide Bobov. de Prec. Moham. p. 5, et Reland. Dissert. de Gemmis Arab
p. 235, 239. 4 Vide D'Herbelot, Bibl. Orient. Art. Corsi.
1 Jallalo'ddin. 2 Jallalo'ddin, Yahya, &c See D'Herbel. Bibl.
Orient. Art. Ozair. 3 Nehem. ii. 12, &c.
And when Abraham said, O LORD, show me how thou wilt raise the dead;y God
said, Dost thou not yet believe? He answered, Yea, but I ask this that my
heart may rest at ease. GOD said, take therefore four birds, and divide
them;z then lay a part of them on every mountain; then call them, and they
shall come swiftly unto thee: and know that GOD is mighty and wise.
The similitude of those who lay out their substance, for advancing the
religion of GOD, is as a grain of corn which produceth seven ears, and in
every ear an hundred grains; for GOD giveth twofold unto whom he pleaseth: GOD
is bounteous and wise.
They who lay out their substance for the religion of GOD, and afterwards
follow not what they have so laid out by reproaches or mischief,a they shall
have their reward with their LORD; upon them shall no fear come, neither shall
they be grieved.
A fair speech and to forgive, is better than alms followed by mischief.
GOD is rich and merciful.
O true believers, make not your alms of none effect by reproaching, or
mischief, as he who layeth out what he hath to appear unto men to give alms,
and believeth not in GOD and the last day. The likeness of such a one is as a
flint covered with earth, on which a violent rain falleth, and leaveth it
hard. They cannot prosper in anything which they have gained, for GOD
directeth not the unbelieving people.
And the likeness of those who lay out their substance from a desire to
please GOD, and for an establishment for their souls, is as a garden on a
hill, on which a violent rain falleth, and it bringeth forth its fruits
twofold; and if a violent rain falleth not on it, yet the dew falleth thereon:
and GOD seeth that which ye do.
Doth any of you desire to have a garden of palm-trees and vines,b through
which rivers flow, wherein ye may have all kinds of fruits, and that he may
attain to old age, and have a weak offspring? then a violent fiery wind shall
strike it, so that it shall be burned. Thus GOD declareth his signs unto you,
that ye may consider.
O true believers, bestow alms of the good things which ye have gained,
and of that which we have produced for you out of the earth, and choose not
the bad thereof, to give it in alms,
y The occasion of this request of Abraham is said to have been on a
doubt proposed to him by the devil, in human form, how it was possible for the
several parts of the corpse of a man which lay on the sea-shore, and had been
partly devoured by the wild beasts, the birds, and the fish, to be brought
together at the resurrection.4
z These birds, according to the commentators, were an eagle (a dove,
say others), a peacock, a raven and a cock, which Abraham cut to pieces, and
mingled their flesh and feathers together, or, as some tell us, pounded all in
a mortar, and dividing the mass into four parts, laid them on so many
mountains, but kept the heads, which he had preserved whole, in his hand.
Then he called them each by their name, and immediately one part flew to the
other, till they all recovered their first shape, and then came to be joined
to their respective heads.1
This seems to be taken from Abraham's sacrifice of birds mentioned by
Moses,2 with some additional circumstances.
a i.e., Either by reproaching the person whom they have relieved with
what they have done for him, or by exposing his poverty to his prejudice.3
b This garden is an emblem of alms given out of hypocrisy, or attended
with reproaches, which perish, and will be of no service hereafter to the
giver.4
4 See D'Herbelot, p. 13. 1 Jallalo'ddin. See D'Herbelot,
ubi supra. 2 Gen. xv 3 Jallalo'ddin.
4 Idem.
such as ye would not accept yourselves, otherwise than by connivance:c
and know that GOD is rich and worthy to be praised.
270 The devil threateneth you with poverty, and commandeth you filthy
covetousness; but GOD promiseth you pardon from himself and abundance: GOD is
bounteous and wise.
He giveth wisdom unto whom he pleaseth; and he unto whom wisdom is given
hath received much good: but none will consider, except the wise of heart.
And whatever alms ye shall give, or whatever vow ye shall vow, verily GOD
knoweth it; but the ungodly shall have none to help them. If ye make your
alms to appear, it is well; but if ye conceal them, and give them unto the
poor, this will be better for you, and will atone for your sins; and GOD is
well informed of that which ye do.
The direction of them belongeth not unto thee; but GOD directeth whom he
pleaseth. The good that ye shall give in alms shall redound unto yourselves;
and ye shall not give unless out of desire of seeing the face of GOD.d And
what good thing ye shall give in alms, it shall be repaid you, and ye shall
not be treated unjustly; unto the poor who are wholly employed in fighting for
the religion of GOD, and cannot go to and fro on the earth; whom the ignorant
man thinketh rich, because of their modesty: thou shalt know them by this
mark, they ask not men with importunity; and what good ye shall give in alms,
verily GOD knoweth it.
They who distribute alms of their substance night and day, in private and
in public, shall have their reward with the LORD; on them shall no fear come,
neither shall they be grieved.
They who devour usury shall not arise from the dead, but as he ariseth
whom Satan hath infected by a touch:e this shall happen to them because they
say, Truly selling is but as usury: and yet GOD hath permitted selling and
forbidden usury. He therefore who when there cometh unto him an admonition
from his LORD abstaineth from usury for the future, shall have what is past
forgiven him, and his affair belongeth unto GOD. But whoever returneth to
usury, they shall be the companions of hell fire, they shall continue therein
forever.
GOD shall take his blessing from usury, and shall increase alms: for GOD
loveth no infidel, or ungodly person. But they who believe and do that which
is right, and observe the stated times of prayer, and pay their legal alms,
they shall have their reward with their LORD: there shall come no fear on
them, neither shall they be grieved.
O true believers, fear GOD, and remit that which remaineth of usury,f if
ye really believe;
but if ye do it not, hearken unto war, which is declared against you from
GOD and his apostle: yet if ye repent, ye shall have the capital of your
money. Deal not unjustly with others, and ye shall not be dealt with
unjustly.
c That is, on having some amends made by the seller of such goods,
either by abatement of the price, or giving something else to the buyer to
make up the value.
d i.e., For the sake of a reward hereafter, and not for any worldly
consideration.1
e viz., Like demoniacs or possessed persons, that is, in great horror
and distraction of mind and convulsive agitation of body.
f Or the interest due before usury was prohibited. For this some of
Mohammed's followers exacted of their debtors, supposing they lawfully might.2
1 Jallalo'ddin. 2 Idem.
If there be any debtor under a difficulty of paying his debt, let his
creditor wait till it be easy for him to do it; but if ye remit it as alms, it
will be better for you, if ye knew it.
280 And fear the day wherein ye shall return unto GOD; then shall every soul
be paid what it hath gained, and they shall not be treated unjustly.
O true believers, when ye bind yourselves one to the other in a debt for
a certain time, write it down; and let a writer write between you according to
justice, and let not the writer refuse writing according to what GOD hath
taught him; but let him write, and let him who oweth the debt dictate, and let
him fear GOD his LORD, and not diminish aught thereof. But if he who oweth
the debt be foolish, or weak, or be not able to dictate himself, let his
agentg dictate according to equity; and call to witness two witnesses of your
neighboring men; but if there be not two men, let there be a man and two women
of those whom ye shall choose for witnesses: if one of those women should
mistake, the other of them will cause her to recollect. And the witnesses
shall not refuse, whensoever they shall be called. And disdain not to write
it down, be it a large debt, or be it a small one, until its time of payment:
this will be more just in the sight of GOD, and more right for bearing
witness, and more easy, that ye may not doubt. But if it be a present bargain
which ye transact between yourselves, it shall be no crime in you, if ye write
it not down. And take witnesses when ye sell one to the other, and let no
harm be done to the writer, nor to the witness; which if ye do, it will surely
be injustice in you: and fear GOD, and GOD will instruct you, for GOD knoweth
all things.
And if ye be on a journey, and find no writer, let pledges be taken: but
if one of you trust the other, let him who is trusted return what he is
trusted with, and fear GOD his LORD. And conceal not the testimony, for he
who concealeth it hath surely a wicked heart: GOD knoweth that which ye do.
Whatever is in heaven and on earth is GOD'S: and whether ye manifest that
which is in your minds, or conceal it, GOD will call you to account for it,
and will forgive whom he pleaseth, and will punish whom he pleaseth, for GOD
is almighty.
The apostle believeth in that which hath been sent down unto him from his
LORD, and the faithful also. Every one of them believeth in GOD, and his
angels, and his scriptures, and his apostles: we make no distinction at all
between his apostles.h And they say, We have heard, and do obey: we implore
thy mercy, O LORD, for unto thee must we return.
GOD will not force any one beyond its capacity: it shall have the good
which it gaineth, and it shall suffer the evil which it gaineth. O LORD,
punish us not, if we forget, or act sinfully: O LORD, lay not on us a burden
like that which thou hast laid on those who have been before us;i neither make
us, O LORD, to bear what we have not strength to bear, but be favorable unto
us, and spare us, and be merciful unto us. Thou art our patron, help us
therefore against the unbelieving nations.
g Whoever manages his affairs, whether his father, heir, guardian, or
interpreter.1
h But this, say the Mohammedans, the Jews do, who receive Moses but
reject Jesus; and the Christians, who receive both those prophets, but reject
Mohammed.2
i That is, on the Jews, who, as the commentators tell us, were ordered
to kill a man by way of atonement, to give one-fourth of their substance in
alms, and to cut off an unclean ulcerous part,3 and were forbidden to eat fat,
or animals that divided the hoof, and were obliged to observe the sabbath, and
other particulars wherein the Mohammedans are at liberty.4
1 Jallalo'ddin. 2 Idem. 3 Idem. 4
Yahya.
CHAPTER III.
ENTITLED, THE FAMILY OF IMRAN;k REVEALED AT MEDINA
IN THE NAME OF THE MOST MERCIFUL GOD.
AL. M.l There is no GOD but GOD, the living, the self-subsisting:
he hath sent down unto thee the book of the Koran with truth, confirming
that which was revealed before it; for he had formerly sent down the law, and
the gospel a direction unto men; and he had also sent down the distinction
between good and evil.
Verily those who believe not the signs of GOD shall suffer a grievous
punishment; for GOD is mighty, able to revenge.
Surely nothing is hidden from GOD, of that which is on earth, or in
heaven: it is he who formeth you in the wombs, as he pleaseth; there is no GOD
but he, the mighty, the wise.
It is he who hath sent down unto thee the book, wherein are some verses
clear to be understood, they are the foundation of the book; and others are
parabolical.m But they whose hearts are perverse will follow that which is
parabolical therein, out of love of schism, and a desire of the interpretation
thereof; yet none knoweth the interpretation thereof, except God. But they
who are well grounded in the knowledge say, We believe therein, the whole is
from our LORD; and none will consider except the prudent.
O LORD, cause not our hearts to swerve from truth, after thou hast
directed us: and give us from thee mercy, for thou art he who giveth.
O LORD, thou shalt surely gather mankind together, unto a day of
resurrection: there is no doubt of it, for GOD will not be contrary to the
promise.
As for the infidels, their wealth shall not profit them anything, nor
their children, against GOD: they shall be the fuel of hell fire.
According to the wont of the people of Pharaoh, and of those who went
before them, they charged our signs with a lie; but GOD caught them in their
wickedness, and GOD is severe in punishing.
10 Say unto those who believe not, Ye shall be overcome, and thrown
together into hell; and an unhappy couch shall it be.
Ye have already had a miracle shown you in two armies, which attacked
each other:n one army fought for GOD'S true religion, but the other were
infidels; they saw the faithful twice as many as themselves in their eyesight;
for GOD strengthened with his help whom he pleaseth. Surely herein was an
example unto men of understanding.
k This name is given in the Korân to the father of the Virgin Mary.
See below, p. 35.
l For the meaning of these letters the reader is referred to the
Preliminary Discourse, Sect. III.
m This passage is translated according to the exposition of al
Zamakhshari and al Beidâwi, which seems to be the truest.
The contents of the Korân are here distinguished into such passages as
are to be taken in the literal sense, and such as require a figurative
acceptation. The former being plain and obvious to be understood, compose the
fundamental part, or, as the original expresses it, the mother of the book,
and contain the principal doctrines and precepts; agreeably to and
consistently with which, those passages which are wrapt up in metaphors, and
delivered in an enigmatical, allegorical style, are always to be interpreted.5
n The sign or miracle here meant, was the victory gained by Mohammed in
the second year of the Hejra, over the idolatrous Meccans, headed by Abu
Sofiân, in the valley of Bedr, which is situate near the sea, between Mecca
and Medina. Mohammed's forces consisted of no more than three hundred and
nineteen men, but the enemy's army of near a thousand, notwithstanding which
odds he put them to flight, having killed seventy of the principal Koreish,
and taken as many prisoners, with the loss of only fourteen of his own men.1
This was the first victory obtained by the prophet, and though it may seem no
very considerable action, yet it
5 See the Prelim. Disc. Sect. III. 1 Elmacin. p. 5. Hottinger.
Hist. Orient. l. 2, c. 4. Abulfed. Vit. Moham. p. 56, &c. Prideaux's Life of
Mahom. p. 71, &c.
The love and eager desire of wives, and children, and sums heaped up of
gold and silver, and excellent horses, and cattle, and land, is prepared for
men: this is the provision of the present life; but unto GOD shall be the most
excellent return.
Say, Shall I declare unto you better things than this? For those who are
devout are prepared with their LORD gardens through which rivers flow; therein
shall they continue forever: and they shall enjoy wives free from impurity,
and the favor of GOD; for GOD regardeth his servants
who say, O LORD, we do sincerely believe; forgive us therefore our sins,
and deliver us from the pain of hell fire:
the patient, and the lovers of truth, and the devout, and the almsgivers,
and those who ask pardon early in the morning.
GOD hath borne witness that there is no GOD but he; and the angels, and
those who are endowed with wisdom, profess the same; who executeth
righteousness; there is no GOD but he; the mighty, the wise.
Verily the true religion in the sight of GOD is Islâm;o and they who had
received the scriptures dissented not therefrom, until after the knowledge of
God's unity had come unto them, out of envy among themselves; but whosoever
believeth not in the signs of GOD, verily GOD will be swift in bringing him to
account.
If they dispute with thee, say, I have resigned myself unto GOD, and he
who followeth me doth the same;
and say unto them who have received the scriptures, and to the ignorant,p
Do ye profess the religion of Islam? now if they embrace Islam, they are
surely directed; but if they turn their backs, verily unto thee belongeth
preaching only; for GOD regardeth his servants.
20 And unto those who believe not in the signs of GOD, and slay the
prophets without a cause, and put those men to death who teach justice;
denounce unto them a painful punishment.
These are they whose works perish in this world, and in that which is to
come; and they shall have none to help them.
was of great advantage to him, and the foundation of all his future power and
success. For which reason it is famous in the Arabian history, and more than
once vaunted in the Korân,2 as an effect of the divine assistance. The
miracle, it is said, consisted in three things: 1. Mohammed, by the direction
of the angel Gabriel, took a handful of gravel and threw it toward the enemy
in the attack, saying, May their faces be confounded; whereupon they
immediately turned their backs and fled. But though the prophet seemingly
threw the gravel himself, yet it is told in the Korân,3 that it was not he,
but God, who threw it, that is to say, by the ministry of his angel. 2. The
Mohammedan troops seemed to the infidels to be twice as many in number as
themselves, which greatly discouraged them. And 3. God sent down to their
assistance first a thousand and afterwards three thousand angels, led by
Gabriel, mounted on his horse Haizûm; and, according to the Korân,4 these
celestial auxiliaries really did all the execution, though Mohammed's men
imagined themselves did it, and fought stoutly at the same time.
o The proper name of the Mohammedan religion, which signifies the
resigning or devoting one's self entirely to GOD and his service. This they
say is the religion which all the prophets were sent to teach, being founded
on the unity of GOD.5
p i.e., The pagan Arabs, who had no knowledge of the scriptures.1
2 See this chapter below, and c. 8 and 32. 3 Cap. 8, not far
from the beginning. 4 Ibid.
5 Jallalo'ddin, al Beidâwi. 1 Idem.
Hast thou not observed those unto whom part of the scripture was given?q
They were called unto the book of GOD, that it might judge between them;r then
some of them turned their backs, and retired afar off.
This they did because they said, the fire of hell shall by no means touch
us, but for a certain number of days;s and that which they had falsely devised
hath deceived them in their religion.
How then will it be with them, when we shall gather them together at the
day of judgment,t of which there is no doubt; and every soul shall be paid
that which it hath gained, neither shall they be treated unjustly?
Say, O GOD, who possessest the kingdom; thou givest the kingdom unto whom
thou wilt, and thou takest away the kingdom from whom thou wilt: thou exaltest
whom thou wilt, and thou humblest whom thou wilt: in thy hand is good, for
thou art almighty.
Thou makest the night to succeed the day: thou bringest forth the living
out of the dead, and thou bringest forth the dead out of the living;u and
providest food for whom thou wilt without measure.
Let not the faithful take the infidels for their protectors, rather than
the faithful: he who doth this shall not be protected of GOD at all; unless ye
fear any danger from them: but GOD warneth you to beware of himself; for unto
GOD must ye return. Say, Whether ye conceal that which is in your breasts, or
whether ye declare it, GOD knoweth it; for he knoweth whatever is in heaven,
and whatever is on earth: GOD is almighty.
On the last day every soul shall find the good which it hath wrought,
present; and the evil which it hath wrought, it shall wish that between itself
and that were a wide distance: but GOD warneth you to beware of himself; for
GOD is gracious unto his servants.
Say, If ye love GOD, follow me: then GOD shall love you, and forgive you
your sins; for GOD is gracious and merciful. Say, Obey GOD, and his apostle;
but if ye go back, verily GOD loveth not the unbelievers.
q That is, the Jews.
r This passage was revealed on occasion of a dispute Mohammed had with
some Jews, which is differently related by the commentators.
Al Beidâwi says that Mohammed going one day into a Jewish synagogue,
Naïm Ebn Amru and al Hareth Ebn Zeid asked him what religion he was of? To
which he answering, "Of the religion of Abraham;" they replied, "Abraham was a
Jew." But on Mohammed's proposing that the Pentateuch might decide the
question, they would by no means agree to it.
But Jallalo'ddin tells us that two persons of the Jewish religion having
committed adultery, their punishment was referred to Mohammed, who gave
sentence that they should be stoned, according to the law of Moses. This the
Jews refused to submit to, alleging there was no such command in the
Pentateuch; but on Mohammed's appealing to the book, the said law was found
therein. Whereupon the criminals were stoned, to the great mortification of
the Jews.
It is very remarkable that this law of Moses concerning the stoning of
adulterers is mentioned in the New Testament2 (though I know some dispute the
authenticity of that whole passage), but is not now to be found, either in the
Hebrew or Samaritan Pentateuch, or in the Septuagint; it being only said that
such shall be put to death.3 This omission is insisted on by the Mohammedans
as one instance of the corruption of the law of Moses by the Jews.
It is also observable that there was a verse once extant in the Korân,
commanding adulterers to be stoned; and the commentators say the words only
are abrogated, the sense or law still remaining in force.4
s i.e., Forty; the time their forefathers worshipped the calf.5 Al
Beidâwi adds, that some of them pretended their punishment was to last but
seven days, that is, a day for every thousand years which they supposed the
world was to endure; and that they imagined they were to be so mildly dealt
with, either by reason of the intercession of their fathers the prophets, or
because GOD had promised Jacob that his offspring should be punished but
slightly.
t The Mohammedans have a tradition that the first banner of the
infidels that shall be set up, on the day of judgment, will be that of the
Jews; and that GOD will first reproach them with their wickedness, over the
heads of those who are present, and then order them to hell.6
u As a man from seed, and a bird from an egg; and vice versâ.1
2 John viii. 5. 3 Levit. xx. 10. See Whiston's Essay towards
restoring the true text of the Old Test. p. 99, 100.
4 See the Prelim. Disc. Sect. III. 5 See before, p. 10, note g.
6 Al Beidåwi. 1 Jallalo'ddin
30 GOD hath surely chosen Adam, and Noah, and the family of Abraham, and
the family of Imrânx above the rest of the world; a race descending the one
from the other: GOD is he who heareth and knoweth.
Remember when the wife of Imrâny said, LORD, verily I have vowed unto
thee that which is in my womb, to be dedicated to thy service;z accept it
therefore of me; for thou art he who heareth and knoweth. And when she was
delivered of it, she said, LORD, verily I have brought forth a female (and GOD
well knew what she had brought forth), and a male is not as a female.a I have
called her MARY; and I commend her to thy protection, and also her issue,
against Satan driven away with stones.b
x Or Amrân, is the name of two several persons, according to the
Mohammedan tradition. One was the father of Moses and Aaron; and the other
was the father of Moses and Aaron; and the other was the father of the Virgin
Mary;2 but he is called by some Christian writers Joachim. The commentators
suppose the first, or rather both of them, to be meant in this place; however,
the person intended in the next passage, it is agreed, was the latter; who
besides Mary the mother of Jesus, had also a son named Aaron,3 and another
sister, named Ishá (or Elizabeth), who married Zacharias, and was the mother
of John the Baptist; whence that prophet and Jesus are usually called by the
Mohammedans, The two sons of the aunt, or the cousins german.
From the identity of names it has been generally imagined by Christian
writers4 that the Korân here confounds Mary the mother of Jesus, with Mary or
Miriam the sister of Moses and Aaron; which intolerable anachronism, if it
were certain, is sufficient of itself to destroy the pretended authority of
this book. But though Mohammed may be supposed to have been ignorant enough
in ancient history and chronology to have committed so gross a blunder, yet I
do not see how it can be made out from the words of the Korân. For it does
not follow, because two persons have the same name, and have each a father and
brother who bear the same names, that they must therefore necessarily be the
same person: besides, such a mistake is inconsistent with a number of other
places in the Korân, whereby it manifestly appears that Mohammed well knew and
asserted that Moses preceded Jesus several ages. And the commentators
accordingly fail not to tell us that there had passed about one thousand eight
hundred years between Amrân the father of Moses, and Amrân the father of the
Virgin Mary: they also make them the sons of different persons; the first,
they say, was the son of Yeshar, or Izhar (though he was really his brother),5
the son of Kâhath, the son of Levi; and the other was the son of Mathân,6
whose genealogy they trace, but in a very corrupt and imperfect manner, up to
David, and thence to Adam.7
It must be observed that though the Virgin Mary is called in the Korân1
the sister of Aaron, yet she is nowhere called the sister of Moses; however,
some Mohammedan writers have imagined that the same individual Mary, the
sister of Moses, was miraculously preserved alive from his time till that of
Jesus Christ, purposely to become the mother of the latter.2
y The Imrân here mentioned was the father of the Virgin Mary, and his
wife's name was Hannah, or Ann, the daughter of Fakudh. This woman, say the
commentators, being aged and barren, on seeing a bird feed her young ones,
became very desirous of issue, and begged a child of GOD, promising to
consecrate it to his service in the temple; whereupon she had a child, but it
proved a daughter.3
z The Arabic word is free, but here signifies particularly one that is
free or detached from all worldly desires and occupations, and wholly devoted
to GOD'S service.4
a Because a female could not minister in the temple as a male could.5
b This expression alludes to a tradition, that Abraham, when the devil
tempted him to disobey God in not sacrificing his son, drove the fiend away by
throwing stones at him; in memory of which, the Mohammedans, at the pilgrimage
of Mecca, throw a certain number of stones at the devil, with certain
ceremonies, in the valley of Mina.6
It is not improbable that the pretended immaculate conception of the
Virgin Mary is intimated in this passage; for according to a tradition of
Mohammed, every person that comes into the world is touched at his birth by
the devil, and therefore cries out: Mary and her son only excepted, between
whom and the evil spirit God placed a veil, so that his touch did not reach
them.7 And for this reason, they say, neither of them were guilty of any sin,
like the rest of the children of Adam:8 which peculiar grace they obtained by
virtue of this recommendation of them by Hannah to God's protection.
2 Al Zamakhshari, al Beidâwi. 3 Kor. c. 19. 4
Vide Reland. de Rel. Moh. p. 211 Marracc. in Alc. p. 115, &c. Prideaux,
Letter to the Deists, p. 185. 5 Exod. vi. 18. 6 Al Zamakh. al
Beidâwi. 7 Vide Reland. ubi sup. D'Herbelot, Bibl. Orient. p. 583.
1 Cap. 19. 2 Vide Guadagnol. Apolog. pro Rel. Christ. contra Ahmed Ebn
Zein al Abedin. p. 279.
3 Al Beidâwi, al Thalabi. 4 Jallalo'ddin, al Zamakhshari.
5 Jallalo'ddin. 6 See the Prelim. Disc. Sect. IV.
7 Jallalo'ddin, al Beidâwi. 8 Kitada.
Therefore the LORD accepted her with a gracious acceptance,c and caused
her to bear an excellent offspring. And Zacharias took care of the child;
whenever Zacharias went into the chamber to her, he found provisions with
her:d and he said, O Mary, whence hadst thou this? she answered, This is from
GOD, for GOD provideth for whom he pleaseth without measure.e
There Zacharias called on his LORD, and said, LORD, give me from thee a
good offspring, for thou art the hearer of prayer. And the angelsf called to
him, while he stood praying in the chamber,
saying, Verily GOD promiseth thee a son named John, who shall bear
witness to the Wordg which cometh from GOD; and honourable person, chaste,h
and one of the righteous prophets.
He answered, LORD, how shall I have a son, when old age hath overtaken
me,i and my wife is barren? The angel said, So GOD doth that which he
pleaseth.
Zacharias answered, LORD, give me a sign. The angel said, Thy sign shall
be, that thou shalt speak unto no mank for three days, otherwise than by
gesture: remember thy LORD often, and praise him evening and morning.
And when the angels said, O Mary, verily GOD hath chosen thee, and hath
purified thee and hath chosen thee above all the women of the world:
O Mary, be devout towards thy LORD, and worship, and bow down with those
who bow down.
This is a secret history: we reveal it unto thee, although thou wast not
present with them when they threw in their rods to cast lots which of them
should have the education of Mary;l neither wast thou with them, when they
strove among themselves.
40 When the angels said; O Mary, verily GOD sendeth thee good tidings, that
thou shalt bear the Word proceeding from himself; his name shall be CHRIST
JESUS the son of Mary, honourable in this world and in the world to come, and
one of those who approach near to the presence of GOD;
c Though the child happened not to be a male, yet her mother presented
her to the priests who had the care of the temple, as one dedicated to GOD;
and they having received her, she was committed to the care of Zacharias, as
will be observed by-and-bye, and he built her an apartment in the temple, and
supplied her with necessaries.9
d The commentators say that none went into Mary's apartment but
Zacharias himself, and that he locked seven doors upon her, yet he found she
had always winter fruits in summer, and summer fruits in winter.10
e There is a story of Fâtema, Mohammed's daughter, that she once
brought two loaves and a piece of flesh to her father, who returned them to
her, and having called for her again, when she uncovered the dish, it was full
of bread and meat; and on Mohammed's asking her whence she had it, she
answered in the words of this passage: This is from GOD; for GOD provideth for
whom he pleaseth without measure. Whereupon he blessed GOD, who thus favoured
her, as he had the most excellent of the daughters of Israel.1
f Though the word be in the plural, yet the commentators say it was the
angel Gabriel only. The same is to be understood where it occurs in the
following passages.
g That is, Jesus, who, al Beidâwi says, is so called because he was
conceived by the word or command of GOD without a father.
h The original word signifies one who refrains not only from women, but
from all other worldly delights and desires. Al Beidâwi mentions a tradition,
that during his childhood some boys invited him to play, but he refused,
saying that he was not created to play.
i Zacharias was then ninety-nine years old, and his wife eighty-nine.2
k Though he could not speak to anybody else, yet his tongue was at
liberty to praise GOD as he is directed to do by the following words.
l When Mary was first brought to the temple, the priests, because she
was the daughter of one of their chiefs, disputed among themselves who should
have the education of her. Zacharias insisted that he ought to be preferred,
because he had married her aunt; but the others not consenting that it should
be so, they agreed to decide the matter by casting of lots; whereupon twenty-
seven of them went to the river Jordan and threw in their rods (or arrows
without heads or feathers, such as the Arabs used for the same purpose), on
which they had written some passages of the law; but they all sank except that
of Zacharias, which floated on the water; and he had thereupon the care of the
child committed to him.3
9 Jallalo'ddin, al Beidâwi. Vide Lud. de Dieu, in not. ad Hist.
Christi Xaverii, p. 542. 10 Al Beidâwi. Vide de Dieu, ubi
sup. p. 548. 1 Al Beidâwi 2 Idem. 3 Idem.
Jallalo'ddin, &c.
and he shall speak unto men in the cradle,m and when he is grown up;n and
he shall be one of the righteous:
she answered, LORD, how shall I have a son, since a man hath not touched
me? the angel said, So GOD createth that which he pleaseth: when he decreeth a
thing, he only saith unto it, Be, and it is:
GOD shall teach him the scripture, and wisdom, and the law, and the
gospel; and shall appoint him his apostle to the children of Israel; and he
shall say, Verily I come unto you with a sign from your LORD; for I will make
before you, of clay, as it were the figure of a bird;o then I will breathe
thereon, and it shall become a bird, by the permission of GOD;p and I will
heal him that hath been blind from his birth; and the leper: and I will raise
the deadq by the permission of GOD: and I will prophesy unto you what ye eat,
and what ye lay up for store in your houses. Verily herein will be a sign
unto you, if ye believe.
And I come to confirm the law which was revealed before me and to allow
unto you as lawful part of that which hath been forbidden you:r and I come
unto you with a sign from your LORD; therefore fear GOD, and obey me. Verily
GOD is my LORD, and your LORD; therefore serve him. This is the right way.
m Besides an instance of this given in the Korân itself,1 which I shall
not here anticipate, a Mohammedan writer, (of no very great credit, indeed)
tells two stories, one of Jesus's speaking while in his mother's womb, to
reprove her cousin Joseph for his unjust suspicions of her;2 and another of
his giving an answer to the same person soon after he was born. For Joseph
being sent by Zacharias to seek Mary (who had gone out of the city by night to
conceal her delivery) and having found her began to expostulate with her, but
she made no reply; whereupon the child spoke these words: Rejoice, O Joseph,
and be of good cheer; for God hath brought me forth from the darkness of the
womb, to the light of the world; and I shall go to the children of Israel, and
invite them to the obedience of God.3
These seem all to have been taken from some fabulous traditions of the
eastern Christians, one of which is preserved to us in the spurious gospel of
the Infancy of Christ; where we read that Jesus spoke while yet in the cradle,
and said to his mother, Verily I am Jesus the Son of God, the word which thou
hast brought forth, as the angel Gabriel did declare unto thee; and my father
hath sent me to save the world.4
n The Arabic word properly signifies a man in full age, that is,
between thirty or thirty-four, and fifty-one; and the passage may relate to
Christ's preaching here on earth. But as he had scarce attained this age when
he was taken up into heaven, the commentators choose to understand it of his
second coming.5
o Some say it was a bat,6 though others suppose Jesus made several
birds of different sorts.
This circumstance is also taken from the following fabulous tradition,
which may be found in the spurious gospel above mentioned. Jesus being seven
years old, and at play with several children of his age, they made several
figures of birds and beasts, for their diversion, of clay; and each preferring
his own workmanship, Jesus told them, that he would make his walk and leap;
which accordingly, at his command, they did. He made also several figures of
sparrows and other birds, which flew about or stood on his hands as he ordered
them, and also ate and drank when he offered them meat and drink. The
children telling this to their parents, were forbidden to play any more with
Jesus, whom they held to be a sorcerer.8
p The commentators observe that these words are added here, and in the
next sentence, lest it should be thought Jesus did these miracles by his own
power, or was GOD.9
q Jallalo'ddin mentions three persons whom Christ restored to life, and
who lived several years after, and had children, viz., Lazarus, the widow's
son, and the publican's (I suppose he means the ruler of the synagogue's)
daughter. He adds that he also raised Shem the son of Noah, who, as another
writes10 thinking he had been called to judgment, came out of his grave with
his head half grey, whereas men did not grow grey in his days; after which he
immediately died again.
r Such as the eating of fish that have neither fins nor scales, the
caul and fat of animals, and camel's flesh, and to work on the sabbath. These
things, say the commentators, being arbitrary institutions in the law of
Moses, were abrogated by Jesus; as several of the same kind, instituted by the
latter, have been since abrogated by Mohammed.1
1 Cap. 19. 2 Vide Sikii notas in Evang. Infant. p. 5.
3 Al Kessai, apud eundem 4 Evang. Infant. p. 5. 5
Jallalo'ddin. Al Beidâwi. 6 Jallalo'ddin. 7 Al Thalabi
8 Evang. Infant. p. 111, &c 9 Al Beidâwi, &c. 10 Al
Thalabi. 1 Al Beidâwi. Jallalo'ddin.
But when Jesus perceived their unbelief, he said, Who will be my helpers
towards GOD? The apostles answered,s We will be the helpers of GOD; we
believe in GOD, and do thou bear witness that we are true believers.
O LORD, we believe in that which thou hast sent down, and we have
followed thy apostle; write us down therefore with those who bear witness of
him.
And the Jews devised a stratagem against him;t but GOD devised a
stratagem against them;u and GOD is the best deviser of stratagems.
s In Arabic, al Hawâriyûn; which word they derive from Hâra, to be
white, and suppose the apostles were so called either from the candour and
sincerity of their minds, or because they were princes and wore white
garments, or else because they were by trade fullers.2 According to which
last opinion, their vocation is thus related; that as Jesus passed by the
seaside, he saw some fullers at work, and accosting them, said, Ye cleanse
these clothes, but cleanse not your hearts; upon which they believed on him.
But the true etymology seems to be from the Ethiopic verb Hawyra, to go;
whence Hawârya signifies one that is sent, a messenger or apostle.3
t i.e., They laid a design to take away his life.
u This stratagem of God's was the taking of Jesus up into heaven, and
stamping his likeness on another person, who was apprehended and crucified in
his stead. For it is the constant doctrine of the Mohammedans that it was not
Jesus himself who underwent that ignominious death, but somebody else in his
shape and resemblance.4 The person crucified some will have to be a spy that
was sent to entrap him; others, that it was one Titian, who by the direction
of Judas entered in at a window of the house where Jesus was, to kill him; and
others that it was Judas himself, who agreed with the rulers of the Jews to
betray him for thirty pieces of silver, and led those who were sent to take
him.
They add, that Jesus after his crucifixion in effigy, was sent down
again to the earth, to comfort his mother and disciples and acquaint them how
the Jews were deceived; and was then taken up a second time into heaven.5
It is supposed by several that this story was an original invention of
Mohammed's; but they are certainly mistaken; for several sectaries held the
same opinion, long before his time. The Basilidians,6 in the very beginning
of Christianity, denied that Christ himself suffered, but that Simon the
Cyrenean was crucified in his place. The Cerinthians before them, and the
Carpocratians next (to name no more of those who affirmed Jesus to have been a
mere man), did believe the same thing; that it was not himself, but one of his
followers very like him that was crucified. Photius tells us, that he read a
book entitled, "The Journeys of the Apostles," relating the acts of Peter,
John, Andrew, Thomas and Paul; and among other things contained therein, this
was one, that Christ, was not crucified, but another in his stead, and that
therefore he laughed at his crucifiers,7 or those who thought they had
crucified him.8
I have in another place9 mentioned an apocryphal gospel of Barnabas, a
forgery originally of some nominal Christians, but interpolated since by
Mohammedans; which gives this part of the history of Jesus with circumstances
too curious to be omitted. It is therein related, that the moment the Jews
were going to apprehend Jesus in the garden, he was snatched up into the third
heaven by the ministry of four angels, Gabriel, Michael, Raphael and Uriel;
that he will not die till the end of the world, and that it was Judas who was
crucified in his stead; God having permitted that traitor to appear so like
his master, in the eyes of the Jews, that they took and delivered him to
Pilate. That this resemblance was so great, that it deceived the Virgin Mary
and the Apostles themselves; but that Jesus Christ afterward obtained leave of
God to go and comfort them. That Barnabas having then asked him, why the
divine goodness had suffered the mother and disciples of so holy a prophet to
believe even for one moment that he had died in so ignominious a manner?
Jesus returned the following answer. "O Barnabas, believe me that every sin,
how small soever, is punished by God with great torment, because God is
offended with sin. My mother therefore and faithful disciples, having loved
me with a mixture of earthly love, the just God has been pleased to punish
this love with their present grief, that they might not be punished for it
hereafter in the flames of hell. And as for me, though I have myself been
blameless in the world, yet other men having called me God and the Son of God;
therefore God, that I might not be mocked by the devils at the day of
judgment, has been pleased that in this world I should be mocked by men with
the death of Judas, making everybody believe that I died upon the cross. And
hence it is that this mocking is still to continue till the coming of
Mohammed, the messenger of God; who, coming into the world, will undeceive
every one who shall believe in the law of God from this mistake.1
2 Idem. 3 Vide Ludolfi Lexic. Æthiop. col. 40, et Golii notas
ad cap. 61 Korâni, p. 205. 4 See Kor. c. 4.
5 Vide Marracc. in Alc. p. 113, &c., et in Prodr. part iii. p. 63, &c.
6 Irenæus, l. I, c. 23, &c. Epiphan. Hæres. 24, num. iii.
7 Photius, Bibl. Cod. 114, col. 291. 8 Toland's Nararenus, p 17,
&c. 9 Prelim. Disc. Sect. IV. 1 See the Menagiana. tom.
iv. p. 326, &c.
When GOD said, O Jesus, verily I will cause thee to die,x and I will take
thee up unto me,y and I will deliver thee from the unbelievers; and I will
place those who follow thee above the unbelievers, until the day of
resurrection:z then unto me shall ye return, and I will judge between you of
that concerning which ye disagree.
Moreover, as for the infidels, I will punish them with a grievous
punishment in this world, and in that which is to come; and there shall be
none to help them.
50 But they who believe, and do that which is right, he shall give them
their reward: for GOD loveth not the wicked doers.
These signs and this prudent admonition do we rehearse unto thee.
Verily the likeness of Jesus in the sight of GOD is as the likeness of
Adam; he created him out of the dust, and then said unto him, Be; and he was.a
This is the truth from thy LORD; be not therefore one of those who doubt;
and whoever shall dispute with thee, concerning him,b after the knowledge
which hath been given thee, say unto them, Come, let us call together our sons
and your sons, and our wives and your wives, and ourselves and yourselves;
then let us make imprecations, and lay the curse of GOD on those who lie.c
Verily this is a true history: and there is no GOD, but GOD; and GOD is
most mighty and wise.
If they turn back, GOD well knoweth the evil doers.
Say, O ye who have received the scripture, come to a just determination
between us and you;d that we worship not any except GOD, and associate no
creature with him; and that the one of us take not the other for lords,e
beside GOD. But if they turn back, say, Bear witness that we are true
believers.
x It is the opinion of a great many Mohammedans that Jesus was taken up
into heaven without dying; which opinion is consonant to what is delivered in
the spurious gospel above mentioned. Wherefore several of the commentators
say that there is a hysteron proteron in these words, I will cause thee to
die, and I will take thee up unto me; and that the copulative does not import
order, or that he died before his assumption; the meaning being this, viz.,
that GOD would first take Jesus up to heaven, and deliver him from the
infidels, and afterwards cause him to die; which they suppose is to happen
when he shall return into the world again, before the last day.2 Some,
thinking the order of the words is not to be changed, interpret them
figuratively, and suppose their signification to be that Jesus was lifted up
while he was asleep, or that GOD caused him to die a spiritual death to all
worldly desires. But others acknowledge that he actually died a natural
death, and continued in that state three hours, or, according to another
tradition, seven hours; after which he was restored to life, and then taken up
to heaven.3
y Some Mohammedans say this was done by the ministry of Gabriel; but
others that a strong whirlwind took him up from Mount Olivet.4
z That is, they who believe in Jesus (among whom the Mohammedans reckon
themselves) shall be for ever superior to the Jews, both in arguments and in
arms. And accordingly, says al Beidâwi, to this very day the Jews have never
prevailed either against the Christians or Moslems, nor have they any kingdom
or established government of their own.
a He was like to Adam in respect of his miraculous production by the
immediate power of GOD.1
b Namely, Jesus.
c To explain this passage their commentators tell the following story.
That some Christians, with their bishop named Abu Hareth, coming to Mohammed
as ambassadors from the inhabitants of Najrân, and entering into some disputes
with him touching religion and the history of Jesus Christ, they agreed the
next morning to abide the trial here mentioned, as a quick way of deciding
which of them were in the wrong. Mohammed met them accordingly, accompanied
by his daughter Fâtema, his son-in-law Ali, and his two grandsons, Hasan and
Hosein, and desired them to wait till he had said his prayers. But when they
saw him kneel down, their resolution failed them, and they durst not venture
to curse him, but submitted to pay him tribute.2
d That is, to such terms of agreement as are indisputably consonant to
the doctrine of all the prophets and scriptures, and therefore cannot be
reasonably rejected.3
e Besides other charges of idolatry on the Jews and Christians,
Mohammed accused them of paying too implicit an obedience to their priests and
monks, who took upon them to pronounce what things were lawful, and what
unlawful, and to dispense with the laws of GOD.4
2 See the Prelim. Disc. Sect. IV. 3 Al Beidâwi. 4 Al
Thalabi. See 2 Kings ii. I, II
1 Jallalo'ddin, &c 2 Jallalo'ddin, al Beidâwi. 3 Idem.
4 Idem.
O ye to whom the scriptures have been given, why do ye dispute concerning
Abraham,f since the Law and the Gospel were not sent down until after him? Do
ye not therefore understand?
Behold ye are they who dispute concerning that which ye have some
knowledge in; why therefore do you dispute concerning that which ye have no
knowledge of?g GOD knoweth, but ye know not.
60 Abraham was neither a Jew nor a Christian; but he was of the true
religion, one resigned unto God, and was not of the number of the idolaters.
Verily the men who are the nearest of kin unto Abraham are they who
follow him; and this prophet, and they who believed on him: GOD is the patron
of the faithful.
Some of those who have received the scriptures desire to seduce you;h but
they seduce themselves only, and they perceive it not.
O ye who have received the scriptures, why do ye not believe in the signs
of GOD, since ye are witnesses of them?
O ye who have received the scriptures, why do you clothe truth with
vanity, and knowingly hide the truth?i
And some of those to whom the scriptures were given say, Believe in that
which hath been sent down unto those who believe, in the beginning of the day,
and deny it in the end thereof; that they may go back from their faith;k
and believe him only who followeth your religion. Say, Verily the true
direction is the direction of GOD, that there may be given unto some other a
revelation like unto what hath been given unto you. Will they dispute with
you before your Lord? Say, Surely excellence is in the hand of GOD, he giveth
it unto whom he pleaseth; GOD is bounteous and wise:
he will confer peculiar mercy on whom he pleaseth; for GOD is endued with
great beneficence.
f viz., By pretending him to have been of your religion.
g i.e., Ye perversely dispute even concerning those things which ye
find in the law and the gospel, whereby it appears they were both sent down
long after Abraham's time; why then will ye offer to dispute concerning such
points of Abraham's religion, of which your scriptures say nothing, and of
which ye consequently can have no knowledge?5
h This passage was revealed when the Jews endeavoured to pervert
Hodheifa, Ammâr, and Moâdh to their religion.1
i The Jews and Christians are again accused of corrupting the
scriptures and stifling the prophecies concerning Mohammed.
k The commentators, to explain this passage, say that Caab Ebn al
Ashraf and Malec Ebn al Seif (two Jews of Medina) advised their companions,
when the Keblah was changed,2 to make as if they believed it was done by the
divine direction, and to pray towards the Caaba in the morning, but that in
the evening they should pray, as formerly, towards the temple of Jerusalem;
that Mohammed's followers, imagining the Jews were better judges of this
matter than themselves, might imitate their example. But others say these
were certain Jewish priests of Khaibar, who directed some of their people to
pretend in the morning that they had embraced Mohammedism, but in the close of
the day to say that they had looked into their books of scripture, and
consulted their Rabbins, and could not find that Mohammed was the person
described and intended in the law, by which trick they hoped to raise doubts
in the minds of the Mohammedans.3
Al Beidâwi. 1 Idem. 2 See before, c. 2, p. 16.
3 Al Beidâwi
There is of those who have received the scriptures, unto whom if thou
trust a talent he will restore it unto thee;l and there is also of them, unto
whom if thou trust a dinâr, he will not restore it unto thee, unless thou
stand over him continually with great urgency.m
This they do because they say, We are not obliged to observe justice with
the heathen: but they utter a lie against GOD, knowingly.
70 Yea, whoso keepeth his covenant, and feareth God, GOD surely loveth
those who fear him.
But they who make merchandise of GOD'S covenant, and of their oaths, for
a small price, shall have no portion in the next life, neither shall GOD speak
to them or regard them on the day of resurrection, nor shall he cleanse them;
but they shall suffer a grievous punishment.
And there are certainly some of them who read the scriptures perversely,
that ye may think what they read to be really in the scriptures, yet it is not
in the scripture; and they say, This is from GOD; but it is not from GOD: and
they speak that which is false concerning GOD, against their own knowledge.
It is not fit for a man, that GOD should give him a book of revelations,
and wisdom, and prophecy; and then he should say unto men, Be ye worshippers
of me, besides GOD; but he ought to say, Be ye perfect in knowledge and in
works, since ye know the scriptures, and exercise yourselves therein.n
GOD hath not commanded you to take the angels and the prophets for your
lords: Will he command you to become infidels, after ye have been true
believers?
And remember when GOD accepted the covenant of the prophets,o saying,
This verily is the scripture and the wisdom which I have given you: hereafter
shall an apostle come unto you, confirming the truth of that scripture which
is with you; ye shall surely believe in him, and ye shall assist him. GOD
said, Are ye firmly resolved, and do ye accept my covenant on this condition?
They answered, We are firmly resolved: God said, Be ye therefore witnesses;
and I also bear witness with you:
and whosoever turneth back after this, they are surely the transgressors.
Do they therefore seek any other religion but GOD'S? since to him is
resigned whosoever is in heaven or on earth, voluntarily or of force: and to
him shall they return.
l As an instance of this, the commentators bring Abd'allah Ebn Salâm, a
Jew, very intimate with Mohammed,4 to whom one of the Koreish lent 1,200
ounces of gold, which he very punctually repaid at the time appointed.5
m Al Beidâwi produces an example of such a piece of injustice in one
Phineas Ebn Azûra, a Jew, who borrowed a dinâr, which is a gold coin worth
about ten shillings, of a Koreishite, and afterwards had the conscience to
deny it.
But the person more directly struck at in this passage was the above-
mentioned Caab Ebn al Ashraf, a most inveterate enemy of Mohammed and his
religion, of whom Jallalo'ddin relates the same story as al Beidâwi does of
Phineas. This Caab, after the battle of Bedr, went to Mecca, and there, to
excite the Koreish to revenge themselves, made and recited verses lamenting
the death of those who were slain in that battle, and reflecting very severely
on Mohammed; and he afterwards returned to Medina, and had the boldness to
repeat them publicly there also, at which Mohammed was so exceedingly provoked
that he proscribed him, and sent a party of men to kill him, and he was
circumvented and slain by Mohammed Ebn Moslema, in the third year of the
Hejra.1 Dr. Prideaux2 has confounded the Caab we are now speaking of with
another very different person of the same name, and a famous poet, but who was
the son of Zohair, and no Jew, as a learned gentleman has already observed.3
In consequence of which mistake, the doctor attributes what the Arabian
historians write of the latter to the former, and wrongly affirms that he was
not put to death by Mohammed.
Some of the commentators, however, suppose that in the former part of
this passage the Christians are intended, who, they say, are generally people
of some honour and justice; and in the latter part the Jews, who, they think,
are more given to cheating and dishonesty.4
n This passage was revealed, say the commentators, in answer to the
Christians, who insisted that Jesus had commanded them to worship him as GOD.
Al Beidâwi adds that two Christians, named Abu Râfé al Koradhi and al Seyid al
Najrâni, offered to acknowledge Mohammed for their Lord, and to worship him;
to which he answered, GOD forbid that we should worship any besides GOD.
o Some commentators interpret this of the children of Israel
themselves, of whose race the prophets were. But others say the souls of all
the prophets, even of those who were not then born, were present on Mount
Sinai when GOD gave the law to Moses, and that they entered into the covenant
here mentioned with him. A story borrowed by Mohammed from the Talmudists,
and therefore most probably his true meaning in this place.
4 See Prideaux's Life of Mahom. p. 33. 5 Al Beidâwi,
Jallalo'ddin. 1 Al Jannâbi, Elmacin.
2 Life of Mahom. p. 78, &c. 3 Vide Gagnier, in not. ad Abulfed. Vit.
Moh. p. 64 and 122. 4 Al Beidâwi.
Say, We believe in GOD, and that which hath been sent down unto us, and
that which was sent down unto Abraham, and Ismael, and Isaac, and Jacob, and
the tribes, and that which was delivered to Moses, and Jesus, and the prophets
from their LORD; we make no distinction between any of them; and to him are we
resigned.
Whoever followeth any other religion than Islam, it shall not be accepted
of him: and in the next life he shall be of those who perish.p
80 How shall GOD direct men who have become infidels after they had
believed, and borne witness that the apostle was true, and manifest
declarations of the divine will had come unto them? for GOD directeth not the
ungodly people.
Their reward shall be, that on them shall fall the curse of GOD and of
angels, and of all mankind:
they shall remain under the same forever; their torment shall not be
mitigated, neither shall they be regarded;
except those who repent after this, and amend; for GOD is gracious and
merciful.
Moreover they who become infidels after they have believed, and yet
increase in infidelity, their repentance shall in no wise be accepted, and
they are those who go astray.
Verily they who believe not, and die in their unbelief, the world full of
gold shall in nowise be accepted from any of them, even though he should give
it for his ransom; they shall suffer a grievous punishment, and they shall
have none to help them.
Ye will never attain unto righteousness until ye give in alms of that
which ye love: and whatever ye give, GOD knoweth it.
All food was permitted unto the children of Israel, except what Israel
forbade unto himself,q before the Pentateuch was sent down.r Say unto the
Jews, Bring hither the Pentateuch and read it, if ye speak truth.
Whoever therefore contriveth a lie against GOD after this, they will be
evil doers.
Say, GOD is true: follow ye therefore the religion of Abraham the
orthodox; for he was no idolater.
90 Verily the first house appointed unto men to worship in was that which
was in Becca;s blessed, and a direction to all creatures.t
p See before, chapter 2, p. 8, note y.
q This passage was revealed on the Jews reproaching Mohammed and his
followers with their eating of the flesh and milk of camels,1 which they said
was forbidden Abraham, whose religion Mohammed pretended to follow. In answer
to which he tells them that GOD ordained no distinction of meats before he
gave the law to Moses, though Jacob voluntarily abstained from the flesh and
milk of camels; which some commentators say was the consequence of a vow made
by that patriarch, when afflicted with the sciatica, that if he were cured he
would eat no more of that meat which he liked best; and that was camel's
flesh: but others suppose he abstained from it by the advice of physicians
only.2
This exposition seems to be taken from the children of Israel's not
eating of the sinew on the hollow of the thigh, because the angel, with whom
Jacob wrestled at Peniel, touched the hollow of his thigh in the sinew that
shrank.3
r Wherein the Israelites, because of their wickedness and perverseness,
were forbidden to eat certain animals which had been allowed their
predecessors.4
s Mohammed received this passage when the Jews said that their Keblah,
or the temple of Jerusalem, was more ancient than that of the Mohammedans, or
the Caaba.5 Becca is another name of Mecca.6 Al Beidâwi observes that the
Arabs used the "M" and "B" promiscuously in several words.
t i.e., The Keblah, towards which they are to turn their faces in
prayer.
1 See Levit. xi. 4; Deut. xiv. 7. 2 Al Beidâwi, Jallalo'ddin.
3 Gen. xxxii. 32. 4 Kor. c. 4. See the notes there.
5 Al Beidâwi, Jallalo'ddin. 6 See the Prelim. Disc Sect. I. p.
3.
Therein are manifest signs:u the place where Abraham stood; and whoever
entereth therein, shall be safe. And it is a duty towards GOD, incumbent on
those who are able to go thither,x to visit this house;
but whosoever disbelieveth, verily GOD needeth not the service of any
creature.
Say, O ye who have received the scriptures, why do ye not believe in the
signs of GOD?
Say, O ye who have received the scriptures, why do ye keep back from the
way of GOD, him who believeth? Ye seek to make it crooked, and yet are
witnesses that it is the right: but GOD will not be unmindful of what ye do.
O true believers, if ye obey some of those who have received the
scripture, they will render you infidels, after ye have believed:y
and how can ye be infidels, when the signs of GOD are read unto you, and
his apostle is among you? But he who cleaveth firmly unto GOD, is already
directed in the right way.
O believers, fear GOD with his true fear, and die not unless ye also be
true believers.
And cleave all of you unto the covenantz of GOD, and depart not from it,
and remember the favor of GOD towards you: since ye were enemies, and he
reconciled your hearts, and ye became companions and brethren by his favor:
and ye were on the brink of a pit of fire, and he delivered you thence.
Thus GOD declareth unto you his signs, that ye may be directed.
100 Let there be people among you who invite to the best religion; and
command that which is just, and forbid that which is evil; and they shall be
happy.
And be not as they who are divided, and disagree in matters of religion,a
after manifest proofs have been brought unto them: they shall suffer a great
torment.
On the day of resurrection some faces shall become white, and other faces
shall become black.b And unto them whose faces shall become black, GOD will
say, Have ye returned unto your unbelief, after ye had believed? therefore
taste the punishment, for that ye have been unbelievers:
but they whose faces shall become white shall be in the mercy of GOD,
therein shall they remain for ever.
u Such is the stone wherein they show the print of Abraham's feet, and
the inviolable security of the place immediately mentioned; that the birds
light not on the roof of the Caaba, and wild beasts put off their fierceness
there; that none who came against it in a hostile manner ever prospered,1 as
appeared particularly in the unfortunate expedition of Abraha al Ashram;2 and
other fables of the same stamp which the Mohammedans are taught to believe.
x According to an exposition of this passage attributed to Mohammed, he
is supposed to be able to perform the pilgrimage, who can supply himself with
provisions for the journey, and a beast to ride upon. Al Shâfeï has decided
that those who have money enough, if they cannot go themselves, must hire some
other to go in their room. Malec Ebn Ans thinks he is to be reckoned able who
is strong and healthy, and can bear the fatigue of the journey on foot, if he
has no beast to ride, and can also earn his living by the way. But Abu Hanîfa
is of opinion that both money sufficient and health of body are requisite to
make the pilgrimage a duty.3
y This passage was revealed on occasion of a quarrel excited between
the tribes of al Aws and al Khazraj, by one Shâs Ebn Kais, a Jew; who, passing
by some of both tribes as they were sitting and discoursing familiarly
together, and being inwardly vexed at the friendship and harmony which reigned
among them on their embracing Mohammedism, whereas they had been, for 120
years before, most inveterate and mortal enemies, though descendants of two
brothers; in order to set them at variance, sent a young man to sit down by
them, directing him to relate the story of the battle of Boâth (a place near
Medina), wherein, after a bloody fight, al Aws had the better of al Khazraj,
and to repeat some verses on that subject. The young man executed his orders;
whereupon those of each tribe began to magnify themselves, and to reflect on
and irritate the other, till at length they called to arms, and great numbers
getting together on each side, a dangerous battle had ensued, if Mohammed had
not stepped in and reconciled them; by representing to them how much they
would be to blame if they returned to paganism, and revived those animosities
which Islâm had composed; and telling them that what had happened was a trick
of the devil to disturb their present tranquility.4
z Literally, Hold fast by the cord of God. That is, Secure yourselves
by adhering to Islâm, which is here metaphorically expressed by a cord,
because it is as sure a means of saving those who profess it from perishing
hereafter, as holding by a rope is to prevent one's falling into a well, or
other like place. It is said that Mohammed used for the same reason to call
the Korân, Habl Allah al matîn, i.e., the sure cord of GOD.5
a i.e., As the Jews and Christians, who dispute concerning the unity of
GOD, the future state, &c.1
b See the Preliminary Discourse, Sect. IV.
1 Jallalo'ddin, al Beidâwi. 2 See Kor. c. 105. 3 Al
Beidâwi. 4 Idem.
5 Idem. 1 Idem
These are the signs of GOD: we recite them unto thee with truth. GOD
will not deal unjustly with his creatures.
And to GOD belongeth whatever is in heaven and on earth; and to GOD shall
all things return.
Ye are the best nation that hath been raised up unto mankind: ye command
that which is just, and ye forbid that which is unjust, and ye believe in GOD.
And if they who have received the scriptures had believed, it had surely been
the better for them: there are believers among them,c but the greater part of
them are transgressors.
They shall not hurt you, unless with a slight hurt; and if they fight
against you, they shall turn their backs to you; and they shall not be
helped.d
They are smitten with vileness wheresoever they are found; unless they
obtain security by entering into a treaty with GOD, and a treaty with men:f
and they draw on themselves indignation from GOD, and they are afflicted with
poverty. This they suffer, because they disbelieved the signs of GOD,g and
slew the prophets unjustly; this, because they were rebellious, and
transgressed.
Yet they are not all alike: there are of those who have received the
scriptures, upright people; they meditate on the signs of GOD in the night
season, and worship;
110 they believe in GOD, and the last day; and command that which is just,
and forbid that which is unjust, and zealously strive to excel in good works;
these are of the righteous.
And ye shall not be denied the reward of the good which ye do;h for GOD
knoweth the pious.
As for the unbelievers, their wealth shall not profit them at all,
neither their children, against GOD: they shall be the companions of hell
fire; they shall continue therein forever.
The likeness of that which they lay out in this present life, is as a
wind wherein there is a scorching cold: it falleth on the standing corn of
those men who have injured their own souls, and destroyeth it. And GOD
dealeth not unjustly with them; but they injure their own souls.
O true believers, contract not an intimate friendship with any besides
yourselves;i they will not fail to corrupt you. They wish for that which may
cause you to perish: their hatred hath already appeared from out of their
mouths; but what their breasts conceal is yet more inveterate. We have
already shown you signs of their ill will towards you, if ye understand.
Behold, ye love them, and they do not love you: ye believe in all the
scriptures, and when they meet you, they say, We believe; but when they
assemble privately together, they bite their fingers' ends out of wrath
against you. Say unto them, Die in your wrath: verily GOD knoweth the
innermost part of your breasts.
If good happen unto you, it grieveth them; and if evil befall you, they
rejoice at it. But if ye be patient, and fear God, their subtlety shall not
hurt you at all; for GOD comprehendeth whatever they do.
c As Abd'allah Ebn Salâm and his companions,2 and those of the tribes
of al Aws and al Khazraj who had embraced Mohammedism.
d This verse, al Beidâwi says, is one of those whose meaning is
mysterious, and relates to something future: intimating the low condition to
which the Jewish tribes of Koreidha, Nadîr, Banu Kainokâ, and those who dwelt
at Khaibar, were afterwards reduced by Mohammed.
e i.e., Unless they either profess the Mohammedan religion, or submit
to pay tribute.
f Those namely who have embraced Islâm.
g That is, the Korân.
h Some copies have a different reading in this passage, which they
express in the third person: They shall not be denied, &c.
i i.e., Of a different religion.
2 Al Beidâwi.
Call to mind when thou wentest forth early from thy family, that thou
mightest prepare the faithful a camp for war;k and GOD hear and knew it;
when two companies of you were anxiously thoughtful, so that ye became
faint-hearted;l but GOD was the supporter of them both; and in GOD let the
faithful trust.
And GOD had already given you the victory at Bedr,m when ye were inferior
in number; therefore fear GOD, that ye may be thankful.
120 When thou saidst unto the faithful, Is it not enough for you, that your
LORD should assist you with three thousand angels sent down from heaven?
Verily if ye persevere, and fear God, and your enemies come upon you
suddenly, your LORD will assist you with five thousand angels, distinguished
by their horses and attire.n
And this GOD designed only as good tidings for youo that your hearts
might rest secure; for victory is from GOD alone, the mighty, the wise. That
he should cut off the uttermost part of the unbelievers, or cast them down, or
that they should be overthrown and unsuccessful is nothing to thee.
It is no business of thine; whether God be turned unto them, or whether
he punish them; they are surely unjust doers.p
To GOD belongeth whatsoever is in heaven and on earth: he spareth whom he
pleaseth, and he punisheth whom he pleaseth; for GOD is merciful.
O true believers, devour nor usury, doubling it twofold; but fear GOD,
that ye may prosper:
and fear the fire which is prepared for the unbelievers; and obey GOD,
and his apostle that ye may obtain mercy.
And run with emulation to obtain remission from your LORD, and paradise,
whose breath equalleth the heavens and the earth, which is prepared for the
godly;
k This was at the battle of Ohod, a mountain about four miles to the
north of Medina. The Koreish, to revenge their loss at Bedr,1 the next year
being the third of the Hejra, got together an army of 3,000 men, among whom
there were 200 horse, and 700 armed with coats of mail. These forces marched
under the conduct of Abu Sofiân and sat down at Dhu'lholeifa, a village about
six miles from Medina. Mohammed, being much inferior to his enemies in
numbers, at first determined to keep himself within the town, and receive them
there; but afterwards, the advice of some of his companions prevailing, he
marched out against them at the head of 1,000 men (some say he had 1,050 men,
others but 900), of whom 100 were armed with coats of mail, but he had no more
than one horse, besides his own, in his whole army. With these forces he
formed a camp in a village near Ohod, which mountain he contrived to have on
his back; and the better to secure his men from being surrounded, he placed
fifty archers in the rear, with strict orders not to quit their post. When
they came to engage, Mohammed had the better at first, but afterwards by the
fault of his archers, who left their ranks for the sake of the plunder, and
suffered the enemies' horse to encompass the Mohammedans and attack them in
the rear, he lost the day, and was very near losing his life, being struck
down by a shower of stones, and wounded in the face with two arrows, on
pulling out of which his two foreteeth dropped out. Of the Moslems seventy
men were slain, and among them Hamza the uncle of Mohammed, and of the
infidels twenty-two.2 To excuse the ill success of this battle, and to raise
the drooping courage of his followers, is Mohammed's drift in the remaining
part of this chapter.
l These were some of the families of Banu Salma of the tribe of al
Khazraj, and Banu'l Hareth of the tribe of al Aws, who composed the two wings
of Mohammed's army. Some ill impression had been made on them by Abda'llah
Ebn Obba Solûl, then an infidel, who having drawn off 300 men, told them that
they were going to certain death, and advised them to return back with him;
but he could prevail on but a few, the others being kept firm by the divine
influence, as the following words intimate.3
m See before, p. 32.
n The angels who assisted the Mohammedans at Bedr, rode, say the
commentators, on black and white horses, and had on their heads white and
yellow sashes, the ends of which hung down between their shoulders.
o i.e., As an earnest of future success.
p This passage was revealed when Mohammed received the wounds above
mentioned at the battle of Ohod, and cried out, How shall that people prosper
who have stained their prophet's face with blood, while he called them to
their Lord? The person who wounded him was Otha the son of Abu Wakkas.4
1 See before, p. 32. 2 Abulfeda, in Vita Moham. p. 64, &c. El
Macin. l. x. Prideaux's Life of Mahomet, p. 80.
3 Al Beidâwi.
who give alms in prosperity and adversity; who bridle their anger, and
forgive men; for GOD loveth the beneficent.q
And who, after they have committed a crime, or dealt unjustly with their
own souls, remember GOD, and ask pardon for their sins, (for who forgiveth
sins except GOD?) and persevere not in what they have done knowingly;
130 their reward shall be pardon from their LORD, and gardens wherein rivers
flow, they shall remain therein forever: and how excellent is the reward of
those who labor!
There have already been before you examples of punishment of infidels,
therefore go through the earth, and behold what hath been the end of those who
accuse God's apostles of imposture.
This book is a declaration unto men, and a direction and an admonition to
the pious.
And be not dismayed, neither be ye grieved; for ye shall be superior to
the unbelievers if ye believe.
If a wound hath happened unto you in war,r a like wound hath already
happened unto the unbelieving people:s and we cause these days of different
success interchangeably to succeed each other among men; that GOD may know
those who believe, and may have martyrs from among you: (GOD loveth not the
workers of iniquity;)
and that GOD might prove those who believe, and destroy the infidels.
Did ye imagine that ye should enter paradise, when as yet GOD knew not
those among you who fought strenuously in his cause; nor knew those who
persevered with patience?
Moreover ye did sometimes wish for death before that ye met it;t but ye
have now seen it, and ye looked on, but retreated from it.
Mohammed is no more than an apostle; the other apostles have already
deceased before him: if he die, therefore, or be slain, will ye turn back on
your heels?u but he who turneth back on his heels will not hurt God at all;
and GOD will surely reward the thankful.
q It is related of Hasan the son of Ali, that a slave having once
thrown a dish on him boiling hot, as he sat at table, and fearing his master's
resentment, fell immediately on his knees, and repeated these words, Paradise
is for those who bridle their anger: Hasan answered, I am not angry. The
slave proceeded, and for those who forgive men. I forgive you, said Hasan.
The slave, however, finished the verse, adding, for God loveth the beneficent.
Since it is so replied Hasan, I give you your liberty, and four hundred pieces
of silver.5 A noble instance of moderation and generosity.
r That is, by your being worsted at Ohod.
s When they were defeated at Bedr. It is observable that the number of
Mohammedans slain at Ohod, was equal to that of the idolaters slain at Bedr;
which was so ordered by GOD for a reason to be given elsewhere.1
t Several of Mohammed's followers who were not present at Bedr, wished
for an opportunity of obtaining, in another action, the like honour as those
had gained who fell martyrs in that battle; yet were discouraged on seeing the
superior numbers of the idolaters in the expedition of Ohod. On which
occasion this passage was revealed.2
u These words were revealed when it was reported in the battle of Ohod
that Mohammed was slain; whereupon the idolaters cried out to his followers,
Since your prophet is slain, return to your ancient religion, and to your
friends; if Mohammed had been a prophet he had not been slain. It is related
that a Moslem named Ans Ebn al Nadar, uncle to Malec Ebn Ans, hearing these
words, said aloud to his companions, My friends, though Mohammed be slain,
certainly Mohammed's Lord liveth and dieth not; therefore value not your lives
since the prophet is dead, but fight for the cause for which he fought: then
he cried out, O God, I am excused before thee, and acquitted in thy sight of
what they say; and drawing his sword, fought valiantly till he was killed.3
4 Idem. Abulfeda, ubi supra. 5 Vide D'Herbelot, Bibl.
Orient. Art. Hassan. 1 In not. ad cap. 8.
2 Al Beidâwi 3 Idem.
No soul can die unless by the permission of GOD, according to what is
written in the book containing the determination of things.x And whoso
chooseth the reward of this world, we will give him thereof: but whoso
chooseth the reward of the world to come, we will give him thereof: and we
will surely reward the thankful.
140 How many prophets have encountered those who had many myriads of troops:
and yet they desponded not in their mind for what had befallen them in
fighting for the religion of GOD; and were not weakened, neither behaved
themselves in an abject manner? GOD loveth those who persevere patiently.
And their speech was no other than what they said, Our LORD forgive us
our offences, and our transgressions in our business; and confirm our feet,
and help us against the unbelieving people. And GOD gave them the reward of
this world, and a glorious reward in the life to come; for GOD loveth the
well-doers.
O ye who believe, if you obey the infidels, they will cause you to turn
back on your heels, and ye will be turned back and perish:y
but GOD is your LORD; and he is the best helper.
We will surely cast a dread into the hearts of the unbelievers,z because
they have associated with GOD that concerning which he sent them down no
power: their dwelling shall be the fire of hell; and the receptacle of the
wicked shall be miserable.
GOD had already made good unto you his promise, when ye destroyed them by
his permission,a until ye became faint-hearted, and disputed concerning the
command of the apostle, and were rebellious;b after God had shown you what ye
desired.
Some of you chose this present world, and others of you chose the world
to come.c Then he turned you to flight from before them, that he might make
trial of you: (but he hath now pardoned you: for GOD is endued with
beneficence towards the faithful;)
when ye went up as ye fled, and looked not back on any: while the apostle
called you, in the uttermost part of you.d Therefore God rewarded you with
affliction on affliction, that ye be not grieved hereafter for the spoils
which ye fail of, nor for that which befalleth you,e for GOD is well
acquainted with whatever ye do.
x Mohammed, the more effectually to still the murmurs of his party on
their defeat, represents to them that the time of every man's death is decreed
and predetermined by God, and that those who fell in the battle could not have
avoided their fate had they stayed at home; whereas they had now obtained the
glorious advantage of dying martyrs for the faith. Of the Mohammedan doctrine
of absolute predestination I have spoken in another place.4
y This passage was also occasioned by the endeavours of the Koreish to
seduce the Mohammedans to their old idolatry, as they fled in the battle of
Ohod.
z To this Mohammed attributed the sudden retreat of Abu Sofiân and his
troops, without making any farther advantage of their success; only giving
Mohammed a challenge to meet them next year at Bedr, which he accepted.
Others say that as they were on their march home, they repented they had not
utterly extirpated the Mohammedans, and began to think of going back to Medina
for that purpose, but were prevented by a sudden consternation or panic fear,
which fell on them from GOD.5
a i.e., In the beginning of the battle, when the Moslems had the
advantage, putting the idolaters to flight, and killing several of them.
b That is, till the bowmen, who were placed behind to prevent their
being surrounded, seeing the enemy fly, quitted their post, contrary to
Mohammed's express orders, and dispersed themselves to seize the plunder;
whereupon Khâled Ebn al Walîd perceiving their disorder, fell on their rear
with the horse which he commanded, and turned the fortune of the day. It is
related that though Abda'llah Ebn Johair, their captain, did all he could to
make them keep their ranks, he had not ten that stayed with him out of the
whole fifty.6
c The former were they who, tempted by the spoil, quitted their post;
and the latter they who stood firm by their leader.
d Crying aloud, Come hither to me, O servants of GOD! I am the apostle
of GOD; he who returneth back, shall enter paradise. But notwithstanding all
his endeavours to rally his men, he could not get above thirty of them about
him.
e i.e., GOD punished your avarice and disobedience by suffering you to
be beaten by your enemies, and to be discouraged by the report of your
prophet's death; that ye might be inured to patience under adverse fortune,
and not repine at any loss or disappointment for the future
4 Prelim. Disc. Sect IV. 5 Al Beidâwi. 6 Idem.
Vide Abulfeda, Vit. Moh. p. 65, 66, and note, ibid.
Then he sent down upon you after affliction security; a soft sleep which
fell on some part of you; but other part were troubled by their own souls;f
falsely thinking of GOD, a foolish imagination saying, Will anything of the
matter happen unto us?g Say, Verily, the matter belongeth wholly unto GOD.
They concealed in their minds what they declared not unto thee; saying,h If
anything of the matter had happened unto us,i we had not been slain here.
Answer, If ye had been in your houses, verily they would have gone forth to
fight, whose slaughter was decreed, to the places where they died, and this
came to pass that GOD might try what was in your breasts, and might discern
what was in your hearts; for GOD knoweth the innermost parts of the breasts of
men.
Verily they among you who turned their backs on the day whereon the two
armies met each other at Ohod, Satan caused them to slip for some crime which
they had committed:k but now hath GOD forgiven them; for GOD is gracious and
merciful.
150 O true believers, be not as they who believed not, and said of their
brethren when they had journeyed in the land or had been at war, If they had
been with us, those had not died, nor had these been slain: whereas what
befell them was so ordained that GOD might take it matter of sighing in their
hearts. GOD giveth life, and causeth to die: and GOD seeth that which ye do.
Moreover if ye be slain, or die in defence of the religion of GOD, verily
pardon from GOD, and mercy, is better than what they heap together of worldly
riches.
And if ye die, or be slain, verily unto GOD shall ye be gathered.
And as to the mercy granted unto the disobedient from GOD, thou O
Mohammed, hast been mild towards them; but if thou hadst been severe, and
hard-hearted, they had surely separated themselves from about thee. Therefore
forgive them, and ask pardon for them: and consult them in the affair of war;
and after thou hast deliberated, trust in GOD; for GOD loveth those who trust
in him.
If GOD help you, none shall conquer you; but if he desert you, who is it
that will help you after him? Therefore in GOD let the faithful trust.
It is not the part of a prophet to defraud,l for he who defraudeth shall
bring with him what he hath defrauded any one of, on the day of the
resurrection.m Then shall every soul be paid what he hath gained; and they
shall not be treated unjustly.
f After the action, those who had stood firm in the battle were
refreshed as they lay in the field by falling into an agreeable sleep, so that
the swords fell out of their hands; but those who had behaved themselves ill
were troubled in their minds, imagining they were now given over to
destruction.1
g That is, is there any appearance of success, or of the divine favour
and assistance which we have been promised?2
h i.e., To themselves, or to one another in private.
i If GOD had assisted us according to his promise; or, as others
interpret the words, if we had taken the advice of Abda'llah Ebn Obba Solûl,
and had kept within the town of Medina, our companions had not lost their
lives.3
k viz., For their covetousness in quitting their post to seize the
plunder.
l This passage was revealed, as some say, on the division of the spoil
at Bedr; when some of the soldiers suspected Mohammed of having privately
taken a scarlet carpet made all of silk and very rich, which was missing.4
Others suppose the archers, who occasioned the loss of the battle of Ohod,
left their station because they imagined Mohammed would not give them their
share of the plunder; because, as it is related, he once sent out a party as
an advanced guard, and in the meantime attacking the enemy, took some spoils
which he divided among those who were with him in the action, and gave nothing
to the party that was absent on duty.5
m According to a tradition of Mohammed, whoever cheateth another will
on the day of judgment carry his fraudulent purchase publicly on his neck.
1 Al Beidâwi, Jallalo'ddin. 2 Idem. 3 Idem.
4 Al Beidâwi, Jallalo'ddin.
5 Al Beidâwi.
Shall he therefore who followeth that which is well-pleasing unto GOD be
as he who bringeth on himself wrath from GOD, and whose receptacle is hell? an
evil journey shall it be thither.
There shall be degrees of rewards and punishments with GOD, for GOD seeth
what they do.
Now hath GOD been gracious unto the believers when he raised up among
them an apostle of their own nation,n who should recite his signs unto them,
and purify them, and teach them the book of the Koran and wisdom:o whereas
they were before in manifest error.
After a misfortune had befallen you at Ohod, (ye had already obtained two
equal advantages)p do ye say, Whence cometh this? Answer, This is from
yourselves:q for GOD is almighty.
160 And what happened unto you, on the day whereon the two armies met, was
certainly by the permission of GOD; and that he might know the ungodly. It
was said unto them, Come, fight for the religion of GOD, or drive back the
enemy: they answered, if we had known ye went out to fight, we had certainly
followed you.r They were on that day nearer unto unbelief, than they were to
faith;
they spake with their mouths, what was not in their hearts: but GOD
perfectly knew what they concealed;
who said of their brethren, while themselves stayed at home, if they had
obeyed us, they had not been slain. Say, Then keep back death from
yourselves, if ye say truth.
Thou shalt in nowise reckon those who have been slain at Ohod, in the
cause of GOD, dead; nay, they are sustained alive with their LORD,s
rejoicing for what GOD of his favor hath granted them; and being glad for
those who, coming after them, have not as yet overtaken them;t because there
shall no fear come on them, neither shall they be grieved.
They are filled with joy for the favor which they have received from GOD
and his bounty; and for that GOD suffereth not the reward of the faithful to
perish.
They who hearkened unto GOD and his apostle, after a wound had befallen
them at Ohod,u such of them as do good works, and fear God, shall have a great
reward;
n Some copies, instead of min anfosihim, i.e., of themselves, read min
anfasihim, i.e., of the noblest among them; for such was the tribe of Koreish,
of which Mohammed was descended.1
o i.e., The Sonna.2
p viz., In the battle of Bedr, where ye slew seventy of the enemy,
equalling the number of those who lost their lives at Ohod, and also took as
many prisoners.3
q It was the consequence of your disobeying the orders of the prophet,
and abandoning your post for the sake of plunder.
r That is, if we had conceived the least hope of success when ye
marched out of Medina to encounter the infidels, and had not known that ye
went rather to certain destruction than to battle, we had gone with you. But
this Mohammed here tells them was only a feigned excuse; the true reason of
their staying behind being their want of faith and firmness in their
religion.4
s See before, p. 17.
t i.e., Rejoicing also for their sakes, who are destined to suffer
martyrdom, but have not as yet attained it.5
u The commentators differ a little as to the occassion of this passage.
When news was brought to Mohammed, after the battle of Ohod, that the enemy,
repenting of their retreat, were returning towards Medina, he called about him
those who had stood by him in the battle, and marched out to meet the enemy as
far as Homarâ al Asad, about eight miles from that town, notwithstanding
several of his men were so ill of their wounds that they were forced to be
carried; but a panic fear having seized the army of the Koreish, they changed
their resolution and continued their march home; of which Mohammed having
received intelligence, he also went back to Medina: and, according to some
commentators, the Korân here approves the faith and courage of those who
attended the prophet on this occasion. Others say the persons intended in
this passage were those who went with Mohammed the next year, to meet Abu
Sofiân and the Koreish, according to their challenge, at Bedr,1 where they
waited some time for the enemy, and then returned home; for the Koreish,
though they set out from Mecca, yet never came so far as the place of
appointment, their hearts failing them on their march; which Mohammed
attributed to their being struck with a terror from GOD.2 This expedition the
Arabian histories call the second, or lesser expedition of Bedr.
1 Idem. 2 Idem. 3 See before, p. 32. 4 Al
Beidâwi. 5 Vide Rev. vi. II.
1 See before, p. 47, note 2. 2 Al Beidâwi.
unto whom certain men said, Verily the men of Mecca have already gathered
forces against you, be ye therefore afraid of them:x but this increased their
faith, and they said, GOD is our support, and the most excellent patron.
Wherefore they returned with favor from GOD, and advantage:y no evil
befell them: and they followed what was well pleasing unto GOD: for GOD is
endowed with great liberality.
Verily that devilz would cause you to fear his friends: but be ye not
afraid of them: but fear me, if ye be true believers.
170 They shall not grieve thee, who emulously hasten unto infidelity; for
they shall never hurt GOD at all. GOD will not give them a part in the next
life, and they shall suffer a great punishment.
Surely those who purchase infidelity with faith shall by no means hurt
GOD at all, but they shall suffer a grievous punishment.
And let not the unbelievers think, because we grant them lives long and
prosperous, that it is better for their souls: we grant them long and
prosperous lives only that their iniquity may be increased; and they shall
suffer an ignominious punishment.
GOD is not disposed to leave the faithful in the condition which ye are
now in,a until he sever the wicked from the good;
nor is GOD disposed to make you acquainted with what is a hidden secret,
but GOD chooseth such of his apostles as he pleaseth, to reveal his mind
unto:b believe therefore in GOD, and his apostles; and if ye believe, and fear
God, ye shall receive a great reward.
And let not those who are covetous of what GOD of his bounty hath granted
them imagine that their avarice is better for them: nay, rather it is worse
for them.
That which they have covetously reserved shall be bound as a collar about
their neck,c on the day of the resurrection: unto GOD belongeth the
inheritance of heaven and earth; and GOD is well acquainted with what ye do.
x The persons who thus endeavoured to discourage the Mohammedans were,
according to one tradition, some of the tribe of Abd Kais, who, going to
Medina, were bribed by Abu Sofiân with a camel's load of dried raisins; and,
according to another tradition, it was Noaim Ebn Masúd al Ashjaï who was also
bribed with a she-camel ten months gone with young (a valuable present in
Arabia). This Noaim, they say, finding Mohammed and his men preparing for the
expedition, told them that Abu Sofiân, to spare them the pains of coming so
far as Bedr, would seek them in their own houses, and that none of them could
possibly escape otherwise than by timely flight. Upon which Mohammed, seeing
his followers a little dispirited, swore that he would go himself though not
one of them went with him. And accordingly he set out with seventy horsemen,
every one of them crying out, Hashna Allah, i.e., GOD is our support.3
y While they stayed at Bedr expecting the enemy, they opened a kind of
fair there, and traded to very considerable profit.4
z Meaning either Noaim, or Abu Sofiân himself.
a That is, he will not suffer the good and sincere among you to
continue indiscriminately mixed with the wicked and hypocritical.
b This passage was revealed on the rebellious and disobedient
Mohammedans telling Mohammed that if he was a true prophet he could easily
distinguish those who sincerely believed from the dissemblers.1
c Mohammed is said to have declared, that whoever pays not his legal
contribution of alms duly shall have a serpent twisted about his neck at the
resurrection.2
3 Idem, Jallalo'ddin. 4 Al Beidâwi. 1 Idem.
2 Idem, Jallalo'ddin.
GOD hath already heard the saying of those who said, Verily GOD is poor,
and we are rich:d we will surely write down what they have said, and the
slaughter which they have made of the prophets without a cause; and we will
say unto them, Taste ye the pain of burning.
This shall they suffer for the evil which their hands have sent before
them, and because GOD is not unjust towards mankind;
who also say, Surely GOD hath commanded us, that we should not give
credit to any apostle, until one should come unto us with a sacrifice, which
should be consumed by fire.e
180 Say, Apostles have already come unto you before me,f with plain proofs,
and with the miracle which ye mention: why therefore have ye slain them, if ye
speak truth?
If they accuse thee of imposture, the apostles before thee have also been
accounted impostors, who brought evident demonstrations, and the scriptures,
and the book which enlighteneth the understanding.
Every soul shall taste of death, and ye shall have your reward on the day
of resurrection; and he who shall be far removed from hell fire, and shall be
admitted into paradise, shall be happy: but the present life is only a
deceitful provision.
Ye shall surely be proved in your possessions, and in your persons; and
ye shall bear from those unto whom the scripture was delivered before you, and
from the idolaters, much hurt: but if ye be patient and fear God, this is a
matter that is absolutely determined.
And when GOD accepted the covenant of those to whom the book of the law
was given, saying, Ye shall surely publish it unto mankind, ye shall not hide
it: yet they threw it behind their backs, and sold it for a small price: but
woful is the price for which they have sold it.g
Think not that they who rejoice at what they have done, and expect to be
praised for what they have not done;h think not, O prophet, that they shall
escape from punishment, for they shall suffer a painful punishment;
d It is related that Mohammed, writing to the Jews of the tribe of
Kainokâ to invite them to Islâm, and exhorting them, among other things, in
the words of the Korân,3 to lend unto GOD on good usury, Phineas Ebn Azûra, on
hearing that expression, said, Surely GOD is poor, since they ask to borrow
for him. Whereupon Abu Becr, who was the bearer of that letter, struck him on
the face, and told him that if it had not been for the truce between them, he
would have struck off his head; and on Phineas's complaining to Mohammed of
Abu Becr's ill usage, this passage was revealed.4
e The Jews, say the commentators, insisted that it was a peculiar proof
of the mission of all the prophets sent to them, that they could, by their
prayers, bring down fire from heaven to consume the sacrifice, and therefore
they expected Mohammed should do the like. And some Mohammedan doctors agree
that GOD appointed this miracle as the test of all their prophets, except only
Jesus and Mohammed;5 though others say any other miracle was a proof full as
sufficient as the bringing down fire from heaven.6
The Arabian Jews seem to have drawn a general consequence from some
particular instances of this miracle in the Old Testament.7 And the Jews at
this day say, that first the fire which fell from heaven on the altar of the
tabernacle,8 after the consecration of Aaron and his sons, and afterwards that
which descended on the altar of Solomon's temple, at the dedication of that
structure,9 was fed and constantly maintained there by the priests, both day
and night, without being suffered once to go out, till it was extinguished, as
some think, in the reign of Manasses,10 but, according to the more received
opinion, when the temple was destroyed by the Chaldeans. Several Christians11
have given credit to this assertion of the Jews, with what reason I shall not
here inquire; and the Jews, in consequence of this notion, might probably
expect that a prophet who came to restore GOD'S true religion, should rekindle
for them this heavenly fire, which they have not been favoured with since the
Babylonish captivity.
f Among these the commentators reckon Zacharias and John the Baptist.
g i.e., Dearly shall they pay hereafter for taking bribes to stifle the
truth. Whoever concealeth the knowledge which GOD has given him, says
Mohammed, GOD shall put on him a bridle of fire on the day of resurrection.
h i.e., Who think they have done a commendable deed in concealing and
dissembling the testimonies in the Pentateuch concerning Mohammed, and in
disobeying GOD'S commands to the contrary. It is said that, Mohammed once
asking some Jews concerning a passage in their law, they gave him an answer
very different from the truth, and were mightily pleased that they had, as
they thought, deceived him. Others, however, think this passage relates to
some pretended Mohammedans who rejoiced in their hypocrisy, and expected to be
commended for their wickedness.12
3 Cap. 2, p. 26. 4 Al Beidâwi. 5 Jallalo'ddin.
6 Al Beidâwi.
7 Levit. ix. 24; I Chron. xxi. 26; 2 Chron. vii. I; 1 Kings xviii. 38.
8 Levit. ix. 24. 9 2 Chron. vii. x.
10 Talmud, Zebachim, c. 6. 11 See Prideaux's Connect part i. bk.
iii. p. 158. 12 Al Beidâwi.
and unto GOD belongeth the kingdom of heaven and earth: GOD is almighty.
Now in the creation of heaven and earth, and the vicissitude of night and
day, are signs unto those who are endued with understanding;
who remember GOD standing, and sitting, and lying on their sides;i and
meditate on the creation of heaven and earth, saying, O LORD, thou hast not
created this in vain; far be it from thee: therefore deliver us from the
torment of hell fire:
O LORD, surely whom thou shalt throw into the fire, thou wilt also cover
with shame: nor shall the ungodly have any to help them.
190 O LORD, we have heard a preacherk inviting us to the faith and saying,
Believe in your LORD: and we believed.
O LORD, forgive us therefore our sins, and expiate our evil deeds from
us, and make us to die with the righteous.
O LORD, give us also the reward which thou hast promised by thy apostles;
and cover us not with shame on the day of resurrection; for thou art not
contrary to the promise.
Their LORD therefore answered them, saying, I will not suffer the work of
him among you who worketh to be lost, whether he be male, or female:l the one
of you is from the other.
They therefore who have left their country, and have been turned out of
their houses, and have suffered for my sake, and have been slain in battle;
verily I will expiate their evil deeds from them, and I will surely bring them
into gardens watered by rivers;
a reward from GOD; and with GOD is the most excellent reward.
Let not the prosperous dealing of the unbelievers in the land deceive
thee;m it is but a slender provision;n and then their receptacle shall be
hell; an unhappy couch shall it be.
But they who fear the LORD shall have gardens through which rivers flow,
they shall continue therein forever: this is the gift of GOD for what is with
GOD shall be better for the righteous than short-lived worldly prosperity.
There are some of those who have received the scriptures, who believe in
GOD, and that which hath been sent down unto you, and that which hath been
sent down to them, submitting themselves unto GOD;o they tell not the signs of
GOD for a small price:
i viz., At all times and in all postures. Al Beidâwi mentions a saying
of Mohammed to one Imrân Ebn Hosein, to this purpose: Pray standing, if thou
art able; if not, sitting; and if thou canst not sit up, then as thou liest
along. Al Shâfeï directs that he sick should pray lying on their right side.
k Namely, Mohammed, with the Korân.
l These words were added, as some relate, on Omm Salma, one of the
prophet's wives, telling him that she had observed GOD often made mention of
the men who fled their country for the sake of their faith, but took no notice
of the women.1
m The original word properly signifies success in the affairs of life,
and particularly in trade. It is said that some of Mohammed's followers
observing the prosperity the idolaters enjoyed, expressed their regret that
those enemies of GOD should live in such ease and plenty, while themselves
were perishing for hunger and fatigue; whereupon this passage was revealed.2
n Because of its short continuance.
o The persons here meant, some will have to be Abda'llah Ebn Salâm3 and
his companions; others suppose they were forty Arabs of Najrân, or thirty-two
Ethiopians, or else eight Greeks, who were converted from Christianity to
Mohammedism; and others say this passage was revealed in the ninth year of the
Hejra, when Mohammed, on Gabriel's bringing him the news of the death of
Ashama king of Ethiopia, who had embraced the Mohammedan religion some years
before,4 prayed for the soul of the departed; at which some of his
hypocritical followers were displeased, and wondered that he should pray for a
Christian proselyte whom he had never seen.5
1 Idem. 2 Idem. 3 See before, p. 44. 4 See
the Prelim. Discourse, Sect. II. 5 Al Beidâwi.
these shall have their reward with their LORD; for GOD is swift in taking
an account.p
200 O true believers, be patient and strive to excel in patience, and be
constant-minded, and fear GOD, that ye may be happy.
______________
CHAPTER IV.
ENTITLED, WOMEN;q REVEALED AT MEDINA.
IN THE NAME OF THE MOST MERCIFUL GOD
O MEN, fear your LORD, who hath created you out of one man, and out of
him created his wife, and from them two hath multiplied many men, and women:
and fear GOD by whom ye beseech one another;r and respect womens who have
borne you, for GOD is watching over you.
And give the orphans when they come to age their substance; and render
them not in exchange bad for good:t and devour not their substance, by adding
it to your own substance; for this is a great sin.
And if ye fear that ye shall not act with equity towards orphans of the
female sex, take in marriage of such other women as please you, two, or three,
or four, and not more.u But if ye fear that ye cannot act equitably towards
so many, marry one only, or the slaves which ye shall have acquired.x This
will be easier, that ye swerve not from righteousness. And give women their
dowry freely; but if they voluntarily remit unto you any part of it, enjoy it
with satisfaction and advantage.
And give not unto those who are weak of understanding the substance which
GOD hath appointed you to preserve for them; but maintain them thereout, and
clothe them, and speak kindly unto them.
p See before, p. 21, and the Preliminary Discourse, Sect. IV.
q This title was given to this chapter, because it chiefly treats of
matters relating to women; as, marriages, divorces, dower, prohibited degrees,
&c.
r Saying, I beseech thee for GOD'S sake.1
s Literally, the wombs.
t That is, take not what ye find of value among their effects to your
own use, and give them worse in its stead.
u The commentators understand this passage differently. The true
meaning seems to be as it is here translated; Mohammed advising his followers
that if they found they should wrong the female orphans under their care,
either by marrying them against their inclinations, ought, by reason of their
having already several wives, they should rather choose to marry other women,
to avoid all occasion of sin.2 Others say that when this passage was
revealed, many of the Arabians, fearing trouble and temptation, refused to
take upon them the charge of orphans, and yet multiplied wives to a great
excess, and used them ill; or, as others write, gave themselves up to
fornication; which occasioned this passage. And according to these, its
meaning must be either that if they feared they could not act justly towards
orphans, they had as great reason to apprehend they could not deal equitably
with so many wives, and therefore are commanded to marry but a certain number;
or else, that since fornication was a crime as well as wronging of orphans,
they ought to avoid that also, by marrying according to their abilities.3
x For slaves requiring not so large a dower, nor so good and plentiful
a maintenance as free women, a man might keep several of the former, as easily
as one of the latter.
1 Idem. 2 Idem 3 Idem, Jallalo'ddin.
And examine the orphansy until they attain the age of marriage:z but if
ye perceive they are able to manage their affairs well, deliver their
substance unto them; and waste it not extravagantly, or hastily,
because they grow up.a Let him who is rich abstain entirely from the
orphans' estates; and let him who is poor take thereof according to what shall
be reasonable.b
And when ye deliver their substance unto them, call witnesses thereof in
their presence: GOD taketh sufficient account of your actions.
Men ought to have a part of what their parents and kindred leavec behind
them when they die: and women also ought to have a part of what their parents
and kindred leave, whether it be little, or whether it be much; a determinate
part is due to them.
And when they who are of kin are present at the dividing of what is left,
and also the orphans, and the poor; distribute unto them some part thereof;
and if the estate be too small, at least speak comfortably unto them.
10 And let those fear to abuse orphans, who if they leave behind them a
weak offspring, are solicitous for them; let them therefore fear GOD, and
speak that which is convenient.d
Surely they who devour the possessions of orphans unjustly shall swallow
down nothing but fire into their bellies, and shall broil in raging flames.
GOD hath thus commanded you concerning your children. A male shall have
as much as the share of two females:e but if they be females only, and above
two in number, they shall have two third parts of what the deceased shall
leave;f and if there be but one, she shall have the half.g And the parents of
the deceased shall have each of them a sixth part of what he shall leave, if
he have a child; but if he have no child, and his parents be his heirs, then
his mother shall have the third part.h And if he have brethren, his mother
shall have a sixth part, after the legaciesi which he shall bequeath, and his
debts be paid. Ye know not whether your parents or your children be of
greater use unto you. This is an ordinance from GOD, and GOD is knowing and
wise.
y i.e., Try whether they be well grounded in the principles of
religion, and have sufficient prudence for the management of their affairs.
Under this expression is also comprehended the duty of a curator's instructing
his pupils in those respects.
z Or age of maturity, which is generally reckoned to be fifteen; a
decision supported by a tradition of their prophet, though Abu Hanîfah thinks
eighteen the proper age.1
a i.e., Because they will shortly be of age to receive what belongs to
them.
b That is, no more than what shall make sufficient recompense for the
trouble of their education.
c This law was given to abolish a custom of the pagan Arabs, who
suffered not women or children to have any part of their husband's or father's
inheritance, on pretence that they only should inherit who were able to go to
war.2
d viz., Either to comfort the children, or to assure the dying father
they shall be justly dealt by.3
e This is the general rule to be followed in the distribution of the
estate of the deceased, as may be observed in the following cases.4
f Or if there be two and no more, they will have the same share.
g And the remaining third part, or the remaining moiety of the estate,
which is not here expressly disposed of, if the deceased leaves behind him no
son, nor a father, goes to the public treasury. It must be observed that Mr.
Selden is certainly mistaken when, in explaining this passage of the Korân, he
says, that where there is a son and an only daughter, each of them will have a
moiety:5 for the daughter can have a moiety but in one case only, that is,
where there is no son; for if there be a son, she can have but a third,
according to the above-mentioned rule.
h And his father consequently the other two-thirds.6
i By legacies, in this and the following passages, are chiefly meant
those bequeathed to pious uses; for the Mohammedans approve not of a person's
giving away his substance from his family and near relations on any other
account.
1 Al Beidâwi. 2 Idem. 3 Idem. 4 Vide
Prelim. Disc. Sect. VI. 5 Selden, de Success. ad Leges Ebræor. l. I, c.
I. 6 Al Beidâwi.
Moreover ye may claim half of what your wives shall leave, if they have
no issue; but if they have issue, then ye shall have the fourth part of what
they shall leave, after the legacies which they shall bequeath, and the debts
be paid.
They also shall have the fourth part of what ye shall leave, in case ye
have no issue; but if ye have issue, then they shall have the eighth part of
what ye shall leave, after the legacies which ye shall bequeath, and your
debts be paid.
And if a man or woman's substance be inherited by a distant relation,k
and he or she have a brother or sister; each of them two shall have a sixth
part of the estate.l But if there be more than this number, they shall be
equal sharers in a third part, after payment of the legacies which shall be
bequeathed, and the debts,
without prejudice to the heirs. This is an ordinance from GOD: and GOD
is knowing and gracious.
These are the statutes of GOD. And whoso obeyeth GOD and his apostle,
God shall lead him into gardens wherein rivers flow, they shall continue
therein forever; and this shall be great happiness.
But whoso disobeyeth GOD, and his apostle, and transgresseth his
statutes, God shall cast him into hell fire; he shall remain therein forever,
and he shall suffer a shameful punishment.
If any of your women be guilty of whoredom,m produce four witnesses from
among you against them, and if they bear witness against them, imprison them
in separate apartments until death release them, or GOD affordeth them a way
to escape.n
20 And if two of you commit the like wickedness,o punish them both:p but if
they repent and amend, let them both alone; for GOD is easy to be reconciled
and merciful.
Verily repentance will be accepted with GOD, from those who do evil
ignorantly, and then repent speedily; unto them will GOD be turned: for GOD is
knowing and wise.
But no repentance shall be accepted from those who do evil until the time
when death presenteth itself unto one of them, and he saith, Verily I repent
now; nor unto those who die unbelievers; for them have we prepared a grievous
punishment.
k For this may happen by contract, or on some other special occasion.
l Here, and in the next case, the brother and sister are made equal
sharers, which is an exception to the general rule, of giving a male twice as
much as a female; and the reason is said to be because of the smallness of the
portions, which deserve not such exactness of distribution; for in other cases
the rule holds between brother and sister, as well as other relations.1
m Either adultery or fornication.
n Their punishment, in the beginning of Mohammedism, was to be immured
till they died, but afterwards this cruel doom was mitigated, and they might
avoid it by undergoing the punishment ordained in its stead by the Sonna,
according to which the maidens are to be scourged with a hundred stripes, and
to be banished for a full year; and the married women to be stoned.2
o The commentators are not agreed whether the text speaks of
fornication or sodomy. Al Zamakhshari, and from him, al Beidâwi, supposes the
former is here meant: but Jallalo'ddin is of opinion that the crime intended
in this passage must be committed between two men, and not between a man and a
woman; not only because the pronouns are in the masculine gender, but because
both are ordered to suffer the same slight punishment, and are both allowed
the same repentance and indulgence; and especially for that a different and
much severer punishment is appointed for the women in the preceding words.
Abu'l Kâsem Hebatallah takes simple fornication to be the crime intended, and
that this passage is abrogated by that of the 24th chapter, where the man and
the woman who shall be guilty of fornication are ordered to be scourged with a
hundred stripes each.
p The original is, Do them some hurt or damage: by which some
understand that they are only to reproach them in public,3 or strike them on
the head with their slippers4 (a great indignity in the east), though some
imagine they may be scourged.5
1 See this chapter, near the end. 2 Jallalo'ddin. 3
Jallalo'ddin, Yahya, Abul Kâsem Habatallah, al Beidâwi.
4 Jallalo'ddin al Beidâwi. 5 Al Beidâwi.
O true believers, it is not lawful for you to be heirs of women against
their will,q nor to hinder them from marrying others,r that ye may take away
part of what ye have given them in dowry; unless they have been guilty of a
manifest crime:s but converse kindly with them. And if ye hate them, it may
happen that ye may hate a thing wherein GOD hath placed much good.
If ye be desirous to exchange a wife for another wife,t and ye have
already given one of them a talent,u take not away anything therefrom:x will
ye take it by slandering her, and doing her manifest injustice?
And how can ye take it, since the one of you hath gone in unto the other,
and they have received from you a firm covenant?
Marry not women whom your fathers have had to wife; (except what is
already past:) for this is uncleanness, and an abomination, and an evil way.
Ye are forbidden to marry your mothers, and your daughters, and your
sisters, and your aunts both on the father's and on the mother's side, and
your brothers' daughters, and your sisters' daughters, and your mothers who
have given you suck, and your foster-sisters, and your wives' mothers, and
your daughters-in-law which are under your tuition, born of your wives unto
whom ye have gone in, (but if ye have not gone in unto them, it shall be no
sin in you to marry them, ) and the wives of your sons who proceed out of your
loins; and ye are also forbidden to take to wife two sisters,y except what is
already past: for GOD is gracious and merciful.
Ye are also forbidden to take to wife free women who are married, except
those women whom your right hands shall possess as slaves.z This is ordained
you from GOD. Whatever is beside this is allowed you; that ye may with your
substance provide wives for yourselves, acting that which is right, and
avoiding whoredom. And for the advantage which ye receive from them, give
them their reward,a according to what is ordained: but it shall be no crime in
you to make any other agreement among yourselves,b after the ordinance shall
be complied with; for GOD is knowing and wise.
q It was customary among the pagan Arabs, when a man died, for one of
his relations to claim a right to his widow, which he asserted by throwing his
garment over her; and then he either married her himself, if he thought fit,
on assigning her the same dower that her former husband had done, or kept her
dower and married her to another, or else refused to let her marry unless she
redeemed herself by quitting what she might claim of her husband's goods.1
This unjust custom is abolished by this passage.
r Some say these words are directed to husbands who used to imprison
their wives without any just cause, and out of covetousness, merely to make
them relinquish their dower or their inheritance.2
s Such as disobedience, ill behaviour, immodesty, and the like.3
t That is, by divorcing one, and marrying another.
u i.e., Ever so large a dower.
x See chapter 2, p. 25.
y The same was also prohibited by the Levitical law.4
z According to this passage it is not lawful to marry a free woman that
is already married, be she a Mohammedan or not, unless she be legally parted
from her husband by divorce; but it is lawful to marry those who are slaves,
or taken in war, after they shall have gone through the proper purifications,
though their husbands be living. Yet, according to the decision of Abu
Hanîfah, it is not lawful to marry such whose husbands shall be taken, or in
actual slavery with them.1
a That is, assign them their dower.
b That is, either to increase the dower, or to abate some part or even
the whole of it.
1 Al Beidâwi. 2 Idem. 3 Idem. 4 Levit.
xviii. 18. 1 Al Beidâwi.
Whoso among you hath not means sufficient that he may marry free women,
who are believers, let him marry with such of your maid-servants whom your
right hands possess, as are true believers; for GOD well knoweth your faith.
Ye are the one from the other:c therefore marry them with the consent of their
masters; and give them their dower according to justice; such as are modest,
not guilty of whoredom, nor entertaining lovers.
30 And when they are married, if they be guilty of adultery, they shall
suffer half the punishment which is appointed for the free women.d This is
allowed unto him among you, who feareth to sin by marrying free women; but if
ye abstain from marrying slaves, it will be better for you; GOD is gracious
and merciful.
GOD is willing to declare these things unto you, and to direct you
according to the ordinances of those who have gone before you,e and to be
merciful unto you. GOD is knowing and wise.
GOD desireth to be gracious unto you; but they who follow their lusts,f
desire that ye should turn aside from the truth with great deviation. GOD is
minded to make his religion light unto you: for man was created weak.g
O true believers, consume not your wealth among yourselves in vanity;h
unless there be merchandising among you by mutual consent: neither slay
yourselves;i for GOD is merciful towards you:
and whoever doth this maliciouslyk and wickedly, he will surely cast him
to be broiled in hell fire; and this is easy with GOD.
If ye turn aside from the grievous sins,l of those which ye are forbidden
to commit, we will cleanse you from your smaller faults; and will introduce
you into paradise with an honourable entry.
Covet not that which GOD hath bestowed on some of you preferably to
others.m Unto the men shall be given a portion of what they shall have
gained, and unto the women shall be given a portion of what they shall have
gained:n therefore ask GOD of his bounty; for GOD is omniscient.
c Being alike descended from Adam, and of the same faith.2
d The reason of this is because they are not presumed to have had so
good education. A slave, therefore, in such a case, is to have fifty stripes,
and to be banished for half a year; but she shall not be stoned, because it is
a punishment which cannot be inflicted by halves.3
e viz., Of the prophets, and other holy and prudent men of former
ages.4
f Some commentators suppose that these words have a particular regard
to the Magians, who formerly were frequently guilty of incestuous marriages,
their prophet Zerdusht having allowed them to take their mothers and sisters
to wife; and also to the Jews, who likewise might marry within some of the
degrees here prohibited.5
g Being unable to refrain from women, and too subject to be led away by
carnal appetites.6
h That is, employ it not in things prohibited by GOD; such as usury,
extortion, rapine, gaming, and the like.7
i Literally, slay not your souls; i.e., says Jallalo'ddin, by
committing mortal sins, or such crimes as will destroy them. Others, however,
are of opinion that self-murder, which the gentile Indians did, and still do,
often practise in honour of their idols, or else the taking away the life of
any true believer, is hereby forbidden.8
k See Wisdom xvi. 14, in the Vulgate.
l These sins al Beidâwi, from a tradition of Mohammed, reckons to be
seven (equaling in number the sins called deadly by Christians), that is to
say, idolatry, murder, falsely accusing modest women of adultery, wasting the
substance of orphans, taking of usury, desertion in a religious expedition,
and disobedience to parents. But Ebn Abbâs says they amount to near seven
hundred; and others suppose that idolatry only, of different kinds, in
worshipping idols or any creature, either in opposition to or jointly with the
true God, is here intended; that sin being generally esteemed by Mohammedans,
and in a few lines after declared by the Korân itself, to be the only one
which God will not pardon.1
m Such as honour, power, riches, and other worldly advantages. Some,
however, understand this of the distribution of inheritances according to the
preceding determinations, whereby some have a larger share than others.2
n That is, they shall be blessed according to their deserts; and ought,
therefore, instead of displeasing God by envying of others, to endeavor to
merit his favour by good works and to apply to him by prayer.
2 Idem. 3 Idem. 4 Jallalo'ddin. Al Beidâwi.
5 Al Beidâwi. 6 Idem, Jallalo'ddin. 7 Idem.
8 Idem. 1 Idem. See before, c. 2, p. 10. 2 Idem,
Jallalo'ddin.
We have appointed unto every one kindred, to inherit part of what their
parents and relations shall leave at their deaths. And unto those with whom
your right hands have made an alliance, give their part of the inheritance;o
for GOD is witness of all things.
Men shall have the preëminence above women, because of those advantages
wherein GOD hath caused the one of them to excel the other,p and for that
which they expend of their substance in maintaining their wives. The honest
women are obedient. careful in the absence of their husbands,q for that GOD
preserveth them, by committing them to the care and protection of the men.
But those, whose perverseness ye shall be apprehensive of, rebuke; and remove
them into separate apartments,r and chastise them.s But if they shall be
obedient unto you, seek not an occasion of quarrel against them: for GOD is
high and great.
And if ye fear a breach between the husband and wife, send a judget out
of his family, and a judge out of her family: if they shall desire a
reconciliation, GOD will cause them to agree; for GOD is knowing and wise.
40 Serve GOD, and associate no creature with him; and show kindness unto
parents, and relations, and orphans, and the poor, and your neighbor who is of
kin to you,u and also your neighbor who is a stranger, and to your familiar
companion, and the traveller, and the captives whom your right hands shall
possess; for GOD loveth not the proud or vain-glorious,
who are covetous, and recommend covetousness unto men, and conceal that
which GOD of his bounty hath given themx (we have prepared a shameful
punishment for the unbelievers;)
and who bestow their wealth in charity to be observed of men, and believe
not in GOD, nor in the last day; and whoever hath Satan for a companion, an
evil companion hath he!
And what harm would befall them if they should believe in GOD, and the
last day, and give alms out of that which GOD hath bestowed on them? since GOD
knoweth them who do this.
Verily GOD will not wrong any one even the weight of an ant:y and if it
be a good action, he will double it, and will recompense it in his sight with
a great reward.
o A precept conformable to an old custom of the Arabs, that where
persons mutually entered into a strict friendship or confederacy, the
surviving friend should have a sixth part of the deceased's estate. But this
was afterwards abrogated, according to Jallalo'ddin and al Zamakhshari, at
least as to infidels. The passage may likewise be understood of a private
contract, whereby the survivor is to inherit a certain part of the substance
of him that dies first.3
p Such as superior understanding and strength, and the other privileges
of the male sex, which enjoys the dignities in church and state, goes to war
in defence of GOD'S true religion, and claims a double share of their deceased
ancestors' estates.4
q Both to preserve their husband's substance from loss or waste, and
themselves from all degrees of immodesty.5
r That is, banish them from your bed.
s By this passage the Mohammedans are in plain terms allowed to beat
their wives, in case of stubborn disobedience; but not in a violent or
dangerous manner.6
t i.e., Let the magistrate first send two arbitrators or mediators, one
on each side, to compose the difference, and prevent, if possible, the ill
consequences of an open rupture.
u Either of your own nation or religion.
x Whether it be wealth, knowledge, or any other talent whereby they may
help their neighbour.
y Either by diminishing the recompense due to his good actions, or too
severely punishing his sins. On the contrary, he will reward the former in
the next life far above their deserts. The Arabic word dharra, which is
translated an ant, signifies a very small sort of that insect, and is used to
denote a thing that is exceeding small, as a mite.
3 Vide al Beidâwi. 4 Idem. 5 Idem, Jallalo'ddin.
6 Idem.
How will it be with the unbelievers when we shall bring a witness out of
each nation against itself,z and shall bring thee, O Mohammed, a witness
against these people?a In that day they who have not believed, and have
rebelled against the apostle of God, shall wish the earth was levelled with
them; and they shall not be able to hide any matter from GOD.
O true believers, come not to prayers when ye are drunk,b until ye
understand what ye say; nor when ye are polluted by emission of seed, unless
ye be travelling on the road, until ye wash yourselves. But if ye be sick or
on a journey, or any of you come from easing nature, or have touched women,
and find no water; take fine clean sand and rub your faces and your hands
therewith;c for GOD is merciful and inclined to forgive.
Hast thou not observed those unto whom part of the scriptured was
delivered? they sell error, and desire that ye may wander from the right way;
but GOD well knoweth your enemies. GOD is a sufficient patron; and GOD is a
sufficient helper.
Of the Jews there are some who pervert words from their places;e and say,
We have heard, and have disobeyed; and do thou hear without understanding our
meaning,f and look upon us:g perplexing with their tongues, and reviling the
true religion.
But if they had said, We have heard, and do obey; and do thou hear, and
regard us:h certainly it were better for them, and more right. But GOD hath
cursed them by reason of their infidelity; therefore a few of them only shall
believe.
50 O ye to whom the scriptures have been given, believe in the revelation
which we have sent down, confirming that which is with you; before we deface
your countenances, and render them as the back parts thereof;i or curse them,
as we cursed those who transgressed on the sabbath day;k and the command of
GOD was fulfilled.
Surely GOD will not pardon the giving him an equal;l but will pardon any
other sin except that, to whom he pleasethm and whoso giveth a companion unto
GOD, hath devised a great wickedness.
z When the prophet who was sent to each nation in particular, shall on
the last day be produced to give evidence against such of them as refused to
believe on him, or observed not the laws which he brought.
a That is, the Arabians, to whom Mohammed was, as he pretended, more
peculiarly sent.1
b It is related, that before the prohibition of wine, Abd'alrahmân Ebn
Awf made an entertainment, to which he invited several of the apostle's
companions; and after they had ate and drunk plentifully, the hour of evening
prayer being come, one of the company rose up to pray, but being overcome with
liquor, made a shameful blunder in reciting a passage of the Korân; whereupon
to prevent the danger of any such indecency for the future, this passage was
revealed.2
c See the Prelim. Disc. Sect. IV.
d Meaning the Jews, and particularly their Rabbins.
e That is (according to the commentators), who change the true sense of
the Pentateuch by dislocating passages, or by wresting the words according to
their own fancies and lusts.3 But Mohammed seems chiefly to intend here the
Jews bantering of him in their addresses, by making use of equivocal words,
seeming to bear a good sense in Arabic, but spoken by them in derision
according to their acceptation in Hebrew; an instance of which he gives in the
following words.
f Literally, without being made to hear or apprehend what we say.
g The original word is Raïna, which being a term of reproach in Hebrew,
Mohammed forbade their using to him.4
h In Arabic, Ondhorna; which having no ill equivocal meaning, the
prophet ordered them to use instead of the former.
i That is, perfectly plain, without eyes, nose, or mouth. The
original, however, may also be translated, and turn them behind, by wringing
their necks backward.
k And were therefore changed into apes.5
l That is, idolatry of all kinds.
m viz., To those who repent.6
1 See before, c. 2, p. 16. 2 Al Beidâwi. 3 Idem,
Jallalo'ddin. 4 See before, c. 2, p. 13.
5 See before, c. 2, p. 8. 6 Al Beidâwi.
Hast thou not observed those who justify themselves?n But GOD justifieth
whomsoever he pleaseth, nor shall they be wronged a hair.o
Behold, how they imagine a lie against GOD; and therein is iniquity
sufficiently manifest.
Hast thou not considered those to whom part of the scripture hath been
given? They believe in false gods and idols,p and say of those who believe
not, These are more rightly directed in the way of truth, than they who
believe on Mohammed.
Those are the men whom God hath cursed and unto him whom GOD shall curse,
thou shalt surely find no helper.
Shall they have a part of the kingdom,q since even then they would not
bestow the smallest matterr on men?
Do they envy other men that which GOD of his bounty hath given them?s We
formerly gave unto the family of Abraham a book of revelations and wisdom; and
we gave them a great kingdom.t
There is of them who believeth on him;u and there is of them who turneth
aside from him: but the raging fire of hell is a sufficient punishment.
Verily those who disbelieve our signs, we will surely cast to be broiled
in hell fire; so often as their skins shall be well burned, we will give them
other skins in exchange, that they may taste the sharper torment; for GOD is
mighty and wise.
60 But those who believe and do that which is right, we will bring into
gardens watered by rivers, therein shall they remain forever, and there shall
they enjoy wives free from all impurity; and we will lead them into perpetual
shades.
Moreover GOD commandeth you to restore what ye are trusted with, to the
owners;x and when ye judge between men, that ye judge according to equity: and
surely an excellent virtue it is to which GOD exhorteth you; for GOD both
heareth and seeth.
n i.e., The Christians and Jews, who called themselves the children of
GOD, and his beloved people.1
o The original word signifies a little skin in the cleft of a date-
stone, and is used to express a thing of no value.
p The Arabic is, in Jibt and Taghût. The former is supposed to have
been the proper name of some idol; but it seems rather to signify any false
deity in general. The latter we have explained already.8
It is said that this passage was revealed on the following occasion.
Hoyai Ebn Akhtab and Caab Ebn al Ashraf,9 two chief men among the Jews, with
several others of that religion, went to Mecca, and offered to enter into a
confederacy with the Koreish, and to join their forces against Mohammed. But
the Koreish, entertaining some jealousy of them, told them, that the Jews
pretended to have a written revelation from heaven, as well as Mohammed, and
their doctrines and worship approached much nearer to what he taught, than the
religion of their tribe; wherefore, said they, if you would satisfy us that
you are sincere in the matter, do as we do, and worship our gods. Which
proposal, if the story be true, these Jews complied with, out of their
inveterate hatred to Mohammed.1
q For the Jews gave out that they should be restored to their ancient
power and grandeur;2 depending, it is to be presumed, on the victorious
Messiah whom they expected.
r The original word properly signifies a small dent on the back of a
date-stone, and is commonly used to express a thing of little or no value.
s viz., The spiritual gifts of prophecy, and divine revelations; and
the temporal blessings of victory and success, bestowed on Mohammed and his
followers.
t Wherefore GOD will doubtless show equal favour to this prophet (a
descendant also of Abraham), and those who believe on him.3
u Namely, on Mohammed.
x This passage, it is said, was revealed on the day of the taking of
Mecca, the primary design of it being to direct Mohammed to return the keys of
the Caaba to Othmân Ebn Telha Ebn Abdaldâr, who had then the honour to be
keeper of that holy place,4 and not to deliver them to his uncle al Abbâs, who
having already the custody of the well Zemzem, would fain have had also that
of the Caaba. The prophet obeying the divine order, Othmân was so affected
with the justice of the action, notwithstanding he had at first refused him
entrance, that he immediately embraced Mohammedism; whereupon the guardianship
of the Caaba was confirmed to this Othmân and his heirs for ever.5
7 Idem, Jallalo'ddin. See c. 5, not far from the beginning.
8 See p. 28, note t. 9 See before, p. 40, note m.
1 Al Beidâwi. 2 Idem. 3 Idem. 4 See Prideaux's
Life of Mahomet, p. 2.
5 Al Beidâwi See D'Herbel. Bibl. Orient. p. 220, 221.
O true believers, obey GOD, and obey the apostle; and those who are in
authority among you: and if ye differ, in anything, refer it unto GODy and the
apostle, if ye believe in GOD, and the last day: this is better, and a fairer
method of determination.
Hast thou not observed those who pretend they believe in what hath been
revealed unto thee, and what hath been revealed before thee? They desire to
go to judgment before Taghût,z although they have been commanded not to
believe in him; and Satan desireth to seduce them into a wide error.
And when it is said unto them, Come unto the book which GOD hath sent
down, and to the apostle; thou seest the ungodly turn aside from thee, with
great aversion.
But how will they behave when a misfortune shall befall them, for that
which their hands have sent before them? Then will they come unto thee, and
swear by GOD, saying, If we intended any other than to do good, and to
reconcile the parties.a
GOD knoweth what is in the hearts of these men; therefore let them alone,
and admonish them, and speak unto them a word which may affect their souls.
We have not sent any apostle, but that he might be obeyed by the
permission of GOD: but if they, after they have injured their own souls,b come
unto thee, and ask pardon of GOD, and the apostle ask pardon for them, they
shall surely find GOD easy to be reconciled and merciful.
And by thy LORD they will not perfectly believe, until they make thee
judge of their controversies; and shall not afterwards find in their own minds
any hardship in what thou shalt determine, but shall acquiesce therein with
entire submission.
And if we had commanded them, saying, Slay yourselves, or depart from
your houses;c they would not have done it except a few of them. And if they
had done what they were admonished, it would certainly have been better for
them, and more efficacious for confirming their faith;
70 and we should then have surely given them in our sight an exceeding
great reward, and we should have directed them in the right way.
Whoever obeyeth GOD and the apostle, they shall be with those unto whom
GOD hath been gracious, of the prophets, and the sincere, and the martyrs, and
the righteous; and these are the most excellent company.
y i.e., To the decision of the Korân.
z That is, before the tribunals of infidels. This passage was
occasioned by the following remarkable accident. A certain Jew having a
dispute with a wicked Mohammedan, the latter appealed to the judgment of Caab
Ebn al Ashraf, a principal Jew, and the former to Mohammed. But at length
they agreed to refer the matter to the prophet singly, who, giving it in favor
of the Jew, the Mohammedan refused to acquiesce in his sentence, but would
needs have it re-heard by Omar, afterwards Khalif. When they came to him, the
Jew told him that Mohammed had already decided the affair in his favour, but
that the other would not submit to his determination; and the Mohammedan
confessing this to be true, Omar bid them stay a little, and fetching his
sword, struck off the obstinate Moslem's head, saying aloud, This is the
reward of him who refuseth to submit to the judgment of God and his apostle.
And from this action Omar had the surname of al Farûk, which alludes both to
his separating that knave's head from his body, and to his distinguishing
between truth and falsehood.1 The name of Taghût,2 therefore, in this place,
seems to be given to Caab Ebn al Ashraf.
a For this was the excuse of the friends of the Mohammedan whom Omar
slew, when they came to demand satisfaction for his blood.3
b viz., By acting wickedly, and appealing to the judgment of the
infidels.
c Some understand these words of their venturing their lives in a
religious expedition; and others, of their undergoing the same punishments
which the Israelites did for their idolatry in worshipping the golden calf.4
1 Jallalo'ddin, al Beidâwi. See D'Herbel. Bibl. Orient. p. 688, and
Ockley's Hist. of the Sarac. v. I, p. 365. 2 See before, p. 28.
3 Al Beidâwi. 4 Idem, see before, p. 7
This is bounty from GOD; and GOD is sufficiently knowing.
O true believers, take your necessary precautiond against your enemies,
and either go forth to war in separate parties, or go forth all together in a
body.
There is of you who tarrieth behind;e and if a misfortune befall you, he
saith, Verily GOD hath been gracious unto me, that I was not present with
them:
but if success attend you from GOD, he will say (as if there was no
friendship between you and him),f Would to GOD I had been with them, for I
should have acquired great merit.
Let them therefore fight for the religion of GOD, who part with the
present life in exchange for that which is to come;g for whosoever fighteth
for the religion of GOD, whether he be slain, or be victorious,h we will
surely give him a great reward.
And what ails you, that ye fight not for GOD'S true religion, and in
defence of the weak among men, women, and children,i who say, O LORD, bring us
forth from this city, whose inhabitants are wicked; grant us from before thee
a protector, and grant us from before thee a defender.k
They who believe fight for the religion of GOD; but they who believe not
fight for the religion of Taghût.l Fight therefore against the friends of
Satan, for the stratagem of Satan is weak.
Hast thou not observed those unto whom it was said, Withhold your hands
from war, and be constant at prayers, and pay the legal alms?m But when war
is commanded them, behold a part of them fear men as they should fear GOD, or
with a great fear, and say, O LORD, wherefore hast thou commanded us to go to
war, and hast not suffered us to wait our approaching end?n Say unto them,
The provision of this life is but small; but the future shall be better for
him who feareth God; and ye shall not be in the least injured at the day of
judgment.
80 Wheresoever ye be, death will overtake you, although ye be in lofty
towers. If good befall them, they say, This is from GOD; but if evil befall
them, they say, This is from thee, O Mohammed:o say, All is from GOD; and what
aileth these people, that they are so far from understanding what is said unto
them?
d i.e., Be vigilant, and provide yourselves with arms and necessaries.
e Mohammed here upbraids the hypocritical Moslems, who, for want of
faith and constancy in their religion, were backward in going to war for its
defence.
f i.e., As one who attendeth not to the public, but his own private
interest. Or else these may be the words of the hypocritical Mohammedan
himself, insinuating that he stayed not behind the rest of the army by his own
fault, but was left by Mohammed, who chose to let the others share in his good
fortune, preferably to him.1
g By venturing their lives and fortunes in defence of the faith.
h For no man ought to quit the field till he either fall a martyr or
gain some advantage for the cause.2
i viz., Those believers who stayed behind at Mecca, being detained
there either forcibly by the idolaters, or for want of means to fly for refuge
to Medina. Al Beidâwi observes that children are mentioned here to show the
inhumanity of the Koreish, who persecuted even that tender age.
k This petition, the commentators say, was heard. For GOD afforded
several of them an opportunity and means of escaping, and delivered the rest
at the taking of Mecca by Mohammed, who left Otâb Ebn Osaid governor of the
city: and under his care and protection, those who had suffered for their
religion became the most considerable men in the place.
l See before, p. 28.
m These were some of Mohammed's followers, who readily performed the
duties of their religion so long as they were commanded nothing that might
endanger their lives.
n That is, a natural death.
o As the Jews, in particular, who pretended that their land was grown
barren, and provisions scarce, since Mohammed came to Medina.3
1 Al Beidâwi. 2 Idem. 3 Idem.
Whatever good befalleth thee, O man, it is from GOD; and whatever evil
befalleth thee, it is from thyself.p We have sent thee an apostle unto men,
and GOD is a sufficient witness thereof.
Whoever obeyeth the apostle, obeyeth GOD; and whoever turneth back, we
have not sent thee to be a keeper over them.q
They say, Obedience: yet when they go forth from thee, part of them
meditate by night a matter different from what thou speakest; but GOD shall
write down what they meditate by night: therefore let them alone, and trust in
GOD, for GOD is a sufficient protector.
Do they not attentively consider the Koran? if it had been from any
besides GOD, they would certainly have found therein many contradictions.
When any news cometh unto them, either of security or fear, they
immediately divulge it; but if they told it to the apostle and to those who
are in authority among them, such of them would understand the truth of the
matter, as inform themselves thereof from the apostle and his chiefs. And if
the favor of GOD and his mercy had not been upon you, ye had followed the
devil, except a few of you.r
Fight therefore for the religion of GOD, and oblige not any to what is
difficult,s except thyself; however excite the faithful to war, perhaps GOD
will restrain the courage of the unbelievers; for GOD is stronger than they,
and more able to punish.
He who intercedeth between men with a good intercessiont shall have a
portion thereof; and he who intercedeth with an evil intercession shall have a
portion thereof; for GOD overlooketh all things.
When ye are saluted with a salutation, salute the person with a better
salutation,u or at least return the same; for GOD taketh an account of all
things.
GOD! there is no GOD but he; he will surely gather you together on the
day of resurrection; there is no doubt of it: and who is more true than GOD in
what he saith?
90 Why are ye divided concerning the ungodly into two parties;x since GOD
hath overturned them for what they have committed? Will ye direct him whom
GOD hath led astray; since for him whom GOD shall lead astray, thou shalt find
no true path?
p These words are not to be understood as contradictory to the
preceding, That all proceeds from GOD; since the evil which befalls mankind,
though ordered by GOD, is yet the consequence of their own wicked actions.
q Or, to take an account of their actions, for this is GOD'S part.
r That is, if GOD had not sent his apostle with the Korân to instruct
you in your duty, ye had continued in idolatry and been doomed to destruction;
except only those who, by GOD'S favour and their superior understanding,
should have true notions of the divinity; such, for example, as Zeid Ebn Amru
Ebn Nofail1 and Waraka Ebn Nawfal,2 who left idols, and acknowledged but one
GOD, before the mission of Mohammed.3
s It is said this passage was revealed when the Mohammedans refused to
follow their prophet to the lesser expedition of Bedr, so that he was obliged
to set out with no more than seventy.4 Some copies vary in this place, and
instead of la tokallafo, in the second person singular, read la nokallafo, in
the first person plural, We do not oblige, &c. The meaning being, that the
prophet only was under an indispensable necessity of obeying GOD'S commands,
however difficult, but others might choose, though at their peril.
t i.e., To maintain the right of a believer, or to prevent his being
wronged.
u By adding something farther. As when one salutes another by this
form, Peace be unto thee, he ought not only to return the salutation, but to
add, and the mercy of GOD and his blessing.
x This passage was revealed, according to some, when certain of
Mohammed's followers, pretending not to like Medina, desired leave to go
elsewhere, and, having obtained it, went farther and farther, till they joined
the idolaters; or, as others say, on occasion of some deserters at the battle
of Ohod; concerning whom the Moslems were divided in opinion whether they
should be slain as infidels or not.
1 Vide Millium, de Mohammedismo ante Moh. p. 311. 2 See the
Prelim. Disc. Sect. II. 3 Al Beidâwi.
4 See before, c. 3, p. 49.
They desire that ye should become infidels, as they are infidels, and
that ye should be equally wicked with themselves. Therefore take not friends
from among them, until they fly their country for the religion of GOD; and if
they turn back from the faith, take them, and kill them wherever ye find them;
and take no friend from among them, nor any helper,
except those who go unto a people who are in alliance with you,y or those
who come unto you, their hearts forbidding them either to fight against you,
or to fight against their own people.z And if GOD pleased he would have
permitted them to have prevailed against you, and they would have fought
against you. But if they depart from you, and fight not against you, and
offer you peace, GOD doth not allow you to take or kill them.
Ye shall find others who are desirous to enter into confidence with you,
and at the same time to preserve a confidence with their own people:a so often
as they return to sedition, they shall be subverted therein; and if they
depart not from you, and offer you peace, and restrain their hands from
warring against you, take them and kill them wheresoever ye find them; over
these have we granted you a manifest power.
It is not lawful for a believer to kill a believer, unless it happen by
mistake;b and whoso killeth a believer by mistake, the penalty shall be the
freeing of a believer from slavery, and a fine to be paid to the family of the
deceased,c unless they remit it as alms: and if the slain person be of a
people at enmity with you, and be a true believer, the penalty shall be the
freeing of a believer;d but if he be of a people in confederacy with you, a
fine to be paid to his family, and the freeing of a believer. And he who
findeth not wherewith to do this shall fast two months consecutively as a
penance enjoined from GOD; and GOD is knowing and wise.
But whoso killeth a believer designedly, his reward shall be hell; he
shall remain therein for ever;e and GOD shall be angry with him, and shall
curse him, and shall prepare for him a great punishment.
O true believers, when ye are on a march in defence of the true religion,
justly discern such as ye shall happen to meet, and say not unto him who
saluteth you, thou art not a true believer;f seeking the accidental goods of
the present life;g for with GOD is much spoil. Such have ye formerly been;
but GOD hath been gracious unto you;h therefore make a just discernment, for
GOD is well acquainted with that which ye do.
y The people here meant, say some, were the tribe of Khozâah, or,
according to others, the Aslamians, whose chief, named Helâl Ebn Owaimar,
agreed with Mohammed, when he set out against Mecca, to stand neuter; or, as
others rather think, Banu Becr Ebn Zeid.1
z These, it is said, were the tribe of Modlaj, who came in to Mohammed,
but would not be obliged to assist him in war.2
a The person hinted at here were the tribes of Asad and Ghatfân, or, as
some say, Banu Abdaldâr, who came to Medina and pretended to embrace
Mohammedism, that they might be trusted by the Moslems, but when they
returned, fell back to their old idolatry.3
b That is, by accident and without design. This passage was revealed
to decide the case of Ayâsh Ebn Abi Rabîa, the brother, by the mother's side,
of Abu Jahl, who meeting Hareth Ebn Zeid on the road, and not knowing that he
had embraced Mohammedism, slew him.4
c Which fine is to be distributed according to the laws of inheritances
given in the beginning of this chapter.5
d And no fine shall be paid, because in such case his relations, being
infidels and at open war with the Moslems, have no right to inherit what he
leaves.
e That is, unless he repent. Others, however, understand not here an
eternity of damnation (for it is the general doctrine of the Mohammedans that
none who profess that faith shall continue in hell for ever), but only a long
space of time.1
f On pretence that he only feigns to be a Moslem, that he might escape
from you. The commentators mention more instances than one of persons slain
and plundered by Mohammed's men under this pretext, notwithstanding they
declared themselves Moslems by repeating the usual form of words, and saluting
them; for which reason this passage was revealed, to prevent such rash
judgments for the future.
g That is, being willing to judge him an infidel, only that ye may kill
and plunder him.
h viz., At your first profession of Islâmism, before ye had given any
demonstrations of your sincerity and zeal therein.
1 Al Beidâwi, Jallalo'ddin. 2 Al Beidâwi. 3 Idem.
4 Idem. 5 Idem.
1 Idem.
Those believers who sit still at home, not having any hurt,i and those
who employ their fortunes and their persons for the religion of GOD, shall not
be held equal. GOD hath preferred those who employ their fortunes and their
persons in that cause to a degree of honour above those who sit at home; GOD
hath indeed promised every one paradise, but GOD hath preferred those who
fight for the faith before those who sit still, by adding unto them a great
reward,
by degrees of honour conferred on them from him, and by granting them
forgiveness and mercy; for GOD is indulgent and merciful.
Moreover unto those whom the angels put to death, having injured their
own souls,k the angels said, Of what religion were ye? they answered, We were
weak in the earth.l The angels replied, Was not GOD'S earth wide enough, that
ye might fly therein to a place of refuge?m Therefore their habitation shall
be hell; and an evil journey shall it be thither:
100 except the weak among men, and women, and children, who were not able to
find means, and were not directed in the way; these peradventure GOD will
pardon, for GOD is ready to forgive, and gracious.
Whosoever flieth from his country for the sake of GOD'S true religion,
shall find in the earth many forced to do the same, and plenty of provisions.
And whoever departeth from his house, and flieth unto GOD and his apostle, if
death overtake him in the way,n GOD will be obliged to reward him, for GOD is
gracious and merciful.
When ye march to war in the earth, it shall be no crime in you if ye
shorten your prayers, in case ye fear the infidels may attack you; for the
infidels are your open enemy.
i i.e., Not being disabled from going to war by sickness, or other just
impediment. It is said that when the passage was first revealed there was no
such exception therein, which occasioned Ebn Omm Mactûm, on his hearing it
repeated, to object, And what though I be blind? Whereupon Mohammed, falling
into a kind of trance, which was succeeded by strong agitations, pretended he
had received the divine direction to add these words to the text.2
k These were certain inhabitants of Mecca, who held with the hare and
ran with the hounds, for though they embraced Mohammedism, yet they would not
leave that city to join the prophet, as the rest of the Moslems did, but on
the contrary went out with the idolaters, and were therefore slain with them
at the battle of Bedr.3
l Being unable to fly, and compelled to follow the infidels to war.
m As they did who fled to Ethiopia and to Medina.
n This passage was revealed, says al Beidâwi, on account of Jondob Ebn
Damra. This person being sick, was, in his flight, carried by his sons on a
couch, and before he arrived at Medina, perceiving his end approached, he
clapped his right hand on his left, and solemnly plighting his faith to GOD
and his apostle, died.
o To defend those who are at prayers, and to face the enemy.
2 Al Beidâwi. 3 Idem, Jallalo'ddin
But when thou, O prophet, shalt be among them, and shalt pray with them,
let a party of them arise to prayer with thee, and let them take their arms;
and when they shall have worshipped, let them stand behind you,o and let
another party come that hath not prayed, and let them pray with thee, and let
them be cautious and take their arms. The unbelievers would that ye should
neglect your arms and your baggage while ye pray, that they might turn upon
you at once. It shall be no crime in you, if ye be incommoded by rain, or be
sick, that ye lay down your arms; but take your necessary precaution:p GOD
hath prepared for the unbelievers an ignominious punishment.
And when ye shall have ended your prayer, remember GOD, standing, and
sitting, and lying on your sides.q But when ye are secure from danger,
complete your prayers: for prayer is commanded the faithful, and appointed to
be said at the stated times.
Be not negligent in seeking out the unbelieving people, though ye suffer
some inconvenience; for they also shall suffer as ye suffer, and ye hope for a
reward from GOD which they cannot hope for; and GOD is knowing and wise.r
We have sent down unto thee the book of the Koran with truth, that thou
mayest judge between men through that wisdom which GOD showeth thee therein;
and be not an advocate for the fraudulent;s but ask pardon of GOD for thy
wrong intention, since GOD is indulgent and merciful.
Dispute not for those who deceive one another, for GOD loveth not him who
is a deceiver or unjust.t
Such conceal themselves from men, but they conceal not themselves from
GOD; for he is with them when they imagine by night a saying which pleaseth
him not,u and GOD comprehendeth what they do.
Behold, ye are they who have disputed for them in this present life; but
who shall dispute with GOD for them on the day of resurrection, or who will
become their patron?
110 yet he who doth evil, or injureth his own soul, and afterwards asketh
pardon of God, shall find God gracious and merciful.
Whoso committeth wickedness, committeth it against his own soul: GOD is
knowing and wise.
And whoso committeth a sin or iniquity, and afterwards layeth it on the
innocent, he shall surely bear the guilt of calumny and manifest injustice.
If the indulgence and mercy of GOD had not been upon thee, surely a part
of them had studied to seduce thee;x but they shall seduce themselves only,
and shall not hurt thee at all. GOD hath sent down unto thee the book of the
Koran and wisdom, and hath taught thee that which thou knewest not;y for the
favor of GOD hath been great towards thee.
There is no good in the multitude of their private discourses, unless in
the discourse of him who recommendeth alms, or that which is right, or
agreement amongst men: whoever doth this out of a desire to please GOD, we
will surely give him a great reward.
p By keeping strict guard.
q That is, in such posture as ye shall be able.1
r This verse was revealed on occasion of the unwillingness of
Mohammed's men to accompany him in the lesser expedition of Bedr.2
s Tima Ebn Obeirak, of the sons of Dhafar, one of Mohammed's
companions, stole a coat of mail from his neighbour, Kitâda Ebn al Nomân, in a
bag of meal, and hid it at a Jew's named Zeid Ebn al Samîn; Tima, being
suspected, the coat of mail was demanded of him, but he denying he knew
anything of it, they followed the track of the meal, which had run out through
a hole in the bag, to the Jew's house, and there seized it, accusing him of
the theft; but he producing witnesses of his own religion that he had it of
Tima, the sons of Dhafar came to Mohammed and desired him to defend his
companion's reputation, and condemn the Jew; which he having some thoughts of
doing, this passage was revealed, reprehending him for his rash intention, and
commanding him to judge not according to his own prejudice and opinion, but
according to the merit of the case.3
t Al Beidâwi, as an instance of the divine justice, adds, that Tima,
after the fact above mentioned, fled to Mecca, and returned to idolatry; and
there undermining the wall of a house, in order to commit a robbery, the wall
fell in upon him and crushed him to death.
u That is, when they secretly contrive means, by false evidence or
otherwise, to lay their crimes on innocent persons.
x Meaning the sons of Dhafar.
y By instructing them in the knowledge of right and wrong, and the
rules of justice.
1 See before, c. 3, p. 52. 2 Al Beidâwi. 3 Idem,
Jallalo'ddin, Yahya.
But whoso separateth himself from the apostle, after true direction hath
been manifested unto him, and followeth any other way than than of the true
believers, we will cause him to obtain that to which he is inclined,z and will
cast him to be burned in hell; and an unhappy journey shall it be thither.
Verily GOD will not pardon the giving him a companion, but he will pardon
any crime besides that, unto whom he pleaseth: and he who giveth a companion
unto GOD is surely led aside into a wide mistake;
the infidels invoke beside him only female deities;a and only invoke
rebellious Satan.
GOD cursed him; and he said, Verily I will take of thy servants a part
cut off from the rest,b and I will seduce them, and will insinuate vain
desires into them, and I will command them and they shall cut off the ears of
cattle;c and I will command them and they shall change GOD'S creature.d But
whoever taketh Satan for his patron, besides GOD,e shall surely perish with a
manifest destruction.
He maketh them promises, and insinuateth into them vain desires; yet
Satan maketh them only deceitful promises.
120 The receptacle of these shall be hell, they shall find no refuge from
it.
But they who believe, and do good works, we will surely lead them into
gardens, through which rivers flow, they shall continue therein forever,
according to the true promise of GOD; and who is more true than GOD in what he
saith?
It shall not be according to your desires, nor according to the desires
of those who have received the scriptures.f Whoso doth evil shall be rewarded
for it; and shall not find any patron or helper, beside GOD;
but whoso doth good works, whether he be male or female, and is a true
believer, they shall be admitted into paradise, and shall not in the least be
unjustly dealt with.
Who is better in point of religion than he who resigneth himself unto
GOD, and is a worker of righteousness, and followeth the law of Abraham the
orthodox? since GOD took Abraham for his friend:g
and to God belongeth whatsoever is in heaven and on earth; GOD
comprehendeth all things.
z viz., Error, and false notions of religion.
a Namely, Allât, al Uzza, and Menât, the idols of the Meccans; or the
angels, whom they called the daughters of GOD.4
b Or, as the original may be translated, a part destined or
predetermined to be seduced by me.
c Which was done out of superstition by the old pagan Arabs. Some more
of this custom in the notes to the fifth chapter.
d Either by maiming it, or putting it to uses not designed by the
Creator. Al Beidâwi supposes the text to intend not only the superstitious
amputations of the ears and other parts of cattle, but the castration of
slaves, the marking their bodies with figures, by pricking and dyeing them
with wood or indigo (as the Arabs did and still do), the sharpening their
teeth by filing; and also sodomy, and the unnatural amours between those of
the female sex, the worship of the sun, moon, and other parts of nature, and
the like.
e i.e., By leaving the service of GOD, and doing the works of the
devil.
f That is, the promises of GOD are not to be gained by acting after
your own fancies, nor yet after the fancies of the Jews or Christians, but by
obeying the commands of GOD. This passage, they say, was revealed on a
dispute which arose between those of the three religions, each preferring his
own, and condemning the others. Some, however, suppose the persons here
spoken to in the second person were not the Mohammedans, but the idolaters.1
g Therefore the Mohammedans usually call that patriarch, as the
scripture also does, Khalîl Allah, the Friend of God, and simply al Khalîl;
and they tell the following story: That Abraham in a time of dearth sent to a
friend of his in Egypt for a supply of corn; but the friend denied him, saying
in his excuse, that though there was a famine in their country also, yet had
it been for Abraham's own family, he would have sent what he desired, but he
knew he wanted it only to entertain his guests and give away to the poor,
according to his usual hospitality. The servants whom Abraham had sent on
this message, being ashamed to return empty, to conceal the matter from their
neighbours, filled their sacks with fine white sand, which in the east pretty
much resembles meal. Abraham being informed by his servants, on their return
of their ill success, the concern he was under threw him into a sleep; and in
the meantime Sarah, knowing nothing of what had happened, opening one of the
sacks, found good flour in it, and immediately set out about making of bread.
Abraham awaking and smelling the new bread, asked her whence she had the
flour? Why, says she, from your friend in Egypt. Nay, replied the Patriarch,
it must have come from no other than my friend GOD Almighty.2
4 See the Prelim. Discourse, Sect. I. 1 Al Beidâwi,
Jallalo'ddin, Yahya,
They will consult thee concerning women;h Answer, GOD instructeth you
concerning them,i and that which is read unto you in the book of the Koran
concerning female orphans, to whom ye give not that which is ordained them,
neither will ye marry them,k and concerning weak infants,l and that ye observe
justice towards orphans: whatever good ye do, GOD knoweth it.
If a woman fear ill usage, or aversion from her husband, it shall be no
crime in them if they agree the matter amicably between themselves;m for a
reconciliation is better than a separation. Men's souls are naturally
inclined to covetousness:n but if ye be kind towards women, and fear to wrong
them, GOD is well acquainted with what ye do.
Ye can by no means carry yourselves equally between women in all
respects, although ye study to do it; therefore turn not from a wife with all
manner of aversion,o nor leave her like one in suspense:p if ye agree, and
fear to abuse your wives, GOD is gracious and merciful;
but if they separate, GOD will satisfy them both of his abundance;q for
GOD is extensive and wise,
130 and unto GOD belongeth whatsoever is in heaven and on earth. We have
already commanded those unto whom the scriptures were given before you, and we
command you also, saying, Fear GOD; but if ye disbelieve, unto GOD belongeth
whatsoever is in heaven and on earth; and GOD is self-sufficient,r and to be
praised;
for unto GOD belongeth whatsoever is in heaven and on earth, and GOD is a
sufficient protector.
If he pleaseth he will take you away, O men, and will produce others in
your stead;s for GOD is able to do this.
Whoso desireth the reward of this world, verily with GOD is the reward of
this world, and also of that which is to come; GOD both heareth and seeth.
h i.e., As to the share they are to have in the distribution of the
inheritances of their deceased relations; for it seems that the Arabs were not
satisfied with Mohammed's decision on this point, against the old customs.
i i.e., He hath already made his will known unto you, by revealing the
passages concerning inheritances in the beginning of this chapter.
k Or the words may be rendered in the affirmative, and whom ye desire
to marry. For the pagan Arabs used to wrong their female orphans in both
instances; obliging them to marry against their inclinations, if they were
beautiful or rich; or else not suffering them to marry at all, that they might
keep what belonged to them.3
l That is, male children of tender years, to whom the Arabs, in the
time of paganism, used to allow no share in the distribution of their parents'
estate.4
m By the wife's remitting part of her dower or other dues.
n So that the woman, on the one side, is unwilling to part with any of
her right; and the husband, on the other, cares not to retain one he has no
affection for; or, if he should retain her, she can scarce expect he will use
her in all respects as he ought.1
o i.e., Though you cannot use her equally well with a beloved wife, yet
observe some measures of justice towards her; for if a man is not able
perfectly to perform his duty, he ought not, for that reason, entirely to
neglect it.2
p Or like one that neither has a husband, nor is divorced, and at
liberty to marry elsewhere.
q That is, either will bless them with a better and more advantageous
match, or with peace and tranquility of mind.3
r Wanting the service of no creature.
s i.e., Either another race of men or a different species of creatures.
2 Al Beidâwi. See D'Herbel. Bibl. Orient. p. 14, and Morgan's
Mahometism Explained, vol. i. p. 132. 3 Al Beidâwi.
4 See before, p. 54, note c. 1 Al Beidâwi. 2 Idem.
3 Idem.
O true believers, observe justice when ye bear witness before GOD,
although it be against yourselves, or your parents, or relations; whether the
party be rich, or whether he be poor; for GOD is more worthy than them both:
therefore follow not your own lust in bearing testimony so that ye swerve from
justice. And whether ye wrest your evidence, or decline giving it, GOD is
well acquainted with that which ye do.
O true believers, believe in GOD and his apostle, and the book which he
hath caused to descend unto his apostle, and the book which he hath formerly
sent down.t And whosoever believeth not in GOD, and his angels, and his
scriptures, and his apostles, and the last day, he surely erreth in a wide
mistake.
Moreover they who believed, and afterwards became infidels, and then
believed again, and after that disbelieved, and increased in infidelity,u GOD
will by no means forgive them, nor direct them into the right way.
Declare unto the ungodlyx that they shall suffer a painful punishment.
They who take the unbelievers for their protectors, besides the faithful,
do they seek for power with them? since all power belongeth unto GOD.
And he hath already revealed unto you, in the book of the Korân,y the
following passage-When ye shall hear the signs of GOD, they shall not be
believed, but they shall be laughed to scorn. Therefore sit not with them who
believe not, until they engage in different discourse; for if ye do ye will
certainly become like unto them. GOD will surely gather the ungodly and the
unbelievers together in hell.
140 They who wait to observe what befalleth you, if victory be granted you
from GOD, say, Were we not with you?z But if any advantage happen to the
infidels, they say unto them, Were we not superior to you,a and have we not
defended you against the believers? GOD shall judge between you on the day of
resurrection: and GOD will not grant the unbelievers means to prevail over the
faithful.
The hypocrites act deceitfully with GOD, but he will deceive them; and
when they stand up to pray, they stand carelessly, affecting to be seen of
men, and remember not GOD, unless a little,b
wavering between faith and infidelity, and adhering neither unto these
nor unto those:c and for him whom GOD shall lead astray thou shalt find no
true path.
O true believers, take not the unbelievers for your protectors besides
the faithful. Will ye furnish GOD with an evident argument of impiety against
you?
t It is said that Abda'llah Ebn Salâm and his companions told Mohammed
that they believed in him, and his Korân, and in Moses, and the Pentateuch,
and in Ezra, but no farther; whereupon this passage was revealed, declaring
that a partial faith is little better than none at all, and that a true
believer must believe in all GOD'S prophets and revelations without
exception.4
u These were the Jews, who first believed in Moses, and afterwards fell
into idolatry by worshiping the golden calf; and though they repented of that,
yet in after ages rejected the prophets who were sent to them, and
particularly Jesus, the son of Mary, and now filled up the measure of their
unbelief by rejecting of Mohammed.5
x Mohammed here means those who hypocritically pretended to believe in
him but really did not, and by their treachery did great mischief to his
party.1
y Cap. 6.
z i.e., Did we not assist you? Therefore give us part of the spoil.2
a Would not our army have cut you off if it had not been for our faint
assistance, or rather desertion, of the Moslems, and our disheartening them?3
b That is, with the tongue, and not with the heart.
c Halting between two opinions, and being staunch friends neither to
the Moslems nor the infidels.
4 Al Beidâwi. 5 Idem. 1 Idem. 2. Idem.
3 Idem.
Moreover the hypocrites shall be in the lowest bottom of hell fire,d and
thou shalt not find any to help them thence.
But they who repent and amend, and adhere firmly unto GOD, and approve
the sincerity of their religion to GOD, they shall be numbered with the
faithful; and GOD will surely give the faithful a great reward.
And how should GOD go about to punish you, if ye be thankful and believe?
for GOD is grateful and wise.
GOD loveth not the speaking ill of any one in public, unless he who is
injured call for assistance; and GOD heareth and knoweth:
whether ye publish a good action, or conceal it, or forgive evil, verily
GOD is gracious and powerful.
They who believe not in GOD, and his apostles, and would make a
distinction between GOD and his apostles,e and say, We believe in some of the
prophets and reject others of them, and seek to take a middle way in this
matter;
150 these are really unbelievers: and we have prepared for the unbelievers
an ignominious punishment.
But they who believe in GOD and his apostles, and make no distinction
between any of them, unto those will we surely give their reward; and GOD is
gracious and merciful.
They who have received the scripturesf will demand of thee, that thou
cause a book to descend unto them from heaven: they formerly asked of Moses a
greater thing than this: for they said, Show us GOD visibly.g Wherefore a
storm of fire from heaven destroyed them, because of their iniquity. Then
they took the calf for their God,h after that evident proofs of the divine
unity had come unto them: but we forgave them that, and gave Moses a manifest
power to punish them.i
And we lifted the mountain of Sinai over them,k when we exacted from them
their covenant; and said unto them, Enter the gate of the city worshipping.l
We also said unto them, Transgress not on the Sabbath-day. And we received
from them a firm covenant, that they would observe these things.
Therefore for thatm they have made void their covenant, and have not
believed in the signs of GOD, and have slain the prophets unjustly, and have
said, Our hearts are circumcised; (but GOD hath sealed them up, because of
their unbelief; therefore they shall not believe, except a few of them:)
and for that they have not believed in Jesus, and have spoken against
Mary a grievous calumny;n
d See the Preliminary Discourse, Sect. IV.
e See c. 2, p. 31, note h.
f That is, the Jews; who demanded of Mohammed, as a proof of his
mission, that they might see a book of revelations descend to him from heaven,
or that he would produce one written in a celestial character, like the two
tables of Moses.
g See chapter 2, p. 6.
This story seems to be an addition to what Moses says of the seventy
elders, who went up to the mountain with him, and with Aaron, Nadab, and
Abihu, and saw the GOD of Israel.1
h See chapter 2, p. 6.
i See ibid. p. 6, note m.
k See ibid. p. 8.
l See ibid. p. 7.
m There being nothing in the following words of this sentence, to
answer to the causal for that, Jallalo'ddin supposes something to be
understood to complete the sense, as therefore we have cursed them, or the
like.
n By accusing her of fornication.2
1 Exod. xxiv. 9, 10, 11. 2 See the Kor. c. 19, and that
virulent book entitled Toldoth Jesu.
and have said, Verily we have slain Christ Jesus the son of Mary, the
apostle of GOD; yet they slew him not, neither crucified him, but he was
represented by one in his likeness;o and verily they who disagreed concerning
himp were in a doubt as to this matter, and had no sure knowledge thereof, but
followed only an uncertain opinion. They did not really kill him; but GOD
took him up unto himself: and GOD is mighty and wise.
And there shall not be one of those who have received the scriptures, who
shall not believe in him, before his death;q and on the day of resurrection he
shall be a witness against them.r
Because of the iniquity of those who Judaize, we have forbidden them good
things, which had been formerly allowed them;s
and because they shut out many from the way of GOD, and have taken usury,
which was forbidden them by the law, and devoured men's substance vainly: we
have prepared for such of them as are unbelievers a painful punishment.
160 But those among them who are well grounded in knowledge,t and the
faithful, who believe in that which hath been sent down unto thee, and that
which hath been sent down unto the prophets before thee, and who observe the
stated times of prayer, and give alms, and believe in GOD and the last day
unto these will we give a great reward.
Verily we have revealed our will unto thee, as we have revealed it unto
Noah and the prophets who succeeded him; and as we revealed it unto Abraham,
and Ismael, and Isaac, and Jacob, and the tribes, and unto Jesus, and Job, and
Jonas, and Aaron, and Solomon; and we have given thee the Koran, as we gave
the psalms unto David:
some apostles have we sent, whom we have formerly mentioned unto thee;
and other apostles have we sent, whom we have not mentioned unto thee; and GOD
spake unto Moses, discoursing with him;
apostles declaring good tidings, and denouncing threats, lest men should
have an argument of excuse against GOD, after the apostles had been sent unto
them; GOD is mighty and wise.
GOD is witness of that revelation which he hath sent down unto thee; he
sent it down with his special knowledge: the angels also are witnesses
thereof; but GOD is a sufficient witness.
They who believe not, and turn aside others from the way of GOD, have
erred in a wide mistake.
o See chapter 3, p. 38, and the notes there.
p For some maintained that he was justly and really crucified; some
insisted that it was not Jesus who suffered, but another who resembled him in
the face, pretending the other parts of his body, by their unlikeness, plainly
discovered the imposition; some said he was taken up into heaven; and others,
that his manhood only suffered, and that his godhead ascended into heaven.3
q This passage is expounded two ways.
Some, referring the relative his, to the first antecedent, take the
meaning to be, that no Jew or Christian shall die before he believes in Jesus:
for they say, that when one of either of those religions is ready to breathe
his last, and sees the angel of death before him, he shall then believe in
that prophet as he ought, though his faith will not then be of any avail.
According to a tradition of Hejâj, when a Jew is expiring, the angels will
strike him on the back and face, and say to him, O thou enemy of GOD, Jesus
was sent as a prophet unto thee, and thou didst not believe on him; to which
he will answer, I now believe him to be the servant of GOD; and to a dying
Christian they will say, Jesus was sent as a prophet unto thee, and thou hast
imagined him to be GOD, or the son of GOD; whereupon he will believe him to be
the servant of GOD only, and his apostle.
Others, taking the above-mentioned relative to refer to Jesus, suppose
the intent of the passage to be, that all Jews and Christians in general shall
have a right faith in that prophet before his death, that is, when he descends
from heaven and returns into the world, where he is to kill Antichrist, and to
establish the Mohammedan religion, and a most perfect tranquility and security
on earth.1
r i.e., Against the Jews, for rejecting him; and against the
Christians, for calling him GOD, and the son of GOD.2
s See chapter 3, p. 38 and 42, and the notes there.
t As Abda'llah Ebn Salâm, and his companions.3
3 Al Beidâwi. 1 Jallalo'ddin, Yahya, al Zamakhshari, and al
Beidâwi. See the Prelim. Disc. Sect. IV. 2 Al Beidâwi. 3
Idem.
Verily those who believe not, and act unjustly, GOD will by no means
forgive, neither will he direct them into any other way,
than the way of hell; they shall remain therein forever: and this is easy
with GOD.
O men, now is the apostle come unto you, with truth from your LORD;
believe therefore, it will be better for you. But if ye disbelieve, verily
unto GOD belongeth whatsoever is in heaven and on earth; and GOD is knowing
and wise.
O ye who have received the scriptures, exceed not the just bounds in your
religion,u neither say of GOD any other than the truth. Verily Christ Jesus
the son of Mary is the apostle of GOD, and his Word, which he conveyed into
Mary, and a spirit proceeding from him. Believe therefore in GOD, and his
apostles, and say not, There are three Gods;x forbear this; it will be better
for you. GOD is but one GOD. Far be it from him that he should have a son!
unto him belongeth whatever is in heaven and on earth; and GOD is a sufficient
protector.
170 Christ doth not proudly disdain to be a servant unto GOD; neither the
angels who approach near to his presence:
and whoso disdaineth his service, and is puffed up with pride, God will
gather them all to himself, on the last day.
Unto those who believe, and do that which is right, he shall give their
rewards, and shall superabundantly add unto them of his liberality: but those
who are disdainful and proud, he will punish with a grievous punishment;
and they shall not find any to protect or to help them, besides GOD.
O men, now is an evident proof come unto you from your LORD, and we have
sent down unto you manifest light.y They who believe in GOD and firmly adhere
to him, he will lead them into mercy from him, and abundance; and he will
direct them in the right way to himself.z
They will consult thee for thy decision in certain cases; say unto them,
GOD giveth you these determinations, concerning the more remote degrees of
kindred.a If a man die without issue, and have a sister, she shall have the
half of what he shall leave:b and he shall be heir to her,c in case she have
no issue. But if there be two sisters they shall have between them two third
parts of what he shall leave; and if there be several, both brothers and
sisters, a male shall have as much as the portion of two females. GOD
declareth unto you these precepts, lest ye err: and GOD knoweth all things.
u Either by rejecting and contemning of Jesus as the Jews do; or
raising him to an equality with GOD, as do the Christians.4
x Namely, God, Jesus, and Mary.1 For the eastern writers mention a
sect of Christians which held the Trinity to be composed of those three;2 but
it is allowed that this heresy has been long since extinct.3 The passage,
however, is equally levelled against the Holy Trinity, according to the
doctrine of the orthodox Christians, who, as al Beidâwi acknowledges, believe
the divine nature to consist of three persons, the Father, the Son, and the
Holy Ghost; by the Father understanding GOD'S essence; by the Son his
knowledge, and by the Holy Ghost his life.
y That is, Mohammed and his Korân.
z viz., Into the religion of Islâm, in this world, and the way to
paradise in the next.4
a See the beginning of this chapter, p. 53.
b And the other half will go to the public treasury.
c That is, he shall inherit her whole substance.
4 Al Beidâwi. 1 Idem, Jallalo'ddin, Yahya. 2 Elmacin.
p. 227. Eutych. p. 120. See the Prelim. Disc. Sect. II 3 Ahmed Ebn
Abd'al Halim. 4 Al Beidâwi.
CHAPTER V.
ENTITLED, THE TABLE;d REVEALED AT MEDINA.
IN THE NAME OF THE MOST MERCIFUL GOD.
O TRUE believers, perform your contracts. Ye are allowed to eat the
brute cattle,e other than what ye are commanded to abstain from; except the
game which ye are allowed at other times, but not while ye are on pilgrimage
to Mecca; GOD ordaineth that which he pleaseth.
O true believers, violate not the holy rites of GOD,f nor the sacred
month,g nor the offering, nor the ornaments hung thereon,h nor those who are
travelling to the holy house, seeking favor from their LORD, and to please
him.
But when ye shall have finished your pilgrimage; then hunt. And let not
the malice of some, in that they hindered you from entering the sacred
temple,i provoke you to transgress, by taking revenge on them in the sacred
months. Assist one another according to justice and piety, but assist not one
another in injustice and malice: therefore fear GOD; for GOD is severe in
punishing.
Ye are forbidden to eat that which dieth of itself, and blood, and
swine's flesh, and that on which the name of any besides GOD hath been
invocated;k and that which hath been strangled, or killed by a blow, or by a
fall, or by the horns of another beast, and that which hath been eaten by a
wild beast,l except what ye shall kill yourselves;m and that which hath been
sacrificed unto idols.n It is likewise unlawful for you to make division by
casting lots with arrows.o This is an impiety. On this day,p woe be unto
those who have apostatized from their religion; therefore fear not them, but
fear me.
This day have I perfected your religion for you,q and have completed my
mercy upon you;r and I have chosen for you Islam, to be your religion. But
whosoever shall be driven by necessity through hunger, to eat of what we have
forbidden, not designing to sin, surely GOD will be indulgent and merciful
unto him.
d The title is taken from the Table, which, towards the end of the
chapter, is fabled to have been let down from heaven to Jesus. It is
sometimes also called the chapter of Contracts, which word occurs in the first
verse.
e As camels, oxen, and sheep; and also wild cows, antelopes, &c.;1 but
not swine, nor what is taken in hunting during the pilgrimage.
f i.e., The ceremonies used in the pilgrimage of Mecca.
g See the Prelim. Disc. Sect. VII.
h The offering here meant is the sheep led to Mecca, to be there
sacrificed, about the neck of which they used to hang garlands, green boughs,
or some other ornament, that it may be distinguished as a thing sacred.2
i In the expedition of Al Hodeibiya.3
k For the idolatrous Arabs used, in killing any animal for food, to
consecrate it, as it were, to their idols, by saying, In the name of Allât, or
al Uzza.4
l Or by a creature trained up to hunting.5
m That is, unless ye come up time enough to find life in the animal,
and to cut its throat.
n The word also signifies certain stones, which the pagan Arabs used to
set up near their houses, and on which they superstitiously slew animals, in
honour of their gods.6
o See Prelim. Disc. Sect. V.
p This passage, it is said, was revealed on Friday evening, being the
day of the pilgrims visiting Mount Arafat, the last time Mohammed visited the
temple of Mecca, therefore called the pilgrimage of valediction.7
q And therefore the commentators say, that after this time, no positive
or negative precept was given.1
r By having given you a true and perfect religion; or, by the taking of
Mecca, and the destruction of idolatry.
1 Jallalo'ddin, al Beidâwi. 2 See the Prelim. Disc. Sect. IV.
3 See the Prelim. Disc. Sect. II.
4 See c. 2, p. 18. 5 Al Beidâwi. 6 Idem. 7
Idem. See Prid. Life of Mahom. p. 99.
1 Vide Abulfed. Vit. Moh. p. 131.
They will ask thee what is allowed them as lawful to eat? Answer, Such
things as are goods are allowed you; and what ye shall teach animals of prey
to catch,t training them up for hunting after the manner of dogs, and teaching
them according to the skill which GOD hath taught you. Eat therefore of that
which they shall catch for you; and commemorate the name of GOD thereon;u and
fear GOD, for GOD is swift in taking an account.
This day are ye allowed to eat such things as are good, and the food of
those to whom the scriptures were givenx is also allowed as lawful unto you;
and your food is allowed as lawful unto them. And ye are also allowed to
marry free women that are believers, and also free women of those who have
received the scriptures before you, when ye shall have assigned them their
dower; living chastely with them, neither committing fornication, nor taking
them for concubines. Whoever shall renounce the faith, his work shall be
vain, and in the next life he shall be of those who perish.
O true believers, when ye prepare yourselves to pray, wash your faces,
and your hands unto the elbows; and rub your heads, and your feet unto the
ankles;
and if ye be polluted by having lain with a woman, wash yourselves all
over. But if ye be sick, or on a journey, or any of you cometh from the
privy, or if ye have touched women, and ye find no water, take fine clean
sand, and rub your faces and your hands therewith; GOD would not put a
difficulty upon you; but he desireth to purify you, and to complete his favor
upon you, that ye may give thanks.
10 Remember the favor of GOD towards you, and his covenant which he hath
made with you, when ye said, We have heard, and will obey.y Therefore fear
God, for God knoweth the innermost parts of the breasts of men.
O true believers, observe justice when ye appear as witnesses before GOD,
and let not hatred towards any induce you to do wrong: but act justly; this
will approach nearer unto piety; and fear GOD, for GOD is fully acquainted
with what ye do.
GOD hath promised unto those who believe, and do that which is right,
that they shall receive pardon and a great reward.
But they who believe not, and accuse our signs of falsehood, they shall
be the companions of hell.
O true believers, remember God's favor towards you, when certain men
designed to stretch forth their hands against you, but he restrained their
hands from hurting you;z therefore fear GOD and in GOD let the faithful trust.
s Not such as are filthy, or unwholesome.
t Whether beasts or birds.
u Either when ye let go the hound, hawk, or other animal, after the
game; or when ye kill it.
x viz., Slain or dressed by Jews or Christians.
y These words are the form used at the inauguration of a prince; and
Mohammed here intends the oath of fidelity which his followers had taken to
him at al Akaba.2
z The commentators tell several stories as the occasion of this
passage. One says, that Mohammed and some of his followers being at Osfân (a
place not far from Mecca, in the way to Medina), and performing their noon
devotions, a company of idolaters, who were in view, repented they had not
taken that opportunity of attacking them, and therefore waited till the hour
of evening prayer, intending to fall upon them then: but GOD defeated their
design, by revealing the verse of fear. Another relates, that the prophet
going to the tribe of Koreidha (who were Jews) to levy a fine for the blood of
two Moslems, who had been killed by mistake, by Amru Ebn Ommeya al Dimri, they
desired him to sit down and eat with them, and they would pay the fine;
Mohammed complying with their request, while he was sitting, they laid a
design against his life, one Amru Ebn Jahâsh undertaking to throw a millstone
upon him; but GOD withheld his hand, and Gabriel immediately descended to
acquaint the prophet with their treachery, upon which he rose up and went his
way. A third story is, that Mohammed having hung up his arms on a tree, under
which he was resting himself, and his companions being dispersed some distance
from him, an Arab of the desert came up to him and drew his sword, saying, Who
hindereth me from killing thee? To which Mohammed answered, GOD; and Gabriel
beating the sword out of the Arab's hand, Mohammed took it up, and asked him
the same question, Who hinders me from killing thee? the Arab replied, nobody,
and immediately professed Mohammedism.1 Abûlfeda2 tells the same story, with
some variation of circumstances.
2 Vide Abulfed. ibid. p. 43, and the Prelim. Disc. Sect. II.
1 Al Beidâwi. 2 Vit. Moh. p. 73.
GOD formerly accepted the covenant of the children of Israel, and we
appointed out of them twelve leaders: and GOD said, Verily I am with you:a if
ye observe prayer, and give alms, and believe in my apostles, and assist them,
and lend unto GOD on good usury,b I will surely expiate your evil deeds from
you, and I will lead you into gardens, wherein rivers flow: but he among you
who disbelieveth after this, erreth from the straight path.
Wherefore because they have broken their covenant, we have cursed them,
and hardened their hearts; they dislocate the words of the Pentateuch from
their places, and have forgotten part of what they were admonished; and thou
wilt not cease to discover deceitful practices among them, except a few of
them. But forgive them,c and pardon them, for GOD loveth the beneficent.
And from those who say, We are Christians, we have received their
covenant; but they have forgotten part of what they were admonished; wherefore
we have raised up enmity and hatred among them, till the day of resurrection;
and GOD will then surely declare unto them what they have been doing.
O ye who have received the scriptures, now is our apostle come unto you,
to make manifest unto you many things which ye concealed in the scriptures;d
and to pass overe many things. Now is light and a perspicuous book of
revelations come unto you from God. Thereby will GOD direct him who shall
follow his good pleasure, into the paths of peace; and shall lead them out of
darkness into light, by his will, and shall direct them in the right way.
They are infidels, who say, Verily GOD is Christ the son of Mary. Say
unto them, And who could obtain anything from GOD to the contrary, if he
pleased to destroy Christ the son of Mary, and his mother, and all those who
are on the earth?
20 For unto GOD belongeth the kingdom of heaven and earth, and whatsoever
is contained between them; he createth what he pleaseth, and GOD is almighty.
a After the Israelites had escaped from Pharaoh, GOD ordered them to go
against Jericho, which was then inhabited by giants, of the race of the
Canaanites, promising to give it into their hands; and Moses, by the divine
direction, appointed a prince or captain over each tribe, to lead them in that
expedition,3 and when they came to the borders of the land of Canaan, sent the
captains as spies to get information of the state of the country, enjoining
them secresy; but they being terrified at the prodigious size and strength of
the inhabitants, disheartened the people by publicly telling them what they
had seen, except only Caleb the son of Yufanna (Jephunneh) and Joshua the son
of Nun.4
b By contributing towards this holy war.
c That is, if they repent and believe, or submit to pay tribute. Some,
however, think these words are abrogated by the verse of the sword.5
d Such as the verse of stoning adulterers,6 the description of
Mohammed, and Christ's prophecy of him by the name of Ahmed.7
e i.e., Those which it was not necessary to restore.
3 See Numb. i. 4. 5. 4 Al Beidâwi. Numb. xiii. and xiv
5 Al Beidâwi. 6 See c. 3, p. 34.
7 Al Beidâwi.
The Jews and the Christians say, We are the children of GOD and his
beloved. Answer, Why therefore doth he punish you for your sins? Nay, but ye
are men, of those whom he hath created. He forgiveth whom he pleaseth, and
punisheth whom he pleaseth; and unto GOD belongeth the kingdom of heaven and
earth, and of what is contained between them both; and unto him shall all
things return.
O ye who have received the scriptures, now is our apostle come unto you,
declaring unto you the true religion, during the cessation of apostles,f lest
ye should say, There came unto us no bearer of good tidings, nor any warner:
but now is a bearer of good tidings, and a warner come unto you; for GOD is
almighty.
Call to mind when Moses said unto his people, O my people, remember the
favor of GOD towards you, since he hath appointed prophets among you, and
constituted you kings,g and bestowed on you what he hath given to no other
nation in the world.h
O my people, enter the holy land, which GOD hath decreed you, and turn
not your backs, lest ye be subverted and perish.
They answered, O Moses, verily there are a gigantic people in the land;i
and we will by no means enter it, until they depart thence; but if they depart
thence, then will we enter therein.
And two menk of those who feared GOD, unto whom GOD had been gracious,
said, Enter ye upon them suddenly by the gate of the city; and when ye shall
have entered the same, ye shall surely be victorious: therefore trust in GOD,
if ye are true believers.
They replied, O Moses, we will never enter the land, while they remain
therein: go therefore thou, and thy LORD, and fight; for we will sit here.
Moses said, O LORD, surely I am not master of any except myself, and my
brother; therefore make a distinction between us and the ungodly people.
GOD answered, Verily the land shall be forbidden them forty years; during
which time they shall wander like men astonished on the earth;l therefore be
not thou solicitous for the ungodly people.
f The Arabic word al Fatra signifies the intermediate space of time
between two prophets, during which no new revelation or dispensation was
given; as the interval between Moses and Jesus, and between Jesus and
Mohammed, at the expiration of which last, Mohammed pretended to be sent.
g This was fulfilled either by GOD'S giving them a kingdom, and a long
series of princes; or by his having made them kings or masters of themselves,
by delivering them from the Egyptian bondage.
h Having divided the Red Sea for you, and guided you by a cloud, and
fed you with quails and manna, &c.1
i The largest of these giants, the commentators say, was Og, the son of
Anak; concerning whose enormous stature, his escaping the Flood, and the
manner of his being slain by Moses, the Mohammedans relate several absurd
fables.2
k Namely, Caleb and Joshua.
l The commentators pretend that the Israelites, while they thus
wandered in the desert, were kept within the compass of about eighteen (or as
some say twenty-seven) miles; and that though they travelled from morning to
night, yet they constantly found themselves the next day at the place from
whence they set out.1
1 Al Beidâwi. 2 Vide Marraacc. in Alcor. p. 231, &c.
D'Herbel. Bibl. Orient. p. 336. 1 Al Beidâwi, Jallalo'ddin.
30 Relate unto them also the history of the two sons of Adam,m with truth.
When they offeredn their offering, and it was accepted from one of them,o and
was not accepted from the other, Cain said to his brother, I will certainly
kill thee. Abel answered, GOD only accepteth the offering of the pious;
if thou stretchest forth thy hand against me, to slay me, I will not
stretch forth my hand against thee, to slay thee; for I fear GOD, the LORD of
all creatures.p
I choose that thou shouldest bear my iniquity and thine own iniquity; and
that thou become a companion of hell fire; for that is the reward of the
unjust.q
But his soul suffered him to slay his brother, and he slew him;r
wherefore he became of the number of those who perish.
And GOD sent a raven, which scratched the earth, to show him how he
should hide the shame of his brother,s and he said, Woe is me! am I unable to
be like this raven, that I may hide my brother's shame? and he became one of
those who repent.
Wherefore we commanded the children of Israel, that he who slayeth a
soul, without having slain a soul, or committed wickedness in the earth,t
shall be as if he had slain all mankind:u but he who saveth a soul alive,
shall be as if he had saved the lives of all mankind.
Our apostles formerly came unto them, with evident miracles; then were
many of them after this, transgressors on the earth.
But the recompense of those who fight against GOD and his apostle, and
study to act corruptly in the earth, shall be, that they shall be slain, or
crucified, or have their hands and their feet cut off on the opposite sides,
or be banished the land.x This shall be their disgrace in this world, and in
the next world they shall suffer a grievous punishment;
except those who shall repent, before ye prevail against them; for know
that GOD is inclined to forgive, and merciful.
m viz., Cain and Abel, whom the Mohammedans call Kâbil and Hâbil.
n The occasion of their making this offering is thus related, according
to the common tradition in the east.2 Each of them being born with a twin
sister, when they were grown up, Adam, by God's direction, ordered Cain to
marry Abel's twin sister, and that Abel should marry Cain's (for it being the
common opinion that marriages ought not to be had in the nearest degrees of
consanguinity, since they must necessarily marry their sisters, it seemed
reasonable to suppose they ought to take those of the remoter degree), but
this Cain refusing to agree to, because his own sister was the handsomest,
Adam ordered them to make their offerings to GOD, thereby referring the
dispute to his determination.3 The commentators say Cain's offering was a
sheaf of the very worst of his corn, but Abel's a fat lamb, of the best of his
flock.
o Namely, from Abel, whose sacrifice GOD declared his acceptance of in
a visible manner, by causing fire to descend from heaven and consume it,
without touching that of Cain.4
p To enhance Abel's patience, al Beidâwi tells us, that he was the
stronger of the two, and could easily have prevailed against his brother.
q The conversation between the two brothers is related somewhat to the
same purpose in the Jerusalem Targum and that of Jonathan ben Uzziel.
r Some say he knocked out his brains with a stone;5 and pretend that as
Cain was considering which way he should effect the murder, the devil appeared
to him in a human shape, and showed him how to do it, by crushing the head of
a bird between two stones.6
s i.e., His dead corpse. For Cain, having committed this fratricide,
became exceedingly troubled in his mind, and carried the dead body about on
his shoulders for a considerable time, not knowing where to conceal it, till
it stank horridly; and then God taught him to bury it by the example of a
raven, who having killed another raven in his presence, dug a pit with his
claws and beak, and buried him therein.7 For this circumstance of the raven
Mohammed was beholden to the Jews, who tell the same story, except only that
they make the raven to appear to Adam, and that he thereupon buried his son.8
t Such as idolatry, or robbing on the highway.1
u Having broken the commandment which forbids the shedding of blood.
x The lawyers are not agreed as to the applying of these punishments.
But the commentators suppose that they who commit murder only are to be put to
death in the ordinary way; those who murder and rob too, to be crucified;
those who rob without committing murder, to have their right hand and their
left foot cut off; and they who assault persons and put them in fear, to be
banished.2 It is also a doubt whether they who are to be crucified shall be
crucified alive, or be first put to death, or whether they shall hang on the
cross till they die.3
2 Vide Abulfarag, p. 6, 7; Eutych. Annal. p. 15, 16; and D'Herbelot,
Bibl. Orient. Art. Cabil. 3 Al Beidâwi.
4 Idem, Jallalo'ddin. 5 Vide Eutych. ubi supra. 6 Vide
D'Herbelot, ubi sup. 7 Jallalo'ddin, al Beidâwi.
8 Vide R. Eliezer, Pirke, c. 20. 1 Al Beidâwi. 2 Idem,
Jallalo'ddin. 3 Al Beidâwi.
O true believers, fear GOD, and earnestly desire a near conjunction with
him, and fight for his religion, that ye may be happy.
40 Moreover they who believe not, although they had whatever is in the
earth, and as much more withal, that they might therewith redeem themselves
from punishment on the day of resurrection; it shall not be accepted from
them, but they shall suffer a painful punishment.
They shall desire to go forth from the fire, but they shall not go forth
from it, and their punishment shall be permanent.
If a man or a woman steal, cut off their hands,y in retribution for that
which they have committed; this is an exemplary punishment appointed by GOD;
and GOD is mighty and wise.
But whoever shall repent after his iniquity, and amend, verily GOD will
be turned unto him,z for GOD is inclined to forgive, and merciful.
Dost thou not know that the kingdom of heaven and earth is GOD'S? He
punisheth whom he pleaseth, and he pardoneth whom he pleaseth; for GOD is
almighty.
O apostle, let not them grieve thee, who hasten to infidelity,a either of
those who say, We believe, with their mouths, but whose hearts believe not;b
or of the Jews, who hearken to a lie, and hearken to other people;c who come
unto thee: they pervert the words of the law from their true places,d and say,
If this be brought unto you, receive it; but if it be not brought unto you,
beware of receiving aught else;e and in behalf of him whom GOD shall resolve
to seduce, thou shalt not prevail with GOD at all. They whose hearts GOD
shall not please to cleanse shall suffer shame in this world, and a grievous
punishment in the next:
who hearken to a lie, and eat that which is forbidden.f But if they come
unto thee for judgment, either judge between them, or leave them;g and if thou
leave them, they shall not hurt thee at all. But if thou undertake to judge,
judge between them with equity; for GOD loveth those who observe justice.
y But this punishment, according to the Sonna, is not to be inflicted,
unless the value of the thing stolen amount to four dinârs, or about forty
shillings. For the first offence, the criminal is to lose his right hand,
which is to be cut off at the wrist; for the second offence, his left foot, at
the ankle; for the third, his left hand; for the fourth, his right foot; and
if he continue to offend, he shall be scourged at the discretion of the
judge.4
z That is, GOD will not punish him for it hereafter; but his repentance
does not supersede the execution of the law here, nor excuse him from making
restitution. Yet, according to al Shâfeï, he shall not be punished if the
party wronged forgive him before he be carried before a magistrate.5
a i.e., Who take the first opportunity to throw off the mask, and join
the unbelievers.
b viz., The hypocritical Mohammedans.
c These words are capable of two senses; and may either mean that they
attended to the lies and forgeries of their Rabbins, neglecting the
remonstrances of Mohammed; or else, that they came to hear Mohammed as spies
only, that they might report what he said to their companions, and represent
him as a liar.1
d See chapter 4, p. 59, note e.
e That is, if what Mohammed tells you agrees with scripture, as
corrupted and dislocated by us, then you may accept it as the word of GOD; but
if not, reject it. These words, it is said, relate to the sentence pronounced
by that prophet on an adulterer and an adulteress,2 both persons of some
figure among the Jews. For they, it seems, though they referred the matter to
Mohammed, yet directed the persons who carried the criminals before him, that
if he ordered them to be scourged, and to have their faces blackened (by way
of ignominy), they should acquiesce in his determination; but in case he
condemned them to be stoned, they should not. And Mohammed pronouncing the
latter sentence against them, they refused to execute it, till Ebn Sûriya (a
Jew), who was called upon to decide the matter, acknowledged the law to be so-
whereupon they were stoned at the door of the mosque.3
f Some understand this of unlawful meats; but others of taking or
devouring, as it is expressed, of usury and bribes.4
g i.e., Take thy choice, whether thou wilt determine their differences
or not. Hence al Shâfeï was of opinion that a judge was not obliged to decide
causes between Jews or Christians; though if one or both of them be
tributaries, or under the protection of the Mohammedans, they are obliged:
this verse not regarding them. Abu Hanîfa, however, thought that the
magistrates were obliged to judge all cases which were submitted to them.6
4 Jallalo'ddin, Al Beidâwi. 5 Idem. 1 Al Beidâwi.
2 See c. 3, p. 34, note r
3 Al Beidâwi. 4 Idem. 6 Idem.
And how will they submit to thy decision, since they have the law,
containing the judgment of GOD?h Then will they turn their backs, after this;i
but those are not true believers.k
We have surely sent down the law, containing direction, and light:
thereby did the prophets, who professed the true religion, judge those who
judaized; and the doctors and priests also judged by the book of GOD, which
had been committed to their custody; and they were witnesses thereof.l
Therefore fear not men, but fear me; neither sell my signs for a small price.
And whoso judgeth not according to what GOD hath revealed, they are infidels.
We have therein commanded them, that they should give life for life,m and
eye for eye, and nose for nose, and ear for ear, and tooth for tooth; and that
wounds should also be punished by retaliation:n but whoever should remit it as
alms, it should be accepted as an atonement for him. And whoso judgeth not
according to what GOD hath revealed, they are unjust.
50 We also caused Jesus the son of Mary to follow the footsteps of the
prophets, confirming the law which was sent down before him; and we gave him
the gospel, containing direction and light; confirming also the law which was
given before it, and a direction and admonition unto those who fear God:
that they who have received the gospel might judge according to what GOD
hath revealed therein: and whoso judgeth not according to what GOD hath
revealed, they are transgressors.
We have also sent down unto thee the book of the Koran with truth,
confirming that scripture which was revealed before it; and preserving the
same safe from corruption. Judge therefore between them according to that
which GOD hath revealed; and follow not their desires, by swerving from the
truth which hath come unto thee. Unto every of you have we given a law, and
an open path;
and if GOD had pleased, he had surely made you one people;o but he hath
thought fit to give you different laws, that he might try you in that which he
hath given you respectively. Therefore strive to excel each other in good
works: unto GOD shall ye all return, and then will he declare unto you that
concerning which ye have disagreed.
h In the following passage Mohammed endeavours to answer the objections
of the Jews and Christians, who insisted that they ought to be judged, the
former by the law of Moses, and the latter by the gospel. He allows that the
law was the proper rule of judging till the coming revelation of the Korân,
which is so far from being contradictory to either of the former, that it is
more full and explicit; declaring several points which had been stifled or
corrupted therein, and requiring a rigorous execution of the precepts in both,
which had been too remissly observed, or rather neglected, by the latter
professors of those religions.
i That is, notwithstanding their outward submission, they will not
abide by thy sentence, though conformable to the law, if it contradict their
own false and loose decisions.
k As gainsaying the doctrine of the books which they acknowledge for
scripture.
l That is, vigilant, to prevent any corruptions therein.
m The original word is soul.
n See Exod. xxi. 24, &c.
o i.e., He had given you the same laws, which should have continued in
force through all ages, without being abolished or changed by new
dispensations; or he could have forced you all to embrace the Mohammedan
religion.1
1 Idem.
Wherefore do thou, O prophet, judge between them according to that which
GOD hath revealed, and follow not their desires; but beware of them, lest they
cause thee to errp from part of those precepts which GOD hath sent down unto
thee; and if they turn back,q know that GOD is pleased to punish them for some
of their crimes; for a great number of men are transgressors.
Do they therefore desire the judgment of the time of ignorance?r but who
is better than GOD, to judge between people who reason aright?
O true believers, take not the Jews or Christians for your friends; they
are friends the one to the other; but whoso among you taketh them for his
friends, he is surely one of them: verily GOD directeth not unjust people.
Thou shalt see those in whose hearts there is an infirmity, to hasten
unto them, saying, We fear lest some adversity befall us;s but it is easy for
GOD to give victory, or a command from him,t that they may repent of that
which they concealed in their minds.
And they who believe will say, Are these the men who have sworn by GOD,
with a most firm oath, that they surely held with you?u their works are become
vain, and they are of those who perish.
O true believers, whoever of you apostatizeth from his religion, GOD will
certainly bring other people to supply his place,x whom he will love, and who
will love him; who shall be humble towards the believers; but severe to the
unbelievers: they shall fight for the religion of GOD, and shall not fear the
obloquy of the detractor. This is the bounty of GOD, he bestoweth it on whom
he pleaseth: GOD is extensive and wise.
p It is related that certain of the Jewish priests came to Mohammed
with a design to entrap him; and having first represented to him that if they
acknowledged him for a prophet, the rest of the Jews would certainly follow
their example, made this proposal-that if he would give judgment for them in a
controversy of moment which they pretended to have with their own people, and
which was agreed to be referred to his decision, they would believe him; but
this Mohammed absolutely refused to comply with.2
q Or refuse to be judged by the Korân.
r That is, to be judged according to the customs of paganism, which
indulge the passions and vicious appetites of mankind: for this, it seems, was
demanded by the Jewish tribes of Koreidha and al Nadîr.3
s These were the words of Ebn Obba, who, when Obâdah Ebn al Sâmat
publicly renounced the friendship of the infidels, and professed that he took
GOD and his apostle for his patrons, said that he was a man apprehensive of
the fickleness of fortune, and therefore would not throw off his old friends,
who might be of service to him hereafter.1
t To extirpate and banish the Jews; or to detect and punish the
hypocrites.
u These words may be spoken by the Mohammedans either to one another or
to the Jews, since these hypocrites had given their oaths to both.2
x This is one of those accidents which, it is pretended, were foretold
by the Korân long before they came to pass. For in the latter days of
Mohammed, and after his death, considerable numbers of the Arabs quitted his
religion, and returned to Paganism, Judaism, or Christianity. Al Beidâwi
reckons them up in the following order. 1. Three companies of Banu Modlaj,
seduced by Dhu'lhamâr al Aswad al Ansi, who set up for a prophet in Yaman, and
grew very powerful there.3 2. Banu Honeifa, who followed the famous false
prophet Moseilama.4 3. Banu Asad, who acknowledged Toleiha Ebn Khowailed,
another Banu Asad, who acknowledged Toleiha Ebn Khowailed, another pretender
to divine revelation,5 for their prophet. All these fell off in Mohammed's
lifetime. The following, except only the last, apostatized in the reign of
Abu Becr. 4. Certain of the tribe of Fezârah, headed by Oyeyma Ebn Hosein.
5. Some of the tribe of Ghatfân, whose leader was Korrah Ebn Salma. 6. Banu
Soleim, who followed al Fajâah Ebn Ad Yalîl. 7. Banu Yarbu, whose captain
was Malec Ebn Noweirah Ebn Kais. 8. Part of the tribe of Tamîm, the
proselytes of Sajâj the daughter of al Mondhar, who gave herself out for a
prophetess.6 9. The tribe of Kendah, led by al Asháth Ebn Kais. 10. Banu
Becr Ebn al Wayel, in the province of Bahrein, headed by al Hotam Ebn Zeid.
And, 11. Some of the tribe of Ghassân, who with their prince Jabalah Ebn al
Ayham, renounced Mohammedism in the time of Omar, and returned to their former
profession of Christianity.7
But as to the persons who fulfilled the other part of this prophecy, by
supplying the loss of so many renegades, the commentators are not agreed.
Some will have them to be the inhabitants of Yaman, and others the Persians;
the authority of Mohammed himself being vouched for both opinions. Others,
however, suppose them to be 2,000 of the tribe of al Nakhá (who dwelt in
Yaman), 5,000 of those of Kendah and Bajîlah, and 3,000 of unknown descent,8
who were present at the famous battle of Kadesia, fought in the Khalîfat of
Omar, and which put an end to the Persian empire.9
2 Al Beidâwi. 3 Idem. 1 Idem. 2 Idem.
3 See the Prelim. Disc. Sect. VIII.
4 See ibid. 5 See Ibid. 6 See ibid. 7 See
ibid. Sect I. 8 Vide D'Herbel. Bibl. Orient. p. 226.
9 Al Beidâwi.
60 Verily your protector is GOD, and his apostle, and those who believe,
who observe the stated times of prayer, and give alms, and who bow down to
worship.
And whoso taketh GOD, and his apostle, and the believers for his friends,
they are the party of GOD, and they shall be victorious.
O true believers, take not such of those to whom the scriptures were
delivered before you, or of the infidels, for your friends, who make a
laughing-stock, and a jest of your religion;y but fear GOD, if ye be true
believers;
nor those who when ye call to prayer, make a laughing-stock and a jest of
it;z this they do, because they are people who do not understand.
Say, O ye who have received the scriptures, do ye reject us for any other
reason than because we believe in GOD, and that revelation which hath been
sent down unto us, and that which was formerly sent down, and for that the
greater part of you are transgressors?
Say, Shall I denounce unto you a worse thing than this, as to the reward
which ye are to expect with GOD? He whom GOD hath cursed, and with whom he
hath been angry, having changed some of them into apes and swine,a and who
worship Taghût,b they are in the worse condition, and err more widely from the
straightness of the path.
When they came unto you, they said, We believe: yet they entered into
your company with infidelity, and went forth from you with the same; but GOD
well knew what they concealed.
Thou shalt see many of them hastening unto iniquity and malice, and to
eat things forbidden;c and woe unto them for what they have done.
Unless their doctors and priests forbid them uttering wickedness, and
eating things forbidden; woe unto them for what they shall have committed.
The Jews say, The hand of GOD is tied up.d Their hands shall be tied
up,e and they shall be cursed for that which they have said. Nay his hands
are both stretched forth; he bestoweth as he pleaseth: that which hath been
sent down unto thee from thy LORDf shall increase the transgression and
infidelity of many of them; and we have put enmity and hatred between them,
until the day of resurrection. So often as they shall kindle a fire for war
GOD shall extinguish it;g and they shall set their minds to act corruptly in
the earth, but GOD loveth not the corrupt doers.
y This passage was primarily intended to forbid the Moslems entering
into a friendship with two hypocrites named Refâa Ebn Zeid, and Soweid Ebn al
Hareth, who, though they had embraced Mohammedism, yet ridiculed it on all
occasions, and were notwithstanding greatly beloved among the prophet's
followers.
z These words were added on occasion of a certain Christian, who
hearing the Muadhdhin, or crier, in calling to prayers, repeat this part of
the usual form, I profess that Mohammed is the apostle of GOD, said aloud, May
GOD burn the liar: but a few nights after his own house was accidentally set
on fire by a servant, and himself and his family perished in the flames.1
a The former were the Jews of Ailah, who broke the sabbath;2 and the
latter those who believed not in the miracle of the table which was let down
from heaven to Jesus.3 Some, however, imagine that the Jews of Ailah only are
meant in this place, pretending that the young men among them were
metamorphosed into apes, and the old men into swine.4
b See chap. 2, p. 28.
c See before, p. 73.
d That is, he is become niggardly and close-fisted. These were the
words of Phineas Ebn Azûra (another indecent expression of whom, almost to the
same purpose, is mentioned elsewhere)5 when the Jews were much impoverished by
a dearth, which the commentators will have to be a judgment on them for their
rejecting of Mohammed; and the other Jews who heard him, instead of reproving
him, expressed their approbation of what he had said.6
e i.e., They shall be punished with want and avarice. The words may
also allude to the manner wherein the reprobates shall appear at the last day,
having their right hands tied up to their necks;7 which is the proper
signification of the Arabic word.
f viz., The Korân.
g Either by raising feuds and quarrels among themselves, or by granting
the victory to the Moslems. Al Beidâwi adds, that on the Jews neglecting the
true observance of their law, and corrupting their religion, GOD has
successively delivered them into the hands, first of Bakht Nasr or
Nebuchadnezzar, then of Titus the Roman, and afterwards of the Persians, and
has now at last subjected them to the Mohammedans.
1 Idem. 2 See c. 2, p. 8. 3 See towards the end
of this chapter 4 Al Beidâwi.
5 Cap. 3, p. 51. 6 Al Beidâwi. 7 See the Prelim. Disc. Sect.
IV.
70 Moreover if they who have received the scriptures believe, and fear God,
we will surely expiate their sins from them, and we will lead them into
gardens of pleasure; and if they observe the law, and the gospel, and the
other scriptures which have been sent down unto them from their LORD, they
shall surely eat of good things both from above them, and from under their
feet.h Among them there are people who act uprightly; but how evil is that
which many of them do work!
O apostle, publish the whole of that which hath been sent down unto thee
from thy LORD: for if thou do not, thou dost not in effect publish any part
thereof;i and GOD will defend thee against wicked men;k for GOD directeth not
the unbelieving people.
Say, O ye who have received the scriptures, ye are not grounded on
anything, until ye observe the law and the gospel and that which hath been
sent down unto you from your LORD. That which hath been sent down unto thee
from thy LORD will surely increase the transgression and infidelity of many of
them: but be not thou solicitous for the unbelieving people.
Verily they who believe, and those who Judaize, and the Sabians, and the
Christians, whoever of them believeth in GOD and the last day, and doth that
which is right, there shall come no fear on them, neither shall they be
grieved.l
We formerly accepted the covenant of the children of Israel, and sent
apostles unto them. So often as an apostle came unto them with that which
their souls desired not, they accused some of them of imposture, and some of
them they killed:
and they imagined that there should be no punishment for those crimes,
and they became blind, and deaf.m Then was GOD turned unto them;n afterwards
many of them again became blind and deaf; but GOD saw what they did.
h That is, they shall enjoy the blessings both of heaven and earth.
i That is, if thou do not complete the publication of all thy
revelations without exception, thou dost not answer the end for which they
were revealed; because the concealing of any part, renders the system of
religion which GOD has thought fit to publish to mankind by thy ministry lame
and imperfect.1
k Until this verse was revealed, Mohammed entertained a guard of armed
men for his security, but on his receiving this assurance of GOD'S protection,
he immediately dismissed them.2
l See chap. 2, p. 8.
m Shutting their eyes and ears against conviction and the remonstrance
of the law; as when they worshipped the calf.
n i.e., Upon their repentance.
1 Al Beidâwi, Jallalo'ddin. 2 Idem.
They are surely infidels, who say, Verily GOD is Christ the son of Mary;
since Christ said, O children of Israel, serve GOD, my LORD and your LORD;
whoever shall give a companion unto GOD, GOD shall exclude him from paradise,
and his habitation shall be hell fire; and the ungodly shall have none to help
them.
They are certainly infidels, who say, GOD is the third of three:o for
there is no GOD, besides one GOD; and if they refrain not from what they say,
a painful torment shall surely be inflicted on such of them as are
unbelievers.
Will they not therefore be turned unto GOD, and ask pardon of him? since
GOD is gracious and merciful.
Christ the son of Mary is no more than an apostle; other apostles have
preceded him; and his mother was a woman of veracity:p they both ate food.q
Behold, how we declare unto them the signs of God's unity; and then behold how
they turn aside from the truth.
80 Say unto them, Will ye worship, besides GOD, that which can cause you
neither harm nor profit? GOD is he who heareth and seeth.
Say, O ye who have received the scriptures, exceed not the just bounds in
your religion,r by speaking beside the truth; neither follow the desires of
people who have heretofore erred, and who have seduced many, and have gone
astray from the straight path.s
Those among the children of Israel who believe not were cursed by the
tongue of David, and of Jesus the son of Mary.t This befell them because they
were rebellious and transgressed: they forbade not one another the wickedness
which they committed; and woe unto them for what they committed.
Thou shalt see many of them take for their friends those who believe not.
Woe unto them for what their souls have sent before them,u for that GOD is
incensed against them, and they shall remain in torment forever.
But, if they had believed in GOD, and the prophet, and that which hath
been revealed unto him, they had not taken them for their friends; but many of
them are evil-doers.
Thou shalt surely find the most violent of all men in enmity against the
true believers to be the Jews, and the idolaters: and thou shalt surely find
those among them to be the most inclinable to entertain friendship for the
true believers, who say, We are Christians. This cometh to pass, because
there are priests and monks among them; and because they are not elated with
pride:x
And when they hear that which hath been sent down to the apostle read
unto them, thou shalt see their eyes overflow with tears, because of the truth
which they perceive therein,y saying, O LORD, we believe; write us down
therefore with those who bear witness to the truth,
o See chap. 4, p. 72.
p Never pretending to partake of the divine nature, or to be the mother
of GOD.3
q Being obliged to support their lives by the same means, and being
subject to the same necessities and infirmities as the rest of mankind, and
therefore no Gods.1
r See chap. 4, p. 72. But here the words are principally directed to
the Christians.
s That is, of their prelates and predecessors, who erred in ascribing
divinity to Christ, before the mission of Mohammed.2
t See before, p. 81, note a.
u See chap. 2, p. 11, note r.
x Having not that high conceit of themselves, as the Jews have; but
being humble and well disposed to receive the truth; qualities, says al
Beidâwi, which are to be commended even in infidels.
y The persons directly intended in this passage were, either Ashama,
king of Ethiopia, and several bishops and priests, who, being assembled for
that purpose, heard Jaafar Ebn Abi Taleb, who fled to that country in the
first flight,3 read the 29th and 30th, and afterwards the 18th and 19th
chapters of the Korân; on hearing of which the king and the rest of the
company burst into tears, and confessed what was delivered therein to be
conformable to truth; that prince himself, in particular, becoming a proselyte
to Mohammedism:4 or else, thirty, or as others say, seventy persons, sent
ambassadors to Mohammed by the same king of Ethiopia, to whom the prophet
himself read the 36th chapter, entitled Y.S. Whereupon they began to weep,
saying, How like is this to that which was revealed unto Jesus! and
immediately professed themselves Moslems.5
2 Jallalo'ddin. 1 Idem, al Beidâwi. 2 Idem.
3 See the Prelim. Disc. Sect. II.
4 Al Beidâwi, al Thalabi. Vide Abulfed. Vit. Moham. p. 25, &c. Marracc.
Prodr. ad Refut. Alcor. part i. p. 45. 5 Al Beidâwi, Jallalo'ddin.
Vide Marracc. ubi sup.
and what should hinder us from believing in GOD, and the truth which hath
come unto us, and from earnestly desiring that our LORD would introduce us
into paradise with the righteous people?
Therefore hath GOD rewarded them, for what they have said, with gardens
through which rivers flow; they shall continue therein forever; and this is
the reward of the righteous. But they who believe not, and accuse our signs
of falsehood, they shall be the companions of hell.
O true believers, forbid not the good things which GOD hath allowed you;z
but transgress not, for GOD loveth not the transgressors.
90 And eat of what GOD hath given you for food that which is lawful and
good: and fear GOD, in whom ye believe.
GOD will not punish you for an inconsiderate word in your oaths;a but he
will punish you for what ye solemnly swear with deliberation. And the
expiation of such an oath shall be the feeding of ten poor men with such
moderate food as ye feed your own families withal; or to clothe them;b or to
free the neck of a true believer from captivity: but he who shall not find
wherewith to perform one of these three things shall fast three days.c This
is the expiation of your oaths, when ye swear inadvertently. Therefore keep
your oaths. Thus GOD declareth unto you his signs, that ye may give thanks.
O true believers, surely wine, and lots,d and images,e and divining
arrows,f are an abomination of the work of Satan; therefore avoid them that ye
may prosper.
Satan seeketh to sow dissension and hatred among you, by means of wine
and lots, and to divert you from remembering GOD, and from prayer: will ye not
therefore abstain from them? Obey GOD, and obey the apostle, and take heed to
yourselves: but if ye turn back, know that the duty of our apostle is only to
preach publicly.g
In those who believe and do good works, it is no sin that they have
tasted wine or gaming before they were forbidden; if they fear God, and
believe, and do good works, and shall for the future fear God, and believe,
and shall persevere to fear him, and to do good;h for GOD loveth those who do
good.
z These words were revealed when certain of Mohammed's companions
agreed to oblige themselves to continual fasting and watching, and to abstain
from women, eating flesh, sleeping on beds, and other lawful enjoyments of
life, in imitation of some self-denying Christians; but this the prophet
disapproved, declaring that he would have no monks in his religion.1
a See chap. 2, p. 24.
b The commentators give us the different opinions of the doctors, as to
the quantity of food and clothes to be given in this case; which I think
scarce worth transcribing.
c That is, three days together, says Abu Hanîfa. But this is not
observed in practice, being neither explicitly commanded in the Korân, nor
ordered in the Sonna.2
d That is, all inebriating liquors, and games of chance. See the
Prelim. Disc. Sect. V. and chap. 2, p. 23.
e Al Beidâwi and some other commentators expound this of idols; but
others, with more probability, of the carved pieces or men, with which the
pagan Arabs played at chess, being little figures of men, elephants, horses,
and dromedaries; and this is supposed to be the only thing Mohammed disliked
in that game: for which reason the Sonnites play with plain pieces of wood or
ivory; but the Persians and Indians, who are not so scrupulous, still make use
of the carved ones.3
f See the Prelim. Discourse, Sect. V.
g See ibid. Sect. II.
h The commentators endeavour to excuse the tautology of this passage,
by supposing the threefold repetition of fearing and believing refers either
to the three parts of time, past, present, and future, or to the threefold
duty of man, towards GOD, himself, and his neighbour, &c.4
1 Jallalo'ddin, al Beidâwi. 2 Al Beidâwi. 3 Vide
Prelim Disc. Sect. V. 4 Al Beidâwi.
O true believers, GOD will surely prove you in offering you plenty of
game, which ye may take with your hands or your lances,i that GOD may know who
feareth him in secret; but whoever transgresseth after this shall suffer a
grievous punishment.
O true believers, kill no game while ye are on pilgrimage;k whosoever
among you shall kill any designedly shall restore the like of what he shall
have killed, in domestic animals,l according to the determination of two just
persons among you, to be brought as an offering to the Caaba; or in atonement
thereof shall feed the poor; or instead thereof shall fast, that he may taste
the heinousness of his deed. GOD hath forgiven what is past, but whoever
returneth to transgress, GOD will take vengeance on him; for GOD is mighty and
able to avenge.
It is lawful for you to fish in the sea,m and to eat what ye shall catch,
as a provision for you and for those who travel; but it is unlawful for you to
hunt by land, while ye are performing the rights of pilgrimage;n therefore
fear GOD, before whom ye shall be assembled at the last day.
GOD hath appointed the Caaba, the holy house, an establishment for
mankind; and hath ordained the sacred month,q and the offering, and the
ornaments hung thereon.q This hath he done that ye might know that GOD
knoweth whatsoever is in heaven and on earth, and that GOD is omniscient.
Know that GOD is severe in punishing, and that GOD is also ready to forgive,
and merciful.
The duty of our apostle is to preach only;r and GOD knoweth that which ye
discover, and that which ye conceal.
100 Say, Evil and good shall not be equally esteemed of, though the
abundance of evil pleaseth thee;s therefore fear GOD, O ye of understanding,
that ye may be happy.
i This temptation or trial was at al Hodeibiya, where Mohammed's men,
who had attended him thither with an intent to perform a pilgrimage to the
Caaba, and had initiated themselves with the usual rites, were surrounded by
so great a number of birds and beasts that they impeded their march; for which
unusual accident, some of them concluded that GOD had allowed them to be
taken; but this passage was to convince them of the contrary.1
k Literally, while ye are Mohrims, or have actually initiated
yourselves as pilgrims, by putting on the garment worn at that solemnity.
Hunting and fowling are hereby absolutely forbidden to persons in this state,
though they are allowed to kill certain kinds of noxious animals.2
l That is, he shall bring an offering to the temple of Mecca, to be
slain there and distributed among the poor, of some domestic or tame animal,
equal in value to what he shall have killed; as a sheep, for example, in lieu
of an antelope, a pigeon for a partridge, &c. And of this value two prudent
persons were to be judges. If the offender was not able to do this, he was to
give a certain quantity of food to one or more poor men; or, if he could not
afford that, to fast a proportionable number of days.3
m This, says Jallalo'ddin, is to be understood of fish that live
altogether in the sea, and not of those that live in the sea and on land both,
as crabs, &c. The Turks, who are Hanifites, never eat this sort of fish; but
the sect of Malec Ebn Ans, and perhaps some others, make no scruple of it.
n See above, note k.
o That is, the place where the practice of their religious ceremonies
is chiefly established; where those who are under any apprehension of danger
may find a sure asylum, and the merchant certain gain, &c.4
p Al Beidâwi understands this of the month of Dhu'lhajja, wherein the
ceremonies of the pilgrimage are performed; but Jallalo'ddin supposes all the
four sacred months are here intended.5
q See before, p. 73.
r See the Prelim. Discourse, Sect. II.
s For judgment is to be made of things not from their plenty or
scarcity, but from their intrinsic good or bad qualities.6
1 Idem, Jallalo'ddin. 2 See the Prelim. Disc. Sect. V.
3 Jallalo'ddin, al Beidâwi 4 Idem.
5 See the Prelim Disc. Sect. VII 6 Al Beidâwi.
O true believers, inquire not concerning things, which, if they be
declared unto you, may give you pain;t but if ye ask concerning them when the
Koran is sent down, they will be declared unto you: GOD pardoneth you as to
these matters; for GOD is ready to forgive, and gracious. People who have
been before you formerly inquired concerning them; and afterwards disbelieved
therein.
God hath not ordained anything concerning Bahîra, nor Sâïba, nor Wasîla,
nor Hâmi,u but the unbelievers have invented a lie against GOD: and the
greater part of them do not understand.
And when it was said unto them, Come unto that which GOD hath revealed,
and to the apostle; they answered, That religion which we found our fathers to
follow is sufficient for us. What, though their fathers knew nothing and were
not rightly directed?
O true believers, take care of your souls! He who erreth shall not hurt
you, while ye are rightly directed:x unto GOD shall ye all return, and he will
tell you that which ye have done.
O true believers, let witnesses be taken between you, when death
approaches any of you, at the time of making the testament; let there be two
witnesses, just men, from among you;y or two others of a different tribe or
faith from yourselves,z if ye be journeying in the earth, and the accident of
death befall you. Ye shall shut them both up, after the afternoon prayer,a
and they shall swear by GOD, if ye doubt them, and they shall say, We will not
sell our evidence for a bribe, although the person concerned be one who is
related to us, neither will we conceal the testimony of GOD, for then should
we certainly be of the number of the wicked.
But if it appear that both have been guilty of iniquity, two others shall
stand up in their place, of those who have convicted them of falsehood, the
two nearest in blood, and they shall swear by GOD, saying, Verily our
testimony is more true than the testimony of these two, neither have we
prevaricated; for then should we become of the number of the unjust.
t The Arabs continually teasing their prophet with questions, which
probably he was not always prepared to answer, they are here ordered to wait,
till GOD should think fit to declare his pleasure by some farther revelation;
and, to abate their curiosity, they are told, at the same time, that very
likely the answers would not be agreeable to their inclinations. Al Beidâwi
says, that when the pilgrimage was first commanded, Sorâka Ebn Malec asked
Mohammed whether they were obliged to perform it every year? To this question
the prophet at first turned a deaf ear, but being asked it a second and a
third time, he at last said, No; but if I had said yes it would have become a
duty, and, if it were a duty, ye would not be able to perform it; therefore
give me no trouble as to things wherein I give you none: whereupon this
passage was revealed.
u These were the names given by the pagan Arabs to certain camels or
sheep which were turned loose to feed, and exempted from common services, in
some particular cases; having their ears slit, or some other mark, that they
might be known; and this they did in honour of their gods.1 Which
superstitions are here declared to be no ordinances of God, but the inventions
of foolish men.
x This was revealed when the infidels reproached those who embraced
Mohammedism and renounced their old idolatry, that by so doing they arraigned
the wisdom of their forefathers.2
y That is, of your kindred or religion.
z They who interpret these words of persons of another religion, say
they are abrogated, and that the testimony of such ought not to be received
against a Moslem.3
a In case there was any doubt, the witnesses were to be kept apart from
company, lest they should be corrupted, till they gave their evidence, which
they generally did when the afternoon prayer was over, because that was the
time of people's assembling in public, or, say some, because the guardian
angels then relieve each other, so that there would be four angels to witness
against them if they gave false evidence. But others suppose they might be
examined after the hour of any other prayer, when there was a sufficient
assembly.4
1 See the Prelim. Disc. Sect. V 2 Al Beidâwi. 3
Idem. 4 Idem.
This will be easier, that men may give testimony according to the plain
intention thereof, or fear lest a different oath be given, after their oath.
Therefore fear GOD, and hearken; for GOD directeth not the unjust people.b
On a certain dayc shall GOD assemble the apostles, and shall say unto
them, What answer was returned you, when ye preached unto the people to whom
ye were sent? They shall answer, We have no knowledge, but thou art the
knower of secrets.d
When GOD shall say, O Jesus son of Mary, remember my favor towards thee,
and towards thy mother; when I strengthened thee with the holy spirit,e that
thou shouldest speak unto men in the cradle, and when thou wast grown up;f
110 and when I taught thee the scripture, and wisdom and the law, and the
gospel: and when thou didst create of clay as it were the figure of a bird, by
my permission, and didst breathe thereon, and it became a bird, by my
permission, and thou didst heal one blind from his birth, and the leper, by my
permission;g and when thou didst bring forth the dead from their graves by my
permission; and when I withheld the children of Israel from killing thee,h
when thou hadst come unto them with evident miracles, and such of them as
believed not said, This is nothing but manifest sorcery.
And when I commanded the apostles of Jesus saying, Believe in me, and in
my messenger; they answered, We do believe; and do thou bear witness that we
are resigned unto thee.
Remember when the apostles said, O Jesus son of Mary, is thy LORD able to
cause a table to descend unto us from heaven?i He answered, Fear GOD, if ye
be true believers.
b The occasion of the preceding passage is said to have been this.
Tamîn al Dâri and Addi Ebn Yâzid, both Christians, took a journey into Syria
to trade, in company with Bodeil, the freed man of Amru Ebn al As, who was a
Moslem. When they came to Damascus, Bodeil fell sick, and died, having first
wrote down a list of his effects on a piece of paper, which he hid in his
baggage, without acquainting his companions with it, and desired them only to
deliver what he had to his friends of the tribe of Sahm. The survivors,
however, searching among his goods, found a vessel of silver of considerable
weight, and inlaid with gold, which they concealed, and on their return
delivered the rest to the deceased's relations, who, finding the list of
Bodeil's writing, demanded the vessel of silver of them, but they denied it;
and the affair being brought before Mohammed, these words, viz., O true
believers, take witnesses, &c., were revealed, and he ordered them to be sworn
at the pulpit in the mosque, just as afternoon prayer was over, and on their
making oath that they knew nothing of the plate demanded, dismissed them. But
afterwards, the vessel being found in their hands, the Sahmites, suspecting it
was Bodeil's, charged them with it, and they confessed it was his, but
insisted that they had bought it of him, and that they had not produced it
because they had no proof of the bargain. Upon this they went again before
Mohammed, to whom these words, And if it appear, &c., were revealed; and
thereupon Amru Ebn al As and al Motalleb Ebn Abi Refâa, both of the tribe of
Sahm, stood up, and were sworn against them; and judgment was given
accordingly.1
c That is, on the day of judgment.
d That is, we are ignorant whether our proselytes were sincere, or
whether they apostatized after our deaths; but thou well knowest, not only
what answer they gave us, but the secrets of their hearts, and whether they
have since continued firm in their religion or not.
e See chapter 2, p. 10.
f See chapter 3, p. 37.
g See ibid.
h See ibid. p. 38.
1 Al Beidâwi.
They said, We desire to eat thereof, and that our hearts may rest at
ease, and that we may know that thou hast told us the truth, and that we may
be witnesses thereof.
Jesus the son of Mary said, O GOD our LORD, cause a table to descend unto
us from heaven, that the day of its descent may become a festival dayk unto
us, unto the first of us, and unto the last of us, and a sign from thee; and
do thou provide food for us, for thou art the best provider.
GOD said, Verily I will cause it to descend unto you; but whoever among
you shall disbelieve hereafter, I will surely punish him with a punishment,
wherewith I will not punish any other creature.
And when GOD shall say unto Jesus, at the last day, O Jesus son of Mary,
hast thou said unto men, Take me and my mother for two gods, beside GOD? He
shall answer, Praise be unto thee! it is not for me to say that which I ought
not; if I had said so, thou wouldest surely have known it: thou knowest what
is in me, but I know not what is in thee; for thou art the knower of secrets.
I have not spoken to them any other than what thou didst command me;
namely, Worship GOD, my LORD and your LORD: and I was a witness of their
actions while I staid among them; but since thou hast taken me to thyself,l
thou hast been the watcher over them; for thou art witness of all things.
If thou punish them, they are surely thy servants; and if thou forgive
them, thou art mighty and wise.
GOD will say, This day shall their veracity be of advantage unto those
who speak truth; they shall have gardens wherein rivers flow, they shall
remain therein forever: GOD hath been well pleased in them, and they have been
well pleased in him. This shall be great felicity.
120 Unto GOD belongeth the kingdom of heaven and of earth, and of whatever
therein is; and he is almighty.
i This miracle is thus related by the commentators. Jesus having, at
the request of his followers, asked it of God, a red table immediately
descended, in their sight, between two clouds, and was set before them;
whereupon he rose up, and having made the ablution, prayed, and then took off
the cloth which covered the table, saying, In the name of GOD, the best
provider of food. What the provisions were with which this table was
furnished is a matter wherein the expositors are not agreed. One will have
them to be nine cakes of bread and nine fishes; another bread and flesh;
another, all sorts of food, except flesh; another all sorts of food, except
bread and flesh; another, all except bread and fish; another, one fish, which
had the taste of all manner of food; and another, fruits of paradise; but the
most received tradition is that when the table was uncovered, there appeared a
fish ready dressed, without scales or prickly fins, dropping with fat, having
salt placed at its head and vinegar at its tail, and round it all sorts of
herbs, except leeks, and five loaves of bread, on one of which there were
olives, on the second honey, on the third butter, on the fourth cheese, and on
the fifth dried flesh. They add that Jesus, at the request of the apostles,
showed them another miracle, by restoring the fish to life, and causing its
scales and fins to return to it, at which the standers-by being affrighted, he
caused it to become as it was before; that 1,300 men and women, all afflicted
with bodily infirmities or poverty, ate of these provisions, and were
satisfied, the fish remaining whole as it was at first; that then the table
flew up to heaven in the sight of all; and every one who had partaken of this
food were delivered from their infirmities and misfortunes; and that it
continued to descend for forty days together at dinner-time, and stood on the
ground till the sun declined, and was then taken up into the clouds. Some of
the Mohammedan writers are of opinion that this table did not really descend,
but that it was only a parable; but most think the words of the Korân are
plain to the contrary. A further tradition is, that several men were changed
into swine for disbelieving this miracle, and attributing it to magic art; or,
as others pretend, for stealing some of the victuals from off it.1 Several
other fabulous circumstances are also told, which are scarce worth
transcribing.2
k Some say the table descended on a Sunday, which was the reason of the
Christians observing that day as sacred. Others pretend this day is still
kept among them as a very great festival; and it seems as if the story had its
rise from an imperfect notion of Christ's last supper and the institution of
the Eucharist.
i Or, since thou hast caused me to die: but as it is a dispute among the
Mohammedans whether Christ actually died or not, before his assumption,3 and
the original may be translated either way, I have chosen the former
expression, which leaves the matter undecided.
Idem, al Thalabi. 2 Vide Marracc. in Alc. p. 238, &c.
3 See cap. 3, p. 38.
CHAPTER VI.
ENTITLED, CATTLE;m REVEALED AT MECCA.n
IN THE NAME OF THE MOST MERCIFUL GOD.
PRAISE be unto GOD, who hath created the heavens and the earth, and hath
ordained the darkness and the light; nevertheless they who believe not in the
LORD equalize other gods with him.
It is he who hath created you of clay; and then decreed the term of your
lives; and the prefixed term is with him:o yet do ye doubt thereof.
He is GOD in heaven and in earth; he knoweth what ye keep secret, and
what ye publish, and knoweth what ye deserve.
There came not unto them any sign, of the signs of their LORD, but they
retired from the same;
and they have gainsaid the truth, after that it hath come unto them: but
a message shall come unto them, concerning that which they have mocked at.p
Do they not consider how many generations we have destroyed before them?
We had established them in the earth in a manner wherein we have not
established you;q we sent the heaven to rain abundantly upon them, and we gave
them rivers which flowed under their feet: yet we destroyed them in their
sins, and raised up other generations after them.
Although we had caused to descend unto thee a book written on paper, and
they had handled it with their hands, the unbelievers had surely said, This is
no other than manifest sorcery.
They said, Unless an angel be sent down unto him, we will not believe.
But if we had sent down an angel, verily the matter had ben decreed,r and they
should not have been borne with, by having time granted them to repent.
And if we had appointed an angel for our messenger, we should have sent
him in the form of a man,s and have clothed him before them, as they are
clothed.
10 Other apostles have been laughed to scorn before thee, but the judgment
which they made a jest of encompassed those who laughed them to scorn.
Say, Go through the earth, and behold what hath been the end of those,
who accused our prophets of imposture.
Say, Unto whom belongeth whatsoever is in heaven and earth? Say, Unto
GOD, He hath prescribed unto himself mercy. He will surely gather you
together on the day of resurrection; there is no doubt of it. They who
destroy their own souls are those who will not believe.
m This chapter is so entitled, because some superstitious customs of
the Meccans, as to certain cattle, are therein incidentally mentioned.
n Except only six verses, or, say others, three verses, which are taken
notice of in the notes.
o By the last term some understand the time of the resurrection.
Others think that by the first term is intended the space between creation and
death, and by the latter, that between death and the resurrection.
p That is, they shall be convinced of the truth which they have made a
jest of, when they see the punishment which they shall suffer for so doing,
both in this world and the next; or when they shall see the glorious success
of Mohammedism.
q i.e., We had blessed them with greater power and length of prosperity
than we have granted you, O men of Mecca.1 Mohammed seems here to mean the
ancient and potent tribes of Ad and Thamûd, &c.2
r That is to say, As they would not have believed, even if an angel had
descended to them from heaven, GOD has shown his mercy in not complying with
their demands; for if he had, they would have suffered immediate condemnation,
and would have been allowed no time for repentance.
s As Gabriel generally appeared to Mahommed; who, though a prophet, was
not able to bear the sight of him when he appeared in his proper form, much
less would others be able to support it.
1 Al Beidâwi. 2 See the Prelim. Disc. Sect. I. p. 5,
&c.
Unto him is owing whatsoever happeneth by night or by day; it is he who
heareth and knoweth.
Say, Shall I take any other protector than GOD, the creator of heaven and
earth, who feedeth all and is not fed by any? Say, Verily I am commanded to
be the first who professeth Islâm,t and it was said unto me, Thou shalt by no
means be one of the idolaters.
Say, Verily I fear, if I should rebel against my LORD, the punishment of
the great day:
from whomsoever it shall be averted on that day, God will have been
merciful unto him; this will be manifest salvation.
If GOD afflict thee with any hurt, there is none who can take it off from
thee, except himself; but if he cause good to befall thee, he is almighty;
he is the supreme Lord over his servants, and he is wise and knowing.
Say, What thing is the strongest in bearing testimony?u Say, GOD; he is
witness between me and you. And this Koran was revealed unto me, that I should
admonish you thereby, and also those unto whom it shall reach. Do ye really
profess that there are other gods together with GOD? Say, I do not profess
this. Say, Verily he is one GOD; and I am guiltless of what ye associate with
him.
20 They unto whom we have given the scripture know our apostle, even as
they know their own children;x but they who destroy their own souls will not
believe.
Who is more unjust than he who inventeth a lie against GOD,y or chargeth
his signs with imposture? Surely, the unjust shall not prosper.
And on the day of resurrection we will assemble them all; then will we
say unto those who associated others with God, Where are your companions,z
whom ye imagined to be those of God?
But they shall have no other excuse, than that they shall say, by GOD our
LORD, we have not been idolaters.
Behold, how they lie against themselves, and what they have blasphemously
imagined to be the companion of God flieth from them.a
There is of them who hearkeneth unto thee when thou readest the Korân;b
but we have cast veils over their hearts, that they should not understand it,
and a deafness in their ears: and though they should see all kinds of signs,
they will not believe therein; and their infidelity will arrive to that height
that they will even come unto thee, to dispute with thee. The unbelievers
will say, This is nothing but silly fables of ancient times.
t That is, the first of my nation.1
u This passage was revealed when the Koreish told Mohammed that they
had asked the Jews and Christians concerning him, who assured them they found
no mention or description of him in their books of scripture, Therefore, said
they, who bears witness to thee, that thou art the apostle of GOD?2
x See chapter 2, p. 16.
y Saying the angels are the daughters of GOD, and intercessors for us
with him, &c.3
z i.e., Your idols and false gods.
a That is, their imaginary deities prove to be nothing, and disappear
like vain phantoms and chimeras.
b The persons here meant were Abu Sofiân, al Walîd, al Nodar, Otha, Abu
Jahl, and their comrades, who went to hear Mohammed repeat some of the Korân;
and Nodar being asked what he said, answered, with an oath, that he knew not,
only that he moved his tongue, and told a parcel of foolish stories, as he had
done to them.4
1 Al Beidâwi. 2 Idem, Jallalo'ddin. 3 Al Beidâwi.
4 Idem.
And they will forbid others from believing therein, and will retire afar
off from it; but they will destroy their own souls only, and they are not
sensible thereof.
If thou didst see when they shall be set over the fire of hell! and they
shall say, Would to GOD we might be sent back into the world; we would not
charge the signs of our LORD with imposture, and we would become true
believers:
nay, but that is become manifest unto them, which they formerly
concealed;c and though they should be sent back into the world, they would
surely return to that which was forbidden them; and they are surely liars.
And they said, There is no other life than our present life; neither
shall we be raised again.
30 But if thou couldest see, when they shall be set before their LORD!d He
shall say unto them, Is not this in truth come to pass? They shall answer,
Yea, by our LORD. God shall say, Taste therefore the punishment due unto you,
for that ye have disbelieved.
They are lost who reject as a falsehood the meeting of GOD in the next
life, until the houre cometh suddenly upon them. Then will they say, Alas!
for that we have behaved ourselves negligently in our lifetime; and they shall
carry their burdens on their backs;f will it not be evil which they shall be
loaden with?
This present life is no other than a play and a vain amusement; but
surely the future mansion shall be better for those who fear God: will they
not therefore understand?
Now we know that what they speak grieveth thee: yet they do not accuse
thee of falsehood; but the ungodly contradict the signs of GOD.g
And apostles before thee have been accounted liars: but they patiently
bore their being accounted liars, and their being vexed, until our help came
unto them; for there is none who can change the words of GOD: and thou hast
received some information concerning those who have been formerly sent from
him.h
If their aversion to thy admonitions be grievous unto thee, if thou canst
seek out a den whereby thou mayest venetrate into the inward parts of the
earth, or a ladder by which thou mayest ascend into heaven, that thou mayest
show them a sign, do so, but thy search will be fruitless; for if GOD pleased
he would bring them all to the true direction: be not therefore one of the
ignorant.
c Their hypocrisy and vile actions; nor does their promise proceed from
any sincere intention of amendment, but from the anguish and misery of their
condition.5
d viz., In order for judgment.
e The last day is here called the hour, as it is in scripture;6 and the
preceding expression of meeting GOD on that day is also agreeable to the
same.7
f When an infidel comes forth from his grave, says Jallalo'ddin, his
works shall be represented to him under the ugliest form that ever he beheld,
having a most deformed countenance, a filthy smell, and a disagreeable voice;
so that he shall cry out, GOD defend me from thee, what art thou? I never saw
anything more detestable! To which the figure will answer, Why dost thou
wonder at my ugliness? I am thy evil works;1 thou didst ride upon me while
thou wast in the world; but now will I ride upon thee, and thou shalt carry
me. and immediately it shall get upon him; and whatever he shall meet shall
terrify him, and say, Hail, thou enemy of God, thou art he who was meant by
(these words of the Korân), and they shall carry their burdens, &c.2
g That is, it is not thou but GOD whom they injure by their impious
gainsaying of what has been revealed to thee. It is said that Abu Jahl once
told Mohammed that they did not accuse him of falsehood, because he was known
to be a man of veracity, but only they did not believe the revelations which
he brought them; which occasioned this passage.3
h i.e., Thou has been acquainted with the stories of several of the
preceding prophets; what persecutions they suffered from those to whom they
were sent, and in what manner GOD supported them and punished their enemies,
according to his unalterable promise.4
5 Idem. 6 1 John v. 25, &c. 7 1 Thess. iv. 17.
1 See Milton's Paradise Lost, bk. ii v. 737, &c.
2 See also cap. 3, p. 48. 3 Al Beidâwi. 4 Idem.
He will give a favorable answer unto those only who shall hearken with
attention: and GOD will raise the dead; then unto him shall they return.
The infidels say, Unless some sign be sent down unto him from his LORD,
we will not believe: answer, Verily GOD is able to send down a sign: but the
greater part of them know it not.k
There is no kind of beast on earth, nor fowl which flieth with its wings,
but the same is a people like unto you;l we have not omitted anything in the
book of our decrees: then unto their LORD shall they return.n
They who accuse our signs of falsehood are deaf and dumb, walking in
darkness: GOD will lead into error whom he pleaseth, and whom he pleaseth he
will put in the right way.
40 Say, What think ye? if the punishment of GOD come upon you, or the hour
of the resurrection come upon you, will ye call upon any other than GOD, if ye
speak truth?
yea, him shall ye call upon, and he shall free you from that which ye
shall ask him to deliver you from, if he pleaseth; and ye shall forget that
which ye associated with him.o
We have already sent messengers unto sundry nations before thee, and we
afflicted them with trouble and adversity that they might humble themselves:
yet when the affliction which we sent came upon them, they did not humble
themselves; but their hearts became hardened, and Satan prepared for them that
which they committed.
And when they had forgotten that concerning which they had been
admonished, we opened unto them the gates of all things;p until, while they
were rejoicing for that which had been given them, we suddenly laid hold on
them, and behold, they were seized with despair;
and the utmost part of the people which had acted wickedly was cut off:
praise be unto GOD, the LORD of all creatures!
Say, what think ye? if GOD should take away your hearing and your sight,
and should seal up your hearts; what god besides GOD will restore them unto
you? See how variously we show forth the signs of God's unity;q yet do they
turn aside from them.
Say unto them, What think ye? if the punishment of GOD come upon you
suddenly, or in open view;r will any perish, except the ungodly people?
We send not our messengers otherwise than bearing good tidings and
denouncing threats. Whoso therefore shall believe and amend, on them shall no
fear come, neither shall they be grieved:
i In this passage Mohammed is reproved for his impatience in not
bearing with the obstinacy of his countrymen, and for his indiscreet desire of
effecting what GOD hath not decreed, namely, the conversion and salvation of
all men.5
k Being both ignorant of GOD'S almighty power, and of the consequence
of what they ask, which might prove their utter destruction.
l Being created and preserved by the same omnipotence and providence as
ye are.
m That is, in the preserved table, wherein GOD'S decrees are written,
and all things which come to pass in this world, as well the most minute as
the more momentous, are exactly registered.6
n For, according to the Mohammedan belief, the irrational animals will
also be restored to life at the resurrection, that they may be brought to
judgment, and have vengeance taken on them for the injuries they did one
another while in this world.7
o That is, ye shall then forsake your false gods, when ye shall be
effectually convinced that GOD alone is able to deliver you from eternal
punishment. But others rather think that this forgetting will be the effect
of the distress and terror which they will then be in.8
p That is, we gave them all manner of plenty; that since they took no
warning by their afflictions, their prosperity might become a snare to them,
and they might bring down upon themselves swifter destruction.
q Laying them before you in different views, and making use of
arguments and motives drawn from various considerations.
r That is, says al Beidâwi, either without any previous notice, or
after some warning given.
5 Idem. 6 See the Prelim. Disc. Sect. IV. 7 See ibid.
p. 67. 8 Al Beidâwi.
but whoso shall accuse our signs of falsehood, a punishment shall fall on
them, because they have done wickedly.
50 Say, I say not unto you, The treasures of GOD are in my power: neither
do I say, I know the secrets of God: neither do I say unto you, Verily I am an
angel: I follow only that which is revealed unto me. Say, Shall the blind and
the seeing be held equal? do ye not therefore consider?
Preach it unto those who fear that they shall be assembled before their
LORD: they shall have no patron nor intercessor, except him; that peradventure
they may take heed to themselves.
Drive not away those who call upon their LORD morning and evening,
desiring to see his face;s it belongeth not unto thee to pass any judgment on
them,t nor doth it belong unto them to pass any judgment on thee: therefore if
thou drive them away, thou wilt become one of the unjust.
Thus have we proved some part of them by other part, that they may say,
Are these the people among us unto whom GOD hath been gracious?u Doth not GOD
most truly know those who are thankful?
And when they who believe in our signs shall come unto thee, say, Peace
be upon you. Your LORD hath prescribed unto himself mercy; so whoever among
you worketh evil through ignorance, and afterwards repenteth and amendeth;
unto him will he surely be gracious and merciful.
Thus have we distinctly propounded our signs, that the path of the wicked
might be made known.
Say, Verily I am forbidden to worship the false deities which ye invoke,
besides GOD. Say, I will not follow your desires; for then should I err,
neither should I be one of those who are rightly directed.
Say, I behave according to the plain declaration, which I have received
from my LORD; but ye have forged lies concerning him. That which ye desire
should be hastened, is not in my power;x judgment belongeth only unto GOD; he
will determine the truth; and he is the best discerner.
Say, If what ye desire should be hastened were in my power, the matter
had been determined between me and you:y but GOD well knoweth the unjust.
s These words were occasioned when the Koreish desired Mohammed not to
admit the poor or more inferior people, such as Ammâr, Soheib, Khobbâb, and
Salmân, into his company, pretending that then they would come and discourse
with him; but he refusing to turn away any believers, they insisted at least
that he should order them to rise up and withdraw when they came, which he
agreed to do. Others say that the chief men of Mecca expelled all the poor
out of their city, bidding them go to Mohammed; which they did, and offered to
embrace his religion; but he made some difficulty to receive them, suspecting
their motive to be necessity, and not real conviction;1 whereupon this passage
was revealed.
t i.e., Rashly to decide whether their intentions be sincere or not;
since thou canst not know their heart, and their faith may possibly be more
firm than that of those who would persuade thee to discard them.
u That is to say, the noble by those of mean extraction, and the rich
by the poor; in that GOD chose to call the latter to the faith before the
former.2
x This passage is an answer to the audacious defiances of the infidels,
who bad Mohammed, if he were a true prophet, to call for a shower of stones
from heaven, or some other sudden and miraculous punishment, to destroy them.3
y For I should ere now have destroyed you, out of zeal for GOD'S
honour, had it been in my power.4
1 Idem, Jallalo'ddin. 2 Al Beidâwi. 3 Idem.
4 Idem.
With him are the keys of the secret things; none knoweth them besides
himself: he knoweth that which is on the dry land and in the sea; there
falleth no leaf, but he knoweth it; neither is there a single grain in the
dark parts of the earth, neither a green thing, nor a dry thing, but it is
written in the perspicuous book.z
60 It is he who causeth you to sleep by night, and knoweth what ye merit by
day; he also awaketh you therein, that the prefixed term of your lives may be
fulfilled; then unto him shall ye return, and he shall declare unto you that
which ye have wrought.
He is supreme over his servants, and sendeth the guardian angels to watch
over you,a until, when death overtaketh one of you, our messengersb cause him
to die: and they will not neglect our commands.
Afterwards shall they return unto GOD, their true LORD: doth not judgment
belong unto him? he is the most quick in taking an account.c
Say, Who delivereth you from the darknessd of the land, and of the sea,
when ye call upon him humbly and in private, saying, Verily if thou deliver
use from these dangers, we will surely be thankful?
Say, GOD delivereth you from them, and from every grief of mind; yet
afterwards ye give him companions.f
Say, He is able to send on you a punishment from above you,g or from
under your feet,h or to engage you in dissension, and to make some of you
taste the violence of others. Observe how variously we show forth our signs,
that peradventure they may understand.
This people hath accused the revelation which thou hast brought of
falsehood, although it be the truth. Say, I am not a guardian over you: every
prophecy hath its fixed time of accomplishment; and he will hereafter know it.
When thou seest those who are engaged in cavilling at, or ridiculing our
signs, depart from them, until they be engaged in some other discourse: and if
Satan cause thee to forget this precept, do not sit with the ungodly people
after recollection.
They who fear God are not at all accountable for them, but their duty is
to remember that they may take heed to themselves.i
Abandon those who make their religion a sport and a jest; and whom the
present life hath deceived: and admonish them by the Koran, that a soul
becometh liable to destruction for that which it committeth: it shall have no
patron nor intercessor besides GOD: and if it could pay the utmost price of
redemption, it would not be accepted from it. They who are delivered over to
perdition for that which they have committed shall have boiling water to
drink, and shall suffer a grievous punishment, because they have disbelieved.
z i.e., The preserved table, or register of GOD'S decrees.
a See the Prelim. Disc. Sect. IV.
b That is, the angel of death and his assistants.5
c See the Prelim. Disc. Sect. IV.
d That is, the dangers and distresses.
e The Cufic copies read it in the third person, if he deliver us, &c.
f Returning to your old idolatry.
g That is, by storms from heaven, as he destroyed the unbelieving
people of Noah, and of Lot, and the army of Abraha, the lord of the elephant.1
h Either by drowning you, as he did Pharaoh and his host, or causing
the earth to open and swallow you up, as happened to Korah, or (as the
Mohammedans name him) Karun.2
i And therefore need not be troubled at the indecent and impious talk
of the infidels, provided they take care not to be infected by them. When the
preceding passage was revealed, the Moslems told their prophet that if they
were obliged to rise up whenever the idolaters spoke irreverently of the
Korân, they could never sit quietly in the temple, nor perform their devotions
there; whereupon these words were added.3
5 See the Prelim. Disc. Sec. IV. 1 Al Beidâwi. 2
Idem. 3 Idem, Jallalo'ddin.
70 Say, Shall we call upon that, besides GOD, which can neither profit us,
nor hurt us? and shall we turn back on our heels, after that GOD hath directed
us; like him whom the devils have infatuated, wandering amazedly in the earth,
and yet having companions who call him into the true direction, saying, Come
unto us? Say, the direction of GOD is the true direction; we are commanded to
resign ourselves unto the LORD of all creatures;
and it is also commanded us, saying, Observe the stated times of prayer,
and fear him; for it is he before whom ye shall be assembled.
It is he who hath created the heavens and the earth in truth; and
whenever he saith unto a thing, Be, it is.
His word is the truth; and his will be the kingdom on the day whereon the
trumpet shall be sounded:k he knoweth whatever is secret, and whatever is
public; he is the wise, the knowing.
Call to mind when Abraham said unto his father Azer,l Dost thou take
images for gods?m Verily I perceive that thou and thy people are in a
manifest error.
And thus did we show unto Abraham the kingdom of heaven and earth, that
he might become one of those who firmly believe.n
And when the night overshadowed him, he saw a star, and he said, This is
my LORD;o but when it set, he said, I like not gods which set.
k See the Prelim. Disc. Sect. IV.
l This is the name which the Mohammedans give to Abraham's father,
named in scripture Terah. However, some of their writers pretend that Azer
was the son of Terah,1 and D'Herbelot says that the Arabs always distinguish
them in their genealogies as different persons; but that because Abraham was
the son of Terah according to Moses, it is therefore supposed (by European
writers) that Terah is the same with the Azer of the Arabs.2 How true this
observation may be in relation to some authors, I cannot say, but I am sure it
cannot be true of all; for several Arab and Turkish writers expressly make
Azer and Terah the same person.3 Azer, in ancient times, was the name of the
planet Mars, and the month of March was so called by the most ancient
Persians; for the word originally signifying fire (as it still does,) it was
therefore given by them and the Chaldeans to that planet,4 which partaking, as
was supposed, of a fiery nature, was acknowledged by the Chaldeans and
Assyrians as a god or planetary deity, whom in old times they worshipped under
the form of a pillar: whence Azer became a name among the nobility, who
esteemed it honourable to be denominated from their gods,5 and is found in the
composition of several Babylonish names. For these reasons a learned author
supposes Azer to have been the heathen name of Terah, and that the other was
given him on his conversion.6 Al Beidâwi confirms this conjecture, saying
that Azer was the name of the idol which he worshipped. It may be observed
that Abraham's father is also called Zarah in the Talmud and Athar by
Eusebius.
m That Azer, or Terah, was an idolater is allowed on all hands; nor can
it be denied, since he is expressly said in scripture to have served strange
gods.7 The eastern authors unanimously agree that he was a statuary, or
carver of idols; and he is represented as the first who made images of clay,
pictures only having been in use before,8 and taught that they were to be
adored as gods.9 However, we are told his employment was a very honourable
one,10 and that he was a great lord, and in high favour with Nimrod, whose
son-in-law he was,11 because he made his idols for him, and was excellent in
his art. Some of the Rabbins say Terah was a priest, and chief of the
order.12
n That is, we gave him a right apprehension of the government of the
world and of the heavenly bodies, that he might know them all to be ruled by
GOD, by putting him on making the following reflections.
1 Tarîkh Montakhab, apud D'Herbel. Bibl. Orient. p. 12. 2
D'Herbel. ibid. 3 Al Beidâwi, Jallalo'ddin, Yahya, Ebn Shohnah, Mirat
Kainat, &c. Vide etiam Pharhang Jehang-hiri, apud Hyde de Rel. Vet. Persar.
p. 68. 4 Hyde, ibid. p. 63. 5 Idem, ibid. p. 64.
6 Idem, ibid. p. 62. 7 Josh. xxiv. 2, 14. 8 Epiphan.
adv. Hær. l. r, p. 7, 8.
9 Suidas in Lexico, voce ?epúx. 10 Vide Hyde, ubi sup. p. 63.
11 D'Herbel. ubi sup. 12 Shalshel. hakkab. p. 94.
And when he saw the moon rising, he said, This is my LORD; but when he
saw it set, he said, Verily if my LORD direct me not, I shall become one of
the people who go astray.
And when he saw the sun rising, he said, This is my LORD, this is the
greatest; but when it set, he said, O my people, verily I am clear of that
which ye associate with God:
I direct my face unto him who hath created the heavens and the earth; I
am orthodox, and am not one of the idolaters.
80 And his people disputed with him: and he said, Will ye dispute with me
concerning GOD? since he hath now directed me, and I fear not that which ye
associate with him, unless that my LORD willeth a thing; for my LORD
comprehendeth all things by his knowledge:p will ye not therefore consider?
And how should I fear that which ye associate with God, since ye fear not
to have associated with GOD that concerning which he hath sent down unto you
no authority? which therefore of the two parties is the more safe, if ye
understand aright?
They who believe, and clothe not their faith with injustice,q they shall
enjoy security, and they are rightly directed.
And this is our argument wherewith we furnished Abraham that he might
make use of it against his people: we exalt unto degrees of wisdom and
knowledge whom we please; for thy LORD is wise and knowing.
And we gave unto them Isaac and Jacob; we directed them both: and Noah
had we before directed, and of his posterityr David and Solomon; and Job,s and
Joseph, and Moses, and Aaron: thus do we reward the righteous:
and Zacharias, and John, and Jesus, and Elias;t all of them were upright
men:
and Ismael, and Elisha,u and Jonas,u and Lot;y all these have we favored
above the rest of the world;
o Since Abraham's parents were idolaters, it seems to be a necessary
consequence that himself was one also in his younger years; the scripture not
obscurely intimates as much,1 and the Jews themselves acknowledge it.2 At
what age he came to the knowledge of the true God and left idolatry, opinions
are various. Some Jewish writers tell us he was then but three years old,3
and the Mohammedans likewise suppose him very young, and that he asked his
father and mother several shrewd questions when a child.4 Others, however,
allow him to have been a middle-aged man at that time.5 Maimonides, in
particular, and R. Abraham Zacuth think him to have been forty years old,
which age is also mentioned in the Korân. But the general opinion of the
Mohammedans is that he was about fifteen or sixteen.6 As the religion wherein
Abraham was educated was the Sabian, which consisted chiefly in the worship of
the heavenly bodies,7 he is introduced examining their nature and properties,
to see whether they had a right to the worship which was paid them or not; and
the first which he observed was the planet Venus, or, as others will have it,
Jupiter.8 This method of Abraham's attaining to the knowledge of the supreme
Creator of all things, is conformable to what Josephus writes, viz.: That he
drew his notions from the changes which he had observed in the earth and the
sea, and in the sun and the moon, and the rest of the celestial bodies;
concluding that they were subject to the command of a superior power, to whom
alone all honour and thanks are due.9 The story itself is certainly taken
from the Talmud.10 Some of the commentators, however, suppose this reasoning
of Abraham with himself was not the first means of his conversion, but that he
used it only by way of argument to convince the idolaters among whom he then
lived.
p That is, I am not afraid of your false gods, which cannot hurt me,
except GOD permitteth it, or is pleased to afflict me himself.
q By injustice, in this place, the commentators understand idolatry, or
open rebellion against GOD.
r Some refer the relative his to Abraham, the person chiefly spoken of
in this passage; some to Noah, the next antecedent, because Jonas and Lot were
not (say they) of Abraham's seed; and others suppose the persons named in this
and the next verse are to be understood as the descendants of Abraham, and
those in the following verse as those of Noah.11
s The Mohammedans say he was of the race of Esau. See chapters 21 and
38.
t See chapter 37.
u This prophet was the successor of Elias, and, as the commentators
will have it, the son of Okhtûb, though the scripture makes him the son of
Shaphat.
x See chapters 10, 21, and 37.
y See chapter 7, &c.
1 Vide Josh. xxiv. 2, 14, and Hyde, ubi sup. p. 59. 2
Joseph. Ant. l. I, c. 7. Maimon. More Nev. part iii. c. 29, et Yad Hazzak. de
Id. c. I, &c. 3 Tanchuma, Talmud, Nedarim, 32, I, et apud Maimon.
Yad Hazz. ubi sup. 4 Vide D'Herbel. Bibl. Orient. Art. Abraham.
5 Maimon. ubi sup. R. Abr. Zacuth in Sefer Juchasin, Shalshel. hakkab,
&c. 6 Vide Hyde, ubi sup. p. 60, 61, et Hotting. Smegma Orient. p.
290, &c. Genebr. in Chron. 7 See the Prelim. Disc. Sect. I. p. 11.
8 Al Beidâwi. 9 Joseph. Ant. l. I, c. 7. 10 R.
Bechai, in Midrash. Vide Bartolocc. Bibl. Rabb. part i. p. 640. 11 Al
Beidâwi.
and also divers of their fathers, and their issue, and their brethren;
and we chose them, and directed them into the right way.
This is the direction of GOD, he directeth thereby such of his servants
as he pleaseth; but if they had been guilty of idolatry, that which they
wrought would have become utterly fruitless unto them.
Those were the persons unto whom we gave the scripture, and wisdom, and
prophecy; but if thesez believe not therein, we will commit the care of them
to a people who shall not disbelieve the same.
90 Those were the persons whom GOD hath directed, therefore follow their
direction. Say unto the inhabitants of Mecca, I ask of you no recompense for
preaching the Koran; it is no other than an admonition unto all creatures.
They make not a due estimation of GOD,a when they say, GOD hath not sent
down unto man anything at all:b Say, Who sent down the book which Moses
brought, a light and a direction unto men; which ye transcribe on papers,
whereof ye publish some part, and great part whereof ye conceal? and ye have
been taught by Mohammed what ye knew not, neither your fathers. Say, GOD sent
it down: then leave them to amuse themselves with their vain discourse.
This book which we have sent down is blessed; confirming that which was
revealed before it; and is delivered unto thee that thou mayest preach it unto
the metropolis of Mecca and to those who are round about it. And they who
believe in the next life will believe therein, and they will diligently
observe their times of prayer.
Who is more wicked than he who forgeth a lie concerning GOD?c or saith
This was revealed unto me; when nothing hath been revealed unto him?d and who
saith, I will produce a revelation like unto that which GOD hath sent down?e
If thou didst see when the ungodly are in the pangs of death, and the angelsf
reach out their hands saying, Cast forth your souls; this day shall ye receive
an ignominious punishment for that which ye have falsely spoken concerning
GOD; and because ye have proudly rejected his signs.
z That is, the Koreish.1
a That is, they know him not truly, nor have just notions of his
goodness and mercy towards man. The persons here meant, according to some
commentators, are the Jews, and according to others, the idolaters.2
This verse and the two next, as Jallalo'ddin thinks, were revealed at
Medina.
b By these words the Jews (if they were the persons meant) chiefly
intended to deny the Korân to be of divine revelation, though they might in
strictness insist that GOD never revealed, or sent down, as the Korân
expresses it, any real composition or material writing from heaven in the
manner that Mohammed pretended his revelations were delivered,3 if we except
only the Decalogue, GOD having left to the inspired penmen not only the labour
of writing, but the liberty, in a great measure at least, of putting the
truths into their own words and manner of expression.
c Falsely pretending to have received revelations from him, as did
Moselama, al Aswad al Ansi, and others.
d As did Abda'llah Ebn Saad Ebn Abi Sarah, who for some time was the
prophet's amanuensis, and when these words were dictated to him as revealed,
viz., We created man of a purer kind of clay, &c.,4 cried out, by way of
admiration, Blessed be GOD the best Creator! and being ordered by Mohammed to
write these words down also, as part of the inspired passage, began to think
himself as great a prophet as his master.5 Whereupon he took upon himself to
corrupt and alter the Korân according to his own fancy, and at length
apostatizing, was one of the ten who were proscribed at the taking of Mecca,6
and narrowly escaped with life on his recantation, by the interposition of
Othmân Ebn Affán, whose foster-brother he was.7
e For some Arabs, it seems, had the vanity to imagine, and gave out,
that, if they pleased, they could write a book nothing inferior to the Korân.
f See before, p. 94, note b.
1 Idem. 2 Idem. 3 See the Prelim. Disc. Sect. III.
p. 50, &c. 4 Kor. c. 23.
5 Al Beidâwi. 6 See the Prelim. Disc. p. 43. 7 Vide
Abulfeda, Vit. Moh. p. 109.
16-2
And now are ye come unto us alone,g as we created you at first,h and ye
have left that which we had bestowed on you, behind your backs; neither do we
see with you your intercessors,i whom ye thought to have been partners with
God among you: now is the relation between you cut off, and what ye imagined
hath deceived you.k
GOD causeth the grain and the date-stone to put forth: he bringeth forth
the living from the dead, and he bringeth forth the dead from the living.l
This is GOD. Why therefore are ye turned away from him?
He causeth the morning to appear; and hath ordained the night for rest,
and the sun and the moon for the computing of time. This is the disposition
of the mighty, the wise God.
It is he who hath ordained the stars for you, that ye may be directed
thereby in the darkness of the land and of the sea. We have clearly shown
forth our signs, unto people who understand.
It is he who hath produced you from one soul; and hath provided for you a
sure receptacle and a repository.m We have clearly shown forth our signs,
unto people who are wise.
It is he who sendeth down water from heaven, and we have thereby produced
the springing buds of all things, and have thereout produced the green thing,
from which we produce the grain growing in rows, and palm-trees from whose
branches proceed clusters of dates hanging close together; and gardens of
grapes, and olives, and pomegranates, both like and unlike to one another.
Look on their fruits, when they bear fruit, and their growing to maturity.
Verily herein are signs, unto people who believe.
100 Yet they have set up the geniin as partners with GOD, although he
created them: and they have falsely attributed unto him sons and daughters,o
without knowledge. Praise be unto him; and far be that from him which they
attribute unto him!
He is the maker of heaven and earth: how should he have issue since he
hath no consort? he hath created all things, and he is omniscient.
This is GOD your LORD; there is no GOD but he, the creator of all things;
therefore serve him: for he taketh care of all things.
The sight comprehendeth him not, but he comprehendeth the sight; he is
the gracious,p the wise.
Now have evident demonstrations come unto you from your LORD; whoso seeth
them, the advantage thereof will redound to his own soul: and whoso is
wilfully blind, the consequence will be to himself. I am not a keeper over
you.
Thus do we variously explain our signs; that they may say, Thou hast
studied diligently;q and that we may declare them unto people of
understanding.
Follow that which hath been revealed unto thee from thy LORD; there is no
GOD but he: retire therefore from the idolaters.
g That is, without your wealth, your children, or your friends, which
ye so much depended on in your lifetime.
h i.e., Naked and helpless.
Or false gods.
k Concerning the intercession of your idols, or the disbelief of future
rewards and punishments.
l See chapter 3, p. 34.
m Namely, in the loins of your fathers, and the wombs of your mothers.1
n This word signifies properly the genus of rational, invisible beings,
whether angels, devils, or that intermediate species usually called genii.
Some of the commentators therefore, in this place, understand the angels, whom
the pagan Arabs worshipped; and others the devils, either because they became
their servants by adoring idols at their instigation, or else because,
according to the Magian system, they looked on the devil as a sort of creator,
making him the author and principle of all evil, and GOD the author of good
only.2
o See the Prelim. Discourse, p. 14 and 30.
p Or, as the word may be translated, the incomprehensible.3
q That is, Thou hast been instructed by the Jews and Christians in
these matters, and only retailest to us what thou hast learned of them. For
this the infidels objected to Mohammed, thinking it impossible for him to
discourse on subjects of so high a nature, and in so clear and pertinent a
manner, without being well versed in the doctrines and sacred writings of
those people.
1 Al Beidâwi. 2 Idem. 3 Idem.
If GOD had so pleased, they had not been guilty of idolatry. We have not
appointed thee a keeper over them; neither art thou a guardian over them.
Revile not the idols which they invoke besides GOD, lest they maliciously
revile GOD, without knowledge. Thus have we prepared for every nation their
works: hereafter unto GOD shall they return, and he shall declare unto them
that which they have done.
They have sworn by GOD, by the most solemn oath, that if a sign came unto
them, they would certainly believe therein: Say, Verily signs are in the power
of GOD alone; and he permitteth you not to understand, that when they come,
they will not believe.r
110 And we will turn aside their hearts and their sight from the truth, as
they believed not thereins the first time; and we will leave them to wander in
their error.
And though we had sent down angels unto them, and the dead had spoken
unto them, and we had gathered together before them all things in one view;t
they would not have believed, unless GOD had so pleased: but the greater part
of them know it not.
Thus have we appointed unto every prophet an enemy; the devils of men,
and of genii: who privately suggest the one to the other specious discourses
to deceive; but if thy LORD pleased, they would not have done it. Therefore
leave them, and that which they have falsely imagined;
and let the hearts of those be inclined thereto, who believe not in the
life to come; and let them please themselves therein, and let them gain that
which they are gaining.
Shall I seek after any other judge besides GOD to judge between us? It
is he who hath sent down unto you the book of the Koran distinguishing between
good and evil; and they to whom we gave the scripture know that it is sent
down from thy LORD, with truth. Be not therefore one of those who doubt
thereof.
The words of thy LORD are perfect, in truth and justice; there is none
who can change his words:u he both heareth and knoweth.
But if thou obey the greater part of them who are in the earth, they will
lead thee aside from the path of GOD: they follow an uncertain opinion only,x
and speak nothing but lies;
verily thy LORD well knoweth those who go astray from his path, and well
knoweth those who are rightly directed.
Eat of that whereon the name of GOD hath been commemorated,y if ye
believe in his signs:
and why do ye not eat of that whereon the name of GOD hath been
commemorated? since he hath plainly declared unto you what he hath forbidden
you; except that which ye be compelled to eat of by necessity; many lead
others into error, because of their appetites, being void of knowledge; but
thy LORD well knoweth who are the transgressors.
r In this passage Mohammed endeavours to excuse his inability of
working a miracle, as had been demanded of him; declaring that GOD did not
think fit to comply with their desires; and that if he had so thought fit, yet
it had been in vain, because if they were not convinced by the Korân, they
would not be convinced by the greatest miracle.4
s i.e., In the Korân.
t For the Meccans required that Mohammed should either show them an
angel descending from heaven in their sight, or raise their dead fathers, that
they might discourse with them, or prevail on GOD and his angels to appear to
them in a body.
u Some interpret this of the immutability of GOD'S decree, and the
certainty of his threats and promises; others, of his particular promise to
preserve the Korân from any such alterations or corruptions as they imagine to
have happened to the Pentateuch and the Gospel;1 and others, of the
unalterable duration of the Mohammedan law, which they hold is to last till
the end of the world, there being no other prophet, law, or dispensation to be
expected after it.
x Imagining that the true religion was that which their idolatrous
ancestors professed.
y See chap. 2, p. 18, and chap. 5, p. 73.
4 Confer Luke xvi. 31. 1 See the Prelim. Disc. p. 58, and
Kor. c. 15.
120 Leave both the outside of iniquity and inside thereof:z for they who
commit iniquity shall receive the reward of that which they shall have gained.
Eat not therefore of that whereon the name of GOD hath not been
commemorated; for this is certainly wickedness: but the devils will suggest
unto their friends, they they dispute with you concerning this precept; but if
ye obey them, ye are surely idolaters.
Shall he who hath been dead, and whom we have restored unto life, and
unto whom we have ordained a light, whereby he may walk among men, be as he
whose similitude is in darkness, from whence he shall not come forth?a Thus
was that which the infidels are doing prepared for them.
And thus have we placed in every city chief leaders of the wicked men
thereof,b that they may act deceitfully therein; but they shall act
deceitfully against their own souls only; and they know it not.
And when a signc cometh unto them, they say, We will by no means believe
until a revelation be brought unto us, like unto that which hath been
delivered unto the messengers of GOD.d GOD best knoweth whom he will appoint
for his messenger.e Vileness in the sight of GOD shall fall upon those who
deal wickedly, and a grievous punishment, for that they have dealt
deceitfully.
And whomsoever GOD shall please to direct, he will open his breast to
receive the faith of Islam: but whomsoever he shall please to lead into error,
he will render his breast straight and narrow, as though he were climbing up
to heaven.f Thus doth GOD inflict a terrible punishment on those who believe
not.
This is the right way of thy LORD. Now have we plainly declared our
signs unto those people who will consider.
They shall have a dwelling of peace with their LORD, and he shall be
their patron, because of that which they have wrought.
Think on the day whereon God shall gather them all together, and shall
say, O company of genii,g ye have been much concerned with mankind;h and their
friends from among mankind shall say, O LORD, the one of us hath received
advantage from the other,i and we are arrived at our limited termk which thou
hast appointed us. God will say, Hell fire shall be your habitation, therein
shall ye remain forever; unless as GOD shall please to mitigate your pains,l
for thy LORD is wise and knowing.
z That is, both open and secret sins.
a The persons primarily intended in this passage, were Hamza,
Mohammed's uncle, and Abu Jahl; others, instead of Hamza, name Omar, or Ammâr
b In the same manner as we have done in Mecca.
c i.e., Any verse or passage of the Korân.
d These were the words of the Koreish, who thought that there were
persons among themselves more worthy of the honour of being GOD'S messenger
than Mohammed.
e Literally, Where he will place his commission. GOD, says al Beidâwi,
bestows not the gift of prophecy on any one on account of his nobility or
riches, but for their spiritual qualifications; making choice of such of his
servants as he pleases, and who he knows will execute their commissions
faithfully.
f Or had undertaken the most impossible thing in the world. In like
manner shall the heart of such a man be incapable of receiving the truth.
g That is, of devils.1
h In tempting and seducing them to sin.
i The advantage which men received from the evil spirits, was their
raising and satisfying their lusts and appetites; and that which the latter
received in return, was the obedience paid them by the former, &c.2
k viz., The day of resurrection, which we believed not in the other
world.
l The commentators tell us that this alleviation of the pains of the
damned will be when they shall be taken out of the fire to drink the boiling
water,3 or to suffer the extreme cold, called al Zamharîr, which is to be one
part of their punishment; but others think the respite which God will grant to
some before they are thrown into hell, is here intended.4 According to the
exposition of Ebn Abbas, these words may be rendered, Unless him whom GOD
shall please to deliver thence.5
1 Al Beidâwi. 2 Idem, Jallalo'ddin. 3
Jallalo'ddin. 4 Al Beidâwi.
5 See the Prelim. Disc. Sect. IV. p. 72, &c.
Thus do we set some of the unjust over others of them, because of that
which they have deserved.
130 O company of genii and men, did not messengers from among yourselves
come unto you,m rehearsing my signs unto you, and forewarning you of the
meeting of this your day? They shall answer, We bear witness against
ourselves: the present life deceived them: and they shall bear witness against
themselves that they were unbelievers.
This hath been the method of God's dealing with his creatures, because
thy LORD would not destroy the cities in their iniquity, while their
inhabitants were careless.n
Every one shall have degrees of recompense of that which they shall do;
for thy LORD is not regardless of that which they do,
and thy LORD is self-sufficient and endued with mercy. If he pleaseth he
can destroy you, and cause such as he pleaseth to succeed you, in like manner
as he produced you from the posterity of other people.
Verily that which is threatened you, shall surely come to pass; neither
shall ye cause it to fail.
Say unto those of Mecca, O my people, act according to your power; verily
I will act according to my duty:o and hereafter shall ye know
whose will be the reward of paradise. The ungodly shall not prosper.
Those of Mecca set apart unto GOD a portion of that which he hath
produced of the fruits of the earth, and of cattle; and say, This belongeth
unto GOD (according to their imagination), and this unto our companions.p And
that which is destined for their companions cometh not unto GOD; yet that
which is set apart unto GOD cometh unto their companions.q How ill do they
judge!
In like manner have their companions induced many of the idolaters to
slay their children,r that they might bring them to perdition, and that they
might render their religion obscure and confused unto them.s But if GOD had
pleased, they had not done this: therefore leave them and that which they
falsely imagine.
m It is the Mohammedan belief that apostles were sent by GOD for the
conversion both of genii and of men; being generally of humane race (as
Mohammed, in particular, who pretended to have a commission to preach to both
kinds); according to this passage, it seems there must have been prophets of
the race of genii also, though their mission be a secret to us.
n Or considered not their danger; but GOD first sent some prophet to
them to warn them of it, and to invite them to repentance.
o That is, ye may proceed in your rebellion against GOD and your malice
towards me, and be confirmed in your infidelity; but I will persevere to bear
your insults with patience, and to publish those revelations which GOD has
commanded me.1
p i.e., Our idols. In which sense this word is to be taken through the
whole passage.
q As to this custom of the pagan Arabs, see the Prelim. Disc. Sect. I.
p. 13. To what is there said we may add, that the share set apart for GOD was
employed chiefly in relieving the poor and strangers; and the share of the
idols, for paying their priests, and providing sacrifices for them.2
r Either by that inhuman custom, which prevailed among those of Kendah
and some other tribes, of burying their daughters alive, so soon as they were
born, if they apprehended they could not maintain them;3 or else be offering
them to their idols, at the instigation of those who had the custody of their
temples.4
s By corrupting with horrid superstitions that religion which Ismael
had left to his posterity.5
1 Al Beidâwi. 2 Idem, Jallalo'ddin. 3 See cap. 81.
4 Al Beidâwi.
5 Idem.
They also say, These cattle and fruits of the earth are sacred; none
shall eat thereof but who we pleaset (according to their imagination); and
there are cattle whose backs are forbidden to be rode on, or laden with
burdens;u and there are cattle on which they commemorate not the name of GOD
when they slay them;x devising a lie against him; God shall reward them for
that which they falsely devise.
140 And they say, That which is in the bellies of these cattley is allowed
to our males to eat, and is forbidden to our wives: but if it prove abortive,
they they are both partakers thereof.z God shall give them the reward of
their attributing these things to him: he is knowing and wise.
They are utterly lost who have slain their children foolishly,a without
knowledge;b and have forbidden that which GOD hath given them for food,
devising a lie against GOD. They have erred, and were not rightly directed.
He it is who produceth gardens of vines, both those which are supported
on trails of wood, and those which are not supported,c and palm-trees, and the
corn affording various food, and olives, and pomegranates, alike and unlike
unto one another. Eat of their fruit, when they bear fruit, and pay the due
thereof on the day whereon ye shall gather it;d but be not profuse,e for GOD
loveth not those who are too profuse.
And God hath given you some cattle fit for bearing of burdens, and some
fit for slaughter only. Eat of what GOD hath given you for food; and follow
not the steps of Satan, for he is your declared enemy.
Four pairf of cattle hath God given you; of sheep one pair, and of goats
one pair. Say unto them, Hath God forbidden the two males, of sheep and of
goats, or the two females; or that which the wombs of the two females contain?
Tell me with certainty, if ye speak truth.
And of camels hath God given you one pair, and of oxen one pair. Say,
Hath he forbidden the two males of these, or the two females; or that which
the wombs of the two females contain?g Were ye present when GOD commanded you
this? And who is more unjust than he who deviseth a lie against GOD,h that he
may seduce men without understanding? Verily GOD directed not unjust people.
t That is, those who serve our idols, and are of the male sex; for the
women were not allowed to eat of them.6
u Which they superstitiously exempted from such services, in some
particular cases, as they did the Bahîra, the Sâïba, and the Hâmi.7
x See c. 5, p. 73.
y That is, the foetus or embryos of the Bahîra and the Sâïba, which
shall be brought forth alive.
z For if those cattle cast their young, the women might eat thereof as
well as the men.
a See above, note r.
b Not having a due sense of GOD'S providence.
c Or, as some choose to interpret the words, Trees or plants which are
planted by the labour of man, and those which grow naturally in the deserts
and on mountains.
d That is, give alms thereof to the poor. And these alms, as al
Beidâwi observes, were what they used to give before the Zacât, or legal alms,
was instituted, which was done after Mohammed had retired from Mecca, where
this verse was revealed. Yet some are of another opinion, and for this very
reason will have the verse to have been revealed at Medina.
e i.e., Give not so much thereof in alms as to leave your own families
in want, for charity begins at home.
f Or, literally, eight males and females paired together; that is, four
of each sex, and two of every distinct kind.
g In this passage Mohammed endeavours to convince the Arabs of their
superstitious folly in making it unlawful, one while, to eat the males of
these four kinds of cattle; another while, the females; and at another time,
their young.1
h The person particularly intended here, some say, was Amru Ebn Lohai,
king of Hejâz, a great introducer of idolatry and superstition among the
Arabs.2
6 Idem. 7 See cap. 5, p. 86, and Prelim. Disc. Sect. V.
1 Al Beidâwi. 2 Idem. See Prelim. Disc. p. 15, and Pocock
Spec. p. 80.
Say, I find not in that which hath been revealed unto me anything
forbidden unto the eater, that he eat it not, except it be that which dieth of
itself, or blood poured forth,i or swine's flesh: for this is an abomination:
or that which is profane, having been slain in the name of some other than of
GOD. But whoso shall be compelled by necessity to eat of these things, not
lusting, nor wilfully transgressing, verily thy LORD will be gracious unto him
and merciful.
Unto the Jews did we forbid every beast having an undivided hoof; and of
bullocks and sheep, we forbade them the fat of both; except that which should
be on their backs, or their inwards,k or which should be intermixed with the
bone.l This have we rewarded them with, because of their iniquity; and we are
surely speakers of truth.
If they accuse thee of imposture, say, Your LORD is endued with extensive
mercy; but his severity shall not be averted from wicked people.
The idolaters will say, If GOD had pleased, we had not been guilty of
idolatry, neither our fathers; and pretend that we have not forbidden them
anything. Thus did they who were before them accuse the prophets of
imposture, until they tasted our severe punishment. Say, Is there with you
any certain knowledge of what ye allege, that ye may produce it unto us? Ye
follow only a false imagination; and ye utter only lies.
150 Say, therefore, Unto GOD belongeth the most evident demonstration; for
if he had pleased, he had directed you all.
Say, Produce your witnesses, who can bear testimony that GOD hath
forbidden this. But if they bear testimony of this, do not thou bear
testimony with them, nor do thou follow the desires of those who accuse our
signs of falsehood, and who believe not in the life to come, and equalize
idols with their LORD.
Say, Come;m I will rehearse that which your LORD hath forbidden you; that
is to say, that ye be not guilty of idolatry, and that ye show kindness to
your parents, and that ye murder not your children for fear lest ye be reduced
to poverty; we will provide for you and them; and draw not near unto heinous
crimes,n neither openly nor in secret; and slay not the soul which God hath
forbidden you to slay, unless for a just cause.o This hath he enjoined you
that ye may understand.
And meddle not with the substance of the orphan, otherwise than for the
improving thereof, until he attain his age of strength: and use a full
measure, and a just balance. We will not impose a task on any soul beyond its
ability. And when ye pronounce judgment observe justice, although it be for
or against one who is near of kin, and fulfil the covenant of GOD. This hath
God commanded you, that ye may be admonished;
i That is, fluid blood; in opposition to what the Arabs suppose to be
also blood, but not fluid, as the liver and the spleen.3
k See Levit. vii. 23, and iii. 16.
l viz., The fat of the rumps or tails of sheep, which are very large in
the east, a small one weighing ten or twelve pounds, and some no less than
threescore.
m This and the two following verses Jallalo'ddin supposes to have been
revealed at Medina.
n The original word signifies peculiarly fornication and avarice.
o As for murder, apostacy, or adultery.4
3 Al Beidâwi, Jallalo'ddin. 4 Al Beidâwi.
and that ye may know that this is my right way: therefore follow it, and
follow not the path of others, lest ye be scattered from the path of God.
This hath he commanded you that ye may take heed.
We gave also unto Moses the book of the law; a perfect rule unto him who
should do right, and a determination concerning all things needful, and a
direction, and mercy; that the children of Israel might believe the meeting of
their LORD.
And this book which we have now sent down is blessed; therefore follow
it, and fear God that ye may obtain mercy:
lest ye should say, The scriptures were only sent down unto two peoplep
before us; and we neglected to peruse them with attention:q
or lest ye should say, If a book of divine revelations had been sent down
unto us, we would surely have been better directed than they.r And now hath a
manifest declaration come unto you from your LORD, and a direction and mercy:
and who is more unjust than he who deviseth lies against the signs of GOD, and
turneth aside from them? We will reward those who turn aside from our signs
with a grievous punishment, because they have turned aside.
Do they wait for any other than that the angels should come unto them, to
part their souls from their bodies; or that thy LORD should come to punish
them; or that some of the signs of thy LORD should come to pass, showing the
day of judgment to be at hand?s On the day whereon some of thy LORD'S signs
shall come to pass, its faith shall not profit a soul which believed not
before, or wrought not good in its faith.t Say, Wait ye for this day; we
surely do wait for it.
160 They who make a division in their religion,u and become sectaries, have
thou nothing to do with them; their affair belongeth only unto GOD. Hereafter
shall he declare unto them that which they have done.
He who shall appear with good works, shall receive a tenfold recompense
for the same; but he who shall appear with evil works, shall receive only an
equal punishment for the same; and they shall not be treated unjustly.
Say, Verily my LORD hath directed me into a right way, a true religion,
the sect of Abraham the orthodox; and he was no idolater.
Say, Verily my prayers, and my worship, and my life, and my death are
dedicated unto GOD, the LORD of all creatures: he hath no companion. This
have I been commanded: I am the first Moslem.x
p That is, the Jews and the Christians.
q Either because we knew nothing of them, or did not understand the
language wherein they were written.
r Because of the acuteness of our wit, the clearness of our
understanding, and our facility of learning sciences-as appears from our
excelling in history, poetry, and oratory, notwithstanding we are illiterate
people.5
s Al Beidâwi, from a tradition of Mohammed, says that ten signs will
precede the last day, viz., the smoke, the beast of the earth, an eclipse in
the east, another in the west, and a third in the peninsula of Arabia, the
appearance of anti-Christ, the sun's rising in the west, the eruption of Gog
and Magog, the descent of Jesus on earth, and fire which shall break forth
from Aden.1
t For faith in the next life will be of no advantage to those who have
not believed in this; nor yet faith in this life without good works.
u That is, who believe in part of it, and disbelieve other parts of it,
or who form schisms therein. Mohammed is reported to have declared that the
Jews were divided into seventy-one sects, and the Christians into seventy-two;
and that his own followers would be split into seventy-three sects; and that
all of them would be damned, except only one of each.2
x See before, p. 90.
5 Idem. 1 See the Prelim. Disc. Sect. IV. p. 62, &c.
2 Al Beidâwi.
Say, shall I desire any other LORD besides GOD? since he is the LORD of
all things; and no soul shall acquire any merits or demerits but for itself;
and no burdened soul shall bear the burden of another.y Moreover unto your
LORD shall ye return; and he shall declare unto you that concerning which ye
now dispute.
It is he who hath appointed you to succeed your predecessors in the
earth, and hath raised some of you above others by various degrees of worldly
advantages, that he might prove you by that which he hath bestowed on you.
Thy LORD is swift in punishing; and he is also gracious and merciful.
_______
CHAPTER VII
ENTITLED, AL ARAF;z REVEALED AT MECCA.a
IN THE NAME OF THE MOST MERCIFUL GOD.
AL. M. S.b A book hath been sent down unto thee: and therefore let there
be no doubt in thy breast concerning it; that thou mayest preach the same, and
that it may be an admonition unto the faithful.
Follow that which hath been sent down unto you from your LORD; and follow
no guides besides him: how little will ye be warned!
How many cities have we destroyed; which our vengeance overtook by
night,c or while they were reposing themselves at noon-day!d And their
supplication, when our punishment came upon them,
was no other than that they said, Verily we have been unjust.
We will surely call those to an account, unto whom a prophet hath been
sent; and we will also call those to account who have been sent unto them.
And we will declare their actions unto them with knowledge; for we are
not absent from them.
The weighing of men's actions on that day shall be just;e and they whose
balances laden with their good works shall be heavy, are those who shall be
happy;
but they whose balances shall be light, are those who have lost their
souls, because they injured our signs.
And now have we placed you on the earth, and have provided you food
therein: but how little are ye thankful!
10 We created you, and afterwards formed you; and then said unto the
angels, Worship Adam; and they all worshipped him, except Eblis, who was not
one of those who worshipped.f
God said unto him, What hindered thee from worshipping Adam, since I had
commanded thee? He answered, I am more excellent than he: thou hast created
me of fire, and hast created him of clay.
y This was revealed in answer to the pressing instances of the
idolaters, who offered to take the crime upon themselves, if Mohammed would
conform to their worship.3
z Al Arâf signifies the partition between paradise and hell, which is
mentioned in this chapter.1
a Some, however, except five or eight verses, begin at these words, And
ask them concerning the city, &c.
b The signification of those letters the more sober Mohammedans confess
GOD alone knows. Some, however, imagine they stand for Allah, Gabriel,
Mohammed, on whom be peace.
c As it did the inhabitants of Sodom and Gomorrah, to whom Lot was
sent.
d As happened to the Midianites, to whom Shoaib preached.
e See the Prelim. Disc. Sect. IV. p. 69.
f See chapter 2, p. 5, &c.
3 Idem. 1 See the Prelim. Disc. Sect. IV. p. 74.
God said, Get thee down therefore from paradise; for it is not fit that
thou behave thyself proudly therein: get thee hence; thou shalt be one of the
contemptible.
He answered, Give me respite until the day of resurrection.
God said, Verily thou shalt be one of those who are respited.g
The devil said, Because thou hast depraved me, I will lay wait for men in
thy strait way;
then will I come upon them from before, and from behind, and from their
right hands, and from their left;h and thou shalt not find the greater part of
them thankful.
God said unto him, Get thee hence, despised, and driven far away: verily
whoever of them shall follow thee, I will surely fill hell with you all:
but as for thee, O Adam, dwell thou and thy wife in paradise; and eat of
the fruit thereof wherever ye will; but approach not this tree, lest ye become
of the number of the unjust.
And Satan suggested to them both, that he would discover unto them their
nakedness, which was hidden from them; and he said, Your LORD hath not
forbidden you this tree, for any other reason but lest ye should become
angels, or lest ye become immortal.
20 And he sware unto them, saying, Verily I am one of those who counsel you
aright.
And he caused them to fall through deceit.i And when they had tasted of
the tree, their nakedness appeared unto them;k and they began to join together
the leaves of paradise,l to cover themselves. And their LORD called to them,
saying, Did I not forbid you this tree: and did I not say unto you, Verily
Satan is your declared enemy?
They answered, O LORD, we have dealt unjustly with our own souls; and if
thou forgive us not, and be not merciful unto us, we shall surely be of those
who perish.
God said, Get ye down, the one of you an enemy unto the other; and ye
shall have a dwelling-place upon the earth, and a provision for a season.
He said, Therein shall ye live, and therein shall ye die, and from thence
shall ye be taken forth at the resurrection.
O children of Adam, we have sent down unto you apparel,m to conceal your
nakedness, and fair garments; but the clothing of piety is better. This is one
of the signs of God; that peradventure ye may consider.
g As the time till which the devil is reprieved is not particularly
expressed, the commentators suppose his request was not wholly granted; but
agree that he shall die, as well as other creatures, at the second sound of
the trumpet.2
h i.e., I will attack them on every side that I shall be able. The
other two ways, viz., from above and from under their feet, are omitted, say
the commentators, to show that the devil's power is limited.3
i The Mohammedan gospel of Barnabas tells us that the sentence which
GOD pronounced on the serpent for introducing the devil into paradise4 was,
that he should not only be turned out of paradise, but that he should have his
legs cut off by the angel Michael, with the sword of GOD; and that the devil
himself, since he had rendered our first parents unclean, was condemned to eat
the excrements of them and all their posterity; which two last circumstances I
do not remember to have read elsewhere. The words of the manuscript are
these: Y llamó [Dios] a la serpiente, y a Michael, aquel que tiene la espada
de Dios, y le dixo; Aquesta sierpe es acelerada, echala la primera del
parayso, y cortale las piernas, y si quisiere caminar, arrastrara la vida por
tierra. Y llamó à Satanas, el qual vino riendo, y dixole; Porque tu reprobo
has engañado a aquestos, y los has hecho immundos? Yo quiero que toda
immundicia suya, y de todos sus hijos, en saliendo de sus cuerpos entre por tu
boca, porque en verdad ellos haran penitencia, y tu quedaras harto de
immundicia.
k Which they had not perceived before; being clothed, as some say, with
light, or garments of paradise, which fell from them on their disobedience.
Yahya imagines their nakedness was hidden by their hair.5
l Which it is said were fig-leaves.6
m Not only proper materials, but also ingenuity of mind and dexterity
of hand to make use of them.7
2 Al Beidâwi. See the Prelim. Disc. Sect. IV. p. 65, and D'Herbelot,
Bibl. Orient. Art. Eblis. 3 Al Beidâwi.
4 See the notes to cap. 2, p. 5. 5 Idem. 6 Idem.
7 Idem.
O children of Adam, let not Satan seduce you, as he expelled your parents
out of paradise, by stripping them of their clothing, that he might show them
their nakedness: verily he seeth you, both he and his companions, whereas ye
see not them.n We have appointed the devils to be patrons of those who believe
not:
and when they commit a filthy action, they say, We found our fathers
practising the same; and GOD hath commanded us to do it. Say, Verily GOD
commandeth not filthy actions. Do ye speak concerning GOD that which ye know
not?
Say, My LORD hath commanded me to observe justice; therefore set your
faces to pray at every place of worship, and call upon him, approving unto him
the sincerity of your religion. As he produced you at first, so unto him
shall ye return. A part of mankind hath he directed; and a part hath been
justly led into error, because they have taken the devils for their patrons
besides GOD, and imagine they are rightly directed.
O children of Adam, take your decent apparel at every place of worship,o
and eat and drink,p but be not guilty of excess; for he loveth not those who
are guilty of excess.
30 Say, Who hath forbidden the decent apparel of GOD, which he hath
produced for his servants, and the good things which he hath provided for
food? Say, these things are for those who believe, in this present life, but
peculiarly on the day of resurrection.q Thus do we distinctly explain our
signs unto people who understand.
Say, Verily my LORD hath forbidden filthy actions, both that which is
discovered thereof, and that which is concealed, and also iniquity, and unjust
violence; and hath forbidden you to associate with GOD that concerning which
he hath sent you down no authority, or to speak of GOD that which ye know not.
Unto every nation there is a prefixed term; therefore when their term is
expired, they shall not have respite for an hour, neither shall they be
anticipated.
O children of Adam, verily apostles from among you shall come unto you,
who shall expound my signs unto you: whosoever therefore shall fear God and
amend, there shall come no fear on them, neither shall they be grieved.
But they who shall accuse our signs of falsehood, and shall proudly
reject them, they shall be the companions of hell fire; they shall remain
therein forever.
And who is more unjust than he who deviseth a lie concerning GOD, or
accuseth his signs of imposture? Unto these shall be given their portion of
worldly happiness, according to what is written in the book of God's decrees,
until our messengersr come unto them, and shall cause them to die; saying,
Where are the idols which ye called upon, besides GOD? They shall answer,
They have disappeared from us. And they shall bear witness against themselves
that they were unbelievers.
n Because of the subtlety of their bodies, and their being void of all
colour.8
o This passage was revealed to reprove an immodest custom of the pagan
Arabs, who used to encompass the Caaba naked, because clothes, they said, were
the signs of their disobedience to GOD.1 The Sonna orders that, when a man
goes to prayers, he should put on his better apparel, out of respect to the
divine majesty before whom he is to appear. But as the Mohammedans think it
indecent, on the one hand, to come into GOD'S presence in a slovenly manner,
so they imagine, on the other, that they ought not to appear before him in
habits too rich or sumptuous, and particularly in clothes adorned with gold or
silver, lest they should seem proud.
p The sons of Amer, it is said, when they performed the pilgrimage to
Mecca, used to eat no more than was absolutely necessary, and that not of the
more delicious sort of food neither, which abstinence they looked upon as a
piece of merit, but they are here told the contrary.2
q Because then the wicked, who also partook of the blessings of this
life, will have no share in the enjoyments of the next.
r viz., The angel of death and his assistants.
8 Jallalo'ddin. 1 idem, al Beidâwi. 2 Idem.
God shall say unto them at the resurrection, Enter ye with the nations
which have preceded you, of genii and of men, into hell fire; so often as one
nation shall enter, it shall curse its sister,s until they shall all have
successively entered therein. The latter of them shall say of the former of
them: O LORD, these have seduced us; therefore inflict on them a double
punishment of the fire of hell. God shall answer, It shall be doubled unto
all:t but ye know it not:
and the former of them shall say unto the latter of them, Ye have not
therefore any favor above us; taste the punishment for that which ye have
gained.
Verily they who shall charge our signs with falsehood, and shall proudly
reject them, the gates of heaven shall not be opened unto them,u neither shall
they enter into paradise, until a camel pass through the eye of a needle,x and
thus will we reward the wicked doers.
Their couch shall be in hell, and over them shall be coverings of fire;
and thus will we reward the unjust.
40 But they who believe, and do that which is right (we will not load any
soul but according to its ability,) they shall be the companions of paradise;
they shall remain therein forever.
And we will remove all grudges from their minds;y rivers shall run at
their feet, and they shall say, Praised be GOD, who hath directed us unto this
felicity, for we should not have been rightly directed, if GOD had not
directed us; now are we convinced by demonstration that the Apostles of our
LORD came unto us with truth. And it shall be proclaimed unto them, This is
paradise, whereof ye are made heirs, as a reward for that which ye have
wrought.
And the inhabitantsz of paradise shall call out to the inhabitants of
hell fire, saying, Now have we found that which our LORD promised us to be
true: have ye also found that which your LORD promised you to be true? They
shall answer, Yea. And a criera shall proclaim between them, The curse of GOD
shall be on the wicked;
who turn men aside from the way of GOD, and seek to render it crooked,
and who deny the life to come.
s That is, the nation whose example betrayed them into their idolatry
and other wickedness.
t Unto those who set the example, because they not only transgressed
themselves, but were also the occasion of the others' transgression; and unto
those who followed them, because of their own infidelity and their imitating
an ill example.1
u That is, when their souls shall, after death, ascend to heaven, they
shall not be admitted, but shall be thrown down into the dungeon under the
seventh earth.2
x This expression was probably taken from our Saviour's words in the
gospel,3 though it be proverbial in the east.
y So that, whatever differences or animosities there had been between
them in their lifetime, they shall now be forgotten, and give place to sincere
love and amity. This Ali is said to have hoped would prove true to himself
and his inveterate enemies, Othmân, Telha, and al Zobeir.4
z Literally, the companions.
a This crier, some say, will be the angel Israfil.
1 Idem. 2 Jallalo'ddin. See the Prelim. Disc. ubi sup. p.
61. 3 Matth. xix. 24 4 Al Beidâwi.
And between the blessed and the damned there shall be a veil; and men
shall stand on Al Arâfb who shall know every one of them by their marks;c and
shall call unto the inhabitants of paradise, saying, Peace be upon you: yet
they shall not enter therein, although they earnestly desire it.d
And when they shall turn their eyes towards the companions of hell fire,
they say, O LORD, place us not with the ungodly people!
And those who stand on Al Arâf shall call unto certain men,e whom they
shall know by their marks, and shall say, What hath your gathering of riches
availed you, and that ye were puffed up with pride?
Are these the men on whom ye sware that GOD would not bestow mercy?f
Enter ye into paradise; there shall come no fear on you, neither shall ye be
grieved.g
And the inhabitants of hell fire shall call unto the inhabitants of
paradise, saying, Pour upon us some water, or of those refreshments which GOD
hath bestowed on you.h They shall answer, Verily GOD hath forbidden them unto
the unbelievers;
who made a laughing-stock and a sport of their religion, and whom the
life of the world hath deceived: therefore this day will we forget them, as
they did forget the meeting of this day, and for that they denied our signs to
be from God.
50 And now have we brought unto those of Mecca a book of divine
revelations: we have explained it with knowledge; a direction and mercy unto
people who shall believe.
Do they wait for any other than the interpretation thereof?i On the day
whereon the interpretation thereof shall come, they who had forgotten the same
before shall say, Now are we convinced by demonstration that the messengers of
our LORD came unto us with truth: shall we therefore have any intercessors,
who will intercede for us? or shall we be sent back into the world, that we
may do other works than what we did in our life-time? But now have they lost
their souls; and that which they impiously imagined hath fled from them.k
Verily, your LORD is GOD, who created the heavens and the earth in six
days; and then ascended his throne: he causeth the night to cover the day; it
succeedeth the same swiftly: he also created the sun and the moon, and the
stars, which are absolutely subject unto his command. Is not the whole
creation, and the empire thereof, his? Blessed be GOD, the LORD of all
creatures!
b Al Arâf is the name of the wall or partition which, as Mohammed
taught, will separate paradise from hell.5 But as to the persons who are to
be placed thereon the commentators differ, as has been elsewhere observed.6
c i.e., Who shall distinguish the blessed from the damned by their
proper characteristics; such as the whiteness and splendour of the faces of
the former, and the blackness of those of the latter.1
d From this circumstance, it seems that their opinion is the most
probable who make this intermediate partition a sort of purgatory for those
who, though they deserve not to be sent to hell, yet have not merits
sufficient to gain them immediate admittance into paradise, and will be
tantalized here for a certain time with a bare view of the felicity of that
place.
e That is, the chiefs and ringleaders of the infidels.2
f These were the inferior and poorer among the believers, whom they
despised in their lifetimes as unworthy of God's favour.
g These words are directed, by an apostrophe, to the poor and despised
believers above mentioned. Some commentators, however, imagine these and the
next preceding words are to be understood of those who will be confined in al
Arâf; and that the damned will, in return for their reproachful speech, swear
that they shall never enter paradise themselves; whereupon GOD of his mercy
shall order them to be admitted by these words.3
h i.e., Of the other liquors or fruits of paradise. Compare this
passage with the parable of Dives and Lazarus.
i That is, the event of the promises and menaces therein.
k See chapter 6, p. 90, note a.
5 See the Prelim. Disc. Sect. IV. p. 74. 6 See ibid.
1 Al Beidâwi. 2 Idem.
3 Idem
Call upon your LORD humbly and in secret; for he loveth not those who
transgress.l
And act not corruptly in the earth, after its reformation;m and call upon
him with fear and desire: for the mercy of GOD is near unto the righteous.
It is he who sendeth the winds, spread abroadn before his mercy,o until
they bring a cloud heavy with rain, which we drive into a dead country;p and
we cause water to descend thereon, by which we cause all sorts of fruits to
spring forth. Thus will we bring forth the dead from their graves;q that
peradventure ye may consider.
From a good country shall its fruit spring forth abundantly, by the
permission of its LORD; but from the land which is bad, it shall not spring
forth otherwise than scarcely. Thus do we explain the signs of divine
providence unto people who are thankful.
We formerly sent Noahr unto his people: and he said, O my people, worship
GOD: ye have no other GOD than him.s Verily I fear for you the punishment of
the great day.t
The chiefs of his people answered him, We surely perceive thee to be in a
manifest error.
He replied, O my people, there is no error in me; but I am a messenger
from the LORD of all creatures.
60 I bring unto you the messages of my LORD; and I counsel you aright: for
I know from GOD, that which ye know not.
Do ye wonder that an admonition hath come unto you from your LORD by a
manu from among you, to warn you, that ye may take heed to yourselves, and
that peradventure ye may obtain mercy?
l Behaving themselves arrogantly while they pray; or praying with an
obstreperous voice, or a multitude of words and vain repetitions.1
m i.e., After that GOD hath sent his prophets, and revealed his laws,
for the reformation and amendment of mankind.
n Or ranging over a large extent of land. Some copies, instead of
noshran, which is the reading I have here followed, have boshran, which
signifies good tidings; the rising of the wind in such a manner being the
forerunner of rain.
o That is, rain. For the east wind, says al Beidâwi, raises the
clouds, the north wind drives them together, the south wind agitates them, so
as to make the rain fall, and the west wind disperses them again.2
p Or a dry and parched land.
q See the Prelim. Disc. Sect. IV.
r Noah the son of Lamech, according to the Mohammedan writers, was one
of the six principal prophets,3 though he had no written revelations delivered
to him,4 and the first who appeared after his great-grandfather Edrîs or
Enoch. They also say he was by trade a carpenter, which they infer from his
building the ark, and that the year of his mission was the fiftieth, or, as
others say, the fortieth of his age.5
That Noah was a preacher of righteousness unto the wicked antediluvians
is testified by scripture.6 The eastern Christians say that when God ordered
Noah to build the ark, he also directed him to make an instrument of wood,
such as they make use of at this day in the east, instead of bells, to call
the people to church, and named in Arabic Nâkûs, and in modern Greek Semandra;
on which he was to strike three times every day, not only to call together the
workmen that were building the ark, but to give him an opportunity of daily
admonishing his people of the impending danger of the Deluge, which would
certainly destroy them if they did not repent.7
Some Mohammedan authors pretend Noah was sent to convert Zohâk, one of
the Persian kings of the first race, who refused to hearken to him; and that
he afterwards preached GOD's unity publicly.8
s From these words, and other passages of the Korân where Noah's
preaching is mentioned, it appears that, according to Mohammed's opinion, a
principal crime of the antediluvians was idolatry.9
t viz., Either the day of resurrection, or that whereon the Flood was
to begin.
u For, said they, if GOD had pleased, he would have sent an angel, and
not a man; since we never heard of such an instance in the times of our
fathers.10
1 Idem. 2 Idem. 3 See the Prelim. Disc. p. 59.
4 Vide Reland. de Relig. Moh. p. 34.
5 Al Zamakhshari. 6 2 Pet. ii. 5. 7 Eutych. Annal. p. 37.
8 Vide D'Herbal. Bibl. Orient. p. 675.
9 See c. 71, and the Prelim. Disc. Sect. I. p. 14. 10 Al Beidâwi.
And they accused him of imposture: but we delivered him and those who
were with him in the ark,x and we drowned those who charged our signs with
falsehood; for they were a blind people.
And unto the tribe of Ad we sent their brother Hûd.z He said, O my
people, worship GOD: ye have no other GOD than him; will ye not fear him?
The chiefs of those among his people who believed not,a answered, Verily
we perceive that thou art guided by folly; and we certainly esteem thee to be
one of the liars.
He replied, O my people, I am not guided by folly; but I am a messenger
unto you from the LORD of all creatures:
I bring unto you the messages of my LORD; and I am a faithful counsellor
unto you.
Do ye wonder that an admonition hath come unto you from your LORD, by a
man from among you, that he may warn you? Call to mind how he hath appointed
you successors unto the people of Noah,b and hath added unto you in stature
largely.c Remember the benefits of GOD, that ye may prosper.
They said, Art thou come unto us, that we should worship GOD alone, and
leave the deities which our fathers worshipped? Now bring down that judgment
upon us, with which thou threatenest us, if thou speakest truth.
Hud answered, Now shall there suddenly fall upon you from your LORD
vengeance and indignation. Will ye dispute with me concerning the names which
ye have named,d and your fathers; as to which GOD hath not revealed unto you
any authority? Do ye wait therefore, and I will be one of those who wait with
you.
x That is, those who believed on him, and entered into that vessel with
him. Though there be a tradition among the Mohammedans, said to have been
received from the prophet himself, and conformable to the scripture, that
eight persons, and no more, were saved in the ark, yet some of them report the
number variously. One says they were but six, another ten, another twelve,
another seventy-eight, and another four-score, half men and half women,1 and
that one of them was the elder Jorham,2 the preserver, as some pretend, of the
Arabian language.3
y Ad was an ancient and potent tribe of Arabs,4 and zealous idolaters.5
They chiefly worshipped four deities, Sâkia, Hâfedha, Râzeka and Sâlema; the
first, as they imagined, supplying them with rain, the second preserving them
from all dangers abroad, the third providing food for their sustenance, and
the fourth restoring them to health when afflicted with sickness,6 according
to the signification of the several names.
z Generally supposed to be the same person with Heber;7 but others say
he was the son of Abda'llah, the son of Ribâh, the son of Kholûd, the son of
Ad, the son of Aws or Uz, the son of Aram, the son of Sem.8
a These words were added because some of the principal men among them
believed on Hûd, one of whom was Morthed Ebn Saad.9
b Dwelling in the habitations of the antediluvians, who preceded them
not many centuries, or having the chief sway in the earth after them. For the
kingdom of Shedâd, the son of Ad, is said to have extended from the sands of
Alaj to the trees of Omân.10
c See the Prelim. Disc. p. 5.
d That is, concerning the idols and imaginary objects of your worship,
to which ye wickedly gave the names, attributes, and honour due to the only
true GOD.
1 Al Zamakhshari, Jallalo'ddin, Ebn Shohnah. 2 Idem. See the
Prelim. Disc. Sect I. p. 6. 3 Vide Pocock. Orat. Præfix. Carm.
Tograi. 4 See the Prelim. Disc. Sect. I. p. 5. 5 Abulfeda.
6 Vide D'Herbel. Bibl. Orient. Art. Houd.
7 See the Prelim. Disc. p. 5. 1 Al Beidâwi. 9 Idem.
10 Idem.
70 And we delivered him, and them who believed with him by our mercy; and
we cut off the uttermost part of those who charged our signs with falsehood,
and were not believers.e
And unto the tribe of Thamûd we sentf their brother Sâleh.g He said, O
my people, worship GOD: ye have no GOD besides him. Now hath a manifest proof
come unto you from your LORD. This she-camel of GOD is a sign unto you:h
therefore dismiss her freely, that she may feed in GOD's earth; and do her no
hurt, lest a painful punishment seize you.
And call to mind how he hath appointed you successors unto the tribe of
Ad, and hath given you a habitation on earth; ye build yourselves castles on
the plains thereof, and cut out the mountains into houses.i Remember
therefore the benefits of GOD, and commit not violence in the earth, acting
corruptly.
The chiefs among his people who were puffed up with pride, said unto
those who were esteemed weak, namely unto those who believed among them, Do ye
know that Sâleh hath been sent from his LORD? They answered, We do surely
believe in that wherewith he hath been sent.
Those who were elated with pride replied, Verily we believe not in that
wherein ye believe.
e The dreadful destruction of the Adites we have mentioned in another
place,1 and shall only add here some further circumstances of that calamity,
and which differ a little from what is there said; for the Arab writers
acknowledge many inconsistencies in the histories of these ancient tribes.2
The tribe of Ad having been for their incredulity previously chastised
with a three years' drought, sent Kail Ebn Ithar and Morthed Ebn Saad, with
seventy other principal men, to the temple of Mecca to obtain rain. Mecca was
then in the hands of the tribe of Amalek whose prince was Moâwiyah Ebn Becr;
and he, being without the city when the ambassadors arrived, entertained them
there for a month in so hospitable a manner that they had forgotten the
business they came about had not the king reminded them of it, not as from
himself, lest they should think he wanted to be rid of them, but by some
verses which he put into the mouth of a singing woman. At which, being roused
from their lethargy, Morthed told them the only way they had to obtain what
they wanted would be to repent and obey their prophet; but this displeasing
the rest, they desired Moâwiyah to imprison him, lest he should go with them;
which being done, Kail with the rest entering Mecca, begged of GOD that he
would send rain to the people of Ad. Whereupon three clouds appeared, a white
one, a red one, and a black one; and a voice from heaven ordered Kail to
choose which he would. Kail failed not to make choice of the last, thinking
it to be laden with the most rain; but when this cloud came over them, it
proved to be fraught with the divine vengeance, and a tempest broke forth from
it which destroyed them all.3
f Thamûd was another tribe of the ancient Arabs who fell into idolatry.
See the Prelim. Disc. Sect. I. p. 5.
g Al Beidâwi deduces his genealogy thus: Sâleh, the son of Obeid, the
son of Asaf, the son of Masekh, the son of Obeid, the son of Hâdher, the son
of Thamûd.4
h The Thamûdites, insisting on a miracle, proposed to Sâleh that he
should go with them to their festival, and that they should call on their
gods, and he on his, promising to follow that deity which should answer. But
after they had called on their idols a long time to no purpose, Jonda Ebn
Amru, their prince, pointed to a rock standing by itself, and bade Sâleh cause
a she-camel big with young to come forth from it, solemnly engaging that, if
he did, he would believe, and his people promised the same. Whereupon Sâleh
asked it of GOD, and presently the rock, after several throes as if in labour,
was delivered of a she-camel answering the description of Jonda, which
immediately brought forth a young one, ready weaned, and, as some say, as big
as herself. Jonda, seeing this miracle, believed on the prophet, and some few
with him; but the greater part of the Thamûdites remained, notwithstanding,
incredulous. Of this camel the commentators tell several very absurd stories:
as that, when she went to drink, she never raised her head from the well or
river till she had drunk up all the water in it, and then she offered herself
to be milked, the people drawing from her as much milk as they pleased; and
some say that she went about the town crying aloud, If any wants milk let him
come forth.5
i The tribe of Thamûd dwelt first in the country of the Adites, but
their numbers increasing, they removed to the territory of Hejr for the sake
of the mountains, where they cut themselves habitations in the rocks, to be
seen at this day.
1 Prelim. Disc. p. 5. 2 Al Beidâwi. Vide D'Herbelot, Bibl
Orient. Art. Houd. 3 See the Prelim. Disc. p. 5.
4 Abulfeda, al Zamakhshari. Vide D'Herbel. Bibl. Orient. Art. Sâleh.
5 See the Prelim. Disc. p. 6.
And they cut off the feet of the camel,k and insolently transgressed the
command of their LORD,l and said, O Sâleh, cause that to come upon us which
thou hast threatened us, if thou art one of those who have been sent by God.
Whereupon a terrible noise from heavenm assailed them; and in the morning
they were found in their dwellings prostrate on their breasts and dead.n
And Sâleh departed from them, and said,o O my people, now have I
delivered unto you the message of my LORD and I advised you well, but ye love
not those who advise you well.
And remember Lot,p when he said unto his people, Do ye commit a
wickedness, wherein no creature hath set you an example?
Do ye approach lustfully unto men, leaving the women? Certainly ye are
people who transgress all modesty.
80 But the answer of his people was no other than that they said the one to
the other, Expel themq your city; for they are men who preserve themselves
pure from the crimes which ye commit.
Therefore we delivered him and his family, except his wife; she was one
of those who stayed behind:r
and we rained a shower of stones upon them.s Behold therefore what was
the end of the wicked.
k This extraordinary camel frighting the other cattle from their
pasture, a certain rich woman named Oneiza Omm Ganem, having four daughters,
dressed them out and offered one Kedâr his choice of them if he would kill the
camel. Whereupon he chose one, and with the assistance of eight other men,
hamstrung and killed the dam, and pursuing the young one, which fled to the
mountain, killed that also and divided his flesh among them.1 Others tell the
story somewhat differently, adding Sadaka Bint al Mokhtâr as a joint
conspiratress with Oneiza, and pretending that the young one was not killed;
for they say that having fled to a certain mountain named Kâra, he there cried
three times, and Sâleh bade them catch him if they could, for then there might
be hopes of their avoiding the divine vengeance; but this they were not able
to do, the rock opening after he had cried, and receiving him within it.2
l Defying the vengeance with which they were threatened; because they
trusted in their strong dwellings hewn in the rocks, saying that the tribe of
Ad perished only because their houses were not built with sufficient
strength.3
m Like violent and repeated claps of thunder, which some say was no
other than the voice of the angel Gabriel,4 and which rent their hearts.5 It
is said that after they had killed the camel, Sâleh told them that on the
morrow their faces should become yellow, the next day red, and the third day
black, and that on the fourth GOD'S vengeance should light on them; and that
the first three signs happening accordingly, they sought to put him to death,
but GOD delivered him by sending him into Palestine.6
n Mohammed, in the expedition of Tabûc, which he undertook against the
Greeks in the ninth year of the Hejra, passing by Hejr, where this ancient
tribe had dwelt, forbade his army, though much distressed with heat and
thirst, to draw any water there, but ordered them if they had drunk of that
water to bring it up again, or if they had kneaded any meal with it, to give
it to their camels;7 and wrapping up his face in his garment, he set spurs to
his mule, crying out, Enter not the houses of those wicked men, but rather
weep, lest that happen unto you which befell them; and having so said, he
continued galloping full speed with his face muffled up, till he had passed
the valley.8
o Whether this speech was made by Sâleh to them at parting, as seems
most probable, or after the judgment had fallen on them, the commentators are
not agreed.
p The commentators say, conformably to the scripture, that Lot was the
son of Haran, the son of Azer or Terah, and consequently Abraham's nephew, who
brought him with him from Chaldea into Palestine, where they say he was sent
by GOD to reclaim the inhabitants of Sodom and the other neighbouring cities
which were overthrown with it, from the unnatural vice to which they were
addicted.9 And this Mohammedan tradition seems to be countenanced by the
words of the apostle, that this righteous man dwelling among them, in seeing
and hearinng vexed his righteous soul from day to day with their unlawful
deeds;10 whence it is probable that he omitted no opportunity of endeavouring
their reformation. The story of Lot is told with further circumstances in the
eleventh chapter.
q viz., Lot, and those who believe on him.
r See chap. II.
s See ibid.
1 Abulfeda. 2 Al Beidâwi. Vide D'Herbel. ubi supra.
3 Al Kessai. 4 See the Prelim. Disc. p. 6. 5
Abulfeda, al Beidâwi. 6 Al Beidâwi. 7 Abulfed. Vit. Moh. p.
124. 8 Al Bokhari. 9 Vide D'Herbelot, Bibl. Orient. Art.
Loth. 10 2 Pet. ii. 8. 1 Gen. xxv. 2.
And unto Madiant we sent their brother Shoaib.u He said unto them, O my
people, worship GOD; ye have no GOD besides him. Now hath an evident
demonstrationx come unto you from your LORD. Therefore give full measure and
just weight, and diminish not unto men aught of their matters:y neither act
corruptly in the earth, after its reformation.z This will be better for you,
if ye believe.
And beset not every way, threatening the passenger;a and turning aside
from the path of GOD him who believeth in him, and seeking to make it crooked.
And remember, when ye were few, and God multiplied you: and behold, what hath
been the end of those who acted corruptly.
And if part of you believe in that wherewith I am sent, and part believe
not, wait patiently until GOD judge between us; for he is the best judge.
The chiefs of his people, who were elated with pride, answered, We will
surely cast thee, O Shoaib, and those who believe with thee, out of our city:
or else thou shalt certainly return unto our religion. He said, What, though
we be averse thereto?
We shall surely imagine a lie against GOD, if we return unto your
religion, after that GOD hath delivered us from the same: and we have no
reason to return unto it, unless GOD our LORD shall please to abandon us. Our
LORD comprehendeth every thing by his knowledge. In GOD do we put our trust.
O LORD do thou judge between us and our nation with truth; for thou art the
best judge.
And the chiefs of his people who believed not said, If ye follow Shoaib,
ye shall surely perish.
Therefore a storm from heavenb assailed them, and in the morning they
were found in their dwellings dead and prostrate.
90 They who accused Shoaib of imposture became as though they had never
dwelt therein; they who accused Shoaib of imposture perished themselves.
And he departed from them, and said, O my people, now have I performed
unto you the messages of my LORD; and I advised you aright: but why should I
be grieved for an unbelieving people.
We have never sent any prophet unto a city, but we afflicted the
inhabitants thereof with calamity and adversity, that they might humble
themselves.
Then we gave them in exchange good in lieu of evil, until they abounded,
and said, Adversity and prosperity formerly happened unto our fathers, as unto
us. Therefore we took vengeance on them suddenly, and they perceived it not
beforehand.
t Or Midian, was a city of Hejâz, and the habitation of a tribe or the
same name, the descendants of Midian, the son of Abraham by Keturah,1 who
afterwards coalesced with the Ismaelites, as it seems; Moses naming the same
merchants who sold Joseph to Potiphar, in one place Ismaelites,2 and in
another Midianites.3
This city was situated on the Red Sea, south-east of Mount Sinai, and is
doubtless the same with the Modiana of Ptolemy; what was remaining of it in
Mohammed's time was soon after demolished in the succeeding wars,4 and it
remains desolate to this day. The people of the country pretend to show the
well whence Moses watered Jethro's flocks.5
u Some Mohammedan writers make him the son of Mikaïl, the son of
Yashjar, the son of Madian;6 and they generally suppose him to be the same
person with the father-in-law of Moses, who is named in scripture Reuel or
Raguel, and Jethro.7 But Ahmed Ebn Abd'alhalim charges those who entertain
this opinion with ignorance. Al Kessâi says that his father's name was Sanûn,
and that he was first called Boyûn, and afterwards Shoaib: and adds that he
was a comely person, but spare and lean, very thoughtful and of few words.
Doctor Prideaux writes this name, after the French translation, Chaib.8
x This demonstration the commentators suppose to have been a power of
working miracles, though the Korân mentions none in particular. However, they
say (after the Jews) that he gave his son-in-law that wonder-working rod,9
with which he performed all those miracles in Egypt and the desert, and also
excellent advice and instructions,10 whence he had the surname of Khatîb al
anbiyâ, or the preacher to the prophets.11
y For one of the great crimes which the Midianites were guilty of was
the using of diverse measures and weights, a great and a small, buying by one
and selling by another.12
z See before, p. 110, note m.
a Robbing on the highway, it seems, was another crying sin frequent
among these people. But some of the commentators interpret this passage
figuratively, of their besetting the way of truth, and threatening those who
gave ear to the remonstrances of Shoaib.13
b Like that which destroyed the Thamûdites. Some suppose it to have
been an earthquake, for the original word signifies either or both; and both
these dreadful calamities may well be supposed to have jointly executed the
divine vengeance.
2 Gen. xxxix. I. 3 Gen. xxxvii. 36. 4 Vide Golii not.
in Alfrag. p. 143. 5 Abulfed Desc. Arab. p. 42. Geogr. Nub. p. 10
6 Al Beidâwi, Tarikh Montakhab. 7 Exod. ii. 18; iii. I.
8 Life of Mah. p. 24.
9 Al Beidâwi. Vide Shalshel hakkab. p. 12. 10 Exod. xviii. 13, &c.
11 Vide D'Herbelot. Bibl. Orient. Art. Schoaib.
12 Vide ibid. al Beidâwi. See Deut. xxv. 13, 14. 13 Idem.
But if the inhabitants of those cities had believed and feared God, we
would surely have opened to them blessings both from heaven and earth. But
they charged our apostles with falsehood, wherefore we took vengeance on them,
for that which they had been guilty of.
Were the inhabitants therefore of those cities secure that our punishment
should not fall on them by night, while they slept?
Or were the inhabitants of those cities secure that our punishment should
not fall on them by day, while they sported?
Were they therefore secure from the stratagem of GOD?c But none will
think himself secure from the stratagem of GOD, except the people who perish.
And hath it not manifestly appeared unto those who have inherited the
earth after the former inhabitants thereof, that if we please, we can afflict
them for their sins? But we will seal up their hearts; and they shall not
hearken.
We will relate unto thee some stories of these cities. Their apostles
had come unto them with evident miracles, but they were not disposed to
believe in that which they had before gainsaid. Thus will GOD seal up the
hearts of the unbelievers.
100 And we found not in the greater part of them any observance of their
covenant; but we found the greater part of them wicked doers.
Then we sent after the above named apostles, Moses with our signs unto
Pharaohd and his princes; who treated them unjustly:e but behold what was the
end of the corrupt doers.
And Moses said, O Pharaoh, verily I am an apostle sent from the LORD of
all creatures.
It is just that I should not speak of GOD other than the truth. Now am I
come unto you with an evident sign from your LORD: send therefore the children
of Israel away with me. Pharaoh answered, If thou comest with a sign, produce
it, if thou speakest truth.
Wherefore he cast down his rod; and behold, it became a visible serpent.f
c Hereby is figuratively expressed the manner of GOD'S dealing with
proud and ungrateful men, by suffering them to fill up the measure of their
iniquity, without vouchsafing to bring them to a sense of their condition by
chastisements and afflictions till they find themselves utterly lost, when
they least expect it.1
d This was the common title or name of the kings of Egypt (signifying
king in the Coptic tongue), as Ptolemy was in after times; and as Cæsar was
that of the Roman emperors, and Khosrû that of the kings of Persia. But which
of the kings of Egypt this Pharaoh of Moses was, is uncertain. Not to mention
the opinions of the European writers, those of the east generally suppose him
to have been al Walîd, who, according to some, was an Arab of the tribe of Ad,
or, according to others, the son of Masáb, the son of Riyân, the son of
Walîd,2 the Amalekite.3 There are historians, however, who suppose Kabûs, the
brother and predecessor of al Walîd, was the prince we are speaking of; and
pretend he lived six hundred and twenty years, and reigned four hundred.
Which is more reasonable, at least, than the opinion of those who imagine it
was his father Masáb, or grand-father Riyân.4 Abulfeda says that Masáb being
one hundred and seventy years old, and having no child, while he kept the
herds saw a cow calve, and heard her say, at the same time, O Masáb, be not
grieved, for thou shalt have a wicked son, who will be at length cast into
hell. And he accordingly had this Walîd, who afterwards coming to be king of
Egypt, proved an impious tyrant.
e By not believing therein.
f The Arab writers tell enormous fables of this serpent or dragon. For
they say that he was hairy, and of so prodigious a size, that when he opened
his mouth, his jaws were fourscore cubits asunder, and when he laid his lower
jaw on the ground, his upper reached to the top of the palace; that Pharaoh
seeing this monster make toward him, fled from it, and was so terribly
frightened that he befouled himself; and that the whole assembly also betaking
themselves to their heels, no less than twenty-five thousand of them lost
their lives in the press. They add that Pharaoh upon this adjured Moses by
GOD who had sent him, to take away the serpent, and promised he would believe
on him, and let the Israelites go; but when Moses had done what he requested,
he relapsed, and grew as hardened as before.5
1 Al Beidâwi. 2 See the Prelim. Disc. p. 7. 3
Abulfeda, &c. 4 Kitâb tafsir lebâb, and al Keshâf.
And he drew forth his hand out of his bosom; and behold, it appeared
white unto the spectators.g
The chiefs of the people of Pharaoh said, This man is certainly an expert
magician:
he seeketh to dispossess you of your land; what therefore do ye direct?
They answered, Put off him and his brother by fair promises for some
time, and in the mean while send unto the cities persons who may assemble
and bring unto thee every expert magician.
110 So the magiciansh came unto Pharaoh; and they said, Shall we surely
receive a reward, if we do overcome?
He answered, Yea; and ye shall certainly be of those who approach near
unto my throne.
They said, O Moses, either do thou cast down thy rod first, or we will
cast down ours.
Moses answered, Do ye cast down your rods first. And when they had cast
them down, they enchanted the eyes of the men who were present, and terrified
them: and they performed a great enchantment.i
And we spake by revelation unto Moses, saying, Throw down thy rod. And
behold, it swallowed up the rods which they had caused falsely to appear
changed into serpents.k
Wherefore the truth was confirmed, and that which they had wrought
vanished.
And Pharaoh and his magicians were overcome there, and were rendered
contemptible.
And the magicians prostrated themselves, worshipping;
and they said, We believe in the LORD of all creatures,
the LORD of Moses and Aaron.l
g There is a tradition that Moses was a very swarthy man; and that when
he put his hand into his bosom, and drew it out again, it became extremely
white and splendid, surpassing the brightness of the sun.6 Marracci7 says we
do not read in scripture that Moses showed this sign before Pharaoh. It is
true, the scripture does not expressly say so, but it seems to be no more than
a necessary inference from that passage where GOD tells Moses that if they
will not hearken to the first sign, they will believe the latter sign, and if
they will not believe these two signs, then directs him to turn the water into
blood.8
h The Arabian writers name several of these magicians, besides their
chief priest Simeon, viz., Sadûr and Ghadûr, Jaath and Mosfa, Warân and Zamân,
each of whom came attended with their disciples, amounting in all to several
thousands.9
i They provided themselves with a great number of thick ropes and long
pieces of wood, which they contrived, by some means, to move, and make them
twist themselves one over the other, and so imposed on the beholders, who at a
distance took them to be true serpents.1
k The expositors add, that when this serpent had swallowed up all the
rods and cords, he made directly towards the assembly, and put them into so
great a terror that they fled, and a considerable number were killed in the
crowd; then Moses took it up, and it became a rod in his hand as before.
Whereupon the magicians declared that it could be no enchantment, because in
such case their rods and cords would not have disappeared.2
l It seems probable that all the magicians were not converted by this
miracle, for some writers introduce Sadûr and Ghadûr only, acknowledging
Moses's miracle to be wrought by the power of GOD. These two, they say, were
brothers, and the sons of a famous magician, then dead; but on their being
sent for to court on this occasion, their mother persuaded them to go to their
father's tomb to ask his advice. Being come to the tomb, the father answered
their call; and when they had acquainted him with the affair, he told them
that they should inform themselves whether the rod of which they spoke became
a serpent while its masters slept, or only when they were awake; for, said he,
enchantments have no effect while the enchanter is asleep, and therefore if it
be otherwise in this case, you may be assured that they act by a divine power.
These two magicians then, arriving at the capital of Egypt, on inquiry found,
to their great astonishment, that when Moses and Aaron went to rest, their rod
became a serpent, and guarded them while they slept.3 And this was the first
step towards their conversion.
5 Al Beidâwi. 6 Idem. 7 In Alc. p. 284.
8 Exod. iv. 8, 9.
9 Vide D'Herbelot, Bibl. Orient. Art. Mousa. p. 643, &c. Al Kessâi.
1 Al Beidâwi. Vide D'Herbelot, ubi sup. and Kor. c. 20.
2 Al Beidâwi. 3 Vide D'Herbel. ubi. sup.
120 Pharaoh said, Have ye believed on him, before I have given you
permission? Verily this is a plot which ye have contrived in the city, that
ye might cast forth from thence the inhabitants thereof.m But ye shall surely
know that I am your master;
for I will cause your hands and your feet to be cut off on the opposite
sides,n then will I cause you all to be crucified.o
The magicians answered, We shall certainly return unto our LORD, in the
next life;
for thou takest vengeance on us only because we have believed in the
signs of our LORD, when they have come unto us. O LORD, pour on us patience;
and cause us to die Moslems.p
And the chiefs of Pharaoh's people said, Wilt thou let Moses and his
people go, that they may act corruptly in the earth, and leave thee and thy
gods?q Pharaoh answered, We will cause their male children to be slain, and
we will suffer their females to live;r and by that means we shall prevail over
them.
Moses said unto his people, Ask assistance of GOD, and suffer patiently:
for the earth is God's, he giveth it for an inheritance unto such of his
servants as he pleaseth; and the prosperous end shall be unto those who fear
him.
They answered, We have been afflicted by having our male children slain,
before thou camest unto us, and also since thou hast come unto us. Moses
said, Peradventure it may happen that our LORD will destroy your enemy, and
will cause you to succeed him in the earth, that he may see how ye will act
therein.
And we formerly punished the people of Pharaoh with dearth and scarcity
of fruits, that they might be warned.
Yet when good happened unto them, they said, This is owing unto us: but
if evil befell them, they attributed the same to the ill luck of Moses, and
those who were with him.s Was not their ill luck with GOD?t But most of them
knew it not.
And they said unto Moses, Whatever sign thou show unto us, to enchant us
therewith, we will not believe on thee.
130 Wherefore we sent upon them a floodu and locusts, and lice,x and frogs,
and blood; distinct miracles: but they behaved proudly, and became a wicked
people.
m i.e., This is a confederacy between you and Moses, entered into
before ye left the city to go to the place of appointment, to turn out the
Copts, or native Egyptians, and establish the Israelites in their stead.4
n That is, your right hands and your left feet.
o Some say Pharaoh was the first inventor of this ignominious and
painful punishment.
p Some think these converted magicians were executed accordingly; but
others deny it, and say that the king was not able to put them to death,
insisting on these words of the Korân,5 You two, and they who follow you,
shall overcome.
q Which were the stars, or other idols. But some of the commentators,
from certain impious expressions of this prince, recorded in the Korân,1
whereby he sets up himself as the only god of his subjects, suppose that he
was the object of their worship, and therefore instead of alihataca, thy gods,
read ilahataca, thy worship.2
r That is, we will continue to make use of the same cruel policy to
keep the Israelites in subjection, as we have hitherto done. The commentators
say that Pharaoh came to this resolution because he had either been admonished
in a dream, or by the astrologers or diviners, that one of that nation should
subvert his kingdom.3
s Looking on him and his followers as the occasion of those calamities.
The original word properly signifies to take an ominous and sinister presage
of any future event, from the flight of birds, or the like.
t By whose will and decree they were so afflicted, as a punishment for
their wickedness.
u This inundation, they say, was occasioned by unusual rains, which
continued eight days together, and the overflowing of the Nile; and not only
covered their lands, but came into their houses, and rose as high as their
backs and necks; but the children of Israel had no rain in their quarters.4
As there is no mention of any such miraculous inundation in the Mosaic
writings, some have imagined this plague to have been either a pestilence, or
the small-pox, or some other epidemical distemper.5 For the word tufân, which
is used in this place, and is generally rendered a deluge, may also signify
any other universal destruction or mortality.
x Some will have these insects to have been a larger sort of tick;
others, the young locusts before they have wings.6
4 Al Beidâwi. 5 Cap. 28. 1 Ibid. and c. 26, &c.
2 Al Beidâwi. 3 Idem, Jallalo'ddin. 4 Idem, Abulfed.
5 Al Beidâwi. 6 Idem.
And when the plaguey fell on them, they said, O Moses, entreat thy LORD
for us, according to that which he hath covenanted with thee; verily if thou
take the plague from off us, we will surely believe thee, and we will let the
children of Israel go with thee. But when we had taken the plague from off
them until the term which God had granted them was expired, behold they broke
their promise.
Wherefore we took vengeance on them, and drowned them in the Red Sea;z
because they charged our signs with falsehood, and neglected them.
And we caused the people who had been rendered weak to inherit the
eastern parts of the earth and the western parts thereof,a which we blessed
with fertility; and the gracious word of thy LORD was fulfilled on the
children of Israel, for that they had endured with patience: and we destroyed
the structures which Pharaoh and his people had made, and that which they had
erected.b
And we caused the children of Israel to pass through the sea, and they
came unto a people who gave themselves up to the worship of their idols,c and
they said, O Moses, make us a god, in like manner as these people have gods.
Moses answered, Verily ye are an ignorant people:
for the religion which these follow will be destroyed, and that which
they do is vain.
He said, Shall I seek for you any other god than GOD; since he hath
preferred you to the rest of the world?
And remember when we delivered you from the people of Pharaoh, who
grievously oppressed you; they slew your male children, and let your females
live: therein was a great trial from your LORD.
And we appointed unto Moses a fast of thirty nights before we gave him
the law,d and we completed them by adding of ten more; and the stated time of
his LORD was fulfilled in forty nights. And Moses said unto his brother
Aaron, Be thou my deputy among my people during my absence; and behave
uprightly, and follow not the way of the corrupt doers.
y viz., Any of the calamities already mentioned, or the pestilence
which GOD sent upon them afterwards.
z See this wonderful event more particularly described in the tenth and
twentieth chapters.
a That is, the land of Syria, of which the eastern geographers reckon
Palestine a part, and wherein the commentators say the children of Israel
succeeded the kings of Egypt and the Amalekites.1
b Particularly the lofty tower which Pharaoh caused to be built, that
he might attack the GOD of Moses.2
c These people some will have to be of the tribe of Amalek, whom Moses
was commanded to destroy, and others of the tribe of Lakhm. Their idols, it
is said, were images of oxen, which gave the first hint to the making of the
golden calf.3
d The commentators say that GOD, having promised Moses to give him the
law, directed him to prepare himself for the high favour of speaking with GOD
in person by a fast of thirty days; and that Moses accordingly fasted the
whole month of Dhu'lkaada; but not liking the savour of his breath, he rubbed
his teeth with a dentrifice, upon which the angels told him that his breath
before had the odour of musk,4 but that his rubbing his teeth had taken it
away. Whereupon GOD ordered him to fast ten days more, which he did; and
these were the first ten days of the succeeding month Dhu'lhajja. Others,
however, suppose that Moses was commanded to fast and pray thirty days only,
and that during the other ten GOD discoursed with him.5
1 Idem. 2 Vide Kor. c. 28 and 40. 3 Al Beidâwi.
4 See the Prelim. Disc. Sect. IV
5 Al Beidâwi. Jallalo'ddin.
And when Moses came at our appointed time, and his LORD spake unto him,e
he said, O LORD, show me thy glory, that I may behold thee. God answereth,
Thou shalt in no wise behold me; but look towards the mountain,f and if it
stand firm in its place, then thou shalt see me. But when his LORD appeared
with glory in the mount,g he reduced it to dust. And Moses fell down in a
swoon.
140 And when he came to himself, he said, Praise be unto thee! I turn unto
thee with repentence, and I am the first of true believers.h
God said unto him, O Moses, I have chosen thee above all men, by
honouring thee with my commissions, and by my speaking unto thee: receive
therefore that which I have brought thee, and be one of those who give
thanks.i
And we wrote for him on the tablesk an admonition concerning every
matter, and a decision in every case,l and said, Receive this with reverence;
and command thy people that they live according to the most excellent precepts
thereof. I will show you the dwelling of the wicked.m
I will turn aside from my signs those who behave themselves proudly in
the earth, without justice: and although they see every sign, yet they shall
not believe therein; and although they see the way of righteousness, yet they
shall not take that way; but if they see the way of error, they shall take
that way.
This shall come to pass because they accuse our signs of imposture, and
neglect the same.
But as for them who deny the truth of our signs and the meeting of the
life to come, their works shall be vain: shall they be rewarded otherwise than
according to what they shall have wrought?
And the people of Moses, after his departure, took a corporeal calf,n
made of their ornaments,o which lowed.p Did they not see that it spake not
unto them, neither directed them in the way?
yet they took it for their god, and acted wickedly.
But when they repented with sorrow,q and saw that they had gone astray,
they said, Verily if our LORD have not mercy upon us, and forgive us not, we
shall certainly become of the number of those who perish.
e Without the mediation of any other, and face to face, as he speaks
unto the angels.6
f This mountain the Mohammedans name al Zabir.
g Or, as it is literally, unto the mount. For some of the expositors
pretend that GOD endued the mountain with life and the sense of seeing.
h This is not to be taken strictly. See the like expression in chapter
6, p. 90.
i The Mohammedans have a tradition that Moses asked to see GOD on the
day of Arafat, and that he received the law on the day they slay the victims
at the pilgrimage of Mecca, which days are the ninth and tenth of Dhu'lhajja.
k These tables, according to some, were seven in number, and according
to others ten. Nor are the commentators agreed whether they were cut out of a
kind of lote-tree in paradise called al Sedra, or whether they were
chrysolites, emeralds, rubies or common stone.1 But they say that they were
each ten or twelve cubits long; for they suppose that not only the ten
commandments but the whole law was written thereon: and some add that the
letters were cut quite through the tables, so that they might be read on both
sides2-which is a fable of the Jews.
l That is, a perfect law comprehending all necessary instructions, as
well in regard to religious and moral duties, as the administration of
justice.
m viz., The desolate habitations of the Egyptians, or those of the
impious tribes of Ad and Thamûd, or perhaps hell, the dwelling of the ungodly
in the other world.
n That is, as some understand it, consisting of flesh and blood; or, as
others, being a mere body or mass of metal, without a soul.3
o Such as their rings and bracelets of gold and silver.4
p See chapter 20, and the notes to chapter 2, p. 6.
q Father Marracci seems not to have understood the meaning of this
phrase, having literally translated the Arabic words, wa lamma sokita fi
eidîhim, without any manner of sense, Et cum cadere factus fuisset in manibus
eorum.
6 Al Beidâwi. Vide D'Herbel. Bibl. Orient. p. 650. 1 Al
Beidâwi. 2 Vide D'Herbel. ubi sup. 3 Al Beidâwi. See cap.
20, and the notes to cap. 2, p. 6. 4 Vide ibid.
And when Moses returned unto his people, full of wrath and indignation,
he said, An evil thing is it that ye have committed after my departure; have
ye hastened the command of your LORD?r And he threw down the tables,s and
took his brother by the hair of the head, and dragged him unto him. And Aaron
said unto him, Son of my mother, verily the people prevailed against me,t and
it wanted little but they had slain me: make not my enemies therefore to
rejoice over me, neither place me with the wicked people.
150 Moses said, O LORD, forgive me and my brother, and receive us into thy
mercy; for thou art the most merciful of those who exercise mercy.
Verily as for them who took the calf for their god, indignation shall
overtake them from their LORD,u and ignominy in this life: thus will we reward
those who imagine falsehood.
But unto them who do evil, and afterwards repent, and believe in God,
verily thy LORD will thereafter be clement and merciful.
And when the anger of Moses was appeased, he took the tables;x and in
what was written thereon was a direction and mercy, unto those who feared
their LORD.
And Moses chose out of his people seventy men, to go up with him to the
mountain at the time appointed by us: and when a storm of thunder and
lightning had taken them away,y he said, O LORD, if thou hadst pleased, thou
hadst destroyed them before, and me also; wilt thou destroy us for that which
the foolish men among us have committed? This is only thy trial; thou wilt
thereby lead into error whom thou pleasest, and thou wilt direct whom thou
pleasest. Thou art our protector, therefore forgive us, and be merciful unto
us; for thou art the best of those who forgive.
And write down for us good in this world, and in the life to come; for
unto thee are we directed. God answered, I will inflict my punishment on whom
I please; and my mercy extendeth over all things; and I will write down good
unto those who shall fear me, and give alms, and who shall believe in our
signs;
who shall follow the apostle, the illiterate prophet,z whom they shall
find written downa with them in the law and the gospel: he will command them
that which is just, and will forbid them that which is evil; and will allow
them as lawful the good things which were before forbidden,b and will prohibit
those which are bad;c and he will ease them of their heavy burden, and of the
yokes which were upon them.d And those who believe in him, and honour him,
and assist him, and follow the light, which hath been sent down with him,
shall be happy.
Say, O men, Verily I am the messenger of GOD unto you all:e
unto him belongeth the kingdom of heaven and earth; there is no GOD but
he: he giveth life, and he causeth to die. Believe therefore in GOD and his
apostle, the illiterate prophet, who believeth in GOD and his word; and follow
him, that ye may be rightly directed.
r By neglecting his precepts, and bringing down his swift vengeance on
you.
s Which were all broken and taken up to heaven, except one only; and
this, they say, contained the threats and judicial ordinances, and was
afterwards put into the ark.1
t Literally, rendered me weak.
u See chapter 2, p. 6.
x Or the fragments of that which was left.
y See chapter 2, p. 6, and chapter 4, p. 70.
z That is, Mohammed. See the Prelim. Disc. Sect. II.
a i.e., Both foretold by name and certain description.
b See chapter 3, p. 37.
c As the eating of blood and swine's flesh, and the taking of usury,
&c.
d See chapter 2, p. 31.
e That is, to all mankind in general, and not to one particular nation,
as the former prophets were sent.
1 Al Beidâwi. Vide D'Herbel. ubi sup. p. 649.
Of the people of Moses there is a partyf who direct others with truth,
and act justly according to the same.
160 And we divided them into twelve tribes, as into so many nations. And
we spake by revelation unto Moses, when his people asked drink of him, and we
said, Strike the rock with thy rod; and there gushed thereout twelve
fountains,g and men knew their respective drinking-place. And we caused
clouds to overshadow them, and manna and quailsh to descend upon them, saying,
Eat of the good things which we have given you for food: and they injured not
us, but they injured their own souls.
And call to mind when it was said unto them, Dwell in this city,i and eat
of the provisions thereof wherever ye will, and say, Forgiveness; and enter
the gate worshipping: we will pardon you your sins, and will give increase
unto the well-doers.
But they who were ungodly among them changed the expression into
another,k which had not been spoken unto them. Wherefore we went down upon
them indignation from heaven, because they transgressed.
And ask them concerning the city,l which was situate on the sea, when
they transgressed on the Sabbath-day: when their fish came unto them on their
Sabbath-day, appearing openly on the water: but on the day whereon they
celebrated no Sabbath, they came not unto them. Thus did we prove them,
because they were wicked-doers.
And when a party of themm said unto the others, Why do ye warn a people
whom GOD will destroy, or will punish with a grievous punishment? They
answered, This is an excuse for us unto your LORD,n and peradventure they will
beware.
But when they had forgotten the admonitions which had been given them, we
delivered those who forbade them to do evil; and we inflicted on those who had
transgressed a severe punishment, because they had acted wickedly.
f viz., Those Jews who seemed better disposed than the rest of their
brethren to receive Mohammed's law; or perhaps such of them as had actually
received it. Some imagine they were a Jewish nation dwelling somewhere beyond
China, which Mohammed saw the night he made his journey to heaven, and who
believed on him.1
g See chapter 2, p. 7.
To what is said in the notes there, we may add that, according to a
certain tradition, the stone on which this miracle was wrought was thrown down
from paradise by Adam, and came into the possession of Shoaib, who gave it
with the rod to Moses; and that, according to another, the water issued thence
by three orifices on each of the four sides of the stone, making twelve in
all, and that it ran in so many rivulets to the quarter of each tribe in the
camp.2
h See chapter 2, p. 7.
i See this passage explained, ibid.
k Professor Sike says, that being prone to leave spiritual for worldly
matters, instead of Hittaton they said Hintaton, which signifies wheat,3 and
comes much nearer the true word than the expression I have in the last place
quoted, set down from Jallalo'ddin. Whether he took this from the same
commentator or not does not certainly appear, though he mentions him just
before; but if he did, his copy must differ from that which I have followed.
l This city was Ailah or Elath, on the Red Sea; though some pretend it
was Midian, and others Tiberias. The whole story is already given in the
notes to chapter 2, p. 8. Some suppose the following five or eight verses to
have been revealed at Medina.
m viz., The religious persons among them, who strictly observed the
Sabbath, and endeavoured to reclaim the others, till they despaired of
success. But some think these words were spoken by the offenders, in answer
to the admonitions of the others.
n That we have done our duty in dissuading them from their wickedness.
1 Al Beidâwi. 2 Idem. 3 Sike, in not. ad
Evang. Infant. p. 71.
And when they proudly refused to desist from what had been forbidden
them, we said unto them, Be ye transformed into apes, driven away from the
society of men. And remember when thy LORD declared that he would surely send
against the Jews until the day of resurrection, some nation who should afflict
them with a grievous oppression:o for thy LORD is swift in punishing, and he
is also ready to forgive, and merciful:
and we dispersed them among the nations in the earth. Some of them are
upright persons, and some of them are otherwise. And we proved them with
prosperity and with adversity, that they might return from their disobedience;
and a succession of their posterity hath succeeded after them, who have
inherited the book of the law, who receive the temporal goods of this world,p
and say, It will surely be forgiven us: and if a temporal advantage like the
former be offered them, they accept it also. Is it not the covenant of the
book of the law established with them, that they should not speak of GOD aught
but the truth?q Yet they diligently read that which is therein. But the
enjoyment of the next life will be better for those who fear God than the
wicked gains of these people: (Do ye not therefore understand?)
and for those who hold fast the book of the law, and are constant at
prayer: for we will by no means suffer the reward of the righteous to perish.
170 And when we shook the mountain of Sinai over them,r as though it had
been a covering, and they imagined, that it was falling upon them; and we
said, Receive the law which we have brought you with reverence; and remember
that which is contained therein, that ye may take heed.
And when thy LORD drew forth their posterity from the loins of the sons
of Adam,s and took them to witness against themselves, saying, Am not I your
LORD? They answered, Yea: we do bear witness. This was done lest ye should
say, at the day of resurrection, Verily we were negligent as to this matter,
because we were not apprised thereof:
or lest ye should say, Verily our fathers were formerly guilty of
idolatry, and we are their posterity who have succeeded them; wilt thou
therefore destroy us for that which vain men have committed?
Thus do we explain our signs, that they may return from their vanities.
And relate unto the Jews the history of him unto whom we brought our
signs,t and the departed from them; wherefore Satan followed him, and he
became one of those who were seduced.
o See chapter 5, p. 82, note g.
p By accepting of bribes for wresting judgment, and for corrupting the
copies of the Pentateuch, and by extorting of usury, &c.1
q Particularly by giving out that GOD will forgive their corruption
without sincere repentance and amendment.
r See chapter 2, p. 8, note z.
s This was done in the plain of Dahia in India, or as others imagine,
in a valley near Mecca. The commentators tell us that God stroked Adam's
back, and extracted from his loins his whole posterity, which should come into
the world until the resurrection, one generation after another; that these men
were actually assembled all together in the shape of small ants, which were
endued with understanding; and that after they had, in the presence of angels,
confessed their dependence on GOD, they were again caused to return into the
loins of their great ancestor.2 From this fiction it appears that the
doctrine of pre-existence is not unknown to the Mohammedans; there is some
little conformity between it and the modern theory of generation ex
animalculis in semine marium.
t Some suppose the person here intended to be a Jewish rabbi, or one
Ommeya Ebn Abi'lsalt, who read the scriptures, and found thereby that GOD
would send a prophet about that time, and was in hopes that he might be the
man; but when Mohammed declared his mission, believed not on him through envy.
But according to the more general opinion, it was Balaam, the son of Beor, of
the Canaanitish race, well acquainted with part at least of the scripture,
having even been favoured with some revelations from GOD; who being requested
by his nation to curse Moses and the children of Israel, refused it at first,
saying, How can I curse those who are protected by the angels? But afterwards
he was prevailed on by gifts; and he had no sooner done it, than he began to
put out his tongue like a dog, and it hung down upon his breast.3
1 Al Beidâwi. 2 Idem, Jallalo'ddin. Yahya. Vide D'Herbelot,
Bibl. Orient. p. 54. 3 Al Beidâwi, Jallalo'ddin, al Zamakhshari.
Vide D'Herbel. Bibl. Orient. Art. Balaam.
And if we had pleased, we had surely raised him thereby unto wisdom; but
he inclined unto the earth, and followed his own desire.u Wherefore his
likeness as the likeness of a dog, which, if thou drive him away, putteth
forth his tongue, or, if thou let him alone, putteth forth his tongue also.
This is the likeness of the people, who accuse our signs of falsehood.
Rehearse therefore this history unto them, that they may consider.
Evil is the similitude of those people who accuse our signs of falsehood,
and injure their own souls.
Whomsoever GOD shall direct, he will be rightly directed; and whomsoever
he shall lead astray, they shall perish.
Moreover we have created for hell many of the genii and of men; they have
hearts by which they understand not, and they have eyes by which they see not:
and they have ears by which they hear not. These are like the brute beasts;
yea they go more astray: these are the negligent.
GOD hath most excellent names;x therefore call on him by the same; and
withdraw from those who use his name perversely:y they shall be rewarded for
that which they shall have wrought.
180 And of those whom we have created there are a people who direct others
with truth, and act justly according thereto.z
But those who devise lies against our signs, we will suffer them to fall
gradually into ruin, by a method which they knew not:a
and I will grant them to enjoy a long and prosperous life; for my
stratagem is effectual.
Do they not consider that there is no devil in their companion?b He is
no other than a public preacher.
Or do they not contemplate the kingdom of heaven and earth, and the
things which GOD hath created; and consider that peradventure it may be that
their end draweth nigh? And in what new declaration will they believe, after
this?c
He whom GOD shall cause to err, shall have no director; and he shall
leave them in their impiety, wandering in confusion.
They will ask thee concerning the last hour; at what time its coming is
fixed? Answer, Verily the knowledge thereof is with my LORD; none shall
declare the fixed time thereof, except he. The expectation thereof is
grievous in heaven and on earth:d it shall come upon you no otherwise than
suddenly.
They will ask thee, as though thou wast well acquainted therewith.
Answer, Verily the knowledge thereof is with GOD alone: but the greater part
of men know it not.
u Loving the wages of unrighteousness, and running greedily after error
for reward.4
x Expressing his glorious attributes. Of these the Mohammedan Arabs
have no less than ninety-nine, which are reckoned up by Marracci.5
y As did Walid Ebn al Mogheira, who hearing Mohammed give GOD the title
of al Rahmân, or the merciful, laughed aloud, saying he knew none of that
name, except a certain man who dwelt in Yamama;1 or as the idolatrous Meccans
did, who deduced the names of their idols from those of the true GOD;
deriving, for example, Allât from Allah, al Uzza from al Azîz, the mighty, and
Manât from al Mannân, the bountiful.2
z As it is said a little above that GOD hath created many to eternal
misery, so here he is said to have created others to eternal happiness.3
a By flattering them with prosperity in this life, and permitting them
to sin in an uninterrupted security, till they find themselves unexpectedly
ruined.4
b viz., In Mohammed, whom they gave out to be possessed when he went up
to Mount Safâ, and from thence called to the several families of each
respective tribe in order, to warn them of GOD'S vengeance if they continued
in their idolatry.5
c i.e., After they have rejected the Korân. For what more evident
revelation can they hereafter expect?6
d Not only to men and genii, but to the angels also.
4 2 Peter ii. v.; Jude II. 5 In Alc. p. 414. 1
Marrac. Vit. Moh. p. 19. 2 Al Beidâwi. Jallalo'ddin. See the
Prelim. Disc. p. 14. 3 Al Beidâwi. 4 Idem. 5
Idem. 6 Idem.
Say, I am able neither to procure advantage unto myself, nor to avert
mischief from me, but as GOD pleaseth. If I knew the secrets of God, I should
surely enjoy abundance of good, neither should evil befall me. Verily I am no
other than a denouncer of threats, and a messenger of good tidings unto people
who believe.
It is he who hath created you from one person, and out of him produced
his wife, that he might dwell with her: and when he had known her, she carried
a light burden for a time, wherefore she walked easily therewith. But when it
became more heavy,e she called upon GOD their LORD, saying, If thou give us a
child rightly shaped, we will surely be thankful.
190 Yet when he had given them a child rightly shaped, they attributed
companions unto him, for that which he had given them.f But far be that from
GOD, which they associated with him!
Will they associate with him false gods which create nothing but are
themselves created: and can neither give them assistance, nor help themselves?
And if ye invite them to the true direction, they will not follow you: it
will be equal unto you, whether ye invite them, or whether ye hold your peace.
Verily the false deities whom ye invoke besides GOD are servants like
unto you.g Call therefore upon them, and let them give you an answer, if ye
speak truth.
Have they feet, to walk with? Or have they hands, to lay hold with? Or
have they eyes, to see with? Or have they ears, to hear with? Say, Call upon
your companions, and then lay a snare for me, and defer it not;
for GOD is my protector, who sent down the book of the Koran; and he
protecteth the righteous.
But they whom ye invoke besides him cannot assist you, neither do they
help themselves;
and if ye call on them to direct you, they will not hear. Thou seest
them look towards thee, but they see not.
Use indulgence,h and command that which is just, and withdraw far from
the ignorant.
e That is, when the child grew bigger in her womb.
f For the explaining of this whole passage, the commentators tell the
following story:-
They say, that when Eve was big with her first child, the devil came to
her and asked her whether she knew what she carried within her, and which way
she should be delivered of it, suggesting that possibly it might be a beast.
She, being unable to give an answer to this question, went in a fright to
Adam, and acquainted him with the matter, who, not knowing what to think of
it, grew sad and pensive. Whereupon the devil appeared to her again (or, as
others say, to Adam), and pretended that he by his prayers would obtain of GOD
that she might be safely delivered of a son in Adam's likeness, provided they
would promise to name him Abda'lhareth, or the servant of al Hareth (which was
the devil's name among the angels), instead of Abd'allah, or the servant of
GOD, as Adam had designed. This proposal was agreed to, and accordingly, when
the child was born, they gave it that name, upon which it immediately died.1
And with this Adam and Eve are here taxed, as an act of idolatry. The story
looks like a rabbinical fiction, and seems to have no other foundation than
Cain's being called by Moses Obed adâmah, that is, a tiller of the ground,
which might be translated into Arabic by Abd'alhareth.
But al Beidâwi, thinking it unlikely that a prophet (as Adam is, by the
Mohammedans, supposed to have been) should be guilty of such an action,
imagines the Korân in this place means Kosai, one of Mohammed's ancestors, and
his wife, who begged issue of GOD, and having four sons granted them, called
their names Abd Menâf, Abd Shams, Abd'al Uzza, and Abd'al Dâr, after the names
of the four principal idols of the Koreish. And the following words also he
supposes to relate to their idolatrous posterity.
g Being subject to the absolute command of GOD. For the chief idols of
the Arabs were the sun, moon, and stars.2
h Or, as the words may also be translated, Take the superabundant
overplus-meaning that Mohammed should accept such voluntary alms from the
people as they could spare. But the passage, if taken in this sense, was
abrogated by the precept of legal alms, which was given at Medina.
1 Idem, Yahya. Vide D'Herbelot, Bibl. Orient. p. 438, et Selden. de
Jure Nat. Sec. Hebr. l. 5, c. 8. 2 See the Prelim. Disc. p. 12, &c.
And if an evil suggestion from Satan be suggested unto thee, to divert
thee from thy duty, have recourse unto GOD: for he heareth and knoweth.
200 Verily they who fear God, when a temptation from Satan assaileth them,
remember the divine commands, and behold, they clearly see the danger of sin
and the wiles of the devil.
But as for the brethren of the devils, they shall continue them in error;
and afterwards they shall not preserve themselves therefrom.
And when thou bringest not a verse of the Koran unto them, they say, Hast
thou not put it together?i Answer, I follow that only which is revealed unto
me from my LORD. This book containeth evident proofs from your LORD, and is a
direction and mercy unto people who believe.
And when the Koran is read, attend thereto, and keep silence; that ye may
obtain mercy.
And meditate on thy LORD in thine own mind, with humility and fear, and
without loud speaking, evening and morning; and be not one of the negligent.
Moreover the angels who are with my LORD do not proudly disdain his
service, but they celebrate his praise and worship him.
_______
CHAPTER VIII.
ENTITLED, THE SPOILS;k REVEALED AT MEDINA.
IN THE NAME OF THE MOST MERCIFUL GOD.
THEY will ask thee concerning the spoils: Answer, The division of the
spoils belongeth unto GOD and the apostle.m Therefore fear GOD, and compose
the matter amicably among you: and obey GOD and his apostle, if ye are true
believers.
Verily the true believers are those whose hearts fear when GOD is
mentioned, and whose faith increaseth when his signs are rehearsed unto them,
and who trust in their LORD;
i i.e., Hast thou not yet contrived what to say; or canst thou obtain
no revelation from GOD
k This chapter was occasioned by the high disputes which happened about
the division of the spoils taken at the battle of Bedr,1 between the young men
who had fought, and the old men who had stayed under the ensigns; the former
insisting they ought to have the whole, and the latter that they deserved a
share.2 To end the contention, Mohammed pretended to have received orders
from heaven to divide the booty among them equally, having first taken
thereout a fifth part for the purposes which will be mentioned hereafter.
l Except seven verses, beginning at these words, And call to mind when
the unbelievers plotted against thee, &c. Which some think were revealed at
Mecca.
m It is related that Saad Ebn Abi Wakkâs, one of the companions, whose
brother Omair was slain in this battle, having killed Saîd Ebn al As, took his
sword, and carrying it to Mohammed, desired that he might be permitted to keep
it; but the prophet told him that it was not his to give away, and ordered him
to lay it with the other spoils. At this repulse, and the loss of his
brother, Saad was greatly disturbed; but in a very little while this chapter
was revealed, and thereupon Mohammed gave him the sword, saying, You asked
this sword of me when I had no power to dispose of it, but now I have received
authority from GOD to distribute the spoils, you may take it.3
1 See cap. 3, p. 33. 2 Al Beidâwi, Jallalo'ddin. 3 Al
Beidâwi.
who observe the stated times of prayer, and give alms out of that which
we have bestowed on them.
These are really believers: they shall have superior degrees of felicity
with their LORD, and forgiveness, and an honourable provision.
As thy LORD brought thee forth from thy house,n with truth; and part of
the believers were averse to thy directions:o
they disputed with thee concerning the truth, after it had been made
known unto them;p no otherwise than as if they had been led forth to death,
and had seen it with their eyes.q
And call to mind when GOD promised you one of the two parties, that it
should be delivered unto you,r and ye desired that the party which was not
furnished with armss should be delivered unto you: but GOD purposed to make
known the truth in his words, and to cut off the uttermost part of the
unbelievers;t
that he might verify the truth, and destroy falsehood, although the
wicked were averse thereto.
n i.e., From Medina. The particle as having nothing in the following
words to answer it, al Beidâwi supposes the connection to be that the division
of the spoils belonged to the prophet, notwithstanding his followers were
averse to it, as they had been averse to the expedition itself.
o For the better understanding of this passage, it will be necessary to
mention some further particulars relating to the expedition of Bedr.
Mohammed having received private information (for which he pretended he
was obliged to the angel Gabriel) of the approach of a caravan belonging to
the Koreish, which was on its return from Syria with a large quantity of
valuable merchandise, and was guarded by no more than thirty, or, as others
say, forty men, set out with a party to intercept it. Abu Sofiân, who
commanded the little convoy, having notice of Mohammed's motions, sent to
Mecca for succours; upon which Abu Jahl, and all the principal men of the
city, except only
Abu Laheb, marched to his assistance, with a body of nine hundred and fifty
men. Mohammed had no sooner received advice of this, than Gabriel descended
with a promise that he should either take the caravan or beat the succours;
whereupon he consulted with his companions which of the two he should attack.
Some of them were for setting upon the caravan, saying that they were not
prepared to fight such a body of troops as were coming with Abu Jahl: but this
proposal Mohammed rejected, telling them that the caravan was at a
considerable distance by the seaside, whereas Abu Jahl was just upon them.
The others, however, insisted so obstinately on pursuing the first design of
falling on the caravan, that the prophet grew angry, but by the interposition
of Abu Becr, Omar, Saad Ebn Obadah, and Mokdâd Ebn Amru, they at length
acquiesced in his opinion. Mokdâd in particular assured him they were all
ready to obey his orders, and would not say to him, as the children of Israel
did to Moses, Go thou and thy LORD to fight, for we will sit here;1 but, Go
thou and thy LORD to fight, and we will fight with you. At this Mohammed
smiled, and again sat down to consult with them, applying himself chiefly to
the Ansârs or helpers, because they were the greater part of his forces, and
he had some apprehension lest they should not think themselves obliged by the
oath they had taken to him at al Akaba,2 to assist him against any other than
such as should attack him in Medina. But Saad Ebn Moâdh, in the name of the
rest, told him that they had received him as the apostle of GOD, and had
promised him obedience, and were therefore all to a man ready to follow him
where he pleased, though it were into the sea. Upon which the prophet ordered
them in GOD'S name to attack the succours, assuring them of the victory.3
p That is, concerning their success against Abu Jahl and the Koreish;
notwithstanding they had GOD'S promise to encourage them.
q The reason of this great backwardness was the smallness of their
number, in comparison of the enemy, and their being unprepared; for they were
all foot, having but two horses among them, whereas the Koreish had no less
than a hundred horse.4
r That is, either the caravan or the succours from Mecca. Father
Marracci mistaking al îr and al nafîr, which are appellatives and signify the
caravan and the troop or body of succours, for proper names, has thence coined
two families of the Koreish never heard of before, which he calls Airenses and
Naphirenses.5
s viz., The caravan, which was guarded by no more than forty horse;
whereas the other party was strong and well appointed.
t As if he had said, Your view was only to gain the spoils of the
caravan, and to avoid danger; but God designed to exalt his true religion by
extirpating its adversaries.6
1 Kor. c. 5, p. 76. 2 See the Prelim. Disc. p. 37.
3 Al Beidâwi. 4 Idem. Vide Abulfed, Vit. Moh. p. 56.
5 Marracc. in Alc. p. 297. 6 Al Beidâwi.
When ye asked assistance of your LORD,u and he answered you, Verily I
will assist you with a thousandx angels, following one another in order.
10 And this GOD designed only as good tidingsy for you, and that your
hearts might thereby rest secure: for victory is from GOD alone; and GOD is
mighty and wise.
When a sleep fell on you as a security from him, and he sent down upon
you water from heaven, that he might thereby purify you, and take from you the
abomination of Satan,z and that he might confirm your hearts, and establish
your feet thereby.
Also when thy LORD spake unto the angels, saying, Verily I am with you;
wherefore confirm those who believe. I will cast a dread into the hearts of
the unbelievers. Therefore strike off their heads, and strike off all the
ends of their fingers.a
This shall they suffer, because they have resisted GOD and his apostle:
and whosoever shall oppose GOD and his apostle, verily GOD will be severe in
punishing him.
This shall be your punishment; taste it therefore: and the infidels shall
also suffer the torment of hell fire.
O true believers, when ye meet the unbelievers marching in great numbers
against you, turn not your backs unto them:
for whoso shall turn his back unto them in that day, unless he turneth
aside to fight, or retreateth to another party of the faithful,b shall draw on
himself the indignation of GOD, and his abode shall be in hell; an ill journey
shall it be thither!
And ye slew not those who were slain at Bedr yourselves, but GOD slew
them.c Neither didst thou, O Mohammed cast the gravel into their eyes, when
thou didst seem to cast it; but GOD cast it,d that he might prove the true
believers by a gracious trial from himself, for GOD heareth and knoweth.
This was done that GOD might also weaken the crafty devices of the
unbelievers.
If ye desire a decision of the matter between us, now hath a decision
come unto you:e and if ye desist from opposing the apostle, it will be better
for you. But if ye return to attack him, we will also return to his
assistance; and your forces shall not be of advantage unto you at all,
although they be numerous; for GOD is with the faithful.
u When Mohammed's men saw they could not avoid fighting, they
recommended themselves to GOD'S protection; and their prophet prayed with
great earnestness, crying out, O GOD, fulfil that which thou hast promised me:
O GOD, if this party be cut off, thou wilt no more be worshipped on earth.
And he continued to repeat these words till his cloak fell from off his back.7
x Which were afterwards reinforced with three thousand more.8
Wherefore some copies instead of a thousand, read thousands in the plural.
y See chap. 3, p. 45.
z It is related, that the spot where Mohammed's little army lay was a
dry and deep sand, into which their feet sank as they walked, the enemy having
the command of the water; and that having fallen asleep, the greater part of
them were disturbed with dreams, wherein the devil suggested to them that they
could never expect God's assistance in the battle, since they were cut off
from the water, and besides suffering the inconvenience of thirst, must be
obliged to pray without washing, though they imagined themselves to be the
favourites of God, and that they had his apostle among them. But in the night
rain fell so plentifully that it formed a little brook, and not only supplied
them with water for all their uses, but made the sand between them and the
infidel army firm enough to bear them; whereupon the diabolical suggestions
ceased.1
a This is the punishment expressly assigned the enemies of the
Mohammedan religion; though the Moslems did not inflict it on the prisoners
they took at Bedr, for which they are reprehended in this chapter.
b That is, if it be not downright running away, but done either with
design to rally and attack the enemy again, or by way of feint or stratagem,
or to succour a party which is hard pressed, &c.2
c See c. 3, p. 32, note n.
d See ibid.
e These words are directed to the people of Mecca, whom Mohammed
derides, because the Koreish, when they were ready to set out from Mecca, took
hold of the curtains of the Caaba, saying O GOD, grant the victory to the
superior army, the party that is most rightly directed, and the most
honourable.1
7 Idem. Vide Abulfed. Vit. Moh. p. 58. 8 See cap. 3, p. 33 and
45. 1 Al Beidâwi.
9 Idem.
20 O true believers, obey GOD and his apostle, and turn not back from him,
since ye hear the admonitions of the Korân.
And be not as those who say, We hear, when they do not hear.
Verily the worst sort of beasts in the sight of GOD are the deaf and the
dumb, who understand not.
If GOD had known any good in them, he would certainly have caused them to
hear:f and if he had caused them to hear, they would surely have turned back,
and have retired afar off.
O true believers, answer GOD and his apostle, when he inviteth you unto
that which giveth you life; and know that GOD goeth between a man and his
heart,g and that before him ye shall be assembled.
Beware of sedition;h it will not affect those who are ungodly among you
particularly, but all of you in general; and know that GOD is severe in
punishing.
And remember when ye were few, and reputed weak in the land;i ye feared
lest men should snatch you away: but God provided you a place of refuge, and
he strengthened you with his assistance, and bestowed on you good things, that
ye might give thanks.
O true believers, deceive not GOD and his apostle;k neither violate your
faith against your own knowledge.
And know that your wealth and your children are a temptation unto you;l
and that with GOD is a great reward.
O true believers, if ye fear GOD, he will grant you a distinction,m and
will expiate your sins from you, and will forgive you; for GOD is endued with
great liberality.
f That is, to hearken to the remonstrances of the Korân. Some say that
the infidels demanded of Mohammed that he should raise Kosai, one of his
ancestors, to life, to bear witness to the truth of his mission, saying he was
a man of honour and veracity, and they would believe his testimony: but they
are here told that it would have been in vain.2
g Not only knowing the innermost secrets of his heart, but overruling a
man's designs, and disposing him either to belief or infidelity.
h The original word signifies any epidemical crime, which involves a
number of people in its guilt; and the commentators are divided as to its
particular meaning in this place.
i viz., At Mecca. The persons here spoken to are the Mohâjerîn, or
refugees who fled from thence to Medina.
k Al Beidâwi mentions an instance of such treacherous dealing in Abu
Lobâba, who was sent by Mohammed to the tribe of Koreidha, then besieged by
that prophet for having broken their league with him and perfidiously gone
over to the enemies at the war of the ditch,3 to persuade them to surrender at
the discretion of Saad Ebn Moadh, prince of the tribe of Aws, their
confederates, which proposal they had refused. But Abu Lobâba's family and
effects being in the hands of those of Koreidha, he acted directly contrary to
his commission, and instead of persuading them to accept Saad as their judge,
when they asked his advice about it, drew his hand across his throat,
signifying that he would put them all to death. However, he had no sooner
done this than he was sensible of his crime, and going into a mosque, tied
himself to a pillar, and remained there seven days without meat or drink, till
Mohammed forgave him.
l As they were to Abu Lobâba.
m i.e., A direction that you may distinguish between truth and
falsehood; or success in battle to distinguish the believers from the
infidels; or the like.
1 Idem. 2 Idem. See c. 6, p. 99. 3 See Prid. Life
of Mah. p. 85. Abulf. Vit. Moh. p. 76, and the notes to c. 33.
30 And call to mind when the unbelievers plotted against thee, that they
might either detain thee in bonds, or put to death, or expel thee the city;n
and they plotted against thee: but GOD laid a plot against them;o and GOD is
the best layer of plots.
And when our signs are repeated unto them, they say, We have heard; if we
pleased we would certainly pronounce a composition like unto this: this is
nothing but fables of the ancients.p
And when they said, O GOD, if this be the truth from thee, rain down
stones upon us from heaven, or inflict on us some other grievous punishment.r
But GOD was not disposed to punish them, while thou wast with them: nor
was GOD disposed to punish them when they asked pardon.s
But they have nothing to offer in excuse why GOD should not punish them,
since they hindered the believers from visiting the holy temple,t although
they are not the guardians thereof.u The guardians thereof are those only who
fear God; but the greater part of them know it not.
And their prayer at the house of God is no other than whistling and
clapping of the hands.x Taste therefore the punishment, for that ye have been
unbelievers.
They who believe not expend their wealth to obstruct the way of GOD:y
they shall expend it, but afterwards it shall become matter of sighing and
regret unto them, and at length they shall be overcome;
and the unbelievers shall be gathered together into hell;
that GOD may distinguish the wicked from the good, and may throw the
wicked one upon the other, and may gather them all in a heap, and cast them
into hell. These are they who shall perish.
Say unto the unbelievers, that if they desist from opposing thee, what is
already past shall be forgiven them; but if they return to attack thee, the
exemplary punishment of the former opposers of the prophets is already past,
and the like shall be inflicted on them.
40 Therefore fight against them until there be no opposition in favor of
idolatry, and the religion be wholly GOD'S. If they desist, verily GOD seeth
that which they do:
n When the Meccans heard of the league entered into by Mohammed with
those of Medina, being apprehensive of the consequence, they held a council,
whereat they say the devil assisted in the likeness of an old man of Najd.
The point under consideration being what they should do with Mohammed,
Abu'lbakhtari was of opinion that he should be imprisoned, and the room walled
up, except a little hole, through which he should have necessaries given him,
till he died. This the devil opposed, saying that he might probably be
released by some of his own party. Heshâm Ebn Amru was for banishing him, but
his advice also the devil rejected, insisting that Mohammed might engage some
other tribes in his interest, and make war on them. At length Abu Jahl gave
his opinion for putting him to death, and proposed the manner, which was
unanimously approved.1
o Revealing their conspiracy to Mohammed, and miraculously assisting
him to deceive them and make his escape;2 and afterwards drawing them to the
battle of Bedr.
p See chapter 6, p. 90.
r This was the speech of Al Nodar Ebn al Hareth.3
s Saying, GOD forgive us! Some of the commentators, however, suppose
the persons who asked pardon were certain believers who stayed among the
infidels; and others think the meaning to be, that GOD would not punish them,
provided they asked pardon.
t Obliging them to fly from Mecca, and not permitting them so much as
to approach the temple, in the expedition of al Hodeibiya.4
u Because of their idolatry and indecent deportment there. For
otherwise the Koreish had a right to the guardianship of the Caaba, and it was
continued in their tribe and in the same family even after the taking of
Mecca.5
x It is said that they used to go round the Caaba naked,6 both men and
women, whistling at the same time through their fingers, and clapping their
hands. Or, as others say, they made this noise on purpose to disturb Mohammed
when at his prayers, pretending to be at prayers also themselves.7
y The persons particularly meant in this passage were twelve of the
Koreish, who gave each of them ten camels every day to be killed for
provisions for their army in the expedition of Bedr; or, according to others,
the owners of the effects brought by the caravan, who gave great part of them
to the support of the succours from Mecca. It is also said that Abu Sofiân,
in the expedition of Ohod, hired two thousand Arabs, who cost him a
considerable sum, besides the auxiliaries which he had obtained gratis.8
1 Al Beidâwi. See the Prelim. Disc. p. 39. 2 See ibid.
3 Al Beidâwi. 4 See the Prelim. Disc. p. 41. 5 See
c. 4, p. 60, note x. 6 See c. 7, p. 107. 7 Al Beidâwi.
8 Idem.
but if they turn back, know that GOD is your patron; he is the best
patron, and the best helper.
And know that whenever ye gain any spoils, a fifth part thereof belongeth
unto GOD, and to the apostle, and his kindred, and the orphans, and the poor,
and the traveller;z if ye believe in GOD, and that which we have sent down
unto our servant on the day of distinction,a on the day whereon the two armies
met: and GOD is almighty.
When ye were encamped on the hithermost side of the valley,b and they
were encamped on the farther side, and the caravan was below you;c and if ye
had mutually appointed to come to a battle ye would certainly have declined
the appointment;d but ye were brought to an engagement without any previous
appointment, that GOD might accomplish the thing which was decreed to be
done;e
that he who perisheth hereafter may perish after demonstrative evidence,
and that he who liveth may live by the same evidence; GOD both heareth and
knoweth.
When thy LORD caused the enemy to appear unto thee in thy sleep few in
number;f and if he had caused them to appear numerous unto thee, ye would have
been disheartened, and would have disputed concerning the matter:g but GOD
preserved you from this; for he knoweth the innermost parts of the breasts of
men.
And when he caused them to appear unto you when ye met, to be few in your
eyes;h and diminished your numbers in their eyes;i that GOD might accomplish
the thing which was decreed to be done; and unto GOD shall all things return.
O true believers, when ye meet a party of the infidels, stand firm, and
remember GOD frequently, that ye may prosper:
and obey GOD and his apostle, and be not refractory, lest ye be
discouraged, and your success depart from you; but persevere with patience,
for GOD is with those who persevere.
z According to this law, a fifth part of the spoils is appropriated to
the particular uses here mentioned, and the other four-fifths are to be
equally divided among those who were present at the action: but in what manner
or to whom the first fifth is to be distributed, the Mohammedan doctors
differ, as we have elsewhere observed.1 Though it be the general opinion that
this verse was revealed at Bedr, yet there are some who suppose it was
revealed in the expedition against the Jewish tribe of Kainokâ, which happened
a little above a month after.2
a i.e., Of the battle of Bedr; which is so called because it
distinguished the true believers from the infidels.
b Which was much more inconvenient than the other, because of the deep
sand and want of water.
c By the seaside, making the best of their way to Mecca.
d Because of the great superiority of the enemy, and the disadvantages
ye lay under.
e By granting a miraculous victory to the faithful, and overthrowing
their enemies; for the conviction of the latter, and the confirmation of the
former.3
f With which vision Mohammed acquainted his companions for their
encouragement.
g Whether ye should attack the enemy or fly.
h It is said that Ebn Masúd asked the man who was next him whether he
did not see them to be about seventy, to which he replied that he took them to
be a hundred.4
i This seeming contradictory to a passage in the third chapter,5 where
it is said that the Moslems appeared to the infidels to be twice their own
number, the commentators reconcile the matter by telling us that, just before
the battle began, the prophet's party seemed fewer than they really were, to
draw the enemy to an engagement; but that so soon as the armies were fully
engaged, they appeared superior, to terrify and dismay their adversaries. It
is related that Abu Jahl at first thought them so inconsiderable a handful,
that he said one camel would be as much as they could all eat.6
1 See the Prelim. Disc. Sect. VI. 2 Al Beidâwi. 3
Idem. 4 Idem. 5 Page 33
6 Al Beidâwi, Jallalo'ddin, Yahya.
And be not as those who went out of their houses in an insolent manner,
and to appear with ostentation unto men,k and turned aside from the way of
GOD; for GOD comprehendeth that which they do.
50 And remember when Satan prepared their works for them,l and said, No man
shall prevail against you to-day; and I will surely be near to assist you.
But when the two armies appeared in sight of each other, he turned back on his
heels, and said, Verily I am clear of you: I certainly see that which ye see
not; I fear GOD, for GOD is severe in punishing.m
When the hypocrites, and those in whose hearts there was an infirmity,
said, Their religion hath deceived these men:n but whosoever confideth in GOD
cannot be deceived; for GOD is mighty and wise.
And if thou didst behold when the angels caused the unbelievers to die:
they strike their faces and their backs,o and say unto them, Taste ye the pain
of burning:
this shall ye suffer for that which your hands have sent before you;p and
because GOD is not unjust towards his servants.
These have acted according to the wont of the people of Pharaoh, and of
those before them, who disbelieved in the signs of GOD: therefore GOD took
them away in their iniquity; for GOD is mighty and severe in punishing.
This hath come to pass because GOD changeth not his grace, wherewith he
hath favored any people, until they change that which is in their souls; and
for that GOD both heareth and seeth.
According to the wont of the people of Pharaoh, and of those before them,
who charged the signs of their LORD with imposture, have they acted: wherefore
we destroyed them in their sins, and we drowned the people of Pharaoh; for
they were all unjust persons.
Verily the worst cattle in the sight of GOD are those who are obstinate
infidels, and will not believe.
k These were the Meccans, who, marching to the assistance of the
caravan, and being come as far as Johfa, were there met by a messenger from
Abu Sofiân, to acquaint them that he thought himself out of danger, and
therefore they might return home; upon which, Abu Jahl, to give the greater
opinion of the courage of himself and his comrades, and of their readiness to
assist their friends, swore that they would not return till they had been at
Bedr, and had there drunk wine and entertained those who should be present,
and diverted themselves with singing women.1 The event of which bravado was
very fatal, several of the principal Koreish, and Abu Jahl in particular,
losing their lives in the expedition.
l By inciting them to oppose the prophet.
m Some understand this passage figuratively, of the private instigation
of the devil, and of the defeating of his designs and the hopes with which he
had inspired the idolaters. But others take the whole literally, and tell us
that when the Koreish, on their march, bethought themselves of the enmity
between them and the tribe of Kenâna, who were masters of the country about
Bedr, that consideration would have prevailed on them to return, had not the
devil appeared in the likeness of Sorâka Ebn Malec, a principal person of that
tribe, and promised them that they should not be molested, and that himself
would go with them. But when they came to join battle, and the devil saw the
angels descending to the assistance of the Moslems, he retired; and al Hareth
Ebn Heshâm, who had him then by the hand, asking him whither he was going, and
if he intended to betray them at such a juncture, he answered, in the words of
this passage: I am clear of you, for I see that which ye see not; meaning the
celestial succours. They say further, that when the Koreish, on their return,
laid the blame of their overthrow on Sorâka, he swore that he did not so much
as know of their march till he heard they were routed: and afterwards, when
they embraced Mohammedism, they were satisfied it was the devil.2
n In tempting them to so great a piece of folly, as to attack so large
a body of men with such a handful.
o This passage is generally understood of the angels who slew the
infidels at Bedr, and who fought (as the commentators pretend) with iron
maces, which shot forth flames of fire at every stroke.3 Some, however,
imagine that the words hint, at least, at the examination of the sepulchre,
which the Mohammedans believe every man must undergo after death, and will be
very terrible to the unbelievers.4
p See chapter 2, p. 11, note r.
1 Al Beidâwi. 2 Idem, Jallalo'ddin. 3 Idem.
4 See the Prelim. Disc. Sect. IV. p. 50, &c.
As to those who enter into a league with thee, and afterwards violate
their league at every convenient opportunity,q and fear not God;
if thou take them in war, disperse, by making them an example, those who
shall come after them, that they may be warned;
60 or if thou apprehend treachery from any people, throw back their league
unto them with like treatment; for GOD loveth not the treacherous.
And think notr that the unbelievers have escaped God's vengeance,s for
they shall not weaken the power of God.
Therefore prepare against them what force ye are able, and troops of
horse, whereby ye may strike a terror into the enemy of GOD, and your enemy,
and into other infidels besides them, whom ye know not, but GOD knoweth them.
And whatsoever ye shall expend in the defence of the religion of GOD, it shall
be repaid unto you, and ye shall not be treated unjustly.
And if they incline unto peace, do thou also incline thereto; and put thy
confidence in GOD, for it is he who heareth and knoweth.
But if they seek to deceive thee, verily GOD will be thy support. It is
he who hath strengthened thee with his help, and with that of the faithful;
and hath united their hearts. If thou hadst expended whatever riches are in
the earth, thou couldst not have united their hearts,t but GOD united them;
for he is mighty and wise.
O prophet, GOD is thy support, and such of the true believers who
followeth thee.u
O prophet stir up the faithful to war: if twenty of you persevere with
constancy, they shall overcome two hundred, and if there be one hundred of
you, they shall overcome a thousand of those who believe not; because they are
a people which do not understand.
Now hath GOD eased you, for he knew that ye were weak. If there be an
hundred of you who persevere with constancy, they shall overcome two hundred;
and if there be a thousand of you, they shall overcome two thousand,x by the
permission of GOD; for GOD is with those who persevere.
It hath not been granted unto any prophet, that he should possess
captives, until he hath made a great slaughter of the infidels in the earth.y
Ye seek the accidental goods of this world, but GOD regardeth the life to
come; and GOD is mighty and wise.
q As did the tribe of Koreidha.1
r Some copies read it in the third person, Let not the unbelievers
think, &c.
s viz., Those who made their escape from Bedr.
t Because of the inveterate enmity which reigned among many of the Arab
tribes; and therefore this reconciliation is reckoned by the commentators as
no inconsiderable miracle, and a strong proof of their prophet's mission.
u This passage, as some say, was revealed in a plain called al Beidâ,
between Mecca and Medina, during the expedition of Bedr; and, as others, in
the sixth year of the prophet's mission, on the occasion of Omar's embracing
Mohammedism.
x See Levit. xxvi. 8; Josh xxiii. 10.
y Because severity ought to be used where circumstances require it,
though clemency be more preferable where it may be exercised with safety.
While the Mohammedans, therefore, were weak, and their religion in its
infancy, GOD'S pleasure was that the opposers of it should be cut off, as is
particularly directed in this chapter. For which reason, they are here
upbraided with their preferring the lucre of the ransom to their duty
1 See before, p. 128, and c. 33.
Unless a revelation had been previously delivered from GOD, verily a
severe punishment had been inflicted on you, for the ransom which ye took from
the captives at Bedr.z
70 Eat therefore of what ye have acquired,a that which is lawful and good;
for GOD is gracious and merciful.
O prophet, say unto the captives who are in your hands. If GOD shall know
any good to be in your hearts, he will give you better than what hath been
taken from you;b and he will forgive you, for GOD is gracious and merciful.
But if they seek to deceive thee,c verily they have deceived GOD;
wherefore he hath given thee power over them: and GOD is knowing and wise.
Moreover, they who have believed, and have fled their country, and
employed their substance and their persons in fighting for the religion of
GOD, and they who have given the prophet a refuge among them, and have
assisted him, these shall be deemed the one nearest of kin to the other.d But
they who have believed, but have not fled their country, shall have no right
of kindred at all with you, until they also fly. Yet if they ask assistance
of you on account of religion, it belongeth unto you to give them assistance;
except against a people between whom and yourselves there shall be a league
subsisting: and GOD seeth that which ye do.
And as to the infidels let them be deemed of kin the one to the other.
Unless ye do this, there will be a sedition in the earth, and grievous
corruption.
But as for them who have believed, and left their country, and have
fought for GOD's true religion, and who have allowed the prophet a retreat
among them, and have assisted him, these are really believers; they shall
receive mercy, and an honourable provision.
z That is, had not the ransom been, in strictness, lawful for you to
accept, by GOD'S having in general terms allowed you the spoil and the
captives, ye had been severely punished.
Among the seventy prisoners which the Moslems took in this battle were
Al Abbâs, one of Mohammed's uncles, and Okail, the son of Abu Tâleb and
brother of Ali. When they were brought before Mohammed, he asking the advice
of his companions what should be done with them, Abu Becr was for releasing
them on their paying ransom, saying, that they were near relations to the
prophet, and GOD might possibly forgive them on their repentance; but Omar was
for striking off their heads, as professed patrons of infidelity. Mohammed
did not approve of the latter advice, but observed that Abu Becr resembled
Abraham, who interceded for offenders, and that Omar was like Noah, who prayed
for the utter extirpation of the wicked antediluvians; and thereupon it was
agreed to accept a ransom from them and their fellow-captives. Soon after
which, Omar, going into the prophet's tent, found him and Abu Becr weeping,
and, asking them the reason of their tears, Mohammed acquainted him that this
verse had been revealed, condemning their ill-timed lenity towards their
prisoners, and that they had narrowly escaped the divine vengeance for it,
adding that, if GOD had not passed the matter over, they had certainly been
destroyed to a man, excepting only Omar and Saad Ebn Moadh, a person of as
great severity, and who was also for putting the prisoners to death.1 Yet did
not this crime go absolutely unpunished neither: for in the battle of Ohod the
Moslems lost seventy men, equal to the number of prisoners taken at Bedr, 2
which was so ordered by GOD, as a retaliation or atonement for the same.
a i.e., Of the ransom which ye have received of your prisoners. For it
seems, on this rebuke, they had some scruple of conscience whether they might
convert it to their own use or not.3
b That is, if ye repent and believe, GOD will make you abundant
retribution for the ransom ye have now paid. It is said that this passage was
revealed on the particular account of al Abbâs, who, being obliged by
Mohammed, though his uncle, to ransom both himself and his two nephews, Okail
and Nawfal Ebn al Hareth, complained that he should be reduced to beg alms of
the Koreish as long as he lived. Whereupon Mohammed asked him what was become
of the gold which he delivered to Omm al Fadl when he left Mecca, telling her
that he knew not what might befall him in the expedition, and therefore, if he
lost his life, she might keep it herself for the use of her and her children?
Al Abbâs demanded who told him this, to which Mohammed replied that GOD had
revealed it to him. And upon this al Abbâs immediately professed Islâmism,
declaring that none could know of that affair except GOD, because he gave her
the money at midnight. Some years after, al Abbâs reflecting on this passage,
confessed it to be fulfilled; for he was then not only possessed of a large
substance, but had the custody of the well Zemzem, which, he said, he
preferred to all the riches of Mecca.4
c By not paying the ransom agreed on.
d And shall consequently inherit one another's substance, preferably to
their relations by blood. And this, they say, was practised for some time,
the Mohâjerin and Ansârs being judged heirs to one another, exclusive of the
deceased's other kindred, till this passage was abrogated by the following:
Those who are related by blood shall be deemed the nearest of kin to each
other.
1 Idem. 2 See c. 3, p. 46. 3 Al Beidâwi.
4 Idem. Vide D'Herbel. Bibl. Orient. Art. Abbâs.
And they who have believe since, and have fled their country, and have
fought with you, these also are of you. And those who are related by
consanguinity shall be deemed the nearest of kin to each other preferably to
strangers according to the book of GOD; GOD knoweth all things.
________
CHAPTER IX.
ENTITLED, THE DECLARATION OF IMMUNITY;e REVEALED AT MEDINA.
A DECLARATION of immunity from GOD and his apostle, unto the idolaters,
with whom ye have entered into league.f
Go to and fro in the earth securely four months;g and know that ye shall
not weaken GOD, and that GOD will disgrace the unbelievers.
And a declaration from GOD and his apostle unto the people, on the day of
the greater pilgrimage,h that GOD is clear of the idolaters, and his apostle
also. Wherefore if ye repent, this will be better for you; but if ye turn
back, know that ye shall not weaken GOD: and denounce unto those who believe
not, a painful punishment.
e The reason why the chapter had this title appears from the first
verse. Some, however, give it other titles, and particularly that of
Repentance, which is mentioned immediately after.
It is observable that this chapter alone has not the auspicatory form,
In the name of the most merciful GOD, prefixed to it; the reason of which
omission, as some think, was, because these words imply a concession of
security, which is utterly taken away by this chapter, after a fixed time;
wherefore some have called it the chapter of Punishment; others say that
Mohammed (who died soon after he had received this chapter), having given no
direction where it should be placed, nor for the prefixing the Bismillah to
it, as had been done to the other chapters; and the argument of this chapter
bearing a near resemblance to that of the preceding, his companions differed
about it, some saying that both chapters were but one, and together made the
seventh of the seven long ones, and others that they were two distinct
chapters; whereupon, to accommodate the dispute, they left a space between
them, but did not interpose the distinction of the Bismillah.1
It is agreed that this chapter was the last which was revealed; and the
only one, as Mohammed declared, which was revealed entire and at once, except
the hundred and tenth.
Some will have the two last verses to have been revealed at Mecca.
f Some understand this sentence of the immunity or security therein
granted to the infidels for the space of four months; but others think that
the words properly signify that Mohammed for the space of four months; but
others think that the words properly signify that Mohammed is here declared by
GOD to be absolutely free and discharged from all truce or league with them,
after the expiration of that time;2 and this last seems to be the truest
interpretation.
Mohammed's thus renouncing all league with those who would not receive
him as the apostle of GOD, or submit to become tributary, was the consequence
of the great power to which he was now arrived. But the pretext he made use
of was the treachery he had met with among the Jewish, and idolatrous Arabs-
scarce any keeping faith with him, except Banu Damra, Banu Kenâna, and a few
others.3
g These months were Shawâl, Dhu'lkaada, Dhu'lhajja, and Moharram; the
chapter being revealed in Shawâl. Yet others compute them from the tenth of
Dhu'lhajja, when the chapter was published at Mecca, and consequently make
them expire on the tenth of the former Rabî.4
h viz., The tenth of Dhu'lhajja, when they slay the victims at Mina;
which day is their great feast, and completes the ceremonies of the
pilgrimage. Some suppose the adjective greater is added here to distinguish
the pilgrimage made at the appointed time from lesser pilgrimages, as they may
be called, or visitations of the Caaba, which may be performed at any time of
the year; or else because the concourse at the pilgrimage this year was
greater than ordinary, both Moslems and idolaters being present at it.
The promulgation of this chapter was committed by Mohammed to Ali, who
rode for that purpose on the prophet's slit-eared camel from Medina to Mecca;
and on the day above mentioned, standing up before the whole assembly at al
Akaba, told them that he was the messenger of the apostle of GOD unto them.
Whereupon they asking him what was his errand, he read twenty or thirty verses
of the chapter to them, and then said, I am commanded to acquaint you with
four things: I. That no idolater is to come near the temple of Mecca after
this year; 2. That no man presume to compass the Caaba naked for the future;5
3. That none but true believers shall enter paradise; and 4. That public faith
is to be kept.6
1 Al Beidâwi, Jallalo'ddin, Yahya, &c. 2 Idem. 3
Idem. 4 Idem, al Zamaksh., Jallalo'ddin.
5 See before, cap. 7, p. 107. 6 Al Beidâwi. Vide Abulfed. Vit.
Moh. p. 127, &c.
Except such of the idolaters with whom ye shall have entered into a
league, and who afterwards shall not fail you in any instance, nor assist any
other against you.i Wherefore perform the covenant which ye shall have made
with them, until their time shall be elapsed; for GOD loveth those who fear
him.
And when the months wherein ye are not allowed to attack them shall be
past, kill the idolaters wheresoever ye shall find them,k and take them
prisoners, and besiege them, and lay wait for them in every convenient place.
But if they shall repent, and observe the appointed times of prayer, and pay
the legal alms, dismiss them freely: for GOD is gracious and merciful.
And if any of the idolaters shall demand protection of thee, grant him
protection, that he may hear the word of GOD: and afterwards let him reach the
place of his security.l This shalt thou do, because they are people which
know not the excellency of the religion thou preachest.
How shall the idolaters be admitted into a league with GOD and with his
apostle; except those with whom ye entered into a league at the holy temple?m
So long as they behave with fidelity towards you, do ye also behave with
fidelity towards them; for GOD loveth those who fear him.
How can they be admitted into a league with you, since, if they prevail
against you, they will not regard in you either consanguinity or faith? They
will please you with their mouths, but their hearts will be averse from you;
for the greater part of them are wicked doers.
They sell the signs of GOD for a small price, and obstruct his way; it is
certainly evil which they do.
10 They regard not in a believer either consanguinity or faith; and these
are the transgressors.
Yet if they repent, and observe the appointed times of prayer, and give
alms, they shall be deemed your brethren in religion. We distinctly propound
our signs unto people who understand.
But if they violate their oaths, after their league, and revile your
religion, oppose the leaders of infidelity (for there is no trust in them),
that they may desist from their treachery.
Will ye not fight against people who have violated their oaths, and
conspired to expel the apostle of God; and who of their own accord assaulted
you the first time?n Will ye fear them? But it is more just that ye should
fear GOD, if ye are true believers.
i So that notwithstanding Mohammed renounces all league with those who
had deceived him, he declares himself ready to perform his engagements to such
as had been true to him.
k Either within or without the sacred territory.
l That is, you shall give him a safe-conduct, that he may return home
again securely, in case he shall not think fit to embrace Mohammedism.
m These are the persons before excepted.
n As did the Koreish in assisting the tribe of Becr against those of
Khozâah,7 and laying a design to ruin Mohammed, without any just provocation;
and as several of the Jewish tribes did, by aiding the enemy, and endeavouring
to oblige the prophet to leave Medina, as he had been obliged to leave Mecca.8
7 See the Prelim. Disc. p. 42. 8 Al Beidâwi.
Attack them therefore; GOD shall punish them by your hands, and will
cover them with shame, and will give you the victory over them; and he will
heal the breasts of the people who believe,o
and will take away the indignation of their hearts: for GOD will be
turned unto whom he pleaseth; and GOD is knowing and wise.
Did ye imagine that ye should be abandoned, whereas GOD did not yet know
those among you who fought for his religion, and took not any besides GOD, and
his apostle, and the faithful for their friends? GOD is well acquainted with
that which ye do.
It is not fitting that the idolaters should visit the temples of GOD,
being witnesses against their own souls of their infidelity. The works of
these men are vain: and they shall remain in hell fire forever.
But he only shall visit the temples of GOD, who believeth in GOD and the
last day, and is constant at prayer, and payeth the legal alms, and feareth
GOD alone. These perhaps may become of the number of those who are rightly
directed.p
Do ye reckon the giving drink to the pilgrims, and the visiting of the
holy temple, to be actions as meritorious as those performed by him who
believeth in GOD and the last day, and fighteth for the religion of GOD?q
They shall not be held equal with GOD: for GOD directeth not the unrighteous
people.
20 They who have believed, and fled their country and employed their
substance and their persons in the defence of GOD'S true religion, shall be in
the highest degree of honour with GOD; and these are they who shall be happy.
Their LORD sendeth them good tidings of mercy from him, and good will,
and of gardens wherein they shall enjoy lasting pleasure:
they shall continue therein forever; for with GOD is a great reward.
O true believers, take not your fathers or your brethren for friends, if
they love infidelity above faith; and whosoever among you shall take them for
his friends, they will be unjust doers.
Say, if your fathers, and your sons, and your brethren, and your wives,
and your relations, and your substance which ye have acquired, and your
merchandise which ye apprehend may not be sold off, and your dwellings wherein
ye delight, be more dear unto you than GOD, and his apostle, and the
advancement of his religion; wait until GOD shall send his command:r for GOD
directeth not the ungodly people.
Now hath GOD assisted you in many engagements, and particularly at the
battle of Honein,s when ye pleased yourselves in your multitude, but it was no
manner of advantage unto you, and the earth became too strait for you,t
notwithstanding it was spacious; then did ye retreat, and turn your backs.
o viz., Those of Khozâah; or, as others say, certain families of Yaman
and Saba, who went to Mecca, and there professed Mohammedism, but were very
injuriously treated by the inhabitants; whereupon they complained to Mohammed,
who bade them take comfort, for that joy was approaching.1
p These words are to warn the believers from having too great a
confidence in their own merits, and likewise to deter the unbelievers; for if
the faithful will but perhaps be saved, what can the others hope for?2
q This passage was revealed on occasion of some words of al Abbâs,
Mohammed's uncle, who, when he was taken prisoner, being bitterly reproached
by the Moslems, and particularly by his nephew Ali, answered: You rip up our
ill actions, but take no notice of our good ones; we visit the temple of
Mecca, and adorn the Caaba with hangings, and give drink to the pilgrims (of
Zemzem water, I suppose) and free captives.3
r Or shall punish you. Some suppose the taking of Mecca to be here
intended.4
s This battle was fought in the eighth year of the Hejra, in the valley
of Honein, which lies about three miles from Mecca towards Tâyef, between
Mohammed, who had an army of twelve thousand men, and the tribes of Hawâzen
and Thakîf, whose forces did not exceed four thousand. The Mohammedans,
seeing themselves so greatly superior to their enemies, made sure of the
victory; a certain person, whom some suppose to have been the prophet himself,
crying out, These can never be overcome by so few. But GOD was so highly
displeased with this confidence, that in the first encounter the Moslems were
put to flight,5 some of them running away quite to Mecca, so that none stood
their ground except Mohammed himself, and some few of his family; and they say
the prophet's courage was so great, that his uncle al Abbâs, and his cousin
Abu Sofiân Ebn al Hareth, had much ado to prevent his spurring his mule into
the midst of the enemy, by laying hold of the bridle and stirrup. Then he
ordered al Abbâs, who had the voice of a Stentor, to recall his flying troops;
upon which they rallied, and the prophet throwing a handful of dust against
the enemy, they attacked them a second time, and by the divine assistance
gained the victory.6
t For the valley being very deep, and encompassed by craggy mountains,
the enemy placed themselves in ambush on every side, attacking them in the
straits and narrow passages, and from behind the rocks, with great advantage.1
1 Idem. 2 Idem. 3 Idem. 4 Idem
5 See Prid. Life of Mahomet, p. 96, &c. Hotting. Hist. Orient.
p. 271, &c. D'Herbel. Bibl. Orient. p. 601. 6 Al Beidâwi,
Jallalo'ddin, Abulfeda, Vit. Moh. p. 112, &c.
1 Ebn Ishak.
Afterwards GOD sent down his securityu upon his apostle and upon the
faithful, and sent down troops of angels,x which ye saw not; and he punished
those who disbelieved; and this was the reward of the unbelievers.
Nevertheless GOD will hereafter be turned unto whom he pleaseth;y for GOD
is gracious and merciful.
O true believers, verily the idolaters are unclean; let them not
therefore come near unto the holy temple after this year.z And if ye fear
want, by the cutting off trade and communication with them, GOD will enrich
you of his abundance,a if he pleaseth; for GOD is knowing and wise.
Fight against them who believe not in GOD, nor the last day,b and forbid
not that which GOD and his apostle have forbidden, and profess not the true
religion, of those unto whom the scriptures have been delivered, until they
pay tribute by right of subjection,c and they be reduced low.
u The original word is Sakînat, which the commentators interpret in
this sense; but it seems rather to signify the divine presence, or Shechinah,
appearing to aid the Moslems.2
x As to the number of these celestial auxiliaries, the commentators
differ; some say they were five thousand, some eight thousand, and others
sixteen thousand.3
y Besides a great number of proselytes who were gained by this battle,
Mohammed, on their request, was so generous as to restore the captives (which
were no less than six thousand) to their friends, and offered to make amends
himself to any of his men who should not be willing to part with his
prisoners; but they all consented to it.4
z Which was the ninth year of the Hejra. In consequence of this
prohibition, neither Jews nor Christians, nor those of any other religion, are
suffered to come near Mecca to this day.
a This promise, says al Beidâwi, was fulfilled by GOD'S sending plenty
of rain, and disposing the inhabitants of Tebâla and Jorash, two towns in
Yaman, to embrace Islâm, who thereupon brought sufficient provisions to
Mohammed's men; and also by the subsequent coming in of the Arabs from all
quarters to him.
b That is, who have not a just and true faith in these matters; but
either believe a plurality of gods, or deny the eternity of hell torments,5 or
the delights of paradise as described in the Korân. For as it appears by the
following words, the Jews and Christians are the persons here chiefly meant.
c This I think the true meaning of the words an yadin, which literally
signify by or out of hand, and are variously interpreted: some supposing they
mean that the tribute is to be paid readily, or by their own hands and not by
another; or that tribute is to be exacted of the rich only, or those who are
able to pay it, and not of the poor; or else that it is to be taken as a
favour that the Mohammedans are satisfied with so small an imposition, &c.6
That the Jews and Christians are, according to this law, to be admitted
to protection on payment of tribute, there is no doubt: though the Mohammedan
doctors differ as to those of other religions. It is said that Omar at first
refused to accept tribute from a Magian, till Abd'alrahmân Ebn Awf assured him
that Mohammed himself had granted protection to a Magian, and ordered that the
professors of that religion should be included among the people of the book,
or those who found their religion on some book which they suppose to be of
divine original. And it is the more received opinion that these three
religions only ought to be tolerated on the condition of paying tribute:
others, however, admit the Sabians also. Abu Hanîfa supposed people of any
religion might be suffered, except the idolatrous Arabs; and Malec excepted
only apostates from Mohammedism.
The least tribute that can be taken from every such person, is generally
agreed to be a dinâr or about ten shillings, a year; nor can he be obliged to
pay more unless he consent to it; and this, they say, ought to be laid as well
on the poor as on the rich.1 But Abu Hanîfa decided that the rich should pay
forty-eight dirhems (twenty, and sometimes twenty-five, of which made a dinâr)
a year; one in middling circumstances half that sum; and a poor man, who was
able to get his living, a quarter of it: but that he who was not able to
support himself should pay nothing.2
2 See cap. 2, p. 27, note k. 3 Al Beidâwi. 4 Idem.
5 See cap. 2, p. 10, and cap. 3, p. 34. 6 Vide al Beidâwi.
30 The Jews say, Ezra is the son of GOD:d and the Christians say, Christ is
the Son of GOD. This is their saying in their mouths; they imitate the saying
of those who were unbelievers in former times. May GOD resist them. How are
they infatuated!
They take their priests and their monks for their lords, besides GOD,e
and Christ the son of Mary; although they are commanded to worship one GOD
only: there is no GOD but he; far be that from him which they associate with
him!
They seek to extinguish the light of GOD with their mouths; but GOD
willeth no other than to perfect his light, although the infidels be averse
thereto.
It is he who hath sent his apostle with the direction, and true religion:
that he may cause it to appear superior to every other religion; although the
idolaters be averse thereto.
O true believers, verily many of the priests and monks devour the
substance of men in vanity,f and obstruct the way of GOD. But unto those who
treasure up gold and silver, and employ it not for the advancement of GOD'S
true religion, denounce a grievous punishment.
On the day of judgment their treasures shall be intensely heated in the
fire of hell, and their foreheads, and their sides, and their backs shall be
stigmatized therewith; and their tormentors shall say, This is what ye have
treasured up for your souls; taste therefore that which ye have treasured up.
d This grievous charge against the Jews the commentators endeavour to
support by telling us that it is meant of some ancient heterodox Jews, or else
of some Jews of Medina; who said so for no other reason than for that the law
being utterly lost and forgotten during the Babylonish captivity, Ezra, having
been raised to life after he had been dead one hundred years,3 dictated the
whole anew to the scribes, out of his own memory; at which they greatly
marvelled, and declared that he could not have done it unless he were the son
of GOD.4 Al Beidâwi, adds that the imputation must be true, because this
verse was read to the Jews, and they did not contradict it; which they were
ready enough to do in other instances.
That Ezra did thus restore not only the Pentateuch, but also the other
books of the Old Testament, by divine revelation, was the opinion of several
of the Christian fathers, who are quoted by Dr. Prideaux,5 and of some other
writers;6 which they seem to have first borrowed from a passage in that very
ancient apocryphal book, called (in our English Bible) the second book of
Esdras.7 Dr. Prideaux8 tells us that herein the fathers attributed more to
Ezra than the Jews themselves, who suppose that he only collected and set
forth a correct edition of the scriptures, which he laboured much in, and went
a great way in the perfecting of it. It is not improbable, however, that the
fiction came originally from the Jews, though they be now of another opinion,
and I cannot fix it upon them by any direct proof. For, not to insist on the
testimony of the Mohammedans (which yet I cannot but think of some little
weight in a point of this nature), it is allowed by the most sagacious critics
that the second book of Ezra was written by a Christian indeed,9 but yet one
who had been bred a Jew, and was intimately acquainted with the fables of the
Rabbins;10 and the story itself is perfectly in the taste and way of thinking
of those men.
e See the chap. 3, p. 39, note e.
f By taking of bribes, says al Beidâwi; meaning, probably, the money
they took for dispensing with the commands of GOD, and by way of commutation.
1 Vide Reland. de Jure Militari Mohammedanor. p. 17 and 50.
2 Al Beidâwi. 3 See cap. 2, p. 28.
4 Al Beidâwi, al Zamakhshari, &c. 5 Connect. part i. l. 5, p. 329.
6 Athanasius junior, in Synopsi S. Script. tom. ii. p. 86. Leontius
Byzantin. de Sectis, p. 428. 7 Cap. xiv. 20, &c. 8 Loco
citat. 9 See 2 Esdras ii. 43-47; and vii. 28, &c. 10
Vide Dodwelli Dissert. Cyprian. Dissert. 4, § 2. Whiston's Essay on the
Apostolical Constit. p. 34, 76, and 304, &c.; et Fabricii Codic. Apocryph.
Novi Test. part ii. p. 936, &c.
Moreover, the complete number of months with GOD, is twelve months,g
which were ordained in the book of GOD,h on the day whereon he created the
heavens and the earth: of these, four are sacred.i This is the right
religion: therefore deal not unjustly with yourselves therein. But attack the
idolaters in all the months, as they attack you in all;k and know that GOD is
with those who fear him.
Verily the transferring of a sacred month to another month, is an
additional infidelity.l The unbelievers are led into an error thereby: they
allow a month to be violated one year, and declare it sacred another year,m
that they may agree in the number of months which GOD hath commanded to be
kept sacred; and they allow that which GOD hath forbidden. The evil of their
actions hath been prepared for them: for GOD directeth not the unbelieving
people.
O true believers, what ailed you, that when it was said unto you, Go
forth to fight for the religion of GOD, ye inclined heavily towards the
earth?n Do ye prefer the present life to that which is to come? But the
provision of this life, in respect of that which is to come, is but slender.
Unless ye go forth when ye are summoned to war, God will punish you with
a grievous punishment; and he will place another people in your stead,o and ye
shall not hurt him at all; for GOD is almighty.
40 If ye assist not the prophet, verily GOD will assist him, as he assisted
him formerly, when the unbelievers drove him out of Mecca, the second of two:p
when they were both in the cave: when he said unto his companion, Be not
grieved, for GOD is with us.q And GOD sent down his securityr upon him, and
strengthened him with armies of angels, whom ye saw not.s And he made the
word of those who believed not to be abased, and the word of GOD was exalted:
for GOD is mighty and wise.
g According to this passage, the intercalation of a month every third
or second year, which the Arabs had learned of the Jews, in order to reduce
their lunar years to solar years, is absolutely unlawful. For by this means
they fixed the time of the pilgrimage and of the fast of Ramadân to certain
seasons of the year which ought to be ambulatory.1
h viz., The preserved table.
i See the Prelim. Discourse, Sect. VII.
k For it is not reasonable that you should observe the sacred months
with regard to those who do not acknowledge them to be sacred, but make war
against you therein.2
l This was an invention or innovation of the idolatrous Arabs, whereby
they avoided keeping a sacred month, when it suited not their conveniency, by
keeping a profane month in its stead; transferring, for example, the
observance of Moharram to the succeeding month Safar. The first man who put
this in practice, they say, was Jonâda Ebn Awf, of the tribe of Kenâna.3
These ordinances relating to the months were promulgated by Mohammed
himself at the pilgrimage of valediction.4
m As did Jonâda, who made public proclamation at the assembly of
pilgrims, that their gods had allowed Moharram to be profane, whereupon they
observed it not; but the next year he told them that the gods had ordered it
to be kept sacred.5
n viz., In the expedition of Tabûc, a town situate about half-way
between Medina and Damascus, which Mohammed undertook against the Greeks, with
an army of thirty thousand men, in the ninth year of the Hejra. On this
expedition the Moslems set out with great unwillingness, because it was
undertaken in the midst of the summer heats, and at a time of great drought
and scarcity; whereby the soldiers suffered so much, that this army was called
the distressed army: besides, their fruits were just ripe, and they had much
rather have stayed to have gathered them.6
o See chap. 5, p. 80.
p That is, having only Abu Becr with him.
q See the Prelim. Disc. Sect. II. p. 39.
r See before, p. 137, note u.
s Who, as some imagine, guarded him in the cave. Or the words may
relate to the succours from heaven which Mohammed pretended to have received
in several encounters; as at Bedr, the war of the ditch, and the battle of
Honein.
1 See Prid. Life of Mahomet, p. 65, &c., and the Prelim. Disc. Sect.
IV. and VII. 2 See cap. 2, p. 20. 3 Al Beidâwi,
Jallalo'ddin. Vide Poc. Spec. p. 323, and the Prelim. Disc. Sect. VII.
4 Abulfeda, Vit. Moh. p. 132. 5 Al Beidâwi.
6 Idem, Jallalo'ddin. Vide Abulfeda, Vit. Moh. p. 123.
Go forth to battle, both light and heavy,t and employ your substance and
your persons for the advancement of GOD's religion. This will be better for
you, if ye know it.
If it had been a near advantage, and a moderate journey, they had surely
followed thee;u but the way seemed tedious unto them: and yet they will swear
by GOD, saying, If we had been able, we had surely gone forth with you. They
destroy their own souls; for GOD knoweth that they are liars.
GOD forgive thee! why didst thou give them leave to stay at home,x until
they who speak the truth, when they excuse themselves, had become manifested
unto thee, and thou hadst known the liars.
They who believe in GOD and the last day, will not ask leave of thee to
be excused from employing their substance and their persons for the
advancement of GOD's true religion; and GOD knoweth those who fear him.
Verily they only will ask leave of thee to stay behind, who believe not
in GOD and the last day, and whose hearts doubt concerning the faith:
wherefore they are tossed to and fro in their doubting.
If they had been willing to go forth with thee, they had certainly
prepared for that purpose a provision of arms and necessaries: but GOD was
averse to their going forth; wherefore he rendered them slothful, and it was
said unto them, Sit ye still with those who sit still.y
If they had gone forth with you, they had only been a burden unto you,
and had run to and fro between you, stirring you up to sedition; and there
would have been some among you, who would have given ear unto them: and GOD
knoweth the wicked.
They formerly sought to raise a sedition,z and they disturbed thy
affairs, until the truth came, and the decree of GOD was made manifest;
although they were adverse thereto.
There is of them who saith unto thee, Give me leave to stay behind, and
expose me not to temptation.a Have they not fallen into temptation at home?b
But hell will surely encompass the unbelievers.
50 If good happen unto thee, it grieveth them: but if a misfortune befall
thee, they say, We ordered our business before;c and they turn their backs,
and rejoice at thy mishap.
Say, Nothing shall befall us, but what GOD hath decreed for us; he is our
patron; and on GOD let the faithful trust.
t i.e., Whether the expedition be agreeable or not; or whether ye have
sufficient arms and provisions or not; or whether ye be on horseback or on
foot, &c.
u That is, had there been no difficulties to surmount in the expedition
of Tabûc, and the march thither had been short and easy, so that the plunder
might have cost them little or no trouble, they would not have been so
backward.
x For Mohammed excused several of his men, on their request, from going
on this expedition; as Abda'llah Ebn Obba and his hypocritical adherents, and
also three of the Ansârs, for which he is here reprehended.
y i.e., With the women and children, and other impotent people.
z As they did at the battle of Ohod.1
a By obliging me to go, against my will, on an expedition, the
hardships of which may tempt me to rebel or to desert. It is related that one
Jadd Ebn Kais said that the Ansârs well knew he was much given to women, and
he dared not trust himself with the Greek girls; wherefore he desired he might
be left behind, and he would assist them with his purse.2
b Discovering their hypocrisy by their backwardness to go to war for
the promotion of the true religion.
c That is, we took care to keep out of harm's way by staying at home.
1 See cap. 3, p. 45, &c. 2 Al Beidâwi.
Say, Do ye expect any other should befall us, than one of the two most
excellent things; either victory or martyrdom? But we expect concerning you,
that GOD inflict a punishment on you, either from himself, or by our hands.d
Wait, therefore, to see what will be the end of both; for we will wait for
you.
Say, Expend your money in pious uses, either voluntarily, or by
constraint, it shall not be accepted of you; because ye are wicked people.
And nothing hindereth their contributions from being accepted of them,
but that they believe not in GOD and his apostle, and perform not the duty of
prayer, otherwise than sluggishly; and expend not their money for God's
service, otherwise than unwillingly.
Let not therefore their riches, or their children cause thee to marvel.
Verily GOD intendeth only to punish them by these things in this world; and
that their souls may depart while they are unbelievers.
They swear by GOD that they are of you;e yet they are not of you, but are
people who stand in fear.f
If they find a place of refuge, or caves, or a retreating hole, they
surely turn towards the same, and in a headstrong manner, haste thereto.
There is of them also who spreadeth ill reports of thee, in relation to
thy distribution of the alms: yet if they receive part thereof, they are well
pleased; but if they receive not a part thereof, behold, they are angry.g
But if they had been pleased with that which GOD and his apostle had
given them, and had said, GOD is our support; GOD will give unto us of his
abundance, and his prophet also; verily unto GOD do we make our supplications:
it would have been more decent.
60 Alms are to be distributedh only unto the poor, and the needy,i and
those who are employed in collecting and distributing the same, and unto those
whose hearts are reconciled,k and for the redemption of captives, and unto
those who are in debt and insolvent, and for the advancement of GOD'S
religion, and unto the traveller. This is an ordinance from GOD: and GOD is
knowing and wise.
There are some of them who injure the prophet, and say, He is an ear.l
Answer, He is an ear of good unto you:m he believeth in GOD, and giveth credit
to the faithful, and is a mercy unto such of you who believe.
d i.e., Either by some signal judgment from heaven, or by remitting
their punishment to the true believers.
e viz., Staunch Moslems.
f Hypocritically concealing their infidelity, lest ye should chastise
them, as ye have done the professed infidels and apostates; and yet ready to
avow their infidelity, when they think they may do it with safety.
g This person was Abu'l Jowâdh the hypocrite, who said Mohammed gave
them away among the keepers of sheep only; or, as others suppose, Ebn
Dhi'lkhowaisara, who found fault with the prophet's distribution of the spoils
taken at Honein, because he gave them all among the Meccans, to reconcile and
gain them over to his religion and interest.3
h See what is said as to this point in the Prelim. Disc. Sect. IV.
i The commentators make a distinction between these two words in the
original, fakîr and meskîn; one, they say, signifies him who is utterly
destitute both of money and means of livelihood; the other, one who is in want
indeed, but is able to get something towards his own support. But to which of
the two words either of these different significations properly belongs, the
critics differ.
k That is, who were lately enemies to the faithful, but have now
embraced Mohammedism, and entered into amity with them. For Mohammed, to gain
their hearts and confirm them in his religion, made large presents to the
chief of the Koreish out of the spoils at Honein, as has been just now
mentioned.4 But this law they say became of no obligation when the Mohammedan
faith was established, and stood not in need of such methods for its support.
l i.e., He hears everything that we say; and gives credit to all the
stories that are carried to him.
m Giving credit to nothing that may do you hurt.
3 Idem. Vide Abulfeda. Vit. Moh. p. 118, 119. 4 Abulfeda,
ibid.
But they who injure the apostle of GOD, shall suffer a painful
punishment.
They swear unto you by GOD, that they may please you; but it is more just
that they should please GOD and his apostle, if they are true believers.
Do they not know that he who opposeth GOD and his apostle, shall without
doubt be punished with the fire of hell; and shall remain therein forever?
This will be great ignominy.
The hypocrites are apprehensive lest a Suran should be revealed
concerning them, to declare unto them that which is in their hearts. Say unto
them, Scoff ye; but GOD will surely bring to light that which ye fear should
be discovered.
And if thou ask them the reason of this scoffing, they say, Verily we
were only engaged in discourse; and jesting among ourselves.o Say, Do ye
scoff at GOD and his signs, and at his apostle?
offer not an excuse: now are ye become infidels, after your faith. If we
forgive a part of you, we will punish a part, for that they have been wicked
doers.
Hypocritical men and women are the one of them of the other: they command
that which is evil, and forbid that which is just, and shut their hands from
giving alms. They have forgotten GOD; wherefore he hath forgotten them:
verily the hypocrites are those who act wickedly.
GOD denounceth unto the hypocrites, both men and women, and to the
unbelievers, the fire of hell; they shall remain therein forever: this will be
their sufficient reward; GOD hath cursed them, and they shall endure a lasting
torment.
70 As they who have been before you, so are ye. They were superior to you
in strength, and had more abundance of wealth and of children; and they
enjoyed their portion in this world; and ye also enjoy your portion here, as
they who have preceded you enjoyed their portion. And ye engage yourselves in
vain discourses, like unto those wherein they engaged themselves. The works
of these are vain both in this world and in that which is to come; and these
are they who perish.
Have they not been acquainted with the history of those who have been
before them? of the people of Noah, and of Ad, and of Thamud, and of the
people of Abraham, and of the inhabitants of Madian, and of the cities which
were overthrown?p Their apostles came unto them with evident demonstrations:
and GOD was not disposed to treat them unjustly; but they dealt unjustly with
their own souls.
And the faithful men, and the faithful women, are friends one to another:
they command that which is just, and they forbid that which is evil; and they
are constant at prayer, and pay their appointed alms; and they obey GOD and
his apostle: unto these will GOD be merciful; for he is mighty and wise.
n So the Mohammedans call a chapter of the Korân.5
o It is related that in the expedition of Tabûc, a company of
hypocrites passing near Mohammed, said to one another, Behold that man! he
would take the strongholds of Syria. Away! away!-which being told the
prophet, he called them to him, and asked them why they had said so? Whereto
they replied with an oath that they were not talking of what related to him or
his companions, but were only diverting themselves with indifferent discourse
to beguile the tediousness of the way.6
p Namely, Sodom and Gomorrah, and the other cities which shared their
fate, and are thence called al Motakifât, or the subverted.7
5 See the Prelim. Disc. Sect. III. 6 Al Beidâwi. 7 See
cap. II.
GOD promiseth unto the true believers, both men and women, gardens
through which rivers flow, wherein they shall remain forever; and delicious
dwellings in gardens of perpetual abode:q but good-will from GOD shall be
their most excellent reward. This will be great felicity.
O prophet, wage war against the unbelievers and the hypocrites, and be
severe unto them: for their dwelling shall be hell; an unhappy journey shall
it be thither!
They swear by GOD that they said not what they are charged with: yet they
spake the word of infidelity, and became unbelievers after they had embraced
Islâm.r And they designed that which they could not effect;s and they did not
disapprove the design for any other reason than because GOD and his apostle
had enriched them of his bounty.t If they repent, it will be better for them;
but if they relapse, GOD will punish them with a grievous torment, in this
world and in the next; and they shall have no portion on earth, nor any
protector.
There are some of them who made a covenant with GOD, saying, Verily if he
give us of his abundance, we will give alms, and become righteous people.u
Yet when they had given unto him of his abundance, they became covetous
thereof, and turned back, and retired afar off.
Wherefore he hath caused hypocrisy to succeed in their hearts, until the
day whereon they shall meet him; for that they failed to perform unto GOD that
which they had promised him, and for that they prevaricated.
Do they not know that GOD knoweth whatever they conceal, and their
private discourses; and that GOD is the knower of secrets?
q Literally, gardens of Eden; but the commentators do not take the word
Eden in the sense which it bears in Hebrew, as has been elsewhere observed.8
r It is related that al Jallâs Ebn Soweid hearing some passages of this
chapter, which sharply reprehend those who refused to go on the above-
mentioned expedition of Tabûc, declared that if what Mohammed said of his
brethren was true, they were worse than asses; which coming to the prophet's
ear, he sent for him; and he denied the words upon oath. But on the immediate
revelation of this passage, he confessed his fault, and his repentance was
accepted.9
s The commentators tell us that fifteen men conspired to kill Mohammed
in his return from Tabûc by pushing him from his camel into a precipice, as he
rode by night over the highest part of al Akaba. But when they were going to
execute their design, Hodheifa, who followed and drove the prophet's camel,
which was led by Ammâr Ebn Yâser, hearing the tread of camels and the clashing
of arms, gave the alarm, upon which they fled. Some, however, suppose the
design here meant was a plot to expel Mohammed from Medina.10
t For Mohammed's residing at Medina was of great advantage to the
place, the inhabitants being generally poor, and in want of most conveniences
of life; but on the prophet's coming among them, they became possessed of
large herds of cattle and money also. Al Beidâwi says that the above-named al
Jallâs in particular, having a servant killed, received by Mohammed's order no
less than ten thousand dirhems, or about three hundred pounds, as a fine for
the redemption of his blood.
u An instance of this is given in Thalaba Ebn Hateb, who came to
Mohammed and desired him to beg of GOD that he would bestow riches on him.
The prophet at first advised him rather to be thankful for the little he had
than to covet more, which might become a temptation to him; but on Thalaba's
repeated request and solemn promise that he would make a good use of his
riches, he was at length prevailed on, and preferred the petition to GOD.
Thalaba in a short time grew vastly rich, which, Mohammed being acquainted
with, sent two collectors to gather the alms. Other people readily paid them;
but, when they came to Thalaba, and read the injunction to him out of the
Korân, he told them that it was not alms, but tribute, or next kin to tribute,
and bid them go back till he had better considered of it. Upon which this
passage was revealed; and when Thalaba came afterwards and brought his alms,
Mohammed told him that GOD had commanded him not to accept it, and threw dust
upon his head, saying, This is what thou hast deserved. He then offered his
alms to Abu Becr, who refused to accept them, as did Omar some years after,
when he was Khalîf.1
8 See the Prelim. Disc. p. 75. 9 Al Beidâwi. 10
Idem. 1 Idem.
80 They who traduce such of the believers as are liberal in giving alms
beyond what they are obliged, and those who find nothing to give, but what
they gain by their industry;x and therefore scoff at them: GOD shall scoff at
them, and they shall suffer a grievous punishment.
Ask forgiveness for them, or do not ask forgiveness for them; it will be
equal. If thou ask forgiveness for them seventy times, GOD will by no means
forgive them.y This is the divine pleasure, for that they believe not in GOD,
and his apostle; and GOD directeth not the ungodly people.
They who were left at home in the expedition of Tabûc, were glad of their
staying behind the apostle of GOD, and were unwilling to employ their
substance and their persons for the advancement of GOD's true religion; and
they said, Go not forth in the heat.z Say, the fire of hell will be hotter;
if they understood this.
Wherefore let them laugh little, and weep much, as a reward for that
which they have done.
If GOD bring thee back unto some of them,a and they ask thee leave to go
forth to war with thee, say, Ye shall not go forth with me for the future,
neither shall ye fight an enemy with me; ye were pleased with sitting at home
the first time; sit ye at home therefore with those who stay behind.
Neither do thou ever pray over any of them who shall die,b neither stand
at his gravec for that they believed not in GOD and his apostle, and die in
their wickedness.
Let not their riches or their children cause thee to marvel: for GOD
intendeth only to punish them therewith in this world, and that their souls
may depart, while they are infidels.
When a Surad is sent down, wherein it is said, Believe in GOD, and go
forth to war with his apostle; those who are in plentiful circumstances among
them ask leave of thee to stay behind, and say, Suffer us to be of the number
of those who sit at home.
They are well pleased to be with those who stay behind, and their hearts
are sealed up; wherefore they do not understand.
x Al Beidâwi relates that Mohammed, exhorting his followers to
voluntary alms, among others, Abda'lrahmân Ebn Awf gave four thousand dirhems,
which was one-half of what he had; Asem Ebn Adda gave a hundred beasts' loads
of dates; and Abu Okail a saá, which is no more than a sixtieth part of a
load, of the same fruit, but was the half of what he had earned by a night's
hard work. This Mohammed accepted: whereupon the hypocrites said that
Abda'lrahmân and Asem gave what they did out of ostentation, and that GOD and
his apostle might well have excused Abu Okail's mite; which occasioned this
passage.
I suppose this collection was made to defray the charge of the
expedition of Tabûc, towards which, as another writer tells us, Abu Becr
contributed all that he had, and Othmân very largely, viz., as it is said,
three hundred camels for slaughter, and a thousand dinârs of gold.2
y In the last sickness of Abda'llah Ebn Obba, the hypocrite (who died
in the ninth year of the Hejra), his son, named also Abda'llah, came and asked
Mohammed to beg pardon of GOD for him, which he did, and thereupon the former
part of this verse was revealed. But the prophet, not taking that for a
repulse, said he would pray seventy times for him; upon which the latter part
of the verse was revealed, declaring it would be absolutely in vain. It may
be observed that the numbers seven, and seventy, and seven hundred, are
frequently used by the eastern writers, to signify not so many precisely, but
only an indefinite number, either greater or lesser,3 several examples of
which are to be met with in the scripture.4
z This they spoke in a scoffing manner to one another, because, as has
been observed, the expedition of Tabûc was undertaken in a very hot and dry
season.
a That is, if thou return in safety to Medina to the hypocrites, who
are here called some of them who stayed behind, because they were not all
hypocrites. The whole number is said to have been twelve.1
b This passage was also revealed on account of Abda'llah Ebn Obba. In
his last illness he desired to see Mohammed, and, when he was come, asked him
to beg forgiveness of GOD for him, and requested that his corpse might be
wrapped up in the garment that was next his body (which might have the same
efficacy with the habit of a Franciscan), and that he would pray over him when
dead. Accordingly, when he was dead, the prophet sent his shirt, or inner
vestment, to shroud the corpse, and was going to pray over it, but was
forbidden by these words. Some say they were not revealed till he had
actually prayed for him.2
c Either by assisting at his funeral, or visiting his sepulchre.
d See before, p. 142, note n.
2 Abulfed. Vit. Moh. p. 123. 3 Al Beidâwi. 4 Matth.
xviii. 22. 1 Al Beidâwi.
2 Idem.
But the apostle, and those who have believed with him, expose their
fortunes and their lives for God's service; they shall enjoy the good things
of either life, and they shall be happy.
90 GOD hath prepared for them gardens through which rivers flow; they shall
remain therein forever. This will be great felicity.
And certain Arabs of the desert came to excuse themselves,e praying that
they might be permitted to stay behind; and they sat at home who had renounced
GOD and his apostle. But a painful punishment shall be inflicted on such of
them as believe not.
In those who are weak, or are afflicted with sickness, or in those who
find not wherewith to contribute to the war,f it shall be no crime if they
stay at home; provided they behave themselves faithfully towards GOD and his
apostle. There is no room to lay blame on the righteous; for GOD is gracious
and merciful:
nor on those, unto whom, when they came unto thee, requesting that thou
wouldest supply them with necessaries for travelling, thou didst answer, I
find not wherewith to supply you, returned, their eyes shedding tears for
grief, that they found not wherewith to contribute to the expedition.g
But there is reason to blame those who ask leave of thee to sit at home,
when they are rich. They are pleased to be with those who stay behind, and
GOD hath sealed up their hearts; wherefore they do not understand.
They will excuse themselves unto you, when ye are returned unto them.
Say, Excuse not yourselves; we will by no means believe you: GOD hath
acquainted us with your behavior; and GOD will observe his actions, and his
apostle also: and hereafter shall ye be brought before him who knoweth that
which is hidden, and that which is manifest; and he will declare unto you that
which ye have done.
They will swear unto you by GOD, which ye have done. They will swear
unto you by GOD, when ye are returned unto them, that ye may let them alone.h
Let them alone, therefore, for they are an abomination, and their dwelling
shall be hell, a reward for that which they have deserved.
They will swear unto you, that ye may be well pleased with them; but if
ye be well pleased with them, verily GOD will not be well pleased with people
who prevaricate.
The Arabs of the desert are more obstinate in their unbelief and
hypocrisy; and it is easier for them to be ignorant of the ordinances of that
which GOD hath sent down unto his apostle;i and GOD is knowing and wise.
Of the Arabs of the desert there is who reckoneth that which he expendeth
for the service of God, to be as tribute,k and waiteth that some change of
fortunel may befall you. A change for evil shall happen unto them; for GOD
both heareth and knoweth.
e These were the tribes of Asad and Ghatfân, who excused themselves on
account of the necessities of their families, which their industry only
maintained. But some write they were the family of Amer Ebn al Tofail, who
said that if they went with the army, the tribe of Tay would take advantage of
their absence, and fall upon their wives and children, and their cattle.3
f By reason of their extreme poverty; as those of Joheina, Mozeina, and
Banu Odhra.4
g The persons here intended were seven men of the Ansârs, who came to
Mohammed and begged he would give them some patched boots and soled shoes, it
being impossible for them to march so far barefoot in such a season; but he
told them he could not supply them; whereupon they went away weeping. Some,
however, say these were the Banu Mokren; and others, Abu Musa and his
companions.5
h And not chastise them.
i Because of their wild way of life, the hardness of their hearts,
their not frequenting people of knowledge, and the few opportunities they have
of being instructed.6
k Or a contribution exacted by force, the payment of which he can in no
wise avoid.
l Hoping that some reverse may afford a convenient opportunity of
throwing off the burden
3 Idem. 4 Idem. 5 Idem. 6 Idem. See the
Prelim. Disc. p. 10 and 23.
100 And of the Arabs of the desert there is who believeth in GOD, and in the
last day; and esteemeth that which he layeth out for the service of God to be
the means of bringing him near unto GOD, and the prayers of the apostle. Is
it not unto them the means of a near approach? GOD shall lead them into his
mercy; for GOD is gracious and merciful.m
As for the leaders and the first of the Mohâjerîn, and the Ansârs,n and
those who have followed them in well doing; GOD is well pleased with them, and
they are well pleased in him: and he hath prepared for them gardens watered by
rivers; they shall remain therein forever. This shall be great felicity.
And of the Arabs of the desert who dwell round about you, there are
hypocritical persons:o and of the inhabitants of Medina there are some who are
obstinate in hypocrisy. Thou knowest them not, O prophet, but we know them:
we will surely punish them twice:p afterwards shall they be sent to a grievous
torment.
And others have acknowledged their crimes.q They have mixed a good
action with another which is bad:r peradventure GOD will be turned unto them;
for GOD is gracious and merciful.
Take alms of their substance, that thou mayest cleanse them, and purify
them thereby;s and pray for them: for thy prayers shall be a security of mind
unto them; and GOD both heareth and knoweth.
Do they not know that GOD accepteth repentance from his servants, and
accepteth alms; and that GOD is easy to be reconciled, and merciful?
Say unto them, Work as ye will; but GOD will behold your work, and his
apostle also, and the true believers: and ye shall be brought before him who
knoweth that which is kept secret, and that which is made public: and he will
declare unto you whatever ye have done.
m The Arabs meant in the former of these two passages, are said to have
been the tribes of Asad, Ghatfân, and Banu Tamim; and those intended in the
latter, Abdallah, surnamed Dhû'lbajâdîn, and his people.1
n The Mohâjerîn, or refugees, were those of Mecca, who fled thence on
account of their religion; and the Ansârs, or helpers, were those of Medina,
who received Mohammed and his followers into their protection, and assisted
them against their enemies. By the leaders of the Mohâjerîn are meant those
who believed on Mohammed before the Hejra, or early enough to pray towards
Jerusalem, from which the Kebla was changed to the temple of Mecca in the
second year of the Hejra, or else such of them as were present at the battle
of Bedr. The leaders of the Ansârs were those who took the oath of fidelity
to him at al Akaba, either the first or the second time.2
o i.e., In the neighbourhood of Medina. These were the tribes of
Joheina, Mozeina, Aslam, Ashjá, and Ghifâr.3
p Either by exposing them to public shame, and putting them to death;
or by either of those punishments, and the torment of the sepulchre: or else
by exacting alms of them by way of fine, and giving them corporal punishment.4
q Making no hypocritical excuses for them. These were certain men,
who, having stayed at home instead of accompanying Mohammed to Tabûc, as soon
as they heard the severe reprehensions and threats of this chapter against
those who had stayed behind, bound themselves to the pillars of the mosque,
and swore that they would not loose themselves till they were loosed by the
prophet. But when he entered the mosque to pray, and was informed of the
matter, he also swore that he would not loose them without a particular
command from GOD; whereupon this passage was revealed, and they were
accordingly dismissed.5
r Though they were backward in going to war, and held with the
hypocrites, yet they confessed their crime and repented.
s When these persons were loosed, they prayed Mohammed to take their
substance, for the sake of which they had stayed at home, as alms, to cleanse
them from their transgression; but he told them he had no orders to accept
anything from them: upon which this verse was sent down, allowing him to take
their alms.6
1 Al Beidâwi. 2 Idem. 3 Idem. 4 Idem.
5 Idem. 6 Idem.
And there are others who wait with suspense the decree of GOD: whether he
will punish them, or whether he will be turned unto them:t but GOD is knowing
and wise,
There are some who have built a temple to hurt the faithful, and to
propagate infidelity, and to foment division among the true believers,u and
for a lurking place for him who hath fought against GOD and his apostle in
time past;x and they swear, saying, Verily we intended no other than to do for
the best: but GOD is witness that they do certainly lie.
Stand not up to pray therein forever. There is a temple founded on
piety,y from the first day of its building. It is more just that thou stand
up to pray therein: therein are men who love to be purified;z for GOD loveth
the clean.
110 Whether therefore is he better, who hath founded his building on the
fear of GOD and his good will; or he who hath founded his building on the
brink of a bank of earth which is washed away by waters, so that it falleth
with him into the fire of hell? God directeth not the ungodly people.
Their building which they have built will not cease to be an occasion of
doubting in their hearts, until their hearts be cut in pieces;a and GOD is
knowing and wise.
Verily GOD hath purchased of the true believers their souls, and their
substance, promising them the enjoyment of paradise; on condition that they
fight for the cause of GOD: whether they slay or be slain, the promise for the
same is assuredly due by the law, and the gospel, and the Koran. And who
performeth his contract more faithfully than GOD? Rejoice therefore in the
contract which ye have made. This shall be great happiness.
t The persons here intended were the three Ansârs whose pardon is
granted a little below.
u When Banu Amru Ebn Awf had built the temple or mosque of Kobâ, which
will be mentioned by-and-bye, they asked Mohammed to come and pray in it, and
he complied with their request. This exciting the envy of their brethren,
Banu Ganem Ebn Awf, they also built a mosque, intending that the Imâm or
priest who should officiate there should be Abu Amer, a Christian monk; but he
dying in Syria, they came to Mohammed and desired he would consecrate, as it
were, their mosque by praying in it. The prophet accordingly prepared himself
to go with them, but was forbidden by the immediate revelation of this
passage, discovering their hypocrisy and ill design; whereupon he sent Malec
Ebn al Dokhshom, Maan Ebn Addi, Amer Ebn al Sacan, and al Wahsha, the
Ethiopian, to demolish and burn it, which they performed, and made it a
dunghill. According to another account, this mosque was built a little before
the expedition of Tabûc, with a design to hinder Mohammed's men from engaging
therein; and when he was asked to pray there, he answered that he was just
setting out on a journey, but that when he came back, with GOD'S leave, he
would do what they desired; but when they applied to him again, on his return,
this passage was revealed.1
x That is, Abu Amer, the monk, who was a declared enemy to Mohammed,
having threatened him at Ohod, that no party should appear in the field
against him, but he would make one of them; and, to be as good as his word, he
continued to oppose him till the battle of Honein, at which he was present,
and being put to flight with those of Hawâzen, he retreated into Syria,
designing to obtain a supply of troops from the Grecian emperor to renew the
war, but he died at Kinnisrîn. Others say that this monk was a confederate at
the war of the ditch, and that he fled thence into Syria.2
y viz., That of Kobâ, a place about two miles from Medina, where
Mohammed rested four days before he entered that city, in his flight from
Mecca, and where he laid the foundation of a mosque,3 which was afterwards
built by Banu Amru Ebn Awf. But according to a different tradition, the
mosque here meant was that which Mohammed built at Medina.
z Al Beidâwi says, that Mohammed walking once with the Mohâjerîn to
Kobâ, found the Ansârs sitting at the mosque door, and asked them whether they
were believers; and, on their being silent, repeated the question: whereupon
Omar answered, that they were believers; and Mohammed demanding whether they
acquiesced in the judgment Omar had made of them, they said yes. He then
asked them whether they would be patient in adversity and thankful in
prosperity; to which they answering in the affirmative, he swore by the LORD
of the Caaba that they were true believers. Afterwards he examined them as to
their manner of performing the legal washings, and, particularly, what they
did after easing themselves; they told him that in such a case they used three
stones, and after that washed with water: upon which he repeated these words
of the Korân to them.
a Some interpret these words of their being deprived of their judgment
and understanding; and others of the punishment they are to expect, either of
death in this world, or of the rack of the sepulchre, or the pains of hell.
1 Idem, Jallalo'ddin. 2 Idem. 3 Idem, Ebn Shohnah.
Vide Abulfed. Vit. Moh. p. 52. Where the translator, taking this passage of
the Korân, which is there cited, for the words of his author, has missed the
true sense.
The penitent, and those who serve God, and praise him, and who fast, and
bow down, and worship; and who command that which is just, and forbid that
which is evil, and keep the ordinances of GOD, shall likewise be rewarded with
paradise: wherefore bear good tidings unto the faithful.
It is not allowed unto the prophet, nor those who are true believers,
that they pray for idolaters,b although they be of kin, after it is become
known unto them, that they are inhabitants of hell.c
Neither did Abraham ask forgiveness for his father, otherwise than in
pursuance of a promise which he had promised unto him:d but when it became
known unto him, that he was an enemy unto GOD, he declared himself clear of
him.e Verily Abraham was pitiful and compassionate.
Nor is GOD disposed to lead people into error,f after that he hath
directed them, until that which they ought to avoid is become known unto them;
for GOD knoweth all things.
Verily unto GOD belongeth the kingdom of heaven and of earth; he giveth
life, and he causeth to die; and ye have no patron or helper besides GOD.
GOD is reconciled unto the prophet, and unto the Mohâjerîn and the
Ansârs,g who followed him in the hour of distress,h after that it had wanted
little but that the hearts of a part of them had swerved from their duty:
afterwards was he turned unto them: for he was compassionate and merciful
towards them.
And he is also reconciled unto the three who were left behind,i so that
the earth became too straight for them, notwithstanding its spaciousness, and
their souls became straightened within them, and they considered that there
was no refuge from GOD, otherwise than by having recourse unto him. Then was
he turned unto them, that they might repent; for GOD is easy to be reconciled
and merciful.
b This passage was revealed, as some think, on account of Abu Taleb,
Mohammed's uncle and great benefactor; who, on his death-bed, being pressed by
his nephew to speak a word which might enable him to plead his cause before
GOD, that is, to profess Islâm, absolutely refused. Mohammed, however, told
him that he would not cease to pray for him, till he should be forbidden by
GOD; which he was by these words. Others suppose the occasion to have been
Mohammed's visiting his mother Amena's sepulchre at al Abwâ, soon after the
taking of Mecca; for they say that while he stood at the tomb he burst into
tears, and said, I asked leave of GOD to visit my mother's tomb, and he
granted it me; but when I asked leave to pray for her, it was denied me.1
c By their dying infidels. For otherwise it is not only lawful, but
commendable, to pray for unbelievers, while there are hopes of their
conversion.
d viz., To pray that GOD would dispose his heart to repentance. Some
suppose this was a promise made to Abraham by his father, that he would
believe in GOD. For the words may be taken either way.
e Desisting to pray for him, when he was assured by inspiration that he
was not to be converted; or after he actually died an infidel. See c. 6, p.
96.
f i.e., To consider or punish them as transgressors. This passage was
revealed to excuse those who had prayed for such of their friends as had died
idolaters, before it was forbidden; or else to excuse certain people who had
ignorantly prayed towards the first Kebla, and drank wine, &c.
g Having forgiven the crime they committed, in giving the hypocrites
leave to be absent from the expedition to Tabûc; or for the other sins which
they might, through inadvertence, have been guilty of. For the best men have
need of repentance.2
h viz., In the expedition of Tabûc; wherein Mohammed's men were driven
to such extremities that (besides what they endured by reason of the excessive
heat) ten men were obliged to ride by turns on one camel, and provisions and
water were so scarce that two men divided a date between them, and they were
obliged to drink the water out of the camels' stomachs.3
i Or, as it may be translated, who were left in suspense, whether they
should be pardoned or not.4 These were three Ansârs, named Caab Ebn Malec,
Helâl Ebn Omeyya, and Merâra Ebn Rabî, who went not with Mohammed to Tabûc,
and were therefore, on his return, secluded from the fellowship of the other
Moslems; the prophet forbidding any to salute them, or to hold discourse with
them. Under which interdiction they continued fifty days, till, on their
sincere repentance, they were at length discharged from it, by the revelation
of this passage.5
1 Al Beidâwi. 2 Idem. 3 Al Beidâwi. 4 See
before, p. 147, note t.
5 Al Beidâwi, Jallalo'ddin Abulf. Vit. Moh. p. 133, 126.
120 O true believers, fear GOD and be with the sincere.
There was no reason why the inhabitants of Medina, and the Arabs of the
desert who dwell around them, should stay behind the apostle of GOD, or should
prefer themselves before him.k This is unreasonable: because they are not
distressed either by thirst, or labor, or hunger, for the defence of GOD'S
true religion; neither do they stir a step, which may irritate the
unbelievers; neither do they receive from the enemy any damage, but a good
work is written down unto them for the same; for GOD suffereth not the reward
of the righteous to perish.
And they contribute not any sum either small or great, nor do they pass a
valley; but it is written down unto them that GOD may reward them with a
recompense exceeding that which they have wrought.
The believers are not obliged to go forth to war altogether: if a part of
every band of them go not forth, it is that they may diligently instruct
themselves in their religion;l and may admonish their people, when they return
unto them, that they may take heed to themselves.
O true believers, wage war against such of the infidels as are near you;m
and let them find severityn in you: and know that GOD is with those who fear
him.
Whenever a Sura is sent down, there are some of them who say, Which of
you hath this caused to increase in faith? It will increase the faith of
those who believe, and they shall rejoice:
but unto those in whose hearts there is an infirmity, it will add further
doubt unto their present doubt; and they shall die in their infidelity.
Do they not see that they are tried every year once or twice?o yet they
repent not, neither are they warned.
And whenever a Sura is sent down, they look at one another, saying, Doth
any one see you?p then do they turn aside. GOD shall turn aside their hearts
from the truth; because they are a people who do not understand.
k By not caring to share with him the dangers and fatigues of war. Al
Beidâwi tells us, that after Mohammed had set out for Tabûc, one Abu
Khaithama, sitting in his garden, where his wife, a very beautiful woman, had
spread a mat for him in the shade, and had set new dates and fresh water
before him, after a little reflection, cried out: This is not well that I
should thus take my ease and pleasure, while the apostle of GOD is exposed to
the scorching of the sunbeams and the inclemencies of the war; and immediately
mounting his camel, took his sword and lance, and went to join the army.
l That is, if some of every tribe of town be left behind, the end of
their being so left is that they may apply themselves to study, and attain a
more exact knowledge of the several points of their religion, so as to be able
to instruct such as, by reason of their continual employment in the wars, have
no other means of information. They say, that after the preceding passages
were revealed, reprehending those who had stayed at home during the expedition
of Tabûc, every man went to war, so that the study of religion, which is
rather more necessary for the defence and propagation of the faith than even
arms themselves, became wholly laid aside and neglected; to prevent which, for
the future, a convenient number are hereby directed to be left behind, that
they may have leisure to prosecute their studies.
m Either of your kindred or neighbours; for these claim your pity and
care in the first place, and their conversion ought first to be endeavoured.
The persons particularly meant in this passage are supposed to have been the
Jews of the tribes of Koreidha and Nadhîr, and those of Khaibar; or else the
Greeks of Syria.1
n Or fierceness in war.
o i.e., By various kinds of trials, or by being called forth to war,
and by being made witnesses of GOD'S miraculous protection of the faithful.
p They wink at one another to rise and leave the prophet's presence, if
they think they can do it without being observed, to avoid hearing the severe
and deserving reproofs which they apprehended in every new revelation. The
persons intended are the hypocritical Moslems.
1 Al Beidâwi.
Now hath an apostle come unto you of our own nation,q an excellent
person: it is grievous unto him that ye commit wickedness; he is careful over
you, and compassionate and merciful towards the believers.
130 If they turn back, say, GOD is my support: there is no GOD but he. On
him do I trust; and he is the LORD of the magnificent throne.
________
CHAPTER X.
ENTITLED, JONAS;r REVEALED AT MECCA.
IN THE NAME OF THE MOST MERCIFUL GOD.
AL. R.s These are the signs of the wise book.
Is it a strange thing unto the men of Mecca, that we have revealed our
will unto a man from among them,t saying, Denounce threats unto men if they
believe not; and bear good tidings unto those who believe, that on the merit
of their sincerity they have an interest with their LORD? The unbelievers
say, This is manifest sorcery.u
Verily your LORD is GOD, who hath created the heavens and the earth in
six days; and then ascended his throne, to take on himself the government of
all things. There is no intercessor, but by his permission.x This is GOD,
your LORD; therefore serve him. Will ye not consider?
Unto him shall ye all return according to the certain promise of GOD; for
he produceth a creature, and then causeth it to return again; that he may
reward those who believe and do that which is right, with equity. But as for
the unbelievers, they shall drink boiling water, and they shall suffer a
grievous punishment, for that they have disbelieved.
It is he who hath ordained the sun to shine by day, and the moon for a
light by night; and had appointed her stations, that ye might know the number
of years, and the computation of time. GOD hath not created this, but with
truth. He explaineth his signs unto people who understand.
Moreover in the vicissitudes of night and day, and whatever GOD hath
created in heaven and earth, are surely signs unto men who fear him.
q See chapter 3, p. 49, note n
r This prophet is mentioned towards the end of the chapter.
s See the Prelim. Disc. Sec. III. p. 46, 47.
t And not one of the most powerful among them neither; so that the
Koreish said it was a wonder GOD could find out no other messenger than the
orphan pupil of Abu Taleb.2
u Meaning the Korân. According to the reading of some copies, the
words may be rendered, This man (i.e., Mohammed) is no other than a manifest
sorcerer.
x These words were revealed to refute the foolish opinion of the
idolatrous Meccans, who imagined their idols were intercessors with GOD for
them.
2 Idem.
Verily they who hope not to meet us at the last day, and delight in this
present life, and rest securely in the same, and who are negligent of our
signs;
their dwelling shall be hell fire, for that which they have deserved.
But as to those who believe, and work righteousness, their LORD will
direct them because of their faith; they shall have rivers flowing through
gardens of pleasure.
10 Their prayer therein shall be Praise be unto thee O GOD! and their
salutationy therein shall be Peace!
and the end of their prayer shall be, Praise be unto GOD, the LORD of all
creatures!
If GOD should cause evil to hasten unto men, according to their desire of
hastening good, verily their end had been decreed. Wherefore we suffer those
who hope not to meet us at the resurrection, to wander amazedly in their
error.
When evil befalleth a man, he prayeth unto us lying on his side, or
sitting, or standing:z but when we deliver him from his affliction, he
continueth his former course of life, as though he had not called upon us to
defend him against the evil which had befallen him. Thus was that which the
transgressors committed prepared for them.
We have formerly destroyed the generations who were before you, O men of
Mecca, when they had acted unjustly, and our apostles had come unto them with
evident miracles and they would not believe. Thus do we reward the wicked
people.
Afterwards did we cause you to succeed them in the earth; that we might
see how ye would act.
When our evident signs are recited unto them, they who hope not to meet
us at the resurrection, say, Bring a different Koran from this; or make some
change therein. Answer, It is not fit for me, that I should change it at my
pleasure: I follow that only which is revealed unto me. Verily I fear if I
should be disobedient unto my LORD, the punishment of the great day.
Say, If GOD had so pleased, I had not read it unto you, neither had I
taught you the same. I have already dwelt among you to the age of forty
years,a before I received it. Do ye not therefore understand?
And who is more unjust than he who deviseth a lie against GOD, or
accuseth his signs of falsehood? Surely the wicked shall not prosper.
They worship besides GOD, that which can neither hurt them or profit
them, and they say, These are our intercessors with GOD.b Answer, Will ye
tell GOD that which he knoweth not, neither in heaven nor in earth?c Praise
be unto him! and far be that from him, which they associate with him!
20 Men were professors of one religion only,d but they dissented therefrom;
and if a decree had not previously issued from thy LORD, deferring their
punishment, verily the matter had been decided between them, concerning which
they disagreed.
y Either the mutual salutation of the blessed to one another, or that
of the angels to the blessed.
z i.e., In all postures, and at all times.
a For so old was Mohammed before he took upon him to be a prophet;1
during which time his fellow-citizens well knew that he had not applied
himself to learning of any sort, nor frequented learned men, nor had ever
exercised himself in composing verses or orations whereby he might acquire the
art of rhetoric, or elegance of speech.2 A flagrant proof, says al Beidâwi,
that this book could be taught him by none but God.
b See the Prelim. Disc. Sect. I. p. 12, &c.
c viz., That he hath equals or companions either in heaven or on earth;
since he acknowledgeth none.
d That is to say, the true religion, or Islâm, which was generally
professed, as some say, till Abel was murdered, or, as others, till the days
of Noah. Some suppose the first ages after the Flood are here intended:
others, the state of religion in Arabia, from the time of Abraham to that of
Amru Ebn Lohai, the great introducer of idolatry into that country.
1 See the Prelim. Disc. p. 33. Abulfeda, Vit. Moh. c. 7. 2 See the
Prelim. Disc. p. 21, &c.
They say, Unless a sign be sent down unto him from his LORD, we will not
believe. Answer, Verily that which is hidden is known only unto GOD: wait,
therefore, the pleasure of God; and I also will wait with you.
And when we caused the men of Mecca to taste mercy, after an affliction
which had befallen them, behold, they devised a stratagem against our signs.e
Say unto them, GOD is more swift in executing a stratagem, than ye. Verily
our messengersf write down that which ye deceitfully devise.
It is he who hath given you conveniences for travelling by land and by
sea; so that ye be in ships, which sail with them, with a favorable wind, and
they rejoice therein. And when a tempestuous wind overtaketh them, and waves
come upon them from every side, and they think themselves encompassed with
inevitable dangers; they call upon GOD, exhibiting the pure religion unto
him,g and saying, Verily if thou deliver us from this peril, we will be of
those who give thanks.
But when he hath delivered them, behold, they behave themselves
insolently in the earth, without justice. O men, verily the violence which ye
commit against your own souls, is for the enjoyment of this present life only;
afterwards unto us shall ye return, and we will declare unto you that which ye
have done.
Verily the likeness of this present life is no other than as water, which
we send down from heaven, and wherewith the productions of the earth are
mixed, of which men eat, and cattle also, until the earth receive its vesture,
and be adorned with various plants: the inhabitants thereof imagine that they
have power over the same; but our command cometh unto it by night, or by day,
and we render it as though it had been mowen, as though it had not yesterday
abounded with fruits. Thus do we explain our signs unto people who consider.
GOD inviteth unto the dwelling of peace,h and directeth whom he pleaseth
into the right way.
They who do right shall receive a most excellent reward, and a
superabundant addition;i neither blacknessk nor shame shall cover their faces.
These shall be the inhabitants of paradise; they shall continue therein
forever.
But they who commit evil shall receive the reward of evil, equal
thereunto,l and they shall be covered with shame, (for they shall have no
protector against GOD); as though their faces were covered with the profound
darkness of the night. These shall be the inhabitants of hell fire: they
shall remain therein forever.
e For it is said that they were afflicted with a dearth for seven
years, so that they were very near perishing; but no sooner relieved by GOD'S
sending them plenty, than they began again to charge Mohammed with imposture,
and to ridicule his revelations.3
f i.e., The guardian angels.
g That is, applying themselves to GOD only, and neglecting their idols;
their fears directing them in such an extremity to ask help of him only who
could give it.
h viz., Paradise.
i For their reward will vastly exceed the merit of their good works.
Al Ghazâli supposes this additional recompense will be the beatific vision.4
k See the Prelim. Disc. p. 67, &c.
l i.e., Though the blessed will be rewarded beyond their deserts, yet
GOD will not punish any beyond their demerits, but treat them with the
exactest justice.
3 Al Beidâwi. 4 See the Prelim. Disc. p. 78.
On the day of the resurrection we will gather them altogether; then will
we say unto the idolaters, Get ye to your place, ye and your companions:m and
we will separate them from one another; and their companions will say unto
them, Ye do not worship us;n
30 and GOD is a sufficient witness between us and you; neither did we mind
your worshipping of us.
There shall every soul experienceo that which it shall have sent before
it;p and they shall be brought before GOD their true LORD; and the false
deities which they vainly imagined, shall disappear from before them.
Say, Who provideth you food from heaven and earth? or who hath the
absolute power over the hearing and the sight? and who bringeth forth the
living from the dead, and bringeth forth the dead from the living? and who
governeth all things? They will surely answer, GOD. Say, Will ye not
therefore fear him?
This is therefore GOD your true LORD: and what remaineth there after
truth, except error? How therefore are ye turned aside from the truth?
Thus is the word of thy LORD verified upon them who do wickedly; that
they believe not.
Say, Is there any of your companions who produceth a creature, and then
causeth it to return unto himself? Say, GOD produceth a creature, and then
causeth it to return unto himself. How therefore are ye turned aside from his
worship?
Say, Is there any of your companions who directeth unto the truth. Say,
GOD directeth unto the truth. Whether is he, therefore, who directeth unto
the truth, more worthy to be followed; or he who directeth not, unless he be
directed? What aileth you therefore, that ye judge as ye do?
And the greater part of them follow an uncertain opinion only; but a mere
opinion attaineth not unto any truth. Verily GOD knoweth that which they do.
This Koran could not have been composed by any except GOD; but it is a
confirmation of that which was revealed before it, and an explanation of the
scripture; there is no doubt thereof; sent down from the LORD of all
creatures.
Will they say, Mohammed hath forged it? Answer, Bring therefore a
chapter like unto it; and call whom you may to your assistance, besides GOD,
if ye speak truth.
40 But they have charged that with falsehood, the knowledge whereof they do
not comprehend, neither hath the interpretation thereof come unto them. In
the same manner did those who were before them accuse their prophets of
imposture; but behold, what was the end of the unjust!
There are some of them who believe therein; and there are some of them
who believe not therein:q and thy LORD well knoweth the corrupt doers.
If they accuse thee of imposture, say, I have my work, and ye have your
work; ye shall be clear of that which I do, and I will be clear of that which
ye do.
There are some of them who hearken unto thee; but wilt thou make the deaf
to hear, although they do not understand?
m That is, your idols, or the companions which ye attributed unto GOD.
n But ye really worshipped your own lusts, and were seduced to
idolatry, not by us, but by your own superstitious fancies. It is pretended
that GOD will, at the last day, enable the idols to speak, and that they will
thus reproach their worshippers, instead of interceding for them, as they
hoped. Some suppose the angels, who were also objects of the worship of the
pagan Arabs, are particularly intended in this place.
o Some copies instead of tablu, read tatiu , i.e., shall follow, or
meditate upon.
p See chapter 2, p. 11, note r.
q i.e., There are some of them who are inwardly well satisfied of the
truth of thy doctrine, though they are so wicked as to oppose it; and there
are others of them who believe it not, through prejudice and want of
consideration. Or the passage may be understood in the future tense, of some
who should afterwards believe, and repent, and of others who should die
infidels.1
1 Al Beidâwi.
And there are some of them who look at thee; but wilt thou direct the
blind, although they see not?r
Verily GOD will not deal unjustly with men in any respect: but men deal
unjustly with their own souls.s
On a certain day he will gather them together, as though they had not
tarriedt above an hour of a day: they shall know one another.u Then shall
they perish who have denied the meeting of GOD; and were not rightly directed.
Whether we cause thee to see a part of the punishment wherewith we have
threatened them, or whether we cause thee to die before thou see it; unto us
shall they return: then shall GOD be witness of that which they do.
Unto every nation hath an apostle been sent; and when their apostle came,
the matter was decided between them with equity;x and they were not treated
unjustly.
The unbelievers say, When will this threatening be made good, if ye speak
truth?
50 Answer, I am able neither to procure advantage unto myself, nor to avert
mischief from me, but as GOD pleaseth. Unto every nation is a fixed term
decreed; when their term therefore is expired, they shall not have respite for
an hour, neither shall their punishment be anticipated.
Say, Tell me, if the punishment of GOD overtake you by night, or by day,
what part thereof will the ungodly wish to be hastened?
When it falleth on you, do ye then believe it? Now do ye believe, and
wish it far from you, when as ye formerly desired it should be hastened?
Then shall it be said unto the wicked, Taste the punishment of eternity;
would ye receive other than the reward of that which ye have wrought?
They will desire to know of thee, whether this be true. Answer, Yea, by
my LORD, it is certainly true; neither shall ye weaken God's power so as to
escape it.
Verily, if every soul which hath acted wickedly had whatever is on the
earth, it would willingly redeem itself therewith at the last day. Yet they
will conceal their repentance,y after they shall have seen the punishment; and
the matter shall be decided between them with equity, and they shall not be
unjustly treated.
Doth not whatsoever is in heaven and on earth belong unto GOD? Is not
the promise of GOD true? But the greater part of them know it not.
He giveth life, and he causeth to die: and unto him shall ye all return.
O men, now hath an admonition come unto you from your LORD, and a remedy
for the doubts which are in your breasts; and a direction, and mercy unto the
true believers.
Say, Through the grace of GOD, and his mercy; therein therefore let them
rejoice; this will be better than what they heap together of worldly riches.
r These words were revealed on account of certain Meccans, who seemed
to attend while Mohammed read the Korân to them, or instructed them in any
point of religion, but yet were as far from being convinced or edified, as if
they had not heard him at all.2
s For GOD deprives them not of their senses or understanding; but they
corrupt and make an ill use of them.
t Either in the world or in the grave.
u As if it were but a little while since they parted. But this will
happen during the first moments only of the resurrection; for afterwards the
terror of the day will disturb and take from them all knowledge of one
another.3
x By delivering the prophet and those who believed on him, and
destroying the obstinate infidels.
y To hide their shame and regret;4 or because their surprise and
astonishment will deprive them of the use of speech.5 Some, however,
understand the verb which is here rendered will conceal, in the contrary
signification, which it sometimes bears; and then it must be translated-They
will openly declare their repentance, &c.
2 Idem. See cap. 6, p. 90. 3 Idem. 4 Jallalo'ddin.
5 Al Beidâwi.
60 Say, Tell me; of that which GOD hath sent down unto you for food, have
ye declared part to be lawful,z and other part to be unlawful? Say, Hath GOD
permitted you to make this distinction? or do ye devise a lie concerning GOD?
But what will be the opinion of those who devise a lie concerning GOD, on
the day of the resurrection? Verily GOD is endued with beneficence towards
mankind; but the greater part of them do not give thanks.
Thou shalt be engaged in no business, neither shalt thou be employed in
meditating on any passage of the Koran; nor shall ye do any action, but we
will be witnesses over you, when ye are employed therein. Nor is so much as
the weight of an anta hidden from thy LORD, in earth or in heaven: neither is
there anything lesser than that, or greater, but it is written in the
perspicuous book.b
Are not the friends of GOD the persons on whom no fear shall come, and
who shall not be grieved?
They who believe and fear God
shall receive good tidings in this life, and in that which is to come.
There is no change in the words of GOD. This shall be great felicity.
Let not their discoursec grieve thee; for all might belongeth unto GOD:
he both heareth and knoweth.
Is not whoever dwelleth in heaven and on earth subject unto GOD? What
therefore do they follow, who invoke idols, besides GOD? They follow nothing
but a vain opinion; and they only utter lies.
It is he who hath ordained the night for you, that ye may take your rest
therein, and the clear day for labor: verily herein are signs unto people who
hearken.
They say, GOD hath begotten children; GOD forbid! He is self-sufficient.
Unto him belongeth whatsoever is in heaven and on earth: ye have no
demonstrative proof of this. Do ye speak of GOD that which ye know not?
70 Say, Verily they who imagine a lie concerning GOD shall not prosper.
They may enjoy a provision in this world; but afterwards unto us shall
they return, and we will then cause them to taste a grievous punishment, for
that they were unbelievers.
Rehearse unto them the history of Noah:d when he said unto his people, O
my people, if my standing forth among you, and my warning you of the signs of
GOD, be grievous unto you; in GOD do I put my trust. Therefore lay your
design against me, and assemble your false gods; but let not your design be
carried on by you in the dark: then come forth against me, and delay not.
And if ye turn aside from my admonitions, I ask not any reward of you for
the same;e I expect my reward from GOD alone, and I am commanded to be one of
those who are resigned unto him.
But they accused him of imposture, wherefore we delivered him, and those
who were with him in the ark, and we caused them to survive the flood, but we
drowned those who charged our signs with falsehood. Behold therefore, what
was the end of those who were warned by Noah.
Then did we send, after him, apostles unto their respective people,f and
they came unto them with evident demonstrations: yet they were not disposed to
believe in that which they had before rejected as false. Thus do we seal up
the hearts of the transgressors.
z See chapter 6, p. 101, &c.
a See chapter 4, p. 58, note y.
b The preserved table, wherein GOD'S decrees are recorded.
c The impious and rebellious talk of the infidels.
d See chapter 7, p. 110, &c.
e Therefore ye cannot excuse yourselves by saying that I am burdensome
to you.
f As Hûd, Sâleh, Abraham, Lot, and Shoaib, to those of Ad, Thamûd,
Babel, Sodom, and Midian.
Then did we send, after them, Moses and Aaron unto Pharaoh and his
princes with our signs:g but they behaved proudly, and were a wicked people.
And when the truth from us had come unto them, they said, Verily this is
manifest sorcery.
Moses said unto them, Do ye speak this of the truth, after it hath come
unto you? Is this sorcery? but sorcerers shall not prosper.
They said, Art thou come unto us to turn us aside from that religion,
which we found our fathers practise; and that ye two may have the command in
the land? But we do not believe you.
80 And Pharaoh said, Bring unto me every expert magician. And when the
magicians were come, Moses said unto them, Cast down that which ye are about
to cast down.
And when they had cast down their rods and cords, Moses said unto them,
The enchantment which ye have performed shall GOD surely render vain; for GOD
prospereth not the work of the wicked doers,
and GOD will verify the truth of his words, although the wicked be
adverse thereto.
And there believed not any on Moses, except a generation of his people,h
for fear of Pharaoh and of his princes, lest he should afflict them. And
Pharaoh was lifted up with pride in the earth, and was surely one of the
transgressors.
And Moses said, O my people, if ye believe in GOD, put your trust in him,
if ye be resigned to his will.
They answered, We put our trust in GOD: O LORD, suffer us not to be
afflicted by unjust people;
but deliver us, through thy mercy, from the unbelieving people.
And we spake by inspiration unto Moses and his brother, saying, Provide
habitations for your people in Egypt, and make your houses a place of
worship,i and be constant at prayer: and bear good news unto the true
believers.
And Moses said, O LORD, verily thou hast given unto Pharaoh and his
people pompous ornaments,k and riches in this present life, O LORD, that they
may be seduced from thy way: O LORD, bring their riches to nought, and harden
their hearts; that they may not believe, until they see their grievous
punishment.
God said, Your petition is hear;l be ye upright therefore,m and follow
not the way of those who are ignorant.
g See chapter 7, p. 115, &c.
h For when he first began to preach, a few of the younger Israelites
only believed on him; the others not giving ear to him, for fear of the king.
But some suppose the pronoun his refers to Pharaoh, and that these were
certain Egyptians, who, together with his wife Asia, believed on Moses.1
i So Jallalo'ddin expounds the original word Kebla, which properly
signifies that place or quarter toward which one prays. Wherefore al
Zamakhshari supposes that the Israelites are here ordered to dispose their
oratories in such a manner that, when they prayed, their faces might be turned
towards Mecca; which he imagines was the Kebla of Moses, as it is that of the
Mohammedans. The former commentator adds that Pharaoh had forbidden the
Israelites to pray to GOD; for which reason they were obliged to perform that
duty privately in their houses.
k As magnificent apparel, chariots, and the like.
l The pronoun is in the dual number; the antecedent being Moses and
Aaron. The commentators say that, in consequence of this prayer, all the
treasures of Egypt were turned into stones.2
m Or, as al Beidâwi interprets it, Be ye constant and steady in
preaching to the people. The Mohammedans pretend that Moses continued in
Egypt no less than forty years after he had first published his mission: which
cannot be reconciled to scripture.
1 Al Beidâwi. 2 Jallalo'ddin.
90 And we caused the children of Israel to pass through the sea; and
Pharaoh and his army followed them in a violent and hostile manner; until,
when he was drowning, he said, I believe that there is no GOD but he, on whom
the children of Israel believe; and I am one of the resigned.n
Now dost thou believe; when thou hast been hitherto rebellious, and one
of the wicked doers?
This day will we raise thy bodyo from the bottom of the sea, that thou
mayest be a sign unto those who shall be after thee; and verily a great number
of men are negligent of our signs.
And we prepared for the children of Israel an established dwelling in the
land of Canaan, and we provided good things for their sustenance; and they
differed not in point of religion, until knowledge had come unto them;p verily
thy LORD will judge between them on the day of resurrection, concerning that
wherein they disagreed.
If thou art in a doubt concerning any part of that which we have sent
down unto thee,q ask them who have read the book of the law before thee. Now
hath the truth come unto thee from thy LORD; be not therefore one of those who
doubt;
neither be thou one of those who charge the signs of GOD with falsehood,
lest thou become one of those who perish.
Verily those against whom the word of thy LORD is decreed, shall not
believe,
although there come unto them every kind of miracle, until they see the
grievous punishment prepared for them.
And if it were not so, some city, among the many which have been
destroyed, would have believed; and the faith of its inhabitants would have
been of advantage unto them; but none of them believed, before the execution
of their sentence, except the people of Jonas.r When they believed, we
delivered them from the punishment of shame in this world, and suffered them
to enjoy their lives and possessions for a time.s
But if thy LORD had pleased, verily all who are in the earth would have
believed in general. Wilt thou therefore forcibly compel men to be true
believers?
100 No soul can believe, but by the permission of GOD: and he shall pour out
his indignation on those who will not understand.
Say, Consider whatever is in heaven and on earth: but signs are of no
avail, neither preachers, unto people who will not believe.
n These words, it is said, Pharaoh repeated often in his extremity,
that he might be heard. But his repentance came too late; for Gabriel soon
stopped his mouth with mud, lest he should obtain mercy; reproaching him at
the same time in the words which follow.
o Some of the children of Israel doubting whether Pharaoh was really
drowned. Gabriel, by GOD'S command, caused his naked corpse to swim to shore,
that they might see it.3 The word here translated body, signifying also a
coat of mail, some imagine the meaning to be, that his corpse floated armed
with his coat of mail, which they tell us was of gold, by which they knew that
it was he.
p i.e., After the law had been revealed, and published by Moses.
q That is, concerning the truth of the histories which are here
related. The commentators doubt whether the person here spoken to be Mohammed
himself or his auditor.
r viz., The inhabitants of Ninive, which stood on or near the place
where al Mawsel now stands. This people having corrupted themselves with
idolatry, Jonas the son of Mattai (or Amittai, which the Mohammedans suppose
to be the name of his mother), an Israelite of the tribe of Benjamin, was sent
by God to preach to and reclaim them. When he first began to exhort them to
repentance, instead of hearkening to him, they used him very ill, so that he
was obliged to leave the city; threatening them, at his departure, that they
should be destroyed within three days, or, as others say, within forty.1 But
when the time drew near, and they saw the heavens overcast with a black cloud,
which shot forth fire, and filled the air with smoke, and hung directly over
their city, they were in a terrible consternation, and getting into the fields
with their families and cattle, they put on sackcloth, and humbled themselves
before God, calling aloud for pardon, and sincerely repenting of their past
wickedness. Whereupon God was pleased to forgive them, and the storm blew
over.2
s i.e., Until they died according to the ordinary course of nature.
3 See Exod. xiv. 30. 1 See Jonah iii. 4. 2 Al
Beidâwi, Jallalo'ddin, Abulfeda. See cap. 21 and 37.
Do they therefore expect any other than some terrible judgment, like unto
the judgments which have fallen on those who have gone before them? Say, Wait
ye the issue; and I also will wait with you;
then will we deliver our apostles and those who believe. Thus is it a
justice due from us, that we should deliver the true believers.
Say, O men of Mecca, if ye be in doubt concerning my religion, verily I
worship not the idols which ye worship, besides GOD; but I worship GOD, who
will cause you to die: and I am commanded to be one of the true believers.
And it was said unto me, Set thy face towards the true religion, and be
orthodox; and by no means be one of those who attribute companions unto God;
neither invoke, besides GOD, that which can neither profit thee nor hurt
thee: for if thou do, thou wilt then certainly become one of the unjust.
If GOD afflict thee with hurt, there is none who can relieve thee from
it, except he; and if he willeth thee any good, there is none who can keep
back his bounty: he will confer it on such of his servants as he pleaseth; and
he is gracious and merciful.
Say, O men, now hath the truth come unto you from your LORD. He
therefore who shall be directed, will be directed to the advantage of his own
soul: but he who shall err, will err only against the same. I am no guardian
over you.
Do thou, O prophet, follow that which is revealed unto thee: and
persevere with patience, until GOD shall judge; for he is the best judge.
________
CHAPTER XI.
ENTITLED, HUD;t REVEALED AT MECCA.
IN THE NAME OF THE MOST MERCIFUL GOD.
AL. R.u THIS book, the verses whereof are guarded against corruption,
and are also distinctly explained,y is a revelation from the wise, the knowing
God:
that ye serve not any other GOD: (verily I am a denouncer of threats, and
a bearer of good tidings unto you from him;)
t The story of which prophet is repeated in this chapter.
u See the Prelim. Disc. p. 46, &c.
x According to the various senses which the verb ohkimat, in the
original, may bear, the commentators suggest as many different
interpretations. Some suppose the meaning to be, according to our version,
that the Korân is not liable to be corrupted,1 as the law and the gospel have
been, in the opinion of the Mohammedans; others, that every verse in this
particular chapter is in full force, and not one of them abrogated; others,
that the verses of the Korân are disposed in a clear and perspicuous method,
or contain evident and demonstrative arguments; and others, that they comprise
judicial declarations, to regulate both faith and practice.2
y The signification of the verb fossilat, which is here used, being
also ambiguous, the meaning of this passage is supposed to be, either that the
verses are distinctly proposed or expressed in a clear manner; or that the
subject matter of the whole may be distinguished or divided into laws,
monitions, and examples; or else that the verses were revealed by parcels.
1 See the Prelim. Disc. p. 53. 2 Al Beidâwi,
Jallalo'ddin, al Zamakhshari, &c.
and that ye ask pardon of your LORD, and then be turned unto him. He
will cause you to enjoy a plentiful provision, until a prefixed time: and unto
every one that hath merit by good works will he give his abundant reward. But
if ye turn back, verily I fear for you the punishment of the great day:
unto GOD shall ye return; and he is almighty.
Do they not double the folds of their breasts,z that they may conceal
their designs from him?
When they cover themselves with their garments, doth not he know that
which they conceal, and that which they discover?
For he knoweth the innermost parts of the breasts of men.a
There is no creature which creepeth on the earth, but GOD provideth its
food; and he knoweth the place of its retreat, and where it is laid up.b The
whole is written in the perspicuous book of his decrees.
It is he who hath created the heavens and the earth in six days, (but his
throne was above the waters before the creation thereof),c that he might prove
you, and see which of you would excel in works.
10 If thou say, Ye shall surely be raised again, after death; the
unbelievers will say, This is nothing but manifest sorcery.
And verily if we defer their punishment unto a determined season, they
will say, What hindereth it from falling on us? Will it not come upon them on
a day, wherein there shall be none to avert it from them; and that which they
scoffed at shall encompass them?
Verily, if we cause man to taste mercy from us, and afterwards take it
away from him; he will surely become desperate,d and ungrateful.
And if we cause him to taste favor, after an affliction hath befallen
him, he will surely say, The evils which I suffered are passed from me, and he
will become joyful and insolent:
except those who persevere with patience, and do that which is right;
they shall receive pardon, and a great reward.
Peradventure thou wilt omit to publish part of that which hath been
revealed unto thee, and thy breast will become straitened, lest they say,
Unless a treasure be sent down unto him, or an angel come with him, to bear
witness unto him, we will not believe. Verily thou art a preacher only; and
GOD is the governor of all things.
Will they say, He hath forged the Koran? Answer, Bring therefore ten
chapterse like unto it, forged by yourselves: and call on whomsoever ye may to
assist you, except GOD, if ye speak truth.
z Or, as it may be translated, Do they not turn away their breasts, &c.
a This passage was occasioned by the words of certain of the idolaters,
who said to one another, When we let down our curtains (such as the women use
in the east to screen themselves from the sight of the men when they happen to
be in the room), and wrap ourselves up in our garments, and fold up our
breasts, to conceal our malice against Mohammed, how should he come to the
knowledge of it? Some suppose the passage relates to certain hypocritical
Moslems; but this opinion is generally rejected, because the verse was
revealed at Mecca, and the birth of hypocrisy among the Mohammedans happened
not till after the Hejra.
b i.e., Both during its life and after its death; or the repository of
every animal, before its birth, in the loins and wombs of the parents.
c For the Mohammedans suppose this throne, and the waters whereon it
stands, which waters they imagine are supported by a spirit or wind, were,
with some other things, created before the heavens and earth. This fancy they
borrowed from the Jews, who also say that the throne of glory then stood in
the air, and was borne on the face of the waters, by the breath of GOD'S
mouth.1
d Casting aside all hopes of the divine favour, for want of patience
and trust in GOD.
e This was the number which he first challenged them to compose; but
they not being able to do it, he made the matter still easier, challenging
them to produce a single chapter only,2 comparable to the Korân in doctrine
and eloquence.
1 Rashi, ad Gen. i. 2. Vide Reland. de Relig. Moh. p. 50, &c.
2 See c. 2, p. 3; c. 10, p. 153, &c.
But if they whom ye call to your assistance hear you not; know that this
book hath been revealed by the knowledge of GOD only,f and that there is no
GOD but he. Will ye therefore become Moslems?
Whoso chooseth the present life, and the pomp thereof, unto them will we
give the recompense of their works therein, and the same shall not be
diminished unto them.
These are they for whom no other reward is prepared in the next life,
except the fire of hell: that which they have done in this life shall perish;
and that which they have wrought shall be vain.
20 Shall he therefore be compared with them, who followeth the evident
declaration of his LORD, and whom a witness from himg attendeth, preceded by
the book of Moses,h which was revealed for a guide, and out of mercy to
mankind? These believe in the Koran: but whosoever of the confederate
infidels believeth not therein, is threatened the fire of hell, which threat
shall certainly be executed: be not therefore in a doubt concerning it; for it
is the truth from thy LORD: but the greater part of men will not believe.
Who is more unjust than he who imagineth a lie concerning GOD? They
shall be set before the LORD, at the day of judgment, and the witnessesi shall
say, These are they who devised lies against their LORD. Shall not the curse
of GOD fall on the unjust;
who turn men aside from the way of GOD, and seek to render it crooked,
and who believe not in the life to come? These were not able to prevail
against God on earth, so as to escape punishment; neither had they any
protectors besides GOD: their punishment shall be doubled unto them.k They
could not hear, neither did they see
These are they who have lost their souls; and the idols which they
falsely imagined have abandoned them.
There is no doubt but they shall be most miserable in the world to come.
But as for those who believe and do good works, and humble themselves
before their LORD, they shall be the inhabitants of paradise; they shall
remain therein forever.
The similitude of the two partiesl is as the blind and the deaf, and as
he who seeth and heareth: shall they be compared as equal? Will ye not
therefore consider?
We formerly sent Noahm unto his people; and he said, Verily I am a public
preacher unto you;
that ye worship GOD alone; verily I fear for you the punishment of the
terrible day.
But the chiefs of the people, who believed not, answered, We see thee to
be no other than a man, like unto us; and we do not see that any follow thee,
except those who are the most abject among us, who have believed on thee by a
rash judgment;n neither do we perceive any excellence in you above us: but we
esteem you to be liars.
30 Noah said, O my people, tell me; if I have received an evident
declaration from my LORD, and he hath bestowed on me mercy from himself, which
is hidden from you, do we compel you to receive the same, in case ye be averse
thereto?
f Or containing several passages wrapped up in dark and mysterious
expressions, which can proceed from and are perfectly comprehended by none but
GOD.3
g The Korân; or, as others suppose, the angel Gabriel.
h Which bears testimony thereto.
i That is, the angels, and prophets, and their own members.
k For they shall be punished both in this life and in the next.
l i.e., The believers and the infidels.
m See chapter 7, p. 110, &c.
n For want of mature consideration, and moved by the first impulse of
their fancy.
3 See c. 3, p. 32.
O my people, I ask not of you riches, for my preaching unto you: my
reward is with GOD alone. I will not drive away those who have believed:o
verily they shall meet their LORD, at the resurrection; but I perceive that ye
are ignorant men.
O my people, who shall assist me against GOD, if I drive them away? Will
ye not therefore consider?
I say not unto you, The treasures of GOD are in my power; neither do I
say, I know the secrets of God: neither do I say, Verily I am an angel;p
neither do I say of those whom your eyes do contemn, GOD will by no means
bestow good on them: (GOD best knoweth that which is in their souls;) for then
should I certainly be one of the unjust.
They answered, O Noah, thou hast already disputed with us, and hast
multiplied disputes with us; now therefore do thou bring that punishment upon
us wherewith thou hast threatened us, if thou speakest truth.
Noah said, Verily GOD alone shall bring it upon you, if he pleaseth; and
ye shall not prevail against him, so as to escape the same.
Neither shall my counsel profit you, although I endeavor to counsel you
aright, if GOD shall please to lead you into error. He is your LORD, and unto
him shall ye return.
Will the Meccans say, Mohammed hath forged the Koran? Answer, If I have
forged it, on me be my guilt: and let me be clear of that which ye are guilty
of.
And it was revealed unto Noah, saying, Verily none of thy people shall
believe, except he who hath already believed: be not therefore grieved, for
that which they are doing.
But make an ark in our presence, according to the form and dimensions
which we have revealed unto thee: and speak not unto me in behalf of those who
have acted unjustly; for they are doomed to be drowned.
40 And he built the ark; and so often as a company of his people passed by
him, they derided him:q but he said, Though ye scoff at us now, we will scoff
at you hereafter, as ye scoff at us; and ye shall surely know
on whom a punishment shall be inflicted, which shall cover him with
shame, and on whom a lasting punishment shall fall.
o For this they asked him to do, because they were poor mean people.
The same thing the Koreish demanded of Mohammed, but he was forbidden to
comply with their request.1
p See chapter 6, p. 93.
q For building a vessel in an inland country, and so far from the sea;
and for that he was turned carpenter after he had set up for a prophet.2
1 See cap. 6, p. 93. 2 Al Beidâwi. 3 Idem.
4 Jallalo'ddin, &c. 5 Vide D'Herbelot, Bibl. Orient. Art.
Noah. 6 Vide Hyde, de Rel. Vet. Persar, and Lord's Account of the
Relig. of the Persees, p. 9.
Thus were they employed until our sentence was put in execution, and the
oven poured forth water.r And we said unto Noah, Carry into the ark of every
species of animals one pair;s and thy family,t (except him on whom a previous
sentence of destruction hath passed),u and those who believe.x But there
believed not with him except a few.y
And Noah said, Embark thereon, in the name of GOD; while it moveth
forward, and while it standeth still;z for my LORD is gracious and merciful.
And the ark swam with them between waves like mountains:a and Noah called
unto his son,b who was separated from him, saying, Embark with us, my son, and
stay not with the unbelievers.
He answered, I will get on a mountain, which will secure me from the
water. Noah replied, There is no security this day from the decree of GOD,
except for him on whom he shall have mercy. And a wave passed between them,
and he became one of those who were drowned.
r Or, as the original literally signifies, boiled over; which is
consonant to what the Rabbins say, that the waters of the Deluge were boiling
hot.
This oven was, as some say, at Cûfa, in a spot whereon a mosque now
stands; or, as others rather think, in a certain place in India, or else at
Ain warda in Mesopotamia;3 and its exundation was the sign by which Noah knew
the flood was coming.4 Some pretend that it was the same oven which Eve made
use of to bake her bread in, being of a form different from those we use,
having the mouth in the upper part, and that it descended from patriarch to
patriarch, till it came to Noah.5 It is remarkable that Mohammed, in all
probability, borrowed this circumstance from the Persian Magi, who also
fancied that the first waters of the Deluge gushed out of the oven of a
certain old woman named Zala Cûfa.6
But the word tannûr, which is here translated oven, also signifying the
superficies of the earth, or a place whence waters spring forth, or where they
are collected, some suppose it means no more in this passage than the spot or
fissure whence the first eruption of waters brake forth.
s Or, as the words may also be rendered, and some commentators think
they ought, two pair, that is, two males and two females of each species;
wherein they partly agree with divers Jewish and Christian writers,1 who from
the Hebrew expression, seven and seven and two and two, the male and his
female,2 suppose there went into the ark fourteen pair of every clean, and two
pair of every unclean species. There is a tradition that GOD gathered
together unto Noah all sorts of beasts, birds, and other animals (it being
indeed difficult to conceive how he should come by them all without some
supernatural assistance), and that as he laid hold on them, his right hand
constantly fell on the male, and his left on the female.3
t Namely, thy wife, and thy sons and their wives.4
u This was an unbelieving son of Noah,5 named Canaan,6 or Yam;7 though
others say he was not the son of Noah, but his grandson by his son Ham, or his
wife's son by another husband; nay, some pretend he was related to him no
farther than by having been educated and brought up in his house.8 The best
commentators add, that Noah's wife, named Wâïla, who was n infidel, was also
comprehended in this exception, and perished with her son.9
x Noah's family being mentioned before, it is supposed that by these
words are intended the other believers, who were his proselytes, but not of
his family: whence the common opinion among the Mohammedans, of a greater
number than eight being saved in the ark, seems to have taken its rise.10
y viz., His other wife, who was a true believer, his three sons, Shem,
Ham, and Japhet, and their wives, and seventy-two persons more.11
z That is, omit no opportunity of getting on board. According to a
different reading, the latter words may be rendered, Who shall cause it to
move forward, and to stop, as there shall be occasion. The commentators tell
us that the ark moved forwards, or stood still, as Noah would have it, on his
pronouncing only the words, In the name of GOD.12
It is to be observed that the more judicious commentators make the
dimensions of the ark to be the same with those assigned by Moses:13
Notwithstanding, others have enlarged them most extravagantly,14 as some
Christian writers15 have also done. They likewise tell us that Noah was two
years in building the ark, which was framed of Indian plane-tree,16 that it
was divided into three stories, of which the lower was designed for the
beasts, the middle one for the men and women, and the upper for the birds;17
and that the men were separated from the women by the body of Adam, which Noah
had taken into the ark.18 This last is a tradition of the eastern
Christians,19 some of whom pretend that the matrimonial duty was superseded
and suspended during the time Noah and his family were in the ark;20 though
Ham has been accused of not observing continency on that occasion, his wife,
it seems, bringing forth Caanan in the very ark.21
a The waters prevailing fifteen cubits above the mountains.22
b See above, note u.
1 Aben Ezra, Justin Martyr, Origen, &c. 2 Gen. vii. 2.
3 Jallalo'ddin. 4 Al Beidâwi. 5 Yahya. 6
Jallalo'ddin, al Beidâwi. 7 Ebn Shohnah. 8 Al Zamakhshari.
Vide D'Herbel. Bibl. Orient. p. 676. 9 Jallalo'ddin, al
Zamakhshari, al Beidâwi. 10 See c. 7, p. 111. 11 See
ibid. note x. 12 Al Beidâwi, &c. 13 Idem, &c.
14 Yahya. Vide Marracc. in Alcor. p. 340.
15 Origen. Contr. Cels. l. 4. Vide Kircher. de Arca Noe, c. 8. 16 Al
Beidâwi. Vide D'Herbel. p. 675, and Eutych. p. 34.
17 Al Beidâwi. Vide Eutych. Annal. p. 34. 18 Yahya. 19
Jacob, Edessenus, apud Barcepham de Parad. part i. c. 14. Eutych. ubi sup.
Vide etiam Eliezer. pirke c. 23. 20 Ambros. de Noa et Arca, c. 21.
21 Vide Heidegger. Hist. Patriarchar. vol. i. p. 409.
22 Al Beidâwi.
And it was said, O earth, swallow up thy waters, and thou, O heaven,
withhold thy rain. And immediately the water abated, and the decree was
fulfilled, and the ark rested on the mountain Al Judi;c and it was said, Away
with the ungodly people!
And Noah called upon his LORD, and said, O LORD, verily my son is of my
family, and thy promise is true;d for thou art the most just of those who
exercise judgment.
God answered, O Noah, verily he is not of thy family;e this intercession
of thine for him is not a righteous work.f Ask not of me therefore that
wherein thou hast no knowledge: I admonish thee that thou become not one of
the ignorant.
Noah said, O LORD, I have recourse unto thee for the assistance of thy
grace, that I ask not of thee that wherein I have no knowledge; and unless
thou forgive me, and be merciful unto me, I shall be one of those who perish.
50 It was said unto him, O Noah, come down from the ark,g with peace from
us, and blessings upon thee, and upon part of those who are with thee:h but as
for a part of them,i we will suffer them to enjoy the provision of this world;
and afterwards shall a grievous punishment from us be inflicted on them, in
the life to come.
This is a secret history, which we reveal unto thee: thou didst not know
it, neither did thy people, before this. Wherefore persevere with patience:
for the prosperous issue shall attend the pious.
And unto the tribe of Ad we sent their brother Hud.k He said, O my
people, worship GOD; ye have no GOD besides him: ye only imagine falsehood, in
setting up idols and intercessors of your own making.
c This mountain is one of those which divide Armenia, on the south,
from Mesopotamia, and that part of Assyria which is inhabited by the Curds,
from whom the mountains took the name of Cardu, or Gardu, by the Greeks turned
into Gordyæi, and other names.1 Mount al Jûdi (which name seems to be a
corruption, though it be constantly so written by the Arabs, for Jordi, or
Giordi) is also called Thamanin,2 probably from a town at the foot of it,3 so
named from the number of persons saved in the ark, the word thamanin
signifying eighty, and overlooks the country of Diyâr Rabîah, near the cities
of Mawsel, Forda, and Jazîrat Ebn Omar, which last place one affirms to be but
four miles from the place of the ark, and says that a Mohammedan temple was
built there with the remains of that vessel, by the Khalif Omar Ebn
Abd'alaziz, whom he by mistake calls Omar Ebn al Khattâb.4
The tradition which affirms the ark to have rested on these mountains,
must have been very ancient, since it is the tradition of the Chaldeans
themselves:5 the Chaldee paraphrasts consent to their opinion,6 which obtained
very much formerly, especially among the eastern Christians.7 To confirm it,
we are told that the remainders of the ark were to be seen on the Gordyæan
mountains: Berosus and Abydenus both declare there was such a report in their
time;8 the first observing that several of the inhabitants thereabouts scraped
the pitch off the planks as a rarity, and carried it about them for an amulet:
and the latter saying that they used the wood of the vessel against many
diseases with wonderful success. The relics of the ark were also to be seen
here in the time of Epiphanius, if we may believe him;9 and we are told the
emperor Heraclius went from the town of Thamanin up to the mountain al Jûdi,
and saw the place of the ark.10 There was also formerly a famous monastery,
called the monastery of the ark, upon some of these mountains, where the
Nestorians used to celebrate a feast day on the spot where they supposed the
ark rested; but in the year of Christ 776, that monastery was destroyed by
lightning, with the church, and a numerous congregation in it.11 Since which
time it seems the credit of this tradition hath declined, and given place to
another, which obtains at present, and according to which the ark rested on
Mount Masis, in Armenia, called by the Turks Aghir dagh, or the heavy or great
mountain, and situate about twelve leagues south-east of Erivan.12
d Noah here challenges GOD'S promise that he would save his family.
e Being cut off from it on account of his infidelity.
f According to a different reading, this passage may be rendered, For
he hath acted unrighteously.
g The Mohammedans say that Noah went into the ark on the tenth of
Rajeb, and came out of it the tenth of al Moharram, which therefore became a
fast. So that the whole time of Noah's being in the ark, according to them,
was six months.1
h viz., Such of them as continued in their belief.
i That is, such of his posterity as should depart from the true faith,
and fall into idolatry.
k See chapter 7, p. 111.
1 See Bochart. Phaleg. l. I, c. 3. 2 Geogr. Nub. p. 202.
3 Vide D'Herbel. Bibl. Orient. p. 404 and 676, and Agathiam, l. 14, p.
135. 4 Benjamin. Itiner. p. 61. 5 Berosus, apud Joseph.
Antiq. l. I, c. 4. 6 Onkelos et Jonathan, in Gen. viii. 4.
7 Vide Eutych. Annal. p. 41. 8 Berosus, apud Joseph. ubi sup.
Abydenus, apud Euseb. Præp. Ev. l. 9, c.4. 9 Epiph. Hæres. 18.
10 Elmacin. l. I, c. I. 11 Vide Chronic. Dionysii Patriarch.
Jacobitar. apud Asseman. Bibl. Orient. t. 2, p. 113. 12 Al Beidâwi.
1 Idem. See D'Herbel. ubi sup.
O my people, I ask not of you for this my preaching, any recompense: my
recompense do I expect from him only who hath created me. Will ye not
therefore understand?
O my people, ask pardon of your LORD; and be turned unto him: he will
send the heaven to pour forth rain plentifully upon you,l
and he will increase your strength by giving unto you farther strength:m
therefore turn not aside, to commit evil.
They answered, O Hud, thou hast brought us no proof of what thou sayest;
therefore we will not leave our gods for thy saying, neither do we believe
thee
We say no other than that some of our gods have afflicted thee with
evil.n He replied, Verily I call GOD to witness, and do ye also bear witness
that I am clear of that which ye associate
with God, besides him. Do ye all therefore join to devise a plot against
me, and tarry not;
for I put my confidence in GOD, my LORD and your LORD. There is no
beast, but he holdeth it by its forelock:o verily my LORD proceedeth in the
right way.
60 But if ye turn back, I have already declared unto you that with which I
was sent unto you: and my LORD shall substitute another nation in your stead;
and ye shall not hurt him at all: for my LORD is guardian over all things.
And when our sentence came to be put in execution, we delivered Hud, and
those who had believed with him,p through our mercy; and we delivered them
from a grievous punishment.
And this tribe of Ad wittingly rejected the signs of their LORD, and were
disobedient unto his messengers, and they followed the command of every
rebellious perverse person.
Wherefore they were followed in this world by a curse, and they shall be
followed by the same on the day of resurrection. Did not Ad disbelieve in
their LORD? Was it not said, Away with Ad, the people of Hud?
And unto the tribe of Thamud we sent their brother Saleh.q He said unto
them, O my people, worship GOD; ye have no GOD besides him. It is he who hath
produced you out of the earth, and hath given you an habitation therein. Ask
pardon of him therefore, and be turned unto him; for my LORD is near, and
ready to answer.
They answered, O Saleh, thou wast a person on whom we placed our hopes
before this.r Dost thou forbid us to worship that which our fathers
worshipped? But we are certainly in doubt concerning the religion to which
thou dost invite us, as justly to be suspected.
Saleh said, O my people, tell me; if I have received an evident
declaration from my LORD, and he hath bestowed on me mercy from himself; who
will protect me from the vengeance of GOD, if I be disobedient unto him? For
ye shall not add unto me, other than loss.
And he said, O my people, this she-camel of GOD is a sign unto you;
therefore dismiss her freely, that she may feed in GOD'S earth, and do her no
harm, lest a swift punishment seize you.
l For the Adites were grievously distressed by a drought for three
years.2
m By giving you children; the wombs of their wives being also rendered
barren during the time of the drought, as well as their lands.3
n Or madness; having deprived thee of thy reason for the indignities
thou hast offered them.
o That is, he exerciseth an absolute power over it. A creature held in
this manner being supposed to be reduced to the lowest subjection.
p Who were in number four thousand.4
q See chapter 7, p. 112.
r Designing to have made thee our prince, because of the singular
prudence and other good qualities which we observed in thee; but thy
dissenting from us in point of religious worship has frustrated those hopes.5
2 See the notes to cap. 7, p. 111. 3 Al Beidâwi. 4
Idem. 5 Idem.
Yet they killed her; and Saleh said, Enjoy yourselves in your dwellings
for three days:s after which ye shall be destroyed. This is an infallible
prediction.
And when our decree came to be executed, we delivered Saleh and those who
believed with him, through our mercy, from the disgrace of that day; for thy
LORD is the strong, the mighty God.
70 But a terrible noise from heaven assailed those who had acted unjustly;
and in the morning they were found in their houses, lying dead and prostrate:
as though they had never dwelt therein. Did not Thamud disbelieve in
their LORD? Was not Thamud cast far away?
Our messengerst also came formerly unto Abraham, with good tidings: they
said, Peace be upon thee. And he answered, and on you be Peace! And he
tarried not, but brought a roasted calf.
And when he saw that their hands did not touch the meat, he misliked
them, and entertained a fear of them.u But they said, Fear not: for we are
sent unto the people of Lot.x
And his wife Sarah was standing by,y and she laughed;z and we promised
her Isaac, and after Isaac, Jacob.
She said, Alas! shall I bear a son, who am old; this my husband also
being advanced in years?a Verily this would be a wonderful thing.
The angels answered, Dost thou wonder at the effect of the command of
GOD? The mercy of God and his blessings be upon you, the family of the
house:b for he is praiseworthy, and to be glorified.
And when his apprehension had departed from Abraham, and the good tidings
of Isaac's birth had come unto him, he disputed with us concerning the people
of Lot;c for Abraham was a pitiful, compassionate, and devout person.
The angels said unto him, O Abraham, abstain from this; for now is the
command of thy LORD come, to put their sentence in execution, and an
inevitable punishment is ready to fall upon them.
s viz., Wednesday, Thursday, and Friday.1 See chapter 7, p. 113, note
m.
t These were the angels who were sent to acquaint Abraham with the
promise of Isaac, and to destroy Sodom and Gomorrah. Some of the commentators
pretend they were twelve, or nine, or ten in number; but others, agreeably to
scripture, say they were but three, viz., Gabriel, Michael and Israfîl.2
u Apprehending they had some ill design against him, because they would
not eat with him.
x Being angels, whose nature needs not the support of food.3
y Either behind the curtain, or door of the tent; or else waiting upon
them.
z The commentators are so little acquainted with scripture, that, not
knowing the true occasion of Sarah's laughter, they strain their invention to
give some reason for it. One says that she laughed at the angels discovering
themselves, and ridding Abraham and herself of their apprehensions; and
another, that it was at the approaching destruction of the Sodomites (a very
probable motive in one of her sex). Some, however, interpret the original
word differently, and will have it that she did not laugh, but that her
courses, which had stopped for several years, came upon her at this time, as a
previous sign of her future conception.4
a Al Beidâwi writes that Sarah was then ninety or ninety-nine years
old, and Abraham a hundred and twenty.
b Or the stock whence all the prophets were to proceed for the future.
Or the expression may perhaps refer to Abraham and Ismael's building the
Caaba, which is often called, by way of excellence, the house.
c That is, he interceded with us for them.5 Jallalo'ddin, instead of
the numbers mentioned by Moses, says that Abraham first asked whether GOD
would destroy those cities if three hundred righteous persons were found
therein, and so fell successively to two hundred, forty, fourteen, and at last
came to one: but there was not one righteous person to be found among them,
except only Lot and his family.
1 Idem. 2 Idem, Jallalo'ddin. See Gen. xviii. 3
Idem. 4 Idem, Jallalo'ddin, al Zamakhshari.
5 Vide Gen. xviii. 23, &c.
And when our messengers came unto Lot, he was troubled for them,d and his
arm was straightened concerning them;e and he said, This is a grievous day.
80 And his people came unto him, rushing upon him, and they had formerly
been guilty of wickedness. Lot said unto them, O my people, these my
daughters are more lawful for you: therefore fear GOD, and put me not to shame
by wronging my guests. Is there not a man of prudence among you?
They answered, Thou knowest that we have no need of thy daughters; and
thou well knowest what we would have.
He said, If I had strength sufficient to oppose you, or I could have
recourse unto a powerful support, I would certainly do it.
The angels said, O Lot, verily we are the messengers of thy LORD; they
shall by no means come in unto thee.f Go forth, therefore, with thy family,
in some part of the night, and let not any of you turn back: but as for thy
wife,g that shall happen unto her, which shall happen unto them. Verily the
prediction of their punishment shall be fulfilled in the morning: is not the
morning near?
And when our command came, we turned those cities upside down,h and we
rained upon them stones of baked clay,i one following another, and being
markedk from thy LORD; and they are not far distant from those who act
unjustly.l
And unto Madian we sent their brother Shoaib:m he said, O people, worship
GOD: ye have no GOD but him: and diminish not measure and weight. Verily I
see you to be in a happy condition:n but I fear for you the punishment of the
day which will encompass the ungodly.
O my people, give full measure and just weight; and diminish not unto men
aught of their matters; neither commit injustice in the earth, acting
corruptly.
The residue which shall remain unto you as the gift of GOD, after ye
shall have done justice to others, will be better for you, than wealth gotten
by fraud, if ye be true believers.
I am no guardian over you.
d Because they appeared in the shape of beautiful young men, which must
needs tempt those of Sodom to abuse them.6
e i.e., He knew himself unable to protect them against the insults of
his townsmen.
f Al Beidâwi says that Lot shut his door, and argued the matter with
the riotous assembly from behind it; but at length they endeavoured to get
over the wall: whereupon Gabriel, seeing his distress, struck them on the face
with one of his wings, and blinded them; so that they moved off, crying out
for help, and saying that Lot had magicians in his house.
g This seems to be the true sense of the passage; but according to a
different reading of the vowel, some interpret it, Except thy wife; the
meaning being that Lot is here commanded to take his family with him except
his wife. Wherefore the commentators cannot agree whether Lot's wife went
forth with him or not; some denying it, and pretending that she was left
behind and perished in the common destruction; and others affirming it, and
saying that when she heard the noise of the storm and overthrow of the cities,
she turned back lamenting their fate, and was immediately struck down and
killed by one of the stones mentioned a little lower.1 A punishment she
justly merited for her infidelity and disobedience to her husband.2
h For they tell us that Gabriel thrust his wing under them, and lifted
them up so high, that the inhabitants of the lower heaven heard the barking of
the dogs and the crowing of the cocks; and then, inverting them, threw them
down to the earth.3
i The kiln wherein they were burned some imagine to have been hell.
k That is, as some suppose, streaked with white and red, or having some
other peculiar mark to distinguish them from ordinary stones. But the common
opinion is that each stone had the name of the person who was to be killed by
it written thereon.4 The army of Abraha al Ashram was also destroyed by the
same kind of stones.
l This is a kind of threat to other wicked persons, and particularly to
the infidels of Mecca, who deserved and might justly apprehend the same
punishment.
m See chap. 7, p. 113, &c.
n That is, enjoying plenty of all things; and therefore having the less
occasion to defraud one another, and being the more strongly bound to be
thankful and obedient unto GOD.
6 Jallalo'ddin, al Beidâwi. Vide Joseph. Ant. l. I, c. II.
1 Idem interpretes. 2 See cap. 66.
3 Jallalo'ddin, al Beidâwi. 4 Idem.
They answered, O Shoaib, do thy prayers enjoin thee, that we should leave
the gods which our fathers worshipped; or that we should not do what we please
with our substance?o Thou only, it seems, art the wise person, and fit to
direct.
90 He said, O my people, tell me: if I have received an evident declaration
from my LORD, and he hath bestowed on me an excellent provision, and I will
not consent unto you in that which I forbid you; do I seek any other than your
reformation, to the utmost of my power? My support is from GOD alone: on him
do I trust, and unto him do I turn me.
O my people, let not your opposing of me draw on you a vengeance like
unto that which fell on the people of Noah, or the people of Hud, or the
people of Saleh: neither was the people of Lot far distant from you.p
Ask pardon, therefore, of your LORD; and be turned unto him: for my LORD
is merciful and loving.
They answered, O Shoaib, we understand not much of what thou sayest; and
we see thee to be a man of no powerq among us: if it had not been for the sake
of thy family,r we had surely stoned thee, neither couldst thou have prevailed
against us.
Shoaib said, O my people, is my family more worthy in your opinion than
GOD? and do ye cast him behind you with neglect? Verily my LORD comprehendeth
that which ye do.
O my people, do ye work according to your condition; I will surely work
according to my duty.s And ye shall certainly know
on whom will be inflicted a punishment which shall cover him with shame,
and who is a liar. Wait, therefore, the event; for I also will wait it with
you.
Wherefore, when our decree came to be executed, we delivered Shoaib and
those who believed with him, through our mercy: and a terrible noise from
Heaven assailed those who had acted unjustly; and in the morning they were
found in their houses lying dead and prostrate,
as though they had never dwelt therein. Was not Madian removed from off
the earth, as Thamud had been removed?
And we formerly sent Moses with our signs, and manifest power unto
Pharaoh and his princes;t but they followed the command of Pharaoh; although
the command of Pharaoh did not direct them aright.
100 Pharaoh shall precede his on the day of resurrection, and he shall lead
them into hell fire; an unhappy way shall it be which they shall be led.
They were followed in this life by a curse, and on the day of
resurrection miserable shall be the gift which shall be given them.
This is a part of the histories of the cities, which we rehearse unto
thee. Of them there are some standing; and others which are utterly
demolished.u
o For this liberty they imagined was taken from them, by his
prohibition of false weights and measures, or to diminish or adulterate their
coin.5
p For Sodom and Gomorrah were situate not a great way from you, and
their destruction happened not many ages ago; neither did they deserve it, on
account of their obstinacy and wickedness, much more than yourselves.
q The Arabic word daîf, weak, signifying also, in the Hamyaritic
dialect, blind, some suppose that Shoaib was so, and that the Midianites
objected that to him as a defect which disqualified him for the prophetic
office.
r i.e., For the respect we bear to thy family and relations, whom we
honour as being of our religion, and not for any apprehension we have of their
power to assist you against us. The original word, here translated family,
signifies any number from three to seven or ten, but not more.6
s See chapter 6, p. 101, note o.
t See chapter 7, p. 115, &c.
u Literally, mown down; the sentence presenting the different images of
corn standing, and cut down, which is also often used by the sacred writers.
5 Al Beidâwi. 6 Idem.
And we treated them not unjustly, but they dealt unjustly with their own
souls: and their gods which they invoked, besides GOD, were of no advantage
unto them at all, when the decree of thy LORD came to be executed on them,
neither were they any other than a detriment unto them.
And thus was the punishment of thy LORD inflicted, when he punished the
cities which were unjust; for his punishment is grievous and severe.
Verily herein is a sign unto him who feareth the punishment of the last
day: that shall be a day, whereon all men shall be assembled, and that shall
be a day whereon witness shall be borne;
we defer it not, but to a determined time.
When that day shall come, no soul shall speak to excuse itself, or to
intercede for another, but by the permission of God. Of them, one shall be
miserable, and another shall be happy.
And they who shall be miserable, shall be thrown into hell fire; there
shall they wail and bemoan themselves:x
they shall remain therein so long as the heavens and the earth shall
endure;y except what thy LORD shall please to remit of their sentence;z for
thy LORD effecteth that which he pleaseth.
110 But they who shall be happy, shall be admitted into paradise; they shall
remain therein so long as the heavens and the earth endure: besides what thy
LORD shall please to add unto their bliss; a bounty which shall not be
interrupted.
Be not therefore in doubt concerning that which these men worship: they
worship no other than what their fathers worshipped before them; and we will
surely give them their full portion, not in the least diminished.
We formerly gave unto Moses the book of the law; and disputes arose among
his people concerning it: and unless a previous decree had proceeded from thy
LORD, to bear with them during this life, the matter had been surely decided
between them. And thy people are also jealous and in doubt concerning the
Koran.
But unto every one of them will thy LORD render the reward of their
works; for he well knoweth that which they do.
Be thou steadfast, therefore, as thou hast been commanded; and let him
also be steadfast who shall be converted with thee; and transgress not; for he
seeth that which ye do.
And incline not unto those who act unjustly, lest the fire of hell touch
you: for ye have no protectors, except GOD; neither shall ye be assisted
against him.
Pray regularly morning and evening;a and in the former part of the
night,b for good works drive away evils. This is an admonition unto those who
consider:
wherefore persevere with patience; for GOD suffereth not the reward of
the righteous to perish.
x The two words in the original signify properly the vehement drawing
in and expiration of one's breath, which is usual to persons in great pain and
anguish; and particularly the reciprocation of the voice of an ass when he
brays.
y This is not to be strictly understood as if either the punishment of
the damned should have an end, or the heavens and the earth should endure for
ever; the expression being only used by way of image or comparison, which need
not agree in every point with the thing signified. Some, however, think the
future heavens and earth, into which the present shall be changed, are here
meant.1
z See the Prelim. Disc. Sect. IV. p. 72, 73.
a Literally, in the two extremities of the day.
b That is, after sunset and before supper, when the Mohammedans say
their fourth prayer, called by them Salât al moghreb, or the evening prayer.2
1 Al Beidâwi. 2 Idem.
Were such of the generations before you, endued with understanding and
virtue, who forbade the acting corruptly in the earth, any more than a few
only of those whom we delivered; but they who were unjust followed the
delights which they enjoyed in this world,c and were wicked doers:d
and thy LORD was not of such a disposition as to destroy the cities
unjustly,e while their inhabitants behaved themselves uprightly.
120 And if thy LORD pleased, he would have made all men of one religion: but
they shall not cease to differ among themselves, unless those on whom thy LORD
shall have mercy: and unto this hath he created them; for the word of thy LORD
shall be fulfilled, when he said, Verily I will fill hell altogether with
genii and men.
The whole which we have related of the histories of our apostles do we
relate unto thee, that we may confirm thy heart thereby; and herein is the
truth come unto thee, and an admonition, and a warning unto the true
believers.
Say unto those who believe not, Act ye according to your condition; we
surely will act according to our duty:f and wait the issue; for we certainly
wait it also.
Unto GOD is known that which is secret in heaven and earth; and unto him
shall the whole matter be referred. Therefore worship him, and put thy trust
in him; for thy LORD is not regardless of that which ye do.
______
CHAPTER XII.
ENTITLED, JOSEPH;g REVEALED AT MECCA.
IN THE NAME OF THE MOST MERCIFUL GOD.
AL. R.h These are the signs of the perspicuous book;
which we have sent down in the Arabic tongue, that, peradventure, ye
might understand.
We relate unto thee a most excellent history, by revealing unto thee this
Korân,i whereas thou wast before one of thek negligent.
c Making it their sole business to please their luxurious desires and
appetites, and placing their whole felicity therein.
d Al Beidâwi says that this passage gives the reason why the nations
were destroyed of old; viz., for their violence and injustice, their following
their own lusts, and for their idolatry and unbelief.
e Or, as the commentator just named explains it, for their idolatry
only, when they observed justice in other respects.
f See chapter 6, p. 110, note o.
g The Koreish, thinking to puzzle Mohammed, at the instigation and by
the direction of certain Jewish Rabbins, demanded of him how Jacob's family
happened to go down into Egypt, and that he would relate to them the history
of Joseph, with all its circumstances: whereupon he pretended to have received
this chapter from heaven, containing the story of that patriarch.1 It is
said, however, to have been rejected by two Mohammedan sects, branches of the
Khârejites, called the Ajâredites and the Maimûnians, as apocryphal and
spurious.
h See the Prelim. Disc. p. 46, &c.
i Or this particular chapter. For the word Korân, as has been
elsewhere observed,2 properly signifying no more than a reading or lecture, is
often used to denote, not only the whole volume, but any distinct chapter or
section of it.
k i.e., So far from being acquainted with the story, that it never so
much as entered into thy thoughts; a certain argument, says al Beidâwi, that
it must have been revealed to him from heaven.
1 Al Beidâwi. 2 Prelim. Disc. Sect. III. p. 44.
When Joseph said unto his father,l O my father, verily I saw in my dream
eleven stars,m and the sun and the moon; I saw them make obeisance unto me:
Jacob said, O my child, tell not thy vision to thy brethren, lest they
devise some plot against thee;n for the devil is a professed enemy unto man;
and thus, according to thy dream, shall thy LORD choose thee, and teach
thee the interpretation of dark sayings,o and he shall accomplish his favor
upon thee and upon the family of Jacob, as he hath formerly accomplished it
upon thy fathers Abraham and Isaac; for thy LORD is knowing and wise.
Surely in the history of Joseph and his brethren there are signs of God's
providence to the inquisitive;
when they said to one another, Joseph and his brotherp are dearer to our
father than we, who are the greater number: our father certainly maketh a
wrong judgment.
Wherefore slay Joseph, or drive him into some distant or desert part of
the earth, and the face of your father shall be cleared towards you;q and ye
shall afterwards be people of integrity.
10 One of themr spoke and said; Slay not Joseph, but throw him to the
bottom of the well; and some travellers will take him up, if ye do this.
They said unto Jacob, O father, why dost thou not intrust Joseph with us,
since we are sincere well-wishers unto him?
Send him with us to-morrow, into the field, that he may divert himself,
and sport,s and we will be his guardians.
Jacob answered, It grieveth me that ye take him away; and I fear lest the
wolf devour him,t while ye are negligent of him.
They said, Surely if the wolf devour him, when there are so many of us,
we shall be weak indeed.u
l Who was Jacob, the son of Isaac, the son of Abraham.3
m The commentators give us the names of these stars (which I think it
needless to trouble the reader with), as Mohammed repeated them, at the
request of a Jew, who thought to entrap him by the question.2
n For they say, Jacob, judging that Joseph's dream portended his
advancement above the rest of the family, justly apprehended his brethren's
envy might tempt them to do him some mischief.
o That is, of dreams; or, as others suppose, of the profound passages
of scripture, and all difficulties respecting either religion or justice.
p viz., Benjamin, his brother by the same mother.
q Or, he will settle his love wholly upon you, and ye will have no
rival in his favour.
r This person, as some say, was Judah, the most prudent and noble-
minded of them all; or, according to others, Reuben, whom the Mohammedan
writers call Rubîl.3 And both these opinions are supported by the account of
Moses, who tells us that Reuben advised them not to kill Joseph, but to throw
him into a pit privately, intending to release him;4 and that afterwards
Judah, in Reuben's absence, persuaded them not to let him die in the pit, but
to sell him to the Ishmaelites.5
s Some copies read, in the first person plural, that we may divert
ourselves, &c.
t The reason why Jacob feared this beast in particular, as the
commentators say, was, either because the land was full of wolves, or else
because Jacob had dreamed he saw Joseph devoured by one of those creatures.6
u i.e., It will be an instance of extreme weakness and folly in us, and
we shall be justly blamed for his loss.
1 Al Beidâwi, &c. 2 Idem, al Zamakhshari. 3
Idem. 4 Gen. xxxvii. 21, 22. 5 Ibid. v. 26, 27. 6 Al
Beidâwi, Jallalo'ddin, al Zamakhshari.
And when they had carried him with them, and agreed to set him at the
bottom of the well,x they executed their design: and we sent a revelation unto
him,y saying, Thou shalt hereafter declare this their action unto them; and
they shall not perceive thee to be Joseph.
And they came to their father at even, weeping,
and said, Father, we went and ran races with one another,z and we left
Joseph with our baggage, and the wolf hath devoured him; but thou wilt not
believe us, although we speak the truth.
And they produced his inner garment stained with false blood. Jacob
answered, Nay, but ye yourselves have contrived the thing for your own sakes:a
however patience is most becoming, and GOD'S assistance is to be implored to
enable me to support the misfortune which ye relate.
And certain travellersb came, and sent onec to draw water for them; and
he let down his bucket,d and said, Good news!e this is a youth. And they
concealed him,f that they might sell him as a piece of merchandise: but GOD
knew that which they did.
20 And they sold him for a mean price, for a few pence,g and valued him
lightly.
And the Egyptian who bought himh said to his wife,i Use him honourably;
peradventure he may be serviceable to us, or we may adopt him for our son.k
Thus did we prepare an establishment for Joseph in the earth, and we taught
him the interpretation of dark sayings: for GOD is well able to effect his
purpose; but the greater part of men do not understand.
x This well, say some, was a certain well near Jerusalem, or not far
from the river Jordan; but others call it the well of Egypt or Midian. The
commentators tell us that, when the sons of Jacob had gotten Joseph with them
in the field, they began to abuse and to beat him so unmercifully, that they
had killed him, had not Judah, on his crying out for help, insisted on the
promise they had made not to kill him, but to cast him into the well.
Whereupon they let him down a little way; but, as he held by the sides of the
well, they bound him, and took off his inner garment, designing to stain it
with blood, to deceive their father. Joseph begged hard to have his garment
returned him, but to no purpose, his brothers telling him, with a sneer, that
the eleven stars and the sun and the moon might clothe him and keep him
company. When they had let him down half-way, they let him fall thence to the
bottom, and, there being water in the well (though the scripture says the
contrary), he was obliged to get upon a stone, on which, as he stood weeping,
the angel Gabriel came to him with the revelation mentioned immediately.1
y Joseph being then but seventeen years old, al Beidâwi observes that
herein he resembled John the Baptist and Jesus, who were also favoured with
the divine communication very early. The commentators pretend that Gabriel
also clothed him in the well with a garment of silk of paradise. For they say
that when Abraham was thrown into the fire by Nimrod,2 he was stripped; and
that Gabriel brought this garment and put it on him; and that from Abraham it
descended to Jacob, who folded it up and put it into an amulet, which he hung
about Joseph's neck, whence Gabriel drew it out.3
z These races they used by way of exercise; and the commentators
generally understand here that kind of race wherein they also showed their
dexterity in throwing darts, which is still used in the east.
a This Jacob had reason to suspect, because, when the garment was
brought to him, he observed that, though it was bloody, yet it was not torn.4
b viz., A caravan or company travelling from Midian to Egypt, who
rested near the well three days after Joseph had been thrown into it.
c The commentators are so exact as to give us the name of this man,
who, as they pretend, was Malec Ebn Dhór, of the tribe of Khozâah.5
d And Joseph, making use of the opportunity, took hold of the cord, and
was drawn up by the man.
e The original words are Ya boshra: the latter of which some take for
the proper name of the water-drawer's companion, whom he called to his
assistance; and then they must be translated, O Boshra.
f The expositors are not agreed whether the pronoun they relates to
Malec and his companions or to Joseph's brethren. They who espouse the former
opinion say that those who came to draw water concealed the manner of their
coming by him from the rest of the caravan, that they might keep him to
themselves, pretending that some people of the place had given him to them to
sell for them in Egypt. And they who prefer the latter opinion tell us that
Judah carried victuals to Joseph every day while he was in the well, but not
finding him there on the fourth day, he acquainted his brothers with it;
whereupon they all went to the caravan and claimed Joseph as their slave, he
not daring to discover that he was their brother, lest something worse should
befall him; and at length they agreed to sell him to them.6
g Namely, twenty or twenty-two dirhems, and those not of full weight
neither; for having weighed one ounce of silver only, the remainder was paid
by tale, which is the most unfair way of payment.1
h His name was Kitfîr, or Itfîr (a corruption of Potiphar); and he was
a man of great consideration, being superintendent of the royal treasury.2
The commentators say that Joseph came into his service at seventeen, and
lived with him thirteen years; and that he was made prime minister in the
thirty-third year of his age, and died at a hundred and twenty.
They who suppose Joseph was twice sold differ as to the price the
Egyptian paid for him; some saying it was twenty dinârs of gold, a pair of
shoes, and two white garments; and others, that it was a large quantity of
silver or of gold.
i Some call her Raïl; but the name she is best known by is that of
Zoleikha.
k Kitfîr having no children. It is said that Joseph gained his
master's good opinion so suddenly by his countenance, which Kitfîr, who, they
pretend, had great skill in physiognomy, judged to indicate his prudence and
other good qualities.
1 Idem. 2 See cap. 21. 3 Al Beidâwi, al Zamakhshari.
4 Al Beidâwi.
5 Idem. 6 Idem. 1 Al Beidâwi. 2 Idem.
And when he had attained his age of strength, we bestowed on him wisdom,
and knowledge; for thus do we recompense the righteous.
And she, in whose house he was, desired him to lie with her; and she shut
the doors and said, Come hither. He answered, GOD forbid! verily my lordl
hath made my dwelling with him easy; and the ungrateful shall not prosper.
But she resolved within herself to enjoy him, and he would have resolved
to enjoy her, had he not seen the evident demonstration of his LORD.m So we
turned away evil and filthiness from him, because he was one of our sincere
servants.
And they ran to get one before the other to the door;n and she rent his
inner garment behind. And they met her lord at the door. She said, What
shall be the reward of him who seeketh to commit evil in thy family, but
imprisonment, and a painful punishment?
And Joseph said, She asked me to lie with her. And a witness of her
familyo bore witness, saying, If his garment be rent before, she speaketh
truth, and he is a liar:
but if his garment be rent behind, she lieth, and he is a speaker of
truth.
And when her husband saw that his garment was torn behind, he said, This
is a cunning contrivance of your sex; for surely your cunning is great.
O Joseph, take no farther notice of this affair: and thou, O woman, ask
pardon for thy crime; for thou art a guilty person.
30 And certain women said publiclyp in the city, The nobleman's wife asked
her servant to lie with her; he hath inflamed her breast with his love; and we
perceive her to be in manifest error.
l viz., Kitfîr. But others understand it to be spoken of GOD.
m That is, had he not seriously considered the filthiness of whoredom,
and the great guilt thereof. Some, however, suppose that the words mean some
miraculous voice or apparition, sent by GOD to divert Joseph from executing
the criminal thoughts which began to possess him. For they say that he was so
far tempted with his mistress's beauty and enticing behaviour that he sat in
her lap, and even began to undress himself, when a voice called to him, and
bade him beware of her; but he taking no notice of this admonition, though it
was repeated three times, at length the angel Gabriel, or, as others will have
it, the figure of his master, appeared to him: but the more general opinion is
that it was the apparition of his father Jacob, who bit his fingers' ends, or,
as some write, struck him on the breast, whereupon his lubricity passed out at
the ends of his fingers.3
For this fable, so injurious to the character of Joseph, the Mohammedans
are obliged to their old friends the Jews,4 who imagine that he had a design
to lie with his mistress, from these words of Moses,5 And it came to pass-that
Joseph went into the house to do his business, &c.
n He flying from her, and she running after to detain him.
o viz., A cousin of hers, who was then a child in the cradle.6
p These women, whose tongues were so free with Zoleikha's character on
this occasion, were five in number, and the wives of so many of the king's
chief officers-viz., his chamberlain, his butler, his baker, his jailer, and
his herdsman.1
3 Idem, al Zamakhshari, Jallalo'ddin, Yahya. 4 Talm. Babyl.
Sed. Nashim, p. 36. Vide Bartolocc. Bibl. Rabb. part iii. p. 509.
5 Gen. xxxix. II. 6 Supra citati interpretes 1 Al
Beidâwi.
And when she heard of their subtle behaviour, she sent unto them,q and
prepared a banquet for them, and she gave to each of them a knife; and she
said unto Joseph, Come forth unto them. And when they saw him, they praised
him greatly;r and they cut their own hands,s and said, O GOD! this is not a
mortal; he is no other than an angel, deserving the highest respect.
And his mistress said, This is he, for whose sake ye blamed me: I asked
him to lie with me, but he constantly refused. But if he do not perform that
which I command him, he shall surely be cast into prison, and he shall be made
one of the contemptible.
Joseph said, O LORD, a prison is more eligible unto me than the crime to
which they invite me; but unless thou turn aside their snares from me, I shall
youthfully incline unto them, and I shall become one of the foolish.
Wherefore his LORD heard him, and turned aside their snare from him; for
he both heareth and knoweth.
And it seemed good unto themt even after they had seen the signs of
innocency, to imprison him for a time.
And there entered into the prison with him two of the king's servants.u
One of themx said, it seemed to me in my dream that I pressed wine out of
grapes. And the other said, It seemed unto me in my dream that I carried
bread on my head, whereof the birds did eat. Declare unto us the
interpretation of our dreams, for we perceive that thou art a beneficent
person.
Joseph answered, No food, wherewith ye may be nourished, shall come unto
you, but I will declare unto you the interpretation thereof, before it come
unto you.y This knowledge is a part of that which my LORD hath taught me: for
I have left the religion of people who believe not in GOD, and who deny the
life to come;
and I follow the religion of my fathers, Abraham, and Isaac, and Jacob.
It is not lawful for us to associate anything with GOD. This knowledge of the
divine unity hath been given us of the bounty of GOD towards us, and towards
mankind; but the greater part of men are not thankful.
O my fellow-prisoners, are sundry lords better, or the only true and
mighty GOD?
40 Ye worship not, besides him other than the names which ye have named,z
ye and your fathers, concerning which GOD hath sent down no authoritative
proof: yet judgment belongeth unto GOD alone; who hath commanded that ye
worship none besides him. This is the right religion; but the greater part of
men know it not.
q The number of all the women invited was forty, and among them were
the five ladies above mentioned.2
r The old Latin translators have strangely mistaken the sense of the
original word acbarnaho, which they render menstruatoe sunt; and then rebuke
Mohammed for the indecency, crying out demurely in the margin, O fodum et
obsconum prophetam! Erpenius3 thinks that there is not the least trace of
such a meaning in the word; but he is mistaken: for the verb cabara in the
fourth conjugation, which is here used, has that import, though the subjoining
of the pronoun to it here (which possibly the Latin translators did not
observe) absolutely overthrows that interpretation.
s Through extreme surprise at the wonderful beauty of Joseph; which
surprise Zoleikha foreseeing, put knives into their hands, on purpose that
this accident might happen. Some writers have observed, on occasion of this
passage, that it is customary in the east for lovers to testify the violence
of their passion by cutting themselves, as a sign that they would spend their
blood in the service of the person beloved; which is true enough, but I do not
find that any of the commentators suppose these Egyptian ladies had any such
design.
t That is, to Kitfîr and his friends. The occasion of Joseph's
imprisonment is said to be, either that they suspected him to be guilty,
notwithstanding the proofs which had been given of his innocence, or else that
Zoleikha desired it, feigning, to deceive her husband, that she wanted to have
Joseph removed from her sight, till she could conquer her passion by time;
though her real design was to force him to compliance.
u viz., His chief butler and baker, who were accused of a design to
poison him.
x Namely, the butler.
y The meaning of this passage seems to be, either that Joseph, to show
he used no arts of divination or astrology, promises to interpret their dreams
to them immediately, even before they should eat a single meal; or else, he
here offers to prophesy to them beforehand, the quantity and quality of the
victuals which should be brought them, as a taste of his skill.
z See c. 7, p. 111, note d.
2 Idem. 3 In not. ad Hist. Josephi.
O my fellow-prisoners, verily the one of you shall serve wine unto his
lord, as formerly; but the other shall be crucified, and the birds shall eat
from off his head. The matter is decreed, concerning which ye seek to be
informed.
And Joseph said unto him whom he judged to be the person who should
escape of the two, Remember me in the presence of thy lord. But the devil
caused him to forget to make mention of Joseph unto his lord;a wherefore he
remained in the prison some years.b
And the king of Egyptc said, Verily, I saw in my dream seven fat kine,
which seven lean kine devoured, and seven green ears of corn, and other seven
withered ears. O nobles, expound my vision unto me, if ye be able to
interpret a vision.
They answered, They are confused dreams, neither are we skilled in the
interpretation of such kind of dreams.
And Joseph's fellow-prisoner who had been delivered, said, (for he
remembered Joseph after a certain space of time,) I will declare unto you the
interpretation thereof; wherefore let me go unto the person who will interpret
it unto me.
And he went to the prison, and said, O Joseph, thou man of veracity,
teach us the interpretation of seven fat kine, which seven lean kine devoured;
and of seven green ears of corn, and other seven withered ears, which the king
saw in his dream; that I may return unto the men who have sent me, that
peradventure they may understand the same.
Joseph answered, Ye shall sow seven years as usual: and the corn which ye
shall reap, do ye leave in its ear,d except a little whereof ye may eat.
Then shall there come, after this, seven grievous years of famine, which
shall consume what ye shall have laid up as a provision for the same, except a
little which ye shall have kept.
Then shall there come, after this, a year wherein men shall have plenty
of rain,e and wherein they shall press wine and oil.
a According to the explication of some, who take the pronoun him to
relate to Joseph, this passage may be rendered, But the devil caused him
(i.e., Joseph) to forget to make his application unto his Lord; and to beg the
good offices of his fellow-prisoner for his deliverance, instead of relying on
GOD alone, as it became a prophet, especially, to have done.1
b The original word signifying any number from three to nine or ten,
the common opinion is that Joseph remained in prison seven years, though some
say he was confined no less than twelve years.2
c This prince, as the oriental writers generally agree, was Riyân, the
son of al Walîd, the Amalekite,3 who was converted by Joseph to the worship of
the true GOD, and died in the lifetime of that prophet. But some pretend that
the Pharaoh of Joseph and of Moses were one and the same person, and that he
lived (or rather reigned) four hundred years.4
d To preserve it from the weevil.5
e Notwithstanding what some ancient authors write to the contrary,6 it
often rains in winter in the lower Egypt, and even snow has been observed to
fall at Alexandria, contrary to the express assertion of Seneca.7 In the
upper Egypt, indeed, towards the cataracts of Nile, it rains very seldom.8
Some, however, suppose that the rains here mentioned are intended of those
which should fall in Ethiopia, and occasion the swelling of the Nile, the
great cause of the fertility of Egypt; or else of those which should fall in
the neighbouring countries, which were also afflicted with famine during the
same time.
1 Al Beidâwi. 2 Idem, Jallalo'ddin. 3 See the Prelim.
Disc. p. 7. 4 Al Beidâwi. See c. 7, p. 115, note d. 5 Idem.
6 Plato, in Timæo. Pomp. Mela. 7 Nat. Quæst. l. 4.
8 See Greaves's Descr. of the Pyramids, p. 74, &c. Ray's Collection of
Travels, tom. ii. p. 92.
50 And when the chief butler had reported this, the king said, Bring him
unto me. And when the messenger came unto Joseph, he said, Return unto thy
lord, and ask of him, what was the intent of the women who cut their hands;f
for my LORD well knoweth the snare which they laid for me.g
And when the women were assembled before the king, he said unto them,
What was your design, when ye solicited Joseph to unlawful love? They
answered, GOD be praised! we know not any ill of him. The nobleman's wife
said, Now is the truth become manifest: I solicited him to lie with me; and he
is one of those who speak truth.
And when Joseph was acquainted therewith, he said, This discovery hath
been made, that my lord might know that I was not unfaithful unto him in his
absence, and that God directeth not the plot of the deceivers.
Neither do I absolutely justify myself:h since every soul is prone unto
evil, except those on whom my LORD shall show mercy; for my LORD is gracious
and merciful.
And the king said, Bring him unto me: I will take him into my own
peculiar service. And when Joseph was brought unto the king, and he had
discoursed with him, he said, Thou art this day firmly established with us,
and shalt be intrusted with our affairs.i
Joseph answered, Set me over the storehouses of the land; for I will be a
skilful keeper thereof.
Thus did we establish Joseph in the land, that he might provide himself a
dwelling therein, where he pleased. We bestow our mercy on whom we please,
and we suffer not the reward of the righteous to perish:
and certainly the reward of the next life is better, for those who
believe, and fear God.
f Joseph, it seems, cared not to get out of prison till his innocence
was publicly known and declared. It is observed by the commentators that
Joseph does not bid the messenger move the king to inform himself of the truth
of the affair, but bids him directly to ask the king, to incite him to make
the proper inquiry with the greater earnestness. They also observe that
Joseph takes care not to mention his mistress, out of respect and gratitude
for the favours he had received while in her house.1
g Endeavouring both by threats and persuasion to entice me to commit
folly with my mistress.
h According to a tradition of Ebn Abbâs, Joseph had no sooner spoken
the foregoing words, asserting his innocency, than Gabriel said to him, What,
not when thou wast deliberating to lie with her? Upon which Joseph confessed
his frailty.2
i The commentators say that Joseph being taken out of prison, after he
had washed and changed his clothes, was introduced to the king, whom he
saluted in the Hebrew tongue, and on the king's asking what language that was,
he answered that it was the language of his fathers. This prince, they say,
understood no less than seventy languages, in every one of which he discoursed
with Joseph, who answered him in the same; at which the king greatly
marvelling, desired him to relate his dream, which he did, describing the most
minute circumstances: whereupon the king placed Joseph by him on his throne,
and made him his Wazîr, or chief minister. Some say that his master Kitfîr
dying about this time, he not only succeeded him in his place, but, by the
king's command, married the widow, his late mistress, whom he found to be a
virgin, and who bare him Ephraim and Manasses.3 So that according to this
tradition, she was the same woman who is called Asenath by Moses. This
supposed marriage, which authorized their amours, probably encouraged the
Mohammedan divines to make use of the loves of Joseph and Zoleikha, as an
allegorical emblem of the spiritual love between the Creator and the creature,
GOD and the soul; just as the Christians apply the Song of Solomon to the same
mystical purpose.4
1 Al Beidâwi, &c. 2 Idem, &c. 3 Idem, Kitab
Tafasir, &c. 4 Vide D'Herbelot. Bibl. Orient. Art. Jousouf.
Moreover, Joseph's brethren came,k and went in unto him; and he knew
them, but they knew not him.
And when he had furnished them with their provisions, he said, Bring unto
me your brother, the son of your father; do ye not see that I give full
measure, and that I am the most hospitable receiver of guests?
60 But if ye bring him not unto me, there shall be no corn measured unto
you from me, neither shall ye approach my presence.
They answered, We will endeavor to obtain him of his father, and we will
certainly perform what thou requirest.
And Joseph said to his servants, Put their money,l which they have paid
for their corn; into their sacks, that they may perceive it, when they shall
be returned to their family: peradventure they will come back unto us.
And when they were returned unto their father, they said, O father, it is
forbidden to measure out corn unto us any more, unless we carry our brother
Benjamin with us: wherefore send our brother with us, and we shall have corn
measured unto us; and we will certainly guard him from any mischance.
Jacob answered, Shall I trust him with you with any better success than I
trusted your brother Joseph with you heretofore? But GOD is the best
guardian; and he is the most merciful of those that show mercy.
And when they opened their provision, they found their money had been
returned unto them; and they said, O father, what do we desire farther? this
our money hath been returned unto us; we will therefore return, and provide
corn for our family: we will take care of our brother; and we shall receive a
camel's burden more than we did the last time. This is a small quantity.m
Jacob said, I will by no means send him with you, until ye give me a
solemn promise, and swear by GOD that ye will certainly bring him back unto
me, unless ye be encompassed by some inevitable impediment. And when they had
given him their solemn promise, he said, GOD is witness of what we say.
And he said, My sons, enter not into the city by one and the same gate;
but enter by different gates. But this precaution will be of no advantage
unto you against the decree of GOD; for judgment belongeth unto GOD alone: in
him do I put my trust, and in him let those confide who seek in whom to put
their trust.
k Joseph, being made Wazîr, governed with great wisdom; for he not only
caused justice to be impartially administered, and encouraged the people to
industry and the improvement of agriculture during the seven years of plenty,
but began and perfected several works of great benefit; the natives at this
day ascribing to the patriarch Joseph almost all the ancient works of public
utility throughout the kingdom; as particularly the rendering the province of
al Feyyûm, from a standing pool or marsh, the most fertile and best cultivated
land in all Egypt.5 When the years of famine came, the effects of which were
felt not only in Egypt, but in Syria and the neighbouring countries, the
inhabitants were obliged to apply to Joseph for corn, which he sold to them,
first for their money, jewels, and ornaments, then for their cattle and lands,
and at length for their persons; so that all the Egyptians in general became
slaves to the king, though Joseph, by his consent, soon released them, and
returned them their substance. The dearth being felt in the land of Canaan,
Jacob sent all his sons, except only Benjamin, into Egypt for corn. On their
arrival, Joseph (who well knew them) asked them who they were, saying he
suspected them to be spies; but they told him they came only to buy
provisions, and that they were all the sons of an ancient man, named Jacob,
who was also a prophet. Joseph then asked how many brothers there were of
them; they answered, Twelve; but that one of them had been lost in a desert.
Upon which he inquired for the eleventh brother, there being no more than ten
of them present. They said he was a lad, and with their father, whose
fondness for him would not suffer him to accompany them in their journey. At
length Joseph asked them who they had to vouch for their veracity; but they
told him they knew no man who could vouch for them in Egypt. Then, replied
he, one of you shall stay behind with me as a pledge, and the others may
return home with their provisions; and when ye come again, ye shall bring your
younger brother with you, that I may know ye have told me the truth.
Whereupon, it being in vain to dispute the matter, they cast lots who should
stay behind, and the lot fell upon Simeon. When they departed, Joseph gave
each of them a camel, and another for their brother.1
l The original word signifying not only money, but also goods bartered
or given in exchange for other merchandise, some commentators tell us, that
they paid for their corn, not in money, but in shoes and dressed skins,2
m The meaning may be, either that the corn they now brought was not
sufficient for the support of their families, so that it was necessary for
them to take another journey, or else, that a camel's load, more or less, was
but a trifle to the king of Egypt. Some suppose these to be the words of
Jacob, declaring it was too mean a consideration to induce him to part with
his son.
5 Vide Golii not. in Alfragan. p. 175, &c. Kircher. Oedip. Ægypt vol.
i. p. 8. Lucas, Voy. tom. ii. p. 205, and tom. iii. p. 53.
1 Al Beidâwi. 2 Idem.
And when they entered the city, as their father had commanded them, it
was of no advantage unto them against the decree of GOD; and the same served
only to satisfy the desire of Jacob's soul, which he had charged them to
perform: for he was endued with knowledge of that which we had taught him; but
the greater part of men do not understand.
And when they entered into the presence of Joseph, he received his
brother Benjamin as his guest, and said, Verily I am thy brother,n be not
therefore afflicted for that which they have committed against us.
70 And when he had furnished them with their provisions, he put his cupo in
his brother Benjamin's sack. Then a crier cried after them, saying, O company
of travellers, ye are surely thieves.
They said, (and turned back unto them,) What is it that ye miss?
They answered, We miss the prince's cup: and unto him who shall produce
it, shall be given a camel's load of corn, and I will be surety for the same.
Joseph's brethren replied, By GOD, ye do well know, that we come not to
act corruptly in the land,p neither are we thieves.
The Egyptians said, What shall be the reward of him, who shall appear to
have stolen the cup, if ye be found liars?
Joseph's brethren answered, As to the reward of him, in whose sack it
shall be found, let him become a bondman in satisfaction of the same: thus do
we reward the unjust, who are guilty of theft.q
Then he began by their sacks, before he searched the sack of his
brother;r and he drew out the cup from his brother's sack. Thus did we
furnish Joseph with a stratagem. It was not lawful for him to take his
brother for a bondman, by the law of the king of Egypt,s had not GOD pleased
to allow it, according to the offer of his brethren. We exalt to degrees of
knowledge and honour whom we please: and there is one who is knowing above all
those who are endued with knowledge.
His brethren said, If Benjamin be guilty of theft, his brother Joseph
hath been also guilty of theft heretofore.t But Joseph concealed these things
in his mind, and did not discover them unto them: and he said within himself,
Ye are in a worse condition than us two; and GOD best knoweth what ye
discourse about.
n It is related that Joseph, having invited his brethren to an
entertainment, ordered them to be placed two and two together, by which means
Benjamin, the eleventh, was obliged to sit alone, and bursting into tears,
said, If my brother Joseph were alive, he would have sat with me. Whereupon
Joseph ordered him to be seated at the same table with himself, and when the
entertainment was over, dismissed the rest, ordering that they should be
lodged two and two in a house, but kept Benjamin in his own apartment, where
he passed the night. The next day Joseph asked him whether he would accept of
himself for his brother, in the room of him whom he had lost, to which
Benjamin replied, Who can find a brother comparable unto thee? yet thou art
not the son of Jacob and Rachel. And upon this Joseph discovered himself to
him.1
o Some imagine this to be a measure holding a saá (or about a gallon),
wherein they used to measure corn or give water to the beasts. But others
take it to be a drinking-cup of silver or gold.
p Both by our behaviour among you, and our bringing again our money,
which was returned to us without our knowledge.
q This was the method of punishing theft used by Jacob and his family;
for among the Egyptians it was punished in another manner.
r Some suppose this search was made by the person whom Joseph sent
after them; others by Joseph himself, when they were brought back to the city.
s For there the thief was not reduced to servitude, but was scourged,
and obliged to restore the double of what he had stolen.2
t The occasion of this suspicion, it is said, was, that Joseph having
been brought up by his father's sister, she became so fond of him that, when
he grew up, and Jacob designed to take him from her, she contrived the
following stratagem to keep him: -Having a girdle which had once belonged to
Abraham, she girt it about the child, and then, pretending she had lost it,
caused strict search to be made for it; and it being at length found on
Joseph, he was adjudged, according to the above-mentioned law of the family,
to be delivered to her as her property. Some, however, say that Joseph
actually stole an idol of gold, which belonged to his mother's father, and
destroyed it; a story probably taken from Rachel's stealing the images of
Laban: and others tell us that he once stole a goat, or a hen, to give to a
poor man.3
1 Al Beidâwi. 2 Idem, Jallalo'ddin.
They said unto Joseph, Noble lord, verily this lad hath an aged father;
wherefore take one of us in his stead; for we perceive that thou art a
beneficent person.
Joseph answered, GOD forbid that we should take any other than him with
whom we found our goods; for then should we certainly be unjust.
80 And when they despaired of obtaining Benjamin, they retired to confer
privately together. And the elder of themu said, Do ye not know that your
father hath received a solemn promise from you, in the name of GOD, and how
perfidiously ye behaved heretofore towards Joseph? Wherefore I will by no
means depart the land of Egypt, until my father give me leave to return unto
him, or GOD maketh known his will to me; for he is the best judge.
Return ye to your father, and say, O father, verily thy son hath
committed theft; we bear witness of no more than what we know, and we could
not guard against what we did not foresee:
and do thou inquire in the city, where we have been, and of the company
of merchants, with whom we are arrived, and thou wilt find that we speak the
truth.
And when they were returned, and had spoken thus to their father, he
said, Nay, but rather ye yourselves have contrived the thing for your own
sakes, but patience is most proper for me; peradventure GOD will restore them
allx unto me; for he is knowing and wise.
And he turned from them and said, Oh how I am grieved for Joseph! And
his eyes became white with mourning,y he being oppressed with deep sorrow.
His sons said, By GOD, thou wilt not cease to remember Joseph until thou
be brought to death's door, or thou be actually destroyed by excessive
affliction.
He answered, I only represent my grief, which I am not able to contain,
and my sorrow unto GOD, but I know by revelation from GOD that which ye know
not.z
O my sons, go and make inquiry after Joseph and his brother; and despair
not of the mercy of GOD; for none despaireth of GOD's mercy, except the
unbelieving people.
Wherefore Joseph's brethren returned into Egypt: and when they came into
his presence, they said, Noble lord, the famine is felt by us and our family,
and we are come with a small sum of money:a yet give unto us full measure, and
bestow corn upon us as alms; for GOD rewardeth the almsgivers.
u viz., Reuben. But some think Simeon or Judah to be here meant; and
instead of the elder, interpret it the most prudent of them.
x i.e., Joseph, Benjamin, and Simeon.
y That is, the pupils lost their deep blackness and became of a pearl
colour (as happens in suffusions), by his continual weeping: which very much
weakened his sight, or, as some pretend, made him quite blind.4
z viz., That Joseph is yet alive, of which some tell us he was assured
by the angel of death in a dream; though others suppose he depended on the
completion of Joseph's dream, which must have been frustrated had he died
before his brethren had bowed down before him.5
a Their money being clipped and adulterated. Some, however, imagine
they did not bring money, but goods to barter, such as wool and butter, or
other commodities of small value.6
3 Jallalo'ddin. 4 Al Beidâwi. 5 Idem.
6 Idem.
Joseph said unto them, Do ye know what ye did unto Joseph and his
brother, when ye were ignorant of the consequences thereof?b
90 They answered, Art thou really Joseph?c He replied, I am Joseph; and
this is my brother. Now hath GOD been gracious unto us. For whoso feareth
God, and persevereth with patience, shall at length find relief; since GOD
will not suffer the reward of the righteous to perish.
They said, By GOD, now hath GOD chosen thee above us; and we have surely
been sinners.
Joseph answered, Let there be no reproach cast on you this day. GOD
forgiveth you; for he is the most merciful of those who show mercy.
Depart ye with this my inner garment,d and throw it on my father's face;
and he shall recover his sight: and then come unto me with all your family.
And when the company of travellers was departed from Egypt on their
journey towards Canaan, their father said, unto those who were about him,
Verily I perceive the smell of Joseph;e although ye think that I dote.
They answered, By GOD, thou art in thy old mistake.f
But when the messenger of good tidingsg was come with Joseph's inner
garment, he threw it over his face; and he recovered his eyesight.
And Jacob said, Did I not tell you that I knew from GOD, that which ye
knew not?
They answered, O father, ask pardon of our sins for us, for we have
surely been sinners.
He replied, I will surely ask pardon for you of my LORD;h for he is
gracious and merciful.
100 And when Jacob and his family arrived in Egypt, and were introduced unto
Joseph, he received his parents unto him,i and said, Enter ye into Egypt, by
GOD'S favor, in full security.
b The injury they did Benjamin was the separating him from his brother;
after which they kept him in so great subjection, that he durst not speak to
them but with the utmost submission. Some say that these words were
occasioned by a letter which Joseph's brethren delivered to him from their
father, requesting the releasement of Benjamin, and by their representing his
extreme affliction at the loss of him and his brother. The commentators
observe that Joseph, to excuse his brethren's behaviour towards him,
attributes it to their ignorance, and the heat of youth.1
c They say this question was not the effect of a bare suspicion that he
was Joseph, but that they actually knew him, either by his face and behaviour,
or by his foreteeth, which he showed in smiling, or else by putting off his
tiara, and discovering a whitish mole on his forehead.2
d Which the commentators generally suppose to be the same garment with
which Gabriel invested him in the well; which having originally come from
paradise, had preserved the odour of that place, and was of so great virtue as
to cure any distemper in the person who was touched with it.3
e This was the odour of the garment above mentioned, brought by the
wind to Jacob, who smelt it, as is pretended, at the distance of eighty
parasangs;4 or, as others will have, three, or eight days' journey off.5
f Being led into this imagination by the excessive love of Joseph.
g viz., Judah, who, as he had formerly grieved his father by bringing
him Joseph's coat stained with blood, now rejoiced him as much by being the
bearer of this vest, and the news of Joseph's prosperity.6
h Deferring it, as some fancy, till he should see Joseph, and have his
consent.
i viz., His father and Leah, his mother's sister, whom he looked on as
his mother after Rachel's death.7
Al Beidâwi tells us that Joseph sent carriages and provisions for his
father and his family; and that he and the king of Egypt went forth to meet
them. He adds that the number of the children of Israel who entered Egypt
with him was seventy-two; and that when they were led out thence by Moses,
they were increased to six hundred thousand five hundred and seventy men and
upwards, besides the old people and children.
1 Idem. 2 Idem. 3 Idem, Jallalo'ddin. 4
Idem. 5 Jallalo'ddin.
6 Al Beidâwi. 7 Idem. See Gen. xxxvii. 10.
And he raised his parents to the seat of state, and they, together with his
brethren, fell down and did obeisance unto him.k And he said, O my father,
this is the interpretation of my vision, which I saw heretofore: now hath my
LORD rendered it true. And he hath surely been gracious unto me, since he
took me forth from the prison, and hath brought you hither from the desert;
after that the devil had sown discord between me any my brethren: for my LORD
is gracious unto whom he pleaseth; and he is the knowing, the wise God.
O LORD, thou hast given me a part of the kingdom, and hast taught me the
interpretation of dark sayings. The Creator of heaven and earth! thou art my
protector in this world, and in that which is to come: make me to die a
Moslem, and join me with the righteous.l
This is a secret history which we reveal unto thee, O Mohammed, although
thou wast not present with the brethren of Joseph, when they concerted their
design, and contrived a plot against him. But the greater part of men,
although they earnestly desire it, will not believe.
Thou shalt not demand of them any reward for thy publishing the Koran; it
is no other than an admonition unto all creatures.
And how many signs soever there be of the being, unity, and providence of
God, in the heavens and the earth; they will pass by them, and will retire
afar off from them.
And the greater part of them believe not in GOD, without being also
guilty of idolatry.m
Do they not believe that some overwhelming affliction shall fall on them,
as a punishment from GOD; or that the hour of judgment shall overtake them
suddenly, when they consider not its approach?
Say unto those of Mecca, This is my way: I invite you unto GOD, by an
evident demonstration; both I and he who followeth me; and, praise be unto
GOD! I am not an idolater.
We sent not any apostles before thee, except men, unto whom we revealed
our will, and whom we chose out of those who dwelt in cities.n Will they not
go through the earth, and see what hath been the end of those who have
preceded them? But the dwelling of the next life shall surely be better for
those who fear God. Will they not therefore understand?
110 Their predecessors were borne with for a time, until, when our apostles
despaired of their conversion, and they thought that they were liars, our help
came unto them, and we delivered whom we pleased; but our vengeance was not
turned away from the wicked people.
Verily in the histories of the prophets and their people, there is an
instructive example unto those who are endued with understanding. The Koran
is not a new invented fiction: but a confirmation of those scriptures which
have been revealed before it, and a distinct explication of everything
necessary in respect either to faith or practice, and a direction and mercy
unto people who believe.
k A transposition is supposed to be in these words, and that he seated
his father and mother after they had bowed down to him, and not before.1
l The Mohammedan authors write that Jacob dwelt in Egypt twenty-four
years, and at his death ordered his body to be buried in Palestine by his
father, which Joseph took care to perform; and then returning into Egypt, died
twenty-three years after. They add that such high disputes arose among the
Egyptians concerning his burial, that they had like to have come to blows; but
at length they agreed to put his body into a marble coffin, and to sink it in
the Nile-out of a superstitious imagination, that it might help the regular
increase of the river, and deliver them from famine for the future; but when
Moses led the Israelites out of Egypt, he took up the coffin, and carried
Joseph's bones with him into Canaan, where he buried them by his ancestors.2
m For this crime Mohammed charges not only on the idolatrous Meccans,
but also on the Jews and Christians, as has been already observed more than
once.
n And not of the inhabitants of the deserts; because the former are
more knowing and compassionate, and the latter more ignorant and hard-
hearted.3
1 Idem. 2 Idem. 3 Idem. See the Prelim. Disc.
Sect. I. p. 24.
CHAPTER XIII.
ENTITLED, THUNDER;o REVEALED AT MECCA.p
IN THE NAME OF THE MOST MERCIFUL GOD.
AL. M. R.q These are the signs of the book of the Koran: and that which
hath been sent down unto thee from thy LORD is the truth; but the greater part
of men will not believe.
It is GOD who hath raised the heavens without visible pillars; and then
ascended his throne, and compelled the sun and the moon to perform their
services; every of the heavenly bodies runneth an appointed course. He
ordereth all things. He showeth his signs distinctly, that ye may be assured
ye must meet your LORD at the last day.
It is he who hath stretched forth the earth, and placed therein steadfast
mountains, and rivers; and hath ordained therein of every fruit two different
kinds.r He causeth the night to cover the day. Herein are certain signs unto
people who consider.
And in the earth are tracts of land of different natures,s though
bordering on each other; and also vineyards, and seeds, and palm-trees
springing several from the same root, and singly from distinct roots. They
are watered with the same water, yet we render some of them more excellent
than others to eat. Herein are surely signs unto people who understand.
If thou dost wonder at the infidels denying the resurrection, surely
wonderful is their saying, After we shall have been reduced to dust, shall we
be restored in a new creature?
These are they who believe not in their LORD: these shall have collars on
their necks,t and these shall be the inhabitants of hell fire: therein shall
they abide for ever.
o This word occurs in the next page.
p Or, according to some copies, at Medina.
q The meaning of these letters is unknown. Of several conjectural
explications which are given of them, the following is one: I am the most wise
and knowing GOD.
r As sweet and sour, black and white, small and large, &c.1
s Some tracts being fruitful and others barren, some plain and others
mountainous, some proper for corn and others for trees, &c.2
t The collar here mentioned is an engine something like a pillory, but
light enough for the criminal to walk about with. Besides the hole to fix it
on the neck, there is another for one of the hands, which is thereby fastened
to the neck.3 And in this manner the Mohammedans suppose the reprobates will
appear at the day of judgment.4 Some understand this passage figuratively, of
the infidels being bound in the chains of error and obstinacy.5
1 Idem, Jallalo'ddin. 2 Idem. 3 Vide Chardin, Voy. de
Perse, tom. ii. p. 220. 4 See cap. 5, p. 81.
5 Al Beidâwi.
They will ask of thee to hasten evil rather than good:u although there
have already been examples of the divine vengeance before them. Thy LORD is
surely endued with indulgence towards men, notwithstanding their iniquity; but
thy LORD is also severe in punishing.
The infidels say, Unless a sign be sent down unto him from his LORD, we
will not believe. Thou art commissioned to be a preacher only, and not a
worker of miracles: and unto every people hath a director been appointed.
GOD knoweth what every female beareth in her womb; and what the wombs
want or exceed of their due time, or number of young. With him is everything
regulated according to a determined measure.
10 He knoweth that which is hidden, and that which is revealed. He is the
great, the most high.
He among you who concealeth his words, and he who proclaimeth them in
public; he also who seeketh to hide himself in the night, and he who goeth
forth openly in the day, is equal in respect to the knowledge of God.
Each of them hath angels mutually succeeding each other, before him, and
behind him; they watch him by the command of GOD.x Verily GOD will not change
his grace which is in men, until they change the disposition in their souls by
sin. When GOD willeth evil on a people there shall be none to avert it;
neither shall they have any protector beside him.
It is he who causeth the lightning to appear unto you, to strike fear,
and to raise hope,y and who formeth the pregnant clouds.
The thunder celebrateth his praise,z and the angels also, for fear of
him. He sendeth his thunderbolts, and striketh therewith whom he pleaseth,
while they dispute concerning GOD;a for he is mighty in power.
It is he who ought of right to be invoked; and the idols, which they
invoke besides him, shall not hear them at all; otherwise than as he is heard,
who stretcheth forth his hands to the water that it may ascend to his mouth,
when it cannot ascend thither: the supplication of the unbelievers is utterly
erroneous.
Whatsoever is in heaven and on earth worshippeth GOD, voluntarily or of
force;b and their shadows also, morning and evening.c
Say, Who is the LORD of heaven and earth? Answer, GOD. Say, Have ye,
therefore, taken unto yourselves protectors beside him, who are unable either
to help, or to defend themselves from hurt? Say, Shall the blind and the
seeing be esteemed equal? or shall darkness and light be accounted the same?
or have they attributed companions unto GOD who have created as he hath
created, so that their creation bear any resemblance unto his? Say, GOD is
the creator of all things; he is the one, the victorious God.
u Provoking and daring thee to call down the divine vengeance on them
for their impenitency.
x See the Prelim. Disc. Sect. IV. p. 56.
y Thunder and lightning being the sign of approaching rain; a great
blessing, in the eastern countries more especially.
z Or causeth those who hear it to praise him. Some commentators tell
us that by the word thunder, in this place, is meant the angel who presides
over the clouds, and drives them forwards with twisted sheets of fire.6
a This passage was revealed on the following occasion: Amer Ebn al
Tofail and Arbad Ebn Rabîah, the brother of Labîd, went to Mohammed with an
intent to kill him; and Amer began to dispute with him concerning the chief
points of his doctrine, while Arbad, taking a compass, went behind him to
dispatch him with his sword; but the prophet, perceiving his design, implored
GOD'S protection; whereupon Arbad was immediately struck dead by thunder, and
Amer was struck with a pestilential boil, of which he died in a short time, in
a miserable condition.7
Jallalo'ddin, however, tells another story saying that Mohammed, having
sent one to invite a certain man to embrace his religion, the person put this
question to the missionary, Who is this apostle, and what is God? Is he of
gold, or of silver, or of brass? Upon which a thunderbolt struck off his
skull, and killed him.
b The infidels and devils themselves being constrained to humble
themselves before him, though against their will, when they are delivered up
to punishment.
c This is an allusion to the increasing and diminishing of the shadows,
according to the height of the sun; so that, when they are the longest, which
is in the morning and the evening, they appear prostrate on the ground, in the
posture of adoration.
6 Idem, Jallalo'ddin. 7 Al Beidâwi. Vide Golii. not. in Adagia
Arab. adject. ad Gram Erpenii, p. 99.
He causeth water to descend from heaven, and the brooks flow according to
their respective measure, and the floods bear the floating froth: and from the
metals which they melt in the fire, seeking to cast ornaments or vessels for
use, there ariseth a scum like unto it. Thus GOD setteth forth truth and
vanity. But the scum is thrown off, and that which is useful to mankind
remaineth on the earth. Thus doth GOD put forth parables. Unto those who
obey their LORD shall be given the most excellent reward: but those who obey
him not, although they were possessed of whatever is in the whole earth and as
much more, they would give it all for their ransom. These will be brought to
a terrible account: their abode shall be hell; an unhappy couch shall it be!
Shall he, therefore, who knoweth that what hath been sent down unto thee
from thy LORD, is truth, be rewarded as he who is blind? The prudent only
will consider;
20 who fulfil the covenant of GOD, and break not their contract;
and who join that which GOD hath commanded to be joined,d and who fear
their LORD, and dread an ill account;
and who persevere out of a sincere desire to please their LORD, and
observe the stated times of prayer, and give alms out of what we have bestowed
on them, in secret and openly, and who turn away evil with good: the reward of
these shall be paradise,
gardens of eternal abode,e which they shall enter, and also whoever shall
have acted uprightly, of their fathers, and their wives, and their posterity:
and the angels shall go in unto them by every gate,
saying, Peace be upon you, because ye have endured with patience; how
excellent a reward is paradise!
But as for those who violate the covenant of GOD, after the establishment
thereof, and who cut in sunder that which GOD hath commanded to be joined, and
act corruptly in the earth, on them shall a curse fall, and they shall have a
miserable dwelling in hell.
GOD giveth provision in abundance unto whom he pleaseth, and is sparing
unto whom he pleaseth. Those of Mecca rejoice in the present life; although
the present life, in respect of the future, is but a precarious provision.
The infidels say, Unless a sign be sent down unto him from his LORD, we
will not believe. Answer, Verily, GOD will lead into error whom he pleaseth,
and will direct unto himself him who repenteth,
and those who believe, and whose hearts rest securely in the meditation
of GOD; shall not men's hearts rest securely in the meditation of GOD? They
who believe and do that which is right shall enjoy blessedness, and partake of
a happy resurrection.
d By believing in all the prophets, without exception, and joining
thereto the continual practice of their duty, both towards GOD and man.1
e Literally, gardens of Eden. See chapter 9, p. 143.
1 Idem, Jallalo'ddin, Yahya.
Thus have we sent thee to a nation which other nations have preceded unto
whom prophets have likewise been sent, that thou mayest rehearse unto them
that which we have revealed unto thee, even while they believe not in the
merciful God. Say unto them, He is my LORD; there is no GOD but he: in him do
I trust, and unto him must I return.
30 Though a Koran were revealed by which mountains should be removed, or
the earth cleaved in sunder, or the dead be caused to speak,f it would be in
vain. But the matter belongeth wholly unto GOD. Do not, therefore, the
believers know, that if GOD pleased, he would certainly direct all men?
Adversity shall not cease to afflict the unbelievers for that which they
have committed, or to sit down near their habitations,g until GOD'S promise
come;h for GOD is not contrary to the promise.
Apostles before thee have been laughed to scorn; and I permitted the
infidels to enjoy a long and happy life: but afterwards I punished them; and
how severe was the punishment which I inflicted on them!
Who is it, therefore, that standeth over every soul, to observe that
which it committeth? They attribute companions unto GOD. Say, Name them:
will ye declare unto him that which he knoweth not in the earth? or will ye
name them in outward speech only?i But the deceitful procedure of the
infidels was prepared for them; and they are turned aside from the right path:
for he whom GOD shall cause to err, shall have no director.
They shall suffer a punishment in this life; but the punishment of the
next shall be more grievous: and there shall be none to protect them against
GOD.
This is the description of paradise, which is promised to the pious. It
is watered by rivers; its food is perpetual, and its shade also: this shall be
the reward of those who fear God. But the reward of the infidels shall be
hell fire.
Those to whom we have given the scriptures, rejoice at what hath been
revealed unto thee.k Yet there are some of the confederates who deny part
thereof.l Say unto them, Verily I am commanded to worship GOD alone; and to
give him no companion: upon him do I call, and unto him shall I return.
f These are miracles which the Koreish required of Mohammed; demanding
that he would, by the power of his Korân, either remove the mountains from
about Mecca, that they might have delicious gardens in their room, or that he
would oblige the wind to transport them, with their merchandise, to Syria
(according to which tradition, the words here translated, or the earth cleaved
in sunder, should be rendered, or the earth be travelled over in an instant);
or else raise to life Kosai Ebn Kelâb,1 and others of their ancestors, to bear
witness to him; whereupon this passage was revealed.
g It is supposed by some that these words are spoken to Mohammed, and
then they must be translated in the second person, Nor shall thou cease to sit
down, &c. For they say this verse relates to the idolaters of Mecca, who were
afflicted with a series of misfortunes for their ill-usage of their prophet,
and were also continually annoyed and harassed by his parties, which
frequently plundered their caravans and drove off their cattle, himself
sitting down with his whole army near the city in the expedition of al
Hodeibîya.2
h i.e., Till death and the day of judgment overtake them; or, according
to the exposition in the preceding note, until the taking of Mecca.3
i That is, calling them the companion of GOD, without being able to
assign any reason, or give any proof why they deserve to be sharers in the
honour and worship due from mankind to him.4
k viz., The first proselytes to Mohammedism from Judaism and
Christianity; or the Jews and Christians in general, who were pleased to find
the Korân so consonant to their own scriptures.5
l That is, such of them as had entered into a confederacy to oppose
Mohammed; as did Caab Ebn al Ashraf, and the Jews who followed him, and al
Seyid al Najrâni, al Akib, and several other Christians; who denied such parts
of the Korân as contradicted their corrupt doctrines and traditions.6
1 See cap. 8, p. 128, note f. 2 Al Beidâwi. 3
Idem. 4 Idem. 5 See cap. 3, p. 52. 6 Idem.
To this purpose have we sent down the Koran a rule of judgment, in the
Arabic language. And verily, if thou follow their desires, after the
knowledge which hath been given thee, there shall be none to defend or protect
thee against GOD.
We have formerly sent apostles before thee, and bestowed on them wives
and children;m and no apostle had the power to come with a sign, unless by the
permission of GOD. Every age hath its book of revelation:
GOD shall abolish and shall confirm what he pleaseth. With him is the
original of the book.n
40 Moreover, whether we cause thee to see any part of that punishment
wherewith we have threatened them, or whether we cause thee to die before it
be inflicted on them, verily unto thee belongeth preaching only, but unto us
inquisition.
Do they not see that we come into their land, and straighten the borders
thereof, by the conquests of the true believers? When GOD judgeth, there is
none to reverse his judgment: and he will be swift in taking an account.
Their predecessors formerly devised subtle plots against their prophets;
but GOD is master of every subtle device. He knoweth that which every soul
deserveth: and the infidels shall surely know, whose will be the reward of
paradise.
The unbelieverso will say, Thou art not sent of God. Answer, GOD is a
sufficient witness between me and you, and he who understandeth the
scriptures.
m As we have on thee. This passage was revealed in answer to the
reproaches which were cast on Mohammed, on account of the great number of his
wives. For the Jews said that if he was a true prophet, his care and
attention would be employed about something else than women and the getting of
children.7 It may be observed that it is a maxim of the Jews that nothing is
more repugnant to prophecy than carnality.8
n Literally, the mother of the book; by which is meant the preserved
table, from which all the written revelations which have been from time to
time published to mankind, according to the several dispensations, are
transcripts.
o The persons intended in this passage, it is said, were the Jewish
doctors.9
7 Jallalo'ddin, Yahya. 8 Vide Maimon. More Nev. part ii. c. 36,
&c. 9 Al Beidâwi.
CHAPTER XIV.
ENTITLED, ABRAHAM;a REVEALED AT MECCA.
IN THE NAME OF THE MOST MERCIFUL GOD.
AL. R.b This book have we sent down unto thee, that thou mayest lead men
forth from darkness into light, by the permission of their LORD, into the
glorious and laudable way.
GOD is he unto whom belongeth whatsoever is in heaven and on earth: and
woe be to the infidels, because a grievous punishment waiteth them;
who love the present life above that which is to come, and turn men aside
from the way of GOD, and seek to render it crooked: these are in an error far
distant from the truth.
We have sent no apostle but with the language of his people, that he
might declare their duty plainly unto them;c for GOD causeth to err whom he
pleaseth, and directeth whom he pleaseth; and he is the mighty, the wise.
We formerly sent Moses with our signs, and commanded him saying, Lead
forth thy people from darkness into light, and remind them of the favors of
GOD:d verily therein are signs unto every patient and grateful person.
And call to mind when Moses said unto his people, Remember the favor of
GOD towards you, when he delivered you from the people of Pharaoh: they
grievously oppressed you; and they slew your male children, but let your
females live:e therein was a great trial from your LORD.
And when your LORD declared by the mouth of Moses, saying, If ye be
thankful, I will surely increase my favors towards you; but if ye be
ungrateful, verily my punishment shall be severe.
And Moses said, If ye be ungrateful, and all who are in the earth
likewise; verily GOD needeth not your thanks, though he deserveth the highest
praise.
Hath not the history of the nations your predecessors reached you;
namely, of the people of Noah, and of Ad, and of Thamud,f
10 and of those who succeeded them; whose number none knoweth except GOD?
Their apostles came unto them with evident miracles; but they clapped their
hands to their mouths out of indignation, and said, We do not believe the
message with which ye pretend to be sent; and we are in a doubt concerning the
religion to which ye invite us, as justly to be suspected.
a Mention is made of this patriarch towards the end of the chapter.
b See the Prelim. Disc. Sect. III p. 46, &c.
c That so they might not only perfectly and readily understand those
revelations themselves, but might also be able to translate and interpret them
unto others.1
d Literally, the days of GOD; which may also be translated, the battles
of GOD (the Arabs using the word day to signify a remarkable engagement, as
the Italians do giornata, and the French, journée), or his wonderful acts
manifested in the various success of former nations in their wars.2
e See chapter 7, p. 117, &c.
f See ibid. p. 111, &c.
1 Idem. 2 Idem.
Their apostles answered, Is there any doubt concerning GOD, the creator
of heaven and earth? He inviteth you to the true faith that he may forgive
you part of your sins,g and may respite your punishment, by granting you space
to repent, until an appointed time.
They answered, Ye are but men, like unto us: ye seek to turn us aside
from the gods which our fathers worshipped: wherefore bring us an evident
demonstration by some miracle, that ye speak truth.
Their apostles replied unto them, We are no other than men like unto you;
but GOD is bountiful unto such of his servants as he pleaseth: and it is not
in our power to give you a miraculous demonstration of our mission,
unless by the permission of GOD; in GOD therefore let the faithful trust.
And what excuse have we to allege, that we should not put our trust in
GOD; since he hath directed us our paths? Wherefore we will certainly suffer
with patience the persecution wherewith ye shall afflict us: in GOD therefore
let those put their confidence who seek in whom to put their trust.
And those who believed not said unto their apostles, We will surely expel
you out of our land; or ye shall return unto our religion. And their LORD
spake unto them by revelation, saying, We will surely destroy the wicked
doers;
and we will cause you to dwell in the earth, after them. This shall be
granted unto him who shall dread the appearance at my tribunal, and shall fear
my threatening.
And they asked assistance of God,h and every rebellious perverse person
failed of success.
Hell lieth unseen before him, and he shall have filthy wateri given him
to drink:
20 he shall sup it up by little and little, and he shall not easily let it
pass his throat because of its nauseousness; death also shall come upon him
from every quarter, yet he shall not die; and before him shall there stand
prepared a grievous torment.
This is the likeness of those who believe not in their LORD. Their works
are as ashes, which the wind violently scattereth in a stormy day: they shall
not be able to obtain any solid advantage from that which they have wrought.
This is an error most distant from truth.
Dost thou not see that GOD hath created the heavens and the earth in
wisdom? If he please, he can destroy you, and produce a new creature in your
stead:
neither will this be difficult with GOD.
And they shall all come forth into the presence of GOD at the last day:
and the weak among them shall say unto those who behaved themselves
arrogantly,j Verily we were your followers on earth; will ye not therefore
avert from us some part of the divine vengeance?
They shall answer, If GOD had directed us aright, we had certainly
directed you.k It is equal unto us whether we bear our torments impatiently,
or whether we endure them with patience: for we have no way to escape.
g That is, such of them as were committed directly against GOD, which
are immediately cancelled by faith, or embracing Islâm; but not the crimes of
injustice, and oppression, which were committed against man:1 for to obtain
remission of these last, besides faith, repentance and restitution, according
to a man's ability, are also necessary.
h The commentators are uncertain whether these were the prophets, who
begged assistance against their enemies; or the infidels, who called for GOD'S
decision between themselves and them; or both. And some suppose this verse
has no connection with the preceding, but is spoken of the people of Mecca,
who begged rain in a great drought with which they were afflicted at the
prayer of their prophet, but could not obtain it.2
i Which will issue from the bodies of the damned, mixed with purulent
matter and blood.
j i.e., The more simple and inferior people shall say to their teachers
and princes who seduced them to idolatry, and confirmed them in their
obstinate infidelity.
k That is, We made the same choice for you, as we did for ourselves:
and had not GOD permitted us to fall into error, we had not seduced you.
1 Al Beidâwi. 2 Idem.
And Satan shall say, after judgment shall have been given, Verily GOD
promised you a promise of truth: and I also made you a promise; but I deceived
you. Yet I had not any power over you to compel you;
but I called you only, and ye answered me: wherefore accuse not me, but
accuse yourselves.l I cannot assist you; neither can ye assist me. Verily I
do now renounce your having associated me with God heretofore.m A grievous
punishment is prepared for the unjust.
But they who shall have believed and wrought righteousness shall be
introduced into gardens, wherein rivers flow, they shall remain therein
forever, by the permission of their LORD; and their salutation therein shall
be, Peace!n
Dost thou not see how GOD putteth forth a parable; representing a good
word, as a good tree, whose root is firmly fixed in the earth, and whose
branches reach unto heaven;
30 which bringeth forth its fruit in all seasons, by the will of its LORD?
GOD propoundeth parables unto men, that they may be instructed.
And the likeness of an evil word is as an evil tree; which is torn up
from the face of the earth, and hath no stability.o
GOD shall confirm them who believe, by the steadfast word of faith, both
in this life and in that which is to come:p but GOD shall lead the wicked into
error; for GOD doth that which he pleaseth.
Hast thou not considered those who have changed the grace of GOD to
infidelity,q and cause their people to descend into the house of perdition,
namely, into hell? They shall be thrown to burn therein; and an unhappy
dwelling shall it be.
They also set up idols as co-partners with GOD, that they might cause men
to stray from his path. Say, unto them, Enjoy the pleasures of this life for
a time; but your departure hence shall be into hell fire.
Speak unto my servants who have believed, that they be assiduous at
prayer, and give alms out of that which we have bestowed on them, both
privately and in public; before the day cometh, wherein there shall be no
buying nor selling, neither any friendship.
l Lay not the blame on my temptations, but blame your own folly in
obeying and trusting in me, who had openly professed myself your
irreconcilable enemy.
m Or I do now declare myself clear of your having obeyed me, preferably
to GOD, and worshipped idols at my instigation. Or the words may be
translated, I believed not heretofore in that Being with whom ye did associate
me; intimating his first disobedience in refusing to worship Adam at GOD'S
command.1
n See chapter 10, p. 151.
o What is particularly intended in this passage by the good word, and
the evil word, the expositors differ. But the first seems to mean the
profession of GOD'S unity; the inviting others to the true religion, or the
Korân itself; and the latter, the acknowledging a plurality of gods, the
seducing of others to idolatry, or the obstinate opposition of GOD'S
prophets.2
p Jallalo'ddin supposes the sepulchre to be here understood; in which
place when the true believers come to be examined by the two angels concerning
their faith, they will answer properly and without hesitation; which the
infidels will not be able to do.3
q That is, who requite his favours with disobedience and incredulity.
Or, whose ingratitude obliged GOD to deprive them of the blessings he had
bestowed on them; as he did the Meccans, who though GOD had placed them in the
sacred territory, and given them the custody of the Caaba, and abundant
provision of all necessaries and conveniences of life, and had also honoured
them by the mission of Mohammed, yet in return for all this became obstinate
unbelievers, and persecuted his apostle; for which they were not only punished
by a famine of seven years, but also by the loss and disgrace they sustained
at Bedr; so that they who had before been celebrated for their prosperity,
were not stripped of that, and become conspicuous only for their infidelity.4
If this be the drift of the passage, it could not have been revealed at Mecca,
as the rest of the chapter is agreed to be; wherefore some suppose this verse
and the next to have been revealed at Medina.
1 Idem. 2 Idem, Jallalo'ddin. 3 See the Prelim. Disc.
Sect. IV. p. 59. 4 Al Beidâwi.
It is GOD who hath created the heavens and the earth; and causeth water
to descend from heaven, and by means thereof produceth fruits for your
sustenance: and by his command he obligethr the ships to sail in the sea for
your service; and he also forceth the rivers to supply your uses: he likewise
compelleth the sun and the moon, which diligently perform their courses, to
serve you; and hath subjected the day and the night to your service. He
giveth you of everything which ye ask him; and if ye attempt to reckon up the
favors of GOD, ye shall not be able to compute the same. Surely man is unjust
and ungrateful.
Remember when Abraham said, O LORD, make this lands a place of security;
and grant that I and my childrent may avoid the worship of idols;
for they, O LORD, have seduced a great number of men. Whoever therefore
shall follow me, he shall be of me; and whosoever shall disobey me, verily
thou wilt be gracious and merciful.u
40 O LORD, I have caused some of my offspringx to settle in an unfruitful
valley, near the holy house, O LORD, that they may be constant at prayer.
Grant, therefore, that the hearts of some meny may be affected with kindness
toward them; and do thou bestow on them all sorts of fruits,z that they may
give thanks.
O LORD, thou knowest whatsoever we conceal, and whatsoever we publish;
for nothing is hidden from GOD, either on earth or in heaven. Praise be unto
GOD, who hath given me, in my old age, Israel and Isaac: for my LORD is the
hearer of supplication.
O LORD, grant that I may be an observer of prayer, and a part of my
posterity also,a O LORD, and receive my supplication. O LORD, forgive me, and
my parents,b and the faithful, on the day whereon an account shall be taken.
Think not, O prophet, that GOD is regardless of what the ungodly do. He
only deferreth their punishment unto the day whereon men's eyes shall be
fixed:
r The word used here, and in the following sentences, is sakhkhara,
which signifies forcibly to press into any service.1
s viz., The territory of Mecca. See the Prelim. Disc. Sect. IV.
t This prayer, it seems, was not heard as to all his posterity,
particularly as to the descendants of Ismael; though some pretend that these
latter did not worship images, but only paid a superstitious veneration to
certain stones, which they set up and compassed, as representations of the
Caaba.2
u That is, by disposing him to repentance. But Jallalo'ddin supposes
these words were spoken by Abraham before he knew that GOD would not pardon
idolatry.
x i.e., Ismael and his posterity. The Mohammedans say, that Hagar, his
mother, belonged to Sarah, who gave her to Abraham; and that, on her bearing
him this son, Sarah became so jealous of her, that she prevailed on her
husband to turn them both out of doors; whereupon he sent them to the
territory of Mecca, where GOD caused the fountain of Zemzem to spring forth
for their relief, in consideration of which the Jorhamites, who were the
masters of the country, permitted them to settle among them.3
y Had he said the hearts of men, absolutely, the Persians and the
Romans would also have treated them as friends; and both the Jews and
Christians would have made their pilgrimages to Mecca.4
z This part of the prayer was granted; Mecca being so plentifully
supplied, that the fruits of spring, summer, and autumn, are to be found there
at one and the same time.5
a For he knew by revelation that somme of them would be infidels.
b Abraham put up this petition to GOD before he knew that his parents
were the enemies of GOD.6 Some suppose his mother was a true believer, and
therefore read it in the singular, and my father. Others fancy that by his
parents the patriarch here means Adam and Eve.7
1 See chapter 2, p. 17, note c. 2 Al Beidâwi. See the
Prelim. Disc. Sect. I. p. 13-16. 3 Idem.
4 Idem, Jallalo'ddin. 5 Idem. 6 See chapter 9, p. 148.
7 Jallalo'ddin, Al Beidâwi.
they shall hasten forward, at the voice of the angel calling to judgment,
and shall lift up their heads; they shall not be able to turn their sight from
the object whereon it shall be fixed, and their hearts shall be void of sense,
through excessive terror. Wherefore do thou threaten men with the day,
whereon their punishment shall be inflicted on them,
and whereon those who have acted unjustly shall say, O LORD, give us
respite unto a term near at hand;
and we will obey thy call, and we will follow thy apostles. But it shall
be answered unto them, Did ye not swear heretofore, that no reverse should
befall you?c
yet ye dwelt in the dwellings of those who had treated their own souls
unjustly;d and it appeared plainly unto you how we had dwelt with them;e and
we propounded their destruction as examples unto you. They employ their
utmost subtlety to oppose the truth; but their subtlety is apparent unto GOD,
who is able to frustrate their designs; although their subtlety were so great,
that the mountains might be moved thereby.
Think not, therefore, O prophet, that GOD will be contrary to his promise
of assistance, made unto his apostles; for GOD is mighty, able to avenge.
The day will come, when the earth shall be changed into another earth,
and the heavens into other heavens;f and men shall come forth from their
graves to appear before the only, the mighty GOD.
50 And thou shalt see the wicked on that day bound together in fetters:
their inner garments shall be of pitch, and fire shall cover their faces;
that GOD may reward every soul according to what it shall have deserved; for
GOD is swift in taking an account.
This is a sufficient admonition unto men, that they may be warned
thereby, and that they may know that there is but one GOD; and that those who
are endued with understanding may consider.
c That is, That ye should not taste of death, but continue in this
world for ever; or that ye should not after death be raised to judgment.1
d viz., Of the Adites and Thamûdites.
e Not only by the histories of those people revealed in the Korân, but
also by the monuments remaining of them (as the houses of the Thamûdites, and
the traditions preserved among you of the terrible judgments which befell
them.
f This the Mohammedans suppose will come to pass at the last day; the
earth becoming white and even, or, as some will have it, of silver; and the
heavens of gold.2
1 Iidem, Al Zamakhshari, Yahya. 2 Iidem. Vide Prelim. Disc.
Sect. IV, p. 67.
CHAPTER XV.
ENTITLED, AL HEJR;g REVEALED AT MECCA.
IN THE NAME OF THE MOST MERCIFUL GOD.
A. L. R.h These are the signs of the book, and of the perspicuous Koran.
The time may come when the unbelievers shall wish that they had been
Moslems.i
Suffer them to eat, and to enjoy themselves in this world; and let hope
entertain them, but they shall hereafter know their folly.
We have not destroyed any city, but a fixed term of repentance was
appointed them.
No nation shall be punished before their time shall be come; neither
shall they be respited after.
The Meccans say, O thou to whom the admonitionj hath been sent down, thou
art certainly possessed with a devil:
wouldest thou not have come unto us with an attendance of angels, if thou
hadst spoken truth?
Answer, We send not down the angels, unless on a just occasion;k nor
should they be then respited any longer.
We have surely sent down the Koran; and we will certainly preserve the
same from corruption.l
10 We have heretofore sent apostles before thee among the ancient sects:
and there came no apostle unto them, but they laughed him to scorn.
In the same manner will we put it into the hearts of the wicked Meccans
to scoff at their prophet:
they shall not believe on him; and the sentence of the nations of old
hath been executed heretofore.
If we should open a gate in the heaven above them, and they should ascend
theretom all the day long,
they should rather say, Our eyes are only dazzled; or rather we are a
people deluded by enchantments.
We have placed the twelve signs in the heaven, and have set them out in
various figures, for the observation of spectators:
and we guard them from every deviln driven away with stones;o
g Al Hejr is a territory in the province of Hejaz, between Medina and
Syria, where the tribe of Thamûd dwelt;1 and is mentioned towards the end of
the chapter.
h See the Prelim. Disc. Sect. III. p. 46, &c.
i viz., When they shall see the success and prosperity of the true
believers; or when they shall come to die; or at the resurrection.
j i.e., The revelations which compose the Korân.
k When the divine wisdom shall judge it proper to use their ministry,
as in bearing his revelations to the prophets, and the executing his sentence
on wicked people; but not to humour you with their appearance in visible
shapes, which, should your demand be complied with, would only increase your
confusion, and bring GOD'S vengeance on you the sooner.
l See the Prelim. Disc. IV. p. 57.
m i.e., The incredulous Meccans themselves; or, as others rather think,
the angels in visible forms.
n For the Mohammedans imagine that the devils endeavour to ascend to
the constellations, to pry into the actions and overhear the discourse of the
inhabitants of heaven, and to tempt them. They also pretend that these evil
spirits had the liberty of entering any of the heavens till the birth of
JESUS, when they were excluded three of them; but that on the birth of
Mohammed they were forbidden the other four.2
o See chapter 3, p. 35, note b.
1 See the Prelim. Disc. p. 4. 2 Al Beidâwi.
except him who listeneth by stealth, at whom a visible flame is darted.p
We have also spread forth the earth, and thrown thereon stable mountains,
and we have caused every kind of vegetable to spring forth in the same,
according to a determinate weight:
20 and we have provided therein necessaries of life for you, and for him
whom ye do not sustain.q
There is no one thing but the storehouses thereof are in our hands; and
we distribute not the same otherwise than in a determinate measure.
We also send the winds driving the pregnant clouds, and we send down from
heaven water, whereof we give you to drink, and which ye keep not in store.
Verily we give life, and we put to death: and we are the heirs of all
things.r
We know those among you who go before; and we know those who stay
behind.s
And thy LORD shall gather them together at the last day: for he is
knowing and wise.
We created man of dried clay, of black mud, formed into shape:t
and we had before created the devil of subtle fire.
And remember when thy LORD said unto the angels, Verily I am about to
create man of dried clay, of black mud, wrought into shape;
when, therefore, I shall have completely formed him, and shall have
breathed of my spirit into him; do ye fall down and worship him.
30 And all the angels worshipped Adam together,
except Eblis, who refused to be with those who worshipped him.
And God said unto him, O Eblis, what hindered thee from being with those
who worshipped Adam?
He answered, It is not fit that I should worship man, whom thou hast
created of dried clay, of black mud, wrought into shape.
God said, Get thee therefore hence: for thou shalt be driven away with
stones:
and a curse shall be on thee, until the day of judgment.
The devil said, O LORD, Give me respite until the day of resurrection.
God answered, Verily thou shalt be one of those who are respited
until the day of the appointed time.u
The devil replied, O LORD, because thou hast seduced me, I will surely
tempt them to disobedience in the earth;
40 and I will seduce such of them as shall be thy chosen servants.
God said, This is the right way with me.x
Verily as to my servants, thou shalt have no power over them; but over
those only who shall be seduced, and who shall follow thee.
And hell is surely denounced unto them all:
p For when a star seems to fall or shoot, the Mohammedans suppose the
angels, who keep guard in the constellations, dart them at the devils who
approach too near.
q viz., Your family, servants, and slaves, whom ye wrongly imagine that
ye feed yourselves; though it is GOD who provides for them as well as you:1
or, as some rather think, the animals, of whom men take no care.2
r i.e., Alone surviving, when all creatures shall be dead and
annihilated.
s What these words particularly drive at is uncertain. Some think them
spoken of the different times of men's several entrance into this world, and
their departure out of it; others of the respective forwardness and
backwardness of Mohammed's men in battle; and a third says, the passage was
occasioned by the different behaviour of Mohammed's followers, on seeing a
very beautiful woman at prayers behind the prophet; some of them going out of
the Mosque before her, to avoid looking on her more nearly, and others staying
behind, on purpose to view her.3
t See chapter 2, p. 4, &c.
u See ibid. and chapter 7, p. 106.
x viz., The saving of the elect, and the utter reprobation of the
wicked, according to my eternal decree.
1 Idem. 2 Jallalo'ddin. 3 Al Beidâwi.
it hath seven gates; unto every gate a distinct company of them shall be
assigned.y
But those who fear God shall dwell in gardens, amidst fountains.
The angels shall say unto them, Enter ye therein in peace and security,
and we will remove all grudges from their breasts;z they shall be as
brethren, sitting over against one anothera on couches;
weariness shall not affect them therein, neither shall they be cast out
thence forever.
Declare unto my servants that I am the gracious, the merciful God;
50 and that my punishment is a grievous punishment.
And relate unto them the history of Abraham's guests.b
When they went in unto him, and said, Peace be unto thee,
he answered, Verily we are afraid of you:c
and they replied, Fear not; we bring thee the promise of a wise son.
He said, Do ye bring me the promise of a son now old age hath overtaken
me? what is it therefore that ye tell me?
They said, We have told thee the truth; be not therefore one of those who
despair.
He answered, And who despaireth of the mercy of GOD, except those who
err?
And he said, What is your errand, therefore, O messengers of God?
They answered, Verily we are sent to destroy a wicked people;
60 but as for the family of Lot, we will save them all,
except his wife; we have decreed that she shall be one of those who
remain behind to be destroyed with the infidels.
And when the messengers came to the family of Lot,
he said unto them, Verily ye are a people who are unknown to me.
They answered, But we are come unto thee to execute that sentence,
concerning which your fellow-citizens doubted:
we tell thee a certain truth; and we are messengers of veracity.
Therefore lead forth thy family, in some time of the night; and do thou
follow behind them, and let none of you turn back; but go whither ye are
commanded.d
And we gave him this command; because the utmost remnant of those people
was to be cut off in the morning.
And the inhabitants of the city came unto Lot, rejoicing at the news of
the arrival of some strangers.
And he said unto them, Verily these are my guests: wherefore do not
disgrace me by abusing them;
70 but fear GOD, and put me not to shame.
They answered, Have we not forbidden thee from entertaining or protecting
any man?
Lot replied, These are my daughters: therefore rather make use of them,
if ye be resolved to do what ye purpose.
As thou livest they wander in their folly.e
Wherefore a terrible storm from heaven assailed them at sunrise,
and we turned the city upside down: and we rained on them stones of baked
clay.
Verily herein are signs unto men of sagacity:
and those cities were punished, to point out a right way for men to walk
in.
Verily herein is a sign unto the true believers.
y See the Prelim. Disc. Sect. IV. p. 71
z That is, all hatred and ill-will which they bore each other in their
lifetime; or, as some choose to expound it, all envy or heart-burning on
account of the different degrees of honour and happiness to which the blessed
will be promoted according to their respective merits.
a Never turning their backs to one another;2 which might be construed a
sign of contempt.
b See chapter 11, p. 165, &c.
c What occasioned Abraham's apprehension was, either their sudden
entering without leave or their coming at an unseasonable time; or else their
not eating with him.
d Which was into Syria; or into Egypt.
e Some will have these words spoken by the angels to Lot; others, by
GOD to Mohammed.
1 See chapter 7, p. 108, note, 7. 2 Jallalo'ddin. 3 Al
Beidâwi, Jallalo'ddin.
The inhabitants of the wood near Midianf were also ungodly.
80 Wherefore we took vengeance on them.g And both of them were destroyed,
to serve as a manifest rule for men to direct their actions by.
And the inhabitants of Al Hejrh likewise heretofore accused the
messengers of God of imposture:
and we produced our signs unto them, but they retired afar off from the
same.
And they hewed houses out of the mountains, to secure themselves.
But a terrible noise from heaven assailed them in the morning;
neither was what they had wrought of any advantage unto them.
We have not created the heavens and the earth, and whatever is contained
between them, otherwise than in justice: and the hour of judgment shall surely
come. Wherefore O Mohammed, forgive thy people with a gracious forgiveness.i
Verily thy LORD is the creator of thee and of them, and knoweth what is
most expedient.
We have already brought unto thee seven verses which are frequently to be
repeated,j and the glorious Koran.
Cast not thine eyes on the good things which we have bestowed on several
of the unbelievers, so as to covet the same:k neither be thou grieved on their
account. Behave thyself with meekness towards the true believers;
90 and say, I am a public preacher.
If they believe not, we will inflict a like punishment on them, as we
have inflicted on the dividers,l
who distinguished the Koran into different parts,
for by thy LORD, we will demand an account from them all of that which
they have wrought.
Wherefore publish that which thou hast been commanded, and withdraw from
the idolaters.
f To whom Shoaib was also sent, as well as to the inhabitants of
Midian. Abulfeda says these people dwelt near Tabûc, and that they were not
of the same tribe with Shoaib. See also Geog. Nub. 110.
g Destroying them, for their incredulity and disobedience, by a hot
suffocating wind.1
h Who were the tribe of Thamûd.2
i This verse, it is said, was abrogated by that of the sword.
j That is, the first chapter of the Korân, which consists of so many
verses: though some suppose the seven long chapters3 are here intended.
k That is, Do not envy or covet their worldly prosperity, since thou
hast received, in the Korân, a blessing, in comparison whereof all that we
have bestowed on them ought to be contemned as of no value. Al Beidâwi
mentions a tradition, that Mohammed meeting at Adhriât (a town of Syria) seven
caravans, very richly laden, belonging to some Jews of the tribes of Koreidha
and al Nadîr, his men had a great mind to plunder them, saying, That those
riches would be of great service for the propagation of GOD'S true religion.
But the prophet represented to them, by this passage, that they had no reason
to repine, GOD having given them the seven verses, which were infinitely more
valuable than those seven caravans.4
l Some interpret the original word, the obstructers, who hindered men
from entering Mecca, to visit the temple, lest they should be persuaded to
embrace Islâm: and this, it is said, was done by ten men, who were all slain
at Bedr. Others translate the word, who bound themselves by oath; and suppose
certain Thamûdites, who swore to kill Saleh by night, are here meant. But the
sentence more probably relates to the Jews and Christians, who (say the
Mohammedans) receive some part of the scriptures, and reject others; and also
approved of some passages of the Korân, and disapproved of others, according
to their prejudices; or else to the unbelieving Meccans, some of whom called
the Korân a piece of witchcraft; others, flights of divination; others, old
stories; and others, a poetical composition.5
1 Iidem. 2 See chapter 7, p. 113, &c., and Prel. Disc. p. 5.
3 See chapter 9, p. 134, note e.
4 Al Beidâwi. 5 Idem, Jallalo'ddin.
We will surely take thy part against the scoffers,m
who associate with GOD another god; they shall surely know their folly.
And now we well know that thou art deeply concerned on account of that
which they say;
but do thou celebrate the praise of thy LORD; and be one of those who
worship;
and serve thy LORD until deathn shall overtake thee.
_______
CHAPTER XVI.
ENTITLED, THE BEE;o REVEALED AT MECCA.
IN THE NAME OF THE MOST MERCIFUL GOD.
THE sentence of GOD will surely come to be executed; wherefore do not
hasten it. Praise be unto him! and far be that from him which they associate
with him!
He shall cause the angels to descend with a revelation by his command,
unto such of his servants as he pleaseth, saying, Preach that there is no GOD,
except myself; therefore fear me.
He hath created the heavens and the earth, to manifest his justice; far
be that from him which they associate with him!
He hath created man of seed; and yet behold he is a professed disputer
against the resurrection.q
He hath likewise created the cattle for you; from them ye have wherewith
to keep yourselves warm,r and other advantages; and of them do ye also eat.
And they are likewise a credit unto you,s when ye drive them home in the
evening, and when ye lead them forth to feed in the morning:
and they carry your burdens to a distant country, at which ye could not
otherwise arrive, unless with great difficulty to yourselves; for your LORD is
compassionate and merciful.
and he hath also created horses, and mules, and asses, that ye may ride
thereon, and for an ornament unto you; and he likewise created other things
which ye know not.
It appertaineth unto GOD to instruct men in the right way; and there is
who turneth aside from the same: but if he had pleased, he would certainly
have directed you all.
10 It is he who sendeth down from heaven rain water, whereof ye have to
drink, and from which plants, whereon ye feed your cattle, receive their
nourishment.
m This passage, it is said, was revealed on account of five noble
Koreish, whose names were al Walîd Ebn al Mogheira, al As Ebn Wayel, Oda Ebn
Kais, al Aswad Ebn Abd Yaghûth, and al Aswad Ebn al Motalleb. These were
inveterate enemies of Mohammed, continually persecuting him, and turning him
into ridicule; wherefore at length Gabriel came and told him that he was
commanded to take his part against them; and on the angel's making a sign
towards them one after another, al Walîd passing by some arrows, one of them
hitched in his garment, and he, out of pride, not stooping to take it off, but
walking forward, the head of it cut a vein in his heel, and he bled to death;
al As was killed with a thorn, which stuck into the sole of his foot, and
caused his leg to swell to a monstrous size; Oda died with violent and
perpetual sneezing; al Aswad Ebn Abd Yaghûth ran his head against a thorny
tree and killed himself; and al Aswad Ebn al Motalleb was struck blind.1
n Literally, That which is certain.
o This insect is mentioned about the middle of the chapter.
p Except the three last verses.
q The person particularly intended in this place was Obba Ebn Khalf,
who came to Mohammed with a rotten bone, and asked him whether it was possible
for GOD to restore it to life.2
r viz., Their skins, wool, and hair, which serve you for clothing.
s Being a grace to your court-yards, and a credit to you in the eyes of
your neighbours.3
1 Al Beidâwi. 2 Idem. 3 Idem.
And by means thereof he causeth corn, and olives, and palm-trees, and
grapes, and all kinds of fruits, to spring forth for you. Surely herein is a
sign of the divine power and wisdom unto people who consider.
And he hath subjected the night and the day to your service; and the sun,
and the moon, and the stars, which are compelled to serve by his command.
Verily herein are signs unto people of understanding.
And he hath also given you dominion over whatever he hath created for you
in the earth, distinguished by its different colour.t Surely herein is a sign
unto people who reflect.
It is he who hath subjected the sea unto you, that ye might eat fishu
thereout, and take from thence ornamentsx for you to wear; and thou seest the
ships ploughing the waves thereof, that ye may seek to enrich yourselves of
his abundance, by commerce; and that ye might give thanks.
And he hath thrown upon the earth mountains firmly rooted, lest it should
move with you,y and also rivers, and paths, that ye might be directed:
and he hath likewise ordained marks whereby men may know their way; and
they are directed by the stars.z
Shall God therefore, who createth, be as he who createth not? Do ye not
therefore consider?
If ye attempt to reckon up the favors of GOD, ye shall not be able to
compute their number; GOD is surely gracious and merciful;
and GOD knoweth that which ye conceal, and that which ye publish.
20 But the idols which ye invoke, besides GOD, create nothing, but are
themselves created.
They are dead, and not living; neither do they understand
when they shall be raised.a
Your GOD is one GOD. As to those who believe not in the life to come,
their hearts deny the plainest evidence, and they proudly reject the truth.
There is no doubt but GOD knoweth that which they conceal and that which
they discover.
Verily he loveth not the proud.
And when it is said unto them, What hath your LORD sent down unto
Mohammed? they answer, Fables of ancient times.
Thus are they given up to error, that they may bear their own burdens
without diminution on the day of resurrection, and also a part of the burdens
of those whom they caused to err, without knowledge. Will it not be an evil
burden which they shall bear?
Their predecessors devised plots heretofore: but GOD came into their
building, to overthrow it from the foundations; and the roof fell on them from
above, and a punishment came upon them, from whence they did not expect.b
t That is, of every kind; the various colour of things being one of
their chief distinctions.1
u Literally, fresh flesh; by which fish is meant, as being naturally
more fresh, and sooner liable to corruption, than the flesh of birds and
beasts. The expression is thought to have been made use of here the rather,
because the production of such fresh food from salt water is an instance of
GOD'S power.2
x As pearls and coral.
y The Mohammedans suppose that the earth, when first created, was
smooth and equal, and thereby liable to a circular motion as well as the
celestial orbs; and that the angels asking, who could be able to stand on so
tottering a frame, God fixed it the next morning by throwing the mountains on
it.
z Which are their guides, not only at sea, but also on land, when they
travel by night through the deserts. The stars which they observe for this
purpose, are either the Pleiades, or some of those near the Pole.
a i.e., At what time they or their worshippers shall be raised to
receive judgment.
b Some understand this passage figuratively, of God's disappointing
their wicked designs; but others suppose the words literally relate to the
tower which Nimrod (whom the Mohammedans will have to be the son of Caanan,
the son of Ham, and so the nephew of Cush, and not his son) built in Babel,
and carried to an immense height (five thousand cubits, say some), foolishly
purposing thereby to ascend to heaven and wage war with the inhabitants of
that place; but God frustrated his attempt, utterly overthrowing the tower by
a violent wind and earthquake.1
1 Idem. 2 Idem.
Also on the day of resurrection he will cover them with shame; and will
say, Where are my companions, concerning whom ye disputed? Those unto whom
knowledge shall have been given,c shall answer, This day shall shame and
misery fall upon the unbelievers.
30 They whom the angels shall cause to die, having dealt unjustly with
their own souls, shall offer to make their peaced in the article of death,
saying, We have done no evil. But the angels shall reply. Yea; verily GOD
well knoweth that which ye have wrought:
wherefore enter the gates of hell, therein to remain forever; and
miserable shall be the abode of the proud.
And it shall be said unto those who shall fear God, What hath your LORD
sent down? They shall answer, Good; unto those who do right shall be given an
excellent reward in this world; but the dwelling of the next life shall be
better; and happy shall be the dwelling of the pious!
namely gardens of eternal abode,e into which they shall enter; rivers
shall flow beneath the same; therein shall they enjoy whatever they wish.
Thus will GOD recompense the pious.
Unto the righteous, whom the angels shall cause to die, they shall say,
Peace be upon you; enter ye into paradise, as a reward for that which ye have
wrought.
Do the unbelievers expect any other than that the angels come unto them,
to part their souls from their bodies; or that the sentence of thy LORD come
to be executed on them? So did they act who were before them; and GOD was not
unjust towards them in that he destroyed them; but they dealt unjustly with
their own souls:
the evils of that which they committed reached them; and the divine
judgment which they scoffed at fell upon them.
The idolaters say, If GOD had pleased, we had not worshipped anything
besides him, neither had our fathers: neither had we forbidden anything,
without him.f So did they who were before them. But is the duty of the
apostles any other than public preaching?
We have heretofore raised up in every nation an apostle to admonish them,
saying, Worship GOD, and avoid TAGHUT.g And of them there were some whom GOD
directed, and there were others of them who were decreed to go astray.
Wherefore go through the earth, O tribe of Koreish, and see what hath been the
end of those who accused their apostles of imposture.
If thou, O prophet, dost earnestly wish for their direction; verily GOD
will not direct him whom he hath resolved to lead into error; neither shall
they have any helpers.
40 And they swear most solemnly by GOD, saying, GOD will not raise the
dead. Yea; the promise thereof is true: but the greater part of men know it
not.
c viz., The prophets, and the teachers and professors of GOD'S unity;
or, the angels.
d Making their submission, and humbly excusing their evil actions, as
proceeding from ignorance, and not from obstinacy or malice.2
e Literally, gardens of Eden. See chapter 9, p. 142.
f This they spoke of in a scoffing manner, justifying their idolatry
and superstitious abstaining from certain cattle,3 by pretending, that had
these things been disagreeable to GOD, he would not have suffered them to be
practised.
g See chapter 2, p. 28.
1 Idem, Jallalo'ddin. Vide D'Herbel. Bibl. Orient. Art. Nimrod
2 Iidem Interp 3 See chapter 6, p. 102, &c.
He will raise them that he may clearly show them the truth concerning
which they now disagree, and that the unbelievers may know that they are
liars.
Verily our speech unto anything, when we will the same, is, that we only
say unto it, Be; and it is.
As for those who have fled their country for the sake of GOD, after they
had been unjustly persecuted;h we will surely provide them an excellent
habitation in this world, but the reward of the next life shall be greater; if
they knew it.i
They who persevere patiently, and put their trust in their LORD, shall
not fail of happiness in this life and in that which is to come.
We have not sent any before thee, as our apostles, other than men,j unto
whom we spake by revelation. Inquire therefore of those who have the custody
of the scriptures, if ye know not this to be truth.
We sent them with evident miracles, and written revelations; and we have
sent down unto thee this Korân,k that thou mayest declare unto mankind that
which hath been sent down unto them, and that they may consider.
Are they who have plotted evil against their prophet secure that GOD will
not cause the earth to cleave under them, or that a punishment will not come
upon them, from whence they do not expect;
or that he will not chastise them while they are busied in travelling
from one place to another, and in traffic? (for they shall not be able to
elude the power of God,)
or that he will not chastise them by a gradual destruction? But your
LORD is truly gracious and merciful in granting you respite.
50 Do they not consider the things which GOD hath created; whose shadows
are cast on the right hand and on the left, worshipping God,l and become
contracted?
Whatever moveth both in heaven and on earth worshippeth GOD, and the
angels also; and they are not elated with pride, so as to disdain his service:
they fear their LORD, who is exalted above them, and perform that which
they are commanded.
GOD said, Take not unto yourselves two gods; for there is but one GOD:
and revere me.
Unto him belongeth whatsoever is in heaven and on earth; and unto him is
obedience eternally due. Will ye therefore fear any besides GOD?
Whatever favors ye have received are certainly from GOD; and when evil
afflicteth you, unto him do ye make your supplication;
yet when he taketh the evil from off you, behold, a part of you give a
companion unto their LORD,
to show their ingratitude for the favors we have bestowed on them.
Delight yourselves in the enjoyments of this life: but hereafter shall ye know
that ye cannot escape the divine vengeance.
And they set apart unto idols which have no knowledge,m a part of the
food which we have provided for them. By GOD, ye shall surely be called to
account for that which ye have falsely devised.
h Some suppose the prophet and the companions of his flight in general,
are here intended: others suppose that those are particularly meant in this
place, who, after Mohammed's departure, were imprisoned at Mecca on account of
their having embraced his religion, and suffered great persecution from the
Koreish; as, Belâl, Soheib, Khabbab, Ammâr, Abes, Abu'l Jandal, and Sohail.1
i It is uncertain whether the pronoun they relates to the infidels, or
to the true believers. If to the former, the consequence would be, that they
they would be desirous of attaining to the happiness of the Mohajerîn, by
professing the same faith; if to the latter, the knowledge of this is urged as
a motive to patience and perseverance.2
j See chapter 7, p. 110, note r; chapter 12, p. 189, &c.
k Literally, this admonition.3
l See chapter 13, p. 182, note c.
m Or, which they know not; foolishly imagining that they have power to
help them, or interest with GOD to intercede for them.
As to the ancient Arabs setting apart a certain portion of the produce
of their lands for their idols, and their superstitions abstaining from the
use of certain cattle, in honour to the same, see chapter 5, p. 86, and
chapter 6, p. 102, and the notes there.
1 Al Beidâwi. 2 Idem. 3 See the Prelim. Disc.
Sect. III. p. 44.
They attribute daughters unto GODn (far be it from him!) but unto
themselves children of the sex which they desire.o
60 And when any of them is told the news of the birth of a female, his face
becometh black,p and he is deeply afflicted:
he hideth himself from the people, because of the ill tidings which have
been told him; considering within himself whether he shall keep it with
disgrace, or whether he shall bury it in the dust. Do they not make an ill
judgment?
Unto those who believe not in the next life, the similitude of evil ought
to be applied, and unto GOD the most sublime similitude:q for he is mighty and
wise.
If GOD should punish men for their iniquity, he would not leave on the
earth any moving thing: but he giveth them respite unto an appointed time; and
when their time shall come, they shall not be respited an hour, neither shall
their punishment be anticipated.
They attribute unto GOD that which they dislike themselves,r and their
tongues utter a lie; namely, that the reward of paradise is for them. There
is no doubt but that the fire of hell is prepared for them, and that they
shall be sent thither before the rest of the wicked.
By GOD, we have heretofore sent messengers unto the nations before thee:
but Satan prepared their works for them; he was their patron in this world,s
and in that which is to come they shall suffer a grievous torment.
We have not sent down the book of the Koran unto thee, for any other
purpose, than that thou shouldest declare unto them that truth concerning
which they disagree; and for a direction and mercy unto people who believe.
GOD sendeth down water from heaven, and causeth the earth to revive after
it hath been dead. Verily herein is a sign of the resurrection unto people
who hearken.
Ye have also in cattle an example of instruction: we give you to drink of
that which is in their bellies; a liquor between digested dregs, and blood;t
namely, pure milk,u which is swallowed with pleasure by those who drink it.
n See the Prelim. Disc. p. 14. Al Beidâwi says, that the tribes of
Khozâah and Kenâna, in particular, used to call the angels the daughters of
GOD.
o viz., Sons: for the birth of a daughter was looked on as a kind of
misfortune among the Arabs; and they often used to put them to death by
burying them alive.1
p i.e., Clouded with confusion and sorrow.
q This passage condemns the Meccans' injudicious and blasphemous
application of such circumstances to GOD as were unworthy of him, and not only
derogatory to the perfections of the Deity, but even disgraceful to man; while
they arrogantly applied the more honourable circumstances to themselves.
r By giving him daughters, and associates in power and honour; by
disregarding his messengers; and by setting apart the better share of the
presents and offerings for their idols, and the worse for him.2
s Or, He is the patron of them (viz. the Koreish) this day, &c.
t The milk consisting of certain particles of the blood, supplied from
the finer parts of the ailment. Ebn Abbas says, that the grosser parts of the
food subside into excrement, and that the finer parts are converted into milk,
and the finest of all into blood.
u Having neither the colour of the blood, nor the smell of the
excrements.
1 See chapter 81. 2 Al Beidâwi
And of the fruits of palm-trees, and of grapes, ye obtain an inebriating
liquor, and also good nourishment.x Verily herein is a sign unto people who
understand.
70 Thy LORD spake by inspiration unto the bee, saying, Provide thee housesy
in the mountains, and in the trees, and of those materials wherewith men build
hives for thee:
then eat of every kind of fruit, and walk in the beaten paths of thy
LORD.z There proceedeth from their bellies a liquor of various colours,a
wherein is a medicine for men.b Verily herein is a sign unto people who
consider.
GOD hath created you, and he will hereafter cause you to die: and some of
you shall have his life prolonged to a decrepit age, so that he shall forget
whatever he knew; for GOD is wise and powerful.
GOD causeth some of you to excel others in worldly possessions: yet they
who are caused to excel do not give their wealth unto the slaves whom their
right hands possess, that they may become equal sharers therein.c Do they
therefore deny the beneficence of GOD?
GOD hath ordained you wives from among yourselves,d and of your wives
hath granted you children and grand-children; and hath bestowed on you good
things for food. Will they therefore believe in that which is vain, and
ungratefully deny the goodness of GOD?
They worship, besides GOD, idols which possess nothing wherewith to
sustain them, either in heaven, or on earth; and have no power.
Wherefore liken not anything unto GOD:e for GOD knoweth, but ye know not.
GOD propoundeth as a parable a possessed slave, who hath power over
nothing, and him on whom we have bestowed a good provision from us, and who
giveth alms thereout both secretly and openly:f shall these two be esteemed
equal? GOD forbid! But the greater part of men know it not.
x Not only wine, which is forbidden, but also lawful food, as dates,
raisins, a kind of honey flowing from the dates, and vinegar.
Some have supposed that these words allow the moderate use of wine; but
the contrary is the received opinion.
y So the apartments which the bee builds are here called, because of
their beautiful workmanship, and admirable contrivance, which no geometrician
can excel.2
z i.e., The ways through which, by GOD'S power, the bitter flowers
passing the bee's stomach become money; or, the methods of making honey, which
he has taught her by instinct; or else the ready way home from the distant
places to which that insect flies.3
a viz., Honey; the colour of which is very different, occasioned by the
different plants on which the bees feed; some being white, some yellow, some
red, and some black.4
b The same being not only good food, but a useful remedy in several
distempers, particularly those occasioned by phlegm. There is a story, that a
man came once to Mohammed, and told him that his brother was afflicted with a
violent pain in his belly: upon which the prophet bade him give him some
honey. The fellow took his advice; but soon after coming again, told him that
the medicine had done his brother no manner of service: Mohammed answered, Go
and give him more honey, for God speaks truth, and thy brother's belly lies.
And the dose being repeated, the man, by GOD'S mercy, was immediately cured.5
c These words reprove the idolatrous Meccans, who could admit created
beings to a share of the divine honour, though they suffered not their slaves
to share with themselves to what GOD had bestowed on them.6
d That is, of your own nations and tribes. Some think the formation of
Eve from Adam is here intended.
e Or propound no similitudes or comparisons between him and his
creatures. One argument the Meccans employed in defence of their idolatry, it
seems, was, that the worship of inferior deities did honour to GOD; in the
same manner as the respect showed to the servants of a prince does honour to
the prince himself.7
f The idols are here likened to a slave, who is so far from having
anything of his own, that he is himself in the possession of another; whereas
GOD is as a rich free man, who provideth for his family abundantly, and also
assisteth others who have need, both in public, and in private.8
1 See chapter 2, p. 23. 2 Al Beidâwi. 3 Idem.
4 Idem. 5 Idem.
6 Idem. 7 Idem. 8 Idem, Jallalo'ddin.
GOD also propoundeth as a parable two men; one of them born dumb, who is
unable to do or understand anything, but is a burden unto his master;
whithersoever he shall send him, he shall not return with any good success:
shall this man, and he who hath his speech and understanding, and who
commandeth that which is just, and followeth the right way, be esteemed
equal?g
Unto GOD alone is the secret of heaven and earth known. And the business
of the last hourh shall be only as the twinkling of an eye, or even more
quick: for GOD is almighty.
80 GOD hath brought you forth from the wombs of your mothers; ye knew
nothing, and he gave you the senses of hearing and seeing, and understandings,
that ye might give thanks.
Do they not behold the fowls which are enabled to fly in the open
firmament of heaven? none supporteth them except GOD. Verily herein are signs
unto people who believe.
GOD hath also provided you houses for habitations for you; and hath also
provided you tents of the skins of cattle, which ye find light to be removed
on the day of your departure to new quarters, and easy to be pitched on the
day of your sitting down therein: and of their wool, and their fur, and their
hair, hath he supplied you with furniture and household-stuff for a season.
And GOD hath provided for you, of that which he hath created,
conveniences to shade you from the sun,i and he hath also provided you places
of retreat in the mountains,j and he hath given you garments to defend you
from the heat,k and coats of mail to defend you in your wars. Thus doth he
accomplish his favor towards you, that ye may resign yourselves unto him.
But if they turn back, verily thy duty is public preaching only.
They acknowledge the goodness of GOD, and afterwards they deny the same;l
but the greater part of them are unbelievers.m
On a certain day we will raise a witness out of every nation:n then they
who shall have been unbelievers shall not be suffered to excuse themselves,
neither shall they be received into favor.
And when they who shall have acted unjustly shall see the torment
prepared for them; (it shall not be mitigated unto them, neither shall they be
respited):
and when those who shall have been guilty of idolatry shall see their
false gods,o they shall say, O LORD, these are our idols which we invoked,
besides thee. But they shall return an answer unto them, saying, Verily ye
are liars.p
And on that day shall the wicked offer submission unto GOD; and the false
deities which they imagined shall abandon them.
g The idol is here again represented under the image of one who, by a
defect in his senses, is a useless burthen to the man who maintains him; and
GOD, under that of a person completely qualified either to direct or to
execute any useful undertaking. Some suppose the comparison is intended of a
true believer and an infidel.
h That is, The resurrection of the dead.
i As trees, houses, tents, mountains, &c.
j viz., Caves and grottos, both natural and artificial.
k Al Beidâwi says, that one extreme, and that the most insupportable in
Arabia, is here put for both; but Jallalo'ddin supposes that by heat we are in
this place to understand cold.
l Confessing God to be the author of all the blessings they enjoy; and
yet directing their worship and thanks to their idols, by whose intercession
they imagine blessings are obtained.
m Absolutely denying GOD'S providence, either through ignorance or
perverseness.
n See chapter 4, p. 59, note z.
o Literally, Their companions.
p For that we are not the companions of GOD, as ye imagined; neither
did ye really serve us, but your own corrupt affections and lusts; nor yet
were ye led into idolatry by us, but ye fell into it of your own accord.1
1 Al Beidâwi.
90 As for those who shall have been infidels, and shall have turned aside
others from the way of GOD, we will add unto them punishment upon punishment
because they have corrupted others.
On a certain day we will raise up in every nation a witness against them,
from among themselves; and we will bring thee, O Mohammed, as a witness
against these Arabians. We have sent down unto thee the book of the Koran,
for an explication of everything necessary both as to faith and practice, and
a direction, and mercy, and good tidings unto the Moslems.
Verily GOD commandeth justice, and the doing of good, and the giving unto
kindred what shall be necessary; and he forbiddeth wickedness, and iniquity,
and oppression: he admonisheth you that ye may remember.q
Perform your covenant with GOD,r when ye enter into covenant with him;
and violate not your oaths, after the ratification thereof; since ye have made
GOD a witness over you. Verily GOD knoweth that which ye do.
And be not like unto her who undoeth that which she hath spun, untwisting
it after she hath twisted it strongly;s taking your oaths between you
deceitfully, because one party is more numerous than another party.t Verily
GOD only tempteth you therein; and he will make that manifest unto you, on the
day of resurrection, concerning which ye now disagree.
If GOD had pleased, he would surely have made you one people:u but he
will lead into error whom he pleaseth, and he will direct whom he pleaseth;
and ye shall surely give an account of that which ye have done.
Therefore take not your oaths between you deceitfully lest your foot
slip, after it hath been steadfastly fixed, and ye taste evil in this life,
for that ye have turned aside from the way of GOD; and ye suffer a grievous
punishment in the life to come.
And sell not the covenant of GOD for a small price;x for with GOD is a
better recompense prepared for you, if ye be men of understanding.
That which is with you will fail; but that which is with GOD is
permanent: and we will surely reward those who shall persevere, according to
the utmost merit of their actions.
q This verse, which was the occasion of the conversion of Othmân Ebn
Matûn, the commentators say, containeth the whole which it is a man's duty
either to perform or to avoid; and is alone a sufficient demonstration of what
is said in the foregoing verse. Under the three things here commanded, they
understand the belief of GOD'S unity, without inclining to atheism, on the one
hand, or polytheism, on the other; obedience to the commands of God; and
charity towards those in distress. And under the three things forbidden, they
comprehend all corrupt and carnal affections; all false doctrines and
heretical opinions; and all injustice towards man.2
r By persevering in his true religion. Some think that the oath of
fidelity taken to Mohammed by his followers is chiefly intended here.
s Some suppose that a particular woman is meant in this passage, who
used (like Penelope) to undo at night the work that she had done in the day.
Her name, they say, was Reita Bint Saad Ebn Teym, of the tribe of Koreish.3
t Of this insincerity in their alliances the Koreish are accused; it
being usual with them, when they saw the enemies of their confederates to be
superior in force, to renounce their league with their old friends, and strike
up one with the others.4
u Or, of one religion.
x That is, Be not prevailed on to renounce your religion, or your
engagements with your prophet, by any promises or gifts of the infidels. For,
it seems, the Koreish, to tempt the poorer Moslems to apostatize, made them
offers, not very considerable indeed, but such as they imagined might be worth
their acceptance.5
2 Idem. 3 Idem. 4 Idem. 5 Idem.
Whoso worketh righteousness, whether he be male or female, and is a true
believer, we will surely raise him to a happy life; and we will give them
their reward, according to the utmost merit of their actions.
100 When thou readest the Koran, have recourse unto GOD, that he may
preserve thee from Satan driven away with stones;y
he hath no power over those who believe, and who put confidence in their
LORD;
but his power is over those only who take him for their patron, and who
give companions unto God.
When we substitute in the Koran an abrogating verse in lieu of a verse
abrogated (and GOD best knoweth the fitness of that which he revealeth), the
infidels say, Thou art only a forger of these verses: but the greater part of
them know not truth from falsehood.
Say, The holy spiritz hath brought the same down from thy LORD with
truth; that he may confirm those who believe, and for a direction and good
tidings unto the Moslems.
We also know that they say, Verily, a certain man teacheth him to compose
the Koran. The tongue of the person unto whom they incline is a foreign
tongue; but this, wherein the Koran is written, is the perspicuous Arabic
tongue.a
y Mohammed one day reading in the Korân, uttered a horrid blasphemy, to
the great scandal of those who were present, as will be observed in another
place;1 to excuse which he assured them that those words were put into his
mouth by the devil; and to prevent any such accident for the future, he is
here taught to beg GOD'S protection before he entered on that duty.2 Hence
the Mohammedans, before they begin to read any part of this book, repeat these
words, I have recourse unto God for assistance against Satan driven away with
stones.
z viz., Gabriel. See chapter 2, p. 10.
a This was a great objection made by the Meccans to the authority of
the Korân; for when Mohammed insisted, as a proof of its divine original, that
it was impossible a man so utterly unacquainted with learning as himself could
compose such a book, they replied, that he had one or more assistants in the
forgery; but as to the particular person or persons suspected of this
confederacy, the traditions differ. One says it was Jabar, a Greek, servant
to Amer Ebn al Hadrami, who could read and write well;3 another, that they
were Jabar and Yesâr, two slaves who followed the trade of sword-cutlers at
Mecca, and used to read the pentateuch and gospel, and had often Mohammed for
their auditor, when he passed that way.4 Another tells us, it was one Aïsh,
or Yâïsh, a domestic of al Haweiteb Ebn Abd al Uzza, who was a man of some
learning, and had embraced Mohammedism.5 Another supposes it was one Kais, a
Christian, whose house Mohammed frequented;6 another, that it was Addâs, a
servant of Otba Ebn Rabîa;7 and another, that it was Salmân the Persian.8
According to some Christian writers,9 Abdallah Ebn Salâm, the Jew who
was so intimate with Mohammed (named by one, according to the Hebrew dialect,
Abdias Ben Salon and by another, Abdala Celen), was assisting to him in the
compiling his pretended revelations. This Jew Dr. Prideaux confounds with
Salmân the Persian, who was a very different man, as a late author10 has
observed before me; wherefore, and for that we may have occasion to speak of
Salmân hereafter, it may be proper to add a brief extract of his story as told
by himself. He was of a good family of Ispahan, and, in his younger years,
left the religion of his country to embrace Christianity; and travelling into
Syria, was advised by a certain monk of Amuria to go into Arabia, where a
prophet was expected to arise about that time, who should establish the
religion of Abraham; and whom he should know, among other things, by the seal
of prophecy between his shoulders. Salmân performed the journey, and meeting
with Mohammed at Koba, where he rested in his flight to Medina, soon found him
to be the person he sought, and professed Islâm.11
The general opinion of the Christians, however is, that the chief help
Mohammed had in the contriving his Korân, was from a Nestorian monk named
Sergius, supposed to be the same person with the monk Boheira, with whom
Mohammed in his younger years had some conference, at Bosra, a city of Syria
Damascena, where that monk resided.12 To confirm
1 In not. ad cap. 22. 2 Jallalo'ddin, Al Beidâwi, Yahya, &c.
3 Al Zamakhshari, Al Beidâwi, Yahya.
4 Al Zamakh., Al Beidâwi. See Prid. Life of Mah. p. 32. 5 Iidem.
6 Jallalo'ddin. 7 Al Zamakh., Yahya.
8 Al Zamakh., Al Beidâwi. 9 Ricardi Confut. Legis Saracenicæ, c.
13. Joh. Andreas, de Confus. Sectæ Mahometanæ, c. 2 See Prid. Life of Mah.
pp. 33, 34. 10 Gagnier not. in Abulf. Vit. Moh. p. 74. 11 Ex
Ebn Ishak. Vide Gagnier, ibid 12 See Prid. ubi sup. p. 35, &c.
Gagnier, ubi sup. pp. 10, 11. Marrac. de Alcor. p. 37.
Moreover as for those who believe not the signs of GOD, GOD will not
direct them, and they shall suffer a painful torment:
verily they imagine a falsehood who believe not in the signs of GOD, and
they are really the liars.
Whoever denieth GOD, after he hath believed, except him who shall be
compelled against his will, and whose heart continueth steadfast in the faith,
shall be severely chastised:b but whoever shall voluntarily profess
infidelity, on those shall the indignation of GOD fall, and they shall suffer
a grievous punishment.
This shall be their sentence, because they have loved the present life
above that which is to come, and for that GOD directeth not the unbelieving
people.
110 These are they whose hearts, and hearing, and sight, GOD hath sealed up;
and these are the negligent: there is no doubt but that in the next life they
shall perish.
which supposition, a passage has been produced from an Arab writer,1 who says
that Boheira's name in the books of the Christians, is Sergius; but this is
only a conjecture; and another2 tells us, his true name was Saïd, or Felix,
and his surname Boheira. But be that as it will, if Boheira and Sergius were
the same man, I find not the least intimation in the Mohammedan writers that
he ever quitted his monastery to go into Arabia (as is supposed by the
Christians); and his acquaintance with Mohammed at Bosra was too early to
favour the surmise of his assisting him in the Korân, which was composed long
after; though Mohammed might, from his discourse, gain some knowledge of
Christianity and of the scriptures, which might be of use to him therein.
From the answer given in this passage of the Korân to the objection of
the infidels, viz., that the person suspected by them to have a hand in the
Korân spoke a foreign language, and therefore could not, with any face of
probability, be supposed to assist in a composition written in the Arabic
tongue, and with so great elegance, it is plain this person was no Arabian.
The word Ajami, which is here used, signifies any foreign or barbarous
language in general; but the Arabs applying it more particularly to the
Persian, it has been thence concluded by some that Salmân was the person;
however, if it be true that he came not to Mohammed till after the Hejra,
either he could not be the man here intended, or else this verse must have
been revealed at Medina, contrary to the common opinion.
b These words were added for the sake of Ammâr Ebn Yaser, and some
others, who being taken and tortured by the Koreish, renounced their faith out
of fear, though their hearts agreed not with their mouths.3 It seems Ammâr
wanted the constancy of his father and mother, Yâser, and Sommeya, who
underwent the like trial at the same time with their son, and resolutely
refusing to recant, were both put to death, the infidels tying Sommeya between
two camels, and striking a lance through her privy parts.4 When news was
brought to Mohammed, that Ammâr had denied the faith, he said, it could not
be, for that Ammâr was full of faith from the crown of his head to the sole of
his foot, faith being mixed and incorporated with his very flesh and blood;
and when Ammâr himself came weeping to the prophet, he wiped his eyes, saying,
What fault was it of thine, if they forced thee?
But though it be here said, that those who apostatize in appearance
only, to avoid death or torments, may hope for pardon from GOD, yet it is
unanimously agreed by the Mohammedan doctors, to be much more meritorious and
pleasing in the sight of GOD, courageously and nobly to persist in the true
faith, and rather to suffer death itself than renounce it, even in words. Nor
did the Mohammedan religion want its martyrs, in the strict sense of the word;
of which I will here give two instances, besides the above-mentioned. One is
that of Khobaib Ebn Ada, who being perfidiously sold to the Koreish, was by
them put to death in a cruel manner, by mutilation, and cutting off his flesh
piecemeal; and being asked, in the midst of his tortures, whether he did not
wish Mohammed was in his place, answered I would not wish to be with my
family, my substance, and my children, on condition that Mohammed was only to
be pricked with a thorn.5 The other is that of a man who was put to death by
Moseilama, on the following occasion. That false prophet having taken two of
Mohammed's followers, asked one of them, what he said of Mohammed? the man
answered, That he was the apostle of God: And what sayest thou of me? added
Moseilama; to which he replied, Thou also art the apostle of God; whereupon he
was immediately dismissed in safety. But the other, having returned the same
answer to the former question, refused to give any to the last, though
required to do it three several times, but pretended to be deaf, and was
therefore slain. It is related that Mohammed, when the story of these two men
was told him, said, The first of them threw himself on God's mercy; but the
latter professed the truth; and he shall find his account in it.6
1 Al Masudi. 2 Abu'l Hasan al Becri in Korân. 3 Al
Beidâwi, Al Zamakh., Yahya.
4 Al Beidâwi 5 Ebn Shohnah. 6 Al Beidâwi.
Moreover thy LORD will be favorable unto those who have fled their
country, after having suffered persecution,c and had been compelled to deny
the faith by violence, and who have since fought in defence of the true
religion, and have persevered with patience; verily unto these will thy LORD
be gracious and merciful, after they shall have shown their sincerity.
On a certain day shall every soul come to plead itself,d and every soul
shall be repaid that which it shall have wrought; and they shall not be
treated unjustly.
GOD propoundeth as a parable a citye which was secure and quiet, unto
which her provisions came in abundance from every side; but she ungratefully
denied the favor of GOD: wherefore GOD caused her to taste the extreme famine,
and fear, because of that which they had done.
And now is an apostle come unto the inhabitants of Mecca from among
themselves; and they accuse him of imposture: wherefore a punishment shall be
inflicted on them, while they are acting unjustly.
Eat of what GOD hath given you for food, that which is lawful and good;
and be thankful for the favors of GOD, if ye serve him.
He hath only forbidden you that which dieth of itself, and blood, and
swine's flesh, and that which hath been slain in the name of any, besides
GOD.f But unto him who shall be compelled by necessity to eat of these
things, not lusting nor wilfully transgressing, GOD will surely be gracious
and merciful.
And say not that wherein your tongues utter a lie; This is lawful, and
this is unlawful;g that ye may devise a lie concerning GOD: for they who
devise concerning GOD shall not prosper.
They shall have small enjoyment in this world, and in that which is to
come they shall suffer a grievous torment.
Unto the Jews did we forbid that which we have told thee formally:h and
we did them no injury in that respect; but they injured their own souls.i
120 Moreover thy LORD will be favorable unto those who do evil through
ignorance, and afterwards repent and amend: verily unto these will thy LORD be
gracious and merciful, after their repentance.
Abraham was a model of true religion, obedient unto GOD, orthodox, and
was not an idolater:j
he was also grateful for his benefits: wherefore God chose him, and
directed him into the right way.
And we bestowed on him good in this world; and in the next he shall
surely be one of the righteous.
We have also spoken unto thee, O Mohammed, by revelation, saying, Follow
the religion of Abraham, who was orthodox, and was no idolater.
c As did Ammâr, who made one in both the flights. Some, reading the
verb with different vowels, render the last words, after having persecuted the
true believers; and instance in al Hadrami, who obliged a servant of his to
renounce Mohammedism, by force, but afterwards, together with that servant
professed the same faith, and fled for it.1
d That is, Every person shall be solicitous for his own salvation, not
concerning himself with the condition of another, but crying out, My own soul,
my own soul!2
e This example is applied to every city which having received great
blessings from GOD, becometh insolent and unthankful, and is therefore
chastised by some signal judgment; or rather to Mecca in particular, on which
the calamities threatened in this passage, viz. both famine and sword, were
inflicted.3
f See chapter 5, p. 73.
g Allowing what GOD hath forbidden, and superstitiously abstaining from
what he hath allowed. See chapter 6, p. 101, &c.
h viz., In the 6th chapter, p. 103.
i i.e., They were forbidden things which were in themselves
indifferent, as a punishment for their wickedness and rebellion.
j This was to reprehend the idolatrous Koreish, who pretended that they
professed the religion of Abraham.
1 Idem. 2 Idem. 3 Idem.
The sabbath was only appointed unto those who differed with their prophet
concerning it;k and thy LORD will surely judge between them, on the day of
resurrection, as to that concerning which they differed.
Invite men unto the way of thy LORD, by wisdom, and mild exhortation; and
dispute with them in the most condescending manner: for thy LORD well knoweth
him who strayeth from his path, and he well knoweth those who are rightly
directed.
If ye take vengeance on any, take a vengeance proportionable to the wrong
which hath been done you;l but if ye suffer wrong patiently, verily this will
be better for the patient.m
Wherefore, do thou bear opposition with patience; but thy patience shall
not be practicable, unless with GOD'S assistance. And be thou not grieved on
account of the unbelievers; neither be thou troubled for that which they
subtilely devise; for GOD is with those who fear him, and are upright.
_______
CHAPTER XVII.
ENTITLED, THE NIGHT JOURNEY;n REVEALED AT MECCA.
IN THE NAME OF THE MOST MERCIFUL GOD.
PRAISE be unto him who transported his servant by night, from the sacred
temple of Mecca to the farther temple of Jerusalem,p the circuit of which we
have blessed, that we might show some of our signs; for God is he who heareth,
and seeth.
k These were the Jews; who being ordered by Moses to set apart Friday
(the day now observed by the Mohammedans) for the exercise of divine worship,
refused it, and chose the sabbath-day, because on that day GOD rested from his
works of creation: for which reason they were commanded to keep the day they
had chosen in the strictest manner.1
l This passage is supposed to have been revealed at Medina, on occasion
of Hamza, Mohammed's uncle, being slain at the battle of Ohod. For the
infidels having abused his dead body, by taking out his bowels, and cutting
off his ears and his nose, when Mohammed saw it, he swore that if God granted
him success, he would retaliate those cruelties on seventy of the Koreish; but
he was by these words forbidden to execute what he had sworn, and he
accordingly made void his oath.2 Abu'lfeda makes the number on which Mohammed
swore to reek his vengeance to be but thirty:3 but it may be observed, by the
way, that the translator renders the passage in that author, GOD hath revealed
unto me that I shall retaliate, &c., instead of, If GOD grant me victory over
the Koreish, I will retaliate, &c., reading Laïn adhharni, for adhfarni; GOD,
far from putting this design into the prophet's head by a revelation,
expressly forbidding him to put it in execution.
m Here, says al Beidâwi, the Korân principally points at Mohammed, who
was of all men the most conspicuous for meekness and clemency.
n The reason of this inscription appears in the first words. Some
entitle the chapter, The children of Israel.
o Some except eight verses, beginning at these words, It wanted little
but that the infidels had seduced thee, &c.
p From whence he was carried through the seven heavens to the presence
of GOD, and brought back again to Mecca the same night.
This journey of Mohammed to heaven is so well known that I may be
pardoned if I omit the description of it. The English reader may find it in
Dr. Prideaux's Life of Mahomet,1 and the learned in Abu'lfeda,2 whose
annotator has corrected several mistakes in the relation of Dr. Prideaux, and
in other writers.
It is a dispute among the Mohammedan divines, whether their prophet's
night-journey was really performed by him corporally, or whether it was only a
dream or vision. Some think the whole was no more than a vision; and allege
and express tradition of Moâwiyoh,3 one of Mohammed's successors, to that
purpose. Others suppose he was carried bodily to Jerusalem, but no farther;
and that he ascended thence to heaven in spirit only. But the received
opinion is, that it was no vision, but that he was actually transported in the
body to his journey's end; and if any impossibility be objected, they think it
a sufficient answer to say, that it might easily be effected by an omnipotent
agent.4
1 Idem, Jallalo'ddin. 2 Iidem. 3 Abu'lf. Vit. Moh. n.
68. 1 Page 43, &c. See also Morgan's Mahometism Explained, vol. 2
2 Vit. Moham. cap. 19. 3 Vide ibid, c. 18. 4 Al
Beidâwi.
And we gave unto Moses the book of the law, and appointed the same to be
a direction unto the children of Israel, commanding them, saying, Beware that
ye take not any other patron besides me.
O posterity of those whom we carried in the ark with Noah:q verily he was
a grateful servant.
And we expressly declared unto the children of Israel in the book of the
law, saying, Ye will surely commit evil in the earth twice,r and ye will be
elated with great insolence.
And when the punishment threatened for the first of those transgressions
came to be executed, we sent against you our servants,s endued with exceeding
strength in war, and they searched the inner apartments of your houses; and
the prediction became accomplished.
Afterwards we gave you the victory over them,t in your turn, and we
granted you increase of wealth and children, and we made you a more numerous
people,
saying, If ye do well, ye will do well to your own souls; and if ye do
evil, ye will do it unto the same. And when the punishment threatened for
your latter transgression came to be executed, we sent enemies against you to
afflict you,u and to enter the temple, as they entered it the first time, and
utterly to destroy that which they had conquered.
q The commentators are put to it to find out the connection of these
words with the foregoing. Some think the accusative case is here put for the
vocative, as I have translated it: and others interpret the words thus, Take
not for your patrons besides me, the posterity of those, &c., meaning, mortal
men.
r Their first transgression was their rejecting the decisions of the
law, their putting Isaiah to death,5 and their imprisoning of Jeremiah:6 and
the second, was their slaying of Zachariah and John the Baptist, and their
imagining the death of JESUS.7
s These were Jalût, or Goliah, and his forces;8 or Sennacherib the
Assyrian; or else Nebuchadnezzar, whom the eastern writers called Bakhtnasr
(which was however only his surname, his true name being Gudarz, or Raham),
the governor of Babylon under Lohorasp, king of Persia,9 who took Jerusalem,
and destroyed the temple.
t By permitting David to kill Goliah; or by the miraculous defeat of
Sennacherib's army; or for that GOD put it into the heart of Bahman the son of
Isfandiyar, when he succeeded his grandfather Lohorasp, to order Kiresh, or
Cyrus, then governor of Babylon, to send home the Jews from their captivity,
under the conduct of Daniel; which he accordingly did, and they prevailed
against those whom Bakhtnasr had left in the land.10
u Some imagine the army meant in this place was that of Bakhtnasr;11
but others say the Persians conquered the Jews this second time, by the arms
of Gudarz (by whom they seem to intend Antiochus Epiphanes), one of the
successors of Alexander at Babylon. It is related that the general in this
expedition, entering the temple, saw blood bubbling up on the great altar, and
asking the reason of it, the Jews told him it was the blood of a sacrifice
which had not been accepted of GOD; to which he replied, that they had not
told him the truth, and ordered a thousand of them to be slain on the altar;
but the blood not ceasing, he told them that if they would not confess the
truth, he would not spare one of them; whereupon they acknowledged it was the
blood of John: and the general said, Thus hath your Lord taken vengeance on
you; and then cried out, O John, my LORD and thy LORD knoweth what hath
befallen thy people for thy sake; wherefore let thy blood stop, by GOD'S
permission, lest I leave not one of them alive; upon which the blood
immediately stopped.12
These are the explications of the commentators, wherein their ignorance
in ancient history is sufficiently manifest; though perhaps Mohammed himself,
in this latter passage, intended the destruction of Jerusalem by the Romans.
5 Id. m. 6 Jallalo'ddin. 7 Iidem. 8
Jallalo'ddin, Yahya. 9 Al Zamakhshari, Al Beidâwi. 10
Iidem. 11 Yahya, Jallalo'ddin 12 Al Beidâwi.
Peradventure your LORD will have mercy on you hereafter: but if ye return
to transgress a third time, we also will return to chastise you;x and we have
appointed hell to be the prison of the unbelievers.
Verily this Koran directeth unto the way which is most right, and
declareth unto the faithful,
10 who do good works, that they shall receive a great reward;
and that for those who believe not in the life to come, we have prepared
a grievous punishment.
Man prayeth for evil, as he prayeth for good;y for man is hasty.z
We have ordained the night and the day for two signs of our power:
afterwards we blot out the sign of the night, and we cause the sign of the day
to shine forth, that ye may endeavor to obtain plenty from your LORD by doing
your business therein, and that ye may know the number of years, and the
computation of time; and everything necessary have we explained by a
perspicuous explication.
The fatea of every man have we bound about his neck;b and we will produce
unto him, on the day of resurrection, a book wherein his actions shall be
recorded: it shall be offered him open,
and the angels shall say unto him, Read thy book; thine own soul will be
a sufficient accountant against thee, this day.c
He who shall be rightly directed, shall be directed to the advantage only
of his own soul; and he who shall err shall err only against the same: neither
shall any laden soul be charged with the burden of another. We did not punish
any people, until we had first sent an apostle to warn them.
And when we resolved to destroy a city, we commanded the inhabitants
thereof, who lived in affluence, to obey our apostle; but they acted corruptly
therein: wherefore the sentence was justly pronounced against that city; and
we destroyed it with an utter destruction.
And how many generations have we consumed since Noah? for thy LORD
sufficiently knoweth and seeth the sins of his servants.
Whosoever chooseth this transitory life, we will bestow on him therein
beforehand that which we please; on him, namely, whom we please: afterwards
will we appoint him hell for his abode; he shall be thrown into the same to be
scorched, covered with ignominy, and utterly rejected from mercy.
x And this came accordingly to pass; for the Jews being again so wicked
as to reject Mohammed, and conspire against his life, God delivered them into
his hands; and he exterminated the tribe of Koreidha, and slew the chiefs of
al Nadîr, and obliged the rest of the Jewish tribes to pay tribute.1
y Out of ignorance, mistaking evil for good; or making wicked
imprecations on himself and others, out of passion and impatience.
z Or inconsiderate, not weighing the consequence of what he asks.
It is said that the person here meant is Adam, who, when the breath of
life was breathed into his nostrils, and had reached so far as his navel,
though the lower part of his body was, as yet, but a piece of clay, must needs
try to rise up, and got an ugly fall by the bargain. But others pretend the
passage was revealed on the following occasion. Mohammed committed a certain
captive to the charge of his wife, Sawda bint Zamáa, who, moved with
compassion at the man's groans, unbound him, and let him escape: upon which
the prophet, in the first motions of his anger, wished her hand might fall
off; but immediately composing himself, said aloud, O God, I am but a man:
therefore turn my curse into a blessing.2
a Literally, the bird, which is here used to signify a man's fortune or
success; the Arabs, as well as the Greeks and Romans, taking omens from the
flight of birds, which they supposed to portend good luck, if they flew from
the left to the right, but if from the right to the left, the contrary; the
like judgment they also made when certain beasts passed before them.
b Like a collar, which he cannot by any means get off. See the Prelim.
Disc. Sect. IV p. 80.
c See ibid. p. 20.
1 Idem. 2 Jallalo'ddin
20 But whosoever chooseth the life to come, and directeth his endeavor
towards the same, being also a true believer; the endeavor of these shall be
acceptable unto God.
On all will we bestow the blessings of this life, both on these and on
those, of the gift of thy LORD; for the gift of thy LORD shall not be denied
unto any.
Behold, how we have caused some of them to surpass others in wealth and
dignity: but the next life shall be more considerable in degrees of honour,
and greater in excellence.
Set not up another god with the true GOD, lest thou sit down in disgrace,
and destitute.
Thy LORD hath commanded that ye worship none besides him; and that ye
show kindness unto your parents, whether the one of them, or both of them
attain to old age with thee.d Wherefore, say not unto them, Fie on you!e
neither reproach them, but speak respectfully unto them
and submit to behave humblye towards them, out of tender affection and
say, O LORD, have mercy on them both, as they nursed me when I was little.
Your LORD well knoweth that which is in your souls; whether ye be men of
integrity:
and he will be gracious unto those who sincerely return unto him.
And give unto him who is of kin to you his due,f and also unto the poor,
and the traveller. And waste not thy substance profusely:
for the profuse are brethren of the devils:g and the devil was ungrateful
unto his LORD.
30 But if thou turn from them, in expectation of the mercy which thou
hopest from thy LORD;h at least, speak kindly unto them.
And let not thy hand be tied up to thy neck; neither open it with an
unbounded expansion,i lest thou become worthy of reprehension, and be reduced
to poverty.
Verily thy LORD will enlarge the store of whom he pleaseth, and will be
sparing unto whom he pleaseth; for he knoweth and regardeth his servants.
Kill not your children for fear of being brought to want; we will provide
for them and for you; verily the killing them is a great sin.
Draw not near unto fornication; for it is wickedness, and an evil way.
Neither slay the soul which GOD hath forbidden you to slay, unless for a
just cause;k and whosoever shall be slain unjustly, we have given his heir
power to demand satisfaction;l but let him not exceed the bounds of moderation
in putting to death the murderer in too cruel a manner, or by revenging his
friend's blood on any other than the person who killed him; since he is
assisted by this law.m
d That is, receiving their support and maintenance from thee.
e Literally, Lower the wing of humility, &c.
f That is, friendship and affection, and assistance in time of need.
g Prodigality, and squandering away one's substance in folly or luxury,
being a very great sin. The Arabs were particularly guilty of extravagance in
killing camels, and distributing them by lot, merely out of vanity and
ostentation; which they are forbidden by this passage, and commanded to bestow
what they could spare on their poor relations, and other indigent people.1
h That is, If thy present circumstances will not permit thee to assist
others, defer thy charity till GOD shall grant thee better ability.
i i.e., Be neither niggardly nor profuse, but observe the mean between
the two extremes, wherein consists true liberality.2
j See chapter 6, p. 101 and 103, and chapter 81.
k The crimes for which a man may justly be put to death are these:
apostasy, adultery and murder.3
l It being at the election of the heir, or next of kin, either to take
the life of the murderer or to accept of a fine in lieu of it.4
m Some refer the pronoun he to the person slain, for the avenging whose
death this law was made; some to the heir, who has a right granted him to
demand satisfaction for his friend's blood;1 and others to him who shall be
slain by the heir, if he carry his vengeance too far.2
1 Al Beidâwi. 2 Idem. 3 Idem. 4 See
chapter 2, p. 19. 1 Yahya.
2 Vide Al Beidâwi.
And meddle not with the substance of the orphan, unless it be to improve
it, until he attain his age of strength:n and perform your covenant; for the
performance of your covenant shall be inquired into hereafter.
And give full measure, when you measure aught; and weigh with a just
balance. This will be better, and more easy for determining every man's due.o
And follow not that whereof thou hast no knowledge;p for the hearing, and
the sight, and the heart, every of these shall be examined at the last day.
Walk not proudly in the land, for thou canst not cleave the earth,
neither shalt thou equal the mountains in stature.
40 All this is evil, and abominable in the sight of thy LORD.
These precepts are a part of the wisdom which they LORD hath revealed
unto thee. Set not up any other god as equal unto GOD, lest thou be cast into
hell, reproved and rejected.
Hath your LORD preferably granted unto you sons, and taken for himself
daughters from among the angels?q Verily in asserting this ye utter a
grievous saying.
And now have we used various arguments and repetitions in this Koran,
that they may be warned: yet it only rendereth them more disposed to fly from
the truth.
Say unto the idolaters, If there were other gods with him, as ye say,
they would surely seek an occasion of making some attempt against the
possessor of the throne:r
GOD forbid! and far, very far, be that from him which they utter!
The seven heavens praise him, and the earth, and all who are therein:
neither is there anything which doth not celebrate his praise; but ye
understand not their celebration thereof: he is gracious and merciful.
When thou readest the Koran, we place between thee and those who believe
not in the life to come a dark veil;
and we put coverings over their hearts, lest they should understand it,
and in their ears thickness of hearing.
And when thou makest mention, in repeating the Koran, of thy LORD only,s
they turn their backs, flying the doctrine of his unity.
50 We well know with what design they hearken, when they hearken unto thee,
and when they privately discourse together: when the ungodly say, Ye follow no
other than a madman.
Behold! what epithets they bestow on thee. But they are deceived;
neither can they find any just occasion to reproach thee.
They also say, After we shall have become bones and dust, shall we surely
be raised a new creature?
n See chapter 4, p. 53, 54.
o Or, more advantageous in the end.3
p i.e., Vain and uncertain opinions, which thou hast not good reason to
believe true, or at least probable. Some interpret the words, Accuse not
another of a crime whereof thou hast no knowledge; supposing they forbid the
bearing false witness, or the spreading or giving credit to idle reports of
others.4
q See chapter 16, p. 199.
r i.e., They would in all probability contend with GOD for superiority,
and endeavour to dethrone him, in the same manner as princes act with one
another on earth.
s Not allowing their gods to be his associates, nor praying their
intercession with him.
3 Idem. Al Zamakh. 4 Iidem.
Answer, Be ye stones, or iron, or some creature more improbable in your
opinions to be raised to life. But they will say, Who shall restore us to
life? Answer, He who created you the first time: and they will wag their
heads at thee, saying, When shall this be? Answer, Peradventure it is nigh.
On that day shall GOD call you forth from your sepulchres, and ye shall
obey, with celebration of his praise;t and ye shall think that ye tarriedu but
a little while.
Speak unto my servants, that they speak mildly unto the unbelievers, lest
ye exasperate them; for Satan soweth discord among them, and Satan is a
declared enemy unto man.
your LORD well knoweth you; if he pleaseth, he will have mercy on you,
or, if he pleaseth, he will punish you:x and we have not sent thee to be a
steward over them.
Thy LORD well knoweth all persons in heaven and on earth.y We have
bestowed peculiar favors on some of the prophets, preferably to others; and we
gave unto David the psalms.z
Say, Call upon those whom ye imagine to be gods besides him; yet they
will not be able to free you from harm, or to turn it on others.
Those whom ye invoke,a do themselves desire to be admitted to a near
conjunction with their LORD; striving which of them shall approach nearest
unto him: they also hope for his mercy, and dread his punishment; for the
punishment of thy LORD is terrible.
60 There is no city but we will destroy the same before the day of
resurrection, or we will punish it with a grievous punishment. This is
written in the book of our eternal decrees.
Nothing hindered us from sending thee with miracles, except that the
former nations have charged them with imposture. We gave unto the tribe of
Thamud, at their demand, the she-camel visible to their sight: yet they dealt
unjustly with her:b and we send not a prophet with miracles, but to strike
terror.
Remember when we said unto thee, Verily thy LORD encompasseth men by his
knowledge and power. We have appointed the vision which we showed thee,c and
also the treed cursed in the Koran, only for an occasion of dispute unto men,
and to strike them with terror; but it shall cause them to transgress only the
more enormously.
t The dead, says al Beidâwi, at his call shall immediately rise, and
shaking the dust off their heads, shall say, Praise be unto thee, O God.
u viz., In your graves; or in the world.
x These words are designed as a pattern for the Moslems to follow, in
discoursing with the idolaters; by which they are taught to use soft and
dubious expressions, and not to tell them directly that they are doomed to
hell fire; which, besides the presumption in offering to determine the
sentence of others, would only make them more irreconcilable enemies.1
y And may choose whom he pleases for his ambassador. This is an answer
to the objections of the Koreish, that Mohammed was the orphan pupil of Abu
Taleb, and followed by a parcel of naked and hungry fellows.2
z Which were a greater honour to him than his kingdom; and wherein
Mohammed and his people are foretold by these words, among others:3 The
righteous shall inherit the earth.4
a viz., The angels and prophets, who are the servants of GOD as well as
yourselves.
b See chapter 7, p. 112.
c Mohammed's journey to heaven is generally agreed to be intended in
this place; which occasioned great heats and debates among his followers, till
they were quieted by Abu Becr's bearing testimony to the truth of it.5 The
word vision, here used, is urged by those who take this journey to have been
no more than a dream, as a plain confirmation of their opinion. Some,
however, suppose the vision meant in this passage was not the night-journey,
but the dream Mohammed saw at al Hodeibiya, wherein he seemed to make his
entrance into Mecca;6 or that at Bedr;7 or else a vision he had relating to
the family of Ommeya, whom he saw mount his pulpit, and jump about in it like
monkeys; upon which he said, This is their portion in this world, which they
have gained by their profession of Islâm.1 But if any of these latter
expositions be true, the verse must have been revealed at Medina.
d Called al Zakkûm, which springs from the bottom of hell.2
1 Al Beidâwi. 2 Idem. 3 Vide Marracc. in Alc. p.
28, &c. Prid. Life of Mah. p. 122. 4 Psal. xxxvii. 28. Al Beid.
5 Vide Abulf. Vit. Moh. p. 39, and not. ibid Prideaux, Life of Mah. p.
50, and Prelim. Disc. Sect. II, p. 36.
6 See Kor. chapter 48. 7 See chapter 8, p. 129. 1 Al
Beidâwi. 2 See chapter 37.
And remember when we said unto the angels, Worship Adam; and they all
worshipped him except Eblis, who said, Shall I worship him whom thou hast
created of clay?
And he said, What thinkest thou, as to this man whom thou hast honoured
above me? verily, if thou grant me respite until the day of resurrection, I
will extirpate his offspring, except a few.
God answered, Begone, I grant thee respite: but whosoever of them shall
follow thee, hell shall surely be your reward; an ample reward for your
demerits!e
And entice to vanity such of them as thou canst, by thy voice; and
assault them on all sides with thy horsemen and thy footmen;f and partake with
them in their riches, and their children;g and make them promises; (but the
devil shall make them no other than deceitful promises:)
as to my servants, thou shalt have no power over them; for thy LORD is a
sufficient protector of those who trust in him.
It is your LORD who driveth forward the ships for you in the sea, that ye
may seek to enrich yourselves of his abundance by commerce; for he is merciful
towards you.
When a misfortune befalleth you at sea, the false deities whom ye invoke
are forgotten by you, except him alone: yet when he bringeth you safe to dry
land, ye retire afar off from him, and return to your idols; for man is
ungrateful.h
70 Are ye therefore secure that he will not cause the dry land to swallow
you up, or that he will not send against you a whirlwind driving the sands to
overwhelm you? Then shall ye find none to protect you.
Or are ye secure that he will not cause you again to commit yourselves to
the sea another time, and send against you a tempestuous wind, and drown you;
for that ye have been ungrateful? then shall ye find none to defend you
against us, in that distress.
And now have we honoured the children of Adam by sundry peculiar
privileges and endowments; and we have given them conveniences of carriage by
land and by sea, and have provided food for them of good things; and we have
preferred them before many of our creatures which we have created, by granting
them great prerogatives.
On a certain day we will call all men to judgment with their respective
leader:i and whosoever shall have his book given him into his right hand, they
shall read their book with joy and satisfaction;j and they shall not be
wronged a hair.k
e See chapter 2, p. 5, and chapter 7, p. 106, &c.
f i.e., With all thy forces.
g Instigating them to get wealth by unlawful means, and to spend it in
supporting vice and superstition; and tempting them to incestuous mixtures,
and to give their children names in honour of their idols, as Abd Yaghuth,
Abd' al Uzza, &c.3
h See chapter 10, p. 152.
i Some interpret this of the prophet sent to every people; others, of
the heads of sects; others, of the various religions professed in the world;
others, of the books which shall be given to every man at the resurrection,
containing a register of their good and bad actions.
j See the Prelim. Disc. Sect. IV. p. 70.
k See chapter 4, p. 60, note o.
3 Al Beidâwi.
And whoever hath been blind in this life shall be also blind in the next,
and shall wander more widely from the path of salvation.
It wanted little but the unbelievers had tempted thee to swerve from the
instructions which we had revealed unto thee, that thou shouldest devise
concerning us a different thing;l and then would they have taken thee for
their friend:
and unless we had confirmed thee, thou hadst certainly been very near
inclining unto them a little.
Then would we surely have caused thee to taste the punishment of life,
and the punishment of death;m and thou shouldest not have found any to protect
thee against us.
The unbelievers had likewise almost caused thee to depart the land, that
they might have expelled thee thence:n but then should they not have tarried
therein after thee, except a little while.o
This is the method of dealing which we have prescribed ourselves in
respect to our apostles, whom we have already sent before thee: and thou shalt
not find any change in our prescribed method.
80 Regularly perform thy prayer at the declension of the sun, at the first
darkness of the night,q and the prayer of daybreak;r for the prayer of
daybreak is borne witness unto by the angels.s
l These are generally supposed to have been the tribe of Thakîf, the
inhabitants of al Tâyef, who insisted on Mohammed's granting them several very
extraordinary privileges, as the terms of their submission to him; for they
demanded that they might be free from the legal contribution of alms, and from
observing the appointed times of prayer; that they might be allowed to keep
their idol Allât for a certain time,1 and that their territory might be
declared a place of security and not be violated, like that of Mecca, &c. And
they added, that if the other Arabs asked him the reason of these concessions,
he should say, that GOD had commanded him so to do.2 According to which
explication it is plain this verse must have been revealed long after the
Hejra.
Some, however, will have the passage to have been revealed at Mecca, on
occasion of the Koreish; who told Mohammed they would not suffer him to kiss
the black stone in the wall of Caaba, unless he also visited their idols, and
touched them with his hand, to show his respect.
m i.e., Both of this life and the next. Some interpret the first of
the punishment in the next world, and the latter of the torture of the
sepulchre.3
n The commentators differ as to the place where this passage was
delivered, and the occasion of it. Some think it was revealed at Mecca, and
that it refers to the violent enmity which the Koreish bore Mohammed, and
their restless endeavours to make him leave Mecca;4 as he was at length
obliged to do. But as the persons here spoken of seem not to have prevailed
in their project, others suppose that the verse was revealed at Medina, on the
following occasion. The Jews, envious of Mohammed's good reception and stay
there, told him, by way of counsel, that Syria was the land of the prophets,
and that if he was really a prophet he ought to go thither. Mohammed
seriously reflecting on what they had said, began to think they had advised
him well; and actually set out, and proceeded a day's journey in his way to
Syria: whereupon GOD acquainted him with their design by the revelation of
this verse; and he returned to Medina.5
o This was fulfilled, according to the former of the above-mentioned
explications, by the loss of the Koreish at Bedr; and according to the latter,
by the great slaughter of the Jews of Koreidha and al Nadîr.6
p i.e., At the time of noon prayer, when the sun declines from the
meridian; or, as some choose to translate the words, at the setting of the
sun, which is the time of the first evening prayer.
q The time of the last evening prayer.
r Literally, the reading of the daybreak; whence some suppose the
reading of the Korân at that time is here meant.
s viz., The guardian angels, who, according to some, are relieved at
that time; or else the angels appointed to make the change of night into day,
&c.7
1 See the Prelim. Disc. p. 14. 2 Al Beidâwi, Jallalo'ddin.
Vide Abulf. Vit. Moham. p. 126, &c. 3 Al Beidâwi.
4 Idem. 5 Idem, Jallalo'ddin. 6 Iidem. 7 Al
Beidâwi.
And watch some part of the night in the same exercise, as a work of
supererogation for thee: peradventure thy LORD will raise thee to an
honourable station.t
And say, O LORD, cause me to enter with a favorable entry, and cause me
to come forthu with a favorable coming forth; and grant me from thee an
assisting power.
And say, Truth is come, and falsehood is vanished: for falsehood is of
short continuance.x
We send down of the Koran that which is a medicine and mercy unto the
true believers; but it shall only increase the perdition of the unjust.
When we bestow favors on man, he retireth and withdraweth himself
ungratefully from us: but when evil toucheth him, he despaireth of our mercy.
Say, Every one acteth after his own manner:y but your LORD best knoweth
who is most truly directed in his way.
They will ask thee concerning the spirit:z answer, The spirit was created
at the command of my LORD:a but ye have no knowledge given unto you, except a
little.b
If we pleased, we should certainly take away that which we have revealed
unto thee;c in such case thou couldst not find any to assist thee therein
against us,
unless through mercy from thy LORD; for his favor towards thee hath been
great.
90 Say, Verily if men and genii were purposely assembled, that they might
produce a book like this Koran, they could not produce one like unto it,
although the one of them assisted the other.
And we have variously propounded unto men in this Koran every kind of
figurative argument; but the greater part of men refuse to receive it, merely
out of infidelity.
t According to a tradition of Abu Horeira, the honourable station here
intended is that of intercessor for others.1
u That is, Grant that I may enter my grave with peace, and come forth
from it, at the resurrection, with honour and satisfaction. In which sense
this petition is the same with that of Balaam, Let me die the death of the
righteous, and let my last end be like his.2
But as the person here spoken to is generally supposed to be Mohammed,
the commentators say he was commanded to pray in these words for a safe
departure from Mecca, and a good reception at Medina; or for a sure refuge in
the cave, where he hid himself when he fled from Mecca;3 or (which is the more
common opinion) for a victorious entrance into Mecca, and a safe return
thence.4
x These words Mohammed repeated, when he entered the temple of Mecca,
after the taking of that city, and cleansed it of the idols; a great number of
which are said to have fallen down on his touching them with the end of the
stick he held in his hand.5
y i.e., According to his judgment or opinion, be it true or false; or
according to the bent of his mind, and the natural constitution of his body.6
z Or the soul of man. Some interpret it of the angel Gabriel, or of
the divine revelation.7
a viz., By the word Kun, i.e., Be; consisting of an immaterial
substance, and not generated, like the body. But, according to a different
opinion, this passage should be translated, The spirit is of those things, the
knowledge of which thy Lord hath reserved to himself. For it is said that the
Jews bid the Koreish ask Mohammed to relate the history of those who slept in
the cave,8 and of Dhu'lkarnein,9 and to give them an account of the soul of
man; adding, that if he pretended to answer all the three questions, or could
answer none of them, they might be sure he was no prophet; but if he gave an
answer to one or two of the questions and was silent as to the other, he was
really a prophet. Accordingly, when they propounded the questions to him, he
told them the two histories, but acknowledged his ignorance as to the origin
of the human soul.10
b All your knowledge being acquired from the information of your
senses, which must necessarily fail you in spiritual speculations, without the
assistance of divine revelation.11
c viz., The Korân; by razing it both from the written copies, and the
memories of men.
1 Idem. 2 Numb. xxiii. 10. 3 See the Prelim. Disc.
Sect. II. p. 39. 4 Al Beidâwi, Jallalo'ddin. 5 Iidem.
Vide Gagnier, Vie de Mahomet, tom. 2, p. 127. 6 Al Beidâwi.
7 Idem.
8 See the next chapter. 9 See ib. 10 Al Beidâwi.
11 Idem.
And they say, We will by no means believe on thee, until thou cause a
spring of water to gush forth for us out of the earth;d
or thou have a garden of palm-trees and vines, and thou cause rivers to
spring forth from the midst thereof in abundance;
or thou cause the heaven to fall down upon us, as thou hast given out, in
pieces; or thou bring down GOD and the angels to vouch for thee;
or thou have a house of gold; or thou ascend by a ladder to heaven:
neither will we believe thy ascending thither alone,e until thou cause a book
to descend unto us, bearing witness of thee, which we may read. Answer My
LORD be praised! Am I other than a man, sent as an apostle?
And nothing hindereth men from believing, when a direction is come unto
them, except that they say, Hath GOD sent a man for his apostle?
Answer, If the angels had walked on earth as familiar inhabitants
thereof, we had surely sent down unto them from heaven an angel for our
apostle.
Say, GOD is a sufficient witness between me and you: for he knoweth and
regardeth his servants.
Whom GOD shall direct, he shall be the rightly directed; and whom he
shall cause to err, thou shalt find none to assist, besides him. And we will
gather them together on the day of resurrection, creeping on their faces,
blind, and dumb, and deaf:f their abode shall be hell; so often as the fire
thereof shall be extinguished, we will rekindle a burning flame to torment
them.g
100 This shall be their reward, because they disbelieve in our signs, and
say, When we shall have been reduced to bones and dust, shall we surely be
raised new creatures?
Do they not perceive that GOD, who created the heavens and the earth, is
able to create other bodies, like their present? And he hath appointed them a
limited term;h there is no doubt thereof: but the ungodly reject the truth,
merely out of unbelief.
Say, If ye possessed the treasures of the mercy of my LORD, ye would
surely refrain from using them, for fear of spending them;i for man is
covetous.
We heretofore gave unto Moses the power of working nine evident signs.j
And do thou ask the children of Israel, as to the story of Moses;k when he
came unto them, and Pharaoh said unto him, Verily I esteemed thee, O Moses, to
be deluded by sorcery.
d This and the following miracles were demanded of Mohammed by the
Koreish, as proofs of his mission.
e As thou pretendest to have done in thy night-journey; but of which no
man was witness.
f See the Prelim. Disc. Sect. IV. p. 66.
g i.e., When the fire shall go out or abate for want of fuel, after the
consumption of the skins and flesh of the damned, we will add fresh vigour to
the flames by giving them new bodies.1
h Or life, or resurrection.
i That is, lest they should be exhausted.
j These were, the changing his rod into a serpent, the making his hand
white and shining, the producing locusts, lice, frogs, and blood, the dividing
of the Red Sea, the bringing water out of the rock, and the shaking of Mount
Sinai over the children of Israel. In lieu of the three last some reckon the
inundation of the Nile, the blasting of the corn, and scarcity of the fruits
of the earth.2 These words, however, are interpreted by others, not of nine
miracles, but of nine commandments, which Moses gave his people, and were thus
numbered up by Mohammed himself to a Jew, who asked him the question, viz.,
That they should not be guilty of idolatry, nor steal, nor commit adultery or
murder, nor practise sorcery or usury, nor accuse an innocent man to take away
his life, or a modest woman of whoredom, nor desert the army; to which he
added the observing of the sabbath, as a tenth commandment, but which
peculiarly regarded the Jews: upon which answer, it is said, the Jew kissed
the prophet's hands and feet.3
k Some think these words are directed to Moses, who is hereby commanded
to demand the children of Israel of Pharaoh, that he might let them go with
him.
1 Al Beidâwi. See chapter 4, p. 60. 2 Idem, Jallalo'ddin.
3 Al Beidâwi.
Moses answered, Thou well knowest that none hath sent down these evident
signs except the LORD of heaven and earth; and I surely esteem thee, O
Pharaoh, a lost man.
Wherefore Pharaoh sought to drive them out of the land; but we drowned
him and all those who were with him.
And we said unto the children of Israel, after his destruction, Dwell ye
in the land: and when the promise of the next life shall come to be fulfilled,
we will bring you both promiscuously to judgment. We have sent down the Koran
with truth, and it hath descended with truth: and we have not sent thee
otherwise than to be a bearer of good tidings, and a denouncer of threats.
And we have divided the Koran, revealing it by parcels, that thou
mightest read it unto men with deliberation: and we have sent it down, causing
it to descend as occasion required.l
Say, Whether ye believe therein, or do not believe, verily those who have
been favored with the knowledge of the scriptures which were revealed before
it, when the same is rehearsed unto them, fall down on their faces,m
worshipping, and say, Our LORD be praised, for that the promise of our LORD is
surely fulfilled!
and they fall down on their faces, weeping; and the hearing thereof
increaseth their humility.
110 Say, call upon GOD, or call on the Merciful: by whichsoever of the two
names ye invoke him, it is equal; for he hath most excellent names.n
Pronounce not thy prayer aloud, neither pronounce it with too low a voice,o
but follow a middle way between these:
and say, Praise be unto GOD, who hath not begotten any child; who hath no
partner in the kingdom, nor hath any to protect him from contempt: and magnify
him by proclaiming his greatness.
________
CHAPTER XVIII.
ENTITLED, THE CAVE;p REVEALED AT MECCA.q
IN THE NAME OF THE MOST MERCIFUL GOD.
PRAISE be unto GOD, who hath sent down unto his servant the book of the
Korân, and hath not inserted therein any crookedness,
but hath made it a straight rule: that he should threaten a grievous
punishment unto the unbelievers, from his presence; and should bear good
tidings unto the faithful, who work righteousness, that they should receive an
excellent reward, namely, paradise, wherein they shall remain forever:
l See the Prelim. Disc. Sect. III. p. 50.
m Literally, on their chins.
n The infidels hearing Mohammed say, O GOD, and O Merciful, imagined
the Merciful was the name of a deity different from GOD, and that he preached
the worship of two; which occasioned this passage. See chapter 7, p. 123.
o Neither so loud, that the infidels may overhear thee, and thence take
occasion to blaspheme and scoff; nor so softly as not to be heard by the
assistants. Some suppose that by the word prayer, in this place, is meant the
reading of the Korân.
p The chapter is thus inscribed because it makes mention of the cave
wherein the seven sleepers concealed themselves.
q Some except one verse, which begins thus, Behave thyself with
constancy, &c.
and that he should warn those who say, GOD hath begotten issue;
of which matter they have no knowledge, neither had their fathers. A
grievous saying it is, which proceedeth from their mouths: they speak no other
than a lie.
Peradventure thou wilt kill thyself with grief after them, out of thy
earnest zeal for their conversion, if they believe not in this new revelation
of the Koran.
Verily we have ordained whatsoever is on the earth for the ornament
thereof, that we might make trial of men, and see which of them excelleth in
works:
and we will surely reduce whatever is thereon to dry dust.
Dost thou consider that the companions of the cave,r and Al Rakim,s were
one of our signs, and a great miracle?
When the young men took refuge in the cave, they said, O LORD, grant us
mercy from before thee, and dispose our business for us to a right issue.
10 Wherefore we struck their ears with deafness, so that they slept without
disturbance in the cave for a great number of years:
then we awaked them, that we might know which of the two partiest was
more exact in computing the space which they had remained there.
We will relate unto thee their history with truth. Verily they were
young men who had believed in their LORD: and we had abundantly directed them:
and we fortified their hearts with constancy when they stood before the
tyrant; and they said, Our LORD is the LORD of heaven and earth: we will by no
means call on any god besides him; for then should we surely utter an
extravagance.
These our fellow people have taken other gods, besides him; although they
bring no demonstrative argument for them: and who is more unjust than he who
deviseth a lie concerning GOD?
And they said the one to the other, When ye shall separate yourselves
from them, and from the deities which they worship, except GOD,u fly into the
cave: your LORD will pour his mercy on you abundantly, and will dispose your
business for you to advantage.
r These were certain Christian youths, of a good family in Ephesus,
who, to avoid the persecution of the emperor Decius, by the Arab writers
called Decianus, hid themselves in a cave, where they slept for a great number
of years.1
This apocryphal story (for Baronius2 treats it as no better, and Father
Marracci3 acknowledges it to be partly false, or at least doubtful, though he
calls Hottinger a monster of impiety, and the off-scum of heretics, for
terming it a fable4), was borrowed by Mohammed from the Christian traditions,5
but has been embellished by him and his followers with several additional
circumstances.6
s What is meant by this word the commentators cannot agree. Some will
have it to be the name of the mountain, or the valley, wherein the cave was;
some say it was the name of their dog; and others (who seem to come nearest
the true signification) that it was a brass plate, or stone table, placed near
the mouth of the cave, on which the names of the young men were written.
There are some, however, who take the companions of al Rakîm to be
different from the seven sleepers; for they say the former were three men who
were driven by ill weather into a cave for shelter, and were shut in there by
the falling down of a vast stone, which stopped the cave's mouth; but on their
begging GOD'S mercy, and their relating each of them a meritorious action
which they hoped might entitle them to it, were miraculously delivered by the
rock's rending in sunder to give them passage.7
t viz., Of the sleepers themselves, or others, who were divided in
opinion as to the length of their stay in the cave.
u For they, like other idolaters, worshipped the true GOD and idols
also.8
1 Al Beidâwi, Jallalo'ddin, &c. 2 In Martyrol. ad 27 Julii.
3 In Alcor. p. 425. et in Prodr. part. 4, p. 103.
4 Hotting. Hist. Orient. p. 40. 5 Vide Greg. Turon. et Simeon.
Metaphrast. 6 Vide D'Herbelot, Bibl. Orient. p. 189.
7 Al Beidâwi, ex trad Noomân Ebn Bashir. 8 Idem.
And thou mightest have seen the sun, when it had risen, to decline from
their cave towards the right hand, and when it went down, to leave them on the
left hand:x and they were in the spacious part of the cave.y This was one of
the signs of GOD. Whomsoever GOD shall direct, he shall be rightly directed:
and whomsoever he shall cause to err, thou shalt not find any to defend, or to
direct.
And thou wouldest have judged them to have been awake,z while they were
sleeping; and we caused them to turn themselves to the right hand, and to the
left.a And their dogb stretched forth his forelegs in the mouth of the cave:
if thou hadst come suddenly upon them, verily thou wouldest have turned thy
back and fled from them, and thou wouldest have been filled with fear at the
sight of them.c
And so we awaked them from their sleep, that they might ask questions of
one another. One of them spake and said, How long have ye tarried here? They
answered, We have tarried a day, or part of a day. The others said, Your LORD
best knoweth the time ye have tarried:d and now send one of you with this your
money into the city;e and let him see which of its inhabitants hath the best
and cheapest food, and let him bring you provision from him; and let him
behave circumspectly, and not discover you to any one.
Verily if they come up against you, they will stone you, or force you to
return to their religion; and then shall ye not prosper forever.
x Lest it should be offensive to them, the cave opening towards the
south.1
y i.e., In the midst of it, where they were incommoded neither by the
heat of the sun nor the closeness of the cave.2
z Because of their having their eyes open, or their frequent turning
themselves from one side to the other.3
a Lest their lying so long on the ground should consume their flesh.4
b This dog had followed them as they passed by him when they fled to
the cave, and they drove him away; whereupon GOD caused him to speak, and he
said, I love those who are dear unto God; go to sleep therefore, and I will
guard you. But some say, it was a dog belonging to a shepherd who followed
them, and that the dog followed the shepherd; which opinion is supported by
reading, as some do, câlebohom, their dog's master instead of calbohom, their
dog.5 Jallalo'ddin adds, that the dog behaved as his masters did, in turning
himself, in sleeping, and in waking.
The Mohammedans have a great respect for this dog, and allow him a place
in paradise with some other favourite brutes; and they have a sort of proverb
which they use in speaking of a covetous person, that he would not throw a
bone to the dog of the seven sleepers; nay, it is said that they have the
superstition to write his name, which they suppose to be Katmîr (though some,
as is observed above, think he was called al Rakîm), on their letters which go
far, or which pass the sea, as a protection, or kind of talisman, to preserve
them from miscarriage.6
c For that GOD had given them terrible countenances; or else because of
the largeness of their bodies, or the horror of the place.
It is related that the Khalif Moâwiyah, in an expedition he made against
Natolia, passed by the cave of the seven sleepers, and would needs send
somebody into it, notwithstanding Ebn Abbâs remonstrated to him the danger of
it, saying, That a better man than him (meaning the prophet) had been
forbidden to enter it, and repeated this verse; but the men the Khaliff sent
in had no sooner entered the cave, than they were struck dead by a burning
wind.7
d As they entered the cave in the morning, and waked about noon, they
at first imagined they had slept half a day, or a day and a half at most; but
when they found their nails and hair grown very long, they used these words.8
e Which some commentators suppose was Tarsus.
1 Idem. 2 Idem. 3 Idem. 4 Idem,
Jallalo'ddin. 5 Idem. 6 La Roque, Voy. de l'Arabie Heur.
p. 74. Vide D'Herbel. ubi sup. 7 Al Beidâwi. 8 Idem.
20 And so we made their people acquainted with what had happened to them;
that they might know that the promise of GOD is true, and that there is no
doubt of the last hour;f when they disputed among themselves concerning their
matter.g And they said, Erect a building over them: their LORD best knoweth
their condition. Those who prevailed in their affair answered, We will surely
build a chapel over them.h
Some say, The sleepers were three; and their dog was the fourth;i and
others say, They were five; and their dog was the sixth;j guessing at a secret
matter: and others say, They were seven; and their dog was the eighth.k Say,
My LORD best knoweth their number: none shall know them, except a few.
Wherefore dispute not concerning them, except with a clear disputation,
according to what hath been revealed unto thee: and ask not any of the
Christians concerning them.
Say not of any matter, I will surely do this to-morrow; unless thou add,
If GOD please.l And remember thy LORD, when thou forgettest,m and say, My
LORD is able to direct me with ease, that I may draw near unto the truth of
this matter rightly.
And they remained in their cave three hundred years, and nine years
over.n
Say, GOD best knoweth how long they continued there: unto him are the
secrets of heaven and earth known; do thou make him to see and to hear.o The
inhabitants thereof have no protector besides him; neither doth he suffer any
one to have a share in the establishment or knowledge of his decree.
f The long sleep of these young men, and their waking after so many
years, being a representation of the state of those who die, and are
afterwards raised to life.
g i.e., Concerning the resurrection; some saying that the souls only
should be raised, others, that they should be raised with the body; or,
concerning the sleepers, after they were really dead; one saying, that they
were dead, and another, they were only asleep: or else concerning the erecting
a building over them, as it follows in the next words; some advising a
dwelling-house to be built there, and others a temple.1
h When the young man who was sent into the city, went to pay for the
provision he had bought, his money was so old, being the coin of Decianus,
that they imagined he had found a treasure, and carried him before the prince,
who was a Christian, and having heard his story, sent some with him to the
cave, who saw and spoke to the others: after which they fell asleep again and
died; and the prince ordered them to be buried in the same place, and built a
chapel over them.
i This was the opinion of al Seyid, a Jacobite Christian of Najrân.
j Which was the opinion of certain Christians, and particularly of a
Nestorian prelate.
k And this is the true opinion.2
l It is said, that when the Koreish, by the direction of the Jews, put
the three questions above mentioned to Mohammed, he bid them come to him the
next day, and he would give them an answer, but added not, if it please God;
for which reason he had the mortification to wait above ten days before any
revelation was vouchsafed him concerning those matters, so that the Koreish
triumphed, and bitterly reproached him as a liar: but at length Gabriel
brought him directions what he should say; with this admonition, however, that
he should not be so confident for the future.3
m i.e., Give the glory to him, and ask pardon for thy omission, in case
thou forget to say, If it please God.
n Jallalo'ddin supposes the whole space was three hundred solar years,
and that the odd nine are added to reduce them to lunar years.
Some think these words are introduced as spoken by the Christians, who
differed among themselves about the time; one saying it was three hundred
years, and another, three hundred and nine years.4 The interval between the
reign of Decius, and that of Theodosius the younger, in whose time the
sleepers are said to have awaked, will not allow them to have slept quite two
hundred years; though Mohammed is somewhat excusable, since the number
assigned by Simeon Metaphrastes5 is three hundred and seventy-two years.
o This is an ironical expression, intimating the folly and madness of
man's presuming to instruct GOD.6
1 Idem. 2 Idem, Jallalo'ddin. 3 Al Beidâwi.
4 Idem. 5 Ubi sup.
6 Al Beidâwi. Jallalo'ddin
Read that which hath been revealed unto thee, of the book of thy LORD,
without presuming to make any change therein:p there is none who hath power to
change his words; and thou shalt not find any to fly to, besides him, if thou
attempt it.
Behave thyself with constancy towards those who call upon their LORD
morning and evening, and who seek his favor; and let not thine eyes be turned
away from them, seeking the pomp of this life;q neither obey him whose heart
we have caused to neglect the remembrance of us,r and who followeth his lusts,
and leaveth the truth behind him.
And say, The truth is from your LORD; wherefore let him who will,
believe, and let him who will, be incredulous. We have surely prepared for
the unjust hell fire, the flame and smoke whereof shall surround him like a
pavilion: and if they beg relief, they shall be relieved with water like
molten brass, which shall scald their faces: O how miserable a potion, and how
unhappy a couch!
As to those who believe, and do good works, we will not suffer the reward
of him who shall work righteousness to perish;
30 for them are prepared gardens of eternal abode,s which shall be watered
by rivers; they shall be adorned therein with bracelets of gold, and they
shall be clothed in green garments of fine silk and brocades, reposing
themselves therein on thrones. O how happy a reward, and how easy a couch!
And propound unto them as a parable two men:t on the one of whom we had
bestowed two vineyards, and had surrounded them with palm-trees, and had
caused corn to grow between them. Each of the gardens brought forth its fruit
every season, and failed not at all;
and we caused a river to flow in the midst thereof: and he had great
abundance. And he said unto his companion by way of debate, I am superior to
thee in wealth, and have a more powerful family.
And he went into his garden,u being guilty of injustice against his own
soul, and said, I do not think that this garden will decay forever;
neither do I think that the last hour will come: and although I should
return unto my LORD, verily I shall find a better garden than this in
exchange.u
And his companion said unto him, by way of debate, Dost thou not believe
in him who created thee of the dust, and afterwards of seed; and then
fashioned thee into a perfect man?
But as for me, GOD is my LORD; and I will not associate any other deity
with my LORD.
p As the unbelievers would persuade thee to do.1
q That is, Despise not the poor believers because of their meanness,
nor honour the rich because of their wealth and grandeur.
r The person more particularly intended here, it is said, was Ommeya
Ebn Khalf, who desired Mohammed to discard his indigent companions, out of
respect to the Koreish. See chapter 6 p. 93.
s Literally of Eden. See chapter 9, p. 142, 143.
t Though these seem to be general characters only, designed to
represent the different end of the wicked, and of the good; yet it is
supposed, by some, that two particular persons are here meant. One says they
were two Israelites and brothers, who had a considerable sum left them by
their father, which they divided between them; and that one of them, being an
unbeliever, bought large fields and possessions with his portion, while the
other, who was a true believer, disposed of his to pious uses; but that in the
end, the former was ruined, and the latter prospered. Another thinks they
were two men of the tribe of Makhzûm: the one named al Aswad Ebn Abd'al
Ashadd, an infidel; and the other Abu Salma Ebn Abd'allah, the husband of Omm
Salma (whom the prophet married after his death), and a true believer.2
u Carrying his companion with him, out of ostentation, and to mortify
him with the view of his large possessions.3
x Vainly imagining that his prosperity was not so much the free gift of
GOD, as due to his merit.4
1 Iidem. 2 Al Beidâwi. 3 Idem. 4
Idem
And when thou enterest thy garden, wilt thou not say, What GOD pleaseth
shall come to pass; there is no power but in GOD alone? Although thou seest
me to be inferior to thee in wealth and number of children,
my LORD is well able to bestow on me a better gift than thy garden, and
to shoot his arrows against the same from heaven, so that it shall become
barren dust;
or its water may sink deep into the earth, that thou canst not draw
thereof.
40 And his possessions were encompassed with destruction, as his companion
had forewarned him; wherefore he began to turn down the palms of his hands out
of sorrow and regret for that which he had expended thereon; for the vines
thereof were fallen down on their trails: and he said, Would to GOD that I had
not associated any other deity with my LORD!
And he had no party to assist him besides GOD, neither was he able to
defend himself against his vengeance.
In such case protection belongeth of right unto GOD alone; he is the best
rewarder, and the best giver of success.
And propound to them a similitude of the present life. It is like water
which we send down from heaven; and the herb of the earth is mixed therewith,
and after it hath been green and flourishing, in the morning it becometh dry
stubble, which the winds scatter abroad: and GOD is able to do all things.
Wealth and children are the ornament of this present life: but good
works, which are permanent, are better in the sight of thy LORD, with respect
to the reward, and better with respect to hope.
50 On a certain day we will cause the mountains to pass away,y and thou
shalt see the earth appearing plain and even; and we will gather mankind
together, and we will not leave any one of them behind.
And they shall be set before thy LORD in distinct order, and he shall say
unto them, Now are ye come unto us naked, as we created you the first time:
but ye thought that we should not perform our promise unto you.
And the book wherein every one's actions are recorded shall be put into
his hand; and thou shalt see the wicked in great terror, because of that which
is written therein, and they shall say, Alas for us! what meaneth this book?
it omitteth neither a small action nor a great one, but it compriseth the
same; and they shall find that which they have wrought, present before their
eyes: and thy LORD will not deal unjustly with any one.
Remember when we said unto the angels, Worship ye Adam: and they all
worshipped him, except Eblis,z who was one of the genii,a and departed from
the command of his LORD. Will ye therefore take him and his offspring for
your patrons besides me, notwithstanding they are your enemies? Miserable
shall such a change be to the ungodly!
I called not them to be present at the creation of the heavens and of the
earth, nor at the creation of themselves, neither did I take those seducers
for my assistants.
y For being torn up by the roots, they shall fly in the air, and be
reduced to atoms.1
z See chapter 2, p. 5, and chapter 7, p. 105, &c.
a Hence some imagine the genii are a species of angels: others suppose
the devil to have been originally a genius, which was the occasion of his
rebellion, and call him the father of the genii, whom he begat after his
fall;2 it being a constant opinion among the Mohammedans, that the angels are
impeccable, and do not propagate their species.3
1 Idem. See Prelim. Disc. Sect. IV. p. 64. 2 Jallalo'ddin,
&c. 3 See the Prelim. Disc. Sect. IV. p. 56, &c.
On a certain day, God shall say unto the idolaters, Call those whom ye
imagined to be my companions, to protect you: and they shall call them, but
they shall not answer them; and we will place a valley of destruction between
them:b
and the wicked shall see hell fire: and they shall know that they shall
be thrown into the same, and they shall find no way to avoid it.
And now have we variously propounded unto men, in this Koran, a parable
of every kind; but man cavilleth at most things therein.
Yet nothing hindereth men from believing, now a direction is come unto
them, and from asking pardon of their LORD, excepting that they wait until the
punishment of their predecessors come to be inflicted on them, or that the
chastisement of the next life come upon them publicly.
We send not our messengers, but to bear good tidings, and to denounce
threats. Those who believe not dispute with vain arguments, that they may
thereby render the truth of no effect; and they hold my signs, and the
admonitions which have been made them, in derision.
And who is more unjust than he who hath been acquainted with the signs of
his LORD, and retireth afar off from the same, and forgetteth that which his
hands have formerly committed? Verily we have cast veils over their hearts,
lest they should understand the Koran, and into their ears thickness of
hearing:
if thou invite them to the true direction, yet will they not therefore be
directed forever.
Thy LORD is gracious, endued with mercy; if he would have punished them
for that which they have committed, he would doubtless have hastened their
punishment: but a threat hath been denounced against them,c and they shall
find no refuge, besides him.
And those former citiesd did we destroy, when they acted unjustly; and we
gave them previous warning of their destruction.
And remember when Moses said unto his servant Joshua the son of Nun, I
will not cease to go forward, until I come to the place where the two seas
meet; or I will travel for a long space of time.e
60 But when they were arrived at the meeting of the two seas,f they forgot
their fish, which they had taken with them;g and the fish took its way freely
in the sea.h
b i.e., Between the idolaters and their false gods. Some suppose the
meaning is no more than that GOD will set them at variance and division.
c viz., Of their calamity at Bedr (for the Koreish are the infidels
here intended), or their punishment at the resurrection.1
d That is, the towns of the Adites, Thamûdites, Sodomites, &c.
e The original word properly signifies the space of eighty years and
upwards. To explain this long passage the commentators tell the following
story: They say that Moses once preaching to the people, they admired his
knowledge and eloquence so much, that they asked him whether he knew any man
in the world who was wiser than himself; to which he answered in the negative:
whereupon GOD, in a revelation, having reprehended him for his vanity (though
some pretend that Moses asked GOD the question of his own accord), acquainted
him that his servant al Khedr was more knowing than he; and, at Moses' request
told him he might find that person at a certain rock, where the two seas met;
directing him to take a fish with him in a basket, and that where he missed
the fish, that was the place. Accordingly Moses set out, with his servant
Joshua, in search of al Khedr; which expedition is here described.2
f viz., Those of Persia and Greece. Some fancy that the meeting of
Moses and al Khedr is here intended, as of the two seas of knowledge.3
g Moses forgot to inquire concerning it, and Joshua forgot to tell him
when he missed it. It is said that when they came to the rock, Moses falling
asleep, the fish, which was roasted, leaped out of the basket into the sea;
some add, that Joshua making the ablution at the fountain of life (of which
immediately), some of the water happened to be sprinkled on the fish, which
immediately restored it to life.1
h The word here translated freely, signifying also a pipe or arched
canal for conveyance of water, some have imagined that the water of the sea
was miraculously kept from touching the body of the fish, which passed through
it as under an arch.2
1 Al Beidâwi. 2 Idem, Al Zamakhshari, Al Bokhari, in Sonna,
&c. 3 Idem. 1 Idem.
2 Idem.
And when they had passed beyond that place, Moses said unto his servant,
Bring us our dinner; for now are we fatigued with this our journey.
His servant answered, Dost thou know what has befallen me? When we took
up our lodging at the rock, verily I forgot the fish: and none made me to
forget it, except Satan, that I should not remind thee of it. And the fish
took its way into the sea, in a wonderful manner.
Moses said, This is what we sought after. And they both went back,
returning by the way they came.
And coming to the rock they found one of our servants,i unto whom we had
granted mercy from us, and whom we had taught wisdom from before us.
And Moses said unto him, Shall I follow thee, that thou mayest teach me
part of that which thou hast been taught, for a direction unto me?
He answered, Verily thou canst not bear with me:
for how canst thou patiently suffer those things, the knowledge whereof
thou dost not comprehend?
Moses replied, Thou shalt find me patient, if GOD please; neither will I
be disobedient unto thee in anything.
He said, If thou follow me, therefore, ask me not concerning anything,
until I shall declare the meaning thereof unto thee.
70 So they both went on by the sea-shore, until they went up into a ship;
and he made a hole therein.j And Moses said unto him, Hast thou made a hole
therein, that thou mightest drown those who are on board? now hast thou done a
strange thing.
He answered, Did I not tell thee that thou couldst not bear with me?
Moses said, Rebuke me not, because I did forget; and impose not on me a
difficulty in what I am commanded.
Wherefore they left the ship and proceeded, until they met with a youth;
and he slew him.k Moses said, Hast thou slain an innocent person, without his
having killed another? now hast thou committed an unjust action.
He answered, Did I not tell thee that thou couldest not bear with me?
Moses said, If I ask thee concerning anything hereafter, suffer me not to
accompany thee: now hast thou received an excuse from me.
i This person, according to the general opinion, was the prophet al
Khedr; whom the Mohammedans usually confound with Phineas, Elias, and St.
George, saying that his soul passed by a metempsychosis successively through
all three. Some, however, say his true name was Balya Ebn Malcân, and that he
lived in the time of Afridûn, one of the ancient kings of Persia, and that he
preceded Dhu'lkarnein, and lived to the time of Moses. They suppose al Khedr,
having found out the fountain of life and drunk thereof, became immortal; and
that he had therefore this name from his flourishing and continual youth.3
Part of these fictions they took from the Jews, some of whom also fancy
Phineas was Elias.4
j For al Khedr took an axe, and knocked out two of her planks.5
k By twisting his neck round, or dashing his head against a wall, or
else by throwing him down and cutting his throat.6
3 Idem. Vide D'Herbelot, Bibl. Orient. Art. Khedher, Septemcastrens.
de Turcar. Moribus. Busbeq. Epist. I, p. 93, &c. Hotting. Hist. Orient. p. 58,
&c., 99, &c., 292, &c. 4 R. Levi Ben Gerson in Append. l. I, Reg. I,
27. 5 Al Beidâwi. 6 Idem
They went forwards, therefore, until they came to the inhabitants of a
certain city:l and they asked food of the inhabitants thereof; but they
refused to receive them. And they found therein a wall, which was ready to
fall down; and he set it upright.m Whereupon Moses said unto him, If thou
wouldest thou mightest doubtless have received a reward for it.
He answered, This shall be a separation between me and thee; but I will
first declare unto thee the signification of that which thou couldest not bear
with patience.
The vessel belonged to certain poor men,n who did their business in the
sea: and I was minded to render it unserviceable, because there was a kingo
behind them, who took every sound ship by force.
As to the youth, his parents were true believers; and we feared, lest he,
being an unbeliever, should oblige them to suffer his perverseness and
ingratitude:
80 wherefore we desired that their LORD might give them a more righteous
child in exchange for him, and one more affectionate towards them.p
And the wall belonged to two orphan youthsq in the city, and under it was
a treasure hidden which belonged to them; and their father was a righteous
man: and thy LORD was pleased that they should attain their full age, and take
forth their treasure, through the mercy of thy LORD, and I did not what thou
hast seen of mine own will, but by God's direction. This is the
interpretation of that which thou couldest not bear with patience.
The Jews will ask thee concerning Dhu'lkarnein.r Answer I will rehearse
unto you an account of him.
We made him powerful in the earth, and we gave him means to accomplish
everything he pleased. And he followed his way,
l This city was Antioch; or, as some rather think, Obollah, near Basra,
or else Bâjirwân in Armenia.1
m By only stroking it with his hand; though others say he threw it down
and rebuilt it.2
n They were ten brothers, five of whom were past their labour by reason
of their age.3
o Named Jaland Ebn Karkar, or Minwâr Ebn Jaland al Azdi.4
p It is said that they had afterwards a daughter, who was the wife and
the mother of a prophet; and that her son converted a whole nation.5
q Their names were Asram and Sarim.6
r Or, the two-horned. The generality of the commentators7 suppose the
person here meant to be Alexander the Great, or, as they call him, Iscander al
Rûmi, king of Persia and Greece; but there are very different opinions as to
the reason of this surname. Some think it was given him because he was king
of the East and of the West, or because he had made expeditions to both those
extreme parts of the earth; or else because he had two horns on his diadem, or
two curls of hair, like horns, on his forehead; or, which is most probable, by
reason of his great valour. Several modern writers8 rather suppose the
surname was occasioned by his being represented in his coins and statues with
horns, as the son of Jupiter Ammon; or else by his being compared by the
prophet Daniel to a he-goat;9 though he is there represented with but one
horn.10
There are some good writers, however, who believe the prince intended in
this passage of the Korân was not Alexander the Grecian, but another great
conqueror, who bore the same name and surname, and was much more ancient than
he, being contemporary with Abraham, and one of the kings of Persia of the
first race;11 or, as others suppose, a king of Yaman, named Asaab Ebn al
Râyesh.12
They all agree he was a true believer, but whether he was a prophet or
no, is a disputed point.
1 Idem. 2 Idem. 3 Idem. 4 Idem.
5 Idem. 6 Idem.
7 Idem, Al Zamakhshari, Jallalo'ddin, Yahya. 8 Scaliger, de Emend.
temp. L'Empereur, not. in Jachiad. Dan. viii. 5. Gol. in Alfrag. p. 58, &c.
9 Schickard. Tarikh Reg. Pers. p. 73. 10 See Dan. viii.
11 Abulfeda, Khondemir, Tarikh Montakhab, &c. Vide D'Herbel. Bibl.
Orient. Art. Escander. 12 Ex trad. Ebn Abbas. Vide Poc. Spec. p. 58.
until he came to the place where the sun setteth; and he found it to set
in a spring of black mud;s and he found near the same a certain people.t
And we said, O Dhu'lkarnein, either punish this people, or use gentleness
towards them.u
He answered, Whosoever of them shall commit injustice, we will surely
punish him in this world; afterwards shall he return unto his LORD, and he
shall punish him with a severe punishment.
But whosoever believeth, and doth that which is right, shall receive the
most excellent reward, and we will give him in command that which is easy.
Then he continued his way,
until he came to the place where the sun riseth;x and he found it to rise
on certain people, unto whom we had not given anything wherewith to shelter
themselves therefrom.y
90 Thus it was; and we comprehended with our knowledge the forces which
were with him.
And he prosecuted his journey from south to north,
until he came between the two mountains;z beneath which he found certain
people, who could scarce understand what was said.a
And they said, O Dhu'lkarnein, verily, Gog and Magog waste the land;b
shall we therefore pay thee tribute, on condition that thou build a rampart
between us and them?
He answered, The power wherewith my LORD has strengthened me is better
than your tribute: but assist me strenuously, and I will set a strong wall
between you and them.
Bring me iron in large pieces, until it fill up the space between the two
sides of these mountains. And he said to the workmen, Blow with your bellows,
until it make the iron red hot as fire. And he said further, Bring me molten
brass, that I may pour upon it.
s That is, it seemed so to him, when he came to the ocean, and saw
nothing but water.1
t An unbelieving nation, who were clothed in the skins of wild beasts,
and lived upon what the sea cast on shore.2
u For GOD gave Dhu'lkarnein his choice, either to destroy them for
their infidelity, or to instruct them in the true faith; or, according to
others, either to put them to the sword, or to take them captives: but the
words which follow confirm the former interpretation, by which it appears he
chose to invite them to the true religion, and to punish only the disobedient
and incredulous.
x i.e., That part of the habitable world on which the sun first rises.
y Who had neither clothes nor houses, their country not bearing any
buildings, but dwelt in holes underground, into which they retreated from the
heat of the sun.3 Jallalo'ddin says they were the Zenj, a black nation lying
south-west of Ethiopia. They seem to be the Troglodytes of the ancients.
z Between which Dhu'lkarnein built the famous rampart, mentioned
immediately, against the irruptions of Gog and Magog. These mountains are
situate in Armenia and Adherbijân, or, according to others, much more
northwards, on the confines of Turkestan.4 The relation of a journey taken to
this rampart, by one who was sent on purpose to view it by the Khalîf al
Wathec, may be seen in D'Herbelot.5
a By reason of the strangeness of their speech and their slowness of
apprehension; wherefore they were obliged to make use of an interpreter.6
b The Arabs call them Yajûi and Majûj, and say they are two nations or
tribes descended from Japhet the son of Noah, or, as others write, Gog are a
tribe of the Turks, and Magog of those of Gilân,7 the Geli and Gelæ of Ptolemy
and Strabo.8
It is said these barbarous people made their irruptions into the
neighbouring countries in the spring, and destroyed and carried off all the
fruits of the earth; and some pretend they were man-eaters.9
1 Al Beidâwi, Jallalo'ddin. 2 Iidem. 3 Iidem.
4 Al Beidâwi.
5 Bibl. Orient. Art. Jagiouge. 6 Al Beidâwi. 7 Idem.
Vide D'Herbel. ubi supra. 8 V. Gol. in Alfrag. p. 207. 9 Al
Beidâwi.
Wherefore, when this wall was finished, Gog and Magog could not scale it,
neither could they dig through it.c
And Dhu'lkarnein said, This is a mercy from my LORD:
but when the prediction of my LORD shall come to be fulfilled,d he shall
reduce the wall to dust; and the prediction of my LORD is true.
On that day we will suffer some of them to press tumultuously like waves
on others:e and the trumpet shall be sounded, and we will gather them in a
body together.
100 And we will set hell on that day before the unbelievers;
whose eyes have been veiled from my remembrance, and who could not hear
my words.
Do the unbelievers think that I will not punish them, for that they take
my servants for their protectors besides me? Verily we have prepared hell for
the abode of the infidels.
Say, Shall we declare unto you those whose works are vain,
whose endeavor in the present life hath been wrongly directed, and who
think they do the work which is right?
These are they who believe not in the signs of their LORD, or that they
shall be assembled before him; wherefore their works are vain, and we will not
allow them any weight on the day of resurrection.
This shall be their reward, namely, hell; for that they have disbelieved,
and have held my signs and apostles in derision.
But as for those who believe and do good works, they shall have the
gardens of paradise for their abode:
they shall remain therein forever; they shall wish for no change therein.
Say, If the sea were ink to write the words of my LORD, verily the sea
would fail, before the words of my LORD would fail; although we added another
sea like unto it as a further supply.
110 Say, Verily I am only a man as ye are. It is revealed unto me that your
GOD is one only GOD: let him therefore who hopeth to meet his LORD work a
righteous work; and let him not make any other to partake in the worship of
his LORD.
c The commentators say the wall was built in this manner. They dug
till they found water, and having laid the foundation of stone and melted
brass, they built the super-structure of large pieces of iron, between which
they laid wood and coals, till they equalled the height of the mountains; and
then setting fire to the combustibles, by the help of large bellows, they made
the iron red hot, and over it poured melted brass, which filling up the
vacancies between the pieces of iron, rendered the whole work as firm as a
rock. Some tell us that the whole was built of stones joined by cramps of
iron, on which they poured melted brass to fasten them.1
d That is, when the time shall come for Gog and Magog to break forth
from their confinement; which shall happen sometime before the resurrection.2
e These words represent either the violent irruption of Gog and Magog,
or the tumultuous assembly of all creatures, men, genii, and brutes, at the
resurrection.3
1 Idem, &c. 2 See the Prelim. Disc. Sect. IV. p. 63.
3 See ib. p. 67.
CHAPTER XIX.
ENTITLED, MARY;g REVEALED AT MECCA.g
IN THE NAME OF THE MOST MERCIFUL GOD.
C. H. Y. A. S.h A COMMEMORATION of the mercy of thy LORD towards his
servant Zacharias.i
When he called upon his LORD, invoking him in secret,
and said, O LORD, verily my bones are weakened, and my head is become
white with hoariness,
and I have never been unsuccessful in my prayers to thee, O LORD.
But now I fear my nephews, who are to succeed after me, for my wife is
barren:
wherefore, give me a successor of my own body from before thee; who may
be my heir, and may be an heir of the family of Jacob;k and grant, O LORD,
that he may be acceptable unto thee.
And the angel answered him, O Zacharias, verily we bring thee tidings of
a son, whose name shall be John;
we have not caused any to bear the same name before him.l
Zacharias said, LORD, how shall I have a son, seeing my wife is barren,
and I am now arrived at a great age,m and am decrepit?
10 The angel said, So shall it be: thy LORD saith, This is easy with me;
since I created thee heretofore, when thou wast nothing.
Zacharias answered, O LORD, give me a sign. The angel replied, Thy sign
shall be that thou shalt not speak to men for three nights, although thou be
in perfect health.
And he went forth unto his people, from the chamber, and he made signs
unto them,n as if he should say, Praise ye God in the morning and in the
evening.
And we said unto his son, O John, receive the book of the law, with a
resolution to study and observe it. And we bestowed on him wisdom, when he
was yet a child,
f Several circumstances relating to the Virgin Mary being mentioned in
this chapter, her name was pitched upon for the title.
g Except the verse of Adoration.
h See the Prelim. Disc. Sect. III. p. 46, 47.
i See chapter 3. p. 36, &c.
j These were his brother's sons, who were very wicked men, and
Zacharias was apprehensive lest, after his death, instead of confirming the
people in the true religion, they should seduce them to idolatry.1 And some
commentators imagine that he made this prayer in private, lest his nephews
should overhear him.
k viz., In holiness and knowledge; or in the government and
superintendence of the Israelites. There are some who suppose it is not the
patriarch who is here meant, but another Jacob, the brother of Zacharias, or
of Imrân Ebn Mâthân, of the race of Solomon.2
l For he was the first who bore the name of John, or Yahya (as the
Arabs pronounce it); which fancy seems to be occasioned by the words of St.
Luke misunderstood, that none of Zacharias's kindred was called by that name:3
for otherwise John, or, as it is written in Hebrew, Johanan, was a common name
among the Jews.
Some expositors avoid this objection, by observing that the original
word samiyyan signifies, not only one who is actually called by the same name,
but also one who by reason of his possessing the like qualities and
privileges, deserves, or may pretend to the same name.
m The Mohammedan traditions greatly differ as to the age of Zacharias
at this time; we have mentioned one already:4 Jallalo'ddin says, he was an
hundred and twenty, and his wife ninety-eight; and the Sonna takes notice of
several other opinions.
n Some say he wrote the following words on the ground.
1 Al Beidâwi, Jallalo'ddin. 2 Iidem. 3 Luke i. 61.
and mercy from us, and purity of life;o and he was a devout person, and
dutiful towards his parents, and was not proud or rebellious.
Peace be on him the day whereon he was born, and the day whereon he shall
die, and the day whereon he shall be raised to life.
And remember in the book of the Koran the story of Mary; when she retired
from her family to a place towards the east,p
and took a veil to conceal herself from them; and we sent our spirit
Gabriel unto her, and he appeared unto her in the shape of a perfect man.q
20 She said, I fly for refuge unto the merciful God, that he may defend me
from thee: if thou fearest him, thou wilt not approach me.
He answered, Verily I am the messenger of thy LORD, and am sent to give
thee a holy son.
She said, How shall I have a son, seeing a man hath not touched me, and I
am no harlot?
Gabriel replied, So shall it be: thy LORD saith, This is easy with me;
and we will perform it, that we may ordain him for a sign unto men, and a
mercy from us: for it is a thing which is decreed.
Wherefore she conceived him;r and she retired aside with him in her womb
to a distant place;s
and the pains of child-birth came upon her near the trunk of a palm-
tree.t She said, Would to GOD I had died before this, and had become a thing
forgotten, and lost in oblivion.
And he who was beneath her called to her,u saying, be not grieved; now
hath GOD provided a rivulet under thee;
o Or, as the word also signifies, The love of alms-deeds.
p viz., To the eastern part of the temple; or to a private chamber in
the house, which opened to the east: whence, says al Beidâwi, the Christians
pray towards that quarter.
There is a tradition, that when the virgin was grown to years of
puberty, she used to leave her apartment in the temple, and retire to
Zacharias's house to her aunt, when her courses came upon her; and so soon as
she was clean, she returned again to the temple: and that at the time of the
angel's visiting her, she was at her aunt's on the like occasion, and was
sitting to wash herself, in an open place, behind a veil to prevent her being
seen.1 But others more prudently suppose the design of her retirement was to
pray.2
q Like a full-grown but beardless youth. Al Beidâwi, not contented
with having given one good reason why he appeared in that form, viz., to
moderate her surprise, that she might hear his message with less shyness,
adds, that perhaps it might be to raise an emotion in her, and assist her
conception.
r For Gabriel blew into the bosom of her shift, which he opened with
his fingers,3 and his breath reaching her womb, caused the conception.4 The
age of the Virgin Mary at the time of her conception was thirteen, or, as
others say, ten; and she went six, seven, eight, or nine months with him,
according to different traditions; though some say the child was conceived at
its full growth of nine months, and that she was delivered of him within an
hour after.5
s To conceal her delivery, she went out of the city by night, to a
certain mountain.
t The palm to which she fled, that she might lean on it in her travail,
was a withered trunk, without any head or verdure, and this happened in the
winter season; notwithstanding which it miraculously supplied her with fruits
for her refreshment;6 as is mentioned immediately.
It has been observed, that the Mohammedan account of the delivery of the
Virgin Mary very much resembles that of Latona, as described by the poets,7
not only in this circumstance of their laying hold on a palm-tree8 (though
some say Latona embraced an olive-tree, or an olive and a palm, or else two
laurels), but also in that of their infants speaking; which Apollo is fabled
to have done in the womb.9
u This some imagine to have been the child himself; but others suppose
it was Gabriel who stood somewhat lower than she did.10 According to a
different reading this passage may be rendered, And he called to her from
beneath her, &c. And some refer the pronoun, translated her, to the palm-
tree; and then it should be beneath it, &c.
1 Yahya, Al Beidâwi. 2 Al Zamakh. 3 Yahya.
4 Jallalo'ddin, Al Beidâwi.
5 Al Beidâwi, Yahya. 6 Iidem, Al Zamakh. 7 Vide Sikii not.
in Evang. Infant. p. 9, 21, &c. 8 Homer. Hymn. in Apoll.
Callimach. Hymn. in Delum. 9 Callimach. ibid. See Kor. chapter 3,
p. 57. 10 Al Beidâwi, Jallalo'ddin.
and do thou shake the body of the palm-tree, and it shall let fall ripe
dates upon thee ready gathered.x
And eat, and drink, and calm thy mind.y Moreover, if thou see any man,
and he question thee,
say, Verily I have vowed a fast unto the Merciful: wherefore I will by no
means speak to a man this day.z
So she brought the child to her people, carrying him in her arms. And
they said unto her, O Mary, now hast thou done a strange thing:
O sister of Aaron,a thy father was not a bad man, neither was thy mother
a harlot.
30 But she made signs unto the child to answer them; and they said, How
shall we speak to him, who is an infant in the cradle?
Whereupon the child said, Verily I am the servant of GOD;b he hath given
me the book of the gospel, and hath appointed me a prophet.
And he hath made me blessed, wheresoever I shall be; and hath commanded
me to observe prayer, and to give alms, so long as I shall live;
and he hath made me dutiful towards my mother, and hath not made me proud
or unhappy.
And peace be on me the day whereon I was born, and the day whereon I
shall die, and the day whereon I shall be raised to life.
This was JESUS, the son of Mary; the Word of truth,c concerning whom they
doubt.
It is not meet for GOD, that he should have any son; GOD forbid! When he
decreeth a thing, he only saith unto it, Be; and it is.
And verily GOD is my LORD and your LORD; wherefore, serve him: this is
the right way.
Yet the sectaries differ among themselves concerning Jesus; but woe be
unto those who are unbelievers, because of their appearance at the great day.
Do thou cause them to hear, and do thou cause them to see,d on the day
whereon they shall come unto us to be judged: but the ungodly are this day in
a manifest error.
40 And do thou forewarn them of the day of sighing, when the matter shall
be determined, while they are now sunk in negligence, and do not believe.
Verily we will inherit the earth, and whatever creatures are therein;e
and unto us shall they all return.
x And accordingly she had no sooner spoken it than the dry trunk
revived, and shot forth green leaves, and a head loaded with ripe fruit.
y Literally, thine eye.
z During which she was not to speak to anybody, unless to acquaint them
with the reason of her silence: and some suppose she did that by signs.
a Several Christian writers think the Korân stands convicted of a
manifest falsehood in this particular, but I am afraid the Mohammedans may
avoid the charge;1 as they do by several answers. Some say the Virgin Mary
had really a brother named Aaron, who had the same father, but a different
mother; others suppose Aaron the brother of Moses is here meant, but say Mary
is called his sister, either because she was of the Levitical race (as by her
being related to Elizabeth, it should seem she was), or by way of comparison;
others say that it was a different person of that name who was contemporary
with her, and conspicuous for his good or bad qualities, and that they likened
her to him either by way of commendation of of reproach,2 &c.
b These were the first words which were put into the mouth of JESUS, to
obviate the imagination of his partaking of the divine nature, or having a
right to the worship of mankind, on account of his miraculous speaking so soon
after his birth.3
c This expression may either be referred to JESUS, as the Word of GOD;
or to the account just given of him.
d These words are variously expounded; some taking them to express
admiration4 at the quickness of those senses in the wicked, at the day of
judgment, when they shall plainly perceive the torments prepared for them,
though they have been deaf and blind in this life; and others supposing the
words contain a threat to the unbelievers, of what they shall then hear and
see; or else a command to Mohammed to lay before them the terrors of that
day.5
e i.e., Alone surviving, when all creatures shall be dead and
annihilated. See chapter 15, p. 192.
1 See chapter 3, p. 34, 35. 2 Al Zamakh., Al Beidâwi.
Jallalo'ddin, Yahya, &c. 3 Al Beidâwi, &c.
4 See chapter 18, p. 220. 5 Al Beidâwi.
And remember Abraham in the book of the Koran; for he was one of great
veracity, and a prophet.
When he said unto his father, O my father,f why dost thou worship that
which heareth not, neither seeth, nor profiteth thee at all?
O my father, verily a degree of knowledge hath been bestowed on me, which
hath not been bestowed on thee: wherefore follow me; I will lead thee into an
even way.
O my father, serve not Satan; for Satan was rebellious unto the Merciful.
O my father, verily I fear lest a punishment be inflicted on thee from
the Merciful, and thou become a companion of Satan.
His father answered, Dost thou reject my gods, O Abraham? If thou
forbear not, I will surely stone thee: wherefore leave me for a long time.
Abraham replied, Peace be on thee: I will ask pardon for thee of my LORD;
for he is gracious unto me.
And I will separate myself from you, and from the idols which ye invoke
besides GOD; and I will call upon my LORD; it may be that I shall not be
unsuccessful in calling on my LORD, as ye are in calling upon them.
50 And when he had separated himself from them, and from the idols which
they worshipped besides GOD,g we gave him Isaac and jacob; and we made each of
them a prophet,
and we bestowed on them, through our mercy, the gift of prophecy, and
children and wealth; and we caused them to deserve the highest commendations.h
And remember Moses in the book of the Koran: for he was sincerely
upright, and was an apostle and a prophet.
And we called unto him from the right side of Mount Sinai, and caused him
to draw near, and to discourse privately with us.i
And we gave him, through our mercy, his brother Aaron a prophet, for his
assistant.
Remember also Ismael in the same book; for he was true to his promise,j
and was an apostle, and a prophet.
And he commanded his family to observe prayer, and to give alms; and he
was acceptable unto his LORD.
And remember Edrisk in the same book; for he was a just person, and a
prophet:
and we exalted him to a high place.l
These are they unto whom GOD hath been bounteous, of the prophets of the
posterity of Adam, and of those whom we carried in the ark with Noah; and of
the posterity of Abraham, and of Israel, and of those whom we have directed
and chosen. When the signs of the Merciful were read unto them, they fell
down, worshipping, and wept:
f See chapter 6, p. 95, &c.
g By flying to Harrân, and thence to Palestine.
h Literally, We granted them a lofty tongue of truth.
i Or, as some expound it, And we raise him on high; for, say they, he
was raised to so great an elevation, that he heard the creaking of the pen
writing on the table of GOD'S decrees.1
j Being celebrated on that account; and particularly for his behaving
with that resignation and constancy which he had promised his father, on his
receiving GOD'S command to sacrifice him;2 for the Mohammedans say it was
Ismael, and not Isaac, whom he was commanded to offer.
k Or Enoch, the great-grandfather of Noah, who had that surname from
his great knowledge; for he was favoured with no less than thirty books of
divine revelations, and was the first who wrote with a pen, and studied the
sciences of astronomy and arithmetic, &c.3
The learned Bartolocci endeavours to show, from the testimonies of the
ancient Jews, that Enoch, surnamed Edris, was a very different person from the
Enoch of Moses, and many ages younger.4
l Some understand by this the honour of the prophetic office, and his
familiarity with GOD; but others suppose his translation is here meant: for
they say that he was taken up by GOD into heaven at the age of three hundred
and fifty, having first suffered death, and been restored to life; and that he
is now alive in one of the seven heavens, or in paradise.5
1 Idem. 2 Idem. 3 Idem, Jallalo'ddin, &c.
4 Bartol. Bibl. Rabb. part 2, p. 845. 5 Iidem, Abulfeda.
60 but a succeeding generation have come after them, who neglect prayer,
and follow their lusts; and they shall surely fall into evil:
except him who repenteth, and believeth, and doth that which is right;
these shall enter paradise, and they shall not in the least be wronged:
gardens of perpetual abode shall be their reward, which the Merciful hath
promised unto his servants, as an object of faith; for his promise will surely
come to be fulfilled.
Therein shall they hear no vain discourse, but peace;m and their
provision shall be prepared for them therein morning and evening.
This is paradise, which we will give for an inheritance unto such of our
servants as shall be pious.
We descend not from heaven, unless by the command of thy LORD: unto him
belongeth whatsoever is before us, and whatsoever is behind us, and whatsoever
is in the intermediate space; neither is thy LORD forgetful of thee.n
He is the LORD of heaven and earth, and of whatsoever is between them:
wherefore worship him, and be constant in his worship. Dost thou know any
named like him?o
Man saith,p After I shall have been dead, shall I really be brought forth
alive from the grave?
Doth not man remember that we created him heretofore, when he was
nothing?
But by thy LORD we will surely assemble them and the devils to judgment;q
then will we set them round about hell on their knees:
70 afterwards we will draw forth from every sect such of them as shall have
been a more obstinate rebel against the Merciful;r
and we best know which of them are more worthy to be burned therein.s
There shall be none of you but shall approach near the same:t this is an
established decree with thy LORD.
Afterwards we will deliver those who shall have been pious, but we will
leave the ungodly therein on their knees.
m i.e., Words of peace and comfort; or the salutations of the angels,1
&c.
n These are generally supposed to have been the words of the angel
Gabriel, in answer to Mohammed's complaint for his long delay of fifteen, or,
according to another tradition, of forty days, before he brought him
instructions what solution he should give to the questions which had been
asked him concerning the sleepers, Dhu'lkarnein, and the spirit.2
Others, however, are of opinion that they are the words which the godly
will use at their entrance into paradise; and that their meaning is, We take
up our abode here at the command and through the mercy of God alone, who
ruleth all things, past, future, and present; and who is not forgetful of the
works of his servants.3
o That is, Deserving, or having a right to the name and attributes of
GOD.
p Some suppose a particular person is here meant, namely, Obba Ebn
Khalf.4
q It is said that every infidel will appear, at the day judgment,
chained to the devil who seduced him.5
r Hence, says al Beidâwi, it appears that GOD will pardon some of the
rebellious people. But perhaps the distinguishing the unbelievers into
different classes, in order to consign them to different places and degrees of
torment, is here meant.
s viz., The more obstinate and perverse, and especially the heads of
sects, who will suffer double punishment for their own errors and their
seducing of others.
t For the true believers must also pass by or through hell, but the
fire will be damped and the flames abated, so as not to hurt them, though it
will lay hold on the others. Some, however, suppose that the words intend no
more than the passage over the narrow bridge, which is laid over hell.6
1 See chapter 10, p. 151. 2 See before, p. 118, 119.
3 Al Beidâwi. 4 See chapter 16, p. 195. 5 Al
Beidâwi. 6 Idem. See the Prelim. Disc. Sect. IV. p. 71.
When our manifest signs are read unto them, the infidels say unto the
true believers, Which of the two parties is in the more eligible condition,
and formeth the more excellent assembly?u
But how many generations have we destroyed before them, which excelled
them in wealth, and in outward appearance?
Say, Whosoever is in error, the Merciful will grant him a long and
prosperous life,
until they see that with which they are threatened, whether it be the
punishment of this life, or that of the last hour; and hereafter they shall
know who is in the worse condition, and the weaker in forces.
GOD shall more fully direct those who receive direction;
and the good works which remain forever are better in the sight of thy
LORD than worldly possessions, in respect to the reward, and more eligible in
respect to the future recompense.
80 Hast thou seen him who believeth not in our signs, and saith, I shall
surely have riches and children bestowed on me?x
Is he acquainted with the secrets of futurity; or hath he received a
covenant from the Merciful that it shall be so?
By no means. We will surely write down that which he saith; and
increasing we will increase his punishment;
and we will be his heir as to that which he speaketh of,y and on the last
day he shall appear before us alone and naked.
They have taken other gods, besides GOD, that they may be a glory unto
them.
By no means. Hereafter shall they deny their worship;z and they shall
become adversariesa unto them.
Dost thou not see that we send the devils against the infidels, to incite
them to sin by their instigations?
Wherefore be not in haste to call down destruction upon them; for we
number unto them a determined number of days of respite.
On a certain day we will assemble the pious before the Merciful in an
honourable manner, as ambassadors come into the presence of a prince:
but we will drive the wicked into hell, as cattle are driven to water:
90 they shall obtain no intercession, except he only who hath received a
covenant from the Merciful.b
They say, The Merciful hath begotten issue. Now have ye uttered an
impious thing:
it wanteth little but that on occasion thereof the heavens be rent, and
the earth cleave in sunder, and the mountains be overthrown and fall,
for that they attribute children unto the Merciful; whereas it becometh
not GOD to beget children.
u viz., Of us, or of you. When the Koreish were unable to produce a
composition to equal the Korân, they began to glory in their wealth and
nobility, valuing themselves highly on that account, and despising the
followers of Mohammed.
x This passage was revealed on account of al As Ebn Wayel, who being
indebted to Khabbâb, when he demanded the money, refused to pay it, unless he
would deny Mohammed; to which proposal Khabbâb answered, that he would never
deny that prophet, neither alive, nor dead, nor when he should be raised to
life at the last day; therefore replied al As, when thou art raised again,
come to me, for I shall then have abundance of riches, and children, and I
will pay you.1
y i.e., He shall be obliged to leave all his wealth and his children
behind him at his death.
z viz., At the resurrection; when the idolaters shall disclaim their
idols, and the idols their worshippers, and shall mutually accuse one
another.2
a Or, the contrary; that is to say, a disgrace instead of an honour.
b That is, except he who shall be a subject properly disposed to
receive that favour, by having possessed Islâm. Or, the words may also be
translated, according to another exposition, They shall not obtain the
intercession of any, except the intercession of him, &c. Or else, None shall
be able to make intercession for others, except he who shall have received a
covenant (or permission) from God; i.e., who shall be qualified for that
office by faith, and good works, according to GOD's promise, or shall have
special leave given him by GOD for that purpose.3
1 Idem, Jallalo'ddin. 2 See chapter 6, p. 90; chapter 10, p.
152, 153, &c. 3 Al Beidâwi. See chapter 2, p. 28, &c.
Verily there is none in heaven or on earth but shall approach the
Merciful as his servant. He encompasseth them by his knowledge and power, and
numbereth them with an exact computation:
and they shall all come unto him on the day of resurrection, destitute
both of helpers and followers.
But as for those who believe and do good works, the Merciful will bestow
on them love.c
Verily we have rendered the Koran easy for thy tongue, that thou mayest
thereby declare our promises unto the pious, and mayest thereby denounce
threats unto contentious people.
And how many generations have we destroyed before them? Dost thou find
one of them remaining? Or dost thou hear so much as a whisper concerning
them?
________
CHAPTER XX.
ENTITLED, T. H.;d REVEALED AT MECCA.
IN THE NAME OF THE MOST MERCIFUL GOD.
T. H. WE have not sent down the Koran unto thee, that thou shouldest be
unhappy;e
but for an admonition unto him who feareth God:
being sent down from him who created the earth, and the lofty heavens.
The Merciful sitteth on his throne:
unto him belongeth whatsoever is in heaven and on earth, and whatsoever
is between them, and whatsoever is under the earth.
If thou pronounce thy prayers with a loud voice, know that it is not
necessary in respect to God; for he knoweth that which is secret, and what is
yet more hidden.
GOD! there is no GOD but he, he hath most excellent names.f
Hast thou been informed of the history of Moses?g
c viz., The love of GOD and all the inhabitants of heaven. Some
suppose this verse was revealed to comfort the Moslems who were hated and
despised at Mecca, on account of their faith, by the promise of their gaining
the love and esteem of mankind in a short time.
d The signification of these letters, which being prefixed to the
chapter are therefore taken for the title, is uncertain.1 Some, however,
imagine they stand for Ya rajol, i.e. O man! which interpretation, seeming not
easily to be accounted for from the Arabic, is by a certain tradition deduced
from the Ethiopic:2 or for Ta, i.e. tread; telling us that Mohammed, being
employed in watching and prayer the night this passage was revealed, stood on
one foot only, but was hereby commanded to ease himself by setting both feet
to the ground. Others fancy the first letter stands for Tûba, beatitude; and
the latter for Hawiyat, the name of the lower apartment of hell. Tah is also
an interjection commanding silence, and may properly enough be used in this
place.
e Either by reason of thy zealous solicitude for the conversion of the
infidels, or thy fatiguing thyself by watching and other religious exercises;
for, it seems, the Koreish urged the extraordinary fatigues he underwent in
those respects, as the consequence of his having left their religion.3
f See chapter 7, p. 123, and chapter 17, p. 216.
g The relation of the story of Moses, which takes up the greatest part
of this chapter, was designed to encourage Mohammed, by his example, to
discharge the prophetic office with firmness of mind, as being assured of
receiving the like assistance from GOD: for it is said this chapter was one of
the first that were revealed.4
1 See the Prelim. Disc. Sect. III. p. 46, &c. 2 Moham. Ebn Abd
al Baki, ex trad. Acremæ Ebn Abi Sofian. 3 Al Beidâwi. 4
Idem.
When he saw fire, and said unto his family, Tarry ye here; for I perceive
fire:
10 peradventure I may bring you a brand thereout, or may find a direction
in our way by the fire.h
And when he was come near unto it, a voice called unto him, saying, O
Moses,
verily I am thy LORD: wherefore put off thy shoes;i for thou art in the
sacred valley Towa.
And I have chosen thee; therefore hearken with attention unto that which
is revealed unto thee.
Verily I am GOD; there is no god besides me; wherefore worship me, and
perform thy prayer in remembrance of me.
Verily the hour cometh: I will surely manifest the same,
that every soul may receive its reward for that which it hath
deliberately done.
Let not him who believeth not therein, and who followeth his lust,
prevent thee from believing in the same, lest thou perish.
Now what is that in thy right hand, O Moses?
He answered, It is my rod whereon I lean, and with which I beat down
leaves for my flock; and I have other uses for it.j
20 God said unto him, Cast it down, O Moses.
And he cast it down, and behold, it became a serpent,k which ran about.
God said, Take hold on it, and fear not:l we will reduce it to its former
condition.
And put thy right hand under thy left arm: it shall come forth white,m
without any hurt. This shall be another sign:
that we may show thee some of our greatest signs.
Go unto Pharaoh: for he is exceedingly impious.
Moses answered, LORD, enlarge my breast,
and make what thou hast commanded me easy unto me:
and loose the knot of my tongue,
that they may understand my speech.n
30 And give me a counselloro of my family,
namely, Aaron my brother.
Gird up my loins by him,
and make him my colleague in the business:
that we may praise thee greatly, and may remember thee often;
for thou regardest us.
God replied, Now hast thou obtained thy request, O Moses:
and we have heretofore been gracious unto thee, another time;
h The commentators say, that Moses having obtained leave of Shoaib, or
Jethro, his father-in-law, to visit his mother, departed with his family from
Midian towards Egypt; but coming to the valley of Towa, wherein Mount Sinai
stands, his wife fell in labour, and was delivered of a son, in a very dark
and snowy night; he had also lost his way, and his cattle were scattered from
him; when on a sudden he saw a fire by the side of a mountain, which on his
nearer approaching he found burning in a green bush.1
i This was a mark of humility and respect: though some fancy there was
some uncleanness in the shoes themselves, because they were made of the skin
of an ass not dressed.2
j As to drive away wild beasts from my flock, to carry my bottle of
water on, to stick up and hang my upper garment on to shade me from the sun;
and several other uses enumerated by the commentators.
k Which was at first no bigger than the rod, but afterwards swelled to
a prodigious size.3
l When Moses saw the serpent move about with great nimbleness, and
swallow stones and trees, he was greatly terrified, and fled from it; but
recovering his courage at these words of GOD, he had the boldness to take the
serpent by the jaws.4
m See chapter 7, p. 116.
n For Moses had an impediment in his speech, which was occasioned by
the following accident. Pharaoh one day carrying him in his arms, when a
child, he suddenly laid hold of his bear, and plucked it in a very rough
manner, which put Pharaoh into such a passion, that he ordered him to be put
to death: but Asia, his wife, representing to him that he was but a child, who
could not distinguish between a burning coal and a ruby, he ordered the
experiment to be made; and a live coal and a ruby being set before Moses, he
took the coal and put it into his mouth, and burnt his tongue; and thereupon
he was pardoned. This is a Jewish story a little altered.5
o The Arabic word is Wazîr, which signifies one who has the chief
administration of affairs under a prince.
1 Idem. 2 Idem. 3 Idem. 4 Idem.
5 Vide Shalsh. Hakkab, p. 11.
when we revealed unto thy mother that which was revealed unto her,p
saying, Put him into the ark, and cast him into the river and the river
shall throw him on the shore; and my enemy and his enemy shall take him and
bring him up;q and I bestowed on thee love from me,r
40 that thou mightest be bred up under my eye.
When thy sister went and said, Shall I bring you unto one who will nurse
the child?s So we returned thee unto thy mother, that her mind might be set
at ease, and that she might not be afflicted. And thou slewest a soul, and we
delivered thee from trouble;t and we proved thee by several trials:u
and afterwards thou didst dwell some yearsx among the inhabitants of
Madian. Then thou camest hither according to our decree, O Moses;
and I have chosen thee for myself;
wherefore go thou and thy brothery with my signs; and be not negligent in
remembering me.
Go ye unto Pharaoh, for he is excessively impious:
and speak mildly unto him; peradventure he will consider, or will fear
our threats.
They answered, O LORD, verily we fear lest he be precipitately violent
against us, or lest he transgress more exorbitantly.
God replied, Fear not; for I am with you: I will hear and will see.
Go ye therefore unto him, and say, Verily we are the messengers of thy
LORD: wherefore send the children of Israel with us, and do not afflict them.
Now are we come unto thee with a sign from thy LORD: and peace be upon him who
shall follow the true direction.
50 Verily it hath been revealed unto us, that a punishment shall be
inflicted on him who shall charge us with imposture, and shall turn back.
And when they had delivered their message, Pharaoh said, Who is your
LORD, O Moses?
He answered, Our LORD is he who giveth all things: he hath created them,
and directeth them by his providence.
p The commentators are not agreed by what means this revelation was
made; whether by private inspiration, by a dream, by a prophet, or by an
angel.
q The commentators say, that his mother accordingly made an ark of the
papyrus, and pitched it, and put in some cotton; and having laid the child
therein, committed it to the river, a branch of which went into Pharaoh's
garden: that the stream carried the ark thither into a fishpond, at the head
of which Pharaoh was then sitting, with his wife Asia, the daughter of
Mozahem; and that the king, having commanded it to be taken up and opened, and
finding in it a beautiful child, took a fancy to it, and ordered it to be
brought up.1
Some writers mention a miraculous preservation of Moses before he was
put into the ark; and tell us, that his mother having hid him from Pharaoh's
officers in an oven, his sister, in her mother's absence, kindled a large fire
in the oven to heat it, not knowing the child was there, but that he was
afterwards taken out unhurt.2
r That is, I inspired the love of thee into the hearts of those who saw
thee, and particularly into the heart of Pharaoh.
s The Mohammedans pretend that several nurses were brought, but the
child refused to take the breast of any, till his sister Miriam, who went to
learn news of him, told them she would find a nurse, and brought his mother.3
t Moses killed an Egyptian, in defence of an Israelite, and escaped the
danger of being punished for it, by flying to Midian, which was eight days'
journey distant from Mesr.4
The Jews pretend he was actually imprisoned for the fact, and condemned
to be beheaded, but that, when he should have suffered, his neck became as
hard as ivory, and the sword rebounded on the executioner.5
u For he was obliged to abandon his country and his friends, and to
travel several days, in great terror and want of necessary provisions, to seek
a refuge among strangers; and was afterwards forced to serve for hire, to gain
a livelihood.
x i.e., Ten.6
y Aaron being by this time come out to meet his brother, either by
divine inspiration, or having notice of his design to return to Egypt.7
1 Al Beidâwi. 2 Abulfeda, &c. 3 Al Beidâwi.
4 Idem.
5 Shalsh Hakkab. p. 11. 6 Al Beidâwi. 7 Idem.
Pharaoh said, What therefore is the condition of the former generations?z
Moses answered, The knowledge thereof is with my LORD, in the book of his
decrees: my LORD erreth not, neither doth he forget.
It is he who hath spread the earth as a bed for you, and hath made you
paths therein; and who sendeth down rain from heaven, whereby we cause various
kinds of vegetables to spring forth:
saying, Eat of part, and feed your cattle with other part thereof.
Verily herein are signs unto those who are endued with understanding.
Out of the ground have we created you; and to the same will we cause you
to return, and we will bring you forth from thence another time.
And we showed Pharaoh all our signs which we had empowered Moses to
perform: but he accused him of imposture, and refused to believe;
and he said, Art thou come unto us that thou mayest dispossess us of our
land by the enchantments, O Moses?
60 Verily we will meet thee with the like enchantments; wherefore fix an
appointment between us and thee; we will not fail it, neither shalt thou, in
an equal place.
Moses answered, Let your appointment be on the day of your solemn feast;a
and let the people be assembled in open day.
And Pharaoh turned away from Moses, and gathered together the most expert
magicians to execute his stratagem; and then came to the appointment.
Moses said unto them, Woe be unto you! do not devise a lie against GOD,b
lest he utterly destroy you by some judgment: for he shall not prosper
who deviseth lies.
And the magicians disputed concerning their affair among themselves, and
discoursed in private:
and they said, These two are certainly magicians: they seek to dispossess
you of your land by their sorcery; and to lead away with them your chiefest
and most considerable men.
Wherefore collect all your cunning, and then come in order: for he shall
prosper this day, who shall be superior.
They said, O Moses, whether wilt thou cast down thy rod first, or shall
we be the first who cast down our rods?
He answered, Do ye cast down your rods first. And behold, their cords
and their rods appeared unto him, by their enchantment, to run about like
serpents;c
70 wherefore Moses conceived fear in his heart.
But we said unto him, Fear not; for thou shalt be superior:
therefore cast down the rod which is in thy right hand; and it shall
swallow up the seeming serpents which they have made: for what they have made
is only the deceit of an enchanter; and an enchanter shall not prosper,
withersoever he cometh.
And the magicians, when they saw the miracle which Moses performed, fell
down and worshipped, saying, We believe in the LORD of Aaron and of Moses.
Pharaoh said unto them, Do ye believe in him before I give you
permission? Verily this is your master, who hath taught you magic. But I
will surely cut off your hands and your feet on the opposite sides; and I will
crucify you on trunks of palm-trees:d and ye shall know which of us is more
severe in punishing, and can longer protract your pains.
z viz., As to happiness or misery after death.
a Which was probably the first day of their new year.
b By saying the miracles performed in his name are the effects of
magic.
c They rubbed them over with quicksilver, which being wrought upon by
the heat of the sun, caused them to move.1 See chapter 7, p. 116.
d See Ibid.
1 Idem.
They answered, We will by no means have greater regard unto thee than
unto those evident miracles which have been shown us, or than unto him who
hath created us. Pronounce therefore that sentence against us which thou art
about to pronounce: for thou canst only give sentence as to this present life.
Verily we believe in our LORD, that he may forgive us our sins, and the
sorcery which thou hast forced us to exercise: for GOD is better to reward,
and more able to prolong punishment than thou.
Verily whosoever shall appear before his LORD on the day of judgment,
polluted with crimes, shall have hell for his reward; he shall not die
therein, neither shall he live.
But whoever shall appear before him, having been a true believer, and
shall have worked righteousness, for these are prepared the highest degrees of
happiness;
namely, gardens of perpetual abode,e which shall be watered by rivers;
they shall remain therein forever: and this shall be the reward of him who
shall be pure.
And we spake by revelation unto Moses, saying, Go forth with my servants
out of Egypt by night; and smite the waters with thy rod, and make them a dry
path through the sea:f
80 be not apprehensive of Pharaoh's overtaking thee; neither be thou
afraid.
And when Moses had done so, Pharaoh followed them with his forces; and
the waters of the sea overwhelmed them. And Pharaoh caused his people to err,
neither did he direct them aright.
Thus, O children of Israel, we delivered you from your enemy; and we
appointed you the right side of Mount Sinai to discourse with Moses and to
give him the law; and we caused manna and quails to descend upon you,g
saying, Eat of the good things which we have given you for food; and
transgress not therein,h lest my indignation fall on you; and on whomsoever my
indignation shall fall, he shall go down headlong into perdition.
But I will be gracious unto him who shall repent and believe, and shall
do that which is right; and who shall be rightly directed.
What hath caused thee to hasten from thy people, O Moses, to receive the
law?i
He answered, These follow close on my footsteps; but I have hastened unto
thee, O LORD, that thou mightest be well pleased with me.
God said, We have already made a trial of thy people, since thy
departure;j and al Sâmerik hath seduced them to idolatry.
e Literally, gardens of Eden; see chapter 9, p. 142, 143.
f The expositors add, that the sea was divided into twelve separate
paths, one for each tribe:1 a fable borrowed from the Jews.2
g See chapter 2, p. 7.
h By ingratitude, excess, or insolent behaviour.
i For Moses, it seems, outwent the seventy elders, who had been chosen,
in obedience to the divine command, to accompany him to the mount,3 and
appeared before GOD while they were at some, though no great, distance behind
him.
j They continued in the worship of the true GOD for the first twenty
days of Moses's absence, which, by taking the nights also into their
reckoning, they computed to be forty, and at their expiration concluded they
had stayed the full time which Moses had commanded them, and so fell into the
worship of the golden calf.4
k This was not his proper name, but he had this appellation because he
was of a certain tribe among the Jews called Samaritans (wherein the
Mohammedans strangely betray their ignorance in history); though some say he
was a proselyte, but a hypocritical one, and originally of Kirmân, or some
other country. His true name was Moses, or Mûsa, Ebn Dhafar.5
Selden is of opinion that this person was no other than Aaron himself,
(who was really the maker of the calf), and that he is here called al Sâmeri,
from the Hebrew verb shamar, to keep;1 because he was the Keeper or Guardian
of the children of Israel during his brother's absence in the mount; which is
a very ingenious conjecture, not absolutely inconsistent with the text of the
Korân (though Mohammed seems to have mistaken al Sâmeri for the name of a
different person), and offers a much more probable origin of that appellation,
than to derive it, as the Mohammedans do, from the Samaritans, who were not
formed into a people, nor bore that name till many ages after.
1 Idem, Abulfed. in Hist. 2 Vide R. Eliezer, Pirke, chapter
42. 3 See chapter 2, p. 6, 7; chapter 7, p. 120, &c.
4 Al Beidâwi. 5 Idem.
Wherefore Moses returned unto his peoplel in great wrath, and exceedingly
afflicted.
And he said, O my people, had not your LORD promised you a most excellent
promise?m Did the time of my absence seem long unto you? Or did ye desire
that indignation from your LORD should fall on you, and therefore failed to
keep the promise which ye made me?
90 They answered, We have not failed in what we promised thee of our own
authority; but we were made to carry in several loads of gold and silver, of
the ornaments of the people,n and we cast them into the fire; and in like
manner al Sâmeri also cast in what he had collected, and he produced unto them
a corporeal calf,o which lowed. And al Sâmeri and his companions said, This
is your god, and the god of Moses; but he hath forgotten him, and is gone to
seek some other.
Did they not therefore see that their idol returned them no answer, and
was not able to cause them either hurt or profit?
And Aaron had said unto them before, O my people, verily ye are only
proved by this calf; for your LORD is the Merciful: wherefore, follow me, and
obey my command.
They answered, We will by no means cease to be devoted to its worship,
until Moses return unto us.
And when Moses was returned, he said, O Aaron, what hindered thee, when
thou sawest that they went astray, that thou didst not follow me?p Hast thou,
therefore, been disobedient to my command?
Aaron answered, O son of my mother, drag me not by the beard, nor by the
hair of my head. Verily I feared lest thou shouldest say,
Thou hast made a division among the children of Israel, and thou hast not
observed my saying.q
Moses said unto al Sâmeri, What was thy design, O Sâmeri? He answered, I
saw that which they saw not;r wherefore I took a handful of dust from the
footsteps of the messenger of God, and I cast it into the molten calf;s for so
did my mind direct me.
l viz., After he had completed his forty days' stay in the mount, and
had received the law.2
m i.e., The law, containing a light and certain direction to guide you
in the right way.
n These ornaments were rings, bracelets, and the like, which the
Israelities had borrowed of the Egyptians, under pretence of decking
themselves out for some feast, and had not returned to them; or, as some
think, what they had stripped from the dead bodies of the Egyptians, cast on
shore by the sea: and al Sameri, conceiving them unlawful to be kept, and the
occasion of much wickedness, persuaded Aaron to let him collect them from the
people; which being done, he threw them all into the fire, to melt them down
into one mass.3
It is observable, that the Mohammedans generally suppose the cast
metal's coming forth in the shape of a calf, was beside the expectation of al
Sameri, who had not made a mould of that figure: and that when Aaron excuses
himself to his brother, in the pentateuch, he seems as if he would persuade
him it was an accident.4
o See chapter 7, p. 119, note n.
p By these words Moses reprehends Aaron for not seconding his zeal in
taking arms against the idolaters; or for not coming after him to the
mountain, to acquaint him with their rebellion.
q i.e., Lest if I had taken arms against the worshippers of the calf,
thou shouldest say that I had raised a sedition; or if I had gone after thee,
thou shouldest blame me for abandoning my charge, and not waiting thy return
to rectify what was amiss.
r Or, I knew that which they knew not; viz., That the messenger sent to
thee from GOD was a pure spirit, and that his footsteps gave life to whatever
they touched; being no other than the angel Gabriel, mounted on the horse of
life: and therefore I made use of the dust of his feet to animate the molten
calf. It is said al Sâmeri knew the angel, because he had saved and taken
care of him when a child and exposed by his mother for fear of Pharaoh.1
s See chapter 2, p. 6.
1 Selden, de Diis Syris, Synt. I, chapter 4. 2 Al Beidâwi.
3 Idem. Vide D'Herbel. Bibl. Orient. p. 650, and Kor. chapter 2, p. 6,
&c. 4 See Exod. xxxii. 24. 1 Al Beidâwi, Jallalo'ddin.
Moses said, Get thee gone; for thy punishment in this life shall be, that
thou shalt say unto those who shall meet thee, Touch me not;t and a threat is
denounced against thee of more terrible pains, in the life to come, which thou
shalt by no means escape. And behold now thy god, to whose worship thou hast
continued assiduously devoted; verily we will burn it;u and we will reduce it
to powder, and scatter it in the sea.
Your GOD is the true GOD, besides whom there is no other god: he
comprehendeth all things by his knowledge.
100 Thus do we recite unto thee, O Mohammed, relations of what hath passed
heretofore; and we have given thee an admonition from us.
He who shall turn aside from it shall surely carry a load of guilt on the
day of resurrection:
they shall continue thereunder forever; and a grievous burden shall it be
unto them on the day of resurrection;x
On that day the trumpet shall be sounded; and we will gather the wicked
together on that day, having grey eyes.y
They shall speak with a low voice to one another, saying, Ye have not
tarriedz above ten days.
We well know what they will say; when the most conspicuous among them for
behavior shall say, Ye have not tarried above one day.
They will ask thee concerning the mountains: Answer, My LORD will reduce
them to dust, and scatter them abroad;a
and he will leave them a plain equally extended: thou shalt see no part
of them higher or lower than another.
On that day mankind shall follow the angel who will call them to
judgment,b none shall have power to turn aside from him; and their voices
shall be low before the Merciful, neither shalt thou hear any more than the
hollow sound of their feet.
t Lest they infect thee with a burning fever: for that was the
consequence of any man's touching him, and the same happened to the persons he
touched; for which reason he was obliged to avoid all communication with
others, and was also shunned by them, wandering in the desert like a wild
beast.2
Hence, it is concluded that a tribe of Samaritan Jews, said to inhabit a
certain isle in the Red Sea, are the descendants of our al Sâmeri; because it
is their peculiar mark of distinction, at this day, to use the same words,
viz., La mesâs, i.e., Touch me not, to those they meet.3 It is not improbable
that this story may owe its rise to the known hatred borne by the Samaritans
to the Jews, and their superstitiously avoiding to have any commerce with
them, or any other strangers.4
u Or, as the word may also be translated, We will file it down; but the
other is the more received interpretation.
x See chapter 6, p. 91.
y For this, with the Arabs, is one mark of an enemy, or a person they
abominate; to say a man has a black liver (though I think we express our
aversion by the term white-livered), reddish whiskers and grey eyes, being a
periphrasis for a foe, and particularly a Greek, which nation were the most
inveterate enemies of the Arabs, and have usually hair and eyes of those
colours.5 The original word, however, signifies also those who are squint-
eyed, or even blind of a suffusion.
z viz., In the world; or, in the grave.
a See the Prelim. Disc. Sect. IV. p. 64.
b See ibid. p. 56.
2 Iidem. 3 Vide Geogr. Nub. p. 45. 4 Vide Selden,
ubi sup. 5 Al Beidâwi, Jawhari, in Lex.
25
On that day, the intercession of none shall be of advantage unto another,
except the intercession of him to whom the Merciful shall grant permission,c
and who shall be acceptable unto him in what he saith.
110 God knoweth that which is before them, and that which is behind them;
but they comprehend not the same by their knowledge:
and their faces shall be humbledd before the living, the self-subsisting
God; and he shall be wretched who shall bear his iniquity.
But whosoever shall do good works, being a true believer, shall not fear
any injustice, or any diminution of his reward from God.
And thus have we sent down this book, being a Koran in the Arabic tongue;
and we have inserted various threats and promises therein, that men may fear
God, or that it may awaken some consideration in them:
wherefore, let GOD be highly exalted, the King, the Truth! Be not over-
hasty in receiving or repeating the Koran before the revelation thereof be
completed unto thee;e and say, LORD, increase my knowledge.
We heretofore gave a command unto Adam; but he forgot the same,f and ate
of the forbidden fruit; and we found not in him a firm resolution.
And remember when we said unto the angels, Worship ye Adam; and they
worshipped him: but Eblis refused.g And we said, O Adam, verily this is an
enemy unto thee, and thy wife: wherefore, beware lest he turn you out of
paradise; for then shalt thou be miserable.
Verily we have made a provision for thee, that thou shalt not hunger
therein, neither shalt thou be naked:
and there is also a provision made for thee, that thou shalt not thirst
therein, neither shalt thou be incommoded by heat. But Satan whispered evil
suggestions unto him, saying, O Adam, shall I guide thee to the tree of
eternity, and a kingdom which faileth not?
And they both ate thereof: and their nakedness appeared unto them; and
they began to sew together the leaves of paradise, to cover themselves.h And
thus Adam became disobedient unto his LORD, and was seduced.
120 Afterwards his LORD accepted him, on his repentance, and was turned unto
him, and directed him.
And God said, Get ye down hence, all of you: the one of you shall be an
enemy unto the other. But hereafter shall a direction come unto you from me:i
and whosoever shall follow my direction shall not err, neither shall he
be unhappy;
but whosoever shall turn aside from my admonition, verily he shall lead a
miserable life,
and we will cause him to appear before us on the day of resurrection,
blind.j
And he shall say, O LORD, why hast thou brought me before thee blind,
whereas before I saw clearly?
c Or, Except unto him, &c. See chapter 19, p. 232.
d The original word properly expresses the humility and dejected looks
of captives in the presence of their conqueror.
e Mohammed is here commanded not to be impatient at any delay in
Gabriel's bringing the divine revelations, or not to repeat it too fast after
the angel, so as to overtake him before he had finished the passage. But some
suppose the prohibition relates to the publishing any verse before the same
was perfectly explained to him.1
f Adam's so soon forgetting the divine command, has occasioned some
Arab etymologists to derive the word Insân, i.e., man, from nasiya, to forget;
and has also given rise to the following proverbial saying, Awwalo nâsin
awwalo 'nnâsi, that is, The first forgetful person was the first of men;
alluding to the like sound of the words
g See chapter 2, p. 4, &c.; chapter 7, p. 105, &c.
h See chapter 7, p. 106.
i See chapter 2, p. 5.
j See the Prelim. Disc. Sect. IV. p. 66.
1 Al Beidâwi, Jallalo'ddin
God shall answer, Thus have we done, because our signs came unto thee,
and thou didst forget them; and in the same manner shalt thou be forgotten
this day.
And thus will we reward him who shall be negligent, and shall not believe
in the signs of his LORD: and the punishment of the life to come shall be more
severe, and more lasting, than the punishment of this life.
Are not the Meccans, therefore, acquainted how many generations we have
destroyed before them; in whose dwellings they walk?k Verily herein are signs
unto those who are endued with understanding.
And unless a decree had previously gone forth from thy LORD for their
respite, verily their destruction had necessarily followed: but there is a
certain time determined by God for their punishment.
130 Wherefore, do thou, O Mohammed, patiently bear that which they say; and
celebrate the praise of thy LORD before the rising of the sun, and before the
setting thereof, and praise him in the hours of the night, and in the
extremities of the day,l that thou mayest be well-pleased with the prospect of
receiving favor from God.
And cast not thine eyes on that which we have granted divers of the
unbelievers to enjoy, namely, the splendor of this present life,m that we may
prove them thereby; for the provision of thy LORDn is better, and more
permanent.
Command thy family to observe prayer; and do thou persevere therein. We
require not of thee that thou labor to gain necessary provisions for thyself
and family; we will provide for thee; for the prosperous issue shall attend on
piety.o
The unbelievers say, Unless he come unto us with a sign from his LORD, we
will not believe on him. Hath not a plain declaration come unto them, of that
which is contained in the former volumes of scripture, by the revelation of
the Koran?
if we had destroyed them by a judgment before the same had been revealed,
they would have said, at the resurrection, O LORD, how could we believe since
thou didst not send unto us an apostle, that we might follow thy signs, before
we were humbled and covered with shame?
Say, Each of us wait the issue: wait, therefore; for ye shall surely know
hereafter who have been the followers of the even way, and who hath been
rightly directed.
k Seeing the footsteps of their destruction; as of the tribes of Al,
and Thamûd.
l i.e., Evening and morning; which times are repeated as the principal
hours of prayer. But some suppose these words intend the prayer of noon; the
first half of the day ending, and the second half beginning at that time.1
m That is, do not envy or covet their pomp and prosperity in this
world.2
n viz., The reward laid up for thee in the next life: or the gift of
prophecy, and the revelations with which GOD had favoured thee.
o It is said that when Mahommed's family were in any strait or
affliction, he used to order them to go to prayers, and to repeat this verse.3
1 Iidem. 2 See chapter 15, p. 194. 3 Al
Beidâwi.
CHAPTER XXI.
ENTITLED, THE PROPHETS;p REVEALED AT MECCA.
IN THE NAME OF THE MOST MERCIFUL GOD.
THE time of giving up their account draweth nigh unto the people of
Mecca; while they are sunk in negligence, turning aside from the consideration
thereof.
No admonition cometh unto them from their LORD, being lately revealed in
the Koran, but when they hear it,
they turn it to sport: their hearts are taken up with delights. And they
who act unjustly discourse privately together, saying, Is this Mohammed any
more than a man like yourselves? Will ye therefore come to hear a piece of
sorcery, when ye plainly perceive it to be so?
Say, My LORD knoweth whatever is spoken in heaven and on earth: it is he
who heareth and knoweth.
But they say, The Koran is a confused heap of dreams: nay, he hath forged
it; nay, he is a poet: let him come unto us therefore with some miracle, in
like manner as the former prophets were sent.
None of the cities which we have destroyed believed the miracles which
they saw performed before them: will these therefore believe, if they see a
miracle?
We sent none as our apostles before them, other than men, unto whom we
revealed our will. Ask those who are acquainted with the scripture, if ye
know not this.
We gave them not a body which could be supported without their eating
food; neither were they immortal.
But we made good our promise unto them: wherefore we delivered them, and
those whom we pleased; but we destroyed the exorbitant transgressors.
10 Now have we sent down unto you, O Koreish, the book of the Koran;
wherein there is honourable mention of you: will ye not therefore understand?
And how many cities have we overthrown, which were ungodly; and caused
other nations to rise up after them?
And when they felt our severe vengeance, behold, they fled swiftly from
those cities.
And the angels said scoffingly unto them, Do not fly; but return to that
wherein ye delighted, and to your habitations; peradventure ye will be asked.q
They answered, Alas for us! verily we have been unjust.r
And this their lamentation ceased not, until we had rendered them like
corn which is mown down and utterly extinct.
p The chapter bears this title, because some particular relating to
several of the ancient prophets are here recited.
q i.e., Concerning the present posture of affairs, by way of
consultation: or, that ye may be examined as to your deeds, that ye may
receive the reward thereof.1
r It is related that a prophet was sent to the inhabitants of certain
towns in Yaman, but instead of hearkening to his remonstrances, they killed
him: upon which GOD delivered them into the hands of Nebuchadnezzar, who put
them to the sword: a voice at the same time crying from heaven, Vengeance for
the blood of the prophets! Upon which they repented, and used the words of
this passage.
1 Idem, Jallalo'ddin, al Zamakh.
We created not the heavens and the earth, and that which is between them,
by way of sport.s
If we had pleased to take diversion, verily we had taken it with that
which beseemeth us;t if we had resolved to have done this.
But we will oppose truth to vanity, and it shall confound the same; and
behold, it shall vanish away. Woe be unto you, for that which ye impiously
utter concerning God!
since whoever is in heaven and on earth is subject unto him; and the
angels who are in his presence do not insolently disdain his service, neither
are they tired therewith.
20 They praise him night and day; they faint not.
Have they taken gods from the earth? Shall they raise the dead to life?
If there were either in heaven or on earth gods besides GOD, verily both
would be corrupted.u But far be that which they utter from GOD, the LORD of
the throne!
No account shall be demanded of him for what he shall do; but an account
shall be demanded of them.
Have they taken other gods besides him! Say, Produce your proof thereof.
This is the admonition of those who are contemporary with me, and the
admonition of those who have been before me:x but the greater part of them
know not the truth, and turn aside from the same.
We have sent no apostle before thee, but we revealed unto him that there
is no god beside myself, wherefore serve me.
They say, The Merciful hath begotten issue; and the angels are his
daughters.y GOD forbid! They are his honoured servants,
they prevent him not in anything which they say;z and they execute his
command.
He knoweth that which is before them, and that which is behind them; they
shall not intercede for any,
except for whom it shall please him; and they tremble for fear of him.
30 Whoever of them shall say, I am a god besides him; that angel will we
reward with hell: for so will we reward the unjust.
Do not the unbelievers therefore know, that the heavens and the earth
were solid, and we clave the same in sunder;a and made every living thing of
water? Will they not therefore believe?
And we placed stable mountains on the earth, lest it should move with
them;b and we made broad passages between them for paths, that they might be
directed in their journeys:
s But for the manifestation of our power and wisdom to people of
understanding, that they may seriously consider the wonders of the creation,
and direct their actions to the attainment of future happiness, neglecting the
vain pomp and fleeting pleasures of this world.
t viz., We had sought our pleasure in our own perfections; or, in the
spiritual beings which are in our immediate presence; and not in raising of
material buildings, with painted roofs, and fine floors, which is the
diversion of man.
Some think the original word, translated diversion, signifies in this
place a wife, or a child; and that the passage is particularly levelled
against the Christians.1
u That is, the whole creation would necessarily fall into confusion and
be overturned, by the competition of such mighty antagonists.
x i.e., This is the constant doctrine of all the sacred books; not only
of the Korân, but of those which were revealed in former ages; all of them
bearing witness to the great and fundamental truth of the unity of God.
y This passage was revealed on account of the Khozâites, who held the
angels to be the daughters of GOD.
z i.e., They presume not to say anything, until he hath spoken it;
behaving as servants who know their duty.
a That is, They were one continued mass of matter, till we separated
them, and divided the heaven into seven heavens, and the earth into as many
stories; and distinguished the various orbs of the one, and the different
climates of the other, &c. Or, as some choose to translate the words, The
heavens and the earth were shut up, and we opened the same; their meaning
being, that the heavens did not rain, nor the earth produce vegetables, till
GOD interposed his power.2
b See chapter 16, p. 196.
1 Iidem. 2 Al Beidâwi, Jallalo'ddin.
and we made the heaven a roof well supported. Yet they turn aside from
the signs thereof, not considering that they are the workmanship of God.
It is he who hath created the night, and the day, and the sun, and the
moon; all the celestial bodies move swiftly, each in its respective orb.
We have not granted unto any man before thee eternal permanency in this
world; if thou die, therefore, will they be immortal?c
Every soul shall taste of death: and we will prove you with evil, and
with good, for a trial of you; and unto us shall ye return.
When the unbelievers see thee, they receive thee only with scoffing,
saying, Is this he who mentioneth your gods with contempt? Yet themselves
believe not what is mentioned to them of the Merciful.d
Man is created of precipitation.e Hereafter will I show you my signs, so
that ye shall not wish them to be hastened.
They say, When will this threat be accomplished, if ye speak truth?
40 If they who believe not knew that the time will surely come, when they
shall not be able to drive back the fire of hell from their faces, nor from
their backs, neither shall they be helped, they would not hasten it.
But the day of vengeance shall come upon them suddenly, and shall strike
them with astonishment: they shall not be able to avert it, neither shall they
be respited.
Other apostles have been mocked before thee; but the punishment which
they scoffed at fell upon such of them as mocked.
Say unto the scoffers, Who shall save you by night and by day from the
Merciful? Yet they utterly neglect the remembrance of their LORD.
Have they gods who will defend them, besides us? They are not able to
help themselves; neither shall they be assisted against us by their
companions,
But we have permitted these men and their fathers to enjoy worldly
prosperity, so long as life was continued unto them. Do they not perceive
that we come unto the land of the unbelievers, and straiten the borders
thereof? Shall they therefore be the conquerors?
Say, I only preach unto you the revelation of God: but the deaf will not
hear thy call, whenever they are preached unto.
Yet if the least breath of the punishment of thy LORD touch them, they
will surely say, Alas for us! verily we have been unjust.
We will appoint just balances for the day of resurrection; neither shall
any soul be injured at all: although the merit or guilt of an action be of the
weight of a grain of mustard-seed only, we will produce it publicly; and there
will be sufficient accountants with us.
We formerly gave unto Moses and Aaron the law, being a distinctionf
between good and evil, and a light and admonition unto the pious;
50 who fear their LORD in secret, and who dread the hour of judgment.
And this book also is a blessed admonition, which we have sent down from
heaven: will ye therefore deny it?
c This passage was revealed when the infidels said, We expect to see
Mohammed die, like the rest of mankind.
d Denying his unity; or rejecting his apostles and the scriptures which
were given for their instruction, and particularly the Korân.
e Being hasty and inconsiderate.1 It is said this passage was revealed
on account of al Nodar Ebn al Hareth, when he desired Mohammed to hasten the
divine vengeance with which he threatened the unbelievers.2
f Arab. 'al Forkân. See the Prelim. Disc. Sect. III. p. 44.
1 See chapter 17, p. 208, &c. 2 Al Beidâwi.
And we gave unto Abraham his directiong heretofore, and we knew him to be
worthy of the revelations wherewith he was favored.
Remember when he said unto his father, and his people, What are these
images, to which ye are so entirely devoted?h
They answered, We found our fathers worshipping them.
He said, Verily both ye and your fathers have been in a manifest error.
They said, Dost thou seriously tell us the truth, or art thou one who
jestest with us?
He replied, Verily your LORD is the LORD of the heavens and the earth; it
is he who hath created them: and I am one of those who bear witness thereof.
By GOD, I will surely devise a plot against your idols, after ye shall
have retired from them, and shall have turned your backs.
And in the people's absence he went into the temple where the idols
stood, and he brake them all in pieces, except the biggest of them; that they
might lay the blame upon that.i And when they were returned, and saw the
havoc which had been made,
60 they said, Who hath done this to our gods? He is certainly an impious
person.
And certain of them answered, We heard a young man speak reproachfully of
them: he is named Abraham.
They said, Bring him therefore before the people, that they may bear
witness against him.
And when he was brought before the assembly, they said unto him, Hast
thou done this unto our gods, O Abraham?
He answered, Nay, that biggest of them hath done it: but ask them, if
they can speak.
And they returned unto themselves,j and said the one to the other, Verily
ye are the impious persons.
Afterwards they relapsed into their former obstinacy,k and said, Verily
thou knowest that these speak not.
Abraham answered, Do ye therefore worship, besides GOD, that which cannot
profit you at all, neither can it hurt you? Fie on you: and upon that which
ye worship besides GOD! Do ye not understand?
They said, Burn him, and avenge your gods: if ye do this it will be
well.l
g viz., The ten books of divine revelations which were given him.1
h See chapter 6, p. 95, &c., chapter 19, p. 230, and chapter 2, p. 28.
i Abraham took his opportunity to do this while the Chaldeans were
abroad in the fields, celebrating a great festival; and some say he hid
himself in the temple: and when he had accomplished his design, that he might
the more evidently convince them of their folly in worshipping them, he hung
the axe, with which he had hewn and broken down the images, on the neck of the
chief idol, named by some writers, Baal; as if he had been the author of all
the mischief.2 For this story, which, though it be false, is not ill
invented, Mohammed stands indebted to the Jews; who tell it with a little
variation: for they say Abraham performed this exploit in his father's shop,
during his absence; that Terah, on his return, demanding the occasion of the
disorder, his son told him that the idols had quarrelled and fallen together
by the ears about an offering of fine flour, which had been brought them by an
old woman; and that the father, finding he could not insist on the
impossibility of what Abraham pretended, without confessing the impotence of
his gods, fell into a violent passion and carried him to Nimrod that he might
be exemplarily punished for his insolence.3
j That is, They became sensible of their folly.
k Literally, They were turned down upon their heads.
l Perceiving they could not prevail against Abraham by dint of
argument, says al Beidâwi, they had recourse to persecution and torments. The
same commentator tells us the person who gave this counsel was a Persian
Curd,4 named Heyyûn, and that the earth opened and swallowed him up alive:
some, however, say it was Andeshân, a Magian priest;5 and others, that it was
Nimrod himself.
1 See the Prel. Disc. Sect. IV. p. 57. 2 Al Beidâwi,
Jallalo'ddin, &c. Vide Hyde, de Rel. vet. Pers. c. 2. 3 R. Gedal.
in Shalshel. hakkab. p. 8 Vide Maimon. Yad hazzaka, c. I, de idol.
4 Vide D'Herbel. Bibl. Orient. Art. Dhokak. et Schultens, Indic. Geogr.
in Vit. Saladini, voce Curdi. 5 Vide D'Herbel. p. 115.
And when Abraham was cast into the burning pile, we said, O fire, be thou
cold, and a preservation unto Abraham.m
70 And they sought to lay a plot against him: but we caused them to be the
sufferers.n
And we delivered him, and Lot, by bringing them into the land wherein we
have blessed all creatures.o
And we bestowed on him Isaac and Jacob, as an additional gift: and we
made all of them righteous persons.
We also made them models of religion,p that they might direct others by
our command: and we inspired into them the doing of good works, and the
observance of prayer, and the giving of alms; and they served us.
And unto Lot we gave wisdom and knowledge, and we delivered him out of
the city which committed filthy crimes; for they were a wicked and insolent
people;q
and we led him into our mercy; for he was an upright person.
And remember Noah, when he called for destruction on his people,r before
the prophets above mentioned: and we heard him, and delivered him and his
family from a great strait:
m The commentators relate that, by Nimrod's order, a large space was
enclosed at Cûtha, and filled with a vast quantity of wood, which being set on
fire burned so fiercely, that none dared to venture near it: then they bound
Abraham, and putting him into an engine (which some suppose to have been of
the devil's invention), shot him into the midst of the fire; from which he was
preserved by the angel Gabriel who was sent to his assistance; the fire
burning only the cords with which he was bound.1 They add that the fire
having miraculously lost its heat, in respect to Abraham, became an
odoriferous air, and that the pile changed to a pleasant meadow; though it
raged so furiously otherwise, that, according to some writers, about two
thousand of the idolaters were consumed by it.2
This story seems to have had no other foundation than that passage of
Moses, where GOD is said to have brought Abraham out of Ur, of the Chaldees,3
misunderstood: which words the Jews, the most trifling interpreters of
scripture, and some moderns who have followed them, have translated, out of
the fire of the Chaldees; taking the word Ur, not for the proper name of a
city, as it really is, but for an appellative, signifying fire.4 However, it
is a fable of some antiquity, and credited, not only by the Jews, but by
several of the eastern Christians; the twenty-fifth of the second Canûn, or
January, being set apart in the Syrian calendar, for the commemoration of
Abraham's being cast into the fire.5
The Jews also mention some other persecutions which Abraham underwent on
account of his religion, particularly a ten years' imprisonment;6 some saying
he was imprisoned by Nimrod;7 and others, by his father Terah.8
n Some tell us that Nimrod, on seeing this miraculous deliverance from
his palace, cried out, that he would make an offering to the GOD of Abraham;
and that he accordingly sacrificed four thousand kine.9 But, if he ever
relented, he soon relapsed into his former infidelity: for he built a tower
that he might ascend to heaven to see Abraham's GOD; which being overthrown,10
still persisting in his design, he would be carried to heaven in a chest borne
by four monstrous birds; but after wandering for some time through the air, he
fell down on a mountain with such a force, that he made it shake, whereto (as
some fancy) a passage in the Korân11 alludes, which may be translated,
although their contrivances be such as to make the mountains tremble.
Nimrod, disappointed in his design of making war with GOD, turned his
arms against Abraham, who, being a great prince, raised forces to defend
himself; but GOD, dividing Nimrod's subjects, and confounding their language,
deprived him of the greater part of his people, and plagued those who adhered
to him by swarms of gnats, which destroyed almost all of them: and one of
those gnats having entered into the nostril, or ear, of Nimrod, penetrated to
one of the membranes of his brain, where, growing bigger every day, it gave
him such intolerable pain, that he was obliged to cause his head to be beaten
with a mallet, in order to procure some ease, which torture he suffered four
hundred years; GOD being willing to punish, by one of the smallest of his
creatures, him who insolently boasted himself to be lord of all.12 A Syrian
calendar places the death of Nimrod, as if the time were well known, on the
eighth of Thamûz, or July.13
o i.e., Palestine; in which country the greater part of the prophets
appeared.
p See chapter 2, p. 14.
q See chapter 7, p. 113, &c., and chapter II, p. 166.
r See chapter 8, p. 132, note z.
1 Al Beidâwi, Jallalo'ddin, &c. Vide Morgan's Mahometism Expl. v. I,
chapter 4. 2 The MS Gospel of Barnabas, chapter 28.
3 Genes. xv. 7. 4 Vide Targ. Jonath. et Hierosol. in Genes. c. II et
15; et Hyde, de Rel. vet. Pers. p. 74, &c. 5 Vide Hyde, ibid., p.
73. 6 R. Eliez. Pirke, c. 26, &c. Vide Maim. More Nev. l. 3, c. 29.
7 Glossa Talmud. in Gemar. Bava bathra, 91, I.
8 In Aggada. 9 Al Beidâwi. 10 See chapter 16, p. 196.
11 Chapter 14, p. 190.
12 Vide D'Herbel. Bibl. Orient. Art. Nemrod. Hyde, ubi supra. 13
Vide Hyde, ibid. p. 74.
and we protected him from the people who accused our signs of falsehood;
for they were a wicked people, wherefore we drowned them all.
And remember David and Solomon, when they pronounced judgment concerning
a field, when the sheep of certain people had fed therein by night, having no
shepherd; and we were witnesses of their judgment:
and we gave the understanding thereof unto Solomon.s And on all of them
we bestowed wisdom, and knowledge. And we compelled the mountains to praise
us, with David; and the birds also:t and we did this.
80 And we taught him the art of making coats of mail for you,u that they
may defend you in your wars: will ye therefore be thankful?
And unto Solomon we subjected a strong wind:x it ran at his command to
the land whereon we had bestowed our blessing:y and we knew all things.
And we also subjected unto his command divers of the devils, who might
dive to get pearls for him, and perform other work besides this;z and we
watched over them.a
And remember Job;b when he cried unto his LORD, saying, Verily evil hath
afflicted me: but thou art the most merciful of those who show mercy.
s Some sheep, in their shepherd's absence, having broken into another
man's field (or vineyard, say others), by night, and eaten up the corn, a
dispute arose thereupon: and the cause being brought before David and Solomon,
the former said, that the owner of the land should take the sheep, in
compensation of the damage which he had sustained; but Solomon, who was then
but eleven years old, was of opinion that it would be more just for the owner
of the field to take only the profit of the sheep, viz., their milk, lambs,
and wool, till the shepherd should, by his own labour and at his own expense,
put the field into as good condition as when the sheep entered it; after which
the sheep might be returned to their master. And this judgment of Solomon was
approved by David himself as better than his own.1
t Mohammed, it seems, taking the visions of the Talmudists for truth,
believed that when David was fatigued with singing psalms, the mountains,
birds, and other parts of the creation, both animate and inanimate, relieved
him in chanting the divine praises. This consequence the Jews draw from the
words of the psalmist, when he calls on the several parts of nature to join
with him in celebrating the praise of GOD;2 it being their perverse custom to
expound passages in the most literal manner, which cannot bear a literal sense
without a manifest absurdity; and, on the contrary, to turn the plainest
passages into allegorical fancies.
u Men, before his inventing them, used to arm themselves with broad
plates of metal. Lest this fable should want something of the marvellous, one
writer tells us, that the iron which David used became soft in his hands like
wax.3
x Which transported his throne with prodigious swiftness. Some say,
this wind was violent or gentle, just as Solomon pleased.4
y viz., Palestine: whither the wind brought back Solomon's throne in
the evening, after having carried it to a distant country in the morning.
z Such as the building of cities and palaces, the fetching of rare
pieces of art from foreign countries, and the like.
a Lest they should swerve from his orders, or do mischief according to
their natural inclinations. Jallalo'ddin says, that when they had finished
any piece of building, they pulled it down before night, if they were not
employed in something new.
b The Mohammedan writers tell us, that Job was of the race of Esau, and
was blessed with a numerous family, and abundant riches; but that GOD proved
him, by taking away all that he had, even his children, who were killed by the
fall of a house; notwithstanding which he continued to serve GOD, and to
return him thanks, as usual; that he was then struck with a filthy disease,
his body being full of worms, and so offensive, that as he lay on the dunghill
none could bear to come near him: that his wife, however (whom some call
Rahmat the daughter of Ephraim the son of Joseph, and others Makhir the
daughter of Manasses), attended him with great patience, supporting him with
what she earned by her labour; but that the devil appeared to her one day,
after having reminded her of her past prosperity, promised her that if she
would worship him, he would restore all they had lost; whereupon she asked her
husband's consent, who was so angry at the proposal, that he swore, if he
recovered, to give his wife a hundred stripes: that Job having pronounced the
prayer recorded in this passage, GOD sent Gabriel, who taking him by the hand
raised him up; and at the same time a fountain sprang up at his feet, of which
having drank, the worms fell off his body, and washing therein he recovered
his former health and beauty: that GOD then restored all to him double; his
wife also becoming young and handsome again, and bearing him twenty-six sons;
and that Job, to satisfy his oath, was directed by GOD to strike her one blow
with a palm-branch having a hundred leaves.1 Some, to express the great
riches which were bestowed on Job after his sufferings, say he had two
threshing-floors, one for wheat, and the other for barley, and that GOD sent
two clouds which rained gold on the one, and silver on the other, till they
ran over.2 The traditions differ as to the continuance of Job's calamities;
one will have it to be eighteen years, another thirteen, another three, and
another exactly seven years seven months and seven hours.
1 Al Beidâwi, Jallalo'ddin, &c. 2 See Psalm cxlviii
3 Tarikh Montakkab. Vide D'Herbel. p. 284.
4 See chapter 27.
Wherefore we heard him, and relieved him from the evil which was upon
him: and we restored unto him his family, and as many more with them, through
our mercy, and for an admonition unto those who serve God.
And remember Ismael, and Edris,c and Dhu'lkefl.d All these were patient
persons;
wherefore we led them into our mercy; for they were righteous doers.
And remember Dhu'lnun,e when he departed in wrath,f and thought that we
could not exercise our power over him. And he cried out in the darkness,g
saying, There is no GOD, besides thee: praise be unto thee! Verily I have
been one of the unjust.
90 Wherefore we heard him, and delivered him from affliction;h for so do we
deliver the true believers.
And remember Zacharias, when he called upon his LORD, saying, O LORD,
leave me not childless: yet thou art the best heir.
Wherefore we heard him, and we gave him John; and we rendered his wife
fit for bearing a child unto him. These strove to excel in good works, and
called upon us with love, and with fear; and humbled themselves before us.
And remember her who preserved her virginity,i and into whom we breathed
of our spirit; ordaining her and her son for a sign unto all creatures.
Verily this your religion is one religion,j and I am your LORD; wherefore
serve me.
But the Jews and Christians have made schisms in the affair of their
religion among themselves; but all of them shall appear before us.
Whosoever shall do good works, being a true believer, there shall be no
denial of the reward due to his endeavors; and we will surely write it down
unto him.
An inviolable prohibition is laid on every city which we shall have
destroyed; for that they shall not return any more into the world,
c See chapter 19, p. 230.
d Who this prophet was is very uncertain. One commentator will have
him to be Elias, or Joshua, or Zacharias:3 another supposes him to have been
the son of Job, and to have dwelt in Syria; to which some add, that he was
first a very wicked man, but afterwards repenting, died; upon which these
words appeared miraculously written over his door, Now hath God been merciful
unto Dhu'lkefl:4 and a third tells us he was a person of great strictness of
life, and one who used to decide causes to the satisfaction of all parties,
because he was never in a passion: and that he was called Dhu'lkefl from his
continual fasting, and other religious exercises.5
e This is the surname of Jonas; which was given him because he was
swallowed by the fish. See chapter 10, p. 157.
f Some suppose Jonas's anger was against the Ninevites, being tired
with preaching to them for so long a time, and greatly disgusted at their
obstinacy and ill usage of him; but others, more agreeably to scripture, say
the reason of his ill humour was GOD'S pardoning of that people on their
repentance, and averting the judgment which Jonas had threatened them with, so
that he thought he had been made a liar.6
g i.e., Out of the belly of the fish.
h See chapter 37.
i Namely, the Virgin Mary
j Being the same which was professed by all the prophets, and holy men
and women, without any fundamental difference or variation.
1 Al Beidâwi, Jallalo'ddin, Abu'lfeda, &c. See D'Herbel. Bibl. Orient.
Art. Aicub. 2 Jallalo'ddin.
3 Al Beidâwi. 4 Abu'lf. 5 Jallalo'ddin. 6 Al
Beidâwi.
until Gog and Magog shall have a passage opened for them,k and they shall
hasten from every high hill,l
and the certain promise shall draw near to be fulfilled: and behold, the
eyes of the infidels shall be fixed with astonishment, and they shall say,
Alas for us! we were formerly regardless of this day; yea, we were wicked
doers.
Verily both ye, O men of Mecca, and the idols which ye worship besides
GOD, shall be cast as fuel into hell fire: ye shall go down into the same.
If these were really gods, they would not go down into the same: and all
of them shall remain therein forever.
100 In that place shall they groan for anguish; and they shall not hear
ought therein.m
As for those unto whom the most excellent reward of paradise hath been
predestinated by us, they shall be transported far off from the same;n
they shall not hear the least sound thereof: and they shall continue
forever in the felicity which their souls desire.
The greatest terror shall not trouble them; and the angels shall meet
them to congratulate them, saying, This is your day which ye were promised.
On that day we will roll up the heavens, as the angel al Sijilo rolleth
up the book wherein every man's actions are recorded. As we made the first
creature out of nothing, so we will also reproduce it at the resurrection.
This is a promise which it lieth on us to fulfil: we will surely perform it.
And now have we written in the psalms, after the promulgation of the law,
that my servants the righteous shall inherit the earth.p
Verily in this book are contained sufficient means of salvation, unto
people who serve God.
We have not sent thee, O Mohammed, but as a mercy unto all creatures.
Say, No other hath been revealed unto me, than that your GOD is one GOD:
will ye therefore be resigned unto him?
But if they turn their backs to the confession of God's unity, say, I
proclaim war against you all equally:q but I know not whether that which ye
are threatened withr be nigh, or whether it be far distant.
110 Verily God knoweth the discourse which is spoken in public; and he also
knoweth that which ye hold in private.
I know not but peradventure the respite granted you is for a trial of
you; and that he may enjoy the prosperity of this world for a time.
Say, LORD, judge between me and my adversaries with truth. Our LORD is
the Merciful; whose assistance is to be implored against the blasphemies and
calumnies which ye utter.
k i.e., Until the resurrection; one sign of the approach whereof will
be the eruption of those barbarians.1
l In this passage some copies, instead of hadabin, i.e., an elevated
part of the earth, have jadathin, which signifies a grave; and if we follow
the latter reading, the pronoun they must not refer to Gog and Magog, but to
mankind in general.
m Because of their astonishment and the insupportable torments they
shall endure; or, as others expound the words, They shall not hear therein
anything which may give them the least comfort.
n One Ebn al Zabári objected to the preceding words, Both ye and that
which ye worship besides GOD, shall be cast into hell, because, being general
, they asserted an absolute falsehood; some of the objects of idolatrous
worship being so far from any danger of damnation, that they were in the
highest favour with GOD, as JESUS, Ezra, and the angels: wherefore this
passage was revealed, excepting those who were predestined to salvation.2
o Whose office it is to write down the actions of every man's life,
which, at his death, he rolls up, as completed. Some pretend one of
Mohammed's scribes is here meant: and others take the word Sijil, or, as it is
also written, Sijjill, for an appellative, signifying a book or written
scroll; and accordingly render the passage, as a written scroll is rolled up.3
p These words are taken from Psalm xxxvii. v. 29.
q Or, I have publicly declared unto you what I was commanded.
r viz., The losses and disgraces which ye shall suffer by the future
successes of the Moslems; or, the day of judgment.
1 See the Prelim. Disc. Sect. IV. p. 63. 2 Al Beidâwi,
Jallalo'ddin. 3 Iidem, &c.
CHAPTER XXII.
ENTITLED, THE PILGRIMAGE;s REVEALED AT MECCA.t
IN THE NAME OF THE MOST MERCIFUL GOD.
O MEN of Mecca, fear your LORD. Verily the shock of the last houru will
be a terrible thing.
On the day whereon ye shall see it, every woman who giveth suck shall
forget the infant which she suckleth,x and every female that is with young
shall cast her burden; and thou shalt see men seemingly drunk, yet they shall
not be really drunk: but the punishment of GOD will be severe.
There is a man who disputeth concerning GOD without knowledge,y and
followeth every rebellious devil:
against whom it is written, that whoever shall take him for his patron,
he shall surely seduce him, and shall lead him into the torment of hell.
O men, if ye be in doubt concerning the resurrection, consider that we
first created you of the dust of the ground; afterwards, of seed; afterwards,
of a little coagulated blood;z afterwards, of a piece of flesh, perfectly
formed in part, and in part imperfectly formed; that we might make our power
manifest unto you: and we caused that which we please to rest in the wombs,
until the appointed time of delivery. Then we bring you forth infants; and
afterwards we permit you to attain your age of full strength: and one of you
dieth in his youth, and another of you is postponed to a decrepit age, so that
he forgetteth whatever he knew. Thou seest the earth sometimes dried up and
barren: but when we send down rain thereon, it is put in motion and swelleth,
and produceth every kind of luxuriant vegetables.
This showeth that GOD is the truth, and that he raiseth the dead to life,
and that he is almighty;
and that the hour of judgment will surely come (there is no doubt
thereof), and that GOD will raise again those who are in the graves.
s Some ceremonies used at the pilgrimage of Mecca being mentioned in
this chapter, gave occasion to the inscription.
t Some1 except two verses, beginning at these words, There are some men
who serve GOD, in a wavering manner, &c. And others2 six verses, beginning
at, These are two opposite parties, &c.
u Or, the earthquake which, some say, is to happen a little before the
sun rises from the west; one sign of the near approach of the day of
judgment.3
x See the Prelim. Disc. Sect. IV. p. 64.
y This passage was revealed on account of al Nodar Ebn al Hareth, who
maintained that the angels were the daughters of GOD, that the Korân was a
fardel of old fables, and denied the resurrection.4
z See chapter 96.
1 Jallalo'ddin. 2 Al Beidâwi. 3 See the Prelim. Disc.
Sect. IV. p. 61, &c.
4 Al Beidâwi.
There is a man who disputeth concerning GOD without either knowledge, or
a direction, or an enlightening book;a
proudly turning his side, that he may seduce men from the way of GOD.
Ignominy shall attend him in this world; and on the day of resurrection we
will make him taste the torment of burning,
10 when it shall be said unto him. This thou sufferest because of that
which thy hands have formerly committed; for GOD is not unjust towards
mankind.
There are some men who serve GOD in a wavering manner, standing, as it
were, on the vergeb of the true religion. If good befall one of them, he
resteth satisfied therein; but if any tribulation befall him, he turneth
himself round, with the loss both of this world, and of the life to come.
This is manifest perdition.
He will call upon that, besides GOD, which can neither hurt him, nor
profit him. This is an error remote from truth.
He will invoke him who will sooner be of hurt to his worshipper than of
advantage. Such is surely a miserable patron, and a miserable companion.
But GOD will introduce those who shall believe, and do righteous works,
into gardens through which rivers flow; for GOD doth that which he pleaseth.
Whoso thinketh that GOD will not assist his apostle in this world, and in
the world to come, let him strain a rope towards heaven, then let him put an
end to his life, and see whether his devices can render that ineffectual, for
which he was angry.c
Thus do we send down the Koran, being evident signs: for GOD directeth
whom he pleaseth.
As to the true believers, and those who Judaize, and the Sabians, and the
Christians, and the Magians, and the idolaters; verily GOD shall judge between
them on the day of resurrection; for GOD is witness of all things.
Dost thou not perceive that all creatures both in heaven and on earth
adore GOD;d and the sun, and the moon, and the stars, and the mountains, and
the trees, and the beasts, and many men? but many are worthy of chastisement:
and whomsoever GOD shall render despicable, there shall be none to
honour; for GOD doth that which he pleaseth.
a The person here meant, it is said, was Abu Jahl,1 a principal man
among the Koreish, and a most inveterate enemy of Mohammed and his religion.
His true name was Amru Ebn Heshâm, of the family of Makhzûm; and he was
surnamed Abu'lhocm, i.e., the father of wisdom, which was afterwards changed
into Abu Jahl, or the father of folly. He was slain in the battle of Bedr.2
b This expression alludes to one who being posted in the skirts of an
army, if he sees the victory inclining to his own side, stands his ground, but
if the enemy is likely to prevail, takes to his heels.
The passage, they say, was revealed on account of certain Arabs of the
desert, who came to Medina, and having professed Mohammedism, were well enough
pleased with it so long as their affairs prospered, but if they met with any
adversity, were sure to lay the blame on their new religion. A tradition of
Abu Saïd mentions another accident as the occasion of this passage, viz., that
a certain Jew embraced Islâm, but afterwards taking a dislike to it, on
account of some misfortune which had befallen him, went to Mohammed, and
desired he might renounce it, and be freed from the obligation of it: but the
prophet told him that no such thing was allowed in his religion.3
c Or, Let him tie a rope to the roof of his house, and hang himself;
that is, let him carry his anger and resentment to ever so great a height,
even to be driven to the most desperate extremities, and see whether with all
his endeavours he will be able to intercept the divine assistance.4
d Confessing his power, and obeying his supreme command.
1 Jallalo'ddin. 2 See chapter 8, p. 132. 3 Al
Beidâwi. 4 Idem.
20 These are two opposite parties, who dispute concerning their LORD.e And
they who believe not shall have garments of fire fitted unto them: boiling
water shall be poured on their heads;
their bowels shall be dissolved thereby, and also their skins; and they
shall be beaten with maces of iron.
So often as they shall endeavor to get out of hell, because of the
anguish of their torments, they shall be dragged back into the same; and their
tormentors shall say unto them, Taste ye the pain of burning.
GOD will introduce those who shall believe, and act righteously, into
gardens through which rivers flow: they shall be adorned therein with
bracelets of gold, and pearls; and their vestures therein shall be silk.
They are directed unto a good saying;f and are directed into the
honourable way.
But they who shall disbelieve, and obstruct the way of GOD, and hinder
men from visiting the holy temple of Mecca, which we have appointed for a
place of worship unto all men: the inhabitant thereof, and the stranger have
an equal right to visit it:
and whosoever shall seek impiously to profane it, we will cause him to
taste a grievous torment.
Call to mind when we gave the site of the house of the Caaba for an abode
unto Abraham,g saying, Do not associate anything with me; and cleanse my house
for those who compass it, and who stand up, and who bow down to worship.
And proclaim unto the people a solemn pilgrimage;h let them come unto
thee on foot, and on every lean camel, arriving from every distant road;
that they may be witnesses of the advantages which accrue to them from
the visiting this holy place,i and may commemorate the name of GOD on the
appointed days,j in gratitude for the brute cattle which he hath bestowed on
them. Wherefore eat thereof, and feed the needy, and the poor.
30 Afterwards let them put an end to the neglect of their persons;k and let
them pay their vows,l and compass the ancient house.m
e viz., The true believers, and the infidels. The passage is said to
have been revealed on occasion of a dispute between the Jews and the
Mohammedans; the former insisting that they were in greater favour with GOD,
their prophet and revelations being prior to those of the latter; and these
replying, that they were more in GOD'S favour, for that they believed not only
in Moses but also in Mohammed, and in all the scriptures without exception;
whereas the Jews rejected Mohammed, though they knew him to be a prophet, out
of envy.1
f viz., The profession of GOD'S unity; or these words, which they shall
use at their entrance into paradise, Praise be unto GOD, who hath fulfilled
his promise unto us.2
g i.e., For a place of religious worship; showing him the spot where it
had stood, and also the model of the old building, which had been taken up to
heaven at the flood.3
h It is related that Abraham, in obedience to this command, went up to
Mount Abu kobeis, near Mecca, and cried from thence, O men, perform the
pilgrimage to the house of your LORD; and that GOD caused those who were then
in the loins of their fathers, and the wombs of their mothers, from east to
west, and who, he knew beforehand, would perform the pilgrimage, to hear his
voice. Some say, however, that these words were directed to Mohammed,
commanding him to proclaim the pilgrimage of valediction:4 according to which
exposition the passage must have been revealed at Medina.
i viz., The temporal advantage made by the great trade driven at Mecca
during the pilgrimage, and the spiritual advantage of having performed so
meritorious a work.
j Namely, The ten first days of Dhu'lhajja; or the tenth day of the
same month, on which they slay the sacrifices, and the three following days.5
k By shaving their heads, and other parts of their bodies, and cutting
their beards and nails in the valley of Mina; which the pilgrims are not
allowed to do from the time they become Mohrims, and have solemnly dedicated
themselves to the performance of the pilgrimage, till they have finished the
ceremonies, and slain their victims.6
l By doing the good works which they have vowed to do in their
pilgrimage. Some understand the words only of the performance of the
requisite ceremonies.
m i.e., The Caaba; which the Mohammedans pretend was the first edifice
built and appointed for the worship of GOD.1 The going round this chapel is a
principal ceremony of the pilgrimage, and is often repeated; but the last time
of their doing it, when they take their farewell of the temple, seems to be
more particularly meant in this place.
1 Idem. 2 Idem. 3 See the Prelim. Disc., Sect. IV.
4 Al Beidâwi. 5 Idem, Jallalo'ddin. 6 Iidem. See
chapter 2, p. 14, chapter 5, p. 85, and Bobov. de Peregr. Meccana, p. 15, &c.
1 See chapter 3, p. 42, and the Prelim. Disc. Sect. IV.
This let them do. And whoever shall regard the sacred ordinances of
GOD;n this will be better for him in the sight of his LORD. All sorts of
cattle are allowed you to eat, except what hath been read unto you, in former
passages of the Koran, to be forbidden. But depart from the abomination of
idols, and avoid speaking that which is false:o
being orthodox in respect to GOD, associating no other god with him; for
whoever associateth, any other with GOD is like that which falleth from
heaven, and which the birds snatch away, or the wind bloweth to a far distant
place.p
This is so. And whoso maketh valuable offerings unto GOD;q verily they
proceed from the piety of men's hearts.
Ye receive various advantages from the cattle designed for sacrifices,
until a determined time for slaying them: then the place of sacrificing them
is at the ancient house.
Unto the professors of every religionr have we appointed certain rites,
that they may commemorate the name of GOD on slaying the brute cattle which he
hath provided for them. Your GOD is one GOD: wherefore resign yourselves
wholly unto him. And do thou bear good tidings unto those who humble
themselves;
whose hearts, when mention is made of GOD, are struck with fear; and unto
those who patiently endure that which befalleth them; and who duly perform
their prayers, and give alms out of what we have bestowed on them.
The camels slain for sacrifice have we appointed for you as symbols of
your obedience unto GOD: ye also receive other advantages from them.
Wherefore commemorate the name of GOD over them, when ye slay them, standing
on their feet disposed in right order:s and when they are fallen down dead,
eat of them; and give to eat thereof both unto him who is content with what is
given him, without asking, and unto him who asketh.t Thus have we given you
dominion over them, that ye might return us thanks.
n By observing what he has commanded, and avoiding what he has
forbidden, or, as the words also signify, Whoever shall honour what GOD hath
sanctified, or commanded not to be profaned; as the temple and territory of
Mecca, and the sacred months, &c.
o Either by asserting wrong and impious things of the Deity; or by
bearing false witness against your neighbours.
p Because he who falls into idolatry, sinketh from the height of faith
into the depth of infidelity, has his thoughts distracted by wicked lusts, and
is hurried by the devil into the most absurd errors.2
q By choosing a well-favoured and costly victim, in honour of him to
whom it is destined. They say Mohammed once offered a hundred fat camels, and
among them one which had belonged to Abu Jahl, having in his nose a ring of
gold: and that Omar offered a noble camel, for which he had been bid three
hundred dinârs.3
The original may also be translated generally, Whoso regardeth the rites
of the pilgrimage, &c. But the victims seem to be more particularly intended
in this place.
r Jallalo'ddin understands this passage in a restrained sense, of the
former nations who were true believers; to whom God appointed a sacrifice, and
a fixed place and proper ceremonies for the offering of it.
s That is, as some expound the word, standing on three feet, having one
of their fore feet tied up, which is the manner of tying camels to prevent
their moving from the place. Some copies instead of sawâffa, read sawâffena,
from the verb safana, which properly signifies the posture of a horse, when he
stands on three feet, the edge of the fourth only touching the ground.
t Or, as the words may also be rendered, Unto him who asketh in a
modest and humble manner, and unto him who wanteth but dareth not ask.
2 Al Beidâwi. 3 Idem.
Their flesh is not accepted of GOD, neither their blood; but your piety
is accepted of him. Thus have we given you dominion over them, that ye might
magnify GOD, for the revelations whereby he hath directed you. And bear good
tidings unto the righteous,
that GOD will repel the ill designs of the infidels from the true
believers; for GOD loveth not every perfidious unbeliever.
40 Permission is granted unto those who take arms against the unbelievers,
for that they have been unjustly persecuted by them (and GOD is certainly able
to assist them):
who have been turned out of their habitations injuriously, and for no
other reason than because they say, Our LORD is GOD.u And if GOD did not
repel the violence of some men by others, verily monasteries, and churches,
and synagogues, and the temples of the Moslems, wherein the name of GOD is
frequently commemorated, would be utterly demolished.x And GOD will certainly
assist him who shall be on his side: for GOD is strong and mighty.
And he will assist those who, if we establish them in the earth, will
observe prayer, and give alms, and command that which is just, and forbid that
which is unjust. And unto GOD shall be the end of all things.
If they accuse thee, O Mohammed, of imposture; consider that, before
them, O Mohammed, of imposture; consider that, before them, the people of
Noah, and the tribes of Ad and Thamud, and the people of Abraham, and the
people of Lot, and the inhabitants of Madian, accused their prophets of
imposture: and Moses was also charged with falsehood. And I granted a long
respite unto the unbelievers: but afterwards I chastised them; and how
different was the change I made in their condition!
How many cities have we destroyed, which were ungodly, and which are now
fallen to ruin on their roofs? And how many wells have been abandoned,y and
lofty castles?
Do they not therefore journey through the land? And have they not hearts
to understand with, or ears to hear with? Surely as to these things their
eyes are not blind, but the hearts are blind which are in their breasts.
They will urge thee to hasten the threatened punishment; but GOD will not
fail to perform what he hath threatened: and verily one day with thy LORD is
as a thousand years, of those which ye compute.z
Unto how many cities have I granted respite, though they were wicked?
Yet afterwards I chastised them: and unto me shall they come to be judged at
the last day.
Say, O men, verily I am only a public preacher unto you.
u This was the first passage of the Korân which allowed Mohammed and
his followers to defend themselves against their enemies by force, and was
revealed a little before the flight to Medina; till which time the prophet had
exhorted his Moslems to suffer the injuries offered them with patience, which
is also commanded in above seventy different places of the Korân.1
x That is, The public exercise of any religion, whether true or false,
is supported only by force; and therefore, as Mohammed would argue, the true
religion must be established by the same means.
y That is, How many spots in the deserts, which were formerly
inhabited, are now abandoned? a neglected well being the proper sign of such a
deserted dwelling in those parts, as ruins are of a demolished town.
Some imagine that this passage intends more particularly a well at the
foot of a certain hill in the province of Hadramaut, and a castle built on the
top of the same hill, both belonging to the people of Handha Ebn Safwân, a
remnant of the Thamudites, who having killed their prophet, were utterly
destroyed by GOD, and their dwelling abandoned.2
z See 2 Pet. iii. 8.
1 Al Beidâwi, &c. Vide the Prelim. Disc. Sect. II. p. 38, &c.
2 Iidem
And they who believe, and do good works, shall obtain forgiveness and an
honourable provision.
50 But those who endeavor to make our signs of none effect shall be the
inhabitants of hell.
We have sent no apostle, or prophet, before thee, but, when he read,
Satan suggested some error in his reading.a But GOD shall make void that
which Satan hath suggested: then shall GOD confirm his signs; for GOD is
knowing and wise.
But this he permitteth, that he may make that which Satan hath suggested,
a temptation unto those in whose hearts there is an infirmity, and whose
hearts are hardened (for the ungodly are certainly in a wide disagreement from
the truth):
and that they on whom knowledge hath been bestowed may know that this
book is the truth from thy LORD, and may believe therein; and that their
hearts may acquiesce in the same: for GOD is surely the director of those who
believe, into the right way.
But the infidels will not cease to doubt concerning it, until the hour of
judgment cometh suddenly upon them; or until the punishment of a grievous dayb
overtake them.
On that day the kingdom shall be GOD'S: he shall judge between them. And
they who shall have believed, and shall have wrought righteousness, shall be
in gardens of pleasure;
but they who shall have disbelieved, and shall have charged our signs
with falsehood, those shall suffer a shameful punishment.
And as to those who shall have fled their country for the sake of GOD'S
true religion, and afterwards shall have been slain, or shall have died; on
them will GOD bestow an excellent provision; and GOD is the best provider.
He will surely introduce them with an introduction with which they shall
be well pleased; for GOD is knowing and gracious.
This is so. Whoever shall take a vengeance equal to the injury which
hath been done him,c and shall afterwards be unjustly treated;d verily GOD
will assist him: for GOD is merciful, and ready to forgive.
60 This shall be done, for that GOD causeth the night to succeed the day,
and he causeth the day to succeed the night; and for that GOD both heareth and
seeth.
a The occasion of the passage is thus related. Mohammed one day
reading the 53rd chapter of the Korân, when he came to this verse, What think
ye of Allât, and al Uzza, and of Manâh, the other third goddess? the devil put
the following words into his mouth, which he pronounced through inadvertence,
or, as some tell us, because he was then half asleep.1 viz., These are the
most high and beauteous damsels, whose intercession is to be hoped for. The
Koreish, who were sitting near Mohammed, greatly rejoiced at what they had
heard, and when he had finished the chapter, joined with him and his followers
in making their adoration: but the prophet, being acquainted by the angel
Gabriel with the reason of their compliance, and with what he had uttered, was
deeply concerned at his mistake, till this verse was revealed for his
consolation.2
We are told however by Al Beidâwi, that the more intelligent and
accurate persons reject the aforesaid story; and the verb, here translated
read, signifying also to wish for anything, interpret the passage of the
suggestions of the devil to debauch the affections of those holy persons, or
to employ their minds in vain wishes and desires.
b Or, a day which maketh childless; by which some great misfortune in
war is expressed: as the overthrow the infidels received at Bedr. Some
suppose the resurrection is here intended.
c And shall not take a more severe revenge than the fact deserves.
d By the aggressor's seeking to revenge himself again of the person
injured, by offering him some further violence.
The passage seems to relate to the vengeance which the Moslems should
take of the infidels, for their unjust persecution of them.
1 Yahya. 2 Al Beidâwi, Jallalo'ddin, Yahya, &c. See
chapter 16, p. 203.
This, because GOD is truth, and because what they invoke besides him is
vanity; and for that GOD is the high, the mighty.
Dost thou not see that GOD sendeth down water from heaven, and the earth
becometh green? for GOD is gracious and wise.
Unto him belongeth whatsoever is in heaven and on earth: and GOD is self-
sufficient, worthy to be praised.
Dost thou not see that GOD hath subjected whatever is in the earth to
your service, and also the ships which sail in the sea, by his command? And
he withholdeth the heaven that it fall not on the earth, unless by his
permission:e for GOD is gracious unto mankind, and merciful.
It is he who hath given you life, and will hereafter cause you to die;
afterwards he will again raise you to life, at the resurrection: but man is
surely ungrateful.
Unto the professors of every religion have we appointed certain rites,
which they observe. Let them not therefore dispute with thee concerning this
matter: but invite them unto thy LORD: for thou followest the right direction.
But if they enter into debate with thee, answer, GOD well knoweth that
which ye do:
GOD will judge between you on the day of resurrection, concerning that
wherein ye now disagree.
Dost thou not know that GOD knoweth whatever is in heaven and on earth?
Verily this is written in the book of his decrees: this is easy with GOD.
70 They worship, besides GOD, that concerning which he hath sent down no
convincing proof, and concerning which they have no knowledge: but the unjust
doers shall have none to assist them.
And when our evident signs are rehearsed unto them, thou mayest perceive,
in the countenances of the unbelievers, a disdain thereof: it wanteth little
but that they rush with violence on those who rehearse our signs unto them.
Say, Shall I declare unto you a worse thing than this? The fire of hell,
which GOD hath threatened unto those who believe not, is worse; and an unhappy
journey shall it be thither.
O men, a parable is propounded unto you; wherefore hearken unto it.
Verily the idols which ye invoke, besides GOD, can never create a single fly,
although they were all assembled for that purpose: and if the fly snatch
anything from them, they cannot recover the same from it.f Weak is the
petitioner, and the petitioned.
They judge not of GOD according to his due estimation: for GOD is
powerful and mighty.
GOD chooseth messengers from among the angels,g and from among men: for
GOD is he who heareth and seeth.
He knoweth that which is before them, and that which is behind them: and
unto GOD shall all things return.
O true believers, bow down, and prostrate yourselves, and worship your
LORD; and work righteousness, that ye may be happy:
and fight in defence of GOD'S true religion, as it behooveth you to fight
for the same. He hath chosen you, and hath not imposed on you any difficulty
in the religion which he hath given you, the religion of your father Abraham:
he hath named you Moslems
e Which it will do at the last day.
f The commentators say, that the Arabs used to anoint the images of
their gods with some odoriferous composition, and with honey, which the flies
eat, though the doors of the temple were carefully shut, getting in at the
windows or crevices.
Perhaps Mohammed took this argument from the Jews, who pretend that the
temple of Jerusalem, and the sacrifices there offered to the true GOD, were
never annoyed by flies;1 whereas swarms of those insects infested the heathen
temples, being drawn thither by the steam of the sacrifices.2
g Who are the bearers of the divine revelations to the prophets; but
ought not to be the objects of worship.
1 Pirke Aboth c. 5, Sect. 6, 7. 2 Vide Selden, de Diis
Syris, Synt. 2, c. 6.
heretofore, and in this book; that our apostle may be a witness against
you at the day of judgment, and that ye may be witnesses against the rest of
mankind. Wherefore be ye constant at prayer; and give alms: and adhere firmly
unto GOD. He is your master; and he is the best master, and the best
protector.
________
CHAPTER XXIII.
ENTITLED, THE TRUE BELIEVERS; REVEALED AT MECCA.
IN THE NAME OF THE MOST MERCIFUL GOD.
NOW are the true believers happy:
who humble themselves in their prayer,
and who eschew all vain discourse,
and who are doers of alms-deeds;
and who keep themselves from carnal knowledge of any women
except their wives, or the captives which their right hands possess (for
as to them they shall be blameless:
but whosoever coveteth any woman beyond these, they are transgressors):
and who acquit themselves faithfully of their trust, and justly perform
their covenant;
and who observe their appointed times of prayer:
10 these shall be the heirs,
who shall inherit paradise; they shall continue therein forever.
We formerly created man in a finer sort of clay;
afterwards we placed him in the form of seed in a sure receptacle:h
afterwards we made the seed coagulated blood; and we formed the
coagulated blood into a piece of flesh: then we formed the piece of flesh into
bones: and we clothed those bones with flesh: then we produced the same by
another creation.i Wherefore blessed be GOD, the most excellent Creator!j
After this shall ye die:
and afterwards shall ye be restored to life, on the day of resurrection.
And we have created over you seven heavens:k and we are not negligent of
what we have created.
And we send down rain from heaven, by measure; and we cause it to remain
on the earth: we are also certainly able to deprive you of the same.
And we cause gardens of palm-trees, and vineyards, to spring forth for
you by means thereof; wherein ye have many fruits, and whereof ye eat.
20 And we also raise for you a tree springing from Mount Sinai;l which
produceth oil, and a sauce for those who eat.
h viz., The womb.
i i.e., Producing a perfect man, composed of soul and body.
j See chapter 6, p. 97, note d.
k Literally, seven paths; by which the heavens are meant, because,
according to some expositors they are the paths of the angels and of the
celestial bodies: though the original word also signifies things which are
folded or placed like stories one above another, as the Mohammedans suppose
the heavens to be.
l viz., The olive. The gardens near this mountain are yet famous for
the excellent fruit-trees of almost all sorts which grow there.1
1 Vide Voyages de Thevenot, liv. 2, ch. 9.
Ye have likewise an instruction in the cattle; we give you to drink of
the milk which is in their bellies, and ye receive many advantages from them;
and of them do ye eat:
and on them, and on ships, are ye carried.m
We sent Noah heretofore unto his people, and he said, O my people, serve
GOD: ye have no GOD besides him; will ye therefore not fear the consequence of
your worshipping other gods?
And the chiefs of his people, who believed not, said, This is no other
than a man, as ye are: he seeketh to raise himself to a superiority over you.
If GOD had pleased to have sent a messenger unto you, he would surely have
sent angels: we have not heard this of our fore-fathers.
Verily he is no other than a man disturbed with frenzy: wherefore wait
concerning him for a time.
Noah said, O LORD, do thou protect me; for that they accuse me of
falsehood.
And we revealed our orders unto him, saying, Make the ark in our sight;
and according to our revelation. And when our decree cometh to be executed,
and the oven shall boil and pour forth water,
carry into it of every species of animals one pair; and also thy family,
except such of them on whom a previous sentence of destruction hath passed:n
and speak not unto me in behalf of those who have been unjust; for they shall
be drowned.
And when thou and they who shall be with thee shall go up into the ark,
say Praise be unto GOD, who hath delivered us from the ungodly people!
30 And say, O LORD, cause me to come down from this ark with a blessed
descent; for thou art the best able to bring me down from the same with
safety.
Verily herein were signs of our omnipotence; and we proved mankind
thereby.
Afterwards we raised up another generationo after them;
and we sent unto them an apostle from among them,p who said, Worship GOD:
ye have no GOD besides him; will ye therefore not fear his vengeance?
And the chiefs of his people, who believed not, and who denied the
meeting of the life to come, and on whom we had bestowed affluence in this
present life, said, This is no other than a man, as ye are; he eateth of that
whereof ye eat,
and he drinketh of that whereof ye drink:
and if ye obey a man like unto yourselves, ye will surely be sufferers.
Doth he threaten you that after ye shall be dead, and shall become dust
and bones, ye shall be brought forth alive from your graves?
Away, away with that ye are threatened with!
There is no other life besides our present life: we die, and we live; and
we shall not be raised again.
40 This is no other than a man, who deviseth a lie concerning GOD: but we
will not believe him.
Their apostle said, O LORD, defend me; for that they have accused me of
imposture.
God answered, After a little while they shall surely repent their
obstinacy.
Wherefore a severe punishment was justly inflicted on them, and we
rendered them like the refuse which is carried down by a stream. Away
therefore with the ungodly people!
Afterwards we raised up other generationsq after them.
m The beast more particularly meant in this place is the camel, which
is chiefly used for carriage in the east; being called by the Arabs, the land
ship, on which they pass those seas of sand, the deserts.
n See chapter 11, p. 160, &c.
o Namely, the tribe of Ad, or of Thamud.
p viz., The prophet Hûd, or Sâleh.
q As the Sodomites, Midianites, &c.
No nation shall be punished before their determined time;
neither shall they be respited after. Afterwards we sent our apostles,
one after another. So often as their apostle came unto any nation, they
charged him with imposture: and we caused them successively to follow one
another to destruction; and we made them only subjects of traditional stories.
Away therefore with the unbelieving nations!
Afterwards we sent Moses, and Aaron his brother, with our signs and
manifest power,
unto Pharaoh and his princes: but they proudly refused to believe on him;
for they were a haughty people.
And they said, Shall we believe on two men like unto ourselves; whose
people are our servants?
50 And they accused them of imposture: wherefore they became of the number
of those who were destroyed.
And we heretofore gave the book of the law unto Moses, that the children
of Israel might be directed thereby.
And we appointed the son of Mary, and his mother, for a sign: and we
prepared an abode for them in an elevated part of the earth,r being a place of
quiet and security, and watered with running springs.
O apostles, eat of those things which are good;s and work righteousness:
for I well know that which ye do.
This your religion is one religion;t and I am your LORD: wherefore fear
me.
But men have rent the affair of their religion into various sects: every
party rejoiceth in that which they follow.
Wherefore leave them in their confusion, until a certain time.u
Do they think that we hasten unto them the wealth and children which we
have abundantly bestowed on them,
for their good? But they do not understand.
Verily they who stand in awe, for fear of their LORD,
60 and who believe in the signs of their LORD,
and who attribute not companions unto their LORD;
and who give that which they give in alms, their hearts being struck with
dread, for that they must return unto their LORD:
these hasten unto good, and are foremost to obtain the same.
We will not impose any difficulty on a soul, except according to its
ability; with us is a book, which speaketh the truth; and they shall not be
injured.
But their hearts are drowned in negligence, as to this matter: and they
have works different from those we have mentioned; which they will continue to
do,
until when we chastise such of them as enjoy an affluence of fortune, by
a severe punishment,x behold, they cry aloud for help:
r The commentators tell us the place here intended is Jerusalem, or
Damascus, or Ramlah, or Palestine, or Egypt.1
But perhaps the passage means the hill to which the Virgin Mary retired
to be delivered, according to the Mohammedan tradition.2
s These words are addressed to the apostles in general, to whom it was
permitted to eat of all clean and wholesome food; and were spoken to them
severally at the time of their respective mission. Some, however, think them
directed particularly to the Virgin Mary and JESUS, or singly to the latter
(in which case the plural number must be used out of respect only), proposing
the practice of the prophets for their imitation. Mohammed probably designed
in this passage to condemn the abstinence observed by the Christian monks.3
t See chapter 21, p. 248.
u i.e., Till they shall be slain, or shall die a natural death.
x By which is intended either the overthrow at Bedr, where several of
the chief Korashites lost their lives; or the famine with which the Meccans
were afflicted, at the prayer of the prophet, conceived in these words, O GOD,
set thy foot strongly on Modar (an ancestor of the Koreish), and give them
years like the years of Joseph: whereupon so great a dearth ensued, that they
were obliged to feed on dogs, carrion, and burnt bones.4
1 Al Beidâwi, Jallalo'ddin. 2 See chapter 19, p. 228.
3 Al Beidâwi. 4 Idem.
but it shall be answered them, Cry not for help to-day: for ye shall not
be assisted by us.
My signs were read unto you, but ye turned back on your heels:
proudly elating yourselves because of your possessing the holy temple;
discoursing together by night, and talking foolishly.
70 Do they not therefore attentively consider that which is spoken unto
them; whether a revelation is come unto them which came not unto their fore-
fathers?
Or do they not know their apostle; and therefore reject him?
Or do they say, He is a madman? Nay, he hath come unto them with the
truth; but the greater part of them detest the truth.
If the truth had followed their desires, verily the heavens and the
earth, and whoever therein is, had been corrupted.y But we have brought them
their admonition; and they turn aside from their admonition.
Dost thou ask of them any maintenance for thy preaching? since the
maintenance of thy LORD is better; for he is the most bounteous provider.
Thou certainly invitest them to the right way:
and they who believe not in the life to come, do surely deviate from that
way.
If we had had compassion on them, and taken off from them the calamity
which had befallen them,z they would surely have more obstinately persisted in
their error, wandering in confusion.
We formerly chastised them with a punishment:a yet they did not humble
themselves before their LORD, neither did they make supplications unto him;
until, when we have opened upon them a door, from which a severe
punishmentb hath issued, behold they are driven to despair thereat.
80 It is God who hath created in you the senses of hearing and of sight,
that ye may perceive our judgments, and hearts, that ye may seriously consider
them: yet how few of you give thanks!
It is he who hath produced you in the earth; and before him shall ye be
assembled.
It is he who giveth life, and putteth to death; and to him is to be
attributed the vicissitude of night and day: do ye not therefore understand?
But the unbelieving Meccans say as their predecessors said:
they say, When we shall be dead, and shall have become dust and bones,
shall we really be raised to life?
We have already been threatened with this, and our fathers also
heretofore: this is nothing but fables of the ancients.
Say, Whose is the earth, and whoever therein is, if ye know?
They will answer, GOD'S. Say, Will ye not therefore consider?
Say, Who is the LORD of the seven heavens, and the LORD of the
magnificent throne?
They will answer, They are GOD'S. Say, Will ye not therefore fear him?
90 Say, In whose hand is the kingdom of all things; who protecteth whom he
pleaseth, but is himself protected of none; if ye know?
They will answer, In GOD'S. Say, How therefore are ye bewitched?
y That is, If there had been a plurality of gods, as the idolaters
contend:1 or, if the doctrine taught by Mohammed had been agreeable to their
inclinations, &c.
z viz., The famine. It is said that the Meccans being reduced to eat
ilhiz, which is a sort of miserable food made of blood and camels' hair, used
by the Arabs in time of scarcity, Abu Sofiân came to Mohammed, and said, Tell
me, I adjure thee by God and the relation that is between us, dost thou think
thou art sent as a mercy unto all creatures; since thou hast slain the fathers
with the sword and the children with hunger?2
a Namely, the slaughter at Bedr.
b viz., Famine; which is more terrible than the calamities of war.3
According to these explications, the passage must have been revealed at
Medina; unless it be taken in a prophetical sense.
1 See chapter 21, p. 243. 2 Al Beidâwi. 3 Idem.
Yea, we have brought them the truth; and they are certainly liars in
denying the same.
GOD hath not begotten issue; neither is there any other god with him:
otherwise every god had surely taken away that which he had created;c and some
of them had exalted themselves above the others.d Far be that from GOD, which
they affirm of him!
He knoweth that which is concealed, and that which is made public:
wherefore far be it from him to have those sharers in his honour which they
attribute to him!
Say, O LORD, If thou wilt surely cause me to see the vengeance with which
they have been threatened;
O LORD, set me not among the ungodly people:
for we are surely able to make thee see that with which we have
threatened them.
Turn aside evil with that which is better:e we well know the calumnies
which they utter against thee.
And say, O LORD I fly unto thee for refuge, against the suggestions of
the devils
100 and I have recourse unto thee, O LORD, to drive them away, that they be
not present with me.f
The gainsaying of the unbelievers ceaseth not until, when death
overtaketh any of them, he saith, O LORD, suffer me to return to life,
that I may do that which is right; in professing the true faith which I
have neglected.g By no means. Verily these are the words which ye shall
speak:
but behind them there shall be a bar,h until the day of resurrection.
When therefore the trumpet shall be sounded, there shall be no relation
between them which shall be regarded on that day; neither shall they ask
assistance of each other.
They whose balances shall be heavy with good works shall be happy; but
they whose balances shall be light are those who shall lose their souls, and
shall remain in hell for ever.i
The fire shall scorch their faces, and they shall writhe their mouths
therein for anguish:
and it shall be said unto them, Were not my signs rehearsed unto you; and
did ye not charge them with falsehood?
They shall answer, O LORD, our unhappiness prevailed over us, and we were
people who sent astray.
O LORD, take us forth from this fire: if we return to our former
wickedness, we shall surely be unjust.
c And set up a distinct creation and kingdom of his own.
d See chapter 17, p. 210.
e That is, By forgiving injuries, and returning of good for them: which
rule is to be qualified, however, with this proviso; that the true religion
receive no prejudice by such mildness and clemency.1
f To besiege me: or, as it may also be translated, That they hurt me
not.
g Or, as the word may also import, In the world which I have left; that
is, during the further term of life which shall be granted me, and from which
I have been cut off.2
h The original word barzakh, here translated bar, primarily signifies
any partition, or interstice, which divides one thing from another; but is
used by the Arabs not always in the same, and sometimes in an obscure sense.
They seem generally to express by it what the Greeks did by the word Hades;
one while using it for the place of the dead, another while for the time of
their continuance in that state, another while for the state itself. It is
defined by their critics to be the interval or space between this world and
the next, or between death and the resurrection; every person who dies being
said to enter into al barzakh; or, as the Greek expresses it, [Greek text].3
One lexicographer4 tells us that in the Korân it denotes the grave; but the
commentators on this passage expound it a bar, or invincible obstacle, cutting
off all possibility of return into the world, after death. See chapter 25,
where the word again occurs.
Some interpreters understand the words we have rendered behind them, to
mean before them (it being one of those words, of which there are several in
the Arabic tongue, that have direct contrary significations), considering al
Barzakh as a future space, and lying before, and not behind them.
i See the Prelim. Disc. Sect. IV., p. 69.
1 Idem. 2 Idem. 3 Vide Pocock. not. in Port. Mosis,
p. 248, &c., and the Prelim Disc. Sect. IV. p. 60.
4 Ebn Maruf, apud Gol. Lex. Arab. col. 254.
10 God will say unto them, Be ye driven away with ignominy thereinto: and
speak not unto me to deliver you.
Verily there were a party of my servants, who said, O LORD, we believe:
wherefore forgive us, and be merciful unto us; for thou art the best of those
who show mercy.
But ye received them with scoffs, so that they suffered you to forget my
admonition,j and ye laughed them to scorn.
I have this day rewarded them, for that they suffered the injuries ye
offered them with patience: verily they enjoy great felicity.
God will say, What number of years have ye continued on earth?
They will answer, We have continued there a day, or part of a day:k but
ask those who keep account.l
God will say, Ye have tarried but a while, if ye knew it.
Did ye think that we had created you in sport, and that ye should not be
brought again before us? Wherefore let GOD be exalted, the King, the Truth!
There is no GOD besides him, the LORD of the honourable throne. Whoever
together with the true GOD shall invoke another god, concerning whom he hath
no demonstrative proof, shall surely be brought to an account for the same
before his LORD. Verily the infidels shall not prosper.
Say, O LORD, pardon, and show mercy; for thou art the best of those who
show mercy.
_______
CHAPTER XXIV.
ENTITLED, LIGHT;m REVEALED AT MEDINA.
IN THE NAME OF THE MOST MERCIFUL GOD.
THIS Sura have we sent down from heaven; and have ratified the same; and
we have revealed evident signs, that ye may be warned.
The whore, and the whoremonger, shall ye scourge with a hundred stripes.n
And let not compassion towards them prevent you from executing the judgment of
GOD;o if ye believe in GOD and the last day: and let some of the true
believers be witnesses of their punishment.p
j Being unable to prevail on you by their remonstrances, because of the
contempt wherein ye held them.
k The time will seem thus short to them in comparison to the eternal
duration of their torments, or because the time of their living in the world
was the time of their joy and pleasure; it being usual for the Arabs to
describe what they like as of short, and what they dislike, as of long
continuance.
l That is, the angels, who keep account of the length of men's lives
and of their works, or any other who may have leisure to compute; and not us,
whose torments distract our thoughts and attention.
m This title is taken from an allegorical comparison made between light
and GOD, or faith in him, about the middle of the chapter.
n This law is not to be understood to relate to married people, who are
of free condition; because adultery in such, according to the Sonna, is to be
punished by stoning.1
o i.e., Be not moved by pity, either to forgive the offenders, or to
mitigate their punishment. Mohammed was for so strict and impartial an
execution of the laws, that he is reported to have said, If Fâtema the
daughter of Mohammed steal, let her hand be struck off.2
p That is, Let the punishment be inflicted in public, and not in
private; because the ignominy of it is more intolerable than the smart, and
more likely to work a reformation on the offender. Some say there ought to be
three persons present at the least; but others think two, or even one, to be
sufficient.1
1 See chapter 4, p. 55 and 57. 2 Al Beidâwi.
1 Idem.
The whoremonger shall not marry any other than a harlot, or an
idolatress. And a harlot shall no man take in marriage, except a whoremonger,
or an idolater. And this kind of marriage is forbidden the true believers.q
But as to those who accuse women of reputation of whoredom,r and produce
not four witnesses of the fact,s scourge them with fourscore stripes, and
receive not their testimony forever; for such are infamous prevaricators;
excepting those who shall afterwards repent, and amend; for unto such
will GOD be gracious and merciful.
They who shall accuse their wives of adultery, and shall have no
witnesses thereof, besides themselves; the testimony which shall be required
of one of them shall be, that he swear four times by GOD that he speaketh the
truth:
and the fifth time that he imprecate the curse of GOD on him if he be a
liar.
And it shall avert the punishment from the wife, if she swear four times
by GOD that he is a liar;
and if the fifth time she imprecate the wrath of GOD on her, if he
speaketh the truth.t
10 If it were not for the indulgence of GOD towards you, and his mercy, and
that GOD is easy to be reconciled, and wise, he would immediately discover
your crimes.
q The preceding passage was revealed on account of the meaner and more
indigent Mohâjerins, or refugees, who sought to marry the whores of the
infidels, taken captives in war, for the sake of the gain which they made by
prostituting themselves. Some think the prohibition was special, and regarded
only the Mohâjerins before mentioned; and others are of opinion it was
general; but it is agreed to have been abrogated by the words which follow in
this chapter, Marry the single women among you; harlots being comprised under
the appellation of single women.2
It is supposed by some that not marriage, but unlawful commerce with
such women is here forbidden.
r The Arabic word, mohsinât, properly signifies women of unblamable
conduct; but to bring the chastisement after mentioned on the calumniator, it
is also requisite that they be free women, of ripe age, having their
understandings perfect, and of the Mohammedan religion. Though the word be of
the feminine gender, yet men are also supposed to be comprised in this law.
Abu Hanîfa was of opinion that the slanderer ought to be scourged in
public, as well as the fornicator; but the generality are against him.3
s See chapter 4, p. 55.
t In case both swear, the man's oath discharges him from the imputation
and penalty of slander, and the woman's oath frees her from the imputation and
penalty of adultery: but though the woman do swear to her innocence, yet the
marriage is actually void, or ought to be declared void by the judge: because
it is not fit they should continue together after they have come to these
extremities.4
2 Idem, Jallalo'ddin. 3 Idem. 4 Idem.
As to the party among you who have published the falsehood concerning
Ayesha,u think it not to be an evil unto you: on the contrary, it is better
for you.x Every man of them shall be punished according to the injustice of
which he hath been guilty;y and he among them who hath undertaken to aggravate
the samez shall suffer a grievous punishment.
Did not the faithful men, and the faithful women, when ye heard this,
judge in their own minds for the best; and say, This is a manifest falsehood?
Have they produced four witnesses thereof? wherefore since they have not
produced the witnesses, they are surely liars in the sight of GOD.
Had it not been for the indulgence of GOD towards you, and his mercy, in
this world and in that which is to come, verily a grievous punishment had been
inflicted on you, for the calumny which ye have spread: when ye published that
with your tongues, and spoke that with your mouths, of which ye had no
knowledge; and esteemed it to be light, whereas it was a matter of importance
in the sight of GOD.
When ye heard it, did ye say, It belongeth not unto us, that we should
talk of this matter: GOD forbid! this is a grievous calumny.
GOD warneth you, that ye return not to the like crime forever; if ye be
true believers.
And GOD declareth unto you his signs; for GOD is knowing and wise.
Verily they who love that scandal be published of those who believe,
shall receive a severe punishment
both in this world and in the next. GOD knoweth, but ye know not.
20 Had it not been for the indulgence of GOD towards you and his mercy, and
that GOD is gracious and merciful, ye had felt his vengeance.
O true believers, follow not the steps of the devil: for whosoever shall
follow the steps of the devil, he will command them filthy crimes, and that
which is unlawful. If it were not for the indulgence of GOD, and his mercy
towards you, there had not been so much as one of you cleansed from his guilt
forever: but GOD cleanseth whom he pleaseth; for GOD both heareth and knoweth.
u For the understanding of this passage, it is necessary to relate the
following story:
Mohammed having undertaken an expedition against the tribe of Mostalak,
in the sixth year of the Hejra, took his wife Ayesha with him, to accompany
him. In their return, when they were not far from Medina, the army removing
by night, Ayesha, on the road, alighted from her camel, and stepped aside on a
private occasion: but, on her return, perceiving she had dropped her necklace,
which was of onyxes of Dhafâr, she went back to look for it; and in the
meantime her attendants, taking it for granted, that she was got into her
pavilion (or little tent surrounded with curtains, wherein women are carried
in the east) set it again on the camel, and led it away. When she came back
to the road, and saw her camel was gone, she sat down there, expecting that
when she was missed some would be sent back to fetch her; and in a little time
she fell asleep. Early in the morning, Safwân Ebn al Moattel, who had stayed
behind to rest himself, coming by, and perceiving somebody asleep, went to see
who it was and knew her to be Ayesha; upon which he waked her, by twice
pronouncing with a low voice these words, We are God's, and unto him must we
return. Then Ayesha immediately covered herself with her veil; and Safwân set
her on his own camel, and led her after the army, which they overtook by noon,
as they were resting.
This accident had like to have ruined Ayesha, whose reputation was
publicly called in question, as if she had been guilty of adultery with
Safwân; and Mohammed himself knew not what to think, when he reflected on the
circumstances of the affair, which were improved by some malicious people very
much to Ayesha's dishonour; and notwithstanding his wife's protestations of
her innocence, he could not get rid of his perplexity, nor stop the mouths of
the censorious, till about a month after, when this passage was revealed,
declaring the accusation to be unjust.1
x The words are directed to the prophet, and to Abu Becr, Ayesha, and
Safwân, the persons concerned in this false report; since, besides the amends
they might expect in the next world, GOD had done them the honour to clear
their reputations by revealing eighteen verses expressly for that purpose.2
y The persons concerned in spreading the scandal were Abd'allah Ebn
Obba (who first raised it, and inflamed the matter to the utmost, out of
hatred to Mohammed), Zeid Ebn Refâa, Hassân Ebn Thabet, Mestah Ebn Othâtha, a
great-grandson of Abd'almotalleb's, and Hamna Bint Jahash: and every one of
them received fourscore stripes, pursuant to the law ordained in this chapter,
except only Abd'allah, who was exempted, being a man of great consideration.3
It is said that, as a farther punishment, Hassân and Mestah became
blind, and that the former of them also lost the use of both his hands.4
z viz., Abd'allah Ebn Obba , who had not the grace to become a true
believer, but died an infidel.5
1 Al Bokhari in Sonna, Al Beidâwi, Jallalo'ddin, &c. Vide Abu'lf. Vit.
Moh. p. 82, &c., and Gagnier, Vie de Mahomet, lib. 4. c. 7.
2 Al Beidâwi. 3 Abulfeda, Vit. Moh. p. 83. 4 Al Beidâwi.
5 See chapter 9, p. 144.
Let not those among you, who possess abundance of wealth and have
ability, swear that they will not give unto their kindred, and the poor, and
those who have fled their country for the sake of GOD'S true religion: but let
them forgive, and act with benevolence towards them. Do ye not desire that
GOD should pardon you?a And GOD is gracious and merciful.
Moreover they who falsely accuse modest women, who behave in a negligent
manner,b and are true believers, shall be cursed in this world, and in the
world to come; and they shall suffer a severe punishment.c
One day their own tongues shall bear witness against them, and their
hands, and their feet, concerning that which they have done.
On that day shall GOD render unto them their just due; and they shall
know that GOD is the evident truth.
The wicked women should be joined to the wicked men, and the wicked men
to the wicked women; but the good women should be married to the good men, and
the good men to the good women. These shall be cleared from the calumnies
which slanderers speak of them;d they shall obtain pardon, and an honourable
provision.
O true believers, enter not any houses, besides your own houses, until ye
have asked leave, and have saluted the family thereof:e this is better for
you; peradventure ye will be admonished.
And if ye shall find no person in the houses, yet do not enter them,
until leave be granted you: and if it be said unto you, Return back, do ye
return back. This will be more decent for you:f and GOD knoweth that which ye
do.
It shall be no crime in you, that ye enter uninhabited houses,g wherein
ye may meet with a convenience. GOD knoweth that which ye discover, and that
which ye conceal.
30 Speak unto the true believers, that they restrain their eyes, and keep
themselves from immodest actions: this will be more pure for them; for GOD is
well acquainted with that which they do.
a This passage was revealed on account of Abu Becr: who swore that he
would not for the future bestow anything on Mestah, though he was his mother's
sister's son, and a poor Mohâjer or refugee, because he had joined in
scandalizing his daughter Ayesha. But on Mohammed's reading this verse to
him, he continued Mestah's pension.1
b i.e., Who may be less careful in their conduct, and more free in
their behaviour, as being conscious of no ill.
c Though the words be general, yet they principally regard those who
should calumniate the prophet's wives. According to a saying of Ebn Abbas, if
the threats contained in the whole Korân be examined, there are none so severe
as those occasioned by the false accusation of Ayesha; wherefore he thought
even repentance would stand her slanderers in no stead.2
d Al Beidâwi observes, on this passage, that GOD cleared four persons,
by four extraordinary testimonies: for he cleared Joseph by the testimony of a
child in his mistress's family;3 Moses, by means of the stone which fled away
with his garments;4 Mary, by the testimony of her infant;5 and Ayesha, by
these verses of the Korân.
e To enter suddenly or abruptly into any man's house or apartment, is
reckoned a great incivility in the east; because a person may possibly be
surprised in an indecent action or posture, or may have something discovered
which he would conceal. It is said, that a man came to Mohammed, and wanted
to know whether he must ask leave to go in to his sister; which being answered
in the affirmative, he told the prophet that his sister had nobody else to
attend upon her, and it would be troublesome to ask leave every time he went
in to her. What, replied Mohammed, wouldest thou see her naked?6
f Than to be importunate for admission, or to wait at the door.
g i.e., Which are not the private habitation of a family; such as
public inns, shops, sheds, &c.
1 Al Beidâwi, Jallalo'ddin. 2 Al Beidâwi. 3 See
chapter 12, p. 172.
4 See chapter 2, p. 7, and chapter 33. 5 See chapter 19, p. 229.
6 Al Beidâwi.
And speak unto the believing women, that they restrain their eyes, and
preserve their modesty, and discover not their ornaments,h except what
necessarily appeareth thereof;i and let them throw their veils over their
bosoms,j and not show their ornaments, unless to their husbands,k or their
fathers, or their husbands' fathers, or their sons, or their husbands' sons,
or their brothers, or their brothers' sons, or their sisters' sons,l or their
women,m or the captives which their right hands shall possess,n or unto such
men as attend them, and have no need of women,o or unto children, who
distinguish not the nakedness of women. And let them not make a noise with
their feet, that their ornaments which they hide may thereby be discovered.p
And be ye all turned unto GOD, O true believers, that ye may be happy.
Marry those who are singleq among you, and such as are honest of your
men-servants and your maid-servants: if they be poor, GOD will enrich them of
his abundance; for GOD is bounteous and wise.
And let those who find not a match, keep themselves from fornication,
until GOD shall enrich them of his abundance. And unto such of your slavesr
as desire a written instrument allowing them to redeem themselves on paying a
certain sum,s write one, if ye know good in them;t and give them of the riches
of GOD, which he hath given you.u And compel not your maid-servants to
prostitute themselves, if they be willing to live chastely; that ye may seek
the casual advantage of this present life;x but whoever shall compel them
thereto, verily GOD will be gracious and merciful unto such women after their
compulsion.
h As their clothes, jewels, and the furniture of their toilet; much
less such parts of their bodies as ought not be seen.
i Some think their outward garments are here meant; and others their
hands and faces: it is generally held, however, that a free woman ought not to
discover even those parts, unless to the persons after excepted, or on some
unavoidable occasion, as their giving evidence in public, taking advice or
medicines in case of sickness, &c.
j Taking care to cover their heads, necks, and breasts.
k For whose sake it is that they adorn themselves, and who alone have
the privilege to see their whole body.
l These near relations are also excepted, because they cannot avoid
seeing them frequently, and there is no great danger to be apprehended from
them. They are allowed, therefore, to see what cannot well be concealed in so
familiar an intercourse,1 but no other part of their body, particularly
whatever is between the navel and the knees.2
Uncles not being here particularly mentioned, it is a doubt whether they
may be admitted to see their nieces. Some think they are included under the
appellation of brothers: but others are of opinion that they are not comprised
in this exception; and give this reason for it, viz., lest they should
describe the persons of their nieces to their sons.3
m That is, such as are of the Mohammedan religion; it being reckoned by
some unlawful, or, at least, indecent, for a woman, who is a true believer, to
uncover herself before one who is an infidel, because she will hardly refrain
describing her to the men: but others suppose all women in general are here
excepted; for, in this particular, doctors differ.4
n Slaves of either sex are included in this exception, and, as some
think, domestic servants who are not slaves; as those of a different nation.
It is related, that Mohammed once made a present of a man-slave to his
daughter Fâtema; and when he brought him to her, she had on a garment which
was so scanty that she was obliged to leave either her head or her feet
uncovered: and that the prophet, seeing her in great confusion on that
account, told her, she need be under no concern, for that there was none
present besides her father and her slave.5
o Or have no desire to enjoy them; such as decrepit old men, and
deformed or silly persons, who follow people as hangers-on, for their spare
victuals, being too despicable to raise either a woman's passion, or a man's
jealousy. Whether eunuchs are comprehended under this general designation, is
a question among the learned.6
p By shaking the rings, which the women in the east wear about their
ankles, and are usually of gold or silver.7 The pride which the Jewish ladies
of old took in making a tinkling with these ornaments of their feet, is (among
other things of that nature) severely reproved by the prophet Isaiah.8
q i.e., Those who are unmarried of either sex; whether they have been
married before or not.
r Of either sex.
s Whereby the master obliges himself to set his slave at liberty, on
receiving a certain sum of money, which the slave undertakes to pay.
t That is, if ye have found them faithful, and have reason to believe
they will perform their engagement.
u Either by bestowing something on them of your own substance, or by
abating them a part of their ransom. Some suppose these words are directed,
not to the masters only, but to all Moslems in general; recommending it to
them to assist those who have obtained their freedom, and paid their ransom,
either out of their own stock, or by admitting them to have a share in the
public alms.1
x It seems Abda'llah Ebn Obba had six women-slaves, on whom he laid a
certain tax, which he obliged them to earn by the prostitution of their
bodies: and one of them made her complaint to Mohammed, which occasioned the
revelation of this passage.2
1 Idem. 2 Jallalo'ddin. 3 Al Beidâwi. 4
Idem, Jallalo'ddin. 5 Idem.
6 Idem, Yahya, &c. 7 Idem 8 Isaiah iii. 16 and 18.
1 Al Beidâwi. 2 Idem, Jallalo'ddin
And now have we revealed unto you evident signs, and a history like unto
some of the histories of those who have gone before you,y and an admonition
unto the pious.
GOD is the light of heaven and earth: the similitude of his light is as a
niche in a wall, wherein a lamp is placed, and the lamp enclosed in a case of
glass; the glass appears as it were a shining star. It is lighted with the
oil of a blessed tree, an olive neither of the east, nor of the west:z it
wanteth little but that the oil thereof would give light, although no fire
touched it. This is light added unto light:a GOD will direct unto his light
whom he pleaseth. GOD propoundeth parables unto men; for GOD knoweth all
things.
In the houses which GOD hath permitted to be raised,b and that his name
be commemorated therein! men celebrate his praise in the same, morning and
evening,
whom neither merchandising nor selling diverteth from the remembering of
GOD, and the observance of prayer, and the giving of alms; fearing the day
whereon men's hearts and eyes shall be troubled;
that GOD may recompense them according to the utmost merit of what they
shall have wrought, and may add unto them of his abundance a more excellent
reward; for GOD bestoweth on whom he pleaseth without measure.
But as to the unbelievers, their works are like the vapor in a plain,c
which the thirsty traveller thinketh to be water, until, when he cometh
thereto, he findeth it to be nothing; but he findeth GOD with him,d and he
will fully pay him his account; and GOD is swift in taking an account;
y i.e., The story of the false accusation of Ayesha, which resembles
those of Joseph and the Virgin Mary.3
z But of a more excellent kind. Some think the meaning to be that the
tree grows neither in the eastern nor the western parts, but in the midst of
the world, namely, in Syria, where the best olives grow.4
a Or a light whose brightness is doubly increased by the circumstances
above mentioned.
The commentators explain this allegory, and every particular of it, with
great subtlety; interpreting the light here described to be the light revealed
in the Korân, or God's enlightening grace in the heart of man; and in divers
other manners.
b The connection of these words is not very obvious. Some suppose they
ought to be joined with the preceding words, Like a niche, or It is lighted in
the houses, &c., and that the comparison is more strong and just, by being
made to the lamps in Mosques, which are larger than those in private houses.
Some think they are rather to be connected with the following words, Men
praise, &c. And others are of opinion they are an imperfect beginning of a
sentence, and that the words, Praise ye God, or the like, are to be
understood. However, the houses here intended are those set apart for divine
worship; or particularly the three principal temples of Mecca, Medina, and
Jerusalem.5
c The Arabic word Serâb signifies that false appearance which, in the
eastern countries, is often seen in sandy plains about noon, resembling a
large lake of water in motion, and is occasioned by the reverberation of the
sunbeams. It sometimes tempts thirsty travellers out of their way, but
deceives them when they come near, either going forward (for it always appears
at the same distance), or quite vanishing.1
d That is, He will not escape the notice or vengeance of GOD.
3 Iidem. 4 Iidem. 4 Al Beidâwi.
40 or, as the darkness in a deep sea, covered by waves riding on waves,
above which are clouds, being additions of darkness one over the other; when
one stretcheth forth his hand, he is far from seeing it. And unto whomsoever
GOD shall not grant his light, he shall enjoy no light at all.
Dost thou not perceive that all creatures both in heaven and earth praise
GOD: and the birds also, extending their wings? Every one knoweth his prayer,
and his praise: and GOD knoweth that which they do.
Unto GOD belongeth the kingdom of heaven and earth; and unto GOD shall be
the return at the last day.
Dost thou not see that GOD gently driveth forward the clouds, and
gathereth them together, and then layeth them on heaps? Thou also seest the
rain, which falleth from the midst thereof; and God sendeth down from heaven
as it were mountains, wherein there is hail; he striketh therewith whom he
pleaseth, and turneth the same away from whom he pleaseth: the brightness of
his lightning wanteth but little of taking away the sight.
GOD shifteth the night, and the day: verily herein is an instruction unto
those who have sight. And GOD hath created every animal of water;e one of
them goeth on his belly, and another of them walketh upon two feet, and
another of them walketh upon four feet: GOD createth that which he pleaseth;
for GOD is almighty.
Now have we sent down evident signs: and GOD directeth whom he pleaseth
into the right way.
The hypocrites say, We believe in GOD, and on his apostle; and we obey
them: yet a part of them turneth back, after this; but these are not really
believers.
And when they are summoned before GOD and his apostle, that he may judge
between them; behold, a part of them retire:
but if the right had been on their side, they would have come and
submitted themselves unto him.
Is there an infirmity in their hearts? Do they doubt? Or do they fear
lest GOD and his apostle act unjustly towards them? But themselves are the
unjust doers.f
50 The saying of the true believers, when they are summoned before GOD and
his apostle, that he may judge between them, is no other than that they say,
We have heard, and do obey: and these are they who shall prosper.
Whoever shall obey GOD and his apostle, and shall fear GOD, and shall be
devout towards him; these shall enjoy great felicity.
They swear by GOD, with a most solemn oath, that if thou commandest them,
they will go forth from their houses and possessions. Say, Swear not to a
falsehood: obedience is more requisite: and GOD is well acquainted with that
which ye do.
e This assertion, which has already occurred in another place,2 being
not true in strictness, the commentators suppose that by water is meant seed;
or else that water is mentioned only as the chief cause of the growth of
animals, and a considerable and necessary constituent part of their bodies.
f This passage was occasioned by Bashir the hypocrite, who, having a
controversy with a Jew, appealed to Caab Ebn al Ashraf, whereas the Jew
appealed to Mohammed;3 or, as others tell us, by Mogheira Ebn Wayel, who
refused to submit a dispute he had with Al. to the prophet's decision.4
1 Vide Q. Curt. de rebus Alex. lib. 7, et Gol. in Alfrag. p. 111, et in
Adag. Arab. ad calcem Gram. Erp. p. 93. 2 Chapter 21, p. 243.
3 See chapter 4, p. 61. 4 Al Beidâwi
Say, Obey GOD, and obey the apostle: but if ye turn back, verily it is
expected of him that he perform his duty, and of you that ye perform your
duty; and if ye obey him, ye shall be directed, but the duty of our apostle is
only public preaching.
GOD promiseth unto such of you as believe, and do good works, that he
will cause them to succeed the unbelievers in the earth, as he caused those
who were before you to succeed the infidels of their time;g and that he will
establish for them their religion which pleaseth them, and will change their
fear into security. They shall worship me; and shall not associate any other
with me. But whoever shall disbelieve after this, they will be the wicked
doers.
Observe prayer, and give alms, and obey the apostle; that ye may obtain
mercy.
Think not that the unbelievers shall frustrate the designs of God on
earth: and their abode hereafter shall be hell fire; a miserable journey shall
it be thither!
O true believers, let your slaves and those among you who shall not have
attained the age of puberty, ask leave of you, before they come into your
presence, three times in the day;h namely, before the morning prayer,i and
when ye lay aside your garments at noon,j and after the evening prayer.k
These are the three times for you to be private: it shall be no crime in you,
or in them, if they go in to you without asking permission after these times,
while ye are in frequent attendance, the one of you on the other. Thus GOD
declareth his signs unto you; for GOD is knowing and wise.
And when your children attain the age of puberty, let them ask leave to
come into your presence at all times, in the same manner as those who have
attained that age before them, ask leave. Thus GOD declareth his signs unto
you; and GOD is knowing and wise.
As to such women as are past child-bearing, who hope not to marry again,
because of their advanced age; it shall be no crime in them, if they lay aside
their outer garments, not showing their ornaments; but if they abstain from
this, it will be better for them.l GOD both heareth and knoweth.
60 It shall be no crime in the blind, nor shall it be any crime in the
lame, neither shall it be any crime in the sick, or in yourselves, that ye eat
in your houses,m or in the houses of your fathers, or the houses of your
mothers, or in the houses of your brothers, or the houses of your sisters, or
the houses of your uncles on the father's side, or the houses of your aunts on
the father's side, or the houses of your uncles on the mother's side, the
houses of your aunts on the mother's side, or in those houses the keys whereof
ye have in your possession, or in the house of your friend. It shall not be
any crime in you whether ye eat together, or separately.n
g i.e., As he caused the Israelites to dispossess the Canaanites, &c.
h Because there are certain times when it is not convenient, even for a
domestic, or a child, to come in to one without notice. It is said this
passage was revealed on account of Asma Bint Morthed, whose servant entered
suddenly upon her, at an improper time; but others say, it was occasioned by
Modraj Ebn Amru, then a boy, who, being sent by Mohammed to call Omar to him,
went directly into the room where he was, without giving notice, and found him
taking his noon's nap, and in no very decent posture; at which Omar was so
ruffled, that he wished GOD would forbid even their fathers, and children, to
come in to them abruptly, at such times.1
i Which is the time of people's rising from their beds, and dressing
themselves for the day.
j That is, when ye take off your upper garments to sleep at noon; which
is a common custom in the east, and all warm countries.
k When ye undress yourselves to prepare for bed. Al Beidâwi adds a
fourth season, when permission to enter must be asked, viz., at night: but
this follows of course.
l See before, p. 266.
m i.e., Where your wives or families are; or in the houses of your
sons, which may be looked on as your own.
This passage was designed to remove some scruples or superstitions of
the Arabs in Mohammed's time; some of whom thought their eating with maimed or
sick people defiled them; others imagined they ought not to eat in the house
of another, though ever so nearly related to them, or though they were
entrusted with the key and care of the house in the master's absence, and
might therefore conclude it would be no offence; and others declined eating
with their friends though invited, lest they should be burthensome.1 The
whole passage seems to be no more than a declaration that the things scrupled
were perfectly innocent; however, the commentators say it is now abrogated,
and that it related only to the old Arabs, in the infancy of Mohammedism.
n As the tribe of Leith thought it unlawful for a man to eat alone; and
some of the Ansârs, if they had a guest with them, never ate but in his
company; so there were others who refused to eat with any, out of a
superstitious caution lest they should be defiled, or out of a hoggish
greediness.2
1 Idem.
And when ye enter any houses, salute one anothero on the part of GOD,
with a blessed and a welcome salutation. Thus GOD declareth his signs unto
you, that ye may understand.
Verily they only are true believers, who believe in GOD and his apostle,
and when they are assembled with him on any affair,p depart not, until they
have obtained leave of him. Verily they who ask leave of thee are those who
believe in GOD and his apostle. When therefore they ask leave of thee to
depart, on account of any business of their own, grant leave unto such of them
as thou shalt think fit, and ask pardon for them of GOD;q for GOD is gracious
and merciful.
Let not the calling of the apostle be esteemed among you, as your calling
the one to the other.r GOD knoweth such of you as privately withdraw
themselves from the assembly, taking shelter behind one another. But let
those who withstand his command take heed, lest some calamity befall them in
this world, or a grievous punishment be inflicted on them in the life to come.
Doth not whatever is in heaven and on earth belong unto GOD? He well
knoweth what ye are about: and on a certain day they shall be assembled before
him; and he shall declare unto them that which they have done; for GOD knoweth
all things.
o Literally yourselves; that is, according to al Beidâwi, the people of
the house, to whom ye are united by the ties of blood, and by the common bond
of religion. And if there be nobody in the house, says Jallalo'ddin, salute
yourselves, and say, Peace be on us, and on the righteous servants of God: for
the angels will return your salutation.
p As, at public prayers, or a solemn feast, or at council, or on a
military expedition.
q Because such departure, though with leave, and on a reasonable
excuse, is a kind of failure in the exact performance of their duty; seeing
they prefer their temporal affairs to the advancement of the true religion.3
r These words are variously interpreted; for their meaning may be,
either, Make not light of the apostle's summons, as ye would of another
person's of equal condition with yourselves, by not obeying it, or by
departing out of, or coming into, his presence without leave first obtained;
or, Think not that when the apostle calls upon God in prayer, it is with him,
as with you, when ye prefer a petition to a superior, who sometimes grants,
but as often denies, your suit; or, Call not to the apostle, as ye do to one
another, that is, by name, or familiarly and with a loud voice; but make use
of some honourable compellation, as, O apostle of GOD, or, O prophet of GOD,
and speak in an humble modest manner.4
1 Idem, Jallalo'ddin. 2 Iidem. 3 Al Beidâwi.
4 Idem, Jallalo'ddin, &c.
CHAPTER XXV.
ENTITLED, AL FORKAN; REVEALED AT MECCA.
IN THE NAME OF THE MOST MERCIFUL GOD.
BLESSED be he who hath revealed the Forkans unto his servant, that he may
be a preacher to all creatures:
unto whom belongeth the kingdom of heaven and of earth: who hath begotten
no issue; and hath no partner in his kingdom: who hath created all things, and
disposed the same according to his determinate will.
Yet have they taken other gods besides him; which have created nothing,
but are themselves created:t
and are able neither to avert evil from, nor to procure good unto
themselves; and have not the power of death, or of life, or of raising the
dead.
And the unbelievers say, This Koran is no other than a forgery which he
hath contrived; and other people have assisted him therein:u but they utter an
unjust thing, and a falsehood.
They also say, These are fables of the ancients, which he hath caused to
be written down; and they are dictated unto him morning and evening.
Say, He hath revealed it, who knoweth the secrets in heaven and earth:
verily he is gracious and merciful.
And they say, What kind of apostle is this? He eateth food, and walketh
in the streets,x as we do: unless an angel be sent down unto him, and become a
fellow preacher with him;
or unless a treasure be cast down unto him; or he have a garden, of the
fruit whereof he may eat; we will not believe. The ungodly also say, Ye
follow no other than a man who is distracted.
10 Behold what they liken thee unto. But they are deceived; neither can
they find a just occasion to reproach thee.
Blessed be he, who, if he pleaseth, will make for thee a better provision
than this which they speak of; namely, gardens through which rivers flow: and
he will provide thee palaces.
But they reject the belief of the hour of judgment, as a falsehood: and
we have prepared for him, who shall reject the belief of that hour, burning
fire;
when it shall see them from a distant place, they shall hear it furiously
raging and roaring.
And when they shall be cast, bound together, into a strait place thereof,
they shall there call for death;
but it shall be answered them, Call not this day for one death, but call
for many deaths.
Say, Is this better, or a garden of eternal duration, which is promised
unto the pious? It shall be given unto them for a reward, and a retreat:
s Which is one of the names of the Korân. See the Prelim. Disc. Sect.
III. p. 44.
t Being either the heavenly bodies, or idols, the works of men's hands.
u See chapter 16, p. 203. It is supposed the Jews are particularly
intended in this place; because they used to repeat passages of ancient
history to Mohammed, on which he used to discourse and make observations.1
x Being subject to the same wants and infirmities of nature, and
obliged to submit to the same low means of supporting himself and his family,
with ourselves. The Meccans were acquainted with Mohammed, and with his
circumstances and way of life, too well to change their old familiarity into
the reverence due to the messenger of GOD; for a prophet hath no honour in his
own country.
1 Al Beidâwi.
therein shall they have whatever they please, continuing in the same
forever. This is a promise to be demanded at the hands of thy LORD.
On a certain day he shall assemble them, and whatever they worship,
besides GOD; and shall say unto the worshipped, Did ye seduce these my
servants; or did they wander of themselves from the right way?
They shall answer, GOD forbid! It was not fitting for us, that we should
take any protectors besides thee: but thou didst permit them and their fathers
to enjoy abundance; so that they forgot thy admonition, and became lost
people.
20 And God shall say unto their worshippers, Now have these convinced you
of falsehood, in that which ye say: they can neither avert your punishment,
nor give you any assistance.
And whoever of you shall be guilty of injustice, him will we cause to
taste a grievous torment.
We have sent no messengers before thee, but they ate food, and walked
through the streets: and we make some of you an occasion of trial unto
others.y Will ye persevere with patience? since the LORD regardeth your
perseverance.
They who hope not to meet us at the resurrection say, Unless the angels
be sent down unto us, or we see our LORD himself, we will not believe. Verily
they behave themselves arrogantly; and have transgressed with an enormous
transgression.
The day whereon they shall see the angels,z there shall be no glad
tidings on that day for the wicked; and they shall say, Be this removed far
from us?
and we will come unto the work which they shall have wrought, and we will
make it as dust scattered abroad.
On that day shall they who are destined to paradise be more happy in an
abode, and have a preferable place of repose at noon.a
On that day the heaven shall be cloven in sunder by the clouds, and the
angels shall be sent down, descending visibly therein.b
On that day the kingdom shall of right belong wholly unto the Merciful;
and that day shall be grievous for the unbelievers.
On that day the unjust personc shall bite his hand for anguish and
despair, and shall say, Oh that I had taken the way of truth with the apostle!
y Giving occasion of envy, repining, and malice; to the poor, mean, and
sick, for example, when they compare their own condition with that of the
rich, the noble, and those who are in health: and trying the people to whom
prophets are sent, by those prophets.1
z viz., At their death, or at the resurrection.
a For the business of the day of judgment will be over by that time;
and the blessed will pass their noon in paradise, and the damned in hell.2
b i.e., They shall part and make way for the clouds which shall descend
with the angels, bearing the books wherein every man's actions are recorded.
c It is supposed by some that these words particularly relate to Okba
Ebn Abi Moait, who used to be much in Mohammed's company, and having once
invited him to an entertainment, the prophet refused to taste of his meat
unless he would profess Islâm; which accordingly he did. Soon after, Okba,
meeting Obba Ebn Khalf, his intimate friend, and being reproached by him for
changing his religion, assured him that he had not, but had only pronounced
the profession of faith to engage Mohammed to eat with him, because he could
not for shame let him go out of his house without eating. However, Obba
protested that he would not be satisfied, unless he went to Mohammed, and set
his foot on his neck, and spit in his face: which Okba, rather than break with
his friend, performed in the public hall, where he found Mohammed sitting;
whereupon the prophet told him that if ever he met him out of Mecca, he would
cut off his head. And he was as good as his word: for Okba, being afterwards
taken prisoner at the battle of Bedr, had his head struck off by Ali at
Mohammed's command. As for Obba, he received a wound from the prophet's own
hand, at the battle of Ohod, of which he died at his return to Mecca.3
1 Idem, Jallal. 2 Idem. 3 Al Beidâwi. Vide Gagnier,
Vie de Mahom. vol. I, p. 362.
30 Alas for me! Oh that I had not taken such a oned for my friend!
He seduced me from the admonition of God, after it had come unto me: for
the devil is the betrayer of man.
And the apostle shall say, O LORD, verily my people esteemed this Korân
to be a vain composition.
In like manner did we ordain unto every prophet an enemy from among the
wicked: but thy LORD is a sufficient director and defender.
The unbelievers say, Unless the Koran be sent down unto him entire at
once,e we will not believe. But in this manner have we revealed it, that we
might confirm thy heart thereby,f and we have dictated it gradually, by
distinct parcels.
They shall not come unto thee with any strange question; but we will
bring thee the truth in answer, and a most excellent interpretation.
They who shall be dragged on their faces into hell shall be in the worst
condition, and shall stray most widely from the way of salvation.
We heretofore delivered unto Moses the book of the law; and we appointed
him Aaron his brother for a counsellor.
And we said unto them, Go ye to the people who charge our signs with
falsehood. And we destroyed them with a signal destruction.
And remember the people of Noah, when they accused our apostles of
imposture: we drowned them, and made them a sign unto mankind. And we have
prepared for the unjust a painful torment.
40 Remember also Ad, and Thamud, and those who dwelt at al Rass;g and many
other generations within this period.
Unto each of them did we propound examples for their admonition; and each
of them did we destroy with an utter destruction.
The Koreish have passed frequently near the city which was rained on by a
fatal rain;h have they not seen where it once stood? Yet have they not
dreaded the resurrection.
d According to the preceding note, this was Obba Ebn Khalf.
e As were the Pentateuch, Psalms, and Gospel, according to the
Mohammedan notion whereas it was twenty-three years before the Korân was
completely revealed.1
f Both to infuse courage and constancy into thy mind, and to strengthen
thy memory and understanding. For, say the commentators, the prophet's
receiving the divine direction, from time to time, how to behave, and to
speak, on any emergency, and the frequent visits of the angel Gabriel, greatly
encouraged and supported him under all his difficulties: and the revealing of
the Korân by degrees was a great, and, to him, a necessary help for his
retaining and understanding it; which it would have been impossible for him to
have done with any exactness, had it been revealed at once; Mohammed's case
being entirely different from that of Moses, David, and JESUS, who could all
read and write, whereas he was perfectly illiterate.2
g The commentators are at a loss where to place al Rass. According to
one opinion it was the name of a well (as the word signifies) near Midian,
about which some idolaters having fixed their habitations, the prophet Shoaib
was sent to preach to them; but they not believing on him, the well fell in,
and they and their houses were all swallowed up. Another supposes it to have
been in a town in Yamâma, where a remnant of the Thamûdites settled, to whom a
prophet was also sent; but they slaying him, were utterly destroyed. Another
thinks it was a well near Antioch, where Habîb al Najjâr (whose tomb is still
to be seen there, beige frequently visited by Mohammedans) was martyred.3 And
a fourth takes al Rass to be a well in Hadramaut, by which dwelt some
idolatrous Thamûdites, whose prophet was Handha, or Khantala (for I find the
name written both ways) Ebn Safwân.4 These people were first annoyed by
certain monstrous birds, called Ankâ, which lodged in the mountain above them,
and used to snatch away their children, when they wanted other prey; but this
calamity was so far from humbling them, that on their prophet's calling down a
judgment upon them, they killed him, and were all destroyed.5
h viz., Sodom; for the Koreish often passed by the place where it once
stood, in the journeys they took to Syria for the sake of trade.
1 See the Prelim. Disc. Sect. III. p. 50, &c. 2 Al Beidâwi, &c.
3 Abu'lf. Geog. Vide Vit. Saladini, p. 86.
4 See chapter 22, p. 254, note y. 5 Al Beidâwi, Jallalo'ddin.
When they see thee, they will receive thee only with scoffing, saying, Is
this he whom GOD hath sent as his apostle?
Verily he had almost drawn us aside from the worship of our gods, if we
had not firmly persevered in our devotion towards them. But they shall know
hereafter, when they shall see the punishment prepared for them, who hath
strayed more widely from the right path.
What thinkest thou? He who taketh his lust for his god; canst thou be
his guardian?i
Dost thou imagine that the greater part of them hear, or understand?
They are no other than like the brute cattle; yea, they stray more widely from
the true path.
Dost thou not consider the works of thy LORD, how he stretcheth forth the
shadow before sunrise? If he had pleased, he would have made it immovable
forever. Then we cause the sun to rise, and to show the same;
and afterwards we contract it by an easy and gradual contraction.
It is he who hath ordained the night to cover you as a garment; and sleep
to give you rest; and hath ordained the day for waking.
50 It is he who sendeth the winds, driving abroad the pregnant clouds, as
the forerunners of his mercy:j and we send down pure waterk from heaven,
that we may thereby revive a dead country, and give to drink thereof unto
what we have created, both of cattle and men, in great numbers;l
and we distribute the same among them at various times, that they may
consider: but the greater part of men refuse to consider, only out of
ingratitude.m
If we had pleased, we had sent a preacher unto every city:n
wherefore, do not thou obey the unbelievers; but oppose them herewith,
with a strong opposition.
It is he who hath let loose the two seas; this fresh and sweet, and that
salt and bitter; and hath placed between them a bar,o and a bound which cannot
be passed.
It is he who hath created man of water,p and hath made him to bear the
double relation of consanguinity and affinity; for thy LORD is powerful.
They worship, besides GOD, that which can neither profit them nor hurt
them: and the unbeliever is an assistant of the devil against his LORD.q
We have sent thee to be no other than a bearer of good tidings, and a
denouncer of threats.
i i.e., Dost thou expect to reclaim such a one from idolatry and
infidelity?
j See chapter 7, p. 110. There is the same various reading here as is
mentioned in the notes to that passage.
k Properly, purifying water; which epithet may perhaps refer to the
cleansing quality of that element, of so great use both on religious and on
common occasions.
l That is, To such as live in the dry deserts, and are obliged to drink
rain-water; which the inhabitants of towns, and places well-watered, have no
occasion to do.
m Or, out of infidelity: for the old Arabs used to think themselves
indebted for their rains, not to GOD, but to the influence of some particular
stars.
n And had not given thee, O Mohammed, the honour and trouble of being a
preacher to the whole world in general.
o To keep them asunder, and prevent their mixing with each other. The
original word is barzakh; which has been already explained.2
p With which Adam's primitive clay was mixed; or, of seed. See chapter
24, p. 268.
q Joining with him in his rebellion and infidelity. Some think Abu
Jahl is particularly struck at in this passage. The words may also be
translated, The unbeliever is contemptible in the sight of his Lord.
1 See the Prelim. Disc. Sect. I. p. 24. 2 In not. ad cap. 23,
p. 261.
Say, I ask not of you any reward for this my preaching; besides the
conversion of him who shall desire to take the way unto his LORD.a
60 And do thou trust in him who liveth, and dieth not; and celebrate his
praise: (he is sufficiently acquainted with the faults of his servants): who
hath created the heavens and the earth, and whatever is between them, in six
days; and then ascended his throne: the Merciful. Ask now the knowing
concerning him.
When it is said unto the unbelievers, Adore the Merciful; they reply, And
who is the Merciful?b Shall we adore that which thou commandest us? And
this precept causeth them to fly the faster from the faith.
Blessed be he who hath placed the twelve signs in the heavens; and hath
placed therein a lamp by day,c and the moon which shineth by night!
It is he who hath ordained the night and the day to succeed each other,
for the observation of him who will consider, or desireth to show his
gratitude.
The servants of the Merciful are those who walk meekly on the earth, and
when the ignorant speak unto them, answer, Peace:d
and who pass the night adoring their LORD, and standing up to pray unto
him;
and who say, O LORD, avert from us the torment of hell, for the torment
thereof is perpetual; verily the same is a miserable abode and a wretched
station:
and who, when they bestow, are neither profuse nor niggardly; but observe
a just medium between these;e
and who invoke not another god together with the true GOD; neither slay
the soul which GOD hath forbidden to be slain, unless for a just cause: and
who are not guilty of fornication. But he who shall do this shall meet the
reward of his wickedness:
his punishment shall be doubled unto him on the day of resurrection; and
he shall remain therein, covered with ignominy, forever:
70 except him who shall repent and believe, and shall work a righteous
work; unto them will GOD change their former evils into good;f for GOD is
ready to forgive, and merciful.
And whoever repenteth, and doth that which is right; verily he turneth
unto GOD with an acceptable conversion.
And they who do not bear false witness; and when they pass by vain
discourse, pass by the same with decency;
and who, when they are admonished by the signs of their LORD, fall not
down as if they were deaf and blind, but stand up and are attentive thereto:
and who say, O LORD, grant us of our wives and our offspring such as may
be the satisfaction of our eyes; and make us patterns unto those who fear
thee.
These shall be rewarded with the highest apartments in paradise, because
they have persevered with constancy; and they shall meet therein with greeting
and salutation;
they shall remain in the same forever: it shall be an excellent abode,
and a delightful station.
Say, My LORD is not solicitous on your account, if ye do not invoke him:
ye have already charged his apostle with imposture; but hereafter shall there
be a lasting punishment inflicted on you.
a Seeking to draw near unto him, by embracing the religion taught by me
his apostle; which is the best return I expect from you for my labours.1 The
passage, however, is capable of another meaning, viz., that Mohammed desires
none to give, but him who shall contribute freely and voluntarily towards the
advancement of GOD'S true religion.
b See chapter 17, p. 237.
c i.e., The sun.
d This is intended here not as a salutation, but as a waiving all
farther discourse and communication with the idolaters.
e See chapter 17, p. 230.
f Blotting out their former rebellion, on their repentance, and
confirming and increasing their faith and obedience.2
1 Al Beidâwi. 2 Idem.
CHAPTER XXVI.
ENTITLED, THE POETS;g REVEALED AT MECCA.h
IN THE NAME OF THE MOST MERCIFUL GOD.
T. S. M.i THESE are the signs of the perspicuous book.
Peradventure thou afflictest thyself unto death, lest the Meccans become
not believers.
If we pleased, we could send down unto them a convincing sign from
heaven, unto which their necks would humbly submit.
But there cometh unto them no admonition from the Merciful, being newly
revealed as occasions require, but they turn aside from the same;
and they have charged it with falsehood: but a message shall come unto
them, which they shall not laugh to scorn.
Do they not behold the earth, how many vegetables we cause to spring up
therein, of every noble species?
Verily herein is a sign: but the greater part of them do not believe.
Verily thy LORD is the mighty, the merciful God.
Remember when thy LORD called Moses, saying, Go to the unjust people,
10 the people of Pharaoh; will they not dread me?
Moses answered, O LORD, verily I fear lest they accuse me of falsehood,
and lest my breast become straitened, and my tongue be not ready in
speaking:k send therefore unto Aaron, to be my assistant.
Also they have a crime to object against me:l and I fear they will put me
to death.
God said, They shall by no means put thee to death: wherefore go ye with
our signs; for we will be with you, and will hear what passes between you and
them.
Go ye therefore unto Pharaoh, and say, Verily we are the apostlem of the
LORD of all creatures:
send away with us the children of Israel.
And when they had delivered their message, Pharaoh answered, Have we not
brought thee up, among us,
when a child; and hast thou not dwelt among us for several years of thy
life?n Yet hast thou done thy deed which thou hast done, and thou art an
ungrateful person.
g The chapter bears this inscription because at the conclusion of it
the Arabian poets are severely censured.
h The five last verses, beginning at these words, And those who err
follow the poets, &c., some take to have been revealed at Medina.
i See the Prelim. Disc. Sect. III. p. 46, &c.
k See chap. 20, p. 257.
l viz., The having killed an Egyptian.1
m The word is in the singular number in the original; for which the
commentators give several reasons.
n It is said that Moses dwelt among the Egyptians thirty years, and
then went to Midian, where he stayed ten years; after which he returned to
Egypt, and spent thirty years in endeavouring to convert them; and that he
lived after the drowning of Pharaoh fifty years.2
1 See cap. 28. 2 Al Beidâwi.
Moses replied, I did it indeed, and I was one of those who erred;o
20 wherefore I fled from you, because I feared you: but my LORD hath
bestowed on me wisdom, and hath appointed me one of his apostles.
And this is the favor which thou hast bestowed on me, that thou hast
enslaved the children of Israel.
Pharaoh said, And who is the LORD of all creatures?
Moses answered, The LORD of heaven and earth, and whatever is between
them: if ye are men of sagacity.
Pharaoh said unto those who were about him, Do ye not hear?
Moses said, Your LORD, and the LORD of your forefathers.
Pharaoh said unto those who were present, Your apostle, who is sent unto
you, is certainly distracted.p
Moses said, The LORD of the east, and of the west, and of whatever is
between them; if ye are men of understanding.
Pharaoh said unto him, Verily if thou take any god besides me,q I will
make thee one of those who are imprisoned.r
Moses answered, What, although I come unto you with a convincing miracle?
30 Pharaoh replied, Produce it therefore, if thou speakest truth.
And he cast down his rod, and behold, it became a visible serpent:
and he drew forth his hand out of his bosom; and behold, it appeared
white unto the spectators.
Pharaoh said unto the princes who were about him, Verily this man is a
skilful magician:
he seeketh to dispossess you of your land by his sorcery; what therefore
do ye direct?
They answered , Delay him and his brother by good words for a time; and
send through the cities men to assemble
and bring unto thee every skilful magician.
So the magicians were assembled at an appointed time, on a solemn day.
And it was said unto the people, Are ye assembled together?
Perhaps we may follow the magicians, if they do get the victory.
40 And when the magicians were come, they said unto Pharaoh, Shall we
certainly receive a reward, if we do get the victory?
He answered, Yea; and ye shall surely be of those who approach my person.
Moses said unto them, Cast down what ye are about to cast down.
Wherefore they cast down their ropes and their rods, and said, By the
might of Pharaoh, verily we shall be the conquerors.
And Moses cast down his rod, and behold, it swallowed up that which they
had caused falsely to appear changed into serpents.
Whereupon the magicians prostrated themselves, worshipping,
and said, We believe in the LORD of all creatures,
the LORD of Moses and of Aaron.
Pharaoh said unto them, Have ye believed on him, before I have given you
permission? Verily he is your chief who hath taught you magic:s but hereafter
ye shall surely know my power.
o Having killed the Egyptian undesignedly.
p Pharaoh, it seems, thought Moses had given but wild answers to his
question; for he wanted to know the person and true nature of the GOD whose
messenger Moses pretended to be; whereas he spoke of his works only. And
because this answer gave so little satisfaction to the king, he is therefore
supposed by some to have been a Dahrite, or one who believed the eternity of
the world.3
q From this and a parallel expression in the twenty-eighth chapter, it
is inferred that Pharaoh claimed the worship of his subjects, as due to his
supreme power.
r These words, says al Beidâwi, were a more terrible menace than if he
had said I will imprison thee; and gave Moses to understand that he must
expect to keep company with those wretches whom the tyrant had thrown, as was
his custom, into a deep dungeon, where they remained till they died.
s But has reserved the most efficacious secrets to himself.4
3 Idem. 4 Idem.
I will cut off your hands and your feet, on the opposite sides, and I
will crucify you all.
50 They answered, It will be no harm unto us; for we shall return unto our
LORD.
We hope that our LORD will forgive us our sins, since we are the first
who have believed.t
And we spake by revelation unto Moses, saying, March forth with my
servants by night; for ye will be pursued.
And Pharaoh sent officers through the cities to assemble forces, saying,
Verily these are a small company;
and they are enraged against us:
but we are a multitude well provided.
So we caused them to quit their gardens, and fountains,
and treasures, and fair dwellings:
thus did we do; and we made the children of Israel to inherit the same.u
60 And they pursued them at sunrise.
And when the two armies were come in sight of each other, the companions
of Moses said, We shall surely be overtaken.
Moses answered, By no means; for my LORD is with me, who will surely
direct me.
And we commanded Moses by revelation, saying, Smite the sea with thy rod.
And when he had smitten it, it became divided into twelve parts, between which
were as many paths, and every part was like a vast mountain.
And we drew thither the others;
and we delivered Moses and all those who were with him:
then we drowned the others.
Verily herein was a sign; but the greater part of them did not believe.
Verily thy LORD is the mighty and the merciful.
And rehearse unto them the story of Abraham:
70 when he said unto his father, and his people, What do ye worship?
They answered, We worship idols; and we constantly serve them all the day
long.
Abraham said, Do they hear you, when ye invoke them?
Or do they either profit you, or hurt you?
They answered, But we found our fathers do the same.
He said, What think ye? The gods which ye worship,
and your forefathers worshipped,
are my enemy: except only the LORD of all creatures,
who hath created me, and directeth me;
and who giveth me to eat, and to drink,
80 and when I am sick, healeth me;
and who will cause me to die, and will afterwards restore me to life;
and who, I hope, will forgive my sins on the day of judgment.
O LORD, grant me wisdom; and join me with the righteous:
and grant that I may be spoken of with honourx among the latest
posterity;
and make me an heir of the garden of delight:
and forgive my father, for that he hath been one of those who go astray.y
And cover me not with shame on the day of resurrection;
on the day in which neither riches nor children shall avail,
unless unto him who shall come unto GOD with a sincere heart:
90 when paradise shall be brought near to the view of the pious,
and hell shall appear plainly to those who shall have erred:
t See chapter 7, p. 116, &c.
u Hence some suppose the Israelites, after the destruction of Pharaoh
and his host, returned to Egypt, and possessed themselves of the riches of
that country.5 But others are of opinion that the meaning is no more than
that GOD gave them the like possessions and dwellings in another country.6
x Literally, Grant me a tongue of truth, that is, a high encomium. The
same expression is used in c. 19, p. 252.
y By disposing him to repentance, and the receiving of the true faith.
Some suppose Abraham pronounced this prayer after his father's death, thinking
that possibly he might have been inwardly a true believer, but have concealed
his conversion for fear of Nimrod, and before he was forbidden to pray for
him.7
5 Jallalo'ddin, Yahya. 6 Al Zamakh. See cap. 7, p. 118.
7 See cap. 9, p. 148, and c. 14, p. 209.
and it shall be said unto them, Where are your deities which ye served
besides GOD? will they deliver you from punishment, or will they deliver
themselves?
And they shall be cast into the same, both they,z and those who have been
seduced to their worship;
and all the host of Eblis.
The seduced shall dispute therein with their false gods,
saying, By GOD, we were in a manifest error,
when we equalled you with the LORD of all creatures:
and none seduced us but the wicked.
100 We have now no intercessors,
nor any friend who careth for us.
If we were allowed to return once more into the world, we would certainly
become true believers.
Verily herein was a sign; but the greater part of them believed not.
The LORD is the mighty, the merciful.
The people of Noah accused God's messengers of imposture:
when their brother Noah said unto them, Will ye not fear God?
Verily I am a faithful messenger unto you;
110 wherefore fear GOD, and obey me.
I ask no reward of you for my preaching unto you; I expect my reward from
no other than the LORD of all creatures:
wherefore fear GOD, and obey me.
They answered, Shall we believe on thee, when only the most abject
persons have followed thee?
Noah said, I have no knowledge of that which they did;a
it appertaineth unto my LORD alone to bring them to account, if ye
understand;
wherefore I will not drive away the believers:b
I am no more than a public preacher.
They replied, Assuredly, unless thou desist, O Noah, thou shalt be
stoned.
He said, O LORD, verily my people take me for a liar;
wherefore judge publicly between me and them; and deliver me and the true
believers who are with me.
Wherefore we delivered him, and those who were with him, in the ark
filled with men and animals;
120 and afterwards we drowned the rest.
Verily herein was a sign; but the greater part of them believed not.
Thy LORD is the mighty, the merciful.
The tribe of Ad charged God's messengers with falsehood:
when their brother Hud said unto them, Will ye not fear God?
Verily I am a faithful messenger unto you;
wherefore fear GOD, and obey me.
I demand not of you any reward for my preaching unto you: I expect my
reward from no other than the LORD of all creatures.
Do ye build a landmark on every high place, to divert yourselves?c
And do ye erect magnificent works, hoping that ye may continue in their
possession forever?
130 And when ye exercise your power, do ye exercise it with cruelty and
rigour?d
Fear GOD, by leaving these things; and obey me.
And fear him who hath bestowed on you that which ye know:
he hath bestowed on you cattle, and children,
and gardens, and springs of water.
Verily I fear for you the punishment of a grievous day.
They answered, It is equal unto us whether thou admonish us, or dost not
admonish us:
this which thou preachest is only a device of the ancients;
z See chapter 21, p. 273.
a i.e., Whether they have embraced the faith which I have preached, out
of the sincerity of their hearts, or in prospect of some worldly advantage.
b See chapter 11, p. 161.
c Or to mock the passengers; who direct themselves in their journeys by
the stars, and have no need of such buildings?1
d Putting to death, and inflicting other corporal punishments without
mercy, and rather for the satisfaction of your passion than the amendment of
the sufferer.2
1 Al Beidâwi. 2 Idem.
neither shall we be punished for what we have done.
And they accused him of imposture: wherefore we destroyed them. Verily
herein was a sign: but the greater part of them believed not.
140 Thy LORD is the mighty, the merciful.
The tribe of Thamud also charged the messengers of God with falsehood.
When their brother Saleh said unto them, Will ye not fear God?
Verily I am a faithful messenger unto you:
wherefore fear GOD, and obey me.
I demand no reward of you for my preaching unto you: I expect my reward
from no other than the LORD of all creatures.
Shall ye be left forever secure in the possession of the things which are
here;
among gardens, and fountains,
and corn, and palm-trees, whose branches sheathe their flowers.
And will ye continue to cut habitations for yourselves out of the
mountains, behaving with insolence?e
150 Fear GOD, and obey me;
and obey not the command of the transgressors,
who act corruptly in the earth, and reform not the same.
They answered, Verily thou art distracted:
thou art no other than a man like unto us: produce now some sign, if thou
speakest truth.
Saleh said, This she-camel shall be a sign unto you: she shall have her
portion of water, and ye shall have your portion of water alternately, on a
several day appointed for you;f
and do her no hurt, lest the punishment of a terrible day be inflicted on
you.
But they slew her; and were made to repent of their impiety:
for the punishment which had been threatened overtook them. Verily
herein was a sign; but the greater part of them did not believe.
Thy LORD is the mighty, the merciful.
160 The people of Lot likewise accused God's messengers of imposture.
When their brother Lot said unto them, Will ye not fear God?
Verily I am a faithful messenger unto you:
wherefore fear GOD, and obey me.
I demand no reward of you for my preaching: I expect my reward from no
other than the LORD of all creatures.
Do ye approach unto the males among mankind,
and leave your wives which your LORD hath created for you. Surely ye are
people who transgress.
They answered, Unless thou desist, O Lot, thou shalt certainly be
expelled our city.
He said, Verily I am one of those who abhor your doings:
O LORD, deliver me, and my family, from that which they act.
170 Wherefore we delivered him, and all his family,
except an old woman, his wife, who perished among those who remained
behind;
then we destroyed the rest;
and we rained on them a shower of stones; and terrible was the shower
which fell on those who had been warned in vain.
Verily herein was a sign; but the greater part of them did not believe.
Thy LORD is the mighty, the merciful.
The inhabitants of the woodg also accused GOD'S messengers of imposture.
When Shoaib said unto him, Will ye not fear God?
Verily I am a faithful messenger unto you:
e Or, as the original word may also be rendered, showing art and
ingenuity in your work.
f That is, they were to have the use of the water by turns, the camel
drinking one day, and the Thamudites drawing the other day; for when this
camel drank, she emptied the wells or brooks for that day. See chapter 7, p.
112.
g See chapter 15, p. 213. Shoaib being not called the brother of these
people, which would have preserved the conformity between this passage and the
preceding, it has been thought they were not Midianites, but of another race;
however, we find the prophet taxes them with the same crimes as he did those
of Midian.1
1 See cap. 7, p. 113.
wherefore fear GOD, and obey me.
180 I ask no reward of you for my preaching: I expect my reward from no
other than the LORD of all creatures.
Give just measure, and be not defrauders;
and weigh with an equal balance;
and diminish not unto men aught of their matters; neither commit violence
in the earth, acting corruptly.
And fear him who hath created you, and also the former generations.
They answered, Certainly thou art distracted;
thou art no more than a man, like unto us; and we do surely esteem thee
to be a liar.
Cause now a part of the heaven to fall upon us, if thou speakest truth.
Shoaib said, My LORD best knoweth that which ye do.
And they charged him with falsehood: wherefore the punishment of the day
of the shadowing cloudh overtook them; and this was the punishment of a
grievous day.
190 Verily herein was a sign; but the greater part of them did not believe.
Thy LORD is the mighty, the merciful.
This book is certainly a revelation from the LORD of all creatures,
which the faithful spiriti hath caused to descend
upon thy heart, that thou mightest be a preacher to thy people,
in the perspicuous Arabic tongue;
and it is borne witness to in the scriptures of former ages.
Was it not a sign unto them, that the wise men among the children of
Israel knew it?
Had we revealed it unto any of the foreigners,
and he had read the same unto them, yet they would not have believed
therein.
200 Thus have we caused obstinate infidelity to enter the hearts of the
wicked:
they shall not believe therein, until they see a painful punishment.
It shall come suddenly upon them, and they shall not foresee it:
and they shall say, Shall we be respited?
Do they therefore desire our punishment to be hastened?k
What thinkest thou? If we suffer them to enjoy the advantage of this
life for several years,
and afterwards that with which they are threatened come upon them;
what will that which they have enjoyed profit them?
We have destroyed no city, but preachers were first sent unto it,
to admonish the inhabitants thereof; neither did we treat them unjustly.
210 The devils did not descend with the Koran, as the infidels give out:
it is not for their purpose, neither are they able to produce such a
book;
for they are far removed from hearing the discourse of the angels in
heaven.l
Invoke no other god with the true GOD, lest thou become one of those who
are doomed to punishment.
And admonish thy more near relations.m
And behave thyself with meeknessn towards the true believers who follow
thee:
h GOD first plagued them with such intolerable heat for seven days that
all their waters were dried up, and then brought a cloud over them, under
whose shade they ran, and were all destroyed by a hot wind and fire which
proceeded from it.2
i i.e., Gabriel, who is entrusted with the divine secrets and
revelations.
k The infidels were continually defying Mohammed to bring some signal
and miraculous destruction on them, as a shower of stones, &c.
l See chapter 15, p. 211.
m The commentators suppose the same command to have been virtually
contained in the 74th chapter, which is prior to this in point of time.3 It
is said that Mohammed, on receiving the passage before us, went up immediately
to Mount Safâ, and having called the several families to him, one by one, when
they were all assembled, asked them whether, if he should tell them that
mountain would bring forth a smaller mountain, they would believe him; to
which they answering in the affirmative, Verily, says he, I am a warner sent
unto you, before a severe chastisement.4
n Literally, lower thy wing.
2 Al Beidâwi. 3 See the notes thereon, and the Prelim. Disc.
Sect. II. p. 34. 4 Al Beidâwi.
and if they be disobedient unto thee, say, Verily, I am clear of that
which ye do.
And trust in the most mighty, the merciful God;
who seeth thee when thou risest up,
and thy behavior among those who worship;o
220 for he both heareth and knoweth.
Shall I declare unto you upon whom the devils descend?
They descend upon every lying and wicked person:p
they learn what is heard;q but the greater part of them are liars.
And those who err follow the steps of the poets:
dost thou not see that they rove as bereft of their senses through every
valley;
and that they say that which they do not?r
except those who believe, and do good works, and remember GOD frequently;
and who defend themselves, after they have been unjustly treated.s And
they who act unjustly shall know hereafter with what treatment they shall be
treated.
o i.e., Who seeth thee when thou risest up to watch and spend the night
in religious exercises, and observeth thy anxious care for the Moslems' exact
performance of their duty. It is said that the night on which the precept of
watching was abrogated. Mohammed went privately from one house to another, to
see how his companions spent the time; and that he found them so intent in
reading the Korân, and repeating their prayers, that their houses, by reason
of the humming noise they made, seemed to be so many nests of hornets.5 Some
commentators, however, suppose that by the prophet's behaviour, in this place,
are meant the various postures he used in praying at the head of his
companions; as standing, bowing, prostration, and sitting.6
p The prophet, having vindicated himself from the charge of having
communication with the devils, by the opposition between his doctrine and
their designs, and their inability to compose so consistent a book as the
Korân, proceeds to show that the persons most likely to a correspondence with
those evil spirits were liars and slanderers, that is, his enemies and
opposers.
q i.e., They are taught by the secret inspiration of the devils, and
receive their idle and inconsistent suggestions for truth. It being uncertain
whether the slanderers or the devils be the nominative case to the verb, the
words may also be rendered, They impart what they hear; that is, The devils
acquaint their correspondents on earth with such incoherent scraps of the
angels' discourse as they can hear by stealth.7
r Their compositions being as wild as the actions of a distracted man:
for most of the ancient poetry was full of vain imaginations; as fabulous
stories and descriptions, love verses, flattery, excessive commendations of
their patrons, and as excessive reproaches of their enemies, incitements to
vicious actions, vainglorious vauntings, and the like.8
s That is, such poets as had embraced Mohammedism; whose works, free
from the profaneness of the former, run chiefly on the praises of GOD, and the
establishing his unity, and contain exhortations to obedience and other
religious and moral virtues, without any satirical invectives, unless against
such as have given just provocations, by having first attacked them, or some
others of the true believers, with the same weapons. In this last case
Mohammed saw it was necessary for him to borrow assistance from the poets of
his party, to defend himself and religion from the insults and ridicule of the
others, for which purpose he employed the pens of Labid Ebn Rabîa,1 Abda'llah
Ebn Rawâha, Hassân Ebn Thabet, and the two Caabs. It is related that Mohammed
once said to Caab Ebn Malec, Ply them with satires; for, by him in whose hand
my soul is, they wound more deeply than arrows.2
5 Idem. 6 Idem, Jallalo'ddin. 7 Idem. 8
Idem. 1 See the Prelim. Disc. p. 47.
2 Al Beidâwi.
CHAPTER XXVII.
ENTITLED, THE ANT;t REVEALED AT MECCA.
IN THE NAME OF THE MOST MERCIFUL GOD.
T. S. THESE are the signs of the Koran, and of the perspicuous book:
a direction, and good tidings unto the true believers? who regularly
perform their prayer, and give alms, and firmly believe in the life to come.
As to those who believe not in the life to come, we have prepared their
works for them;u and they shall be struck with astonishment at their
disappointment, when they shall be raised again:
these are they whom an evil punishment awaiteth in this life; and in that
which is to come they shall be the greatest losers.
Thou hast certainly received the Koran from the presence of a wise, a
knowing God.
Remember when Moses said unto his family, Verily I perceive fire;
I will bring you tidings thereof, or I will bring you a lighted brand,
that ye may be warmed.x
And when he was come near unto it, a voice cried unto him, saying,
Blessed be he who is in the fire, and whoever is about it;y and praise be unto
GOD, the LORD of all creatures!
O Moses, verily I am GOD, the mighty, the wise:
10 cast down now thy rod. And when he saw it, that it moved, as though it
had been a serpent, he retreated, and fled, and returned not. And God said, O
Moses, fear not; for my messengers are not disturbed with fear in my sight:
except he who shall have done amiss, and shall have afterwards
substituted good in lieu of evil; for I am gracious and merciful.z
Moreover put thy hand into thy bosom; it shall come forth white, without
hurt: this shall be one among the nine signsa unto Pharaoh and his people: for
they are a wicked people.
And when our visible signs had come unto them, they said, This is a
manifest sorcery.
And they denied them, although their souls certainly knew them to be from
God, out of iniquity and pride: but behold what was the end of the corrupt
doers.
We heretofore bestowed knowledge on David and Solomon; and they said,
Praise be unto GOD, who hath made us more excellent than many of his faithful
servants!
And Solomon was David's heir;b and he said, O men, we have been taught
the speech of birds,c and have had all things bestowed on us; this is manifest
excellence.
t In this chapter is related, among other strange things, an odd story
of the ant, which has therefore been pitched on for the title.
u By rendering them pleasing and agreeable to their corrupt natures and
inclinations.
x See chapter 20, p. 234.
y Some suppose GOD to be intended by the former words, and by the
latter, the angels who were present;1 others think Moses and the angels are
here meant, or all persons in general in this holy plain, and the country
round it.2
z This exception was designed to qualify the preceding assertion, which
seemed too general; for several of the prophets have been subject to sins,
though not great ones, before their mission, for which they had reason to
apprehend GOD'S anger, though they are here assured that their subsequent
merits entitle them to his pardon. It is supposed that Moses's killing the
Egyptian undesignedly is hinted at.3
a See chapter 17, p. 215.
b Inheriting not only his kingdom, but also the prophetical office,
preferably to his other sons, who were no less than nineteen.4
1 Yahya. 2 Jallalo'ddin, al Beidâwi. 3 Idem.
4 Idem.
And his armies were gathered together unto Solomon, consisting of genii,d
and men, and birds; and they were led in distinct bands,
until they came unto the valley of ants.e And an ant, seeing the hosts
approaching, said, O ants, enter ye into your habitations, lest Solomon and
his army tread you under foot, and perceive it not.
And Solomon smiled, laughing at her words, and said, O LORD, excite me
that I may be thankful for thy favor, wherewith thou hast favored me, and my
parents; and that I may do that which is right, and well-pleasing unto thee:
and introduce me, through thy mercy, into paradise, among thy servants the
righteous.
20 And he viewed the birds, and said, What is the reason that I see not the
lapwing?f Is she absent?
Verily I will chastise her with a severe chastisement,g or I will put her
to death; unless she bring me a just excuse.
And she tarried not long before she presented herself unto Solomon, and
said, I have viewed a country which thou hast not viewed; and I come unto thee
from Saba, with a certain piece of news.
I found a womanh to reign over them, who is provided with everything
requisite for a prince, and hath a magnificent throne.i
c That is, the meaning of their several voices, though not articulate;
of Solomon's interpretation whereof the commentators give several instances.5
d For this fancy, as well as the former, Mohammed was obliged to the
Talmudists,6 who, according to their manner, have interpreted the Hebrew words
of Solomon,7 which the English version renders, I gat men-singers and women-
singers, as if that prince had forced demons or spirits to serve him at his
table, and in other capacities; and particularly in his vast and magnificent
buildings, which they could not conceive he could otherwise have performed.
e The valley seems to be so called from the great numbers of ants which
are found there. Some place it in Syria, and others in Tâyef.8
f The Arab historians tell us that Solomon, having finished the temple
of Jerusalem, went in pilgrimage to Mecca, where, having stayed as long as he
pleased, he proceeded toward Yaman; and leaving Mecca in the morning, he
arrived by noon at Sanaa, and being extremely delighted with the country,
rested there; but wanting water to make the ablution, he looked among the
birds for the lapwing, called by the Arabs al Hudbud, whose business it was to
find it; for it is pretended she was sagacious or sharp-sighted enough to
discover water underground, which the devils used to draw, after she had
marked the place by digging with her bill: they add, that this bird was then
taking a tour in the air, whence, seeing one of her companions alighting, she
descended also, and having had a description given her by the other of the
city of Saba, whence she was just arrived, they both went together to take a
view of the place, and returned soon after Solomon had made the inquiry which
occasioned what follows.1
It may be proper to mention her what the eastern writers fable of the
manner of Solomon's travelling. They say that he had a carpet of green silk,
on which his throne was placed, being of a prodigious length and breadth, and
sufficient for all his forces to stand on, the men placing themselves on his
right hand, and the spirits on his left; and that when all were in order, the
wind, at his command, took up the carpet, and transported it, with all that
were upon it, wherever he pleased;2 the army of birds at the same time flying
over their heads, and forming a kind of canopy, to shade them from the sun.
g By plucking off her feathers, and setting her in the sun, to be
tormented by the insects; or by shutting her up in a cage.3
h This queen the Arabs name Balkîs: some make her the daughter of al
Hodhâd Ebn Sharhabil,4 and others of Sharahîl Ebn Malec;5 but they all agree
she was a descendant of Yárab Ebn Kahtân. She is placed the twenty-second in
Dr. Pocock's list of the kings of Yaman.6
i Which the commentators say was made of gold and silver, and crowned
with precious stones. But they differ as to the size of it; one making it
fourscore cubits long, forty broad, and thirty high; while some say it was
fourscore, and others thirty cubits every way.
5 See Maracc. not. in loc. p. 511. 6 Vide Midrash, Yalkut
Shemuni, p. 11, f. 29, et Millium, de Mohammedismo ante Mohammed. p. 232.
7 Eccles. ii. 8 8 Al Beidâwi. Jallalo'ddin. 1 Idem.
2 See cap. 21, p. 247.
3 Al Beidâwi, Jallalo'ddin. 4 Vide Pocock. Spec. p. 59. 5 Al
Beidâwi, &c. Vide D'Herbel. Bibl. Orient. p. 182.
6 Ubi sup.
I found her and her people to worship the sun, besides GOD: and Satan
hath prepared their works for them, and hath turned them aside from the way of
truth (wherefore they are not rightly directed),
lest they should worship GOD, who bringeth to light that which is hidden
in heaven and earth, and knoweth whatever they conceal, and whatever they
discover.
GOD! there is no GOD but he; the LORD of the magnificent throne.
Solomon said, We shall see whether thou hast spoken the truth, or whether
thou art a liar.
Go with this my letter, and cast it down unto them; then turn aside from
them, and wait to know what answer they will return.
And when the Queen of Saba had received the letter,k she said, O nobles,
verily an honourable letter hath been delivered unto me;
30 it is from Solomon, and this is the tenor thereof: In the name of the
most merciful GOD,
Rise not up against me: but come and surrender yourselves unto me.l
She said, O nobles, advise me in my business: I will not resolve on
anything, until ye be witnesses and approve thereof.
The nobles answered, We are endued with strength, and are endued with
great prowess in war; but the command appertaineth unto thee: see therefore
what thou wilt command.m
She said, Verily kings, when they enter a city by force, waste the same,
and abase the most powerful of the inhabitants hereof: and so will these do
with us.
But I will send gifts unto them; and will wait for what further
information those who shall be sent shall bring back.
And when the queen's ambassador came unto Solomon,n that prince said,
Will ye present me with riches? Verily that which GOD hath given me is better
than what he hath given you: but ye do glory in your gifts.
Return unto the people of Saba. We will surely come unto them with
forces, which they shall not be able to withstand; and we will drive them out
from their city, humbled; and they shall become contemptible.
And Solomon said, O nobles, which of you will bring unto me her throne,
before they come and surrender themselves unto me?
A terrible geniuso answered, I will bring it unto thee, before thou arise
from thy place:p for I am able to perform it, and may be trusted.
k Jallalo'ddin says that the queen was surrounded by her army when the
lapwing threw the letter into her bosom; but al Beidâwi supposes she was in an
apartment of her palace, the doors of which were shut, and that the bird flew
in at the window. The former commentator gives a copy of the epistle somewhat
more full than that in the text; viz., From the servant of GOD, Solomon, the
son of David, unto Balkîs queen of Saba. In the name of the most merciful
GOD. Peace be on him who followeth the true direction. Rise not up against
me, but come and surrender yourselves unto me. He adds that Solomon perfumed
this letter with musk, and sealed it with his signet.
l Or, Come unto me and resign yourselves unto the divine direction, and
profess the true religion which I preach.
m i.e., Whether thou wilt obey the summons of Solomon, or give us
orders to make head against him.
n Bearing the presents, which they say were five hundred young slaves
of each sex, all habited in the same manner, five hundred bricks of gold, a
crown enriched with precious stones, besides a large quantity of musk, amber,
and other things of value.1 Some add that Balkîs, to try whether Solomon was
a prophet or no, dressed the boys like girls, and the girls like boys, and
sent him in a casket, a pearl not drilled, and an onyx drilled with a crooked
hole; and that Solomon distinguished the boys from the girls by the different
manner of their taking water, and ordered one worm to bore the pearl, and
another to pass a thread through the onyx.2 They also tell us that Solomon,
having notice of this embassy, by means of the lapwing, even before they set
out, ordered a large square to be enclosed with a wall built of gold and
silver bricks, wherein he ranged his forces and attendants to receive them.3
o This was an Ifrît, or one of the wicked and rebellious genii; and his
name, says al Beidâwi, was Dhacwân or Sakhr.
p i.e., From thy seat of justice. For Solomon used to sit in judgment
every day till noon.4
1 Jallalo'ddin 2 Al Beidâwi. 3 Jallalo'ddin.
4 Idem interp.
40 And one with whom was the knowledge of the scripturesq said, I will
bring it unto thee, in the twinkling of an eye.r And when Solomon saw the
throne placed before him, he said, This is a favor of my LORD, that he may
make trial of me, whether I will be grateful, or whether I will be ungrateful;
and he who is grateful is grateful to his own advantage, but if any shall be
ungrateful, verily my LORD is self-sufficient and munificent.
And Solomon said unto his servants, Alter her throne, that she may not
know it, to the end we may see whether she be rightly directed, or whether she
be one of those who are not rightly directed.
And when she was come unto Solomon,s it was said unto her, is thy throne
like this? She answered, As though it were the same. And we have had
knowledge bestowed on us before this, and have been resigned unto God.t
But that which she worshipped, besides GOD, had turned her aside from the
truth; for she was of an unbelieving people.
It was said unto her, Enter the palace.u And when she saw it, she
imagined it to be a great water; and she discovered her legs, by lifting up
her robe to pass through it.x Whereupon Solomon said unto her, Verily this is
a palace evenly floored with glass.
Then said the queen, O LORD, verily I have dealt unjustly with my own
soul; and I resign myself, together with Solomon, unto GOD, the LORD of all
creatures.y
Also we heretofore sent unto the tribe of Thamud their brother Saleh; who
said unto them, Serve ye GOD. And behold, they were divided into two parties,
who disputed among themselves.z
Saleh said, O my people why do ye hasten evil rather than good?a Unless
ye ask pardon of GOD, that ye may obtain mercy, ye are lost.
q This person, as is generally supposed, was Asaf the son of Barachia,
Solomon's Wazir (or Visir), who knew the great or ineffable name of GOD, by
pronouncing of which he performed this wonderful exploit.5 Others, however,
suppose it was al Khedr, or else Gabriel, or some other angel; and some
imagine it to have been Solomon himself.6
r The original is, Before thou canst look at any object, and take thy
eye off it. It is said that Solomon, at Asaf's desire, looked up to heaven,
and before he cast his eye downwards, the throne made its way underground, and
appeared before him.
s For, on the return of her ambassador, she determined to go and submit
herself to that prince; but before her departure, she secured her throne, as
she thought, by locking it up in a strong castle, and setting a guard to
defend it; after which she set out, attended by a vast army.7
t It is uncertain whether these be the words of Balkîs, acknowledging
her conviction by the wonders she had already seen; or of Solomon and his
people, acknowledging the favour of GOD, in calling them to the true faith
before her.
u Or, as some understand the word, the court before the palace, which
Solomon had commanded to be built against the arrival of Balkîs; the floor or
pavement being of transparent glass, laid over running water, in which fish
were swimming. Fronting this pavement was placed the royal throne, on which
Solomon sat to receive the queen.8
x Some Arab writers tell us Solomon had been informed that Balkîs's
legs and feet were covered with hair, like those of an ass, of the truth of
which he had hereby an opportunity of being satisfied by ocular demonstration.
y The queen of Saba having by these words professed Islâm, and
renounced idolatry, Solomon had thoughts of making her his wife; but could not
resolve to do it; till the devils had by a depilatory taken off the hair from
her legs.9 Some,10 however, will have it that she did not marry Solomon, but
a prince of the tribe of Hamdân.
z Concerning the doctrine preached by Saleh; one party believing on
him, and the other treating him as an impostor.
a i.e., Why do ye urge and defy the divine vengeance with which ye are
threatened, instead of averting it by repentance?
5 Jallalo'ddin. 6 Al Beidâwi. 7 Jallalo'ddin.
8 Idem, al Beidâwi
9 Jallalo'ddin. 10 Apud al Beidâwi
They answered, We presage evil from thee, and from those who are with
thee. Saleh replied, The evil which ye presage is with GOD:b but ye are a
people who are proved by a vicissitude of prosperity and adversity.
And there were nine men in the city, who acted corruptly in the earth,
and behaved not with integrity.
50 And they said unto one another, Swear ye reciprocally by GOD, that we
will fall upon Saleh and his family by night: and afterwards we will say unto
him who hath right to avenge his blood, We were not so much as present at the
destruction of his family; and we certainly speak the truth.
And they devised a plot against him: but we devised a plot against them;
and they perceived it not.
And see what was the issue of their plot:c we utterly destroyed them and
their whole people;
and these their habitations remain empty, because of the injustice which
they committed. Verily herein is a sign unto people who understand.
And we delivered those who believed, and feared God.
And remember Lot; when he said unto his people, Do ye commit a
wickedness, though ye see the heinousness thereof?
Do ye approach lustfully unto men, leaving the women? Ye are surely an
ignorant people.
But the answer of his people was no other than that they said, Cast the
family of Lot out of your city: for they are men who preserve themselves pure
from the crimes of which ye are guilty.
Wherefore we delivered him and his family, except his wife, whom we
decreed to be one of those who remained behind to be destroyed.
And we rained on them a shower of stones: and dreadful was the shower
which fell on those who had been warned in vain.d
60 Say, Praise be unto GOD; and peace be upon his servants whom he hath
chosen! Is GOD more worthy, or the false gods which they associate with him?
Is not he to be preferred, who hath created the heavens and the earth,
and sendeth down rain for you from heaven, whereby we cause delicious groves
to spring up? It is not in your power to cause the trees thereof to shoot
forth. Is there any other god partner with the true GOD? Verily these are a
people who deviate from the truth.
Is not he more worthy to be adored, who hath established the earth, and
hath caused rivers to flow through the midst thereof, and placed thereon
immovable mountains, and set a bar between the two seas?e Is there any other
god equal with the true GOD? Yet the greater part of them know it not.
Is not he more worthy who heareth the afflicted,f when he calleth upon
him, and taketh off the evil which distressed him: and who hath made you the
successors of your forefathers in the earth? Is there any other god who can
be equalled with the true GOD? How few consider these things!
b See chapter 7, p. 117, where the Egyptians in the same manner accuse
Moses as the cause of their calamities.
c It is related that Saleh, and those who believed on him, usually
meeting to pray in a certain narrow place between the mountains, the infidels
said, He thinks to make an end of us after three days,1 but we will be
beforehand with him; and that a party of them went directly to the straits
above mentioned, thinking to execute their design, but were terribly
disappointed; for, instead of catching the prophet, they were caught
themselves, their retreat being cut off by a large piece of rock, which fell
down at the mouth of the straits, so that they perished there in a miserable
manner.
d See chapter 7, p. 113, and chapter 11, p. 166.
e See chapter 25, p. 274. The word barzakh is not used here, but
another of equivalent import.
f Literally, Him who is driven by distress to implore GOD'S assistance.
1 See cap. 7, p. 113, note m.
28
Is not he more worthy who directeth you in the dark paths of the land and
of the sea; and who sendeth the winds driving abroad the clouds, as the
forerunners of his mercy!g Is there any other god who can be equalled with
the true God? Far be GOD from having those partners in his power, which ye
associate with him.
Is not he more worthy, who produceth a creature, and after it hath been
dead restoreth it to life; and who giveth you food from heaven and earth? Is
there any other god with the true GOD, who doth this? Say, Produce your proof
thereof, if ye speak truth.
Say, None either in heaven or earth knoweth that which is hidden, besides
GOD: neither do they understand
when they shall be raised.
However, their knowledge attaineth some notion of the life to come:h yet
they are in an uncertainty concerning the same; yea, they are blind as to the
real circumstances thereof.
And the unbelievers say, When we and our fathers shall have been reduced
to dust, shall we be taken forth from the grave?
70 Verily we have been threatened with this, both we and our fathers,
heretofore. This is no other than fables of the ancients.
Say unto them, pass through the earth, and see what hath been the end of
the wicked.
And be not thou grieved for them; neither be thou in any concern on
account of the plots which they are contriving against thee.
And they say, When will this threat be accomplished, if ye speak true?
Answer, Peradventure some part of that punishment, which ye desire to be
hastened may follow close behind you:
verily thy LORD is endued with indulgence towards mankind; but the
greater part of them are not thankful.
Verily thy LORD knoweth what their breasts conceal, and what they
discover:
and there is nothing hidden in heaven or on earth, but it is written in a
clear book.
Verily this Koran declareth unto the children of Israel most of those
points concerning which they disagree:i
and it is certainly a direction, and a mercy unto the true believers.
80 Thy LORD will decide the controversy between them, by his definitive
sentence: and he is the mighty, the wise.
Therefore, put thy trust in GOD; for thou art in the manifest truth.
Verily thou shalt not make the dead to hear, neither shalt thou make the
deaf to hear thy call to the true faith, when they retire and turn their
backs:
neither shalt thou direct the blind to extricate themselves out of their
error. Thou shalt make none to hear thee, except him who shall believe in our
signs: and they are wholly resigned unto us.
When the sentence shall be ready to fall upon them, we will cause a
beastk to come forth unto them from out of the earth, which shall speak unto
them:l verily men do not firmly believe in our signs.
On the day of resurrection we will assemble, out of every nation, a
company of those who shall have charged our signs with falsehood; and they
shall be prevented from mixing together,
g See chapter 7, p. 110, and chapter 25, p. 274.
h Or the words may be translated thus: Yea, their knowledge faileth as
to the life to come: yea, &c.
i Such as the comparing of GOD to sensible things, or to created
beings: the removing all imperfections from the description of the Divine
Being; the state of paradise and hell; the stories of Ezra and Jesus Christ,
&c.1
k The Mohammedans call this beast, whose appearance will be one sign of
the approach of the day of judgment, al Jassâsa, or the Spy. I have given the
description of her elsewhere;2 to which should be added that she is to have
two wings.
l Or, according to a different reading, viz., taclimohom instead of
tocallimohom, who shall wound them.3
1 Al Beidâwi. 2 Prelim. Disc. Sec. IV. p. 62, &c.
3 Vide ibid.
until they shall arrive at the place of judgment. And God shall say unto
them, Have ye charged my signs with falsehood, although ye comprehended them
not with your knowledge. Or what is it that ye were doing?
And the sentence of damnation shall fall on them, for that they have
acted unjustly: and they shall not speak in their own excuse.
Do they not see that we have ordained the night, that they may rest
therein, and the day giving open light? Verily herein are signs unto people
who believe.
On that day the trumpet shall be sounded; and whoever are in heaven and
on earth shall be struck with terror, except those whom GOD shall please to
exempt therefrom:m and all shall come before him in humble guise.
90 And thou shalt see the mountains, and shalt think them firmly fixed; but
they shall pass away, even as the clouds pass away. This will be the work of
GOD, who hath rightly disposed all things: and he is well acquainted with that
which ye do.
Whoever shall have wrought righteousness, shall receive a reward beyond
the desert thereof; and they shall be secure from the terror of that day;n
but whoever shall have wrought evil, shall be thrown on their faces into
hell fire. Shall ye receive the reward of any other than of that which ye
shall have wrought?
Verily I am commanded to worship the LORD of this territory of Mecca, who
hath sanctified the same: unto him belong all things. And I am commanded to
be a Moslem,
and to rehearse the Koran: he who shall be directed thereby will be
directed to his own advantage;
and to him who shall go astray, say, Verily I am a warner only. And say,
Praise be unto GOD! he will show you his signs,o and ye shall know them: and
thy LORD is not regardless of that which they do.
________
CHAPTER XXVIII.
ENTITLED, THE STORY;p REVEALED AT MECCA.q
IN THE NAME OF THE MOST MERCIFUL GOD.
T. S. M.r THESE are the signs of the perspicuous book.
We will dictate unto thee, O Mohammed, some parts of the history of Moses
and Pharaoh, with truth; for the sake of people who believe.
m See the Prelim. Disc. Sect. IV. p. 65, &c. Some say the persons
exempted from this general consternation will be the angels Gabriel, Michael,
Israfil, and Izraël;1 others suppose them to be the virgins of paradise, and
the angels who guard that place, and carry GOD'S throne;2 and others will have
them to be the martyrs.3
n That is, from the fear of damnation, and the other terrors which will
disturb the wicked; not from the general terror or consternation before
mentioned.
o viz., The successes of the true believers against the infidels, and
particularly the victory of Bedr
p The title is taken from the 26th verse, where Moses is said to have
related the story of his adventures to Shoaib.
q Some except a verse towards the latter end, beginning with these
words: He who hath given thee the Korân for a rule of faith and practice, &c.
r See the Prelim. Disc. Sect. III. p. 46.
1 Jallalo'ddin, al Beidâwi. 2 Idem. 3 Ebn
Abbas.
Now Pharaoh lifted himself up in the land of Egypt; and he caused his
subjects to be divided into parties;s he weakened one party of them,t by
slaying their male children, and preserving their females alive; for he was an
oppressor.
And we were minded to be gracious unto those who were weakened in the
land, and to make them models of religion; and to make them the heirs of the
wealth of Pharaoh and his people,u
and to establish a place for them in the earth; and to show Pharaoh and
Haman,x and their forces, that destruction of their kingdom and nation by
them, which they sought to avoid.y
And we directed the mother of Moses by revelation, saying, give him suck:
and if thou fearest for him, cast him into the river; and fear not, neither be
afflicted; for we will restore him unto thee, and will appoint him one of our
apostles.z
And when she had put the child in the ark, and had cast it into the
river, the family of Pharaoh took him up; providence designing that he should
become an enemy, and a sorrow unto them. Verily Pharaoh and Haman, and their
forces were sinners.
And the wife of Pharaoh said, This child is a delight of the eye to me,
and to thee:a kill him not; peradventure it may happen that he may be
serviceable unto us; or we may adopt him for our son. And they perceived not
the consequence of what they were doing.
And the heart of the mother of Moses became oppressed with fear; and she
had almost discovered him, had we not armed her heart with constancy, that she
might be one of those who believe the promises of God.
10 And she said unto his sister, Follow him. And she watched him at a
distance; and they perceived it not.
And we suffered him not to take the breasts of the nurses who were
provided before his sister came up;b and she said, Shall I direct you unto
some of his nation, who may nurse him for you, and will be careful of him?
And, at their desire, she brought his mother to them. So we restored him
to his mother, that her mind might be set at ease, and that she might not be
afflicted; and that she might know that the promise of GOD was true: but the
greater part of mankind know not the truth.
s i.e., Either into companies, that they might the better attend his
order and perform the services he exacted of them; or into opposite factions,
to prevent their attempting anything against them, to deliver themselves from
his tyranny.1
t viz., The Israelites.
u See chapter 26, p. 278.
x This name is given to Pharaoh's chief minister; from whence it is
generally inferred that Mohammed has here made Haman, the favourite of
Ahasuerus king of Persia, and who indisputably lived many ages after Moses, to
be that prophet's contemporary. But how probable soever this mistake may seem
to us, it will be very hard, if not impossible, to convince a Mohammedan of
it; for, as has been observed in a parallel case,2 two very different persons
may bear the same name.3
y For Pharaoh had either dreamed, or been told by some diviners, that
one of the Hebrew nation should be the ruin of his kingdom; which prophecy is
supposed to have been the occasion of his cruelty to them.4 This circumstance
is owing to the invention of the Jews.5
z It is related that the midwife appointed to attend the Hebrew women,
terrified by a light which appeared between the eyes of Moses at his birth,
and touched with an extraordinary affection for the child, did not discover
him to the officers, so that his mother kept him in her house, and nursed him
three months; after which it was impossible for her to conceal him any longer,
the king then giving orders to make the searches more strictly.6
a This sudden affection or admiration was raised in them either by his
uncommon beauty, or by the light which shone on his forehead, or because, when
they opened the ark, they found him sucking his thumb, which supplied him with
milk.7
b See chapter 20, p. 235.
1 Al Beidâwi. 2 See p. 34, note x. 3 Vide Reland. de
Rel Moham. p. 217. 4 See cap. 7, p. 117. 5 Vide Shalshel.
hakkab, p. 11. et R. Eliez. pirke, c. 48 6 Al Beidâwi. See the notes
to cap. 20, p. 235.
7 Idem, Jallalo'ddin.
And when Moses had attained his age of full strength, and was become a
perfect man, we bestowed on him wisdom and knowledge: and thus do we reward
the upright.
And he went into the city, at a time when the inhabitants thereof
observed not what passed in the streets:c and he found therein two men
fighting; the one being of his own party, and the other of his enemies.d And
he who was of his party begged his assistance against him who was of the
contrary party; and Moses struck him with his fist, and slew him: but being
sorry for what had happened, he said, This is of the work of the devil;e for
he is a seducing and an open enemy.
And he said, O LORD, verily I have injured my own soul: wherefore forgive
me. So God forgave him; for he is ready to forgive, and merciful.
He said, O LORD, by the favors with which thou hast favored me, I will
not be an assistant to the wicked for the future.
And the next morning he was afraid in the city, and looked about him, as
one apprehensive of danger: and behold, he whom he had assisted the day before
cried out unto him for help a second time. But Moses said unto him, Thou art
plainly a quarrelsome fellow.
And when he sought to lay hold on him who was an enemy unto them both, he
said, O Moses, dost thou intend to kill me, as thou killedst a man yesterday?f
Thou seekest only to be an oppressor in the earth, and seekest not to be a
reconciler of quarrels.
And a certain mang came from the farther part of the city, running
hastily, and said, O Moses, verily the magistrates are deliberating concerning
thee, to put thee to death: depart therefore; I certainly advise thee well.
20 Wherefore he departed out of the city in great fear, looking this way
and that, lest he should be pursued. And he said, O LORD, deliver me from the
unjust people.
And when he was journeying towards Madian, he said, Peradventure my LORD
will direct me in the right way.h
And when he arrived at the water of Madian, he found about the well a
company of men, who were watering their flocks.
And he found, besides them, two women, who kept off their sheep at a
distance. And he said unto them, What is the matter with you? They answered,
We shall not water our flock, until the shepherds shall have driven away
theirs; for our father is an old man, stricken in years.
So Moses watered their sheep for them;i and afterwards retired to the
shade, saying, O LORD, verily I stand in need of the good which thou shalt
send down unto me.
c viz., At noon; at which time it is usual in those countries for
people to retire to sleep; or, as others rather suppose, a little within
night.
d i.e., The one being an Israelite of his own religion and nation, and
the other an idolatrous Egyptian.
e Mohammed allows that Moses killed the Egyptian wrongfully; but, to
excuse it, supposes that he struck him without designing to kill him.
f Some suppose these words to have been spoken by the Israelite, who,
because Moses had reprimanded him, imagined he was going to strike him; and
others, by the Egyptian, who either knew or suspected that Moses had killed
his countryman the day before.
g This person, says the tradition, was an Egyptian, and Pharaoh's
uncle's son, but a true believer; who, finding that the king had been informed
of what Moses had done, and designed to put him to death, gave him immediate
notice to provide for his safety by flight.
h For Moses knew not the way, and coming to a place where three roads
met, committed himself to the guidance of GOD, and took the middle road, which
was the right; providence likewise so ordering it, that his pursuers took the
other two roads, and missed him.1 Some say he was led by an angel in the
appearance of a traveller.2
i By rolling away a stone of a prodigious weight, which had been laid
over the mouth of the well by the shepherds, and required no less than seven
men (though some name a much larger number) to remove it.1
1 Al Beidâwi. 2 Jallalo'ddin. 1 Idem,
interp. Yahya.
And one of the damselsk came unto him, walking bashfully, and said, My
father calleth thee, that he may recompense thee for the trouble which thou
hast taken in watering our sheep for us. And when he was come unto Shoaib,
and had told him the story of his adventures, he said unto him, Fear not: thou
hast escaped from unjust people.
And one of the damsels said, My father, hire him for certain wages: the
best servant thou canst hire is an able and trusty person.l
And Shoaib said unto Moses, Verily I will give thee one of these my two
daughters in marriage, on condition that thou serve me for hire eight years;
and if thou fulfil ten years, it is in thine own breast; for I seek not to
impose a hardship on thee: and thou shalt find me, if GOD please, a man of
probity.
Moses answered, Let this be the covenant between me and thee: whichsoever
of the two terms I shall fulfil let it be no crime in me if I then quit thy
service; and GOD is witness of that which we say.
And when Moses had fulfilled the term,m and was journeying with his
family towards Egypt, he saw fire on the side of Mount Sinai. And he said
unto his family, Tarry ye here; for I see fire: peradventure I may bring you
thence some tidings of the way,n or at least a brand out of the fire, that ye
may be warmed.
30 And when he was come thereto, a voice cried unto him from the right side
of the valley, in the sacred bottom, from the tree, saying, O Moses, verily I
am GOD, the LORD of all creatures:
cast down now thy rod. And when he saw it that it moved, as though it
had been a serpent, he retreated and fled, and returned not. And God said
unto him, O Moses, draw near, and fear not; for thou art safe.
Put thy hand into thy bosom, and it shall come forth white, without any
hurt: and draw back thy hando unto thee which thou stretchest forth for fear.
These shall be two evident signs from thy LORD, unto Pharaoh and his princes;
for they are a wicked people.
Moses said, O LORD, verily I have slain one of them; and I fear they will
put me to death:
but my brother Aaron is of a more eloquent tongue than I am; wherefore
send him with me for an assistant, that he may gain me credit; for I fear lest
they accuse me of imposture.
God said, We will strengthen thine arm by thy brother, and we will give
each of you extraordinary power, so that they shall not come up to you, in our
signs. Ye two, and whoever shall follow you, shall be the conquerors.
k This was Sefûra (or Zipporah) the elder, or, as others suppose, the
younger daughter of Shoaib, whom Moses afterwards married.
l The girl, being asked by her father how she knew Moses deserved this
character, told him that he had removed the vast stone above mentioned without
any assistance, and that he looked not in her face, but held down his head
till he heard her message, and desired her to walk behind him, because the
wind ruffled her garments a little, and discovered some part of her legs.2
m viz., The longest terms of ten years. The Mohammedans say, after the
Jews,3 that Moses received from Shoaib the rod of the prophets (which was a
branch of a myrtle of paradise, and had descended to him from Adam) to keep
off the wild beasts from his sheep; and that this was the rod with which he
performed all those wonders in Egypt.
n See chapter 20, p. 234.
o LIterally, thy wing: the expression alludes to the action of birds,
which stretch forth their wings to fly away when they are frighted, and fold
them together again when they think themselves secure.4
2 Idem. 3 Vide Shals. hakkab. p. 12. R. Eliez. pirke, c. 40,
&c. 4 Al Beidâwi.
And when Moses came unto them with our evident signs, they said, This is
no other than a deceitful piece of sorcery: neither have we heard of anything
like this among our forefathers.
And Moses said, My LORD best knoweth who cometh with a direction from
him; and who shall have success in this life, as well as the next: but the
unjust shall not prosper.
And Pharaoh said, O princes, I did not know that ye had any other god
besides me.p Wherefore do thou, O Haman, burn me clay into bricks; and build
me a high tower,q that I may ascend unto the GOD of Moses: for I verily
believe him to be a liar.
And both he and his forces behaved themselves insolently and unjustly in
the earth; and imagined that they should not be brought before us to be
judged.
40 Wherefore we took him and his forces, and cast them into the sea.
Behold, therefore, what was the end of the unjust.
And we made them deceitful guides, inviting their followers to hell fire;
and on the day of resurrection they shall not be screened from punishment.
We pursued them with a curse in this life; and on the day of resurrection
they shall be shamefully rejected.
And we gave the book of the law unto Moses, after he had destroyed the
former generations, to enlighten the minds of men, and for a direction, and a
mercy; that peradventure they might consider.
Thou, O prophet, wast not on the west side of Mount Sinai, when we
delivered Moses his commission: neither wast thou one of those who were
present at his receiving it:
but we raised up several generations after Moses; and life was prolonged
unto them. Neither didst thou dwell among the inhabitants of Madian,
rehearsing unto them our signs; but we have sent thee fully instructed in
every particular.
Nor wast thou present on the side of the mount, when we called unto
Moses; but thou art sent as a mercy from thy LORD; that thou mightest preach
unto a people to whom no preacher hath come before thee,r that peradventure
they may be warned;
and lest, if a calamity had befallen them, for that which their hands had
previously committed, they should have said, O LORD, since thou hast not sent
an apostle unto us, that we might follow thy signs, and become true believers,
are we not excusable?
Yet when the truth is come unto them from before us, they say, Unless he
receive the same power to work miracles as Moses received, we will not
believe. Have they not likewise rejected the revelation which was heretofore
given unto Moses? They say, Two cunning imposturess have mutually assisted
one another: and they say, Verily we reject them both.
Say, Produce therefore a book from GOD, which is more right than these
two, that I may follow it; if ye speak truth.
p See chapter 26, p. 277.
q It is said that Haman, having prepared bricks and other materials,
employed no less than fifty thousand men, besides labourers, in the building;
which they carried to so immense a height that the workmen could no longer
stand on it: that Pharaoh, ascending this tower, threw a javelin towards
heaven, which fell back again stained with blood, whereupon he impiously
boasted that he had killed the GOD of Moses; but at sunset GOD sent the angel
Gabriel, who, with one stroke of his wing, demolished the tower, a part
whereof, falling on the king's army, destroyed a million of men.5
r That is, to the Arabians; to whom no prophet had been sent, at least
since Ismael.
s viz., The Pentateuch and the Korân. Some copies read, Two impostors,
meaning Moses and Mohammed.
5 Al Zamakhshari.
50 But if they return thee no answer, know that they only follow their own
desires: and who erreth more widely from the truth than he who followeth his
own desire, without a direction from GOD? Verily GOD directeth not the unjust
people.
And now have we caused our word to come unto them, that they may be
admonished.
They unto whom we have given the scriptures which were revealed before
it, believe in the same;
and when it is read unto them, say, We believe therein; it is certainly
the truth from our LORD: verily we were Moslems before this.t
These shall receive their reward twice,u because they have persevered,
and repel evil by good, and distribute alms out of that which we have bestowed
on them;
and when they hear vain discourse, avoid the same, saying, We have our
works, and ye have your works; peace be on you;x we covet not the acquaintance
of the ignorant.
Verily thou canst not direct whom thou wilt: but GOD directeth whom he
pleaseth; and he best knoweth those who will submit to be directed.
The Meccans say, If we follow the same direction with thee, we shall be
forcibly expelled our land.y Have we not established for them a secure
asylum,z to which fruits of every sort are brought, as a provision for our
bounty? but the greater part of them do not understand.
How many cities have we destroyed, whose inhabitants lived in ease and
plenty? and these their dwellings are not inhabited after them, unless for a
little while;a and we were the inheritors of their wealth.b
But thy LORD did not destroy those cities, until he had sent unto their
capital an apostle, to rehearse our signs unto them: neither did we destroy
those cities, unless their inhabitants were injurious to their apostle.
60 The things which are given you are the provisions of this present life,
and the pomp thereof; but that which is with GOD is better and more durable:
will ye not therefore understand?
Shall he then, unto whom we have promised an excellent promise of future
happiness, and who shall attain the same, be as he on whom we have bestowed
the provision of this present life, and who, on the day of resurrection, shall
be one of those who are delivered up to eternal punishment?
On that day God shall call unto them, and shall say, Where are my
partners, which ye imagined to be so?
t Holding the same faith in fundamentals, before the revelation of the
Korân, which we receive because it is consonant to the scriptures, and
attested to by them. The passage intends those Jews and Christians who had
embraced Mohammedism.
u Because they have believed both in their own scriptures and in the
Korân.
x See chap. 25, p. 275, note d.
y This objection was made by Al Hareth Ebn Othmân Ebn Nawfal Ebn Abd
Menâf, who came to Mohammed and told him that the Koreish believed he preached
the truth, but were apprehensive that if they made the Arabs their enemies by
quitting their religion, they would be obliged likewise to quit Mecca, being
but a handful of men, in comparison to the whole nation.1
z By giving them for their habitation the sacred territory of Mecca, a
place protected by GOD, and reverenced by man.
a That is, for a day, or a few hours only, while travellers stay there
to rest and refresh themselves; or, as the original may also signify, unless
by a few inhabitants: some of those ancient cities and dwellings being utterly
desolate, and others thinly inhabited.
b There being none left to enjoy it after them.
1 Al Beidâwi.
And they upon whom the sentence of damnation shall be justly pronounced
shall answer, These, O LORD, are those whom we seduced: but now we clearly
quit them, and turn unto thee. They did not worship us, but their own lusts.c
And it shall be said unto the idolaters, Call now upon those whom ye
associated with God: and they shall call upon them, but they shall not answer
them; and they shall see the punishment prepared for them, and shall wish that
they had submitted to be directed.
On that day, God shall call unto them, and shall say, What answer did ye
return to our messengers?
But they shall not be able to give an account thereof on that day;d
neither shall they ask one another for information.
Howbeit whoso shall repent and believe, and shall do that which is right,
may expect to be happy.
Thy LORD createth what he pleaseth; and chooseth freely: but they have no
free choice. Praise be unto GOD; and far be he removed from the idols which
they associate with him!
Thy LORD knoweth both the secret malice which their breasts conceal, and
the open hatred which they discover.
70 He is GOD; there is no GOD but he. Unto him is the praise due, both in
this life and in that which is to come: unto him doth judgment belong; and
before him shall ye be assembled at the last day.
Say, What think ye? If GOD should cover you with perpetual night, until
the day of resurrection; what god, besides GOD, would bring you light? Will
ye not therefore hearken?
Say, What think ye? If GOD should give you continual day, until the day
of resurrection; what god, besides GOD, would bring you night, that ye might
rest therein? Will ye not therefore consider?
Of his mercy he hath made for you the night and the day, that ye may rest
in the one, and may seek to obtain provision for yourselves of his abundance,
by your industry, in the other; and that ye may give thanks.
On a certain day God shall call unto them, and shall say, Where are my
partners, which ye imagined to share the divine power with me?
And we will produce a witness out of every nation,e and will say, Bring
hither your proof of what ye have asserted. And they shall know that the
right is GOD'S alone; and the deities which they have devised shall abandon
them.
Karûn was of the people of Moses;f but he behaved insolently towards
them: for we had given him so much treasure, that his keys would have loaded
several strong men.g When his people said unto him, Rejoice not immoderately;
for GOD loveth not those who rejoice in their riches immoderately:
c See chap. 10, p. 153.
d Literally, The account thereof shall be dark unto them; for the
consternation they shall then be under, will render them stupid, and unable to
return an answer.
e viz., The prophet who shall have been sent to each nation.
f The commentators say, Karûn was the son of Yeshar (or Izhar), the
uncle of Moses, and, consequently, make him the same with the Korah of the
scriptures. This person is represented by them as the most beautiful of the
Israelites, and so far surpassing them all in opulency that the riches of
Karûn have become a proverb. The Mohammedans are indebted to the Jews for
this last circumstance, to which they have added several other fables; for
they tell us that he built a large palace overlaid with gold, the doors
whereof were of massy gold; that he became so insolent because of his immense
riches, as to raise a sedition against Moses, though some pretend the occasion
of his rebellion to have been his unwillingness to give alms, as Moses had
commanded; that one day, when that prophet was preaching to the people, and,
among other laws which he published, declared that adulterers should be
stoned, Karûn asked him what if he should be found guilty of the same crime?
To which Moses answered, that in such case he would suffer the same
punishment; and thereupon Karûn produced a harlot, whom he had hired to swear
that Moses had lain with her, and charged him publicly with it; but on Moses
adjuring the woman to speak the truth, her resolution failed her, and she
confessed that she was suborned by Karûn to accuse him wrongfully; that then
God directed Moses, who had complained to him of this usage, to command the
earth what he pleased, and it should obey him; whereupon he said, O earth
swallow them up! and that immediately the earth opened under Karûn and his
confederates, and swallowed them up, with his palace and all his riches.1
There goes a tradition, that as Karûn sank gradually into the ground, first to
his knees, then to his waist, then to his neck, he cried out four several
times, O Moses, have mercy on me! but that Moses continued to say, O earth,
swallow them up, till at last he wholly disappeared; upon which GOD said to
Moses, Thou hast no mercy on Karûn, though he asked pardon of thee four times;
but I would have had compassion on him if he had asked pardon of me but once.2
g The original word properly signifies any number of persons from ten
to forty. Some pretend these keys were a sufficient load for seventy men; and
Abulfeda says forty mules used to be employed to carry them.
1 Abulfeda, Jallalo'ddin, al Beidâwi, &c.
but seek to attain by means of the wealth which GOD hath given thee, the
future mansion of paradise.h And forget not thy portion in this world; but be
thou bounteous unto others, as GOD hath been bounteous unto thee; and seek not
to act corruptly in the earth; for GOD loveth not the corrupt doers.
He answered, I have received these riches, only because of the knowledge
which is with me.i Did he not know that GOD had already destroyed, before
him, several generations, who were mightier than he in strength, and had
amassed more abundance of riches? And the wicked shall not be asked to
discover their crimes.
And Karûn went forth unto his people, in his pomp.k And they who loved
this present life said, Oh that we had the like wealth, as hath been given
unto Karûn? verily he is master of a great fortune.
80 But those on whom knowledge had been bestowed answered, Alas for you!
the reward of GOD in the next life will be better unto him who shall believe
and do good works; but none shall attain the same, except those who persevere
with constancy.
And we caused the ground to cleave in sunder, and to swallow up him and
his palace: and he had no forces to defend him, besides GOD; neither was he
rescued from punishment.
And the next morning, those who had coveted his condition the day before
said, Aha! verily GOD bestoweth abundant provision on such of his servants as
he pleaseth; and he is sparing unto whom he pleaseth. Unless GOD had been
gracious unto us, certainly the earth had swallowed us up also. Aha! the
unbelievers shall not prosper.
As to this future mansion of paradise, we will give it unto them who seek
not to exalt themselves in the earth, or to do wrong; for the happy issue
shall attend the pious.
Whoso doth good shall receive a reward which shall exceed the merit
thereof: but as to him who doth evil, they who work evil shall be rewarded
according to the merit only of that which they shall have wrought.
Verily he who hath given thee the Koran for a rule of faith and practice
will certainly bring thee back home unto Mecca.l Say, My LORD best knoweth
who cometh with a true direction, and who is in a manifest error.
h This passage is parallel to that in the New Testament, Make to
yourselves friends of the mammon of unrighteousness; that when ye fail, they
may receive you into everlasting habitations.3
i For some say he was the most learned of all the Israelites, and the
best versed in the law, after Moses and Aaron; others pretend he was skilled
in chemistry, or in merchandising, or other arts of gain, and others suppose
(as the Jews also fable4) that he found out the treasures of Joseph in Egypt.5
k It is said he rode on a white mule adorned with trappings of gold,
and that he was clothed in purple, and attended by four thousand men, all well
mounted and richly dressed.
l This verse, some say, was revealed to Mohammed when he arrived at
Johsa, in his flight from Mecca to Medina, to comfort him and still his
complaints.
2 Al Beidâwi. Vide D'Herbel. Bibl. Orient. Art. Carun. 3
Luke xvi. 9. 4 Vide R. Ghedal, Shalsh. hakkab. p. 13. 5
Jallalo'ddin, al Beidâwi.
Thou didst not expect that the book of the Koran should be delivered unto
thee: but thou hast received it through the mercy of thy LORD. Be not
therefore assisting to the unbelievers;
neither let them turn thee aside from the signs of GOD, after they have
been sent down unto thee: and invite men unto thy LORD. And be not thou an
idolater;
neither invoke any other god, together with the true GOD: there is no god
but he. Everything shall perish, except himself: unto him belongeth judgment:
and before him shall ye be assembled at the last day.
________
CHAPTER XXIX.
ENTITLED, THE SPIDER;m REVEALED AT MECCA.n
IN THE NAME OF THE MOST MERCIFUL GOD.
A. L. M.o Do men imagine that it shall be sufficient for themp to say,
We believe; will they not be proved?q
We heretofore proved those who were before them; for GOD will surely know
them who are sincere, and he will surely know the liars.
Do they who work evil think that they shall prevent us from taking
vengeance on them? An ill judgment do they make.
Whoso hopeth to meet GOD, verily GOD'S appointed time will certainly
come; and he both heareth and knoweth.
Whoever striveth to promote the true religion, striveth for the advantage
of his own soul; for GOD needeth not any of his creatures:
and as to those who believe and work righteousness, we will expiate their
evil deeds from them; and we will give them a reward according to the utmost
merit of their actions.
We have commanded man to show kindness towards his parents: but if they
endeavor to prevail with thee to associate with me that concerning which thou
hast no knowledge, obey them not.r Unto me shall ye return; and I will
declare unto you what ye have done.
Those who shall believe, and shall work righteousness, we will surely
introduce into paradise, among the upright.
m Transient mention is made of this insect towards the middle of the
chapter.
n Some think the first ten verses, ending with these words, And he well
knoweth the hypocrites, were revealed at Medina, and the rest at Mecca; and
others believe the reverse.
o See the Prelim. Disc. Sect. III. p. 46, &c.
p Literally, That they shall be let alone, &c.
q This passage reprehends the impatience of some of the prophet's
companions, under the hardships which they sustained in defence of their
religion, and the losses which they suffered from the infidels; representing
to them that such trials and afflictions were necessary to distinguish the
sincere person from the hypocrite, and the steady from the wavering. Some
suppose it to have been occasioned by the death of Mahja, Omar's slave, killed
by an arrow at the battle of Bedr, which was deeply lamented and laid to heart
by his wife and parents.1
r That is, If they endeavour to pervert thee to idolatry. The passage
is said to have been revealed on account of Saad Ebn Abi Wakkâs, and his
mother Hamna, who, when she heard that her son had embraced Mohammedism, swore
that she would neither eat nor drink till he returned to his old religion, and
kept her oath for three days.2
1 Al Beidâwi. 2 Idem.
There are some men who say, We believe in GOD: but when such a one is
afflicted for GOD'S sake, he esteemeth the persecution of men to be as
grievous as the punishment of GOD. Yet if success cometh from thy LORD, they
say, Verily we are with you. Doth not GOD well know that which is in the
breasts of his creatures?
10 Verily GOD well knoweth the true believers, and he well knoweth the
hypocrites.
The unbelievers say unto those who believe, Follow our way, and we will
bear your sins. Howbeit they shall not bear any part of their sins; for they
are liars:
but they shall surely bear their own burdens, and other burdens besides
their own burdens;s and they shall be examined, on the day of resurrection,
concerning that which they have falsely devised.
We heretofore sent Noah unto his people; and he tarried among them one
thousand years, save fifty years:t and the deluge took them away, while they
were acting unjustly;
but we delivered him and those who were in the ark, and we made the sameu
a sign unto all creatures.
We also sent Abraham; when he said unto his people, Serve GOD, and fear
him; this will be better for you; if ye understand.
Ye only worship idols besides GOD, and forge a lie. Verily those which
ye worship, besides GOD, are not able to make any provision for you: seek
therefore your provision from GOD; and serve him, and give thanks unto him;
unto him shall ye return.
If he charge me with imposture,x verily sundry nations before you
likewise charged their prophets with imposture: but public preaching only is
incumbent on an apostle.
Do they not see how GOD produceth creatures, and afterwards restoreth
them?y Verily this is easy with GOD.
Say, go through the earth, and see how he originally produceth creatures:
afterwards will GOD reproduce another production; for GOD is almighty.
20 He will punish whom he pleaseth, and he will have mercy on whom he
pleaseth. Before him shall ye be brought at the day of judgment:
and ye shall not escape his reach, either in earth, or in heaven:z
neither shall ye have any patron or defender besides GOD.
As for those who believe not in the signs of GOD, or that they shall meet
him at the resurrection, they shall despair of my mercy, and for them is a
painful punishment prepared.
s viz., The guilt of seducing others, which shall be added to the guilt
of their own obstinacy without diminishing the guilt of such as shall be
seduced by them.
t This is true, if the whole life of Noah be reckoned; and accordingly
Abulfeda says he was sent to preach in his two hundred and fiftieth year, and
that he lived in all nine hundred and fifty: but the text seeming to speak of
those years only which he spent in preaching to the wicked antediluvians, the
commentators suppose him to have lived much longer. Some say the whole length
of his life was a thousand and fifty years; that his mission happened in the
fortieth year of his age, and that he lived after the Flood sixty years;1 and
others give different numbers; one, in particular, pretending that Noah lived
near sixteen hundred years.2
This circumstance, says al Beidâwi, was mentioned to encourage Mohammed,
and to assure him that God, who supported Noah so many years against the
opposition and plots of the antediluvian infidels, would not fail to defend
him against all attempts of the idolatrous Meccans and their partisans.
u i.e., The ark.
x This seems to be part of Abraham's speech to his people: but some
suppose that GOD here speaks, by way of apostrophe, first to the Koreish, and
afterwards to Mohammed; and that the parenthesis is continued to these words,
And the answer of his people was no other, &c. In which case we should have
said, If ye charge Mohammed your apostle with imposture, &c.
y The infidels are bid to consider how GOD causeth the fruits of the
earth to spring forth, and reneweth them every year, as in the preceding;
which is an argument of his power to raise man, whom he created at first, to
life again after death, at his own appointed time.
z See Psalm cxxxix. 7, &c.
1 Idem, al Zamakh. 2 Caab, apud Yahyam.
And the answer of his people was no other than that they said, Slay him,
or burn him. But GOD saved him from the fire.a Verily herein were signs unto
people who believed.
And Abraham said, Ye have taken idols, besides GOD, to cement affection
between you in this life:
but on the day of resurrection, the one of you shall deny the other, and
the one of you shall curse the other; and your abode shall be hell fire, and
there shall be none to deliver you.
And Lot believed on him. And Abraham said, Verily I fly from my people,
unto the place which my LORD hath commanded me; or he is the mighty, the wise.
And we gave him Isaac and Jacob; and we placed among his descendants the
gift of prophecy and the scriptures: and we gave him his reward in this world;
and in the next he shall be one of the righteous.
We also sent Lot; when he said unto his people, Do ye commit filthiness
which no creature hath committed before you?
Do ye approach lustfully unto men, and lay wait in the highways,b and
commit wickedness in your assembly?c And the answer of his people was no
other than that they said, Bring down the vengeance of GOD upon us, if thou
speakest truth.
30 Lot said, O LORD, defend me against the corrupt people.
And when our messengers came unto Abraham with good tidings,d they said,
We will surely destroy the inhabitants of this city: for the inhabitants
thereof are unjust doers.
Abraham answered, Verily Lot dwelleth there. They replied, We well know
who dwelleth therein: we will surely deliver him and his family, except his
wife; she shall be one of those who remain behind.
And when our messengers came unto Lot, he was troubled for them, and his
arm was straitened concerning them.e But they said, Fear not, neither be
grieved; for we will deliver thee and thy family, except thy wife; for she
shall be one of those who remain behind.
We will surely bring down upon the inhabitants of this city vengeance
from heaven, for that they have been wicked doers;
and we have left thereof a manifest signf unto people who understand.
And unto the inhabitants of Madian we sent their brother Shoaib; and he
said unto them, O my people, serve GOD, and expect the last day; and
transgress not, acting corruptly in the earth.
But they accused him of imposture; wherefore a storm from heaveng
assailed them, and in the morning they were found in their dwellings dead and
prostrate.
And we also destroyed the tribes of Ad, and Thamud; and this is well
known unto you from what yet remains of their dwellings. And Satan prepared
their works for them, and turned them aside from the way of truth, although
they were sagacious people.
And we likewise destroyed Karûn, and Pharaoh, and Haman. Moses came unto
them with evident miracles, and they behaved themselves insolently in the
earth: but they could not escape our vengeance.
a See chapter 21.
b Some suppose the Sodomites robbed and murdered the passengers;
others, that they unnaturally abused their bodies.
c Their meetings being scenes of obscenity and riot.
d See chapter 11, p. 165, &c.
e See ibid. p. 166.
f viz., The story of its destruction, handed down by common tradition;
or else its ruins, or some other footsteps of this signal judgment; it being
pretended that several of the stones, which fell from heaven on those cities,
are still to be seen, and that the ground where they stood appears burnt and
blackish.
g See chapter 7, p. 114.
40 Every of them did we destroy in his sin. Against some of them we sent a
violent wind:h some of them did a terrible noise from heaven destroy:i some of
them did we cause the earth to swallow up:k and some of them we drowned.l
Neither was GOD disposed to treat them unjustly; but they dealt unjustly with
their own souls.
The likeness of those who take other patrons besides GOD is as the
likeness of the spider, which maketh herself a house: but the weakest of all
houses surely is the house of the spider; if they knew this.
Moreover GOD knoweth what things they invoke, besides him; and he is the
mighty, the wise.
These similitudes do we propound unto men: but none understand them,
except the wise.
GOD hath created the heavens and the earth in truth; verily herein is a
sign unto the true believers.
Rehearse that which hath been revealed unto thee of the book of the
Koran: and be constant at prayer; for prayer preserveth a man from filthy
crimes, and from that which is blamable; and the remembering of GOD is surely
a most important duty. GOD knoweth that which ye do.
Dispute not against those who have received the scriptures, unless in the
mildest manner;m except against such of them as behave injuriously towards
you: and say, We believe in the revelation which hath been sent down unto us,
and also in that which hath been sent down unto you; our GOD and your GOD is
one, and unto him are we resigned.
Thus have we sent down the book of the Koran unto thee: and they unto
whom we have given the former scriptures believe therein; and of these
Arabians also there is who believeth therein: and none reject our signs,
except the obstinate infidels.
Thou couldest not read any book before this; neither couldest thou write
it with thy right hand: then had the gainsayers justly doubted of the divine
original thereof.
But the same is evident signs in the breasts of those who have received
understanding: for none reject our signs except the unjust.
50 They say, Unless a sign be sent down unto him from his LORD, we will not
believe. Answer, Signs are in the power of GOD alone; and I am no more than a
public preacher.
Is it not sufficient for them that we have sent down unto thee the book
of the Koran, to be read unto them? Verily herein is a mercy, and an
admonition unto people who believe.
Say GOD is a sufficient witness between me and you:
he knoweth whatever is in heaven and earth; and those who believe in vain
idols, and deny GOD, they shall perish.
They will urge thee to hasten the punishment which they defy thee to
bring down upon them:n if there had not been a determined time for their
respite, the punishment had come upon them before this; but it shall surely
overtake them suddenly, and they shall not foresee it.
They urge thee to bring down vengeance swiftly upon them: but hell shall
surely encompass the unbelievers.
h The original word properly signifies a wind that drives the gravel
and small stones before it; by which the storm, or shower of stones, which
destroyed Sodom and Gomorrah, seems to be intended.
i Which was the end of Ad and Thamud.
k As it did Karûn.
l As the unbelievers in Noah's time, and Pharaoh and his army
m i.e., Without ill language or passion. This verse is generally
supposed to have been abrogated by that of the sword; though some think it
relates only to those who are in alliance with the Moslems.
n See chapter 6, p. 93
On a certain day their punishment shall suddenly assail them, both from
above them, and from under their feet; and God shall say, Taste ye the reward
of that which ye have wrought.
O my servants who have believed, verily my earth is spacious: wherefore
serve me.o
Every soul shall taste death: afterwards shall ye return unto us;
and as for those who shall have believed, and wrought righteousness, we
will surely lodge them in the higher apartments of paradise; rivers shall flow
beneath them, and they shall continue therein forever. How excellent will be
the reward of the workers of righteousness;
60 who persevere with patience, and put their trust in their LORD!
How many beasts are there, which provide not their food? It is GOD who
provideth for them, and for you; and he both heareth and knoweth.
Verily, if thou ask the Meccans, who hath created the heavens and the
earth, and hath obliged the sun and the moon to serve in their courses? they
will answer, GOD. How therefore do they lie, in acknowledging of other gods?
GOD maketh abundant provision for such of his servants as he pleaseth;
and is sparing unto him, if he pleaseth: for GOD knoweth all things.p
Verily if thou ask them, who sendeth rain from heaven, and thereby
quickeneth the earth, after it hath been dead? they will answer, GOD. Say,
GOD be praised! But the greater part of them do not understand.
This present life is no other than a toy, and a plaything; but the future
mansion of paradise is life indeed: if they knew this they would not prefer
the former to the latter.
When they sail in a ship, they call upon GOD, sincerely exhibiting unto
him the true religion: but when he bringeth them safe to land, behold, they
return to their idolatry;
to show themselves ungrateful for that which we have bestowed on them,
and that they may enjoy the delights of this life; but they shall hereafter
know the issue.
Do they not see that we have made the territory of Mecca an inviolable
and secure asylum, when men are spoiled in the countries round about them? Do
they therefore believe in that which is vain, and acknowledge not the goodness
of GOD?
But who is more unjust than he who deviseth a lie against GOD, or denieth
the truth, when it hath come unto him? Is there not in hell an abode for the
unbelievers?
70 Whoever do their utmost endeavor to promote our true religion, we will
direct them into our ways; for GOD is with the righteous.
o That is, If ye cannot serve me in one city or country, fly unto
another, where ye may profess the true religion in safety; for the earth is
wide enough, and ye may easily find places of refuge. Mohammed is said to
have declared, That whoever flies for the sake of his religion, though he stir
but the distance of a span, merits paradise, and shall be the companion of
Abraham and of himself.1
p And particularly who will make a good, and who will make a bad use of
their riches.
1 Al Beidâwi.
CHAPTER XXX.
ENTITLED, THE GREEKS;q REVEALED AT MECCA.r
IN THE NAME OF THE MOST MERCIFUL GOD.
A. L. M.s THE Greeks have been overcome by the Persians,t
q The original word is al Rûm; by which the later Greeks, or subjects
of the Constantinopolitan empire, are here meant; though the Arabs give the
same name also to the Romans, and other Europeans.
r Some except the verse beginning at these words, Praise be unto GOD.
s The Prelim. Disc. Sect. III. p. 46, &c.
t The accomplishment of the prophecy contained in this passage, which
is very famous among the Mohammedans, being insisted on by their doctors as a
convincing proof that the Korân really came down from heaven, it may be
excusable to be a little particular.
The passage is said to have been revealed on occasion of a great victory
obtained by the Persians over the Greeks, the news whereof coming to Mecca,
the infidels became strangely elated, and began to abuse Mohammed and his
followers, imagining that this success of the Persians, who, like themselves,
were idolaters, and supposed to have no scriptures, against the Christians,
who pretended as well as Mohammed to worship one GOD, and to have divine
scriptures, was an earnest of their own future successes against the prophet
and those of his religion: to check which vain hopes, it was foretold, in the
words of the text, that how improbable soever it might seem, yet the scale
should be turned in a few years, and the vanquished Greeks prevail as
remarkably against the Persians.
That this prophecy was exactly fulfilled the commentators fail not to
observe, though they do not exactly agree in the accounts they give of its
accomplishment; the number of years between the two actions being not
precisely determined. Some place the victory gained by the Persians in the
fifth year before the Hejra, and their defeat by the Greeks in the second year
after it, when the battle of Bedr was fought:1 others place the former in the
third or fourth year before the Hejra, and the latter in the end of the sixth
or beginning of the seventh year after it, when the expedition of al
Hodeibiyah was undertaken.2
The date of the victory gained by the Greeks, in the first of these
accounts, interferes with a story which the commentators tell, of a wager laid
by Abu Becr with Obba Ebn Khalf, who turned this prophecy into ridicule. Abu
Becr at first laid ten young camels that the Persians should receive an
overthrow within three years; but on his acquainting Mohammed with what he had
done, that prophet told him that the word bed', made use of in this passage,
signified no determinate number of years, but any number from three to nine
(though some suppose the tenth year is included), and therefore advised him to
prolong the time, and to raise the wager; which he accordingly proposed to
Obba, and they agreed that the time assigned should be nine years, and the
wager a hundred camels. Before the time was elapsed, Obba died of a wound he
had received at Ohod, in the third year of the Hejra;3 but the event
afterwards showing that Abu Becr had won, he received the camels of Obba's
heirs, and brought them in triumph to Mohammed.4
History informs us that the successes of Khosru Parviz, king of Persia,
who carried on a terrible war against the Greek empire, to revenge the death
of Maurice, his father-in-law, slain by Phocas, were very great, and continued
in an uninterrupted course for two and twenty years. Particularly in the year
of Christ 615, about the beginning of the sixth year before the Hejra the
Persians, having the preceding year conquered Syria, made themselves masters
of Palestine, and took Jerusalem; which seems to be that signal advantage
gained over the Greeks mentioned in this passage, as agreeing best with the
terms here used, and most likely to alarm the Arabs by reason of their
vicinity to the scene of action: and there was so little probability, at that
time, of the Greeks being able to retrieve their losses, much less to distress
the Persians, that in the following years the arms of the latter made still
farther and more considerable progresses, and at length they laid siege to
Constantinople itself. But in the year 625, in which the fourth year of the
Hejra began, about ten years after the taking of Jerusalem, the Greeks, when
it was least expected, gained a remarkable victory over the Persians, and not
only obliged them to quit the territories of the empire, by carrying the war
into their own country, but drove them to the last extremity, and spoiled the
capital city al Madâyen; Heraclius enjoying thenceforward a continued series
of good fortune, to the deposition and death of Khosru. For more exact
information in these matters, and more nicely fixing the dates, either so as
to correspond with or to overturn this pretended prophecy (neither of which is
my business here), the reader may have recourse to the historians and
chronologers.5
1 Jallalo'ddin, &c. 2 Al Zamakh., al Beidâwi. 3 See
p. 272, note h. 4 Al Beidâwi, Jallalo'ddin, &c. 5 Vide
etiam Asseman, Bibl. Orient. t. 3, part i. p. 411, &c. et Boulainy. Vie de
Mahom. p. 333, &c.
in the nearest part of the land;u but after their defeat, they shall
overcome the others in their turn,
within a few years. Unto GOD belongeth the disposal of this matter, both
for what is past, and for what is to come: and on that day shall the believers
rejoice
in the success granted by GOD; for he granteth success unto whom he
pleaseth, and he is the mighty, the merciful.
This is the promise of GOD: GOD will not act contrary to his promise: but
the greater part of men know not the veracity of God.
They know the outward appearance of this present life; but they are
careless as to the life to come.
Do they not consider within themselves that GOD hath not created the
heavens and the earth, and whatever is between them, otherwise than in truth,
and hath set them a determined period? Verily a great number of men reject
the belief of their future meeting their LORD at the resurrection.
Do they not pass through the earth, and see what hath been the end of
those who were before them? They excelled the Meccans in strength, and broke
up the earth,x and inhabited it in greater affluence and prosperity than they
inhabit the same: and their apostles came unto them with evident miracles; and
GOD was not disposed to treat them unjustly, but they injured their own souls
by their obstinate infidelity;
and the end of those who had done evil was evil, because they charged the
signs of God with falsehood, and laughed the same to scorn.
10 God produceth creatures, and will hereafter restore them to life: then
shall ye return unto him.
And on the day whereon the hour shall come, the wicked shall be struck
dumb for despair;
and they shall have no intercessors from among the idols which they
associated with God. And they shall deny the false gods which they associated
with him.
On the day whereon the hour shall come, on that day shall the true
believers and the infidels be separated:
and they who shall have believed, and wrought righteousness, shall take
their pleasure in a delightful meadow;
but as for those who shall have disbelieved, and rejected our signs, and
the meeting of the next life, they shall be delivered up to punishment.
Wherefore glorify GOD, when the evening overtaketh you, and when ye rise
in the morning:
and unto him be praise in heaven and earth; and at sunset, and when ye
rest at noon.y
He bringeth forth the living out of the dead, and he bringeth forth the
dead out of the living;z and he quickeneth the earth after it hath been dead:
and in like manner shall ye be brought forth from your graves.
Of his signs one is, that he hath created you of dust; and behold, ye are
become men, spread over the face of the earth.
20 And of his signs another is, that he hath created you, out of
yourselves, wives, that ye may cohabit with them; and hath put love and
compassion between you: verily herein are signs unto people who consider.
u Some interpreters, supposing that the land here meant is the land of
Arabia, or else that of the Greeks, place the scene of action in the confines
of Arabia and Syria, near Bostra and Adhraât;6 others imagine the land of
Persia is intended, and lay the scene in Mesopotamia, on the frontiers of that
kingdom;7 but Ebn Abbas, with more probability, thinks it was in Palestine.
x To dig for water and minerals, and to till the ground for seed, &c.8
y Some are of opinion that the five times of prayer are intended in
this passage; the evening including the time both of the prayer of sunset, and
of the evening prayer properly so called, and the word I have rendered at
sunset, marking the hour of afternoon prayer, since it may be applied also to
the time a little before sunset.
z See chapter 3, p. 34.
6 Yahya, al Beidâwi. 7 Mojahed, apud Zamakh. Jallalo'ddin.
8 Al Beidâwi.
29
And of his signs are also the creation of the heavens and the earth, and
the variety of your languages, and of your complexions:z verily herein are
signs unto men of understanding.
And of his signs are your sleeping by night and by day, and your seeking
to provide for yourselves of his abundance: verily herein are signs unto
people who hearken.
Of his signs others are, that he showeth you the lightning, to strike
terror, and to give hope of rain, and that he sendeth down water from heaven,
and quickeneth thereby the earth, after it hath been dead; verily herein are
signs unto people who understand.
And of his signs this also is one, namely, that the heaven and the earth
stand firm at command: hereafter, when he shall call you out of the earth at
one summons, behold, ye shall come forth.
Unto him are subject whosoever are in the heavens and on earth: all are
obedient unto him.
It is he who originally produceth a creature, and afterwards restoreth
the same to life: and this is most easy with him. He justly challengeth the
most exalted comparison, in heaven and earth;a and he is the mighty, the wise.
He propoundeth unto a comparison taken from yourselves. Have ye, among
the slaves whom your right hands possess, any partner in the substance which
we have bestowed on you, so that ye become equal sharers therein with them, or
that ye fear them as ye fear one another?b Thus we distinctly explain our
signs, unto people who understand.
But those who act unjustly, by attributing companions unto God, follow
their own lusts, without knowledge: and who shall direct him whom GOD shall
cause to err? They shall have none to help them.
Wherefore be thou orthodox, and set thy face towards the true religion,
the institution of GOD, to which he hath created mankind disposed: there is no
change in what GOD hath created.c This is the right religion; but the greater
part of men know it not.
30 And be ye turned unto him, and fear him, and be constant at prayer, and
be not idolaters.
Of those who have made a schism in their religion, and are divided into
various sects, every sect rejoice in their own opinion.
When adversity befalleth men, they call upon their LORD, turning unto
him: afterwards, when he hath caused them to taste of his mercy, behold, a
part of them associate other deities with their LORD:
to show themselves ungrateful for the favors which we have bestowed on
them. Enjoy therefore the vain pleasures of this life; but hereafter shall ye
know the consequence.
Have we sent down unto them any authority, which speaketh of the false
gods which they associate with him?d
z Which are certainly most wonderful, and, as I conceive, very hard to
be accounted for, if we allow the several nations in the world to be all the
offspring of one man, as we are assured by scripture they are, without having
recourse to the immediate omnipotency of GOD.
a That is, in speaking of him we ought to make use of the most noble
and magnificent expressions we can possibly devise.
b See chapter 16, p. 200
c i.e., The immutable law, or rule, to which man is naturally disposed
to conform, and which every one would embrace, as most fit for a rational
creature, if it were not for the prejudices of education. The Mohammedans
have a tradition that their prophet used to say, That every person is born
naturally disposed to become a Moslem; but that a man's parents make him a
Jew, a Christian, or a Magian.
d That is, Have we either by the mouth of any prophet, or by any
written revelation, commanded or encouraged the worship of more gods than one?
When we cause men to taste mercy, they rejoice therein; but if evil
befalleth them, for that which their hands have before committed, behold, they
despair.e
Do they not see that GOD bestoweth provision abundantly on whom he
pleaseth, and is sparing unto whom he pleaseth? Verily herein are signs unto
people who believe.
Give unto him who is of kin to thee his reasonable due; and also to the
poor, and the stranger: this is better for those who seek the face of GOD; and
they shall prosper.
Whatever ye shall give in usury,f to be an increase of men's substance,
shall not be increased by the blessing of GOD: but whatever ye shall give in
alms, for GOD'S sake, they shall receive a twofold reward.
It is GOD who hath created you, and hath provided food for you: hereafter
will he cause you to die; and after that will he raise you again to life. Is
there any of your false gods, who is able to do the least of these things?
Praise be unto him; and far be he removed from what they associate with him!
40 Corruptiong hath appeared by land and by sea, for the crimes which men's
hands have committed; that it might make them to tasteh a part of the fruits
of that which they have wrought, that peradventure they might turn from their
evil ways.
Say, Go through the earth, and see what hath been the end of those who
have been before you: the greater part of them were idolaters.
Set thy face therefore towards the right religion, before the day cometh,
which none can put back from GOD. On that day shall they be separated into
two companies:
whoever shall have been an unbeliever, on him shall his unbelief be
charged; and whoever shall have done that which is right, shall spread
themselves couches of repose in paradise;
that he may reward those who shall believe, and work righteousness, of
his abundant liberality; for he loveth not the unbelievers.
Of his signs one is, that he sendeth the winds, bearing welcome tidings
of rain, that he may cause you to taste of his mercy; and that ships may sail
at his command, that ye may seek to enrich yourselves of his abundance by
commerce; and that ye may give thanks.
We sent apostles, before thee, unto their respective people, and they
came unto them with evident proofs: and we took vengeance on those who did
wickedly; and it was incumbent on us to assist the true believers.
It is GOD who sendeth the winds, and raiseth the clouds, and spreadeth
the same in the heaven, as he pleaseth; and afterwards disperseth the same:
and thou mayest see the rain issuing from the midst thereof; and when he
poureth the same down on such of his servants as he pleaseth, behold, they are
filled with joy;
although before it was sent down unto them, before such relief, they were
despairing.
Consider therefore the traces of GOD'S mercy; how he quickeneth the
earth, after its state of death: verily the same will raise the dead; for he
is almighty.
50 Yet if we should send a blasting wind, and they should see their corn
yellow and burnt up, they would surely become ungrateful, after our former
favors.
Thou canst not make the dead to hear, neither canst thou make the deaf to
hear thy call, when they retire and turn their backs;
e And seek not to regain the favour of GOD by timely repentance.
f Or by way of bribe. The word may include any sort of extortion or
illicit gain.
g viz., Mischief and public calamities, such as famine, pestilence,
droughts, shipwrecks, &c. or erroneous doctrines, or a general depravity of
manners.
h Some copies read in the first person plural, That we might cause them
to taste &c.
29-2
neither canst thou direct the blind out of their error: thou shalt make
none to hear, except him who shall believe in our signs; for they are resigned
unto us.
It is GOD who created you in weakness, and after weakness hath given you
strength; and after strength, he will again reduce you to weakness, and gray
hairs: he createth that which he pleaseth; and he is the wise, the powerful.
On the day whereon the last hour shall come, the wicked will swear
that they have not tarriedi above an hour: in like manner did they utter
lies in their lifetime.
But those on whom knowledge hath been bestowed, and faith, will say, Ye
have tarried, according to the book of GOD,k until the day of resurrection;
for this is the day of resurrection; but ye knew it not.
On that day their excuse shall not avail those who have acted unjustly;
neither shall they be invited any more to make themselves acceptable unto God.
And now have we propounded unto men, in this Koran, parables of every
kind: yet if thou bring them a verse thereof, the unbelievers will surely say,
Ye are no other than publishers of vain falsehoods.
Thus hath GOD sealed up the hearts of those who believe not:
60 But do thou, O Mohammed, persevere with constancy, for GOD is true; and
let not those induce thee to waver, who have no certain knowledge.
________
CHAPTER XXXI.
ENTITLED, LOKMÂN;l REVEALED AT MECCA.m
IN THE NAME OF THE MOST MERCIFUL GOD.
A. L. M.n THESE are the signs of the wise book,
a direction, and a mercy unto the righteous;
who observe the appointed times of prayer, and give alms, and have firm
assurance in the life to come:
these are directed by their LORD, and they shall prosper.
There is a man who purchaseth a ludicrous story,o that he may seduce men
from the way of GOD, without knowledge, and may laugh the same to scorn: these
shall suffer a shameful punishment.
i viz., In the world or in their graves. See chapter 23, p. 262.
k That is, according to his foreknowledge and decree in the preserved
table; or according to what is said in the Korân, where the state of the dead
is expressed by these words:1 Behind them there shall be a bar until the day
of resurrection.2
l The chapter is so entitled from a person of this name mentioned
therein, of whom more immediately.
m Some except the fourth verse, beginning at these words, Who observe
the appointed times of prayer, and give alms, &c. And others three verses,
beginning at these words, If all the trees in the earth were pens, &c.
n See the Prelim. Disc. Sect. III. p. 46, &c.
o i.e., Vain and silly fables. The passage was revealed, it is said,
on occasion of al Nodar Ebn al Hareth, who, having brought from Persia the
romance of Rostam and Isfandiyar, the two heroes of that country, recited it
in the assemblies of the Koreish, highly extolling the power and splendour of
the ancient Persian kings, and preferring their stories to those of Ad and
Thamud, David and Solomon, and the rest which are told in the Korân. Some say
that al Nodar bought singing girls, and carried them to those who were
inclined to become Moslems to divert them from their purpose by songs and
tales.3
1 Cap. 23, p. 261. 2 Al Beidâwi. 3 Idem
And when our signs are rehearsed unto him, he disdainfully turneth his
back as though he heard them not, as though there were a deafness in his ears:
wherefore denounce unto him a grievous punishment.
But they who shall believe and work righteousness, shall enjoy gardens of
pleasure:
they shall continue therein forever: this is the certain promise of GOD;
and he is the mighty, the wise.
He hath created the heavens without visible pillars to sustain them, and
thrown on the earth mountains firmly rooted, lest it should move with you;p
and he hath replenished the same with all kinds of beasts; and we send down
rain from heaven, and cause every kind of noble vegetable to spring forth
therein.
10 This is the creation of GOD: show me now what they have created, who are
worshipped besides him? verily the ungodly are in a manifest error.
We heretofore bestowed wisdom on Lokmân,q and commanded him, saying, Be
thou thankful unto GOD: for whoever is thankful, shall be thankful to the
advantage of his own soul; and if any shall be unthankful, verily GOD is self-
sufficient, and worthy to be praised.
And remember when Lokmân said unto his son,r as he admonished him, Oh my
son, give not a partner unto GOD; for polytheism is a great impiety.
We have commanded man concerning his parents,s (his mother carrieth him
in her womb with weakness and faintness, and he is weaned in two years),
saying, Be grateful unto me, and to thy parents. Unto me shall all come to be
judged.
p See chapter 16, p. 196. A learned writer,1 in his notes on this
passage, says the original word rawâsiya, which the commentators in general
will have to signify stable mountains, seems properly to express the Hebrew
word mechonim, i.e., bases or foundations; and therefore he thinks the Korân
has here translated that passage of the Psalms, He laid the foundations of the
earth, that it should not be moved for ever.2 This is not the only instance
which might be given that the Mohammedan doctors are not always the best
interpreters of their own scriptures.
q The Arab writers say, that Lokmân was the son of Baûra who was the
son or grandson of a sister or aunt of Job; and that he lived several
centuries, and to the time of David, with whom he was conversant in Palestine.
According to the description they give of his person, he must have been
deformed enough; for they say he was of a black complexion (whence some call
him an Ethiopian), with thick lips and splay feet: but in return he received
from GOD wisdom and eloquence in a great degree, which some pretend were given
him in a vision, on his making choice of wisdom preferably to the gift of
prophecy, either of which were offered him. The generality of the
Mohammedans, therefore, hold him to have been no prophet, but only a wise man.
As to his condition, they say he was a slave, but obtained his liberty on the
following occasion: His master having one day given him a bitter melon to eat,
he paid him such exact obedience as to eat it all; at which his master being
surprised, asked him how he could eat so nauseous a fruit? To which he
replied, it was no wonder that he should for once accept a bitter fruit from
the same hand from which he had received so many favours.3 The commentators
mention several quick repartees of Lokmân, which, together with the
circumstances above mentioned, agree so well with what Maximus Planudes has
written of Esop, that from thence, and from the fables attributed to Lokmân by
the orientals, the latter has been generally thought to have been no other
than the Esop of the Greeks. However, that be (for I think the matter will
bear a dispute), I am of opinion that Planudes borrowed great part of his life
of Esop from the traditions he met with in the east concerning Lokmân,
concluding them to have been the same person, because they were both slaves,
and supposed to be the writers of those fables which go under their respective
names, and bear a great resemblance to one another; for it has long since been
observed by learned men that the greater part of that monk's performance is an
absurd romance, and supported by no evidence of the ancient writers.4
r Whom some name Anám (which comes pretty near the Ennus of Planudes),
some Ashcam, and others Mathan.
s The two verses which begin at these words, and end with the
following, viz., And then will I declare unto you that which ye have done, are
no part of Lokmân's advice to his son, but are inserted by way of parenthesis,
as very pertinent and proper to be repeated here, to show the heinousness of
idolatry; they are to be read (excepting some additions) in the twenty-ninth
chapter, and were originally revealed on account of Saad Ebn Abi Wakkâs, as
has been already observed.5
1 Gol. in Append. ad Erpenii Gram. p. 187. 2 Ps. civ. 5.
3 Al Zamakh, al Beidâwi, &c. Vide D'Herbel. Bibl. Orient. p. 516, et
Marracc. in Alc. p. 547. 4 Vide la Vie d'Esope, par M. de
Meziriac, et Bayle, Dict. Hist. Art. Esope. Rem. B.
5 See cap. 29, p. 297, and the notes thereon.
But if thy parents endeavor to prevail on thee to associate with me that
concerning which thou hast no knowledge, obey them not: bear them company in
this world in what shall be reasonable;t but follow the way of him who
sincerely turneth unto me.u Hereafter unto me shall ye return, and then will
I declare unto you that which ye have done.
Oh my son, verily every matter, whether good or bad, though it be of the
weight of a grain of mustard-seed, and be hidden in a rock, or in the heavens,
or in the earth, GOD will bring the same to light; for GOD is clear-sighted
and knowing.
Oh my son, be constant at prayer, and command that which is just, and
forbid that which is evil: and be patient under the afflictions which shall
befall thee; for this is a duty absolutely incumbent on all men.
Distort not thy face out of contempt to men, neither walk in the earth
with insolence; for GOD loveth no arrogant, vain-glorious person.
And be moderate in thy pace; and lower thy voice; for the most ungrateful
of all voices surely is the voice of asses.x
Do ye not see that GOD hath subjected whatever is in heaven and on earth
to your service, and hath abundantly poured on you his favors, both outwardly
and inwardly?y There are some who dispute concerning GOD without knowledge,
and without a direction, and without an enlightening book.
20 And when it is said unto them, Follow that which GOD hath revealed, they
answer, Nay, we will follow that which we found our fathers to practise.
What, though the devil invite them to the torment of hell?
Whosoever resigneth himself unto GOD, being a worker of righteousness,
taketh hold on a strong handle; and unto GOD belongeth the issue of all
things.
But whoever shall be an unbeliever, let not his unbelief grieve thee:
unto us shall they return; then will we declare unto them that which they have
done, for GOD knoweth the innermost parts of the breasts of men.
We will suffer them to enjoy this world for a little while: afterwards we
will drive them to a severe punishment.
If thou ask them who hath created the heavens and the earth, they will
surely answer, GOD. Say, GOD be praised! but the greater part of them do not
understand.
Unto GOD belongeth whatever is in heaven and earth: for GOD is the self-
sufficient, the praiseworthy.
If whatever trees are in the earth were pens, and he should after that
swell the sea into seven seas of ink, the words of GOD would not be
exhausted;z for GOD is mighty and wise.
Your creation and your resuscitation are but as the creation and
resuscitation of one soul: verily GOD both heareth and seeth.
t That is, show them all deference and obedience, so far as may be
consistent with thy duty towards GOD.
u The person particularly meant here was Abu Becr, at whose persuasion
Saad had become a Moslem.
x To the braying of which animal the Arabs liken a loud and
disagreeable voice.
y i.e., All kinds of blessings, regarding as well the mind as the body.
z This passage is said to have been revealed in answer to the Jews, who
insisted that all knowledge was contained in the law.1
a GOD being able to produce a million of worlds by the single word Kun,
i.e., Be, and to raise the dead in general by the single word Kum, i.e.,
Arise.
1 Al Beidâwi.
30 Dost thou not see that GOD causeth the night to succeed the day, and
causeth the day to succeed the night, and compelleth the sun and the moon to
serve you? Each of those luminaries hasteneth in its course to a determined
period: and GOD is well acquainted with that which ye do.
This is declared concerning the divine knowledge and power, for that GOD
is the true Being, and for that whatever ye invoke, besides him is vanity; and
for that GOD is the high, the great God.
Dost thou not see that the ships run in the sea, through the favor of
GOD, that he may show you of his signs? Verily herein are signs unto every
patient, grateful person.
When waves cover them, like overshadowing clouds, they call upon GOD,
exhibiting the pure religion unto him; but when he bringeth them safe to land,
there is of them who halteth between the true faith and idolatry. Howbeit,
none rejecteth our signs, except every perfidious, ungrateful person.
O men, fear your LORD, and dread the day whereon a father shall not make
satisfaction for his father at all:
the promise of GOD is assuredly true. Let not this present life,
therefore, deceive you; neither let the deceiverb deceive you concerning GOD.
Verily the knowledge of the hour of judgment is with GOD; and he causeth
the rain to descend at his own appointed time; and he knoweth what is in the
wombs of females. No soul knoweth what it shall gain on the morrow; neither
doth any soul know in what land it shall die;c but GOD is knowing and fully
acquainted with all things.
________
CHAPTER XXXII.
ENTITLED, ADORATION;d REVEALED AT MECCA.
IN THE NAME OF THE MOST MERCIFUL GOD.
A. L. M.e THE revelation of this book, there is no doubt thereof, is
from the LORD of all creatures.
Will they say, Mohammed hath forged it? Nay it is the truth from thy
LORD, that thou mayest preach to a people, unto whom no preacher hath come
before thee;f peradventure they will be directed.
b viz., The devil.
c In this passage five things are enumerated which are known to GOD
alone, viz., The time of the day of judgment; the time of rain; what is
forming in the womb, as whether it be male or female, &c.; what shall happen
on the morrow; and where any person shall die. These the Arabs, according to
a tradition of their prophet, call the five keys of secret knowledge. The
passage, it is said, was occasioned by al Hareth Ebn Amru, who propounded
questions of this nature to Mohammed.
As to the last particular, al Beidâwi relates the following story: The
angel of death passing once by Solomon in a visible shape, and looking at one
who was sitting with him, the man asked who he was, and upon Solomon's
acquainting him that it was the angel of death, said, He seems to want me;
wherefore order the wind to carry me from hence into India; which being
accordingly done, the angel said to Solomon, I looked so earnestly at the man
out of wonder; because I was commanded to take his soul in India, and found
him with thee in Palestine.
d The title is taken from the middle of the chapter, where the
believers are said to fall down adoring
e See the Prelim. Disc. Sect. III p. 46, &c.
f See chapter 28, p. 293.
It is GOD who hath created the heavens and the earth, and whatever is
between them, in six days; and then ascended his throne. Ye have no patron or
intercessor besides him. Will ye not therefore consider?
He governeth all things from heaven even to the earth: hereafter shall
they return unto him, on the day whose length shall be a thousand years,g of
those which ye compute.
This is he who knoweth the future, and the present; the mighty, the
merciful.
It is he who hath made everything which he hath created exceeding good;
and first created man of clay,
and afterwards made his posterity of an extract of despicable water;h
and then formed him into proper shape, and breathed of his spirit into
him; and hath given you the senses of hearing and seeing, and hearts to
understand. How small thanks do ye return!
And they say, When we shall lie hidden in the earth, shall we be raised
thence a new creature?
10 Yea, they deny the meeting of their LORD at the resurrection.
Say, The angel of death,i who is set over you, shall cause you to die:
then shall ye be brought back unto your LORD.
If thou couldest see, when the wicked shall bow down their heads before
their LORD, saying, O LORD, we have seen, and have heard: suffer us therefore
to return into the world, and we will work that which is right; since we are
now certain of the truth of what hath been preached to us: thou wouldest see
an amazing sight.
If we had pleased we had certainly given unto every soul its direction:
but the word which hath proceeded from me must necessarily be fulfilled, when
I said, Verily I will fill hell with genii and men, altogether.k
Taste therefore the torment prepared for you, because ye have forgotten
the coming of this your day: we also have forgotten you; taste therefore the
punishment of eternal duration, for that which ye have wrought.
Verily they only believe in our signs, who, when they are warned thereby,
fall down adoring, and celebrate the praise of their LORD, and are not elated
with pride;
their sides are raised from their beds, calling on their LORD with fear
and with hope; and they distribute alms out of what we have bestowed on them.
No soull knoweth the complete satisfactionm which is secretly prepared
for them, as a reward for that which they have wrought.
g As to the reconciliation of this passage with another,1 which seems
contradictory, see the Prelim. Disc. Sect. IV. p. 65.
Some, however, do not interpret the passage before us of the
resurrection, but suppose that the words here describe the making and
executing of the decrees of GOD, which are sent down from heaven to earth, and
are returned (or ascend, as the verb properly signifies) back to him, after
they have been put in execution; and present themselves, as it were, so
executed, to his knowledge, in the space of a day with GOD, but with man, of a
thousand years. Others imagine this space to be the time which the angels,
who carry the divine decrees, and bring them back executed, take in descending
and reascending, because the distance from heaven to earth is a journey of
five hundred years: and others fancy that the angels bring down at once
decrees for a thousand years to come, which being expired, they return back
for fresh orders, &c.2
h i.e., Seed.
i See the Prelim. Disc. Sect. IV. p. 56.
k See chapter 7, p. 106, and chapter 11, p. 169.
l Not even an angel of those who approach nearest GOD'S throne, nor any
prophet who hath been sent by him.3
m Literally, The joy of the eyes. The commentators fail not, on
occasion of this passage, to produce that saying of their prophet, which was
originally none of his own; GOD saith, I have prepared for my righteous
servants, what eye hath not seen, nor hath ear heard, nor hath entered into
the heart of man to conceive.
1 Cap. 20. 2 Al Beidâwi. 3 Idem.
Shall he, therefore, who is a true believer, be as he who is an impious
transgressor? They shall not be held equal.
As to those who believe and do that which is right, they shall have
gardens of perpetual abode, an ample recompense for that which they shall have
wrought:
20 but as for those who impiously transgress, their abode shall be hell
fire; so often as they shall endeavor to get thereout, they shall be dragged
back into the same, and it shall be said unto them, Taste ye the torment of
hell fire, which ye rejected as a falsehood.
And we will cause them to taste the nearer punishment of this world,
besides the more grievous punishment of the next; peradventure they will
repent.
Who is more unjust than he who is warned by the signs of his LORD, and
then turneth aside from the same? We will surely take vengeance on the
wicked.
We heretofore delivered the book of the law unto Moses; wherefore be not
thou in doubt as to the revelation thereof:n and we ordained the same to be a
direction unto the children of Israel;
and we appointed teachers from among them, who should direct the people
at our command, when they had persevered with patience, and had firmly
believed in our signs.
Verily thy LORD will judge between them, on the day of resurrection,
concerning that wherein they have disagreed.
Is it not known unto them how many generations we have destroyed before
them, through whose dwellings they walk?o Verily herein are signs: will they
not therefore hearken?
Do they not see that we drive rain unto a land bare of grass and parched
up, and thereby produce corn, of which their cattle eat, and themselves also?
Will they not therefore regard?
The infidels say to the true believers, When will this decision be made
between us, if ye speak truth?
Answer, On the day of that decision,p the faith of those who shall have
disbelieved shall not avail them; neither shall they be respited any longer.
30 Wherefore avoid them, and expect the issue: verily they expect to obtain
some advantage over thee.
n Or, as some interpret it, of the revelation of the Korân to thyself;
since the delivery of the law to Moses proves that the revelation of the Korân
to thee is not the first instance of the kind. Others think the words should
be translated thus: Be thou not in doubt as to thy meeting of that prophet;
supposing that the interview between Moses and Mohammed in the sixth heaven,
when the latter took his night journey thither, is here intended.4
o The Meccans frequently passing by the places where the Adites,
Thamudites, Midianites, Sodomites, &c., once dwelt.
p That is, on the day of judgment; though some suppose the day here
intended to be that of the victory at Bedr, or else that of the taking of
Mecca, when several of those who had been proscribed were put to death without
remission.5
4 Idem. 5 See the Prelim. Disc. Sect. II. p. 42.
CHAPTER XXXIII.
ENTITLED, THE CONFEDERATES;q REVEALED AT MEDINA.
IN THE NAME OF THE MOST MERCIFUL GOD.
O PROPHET, fear GOD, and obey not the unbelievers and the hypocrites:r
verily GOD is knowing and wise.
But follow that which is revealed unto thee from thy LORD; for GOD is
well acquainted with that which ye do;
and put thy trust in GOD; for GOD is a sufficient protector.
GOD hath not given a man two hearts within him; neither hath he made your
wives (some of whom ye divorce, regarding them thereafter as your mothers)
your true mothers; not hath he made your adopted sons your true sons.s This
is your saying in your mouths: but GOD speaketh the truth; and he directed the
right way.
Call such as are adopted, the sons of their natural fathers: this will be
more just in the sight of GOD. And if ye know not their fathers, let them be
as your brethren in religion, and your companions: and it shall be no crime in
you, that ye errt in this matter; but that shall be criminal which your hearts
purposely design; for GOD is gracious and merciful.
The prophet is nigher unto the true believers than their own souls;u and
his wives are their mothers.x Those who are related by consanguinity are
nigher of kin the one of them unto the others, according to the book of GOD,
than the other true believers, and the Mohâjerûn:y unless that ye do what is
fitting and reasonable to your relations in general. This is written in the
book of God.z
q Part of this chapter was revealed on occasion of the war of the
ditch, which happened in the fifth year of the Hejra, when Medina was
besieged, for above twenty days, by the joint and confederate forces of
several Jewish tribes, and of the inhabitants of Mecca, Najd, and Tehâma, at
the instigation of the Jews of the tribe of Nadhîr, who had been driven out of
their settlement near Medina, by Mohammed, the year before.1
r It is related that Abu Sofiân, Acrema Ebn Abi Jahl, and Abu'l A war
al Salami, having an amicable interview with Mohammed, at which were present
also Abda'llah Ebn Obba, Moatteb Ebn Kosheir, and Jadd Ebn Kais, they proposed
to the prophet that if he would leave off preaching against the worship of
their gods, and acknowledge them to be mediators, they would give him and his
LORD no farther disturbance; upon which these words were revealed.2
s This passage was revealed to abolish two customs among the old Arabs.
The first was their manner of divorcing their wives, when they had no mind to
let them go out of their house, or to marry again; and this the husband did by
saying to the woman, Thou art henceforward to me as the back of my mother;
after which words pronounced he abstained from her bed, and regarded her in
all respects as his mother, and she became related to all his kindred in the
same degree as if she had been really so. The other custom was the holding
their adopted sons to be as as nearly related to them as their natural sons,
so that the same impediments of marriage arose from that supposed relation, in
the prohibited degrees, as it would have done in the case of a genuine son.
The latter Mohammed had a peculiar reason to abolish-viz., his marrying the
divorced wife of his freedman Zeid, who was also his adopted son, of which
more will be said by-and-bye. By the declaration which introduces this
passage, that GOD has not given a man two hearts, is meant, that a man cannot
have the same affection for supposed parents and adopted children, as for
those who are really so. They tell us the Arabs used to say, of a prudent and
acute person, that he had two hearts; whence one Abu Mámer, or, as others
write, Jemîl Ebn Asad al Fihri, was surnamed Dhu'lkalbein, or the man with two
hearts.3
t Through ignorance or mistake; or, that ye have erred for the time
past.
u Commanding them nothing but what is for their interest and advantage,
and being more solicitous for their present and future happiness even than
themselves; for which reason he ought to be dear to them, and deserves their
utmost love and respect. In some copies these words are added, And he is a
father unto them; every prophet being the spiritual father of his people, who
are therefore brethren. It is said that this passage was revealed on some of
Mohammed's followers telling him, when he summoned them to attend him in the
expedition of Tabûc,4 that they would ask leave of their fathers and mothers.5
x Though the spiritual relation between Mohammed and his people,
declared in the preceding words, created no impediment to prevent his taking
to wife such women among them as he thought fit; yet the commentators are of
opinion that they are here forbidden to marry any of his wives.6
y These words, which also occur, excepting the latter part of the
sentence, in the eighth chapter, abrogate that law concerning inheritances,
published in the same chapter, whereby the Mohâjerûn and Ansârs were to be the
heirs of one another, exclusive of their nearer relations, who were infidels.7
z i.e., In the preserved table, or the Korân; or, as others suppose, in
the Pentateuch.
1 Vide Abulfeda, Vit. Moh. p. 73, et Gagnier, Vie de Mahomet, l. 4, c.
I 2 Al Beidâwi 3 Idem, Jallalo'ddin, &c.
4 See cap. 9, p. 139. 5 Al Beidâwi. 6 See the Prelim. Disc.
Sect. VI. 7 See cap. 8, p. 133.
Remember when we accepted their covenant from the prophets,a and from
thee, O Mohammed, and from Noah, and Abraham, and Moses, and Jesus the son of
Mary, and received from them a firm covenant;b
that God may examine the speakers of truth concerning their veracity:c
and he hath prepared a painful torment for the unbelievers.
O true believers, remember the favor of GOD towards you, when armies of
infidels came against you,d and we sent against them a wind, and hosts of
angels which ye saw not:e and GOD beheld that which ye did.
10 When they came against you from above you, and from below you,f and when
your sight became troubled, and your hearts came even to your throats for
fear, and ye imagined of GOD various imaginations.g
There were the faithful tried, and made to tremble with a violent
trembling.
a Jallalo'ddin supposes this covenant was made when Adam's posterity
were drawn forth from his loins, and appeared before GOD like small ants:8 but
Marracci conjectures that the covenant here meant was the same which the
Talmudists pretend all the prophets entered into with GOD on Mount Sinai,
where they were all assembled in person with Moses.9
b Whereby they undertook to execute their several commissions, and
promised to preach the religion commanded them by GOD.
c i.e., That he may at the day of judgment demand of the prophets in
what manner they executed their several commissions, and how they were
received by their people; or, as the words may also import, that he may
examine those who believed on them, concerning their belief, and reward them
accordingly.
d These were the forces of the Koreish and the tribe of Ghatfân,
confederated with the Jews of al Nadhîr and Koreidha, who besieged Medina to
the number of twelve thousand men, in the expedition called the war of the
ditch.
e On the enemies' approach, Mohammed, by the advice of Salmân, the
Persian, ordered a deep ditch or entrenchment to be dug round Medina, for the
security of the city, and went out to defend it with three thousand men. Both
sides remained in their camps near a month, without any other acts of
hostility than shooting of arrows and slinging of stones; till, in a winter's
night, GOD sent a piercing cold east wind, which benumbed the limbs of the
confederates, blew the dust in their faces, extinguished their fires,
overturned their tents, and put their horses in disorder, the angels at the
same time crying, Allah acbar! round about their camp; whereupon Toleiha Ebn
Khowailed, the Asadite, said aloud, Mohammed is going to attack you with
enchantments, wherefore provide for your safety by flight: and accordingly the
Koreish first, and afterward the Ghatfânites, broke up the siege, and returned
home; which retreat was also not a little owing to the dissensions among the
confederate forces, the raising and fomenting whereof the Mohammedans also
ascribe to GOD. It is related that when Mohammed heard that his enemies were
retired, he said, I have obtained success by means of the east wind; and Ad
perished by the west wind.1
f The Ghatfânites pitched on the east side of the town, on the higher
part of the valley; and the Koreish on the west side, on the lower part of the
valley.2
g The sincere and those who were more firm of heart fearing they should
not be able to stand the trial; and the weaker-hearted and hypocrites thinking
themselves delivered up to slaughter and destruction
8 See cap. 7, p. 122. 9 See cap. 3, p. 41. 1 Al
Beidâwi, Abulf. Vit. Moh. p. 77, &c. 2 Idem.
And when the hypocrites, and those in whose heart was an infirmity, said,
GOD and his apostle have made you no other than a fallacious promise.h
And when a party of themi said, O inhabitants of Yathreb,k there is no
place of security for you here; wherefore return home. And a part of them
asked leave of the prophet to depart, saying, Verily our houses are
defenceless and exposed to the enemy: but they were not defenceless; and their
intention was no other than to fly.
If the city had been entered upon them by the enemy from the parts
adjacent, and they had been asked to desert the true believers, and to fight
against them; they had surely consented thereto: but they had not, in such
case, remained in the samel but a little while.
They had before made a covenant with GOD, that they would not turn their
backs:m and the performance of their covenant with GOD shall be examined into
hereafter.
Say, Flight shall not profit you, if ye fly from death or from slaughter:
and if it would, yet shall ye not enjoy this world but a little.
Say, Who is he who shall defend you against GOD, if he is pleased to
bring evil on you, or is pleased to show mercy towards you? They shall find
none to patronize or protect them, besides GOD.
GOD already knoweth those among you who hinder others from following his
apostle, and who say unto their brethren, Come hither unto us; and who come
not to battle, except a little:n
being covetous towards you:o but when fear cometh on them, thou seest
them look unto thee for assistance, their eyes rolling about like the eyes of
him who fainteth by reason of the agonies of death: yet when their fear is
past they inveigh against you with sharp tongues; being covetous of the best
and most valuable part of the spoils. These believe not sincerely; wherefore
GOD hath rendered their works of no avail; and this is easy with GOD.
20 They imagined that the confederates would not depart and raise the
siege: and if the confederates should come another time, they would wish to
live in the deserts among the Arabs who dwell in tents,p and there to inquire
after news concerning you; and although they were with you this time, yet they
fought not, except a little.
Ye have in the apostle of GOD an excellent example,q unto him who hopeth
in GOD, and the last day, and remembereth GOD frequently.
h The person who uttered these words, it is said, was Moatteb Ebn
Kosheir, who told his fellows that Mohammed had promised them the spoils of
the Persians and the Greeks, whereas now not one of them dared to stir out of
their entrenchment.3
i viz., Aws Ebn Keidhi and his adherents.
k This was the ancient and proper name of Medina, or of the territory
wherein it stands. Some suppose the town was so named from its founder,
Yathreb, the son of Kâbiya, the son of Mahlayel, the son of Aram, the son of
Sem, the son of Noah; though others tell us it was built by the Amalekites.4
l i.e., In the city; or, in their apostasy and rebellion, because the
Moslems would surely succeed at last.
m The persons meant here were Banu Haretha, who having behaved very ill
and run away on a certain occasion, promised they would do so no more.5
n Either coming to the army in small numbers, or staying with them but
a little while, and then returning on some feigned excuse; or behaving ill in
time of action. Some expositors take these words to be part of the speech of
the hypocrites, reflecting on Mohammed's companions for lying idle in the
trenches, and not attacking the enemy.
o i.e., Sparing of their assistance either in person or with their
purse; or being greedy after the booty.
p That they might be absent, and not obliged to go to war.
q viz., Of firmness in time of danger, of confidence in the divine
assistance, and of piety by fervent prayer for the same.
3 Idem. Vide Abulf. ubi sup. p. 76. 4 Ahmed Ebn Yusof. See
the Prelim. Disc. p. 4 5 Al Beidâwi.
When the true believers saw the confederates, they said, This is what GOD
and his apostle have foretold us;r and GOD and his apostle have spoken the
truth: and it only increased their faith and resignation.
Of the true believers some men justly performed what they had promised
unto GOD;s and some of them have finished their course,t and some of them wait
the same advantage;u and they changed not their promise by deviating therefrom
in the least:
that GOD may reward the just performers of their covenant for their
fidelity; and may punish the hypocritical, if he pleaseth, or may be turned
unto them; for GOD is ready to forgive, and merciful.
GOD hath driven back the infidels in their wrath: they obtained no
advantage; and GOD was a sufficient protector unto the faithful in battle; for
GOD is strong and mighty.
And he hath caused such of those who have received the scriptures, as
assisted the confederates, to come down out of their fortresses,x and he cast
into their hearts terror and dismay:z a part of them ye slew, and a part ye
made captives;
r Namely, That we must not expect to enter paradise without undergoing
some trials and tribulations.1 There is a tradition that Mohammed actually
foretold this expedition of confederates some time before, and the success of
it.2
s By standing firm with the prophet, and strenuously opposing the
enemies of the true religion, according to their engagement.
t Or, as the words may be translated, have fulfilled their vow, or paid
their debt to nature, by falling martyrs in battle; as did Hamza, Mohammed's
uncle, Masab Ebn Omair, and Ans Ebn al Nadr,3 who were slain at the battle of
Ohod. The martyrs at the war of the ditch were six, including Saad Ebn Moadh,
who died of his wound about a month after.4
u As Othmân and Telha.5
x These were the Jews of the tribe of Koreidha, who, though they were
in league with Mohammed, had, at the incessant persuasion of Caab Ebn Asad, a
principal man among them, perfidiously gone over to his enemies in this war of
the ditch, and were severely punished for it. For the next morning, after the
confederate forces had decamped, Mohammed and his men returned to Medina, and,
laying down their arms, began to refresh themselves after their fatigue; upon
which Gabriel came to the prophet and asked him whether he had suffered his
people to lay down their arms, when the angels had not laid down theirs; and
ordering him to go immediately against the Koradhites, assuring him that
himself would lead the way. Mohammed, in obedience to the divine command,
having caused public proclamation to be made that every one should pray that
afternoon for success against the sons of Koreidha, set forward upon the
expedition without loss of time; and being arrived at the fortress of the
Koradhites, besieged them for twenty-five days, at the end of which those
people, being in great terror and distress, capitulated, and at length, not
daring to trust to Mohammed's mercy, surrendered at the discretion of Saad Ebn
Moadh,6 hoping that he, being the prince of the tribe of Aws, their old
friends and confederates, would have some regard for them. But they were
deceived: for Saad, being greatly incensed at their breach of faith, had
begged of GOD that he might not die of the wound he had received at the ditch
till he saw vengeance taken on the Koradhites, and therefore adjudged that the
men should be put to the sword, the women and children made slaves, and their
goods be divided among the Moslems; which sentence Mohammed had no sooner
heard than he cried out, That Saad had pronounced the sentence of GOD: and the
same was accordingly executed, the number of men who were slain amounting to
six hundred, or, as others say, to seven hundred, or very near, among whom
were Hoyai Ebn Akhtab, a great enemy of Mohammed's, and Caab Ebn Asad, who had
been the chief occasion of the revolt of their tribe: and soon after Saad, who
had given judgment against them, died, his wound, which had been skinned over,
opening again.7
z This was the work of Gabriel, who, according to his promise, went
before the army of Moslems. It is said that Mohammed, a little before he came
to the settlement of the Koradhites, asking some of his men whether anybody
had passed them, they answered, that Dohya Ebn Kholeifa, the Calbite, had just
passed by them, mounted on a white mule, with housings of satin: to which he
replied, That person was the angel Gabriel, who is sent to the sons of
Koreidha to shake their castles, and to strike their hearts with fear and
consternation.8
1 See cap. 2, p. 22; cap. 3, p. 46; cap. 29, p. 298, &c. 2 Al
Beidâwi. 3 Idem. 4 Abulf. Vit. Moh. p. 79. 5 Al
Beidâwi. 6 See cap. 8, p. 128. 7 Al Beidâwi, Abulf. Vit.
Moh. p. 77, &c. Vide Gagnier, Vie de Mah. l. 4, c. 2. 8 Ebn
Ishak.
and God hath caused you to inherit their land, and their houses, and
their wealth,a and a land on which ye have not trodden;b for GOD is almighty.
O prophet, say unto thy wives, If ye seek this present life, and the pomp
thereof, come, I will make a handsome provision for you, and I will dismiss
you with an honourable dismission;c
but if ye seek GOD and his apostle, and the life to come, verily GOD hath
prepared for such of you as work righteousness a great reward.
30 O wives of the prophet, whosoever of you shall commit a manifest
wickedness, the punishment thereof shall be doubled unto her twofold;d and
this is easy with GOD:
but whosoever of you shall be obedient unto GOD and his apostle, and
shall do that which is right, we will give her her reward twice,e and we have
prepared for her an honourable provision in paradise.
O wives of the prophet, ye are not as other women: if ye fear God, be not
too complaisant in speech, lest he should covet, in whose heart is a disease
of incontinence; but speak the speech which is convenient.
And sit still in your houses; and set not out yourselves with the
ostentation of the former time of ignorance:f and observe the appointed times
of prayer, and give alms; and obey GOD, and his apostle; for GOD desireth only
to remove from you the abomination of vanity, since ye are the household of
the prophet, and to purify you by a perfect purification.g
And remember that which is read in your houses, of the signs of GOD, and
of the wisdom revealed in the Koran; for GOD is clear-sighted, and well
acquainted with your actions.
Verily the Moslems of either sex, and the true believers of either sex,
and the devout men, and the devout women, and the men of veracity, and the
women of veracity, and the patient men, and the patient women, and the humble
men, and the humble women, and the alms-givers of either sex, and the men who
fast, and the women who fast, and the chaste men, and the chaste women, and
those of either sex who remember GOD frequently; for them hath GOD prepared
forgiveness, and a great reward.
a Their immovable possessions Mohammed gave to the Mohâjerin, saying,
that the Ansârs were in their own houses, but that the others were destitute
of habitations. The movables were divided among his followers, but he
remitted the fifth part, which was usual to be taken in other cases.1
b By which some suppose Persia and Greece are meant; others, Khaibar;
and others, whatever lands the Moslems may conquer till the day of judgment.2
c This passage was revealed on Mohammed's wives asking for more
sumptuous clothes, and an additional allowance for their expenses; and he had
no sooner received it than he gave them their option, either to continue with
him or to be divorced, beginning with Ayesha, who chose GOD and his apostle,
and the rest followed her example; upon which the prophet thanked them, and
the following words were revealed, viz., It shall not be lawful for thee to
take other women to wife hereafter,3 &c. From hence some have concluded that
wife who has her option given her, and chooses to stay with her husband, shall
not be divorced, though others are of a contrary opinion.4
d For the crime would be more enormous and unpardonable in them,
because of their superior condition, and the grace which they have received
from GOD; whence it is that the punishment of a free person is ordained to be
double to that of a slave,5 and prophets are more severely reprimanded for
their faults than other men.6
e viz., Once for her obedience, and a second time for her conjugal
affection to the prophet, and handsome behaviour to him.
f That is, in the old time of idolatry. Some suppose the times before
the Flood, or the time of Abraham, to be here intended, when women adorned
themselves with all their finery, and went abroad into the streets to show
themselves to the men.7
g The pronouns of the second person in this part of the passage being
of the masculine gender, the Shiites pretend the sentence has no connection
with the foregoing or the following words; and will have it that by the
household of the prophet are particularly meant Fâtema and Ali, and their two
sons, Hasan and Hosein, to whom these words are directed.8
1 Al Beidâwi. 2 Idem. 3 See after, in this chapter,
p. 310. 4 Al Beidâwi.
5 See cap 4, p. 57. 6 Al Beidâwi. 7 Idem. 8
Idem.
It is not fit for a true believer of either sex, when GOD and his apostle
have decreed a thing, that they should have the liberty of choosing a
different matter of their own:h and whoever is disobedient unto GOD and his
apostle surely erreth with a manifest error.
And remember when thou saidst to him unto whom GOD had been gracious,i
and on whom thou also hadst conferred favours,k Keep thy wife to thyself, and
fear GOD: and thou didst conceal that in thy mind which GOD had determined to
discover,l and didst fear men; whereas it was more just that thou shouldest
fear GOD. But when Zeidm had determined the matter concerning her, and had
resolved to divorce her, we joined her in marriage unto thee;n lest a crime
should be charged on the true believers, in marrying the wives of their
adopted sons, when they have determined the matter concerning them;o and the
command of GOD is to be performed.
No crime is to be charged on the prophet, as to what GOD hath allowed
him, conformable to the ordinance of GOD with regard to those who preceded him
(for the command of GOD is a determinate decree),
h This verse was revealed on account of Zeinab (or Zenobia), the
daughter of Jahash, and wife of Zeid, Mohammed's freedman, whom the prophet
sought in marriage, but received a repulse from the lady and her brother
Abdallah, they being at first averse to the match: for which they are here
reprehended. The mother of Zeinab, it is said, was Amîma, the daughter of
Abd'almotalleb, and aunt to Mohammed.1
i viz., Zeid Ebn Haretha, on whom GOD had bestowed the grace early to
become a Moslem.
k By giving him his liberty, and adopting him for thy son, &c.
Zeid was of the tribe of Calb, a branch of the Khodaites, descended from
Hamyar, the son of Saba; and being taken in his childhood by a party of
freebooters, was bought by Mohammed, or, as others say, by his wife Khadijah
before she married him. Some years after, Haretha, hearing where his son was,
took a journey to Mecca, and offered a considerable sum for his ransom;
whereupon, Mohammed said, Let Zeid come hither: and if he chooses to go with
you, take him without ransom: but if it be his choice to stay with me, why
should I not keep him? And Zeid being come, declared that he would stay with
his master, who treated him as if he were his only son. Mohammed no sooner
heard this, but he took Zeid by the hand, and led him to the black stone of
the Caaba, where he publicly adopted him for his son, and constituted him his
heir, with which the father acquiesced, and returned home well satisfied.
From this time Zeid was called the son of Mohammed, till the publication of
Islâm, after which the prophet gave him to wife Zeinab.2
l Namely, thy affection to Zeinab. The whole intrigue is artfully
enough unfolded in this passage. The story is as follows:-
Some years after his marriage, Mohammed, going to Zeid's house on some
affair, and not finding him at home, accidentally cast his eyes on Zeinab, who
was then in a dress which discovered her beauty to advantage, and was so
smitten at the sight, that he could not forbear crying out, GOD be praised,
who turneth the hearts of men as he pleaseth! This Zeinab failed not to
acquaint her husband with on his return home; whereupon, Zeid, after mature
reflection, thought he could do no less than part with his wife in favour of
his benefactor, and therefore resolved to divorce her, and acquainted Mohammed
with his resolution; but he, apprehending the scandal it might raise, offered
to dissuade him from it, and endeavoured to stifle the flames which inwardly
consumed him; but at length, his love for her being authorized by this
revelation, he acquiesced, and after the term of her divorce was expired,
married her in the latter end of the fifth year of the Hejra.3
m It is observed that this is the only person, of all Mohammed's
companions, whose name is mentioned in the Korân.
n Whence Zeinab used to vaunt herself above the prophet's other wives,
saying that GOD had made the match between Mohammed and herself, whereas their
matches were made by their relations.4
o For this feigned relation, as has been observed, created an
impediment of marriage among the old Arabs within the prohibited degrees, in
the same manner as if it had been real; and therefore Mohammed's marrying
Zeinab, who had been his adopted son's wife, occasioned great scandal among
his followers, which was much heightened by the Jews and hypocrites: but the
custom is here declared unreasonable, and abolished for the future.
1 Al Beidâwi, Jallalo'ddin. 2 Al Jannabi. Vide Gagnier, Vie de
Moh. l. 4. c. 3. 3 Al Beidâwi, al Jannabi, &c. 4 Idem.
who brought the messages of GOD, and feared him, and feared none besides
GOD: and GOD is a sufficient accountant.
40 Mohammed is not the father of any man among you; but the apostle of GOD,
and the seal of the prophets: and GOD knoweth all things.
O true believers, remember GOD with a frequent remembrance, and celebrate
his praise morning and evening.
It is he who is gracious unto you, and his angels intercede for you, that
he may lead you forth from darkness into light; and he is merciful towards the
true believers.
Their salutation, on the day whereon they shall meet him, shall be,
Peace! and he hath prepared for them an honourable recompense.
O prophet, verily we have sent thee to be a witness, and a bearer of good
tidings, and a denouncer of threats,
and an inviter unto GOD, through his good pleasure, and a shining light.
Bear good tidings therefore unto the true believers, that they shall
receive great abundance from GOD.
And obey not the unbelievers, and the hypocrites, and mind not their evil
treatment: but trust in GOD; and GOD is a sufficient protector.
O true believers, when ye marry women who are believers, and afterwards
put them away, before ye have touched them, there is no term prescribed you to
fulfil towards themp after their divorce: but make them a present,q and
dismiss them freely with an honourable dismission.
O prophet, we have allowed thee thy wives unto whom thou hast given their
dower, and also the slaves which thy right hand possesseth, of the booty which
GOD hath granted thee;r and the daughters of thy uncle, and the daughters of
thy aunts, both on thy father's side, and on thy mother's side, who have fled
with thee from Mecca,s and any other believing woman, if she give herself unto
the prophet;t in case the prophet desireth to take her to wife. This is a
peculiar privilege granted unto thee above the rest of the true believers.u
50 We know what we have ordained them concerning their wives, and the
slaves which their right hands possess: lest it should be deemed a crime in
thee to make use of the privilege granted thee; for GOD is gracious and
merciful.
p That is, Ye are not obliged to keep them any certain time before ye
dismiss them, as ye are those with whom the marriage has been consummated.
See chap. 2, p. 24.
q i.e., If no dower has been assigned them: for if a dower has been
assigned, the husband is obliged, according to the Sonna, to give the woman
half the dower agreed on, besides a present.1 This is still to be understood
of such women with whom the marriage has not been consummated.
r It is said, therefore, that the women slaves which he should buy are
not included in this grant.
s But not the others. It is related of Omm Hâni, the daughter of Abu
Taleb, that she should say, The apostle of GOD courted me for his wife, but I
excused myself to him, and he accepted of my excuse: afterwards this verse was
revealed; but he was not thereby allowed to marry me, because I fled not with
him.2
It may be observed that Dr. Prideaux is much mistaken when he asserts
that Mohammed, in this chapter, brings in GOD exempting him from the law in
the fourth chapter,3 whereby the Moslems are forbidden to marry within certain
degrees, and giving him an especial privilege to take to wife the daughter of
his brother, or the daughter of his sister.4
t Without demanding any dower. According to a tradition of Ebn Abbas,
the prophet, however, married no woman without assigning her a dower. The
commentators are not agreed who was the woman particularly meant in this
passage; but they name four who are supposed to have thus given themselves to
the prophet, viz., Maimûna Bint al Hareth, Zeinab Bint Khozaima, Ghozîa Bint
Jâber, surnamed Omm Shoraic (which three he actually married), and Khawla Bint
Hakim, whom, as it seems, he rejected.
u For no Moslem can legally marry above four wives, whether free women
or slaves; whereas Mohammed is, by the preceding passage, left at liberty to
take as many as he pleased, though with some restrictions.
1 Idem. 2 Idem. 3 Page 56. 4 See Prid. Life
of Mahomet, p. 116.
Thou mayest postpone the turn of such of thy wives as thou shalt please,
in being called to thy bed; and thou mayest take unto thee her whom thou shalt
please, and her whom thou shalt desire of those whom thou shalt have before
rejected: and it shall be no crime in thee.x This will be more easy, that
they may be entirely content, and may not be grieved, but may be well pleased
with what thou shalt give every of them: GOD knoweth whatever is in your
hearts; and GOD is knowing and gracious.
It shall not be lawful for thee to take other women to wife hereafter,z
nor to exchange any of thy wives for them,a although their beauty please thee;
except the slaves whom thy right hand shall possess: and GOD observeth all
things.
O true believer, enter not the houses of the prophet, unless it be
permitted you to eat meat with him, without waiting his convenient time; but
when ye are invited, then enter. And when ye shall have eaten, disperse
yourselves; and stay not to enter into familiar discourse: for this
incommodeth the prophet. He is ashamed to bid you depart; but GOD is not
ashamed of the truth. And when ye ask of the prophet's wives what ye may have
occasion for, ask it of them from behind a curtain.b This will be more pure
for your hearts and their hearts. Neither is it fit for you to give any
uneasiness to the apostle of GOD, or to marry his wives after him for ever:c
for this would be a grievous thing in the sight of GOD.
Whether ye divulge a thing or conceal it, verily GOD knoweth all things.
x By this passage some farther privileges were granted unto Mohammed;
for, whereas other men are obliged to carry themselves equally towards their
wives,1 in case they had more than one, particularly as to the duties of the
marriage bed, to which each has a right to be called in her turn (which right
was acknowledged in the most early ages),2 and cannot take again a wife whom
they have divorced the third time, till she has been married to another and
divorced by him,3 the prophet was left absolutely at liberty to deal with them
in these and other respects as he thought fit.
z The commentators differ as to the express meaning of these words.
Some think Mohammed was thereby forbidden to take any more wives than nine,
which number he then had, and is supposed to have been his stint, as four was
that of other men; some imagine that after this prohibition, though any of the
wives he then had should die or be divorced, yet he could not marry another in
her room: some think he was only forbidden from this time forward to marry any
other woman than one of the four sorts mentioned in the preceding passage; and
others4 are of opinion that this verse is abrogated by the two preceding
verses, or one of them, and was revealed before them, though it be read after
them.5
a By divorcing her and marrying another. Al Zamakhshari tells us that
some are of opinion this prohibition is to be understood of a particular kind
of exchange used among the idolatrous Arabs, whereby two men made a mutual
exchange of their wives without any other formality.
b That is, let there be a curtain drawn between you, or let them be
veiled while ye talk with them. As the design of the former precept was to
prevent the impertinence of troublesome visitors, the design of this was to
guard against too near an intercourse or familiarity between his wives and his
followers; and was occasioned, it is said, by the hand of one of his
companions accidentally touching that of Ayesha, which gave the prophet some
uneasiness.6
c i.e., Either such as he shall divorce in his lifetime, or his widows
after his death. This was another privilege peculiar to the prophet.
It is related that, in the Khalifat of Omar, Ashath Ebn Kais married the
woman whom Mohammed had dismissed without consummating his marriage with her;7
upon which the Khalîf at first was thinking to stone her, but afterwards
changed his mind, on its being represented to him that this prohibition
related only to such women to whom the prophet had gone in.8
1 See Kor. c. 4, p. 53, &c. 2 See Gen. xxx. 14, &c 3 See
cap. 2, p. 24. 4 As Abu'l Kasem Hebatallah. 5 Al Zamakh., al
Beidâwi, Jallalo'ddin, &c. 6 Al Beidâwi. 7 See before, p.
318, note t.
8 Al Beidâwi.
It shall be no crime in them, as to their fathers, or their sons, or
their brothers, or their brothers' sons, or their sisters' sons, or their
women, or the slaves which their right hands possess, if they speak to them
unveiled:d and fear ye GOD;e for GOD is witness of all things.
Verily GOD and his angels bless the prophet. O true believers, do ye
also bless him, and salute him with a respectful salutation.f
As to those who offend GOD and his apostle, GOD shall curse them in this
world and in the next; and he hath prepared for them a shameful punishment.
And they who shall injure the true believers of either sex, without their
deserving it, shall surely bear the guilt of calumny and a manifest
injustice.g
O prophet, speak unto thy wives, and thy daughters, and the wives of the
true believers, that they cast their outer garmentsh over them when they walk
abroad; this will be more proper, that they may be known to be matrons of
reputation, and may not be affronted by unseemly words or actions. GOD is
gracious and merciful.
60 Verily if the hypocrites, and those in whose hearts is an infirmity, and
they who raise disturbances in Medina, do not desist, we will surely stir thee
up against them, to chastise them: henceforth they shall not be suffered to
dwell near thee therein, except for a little time,
and being accursed; wherever they are found they shall be taken, and
killed with a general slaughter,
according to the sentence of GOD concerning those who have been before;
and thou shalt not find any change in the sentence of GOD.
Men will ask thee concerning the approach of the last hour; answer,
Verily the knowledge thereof is with GOD alone; and he will not inform thee:
peradventure the hour is nigh at hand.
Verily GOD hath cursed the infidels, and hath prepared for them a fierce
fire,
wherein they shall remain forever: they shall find no patron or defender.
On the day whereon their faces shall be rolled in hell fire, they shall
say, Oh that we had obeyed GOD, and had obeyed his apostle!
And they shall say, O LORD, verily we have obeyed our lords, and our
great men; and they have seduced us from the right way.
O LORD, give them the double of our punishment; and curse them with a
heavy curse!
O true believers, be not as those who injured Moses; but GOD cleared him
from the scandal which they had spoken concerning him;i and he was of great
consideration in the sight of GOD.k
d See chapter 24, p. 264.
e The words are directed to the prophet's wives.
f Hence the Mohammedans seldom mention his name without adding, On whom
be the blessing of GOD and peace! or the like words.
g This verse was revealed, according to some, on occasion of certain
hypocrites who had slandered Ali; or, according to others, on occasion of
those who falsely accused Ayesha,9 &c.
h The original word properly signifies the large wrappers, usually of
white linen, with which the women in the east cover themselves from head to
foot when they go abroad.
i The commentators are not agreed what this injury was. Some say that
Moses using to wash himself apart, certain malicious people gave out that he
had a rupture (or, say others, that he was a leper, or an hermaphrodite), and
for that reason was ashamed to wash with them; but GOD cleared him from this
aspersion by causing the stone on which he had laid his clothes while he
washed to run away with them into the camp, whither Moses followed it naked;
and by that means the Israelites, in the midst of whom he was gotten ere he
was aware, plainly perceived the falsehood of the report. Others suppose
Karûn's accusation of Moses is here intended,1 or else the suspicion of
Aaron's murder, which was cast on Moses because he was with him when he died
on Mount Hor; of which latter he was justified by the angels bringing his body
and exposing it to public view, or, say some, by the testimony of Aaron
himself, who was raised to life for that purpose.2
The passage is said to have been occasioned by reflections which were
cast on Mohammed, on his dividing certain spoils; and that when they came to
his ear, he said, GOD be merciful unto my brother Moses: he was wronged more
than this, and bore it with patience.3
k Some copies for inda read abda, according to which the words should
be translated, And he was an illustrious servant of GOD.1
9 See cap. 24. 1 See cap. 28, p. 295. 2 Jallalo'ddin,
al Beidâwi. 3 Al Bokhari.
70 O true believers, fear GOD, and speak words well directed:
that God may correct your works for you, and may forgive you your sins:
and whoever shall obey GOD and his apostle shall enjoy great felicity.
We proposed the faith unto the heavens, and the earth, and the mountains:
and they refused to undertake the same, and were afraid thereof; but man
undertook it:l verily he was unjust to himself, and foolish;m
that GOD may punish the hypocritical men, and the hypocritical women, and
the idolaters, and the idolatresses; and that GOD may be turned unto the true
believers, both men and women; for GOD is gracious and merciful.
________
CHAPTER XXXIV.
ENTITLED, SABA;n REVEALED AT MECCA.
IN THE NAME OF THE MOST MERCIFUL GOD.
PRAISE be unto GOD, unto whom belongeth whatever is in the heavens and on
earth: and unto him be praise in the world to come; for he is wise and
intelligent.
He knoweth whatsoever entereth into the earth,o and whatsoever cometh out
of the same,p and whatsoever descendeth from heaven,q and whatsoever ascendeth
thereto:r and he is merciful and ready to forgive.
The unbelievers say, The hour of judgment will not come unto us. Answer,
Yea, by my LORD, it will surely come unto you; it is he who knoweth the hidden
secret: the weight of an ant, either in heaven or in earth, is not absent from
him, nor anything lesser than this or greater, but the same is written in the
perspicuous book of his decrees;
l By faith is here understood entire obedience to the law of GOD, which
is represented to be of so high concern (no less than eternal happiness or
misery depending on the observance or neglect thereof), and so difficult in
the performance, that if GOD should propose the same on the conditions
annexed, to the vaster parts of the creation, and they had understanding to
comprehend the offer, they would decline it, and not dare to take on them a
duty, the failing wherein must be attended with so terrible a consequence; and
yet man is said to have undertaken it, notwithstanding his weakness and the
infirmities of his nature. Some imagine this proposal is not hypothetical,
but was actually made to the heavens, earth, and mountains, which at their
first creation were endued with reason, and that GOD told them he had made a
law, and had created paradise for the recompense of such as were obedient to
it, and hell for the punishment of the disobedient; to which they answered
they were content to be obliged to perform the services for which they were
created, but would not undertake to fulfil the divine law on those conditions,
and therefore desired neither reward nor punishment; they add that when Adam
was created, the same offer was made to him, and he accepted it.4 The
commentators have other explications of this passage, which it would be too
prolix to transcribe.
m Unjust to himself in not fulfilling his engagements and obeying the
law he had accepted; and foolish in not considering the consequence of his
disobedience and neglect.
n Mention is made of the people of Saba in the fifteenth verse.
o As the rain, hidden treasures, the dead, &c.
p As animals, plants, metals, spring-water, &c.
q As the angels, scriptures, decrees of GOD, rain, thunder and
lightning, &c.
r As the angels, men's works, vapours, smoke, &c.5
4 Jallalo'ddin, al Beidâwi. 5 Al Beidâwi.
that he may recompense those who shall have believed, and wrought
righteousness: they shall receive pardon, and an honourable provision.
But they who endeavor to render our signs of none effect shall receive a
punishment of painful torment.
Those unto whom knowledge hath been given, see that the book which hath
been revealed unto thee from thy LORD is the truth, and directeth into the
glorious and laudable way.
The unbelievers say to one another, Shall we show you a man who shall
prophesy unto you, that when ye shall have been dispersed with a total
dispersion, ye shall be raised a new creature?
He hath forged a lie concerning GOD, or rather he is distracted. But
they who believe not in the life to come shall fall into punishment and a wide
error.
Have they not therefore considered what is before them, and what is
behind them, of the heaven and the earth? If we please, we will cause the
earth to open and swallow them up, or will cause a piece of the heaven to fall
upon them: verily herein is a sign unto every servant, who turneth unto God.
10 We heretofore bestowed on David excellence from us: and we said, O
mountains, sing alternate praises with him; and we obliged the birds also to
join therein.s And we softened the iron for him, saying, Make thereof
complete coats of mail,t and rightly dispose the small plates which compose
the same: and work ye righteousness, O family of David; for I see that which
ye do.
And we made the wind subject unto Solomon:u it blew in the morning for a
month, and in the evening for a month. And we made a fountain of molten brass
to flow for him.x And some of the genii were obliged to work in his presence,
by the will of his LORD; and whoever of them turned aside from our command, we
will cause him to taste the pain of hell fire.y
They made for him whatever he pleased of palaces, and statues,z and large
dishes like fishponds,a and caldrons standing firm on their trevets;b and we
said, Work righteousness, O family of David, with thanksgiving; for few of my
servants are thankful.
s See chapter 21, p. 247
t See ibid.
u See ibid. and chapter 27, p. 284.
x This fountain they say was in Yaman, and flowed three days in a
month.1
y Or, as some expound the words, We caused him to taste the pain of
burning; by which they understand the correction the disobedient genii
received at the hands of the angel set over them, who whipped them with a whip
of fire.
z Some suppose these were images of the angels and prophets, and that
the making of them was not then forbidden; or else that they were not such
images as were forbidden by the law. Some say these spirits made him two
lions, which were placed at the foot of his throne, and two eagles, which were
set above it; and that when he mounted it the lions stretched out their paws,
and when he sat down the eagles shaded him with their wings.2
a Being so monstrously large that a thousand men might eat out of each
of them at once.
b These cauldrons, they say, were cut out of the mountains of Yaman,
and were so vastly big that they could not be moved; and people went up to
them by steps.3
1 Idem, Jallalo'ddin. 2 Idem. 3 Jallalo'ddin.
And when we had decreed that Solomon should die, nothing discovered his
death unto them, except the creeping thing of the earth, which gnawed his
staff.c And when his body fell down, the genii plainly perceived that if they
had known that which is secret, they had not continued in a vile punishment.d
The descendants of Sabae had heretofore a sign in their dwelling; namely,
two gardens on the right hand and on the left,f and it was said unto them, Eat
ye of the provision of your LORD, and give thanks unto him; ye have a good
country, and a gracious LORD.
But they turned aside from what we had commanded them; wherefore we sent
against them the inundation of al Arem,g and we changed their two gardens for
them into two gardens producing bitter fruit, and tamarisks,h and some little
fruit of the lote-tree.
This we gave them in reward, because they were ungrateful: is any thus
rewarded except the ungrateful?
And we placed between them and the cities which we have blessed,i cities
situated near each other; and we made the journey easy between them,k saying,
Travel through the same by night and by day, in security.
But they said, O LORD, put a greater distance between our journeys:l and
they were unjust unto themselves; and we made them the subject of discourse,
and dispersed them with a total dispersion.m Verily, herein are signs unto
every patient, grateful person.
c The commentators, to explain this passage, tell us that David, having
laid the foundations of the temple of Jerusalem, which was to be in lieu of
the tabernacle of Moses, when he died, left it to be finished by his son
Solomon, who employed the genii in the work: that Solomon, before the edifice
was quite completed, perceiving his end drew nigh, begged of GOD that his
death might be concealed from the genii till they had entirely finished it;
that GOD therefore so ordered it, that Solomon died as he stood at his
prayers, leaning on his staff, which supported the body in that posture a full
year; and the genii, supposing him to be alive, continued their work during
that term, at the expiration whereof the temple being perfectly completed, a
worm, which had gotten into the staff, ate it through, and the corpse fell to
the ground and discovered the king's death.4
Possibly this fable of the temple's being built by genii, and not by
men, might take its rise from what is mentioned in scripture, that the house
was built of stone made ready before it was brought thither; so that there was
neither hammer, nor axe, nor any tool of iron heard in the house while it was
building;5 the Rabbins indeed, tell us of a worm, which might assist the
workmen, its virtue being such as to cause the rocks and stones to fly in
sunder.6 Whether the worm which gnawed Solomon's staff were of the same breed
with this other, I know not; but the story has perfectly the air of a Jewish
invention.
d i.e., They had not continued in servile subjection to the command of
Solomon, nor had gone on with the work of the temple.
e Saba was the son of Yashhab, the son of Yárab, the son of Kahtân,
whose posterity dwelt in Yaman, in the city of Mâreb, called also Saba, about
three days' journey from Sanaa.
f That is, two tracts of land, one on this side of their city, and the
other on that, planted with trees, and made into gardens, which lay so thick
and close together, that each tract seemed to be one continued garden: or, it
may be, every house had a garden on each hand of it.1
g The commentators set down several significations of the word al Arem,
which are scarce worth mentioning: it most properly signifies mounds or dams
for the stopping or containing of water, and is here used for that stupendous
mound or building which formed the vast reservoir above the city of Saba,
described in another place,2 and which, for the great impiety, pride, and
insolence of the inhabitants, was broken down in the night by a mighty flood,
and occasioned a terrible destruction.3 Al Beidâwi supposes this mound was
the work of queen Balkîs, and that the above-mentioned catastrophe happened
after the time of Jesus Christ; wherein he seems to be mistaken.
h A low shrub bearing no fruit, and delighting in saltish and barren
ground.
i viz., The cities of Syria.
k By reason of their near distance, so that during the whole journey a
traveller might rest in one town during the heat of the day, and in another at
night; nor was he obliged to carry provisions with him.4
l This petition they made out of covetousness, that the poor being
obliged to be longer on the road, they might make greater advantages in
letting out their cattle, and furnishing the travellers with provision: and
GOD was pleased to punish them by granting them their wish, and permitting
most of the cities, which were between Saba and Syria, to be ruined and
abandoned.5
m For the neighbouring nations justly wondered at so sudden and
unforeseen a revolution in the affairs of this once flourishing people: whence
it became a proverbial saying, to express a total dispersion, that they were
gone and scattered like Saba.6
Of the descendants of Saba, who quitted their country and sought new
settlements on this inundation, the tribe of Ghassân went into Syria, the
tribe of Anmâr to Yathreb, the tribe of Jodhâm to Tehâmah, the tribe of al Azd
to Omân,1 the tribe of Tay to Najd, the tribe of Khozaah to Batan Marr near
Mecca, Banu Amela to a mountain, thence called the Mountain of Amela, near
Damascus, and others went to Hira in Irâk,2 &c.
4 Al Beidâwi, Jallalo'ddin. 5 I Kings vi. 7. 6 Vide
Kimhi, in loc. Buxt. Lex. Talm. p. 2456, et Schickardi Tarich reg. Pers. p.
62. 1 Al Beidâwi. 2 See the Prelim. Disc. Sect. I. p. 8.
3 See ibid. 4 Jallal., al Beidâwi. 5 Idem.
6 Al Beidâwi. Vide Gol. not. in Alfrag. p. 87
And Eblis found his opinion of them to be true:n and they followed him,
except a party of the true believers:o
20 and he had no power over them, unless to tempt them, that we might know
him who believed in the life to come, from him who doubted thereof. Thy LORD
observeth all things.
Say unto the idolaters, Call upon those whom ye imagine to be gods,
besides GOD: they are not masters of the weight of an ant in heaven or on
earth, neither have they any share in the creation or government of the same;
nor is any of them assistant to him therein.
No intercession will be of service in his presence, except the
intercession of him to whom he shall grant permission to intercede for
others:p and they shall wait in suspense until, when the terror shall be taken
off from their hearts,q they shall say to one another: What doth your LORD
say? They shall answer, That which is just: and he is the high, the great
God.
Say, Who provideth food for you from heaven and earth? Answer, GOD: and
either we, or ye, follow the true direction, or are in a manifest error.
Say, Ye shall not be examined concerning what we shall have committed:
neither shall we be examined concerning what ye shall have done.
Say, Our LORD will assemble us together at the last day: then he will
judge between us with truth; and he is the judge, the knowing.
Say, Show me those whom ye have joined as partners with him? Nay; rather
he is the mighty, the wise GOD.
We have not sent thee otherwise than unto mankind in general, a bearer of
good tidings, and a denouncer of threats; but the greater part of men do not
understand.
And they say, When will this threat be fulfilled, if ye speak truth?
Answer, A threat is denounced unto you of a day which ye shall not retard
one hour, neither shall ye hasten.
30 The unbelievers say, We will by no means believe in this Koran, nor in
that which hath been revealed before it.r But if thou couldest see when the
unjust doers shall be set before their LORD! They will iterate discourse with
one another: those who were esteemed weak shall say unto those who behaved
themselves arrogantly,s Had it not been for you, verily we had been true
believers.
They who behaved themselves arrogantly shall say unto those who were
esteemed weak, Did we turn you aside from the true direction, after it had
come unto you? On the contrary, ye acted wickedly of your own free choice.
n Either his opinion of the Sabeans, when he saw them addicted to pride
and ingratitude, and the satisfying their lusts; or else the opinion he
entertained of all mankind at the fall of Adam, or at his creation, when he
heard the angels say, Wilt thou place in the earth one who will do evil
therein, and shed blood?3
o Who were saved from the common destruction.
p See chapter 19, p. 232.
q i.e., From the hearts of the intercessors, and of those for whom GOD
shall allow them to intercede, by the permission which he shall then grant
them; for no angel or prophet shall dare to speak at the last day without the
divine leave.
r It is said that the infidels of Mecca, having inquired of the Jews
and Christians concerning the mission of Mohammed, were assured by them that
they found him described as the prophet who should come, both in the
Pentateuch and in the Gospel; at which they were very angry, and broke out
into the words here recorded.4
s See chapter 14, p. 187, note
1 Al Beidâwi. 2 Vide Poc. Spec. p. 42, 45, and 66.
3 See cap. 2, p. 4; cap. 7, p. 106; and cap. 15, p. 192, &c.
4 Al Beidâwi
And they who were esteemed weak shall say unto those who behaved with
arrogance, Nay, but the crafty plot which ye devised by night and by day,
occasioned our ruin: when ye commanded us that we should not believe in GOD,
and that we should set up other gods as equals unto him. And they shall
conceal their repentance,t after they shall have seen the punishment prepared
for them. And we will put yokes on the necks of those who shall have
disbelieved: shall they be rewarded any otherwise than according to what they
shall have wrought?
We have sent no warner unto any city, but the inhabitants thereof who
lived in affluence said, Verily we believe not that with which ye are sent.
And those of Mecca also say, We abound in riches and children, more than
ye; and we shall not be punished hereafter.
Answer, Verily my LORD will bestow provision in abundance unto whom he
pleaseth, and will be sparing unto whom he pleaseth: but the greater part of
men know not this.
Neither your riches nor your children are the things which shall cause
you to draw nigh unto us with a near approach: only whoever believeth, and
worketh righteousness, they shall receive a double reward for that which they
shall have wrought: and they shall dwell in security, in the upper apartments
of paradise.
But they who shall endeavor to render our signs of none effect shall be
delivered up to punishment.
Say, Verily my LORD will bestow provision in abundance unto whom he
pleaseth of his servants, and will be sparing unto whom he pleaseth: and
whatever thing ye shall give in alms, he will return it; and he is the best
provider of food.
On a certain day he shall gather them altogether: then shall he say unto
the angels, Did these worship you?
40 And the angels shall answer, GOD forbid! thou art our friend, and not
these: but they worshipped devils; the greater part of them believed in them.
On this day the one of you shall not be able either to profit or to hurt
the other. And we will say unto those who have acted unjustly, Taste ye the
pain of hell fire, which ye rejected as a falsehood.
When our evident signs are read unto them, they say of thee, O Mohammed,
This is no other than a man who seeketh to turn you aside from the gods which
your fathers worshipped. And they say of the Koran, This is no other than a
lie blasphemously forged. And the unbelievers say of the truth, when it is
come unto them, This is no other than manifest sorcery:
yet we have given them no books of scripture wherein to exercise
themselves, nor have we sent unto them any warner before thee.
They who were before them in like manner accused their prophets of
imposture: but these have not arrived unto the tenth part of the riches and
strength which we had bestowed on the former: and they accused my apostles of
imposture; and how severe was my vengeance!
Say, Verily I advise you unto one thing, namely, that ye stand before GOD
by two and two, and singly;u and then consider seriously and you will find
that there is no madness in your companion Mohammed: he is no other than a
warner unto you, sent before a severe punishment.
t See chapter 10, p. 154, note y.
u i.e., That ye set yourselves to deliberate and judge of me and my
pretensions coolly and sincerely, as in the sight of GOD, without passion or
prejudice. The reason why they are ordered to consider either alone, or by
two and two at most together, is because in larger assembles, where noise,
passion, and prejudice generally prevail, men have not that freedom of
judgment which they have in private.1
1 Al Beidâwi.
Say, I ask not of you any reward for my preaching;x it is your own,
either to give or not:y my reward is to be expected from GOD alone; and he is
witness over all things.
Say, Verily my LORD sendeth down the truth to his prophets: he is the
knower of secrets.
Say, Truth is come, and falsehood is vanished, and shall not return any
more.
Say, If I err, verily I shall err only against my own soul: but if I be
rightly directed, it will be by that which my LORD revealeth unto me; for he
is ready to hear, and nigh unto those who call upon him.
50 If thou couldest see, when the unbelievers shall tremble,z and shall
find no refuge, and shall be taken from a near place,a
and shall say, We believe in him! But how shall they receive the faith
from a distant place:b
since they had before denied him, and reviled the mysteries of faith,
from a distant place?
And a bar shall be placed between them and that which they shall desire;
as it hath been done with those who behaved like them heretofore: because
they have been in a doubt which hath caused scandal.
________
CHAPTER XXXV.
ENTITLED, THE CREATOR;c REVEALED AT MECCA.
IN THE NAME OF THE MOST MERCIFUL GOD.
PRAISE be unto GOD the Creator of heaven and earth; who maketh the angels
his messengers, furnished with two, and three, and four pair of wings:d GOD
maketh what addition he pleaseth unto his creatures; for GOD is almighty.
The mercy which GOD shall freely bestow on mankind, there is none who can
withhold; and what he shall withhold, there is none who can bestow, besides
him; and he is the mighty, the wise.
O men, remember the favor of GOD towards you: is there any creator,
besides GOD, who provideth food for you from heaven and earth? There is no
GOD but he: how therefore are ye turned aside from acknowledging his unity?
x Mohammed, having in the preceding words answered the imputation of
madness or vain enthusiasm, by appealing to their cooler thoughts of him and
his actions, endeavours by these to clear himself of the suspicion of any
worldly view or interest, declaring that he desired no salary or support from
them for executing his commission, but expected his wages from GOD alone.
y See chapter 25, p. 275.
z viz., At their death, or the day of judgment, or the battle of Bedr.2
a That is, from the outside of the earth to the inside thereof; or,
from before GOD'S tribunal to hell fire; or, from the plain of Bedr to the
well into which the dead bodies of the slain were thrown.3
b i.e., When they are in the other world; whereas faith is to be
received in this.
c Some entitle this chapter The Angels: both words occur in the first
verse.
d That is, some angels have a greater and some a lesser number of
wings, according to their different orders, the words not being designed to
express the particular number. Gabriel is said to have appeared to Mohammed,
on the night he made his journey to heaven, with no less than six hundred
wings.4
2 Al Beidâwi. 3 Idem. 4 Idem.
If they accuse thee of imposture, apostles before thee have also been
accused of imposture: and unto GOD shall all things return.
O men, verily the promise of GOD is true: let not therefore the present
life deceive you, neither let the deceiver deceive you concerning GOD:
for Satan is an enemy unto you; wherefore hold him for an enemy: he only
inviteth his confederates to be the inhabitants of hell.
For those who believe not there is prepared a severe torment:
but for those who shall believe and do that which is right, is prepared
mercy and a great reward.
Shall he therefore for whom his evil work hath been prepared, and who
imagineth it to be good, be as he who is rightly disposed, and discerneth the
truth? Verily GOD will cause to err whom he pleaseth, and will direct whom he
pleaseth. Let not thy soul therefore be spent in sighs for their sakes, on
account of their obstinacy; for GOD well knoweth that which they do.
10 It is God who sendeth the winds, and raiseth a cloud; and we drive the
same unto a dead country, and thereby quicken the earth after it hath been
dead; so shall the resurrection be.e
Whoever desireth excellence; unto GOD doth all excellence belong: unto
him ascendeth the good speech; and the righteous work will he exalt. But as
for them who devise wicked plots,f they shall suffer a severe punishment; and
the device of those men shall be rendered vain.
GOD created you first of the dust, and afterwards of seed;g and he hath
made you man and wife. No female conceiveth, or bringeth forth, but with his
knowledge. Nor is anything added unto the age of him whose life is prolonged,
neither is anything diminished from his age, but the same is written in the
book of God's decrees. Verily this is easy with GOD.
The two seas are not to be held in comparison: this is fresh and sweet,
pleasant to drink: but that is salt and bitter:h yet out of each of them ye
eat fish,i and take ornamentsk for you to wear. Thou seest the ships also
ploughing the waves thereof, that ye may seek to enrich yourselves by
commerce, of the abundance of God: peradventure ye will be thankful.
He causeth the night to succeed the day, and he causeth the day to
succeed the night; and he obligeth the sun and the moon to perform their
services: each of them runneth an appointed course. This is GOD, your LORD:
his is the kingdom. But the idols which ye invoke besides him have not the
power even over the skin of a date-stone:
if ye invoke them, they will not hear your calling; and although they
should hear, yet they would not answer you. On the day of resurrection they
shall disclaim your having associated them with God: and none shall declare
unto thee the truth, like one who is well acquainted therewith.
O men, ye have need of GOD; but GOD is self-sufficient, and to be
praised.
If he pleaseth, he can take you away, and produce a new creature in your
stead:
neither will this be difficult with GOD.
A burdened soul shall not bear the burden of another: and if a heavy-
burdened soul call on another to bear part of its burden, no part thereof
shall be borne by the person who shall be called on, although he be ever so
nearly related. Thou shalt admonish those who fear their LORD in secret and
are constant at prayer: and whoever cleanseth himself from the guilt of
disobedience, cleanseth himself to the advantage of his own soul; for all
shall be assembled before GOD at the last day.
e See chapter 29, p. 298, note
f As the Koreish did against Mohammed. See chapter 8, p. 128, note n.
g See chapter 22, p. 250.
h That is, the two collective bodies of salt water and fresh. See
chapter 25, p. 274
i See chapter 16, p. 196, note u.
k As pearls and coral.
20 The blind and the seeing shall not be held equal; neither darkness and
light; nor the cool shade and the scorching wind:
neither shall the living and the dead be held equal.l GOD shall cause
him to hear whom he pleaseth; but thou shalt not make those to hear who are in
their graves.m Thou art no other than a preacher:
verily we have sent thee with truth, a bearer of good tidings, and a
denouncer of threats. There hath been no nation, but a preacher hath in past
times been conversant among them:
if they charge thee with imposture, they who were before them likewise
charged their apostles with imposture. Their apostles came unto them with
evident miracles, and with divine writings,n and with the enlightening book:o
afterwards I chastised those who were unbelievers; and how severe was my
vengeance!
Dost thou not see that GOD sendeth down rain from heaven, and that we
thereby produce fruits of various colours?q In the mountain also there are
some tracts white and red, of various colours;q and others are of a deep
black: and of men, and beasts, and cattle there are whose colours are in like
manner various. Such only of his servants fear GOD as are endued with
understanding: verily GOD is mighty and ready to forgive.
Verily they who read the book of GOD, and are constant at prayer, and
give alms out of what we have bestowed on them, both in secret and openly,
hope for a merchandise which shall not perish:
that God may fully pay them their wages, and make them a superabundant
addition of his liberality; for he is ready to forgive the faults of his
servants, and to requite their endeavors.
That which we have revealed unto thee of the book of the Koran is the
truth, confirming the scriptures which were revealed before it: for GOD
knoweth and regardeth his servants.
And we have given the book of the Koran in heritage unto such of our
servants as we have chosen: of them there is one who injureth his own soul;r
and there is another of them who keepeth the middle way;s and there is another
of them who outstrippeth others in good works, by the permission of GOD. This
is the great excellence.
30 They shall be introduced into gardens of perpetual abode; they shall be
adorned therein with bracelets of gold and pearls, and their clothing therein
shall be of silk:
and they shall say, Praise be unto GOD, who hath taken away sorrow from
us! verily our LORD is ready to forgive the sinners, and to reward the
obedient;
l This passage expresses the great difference between a true believer
and an infidel, truth and vanity, and their future reward and punishment.
m i.e., Those who obstinately persist in their unbelief, who are
compared to the dead.
n As the volumes delivered to Abraham, and to other prophets before
Moses.
o viz., The law or the gospel.
p That is, of different kinds. See chapter 16, p. 196.
q Being more or less intense.1
r By not practising what he is taught and commanded in the Korân.
s That is, who meaneth well, and performeth his duty for the most part,
but not perfectly
1 Al Beidâwi.
who hath caused us to take up our rest in a dwelling of eternal
stability, through his bounty, wherein no labor shall touch us, neither shall
any weariness affect us.
But for the unbelievers is prepared the fire of hell: it shall not be
decreed them to die a second time; neither shall any part of the punishment
thereof be made lighter unto them. Thus shall every infidel be rewarded.
And they shall cry out aloud in hell, saying, LORD, take us hence, and we
will work righteousness, and not what we have formerly wrought. But it shall
be answered them, Did we not grant you lives of length sufficient, that
whoever would be warned might be warned therein; and did not the preachert
come unto you?
taste therefore the pains of hell. And the unjust shall have no
protector.
Verily GOD knoweth the secrets both of heaven and earth, for he knoweth
the innermost parts of the breasts of men.
It is he who hath made you to succeed in the earth. Whoever shall
disbelieve, on him be his unbelief; and their unbelief shall only gain the
unbelievers greater indignation in the sight of their LORD; and their unbelief
shall only increase the perdition of the unbelievers.
Say, What think ye of your deities which ye invoke besides GOD? Show me
what part of the earth they have created. Or had they any share in the
creation of the heavens? Have we given unto the idolaters any book of
revelations, so that they may rely on any proof therefrom to authorize their
practice? Nay; but the ungodly make unto one another only deceitful promises.
Verily GOD sustaineth the heavens and the earth, lest they fail: and if
they should fail, none could support the same besides him; he is gracious and
merciful.
40 The Koreish swore by GOD, with a most solemn oath, that if a preacher
had come unto them, they would surely have been more willingly directed than
any nation: but now a preacher is come unto them, it hath only increased in
them their aversion from the truth,
their arrogance in the earth, and their contriving of evil; but the
contrivance of evil shall only encompass the authors thereof. Do they expect
any other than the punishment awarded against the unbelievers of former times?
For thou shalt not find any change in the ordinance of GOD;
neither shalt thou find any variation in the ordinance of GOD.
Have they not gone through the earth, and seen what hath been the end of
those who were before them; although they were more mighty in strength than
they? GOD is not to be frustrated by anything either in heaven or on earth;
for he is wise and powerful.
If GOD should punish men according to what they deserve, he would not
leave on the back of the earth so much as a beast: but he respiteth them to a
determined time;
and when their time shall come, verily GOD will regard his servants.
t viz., Mohammed.
CHAPTER XXXVI.
ENTITLED, Y. S.; REVEALED AT MECCA.
IN THE NAME OF THE MOST MERCIFUL GOD.
Y. S.u I SWEAR by the instructive Koran,
that thou art one of the messengers of God,
sent to show the right way.
This is a revelation of the most mighty, the merciful God:
that thou mayest warn a people whose fathers were not warned, and who
live in negligence.
Our sentencex hath justly been pronounced against the greater part of
them; wherefore they shall not believe.
We have put yokesy on their necks, which come up to their chins; and they
are forced to hold up their heads;
and we have set a bar before them, and a bar behind them;z and we have
covered them with darkness; wherefore they shall not see.a
It shall be equal unto them whether thou preach unto them, or do not
preach unto them; they shall not believe.
10 But thou shalt preach with effect unto him only who followeth the
admonition of the Koran, and feareth the Merciful in secret. Wherefore bear
good tidings unto him, of mercy, and an honourable reward.
Verily we will restore the dead to life, and will write down their works
which they shall have sent before them, and their footsteps which they shall
have left behind them: b and everything do we set down in a plain register.
Propound unto them as an example the inhabitants of the city of Antioch,
when the apostles of Jesus came thereto:c
u The meaning of these letters is unknown:1 some, however, from a
tradition of Ebn Abbas, pretend they stand for Ya insân, i.e., O man. This
chapter, it is said, had several other titles given it by Mohammed himself,
and particularly that of The heart of the Korân. The Mohammedans read it to
dying persons in their last agony.2
x viz., The sentence of damnation, which GOD pronounced against the
greater part of genii and men at the fall of Adam.3
y Or collars, such as are described p. 181, note t.
z That is, we have placed obstacles to prevent their looking either
forwards or backwards. The whole passage represents the blindness and
invincible obstinacy, with which GOD justly curses perverse and reprobate men.
a It is said that when the Koreish, in pursuance of a resolution they
had taken, had sent a select number to beset Mohammed's house, and to kill
him,4 the prophet, having caused Ali to lie down on his bed to deceive the
assassins, went out and threw a handful of dust at them, repeating the nine
first verses of this chapter, which end here; and they were thereupon stricken
with blindness, so that they could not see him.5
b As their good or evil example, doctrine, &c.
c To explain this passage, the commentators tell the following story:-
The people of Antioch being idolaters, Jesus sent two of his disciples
thither to preach to them; and when they drew near the city they found Habîb,
surnamed al Najjâr, or the carpenter, feeding sheep, and acqainted him with
their errand; whereupon he asked them what proof they had of their veracity,
and they told him they could cure the sick, and the blind, and the lepers; and
to demonstrate the truth of what they said, they laid their hands on a child
of his who was sick, and immediately restored him to health. Habîb was
convinced by this miracle, and believed; after which they went into the city
and preached the worship of one true GOD, curing a great number of people of
several infirmities; but at length, the affair coming to the prince's ear, he
ordered them to be imprisoned for endeavouring to seduce the people. When
Jesus heard of this, he sent another of his disciples, generally supposed to
have been Simon Peter, who, coming to Antioch, and appearing as a zealous
idolater, soon insinuated
1 See the Prelim. Disc. Sec. III. p. 46, &c. 2 Vide Bobov. De
Visit. Ægrot. p. 17. 3 See cap. 7, p. 106; c. II, p. 169, &c.
4 See the Prelim. Disc. p. 39. 5 Vide Abulf. Vit Moh. p. 50.
when we sent unto them two of the said apostles;d but they charged them
with imposture. Wherefore we strengthened them with a third.e And they said,
Verily we are sent unto you by God.
The inhabitants answered, Ye are no other than men, as we are; ye only
publish a lie.
The apostles replied, Our LORD knoweth that we are really sent unto you:
and our duty is only public preaching.
Those of Antioch said, Verily we presage evil from you: if ye desist not
from preaching, we will surely stone you, and a painful punishment shall be
inflicted on you by us.
The apostles answered, Your evil presage is with yourselves:f although ye
be warned, will ye persist in yours errors? Verily ye are a people who
transgress exceedingly.
And a certain mang came hastily from the farther parts of the city, and
said, O my people, follow the messengers of God;
20 follow him who demandeth not any reward of you: for these are rightly
directed.
What reason have I that I should not worship him who hath created me? for
unto him shall ye return.
Shall I take other gods besides him? If the Merciful be pleased to
afflict me, their intercession will not avail me at all, neither can they
deliver me:
then should I be in a manifest error.
Verily I believe in your LORD; wherefore hearken unto me.
But they stoned him: and as he died, it was said unto him, Enter thou
into paradise. And he said, O that my people knew
how merciful GOD hath been unto me! for he hath highly honoured me.
And we sent not down against his people, after they had slain him, an
army from heaven, nor the other instruments of destruction which we sent down
on unbelievers in former days:h
there was only one cry of Gabriel from heaven, and behold, they became
utterly extinct.
Oh the misery of men! No apostle cometh unto them, but they laugh him to
scorn.
30 Do they not consider how many generations we have destroyed before them?
Verily they shall not return unto them:
but all of them in general shall be assembled before us.
himself into the favour of the inhabitants and of their prince, and at length
took an opportunity to desire the prince would order the two persons who, as
he was informed, had been put in prison for broaching new opinions, to be
brought before him to be examined; and accordingly they were brought: when
Peter, having previously warned them to take no notice that they knew him,
asked them who sent them, to which they answered, GOD, who had created all
things, and had no companion. He then required some convincing proof of their
mission, upon which they restored a blind person to his sight and performed
some other miracles, with which Peter seemed not to be satisfied, for that,
according to some, he did the very same miracles himself, but declared that,
if their GOD could enable them to raise the dead, he would believe them; which
condition the two apostles accepting, a lad was brought who had been dead
seven days, and at their prayers he was raised to life; and thereupon Peter
acknowledged himself convinced, and ran and demolished the idols, a great many
of the people following him, and embracing the true faith; but those who
believed not were destroyed by the cry of the angel Gabriel.1
d Some say these two were John and Paul; but others name different
persons.
e viz., Simon Peter.
f i.e., If any evil befall you, it will be the consequence of your own
obstinacy and unbelief. See chapter 27, p. 287, note b.
g This was Habîb al Najjâr, whose martyrdom is here described. His
tomb is still shown near Antioch, and is much visited by the Mohammedans.2
h As a deluge, or a shower of stones, or a suffocating wind, &c. The
words may also be translated, Nor did we determine to send down such
executioners of our justice.
1 Al Zamakh., al Beidâwi, &c. Vide etiam Marracc. in Alc. p. 580.
2 Vide Schultens, Indic. Geogr. ad calcem Vitæ Saladini, voce
Antiochia.
One sign of the resurrection unto them is the dead earth:i we quicken the
same by the rain, and produce thereout various sorts of grain, of which they
eat.
And we make therein gardens of palm-trees, and vines; and we cause
springs to gush forth in the same:
that they may eat of the fruits thereof, and of the labor of their hands.
Will they not therefore give thanks?
Praise be unto him who hath created all the different kinds, both of
vegetables, which the earth bringeth forth, and of their own species, by
forming the two sexes, and also the various sorts of things which they know
not.
The night also is a sign unto them: we withdraw the day from the same,
and behold, they are covered with darkness:
and the sun hasteneth to his place of rest.k This is the disposition of
the mighty, the wise God.
and for the moon have we appointed certain mansions,l until she change
and return to be like the old branch of a palm-tree.m
40 It is not expedient that the sun should overtake the moon in her course:
neither doth the night outstrip the day: but each of these luminaries moving
in a peculiar orbit.
It is a sign also unto them, that they carry their offspring in the ship
filled with merchandise;n
and that we have made for them other conveniences like unto it,o whereon
they ride.
If we please, we drown them, and there is none to help them; neither are
they delivered,
unless through our mercy, and that they may enjoy life for a season.
When it is said unto them, Fear that which is before you, and that which
is behind you,p that ye may obtain mercy: they withdraw from thee:
and thou dost not bring them one sign, of the signs of their LORD, but
they turn aside from the same.
And when it is said unto them, Give alms of that which GOD hath bestowed
on you; the unbelievers say unto those who believe, by way of mockery, Shall
we feed him whom GOD can feed, if he pleaseth?q Verily ye are in no other
than a manifest error.
And they say, When will this promise of the resurrection be fulfilled, if
ye speak truth?
They only wait for one sounding of the trumpet,r which shall overtake
them while they are disputing together;
50 and they shall not have time to make any disposition of their effects,
neither shall they return to their family.
And the trumpet shall be sounded again;s and behold they shall come forth
from their graves, and hasten unto their LORD.
i See cap. 29, p. 298, note y.
k That is, he hasteneth to run his daily course, the setting of the sun
resembling a traveller's going to rest. Some copies vary in this place, and
instead of limostakarrin laha, read la mostakarra laha; according to which the
sentence should be rendered, The sun runneth his course without ceasing, and
hath not a place of rest.
l viz., These are twenty-eight constellations, through one of which the
moon passes every night, thence called the mansions or houses of the moon.1
m For when a palm-branch grows old, it shrinks, and becomes crooked and
yellow, not ill representing the appearance of the new moon.
n Some suppose that the deliverance of Noah and his companions in the
ark is here intended; and then the words should be translated, That we carried
their progeny in the ark filled with living creatures.
o As camels, which are the land-ships; or lesser vessels and boats.
p i.e., The punishment of this world and of the next.
q When the poor Moslems asked alms of the richer Koreish, they told
them that if GOD could provide for them, as they imagined, and did not, it was
an argument that they deserved not his favour so well as themselves: whereas
GOD permits some to be in want, to try the rich and exercise their charity.
r See the Prelim. Disc. Sect. IV. p. 64, 65, and the notes to chapter
39
s See ibid.
1 See the Prelim. Disc. Sect. I. p. 24.
They shall say, Alas for us! who hath awakened us from our bed?t This is
what the Merciful promised us; and his apostles spoke the truth.
It shall be but one sound of the trumpet, and behold, they shall be all
assembled before us.
On this day no soul shall be unjustly treated in the least; neither shall
ye be rewarded, but according to what ye shall have wrought.
On this day the inhabitants of paradise shall be wholly taken up with
joy:
they and their wives shall rest in shady groves, leaning on magnificent
couches.
There shall they have fruit, and they shall obtain whatever they shall
desire.
Peace shall be the word spoken unto the righteous, by a merciful LORD:
but he shall say unto the wicked, Be ye separated this day, O ye wicked,
from the righteous.
60 Did I not command you, O sons of Adam, that ye should not worship Satan;
because he was an open enemy unto you?
And did I not say, Worship me; this is the right way?
But now hath he seduced a great multitude of you: did ye not therefore
understand?
This is hell, with which ye were threatened:
be ye cast into the same this day to be burned; for that ye have been
unbelievers.
On this day we will seal up their mouths, that they shall not open them
in their own defence; and their hands shall speak unto us, and their feet
shall bear witness of that which they have committed.u
If we pleased we could put out their eyes, and they might run with
emulation in the way they use to take; and how should they see their error?
And if we pleased we could transform them into other shapes, in their
places when they should be found; and they should not be able to depart;
neither should they repent.x
Unto whomsoever we grant a long life, him do we cause to bow down his
body through age. Will they not therefore understand?
We have not taught Mohammed the art of poetry;y nor is it expedient for
him to be a poet. This book is no other than an admonition from God, and a
perspicuous Korân;
70 that he may warn him who is living:z and the sentence of condemnation
will be justly executed on the unbelievers.
Do they not consider that we have created for them, among the things
which our hands have wrought, cattle of several kinds, of which they are
possessors;
and that we have put the same in subjection under them? Some of them are
for their riding; and on some of them do they feed:
and they receive other advantages therefrom; and of their milk do they
drink. Will they not, therefore, be thankful?
They have taken other gods, besides GOD, in hopes that they may be
assisted by them;
but they are not able to give them any assistance: yet are they a party
of troops ready to defend them.
Let not their speech, therefore, grieve thee: we know that which they
privately conceal, and that which they publicly discover.
Doth not man know that we have created him of seed? yet behold, he is an
open disputer against the resurrection;
t For they shall sleep during the interval between these two blasts of
the trumpet, and shall feel no pain.1
u See the Prelim. Disc. Sect. IV. p. 69.
x That is, They deserve to be thus treated for their infidelity and
disobedience; but we bear with them out of mercy, and grant them respite.
y That is in answer to the infidels, who pretended the Korân was only a
poetical composition.
z i.e., Endued with understanding; the stupid and careless being like
dead persons.2
1 Jallalo'ddin. 2 Al Beidâwi.
and he propoundeth unto us a comparison, and forgetteth his creation. He
saith, Who shall restore bones to life, when they are rotten?a
Answer, He shall restore them to life, who produced them the first time:
for he is skilled in every kind of creation:
80 who giveth you fire out of the green tree,b and behold, ye kindle your
fuel from thence.
Is not he who hath created the heavens and the earth able to create new
creatures like unto them? Yea certainly: for he is the wise Creator.
His command, when he willeth a thing, is only that he saith unto it, Be;
and it is.
Wherefore praise be unto him, in whose hand is the kingdom of all things,
and unto whom ye shall return at the last day.
________
CHAPTER XXXVII.
ENTITLED, THOSE WHO RANK THEMSELVES IN ORDER;
REVEALED AT MECCA.
IN THE NAME OF THE MOST MERCIFUL GOD.
BY the angels who rank themselves in order;c
and by those who drive forward and dispel the clouds;d
and by those who read the Koran for an admonition;
verily your GOD is one:
the LORD of heaven and earth, and of whatever is between them, and the
LORD of the east.e
We have adorned the lower heaven with the ornament of the stars:
and we have placed therein a guard against every rebellious devil;
that they may not listen to the discourse of the exalted princes (for
they are darted at from every side,
to repel them, and a lasting torment is prepared for them);
10 except him who catcheth a word by stealth, and is pursued by a shining
flame.f
Ask the Meccans, therefore, whether they be stronger by nature, or the
angels, whom we have created? We have surely created them of stiff clay.
Thou wonderest at God's power and their obstinacy; but they mock at the
arguments urged to convince them:
a See chapter 16, p. 195, note
b The usual way of striking fire in the east is by rubbing together two
pieces of wood, one of which is commonly of the tree called Markh, and the
other of that called Afâr: and it will succeed even though the wood be green
and wet.1
c Some understand by these words the souls of men who range themselves
in obedience to GOD'S laws, and put away from them all infidelity and corrupt
doings; or the souls of those who rank themselves in battle array, to fight
for the true religion, and push on their horses to charge the infidels, &c.2
d Or, who put in motion all bodies, in the upper and lower world,
according to the divine command; or, who keep off men from disobedience to
GOD, by inspiring them with good thoughts and inclinations; or, who drive away
the devils from them, &c.3
e The original word, being in the plural number, is supposed to signify
the different points of the horizon from whence the sun rises in the course of
the year, which are in number 360 (equal to the number of days in the old
civil year), and have as many corresponding points where it successively sets,
during that space.4 Marracci groundlessly imagines this interpretation to be
built on the error of the plurality of worlds.5
f See chapter 15, p. 192.
1 Vide Hyde, de Rel. Vet. Pers. c. 25, p. 333, &c. 2 Al
Beidâwi. 3 Idem. 4 Idem, Yahya.
5 Marracc. in Alc. p. 589.
when they are warned, they do not take warning;
and when they see any sign, they scoff thereat,
and say, This is no other than manifest sorcery:
after we shall be dead, and become dust and bones, shall we really be
raised to life,
and our forefathers also?
Answer, Yea: and ye shall then be despicable.
There shall be but one blast of the trumpet, and they shall see
themselves raised:
20 and they shall say, Alas for us! this is the day of judgment,
this is the day of distinction between the righteous and the wicked,
which ye rejected as a falsehood.
Gather together those who have acted unjustly, and their comrades, and
the idols which they worshipped
besides GOD, and direct them in the way to hell;
and set them before God's tribunal; for they shall be called to account.
What aileth you that ye defend not one another?
But on this day they shall submit themselves to the judgment of God:
and they shall draw nigh unto one another, and shall dispute among
themselves.
And the seduced shall say unto those who seduced them, Verily ye came
unto us with presages of prosperity;g
and the seducers shall answer, Nay, rather ye were not true believers:
for we had no power over you to compel you; but ye were people who voluntarily
transgressed:
30 wherefore the sentence of our LORD hath been justly pronounced against
us, and we shall surely taste his vengeance.
We seduced you; but we also erred ourselves.
They shall both therefore be made partakers of the same punishment on
that day.
Thus will we deal with the wicked:
because, when it is said unto them, There is no god besides the true GOD,
they swell with arrogance,
and say, Shall we abandon our gods for a distracted poet?
Nay: he cometh with the truth, and beareth witness to the former
apostles.
Ye shall surely taste the painful torment of hell;
and ye shall not be rewarded, but according to your works.
But as for the sincere servants of GOD,
40 they shall have a certain provision in paradise,
namely, delicious fruits: and they shall be honoured:
they shall be placed in gardens of pleasure,
leaning on couches, opposite to one another:h
a cup shall be carried round unto them, filled from a limpid fountain,
for the delight of those who drink:
it shall not oppress the understanding, neither shall they be inebriated
therewith.
And near them shall lie the virgins of paradise, refraining their looks
from beholding any besides their spouses, having large black eyes, and
resembling the eggs of an ostrich covered with feathers from the dust.i
And they shall turn the one unto the other, and shall ask one another
questions.
And one of them shall say, Verily I had an intimate friend while I lived
in the world,
50 who said unto me, Art thou one of those who assertest the truth of the
resurrection?
After we shall be dead, and reduced to dust and bones, shall we surely be
judged?
Then he shall say to his companions, Will ye look down?
And he shall look down, and shall see him in the midst of hell:
and he shall say unto him, By GOD, it wanted little but thou hadst drawn
me into ruin:
and had it not been for the grace of my LORD, I had surely been one of
those who have been delivered up to eternal torment.
g Literally, from the right hand. The words may also be rendered, with
force, to compel us; or with an oath, swearing that ye were in the right.
h See chapter 15, p. 193, note
i This may seem an odd comparison to an European; but the orientals
think nothing comes so near the colour of a fine woman's skin as that of an
ostrich's egg when kept perfectly clean.
31
Shall we die
any other than our first death; or do we suffer any punishment?
Verily this is great felicity:
for the obtaining a felicity like this let the laborers labor.
60 Is this a better entertainment, or the tree of al Zakkum?k
Verily we have designed the same for an occasion of dispute unto the
unjust.l
It is a tree which issueth from the bottom of hell:
the fruit thereof resembleth the heads of devils;m
and the damned shall eat of the same, and shall fill their bellies
therewith;
and there shall be given them thereon a mixture of filthy and boiling
water to drink:
afterwards shall they return into hell.n
They found their fathers going astray,
and they trod hastily in their footsteps:
for the greater part of the ancients erred before them.
70 And we sent warners unto them heretofore:
and see how miserable was the end of those who were warned;
except the sincere servants of GOD.
Noah called on us in former days: and we heard him graciously:
and we delivered him and his family out of the great distress;
and we caused his offspring to be those who survived to people the earth:
and we left the following salutation to be bestowed on him by the latest
posterity,
namely, Peace be on Noah among all creatures!
Thus do we reward the righteous;
for he was one of our servants the true believers.
80 Afterwards we drowned the others.
Abraham also was of his religion:o
when he came unto his LORD with a perfect heart.
When he said unto his father and his people, What do ye worship?
Do ye choose false gods preferably to the true GOD?
What therefore is your opinion of the LORD of all creatures?
And he looked and observed the stars,
and said, Verily I shall be sick,p and shall not assist at your
sacrifices:
and they turned their backs and departed from him.q
And Abraham went privately to their gods, and said, scoffingly unto them,
Do ye not eat of the meat which is set before you?
90 What aileth you that ye speak not?
And he turned upon them, and struck them with his right hand, and
demolished them.
And the people came hastily unto him:
and he said, Do ye worship the images which ye carve?
whereas GOD hath created you, and also that which ye make.
They said, Build a pile for him, and cast him into the glowing fire.
And they devised a plot against him; but we made them the inferior, and
delivered him.r
And Abraham said, Verily I am going unto my LORD,s who will direct me.
O LORD, grant me a righteous issue.
Wherefore we acquainted him that he should have a son, who should be a
meek youth.
k There is a thorny tree so called, which grows in Tehâma, and bears
fruit like an almond, but extremely bitter; and therefore the same name is
given to this infernal tree.
l The infidels not conceiving how a tree could grow in hell, where the
stones themselves serve for fuel.
m Or of serpents ugly to behold; the original word signifies both.
n Some suppose that the entertainment mentioned will be the welcome
given the damned before they enter that place; and others, that they will be
suffered to come out of hell from time to time, to drink their scalding
liquor.
o For Noah and he agreed in the fundamental points both of faith and
practice; though the space between them was no less than 2640 years.1
p He made as if he gathered so much from the aspect of the heavens-the
people being greatly addicted to the superstitions of astrology-and made it
his excuse for being absent from their festival, to which they had invited
him.
q Fearing he had some contagious distemper.2
r See chapter 21, p. 246, &c.
s Whither he hath commanded me.
1 Al Beidâwi. 2 Idem.
100 And when he had attained to years of discretion,t and could join in acts
of religion with him,
Abraham said unto him, O my son, verily I saw in a dream that I should
offer thee in sacrifice:u consider therefore what thou art of opinion I should
do.
He answered, O my father, do what thou art commanded: thou shalt find me,
if GOD please, a patient person.
And when they had submitted themselves to the divine will, and Abraham
had laid his son prostrate on his face,x
we cried unto him, O Abraham,
now hast thou verified the vision. Thus do we reward the righteous.
Verily this was a manifest trial.
And we ransomed him with a noble victim.y
And we left the following salutation to be bestowed on him by the latest
posterity,
namely, Peace be on Abraham!
110 Thus do we reward the righteous:
for he was one of our faithful servants.
And we rejoiced him with the promise of Isaac:
and of their offspring were some righteous doers, and others who
manifestly injured their own souls.
We were also gracious unto Moses and Aaron, heretofore:
and we delivered them and their people from a great distress.
And we assisted them against the Egyptians; and they became the
conquerors.
And we gave them the perspicuous book of the law,
and we directed them into the right way,
and we left the following salutation to be bestowed on them by the latest
posterity,
120 namely, Peace be on Moses and Aaron!
Thus do we reward the righteous;
for they were two of our faithful servants.
And Eliasz was also one of those who were sent by us.
t He was then thirteen years old.3
u The commentators say, that Abraham was ordered in a vision, which he
saw on the eighth night of the month Dhu'lhajja, to sacrifice his son; and to
assure him that this was not from the devil, as he was inclined to suspect,
the same vision was repeated a second time the next night, when he knew it to
be from GOD, and also a third time the night following, when he resolved to
obey it, and to sacrifice his son; and hence some think the eighth, ninth, and
tenth days of Dhu'lhajja are called Yawm altarwiya, yawm ar afat, and yawm
alnehr, that is, the day of the vision, the day of knowledge, and the day of
the sacrifice.
It is the most received opinion among the Mohammedans that the son whom
Abraham offered was Ismael, and not Isaac, Ismael being his only son at that
time: for the promise of Isaac's birth is mentioned lower, as subsequent in
time to this transaction. They also allege the testimony of their prophet,
who is reported to have said, I am the son of the two who were offered in
sacrifice; meaning his great ancestor, Ismael, and his own father Abd'allah:
for Abd'almotalleb had made a vow that if GOD would permit him to find out and
open the well Zemzem, and should give him ten sons, he would sacrifice one of
them. Accordingly, when he had obtained his desire in both respects, he cast
lots on his sons, and the lot falling on Abd'allah, he redeemed him by
offering a hundred camels, which was therefore ordered to be the price of a
man's blood in the Sonna.1
x The commentators add, that Abraham went so far as to draw the knife
with all his strength across the lad's throat, but was miraculously hindered
from hurting him.2
y The epithet of great or noble is here added, either because it was
large and fat, or because it was accepted as the ransom of a prophet. Some
suppose this victim was a ram, and, if we may believe a common tradition, the
very same which Abel sacrificed, having been brought to Abraham out of
paradise; others fancy it was a wild goat, which came down from Mount Thabîr,
near Mecca, for the Mohammedans lay the scene of this transaction in the
valley of Mina; as a proof of which they tell us that the horns of the victim
were hung upon the spout of the Caaba, where they remained till they were
burnt, together with that building, in the days of Abda'llah Ebn Zobeir;3
though others assure us that they had been before taken down by Mohammed
himself, to remove all occasion of idolatry.4
z This prophet the Mohammedans generally suppose to be the same with al
Khedr, and confound him with Phineas,5 and sometimes with Edris, or Enoch.
Some say he was the son of Yasin, and nearly related to Aaron; and others
suppose him to have been a different person. He was sent to the inhabitants
of Baalbec, in Syria, the Heliopolis of the Greeks, to reclaim them from the
worship of their idol Baal, or the sun, whose name makes part of that of the
city, which was anciently called Becc.6
3 Idem. 1 Idem, Jallalo'ddin, al Zamakh. 2 Idem,
Jallalo'ddin. 3 Idem. 4 Vide D'Herbel. Bibl. Orient. Art.
Ismail. 5 See cap. 18, p. 223, note 6 Jallalo'ddin, al
Beidâwi.
When he said unto his people, Do ye not fear God?
Do ye invoke Baal, and forsake the most excellent Creator?
GOD is your LORD, and the LORD of your forefathers.
But they accused him of imposture: wherefore they shall be delivered up
to eternal punishment;
except the sincere servants of GOD.
And we left the following salutation to be bestowed on him by the latest
posterity,
130 namely, Peace be on Ilyâsin!a
Thus do we reward the righteous:
for he was one of our faithful servants.
And Lot was also one of those who were sent by us.
When we delivered him and his whole family,
except an old woman, his wife, who perished, among those that remained
behind:
afterwards we destroyed the others.b
And ye, O people of Mecca, pass by the places where they once dwelt, as
ye journey in the morning,
and by night; will ye not therefore understand?
Jonas was also one of those who were sent by us.c
140 When he fledd into the loaded ship;
and those who were on board cast lots among themselves,e and he was
condemned:f
and the fish swallowed him;g for he was worthy of reprehension.
And if he had not been one those who praised GOD,h
verily he had remained in the belly thereof until the day of
resurrection.
And we cast him on the naked shore, and he was sick:i
and we caused a plant of a gourdk to grow up over him;
and we went him to an hundred thousand persons, or they were a greater
number,
and they believed: wherefore we granted them to enjoy this life for a
season.
Inquire of the Meccans whether thy LORD hath daughters, and they sons?l
150 Have we created the angels of the female sex? and were they witnesses
thereof?
a The commentators do not well know what to make of this word. Some
think it is the plural of Elias, or, as the Arabs write it, Ilyâs, and that
both that prophet and his followers, or those who resembled him, are meant
thereby; others divide the word, and read âl Yasîn, i.e., the family of Yasin,
who was the father of Elias according to an opinion mentioned above; and
others imagine it signifies Mohammed, or the Korân, or some other book of
scripture. But the most probable conjecture is that Ilyâs and Ilyâsin are the
same name, or design one and the same person, as Sinai and Sinin denote one
and the same mountain; the last syllable being added here, to keep up the
rhyme or cadence, at the close of the verse.
b See chapter 7, p. 113, &c., and chapter 11, p. 166, &c.
c See chapter 10, p. 157.
d See chapter 21, p. 248.
e Al Beidâwi says the ship stood stock-still, wherefore they concluded
that they had a fugitive servant on board, and cast lots to find him out.
f i.e., He was taken by the lot.
g When the lot fell on Jonas he cried out, I am the fugitive; and
immediately threw himself into the sea.7
h The words seem to relate particularly to Jonas's supplication while
in the whale's belly.8
i By reason of what he had suffered; his body becoming like that of a
new-born child.9 It is said that the fish, after it had swallowed Jonas, swam
after the ship with its head above water, that the prophet might breathe, who
continued to praise GOD till the fish came to land and vomited him out.
The opinions of the Mohammedan writers as to the time Jonas continued in
the fish's belly differ very much: some suppose it was part of a day, others
three days, others seven, others twenty, and others forty.10
k The original word signifies a plant which spreads itself upon the
ground, having no erect stalk or stem to support it, and particularly a gourd;
though some imagine Jonas's plant to have been a fig, and others the small
tree or shrub called Mauz,1 which bears very large leaves, and excellent
fruit.2 The commentators add, that this plant withered the next morning, and
that Jonas being much concerned at it, GOD made a remonstrance to him in
behalf of the Ninivites, agreeable to what is recorded in scripture.
l See chapter 16, p. 199.
7 Idem. 8 See cap. 21, p. 248. 9 Al Beidâwi.
10 Idem. 1 Idem.
2 Vide J Leon. Descr. Afric. lib. 9. Gab. Sionit. de Urb. Orient. ad calcem
Geogr. Nub. p. 32, et Hottinger. Hist. Orient. p. 78, &c.
Do they not say of their own false invention,
GOD hath begotten issue? and are they not really liars?
Hath he chosen daughters preferably to sons?
Ye have no reason to judge thus.
Will ye therefore not be admonished?
Or have ye a manifest proof of what ye say?
Produce now your book of revelations, if ye speak truth.
And they make him to be of kin unto the genii;m whereas the genii know
that they who affirm such things shall be delivered up to eternal punishment;
(far be that from GOD, which they affirm of him!)
160 except the sincere servants of GOD.
Moreover ye and that which ye worship
shall not seduce any concerning God,
except him who is destined to be burned in hell.
There is none of us but hath an appointed place:
we range ourselves in order, attending the commands of God;
and we celebrate the divine praise.n
The infidels said,
If we had been favored with a book of divine revelations, of those which
were delivered to the ancients,
we had surely been sincere servants of GOD:
170 yet now the Koran is revealed, they believe not therein; but hereafter
shall they know the consequence of their unbelief.
Our word hath formerly been given unto our servants the apostles;
that they shall certainly be assisted against the infidels,
and that our armies should surely be the conquerors.
Turn aside therefore from them, for a season:
and see the calamities which shall afflict them; for they shall see thy
future success and prosperity.
Do they therefore seek to hasten our vengeance?
Verily when it shall descend into their courts, an evil morning shall it
be unto those who were warned in vain.
Turn aside from them therefore for a season,
and see: hereafter shall they see thy success and their punishment.
180 Praise be unto thy LORD, the LORD who is far exalted above what they
affirm of him!
And peace be on his apostles!
And praise be unto GOD, the LORD of all creatures!
m That is, the angels, who are also comprehended under the name of
genii, being a species of them. Some say that the infidels went so far as to
assert that GOD and the devil were brothers,3 which blasphemous expression may
have been occasioned by the magian notions.
n These words are supposed to be spoken by the angels, disclaiming the
worship paid to them by the idolaters, and declaring that they have each their
station and office appointed them by GOD, whose commands they are at all times
ready to execute, and whose praises they continually sing. There are some
expositors, however, who think they are the words of Mohammed and his
followers; the meaning being, that each of them has a place destined for him
in paradise, and that they are the men who range themselves in order before
GOD, to worship and pray to him, and who celebrate his praise by rejecting
every false notion derogatory to the divine wisdom and power.
3 Al Beidâwi.
________
CHAPTER XXXVIII.
ENTITLED, S.; REVEALED AT MECCA.
IN THE NAME OF THE MOST MERCIFUL GOD.
S.o BY the Korân full of admonition.p Verily the unbelievers are
addicted to pride and contention.
How many generations have we destroyed before them; and they cried for
mercy, but it was not a time to escape.
They wonder that a warner from among themselves hath come unto them. And
the unbelievers said, This man is a sorcerer, and a liar:
doth he affirm the gods to be but one GOD. Surely this is a wonderful
thing.
o The meaning of this letter is unknown:1 some guess it stands for
Sidk, i.e., Truth; or for Sadaka, i.e., He (viz., Mohammed) speaketh the
truth; and others propose different conjectures, all equally uncertain.
p Something must be understood to answer this oath, which the
commentators variously supply.
1 See the Prelim. Disc. Sect. III. p. 46, &c.
And the chief men among them departed,q saying to one another, Go, and
persevere in the worship of your gods: verily this is the thing which is
designed.r
We have not heard anything like this in the last religion:s this is no
other than a false contrivance.
Hath an admonition been sent unto him preferable to any other among us?
Verily they are in a doubt concerning my admonition: but they have not yet
tasted my vengeance.
Are the treasures of the mercy of thy LORD, the mighty, the munificent
God, in their hands?
Is the kingdom of the heavens, and the earth, and of whatever is between
them, in their possession? If it be so, let them ascend by steps unto heaven.
10 But any army of the confederates shall even here be put to flight.
The people of Noah, and the tribe of Ad, and Pharaoh the contriver of the
stakes,t
and the tribe of Thamud, and the people of Lot, and the inhabitants of
the wood near Madian,u accused the prophets of imposture before them; these
were the confederates against the messengers of God.
All of them did no other than accuse their apostles of falsehood:
wherefore my vengeance hath been justly executed upon them.
And these wait only for one sounding of the trumpet; which there shall be
no deferring.
And they scoffingly say, O LORD, hasten our sentence unto us, before the
day of account.
Do thou patiently bear that which they utter: and remind them of our
servant David, endued with strength;x for he was one who seriously turned
himself unto God.
We compelled the mountains to celebrate our praise with him, in the
evening and at sunrise,
and also the birds, which gathered themselves together unto him:y all of
them returned frequently unto him for this purpose.
And we established his kingdom, and gave him wisdom and eloquence of
speech.
20 Hath the story of the two adversariesz come to thy knowledge; when they
ascended over the wall into the upper apartment,
q On the conversion of Omar, the Koreish being greatly irritated, the
most considerable of them went in a body to Abu Taleb, to complain to him of
his nephew Mohammed's proceedings; but being confounded and put to silence by
the prophet's arguments, they left the assembly, and encouraged one another in
their obstinacy.2
r Namely, to draw us from their worship.
s i.e., In the religion which we received from our fathers; or, in the
religion of Jesus, which was the last before the mission of Mohammed.3
t For they say Pharaoh used to tie those he had a mind to punish by the
hands and feet to four stakes fixed in the ground, and so tormented them.4
Some interpret the words, which may also be translated the lord or master of
the stakes, figuratively, of the firm establishment of Pharaoh's kingdom;
because the Arabs fix their tents with stakes;5 but they may possibly intend
that prince's obstinacy and hardness of heart.
u See chapter 15, p. 194.
x The commentators suppose that ability to undergo the frequent
practice of religious exercises is here meant. They say David used to fast
every other day, and to spend one-half of the night in prayer.1
y See chapter 21, p. 247.
z These were two angels, who came unto David in the shape of men, to
demand judgment in the feigned controversy after mentioned. It is no other
than Nathan's parable to David,2 a little disguised.
2 Al Beidâwi. 3 Idem. 4 Jallalo'ddin. 5 Al
Beidâwi. 1 Idem. interp. 2 2 Sam. xii.
when they went in unto David, and he was afraid of them.a They said,
Fear not: we are two adversaries who have a controversy to be decided. The
one of us hath wronged the other: wherefore judge between us with truth, and
be not unjust; and direct us into the even way.
This my brother had ninety and nine sheep: and I had only one ewe: and he
said, Give her me to keep; and he prevailed against me in the discourse which
we had together.
David answered, Verily he hath wronged thee in demanding thine ewe as an
addition to his own sheep: and many of them who are concerned together in
business wrong one another, except those who believe and do that which is
right; but how few are they! And David perceived that we had tried him by
this parable, and he asked pardon of his LORD: and he fell down and bowed
himself, and repented.b
Wherefore we forgave him this fault; and he shall be admitted to approach
near unto us, and shall have an excellent place of abode in paradise.
O David, verily we have appointed thee a sovereign prince in the earth:
judge therefore between men with truth; and follow not thy own lust, lest it
cause thee to err from the way of GOD: for those who err from the way of GOD
shall suffer a severe punishment, because they have forgotten the day of
account.
We have not created the heavens and the earth, and whatever is between
them, in vain.c This is the opinion of the unbelievers: but woe unto those
who believe not, because of the fire of hell.
Shall we deal with those who believe and do good works, as with those who
act corruptly in the earth? Shall we deal with the pious as with the wicked?
A blessed book have we sent down unto thee, O Mohammed, that they may
attentively meditate on the signs thereof, and that men of understanding may
be warned.
And we gave unto David Solomon; how excellent a servant! for he
frequently turned himself unto God.
30 When the horses standing on three feet, and touching the ground with the
edge of the fourth foot, and swift in the course, were set in parade before
him in the evening,d
he said, Verily I have loved the love of earthly good above the
remembrance of my LORD: and have spent the time in viewing these horses, until
the sun is hidden by the veil of night;
bring the horses back unto me. And when they were brought back, he began
to cut off their legs and their necks.
a Because they came suddenly upon him, on a day of privacy: when the
doors were guarded, and no person admitted to disturb his devotions. For
David, they say, divided his time regularly, setting apart one day for the
service of GOD, another day for rendering justice to his people, another day
for preaching to them, and another day for his own affairs.3
b The crime of which David had been guilty, was the taking the wife of
Uriah, and ordering her husband to be set in the front of the battle to be
slain.4
Some suppose this story was told to serve as an admonition to Mohammed,
who, it seems, was apt to covet what was another's.
c So as to permit injustice to go unpunished, and righteousness
unrewarded.
d Some say that Solomon brought these horses, being a thousand in
number, from Damascus and Nisibis, which cities he had taken; others say that
they were left him by his father, who took them from the Amalekites; while
others, who prefer the marvellous, pretend that they came up out of the sea,
and had wings. However, Solomon, having one day a mind to view these horses,
ordered them to be brought before him, and was so taken up with them that he
spent the remainder of the day, till after sunset, in looking on them; by
which means he neglected the prayer, which ought to have been said at that
time, till it was too late; but when he perceived his omission, he was so
greatly concerned at it, that ordering the horses to be brought back, he
killed them all as an offering to GOD, except only a hundred of the best of
them. But GOD made him ample amends for the loss of these horses, by giving
him dominion over the winds.5
3 Al Beidâwi, Jallalo'ddin. 4 Idem. 5 Al Beidâwi, al
Zamakh., Yahya.
We also tried Solomon, and placed on his throne a counterfeit body:e
afterwards he turned unto God,
and said, O LORD, forgive me, and give me a kingdom which may not be
obtained by any after me;f for thou art the giver of kingdoms.
And we made the wind subject to him; it ran gently at his command,
whithersoever we directed.
And we also put the devils in subjection under him; and among them such
as were every way skilled in building, and in diving for pearls:g
and others we delivered to him bound in chains,
saying, This is our gift: therefore be bounteous, or be sparing unto whom
thou shalt think fit,h without rendering an account.
And he shall approach near unto us, and shall have an excellent abode in
paradise.
40 And remember our servant Job,i when he cried unto his LORD, saying,
Verily Satan hath afflicted me with calamity and pain.
And it was said unto him, Strike the earth with thy foot; which when he
had done, a fountaink sprang up, and it was said to him, This is for thee to
wash in, to refresh thee, and to drink.
And we restored unto him his family, and as many more with them, through
our mercy; and for an admonition unto those who are endued with understanding.
And we said unto him, Take a handful of rodsl in thy hand, and strike thy
wife therewith;m and break not thine oath.n Verily we found him a patient
person:
how excellent a servant was he! for he was one who frequently turned
himself unto us.
Remember also our servants Abraham, and Isaac, and Jacob, who were men
strenuous and prudent.
e The most received exposition of this passage is taken from the
following Talmudic fable.1
Solomon, having taken Sidon, and slain the king of that city, brought
away his daughter Jerâda, who became his favourite; and because she ceased not
to lament her father's loss, he ordered the devils to make an image of him for
her consolation: which being done, and placed in her chamber, she and her
maids worshipped it morning and evening, according to their custom. At length
Solomon being informed of this idolatry, which was practised under his roof,
by his vizir Asâf, he broke the image, and having chastised the woman, went
out into the desert, where he wept and made supplications to GOD; who did not
think fit, however, to let his negligence pass without some correction. It
was Solomon's custom, while he eased or washed himself, to entrust his signet,
on which his kingdom depended, with a concubine of his named Amîna: one day,
therefore, when she had the ring in her custody, a devil, named Sakhar, came
to her in the shape of Solomon, and received the ring from her; by virtue of
which he became possessed of the kingdom, and sat on the throne in the shape
which he had borrowed, making what alterations in the law he pleased.
Solomon, in the meantime, being changed in his outward appearance, and known
to none of his subjects, was obliged to wander about, and beg alms for his
subsistence; till at length, after the space of forty days, which was the time
the image had been worshipped in his house, the devil flew away, and threw the
signet into the sea: the signet was immediately swallowed by a fish, which
being taken and given to Solomon, he found the ring in its belly, and having
by this means recovered the kingdom, took Sakhar, and tying a great stone to
his neck, threw him into the lake of Tiberias.2
f i.e., That I may surpass all future princes in magnificence and
power.
g See chapter 21, p. 247; chapter 27, p. 284, &c.
h Some suppose these words to relate to the genii, and that Solomon is
thereby empowered to release or to keep in chains such of them as he pleased.
i See chapter 21, p. 247.
k Some say there were two springs, one of hot water, wherein he bathed;
and the other of cold, of which he drank.3
l The original not expressing what this handful was to consist of, one
supposes it was to be only a handful of dry grass or of rushes, and another
that it was a branch of a palm-tree.4
m The commentators are not agreed what fault Job's wife had committed
to deserve this chastisement: we have mentioned one opinion already.5 Some
think it was only because she stayed too long on an errand.
n For he had sworn to give her a hundred stripes if he recovered.
1 Vide Talm. En Jacob, part ii. et Yalkut in lib. Reg. p. 182.
2 Al Beidâwi, Jallalo'ddin, Abulfeda. 3 Al Beidâwi.
4 See the notes to cap. 21, p. 247. 5 See ibid.
Verily we purified them with a perfect purification, through the
remembrance of the life to come;o
and they were in our sight, elect and good men.
And remember Ismael, and Elisha,p and Dhu'lkefl:q for all these were good
men.
This is an admonition. Verily the pious shall have an excellent place to
return unto,
50 namely, gardens of perpetual abode, the gates whereof shall stand open
unto them.
As they lie down therein, they shall there ask for many sorts of fruits,
and for drink;
and near them shall sit the virgins of paradise, refraining their looks
from beholding any besides their spouses, and of equal age with them.r
This is what ye are promised, at the day of account.
This is our provision, which shall not fail.
This shall be the reward of the righteous. But for the transgressors is
prepared an evil receptacle,
namely, hell: they shall be cast into the same to be burned, and a
wretched couch shall it be.
This let them taste, to wit, scalding water, and corruption flowing from
the bodies of the damned,
and divers other things of the same kind.
And it shall be said to the seducers, This troop which was guided by you
shall be thrown, together with you, headlong into hell: they shall not be
bidden welcome: for they shall enter the fire to be burned.
60 And the seduced shall say to their seducers, Verily ye shall not be
bidden welcome: ye have brought it upon us; and a wretched abode is hell.
They shall say, O LORD, doubly increase the torment of him who hath
brought this punishment upon us, in the fire of hell.
And the infidels shall say, Why do we not see the men whom we numbered
among the wicked,
and whom we received with scorn? Or do our eyes miss them?
Verily this is a truth; to wit, the disputing of the inhabitants of hell
fire.
Say, O Mohammed, unto the idolaters, Verily I am no other than a warner:
and there is no god, except the one only GOD, the Almighty,
the LORD of heaven and earth, and of whatsoever is between them; the
mighty, the forgiver of sins.
Say, it is a weighty message,
from which ye turn aside.
I had no knowledge of the exalted princes,s when they disputed concerning
the creation of man:
70 (it hath been revealed unto me only as a proof that I am a public
preacher:)
when thy LORD said unto the angels, Verily I am about to create man of
clay:
when I shall have formed him, therefore, and shall have breathed my
spirit into him, do ye fall down and worship him.t
And all the angels worshipped him, in general,
except Eblis, who was puffed up with pride, and became an unbeliever.
God said unto him, O Eblis, what hindereth thee from worshipping that
which I have created with my hands?
Art thou elated with vain pride? Or art thou really one of exalted
merit?
He answered, I am more excellent than he: thou hast created me of fire,
and thou hast created him of clay.
o Or, as the words may be interpreted, according to al Zamakhshari, We
have purified them, or peculiarly destined and fitted them for paradise.
p See chapter 6, p. 96.
q See chapter 21, p. 248. Al Beidâwi here takes notice of another
tradition concerning this prophet, viz., that he entertained and took care of
a hundred Israelites, who fled to him from certain slaughter, from which
action he probably had the name of Dhu'lkefl given him, the primary
signification of the verb cafala being to maintain or take care of another.
If a conjecture might be founded on this tradition, I should fancy the person
intended was Obadiah, the governor of Ahab's house.6
r i.e., About thirty or thirty-three.1
s That is, the angels.
t See chapter 2, p. 4.
6 See I Kings xviii. 4. 1 See the Prelim. Disc. Sect.
IV. p. 77.
God said unto him, Get thee hence therefore; for thou shalt be driven
away from mercy;
and my curse shall be upon thee, until the day of judgment.
80 He replied, O LORD, respite me, therefore, until the day of
resurrection.
God said, Verily thou shalt be one of those who are respited
until the day of the determined time.
Eblis said, By thy might do I swear, I will surely seduce them all,
except thy servants who shall be peculiarly chosen from among them.
God said, It is a just sentence; and I speak the truth: I will surely
fill hell with thee, and with such of them as shall follow thee, altogether.u
Say unto the Meccans, I ask not of you any reward for this my preaching:
neither am I one of those who assume a part which belongs not to them.
The Koran is no other than an admonition unto all creatures:
and ye shall surely know what is delivered therein to be true, after a
season.
________
CHAPTER XXXIX.
ENTITLED, THE TROOPS;x REVEALED AT MECCA.y
IN THE NAME OF THE MOST MERCIFUL GOD.
THE revelation of this book is from the mighty, the wise GOD.
Verily we have revealed this book unto thee with truth: wherefore serve
GOD, exhibiting the pure religion unto him.
Ought not the pure religion to be exhibited unto GOD?
But as to those who take other patrons besides him, saying, We worship
them only that they may bring us nearer unto GOD; verily GOD will judge
between them concerning that wherein they disagree.
Surely GOD will not direct him who is a liar, or ungrateful.
If GOD had been minded to have had a son, he had surely chosen what he
pleased out of that which he hath created.z But far be such a thing from him!
He is the sole, the almighty God.
He hath created the heavens and the earth with truth: he causeth the
night to succeed the day, and he causeth the day to succeed the night, and he
obligeth the sun and the moon to perform their services; each of them
hastening to an appointed period. Is not he the mighty, the forgiver of sins?
He created you of one man, and afterwards out of him formed his wife: and
he hath bestoweda on you four pair of cattle.b He formeth you in the wombs of
your mothers, by several gradual formations,c within three veils of darkness.d
This is GOD, your LORD: his is the kingdom: there is no GOD but he. Why
therefore are ye turned aside from the worship of him to idolatry?
u See chapter 7, p. 106, and chapter 15, p. 192, &c.
x This title is taken from the latter end of the chapter, where it is
said the wicked shall be sent to hell, and the righteous admitted into
paradise by troops.
y Except the verse beginning, Say, O my servants, who have transgressed
against your own souls, &c.1
z Because, says Al Beidâwi, there is no being besides himself but what
hath been created by him, since there cannot be two necessarily-existent
beings; and hence appears the absurdity of the imagination here condemned,
because no creature can resemble the Creator, or be worthy to bear the
relation of a son to him.
a Literally, He hath sent down; from which expression some have
imagined that these four kinds of beasts were created in paradise, and thence
sent down to earth.2
b See chapter 6, p. 102.
c See chapter 22, p. 250.
d i.e., The belly, the womb, and the membranes which enclose the
embryo.
1 Jallalo'ddin, al Beidâwi. 2 Al Zamakh.
If ye be ungrateful, verily GOD hath no need of you; yet he liketh not
ingratitude in his servants: but if ye be thankful, he will be well pleased
with you. A burdened soul shall not bear the burden of another; hereafter
shall ye return unto your LORD, and he shall declare unto you that which ye
have wrought, and will reward you accordingly;
10 for he knoweth the innermost parts of your breasts.
When harm befalleth a man, he calleth upon his LORD, and turneth unto
him: yet afterwards, when God hath bestowed on him favor from himself, he
forgetteth that Being which he invoked before,e and setteth up equals unto
GOD, that he may seduce men from his way. Say unto such a man, Enjoy this
life in thy infidelity for a little while; but hereafter shalt thou surely be
one of the inhabitants of hell fire.
Shall he who giveth himself up to prayer in the hours of the night,
prostrate, and standing, and who taketh heed as to the life to come, and
hopeth for the mercy of his LORD, be dealt with as the wicked unbeliever?
Say, Shall they who know their duty and they who know it not, be held equal?
Verily the men of understanding only will be warned.
Say, O my servants who believe, fear your LORD. They who do good in this
world shall obtain good in the next;f and GOD'S earth is spacious:g verily
those who persevere with patience shall receive their recompense without
measure.
Say, I am commanded to worship GOD, and to exhibit the pure religion unto
him: and I am commanded to be the first Moslem.h
Say, Verily I fear, if I be disobedient unto my LORD, the punishment of
the great day.
Say, I worship GOD, exhibiting my religion pure unto him;
but do ye worship that which ye will, besides him. Say, Verily they will
be the losers, who shall lose their own souls, and their families, on the day
of resurrection: is not this manifest loss?
Over them shall be roofs of fire, and under them shall be floors of fire.
With this doth GOD terrify his servants: wherefore, oh my servants, fear him.
But those who eschew the worship of idols, and are turned unto GOD, shall
receive good tidings. Bear good tidings therefore unto my servants, who
hearken unto my word, and follow that which is most excellent therein: these
are they whom GOD directeth, and these are men of understanding.
20 Him, therefore, on whom the sentence of eternal punishment shall be
justly pronounced, canst thou, O Mohammed, deliver him who is destined to
dwell in the fire of hell?
But for those who fear their LORD will be prepared high apartments in
paradise, over which shall be other apartments built; and rivers shall run
beneath them: this is the promise of GOD; and GOD will not be contrary to the
promise.
Dost thou not see that GOD sendeth down water from heaven, and causeth
the same to enter and form sources in the earth; and produceth thereby corn of
various sorts? Afterwards he causeth the same to wither; and thou seest it
become yellow: afterwards he maketh it crumble into dust. Verily, herein is
an instruction to men of understanding.
e Or, He forgetteth the evil which he before prayed against.
f Or, They who do good, shall obtain good even in this world.
g Wherefore let him who cannot safely exercise his religion where he
was born or resides, fly to a place of liberty and security.1
h i.e., The first of the Koreish who professeth the true religion, or
the leader in chief of the Moslems.
1 Al Beidâwi
Shall he, therefore, whose breast GOD hath enlarged to receive the
religion of Islam, and who followeth the light from his LORD, be as he whose
heart is hardened? But woe unto those whose hearts are hardened against the
remembrance of GOD! they are in a manifest error.
GOD hath revealed a most excellent discourse; a book conformable to
itself, and containing repeated admonitions. The skins of those who fear
their LORD shrink for fear thereat; afterwards their skins grow soft, and
their hearts also, at the remembrance of their LORD. This is the direction of
GOD: he will direct thereby whom he pleaseth; and whomsoever GOD shall cause
to err, he shall have no director.
Shall he therefore who shall be obliged to screen himself with his face
from the severity of the punishment on the day of resurrection, be as he who
is secure therefrom? And it shall be said unto the ungodly, Taste that which
ye have deserved.
Those who were before them accused their apostles of imposture; wherefore
a punishment came upon them from whence they expected it not:
and GOD caused them to take shame in this present life; but the
punishment of the life to come will certainly be greater. If they were men of
understanding, they would know this.
Now have we proposed unto mankind, in this Koran, every kind of parable;
that they may be warned:
an Arabic Koran, wherein there is no crookedness; that they may fear God.
30 GOD propoundeth as a parable a man who hath several companions which are
at mutual variance, and a man who committeth himself wholly to one person:l
shall these be held in equal comparison? GOD forbid! But the greater part of
them do not understand.
Verily thou, O Mohammed, shalt die, and they also shall die:
and ye shall debate the matterm with one another before your LORD, at the
day of resurrection.
Who is more unjust than he who uttereth a lie concerning GOD, and denieth
the truth when it cometh unto him? Is there not a dwelling provided in hell
for the unbelievers?
But he who bringeth the truth, and giveth credit thereto,n these are they
who fear God;
they shall obtain whatever they shall desire, in the sight of their LORD:
this shall be the recompense of the righteous;
that GOD may expiate from them the very worst of that which they have
wrought, and may render them their reward according to the utmost merit of the
good which they have wrought.
i For his hands shall be chained to his neck, and he shall not be able
to oppose anything but his face to the fire.1
k i.e., No contradiction, defect, or doubt.
l This passage represents the uncertainty of the idolater, who is
distracted in the service of different masters; and the satisfaction of mind
which attends the worshipper of the only true GOD.2
m For the prophet will represent his endeavours to reclaim them from
idolatry, and their obstinacy; and they will make frivolous excuses, as that
they obeyed their chiefs, and kept to the religion of their fathers, &c.3
n i.e., Mohammed and his followers. Some suppose that by the latter
words Abu Becr is particularly intended, because he asserted the prophet's
veracity in respect to his journey to heaven.
1 Al Beidâwi. 2 Idem. 3 Idem.
Is not GOD a sufficient protector of his servant? yet they will attempt
to make thee afraid of the false deities which they worship besides GOD.o But
he whom GOD shall cause to err, shall have none to direct him:
and he whom GOD shall direct, shall have none to mislead him. Is not GOD
most mighty, able to avenge?
If thou ask them who hath created the heavens and the earth, they will
surely answer, GOD. Say, Do ye think, therefore, that the deities which ye
invoke besides GOD, if GOD be pleased to afflict me, are able to relieve me
from his affliction? or if he be pleased to show mercy unto me, that they are
able to withhold his mercy? Say, GOD is my sufficient support: in him let
those put their trust, who seek in whom to confide.
40 Say, O my people, do ye act according to your state; verily I will act
according to mine: hereafter shall ye know
on which of us will be inflicted a punishment that shall cover him with
shame, and on whom a lasting punishment shall fall.
Verily we have revealed unto thee the book of the Koran, for the
instruction of mankind, with truth. Whoso shall be directed thereby shall be
directed to the advantage of his own soul; and whoso shall err, shall only err
against the same: and thou art not a guardian over them.
GOD taketh unto himself the souls of men at the time of their death; and
those which die not he also taketh in their sleep:p and he withholdeth those
on which he hath passed the decree of death,q but sendeth back the others till
a determined period.r Verily herein are signs unto the people who consider.
Have the Koreish taken idols for their intercessors with God? Say, What,
although they have not dominion over anything, neither do they understand?
Say, Intercession is altogether in the disposal of GOD:s his is the
kingdom of heaven and earth; and hereafter shall ye return unto him.
When the one sole GOD is mentioned, the hearts of those who believe not
in the life to come, shrink with horror: but when the false gods, which are
worshipped besides him, are mentioned, behold they are filled with joy.
Say, O GOD, the creator of heaven and earth, who knowest that which is
secret, and that which is manifest; thou shalt judge between thy servants
concerning that wherein they disagree.
If those who act unjustly were masters of whatever is in the earth, and
as much more therewith, verily they would give it to ransom themselves from
the evil of the punishment, on the day of resurrection: and there shall appear
unto them, from GOD, terrors which they never imagined;
and there shall appear unto them the evils of that which they shall have
gained; and that which they mocked at shall encompass them.
o The Koreish used to tell Mohammed that they feared their gods would
do him some mischief, and deprive him of the use of his limbs, or of his
reason, because he spoke disgracefully of them. It is thought by some that
this passage was verified in Khâled Ebn al Walîd; who, being sent by Mohammed
to demolish the idol al Uzza, was advised by the keeper of her temple to take
heed what he did, because the goddess was able to avenge herself severely; but
he was so little moved at the man's warning, that he immediately stepped up to
the idol, and broke her nose. To support the latter explication, they say
that what happened to Khâled is attributed to Mohammed, because the former was
then executing the prophet's orders.1 A circumstance not much different from
the above mentioned is told of the demolition of Allat.2
p That is, seemingly and to outward appearance, sleep being the image
of death.
q Not permitting them to return again into their bodies.
r viz., Into their bodies, when they awake.3
s For none can or dare presume to intercede with him, unless by his
permission.
1 Idem. 2 Vide Gagnier, not. in Abulf. Vit. Moh. p. 127.
3 Al Beidâwi.
50 When harm befalleth man, he calleth upon us; yet afterwards, when we
have bestowed on him favor from us, he saith, I have received it merely
because of God's knowledge of my deserts.t On the contrary, it is a trial;
but the greater part of them know it not.
Those who were before them said the same:u but that which they had
gained, profited them not:
and the evils which they had deserved, fell upon them. And whoever of
these Meccans shall have acted unjustly, on them likewise shall fall the evils
which they shall have deserved;x neither shall they frustrate the divine
vengeance.
Do they not know that GOD bestoweth provision abundantly on whom he
pleaseth, and is sparing unto whom he pleaseth? Verily herein are signs unto
people who believe.
Say, O my servants who have transgressed against your own souls, despair
not of the mercy of GOD: seeing that GOD forgiveth all sins,y for he is
gracious and merciful.
And be turned unto your LORD, and resign yourselves unto him, before the
threatened punishment overtake you; for then ye shall not be helped.
And follow the most excellent instructions which have been sent down unto
you from your LORD, before the punishment come suddenly upon you, and ye
perceive not the approach thereof;
and a soul say, Alas! for that I have been negligent in my duty to GOD;
verily I have been one of the scorners:
or say, If GOD had directed me, verily I had been one of the pious:
or say, when it seeth the prepared punishment, If I could return once
more into the world, I would become one of the righteous.
60 But God shall answer, My signs came unto thee heretofore, and thou didst
charge them with falsehood, and wast puffed up with pride; and thou becamest
one of the unbelievers.
On the day of resurrection, thou shalt see the faces of those who have
uttered lies concerning GOD, become black: is there not an abode prepared in
hell for the arrogant?
But GOD shall deliver those who shall fear him, and shall set them in
their place of safety: evil shall not touch them, neither shall they be
grieved.
GOD is the creator of all things, and he is the governor of all things.
His are the keys of heaven and earth: and they who believe not in the signs of
GOD, they shall perish.
Say, Do ye therefore bid me to worship other than GOD, oh ye fools?
since it hath been spoken by revelation unto thee, and also unto the
prophets who have been before thee, saying, Verily if thou join any partners
with God, thy work will be altogether unprofitable, and thou shalt certainly
be one of those who perish:
wherefore rather fear GOD, and be one of those who give thanks.
But they make not a due estimation of GOD:z since the whole earth shall
be but his handful, on the day of resurrection; and the heavens shall be
rolled together in his right hand. Praise be unto him! and far be he exalted
above the idols which they associate with him!
t Or by means of my own wisdom.
u As did Karûn in particular.1
x As it happened accordingly: for they were punished with a sore famine
for seven years and had the bravest of their warriors cut off at the battle of
Bedr.2
y To those who sincerely repent and profess his unity: for the sins of
idolaters will not be forgiven.3
z See chapter 6, p. 97, note a.
1 See cap. 28, p. 295. 2 Al Beidâwi. 3 See p.
10, note h.
the trumpet shall be sounded,a and whoever are in heaven, and whoever are
on earth, shall expire; except those whom GOD shall please to exempt from the
common fate.b Afterwards it shall be sounded again; and behold, they shall
arise and look up.
And the earth shall shine by the light of its LORD: and the book shall be
laid open,c and the prophets and the martyrs shall be brought as witnesses;
and judgment shall be given between them with truth, and they shall not be
treated unjustly.
70 And every soul shall be fully rewarded, according to that which it shall
have wrought; for he perfectly knoweth whatever they do.
And the unbelievers shall be driven unto hell by troops, until, when they
shall arrive at the same, the gates thereof shall be opened: and the keepers
thereofd shall say unto them, Did not apostles from among you come unto you,
who rehearsed unto you the signs of your LORD, and warned you of the meeting
of this your day? They shall answer, Yea: but the sentence of eternal
punishment hath been justly pronounced on the unbelievers.e
It shall be said unto them, Enter ye the gates of hell, to dwell therein
forever; and miserable shall be the abode of the proud!
But those who shall have feared their LORD shall be conducted by troops
towards paradise, until they shall arrive at the same: and the gates thereof
shall be ready set open; and the guards thereof shall say unto them, Peace be
on you! ye have been good: wherefore enter ye into paradise, to remain therein
forever.
And they shall answer, Praise be unto GOD, who hath performed his promise
unto us, and hath made us to inherit the earth,f that we may dwell in paradise
wherever we please! How excellent is the reward of those who work
righteousness!
And thou shalt see the angels going in procession round the throne,
celebrating the praises of their LORD: and judgment shall be given between
them with truth; and they shall say, Praise be unto GOD, the LORD of all
creatures!
a The first time, says Al Beidâwi; who consequently supposes there will
be no more than two blasts (and two only are distinctly mentioned in the
Korân), though others suppose there will be three.1
b These, some say, will be the angels Gabriel, Michael, and Israfil,
and the angel of death, who yet will afterwards all die, at the command of
GOD;2 it being the constant opinion of the Mohammedan doctors, that every
soul, both of men and of animals, which live either on land or in the sea, and
of the angels also, must necessarily taste of death:3 others suppose those who
will be exempted are the angels who bear the throne of GOD,4 or the black-eyed
damsels, and other inhabitants of paradise.5
The space between these two blasts of the trumpet will be forty days,
according to Yahya and others; there are some, however, who suppose it will be
as many years.6
c See the Prelim. Disc. Sect. IV. p. 68.
d See chapter 74, and the Prelim. Disc. Sect. IV. p. 72.
e See chapter 7, p. 106; chapter 11, p. 169, &c. It seems as if the
damned, by these words, attributed their ruin to GOD'S decree of
predestination.
f This is a metaphorical expression, representing the perfect security
and abundance which the blessed will enjoy in paradise.
1 See the Prelim. Disc. Sect. IV. p. 65. 2 Al Beidâwi, Yahya.
3 Vide Pocock. not. in Port. Mosis. p. 266.
4 Al Beidâwi. 5 Jallalo'ddin 6 See the Prelim. Disc. ubi
sup.
CHAPTER XL.
ENTITLED, THE TRUE BELIEVER;g REVEALED AT MECCA.
IN THE NAME OF THE MOST MERCIFUL GOD.
H. M.h THE revelation of this book is from the mighty, the wise GOD;
the forgiver of sin and the accepter of repentance; severe in punishing;
long suffering. There is no GOD but he: before him shall be the general
assembly at the last day.
None disputeth against the signs of GOD, except the unbelievers: but let
not their prosperous dealing in the landi deceive thee with vain allurement.
The people of Noah, and the confederated infidels which were after them,
accused their respective prophets of imposture before these; and each nation
hatched ill designs against their apostle, that they might get him into their
power; and they disputed with vain reasoning, that they might thereby
invalidate the truth: wherefore I chastised them; and how severe was my
punishment!
Thus hath the sentence of thy LORD justly passed on the unbelievers; and
they shall be the inhabitants of hell fire.
The angels who bear the throne of God, and those who stand about it,k
celebrate the praise of their LORD, and believe in him; and they ask pardon
for the true believers, saying, O LORD, thou encompassest all things by thy
mercy and knowledge; wherefore forgive those who repent, and follow thy path,
and deliver them from the pains of hell:
O LORD, lead them also into gardens of eternal abode, which thou hast
promised unto them, and unto every one who shall do right, of their fathers,
and their wives, and their children; for thou art the mighty, the wise God.
And deliver them from evil; for whomsoever thou shalt deliver from evil
on that day, on him wilt thou show mercy; and this will be great salvation.
10 But the infidels at the day of judgment, shall hear a voice crying unto
them, Verily the hatred of GOD towards you is more grievous than your hatred
towards yourselves: since ye were called unto the faith, and would not
believe.
They shall say, O LORD, thou hast given us death twice, and thou hast
twice given us life;l and we confess our sins: is there therefore no way to
get forth from this fire?
And it shall be answered them, This hath befallen you, for that when one
GOD was preached unto you, ye believed not; but if a plurality of gods had
been associated with him, ye had believed: and judgment belongeth unto the
high, the great GOD.
g This title is taken from the passage wherein mention is made of one
of Pharaoh's family who believed in Moses.
h See the Prelim. Disc. Sect. III. p. 46, &c.
i By trading into Syria and Yaman. See chapter 3, p. 52, note m.
k These are the Cherubim, the highest order of angels, who approach
nearest to GOD'S presence.1
l Having first created us in a state of death, or void of life and
sensation, and then given life to the inanimate body;2 and afterwards caused
us to die a natural death, and raised us again at the resurrection. Some
understand the first death to be a natural death, and the second that in the
sepulchre, after the body shall have been there raised to life in order to be
examined;3 and consequently suppose the two revivals to be those of the
sepulchre and the resurrection.4
1 Al Beidâwi. 2 See c p. 2, p. 4. 3 See Prelim
Disc. Sect. IV. p. 60, &c.
4 Al Beidâwi. Jallal.
It is he who showeth you his signs, and sendeth down food unto you from
heaven: but none will be admonished, except he who turneth himself unto God.
Call therefore upon GOD, exhibiting your religion pure unto him, although
the infidels be averse thereto.
He is the Being of exalted degree, the possessor of the throne; who
sendeth down the spirit, at his command, on such of his servants as he
pleaseth: that he may warn mankind of the day of meeting,m
the day whereon they shall come forth out of their graves, and nothing of
what concerneth them shall be hidden from GOD. Unto whom will the kingdom
belong, on that day? Unto the only, the almighty GOD.
On that day shall every soul be rewarded according to its merits: there
shall be no injustice done on that day. Verily GOD will be swift in taking an
account.
Wherefore warn them, O prophet, of the day which shall suddenly approach;
when men's hearts shall come up to their throats, and strangle them.
The ungodly shall have no friend or intercessor who shall be heard.
20 God will know the deceitful eye, and that which their breasts conceal;
and GOD will judge with truth: but the false gods which they invoke,
besides him, shall not judge at all: for GOD is he who heareth and seeth.
Have they not gone through the earth, and seen what hath been the end of
those who were before them? They were more mighty than these in strength, and
left more considerable footsteps of their power in the earth: yet GOD
chastised them for their sins, and there was none to protect them from GOD.
This they suffered, because their apostles had come unto them with
evident signs, and they disbelieved: wherefore GOD chastised them; for he is
strong, and severe in punishing.
We heretofore sent Moses with our signs and manifest power,
unto Pharaoh, and Haman, and Karûn; and they said, He is a sorcerer, and
a liar.
And when he came unto them with the truth from us, they said, Slay the
sons of those who have believed with him, and save their daughters alive:n but
the stratagem of the infidels was no other than vain.
And Pharaoh said, Let me alone, that I may kill Moses;o and let him call
upon his LORD: verily I fear lest he change your religion, or cause violence
to appear in the earth.p
And Moses said unto his people, Verily I have recourse unto my LORD and
your LORD, to defend me against every proud person, who believeth not in the
day of account.
And a man who was a true believer, of the family of Pharaoh,q and
concealed in his faith, said, Will ye put a man to death, because he saith,
GOD is my LORD; seeing he is come unto you with evident signs from your LORD?
If he be a liar, on him will the punishment of his falsehood light; but if he
speaketh the truth, some of those judgments with which he threateneth you will
fall upon you: verily GOD directeth not him who is a transgressor, or a liar:
m When the Creator and his creatures,5 the inhabitants of heaven and of
earth, the false deities and their worshippers, the oppressor and the
oppressed, the labourer and his works, shall meet each other.6
n i.e., Pursue the resolution which has been formerly taken, and
execute it more strictly for the future. See chapter 7, p. 117, note r.
o For they advised him not to put Moses to death, lest it should be
thought he was not able to oppose him by dint of argument.1
p By raising of commotions and seditions, in order to introduce his new
religion.
q This seems to be the same person who is mentioned, chapter 28, p.
291.
5 See cap. 6, p. 91 6 Al Beidâwi, Jallal 1 Al
Beidâwi
32
30 O my people, the kingdom is yours this day; and ye are conspicuous in
the earth; but who shall defend us from the scourge of GOD, if it come unto
us?r Pharaoh said, I only propose to you what I think to be most expedient;
and I guide you only into the right path.
And he who had believed said, O my people, Verily I fear for you a day
like that of the confederates against the prophets in former times;
a condition like that of the people of Noah, and the tribes of Ad and
Thamud,
and of those who have lived after them; for GOD willeth not that any
injustice be done unto his servants.
O my people, verily I fear for you the day whereon men shall call unto
one another;s
the day whereon ye shall be turned back from the tribunal, and driven to
hell: then shall ye have none to protect you against GOD. And he whom GOD
shall cause to err shall have no director.
Joseph came unto you, before Moses, with evident signs; but ye ceased not
to doubt of the religion which he preached unto you, until, when he died, ye
said, GOD will by no means send another apostle after him. Thus doth GOD
cause him to err, who is a transgressor, and a sceptic.
They who dispute against the signs of GOD, without any authority which
hath come unto them, are in great abomination with GOD, and with those who
believe. Thus doth GOD seal up every proud and stubborn heart.
And Pharaoh said, O Haman, build me a tower, that I may reach the tracts,
the tracts of heaven, and may view the GOD of Moses;t for verily I think
him to be a liar.
40 And thus the evil of his work was prepared for Pharaoh, and he turned
aside from the right path: and the stratagems of Pharaoh ended only in loss.
And he who had believed said, O my people, follow me: I will guide you
into the right way.
O my people, verily this present life is but a temporary enjoyment; but
the life to come is the mansion of firm continuance.
Whoever worketh evil shall only be rewarded in equal proportion to the
same: but whoever worketh good, whether male or female, and is a true
believer, they shall enter paradise: they shall be provided for therein
superabundantly.
And, O my people, as for me, I invite you to salvation; but ye invite me
to hell fire:
ye invite me to deny GOD, and to associate with him that whereof I have
no knowledge; but I invite you to the most mighty, the forgiver of sins.
There is no doubt but that the false gods to which ye invite me deserve
not to be invoked, either in this world or in the next; and that we must
return unto GOD; and that the transgressors shall be the inhabitants of hell
fire:
and ye shall then remember what I now say unto you. And I commit my
affair unto GOD; for GOD regardeth his servants.
Wherefore GOD delivered him from the evils which they had devised; and a
grievous punishment encompassed the people of Pharaoh.u
r See the speech of Gamaliel to the Jewish Sanhedrim, when the apostles
were brought before them.2
s i.e., The day of judgment, when the inhabitants of paradise and of
hell shall enter into mutual discourse: when the latter shall call for help,
and the seducers and the seduced shall cast the blame upon each other.3
t See chapter 28, p. 293.
u Some are of opinion that those who were sent by Pharaoh to seize the
true believer, his kinsman, are the persons more particularly meant in this
place: for they tell us that the said believer fled to a mountain, where they
found him at prayers, guarded by the wild beasts, which ranged themselves in
order about him, and that his pursuers thereupon returned in a great fright to
their master, who put them to death for not performing his command.1
2 Acts v. 38, 39 3 Al Beidâwi, Jallalo'ddin 1 Al
Beidâwi.
They shall be exposed to the fire of hell morning and evening:x and the
day whereon the hour of judgment shall come, it shall be said unto them,
Enter, O people of Pharaoh, into a most severe torment.
50 And think on the time when the infidels shall dispute together in hell
fire; and the weak shall say unto those who behaved with arrogance,y Verily we
were your followers: will ye therefore relieve us from any part of this fire?
Those who behaved with arrogance shall answer, Verily we are all doomed
to suffer therein: for GOD hath now judged between his servants.
And they who shall be in the fire shall say unto the keepers of hell,z
Call ye on your LORD, that he would ease us, for one day, from this
punishment.
They shall answer, Did not your apostles come unto you with evident
proofs? They shall say, Yea. The keepers shall reply, Do ye therefore call
on God: but the calling of the unbelievers on him shall be only in vain.
We will surely assist our apostles, and those who believe, in this
present life, and on the day whereon the witnesses shall stand forth:
a day, whereon the excuse of the unbelievers shall not avail them; but a
curse shall attend them, and a wretched abode.
We heretofore gave unto Moses a direction; and we left as an inheritance
unto the children of Israel the book of the law; a direction, and an
admonition to men of understanding.
Wherefore do thou, O prophet, bear the insults of the infidels with
patience; for the promise of GOD is true; and ask pardon for thy fault;a and
celebrate the praise of thy LORD, in the evening and in the morning.
As to those who impugn the signs of GOD, without any convincing proof
which hath been revealed unto them, there is nothing but pride in their
breasts;b but they shall not attain their desire: wherefore fly for refuge
unto GOD; for it is he who heareth and seeth.
Verily the creation of heaven and earth is more considerable than the
creation of man: but the greater part of men do not understand.
60 The blind and the seeing shall not be held equal; nor they who believe
and work righteousness, and the evil doer: how few revolve these things in
their mind!
The last hour will surely come; there is no doubt thereof: but the
greater part of men believe it not.
Your LORD said, Call upon me, and I will hear you: but they who proudly
disdain my service shall enter with ignominy into hell.
It is GOD who hath appointed the night for you to take your rest therein,
and the day to give you light: verily GOD is endued with beneficence towards
mankind: but the greater part of men do not give thanks.
This is GOD, your LORD, the Creator of all things; there is no GOD
besides him: how therefore are ye turned aside from his worship?
Thus are they turned aside, who oppose the signs of GOD.
x Some expound these words of the previous punishment they are doomed
to suffer according to a tradition of Ebn Masúd, which informs us that their
souls are in the crops of black birds, which are exposed to hell fire every
morning and evening until the day of judgment.2
y See chapter 14, p. 187, note
z See chapter 74.
a In being too backward and negligent in advancing the true religion,
for fear of the infidels.3
b This sentence may be understood generally, though it was revealed on
account of the idolatrous Meccans or of the Jews, who said of Mohammed, This
man is not our lord, but the Messias, the Son of David, whose kingdom will be
extended over sea and land.4
2 Idem. 3 Idem. 4 Idem.
It is GOD who hath given you the earth for a stable floor, and the heaven
for a ceiling; and who hath formed you, and made your forms beautiful, and
feedeth you with good things. This is GOD, your LORD. Wherefore blessed be
GOD, the LORD of all creatures!
He is the living God: there is no GOD but he. Wherefore call upon him,
exhibiting unto him the pure religion. Praise be unto GOD, the LORD of all
creatures!
Say, Verily I am forbidden to worship the deities which ye invoke,
besides GOD, after that evident proofs have come unto me from my LORD; and I
am commanded to resign myself unto the LORD of all creatures.
It is he who first created you of dust, and afterwards of seed, and
afterwards of coagulated blood; and afterwards brought you forth infants out
of your mothers' wombs: then he permitteth you to attain your age of full
strength, and afterwards to grow old men (but some of you die before that
age), and to arrive at the determined period of your life;c that peradventure
ye may understand.
70 It is he who giveth life, and causeth to die: and when he decreeth a
thing, he only saith unto it, Be, and it is.
Dost thou not observe those who dispute against the signs of GOD, how
they are turned aside from the true faith?
They who charge with falsehood the book of the Koran, and the other
scriptures and revealed doctrines which we have sent our former apostles to
preach, shall hereafter know their folly,
when the collars shall be on their necks, and the chains by which they
shall be dragged into hell; then shall they be burned in the fire.
And it shall be said unto them, Where are the gods which ye associated,
besides GOD? They shall answer, They have withdrawn themselves from us: yea,
we called on nothingd heretofore. Thus doth GOD lead the unbelievers into
error.
This hath befallen you, for that ye rejoiced insolently on earth, in that
which was false; and for that ye were elated with immoderate joy.
Enter the gates of hell, to remain therein forever: and wretched shall be
the abode of the haughty!
Wherefore persevere with patience, O Mohammed; for the promise of GOD is
true. Whether we cause thee to see any part of the punishment with which we
have threatened them, or whether we cause thee to die before thou see it;
before us shall they be assembled at the last day.
We have sent a great number of apostles before thee;e the histories of
some of whom we have related unto thee, and the histories of others of them we
have not related unto thee: but no apostle had the power to produce a sign,
unless by the permission of GOD. When the command of GOD, therefore, shall
come, judgment shall be given with truth; and then shall they perish who
endeavor to render the signs of God of no effect.
It is GOD who hath given you the cattle, that ye may ride on some of
them, and may eat of others of them;
80 (ye also receive other advantages therefrom;)f and that on them ye may
arrive at the business proposed in your mind: and on them are ye carried by
land, and on ships by sea.
And he showeth you his signs; which, therefore, of the signs of GOD, will
ye deny?
Do they not pass through the earth, and see what hath been the end of
those who were before them? They were more numerous than these, and more
mighty in strength, and left more considerable monuments of their power in the
earth: yet that which they had acquired profited them not.
c See chapter 22, p. 250.
d Seeing an idol is nothing in the world.1
e See the Prelim. Disc. Sect. IV. p. 59.
f See chapter 16, p. 195
1 Idem
And when their apostles came unto them with evident proofs of their
mission, they rejoiced in the knowledge which was with them:g but that which
they mocked at encompassed them.
And when they beheld our vengeance, they said, We believe in GOD alone,
and we renounce the idols which we associated with him:
but their faith availed them not, after they had beholden our vengeance.
This was the ordinance of GOD, which was formerly observed in respect to his
servants and then did the unbelievers perish.
_______
CHAPTER XLI.
ENTITLED, ARE DISTINCTLY EXPLAINED;h REVEALED AT MECCA.
IN THE NAME OF THE MOST MERCIFUL GOD.
H. M.i This is a revelation from the most Merciful;
a book, the verses whereof are distinctly explained,k an Arabic Koran,
for the instruction of people who understand;
bearing good tidings, and denouncing threats: but the greater part of
them turn aside, and hearken not thereto.
And they say, Our hearts are veiled from the doctrine to which thou
invitest us; and there is a deafness in our ears, and a curtain between us and
thee: wherefore act thou as thou shalt think fit; for we shall act according
to our own sentiments.
Say, Verily I am only a man like you. It is revealed unto me, that your
GOD is one GOD: wherefore direct your way straight unto him; and ask pardon of
him for what is past. And woe be to the idolaters:
who give not the appointed alms, and believe not in the life to come!
But as to those who believe and work righteousness, they shall receive an
everlasting reward.
Say, Do ye indeed disbelieve in him who created the earth in two days;l
and do ye set up equals unto him? He is the LORD of all creatures.
And he placed in the earth mountains firmly rooted,m rising above the
same: and he blessed it; and provided therein the food of the creatures
designed to be the inhabitants thereof, in four days;n equally, for those who
ask.o
g Being prejudiced in favour of their own erroneous doctrines, and
despising the instructions of the prophets.
h Some entitle this chapter Worship, or Adoration, because the infidels
are herein commanded to forsake the worship of idols, and to worship GOD: but
the thirty-second chapter bearing the same title, that which we have here
prefixed is, for distinction, generally used.
i See the Prelim. Disc. Sect. III. p. 46, &c.
k See chapter 11, p. 158, note y.
l viz., The two first days of the week.1
m See chapter 16, p. 196.
n That is, including the two former days wherein the earth was created.
o i.e., For all, in proportion to the necessity of each, and as their
several appetites require. Some refer the word sawâan, here translated
equally, and which also signifies completely, to the four days; and suppose
the meaning to be that GOD created these things in just so many entire and
complete days.2
1 Jallalo'ddin. 2 Idem, al Beidâwi.
10 Then he set his mind to the creation of heaven, and it was smoke;p and
he said unto it, and to the earth, Come, either obediently, or against your
will. They answered, We come, obedient to thy command.
And he formed them into seven heavens, in two days;q and revealed unto
every heaven its office. And we adorned the lower heaven with lights, and
placed therein, a guard of angels.r This is the disposition of the mighty,
the wise God.
If the Meccans withdraw from these instructions, say, I denounce unto you
a sudden destruction, like the destruction of Ad and Thamud.
When the apostles came unto them before them and behind them,s saying,
Worship GOD alone; they answered, If our LORD had been pleased to send
messengers, he had surely sent angels; and we believe not the message with
which ye are sent.
As to the tribe of Ad, they behaved insolently in the earth, without
reason, and said, Who is more mighty than we in strength? Did they not see
that GOD, who had created them, was more mighty than they in strength? And
they knowingly rejected our signs.
Wherefore we sent against them a piercing wind, on days of ill luck,t
that we might make them taste the punishment of shame in this world: but the
punishment of the life to come will be more shameful; and they shall not be
protected therefrom.
And as to Thamud, we directed them; but they loved blindness better than
the true direction: wherefore the terrible noise of an ignominious punishment
assailed them, for that which they had deserved;
but we delivered those who believed, and feared God.u
And warn them of the day, on which the enemies of GOD shall be gathered
together unto hell fire, and shall march in distinct bands;
until, when they shall arrive thereat, their ears, and their eyes, and
their skins, shall bear witness against them of that which they shall have
wrought.
20 And they shall say unto their skins, Wherefore do ye bear witness
against us? They shall answer, GOD hath caused us to speak, who giveth speech
unto all things: he created you the first time; and unto him are ye returned.
Ye did not hide yourselves, while ye sinned, so that your ears, and your
eyes, and your skins could not bear witness against you:x but ye thought that
GOD was ignorant of many things which ye did.
This was your opinion, which ye imagined of your LORD: it hath ruined
you; and ye are become lost people.
p Or darkness. Al Zamakhshari says this smoke proceeded from the
waters under the throne of GOD (which throne was one of the things created
before the heavens and the earth), and rose above the water; that the water
being dried up, the earth was formed out of it, and the heavens out of the
smoke which had mounted aloft.
q viz., On the fifth and sixth days of the week. It is said the
heavens were created on Thursday, and the sun, moon, and stars on Friday; in
the evening of which last day Adam was made.3
r See chapter 15.
s That is, on every side; persuading and urging them continually, and
by arguments drawn from past examples, and the expectation of future rewards
or punishments.
t It is said that this wind continued from Wednesday to Wednesday
inclusive, being the latter end of the month Shawâl; and that a Wednesday is
the day whereon GOD sends down his judgments on a wicked people.4
u See chapter 7, p. 112, &c.
x i.e., Ye hid your crimes from men, little thinking that your very
members, from which ye could not hide them, would rise up as witnesses against
you.
3 Idem. 4 Idem.
Whether they bear their torment, hell fire shall be their abode; or
whether they beg for favor, they shall not obtain favor.
And we will give them the devils to be their companions; for they dressed
up for them the false notions which they entertained of this present world,
and of that which is to come; and the sentence justly fitteth them, which was
formerly pronounced on the nations of genii and men who were before them; for
they perished.
The unbelievers say, Hearken not unto this Koran: but use vain discoursey
during the reading thereof; that ye may overcome the voice of the reader by
your scoffs and laughter.
Wherefore we will surely cause the unbelievers to taste a grievous
punishment,
and we will certainly reward them for the evils which they shall have
wrought.
This shall be the reward of the enemies of GOD, namely, hell fire;
therein is prepared for them an everlasting abode, as a reward for that they
have wittingly rejected our signs.
And the infidels shall say in hell, O LORD, show us the two that seduced
us, of the genii and men,z and we will cast them under our feet, that they may
become most base and despicable.
30 As for those who say, Our LORD is GOD, and who behave uprightly; the
angels shall descend unto them,a and shall say, Fear not, neither be ye
grieved; but rejoice in the hopes of paradise which ye have been promised.
We are your friends in this life, and in that which is to come: therein
shall ye have that which your souls shall desire, and therein shall ye obtain
whatever ye shall ask for;
as a gift from a gracious and merciful God.
Who speaketh better than he who inviteth unto GOD, and worketh
righteousness, and saith, I am a Moslem?
Good and evil shall not be held equal. Turn away evil with that which is
better; and behold, the man between whom and thyself there was enmity shall
become, as it were, thy warmest friend:
but none shall attain to this perfection, except they who are patient;
nor shall any attain thereto, except he who is endued with a great happiness
of temper.
And if a malicious suggestion be offered unto thee from Satan, have
recourse unto GOD; for it is he who heareth and knoweth.
Among the signs of his power are the night, and the day, and the sun, and
the moon. Worship not the sun, neither the moon: but worship GOD, who hath
created them; if ye serve him.
But if they proudly disdain his service; verily the angels, who are with
thy LORD, praise him night and day, and are not wearied.
And among his signs another is, that thou seest the land waste; but when
we send down rain thereon, it is stirred and fermenteth. And he who
quickeneth the earth will surely quicken the dead; for he is almighty.
40 Verily those who impiously wrong our signs are not concealed from us.
Is he, therefore, better, who shall be cast into hell fire, or he who shall
appear secure on the day of resurrection? Work that which ye will: he
certainly beholdeth whatever ye do.
Verily they who believe not in the admonition of the Koran, after it hath
come unto them, shall one day be discovered. It is certainly a book of
infinite value:
y Or, talk aloud.
z i.e., Those of either species, who drew us into sin and ruin. Some
suppose that the two more particularly intended here are Eblis and Cain, the
two authors of infidelity and murder.1
a Either while they are living on earth to dispose their minds to good,
to preserve them from temptations, and to comfort them; or at the hour of
death to support them in their last agony; or at their coming forth from their
graves at the resurrection.2
1 Idem, Jallalo'ddin. 2 Idem.
vanity shall not approach it, either from before it, or from behind it:b
it is a revelation from a wise God, whose praise is justly to be celebrated.
No other is said unto thee by the infidels of Mecca than what hath been
formerly said unto the apostles before thee: verily thy LORD is inclined to
forgiveness, and is also able to chastise severely.
If we had revealed the Koran in a foreign language,c they had surely
said, Unless the signs thereof be distinctly explained, we will not receive
the same: is the book written in a foreign tongue, and the person unto whom it
is directed an Arabian? Answer, It is, unto those who believe, a sure guide,
and a remedy for doubt unto those who believe, a sure guide, and a remedy for
doubt and uncertainty: but unto those who believe not, it is a thickness of
hearing in their ears, and it is a darkness which covereth them; these are as
they who are called unto from a distant place.d
We heretofore gave the book of the law unto Moses; and a dispute arose
concerning the same: and if a previous decree had not proceeded from thy LORD,
to respite the opposers of that revelation, verily the matter had been decided
between them, by the destruction of the infidels; for they were in a very
great doubt as to the same.
He who doth right, doth it to the advantage of his own soul; and he who
doth evil, doth it against the same: for thy LORD is not unjust towards his
servants.
Unto him is reserved the knowledge of the hour of judgment: and no fruit
cometh forth from the knops which involve it; neither doth any female conceive
in her womb, nor is she delivered of her burden, but with his knowledge. On
the day whereon he shall call them to him, saying, Where are my companions
which ye ascribed unto me? they shall answer, We assure thee there is no
witness of this matter among us:e
and the idols which they called on before shall withdraw themselves from
them; and they shall perceive that there will be no way to escape.
Man is not wearied with asking good; but if evil befall him, he
despondeth, and despaireth.
50 And if we cause him to taste mercy from us, after affliction hath
touched him, he surely saith, This is due to me on account of my deserts: I do
not think the hour of judgment will ever come: and if I be brought before my
LORD, I shall surely attain, with him, the most excellent condition. But we
will then declare unto those who shall not have believed, that which they have
wrought; and we will surely cause them to taste a most severe punishment.
When we confer favors on man, he turneth aside, and departeth without
returning thanks: but when evil toucheth him, he is frequent at prayer.
Say, What think ye? if the Koran be from GOD, and ye believe not therein;
who will lie under a greater error, than he who dissenteth widely therefrom?
Hereafter we will show them our signs in the regions in the regions of
the earth, and in themselves;f until it become manifest unto them that this
book is the truth. Is it not sufficient for thee that thy LORD is witness of
all things?
Are they not in a doubt as to the meeting of their LORD at the
resurrection? Doth not he encompass all things?
b That is, it shall not be prevailed against, or frustrated by any
means or in any respect whatever.
c See chapter 16, p. 203, &c.
d Being so far off that they hear not, or understand not the voice of
him who calls to them.
e For they shall disclaim their idols at the resurrection.
f By the surprising victories and conquests of Mohammed and his
successors.1
1 Al Beidâwi.
CHAPTER XLII.
ENTITLED, CONSULTATION;g REVEALED AT MECCA.h
IN THE NAME OF THE MOST MERCIFUL GOD.
H. M. A. S. K.i THUS doth the mighty, the wise GOD reveal his will unto
thee; and in like manner did he reveal it unto the prophets who were before
thee.
Unto him belongeth whatever is in heaven, and in earth; and he is the
high, the great God.
It wanteth little but that the heavens be rent in sunder from above, at
the awfulness of his majesty: the angels celebrate the praise of their LORD,
and ask pardon for those who dwell in the earth. Is not GOD the forgiver of
sins, the merciful?
But as to those who take other gods for their patrons, besides him, GOD
observeth their actions: for thou art not a steward over them.
Thus have we revealed unto thee an Arabic Koran, that thou mayest warn
the metropolis of Mecca, and the Arabs who dwell round about it; and mayest
threaten them with the day of the general assembly, of which there is no
doubt: one part shall then be placed in paradise, and another part in hell.
If GOD had pleased, he had made them all of one religion; but he leadeth
whom he pleaseth into his mercy; and the unjust shall have no patron or
helper.
Do they take other patrons, besides him? whereas GOD is the only true
patron: he quickeneth the dead; and he is almighty.
Whatever matter ye disagree about, the decision thereof appertaineth unto
GOD. This is GOD, my LORD: in him do I trust, and unto him do I turn me:
the Creator of heaven and earth: he hath given you wives of your own
species, and cattle both male and female; by which means he multiplieth you:
there is nothing like him; and it is he who heareth and seeth.
10 His are the keys of heaven and earth; he bestoweth provision abundantly
on whom he pleaseth, and he is sparing unto whom he pleaseth; for he knoweth
all things.
He hath ordained you the religion which he commanded Noah, and which we
have revealed unto thee, O Mohammed, and which we commanded Abraham, and
Moses, and Jesus:k saying, Observe this religion, and be not divided therein.
The worship of one God, to which thou invitest them, is grievous unto the
unbelievers:
g The title is taken from the verse wherein the believers are
commended, among other things, for using deliberation in their affairs, and
consulting together in order to act for the best. Some, instead of this word,
prefix the five single letters with which the chapter begins.
h Jallalo'ddin excepts three verses, beginning with these words, Say, I
ask not of you, for this my preaching, any reward, &c.
i See the Prelim. Disc. Sect. III. p. 46, &c.
k See ibid. Sect. IV. p. 55 and 59.
GOD will elect thereto whom he pleaseth, and will direct unto the same
him who shall repent.
Those who lived in times past were not divided among themselves, until
after that the knowledge of God's unity had come unto them; through their own
perverseness: and unless a previous decree had passed from thy LORD, to bear
with them till a determined time, verily the matter had been decided between
them, by the destruction of the gainsayers. They who have inherited the
scriptures after them,l are certainly in a perplexing doubt concerning the
same.m
Wherefore invite them to receive the sure faith, and be urgent with them,
as thou hast been commanded; and follow not their vain desires: and say, I
believe in all the scriptures which GOD hath sent down; and I am commanded to
establish justice among you: GOD is our LORD and your LORD: unto us will our
works be imputed, and unto you will your works be imputed: let there be no
wrangling between us and you; for GOD will assemble us all at the last day,
and unto him shall we return.
As to those who dispute concerning GOD, after obedience hath been paid
him by receiving his religion, their disputing shall be vain in the sight of
their LORD; and wrath shall fall on them, and they shall suffer a grievous
punishment.
It is GOD who hath sent down the scripture with truth; and the balance of
true judgment: and what shall inform with truth; and the balance of true
judgment: and what shall inform thee whether the hour be nigh at hand?
They who believe not therein wish it to be hastened by way of mockery:
but they who believe dread the same, and know it to be the truth. Are not
those who dispute concerning the last hour in a wide error?
GOD is bounteous unto his servants; he provideth for whom he pleaseth;
and he is the strong, the mighty.
Whoso chooseth the tillage of the life to come,n unto him will we give
increase in his tillage: and whoso chooseth the tillage of this world, we will
give him the fruit thereof; but he shall have no part in the life to come.
20 Have the idolaters deities which ordain them a religion which GOD hath
not allowed? But had it not been for the decree of respiting their punishment
to the day of separating the infidels from the true believers, judgment had
been already given between them: for the unjust shall surely suffer a painful
torment.
On that day thou shalt see the unjust in great terror, because of their
demerits; and the penalty thereof shall fall upon them: but they who believe
and do good works shall dwell in the delightful meadows of paradise; they
shall obtain whatever they shall desire, with their LORD. This is the
greatest acquisition.
This is what GOD promiseth unto his servants who believe and do good
works. Say, I ask not of you, for this my preaching, any reward, except the
love of my relations: and whoever shall have deserved well by one good action,
unto him will we add the merit of another action thereto; for GOD is inclined
to forgive, and ready to reward.
Do they say, Mohammed hath blasphemously forged a lie concerning GOD? If
GOD pleaseth, he will seal up thy heart:o and GOD will absolutely abolish
vanity, and will establish the truth in his words;p for he knoweth the
innermost part of men's breasts.
l viz., The modern Jews and Christians.
m Not understanding the true meaning, nor believing the real doctrines
thereof.
n Labouring here to obtain a reward hereafter; for what is sown in this
world will be reaped in the next.
o The meaning of these words is somewhat obscure. Some imagine they
express a detestation of the forgery charged on the prophet by the infidels;
because none could be capable of so wicked an action but one whose heart was
close shut, and knew not his LORD; as if he had said, God forbid that thou
shouldst be void of grace, or have so little sense of thy duty. Others think
the signification to be that GOD might strike all the revelations which had
been vouchsafed to Mohammed, out of his heart at once; and others, that GOD
would strengthen his heart with patience against the insults of the
unbelievers.1
p Wherefore if the doctrine taught in this book be of man, it will
certainly fail and come to nothing; but if it be of GOD, it can never be
overthrown.2
1 Al Beidâwi. 2 Idem.
It is he who accepteth repentance from his servants, and forgiveth sins,
and knoweth that which ye do.
He will incline his ear unto those who believe and work righteousness,
and will add unto them above what they shall ask or deserve, of his bounty:
but the unbelievers shall suffer a severe punishment.
If GOD should bestow abundance upon his servants they would certainly
behave insolently in the earth: but he sendeth down by measure unto every one
that which he pleaseth; for he well knoweth and seeth the condition of his
servants.
It is he who sendeth down the rain, after men have despaired thereof, and
spreadeth abroad his mercy; and he is the patron, justly to be praised.
Among his signs is the creation of heaven and earth, and of the living
creatures with which he hath replenished them both; and he is able to gather
them together before his tribunal, whenever he pleaseth.
Whatever misfortune befalleth you is sent unto you by God, for that which
your hands have deserved; and yet he forgiveth many things:
30 ye shall not frustrate the divine vengeance in the earth; neither shall
ye have any protector or helper, against GOD.
Among his signs also are the ships running in the sea, like high
mountains: if he pleaseth, he causeth the wind to cease, and they lie still on
the back of the water: (verily herein are signs unto every patient and
grateful person):
or he destroyeth them by shipwreck, be cause of that which their crews
have merited; though he pardoneth many things.
And they who dispute against our signs shall know that there will be no
way for them to escape our vengeance.
Whatever things are given you, they are the provision of this present
life: but the reward which is with GOD is better, and more durable, for those
who believe, and put their trust in their LORD;
and who avoid heinous and filthy crimes, and when they are angry,
forgive;
and who hearken unto their LORD, and are constant at prayer, and whose
affairs are directed by consultation among themselves, and who give alms out
of what we have bestowed on them;
and who, when an injury is done them, avenge themselvesq
(and the retaliation of evil ought to be an evil proportionate thereto):
but he who forgiveth and is reconciled unto his enemy, shall receive his
reward from GOD;r for he loveth not the unjust doers.
And whoso shall avenge himself, after he hath been injured; as to these,
it is not lawful to punish them for it:
40 but it is only lawful to punish those who wrong men, and act insolently
in the earth, against justice; these shall suffer a grievous punishment.
And whoso beareth injuries patiently, and forgiveth; verily this is a
necessary work.
Whom GOD shall cause to err, he shall afterwards have no protector. And
thou shalt see the ungodly,
q Using the means which GOD has put into their hands for their own
defence. This is added to complete the character here given; for valour and
courage are not inconsistent with clemency,3 the rule being,
Parcere subjectis, et debellare superbos.
r See chapter 5, p. 79, &c.
3 Idem.
who shall say, when they behold the punishment prepared for them, Is
there no way to return back into the world?
And thou shalt see them exposed unto hell fire; dejected, because of the
ignominy they shall undergo: they shall look at the fire sideways, and by
stealth; and the true believers shall say, Verily the losers are they who have
lost their own souls, and their families, on the day of resurrection: shall
not the ungodly continue in eternal torment?
They shall have no protectors to defend them against GOD: and whom GOD
shall cause to err, he shall find no way to the truth.
Hearken unto your LORD, before the day come, which GOD will not keep
back: ye shall have no place of refuge on that day; neither shall ye be able
to deny your sins.
But if those to whom thou preachest turn aside from thy admonitions,
verily we have not sent thee to be a guardian over them: thy duty is preaching
only. When we cause man to taste mercy from us, he rejoiceth thereat: but if
evil befall them, for that which their hands have formerly committed, verily
man becometh ungrateful.
Unto GOD appertaineth the kingdom of heaven and earth: he createth that
which he pleaseth; he giveth females unto whom he pleaseth, and he giveth
males unto whom he pleaseth;
or he giveth them males and females jointly: and he maketh whom he
pleaseth to be childless; for he is wise and powerful.
50 It is not fit for man that GOD should speak unto him otherwise than by
private revelation, or from behind a veil,
or by his sending of a messenger to reveal, by his permission, that which
he pleaseth; for he is high and wise.
Thus have we revealed unto thee a revelation,s by our command. Thou
didst not understand, before this, what the book of the Koran was, nor what
the faith was: but we have ordained the same for a light; we will thereby
direct such of our servants as we please: and thou shalt surely direct them
into the right way,
the way of GOD, unto whom belongeth whatever is in heaven and in earth.
Shall not all things return unto GOD?
________
CHAPTER XLIII.
ENTITLED, THE ORNAMENTS OF GOLD;t REVEALED AT MECCA.u
IN THE NAME OF THE MOST MERCIFUL GOD.
H. M.x BY the perspicuous book;
verily we have ordained the same an Arabic Koran that ye may understand:
and it is certainly written in the original book,y kept with us, being
sublime and full of wisdom.
s Or, as the words may be also translated, Thus have we sent the spirit
Gabriel unto thee with a revelation.
t The words chosen for the title of this chapter occurs p. 364.
u Some except the verse beginning with these words, And ask our
apostles whom we have sent before thee, &c.
x See the Prelim. Disc. Sect. III. p. 46, &c.
y i.e., The preserved table; which is the original of all the
scriptures in general.
Shall we therefore turn away from you the admonition, and deprive you
thereof, because ye are a people who transgress?
And how many prophets have we sent among those of old?
and no prophet came unto them, out they laughed him to scorn:
wherefore we destroyed nations who were more mighty than these in
strength; and the example of those who were of old hath been already set
before them.
If thou ask them who created the heavens and the earth, they will
certainly answer, The mighty, the wise God created them:
who hath spread the earth as a bed for you, and hath made you paths
therein, that ye may be directed:
10 and who sendeth down rain from heaven by measure, whereby we quicken a
dead country; (so shall ye be brought forth from your graves:)
and who hath created all the various species of things, and hath given
you ships and cattle, whereon ye are carried;
that ye may sit firmly on the backs thereof, and may remember the favor
of your LORD, when ye sit thereon, and may say, Praise be unto him, who hath
subjected these unto our service! for we could not have mastered them by our
own power:
and unto our LORD shall we surely return.
Yet have they attributed unto him some of his servants as his offspring:
verily man is openly ungrateful.
Hath God taken daughters out of those beings which he hath created; and
hath he chosen sons for you?
But when one of them hath the news brought of the birth of a child of
that sex which they attribute unto the Merciful, as his similitude, his face
becometh black, and he is oppressed with sorrow.z
Do they therefore attribute unto God female issue, which are brought up
among ornaments, and are contentious without cause?
And do they make the angels, who are the servants of the Merciful,
females? Were they present at their creation? Their testimony shall be
written down, and they shall be examined concerning the same, on the day of
judgment.
And they say, If the Merciful had pleased, we had not worshipped them.
They have no knowledge herein: they only utter a vain lie.
20 Have we given them a book of revelations before this; and do they keep
the same in their custody?
But they say, Verily we found our fathers practising a religion; and we
are guided in their footsteps.
Thus we sent no preacher before thee, unto any city, but the inhabitants
thereof who lived in affluence, said, Verily we found our fathers practising a
religion: and we tread in their footsteps.
And the preacher answered, What, although I bring you a more right
religion than that which ye found your fathers to practise? And they replied,
Verily we believe not that which ye are sent to preach.
Wherefore we took vengeance on them: and behold what hath been the end of
those who accused our apostles of imposture.
Remember when Abraham said unto his father, and his people, Verily I am
clear of the gods which ye worship,
except him who hath created me; for he will direct me aright.
And he ordained this to be a constant doctrine among his posterity; that
they should be turned from idolatry to the worship of the only true God.
Verily I have permitted these Meccans and their fathers to live in
prosperity, until the truth should come unto them, and a manifest apostle:
but now the truth is come unto them, they say, This is a piece of
sorcery; and we believe not therein.
30 And they say, Had this Korân been sent down unto some great man of
either of the two cities,a we would have received it.
z See chapter 16, p. 100, &c.
a i.e., To one of the principal inhabitants of Mecca, or of Tâyef, such
as al Walid Ebn al Mogheira, or Erwa Ebn Masud, the Thakifite.1
1 Al Beidâwi.
Do they distribute the mercy of thy LORD?b We distribute the necessary
provision among them, in this present life, and we raise some of them several
degrees above the others, that the one of them may take the other to serve
him: and the mercy of thy LORD is more valuable than the riches which they
gather together.
If it were not that mankind would have become one sect of infidels,
verily we had given unto those who believe not in the Merciful, roofs of
silver to their houses, and stairs of silver, by which they might ascend
thereto,
and doors of silver to their houses, and couches of silver, for them to
lean on;
and ornaments of gold: for all this is the provision of the present life;
but the next life with thy LORD shall be for those who fear him.
Whoever shall withdraw from the admonition of the Merciful, we will chain
a devil unto him; and he shall be his inseparable companion:
(and the devils shall turn them aside from the way of truth; yet they
shall imagine themselves to be rightly directed:)
until, when he shall appear before us at the last day, he shall say unto
the devil,c Would to GOD that between me and thee there was the distance of
the east from the west! Oh how wretched a companion art thou!
But wishes shall not avail you on this day, since ye have been unjust;
for ye shall be partakers of the same punishment.
Canst thou, O prophet, make the deaf to hear, or canst thou direct the
blind, and him who is in a manifest error?
40 Whether we take thee away, we will surely take vengeance on them;
or whether we cause thee to see the punishment with which we have
threatened them executed, we will certainly prevail over them.
Wherefore hold fast the doctrine which hath been revealed unto thee; for
thou art in a right way:
and it is a memorial unto thee and thy people, and hereafter shall ye be
examined concerning your observance thereof.
And ask our apostles whom we have sent before thee,d whether we have
appointed gods for them to worship, besides the Merciful.
We formerly sent Moses with our signs unto Pharaoh and his princes, and
he said, Verily I am the apostle of the LORD of all creatures.
And when he came unto them with our signs, behold, they laughed him to
scorn;
although we showed them no sign, but it was greater than the other:e and
we inflicted a punishmentf on them, that peradventure they might be converted.
And they said unto Moses, O magician, pray unto thy LORD for us,
according to the covenant which he hath made with thee; for we will certainly
be directed.
But when we took the plague from off them, behold, they brake their
promise.
50 And Pharaoh made proclamation among his people, saying, O my people, is
not the kingdom of Egypt mine, and these rivers,g which flow beneath me? Do
ye not see?
Am not I better than this Moses, who is a contemptible person,
b By this expression the prophetic office is here particularly
intended.
c See chapter 19.
d That is, ask those who profess the religions which they taught, and
their learned men.2
e Literally, Than its sister. The meaning is that the miracles were
all very great and considerable, or, as the French may express it, by a phrase
nearly the same, les uns plus grands que les autres.
f viz., The successive plagues which they suffered, previous to their
final destruction in the Red Sea.
g To wit, the Nile and its branches.3
2 Idem, Jallal., &c. 3 Idem.
and can scarce express himself intelligibly?h
Have bracelets of gold, therefore, been put upon him;i or do the angels
attend him in orderly procession?
And Pharaoh persuaded his people to light behavior; and they obeyed him:
for they were a wicked people.
And when they had provoked us to wrath, we took vengeance on them: and we
drowned them all:
and we made them a precedent, and an example unto others.
And when the son of Mary was proposed for an example, behold, thy people
cried out through excess of joy thereat;k
and they said, Are our gods better, or he? They have proposed this
instance unto thee no otherwise than for an occasion of dispute: yea, they are
contentious men.
Jesus is no other than a servant, whom we favored with the gift of
prophecy; and we appointed him for an examplel unto the children of Israel:
60 (if we pleased, verily we could from ourselves produce angels, to
succeed you in the earth):m
and he shall be a sign of the approach of the last hour;n wherefore doubt
not thereof. And follow me: this is the right way.
And let not Satan cause you to turn aside: for he is your open enemy.
And when Jesus came with evident miracles, he said, Now am I come unto
you with wisdom,o and to explain unto you part of those things concerning
which ye disagree; wherefore fear GOD, and obey me.
Verily GOD is my LORD, and your LORD; wherefore worship him: this is the
right way.
And the confederated sects among them fell to variance:p but woe unto
those who have acted unjustly, because of the punishment of a grievous day.
Do the unbelievers wait for any other than the hour of judgment; that it
may come upon them suddenly, while they foresee it not?
The intimate friends, on that day, shall be enemies unto one another;
except the pious.
h See chapter 20, p. 234, note
i Such bracelets were some of the insignia of royalty; for when the
Egyptians raised a person to the dignity of a prince, they put a collar or
chain of gold about his neck,1 and bracelets of gold on his wrists.2
k This passage is generally supposed to have been revealed on occasion
of an objection made by one Ebn al Zabári to those words in the 21st chapter,3
by which all in general, who were worshipped as deities, besides GOD, are
doomed to hell: whereupon the infidels cried out, We are contented that our
gods should be with Jesus; for he also is worshipped as GOD.4 Some, however,
are of opinion it might have been revealed in answer to certain idolaters, who
said that the Christians, who received the scriptures, worshipped Jesus,
supposing him to be the son of GOD; whereas the angels were more worthy of
that honour than he.5
l Or an instance of our power, by his miraculous birth.
m As easily as we produced Jesus without a father.6 The intent of the
words is to show how just and reasonable it is to think that the angels should
bear the relation of children to men, rather than to GOD; they being his
creatures, as well as men, and equally in his power.
n For some time before the resurrection Jesus is to descend on earth,
according to the Mohammedans, near Damascus,7 or, as some say, near a rock in
the holy land named Afik, with a lance in his hand, wherewith he is to kill
Antichrist, whom he will encounter at Ludd, or Lydda, a small town not far
from Joppa.8 They add that he will arrive at Jerusalem at the time of morning
prayer, that he shall perform his devotions after the Mohammedan institution,
and officiate instead of the Imâm, who shall give place to him; that he will
break down the cross, and destroy the churches of the Christians, of whom he
will make a general slaughter, excepting only such as shall profess Islâm,
etc.9
o That is, with a book of revelations, and an excellent system of
religion.
p This may be understood either of the Jews in the time of Jesus, who
opposed his doctrine, or of the Christians since, who have fallen into various
opinions concerning him; some making him to be GOD, others the Son of GOD, and
others, one of the persons of the Trinity, &c.10
1 See Gen. xli. 42. 2 Al Beidâwi, Jallalo'ddin. 3 See
p. 249. 4 Jallalo'ddin, al Beidâwi. 5 Idem.
6 Idem. 7 See the Prelim. Disc. Sect. IV. p. 63. 8 See
ibid. p. 63. 9 Al Beidâwi. 10 Idem, Jallalo'ddin.
O my servants, there shall no fear come on you this day, neither shall ye
be grieved:
who have believed in our signs, and have been Moslems:
70 enter ye into paradise, ye and your wives, with great joy.
Dishes of gold shall be carried round unto them, and cups without
handles: and therein shall they enjoy whatever their souls shall desire, and
whatever their eyes shall delight in: and ye shall remain therein forever.
This is paradise, which ye have inherited as a reward for that which ye
have wrought.
Therein shall ye have fruits in abundance, of which ye shall eat.
But the wicked shall remain forever in the torment of hell:
it shall not be made lighter unto them; and they shall despair therein.
We deal not unjustly with them, but they deal unjustly with their own
souls.
And they shall call aloud, saying, O Malec,q intercede for us that thy
LORD would end us by annihilation. He shall answer,r Verily ye shall remain
here forever.
We brought you the truth heretofore, but the greater part of you abhorred
the truth.
Have the infidels fixed on a method to circumvent our apostle? Verily we
will fix on a method to circumvent them.
80 Do they imagine that we hear not their secrets, and their private
discourse? Yea; and our messengers who attend thems write down the same.
Say, If the Merciful had a son, verily I would be the first of those who
should worship him.
Far be the LORD of heaven and earth, the LORD of the throne, from that
which they affirm of him!
Wherefore let them wade in their vanity, and divert themselves until they
arrive at their day with which they have been threatened.
He who is GOD in heaven, is GOD on earth also: and he is the wise, the
knowing.
And blessed be he unto whom appertaineth the kingdom of heaven and earth,
and of whatever is between them; with whom is the knowledge of the last hour;
and before whom ye shall be assembled.
They whom they invoke besides him have not the privilege to intercede for
others; except those who bear witness to the truth, and know the same.t
If thou ask them who hath created them, they will surely answer, GOD.
How therefore are they turned away to the worship of others?
God also heareth the saying of the prophet, O LORD, verily these are
people who believe not:
and he answereth, Therefore turn aside from them; and say, Peace:u
hereafter shall they know their folly.
q This the Mohammedans suppose to be the name of the principal angel
who has the charge of hell.
r Some say that this answer will not be given till a thousand years
after.
s i.e., The guardian angels.
t That is, to the doctrine of GOD'S unity. The exception comprehends
Jesus, Ezra, and the angels; who will be admitted as intercessors, though they
have been worshipped as gods.1
u See chapter 25, p. 275, note d.
1 Idem.
CHAPTER XLIV.
ENTITLED, SMOKE;x REVEALED AT MECCA.y
IN THE NAME OF THE MOST MERCIFUL GOD.
H. M.z BY the perspicuous book of the Koran;
verily we have sent down the same on a blessed nighta (for we had engaged
so to do),
on the night wherein is distinctly sent down the decree of every
determined thing,
as a command from us.b Verily we have ever used to send apostles with
revelations, at proper intervals,
as a mercy from thy LORD; for it is he who heareth and knoweth:
the LORD of heaven and earth, and of whatever is between them; if ye are
men of sure knowledge.
There is no GOD but he: he giveth life, and he causeth to die; he is your
LORD, and the LORD of your forefathers.
Yet do they amuse themselves with doubt.
But observe them, on the day whereon the heaven shall produce a visible
smoke,
10 which shall cover mankind:c this will be a tormenting plague.
They shall say, O LORD, take this plague from off us: verily we will
become true believers.
How should an admonition be of avail to them in this condition; when a
manifest apostle came unto them,
but they retired from him, saying, This man is instructed by others,d or
is a distracted person?
We will take the plague from off you, a little: but ye will certainly
return to your infidelity.e
On the day whereon we shall fiercely assault them with great power,f
verily we will take vengeance on them.
We made trial of the people of Pharaoh before them, and an honourable
messenger came unto them,
x This word occurs within a few lines from the beginning of the
chapter.
y Some except the verse beginning, We will take the plague off you a
little, &c.
z See the Prelim. Disc. Sect. III. p. 46, &c.
a Generally supposed to be that between the twenty-third and twenty-
fourth of Ramadân. See ibid. p. 50, and chapter 97, and the notes there.
b For annually on this night, as the Mohammedans are taught, all the
events of the ensuing year, with respect to life and death and the other
affairs of this world, are disposed and settled.1 Some, however, suppose that
these words refer only to that particular night on which the Korân, wherein
are completely contained the divine determinations in respect to religion and
morality, was sent down;2 and, according to this exposition, the passage may
be rendered, The night whereon every determined or adjudged matter was sent
down.
c The commentators differ in their expositions of this passage. Some
think it spoke of a smoke which seemed to fill the air during the famine which
was inflicted on the Meccans in Mohammed's time,3 and was so thick that,
though they could hear, yet they could not see one another.4 But, according
to a tradition of Ali, the smoke here meant is that which is to be one of the
previous signs of the day of judgment,5 and will fill the whole space from
east to west, and last for forty days. This smoke, they say, will intoxicate
the infidels, and issue at their nose, ears and posteriors, but will very
little inconvenience the true believers.6
d See chapter 16, p. 203.
e If we follow the former exposition, the words are to be understood,
of the ceasing of the famine upon the intercession of Mohammed, at the desire
of the Koreish, and on their promise of believing on him; notwithstanding
which, they fell back to their old incredulity; but if we follow the latter
exposition, they are to be understood of GOD'S taking away the plague of the
smoke, after the expiration of the forty days, at the prayer of the infidels,
and on their promise of receiving the true faith, which being done, they will
immediately return to their wonted obstinacy.
f Some expound this of the slaughter at Bedr, and others of the day of
judgment.
1 Jallalo'ddin, al Beidâwi. 2 Idem. 3 See cap. 23, p.
259, note
4 Al Zamakh., al Beidâwi, Yahya, Jallalo'ddin. 5 See the Prelim. Disc.
Sect. IV. p. 63. 6 Al Zamakh., al Beidâwi.
33
saying, Send unto me the servants of GOD;g verily I am a faithful
messenger unto you:
and lift not yourselves up against GOD; for I come unto you with manifest
power.
And I fly for protection unto my LORD, and your LORD, that ye stone me
not.h
20 If ye do not believe me, at least depart from me.i
And when they accused him of imposture, he called upon his LORD, saying,
These are a wicked people.
And God said unto him, March forth with my servants by night; for ye will
be pursued:
and leave the sea divided, that the Egyptians may enter the same; for
they are a host doomed to be drowned.
How many gardens, and fountains,
and fields of corn, and fair dwellings,
and advantages which they enjoyed, did they leave behind them!
Thus we dispossessed them thereof; and we gave the same for an
inheritance unto another people.k
Neither heaven nor earth wept for them;l neither were they respited any
longer.
And we delivered the children of Israel from a shameful affliction;
30 from Pharaoh; for he was haughty, and a transgressor:
and we chose them, knowingly,m above all people;
and we showed them several signs,n wherein was an evident trial.
Verily these Meccans say,
Assuredly our final end will be no other than our first natural death;
neither shall we be raised again:
bring now our forefathers back to life, if ye speak truth.
Are they better, or the people of Tobba,o
and those who were before them? we destroyed them, because they wrought
wickedness.
We have not created the heavens and the earth, and whatever is between
them, by way of sport:
we have created them no otherwise than in truth;p but the greater part of
them do not understand.
40 Verily the day of separationq shall be the appointed term of them all:
a day, whereon the master and the servant shall be of no advantage to one
another, neither shall they be helped;
excepting those on whom GOD shall have mercy; for he is the mighty, the
merciful.
Verily, the fruit of the tree of al Zakkum
shall be the food of the impious:r
g i.e., Let the Israelites go with me to worship their GOD.
h Or that ye injure me not, either by word or deed.1
i Without opposing me or offering me any injury, which I have not
deserved from you.
k See chapter 26, p. 278.
l That is, none pitied their destruction.
m i.e., Knowing that they were worthy of our choice; or,
notwithstanding we knew they would, in time to come, fall into idolatry, &c.
n As the dividing of the Red Sea, the cloud which shaded them, the
raining on them manna and quails, &c.2
o The Hamyarites, whose kings had the title of Tobba.3 The
commentators tell us that the Tobba here meant was very potent, and built
Samarcand, or, as others say, demolished it; and that he was a true believer,
but his subjects were infidels.4
This prince seems to have been Abu Carb Asaad, who flourished about
seven hundred years before Mohammed, and embraced Judaism, which religion he
first introduced into Yaman (being the true religion at that time, inasmuch as
Christianity was not then promulgated), and was, for that cause probably,
slain by his own people.5
p See chapter 21, p. 242, and chapter 38, p. 341.
q i.e., The day of judgment; when the wicked shall be separated from
the righteous, &c.
r Jallalo'ddin supposes this passage to have been particularly levelled
against Abu Jahl.
1 Al Beidâwi. 2 Idem. 3 See the Prelim. Disc. Sect.
I. p. 7. 4 Al Beidâwi, Jallalo'ddin.
5 Al Jannâbi. Vide Poc. Spec. p. 60.
as the dregs of oil shall it boil in the bellies of the damned,
like the boiling of the hottest water.
And it shall be said to the tormentors, Take him, and drag him into the
midst of hell:
and pour on his head the torture of boiling water,
saying, Taste this; for thou art that mighty and honourable person.
50 Verily this is the punishment of which ye doubted.
But the pious shall be lodged in a place of security,
among gardens and fountains:
they shall be clothed in fine silk, and in satin; and they shall sit
facing one another.
Thus shall it be: and we will espouse them to fair damsels, having large
black eyes.
In that place shall they call for all kinds of fruits, in full security:
they shall not taste death therein, after the first death; and God shall
deliver from the pains of hell:
through the gracious bounty of thy LORD. This will be great felicity.
Moreover we have rendered the Koran easy for thee, by revealing it in
thine own tongue; to the end that they may be admonished:
wherefore do thou wait the event; for they wait to see some misfortune
befall thee.
________
CHAPTER XLV.
ENTITLED, THE KNEELING;s REVEALED AT MECCA.
IN THE NAME OF THE MOST MERCIFUL GOD.
H. M.t THE revelation of this book is from the mighty, the wise GOD.
Verily both in heaven and earth are signs of the divine power unto the
true believers:
and in the creation of yourselves, and of the beasts which are scattered
over the face of the earth, are signs unto people of sound judgment;
and also in the vicissitude of night and day, and the rain which GOD
sendeth down from heaven, whereby he quickeneth the earth after it hath been
dead: in the change of the winds also are signs unto people of understanding.
These are the signs of GOD; we rehearse them unto thee with truth. In
what revelation therefore will they believe, after they have rejected GOD and
his signs?
Woe unto every lying and impious person;
who heareth the signs of GOD, which are read unto him, and afterwards
proudly persisteth in infidelity, as though he heard them not: (denounce unto
him a painful punishment:)
and who, when he cometh to the knowledge of any of our signs, receiveth
the same with scorn. For these is prepared a shameful punishment:
before them lieth hell; and whatever they shall have gained shall not
avail them at all, neither shall the idols which they have taken for their
patrons, besides GOD; and they shall suffer a grievous punishment.
10 This is a true direction: and for those who disbelieve the signs of
their LORD, is prepared the punishment of a painful torment.
It is GOD who hath subjected the sea unto you, that the ships may sail
therein, at his command; and that ye may seek advantage unto yourselves by
commerce; of his bounty; and that ye may give thanks:
and he obligeth whatever is in heaven and on earth to serve you; the
whole being from him. Verily herein are signs unto people who consider.
s The word from which this chapter is denominated occurs p. 370.
t See the Prelim. Disc. Sect. III. p. 46, &c.
Speak unto the true believers, that they forgive those who hope not for
the days of GOD,u that he may reward people according to what they shall have
wrought.
Whoso doeth that which is right doth it to the advantage of his own soul;
and whoso doeth evil doth it against the same: hereafter shall ye return unto
your LORD.
We gave unto the children of Israel the book of the law, and wisdom, and
prophecy; and we fed them with good things, and preferred them above all
nations:
and we gave them plain ordinances concerning the business of religion;
neither do they fall to variance, except after that knowledge had come unto
them, through envy among themselves: but thy LORD will decide the controversy
between them, on the day of resurrection, concerning that wherein they
disagree.
Afterwards we appointed thee, O Mohammed, to promulgate a law concerning
the business of religion: wherefore follow the same, and follow not the
desires of those who are ignorant.x
Verily they shall not avail thee against GOD at all; the unjust are the
patrons of one another; but GOD is the patron of the pious.
This Koran delivereth evident precepts unto mankind; and is a direction,
and a mercy, unto people who judge aright.
20 Do the workers of iniquity imagine that we will deal with them as with
those who believe and do good works; so that their life and their death shall
be equal? An ill judgment do they make.
GOD hath created the heavens and the earth in truth; that he may
recompense every soul according to that which it shall have wrought: and they
shall not be treated unjustly.
What thinkest thou? He who taketh his own lust for his GOD, and whom GOD
causeth knowingly to err, and whose ears and whose heart he hath sealed up,
and over whose eyes he hath cast a veil; who shall direct him, after GOD shall
have forsaken him? Will ye therefore not be admonished?
They say, There is no other life, except our present life: we die, and we
live; and nothing but time destroyeth us. But they have no knowledge in this
matter; they only follow a vain opinion.
And when our evident signs are rehearsed unto them, their argument which
they offer against the same is no other than that they say, Bring to life our
fathers who have been dead; if ye speak truth.
Say, GOD giveth you life; and afterwards causeth you to die: hereafter
will he assemble you together on the day of resurrection; there is no doubt
thereof; but the greater part of men do not understand.
Unto GOD appertaineth the kingdom of heaven and earth; and the day
whereon the hour shall be fixed, on that day shall those who charge the Koran
with vanity perish.
And thou shalt see every nationy kneeling: every nation shall be called
unto its book of account; and it shall be said unto them, This day shall ye be
rewarded according to that which ye have wrought.
u By the days of GOD, in this place, are meant the prosperous successes
of his people in battle against the infidels.1 The passage is said to have
been revealed on account of Omar, who being reviled by one of the tribe of
Ghifâr, was thinking to revenge himself by force. Some are of opinion that
this verse is abrogated by that of war.2
x That is, of the principal Koreish, who were urgent with Mohammed to
return to the religion of his forefathers.3
y The original word Ommat properly signifies a people who profess one
and the same law or religion.
1 See p. 186, note d. 2 Al Beidâwi. 3
Idem.
This our book will speak concerning you with truth; therein have we
written down whatever ye have done.z
As to those who shall have believed and done good works, their LORD shall
lead them into his mercy: this shall be manifest felicity.
30 But as to the infidels, it shall be said unto them, Were not my signs
rehearsed unto you? but ye proudly rejected them, and became a wicked people!
And when it was said unto you, Verily the promise of GOD is true: and as
to the hour of judgment, there is no doubt thereof: ye answered, We know not
what the hour of judgment is: we hold an uncertain opinion only; and we are
not well assured of this matter.
But on that day the evils of that which they have wrought shall appear
unto them; and that which they mocked at shall encompass them:
and it shall be said unto them, This day will we forget you, as ye did
forget the meeting of this your day: and your abode shall be hell fire; and ye
shall have none to deliver you.
This shall ye suffer, because ye turned the signs of GOD to ridicule; and
the life of the world deceived you. On this day, therefore, they shall not be
taken forth from thence, neither shall they be asked any more to render
themselves well-pleasing unto God.
Wherefore praise be unto GOD, the LORD of the heavens, and the LORD of
the earth;
the LORD of all creatures: and unto him be glory in heaven and earth; for
he is the mighty, the wise God.
_______
CHAPTER XLVI.
ENTITLED, AL AHKAF;a REVEALED AT MECCA.
IN THE NAME OF THE MOST MERCIFUL GOD.
H. M.b THE revelation of this book is from the mighty, the wise GOD.
We have not created the heavens, and the earth, and whatever is between
them, otherwise than in truth,c and for a determined period:d but the
unbelievers turn away from the warning which is given them.
Say, What think ye? Show me what part of the earth the idols which ye
invoke, besides GOD, have created? Or, had they any share in the creation of
the heavens? Bring me a book of scripture revealed before this, or some
footstep of ancient knowledge, to countenance your idolatrous practices; if ye
are men of veracity.
Who is in a wider error than he who invoketh, besides GOD, that which
cannot return him an answer, to the day of resurrection; and idols which
regard not their calling on them:
and which, when men shall be gathered together to judgment, will become
their enemies, and will ungratefully deny their worship?
z See the Prelim. Disc. Sect. IV. p. 70.
a Al Ahkâf is the plural of Hekf, and signifies lands which lie in a
crooked or winding manner; whence it became the name of a territory in the
province of Hadramaut, where the Adites dwelt. It is mentioned about the
middle of the chapter.
b See the Prelim. Disc. Sect. III. p. 46, &c.
c See chapter 21, p. 242, and chapter 38, p. 341, &c.
d Being to last but a certain space of time, and not for ever.
When our evident signs are rehearsed unto them, the unbelievers say of
the truth,e when it cometh unto them, This is a manifest piece of sorcery.
Will they say, Mohammed hath forged it? Answer, If I have forged it,
verily ye shall not obtain for me any favor from GOD: he well knoweth the
injurious language which ye utter concerning it: he is a sufficient witness
between me and you; and he is gracious and merciful.
Say, I am not singular among the apostles;f neither do I know what will
be done with me or with you hereafter: I follow no other than what is revealed
unto me; neither am I any more than a public warner.
Say, What is your opinion? If this book be from GOD, and ye believe not
therein; and a witness of the children of Israel bear witness to its
consonancy with the law,g and believeth therein; and ye proudly reject the
same: are ye not unjust doers? Verily GOD directeth not unjust people.
10 But those who believe not say of the true believers, If the doctrine of
the Koran had been good, they had not embraced the same before us.h And when
they are not guided thereby, they say, This is an antiquated lie.
Whereas the book of Moses was revealed before the Koran, to be a guide
and a mercy: and this is a book confirming the same, delivered in the Arabic
tongue; to denounce threats unto those who act unjustly, and to bear good
tidings unto the righteous doers.
As to those who say, Our LORD is GOD; and who behave uprightly: on them
shall no fear come, neither shall they be grieved.
These shall be the inhabitants of paradise, they shall remain therein
forever: in recompense for that which they have wrought.
We have commanded man to show kindness to his parents: his mother beareth
him in her womb with pain, and bringeth him forth with pain: and the space of
his being carried in her womb, and of his weaning, is thirty months;i until,
when he attaineth his age of strength, and attaineth the age of forty years,
he saith,k O LORD, excite me, by the inspiration, that I may be grateful for
their favors, wherewith thou hast favored me and my parents; and that I may
work righteousness, which may please thee: and be gracious unto me in my
issue; for I am turned unto thee, and am a Moslem.
These are they from whom we accept the good work which they have wrought,
and whose evil works we pass by; and they shall be among the inhabitants of
paradise: this is a true promise, which they are promised in this world.
e i.e., Any part of the revelations of the Korân.
f That is, I do not teach a doctrine different from what the former
apostles and prophets have taught, nor am I able to do what they could not,
particularly to show the signs which every one shall think fit to demand.1
g This witness is generally supposed to have been the Jew Abd'allah Ebn
Salâm, who declared that Mohammed was the prophet foretold by Moses. Some,
however, suppose the witness here meant to have been Moses himself.2
h These words were spoken, as some think, by the Jews, when Abd'allah
professed Islâm; or, according to others, by the Koreish, because the first
followers of Mohammed were for the most part poor and mean people; or else by
the tribes of Amer, Ghatfân, and Asad, on the conversion of those of Joheinah,
Mozeinah, Aslam, and Ghifar.3
i At the least. For if the full time of suckling an infant be two
years,4 or twenty-four months, there remain but six months for the space of
his being carried in the womb; which is the least that can be allowed.5
k These words, it is said, were revealed on account of Abu Becr, who
professed Islâm in the fortieth year of his age, two years after Mohammed's
mission, and was the only person, either of the Mohâjerin or the Ansârs, whose
father and mother were also converted; his son Abd'alrahmân, and his grandson
Abu Atik, likewise embracing the same faith.6
1 Al Beidâwi. 2 Idem, Jallalo'ddin 3 Idem.
4 See cap. 2, p. 25.
5 Al Beidâwi. 6 Idem, Jallalo'ddin, &c.
He who saith unto his parents, Fie on you! Do ye promise me that I shall
be taken forth from the grave, and restored to life; when many generations
have passed away before me, and none of them have returned back?l And his
parents implore GOD'S assistance, and say to their son, Alas for thee!
Believe: for the promise of GOD is true. But he answereth, This is no other
than silly fables of the ancients.
These are they whom the sentence passed on the nations which have been
before them, of genii and of men, justly fitteth: they shall surely perish.m
For every one is prepared a certain degree of happiness or misery,
according to that which they shall have wrought: that God may recompense them
for their works: and they shall not be treated unjustly.
On a certain day, the unbelievers shall be exposed before the fire of
hell; and it shall be said unto them, Ye received your good things in your
lifetime, while ye were in the world; and ye enjoyed yourselves therein:
wherefore this day ye shall be rewarded with the punishment of ignominy; for
that ye behaved insolently in the earth, without justice, and for that ye
transgressed.
20 Remember the brother of Ad,n when he preached unto his people in Al
Ahkaf (and there were preachers before him, and after him), saying, Worship
none but GOD: verily I fear for you the punishment of a great day.
They answered, Art thou come unto us that thou mayest turn us aside from
the worship of our gods? Bring on us now the punishment with which thou
threatenest us, if thou art a man of veracity.
He said, Verily the knowledge of the time when your punishment will be
inflicted is with GOD; and I only declare unto you that which I am sent to
preach; but I see ye are an ignorant people.
And when they saw the preparation made for their punishment, namely, a
cloud traversing the sky, and tending towards their valleys, they said, This
is a traversing cloud, which bringeth us rain. Hud answered, Nay; it is what
ye demanded to be hastened: a wind, wherein is a severe vengeance:
it will destroy everything,o at the command of its LORD. And in the
morning nothing was to be seen, besides their empty dwellings. Thus do we
reward wicked people.
We had established them in the like flourishing condition wherein we have
established you, O men of Mecca; and we had given them ears, and eyes, and
hearts: yet neither their ears, nor their eyes, nor their hearts profited them
at all, when they rejected the signs of GOD; but the vengeance which they
mocked at fell upon them.
We heretofore destroyed the cities which were round about you;p and we
variously proposed our signs unto them, that they might repent.
Did those protect them, whom they took for gods, besides GOD, and
imagined to be honoured with his familiarity? Nay; they withdrew from them:
yet this was their false opinion which seduced them, and the blasphemy which
they had devised.
l The words seem to be general; but it is said they were revealed
particularly on occasion of Abd'alrahmân, the son of Abu Becr, who used these
expressions to his father and mother before he professed Islâm.7
m Unless they redeem their fault by repentance, and embracing the true
faith, as did Abd'alrahmân.
n i.e., The prophet Hud.
o Which came to pass accordingly; for this pestilential and violent
wind killed all who believed not in the doctrine of Hud, without distinction
of sex, age, or degree; and entirely destroyed their possessions. See the
Prelim. Disc. Sect. I. p. 5, and the notes to chapter 7, p. 111.
p As the settlements of the Thamudites, Midianites, and the cities of
Sodom and Gomorrah, &c.
7 Al Beidâwi.
Remember when we caused certain of the geniiq to turn aside unto thee,
that they might hear the Koran: and when they were present at the reading of
the same, they said to one another, Give ear: and when it was ended, they
returned back unto their people, preaching what they had heard.
They said, Our people, verily we have heard a book read unto us, which
hath been revealed since Moses,r confirming the scripture which was delivered
before it; and directing unto the truth, and the right way.
30 Our people, obey GOD'S preacher: and believe in him; that he may forgive
you your sins, and may deliver you from a painful punishment.
And whoever obeyeth not GOD'S preacher shall by no means frustrate God's
vengeance on earth: neither shall he have any protectors besides him. These
will be in a manifest error.
Do they not know that GOD, who hath created the heavens and the earth,
and was not fatigued with the creation thereof, is able to raise the dead to
life? Yea verily; for he is almighty.
On a certain day the unbelievers shall be exposed unto hell fire; and it
shall be said unto them, Is not this really come to pass? They shall answer,
Yea, by our LORD. God shall reply, Taste, therefore, the punishment of hell,
for that ye have been unbelievers.
Do thou, O prophet, bear the insults of thy people with patience, as our
apostles, who were endued with constancy, bear the injuries of their people:
and require not their punishment to be hastened unto them. On the day whereon
they shall see the punishment wherewith they have been threatened,
it shall seem as though they had tarried in the world but an hour of a
day. This is a fair warning. Shall they perish except the people who
transgress?
________
CHAPTER XLVII.
ENTITLED, MOHAMMED;s REVEALED AT MEDINA.t
IN THE NAME OF THE MOST MERCIFUL GOD.
GOD will render of none effect the works of those who believe not, and
who turn away men from the way of GOD:
but as to those who believe, and work righteousness, and believe the
revelation which hath been sent down unto Mohammed (for it is the truth from
their LORD), he will expiate their evil deeds from them, and will dispose
their heart aright.
q These genii, according to different opinions, were of Nisibin, or of
Yaman, or of Ninive; and in number nine or seven. They heard Mohammed reading
the Korân by night, or after the morning prayer, in the valley of al Nakhlah,
during the time of his retreat to al Tayef, and believed on him.1
r Hence the commentators suppose those genii, before their conversion
to Mohammedism, to have been of the Jewish religion.
s Some entitle this chapter War, which is therein commanded to be
vigorously carried on against the enemies of the Mohammedan faith.
t Some suppose the whole to have been revealed at Mecca.
1 Idem, Jallalo'ddin.
This will he do, because those who believe not follow vanity, and because
those who believe follow the truth from their LORD. Thus GOD propoundeth unto
men their examples.
When ye encounter the unbelievers, strike off their heads, until ye have
made a great slaughter among them; and bind them in bonds;
and either give them a free dismission afterwards, or exact a ransom;
until the war shall have laid down its arms.u This shall ye do. Verily if
GOD pleased he could take vengeance on them, without your assistance; but he
commandeth you to fight his battles, that he may prove the one of you by the
other. And as to those who fightx in defence of GOD'S true religion, God will
not suffer their works to perish:
he will guide them, and will dispose their heart aright;
and he will lead them into paradise, of which he hath told them.
O true believers, if ye assist GOD, by fighting for his religion, he will
assist you against your enemies; and will set your feet fast:
but as for the infidels, let them perish; and their works shall God
render vain.
10 This shall befall them, because they have rejected with abhorrence that
which GOD hath revealed: wherefore their works shall become of no avail.
Do they not travel through the earth, and see what hath been the end of
those who were before them? GOD utterly destroyed them: and the like
catastrophe awaiteth the unbelievers.
This shall come to pass, for that GOD is the patron of the true
believers, and for that the infidels have no protector.
Verily GOD will introduce those who believe, and do good works, into
gardens beneath which rivers flow: but the unbelievers indulge themselves in
pleasures, and eat as beasts eat; and their abode shall be hell fire.
How many cities were more mighty in strength than thy city which hath
expelled thee; yet have we destroyed them, and there was none to help them?
Shall he therefore, who followeth the plain declaration of his LORD, be
as he whose evil works have been dressed up for him by the devil; and who
follow their own lusts?
The description of paradise, which is promised unto the pious: therein
are rivers of incorruptible water; and rivers of milk, the taste whereof
changeth not; and rivers of wine, pleasant unto those who drink;
and rivers of clarified honey: and therein shall they have plenty of all
kinds of fruits; and pardon from their LORD. Shall the man for whom these
things are prepared be as he who must dwell forever in hell fire; and will
have the boiling water given him to drink, which shall burst their bowels?
u This law the Hanifites judge to be abrogated, or to relate
particularly to the war of Bedr, for the severity here commanded, which was
necessary in the beginning of Mohammedism,1 they think too rigorous to be put
in practice in its flourishing state. But the Persians and some others hold
the command to be still in full force; for, according to them, all the men of
full age who are taken in battle are to be slain, unless they embrace the
Mohammedan faith; and those who fall into the hands of the Moslems after the
battle are not to be slain, but may either be set at liberty gratis or on
payment of a certain ransom, or may be exchanged for Mohammedan prisoners, or
condemned to slavery, at the pleasure of the Imâm or prince.2
x Some copies, instead of kâtilu, read kûtilu, according to which
latter reading it should be rendered, who are slain, or suffer martyrdom, &c.
1 See cap. 8, p. 127 and 132. 2 Al Beidâwi. Vide Reland.
Dissert. de Jure Militari Mohammedanor. p. 32.
Of the unbelievers there are some who give ear unto thee, until, when
they go out from thee, they say, by way of derision, unto those to whom
knowledge hath been given,y What hath he said now? These are they whose
hearts GOD hath sealed up, and who follow their own lusts:
but as to those who are directed, God will grant them a more ample
direction, and he will instruct them what to avoid.z
20 Do the infidels wait for any other than the last hour, that it may come
upon them suddenly? Some signs thereof are already come:a and when it shall
actually overtake them, how can they then receive admonition?
Know therefore, that there is no god but GOD: and ask pardon for thy
sin,b and for the true believers, both men and women. GOD knoweth your busy
employment in the world, and the place of your abode hereafter.
The true believers say, Hath not a Sura been revealed commanding war
against the infidels? But when a Sura without any ambiguity is revealed, and
war is mentioned therein, thou mayest see those in whose hearts is an
infirmity,c look towards thee with the look of one whom death overshadoweth.
But obedience would be more eligible for them, and to speak that which is
convenient.
And when the command is firmly established, if they give credit unto GOD,
it will be better for them.
Were ye ready, therefore, if ye had been put in authority,d to commit
outrages in the earth, and to violate the ties of blood?
These are they whom GOD hath cursed, and hath rendered deaf, and whose
eyes he hath blinded.
Do they not therefore attentively meditate on the Koran? Are there locks
upon their hearts?
Verily they who turn their backs, after the true direction is made
manifest unto them, Satan shall prepare their wickedness for them, and God
shall bear with them for a time.
This shall befall them, because they say privately unto those who detest
what GOD hath revealed, We will obey you in part of the matter.e But GOD
knoweth their secrets.
How therefore will it be with them, when the angels shall cause them to
die, and shall strike their faces, and their backs?f
30 This shall they suffer, because they follow that which provoketh GOD to
wrath, and are averse to what is well pleasing unto him: and he will render
their works vain.
Do they in whose hearts is an infirmity imagine that GOD will not bring
their malice to light?
If we pleased, we could surely show them unto thee, and thou shouldest
know them by their marks; but thou shalt certainly know them by their perverse
pronunciation of their words. GOD knoweth your actions:
and we will try you, until we know those among you who fight valiantly,
and who persevere with constancy: and we will try the reports of your
behavior.
y i.e., The more learned of Mohammed's companions, such as Ebn Masúd
and Ebn Abbâs.3
z Or, as the words may also be translated, and he will reward them for
their piety.
a As the mission of Mohammed, the splitting of the moon, and the
smoke,1 mentioned in the forty-fourth chapter.
b Though Mohammed here and elsewhere2 acknowledges himself to be a
sinner, yet several Mohammedan doctors pretend he was wholly free from sin,
and suppose he is here commanded to ask forgiveness, not that he wanted it,
but that he might set an example to his followers: wherefore he used to say of
himself, if the tradition be true, I ask pardon of GOD a hundred times a day.3
c As hypocrisy, cowardice, or instability in their religion.
d Or, as the words may also be translated, If ye had turned back, and
apostatized from your faith.
e i.e., In part of what ye desire of us; by staying at home and not
going forth with Mohammed to war, and by private combination against him.4
f These words are supposed to allude to the examination of the
sepulchre.
3 Jallalo'ddin. 1 Idem, al Beidâwi. 2 See cap. 48, in
the beginning. 3 Jallalo'ddin
4 Al Beidâwi.
Verily those who believe not, and turn away men from the way of GOD, and
make opposition against the apostle,g after the divine direction hath been
manifested unto them, shall not hurt GOD at all; but he shall make their works
to perish.
O true believers, obey GOD; and obey the apostle: and render not your
works of no effect.
Verily those who believe not, and who turn away men from the way of GOD,
and then die, being unbelievers, GOD will by no means forgive.
Faint not therefore, neither invite your enemies to peace, while ye are
the superior: for GOD is with you, and will not defraud you of the merit of
your works.
Verily this present life is only a play and a vain amusement; but if ye
believe, and fear God, he will give you your rewards. He doth not require of
you your whole substance:
if he should require the whole of you, and earnestly press you, ye would
become niggardly, and it would raise your hatred against his apostle.
40 Behold, ye are those who are invited to expend part of your substance
for the support of GOD'S true religion; and there are some of you who are
niggardly. But whoever shall be niggardly shall be niggardly towards his own
soul: for GOD wanteth nothing, but ye are needy: and if ye turn back, he will
substitute another people in your stead, who shall not be like unto you.h
________
CHAPTER XLVIII.
ENTITLED, THE VICTORY; REVEALED AT MEDINA.
IN THE NAME OF THE MOST MERCIFUL GOD.
VERILY we have granted thee a manifest victory:i
that GOD may forgive theek thy preceding and thy subsequent sin,l and may
complete his favour on thee, and direct thee in the right way;
g These were the tribes of Koreidha and al Nadir; or those who
distributed provision to the army of the Koreish at Bedr.1
h i.e., In backwardness and aversion to the propagation of the faith.
The people here designed to be put in the place of these lukewarm Moslems are
generally supposed to be the Persians, there being a tradition that Mohammed,
being asked what people they were, at a time when Salmân was sitting by him,
clapped his hand on his thigh, and said, This man and his nation. Others,
however, are of opinion the Ansârs or the angels are intended in this place.2
i This victory, from which the chapter takes its title, according to
the most received interpretation, was the taking of the city of Mecca. The
passage is said to have been revealed on Mohammed's return from the expedition
of al Hodeibiya, and contains a promise or prediction of this signal success,
which happened not till two years after, the preterite tense being therein
used, according to the prophetic style, for the future.3
There are some, notwithstanding, who suppose the advantage here intended
was the pacification of al Hodeibiya, which is here called a victory, because
the Meccans sued for peace, and made a truce there with Mohammed, their
breaking of which occasioned the taking of Mecca. Others think the conquest
of Khaibar, or the victory over the Greeks at Mûta, &c., to be meant in this
place.
k That is to say, that GOD ay give thee an opportunity of deserving
forgiveness by eradicating of idolatry, and exalting his true religion, and
the delivering of the weak from the hands of the ungodly, &c.
l i.e., Whatever thou hast done worthy reprehension; or, thy sins
committed as well in the time of ignorance as since. Some expound the words
more particularly, and say the preceding or former fault was his lying with
his handmaid Mary,1 contrary to his oath; and the latter, his marrying of
Zeinab,2 the wife of Zeîd his adopted son.3
1 Al Beidâwi. See cap. 8, p. 129, note y. 2 Idem.
3 Al Zamakh., al Beidâwi, &c.
1 See cap. 66, and the notes thereon. 2 See cap. 33, and the notes
thereon. 3 Al Zamakh.
and that GOD may assist thee with a glorious assistance.
It is he who sendeth down secure tranquility into the hearts of the true
believers, that they may increase in faith, beyond their former faith; (the
hosts of heaven and earth are GOD'S; and GOD is knowing and wise)
that he may lead the true believers of both sexes into gardens beneath
which rivers flow, to dwell therein forever; and may expiate their evil deeds
from them: (this will be great felicity with GOD):
and that he may punish the hypocritical men, and the hypocritical women,
and the idolaters, and the idolatresses, who conceive an ill opinion of GOD.
They shall experience a turn of evil fortune: and GOD shall be angry with
them, and shall curse them, and hath prepared hell for them; and ill journey
shall it be thither!
Unto GOD belong the hosts of heaven and earth; and GOD is mighty and
wise.
Verily we have sent thee to be a witness, and a bearer of good tidings,
and a denouncer of threats;
that ye may believe in GOD, and his apostle; and may assist him, and
revere him, and praise him morning and evening.
10 Verily they who swear fealtym unto thee, swear fealty unto GOD: the hand
of GOD is over their hands.n Whoever shall violate his oath, will violate the
same to the hurt only of his own soul: but whoever shall perform that which he
hath covenanted with GOD, he will surely give him a great reward.
The Arabs of the desert who were left behindo will say unto thee, Our
substance and our families employed us, so that we went not forth with thee to
war; wherefore, ask pardon for us. They speak that with their tongues, which
is not in their hearts. Answer, Who shall be able to obtain for you anything
from GOD to the contrary, if he is pleased to afflict you, or is pleased to be
gracious unto you? Yea, verily, GOD is well acquainted with that which ye do.
Truly ye imagined that the apostle and the true believers would never
return to their families: and this was prepared in your hearts: but ye
imagined an evil imagination; and ye are a corrupt people.
Whoso believeth not in GOD and his apostle, verily we have prepared
burning fire for the unbelievers.
Unto GOD belongeth the kingdom of heaven and earth: he forgiveth whom he
pleaseth: and he punisheth whom he pleaseth: and GOD is inclined to forgive,
and merciful.
Those who were left behind will say, when ye go forth to take the spoil,p
Suffer us to follow you. They seek to change the word of GOD.q Say, Ye shall
by no means follow us: thus hath GOD said heretofore. They will reply, Nay:
ye envy us a share of the booty. But they are men of small understanding.
m The original word signifies publicly to acknowledge or inaugurate a
prince, by swearing fidelity and obedience to him.
n That is, he beholdeth from above, and is witness to the solemnity of
your giving your faith to his apostle, and will reward you for it.4 The
expression alludes to the manner of their plighting their faith on these
occasions.
o These were the tribes of Aslam, Joheinah, Mozeinah, and Ghifâr, who,
being summoned to attend Mohammed in the expedition of al Hodeibiya, stayed
behind, and excused themselves by saying their families must suffer in their
absence, and would be robbed of the little they had (for these tribes were of
the poorer Arabs); whereas in reality they wanted firmness in the faith, and
courage to face the Koreish.5
p viz., In the expedition of Khaibar. The prophet returned from al
Hodeibiya in Dhu'lhajja, in the sixth year of the Hejra, and stayed at Medina
the remainder of that month and the beginning of Moharram, and then set
forward against the Jews of Khaibar, with those only who had attended him to
Hodeibiya; and having made himself master of the place, and all the castles
and strongholds in that territory,1 took spoils to a great value, which he
divided among them who were present at that expedition, and none else.2
q Which was his promise to those who attended the prophet to al
Hodeibiya, that he would make them amends for their missing of the plunder of
Mecca at that time by giving them that of Khaibar in lieu thereof. Some think
the word here intended, to be that passage in the ninth chapter,3 Ye shall not
go forth with me for the future, &c., which yet was plainly revealed long
after the taking of Khaibar, on occasion of the expedition of Tabûc.4
4 Jallalo'ddin. 5 Idem, al Beidâwi.
Say unto the Arabs of the desert who were left behind, Ye shall be called
forth against a mighty and a warlike nation;r ye shall fight against them, or
they shall profess Islâm. If ye obey, GOD will give you a glorious reward:
but if ye turn back, as ye turned back heretofore, he will chastise you with a
grievous chastisement.
It shall be no crime in the blind, neither shall it be a crime in the
lame, neither shall it be a crime in the sick, if they go not forth to war:
and whoso shall obey GOD and his apostle, he shall lead them into gardens
beneath which rivers flow; but whoso shall turn back, he will chastise him
with a grievous chastisement.
Now GOD was well pleased with the true believers, when they sware
fidelity to thee under the tree;s and he knew that which was in their hearts;
wherefore he sent down on them tranquility of mind,t and rewarded them with a
speedy victory,u
and many spoils which they took: for GOD is mighty and wise.
20 GOD promised you many spoils which ye should take; but he have you these
by way of earnest; and he restrained the hands of men from you:x that the same
may be a sign unto the true believers; and that he may guide you into the
right way.
And he also promiseth you other spoils, which ye have not yet been able
to take: but now hath GOD encompassed them for you; and GOD is almighty.
If the unbelieving Meccans had fought against you, verily they had turned
their backs; and they would not have found a patron or protector:
according to the ordinance of GOD, which hath been put in execution
heretofore against opposers of the prophets; for thou shalt not find any
change in the ordinance of GOD.
It was he who restrained their hands from you, and your hands from them,
in the valley of Mecca; after that he had given you the victory over them:y
and GOD saw that which ye did.
r These were Banu Honeifa, who inhabited al Yamâma, and were the
followers of Moseilama, Mohammed's competitor; or any other of those tribes
which apostatized from Mohammedism,5 or, as others rather suppose, the
Persians or the Greeks.6
s Mohammed, when at al Hodeibiya, sent Jawwâs Ebn Omeyya the Khozaïte,
to acquaint the Meccans that he was come with a peaceable intention to visit
the temple; but they, on some jealousy conceived, refusing to admit him, the
prophet sent Othman Ebn Affân, whom they imprisoned, and a report ran that he
was slain: whereupon Mohammed called his men about him, and they took an oath
to be faithful to him, even to death; during which ceremony he sat under a
tree, supposed by some to have been an Egyptian thorn, and by others a kind of
lote-tree.7
t The original word is Sakînat, of which notice has been taken
elsewhere.8
u Namely, the success at Khaibar; or, as some rather imagine, the
taking of Mecca, &c.
x i.e., The hands of those of Khaibar, or of their successors of the
tribes of Asad and Ghatfân, or of the inhabitants of Mecca, by the
pacification of al Hodeibiya.1
y Jallalo'ddin says that fourscore of the infidels came privately to
Mohammed's camp at al Hodeibiya, with an intent to surprise some of his men,
but were taken and brought before the prophet, who pardoned them and ordered
them to be set at liberty; and this generous action was the occasion of the
truce struck up by the Koreish with Mohammed; for thereupon they sent Sohail
Ebn Amru and some others (and not Arwa Ebn Masúd, as is said by mistake in
another place,2 for his errand was an actual defiance) to treat for peace.
Al Beidâwi explains the passage by another story, telling us that Acrema
Ebn Abi Jahl marching from Mecca at the head of five hundred men to al
Hodeibiya, Mohammed sent against him Khâled Ebn al Walîd with a detachment,
who drove the infidels back to the innermost part of Mecca (as the word here
translated valley properly signifies), and then left them, out of respect to
the place.
1 Vide Abulf. Vit. Moh. p. 87, &c. 2 Al Beidâwi. 3
Page 144.
4 Al Beidâwi. 5 Idem. 6 Jallalo'ddin. 7 Idem, al
Beidâwi. Vide Abulf. Vit. Moh. p. 86.
8 In not. ad cap. 2, p. 27. 1 Al Beidâwi. 2 Prelim. Disc.
Sect. II. p. 41.
These are they who believed not, and hindered you from visiting the holy
temple, and also hindered the offering being detained, that it should not
arrive at the place where it ought to be sacrificed.z Had it not been that ye
might have trampled on divers true believers, both men and women, whom ye know
not, being promiscuously assembled with the infidels, and that a crime might
therefore have lighted on you on their account, without your knowledge, he had
not restrained your hands from them: but this was done, that GOD might lead
whom he pleased into his mercy. If they had been distinguished from one
another, we had surely chastised such of them as believed not, with a severe
chastisement.
When the unbelievers had put in their hearts an affected preciseness, the
preciseness of ignorance, and GOD sent down his tranquility on his apostle and
on the true believers;a and firmly fixed in them the word of piety,b and they
were the most worthy of the same, and the most deserving thereof: for GOD
knoweth all things.
Now hath GOD in truth verified unto his apostle the vision,c wherein he
said, Ye shall surely enter the holy temple of Mecca, if GOD please, in full
security; having your heads shaved, and your hair cut:d ye shall not fear: for
God knoweth that which ye know not; and he hath appointed you, besides this, a
speedy victory.e
z Mohammed's intent, in the expedition of al Hodeibiya, being only to
visit the temple of Mecca in a peaceable manner, and to offer a sacrifice in
the valley of Mina, according to the established rites, he carried beasts with
him for that purpose; but was not permitted by the Koreish either to enter the
temple or to go to Mina.
a This passage was occasioned by the stiffness of Sohail and his
companions in wording the treaty concluded with Mohammed; for when the prophet
ordered Ali to begin with the form, In the name of the most merciful GOD, they
objected to it, and insisted that he should begin with this: In thy name, O
GOD; which Mohammed submitted to, and proceeded to dictate, These are the
conditions on which Mohammed, the apostle of GOD, has made peace with those of
Mecca; to this Sohail again objected, saying, If we had acknowledged thee to
be the apostle of GOD, we had not given thee any opposition; whereupon
Mohammed ordered Ali to write as Sohail desired, These are the conditions
which Mohammed, the son of Abdallah, &c. But the Moslems were so disgusted
thereat, that they were on the point of breaking off the treaty, and had
fallen on the Meccans, had not GOD appeased and calmed their minds, as it
follows in the text.3
The terms of this pacification were that there should be a truce for ten
years; that any person might enter into league either with Mohammed or with
the Koreish, as he should think fit; and that Mohammed should have the liberty
to visit the temple of Mecca the next year for three days.4
b i.e., The Mohammedan profession of faith; or the Bismillah, and the
words, Mohammed, the apostle of GOD, which were rejected by the infidels.
c Or dream which Mohammed had at Medina before he set out for al
Hodeibiya; wherein he dreamed that he and his companions entered Mecca in
security, with their heads shaven and their hair cut. This dream being
imparted by the prophet to his followers, occasioned a great deal of joy among
them, and they supposed it would be fulfilled that same year; but when they
saw the truce concluded, which frustrated their expectation for that time,
they were deeply concerned; whereupon this passage was revealed for their
consolation, confirming the vision, which was not to be fulfilled till the
year after, when Mohammed performed the visitation distinguished by the
addition of al Kadâ, or completion, because he then completed the visitation
of the former year, when the Koreish not permitting him to enter Mecca, he was
obliged to kill his victims, and to shave himself at al Hodeibiya.5
d i.e., Some being shaved, and others having only their hair cut.
e viz., The taking of Khaibar.
3 Al Beidâwi. Vide Abulf. Vit. Moh. p. 87. 4 Idem.
5 Al Beidâwi, Jallalo'ddin. Vide Abulf. Vit. Moh. p. 84, 87.
It is he who hath sent his apostle with the direction, and the religion
of truth; that he may exalt the same above every religion: and GOD is a
sufficient witness hereof.
Mohammed is the apostle of GOD: and those who are with him are fierce
against the unbelievers, but compassionate towards one another. Thou mayest
see them bowing down, prostrate, seeking a recompense from GOD, and his good-
will. Their signs are in their faces, being marks of frequent prostration.
This is their description in the pentateuch, and their description in the
gospel: they are as seed which putteth forth its stalk and strengtheneth it,
and swelleth in the ear, and riseth upon its stem; giving delight unto the
sower. Such are the Moslems described to be: that the infidels may swell with
indignation at them. GOD hath promised unto such of them as believe, and do
good works, pardon and a great reward.
________
CHAPTER XLIX.
ENTITLED, THE INNER APARTMENTS; REVEALED AT MEDINA.
IN THE NAME OF THE MOST MERCIFUL GOD.
O TRUE believers, anticipate not any matter in the sight of GOD and his
apostle:f and fear GOD; for GOD both heareth and knoweth.
O true believers, raise not your voices above the voice of the prophet;g
neither speak loud unto him in discourse, as ye speak loud unto one another,
lest your works become vain, and ye perceive it not.
Verily they who lower their voices in the presence of the apostle of GOD
are those whose hearts GOD hath disposed unto piety: they shall obtain pardon,
and a great reward.
As to those who call unto thee from without the inner apartments;h the
greater part of them do not understand the respect due to thee.
If they wait with patience, until thou come forth unto them, it will
certainly be better for them: but GOD is inclined to forgive, and merciful.
f That is, do not presume to give your own decision in any case, before
ye have received the judgment of GOD and his apostle.
g This verse is said to have been occasioned by a dispute between Abu
Becr and Omar, concerning the appointing of a governor of a certain place; in
which they raised their voices so high, in the presence of the apostle, that
it was thought proper to forbid such indecencies for the future.1
h These, they say, were Oyeyna Ebn Osein, and al Akrá Ebn Hâbes; who
wanting to speak with Mohammed, when he was sleeping at noon in his women's
apartment, had the rudeness to call out several times, Mohammed, come forth to
us.2
1 Jallal. 2 Al Beidâwi.
O true believers, if a wicked man come unto you with a tale, inquire
strictly into the truth thereof; lest ye hurt people through ignorance, and
afterwards repent of what ye have done;i
and know that the apostle of GOD is among you: if he should obey you in
many things, ye would certainly be guilty of a crime, in leading him into a
mistake. But GOD hath made the faith amiable unto you, and hath prepared the
same in your hearts; and hath rendered infidelity, and iniquity, and
disobedience hateful unto you. These are they who walk in the right way;
through mercy from GOD, and grace: and GOD is knowing, and wise.
If two parties of the believers contend with one another, do ye endeavor
to compose the matter between them: and if the one of them offer an insult
unto the other, fight against that party which offered the insult, until they
return unto the judgment of GOD; and if they do return, make peace between
them with equity: and act with justice; for GOD loveth those who act justly.k
10 Verily the true believers are brethren; wherefore reconcile your
brethren; and fear GOD, that ye may obtain mercy.
O true believers, let not men laugh other men to scorn; who peradventure
may be better than themselves: neither let women laugh other women to scorn;
who may possibly be better than themselves. Neither defame one another; nor
call one another by opprobrious appellations. An ill name it is to be charged
with wickedness, after having embraced the faith: and whoso repenteth not,
they will be the unjust doers.l
O true believers, carefully avoid entertaining a suspicion of another:
for some suspicions are a crime. Inquire not too curiously into other men's
failings: neither let the one of you speak ill of another in his absence.
Would any of you desire to eat the flesh of his dead brother? Surely ye would
abhor it. And fear GOD; for GOD is easy to be reconciled, and merciful.
O men, verily we have created you of a male and a female; and we have
distributed you into nations and tribes, that ye might know one another.
Verily the most honourable of you, in the sight of GOD, is the most pious of
you: and GOD is wise and knowing.
The Arabs of the desertm say, We believe. Answer, Ye do by no means
believe; but say, We have embraced Islâm:n for the faith hath not yet entered
into your hearts. If ye obey GOD and his apostle, he will not defraud you of
any part of the merit of your works: for GOD is inclined to forgive, and
merciful.
i This passage was occasioned, it is said, by the following accident.
Al Walid Ebn Okba being sent by Mohammed to collect the alms from the tribe of
al Mostalek, when he saw them come out to meet him in great numbers, grew
apprehensive they designed him some mischief, because of past enmity between
him and them in the time of ignorance, and immediately turned back, and told
the prophet they refused to pay their alms, and attempted to kill him; upon
which Mohammed was thinking to reduce them by force: but on sending Khâled Ebn
al Walîd to them, he found his former messenger had wronged them, and that
they continued in their obedience.3
k This verse is supposed to have been occasioned by a fray which
happened between the tribes of al Aws and al Khazraj. Some relate that the
prophet one day riding on an ass, as he passed near Abdallah Ebn Obba, the ass
chanced to stale, at which Ebn Obba stopped his nose; and Ebn Rawâha said to
him, By GOD, the piss of his ass smells sweeter than thy musk: whereupon a
quarrel ensued between their followers, and they came to blows, though they
struck one another only with their hands and slippers, or with palm-branches.4
l It is said that this verse was revealed on account of Safiya Bint
Hoyai, one of the prophet's wives; who came to her husband and complained that
the women said to her, O thou Jewess, the daughter of a Jew and of a Jewess:
to which he answered, Canst thou not say, Aaron is my father, and Moses is my
uncle, and Mohammed is my husband?5
m These were certain of the tribe of Asad, who came to Medina in a year
of scarcity, and having professed Mohammedism, told the prophet that they had
brought all their goods and their families, and would not oppose him, as some
other tribes had done: and this they said to obtain a part of the alms, and to
upbraid him with their having embraced his religion and party.6
n That is, Ye are not sincere believers, but outward professors only of
the true religion.
3 Idem, Jallal. 4 Idem 5 Al Beidâwi. See Prid. Life
of Mahom. p. 111, &c. 6 Idem.
Verily the true believers are those only who believe in GOD and his
apostle, and afterwards doubt not; and who employ their substance and their
persons in the defence of GOD'S true religion: these are they who speak
sincerely.
Say, Will ye inform GOD concerning your religion?o But GOD knoweth
whatever is in heaven and in earth: for GOD is omniscient.
They upbraid thee that they have embraced Islâm. Answer, Upbraid me not
with your having embraced Islâm: rather GOD upbraideth you, that he hath
directed you to the faith;p if ye speak sincerely.
Verily GOD knoweth the secrets of heaven and earth: and GOD beholdeth
that which ye do.
________
CHAPTER L.
ENTITLED, K; REVEALED AT MECCA.
IN THE NAME OF THE MOST MERCIFUL GOD.
K.q BY the glorious Koran:
verily they wonder that a preacher from among themselves is come unto
them; and the unbelievers say, This is a wonderful thing:
after we shall be dead, and become dust, shall we return to life?
This is a return remote from thought. Now we know what the earth
consumeth of them; and with us is a book which keepeth an account thereof.
But they charge falsehood on the truth, after it hath come unto them:
wherefore they are plunged in a confused business.r
Do they not look up to the heaven above them, and consider how we have
raised it and adorned it; and that there are no flaws therein?
We have also spread forth the earth, and thrown thereon mountains firmly
rooted:s and we caused every beautiful kind of vegetables to spring up
therein;
for a subject of meditation, and an admonition unto every man who turneth
unto us.
And we send down rain as a blessing from heaven, whereby we cause gardens
to spring forth, and the grain of harvest,
10 and tall palm-trees having branches laden with dates hanging one above
another,
as a provision for mankind; and we thereby quicken a dead country: so
shall be the coming forth of the dead from their graves.
o i.e., Will ye pretend to deceive him, by saying ye are true
believers?
p The obligation being not on GOD'S side, but on yours, for that he has
favoured you so far as to guide you into the true faith, if ye are sincere
believers.
q Some imagine that this letter is designed to express the mountain
Kâf, which several eastern writers fancy encompass the whole world.1 Others
say it stands for Kada al amr, i.e., The matter is decreed, viz., the
chastisement of the infidels.2 See the Prelim. Disc. Sect. III. p. 46, &c.
r Not knowing what certainly to affirm of the Korân; calling it
sometimes a piece of poetry, at other times a piece of sorcery, and at other
times a piece of divination, &c.
s See chapter 16, p. 196, and chapter 31, p. 307.
1 Vide D'Herbel. Bibl. Orient. Art. Caf. 2 Al Beidâwi.
Jallalo'ddin.
The people of Noah, and those who dwelt at Al Rass,t and Thamud,
and Ad, and Pharaoh, accused the prophets of imposture before the
Meccans; and also the brethren of Lot, and the inhabitants of the wood near
Midian, and the people of Tobba:u all these accused the apostles of imposture;
wherefore the judgments which I threatened were justly inflicted on them.
Is our power exhausted by the first creation? Yea; they are in a
perplexity, because of a new creation which is foretold them, namely the
raising of the dead.
We created man, and we know what his soul whispereth within him; and we
are nearer unto him than his jugular vein.
When the two angels deputed to take account of a man's behavior, take an
account thereof; one sitting on the right hand, and the other on the left:
he uttereth not a word, but there is with him a watcher, ready to note
it.x
And the agony of death shall come in truth: this, O man, is what thou
soughtest to avoid.
And the trumpet shall sound: this will be the day which hath been
threatened.
20 And every soul shall come; and therewith shall be a driver and a
witness.y
And the former shall say unto the unbeliever, Thou wast negligent
heretofore of this day: but we have removed thy veil from off thee; and thy
sight is become piercing this day.
And his companions shall say, This is what is ready with me to be
attested.
And God shall say, Cast into hell every unbeliever, and perverse person,
and every one who forbade good, and every transgressor, and doubter of
the faith,
who set up another god with the true GOD; and cast him into a grievous
torment.
His companionz shall say, O LORD, I did not seduce him; but he was in a
wide error.a
God shall say, Wrangle not in my presence: since I threatened you
beforehand with the torments which ye now see prepared for you.
The sentence is not changed with me: neither do I treat my servants
unjustly.
On that day we will say unto hell, Art thou full? and it shall answer, Is
there yet any addition?b
30 And paradise shall be brought near unto the pious;
and it shall be said unto them, This is what ye have been promised; unto
every one who turned himself unto God, and kept his commandments;
t See chapter 25, p. 273.
u See chapter 44, p. 368.
x The intent of the passage is to exalt the omniscience of GOD, who
wants not the information of the guardian angels, though he has thought fit,
in his wisdom, to give them that employment; for if they are so exact as to
write down every word which falls from a man's mouth, how can we hope to
escape the observation of him who sees our inmost thoughts?
The Mohammedans have a tradition that the angel who notes a man's good
actions has the command over him who notes his evil actions; and that when a
man does a good action, the angel of the right hand writes it down ten times,
and when he commits an ill action, the same angel says to the angel of the
left hand, Forbear setting it down for seven hours; peradventure he may pray,
or may ask pardon.1
y i.e., Two angels, one acting as a sergeant, to bring every person
before the tribunal; and the other prepared as a witness, to testify either
for or against him. Some say the former will be the guardian angel who took
down his evil actions, and the other the angel who took down his good
actions.2
z viz., The devil which shall be chained to him.
a This will be the answer of the devil, whom the wicked person will
accuse as his seducer; for the devil has no power over a man to cause him to
do evil, any otherwise than by suggesting what is agreeable to his corrupt
inclinations.3
b i.e., Are there yet any more condemned to this place, or is my space
to be enlarged and rendered more capacious to receive them?
The commentators suppose hell will be quite filled at the day of
judgment, according to that repeated expression in the Korân, Verily I will
fill hell with you, &c.
1 Al Beidâwi. 2 Idem. 3 See cap. 14, p. 188,
&c.
who feared the Merciful in secret, and came unto him with a converted
heart:
enter the same in peace: this is the day of eternity.
Therein shall they have whatever they shall desire; and there will be a
superabundant addition of bliss with us.c
How many generations have we destroyed before the Meccans, which were
more mighty than they in strength? Pass, therefore, through the regions of
the earth, and see whether there be any refuge from our vengeance.
Verily herein is an admonition unto him who hath a heart to understand,
or giveth ear, and is present with an attentive mind.
We created the heavens and the earth, and whatever is between them, in
six days, and no weariness affected us.d
Wherefore patiently suffer what they say;e and celebrate the praise of
thy LORD before sunrise, and before sunset,
and praise him in some part of the night: and perform the additional
parts of worship.f
40 And hearken unto the day whereon the crier shall call men to judgment
from a near place:g
the day whereon they shall hear the voice of the trumpet in truth: this
will be the day of men's coming forth from their graves:
we give life, and we cause to die; and unto us shall be the return of all
creatures:
the day whereon the earth shall suddenly cleave in sunder over them.
This will be an assembly easy for us to assemble.
We well know what the unbelievers say; and thou art not sent to compel
them forcibly to the faith.
Wherefore warn, by the Koran, him who feareth my threatening.
________
CHAPTER LI.
ENTITLED, THE DISPERSING; REVEALED AT MECCA.
IN THE NAME OF THE MOST MERCIFUL GOD.
BY the winds dispersing and scattering the dust;h
and by the clouds bearing a load of rain;i
by the ships running swiftly in the sea;k
c See the Prelim. Disc. Sect. IV. p. 78.
d This was revealed in answer to the Jews, who said that GOD rested
from his work of creation on the seventh day, and reposed himself on his
throne, as one fatigued.1
e viz., Either what the idolaters say, in denying the resurrection; or
the Jews, in speaking indecently of GOD.
f These are the two inclinations used after the evening prayer, which
are not necessary, or of precept, but voluntary, and of supererogation; and
may therefore be added, or omitted, indifferently.
g That is, from a place whence every creature may equally hear the
call. This place, it is supposed, will be the mountain of the temple of
Jerusalem, which some fancy to be nigher heaven than any other part of the
earth; whence Israfil will sound the trumpet, and Gabriel will make the
following proclamation: O ye rotten bones, and torn flesh, and dispersed
hairs, GOD commandeth you to be gathered together to judgment.2
h Or, by the women who bring forth or scatter children, &c.
i Or, by the women bearing a burden in their womb, or the winds bearing
the clouds, &c.
k Or, by the winds passing swiftly in the air, or the stars moving
swiftly in their courses, &c.
1 Al Beidâwi, Jallalo'ddin. 2 Idem.
and by the angels who distribute things necessary for the support of all
creatures;l
verily that wherewith ye are threatened is certainly true;
and the last judgment will surely come.
By the heaven furnished with paths;m
ye widely differ in what ye say.n
He will be turned aside from the faith, who shall be turned aside by the
divine decree.
10 Cursed be the liars;
who wade in deep waters of ignorance, neglecting their salvation.
They ask, When will the day of judgment come?
On that day shall they be burned in hell fire;
and it shall be said unto them, Taste your punishment; this is what ye
demanded to be hastened.
But the pious shall dwell among gardens and fountains,
receiving that which their LORD shall give them; because they were
righteous doers before this day.
They slept but a small part of the night;o
and early in the morning they asked pardon of God:
and a due portion of their wealth was given unto him who asked, and unto
him who was forbidden by shame to ask.
20 There are signs of the divine power and goodness in the earth, unto men
of sound understanding;
and also in your own selves: will ye not therefore consider?
Your sustenance is in the heaven; and also that which ye are promised.p
Wherefore by the LORD of heaven and earth I swear that this is certainly
the truth; according to what ye yourselves speak.q
Hath not the story of Abraham's honoured guestsr come to thy knowledge?
When they went in unto him, and said, Peace: he answered Peace; saying
within himself, These are unknown people.
And he went privately unto his family, and brought a fatted calf.
And he set it before them, and when he saw they touched it not, he said,
Do ye not eat?
And he began to entertain a fear of them. They said, Fear not:s and they
declared unto him the promise of a wise youth.
And his wife drew near with exclamation, and she smote her face,t and
said, I am an old woman, and barren.
30 The angels answered, Thus saith thy LORD: verily he is the wise, the
knowing.
And Abraham said unto them, What is your errand, therefore, O messengers
of God?
They answered, Verily we are sent unto a wicked people:
that we may send down upon them stones of baked clay,
marked from thy LORD, for the destruction of transgressors.
And we brought forth the true believers who were in the city:
but we found not therein more than one family of Moslems.
And we overthrew the same, and left a sign therein unto those who dread
the severe chastisement of God.
In Moses also was a sign: when we sent him unto Pharaoh with manifest
power.
But he turned back, with his princes, saying, This man is a sorceror, or
a madman.
l Or, by the winds which distribute the rain, &c.
m i.e., The paths or orbs of the stars, or the streaks which appear in
the sky like paths, being thin and extended clouds.
n Concerning Mohammed, or the Korân, or the resurrection and day of
judgment; speaking variously and inconsistently of them.
o Spending the greater part in prayer and religious meditation.
p i.e., Your food cometh from above, whence proceedeth the change of
seasons and rain; and your future reward is also there, that is to say, in
paradise, which is situate above the seven heavens.
q That is, without any doubt or reserved meaning, as ye affirm a truth
unto one another.
r See chapter 11, p. 165, and chapter 15, p. 193.
s Some add, that to remove Abraham's fear, Gabriel, who was one of
these strangers, touched the calf with his wing, and it immediately rose up
and walked to its dam; upon which Abraham knew them to be the messengers of
GOD.1
t This, some pretend, she did for shame, because she felt her courses
coming upon her.
1 Al Beidâwi.
40 Wherefore we took him and his forces, and cast them into the sea: and he
was one worthy of reprehension.
And in the tribe of Ad also was a sign: when we sent against them a
destroying wind;u
it touched not aught whereon it came, but it rendered the same as a thing
rotten, and reduced to dust.
In Thamud likewise was a sign: when it was said unto them, Enjoy
yourselves for a time.x
But they insolently transgressed the command of their LORD: wherefore a
terrible noise from heaven assailed them, while they looked on;y
and they were not able to stand on their feet, neither did they save
themselves from destruction.
And the people of Noah did we destroy before these: for they were a
people who enormously transgressed.
We have built the heaven with might; and we have given it a large extent:
and we have stretched forth the earth beneath; and how evenly have we
spread the same!
And of everything have we created two kinds,z that peradventure ye may
consider.
50 Fly, therefore, unto GOD; verily I am a public warner unto you, from
him.
And set not up another god with the true GOD: verily I am a public warner
unto you, from him.
In like manner there came no apostle unto their predecessors, but they
said, This man is a magician, or a madman.
Have they bequeathed this behavior successively the one to the other?
Yea; they are a people who enormously transgress.
Wherefore withdraw from them; and thou shalt not be blameworthy in so
doing.
Yet continue to admonish: for admonition profiteth the true believers.
I have not created genii and men for any other end than that they should
serve me.
I require not any sustenance from them; neither will I that they feed me.
Verily GOD is he who provideth for all creatures; possessed of mighty
power.
Unto those who shall injure our apostle shall be given a portion like
unto the portion of those who behaved like them in times past; and they shall
not wish the same to be hastened.
60 Woe, therefore, to the unbelievers, because of their day with which they
are threatened!
______
CHAPTER LII.
ENTITLED, THE MOUNTAIN; REVEALED AT MECCA.
IN THE NAME OF THE MOST MERCIFUL GOD.
BY the mountain of Sinai;
and by the book written
in an expanded scroll;a
and by the visited house;b
u See chapter 7, p. 111, &c.
x i.e., For three days. See chapter 11, p. 165.
y For this calamity happened in the daytime.
z As for example: male and female; the heaven and the earth; the sun
and the moon; light and darkness; plains and mountains; winter and summer;
sweet and bitter, &c.1
a The book here intended, according to different opinions, is either
the book or register wherein every man's actions are recorded; or the
preserved table containing GOD'S decrees; or the book of the law, which was
written by GOD, Moses hearing the creaking of the pen; or else the Korân.2
b i.e., The Caaba, so much visited by pilgrims; or, as some rather
think, the original model of that house in heaven, called al Dorâh, which is
visited and compassed by the angels, as the other is by men.3
1 Jallalo'ddin. 2 Al Zamakh., al Beidâwi.
and by the elevated roof of heaven;
and by the swelling ocean:
verily the punishment of thy LORD will surely descend;
there shall be none to withhold it.
On that day the heaven shall be shaken, and shall reel;
10 and the mountains shall walk and pass away.
And on that day woe be unto those who accused God's apostles of
imposture;
who amused themselves in wading in vain disputes!
On that day shall they be driven and thrust into the fire of hell;
and it shall be said unto them, This is the fire which ye denied as a
fiction.
Is this a magic illusion? Or do ye not see?
Enter the same to be scorched: whether ye bear your torments patiently,
or impatiently, it will be equal unto you: ye shall surely receive the reward
of that which ye have wrought.
But the pious shall dwell amidst gardens and pleasures;
delighting themselves in what their LORD shall have given them: and their
LORD shall deliver them from the pains of hell.
And it shall be said unto them, Eat and drink with easy digestion;
because of that which ye have wrought:
20 leaning on couches disposed in order: and we will espouse them unto
virgins having large black eyes.
And unto those who believe, and whose offspring follow them in the faith,
we will join their offspring in paradise: and we will not diminish unto them
aught of the merit of their works. (Every man is given in pledge for that
which he shall have wrought.c)
And we will give them fruits in abundance, and flesh of the kinds which
they shall desire.
They shall present unto one another therein a cup of wine, wherein there
shall be no vain discourse, nor any incitement unto wickedness.
And youths appointed to attend them shall go round them: beautiful as
pearls hidden in their shell.
And they shall approach unto one another, and shall ask mutual questions.
And they shall say, Verily we were heretofore amidst our family, in great
dread with regard to our state after death:
but GOD hath been gracious unto us, and hath delivered us from the pain
of burning fire:
for we called on him heretofore; and he is the beneficent, the merciful.
Wherefore do thou, O prophet, admonish thy people. Thou art not, by the
grace of thy LORD, a soothsayer, or a madman.
30 Do they say, He is a poet; we wait, concerning him, some adverse turn of
fortune?
Say, Wait ye my ruin: verily I wait, with you, the time of your
destruction.
Do their mature understandings bid them say this; or are they people who
perversely transgress?
Do they say, He hath forged the Koran? Verily they believe not.
Let them produce a discourse like unto it, if they speak truth.
Were they created by nothing; or were they creators of themselves?
Did they create the heavens and the earth? Verily they are not firmly
persuaded that God hath created them.d
Are the stores of thy LORD in their hands? Are they the supreme
dispensers of all things?
c i.e., Every man is pledged unto GOD for his behaviour; and if he does
well, he redeems his pledge, but if evil, he forfeits it.
d For though they confess this with their tongues, yet they deny it by
their averseness to render him his due worship.
3 See the Prelim. Disc. Sect. IV.
Have they a ladder whereby they may ascend to heaven, and hear the
discourses of angels? Let one, therefore, who hath heard them, produce an
evident proof thereof.
Hath God daughters, and have ye sons?e
40 Dost thou ask them a reward for thy preaching? but they are laden with
debts.
Are the secrets of futurity with them; and do they transcribe the same
from the table of God's degrees?
Do they seek to lay a plot against thee? But the unbelievers are they
who shall be circumvented.f
Have they any god, besides GOD? Far be GOD exalted above the idols which
they associate with him!
If they should see a fragment of the heaven falling down upon them, they
would say, It is only a thick cloud.g
Wherefore leave them, until they arrive at their day wherein they shall
swoon for fear:h
a day, in which their subtle contrivances shall not avail them at all,
neither shall they be protected.
And those who act unjustly shall surely suffer another punishment besides
this:i but the greater part of them do not understand.
And wait thou patiently the judgment of thy LORD concerning them; for
thou art in our eye: and celebrate the praise of thy LORD, when thou risest
up;
and praise him in the night-season, and when the stars begin to
disappear.
______
CHAPTER LIII.
ENTITLED, THE STAR; REVEALED AT MECCA.
IN THE NAME OF THE MOST MERCIFUL GOD.
BY the star,k when it setteth;l
your companion Mohammed erreth not; nor is he led astray:
neither doth he speak of his own will.
It is no other than a revelation, which hath been revealed unto him.
One mighty in power, endued with understanding, taught it him:m
and he appearedn
in the highest part of the horizon.
Afterwards he approached the prophet,o and near unto him;
e See chapter 16, p. 199, &c.
f See chapter 8, p. 128, &c.
g This was one of the judgments which the idolatrous Meccans defied
Mohammed to bring down upon them; and yet, says the text, if they should see a
part of the heaven falling on them, they would not believe it till they were
crushed to death by it.1
h i.e., At the first sound of the trumpet.2
i That is, besides the punishment to which they shall be doomed at the
day of judgment, they shall be previously chastised by calamities in this
life, as the slaughter at Bedr, and the seven years' famine, and also after
their death, by the examination of the sepulchre.3
k Some suppose the stars in general, and others the Pleiades in
particular, to be meant in this place.
l Or, according to a contrary signification of the verb here used, when
it riseth.
m Namely, the angel Gabriel.
n In his natural form, in which GOD created him, and in the eastern
part of the sky. It is said that this angel appeared in his proper shape to
none of the prophets, except Mohammed, and to him only twice: once when he
received the first revelation of the Korân, and a second time when he took his
night journey to heaven; as it follows in the text.
o In a human shape.
1 Al Beidâwi. 2 See the Prelim. Disc. Sect. IV. p. 64.
3 Al Beidâwi.
until he was at the distance of two bows' lengthp from him, or yet
nearer;
10 and he revealed unto his servant that which he revealed.
The heart of Mohammed did not falsely represent that which he saw.
Will ye therefore dispute with him concerning that which he saw?q
He also saw him another time,
by the lote-tree beyond which there is no passing:r
near it is the garden of eternal abode.
When the lote-tree covered that which it covered,s
his eyesight turned not aside, neither did it wander:
and he really beheld some of the greatest signs of his LORD.t
What think ye of Allat, and Al Uzza,
20 and Manah, that other third goddess?u
Have ye male children, and God female?x
This, therefore, is an unjust partition.
They are no other than empty names, which ye and your fathers have named
goddesses. GOD hath not revealed concerning them anything to authorize their
worship. They follow no other than a vain opinion, and what their souls
desire: yet hath the true direction come unto them from their LORD.
Shall man have whatever he wisheth for?y
The life to come and the present life are GOD'S:
and how many angels soever there be in the heavens, their intercession
shall be of no avail,
until after GOD shall have granted permission unto whom he shall please
and shall accept.
Verily they who believe not in the life to come give unto the angels a
female appellation.
But they have no knowledge herein: they follow no other than a bare
opinion; and a bare opinion attaineth not anything of truth.
30 Wherefore withdraw from him who turneth away from our admonition, and
seeketh only the present life.
This is their highest pitch of knowledge. Verily thy LORD well knoweth
him who erreth from his way; and he well knoweth him who is rightly directed.
Unto GOD belongeth whatever is in heaven and earth: that he may reward
those who do evil, according to that which they shall have wrought; and may
reward those who do well, with the most excellent reward.
As to those who avoid great crimes, and heinous sins, and are guilty only
of lighter faults; verily thy LORD will be extensive in mercy towards them.
He well knew you when he produced you out of the earth, and when ye were
embryos in your mothers' wombs: wherefore justify not yourselves: he best
knoweth the man who feareth him.
What thinkest thou of him who turneth aside from following the truth,
p Or, as the word also signifies, two cubits' length.
q But he saw it in reality.
r This tree, say the commentators, stands in the seventh heaven, on the
right hand of the throne of GOD; and is the utmost bounds beyond which the
angels themselves must not pass; or, as some rather imagine, beyond which no
creature's knowledge can extend.
s The words seem to signify that what was under this tree exceeded all
description and number. Some suppose the whole host of angels worshipping
beneath it1 are intended, and others, the birds which sit on its branches.2
t Seeing the wonders both of the sensible and the intellectual world.3
u Those were three idols of the ancient Arabs, of which we have spoken
in the Preliminary Discourse.4
As to the blasphemy which some pretend Mohammed once uttered, through
inadvertence, as he was reading this passage, see chapter 22, p. 255.
x See chapter 16, p. 199, &c.
y i.e., Shall he dictate to GOD, and name whom he pleases for his
intercessors, or for his prophet; or shall he choose a religion according to
his own fancy, and prescribe the terms on which he may claim the reward of
this life and the next?5
1 Al Beidâwi. 2 Jalallo'ddin. 3 Al Beidâwi.
4 Sect. I. p. 14, &c.
5 Al Beidâwi, Jallalo'ddin.
and giveth little, and covetously stoppeth his hand?z
Is the knowledge of futurity with him, so that he seeth the same?a
Hath he not been informed of that which is contained in the books of
Moses,
and of Abraham who faithfully performed his engagements?
To wit: that a burdened soul shall not bear the burden of another;
40 and that nothing shall be imputed to a man for righteousness, except his
own labor;
and that his labor shall surely be made manifest hereafter,
and that he shall be rewarded for the same with a most abundant reward;
and that unto thy LORD will be the end of all things;
and that he causeth to laugh, and causeth to weep;
and that he putteth to death, and giveth life:
and that he createth the two sexes, the male and the female,
of seed when it is emitted;
and that unto him appertaineth another production, namely, the raising of
the dead again to life hereafter;
and that he enricheth, and causeth to acquire possessions;
50 and that he is the LORD of the dog-star;b
and that he destroyed the ancient tribe of Ad,
and Thamud, and left not any of them alive;
and also the people of Noah, before them; for they were most unjust and
wicked:
and he overthrew the cities which were turned upside down;c
and that which covered them, covered them.
Which, therefore, of thy LORD'S benefits, O man, wilt thou call in
question?
This our apostle is a preacher like the preachers who preceded him.
The approaching day of judgment draweth near: there is none who can
reveal the exact time of the same, besides GOD.
Do ye, therefore, wonder at this new revelation,
60 and do ye laugh, and not weep,
spending your time in idle diversions?
But rather worship GOD, and serve him.
_______
CHAPTER LIV.
ENTITLED, THE MOON; REVEALED AT MECCA.
IN THE NAME OF THE MOST MERCIFUL GOD.
THE hour of judgment approacheth; and the moon hath been split in
sunder:d
z This passage, it is said, was revealed on account of al Walid Ebn al
Mogheira, who, following the prophet one day, was reviled by an idolater for
leaving the religion of the Koreish, and giving occasion of scandal; to which
he answered, that what he did was out of apprehension of the divine vengeance:
whereupon the man offered, for a certain sum, to take the guilt of his
apostacy on himself; and the bargain being made, al Walid returned to his
idolatry, and paid the man part of what had been agreed on; but afterwards, on
farther consideration, he thought it too much, and kept back the remainder.6
a That is, is he assured that the person with whom he made the above-
mentioned agreement will be allowed to suffer in his stead hereafter?7
b Sirius, or the greater dog-star, was worshipped by some of the old
Arabs.1
c viz., Sodom, and the other cities involved in her ruin. See chapter
11, p. 166.
d This passage is expounded two different ways. Some imagine the words
refer to a famous miracle supposed to have been performed by Mohammed; for it
is said that, on the infidels demanding a sign of him, the moon appeared
cloven in two,1 one part vanishing, and the other remaining; and Ebn Masúd
affirmed that he saw Mount Harâ interpose between the two sections. Others
think the preter tense is here used in the prophetic style for the future, and
that the passage should be rendered, The moon shall be split in sunder: for
this, they say, is to happen at the resurrection. The former opinion is
supported by reading, according to some copies, wakad inshakka 'lkamaro, i.e.,
since the moon hath already been split in sunder; the splitting of the moon
being reckoned by some to be one of the previous signs of the last day.2
6 Al Beidâwi. 7 Idem. 1 See the Prelim. Disc. Sect.
I. p. 13, and Hyde, not. in Ulug. Beig. Tab. Stell. fix. p. 53.
1 See a long and fabulous account of this pretended miracle in Gagnier, Vie
de Mah. c. 19 2 Al Zamakh., al Beidâwi.
but if the unbelievers see a sign, they turn aside, saying, This is a
powerful charm.e
And they accuse thee, O Mohammed, of imposture, and follow their own
lusts: but everything will be immutably fixed.f
And now hath a messageg come unto them, wherein is a determent from
obstinate infidelity;
the same being consummate wisdom: but warners profit them not;
wherefore do thou withdraw from them. The day whereon the summoner shall
summon mankind to an ungrateful business,h
they shall come forth from their graves with downcast looks: numerous as
locusts scattered far abroad;
hastening with terror unto the summoner. The unbelievers shall say, This
is a day of distress.
The people of Noah accused that prophet of imposture, before thy people
rejected thee: they accused our servant of imposture, saying, He is a madman;
and he was rejected with reproach.
10 He called, therefore, upon his LORD, saying, Verily I am overpowered;
wherefore avenge me.i
So we opened the gates of heaven, with water pouring down,
and we caused the earth to break forth into springs; so that the water of
heaven and earth met, according to the decree which had been established.
And we bare him on a vessel composed of planks and nails;
which moved forward under our eyes:k as a recompense unto him who had
been ungratefully rejected.
And we left the said vessel for a sign: but is any one warned thereby?
And how severe was my vengeance, and my threatening!
Now have we made the Koran easy for admonition: but is any one admonished
thereby?
Ad charged their prophet with imposture: but how severe was my vengeance,
and my threatening!
Verily we sent against them a roaringl wind, on a day of continued ill
luck;m
20 it carried men away, as though they had been roots of palm-trees
forcibly torn up.n
And how severe was my vengeance and my threatening!
Now have we made the Koran easy for admonition: but is any one admonished
thereby?
Thamud charged the admonitions of their prophet with falsehood,
and said, Shall we follow a single man among us? verily we should then be
guilty of error, and preposterous madness:
is the office of admonition committed unto him preferably to the rest of
us? Nay; he is a liar, and an insolent fellow.
e Or, as the participle here used may also signify, a continued series
of magic, or a transient magic illusion.
f Or will reach a final period of ruin or success in this world, and of
misery or happiness in the next, which will be conclusive and unchangeable
thenceforward for ever.3
g i.e., The Korân, containing stories of former nations which have been
chastised for their incredulity, and threats of a more dreadful punishment
hereafter.
h That is, when the angel Israfil shall call men to judgment.
i This petition was not preferred by Noah till after he had suffered
repeated violence from his people; for it is related that one of them having
fallen upon him and almost strangled him, when he came to himself he said, O
LORD, forgive them, for they know not what they do.4
k i.e., Under our special regard and keeping.
l Or, a cold wind.
m viz., On a Wednesday. See chapter 41, p. 356, note t.
n It is related that they sought shelter in the clefts of rocks, and in
pits, holding fast by one another; but that the wind impetuously tore them
away, and threw them down dead.5
3 Al Beidâwi. 4 Idem. 5 Idem.
But God said to Saleh, To-morrow shall they know who is the liar, and the
insolent person:
for we will surely send the she-camel for a trial of them:o and do thou
observe them, and bear their insults with patience:
and prophesy unto them that the water shall be divided between them,p and
each portion shall be sat down to alternately.
And they called their companion:q and he took a sword,r and slew her.
30 But how severe was my vengeance, and my threatening!
For we sent against them one cry of the angel Gabriel; and they became
like the dry sticks used by him who buildeth a fold for cattle.s
And now have we made the Koran easy for admonition: but is any one
admonished thereby?
The people of Lot charged his preaching with falsehood:
but we sent against them a wind driving a shower of stones, which
destroyed them all except the family of Lot; whom we delivered early in the
morning,
through favor from us. Thus do we reward those who are thankful.
And Lot had warned them of our severity in chastising; but they doubted
of that warning.
And they demanded his guests of him, that they might abuse them: but we
put out their eyes,t
saying, Taste my vengeance, and my threatening.
And early in the morning a lasting punishmentu surprised them. Taste,
therefore, my vengeance, and my threatening.
40 Now have we made the Koran easy for admonition: but is any one
admonished thereby?
The warning of Moses also came unto the people of Pharaoh;
but they charged every one of our signs with imposture: wherefore we
chastised them with a mighty and irresistible chastisement.
Are your unbelievers, O Meccans, better than these? Is immunity from
punishment promised unto you in the scriptures?
Do they say, We are a body of men able to prevail against our enemies?
The multitude shall surely be put to flight, and shall turn their back.x
But the hour of judgment is their threatened time of punishment:y and
that hour shall be more grievous and more bitter than their afflictions in
this life.
Verily the wicked wander in error, and shall be tormented hereafter in
burning flames.
On that day they shall be dragged into the fire on their faces; and it
shall be said unto them, Taste ye the touch of hell.
All things have we created bound by a fixed decree:
50 and our command is no more than a single word,z like the twinkling of an
eye.
o See chapter 7, p. 112, &c.
p That is, between the Thamudites and the camel. See chapter 26, p.
280, note f.
q Namely, Kodâr Ebn Salef; who was not an Arab, but a stranger dwelling
among the Thamudites. See chapter 7, p. 112, note k.
r Or, as the word also imports, He became resolute and daring.
s The words may signify either the dry boughs with which, in the east,
they make folds or enclosures, to fence their cattle from wind and cold; or
the stubble and other stuff with which they litter them in those folds during
the winter season.
t So that their sockets became filled up even with the other parts of
their faces. This, it is said, was done by one stroke of the wing of the
angel Gabriel. See chapter 11, p. 166.
u Under which they shall continue till they receive their full
punishment in hell.
x This prophecy was fulfilled by the overthrow of the Koreish at Bedr.
It is related, from a tradition of Omar, that when this passage was revealed,
Mohammed professed himself to be ignorant of its true meaning; but on the day
of the battle of Bedr, he repeated these words as he was putting on his coat
of mail.1
y i.e., The time when they shall receive their full punishment; what
they suffer in this world being only the forerunner or earnest of what they
shall feel in the next.
z viz., Kun, i.e., Be. The passage may also be rendered, The execution
of our purpose is but a single act, exerted in a moment. Some suppose it
refers to the business of the day of judgment.1
1 Al Beidâwi.
We have formerly destroyed nations like unto you; but is any of you
warned by their example?
Everything which they do is recorded in the books kept by the guardian
angels:
and every action both small and great, is written down in the preserved
table.
Moreover the pious shall dwell among gardens and rivers,
in the assembly of truth, in the presence of a most potent king.
________
CHAPTER LV.
ENTITLED, THE MERCIFUL; REVEALED AT MECCA.a
IN THE NAME OF THE MOST MERCIFUL GOD.
THE Merciful hath taught his servant the Koran.
He created man:
he hath taught him distinct speech.
The sun and the moon run their courses according to a certain rule:
and the vegetables which creep on the ground, and the trees submit to his
disposition.
He also raised the heaven; and he appointed the balance,b
that ye should not transgress in respect to the balance:
wherefore observe a just weight; and diminish not the balance.
And the earth hath he prepared for living creatures:
10 therein are various fruits, and palm-trees bearing sheaths of flowers;
and grain having chaff, and leaves.
Which, therefore, of your LORD'S benefits will ye ungratefully deny?c
He created man of dried clay like an earthen vessel:
but he created the genii of fire clear from smoke.
Which, therefore, of your LORD'S benefits will ye ungratefully deny?
He is the LORD of the east,
and the LORD of the west.d
Which, therefore, of your LORD'S benefits will ye ungratefully deny?
He hath let loose the two seas,e that they meet each another:
20 between them is placed a bar which they cannot pass.
Which, therefore, of your LORD'S benefits will ye ungratefully deny?
From them are taken forth unions and lesser pearls.
Which, therefore, of your LORD'S benefits will ye ungratefully deny?
His also are the ships, carrying their sails aloft in the sea like
mountains.
Which, therefore, of your LORD'S benefits will ye ungratefully deny?
Every creature which liveth on the earth is subject to decay:
but the glorious and honourable countenance of thy LORD shall remain
forever.
a Most of the commentators doubt whether this chapter was revealed at
Mecca or at Medina; or partly at the one place, and partly at the other.
b Or justice and equity in mutual dealings.
c The words are directed to the two species of rational creatures, men
and genii; the verb and the pronoun being in the dual number.
This verse is intercalated, or repeated by way of burden, throughout the
whole chapter no less than thirty-one times, which was done, as Marracci
guesses, in imitation of David.2
d The original words are both in the dual number, and signify the
different points of the horizon at which the sun rises and sets at the summer
and winter solstice. See chapter 37, p. 334, note e.
e Of salt water and fresh;3 or the Persian and Mediterranean seas.4
1 Idem. 2 See Psalm cxxxvi. 3 See cap. 25, p. 274.
4 Al Beidâwi.
Which, therefore, of your LORD'S benefits will ye ungratefully deny?
Unto him do all creatures which are in heaven and earth make petition:
every day is he employed in some new work.f
30 Which, therefore, of your LORD'S benefits will ye ungratefully deny?
We will surely attend to judge you, O men and genii, at the last day.
Which, therefore, of your LORD'S benefits will ye ungratefully deny?
O ye collective body of genii and men, if ye be able to pass out of the
confines of heaven and earth,g pass forth: ye shall not pass forth but by
absolute power.
Which, therefore, of your LORD'S benefits will ye ungratefully deny?
A flame of fire without smoke, and a smoke without flameh shall be sent
down upon you; and ye shall not be able to defend yourselves therefrom.
Which, therefore, of your LORD'S benefits will ye ungratefully deny?
And when the heaven shall be rent in sunder, and shall become red as a
rose, and shall melt like ointment.i
(Which, therefore, of your LORD'S benefits will ye ungratefully deny?)
On that day neither man nor genius shall be asked concerning his sin.k
40 Which, therefore, of your LORD'S benefits will ye ungratefully deny?
The wicked shall be known by their marks;l and they shall be taken by the
forelocks, and the feet, and shall be cast into hell.
Which, therefore, of your LORD'S benefits will ye ungratefully deny?
This is hell, which the wicked deny as a falsehood:
they shall pass to and fro between the same and hot boiling water.m
Which, therefore, of your LORD'S benefits will ye ungratefully deny?
But for him who dreadeth the tribunal of his LORD are prepared two
gardens:n
(Which, therefore, of your LORD'S benefits will ye ungratefully deny?)
planted with shady trees.
Which, therefore, of your LORD'S benefits will ye ungratefully deny?
50 In each of them shall be two fountains flowing.
Which, therefore, of your LORD'S benefits will ye ungratefully deny?
In each of them shall there be of every fruit two kinds.o
Which, therefore, of your LORD'S benefits will ye ungratefully deny?
They shall repose on couches, the linings whereof shall be of thick silk
interwoven with gold: and the fruit of the two gardens shall be near at hand
together.p
Which, therefore, of your LORD'S benefits will ye ungratefully deny?
Therein shall receive them beauteous damsels, refraining their eyes from
beholding any besides their spouses: whom no man shall have deflowered before
them, neither any genius:
f In executing those things which he hath decreed from eternity; by
giving life and death, raising one and abasing another, hearing prayers and
granting petitions, &c.5
g To fly from the power and to avoid the decree of GOD.
h Or, as the word also signifies, molten brass, which shall be poured
on the heads of the damned.
i Or, shall appear like red leather; according to a different
signification of the original word.
k For their crimes will be known by their different marks; as it
follows in the text. This, says al Beidâwi, is to be understood of the time
when they shall be raised to life, and shall be led towards the tribunal: for
when they come to trial, they will then undergo an examination, as is declared
in several places of the Korân.
l See the Prelim. Disc. Sect. IV. p. 66, &c.
m For the only respite they shall have from the flames of hell, will be
when they are suffered to go to drink this scalding liquor. See chapter 37,
p. 336.
n i.e., One distinct paradise for men, and another for genii, or, as
some imagine, two gardens for each person; one as a reward due to his works,
and the other as a free and superabundant gift, &c.
o Some being known, and like the fruits of the earth; and others of new
and unknown species, or fruits both green and ripe.
p So that a man may reach them as he sits or lies down.
5 Idem, Jallalo'ddin.
(Which, therefore, of your LORD'S benefits will ye ungratefully deny?)
Having complexions like rubies and pearls.
Which, therefore, of your LORD'S benefits will ye ungratefully deny?
60 Shall the reward of good works be any other good?
Which, therefore, of your LORD'S benefits will ye ungratefully deny?
And besides these there shall be two other gardens:q
(Which, therefore, of your LORD'S benefits will ye ungratefully deny?)
Of a dark green.r
Which, therefore, of your LORD'S benefits will ye ungratefully deny?
In each of them shall be two fountains pouring forth plenty of water.
Which, therefore, of your LORD'S benefits will ye ungratefully deny?
In each of them shall be fruits, and palm-trees, and pomegranates.
Which, therefore, of your LORD'S benefits will ye ungratefully deny?
70 Therein shall be agreeable and beauteous damsels:
Which, therefore, of your LORD'S benefits will ye ungratefully deny?
Having fine black eyes, and kept in pavilions from public view:
Which, therefore, of your LORD'S benefits will ye ungratefully deny?
Whom no man shall have deflowered before their destined spouses, nor any
genius.
Which, therefore, of your LORD'S benefits will ye ungratefully deny?
Therein shall they delight themselves, lying on green cushions and
beautiful carpets.
Which, therefore, of your LORD'S benefits will ye ungratefully deny?
Blessed be the name of thy LORD, possessed of glory and honour!
______
CHAPTER LVI.
ENTITLED, THE INEVITABLE; REVEALED AT MECCA.
IN THE NAME OF THE MOST MERCIFUL GOD.
WHEN the inevitables day of judgment shall suddenly come,
no soul shall charge the prediction of its coming with falsehood:
it will abase some, and exalt others.
When the earth shall be shaken with a violent shock;
and the mountains shall be dashed in pieces,
and shall become as dust scattered abroad;
and ye shall be separated into three distinct classes:
the companions of the right hand; (how happy shall the companions of the
right hand be!)
and the companions of the left handt (how miserable shall the companions
of the left hand be!),
q For the inferior classes of the inhabitants of paradise.
r From hence, says al Beidâwi, it may be inferred that these gardens
will chiefly produce herbs or the inferior sorts of vegetables, whereas the
former will be planted chiefly with fruit-trees. The following part of this
description also falls short of that of the other gardens, prepared for the
superior classes.
s The original word, the force whereof cannot well be expressed by a
single one in English, signifies a calamitous accident, which falls surely and
with sudden violence, and is therefore made use of here to design the day of
judgment.
t That is, the blessed and the damned; who may be thus distinguished
here, because the books wherein their actions are registered will be delivered
into the right hands of the former and into the left hands of the latter,1
thought he words translated right hand and left hand do also signify happiness
and misery.
1 Al Beidâwi, Jallalo'ddin.
10 and those who have preceded others in the faith shall precede them to
paradise.u
These are they who shall approach near unto God:
they shall dwell in gardens of delight:
(There shall be many of the former religions;
and few of the last.x)
Reposing on couches adorned with gold and precious stones;
sitting opposite to one another thereon.y
Youths which shall continue in their bloom forever, shall go round about
to attend them,
with goblets, and beakers, and a cup of flowing wine:
their heads shall not ache by drinking the same, neither shall their
reason be disturbed:
20 and with fruits of the sorts which they shall choose,
and the flesh of birds of the kind which they shall desire.
And there shall accompany them fair damsels having large black eyes;
resembling pearls hidden in their shells:
as a reward for that which they shall have wrought.
They shall not hear therein any vain discourse, or any charge of sin;
but only the salutation, Peace! Peace!
And the companions of the right hand (how happy shall the companions of
the right hand be!)
shall have their abode among lote-trees free from thorns,
and trees of mauzz loaded regularly with their produce from top to
bottom;
under an extended shade,
30 near a flowing water,a
and amidst fruits in abundance,
which shall not fail, nor shall be forbidden to be gathered:
and they shall repose themselves on lofty beds.b
Verily we have created the damsels of paradise by a peculiar creation;c
and we have made them virgins,d
beloved by their husbands, of equal age with them;
for the delight of the companions of the right hand.
There shall be many of the former religions,
and many of the latter.e
u Either the first converts to Mohammedism, or the prophets, who were
the respective leaders of their people, or any persons who have been eminent
examples of piety and virtue, may be here intended. The original words
literally rendered are, The leaders, the leaders: which repetition, as some
suppose, was designed to express the dignity of these persons and the
certainty of their future glory and happiness.2
x i.e., There shall be more leaders, who have preceded others in faith
and good works, among the followers of the several prophets from Adam down to
Mohammed, than of the followers of Mohammed himself.3
y See chapter 25, p. 193, note a.
z The original word Talh is the name, not only of the mauz,1 but also
of a very tall and thorny tree, which bears abundance of flowers of an
agreeable smell,2 and seems to be the Acacia.
a Which shall be conveyed in channels to such places and in such manner
as every one shall desire.3 Al Beidâwi observes that the condition of the few
who have preceded others in faith and good works, is represented by whatever
may render a city life agreeable; and that the condition of the companions of
the right hand, or the generality of the blessed, is represented by those
things which make the principal pleasure of a country life; and that this is
done to show the difference of the two conditions.
b The word translated beds, signifies also, by way of metaphor, wives
or concubines; and if the latter sense be preferred, the passage may be
rendered thus, And they shall enjoy damsels raised on lofty couches, whom we
have created, &c.
c Having created them purposely of finer materials than the females of
this world, and subject to none of those inconveniences which are natural to
the sex.4 Some understand this passage of the beatified women; who, though
they died old and ugly, shall yet be restored to their youth and beauty in
paradise.5
d For how often soever their husbands shall go in unto them, they shall
always find them virgins.
e Father Marracci thinks this to be a manifest contradiction to what is
said above, There shall be many of the former and few of the latter: but al
Beidâwi obviates such an objection, by observing that the preceding passage
speaks of the leaders only, and those who have preceded others in faith and
good works; and the passage before us speaks of the righteous of inferior
merit and degree; so that though there be many of both sorts, yet there may be
few of one sort, comparatively speaking, in respect to the other.
2 Idem. 3 Idem. 1 See p. 338. 2 Vide J.
Leon. Descript. Africæ, l. 2.
3 Al Beidâwi. 4 See the Prelim. Disc. Sect. IV. p. 75, &c.
5 See ibid. p. 80.
40 And the companions of the left hand (how miserable shall the companions
of the left hand be!)
shall dwell amidst burning winds,f and scalding water,
under the shade of a black smoke,
neither cool nor agreeable.
For they enjoyed the pleasures of life before this, while on earth;
and obstinately persisted in a heinous wickedness:
and they said,
After we shall have died, and become dust and bones, shall we surely be
raised to life?
Shall our forefathers also be raised with us?
Say, Verily both the first and the last
50 shall surely be gathered together to judgment, at the prefixed time of a
known day.
Then ye, O men, who have erred, and denied the resurrection as a
falsehood,
shall surely eat of the fruit of the tree of al Zakkum,
and shall fill your bellies therewith:
and ye shall drink thereon boiling water;
and ye shall drink as a thirsty camel drinketh.
This shall be their entertainment on the day of judgment.
We have created you: will ye not therefore believe that we can raise you
from the dead?
What think ye? The seed which ye emit,
do ye create the same, or are we the creators thereof?
60 We have decreed death unto you all:
and we shall not be prevented. We are able to substitute others like
unto you in your stead, and to produce you again in the condition or form
which ye know not.
Ye know the original production by creation; will ye not therefore
consider that we are able to produce you by resuscitation?
What think ye? The grain which ye sow,
do ye cause the same to spring forth, or do we cause it to spring forth?
If we pleased, verily we could render the same dry and fruitless, so that
ye would not cease to wonder,g saying,
Verily we have contracted debtsh for seed and labor, but we are not
permittedi to reap the fruit thereof.
What think ye? The water which ye drink,
do ye send down the same from the clouds, or are we the senders thereof?
If we pleased, we could render the same brackish: will ye not therefore
give thanks?
70 What think ye? The fire which ye strike,
do ye produce the tree whence ye obtain the same,k or are we the
producers thereof?
We have ordained the same for an admonition,l and an advantage to those
who travel through the deserts.
Wherefore praise the name of thy LORD, the great God.
Moreover I swearm by the setting of the stars;
(and it is surely a great oath, if ye knew it;)
that this is the excellent Koran,
the original whereof is written in the preserved book:
none shall touch the same, except those who are clean.n
It is a revelation from the LORD of all creatures.
80 Will ye, therefore, despise this new revelation?
f Which shall penetrate into the passages of their bodies.
g Or to repent of your time and labour bestowed to little purpose, &c.
h Or, We are undone.
i Or, We are unfortunate wretches, who are denied the necessaries of
life.
k See chapter 36, p. 334, note b.
l To put men in mind of the resurrection;1 which the production of fire
in some sort resembles, or, of the fire of hell.2
m The particle la is generally supposed to be intensive in this place;
but if it be taken for a negative, the words must be translated, I will not or
do not swear, because what is here asserted is too manifest to need the
confirmation of an oath.3
n Or, Let none touch the same, &c. Purity both of body and mind being
requisite in him who would use this book with the respect he ought, and hopes
to edify by it: for which reason these words are usually written on the
cover.4
1 See cap. 36, p. 334. 2 Al Beidâwi. 3 Idem.
4 See the Prelim. Disc. Sect. III. p. 54.
And do ye make this return for your food which ye receive from God, that
ye deny yourselves to be obliged to him for the same?o
When the soul of a dying person cometh up to his throat,
and ye at the same time are looking on;
(and we are nigher unto him than ye, but ye see not his true condition;)
would ye not, if ye are not to be rewarded for your action hereafter,
cause the same to return into the body, if ye speak the truth?p
And whether he be of those who shall approach near unto God,q
his reward shall be rest, and mercy, and a garden of delights:
or whether he be of the companions of the right hand,
90 he shall be saluted with the salutation, Peace be unto thee! by the
companions of the right hand, his brethren:
or whether he be of those who have rejected the true faith,
and gone astray,
his entertainment shall consist of boiling water,
and the burning of hell fire.
Verily this is a certain truth.
Wherefore praise the name of thy LORD, the great God.
________
CHAPTER LVII.
ENTITLED, IRON;r REVEALED AT MECCA, OR AT MEDINA.s
IN THE NAME OF THE MOST MERCIFUL GOD.
WHATEVER is in heaven and earth singeth praise unto GOD; and he is mighty
and wise.
His is the kingdom of heaven and earth; he giveth life, and he putteth to
death; and he is almighty.
He is the first, and the last; the manifest and the hidden: and he
knoweth all things.
It is he who created the heavens and the earth in six days, and then
ascended his throne. He knoweth that which entereth into the earth, and that
which issueth out of the same, and that which descendeth from heaven, and that
which ascendeth thereto; and he is with you, wheresoever ye be: for GOD seeth
that which ye do.
His is the kingdom of heavens and earth; and unto GOD shall all things
return.
He causeth the night to succeed the day, and he causeth the day to
succeed the night; and he knowest the innermost part of men's breasts.
Believe in GOD and his apostle, and lay out in alms a part of the wealth
whereof GOD hath made you inheritors: for unto such of you as believe, and
bestow alms, shall be given a great reward.
o By ascribing the rains, which fertilize your lands, to the influence
of the stars.5
Some copies instead of rizkacom, i.e., your food, read shocracom, i.e.,
your gratitude; and then the passage may be rendered thus, And do ye make this
return of gratitude, for GOD'S revealing the Korân, that ye reject the same as
a fiction?
p The meaning of this obscure passage is, if ye shall not be obliged to
give an account of your actions at the last day, as by your denying the
resurrection ye seem to believe, cause the soul of the dying person to return
into his body; for ye may as easily do that as avoid the general judgment.6
q That is, of the leaders, or first professors of the faith.
r The word occurs toward the end of the chapter.
s It is uncertain which of the two places was the scene of revelation
of this chapter.
35
5 See ibid. Sect. I. p. 25. 6 Jallal., al Beidâwi.
And what aileth you, that ye believe not in GOD, when the apostle
inviteth you to believe in your LORD; and he hath received your covenantt
concerning this matter, if ye believe any proposition?
It is he who hath sent down unto his servant evident signs, that he may
lead you out of darkness into light; for GOD is compassionate and merciful
unto you.
10 And what aileth you, that ye contribute not of your substance for the
defence of GOD'S true religion? Since unto GOD appertaineth the inheritance
of heaven and earth. Those among you who shall have contributed and fought in
defence of the faith, before the taking of Mecca, shall not be held equal with
those who shall contribute and fight for the same afterwards.u These shall be
superior in degree unto those who shall contribute and fight for the
propagation of the faith, after the above-mentioned success; but unto all hath
GOD promised a most excellent reward; and GOD well knoweth that which ye do.
Who is he that will lend unto GOD an acceptable loan? for he will double
the same unto him, and he shall receive moreover an honourable reward.
On a certain day, thou shalt see the true believers of both sexes: their
light shall run before them, and on their right hands;x and it shall be said
unto them, Good tidings unto you this day: gardens through which rivers flow;
ye shall remain therein forever. This will be great felicity.
On that day the hypocritical men and the hypocritical women shall say
unto those who believe, Stay for us,y what we may borrow some of your light.
It shall be answered, Return back into the world, and seek light. And a high
wall shall be set betwixt them, wherein shall be a gate, within which shall be
mercy; and without it, over against the same, the torment of hell. The
hypocrites shall call out unto the true believers, saying, Were we not with
you? They shall answer, Yea; but ye seduced your own souls by your hypocrisy;
and ye waited our ruin; and ye doubted concerning the faith; and your wishes
deceived you, until the decree of GOD came, and ye died: and the deceiver
deceived you concerning GOD.
This day, therefore, a ransom shall not be accepted of you, nor of those
who have been unbelievers. Your abode shall be hell fire: this is what ye
have deserved; and an unhappy journey shall it be thither!
Is not the time yet come unto those who believe, that their hearts should
humbly submit to the admonition of GOD, and to that truth which hath been
revealed; and that they be not as those unto whom the scripture was given
heretofore, and to whom the time of forbearance was prolonged, but their
hearts were hardened, and many of them were wicked doers?
Know that GOD quickeneth the earth, after it hath been dead. Now have we
distinctly declared our signs unto you, that ye may understand.
Verily as to the almsgivers, both men and women, and those who lend unto
GOD an acceptable loan, he will double the same unto them; and they shall
moreover receive an honourable reward.
And they who believe in GOD and his apostles, these are the men of
veracity, and the witnesses in the presence of their LORD: they shall have
their reward, and their light. But as to those who believe not, and accuse
our signs of falsehood, they shall be the companions of hell.
t That is, ye are obliged to believe in him by the strongest arguments
and motives.
u Because afterwards there was not so great necessity for either, the
Mohammedan religion being firmly established by that great success.
x One light leading them the right way to paradise, and the other
proceeding from the book wherein their actions are recorded, which they will
hold in their right hand.
y For the righteous will hasten to paradise swift as lightning.
Know that this present life is only a toy and a vain amusement: and
worldly pomp, and the affectation of glory among you, and the multiplying of
riches and children, are as the plants nourished by the rain, the springing up
whereof delighteth the husbandmen; afterwards they wither, so that thou seest
the same turned yellow, and at length they become dry stubble. And in the
life to come will be a severe punishment for those who covet worldly grandeur;
20 and pardon from GOD, and favor for those who renounce it: for this
present life is no other than a deceitful provision.
Hasten with emulation to obtain pardon from your LORD, and paradise, the
extent whereof equalleth the extent of heaven and earth, prepared for those
who believe in GOD and his apostles. This is the bounty of GOD: he will give
the same unto whom he pleaseth; and GOD is endued with great bounty.
No accident happeneth in the earth, nor in your persons, but the same was
entered in the book of our decrees, before we created it: verily this is easy
with GOD:
and this is written lest ye immoderately grieve for the good which
escapeth you, or rejoice for that which happened unto you; for GOD loveth no
proud or vain-glorious person,
or those who are covetous, and command men covetousness. And whoso
turneth aside from giving alms; verily GOD is self-sufficient, worthy to be
praised.
We formerly sent our apostles with evident miracles and arguments; and we
sent down with them the scriptures and the balance,z that men might observe
justice: and we sent them down iron,a wherein is mighty strength for war,b and
various advantages unto mankind: that GOD may know who assisteth him and his
apostles in secret;c for GOD is strong and mighty.
We formerly sent Noah and Abraham, and we established in their posterity
the gift of prophecy, and the scripture: and of them some were directed, but
many of them were evil-doers.
Afterwards we caused our apostles to succeed in their footsteps; and we
caused Jesus the son of Mary to succeed them, and we gave him the gospel: and
we put in the hearts of those that followed him compassion and mercy: but as
to the monastic state, they instituted the same (we did not prescribe it to
them) only out of a desire to please GOD; yet they observed not the same as it
ought truly to have been observed. And we gave unto such of them as believed
their reward: but many of them were wicked doers.
O ye who believe in the former prophets,d fear GOD, and believe in his
apostle Mohammed: he will give you two portions of his mercy,e and he will
ordain a light wherein ye may walk, and he will forgive you; for GOD is ready
to forgive, and merciful:
that those who have received the scriptures may know that they have not
power over any of the favours of GOD,f and that good is in the hand of GOD; he
bestoweth the same on whom he pleaseth; for GOD is endued with great
beneficence.
z i.e., A rule of justice. Some think that a balance was actually
brought down from heaven by the angel Gabriel to Noah, the use of which he was
ordered to introduce among his people.
a That is, we taught them how to dig the same from mines. Al
Zamakhshari adds, that Adam is said to have brought down with him from
paradise five things made of iron, viz., an anvil, a pair of tongs, two
hammers, a greater and a lesser, and a needle.
b Warlike instruments and weapons being generally made of iron.
c That is, sincerely and heartily.
d These words are directed to the Jews and Christians, or rather to the
latter only.
e One as a recompence for their believing in Mohammed, and the other as
a recompense for their believing in the prophets who preceded him; for they
will not lose the reward of their former religion, though it be now abrogated
by the promulgation of Islâm.1
f i.e., That they cannot expect to receive any of the favours above
mentioned, because they believe not in his apostle, and those favours are
annexed to faith in him; or, that they have not power to dispose of GOD'S
favours, particularly of the greatest of them, the gift of prophecy, so as to
appropriate the same to whom they please.1
1 Al Beidâwi. 1 Idem.
CHAPTER LVIII.
ENTITLED, SHE WHO DISPUTED; REVEALED AT MEDINA.g
IN THE NAME OF THE MOST MERCIFUL GOD.
NOW hath GOD heard the speech of her who disputed with thee concerning
her husband, and made her complaint unto GOD;h and GOD hath heard your mutual
discourse: for GOD both heareth and seeth.
As to those among you who divorce their wives, by declaring that they
will thereafter regard them as their mothers; let them know that they are not
their mothers. They only are their mothers who brought them forth;i and they
certainly utter an unjustifiable saying and a falsehood:
but GOD is gracious and ready to forgive.
Those who divorce their wives by declaring that they will for the future
regard them as their mothers, and afterwards would repairk what they have
said, shall be obliged to free a captive,l before they touch one another.
That is what ye are warned to perform: and GOD is well apprised of that which
ye do.
And whoso findeth not a captive to redeem, shall observe a fast of two
consecutive months, before they touch one another. And whoso shall not be
able to fast that time, shall feed threescore poor men. This is ordained you,
that ye may believe in GOD and his apostle. These are the statutes of GOD:
and for the unbelievers is prepared a grievous torment.
Verily they who oppose GOD and his apostle shall be brought low, as the
unbelievers who preceded them were brought low. And now have we sent down
manifest signs: and an ignominious punishment awaiteth the unbelievers.
g Some are of opinion that the first ten verses of this chapter, ending
with these words, and fear GOD, before whom ye shall be assembled, were
revealed at Mecca, and the rest at Medina.2
h This was Khawla bint Thálaba, the wife of Aws Ebn al Sâmat, who,
being divorced by her husband by a form in use among the Arabs in the time of
ignorance, viz., by saying to her, Thou art to me as the back of my mother,3
came to ask Mohammed's opinion whether they were necessarily obliged to a
separation; and he told her that it was not lawful for her to cohabit with her
husband any more: to which she replying, that her husband had not put her
away, the prophet repeated his former decision, adding that such form of
speaking was by general consent understood to imply a perpetual separation.
Upon this the woman, being greatly concerned because of the smallness of her
children, went home, and uttered her complaint to GOD in prayer: and thereupon
this passage was revealed,4 allowing a man to take his wife again,
notwithstanding his having pronounced the above-mentioned form of divorce, on
doing certain acts of charity or mortification, by way of penance.
i And therefore no woman ought to be placed in the same degree of
prohibition, except those whom GOD has joined with them, as nursing mothers,
and the wives of the prophet.5
k This seems to be here the true meaning of the original word, which
properly signifies to return, and is variously expounded by the Mohammedan
doctors.
l Which captive, according to the most received decision, ought to be a
true believer, as is ordered for the expiation of manslaughter.6
2 Idem. 3 See cap. 33, p. 312. 4 Al Beidâwi,
Jallalo'ddin, &c. 5 Al Beidâwi See cap. 4, p. 56, and cap. 33, p. 319.
6 See cap. 4, p. 64.
On a certain day GOD shall raise them all to life, and shall declare unto
them that which they have wrought. GOD hath taken an exact account thereof;
but they have forgotten the same: and GOD is witness over all things.
Dost thou not perceive that GOD knoweth whatever is in heaven and in
earth? There is no private discourse among three persons, but he is the
fourth of them; nor among five, but he is the sixth of them; neither among a
smaller number than this, nor a larger, but he is with them, wheresoever they
be: and he will declare unto them that which they have done, on the day of
resurrection; for GOD knoweth all things.
Hast thou not observed those who have been forbidden to use clandestine
discourse, but afterwards return to what they have been forbidden, and
discourse privily among themselves of wickedness, and enmity, and disobedience
towards the apostle?m And when they come unto thee, they salute thee with
that form of salutation wherewith GOD doth not salute thee;n and they say
among themselves, by way of derision, Would not GOD punish us for what we say,
if this man were a prophet? Hell shall be their sufficient punishment: they
shall go down into the same to be burned; and an unhappy journey shall it be!
10 O true believers, when ye discourse privily together, discourse not of
wickedness, and enmity, and disobedience towards the apostle; but discourse of
justice and piety: and fear GOD, before whom ye shall be assembled.
Verily the clandestine discourse of the infidels proceedeth from Satan,
that he may grieve the true believers: but there shall be none to hurt them in
the least, unless by the permission of GOD; wherefore in GOD let the faithful
trust.
O true believers, when it is said unto you, Make room in the assembly;
make room:o GOD will grant you ample room in paradise. And when it is said
unto you, Rise up; rise up: GOD will raise those of you who believe, and those
to whom knowledge is given, to superior degrees of honour; and GOD is fully
apprised of that which ye do.
O true believers, when ye go to speak with the apostle, give alms
previously to your discoursing with him;p this will be better for you, and
more pure. But if ye find not what to give, verily GOD will be gracious and
merciful unto you.
Do ye fear to give alms previously to your discoursing with the prophet,
lest ye should impoverish yourselves? Therefore if ye do it not, and GOD is
gracious unto you, by dispensing with the said precept for the future, be
constant at prayer, and pay the legal alms; and obey GOD and his apostle in
all other matters: for GOD well knoweth that which ye do.
m That is, the Jews and hypocritical Moslems, who caballed privately
together against Mohammed, and made signs to one another when they saw the
true believers; and this they continued to do, notwithstanding they were
forbidden.
n It seems they used, instead of Al salâm aleica, i.e., Peace be upon
thee, to say, Al sâm aleica, i.e., Mischief on thee, &c.1
o In this passage the Moslems are commanded to give place, in the
public assemblies, to the prophet and the more honourable of his companions;
and not to press and crowd upon him, as they used to do, out of a desire of
being near him, and hearing his discourse.
p To show your sincerity, and to honour the apostle. It is doubted
whether this be a counsel or a precept; but, however, it continued but a very
little while in force, being agreed on all hands to be abrogated by the
following passage, Do ye fear to give alms, &c.2
1 Al Beidâwi, Jallalo'ddin. 2 Idem
Hast thou not observed those who have taken for their friends a people
against whom GOD is incensed?q They are neither of you, nor of them:r and
they swear to a lies knowingly.
GOD hath prepared for them a grievous punishment; for it is evil which
they do.
They have taken their oaths for a cloak, and they have turned men aside
from the way of GOD: wherefore a shameful punishment awaiteth them;
neither their wealth nor their children shall avail them at all against
GOD. These shall be the inhabitants of hell fire; they shall abide therein
forever.
On a certain day GOD shall raise them all: then will they swear unto him,
as they swear now unto you, imagining that it will be of service to them. Are
they not liars?
20 Satan hath prevailed against them, and hath caused them to forget the
remembrance of GOD. These are the party of the devil; and shall not the party
of the devil be doomed to perdition?
Verily they who oppose GOD and his apostle shall be placed among the most
vile. GOD hath written, Verily I will prevail, and my apostles: for GOD is
strong and mighty.
Thou shalt not find people who believe in GOD and the last day to love
him who opposeth GOD and his apostle; although they be their fathers, or their
sons, or their brethren, or their nearest relations. In the hearts of these
hath GOD written faith; and he hath strengthened them with his spirit: and he
will lead them into gardens, beneath which rivers flow, to remain therein
forever. GOD is well pleased in them; and they are well pleased in him.
These are the party of GOD: and shall not the party of GOD prosper?
________
CHAPTER LIX.
ENTITLED, THE EMIGRATION;t REVEALED AT MEDINA.
IN THE NAME OF THE MOST MERCIFUL GOD.
WHATEVER is in heaven and earth celebrateth the praise of GOD: and he is
the mighty, the wise.
q i.e., The Jews.
r Being hypocrites, and wavering between the two parties.
s i.e., They have solemnly professed Islâm, which they believe not in
their hearts.
t The original word signifies the quitting or removing from one's
native country or settlement, to dwell elsewhere, whether it be by choice or
compulsion.
It was he who caused those who believed not, of the people who receive
the scripture, to depart from their habitations at the first emigration.u Ye
did not think that they would go forth: and they thought that their fortresses
would protect them against GOD. But the chastisement of GOD came upon them,
from whence they did not expect; and he cast terror into their hearts. They
pulled down their houses with their own hands,x and the hands of the true
believers. Wherefore take example from them, O ye who have eyes.
And if GOD had not doomed them to banishment, he had surely punished them
in this world:y and in the world to come they shall suffer the torment of hell
fire.
This, because they opposed GOD and his apostle: and whoso opposeth GOD,
verily GOD will be severe in punishing him.
What palm-trees ye cut down, or left standing on their roots, were so cut
down or left by the will of GOD; and that he might disgrace the wicked doers.
And as to the spoils of these people which GOD hath granted wholly to his
apostle,z ye did not push forward any horses or camels against the same;a but
GOD giveth unto his apostles dominion over whom he pleaseth: for GOD is
almighty.
The spoils of the inhabitants of the towns which GOD hath granted to his
apostle are due unto GOD and to the apostle, and to him who is of kin to the
apostle, and the orphans, and the poor, and the traveller; that they may not
be forever divided in a circle among such of you as are rich. What the
apostle shall give you, that accept; and what he shall forbid you, that
abstain from: and fear GOD; for GOD is severe in chastising.
A part also belongeth to the poor Mohâjerîn,b who have been dispossessed
of their houses and their substance, seeking favor from GOD, and his good-
will, and assisting GOD and his apostle. These are the men of veracity.
u The people here intended were the Jews of the tribe of al Nadîr, who
dwelt in Medina, and when Mohammed fled thither from Mecca, promised him to
stand neuter between him and his opponents, and made a treaty with him to that
purpose. When he had gained the battle of Bedr, they confessed that he was
the prophet described in the law: but upon his receiving that disgrace at
Ohod, they changed their note; and Caab Ebn al Ashraf, with forty horse, went
and made a league with Abu Sofiân, which they confirmed by oath. Upon this,
Mohammed got Caab dispatched, and, in the fourth year of the Hejra, set
forward against al Nadîr, and besieged them in their fortress, which stood
about three miles from Medina, for six days, at the end of which they
capitulated, and were allowed to depart, on condition that they should
entirely quit that place: and accordingly some of them went into Syria, and
others to Khaibar and Hira.1
This was the first emigration, mentioned in the passage before us. The
other happened several years after, in the reign of Omar, when that Khalîf
banished those who had settled at Khaibar, and obliged them to depart out of
Arabia.2
Dr. Prideaux, speaking of Mohammed's obliging those of al Nadîr to quit
their settlements, says that a party of his men pursued those who fled into
Syria, and having overtaken them, put them all to the sword, excepting only
one man that escaped. With such cruelty, continues he, did those barbarians
first set up to fight for that imposture they had been deluded into.3 But a
learned gentleman has already observed that this is all grounded on a mistake,
which the doctor was led into by an imperfection in the printed edition of
Elmacinus; where, after mentioning the expulsion of the Nadîrites, are
inserted som e incoherent words relating to another action which happened the
month before, and wherein seventy Moslems, instead of putting others to the
sword, were surprised and put to the sword themselves, together with their
leader al Mondar Ebn Omar, Caab Ebn Zeid alone escaping.4
x Doing what damage they could, that the Moslems might make the less
advantage of what they were obliged to leave behind them.
y By delivering them up to slaughter and captivity, as he did those of
Koreidha.
z It is remarkable that in this expedition the spoils were not divided
according to the law given for that purpose in the Korân,5 but were granted to
the apostle, and declared to be entirely in his disposition. And the reason
was, because the place was taken without the assistance of horse, which became
a rule for the future.6
a For the settlement of those of al Nadîr being so near Medina, the
Moslems went all on foot thither, except only the prophet himself.7
b Wherefore Mohammed distributed those spoils among the Mohâjerîn, or
those who had fled from Mecca, only, and gave no part thereof to the Ansârs,
or those of Medina, except only to three of them, who were in necessitous
circumstances.8
1 Al Beidâwi, Jallal. &c. Vide Abulf. Vit. Moh. c. 35. 2
Idem interp. 3 Prid. Life of Mah. p. 82.
4 Vide Gagnier, not. in Abulf. Vit. Moh. p. 72. 5 Cap. 8, p. 130.
6 Vide Abulf. Vit. Moh. p. 91.
7 Al Beidâwi. 8 Idem. Vide Abulf. ubi sup. p. 72.
And they who quietly possessed the town of Medina, and professed the
faith without molestation, before them,c love him who hath fled unto them, and
find in their breasts no want of that which is given the Mohâjerîn,d but
prefer them before themselves, although there be indigence among them. And
whoso is preserved from the covetousness of his own soul, those shall surely
prosper.
10 And they who have come after theme say, O LORD, forgive us and our
brethren who have preceded us in the faith, and put not into our hearts ill-
will against those who have believed: O LORD, verily thou art compassionate
and merciful.
Hast thou not observed them who play the hypocrites? They say unto their
brethren who believe not, of those who have received the scriptures,f Verily
if ye be expelled your habitations, we will surely go forth with you; and we
will not pay obedience, in your respect, unto any one forever: and if ye be
attacked, we will certainly assist you. But GOD is witness that they are
liars.
Verily if they be expelled, they will not go forth with them: and if they
be attacked, they will not assist them;g and if they do assist them, they will
surely turn their backs: and they shall not be protected.
Verily ye are stronger than they, by reason of the terror cast into their
breasts from GOD. This, because they are not people of prudence.
They will not fight against you in a body, except in fenced towns, or
from behind walls. Their strength in war among themselves is great:h thou
thinkest them to be united; but their hearts are divided. This, because they
are people who do not understand.
Like those who lately preceded them,i they have tasted the evil
consequence of their deed; and a painful torment is prepared for them
hereafter.
Thus have the hypocrites deceived the Jews: like the devil, when he saith
unto a man, Be thou an infidel; and when he is become an infidel, he saith,
Verily I am clear of thee; for I fear GOD, the LORD of all creatures.
Wherefore the end of them both shall be that they shall dwell in hell
fire, abiding therein forever: and this shall be the recompense of the unjust.
O true believers, fear GOD; and let a soul look what it sendeth before
for the morrow:k and fear GOD, for GOD is well acquainted with that which ye
do.
And be not as those who have forgotten GOD, and whom he hath caused to
forget their own souls: these are the wicked doers.
20 The inhabitants of hell fire and the inhabitants of paradise shall not
be held equal. The inhabitants of paradise are they who shall enjoy felicity.
If we had sent down this Koran on a mountain, thou wouldest certainly
have seen the same humble itself, and cleave in sunder for fear of GOD. These
similitudes do we propose unto men, that they may consider.
He is GOD, besides whom there is no GOD; who knoweth that which is
future, and that which is present: he is the most Merciful;
c That is, the Ansârs; who enjoyed their houses and the free exercise
of their religion before the Hejra, while the converts of Mecca were
persecuted and harassed by the idolaters.
d i.e., And bear them no grudge or envy on that account.
e The persons here meant seem to be those who fled from Mecca after
Mohammed began to gain strength, and his religion had made a considerable
progress.
f That is, the Jews of the tribe of al Nadîr.
g And it happened accordingly; for Ebn Obba and his confederates wrote
to the Nadîrites to this purpose, but never performed their promise.1
h i.e., It is not their weakness or cowardice which makes them decline
a field battle with you, since they show strength and valour enough in their
wars with one another; but both fail them when they enter into the lists with
GOD and his apostle.
i viz., The idolaters who were slain at Bedr; or the Jews of Kainokâ,
who were plundered and sent into exile before those of al Nadîr.
k That is, for the next life, which may be called the morrow, as this
present life may be called to-day.
1 Al Beidâwi.
he is GOD, besides whom there is no GOD: the King, the Holy, the Giver of
peace, the Faithful, the Guardian, the Powerful, the Strong, the most High.
Far be GOD exalted above the idols which they associate with him!
He is GOD, the Creator, the Maker, the Former. He hath most excellent
names.l Whatever is in heaven and in earth praiseth him: and he is the
Mighty, the Wise.
________
CHAPTER LX.
ENTITLED, SHE WHO IS TRIED;m REVEALED AT MEDINA.
IN THE NAME OF THE MOST MERCIFUL GOD.
O TRUE believers, take not my enemy and your enemy for your friends,n
showing kindness towards them; since they believe not in the truth which hath
come unto you, having expelled the apostle and yourselves from your native
city, because ye believe in GOD, your LORD. If ye go forth to fight in
defence of my religion, and out of a desire to please me, and privately show
friendship unto them;o verily I well know that which ye conceal, and that
which ye discover: and whoever of you doth this, hath already erred from the
straight path.
If they get the better of you, they will be enemies unto you, and they
will stretch forth their hands and their tongues against you with evil: and
they earnestly desire that ye should become unbelievers.
Neither your kindred nor your children will avail you at all on the day
of resurrection, which will separate you from one another: and GOD seeth that
which ye do.
Ye have an excellent pattern in Abraham, and those who were with him,
when they said unto their people, Verily we are clear of you, and of the idols
which ye worship, besides GOD: we have renounced you; and enmity and hatred is
begun between us and you forever, until ye believe in GOD alone: except
Abraham's saying unto his father, Verily I will beg pardon for thee:p but I
cannot obtain aught of GOD in thy behalf. O LORD, in thee do we trust, and
unto thee are we turned; and before thee shall we be assembled hereafter.
l See cap. 7, p. 123, note x.
m This chapter bears this title because it directs the women who desert
and come over from the infidels to the Moslems to be examined, and tried
whether they be sincere in their profession of the faith.
n This passage was revealed on account of Hateb Ebn Abi Balpaa, who
understanding that Mohammed had a design to surprise Mecca, wrote a letter to
the Koreish, giving them notice of the intended expedition, and advised them
to be on their guard: which letter he sent by Sarah, a maid-servant belonging
to the family of Hâshem. The messenger had not been gone long, before Gabriel
discovered the affair to the prophet, who immediately sent after her; and
having intercepted the letter, asked Hateb how he came to be guilty of such an
action? To which he replied that it was not out of infidelity, or a desire to
return to idolatry, but merely to induce the Koreish to treat his family,
which was still at Mecca, with some kindness; adding that he was well assured
his intelligence would be of no service at all to the Meccans, because he was
satisfied GOD would take vengeance on them. Whereupon Mohammed received his
excuse and pardoned him; but it was thought proper to forbid any such
practices for the future.1
o The verb here used has also a contrary signification, according to
which the words may be rendered, and yet openly show friendship unto them.
p For in this Abraham's example is not to be followed. See chapter 9,
p. 148.
1 Idem. Vide Abulf. Vit. Moh. p. 192.
O LORD, suffer us not to be put to trial by the unbelievers:q and forgive
us, O LORD; for thou art mighty and wise.
Verily ye have in them an excellent example, unto him who hopeth in GOD
and the last day: and whoso turneth back; verily GOD is self-sufficient, and
praiseworthy.
Peradventure GOD will establish friendship between yourselves and such of
them as ye now hold for enemies:r for GOD is powerful; and GOD is inclined to
forgive, and merciful.
As to those who have not borne arms against you on account of religion,
nor turned you out of your dwellings, GOD forbiddeth you not to deal kindly
with them, and to behave justly towards them:s for GOD loveth those who act
justly.
But as to those who have borne arms against you on account of religion,
and have dispossessed you of your habitations, and have assisted in
dispossessing you, GOD forbiddeth you to enter into friendship with them: and
whosoever of you entereth into friendship with them, those are unjust doers.
10 O true believers, when believing women come unto you as refugees, try
them: GOD well knoweth their faith. And if ye know them to be true believers,
send them not back to the infidels: they are not lawful for the unbelievers to
have in marriage; neither are the unbelievers lawful for them. But give their
unbelieving husbands what they shall have expended for their dowers.t Nor
shall it be any crime in you if ye marry them, provided ye give them their
dowries.u And retain not the patronage of the unbelieving women: but demand
back that which ye have expended for the dowry of such of your wives as go
over to the unbelievers; and let them demand back that which they have
expended for the dowry of those who come over to you. This is the judgment of
GOD, which he establisheth among you: and GOD is knowing and wise.
q i.e., Suffer them not to prevail against us, lest they thence
conclude themselves to be in the right, and endeavour to make us deny our
faith by the terror of persecution.1
r And this happened accordingly on the taking of Mecca; when Abu Sofiân
and others of the Koreish, who had till then been inveterate enemies to the
Moslems, embraced the same faith, and became their friends and brethren. Some
suppose the marriage of Mohammed with Omm Habîba, the daughter of Abu Sofiân,
which was celebrated the year before, to be here intended.2
s This passage, it is said, was revealed on account of Koteila bint
Abd'al Uzza, who having, while she was an idolatress, brought some presents to
her daughter, Asma bint Abi Becr, the latter not only refused to accept them,
but even denied her admittance.3
t For, according to the terms of the pacification of al Hodeibiya,4
each side was to return whatever came into their power belonging to the other;
wherefore when the Moslems were, by this passage, forbidden to restore the
married women who should come over to them, they were at the same time
commanded to make some sort of satisfaction, by returning their dowry.
It is related that, after the aforesaid pacification, while Mohammed was
yet at al Hodeibiya, Sobeia bint al Hareth, of the tribe of Aslam, having
embrace Mohammedism, her husband, Mosâfer the Makhzumite, came and demanded
her back; upon which this passage was revealed: and Mohammed, pursuant
thereto, administered to her the oath thereafter directed, and returned her
husband her dower; and then Omar married her.5
u For what is returned to their former husbands is not to be considered
as their dower.
1 Al Beidâwi. 2 Vide Gagnier, not in Abulf. Vit. Moh. p. 91.
3 Al Beidâwi. 4 See cap. 48, p. 380, &c. 5 Al
Beidâwi.
If any of your wivesx escape from you to the unbelievers, and ye have
your turn by the coming over of any of the unbelievers' wives to you;y give
unto those believers whose wives shall have gone away, out of the dowries of
the latter, so much as they shall have expended for the dowers of the former:
and fear GOD, in whom ye believe.
O prophet, when believing women come unto thee, and plight their faith
unto thee,z that they will not associate anything with GOD, nor steal, nor
commit fornication, nor kill their children,a nor come with a calumny which
they have forged between their hands and their feet,b nor be disobedient to
thee in that which shall be reasonable: then do thou plight thy faith unto
them, and ask pardon for them of GOD; for GOD is inclined to forgive, and
merciful.
O true believers, enter not into friendship with a people against whom
GOD is incensed;c they despair of the life to come,d as the infidels despair
of the resurrection of those who dwell in the graves.
________
CHAPTER LXI.
ENTITLED, BATTLE-ARRAY; REVEALED AT MECCA.e
IN THE NAME OF THE MOST MERCIFUL GOD.
WHATEVER is in heaven and in earth celebrateth the praise of GOD; for he
is mighty and wise.
O true believers, why do ye say that which ye do not?f
It is most odious in the sight of GOD, that ye say that which ye do not.
Verily GOD loveth those who fight for his religion in battle-array, as
though they were a well-compacted building.
Remember when Moses said unto his people, O my people, why do ye injure
me;g since ye know that I am the apostle of GOD sent unto you? And when they
had deviated from the truth, GOD made their hearts to deviate from the right
way; for GOD directeth not wicked people.
x Literally, anything of your wives; which some interpret, any part of
their dowry.
y Or, as the original verb may also be translated, and ye take spoils;
in which case the meaning will be, that those Moslems, whose wives shall have
gone over to the infidels, shall have a satisfaction for their dower out of
the next booty. This law, they saw, was given because of the idolaters, after
the preceding verse had been revealed, refused to comply therewith, or to make
any return of the dower of those women who went over to them from the
Moslems;1 so that the latter were obliged to indemnify themselves as they
could.
z See the Prelim. Disc. Sect. II. p. 37. Some are of opinion that this
passage was not revealed till the day of the taking of Mecca; when, after
having received the solemn submission of the men, he proceeded to receive that
of the women.2
a See chapter 81.
b Jallalo'ddin understands these words of their laying their spurious
children to their husbands.
c i.e., The infidels in general; or the Jews in particular.3
d By reason of their infidelity; or because they well know they cannot
expect to be made partakers of the happiness of the next life, by reason of
their rejecting of the prophet foretold in the law, and whose mission is
confirmed by miracles.4
e Or, as some rather judge, at Medina; which opinion is confirmed by
the explication in the next note.
f The commentators generally suppose these words to be directed to the
Moslems, who, notwithstanding they had solemnly engaged to spend their lives
and fortunes in defence of their faith, yet shamefully turned their backs at
the battle of Ohod.5 They may, however, be applied to hypocrites of all
sorts, whose actions contradict their words.
g viz., By your disobedience; or by maliciously aspersing me.6
1 Idem. 2 Idem. 3 See cap. I, p. 1. 4 Al
Beidâwi. 5 Cap. 3, p. 45, &c.
6 See cap. 33, p. 320.
And when Jesus the Son of Mary said, O children of Israel, verily I am
the apostle of GOD sent unto you, confirming the law which was delivered
before me, and bringing good tidings of an apostle who shall come after me,
and whose name shall be Ahmed.i And when he produced unto them evident
miracles, they said, This is manifest sorcery.
But who is more unjust than he who forgeth a lie against GOD, when he is
invited unto Islam? And GOD directeth not the unjust people.
They seek to extinguish GOD'S light with their mouths: but GOD will
perfect his light, though the infidels be averse thereto.
It is he who hath sent his apostle with the direction, and the religion
of truth, that he may exalt the same above every religion, although the
idolaters be averse thereto.
10 O true believers, shall I show you a merchandise which will deliver you
from a painful torment hereafter?
Believe in GOD and his apostle; and defend GOD'S true religion with your
substance, and in your own persons. This will be better for you, if ye knew
it.
He will forgive you your sins, and will introduce you into gardens
through which rivers flow, and agreeable habitations in gardens of perpetual
abode. This will be great felicity.
And ye shall obtain other things which ye desire, namely, assistance from
GOD, and a speedy victory. And do thou bear good tidings to the true
believers.
O true believers, be ye assistants of GOD; as Jesus the son of Mary said
to the apostles, Who will be my assistants with respect to GOD?k The apostles
answered, We will be the assistants of GOD. So a part of the children of
Israel believed, and a part believed not:l but we strengthened those who
believed, above their enemy; wherefore they became victorious over them.
______
CHAPTER LXII.
ENTITLED, THE ASSEMBLY; REVEALED AT MEDINA.
IN THE NAME OF THE MOST MERCIFUL GOD.
WHATEVER is in heaven and earth praiseth GOD; the King, the Holy, the
Mighty, the Wise.
i For Mohammed also bore the name of Ahmed; both names being derived
from the same root, and nearly of the same signification. The Persian
paraphrast, to support what is here alleged, quotes the following words of
Christ, I go to my father, and the Paraclete shall come:7 the Mohammedan
doctors unanimously teaching that by the Paraclete (or, as they choose to read
it, the Periclyte, or Illustrious) their prophet is intended, and no other.8
k See chapter 3, p. 38.
l Either by rejecting him, or by affirming him to be GOD, and the son
of GOD.9
7 See John xvi. 7, &c. 8 See the Prelim. Disc. Sect. IV. p. 58.
9 Jallalo'ddin.
It is he who hath raised up amidst the illiterate Arabians an apostle
from among themselves,m to rehearse his signs unto them, and to purify them,
and to teach them the scriptures and wisdom; whereas before they were
certainly in a manifest error;
and others of them have not yet attained unto them, by embracing the
faith; though they also shall be converted in God's good time; for he is
mighty and wise.
This is the free grace of GOD: he bestoweth the same on whom he pleaseth:
and GOD is endued with great beneficence.
The likeness of those who were charged with the observance of the law,
and then observed it not, is as the likeness of an ass laden with books.n How
wretched is the likeness of the people who charge the signs of GOD with
falsehood! and GOD directeth not the unjust people.
Say, O ye who follow the Jewish religion, if ye say that ye are the
friends of GOD above other men, wish for death,o if ye speak truth.
But they will never wish for it, because of that which their hands have
sent before them:p and GOD well knoweth the unjust.
Say, Verily death, from which ye fly, will surely meet you: then shall ye
be brought before him who knoweth as well what is concealed as what is
discovered; and he will declare unto you that which ye have done.
O true believers, when ye are called to prayer on the day of assembly,q
hasten to the commemoration of GOD and leave merchandising. This will be
better for you, if you knew it.
10 And when prayer is ended, then disperse yourselves through the land as
ye list, and seek gain of the liberality of GOD:r and remember GOD frequently,
that ye may prosper.
But when they see any merchandising, or sport, they flock thereto, and
leave thee standing up in the pulpit.s Say, The reward which is with GOD is
better than any sport or merchandise: and GOD is the best provider.
m See the Prelim. Disc. Sect. II. p. 32.
n Because they understand not the prophecies contained in the law,
which bear witness to Mohammed, no more than the ass does the books he
carries.
o i.e., Make it your request to GOD that he would translate you from
this troublesome world to a state of never-fading bliss.
p See chapter 2, p. 11.
q That is, Friday, which being more peculiarly set apart by Mohammed
for the public worship of GOD, is therefore called Yawm al jomá, i.e., the day
of the assembly or congregation; whereas before it was called al Arûba. The
first time this day was particularly observed, as some say, was on the
prophet's arrival at Medina, into which city he made his first entry on a
Friday: but others tell us that Caab Ebn Lowa, one of Mohammed's ancestors,
gave the day its present name, because on that day the people used to be
assembled before him.1 One reason given for the observation of Friday,
preferably to any other day of the week, is because on that day GOD finished
the creation.2
By returning to your commerce and worldly occupations, if ye think fit:
for the Mohammedans do not hold themselves obliged to observe the day of their
public assembly with the same strictness as the Christians and Jews do their
respective Sabbath; or particularly to abstain from work, after they have
performed their devotions. Some, however, from a tradition of their prophet,
are of opinion that works of charity, and religious exercises, which may draw
down the blessing of GOD, are recommended in this passage.
r It is related that one Friday, while Mohammed was preaching, a
caravan of merchants happened to arrive with their drums beating, according to
custom; which the congregation hearing, they all ran out of the mosque to see
them, except twelve only.3
1 Al Beidâwi. 2 Vide Gol. in Alfrag p. 15. 3 Al
Beidâwi, Jallalo'ddin.
CHAPTER LXIII.
ENTITLED, THE HYPOCRITES; REVEALED AT MEDINA.
IN THE NAME OF THE MOST MERCIFUL GOD.
WHEN the hypocrites come unto thee, they say, We bear witness that thou
art indeed the apostle of GOD. And GOD knoweth that thou art indeed his
apostle: but GOD beareth witness that the hypocrites are certainly liars.
They have taken their oaths for a protection, and they turn others aside
from the way of GOD: it is surely evil which they do.
This is testified of them, because they believed, and afterwards became
unbelievers: wherefore a seal is set on their hearts, and they shall not
understand.
When thou beholdest them, their persons please thee:t and if they speak,
thou hearest their discourse with delight. They resemble pieces of timber set
up against a wall.u They imagine every shout to be against them.x They are
enemies: wherefore beware of them. GOD curse them: how are they turned aside
from the truth!
And when it is said unto them, Come, that the apostle of GOD may ask
pardon for you; they turn away their heads, and thou seest them retire big
with disdain.
It shall be equal unto them, whether thou ask pardon for them, or do not
ask pardon for them: GOD will by no means forgive them; for GOD directeth not
the prevaricating people.
These are the men who say to the inhabitants of Medina, Do not bestow
anything on the refugees who are with the apostle of GOD, that they may be
obliged to separate from him. Whereas unto GOD belong the stores of heaven
and earth: but the hypocrites do not understand.
They say, Verily, if we return to Medina, the worthier shall expel thence
the meaner.y Whereas superior worth belongeth unto GOD and his apostle, and
the true believers: but the hypocrites know it not.
O true believers, let not your riches or your children divert you from
the remembrance of GOD: for whosoever doth this, they will surely be losers.
10 And give alms out of that which we have bestowed on you; before death
come unto one of you, and he say, O LORD, wilt thou not grant me respite for a
short term: that I may give alms, and become one of the righteous?
For GOD will by no means grant further respite to a soul, when its
determined time is come: and GOD is fully apprised of that which ye do.
t The commentators tell us, that Abdallah Ebn Obba, a chief hypocrite,
was a tall man of a very graceful presence, and of a ready and eloquent
tongue; and used to frequent the prophet's assembly, attended by several like
himself; and that these men were greatly admired by Mohammed, who was taken
with their handsome appearance, and listened to their discourse with
pleasure.1
u Being tall and big, but void of knowledge and consideration.2
x Living under continual apprehensions; because they are conscious of
their hypocrisy towards GOD, and their insincerity towards the Moslems.
y These, as well as the preceding, were the words of Ebn Obba to one of
Medina, who in a certain expedition quarrelling with an Arab of the desert
about water, received a blow on the head with a stick, and made his complaint
thereof to him.3
1 Al Beidâwi 2 Idem. 3 Idem.
CHAPTER LXIV
ENTITLED, MUTUAL DECEIT; REVEALED AT MECCA.z
IN THE NAME OF THE MOST MERCIFUL GOD.
WHATEVER is in heaven and earth celebrateth the praises of GOD: his is
the kingdom, and unto him is the praise due; for he is almighty.
It is he who hath created you; and one of you is predestined to be an
unbeliever, and another of you is predestined to be a believer: and GOD
beholdeth that which ye do.
He hath created the heavens and the earth with truth; and he hath
fashioned you, and given you beautiful forms: and unto him must ye all go.
He knoweth whatever is in heaven and earth: and he knoweth that which ye
conceal, and that which ye discover; for GOD knoweth the innermost part of
men's breasts.
Have ye not been acquainted with the story of those who disbelieved
heretofore, and tasted the evil consequence of their behavior? And for them
is prepared in the life to come a tormenting punishment.
This shall they suffer, because their apostles came unto them with
evident proofs of their mission, and they said, Shall men direct us?
Wherefore they believed not, and turned their backs. But GOD standeth in need
of no person: for GOD is self-sufficient, and worthy to be praised.
The unbelievers imagine that they shall not be raised again. Say, Yea,
by my LORD, ye shall surely be raised again; then shall ye be told that which
ye have wrought; and this is easy with GOD.
Wherefore believe in GOD and his apostle, and the light which we have
sent down: for GOD is well acquainted with that which ye do.
On a certain day he shall assemble you, at the day of the general
assembly: that will be the day of mutual deceit.a And whoso shall believe in
GOD, and shall do that which is right, from him will he expiate his evil
deeds, and he will lead him into gardens beneath which rivers flow, to remain
therein forever. This will be great felicity.
10 But they who shall not believe, and shall accuse our signs of falsehood,
those shall be the inhabitants of hell fire, wherein they shall remain
forever; and a wretched journey shall it be thither!
No misfortune happeneth but by the permission of GOD; and whoso believeth
in GOD, he will direct his heart: and GOD knoweth all things.
Wherefore obey GOD, and obey the apostle: but if ye turn back, verily the
duty incumbent on our apostle is only public preaching.
GOD! there is no GOD but he: wherefore in GOD let the faithful put their
trust.
O true believers, verily of your wives and your children ye have an
enemy:b wherefore beware of them. But if ye pass over their offences, and
pardon, and forgive them;c GOD is likewise inclined to forgive, and merciful.
z The commentators are not agreed whether this chapter was revealed at
Mecca, or at Medina; or partly at the one place, and partly at the other.
a When the blessed will deceive the damned, by taking the places which
they would have had in paradise had they been true believers; and
contrariwise.1
b For these are apt to distract a man from his duty, especially in time
of distress;2 a married man caring for the things that are of this world,
while the unmarried careth for the things that belong to the LORD.3
c Considering that the hindrance they may occasion you proceeds from
their affection, and their ill bearing your absence in time of war, &c.
1 Idem, Jallalo'ddin, Yahya. 2 Idem. 3 See I Cor. vii.
25, &c.
Your wealth and your children are only a temptation; but with GOD is a
great reward.
Wherefore fear GOD, as much as ye are able; and hear, and obey: and give
alms, for the good of your souls; for whoso is preserved from the covetousness
of his own soul, they shall prosper.
If ye lend unto GOD an acceptable loan, he will double the same unto you,
and will forgive you: for GOD is grateful, and long-suffering,
knowing both what is hidden, and what is divulged; the Mighty, the Wise.
________
CHAPTER LXV.
ENTITLED, DIVORCE; REVEALED AT MEDINA.
IN THE NAME OF THE MOST MERCIFUL GOD.
O PROPHET, when ye divorce women, put them away at their appointed term;d
and compute the term exactly: and fear GOD, your LORD. Oblige them not to go
out of their apartments, neither let them go out, until the term be expired,
unless they be guilty of manifest uncleanness. These are the statutes of GOD:
and whoever transgresseth the statutes of GOD assuredly injureth his own soul.
Thou knowest not whether GOD will bring something new to pass, which may
reconcile them after this.
And when they shall have fulfilled their term, either retain them with
kindness, or part from them honourably: and take witnesses from among you, men
of integrity; and give your testimony as in the presence of GOD. This
admonition is given unto him who believeth in GOD and the last day: and whoso
feareth GOD, unto him will he grant a happy issue out of all his afflictions,
and he will bestow on him an ample provision from whence he expecteth it not:
and whoso trusteth in GOD, he will be his sufficient support; for GOD
will surely attain his purpose. Now hath GOD appointed unto everything a
determined period.
As to such of your wives as shall despair having their courses, by reason
of their age; if ye be in doubt thereof, let their term be three months: and
let the same be the term of those who have not yet had their courses. But as
to those who are pregnant, their term shall be, until they be delivered of
their burden.e And whoso feareth GOD, unto him will he make his command easy.
This is the command of GOD, which he hath sent down unto you. And whoso
feareth GOD, he will expiate his evil deeds from him, and will increase his
reward.
d That is, when they shall have had their courses thrice after the time
of their divorce, if they prove not to be with child; or, if they prove with
child, when they shall have been delivered.1 Al Beidâwi supposes husbands are
hereby commanded to divorce their wives while they are clean; and says that
the passage was revealed on account of Ebn Omar, who divorced his wife when
she had her courses upon her, and was therefore obliged to take her again.
e See chapter 2, p. 24.
1 cap. 2, p. 24.
Suffer the women whom ye divorce to dwell in some part of the houses
wherein ye dwell; according to the room and conveniences of the habitations
which ye possess: and make them not uneasy, that ye may reduce them to
straits. And if they be with child, expend on them what shall be needful,
until they be delivered of their burden. And if they suckle their children
for you, give them their hire;f and consult among yourselves, according to
what shall be just and reasonable. And if ye be put to a difficulty herein,
and another woman shall suckle the child for him,
let him who hath plenty expend proportionably in the maintenance of the
mother and the nurse, out of his plenty: and let him whose income is scanty
expend in proportion out of that which GOD hath given him. GOD obligeth no
man to more than he hath given him ability to perform: GOD will cause ease to
succeed hardship.
How many cities have turned aside from the command of the LORD and his
apostles! Wherefore we brought them to a severe account; and we chastised
them with a grievous chastisement:
and they tasted the evil consequence of their business; and the end of
their business was perdition.
10 GOD hath prepared for them a severe punishment: wherefore fear GOD, O ye
who are endued with understanding.
True believers, now hath GOD sent down unto you an admonition, an apostle
who may rehearse unto you the perspicuous signs of GOD; that he may bring
forth those who believe and do good works, from darkness into light. And
whoso believeth in GOD, and doth that which is right, him will he lead into
gardens beneath which rivers flow, to remain therein forever: now hath GOD
made an excellent provision for him.
It is GOD who hath created seven heavens, and as many different stories
of the earth: the divine command descendeth between them;g that ye may know
that GOD is omnipotent, and that GOD comprehendeth all things by his
knowledge.
________
CHAPTER LXVI.
ENTITLED, PROHIBITION; REVEALED AT MEDINA.
IN THE NAME OF THE MOST MERCIFUL GOD.
O PROPHET, why holdest thou that to be prohibited which GOD hath allowed
thee, seeking to please thy wives;h since GOD is inclined to forgive, and
merciful?
f Which ought at least to be sufficient to maintain and clothe them
during the time of suckling. See chapter 2, p. 25.
g Penetrating and pervading them all with absolute efficacy.
GOD hath allowed you the dissolution of your oaths:i and GOD is your
master; and he is knowing and wise.
When the prophet intrusted as a secret unto one of his wives a certain
accident; and when she disclosed the same, and GOD made it known unto him; he
acquainted her with part of what she had done, and forbore to upbraid her with
the other part thereof. And when he had acquainted her therewith, she said,
Who hath discovered this unto thee? He answered, The knowing, the sagacious
God hath discovered it unto me.k
h There are some who suppose this passage to have been occasioned by
Mohammed's protesting never to eat honey any more, because, having once eaten
some in the apartment of Hafsa, or of Zeinab, three other of his wives,
namely, Ayesha, Sawda, and Safia, all told him they smelt he had been eating
of the juice which distils from certain shrubs in those parts, and resembles
honey in taste and consistence, but is of a very strong flavour, and which the
prophet had a great aversion to.1 But the more received opinion is, that the
chapter was revealed on the following occasion. Mohammed having lain with a
slave of his named Mary, of Coptic extract (who had been sent him as a present
by al Mokawkas, governor of Eygpt), on the day which was due to Ayesha, or to
Hafsa, and, as some say, on Hafsa's own bed, while she was absent; and this
coming to Hafsa's knowledge, she took it extremely ill, and reproached her
husband so sharply that, to pacify her, he promised, with an oath, never to
touch the maid again:1 and to free him from the obligation of this promise was
the design of the chapter.
I cannot here avoid observing, as a learned writer2 has done before me,
that Dr. Prideaux has strangely misrepresented this passage. For having given
the story of the prophet's amour with his maid mary, a little embellished, he
proceeds to tell us that in this chapter Mohammed brings in GOD allowing him,
and all his Moslems, to lie with their maids when they will, notwithstanding
their wives (whereas the words relate to the prophet only, who wanted not any
new permission for that purpose, because it was a privilege already granted
him,3 though to none else); and then, to show what ground he had for his
assertion, adds that the first words of the chapter are, O prophet, why dost
thou forbid what GOD hath allowed thee, that thou mayest please thy wives?
GOD hath granted unto you to lie with your maid-servants.4 Which last words
are not to be found here, or elsewhere in the Korân, and contain an allowance
of what is expressly forbidden therein;5 though the doctor has thence taken
occasion to make some reflections which might as well have been spared. I
shall say nothing to aggravate the matter, but leave the reader to imagine
what this reverend divine would have said of a Mohammedan if he had caught him
tripping in the like manner.
Having digressed so far, I will venture to add a word or two in order to
account for one circumstance which Dr. Prideaux relates concerning Mohammed's
concubine Mary; viz., that after her master's death, no account was had of her
or the son which she had borne him, but both were sent away into Egypt, and no
mention made of either ever after among them; and then he supposes (for he
seldom is at a loss for a supposition) that Ayesha, out of the hatred which
she bore her, procured of her father, who succeeded the impostor in the
government, to have her thus disposed of.6 But it being certain, by the
general consent of all the eastern writers, that Mary continued in Arabia till
her death, which happened at Medina about five years after that of her master,
and was buried in the usual burying-place there, called al Bakí, and that her
son died before his father, it has been asked, whence the doctor had this?7 I
answer, that I guess he had it partly from Abulfaragius, according to the
printed edition of whose work, the Mary we are speaking of is said to have
been sent with her sister Shirin (not with her son) to Alexandria by al
Mokawkas;8 though I make no doubt but we ought in that passage to read min,
from, instead if ila, to (notwithstanding the manuscript copies of this author
used by Dr. Pocock, the editor, and also a very fair one in my own possession,
agree in the latter reading); and that the sentence ought to run thus, quam
(viz., Mariam) unà cum sorore Shirina ab Alexandria miserat al Mokawkas.
i By having appointed an expiation for that purpose;9 or, as the words
may be translated, God hath allowed you to use an exception in your oaths if
it please GOD; in which case a man is excused from guilt if he perform not his
oath.10 The passage, though directed to all the Moslems in general, seems to
be particularly designed for quieting the prophet's conscience in regard to
the oath above mentioned: but Al Beidâwi approves not this opinion, because
such an oath was to be looked upon as an inconsiderate one, and required no
expiation.
k When Mohammed found that Hafsa knew of his having injured her, or
Ayesha, by lying with his concubine Mary on the day due to one of them, he
desired her to keep the affair secret, promising, at the same time, that he
would not meddle with Mary any more; and foretold her, as a piece of news
which might soothe her vanity, that Abu Becr and Omar should succeed him in
the government of his people. Hafsa, however, could not conceal this from
Ayesha, with whom she lived in strict friendship, but acquainted her with the
whole matter: whereupon the prophet, perceiving, probably by Ayesha's
behaviour, that his secret had been discovered, upbraided Hafsa with her
betraying him, telling her that GOD had revealed it to him; and not only
divorced her, but separated him from all his other wives for a whole month,
which time he spent in the apartment of Mary. In a short time,
notwithstanding, he took Hafsa again, by the direction, as he gave out, of the
angel Gabriel, who commended her for her frequent fasting and other exercises
of devotion, assuring him likewise that she should be one of his wives in
paradise.11
1 Al Zamakh., al Beidâwi. 1 Idem, Jallal., Yahya.
2 Gagnier, not. ad Abulf. Vit. Moh. p. 150.
3 See cap. 33, p. 318, 319. 4 Prid. Life of Mah. p. 113. 5 See
cap. 17, p. 209; cap. 4, p. 56; and cap. 24, p. 267, &c.
6 Prid. Life of Mah. p. 114. 7 Gagnier, ubi supra. 8
Abulfarag. Hist. Dynast. p. 165. 9 See cap. 5, p. 84.
10 Al Beidâwi. 11 Idem. al Zamakh, &c.
If ye both be turned unto GOD (for your hearts have swerved) it is well:
but if ye join against him, verily GOD is his patron; and Gabriel, and the
good man among the faithful, and the angels also are his assistants.l
If he divorce you, his LORD can easily give him in exchange other wives
better than you, women resigned unto God, true believers, devout, penitent,
obedient, given to fasting, both such as have been known by other men, and
virgins.
O true believers, save your souls, and those of your families, from the
fire whose fuel is men and stones, over which are set angels fierce and
terrible;m who disobey not GOD in what he hath commanded them, but perform
what they are commanded.
O unbelievers, excuse not yourselves this day; ye shall surely be
rewarded for what ye have done.n
O true believers, turn unto GOD with a sincere repentance: peradventure
your LORD will do away from you your evil deeds, and will admit you into
gardens, through which rivers flow; on the day whereon GOD will not put to
shame the prophet, or those who believe with him: their light shall run before
them, and on their right hands,o and they shall say, LORD, make our light
perfect, and forgive us: for thou art almighty.
O prophet, attack the infidels with arms, and the hypocrites with
arguments; and treat them with severity: their abode shall be hell, and an ill
journey shall it be thither.
10 GOD propoundeth as a similitude unto the unbelievers, the wife of Noah,
and the wife of Lot: they were under two of our righteous servants, and they
deceived them both;p wherefore their husbands were of no advantage unto them
at all, in the sight of GOD:q and it shall be said unto them, at the last day,
Enter ye into hell fire, with those who enter therein.
GOD also propoundeth as a similitude unto those who believe, the wife of
Pharaoh;r when she said, LORD, build me a house with thee in paradise; and
deliver me from Pharaoh and his doings, and deliver me from the unjust people:
and Mary the daughter of Imran; who preserved her chastity, and into
whose womb we breathed of our spirit,s and who believed in the words of her
LORD, and his scriptures, and was a devout and obedient person.t
l This sentence is directed to Hafsa and Ayesha; the pronouns and verbs
of the second person being in the dual number.
m See chapter 74, and the Prelim. Disc. Sect. IV. p. 72.
n These words will be spoken to the infidels at the last day.
o See chapter 57, p. 400.
p Who were both unbelieving women, but deceived their respective
husbands by their hypocrisy. Noah's wife, named Wâïla, endeavoured to
persuade the people her husband was distracted; and Lot's wife, whose name was
Wâhela (though some writers give this name to the other, and that of Wâïla to
the latter), was in confederacy with the men of Sodom, and used to give them
notice when any strangers came to lodge with him, by a sign of smoke by day,
and of fire by night.1
q For they both met with a disastrous end in this world,2 and will be
doomed to eternal misery in the next. In like manner, as Mohammed would
insinuate, the infidels of his time had no reason to expect any mitigation of
their punishment, on account of their relation to himself and the rest of the
true believers.
r viz., Asia, the daughter of Mozâhem. The commentators relate, that
because she believed in Moses, her husband cruelly tormented her, fastening
her hands and feet to four stakes, and laying a large mill-stone on her
breast, her face, at the same time, being exposed to the scorching beams of
the son. These pains, however, were alleviated by the angels shading her with
their wings, and the view of the mansion prepared for her in paradise, which
was exhibited to her on her pronouncing the prayer in the text. At length GOD
received her soul; or, as some say, she was taken up alive into paradise,
where she eats and drinks.3
s See chapter 19, p. 228, &c.
t On occasion of the honourable mention here made of these two
extraordinary women, the commentators introduce a saying of their prophet,
That among men there had been many perfect, but no more than four of the other
sex had attained perfection; to wit, Asia, the wife of Pharaoh; Mary, the
daughter of Imrân; Khadîjah, the daughter of Khowailed (the prophet's first
wife); and Fâtema, the daughter of Mohammed.
1 Jallal., al Zamakh. 2 See cap. 11, p. 162, 166, and 167.
3 Jallal., al Zamakh.
CHAPTER LXVII.
ENTITLED, THE KINGDOM;u REVEALED AT MECCA.
IN THE NAME OF THE MOST MERCIFUL GOD.
BLESSED be he in whose hand is the kingdom, for he is almighty!
Who hath created death and life, that he might prove you, which of you is
most righteous in his actions: and he is mighty, and ready to forgive.
Who hath created seven heavens, one above another: thou canst not see in
a creature of the most Merciful any unfitness or disproportion.
Lift up thine eyes again to heaven, and look whether thou seest any flaw:
then take two other views; and thy sight shall return unto thee dull and
fatigued.
Moreover we have adorned the lowest heaven with lamps, and have appointed
them to be darted at the devils,x for whom we have prepared the torment of
burning fire:
and for those who believe not in their LORD is also prepared the torment
of hell; and ill journey shall it be thither.
When they shall be thrown thereinto, they shall hear it bray like an
ass;y and it shall boil, and almost burst for fury.
So often as a company of them shall be thrown therein, the keepers
thereof shall ask them, saying, Did not a warner come unto you?
They shall answer, Yea, a warner came unto us: but we accused him of
imposture, and said, GOD hath not revealed anything; ye are in no other than a
great error:
10 and they shall say, If we had hearkened, or had rightly considered, we
should not have been among the inhabitants of burning fire:
and they shall confess their sins; but far be the inhabitants of burning
fire from obtaining mercy!
Verily they who fear their LORD in secret shall receive pardon and a
great reward.
Either conceal your discourse, or make it public; he knoweth the
innermost part of your breasts:
shall not he know all things who hath created them; since he is the
sagacious, the knowing?
It is he who hath levelled the earth for you: therefore walk through the
regions thereof, and eat of his provision; unto him shall be the resurrection.
Are ye secure that he who dwelleth in heaven will not cause the earth to
swallow you up? and behold, it shall shake.
Or are you secure that he who dwelleth in heaven will not send against
you an impetuous whirlwind, driving the sands to overwhelm you? then shall ye
know how important my warning was.
Those also who were before you disbelieved; and how grievous was my
displeasure!
Do they not behold the birds above them, extending and drawing back their
wings? None sustaineth them, except the Merciful; for he regardeth all
things.
20 Or who is he that will be as an army unto you, to defend you against the
Merciful? Verily the unbelievers are in no other than a mistake.
Or who is he that will give you food, if he withholdeth his provision?
yet they persist in perverseness, and flying from the truth.
u It is also entitled by some, The Saving, or The Delivering, because,
say they, it will save him who reads it from the torture of the sepulchre.
x See chapter 15, p. 192.
y See chapter 31, p. 308.
Is he, therefore, who goeth grovelling upon his face, better directed
than he who walketh upright in a straight way?z
Say, It is he who hath given you being, and endued you with hearing, and
sight, and understanding; yet how little gratitude have ye!
Say, It is he who hath sown you in the earth, and unto him shall ye be
gathered together.
They say, When shall this menace be put in execution, if ye speak truth?
Answer, The knowledge of this matter is with GOD alone: for I am only a
public warner.
But when they shall see the same nigh at hand, the countenance of the
infidels shall grow sad: and it shall be said unto them, This is what ye have
been demanding.
Say, What think ye? Whether GOD destroy me and those who are with me, or
have mercy on us; who will protect the unbelievers from a painful punishment?
Say, He is the Merciful; in him do we believe, and in him do we put our
trust. Ye shall hereafter know who is in a manifest error.
30 Say, What think ye? If your water be in the morning swallowed up by the
earth, who will give you clear and running water?
______
CHAPTER LXVIII.
ENTITLED, THE PEN; REVEALED AT MECCA.
IN THE NAME OF THE MOST MERCIFUL GOD.
N.a BY the pen, and what they write,b
thou, O Mohammed, through the grace of thy LORD, art not distracted.
Verily there is prepared for thee an everlasting reward:
for thou art of a noble disposition.c
Thou shalt see, and the infidels shall see,
which of you are bereaved of your senses.
Verily thy LORD well knoweth him who wandereth from his path; and he well
knoweth those who are rightly directed:
wherefore obey not those who charge thee with imposture.
They desire that thou shouldest be easy with them, and they will be easy
with thee.d
z This comparison is applied by the expositors to the infidel and the
true believer.
a This letter is sometimes made the title of the chapter, but its
meaning is confessedly uncertain. They who suppose it stands for the word Nûn
are not agreed as to its signification in this place; for it is not only the
name of the letter N in Arabic, but signifies also an inkhorn and a fish; some
are of opinion the former signification is the most proper here, as consonant
to what is immediately mentioned of the pen and writing, and, considering that
the blood of certain fish is good ink, not inconsistent with the latter
signification; which is, however, preferred by others, saying that either the
whole species of fish in general is thereby intended, or the fish which
swallowed Jonas (who is mentioned in this chapter), or else that vast one
called Behemoth, fancied to support the earth, in particular. Those who
acquiesce in none of the foregoing explications have invented others of their
own, and imagine this character stands for the table of GOD'S decrees, or one
of the rivers in paradise, &c.1
b Some understand these words generally, and others of the pen with
which GOD'S decrees are written on the preserved table, and of the angels who
register the same.
c In that thou hast borne with so much patience and resignation the
wrongs and insults of thy people, which have been greater than those offered
to any apostle before thee.2
d i.e., If thou wilt let them alone in their idolatry and other wicked
practices, they will cease to revile and persecute thee.
1 Al Zamakh., al Beidâwi, Yahya. 2 Al Beidâwi. 3
Idem, Jallal.
10 But obey not any who is a common swearer, a despicable fellow,
a defamer, going about with slander,
who forbiddeth that which is good, who is also a transgressor, a wicked
person,
cruel, and besides this, of spurious birth:e
although he be possessed of wealth and many children:
when our signs are rehearsed unto him, he saith, They are fables of the
ancients.
We will stigmatize him on the nose.f
Verily we have tried the Meccans,g as we formerly tried the owners of the
garden;h when they swore that they would gather the fruit thereofi in the
morning,
and added not the exception, if it please God:
wherefore a surrounding destruction from thy LORD encompassed it, while
they slept;
20 and in the morning it became like a garden whose fruits had been
gathered.k
And they called the one to the other as they rose in the morning,
saying, Go out early to your plantation, if ye intend to gather the fruit
thereof:
so they went on, whispering to one another,
No poor man shall enter the garden upon you, this day.
And they went forth early, with a determined purpose.
And when they saw the garden blasted and destroyed, they said, We have
certainly mistaken our way:
but when they found it to be their own garden, they cried, Verily we are
not permittedl to reap the fruit thereof.
The worthier of them said, Did I not say unto you, Will ye not give
praise unto GOD?
They answered, Praise be unto our LORD! Verily we have been unjust
doers.
30 And they began to blame one another,m
and they said, Woe be unto us! verily we have been transgressors:
peradventure our LORD will give us in exchange a better garden than this:
and we earnestly beseech our LORD to pardon us.
Thus is the chastisement of this life: but the chastisement of the next
shall be more grievous: if they had known it, they would have taken heed.
Verily for the pious are prepared, with their LORD, gardens of delight.
Shall we deal with the Moslems, as with the wicked?n
e The person at whom this passage was particularly levelled is
generally supposed to have been Mohammed's inveterate enemy, al Walid Ebn al
Mogheira, whom, to complete his character, he calls bastard, because al
Mogheira did not own him for his son till he was eighteen years of age.1
Some, however, think it was al Akhnas Ebn Shoraik, who was really of the tribe
of Thakîf, though reputed to be of that of Zahra.2
f Which being the most conspicuous part of the face, a mark set thereon
is attended with the utmost ignominy. It is said that this prophetical menace
was actually made good, al Walid having his nose slit by a sword at the battle
of Bedr, the mark of which wound he carried with him to his grave.3
g By afflicting them with a grievous famine. See chapter 23, p. 260.
h This garden was a plantation of palm-trees, about two parsangs from
Sanaa, belonging to a certain charitable man, who, when he gathered his dates,
used to give public notice to the poor, and to leave them such of the fruit as
the knife missed, or was blown down by the wind, or fell beside the cloth
spread under the tree to receive it: after his death, his sons, who were then
become masters of the garden, apprehending they should come to want if they
followed their father's example, agreed to gather the fruit early in the
morning, when the poor could have no notice of the matter: but when they came
to execute their purpose, they found, to their great grief and surprise, that
their plantation had been destroyed in the night.4
i Literally, that they would cut it; the manner of gathering dates
being to cut the clusters off with a knife. Marracci supposes they intended
to cut down the trees, and destroy the plantation; which, as he observes,
renders the story ridiculous and absurd.
k Or, as the original may also be rendered, like a dark night; it being
burnt up and black.5
l The same expression is used, chapter 56, p. 398.
m For one advised this expedition, another approved of it, a third gave
consent by his silence, but the fourth was absolutely against it.5
n This passage was revealed in answer to the infidels, who said, If we
shall be raised again, as Mohammed and his followers imagine, they will not
excel us; but we shall certainly be in a better condition than they in the
next world, as we are in this.6
1 Idem, Jallalo'ddin. 2 Idem. 3 Idem, Jallalo'ddin.
4 Idem. 5 Al Beidâwi
6 Idem.
What aileth you that ye judge thus?
Have ye a book from heaven, wherein ye read
that ye are therein promised that which ye shall choose?
Or have ye received oaths which shall be binding upon us to the day of
resurrection, that ye shall enjoy what ye imagine?
40 Ask them, which of them will be the voucher of this.
Or have they companionso who will vouch for them? Let them produce their
companions, therefore, if they speak truth.
On a certain day the leg shall be made bare;p and they shall be called
upon to worship, but they shall not be able.q
Their looks shall be cast down: ignominy shall attend them; for that they
were invited to the worship of God, while they were in safety, but would not
hear.
Let me alone, therefore, with him who accuseth this new revelation of
imposture. We will lead them gradually to destruction, by ways which they
know not:r
and I will bear with them for a long time; for my stratagem is effectual.
Dost thou ask them any reward for thy preaching? But they are laden with
debts.
Are the secrets of futurity with them; and do they transcribe the same
from the table of God's decrees?s
Wherefore patiently wait the judgment of thy LORD: and be not like him
who was swallowed by the fish;t when he cried unto God, being inwardly vexed.
Had not grace from his LORD reached him, he had surely been cast forth on
the naked shore, covered with shame:
50 but his LORD chose him, and made him one of the righteous.
It wanteth little but that the unbelievers strike thee down with their
malicious looks, when they hear the admonition of the Koran; and they say, He
is certainly distracted:
but it is no other than an admonition unto all creatures.
______
CHAPTER LXIX.
ENTITLED, THE INFALLIBLE; REVEALED AT MECCA.
IN THE NAME OF THE MOST MERCIFUL GOD.
THE infallible!u
What is the infallible?
And what shall cause thee to understand what the infallible is?
o Or, as some interpret the word, idols; which can make their
condition, in the next life, equal to that of the Moslems?
p This expression is used to signify a grievous and terrible calamity:
thus they say, War has made bare the leg, when they would express the fury and
rage of battle.7
q Because the time of acceptance shall be past. Al Beidâwi is
uncertain whether the words respect the day of judgment, or the article of
death: but Jallalo'ddin supposes them to relate to the former, and adds that
the infidels shall not be able to perform the act of adoration, because their
backs shall become stiff and inflexible.
r i.e., By granting them long life and prosperity in this world; which
will deceive them to their ruin.
s See chapter 52, p. 389.
t That is, be not impatient and pettish, as Jonas was. See chapter 21,
p. 248.
u The original word al Hâkkat is one of the names or epithets of the
day of judgment. As the root from which it is derived signifies not only to
be or come to pass of necessity, but also to verify; some rather think that
day to be so called because it will verify and show the truth of what men
doubt of in this life, viz., the resurrection of the dead, their being brought
to account, and the consequent rewards and punishments.8
7 Idem, Jallalo'ddin 8 Idem
The tribes of Thamud and Ad denied as a falsehood the day which shall
strikex men's hearts with terror.
But Thamud were destroyed by a terrible noise:
and Ad were destroyed by a roaring and furious wind;
which God caused to assail them for seven nights and eight days
successively: thou mightest have seen people during the same, lying prostrate,
as though they had been the roots of hollow palm-trees;y
and couldest thou have seen any of them remaining?
Pharaoh also, and those who were before him, and the cities which were
overthrown,z were guilty of sin:
10 and they severally were disobedient to the apostle of their LORD;
wherefore he chastised them with an abundant chastisement.
When the water of the deluge arose, we carried you in the ark which swam
thereon;
that we might make the same a memorial unto you, and the retaining ear
might retain it.
And when one blast shall sound the trumpet,
and the earth shall be moved from its place, and the mountains also, and
shall be dashed in pieces at one stroke:
on that day the inevitable hour of judgment shall suddenly come;
and the heavens shall cleave in sunder, and shall fall in pieces, on that
day:
and the angels shall be on the sides thereof;a and eight shall bear the
throne of thy LORD above them, on that day.b
On that day ye shall be presented before the judgment-seat of God; and
none of your secret actions shall be hidden.
And he who shall have his book delivered into his right hand shall say,
Take ye, read this my book;
20 verily I thought that I should be brought to this my account:
he shall lead a pleasing life,
in a lofty garden,
the fruits whereof shall be near to gather.
Eat and drink with easy digestion; because of the good works which ye
sent before you, in the days which are past.
But he who shall have his book delivered into his left hand shall say, Oh
that I had not received this book;
and that I had not known what this my account was!
Oh that death had made an end of me!
My riches have not profited me;
and my power is passed from me.
30 And God shall say to the keepers of hell, Take him, and bind him,
and cast him into hell to be burned:
then put him into a chain of the length of seventy cubits:c
because he believed not in the great GOD;
and was not solicitous to feed the poor:
wherefore this day he shall have no friend here;
nor any food, but the filthy corruption flowing from the bodies of the
damned,
which none shall eat but the sinners.
I sweard by that which ye see,
and that which ye see not,
40 that this is the discourse of an honourable apostle
and not the discourse of a poet: how little do ye believe!
Neither is it the discourse of a soothsayer: how little are ye
admonished!
It is a revelation from the LORD of all creatures.
If Mohammed had forged any part of these discourses concerning us,
x Arab. al Kâriát, or the striking; which is another name or epithet of
the last day.
y See chapter 54, p. 392.
z Viz., Sodom and Gomorrah. See chapter 9, p. 142, note p.
a These words seem to intimate the death of the angels at the
demolition of their habitation; beside the ruins whereof they shall lie like
dead bodies.
b The number of those who bear it at present being generally supposed
to be but four; to whom four more will be added at the last day, for the
grandeur of the occasion.1
c i.e., Wrap him round with it, so that he may not be able to stir.
d Or, I will not swear. See chapter 56, p. 398, note m.
1 Idem.
verily we had taken him by the right hand,
and had cut in sunder the vein of his heart;
neither would we have withheld any of you from chastising him.
And verily this book is an admonition unto the pious;
and we well know that there are some of you who charge the same with
imposture:
50 but it shall surely be an occasion of grievous sighing unto the
infidels;
for it is the truth of a certainty.
Wherefore praise the name of thy LORD, the great God.
______
CHAPTER LXX.
ENTITLED, THE STEPS; REVEALED AT MECCA.
IN THE NAME OF THE MOST MERCIFUL GOD.
ONE demanded and called for vengeance to fall
on the unbelievers:e there shall be none to avert the same
from being inflicted by GOD, the possessor of the steps:f
by which the angels ascend unto him, and the spirit Gabriel also, in a
day whose space is fifty thousand years:g
wherefore bear the insults of the Meccans with becoming patience;
for they see their punishment afar off,
but we see it nigh at hand.
On a certain day the heaven shall become like molten brass,
and the mountains like wool of various colours, scattered abroad by the
wind:
10 and a friend shall not ask a friend concerning his condition,
although they see one another. The wicked shall wish to redeem himself
from the punishment of that day, by giving up his children,
and his wife, and his brother,
and his kindred who showed kindness unto him,
and all who are in the earth; and that this might deliver him:
by no means: for hell fire,
dragging them by their scalps,
shall call him who shall have turned his back, and fled from the faith,
and shall have amassed riches, and covetously hoarded them.
Verily man is created extremely impatient:h
20 when evil toucheth him, he is full of complaint;
e The person here meant is generally supposed to have been al Nodar Ebn
al Hareth, who said, O GOD, if what Mohammed preaches be the truth from thee,
rain down upon us a shower of stones, or send some dreadful judgment to punish
us.1 Others, however, think it was Abu Jahl, who challenged Mohammed to cause
a fragment of heaven to fall on them.2
f By which prayers and righteous actions ascend to heaven; or by which
the angels ascend to receive the divine commands, or the believers will ascend
to paradise. Some understand thereby the different orders of angels; or the
heavens, which rise gradually one above another.
g This is supposed to be the space which would be required for their
ascent from the lowest part of creation to the throne of GOD, if it were to be
measured; or the time which it would take a man up to perform that journey;
and this is not contradictory to what is said elsewhere3 (if it be to be
interpreted of the ascent of the angels), that the length of the day whereon
they ascend is one thousand years; because that is meant only of their ascent
from earth to the lower heaven, including also the time of their descent.
But the commentators generally taking the day spoken of in both these
passages to be the day of judgment, have recourse to several expedients to
reconcile them, some of which we have mentioned in another place;4 and as both
passages seem to contradict what the Mohammedan doctors teach, that GOD will
judge all creatures in the space of half a day,5 they suppose those large
number of years are designed to express the time of the previous attendance of
those who are to be judged;6 or else to the space wherein GOD will judge the
unbelieving nations, of which they say there will be fifty, the trial of each
nation taking up one thousand years, though that of the true believers will be
over in the short space above mentioned.7
h See chapter 17, p. 208.
1 Al Zamakh., al Beidâwi. 2 Al Beidâwi. 3 Cap. 32,
p. 310. 4 Prelim. Disc. Sect. IV. p. 65. 5 See ibid. p.
69. 6 See ibid. p. 67. 7 Al Zamakh.
but when good befalleth him, he becometh niggardly:
except those who are devoutly given,
and who persevere in their prayers;
and those of whose substance a due and certain portion
is ready to be given unto him who asketh, and him who is forbidden by
shame to ask:
and those who sincerely believe the day of judgment,
and who dread the punishment of their LORD:
(for there is none secure from the punishment of their LORD:)
and who abstain from the carnal knowledge of women
30 other than their wives, or the slaves which their right hands possess:
(for as to them they shall be blameless;
but whoever coveteth any woman besides these, they are transgressors:)
and those who faithfully keep what they are intrusted with, and their
covenant;
and who are upright in their testimonies,
and who carefully observe the requisite rites in their prayers:
these shall dwell amidst gardens, highly honoured.
What aileth the unbelievers, that they run before thee in companies,
on the right hand and on the left?
Doth every man of them wish to enter into a garden of delight?
By no means: verily we have created them of that which they know.i
40 I sweark by the LORD of the east and of the west,l that we are able to
destroy them,
and to substitute better than them in their room; neither are we to be
prevented, if we shall please so to do.
Wherefore suffer them to wade in vain disputes, and to amuse themselves
with sport: until they meet their day with which they have been threatened;
the day whereon they shall come forth hastily from their graves, as
though they were troops hastening to their standard:
their looks shall be downcast; ignominy shall attend them. This is the
day with which they have been threatened.
______
CHAPTER LXXI.
ENTITLED, NOAH; REVEALED AT MECCA.
IN THE NAME OF THE MOST MERCIFUL GOD.
VERILY we sent Noah unto his people, saying, Warn thy people, before a
grievous punishment overtake them.
Noah said, O my people, verily I am a public warner unto you;
wherefore serve GOD, and fear him, and obey me;
he will forgive you part of your sins;m and will grant you respite until
a determined time: for GOD'S determined time, when it cometh, shall not be
deferred; if ye were men of understanding, ye would know this.
i viz., Of filthy seed, which bears no relation or resemblance to holy
beings; wherefore it is necessary for him who would hope to be an inhabitant
of paradise, to perfect himself in faith and spiritual virtues, to fit himself
for that place.1
k Or, I will not swear, &c. See chapter 56, p. 398, note m.
l The original words are in the plural number, and signify the
different points of the horizon at which the sun rises and sets in the course
of the year. See chapter 37, p. 334, note e.
m i.e., Your past sins; which are done away by the profession of the
true faith.
1 Al Beidâwi.
He said, LORD, verily I have called my people night and day; but my
calling only increaseth their aversion:
and whensoever I call them to the true faith, that thou mayest forgive
them, they put their fingers in their ears, and cover themselves with their
garments, and persist in their infidelity, and proudly disdain my counsel.
Moreover I invited them openly,
and I spake to them again in public; and I also secretly admonished them
in private;
and I said, Beg pardon of your LORD; for he is inclined to forgive:
10 and he will cause the heaven to pour down rain plentifully upon you,
and will give you increase of wealth and of children;n and he will
provide you gardens, and furnish you with rivers.
What aileth you, that ye hope not for benevolence in GOD;o
since he hath created you variously?p
Do ye not see how GOD hath created the seven heavens, one above another;
and hath placed the moon therein for a light, and hath appointed the sun
for a taper?
GOD hath also produced and caused you to spring forth from the earth:
hereafter he will cause you to return into the same; and he will again
take you thence, by bringing you forth from your graves.
And GOD hath spread the earth as a carpet for you,
that ye may walk therein through spacious paths.
20 Noah said, LORD, verily they are disobedient unto me; and they follow
him whose riches and children do no other than increase his perdition.
And they devised a dangerous plot against Noah:
and the chief men said to the others, Ye shall by no means leave your
gods; neither shall ye forsake Wadd, nor Sowa,
nor Yaghuth, and Yauk, and Nesr.q
And they seduced many; (for thou shalt only increase error in the
wicked:)
because of their sins they were drowned, and cast into the fire of hell;
and they found none to protect them against GOD.
And Noah said, LORD, leave not any families of the unbelievers on the
earth:
for if thou leave them, they will seduce thy servants, and will beget
none but a wicked and unbelieving offspring.r
LORD, forgive me and my parents,s and every one who shall enter my
house,t being a true believer, and the true believers of both sexes; and add
unto the unjust doers nothing but destruction.
n It is said that after Noah had for a long time preached to them in
vain, GOD shut up the heaven for forty years, and rendered their women
barren.2
o i.e., That GOD will accept and amply reward those who serve him? For
some suppose Noah's people made him this answer, If what we now follow be the
truth, we ought not to forsake it; but if it be false, how will GOD accept, or
be favourable unto us, who have rebelled against him?3
p That is, as the commentators expound it, by various steps or changes,
from the original matter, till ye became perfect men.4
q These were five idols worshipped by the Antediluvians, and afterwards
by the ancient Arabs. See the Prelim. Disc. Sect. I. p. 15.
r They say Noah preferred not this prayer for the destruction of his
people till after he had tried them for nine hundred and fifty years, and
found them incorrigible reprobates.
s His father Lamech, and his mother, whose name was Shamkha, the
daughter of Enosh, being true believers.
t The commentators are uncertain whether Noah's dwelling-house be here
meant, or the temple he had built for the worship of GOD, or the ark.
2 Idem. 3 Idem. 4 See cap. 22, p. 250, and cap. 23,
p. 257, &c.
CHAPTER LXXII.
ENTITLED, THE GENII; REVEALED AT MECCA.
IN THE NAME OF THE MOST MERCIFUL GOD.
SAY, It hath been revealed unto me that a company of genii attentively
heard me reading the Koran,u and said, Verily we have heard an admirable
discourse;
which directeth unto the right institution; wherefore we believe therein,
and we will by no means associate any other with our LORD.
He (may the majesty of our LORD be exalted!) hath taken no wife, nor hath
he begotten any issue.
Yet the foolish among usx hath spoken that which is extremely false of
GOD;
but we verily thought that neither man nor genius would by any means have
uttered a lie concerning GOD.
And there are certain men who fly for refuge unto certain of the genii;y
but they increase their folly and transgression:
and they also thought, as ye thought,z that GOD would not raise any one
to life.
And we formerly attempted to pry into what was transacting in heaven; but
we found the same filled with a strong guard of angels, and with flaming
darts:
and we sat on some of the seats thereof to hear the discourse of its
inhabitants; but whoever listeneth now, findeth a flame laid in ambush for
him, to guard the celestial confines.a
10 And we know not whether evil be hereby intended against those who are in
the earth, or whether their LORD intendeth to direct them aright.
There are some among us who are upright; and there are some among us who
are otherwise: we are of different ways.
And we verily thought that we could by no means frustrate GOD in the
earth, neither could we escape him by flight:
wherefore, when we had heard the direction contained in the Koran, we
believed therein. And whoever believeth in his LORD, need not fear any
diminution of his reward, nor any injustice.
There are some Moslems among us; and there are others of us who swerve
from righteousness.b And whoso embraceth Islam, they earnestly seek true
direction:
but those who swerve from righteousness shall be fuel for hell.
If they tread in the way of truth, we will surely water them with
abundant rain:c
that we may prove them thereby: but whoso turneth aside from the
admonition of his LORD, him will he send into a severe torment.
Verily the places of worship are set apart unto GOD: wherefore invoke not
any other therein together with GOD.
When the servant of GODd stood up to invoke him, it wanted little but
that the genii had pressed on him in crowds, to hear him rehearse the Koran.
u See chapter 46, p. 374, note q.
x viz., Eblis, or the rebellious genii.
y For the Arabs, when they found themselves in a desert in the evening
(the genii being supposed to haunt such places about that time), used to say,
I fly for refuge unto the Lord of this valley, that he may defend me from the
foolish among his people.1
z It is uncertain which of these pronouns is to be referred to mankind,
and which to the genii, some expositors taking that of the third person to
relate to the former, and that of the second person to the latter; and others
being of the contrary opinion.
a See chapter 15, p. 192.
b See the Prelim. Disc. Sect. IV.
c i.e., We will grant them plenty of all good things. Some think by
these words rain is promised to the Meccans, after their seven years' drought,
on their embracing Islâm.
d viz., Mohammed.
1 Al Beidâwi.
20 Say, Verily I call upon my LORD only, and I associate no other god with
him.
Say, Verily I am not able, of myself, to procure you either hurt, or a
right institution.
Say, Verily none can protect me against GOD;
neither shall I find any refuge besides him.
I can do no more than publish what hath been revealed unto me from GOD,
and his messages. And whosoever shall be disobedient unto GOD, and his
apostle, for him is the fire of hell prepared; they shall remain therein
forever.
Until they see the vengeance with which they are threatened, they will
not cease their opposition: but then shall they know who were the weaker in a
protector, and the fewer in number.
Say, I know not whether the punishment with which ye are threatened be
nigh, or whether my LORD will appoint for it a distant term. He knoweth the
secrets of futurity; and he doth not communicate his secrets unto any,
except an apostle in whom he is well pleased: and he causeth a guard of
angels to march before him, and behind him;
that he may know that they have executed the commissions of their LORD;e
he comprehendeth whatever is with them; and counteth all things by number.
______
CHAPTER LXXIII.
ENTITLED, THE WRAPPED UP; REVEALED AT MECCA.f
IN THE NAME OF THE MOST MERCIFUL GOD.
O THOU wrapped up,g
arise to prayer, and continue therein during the night, except a small
part;h
that is to say, during one half thereof: or do thou lessen the same a
little
or add thereto.i And repeat the Koran with a distinct and sonorous
voice:
e That is to say, either that the prophet may know that Gabriel and the
other angels, who bring down the revelation, have communicated it to him pure
and free from any diabolical suggestions; or that GOD may know that the
prophet has published the same to mankind.1
f Some will have the last verse, beginning at these words, Verily thy
LORD knoweth, &c., to have been revealed at Medina.
g When this revelation was brought to Mohammed, he was wrapped up in
his garments, being affrighted at the appearance of Gabriel; or, as some say,
he lay sleeping unconcernedly, or, according to others, praying, wrapped up in
one part of a large mantle or rug, with the other part of which Ayesha had
covered herself to sleep.2
This epithet of wrapped up, and another of the same import given to
Mohammed in the next chapter, have been imagined, by several learned men,3
pretty plainly to intimate his being subject to the falling sickness: a malady
generally attributed to him by the Christians,4 but mentioned by no Mohammedan
writer. Though such an inference may be made, yet I think it scarce probable,
much less necessary.5
h For a half is such, with respect to the whole. Or, as the sentence
may be rendered, Pray half the night, within a small matter, &c. Some expound
these words as an exception to nights in general; according to whom the sense
will be, Spend one-half of every night in prayer, except some few nights in
the year, &c.6
i i.e., Set apart either less than half the night, as one-third, for
example, or more, as two-thirds. Or the meaning may be, either take a small
matter from a lesser part of the night than one-half, e.g., from one-third,
and so reduce it to a fourth; or add to such lesser part, and make it a full
half.1
1 Idem. 2 Al Zamakh., al Beidâwi. 3 Hotting. Hist.
Orient. l. I, c. 2. Marracc. in Alc. p. 763. Vide Gagnier, not. ad Abulf.
Vit. Moh. p. 9. 4 See Prideaux, Life of Mahomet, p. 16, and the
authors there cited. 5 See Ockley's Hist. of the Saracens, vol. i.
p. 300, &c 6 Al Beidâwi. 1 Idem.
for we will lay on thee a weighty word.k
Verily the rising by nightl is more efficacious for steadfast continuance
in devotion, and more conducive to decent pronunciation:m
for in the day-time thou hast long employment.
And commemorate the name of thy LORD; and separate thyself unto him,
renouncing worldly vanities.
He is the LORD of the east, and of the west; there is no GOD but he.
Wherefore take him for thy patron:
10 and patiently suffer the contumelies which the infidels utter against
thee; and depart from them with a decent departure.
And let me alone with those who charge the Koran with falsehood, who
enjoy the blessings of this life; and bear with them for a while:
verily with us are heavy fetters, and a burning fire,
and food ready to choke him who swalloweth it,n and painful torment.
On a certain day the earth shall be shaken, and the mountains also, and
the mountains shall become a heap of sand poured forth.
Verily we have sent unto you an apostle, to bear witness against you; as
we sent an apostle unto Pharaoh;
but Pharaoh was disobedient unto the apostle; wherefore we chastised him
with a heavy chastisement.
How, therefore, will ye escape, if ye believe not, the day which shall
make children become gray-headed through terror?
The heaven shall be rent in sunder thereby: the promise thereof shall
surely be performed.
Verily this is an admonition; and whoever is willing to be admonished
will take the way unto his LORD.
20 Thy LORD knoweth that thou continuest in prayer and meditation sometimes
near two third parts of the night, and sometimes one half thereof, and at
other times one third part thereof; and a part of thy companions, who are with
thee, do the same. But GOD measureth the night and the day; he knoweth that
ye cannot exactly compute the same: wherefore he turneth favourably unto you.o
Read, therefore, so much of the Koran as may be easy unto you. He knoweth
that there will be some infirm among you; and others travel through the earth,
that they may obtain a competency of the bounty of GOD; and others fight in
the defence of GOD'S faith. Read, therefore, so much of the same as may be
easy. And observe the stated times of prayer, and pay the legal alms; and
lend unto GOD an acceptable loan; for whatever good ye send before your souls,
ye shall find the same with GOD. This will be better, and will merit a
greater reward.p And ask GOD forgiveness; for GOD is ready to forgive, and
merciful.
k viz., The precepts contained in the Korân; which are heavy and
difficult to those who are obliged to observe them, and especially to the
prophet, whose care it was to see that his people observed them also.2
l Or, the person who riseth by night; or, the hours, or particularly
the first hours of the night, &c.
m For the nighttime is most proper for meditation and prayer, and also
for reading GOD'S word distinctly and with attention, by reason of the absence
of every noise and object which may distract the mind.
Marracci, having mentioned this natural explication of the Mohammedan
commentators, because he finds one word in the verse which may be taken in a
sense tending that way, says the whole may with greater exactness be expounded
of the fitness of the night season for amorous diversions and discourse; and
he paraphrases it in Latin thus: Certe in principio noctis majus robur et vim
habet homo, ad foeminas premendas et subagitandas, et ad clarioribus verbis
amores suos propalandos.3 A most effectual way, this, to turn a book into
ridicule!
n As thorns and thistles, the fruit of the infernal tree al Zakkûm, and
the corruption flowing from the bodies of the damned.
o By making the matter easy to you, and dispensing with your scrupulous
counting of the hours of the night which ye are directed to spend in reading
and praying: for some of the Moslems, not knowing how the time passed, used to
watch the whole night, standing and walking about till their legs and feet
swelled in a sad manner. The commentators add that this precept of dedicating
a part of the night to devotion, is abrogated by the institution of the five
hours of prayer.4
p i.e., The good which ye shall do in your lifetime will be much more
meritorious in the sight of GOD, than what ye shall defer till death, and
order by will.1
2 Idem, Jallalo'ddin. 3 Marracc. in Alc. p. 759. 4 Al
Beidâwi. 1 Idem.
CHAPTER LXXIV
ENTITLED, THE COVERED; REVEALED AT MECCA.
IN THE NAME OF THE MOST MERCIFUL GOD.
O THOU covered,q
arise and preach,r
and magnify thy LORD.
And cleanse thy garments:
and fly every abomination:s
and be not liberal in hopes to receive more in return:
and patiently wait for thy LORD.
When the trumpet shall sound,
verily that day shall be a day of distress
10 and uneasiness unto the unbelievers.
Let me alone with him whom I have created,t
on whom I have bestowed abundant riches,
and children dwelling in his presence,u
and for whom I have disposed affairs in a smooth and easy manner,x
and who desireth that I will yet add other blessings unto him.
By no means: because he is an adversary to our signs.y
I will afflict him with grievous calamities:z
for he hath devised and prepared contumelious expressions to ridicule the
Koran.
May he be cursed: how maliciously hath he prepared the same!
20 And again, may he be cursed: how maliciously hath he prepared the same!
Then he looked,
and frowned, and put on an austere countenance:
q It is related, from Mohammed's own mouth, that being on Mount Harâ,
and hearing himself called, he looked on each hand, and saw nobody; but
looking upwards, he saw the angel Gabriel on a throne, between heaven and
earth; at which sight being much terrified, he returned to his wife Khadîjah,
and bade her cover him up; and that then the angel descended, and addressed
him in the words of the text. From hence some think this chapter to have been
the first which was revealed: but the more received opinion is, that it was
the 96th. Others say that the prophet, having been reviled by certain of the
Koreish, was sitting in a melancholy and pensive posture, wrapped up in his
mantle, when Gabriel accosted him: and some say he was sleeping. See the
second note to the preceding chapter.
r It is generally supposed that Mohammed is here commanded more
especially to warn his near relations, the Koreish; as he is expressly ordered
to do in a subsequent revelation.2
s By the word abomination the commentators generally agree idolatry to
be principally intended.
t The person here meant is generally supposed to have been al Walid Ebn
al Mogheira,3 a principal man among the Koreish.
u Being well provided for, and not obliged to go abroad to seek their
livings, as most others of the Meccans were.4
x By facilitating his advancement to power and dignity; which were so
considerable that he was surnamed Rihâna Koreish, or The sweet odour of the
Koreish, and al Wahîd, i.e., The only one, or The incomparable.5
y On the revelation of this passage it is said that Walid's prosperity
began to decay, and continued daily so to do to the time of his death.6
z Or, as the words may be strictly rendered, I will drive him up the
crag of a mountain; which some understand of a mountain of fire, agreeably to
a tradition of their prophet, importing that al Walid will be condemned to
ascend this mountain, and then to be cast down from thence, alternately for
ever; and that he will be seventy years in climbing up, and as many in falling
down.7
2 See cap. 26, p. 281, and the Prelim. Disc. Sect. II. p. 33.
3 Al Zamakh., al Beidâwi, Jallal. 4 Al Beidâwi.
5 Idem. 6 Idem. 7 Idem.
then he turned back, and was elated with pride;
and he said, This is no other than a piece of magic, borrowed from
others:
these are only the words of a man.
I will cast him to be burned in hell.
And what shall make thee to understand what hell is?
It leaveth not anything unconsumed, neither doth it suffer anything to
escape:
it scorcheth men's flesh:
30 over the same are nineteen angels appointed.
We have appointed none but angels to preside over hell fire:a and we have
expressed the number of them only for an occasion of discord to the
unbelievers;b that they to whom the scriptures have been given may be certain
of the veracity of this book,c and the true believers may increase in faith;
and that those to whom the scriptures have been given, and the true
believers, may not doubt hereafter;
and that those in whose hearts there is an infirmity, and the
unbelievers, may say, What mystery doth GOD intend by this number?
Thus doth GOD cause to err whom he pleaseth; and he directeth whom he
pleaseth. None knoweth the armies of thy LORD,d besides him; and thise is no
other than a memento unto mankind.
Assuredly. By the moon,
and the night when it retreateth,
and the morning when it reddeneth,
I swear that this is one of the most terrible calamities,
giving warning unto men,
40 as well as unto him among you who desireth to go forward, as unto him
who chooseth to remain behind.
Every soul is given in pledge for that which it shall have wrought:f
except the companions of the right hand;g
who shall dwell in gardens, and shall ask one another questions
concerning the wicked,
and shall also ask the wicked themselves, saying, What hath brought you
into hell?
They shall answer, We were not of those who were constant at prayer,
neither did we feed the poor;
and we waded in vain disputes with the fallacious reasoners;
and we denied the day of judgment,
until deathh overtook us:
and the intercession of the interceders shall not avail them.
50 What aileth them, therefore, that they turn aside from the admonition of
the Koran,
as though they were timorous asses flying from a lion?
But every man among them desireth that he may have expanded scrolls
delivered to him from God.i
By no means. They fear not the life to come.
By no means: verily this is a sufficient warning.
Whoso is willing to be warned, him shall it warn: but they shall not be
warned, unless GOD shall please. He is worthy to be feared; and he is
inclined to forgiveness.
a The reason of which is said to be, that they might be of a different
nature and species from those who are to be tormented, lest they should have a
fellow-feeling of, and compassionate their sufferings; or else, because of
their great strength and severity of temper.1
b Or, for a trial of them: because they might say this was a particular
borrowed by Mohammed of the Jews.
c And especially the Jews; this being conformable to what is contained
in their books.2
d i.e., All his creatures; or particularly the number and strength of
the guards of hell.
e The antecedent seems to be hell.
f See chapter 52, p. 388.
g i.e., The blessed;3 who shall redeem themselves by their good works.
Some say these are the angels, and others, such as die infants.4
h Literally, That which is certain.
i For the infidels to Mohammed that they would never obey him as a
prophet till he brought each man a writing from heaven, to this effect, viz.,
From GOD to such a one: Follow Mohammed.5
1 Idem 2 Jallal. 3 See cap. 56, p. 396, note t.
4 Al Beidâwi. 5 Idem.
CHAPTER LXXV.
ENTITLED, THE RESURRECTION; REVEALED AT MECCA.
IN THE NAME OF THE MOST MERCIFUL GOD.
VERILY I sweark by the day of resurrection;
and I swear by the soul which accuseth itself:l
doth man think that we will not gather his bones together?
Yea: we are able to put together the smallest bones of his fingers.
But man chooseth to be wicked, for the time which is before him.
He asketh, When will the day of resurrection be?
But when the sight shall be dazzled,
and the moon shall be eclipsed,
and the sun and the moon shall be in conjunction;m
10 on that day man shall say, Where is a place of refuge?
By no means: there shall be no place to fly unto.
With thy LORD shall be the sure mansion of rest on that day:
on that day shall a man be told that which he hath done first and last.n
Yea; a man shall be an evidence against himself:
and though he offer his excuses, they shall not be received.
Move not thy tongue, O Mohammed, in repeating the revelations brought
thee by Gabriel, before he shall have finished the same, that thou mayest
quickly commit them to memory:
for the collecting the Koran in thy mind, and the teaching thee the true
reading thereof, are incumbent on us.
But when we shall have read the same unto thee by the tongue of the
angel, do thou follow the reading thereof:
and afterwards it shall be our part to explain it unto thee.
20 By no means shalt thou be thus hasty for the future. But ye love that
which hasteneth away,o
and neglect the life to come.
Some countenances on that day shall be bright,
looking towards their LORD:
and some countenances, on that day, shall be dismal:
they shall think that a crushing calamity shall be brought upon them.
Assuredly. When a man's soul shall come up to his throat, in his last
agony,
and the standers-by shall say, Who bringeth a charm to recover him?
and shall think it to be his departure out of this world;
k Or, I will not swear. See chapter 56, p. 398, note m.
l Being conscious of having offended, and of failing of perfection,
notwithstanding its endeavours to do its duty; or, the pious soul which shall
blame others, at the last day, for having been remiss in their devotions, &c.
Some understand the words of the soul of Adam, in particular; who is
continually blaming himself for having lost paradise by his disobedience.6
m Rising both in the west:1 which conjunction is no contradiction to
what is mentioned just before, of the moon's being eclipsed; because those
words are not to be understood of a regular eclipse, but metaphorically, of
the moon's losing her light at the last day in a preternatural manner. Some
think the meaning rather to be, that the sun and the moon shall be joined in
the loss of their light.2
n Or, the good which he hath done, and that which he hath left undone,
&c.
o i.e., The fleeting pleasures of this life. The words intimate the
natural hastiness and impatience of man,3 who takes up with a present
enjoyment, though short and bitter in its consequences, rather than wait for
real happiness in futurity.
6 Idem. 1 See the Prelim. Disc. p. 62. 2 Al
Beidâwi. 3 See cap. 17, p. 208.
and one leg shall be joined with the other leg:p
30 on that day unto thy LORD shall he be driven.
For he believed not,q neither did he pray;
but he accused God's apostle of imposture, and turned back from obeying
him:
then he departed unto his family, walking with a haughty mien.
Wherefore, woe be unto thee; woe!
And again, woe be unto thee; woe!
Doth man think that he shall be left at full liberty, without control?
Was he not a drop of seed, which was emitted?
Afterwards he became a little coagulated blood, and God formed him, and
fashioned him with just proportion;
and made of him two sexes, the male and the female.
40 Is not he who hath done this able to quicken the dead?
________
CHAPTER LXXVI.
ENTITLED, MAN; REVEALED AT MECCA.r
IN THE NAME OF THE MOST MERCIFUL GOD.
DID there not pass over man a long space of time; during which he was a
thing not worthy of remembrance?s
Verily we have created man of the mingled seed of both sexes, that we
might prove him: and we have made him to hear and to see.t
We have surely directed him in the way; whether he be grateful, or
ungrateful.
Verily we have prepared for the unbelievers chains, and collars, and
burning fire.
But the just shall drink of a cup of wine, mixed with the water of
Cafur,u
a fountain whereof the servants of GOD shall drink; they shall convey the
same by channels whithersoever they please.
These fulfil their vow, and dread the day, the evil whereof will disperse
itself far abroad;
and give food unto the poor, and the orphan, and the bondman, for his
sake,
saying, We feed you for GOD'S sake only: we desire no recompense from
you, nor any thanks:
p i.e., And when he shall stretch forth his legs together, as is usual
with dying persons. The words may also be translated, And when one affliction
shall be joined with another affliction.
q Or, He did not give alms; or, He was not a man of veracity. Some
suppose Abu Jahl, and others one Adi Ebn Rabîa, to be particularly inveighed
against in this chapter.
r It is somewhat doubtful whether this chapter was revealed at Mecca or
Medina.
s Some take these words to be spoken of Adam, whose body, according to
Mohammedan tradition, was at first a figure of clay, and was left forty years
to dry before GOD breathed life into it;1 others understand them of man in
general and of the time he lies in the womb.
t That he might be capable of receiving the rules and directions given
by GOD for his guidance;2 and of meriting reward or punishment for his
observance or neglect of them.
u Is the name of a fountain in paradise, so called from its resembling
camphire (which the word signifies) in odour and whiteness. Some take the
word for an appellative, and think the wine of paradise will be mixed with
camphire, because of its agreeable coolness and smell.3
1 See the notes to cap. 2, p. 4. 2 Al Beidâwi. 3
Idem.
10 verily we dread, from our LORD, a dismal and calamitous day.x
Wherefore GOD shall deliver them from the evil of that day, and shall
cast on them brightness of countenance, and joy;
and shall reward them, for their patient persevering, with a garden and
silk garments:
therein shall they repose themselves on couches; they shall see therein
neither sun nor moon;y
and the shades thereof shall be near spreading above them, and the fruits
thereof shall hang low, so as to be easily gathered.
And their attendants shall go round about unto them, with vessels of
silver, and goblets:
the bottles shall be bottles of silver shining like glass; they shall
determine the measure thereof by their wish.
And therein shall they be given to drink of a cup of wine, mixed with the
water of Zenjebil,z
a fountain in paradise named Salsabil:a
and youths, which shall continue forever in their bloom, shall go round
to attend them; when thou seest them, thou shalt think them to be scattered
pearls:
20 and when thou lookest, there shalt thou behold delights, and a great
kingdom.
Upon them shall be garments of fine green silk, and of brocades, and they
shall be adorned with bracelets of silver: and their LORD shall give them to
drink of a most pure liquor;
and shall say unto them, Verily this is your reward: and your endeavor is
gratefully accepted.
Verily we have sent down unto thee the Koran, by a gradual revelation.
Wherefore patiently wait the judgment of thy LORD; and obey not any
wicked person or unbeliever among them.
And commemorate the name of thy LORD, in the morning, and in the evening:
and during some part of the night worship him, and praise him a long part
of the night.
Verily these men love the transitory life, and leave behind them the
heavy day of judgment.
We have created them, and have strengthened their joints; and when we
please, we will substitute others like unto them, in their stead.
Verily this is an admonition: and whoso willeth, taketh the way unto his
LORD:
30 but ye shall not will, unless GOD willeth; for GOD is knowing and wise.
He leadeth whom he pleaseth into his mercy; but for the unjust hath he
prepared a grievous punishment.
x It is related that Hasan and Hosein, Mohammed's grandchildren, on a
certain time being both sick, the prophet, among others, visited them, and
they wished Ali to make some vow to GOD for the recovery of his sons:
whereupon Ali, and Fâtema, and Fidda, their maid-servant, vowed a fast of
three days in case they did well; as it happened they did. This vow was
performed with so great strictness, that the first day, having no provisions
in the house, Ali was obliged to borrow three measures of barley of one
Simeon, a Jew, of Khaibar, one measure of which Fâtema ground the same day,
and baked five cakes of the meal, and they were set before them to break their
fast with after sunset: but a poor man coming to them, they gave all their
bread to him, and passed the night without tasting anything except water. The
next day Fâtema made another measure into bread, for the same purpose; but an
orphan begging some food, they chose to let him have it, and passed that night
as the first; and the third day they likewise gave their whole provision to a
famished captive. Upon this occasion Gabriel descended with the chapter,
before us, and told Mohammed that GOD congratulated him on the virtues of his
family.1
y Because they shall not need the light of either.2 The word Zamharîr,
here translated moon, properly signifies extreme cold: for which reason some
understand the meaning of the passage to be, that in paradise there shall be
felt no excess either of heat or of cold.
z The word signifies ginger, which the Arabs delight to mix with the
water they drink; and therefore the water of this fountain is supposed to have
the taste of that spice.3
a Signifies water which flows gently and pleasantly down the throat.
1 Idem. 2 See Revel. xxi. 23. 3 Al Beidâwi,
Jallal.
CHAPTER LXXVII.
ENTITLED, THOSE WHICH ARE SENT; REVEALED AT MECCA.
IN THE NAME OF THE MOST MERCIFUL GOD.
BY the angels which are sent by God, following one another in a continual
series;
and those which move swiftly, with a rapid motion;
and by those which disperse his commands, by divulging them through the
earth;
and by those which separate truth from falsehood, by distinguishing the
same;
and by those which communicate the divine admonitions,
to excuse, or to threaten:b
verily that which ye are promisedc is inevitable.
When the stars, therefore, shall be put out,
and when the heaven shall be cloven in sunder,
10 and when the mountains shall be winnowed,
and when the apostles shall have a time assigned to them to appear and
bear testimony against their respective people;
to what a day shall that appointment be deferred!
to the day of separation:
and what shall cause thee to understand what the day of separation is?
On that day, woe be unto them who accused the prophets of imposture!
Have we not destroyed the obstinate unbelievers of old?
We will also cause those of the latter times to follow them.
Thus do we deal with the wicked.
Woe be, on that day, unto them who accused the prophets of imposture!
20 Have we not created you of a contemptible drop of seed,
which we placed in a sure repository,
until the fixed term of delivery?
And we were able to do this: for we are most powerful.
On that day, woe be unto those who accused the prophets of imposture:
Have we not made the earth to contain
the living and the dead,
and placed therein stable and lofty mountains, and given you fresh water
to drink?
Woe be, on that day, unto those who accused the prophets of imposture!
It shall be said unto them, Go ye to the punishment which ye denied as a
falsehood:
30 go ye into the shadow of the smoke of hell, which shall ascend in three
columns,
and shall not shade you from the heat, neither shall it be of service
against the flame;
but it shall cast forth sparks as big as towers,
resembling yellow camels in colour.d
Woe be, on that day, unto those who accused the prophets of imposture!
This shall be a day whereon they shall not speak to any purpose;
neither shall they be permitted to excuse themselves.
Woe be, on that day, unto those who accused the prophets of imposture!
This shall be the day of separation: we will assemble both you and your
predecessors.
Wherefore, if ye have any cunning stratagem, employ stratagems against
me.
40 Woe be, on that day, unto those who accused the prophets of imposture!
b Some understand the whole passage of the verses of the Korân; which
continued to be sent down, parcel after parcel, during the space of several
years, and which rescind (for so the verb ásafa may also be translated) and
abolish all former dispensations, divulging and making known the ways of
salvation, distinguishing truth from falsehood, and communicating admonition,
&c. Some interpret the first three verses of the winds, sent in a continual
succession, blowing with a violent gust, and dispersing rain over the earth;
and others give different explications.
c viz., The day of judgment.
d Being of fiery colour. Others, however, suppose these sparks will be
of a dusky hue, like that of black camels, which always inclines a little to
the yellow; the word translated yellow, signifying sometimes black. Some
copies, by the variation of a vowel, have cables, instead of camels.
But the pious shall dwell amidst shades and fountains,
and fruits of the kinds which they shall desire:
and it shall be said unto them, Eat and drink with easy digestion, in
recompense for that which ye have wrought;
for thus do we reward the righteous doers.
Woe be, on that day, unto those who accused the prophets of imposture!
Eat, O unbelievers, and enjoy the pleasures of this life, for a little
while: verily ye are wicked men.
Woe be, on that day, unto those who accused the prophets of imposture!
And when it is said unto them, Bow down; they do not bow down.
Woe be, on that day, unto those who accused the prophets of imposture!
50 In what new revelation will they believe, after this.
________
CHAPTER LXXVIII.
ENTITLED, THE NEWS; REVEALED AT MECCA.
IN THE NAME OF THE MOST MERCIFUL GOD.
CONCERNING what do the unbelievers ask questions of one another?
Concerning the great news of the resurrection,
about which they disagree.
Assuredly they shall hereafter know the truth thereof.
Again, Assuredly they shall hereafter know the truth thereof.
Have we not made the earth for a bed,
and the mountains for stakes to fix the same?e
And have we not created you of two sexes;
and appointed your sleep for rest;
10 and made the night a garment to cover you;
and destined the day to the gaining your livelihood;
and built over you seven solid heavens;
and placed therein a burning lamp?
And do we not send down from the clouds pressing forth rain, water
pouring down in abundance,
that we may thereby produce corn, and herbs,
and gardens planted thick with trees?
Verily the day of separation is a fixed period:
the day whereon the trumpet shall sound, and ye shall come in troops to
judgment;
and the heaven shall be opened, and shall be full of gates for the angels
to pass through;
20 and the mountains shall pass away, and become as a vapor;
verily hell shall be a place of ambush,
a receptacle for the transgressors,
who shall remain therein for ages:
they shall not taste any refreshment therein, or any drink,
except boiling water, and filthy corruption:
a fit recompense for their deeds!
For they hope that they should not be brought to an account,
and they disbelieved our signs, accusing them of falsehood.
But everything have we computed, and written down.
30 Taste, therefore: we will not add unto you any other than torment.f
But for the pious is prepared a place of bliss:
gardens planted with trees, and vineyards,
e See chapter 16, p. 196, and chapter 31, p. 307.
f This, say the commentators, is the most severe and terrible sentence
in the whole Korân, pronounced against the inhabitants of hell; they being
hereby assured that every change in their torments will be for the worse.
and damsels with swelling breasts, of equal age with themselves,
and a full cup.
They shall hear no vain discourse there, nor any falsehood.
This shall be their recompense from thy LORD; a gift fully sufficient:
from the LORD of heaven and earth, and of whatever is between them; the
Merciful. The inhabitants of heaven or of earth shall not dare to demand
audience of him:
the day whereon the spirit Gabriel and the other angels shall stand in
order, they shall not speak in behalf of themselves or others, except he only
to whom the Merciful shall grant permission, and who shall say that which is
right.
This is the infallible day. Whoso, therefore, willeth, let him return
unto his LORD.
40 Verily we threaten you with a punishment nigh at hand:
the day whereon a man shall behold the good or evil deeds which his hands
have sent before him; and the unbeliever shall say, Would to GOD I were dust!
________
CHAPTER LXXIX.
ENTITLED, THOSE WHO TEAR FORTH; REVEALED AT MECCA.
IN THE NAME OF THE MOST MERCIFUL GOD.
BY the angels who tear forth the souls of some with violence;
and by those who draw forth the souls of others with gentleness;g
by those who glide swimmingly through the air with the commands of God;
and those who precede and usher the righteous to paradise;
and those who subordinately govern the affairs of this world:
on a certain day, the disturbing blast of the trumpet shall disturb the
universe;
and the subsequent blast shall follow it.
On that day men's hearts shall tremble:
their looks shall be cast down.
10 The infidels say, Shall we surely be made to return whence we came?h
After we shall have become rotten bones, shall we be again raised to
life?
They say, This then will be a return to loss.
Verily it will be but one sounding of the trumpet,i
and, behold, they shall appear alive on the face of the earth.k
Hath not the story of Moses reached thee?
When his LORD called unto him in the holy valley Towa,l
saying, Go unto Pharaoh; for he is insolently wicked:
and say, Hast thou a desire to become just and holy;
and I will direct thee unto thy LORD, that thou mayest fear to
transgress.
20 And he showed him the very great sign of the rod turned into a serpent:
but he charged Moses with imposture, and rebelled against God.
Then he turned back hastily;
and he assembled the magicians, and cried aloud,
g These are the angel of death and his assistants, who will take the
souls of the wicked in a rough and cruel manner from the inmost part of their
bodies, as a man drags up a thing from the bottom of the sea; but will take
the souls of the good in a gentle and easy manner from their lips, as when a
man draws a bucket of water at one pull.1
There are several other interpretations of this whole passage; some
expounding all the five parts of the oath of the stars, others of the souls of
men, others of the souls of warriors in particular, and others of war-horses:
a detail of which, I apprehend, would rather tire than please.
h i.e., Shall we be restored to our former condition?
i viz., The second or third blast, according to different opinions.
k Or, they shall appear at the place of judgment. The original word al
Sâhira is also one of the names of hell.
l See chapter 20, p. 234.
1 Al Beidâwi.
saying, I am your supreme LORD.
Wherefore GOD chastised him with the punishment of the life to come, and
also of this present life.
Verily herein is an example unto him who feareth to rebel.
Are ye more difficult to create, or the heaven which God hath built?
He hath raised the height thereof, and hath perfectly formed the same:
and he hath made the night thereof dark, and hath produced the light
thereof.
30 After this, he stretched out the earth,m
whence he caused to spring forth the water thereof, and the pasture
thereof;
and he established the mountains,
for the use of yourselves, and of your cattle.
When the prevailing, the great day shall come,
on that day shall a man call to remembrance what he hath purposely done:
and hell shall be exposed to the view of the spectator.
And whoso shall have transgressed,
and shall have chosen this present life;
verily hell shall be his abode;
40 but whoso shall have dreaded the appearing before his LORD, and shall
have refrained his soul from lust,
verily paradise shall be his abode.
They will ask thee concerning the last hour, when will be the fixed time
thereof?
By what means canst thou give any information of the same?
Unto thy LORD belongeth the knowledge of the period thereof:
and thou art only a warner, who fearest the same.
The day whereon they shall see the same, it shall seem to them as though
they had not tarried in the world longer than an evening, or a morning
thereof.
______
CHAPTER LXXX.
ENTITLED, HE FROWNED; REVEALED AT MECCA.
IN THE NAME OF THE MOST MERCIFUL GOD.
THE prophet frowned, and turned aside,
because the blind man came unto him:n
and how dost thou know whether he shall peradventure be cleansed from his
sins,
or whether he shall be admonished, and the admonition shall profit him?
The man who is wealthy,
thou receivest respectfully;
whereas it is not to be charged on thee, that he is not cleansed:
but him who cometh unto thee earnestly, seeking his salvation,
and who feareth God,
10 dost thou neglect.
By no means shouldst thou act thus. Verily the Koran is an admonition
(and he who is willing retaineth the same;)
written in volumes honourable,
exalted, and pure;
by the hands of scribes honoured, and just.o
m Which had been created before the heavens, but without expansion.1
n This passage was revealed on the following occasion. A certain blind
man, named Abdallah Ebn Omm Mactûm, came and interrupted Mohammed while he was
engaged in earnest discourse with some of the principal Koreish, whose
conversion he had hopes of; but the prophet taking no notice of him, the blind
man, not knowing he was otherwise busied, raised his voice, and said, O
apostle of GOD, teach me some part of what GOD hath taught thee; but Mohammed,
vexed at this interruption, frowned and turned away from him; for which he is
here reprehended. After this, whenever the prophet saw Ebn Omm Mactûm, he
showed him great respect, saying, The man is welcome, on whose account my LORD
hath reprimanded me; and he made him twice governor of Medina.2
o Being transcribed from the preserved table, highly honoured in the
sight of GOD, kept pure and uncorrupted from the hands of evil spirits, and
touched only by the angels. Some understand hereby the books of the prophets,
with which the Korân agrees in substance.1
1 Jallalo'ddin. 2 Idem al Beidâwi.
May man be cursed! What hath seduced him to infidelity?
Of what thing doth God create him?
Of a drop of seed
doth he create him; and he formeth him with proportion;
20 and then facilitateth his passage out of the womb:
afterwards he causeth him to die, and layeth him in the grave;
hereafter, when it shall please him, he shall raise him to life.
Assuredly, He hath not hitherto fully performed what God hath commanded
him.
Let man consider his food; in what manner it is provided.
We pour down water by showers;
afterwards we cleave the earth in clefts,
and we cause corn to spring forth therein,
and grapes, and clover,
and the olive, and the palm,
30 and gardens planted thick with trees,
and fruits, and grass,
for the use of yourselves and of your cattle.
When the stunning sound of the trumpet shall be heard;
on that day shall a man fly from his brother,
and his mother, and his father,
and his wife, and his children.
Every man of them, on that day, shall have business of his own sufficient
to employ his thoughts.
On that day the faces of some shall be bright,
laughing, and joyful:
40 and upon the faces of others, on that day, shall there be dust;
darkness shall cover them.
These are the unbelievers, the wicked.
______
CHAPTER LXXXI.
ENTITLED, THE FOLDING UP; REVEALED AT MECCA.
IN THE NAME OF THE MOST MERCIFUL GOD.
WHEN the sun shall be folded up;p
and when the stars shall fall;
and when the mountains shall be made to pass away;
and when the camels ten months gone with young shall be neglected;q
and when the wild beasts shall be gathered together;r
and when the seas shall boil;s
and when the souls shall be joined again to their bodies;
and when the girl who hath been buried alive shall be asked
for what crime she was put to death;t
10 and when the books shall be laid open;
and when the heaven shall be removed;u
and when hell shall burn fiercely;
and when paradise shall be brought near;
every soul shall know what it hath wrought.
p As a garment that is laid by.
q See the Prelim. Disc. Sect. IV. p. 64.
r See ibid. p. 64 and 67.
s See ibid. p. 64.
t For it was customary among the ancient Arabs to bury their daughters
alive as soon as they were born; for fear they should be impoverished by
providing for them, or should suffer disgrace on their account. See chapter
16, p. 199.
u Or plucked away from its place, as the skin is plucked off from a
camel which is flaying; for that is the proper signification of the verb here
used. Marracci fancies the passage alludes to that in the Psalms,2 where,
according to the versions of the Septuagint and the Vulgate, GOD is said to
have stretched out the heaven like a skin.
1 Al Zamakh. 2 Psalm civ. 2.
Verily I swearx by the stars which are retrograde,
which move swiftly, and which hide themselves;y
and by the night, when it cometh on;
and by the morning, when it appeareth;
these these are the words of an honourable messenger,z
20 endued with strength, of established dignity in the sight of the
possessor of the throne,
obeyed by the angels under his authority, and faithful:
and your companion Mohammed is not distracted.
He had already seen him in the clear horizon:a
and he suspected notb the secrets revealed unto him.
Neither are these the words of an accursed devil.c
Whither, therefore, are you going?
This is no other than an admonition unto all creatures;
unto him among you who shall be willing to walk uprightly:
but ye shall not will, unless GOD willeth, the LORD of all creatures.
________
CHAPTER LXXXII.
ENTITLED, THE CLEAVING IN SUNDER; REVEALED AT MECCA.
IN THE NAME OF THE MOST MERCIFUL GOD.
WHEN the heaven shall be cloven in sunder;
and when the stars shall be scattered;
and when the seas shall be suffered to join their waters;
and when the graves shall be turned upside down:
every soul shall know what it hath committed, and what it hath omitted.
O man, what hath seduced thee against thy gracious LORD,
who hath created thee, and put thee together, and rightly disposed thee?
In what form he pleased hath he fashioned thee.
Assuredly. But ye deny the last judgment as a falsehood.
10 Verily there are appointed over you guardian angels,d
honourable in the sight of God, writing down your actions;
who know that which ye do.
The just shall surely be in a place of delight:
but the wicked shall surely be in hell;
they shall be cast therein to be turned, on the day of judgment,
and they shall not be absent therefrom forever.
What shall cause thee to understand what the day of judgment is?
Again, What shall cause thee to understand what the day of judgment is?
It is a day whereon one soul shall not be able to obtain anything in
behalf of another soul: and the command, on that day, shall be GOD'S.
x Or, I will not swear, &c. See chapter 56, p. 398, note m.
y Some understand hereby the stars in general, but the more exact
commentators, five of the planets, viz., the two which accompany the sun, and
the three superior planets; which have both a retrograde and a direct motion,
and hide themselves in the rays of the sun, or when they set.
z i.e., Gabriel.
a See chapter 53, p. 389.
b Some copies, by a change of one letter only, instead of dhanînin,
read danînin; and then the words should be rendered, He is not tenacious of,
or grudges not to communicate to you, the secret revelations which he has
received.
c Who has overheard, by stealth, the discourse of the angels. The
verse is an answer to a calumny of the infidels, who said the Korân was only a
piece of divination, or magic; for the Arabs suppose the soothsayer, or
magician, receives his intelligence from those evil spirits, who are
continually listening to learn what they can from the inhabitants of heaven.
d See chapter 50, p. 384, and the Prelim. Disc. Sect. IV. p. 56.
CHAPTER LXXXIII.
ENTITLED, THOSE WHO GIVE SHORT MEASURE OR WEIGHT; REVEALED AT MECCA.
IN THE NAME OF THE MOST MERCIFUL GOD.
WOE be unto those who give short measure or weight:
who, when they receive by measure from other men, take the full;
but when they measure unto them, or weigh unto them, defraud!
Do not these think they shall be raised again,
at the great day,
the day whereon mankind shall stand before the LORD of all creatures?
By no means. Verily the register of the actions of the wicked is surely
in Sejjîn.e
And what shall make thee to understand what Sejjîn is?
It is a book distinctly written.
10 Woe be on that day, unto those who accused the prophets of imposture;
who denied the day of judgment as a falsehood!
And none denieth the same as a falsehood, except every unjust and
flagitious person:
who, when our signs are rehearsed unto him, saith, They are fables of the
ancients.
By no means: but rather their lusts have cast a veil over their hearts.
By no means. Verily they shall be shut out from their LORD on that day;
and they shall be sent into hell to be burned:
then shall it be said unto them by the infernal guards, This is what ye
denied as a falsehood.
Assuredly. But the register of the actions of the righteous is
Illiyyûn:f
and what shall cause thee to understand what Illiyyun is?
20 It is a book distinctly written:
those who approach near unto God are witnesses thereto.g
Verily the righteous shall dwell among delights:
seated on couches they shall behold objects of pleasure;
thou shalt see in their faces the brightness of joy.
They shall be given to drink of pure wine, sealed;
the seal whereof shall be musk:h and to this let those aspire, who aspire
to happiness:
and the water mixed therewith shall be of Tasnîm,i
a fountain whereof those shall drink who approach near unto the divine
presence.k
e Is the name of the general register, wherein the actions of all the
wicked, both men and genii, are distinctly entered. Sejn signifies a prison;
and this book, as some think, derives its name from thence, because it will
occasion those whose deeds are there recorded to be imprisoned in hell.
Sejjin, or Sajin, is also the name of the dungeon beneath the seventh earth,
the residence of Eblis and his host, where, it is supposed by some, that this
book is kept, and where the souls of the wicked will be detained till the
resurrection.1 If the latter explication be admitted, the words, And what
shall make thee to understand what Sejjin is? should be enclosed within a
parenthesis.
f The word is a plural, and signifies high places. Some say it is the
general register wherein the actions of the righteous, whether angels, men, or
genii, are distinctly recorded. Others will have it to be a place in the
seventh heaven, under the throne of GOD, where this book is kept, and where
the souls of the just, as many think, will remain till the last day.2 If we
prefer the latter opinion, the words, And what shall make thee to understand
what Illiyyûn is? should likewise be enclosed in a parenthesis.
g Or, are present with, and keep the same.
h i.e., The vessels containing the same shall be sealed with musk,
instead of clay. Some understand by the seal of this wine its farewell, or
the flavour it will leave in the mouth after it is drank.
i Is the name of a fountain in paradise, so called from its being
conveyed to the highest apartments.
k For they shall drink the water of Tasnîm pure and unmixed, being
continually and wholly employed in the contemplation of GOD; but the other
inhabitants of paradise shall drink it mixed with their wine.3
1 Jallalo'ddin, al Beidâwi. See the Prelim. Disc. Sect. IV. p. 61.
2 Jallalo'ddin. See the Prelim. Disc. ubi sup.
3 Al Beidâwi.
They who act wickedly laugh the true believers to scorn:
30 and when they pass by them, they wink at one another:
and when they turn aside to their people, they turn aside making
scurrilous jests;
and when they see them, they say, Verily these are mistaken men.
But they are not sent to be keepers over them.l
Wherefore one day the true believers, in their turn, shall laugh the
infidels to scorn:m
lying on couches they shall look down upon them in hell.
Shall not the infidels be rewarded for that which they have done?
________
CHAPTER LXXXIV.
ENTITLED, THE RENDING IN SUNDER; REVEALED AT MECCA.n
IN THE NAME OF THE MOST MERCIFUL GOD.
WHEN the heaven shall be rent in sunder,
and shall obey its LORD, and shall be capable thereof;
and when the earth shall be stretched out,o
and shall cast forth that which is therein,p and shall remain empty,
and shall obey its LORD, and shall be capable thereof:
O man, verily laboring thou laborest to meet thy LORD, and thou shalt
meet him.q
And he who shall have his book given into his right hand
shall be called to an easy account,
and shall turn unto his familyr with joy:
10 but he who shall have his book given him behind his back,s
shall invoke destruction to fall upon him,
and he shall be sent into hell to be burned;
because he rejoiced insolently amidst his family on earth.
Verily he thought he should never return unto God:
yea verily, but his LORD beheld him.
Wherefore I sweart by the redness of the sky after sunset,
and by the night, and the animals which it driveth together,
and by the moon when she is in the full;
ye shall surely be transferred successively from state to state.u
20 What aileth them, therefore, that they believe not the resurrection;
and that, when the Koran is read unto them, they worship not?x
Yea: the unbelievers accuse the same of imposture:
but GOD well knoweth the malice which they keep hidden in their breasts.
Wherefore denounce unto them a grievous punishment,
except those who believe and do good works: for them is prepared a never-
failing reward.
l i.e., The infidels are not commissioned by GOD to call the believers
to account, or to judge of their actions.
m When they shall see them ignominiously driven into hell. It is also
said, that a door shall be shown the damned, opening into paradise, and they
shall be bidden to go in; but when they come near the door it shall be
suddenly shut, and the believers within shall laugh at them.1
n There are some who take this chapter to have been revealed at Medina.
o Like a skin; every mountain and hill being levelled.
p As the treasures hidden in its bowels, and the dead bodies which lie
in their graves.
q Or, and thou shalt meet thy labour; whether thy works be good, or
whether they be evil
r i.e., His relations or friends who are true believers; or rather, to
his wives and servants, of the damsels and youths of paradise, who wait to
receive him.2
s That is, into his left hand; for the wicked will have that hand bound
behind their back, and their right hand to their neck.
t Or, I will not swear. See chapter 56, p. 398, note m.
u i.e., From the state of the living, to that of the dead; and from the
state of the dead, to a new state of life in another world.
x Or, humble not themselves.
1 Idem. 2 Idem.
CHAPTER LXXXV.
ENTITLED, THE CELESTIAL SIGNS; REVEALED AT MECCA.
IN THE NAME OF THE MOST MERCIFUL GOD.
BY the heaven adorned with signs;y
by the promised day of judgment;
by the witness, and the witnessed;z
cursed were the contrivers of the pit,a
of fire supplied with fuel;
when they sat around the same,
and were witnesses of what they did against the true believers:b
and they afflicted them for no other reason, but because they believed in
the mighty, the glorious GOD,
unto whom belongeth the kingdom of heaven and earth: and GOD is witness
of all things.
10 Verily for those who persecute the true believers of either sex, and
afterwards repent not, is prepared the torment of hell; and they shall suffer
the pain of burning.c
But for those who believe, and do that which is right, are destined
gardens beneath which rivers flow: this shall be great felicity.
Verily the vengeance of thy LORD is severe.
He createth, and he restoreth to life:
he is inclined to forgive, and gracious;
the possessor of the glorious throne,
who effecteth that which he pleaseth.
Hath not the story of the hosts
of Pharaohd and of Thamude reached thee?
Yet the unbelievers cease not to accuse the divine revelations of
falsehood:
y The original word properly signifies towers, which some interpret of
real towers,1 wherein it is supposed the angels keep guard;2 and others, of
the stars of the first magnitude: but the generality of expositors understand
thereby the twelve signs of the zodiac, wherein the planets make their several
stations.3
z The meaning of these words is very uncertain, and the explications of
the commentators consequently vary. One thinks the witness to be Mohammed,
and that which is borne witness of, to be the resurrection, or the professors
of the Mohammedan faith; or else that these latter are the witness, and the
professors of every other religion, those who will be witnessed against by
them. Another supposes the witness to be the guardian angel, and his charge
the person witnessed against. Another expounds the words of the day of
Arafat, the 9th of Dhu'lhajja, and of the day of slaying the victims, which is
the day following, or else of Friday, the day of the weekly assembling of the
Mohammedans at their mosques, and of the people who are assembled on those
days, &c.4
a Literally, the lords of the pit. These were the ministers of the
persecution raised by Dhu Nowâs, king of Yaman, who was of the Jewish
religion, against the inhabitants of Najrân; for they having embraced
Christianity (at that time the true religion, by the confession of Mohammed
himself), the bigoted tyrant commanded all those who would not renounce their
faith to be cast into a pit, or trench, filled with fire, and there burnt to
ashes.5 Others, however, tell the story with different circumstances.6
b Or, as some choose to understand the words, And shall be witnesses
against themselves, at the day of judgment, of their unjust treatment of the
true believers.
c Which pain, it is said, the persecutors of the Christian martyrs
above mentioned felt in this life; the fire bursting forth upon them from the
pit, and consuming them.7
d See chapter 7, p. 115, &c.
e See ibid. p. 111, &c.
1 Yahya. 2 See cap. 15, p. 191. 3 Jallal., al Beidâwi,
Yahya. 4 Idem. 5 Idem. Vide Poc. Spec. p. 62;
Ecchellens. Hist. Arab. part i. c. 10; and Prid. Life of Mah. p. 61.
6 Vide D'Herbel. Bibl. Orient. Art. Abou Navas.
7 Al Beidâwi, Yahya.
20 but GOD encompasseth them behind, that they cannot escape.
Verily that which they reject is a glorious Koran;
the original whereof is written in a table kept in heaven.f
________
CHAPTER LXXXVI.
ENTITLED, THE STAR WHICH APPEARED BY NIGHT; REVEALED AT MECCA.
IN THE NAME OF THE MOST MERCIFUL GOD.
BY the heaven, and that which appeareth by night:
but what shall cause thee to understand what that which appeareth by
night is?
it is the star of piercing brightness:g
every soul hath a guardian set over it.
Let a man consider, therefore, of what he is created.
He is created of seed poured forth,
issuing from the loins, and the breastbones.h
Verily God is able to restore him to life,
the day whereon all secret thoughts and actions shall be examined into;
10 and he shall have no power to defend himself, nor any protector.
By the heaven which returneth the rain;i
and by the earth which openeth to let forth vegetables and springs:
verily this is a discourse distinguishing good from evil:
and it is not composed with lightness.
Verily the infidels are laying a plot to frustrate my designs:
but I will lay a plot for their ruin.
Wherefore, O prophet, bear with the unbelievers: let them alone a while.
______
CHAPTER LXXXVII.
ENTITLED, THE MOST HIGH;k REVEALED AT MECCA.
IN THE NAME OF THE MOST MERCIFUL GOD.
PRAISE the name of thy LORD, the most high;
who hath created, and completely formed his creatures:
f And preserved from the least change or corruption. See the Prelim.
Disc. Sect. III. p. 50, and Sect. IV. p. 58.
g Some take the words to signify any bright star, without restriction;
but others think some particular star or stars to be thereby intended; which
one supposes to be the morning star (peculiarly called al Târek, or the
appearing by nights), another Saturn (that planet being by the Arabs surnamed
al Thakeb, or the piercing, as it was by the Greeks, Phoenon, or the shining),
and a third, the Pleiades.
h i.e., From the loins of the man, and the breast-bones of the woman.1
i Or, as some expound it, Which performeth its periodic motion,
returning to the point from whence it began the same. The words seem designed
to express the alternate returns of the different seasons of the year.
k Some take the first word of this chapter, viz., Praise, for its
title.
1 Al Beidâwi, Yahya
and who determineth them to various ends,l and directeth them to attain
the same;m
and who produceth the pasture for cattle,
and afterwards rendereth the same dry stubble of a dusky hue.
We will enable thee to rehearse our revelations;n and thou shalt not
forget any part thereof,
except what GOD shall please;o for he knoweth that which is manifest, and
that which is hidden.
And we will facilitate unto thee the most easy way.p
Wherefore admonish thy people, if thy admonition shall be profitable unto
them.
10 Whoso feareth God, he will be admonished:
but the most wretched unbeliever will turn away therefrom;
who shall be cast to be broiled in the greater fire of hell,
wherein he shall not die, neither shall he live.
Now hath he attained felicity, who is purified by faith,
and who remembereth the name of his LORD, and prayeth.
But ye prefer this present life:
yet the life to come is better, and more durable.
Verily this is written in the ancient books,
the books of Abraham and Moses.
________
CHAPTER LXXXVIII.
ENTITLED, THE OVERWHELMING;q REVEALED AT MECCA.
IN THE NAME OF THE MOST MERCIFUL GOD.
HATH the news of the overwhelming day of judgment reached thee?
The countenances of some, on that day, shall be cast down;
labouring and toiling:r
they shall be cast into scorching fire to be broiled:
they shall be given to drink of a boiling fountain:
they shall have no food, but of dry thorns and thistles:s
which shall not fatten, neither shall they satisfy hunger.
But the countenances of others, on that day, shall be joyful;
well pleased with their past endeavor:
10 they shall be placed in a lofty garden,
wherein thou shalt hear no vain discourse:
therein shall be a running fountain;
therein shall be raised beds,
and goblets placed before them,
and cushions laid in order,
and carpets ready spread.
Do they not consider the camels,t how they are created;
l Determining their various species, properties, ways of life, &c.1
m Guiding the rational by their reason and also by revelation, and the
irrational by instinct, &c.2
n See chapter 75, p. 431.
o i.e., Except such revelations as GOD shall think fit to abrogate and
blot out of thy memory. See chapter 2, p. 13, and chapter 75, p. 431.
p To retain the relations communicated to thee by Gabriel; or, as some
understand the words, We will dispose thee to the profession and strict
observance of the most easy religion, that is, of Islâm.
q That is a name, or epithet, of the last day; because it will suddenly
overwhelm all creatures with fear and astonishment. It is also a name, or
epithet, of hell fire.
r i.e., Dragging their chains, and labouring through hell fire, as
camels labour through mud, &c. Or, Employing and fatiguing themselves in what
shall not avail them.3
s Such as the camels eat when green and tender. Some take the original
word al Darí for the name of a thorny tree.
t These animals are of such use, or rather necessity, in the east, that
the creation of a species so wonderfully adapted to those countries is a very
proper instance, to an Arabian, of the power and wisdom of GOD. Some,
however, think the clouds (which the original word ibl also signifies) are
here intended; the heaven being mentioned immediately after.
1 Al Beidâwi. 2 Idem. 3 Idem.
and the heaven, how it is raised;
and the mountains, how they are fixed;
20 and the earth, how it is extended?
Wherefore warn thy people; for thou art a warner only:
thou art not impowered to act with authority over them.
But whoever shall turn back,u and disbelieve,
GOD shall punish him with the greater punishment of the life to come.
Verily unto us shall they return:
then shall it be our part to bring them to account.
________
CHAPTER LXXXIX.
ENTITLED, THE DAYBREAK; REVEALED AT MECCA.x
IN THE NAME OF THE MOST MERCIFUL GOD.
BY the daybreak, and ten nights;y
by that which is double, and that which is single;z
and by the night when it cometh on:
is there not in this an oath formed with understanding?
Hast thou not considered how thy LORD dealt with Ad,
the people of Irem,a adorned with lofty buildings,b
the like whereof hath not been erected in the land;c
and with Thamud, who hewed the rocks in the valleyd into houses;
u Or, Except him who shall turn back, and be an infidel: and GOD shall
also punish him &c. By which exception some suppose that power is here given
to Mohammed to chastise obstinate infidels and apostates.
x Some are of opinion this chapter was revealed at Medina.
y That is, the ten nights of Dhu'lhajja, or the 10th of that month
(whence some understand the daybreak mentioned just before, of the morning of
that day, or of the preceding); or the nights of the 10th of Moharram; or, as
others rather think, the 10th, 11th, and 12th of Dhu'lhajja; all which are
days peculiarly sacred among the Mohammedans.
z These words are variously interpreted. Some understand thereby all
things in general; some, all created beings (which are said to have been
created by pairs, or of two kinds),1 and the Creator, who is single; some, of
the primum mobile, and the other orbs; some, of the constellations and the
planets; some, of the nights before mentioned, taken either together or
singly; and some, of the day of slaying the victims (the 10th of Dhu'lhajja),
and of the day of Arafat, which is the day before, &c.2
a Was the name of the territory or city of the Adites, and of the
garden mentioned in the next note; which were so called from Irem, or Aram,
the grandfather of Ad, their progenitor. Some think Aaron himself to be here
meant, and his name to be added to signify the ancient Adites, his immediate
descendants, and to distinguish them from the latter tribe of that name:3 but
the adjective and relative joined to the word are, in the original, of the
feminine gender, which seems to contradict this opinion.
b Or pillars. Some imagine these words are used to express the great
size and strength of the old Adites;4 and then they should be translated, who
were of enormous stature. But the more exact commentators take the passage to
relate to the sumptuous palace and delightful gardens built and made by
Sheddâd the son of Ad. For they say Ad left two sons, Sheddâd and Sheddîd,
who reigned jointly after his decease, and extended their power over the
greater part of the world; but Sheddîd dying, his brother became sole monarch;
who, having heard of the celestial paradise, made a garden in imitation
thereof, in the deserts of Aden, and called it Irem, after the name of his
great-grandfather: when it was finished he set out, with a great attendance,
to take a view of it; but when they were come within a day's journey of the
place, they were all destroyed by a terrible noise from heaven. Al Beidâwi
adds that one Abdallah Ebn Kelâbah (whom, after D'Herbelot, I have elsewhere
named Colabah)5 accidentally hit on this wonderful place, as he was seeking a
camel.
c If we suppose the preceding words to relate to the vast stature of
the Adites, these must be translated, The like of whom hath not been created,
&c.
d The learned Greaves, in his translation of Abulfeda's description of
Arabia,6 has falsely rendered these words, which are there quoted, Quibus
petroe vallis responsum dederunt, i.e., To whom the rocks of the valley
returned answer: which slip being made by so great a man, I do not at all
wonder that La Roque, and Petis de la Croix, from whose Latin version, and
with whose assistance, La Roque made his French translation of the aforesaid
treatise, have been led into the same mistake, and rendered those words, A qui
les pierres de la valée rendirent réponse.1 The valley here meant, say the
commentators,2 is Wâdi'lkora, lying about one day's journey3 (not five and
upwards, as Abulfeda will have it) from al Hejr.
1 See cap. 51, p. 387. 2 Al Zamakh. 3 Al Beidâwi,
Jallalo'ddin. 4 Idem. See the Prelim. Disc. p. 5. 5
Prelim. Disc. p. 5. 6 p. 43. It was published by Dr. Hudson, in
the third vol. of the Geograhphiæ Veteris Scriptor. Gr. minor.
and with Pharaoh, the contriver of the stakes:e
10 who had behaved insolently in the earth,
and multiplied corruption therein?
Wherefore thy LORD poured on them various kindsf of chastisement:
for thy LORD is surely in a watch-tower, whence he observeth the actions
of men.
Moreover man, when his LORD trieth him by prosperity, and honoureth him,
and is bounteous unto him,
saith, My LORD honoureth me;
but when he proveth him by afflictions, and withholdeth his provisions
from him,
he saith, My LORD despiseth me.
By no means:g but ye honour not the orphan,
neither do ye excite one another to feed the poor;
20 and ye devour the inheritance of the weak,h with undistinguishing
greediness,
and ye love riches with much affection.
By no means should ye do thus. When the earth shall be minutely ground
to dust;
and thy LORD shall come, and the angels rank by rank;
and hell, on that day, shall be brought nigh:i on that day shall man call
to remembrance his evil deeds; but how shall remembrance avail him?
He shall say, Would to GOD that I had heretofore done good works in my
lifetime!k On that day none shall punish with his punishment;
nor shall any bind with his bonds.l
O thou soul which art at rest,m
return unto thy LORD, well pleased with thy reward, and well pleasing
unto God:
enter among my servants;
30 and enter my paradise.
e See chapter 38, p. 340.
f The original word signifies a mixture, and also a scourge of platted
thongs: whence some suppose the chastisement of this life is here represented
by scourge, and intimated to be as much lighter than that of the next life, as
scourging is lighter than death.4
g For worldly prosperity or adversity is not a certain mark either of
the favour or disfavour of GOD.
h Not suffering women or young children to have any share in the
inheritance of their husbands or parents. See chapter 4, p. 54.
i There is a tradition that at the last day hell will be dragged
towards the tribunal by 70,000 halters, each halter being hauled by 70,000
angels, and that it will come with great roaring and fury.5
k Or, for this my latter life.
l i.e., None shall be able to punish or to bind, as GOD shall then
punish and bind the wicked.6
m Some expound this of the soul, which, having, by pursuing the
concatenation of natural causes, raised itself to the knowledge of that Being
which produced them, and exists of necessity, rests fully contented, or
acquiesces in the knowledge of him, and the contemplation of his perfections.
By this the reader will observe that the Mohammedans are no strangers to
Quietism. Others, however, understand the words of the soul, which, having
attained the knowledge of the truth, rests satisfied, and relies securely
thereon, undisturbed by doubts; or of the soul which is secure of its
salvation, and free from fear or sorrow.7
1 Descr. de l'Arabie, mise à la suite du Voyage de la Palestine, par La
Roque, p. 35. 2 Jallalo'ddin, al Beidâwi.
3 Ebn Hawkal, apud Abulf. ubi sup. Geogr. Nub. p. 110. 4 Al
Beidâwi. 5 Idem, Jallalo'ddin. 6 Idem.
7 Al Beidâwi
CHAPTER XC.
ENTITLED, THE TERRITORY; REVEALED AT MECCA.
IN THE NAME OF THE MOST MERCIFUL GOD.
I SWEARn by this territory,o
(and thou, O prophet, residest in this territory,)p
and by the begetter, and that which he hath begotten;q
verily we have created man in misery.r
Doth he think that none shall prevail over him?s
He saith, I have wasted plenty of riches.t
Doth he think that none seeth him?
Have we not made him two eyes,
and a tongue, and two lips;
10 and shown him the two highways of good and evil?
Yet he attempteth not the cliff.
What shall make thee to understand what the cliff is?
It is to free the captive;
or to feed, in the day of famine,
the orphan who is of kin, or the poor man who lieth on the ground.
Whoso doth this, and is one of those who believe, and recommend
perseverance unto each other, and recommend mercy unto each other;
these shall be the companions of the right hand.u
But they who shall disbelieve our signs
shall be the companions of the left hand:x
20 above them shall be arched fire.
_____
CHAPTER XCI.
ENTITLED, THE SUN; REVEALED AT MECCA.
IN THE NAME OF THE MOST MERCIFUL GOD.
BY the Sun, and its rising brightness;
by the moon when she followeth him;y
by the day, when it showeth its splendor;
by the night, when it covereth him with darkness;
by the heaven, and him who built it;
by the earth, and him who spread it forth;
by the soul, and him who completely formed it,
and inspired into the same its faculty of distinguishing, and power of
choosing, wickedness and piety:
n Or, I will not swear, &c. See chapter 56, p. 398, note m.
o viz., The sacred territory of Mecca.
p Or, Thou shalt be allowed to do what thou pleasest in this territory;
the words, in this sense, importing a promise of that absolute power which
Mohammed attained on the taking of Mecca.1
q Some understand these words generally; others of Adam or Abraham, and
of their offspring, and of Mohammed in particular.2
r Or, to trouble. This passage was revealed to comfort the prophet
under the persecutions of the Koreish.3
s Some expositors take a particular person to be here intended, who was
one of Mohammed's most inveterate adversaries; as al Walid Ebn al Mogheira;4
others suppose Abu'l Ashadd Ebn Calda to be the man, who was so very strong,
that a large skin being spread under his feet, and ten men pulling at it, they
could not make him fall, though they tore the skin to pieces.5
t In a vain and ostentatious manner, or in opposing of Mohammed.6
u See chapter 56, p. 396.
x See ibid.
y i.e., When she rises just after him, as she does at the beginning of
the month; or when she gets after him, as happens when she is a little past
the full.7
1 Idem. 2 Idem. 3 Idem. 4 Al Zamakh.
5 Al Beidâwi.
6 Idem. 7 Idem.
now is he who hath purified the same, happy;
10 but he who hath corrupted the same, is miserable.
Thamud accused their prophet Saleh of imposture, through the excess of
their wickedness:
when the wretchz among them was sent to slay the camel;
and the apostle of GOD said unto them, Let alone the camel of GOD; and
hinder not her drinking.
But they charged him with imposture; and they slew her.
Wherefore their LORD destroyed them, for their crime, and made their
punishment equal unto them all:
and he feareth not the issue thereof.
________
CHAPTER XCII.
ENTITLED, THE NIGHT; REVEALED AT MECCA.
IN THE NAME OF THE MOST MERCIFUL GOD.
BY the night, when it covereth all things with darkness;
by the day, when it shineth forth;
by his who hath created the male, and the female:
verily your endeavor is different.
Now whoso is obedient, and feareth God,
and professeth the truth of that faith which is most excellent;
unto him will we facilitate the way to happiness:
but whoso shall be covetous, and shall be wholly taken up with this
world,
and shall deny the truth of that which is most excellent;
10 unto him will we facilitate the way to misery;
and his riches shall not profit him, when he shall fall headlong into
hell.
Verily unto us appertaineth the direction of mankind:
and ours is the life to come, and the present life.
Wherefore I threaten you with fire which burneth fiercely,
which none shall enter to be burned except the most wretched;
who shall have disbelieved, and turned back.
But he who strictly bewareth idolatry and rebellion shall be removed far
from the same;
who giveth his substance in alms,
and by whom no benefit is bestowed on any, that it may be recompensed,
20 but who bestoweth the same for the sake of his LORD, the most High,a
and hereafter he shall be well satisfied with his reward.
________
CHAPTER XCIII.
ENTITLED, THE BRIGHTNESS; REVEALED AT MECCA.
IN THE NAME OF THE MOST MERCIFUL GOD.
BY the brightness of the morning;b
and by the night, when it groweth dark:
z viz., Kedâr Ebn Sâlef. See chapter 7, p. 112, and chapter 54, p.
393.
a Jallalo'ddin thinks this whole description belongs peculiarly to Abu
Becr: for when he had purchased Belâl, the Ethiopian (afterwards the prophet's
Muedhdhin, or crier to prayers), who purchased Belâl, the Ethiopian
(afterwards the prophet's Muedhdhin, or crier to prayers), who had been put to
the rack on account of his faith, the infidels said he did it only out of a
view of interest; upon which this passage was revealed.
b The original word properly signifies the bright part of the day, when
the sun shines full out, three or four hours after it is risen.
thy LORD hath not forsaken thee, neither doth he hate thee.c
Verily the life to come shall be better for thee than this present life:
and thy LORD shall give thee a reward wherewith thou shalt be well
pleased.
Did he not find thee an orphan, and hath he not taken care of thee?
And did he not find thee wandering in error, and hath he not guided thee
into the truth?
And did he not find thee needy, and hath he not enriched thee?
Wherefore oppress not the orphan:
10 neither repulse the beggar:
but declare the goodness of thy LORD.
_______
CHAPTER XCIV.
ENTITLED, HAVE WE NOT OPENED; REVEALED AT MECCA
IN THE NAME OF THE MOST MERCIFUL GOD.
HAVE we not opened thy breast;d
and eased thee of thy burden,e
which galled thy back;
and raise thy reputation for thee?
Verily a difficulty shall be attended with ease.
Verily a difficulty shall be attended with ease.
When thou shalt have ended thy preaching; labor to serve God in return
for his favours;f
and make thy supplication unto thy LORD.
_______
CHAPTER XCV.
ENTITLED, THE FIG; WHERE IT WAS REVEALED IS DISPUTED.
IN THE NAME OF THE MOST MERCIFUL GOD.
BY the fig, and the olive;g
and by mount Sinai,
c It is related that no revelation having been vouchsafed to Mohammed
for several days, in answer to some questions put to him by the Koreish,
because he had confidently promised to resolve them the next day, without
adding the exception, if it please GOD,1 or because he had repulsed an
importunate beggar, or else because a dead puppy lay under his seat, or for
some other reason; his enemies said that GOD had left him: whereupon this
chapter was sent down for his consolation.2
d By disposing and enlarging it to receive the truth, and wisdom, and
prophecy; or, by freeing thee from uneasiness and ignorance? This passage is
thought to intimate the opening of Mohammed's heart, in his infancy, or when
he took his journey to heaven, by the angel Gabriel; who having wrung out the
black drop, or seed of original sin, washed and cleansed the same, and filled
it with wisdom and faith:3 but some think it relates to the occasion of the
preceding chapter.4
e i.e., Of thy sins committed before thy mission; or of thy ignorance,
or trouble of mind.
f Or When thou shalt have finished thy prayer, labour in preaching the
faith.5
g GOD, say the commentators swears by these two fruits, because of
their great uses and virtues: for the fig is wholesome and of easy digestion,
and physically good to carry off phlegm, and gravel in the kidneys or bladder,
and to remove obstructions of the liver and spleen, and also cures the piles
and the gout, &c.; the olive produces oil, which is not only excellent to eat,
but otherwise useful for the compounding of ointments;1 the wood of the olive-
tree, moreover, is good for cleansing the teeth, preventing their growing
rotten, and giving a good odour to the mouth, for which reason the prophets,
and Mohammed in particular, made use of no other for toothpicks.2
Some, however, suppose that these words do not mean the fruits or trees
above mentioned, but two mountains in the holy land, where they grow in
plenty; or else the temple of Damascus and that at Jerusalem.3
1 See cap. 18, p. 219 2 Al Beidâwi, Jallalo'ddin. 3 Al
Beidâwi, Yahya. Vide Abulf. Vit. Moh. p. 8 and 33; Prid, Life of Mohamet, p.
105, &c. 4 Al Beidâwi. 5 Idem. 1 Idem, al
Zamakh.
2 Al Zamakh. 3 Idem, Yahya, al Beidâwi, Jallal.
and this territory of security;h
verily we created man of a most excellent fabric;
afterwards we rendered him the vilest of the vile:i
except those who believe, and work righteousness; for they shall receive
an endless reward.
What, therefore, shall cause thee to deny the day of judgment after
this?k
Is not GOD the most wise judge?
________
CHAPTER XCVI.
ENTITLED, CONGEALED BLOOD; REVEALED AT MECCA.l
IN THE NAME OF THE MOST MERCIFUL GOD.
READ, in the name of thy LORD, who hath created all things;
who hath created man of congealed blood.m
Read, by thy most beneficent LORD;n
who taught the use of the pen;
who teacheth man that which he knoweth not.
Assuredly. Verily man becometh insolent,
because he seeth himself abound in riches.o
Verily unto thy LORD shall be the return of all.
What thinkest thou as to him who forbiddeth
10 our servant, when he prayeth?p
What thinkest thou; if he follow the right direction; or command piety?
What thinkest thou; if he accuse the divine revelations of falsehood, and
turn his back?
h viz., The territory of Mecca.4 These words seem to argue the chapter
to have been revealed there.
i i.e., As the commentators generally expound this passage, We created
man of comely proportion of body, and great perfection of mind; and yet we
have doomed him, in case of disobedience, to be an inhabitant of hell. Some,
however, understand the words of the vigorous constitution of man in the prime
and strength of his age, and of his miserable decay when he becomes old and
decrepit: but they seem rather to intimate the perfect state of happiness
wherein man was originally created, and his fall from thence, in consequence
of Adam's disobedience, to a state of misery in this world, and becoming
liable to one infinitely more miserable in the next.5
k Some suppose these words directed to Mohammed, and others to man in
general, by way of apostrophe.
l The first five verses of this chapter, ending with the words, Who
taught man that which he knew not, are generally allowed to be the first
passage of the Korân which was revealed, though some give this honour to the
seventy-four chapter, and others to the first, the next, they say, being the
sixty-eighth.
m All men being created of thick or concreted blood,6 except only Adam,
Eve, and Jesus.7
n These words, containing a repetition of the command, are supposed to
be a reply to Mohammed, who, in answer to the former words spoken by the
angel, had declared that he could not read, being perfectly illiterate; and
intimate a promise that GOD, who had inspired man with the art of writing,
would graciously remedy this defect in him.8
o The commentators agree the remaining part of the chapter to have been
revealed against Abu Jahl, Mohammed's great adversary.
p For Abu Jahl threatened that if he caught Mohammed in the act of
adoration, he would set his foot on his neck; but when he came and saw him in
that posture, he suddenly turned back as in a fright, and, being asked what
was the matter, said there was a ditch of fire between himself and Mohammed,
and a terrible appearance of troops, to defend him.9
4 See the Prelim. Disc. Sect. IV. 5 Vide Marracc. in loc. p.
809. 6 See cap. 22, p. 250. 7 Yahya.
8 Al Beidâwi. 9 Idem.
Doth he not know that GOD seeth?
Assuredly. Verily, if he forbear not, we will drag him by the forelock,q
the lying, sinful forelock.
And let him call his councilr to his assistance:
we also will call the infernal guards to cast him into hell.
Assuredly. Obey him not: but continue to adore God; and draw nigh unto
him.
________
CHAPTER XCVII.
ENTITLED, AL KADR; WHERE IT WAS REVEALED IS DISPUTED.
IN THE NAME OF THE MOST MERCIFUL GOD.
VERILY we sent down the Koran in the night of al Kadr.s
And what shall make thee understand how excellent the night of al Kadr
is?
The night of al Kadr is better than a thousand months.
Therein do the angels descend, and the spirit of Gabriel also, by the
permission of their LORD, with his decrees concerning every matter.t
It is peace until the rising of the morn.
________
CHAPTER XCVIII.
ENTITLED, THE EVIDENCE;u WHERE IT WAS REVEALED IS DISPUTED.
IN THE NAME OF THE MOST MERCIFUL GOD.
THE unbelievers among those to whom the scriptures were given, and among
the idolaters, did not stagger,x until the clear evidencey had come unto them:
q See chapter 11, p. 164, note o.
r i.e., The council or assembly of the principal Meccans, the far
greater part of whom adhered to Abu Jahl.
s The word al Kadr signifies power and honor or dignity, and also the
divine decree; and the night is so named either from its excellence above all
other nights in the year, or because, as the Mohammedans believe, the divine
decrees for the ensuing year are annually on this night fixed and settled, or
taken from the preserved table by GOD'S throne, and given to the angels to be
executed.1 On this night Mohammed received his first revelations; when the
Korân, say the commentators, was sent down from the aforesaid table, entire
and in one volume, to the lowest heaven, from whence Gabriel revealed it to
Mohammed by parcels, as occasion required.
The Moslem doctors are not agreed where to fix the night of al Kadr; the
greater part are of opinion that it is one of the ten last nights of Ramadân,
and, as is commonly believed, the seventh of those nights, reckoning backward;
by which means it will fall between the 23rd and 24th days of that month.2
t See the preceding note, and chapter 44, p. 367.
u Some entitle this chapter, from the first words, Did not.
x i.e., Did not waver in their religion, or in their promises to follow
the truth, when an apostle should come unto them. For the commentators
pretend that before the appearance of Mohammed, the Jews and Christians, as
well as the worshippers of idols, unanimously believed and expected the coming
of that prophet, until which time they declared they would persevere in their
respective religions, and then would follow him; but when he came, they
rejected him through envy.3
y viz., Mohammed, or the Korân.
1 See cap. 44, p. 367. 2 Al Zamakh., al Beidâwi, Jallalo'ddin.
3 Idem.
an apostle from GOD, rehearsing unto them pure books of revelations;
wherein are contained right discourses.
Neither were they unto whom the scriptures were given divided among
themselves, until after the clear evidence had come unto them.z
And they were commanded no other in the scriptures than to worship GOD,
exhibiting unto him the pure religion, and being orthodox; and to be constant
at prayer, and to give alms;a and this is the right religion.
Verily those who believe not, among those who have received the
scriptures, and among the idolaters, shall be cast into the fire of hell, to
remain therein forever. These are the worst of creatures.
But they who believe, and do good works; these are the best of creatures:
their reward with their LORD shall be gardens of perpetual abode, through
which rivers flow; they shall remain therein forever.
GOD will be well pleased in them; and they shall be well pleased in him.
This is prepared for him who shall fear his LORD.
________
CHAPTER XCIX.
ENTITLED, THE EARTHQUAKE; WHERE IT WAS REVEALED IS DISPUTED.
IN THE NAME OF THE MOST MERCIFUL GOD.
WHEN the earth shall be shaken by an earthquake;b
and the earth shall cast forth her burdens;c
and a man shall say, What aileth her?
On that day the earth shall declare her tidings,
for that thy LORD will inspire her.d
On that day men shall go forward in distinct classes, that they may
behold their works.
And whoever shall have wrought good of the weight of an ant,e shall
behold the same.
And whoever shall have wrought evil of the weight of an ant, shall behold
the same.
z But when the promised apostle was sent, and the truth became manifest
to them, they withstood the clearest conviction, differing from one another in
their opinions; some believing and acknowledging Mohammed to be the prophet
foretold in the scriptures, and others denying it.1
a But these divine precepts in the law and the gospel have they
corrupted, changed, and violated.2
b This earthquake will happen at the first, or, as others say, at the
second blast of the trumpet.3
c viz., The treasures and dead bodies within it.4
d i.e., Will inform all creatures of the occasion of her trembling, and
casting forth her treasures and her dead, by the circumstances which shall
immediately attend them. Some say the earth will, at the last day, be
miraculously enabled to speak, and will give evidence of the actions of her
inhabitants.5
e See chapter 4, p. 58, note y.
1 Idem. 2 Idem. 3 Al Zamakh., al Beidâwi. See the
Prelim. Disc. Sect. IV. p. 65 4 See cap. 84, p. 441.
5 Al Beidâwi. See the Prelim. Disc. Sect. IV.
CHAPTER C.
ENTITLED, THE WAR-HORSES WHICH RUN SWIFTLY; WHERE IT WAS REVEALED IS DISPUTED.
IN THE NAME OF THE MOST MERCIFUL GOD.
BY the war-horses which run swiftly to the battle, with a panting noise;
and by those which strike fire, by dashing their hoofs against the
stones;
and by those which make a sudden incursion on the enemy early in the
morning,
and therein raise the dust,
and therein pass through the midst of the adverse troops:f
verily man is ungrateful unto his LORD;
and he is witness thereof:
and he is immoderate in the love of worldly good.
Doth he not know, therefore, when that which is in the graves shall be
taken forth,
10 and that which is in men's breasts shall be brought to light,
that their LORD will, on that day, be fully informed concerning them?
________
CHAPTER CI.
ENTITLED, THE STRIKING; REVEALED AT MECCA.
IN THE NAME OF THE MOST MERCIFUL GOD.
THE striking!g What is the striking?
And what shall make thee to understand how terrible the striking will be?
On that day men shall be like moths scattered abroad,
and the mountains shall become like carded wool of various colours driven
by the wind.
Moreover he whose balance shall be heavy with good works, shall lead a
pleasing life:
but as to him whose balance shall be light, his dwelling shall be the pit
of hell.h
What shall make thee to understand how frightful the pit of hell is?
It is a burning fire.
f Some will have it that not horses, but the camels which went to the
battle of Bedr, are meant in this passage.1 Others interpret all the parts of
the oath of the human soul;2 but their explications seem a little forced, and
therefore I choose to omit them.
g This is one of the names or epithets given to the last day, because
it will strike the hearts of all creatures with terror.3
h The original word Hâwiyat is the name of the lowest dungeon of hell,
and properly signifies a deep pit or gulf.
1 Yahya, ex trad. Ali Ebn Abi Taleb. 2 Al Beidâwi.
3 Idem, Jallalo'ddin.
CHAPTER CII.
ENTITLED, THE EMULOUS DESIRE OF MULTIPLYING; WHERE IT WAS REVEALED IS
DISPUTED.
IN THE NAME OF THE MOST MERCIFUL GOD.
THE emulous desire of multiplying riches and children employeth you,
until ye visit the graves.i
By no means should ye thus employ your time: hereafter shall ye know your
folly.
Again, By no means: hereafter shall ye know your folly.
By no means: if ye knew the consequence hereof with certainty of
knowledge, ye would not act thus.
Verily ye shall see hell:
again, ye shall surely see it with the eye of certainty.
Then shall ye be examined, on that day, concerning the pleasures with
which ye have amused yourselves in this life.
________
CHAPTER CIII.
ENTITLED, THE AFTERNOON; REVEALED AT MECCA.
IN THE NAME OF THE MOST MERCIFUL GOD.
BY the afternoon;k
verily man employeth himself in that which will prove of loss:
except those who believe, and do that which is right; and who mutually
recommend the truth, and mutually recommend perseverance unto each other.
________
CHAPTER CIV.
ENTITLED, THE SLANDERER; REVEALED AT MECCA.
IN THE NAME OF THE MOST MERCIFUL GOD.
WOE unto every slanderer, and backbiter:l
who heapeth up riches, and prepareth the same for the time to come!
i i.e., Until ye die. According to the exposition of some
commentators, the words should be rendered thus: The contending or vieing in
numbers wholly employeth you, so that ye visit even the graves, to number the
dead: to explain which, they relate that there was a great dispute and
contention between the descendants of Abd Menâf and the descendants of Sahm,
which of the two families were the more numerous; and it being found, on
calculation, that the children of Abd Menâf exceeded those of Sahm, the
Sahmites said that their numbers had been much diminished by wars in the time
of ignorance, and insisted that the dead, as well as the living, should be
taken into the account; and by this way of reckoning they were found to be
more than the descendants of Abd Menâf.1
k Or the time from the sun's declination to his setting, which is one
of the five appointed times of prayer. The original word also signifies, The
age, or time in general.
This passage is said to have been revealed against al Akhnas Ebn
Shoreik, or al Walîd Ebn al Mogheira, or Omeyya Ebn Khalf, who were all guilty
of slandering others, and especially the prophet.1
1 Al Zamakh., al Beidâwi, Jallal. 1 Idem.
He thinketh that his riches will render him immortal.
By no means. He shall surely be cast into Al Hotama.m
And who shall cause thee to understand what Al Hotama is?
It is the kindled fire of GOD;n
which shall mount above the hearts of those who shall be cast therein.
Verily it shall be as an arched vault above them
on columns of vast extent.
________
CHAPTER CV.
ENTITLED, THE ELEPHANT; REVEALED AT MECCA.
IN THE NAME OF THE MOST MERCIFUL GOD.
HAST thou not seen how thy LORD dealt with the masters of the elephant?o
Did he not make their treacherous design an occasion of drawing them into
error;
m Is one of the names of hell, or the name of one of its apartments;2
which is so called because it will break in pieces whatever shall be thrown
into it.
n And therefore shall not be extinguished by any.3
o This chapter relates to the following piece of history, which is
famous among the Arabs; Abraha Ebn al Sabâh, surnamed al Ashram, i.e., the
Slit-nosed, king or viceroy of Yaman, who was an Ethiopian,4 and of the
Christian religion, having built a magnificent church at Sanaa with a design
to draw the Arabs to go in pilgrimage thither, instead of visiting the temple
of Mecca, the Koreish, observing the devotion and concourse of the pilgrims at
the Caaba began considerably to diminish, sent one Nofail, as he is named by
some of the tribe of Kenânah, who getting into the aforesaid church by night,
defiled the altar and walls thereof with his excrements. At this profanation
Abraha being highly incensed, vowed the destruction of the Caaba, and
accordingly set out against Mecca at the head of a considerable army, wherein
were several elephants, which he had obtained of the king of Ethiopia, their
numbers being, as some say, thirteen, though others mention but one. The
Meccans, at the approach of so considerable a host, retired to the
neighbouring mountains, being unable to defend their city or temple; but GOD
himself undertook the protection of both. For when Abraha drew near to Mecca,
and would have entered it, the elephant on which he rode, which was a very
large one, and named Mahmûd, refused to advance any nigher to the town, but
knelt down whenever they endeavoured to force him that way, though he would
rise and march briskly enough if they turned him towards any other quarter:
and while matters were in this posture, on a sudden a large flock of birds,
like swallows, came flying from the sea coast, every one of which carried
three stones, one in each foot, and one in its bill; and these stones they
threw down upon the heads of Abraha's men, certainly killing every one they
struck. Then GOD sent a flood, which swept the dead bodies, and some of those
who had not been struck by the stones, into the sea: the rest fled toward
Yaman, but perished by the way; none of them reaching Sanaa, except only
Abraha himself, who died soon after his arrival there, being struck with a
sort of plague or putrefaction, so that his body opened, and his limbs rotted
off by piecemeal. It is said that one of Abraha's army, named Abu Yacsûm,
escaped over the Red Sea into Ethiopia, and going directly to the king, told
him the tragical story; and upon that prince's asking him what sort of birds
they were that had occasioned such a destruction, the man pointed to one of
them, which had followed him all the way, and was at that time hovering
directly over his head, when immediately the bird let fall the stone, and
struck him dead at the king's feet.5
This remarkable defeat of Abraha happened the very year Mohammed was
born, and as this chapter was revealed before the Hejra, and within fifty-four
years, at least, after it came to pass, when several persons who could have
detected the lie, had Mohammed forged this story out of his own head, were
alive, it seems as if there was really something extraordinary in the matter,
which might, by adding some circumstances, have been worked up into a miracle
to his hands. Marracci6 judges the whole to be either a fable, or else a feat
of some evil spirits, of which he gives a parallel instance, as he thinks, in
the strange defeat of Brennus, when he was marching to attack the temple of
Apollo at Delphi.7 Dr. Prideaux directly charges Mohammed with coining this
miracle, notwithstanding he might have been so easily disproved, and supposes,
without any foundation, that this chapter might not have been published till
Othman's edition of the Korân,1 which was many years after, when all might be
dead who could remember anything of the above-mentioned war.2 But Mohammed
had no occasion to coin such a miracle himself, to gain the temple of Mecca
any greater veneration: the Meccans were but too superstitiously fond of it,
and obliged him, against his inclinations and original design, to make it the
chief place of his new invented worship. I cannot, however, but observe Dr.
Prideaux's partiality on this occasion, compared with the favourable reception
he gives to the story of the miraculous overthrow of Brennus and his army,
which he concludes in the following words: "Thus was GOD pleased in a very
extraordinary manner to execute his vengeance upon those sacrilegious wretches
for the sake of religion in general, how false and idolatrous soever that
particular religion was, for which that temple at Delphos was erected."3 If
it be answered, that the Gauls believed the religion, to the devotions of
which that temple was consecrated, to be true (though that be not certain),
and therefore it was an impiety in them to offer violence to it, whereas
Abraha acknowledged not the holiness of the Caaba, or the worship there
practised; I reply, that the doctor, on occasion of Cambyses being killed by a
wound he accidentally received in the same part of the body where he had
before mortally wounded the Apis, or bull worshipped by the Egyptians, whose
religion and worship that prince most certainly believed to be false and
superstitious, makes the same reflection: "The Egyptians," says he, "reckoned
this as an especial judgment from heaven upon him for that fact, and perchance
they were not much out in it: for it seldom happening in an affront given to
any mode of worship, how erroneous soever it may be, but that religion is in
general wounded hereby, there are many instances in history, wherein GOD hath
very signally punished the profanations of religion in the worst of times, and
under the worst modes of heathen idolatry."4
2 See the Prelim. Disc. Sect. IV. p. 72. 3 Al Beidâwi.
4 See the Prelim. Disc. p. 8.
5 Al Zamakh., al Beidâwi, Jallalo'ddin, Abulf. Hist. Gen. &c. See Prid. Life
of Mahomet, p. 61, &c., and D'Herbel. Bibl. Orient. Art. Abrahah. 6
Refut. in Alcor. p. 823. 7 See Prid. Connection, part ii. book i.
p. 25, and the authors there quoted. 1 See the Prelim. Disc. Sect.
III. p. 45. 2 Prid. Life of Mahomet, p. 63, 64. 3 Prid.
Connection, in the place above cited. 4 Ibid. part i. book iii. p.
173.
and send against them flocks of birds,
which casts down upon them stones of baked clay;p
and render them like the leaves of corn eaten by cattle?
________
CHAPTER CVI.
ENTITLED, KOREISH; REVEALED AT MECCA.
IN THE NAME OF THE MOST MERCIFUL GOD.
FOR the uniting of the tribe of Koreish;q
their uniting in sending forth the caravan of merchants and purveyorsr in
winter and summer;
p These stones were of the same kind with those by which the Sodomites
were destroyed,5 and were no bigger than vetches, though they fell with such
force as to pierce the helmet and the man through, passing out at his
fundament. It is said also that on each stone was written the name of him who
was to be slain by it.
q Some connect these words with the following, and suppose the natural
order to be, Let them serve the Lord of this house, for the uniting, &c.
Others connect them with the last words of the preceding chapter, and take the
meaning to be, that GOD had so destroyed the army of Abraha for the uniting of
the Koreish, &c. And the last opinion is confirmed by one copy, mentioned by
al Beidâwi, wherein this and the preceding make but one chapter. It may not
be amiss to observe, that the tribe of Koreish, the most noble among all the
Arabians, and of which was Mohammed himself, were the posterity of Fehr,
surnamed Koreish, the son of Malec, the son of al Nadr, who was descended in a
right line from Ismael. Some writers say that al Nadr bore the surname of
Koreish, but the more received opinion is that it was his grandson Fehr, who
was so called because of his intrepid boldness, the word being a diminutive of
Karsh, which is the name of a sea monster, very strong and daring; though
there be other reasons given for its imposition.6
r It was Hâshem, the great-grandfather of Mohammed, who first appointed
the two yearly caravans here mentioned;7 one of which set out in the winter
for Yaman, and the other in summer for Syria.8
5 See cap. 11, p. 166. 6 Vide Gagnier, Vie de Mah. t. I, p. 44
and 46. 7 See the Prelim. Disc. p. 3.
8 Al Zamakh., Jallal., al Beidâwi.
let them serve the LORD of this house; who supplieth them with food
against hunger,s
and hath rendered them secure from fear.t
_______
CHAPTER CVII.
ENTITLED, NECESSARIES; WHERE IT WAS REVEALED IS DISPUTED.
IN THE NAME OF THE MOST MERCIFUL GOD.
WHAT thinkest thou of him who denieth the future judgment as a falsehood?
It is he who pusheth away the orphan;u
and stirreth not up others to feed the poor.
Woe be unto those who pray,
and who are negligent at their prayer:
who play the hypocrites,
and deny necessariesx to the needy.
________
CHAPTER CVIII.
ENTITLED, AL CAWTHAR; REVEALED AT MECCA.y
IN THE NAME OF THE MOST MERCIFUL GOD.
VERILY we have given thee al Cawthar.z
s By means of the aforesaid caravans of purveyors; or, Who supplied
them with food in time of a famine, which those of Mecca had suffered.1
t By delivering them from Abraha and his troops; or, by making the
territory of Mecca a place of security.
u The person here intended, according to some, was Abu Jahl, who turned
away an orphan, to whom he was guardian, and who came to him naked, and asked
for some relief out of his own money. Somme say it was Abu Sofiân, who,
having killed a camel, when an orphan begged a piece of the flesh, beat him
away with his staff; and others think it was al Walid Ebn al Mogheira, &c.
x The original word al Maûn properly signifies utensils, or whatever is
of necessary use, as a hatchet, a pot, a dish, and a needle, to which some add
a bucket and a hand-mill; or, according to a tradition of Ayesha, fire, water,
and salt; and this signification it bore in the time of ignorance: but since
the establishment of the Mohammedan religion, the word has been used to denote
alms, either legal or voluntary; which seems to be the true meaning in this
place.
y There are some, however, who think it to have been revealed at
Medina.
z This word signifies abundance, especially of good, and thence the
gift of wisdom and prophecy, the Korân, the office of intercessor, &c. Or it
may imply abundance of children, followers, and the like. It is generally,
however, expounded of a river in paradise of that name, whence the water is
derived into Mohammed's pond, of which the blessed are to drink before their
admission into that place.2 According to a tradition of the prophet's, this
river, wherein his LORD promised him abundant good, is sweeter than honey,
whiter than milk, cooler than snow, and smoother than cream; its banks are of
chrysolites, and the vessels to drink thereout of silver; and those who drink
of it shall never thirst.3
Euthymius Zigabenus,4 instead of Cauthar, reading Canthar, supposes the
word to have the same signification in Arabic as in Greek, and translates the
two first verses of the chapter thus: [Greek text],-i.e., We have given thee
the beetle; wherefore pray unto thy LORD, and slay it; and then he cries out,
O wonderful and magnificent sacrifice, worthy of the legislator!
1 Idem. 2 See the Prelim. Disc. Sect. IV. p. 74. 3 Al
Beidâwi, Jallal. &c. 4 In Panoplia Dogmat. inter Sylburgii
Sarocenic. p. 29.
Wherefore pray unto thy LORD, and slay the victims.a
Verily he who hateth thee shall be childless.b
________
CHAPTER CIX.
ENTITLED, THE UNBELIEVERS; REVEALED AT MECCA.
IN THE NAME OF THE MOST MERCIFUL GOD.
SAY: O unbelievers,c
I will not worship that which ye worship;
nor will ye worship that which I worship.
Neither do I worship that which ye worship;
neither do ye worship that which I worship.
Ye have your religion, and I my religion.
________
CHAPTER CX.
ENTITLED, ASSISTANCE; REVEALED AT MECCA.
IN THE NAME OF THE MOST MERCIFUL GOD.
WHEN the assistance of GOD shall come, and the victory;d
and thou shalt see the people enter into the religion of GOD by troops:e
celebrate the praise of thy LORD, and ask pardon of him;f for he is
inclined to forgive.
a Which are to be sacrificed at the pilgrimage in the valley of Mina.
Al Beidâwi explains the words thus: Pray with fervency and intense devotion,
not out of hypocrisy; and slay the fatted camels and oxen, and distribute the
flesh among the poor; for he says this chapter is the counterpart of the
preceding, exhorting to those virtues which are opposite to the vices there
condemned.
b These words were revealed against al As Ebn Wayel, who, on the death
of al Kâsem, Mohammed's son, called that prophet Abtar, which signifies one
who has no children or posterity.1
c It is said that certain of the Koreish once proposed to Mohammed that
if he would worship their gods for a year, they would worship his GOD for the
same space of time; upon which this chapter was revealed.2
d i.e., When GOD shall cause thee to prevail over thy enemies, and thou
shalt take the city of Mecca.
e Which happened in the ninth year of the Hejra, when, Mohammed having
made himself master of Mecca, and obliged the Koreish to submit to him, the
rest of the Arabs came in to him in great numbers, and professed Islâm.3
f Most of the commentators agree this chapter to have been revealed
before the taking of Mecca, and suppose it gave Mohammed warning of his death;
for they say that when he read it al Abbâs wept, and being asked by the
prophet what was the reason of his weeping, answered, Because it biddeth thee
to prepare for death; to which Mohammed replied, It is as thou sayest.4 And
hence, adds Jallalo'ddin, after the revelation of this chapter the prophet was
more frequent in praising and asking pardon of GOD, because he thereby knew
that his end approached; for Mecca was taken in the eighth year of the Hejra,
and he died in the beginning of the tenth.
1 Jallalo'ddin. 2 Idem, al Beidâwi. 3 See the Prelim.
Disc. Sect. II. p. 43. 4 Al Beidâwi.
CHAPTER CXI.
ENTITLED, ABU LAHEB; REVEALED AT MECCA.
IN THE NAME OF THE MOST MERCIFUL GOD.
THE hands of Abu Laheb shall perish,g and he shall perish.h
His riches shall not profit him, neither that which he hath gained.i
He shall go down to be burned into flaming fire;k
and his wife also,l bearing wood,m
having on her neck a cord of twisted fibres of a palm-tree.
________
CHAPTER CXII.
ENTITLED, THE DECLARATION OF GOD'S UNITY;n
WHERE IT WAS REVEALED IS DISPUTED.
IN THE NAME OF THE MOST MERCIFUL GOD.
SAY, God is one GOD;
the eternal GOD:
be begetteth not, neither is he begotten:
and there is not any one like unto him.
g Abu Laheb was the surname of Abd'al Uzza, one of the sons of
Abd'almotalleb, and uncle to Mohammed. He was a most bitter enemy to his
nephew, and opposed the establishment of his new religion to the utmost of his
power. When that prophet, in obedience to the command he had received to
admonish his near relations,1 had called them together, and told them he was a
warner sent unto them before a grievous chastisement, Abu Laheb cried out,
Mayest thou perish! Hast thou called us together for this? and took up a
stone to cast at him. Whereupon this passage was revealed.2
By the hands of Abu Laheb some commentators, by a synecdoche, understand
his person; others, by a metonymy, his affairs in general, they being
transacted with those members; or his hopes in this world and the next.
h He died of grief and vexation at the defeat his friends had received
at Bedr, surviving that misfortune but seven days.3 They add, that his corpse
was left aboveground three days, till it stank, and then some negroes were
hired to bury him.4
i And accordingly his great possessions, and the rank and esteem in
which he lived at Mecca, were of no service to him, nor could protect him
against the vengeance of GOD. Al Beidâwi mentions also the loss of his son
Otha, who was torn to pieces by a lion in the way to Syria, though surrounded
by the whole caravan.
k Arab. nâr dhât laheb; alluding to the surname of Abu Laheb, which
signifies the father of flames.
l Her name was Omm Jemîl: she was the daughter of Harb, and sister of
Abu Sofiân.
m For fuel in hell; because she fomented the hatred which her husband
bore to Mohammed; or, bearing a bundle of thorns and brambles, because she
carried such, and strewed them by night in the prophet's way.5
n This chapter is held in particular veneration by the Mohammedans, and
declared, by a tradition of their prophet, to be equal in value to a third
part of the whole Korân. It is said to have been revealed in answer to the
Koreish, who asked Mohammed concerning the distinguishing attributes of the
GOD he invited them to worship.6
1 See the Prelim. Disc. Sect. II. p. 34. 2 Al Beidâwi,
Jallalo'ddin, &c. 3 Abulf. Vit. Moh. p. 57.
4 Al Beidâwi. 5 Idem, Jallalo'ddin. 6 Idem.
CHAPTER CXIII.
ENTITLED, THE DAYBREAK; WHERE IT WAS REVEALED IS DISPUTED.
IN THE NAME OF THE MOST MERCIFUL GOD.
SAY, I fly for refuge unto the LORD of the daybreak,o
that he may deliver me from the mischief of those things which he hath
created;p
and from the mischief of the night, when it cometh on;q
and from the mischief of women blowing on knots;r
and from the mischief of the envious, when he envieth.
________
CHAPTER CXIV.
ENTITLED, MEN; WHERE IT WAS REVEALED IS DISPUTED.s
IN THE NAME OF THE MOST MERCIFUL GOD.
SAY, I fly for refuge unto the LORD of men,
the king of men,
the GOD of men,
that he may deliver me from the mischief of the whisperer who slyly
withdraweth,t
who whispereth evil suggestions into the breasts of men:
from genii and men.
o The original word properly signifies a cleaving, and denotes, says al
Beidâwi, the production of all things in general, from the darkness of
privation to the light of existence, and especially of those things which
proceed from others, as springs, rain, plants, children, &c., and hence it is
used more particularly to signify the breaking forth of the light from
darkness, which is a most wonderful instance of the divine power.
p i.e., From the mischiefs proceeding either from the perverseness and
evil choice of those beings which have a power to choose, or the natural
effects of necessary agents, as fire, poison, &c., the world being good in the
whole, though evils may follow from those two causes.1
q Or, as the words may be rendered, From the mischief of the moon, when
she is eclipsed.
r That is, of witches, who used to tie knots in a cord, and to blow on
them, uttering at the same time certain magical words over them, in order to
work on or debilitate the person they had a mind to injure. This was a common
practice in former days:2 what they call in France Nouër l'eguillette, and the
knots which the wizards in the northern parts tie, when they sell mariners a
wind (if the stories told of them be true), are also relics of the same
superstition.
The commentators relate that Lobeid, a Jew, with the assistance of his
daughters, bewitched Mohammed, by tying eleven knots on a cord, which they hid
in a well; whereupon Mohammed falling ill, GOD revealed this chapter and the
following, and Gabriel acquainted him with the use he was to make of them, and
of the place where the cord was hidden: according to whose directions the
prophet sent Ali to fetch the cord, and the same being brought, he repeated
the two chapters over it, and at every verse (for they consist of eleven) a
knot was loosed, till on finishing the last words, he was entirely freed from
the charm.3
s This chapter was revealed on the same occasion and at the same time
with the former.
t i.e., The devil; who withdraweth when a man mentioneth GOD, or hath
recourse to his protection.
1 Al Beidâwi. 2 Vide Virgil. in Pharmaceutria. 3 Al
Beidâwi, Jallalo'ddin.
FINIS
AN INDEX
OF THE
PRINCIPAL MATTERS CONTAINED IN THE KORAN
AND THE NOTES THEREON.
_______
AARON, vide Moses.
Al Abbâs, one of Mohammed's uncles, taken at Bedr, and obliged to ransom
himself, 132, n.; professes Islâm, 133, n.; confesses a passage of the Korân
to
be fulfilled in respect to himself, 133, n.; remarkable for his loud
voice, 137, n.
Abda'lhareth, a son of Adam, so named Abda'llah Dhu'lbajadin, 146, n.
Abda'llah Ebn Obba Solûl, the hypocrite, admired for his person and eloquence,
406, n.; threatens to drive Mohammed from Medina, ib.; raises and
inflames a scandalous story of Ayesha, 264, n.; is present at an
interview between Mohammed and his adversaries, 312, n.; occasions a
quarrel, 382, n.; promises to assist the Nadirites, but fails them, 406,
n.; endeavours to debauch Mohammed's men at Ohod, 45, n.; excused
from going on the expedition to Tabûc, 140, n.; desires Mohammed's
prayers in his last sickness, 144; and to be buried in the prophet's
shirt, 144, n.
Abda'llah Ebn Omm Machîm, a blind man, occasions a passage of the Korân, 437,
n.
Abda'llah Ebn Rawâha, rebukes Ebn Obba, 382, n.
Abda'llah Ebn Saad, one of Mohammed's amanuenses, imagines himself inspired,
and corrupts the Korân, 97, n.; apostatizes and is proscribed, but
escapes with life, ib.
Abda'llah Ebn Salâm, a Jew, intimate with Mohammed, his honesty, 40, n.;
supposed to have assisted in composing the Korân, 203, n.; confounded by
Dr. Prideaux with Salmân, the Persian, ib.; commended for his knowledge
and faith, 71.
Abd Menâf, a dispute between his descendants and the Sahmites, 454, n.
Abda'lrahmân Ebn Awf, one of Mohammed's first converts, P. D., 33; an instance
of his charity, 143, n.
Abel, vide Cain; his ram sacrificed by Abraham, 337, n.
Abraha al Ashram, King of Yaman, his expedition against Mecca; the occasion,
and success thereof, 455, n., &c.
Abraham, the patriarch, an idolater in his youth, 95, n.; how he came to the
knowledge of the true God, ib.; demolishes the idols of the Chaldeans, 245;
preaches to his people, 298; his religion commended, 14, 15, 42, 104;
disputes with Nimrod, 28; escapes the fire into which he was thrown
by Nimrod's order, 246; his praying for his father, 148, 408; desires to
be convinced of the resurrection, 28; his sacrifice of birds, 29;
entertains the angels, 165, 386; receives the promise of Isaac, 165;
called the friend of God, 67; is miraculously supplied by the changing of
sand into meal, ib. n.; his sacrifice of his son, 337; praises God for
Ismael and Isaac, 189; commanded, together with Ismael, to build and
cleanse the Caaba, 14; prays to God to raise up a prophet of their seed,
and for the plenty and security of Mecca, ib.; bequeaths the religion of
Islâm to his children, ib.
Abu Amer, vide Amer, &c.
Ad, a potent tribe of Arabs, destroyed for their infidelity, 111, 258, 278,
356, 373, 367, 446. Vide Hûd.
Adam, traditions concerning his creation, 4, n., 208, n., 432, n.; worshipped
by the angels, 4, 105, 192, 212, 221, 343; his fall, 5, 106; repents and
prays, 5; meets Eve at Mount Arafat, 5, n.; retires with her to Ceylon,
ib.; their stature, ib.; his posterity extracted from his loins by God to
acknowledge him for their Lord, 122, n.; names his eldest son as
directed by the devil, 124, n.
Adoption creates no matrimonial impediment, 312.
Adulterers, Mohammed's sentence against them, 34, 78, n.
Adultery, its punishment, 34, 57; what evidence required to convict a woman of
it, 55.
Adversaries, the dispute of two terminated by David, 341.
Ahmed, the name under which Mohammed was foretold by Christ, 410.
Al Ahkâf, the habitation of the Adites, 371.
Aila, or Elath, the Sabbath-breakers there changed into apes, 8, 121.
Al Akhnas, a hypocrite, 22, n., 420, n.
Alexander, vide Dhu'lkarnein.
Ali is sent to Mecca to publish part of the Korân, 134, n.; the abstinence and
charity of him and his family, 432, n.
Allât, an idol of the Koreish, 67, 390.
Alms recommended, 6, 13, 23, 102, 141; the punishment of not giving alms, in
the next life, 50, n.
Amena, Mohammed's mother; he is not permitted to pray for her, 148.
Amer and Arbad attempt to kill Mohammed, and their punishment, 182, n.
Amer (Abu), a Christian monk, and violent enemy to Mohammed, 147, n.
Amer (Banu), their abstinence on the pilgrimage, 107, n.
Ammâr Ebn Yâser tortured by the Koreish on account of his fatih, 204, n.
Amru Ebn Lohai, the great introducer of idolatry among the Arabs, 102, 151, n.
Amru (Banu) build a mosque at Koba, 147, n.
Anam, the name of Lokmân's son, 307, n.
Angel of death, vide Azraïl.
Angels, their original, 105, 343; worship Adam, vide Adam; impeccable, 221,
n.; of different forms and orders, 326; not the objects of worship, 256; nor
ought to be hated, 11; the number of them which support God's throne,
422; are deputed to take an account of men's actions, 384; some of
them appointed to take the souls of men, 436; to preside over hell, and
to keep guard against the devils, 430; assist the Moslems at Bedr,
32, 131; believed by the Arabs to be daughters of God, 67, 199, &c.;
appear to Abraham and Lot, 165, 166, 386.
Animals, irrational, will be raised at the resurrection and judged, 92, n.;
created of water, 268.
Ans Ebn al Nadar, his behaviour at Ohod, 46, n.
Ansârs, or helpers, who, 146, n.; three of them excommunicated for refusing to
attend Mohammed to Tabûc, 148.
Ants, the valley of, 284; their queen's speech to them on the approach of
Solomon's army, ib.
Apostles were not believed who wrought miracles, 50; those before Mohammed
accused likewise of imposture, 51, 91; of Christ, 38; two of them sent to
preach at Antioch, 330.
Apparel, what kind ought to be worn by those who approach the divine presence,
107.
Arabians, their acuteness, 104; their customs in relation to divorce, 312, n.;
to adoption, ib.; in burying their daughters alive, 101, 438; their
superstitions in relation to eating, 101, &c., 270; and in relation to
cattle, 67, 86; used to worship naked, and why, 107, n.; their injustice
to orphans and women, 68, n.; deem the birth of a daughter a misfortune,
199, n.; the reconciliation of their tribes deemed miraculous, 132, n.;
quit their new religion in great numbers on Mohammed's death, 80.
Arabs of the Desert more obstinate, 145.
Al Arâf, what, 105, n.
Arafat, Mount, why so called, 5, n.; the procession thereto, 21.
Arabad, vide Amer.
Al Arem, the inundation of, 323, n.
Ark of Israel taken by the Amalekites, 17, n.
Arrows for divination forbidden, 84.
Al As Ebn Wayel, an enemy of Mohammed's, 194, 232.
Asaf, Solomon's vizir, 312, n.
Asem, his charity, 143, n.
Ashadd (Abu'l), his extraordinary strength, 447, n.
Ashama, king of Ethiopia, embraces Mohammedism, 83, n.; prayed for after his
death by Mohammed, 52.
Asia, the wife of Pharaoh, marytred by her husband for believing in Moses,
417, n.; is taken alive into paradise, ib.; one of the four perfect women,
418.
Aslam, 378, n.
Astrology, hinted at, 52.
Al Aswad al Ansi, the false prophet, 80, n.
Al Aswad Ebn Abd Yaghuth, al Aswad Ebn al Motalleb, two of Mohammed's enemies,
194.
Aws and Khazraj, their enmity, 43, n.
Ayesha, Mohammed's wife; the story of her accusation, 263, n.
Azraïl, the angel of death, why appointed to that office, 4, n.; a story of
him and Solomon, 309, n.
Azer, the name given to Terah, Abraham's father, 95, n.
BAAL, the chief idol of the Chaldeans, 245, n.
Babel, the tower of, destroyed, 197, n.
Backbiting, vide Slander.
Bahira, 86.
Bakhtnasr, vide Nebuchadnezzar.
Balaam, his punishment for cursing the Israelites, 122, n.
Balkîs, queen of Saba, visits Solomon, and her reception, 286; her legs hairy,
ib.; marries Solomon, ib.
Barnabas, his apocryphal gospel, some extracts thence, 38, n., 106, n.
Al Barzakh, what, 261, n.
Becca, the same with Mecca, 42.
Becr (Abu) attends Mohammed in his flight from Mecca, 139, n.; bears testimony
to the truth of Mohammed's journey to heaven, 211, n.; his wager
with Obba Ebn Khalf, 302, n.; strikes a Jew on the face for speaking
irreverently of God, 51, n.; gives all he has towards the expedition of
Tabûc, 144, n.; purchases Belâl, 448, n.; commpared to Abraham, 132, n.
Bedr, Mohammed's victory there, 32, 45, &c.
Bees, made use of as a similitude, 200.
Believers; the sincere ones, described, 256; their reward, 60; their sentence,
108.
Benjamin, son of Jacob, 176, &c.
Birds, omens taken from them, 208, n.
Blessed, their future happiness described, 333, 366.
Blood forbidden, 18.
Boâth, the battle of, 43, n.
Bodeil, a dispute concerning his effects, occasions a passage of the Korân,
86.
Boheira, the monk, 203.
Bribery to pervert justice forbidden, 20.
Burden, every soul to bear its own, 327.
CAAB Ebn al Alshraf, a Jew, Mohammed's inveterate enemy, 40, n., 184, n.;
slain by his means, ib., 404, n.; mistaken by Dr. Prideaux for another
person, 41, n.
Caab Ebn Asad, persuades the Jews in league with Mohammed to desert him, 315,
n.
Al Caaba, appointed for a place of worship, 141, 252; built and cleansed by
Abraham and Ismael, 14; the keys of it returned to Othmân Ebn Telha, 60,
n.
Cafûr, a fountain in paradise, 432.
Cain and Abel, their sacrifices, 76; Cain kills his brother, 77; instructed by
a raven to bury him, ib.
Caleb, vide Joshua.
Calf, the golden, of what and by whom made, 6; animated, ib.; worshipped by
the Israelites, ib.
Calumny forbidden, 70.
Camels, an instance of God's wisdom, 445; appointed for sacrifice, 434; Jacob
abstains from their flesh and milk, 42, n.
Canaan, an unbelieving son of Noah, 162; caravans of purveyors sent out by the
Koreish, 456.
Carrion forbidden to be eaten, 18.
Cattle, their use, 102, 354; superstitions of the old Arabs concerning them,
86, 102, &c.
Al Cawthar, a river in paradise, 457.
Ceylon, the Isle of, vide Serendib.
Charity recommended, 58, 432.
Chastity commended, 74.
Children, to inherit their parents substance, 25, 53.
Christ, vide Jesus.
Christians declared infidels, 75; and enemies of the Moslems, ib. Vide Jews.
Collars to be worn by the unbelievers in the life to come, 181.
Commandments given the Jews, 215, n.
Commerce from God, 258.
Companions of God, what, 101.
Congealed blood, the matter of which man is created, 450.
Contracts to be performed, 73.
Cow ordered to be sacrificed by the Israelites, 8.
Creation, some account of it, 355.
Crimes to be punished with death, 209.
DAVID kills Goliah, 27, 207; his extraordinary devotion, 340; the birds and
mountains sing praises with him, 322; makes breastplates, 27; his
repentance for taking the wife of Uriah, 341; his and Solomon's
judgment, 247.
Days appointed to commemorate God, 252.
Dead body raised to life by a part of the sacrificed Cow, 8.
Debtors to be mercifully dealt with, 30.
Devil, vide Eblis and Satan; the occasion of his fall, 5, 105.
Devils included under the name Genii, 100; the patrons of unbelievers, 50,
107, 282; their plot to defame Solomon, 12; were permitted to enter all the
seven heavens till the birth of Christ, 192.
Dhu'lkarnein, who he was, 225, n.; builds a wall to prevent the incursions of
Gog and Magog, 226.
Dhu'lkefl, the prophet, opinions concerning him, 248; saves a hundred
Israelites from slaughter, 343.
Dhu'lnûn, vide Jonas.
Dhu Nowâs, king of Yaman, a Jew, persecutes the Christians, 442.
Disputes to be carried on with mildness, 300.
Ditch, War of the, 313.
Divorce, laws concerning it, 24, 54, 318, 414.
Dogs, &c., allowed to be trained up for hunting, 74.
Al Dorâb, the celestial mode of the Caaba, 388, n.
Drink of the damned, 94.
Dying persons, what part of the Korân is usually read to them, 330, n.
EARTH, its creation, 355; remonstrates against the creation of man, 4, n.; is
kept steady by the mountains, 196, 307.
Earthquake, a sign of the approach of the last day, 452.
Eblis refuses to worship Adam at God's command, and why, 5, 105, 102, 212,
221; his sentence, ib.; occasions the fall of Adam, ib.
Eden, the meaning of the word in Arabic, 143.
Edris, supposed to be the same with Enoch, 230.
Education makes a man an infidel, 305.
Elephant, War of the, 455.
Elias, vide al Khedr.
Elisha the prophet, 96.
Enoch, vide Edris.
Entering into houses and apartments abruptly forbidden, 265, 269.
Envy forbidden, 58.
Esop, vide Lokmân.
Eucharist, seems to have occasioned a fable in the Korân, 88.
Eve, vide Adam.
Evidence, vide Witness.
Evil, vide Good.
Examination of the sepulchre, 121, n.
Exhortation to the worship of God, 350; to a good life, 168.
Ezekiel raises the dry bones, 26.
Ezra and his ass restored to life after they had been dead a hundred years,
28; called by the Jews the son of God, and why, 127
FAITH must accompany good works, 160; the reward of those who fight for it,
62, 127, 135, 139, 207, 375, 409, &c.; apostates from it to be put to
death, 209; partial faith not sufficient, 69, n.
Famine afflicts the Meccans, 259; ceases at Mohammed's intercession, 260.
Fast of Ramadân instituted, 19.
Fâtema, Mohammed's daughter, one of the four perfect women, 418, n.; favoured
of God like the Virgin Mary, 36, n.; her charity, 432, n.
Al Fâtiha, the first chapter of the Korân, often repeated by the Mohammedans
in their prayers, I, n.
Fidelity recommended, 135.
Figs, their virtues, 449, n.
Fire, the manner of striking it in the east, 334, n.
Fishing allowed during the pilgrimage, 85.
Flood, vide Noah.
Food, what kinds are forbidden, 18, 73, 100, 102, 205, 270.
Forbidden fruit, what, 5, n.
Forgiveness, to whom it belongs, 316.
Al Forkân, one of the names of the Korân, 271, n.
Fornication forbidden, 55, 57; its punishment, 55, 57, 262.
Fountain of molten brass flows for Solomon, 322.
Fountains of paradise, 432, 433, 440.
Friday, set apart by Mohammed for public worship, and why, 411, n.
Friendship with unbelievers forbidden, 80.
Fruits of the earth, their production an instance of God's power, 98.
Fugitives for the sake of religion shall be provided for and rewarded, 65,
255.
GABRIEL revealed the Korân to Mohammed, 12; assists the Moslems at Bedr, 32;
appears to Zacharias, 36, n.; the angel of revelations, 12, n.; the
enemy of the Jews, ib.; appears twice to Mohammed in his proper form,
390; appears to the Virgin Mary, and causes her to conceive, 228;
the dust of his horse's feet animate the golden calf, 239; generally
appeared to Mohammed in a human form, 90; commanded to assist
Mohammed against the Koreish, 194, n.; orders Mohammed to go against the
Koradhites, 315, n.
Gaming forbidden, 23, 84.
Gânem (Banu) build a mosque with an ill design, which is burnt, 147, n.
Garden, story of the, 420.
Genii, what, 98, n.; some of them converted on hearing the Korân, 426.
God, proofs of his existence, 303; his omnipresence asserted, 403; his
omnipotence, 28, 399; his power and providence conspicuous in his works, 17,
159,
369, 434; his omniscience asserted, 66, 321, 358; knoweth the secrets of
men's hearts, 288; and of futurity, 427; five things known to him
alone, 309, n.; his goodness set forth, 22, 150, 195, 391, 394; in
sending the scriptures and prophets, 22, 100; the author of all good,
201; his word, laws, and sentence unalterable, 99, 304, 384; his mercy
set forth, 46, 275, 294, 361, 390; the only giver of victory, 46, 303;
his promise to the righteous, 306; who acceptable to him, 136; ruleth
the heart of man, 128; his tribunal, 28; his throne, 159; praiseworthy,
201, 443; his attributes, 123, n.; ought not to be frequently sworn by,
24; hath no issue, 14, 155, 261; nor similitude, 307, 344; rested not
the seventh day through weariness, 385; his worship recommended, ib.;
his fear recommended, 153.
Gog and Magog, 225, 249.
Goliah, vide Jalût.
Good works, who shall be redeemed by them, 399, n.
Good and evil both from God, 62.
Gospel, vide Jesus.
Greaves (Mr.), a mistake of his, 445, n.
Greeks overcome the Persians, 302.
Gudarz, the name of Nebuchadnezzar, 207, n.
HABIB, his martyrdom, 331, n.
Hâfedha, an idol of Ad, 111, n.
Haman, Pharaoh's chief minister, 290, 293.
Hami, 86.
Hamza, Mohammed's uncle, killed at Ohod, 45, n.; his body abused, 296, n.
Handha Ebn Safwân, a prophet, 254, n., 273, n.
Hareth (Abu), a Christian bishop, disputes with Mohammed, 39, n.
Haretha (Banu), reproached by Mohammed for flying in battle, 314.
Harût and Marût, two angels, their story and punishment, 12.
Hasan, the son of Ali, an instance of his moderation and generosity, 46, n.
Hateb Ebn Abi Baltaa sends a letter discovering Mohammed's design against
Mecca, which is intercepted, 407, n.
Al Hâwiyat, the name of an apartment in hell, 453, n.
Heathens, justice not to be observed with regard to them according to the
Jews, 41.
Heavens, the Mohamedan belief concerning them, 257, n.; guarded by angels,
426; and earth manifest God's wisdom, 242; will fall at the last day, 256.
Al Hejr, the habitation of the Thamudites, 191.
Hell torments described, 252, 398, 434; the portion of unbelievers, 44, 160;
prepared for those who choose the pomp of this life, 160; and hoard up
money, 138; shall not hurt the believers, 231, n.; will be dragged
towards God's tribunal at the last day, 446, n.; and will then be filled,
384, n.
Al Hodeibiya, the trial there, 85; the expedition thither, 378, &c.
Holy Spirit, who is meant thereby, 10, n.
Honein, the battle of, 136.
Honey, an excellent medicine, 200.
Hospitality recommended, 58.
Al Hotama, the name of an apartment in hell, 455.
Hûd, the prophet, his story, 111. See Ad.
Hunting and fowling forbidden during the pilgrimage, 73, 85.
Husband, his superiority over the wife, 24; his duty to her, 24, &c.;
difference between them to be reconciled by friends, 58, 68. See Divorce,
Wives,
Marriage, &c.
Hypocrites described, 412, &c.; their sentence, 142.
IDOLATERS compared to brutes, 274; to a spider, 300; not to be prayed for
while such, 148; their sentence, 108.
Idolatry, the heinousness thereof, 23; unpardonable, if not repented of, 59.
Idols, their insignificancy, 18, 256, 305, 324; will appear as witnesses
against their worshippers, 153; worshipped by the antediluvians, 425.
Ilhiz, a sort of food used by the Arabs in time of scarcity, 260, n.
Illiyyûn, the meaning of the word, 440, n.
Ilyasin, who, 338, n.
Imâm, the meaning of the word, 14, n.
Immodesty condemned, 266.
Immunity declared to the idolaters for four months, 134.
Imposture charged on all the prophets, 259.
Imrân, father of the Virgin Mary, 32; whether Mohammed confounded him with the
father of Moses and Miriam, 34, n.
Infidels, how they will appear at the last day, 91; will drink boiling water,
94; would have believed, had the Korân been revealed to some great man,
364; if not convinced by the Korân, will not be convinced by miracles,
99; have some notion of a future state, 288; their blasphemy, 339; to be
made war upon, 20, 22; those who die such not to be prayed for, 144,
148; forbidden to approach Mecca, 137.
Inheritances, laws relating thereto, 54, 72.
Injury, to forgive the same is meritorious, 361.
Intercalation of a month forbidden, 139.
Irem, the city of Ad, 445.
Iron, its usefulness, 401; some utensils of that metal brought by Adam down
from paradise, ib.
Isaac promised, 165; his birth, ib.
Islâm the proper name of the Mohammedan religion, 33, n.; the only true
religion, 43; the only religion till the death of Abel, 151.
Ismael, vide Abraham.
Israelites, their males slain by Pharaoh, 6; pass the Red Sea, 118; God's
goodness to them, ib., 370; miraculously fed in the wilderness, 121; lust for
the
herbs of Egypt, 7; worship the golden calf, 6, 11, 119; their
punishment, 6, 10; change the word put into their mouth at Jericho, 7,
121; commanded to sacrifice a red cow, 8, &c.; demand to see God, and
their punishment, 70; refuse to enter the Holy Land, and their
punishment, 76; their transgression, 207; desire a king, 26; cursed by
David and Jesus, 83. Vide Jews.
JACOB bequeaths the religion of Islâm to his children, 15; grows blind by
weeping for the loss of Joseph, 178; recovers his sight by means of Joseph's
garment, and goes into Egypt, 179.
Jadd Ebn Kais, 140, n.
Jahl (Abu), a great enemy of Mohammed, 251; his injustice to an orphan, 457,
n.; terrified, seeing Mohammed at prayers, 450; his advice concerning
Mohammed, 129, n.; slain at Bedr, 131, n.
Al Jallâs Ebn Soweid, 143, n.
Jalût, or Goliah, sent against the Israelites, 207, n.; slain by David, 27.
Al Jassâsa, the beast which will appear at the approach of the last day, 288,
n.
Jesus promised to Mary, 36; his miraculous birth, 36; compared to Adam, 39;
speaks in his mother's womb, 57; and in his cradle, ib.; the apostle of the
Jews, ib.; animates a bird of clay, when a child, ib., n.; performs
several miracles, but not by his own power, ib.; raises three persons to
life, ib.; causes a table with provisions to descend from heaven, 88;
his miracles deemed sorcery, 87; rejected by the Jews, 38; sends two of
his disciples to Antioch, who work miracles, 330; a curse denounced
against those who believe not on him, 39; the Jews lay a plot for his
life, but are disappointed, 38; not really crucified, ib., 70; whether
he died or not, 38; not God nor equal to God, 75, 138; but an apostle
only, 83, 27, 365; the Word of God, 36; various opinions concerning him,
229; will descend on earth before the resurrection, and kill Antichrist,
&c., 71, 365.
Jethro, vide Shoaib.
Jews, vide Israelites; particularly applied to, 5, 13; accused of having
corrupted the scriptures and of stifling passages, 5, n., 40, 59; accuse the
Virgin
Mary of fornication, 70, n.; plot against Jesus, 38; their unbelief, 11,
69, n.; covetous of life, 11; reproved for warring against one another,
10; proof required by them of a prophet's mission, 51; their punishments
at different times for neglect of their religion, 81; metamorphosed into
apes and swine for their infidelity, 8, 81, 88; pretend their punishment
in hell shall be short, 10, 34; their law confirmed by Jesus and the
Korân, 79; their laws concerning food, 103; dispute with the Mohammedans
concerning God's favour, 252; Mohammed refuses to decide a controversy
between them, 80; league with the Koreish against Mohammed, 60; demand
that Mohammed cause a book to descend from heaven, 70; a controversy
between a Jew and a Mohammedan, 61.
Jews and Christians accused of condemning one another, 13; and of corrupting
the scriptures, 40; guilty of two extremes as to their opinion of Christ,
72; none of them shall die before he believes in Christ, 70; their
different behaviour to the Moslems, 83; to be protected on payment of tribute,
137.
Job, his story, 247, 342.
John, the son of Zacharias, his character, 36; his murder revenged on the Jews
by Nebuchadnezzar, 207; the miracle of his blood, ib.
Jonâda first practises the intercalation of a month among the Arabs, 139.
Jonas, his story, 157, 338, 421; called Dhu'lnûn, 248.
Joseph, his story, 169, &c.
Joshua and Caleb sent as spies into the land of Canaan, 76.
Journey, Mohammed's to heaven, 207.
Jowâdh (Abu'l), the hypocrite, finds fault with Mohammed's distribution of the
spoils at Honein, 141.
Judgment (day of), the Mohammedan tradition concerning it, 34; described, 272,
388, 392, 422, 438; the signs of its approach, 376, 438, 250, n.;
called the Hour, 91; unknown to any besides God, 123; will come
suddenly, ib.; and inevitably, 154, 396.
Al Judi, the mountain whereon Noah's ark rested, 162.
Just and unjust, the difference between them, 360.
AL KADR, the name of the night on which the Korân came down from heaven, 451.
Kail sent to Mecca to obtain rain for Ad, 111, n.
Kârûn (or Corah), his story and fearful end, 295, &c.
Kebla, the part towards which the Mohammedans turn in prayer, 42, n.;
indifferent, 13, changed from Jerusalem to Mecca, 15, 16.
Kendah a tribe who used to bury their daughters alive, 101, n.
Keys of knowledge (the five), 309, n.
Khadijah, Mohammed's wife, one of the four perfect women, 417, n
Khaibar, the expedition thither, 378, n.
Khaithama (Abu), a story of him, 149, n.
Khâled Ebn al Walîd puts Mohammed's horse to flight at the battle of Ohod, 47,
n.; demolishes the idol of al Uzza, 347, n.; drives Acrema and his men
into Mecca, 380, n.
Khantala, vide Handha.
Khawla bint Thalâba, her case occasions a passage of the Korân, 402.
Khazraj, vide Aws.
Al Khedr, the prophet, his adventures with Moses, 223, &c.
Khobaib, his martyrdom, 204, n.
Khozâa (the tribe of) held the angels to be the daughters of God, 243, n.
Kitfîr, Joseph's master, 171, n.
Koba, Mohammed founds a mosque there, 147, n.
Kobeis (Abu), a mountain near Mecca, whence Abraham proclaimed the pilgrimage,
252, n.
Korân, the signification of the word, 169, n.; by whom composed, 203, n.;
twenty-three years in completing, 273, n.; could not be composed by any
besides God, 153; men and genii defied to produce a chapter like it,
ib., 214; no forgery, 422; sent down by God himself, 99; its excellency,
43, n., 296, 358; consonant to scripture, 160, 294; no revelation more
evident, 123; contains all things necessary, 92, 202; all differences to
be decided by it, 61; its contents partly literal and partly figurative,
32; traduced by the unbelievers, 271; as a piece of sorcery, 150, as a
poetical composition, 333; as a pack of fables, 196; the sentence of
those who believe not in it, 370; when revealed, 369; not liable to
corruption, 158; ought not to be touched by the unclean, 398.
Koreidha (tribe of), their destruction, 315, n.
Koreish (the tribe of), their nobility, 49, 456; their enmity to Mohammed,
100, n.; demand miracles of him, 184; threaten him for abusing their gods,
347; propound three questions to him, 214; some of them attempt to kill
him, but are struck blind, 330; lose seventy of their principal men at
Bedr, 32, 131; persecute Mohammed's followers, 198; plagued with famine,
260, n.; and several diseases, 194; their manner of praying, 129; make a
truce with Mohammed, 380, n.; violate the truce and lose Mecca, 377, n.
Kosai names his sons from four idols, 124, n.; the Koreish demand him to be
raised to life by Mohammed, 128, n.
LAHEB (ABU), Mohammed's uncle, and bitter enemy, 459, n.; his and his wife's
punishment, ib.
Lapwing gives Solomon an account of the city of Saba, 284; carries a Letter
from him to the queen, ib.; her sagacity in finding water, ib.
Last day, vide Judgment.
Law given to Moses, 6; confirmed by Jesus, 37; and the Korân, 5.
Laws relating to inheritances, 54, 72; legacies, 19, 86; to divorce, vide
Divorce; to murder, vide Murder, &c.
Laws of Moses and Jesus set aside by the Korân, 79, n.
Laws of God, the punishment of those who conceal them, 51, n.
Lazarus raised, 37, n.
Legs made bare, the meaning of that expression, 421, n.
Leith (Banu) thought it unlawful to eat alone, 270.
Letters, initial, explained, 105, n.
Life to come, how expressed in Arabic, 2, n.
Lobâba (Abu), his treachery, 128, n.
Lokmân, his history, 306; whether the same with Esop, 307.
Lot, his story, 113, 165; his wife's infidelity, 417.
Lote-tree in heaven, 390.
Lots forbidden, 23, 84.
MADIAN, a city of Hejâz, 113; its inhabitants destroyed, 281.
Magog, vide Gog.
Malec, the principal angel who has the charge of hell, 366.
Malec Ebn al Seif, a Jew, 40, n.
Man, his wonderful formation, 345; created various ways, 250; shall be
rewarded according to his deserts, 58; ought to be thankful for the good
things of
this life, 333; his ingratitude to God, 305; his presumption in
undertaking to fulfil the laws of God, 351; why destroyed, 169.
Manna given to the Israelites, 7.
Marriage, laws relating thereto, 56, 266; Mohammed's privileges as to
marriage, 318, &c.; apt to distract a man from his duty, 413.
Martyrs, not dead but living, 17; the sufferings of two Mohammedans, 204.
Marût, vide Harût.
Mary, the Virgin, her story, 228, &c.; free from original sin, 35,
miraculously fed, ib.; one of the four perfect women, 418, n.; calumniated by
the Jews,
70; a woman of veracity, 83.
Al Mashér al Harâm, 21.
Masúd (Ebn), a tradition of his in relation to Pharaoh, 353.
Maturity of age, 54.
Measure ought to be just, 114, 440.
Mecca, the security and plenty of that city, 42. See Caaba.
Meccans, their idolatry and superstitions condemned, 101, 301; imagined their
idols interceded for them with God, 150; reproached for their
ingratitude, 188; threatened with destruction, 356; require Mohammed to
show them the angels, 99, n.; send their poor out of the city to
Mohammed, 93, n.; hold a council and conspire Mohammed's destruction,
128, n.; applied indecent circumstances to God, 199, n.; chastised with
famine and sword, 348, n.; promised rain on their embracing Islâm, 426,
n.
Medina, its inhabitants reproved for declining the expedition of Tabûc, 149.
Menât, an idol of the Meccans, 67, 390.
Merwa, vide Safâ.
Mestah, one of the accusers of Ayesha, 265, n.
Midian, vide Madian.
Michael the friend of the Jews, 11, n.
Milk, its production wonderful, 199.
Mina, the valley of, 21.
Miracles required of Mohammed, 184, n., 215, n., 430.
Months, sacred, to be observed, 20, 73, 85, 139.
Moon split in sunder, 391.
Mohâjerîn, or refugees, who, 146, n.
Mohammed promised to Adam, 5; foretold by Christ, 410; expected by Jews and
Christians, 451; sent at forty years of age, 151, n.; complained of by
the Koreish to his uncle, Abu Taleb, 340, n.; his revelations ridiculed
by the Meccans, 152, n.; his journey to heaven, 206; enters into a
league with those of Medina, 128, n.; discovers the conspiracy of the
Meccans against his life, 129, n.; gains some proselytes of the genii by
reading the Korân, 374, n.; sent as a mercy to all creatures, 249; the
illiterate prophet, 120; excuses his inability to work miracles, 99,
182; his promise to those who fly for religion, 301, n.; accused of
injustice in dividing the spoils, 48, 141; flies to Medina, 139;
foretells the victory at Bedr, 393, n.; an account of that victory, 32,
125, &c.; loses the battle of Ohod, where he is in danger of his life,
45; reported to be slain, 46, n.; lays the fault on his men for
disobeying his orders, 47; endeavours to quiet their murmurs for that
misfortune, 46, &c.; goes to meet the Koreish at Bedr according to their
challenge, 49, n.; foretells the battle of the ditch, 315; the fear of
his men at that battle, ib.; his men swear fidelity to him at al
Hodeibiya, 379, n.; his generosity, 380; makes a truce with the Koreish
for ten years, ib.; his courage at the battle of Honein, 137, n.;
expostulates with his followers on their unwillingness to go on the
expedition to Tabûc, 140, &c.; some account of that expedition, 113, n.;
a conspiracy to kill him, 143, n., 330, n.; another attempt on his life,
from which he is miraculously preserved, 74, n.; is almost prevailed on
by the Jews to go into Syria, 213, n.; reproves the hypocritical
Moslems, 62; his mercy to the disobedient, 48; his wives demand a better
allowance, on which he offers them a divorce, 316; they choose to stay
with him, and he lays down some rules for their behaviour, ib.; the Jews
reproach him on account of the number of his wives, 185, n.; his
privileges in that and some other respects, 318, &c.; his divorced wives
or widows not to marry again, 319; his amour with Mary, an Egyptian
slave, 415; disputes in a Jewish synagogue, 34, n.; decides a
controversy in favour of a Jew against a Mohammedan, 61, n.; reprehended
for a rash judgment, 66, n.; not allowed to pray for reprobate
idolaters, 148; utters blasphemy through inadvertance, 255, n.; no
revelation vouchsafed him for several days, 219, 449, n.; enjoined to
admonish his people, 388; his near relation to the believers, 312;
demands respect and obedience from them, 270, 403; challenges his
opponents to produce a chapter like the Korân, 3; put out of conceit
with honey, 415, desires nothing for his pains in preaching, 275;
acknowledges himself a sinner, 376; commanded to pray by night, 427;
refuses the adoration of two Christians, 41, n.; refuses to eat with an
infidel, 272, in.; prophesies the defeat of the Persians by the Romans,
302; reprehends his companions' impatience, 297; and their imitating the
Christians, 84; speaks by revelation, 389; his dream at Bedr, 130; his
dream at Medina, 380; his doctrine compared with that of the other
prophets, 372; is terrified at the approach of Gabriel, 429; is
reprehended for his neglect of a poor blind man, 437; demolishes the
idols of Mecca, 214; warned to prepare for death, 458.
Mohammedans believe in all the scriptures and prophets without distinction,
15; forbidden to hold friendship with infidels, 44, 80; the hypocritical
threatened, 149; the lukewarm deceive their own souls, 377; the sincere,
their reward, 294, their description, 381.
Moseilama, the false prophet, 80, n.
Moses, his story, 115, &c., 233, &c., 276, &c., 289, &c.; his miraculous
preservation in his infancy, 235, &c.; the impediment in his speech, how
occasioned, 234, n.; kills an Egyptian, and flies into Midian, 291; is
entertained by Shoaib, 292; receives his rod from him, ib. n.; sees the
fire in the bush, 283; is sent to Pharaoh, and receives the power of
working miracles, 215; his transactions in Egypt, 115, 156, &c.; brings
water from the rock, 7, 121, n., cleared from an unjust aspersion by a
stone's running away with his clothes, 320, n.; treats with God, and
receives the tables of the law from him, 6, 118; breaks the tables, and
is wroth with Aaron on account of the golden calf, 120; threatens the
people, ib.; part of his law rehearsed, 104; reproved for his vanity,
222, n.; his expedition in search of al Khedr, ib.; his and Aaron's
relics in the ark, 27; his law now corrupted, 34, n.
Moslems, vide Mohammedans.
Murder, laws concerning it, 19, 64, 77, 210, 255.
Musulman, whence the word comes, 14, n.
Mysteries, how expressed in Arabic, 2, n.
AL NADIR (the tribe of) expelled Arabia, 404, n.
Nebuchadnezzar takes Jerusalem, 207, n.
Night, part of it to be spent in prayer, 427.
Nimrod disputes with Abraham, 28; his tower, 196, n.; attempts to ascend to
heaven, 246, n.; his persecution of Abraham and his punishment, ib.
Noah, his story, 110, 160, 279, 298, 424, &c.; his prayer, 392; his wife's
infideliity, 417.
Al Nodar, one of Mohammed's adversaries, his opinion of the Korân, 90, n.;
introduces a Persian romance as preferable to it, 306, n.
OATH, an inconsiderate one, how to be expiated, 84; an extraordinary one, 445.
Oaths, cautions concerning them, 24; not to be violated, 202.
Obba Ebn Khalf disputes against the resurrection, 195, n.; his wager with Abu
Becr, 302, n.; is wounded by Mohammed, 272, n.
Oda Ebn Kais, an enemy of Mohammed, 194.
Offerings to God recommended, 253; a large one made by Mohammed, ib
Og, fables concerning him, 76
Ohod, the battle fought there, 45, n., 47
Okail (Abu), his charity, 144, n.
Okba Ebn Abi Moait professes Islâm and apostatizes, 272, n.; publicly abuses
Mohammed, ib.; taken and beheaded at Bedr, ib.
Olive-trees grow at Mount Sinai, 257.
Olivet (Mount), Christ taken thence by a whirlwind, 39, n.
Omar, his deciding a dispute between a Jew and a Mohammedan, 61, n.; compared
to Noah, 132, n.
Omm Salma, one of Mohammed's wives, 220, n.
Omeyya Ebn Abi'lsalt, 122, n.
Opprobrious language forbidden, 382.
Orphans not to be injured, 54, 449; a curse on those who defraud them, 23; to
be instructed in religion, 54.
Ostrich's egg, a fine woman's skin compared to it, 335.
Othmân Ebn Affân sent by Mohammed to the Koreish, is imprisoned, 379, n.;
contributes largely to the expedition of Tabûc, 144, n.
Othmân Ebn Matûn, his conversion occasioned by a passage of the Korân, 202, n.
Othmân Ebn Telha has the keys of the Caaba returned to him by Mohammed, 60,
n.; embraces Mohammedism, ib
Oven, whence the first waters of the deluge poured forth, 161, n.
Ozair, vide Ezra.
PARABLES, 29, 188, 200, 220, 267, 341
Paraclete, the Mohammedan opinion concerning the person meant thereby, 410, n.
Paradise described, 184, 375, 395, &c.; where situate, 5, n.; its fruits, 3;
the portion of the distressed, 22.
Pardon will be granted to the penitent, 135.
Parents to be honoured, 209, 373; make their children infidels, 304.
Patience recommended, 53, 353; the sign of a true believer, 147, n.
Patriarchs before Moses neither Jews nor Christians, 15.
Pen with which God's decrees are written, 419.
Penitent, their reward, 148.
Pentateuch, vide Law
Persecutors, their sentence, 442.
Persians overcome by the Greeks, 303, n.
Peter (St.), his stratagem to convert those of Antioch, 330, n.
Pharaoh, his story, 115, &c., 156, &c., 289; the common title of the kings of
Egypt, 115; a punishment used by him, 340; his presumption, 365.
Phineas Ebn Azura, a Jew, his dishonesty, 40; his indecent expressions
concerning God, 51, 81, n.
Pico de Adam, vide Serendib.
Pilgrimage to Mecca commanded, 21; directions concerning it, 21, 42, 252, &c.
Pledges to be given where no contract in writing, 31.
Plurality of worlds, the belief thereof imputed to Mohammed, I, n.
Poets censured, 282.
Pomp of this life of no value, 294.
Polygamy, vide Marriage.
Prayer commanded and enforced, 6, 13, 241, 300, 303, &c.; directions
concerning it, 52, 65, 74, 213, 216; not to be entered on by him who is drunk,
59; before reading the Korân, 303; for the penitent, 348.
Predestination, 46, 208.
Pre-existence of souls a doctrine not unknown to the Mohammedans, 122, n.
Pride, abominable in the sight of God, 210.
Prideaux (Dr.) charges the Mohammedans with cruelty, without foundation, 405,
n. confounds Salmân with Abd'allah Ebn Salâm, 203, n.; his
partiality as to the story of Abraha's overthrow, 456, n.; confounds
Caab Ebn al Ashraf, the Jew, with Caab Ebn Zohair, the poet, 41, n.;
misled by Erpenius, 405, n.; misquotes a passage of the Korân, 416, n.;
mistaken in asserting Mohammed might marry his nieces, 318, n.
Prodigality, a crime, 209.
Prophets, their enemy will have God for his, 12; rejected and persecuted
before Mohammed, 91, 153; not chosen for their nobility or riches, 100. Vide
Sinai.
Prosperity or adversity, no mark of God's favour or disfavour, 446.
Punishments and blessings of the next life, 109; the manner, 138.
QUAILS given the Israelites, 7; what kind of birds they were, ib., n.
Quarrels between the true believers to be composed, 382; to be avoided on the
pilgrimage, 21.
Quietism, Mohammedans no strangers to it, 446, n.
RAFE (ABU), a Jew, offers to worship Mohammed, 41.
Rahûn, vide Serendib.
Raïna, a word used by the Jews to Mohammed by way of derision, 13.
Al Rakim, what, 217.
Ramadân (the month) appointed for a fast, 19.
Ransom of captives disapproved, 132.
Al Rass, various opinions concerning it, 273, n.
Razeka, an idol of Ad, 111.
Religion, no violence to be used in it, 28; what is the right, 452; fighting
for it commanded and encouraged, 20, 47, 62, 127, 135, 137, 254, 410; divided
into various sects, 259; harmony therein recommended, 43; whether those
of any religion may be saved, 8, n.
Repentance necessary to salvation, 55; a death-bed one ineffectual, ib.
Resurrection asserted, 211, 384, 431, 441; described, 261, 384; the signs of
its approach, 431; its time known to God alone, 310.
Retaliation (the law of), 18.
Revelations in writinng given to several prophets, 2, n.; what are now extant
according to the Mohammedans, ib.
Revenge allowed, 255.
Riches will not gain a man admission into paradise, 325; employ a man's whole
life, 454.
Right way, what the Mohammmedans so call, I, n.
Righteous, their reward, 152, 297, 311.
Righteousness, wherein it consists, 18.
Rites appointed in every religion, 256.
Rock, whence Moses produced water, 7.
SAAD Ebn Abi Wakkâs, 125, 297, n.
Saad Ebn Moadh, his severity, 132, n.; dooms the Koradhites to destruction,
315, n.
Saba, queen of, vide Balkîs.
Saba, the wickedness of his posterity, and their punishment, 323.
Sabbath, the transgression thereof punished, 121.
Safâ and Merwâ, mountains of, two monuments of God, 17.
Sasiya bint Hoyai, one of Mohammed's wives, 382, n.
Al Sâhira, one of the names of hell, 436, n.
Saïba, 86.
Sâkia, an idol of Ad, 111
Sakhar, a devil, gets Solomon's signet, and reigns in his stead. 342, n.; his
punishment, ib.
Sâleh, the prophet, his story, 112, &c., 280, &c. Vide Thamûd.
Sâlema, an idol of Ad, 111.
Salsabil, a fountain in paradise, 433.
Salutation, mutual, recommended, 63.
Al Sâmeri, the maker of the golden calf, who, 6, n., 237, n.
Sarah, wife of Abraham, her laughing, 165.
Satan, his punishment for seducing our first parents, 106; believed to assist
the Koreish, 131.
Saul, his story, 26, &c.
Sects and their leaders shall quarrel at the resurrection, 18.
Sejâj, the prophetess, 80, n.
Sejjîn, what, 440, n.
Sennacherib, 207, n.
Separation, the day of, a name of the day of judgment, 368.
Serâb, what, 267.
Serendib, the isle of, Adam cast down thereon from paradise, 5, n.; the print
of Adam's foot shown on a mountain there, ib.
Sergius, the monk, 203, n.
Serpent, his sentence for assisting in the seduction of man, 106, n.
Seventy Israelites demand to see God; are killed by lightning, and restored to
life at the prayer of Moses, 6.
Al Seyid al Najrâni, a Jew, offers to worship Mohammed, 41.
Shamhozai, a debauched angel, his penance, 12, n.
Shâs Ebn Kais, a Jew, promotes a quarrel between Aws and Khazraj, 43, n.
Schechinah, misinterpreted by the commentators, 27, n.
Sheddâd, son of Ad, makes a garden in imitation of paradise, 445, n.; is
destroyed in going to view it, ib.
Sheep, the prodigious weight of their tails in the east, 103, n.
Shem, raised to life by Jesus, 37, n.
Shoaib, the prophet, his story, 113, &c., 167.
Signs, the meaning of the word in the Korân. 5, n.
Al Sijil, the angel who takes an account of men's actions, 249.
Sin, the irremissible one, in the opinion of the Mohammedans, 10, n.; the
seven deadly sins, 57, n.
Sinai, Mount, lifted over the Israelites, 8, 11; the souls of all the prophets
present at the delivery of the law to Moses thereon, 41.
Simon the Cyrenæan, supposed to be crucified instead of Jesus, 38, n.
Sirius, or the greater dog-star, worshipped by the old Arabs, 381.
Slaves, how to be treated, 266; women not to be compelled to prostitute
themselves, 267.
Slander forbidden, 382; the punishment of those who slander the prophets, 143,
454.
Sleepers, the seven, their story, 216, &c.
Smoke, which will precede the day of judgment, 367.
Sodom and Gomorrah destroyed, 166.
Sodomy, 55.
Sofiân (Abu) commands the army of the Koreish at Ohod, 45; and the convoy of
the caravan at Bedr, 126; challenges Mohammed to meet him at Bedr
a second time, 47, n.; but fails, 49, n.; embraces Mohammedism on the
taking of Mecca, 408; expostulates with Mohammed, 260.
Sohail Ebn Amru treats with Mohammed on behalf of the Koreish, 379.
Soheib flies to Medinna, 22.
Solomon succeeds David, 283; has power over the winds, 247, 342; his and
David's judgment, 247; his manner of travelling, 284; what passed between
him and the queen of Saba, 284, &c.; a trick of the devil's to blast his
character, 12; cleared by the mouth of Mohammed, ib.; orders several of
his horses to be killed, because they had diverted him from his prayers,
341; is deprived of his signet and his kingdom for some days, 342; his
death concealed for a year, and in what manner, 322.
Sorâka Ebn Malec, the devil appears in his form, 131.
Soul, the origin of it, 214.
Spoils, laws concerning their division, 115, 130.
Stars darted at the devils, 192.
Stoning of adulterers, 34, n.
Striking, an epithet of the last day, 453.
Supererogation, 213.
Sura, or chapter of the Korân, 142.
Sun and moon, not to be worshipped, 357; are subject to God and the use of
man, 109.
Swearer, a common, not to be obeyed, 420.
Swine's flesh. Vide Food.
TABLE caused to descend form heaven by Jesus, 87; of God's decrees, 92.
Tables of the law, 119.
Tabûc, the expedition of, 139.
Taghût, the meaning of the word, 28, n.
Tâleb (Abu), Mohammed's uncle, 148, n.; Mohammed refuses to pray for him on
his dying an infidel, ib.
Talût, vide Saul.
Tasnîm, a fountain in paradise, 440.
Tebâla and Jorash, their inhabitants embrace Mohammedism, 137.
Temple of Mecca, vide Caaba; of Jerusalem, built by genii, 322.
Thálaba grows suddenly rich on Mohammed's prayer for him, 143, n.; refusing to
pay alms is again reduced to poverty, ib.
Thakîf, the tribe of, demand terms of Mohammed, which are denied them, 213, n.
Thamûd, the tribe of, their story and destruction, 111, 254, 258, 356. Vide
Saleh.
Theft, its punishment, 78.
Throne of God, 28; will be borne by eight angels on the day of judgment, 422.
Thunder celebrates the praise of God, 182.
Tima Ebn Obeirak, his theft, 66, n.
Time computed by the sun and moon, 98.
Titian, the name of the person supposed to be crucified in Christ's stead, 38,
n.
Tobba, the people of, destroyed, 368.
Toleihah, the false prophet, 80, 313, n.
Towa, the valley where Moses saw the burning bush, 436.
Tribute, its imposition. 131.
Trinity, the belief thereof forbidden, 72, 83.
True believers, who are such, 257.
Trumpet will sound at the last day, 289, 348.
UNBELIEVERS described, 325; their sentence, 17, 60, 346.
Unity of God asserted, 459.
Unrighteousness punished, 152.
Usury forbidden, 30, 305.
Al Uzza, an idol of the Meccans, 67, n., 390.
VARIETY of languages and complexions hard to be accounted for, 304.
Victory of the Greeks over the Persians foretold by Mohammed, 302.
Visitation of the Caaba, 21.
AL WALID EBN AL MOGHEIRA, a great enemy of Mohammed, was a bastard, 420, n.;
derides Mohammed for calling God al Rahmân, 123; has his nose
slit, 420, n.; his prosperity and decay, 429; hires another to bear the
guilt of his apostacy, 391; his death, 194.
Al Walid Ebn Okba, 382, n.
War against infidels, commanded and recommended, 62, 132, 375, &c.
Waraka Ebn Nawfal acknowledged one God before the mission of Mohammed, 63, n.
Wasîla, 86.
Water produced from the rock by Moses, 7.
Weight to be just, 114, 440.
Whoredom, laws concerning it, 55, 262.
Wicked, their sentence, 155, 191, 435. See Unbelievers.
Widows to be provided for, 26; laws relating to them, 25.
Wife ought to be used justly, 68; may be chastised, 25; the number of wives
allowed by the Korân, 53; their duty to their husbands, 24. See Adultery,
Divorce and Marriage.
Winds, their use, 305; subject to Solomon, 247, 342.
Wine forbidden, 23, 84.
Wills, laws relating to them, 86.
Witnesses, laws relating to them, 69, 82; necessary in bargains, and to secure
debts, 31.
Women ought to be respected, 53; and to have a part of their relations'
inheritance, 54; not to be inherited against their will, 55; to be subject to
the
men, 58; unclean while they have their courses, 23; some directions for
their conduct, 266, 382; the punishment of those who falsely accuse them
of incontinence, 263, 264; those who come over from the enemy, how to be
dealt with, 408.
Works of an infidel, will appear to him at the last day, 91.
AL YAMAMA, its inhabitants a warlike people, 379.
Al Yaman, the inhabitants thereof slay their prophet, 242, n.; they are
destroyed by Nebuchadnezzar, ib.
Yathreb, the ancient name of Medina, 314.
AL ZABIR, Mount, 119, n.
Al Zacât, vide Alms.
Zacharias, praying for a son, is promised John, 36, 227; educates the Virgin
Mary, 36.
Al Zakkûm, the tree of hell, 212, 336, &c.
Al Zamharîr, what, 101, n.
Zeid Ebn Amru, acknowledged one God before the mission of Mohammed, 63, n.
Zeid, the husband of Zeinab, his story, 317, n.; the only person, of
Mohammed's companions, named in the Korân, ib.
Zeinab, her marriage with Mohammed, ib.
Zenjebil, a stream in paradise, 433.
Zoleikha, Joseph's mistress, 171, &c.
i
i
137
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