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2026-06-08T22:04:55Z

CPO675: /* The story of Joseph */

== Ever ==

===Supernatural destruction of cities (the punishment stories)===

==== Every people/city/place pre-Muhammad will be sent a messenger and destroyed before judgement day ====
The Quran names around the vicinity of Arabia cities and tribes destroyed by Allah for rejecting his messengers and Islam.

All towns are said to experience this, an idea which is linked to that of each having its own Messenger.<ref>Durie, Mark. ''The Qur'an and Its Biblical Reflexes: Investigations Into the Genesis of a Religion. pp 49 - 50.'' 2018. Lexington books.</ref> Durie (2018) notes; a ''repeated formulaic system is kam ahlaknā / qaṣamnā (qablahum / min qab lihim / min qablikum) min qarnin / mina l‑qurūni / min qaryatin “how many generations/towns (before them/you) did we destroy/shatter!” (Q6:6; Q7:4; Q10:13; Q17:17; Q19:74, 98; Q20:128; Q21:11; Q36:31; Q50:36)'' is used (along with others) to further highlight this point.<ref name=":42">Ibid. pp. 49.</ref> Drawing on another recurring formula, the Qur'an frequently urges its audience to '''travel through the earth and observe''<nowiki/>' how Allah brought destruction upon sinners of the past, i.e. visible ruins (Q3:137; Q6:11; Q12:109; Q16:36; Q27:69; Q29:20; Q30:9, 42; Q35:44; Q40:21, 82; Q47:10).<ref name=":42" />{{Quote|{{Quran|17|58}}|There is not a town but We will destroy it before the Day of Resurrection, or punish it with a severe punishment. That has been written in the Book.}}'''Bring out Arabic'''

Each example is told in a common literary narrative structure known in academia as a 'punishment story/narrative'. These narratives follow a pattern: A prophet is sent to an unbelieving community by God with a message (to worship God alone and to live righteously). The community rejects the prophet and mocks or opposes him. Despite warnings, the people persist in disbelief. Eventually, God punishes the community, often through a natural disaster or sudden destruction, as a sign of divine justice.<ref name=":32">Marshall, D. (2018). ''Punishment Stories. In Encyclopaedia of the Qur'ān Online.'' Brill. <nowiki>https://doi.org/10.1163/1875-3922_q3_EQCOM_00162</nowiki></ref> These narratives are a recurring rhetorical and theological structure in the Qur'an, particularly in the Meccan suras, where the Qur'an recounts stories of previous prophets send to their communities to warn their contemporaries of the consequences of rejecting divine guidance, of which Muhammad is the latest in the line of these messengers.<ref name=":32" />

This message is changed in Medina to involve military/political domination instead og supernatural punishment as it was clear no miraclous destruciton came - Qur'an needed to comment on it.

Goes against archeological evidence of ancient cities - name some continuously inhabited, and severe lack of evidence of others - archaeological and or written/graffiti record of surviers or surrounding empires.

== The story of Joseph ==
There are many differences between the story of Joseph (Arabic: ''Yūsuf'') in the Qur'an, told in full in Surah 12 (Surah Yūsuf), and the book of Genesis in the bible. Reynolds (2025), largely citing Witzum's (2011) 'The Syriac Millenia of the Qur'an: The Recasting of Biblical Narratives',<ref>Witztum, Joseph (2011) ''[https://almuslih.org/wp-content/uploads/2024/11/Witztum-J-The-Syriac-milieu-of-the-Quran.pdf The Syriac milieu of the Quran: The recasting of Biblical narratives], pp191-239.'' PhD Thesis, Princeton University</ref> notes how these differences directly match post-biblical writings; with almost all of these distinctive Qur’anic elements showing dependence on or conversation with Syriac Christian traditions (such as Pseudo-Narsai, Ephrem, Pseudo-Basil, Balai, Syriac Bible/Peshitta), which comes as part of his argument that Christian traditions were known by Muhammad's community. A few overlap with the Jewish midrash, but the strongest and most consistent influence comes from Christian sources.<ref name=":4">Reynolds, Gabriel Said. C''hristianity and the Qur'an: The Rise of Islam in Christian Arabia (p. 76-86).'' Yale University Press. Kindle Edition.</ref>

Reynolds provides provides 11 clear examples of this:<ref name=":4" />

# Joseph’s singular dream: in the Qur’an he has only one dream (unlike the Book of Genesis which has two) which he tells directly to his father Jacob, who warns him to keep it secret in case it leads his brothers to seek him harm - matching Pseudo-Narsai’s homily (5th-century Syriac Christian).<ref>Ibid. pp76, pp81</ref>
# The brothers' plot to kill Joseph: the Qur’an has the brothers plotting at home, not spontaneously in the fields - also found in Pseudo-Narsai.<ref>Ibid. pp78, pp82</ref>
# The wolf motif: the Qur’an specifies a wolf instead of a vague “wild animal” as in Genesis - which links to Christian tradition (Pseudo-Narsai) who calls the brothers “wolves” and Joseph “a lamb,” echoing Gospel imagery of shepherds/sheep<ref>Ibid. pp78, pp82-83</ref>.
# Joseph in the pit: the Qur’an has Joseph comforted by God in the pit (''jubb''; {{Quran|12|15}}) - which again follows a report in Pseudo-Narsai of revelation to Joseph in the pit (Syriac ''gubbā'').<ref name=":5">Ibid. pp78, pp83</ref>
# Jacob’s (Joseph's father) response to the bloody shirt: the Qur’an has Jacob suspecting deception - reflected in homilies from Ephrem and Balai, who also have Jacob reason that the brothers’ story is false.<ref name=":5" />
# Potiphar and the garment: the Qur’an shows Potiphar recognizing Joseph’s innocence and his wife's guilt in trying to seduce him - found in some post-biblical Jewish Traditions (including ''Genesis Rabbah 87:9'') where he shows knowledge of Joseph's innocence - however only in Christian traditions (e.g., Pseudo-Narsai) do we find Potiphar, as in {{Quran|12|28-29}}, also arguing for Joseph’s innocence by referring to the torn garment as proof.<ref name=":5" />
# Potiphar’s wife confesses: the Qur’an has her admit guilt later in the story - found in the Pseudo-Narsai, where she confesses after Joseph’s rise to power.<ref>Ibid. pp78-79, pp83</ref>
# Jacob’s blindness healed by Joseph’s shirt: the Qur’an reports Jacob miraculously regains sight when Joseph’s shirt touches his face - in the bible Jacob is firstly simply 'dim/heavy with age', but nothing is said about blindness, which is found in Christian late antique sources, and secondly using the garment to heal him draws on Syriac Christian idioms; (“lighten the eyes” = to gladden), made literal in the Qur’an (like other symbolic items in Christian stories) to heal Jacob's eyes.<ref>Ibid. pp79, pp83-84</ref>
# Joseph called a thief by his brothers: the Qur’an has Joseph's brothers suggest he committed a past theft - which is rooted in Pseudo-Narsai, which connects Benjamin’s cup incident to Rachel stealing idols and compares Joseph to her.<ref>Ibid. pp79, pp84-85</ref>
# Joseph’s garment sent to Jacob: the Qur’an has Joseph send his shirt to Jacob - which is related to the Syriac Peshitta (and Septuagint and Vulgate) reading of Genesis and Balai’s poetry, where Jacob receives garments from Joseph.<ref name=":6">Ibid. pp79, pp85</ref>
# The brothers ask for Jacob’s forgiveness – the Qur’an has them repent to Jacob, who asks God to forgive them - which echoes Balai, who also has Jacob forgive and pray for them.<ref name=":6" />

== Flat Earth - Tafsirs ==

=== The Highest Horizon ===
The Qu'ran says Muhammad was in the highest horizon ''bil-ufuqi<ref>افق - [https://lexicon.quranic-research.net/data/01_A/103_Afq.html Lane's lexicon Classical Arabic Dictionary root: hamza fā qāf (أ ف ق)]

Horizon ''ufuq'' (أُفُق) [https://lexicon.quranic-research.net/pdf/Page_0068.pdf Lane's Lexicon p.68]

Horizon ''ufuq'' (أُفُق) [https://lexicon.quranic-research.net/pdf/Page_0069.pdf Lane's Lexicon p.69] </ref>l-aʿlā''<ref>Lanes Lexicon Classical Arabic Dictionary Root: [https://lexicon.quranic-research.net/data/18_E/190_Elw.html ʿayn lām wāw (ع ل و)]

(l-a)ʿlā [https://lexicon.quranic-research.net/pdf/Page_2142.pdf Lanes Lexicon p.2142], [https://lexicon.quranic-research.net/pdf/Page_2143.pdf Lanes Lexicon p.2143]

</ref>. Typically taken as referring to him receiving knowledge there as part of his [[Buraq#The Night Journey (al-Isra wal-Mi'raj)|night journey]].
{{Quote|{{Quran|53|7}}|possessed of sound judgement. He settled, while he (was) in the horizon - the highest.}}See also: {{Quran|81|23}}

On a round Earth, there is no such place as an objective highest horizon, as once you move towards the perceived horizon (the furthest place you can see where the land and sky appear to meet in the distance)<ref>[https://dictionary.cambridge.org/dictionary/english/horizon Horizon Definition] Cambridge Dictionary</ref> the view simply moves further back as you circle around the earth, never actually being reached. So some classical Islamic exegetes have taken this to be the place where the sun rises from, in the seventh heaven, or where it reaches the Earth,<ref>E.g. [https://quranx.com/Tafsir/Jalal/53.7 Tafsir al-Jalalayn on verse Q53:7] by Al-Mahalli (d. 1459 CE) and Al-Suyuti (d. 1505 CE) and the famous pseudepigrapha [https://quranx.com/Tafsir/Abbas/53.7 Tanwîr al-Miqbâs min Tafsîr Ibn ‘Abbâs on verse Q53:7]</ref> which is only possible on a flat Earth.

== The Historical Jesus ==

=== Other Traditions ===

==== Intro ====

Alongside the main consensus from Biblical Scholars/Historians that Jesus was an eschatological preacher in the early first century AD who believed the Earth would end during his time (and therefore couldn't be the Muslim Jesus), there are many other of the most considered authentic teachings of Jesus that clash with Islam; in contrast with the Qur'anic principle of Messenger Uniformitarianism; where all messengers preach essentially the same thing with only minor variations.<ref>Durie, Mark. ''The Qur’an and Its Biblical Reflexes: Investigations into the Genesis of a Religion (pp. 135-142) (Kindle Edition pp. 281-294)''. 5.3 Messenger Uniformitarianism. Lexington Books. 2018.</ref>
{{Quote|{{Quran|41|43}}|Not is said to you except what was said to the Messengers before you. Indeed, your Lord (is) Possessor (of) forgiveness, and Possessor (of) penalty painful.}}{{Quote|{{Quran|2|285}}|The Apostle and the faithful have faith in what has been sent down to him from his Lord. Each [of them] has faith in Allah, His angels, His scriptures and His apostles. [They declare,] ‘We make no distinction between any of His apostles.’ And they say, ‘We hear and obey. Our Lord, forgive us, and toward You is the return.’}}

{{Quote|{{Quran|17|77}}|“This was the sunnah [customary way] of Our messengers whom We sent before you, and you will find no change in Our sunnah”}}cf. {{Quran|6|112}}, {{Quran|35|43}}, {{Quran|22|78}}.

Other than being explicitly told that messengers bring the same message from Allah, Durie (2018) notes the Qur'an repeatedly states that Muhammad was sent to confirm the revelations given to earlier messengers (Q2:91, 97; Q3:3, 50; Q5:48; Q12:111; Q16:43–44; Q35:31), just as each prophet before him confirmed those who came earlier. For example, Jesus (ʿĪsa) confirmed the Torah of Moses (Mūsa) (Q5:46), and the Qurʾan confirms the scriptures revealed to previous prophets (Q4:47). In this way, Muhammad’s role continues the same pattern of reaffirming earlier divine messages rather than introducing a completely new one.<ref>Durie, Mark. ''The Qur’an and Its Biblical Reflexes: Investigations Into the Genesis of a Religion.'' pp.140</ref>

{{Quote|Durie, Mark. The Qur'an and it's Biblical Reflexes. pp.140|• It is also explicitly asserted that messengers bring the same message
from Alla¯h: “Nothing is said to you but what has already been said to
messengers before you” (Q41:43; Q22:78) and “we make no distinction
between any of them” (Q2:136). They also preached the same dīn “commandment” or “religion” (Q42:13; cf. Q3:84; Q4:150), which is referred
to as the “religion of Ibra¯hīm” (Q2:130; Q4:125; Q16:121–23). The
validating function of this idea becomes clear when it is applied against
a group of Jews who reject the concept of the “same message” because
it would mean validating the Messenger. These Jews hold to their own
faith, saying “we believe in what has been sent down on us,” but they
reject the Messenger, or “anything after that” (Q2:91). The ruling against
these Jews is that because they reject the Messenger, they are disbelievers,
rejecting “what All a¯ h has sent down” (Q2:91).31 The idea of the “same message” is further reinforced when the Qurʾan repeatedly states that the Messenger was only sent to confirm what was sent down by previous
messengers (Q2:91, 97; Q3:3, 50; Q5:48; Q12:111; Q16:43–44; Q35:31),
just as previous messengers had done for messengers that preceded them,
for example, ʿĪsa¯ “confirmed” the Tawra¯ h of Mūsa¯(Q5:46), and the Qurʾan
confirms the book(s) sent by previous prophets (Q4:47), just as the Messenger has been doing in his turn.}}
The large differences between the New Testament / Gospels (and by extension the Christian Jesus), and the [[Isa al-Masih (Jesus Christ)|Muslim Jesus,]] are clear to anyone who has read both the Qur'an and NT; with the Qur'an having it's own spin on him and taking many aspects from apocrypha considered inauthentic by NT scholars,<ref>Sanders, E.. ''The Historical Figure of Jesus (pp. 78-79)''. Penguin Books Ltd. Kindle Edition.

..(Gnosticism was a world view that held everything material to be evil; the god who created the world was a bad god, and the creation was wicked. Gnostics who were also Christians held that the good God had sent Jesus to redeem people’s souls, not their bodies, and that Jesus was not a real human being. The Christians who objected to these views finally declared them heretical.) ''I share the general scholarly view that very, very little in the apocryphal gospels could conceivably go back to the time of Jesus. They are legendary and mythological. Of all the apocryphal material, only some of the sayings in the Gospel of Thomas are worth consideration.'' This does not mean that we can make a clean division: the historical four gospels versus the legendary apocryphal gospels. There are legendary traits in the four gospels in the New Testament, and there is also a certain amount of newly created material (as we saw just above)..</ref> and [[Parallels Between the Qur'an and Late Antique Judeo-Christian Literature|later Christian thought/writings]], and have lead to many Muslims arguing for biblical corruption based on textual and theological grounds [though textual don't affect most early & authentic traditions] in general, which is a disputed idea in traditional Islamic thought (cite - Reynolds article. See also: [[Corruption of Previous Scriptures]] & [[Qur'an, Hadith and Scholars:Corruption of Previous Scriptures]])

Historians have searched for a summary of some of the most likely authentic traditions from Biblical historians (using historical-critical methods not Christian or Muslim theologians - more likely to be true and not taken from bias or proving or disproving Islam but historical context, widespread across sources, early - cite Allison explanation - Why - different to time and context, unlikely to be fabricated later by Christians, across all early sources etc.) are shown here as an example of the clashes. [Point: not arguing against Christian Jesus - but secular historians one]

==== Examples ====
{{Quote|Dale C. Allison Jr.. The Historical Christ and the Theological Jesus (Kindle Locations 822-836). Kindle Edition.|2=Given that we typically remember the outlines of an event or the general purport of a conversation rather than the particulars and that we extract patterns and meaning from our memories, it makes little sense to open the quest for Jesus by evaluating individual items with our criteria, in the hope that some bits preserve pristine memory. We should rather be looking for repeating patterns and contemplating the big picture. true. We should trust first, if we are to trust at all, what is most likely to be trustworthy. Although we may, after reading Thucydides, be confident that there was a Peloponnesian War, we may well wonder about many of the details of his account.

The larger the generalization and the more data upon which it is based, the greater our confidence; the more specific the detail and the fewer the data supporting it, the more room we have for doubt. With regard to the sources for Jesus, the traditional criteria of authenticity privilege the parts over the whole. It seems more prudent to privilege generalizations drawn from the whole than to concentrate upon one individual item after another. As a demonstration of how this works in practice, consider the following traditions:

• Jesus prohibited divorce: 1 Cor. 7:10; Mark 10:2-9; Luke 16:18. [Qur'an divorce rules - https://wikiislam.net/wiki/Khula] 

• Jesus sent forth missionaries without staff, food, or money: Matt. 10:9-10; Mark 6:8-9; Luke 10:4.

• Jesus instructed missionaries to get their living by the gospel: 1 Cor. 9:14; Matt. 10:10; Luke 10:7.

• Jesus commanded loving and doing good to enemies: Matt. 5:38-48; Luke 6:27-36. [Qur'an do not be merciful to unbelievers https://wikiislam.net/wiki/Qur%27an,_Hadith_and_Scholars:Non-Muslims & https://wikiislam.net/wiki/Kafir_(Infidel)#Guidelines_on_how_to_deal_with_disbelievers Quran 48:29 ]

• Jesus forbade judging others: Matt. 7:1-2; Luke 6:37-38.

• Jesus asked a prospective follower not to bury his father: Matt. 8:21-22; 22; Luke 959-60.

• Jesus spoke of hating one's father and mother: Matt. 10:37; Luke 14:26; Gospel of Thomas 55, 101. [respect parents - too tenuous]

• Jesus enjoined disciples to take up a cross: Matt. 10:38; Mark 8:34; Luke 14:27.

• Jesus enjoined unlimited forgiveness: Matt. 18:21-22; Luke 17:3-4. [forgiveness against shirk - Qur'an says no Q4:48 and 4:116. ]

• Jesus exhorted hearers to lose their lives in order to save them: Matt. 10:39; Mark 8:35; Luke 17:33.

• Jesus called people away from their livelihoods: Mark 1:16-20; 2:14. [?]

• Jesus figuratively demanded violent removal of hand, foot, and eye: Mark 9:42-48.

• Jesus asked a wealthy man to relinquish his money: Mark 10:17-27. [bring in wealth inequality section of Islam darajat - here]

• Jesus forbade taking oaths: Matt. 5:33-37. [https://www.iium.edu.my/deed/lawbase/risalah_maliki/book31.html#:~:text=Anyone%20who%20swears%20an%20oath,Oneness%2C%20timelessness%20and%20existence.%5D]

• Jesus commanded money to be lent without interest: Matt. 5:42; Gospel of Thomas 95.

• Jesus called some to a life without marriage: Matt. 19:11-12. [Qur'an criticism of monasticism]

• Jesus asked a prospective follower not to say farewell to his parents: Luke 9:61-62. [respect parents?]

• Jesus asked his disciples to renounce all of their possessions: Luke 14:33"}}
<nowiki>--------------------------------------------------</nowiki>

[ highlight those being spoken about in italics or bold]

Professor Allison (2009) notes that Jesus' banning divorce was an important teaching that <s>stood out</s> to early Christians, [https://www.biblegateway.com/passage/?search=Luke%2016%3A18&version=NIV Luke 16:18], [https://www.biblegateway.com/passage/?search=1%20Corinthians%207%3A10-16&version=NIV 1 Corinthians 7:10-16], [https://www.biblegateway.com/passage/?search=Mark%2010%3A2-9&version=NIV Mark 10:2-9], in contrast to Judaism ([https://www.biblegateway.com/passage/?search=Deuteronomy%2024%3A1-4&version=NIV Deuteronomy 24:1-4]) and Islam e.g. Quran 2:228-232, Q65:1-7, (Q4:19 https://quranx.com/hadiths/4.19 & Q4:35), Q33:49 )

He notes that Jesus commanded loving and doing good to enemies in [https://www.biblegateway.com/passage/?search=Matthew%205%3A38-48&version=NIV Matt. 5:38-48]; [https://www.biblegateway.com/passage/?search=Luke%206%3A27-36&version=NIV Luke 6:27-36], while the Qur'an generally advises treating other Muslims well, it specifically states not to be merciful to unbelievers Q48:29. [ For more examples of not being merciful to unbelievers, let alone 'enemies' see: '''[[Qur'an, Hadith and Scholars:Non-Muslims|https://wikiislam.net/wiki/Qur%27an,_Hadith_and_Scholars:Non-Muslims]] & [[Kafir (Infidel)#Guidelines%20on%20how%20to%20deal%20with%20disbelievers|https://wikiislam.net/wiki/Kafir_(Infidel)#Guidelines_on_how_to_deal_with_disbelievers]] Quran 48:29 ]'''

• Jesus enjoined unlimited forgiveness: [https://www.biblegateway.com/passage/?search=Matthew%2018%3A21-22&version=NIV Matt. 18:21-22]; [https://www.biblegateway.com/passage/?search=Luke%2017%3A3-4&version=NIV Luke 17:3-4]. However the Qur'an distinctly says there is no forgiveness for anyone committing shirk (ascribing partners to God) in {{Quran|4|48}} and {{Quran|4|116}}.

He notes Jesus called some to a life without marriage: [https://www.biblegateway.com/passage/?search=Matthew%2019%3A11-12&version=NIV Matt. 19:11-12], while the Qur'an promotes it as a virtue encouraging those to do so.

Marriage is a virtue https://www.getquranic.com/marriage-in-islam-8-quranic-verses-about-marriage/

{{Quote|{{Quran|24|32}}|Marry off those who are single among you, and the upright among your male and female slaves. If they are poor, Allah will enrich them out of His grace, and Allah is all-bounteous, all-knowing.}}

And criticizes monasticism/monks, with celibacy and no marriage being a key aspect<ref>[https://www.britannica.com/topic/monasticism Monasticism] | religion | Britannica Entry</ref> in general

{{Quote|Reynolds, Gabriel Said. Christianity and the Qur'an: The Rise of Islam in Christian Arabia (pp. 131-132). Yale University Press. Kindle Edition.|These verses critical of monks are often read together with Q 57:27, which, while praising certain positive qualities of Christians, also seems to accuse Christians of “innovating” monasticism: Then We sent, following in their footsteps, Our Messengers; and We sent, following, Jesus son of Mary, and gave unto him the Gospel. And We set in the hearts of those who followed him tenderness and mercy. And monasticism they invented—We did not prescribe it for them—only seeking the good pleasure of God; but they observed it not as it should be observed. So We gave those of them who believed their wage; and many of them are ungodly.}}

Criticism of monasticism (https://www.britannica.com/topic/monasticism) - lack of marriage for monks (though admittedly also praises monks in general elsewhere pp130-132)<ref>Reynolds, Gabriel Said. ''Christianity and the Qur'an: The Rise of Islam in Christian Arabia (pp. 130-132).'' Yale University Press. Kindle Edition.</ref>

{{Quote|{{Quran|57|27}}|Then We sent on their footsteps Our Messengers and We followed with Isa, son (of) Maryam, and We gave him the Injeel. And We placed in (the) hearts (of) those who followed him compassion and mercy. But monasticism they innovated - not We prescribed it for them - only seeking (the) pleasure (of) Allah, but not they observed it (with) right observance. So We gave those who believed among them their reward, but most of them (are) defiantly disobediently.}}

<nowiki>-----------------------------------------------------------------</nowiki>

==== Father-son relationship ====
{{Quote|Dale C. Allison Jr.. The Historical Christ and the Theological Jesus (Kindle Location 841-848). Kindle Edition.|2=Working through the tradition in the way I suggest leads to a large number of conclusions. Jesus must have been an exorcist who interpreted his ministry in terms of Satan's downfall. He must have thought highly of John the Baptist. He must have repeatedly spoken of God as Father. [Durie differences in metaphor and understanding of relationship from Hebrew to Arab society = markedly different] He must have composed parables. He must have come into conflict with religious authorities. All of this may seem obvious, but the procedure is not trite, for it also issues in some controversial verdicts. As I have argued elsewhere, for example, ample, the quantity of conventional eschatological material in our primary sources almost necessitates that Jesus was an eschatological prophet.' The reconstruction of Robert Funk and the Jesus Seminar is for this reason alone problematic. Even more controversial is what my approach leads me to infer about Jesus' self-conception. Consider these Synoptic materials:

• Jesus said that the Son of man will return on the clouds of heaven and send angels to gather the elect from throughout the world: Mark 13:26-27; cf. 14:62; Matt. 10:23 (allusions to Daniel 7's depiction of the last judgment are clear). [the son of man plays no part in Islam]}}Allison (2009) notes that Jesus must have repeatedly referred to God as 'father', a way also used by many ancient Jews to describe their relationship to god, also found in the old testament with different metaphorical meanings<ref>Pennington, J.T. "Chapter Nine. God As Father In The Old Testament And Second Temple Literature". ''Heaven and Earth in the Gospel of Matthew''. Leiden, The Netherlands: Brill, 2007. <nowiki>https://doi.org/10.1163/ej.9789004162051.i-399.57</nowiki> Web.</ref> and Talmudic writings with paternal imagery. <ref>Knobnya, S.. (2011). ''God the Father in the Old Testament. European Journal of Theology.'' 20. 139-148. </ref><ref>[https://www.myjewishlearning.com/article/fatherhood-of-god/ Fatherhood of God] | Sages & Scholars | Rabbi Louis Jacobs | My Jewish Learning</ref>

===== Slave-master relationship =====
However this father-son Hebrew metaphorical relationship Jesus used is distinctly abandoned, instead using other things (other metaphors) in Arab society to describe the relationship between humans and God, such as a slave-master relationship,<ref>Durie, Mark. ''The Qur’an and Its Biblical Reflexes: Investigations into the Genesis of a Religion (pp. XX-XX) (pp. 107-110 Kindle Edition)''. 4.1.1. Shirk - Proprietary Partnership. Lexington Books. 2018.</ref> a Patron - Protege (needs explanation of what this is) <ref>Durie, Mark. ''The Qur’an and Its Biblical Reflexes: Investigations into the Genesis of a Religion (pp. XX-XX) (pp. 110-111 Kindle Edition)''. 4.1.2. Shirk - Patron - Protege Relationships. Lexington Books. 2018.</ref>. with Muhammad having strongly condemned the idea that God could have offspring against the unscripted pagans (mushrikun) taking angels as daughters of god early on chronologically of the Qur'an's first recitations, then later against God having a son against Jesus being the son of God.<ref>Durie, Mark. ''The Qur’an and Its Biblical Reflexes: Investigations into the Genesis of a Religion (pp. XX-XX) (pp. 112-113 Kindle Edition)''. 4.1.5 A Polemical Doctrine. Lexington Books. 2018.</ref>

Slave analogy Dure Print edition pp108 - 110 summary:<ref name=":1">Durie, Mark. ''The Qur’an and Its Biblical Reflexes: Investigations into the Genesis of a Religion (pp. 108-110) (pp. XX-XX Kindle Edition)''. 4.1.5 A Polemical Doctrine. Lexington Books. 2018.</ref> Before its theological use, the Arabic root ''sh-r-k'' referred to ordinary '''partnership or shared ownership'''. The Qurʾan draws on this everyday meaning to illustrate why associating partners with God is impossible. Using the metaphor of '''a master and a slave''', the Qurʾan argues that just as a slave with multiple masters suffers confusion and conflict, attributing partners to God creates an impossible and chaotic situation. This logic appears in verses such as Q39:29 and others that argue multiple gods would lead to conflict and the ruin of creation (Q23:91; Q21:22).<ref name=":1" />
{{Quote|{{Quran|39|29}}|Allah presents a parable, “a man was owned by several quarreling partners
(shurakaʾ), and a man was the slave of (just) one man. Are the two equal?”}}

The Qurʾan’s use of the slave-master metaphor differs from Jesus’ teaching in the New Testament. Whereas Jesus uses it to highlight divided human devotion, the Qurʾan uses it to assert the logical impossibility of multiple divine authorities.<ref name=":1" />

{{Quote|Luke 16:13; cf. Matthew. 6:24|No slave can serve two masters; for a slave will either hate the one and love the
other, or be devoted to the one and despise the other. You cannot serve God and wealth.}}

Shirk encompasses various forms of error: attributing partners or helpers to God, believing He needs allies, or seeking aid from others besides Him. The Qurʾan also explores God’s unity through three social analogies relevant to Arabian society: '''patron–protégé relationships''', '''alliances of mutual help''', and '''relationships of equal or unequal status'''.<ref name=":1" />

===== '''Patron–protégé relationships''' =====
The Qur'an distinctly ignores the father-son relationship (and theology) metaphor by using another term that is harder to translate

Explanation of what this is Durie pp.110-111:<ref name=":3">Durie, Mark. ''The Qur’an and Its Biblical Reflexes: Investigations into the Genesis of a Religion (pp. 110-111) (pp. XX-XX Kindle Edition)''. 4.1.5 A Polemical Doctrine. Lexington Books. 2018.</ref> The Qurʾan uses terms from the root '''w-l-y''' to describe '''patron–protégé relationships''', alliances, and guardianship. The key term '''walī''' can mean ally, protector, guardian, or patron, and may indicate either symmetrical alliances or asymmetrical power relationships.<ref name=":3" /><ref>[https://lexicon.quranic-research.net/data/27_w/219_wle.html Root: ''wāw lām yā'' (و ل ي)] - Lane's Lexicon Qur'anic Research

See Lane's Lexicon Classical Arabic Dictionary [https://lexicon.quranic-research.net/pdf/Page_3060.pdf pp.3060] & [https://lexicon.quranic-research.net/pdf/Page_3061.pdf pp.3061] </ref>

In pre-Islamic Arab society, such patronage was essential for protection, as shown by the example of Muḥammad being safeguarded by his uncle Abū Ṭālib. Without a patron, a person was vulnerable.<ref name=":3" /> [in the sirah of Ibn Ishaq]

The Qurʾan emphasizes that '''God has no need of any patron''' and that '''humans should recognize God alone as their walī'''. Seeking any protector besides God is considered '''shirk'''. Believers may take other believers and the Prophet as allies (''awliyāʾ'') alongside God, but not in place of Him.<ref name=":3" />

As the Muslim community developed, especially after what the passage calls the ''Eschatological Transition''—the Qurʾan increasingly stressed exclusive allegiance to God. This served to detach believers from prior tribal or familial loyalties that could compromise their commitment to the faith community.<ref name=":3" />

- and calls for help-

===== Unequal status vs Jesus' views on Wealth =====
Sinai - darajah passage

And inequality in general - inc. the afterlife

=== Punishment narratives ===

==== Punishment BEFORE the day of judgement ====
We are told the sole exception in history was the unnamed town<ref>Unnamed in the Qur'an, though identified as Nineveh (in modern day Iraq) as in the Biblical "Book of Jonah" by Islamic exegetes; e.g. see [https://quranx.com/tafsirs/37.147 tafsirs on Q37:147]</ref> of more than 100,000 people that the messenger Yūnus (Jonah) when the warning was heeded in full by the entire people, and therefore punishment averted ({{Quran|10|98}}, {{Quran|37|147-148}}) “no town believed . . . except the people of Yūnus”<ref>Durie, Mark. 2018. ''The Qur'an and Its Biblical Reflexes: Investigations Into the Genesis of a Religion. pp 49. Kindle Edition pp 151.''</ref>

How many a town defied the command of its Lord and His apostles, then We called it to a severe account and punished it with a dire punishment. Q65:8

So it tasted the evil consequences of its conduct, and the outcome of its conduct was ruin. Q65:9

How many generations that had far more wealth and ostentation have We laid low before them! <<nowiki>https://quranx.com/19.74</nowiki>>

Say, ‘Whoever abides in error, the All-beneficent shall prolong his respite until they sight what they have been promised: either punishment, or the Hour.’ Then they will know whose position is worse, and whose host is weaker <<nowiki>https://quranx.com/19.75</nowiki>>

------

Q34:16 - flood of the damn of Yemen / Saba', the people of Sheba E.g. <ref>See tafsirs on [https://quranx.com/Tafsirs/34.14 Q34:14], [https://quranx.com/Tafsirs/34.15 Q34:15] & [https://quranx.com/Tafsirs/34.16 Q34:16]</ref> {{Quran|34|14-16}}

{{Quote|{{Quran|34|14-16}}|And when We decreed for Solomon death, nothing indicated to the jinn his death except a creature of the earth eating his staff. But when he fell, it became clear to the jinn that if they had known the unseen, they would not have remained in humiliating punishment.
Certainly, (there) was for Saba in their dwelling place a sign: Two gardens on (the) right and (on the) left. "Eat from (the) provision (of) your Lord and be grateful to Him. A land good and a Lord Oft-Forgiving."
But they turned away, so We sent upon them (the) flood (of) the dam, and We changed for them their two gardens (with) two gardens producing fruit bitter, and tamarisks and (some)thing of lote trees few.}}
, {{Quran|65|8-9}}, {{Quran|19|74-75}}

Add: 34:15–21: The punishment of the people of Sheba, without explicit reference to a messenger. Sheba reference <ref>Marshall, David. ''God, Muhammad and the Unbelievers (p. 73).'' Taylor & Francis. Kindle Edition.</ref>

=== Surah 36 ===
Similarly an unnamed town is sent three messengers in {{Quran|36|13-32}}, who's identities have differed in traditional Islamic scholarship,<ref>E.g. see commentaries on [https://quranx.com/Tafsirs/36.13 Q36:13] & [https://quranx.com/tafsirs/36.14 Q36:14], and the later verses in the story, cited as a parable ''(mathal).''</ref> are rejected and so are killed with a cry/shout (''ṣayḥatan)'' ({{Quran|36|29}}). <ref>Marshall, David. ''God, Muhammad and the Unbelievers (p. 63 & 72).'' Taylor & Francis. Kindle Edition.</ref>
{{Quote|Marshall, David. God, Muhammad and the Unbelievers (p. 72). Taylor & Francis. Kindle Edition.|36:13–32: Described as a parable (mathal, v.13), but in outline very similar to the punishment-narratives. The messengers (two of them, reinforced with a third) and the town in which they preach are anonymous. ‘A man from the furthest part of the city’ (v.20) exhorts his people to follow the messengers.}}

== Contradiction ==
The order in Surah 2 has the Jews struck by a lightening bolt after they worship the golden calf, who are then forgiven by Allah by being resurrected.
{{Quote|{{Quran|2|50-67}}|And when We parted the sea with you, and We delivered you and drowned Pharaoh’s clan as you looked on. 
And when We made an appointment with Moses for forty nights, you took up the Calf [for worship] in his absence, and you were wrongdoers. 
Then We excused you after that so that you might give thanks. 
And when We gave Moses the Book and the Criterion so that you might be guided. 
And [recall] when Moses said to his people, ‘O my people! You have indeed wronged yourselves by taking up the Calf [for worship]. Now turn penitently to your Maker, and slay [the guilty among] your folks. That will be better for you with your Maker.’ Then He turned to you clemently. Indeed, He is the All-clement, the All-merciful. 
And when you said, ‘O Moses, we will not believe you until we see Allah visibly.’ Thereupon a thunderbolt seized you as you looked on.
Then We raised you up after your death so that you might give thanks. /n
We shaded you with clouds, and sent down to you manna and quails [saying]: ‘Eat of the good things We have provided for you.’ And they did not wrong Us, but they used to wrong [only] themselves. 
And when We said, ‘Enter this town, and eat thereof freely whencesoever you wish, and enter while prostrating at the gate, and say, ‘‘Relieve [us of the burden of our sins],’’ so that We may forgive your iniquities and We will soon enhance the virtuous.’ 
But the wrongdoers changed the saying with other than what they were told. So We sent down on those who were wrongdoers a plague from the sky because of the transgressions they used to commit. 
And when Moses prayed for water for his people, We said, ‘Strike the rock with your staff.’ Thereat twelve fountains gushed forth from it; every tribe came to know its drinking-place. ‘Eat and drink of Allah’s provision, and do not act wickedly on the earth, causing corruption.’ 
And when you said, ‘O Moses, ‘We will not put up with one kind of food. So invoke your Lord for us, so that He may bring forth for us of that which the earth grows—its greens and cucumbers, its garlic, lentils, and onions.’ He said, ‘Do you seek to replace what is superior with that which is inferior? Go down to any town and you will indeed get what you ask for!’ So they were struck with abasement and poverty, and they earned Allah’s wrath. That, because they would deny the signs of Allah and kill the prophets unjustly. That, because they would disobey and commit transgressions. 
Indeed the faithful, the Jews, the Christians and the Sabaeans—those of them who have faith in Allah and the Last Day and act righteously—they shall have their reward from their Lord, and they will have no fear, nor will they grieve. 
And when We took a pledge from you, and raised the Mount above you, [declaring], ‘Hold on with power to what We have given you and remember that which is in it so that you may be Godwary.’ 
Again you turned away after that; and were it not for Allah’s grace on you and His mercy, you would have surely been among the losers. 
And certainly you know those of you who violated the Sabbath, whereupon We said to them, ‘Be you spurned apes.’ 
So We made it an exemplary punishment for the present and the succeeding [generations], and an advice to the Godwary.}}
In Surah 4 they are struck before they worship the calf. 4:153 specifically says 'then' ''(thumma)''

{{Quote|{{Quran|4|153-161}}|The People of the Book ask you to bring down for them a Book from the sky. Certainly they asked Moses for [something] greater than that, for they said, ‘Show us Allah visibly,’ whereat a thunderbolt seized them for their wrongdoing. Then they took up the Calf [for worship], after all the manifest proofs that had come to them. Yet We excused that, and We gave Moses a manifest authority. 
And We raised the Mount above them for the sake of their covenant, and We said to them, ‘Enter the gate prostrating’ and We said to them, ‘Do not violate the Sabbath,’ and We took from them a solemn covenant. 
Then because of their breaking their covenant, their defiance of Allah’s signs, their killing of the prophets unjustly and for their saying, ‘Our hearts are uncircumcised’… Indeed, Allah has set a seal on them for their unfaith, so they do not have faith except a few. 
And for their faithlessness, and their uttering a monstrous calumny against Mary, 
and for their saying, ‘We killed the Messiah, Jesus son of Mary, the apostle of Allah’—though they did not kill him nor did they crucify him, but so it was made to appear to them. Indeed those who differ concerning him are surely in doubt about him: they do not have any knowledge of that beyond following conjectures, and certainly, they did not kill him. 
Indeed, Allah raised him up toward Himself, and Allah is all-mighty, all-wise. 
There is none among the People of the Book but will surely believe in him before his death; and on the Day of Resurrection, he will be a witness against them. 
Due to the wrongdoing of the Jews, We prohibited them certain good things that were permitted to them [earlier], and for their barring many [people] from the way of Allah, 
and for their taking usury—though they had been forbidden from it—and for eating up the wealth of the people wrongfully. And We have prepared for the faithless among them a painful punishment. }}

=== V2 ===
Surah 4 (summarized version)

1) They ask Moses for a sign and are hit with a thunderbolt

2) They then take up the calf for worship

3) The mountain is raised above them{{Quote|{{Quran|4|153-154}}|The People of the Book ask you to bring down for them a Book from the sky. Certainly they asked Moses for [something] greater than that, for they said, ‘Show us Allah visibly,’ whereat a thunderbolt seized them for their wrongdoing. Then they took up the Calf [for worship], after all the manifest proofs that had come to them. Yet We excused that, and We gave Moses a manifest authority. 
And We raised the Mount above them for the sake of their covenant, and We said to them, ‘Enter the gate prostrating’ and We said to them, ‘Do not violate the Sabbath,’ and We took from them a solemn covenant.}}Surah 2
1) They worshiped the calf. And Moses tells them to slay the guilty among them.

2) They are hit by a thunderbolt - is it chronological?

3) ... a mountain is lifted above them
{{Quote|{{Quran|2|51-56}}|And when We made an appointment with Moses for forty nights, you took up the Calf [for worship] in his absence, and you were wrongdoers. 
Then We excused you after that so that you might give thanks. 
And when We gave Moses the Book and the Criterion so that you might be guided. 
And [recall] when Moses said to his people, ‘O my people! You have indeed wronged yourselves by taking up the Calf [for worship]. Now turn penitently to your Maker, and slay [the guilty among] your folks. That will be better for you with your Maker.’ Then He turned to you clemently. Indeed, He is the All-clement, the All-merciful. 
And when you said, ‘O Moses, we will not believe you until we see Allah visibly.’ Thereupon a thunderbolt seized you as you looked on.
Then We raised you up after your death so that you might give thanks.}}
== The Lote Tree of the utmost Boundary (Sid'rati al-Muntahā) ==
Lote tree's are a real type of tree (Ziziphus spina-christi) native to Arabia and the Middle East.<ref>[https://www.suewickison.com/products/lote-tree?srsltid=AfmBOorj_RU2x1OPxgfRe689M2TWw1g4uZTQLkpSolPGYnIatiIe7h6K Lote Tree | Sidr | Ziziphus spina-christi |] Plants of the Qur'an | Sue Wickison </ref> Different to the tree of eternity/immortality ''(shajarati ul-khul'di)'' in paradise ''jannah,'' the Qur'an mentions The Lote Tree (sidr) of ''the utmost boundary (al-muntahā)''<ref>مُنْتَهَىٰ - [https://lexicon.quranic-research.net/pdf/Page_3029.pdf Lane's Lexicon pp.3029]

</ref> near (but notably not in) the 'garden of abode', said to be 'covered' yaghshā by something unspecified in Q53:16, typically taken by exegetes to mean by angels, light and/or golden animals.<ref>E.g. see [https://quranx.com/Tafsirs/53.16 Tafsirs on Q53:16]</ref>

{{Quote|{{Quran|53|13-17}}|And certainly he saw him (in) descent another,
Near (the) Lote Tree (of) the utmost boundary,
Near it (is the) Garden (of) Abode.
when there covered the Lote Tree what covered it.
Not swerved the sight and not it transgressed.}}

This furthest boundary/limit is said in the hadith, to place the cosmic tree in the sixth heaven, where even celestial creatures cannot go beyond as the limit of creation; said to be seen by Muhammad in his Night Journey (mi’rāj) on the [[:en:Buraq|Buraq]] (E.g. {{Muslim|1|329}}, {{Al Tirmidhi|2=5|3=44|4=3276}}, {{Bukhari|5|58|227}} & {{Al Nasai|2=1|3=5|4=452}}), and by many Islamic exegetes.<ref>See [https://quranx.com/tafsirs/53.14 tafsirs on Q53:14]</ref>

This would align the cosmology of Islamic traditions supporting the idea that paradise (and therefore the garden of the abode) is in the seventh heaven,<ref>[https://islamqa.info/en/answers/215011/where-are-paradise-and-hell#Where_is_Paradise Where is Paradise] | [https://islamqa.info/en/answers/215011/where-are-paradise-and-hell Where Are Paradise and Hell?] | 07/January/2015 islamqa</ref> while some traditions support the idea that paradise is above the seventh heaven,<ref>[https://www.islamweb.net/en/fatwa/107126/the-location-of-paradise-now#:~:text=Paradise%20that%20Allaah%20promised%20for,are%20many%20texts%20proving%20this. The location of Paradise now] | Paradise and Hell | Belief in the Hereafter | Islamic Creed | Fatwa | islamweb.net </ref> both placing the tree relatively close to jannah. However others suggest that this specific ''garden of the abode (jannatu l-mawā)'' is a separate garden/paradise to the eternal one all righteous Muslims will eventually enter, being instead one where martyrs (those killed in war or for their religion) go before judgement day.<ref>E.g. see [https://quranx.com/Tafsirs/53.15 tafsirs on Q53:15]</ref>

Either way there is no evidence of a celestial tree, which must be magic to survive outside of an Earthly plant ecosystem, but is rather an example of tree mythology.
----
----

(See also: <nowiki>https://sunnah.com/mishkat:5865</nowiki> & https://sunnah.com/mishkat:5640, ) read; https://quranx.com/tafsirs/53.14 - exegetes also confirm this is where boundary is the boundary of the skies/heavens where things other than God cannot pass (at least until judgement day where paradise and hell can be entered).

AND Similarly seen next to the 4 main Near-East rivers (Nile, Euphratesm Tigres,) <nowiki>https://sunnah.com/bukhari:5610</nowiki>, which area said to flow from paradise: <nowiki>https://quranx.com/Hadith/Bukhari/USC-MSA/Volume-5/Book-58/Hadith-227/</nowiki> )

cite: [https://www.islamweb.net/en/fatwa/107126/the-location-of-paradise-now#:~:text=Paradise%20that%20Allaah%20promised%20for,are%20many%20texts%20proving%20this. https://www.islamweb.net/en/fatwa/107126/the-location-of-paradise-now#:~:text=Paradise%20that%20Allaah%20promised%20for,are%20many%20texts%20proving%20this.]

The utmost boundary at the end of t heavens confirmed by exegetes in https://quranx.com/tafsirs/53.14

" Jannat al-ma'va' literally means "the Jannat (Garden) that is to be an abode. " Hadrat Hasan Basri says that this is the same Jannat which the believers and righteous will be given in the Hereafter, and from this same verse he has argued that that Jannat is in the heavens. Qatadah says that this is the Jannat in which the souls of the martyrs are kept; it does not imply the Jannat that is to be given in the Hereafter. Ibn 'Abbas also says the same but adds that the Jannat to be granted to the believers in the Hereafter is not in the heavens but here on the earth.

== Parallels Between the Qur'an and Late Antique Judeo-Christian Literature - Part 2 ==
Following on from [[Parallels Between the Qur'an and Late Antique Judeo-Christian Literature|Part 1]], this is Part 2 of Late Antique Judeo-Christian Literature found in the Qur'an. This material, drawing heavily on rabbinical commentaries on the bible, and late Syriac Christian thought found in homilies, was created far later than the biblical cannon; no-where near the time of the events that occurred. This suggests the stories were transmitted in an oral millennia along with local Arabian traditions<ref>Bannister, Andrew G.. ''An Oral-Formulaic Study of the Qur'an (Kindle Location 249-259 in Chapter 1.2 The Biblicist Roots of the Iblis and Adam Story).'' Bloomsbury Publishing. Kindle Edition.

..When the Qur’an emerged in the seventh-century, it did so in an oral culture in which Biblicist traditions were freely circulating and thus there existed a large pool of commonly known stories and traditions to fish from; a pool in which stories could cross-fertilize and influence one another. 23 It is this, more than direct borrowing that perhaps best explains stories like Iblis and Adam as well as other qur’anic tellings of older tales, such as the Seven Sleepers (Q. 18: 9– 25) 24 and the Legend of Alexander (Dhu al-Qarnayn, Q. 18: 83– 101). 25 The Qur’an originates from a milieu in which Biblicist material was well-known to the first audience of the Qur’an; even a simple allusion to a story was often enough to trigger a connection for the hearer. 26 That Biblicist material has been filtered through storytelling rather than simply copied from a written text is further suggested by what the Qur’an leaves out; no minor prophets are referenced, probably because almost no Old Testament narratives feature them nor did the rabbinic literature weave lengthy tales about them. 27 The exception which proves the rule is Jonah (Q. 21: 87– 88; 37: 139– 148; 68: 48– 50), whose short but dramatic story was extremely popular in both Jewish and Christian contexts.28..

And: Bannister, Andrew G.. ''An Oral-Formulaic Study of the Qur'an (Kindle Locations 1391-1392. Chapter 2.3 The Islamic Tradition and Orality).'' Bloomsbury Publishing. Kindle Edition.</ref> where biblical and much later Jewish and Christian stories could be commonly mixed without the new community realizing.
== The story of Noah ==
The prophet Noah is portrayed extremely differently to the one in Genesis,<ref>Segovia, Carlos A.. ''[https://almuslih.org/wp-content/uploads/2024/12/Segovia-C-The-Quranic-Noah-and-the-Making-of-the-Islamic-Prophet.pdf The Quranic Noah and the Making of the Islamic Prophet: A Study of Intertextuality and Religious Identity Formation in Late Antiquity]'', Berlin, München, Boston: De Gruyter, 2015. <nowiki>https://doi.org/10.1515/9783110405897</nowiki></ref> taking on Jewish and Christian traditions, characteristics, as well as terms from late antique Judeo-Christian writings,<ref>The Qur'anic Noah. pp.21-21</ref> molded to suit Muhammad's situation in line with other messengers in the Qur'an.<ref>''The Qurʾan and its Biblical Reflexes: Investigations into the Genesis of a Religion. Chapter 5.3 Messenger Uniformatism. pp.135-143'' By Mark Durie. Lanham, MD: Lexington Books, 2018. </ref>

=== The preaching of Noah ===

Surah 71 consists entirely of the preaching of Noah and his supplications to Allah.{{Quote|{{Quran-range|71|1|28}}|Indeed, We sent Noah to his people, [saying], "Warn your people before there comes to them a painful punishment." He said, "O my people, indeed I am to you a clear warner, [Saying], 'Worship Allah, fear Him and obey me. Allah will forgive you of your sins and delay you for a specified term. Indeed, the time [set by] Allah, when it comes, will not be delayed, if you only knew.' " 
[...]
And Noah said, "My Lord, do not leave upon the earth from among the disbelievers an inhabitant. Indeed, if You leave them, they will mislead Your servants and not beget except [every] wicked one and [confirmed] disbeliever. My Lord, forgive me and my parents and whoever enters my house a believer and the believing men and believing women. And do not increase the wrongdoers except in destruction."}}Reynolds remarks that "The Qur'ānic character of Noah is quite unlike that of the Noah in Genesis, who does not speak a word until after the flood." Citing the Babylonian Talmud, Sanhedrin 108a, he observes that "[his preaching] is also suggested by a passage in the Talmud:
::"The righteous Noah rebuked them, urging, 'Repent; for if not, the Holy One, blessed be He, will bring a deluge upon you and cause your bodies to float upon the water like gourds, as it is written, He is light [i.e., floats] upon the waters. Moreover, ye shall be taken as a curse for all future generations.' (b. Sanhedrin 108a)"
Reynolds further notes, "It is also prominent in the Syriac fathers, several of whom report that Noah preached to his people for a hundred years before God finally sent the flood." citing for example the Syriac authors Narsai, "On the Flood", 33, II. 227-30 and Jacob of Serugh, ''Homilies contre les juifs'', 70, homily 2, II. 37-40.<ref>Gabriel Said Reynolds, ''The Qurʾān and Bible'' p. 858</ref>

The opponents reject Noah's preaching despite him doing so 'day and night' (Quran 71:5-6) in which they respond by putting their fingers in their ears Quran 71:7, on which Neuwirth (2024) notes that "the means of plugging one’s ears in order to shut oneself off from unpleasant news is also encountered in the Talmud (bKetubbot 5a)."<ref>Neuwirth, Angelika. The Qur'an: Text and Commentary, ''Volume 2.1: Early Middle Meccan Suras: The New Elect (p. 280).'' Yale University Press. Kindle Edition.</ref>

=== Noah's disbelieving wife ===
{{Quote|{{Quran|66|10}}|Allah presents an example of those who disbelieved: the wife of Noah and the wife of Lot. They were under two of Our righteous servants but betrayed them, so those prophets did not avail them from Allah at all, and it was said, "Enter the Fire with those who enter."}}The Bible briefly mentions Noah's wife in one verse without further comment ([https://www.biblegateway.com/passage/?search=Genesis%207%3A7&version=NIV Genesis 7:7]), "And Noah and his sons and his wife and his sons’ wives entered the ark to escape the waters of the flood." Regarding the Quranic verse which speaks of her negatively, Reynolds briefly considers the possibility that the Quran has extended to their wives the parallelism between Noah (though not his wife) and Lot found in the New Testament ([https://www.biblegateway.com/passage/?search=2%20Peter%202&version=NIV 2 Peter 2]), but then comments, "However, it is important to note that already in the pre-Islamic period certain groups had developed hostile legends about Noah's wife." He cites Epiphanius (d. 403 CE), ''Panarion'' 2:26, which relates the Gnostic belief that she was not allowed onto the ark, having burned it down three times before the flood.<ref>Gabriel Said Reynolds, ''The Qurʾān and Bible'' p. 841</ref>

=== Noah's flood waters overflowed from an oven ===
The Qur'anic version of the Noah's flood story describes the flood waters as overflowing from an oven. This element is not found even in more ancient versions of the story (Epic of Gilgamesh, Atra hasis, and Ziusudra).

Note that in his translation, Yusuf Ali mistranslates the Aramaic loan word for the oven (alttannooru ٱلتَّنُّورُ)<ref>[http://www.studyquran.org/LaneLexicon/Volume1/00000355.pdf Lane's Lexicon p. 318 تَّنُّورُ]</ref> as "fountains". The Arabic verb translated "gushed forth" (fara فَارَ) means overflowed or boiled in the context of water in a cooking pot<ref>[http://www.studyquran.org/LaneLexicon/Volume6/00000241.pdf Lane's Lexicon p. 2457 فور]</ref>, as well as in the other verse where it is used, {{Quran|67|7}}. Here is Pickthall's more accurate translation:{{Quote|{{Quran|11|40}}|
(Thus it was) till, when Our commandment came to pass '''and the oven gushed forth water''', We said: Load therein two of every kind, a pair (the male and female), and thy household, save him against whom the word hath gone forth already, and those who believe. And but a few were they who believed with him.}}{{Quote|{{Quran|23|27}}|
Then We inspired in him, saying: Make the ship under Our eyes and Our inspiration. Then, when Our command cometh '''and the oven gusheth water''', introduce therein of every (kind) two spouses, and thy household save him thereof against whom the Word hath already gone forth. And plead not with Me on behalf of those who have done wrong. Lo! they will be drowned.}}At one time academic scholars thought this verse alluded to a Midrashic exegesis in which the flood waters were boiling hot (b. Sanhedrin 108b, [https://www.sefaria.org/Rosh_Hashanah.12a.4?lang=bi|Tracate Rosh Hashanah 12a:4]). More recent scholarship, particularly by Olivier Mongellaz in 2024,<ref name="Mongellaz2024">Olivier Mongellaz (2024) [https://brill.com/view/journals/arab/71/4-5/article-p513_4.xml Le four de Noé : un cas d’intertextualité coranique], Arabica 71(4-5), 513-637. https://doi.org/10.1163/15700585-20246900</ref> has identified that these verses most likely reflect a late antique legend in which water gushing up through a bread oven (a large hole dug into the ground) was a sign warning Noah's family of the imminent flood. The interpretation as Noah's own oven is attributed to a number of early commentators (such as Ibn Abbas, Mujahid), while others understood it to be the area of land where the flood waters first rose. Qurtubi said: "The sayings of commentators appear to be different as to the meaning of tannur, but this, in reality, is not a difference. When water began to bulge out, it overflowed from the bread baking oven, and from out of the surface of the land".

Significantly, Mongellaz has argued on literary grounds that a fragmentary Arabic text falsely attributed to Hippolytus of Rome, and which mentions the overflowing bread oven story, is independent of the Islamic tradition and was originally written in a very specific environment which has parallels with the context in which certain parts of the Quran were written.{{Quote|Pseudo. Hippolytus of Rome (translated to English from Mongellaz's French translation)<ref name="Mongellaz2024" />|Meanwhile, Ham's wife stood up to take out the bread that remained in the oven and immediately water sprang out of the oven [fāḍa l-māʾmin al-tannūr] and immediately water came out of the oven, as the Lord had said: "The fountains of the great deeps were opened." Ham's wife called to Noah, saying, "My lord, the word of God has come true (Syr. what God promised has come true!)" - for it had come true just as the Lord had promised her. When Noah heard Ham's wife's words, he said to her, "Oh, the flood has come."}}

=== Noah's ark left behind as a sign ===
{{Quote|{{Quran-range|54|13|15}}|And We carried him on a [construction of] planks and nails, Sailing under Our observation as reward for he who had been denied. And We left it as a sign, so is there any who will remember?}}Unlike the bible, which does not mention the ark as a sign for future generations, Neuwirth (2024) notes the salvation of Noah is made physically plausible to the listeners through the reference to the material verifiability of the ark, which could be taken from various late antique traditions, for example Flavius Josephus (b. 37AD) reports in the ''Jewish Antiquities (I 3.5 § 92)'' of the existence of the remains of Noah’s ark in Armenia (Clementz 1959: 22).<ref name=":0">Neuwirth, Angelika. ''The Qur'an: Text and Commentary, Volume 2.1: Early Middle Meccan Suras: The New Elect (p. 62).'' Yale University Press. Kindle Edition.</ref> She also notes that the appeal to the willingness of the listeners to be admonished by the sign (āya) of Noah’s ark is also reminiscent of the Talmudic story (bSanhedrin 96a) of the death of Sennacherib, who was led to a fateful decision by seeing the remains of Noah’s ark.<ref name=":0" />
==Moses and Pharaoh==
Alongside the biblical account of Moses and the Pharoah, there are some key aspects that match Jewish Rabbinic and Christian non-biblical traditions. Even the place where Moses communicates with God in the story of the burning bush, the word used ''ṭuwan'' in e.g. {{Quran|20|12}} (for the folded land, implying double the holiness)<ref>See; Neuwirth, Angelika. ''The Qur'an: Text and Commentary, Volume 2.1: Early Middle Meccan Suras: The New Elect (p. 199).'' Yale University Press. Kindle Edition. Ṭuwā stands for the holy Mount Sinai or Horeb (cf. KU, 124ff.; FVQ, 206ff.; BEQ, 255ff.). The word was long thought to be a rhyming transformation of Aramaic ṭūrā (“the mountain”), but now, based on rabbinic tradition and in agreement with traditional exegetes, Uri Rubin has convincingly interpreted bi-l-wādī l-muqaddasi Ṭuwā to mean “in the doubly hallowed valley” (see Rubin 2014). (The Sinai is in a sense the “folded Holy Land” [ṬWY = “to fold”].) Citing: Rubin, Uri, 2014, ''[https://urirubin.com/assets/docs/Tuwan.86132451.pdf Moses and the Holy Valley Ṭuwan. On the Biblical and Midrashic Background of a Qurʾanic Scene],'' Journal of Near Eastern Studies 73, 73–81.</ref> does not have a parallel in the bible,<ref>''[https://urirubin.com/assets/docs/Tuwan.86132451.pdf Moses and the Holy Valley Ṭuwan: On the biblical and midrashic background of a qurʾānic scene.]'' Rubin 2014. Ibid. pp. 75.</ref> but does in other Judeo-Christian (later) works.<ref>Ibid. pp. 76-78</ref> And the idea of eschatology in Moses's story such as {{Quran|20|15}}, with reward in the afterlife being mentioned, is not contained in the biblical story of Moses, Neuwirth (2024) notes moves the story into a late antiquity interpretation.<ref>Neuwirth, Angelika. ''The Qur'an: Text and Commentary, Volume 2.1: Early Middle Meccan Suras: The New Elect (p. 199).'' Yale University Press. Kindle Edition.</ref> Key details in the stories include:
===The prophecy of baby Moses===
Alongside the scene of [https://www.biblegateway.com/passage/?search=Exodus%201%3A8-2%3A10&version=NIV Exodus 1:8-2:10] where the Hebrews in Egyptian bondage are told to kill all male babies to control the growing Israelite population, where Moses's mother places his basket in the Nile to escape; Neuwirth (2024) citing Speyer, notes that ''the prophecy to Moses’s mother that an enemy—of Moses as well as of God himself—would take him in reflects a Midrashic interpretation of Exodus Rabba (1:31: “So the daughter of Pharaoh raised the daughter, who was once to take revenge on her father”). The event is explicitly based on a divine intention, namely, to make Moses his chosen one.''<ref>''The Qur'an: Text and Commentary, Volume 2.1: Early Middle Meccan Suras: The New Elect'' Ibid. pp. 201.</ref>{{Quote|{{Quran-range|20|37|39}}|We have bestowed Our favour on you before this, When We told your mother what We relate: 'Put him in a wooden box and cast it in the river. The river will cast it on the bank. An enemy of Ours, and his, will retrieve it.' We bestowed Our love on you that you may be reared under Our eyes.}}And similarly the next verse unlike the bible focuses on the emotional impact of the event on Moses’s mother, Neuwirth notes is comparable to Midrash Exodus Rabba 1:25.<ref>Ibid. pp. 201-202.</ref> Moses's salvation from persecution after manslaughter is commemorated with similar consideration of Moses’s mental condition.<ref>Ibid. pp. 202.</ref>{{Quote|{{Quran|20|40}}|When your sister walked up [to Pharaoh’s palace] saying, “Shall I show you someone who will take care of him?” Then We restored you to your mother, that she might not grieve and be comforted. Then you slew a soul, whereupon We delivered you from anguish, and We tried you with various ordeals. Then you stayed for several years among the people of Midian. Then you turned up as ordained, O Moses!}}
===Moses not suckled by Egyptians===
{{Quote|{{Quran-range|28|12|13}}|And We had prevented from him [all] wet nurses before, so she said, "Shall I direct you to a household that will be responsible for him for you while they are to him [for his upbringing] sincere?" So We restored him to his mother that she might be content and not grieve and that she would know that the promise of Allah is true. But most of the people do not know.}}Reynolds comments, "On this passage cf. Exodus 2:7-9. The Qurʾān's declaration (v. 12) 'We had forbidden him to be suckled by any nurse' (v. 12) reflects a tradition in the Babylonian Talmud that Moses (from whose mouth would come forth the word of God) refused the impure breasts of the Egyptian women:
::Then said his sister to Pharaoh's daughter, Shall I go and call thee a nurse of the Hebrew women? Why just 'of the Hebrew women'? - It teaches that they handed about to all the Egyptian women but he would not suck. He said: Shall a mouth which will speak with [God] suck what is unclean! (b. Sotah 12b)"<ref>Gabriel Said Reynolds, ''The Qurʾān and Bible'' p. 598</ref>
===Moses's speech impediment===
Moses has some kind of speech impediment when going to speak to Pharaoh in the Qurʾān.{{Quote|{{Quran-range|20|24|28}}|"Go to Pharaoh. Indeed, he has transgressed."( Moses) said: "O, my Lord! Expand me my breast,” ease my task for me, And untie the knot from my tongue, so they may understand what I say.”}}Biblical Scholar James Kugel (1997)<ref>Kugel, James L.. The Bible As It Was (Kindle Edition. pp. 432-433). Harvard University Press.</ref> notes that later Jewish and Christian commentators found it necessary to explain Moses's statement in the Old Testament “''Oh my Lord, I am not a man of words … but I am heavy of speech and heavy of tongue''” ([https://www.biblegateway.com/passage/?search=Exodus%204%3A10&version=NIV Exodus 4:10]), as he was believed to be a highly educated man who had been supposedly been schooled in every branch of wisdom, including eloquence.

He notes "it occurred to interpreters that Moses might have been referring here not to any lacuna in his education, but to an actual speech defect, some physical deformity of his mouth or tongue that prevented him from speaking in the usual fashion." We see this in:<ref>Ibid. pp. 432 - 433 (Kindle Edition)</ref>

"''I'' ''am not by nature eloquent; my tongue with difficulty speaks, I stammer, so that I cannot speak before the king."'' —Ezekiel the Tragedian, Exaggē 113– 115 (3rd-2nd century BCE)

''He [Moses] pleased his parents by his beauty, but grieved them by his speech impediment. —''Ephraem, Commentary on Exodus 2: 4 (d. 373 AD)

Others even added stories on how he might have acquired that deformity, such as Josephus in Jewish Antiquities 2: 232– 236 (published ~93/94 AD), connecting their explanation of Moses’ speech problems to the tradition of Pharaoh’s wise men and their warnings about a boy that might grow up and save Israel.<ref>Ibid. pp. 433 - 434 (Kindle Edition)</ref>
===Pharaohs questions===
Neuwirth (2024) comments that the list of further detailed questions to Moses in Surah 26 'The Poets' / al-shuʿarāʾ (i.e. in {{Quran-range|26|22|29}}), citing Speyer, reflect a more detailed episode from Midrash Exodus Rabba 5:18, which also starts from Pharaoh’s self-praise as God.<ref>Neuwirth, Angelika. ''The Qur'an: Text and Commentary, Volume 2.1: Early Middle Meccan Suras: The New Elect (p. 250).'' Yale University Press. Kindle Edition.</ref>
===The Drowning of Pharaoh===
{{Quote|{{Quran-range|10|90|92}}|And We took the Children of Israel across the sea, and Pharaoh and his soldiers pursued them in tyranny and enmity until, when drowning overtook him, he said, "I believe that there is no deity except that in whom the Children of Israel believe, and I am of the Muslims." Now? And you had disobeyed [Him] before and were of the corrupters? So today We will save you in body that you may be to those who succeed you a sign. And indeed, many among the people, of Our signs, are heedless}}Reynolds comments, "The question of Pharaoh's survival appears in an opinion found in the (late fourth century AD) ''Mekilta de-Rabbi Ishmael'' (cr. Gavin McDowell):
::"And the waters returned and covered the chariot etc. [Exo 14:27]. Even Pharaoh, according to the words of R. Judah, as it is said, 'The chariots of Pharaoh and his force, etc.' [Exo 15:4]. R. Nehimiah says: ''Except for Pharaoh.'' About him it says, 'However, for this purpose I have let you live' [Exo 9:16]. Others say that in the end Pharaoh went down and drowned, as it is said, 'Then went the horse of Pharaoh, etc.' [Exo 15:19]. (Beshallah 7)"<ref>Gabriel Said Reynolds, ''The Qurʾān and Bible'' p. 339</ref>
==Arguments for resurrection==
Reynolds (2020) notes the repeated argument that God can resurrect the dead using the analogy that he can bring life back to barren (or dead) land may be connected to a Jewish tradition that God will resurrect the dead with dew, for example, in b. Shabbat 88b.<ref name=":2" />
{{Quote|{{Quran|30|19}}|He brings forth the living from the dead, and brings forth the dead from the living, and revives the earth after its death. Likewise, you [too] shall be raised [from the dead].}}

Cf: {{Quran|16|65}}, {{Quran|43|11}}, {{Quran|50|6-11}}, {{Quran|57|17}}
==Late antique Christian Martyrdom==
{{Main|Shaheed (Martyr)}}
Durie (2018) notes the violence of the Qur'an shares more commonality with contemporary late antique religious (primarily Christian) violence and warfare rather than being directly biblically based.<ref>Durie, Mark. ''The Qur’an and Its Biblical Reflexes: Investigations into the Genesis of a Religion.'' Lexington Books. 2018. Pp. 229 -237. (Kindle Edition: pp. 423-439). 6.9 Stories of Fighting Prophets</ref>

=== Textual overlap ===

Covering the continuity and similarities between late antique religious violence & warfare and the Qur'an (and other Islamic traditions) is too big a topic to cover here; perhaps the most in-depth academic work looking at the continuity between this and Islam is Thomas Sizgorich's ''Violence and Belief in Late Antiquity: Militant Devotion in Christianity and Islam'', however Sinai (2017) notes alongside similar ideas and theology, there are some direct textual references.{{Quote|Sinai, Nicolai. Qur'an: A Historical-Critical Introduction (The New Edinburgh Islamic Surveys) (pp. 301-302). Edinburgh University Press. Kindle Edition.|That the Qur’anic community’s access to Biblical notions of militancy was mediated by late antique Christian discourse is indicated by an intriguing intertextual overlap. According to Q 3: 169–170, those who have been ‘killed in the path of God’ are not dead but ‘alive with their Lord’, rather than having to spend the remaining time until the Resurrection in a state of slumber (similarly Q 2: 154).39 Tor Andrae has pointed out that the phrase ‘alive with their Lord’ (ayāun inda rabbihim) corresponds exactly to the Syriac phrase h. ayyē lwāth alāhā, which a sixth-century Syriac Christian writer (Mar Ishay) applies to the martyrs.40 Furthermore, Mar Ishay contrasts the true fate of the martyrs with unfounded prior opinion: ‘they are believed to be already dead’.41 The same contrast is found in the two Qur’anic passages just cited.42 It could be objected that the parallel demonstrates merely that the Qur’an is familiar with the widespread Christian idea that martyrs are granted prompt access to paradise but that this does not establish a Christian precedent for the Qur’anic application of this idea specifically to those who actively enact – rather than just suffer – violence. However, as Sizgorich reminds us, a Christian martyr was by no means seen merely as a passive victim of persecution but rather as someone who actively ‘defeats the power of the Roman state’.43}}{{Quote|{{Quran|3|169}}|And never think of those who have been killed in the cause of Allah as dead. Rather, they are alive with their Lord, receiving provision}}{{Quote|{{Quran|2|154}}|Do not say that those who are killed in the way of God, are dead, for indeed they are alive, even though you are not aware.}}

=== Martyrs sidestep judgement day ===
After death, humans are typically said to spend their time in an intermediate state known to traditional Islamic scholars as the ''barzakh'' while they wait.<ref>Reynolds, Gabriel Said. 2020. ''Allah:'' ''God in the Qur'an (p. 71-72).'' Yale University Press. Kindle Edition.

It is also the same term used for the barrier between the living and the dead (whilst awaiting judgement day) in the Qur'an, e.g. {{Quran|23|99-100}}</ref> However, as in the above verses, one exception to this rule is Martyrs being with God straight away rather than being judged at judgment day, a non-biblical idea having parallels with late antique Christian thought.

Sinai (2017) similarly notes strong ideological parallels a 6th century hagiographical text (the Panegyric on Macarius, Bishop of Tkow by Pseudo-Dioscorus of Alexandria) of a 5th-century martyr, Egyptian Bishop Macarius of Tkow who was martyred for opposing the council of Chalcedon. Citing Michael Gaddis's summary of the document, ‘He was both willing to die for his faith, and willing to kill for it.’ he notes the same idea in {{Quran|9|111}} … they fight in the way of Allah, kill, and are killed.. <ref>Ibid. (Kindle Edition. pp. 299).</ref> As well as citing English historian of the Byzantine Empire James Howard-Johnston "''..James Howard-Johnston draws attention to a passage in the Chronicle of Theophanes Confessor (d. 818), which reports that at about the same time when the Qur’an promised those ‘killed in the path of God’ immediate entry to paradise, the Byzantine emperor Heraclius similarly announced that those fighting the Sasanians would be recompensed with eternal life. In Heraclius’s address as reported by Theophanes Confessor, we find some of the same general ingredients that are noticeable in Qur’anic calls to militancy…''"<ref>Ibid. (Kindle Edition. pp. 301).</ref> He notes these similarities are likely caused by being on the fringes of the Roman empire.<ref>Ibid. (Kindle Edition. pp. 301).</ref>

==== Martyrdom wipes away other sins and is privileged above other acts from believers ====
{{Quote|Reynolds, Gabriel Said. Christianity and the Qur'an: The Rise of Islam in Christian Arabia (pp. 178-179). Yale University Press. Kindle Edition.|The teaching on the glory earned by martyrs is widespread in the early church. It is nevertheless telling to find the way it is emphasized in the third-century Christian text the aforementioned Didascalia Apostolorum, originally written in Greek but preserved in Syriac.87 The Didascalia clearly teaches that the martyrs will have a privilege above other faithful believers: If then He raises up all men,—as He said by Isaiah: All flesh shall see the salvation of God [Isa 40.5; 52.10],—much more will He quicken and raise up the faithful; and (yet more) again will He quicken and raise up the faithful of the faithful, who are the martyrs, and establish them in great glory and make them His counsellors. For to mere disciples, those who believe in Him, He has promised a glory as of the stars [Dan 12.3]; but to the martyrs He has promised to give an everlasting glory, as of the luminaries which fail not, with more abundant light, that they may be shining for all time.88

The Didascalia is also clear, as is the Qur’an, that martyrs enjoy a special grace through the forgiveness of sins that their deaths have earned for them: But again, sins are forgiven by baptism also to those who from the Gentiles draw near and enter the holy Church of God. Let us inquire also, to whom sins are not imputed. To such as Abraham and Isaac and Jacob and all the patriarchs, as also to the martyrs. Let us hear then, brethren, for the Scripture saith: Who shall boast himself and say: I am clear of sins? Or who shall be confident and say: I am innocent? [Prov 20.9].

And again: There is no man pure of defilement: not though his life be but one day [Job 14.4–5 LXX]. To everyone therefore who believes and is baptized his … former sins have been forgiven; but after baptism also, provided that he has not sinned a deadly sin nor been an accomplice (thereto), but has heard only, or seen, or spoken, and is thus guilty of sin. But if a man go forth from the world by martyrdom for the name of the Lord, blessed is he; for brethren who by martyrdom have gone forth from this world, of these the sins are covered.89

We might compare Q 3:195: “ ‘And those who emigrated, and were expelled from their habitations, those who suffered hurt in My way, and fought, and were slain—them I shall surely acquit of their evil deeds, and I shall admit them to gardens underneath which rivers flow.’ A reward from God! And God with Him is the fairest reward” (italics added). In other words, the Qur’an seems to be well aware of Christian devotion to the martyrs.}}

=== Martyrdom in the Torah and Gospels ===
Muslims who fight are promised paradise, which the Qur'an claims is also a promise in the Torah and Gospel.{{Quote|{{Quran|9|111}}|Indeed Allah has bought from the faithful their souls and their possessions for paradise to be theirs: they fight in the way of Allah, kill, and are killed. A promise binding upon Him in the Torah and the Evangel and the Quran. And who is truer to his promise than Allah? So rejoice in the bargain you have made with Him, and that is the great success.}}Nickel (2020)<ref>Nickel, Gordon D. ''The Quran with Christian Commentary: A Guide to Understanding the Scripture of Islam (p. 222).'' Zondervan Academic. Kindle Edition. 9.111 – They fight in the way of God, and they kill and are killed When the Quran describes believers as fighting “in the way of Allah,” it makes a theological claim by associating Allah with human fighting. See the analysis of these expressions at 73.20 (p. 597). 9.111 – a promise binding on Him in the Torah, and the Gospel, and the Qur’ān This is the only verse in the Quran that brings the Torah (tawrāt), Gospel (injīl), and qur’ān (lit. “recitation”) together. The Quran claims here that the particular point on which the Torah and Gospel agree with the Muslim recitation is that believers “fight in the way of Allah, and they kill and are killed.” This verse makes the reader question whether the Quran has a clear idea of the contents of the Torah and Gospel. A similar question is raised by 61.14, which appears to say that ‘Īsā and his disciples fought against their enemies (cf. 3.52). Along with these misunderstandings, the Quran gives no information about the peaceable teaching and example of Jesus in the Gospel accounts. See the analysis of the Quran’s verses on the “Gospel” at 57.27 (p. 549). Do the Torah and Gospel in fact contain such a promise? See the comment on this characterization of the Bible at 61.14 (p. 566).</ref> and Reynolds (2018) however notes that this is not found there:{{Quote|1=Reynolds, G. S. (2018). The Qur'an and the Bible: Text and Commentary. Commentary on 9:111 (pp. 322) United Kingdom: Yale University Press.|2="9:111 The point of this verse is that those who are prepared to give their lives to God in the holy war are promised paradise as a payment for their services (cf. 2:245; 4:74; 61:10–12). The idea that the martyrs have a special assurance of paradise follows from the Qurʾān’s teaching elsewhere that the act of martyrdom involves forgiveness of sin. This teaching is close to that of the Syriac fathers (see commentary on 2:154, with further references). It is curious that the Qurʾān insists that the promise of heaven for holy warriors is found in the Torah and the Gospel (or “Evangel”); heaven is not found in the Torah and holy war is not found in the Gospels...}}While his commentary on 2:154 (pp. 76) once again highlights the Syriac parallel:{{Quote|2="As Tor Andrae has shown (Les origines de l’islam et le christianisme, 161ff.), the idea that martyrdom involves the absolution of sins is prominent in Syriac Christian texts such as the third-century Didascalia (chap. 20) and the Treaty on the Martyrs of Mar Isaï (d. late sixth cen.); the latter text also insists—much like the Qurʾān—that the martyrs are “living”:

The true martyrs who, by way of a death that covers their sins, demonstrate even more the beauty of their deeds and receive this glorious inheritance by virtue of their blood. By leaving this life they have prepared for their souls an honorable abode in paradise. It was thought that they are already dead, but by their death they have killed their sin, and they are alive with God. (Mar Isaï, Treaty on the Martyrs, 32)}}
=== Further Martyrdom Influence ===
Neuwirth (2024) also notes the influence of Christian martyrdom stories on the sudden conversion and prayers/asking for forgiveness to God of Pharaoh's magician's, who are originally opponents of Moses until he shows them proof of his prophecy via a miracle in the face of a sudden and violent death as threatened by the arrogant ruler (e.g. in {{Quran-range|26|50|51}} and {{Quran-range|20|71|73}}).<ref>Neuwirth, Angelika. ''The Qur'an: Text and Commentary, Volume 2.1: Early Middle Meccan Suras: The New Elect (p. 204).'' Yale University Press. Kindle Edition.</ref> Both Jewish and Christian traditions present individual “anti-Moses” sorcerers named Jannes and Jambres, who continue to appear in later interpretations; citing Nora Schmid, she notes that, although there is no explicit textual reference and the magicians are typically depicted in a negative light, they came to be associated with penance and martyrdom in Christian tradition - in the Qurʾan, this idea is developed further: the forgiveness that Jannes and Jambres either did not receive or only partially received in earlier sources is ultimately granted.<ref>Ibid. pp. 251-252</ref>{{Quote|Neuwirth, Angelika. The Qur'an: Text and Commentary, Volume 2.1: Early Middle Meccan Suras: The New Elect (p. 204). Yale University Press. Kindle Edition.|V. 72–73 qālū lan nuʾthiraka ʿalā mā jāʾanā mina l-bayyināti wa-lladhī faṭaranā fa-qḍi mā anta qāḍin innamā taqḍī hādhihi l-ḥayāta l-dunyā / innā āmannā birabbinā li-yaghfira lanā khaṭāyānā wa-mā akrahtanā ʿalayhi mina l-siḥri wallāhu khayrun wa-abqā] Conversion scene as later in Q 26:50–51. The sorcerers renounce their allegiance to Pharaoh on the basis of the obvious evidence (bayyināt) and give preference to the Creator God, they submit to their worldly fate and hope for the forgiveness of their sins and what they have been forced to do by the ruler—they are a role model for the community, which is also subject to pressure from outside. The request for forgiveness of sins before a violent death is a topos of Christian martyr stories. The entire scene, leaving the context of ‘ancient’ Egypt, reflects the notion of Christian martyrdom stories. Khaṭāyā (singular khaṭīʾa) also lets a Syriac terminus technicus ring through, but the word can be derived from the Arabic root KhṬʿ (“to miss a goal”) (see FVQ, 123ff.). The idea of the forgiveness of sins is prominent in the Christian liturgy—not only through the Lord’s Prayer. In addition to khaṭīʾa, there is the genuine Arabic dhanb, dhunūb.}}

== Expansions on the afterlife ==

Reynolds (2020) notes the Qur’ans provides vivid depictions of hell are highly unlike the New Testament, where Jesus refers to afterlife punishment mostly allusively. The closest the Gospels describe hell is through the few images of “fire,” “wailing,” and “gnashing of teeth.”, for example in Matthew’s Parable of the Weeds, Jesus explains that at the end of the age, the Son of Man will send his angels that will cast evildoers into a fiery furnace where there will be weeping and gnashing of teeth (Matt 13:40–42).<ref>Reynolds, Gabriel Said. ''Allah: God in the Qur'an (pp. 81-82).'' Yale University Press. Kindle Edition.</ref> He notes the much more constant an vivid Qur'anic descriptions far better match later Christian works that expanded the descriptions to be more gruesome, in order to scare the reader/audience.<ref>Ibid. pp. 88.

''We might note how all of these traditions are meant to make humans yearn for paradise and fear hell. The Qur’an, from this regard, is a profoundly psychological work. Like a Christian preacher, like John Chrysostom or Saint Ephrem, the author of the Qur’an speaks of heaven and hell to persuade his audience to repent and believe. He does so in a way, however, that is distinct—emphasizing physical pain and physical pleasure in order, apparently, to make a greater impression on his audience. He puts a terrible tree into hell and young women in paradise.''
</ref>{{Quote|Reynolds, Gabriel Said. Allah: God in the Qur'an (pp. 82-83). Yale University Press. Kindle Edition.|The way that the Qur’an describes hell in particularly vivid, gruesome terms brings us back to something we mentioned in Chapter 1, namely, that the Qur’an in many ways is a “homiletic” work, a work written like a homily or sermon. The Qur’an’s intention is not simply to declare that those who disobey God will be punished, but to describe that punishment in a way which brings the awfulness of hell to life. Similarly, homilists in the early centuries of Christianity expanded dramatically on the New Testament allusions to hell. In a sermon attributed to John Chrysostom (d. 407) we read a description of hell with the sort of detail that we find in the Qur’an: It is a sea of fire—not a sea of the kind or dimensions we know here, but much larger and fiercer, with waves made of fire, fire of a strange and fearsome kind. There is a great abyss there, in fact, of terrible flames, and one can see fire rushing about on all sides like some wild animal…. There will be no one who can resist, no one who can escape: Christ’s gentle, peaceful face will be nowhere to be seen.15}}Sinai (2017) in his paper titled "''The Eschatological Kerygma of the Early Qur’an''" notes many overlap with Syriac Homilies on the afterlife as well as other apocalyptic ideas and terminology.<ref>“[https://almuslih.org/wp-content/uploads/Library/Sinai,%20N%20-%20The%20Eschatological%20Kerygma.pdf The Eschatological Kerygma of the Early Qur’an]”, Nicolai Sinai, in ''Apocalypticism and Eschatology in Late Antiquity: Encounters in the Abrahamic Religions, 6th–8th Centuries'', edited by Hagit Amirav, Emmanouela Grypeou, and Guy Stroumsa, Leuven: Peeters, 2017, 219–266.

These are discussed throughout the whole paper, and a summary can be found in pp.50-57. On heaven and hell specifically, the summary is on pp.55-57.</ref>

== Souls are taken away at night ==

The Qur'an (and traditional Islamic exegetes)<ref>See classical commentaries on these verses such as Al-Jalalayn on [https://quranx.com/Tafsir/Jalal/39.42 Q39:42], [https://quranx.com/Tafsir/Jalal/6.60 Q6:60] and Ibn Kathir on [https://quranx.com/Tafsir/Kathir/39.41 Q39:41-2] and [https://quranx.com/Tafsir/Kathir/6.60 Q6:60]</ref> state that the soul is taken away by Allah during the night.{{Quote|{{Quran|39|42}}|Allah takes the souls at the time of their death, and those who have not died, in their sleep. Then He retains those for whom He has ordained death and releases the others until a specified time. There are indeed signs in that for a people who reflect.}}{{Quote|{{Quran|6|60}}|It is He who takes your souls by night, and He knows what you do by day, then He reanimates you therein so that a specified term may be completed. Then to Him will be your return, whereat He will inform you concerning what you used to do.}}Tesei (2016) notes this idea may mimic a late antique Syriac Christian parallel in the poetical language used by Ephrem, who in the Nisibene hymns (7:15) mentions sleep resembles death, and other Christian writers (such as Babai) wrote about sleep metaphorically Jesus's death and waking up like the resurrection;<ref>Tesei, Tommaso. (2016). "[https://www.researchgate.net/publication/344524709_2_The_barzakh_and_the_Intermediate_State_of_the_Dead_in_the_Quran 2 The barzakh and the Intermediate State of the Dead in the Quran]". pp. 40-42 In Locating Hell in Islamic Traditions. Leiden, The Netherlands: Brill. <nowiki>https://doi.org/10.1163/9789004301368_003</nowiki> (Open access)

''At the same time, the Quran also compares death to the “common sleep” that people experience on a daily basis. This seems to be the case in the cryptic statement found in Q 39:42 (cf. Q 6:60), “God takes the souls at the time of their death (ḥīna mawtihā), and [He takes] that which has not died, in its sleep ( fī manāmihā); He withholds that against which He has decreed death, but sets loose the other until a stated term”. This obscure passage appears to indicate that sleep is a death-like state; sleepers resemble the dead since their souls enter into a state similar to that which they will experience at the moment of death. However, unlike the souls of the dead, which will be raised only on the Day of Resurrection, the ordinary sleeper’s soul is sent back when he awakens―that is, of course, until the time of his death. This parallel between death and “common sleep” finds a fairly close correspondence in the poetical language used by Ephrem, who in the Nisibene hymns (7:15) affirms that: “The one who lies down to sleep resembles the departed and death resembles a dream, and the resurrection the morning”. In these passages the Quran’s eschatological discourse is particularly close to that formulated by Babai, in whose ideas the belief in the soul’s sleep is intimately connected to the strong affirmation of the physical resurrection of the body on the Day of Judgment.'' </ref> with this idea taken literally by Muhammad.

== Arguments for resurrection ==
Reynolds (2020) notes the repeated argument that God can resurrect the dead using the analogy that he can bring life back to barren (or dead) land may be connected to a Jewish tradition that God will resurrect the dead with dew, for example, in b. Shabbat 88b.<ref name=":2">See: Reynolds, Gabriel Said. Allah: ''God in the Qur'an (pp. 76-77).'' Yale University Press. Kindle Edition.

And Footnote 10: Reynolds, Gabriel Said. ''Allah: God in the Qur'an (p. 254).'' Yale University Press. Kindle Edition.</ref>
{{Quote|{{Quran|30|19}}|He brings forth the living from the dead, and brings forth the dead from the living, and revives the earth after its death. Likewise, you [too] shall be raised [from the dead].}}

Cf: {{Quran|16|65}}, {{Quran|43|11}}, {{Quran|50|6-11}}, {{Quran|57|17}}

==See Also==
*[[Pre-Islamic Arab Religion in Islam]]

* [[Parallels Between the Qur'an and Late Antique Judeo-Christian Literature|Parallels Between the Qur'an and Late Antique Judeo-Christian Literature - Part 1]]
* [[Historical Errors in the Quran]]
==References==
<references />

Parallels Between the Qur'an and Late Antique Judeo-Christian Literature (Supplement)

2026-06-07T20:09:32Z

CPO675: /* The term khalāq */ Added a list of parallels to late antique sources in the story of Joseph in the Qur'an, citing Reynolds 2025 book on Christianity and the Qur'an.

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Following on from [[Parallels Between the Qur'an and Late Antique Judeo-Christian Literature]], this supplement contains further parallels beyond what can be accommodated in the main article. This material, drawing heavily on rabbinical commentaries on the bible, and late Syriac Christian thought found in homilies, was created far later than the biblical cannon; no-where near the time of the events that occurred. This suggests the stories were transmitted in an oral millennia along with local Arabian traditions<ref>Bannister, Andrew G.. ''An Oral-Formulaic Study of the Qur'an (Kindle Location 249-259 in Chapter 1.2 The Biblicist Roots of the Iblis and Adam Story).'' Bloomsbury Publishing. Kindle Edition.

..When the Qur’an emerged in the seventh-century, it did so in an oral culture in which Biblicist traditions were freely circulating and thus there existed a large pool of commonly known stories and traditions to fish from; a pool in which stories could cross-fertilize and influence one another. 23 It is this, more than direct borrowing that perhaps best explains stories like Iblis and Adam as well as other qur’anic tellings of older tales, such as the Seven Sleepers (Q. 18: 9– 25) 24 and the Legend of Alexander (Dhu al-Qarnayn, Q. 18: 83– 101). 25 The Qur’an originates from a milieu in which Biblicist material was well-known to the first audience of the Qur’an; even a simple allusion to a story was often enough to trigger a connection for the hearer. 26 That Biblicist material has been filtered through storytelling rather than simply copied from a written text is further suggested by what the Qur’an leaves out; no minor prophets are referenced, probably because almost no Old Testament narratives feature them nor did the rabbinic literature weave lengthy tales about them. 27 The exception which proves the rule is Jonah (Q. 21: 87– 88; 37: 139– 148; 68: 48– 50), whose short but dramatic story was extremely popular in both Jewish and Christian contexts.28..

And: Bannister, Andrew G.. ''An Oral-Formulaic Study of the Qur'an (Kindle Locations 1391-1392. Chapter 2.3 The Islamic Tradition and Orality).'' Bloomsbury Publishing. Kindle Edition.</ref> where biblical and much later Jewish and Christian stories could be commonly mixed without the new community realizing.

== Shooting Stars and Eavesdropping Satans ==
''Main article: [[Shooting Stars in the Quran]]''
{{Quote|{{Quran|37|6-10}}|Indeed, We have adorned the nearest heaven with an adornment of stars, And as protection against every rebellious devil [So] they may not listen to the exalted assembly [of angels] and are pelted from every side, Repelled; and for them is a constant punishment, Except one who snatches [some words] by theft, but they are pursued by a burning flame, piercing.}}
The idea of shooting stars chasing away eavesdropping devils has Zoroastrian, Jewish, and probably Arabian roots. This was noted by Patricia Crone in the commentary published following the 2012-13 Qur'an Seminar (a series of academic conferences).<ref>Patricia Crone's comments in [https://www.degruyter.com/document/doi/10.1515/9783110445909/html?lang=en The Qur’an Seminar Commentary: A Collaborative Study of 50 Qur’anic Passages] De Gruyter, 2017, pp. 305-312</ref> She argues that though the Zoroastrian sources were written after the Quran, their contents date to the Sassanian period, before the rise of Islam. Here the fixed stars and constellations are warriors led by the sun and moon to repel demons represented by moving bodies (planets and comets) from passing to the upper heaven. It is in the Jewish ''Testament of Solomon'' (1st to 3rd century CE) where the demons who fly up among the stars are not warriors but rather try to listen into God's decisions about men. Here, people see shooting stars as the exhausted demons falling back to earth. Eavesdropping demons also feature in the Babylonian Talmud.

== Every living thing from water ==
In two verses the Quran states that Allah created every living thing from water:

{{Quote|{{Quran|21|30}}|Have those who disbelieved not considered that the heavens and the earth were a joined entity, and We separated them and made from water every living thing? Then will they not believe?}}
{{Quote|{{Quran-range|24|45}}|Allah has created every [living] creature from water. And of them are those that move on their bellies, and of them are those that walk on two legs, and of them are those that walk on four. Allah creates what He wills. Indeed, Allah is over all things competent.}}

It is significant that the first of the two verses, 21:30, is explicitly about the creation of the world.

The Jewish apocryphal book 2 Esdras (1st / 2nd century CE) contains the same concept when describing the days of creation. It is not quite as general as the later Quranic version, as verse 53 states that on the 6th day cattle, beasts and creeping things were brought forth from the earth.

{{Quote|[[https://www.biblegateway.com/passage/?search=2%20Esdras%206&version=RSV|2 Esdras 6:42, 47-48]]|42 “On the third day thou didst command the waters to be gathered together in the seventh part of the earth; six parts thou didst dry up and keep so that some of them might be planted and cultivated and be of service before thee. 
... 
47 “On the fifth day thou didst command the seventh part, where the water had been gathered together, to bring forth living creatures, birds, and fishes; and so it was done. 
48 '''The dumb and lifeless water produced living creatures''', as it was commanded, that therefore the nations might declare thy wondrous works.}}

Reynolds notes another earlier parallel taught by the Syriac church father Ephrem (d. 373 CE). He writes, "[...] Ephrem, who explains that God created everything through water: 'Thus, through light and water the earth brought forth everything.' Ephrem, ''Commentary on Genesis'', 1:1-10)."<ref>Gabriel Said Reynolds, "The Quran and Bible:Text and Commentary", New Haven and London: Yale University Press, 2018 p. 553. This is regarding {{Quran|24|45}}, though on p. 508 Reynolds cross references the same parallel regarding the other verse, {{Quran|21|30}}, which is more clearly a statement in the context of the Genesis creation story, like Ephrem's comment.</ref> Ephrem's comment is in the context of the Genesis creation story, much like the first Quranic verse, 21:30. Ephrem says that when heaven and earth were created there were no trees or vegetation as it had not yet rained, so a fountain irrigated the earth. Tafsirs say that when the heaven and earth were separated rain fell so that plants could grow. There is also a similarity with Ephrem in the other verse (24:45), which mentions creatures that move on two, four or no legs. Ephrem explains that as well as the "trees, vegetation and plants", the "Scripture wishes to indicate that all animals, reptiles, cattle and birds came into being as a result of the combining of earth and water".<ref>[https://faberinstitute.com/wp-content/uploads/2019/01/Ephrem-the-Syrian-Commentary-on-Genesis-2-3-Brock.pdf Ephrem's commentary on Genesis] - Faber Institute.com</ref>

== Jinn created from fire ==
{{Quote|{{Quran|15|27}}|And the jinn We created before from scorching fire.}}
According to Reynolds, "The idea that God first created the Jinn from fire (v. 27) reflects Christian texts such as the ''Cave of Treasures'' that speak of the creation of the devil from fire (and have him already present at the creation of Adam)."<ref>Gabriel Said Reynolds, ''The Qurʾān and Bible'' p. 407</ref> See the discussion in the [[Parallels Between the Qur'an and Late Antique Judeo-Christian Literature|main article]] on the prostration of Iblis, which quotes the ''Cave of Treasures'' where he states that he was created from fire and spirit.

== Suckling for two years ==
Reynolds (2020) notes that the idea that women should suckle their children for two years has a basis in the Talmud (b. Ketubbot 60a).<ref>Gabriel Said Reynolds, ''"The Quran and Bible:Text and Commentary", pp.631-pp.632.'' New Haven and London: Yale University Press, 2018.</ref>{{Quote|{{Quran|2|233}}|Mothers shall suckle their children for two full years—that for such as desire to complete the suckling—and on the father shall be their maintenance and clothing, in accordance with honourable norms. No soul is to be tasked except according to its capacity: neither the mother shall be made to suffer harm on her child’s account, nor the father on account of his child, and on the [father’s] heir devolve [duties and rights] similar to that. And if the couple desire to wean with mutual consent and consultation, there will be no sin upon them. And if you want to have your children wet-nursed, there will be no sin upon you so long as you pay what you give in accordance with honourable norms, and be wary of Allah and know that Allah watches what you do.}}

== The Queen of Sheba ==
=== Qur'anic Account ===

The story of the Queen of Sheba is an ancient one, dating back to the Old Testament (1 Kgs. 10:1-10 and 2 Chr. 9:1-12). Josephus also makes mention of the Queen of Sheba, as does the Qur'an, which interestingly embellishes the Old Testament account with the episodes of the hoopoe and the Queen of Sheba exposing her legs.

Below is the Quranic account of the story:

{{Quote|{{Quran-range|27|20|44}}|And he took attendance of the birds and said, "Why do I not see the hoopoe - or is he among the absent? I will surely punish him with a severe punishment or slaughter him unless he brings me clear authorization." But the hoopoe stayed not long and said, "I have encompassed [in knowledge] that which you have not encompassed, and I have come to you from Sheba with certain news. Indeed, I found [there] a woman ruling them, and she has been given of all things, and she has a great throne. I found her and her people prostrating to the sun instead of Allah, and Satan has made their deeds pleasing to them and averted them from [His] way, so they are not guided, [And] so they do not prostrate to Allah, who brings forth what is hidden within the heavens and the earth and knows what you conceal and what you declare - Allah - there is no deity except Him, Lord of the Great Throne." [Solomon] said, "We will see whether you were truthful or were of the liars. Take this letter of mine and deliver it to them. Then leave them and see what [answer] they will return." She said, "O eminent ones, indeed, to me has been delivered a noble letter. Indeed, it is from Solomon, and indeed, it reads: 'In the name of Allah, the Entirely Merciful, the Especially Merciful, Be not haughty with me but come to me in submission [as Muslims].' " She said, "O eminent ones, advise me in my affair. I would not decide a matter until you witness [for] me." They said, "We are men of strength and of great military might, but the command is yours, so see what you will command." She said, "Indeed kings - when they enter a city, they ruin it and render the honored of its people humbled. And thus do they do. But indeed, I will send to them a gift and see with what [reply] the messengers will return." So when they came to Solomon, he said, "Do you provide me with wealth? But what Allah has given me is better than what He has given you. Rather, it is you who rejoice in your gift. Return to them, for we will surely come to them with soldiers that they will be powerless to encounter, and we will surely expel them therefrom in humiliation, and they will be debased." [Solomon] said, "O assembly [of jinn], which of you will bring me her throne before they come to me in submission?" A powerful one from among the jinn said, "I will bring it to you before you rise from your place, and indeed, I am for this [task] strong and trustworthy." Said one who had knowledge from the Scripture, "I will bring it to you before your glance returns to you." And when [Solomon] saw it placed before him, he said, "This is from the favor of my Lord to test me whether I will be grateful or ungrateful. And whoever is grateful - his gratitude is only for [the benefit of] himself. And whoever is ungrateful - then indeed, my Lord is Free of need and Generous." He said, "Disguise for her her throne; we will see whether she will be guided [to truth] or will be of those who is not guided." So when she arrived, it was said [to her], "Is your throne like this?" She said, "[It is] as though it was it." [Solomon said], "And we were given knowledge before her, and we have been Muslims [in submission to Allah]. And that which she was worshipping other than Allah had averted her [from submission to Him]. Indeed, she was from a disbelieving people." She was told, "Enter the palace." But when she saw it, she thought it was a body of water and uncovered her shins [to wade through]. He said, "Indeed, it is a palace [whose floor is] made smooth with glass." She said, "My Lord, indeed I have wronged myself, and I submit with Solomon to Allah, Lord of the worlds."}}

=== Targum Sheni ===

Regarding the above passage, Reynolds cites the ''Targum Sheni'' 1:1-3 (also known as ''The Second Targum of Esther'').<ref>Gabriel Said Reynolds, ''The Qurʾān and Bible'' pp. 585-6</ref> The Targums were translations (in this case, Aramaic) of the Hebrew scriptures, often with significant exegesis, paraphrase, or additional tales interwoven with the text.

A few verses earlier, {{Quran-range|27|16|17}} also has a parallel at the start of the same Targum Sheni passage. Reynolds remarks that "The Qurʾān's declaration that Solomon was taught the 'speech of the birds' (v. 16) and that his army included 'jinn, humans and birds' (v. 17) reflects the Second Targum of Esther (the date of which is disputed, but may date originally from the fourth century AD; On its relationship with the Qurʾān see BEQ, 390-91; 393-98)."<ref>Gabriel Said Reynolds, ''The Qurʾān and Bible'' p. 524 The BEQ reference in the quote is to H. Speyer ''Die biblischen Erzahtungen im Qoran'' 1931, reprint 1961</ref> However, it must be cautioned that the date of the Targum Sheni (Second Targum of Esther) is extremely uncertain. It has received various datings from the 4th to 11th centuries AD (as Reynolds also mentions), though certainly in its final redaction includes material which post-dates the lower end of that range.<ref>[https://www.encyclopedia.com/religion/encyclopedias-almanacs-transcripts-and-maps/targum-sheni Targum Sheni] - Encyclopedia.com (originally from the Encyclopaedia Judaica)</ref>

Dozens of details correspond between this passage and the Quranic verses when they are compared:

{{Quote|Targum Sheni 1:1-3<ref>William St. Clair Tisdall, [https://archive.org/details/in.ernet.dli.2015.233993/page/n43/mode/2up The Sources of Islam] translated and abridged by William Muir, Edinburgh: T. & T. Clark, 1901, pp. 26-27</ref>|At another time, when the heart of Solomon was gladdened with wine, he gave orders for the beasts of the land, the birds of the air, the creeping things of the earth, the demons from above and the Genii, to be brought, that they might dance around him, in order that all the kings waiting upon him might behold his grandeur. And all the royal scribes summoned by their names before him; in fact, all were there except the captives and prisoners and those in charge of them. Just then the Red-cock, enjoying itself, could not be found; and King Solomon said that they should seize and bring it by force, and indeed he sought to kill it. But just then the cock appeared in presence of the King, and said: O Lord, King of the earth! having applied thine ear, listen to my words. It is hardly three months since I made a firm resolution within me that I would not eat a crumb of bread, nor drink a drop of water until I had seen the whole world, and over it make my flight, saying to myself, I must know the city and the kingdom which is not subject to thee, my Lord King. Then I found the fortified city Qîtôr in the Eastern lands, and around it are stones of gold and silver in the streets plentiful as rubbish, and trees planted from the beginning of the world, and rivers to water it, flowing out of the garden of Eden. Many men are there wearing garlands from the garden close by. They shoot arrows, but cannot use the bow. They are ruled by a woman, called Queen of Sheba. Now if it please my Lord King, thy servant, having bound up my girdle, will set out for the fort Qîtôr in Sheba; and having "bound their Kings with chains and their Nobles with links of iron," will bring them into thy presence. The proposal pleased the King, and the scribes prepared a despatch, which was placed under the bird's wing, and away it flew high up in the sky. It grew strong surrounded by a crowd of birds, and reached the Fort of Sheba. By chance the Queen of Sheba was out in the morning worshipping the sea; and the air being darkened by the multitude of birds, she became so alarmed as to rend her clothes in trouble and distress. Just then the Cock alighted by her, and she seeing the letter under its wing opened and read it as follows: "King Solomon sendeth to thee his salaam, and saith, The high and holy One hath set me over the beasts of the field, etc.; and the kings of the four Quarters send to ask after my welfare. Now if it please thee to come and ask after my welfare, I will set thee high above them all. But if it please thee not, I will send kings and armies against thee; — the beasts of the field are my people, the birds of the air my riders, the demons and genii thine enemies, — to imprison you, to slay and to feed upon you." When the Queen of Sheba heard it, she again rent her garments, and sending for her Nobles asked their advice. They knew not Solomon, but advised her to send vessels by the sea, full of beautiful ornaments and gems, together with 6000 boys and girls in purple garments, who had all been born at the same moment; also to send a letter promising to visit him by the end of the year. It was a journey of seven years but she promised to come in three. When at last she came, Solomon sent a messenger shining in brilliant attire, like the morning dawn, to meet her. As they came together, she stepped from her carriage. "Why dost thou thus?" he asked. "Art thou not Solomon?" she said. "Nay, I am but a servant that standeth in his presence." The queen at once addressed a parable to her followers in compliment to him, and then was led by him to the Court. Solomon hearing she had come, arose and sat down in the Palace of glass. When the Queen of Sheba saw it, she thought that the glass floor was water, and so in crossing over lifted up her garments. When Solomon seeing the hair about her legs, cried out to her: Thy beauty is the beauty of women, but thy hair is as the hair of men; hair is good in man, but in woman it is not becoming. On this she said: My Lord, I have three enigmas to put to thee. If thou canst answer them, I shall know that thou art a wise man: but if not thou art like all around thee. When he had answered all three, she replied, astonished: Blessed be the Lord thy God, who hath placed thee on the throne that thou mightest rule with right and justice. And she gave to Solomon much gold and silver; and he to her whatsoever she desired.}}

One cannot be too dogmatic about this parallelism, as the dating of Targum Sheni is not beyond doubt. Nevertheless, it is likely that the story of the Queen of Sheba pre-dates the Qur'an as the Targum is mentioned in the Jerusalem Talmud. It is also clear that the post-Quranic dates often ascribed to Targum Sheni are that of the final redaction and not necessarily that of the Queen of Sheba myths.

== Jacob tells his sons to not enter through one gate ==
{{Quote|{{Quran|12|67}}|And he said, "O my sons, do not enter from one gate but enter from different gates; and I cannot avail you against [the decree of] Allah at all. The decision is only for Allah; upon Him I have relied, and upon Him let those who would rely [indeed] rely."}}

According to Reynolds, Jacob's instruction to his sons to enter through different gates rather than one is a Midrashic tale found in Genesis Rabbah 91:6 "Do not enter through one gate."<ref>Gabriel Said Reynolds, ''The Qurʾān and Bible'' p. 377</ref>

== Moses, Aaron and the Samiri ==
Neuwirth (2024) notes on the following verses that when Moses grabs Aaron’s beard, it may symbolize a challenge to Aaron’s priestly dignity, an idea rooted in Jewish and Christian traditions.<ref name=":1">Neuwirth, Angelika. ''The Qur'an: Text and Commentary, Volume 2.1: Early Middle Meccan Suras: The New Elect. Kindle Edition: pp. 209.''</ref> And Aaron’s defense — that the people should not be divided — is not found in the Bible’s account in [https://www.biblegateway.com/passage/?search=Exodus%2032%3A22-24&version=NIV Exodus 32:22–24], but appears only in later rabbinical debates.<ref name=":1" />
{{Quote|{{Quran-range|20|92|94}}|But (Moses) said: "O Aaron, when you saw that they had gone astray, what hindered you from following me? Did you disobey my command?’ He said, ‘O son of my mother! Do not grab my beard or my head! I feared lest you should say, ‘‘You have caused a rift among the Children of Israel and did not heed my word [of advice].’’’}}
She also notes a possible parallel in this story {{Quran-range|20|95|96}} in the brief description of how the calf was made may relate to scriptural magic described in Exodus Rabba 41:10, though this view contrasts with Paret, who follows Yahuda and relies on a later Midrash that is hard to date.<ref name=":1" /> And in {{Quran-range|20|97|98}} the Samiri / 'al-Sāmirī' is condemned in the Qur’an to live as a leper, symbolizing lifelong impurity — echoing the Bible's [https://www.biblegateway.com/passage/?search=Leviticus%2013%3A45&version=NIV Leviticus 13:45]; though his expulsion and the warning of future punishment parallel the story of Iblīs, showing that al-Sāmirī plays a Satan-like role in the Qur’anic narrative, which, similarly, rabbinic tradition also links Satan to the golden calf incident.<ref name=":1" />

== Mary before the birth of Jesus ==
{{Quote|{{Quran-range|19|16|17}}|And mention in the Book Maryam, when she withdrew from her family (to) a place eastern. Then she took from them a screen. Then We sent to her Our Spirit then he assumed for her the likeness (of) a man well-proportioned.}}
Neuwirth (2024) notes we also find other details in the birth story, such as Mary withdrawing to 'an Eastern place', which had many allegorical meanings in post-biblical traditions connecting Mary with the church in late antiquity, and the screen itself, not contained in the bible, seemingly 'de-allegorised' in the Qur'an as simple details in the story.<ref name=":6">Neuwirth, Angelika. ''The Qur'an: Text and Commentary, Volume 2.1: Early Middle Meccan Suras: The New Elect (Kindle Edition. pp. 385-386).'' Yale University Press. </ref> It is not known if these de-allegorisation readings were meant to superimpose any contemporary allegory or if they were simply circulating in a story or stories already detached from their deeper meanings.<ref name=":6" />
{{Quote|Neuwirth, Angelika. The Qur'an: Text and Commentary, Volume 2.1: Early Middle Meccan Suras: The New Elect (Kindle Edition. pp. 386). Yale University Press.|The detail of the curtain is also reminiscent of a symbolic apocryphal story about Mary (see TUK_0035). According to the account of the Protevangelium of James (Protev 10) already used by Bell (1937), but especially by Tannous (2019), Mary is chosen by lot to weave purple and scarlet for the temple curtain (see KKK, 323)—whose color unmistakably anticipates her son’s passion. In view of the passion story not appearing in the Qurʾan, it is not surprising that in the Qur’an the important curtain is downgraded to a rather marginal accessory, a partition protecting Mary’s private space. As in the case of the “eastern place,” so also in the case of the curtain, an image used allegorically in the Christian tradition is ‘deallegorized’; both symbolic details appear again in the qurʾanic version as everyday realities...}}

== The term sakīnah ==
The term sakīnah is a Rabbinic rather than a biblical one<ref>Bible Hub - [https://biblehub.com/topical/s/shekinah.htm Shekinah]</ref> describing the physical manifestation of God on Earth.<ref name=":12">Durie, Mark. ''The Qur'an and Its Biblical Reflexes: Investigations into the Genesis of a Religion. pp.177-178.'' Lanham, MD: Lexington Books, 2018</ref>

This Rabbinic Hebrew/Aramaic term appears as a Qur'anic noun six times. Most Qur’anic references to ''sakīnah'' describe God giving believers tranquility and reassurance in times of opposition.<ref name=":12" /> One exception is Q2:247–48, where the ark is called a “sakīnah from your Lord,” echoing Jewish or Christian ideas of God’s ''shekīnah'' presence linked to the Ark of the Covenant, however, the Qur’an itself does not associate ''sakīnah'' with divine presence.<ref name=":12" /> Instead, the term, which resembles the Hebrew/Aramiac word phonologically, was absorbed into Arabic and generally means “tranquility” or “reassurance”, so not semantically matching. Durie (2018) notes in this sense, ''sakīnah'' in Q2:248 may be a "linguistic fossil"; borrowed from earlier traditions without being understood, so reinterpreted with a new, purely Arabic meaning based on the root (s-k-n (“rest, stationary, still”)) in that language.<ref name=":12" />

Sinai (2023) sums up:{{Quote|sakīnah {{!}} composure, tranquillity Sinai, Nicolai. Key Terms of the Qur'an: A Critical Dictionary (pp. 391). Princeton University Press. Kindle Edition.|..Etymologically, the word is descended from rabbinic Hebrew shәkinah or its Aramaic equivalent (WMJA 53–55; NB 24–25; JPND 208–209; CQ 21; FVQ 174; Stewart 2021, 42–54), which in targumic and rabbinic texts designate God’s “dwelling” or “presence” in the world and can on occasion appear as a downright hypostasis of the deity (see DTTM 1573 and DJBA 1145 as well as the overview in Unterman et al. 2007). The Qur’anic use of sakīnah, a word that was presumably adopted from the language of the Medinan Jews, is an evident case in which the semantics of a loanword underwent far-reaching adjustment in accordance with the meaning of its Arabic root s-k-n, conveying rest and calmness. As a result, the Qur’anic sakīnah, though explicitly identified as being God’s, has a distinctly psychological slant and does not convey the presence of God at a particular place, as does the rabbinic concept (Durie 2018, 178–179). One may surmise that the Jews of Medina employed the word sakīnah to describe God’s presence in the ark of the covenant (Q 2:248). This would be in line with God’s statement in Exod 25:8 that he will “dwell” in the Israelites’ sanctuary, which the Targum Onqelos renders, “And I shall cause my presence (shkinti) to dwell among them.” The Qur’an, by contrast, integrates the term into the theme of God’s reassuring impact on the believers’ hearts, into which the sakīnah is sent down according to Q 48:4 (see AHW 67 and under → qalb). Thus, while the concept’s original doctrinal context was a theology of God’s presence at particular places and times (see Durie 2018, 179), in its Qur’anic reception it is absorbed into what one might call the Islamic scripture’s theology of divine fortification: the prime arena in which God can be experienced as present, above and beyond his universal role as the world’s creator and sustainer (→ khalaqa), is the human heart.}}

== The term khalāq ==
Sinai (2023 notes the Qur’an uses ''khalāq'' (“share, portion”) in verses threatening that some will have “no share in the hereafter” (e.g., Q 2:102, 2:200, 3:77).<ref name=":2">''khalāq | share'' Sinai, Nicolai. Key Terms of the Qur'an: A Critical Dictionary (p. 281-282). Princeton University Press. Kindle Edition.</ref> Unlike the usual Arabic root ''kh-l-q'' (“to create”), ''khalāq'' seems to be a loanword, likely from Hebrew ''ḥēleq'' or Aramaic ''ḥulaqa'', both meaning “share” or “allotted fate.”<ref name=":2" /> This phrasing strongly resembles rabbinic expressions about having (or lacking) a “share in the world to come,” widely attested in the Mishnah, Tosefta, Talmud, and Midrash.<ref name=":2" /> The Qur’an’s diction thus reflects Rabbinical Jewish idiom, likely adopted in a Medinan context, making ''khalāq,'' like ''ummī'' (“scriptureless”) and ''baraʾa'' (“to create”) etc. an example of Jewish terminology integrated into Qur’anic usage.<ref name=":2" />

Some are not exact matches but very similar, showing potential influence if not direct copies of these texts.
==The story of Joseph==
There are many differences between the story of Joseph (Arabic: ''Yūsuf'') in the Qur'an; told in full in Surah 12 (Surah Yūsuf), and the book of Genesis in the bible. Reynolds (2025), largely citing Witzum's (2011) 'The Syriac Millenia of the Qur'an: The Recasting of Biblical Narratives',<ref>Witztum, Joseph (2011) ''[https://almuslih.org/wp-content/uploads/2024/11/Witztum-J-The-Syriac-milieu-of-the-Quran.pdf The Syriac milieu of the Quran: The recasting of Biblical narratives], pp191-239.'' PhD Thesis, Princeton University</ref> notes how these differences directly match post-biblical writings; with almost all of these distinctive Qur’anic elements showing dependence on or conversation with Syriac Christian traditions (such as Pseudo-Narsai, Ephrem, Pseudo-Basil, Balai, Syriac Bible/Peshitta), which comes as part of his argument that Christian traditions were known by Muhammad's community. A few overlap with the Jewish midrash, but the strongest and most consistent influence comes from Christian sources.<ref name=":4">Reynolds, Gabriel Said. C''hristianity and the Qur'an: The Rise of Islam in Christian Arabia (p. 76-86).'' Yale University Press. Kindle Edition.</ref>

Reynolds provides 11 clear examples of this, with a brief summary of them as follows:<ref name=":4" />
#Joseph’s singular dream: in the Qur’an he has only one dream (unlike the Book of Genesis which has two) which he tells directly to his father Jacob, who warns him to keep it secret in case it leads his brothers to seek him harm - matching Pseudo-Narsai’s homily (5th-century Syriac Christian).<ref>Ibid. pp76, pp81</ref>
#The brothers' plot to kill Joseph: the Qur’an has the brothers plotting at home, not spontaneously in the fields - also found in Pseudo-Narsai.<ref>Ibid. pp78, pp82</ref>
#The wolf motif: the Qur’an specifies a wolf instead of a vague “wild animal” as in Genesis - which links to Christian tradition (Pseudo-Narsai) who calls the brothers “wolves” and Joseph “a lamb,” echoing Gospel imagery of shepherds/sheep<ref>Ibid. pp78, pp82-83</ref>.
#Joseph in the pit: the Qur’an has Joseph comforted by God in the pit (''jubb''; {{Quran|12|15}}) - which again follows a report in Pseudo-Narsai of revelation to Joseph in the pit (Syriac ''gubbā'').<ref name=":5">Ibid. pp78, pp83</ref>
#Jacob’s (Joseph's father) response to the bloody shirt: the Qur’an has Jacob suspecting deception - reflected in homilies from Ephrem and Balai, who also have Jacob reason that the brothers’ story is false.<ref name=":5" />
#Potiphar and the garment: the Qur’an shows Potiphar recognizing Joseph’s innocence and his wife's guilt in trying to seduce him - found in some post-biblical Jewish Traditions (including ''Genesis Rabbah 87:9'') where he shows knowledge of Joseph's innocence - however only in Christian traditions (e.g., Pseudo-Narsai) do we find Potiphar, as in {{Quran|12|28-29}}, also arguing for Joseph’s innocence by referring to the torn garment as proof.<ref name=":5" />
#Potiphar’s wife confesses: the Qur’an has her admit guilt later in the story - found in the Pseudo-Narsai, where she confesses after Joseph’s rise to power.<ref>Ibid. pp78-79, pp83</ref>
#Jacob’s blindness healed by Joseph’s shirt: the Qur’an reports Jacob miraculously regains sight when Joseph’s shirt touches his face - in the bible Jacob is firstly simply 'dim/heavy with age', but nothing is said about blindness, which is found in Christian late antique sources, and secondly using the garment to heal him draws on Syriac Christian idioms; (“lighten the eyes” = to gladden), made literal in the Qur’an (like other symbolic items in Christian stories) to heal Jacob's eyes.<ref>Ibid. pp79, pp83-84</ref>
#Joseph called a thief by his brothers: the Qur’an has Joseph's brothers suggest he committed a past theft - which is rooted in Pseudo-Narsai, which connects Benjamin’s cup incident to Rachel stealing idols and compares Joseph to her.<ref>Ibid. pp79, pp84-85</ref>
#Joseph’s garment sent to Jacob: the Qur’an has Joseph send his shirt to Jacob - which is related to the Syriac Peshitta (and Septuagint and Vulgate) reading of Genesis and Balai’s poetry, where Jacob receives garments from Joseph.<ref name=":62">Ibid. pp79, pp85</ref>
#The brothers ask for Jacob’s forgiveness – the Qur’an has them repent to Jacob, who asks God to forgive them - which echoes Balai, who also has Jacob forgive and pray for them.<ref name=":62" />
==See Also==

* [[Parallels Between the Qur'an and Late Antique Judeo-Christian Literature]]
* [[Pre-Islamic Arab Religion in Islam]]

[[Category:Previous scriptures]]
[[Category:Qur'anic textual history]]
[[Category:Revelation]]
[[Category:Qur'an]]
[[Category:Jewish tradition]]
[[Category:Christian tradition]]

==References==
{{Reflist|30em}}

User:CPO675/Sandbox 1

2026-06-07T20:05:01Z

CPO675: /* The story of Joseph */

== The story of Joseph ==
There are many differences between the story of Joseph (Arabic: ''Yūsuf'') in the Qur'an, told in full in Surah 12 (Surah Yūsuf), and the book of Genesis in the bible. Reynolds (2025), largely citing Witzum's (2011) 'The Syriac Millenia of the Qur'an: The Recasting of Biblical Narratives',<ref>Witztum, Joseph (2011) ''[https://almuslih.org/wp-content/uploads/2024/11/Witztum-J-The-Syriac-milieu-of-the-Quran.pdf The Syriac milieu of the Quran: The recasting of Biblical narratives], pp191-239.'' PhD Thesis, Princeton University</ref> notes how these differences directly match post-biblical writings; with almost all of these distinctive Qur’anic elements showing dependence on or conversation with Syriac Christian traditions (such as Pseudo-Narsai, Ephrem, Pseudo-Basil, Balai, Syriac Bible/Peshitta), which comes as part of his argument that Christian traditions were known by Muhammad's community. A few overlap with the Jewish midrash, but the strongest and most consistent influence comes from Christian sources.<ref name=":4">Reynolds, Gabriel Said. C''hristianity and the Qur'an: The Rise of Islam in Christian Arabia (p. 76-86).'' Yale University Press. Kindle Edition.</ref>

Reynolds provides provides 11 clear examples of this:<ref name=":4" />

# Joseph’s singular dream: in the Qur’an he has only one dream (unlike the Book of Genesis which has two) which he tells directly to his father Jacob, who warns him to keep it secret in case it leads his brothers to seek him harm - matching Pseudo-Narsai’s homily (5th-century Syriac Christian).<ref>Ibid. pp76, pp81</ref>
# The brothers' plot to kill Joseph: the Qur’an has the brothers plotting at home, not spontaneously in the fields - also found in Pseudo-Narsai.<ref>Ibid. pp78, pp82</ref>
# The wolf motif: the Qur’an specifies a wolf instead of a vague “wild animal” as in Genesis - which links to Christian tradition (Pseudo-Narsai) who calls the brothers “wolves” and Joseph “a lamb,” echoing Gospel imagery of shepherds/sheep<ref>Ibid. pp78, pp82-83</ref>.
# Joseph in the pit: the Qur’an has Joseph comforted by God in the pit (''jubb''; {{Quran|12|15}}) - which again follows a report in Pseudo-Narsai of revelation to Joseph in the pit (Syriac ''gubbā'').<ref name=":5">Ibid. pp78, pp83</ref>
# Jacob’s (Joseph's father) response to the bloody shirt: the Qur’an has Jacob suspecting deception - reflected in homilies from Ephrem and Balai, who also have Jacob reason that the brothers’ story is false.<ref name=":5" />
# Potiphar and the garment: the Qur’an shows Potiphar recognizing Joseph’s innocence and his wife's guilt in trying to seduce him - found in some post-biblical Jewish Traditions (including ''Genesis Rabbah 87:9'') where he shows knowledge of Joseph's innocence - however only in Christian traditions (e.g., Pseudo-Narsai) do we find Potiphar, as in {{Quran|12|28-29}}, also arguing for Joseph’s innocence by referring to the torn garment as proof.<ref name=":5" />
# Potiphar’s wife confesses: the Qur’an has her admit guilt later in the story - found in the Pseudo-Narsai, where she confesses after Joseph’s rise to power.<ref>Ibid. pp78-79, pp83</ref>
# Jacob’s blindness healed by Joseph’s shirt: the Qur’an reports Jacob miraculously regains sight when Joseph’s shirt touches his face - in the bible Jacob is firstly simply 'dim/heavy with age', but nothing is said about blindness, which is found in Christian late antique sources, and secondly using the garment to heal him draws on Syriac Christian idioms; (“lighten the eyes” = to gladden), made literal in the Qur’an (like other symbolic items in Christian stories) to heal Jacob's eyes.<ref>Ibid. pp79, pp83-84</ref>
# Joseph called a thief by his brothers: the Qur’an has Joseph's brothers suggest he committed a past theft - which is rooted in Pseudo-Narsai, which connects Benjamin’s cup incident to Rachel stealing idols and compares Joseph to her.<ref>Ibid. pp79, pp84-85</ref>
# Joseph’s garment sent to Jacob: the Qur’an has Joseph send his shirt to Jacob - which is related to the Syriac Peshitta (and Septuagint and Vulgate) reading of Genesis and Balai’s poetry, where Jacob receives garments from Joseph.<ref name=":6">Ibid. pp79, pp85</ref>
# The brothers ask for Jacob’s forgiveness – the Qur’an has them repent to Jacob, who asks God to forgive them - which echoes Balai, who also has Jacob forgive and pray for them.<ref name=":6" />

== Flat Earth - Tafsirs ==

=== The Highest Horizon ===
The Qu'ran says Muhammad was in the highest horizon ''bil-ufuqi<ref>افق - [https://lexicon.quranic-research.net/data/01_A/103_Afq.html Lane's lexicon Classical Arabic Dictionary root: hamza fā qāf (أ ف ق)]

Horizon ''ufuq'' (أُفُق) [https://lexicon.quranic-research.net/pdf/Page_0068.pdf Lane's Lexicon p.68]

Horizon ''ufuq'' (أُفُق) [https://lexicon.quranic-research.net/pdf/Page_0069.pdf Lane's Lexicon p.69] </ref>l-aʿlā''<ref>Lanes Lexicon Classical Arabic Dictionary Root: [https://lexicon.quranic-research.net/data/18_E/190_Elw.html ʿayn lām wāw (ع ل و)]

(l-a)ʿlā [https://lexicon.quranic-research.net/pdf/Page_2142.pdf Lanes Lexicon p.2142], [https://lexicon.quranic-research.net/pdf/Page_2143.pdf Lanes Lexicon p.2143]

</ref>. Typically taken as referring to him receiving knowledge there as part of his [[Buraq#The Night Journey (al-Isra wal-Mi'raj)|night journey]].
{{Quote|{{Quran|53|7}}|possessed of sound judgement. He settled, while he (was) in the horizon - the highest.}}See also: {{Quran|81|23}}

On a round Earth, there is no such place as an objective highest horizon, as once you move towards the perceived horizon (the furthest place you can see where the land and sky appear to meet in the distance)<ref>[https://dictionary.cambridge.org/dictionary/english/horizon Horizon Definition] Cambridge Dictionary</ref> the view simply moves further back as you circle around the earth, never actually being reached. So some classical Islamic exegetes have taken this to be the place where the sun rises from, in the seventh heaven, or where it reaches the Earth,<ref>E.g. [https://quranx.com/Tafsir/Jalal/53.7 Tafsir al-Jalalayn on verse Q53:7] by Al-Mahalli (d. 1459 CE) and Al-Suyuti (d. 1505 CE) and the famous pseudepigrapha [https://quranx.com/Tafsir/Abbas/53.7 Tanwîr al-Miqbâs min Tafsîr Ibn ‘Abbâs on verse Q53:7]</ref> which is only possible on a flat Earth.

== The Historical Jesus ==

=== Other Traditions ===

==== Intro ====

Alongside the main consensus from Biblical Scholars/Historians that Jesus was an eschatological preacher in the early first century AD who believed the Earth would end during his time (and therefore couldn't be the Muslim Jesus), there are many other of the most considered authentic teachings of Jesus that clash with Islam; in contrast with the Qur'anic principle of Messenger Uniformitarianism; where all messengers preach essentially the same thing with only minor variations.<ref>Durie, Mark. ''The Qur’an and Its Biblical Reflexes: Investigations into the Genesis of a Religion (pp. 135-142) (Kindle Edition pp. 281-294)''. 5.3 Messenger Uniformitarianism. Lexington Books. 2018.</ref>
{{Quote|{{Quran|41|43}}|Not is said to you except what was said to the Messengers before you. Indeed, your Lord (is) Possessor (of) forgiveness, and Possessor (of) penalty painful.}}{{Quote|{{Quran|2|285}}|The Apostle and the faithful have faith in what has been sent down to him from his Lord. Each [of them] has faith in Allah, His angels, His scriptures and His apostles. [They declare,] ‘We make no distinction between any of His apostles.’ And they say, ‘We hear and obey. Our Lord, forgive us, and toward You is the return.’}}

{{Quote|{{Quran|17|77}}|“This was the sunnah [customary way] of Our messengers whom We sent before you, and you will find no change in Our sunnah”}}cf. {{Quran|6|112}}, {{Quran|35|43}}, {{Quran|22|78}}.

Other than being explicitly told that messengers bring the same message from Allah, Durie (2018) notes the Qur'an repeatedly states that Muhammad was sent to confirm the revelations given to earlier messengers (Q2:91, 97; Q3:3, 50; Q5:48; Q12:111; Q16:43–44; Q35:31), just as each prophet before him confirmed those who came earlier. For example, Jesus (ʿĪsa) confirmed the Torah of Moses (Mūsa) (Q5:46), and the Qurʾan confirms the scriptures revealed to previous prophets (Q4:47). In this way, Muhammad’s role continues the same pattern of reaffirming earlier divine messages rather than introducing a completely new one.<ref>Durie, Mark. ''The Qur’an and Its Biblical Reflexes: Investigations Into the Genesis of a Religion.'' pp.140</ref>

{{Quote|Durie, Mark. The Qur'an and it's Biblical Reflexes. pp.140|• It is also explicitly asserted that messengers bring the same message
from Alla¯h: “Nothing is said to you but what has already been said to
messengers before you” (Q41:43; Q22:78) and “we make no distinction
between any of them” (Q2:136). They also preached the same dīn “commandment” or “religion” (Q42:13; cf. Q3:84; Q4:150), which is referred
to as the “religion of Ibra¯hīm” (Q2:130; Q4:125; Q16:121–23). The
validating function of this idea becomes clear when it is applied against
a group of Jews who reject the concept of the “same message” because
it would mean validating the Messenger. These Jews hold to their own
faith, saying “we believe in what has been sent down on us,” but they
reject the Messenger, or “anything after that” (Q2:91). The ruling against
these Jews is that because they reject the Messenger, they are disbelievers,
rejecting “what All a¯ h has sent down” (Q2:91).31 The idea of the “same message” is further reinforced when the Qurʾan repeatedly states that the Messenger was only sent to confirm what was sent down by previous
messengers (Q2:91, 97; Q3:3, 50; Q5:48; Q12:111; Q16:43–44; Q35:31),
just as previous messengers had done for messengers that preceded them,
for example, ʿĪsa¯ “confirmed” the Tawra¯ h of Mūsa¯(Q5:46), and the Qurʾan
confirms the book(s) sent by previous prophets (Q4:47), just as the Messenger has been doing in his turn.}}
The large differences between the New Testament / Gospels (and by extension the Christian Jesus), and the [[Isa al-Masih (Jesus Christ)|Muslim Jesus,]] are clear to anyone who has read both the Qur'an and NT; with the Qur'an having it's own spin on him and taking many aspects from apocrypha considered inauthentic by NT scholars,<ref>Sanders, E.. ''The Historical Figure of Jesus (pp. 78-79)''. Penguin Books Ltd. Kindle Edition.

..(Gnosticism was a world view that held everything material to be evil; the god who created the world was a bad god, and the creation was wicked. Gnostics who were also Christians held that the good God had sent Jesus to redeem people’s souls, not their bodies, and that Jesus was not a real human being. The Christians who objected to these views finally declared them heretical.) ''I share the general scholarly view that very, very little in the apocryphal gospels could conceivably go back to the time of Jesus. They are legendary and mythological. Of all the apocryphal material, only some of the sayings in the Gospel of Thomas are worth consideration.'' This does not mean that we can make a clean division: the historical four gospels versus the legendary apocryphal gospels. There are legendary traits in the four gospels in the New Testament, and there is also a certain amount of newly created material (as we saw just above)..</ref> and [[Parallels Between the Qur'an and Late Antique Judeo-Christian Literature|later Christian thought/writings]], and have lead to many Muslims arguing for biblical corruption based on textual and theological grounds [though textual don't affect most early & authentic traditions] in general, which is a disputed idea in traditional Islamic thought (cite - Reynolds article. See also: [[Corruption of Previous Scriptures]] & [[Qur'an, Hadith and Scholars:Corruption of Previous Scriptures]])

Historians have searched for a summary of some of the most likely authentic traditions from Biblical historians (using historical-critical methods not Christian or Muslim theologians - more likely to be true and not taken from bias or proving or disproving Islam but historical context, widespread across sources, early - cite Allison explanation - Why - different to time and context, unlikely to be fabricated later by Christians, across all early sources etc.) are shown here as an example of the clashes. [Point: not arguing against Christian Jesus - but secular historians one]

==== Examples ====
{{Quote|Dale C. Allison Jr.. The Historical Christ and the Theological Jesus (Kindle Locations 822-836). Kindle Edition.|2=Given that we typically remember the outlines of an event or the general purport of a conversation rather than the particulars and that we extract patterns and meaning from our memories, it makes little sense to open the quest for Jesus by evaluating individual items with our criteria, in the hope that some bits preserve pristine memory. We should rather be looking for repeating patterns and contemplating the big picture. true. We should trust first, if we are to trust at all, what is most likely to be trustworthy. Although we may, after reading Thucydides, be confident that there was a Peloponnesian War, we may well wonder about many of the details of his account.

The larger the generalization and the more data upon which it is based, the greater our confidence; the more specific the detail and the fewer the data supporting it, the more room we have for doubt. With regard to the sources for Jesus, the traditional criteria of authenticity privilege the parts over the whole. It seems more prudent to privilege generalizations drawn from the whole than to concentrate upon one individual item after another. As a demonstration of how this works in practice, consider the following traditions:

• Jesus prohibited divorce: 1 Cor. 7:10; Mark 10:2-9; Luke 16:18. [Qur'an divorce rules - https://wikiislam.net/wiki/Khula] 

• Jesus sent forth missionaries without staff, food, or money: Matt. 10:9-10; Mark 6:8-9; Luke 10:4.

• Jesus instructed missionaries to get their living by the gospel: 1 Cor. 9:14; Matt. 10:10; Luke 10:7.

• Jesus commanded loving and doing good to enemies: Matt. 5:38-48; Luke 6:27-36. [Qur'an do not be merciful to unbelievers https://wikiislam.net/wiki/Qur%27an,_Hadith_and_Scholars:Non-Muslims & https://wikiislam.net/wiki/Kafir_(Infidel)#Guidelines_on_how_to_deal_with_disbelievers Quran 48:29 ]

• Jesus forbade judging others: Matt. 7:1-2; Luke 6:37-38.

• Jesus asked a prospective follower not to bury his father: Matt. 8:21-22; 22; Luke 959-60.

• Jesus spoke of hating one's father and mother: Matt. 10:37; Luke 14:26; Gospel of Thomas 55, 101. [respect parents - too tenuous]

• Jesus enjoined disciples to take up a cross: Matt. 10:38; Mark 8:34; Luke 14:27.

• Jesus enjoined unlimited forgiveness: Matt. 18:21-22; Luke 17:3-4. [forgiveness against shirk - Qur'an says no Q4:48 and 4:116. ]

• Jesus exhorted hearers to lose their lives in order to save them: Matt. 10:39; Mark 8:35; Luke 17:33.

• Jesus called people away from their livelihoods: Mark 1:16-20; 2:14. [?]

• Jesus figuratively demanded violent removal of hand, foot, and eye: Mark 9:42-48.

• Jesus asked a wealthy man to relinquish his money: Mark 10:17-27. [bring in wealth inequality section of Islam darajat - here]

• Jesus forbade taking oaths: Matt. 5:33-37. [https://www.iium.edu.my/deed/lawbase/risalah_maliki/book31.html#:~:text=Anyone%20who%20swears%20an%20oath,Oneness%2C%20timelessness%20and%20existence.%5D]

• Jesus commanded money to be lent without interest: Matt. 5:42; Gospel of Thomas 95.

• Jesus called some to a life without marriage: Matt. 19:11-12. [Qur'an criticism of monasticism]

• Jesus asked a prospective follower not to say farewell to his parents: Luke 9:61-62. [respect parents?]

• Jesus asked his disciples to renounce all of their possessions: Luke 14:33"}}
<nowiki>--------------------------------------------------</nowiki>

[ highlight those being spoken about in italics or bold]

Professor Allison (2009) notes that Jesus' banning divorce was an important teaching that <s>stood out</s> to early Christians, [https://www.biblegateway.com/passage/?search=Luke%2016%3A18&version=NIV Luke 16:18], [https://www.biblegateway.com/passage/?search=1%20Corinthians%207%3A10-16&version=NIV 1 Corinthians 7:10-16], [https://www.biblegateway.com/passage/?search=Mark%2010%3A2-9&version=NIV Mark 10:2-9], in contrast to Judaism ([https://www.biblegateway.com/passage/?search=Deuteronomy%2024%3A1-4&version=NIV Deuteronomy 24:1-4]) and Islam e.g. Quran 2:228-232, Q65:1-7, (Q4:19 https://quranx.com/hadiths/4.19 & Q4:35), Q33:49 )

He notes that Jesus commanded loving and doing good to enemies in [https://www.biblegateway.com/passage/?search=Matthew%205%3A38-48&version=NIV Matt. 5:38-48]; [https://www.biblegateway.com/passage/?search=Luke%206%3A27-36&version=NIV Luke 6:27-36], while the Qur'an generally advises treating other Muslims well, it specifically states not to be merciful to unbelievers Q48:29. [ For more examples of not being merciful to unbelievers, let alone 'enemies' see: '''[[Qur'an, Hadith and Scholars:Non-Muslims|https://wikiislam.net/wiki/Qur%27an,_Hadith_and_Scholars:Non-Muslims]] & [[Kafir (Infidel)#Guidelines%20on%20how%20to%20deal%20with%20disbelievers|https://wikiislam.net/wiki/Kafir_(Infidel)#Guidelines_on_how_to_deal_with_disbelievers]] Quran 48:29 ]'''

• Jesus enjoined unlimited forgiveness: [https://www.biblegateway.com/passage/?search=Matthew%2018%3A21-22&version=NIV Matt. 18:21-22]; [https://www.biblegateway.com/passage/?search=Luke%2017%3A3-4&version=NIV Luke 17:3-4]. However the Qur'an distinctly says there is no forgiveness for anyone committing shirk (ascribing partners to God) in {{Quran|4|48}} and {{Quran|4|116}}.

He notes Jesus called some to a life without marriage: [https://www.biblegateway.com/passage/?search=Matthew%2019%3A11-12&version=NIV Matt. 19:11-12], while the Qur'an promotes it as a virtue encouraging those to do so.

Marriage is a virtue https://www.getquranic.com/marriage-in-islam-8-quranic-verses-about-marriage/

{{Quote|{{Quran|24|32}}|Marry off those who are single among you, and the upright among your male and female slaves. If they are poor, Allah will enrich them out of His grace, and Allah is all-bounteous, all-knowing.}}

And criticizes monasticism/monks, with celibacy and no marriage being a key aspect<ref>[https://www.britannica.com/topic/monasticism Monasticism] | religion | Britannica Entry</ref> in general

{{Quote|Reynolds, Gabriel Said. Christianity and the Qur'an: The Rise of Islam in Christian Arabia (pp. 131-132). Yale University Press. Kindle Edition.|These verses critical of monks are often read together with Q 57:27, which, while praising certain positive qualities of Christians, also seems to accuse Christians of “innovating” monasticism: Then We sent, following in their footsteps, Our Messengers; and We sent, following, Jesus son of Mary, and gave unto him the Gospel. And We set in the hearts of those who followed him tenderness and mercy. And monasticism they invented—We did not prescribe it for them—only seeking the good pleasure of God; but they observed it not as it should be observed. So We gave those of them who believed their wage; and many of them are ungodly.}}

Criticism of monasticism (https://www.britannica.com/topic/monasticism) - lack of marriage for monks (though admittedly also praises monks in general elsewhere pp130-132)<ref>Reynolds, Gabriel Said. ''Christianity and the Qur'an: The Rise of Islam in Christian Arabia (pp. 130-132).'' Yale University Press. Kindle Edition.</ref>

{{Quote|{{Quran|57|27}}|Then We sent on their footsteps Our Messengers and We followed with Isa, son (of) Maryam, and We gave him the Injeel. And We placed in (the) hearts (of) those who followed him compassion and mercy. But monasticism they innovated - not We prescribed it for them - only seeking (the) pleasure (of) Allah, but not they observed it (with) right observance. So We gave those who believed among them their reward, but most of them (are) defiantly disobediently.}}

<nowiki>-----------------------------------------------------------------</nowiki>

==== Father-son relationship ====
{{Quote|Dale C. Allison Jr.. The Historical Christ and the Theological Jesus (Kindle Location 841-848). Kindle Edition.|2=Working through the tradition in the way I suggest leads to a large number of conclusions. Jesus must have been an exorcist who interpreted his ministry in terms of Satan's downfall. He must have thought highly of John the Baptist. He must have repeatedly spoken of God as Father. [Durie differences in metaphor and understanding of relationship from Hebrew to Arab society = markedly different] He must have composed parables. He must have come into conflict with religious authorities. All of this may seem obvious, but the procedure is not trite, for it also issues in some controversial verdicts. As I have argued elsewhere, for example, ample, the quantity of conventional eschatological material in our primary sources almost necessitates that Jesus was an eschatological prophet.' The reconstruction of Robert Funk and the Jesus Seminar is for this reason alone problematic. Even more controversial is what my approach leads me to infer about Jesus' self-conception. Consider these Synoptic materials:

• Jesus said that the Son of man will return on the clouds of heaven and send angels to gather the elect from throughout the world: Mark 13:26-27; cf. 14:62; Matt. 10:23 (allusions to Daniel 7's depiction of the last judgment are clear). [the son of man plays no part in Islam]}}Allison (2009) notes that Jesus must have repeatedly referred to God as 'father', a way also used by many ancient Jews to describe their relationship to god, also found in the old testament with different metaphorical meanings<ref>Pennington, J.T. "Chapter Nine. God As Father In The Old Testament And Second Temple Literature". ''Heaven and Earth in the Gospel of Matthew''. Leiden, The Netherlands: Brill, 2007. <nowiki>https://doi.org/10.1163/ej.9789004162051.i-399.57</nowiki> Web.</ref> and Talmudic writings with paternal imagery. <ref>Knobnya, S.. (2011). ''God the Father in the Old Testament. European Journal of Theology.'' 20. 139-148. </ref><ref>[https://www.myjewishlearning.com/article/fatherhood-of-god/ Fatherhood of God] | Sages & Scholars | Rabbi Louis Jacobs | My Jewish Learning</ref>

===== Slave-master relationship =====
However this father-son Hebrew metaphorical relationship Jesus used is distinctly abandoned, instead using other things (other metaphors) in Arab society to describe the relationship between humans and God, such as a slave-master relationship,<ref>Durie, Mark. ''The Qur’an and Its Biblical Reflexes: Investigations into the Genesis of a Religion (pp. XX-XX) (pp. 107-110 Kindle Edition)''. 4.1.1. Shirk - Proprietary Partnership. Lexington Books. 2018.</ref> a Patron - Protege (needs explanation of what this is) <ref>Durie, Mark. ''The Qur’an and Its Biblical Reflexes: Investigations into the Genesis of a Religion (pp. XX-XX) (pp. 110-111 Kindle Edition)''. 4.1.2. Shirk - Patron - Protege Relationships. Lexington Books. 2018.</ref>. with Muhammad having strongly condemned the idea that God could have offspring against the unscripted pagans (mushrikun) taking angels as daughters of god early on chronologically of the Qur'an's first recitations, then later against God having a son against Jesus being the son of God.<ref>Durie, Mark. ''The Qur’an and Its Biblical Reflexes: Investigations into the Genesis of a Religion (pp. XX-XX) (pp. 112-113 Kindle Edition)''. 4.1.5 A Polemical Doctrine. Lexington Books. 2018.</ref>

Slave analogy Dure Print edition pp108 - 110 summary:<ref name=":1">Durie, Mark. ''The Qur’an and Its Biblical Reflexes: Investigations into the Genesis of a Religion (pp. 108-110) (pp. XX-XX Kindle Edition)''. 4.1.5 A Polemical Doctrine. Lexington Books. 2018.</ref> Before its theological use, the Arabic root ''sh-r-k'' referred to ordinary '''partnership or shared ownership'''. The Qurʾan draws on this everyday meaning to illustrate why associating partners with God is impossible. Using the metaphor of '''a master and a slave''', the Qurʾan argues that just as a slave with multiple masters suffers confusion and conflict, attributing partners to God creates an impossible and chaotic situation. This logic appears in verses such as Q39:29 and others that argue multiple gods would lead to conflict and the ruin of creation (Q23:91; Q21:22).<ref name=":1" />
{{Quote|{{Quran|39|29}}|Allah presents a parable, “a man was owned by several quarreling partners
(shurakaʾ), and a man was the slave of (just) one man. Are the two equal?”}}

The Qurʾan’s use of the slave-master metaphor differs from Jesus’ teaching in the New Testament. Whereas Jesus uses it to highlight divided human devotion, the Qurʾan uses it to assert the logical impossibility of multiple divine authorities.<ref name=":1" />

{{Quote|Luke 16:13; cf. Matthew. 6:24|No slave can serve two masters; for a slave will either hate the one and love the
other, or be devoted to the one and despise the other. You cannot serve God and wealth.}}

Shirk encompasses various forms of error: attributing partners or helpers to God, believing He needs allies, or seeking aid from others besides Him. The Qurʾan also explores God’s unity through three social analogies relevant to Arabian society: '''patron–protégé relationships''', '''alliances of mutual help''', and '''relationships of equal or unequal status'''.<ref name=":1" />

===== '''Patron–protégé relationships''' =====
The Qur'an distinctly ignores the father-son relationship (and theology) metaphor by using another term that is harder to translate

Explanation of what this is Durie pp.110-111:<ref name=":3">Durie, Mark. ''The Qur’an and Its Biblical Reflexes: Investigations into the Genesis of a Religion (pp. 110-111) (pp. XX-XX Kindle Edition)''. 4.1.5 A Polemical Doctrine. Lexington Books. 2018.</ref> The Qurʾan uses terms from the root '''w-l-y''' to describe '''patron–protégé relationships''', alliances, and guardianship. The key term '''walī''' can mean ally, protector, guardian, or patron, and may indicate either symmetrical alliances or asymmetrical power relationships.<ref name=":3" /><ref>[https://lexicon.quranic-research.net/data/27_w/219_wle.html Root: ''wāw lām yā'' (و ل ي)] - Lane's Lexicon Qur'anic Research

See Lane's Lexicon Classical Arabic Dictionary [https://lexicon.quranic-research.net/pdf/Page_3060.pdf pp.3060] & [https://lexicon.quranic-research.net/pdf/Page_3061.pdf pp.3061] </ref>

In pre-Islamic Arab society, such patronage was essential for protection, as shown by the example of Muḥammad being safeguarded by his uncle Abū Ṭālib. Without a patron, a person was vulnerable.<ref name=":3" /> [in the sirah of Ibn Ishaq]

The Qurʾan emphasizes that '''God has no need of any patron''' and that '''humans should recognize God alone as their walī'''. Seeking any protector besides God is considered '''shirk'''. Believers may take other believers and the Prophet as allies (''awliyāʾ'') alongside God, but not in place of Him.<ref name=":3" />

As the Muslim community developed, especially after what the passage calls the ''Eschatological Transition''—the Qurʾan increasingly stressed exclusive allegiance to God. This served to detach believers from prior tribal or familial loyalties that could compromise their commitment to the faith community.<ref name=":3" />

- and calls for help-

===== Unequal status vs Jesus' views on Wealth =====
Sinai - darajah passage

And inequality in general - inc. the afterlife

=== Punishment narratives ===

==== Punishment BEFORE the day of judgement ====
We are told the sole exception in history was the unnamed town<ref>Unnamed in the Qur'an, though identified as Nineveh (in modern day Iraq) as in the Biblical "Book of Jonah" by Islamic exegetes; e.g. see [https://quranx.com/tafsirs/37.147 tafsirs on Q37:147]</ref> of more than 100,000 people that the messenger Yūnus (Jonah) when the warning was heeded in full by the entire people, and therefore punishment averted ({{Quran|10|98}}, {{Quran|37|147-148}}) “no town believed . . . except the people of Yūnus”<ref>Durie, Mark. 2018. ''The Qur'an and Its Biblical Reflexes: Investigations Into the Genesis of a Religion. pp 49. Kindle Edition pp 151.''</ref>

How many a town defied the command of its Lord and His apostles, then We called it to a severe account and punished it with a dire punishment. Q65:8

So it tasted the evil consequences of its conduct, and the outcome of its conduct was ruin. Q65:9

How many generations that had far more wealth and ostentation have We laid low before them! <<nowiki>https://quranx.com/19.74</nowiki>>

Say, ‘Whoever abides in error, the All-beneficent shall prolong his respite until they sight what they have been promised: either punishment, or the Hour.’ Then they will know whose position is worse, and whose host is weaker <<nowiki>https://quranx.com/19.75</nowiki>>

------

Q34:16 - flood of the damn of Yemen / Saba', the people of Sheba E.g. <ref>See tafsirs on [https://quranx.com/Tafsirs/34.14 Q34:14], [https://quranx.com/Tafsirs/34.15 Q34:15] & [https://quranx.com/Tafsirs/34.16 Q34:16]</ref> {{Quran|34|14-16}}

{{Quote|{{Quran|34|14-16}}|And when We decreed for Solomon death, nothing indicated to the jinn his death except a creature of the earth eating his staff. But when he fell, it became clear to the jinn that if they had known the unseen, they would not have remained in humiliating punishment.
Certainly, (there) was for Saba in their dwelling place a sign: Two gardens on (the) right and (on the) left. "Eat from (the) provision (of) your Lord and be grateful to Him. A land good and a Lord Oft-Forgiving."
But they turned away, so We sent upon them (the) flood (of) the dam, and We changed for them their two gardens (with) two gardens producing fruit bitter, and tamarisks and (some)thing of lote trees few.}}
, {{Quran|65|8-9}}, {{Quran|19|74-75}}

Add: 34:15–21: The punishment of the people of Sheba, without explicit reference to a messenger. Sheba reference <ref>Marshall, David. ''God, Muhammad and the Unbelievers (p. 73).'' Taylor & Francis. Kindle Edition.</ref>

=== Surah 36 ===
Similarly an unnamed town is sent three messengers in {{Quran|36|13-32}}, who's identities have differed in traditional Islamic scholarship,<ref>E.g. see commentaries on [https://quranx.com/Tafsirs/36.13 Q36:13] & [https://quranx.com/tafsirs/36.14 Q36:14], and the later verses in the story, cited as a parable ''(mathal).''</ref> are rejected and so are killed with a cry/shout (''ṣayḥatan)'' ({{Quran|36|29}}). <ref>Marshall, David. ''God, Muhammad and the Unbelievers (p. 63 & 72).'' Taylor & Francis. Kindle Edition.</ref>
{{Quote|Marshall, David. God, Muhammad and the Unbelievers (p. 72). Taylor & Francis. Kindle Edition.|36:13–32: Described as a parable (mathal, v.13), but in outline very similar to the punishment-narratives. The messengers (two of them, reinforced with a third) and the town in which they preach are anonymous. ‘A man from the furthest part of the city’ (v.20) exhorts his people to follow the messengers.}}

== Contradiction ==
The order in Surah 2 has the Jews struck by a lightening bolt after they worship the golden calf, who are then forgiven by Allah by being resurrected.
{{Quote|{{Quran|2|50-67}}|And when We parted the sea with you, and We delivered you and drowned Pharaoh’s clan as you looked on. 
And when We made an appointment with Moses for forty nights, you took up the Calf [for worship] in his absence, and you were wrongdoers. 
Then We excused you after that so that you might give thanks. 
And when We gave Moses the Book and the Criterion so that you might be guided. 
And [recall] when Moses said to his people, ‘O my people! You have indeed wronged yourselves by taking up the Calf [for worship]. Now turn penitently to your Maker, and slay [the guilty among] your folks. That will be better for you with your Maker.’ Then He turned to you clemently. Indeed, He is the All-clement, the All-merciful. 
And when you said, ‘O Moses, we will not believe you until we see Allah visibly.’ Thereupon a thunderbolt seized you as you looked on.
Then We raised you up after your death so that you might give thanks. /n
We shaded you with clouds, and sent down to you manna and quails [saying]: ‘Eat of the good things We have provided for you.’ And they did not wrong Us, but they used to wrong [only] themselves. 
And when We said, ‘Enter this town, and eat thereof freely whencesoever you wish, and enter while prostrating at the gate, and say, ‘‘Relieve [us of the burden of our sins],’’ so that We may forgive your iniquities and We will soon enhance the virtuous.’ 
But the wrongdoers changed the saying with other than what they were told. So We sent down on those who were wrongdoers a plague from the sky because of the transgressions they used to commit. 
And when Moses prayed for water for his people, We said, ‘Strike the rock with your staff.’ Thereat twelve fountains gushed forth from it; every tribe came to know its drinking-place. ‘Eat and drink of Allah’s provision, and do not act wickedly on the earth, causing corruption.’ 
And when you said, ‘O Moses, ‘We will not put up with one kind of food. So invoke your Lord for us, so that He may bring forth for us of that which the earth grows—its greens and cucumbers, its garlic, lentils, and onions.’ He said, ‘Do you seek to replace what is superior with that which is inferior? Go down to any town and you will indeed get what you ask for!’ So they were struck with abasement and poverty, and they earned Allah’s wrath. That, because they would deny the signs of Allah and kill the prophets unjustly. That, because they would disobey and commit transgressions. 
Indeed the faithful, the Jews, the Christians and the Sabaeans—those of them who have faith in Allah and the Last Day and act righteously—they shall have their reward from their Lord, and they will have no fear, nor will they grieve. 
And when We took a pledge from you, and raised the Mount above you, [declaring], ‘Hold on with power to what We have given you and remember that which is in it so that you may be Godwary.’ 
Again you turned away after that; and were it not for Allah’s grace on you and His mercy, you would have surely been among the losers. 
And certainly you know those of you who violated the Sabbath, whereupon We said to them, ‘Be you spurned apes.’ 
So We made it an exemplary punishment for the present and the succeeding [generations], and an advice to the Godwary.}}
In Surah 4 they are struck before they worship the calf. 4:153 specifically says 'then' ''(thumma)''

{{Quote|{{Quran|4|153-161}}|The People of the Book ask you to bring down for them a Book from the sky. Certainly they asked Moses for [something] greater than that, for they said, ‘Show us Allah visibly,’ whereat a thunderbolt seized them for their wrongdoing. Then they took up the Calf [for worship], after all the manifest proofs that had come to them. Yet We excused that, and We gave Moses a manifest authority. 
And We raised the Mount above them for the sake of their covenant, and We said to them, ‘Enter the gate prostrating’ and We said to them, ‘Do not violate the Sabbath,’ and We took from them a solemn covenant. 
Then because of their breaking their covenant, their defiance of Allah’s signs, their killing of the prophets unjustly and for their saying, ‘Our hearts are uncircumcised’… Indeed, Allah has set a seal on them for their unfaith, so they do not have faith except a few. 
And for their faithlessness, and their uttering a monstrous calumny against Mary, 
and for their saying, ‘We killed the Messiah, Jesus son of Mary, the apostle of Allah’—though they did not kill him nor did they crucify him, but so it was made to appear to them. Indeed those who differ concerning him are surely in doubt about him: they do not have any knowledge of that beyond following conjectures, and certainly, they did not kill him. 
Indeed, Allah raised him up toward Himself, and Allah is all-mighty, all-wise. 
There is none among the People of the Book but will surely believe in him before his death; and on the Day of Resurrection, he will be a witness against them. 
Due to the wrongdoing of the Jews, We prohibited them certain good things that were permitted to them [earlier], and for their barring many [people] from the way of Allah, 
and for their taking usury—though they had been forbidden from it—and for eating up the wealth of the people wrongfully. And We have prepared for the faithless among them a painful punishment. }}

=== V2 ===
Surah 4 (summarized version)

1) They ask Moses for a sign and are hit with a thunderbolt

2) They then take up the calf for worship

3) The mountain is raised above them{{Quote|{{Quran|4|153-154}}|The People of the Book ask you to bring down for them a Book from the sky. Certainly they asked Moses for [something] greater than that, for they said, ‘Show us Allah visibly,’ whereat a thunderbolt seized them for their wrongdoing. Then they took up the Calf [for worship], after all the manifest proofs that had come to them. Yet We excused that, and We gave Moses a manifest authority. 
And We raised the Mount above them for the sake of their covenant, and We said to them, ‘Enter the gate prostrating’ and We said to them, ‘Do not violate the Sabbath,’ and We took from them a solemn covenant.}}Surah 2
1) They worshiped the calf. And Moses tells them to slay the guilty among them.

2) They are hit by a thunderbolt - is it chronological?

3) ... a mountain is lifted above them
{{Quote|{{Quran|2|51-56}}|And when We made an appointment with Moses for forty nights, you took up the Calf [for worship] in his absence, and you were wrongdoers. 
Then We excused you after that so that you might give thanks. 
And when We gave Moses the Book and the Criterion so that you might be guided. 
And [recall] when Moses said to his people, ‘O my people! You have indeed wronged yourselves by taking up the Calf [for worship]. Now turn penitently to your Maker, and slay [the guilty among] your folks. That will be better for you with your Maker.’ Then He turned to you clemently. Indeed, He is the All-clement, the All-merciful. 
And when you said, ‘O Moses, we will not believe you until we see Allah visibly.’ Thereupon a thunderbolt seized you as you looked on.
Then We raised you up after your death so that you might give thanks.}}
== The Lote Tree of the utmost Boundary (Sid'rati al-Muntahā) ==
Lote tree's are a real type of tree (Ziziphus spina-christi) native to Arabia and the Middle East.<ref>[https://www.suewickison.com/products/lote-tree?srsltid=AfmBOorj_RU2x1OPxgfRe689M2TWw1g4uZTQLkpSolPGYnIatiIe7h6K Lote Tree | Sidr | Ziziphus spina-christi |] Plants of the Qur'an | Sue Wickison </ref> Different to the tree of eternity/immortality ''(shajarati ul-khul'di)'' in paradise ''jannah,'' the Qur'an mentions The Lote Tree (sidr) of ''the utmost boundary (al-muntahā)''<ref>مُنْتَهَىٰ - [https://lexicon.quranic-research.net/pdf/Page_3029.pdf Lane's Lexicon pp.3029]

</ref> near (but notably not in) the 'garden of abode', said to be 'covered' yaghshā by something unspecified in Q53:16, typically taken by exegetes to mean by angels, light and/or golden animals.<ref>E.g. see [https://quranx.com/Tafsirs/53.16 Tafsirs on Q53:16]</ref>

{{Quote|{{Quran|53|13-17}}|And certainly he saw him (in) descent another,
Near (the) Lote Tree (of) the utmost boundary,
Near it (is the) Garden (of) Abode.
when there covered the Lote Tree what covered it.
Not swerved the sight and not it transgressed.}}

This furthest boundary/limit is said in the hadith, to place the cosmic tree in the sixth heaven, where even celestial creatures cannot go beyond as the limit of creation; said to be seen by Muhammad in his Night Journey (mi’rāj) on the [[:en:Buraq|Buraq]] (E.g. {{Muslim|1|329}}, {{Al Tirmidhi|2=5|3=44|4=3276}}, {{Bukhari|5|58|227}} & {{Al Nasai|2=1|3=5|4=452}}), and by many Islamic exegetes.<ref>See [https://quranx.com/tafsirs/53.14 tafsirs on Q53:14]</ref>

This would align the cosmology of Islamic traditions supporting the idea that paradise (and therefore the garden of the abode) is in the seventh heaven,<ref>[https://islamqa.info/en/answers/215011/where-are-paradise-and-hell#Where_is_Paradise Where is Paradise] | [https://islamqa.info/en/answers/215011/where-are-paradise-and-hell Where Are Paradise and Hell?] | 07/January/2015 islamqa</ref> while some traditions support the idea that paradise is above the seventh heaven,<ref>[https://www.islamweb.net/en/fatwa/107126/the-location-of-paradise-now#:~:text=Paradise%20that%20Allaah%20promised%20for,are%20many%20texts%20proving%20this. The location of Paradise now] | Paradise and Hell | Belief in the Hereafter | Islamic Creed | Fatwa | islamweb.net </ref> both placing the tree relatively close to jannah. However others suggest that this specific ''garden of the abode (jannatu l-mawā)'' is a separate garden/paradise to the eternal one all righteous Muslims will eventually enter, being instead one where martyrs (those killed in war or for their religion) go before judgement day.<ref>E.g. see [https://quranx.com/Tafsirs/53.15 tafsirs on Q53:15]</ref>

Either way there is no evidence of a celestial tree, which must be magic to survive outside of an Earthly plant ecosystem, but is rather an example of tree mythology.
----
----

(See also: <nowiki>https://sunnah.com/mishkat:5865</nowiki> & https://sunnah.com/mishkat:5640, ) read; https://quranx.com/tafsirs/53.14 - exegetes also confirm this is where boundary is the boundary of the skies/heavens where things other than God cannot pass (at least until judgement day where paradise and hell can be entered).

AND Similarly seen next to the 4 main Near-East rivers (Nile, Euphratesm Tigres,) <nowiki>https://sunnah.com/bukhari:5610</nowiki>, which area said to flow from paradise: <nowiki>https://quranx.com/Hadith/Bukhari/USC-MSA/Volume-5/Book-58/Hadith-227/</nowiki> )

cite: [https://www.islamweb.net/en/fatwa/107126/the-location-of-paradise-now#:~:text=Paradise%20that%20Allaah%20promised%20for,are%20many%20texts%20proving%20this. https://www.islamweb.net/en/fatwa/107126/the-location-of-paradise-now#:~:text=Paradise%20that%20Allaah%20promised%20for,are%20many%20texts%20proving%20this.]

The utmost boundary at the end of t heavens confirmed by exegetes in https://quranx.com/tafsirs/53.14

" Jannat al-ma'va' literally means "the Jannat (Garden) that is to be an abode. " Hadrat Hasan Basri says that this is the same Jannat which the believers and righteous will be given in the Hereafter, and from this same verse he has argued that that Jannat is in the heavens. Qatadah says that this is the Jannat in which the souls of the martyrs are kept; it does not imply the Jannat that is to be given in the Hereafter. Ibn 'Abbas also says the same but adds that the Jannat to be granted to the believers in the Hereafter is not in the heavens but here on the earth.

== Parallels Between the Qur'an and Late Antique Judeo-Christian Literature - Part 2 ==
Following on from [[Parallels Between the Qur'an and Late Antique Judeo-Christian Literature|Part 1]], this is Part 2 of Late Antique Judeo-Christian Literature found in the Qur'an. This material, drawing heavily on rabbinical commentaries on the bible, and late Syriac Christian thought found in homilies, was created far later than the biblical cannon; no-where near the time of the events that occurred. This suggests the stories were transmitted in an oral millennia along with local Arabian traditions<ref>Bannister, Andrew G.. ''An Oral-Formulaic Study of the Qur'an (Kindle Location 249-259 in Chapter 1.2 The Biblicist Roots of the Iblis and Adam Story).'' Bloomsbury Publishing. Kindle Edition.

..When the Qur’an emerged in the seventh-century, it did so in an oral culture in which Biblicist traditions were freely circulating and thus there existed a large pool of commonly known stories and traditions to fish from; a pool in which stories could cross-fertilize and influence one another. 23 It is this, more than direct borrowing that perhaps best explains stories like Iblis and Adam as well as other qur’anic tellings of older tales, such as the Seven Sleepers (Q. 18: 9– 25) 24 and the Legend of Alexander (Dhu al-Qarnayn, Q. 18: 83– 101). 25 The Qur’an originates from a milieu in which Biblicist material was well-known to the first audience of the Qur’an; even a simple allusion to a story was often enough to trigger a connection for the hearer. 26 That Biblicist material has been filtered through storytelling rather than simply copied from a written text is further suggested by what the Qur’an leaves out; no minor prophets are referenced, probably because almost no Old Testament narratives feature them nor did the rabbinic literature weave lengthy tales about them. 27 The exception which proves the rule is Jonah (Q. 21: 87– 88; 37: 139– 148; 68: 48– 50), whose short but dramatic story was extremely popular in both Jewish and Christian contexts.28..

And: Bannister, Andrew G.. ''An Oral-Formulaic Study of the Qur'an (Kindle Locations 1391-1392. Chapter 2.3 The Islamic Tradition and Orality).'' Bloomsbury Publishing. Kindle Edition.</ref> where biblical and much later Jewish and Christian stories could be commonly mixed without the new community realizing.
== The story of Noah ==
The prophet Noah is portrayed extremely differently to the one in Genesis,<ref>Segovia, Carlos A.. ''[https://almuslih.org/wp-content/uploads/2024/12/Segovia-C-The-Quranic-Noah-and-the-Making-of-the-Islamic-Prophet.pdf The Quranic Noah and the Making of the Islamic Prophet: A Study of Intertextuality and Religious Identity Formation in Late Antiquity]'', Berlin, München, Boston: De Gruyter, 2015. <nowiki>https://doi.org/10.1515/9783110405897</nowiki></ref> taking on Jewish and Christian traditions, characteristics, as well as terms from late antique Judeo-Christian writings,<ref>The Qur'anic Noah. pp.21-21</ref> molded to suit Muhammad's situation in line with other messengers in the Qur'an.<ref>''The Qurʾan and its Biblical Reflexes: Investigations into the Genesis of a Religion. Chapter 5.3 Messenger Uniformatism. pp.135-143'' By Mark Durie. Lanham, MD: Lexington Books, 2018. </ref>

=== The preaching of Noah ===

Surah 71 consists entirely of the preaching of Noah and his supplications to Allah.{{Quote|{{Quran-range|71|1|28}}|Indeed, We sent Noah to his people, [saying], "Warn your people before there comes to them a painful punishment." He said, "O my people, indeed I am to you a clear warner, [Saying], 'Worship Allah, fear Him and obey me. Allah will forgive you of your sins and delay you for a specified term. Indeed, the time [set by] Allah, when it comes, will not be delayed, if you only knew.' " 
[...]
And Noah said, "My Lord, do not leave upon the earth from among the disbelievers an inhabitant. Indeed, if You leave them, they will mislead Your servants and not beget except [every] wicked one and [confirmed] disbeliever. My Lord, forgive me and my parents and whoever enters my house a believer and the believing men and believing women. And do not increase the wrongdoers except in destruction."}}Reynolds remarks that "The Qur'ānic character of Noah is quite unlike that of the Noah in Genesis, who does not speak a word until after the flood." Citing the Babylonian Talmud, Sanhedrin 108a, he observes that "[his preaching] is also suggested by a passage in the Talmud:
::"The righteous Noah rebuked them, urging, 'Repent; for if not, the Holy One, blessed be He, will bring a deluge upon you and cause your bodies to float upon the water like gourds, as it is written, He is light [i.e., floats] upon the waters. Moreover, ye shall be taken as a curse for all future generations.' (b. Sanhedrin 108a)"
Reynolds further notes, "It is also prominent in the Syriac fathers, several of whom report that Noah preached to his people for a hundred years before God finally sent the flood." citing for example the Syriac authors Narsai, "On the Flood", 33, II. 227-30 and Jacob of Serugh, ''Homilies contre les juifs'', 70, homily 2, II. 37-40.<ref>Gabriel Said Reynolds, ''The Qurʾān and Bible'' p. 858</ref>

The opponents reject Noah's preaching despite him doing so 'day and night' (Quran 71:5-6) in which they respond by putting their fingers in their ears Quran 71:7, on which Neuwirth (2024) notes that "the means of plugging one’s ears in order to shut oneself off from unpleasant news is also encountered in the Talmud (bKetubbot 5a)."<ref>Neuwirth, Angelika. The Qur'an: Text and Commentary, ''Volume 2.1: Early Middle Meccan Suras: The New Elect (p. 280).'' Yale University Press. Kindle Edition.</ref>

=== Noah's disbelieving wife ===
{{Quote|{{Quran|66|10}}|Allah presents an example of those who disbelieved: the wife of Noah and the wife of Lot. They were under two of Our righteous servants but betrayed them, so those prophets did not avail them from Allah at all, and it was said, "Enter the Fire with those who enter."}}The Bible briefly mentions Noah's wife in one verse without further comment ([https://www.biblegateway.com/passage/?search=Genesis%207%3A7&version=NIV Genesis 7:7]), "And Noah and his sons and his wife and his sons’ wives entered the ark to escape the waters of the flood." Regarding the Quranic verse which speaks of her negatively, Reynolds briefly considers the possibility that the Quran has extended to their wives the parallelism between Noah (though not his wife) and Lot found in the New Testament ([https://www.biblegateway.com/passage/?search=2%20Peter%202&version=NIV 2 Peter 2]), but then comments, "However, it is important to note that already in the pre-Islamic period certain groups had developed hostile legends about Noah's wife." He cites Epiphanius (d. 403 CE), ''Panarion'' 2:26, which relates the Gnostic belief that she was not allowed onto the ark, having burned it down three times before the flood.<ref>Gabriel Said Reynolds, ''The Qurʾān and Bible'' p. 841</ref>

=== Noah's flood waters overflowed from an oven ===
The Qur'anic version of the Noah's flood story describes the flood waters as overflowing from an oven. This element is not found even in more ancient versions of the story (Epic of Gilgamesh, Atra hasis, and Ziusudra).

Note that in his translation, Yusuf Ali mistranslates the Aramaic loan word for the oven (alttannooru ٱلتَّنُّورُ)<ref>[http://www.studyquran.org/LaneLexicon/Volume1/00000355.pdf Lane's Lexicon p. 318 تَّنُّورُ]</ref> as "fountains". The Arabic verb translated "gushed forth" (fara فَارَ) means overflowed or boiled in the context of water in a cooking pot<ref>[http://www.studyquran.org/LaneLexicon/Volume6/00000241.pdf Lane's Lexicon p. 2457 فور]</ref>, as well as in the other verse where it is used, {{Quran|67|7}}. Here is Pickthall's more accurate translation:{{Quote|{{Quran|11|40}}|
(Thus it was) till, when Our commandment came to pass '''and the oven gushed forth water''', We said: Load therein two of every kind, a pair (the male and female), and thy household, save him against whom the word hath gone forth already, and those who believe. And but a few were they who believed with him.}}{{Quote|{{Quran|23|27}}|
Then We inspired in him, saying: Make the ship under Our eyes and Our inspiration. Then, when Our command cometh '''and the oven gusheth water''', introduce therein of every (kind) two spouses, and thy household save him thereof against whom the Word hath already gone forth. And plead not with Me on behalf of those who have done wrong. Lo! they will be drowned.}}At one time academic scholars thought this verse alluded to a Midrashic exegesis in which the flood waters were boiling hot (b. Sanhedrin 108b, [https://www.sefaria.org/Rosh_Hashanah.12a.4?lang=bi|Tracate Rosh Hashanah 12a:4]). More recent scholarship, particularly by Olivier Mongellaz in 2024,<ref name="Mongellaz2024">Olivier Mongellaz (2024) [https://brill.com/view/journals/arab/71/4-5/article-p513_4.xml Le four de Noé : un cas d’intertextualité coranique], Arabica 71(4-5), 513-637. https://doi.org/10.1163/15700585-20246900</ref> has identified that these verses most likely reflect a late antique legend in which water gushing up through a bread oven (a large hole dug into the ground) was a sign warning Noah's family of the imminent flood. The interpretation as Noah's own oven is attributed to a number of early commentators (such as Ibn Abbas, Mujahid), while others understood it to be the area of land where the flood waters first rose. Qurtubi said: "The sayings of commentators appear to be different as to the meaning of tannur, but this, in reality, is not a difference. When water began to bulge out, it overflowed from the bread baking oven, and from out of the surface of the land".

Significantly, Mongellaz has argued on literary grounds that a fragmentary Arabic text falsely attributed to Hippolytus of Rome, and which mentions the overflowing bread oven story, is independent of the Islamic tradition and was originally written in a very specific environment which has parallels with the context in which certain parts of the Quran were written.{{Quote|Pseudo. Hippolytus of Rome (translated to English from Mongellaz's French translation)<ref name="Mongellaz2024" />|Meanwhile, Ham's wife stood up to take out the bread that remained in the oven and immediately water sprang out of the oven [fāḍa l-māʾmin al-tannūr] and immediately water came out of the oven, as the Lord had said: "The fountains of the great deeps were opened." Ham's wife called to Noah, saying, "My lord, the word of God has come true (Syr. what God promised has come true!)" - for it had come true just as the Lord had promised her. When Noah heard Ham's wife's words, he said to her, "Oh, the flood has come."}}

=== Noah's ark left behind as a sign ===
{{Quote|{{Quran-range|54|13|15}}|And We carried him on a [construction of] planks and nails, Sailing under Our observation as reward for he who had been denied. And We left it as a sign, so is there any who will remember?}}Unlike the bible, which does not mention the ark as a sign for future generations, Neuwirth (2024) notes the salvation of Noah is made physically plausible to the listeners through the reference to the material verifiability of the ark, which could be taken from various late antique traditions, for example Flavius Josephus (b. 37AD) reports in the ''Jewish Antiquities (I 3.5 § 92)'' of the existence of the remains of Noah’s ark in Armenia (Clementz 1959: 22).<ref name=":0">Neuwirth, Angelika. ''The Qur'an: Text and Commentary, Volume 2.1: Early Middle Meccan Suras: The New Elect (p. 62).'' Yale University Press. Kindle Edition.</ref> She also notes that the appeal to the willingness of the listeners to be admonished by the sign (āya) of Noah’s ark is also reminiscent of the Talmudic story (bSanhedrin 96a) of the death of Sennacherib, who was led to a fateful decision by seeing the remains of Noah’s ark.<ref name=":0" />
==Moses and Pharaoh==
Alongside the biblical account of Moses and the Pharoah, there are some key aspects that match Jewish Rabbinic and Christian non-biblical traditions. Even the place where Moses communicates with God in the story of the burning bush, the word used ''ṭuwan'' in e.g. {{Quran|20|12}} (for the folded land, implying double the holiness)<ref>See; Neuwirth, Angelika. ''The Qur'an: Text and Commentary, Volume 2.1: Early Middle Meccan Suras: The New Elect (p. 199).'' Yale University Press. Kindle Edition. Ṭuwā stands for the holy Mount Sinai or Horeb (cf. KU, 124ff.; FVQ, 206ff.; BEQ, 255ff.). The word was long thought to be a rhyming transformation of Aramaic ṭūrā (“the mountain”), but now, based on rabbinic tradition and in agreement with traditional exegetes, Uri Rubin has convincingly interpreted bi-l-wādī l-muqaddasi Ṭuwā to mean “in the doubly hallowed valley” (see Rubin 2014). (The Sinai is in a sense the “folded Holy Land” [ṬWY = “to fold”].) Citing: Rubin, Uri, 2014, ''[https://urirubin.com/assets/docs/Tuwan.86132451.pdf Moses and the Holy Valley Ṭuwan. On the Biblical and Midrashic Background of a Qurʾanic Scene],'' Journal of Near Eastern Studies 73, 73–81.</ref> does not have a parallel in the bible,<ref>''[https://urirubin.com/assets/docs/Tuwan.86132451.pdf Moses and the Holy Valley Ṭuwan: On the biblical and midrashic background of a qurʾānic scene.]'' Rubin 2014. Ibid. pp. 75.</ref> but does in other Judeo-Christian (later) works.<ref>Ibid. pp. 76-78</ref> And the idea of eschatology in Moses's story such as {{Quran|20|15}}, with reward in the afterlife being mentioned, is not contained in the biblical story of Moses, Neuwirth (2024) notes moves the story into a late antiquity interpretation.<ref>Neuwirth, Angelika. ''The Qur'an: Text and Commentary, Volume 2.1: Early Middle Meccan Suras: The New Elect (p. 199).'' Yale University Press. Kindle Edition.</ref> Key details in the stories include:
===The prophecy of baby Moses===
Alongside the scene of [https://www.biblegateway.com/passage/?search=Exodus%201%3A8-2%3A10&version=NIV Exodus 1:8-2:10] where the Hebrews in Egyptian bondage are told to kill all male babies to control the growing Israelite population, where Moses's mother places his basket in the Nile to escape; Neuwirth (2024) citing Speyer, notes that ''the prophecy to Moses’s mother that an enemy—of Moses as well as of God himself—would take him in reflects a Midrashic interpretation of Exodus Rabba (1:31: “So the daughter of Pharaoh raised the daughter, who was once to take revenge on her father”). The event is explicitly based on a divine intention, namely, to make Moses his chosen one.''<ref>''The Qur'an: Text and Commentary, Volume 2.1: Early Middle Meccan Suras: The New Elect'' Ibid. pp. 201.</ref>{{Quote|{{Quran-range|20|37|39}}|We have bestowed Our favour on you before this, When We told your mother what We relate: 'Put him in a wooden box and cast it in the river. The river will cast it on the bank. An enemy of Ours, and his, will retrieve it.' We bestowed Our love on you that you may be reared under Our eyes.}}And similarly the next verse unlike the bible focuses on the emotional impact of the event on Moses’s mother, Neuwirth notes is comparable to Midrash Exodus Rabba 1:25.<ref>Ibid. pp. 201-202.</ref> Moses's salvation from persecution after manslaughter is commemorated with similar consideration of Moses’s mental condition.<ref>Ibid. pp. 202.</ref>{{Quote|{{Quran|20|40}}|When your sister walked up [to Pharaoh’s palace] saying, “Shall I show you someone who will take care of him?” Then We restored you to your mother, that she might not grieve and be comforted. Then you slew a soul, whereupon We delivered you from anguish, and We tried you with various ordeals. Then you stayed for several years among the people of Midian. Then you turned up as ordained, O Moses!}}
===Moses not suckled by Egyptians===
{{Quote|{{Quran-range|28|12|13}}|And We had prevented from him [all] wet nurses before, so she said, "Shall I direct you to a household that will be responsible for him for you while they are to him [for his upbringing] sincere?" So We restored him to his mother that she might be content and not grieve and that she would know that the promise of Allah is true. But most of the people do not know.}}Reynolds comments, "On this passage cf. Exodus 2:7-9. The Qurʾān's declaration (v. 12) 'We had forbidden him to be suckled by any nurse' (v. 12) reflects a tradition in the Babylonian Talmud that Moses (from whose mouth would come forth the word of God) refused the impure breasts of the Egyptian women:
::Then said his sister to Pharaoh's daughter, Shall I go and call thee a nurse of the Hebrew women? Why just 'of the Hebrew women'? - It teaches that they handed about to all the Egyptian women but he would not suck. He said: Shall a mouth which will speak with [God] suck what is unclean! (b. Sotah 12b)"<ref>Gabriel Said Reynolds, ''The Qurʾān and Bible'' p. 598</ref>
===Moses's speech impediment===
Moses has some kind of speech impediment when going to speak to Pharaoh in the Qurʾān.{{Quote|{{Quran-range|20|24|28}}|"Go to Pharaoh. Indeed, he has transgressed."( Moses) said: "O, my Lord! Expand me my breast,” ease my task for me, And untie the knot from my tongue, so they may understand what I say.”}}Biblical Scholar James Kugel (1997)<ref>Kugel, James L.. The Bible As It Was (Kindle Edition. pp. 432-433). Harvard University Press.</ref> notes that later Jewish and Christian commentators found it necessary to explain Moses's statement in the Old Testament “''Oh my Lord, I am not a man of words … but I am heavy of speech and heavy of tongue''” ([https://www.biblegateway.com/passage/?search=Exodus%204%3A10&version=NIV Exodus 4:10]), as he was believed to be a highly educated man who had been supposedly been schooled in every branch of wisdom, including eloquence.

He notes "it occurred to interpreters that Moses might have been referring here not to any lacuna in his education, but to an actual speech defect, some physical deformity of his mouth or tongue that prevented him from speaking in the usual fashion." We see this in:<ref>Ibid. pp. 432 - 433 (Kindle Edition)</ref>

"''I'' ''am not by nature eloquent; my tongue with difficulty speaks, I stammer, so that I cannot speak before the king."'' —Ezekiel the Tragedian, Exaggē 113– 115 (3rd-2nd century BCE)

''He [Moses] pleased his parents by his beauty, but grieved them by his speech impediment. —''Ephraem, Commentary on Exodus 2: 4 (d. 373 AD)

Others even added stories on how he might have acquired that deformity, such as Josephus in Jewish Antiquities 2: 232– 236 (published ~93/94 AD), connecting their explanation of Moses’ speech problems to the tradition of Pharaoh’s wise men and their warnings about a boy that might grow up and save Israel.<ref>Ibid. pp. 433 - 434 (Kindle Edition)</ref>
===Pharaohs questions===
Neuwirth (2024) comments that the list of further detailed questions to Moses in Surah 26 'The Poets' / al-shuʿarāʾ (i.e. in {{Quran-range|26|22|29}}), citing Speyer, reflect a more detailed episode from Midrash Exodus Rabba 5:18, which also starts from Pharaoh’s self-praise as God.<ref>Neuwirth, Angelika. ''The Qur'an: Text and Commentary, Volume 2.1: Early Middle Meccan Suras: The New Elect (p. 250).'' Yale University Press. Kindle Edition.</ref>
===The Drowning of Pharaoh===
{{Quote|{{Quran-range|10|90|92}}|And We took the Children of Israel across the sea, and Pharaoh and his soldiers pursued them in tyranny and enmity until, when drowning overtook him, he said, "I believe that there is no deity except that in whom the Children of Israel believe, and I am of the Muslims." Now? And you had disobeyed [Him] before and were of the corrupters? So today We will save you in body that you may be to those who succeed you a sign. And indeed, many among the people, of Our signs, are heedless}}Reynolds comments, "The question of Pharaoh's survival appears in an opinion found in the (late fourth century AD) ''Mekilta de-Rabbi Ishmael'' (cr. Gavin McDowell):
::"And the waters returned and covered the chariot etc. [Exo 14:27]. Even Pharaoh, according to the words of R. Judah, as it is said, 'The chariots of Pharaoh and his force, etc.' [Exo 15:4]. R. Nehimiah says: ''Except for Pharaoh.'' About him it says, 'However, for this purpose I have let you live' [Exo 9:16]. Others say that in the end Pharaoh went down and drowned, as it is said, 'Then went the horse of Pharaoh, etc.' [Exo 15:19]. (Beshallah 7)"<ref>Gabriel Said Reynolds, ''The Qurʾān and Bible'' p. 339</ref>
==Arguments for resurrection==
Reynolds (2020) notes the repeated argument that God can resurrect the dead using the analogy that he can bring life back to barren (or dead) land may be connected to a Jewish tradition that God will resurrect the dead with dew, for example, in b. Shabbat 88b.<ref name=":2" />
{{Quote|{{Quran|30|19}}|He brings forth the living from the dead, and brings forth the dead from the living, and revives the earth after its death. Likewise, you [too] shall be raised [from the dead].}}

Cf: {{Quran|16|65}}, {{Quran|43|11}}, {{Quran|50|6-11}}, {{Quran|57|17}}
==Late antique Christian Martyrdom==
{{Main|Shaheed (Martyr)}}
Durie (2018) notes the violence of the Qur'an shares more commonality with contemporary late antique religious (primarily Christian) violence and warfare rather than being directly biblically based.<ref>Durie, Mark. ''The Qur’an and Its Biblical Reflexes: Investigations into the Genesis of a Religion.'' Lexington Books. 2018. Pp. 229 -237. (Kindle Edition: pp. 423-439). 6.9 Stories of Fighting Prophets</ref>

=== Textual overlap ===

Covering the continuity and similarities between late antique religious violence & warfare and the Qur'an (and other Islamic traditions) is too big a topic to cover here; perhaps the most in-depth academic work looking at the continuity between this and Islam is Thomas Sizgorich's ''Violence and Belief in Late Antiquity: Militant Devotion in Christianity and Islam'', however Sinai (2017) notes alongside similar ideas and theology, there are some direct textual references.{{Quote|Sinai, Nicolai. Qur'an: A Historical-Critical Introduction (The New Edinburgh Islamic Surveys) (pp. 301-302). Edinburgh University Press. Kindle Edition.|That the Qur’anic community’s access to Biblical notions of militancy was mediated by late antique Christian discourse is indicated by an intriguing intertextual overlap. According to Q 3: 169–170, those who have been ‘killed in the path of God’ are not dead but ‘alive with their Lord’, rather than having to spend the remaining time until the Resurrection in a state of slumber (similarly Q 2: 154).39 Tor Andrae has pointed out that the phrase ‘alive with their Lord’ (ayāun inda rabbihim) corresponds exactly to the Syriac phrase h. ayyē lwāth alāhā, which a sixth-century Syriac Christian writer (Mar Ishay) applies to the martyrs.40 Furthermore, Mar Ishay contrasts the true fate of the martyrs with unfounded prior opinion: ‘they are believed to be already dead’.41 The same contrast is found in the two Qur’anic passages just cited.42 It could be objected that the parallel demonstrates merely that the Qur’an is familiar with the widespread Christian idea that martyrs are granted prompt access to paradise but that this does not establish a Christian precedent for the Qur’anic application of this idea specifically to those who actively enact – rather than just suffer – violence. However, as Sizgorich reminds us, a Christian martyr was by no means seen merely as a passive victim of persecution but rather as someone who actively ‘defeats the power of the Roman state’.43}}{{Quote|{{Quran|3|169}}|And never think of those who have been killed in the cause of Allah as dead. Rather, they are alive with their Lord, receiving provision}}{{Quote|{{Quran|2|154}}|Do not say that those who are killed in the way of God, are dead, for indeed they are alive, even though you are not aware.}}

=== Martyrs sidestep judgement day ===
After death, humans are typically said to spend their time in an intermediate state known to traditional Islamic scholars as the ''barzakh'' while they wait.<ref>Reynolds, Gabriel Said. 2020. ''Allah:'' ''God in the Qur'an (p. 71-72).'' Yale University Press. Kindle Edition.

It is also the same term used for the barrier between the living and the dead (whilst awaiting judgement day) in the Qur'an, e.g. {{Quran|23|99-100}}</ref> However, as in the above verses, one exception to this rule is Martyrs being with God straight away rather than being judged at judgment day, a non-biblical idea having parallels with late antique Christian thought.

Sinai (2017) similarly notes strong ideological parallels a 6th century hagiographical text (the Panegyric on Macarius, Bishop of Tkow by Pseudo-Dioscorus of Alexandria) of a 5th-century martyr, Egyptian Bishop Macarius of Tkow who was martyred for opposing the council of Chalcedon. Citing Michael Gaddis's summary of the document, ‘He was both willing to die for his faith, and willing to kill for it.’ he notes the same idea in {{Quran|9|111}} … they fight in the way of Allah, kill, and are killed.. <ref>Ibid. (Kindle Edition. pp. 299).</ref> As well as citing English historian of the Byzantine Empire James Howard-Johnston "''..James Howard-Johnston draws attention to a passage in the Chronicle of Theophanes Confessor (d. 818), which reports that at about the same time when the Qur’an promised those ‘killed in the path of God’ immediate entry to paradise, the Byzantine emperor Heraclius similarly announced that those fighting the Sasanians would be recompensed with eternal life. In Heraclius’s address as reported by Theophanes Confessor, we find some of the same general ingredients that are noticeable in Qur’anic calls to militancy…''"<ref>Ibid. (Kindle Edition. pp. 301).</ref> He notes these similarities are likely caused by being on the fringes of the Roman empire.<ref>Ibid. (Kindle Edition. pp. 301).</ref>

==== Martyrdom wipes away other sins and is privileged above other acts from believers ====
{{Quote|Reynolds, Gabriel Said. Christianity and the Qur'an: The Rise of Islam in Christian Arabia (pp. 178-179). Yale University Press. Kindle Edition.|The teaching on the glory earned by martyrs is widespread in the early church. It is nevertheless telling to find the way it is emphasized in the third-century Christian text the aforementioned Didascalia Apostolorum, originally written in Greek but preserved in Syriac.87 The Didascalia clearly teaches that the martyrs will have a privilege above other faithful believers: If then He raises up all men,—as He said by Isaiah: All flesh shall see the salvation of God [Isa 40.5; 52.10],—much more will He quicken and raise up the faithful; and (yet more) again will He quicken and raise up the faithful of the faithful, who are the martyrs, and establish them in great glory and make them His counsellors. For to mere disciples, those who believe in Him, He has promised a glory as of the stars [Dan 12.3]; but to the martyrs He has promised to give an everlasting glory, as of the luminaries which fail not, with more abundant light, that they may be shining for all time.88

The Didascalia is also clear, as is the Qur’an, that martyrs enjoy a special grace through the forgiveness of sins that their deaths have earned for them: But again, sins are forgiven by baptism also to those who from the Gentiles draw near and enter the holy Church of God. Let us inquire also, to whom sins are not imputed. To such as Abraham and Isaac and Jacob and all the patriarchs, as also to the martyrs. Let us hear then, brethren, for the Scripture saith: Who shall boast himself and say: I am clear of sins? Or who shall be confident and say: I am innocent? [Prov 20.9].

And again: There is no man pure of defilement: not though his life be but one day [Job 14.4–5 LXX]. To everyone therefore who believes and is baptized his … former sins have been forgiven; but after baptism also, provided that he has not sinned a deadly sin nor been an accomplice (thereto), but has heard only, or seen, or spoken, and is thus guilty of sin. But if a man go forth from the world by martyrdom for the name of the Lord, blessed is he; for brethren who by martyrdom have gone forth from this world, of these the sins are covered.89

We might compare Q 3:195: “ ‘And those who emigrated, and were expelled from their habitations, those who suffered hurt in My way, and fought, and were slain—them I shall surely acquit of their evil deeds, and I shall admit them to gardens underneath which rivers flow.’ A reward from God! And God with Him is the fairest reward” (italics added). In other words, the Qur’an seems to be well aware of Christian devotion to the martyrs.}}

=== Martyrdom in the Torah and Gospels ===
Muslims who fight are promised paradise, which the Qur'an claims is also a promise in the Torah and Gospel.{{Quote|{{Quran|9|111}}|Indeed Allah has bought from the faithful their souls and their possessions for paradise to be theirs: they fight in the way of Allah, kill, and are killed. A promise binding upon Him in the Torah and the Evangel and the Quran. And who is truer to his promise than Allah? So rejoice in the bargain you have made with Him, and that is the great success.}}Nickel (2020)<ref>Nickel, Gordon D. ''The Quran with Christian Commentary: A Guide to Understanding the Scripture of Islam (p. 222).'' Zondervan Academic. Kindle Edition. 9.111 – They fight in the way of God, and they kill and are killed When the Quran describes believers as fighting “in the way of Allah,” it makes a theological claim by associating Allah with human fighting. See the analysis of these expressions at 73.20 (p. 597). 9.111 – a promise binding on Him in the Torah, and the Gospel, and the Qur’ān This is the only verse in the Quran that brings the Torah (tawrāt), Gospel (injīl), and qur’ān (lit. “recitation”) together. The Quran claims here that the particular point on which the Torah and Gospel agree with the Muslim recitation is that believers “fight in the way of Allah, and they kill and are killed.” This verse makes the reader question whether the Quran has a clear idea of the contents of the Torah and Gospel. A similar question is raised by 61.14, which appears to say that ‘Īsā and his disciples fought against their enemies (cf. 3.52). Along with these misunderstandings, the Quran gives no information about the peaceable teaching and example of Jesus in the Gospel accounts. See the analysis of the Quran’s verses on the “Gospel” at 57.27 (p. 549). Do the Torah and Gospel in fact contain such a promise? See the comment on this characterization of the Bible at 61.14 (p. 566).</ref> and Reynolds (2018) however notes that this is not found there:{{Quote|1=Reynolds, G. S. (2018). The Qur'an and the Bible: Text and Commentary. Commentary on 9:111 (pp. 322) United Kingdom: Yale University Press.|2="9:111 The point of this verse is that those who are prepared to give their lives to God in the holy war are promised paradise as a payment for their services (cf. 2:245; 4:74; 61:10–12). The idea that the martyrs have a special assurance of paradise follows from the Qurʾān’s teaching elsewhere that the act of martyrdom involves forgiveness of sin. This teaching is close to that of the Syriac fathers (see commentary on 2:154, with further references). It is curious that the Qurʾān insists that the promise of heaven for holy warriors is found in the Torah and the Gospel (or “Evangel”); heaven is not found in the Torah and holy war is not found in the Gospels...}}While his commentary on 2:154 (pp. 76) once again highlights the Syriac parallel:{{Quote|2="As Tor Andrae has shown (Les origines de l’islam et le christianisme, 161ff.), the idea that martyrdom involves the absolution of sins is prominent in Syriac Christian texts such as the third-century Didascalia (chap. 20) and the Treaty on the Martyrs of Mar Isaï (d. late sixth cen.); the latter text also insists—much like the Qurʾān—that the martyrs are “living”:

The true martyrs who, by way of a death that covers their sins, demonstrate even more the beauty of their deeds and receive this glorious inheritance by virtue of their blood. By leaving this life they have prepared for their souls an honorable abode in paradise. It was thought that they are already dead, but by their death they have killed their sin, and they are alive with God. (Mar Isaï, Treaty on the Martyrs, 32)}}
=== Further Martyrdom Influence ===
Neuwirth (2024) also notes the influence of Christian martyrdom stories on the sudden conversion and prayers/asking for forgiveness to God of Pharaoh's magician's, who are originally opponents of Moses until he shows them proof of his prophecy via a miracle in the face of a sudden and violent death as threatened by the arrogant ruler (e.g. in {{Quran-range|26|50|51}} and {{Quran-range|20|71|73}}).<ref>Neuwirth, Angelika. ''The Qur'an: Text and Commentary, Volume 2.1: Early Middle Meccan Suras: The New Elect (p. 204).'' Yale University Press. Kindle Edition.</ref> Both Jewish and Christian traditions present individual “anti-Moses” sorcerers named Jannes and Jambres, who continue to appear in later interpretations; citing Nora Schmid, she notes that, although there is no explicit textual reference and the magicians are typically depicted in a negative light, they came to be associated with penance and martyrdom in Christian tradition - in the Qurʾan, this idea is developed further: the forgiveness that Jannes and Jambres either did not receive or only partially received in earlier sources is ultimately granted.<ref>Ibid. pp. 251-252</ref>{{Quote|Neuwirth, Angelika. The Qur'an: Text and Commentary, Volume 2.1: Early Middle Meccan Suras: The New Elect (p. 204). Yale University Press. Kindle Edition.|V. 72–73 qālū lan nuʾthiraka ʿalā mā jāʾanā mina l-bayyināti wa-lladhī faṭaranā fa-qḍi mā anta qāḍin innamā taqḍī hādhihi l-ḥayāta l-dunyā / innā āmannā birabbinā li-yaghfira lanā khaṭāyānā wa-mā akrahtanā ʿalayhi mina l-siḥri wallāhu khayrun wa-abqā] Conversion scene as later in Q 26:50–51. The sorcerers renounce their allegiance to Pharaoh on the basis of the obvious evidence (bayyināt) and give preference to the Creator God, they submit to their worldly fate and hope for the forgiveness of their sins and what they have been forced to do by the ruler—they are a role model for the community, which is also subject to pressure from outside. The request for forgiveness of sins before a violent death is a topos of Christian martyr stories. The entire scene, leaving the context of ‘ancient’ Egypt, reflects the notion of Christian martyrdom stories. Khaṭāyā (singular khaṭīʾa) also lets a Syriac terminus technicus ring through, but the word can be derived from the Arabic root KhṬʿ (“to miss a goal”) (see FVQ, 123ff.). The idea of the forgiveness of sins is prominent in the Christian liturgy—not only through the Lord’s Prayer. In addition to khaṭīʾa, there is the genuine Arabic dhanb, dhunūb.}}

== Expansions on the afterlife ==

Reynolds (2020) notes the Qur’ans provides vivid depictions of hell are highly unlike the New Testament, where Jesus refers to afterlife punishment mostly allusively. The closest the Gospels describe hell is through the few images of “fire,” “wailing,” and “gnashing of teeth.”, for example in Matthew’s Parable of the Weeds, Jesus explains that at the end of the age, the Son of Man will send his angels that will cast evildoers into a fiery furnace where there will be weeping and gnashing of teeth (Matt 13:40–42).<ref>Reynolds, Gabriel Said. ''Allah: God in the Qur'an (pp. 81-82).'' Yale University Press. Kindle Edition.</ref> He notes the much more constant an vivid Qur'anic descriptions far better match later Christian works that expanded the descriptions to be more gruesome, in order to scare the reader/audience.<ref>Ibid. pp. 88.

''We might note how all of these traditions are meant to make humans yearn for paradise and fear hell. The Qur’an, from this regard, is a profoundly psychological work. Like a Christian preacher, like John Chrysostom or Saint Ephrem, the author of the Qur’an speaks of heaven and hell to persuade his audience to repent and believe. He does so in a way, however, that is distinct—emphasizing physical pain and physical pleasure in order, apparently, to make a greater impression on his audience. He puts a terrible tree into hell and young women in paradise.''
</ref>{{Quote|Reynolds, Gabriel Said. Allah: God in the Qur'an (pp. 82-83). Yale University Press. Kindle Edition.|The way that the Qur’an describes hell in particularly vivid, gruesome terms brings us back to something we mentioned in Chapter 1, namely, that the Qur’an in many ways is a “homiletic” work, a work written like a homily or sermon. The Qur’an’s intention is not simply to declare that those who disobey God will be punished, but to describe that punishment in a way which brings the awfulness of hell to life. Similarly, homilists in the early centuries of Christianity expanded dramatically on the New Testament allusions to hell. In a sermon attributed to John Chrysostom (d. 407) we read a description of hell with the sort of detail that we find in the Qur’an: It is a sea of fire—not a sea of the kind or dimensions we know here, but much larger and fiercer, with waves made of fire, fire of a strange and fearsome kind. There is a great abyss there, in fact, of terrible flames, and one can see fire rushing about on all sides like some wild animal…. There will be no one who can resist, no one who can escape: Christ’s gentle, peaceful face will be nowhere to be seen.15}}Sinai (2017) in his paper titled "''The Eschatological Kerygma of the Early Qur’an''" notes many overlap with Syriac Homilies on the afterlife as well as other apocalyptic ideas and terminology.<ref>“[https://almuslih.org/wp-content/uploads/Library/Sinai,%20N%20-%20The%20Eschatological%20Kerygma.pdf The Eschatological Kerygma of the Early Qur’an]”, Nicolai Sinai, in ''Apocalypticism and Eschatology in Late Antiquity: Encounters in the Abrahamic Religions, 6th–8th Centuries'', edited by Hagit Amirav, Emmanouela Grypeou, and Guy Stroumsa, Leuven: Peeters, 2017, 219–266.

These are discussed throughout the whole paper, and a summary can be found in pp.50-57. On heaven and hell specifically, the summary is on pp.55-57.</ref>

== Souls are taken away at night ==

The Qur'an (and traditional Islamic exegetes)<ref>See classical commentaries on these verses such as Al-Jalalayn on [https://quranx.com/Tafsir/Jalal/39.42 Q39:42], [https://quranx.com/Tafsir/Jalal/6.60 Q6:60] and Ibn Kathir on [https://quranx.com/Tafsir/Kathir/39.41 Q39:41-2] and [https://quranx.com/Tafsir/Kathir/6.60 Q6:60]</ref> state that the soul is taken away by Allah during the night.{{Quote|{{Quran|39|42}}|Allah takes the souls at the time of their death, and those who have not died, in their sleep. Then He retains those for whom He has ordained death and releases the others until a specified time. There are indeed signs in that for a people who reflect.}}{{Quote|{{Quran|6|60}}|It is He who takes your souls by night, and He knows what you do by day, then He reanimates you therein so that a specified term may be completed. Then to Him will be your return, whereat He will inform you concerning what you used to do.}}Tesei (2016) notes this idea may mimic a late antique Syriac Christian parallel in the poetical language used by Ephrem, who in the Nisibene hymns (7:15) mentions sleep resembles death, and other Christian writers (such as Babai) wrote about sleep metaphorically Jesus's death and waking up like the resurrection;<ref>Tesei, Tommaso. (2016). "[https://www.researchgate.net/publication/344524709_2_The_barzakh_and_the_Intermediate_State_of_the_Dead_in_the_Quran 2 The barzakh and the Intermediate State of the Dead in the Quran]". pp. 40-42 In Locating Hell in Islamic Traditions. Leiden, The Netherlands: Brill. <nowiki>https://doi.org/10.1163/9789004301368_003</nowiki> (Open access)

''At the same time, the Quran also compares death to the “common sleep” that people experience on a daily basis. This seems to be the case in the cryptic statement found in Q 39:42 (cf. Q 6:60), “God takes the souls at the time of their death (ḥīna mawtihā), and [He takes] that which has not died, in its sleep ( fī manāmihā); He withholds that against which He has decreed death, but sets loose the other until a stated term”. This obscure passage appears to indicate that sleep is a death-like state; sleepers resemble the dead since their souls enter into a state similar to that which they will experience at the moment of death. However, unlike the souls of the dead, which will be raised only on the Day of Resurrection, the ordinary sleeper’s soul is sent back when he awakens―that is, of course, until the time of his death. This parallel between death and “common sleep” finds a fairly close correspondence in the poetical language used by Ephrem, who in the Nisibene hymns (7:15) affirms that: “The one who lies down to sleep resembles the departed and death resembles a dream, and the resurrection the morning”. In these passages the Quran’s eschatological discourse is particularly close to that formulated by Babai, in whose ideas the belief in the soul’s sleep is intimately connected to the strong affirmation of the physical resurrection of the body on the Day of Judgment.'' </ref> with this idea taken literally by Muhammad.

== Arguments for resurrection ==
Reynolds (2020) notes the repeated argument that God can resurrect the dead using the analogy that he can bring life back to barren (or dead) land may be connected to a Jewish tradition that God will resurrect the dead with dew, for example, in b. Shabbat 88b.<ref name=":2">See: Reynolds, Gabriel Said. Allah: ''God in the Qur'an (pp. 76-77).'' Yale University Press. Kindle Edition.

And Footnote 10: Reynolds, Gabriel Said. ''Allah: God in the Qur'an (p. 254).'' Yale University Press. Kindle Edition.</ref>
{{Quote|{{Quran|30|19}}|He brings forth the living from the dead, and brings forth the dead from the living, and revives the earth after its death. Likewise, you [too] shall be raised [from the dead].}}

Cf: {{Quran|16|65}}, {{Quran|43|11}}, {{Quran|50|6-11}}, {{Quran|57|17}}

==See Also==
*[[Pre-Islamic Arab Religion in Islam]]

* [[Parallels Between the Qur'an and Late Antique Judeo-Christian Literature|Parallels Between the Qur'an and Late Antique Judeo-Christian Literature - Part 1]]
* [[Historical Errors in the Quran]]
==References==
<references />

User:CPO675/Sandbox 1

2026-06-07T20:02:08Z

CPO675: /* The story of Joseph */

== The story of Joseph ==
There are many differences between the story of Joseph (Arabic: ''Yūsuf'') in the Qur'an, told in full in Surah 12 (Surah Yūsuf), and the book of Genesis in the bible. Reynolds (2025), largely citing Witzum's (2011) 'The Syriac Millenia of the Qur'an: The Recasting of Biblical Narratives',<ref>Witztum, Joseph (2011) ''[https://almuslih.org/wp-content/uploads/2024/11/Witztum-J-The-Syriac-milieu-of-the-Quran.pdf The Syriac milieu of the Quran: The recasting of Biblical narratives], pp191-239.'' PhD Thesis, Princeton University</ref> notes how these differences directly match post-biblical writings; with almost all of these distinctive Qur’anic elements showing dependence on or conversation with Syriac Christian traditions (such as Pseudo-Narsai, Ephrem, Pseudo-Basil, Balai, Syriac Bible/Peshitta), which comes as part of his argument that Christian traditions were known by Muhammad's community. A few overlap with the Jewish midrash, but the strongest and most consistent influence comes from Christian sources.<ref name=":4">Reynolds, Gabriel Said. C''hristianity and the Qur'an: The Rise of Islam in Christian Arabia (p. 76-86).'' Yale University Press. Kindle Edition.</ref>

Reynolds provides provides 11 clear examples of this:<ref name=":4" />

# Joseph’s singular dream: in the Qur’an he has only one dream (unlike the Book of Genesis which has two) which he tells directly to his father Jacob, who warns him to keep it secret in case it leads his brothers to seek him harm - matching Pseudo-Narsai’s homily (5th-century Syriac Christian).<ref>Ibid. pp76, pp81</ref>
# The brothers' plot to kill Joseph: the Qur’an has the brothers plotting at home, not spontaneously in the fields - also found in Pseudo-Narsai.<ref>Ibid. pp78, pp82</ref>
# The wolf motif: the Qur’an specifies a wolf instead of a vague “wild animal” as in Genesis - which links to Christian tradition (Pseudo-Narsai) who calls the brothers “wolves” and Joseph “a lamb,” echoing Gospel imagery of shepherds/sheep<ref>Ibid. pp78, pp82-83</ref>.
# Joseph in the pit: the Qur’an has Joseph comforted by God in the pit (''jubb''; {{Quran|12|15}}) - which again follows a report in Pseudo-Narsai of revelation to Joseph in the pit (Syriac ''gubbā'').<ref name=":5">Ibid. pp78, pp83</ref>
# Jacob’s (Joseph's father) response to the bloody shirt: the Qur’an has Jacob suspecting deception - reflected in homilies from Ephrem and Balai, who also have Jacob reason that the brothers’ story is false.<ref name=":5" />
# Potiphar and the garment: the Qur’an shows Potiphar recognizing Joseph’s innocence and his wife's guilt in trying to seduce him - found in some post-biblical Jewish Traditions (including ''Genesis Rabbah 87:9'') where he shows knowledge of Joseph's innocence - however only in Christian traditions (e.g., Pseudo-Narsai) do we find Potiphar, as in {{Quran|12|28-29}}, also arguing for Joseph’s innocence by referring to the torn garment as proof.<ref name=":5" />
# Potiphar’s wife confesses: the Qur’an has her admit guilt later in the story - found in the Pseudo-Narsai, where she confesses after Joseph’s rise to power.<ref>Ibid. pp78-79, pp83</ref>
# Jacob’s blindness healed by Joseph’s shirt: the Qur’an reports Jacob miraculously regains sight when Joseph’s shirt touches his face - in the bible Jacob is firstly simply 'dim/heavy with age' in Genesis 48:10, but nothing is said about blindness, which is found in Christian late antique sources, and secondly using the garment to heal him draws on Syriac Christian idioms; (“lighten the eyes” = to gladden), made literal in the Qur’an (like other symbolic items in Christian stories) to heal Jacob's eyes.<ref>Ibid. pp79, pp83-84</ref>
# Joseph called a thief by his brothers: the Qur’an has Joseph's brothers suggest he committed a past theft - which is rooted in Pseudo-Narsai, which connects Benjamin’s cup incident to Rachel stealing idols and compares Joseph to her.<ref>Ibid. pp79, pp84-85</ref>
# Joseph’s garment sent to Jacob: the Qur’an has Joseph send his shirt to Jacob - which is related to the Syriac Peshitta (and Septuagint and Vulgate) reading of Genesis and Balai’s poetry, where Jacob receives garments from Joseph.<ref name=":6">Ibid. pp79, pp85</ref>
# The brothers ask for Jacob’s forgiveness – the Qur’an has them repent to Jacob, who asks God to forgive them - which echoes Balai, who also has Jacob forgive and pray for them.<ref name=":6" />

== Flat Earth - Tafsirs ==

=== The Highest Horizon ===
The Qu'ran says Muhammad was in the highest horizon ''bil-ufuqi<ref>افق - [https://lexicon.quranic-research.net/data/01_A/103_Afq.html Lane's lexicon Classical Arabic Dictionary root: hamza fā qāf (أ ف ق)]

Horizon ''ufuq'' (أُفُق) [https://lexicon.quranic-research.net/pdf/Page_0068.pdf Lane's Lexicon p.68]

Horizon ''ufuq'' (أُفُق) [https://lexicon.quranic-research.net/pdf/Page_0069.pdf Lane's Lexicon p.69] </ref>l-aʿlā''<ref>Lanes Lexicon Classical Arabic Dictionary Root: [https://lexicon.quranic-research.net/data/18_E/190_Elw.html ʿayn lām wāw (ع ل و)]

(l-a)ʿlā [https://lexicon.quranic-research.net/pdf/Page_2142.pdf Lanes Lexicon p.2142], [https://lexicon.quranic-research.net/pdf/Page_2143.pdf Lanes Lexicon p.2143]

</ref>. Typically taken as referring to him receiving knowledge there as part of his [[Buraq#The Night Journey (al-Isra wal-Mi'raj)|night journey]].
{{Quote|{{Quran|53|7}}|possessed of sound judgement. He settled, while he (was) in the horizon - the highest.}}See also: {{Quran|81|23}}

On a round Earth, there is no such place as an objective highest horizon, as once you move towards the perceived horizon (the furthest place you can see where the land and sky appear to meet in the distance)<ref>[https://dictionary.cambridge.org/dictionary/english/horizon Horizon Definition] Cambridge Dictionary</ref> the view simply moves further back as you circle around the earth, never actually being reached. So some classical Islamic exegetes have taken this to be the place where the sun rises from, in the seventh heaven, or where it reaches the Earth,<ref>E.g. [https://quranx.com/Tafsir/Jalal/53.7 Tafsir al-Jalalayn on verse Q53:7] by Al-Mahalli (d. 1459 CE) and Al-Suyuti (d. 1505 CE) and the famous pseudepigrapha [https://quranx.com/Tafsir/Abbas/53.7 Tanwîr al-Miqbâs min Tafsîr Ibn ‘Abbâs on verse Q53:7]</ref> which is only possible on a flat Earth.

== The Historical Jesus ==

=== Other Traditions ===

==== Intro ====

Alongside the main consensus from Biblical Scholars/Historians that Jesus was an eschatological preacher in the early first century AD who believed the Earth would end during his time (and therefore couldn't be the Muslim Jesus), there are many other of the most considered authentic teachings of Jesus that clash with Islam; in contrast with the Qur'anic principle of Messenger Uniformitarianism; where all messengers preach essentially the same thing with only minor variations.<ref>Durie, Mark. ''The Qur’an and Its Biblical Reflexes: Investigations into the Genesis of a Religion (pp. 135-142) (Kindle Edition pp. 281-294)''. 5.3 Messenger Uniformitarianism. Lexington Books. 2018.</ref>
{{Quote|{{Quran|41|43}}|Not is said to you except what was said to the Messengers before you. Indeed, your Lord (is) Possessor (of) forgiveness, and Possessor (of) penalty painful.}}{{Quote|{{Quran|2|285}}|The Apostle and the faithful have faith in what has been sent down to him from his Lord. Each [of them] has faith in Allah, His angels, His scriptures and His apostles. [They declare,] ‘We make no distinction between any of His apostles.’ And they say, ‘We hear and obey. Our Lord, forgive us, and toward You is the return.’}}

{{Quote|{{Quran|17|77}}|“This was the sunnah [customary way] of Our messengers whom We sent before you, and you will find no change in Our sunnah”}}cf. {{Quran|6|112}}, {{Quran|35|43}}, {{Quran|22|78}}.

Other than being explicitly told that messengers bring the same message from Allah, Durie (2018) notes the Qur'an repeatedly states that Muhammad was sent to confirm the revelations given to earlier messengers (Q2:91, 97; Q3:3, 50; Q5:48; Q12:111; Q16:43–44; Q35:31), just as each prophet before him confirmed those who came earlier. For example, Jesus (ʿĪsa) confirmed the Torah of Moses (Mūsa) (Q5:46), and the Qurʾan confirms the scriptures revealed to previous prophets (Q4:47). In this way, Muhammad’s role continues the same pattern of reaffirming earlier divine messages rather than introducing a completely new one.<ref>Durie, Mark. ''The Qur’an and Its Biblical Reflexes: Investigations Into the Genesis of a Religion.'' pp.140</ref>

{{Quote|Durie, Mark. The Qur'an and it's Biblical Reflexes. pp.140|• It is also explicitly asserted that messengers bring the same message
from Alla¯h: “Nothing is said to you but what has already been said to
messengers before you” (Q41:43; Q22:78) and “we make no distinction
between any of them” (Q2:136). They also preached the same dīn “commandment” or “religion” (Q42:13; cf. Q3:84; Q4:150), which is referred
to as the “religion of Ibra¯hīm” (Q2:130; Q4:125; Q16:121–23). The
validating function of this idea becomes clear when it is applied against
a group of Jews who reject the concept of the “same message” because
it would mean validating the Messenger. These Jews hold to their own
faith, saying “we believe in what has been sent down on us,” but they
reject the Messenger, or “anything after that” (Q2:91). The ruling against
these Jews is that because they reject the Messenger, they are disbelievers,
rejecting “what All a¯ h has sent down” (Q2:91).31 The idea of the “same message” is further reinforced when the Qurʾan repeatedly states that the Messenger was only sent to confirm what was sent down by previous
messengers (Q2:91, 97; Q3:3, 50; Q5:48; Q12:111; Q16:43–44; Q35:31),
just as previous messengers had done for messengers that preceded them,
for example, ʿĪsa¯ “confirmed” the Tawra¯ h of Mūsa¯(Q5:46), and the Qurʾan
confirms the book(s) sent by previous prophets (Q4:47), just as the Messenger has been doing in his turn.}}
The large differences between the New Testament / Gospels (and by extension the Christian Jesus), and the [[Isa al-Masih (Jesus Christ)|Muslim Jesus,]] are clear to anyone who has read both the Qur'an and NT; with the Qur'an having it's own spin on him and taking many aspects from apocrypha considered inauthentic by NT scholars,<ref>Sanders, E.. ''The Historical Figure of Jesus (pp. 78-79)''. Penguin Books Ltd. Kindle Edition.

..(Gnosticism was a world view that held everything material to be evil; the god who created the world was a bad god, and the creation was wicked. Gnostics who were also Christians held that the good God had sent Jesus to redeem people’s souls, not their bodies, and that Jesus was not a real human being. The Christians who objected to these views finally declared them heretical.) ''I share the general scholarly view that very, very little in the apocryphal gospels could conceivably go back to the time of Jesus. They are legendary and mythological. Of all the apocryphal material, only some of the sayings in the Gospel of Thomas are worth consideration.'' This does not mean that we can make a clean division: the historical four gospels versus the legendary apocryphal gospels. There are legendary traits in the four gospels in the New Testament, and there is also a certain amount of newly created material (as we saw just above)..</ref> and [[Parallels Between the Qur'an and Late Antique Judeo-Christian Literature|later Christian thought/writings]], and have lead to many Muslims arguing for biblical corruption based on textual and theological grounds [though textual don't affect most early & authentic traditions] in general, which is a disputed idea in traditional Islamic thought (cite - Reynolds article. See also: [[Corruption of Previous Scriptures]] & [[Qur'an, Hadith and Scholars:Corruption of Previous Scriptures]])

Historians have searched for a summary of some of the most likely authentic traditions from Biblical historians (using historical-critical methods not Christian or Muslim theologians - more likely to be true and not taken from bias or proving or disproving Islam but historical context, widespread across sources, early - cite Allison explanation - Why - different to time and context, unlikely to be fabricated later by Christians, across all early sources etc.) are shown here as an example of the clashes. [Point: not arguing against Christian Jesus - but secular historians one]

==== Examples ====
{{Quote|Dale C. Allison Jr.. The Historical Christ and the Theological Jesus (Kindle Locations 822-836). Kindle Edition.|2=Given that we typically remember the outlines of an event or the general purport of a conversation rather than the particulars and that we extract patterns and meaning from our memories, it makes little sense to open the quest for Jesus by evaluating individual items with our criteria, in the hope that some bits preserve pristine memory. We should rather be looking for repeating patterns and contemplating the big picture. true. We should trust first, if we are to trust at all, what is most likely to be trustworthy. Although we may, after reading Thucydides, be confident that there was a Peloponnesian War, we may well wonder about many of the details of his account.

The larger the generalization and the more data upon which it is based, the greater our confidence; the more specific the detail and the fewer the data supporting it, the more room we have for doubt. With regard to the sources for Jesus, the traditional criteria of authenticity privilege the parts over the whole. It seems more prudent to privilege generalizations drawn from the whole than to concentrate upon one individual item after another. As a demonstration of how this works in practice, consider the following traditions:

• Jesus prohibited divorce: 1 Cor. 7:10; Mark 10:2-9; Luke 16:18. [Qur'an divorce rules - https://wikiislam.net/wiki/Khula] 

• Jesus sent forth missionaries without staff, food, or money: Matt. 10:9-10; Mark 6:8-9; Luke 10:4.

• Jesus instructed missionaries to get their living by the gospel: 1 Cor. 9:14; Matt. 10:10; Luke 10:7.

• Jesus commanded loving and doing good to enemies: Matt. 5:38-48; Luke 6:27-36. [Qur'an do not be merciful to unbelievers https://wikiislam.net/wiki/Qur%27an,_Hadith_and_Scholars:Non-Muslims & https://wikiislam.net/wiki/Kafir_(Infidel)#Guidelines_on_how_to_deal_with_disbelievers Quran 48:29 ]

• Jesus forbade judging others: Matt. 7:1-2; Luke 6:37-38.

• Jesus asked a prospective follower not to bury his father: Matt. 8:21-22; 22; Luke 959-60.

• Jesus spoke of hating one's father and mother: Matt. 10:37; Luke 14:26; Gospel of Thomas 55, 101. [respect parents - too tenuous]

• Jesus enjoined disciples to take up a cross: Matt. 10:38; Mark 8:34; Luke 14:27.

• Jesus enjoined unlimited forgiveness: Matt. 18:21-22; Luke 17:3-4. [forgiveness against shirk - Qur'an says no Q4:48 and 4:116. ]

• Jesus exhorted hearers to lose their lives in order to save them: Matt. 10:39; Mark 8:35; Luke 17:33.

• Jesus called people away from their livelihoods: Mark 1:16-20; 2:14. [?]

• Jesus figuratively demanded violent removal of hand, foot, and eye: Mark 9:42-48.

• Jesus asked a wealthy man to relinquish his money: Mark 10:17-27. [bring in wealth inequality section of Islam darajat - here]

• Jesus forbade taking oaths: Matt. 5:33-37. [https://www.iium.edu.my/deed/lawbase/risalah_maliki/book31.html#:~:text=Anyone%20who%20swears%20an%20oath,Oneness%2C%20timelessness%20and%20existence.%5D]

• Jesus commanded money to be lent without interest: Matt. 5:42; Gospel of Thomas 95.

• Jesus called some to a life without marriage: Matt. 19:11-12. [Qur'an criticism of monasticism]

• Jesus asked a prospective follower not to say farewell to his parents: Luke 9:61-62. [respect parents?]

• Jesus asked his disciples to renounce all of their possessions: Luke 14:33"}}
<nowiki>--------------------------------------------------</nowiki>

[ highlight those being spoken about in italics or bold]

Professor Allison (2009) notes that Jesus' banning divorce was an important teaching that <s>stood out</s> to early Christians, [https://www.biblegateway.com/passage/?search=Luke%2016%3A18&version=NIV Luke 16:18], [https://www.biblegateway.com/passage/?search=1%20Corinthians%207%3A10-16&version=NIV 1 Corinthians 7:10-16], [https://www.biblegateway.com/passage/?search=Mark%2010%3A2-9&version=NIV Mark 10:2-9], in contrast to Judaism ([https://www.biblegateway.com/passage/?search=Deuteronomy%2024%3A1-4&version=NIV Deuteronomy 24:1-4]) and Islam e.g. Quran 2:228-232, Q65:1-7, (Q4:19 https://quranx.com/hadiths/4.19 & Q4:35), Q33:49 )

He notes that Jesus commanded loving and doing good to enemies in [https://www.biblegateway.com/passage/?search=Matthew%205%3A38-48&version=NIV Matt. 5:38-48]; [https://www.biblegateway.com/passage/?search=Luke%206%3A27-36&version=NIV Luke 6:27-36], while the Qur'an generally advises treating other Muslims well, it specifically states not to be merciful to unbelievers Q48:29. [ For more examples of not being merciful to unbelievers, let alone 'enemies' see: '''[[Qur'an, Hadith and Scholars:Non-Muslims|https://wikiislam.net/wiki/Qur%27an,_Hadith_and_Scholars:Non-Muslims]] & [[Kafir (Infidel)#Guidelines%20on%20how%20to%20deal%20with%20disbelievers|https://wikiislam.net/wiki/Kafir_(Infidel)#Guidelines_on_how_to_deal_with_disbelievers]] Quran 48:29 ]'''

• Jesus enjoined unlimited forgiveness: [https://www.biblegateway.com/passage/?search=Matthew%2018%3A21-22&version=NIV Matt. 18:21-22]; [https://www.biblegateway.com/passage/?search=Luke%2017%3A3-4&version=NIV Luke 17:3-4]. However the Qur'an distinctly says there is no forgiveness for anyone committing shirk (ascribing partners to God) in {{Quran|4|48}} and {{Quran|4|116}}.

He notes Jesus called some to a life without marriage: [https://www.biblegateway.com/passage/?search=Matthew%2019%3A11-12&version=NIV Matt. 19:11-12], while the Qur'an promotes it as a virtue encouraging those to do so.

Marriage is a virtue https://www.getquranic.com/marriage-in-islam-8-quranic-verses-about-marriage/

{{Quote|{{Quran|24|32}}|Marry off those who are single among you, and the upright among your male and female slaves. If they are poor, Allah will enrich them out of His grace, and Allah is all-bounteous, all-knowing.}}

And criticizes monasticism/monks, with celibacy and no marriage being a key aspect<ref>[https://www.britannica.com/topic/monasticism Monasticism] | religion | Britannica Entry</ref> in general

{{Quote|Reynolds, Gabriel Said. Christianity and the Qur'an: The Rise of Islam in Christian Arabia (pp. 131-132). Yale University Press. Kindle Edition.|These verses critical of monks are often read together with Q 57:27, which, while praising certain positive qualities of Christians, also seems to accuse Christians of “innovating” monasticism: Then We sent, following in their footsteps, Our Messengers; and We sent, following, Jesus son of Mary, and gave unto him the Gospel. And We set in the hearts of those who followed him tenderness and mercy. And monasticism they invented—We did not prescribe it for them—only seeking the good pleasure of God; but they observed it not as it should be observed. So We gave those of them who believed their wage; and many of them are ungodly.}}

Criticism of monasticism (https://www.britannica.com/topic/monasticism) - lack of marriage for monks (though admittedly also praises monks in general elsewhere pp130-132)<ref>Reynolds, Gabriel Said. ''Christianity and the Qur'an: The Rise of Islam in Christian Arabia (pp. 130-132).'' Yale University Press. Kindle Edition.</ref>

{{Quote|{{Quran|57|27}}|Then We sent on their footsteps Our Messengers and We followed with Isa, son (of) Maryam, and We gave him the Injeel. And We placed in (the) hearts (of) those who followed him compassion and mercy. But monasticism they innovated - not We prescribed it for them - only seeking (the) pleasure (of) Allah, but not they observed it (with) right observance. So We gave those who believed among them their reward, but most of them (are) defiantly disobediently.}}

<nowiki>-----------------------------------------------------------------</nowiki>

==== Father-son relationship ====
{{Quote|Dale C. Allison Jr.. The Historical Christ and the Theological Jesus (Kindle Location 841-848). Kindle Edition.|2=Working through the tradition in the way I suggest leads to a large number of conclusions. Jesus must have been an exorcist who interpreted his ministry in terms of Satan's downfall. He must have thought highly of John the Baptist. He must have repeatedly spoken of God as Father. [Durie differences in metaphor and understanding of relationship from Hebrew to Arab society = markedly different] He must have composed parables. He must have come into conflict with religious authorities. All of this may seem obvious, but the procedure is not trite, for it also issues in some controversial verdicts. As I have argued elsewhere, for example, ample, the quantity of conventional eschatological material in our primary sources almost necessitates that Jesus was an eschatological prophet.' The reconstruction of Robert Funk and the Jesus Seminar is for this reason alone problematic. Even more controversial is what my approach leads me to infer about Jesus' self-conception. Consider these Synoptic materials:

• Jesus said that the Son of man will return on the clouds of heaven and send angels to gather the elect from throughout the world: Mark 13:26-27; cf. 14:62; Matt. 10:23 (allusions to Daniel 7's depiction of the last judgment are clear). [the son of man plays no part in Islam]}}Allison (2009) notes that Jesus must have repeatedly referred to God as 'father', a way also used by many ancient Jews to describe their relationship to god, also found in the old testament with different metaphorical meanings<ref>Pennington, J.T. "Chapter Nine. God As Father In The Old Testament And Second Temple Literature". ''Heaven and Earth in the Gospel of Matthew''. Leiden, The Netherlands: Brill, 2007. <nowiki>https://doi.org/10.1163/ej.9789004162051.i-399.57</nowiki> Web.</ref> and Talmudic writings with paternal imagery. <ref>Knobnya, S.. (2011). ''God the Father in the Old Testament. European Journal of Theology.'' 20. 139-148. </ref><ref>[https://www.myjewishlearning.com/article/fatherhood-of-god/ Fatherhood of God] | Sages & Scholars | Rabbi Louis Jacobs | My Jewish Learning</ref>

===== Slave-master relationship =====
However this father-son Hebrew metaphorical relationship Jesus used is distinctly abandoned, instead using other things (other metaphors) in Arab society to describe the relationship between humans and God, such as a slave-master relationship,<ref>Durie, Mark. ''The Qur’an and Its Biblical Reflexes: Investigations into the Genesis of a Religion (pp. XX-XX) (pp. 107-110 Kindle Edition)''. 4.1.1. Shirk - Proprietary Partnership. Lexington Books. 2018.</ref> a Patron - Protege (needs explanation of what this is) <ref>Durie, Mark. ''The Qur’an and Its Biblical Reflexes: Investigations into the Genesis of a Religion (pp. XX-XX) (pp. 110-111 Kindle Edition)''. 4.1.2. Shirk - Patron - Protege Relationships. Lexington Books. 2018.</ref>. with Muhammad having strongly condemned the idea that God could have offspring against the unscripted pagans (mushrikun) taking angels as daughters of god early on chronologically of the Qur'an's first recitations, then later against God having a son against Jesus being the son of God.<ref>Durie, Mark. ''The Qur’an and Its Biblical Reflexes: Investigations into the Genesis of a Religion (pp. XX-XX) (pp. 112-113 Kindle Edition)''. 4.1.5 A Polemical Doctrine. Lexington Books. 2018.</ref>

Slave analogy Dure Print edition pp108 - 110 summary:<ref name=":1">Durie, Mark. ''The Qur’an and Its Biblical Reflexes: Investigations into the Genesis of a Religion (pp. 108-110) (pp. XX-XX Kindle Edition)''. 4.1.5 A Polemical Doctrine. Lexington Books. 2018.</ref> Before its theological use, the Arabic root ''sh-r-k'' referred to ordinary '''partnership or shared ownership'''. The Qurʾan draws on this everyday meaning to illustrate why associating partners with God is impossible. Using the metaphor of '''a master and a slave''', the Qurʾan argues that just as a slave with multiple masters suffers confusion and conflict, attributing partners to God creates an impossible and chaotic situation. This logic appears in verses such as Q39:29 and others that argue multiple gods would lead to conflict and the ruin of creation (Q23:91; Q21:22).<ref name=":1" />
{{Quote|{{Quran|39|29}}|Allah presents a parable, “a man was owned by several quarreling partners
(shurakaʾ), and a man was the slave of (just) one man. Are the two equal?”}}

The Qurʾan’s use of the slave-master metaphor differs from Jesus’ teaching in the New Testament. Whereas Jesus uses it to highlight divided human devotion, the Qurʾan uses it to assert the logical impossibility of multiple divine authorities.<ref name=":1" />

{{Quote|Luke 16:13; cf. Matthew. 6:24|No slave can serve two masters; for a slave will either hate the one and love the
other, or be devoted to the one and despise the other. You cannot serve God and wealth.}}

Shirk encompasses various forms of error: attributing partners or helpers to God, believing He needs allies, or seeking aid from others besides Him. The Qurʾan also explores God’s unity through three social analogies relevant to Arabian society: '''patron–protégé relationships''', '''alliances of mutual help''', and '''relationships of equal or unequal status'''.<ref name=":1" />

===== '''Patron–protégé relationships''' =====
The Qur'an distinctly ignores the father-son relationship (and theology) metaphor by using another term that is harder to translate

Explanation of what this is Durie pp.110-111:<ref name=":3">Durie, Mark. ''The Qur’an and Its Biblical Reflexes: Investigations into the Genesis of a Religion (pp. 110-111) (pp. XX-XX Kindle Edition)''. 4.1.5 A Polemical Doctrine. Lexington Books. 2018.</ref> The Qurʾan uses terms from the root '''w-l-y''' to describe '''patron–protégé relationships''', alliances, and guardianship. The key term '''walī''' can mean ally, protector, guardian, or patron, and may indicate either symmetrical alliances or asymmetrical power relationships.<ref name=":3" /><ref>[https://lexicon.quranic-research.net/data/27_w/219_wle.html Root: ''wāw lām yā'' (و ل ي)] - Lane's Lexicon Qur'anic Research

See Lane's Lexicon Classical Arabic Dictionary [https://lexicon.quranic-research.net/pdf/Page_3060.pdf pp.3060] & [https://lexicon.quranic-research.net/pdf/Page_3061.pdf pp.3061] </ref>

In pre-Islamic Arab society, such patronage was essential for protection, as shown by the example of Muḥammad being safeguarded by his uncle Abū Ṭālib. Without a patron, a person was vulnerable.<ref name=":3" /> [in the sirah of Ibn Ishaq]

The Qurʾan emphasizes that '''God has no need of any patron''' and that '''humans should recognize God alone as their walī'''. Seeking any protector besides God is considered '''shirk'''. Believers may take other believers and the Prophet as allies (''awliyāʾ'') alongside God, but not in place of Him.<ref name=":3" />

As the Muslim community developed, especially after what the passage calls the ''Eschatological Transition''—the Qurʾan increasingly stressed exclusive allegiance to God. This served to detach believers from prior tribal or familial loyalties that could compromise their commitment to the faith community.<ref name=":3" />

- and calls for help-

===== Unequal status vs Jesus' views on Wealth =====
Sinai - darajah passage

And inequality in general - inc. the afterlife

=== Punishment narratives ===

==== Punishment BEFORE the day of judgement ====
We are told the sole exception in history was the unnamed town<ref>Unnamed in the Qur'an, though identified as Nineveh (in modern day Iraq) as in the Biblical "Book of Jonah" by Islamic exegetes; e.g. see [https://quranx.com/tafsirs/37.147 tafsirs on Q37:147]</ref> of more than 100,000 people that the messenger Yūnus (Jonah) when the warning was heeded in full by the entire people, and therefore punishment averted ({{Quran|10|98}}, {{Quran|37|147-148}}) “no town believed . . . except the people of Yūnus”<ref>Durie, Mark. 2018. ''The Qur'an and Its Biblical Reflexes: Investigations Into the Genesis of a Religion. pp 49. Kindle Edition pp 151.''</ref>

How many a town defied the command of its Lord and His apostles, then We called it to a severe account and punished it with a dire punishment. Q65:8

So it tasted the evil consequences of its conduct, and the outcome of its conduct was ruin. Q65:9

How many generations that had far more wealth and ostentation have We laid low before them! <<nowiki>https://quranx.com/19.74</nowiki>>

Say, ‘Whoever abides in error, the All-beneficent shall prolong his respite until they sight what they have been promised: either punishment, or the Hour.’ Then they will know whose position is worse, and whose host is weaker <<nowiki>https://quranx.com/19.75</nowiki>>

------

Q34:16 - flood of the damn of Yemen / Saba', the people of Sheba E.g. <ref>See tafsirs on [https://quranx.com/Tafsirs/34.14 Q34:14], [https://quranx.com/Tafsirs/34.15 Q34:15] & [https://quranx.com/Tafsirs/34.16 Q34:16]</ref> {{Quran|34|14-16}}

{{Quote|{{Quran|34|14-16}}|And when We decreed for Solomon death, nothing indicated to the jinn his death except a creature of the earth eating his staff. But when he fell, it became clear to the jinn that if they had known the unseen, they would not have remained in humiliating punishment.
Certainly, (there) was for Saba in their dwelling place a sign: Two gardens on (the) right and (on the) left. "Eat from (the) provision (of) your Lord and be grateful to Him. A land good and a Lord Oft-Forgiving."
But they turned away, so We sent upon them (the) flood (of) the dam, and We changed for them their two gardens (with) two gardens producing fruit bitter, and tamarisks and (some)thing of lote trees few.}}
, {{Quran|65|8-9}}, {{Quran|19|74-75}}

Add: 34:15–21: The punishment of the people of Sheba, without explicit reference to a messenger. Sheba reference <ref>Marshall, David. ''God, Muhammad and the Unbelievers (p. 73).'' Taylor & Francis. Kindle Edition.</ref>

=== Surah 36 ===
Similarly an unnamed town is sent three messengers in {{Quran|36|13-32}}, who's identities have differed in traditional Islamic scholarship,<ref>E.g. see commentaries on [https://quranx.com/Tafsirs/36.13 Q36:13] & [https://quranx.com/tafsirs/36.14 Q36:14], and the later verses in the story, cited as a parable ''(mathal).''</ref> are rejected and so are killed with a cry/shout (''ṣayḥatan)'' ({{Quran|36|29}}). <ref>Marshall, David. ''God, Muhammad and the Unbelievers (p. 63 & 72).'' Taylor & Francis. Kindle Edition.</ref>
{{Quote|Marshall, David. God, Muhammad and the Unbelievers (p. 72). Taylor & Francis. Kindle Edition.|36:13–32: Described as a parable (mathal, v.13), but in outline very similar to the punishment-narratives. The messengers (two of them, reinforced with a third) and the town in which they preach are anonymous. ‘A man from the furthest part of the city’ (v.20) exhorts his people to follow the messengers.}}

== Contradiction ==
The order in Surah 2 has the Jews struck by a lightening bolt after they worship the golden calf, who are then forgiven by Allah by being resurrected.
{{Quote|{{Quran|2|50-67}}|And when We parted the sea with you, and We delivered you and drowned Pharaoh’s clan as you looked on. 
And when We made an appointment with Moses for forty nights, you took up the Calf [for worship] in his absence, and you were wrongdoers. 
Then We excused you after that so that you might give thanks. 
And when We gave Moses the Book and the Criterion so that you might be guided. 
And [recall] when Moses said to his people, ‘O my people! You have indeed wronged yourselves by taking up the Calf [for worship]. Now turn penitently to your Maker, and slay [the guilty among] your folks. That will be better for you with your Maker.’ Then He turned to you clemently. Indeed, He is the All-clement, the All-merciful. 
And when you said, ‘O Moses, we will not believe you until we see Allah visibly.’ Thereupon a thunderbolt seized you as you looked on.
Then We raised you up after your death so that you might give thanks. /n
We shaded you with clouds, and sent down to you manna and quails [saying]: ‘Eat of the good things We have provided for you.’ And they did not wrong Us, but they used to wrong [only] themselves. 
And when We said, ‘Enter this town, and eat thereof freely whencesoever you wish, and enter while prostrating at the gate, and say, ‘‘Relieve [us of the burden of our sins],’’ so that We may forgive your iniquities and We will soon enhance the virtuous.’ 
But the wrongdoers changed the saying with other than what they were told. So We sent down on those who were wrongdoers a plague from the sky because of the transgressions they used to commit. 
And when Moses prayed for water for his people, We said, ‘Strike the rock with your staff.’ Thereat twelve fountains gushed forth from it; every tribe came to know its drinking-place. ‘Eat and drink of Allah’s provision, and do not act wickedly on the earth, causing corruption.’ 
And when you said, ‘O Moses, ‘We will not put up with one kind of food. So invoke your Lord for us, so that He may bring forth for us of that which the earth grows—its greens and cucumbers, its garlic, lentils, and onions.’ He said, ‘Do you seek to replace what is superior with that which is inferior? Go down to any town and you will indeed get what you ask for!’ So they were struck with abasement and poverty, and they earned Allah’s wrath. That, because they would deny the signs of Allah and kill the prophets unjustly. That, because they would disobey and commit transgressions. 
Indeed the faithful, the Jews, the Christians and the Sabaeans—those of them who have faith in Allah and the Last Day and act righteously—they shall have their reward from their Lord, and they will have no fear, nor will they grieve. 
And when We took a pledge from you, and raised the Mount above you, [declaring], ‘Hold on with power to what We have given you and remember that which is in it so that you may be Godwary.’ 
Again you turned away after that; and were it not for Allah’s grace on you and His mercy, you would have surely been among the losers. 
And certainly you know those of you who violated the Sabbath, whereupon We said to them, ‘Be you spurned apes.’ 
So We made it an exemplary punishment for the present and the succeeding [generations], and an advice to the Godwary.}}
In Surah 4 they are struck before they worship the calf. 4:153 specifically says 'then' ''(thumma)''

{{Quote|{{Quran|4|153-161}}|The People of the Book ask you to bring down for them a Book from the sky. Certainly they asked Moses for [something] greater than that, for they said, ‘Show us Allah visibly,’ whereat a thunderbolt seized them for their wrongdoing. Then they took up the Calf [for worship], after all the manifest proofs that had come to them. Yet We excused that, and We gave Moses a manifest authority. 
And We raised the Mount above them for the sake of their covenant, and We said to them, ‘Enter the gate prostrating’ and We said to them, ‘Do not violate the Sabbath,’ and We took from them a solemn covenant. 
Then because of their breaking their covenant, their defiance of Allah’s signs, their killing of the prophets unjustly and for their saying, ‘Our hearts are uncircumcised’… Indeed, Allah has set a seal on them for their unfaith, so they do not have faith except a few. 
And for their faithlessness, and their uttering a monstrous calumny against Mary, 
and for their saying, ‘We killed the Messiah, Jesus son of Mary, the apostle of Allah’—though they did not kill him nor did they crucify him, but so it was made to appear to them. Indeed those who differ concerning him are surely in doubt about him: they do not have any knowledge of that beyond following conjectures, and certainly, they did not kill him. 
Indeed, Allah raised him up toward Himself, and Allah is all-mighty, all-wise. 
There is none among the People of the Book but will surely believe in him before his death; and on the Day of Resurrection, he will be a witness against them. 
Due to the wrongdoing of the Jews, We prohibited them certain good things that were permitted to them [earlier], and for their barring many [people] from the way of Allah, 
and for their taking usury—though they had been forbidden from it—and for eating up the wealth of the people wrongfully. And We have prepared for the faithless among them a painful punishment. }}

=== V2 ===
Surah 4 (summarized version)

1) They ask Moses for a sign and are hit with a thunderbolt

2) They then take up the calf for worship

3) The mountain is raised above them{{Quote|{{Quran|4|153-154}}|The People of the Book ask you to bring down for them a Book from the sky. Certainly they asked Moses for [something] greater than that, for they said, ‘Show us Allah visibly,’ whereat a thunderbolt seized them for their wrongdoing. Then they took up the Calf [for worship], after all the manifest proofs that had come to them. Yet We excused that, and We gave Moses a manifest authority. 
And We raised the Mount above them for the sake of their covenant, and We said to them, ‘Enter the gate prostrating’ and We said to them, ‘Do not violate the Sabbath,’ and We took from them a solemn covenant.}}Surah 2
1) They worshiped the calf. And Moses tells them to slay the guilty among them.

2) They are hit by a thunderbolt - is it chronological?

3) ... a mountain is lifted above them
{{Quote|{{Quran|2|51-56}}|And when We made an appointment with Moses for forty nights, you took up the Calf [for worship] in his absence, and you were wrongdoers. 
Then We excused you after that so that you might give thanks. 
And when We gave Moses the Book and the Criterion so that you might be guided. 
And [recall] when Moses said to his people, ‘O my people! You have indeed wronged yourselves by taking up the Calf [for worship]. Now turn penitently to your Maker, and slay [the guilty among] your folks. That will be better for you with your Maker.’ Then He turned to you clemently. Indeed, He is the All-clement, the All-merciful. 
And when you said, ‘O Moses, we will not believe you until we see Allah visibly.’ Thereupon a thunderbolt seized you as you looked on.
Then We raised you up after your death so that you might give thanks.}}
== The Lote Tree of the utmost Boundary (Sid'rati al-Muntahā) ==
Lote tree's are a real type of tree (Ziziphus spina-christi) native to Arabia and the Middle East.<ref>[https://www.suewickison.com/products/lote-tree?srsltid=AfmBOorj_RU2x1OPxgfRe689M2TWw1g4uZTQLkpSolPGYnIatiIe7h6K Lote Tree | Sidr | Ziziphus spina-christi |] Plants of the Qur'an | Sue Wickison </ref> Different to the tree of eternity/immortality ''(shajarati ul-khul'di)'' in paradise ''jannah,'' the Qur'an mentions The Lote Tree (sidr) of ''the utmost boundary (al-muntahā)''<ref>مُنْتَهَىٰ - [https://lexicon.quranic-research.net/pdf/Page_3029.pdf Lane's Lexicon pp.3029]

</ref> near (but notably not in) the 'garden of abode', said to be 'covered' yaghshā by something unspecified in Q53:16, typically taken by exegetes to mean by angels, light and/or golden animals.<ref>E.g. see [https://quranx.com/Tafsirs/53.16 Tafsirs on Q53:16]</ref>

{{Quote|{{Quran|53|13-17}}|And certainly he saw him (in) descent another,
Near (the) Lote Tree (of) the utmost boundary,
Near it (is the) Garden (of) Abode.
when there covered the Lote Tree what covered it.
Not swerved the sight and not it transgressed.}}

This furthest boundary/limit is said in the hadith, to place the cosmic tree in the sixth heaven, where even celestial creatures cannot go beyond as the limit of creation; said to be seen by Muhammad in his Night Journey (mi’rāj) on the [[:en:Buraq|Buraq]] (E.g. {{Muslim|1|329}}, {{Al Tirmidhi|2=5|3=44|4=3276}}, {{Bukhari|5|58|227}} & {{Al Nasai|2=1|3=5|4=452}}), and by many Islamic exegetes.<ref>See [https://quranx.com/tafsirs/53.14 tafsirs on Q53:14]</ref>

This would align the cosmology of Islamic traditions supporting the idea that paradise (and therefore the garden of the abode) is in the seventh heaven,<ref>[https://islamqa.info/en/answers/215011/where-are-paradise-and-hell#Where_is_Paradise Where is Paradise] | [https://islamqa.info/en/answers/215011/where-are-paradise-and-hell Where Are Paradise and Hell?] | 07/January/2015 islamqa</ref> while some traditions support the idea that paradise is above the seventh heaven,<ref>[https://www.islamweb.net/en/fatwa/107126/the-location-of-paradise-now#:~:text=Paradise%20that%20Allaah%20promised%20for,are%20many%20texts%20proving%20this. The location of Paradise now] | Paradise and Hell | Belief in the Hereafter | Islamic Creed | Fatwa | islamweb.net </ref> both placing the tree relatively close to jannah. However others suggest that this specific ''garden of the abode (jannatu l-mawā)'' is a separate garden/paradise to the eternal one all righteous Muslims will eventually enter, being instead one where martyrs (those killed in war or for their religion) go before judgement day.<ref>E.g. see [https://quranx.com/Tafsirs/53.15 tafsirs on Q53:15]</ref>

Either way there is no evidence of a celestial tree, which must be magic to survive outside of an Earthly plant ecosystem, but is rather an example of tree mythology.
----
----

(See also: <nowiki>https://sunnah.com/mishkat:5865</nowiki> & https://sunnah.com/mishkat:5640, ) read; https://quranx.com/tafsirs/53.14 - exegetes also confirm this is where boundary is the boundary of the skies/heavens where things other than God cannot pass (at least until judgement day where paradise and hell can be entered).

AND Similarly seen next to the 4 main Near-East rivers (Nile, Euphratesm Tigres,) <nowiki>https://sunnah.com/bukhari:5610</nowiki>, which area said to flow from paradise: <nowiki>https://quranx.com/Hadith/Bukhari/USC-MSA/Volume-5/Book-58/Hadith-227/</nowiki> )

cite: [https://www.islamweb.net/en/fatwa/107126/the-location-of-paradise-now#:~:text=Paradise%20that%20Allaah%20promised%20for,are%20many%20texts%20proving%20this. https://www.islamweb.net/en/fatwa/107126/the-location-of-paradise-now#:~:text=Paradise%20that%20Allaah%20promised%20for,are%20many%20texts%20proving%20this.]

The utmost boundary at the end of t heavens confirmed by exegetes in https://quranx.com/tafsirs/53.14

" Jannat al-ma'va' literally means "the Jannat (Garden) that is to be an abode. " Hadrat Hasan Basri says that this is the same Jannat which the believers and righteous will be given in the Hereafter, and from this same verse he has argued that that Jannat is in the heavens. Qatadah says that this is the Jannat in which the souls of the martyrs are kept; it does not imply the Jannat that is to be given in the Hereafter. Ibn 'Abbas also says the same but adds that the Jannat to be granted to the believers in the Hereafter is not in the heavens but here on the earth.

== Parallels Between the Qur'an and Late Antique Judeo-Christian Literature - Part 2 ==
Following on from [[Parallels Between the Qur'an and Late Antique Judeo-Christian Literature|Part 1]], this is Part 2 of Late Antique Judeo-Christian Literature found in the Qur'an. This material, drawing heavily on rabbinical commentaries on the bible, and late Syriac Christian thought found in homilies, was created far later than the biblical cannon; no-where near the time of the events that occurred. This suggests the stories were transmitted in an oral millennia along with local Arabian traditions<ref>Bannister, Andrew G.. ''An Oral-Formulaic Study of the Qur'an (Kindle Location 249-259 in Chapter 1.2 The Biblicist Roots of the Iblis and Adam Story).'' Bloomsbury Publishing. Kindle Edition.

..When the Qur’an emerged in the seventh-century, it did so in an oral culture in which Biblicist traditions were freely circulating and thus there existed a large pool of commonly known stories and traditions to fish from; a pool in which stories could cross-fertilize and influence one another. 23 It is this, more than direct borrowing that perhaps best explains stories like Iblis and Adam as well as other qur’anic tellings of older tales, such as the Seven Sleepers (Q. 18: 9– 25) 24 and the Legend of Alexander (Dhu al-Qarnayn, Q. 18: 83– 101). 25 The Qur’an originates from a milieu in which Biblicist material was well-known to the first audience of the Qur’an; even a simple allusion to a story was often enough to trigger a connection for the hearer. 26 That Biblicist material has been filtered through storytelling rather than simply copied from a written text is further suggested by what the Qur’an leaves out; no minor prophets are referenced, probably because almost no Old Testament narratives feature them nor did the rabbinic literature weave lengthy tales about them. 27 The exception which proves the rule is Jonah (Q. 21: 87– 88; 37: 139– 148; 68: 48– 50), whose short but dramatic story was extremely popular in both Jewish and Christian contexts.28..

And: Bannister, Andrew G.. ''An Oral-Formulaic Study of the Qur'an (Kindle Locations 1391-1392. Chapter 2.3 The Islamic Tradition and Orality).'' Bloomsbury Publishing. Kindle Edition.</ref> where biblical and much later Jewish and Christian stories could be commonly mixed without the new community realizing.
== The story of Noah ==
The prophet Noah is portrayed extremely differently to the one in Genesis,<ref>Segovia, Carlos A.. ''[https://almuslih.org/wp-content/uploads/2024/12/Segovia-C-The-Quranic-Noah-and-the-Making-of-the-Islamic-Prophet.pdf The Quranic Noah and the Making of the Islamic Prophet: A Study of Intertextuality and Religious Identity Formation in Late Antiquity]'', Berlin, München, Boston: De Gruyter, 2015. <nowiki>https://doi.org/10.1515/9783110405897</nowiki></ref> taking on Jewish and Christian traditions, characteristics, as well as terms from late antique Judeo-Christian writings,<ref>The Qur'anic Noah. pp.21-21</ref> molded to suit Muhammad's situation in line with other messengers in the Qur'an.<ref>''The Qurʾan and its Biblical Reflexes: Investigations into the Genesis of a Religion. Chapter 5.3 Messenger Uniformatism. pp.135-143'' By Mark Durie. Lanham, MD: Lexington Books, 2018. </ref>

=== The preaching of Noah ===

Surah 71 consists entirely of the preaching of Noah and his supplications to Allah.{{Quote|{{Quran-range|71|1|28}}|Indeed, We sent Noah to his people, [saying], "Warn your people before there comes to them a painful punishment." He said, "O my people, indeed I am to you a clear warner, [Saying], 'Worship Allah, fear Him and obey me. Allah will forgive you of your sins and delay you for a specified term. Indeed, the time [set by] Allah, when it comes, will not be delayed, if you only knew.' " 
[...]
And Noah said, "My Lord, do not leave upon the earth from among the disbelievers an inhabitant. Indeed, if You leave them, they will mislead Your servants and not beget except [every] wicked one and [confirmed] disbeliever. My Lord, forgive me and my parents and whoever enters my house a believer and the believing men and believing women. And do not increase the wrongdoers except in destruction."}}Reynolds remarks that "The Qur'ānic character of Noah is quite unlike that of the Noah in Genesis, who does not speak a word until after the flood." Citing the Babylonian Talmud, Sanhedrin 108a, he observes that "[his preaching] is also suggested by a passage in the Talmud:
::"The righteous Noah rebuked them, urging, 'Repent; for if not, the Holy One, blessed be He, will bring a deluge upon you and cause your bodies to float upon the water like gourds, as it is written, He is light [i.e., floats] upon the waters. Moreover, ye shall be taken as a curse for all future generations.' (b. Sanhedrin 108a)"
Reynolds further notes, "It is also prominent in the Syriac fathers, several of whom report that Noah preached to his people for a hundred years before God finally sent the flood." citing for example the Syriac authors Narsai, "On the Flood", 33, II. 227-30 and Jacob of Serugh, ''Homilies contre les juifs'', 70, homily 2, II. 37-40.<ref>Gabriel Said Reynolds, ''The Qurʾān and Bible'' p. 858</ref>

The opponents reject Noah's preaching despite him doing so 'day and night' (Quran 71:5-6) in which they respond by putting their fingers in their ears Quran 71:7, on which Neuwirth (2024) notes that "the means of plugging one’s ears in order to shut oneself off from unpleasant news is also encountered in the Talmud (bKetubbot 5a)."<ref>Neuwirth, Angelika. The Qur'an: Text and Commentary, ''Volume 2.1: Early Middle Meccan Suras: The New Elect (p. 280).'' Yale University Press. Kindle Edition.</ref>

=== Noah's disbelieving wife ===
{{Quote|{{Quran|66|10}}|Allah presents an example of those who disbelieved: the wife of Noah and the wife of Lot. They were under two of Our righteous servants but betrayed them, so those prophets did not avail them from Allah at all, and it was said, "Enter the Fire with those who enter."}}The Bible briefly mentions Noah's wife in one verse without further comment ([https://www.biblegateway.com/passage/?search=Genesis%207%3A7&version=NIV Genesis 7:7]), "And Noah and his sons and his wife and his sons’ wives entered the ark to escape the waters of the flood." Regarding the Quranic verse which speaks of her negatively, Reynolds briefly considers the possibility that the Quran has extended to their wives the parallelism between Noah (though not his wife) and Lot found in the New Testament ([https://www.biblegateway.com/passage/?search=2%20Peter%202&version=NIV 2 Peter 2]), but then comments, "However, it is important to note that already in the pre-Islamic period certain groups had developed hostile legends about Noah's wife." He cites Epiphanius (d. 403 CE), ''Panarion'' 2:26, which relates the Gnostic belief that she was not allowed onto the ark, having burned it down three times before the flood.<ref>Gabriel Said Reynolds, ''The Qurʾān and Bible'' p. 841</ref>

=== Noah's flood waters overflowed from an oven ===
The Qur'anic version of the Noah's flood story describes the flood waters as overflowing from an oven. This element is not found even in more ancient versions of the story (Epic of Gilgamesh, Atra hasis, and Ziusudra).

Note that in his translation, Yusuf Ali mistranslates the Aramaic loan word for the oven (alttannooru ٱلتَّنُّورُ)<ref>[http://www.studyquran.org/LaneLexicon/Volume1/00000355.pdf Lane's Lexicon p. 318 تَّنُّورُ]</ref> as "fountains". The Arabic verb translated "gushed forth" (fara فَارَ) means overflowed or boiled in the context of water in a cooking pot<ref>[http://www.studyquran.org/LaneLexicon/Volume6/00000241.pdf Lane's Lexicon p. 2457 فور]</ref>, as well as in the other verse where it is used, {{Quran|67|7}}. Here is Pickthall's more accurate translation:{{Quote|{{Quran|11|40}}|
(Thus it was) till, when Our commandment came to pass '''and the oven gushed forth water''', We said: Load therein two of every kind, a pair (the male and female), and thy household, save him against whom the word hath gone forth already, and those who believe. And but a few were they who believed with him.}}{{Quote|{{Quran|23|27}}|
Then We inspired in him, saying: Make the ship under Our eyes and Our inspiration. Then, when Our command cometh '''and the oven gusheth water''', introduce therein of every (kind) two spouses, and thy household save him thereof against whom the Word hath already gone forth. And plead not with Me on behalf of those who have done wrong. Lo! they will be drowned.}}At one time academic scholars thought this verse alluded to a Midrashic exegesis in which the flood waters were boiling hot (b. Sanhedrin 108b, [https://www.sefaria.org/Rosh_Hashanah.12a.4?lang=bi|Tracate Rosh Hashanah 12a:4]). More recent scholarship, particularly by Olivier Mongellaz in 2024,<ref name="Mongellaz2024">Olivier Mongellaz (2024) [https://brill.com/view/journals/arab/71/4-5/article-p513_4.xml Le four de Noé : un cas d’intertextualité coranique], Arabica 71(4-5), 513-637. https://doi.org/10.1163/15700585-20246900</ref> has identified that these verses most likely reflect a late antique legend in which water gushing up through a bread oven (a large hole dug into the ground) was a sign warning Noah's family of the imminent flood. The interpretation as Noah's own oven is attributed to a number of early commentators (such as Ibn Abbas, Mujahid), while others understood it to be the area of land where the flood waters first rose. Qurtubi said: "The sayings of commentators appear to be different as to the meaning of tannur, but this, in reality, is not a difference. When water began to bulge out, it overflowed from the bread baking oven, and from out of the surface of the land".

Significantly, Mongellaz has argued on literary grounds that a fragmentary Arabic text falsely attributed to Hippolytus of Rome, and which mentions the overflowing bread oven story, is independent of the Islamic tradition and was originally written in a very specific environment which has parallels with the context in which certain parts of the Quran were written.{{Quote|Pseudo. Hippolytus of Rome (translated to English from Mongellaz's French translation)<ref name="Mongellaz2024" />|Meanwhile, Ham's wife stood up to take out the bread that remained in the oven and immediately water sprang out of the oven [fāḍa l-māʾmin al-tannūr] and immediately water came out of the oven, as the Lord had said: "The fountains of the great deeps were opened." Ham's wife called to Noah, saying, "My lord, the word of God has come true (Syr. what God promised has come true!)" - for it had come true just as the Lord had promised her. When Noah heard Ham's wife's words, he said to her, "Oh, the flood has come."}}

=== Noah's ark left behind as a sign ===
{{Quote|{{Quran-range|54|13|15}}|And We carried him on a [construction of] planks and nails, Sailing under Our observation as reward for he who had been denied. And We left it as a sign, so is there any who will remember?}}Unlike the bible, which does not mention the ark as a sign for future generations, Neuwirth (2024) notes the salvation of Noah is made physically plausible to the listeners through the reference to the material verifiability of the ark, which could be taken from various late antique traditions, for example Flavius Josephus (b. 37AD) reports in the ''Jewish Antiquities (I 3.5 § 92)'' of the existence of the remains of Noah’s ark in Armenia (Clementz 1959: 22).<ref name=":0">Neuwirth, Angelika. ''The Qur'an: Text and Commentary, Volume 2.1: Early Middle Meccan Suras: The New Elect (p. 62).'' Yale University Press. Kindle Edition.</ref> She also notes that the appeal to the willingness of the listeners to be admonished by the sign (āya) of Noah’s ark is also reminiscent of the Talmudic story (bSanhedrin 96a) of the death of Sennacherib, who was led to a fateful decision by seeing the remains of Noah’s ark.<ref name=":0" />
==Moses and Pharaoh==
Alongside the biblical account of Moses and the Pharoah, there are some key aspects that match Jewish Rabbinic and Christian non-biblical traditions. Even the place where Moses communicates with God in the story of the burning bush, the word used ''ṭuwan'' in e.g. {{Quran|20|12}} (for the folded land, implying double the holiness)<ref>See; Neuwirth, Angelika. ''The Qur'an: Text and Commentary, Volume 2.1: Early Middle Meccan Suras: The New Elect (p. 199).'' Yale University Press. Kindle Edition. Ṭuwā stands for the holy Mount Sinai or Horeb (cf. KU, 124ff.; FVQ, 206ff.; BEQ, 255ff.). The word was long thought to be a rhyming transformation of Aramaic ṭūrā (“the mountain”), but now, based on rabbinic tradition and in agreement with traditional exegetes, Uri Rubin has convincingly interpreted bi-l-wādī l-muqaddasi Ṭuwā to mean “in the doubly hallowed valley” (see Rubin 2014). (The Sinai is in a sense the “folded Holy Land” [ṬWY = “to fold”].) Citing: Rubin, Uri, 2014, ''[https://urirubin.com/assets/docs/Tuwan.86132451.pdf Moses and the Holy Valley Ṭuwan. On the Biblical and Midrashic Background of a Qurʾanic Scene],'' Journal of Near Eastern Studies 73, 73–81.</ref> does not have a parallel in the bible,<ref>''[https://urirubin.com/assets/docs/Tuwan.86132451.pdf Moses and the Holy Valley Ṭuwan: On the biblical and midrashic background of a qurʾānic scene.]'' Rubin 2014. Ibid. pp. 75.</ref> but does in other Judeo-Christian (later) works.<ref>Ibid. pp. 76-78</ref> And the idea of eschatology in Moses's story such as {{Quran|20|15}}, with reward in the afterlife being mentioned, is not contained in the biblical story of Moses, Neuwirth (2024) notes moves the story into a late antiquity interpretation.<ref>Neuwirth, Angelika. ''The Qur'an: Text and Commentary, Volume 2.1: Early Middle Meccan Suras: The New Elect (p. 199).'' Yale University Press. Kindle Edition.</ref> Key details in the stories include:
===The prophecy of baby Moses===
Alongside the scene of [https://www.biblegateway.com/passage/?search=Exodus%201%3A8-2%3A10&version=NIV Exodus 1:8-2:10] where the Hebrews in Egyptian bondage are told to kill all male babies to control the growing Israelite population, where Moses's mother places his basket in the Nile to escape; Neuwirth (2024) citing Speyer, notes that ''the prophecy to Moses’s mother that an enemy—of Moses as well as of God himself—would take him in reflects a Midrashic interpretation of Exodus Rabba (1:31: “So the daughter of Pharaoh raised the daughter, who was once to take revenge on her father”). The event is explicitly based on a divine intention, namely, to make Moses his chosen one.''<ref>''The Qur'an: Text and Commentary, Volume 2.1: Early Middle Meccan Suras: The New Elect'' Ibid. pp. 201.</ref>{{Quote|{{Quran-range|20|37|39}}|We have bestowed Our favour on you before this, When We told your mother what We relate: 'Put him in a wooden box and cast it in the river. The river will cast it on the bank. An enemy of Ours, and his, will retrieve it.' We bestowed Our love on you that you may be reared under Our eyes.}}And similarly the next verse unlike the bible focuses on the emotional impact of the event on Moses’s mother, Neuwirth notes is comparable to Midrash Exodus Rabba 1:25.<ref>Ibid. pp. 201-202.</ref> Moses's salvation from persecution after manslaughter is commemorated with similar consideration of Moses’s mental condition.<ref>Ibid. pp. 202.</ref>{{Quote|{{Quran|20|40}}|When your sister walked up [to Pharaoh’s palace] saying, “Shall I show you someone who will take care of him?” Then We restored you to your mother, that she might not grieve and be comforted. Then you slew a soul, whereupon We delivered you from anguish, and We tried you with various ordeals. Then you stayed for several years among the people of Midian. Then you turned up as ordained, O Moses!}}
===Moses not suckled by Egyptians===
{{Quote|{{Quran-range|28|12|13}}|And We had prevented from him [all] wet nurses before, so she said, "Shall I direct you to a household that will be responsible for him for you while they are to him [for his upbringing] sincere?" So We restored him to his mother that she might be content and not grieve and that she would know that the promise of Allah is true. But most of the people do not know.}}Reynolds comments, "On this passage cf. Exodus 2:7-9. The Qurʾān's declaration (v. 12) 'We had forbidden him to be suckled by any nurse' (v. 12) reflects a tradition in the Babylonian Talmud that Moses (from whose mouth would come forth the word of God) refused the impure breasts of the Egyptian women:
::Then said his sister to Pharaoh's daughter, Shall I go and call thee a nurse of the Hebrew women? Why just 'of the Hebrew women'? - It teaches that they handed about to all the Egyptian women but he would not suck. He said: Shall a mouth which will speak with [God] suck what is unclean! (b. Sotah 12b)"<ref>Gabriel Said Reynolds, ''The Qurʾān and Bible'' p. 598</ref>
===Moses's speech impediment===
Moses has some kind of speech impediment when going to speak to Pharaoh in the Qurʾān.{{Quote|{{Quran-range|20|24|28}}|"Go to Pharaoh. Indeed, he has transgressed."( Moses) said: "O, my Lord! Expand me my breast,” ease my task for me, And untie the knot from my tongue, so they may understand what I say.”}}Biblical Scholar James Kugel (1997)<ref>Kugel, James L.. The Bible As It Was (Kindle Edition. pp. 432-433). Harvard University Press.</ref> notes that later Jewish and Christian commentators found it necessary to explain Moses's statement in the Old Testament “''Oh my Lord, I am not a man of words … but I am heavy of speech and heavy of tongue''” ([https://www.biblegateway.com/passage/?search=Exodus%204%3A10&version=NIV Exodus 4:10]), as he was believed to be a highly educated man who had been supposedly been schooled in every branch of wisdom, including eloquence.

He notes "it occurred to interpreters that Moses might have been referring here not to any lacuna in his education, but to an actual speech defect, some physical deformity of his mouth or tongue that prevented him from speaking in the usual fashion." We see this in:<ref>Ibid. pp. 432 - 433 (Kindle Edition)</ref>

"''I'' ''am not by nature eloquent; my tongue with difficulty speaks, I stammer, so that I cannot speak before the king."'' —Ezekiel the Tragedian, Exaggē 113– 115 (3rd-2nd century BCE)

''He [Moses] pleased his parents by his beauty, but grieved them by his speech impediment. —''Ephraem, Commentary on Exodus 2: 4 (d. 373 AD)

Others even added stories on how he might have acquired that deformity, such as Josephus in Jewish Antiquities 2: 232– 236 (published ~93/94 AD), connecting their explanation of Moses’ speech problems to the tradition of Pharaoh’s wise men and their warnings about a boy that might grow up and save Israel.<ref>Ibid. pp. 433 - 434 (Kindle Edition)</ref>
===Pharaohs questions===
Neuwirth (2024) comments that the list of further detailed questions to Moses in Surah 26 'The Poets' / al-shuʿarāʾ (i.e. in {{Quran-range|26|22|29}}), citing Speyer, reflect a more detailed episode from Midrash Exodus Rabba 5:18, which also starts from Pharaoh’s self-praise as God.<ref>Neuwirth, Angelika. ''The Qur'an: Text and Commentary, Volume 2.1: Early Middle Meccan Suras: The New Elect (p. 250).'' Yale University Press. Kindle Edition.</ref>
===The Drowning of Pharaoh===
{{Quote|{{Quran-range|10|90|92}}|And We took the Children of Israel across the sea, and Pharaoh and his soldiers pursued them in tyranny and enmity until, when drowning overtook him, he said, "I believe that there is no deity except that in whom the Children of Israel believe, and I am of the Muslims." Now? And you had disobeyed [Him] before and were of the corrupters? So today We will save you in body that you may be to those who succeed you a sign. And indeed, many among the people, of Our signs, are heedless}}Reynolds comments, "The question of Pharaoh's survival appears in an opinion found in the (late fourth century AD) ''Mekilta de-Rabbi Ishmael'' (cr. Gavin McDowell):
::"And the waters returned and covered the chariot etc. [Exo 14:27]. Even Pharaoh, according to the words of R. Judah, as it is said, 'The chariots of Pharaoh and his force, etc.' [Exo 15:4]. R. Nehimiah says: ''Except for Pharaoh.'' About him it says, 'However, for this purpose I have let you live' [Exo 9:16]. Others say that in the end Pharaoh went down and drowned, as it is said, 'Then went the horse of Pharaoh, etc.' [Exo 15:19]. (Beshallah 7)"<ref>Gabriel Said Reynolds, ''The Qurʾān and Bible'' p. 339</ref>
==Arguments for resurrection==
Reynolds (2020) notes the repeated argument that God can resurrect the dead using the analogy that he can bring life back to barren (or dead) land may be connected to a Jewish tradition that God will resurrect the dead with dew, for example, in b. Shabbat 88b.<ref name=":2" />
{{Quote|{{Quran|30|19}}|He brings forth the living from the dead, and brings forth the dead from the living, and revives the earth after its death. Likewise, you [too] shall be raised [from the dead].}}

Cf: {{Quran|16|65}}, {{Quran|43|11}}, {{Quran|50|6-11}}, {{Quran|57|17}}
==Late antique Christian Martyrdom==
{{Main|Shaheed (Martyr)}}
Durie (2018) notes the violence of the Qur'an shares more commonality with contemporary late antique religious (primarily Christian) violence and warfare rather than being directly biblically based.<ref>Durie, Mark. ''The Qur’an and Its Biblical Reflexes: Investigations into the Genesis of a Religion.'' Lexington Books. 2018. Pp. 229 -237. (Kindle Edition: pp. 423-439). 6.9 Stories of Fighting Prophets</ref>

=== Textual overlap ===

Covering the continuity and similarities between late antique religious violence & warfare and the Qur'an (and other Islamic traditions) is too big a topic to cover here; perhaps the most in-depth academic work looking at the continuity between this and Islam is Thomas Sizgorich's ''Violence and Belief in Late Antiquity: Militant Devotion in Christianity and Islam'', however Sinai (2017) notes alongside similar ideas and theology, there are some direct textual references.{{Quote|Sinai, Nicolai. Qur'an: A Historical-Critical Introduction (The New Edinburgh Islamic Surveys) (pp. 301-302). Edinburgh University Press. Kindle Edition.|That the Qur’anic community’s access to Biblical notions of militancy was mediated by late antique Christian discourse is indicated by an intriguing intertextual overlap. According to Q 3: 169–170, those who have been ‘killed in the path of God’ are not dead but ‘alive with their Lord’, rather than having to spend the remaining time until the Resurrection in a state of slumber (similarly Q 2: 154).39 Tor Andrae has pointed out that the phrase ‘alive with their Lord’ (ayāun inda rabbihim) corresponds exactly to the Syriac phrase h. ayyē lwāth alāhā, which a sixth-century Syriac Christian writer (Mar Ishay) applies to the martyrs.40 Furthermore, Mar Ishay contrasts the true fate of the martyrs with unfounded prior opinion: ‘they are believed to be already dead’.41 The same contrast is found in the two Qur’anic passages just cited.42 It could be objected that the parallel demonstrates merely that the Qur’an is familiar with the widespread Christian idea that martyrs are granted prompt access to paradise but that this does not establish a Christian precedent for the Qur’anic application of this idea specifically to those who actively enact – rather than just suffer – violence. However, as Sizgorich reminds us, a Christian martyr was by no means seen merely as a passive victim of persecution but rather as someone who actively ‘defeats the power of the Roman state’.43}}{{Quote|{{Quran|3|169}}|And never think of those who have been killed in the cause of Allah as dead. Rather, they are alive with their Lord, receiving provision}}{{Quote|{{Quran|2|154}}|Do not say that those who are killed in the way of God, are dead, for indeed they are alive, even though you are not aware.}}

=== Martyrs sidestep judgement day ===
After death, humans are typically said to spend their time in an intermediate state known to traditional Islamic scholars as the ''barzakh'' while they wait.<ref>Reynolds, Gabriel Said. 2020. ''Allah:'' ''God in the Qur'an (p. 71-72).'' Yale University Press. Kindle Edition.

It is also the same term used for the barrier between the living and the dead (whilst awaiting judgement day) in the Qur'an, e.g. {{Quran|23|99-100}}</ref> However, as in the above verses, one exception to this rule is Martyrs being with God straight away rather than being judged at judgment day, a non-biblical idea having parallels with late antique Christian thought.

Sinai (2017) similarly notes strong ideological parallels a 6th century hagiographical text (the Panegyric on Macarius, Bishop of Tkow by Pseudo-Dioscorus of Alexandria) of a 5th-century martyr, Egyptian Bishop Macarius of Tkow who was martyred for opposing the council of Chalcedon. Citing Michael Gaddis's summary of the document, ‘He was both willing to die for his faith, and willing to kill for it.’ he notes the same idea in {{Quran|9|111}} … they fight in the way of Allah, kill, and are killed.. <ref>Ibid. (Kindle Edition. pp. 299).</ref> As well as citing English historian of the Byzantine Empire James Howard-Johnston "''..James Howard-Johnston draws attention to a passage in the Chronicle of Theophanes Confessor (d. 818), which reports that at about the same time when the Qur’an promised those ‘killed in the path of God’ immediate entry to paradise, the Byzantine emperor Heraclius similarly announced that those fighting the Sasanians would be recompensed with eternal life. In Heraclius’s address as reported by Theophanes Confessor, we find some of the same general ingredients that are noticeable in Qur’anic calls to militancy…''"<ref>Ibid. (Kindle Edition. pp. 301).</ref> He notes these similarities are likely caused by being on the fringes of the Roman empire.<ref>Ibid. (Kindle Edition. pp. 301).</ref>

==== Martyrdom wipes away other sins and is privileged above other acts from believers ====
{{Quote|Reynolds, Gabriel Said. Christianity and the Qur'an: The Rise of Islam in Christian Arabia (pp. 178-179). Yale University Press. Kindle Edition.|The teaching on the glory earned by martyrs is widespread in the early church. It is nevertheless telling to find the way it is emphasized in the third-century Christian text the aforementioned Didascalia Apostolorum, originally written in Greek but preserved in Syriac.87 The Didascalia clearly teaches that the martyrs will have a privilege above other faithful believers: If then He raises up all men,—as He said by Isaiah: All flesh shall see the salvation of God [Isa 40.5; 52.10],—much more will He quicken and raise up the faithful; and (yet more) again will He quicken and raise up the faithful of the faithful, who are the martyrs, and establish them in great glory and make them His counsellors. For to mere disciples, those who believe in Him, He has promised a glory as of the stars [Dan 12.3]; but to the martyrs He has promised to give an everlasting glory, as of the luminaries which fail not, with more abundant light, that they may be shining for all time.88

The Didascalia is also clear, as is the Qur’an, that martyrs enjoy a special grace through the forgiveness of sins that their deaths have earned for them: But again, sins are forgiven by baptism also to those who from the Gentiles draw near and enter the holy Church of God. Let us inquire also, to whom sins are not imputed. To such as Abraham and Isaac and Jacob and all the patriarchs, as also to the martyrs. Let us hear then, brethren, for the Scripture saith: Who shall boast himself and say: I am clear of sins? Or who shall be confident and say: I am innocent? [Prov 20.9].

And again: There is no man pure of defilement: not though his life be but one day [Job 14.4–5 LXX]. To everyone therefore who believes and is baptized his … former sins have been forgiven; but after baptism also, provided that he has not sinned a deadly sin nor been an accomplice (thereto), but has heard only, or seen, or spoken, and is thus guilty of sin. But if a man go forth from the world by martyrdom for the name of the Lord, blessed is he; for brethren who by martyrdom have gone forth from this world, of these the sins are covered.89

We might compare Q 3:195: “ ‘And those who emigrated, and were expelled from their habitations, those who suffered hurt in My way, and fought, and were slain—them I shall surely acquit of their evil deeds, and I shall admit them to gardens underneath which rivers flow.’ A reward from God! And God with Him is the fairest reward” (italics added). In other words, the Qur’an seems to be well aware of Christian devotion to the martyrs.}}

=== Martyrdom in the Torah and Gospels ===
Muslims who fight are promised paradise, which the Qur'an claims is also a promise in the Torah and Gospel.{{Quote|{{Quran|9|111}}|Indeed Allah has bought from the faithful their souls and their possessions for paradise to be theirs: they fight in the way of Allah, kill, and are killed. A promise binding upon Him in the Torah and the Evangel and the Quran. And who is truer to his promise than Allah? So rejoice in the bargain you have made with Him, and that is the great success.}}Nickel (2020)<ref>Nickel, Gordon D. ''The Quran with Christian Commentary: A Guide to Understanding the Scripture of Islam (p. 222).'' Zondervan Academic. Kindle Edition. 9.111 – They fight in the way of God, and they kill and are killed When the Quran describes believers as fighting “in the way of Allah,” it makes a theological claim by associating Allah with human fighting. See the analysis of these expressions at 73.20 (p. 597). 9.111 – a promise binding on Him in the Torah, and the Gospel, and the Qur’ān This is the only verse in the Quran that brings the Torah (tawrāt), Gospel (injīl), and qur’ān (lit. “recitation”) together. The Quran claims here that the particular point on which the Torah and Gospel agree with the Muslim recitation is that believers “fight in the way of Allah, and they kill and are killed.” This verse makes the reader question whether the Quran has a clear idea of the contents of the Torah and Gospel. A similar question is raised by 61.14, which appears to say that ‘Īsā and his disciples fought against their enemies (cf. 3.52). Along with these misunderstandings, the Quran gives no information about the peaceable teaching and example of Jesus in the Gospel accounts. See the analysis of the Quran’s verses on the “Gospel” at 57.27 (p. 549). Do the Torah and Gospel in fact contain such a promise? See the comment on this characterization of the Bible at 61.14 (p. 566).</ref> and Reynolds (2018) however notes that this is not found there:{{Quote|1=Reynolds, G. S. (2018). The Qur'an and the Bible: Text and Commentary. Commentary on 9:111 (pp. 322) United Kingdom: Yale University Press.|2="9:111 The point of this verse is that those who are prepared to give their lives to God in the holy war are promised paradise as a payment for their services (cf. 2:245; 4:74; 61:10–12). The idea that the martyrs have a special assurance of paradise follows from the Qurʾān’s teaching elsewhere that the act of martyrdom involves forgiveness of sin. This teaching is close to that of the Syriac fathers (see commentary on 2:154, with further references). It is curious that the Qurʾān insists that the promise of heaven for holy warriors is found in the Torah and the Gospel (or “Evangel”); heaven is not found in the Torah and holy war is not found in the Gospels...}}While his commentary on 2:154 (pp. 76) once again highlights the Syriac parallel:{{Quote|2="As Tor Andrae has shown (Les origines de l’islam et le christianisme, 161ff.), the idea that martyrdom involves the absolution of sins is prominent in Syriac Christian texts such as the third-century Didascalia (chap. 20) and the Treaty on the Martyrs of Mar Isaï (d. late sixth cen.); the latter text also insists—much like the Qurʾān—that the martyrs are “living”:

The true martyrs who, by way of a death that covers their sins, demonstrate even more the beauty of their deeds and receive this glorious inheritance by virtue of their blood. By leaving this life they have prepared for their souls an honorable abode in paradise. It was thought that they are already dead, but by their death they have killed their sin, and they are alive with God. (Mar Isaï, Treaty on the Martyrs, 32)}}
=== Further Martyrdom Influence ===
Neuwirth (2024) also notes the influence of Christian martyrdom stories on the sudden conversion and prayers/asking for forgiveness to God of Pharaoh's magician's, who are originally opponents of Moses until he shows them proof of his prophecy via a miracle in the face of a sudden and violent death as threatened by the arrogant ruler (e.g. in {{Quran-range|26|50|51}} and {{Quran-range|20|71|73}}).<ref>Neuwirth, Angelika. ''The Qur'an: Text and Commentary, Volume 2.1: Early Middle Meccan Suras: The New Elect (p. 204).'' Yale University Press. Kindle Edition.</ref> Both Jewish and Christian traditions present individual “anti-Moses” sorcerers named Jannes and Jambres, who continue to appear in later interpretations; citing Nora Schmid, she notes that, although there is no explicit textual reference and the magicians are typically depicted in a negative light, they came to be associated with penance and martyrdom in Christian tradition - in the Qurʾan, this idea is developed further: the forgiveness that Jannes and Jambres either did not receive or only partially received in earlier sources is ultimately granted.<ref>Ibid. pp. 251-252</ref>{{Quote|Neuwirth, Angelika. The Qur'an: Text and Commentary, Volume 2.1: Early Middle Meccan Suras: The New Elect (p. 204). Yale University Press. Kindle Edition.|V. 72–73 qālū lan nuʾthiraka ʿalā mā jāʾanā mina l-bayyināti wa-lladhī faṭaranā fa-qḍi mā anta qāḍin innamā taqḍī hādhihi l-ḥayāta l-dunyā / innā āmannā birabbinā li-yaghfira lanā khaṭāyānā wa-mā akrahtanā ʿalayhi mina l-siḥri wallāhu khayrun wa-abqā] Conversion scene as later in Q 26:50–51. The sorcerers renounce their allegiance to Pharaoh on the basis of the obvious evidence (bayyināt) and give preference to the Creator God, they submit to their worldly fate and hope for the forgiveness of their sins and what they have been forced to do by the ruler—they are a role model for the community, which is also subject to pressure from outside. The request for forgiveness of sins before a violent death is a topos of Christian martyr stories. The entire scene, leaving the context of ‘ancient’ Egypt, reflects the notion of Christian martyrdom stories. Khaṭāyā (singular khaṭīʾa) also lets a Syriac terminus technicus ring through, but the word can be derived from the Arabic root KhṬʿ (“to miss a goal”) (see FVQ, 123ff.). The idea of the forgiveness of sins is prominent in the Christian liturgy—not only through the Lord’s Prayer. In addition to khaṭīʾa, there is the genuine Arabic dhanb, dhunūb.}}

== Expansions on the afterlife ==

Reynolds (2020) notes the Qur’ans provides vivid depictions of hell are highly unlike the New Testament, where Jesus refers to afterlife punishment mostly allusively. The closest the Gospels describe hell is through the few images of “fire,” “wailing,” and “gnashing of teeth.”, for example in Matthew’s Parable of the Weeds, Jesus explains that at the end of the age, the Son of Man will send his angels that will cast evildoers into a fiery furnace where there will be weeping and gnashing of teeth (Matt 13:40–42).<ref>Reynolds, Gabriel Said. ''Allah: God in the Qur'an (pp. 81-82).'' Yale University Press. Kindle Edition.</ref> He notes the much more constant an vivid Qur'anic descriptions far better match later Christian works that expanded the descriptions to be more gruesome, in order to scare the reader/audience.<ref>Ibid. pp. 88.

''We might note how all of these traditions are meant to make humans yearn for paradise and fear hell. The Qur’an, from this regard, is a profoundly psychological work. Like a Christian preacher, like John Chrysostom or Saint Ephrem, the author of the Qur’an speaks of heaven and hell to persuade his audience to repent and believe. He does so in a way, however, that is distinct—emphasizing physical pain and physical pleasure in order, apparently, to make a greater impression on his audience. He puts a terrible tree into hell and young women in paradise.''
</ref>{{Quote|Reynolds, Gabriel Said. Allah: God in the Qur'an (pp. 82-83). Yale University Press. Kindle Edition.|The way that the Qur’an describes hell in particularly vivid, gruesome terms brings us back to something we mentioned in Chapter 1, namely, that the Qur’an in many ways is a “homiletic” work, a work written like a homily or sermon. The Qur’an’s intention is not simply to declare that those who disobey God will be punished, but to describe that punishment in a way which brings the awfulness of hell to life. Similarly, homilists in the early centuries of Christianity expanded dramatically on the New Testament allusions to hell. In a sermon attributed to John Chrysostom (d. 407) we read a description of hell with the sort of detail that we find in the Qur’an: It is a sea of fire—not a sea of the kind or dimensions we know here, but much larger and fiercer, with waves made of fire, fire of a strange and fearsome kind. There is a great abyss there, in fact, of terrible flames, and one can see fire rushing about on all sides like some wild animal…. There will be no one who can resist, no one who can escape: Christ’s gentle, peaceful face will be nowhere to be seen.15}}Sinai (2017) in his paper titled "''The Eschatological Kerygma of the Early Qur’an''" notes many overlap with Syriac Homilies on the afterlife as well as other apocalyptic ideas and terminology.<ref>“[https://almuslih.org/wp-content/uploads/Library/Sinai,%20N%20-%20The%20Eschatological%20Kerygma.pdf The Eschatological Kerygma of the Early Qur’an]”, Nicolai Sinai, in ''Apocalypticism and Eschatology in Late Antiquity: Encounters in the Abrahamic Religions, 6th–8th Centuries'', edited by Hagit Amirav, Emmanouela Grypeou, and Guy Stroumsa, Leuven: Peeters, 2017, 219–266.

These are discussed throughout the whole paper, and a summary can be found in pp.50-57. On heaven and hell specifically, the summary is on pp.55-57.</ref>

== Souls are taken away at night ==

The Qur'an (and traditional Islamic exegetes)<ref>See classical commentaries on these verses such as Al-Jalalayn on [https://quranx.com/Tafsir/Jalal/39.42 Q39:42], [https://quranx.com/Tafsir/Jalal/6.60 Q6:60] and Ibn Kathir on [https://quranx.com/Tafsir/Kathir/39.41 Q39:41-2] and [https://quranx.com/Tafsir/Kathir/6.60 Q6:60]</ref> state that the soul is taken away by Allah during the night.{{Quote|{{Quran|39|42}}|Allah takes the souls at the time of their death, and those who have not died, in their sleep. Then He retains those for whom He has ordained death and releases the others until a specified time. There are indeed signs in that for a people who reflect.}}{{Quote|{{Quran|6|60}}|It is He who takes your souls by night, and He knows what you do by day, then He reanimates you therein so that a specified term may be completed. Then to Him will be your return, whereat He will inform you concerning what you used to do.}}Tesei (2016) notes this idea may mimic a late antique Syriac Christian parallel in the poetical language used by Ephrem, who in the Nisibene hymns (7:15) mentions sleep resembles death, and other Christian writers (such as Babai) wrote about sleep metaphorically Jesus's death and waking up like the resurrection;<ref>Tesei, Tommaso. (2016). "[https://www.researchgate.net/publication/344524709_2_The_barzakh_and_the_Intermediate_State_of_the_Dead_in_the_Quran 2 The barzakh and the Intermediate State of the Dead in the Quran]". pp. 40-42 In Locating Hell in Islamic Traditions. Leiden, The Netherlands: Brill. <nowiki>https://doi.org/10.1163/9789004301368_003</nowiki> (Open access)

''At the same time, the Quran also compares death to the “common sleep” that people experience on a daily basis. This seems to be the case in the cryptic statement found in Q 39:42 (cf. Q 6:60), “God takes the souls at the time of their death (ḥīna mawtihā), and [He takes] that which has not died, in its sleep ( fī manāmihā); He withholds that against which He has decreed death, but sets loose the other until a stated term”. This obscure passage appears to indicate that sleep is a death-like state; sleepers resemble the dead since their souls enter into a state similar to that which they will experience at the moment of death. However, unlike the souls of the dead, which will be raised only on the Day of Resurrection, the ordinary sleeper’s soul is sent back when he awakens―that is, of course, until the time of his death. This parallel between death and “common sleep” finds a fairly close correspondence in the poetical language used by Ephrem, who in the Nisibene hymns (7:15) affirms that: “The one who lies down to sleep resembles the departed and death resembles a dream, and the resurrection the morning”. In these passages the Quran’s eschatological discourse is particularly close to that formulated by Babai, in whose ideas the belief in the soul’s sleep is intimately connected to the strong affirmation of the physical resurrection of the body on the Day of Judgment.'' </ref> with this idea taken literally by Muhammad.

== Arguments for resurrection ==
Reynolds (2020) notes the repeated argument that God can resurrect the dead using the analogy that he can bring life back to barren (or dead) land may be connected to a Jewish tradition that God will resurrect the dead with dew, for example, in b. Shabbat 88b.<ref name=":2">See: Reynolds, Gabriel Said. Allah: ''God in the Qur'an (pp. 76-77).'' Yale University Press. Kindle Edition.

And Footnote 10: Reynolds, Gabriel Said. ''Allah: God in the Qur'an (p. 254).'' Yale University Press. Kindle Edition.</ref>
{{Quote|{{Quran|30|19}}|He brings forth the living from the dead, and brings forth the dead from the living, and revives the earth after its death. Likewise, you [too] shall be raised [from the dead].}}

Cf: {{Quran|16|65}}, {{Quran|43|11}}, {{Quran|50|6-11}}, {{Quran|57|17}}

==See Also==
*[[Pre-Islamic Arab Religion in Islam]]

* [[Parallels Between the Qur'an and Late Antique Judeo-Christian Literature|Parallels Between the Qur'an and Late Antique Judeo-Christian Literature - Part 1]]
* [[Historical Errors in the Quran]]
==References==
<references />

User:CPO675/Sandbox 1

2026-06-07T19:57:14Z

CPO675: /* The story of Joseph */

== The story of Joseph ==
There are many differences between the story of Joseph (Arabic: ''Yūsuf'') in the Qur'an, told in full in Surah 12 (Surah Yūsuf), and the book of Genesis in the bible. Reynolds (2025), largely citing Witzum's (2011) 'The Syriac Millenia of the Qur'an: The Recasting of Biblical Narratives',<ref>Witztum, Joseph (2011) ''[https://almuslih.org/wp-content/uploads/2024/11/Witztum-J-The-Syriac-milieu-of-the-Quran.pdf The Syriac milieu of the Quran: The recasting of Biblical narratives], pp191-239.'' PhD Thesis, Princeton University</ref> notes how these differences directly match post-biblical writings; with almost all of these distinctive Qur’anic elements showing dependence on or conversation with Syriac Christian traditions (such as Pseudo-Narsai, Ephrem, Pseudo-Basil, Balai, Syriac Bible/Peshitta), which comes as part of his argument that Christian traditions were known by Muhammad's community. A few overlap with the Jewish midrash, but the strongest and most consistent influence comes from Christian sources.<ref name=":4">Reynolds, Gabriel Said. C''hristianity and the Qur'an: The Rise of Islam in Christian Arabia (p. 76-86).'' Yale University Press. Kindle Edition.</ref>

Reynolds provides provides 11 clear examples of this:<ref name=":4" />

# Joseph’s singular dream: the Qur’an has only one dream (unlike the Book of Genesis which has two) told directly to Jacob, who warns him to keep it secret - matching Pseudo-Narsai’s homily (5th-century Syriac Christian).<ref>Ibid. pp76, pp81</ref>
# The brothers' plot to kill Joseph: the Qur’an has the brothers plotting at home, not spontaneously in the fields - also found in Pseudo-Narsai.<ref>Ibid. pp78, pp82</ref>
# The wolf motif: the Qur’an specifies a wolf instead of a vague “wild animal” in Genesis - which links to Christian tradition (Pseudo-Narsai) who calls the brothers “wolves” and Joseph “a lamb,” echoing Gospel imagery of shepherds/sheep<ref>Ibid. pp78, pp82-83</ref>.
# Joseph in the pit: the Qur’an has Joseph comforted by God in the pit (''jubb''; {{Quran|12|15}}) - which again follows a report in Pseudo-Narsai of revelation to Joseph in the pit (Syriac ''gubbā'').<ref name=":5">Ibid. pp78, pp83</ref>
# Jacob’s (Joseph's father) response to the bloody shirt: the Qur’an has Jacob suspecting deception - reflected in homilies from Ephrem and Balai, who also have Jacob reason that the brothers’ story is false.<ref name=":5" />
# Potiphar and the garment: the Qur’an shows Potiphar recognizing Joseph’s innocence and his wife's guilt in trying to seduce him - found in some post-biblical Jewish Traditions (including ''Genesis Rabbah 87:9'') where he shows knowledge of Joseph's innocence - however only in Christian traditions (e.g., Pseudo-Narsai) do we find Potiphar, as in {{Quran|12|28-29}}, also arguing for Joseph’s innocence by referring to the torn garment as proof.<ref name=":5" />
# Potiphar’s wife confesses: the Qur’an has her admit guilt later in the story - found in the Pseudo-Narsai, where she confesses after Joseph’s rise to power.<ref>Ibid. pp78-79, pp83</ref>
# Jacob’s blindness healed by Joseph’s shirt: the Qur’an reports Jacob miraculously regains sight when Joseph’s shirt touches his face - in the bible Jacob is firstly simply 'dim/heavy with age' in Genesis 48:10, but nothing is said about blindness, which is found in Christian late antique sources, and secondly using the garment to heal him draws on Syriac Christian idioms; (“lighten the eyes” = to gladden), made literal in the Qur’an (like other symbolic items in Christian stories) to heal Jacob's eyes.<ref>Ibid. pp79, pp83-84</ref>
# Joseph called a thief by his brothers: the Qur’an has Joseph's brothers suggest he committed a past theft - which is rooted in Pseudo-Narsai, which connects Benjamin’s cup incident to Rachel stealing idols and compares Joseph to her.<ref>Ibid. pp79, pp84-85</ref>
# Joseph’s garment sent to Jacob: the Qur’an has Joseph send his shirt to Jacob - which is related to the Syriac Peshitta (and Septuagint and Vulgate) reading of Genesis and Balai’s poetry, where Jacob receives garments from Joseph.<ref name=":6">Ibid. pp79, pp85</ref>
# The brothers ask for Jacob’s forgiveness – the Qur’an has them repent to Jacob, who asks God to forgive them - which echoes Balai, who also has Jacob forgive and pray for them.<ref name=":6" />

== Flat Earth - Tafsirs ==

=== The Highest Horizon ===
The Qu'ran says Muhammad was in the highest horizon ''bil-ufuqi<ref>افق - [https://lexicon.quranic-research.net/data/01_A/103_Afq.html Lane's lexicon Classical Arabic Dictionary root: hamza fā qāf (أ ف ق)]

Horizon ''ufuq'' (أُفُق) [https://lexicon.quranic-research.net/pdf/Page_0068.pdf Lane's Lexicon p.68]

Horizon ''ufuq'' (أُفُق) [https://lexicon.quranic-research.net/pdf/Page_0069.pdf Lane's Lexicon p.69] </ref>l-aʿlā''<ref>Lanes Lexicon Classical Arabic Dictionary Root: [https://lexicon.quranic-research.net/data/18_E/190_Elw.html ʿayn lām wāw (ع ل و)]

(l-a)ʿlā [https://lexicon.quranic-research.net/pdf/Page_2142.pdf Lanes Lexicon p.2142], [https://lexicon.quranic-research.net/pdf/Page_2143.pdf Lanes Lexicon p.2143]

</ref>. Typically taken as referring to him receiving knowledge there as part of his [[Buraq#The Night Journey (al-Isra wal-Mi'raj)|night journey]].
{{Quote|{{Quran|53|7}}|possessed of sound judgement. He settled, while he (was) in the horizon - the highest.}}See also: {{Quran|81|23}}

On a round Earth, there is no such place as an objective highest horizon, as once you move towards the perceived horizon (the furthest place you can see where the land and sky appear to meet in the distance)<ref>[https://dictionary.cambridge.org/dictionary/english/horizon Horizon Definition] Cambridge Dictionary</ref> the view simply moves further back as you circle around the earth, never actually being reached. So some classical Islamic exegetes have taken this to be the place where the sun rises from, in the seventh heaven, or where it reaches the Earth,<ref>E.g. [https://quranx.com/Tafsir/Jalal/53.7 Tafsir al-Jalalayn on verse Q53:7] by Al-Mahalli (d. 1459 CE) and Al-Suyuti (d. 1505 CE) and the famous pseudepigrapha [https://quranx.com/Tafsir/Abbas/53.7 Tanwîr al-Miqbâs min Tafsîr Ibn ‘Abbâs on verse Q53:7]</ref> which is only possible on a flat Earth.

== The Historical Jesus ==

=== Other Traditions ===

==== Intro ====

Alongside the main consensus from Biblical Scholars/Historians that Jesus was an eschatological preacher in the early first century AD who believed the Earth would end during his time (and therefore couldn't be the Muslim Jesus), there are many other of the most considered authentic teachings of Jesus that clash with Islam; in contrast with the Qur'anic principle of Messenger Uniformitarianism; where all messengers preach essentially the same thing with only minor variations.<ref>Durie, Mark. ''The Qur’an and Its Biblical Reflexes: Investigations into the Genesis of a Religion (pp. 135-142) (Kindle Edition pp. 281-294)''. 5.3 Messenger Uniformitarianism. Lexington Books. 2018.</ref>
{{Quote|{{Quran|41|43}}|Not is said to you except what was said to the Messengers before you. Indeed, your Lord (is) Possessor (of) forgiveness, and Possessor (of) penalty painful.}}{{Quote|{{Quran|2|285}}|The Apostle and the faithful have faith in what has been sent down to him from his Lord. Each [of them] has faith in Allah, His angels, His scriptures and His apostles. [They declare,] ‘We make no distinction between any of His apostles.’ And they say, ‘We hear and obey. Our Lord, forgive us, and toward You is the return.’}}

{{Quote|{{Quran|17|77}}|“This was the sunnah [customary way] of Our messengers whom We sent before you, and you will find no change in Our sunnah”}}cf. {{Quran|6|112}}, {{Quran|35|43}}, {{Quran|22|78}}.

Other than being explicitly told that messengers bring the same message from Allah, Durie (2018) notes the Qur'an repeatedly states that Muhammad was sent to confirm the revelations given to earlier messengers (Q2:91, 97; Q3:3, 50; Q5:48; Q12:111; Q16:43–44; Q35:31), just as each prophet before him confirmed those who came earlier. For example, Jesus (ʿĪsa) confirmed the Torah of Moses (Mūsa) (Q5:46), and the Qurʾan confirms the scriptures revealed to previous prophets (Q4:47). In this way, Muhammad’s role continues the same pattern of reaffirming earlier divine messages rather than introducing a completely new one.<ref>Durie, Mark. ''The Qur’an and Its Biblical Reflexes: Investigations Into the Genesis of a Religion.'' pp.140</ref>

{{Quote|Durie, Mark. The Qur'an and it's Biblical Reflexes. pp.140|• It is also explicitly asserted that messengers bring the same message
from Alla¯h: “Nothing is said to you but what has already been said to
messengers before you” (Q41:43; Q22:78) and “we make no distinction
between any of them” (Q2:136). They also preached the same dīn “commandment” or “religion” (Q42:13; cf. Q3:84; Q4:150), which is referred
to as the “religion of Ibra¯hīm” (Q2:130; Q4:125; Q16:121–23). The
validating function of this idea becomes clear when it is applied against
a group of Jews who reject the concept of the “same message” because
it would mean validating the Messenger. These Jews hold to their own
faith, saying “we believe in what has been sent down on us,” but they
reject the Messenger, or “anything after that” (Q2:91). The ruling against
these Jews is that because they reject the Messenger, they are disbelievers,
rejecting “what All a¯ h has sent down” (Q2:91).31 The idea of the “same message” is further reinforced when the Qurʾan repeatedly states that the Messenger was only sent to confirm what was sent down by previous
messengers (Q2:91, 97; Q3:3, 50; Q5:48; Q12:111; Q16:43–44; Q35:31),
just as previous messengers had done for messengers that preceded them,
for example, ʿĪsa¯ “confirmed” the Tawra¯ h of Mūsa¯(Q5:46), and the Qurʾan
confirms the book(s) sent by previous prophets (Q4:47), just as the Messenger has been doing in his turn.}}
The large differences between the New Testament / Gospels (and by extension the Christian Jesus), and the [[Isa al-Masih (Jesus Christ)|Muslim Jesus,]] are clear to anyone who has read both the Qur'an and NT; with the Qur'an having it's own spin on him and taking many aspects from apocrypha considered inauthentic by NT scholars,<ref>Sanders, E.. ''The Historical Figure of Jesus (pp. 78-79)''. Penguin Books Ltd. Kindle Edition.

..(Gnosticism was a world view that held everything material to be evil; the god who created the world was a bad god, and the creation was wicked. Gnostics who were also Christians held that the good God had sent Jesus to redeem people’s souls, not their bodies, and that Jesus was not a real human being. The Christians who objected to these views finally declared them heretical.) ''I share the general scholarly view that very, very little in the apocryphal gospels could conceivably go back to the time of Jesus. They are legendary and mythological. Of all the apocryphal material, only some of the sayings in the Gospel of Thomas are worth consideration.'' This does not mean that we can make a clean division: the historical four gospels versus the legendary apocryphal gospels. There are legendary traits in the four gospels in the New Testament, and there is also a certain amount of newly created material (as we saw just above)..</ref> and [[Parallels Between the Qur'an and Late Antique Judeo-Christian Literature|later Christian thought/writings]], and have lead to many Muslims arguing for biblical corruption based on textual and theological grounds [though textual don't affect most early & authentic traditions] in general, which is a disputed idea in traditional Islamic thought (cite - Reynolds article. See also: [[Corruption of Previous Scriptures]] & [[Qur'an, Hadith and Scholars:Corruption of Previous Scriptures]])

Historians have searched for a summary of some of the most likely authentic traditions from Biblical historians (using historical-critical methods not Christian or Muslim theologians - more likely to be true and not taken from bias or proving or disproving Islam but historical context, widespread across sources, early - cite Allison explanation - Why - different to time and context, unlikely to be fabricated later by Christians, across all early sources etc.) are shown here as an example of the clashes. [Point: not arguing against Christian Jesus - but secular historians one]

==== Examples ====
{{Quote|Dale C. Allison Jr.. The Historical Christ and the Theological Jesus (Kindle Locations 822-836). Kindle Edition.|2=Given that we typically remember the outlines of an event or the general purport of a conversation rather than the particulars and that we extract patterns and meaning from our memories, it makes little sense to open the quest for Jesus by evaluating individual items with our criteria, in the hope that some bits preserve pristine memory. We should rather be looking for repeating patterns and contemplating the big picture. true. We should trust first, if we are to trust at all, what is most likely to be trustworthy. Although we may, after reading Thucydides, be confident that there was a Peloponnesian War, we may well wonder about many of the details of his account.

The larger the generalization and the more data upon which it is based, the greater our confidence; the more specific the detail and the fewer the data supporting it, the more room we have for doubt. With regard to the sources for Jesus, the traditional criteria of authenticity privilege the parts over the whole. It seems more prudent to privilege generalizations drawn from the whole than to concentrate upon one individual item after another. As a demonstration of how this works in practice, consider the following traditions:

• Jesus prohibited divorce: 1 Cor. 7:10; Mark 10:2-9; Luke 16:18. [Qur'an divorce rules - https://wikiislam.net/wiki/Khula] 

• Jesus sent forth missionaries without staff, food, or money: Matt. 10:9-10; Mark 6:8-9; Luke 10:4.

• Jesus instructed missionaries to get their living by the gospel: 1 Cor. 9:14; Matt. 10:10; Luke 10:7.

• Jesus commanded loving and doing good to enemies: Matt. 5:38-48; Luke 6:27-36. [Qur'an do not be merciful to unbelievers https://wikiislam.net/wiki/Qur%27an,_Hadith_and_Scholars:Non-Muslims & https://wikiislam.net/wiki/Kafir_(Infidel)#Guidelines_on_how_to_deal_with_disbelievers Quran 48:29 ]

• Jesus forbade judging others: Matt. 7:1-2; Luke 6:37-38.

• Jesus asked a prospective follower not to bury his father: Matt. 8:21-22; 22; Luke 959-60.

• Jesus spoke of hating one's father and mother: Matt. 10:37; Luke 14:26; Gospel of Thomas 55, 101. [respect parents - too tenuous]

• Jesus enjoined disciples to take up a cross: Matt. 10:38; Mark 8:34; Luke 14:27.

• Jesus enjoined unlimited forgiveness: Matt. 18:21-22; Luke 17:3-4. [forgiveness against shirk - Qur'an says no Q4:48 and 4:116. ]

• Jesus exhorted hearers to lose their lives in order to save them: Matt. 10:39; Mark 8:35; Luke 17:33.

• Jesus called people away from their livelihoods: Mark 1:16-20; 2:14. [?]

• Jesus figuratively demanded violent removal of hand, foot, and eye: Mark 9:42-48.

• Jesus asked a wealthy man to relinquish his money: Mark 10:17-27. [bring in wealth inequality section of Islam darajat - here]

• Jesus forbade taking oaths: Matt. 5:33-37. [https://www.iium.edu.my/deed/lawbase/risalah_maliki/book31.html#:~:text=Anyone%20who%20swears%20an%20oath,Oneness%2C%20timelessness%20and%20existence.%5D]

• Jesus commanded money to be lent without interest: Matt. 5:42; Gospel of Thomas 95.

• Jesus called some to a life without marriage: Matt. 19:11-12. [Qur'an criticism of monasticism]

• Jesus asked a prospective follower not to say farewell to his parents: Luke 9:61-62. [respect parents?]

• Jesus asked his disciples to renounce all of their possessions: Luke 14:33"}}
<nowiki>--------------------------------------------------</nowiki>

[ highlight those being spoken about in italics or bold]

Professor Allison (2009) notes that Jesus' banning divorce was an important teaching that <s>stood out</s> to early Christians, [https://www.biblegateway.com/passage/?search=Luke%2016%3A18&version=NIV Luke 16:18], [https://www.biblegateway.com/passage/?search=1%20Corinthians%207%3A10-16&version=NIV 1 Corinthians 7:10-16], [https://www.biblegateway.com/passage/?search=Mark%2010%3A2-9&version=NIV Mark 10:2-9], in contrast to Judaism ([https://www.biblegateway.com/passage/?search=Deuteronomy%2024%3A1-4&version=NIV Deuteronomy 24:1-4]) and Islam e.g. Quran 2:228-232, Q65:1-7, (Q4:19 https://quranx.com/hadiths/4.19 & Q4:35), Q33:49 )

He notes that Jesus commanded loving and doing good to enemies in [https://www.biblegateway.com/passage/?search=Matthew%205%3A38-48&version=NIV Matt. 5:38-48]; [https://www.biblegateway.com/passage/?search=Luke%206%3A27-36&version=NIV Luke 6:27-36], while the Qur'an generally advises treating other Muslims well, it specifically states not to be merciful to unbelievers Q48:29. [ For more examples of not being merciful to unbelievers, let alone 'enemies' see: '''[[Qur'an, Hadith and Scholars:Non-Muslims|https://wikiislam.net/wiki/Qur%27an,_Hadith_and_Scholars:Non-Muslims]] & [[Kafir (Infidel)#Guidelines%20on%20how%20to%20deal%20with%20disbelievers|https://wikiislam.net/wiki/Kafir_(Infidel)#Guidelines_on_how_to_deal_with_disbelievers]] Quran 48:29 ]'''

• Jesus enjoined unlimited forgiveness: [https://www.biblegateway.com/passage/?search=Matthew%2018%3A21-22&version=NIV Matt. 18:21-22]; [https://www.biblegateway.com/passage/?search=Luke%2017%3A3-4&version=NIV Luke 17:3-4]. However the Qur'an distinctly says there is no forgiveness for anyone committing shirk (ascribing partners to God) in {{Quran|4|48}} and {{Quran|4|116}}.

He notes Jesus called some to a life without marriage: [https://www.biblegateway.com/passage/?search=Matthew%2019%3A11-12&version=NIV Matt. 19:11-12], while the Qur'an promotes it as a virtue encouraging those to do so.

Marriage is a virtue https://www.getquranic.com/marriage-in-islam-8-quranic-verses-about-marriage/

{{Quote|{{Quran|24|32}}|Marry off those who are single among you, and the upright among your male and female slaves. If they are poor, Allah will enrich them out of His grace, and Allah is all-bounteous, all-knowing.}}

And criticizes monasticism/monks, with celibacy and no marriage being a key aspect<ref>[https://www.britannica.com/topic/monasticism Monasticism] | religion | Britannica Entry</ref> in general

{{Quote|Reynolds, Gabriel Said. Christianity and the Qur'an: The Rise of Islam in Christian Arabia (pp. 131-132). Yale University Press. Kindle Edition.|These verses critical of monks are often read together with Q 57:27, which, while praising certain positive qualities of Christians, also seems to accuse Christians of “innovating” monasticism: Then We sent, following in their footsteps, Our Messengers; and We sent, following, Jesus son of Mary, and gave unto him the Gospel. And We set in the hearts of those who followed him tenderness and mercy. And monasticism they invented—We did not prescribe it for them—only seeking the good pleasure of God; but they observed it not as it should be observed. So We gave those of them who believed their wage; and many of them are ungodly.}}

Criticism of monasticism (https://www.britannica.com/topic/monasticism) - lack of marriage for monks (though admittedly also praises monks in general elsewhere pp130-132)<ref>Reynolds, Gabriel Said. ''Christianity and the Qur'an: The Rise of Islam in Christian Arabia (pp. 130-132).'' Yale University Press. Kindle Edition.</ref>

{{Quote|{{Quran|57|27}}|Then We sent on their footsteps Our Messengers and We followed with Isa, son (of) Maryam, and We gave him the Injeel. And We placed in (the) hearts (of) those who followed him compassion and mercy. But monasticism they innovated - not We prescribed it for them - only seeking (the) pleasure (of) Allah, but not they observed it (with) right observance. So We gave those who believed among them their reward, but most of them (are) defiantly disobediently.}}

<nowiki>-----------------------------------------------------------------</nowiki>

==== Father-son relationship ====
{{Quote|Dale C. Allison Jr.. The Historical Christ and the Theological Jesus (Kindle Location 841-848). Kindle Edition.|2=Working through the tradition in the way I suggest leads to a large number of conclusions. Jesus must have been an exorcist who interpreted his ministry in terms of Satan's downfall. He must have thought highly of John the Baptist. He must have repeatedly spoken of God as Father. [Durie differences in metaphor and understanding of relationship from Hebrew to Arab society = markedly different] He must have composed parables. He must have come into conflict with religious authorities. All of this may seem obvious, but the procedure is not trite, for it also issues in some controversial verdicts. As I have argued elsewhere, for example, ample, the quantity of conventional eschatological material in our primary sources almost necessitates that Jesus was an eschatological prophet.' The reconstruction of Robert Funk and the Jesus Seminar is for this reason alone problematic. Even more controversial is what my approach leads me to infer about Jesus' self-conception. Consider these Synoptic materials:

• Jesus said that the Son of man will return on the clouds of heaven and send angels to gather the elect from throughout the world: Mark 13:26-27; cf. 14:62; Matt. 10:23 (allusions to Daniel 7's depiction of the last judgment are clear). [the son of man plays no part in Islam]}}Allison (2009) notes that Jesus must have repeatedly referred to God as 'father', a way also used by many ancient Jews to describe their relationship to god, also found in the old testament with different metaphorical meanings<ref>Pennington, J.T. "Chapter Nine. God As Father In The Old Testament And Second Temple Literature". ''Heaven and Earth in the Gospel of Matthew''. Leiden, The Netherlands: Brill, 2007. <nowiki>https://doi.org/10.1163/ej.9789004162051.i-399.57</nowiki> Web.</ref> and Talmudic writings with paternal imagery. <ref>Knobnya, S.. (2011). ''God the Father in the Old Testament. European Journal of Theology.'' 20. 139-148. </ref><ref>[https://www.myjewishlearning.com/article/fatherhood-of-god/ Fatherhood of God] | Sages & Scholars | Rabbi Louis Jacobs | My Jewish Learning</ref>

===== Slave-master relationship =====
However this father-son Hebrew metaphorical relationship Jesus used is distinctly abandoned, instead using other things (other metaphors) in Arab society to describe the relationship between humans and God, such as a slave-master relationship,<ref>Durie, Mark. ''The Qur’an and Its Biblical Reflexes: Investigations into the Genesis of a Religion (pp. XX-XX) (pp. 107-110 Kindle Edition)''. 4.1.1. Shirk - Proprietary Partnership. Lexington Books. 2018.</ref> a Patron - Protege (needs explanation of what this is) <ref>Durie, Mark. ''The Qur’an and Its Biblical Reflexes: Investigations into the Genesis of a Religion (pp. XX-XX) (pp. 110-111 Kindle Edition)''. 4.1.2. Shirk - Patron - Protege Relationships. Lexington Books. 2018.</ref>. with Muhammad having strongly condemned the idea that God could have offspring against the unscripted pagans (mushrikun) taking angels as daughters of god early on chronologically of the Qur'an's first recitations, then later against God having a son against Jesus being the son of God.<ref>Durie, Mark. ''The Qur’an and Its Biblical Reflexes: Investigations into the Genesis of a Religion (pp. XX-XX) (pp. 112-113 Kindle Edition)''. 4.1.5 A Polemical Doctrine. Lexington Books. 2018.</ref>

Slave analogy Dure Print edition pp108 - 110 summary:<ref name=":1">Durie, Mark. ''The Qur’an and Its Biblical Reflexes: Investigations into the Genesis of a Religion (pp. 108-110) (pp. XX-XX Kindle Edition)''. 4.1.5 A Polemical Doctrine. Lexington Books. 2018.</ref> Before its theological use, the Arabic root ''sh-r-k'' referred to ordinary '''partnership or shared ownership'''. The Qurʾan draws on this everyday meaning to illustrate why associating partners with God is impossible. Using the metaphor of '''a master and a slave''', the Qurʾan argues that just as a slave with multiple masters suffers confusion and conflict, attributing partners to God creates an impossible and chaotic situation. This logic appears in verses such as Q39:29 and others that argue multiple gods would lead to conflict and the ruin of creation (Q23:91; Q21:22).<ref name=":1" />
{{Quote|{{Quran|39|29}}|Allah presents a parable, “a man was owned by several quarreling partners
(shurakaʾ), and a man was the slave of (just) one man. Are the two equal?”}}

The Qurʾan’s use of the slave-master metaphor differs from Jesus’ teaching in the New Testament. Whereas Jesus uses it to highlight divided human devotion, the Qurʾan uses it to assert the logical impossibility of multiple divine authorities.<ref name=":1" />

{{Quote|Luke 16:13; cf. Matthew. 6:24|No slave can serve two masters; for a slave will either hate the one and love the
other, or be devoted to the one and despise the other. You cannot serve God and wealth.}}

Shirk encompasses various forms of error: attributing partners or helpers to God, believing He needs allies, or seeking aid from others besides Him. The Qurʾan also explores God’s unity through three social analogies relevant to Arabian society: '''patron–protégé relationships''', '''alliances of mutual help''', and '''relationships of equal or unequal status'''.<ref name=":1" />

===== '''Patron–protégé relationships''' =====
The Qur'an distinctly ignores the father-son relationship (and theology) metaphor by using another term that is harder to translate

Explanation of what this is Durie pp.110-111:<ref name=":3">Durie, Mark. ''The Qur’an and Its Biblical Reflexes: Investigations into the Genesis of a Religion (pp. 110-111) (pp. XX-XX Kindle Edition)''. 4.1.5 A Polemical Doctrine. Lexington Books. 2018.</ref> The Qurʾan uses terms from the root '''w-l-y''' to describe '''patron–protégé relationships''', alliances, and guardianship. The key term '''walī''' can mean ally, protector, guardian, or patron, and may indicate either symmetrical alliances or asymmetrical power relationships.<ref name=":3" /><ref>[https://lexicon.quranic-research.net/data/27_w/219_wle.html Root: ''wāw lām yā'' (و ل ي)] - Lane's Lexicon Qur'anic Research

See Lane's Lexicon Classical Arabic Dictionary [https://lexicon.quranic-research.net/pdf/Page_3060.pdf pp.3060] & [https://lexicon.quranic-research.net/pdf/Page_3061.pdf pp.3061] </ref>

In pre-Islamic Arab society, such patronage was essential for protection, as shown by the example of Muḥammad being safeguarded by his uncle Abū Ṭālib. Without a patron, a person was vulnerable.<ref name=":3" /> [in the sirah of Ibn Ishaq]

The Qurʾan emphasizes that '''God has no need of any patron''' and that '''humans should recognize God alone as their walī'''. Seeking any protector besides God is considered '''shirk'''. Believers may take other believers and the Prophet as allies (''awliyāʾ'') alongside God, but not in place of Him.<ref name=":3" />

As the Muslim community developed, especially after what the passage calls the ''Eschatological Transition''—the Qurʾan increasingly stressed exclusive allegiance to God. This served to detach believers from prior tribal or familial loyalties that could compromise their commitment to the faith community.<ref name=":3" />

- and calls for help-

===== Unequal status vs Jesus' views on Wealth =====
Sinai - darajah passage

And inequality in general - inc. the afterlife

=== Punishment narratives ===

==== Punishment BEFORE the day of judgement ====
We are told the sole exception in history was the unnamed town<ref>Unnamed in the Qur'an, though identified as Nineveh (in modern day Iraq) as in the Biblical "Book of Jonah" by Islamic exegetes; e.g. see [https://quranx.com/tafsirs/37.147 tafsirs on Q37:147]</ref> of more than 100,000 people that the messenger Yūnus (Jonah) when the warning was heeded in full by the entire people, and therefore punishment averted ({{Quran|10|98}}, {{Quran|37|147-148}}) “no town believed . . . except the people of Yūnus”<ref>Durie, Mark. 2018. ''The Qur'an and Its Biblical Reflexes: Investigations Into the Genesis of a Religion. pp 49. Kindle Edition pp 151.''</ref>

How many a town defied the command of its Lord and His apostles, then We called it to a severe account and punished it with a dire punishment. Q65:8

So it tasted the evil consequences of its conduct, and the outcome of its conduct was ruin. Q65:9

How many generations that had far more wealth and ostentation have We laid low before them! <<nowiki>https://quranx.com/19.74</nowiki>>

Say, ‘Whoever abides in error, the All-beneficent shall prolong his respite until they sight what they have been promised: either punishment, or the Hour.’ Then they will know whose position is worse, and whose host is weaker <<nowiki>https://quranx.com/19.75</nowiki>>

------

Q34:16 - flood of the damn of Yemen / Saba', the people of Sheba E.g. <ref>See tafsirs on [https://quranx.com/Tafsirs/34.14 Q34:14], [https://quranx.com/Tafsirs/34.15 Q34:15] & [https://quranx.com/Tafsirs/34.16 Q34:16]</ref> {{Quran|34|14-16}}

{{Quote|{{Quran|34|14-16}}|And when We decreed for Solomon death, nothing indicated to the jinn his death except a creature of the earth eating his staff. But when he fell, it became clear to the jinn that if they had known the unseen, they would not have remained in humiliating punishment.
Certainly, (there) was for Saba in their dwelling place a sign: Two gardens on (the) right and (on the) left. "Eat from (the) provision (of) your Lord and be grateful to Him. A land good and a Lord Oft-Forgiving."
But they turned away, so We sent upon them (the) flood (of) the dam, and We changed for them their two gardens (with) two gardens producing fruit bitter, and tamarisks and (some)thing of lote trees few.}}
, {{Quran|65|8-9}}, {{Quran|19|74-75}}

Add: 34:15–21: The punishment of the people of Sheba, without explicit reference to a messenger. Sheba reference <ref>Marshall, David. ''God, Muhammad and the Unbelievers (p. 73).'' Taylor & Francis. Kindle Edition.</ref>

=== Surah 36 ===
Similarly an unnamed town is sent three messengers in {{Quran|36|13-32}}, who's identities have differed in traditional Islamic scholarship,<ref>E.g. see commentaries on [https://quranx.com/Tafsirs/36.13 Q36:13] & [https://quranx.com/tafsirs/36.14 Q36:14], and the later verses in the story, cited as a parable ''(mathal).''</ref> are rejected and so are killed with a cry/shout (''ṣayḥatan)'' ({{Quran|36|29}}). <ref>Marshall, David. ''God, Muhammad and the Unbelievers (p. 63 & 72).'' Taylor & Francis. Kindle Edition.</ref>
{{Quote|Marshall, David. God, Muhammad and the Unbelievers (p. 72). Taylor & Francis. Kindle Edition.|36:13–32: Described as a parable (mathal, v.13), but in outline very similar to the punishment-narratives. The messengers (two of them, reinforced with a third) and the town in which they preach are anonymous. ‘A man from the furthest part of the city’ (v.20) exhorts his people to follow the messengers.}}

== Contradiction ==
The order in Surah 2 has the Jews struck by a lightening bolt after they worship the golden calf, who are then forgiven by Allah by being resurrected.
{{Quote|{{Quran|2|50-67}}|And when We parted the sea with you, and We delivered you and drowned Pharaoh’s clan as you looked on. 
And when We made an appointment with Moses for forty nights, you took up the Calf [for worship] in his absence, and you were wrongdoers. 
Then We excused you after that so that you might give thanks. 
And when We gave Moses the Book and the Criterion so that you might be guided. 
And [recall] when Moses said to his people, ‘O my people! You have indeed wronged yourselves by taking up the Calf [for worship]. Now turn penitently to your Maker, and slay [the guilty among] your folks. That will be better for you with your Maker.’ Then He turned to you clemently. Indeed, He is the All-clement, the All-merciful. 
And when you said, ‘O Moses, we will not believe you until we see Allah visibly.’ Thereupon a thunderbolt seized you as you looked on.
Then We raised you up after your death so that you might give thanks. /n
We shaded you with clouds, and sent down to you manna and quails [saying]: ‘Eat of the good things We have provided for you.’ And they did not wrong Us, but they used to wrong [only] themselves. 
And when We said, ‘Enter this town, and eat thereof freely whencesoever you wish, and enter while prostrating at the gate, and say, ‘‘Relieve [us of the burden of our sins],’’ so that We may forgive your iniquities and We will soon enhance the virtuous.’ 
But the wrongdoers changed the saying with other than what they were told. So We sent down on those who were wrongdoers a plague from the sky because of the transgressions they used to commit. 
And when Moses prayed for water for his people, We said, ‘Strike the rock with your staff.’ Thereat twelve fountains gushed forth from it; every tribe came to know its drinking-place. ‘Eat and drink of Allah’s provision, and do not act wickedly on the earth, causing corruption.’ 
And when you said, ‘O Moses, ‘We will not put up with one kind of food. So invoke your Lord for us, so that He may bring forth for us of that which the earth grows—its greens and cucumbers, its garlic, lentils, and onions.’ He said, ‘Do you seek to replace what is superior with that which is inferior? Go down to any town and you will indeed get what you ask for!’ So they were struck with abasement and poverty, and they earned Allah’s wrath. That, because they would deny the signs of Allah and kill the prophets unjustly. That, because they would disobey and commit transgressions. 
Indeed the faithful, the Jews, the Christians and the Sabaeans—those of them who have faith in Allah and the Last Day and act righteously—they shall have their reward from their Lord, and they will have no fear, nor will they grieve. 
And when We took a pledge from you, and raised the Mount above you, [declaring], ‘Hold on with power to what We have given you and remember that which is in it so that you may be Godwary.’ 
Again you turned away after that; and were it not for Allah’s grace on you and His mercy, you would have surely been among the losers. 
And certainly you know those of you who violated the Sabbath, whereupon We said to them, ‘Be you spurned apes.’ 
So We made it an exemplary punishment for the present and the succeeding [generations], and an advice to the Godwary.}}
In Surah 4 they are struck before they worship the calf. 4:153 specifically says 'then' ''(thumma)''

{{Quote|{{Quran|4|153-161}}|The People of the Book ask you to bring down for them a Book from the sky. Certainly they asked Moses for [something] greater than that, for they said, ‘Show us Allah visibly,’ whereat a thunderbolt seized them for their wrongdoing. Then they took up the Calf [for worship], after all the manifest proofs that had come to them. Yet We excused that, and We gave Moses a manifest authority. 
And We raised the Mount above them for the sake of their covenant, and We said to them, ‘Enter the gate prostrating’ and We said to them, ‘Do not violate the Sabbath,’ and We took from them a solemn covenant. 
Then because of their breaking their covenant, their defiance of Allah’s signs, their killing of the prophets unjustly and for their saying, ‘Our hearts are uncircumcised’… Indeed, Allah has set a seal on them for their unfaith, so they do not have faith except a few. 
And for their faithlessness, and their uttering a monstrous calumny against Mary, 
and for their saying, ‘We killed the Messiah, Jesus son of Mary, the apostle of Allah’—though they did not kill him nor did they crucify him, but so it was made to appear to them. Indeed those who differ concerning him are surely in doubt about him: they do not have any knowledge of that beyond following conjectures, and certainly, they did not kill him. 
Indeed, Allah raised him up toward Himself, and Allah is all-mighty, all-wise. 
There is none among the People of the Book but will surely believe in him before his death; and on the Day of Resurrection, he will be a witness against them. 
Due to the wrongdoing of the Jews, We prohibited them certain good things that were permitted to them [earlier], and for their barring many [people] from the way of Allah, 
and for their taking usury—though they had been forbidden from it—and for eating up the wealth of the people wrongfully. And We have prepared for the faithless among them a painful punishment. }}

=== V2 ===
Surah 4 (summarized version)

1) They ask Moses for a sign and are hit with a thunderbolt

2) They then take up the calf for worship

3) The mountain is raised above them{{Quote|{{Quran|4|153-154}}|The People of the Book ask you to bring down for them a Book from the sky. Certainly they asked Moses for [something] greater than that, for they said, ‘Show us Allah visibly,’ whereat a thunderbolt seized them for their wrongdoing. Then they took up the Calf [for worship], after all the manifest proofs that had come to them. Yet We excused that, and We gave Moses a manifest authority. 
And We raised the Mount above them for the sake of their covenant, and We said to them, ‘Enter the gate prostrating’ and We said to them, ‘Do not violate the Sabbath,’ and We took from them a solemn covenant.}}Surah 2
1) They worshiped the calf. And Moses tells them to slay the guilty among them.

2) They are hit by a thunderbolt - is it chronological?

3) ... a mountain is lifted above them
{{Quote|{{Quran|2|51-56}}|And when We made an appointment with Moses for forty nights, you took up the Calf [for worship] in his absence, and you were wrongdoers. 
Then We excused you after that so that you might give thanks. 
And when We gave Moses the Book and the Criterion so that you might be guided. 
And [recall] when Moses said to his people, ‘O my people! You have indeed wronged yourselves by taking up the Calf [for worship]. Now turn penitently to your Maker, and slay [the guilty among] your folks. That will be better for you with your Maker.’ Then He turned to you clemently. Indeed, He is the All-clement, the All-merciful. 
And when you said, ‘O Moses, we will not believe you until we see Allah visibly.’ Thereupon a thunderbolt seized you as you looked on.
Then We raised you up after your death so that you might give thanks.}}
== The Lote Tree of the utmost Boundary (Sid'rati al-Muntahā) ==
Lote tree's are a real type of tree (Ziziphus spina-christi) native to Arabia and the Middle East.<ref>[https://www.suewickison.com/products/lote-tree?srsltid=AfmBOorj_RU2x1OPxgfRe689M2TWw1g4uZTQLkpSolPGYnIatiIe7h6K Lote Tree | Sidr | Ziziphus spina-christi |] Plants of the Qur'an | Sue Wickison </ref> Different to the tree of eternity/immortality ''(shajarati ul-khul'di)'' in paradise ''jannah,'' the Qur'an mentions The Lote Tree (sidr) of ''the utmost boundary (al-muntahā)''<ref>مُنْتَهَىٰ - [https://lexicon.quranic-research.net/pdf/Page_3029.pdf Lane's Lexicon pp.3029]

</ref> near (but notably not in) the 'garden of abode', said to be 'covered' yaghshā by something unspecified in Q53:16, typically taken by exegetes to mean by angels, light and/or golden animals.<ref>E.g. see [https://quranx.com/Tafsirs/53.16 Tafsirs on Q53:16]</ref>

{{Quote|{{Quran|53|13-17}}|And certainly he saw him (in) descent another,
Near (the) Lote Tree (of) the utmost boundary,
Near it (is the) Garden (of) Abode.
when there covered the Lote Tree what covered it.
Not swerved the sight and not it transgressed.}}

This furthest boundary/limit is said in the hadith, to place the cosmic tree in the sixth heaven, where even celestial creatures cannot go beyond as the limit of creation; said to be seen by Muhammad in his Night Journey (mi’rāj) on the [[:en:Buraq|Buraq]] (E.g. {{Muslim|1|329}}, {{Al Tirmidhi|2=5|3=44|4=3276}}, {{Bukhari|5|58|227}} & {{Al Nasai|2=1|3=5|4=452}}), and by many Islamic exegetes.<ref>See [https://quranx.com/tafsirs/53.14 tafsirs on Q53:14]</ref>

This would align the cosmology of Islamic traditions supporting the idea that paradise (and therefore the garden of the abode) is in the seventh heaven,<ref>[https://islamqa.info/en/answers/215011/where-are-paradise-and-hell#Where_is_Paradise Where is Paradise] | [https://islamqa.info/en/answers/215011/where-are-paradise-and-hell Where Are Paradise and Hell?] | 07/January/2015 islamqa</ref> while some traditions support the idea that paradise is above the seventh heaven,<ref>[https://www.islamweb.net/en/fatwa/107126/the-location-of-paradise-now#:~:text=Paradise%20that%20Allaah%20promised%20for,are%20many%20texts%20proving%20this. The location of Paradise now] | Paradise and Hell | Belief in the Hereafter | Islamic Creed | Fatwa | islamweb.net </ref> both placing the tree relatively close to jannah. However others suggest that this specific ''garden of the abode (jannatu l-mawā)'' is a separate garden/paradise to the eternal one all righteous Muslims will eventually enter, being instead one where martyrs (those killed in war or for their religion) go before judgement day.<ref>E.g. see [https://quranx.com/Tafsirs/53.15 tafsirs on Q53:15]</ref>

Either way there is no evidence of a celestial tree, which must be magic to survive outside of an Earthly plant ecosystem, but is rather an example of tree mythology.
----
----

(See also: <nowiki>https://sunnah.com/mishkat:5865</nowiki> & https://sunnah.com/mishkat:5640, ) read; https://quranx.com/tafsirs/53.14 - exegetes also confirm this is where boundary is the boundary of the skies/heavens where things other than God cannot pass (at least until judgement day where paradise and hell can be entered).

AND Similarly seen next to the 4 main Near-East rivers (Nile, Euphratesm Tigres,) <nowiki>https://sunnah.com/bukhari:5610</nowiki>, which area said to flow from paradise: <nowiki>https://quranx.com/Hadith/Bukhari/USC-MSA/Volume-5/Book-58/Hadith-227/</nowiki> )

cite: [https://www.islamweb.net/en/fatwa/107126/the-location-of-paradise-now#:~:text=Paradise%20that%20Allaah%20promised%20for,are%20many%20texts%20proving%20this. https://www.islamweb.net/en/fatwa/107126/the-location-of-paradise-now#:~:text=Paradise%20that%20Allaah%20promised%20for,are%20many%20texts%20proving%20this.]

The utmost boundary at the end of t heavens confirmed by exegetes in https://quranx.com/tafsirs/53.14

" Jannat al-ma'va' literally means "the Jannat (Garden) that is to be an abode. " Hadrat Hasan Basri says that this is the same Jannat which the believers and righteous will be given in the Hereafter, and from this same verse he has argued that that Jannat is in the heavens. Qatadah says that this is the Jannat in which the souls of the martyrs are kept; it does not imply the Jannat that is to be given in the Hereafter. Ibn 'Abbas also says the same but adds that the Jannat to be granted to the believers in the Hereafter is not in the heavens but here on the earth.

== Parallels Between the Qur'an and Late Antique Judeo-Christian Literature - Part 2 ==
Following on from [[Parallels Between the Qur'an and Late Antique Judeo-Christian Literature|Part 1]], this is Part 2 of Late Antique Judeo-Christian Literature found in the Qur'an. This material, drawing heavily on rabbinical commentaries on the bible, and late Syriac Christian thought found in homilies, was created far later than the biblical cannon; no-where near the time of the events that occurred. This suggests the stories were transmitted in an oral millennia along with local Arabian traditions<ref>Bannister, Andrew G.. ''An Oral-Formulaic Study of the Qur'an (Kindle Location 249-259 in Chapter 1.2 The Biblicist Roots of the Iblis and Adam Story).'' Bloomsbury Publishing. Kindle Edition.

..When the Qur’an emerged in the seventh-century, it did so in an oral culture in which Biblicist traditions were freely circulating and thus there existed a large pool of commonly known stories and traditions to fish from; a pool in which stories could cross-fertilize and influence one another. 23 It is this, more than direct borrowing that perhaps best explains stories like Iblis and Adam as well as other qur’anic tellings of older tales, such as the Seven Sleepers (Q. 18: 9– 25) 24 and the Legend of Alexander (Dhu al-Qarnayn, Q. 18: 83– 101). 25 The Qur’an originates from a milieu in which Biblicist material was well-known to the first audience of the Qur’an; even a simple allusion to a story was often enough to trigger a connection for the hearer. 26 That Biblicist material has been filtered through storytelling rather than simply copied from a written text is further suggested by what the Qur’an leaves out; no minor prophets are referenced, probably because almost no Old Testament narratives feature them nor did the rabbinic literature weave lengthy tales about them. 27 The exception which proves the rule is Jonah (Q. 21: 87– 88; 37: 139– 148; 68: 48– 50), whose short but dramatic story was extremely popular in both Jewish and Christian contexts.28..

And: Bannister, Andrew G.. ''An Oral-Formulaic Study of the Qur'an (Kindle Locations 1391-1392. Chapter 2.3 The Islamic Tradition and Orality).'' Bloomsbury Publishing. Kindle Edition.</ref> where biblical and much later Jewish and Christian stories could be commonly mixed without the new community realizing.
== The story of Noah ==
The prophet Noah is portrayed extremely differently to the one in Genesis,<ref>Segovia, Carlos A.. ''[https://almuslih.org/wp-content/uploads/2024/12/Segovia-C-The-Quranic-Noah-and-the-Making-of-the-Islamic-Prophet.pdf The Quranic Noah and the Making of the Islamic Prophet: A Study of Intertextuality and Religious Identity Formation in Late Antiquity]'', Berlin, München, Boston: De Gruyter, 2015. <nowiki>https://doi.org/10.1515/9783110405897</nowiki></ref> taking on Jewish and Christian traditions, characteristics, as well as terms from late antique Judeo-Christian writings,<ref>The Qur'anic Noah. pp.21-21</ref> molded to suit Muhammad's situation in line with other messengers in the Qur'an.<ref>''The Qurʾan and its Biblical Reflexes: Investigations into the Genesis of a Religion. Chapter 5.3 Messenger Uniformatism. pp.135-143'' By Mark Durie. Lanham, MD: Lexington Books, 2018. </ref>

=== The preaching of Noah ===

Surah 71 consists entirely of the preaching of Noah and his supplications to Allah.{{Quote|{{Quran-range|71|1|28}}|Indeed, We sent Noah to his people, [saying], "Warn your people before there comes to them a painful punishment." He said, "O my people, indeed I am to you a clear warner, [Saying], 'Worship Allah, fear Him and obey me. Allah will forgive you of your sins and delay you for a specified term. Indeed, the time [set by] Allah, when it comes, will not be delayed, if you only knew.' " 
[...]
And Noah said, "My Lord, do not leave upon the earth from among the disbelievers an inhabitant. Indeed, if You leave them, they will mislead Your servants and not beget except [every] wicked one and [confirmed] disbeliever. My Lord, forgive me and my parents and whoever enters my house a believer and the believing men and believing women. And do not increase the wrongdoers except in destruction."}}Reynolds remarks that "The Qur'ānic character of Noah is quite unlike that of the Noah in Genesis, who does not speak a word until after the flood." Citing the Babylonian Talmud, Sanhedrin 108a, he observes that "[his preaching] is also suggested by a passage in the Talmud:
::"The righteous Noah rebuked them, urging, 'Repent; for if not, the Holy One, blessed be He, will bring a deluge upon you and cause your bodies to float upon the water like gourds, as it is written, He is light [i.e., floats] upon the waters. Moreover, ye shall be taken as a curse for all future generations.' (b. Sanhedrin 108a)"
Reynolds further notes, "It is also prominent in the Syriac fathers, several of whom report that Noah preached to his people for a hundred years before God finally sent the flood." citing for example the Syriac authors Narsai, "On the Flood", 33, II. 227-30 and Jacob of Serugh, ''Homilies contre les juifs'', 70, homily 2, II. 37-40.<ref>Gabriel Said Reynolds, ''The Qurʾān and Bible'' p. 858</ref>

The opponents reject Noah's preaching despite him doing so 'day and night' (Quran 71:5-6) in which they respond by putting their fingers in their ears Quran 71:7, on which Neuwirth (2024) notes that "the means of plugging one’s ears in order to shut oneself off from unpleasant news is also encountered in the Talmud (bKetubbot 5a)."<ref>Neuwirth, Angelika. The Qur'an: Text and Commentary, ''Volume 2.1: Early Middle Meccan Suras: The New Elect (p. 280).'' Yale University Press. Kindle Edition.</ref>

=== Noah's disbelieving wife ===
{{Quote|{{Quran|66|10}}|Allah presents an example of those who disbelieved: the wife of Noah and the wife of Lot. They were under two of Our righteous servants but betrayed them, so those prophets did not avail them from Allah at all, and it was said, "Enter the Fire with those who enter."}}The Bible briefly mentions Noah's wife in one verse without further comment ([https://www.biblegateway.com/passage/?search=Genesis%207%3A7&version=NIV Genesis 7:7]), "And Noah and his sons and his wife and his sons’ wives entered the ark to escape the waters of the flood." Regarding the Quranic verse which speaks of her negatively, Reynolds briefly considers the possibility that the Quran has extended to their wives the parallelism between Noah (though not his wife) and Lot found in the New Testament ([https://www.biblegateway.com/passage/?search=2%20Peter%202&version=NIV 2 Peter 2]), but then comments, "However, it is important to note that already in the pre-Islamic period certain groups had developed hostile legends about Noah's wife." He cites Epiphanius (d. 403 CE), ''Panarion'' 2:26, which relates the Gnostic belief that she was not allowed onto the ark, having burned it down three times before the flood.<ref>Gabriel Said Reynolds, ''The Qurʾān and Bible'' p. 841</ref>

=== Noah's flood waters overflowed from an oven ===
The Qur'anic version of the Noah's flood story describes the flood waters as overflowing from an oven. This element is not found even in more ancient versions of the story (Epic of Gilgamesh, Atra hasis, and Ziusudra).

Note that in his translation, Yusuf Ali mistranslates the Aramaic loan word for the oven (alttannooru ٱلتَّنُّورُ)<ref>[http://www.studyquran.org/LaneLexicon/Volume1/00000355.pdf Lane's Lexicon p. 318 تَّنُّورُ]</ref> as "fountains". The Arabic verb translated "gushed forth" (fara فَارَ) means overflowed or boiled in the context of water in a cooking pot<ref>[http://www.studyquran.org/LaneLexicon/Volume6/00000241.pdf Lane's Lexicon p. 2457 فور]</ref>, as well as in the other verse where it is used, {{Quran|67|7}}. Here is Pickthall's more accurate translation:{{Quote|{{Quran|11|40}}|
(Thus it was) till, when Our commandment came to pass '''and the oven gushed forth water''', We said: Load therein two of every kind, a pair (the male and female), and thy household, save him against whom the word hath gone forth already, and those who believe. And but a few were they who believed with him.}}{{Quote|{{Quran|23|27}}|
Then We inspired in him, saying: Make the ship under Our eyes and Our inspiration. Then, when Our command cometh '''and the oven gusheth water''', introduce therein of every (kind) two spouses, and thy household save him thereof against whom the Word hath already gone forth. And plead not with Me on behalf of those who have done wrong. Lo! they will be drowned.}}At one time academic scholars thought this verse alluded to a Midrashic exegesis in which the flood waters were boiling hot (b. Sanhedrin 108b, [https://www.sefaria.org/Rosh_Hashanah.12a.4?lang=bi|Tracate Rosh Hashanah 12a:4]). More recent scholarship, particularly by Olivier Mongellaz in 2024,<ref name="Mongellaz2024">Olivier Mongellaz (2024) [https://brill.com/view/journals/arab/71/4-5/article-p513_4.xml Le four de Noé : un cas d’intertextualité coranique], Arabica 71(4-5), 513-637. https://doi.org/10.1163/15700585-20246900</ref> has identified that these verses most likely reflect a late antique legend in which water gushing up through a bread oven (a large hole dug into the ground) was a sign warning Noah's family of the imminent flood. The interpretation as Noah's own oven is attributed to a number of early commentators (such as Ibn Abbas, Mujahid), while others understood it to be the area of land where the flood waters first rose. Qurtubi said: "The sayings of commentators appear to be different as to the meaning of tannur, but this, in reality, is not a difference. When water began to bulge out, it overflowed from the bread baking oven, and from out of the surface of the land".

Significantly, Mongellaz has argued on literary grounds that a fragmentary Arabic text falsely attributed to Hippolytus of Rome, and which mentions the overflowing bread oven story, is independent of the Islamic tradition and was originally written in a very specific environment which has parallels with the context in which certain parts of the Quran were written.{{Quote|Pseudo. Hippolytus of Rome (translated to English from Mongellaz's French translation)<ref name="Mongellaz2024" />|Meanwhile, Ham's wife stood up to take out the bread that remained in the oven and immediately water sprang out of the oven [fāḍa l-māʾmin al-tannūr] and immediately water came out of the oven, as the Lord had said: "The fountains of the great deeps were opened." Ham's wife called to Noah, saying, "My lord, the word of God has come true (Syr. what God promised has come true!)" - for it had come true just as the Lord had promised her. When Noah heard Ham's wife's words, he said to her, "Oh, the flood has come."}}

=== Noah's ark left behind as a sign ===
{{Quote|{{Quran-range|54|13|15}}|And We carried him on a [construction of] planks and nails, Sailing under Our observation as reward for he who had been denied. And We left it as a sign, so is there any who will remember?}}Unlike the bible, which does not mention the ark as a sign for future generations, Neuwirth (2024) notes the salvation of Noah is made physically plausible to the listeners through the reference to the material verifiability of the ark, which could be taken from various late antique traditions, for example Flavius Josephus (b. 37AD) reports in the ''Jewish Antiquities (I 3.5 § 92)'' of the existence of the remains of Noah’s ark in Armenia (Clementz 1959: 22).<ref name=":0">Neuwirth, Angelika. ''The Qur'an: Text and Commentary, Volume 2.1: Early Middle Meccan Suras: The New Elect (p. 62).'' Yale University Press. Kindle Edition.</ref> She also notes that the appeal to the willingness of the listeners to be admonished by the sign (āya) of Noah’s ark is also reminiscent of the Talmudic story (bSanhedrin 96a) of the death of Sennacherib, who was led to a fateful decision by seeing the remains of Noah’s ark.<ref name=":0" />
==Moses and Pharaoh==
Alongside the biblical account of Moses and the Pharoah, there are some key aspects that match Jewish Rabbinic and Christian non-biblical traditions. Even the place where Moses communicates with God in the story of the burning bush, the word used ''ṭuwan'' in e.g. {{Quran|20|12}} (for the folded land, implying double the holiness)<ref>See; Neuwirth, Angelika. ''The Qur'an: Text and Commentary, Volume 2.1: Early Middle Meccan Suras: The New Elect (p. 199).'' Yale University Press. Kindle Edition. Ṭuwā stands for the holy Mount Sinai or Horeb (cf. KU, 124ff.; FVQ, 206ff.; BEQ, 255ff.). The word was long thought to be a rhyming transformation of Aramaic ṭūrā (“the mountain”), but now, based on rabbinic tradition and in agreement with traditional exegetes, Uri Rubin has convincingly interpreted bi-l-wādī l-muqaddasi Ṭuwā to mean “in the doubly hallowed valley” (see Rubin 2014). (The Sinai is in a sense the “folded Holy Land” [ṬWY = “to fold”].) Citing: Rubin, Uri, 2014, ''[https://urirubin.com/assets/docs/Tuwan.86132451.pdf Moses and the Holy Valley Ṭuwan. On the Biblical and Midrashic Background of a Qurʾanic Scene],'' Journal of Near Eastern Studies 73, 73–81.</ref> does not have a parallel in the bible,<ref>''[https://urirubin.com/assets/docs/Tuwan.86132451.pdf Moses and the Holy Valley Ṭuwan: On the biblical and midrashic background of a qurʾānic scene.]'' Rubin 2014. Ibid. pp. 75.</ref> but does in other Judeo-Christian (later) works.<ref>Ibid. pp. 76-78</ref> And the idea of eschatology in Moses's story such as {{Quran|20|15}}, with reward in the afterlife being mentioned, is not contained in the biblical story of Moses, Neuwirth (2024) notes moves the story into a late antiquity interpretation.<ref>Neuwirth, Angelika. ''The Qur'an: Text and Commentary, Volume 2.1: Early Middle Meccan Suras: The New Elect (p. 199).'' Yale University Press. Kindle Edition.</ref> Key details in the stories include:
===The prophecy of baby Moses===
Alongside the scene of [https://www.biblegateway.com/passage/?search=Exodus%201%3A8-2%3A10&version=NIV Exodus 1:8-2:10] where the Hebrews in Egyptian bondage are told to kill all male babies to control the growing Israelite population, where Moses's mother places his basket in the Nile to escape; Neuwirth (2024) citing Speyer, notes that ''the prophecy to Moses’s mother that an enemy—of Moses as well as of God himself—would take him in reflects a Midrashic interpretation of Exodus Rabba (1:31: “So the daughter of Pharaoh raised the daughter, who was once to take revenge on her father”). The event is explicitly based on a divine intention, namely, to make Moses his chosen one.''<ref>''The Qur'an: Text and Commentary, Volume 2.1: Early Middle Meccan Suras: The New Elect'' Ibid. pp. 201.</ref>{{Quote|{{Quran-range|20|37|39}}|We have bestowed Our favour on you before this, When We told your mother what We relate: 'Put him in a wooden box and cast it in the river. The river will cast it on the bank. An enemy of Ours, and his, will retrieve it.' We bestowed Our love on you that you may be reared under Our eyes.}}And similarly the next verse unlike the bible focuses on the emotional impact of the event on Moses’s mother, Neuwirth notes is comparable to Midrash Exodus Rabba 1:25.<ref>Ibid. pp. 201-202.</ref> Moses's salvation from persecution after manslaughter is commemorated with similar consideration of Moses’s mental condition.<ref>Ibid. pp. 202.</ref>{{Quote|{{Quran|20|40}}|When your sister walked up [to Pharaoh’s palace] saying, “Shall I show you someone who will take care of him?” Then We restored you to your mother, that she might not grieve and be comforted. Then you slew a soul, whereupon We delivered you from anguish, and We tried you with various ordeals. Then you stayed for several years among the people of Midian. Then you turned up as ordained, O Moses!}}
===Moses not suckled by Egyptians===
{{Quote|{{Quran-range|28|12|13}}|And We had prevented from him [all] wet nurses before, so she said, "Shall I direct you to a household that will be responsible for him for you while they are to him [for his upbringing] sincere?" So We restored him to his mother that she might be content and not grieve and that she would know that the promise of Allah is true. But most of the people do not know.}}Reynolds comments, "On this passage cf. Exodus 2:7-9. The Qurʾān's declaration (v. 12) 'We had forbidden him to be suckled by any nurse' (v. 12) reflects a tradition in the Babylonian Talmud that Moses (from whose mouth would come forth the word of God) refused the impure breasts of the Egyptian women:
::Then said his sister to Pharaoh's daughter, Shall I go and call thee a nurse of the Hebrew women? Why just 'of the Hebrew women'? - It teaches that they handed about to all the Egyptian women but he would not suck. He said: Shall a mouth which will speak with [God] suck what is unclean! (b. Sotah 12b)"<ref>Gabriel Said Reynolds, ''The Qurʾān and Bible'' p. 598</ref>
===Moses's speech impediment===
Moses has some kind of speech impediment when going to speak to Pharaoh in the Qurʾān.{{Quote|{{Quran-range|20|24|28}}|"Go to Pharaoh. Indeed, he has transgressed."( Moses) said: "O, my Lord! Expand me my breast,” ease my task for me, And untie the knot from my tongue, so they may understand what I say.”}}Biblical Scholar James Kugel (1997)<ref>Kugel, James L.. The Bible As It Was (Kindle Edition. pp. 432-433). Harvard University Press.</ref> notes that later Jewish and Christian commentators found it necessary to explain Moses's statement in the Old Testament “''Oh my Lord, I am not a man of words … but I am heavy of speech and heavy of tongue''” ([https://www.biblegateway.com/passage/?search=Exodus%204%3A10&version=NIV Exodus 4:10]), as he was believed to be a highly educated man who had been supposedly been schooled in every branch of wisdom, including eloquence.

He notes "it occurred to interpreters that Moses might have been referring here not to any lacuna in his education, but to an actual speech defect, some physical deformity of his mouth or tongue that prevented him from speaking in the usual fashion." We see this in:<ref>Ibid. pp. 432 - 433 (Kindle Edition)</ref>

"''I'' ''am not by nature eloquent; my tongue with difficulty speaks, I stammer, so that I cannot speak before the king."'' —Ezekiel the Tragedian, Exaggē 113– 115 (3rd-2nd century BCE)

''He [Moses] pleased his parents by his beauty, but grieved them by his speech impediment. —''Ephraem, Commentary on Exodus 2: 4 (d. 373 AD)

Others even added stories on how he might have acquired that deformity, such as Josephus in Jewish Antiquities 2: 232– 236 (published ~93/94 AD), connecting their explanation of Moses’ speech problems to the tradition of Pharaoh’s wise men and their warnings about a boy that might grow up and save Israel.<ref>Ibid. pp. 433 - 434 (Kindle Edition)</ref>
===Pharaohs questions===
Neuwirth (2024) comments that the list of further detailed questions to Moses in Surah 26 'The Poets' / al-shuʿarāʾ (i.e. in {{Quran-range|26|22|29}}), citing Speyer, reflect a more detailed episode from Midrash Exodus Rabba 5:18, which also starts from Pharaoh’s self-praise as God.<ref>Neuwirth, Angelika. ''The Qur'an: Text and Commentary, Volume 2.1: Early Middle Meccan Suras: The New Elect (p. 250).'' Yale University Press. Kindle Edition.</ref>
===The Drowning of Pharaoh===
{{Quote|{{Quran-range|10|90|92}}|And We took the Children of Israel across the sea, and Pharaoh and his soldiers pursued them in tyranny and enmity until, when drowning overtook him, he said, "I believe that there is no deity except that in whom the Children of Israel believe, and I am of the Muslims." Now? And you had disobeyed [Him] before and were of the corrupters? So today We will save you in body that you may be to those who succeed you a sign. And indeed, many among the people, of Our signs, are heedless}}Reynolds comments, "The question of Pharaoh's survival appears in an opinion found in the (late fourth century AD) ''Mekilta de-Rabbi Ishmael'' (cr. Gavin McDowell):
::"And the waters returned and covered the chariot etc. [Exo 14:27]. Even Pharaoh, according to the words of R. Judah, as it is said, 'The chariots of Pharaoh and his force, etc.' [Exo 15:4]. R. Nehimiah says: ''Except for Pharaoh.'' About him it says, 'However, for this purpose I have let you live' [Exo 9:16]. Others say that in the end Pharaoh went down and drowned, as it is said, 'Then went the horse of Pharaoh, etc.' [Exo 15:19]. (Beshallah 7)"<ref>Gabriel Said Reynolds, ''The Qurʾān and Bible'' p. 339</ref>
==Arguments for resurrection==
Reynolds (2020) notes the repeated argument that God can resurrect the dead using the analogy that he can bring life back to barren (or dead) land may be connected to a Jewish tradition that God will resurrect the dead with dew, for example, in b. Shabbat 88b.<ref name=":2" />
{{Quote|{{Quran|30|19}}|He brings forth the living from the dead, and brings forth the dead from the living, and revives the earth after its death. Likewise, you [too] shall be raised [from the dead].}}

Cf: {{Quran|16|65}}, {{Quran|43|11}}, {{Quran|50|6-11}}, {{Quran|57|17}}
==Late antique Christian Martyrdom==
{{Main|Shaheed (Martyr)}}
Durie (2018) notes the violence of the Qur'an shares more commonality with contemporary late antique religious (primarily Christian) violence and warfare rather than being directly biblically based.<ref>Durie, Mark. ''The Qur’an and Its Biblical Reflexes: Investigations into the Genesis of a Religion.'' Lexington Books. 2018. Pp. 229 -237. (Kindle Edition: pp. 423-439). 6.9 Stories of Fighting Prophets</ref>

=== Textual overlap ===

Covering the continuity and similarities between late antique religious violence & warfare and the Qur'an (and other Islamic traditions) is too big a topic to cover here; perhaps the most in-depth academic work looking at the continuity between this and Islam is Thomas Sizgorich's ''Violence and Belief in Late Antiquity: Militant Devotion in Christianity and Islam'', however Sinai (2017) notes alongside similar ideas and theology, there are some direct textual references.{{Quote|Sinai, Nicolai. Qur'an: A Historical-Critical Introduction (The New Edinburgh Islamic Surveys) (pp. 301-302). Edinburgh University Press. Kindle Edition.|That the Qur’anic community’s access to Biblical notions of militancy was mediated by late antique Christian discourse is indicated by an intriguing intertextual overlap. According to Q 3: 169–170, those who have been ‘killed in the path of God’ are not dead but ‘alive with their Lord’, rather than having to spend the remaining time until the Resurrection in a state of slumber (similarly Q 2: 154).39 Tor Andrae has pointed out that the phrase ‘alive with their Lord’ (ayāun inda rabbihim) corresponds exactly to the Syriac phrase h. ayyē lwāth alāhā, which a sixth-century Syriac Christian writer (Mar Ishay) applies to the martyrs.40 Furthermore, Mar Ishay contrasts the true fate of the martyrs with unfounded prior opinion: ‘they are believed to be already dead’.41 The same contrast is found in the two Qur’anic passages just cited.42 It could be objected that the parallel demonstrates merely that the Qur’an is familiar with the widespread Christian idea that martyrs are granted prompt access to paradise but that this does not establish a Christian precedent for the Qur’anic application of this idea specifically to those who actively enact – rather than just suffer – violence. However, as Sizgorich reminds us, a Christian martyr was by no means seen merely as a passive victim of persecution but rather as someone who actively ‘defeats the power of the Roman state’.43}}{{Quote|{{Quran|3|169}}|And never think of those who have been killed in the cause of Allah as dead. Rather, they are alive with their Lord, receiving provision}}{{Quote|{{Quran|2|154}}|Do not say that those who are killed in the way of God, are dead, for indeed they are alive, even though you are not aware.}}

=== Martyrs sidestep judgement day ===
After death, humans are typically said to spend their time in an intermediate state known to traditional Islamic scholars as the ''barzakh'' while they wait.<ref>Reynolds, Gabriel Said. 2020. ''Allah:'' ''God in the Qur'an (p. 71-72).'' Yale University Press. Kindle Edition.

It is also the same term used for the barrier between the living and the dead (whilst awaiting judgement day) in the Qur'an, e.g. {{Quran|23|99-100}}</ref> However, as in the above verses, one exception to this rule is Martyrs being with God straight away rather than being judged at judgment day, a non-biblical idea having parallels with late antique Christian thought.

Sinai (2017) similarly notes strong ideological parallels a 6th century hagiographical text (the Panegyric on Macarius, Bishop of Tkow by Pseudo-Dioscorus of Alexandria) of a 5th-century martyr, Egyptian Bishop Macarius of Tkow who was martyred for opposing the council of Chalcedon. Citing Michael Gaddis's summary of the document, ‘He was both willing to die for his faith, and willing to kill for it.’ he notes the same idea in {{Quran|9|111}} … they fight in the way of Allah, kill, and are killed.. <ref>Ibid. (Kindle Edition. pp. 299).</ref> As well as citing English historian of the Byzantine Empire James Howard-Johnston "''..James Howard-Johnston draws attention to a passage in the Chronicle of Theophanes Confessor (d. 818), which reports that at about the same time when the Qur’an promised those ‘killed in the path of God’ immediate entry to paradise, the Byzantine emperor Heraclius similarly announced that those fighting the Sasanians would be recompensed with eternal life. In Heraclius’s address as reported by Theophanes Confessor, we find some of the same general ingredients that are noticeable in Qur’anic calls to militancy…''"<ref>Ibid. (Kindle Edition. pp. 301).</ref> He notes these similarities are likely caused by being on the fringes of the Roman empire.<ref>Ibid. (Kindle Edition. pp. 301).</ref>

==== Martyrdom wipes away other sins and is privileged above other acts from believers ====
{{Quote|Reynolds, Gabriel Said. Christianity and the Qur'an: The Rise of Islam in Christian Arabia (pp. 178-179). Yale University Press. Kindle Edition.|The teaching on the glory earned by martyrs is widespread in the early church. It is nevertheless telling to find the way it is emphasized in the third-century Christian text the aforementioned Didascalia Apostolorum, originally written in Greek but preserved in Syriac.87 The Didascalia clearly teaches that the martyrs will have a privilege above other faithful believers: If then He raises up all men,—as He said by Isaiah: All flesh shall see the salvation of God [Isa 40.5; 52.10],—much more will He quicken and raise up the faithful; and (yet more) again will He quicken and raise up the faithful of the faithful, who are the martyrs, and establish them in great glory and make them His counsellors. For to mere disciples, those who believe in Him, He has promised a glory as of the stars [Dan 12.3]; but to the martyrs He has promised to give an everlasting glory, as of the luminaries which fail not, with more abundant light, that they may be shining for all time.88

The Didascalia is also clear, as is the Qur’an, that martyrs enjoy a special grace through the forgiveness of sins that their deaths have earned for them: But again, sins are forgiven by baptism also to those who from the Gentiles draw near and enter the holy Church of God. Let us inquire also, to whom sins are not imputed. To such as Abraham and Isaac and Jacob and all the patriarchs, as also to the martyrs. Let us hear then, brethren, for the Scripture saith: Who shall boast himself and say: I am clear of sins? Or who shall be confident and say: I am innocent? [Prov 20.9].

And again: There is no man pure of defilement: not though his life be but one day [Job 14.4–5 LXX]. To everyone therefore who believes and is baptized his … former sins have been forgiven; but after baptism also, provided that he has not sinned a deadly sin nor been an accomplice (thereto), but has heard only, or seen, or spoken, and is thus guilty of sin. But if a man go forth from the world by martyrdom for the name of the Lord, blessed is he; for brethren who by martyrdom have gone forth from this world, of these the sins are covered.89

We might compare Q 3:195: “ ‘And those who emigrated, and were expelled from their habitations, those who suffered hurt in My way, and fought, and were slain—them I shall surely acquit of their evil deeds, and I shall admit them to gardens underneath which rivers flow.’ A reward from God! And God with Him is the fairest reward” (italics added). In other words, the Qur’an seems to be well aware of Christian devotion to the martyrs.}}

=== Martyrdom in the Torah and Gospels ===
Muslims who fight are promised paradise, which the Qur'an claims is also a promise in the Torah and Gospel.{{Quote|{{Quran|9|111}}|Indeed Allah has bought from the faithful their souls and their possessions for paradise to be theirs: they fight in the way of Allah, kill, and are killed. A promise binding upon Him in the Torah and the Evangel and the Quran. And who is truer to his promise than Allah? So rejoice in the bargain you have made with Him, and that is the great success.}}Nickel (2020)<ref>Nickel, Gordon D. ''The Quran with Christian Commentary: A Guide to Understanding the Scripture of Islam (p. 222).'' Zondervan Academic. Kindle Edition. 9.111 – They fight in the way of God, and they kill and are killed When the Quran describes believers as fighting “in the way of Allah,” it makes a theological claim by associating Allah with human fighting. See the analysis of these expressions at 73.20 (p. 597). 9.111 – a promise binding on Him in the Torah, and the Gospel, and the Qur’ān This is the only verse in the Quran that brings the Torah (tawrāt), Gospel (injīl), and qur’ān (lit. “recitation”) together. The Quran claims here that the particular point on which the Torah and Gospel agree with the Muslim recitation is that believers “fight in the way of Allah, and they kill and are killed.” This verse makes the reader question whether the Quran has a clear idea of the contents of the Torah and Gospel. A similar question is raised by 61.14, which appears to say that ‘Īsā and his disciples fought against their enemies (cf. 3.52). Along with these misunderstandings, the Quran gives no information about the peaceable teaching and example of Jesus in the Gospel accounts. See the analysis of the Quran’s verses on the “Gospel” at 57.27 (p. 549). Do the Torah and Gospel in fact contain such a promise? See the comment on this characterization of the Bible at 61.14 (p. 566).</ref> and Reynolds (2018) however notes that this is not found there:{{Quote|1=Reynolds, G. S. (2018). The Qur'an and the Bible: Text and Commentary. Commentary on 9:111 (pp. 322) United Kingdom: Yale University Press.|2="9:111 The point of this verse is that those who are prepared to give their lives to God in the holy war are promised paradise as a payment for their services (cf. 2:245; 4:74; 61:10–12). The idea that the martyrs have a special assurance of paradise follows from the Qurʾān’s teaching elsewhere that the act of martyrdom involves forgiveness of sin. This teaching is close to that of the Syriac fathers (see commentary on 2:154, with further references). It is curious that the Qurʾān insists that the promise of heaven for holy warriors is found in the Torah and the Gospel (or “Evangel”); heaven is not found in the Torah and holy war is not found in the Gospels...}}While his commentary on 2:154 (pp. 76) once again highlights the Syriac parallel:{{Quote|2="As Tor Andrae has shown (Les origines de l’islam et le christianisme, 161ff.), the idea that martyrdom involves the absolution of sins is prominent in Syriac Christian texts such as the third-century Didascalia (chap. 20) and the Treaty on the Martyrs of Mar Isaï (d. late sixth cen.); the latter text also insists—much like the Qurʾān—that the martyrs are “living”:

The true martyrs who, by way of a death that covers their sins, demonstrate even more the beauty of their deeds and receive this glorious inheritance by virtue of their blood. By leaving this life they have prepared for their souls an honorable abode in paradise. It was thought that they are already dead, but by their death they have killed their sin, and they are alive with God. (Mar Isaï, Treaty on the Martyrs, 32)}}
=== Further Martyrdom Influence ===
Neuwirth (2024) also notes the influence of Christian martyrdom stories on the sudden conversion and prayers/asking for forgiveness to God of Pharaoh's magician's, who are originally opponents of Moses until he shows them proof of his prophecy via a miracle in the face of a sudden and violent death as threatened by the arrogant ruler (e.g. in {{Quran-range|26|50|51}} and {{Quran-range|20|71|73}}).<ref>Neuwirth, Angelika. ''The Qur'an: Text and Commentary, Volume 2.1: Early Middle Meccan Suras: The New Elect (p. 204).'' Yale University Press. Kindle Edition.</ref> Both Jewish and Christian traditions present individual “anti-Moses” sorcerers named Jannes and Jambres, who continue to appear in later interpretations; citing Nora Schmid, she notes that, although there is no explicit textual reference and the magicians are typically depicted in a negative light, they came to be associated with penance and martyrdom in Christian tradition - in the Qurʾan, this idea is developed further: the forgiveness that Jannes and Jambres either did not receive or only partially received in earlier sources is ultimately granted.<ref>Ibid. pp. 251-252</ref>{{Quote|Neuwirth, Angelika. The Qur'an: Text and Commentary, Volume 2.1: Early Middle Meccan Suras: The New Elect (p. 204). Yale University Press. Kindle Edition.|V. 72–73 qālū lan nuʾthiraka ʿalā mā jāʾanā mina l-bayyināti wa-lladhī faṭaranā fa-qḍi mā anta qāḍin innamā taqḍī hādhihi l-ḥayāta l-dunyā / innā āmannā birabbinā li-yaghfira lanā khaṭāyānā wa-mā akrahtanā ʿalayhi mina l-siḥri wallāhu khayrun wa-abqā] Conversion scene as later in Q 26:50–51. The sorcerers renounce their allegiance to Pharaoh on the basis of the obvious evidence (bayyināt) and give preference to the Creator God, they submit to their worldly fate and hope for the forgiveness of their sins and what they have been forced to do by the ruler—they are a role model for the community, which is also subject to pressure from outside. The request for forgiveness of sins before a violent death is a topos of Christian martyr stories. The entire scene, leaving the context of ‘ancient’ Egypt, reflects the notion of Christian martyrdom stories. Khaṭāyā (singular khaṭīʾa) also lets a Syriac terminus technicus ring through, but the word can be derived from the Arabic root KhṬʿ (“to miss a goal”) (see FVQ, 123ff.). The idea of the forgiveness of sins is prominent in the Christian liturgy—not only through the Lord’s Prayer. In addition to khaṭīʾa, there is the genuine Arabic dhanb, dhunūb.}}

== Expansions on the afterlife ==

Reynolds (2020) notes the Qur’ans provides vivid depictions of hell are highly unlike the New Testament, where Jesus refers to afterlife punishment mostly allusively. The closest the Gospels describe hell is through the few images of “fire,” “wailing,” and “gnashing of teeth.”, for example in Matthew’s Parable of the Weeds, Jesus explains that at the end of the age, the Son of Man will send his angels that will cast evildoers into a fiery furnace where there will be weeping and gnashing of teeth (Matt 13:40–42).<ref>Reynolds, Gabriel Said. ''Allah: God in the Qur'an (pp. 81-82).'' Yale University Press. Kindle Edition.</ref> He notes the much more constant an vivid Qur'anic descriptions far better match later Christian works that expanded the descriptions to be more gruesome, in order to scare the reader/audience.<ref>Ibid. pp. 88.

''We might note how all of these traditions are meant to make humans yearn for paradise and fear hell. The Qur’an, from this regard, is a profoundly psychological work. Like a Christian preacher, like John Chrysostom or Saint Ephrem, the author of the Qur’an speaks of heaven and hell to persuade his audience to repent and believe. He does so in a way, however, that is distinct—emphasizing physical pain and physical pleasure in order, apparently, to make a greater impression on his audience. He puts a terrible tree into hell and young women in paradise.''
</ref>{{Quote|Reynolds, Gabriel Said. Allah: God in the Qur'an (pp. 82-83). Yale University Press. Kindle Edition.|The way that the Qur’an describes hell in particularly vivid, gruesome terms brings us back to something we mentioned in Chapter 1, namely, that the Qur’an in many ways is a “homiletic” work, a work written like a homily or sermon. The Qur’an’s intention is not simply to declare that those who disobey God will be punished, but to describe that punishment in a way which brings the awfulness of hell to life. Similarly, homilists in the early centuries of Christianity expanded dramatically on the New Testament allusions to hell. In a sermon attributed to John Chrysostom (d. 407) we read a description of hell with the sort of detail that we find in the Qur’an: It is a sea of fire—not a sea of the kind or dimensions we know here, but much larger and fiercer, with waves made of fire, fire of a strange and fearsome kind. There is a great abyss there, in fact, of terrible flames, and one can see fire rushing about on all sides like some wild animal…. There will be no one who can resist, no one who can escape: Christ’s gentle, peaceful face will be nowhere to be seen.15}}Sinai (2017) in his paper titled "''The Eschatological Kerygma of the Early Qur’an''" notes many overlap with Syriac Homilies on the afterlife as well as other apocalyptic ideas and terminology.<ref>“[https://almuslih.org/wp-content/uploads/Library/Sinai,%20N%20-%20The%20Eschatological%20Kerygma.pdf The Eschatological Kerygma of the Early Qur’an]”, Nicolai Sinai, in ''Apocalypticism and Eschatology in Late Antiquity: Encounters in the Abrahamic Religions, 6th–8th Centuries'', edited by Hagit Amirav, Emmanouela Grypeou, and Guy Stroumsa, Leuven: Peeters, 2017, 219–266.

These are discussed throughout the whole paper, and a summary can be found in pp.50-57. On heaven and hell specifically, the summary is on pp.55-57.</ref>

== Souls are taken away at night ==

The Qur'an (and traditional Islamic exegetes)<ref>See classical commentaries on these verses such as Al-Jalalayn on [https://quranx.com/Tafsir/Jalal/39.42 Q39:42], [https://quranx.com/Tafsir/Jalal/6.60 Q6:60] and Ibn Kathir on [https://quranx.com/Tafsir/Kathir/39.41 Q39:41-2] and [https://quranx.com/Tafsir/Kathir/6.60 Q6:60]</ref> state that the soul is taken away by Allah during the night.{{Quote|{{Quran|39|42}}|Allah takes the souls at the time of their death, and those who have not died, in their sleep. Then He retains those for whom He has ordained death and releases the others until a specified time. There are indeed signs in that for a people who reflect.}}{{Quote|{{Quran|6|60}}|It is He who takes your souls by night, and He knows what you do by day, then He reanimates you therein so that a specified term may be completed. Then to Him will be your return, whereat He will inform you concerning what you used to do.}}Tesei (2016) notes this idea may mimic a late antique Syriac Christian parallel in the poetical language used by Ephrem, who in the Nisibene hymns (7:15) mentions sleep resembles death, and other Christian writers (such as Babai) wrote about sleep metaphorically Jesus's death and waking up like the resurrection;<ref>Tesei, Tommaso. (2016). "[https://www.researchgate.net/publication/344524709_2_The_barzakh_and_the_Intermediate_State_of_the_Dead_in_the_Quran 2 The barzakh and the Intermediate State of the Dead in the Quran]". pp. 40-42 In Locating Hell in Islamic Traditions. Leiden, The Netherlands: Brill. <nowiki>https://doi.org/10.1163/9789004301368_003</nowiki> (Open access)

''At the same time, the Quran also compares death to the “common sleep” that people experience on a daily basis. This seems to be the case in the cryptic statement found in Q 39:42 (cf. Q 6:60), “God takes the souls at the time of their death (ḥīna mawtihā), and [He takes] that which has not died, in its sleep ( fī manāmihā); He withholds that against which He has decreed death, but sets loose the other until a stated term”. This obscure passage appears to indicate that sleep is a death-like state; sleepers resemble the dead since their souls enter into a state similar to that which they will experience at the moment of death. However, unlike the souls of the dead, which will be raised only on the Day of Resurrection, the ordinary sleeper’s soul is sent back when he awakens―that is, of course, until the time of his death. This parallel between death and “common sleep” finds a fairly close correspondence in the poetical language used by Ephrem, who in the Nisibene hymns (7:15) affirms that: “The one who lies down to sleep resembles the departed and death resembles a dream, and the resurrection the morning”. In these passages the Quran’s eschatological discourse is particularly close to that formulated by Babai, in whose ideas the belief in the soul’s sleep is intimately connected to the strong affirmation of the physical resurrection of the body on the Day of Judgment.'' </ref> with this idea taken literally by Muhammad.

== Arguments for resurrection ==
Reynolds (2020) notes the repeated argument that God can resurrect the dead using the analogy that he can bring life back to barren (or dead) land may be connected to a Jewish tradition that God will resurrect the dead with dew, for example, in b. Shabbat 88b.<ref name=":2">See: Reynolds, Gabriel Said. Allah: ''God in the Qur'an (pp. 76-77).'' Yale University Press. Kindle Edition.

And Footnote 10: Reynolds, Gabriel Said. ''Allah: God in the Qur'an (p. 254).'' Yale University Press. Kindle Edition.</ref>
{{Quote|{{Quran|30|19}}|He brings forth the living from the dead, and brings forth the dead from the living, and revives the earth after its death. Likewise, you [too] shall be raised [from the dead].}}

Cf: {{Quran|16|65}}, {{Quran|43|11}}, {{Quran|50|6-11}}, {{Quran|57|17}}

==See Also==
*[[Pre-Islamic Arab Religion in Islam]]

* [[Parallels Between the Qur'an and Late Antique Judeo-Christian Literature|Parallels Between the Qur'an and Late Antique Judeo-Christian Literature - Part 1]]
* [[Historical Errors in the Quran]]
==References==
<references />

User:CPO675/Sandbox 1

2026-06-07T19:56:05Z

CPO675: /* The story of Joseph */

== The story of Joseph ==
There are many differences between the story of Joseph (Arabic: ''Yūsuf'') in the Qur'an, told in full in Surah 12 (Surah Yūsuf), and the book of Genesis in the bible.<ref name=":4" /> Reynolds (2025), largely citing Witzum's (2011) 'The Syriac Millenia of the Qur'an: The Recasting of Biblical Narratives',<ref>Witztum, Joseph (2011) ''[https://almuslih.org/wp-content/uploads/2024/11/Witztum-J-The-Syriac-milieu-of-the-Quran.pdf The Syriac milieu of the Quran: The recasting of Biblical narratives], pp191-239.'' PhD Thesis, Princeton University</ref> notes how these differences directly match post-biblical writings; with almost all of these distinctive Qur’anic elements showing dependence on or conversation with Syriac Christian traditions (such as Pseudo-Narsai, Ephrem, Pseudo-Basil, Balai, Syriac Bible/Peshitta), which comes as part of his argument that Christian traditions were known by Muhammad's community. A few overlap with the Jewish midrash, but the strongest and most consistent influence comes from Christian sources.<ref name=":4">Reynolds, Gabriel Said. C''hristianity and the Qur'an: The Rise of Islam in Christian Arabia (p. 76-86).'' Yale University Press. Kindle Edition.</ref>

Reynolds provides provides 11 clear examples of this:<ref name=":4" />

# Joseph’s singular dream: the Qur’an has only one dream (unlike the Book of Genesis which has two) told directly to Jacob, who warns him to keep it secret - matching Pseudo-Narsai’s homily (5th-century Syriac Christian).<ref>Ibid. pp76, pp81</ref>
# The brothers' plot to kill Joseph: the Qur’an has the brothers plotting at home, not spontaneously in the fields - also found in Pseudo-Narsai.<ref>Ibid. pp78, pp82</ref>
# The wolf motif: the Qur’an specifies a wolf instead of a vague “wild animal” in Genesis - which links to Christian tradition (Pseudo-Narsai) who calls the brothers “wolves” and Joseph “a lamb,” echoing Gospel imagery of shepherds/sheep<ref>Ibid. pp78, pp82-83</ref>.
# Joseph in the pit: the Qur’an has Joseph comforted by God in the pit (''jubb''; {{Quran|12|15}}) - which again follows a report in Pseudo-Narsai of revelation to Joseph in the pit (Syriac ''gubbā'').<ref name=":5">Ibid. pp78, pp83</ref>
# Jacob’s (Joseph's father) response to the bloody shirt: the Qur’an has Jacob suspecting deception - reflected in homilies from Ephrem and Balai, who also have Jacob reason that the brothers’ story is false.<ref name=":5" />
# Potiphar and the garment: the Qur’an shows Potiphar recognizing Joseph’s innocence and his wife's guilt in trying to seduce him - found in some post-biblical Jewish Traditions (including ''Genesis Rabbah 87:9'') where he shows knowledge of Joseph's innocence - however only in Christian traditions (e.g., Pseudo-Narsai) do we find Potiphar, as in {{Quran|12|28-29}}, also arguing for Joseph’s innocence by referring to the torn garment as proof.<ref name=":5" />
# Potiphar’s wife confesses: the Qur’an has her admit guilt later in the story - found in the Pseudo-Narsai, where she confesses after Joseph’s rise to power.<ref>Ibid. pp78-79, pp83</ref>
# Jacob’s blindness healed by Joseph’s shirt: the Qur’an reports Jacob miraculously regains sight when Joseph’s shirt touches his face - in the bible Jacob is firstly simply 'dim/heavy with age' in Genesis 48:10, but nothing is said about blindness, which is found in Christian late antique sources, and secondly using the garment to heal him draws on Syriac Christian idioms; (“lighten the eyes” = to gladden), made literal in the Qur’an (like other symbolic items in Christian stories) to heal Jacob's eyes.<ref>Ibid. pp79, pp83-84</ref>
# Joseph called a thief by his brothers: the Qur’an has Joseph's brothers suggest he committed a past theft - which is rooted in Pseudo-Narsai, which connects Benjamin’s cup incident to Rachel stealing idols and compares Joseph to her.<ref>Ibid. pp79, pp84-85</ref>
# Joseph’s garment sent to Jacob: the Qur’an has Joseph send his shirt to Jacob - which is related to the Syriac Peshitta (and Septuagint and Vulgate) reading of Genesis and Balai’s poetry, where Jacob receives garments from Joseph.<ref name=":6">Ibid. pp79, pp85</ref>
# The brothers ask for Jacob’s forgiveness – the Qur’an has them repent to Jacob, who asks God to forgive them - which echoes Balai, who also has Jacob forgive and pray for them.<ref name=":6" />

== Flat Earth - Tafsirs ==

=== The Highest Horizon ===
The Qu'ran says Muhammad was in the highest horizon ''bil-ufuqi<ref>افق - [https://lexicon.quranic-research.net/data/01_A/103_Afq.html Lane's lexicon Classical Arabic Dictionary root: hamza fā qāf (أ ف ق)]

Horizon ''ufuq'' (أُفُق) [https://lexicon.quranic-research.net/pdf/Page_0068.pdf Lane's Lexicon p.68]

Horizon ''ufuq'' (أُفُق) [https://lexicon.quranic-research.net/pdf/Page_0069.pdf Lane's Lexicon p.69] </ref>l-aʿlā''<ref>Lanes Lexicon Classical Arabic Dictionary Root: [https://lexicon.quranic-research.net/data/18_E/190_Elw.html ʿayn lām wāw (ع ل و)]

(l-a)ʿlā [https://lexicon.quranic-research.net/pdf/Page_2142.pdf Lanes Lexicon p.2142], [https://lexicon.quranic-research.net/pdf/Page_2143.pdf Lanes Lexicon p.2143]

</ref>. Typically taken as referring to him receiving knowledge there as part of his [[Buraq#The Night Journey (al-Isra wal-Mi'raj)|night journey]].
{{Quote|{{Quran|53|7}}|possessed of sound judgement. He settled, while he (was) in the horizon - the highest.}}See also: {{Quran|81|23}}

On a round Earth, there is no such place as an objective highest horizon, as once you move towards the perceived horizon (the furthest place you can see where the land and sky appear to meet in the distance)<ref>[https://dictionary.cambridge.org/dictionary/english/horizon Horizon Definition] Cambridge Dictionary</ref> the view simply moves further back as you circle around the earth, never actually being reached. So some classical Islamic exegetes have taken this to be the place where the sun rises from, in the seventh heaven, or where it reaches the Earth,<ref>E.g. [https://quranx.com/Tafsir/Jalal/53.7 Tafsir al-Jalalayn on verse Q53:7] by Al-Mahalli (d. 1459 CE) and Al-Suyuti (d. 1505 CE) and the famous pseudepigrapha [https://quranx.com/Tafsir/Abbas/53.7 Tanwîr al-Miqbâs min Tafsîr Ibn ‘Abbâs on verse Q53:7]</ref> which is only possible on a flat Earth.

== The Historical Jesus ==

=== Other Traditions ===

==== Intro ====

Alongside the main consensus from Biblical Scholars/Historians that Jesus was an eschatological preacher in the early first century AD who believed the Earth would end during his time (and therefore couldn't be the Muslim Jesus), there are many other of the most considered authentic teachings of Jesus that clash with Islam; in contrast with the Qur'anic principle of Messenger Uniformitarianism; where all messengers preach essentially the same thing with only minor variations.<ref>Durie, Mark. ''The Qur’an and Its Biblical Reflexes: Investigations into the Genesis of a Religion (pp. 135-142) (Kindle Edition pp. 281-294)''. 5.3 Messenger Uniformitarianism. Lexington Books. 2018.</ref>
{{Quote|{{Quran|41|43}}|Not is said to you except what was said to the Messengers before you. Indeed, your Lord (is) Possessor (of) forgiveness, and Possessor (of) penalty painful.}}{{Quote|{{Quran|2|285}}|The Apostle and the faithful have faith in what has been sent down to him from his Lord. Each [of them] has faith in Allah, His angels, His scriptures and His apostles. [They declare,] ‘We make no distinction between any of His apostles.’ And they say, ‘We hear and obey. Our Lord, forgive us, and toward You is the return.’}}

{{Quote|{{Quran|17|77}}|“This was the sunnah [customary way] of Our messengers whom We sent before you, and you will find no change in Our sunnah”}}cf. {{Quran|6|112}}, {{Quran|35|43}}, {{Quran|22|78}}.

Other than being explicitly told that messengers bring the same message from Allah, Durie (2018) notes the Qur'an repeatedly states that Muhammad was sent to confirm the revelations given to earlier messengers (Q2:91, 97; Q3:3, 50; Q5:48; Q12:111; Q16:43–44; Q35:31), just as each prophet before him confirmed those who came earlier. For example, Jesus (ʿĪsa) confirmed the Torah of Moses (Mūsa) (Q5:46), and the Qurʾan confirms the scriptures revealed to previous prophets (Q4:47). In this way, Muhammad’s role continues the same pattern of reaffirming earlier divine messages rather than introducing a completely new one.<ref>Durie, Mark. ''The Qur’an and Its Biblical Reflexes: Investigations Into the Genesis of a Religion.'' pp.140</ref>

{{Quote|Durie, Mark. The Qur'an and it's Biblical Reflexes. pp.140|• It is also explicitly asserted that messengers bring the same message
from Alla¯h: “Nothing is said to you but what has already been said to
messengers before you” (Q41:43; Q22:78) and “we make no distinction
between any of them” (Q2:136). They also preached the same dīn “commandment” or “religion” (Q42:13; cf. Q3:84; Q4:150), which is referred
to as the “religion of Ibra¯hīm” (Q2:130; Q4:125; Q16:121–23). The
validating function of this idea becomes clear when it is applied against
a group of Jews who reject the concept of the “same message” because
it would mean validating the Messenger. These Jews hold to their own
faith, saying “we believe in what has been sent down on us,” but they
reject the Messenger, or “anything after that” (Q2:91). The ruling against
these Jews is that because they reject the Messenger, they are disbelievers,
rejecting “what All a¯ h has sent down” (Q2:91).31 The idea of the “same message” is further reinforced when the Qurʾan repeatedly states that the Messenger was only sent to confirm what was sent down by previous
messengers (Q2:91, 97; Q3:3, 50; Q5:48; Q12:111; Q16:43–44; Q35:31),
just as previous messengers had done for messengers that preceded them,
for example, ʿĪsa¯ “confirmed” the Tawra¯ h of Mūsa¯(Q5:46), and the Qurʾan
confirms the book(s) sent by previous prophets (Q4:47), just as the Messenger has been doing in his turn.}}
The large differences between the New Testament / Gospels (and by extension the Christian Jesus), and the [[Isa al-Masih (Jesus Christ)|Muslim Jesus,]] are clear to anyone who has read both the Qur'an and NT; with the Qur'an having it's own spin on him and taking many aspects from apocrypha considered inauthentic by NT scholars,<ref>Sanders, E.. ''The Historical Figure of Jesus (pp. 78-79)''. Penguin Books Ltd. Kindle Edition.

..(Gnosticism was a world view that held everything material to be evil; the god who created the world was a bad god, and the creation was wicked. Gnostics who were also Christians held that the good God had sent Jesus to redeem people’s souls, not their bodies, and that Jesus was not a real human being. The Christians who objected to these views finally declared them heretical.) ''I share the general scholarly view that very, very little in the apocryphal gospels could conceivably go back to the time of Jesus. They are legendary and mythological. Of all the apocryphal material, only some of the sayings in the Gospel of Thomas are worth consideration.'' This does not mean that we can make a clean division: the historical four gospels versus the legendary apocryphal gospels. There are legendary traits in the four gospels in the New Testament, and there is also a certain amount of newly created material (as we saw just above)..</ref> and [[Parallels Between the Qur'an and Late Antique Judeo-Christian Literature|later Christian thought/writings]], and have lead to many Muslims arguing for biblical corruption based on textual and theological grounds [though textual don't affect most early & authentic traditions] in general, which is a disputed idea in traditional Islamic thought (cite - Reynolds article. See also: [[Corruption of Previous Scriptures]] & [[Qur'an, Hadith and Scholars:Corruption of Previous Scriptures]])

Historians have searched for a summary of some of the most likely authentic traditions from Biblical historians (using historical-critical methods not Christian or Muslim theologians - more likely to be true and not taken from bias or proving or disproving Islam but historical context, widespread across sources, early - cite Allison explanation - Why - different to time and context, unlikely to be fabricated later by Christians, across all early sources etc.) are shown here as an example of the clashes. [Point: not arguing against Christian Jesus - but secular historians one]

==== Examples ====
{{Quote|Dale C. Allison Jr.. The Historical Christ and the Theological Jesus (Kindle Locations 822-836). Kindle Edition.|2=Given that we typically remember the outlines of an event or the general purport of a conversation rather than the particulars and that we extract patterns and meaning from our memories, it makes little sense to open the quest for Jesus by evaluating individual items with our criteria, in the hope that some bits preserve pristine memory. We should rather be looking for repeating patterns and contemplating the big picture. true. We should trust first, if we are to trust at all, what is most likely to be trustworthy. Although we may, after reading Thucydides, be confident that there was a Peloponnesian War, we may well wonder about many of the details of his account.

The larger the generalization and the more data upon which it is based, the greater our confidence; the more specific the detail and the fewer the data supporting it, the more room we have for doubt. With regard to the sources for Jesus, the traditional criteria of authenticity privilege the parts over the whole. It seems more prudent to privilege generalizations drawn from the whole than to concentrate upon one individual item after another. As a demonstration of how this works in practice, consider the following traditions:

• Jesus prohibited divorce: 1 Cor. 7:10; Mark 10:2-9; Luke 16:18. [Qur'an divorce rules - https://wikiislam.net/wiki/Khula] 

• Jesus sent forth missionaries without staff, food, or money: Matt. 10:9-10; Mark 6:8-9; Luke 10:4.

• Jesus instructed missionaries to get their living by the gospel: 1 Cor. 9:14; Matt. 10:10; Luke 10:7.

• Jesus commanded loving and doing good to enemies: Matt. 5:38-48; Luke 6:27-36. [Qur'an do not be merciful to unbelievers https://wikiislam.net/wiki/Qur%27an,_Hadith_and_Scholars:Non-Muslims & https://wikiislam.net/wiki/Kafir_(Infidel)#Guidelines_on_how_to_deal_with_disbelievers Quran 48:29 ]

• Jesus forbade judging others: Matt. 7:1-2; Luke 6:37-38.

• Jesus asked a prospective follower not to bury his father: Matt. 8:21-22; 22; Luke 959-60.

• Jesus spoke of hating one's father and mother: Matt. 10:37; Luke 14:26; Gospel of Thomas 55, 101. [respect parents - too tenuous]

• Jesus enjoined disciples to take up a cross: Matt. 10:38; Mark 8:34; Luke 14:27.

• Jesus enjoined unlimited forgiveness: Matt. 18:21-22; Luke 17:3-4. [forgiveness against shirk - Qur'an says no Q4:48 and 4:116. ]

• Jesus exhorted hearers to lose their lives in order to save them: Matt. 10:39; Mark 8:35; Luke 17:33.

• Jesus called people away from their livelihoods: Mark 1:16-20; 2:14. [?]

• Jesus figuratively demanded violent removal of hand, foot, and eye: Mark 9:42-48.

• Jesus asked a wealthy man to relinquish his money: Mark 10:17-27. [bring in wealth inequality section of Islam darajat - here]

• Jesus forbade taking oaths: Matt. 5:33-37. [https://www.iium.edu.my/deed/lawbase/risalah_maliki/book31.html#:~:text=Anyone%20who%20swears%20an%20oath,Oneness%2C%20timelessness%20and%20existence.%5D]

• Jesus commanded money to be lent without interest: Matt. 5:42; Gospel of Thomas 95.

• Jesus called some to a life without marriage: Matt. 19:11-12. [Qur'an criticism of monasticism]

• Jesus asked a prospective follower not to say farewell to his parents: Luke 9:61-62. [respect parents?]

• Jesus asked his disciples to renounce all of their possessions: Luke 14:33"}}
<nowiki>--------------------------------------------------</nowiki>

[ highlight those being spoken about in italics or bold]

Professor Allison (2009) notes that Jesus' banning divorce was an important teaching that <s>stood out</s> to early Christians, [https://www.biblegateway.com/passage/?search=Luke%2016%3A18&version=NIV Luke 16:18], [https://www.biblegateway.com/passage/?search=1%20Corinthians%207%3A10-16&version=NIV 1 Corinthians 7:10-16], [https://www.biblegateway.com/passage/?search=Mark%2010%3A2-9&version=NIV Mark 10:2-9], in contrast to Judaism ([https://www.biblegateway.com/passage/?search=Deuteronomy%2024%3A1-4&version=NIV Deuteronomy 24:1-4]) and Islam e.g. Quran 2:228-232, Q65:1-7, (Q4:19 https://quranx.com/hadiths/4.19 & Q4:35), Q33:49 )

He notes that Jesus commanded loving and doing good to enemies in [https://www.biblegateway.com/passage/?search=Matthew%205%3A38-48&version=NIV Matt. 5:38-48]; [https://www.biblegateway.com/passage/?search=Luke%206%3A27-36&version=NIV Luke 6:27-36], while the Qur'an generally advises treating other Muslims well, it specifically states not to be merciful to unbelievers Q48:29. [ For more examples of not being merciful to unbelievers, let alone 'enemies' see: '''[[Qur'an, Hadith and Scholars:Non-Muslims|https://wikiislam.net/wiki/Qur%27an,_Hadith_and_Scholars:Non-Muslims]] & [[Kafir (Infidel)#Guidelines%20on%20how%20to%20deal%20with%20disbelievers|https://wikiislam.net/wiki/Kafir_(Infidel)#Guidelines_on_how_to_deal_with_disbelievers]] Quran 48:29 ]'''

• Jesus enjoined unlimited forgiveness: [https://www.biblegateway.com/passage/?search=Matthew%2018%3A21-22&version=NIV Matt. 18:21-22]; [https://www.biblegateway.com/passage/?search=Luke%2017%3A3-4&version=NIV Luke 17:3-4]. However the Qur'an distinctly says there is no forgiveness for anyone committing shirk (ascribing partners to God) in {{Quran|4|48}} and {{Quran|4|116}}.

He notes Jesus called some to a life without marriage: [https://www.biblegateway.com/passage/?search=Matthew%2019%3A11-12&version=NIV Matt. 19:11-12], while the Qur'an promotes it as a virtue encouraging those to do so.

Marriage is a virtue https://www.getquranic.com/marriage-in-islam-8-quranic-verses-about-marriage/

{{Quote|{{Quran|24|32}}|Marry off those who are single among you, and the upright among your male and female slaves. If they are poor, Allah will enrich them out of His grace, and Allah is all-bounteous, all-knowing.}}

And criticizes monasticism/monks, with celibacy and no marriage being a key aspect<ref>[https://www.britannica.com/topic/monasticism Monasticism] | religion | Britannica Entry</ref> in general

{{Quote|Reynolds, Gabriel Said. Christianity and the Qur'an: The Rise of Islam in Christian Arabia (pp. 131-132). Yale University Press. Kindle Edition.|These verses critical of monks are often read together with Q 57:27, which, while praising certain positive qualities of Christians, also seems to accuse Christians of “innovating” monasticism: Then We sent, following in their footsteps, Our Messengers; and We sent, following, Jesus son of Mary, and gave unto him the Gospel. And We set in the hearts of those who followed him tenderness and mercy. And monasticism they invented—We did not prescribe it for them—only seeking the good pleasure of God; but they observed it not as it should be observed. So We gave those of them who believed their wage; and many of them are ungodly.}}

Criticism of monasticism (https://www.britannica.com/topic/monasticism) - lack of marriage for monks (though admittedly also praises monks in general elsewhere pp130-132)<ref>Reynolds, Gabriel Said. ''Christianity and the Qur'an: The Rise of Islam in Christian Arabia (pp. 130-132).'' Yale University Press. Kindle Edition.</ref>

{{Quote|{{Quran|57|27}}|Then We sent on their footsteps Our Messengers and We followed with Isa, son (of) Maryam, and We gave him the Injeel. And We placed in (the) hearts (of) those who followed him compassion and mercy. But monasticism they innovated - not We prescribed it for them - only seeking (the) pleasure (of) Allah, but not they observed it (with) right observance. So We gave those who believed among them their reward, but most of them (are) defiantly disobediently.}}

<nowiki>-----------------------------------------------------------------</nowiki>

==== Father-son relationship ====
{{Quote|Dale C. Allison Jr.. The Historical Christ and the Theological Jesus (Kindle Location 841-848). Kindle Edition.|2=Working through the tradition in the way I suggest leads to a large number of conclusions. Jesus must have been an exorcist who interpreted his ministry in terms of Satan's downfall. He must have thought highly of John the Baptist. He must have repeatedly spoken of God as Father. [Durie differences in metaphor and understanding of relationship from Hebrew to Arab society = markedly different] He must have composed parables. He must have come into conflict with religious authorities. All of this may seem obvious, but the procedure is not trite, for it also issues in some controversial verdicts. As I have argued elsewhere, for example, ample, the quantity of conventional eschatological material in our primary sources almost necessitates that Jesus was an eschatological prophet.' The reconstruction of Robert Funk and the Jesus Seminar is for this reason alone problematic. Even more controversial is what my approach leads me to infer about Jesus' self-conception. Consider these Synoptic materials:

• Jesus said that the Son of man will return on the clouds of heaven and send angels to gather the elect from throughout the world: Mark 13:26-27; cf. 14:62; Matt. 10:23 (allusions to Daniel 7's depiction of the last judgment are clear). [the son of man plays no part in Islam]}}Allison (2009) notes that Jesus must have repeatedly referred to God as 'father', a way also used by many ancient Jews to describe their relationship to god, also found in the old testament with different metaphorical meanings<ref>Pennington, J.T. "Chapter Nine. God As Father In The Old Testament And Second Temple Literature". ''Heaven and Earth in the Gospel of Matthew''. Leiden, The Netherlands: Brill, 2007. <nowiki>https://doi.org/10.1163/ej.9789004162051.i-399.57</nowiki> Web.</ref> and Talmudic writings with paternal imagery. <ref>Knobnya, S.. (2011). ''God the Father in the Old Testament. European Journal of Theology.'' 20. 139-148. </ref><ref>[https://www.myjewishlearning.com/article/fatherhood-of-god/ Fatherhood of God] | Sages & Scholars | Rabbi Louis Jacobs | My Jewish Learning</ref>

===== Slave-master relationship =====
However this father-son Hebrew metaphorical relationship Jesus used is distinctly abandoned, instead using other things (other metaphors) in Arab society to describe the relationship between humans and God, such as a slave-master relationship,<ref>Durie, Mark. ''The Qur’an and Its Biblical Reflexes: Investigations into the Genesis of a Religion (pp. XX-XX) (pp. 107-110 Kindle Edition)''. 4.1.1. Shirk - Proprietary Partnership. Lexington Books. 2018.</ref> a Patron - Protege (needs explanation of what this is) <ref>Durie, Mark. ''The Qur’an and Its Biblical Reflexes: Investigations into the Genesis of a Religion (pp. XX-XX) (pp. 110-111 Kindle Edition)''. 4.1.2. Shirk - Patron - Protege Relationships. Lexington Books. 2018.</ref>. with Muhammad having strongly condemned the idea that God could have offspring against the unscripted pagans (mushrikun) taking angels as daughters of god early on chronologically of the Qur'an's first recitations, then later against God having a son against Jesus being the son of God.<ref>Durie, Mark. ''The Qur’an and Its Biblical Reflexes: Investigations into the Genesis of a Religion (pp. XX-XX) (pp. 112-113 Kindle Edition)''. 4.1.5 A Polemical Doctrine. Lexington Books. 2018.</ref>

Slave analogy Dure Print edition pp108 - 110 summary:<ref name=":1">Durie, Mark. ''The Qur’an and Its Biblical Reflexes: Investigations into the Genesis of a Religion (pp. 108-110) (pp. XX-XX Kindle Edition)''. 4.1.5 A Polemical Doctrine. Lexington Books. 2018.</ref> Before its theological use, the Arabic root ''sh-r-k'' referred to ordinary '''partnership or shared ownership'''. The Qurʾan draws on this everyday meaning to illustrate why associating partners with God is impossible. Using the metaphor of '''a master and a slave''', the Qurʾan argues that just as a slave with multiple masters suffers confusion and conflict, attributing partners to God creates an impossible and chaotic situation. This logic appears in verses such as Q39:29 and others that argue multiple gods would lead to conflict and the ruin of creation (Q23:91; Q21:22).<ref name=":1" />
{{Quote|{{Quran|39|29}}|Allah presents a parable, “a man was owned by several quarreling partners
(shurakaʾ), and a man was the slave of (just) one man. Are the two equal?”}}

The Qurʾan’s use of the slave-master metaphor differs from Jesus’ teaching in the New Testament. Whereas Jesus uses it to highlight divided human devotion, the Qurʾan uses it to assert the logical impossibility of multiple divine authorities.<ref name=":1" />

{{Quote|Luke 16:13; cf. Matthew. 6:24|No slave can serve two masters; for a slave will either hate the one and love the
other, or be devoted to the one and despise the other. You cannot serve God and wealth.}}

Shirk encompasses various forms of error: attributing partners or helpers to God, believing He needs allies, or seeking aid from others besides Him. The Qurʾan also explores God’s unity through three social analogies relevant to Arabian society: '''patron–protégé relationships''', '''alliances of mutual help''', and '''relationships of equal or unequal status'''.<ref name=":1" />

===== '''Patron–protégé relationships''' =====
The Qur'an distinctly ignores the father-son relationship (and theology) metaphor by using another term that is harder to translate

Explanation of what this is Durie pp.110-111:<ref name=":3">Durie, Mark. ''The Qur’an and Its Biblical Reflexes: Investigations into the Genesis of a Religion (pp. 110-111) (pp. XX-XX Kindle Edition)''. 4.1.5 A Polemical Doctrine. Lexington Books. 2018.</ref> The Qurʾan uses terms from the root '''w-l-y''' to describe '''patron–protégé relationships''', alliances, and guardianship. The key term '''walī''' can mean ally, protector, guardian, or patron, and may indicate either symmetrical alliances or asymmetrical power relationships.<ref name=":3" /><ref>[https://lexicon.quranic-research.net/data/27_w/219_wle.html Root: ''wāw lām yā'' (و ل ي)] - Lane's Lexicon Qur'anic Research

See Lane's Lexicon Classical Arabic Dictionary [https://lexicon.quranic-research.net/pdf/Page_3060.pdf pp.3060] & [https://lexicon.quranic-research.net/pdf/Page_3061.pdf pp.3061] </ref>

In pre-Islamic Arab society, such patronage was essential for protection, as shown by the example of Muḥammad being safeguarded by his uncle Abū Ṭālib. Without a patron, a person was vulnerable.<ref name=":3" /> [in the sirah of Ibn Ishaq]

The Qurʾan emphasizes that '''God has no need of any patron''' and that '''humans should recognize God alone as their walī'''. Seeking any protector besides God is considered '''shirk'''. Believers may take other believers and the Prophet as allies (''awliyāʾ'') alongside God, but not in place of Him.<ref name=":3" />

As the Muslim community developed, especially after what the passage calls the ''Eschatological Transition''—the Qurʾan increasingly stressed exclusive allegiance to God. This served to detach believers from prior tribal or familial loyalties that could compromise their commitment to the faith community.<ref name=":3" />

- and calls for help-

===== Unequal status vs Jesus' views on Wealth =====
Sinai - darajah passage

And inequality in general - inc. the afterlife

=== Punishment narratives ===

==== Punishment BEFORE the day of judgement ====
We are told the sole exception in history was the unnamed town<ref>Unnamed in the Qur'an, though identified as Nineveh (in modern day Iraq) as in the Biblical "Book of Jonah" by Islamic exegetes; e.g. see [https://quranx.com/tafsirs/37.147 tafsirs on Q37:147]</ref> of more than 100,000 people that the messenger Yūnus (Jonah) when the warning was heeded in full by the entire people, and therefore punishment averted ({{Quran|10|98}}, {{Quran|37|147-148}}) “no town believed . . . except the people of Yūnus”<ref>Durie, Mark. 2018. ''The Qur'an and Its Biblical Reflexes: Investigations Into the Genesis of a Religion. pp 49. Kindle Edition pp 151.''</ref>

How many a town defied the command of its Lord and His apostles, then We called it to a severe account and punished it with a dire punishment. Q65:8

So it tasted the evil consequences of its conduct, and the outcome of its conduct was ruin. Q65:9

How many generations that had far more wealth and ostentation have We laid low before them! <<nowiki>https://quranx.com/19.74</nowiki>>

Say, ‘Whoever abides in error, the All-beneficent shall prolong his respite until they sight what they have been promised: either punishment, or the Hour.’ Then they will know whose position is worse, and whose host is weaker <<nowiki>https://quranx.com/19.75</nowiki>>

------

Q34:16 - flood of the damn of Yemen / Saba', the people of Sheba E.g. <ref>See tafsirs on [https://quranx.com/Tafsirs/34.14 Q34:14], [https://quranx.com/Tafsirs/34.15 Q34:15] & [https://quranx.com/Tafsirs/34.16 Q34:16]</ref> {{Quran|34|14-16}}

{{Quote|{{Quran|34|14-16}}|And when We decreed for Solomon death, nothing indicated to the jinn his death except a creature of the earth eating his staff. But when he fell, it became clear to the jinn that if they had known the unseen, they would not have remained in humiliating punishment.
Certainly, (there) was for Saba in their dwelling place a sign: Two gardens on (the) right and (on the) left. "Eat from (the) provision (of) your Lord and be grateful to Him. A land good and a Lord Oft-Forgiving."
But they turned away, so We sent upon them (the) flood (of) the dam, and We changed for them their two gardens (with) two gardens producing fruit bitter, and tamarisks and (some)thing of lote trees few.}}
, {{Quran|65|8-9}}, {{Quran|19|74-75}}

Add: 34:15–21: The punishment of the people of Sheba, without explicit reference to a messenger. Sheba reference <ref>Marshall, David. ''God, Muhammad and the Unbelievers (p. 73).'' Taylor & Francis. Kindle Edition.</ref>

=== Surah 36 ===
Similarly an unnamed town is sent three messengers in {{Quran|36|13-32}}, who's identities have differed in traditional Islamic scholarship,<ref>E.g. see commentaries on [https://quranx.com/Tafsirs/36.13 Q36:13] & [https://quranx.com/tafsirs/36.14 Q36:14], and the later verses in the story, cited as a parable ''(mathal).''</ref> are rejected and so are killed with a cry/shout (''ṣayḥatan)'' ({{Quran|36|29}}). <ref>Marshall, David. ''God, Muhammad and the Unbelievers (p. 63 & 72).'' Taylor & Francis. Kindle Edition.</ref>
{{Quote|Marshall, David. God, Muhammad and the Unbelievers (p. 72). Taylor & Francis. Kindle Edition.|36:13–32: Described as a parable (mathal, v.13), but in outline very similar to the punishment-narratives. The messengers (two of them, reinforced with a third) and the town in which they preach are anonymous. ‘A man from the furthest part of the city’ (v.20) exhorts his people to follow the messengers.}}

== Contradiction ==
The order in Surah 2 has the Jews struck by a lightening bolt after they worship the golden calf, who are then forgiven by Allah by being resurrected.
{{Quote|{{Quran|2|50-67}}|And when We parted the sea with you, and We delivered you and drowned Pharaoh’s clan as you looked on. 
And when We made an appointment with Moses for forty nights, you took up the Calf [for worship] in his absence, and you were wrongdoers. 
Then We excused you after that so that you might give thanks. 
And when We gave Moses the Book and the Criterion so that you might be guided. 
And [recall] when Moses said to his people, ‘O my people! You have indeed wronged yourselves by taking up the Calf [for worship]. Now turn penitently to your Maker, and slay [the guilty among] your folks. That will be better for you with your Maker.’ Then He turned to you clemently. Indeed, He is the All-clement, the All-merciful. 
And when you said, ‘O Moses, we will not believe you until we see Allah visibly.’ Thereupon a thunderbolt seized you as you looked on.
Then We raised you up after your death so that you might give thanks. /n
We shaded you with clouds, and sent down to you manna and quails [saying]: ‘Eat of the good things We have provided for you.’ And they did not wrong Us, but they used to wrong [only] themselves. 
And when We said, ‘Enter this town, and eat thereof freely whencesoever you wish, and enter while prostrating at the gate, and say, ‘‘Relieve [us of the burden of our sins],’’ so that We may forgive your iniquities and We will soon enhance the virtuous.’ 
But the wrongdoers changed the saying with other than what they were told. So We sent down on those who were wrongdoers a plague from the sky because of the transgressions they used to commit. 
And when Moses prayed for water for his people, We said, ‘Strike the rock with your staff.’ Thereat twelve fountains gushed forth from it; every tribe came to know its drinking-place. ‘Eat and drink of Allah’s provision, and do not act wickedly on the earth, causing corruption.’ 
And when you said, ‘O Moses, ‘We will not put up with one kind of food. So invoke your Lord for us, so that He may bring forth for us of that which the earth grows—its greens and cucumbers, its garlic, lentils, and onions.’ He said, ‘Do you seek to replace what is superior with that which is inferior? Go down to any town and you will indeed get what you ask for!’ So they were struck with abasement and poverty, and they earned Allah’s wrath. That, because they would deny the signs of Allah and kill the prophets unjustly. That, because they would disobey and commit transgressions. 
Indeed the faithful, the Jews, the Christians and the Sabaeans—those of them who have faith in Allah and the Last Day and act righteously—they shall have their reward from their Lord, and they will have no fear, nor will they grieve. 
And when We took a pledge from you, and raised the Mount above you, [declaring], ‘Hold on with power to what We have given you and remember that which is in it so that you may be Godwary.’ 
Again you turned away after that; and were it not for Allah’s grace on you and His mercy, you would have surely been among the losers. 
And certainly you know those of you who violated the Sabbath, whereupon We said to them, ‘Be you spurned apes.’ 
So We made it an exemplary punishment for the present and the succeeding [generations], and an advice to the Godwary.}}
In Surah 4 they are struck before they worship the calf. 4:153 specifically says 'then' ''(thumma)''

{{Quote|{{Quran|4|153-161}}|The People of the Book ask you to bring down for them a Book from the sky. Certainly they asked Moses for [something] greater than that, for they said, ‘Show us Allah visibly,’ whereat a thunderbolt seized them for their wrongdoing. Then they took up the Calf [for worship], after all the manifest proofs that had come to them. Yet We excused that, and We gave Moses a manifest authority. 
And We raised the Mount above them for the sake of their covenant, and We said to them, ‘Enter the gate prostrating’ and We said to them, ‘Do not violate the Sabbath,’ and We took from them a solemn covenant. 
Then because of their breaking their covenant, their defiance of Allah’s signs, their killing of the prophets unjustly and for their saying, ‘Our hearts are uncircumcised’… Indeed, Allah has set a seal on them for their unfaith, so they do not have faith except a few. 
And for their faithlessness, and their uttering a monstrous calumny against Mary, 
and for their saying, ‘We killed the Messiah, Jesus son of Mary, the apostle of Allah’—though they did not kill him nor did they crucify him, but so it was made to appear to them. Indeed those who differ concerning him are surely in doubt about him: they do not have any knowledge of that beyond following conjectures, and certainly, they did not kill him. 
Indeed, Allah raised him up toward Himself, and Allah is all-mighty, all-wise. 
There is none among the People of the Book but will surely believe in him before his death; and on the Day of Resurrection, he will be a witness against them. 
Due to the wrongdoing of the Jews, We prohibited them certain good things that were permitted to them [earlier], and for their barring many [people] from the way of Allah, 
and for their taking usury—though they had been forbidden from it—and for eating up the wealth of the people wrongfully. And We have prepared for the faithless among them a painful punishment. }}

=== V2 ===
Surah 4 (summarized version)

1) They ask Moses for a sign and are hit with a thunderbolt

2) They then take up the calf for worship

3) The mountain is raised above them{{Quote|{{Quran|4|153-154}}|The People of the Book ask you to bring down for them a Book from the sky. Certainly they asked Moses for [something] greater than that, for they said, ‘Show us Allah visibly,’ whereat a thunderbolt seized them for their wrongdoing. Then they took up the Calf [for worship], after all the manifest proofs that had come to them. Yet We excused that, and We gave Moses a manifest authority. 
And We raised the Mount above them for the sake of their covenant, and We said to them, ‘Enter the gate prostrating’ and We said to them, ‘Do not violate the Sabbath,’ and We took from them a solemn covenant.}}Surah 2
1) They worshiped the calf. And Moses tells them to slay the guilty among them.

2) They are hit by a thunderbolt - is it chronological?

3) ... a mountain is lifted above them
{{Quote|{{Quran|2|51-56}}|And when We made an appointment with Moses for forty nights, you took up the Calf [for worship] in his absence, and you were wrongdoers. 
Then We excused you after that so that you might give thanks. 
And when We gave Moses the Book and the Criterion so that you might be guided. 
And [recall] when Moses said to his people, ‘O my people! You have indeed wronged yourselves by taking up the Calf [for worship]. Now turn penitently to your Maker, and slay [the guilty among] your folks. That will be better for you with your Maker.’ Then He turned to you clemently. Indeed, He is the All-clement, the All-merciful. 
And when you said, ‘O Moses, we will not believe you until we see Allah visibly.’ Thereupon a thunderbolt seized you as you looked on.
Then We raised you up after your death so that you might give thanks.}}
== The Lote Tree of the utmost Boundary (Sid'rati al-Muntahā) ==
Lote tree's are a real type of tree (Ziziphus spina-christi) native to Arabia and the Middle East.<ref>[https://www.suewickison.com/products/lote-tree?srsltid=AfmBOorj_RU2x1OPxgfRe689M2TWw1g4uZTQLkpSolPGYnIatiIe7h6K Lote Tree | Sidr | Ziziphus spina-christi |] Plants of the Qur'an | Sue Wickison </ref> Different to the tree of eternity/immortality ''(shajarati ul-khul'di)'' in paradise ''jannah,'' the Qur'an mentions The Lote Tree (sidr) of ''the utmost boundary (al-muntahā)''<ref>مُنْتَهَىٰ - [https://lexicon.quranic-research.net/pdf/Page_3029.pdf Lane's Lexicon pp.3029]

</ref> near (but notably not in) the 'garden of abode', said to be 'covered' yaghshā by something unspecified in Q53:16, typically taken by exegetes to mean by angels, light and/or golden animals.<ref>E.g. see [https://quranx.com/Tafsirs/53.16 Tafsirs on Q53:16]</ref>

{{Quote|{{Quran|53|13-17}}|And certainly he saw him (in) descent another,
Near (the) Lote Tree (of) the utmost boundary,
Near it (is the) Garden (of) Abode.
when there covered the Lote Tree what covered it.
Not swerved the sight and not it transgressed.}}

This furthest boundary/limit is said in the hadith, to place the cosmic tree in the sixth heaven, where even celestial creatures cannot go beyond as the limit of creation; said to be seen by Muhammad in his Night Journey (mi’rāj) on the [[:en:Buraq|Buraq]] (E.g. {{Muslim|1|329}}, {{Al Tirmidhi|2=5|3=44|4=3276}}, {{Bukhari|5|58|227}} & {{Al Nasai|2=1|3=5|4=452}}), and by many Islamic exegetes.<ref>See [https://quranx.com/tafsirs/53.14 tafsirs on Q53:14]</ref>

This would align the cosmology of Islamic traditions supporting the idea that paradise (and therefore the garden of the abode) is in the seventh heaven,<ref>[https://islamqa.info/en/answers/215011/where-are-paradise-and-hell#Where_is_Paradise Where is Paradise] | [https://islamqa.info/en/answers/215011/where-are-paradise-and-hell Where Are Paradise and Hell?] | 07/January/2015 islamqa</ref> while some traditions support the idea that paradise is above the seventh heaven,<ref>[https://www.islamweb.net/en/fatwa/107126/the-location-of-paradise-now#:~:text=Paradise%20that%20Allaah%20promised%20for,are%20many%20texts%20proving%20this. The location of Paradise now] | Paradise and Hell | Belief in the Hereafter | Islamic Creed | Fatwa | islamweb.net </ref> both placing the tree relatively close to jannah. However others suggest that this specific ''garden of the abode (jannatu l-mawā)'' is a separate garden/paradise to the eternal one all righteous Muslims will eventually enter, being instead one where martyrs (those killed in war or for their religion) go before judgement day.<ref>E.g. see [https://quranx.com/Tafsirs/53.15 tafsirs on Q53:15]</ref>

Either way there is no evidence of a celestial tree, which must be magic to survive outside of an Earthly plant ecosystem, but is rather an example of tree mythology.
----
----

(See also: <nowiki>https://sunnah.com/mishkat:5865</nowiki> & https://sunnah.com/mishkat:5640, ) read; https://quranx.com/tafsirs/53.14 - exegetes also confirm this is where boundary is the boundary of the skies/heavens where things other than God cannot pass (at least until judgement day where paradise and hell can be entered).

AND Similarly seen next to the 4 main Near-East rivers (Nile, Euphratesm Tigres,) <nowiki>https://sunnah.com/bukhari:5610</nowiki>, which area said to flow from paradise: <nowiki>https://quranx.com/Hadith/Bukhari/USC-MSA/Volume-5/Book-58/Hadith-227/</nowiki> )

cite: [https://www.islamweb.net/en/fatwa/107126/the-location-of-paradise-now#:~:text=Paradise%20that%20Allaah%20promised%20for,are%20many%20texts%20proving%20this. https://www.islamweb.net/en/fatwa/107126/the-location-of-paradise-now#:~:text=Paradise%20that%20Allaah%20promised%20for,are%20many%20texts%20proving%20this.]

The utmost boundary at the end of t heavens confirmed by exegetes in https://quranx.com/tafsirs/53.14

" Jannat al-ma'va' literally means "the Jannat (Garden) that is to be an abode. " Hadrat Hasan Basri says that this is the same Jannat which the believers and righteous will be given in the Hereafter, and from this same verse he has argued that that Jannat is in the heavens. Qatadah says that this is the Jannat in which the souls of the martyrs are kept; it does not imply the Jannat that is to be given in the Hereafter. Ibn 'Abbas also says the same but adds that the Jannat to be granted to the believers in the Hereafter is not in the heavens but here on the earth.

== Parallels Between the Qur'an and Late Antique Judeo-Christian Literature - Part 2 ==
Following on from [[Parallels Between the Qur'an and Late Antique Judeo-Christian Literature|Part 1]], this is Part 2 of Late Antique Judeo-Christian Literature found in the Qur'an. This material, drawing heavily on rabbinical commentaries on the bible, and late Syriac Christian thought found in homilies, was created far later than the biblical cannon; no-where near the time of the events that occurred. This suggests the stories were transmitted in an oral millennia along with local Arabian traditions<ref>Bannister, Andrew G.. ''An Oral-Formulaic Study of the Qur'an (Kindle Location 249-259 in Chapter 1.2 The Biblicist Roots of the Iblis and Adam Story).'' Bloomsbury Publishing. Kindle Edition.

..When the Qur’an emerged in the seventh-century, it did so in an oral culture in which Biblicist traditions were freely circulating and thus there existed a large pool of commonly known stories and traditions to fish from; a pool in which stories could cross-fertilize and influence one another. 23 It is this, more than direct borrowing that perhaps best explains stories like Iblis and Adam as well as other qur’anic tellings of older tales, such as the Seven Sleepers (Q. 18: 9– 25) 24 and the Legend of Alexander (Dhu al-Qarnayn, Q. 18: 83– 101). 25 The Qur’an originates from a milieu in which Biblicist material was well-known to the first audience of the Qur’an; even a simple allusion to a story was often enough to trigger a connection for the hearer. 26 That Biblicist material has been filtered through storytelling rather than simply copied from a written text is further suggested by what the Qur’an leaves out; no minor prophets are referenced, probably because almost no Old Testament narratives feature them nor did the rabbinic literature weave lengthy tales about them. 27 The exception which proves the rule is Jonah (Q. 21: 87– 88; 37: 139– 148; 68: 48– 50), whose short but dramatic story was extremely popular in both Jewish and Christian contexts.28..

And: Bannister, Andrew G.. ''An Oral-Formulaic Study of the Qur'an (Kindle Locations 1391-1392. Chapter 2.3 The Islamic Tradition and Orality).'' Bloomsbury Publishing. Kindle Edition.</ref> where biblical and much later Jewish and Christian stories could be commonly mixed without the new community realizing.
== The story of Noah ==
The prophet Noah is portrayed extremely differently to the one in Genesis,<ref>Segovia, Carlos A.. ''[https://almuslih.org/wp-content/uploads/2024/12/Segovia-C-The-Quranic-Noah-and-the-Making-of-the-Islamic-Prophet.pdf The Quranic Noah and the Making of the Islamic Prophet: A Study of Intertextuality and Religious Identity Formation in Late Antiquity]'', Berlin, München, Boston: De Gruyter, 2015. <nowiki>https://doi.org/10.1515/9783110405897</nowiki></ref> taking on Jewish and Christian traditions, characteristics, as well as terms from late antique Judeo-Christian writings,<ref>The Qur'anic Noah. pp.21-21</ref> molded to suit Muhammad's situation in line with other messengers in the Qur'an.<ref>''The Qurʾan and its Biblical Reflexes: Investigations into the Genesis of a Religion. Chapter 5.3 Messenger Uniformatism. pp.135-143'' By Mark Durie. Lanham, MD: Lexington Books, 2018. </ref>

=== The preaching of Noah ===

Surah 71 consists entirely of the preaching of Noah and his supplications to Allah.{{Quote|{{Quran-range|71|1|28}}|Indeed, We sent Noah to his people, [saying], "Warn your people before there comes to them a painful punishment." He said, "O my people, indeed I am to you a clear warner, [Saying], 'Worship Allah, fear Him and obey me. Allah will forgive you of your sins and delay you for a specified term. Indeed, the time [set by] Allah, when it comes, will not be delayed, if you only knew.' " 
[...]
And Noah said, "My Lord, do not leave upon the earth from among the disbelievers an inhabitant. Indeed, if You leave them, they will mislead Your servants and not beget except [every] wicked one and [confirmed] disbeliever. My Lord, forgive me and my parents and whoever enters my house a believer and the believing men and believing women. And do not increase the wrongdoers except in destruction."}}Reynolds remarks that "The Qur'ānic character of Noah is quite unlike that of the Noah in Genesis, who does not speak a word until after the flood." Citing the Babylonian Talmud, Sanhedrin 108a, he observes that "[his preaching] is also suggested by a passage in the Talmud:
::"The righteous Noah rebuked them, urging, 'Repent; for if not, the Holy One, blessed be He, will bring a deluge upon you and cause your bodies to float upon the water like gourds, as it is written, He is light [i.e., floats] upon the waters. Moreover, ye shall be taken as a curse for all future generations.' (b. Sanhedrin 108a)"
Reynolds further notes, "It is also prominent in the Syriac fathers, several of whom report that Noah preached to his people for a hundred years before God finally sent the flood." citing for example the Syriac authors Narsai, "On the Flood", 33, II. 227-30 and Jacob of Serugh, ''Homilies contre les juifs'', 70, homily 2, II. 37-40.<ref>Gabriel Said Reynolds, ''The Qurʾān and Bible'' p. 858</ref>

The opponents reject Noah's preaching despite him doing so 'day and night' (Quran 71:5-6) in which they respond by putting their fingers in their ears Quran 71:7, on which Neuwirth (2024) notes that "the means of plugging one’s ears in order to shut oneself off from unpleasant news is also encountered in the Talmud (bKetubbot 5a)."<ref>Neuwirth, Angelika. The Qur'an: Text and Commentary, ''Volume 2.1: Early Middle Meccan Suras: The New Elect (p. 280).'' Yale University Press. Kindle Edition.</ref>

=== Noah's disbelieving wife ===
{{Quote|{{Quran|66|10}}|Allah presents an example of those who disbelieved: the wife of Noah and the wife of Lot. They were under two of Our righteous servants but betrayed them, so those prophets did not avail them from Allah at all, and it was said, "Enter the Fire with those who enter."}}The Bible briefly mentions Noah's wife in one verse without further comment ([https://www.biblegateway.com/passage/?search=Genesis%207%3A7&version=NIV Genesis 7:7]), "And Noah and his sons and his wife and his sons’ wives entered the ark to escape the waters of the flood." Regarding the Quranic verse which speaks of her negatively, Reynolds briefly considers the possibility that the Quran has extended to their wives the parallelism between Noah (though not his wife) and Lot found in the New Testament ([https://www.biblegateway.com/passage/?search=2%20Peter%202&version=NIV 2 Peter 2]), but then comments, "However, it is important to note that already in the pre-Islamic period certain groups had developed hostile legends about Noah's wife." He cites Epiphanius (d. 403 CE), ''Panarion'' 2:26, which relates the Gnostic belief that she was not allowed onto the ark, having burned it down three times before the flood.<ref>Gabriel Said Reynolds, ''The Qurʾān and Bible'' p. 841</ref>

=== Noah's flood waters overflowed from an oven ===
The Qur'anic version of the Noah's flood story describes the flood waters as overflowing from an oven. This element is not found even in more ancient versions of the story (Epic of Gilgamesh, Atra hasis, and Ziusudra).

Note that in his translation, Yusuf Ali mistranslates the Aramaic loan word for the oven (alttannooru ٱلتَّنُّورُ)<ref>[http://www.studyquran.org/LaneLexicon/Volume1/00000355.pdf Lane's Lexicon p. 318 تَّنُّورُ]</ref> as "fountains". The Arabic verb translated "gushed forth" (fara فَارَ) means overflowed or boiled in the context of water in a cooking pot<ref>[http://www.studyquran.org/LaneLexicon/Volume6/00000241.pdf Lane's Lexicon p. 2457 فور]</ref>, as well as in the other verse where it is used, {{Quran|67|7}}. Here is Pickthall's more accurate translation:{{Quote|{{Quran|11|40}}|
(Thus it was) till, when Our commandment came to pass '''and the oven gushed forth water''', We said: Load therein two of every kind, a pair (the male and female), and thy household, save him against whom the word hath gone forth already, and those who believe. And but a few were they who believed with him.}}{{Quote|{{Quran|23|27}}|
Then We inspired in him, saying: Make the ship under Our eyes and Our inspiration. Then, when Our command cometh '''and the oven gusheth water''', introduce therein of every (kind) two spouses, and thy household save him thereof against whom the Word hath already gone forth. And plead not with Me on behalf of those who have done wrong. Lo! they will be drowned.}}At one time academic scholars thought this verse alluded to a Midrashic exegesis in which the flood waters were boiling hot (b. Sanhedrin 108b, [https://www.sefaria.org/Rosh_Hashanah.12a.4?lang=bi|Tracate Rosh Hashanah 12a:4]). More recent scholarship, particularly by Olivier Mongellaz in 2024,<ref name="Mongellaz2024">Olivier Mongellaz (2024) [https://brill.com/view/journals/arab/71/4-5/article-p513_4.xml Le four de Noé : un cas d’intertextualité coranique], Arabica 71(4-5), 513-637. https://doi.org/10.1163/15700585-20246900</ref> has identified that these verses most likely reflect a late antique legend in which water gushing up through a bread oven (a large hole dug into the ground) was a sign warning Noah's family of the imminent flood. The interpretation as Noah's own oven is attributed to a number of early commentators (such as Ibn Abbas, Mujahid), while others understood it to be the area of land where the flood waters first rose. Qurtubi said: "The sayings of commentators appear to be different as to the meaning of tannur, but this, in reality, is not a difference. When water began to bulge out, it overflowed from the bread baking oven, and from out of the surface of the land".

Significantly, Mongellaz has argued on literary grounds that a fragmentary Arabic text falsely attributed to Hippolytus of Rome, and which mentions the overflowing bread oven story, is independent of the Islamic tradition and was originally written in a very specific environment which has parallels with the context in which certain parts of the Quran were written.{{Quote|Pseudo. Hippolytus of Rome (translated to English from Mongellaz's French translation)<ref name="Mongellaz2024" />|Meanwhile, Ham's wife stood up to take out the bread that remained in the oven and immediately water sprang out of the oven [fāḍa l-māʾmin al-tannūr] and immediately water came out of the oven, as the Lord had said: "The fountains of the great deeps were opened." Ham's wife called to Noah, saying, "My lord, the word of God has come true (Syr. what God promised has come true!)" - for it had come true just as the Lord had promised her. When Noah heard Ham's wife's words, he said to her, "Oh, the flood has come."}}

=== Noah's ark left behind as a sign ===
{{Quote|{{Quran-range|54|13|15}}|And We carried him on a [construction of] planks and nails, Sailing under Our observation as reward for he who had been denied. And We left it as a sign, so is there any who will remember?}}Unlike the bible, which does not mention the ark as a sign for future generations, Neuwirth (2024) notes the salvation of Noah is made physically plausible to the listeners through the reference to the material verifiability of the ark, which could be taken from various late antique traditions, for example Flavius Josephus (b. 37AD) reports in the ''Jewish Antiquities (I 3.5 § 92)'' of the existence of the remains of Noah’s ark in Armenia (Clementz 1959: 22).<ref name=":0">Neuwirth, Angelika. ''The Qur'an: Text and Commentary, Volume 2.1: Early Middle Meccan Suras: The New Elect (p. 62).'' Yale University Press. Kindle Edition.</ref> She also notes that the appeal to the willingness of the listeners to be admonished by the sign (āya) of Noah’s ark is also reminiscent of the Talmudic story (bSanhedrin 96a) of the death of Sennacherib, who was led to a fateful decision by seeing the remains of Noah’s ark.<ref name=":0" />
==Moses and Pharaoh==
Alongside the biblical account of Moses and the Pharoah, there are some key aspects that match Jewish Rabbinic and Christian non-biblical traditions. Even the place where Moses communicates with God in the story of the burning bush, the word used ''ṭuwan'' in e.g. {{Quran|20|12}} (for the folded land, implying double the holiness)<ref>See; Neuwirth, Angelika. ''The Qur'an: Text and Commentary, Volume 2.1: Early Middle Meccan Suras: The New Elect (p. 199).'' Yale University Press. Kindle Edition. Ṭuwā stands for the holy Mount Sinai or Horeb (cf. KU, 124ff.; FVQ, 206ff.; BEQ, 255ff.). The word was long thought to be a rhyming transformation of Aramaic ṭūrā (“the mountain”), but now, based on rabbinic tradition and in agreement with traditional exegetes, Uri Rubin has convincingly interpreted bi-l-wādī l-muqaddasi Ṭuwā to mean “in the doubly hallowed valley” (see Rubin 2014). (The Sinai is in a sense the “folded Holy Land” [ṬWY = “to fold”].) Citing: Rubin, Uri, 2014, ''[https://urirubin.com/assets/docs/Tuwan.86132451.pdf Moses and the Holy Valley Ṭuwan. On the Biblical and Midrashic Background of a Qurʾanic Scene],'' Journal of Near Eastern Studies 73, 73–81.</ref> does not have a parallel in the bible,<ref>''[https://urirubin.com/assets/docs/Tuwan.86132451.pdf Moses and the Holy Valley Ṭuwan: On the biblical and midrashic background of a qurʾānic scene.]'' Rubin 2014. Ibid. pp. 75.</ref> but does in other Judeo-Christian (later) works.<ref>Ibid. pp. 76-78</ref> And the idea of eschatology in Moses's story such as {{Quran|20|15}}, with reward in the afterlife being mentioned, is not contained in the biblical story of Moses, Neuwirth (2024) notes moves the story into a late antiquity interpretation.<ref>Neuwirth, Angelika. ''The Qur'an: Text and Commentary, Volume 2.1: Early Middle Meccan Suras: The New Elect (p. 199).'' Yale University Press. Kindle Edition.</ref> Key details in the stories include:
===The prophecy of baby Moses===
Alongside the scene of [https://www.biblegateway.com/passage/?search=Exodus%201%3A8-2%3A10&version=NIV Exodus 1:8-2:10] where the Hebrews in Egyptian bondage are told to kill all male babies to control the growing Israelite population, where Moses's mother places his basket in the Nile to escape; Neuwirth (2024) citing Speyer, notes that ''the prophecy to Moses’s mother that an enemy—of Moses as well as of God himself—would take him in reflects a Midrashic interpretation of Exodus Rabba (1:31: “So the daughter of Pharaoh raised the daughter, who was once to take revenge on her father”). The event is explicitly based on a divine intention, namely, to make Moses his chosen one.''<ref>''The Qur'an: Text and Commentary, Volume 2.1: Early Middle Meccan Suras: The New Elect'' Ibid. pp. 201.</ref>{{Quote|{{Quran-range|20|37|39}}|We have bestowed Our favour on you before this, When We told your mother what We relate: 'Put him in a wooden box and cast it in the river. The river will cast it on the bank. An enemy of Ours, and his, will retrieve it.' We bestowed Our love on you that you may be reared under Our eyes.}}And similarly the next verse unlike the bible focuses on the emotional impact of the event on Moses’s mother, Neuwirth notes is comparable to Midrash Exodus Rabba 1:25.<ref>Ibid. pp. 201-202.</ref> Moses's salvation from persecution after manslaughter is commemorated with similar consideration of Moses’s mental condition.<ref>Ibid. pp. 202.</ref>{{Quote|{{Quran|20|40}}|When your sister walked up [to Pharaoh’s palace] saying, “Shall I show you someone who will take care of him?” Then We restored you to your mother, that she might not grieve and be comforted. Then you slew a soul, whereupon We delivered you from anguish, and We tried you with various ordeals. Then you stayed for several years among the people of Midian. Then you turned up as ordained, O Moses!}}
===Moses not suckled by Egyptians===
{{Quote|{{Quran-range|28|12|13}}|And We had prevented from him [all] wet nurses before, so she said, "Shall I direct you to a household that will be responsible for him for you while they are to him [for his upbringing] sincere?" So We restored him to his mother that she might be content and not grieve and that she would know that the promise of Allah is true. But most of the people do not know.}}Reynolds comments, "On this passage cf. Exodus 2:7-9. The Qurʾān's declaration (v. 12) 'We had forbidden him to be suckled by any nurse' (v. 12) reflects a tradition in the Babylonian Talmud that Moses (from whose mouth would come forth the word of God) refused the impure breasts of the Egyptian women:
::Then said his sister to Pharaoh's daughter, Shall I go and call thee a nurse of the Hebrew women? Why just 'of the Hebrew women'? - It teaches that they handed about to all the Egyptian women but he would not suck. He said: Shall a mouth which will speak with [God] suck what is unclean! (b. Sotah 12b)"<ref>Gabriel Said Reynolds, ''The Qurʾān and Bible'' p. 598</ref>
===Moses's speech impediment===
Moses has some kind of speech impediment when going to speak to Pharaoh in the Qurʾān.{{Quote|{{Quran-range|20|24|28}}|"Go to Pharaoh. Indeed, he has transgressed."( Moses) said: "O, my Lord! Expand me my breast,” ease my task for me, And untie the knot from my tongue, so they may understand what I say.”}}Biblical Scholar James Kugel (1997)<ref>Kugel, James L.. The Bible As It Was (Kindle Edition. pp. 432-433). Harvard University Press.</ref> notes that later Jewish and Christian commentators found it necessary to explain Moses's statement in the Old Testament “''Oh my Lord, I am not a man of words … but I am heavy of speech and heavy of tongue''” ([https://www.biblegateway.com/passage/?search=Exodus%204%3A10&version=NIV Exodus 4:10]), as he was believed to be a highly educated man who had been supposedly been schooled in every branch of wisdom, including eloquence.

He notes "it occurred to interpreters that Moses might have been referring here not to any lacuna in his education, but to an actual speech defect, some physical deformity of his mouth or tongue that prevented him from speaking in the usual fashion." We see this in:<ref>Ibid. pp. 432 - 433 (Kindle Edition)</ref>

"''I'' ''am not by nature eloquent; my tongue with difficulty speaks, I stammer, so that I cannot speak before the king."'' —Ezekiel the Tragedian, Exaggē 113– 115 (3rd-2nd century BCE)

''He [Moses] pleased his parents by his beauty, but grieved them by his speech impediment. —''Ephraem, Commentary on Exodus 2: 4 (d. 373 AD)

Others even added stories on how he might have acquired that deformity, such as Josephus in Jewish Antiquities 2: 232– 236 (published ~93/94 AD), connecting their explanation of Moses’ speech problems to the tradition of Pharaoh’s wise men and their warnings about a boy that might grow up and save Israel.<ref>Ibid. pp. 433 - 434 (Kindle Edition)</ref>
===Pharaohs questions===
Neuwirth (2024) comments that the list of further detailed questions to Moses in Surah 26 'The Poets' / al-shuʿarāʾ (i.e. in {{Quran-range|26|22|29}}), citing Speyer, reflect a more detailed episode from Midrash Exodus Rabba 5:18, which also starts from Pharaoh’s self-praise as God.<ref>Neuwirth, Angelika. ''The Qur'an: Text and Commentary, Volume 2.1: Early Middle Meccan Suras: The New Elect (p. 250).'' Yale University Press. Kindle Edition.</ref>
===The Drowning of Pharaoh===
{{Quote|{{Quran-range|10|90|92}}|And We took the Children of Israel across the sea, and Pharaoh and his soldiers pursued them in tyranny and enmity until, when drowning overtook him, he said, "I believe that there is no deity except that in whom the Children of Israel believe, and I am of the Muslims." Now? And you had disobeyed [Him] before and were of the corrupters? So today We will save you in body that you may be to those who succeed you a sign. And indeed, many among the people, of Our signs, are heedless}}Reynolds comments, "The question of Pharaoh's survival appears in an opinion found in the (late fourth century AD) ''Mekilta de-Rabbi Ishmael'' (cr. Gavin McDowell):
::"And the waters returned and covered the chariot etc. [Exo 14:27]. Even Pharaoh, according to the words of R. Judah, as it is said, 'The chariots of Pharaoh and his force, etc.' [Exo 15:4]. R. Nehimiah says: ''Except for Pharaoh.'' About him it says, 'However, for this purpose I have let you live' [Exo 9:16]. Others say that in the end Pharaoh went down and drowned, as it is said, 'Then went the horse of Pharaoh, etc.' [Exo 15:19]. (Beshallah 7)"<ref>Gabriel Said Reynolds, ''The Qurʾān and Bible'' p. 339</ref>
==Arguments for resurrection==
Reynolds (2020) notes the repeated argument that God can resurrect the dead using the analogy that he can bring life back to barren (or dead) land may be connected to a Jewish tradition that God will resurrect the dead with dew, for example, in b. Shabbat 88b.<ref name=":2" />
{{Quote|{{Quran|30|19}}|He brings forth the living from the dead, and brings forth the dead from the living, and revives the earth after its death. Likewise, you [too] shall be raised [from the dead].}}

Cf: {{Quran|16|65}}, {{Quran|43|11}}, {{Quran|50|6-11}}, {{Quran|57|17}}
==Late antique Christian Martyrdom==
{{Main|Shaheed (Martyr)}}
Durie (2018) notes the violence of the Qur'an shares more commonality with contemporary late antique religious (primarily Christian) violence and warfare rather than being directly biblically based.<ref>Durie, Mark. ''The Qur’an and Its Biblical Reflexes: Investigations into the Genesis of a Religion.'' Lexington Books. 2018. Pp. 229 -237. (Kindle Edition: pp. 423-439). 6.9 Stories of Fighting Prophets</ref>

=== Textual overlap ===

Covering the continuity and similarities between late antique religious violence & warfare and the Qur'an (and other Islamic traditions) is too big a topic to cover here; perhaps the most in-depth academic work looking at the continuity between this and Islam is Thomas Sizgorich's ''Violence and Belief in Late Antiquity: Militant Devotion in Christianity and Islam'', however Sinai (2017) notes alongside similar ideas and theology, there are some direct textual references.{{Quote|Sinai, Nicolai. Qur'an: A Historical-Critical Introduction (The New Edinburgh Islamic Surveys) (pp. 301-302). Edinburgh University Press. Kindle Edition.|That the Qur’anic community’s access to Biblical notions of militancy was mediated by late antique Christian discourse is indicated by an intriguing intertextual overlap. According to Q 3: 169–170, those who have been ‘killed in the path of God’ are not dead but ‘alive with their Lord’, rather than having to spend the remaining time until the Resurrection in a state of slumber (similarly Q 2: 154).39 Tor Andrae has pointed out that the phrase ‘alive with their Lord’ (ayāun inda rabbihim) corresponds exactly to the Syriac phrase h. ayyē lwāth alāhā, which a sixth-century Syriac Christian writer (Mar Ishay) applies to the martyrs.40 Furthermore, Mar Ishay contrasts the true fate of the martyrs with unfounded prior opinion: ‘they are believed to be already dead’.41 The same contrast is found in the two Qur’anic passages just cited.42 It could be objected that the parallel demonstrates merely that the Qur’an is familiar with the widespread Christian idea that martyrs are granted prompt access to paradise but that this does not establish a Christian precedent for the Qur’anic application of this idea specifically to those who actively enact – rather than just suffer – violence. However, as Sizgorich reminds us, a Christian martyr was by no means seen merely as a passive victim of persecution but rather as someone who actively ‘defeats the power of the Roman state’.43}}{{Quote|{{Quran|3|169}}|And never think of those who have been killed in the cause of Allah as dead. Rather, they are alive with their Lord, receiving provision}}{{Quote|{{Quran|2|154}}|Do not say that those who are killed in the way of God, are dead, for indeed they are alive, even though you are not aware.}}

=== Martyrs sidestep judgement day ===
After death, humans are typically said to spend their time in an intermediate state known to traditional Islamic scholars as the ''barzakh'' while they wait.<ref>Reynolds, Gabriel Said. 2020. ''Allah:'' ''God in the Qur'an (p. 71-72).'' Yale University Press. Kindle Edition.

It is also the same term used for the barrier between the living and the dead (whilst awaiting judgement day) in the Qur'an, e.g. {{Quran|23|99-100}}</ref> However, as in the above verses, one exception to this rule is Martyrs being with God straight away rather than being judged at judgment day, a non-biblical idea having parallels with late antique Christian thought.

Sinai (2017) similarly notes strong ideological parallels a 6th century hagiographical text (the Panegyric on Macarius, Bishop of Tkow by Pseudo-Dioscorus of Alexandria) of a 5th-century martyr, Egyptian Bishop Macarius of Tkow who was martyred for opposing the council of Chalcedon. Citing Michael Gaddis's summary of the document, ‘He was both willing to die for his faith, and willing to kill for it.’ he notes the same idea in {{Quran|9|111}} … they fight in the way of Allah, kill, and are killed.. <ref>Ibid. (Kindle Edition. pp. 299).</ref> As well as citing English historian of the Byzantine Empire James Howard-Johnston "''..James Howard-Johnston draws attention to a passage in the Chronicle of Theophanes Confessor (d. 818), which reports that at about the same time when the Qur’an promised those ‘killed in the path of God’ immediate entry to paradise, the Byzantine emperor Heraclius similarly announced that those fighting the Sasanians would be recompensed with eternal life. In Heraclius’s address as reported by Theophanes Confessor, we find some of the same general ingredients that are noticeable in Qur’anic calls to militancy…''"<ref>Ibid. (Kindle Edition. pp. 301).</ref> He notes these similarities are likely caused by being on the fringes of the Roman empire.<ref>Ibid. (Kindle Edition. pp. 301).</ref>

==== Martyrdom wipes away other sins and is privileged above other acts from believers ====
{{Quote|Reynolds, Gabriel Said. Christianity and the Qur'an: The Rise of Islam in Christian Arabia (pp. 178-179). Yale University Press. Kindle Edition.|The teaching on the glory earned by martyrs is widespread in the early church. It is nevertheless telling to find the way it is emphasized in the third-century Christian text the aforementioned Didascalia Apostolorum, originally written in Greek but preserved in Syriac.87 The Didascalia clearly teaches that the martyrs will have a privilege above other faithful believers: If then He raises up all men,—as He said by Isaiah: All flesh shall see the salvation of God [Isa 40.5; 52.10],—much more will He quicken and raise up the faithful; and (yet more) again will He quicken and raise up the faithful of the faithful, who are the martyrs, and establish them in great glory and make them His counsellors. For to mere disciples, those who believe in Him, He has promised a glory as of the stars [Dan 12.3]; but to the martyrs He has promised to give an everlasting glory, as of the luminaries which fail not, with more abundant light, that they may be shining for all time.88

The Didascalia is also clear, as is the Qur’an, that martyrs enjoy a special grace through the forgiveness of sins that their deaths have earned for them: But again, sins are forgiven by baptism also to those who from the Gentiles draw near and enter the holy Church of God. Let us inquire also, to whom sins are not imputed. To such as Abraham and Isaac and Jacob and all the patriarchs, as also to the martyrs. Let us hear then, brethren, for the Scripture saith: Who shall boast himself and say: I am clear of sins? Or who shall be confident and say: I am innocent? [Prov 20.9].

And again: There is no man pure of defilement: not though his life be but one day [Job 14.4–5 LXX]. To everyone therefore who believes and is baptized his … former sins have been forgiven; but after baptism also, provided that he has not sinned a deadly sin nor been an accomplice (thereto), but has heard only, or seen, or spoken, and is thus guilty of sin. But if a man go forth from the world by martyrdom for the name of the Lord, blessed is he; for brethren who by martyrdom have gone forth from this world, of these the sins are covered.89

We might compare Q 3:195: “ ‘And those who emigrated, and were expelled from their habitations, those who suffered hurt in My way, and fought, and were slain—them I shall surely acquit of their evil deeds, and I shall admit them to gardens underneath which rivers flow.’ A reward from God! And God with Him is the fairest reward” (italics added). In other words, the Qur’an seems to be well aware of Christian devotion to the martyrs.}}

=== Martyrdom in the Torah and Gospels ===
Muslims who fight are promised paradise, which the Qur'an claims is also a promise in the Torah and Gospel.{{Quote|{{Quran|9|111}}|Indeed Allah has bought from the faithful their souls and their possessions for paradise to be theirs: they fight in the way of Allah, kill, and are killed. A promise binding upon Him in the Torah and the Evangel and the Quran. And who is truer to his promise than Allah? So rejoice in the bargain you have made with Him, and that is the great success.}}Nickel (2020)<ref>Nickel, Gordon D. ''The Quran with Christian Commentary: A Guide to Understanding the Scripture of Islam (p. 222).'' Zondervan Academic. Kindle Edition. 9.111 – They fight in the way of God, and they kill and are killed When the Quran describes believers as fighting “in the way of Allah,” it makes a theological claim by associating Allah with human fighting. See the analysis of these expressions at 73.20 (p. 597). 9.111 – a promise binding on Him in the Torah, and the Gospel, and the Qur’ān This is the only verse in the Quran that brings the Torah (tawrāt), Gospel (injīl), and qur’ān (lit. “recitation”) together. The Quran claims here that the particular point on which the Torah and Gospel agree with the Muslim recitation is that believers “fight in the way of Allah, and they kill and are killed.” This verse makes the reader question whether the Quran has a clear idea of the contents of the Torah and Gospel. A similar question is raised by 61.14, which appears to say that ‘Īsā and his disciples fought against their enemies (cf. 3.52). Along with these misunderstandings, the Quran gives no information about the peaceable teaching and example of Jesus in the Gospel accounts. See the analysis of the Quran’s verses on the “Gospel” at 57.27 (p. 549). Do the Torah and Gospel in fact contain such a promise? See the comment on this characterization of the Bible at 61.14 (p. 566).</ref> and Reynolds (2018) however notes that this is not found there:{{Quote|1=Reynolds, G. S. (2018). The Qur'an and the Bible: Text and Commentary. Commentary on 9:111 (pp. 322) United Kingdom: Yale University Press.|2="9:111 The point of this verse is that those who are prepared to give their lives to God in the holy war are promised paradise as a payment for their services (cf. 2:245; 4:74; 61:10–12). The idea that the martyrs have a special assurance of paradise follows from the Qurʾān’s teaching elsewhere that the act of martyrdom involves forgiveness of sin. This teaching is close to that of the Syriac fathers (see commentary on 2:154, with further references). It is curious that the Qurʾān insists that the promise of heaven for holy warriors is found in the Torah and the Gospel (or “Evangel”); heaven is not found in the Torah and holy war is not found in the Gospels...}}While his commentary on 2:154 (pp. 76) once again highlights the Syriac parallel:{{Quote|2="As Tor Andrae has shown (Les origines de l’islam et le christianisme, 161ff.), the idea that martyrdom involves the absolution of sins is prominent in Syriac Christian texts such as the third-century Didascalia (chap. 20) and the Treaty on the Martyrs of Mar Isaï (d. late sixth cen.); the latter text also insists—much like the Qurʾān—that the martyrs are “living”:

The true martyrs who, by way of a death that covers their sins, demonstrate even more the beauty of their deeds and receive this glorious inheritance by virtue of their blood. By leaving this life they have prepared for their souls an honorable abode in paradise. It was thought that they are already dead, but by their death they have killed their sin, and they are alive with God. (Mar Isaï, Treaty on the Martyrs, 32)}}
=== Further Martyrdom Influence ===
Neuwirth (2024) also notes the influence of Christian martyrdom stories on the sudden conversion and prayers/asking for forgiveness to God of Pharaoh's magician's, who are originally opponents of Moses until he shows them proof of his prophecy via a miracle in the face of a sudden and violent death as threatened by the arrogant ruler (e.g. in {{Quran-range|26|50|51}} and {{Quran-range|20|71|73}}).<ref>Neuwirth, Angelika. ''The Qur'an: Text and Commentary, Volume 2.1: Early Middle Meccan Suras: The New Elect (p. 204).'' Yale University Press. Kindle Edition.</ref> Both Jewish and Christian traditions present individual “anti-Moses” sorcerers named Jannes and Jambres, who continue to appear in later interpretations; citing Nora Schmid, she notes that, although there is no explicit textual reference and the magicians are typically depicted in a negative light, they came to be associated with penance and martyrdom in Christian tradition - in the Qurʾan, this idea is developed further: the forgiveness that Jannes and Jambres either did not receive or only partially received in earlier sources is ultimately granted.<ref>Ibid. pp. 251-252</ref>{{Quote|Neuwirth, Angelika. The Qur'an: Text and Commentary, Volume 2.1: Early Middle Meccan Suras: The New Elect (p. 204). Yale University Press. Kindle Edition.|V. 72–73 qālū lan nuʾthiraka ʿalā mā jāʾanā mina l-bayyināti wa-lladhī faṭaranā fa-qḍi mā anta qāḍin innamā taqḍī hādhihi l-ḥayāta l-dunyā / innā āmannā birabbinā li-yaghfira lanā khaṭāyānā wa-mā akrahtanā ʿalayhi mina l-siḥri wallāhu khayrun wa-abqā] Conversion scene as later in Q 26:50–51. The sorcerers renounce their allegiance to Pharaoh on the basis of the obvious evidence (bayyināt) and give preference to the Creator God, they submit to their worldly fate and hope for the forgiveness of their sins and what they have been forced to do by the ruler—they are a role model for the community, which is also subject to pressure from outside. The request for forgiveness of sins before a violent death is a topos of Christian martyr stories. The entire scene, leaving the context of ‘ancient’ Egypt, reflects the notion of Christian martyrdom stories. Khaṭāyā (singular khaṭīʾa) also lets a Syriac terminus technicus ring through, but the word can be derived from the Arabic root KhṬʿ (“to miss a goal”) (see FVQ, 123ff.). The idea of the forgiveness of sins is prominent in the Christian liturgy—not only through the Lord’s Prayer. In addition to khaṭīʾa, there is the genuine Arabic dhanb, dhunūb.}}

== Expansions on the afterlife ==

Reynolds (2020) notes the Qur’ans provides vivid depictions of hell are highly unlike the New Testament, where Jesus refers to afterlife punishment mostly allusively. The closest the Gospels describe hell is through the few images of “fire,” “wailing,” and “gnashing of teeth.”, for example in Matthew’s Parable of the Weeds, Jesus explains that at the end of the age, the Son of Man will send his angels that will cast evildoers into a fiery furnace where there will be weeping and gnashing of teeth (Matt 13:40–42).<ref>Reynolds, Gabriel Said. ''Allah: God in the Qur'an (pp. 81-82).'' Yale University Press. Kindle Edition.</ref> He notes the much more constant an vivid Qur'anic descriptions far better match later Christian works that expanded the descriptions to be more gruesome, in order to scare the reader/audience.<ref>Ibid. pp. 88.

''We might note how all of these traditions are meant to make humans yearn for paradise and fear hell. The Qur’an, from this regard, is a profoundly psychological work. Like a Christian preacher, like John Chrysostom or Saint Ephrem, the author of the Qur’an speaks of heaven and hell to persuade his audience to repent and believe. He does so in a way, however, that is distinct—emphasizing physical pain and physical pleasure in order, apparently, to make a greater impression on his audience. He puts a terrible tree into hell and young women in paradise.''
</ref>{{Quote|Reynolds, Gabriel Said. Allah: God in the Qur'an (pp. 82-83). Yale University Press. Kindle Edition.|The way that the Qur’an describes hell in particularly vivid, gruesome terms brings us back to something we mentioned in Chapter 1, namely, that the Qur’an in many ways is a “homiletic” work, a work written like a homily or sermon. The Qur’an’s intention is not simply to declare that those who disobey God will be punished, but to describe that punishment in a way which brings the awfulness of hell to life. Similarly, homilists in the early centuries of Christianity expanded dramatically on the New Testament allusions to hell. In a sermon attributed to John Chrysostom (d. 407) we read a description of hell with the sort of detail that we find in the Qur’an: It is a sea of fire—not a sea of the kind or dimensions we know here, but much larger and fiercer, with waves made of fire, fire of a strange and fearsome kind. There is a great abyss there, in fact, of terrible flames, and one can see fire rushing about on all sides like some wild animal…. There will be no one who can resist, no one who can escape: Christ’s gentle, peaceful face will be nowhere to be seen.15}}Sinai (2017) in his paper titled "''The Eschatological Kerygma of the Early Qur’an''" notes many overlap with Syriac Homilies on the afterlife as well as other apocalyptic ideas and terminology.<ref>“[https://almuslih.org/wp-content/uploads/Library/Sinai,%20N%20-%20The%20Eschatological%20Kerygma.pdf The Eschatological Kerygma of the Early Qur’an]”, Nicolai Sinai, in ''Apocalypticism and Eschatology in Late Antiquity: Encounters in the Abrahamic Religions, 6th–8th Centuries'', edited by Hagit Amirav, Emmanouela Grypeou, and Guy Stroumsa, Leuven: Peeters, 2017, 219–266.

These are discussed throughout the whole paper, and a summary can be found in pp.50-57. On heaven and hell specifically, the summary is on pp.55-57.</ref>

== Souls are taken away at night ==

The Qur'an (and traditional Islamic exegetes)<ref>See classical commentaries on these verses such as Al-Jalalayn on [https://quranx.com/Tafsir/Jalal/39.42 Q39:42], [https://quranx.com/Tafsir/Jalal/6.60 Q6:60] and Ibn Kathir on [https://quranx.com/Tafsir/Kathir/39.41 Q39:41-2] and [https://quranx.com/Tafsir/Kathir/6.60 Q6:60]</ref> state that the soul is taken away by Allah during the night.{{Quote|{{Quran|39|42}}|Allah takes the souls at the time of their death, and those who have not died, in their sleep. Then He retains those for whom He has ordained death and releases the others until a specified time. There are indeed signs in that for a people who reflect.}}{{Quote|{{Quran|6|60}}|It is He who takes your souls by night, and He knows what you do by day, then He reanimates you therein so that a specified term may be completed. Then to Him will be your return, whereat He will inform you concerning what you used to do.}}Tesei (2016) notes this idea may mimic a late antique Syriac Christian parallel in the poetical language used by Ephrem, who in the Nisibene hymns (7:15) mentions sleep resembles death, and other Christian writers (such as Babai) wrote about sleep metaphorically Jesus's death and waking up like the resurrection;<ref>Tesei, Tommaso. (2016). "[https://www.researchgate.net/publication/344524709_2_The_barzakh_and_the_Intermediate_State_of_the_Dead_in_the_Quran 2 The barzakh and the Intermediate State of the Dead in the Quran]". pp. 40-42 In Locating Hell in Islamic Traditions. Leiden, The Netherlands: Brill. <nowiki>https://doi.org/10.1163/9789004301368_003</nowiki> (Open access)

''At the same time, the Quran also compares death to the “common sleep” that people experience on a daily basis. This seems to be the case in the cryptic statement found in Q 39:42 (cf. Q 6:60), “God takes the souls at the time of their death (ḥīna mawtihā), and [He takes] that which has not died, in its sleep ( fī manāmihā); He withholds that against which He has decreed death, but sets loose the other until a stated term”. This obscure passage appears to indicate that sleep is a death-like state; sleepers resemble the dead since their souls enter into a state similar to that which they will experience at the moment of death. However, unlike the souls of the dead, which will be raised only on the Day of Resurrection, the ordinary sleeper’s soul is sent back when he awakens―that is, of course, until the time of his death. This parallel between death and “common sleep” finds a fairly close correspondence in the poetical language used by Ephrem, who in the Nisibene hymns (7:15) affirms that: “The one who lies down to sleep resembles the departed and death resembles a dream, and the resurrection the morning”. In these passages the Quran’s eschatological discourse is particularly close to that formulated by Babai, in whose ideas the belief in the soul’s sleep is intimately connected to the strong affirmation of the physical resurrection of the body on the Day of Judgment.'' </ref> with this idea taken literally by Muhammad.

== Arguments for resurrection ==
Reynolds (2020) notes the repeated argument that God can resurrect the dead using the analogy that he can bring life back to barren (or dead) land may be connected to a Jewish tradition that God will resurrect the dead with dew, for example, in b. Shabbat 88b.<ref name=":2">See: Reynolds, Gabriel Said. Allah: ''God in the Qur'an (pp. 76-77).'' Yale University Press. Kindle Edition.

And Footnote 10: Reynolds, Gabriel Said. ''Allah: God in the Qur'an (p. 254).'' Yale University Press. Kindle Edition.</ref>
{{Quote|{{Quran|30|19}}|He brings forth the living from the dead, and brings forth the dead from the living, and revives the earth after its death. Likewise, you [too] shall be raised [from the dead].}}

Cf: {{Quran|16|65}}, {{Quran|43|11}}, {{Quran|50|6-11}}, {{Quran|57|17}}

==See Also==
*[[Pre-Islamic Arab Religion in Islam]]

* [[Parallels Between the Qur'an and Late Antique Judeo-Christian Literature|Parallels Between the Qur'an and Late Antique Judeo-Christian Literature - Part 1]]
* [[Historical Errors in the Quran]]
==References==
<references />

User:CPO675/Sandbox 1

2026-06-07T19:50:23Z

CPO675: /* The story of Joseph */

== The story of Joseph ==
There are many differences between the story of Joseph (Arabic: ''Yūsuf'') in the Qur'an, told in full in Surah 12 (Surah Yūsuf), and the book of Genesis in the bible.<ref name=":4" /> Reynolds (2025), largely citing Witzum's (2011) 'The Syriac Millenia of the Qur'an: The Recasting of Biblical Narratives',<ref>Witztum, Joseph (2011) ''[https://almuslih.org/wp-content/uploads/2024/11/Witztum-J-The-Syriac-milieu-of-the-Quran.pdf The Syriac milieu of the Quran: The recasting of Biblical narratives], pp191-239.'' PhD Thesis, Princeton University</ref> notes how these differences directly match post-biblical writings; with almost all of these distinctive Qur’anic elements showing dependence on or conversation with Syriac Christian traditions (such as Pseudo-Narsai, Ephrem, Pseudo-Basil, Balai, Syriac Bible/Peshitta), which comes as part of his argument that Christian traditions were known by Muhammad's community. A few overlap with the Jewish midrash, but the strongest and most consistent influence comes from Christian sources.<ref name=":4">Reynolds, Gabriel Said. C''hristianity and the Qur'an: The Rise of Islam in Christian Arabia (p. 76-86).'' Yale University Press. Kindle Edition.</ref>

Reynolds provides provides 11 clear examples of this:<ref name=":4" />

# Joseph’s singular dream: Qur’an has only one dream (unlike the Book of Genesis which has two), told directly to Jacob, who warns him to keep it secret - which matches Pseudo-Narsai’s homily (5th-century Syriac Christian).<ref>Ibid. pp76, pp81</ref>
# The brothers' plot to kill Joseph: the Qur’an has the brothers plotting at home, not spontaneously in the fields - also found in Pseudo-Narsai.<ref>Ibid. pp78, pp82</ref>
# The wolf motif: the Qur’an specifies a wolf instead of a vague “wild animal” in Genesis - which links to Christian tradition (Pseudo-Narsai) who calls the brothers “wolves” and Joseph “a lamb,” echoing Gospel imagery of shepherds/sheep. <ref>Ibid. pp78, pp82-83</ref>
# Joseph in the pit: Qur’an has Joseph comforted by God in the pit (''jubb''; {{Quran|12|15}}) - which again follows a report in Pseudo-Narsai of revelation to Joseph in the pit (Syriac ''gubbā'').<ref name=":5">Ibid. pp78, pp83</ref>
# Jacob’s (Joseph's father) response to the bloody shirt: the Qur’an has Jacob suspecting deception - reflected in homilies from Ephrem and Balai, who also have Jacob reason that the brothers’ story is false.<ref name=":5" />
# Potiphar and the garment: the Qur’an shows Potiphar recognizing Joseph’s innocence and his wife's guilt in trying to seduce him - found in some post-biblical Jewish Traditions (including ''Genesis Rabbah 87:9'') where he shows knowledge of Joseph's innocence - however only in Christian traditions (e.g., Pseudo-Narsai) do we find Potiphar, as in {{Quran|12|28-29}}, arguing for Joseph’s innocence by referring to the torn garment as proof.<ref name=":5" />
# Potiphar’s wife confesses: the Qur’an has her admit guilt later in the story - found in the Pseudo-Narsai, where she confesses after Joseph’s rise to power.<ref>Ibid. pp78-79, pp83</ref>
# Jacob’s blindness healed by Joseph’s shirt: the Qur’an reports Jacob miraculously regains sight when Joseph’s shirt touches his face - in the bible Jacob is firstly simply 'dim/heavy with age' in Genesis 48:10, but nothing is said about blindness, which is found in Christian late antique sources, and secondly using the garment to heal him draws on Syriac Christian idioms; (“lighten the eyes” = to gladden), made literal in the Qur’an (like other symbolic items in Christian stories) to heal Jacob's eyes. <ref>Ibid. pp79, pp83-84</ref>
# Joseph called a thief by his brothers: the Qur’an has Joseph's brothers suggest he committed a past theft - rooted in Pseudo-Narsai, which connects Benjamin’s cup incident to Rachel stealing idols and compares Joseph to her.<ref>Ibid. pp79, pp84-85</ref>
# Joseph’s garment sent to Jacob: Qur’an has Joseph send his shirt to Jacob - which is related to the Syriac Peshitta (and Septuagint and Vulgate) reading of Genesis and Balai’s poetry, where Jacob receives garments from Joseph. <ref name=":6">Ibid. pp79, pp85</ref>
# The brothers ask for Jacob’s forgiveness – the Qur’an has them repent to Jacob, who asks God to forgive them - which Echoes Balai, who also has Jacob forgive and pray for them.<ref name=":6" />

== Flat Earth - Tafsirs ==

=== The Highest Horizon ===
The Qu'ran says Muhammad was in the highest horizon ''bil-ufuqi<ref>افق - [https://lexicon.quranic-research.net/data/01_A/103_Afq.html Lane's lexicon Classical Arabic Dictionary root: hamza fā qāf (أ ف ق)]

Horizon ''ufuq'' (أُفُق) [https://lexicon.quranic-research.net/pdf/Page_0068.pdf Lane's Lexicon p.68]

Horizon ''ufuq'' (أُفُق) [https://lexicon.quranic-research.net/pdf/Page_0069.pdf Lane's Lexicon p.69] </ref>l-aʿlā''<ref>Lanes Lexicon Classical Arabic Dictionary Root: [https://lexicon.quranic-research.net/data/18_E/190_Elw.html ʿayn lām wāw (ع ل و)]

(l-a)ʿlā [https://lexicon.quranic-research.net/pdf/Page_2142.pdf Lanes Lexicon p.2142], [https://lexicon.quranic-research.net/pdf/Page_2143.pdf Lanes Lexicon p.2143]

</ref>. Typically taken as referring to him receiving knowledge there as part of his [[Buraq#The Night Journey (al-Isra wal-Mi'raj)|night journey]].
{{Quote|{{Quran|53|7}}|possessed of sound judgement. He settled, while he (was) in the horizon - the highest.}}See also: {{Quran|81|23}}

On a round Earth, there is no such place as an objective highest horizon, as once you move towards the perceived horizon (the furthest place you can see where the land and sky appear to meet in the distance)<ref>[https://dictionary.cambridge.org/dictionary/english/horizon Horizon Definition] Cambridge Dictionary</ref> the view simply moves further back as you circle around the earth, never actually being reached. So some classical Islamic exegetes have taken this to be the place where the sun rises from, in the seventh heaven, or where it reaches the Earth,<ref>E.g. [https://quranx.com/Tafsir/Jalal/53.7 Tafsir al-Jalalayn on verse Q53:7] by Al-Mahalli (d. 1459 CE) and Al-Suyuti (d. 1505 CE) and the famous pseudepigrapha [https://quranx.com/Tafsir/Abbas/53.7 Tanwîr al-Miqbâs min Tafsîr Ibn ‘Abbâs on verse Q53:7]</ref> which is only possible on a flat Earth.

== The Historical Jesus ==

=== Other Traditions ===

==== Intro ====

Alongside the main consensus from Biblical Scholars/Historians that Jesus was an eschatological preacher in the early first century AD who believed the Earth would end during his time (and therefore couldn't be the Muslim Jesus), there are many other of the most considered authentic teachings of Jesus that clash with Islam; in contrast with the Qur'anic principle of Messenger Uniformitarianism; where all messengers preach essentially the same thing with only minor variations.<ref>Durie, Mark. ''The Qur’an and Its Biblical Reflexes: Investigations into the Genesis of a Religion (pp. 135-142) (Kindle Edition pp. 281-294)''. 5.3 Messenger Uniformitarianism. Lexington Books. 2018.</ref>
{{Quote|{{Quran|41|43}}|Not is said to you except what was said to the Messengers before you. Indeed, your Lord (is) Possessor (of) forgiveness, and Possessor (of) penalty painful.}}{{Quote|{{Quran|2|285}}|The Apostle and the faithful have faith in what has been sent down to him from his Lord. Each [of them] has faith in Allah, His angels, His scriptures and His apostles. [They declare,] ‘We make no distinction between any of His apostles.’ And they say, ‘We hear and obey. Our Lord, forgive us, and toward You is the return.’}}

{{Quote|{{Quran|17|77}}|“This was the sunnah [customary way] of Our messengers whom We sent before you, and you will find no change in Our sunnah”}}cf. {{Quran|6|112}}, {{Quran|35|43}}, {{Quran|22|78}}.

Other than being explicitly told that messengers bring the same message from Allah, Durie (2018) notes the Qur'an repeatedly states that Muhammad was sent to confirm the revelations given to earlier messengers (Q2:91, 97; Q3:3, 50; Q5:48; Q12:111; Q16:43–44; Q35:31), just as each prophet before him confirmed those who came earlier. For example, Jesus (ʿĪsa) confirmed the Torah of Moses (Mūsa) (Q5:46), and the Qurʾan confirms the scriptures revealed to previous prophets (Q4:47). In this way, Muhammad’s role continues the same pattern of reaffirming earlier divine messages rather than introducing a completely new one.<ref>Durie, Mark. ''The Qur’an and Its Biblical Reflexes: Investigations Into the Genesis of a Religion.'' pp.140</ref>

{{Quote|Durie, Mark. The Qur'an and it's Biblical Reflexes. pp.140|• It is also explicitly asserted that messengers bring the same message
from Alla¯h: “Nothing is said to you but what has already been said to
messengers before you” (Q41:43; Q22:78) and “we make no distinction
between any of them” (Q2:136). They also preached the same dīn “commandment” or “religion” (Q42:13; cf. Q3:84; Q4:150), which is referred
to as the “religion of Ibra¯hīm” (Q2:130; Q4:125; Q16:121–23). The
validating function of this idea becomes clear when it is applied against
a group of Jews who reject the concept of the “same message” because
it would mean validating the Messenger. These Jews hold to their own
faith, saying “we believe in what has been sent down on us,” but they
reject the Messenger, or “anything after that” (Q2:91). The ruling against
these Jews is that because they reject the Messenger, they are disbelievers,
rejecting “what All a¯ h has sent down” (Q2:91).31 The idea of the “same message” is further reinforced when the Qurʾan repeatedly states that the Messenger was only sent to confirm what was sent down by previous
messengers (Q2:91, 97; Q3:3, 50; Q5:48; Q12:111; Q16:43–44; Q35:31),
just as previous messengers had done for messengers that preceded them,
for example, ʿĪsa¯ “confirmed” the Tawra¯ h of Mūsa¯(Q5:46), and the Qurʾan
confirms the book(s) sent by previous prophets (Q4:47), just as the Messenger has been doing in his turn.}}
The large differences between the New Testament / Gospels (and by extension the Christian Jesus), and the [[Isa al-Masih (Jesus Christ)|Muslim Jesus,]] are clear to anyone who has read both the Qur'an and NT; with the Qur'an having it's own spin on him and taking many aspects from apocrypha considered inauthentic by NT scholars,<ref>Sanders, E.. ''The Historical Figure of Jesus (pp. 78-79)''. Penguin Books Ltd. Kindle Edition.

..(Gnosticism was a world view that held everything material to be evil; the god who created the world was a bad god, and the creation was wicked. Gnostics who were also Christians held that the good God had sent Jesus to redeem people’s souls, not their bodies, and that Jesus was not a real human being. The Christians who objected to these views finally declared them heretical.) ''I share the general scholarly view that very, very little in the apocryphal gospels could conceivably go back to the time of Jesus. They are legendary and mythological. Of all the apocryphal material, only some of the sayings in the Gospel of Thomas are worth consideration.'' This does not mean that we can make a clean division: the historical four gospels versus the legendary apocryphal gospels. There are legendary traits in the four gospels in the New Testament, and there is also a certain amount of newly created material (as we saw just above)..</ref> and [[Parallels Between the Qur'an and Late Antique Judeo-Christian Literature|later Christian thought/writings]], and have lead to many Muslims arguing for biblical corruption based on textual and theological grounds [though textual don't affect most early & authentic traditions] in general, which is a disputed idea in traditional Islamic thought (cite - Reynolds article. See also: [[Corruption of Previous Scriptures]] & [[Qur'an, Hadith and Scholars:Corruption of Previous Scriptures]])

Historians have searched for a summary of some of the most likely authentic traditions from Biblical historians (using historical-critical methods not Christian or Muslim theologians - more likely to be true and not taken from bias or proving or disproving Islam but historical context, widespread across sources, early - cite Allison explanation - Why - different to time and context, unlikely to be fabricated later by Christians, across all early sources etc.) are shown here as an example of the clashes. [Point: not arguing against Christian Jesus - but secular historians one]

==== Examples ====
{{Quote|Dale C. Allison Jr.. The Historical Christ and the Theological Jesus (Kindle Locations 822-836). Kindle Edition.|2=Given that we typically remember the outlines of an event or the general purport of a conversation rather than the particulars and that we extract patterns and meaning from our memories, it makes little sense to open the quest for Jesus by evaluating individual items with our criteria, in the hope that some bits preserve pristine memory. We should rather be looking for repeating patterns and contemplating the big picture. true. We should trust first, if we are to trust at all, what is most likely to be trustworthy. Although we may, after reading Thucydides, be confident that there was a Peloponnesian War, we may well wonder about many of the details of his account.

The larger the generalization and the more data upon which it is based, the greater our confidence; the more specific the detail and the fewer the data supporting it, the more room we have for doubt. With regard to the sources for Jesus, the traditional criteria of authenticity privilege the parts over the whole. It seems more prudent to privilege generalizations drawn from the whole than to concentrate upon one individual item after another. As a demonstration of how this works in practice, consider the following traditions:

• Jesus prohibited divorce: 1 Cor. 7:10; Mark 10:2-9; Luke 16:18. [Qur'an divorce rules - https://wikiislam.net/wiki/Khula] 

• Jesus sent forth missionaries without staff, food, or money: Matt. 10:9-10; Mark 6:8-9; Luke 10:4.

• Jesus instructed missionaries to get their living by the gospel: 1 Cor. 9:14; Matt. 10:10; Luke 10:7.

• Jesus commanded loving and doing good to enemies: Matt. 5:38-48; Luke 6:27-36. [Qur'an do not be merciful to unbelievers https://wikiislam.net/wiki/Qur%27an,_Hadith_and_Scholars:Non-Muslims & https://wikiislam.net/wiki/Kafir_(Infidel)#Guidelines_on_how_to_deal_with_disbelievers Quran 48:29 ]

• Jesus forbade judging others: Matt. 7:1-2; Luke 6:37-38.

• Jesus asked a prospective follower not to bury his father: Matt. 8:21-22; 22; Luke 959-60.

• Jesus spoke of hating one's father and mother: Matt. 10:37; Luke 14:26; Gospel of Thomas 55, 101. [respect parents - too tenuous]

• Jesus enjoined disciples to take up a cross: Matt. 10:38; Mark 8:34; Luke 14:27.

• Jesus enjoined unlimited forgiveness: Matt. 18:21-22; Luke 17:3-4. [forgiveness against shirk - Qur'an says no Q4:48 and 4:116. ]

• Jesus exhorted hearers to lose their lives in order to save them: Matt. 10:39; Mark 8:35; Luke 17:33.

• Jesus called people away from their livelihoods: Mark 1:16-20; 2:14. [?]

• Jesus figuratively demanded violent removal of hand, foot, and eye: Mark 9:42-48.

• Jesus asked a wealthy man to relinquish his money: Mark 10:17-27. [bring in wealth inequality section of Islam darajat - here]

• Jesus forbade taking oaths: Matt. 5:33-37. [https://www.iium.edu.my/deed/lawbase/risalah_maliki/book31.html#:~:text=Anyone%20who%20swears%20an%20oath,Oneness%2C%20timelessness%20and%20existence.%5D]

• Jesus commanded money to be lent without interest: Matt. 5:42; Gospel of Thomas 95.

• Jesus called some to a life without marriage: Matt. 19:11-12. [Qur'an criticism of monasticism]

• Jesus asked a prospective follower not to say farewell to his parents: Luke 9:61-62. [respect parents?]

• Jesus asked his disciples to renounce all of their possessions: Luke 14:33"}}
<nowiki>--------------------------------------------------</nowiki>

[ highlight those being spoken about in italics or bold]

Professor Allison (2009) notes that Jesus' banning divorce was an important teaching that <s>stood out</s> to early Christians, [https://www.biblegateway.com/passage/?search=Luke%2016%3A18&version=NIV Luke 16:18], [https://www.biblegateway.com/passage/?search=1%20Corinthians%207%3A10-16&version=NIV 1 Corinthians 7:10-16], [https://www.biblegateway.com/passage/?search=Mark%2010%3A2-9&version=NIV Mark 10:2-9], in contrast to Judaism ([https://www.biblegateway.com/passage/?search=Deuteronomy%2024%3A1-4&version=NIV Deuteronomy 24:1-4]) and Islam e.g. Quran 2:228-232, Q65:1-7, (Q4:19 https://quranx.com/hadiths/4.19 & Q4:35), Q33:49 )

He notes that Jesus commanded loving and doing good to enemies in [https://www.biblegateway.com/passage/?search=Matthew%205%3A38-48&version=NIV Matt. 5:38-48]; [https://www.biblegateway.com/passage/?search=Luke%206%3A27-36&version=NIV Luke 6:27-36], while the Qur'an generally advises treating other Muslims well, it specifically states not to be merciful to unbelievers Q48:29. [ For more examples of not being merciful to unbelievers, let alone 'enemies' see: '''[[Qur'an, Hadith and Scholars:Non-Muslims|https://wikiislam.net/wiki/Qur%27an,_Hadith_and_Scholars:Non-Muslims]] & [[Kafir (Infidel)#Guidelines%20on%20how%20to%20deal%20with%20disbelievers|https://wikiislam.net/wiki/Kafir_(Infidel)#Guidelines_on_how_to_deal_with_disbelievers]] Quran 48:29 ]'''

• Jesus enjoined unlimited forgiveness: [https://www.biblegateway.com/passage/?search=Matthew%2018%3A21-22&version=NIV Matt. 18:21-22]; [https://www.biblegateway.com/passage/?search=Luke%2017%3A3-4&version=NIV Luke 17:3-4]. However the Qur'an distinctly says there is no forgiveness for anyone committing shirk (ascribing partners to God) in {{Quran|4|48}} and {{Quran|4|116}}.

He notes Jesus called some to a life without marriage: [https://www.biblegateway.com/passage/?search=Matthew%2019%3A11-12&version=NIV Matt. 19:11-12], while the Qur'an promotes it as a virtue encouraging those to do so.

Marriage is a virtue https://www.getquranic.com/marriage-in-islam-8-quranic-verses-about-marriage/

{{Quote|{{Quran|24|32}}|Marry off those who are single among you, and the upright among your male and female slaves. If they are poor, Allah will enrich them out of His grace, and Allah is all-bounteous, all-knowing.}}

And criticizes monasticism/monks, with celibacy and no marriage being a key aspect<ref>[https://www.britannica.com/topic/monasticism Monasticism] | religion | Britannica Entry</ref> in general

{{Quote|Reynolds, Gabriel Said. Christianity and the Qur'an: The Rise of Islam in Christian Arabia (pp. 131-132). Yale University Press. Kindle Edition.|These verses critical of monks are often read together with Q 57:27, which, while praising certain positive qualities of Christians, also seems to accuse Christians of “innovating” monasticism: Then We sent, following in their footsteps, Our Messengers; and We sent, following, Jesus son of Mary, and gave unto him the Gospel. And We set in the hearts of those who followed him tenderness and mercy. And monasticism they invented—We did not prescribe it for them—only seeking the good pleasure of God; but they observed it not as it should be observed. So We gave those of them who believed their wage; and many of them are ungodly.}}

Criticism of monasticism (https://www.britannica.com/topic/monasticism) - lack of marriage for monks (though admittedly also praises monks in general elsewhere pp130-132)<ref>Reynolds, Gabriel Said. ''Christianity and the Qur'an: The Rise of Islam in Christian Arabia (pp. 130-132).'' Yale University Press. Kindle Edition.</ref>

{{Quote|{{Quran|57|27}}|Then We sent on their footsteps Our Messengers and We followed with Isa, son (of) Maryam, and We gave him the Injeel. And We placed in (the) hearts (of) those who followed him compassion and mercy. But monasticism they innovated - not We prescribed it for them - only seeking (the) pleasure (of) Allah, but not they observed it (with) right observance. So We gave those who believed among them their reward, but most of them (are) defiantly disobediently.}}

<nowiki>-----------------------------------------------------------------</nowiki>

==== Father-son relationship ====
{{Quote|Dale C. Allison Jr.. The Historical Christ and the Theological Jesus (Kindle Location 841-848). Kindle Edition.|2=Working through the tradition in the way I suggest leads to a large number of conclusions. Jesus must have been an exorcist who interpreted his ministry in terms of Satan's downfall. He must have thought highly of John the Baptist. He must have repeatedly spoken of God as Father. [Durie differences in metaphor and understanding of relationship from Hebrew to Arab society = markedly different] He must have composed parables. He must have come into conflict with religious authorities. All of this may seem obvious, but the procedure is not trite, for it also issues in some controversial verdicts. As I have argued elsewhere, for example, ample, the quantity of conventional eschatological material in our primary sources almost necessitates that Jesus was an eschatological prophet.' The reconstruction of Robert Funk and the Jesus Seminar is for this reason alone problematic. Even more controversial is what my approach leads me to infer about Jesus' self-conception. Consider these Synoptic materials:

• Jesus said that the Son of man will return on the clouds of heaven and send angels to gather the elect from throughout the world: Mark 13:26-27; cf. 14:62; Matt. 10:23 (allusions to Daniel 7's depiction of the last judgment are clear). [the son of man plays no part in Islam]}}Allison (2009) notes that Jesus must have repeatedly referred to God as 'father', a way also used by many ancient Jews to describe their relationship to god, also found in the old testament with different metaphorical meanings<ref>Pennington, J.T. "Chapter Nine. God As Father In The Old Testament And Second Temple Literature". ''Heaven and Earth in the Gospel of Matthew''. Leiden, The Netherlands: Brill, 2007. <nowiki>https://doi.org/10.1163/ej.9789004162051.i-399.57</nowiki> Web.</ref> and Talmudic writings with paternal imagery. <ref>Knobnya, S.. (2011). ''God the Father in the Old Testament. European Journal of Theology.'' 20. 139-148. </ref><ref>[https://www.myjewishlearning.com/article/fatherhood-of-god/ Fatherhood of God] | Sages & Scholars | Rabbi Louis Jacobs | My Jewish Learning</ref>

===== Slave-master relationship =====
However this father-son Hebrew metaphorical relationship Jesus used is distinctly abandoned, instead using other things (other metaphors) in Arab society to describe the relationship between humans and God, such as a slave-master relationship,<ref>Durie, Mark. ''The Qur’an and Its Biblical Reflexes: Investigations into the Genesis of a Religion (pp. XX-XX) (pp. 107-110 Kindle Edition)''. 4.1.1. Shirk - Proprietary Partnership. Lexington Books. 2018.</ref> a Patron - Protege (needs explanation of what this is) <ref>Durie, Mark. ''The Qur’an and Its Biblical Reflexes: Investigations into the Genesis of a Religion (pp. XX-XX) (pp. 110-111 Kindle Edition)''. 4.1.2. Shirk - Patron - Protege Relationships. Lexington Books. 2018.</ref>. with Muhammad having strongly condemned the idea that God could have offspring against the unscripted pagans (mushrikun) taking angels as daughters of god early on chronologically of the Qur'an's first recitations, then later against God having a son against Jesus being the son of God.<ref>Durie, Mark. ''The Qur’an and Its Biblical Reflexes: Investigations into the Genesis of a Religion (pp. XX-XX) (pp. 112-113 Kindle Edition)''. 4.1.5 A Polemical Doctrine. Lexington Books. 2018.</ref>

Slave analogy Dure Print edition pp108 - 110 summary:<ref name=":1">Durie, Mark. ''The Qur’an and Its Biblical Reflexes: Investigations into the Genesis of a Religion (pp. 108-110) (pp. XX-XX Kindle Edition)''. 4.1.5 A Polemical Doctrine. Lexington Books. 2018.</ref> Before its theological use, the Arabic root ''sh-r-k'' referred to ordinary '''partnership or shared ownership'''. The Qurʾan draws on this everyday meaning to illustrate why associating partners with God is impossible. Using the metaphor of '''a master and a slave''', the Qurʾan argues that just as a slave with multiple masters suffers confusion and conflict, attributing partners to God creates an impossible and chaotic situation. This logic appears in verses such as Q39:29 and others that argue multiple gods would lead to conflict and the ruin of creation (Q23:91; Q21:22).<ref name=":1" />
{{Quote|{{Quran|39|29}}|Allah presents a parable, “a man was owned by several quarreling partners
(shurakaʾ), and a man was the slave of (just) one man. Are the two equal?”}}

The Qurʾan’s use of the slave-master metaphor differs from Jesus’ teaching in the New Testament. Whereas Jesus uses it to highlight divided human devotion, the Qurʾan uses it to assert the logical impossibility of multiple divine authorities.<ref name=":1" />

{{Quote|Luke 16:13; cf. Matthew. 6:24|No slave can serve two masters; for a slave will either hate the one and love the
other, or be devoted to the one and despise the other. You cannot serve God and wealth.}}

Shirk encompasses various forms of error: attributing partners or helpers to God, believing He needs allies, or seeking aid from others besides Him. The Qurʾan also explores God’s unity through three social analogies relevant to Arabian society: '''patron–protégé relationships''', '''alliances of mutual help''', and '''relationships of equal or unequal status'''.<ref name=":1" />

===== '''Patron–protégé relationships''' =====
The Qur'an distinctly ignores the father-son relationship (and theology) metaphor by using another term that is harder to translate

Explanation of what this is Durie pp.110-111:<ref name=":3">Durie, Mark. ''The Qur’an and Its Biblical Reflexes: Investigations into the Genesis of a Religion (pp. 110-111) (pp. XX-XX Kindle Edition)''. 4.1.5 A Polemical Doctrine. Lexington Books. 2018.</ref> The Qurʾan uses terms from the root '''w-l-y''' to describe '''patron–protégé relationships''', alliances, and guardianship. The key term '''walī''' can mean ally, protector, guardian, or patron, and may indicate either symmetrical alliances or asymmetrical power relationships.<ref name=":3" /><ref>[https://lexicon.quranic-research.net/data/27_w/219_wle.html Root: ''wāw lām yā'' (و ل ي)] - Lane's Lexicon Qur'anic Research

See Lane's Lexicon Classical Arabic Dictionary [https://lexicon.quranic-research.net/pdf/Page_3060.pdf pp.3060] & [https://lexicon.quranic-research.net/pdf/Page_3061.pdf pp.3061] </ref>

In pre-Islamic Arab society, such patronage was essential for protection, as shown by the example of Muḥammad being safeguarded by his uncle Abū Ṭālib. Without a patron, a person was vulnerable.<ref name=":3" /> [in the sirah of Ibn Ishaq]

The Qurʾan emphasizes that '''God has no need of any patron''' and that '''humans should recognize God alone as their walī'''. Seeking any protector besides God is considered '''shirk'''. Believers may take other believers and the Prophet as allies (''awliyāʾ'') alongside God, but not in place of Him.<ref name=":3" />

As the Muslim community developed, especially after what the passage calls the ''Eschatological Transition''—the Qurʾan increasingly stressed exclusive allegiance to God. This served to detach believers from prior tribal or familial loyalties that could compromise their commitment to the faith community.<ref name=":3" />

- and calls for help-

===== Unequal status vs Jesus' views on Wealth =====
Sinai - darajah passage

And inequality in general - inc. the afterlife

=== Punishment narratives ===

==== Punishment BEFORE the day of judgement ====
We are told the sole exception in history was the unnamed town<ref>Unnamed in the Qur'an, though identified as Nineveh (in modern day Iraq) as in the Biblical "Book of Jonah" by Islamic exegetes; e.g. see [https://quranx.com/tafsirs/37.147 tafsirs on Q37:147]</ref> of more than 100,000 people that the messenger Yūnus (Jonah) when the warning was heeded in full by the entire people, and therefore punishment averted ({{Quran|10|98}}, {{Quran|37|147-148}}) “no town believed . . . except the people of Yūnus”<ref>Durie, Mark. 2018. ''The Qur'an and Its Biblical Reflexes: Investigations Into the Genesis of a Religion. pp 49. Kindle Edition pp 151.''</ref>

How many a town defied the command of its Lord and His apostles, then We called it to a severe account and punished it with a dire punishment. Q65:8

So it tasted the evil consequences of its conduct, and the outcome of its conduct was ruin. Q65:9

How many generations that had far more wealth and ostentation have We laid low before them! <<nowiki>https://quranx.com/19.74</nowiki>>

Say, ‘Whoever abides in error, the All-beneficent shall prolong his respite until they sight what they have been promised: either punishment, or the Hour.’ Then they will know whose position is worse, and whose host is weaker <<nowiki>https://quranx.com/19.75</nowiki>>

------

Q34:16 - flood of the damn of Yemen / Saba', the people of Sheba E.g. <ref>See tafsirs on [https://quranx.com/Tafsirs/34.14 Q34:14], [https://quranx.com/Tafsirs/34.15 Q34:15] & [https://quranx.com/Tafsirs/34.16 Q34:16]</ref> {{Quran|34|14-16}}

{{Quote|{{Quran|34|14-16}}|And when We decreed for Solomon death, nothing indicated to the jinn his death except a creature of the earth eating his staff. But when he fell, it became clear to the jinn that if they had known the unseen, they would not have remained in humiliating punishment.
Certainly, (there) was for Saba in their dwelling place a sign: Two gardens on (the) right and (on the) left. "Eat from (the) provision (of) your Lord and be grateful to Him. A land good and a Lord Oft-Forgiving."
But they turned away, so We sent upon them (the) flood (of) the dam, and We changed for them their two gardens (with) two gardens producing fruit bitter, and tamarisks and (some)thing of lote trees few.}}
, {{Quran|65|8-9}}, {{Quran|19|74-75}}

Add: 34:15–21: The punishment of the people of Sheba, without explicit reference to a messenger. Sheba reference <ref>Marshall, David. ''God, Muhammad and the Unbelievers (p. 73).'' Taylor & Francis. Kindle Edition.</ref>

=== Surah 36 ===
Similarly an unnamed town is sent three messengers in {{Quran|36|13-32}}, who's identities have differed in traditional Islamic scholarship,<ref>E.g. see commentaries on [https://quranx.com/Tafsirs/36.13 Q36:13] & [https://quranx.com/tafsirs/36.14 Q36:14], and the later verses in the story, cited as a parable ''(mathal).''</ref> are rejected and so are killed with a cry/shout (''ṣayḥatan)'' ({{Quran|36|29}}). <ref>Marshall, David. ''God, Muhammad and the Unbelievers (p. 63 & 72).'' Taylor & Francis. Kindle Edition.</ref>
{{Quote|Marshall, David. God, Muhammad and the Unbelievers (p. 72). Taylor & Francis. Kindle Edition.|36:13–32: Described as a parable (mathal, v.13), but in outline very similar to the punishment-narratives. The messengers (two of them, reinforced with a third) and the town in which they preach are anonymous. ‘A man from the furthest part of the city’ (v.20) exhorts his people to follow the messengers.}}

== Contradiction ==
The order in Surah 2 has the Jews struck by a lightening bolt after they worship the golden calf, who are then forgiven by Allah by being resurrected.
{{Quote|{{Quran|2|50-67}}|And when We parted the sea with you, and We delivered you and drowned Pharaoh’s clan as you looked on. 
And when We made an appointment with Moses for forty nights, you took up the Calf [for worship] in his absence, and you were wrongdoers. 
Then We excused you after that so that you might give thanks. 
And when We gave Moses the Book and the Criterion so that you might be guided. 
And [recall] when Moses said to his people, ‘O my people! You have indeed wronged yourselves by taking up the Calf [for worship]. Now turn penitently to your Maker, and slay [the guilty among] your folks. That will be better for you with your Maker.’ Then He turned to you clemently. Indeed, He is the All-clement, the All-merciful. 
And when you said, ‘O Moses, we will not believe you until we see Allah visibly.’ Thereupon a thunderbolt seized you as you looked on.
Then We raised you up after your death so that you might give thanks. /n
We shaded you with clouds, and sent down to you manna and quails [saying]: ‘Eat of the good things We have provided for you.’ And they did not wrong Us, but they used to wrong [only] themselves. 
And when We said, ‘Enter this town, and eat thereof freely whencesoever you wish, and enter while prostrating at the gate, and say, ‘‘Relieve [us of the burden of our sins],’’ so that We may forgive your iniquities and We will soon enhance the virtuous.’ 
But the wrongdoers changed the saying with other than what they were told. So We sent down on those who were wrongdoers a plague from the sky because of the transgressions they used to commit. 
And when Moses prayed for water for his people, We said, ‘Strike the rock with your staff.’ Thereat twelve fountains gushed forth from it; every tribe came to know its drinking-place. ‘Eat and drink of Allah’s provision, and do not act wickedly on the earth, causing corruption.’ 
And when you said, ‘O Moses, ‘We will not put up with one kind of food. So invoke your Lord for us, so that He may bring forth for us of that which the earth grows—its greens and cucumbers, its garlic, lentils, and onions.’ He said, ‘Do you seek to replace what is superior with that which is inferior? Go down to any town and you will indeed get what you ask for!’ So they were struck with abasement and poverty, and they earned Allah’s wrath. That, because they would deny the signs of Allah and kill the prophets unjustly. That, because they would disobey and commit transgressions. 
Indeed the faithful, the Jews, the Christians and the Sabaeans—those of them who have faith in Allah and the Last Day and act righteously—they shall have their reward from their Lord, and they will have no fear, nor will they grieve. 
And when We took a pledge from you, and raised the Mount above you, [declaring], ‘Hold on with power to what We have given you and remember that which is in it so that you may be Godwary.’ 
Again you turned away after that; and were it not for Allah’s grace on you and His mercy, you would have surely been among the losers. 
And certainly you know those of you who violated the Sabbath, whereupon We said to them, ‘Be you spurned apes.’ 
So We made it an exemplary punishment for the present and the succeeding [generations], and an advice to the Godwary.}}
In Surah 4 they are struck before they worship the calf. 4:153 specifically says 'then' ''(thumma)''

{{Quote|{{Quran|4|153-161}}|The People of the Book ask you to bring down for them a Book from the sky. Certainly they asked Moses for [something] greater than that, for they said, ‘Show us Allah visibly,’ whereat a thunderbolt seized them for their wrongdoing. Then they took up the Calf [for worship], after all the manifest proofs that had come to them. Yet We excused that, and We gave Moses a manifest authority. 
And We raised the Mount above them for the sake of their covenant, and We said to them, ‘Enter the gate prostrating’ and We said to them, ‘Do not violate the Sabbath,’ and We took from them a solemn covenant. 
Then because of their breaking their covenant, their defiance of Allah’s signs, their killing of the prophets unjustly and for their saying, ‘Our hearts are uncircumcised’… Indeed, Allah has set a seal on them for their unfaith, so they do not have faith except a few. 
And for their faithlessness, and their uttering a monstrous calumny against Mary, 
and for their saying, ‘We killed the Messiah, Jesus son of Mary, the apostle of Allah’—though they did not kill him nor did they crucify him, but so it was made to appear to them. Indeed those who differ concerning him are surely in doubt about him: they do not have any knowledge of that beyond following conjectures, and certainly, they did not kill him. 
Indeed, Allah raised him up toward Himself, and Allah is all-mighty, all-wise. 
There is none among the People of the Book but will surely believe in him before his death; and on the Day of Resurrection, he will be a witness against them. 
Due to the wrongdoing of the Jews, We prohibited them certain good things that were permitted to them [earlier], and for their barring many [people] from the way of Allah, 
and for their taking usury—though they had been forbidden from it—and for eating up the wealth of the people wrongfully. And We have prepared for the faithless among them a painful punishment. }}

=== V2 ===
Surah 4 (summarized version)

1) They ask Moses for a sign and are hit with a thunderbolt

2) They then take up the calf for worship

3) The mountain is raised above them{{Quote|{{Quran|4|153-154}}|The People of the Book ask you to bring down for them a Book from the sky. Certainly they asked Moses for [something] greater than that, for they said, ‘Show us Allah visibly,’ whereat a thunderbolt seized them for their wrongdoing. Then they took up the Calf [for worship], after all the manifest proofs that had come to them. Yet We excused that, and We gave Moses a manifest authority. 
And We raised the Mount above them for the sake of their covenant, and We said to them, ‘Enter the gate prostrating’ and We said to them, ‘Do not violate the Sabbath,’ and We took from them a solemn covenant.}}Surah 2
1) They worshiped the calf. And Moses tells them to slay the guilty among them.

2) They are hit by a thunderbolt - is it chronological?

3) ... a mountain is lifted above them
{{Quote|{{Quran|2|51-56}}|And when We made an appointment with Moses for forty nights, you took up the Calf [for worship] in his absence, and you were wrongdoers. 
Then We excused you after that so that you might give thanks. 
And when We gave Moses the Book and the Criterion so that you might be guided. 
And [recall] when Moses said to his people, ‘O my people! You have indeed wronged yourselves by taking up the Calf [for worship]. Now turn penitently to your Maker, and slay [the guilty among] your folks. That will be better for you with your Maker.’ Then He turned to you clemently. Indeed, He is the All-clement, the All-merciful. 
And when you said, ‘O Moses, we will not believe you until we see Allah visibly.’ Thereupon a thunderbolt seized you as you looked on.
Then We raised you up after your death so that you might give thanks.}}
== The Lote Tree of the utmost Boundary (Sid'rati al-Muntahā) ==
Lote tree's are a real type of tree (Ziziphus spina-christi) native to Arabia and the Middle East.<ref>[https://www.suewickison.com/products/lote-tree?srsltid=AfmBOorj_RU2x1OPxgfRe689M2TWw1g4uZTQLkpSolPGYnIatiIe7h6K Lote Tree | Sidr | Ziziphus spina-christi |] Plants of the Qur'an | Sue Wickison </ref> Different to the tree of eternity/immortality ''(shajarati ul-khul'di)'' in paradise ''jannah,'' the Qur'an mentions The Lote Tree (sidr) of ''the utmost boundary (al-muntahā)''<ref>مُنْتَهَىٰ - [https://lexicon.quranic-research.net/pdf/Page_3029.pdf Lane's Lexicon pp.3029]

</ref> near (but notably not in) the 'garden of abode', said to be 'covered' yaghshā by something unspecified in Q53:16, typically taken by exegetes to mean by angels, light and/or golden animals.<ref>E.g. see [https://quranx.com/Tafsirs/53.16 Tafsirs on Q53:16]</ref>

{{Quote|{{Quran|53|13-17}}|And certainly he saw him (in) descent another,
Near (the) Lote Tree (of) the utmost boundary,
Near it (is the) Garden (of) Abode.
when there covered the Lote Tree what covered it.
Not swerved the sight and not it transgressed.}}

This furthest boundary/limit is said in the hadith, to place the cosmic tree in the sixth heaven, where even celestial creatures cannot go beyond as the limit of creation; said to be seen by Muhammad in his Night Journey (mi’rāj) on the [[:en:Buraq|Buraq]] (E.g. {{Muslim|1|329}}, {{Al Tirmidhi|2=5|3=44|4=3276}}, {{Bukhari|5|58|227}} & {{Al Nasai|2=1|3=5|4=452}}), and by many Islamic exegetes.<ref>See [https://quranx.com/tafsirs/53.14 tafsirs on Q53:14]</ref>

This would align the cosmology of Islamic traditions supporting the idea that paradise (and therefore the garden of the abode) is in the seventh heaven,<ref>[https://islamqa.info/en/answers/215011/where-are-paradise-and-hell#Where_is_Paradise Where is Paradise] | [https://islamqa.info/en/answers/215011/where-are-paradise-and-hell Where Are Paradise and Hell?] | 07/January/2015 islamqa</ref> while some traditions support the idea that paradise is above the seventh heaven,<ref>[https://www.islamweb.net/en/fatwa/107126/the-location-of-paradise-now#:~:text=Paradise%20that%20Allaah%20promised%20for,are%20many%20texts%20proving%20this. The location of Paradise now] | Paradise and Hell | Belief in the Hereafter | Islamic Creed | Fatwa | islamweb.net </ref> both placing the tree relatively close to jannah. However others suggest that this specific ''garden of the abode (jannatu l-mawā)'' is a separate garden/paradise to the eternal one all righteous Muslims will eventually enter, being instead one where martyrs (those killed in war or for their religion) go before judgement day.<ref>E.g. see [https://quranx.com/Tafsirs/53.15 tafsirs on Q53:15]</ref>

Either way there is no evidence of a celestial tree, which must be magic to survive outside of an Earthly plant ecosystem, but is rather an example of tree mythology.
----
----

(See also: <nowiki>https://sunnah.com/mishkat:5865</nowiki> & https://sunnah.com/mishkat:5640, ) read; https://quranx.com/tafsirs/53.14 - exegetes also confirm this is where boundary is the boundary of the skies/heavens where things other than God cannot pass (at least until judgement day where paradise and hell can be entered).

AND Similarly seen next to the 4 main Near-East rivers (Nile, Euphratesm Tigres,) <nowiki>https://sunnah.com/bukhari:5610</nowiki>, which area said to flow from paradise: <nowiki>https://quranx.com/Hadith/Bukhari/USC-MSA/Volume-5/Book-58/Hadith-227/</nowiki> )

cite: [https://www.islamweb.net/en/fatwa/107126/the-location-of-paradise-now#:~:text=Paradise%20that%20Allaah%20promised%20for,are%20many%20texts%20proving%20this. https://www.islamweb.net/en/fatwa/107126/the-location-of-paradise-now#:~:text=Paradise%20that%20Allaah%20promised%20for,are%20many%20texts%20proving%20this.]

The utmost boundary at the end of t heavens confirmed by exegetes in https://quranx.com/tafsirs/53.14

" Jannat al-ma'va' literally means "the Jannat (Garden) that is to be an abode. " Hadrat Hasan Basri says that this is the same Jannat which the believers and righteous will be given in the Hereafter, and from this same verse he has argued that that Jannat is in the heavens. Qatadah says that this is the Jannat in which the souls of the martyrs are kept; it does not imply the Jannat that is to be given in the Hereafter. Ibn 'Abbas also says the same but adds that the Jannat to be granted to the believers in the Hereafter is not in the heavens but here on the earth.

== Parallels Between the Qur'an and Late Antique Judeo-Christian Literature - Part 2 ==
Following on from [[Parallels Between the Qur'an and Late Antique Judeo-Christian Literature|Part 1]], this is Part 2 of Late Antique Judeo-Christian Literature found in the Qur'an. This material, drawing heavily on rabbinical commentaries on the bible, and late Syriac Christian thought found in homilies, was created far later than the biblical cannon; no-where near the time of the events that occurred. This suggests the stories were transmitted in an oral millennia along with local Arabian traditions<ref>Bannister, Andrew G.. ''An Oral-Formulaic Study of the Qur'an (Kindle Location 249-259 in Chapter 1.2 The Biblicist Roots of the Iblis and Adam Story).'' Bloomsbury Publishing. Kindle Edition.

..When the Qur’an emerged in the seventh-century, it did so in an oral culture in which Biblicist traditions were freely circulating and thus there existed a large pool of commonly known stories and traditions to fish from; a pool in which stories could cross-fertilize and influence one another. 23 It is this, more than direct borrowing that perhaps best explains stories like Iblis and Adam as well as other qur’anic tellings of older tales, such as the Seven Sleepers (Q. 18: 9– 25) 24 and the Legend of Alexander (Dhu al-Qarnayn, Q. 18: 83– 101). 25 The Qur’an originates from a milieu in which Biblicist material was well-known to the first audience of the Qur’an; even a simple allusion to a story was often enough to trigger a connection for the hearer. 26 That Biblicist material has been filtered through storytelling rather than simply copied from a written text is further suggested by what the Qur’an leaves out; no minor prophets are referenced, probably because almost no Old Testament narratives feature them nor did the rabbinic literature weave lengthy tales about them. 27 The exception which proves the rule is Jonah (Q. 21: 87– 88; 37: 139– 148; 68: 48– 50), whose short but dramatic story was extremely popular in both Jewish and Christian contexts.28..

And: Bannister, Andrew G.. ''An Oral-Formulaic Study of the Qur'an (Kindle Locations 1391-1392. Chapter 2.3 The Islamic Tradition and Orality).'' Bloomsbury Publishing. Kindle Edition.</ref> where biblical and much later Jewish and Christian stories could be commonly mixed without the new community realizing.
== The story of Noah ==
The prophet Noah is portrayed extremely differently to the one in Genesis,<ref>Segovia, Carlos A.. ''[https://almuslih.org/wp-content/uploads/2024/12/Segovia-C-The-Quranic-Noah-and-the-Making-of-the-Islamic-Prophet.pdf The Quranic Noah and the Making of the Islamic Prophet: A Study of Intertextuality and Religious Identity Formation in Late Antiquity]'', Berlin, München, Boston: De Gruyter, 2015. <nowiki>https://doi.org/10.1515/9783110405897</nowiki></ref> taking on Jewish and Christian traditions, characteristics, as well as terms from late antique Judeo-Christian writings,<ref>The Qur'anic Noah. pp.21-21</ref> molded to suit Muhammad's situation in line with other messengers in the Qur'an.<ref>''The Qurʾan and its Biblical Reflexes: Investigations into the Genesis of a Religion. Chapter 5.3 Messenger Uniformatism. pp.135-143'' By Mark Durie. Lanham, MD: Lexington Books, 2018. </ref>

=== The preaching of Noah ===

Surah 71 consists entirely of the preaching of Noah and his supplications to Allah.{{Quote|{{Quran-range|71|1|28}}|Indeed, We sent Noah to his people, [saying], "Warn your people before there comes to them a painful punishment." He said, "O my people, indeed I am to you a clear warner, [Saying], 'Worship Allah, fear Him and obey me. Allah will forgive you of your sins and delay you for a specified term. Indeed, the time [set by] Allah, when it comes, will not be delayed, if you only knew.' " 
[...]
And Noah said, "My Lord, do not leave upon the earth from among the disbelievers an inhabitant. Indeed, if You leave them, they will mislead Your servants and not beget except [every] wicked one and [confirmed] disbeliever. My Lord, forgive me and my parents and whoever enters my house a believer and the believing men and believing women. And do not increase the wrongdoers except in destruction."}}Reynolds remarks that "The Qur'ānic character of Noah is quite unlike that of the Noah in Genesis, who does not speak a word until after the flood." Citing the Babylonian Talmud, Sanhedrin 108a, he observes that "[his preaching] is also suggested by a passage in the Talmud:
::"The righteous Noah rebuked them, urging, 'Repent; for if not, the Holy One, blessed be He, will bring a deluge upon you and cause your bodies to float upon the water like gourds, as it is written, He is light [i.e., floats] upon the waters. Moreover, ye shall be taken as a curse for all future generations.' (b. Sanhedrin 108a)"
Reynolds further notes, "It is also prominent in the Syriac fathers, several of whom report that Noah preached to his people for a hundred years before God finally sent the flood." citing for example the Syriac authors Narsai, "On the Flood", 33, II. 227-30 and Jacob of Serugh, ''Homilies contre les juifs'', 70, homily 2, II. 37-40.<ref>Gabriel Said Reynolds, ''The Qurʾān and Bible'' p. 858</ref>

The opponents reject Noah's preaching despite him doing so 'day and night' (Quran 71:5-6) in which they respond by putting their fingers in their ears Quran 71:7, on which Neuwirth (2024) notes that "the means of plugging one’s ears in order to shut oneself off from unpleasant news is also encountered in the Talmud (bKetubbot 5a)."<ref>Neuwirth, Angelika. The Qur'an: Text and Commentary, ''Volume 2.1: Early Middle Meccan Suras: The New Elect (p. 280).'' Yale University Press. Kindle Edition.</ref>

=== Noah's disbelieving wife ===
{{Quote|{{Quran|66|10}}|Allah presents an example of those who disbelieved: the wife of Noah and the wife of Lot. They were under two of Our righteous servants but betrayed them, so those prophets did not avail them from Allah at all, and it was said, "Enter the Fire with those who enter."}}The Bible briefly mentions Noah's wife in one verse without further comment ([https://www.biblegateway.com/passage/?search=Genesis%207%3A7&version=NIV Genesis 7:7]), "And Noah and his sons and his wife and his sons’ wives entered the ark to escape the waters of the flood." Regarding the Quranic verse which speaks of her negatively, Reynolds briefly considers the possibility that the Quran has extended to their wives the parallelism between Noah (though not his wife) and Lot found in the New Testament ([https://www.biblegateway.com/passage/?search=2%20Peter%202&version=NIV 2 Peter 2]), but then comments, "However, it is important to note that already in the pre-Islamic period certain groups had developed hostile legends about Noah's wife." He cites Epiphanius (d. 403 CE), ''Panarion'' 2:26, which relates the Gnostic belief that she was not allowed onto the ark, having burned it down three times before the flood.<ref>Gabriel Said Reynolds, ''The Qurʾān and Bible'' p. 841</ref>

=== Noah's flood waters overflowed from an oven ===
The Qur'anic version of the Noah's flood story describes the flood waters as overflowing from an oven. This element is not found even in more ancient versions of the story (Epic of Gilgamesh, Atra hasis, and Ziusudra).

Note that in his translation, Yusuf Ali mistranslates the Aramaic loan word for the oven (alttannooru ٱلتَّنُّورُ)<ref>[http://www.studyquran.org/LaneLexicon/Volume1/00000355.pdf Lane's Lexicon p. 318 تَّنُّورُ]</ref> as "fountains". The Arabic verb translated "gushed forth" (fara فَارَ) means overflowed or boiled in the context of water in a cooking pot<ref>[http://www.studyquran.org/LaneLexicon/Volume6/00000241.pdf Lane's Lexicon p. 2457 فور]</ref>, as well as in the other verse where it is used, {{Quran|67|7}}. Here is Pickthall's more accurate translation:{{Quote|{{Quran|11|40}}|
(Thus it was) till, when Our commandment came to pass '''and the oven gushed forth water''', We said: Load therein two of every kind, a pair (the male and female), and thy household, save him against whom the word hath gone forth already, and those who believe. And but a few were they who believed with him.}}{{Quote|{{Quran|23|27}}|
Then We inspired in him, saying: Make the ship under Our eyes and Our inspiration. Then, when Our command cometh '''and the oven gusheth water''', introduce therein of every (kind) two spouses, and thy household save him thereof against whom the Word hath already gone forth. And plead not with Me on behalf of those who have done wrong. Lo! they will be drowned.}}At one time academic scholars thought this verse alluded to a Midrashic exegesis in which the flood waters were boiling hot (b. Sanhedrin 108b, [https://www.sefaria.org/Rosh_Hashanah.12a.4?lang=bi|Tracate Rosh Hashanah 12a:4]). More recent scholarship, particularly by Olivier Mongellaz in 2024,<ref name="Mongellaz2024">Olivier Mongellaz (2024) [https://brill.com/view/journals/arab/71/4-5/article-p513_4.xml Le four de Noé : un cas d’intertextualité coranique], Arabica 71(4-5), 513-637. https://doi.org/10.1163/15700585-20246900</ref> has identified that these verses most likely reflect a late antique legend in which water gushing up through a bread oven (a large hole dug into the ground) was a sign warning Noah's family of the imminent flood. The interpretation as Noah's own oven is attributed to a number of early commentators (such as Ibn Abbas, Mujahid), while others understood it to be the area of land where the flood waters first rose. Qurtubi said: "The sayings of commentators appear to be different as to the meaning of tannur, but this, in reality, is not a difference. When water began to bulge out, it overflowed from the bread baking oven, and from out of the surface of the land".

Significantly, Mongellaz has argued on literary grounds that a fragmentary Arabic text falsely attributed to Hippolytus of Rome, and which mentions the overflowing bread oven story, is independent of the Islamic tradition and was originally written in a very specific environment which has parallels with the context in which certain parts of the Quran were written.{{Quote|Pseudo. Hippolytus of Rome (translated to English from Mongellaz's French translation)<ref name="Mongellaz2024" />|Meanwhile, Ham's wife stood up to take out the bread that remained in the oven and immediately water sprang out of the oven [fāḍa l-māʾmin al-tannūr] and immediately water came out of the oven, as the Lord had said: "The fountains of the great deeps were opened." Ham's wife called to Noah, saying, "My lord, the word of God has come true (Syr. what God promised has come true!)" - for it had come true just as the Lord had promised her. When Noah heard Ham's wife's words, he said to her, "Oh, the flood has come."}}

=== Noah's ark left behind as a sign ===
{{Quote|{{Quran-range|54|13|15}}|And We carried him on a [construction of] planks and nails, Sailing under Our observation as reward for he who had been denied. And We left it as a sign, so is there any who will remember?}}Unlike the bible, which does not mention the ark as a sign for future generations, Neuwirth (2024) notes the salvation of Noah is made physically plausible to the listeners through the reference to the material verifiability of the ark, which could be taken from various late antique traditions, for example Flavius Josephus (b. 37AD) reports in the ''Jewish Antiquities (I 3.5 § 92)'' of the existence of the remains of Noah’s ark in Armenia (Clementz 1959: 22).<ref name=":0">Neuwirth, Angelika. ''The Qur'an: Text and Commentary, Volume 2.1: Early Middle Meccan Suras: The New Elect (p. 62).'' Yale University Press. Kindle Edition.</ref> She also notes that the appeal to the willingness of the listeners to be admonished by the sign (āya) of Noah’s ark is also reminiscent of the Talmudic story (bSanhedrin 96a) of the death of Sennacherib, who was led to a fateful decision by seeing the remains of Noah’s ark.<ref name=":0" />
==Moses and Pharaoh==
Alongside the biblical account of Moses and the Pharoah, there are some key aspects that match Jewish Rabbinic and Christian non-biblical traditions. Even the place where Moses communicates with God in the story of the burning bush, the word used ''ṭuwan'' in e.g. {{Quran|20|12}} (for the folded land, implying double the holiness)<ref>See; Neuwirth, Angelika. ''The Qur'an: Text and Commentary, Volume 2.1: Early Middle Meccan Suras: The New Elect (p. 199).'' Yale University Press. Kindle Edition. Ṭuwā stands for the holy Mount Sinai or Horeb (cf. KU, 124ff.; FVQ, 206ff.; BEQ, 255ff.). The word was long thought to be a rhyming transformation of Aramaic ṭūrā (“the mountain”), but now, based on rabbinic tradition and in agreement with traditional exegetes, Uri Rubin has convincingly interpreted bi-l-wādī l-muqaddasi Ṭuwā to mean “in the doubly hallowed valley” (see Rubin 2014). (The Sinai is in a sense the “folded Holy Land” [ṬWY = “to fold”].) Citing: Rubin, Uri, 2014, ''[https://urirubin.com/assets/docs/Tuwan.86132451.pdf Moses and the Holy Valley Ṭuwan. On the Biblical and Midrashic Background of a Qurʾanic Scene],'' Journal of Near Eastern Studies 73, 73–81.</ref> does not have a parallel in the bible,<ref>''[https://urirubin.com/assets/docs/Tuwan.86132451.pdf Moses and the Holy Valley Ṭuwan: On the biblical and midrashic background of a qurʾānic scene.]'' Rubin 2014. Ibid. pp. 75.</ref> but does in other Judeo-Christian (later) works.<ref>Ibid. pp. 76-78</ref> And the idea of eschatology in Moses's story such as {{Quran|20|15}}, with reward in the afterlife being mentioned, is not contained in the biblical story of Moses, Neuwirth (2024) notes moves the story into a late antiquity interpretation.<ref>Neuwirth, Angelika. ''The Qur'an: Text and Commentary, Volume 2.1: Early Middle Meccan Suras: The New Elect (p. 199).'' Yale University Press. Kindle Edition.</ref> Key details in the stories include:
===The prophecy of baby Moses===
Alongside the scene of [https://www.biblegateway.com/passage/?search=Exodus%201%3A8-2%3A10&version=NIV Exodus 1:8-2:10] where the Hebrews in Egyptian bondage are told to kill all male babies to control the growing Israelite population, where Moses's mother places his basket in the Nile to escape; Neuwirth (2024) citing Speyer, notes that ''the prophecy to Moses’s mother that an enemy—of Moses as well as of God himself—would take him in reflects a Midrashic interpretation of Exodus Rabba (1:31: “So the daughter of Pharaoh raised the daughter, who was once to take revenge on her father”). The event is explicitly based on a divine intention, namely, to make Moses his chosen one.''<ref>''The Qur'an: Text and Commentary, Volume 2.1: Early Middle Meccan Suras: The New Elect'' Ibid. pp. 201.</ref>{{Quote|{{Quran-range|20|37|39}}|We have bestowed Our favour on you before this, When We told your mother what We relate: 'Put him in a wooden box and cast it in the river. The river will cast it on the bank. An enemy of Ours, and his, will retrieve it.' We bestowed Our love on you that you may be reared under Our eyes.}}And similarly the next verse unlike the bible focuses on the emotional impact of the event on Moses’s mother, Neuwirth notes is comparable to Midrash Exodus Rabba 1:25.<ref>Ibid. pp. 201-202.</ref> Moses's salvation from persecution after manslaughter is commemorated with similar consideration of Moses’s mental condition.<ref>Ibid. pp. 202.</ref>{{Quote|{{Quran|20|40}}|When your sister walked up [to Pharaoh’s palace] saying, “Shall I show you someone who will take care of him?” Then We restored you to your mother, that she might not grieve and be comforted. Then you slew a soul, whereupon We delivered you from anguish, and We tried you with various ordeals. Then you stayed for several years among the people of Midian. Then you turned up as ordained, O Moses!}}
===Moses not suckled by Egyptians===
{{Quote|{{Quran-range|28|12|13}}|And We had prevented from him [all] wet nurses before, so she said, "Shall I direct you to a household that will be responsible for him for you while they are to him [for his upbringing] sincere?" So We restored him to his mother that she might be content and not grieve and that she would know that the promise of Allah is true. But most of the people do not know.}}Reynolds comments, "On this passage cf. Exodus 2:7-9. The Qurʾān's declaration (v. 12) 'We had forbidden him to be suckled by any nurse' (v. 12) reflects a tradition in the Babylonian Talmud that Moses (from whose mouth would come forth the word of God) refused the impure breasts of the Egyptian women:
::Then said his sister to Pharaoh's daughter, Shall I go and call thee a nurse of the Hebrew women? Why just 'of the Hebrew women'? - It teaches that they handed about to all the Egyptian women but he would not suck. He said: Shall a mouth which will speak with [God] suck what is unclean! (b. Sotah 12b)"<ref>Gabriel Said Reynolds, ''The Qurʾān and Bible'' p. 598</ref>
===Moses's speech impediment===
Moses has some kind of speech impediment when going to speak to Pharaoh in the Qurʾān.{{Quote|{{Quran-range|20|24|28}}|"Go to Pharaoh. Indeed, he has transgressed."( Moses) said: "O, my Lord! Expand me my breast,” ease my task for me, And untie the knot from my tongue, so they may understand what I say.”}}Biblical Scholar James Kugel (1997)<ref>Kugel, James L.. The Bible As It Was (Kindle Edition. pp. 432-433). Harvard University Press.</ref> notes that later Jewish and Christian commentators found it necessary to explain Moses's statement in the Old Testament “''Oh my Lord, I am not a man of words … but I am heavy of speech and heavy of tongue''” ([https://www.biblegateway.com/passage/?search=Exodus%204%3A10&version=NIV Exodus 4:10]), as he was believed to be a highly educated man who had been supposedly been schooled in every branch of wisdom, including eloquence.

He notes "it occurred to interpreters that Moses might have been referring here not to any lacuna in his education, but to an actual speech defect, some physical deformity of his mouth or tongue that prevented him from speaking in the usual fashion." We see this in:<ref>Ibid. pp. 432 - 433 (Kindle Edition)</ref>

"''I'' ''am not by nature eloquent; my tongue with difficulty speaks, I stammer, so that I cannot speak before the king."'' —Ezekiel the Tragedian, Exaggē 113– 115 (3rd-2nd century BCE)

''He [Moses] pleased his parents by his beauty, but grieved them by his speech impediment. —''Ephraem, Commentary on Exodus 2: 4 (d. 373 AD)

Others even added stories on how he might have acquired that deformity, such as Josephus in Jewish Antiquities 2: 232– 236 (published ~93/94 AD), connecting their explanation of Moses’ speech problems to the tradition of Pharaoh’s wise men and their warnings about a boy that might grow up and save Israel.<ref>Ibid. pp. 433 - 434 (Kindle Edition)</ref>
===Pharaohs questions===
Neuwirth (2024) comments that the list of further detailed questions to Moses in Surah 26 'The Poets' / al-shuʿarāʾ (i.e. in {{Quran-range|26|22|29}}), citing Speyer, reflect a more detailed episode from Midrash Exodus Rabba 5:18, which also starts from Pharaoh’s self-praise as God.<ref>Neuwirth, Angelika. ''The Qur'an: Text and Commentary, Volume 2.1: Early Middle Meccan Suras: The New Elect (p. 250).'' Yale University Press. Kindle Edition.</ref>
===The Drowning of Pharaoh===
{{Quote|{{Quran-range|10|90|92}}|And We took the Children of Israel across the sea, and Pharaoh and his soldiers pursued them in tyranny and enmity until, when drowning overtook him, he said, "I believe that there is no deity except that in whom the Children of Israel believe, and I am of the Muslims." Now? And you had disobeyed [Him] before and were of the corrupters? So today We will save you in body that you may be to those who succeed you a sign. And indeed, many among the people, of Our signs, are heedless}}Reynolds comments, "The question of Pharaoh's survival appears in an opinion found in the (late fourth century AD) ''Mekilta de-Rabbi Ishmael'' (cr. Gavin McDowell):
::"And the waters returned and covered the chariot etc. [Exo 14:27]. Even Pharaoh, according to the words of R. Judah, as it is said, 'The chariots of Pharaoh and his force, etc.' [Exo 15:4]. R. Nehimiah says: ''Except for Pharaoh.'' About him it says, 'However, for this purpose I have let you live' [Exo 9:16]. Others say that in the end Pharaoh went down and drowned, as it is said, 'Then went the horse of Pharaoh, etc.' [Exo 15:19]. (Beshallah 7)"<ref>Gabriel Said Reynolds, ''The Qurʾān and Bible'' p. 339</ref>
==Arguments for resurrection==
Reynolds (2020) notes the repeated argument that God can resurrect the dead using the analogy that he can bring life back to barren (or dead) land may be connected to a Jewish tradition that God will resurrect the dead with dew, for example, in b. Shabbat 88b.<ref name=":2" />
{{Quote|{{Quran|30|19}}|He brings forth the living from the dead, and brings forth the dead from the living, and revives the earth after its death. Likewise, you [too] shall be raised [from the dead].}}

Cf: {{Quran|16|65}}, {{Quran|43|11}}, {{Quran|50|6-11}}, {{Quran|57|17}}
==Late antique Christian Martyrdom==
{{Main|Shaheed (Martyr)}}
Durie (2018) notes the violence of the Qur'an shares more commonality with contemporary late antique religious (primarily Christian) violence and warfare rather than being directly biblically based.<ref>Durie, Mark. ''The Qur’an and Its Biblical Reflexes: Investigations into the Genesis of a Religion.'' Lexington Books. 2018. Pp. 229 -237. (Kindle Edition: pp. 423-439). 6.9 Stories of Fighting Prophets</ref>

=== Textual overlap ===

Covering the continuity and similarities between late antique religious violence & warfare and the Qur'an (and other Islamic traditions) is too big a topic to cover here; perhaps the most in-depth academic work looking at the continuity between this and Islam is Thomas Sizgorich's ''Violence and Belief in Late Antiquity: Militant Devotion in Christianity and Islam'', however Sinai (2017) notes alongside similar ideas and theology, there are some direct textual references.{{Quote|Sinai, Nicolai. Qur'an: A Historical-Critical Introduction (The New Edinburgh Islamic Surveys) (pp. 301-302). Edinburgh University Press. Kindle Edition.|That the Qur’anic community’s access to Biblical notions of militancy was mediated by late antique Christian discourse is indicated by an intriguing intertextual overlap. According to Q 3: 169–170, those who have been ‘killed in the path of God’ are not dead but ‘alive with their Lord’, rather than having to spend the remaining time until the Resurrection in a state of slumber (similarly Q 2: 154).39 Tor Andrae has pointed out that the phrase ‘alive with their Lord’ (ayāun inda rabbihim) corresponds exactly to the Syriac phrase h. ayyē lwāth alāhā, which a sixth-century Syriac Christian writer (Mar Ishay) applies to the martyrs.40 Furthermore, Mar Ishay contrasts the true fate of the martyrs with unfounded prior opinion: ‘they are believed to be already dead’.41 The same contrast is found in the two Qur’anic passages just cited.42 It could be objected that the parallel demonstrates merely that the Qur’an is familiar with the widespread Christian idea that martyrs are granted prompt access to paradise but that this does not establish a Christian precedent for the Qur’anic application of this idea specifically to those who actively enact – rather than just suffer – violence. However, as Sizgorich reminds us, a Christian martyr was by no means seen merely as a passive victim of persecution but rather as someone who actively ‘defeats the power of the Roman state’.43}}{{Quote|{{Quran|3|169}}|And never think of those who have been killed in the cause of Allah as dead. Rather, they are alive with their Lord, receiving provision}}{{Quote|{{Quran|2|154}}|Do not say that those who are killed in the way of God, are dead, for indeed they are alive, even though you are not aware.}}

=== Martyrs sidestep judgement day ===
After death, humans are typically said to spend their time in an intermediate state known to traditional Islamic scholars as the ''barzakh'' while they wait.<ref>Reynolds, Gabriel Said. 2020. ''Allah:'' ''God in the Qur'an (p. 71-72).'' Yale University Press. Kindle Edition.

It is also the same term used for the barrier between the living and the dead (whilst awaiting judgement day) in the Qur'an, e.g. {{Quran|23|99-100}}</ref> However, as in the above verses, one exception to this rule is Martyrs being with God straight away rather than being judged at judgment day, a non-biblical idea having parallels with late antique Christian thought.

Sinai (2017) similarly notes strong ideological parallels a 6th century hagiographical text (the Panegyric on Macarius, Bishop of Tkow by Pseudo-Dioscorus of Alexandria) of a 5th-century martyr, Egyptian Bishop Macarius of Tkow who was martyred for opposing the council of Chalcedon. Citing Michael Gaddis's summary of the document, ‘He was both willing to die for his faith, and willing to kill for it.’ he notes the same idea in {{Quran|9|111}} … they fight in the way of Allah, kill, and are killed.. <ref>Ibid. (Kindle Edition. pp. 299).</ref> As well as citing English historian of the Byzantine Empire James Howard-Johnston "''..James Howard-Johnston draws attention to a passage in the Chronicle of Theophanes Confessor (d. 818), which reports that at about the same time when the Qur’an promised those ‘killed in the path of God’ immediate entry to paradise, the Byzantine emperor Heraclius similarly announced that those fighting the Sasanians would be recompensed with eternal life. In Heraclius’s address as reported by Theophanes Confessor, we find some of the same general ingredients that are noticeable in Qur’anic calls to militancy…''"<ref>Ibid. (Kindle Edition. pp. 301).</ref> He notes these similarities are likely caused by being on the fringes of the Roman empire.<ref>Ibid. (Kindle Edition. pp. 301).</ref>

==== Martyrdom wipes away other sins and is privileged above other acts from believers ====
{{Quote|Reynolds, Gabriel Said. Christianity and the Qur'an: The Rise of Islam in Christian Arabia (pp. 178-179). Yale University Press. Kindle Edition.|The teaching on the glory earned by martyrs is widespread in the early church. It is nevertheless telling to find the way it is emphasized in the third-century Christian text the aforementioned Didascalia Apostolorum, originally written in Greek but preserved in Syriac.87 The Didascalia clearly teaches that the martyrs will have a privilege above other faithful believers: If then He raises up all men,—as He said by Isaiah: All flesh shall see the salvation of God [Isa 40.5; 52.10],—much more will He quicken and raise up the faithful; and (yet more) again will He quicken and raise up the faithful of the faithful, who are the martyrs, and establish them in great glory and make them His counsellors. For to mere disciples, those who believe in Him, He has promised a glory as of the stars [Dan 12.3]; but to the martyrs He has promised to give an everlasting glory, as of the luminaries which fail not, with more abundant light, that they may be shining for all time.88

The Didascalia is also clear, as is the Qur’an, that martyrs enjoy a special grace through the forgiveness of sins that their deaths have earned for them: But again, sins are forgiven by baptism also to those who from the Gentiles draw near and enter the holy Church of God. Let us inquire also, to whom sins are not imputed. To such as Abraham and Isaac and Jacob and all the patriarchs, as also to the martyrs. Let us hear then, brethren, for the Scripture saith: Who shall boast himself and say: I am clear of sins? Or who shall be confident and say: I am innocent? [Prov 20.9].

And again: There is no man pure of defilement: not though his life be but one day [Job 14.4–5 LXX]. To everyone therefore who believes and is baptized his … former sins have been forgiven; but after baptism also, provided that he has not sinned a deadly sin nor been an accomplice (thereto), but has heard only, or seen, or spoken, and is thus guilty of sin. But if a man go forth from the world by martyrdom for the name of the Lord, blessed is he; for brethren who by martyrdom have gone forth from this world, of these the sins are covered.89

We might compare Q 3:195: “ ‘And those who emigrated, and were expelled from their habitations, those who suffered hurt in My way, and fought, and were slain—them I shall surely acquit of their evil deeds, and I shall admit them to gardens underneath which rivers flow.’ A reward from God! And God with Him is the fairest reward” (italics added). In other words, the Qur’an seems to be well aware of Christian devotion to the martyrs.}}

=== Martyrdom in the Torah and Gospels ===
Muslims who fight are promised paradise, which the Qur'an claims is also a promise in the Torah and Gospel.{{Quote|{{Quran|9|111}}|Indeed Allah has bought from the faithful their souls and their possessions for paradise to be theirs: they fight in the way of Allah, kill, and are killed. A promise binding upon Him in the Torah and the Evangel and the Quran. And who is truer to his promise than Allah? So rejoice in the bargain you have made with Him, and that is the great success.}}Nickel (2020)<ref>Nickel, Gordon D. ''The Quran with Christian Commentary: A Guide to Understanding the Scripture of Islam (p. 222).'' Zondervan Academic. Kindle Edition. 9.111 – They fight in the way of God, and they kill and are killed When the Quran describes believers as fighting “in the way of Allah,” it makes a theological claim by associating Allah with human fighting. See the analysis of these expressions at 73.20 (p. 597). 9.111 – a promise binding on Him in the Torah, and the Gospel, and the Qur’ān This is the only verse in the Quran that brings the Torah (tawrāt), Gospel (injīl), and qur’ān (lit. “recitation”) together. The Quran claims here that the particular point on which the Torah and Gospel agree with the Muslim recitation is that believers “fight in the way of Allah, and they kill and are killed.” This verse makes the reader question whether the Quran has a clear idea of the contents of the Torah and Gospel. A similar question is raised by 61.14, which appears to say that ‘Īsā and his disciples fought against their enemies (cf. 3.52). Along with these misunderstandings, the Quran gives no information about the peaceable teaching and example of Jesus in the Gospel accounts. See the analysis of the Quran’s verses on the “Gospel” at 57.27 (p. 549). Do the Torah and Gospel in fact contain such a promise? See the comment on this characterization of the Bible at 61.14 (p. 566).</ref> and Reynolds (2018) however notes that this is not found there:{{Quote|1=Reynolds, G. S. (2018). The Qur'an and the Bible: Text and Commentary. Commentary on 9:111 (pp. 322) United Kingdom: Yale University Press.|2="9:111 The point of this verse is that those who are prepared to give their lives to God in the holy war are promised paradise as a payment for their services (cf. 2:245; 4:74; 61:10–12). The idea that the martyrs have a special assurance of paradise follows from the Qurʾān’s teaching elsewhere that the act of martyrdom involves forgiveness of sin. This teaching is close to that of the Syriac fathers (see commentary on 2:154, with further references). It is curious that the Qurʾān insists that the promise of heaven for holy warriors is found in the Torah and the Gospel (or “Evangel”); heaven is not found in the Torah and holy war is not found in the Gospels...}}While his commentary on 2:154 (pp. 76) once again highlights the Syriac parallel:{{Quote|2="As Tor Andrae has shown (Les origines de l’islam et le christianisme, 161ff.), the idea that martyrdom involves the absolution of sins is prominent in Syriac Christian texts such as the third-century Didascalia (chap. 20) and the Treaty on the Martyrs of Mar Isaï (d. late sixth cen.); the latter text also insists—much like the Qurʾān—that the martyrs are “living”:

The true martyrs who, by way of a death that covers their sins, demonstrate even more the beauty of their deeds and receive this glorious inheritance by virtue of their blood. By leaving this life they have prepared for their souls an honorable abode in paradise. It was thought that they are already dead, but by their death they have killed their sin, and they are alive with God. (Mar Isaï, Treaty on the Martyrs, 32)}}
=== Further Martyrdom Influence ===
Neuwirth (2024) also notes the influence of Christian martyrdom stories on the sudden conversion and prayers/asking for forgiveness to God of Pharaoh's magician's, who are originally opponents of Moses until he shows them proof of his prophecy via a miracle in the face of a sudden and violent death as threatened by the arrogant ruler (e.g. in {{Quran-range|26|50|51}} and {{Quran-range|20|71|73}}).<ref>Neuwirth, Angelika. ''The Qur'an: Text and Commentary, Volume 2.1: Early Middle Meccan Suras: The New Elect (p. 204).'' Yale University Press. Kindle Edition.</ref> Both Jewish and Christian traditions present individual “anti-Moses” sorcerers named Jannes and Jambres, who continue to appear in later interpretations; citing Nora Schmid, she notes that, although there is no explicit textual reference and the magicians are typically depicted in a negative light, they came to be associated with penance and martyrdom in Christian tradition - in the Qurʾan, this idea is developed further: the forgiveness that Jannes and Jambres either did not receive or only partially received in earlier sources is ultimately granted.<ref>Ibid. pp. 251-252</ref>{{Quote|Neuwirth, Angelika. The Qur'an: Text and Commentary, Volume 2.1: Early Middle Meccan Suras: The New Elect (p. 204). Yale University Press. Kindle Edition.|V. 72–73 qālū lan nuʾthiraka ʿalā mā jāʾanā mina l-bayyināti wa-lladhī faṭaranā fa-qḍi mā anta qāḍin innamā taqḍī hādhihi l-ḥayāta l-dunyā / innā āmannā birabbinā li-yaghfira lanā khaṭāyānā wa-mā akrahtanā ʿalayhi mina l-siḥri wallāhu khayrun wa-abqā] Conversion scene as later in Q 26:50–51. The sorcerers renounce their allegiance to Pharaoh on the basis of the obvious evidence (bayyināt) and give preference to the Creator God, they submit to their worldly fate and hope for the forgiveness of their sins and what they have been forced to do by the ruler—they are a role model for the community, which is also subject to pressure from outside. The request for forgiveness of sins before a violent death is a topos of Christian martyr stories. The entire scene, leaving the context of ‘ancient’ Egypt, reflects the notion of Christian martyrdom stories. Khaṭāyā (singular khaṭīʾa) also lets a Syriac terminus technicus ring through, but the word can be derived from the Arabic root KhṬʿ (“to miss a goal”) (see FVQ, 123ff.). The idea of the forgiveness of sins is prominent in the Christian liturgy—not only through the Lord’s Prayer. In addition to khaṭīʾa, there is the genuine Arabic dhanb, dhunūb.}}

== Expansions on the afterlife ==

Reynolds (2020) notes the Qur’ans provides vivid depictions of hell are highly unlike the New Testament, where Jesus refers to afterlife punishment mostly allusively. The closest the Gospels describe hell is through the few images of “fire,” “wailing,” and “gnashing of teeth.”, for example in Matthew’s Parable of the Weeds, Jesus explains that at the end of the age, the Son of Man will send his angels that will cast evildoers into a fiery furnace where there will be weeping and gnashing of teeth (Matt 13:40–42).<ref>Reynolds, Gabriel Said. ''Allah: God in the Qur'an (pp. 81-82).'' Yale University Press. Kindle Edition.</ref> He notes the much more constant an vivid Qur'anic descriptions far better match later Christian works that expanded the descriptions to be more gruesome, in order to scare the reader/audience.<ref>Ibid. pp. 88.

''We might note how all of these traditions are meant to make humans yearn for paradise and fear hell. The Qur’an, from this regard, is a profoundly psychological work. Like a Christian preacher, like John Chrysostom or Saint Ephrem, the author of the Qur’an speaks of heaven and hell to persuade his audience to repent and believe. He does so in a way, however, that is distinct—emphasizing physical pain and physical pleasure in order, apparently, to make a greater impression on his audience. He puts a terrible tree into hell and young women in paradise.''
</ref>{{Quote|Reynolds, Gabriel Said. Allah: God in the Qur'an (pp. 82-83). Yale University Press. Kindle Edition.|The way that the Qur’an describes hell in particularly vivid, gruesome terms brings us back to something we mentioned in Chapter 1, namely, that the Qur’an in many ways is a “homiletic” work, a work written like a homily or sermon. The Qur’an’s intention is not simply to declare that those who disobey God will be punished, but to describe that punishment in a way which brings the awfulness of hell to life. Similarly, homilists in the early centuries of Christianity expanded dramatically on the New Testament allusions to hell. In a sermon attributed to John Chrysostom (d. 407) we read a description of hell with the sort of detail that we find in the Qur’an: It is a sea of fire—not a sea of the kind or dimensions we know here, but much larger and fiercer, with waves made of fire, fire of a strange and fearsome kind. There is a great abyss there, in fact, of terrible flames, and one can see fire rushing about on all sides like some wild animal…. There will be no one who can resist, no one who can escape: Christ’s gentle, peaceful face will be nowhere to be seen.15}}Sinai (2017) in his paper titled "''The Eschatological Kerygma of the Early Qur’an''" notes many overlap with Syriac Homilies on the afterlife as well as other apocalyptic ideas and terminology.<ref>“[https://almuslih.org/wp-content/uploads/Library/Sinai,%20N%20-%20The%20Eschatological%20Kerygma.pdf The Eschatological Kerygma of the Early Qur’an]”, Nicolai Sinai, in ''Apocalypticism and Eschatology in Late Antiquity: Encounters in the Abrahamic Religions, 6th–8th Centuries'', edited by Hagit Amirav, Emmanouela Grypeou, and Guy Stroumsa, Leuven: Peeters, 2017, 219–266.

These are discussed throughout the whole paper, and a summary can be found in pp.50-57. On heaven and hell specifically, the summary is on pp.55-57.</ref>

== Souls are taken away at night ==

The Qur'an (and traditional Islamic exegetes)<ref>See classical commentaries on these verses such as Al-Jalalayn on [https://quranx.com/Tafsir/Jalal/39.42 Q39:42], [https://quranx.com/Tafsir/Jalal/6.60 Q6:60] and Ibn Kathir on [https://quranx.com/Tafsir/Kathir/39.41 Q39:41-2] and [https://quranx.com/Tafsir/Kathir/6.60 Q6:60]</ref> state that the soul is taken away by Allah during the night.{{Quote|{{Quran|39|42}}|Allah takes the souls at the time of their death, and those who have not died, in their sleep. Then He retains those for whom He has ordained death and releases the others until a specified time. There are indeed signs in that for a people who reflect.}}{{Quote|{{Quran|6|60}}|It is He who takes your souls by night, and He knows what you do by day, then He reanimates you therein so that a specified term may be completed. Then to Him will be your return, whereat He will inform you concerning what you used to do.}}Tesei (2016) notes this idea may mimic a late antique Syriac Christian parallel in the poetical language used by Ephrem, who in the Nisibene hymns (7:15) mentions sleep resembles death, and other Christian writers (such as Babai) wrote about sleep metaphorically Jesus's death and waking up like the resurrection;<ref>Tesei, Tommaso. (2016). "[https://www.researchgate.net/publication/344524709_2_The_barzakh_and_the_Intermediate_State_of_the_Dead_in_the_Quran 2 The barzakh and the Intermediate State of the Dead in the Quran]". pp. 40-42 In Locating Hell in Islamic Traditions. Leiden, The Netherlands: Brill. <nowiki>https://doi.org/10.1163/9789004301368_003</nowiki> (Open access)

''At the same time, the Quran also compares death to the “common sleep” that people experience on a daily basis. This seems to be the case in the cryptic statement found in Q 39:42 (cf. Q 6:60), “God takes the souls at the time of their death (ḥīna mawtihā), and [He takes] that which has not died, in its sleep ( fī manāmihā); He withholds that against which He has decreed death, but sets loose the other until a stated term”. This obscure passage appears to indicate that sleep is a death-like state; sleepers resemble the dead since their souls enter into a state similar to that which they will experience at the moment of death. However, unlike the souls of the dead, which will be raised only on the Day of Resurrection, the ordinary sleeper’s soul is sent back when he awakens―that is, of course, until the time of his death. This parallel between death and “common sleep” finds a fairly close correspondence in the poetical language used by Ephrem, who in the Nisibene hymns (7:15) affirms that: “The one who lies down to sleep resembles the departed and death resembles a dream, and the resurrection the morning”. In these passages the Quran’s eschatological discourse is particularly close to that formulated by Babai, in whose ideas the belief in the soul’s sleep is intimately connected to the strong affirmation of the physical resurrection of the body on the Day of Judgment.'' </ref> with this idea taken literally by Muhammad.

== Arguments for resurrection ==
Reynolds (2020) notes the repeated argument that God can resurrect the dead using the analogy that he can bring life back to barren (or dead) land may be connected to a Jewish tradition that God will resurrect the dead with dew, for example, in b. Shabbat 88b.<ref name=":2">See: Reynolds, Gabriel Said. Allah: ''God in the Qur'an (pp. 76-77).'' Yale University Press. Kindle Edition.

And Footnote 10: Reynolds, Gabriel Said. ''Allah: God in the Qur'an (p. 254).'' Yale University Press. Kindle Edition.</ref>
{{Quote|{{Quran|30|19}}|He brings forth the living from the dead, and brings forth the dead from the living, and revives the earth after its death. Likewise, you [too] shall be raised [from the dead].}}

Cf: {{Quran|16|65}}, {{Quran|43|11}}, {{Quran|50|6-11}}, {{Quran|57|17}}

==See Also==
*[[Pre-Islamic Arab Religion in Islam]]

* [[Parallels Between the Qur'an and Late Antique Judeo-Christian Literature|Parallels Between the Qur'an and Late Antique Judeo-Christian Literature - Part 1]]
* [[Historical Errors in the Quran]]
==References==
<references />

User:CPO675/Sandbox 1

2026-06-07T19:21:44Z

CPO675: /* The story of Joseph */

== The story of Joseph ==
There are many differences between the story of Joseph (Arabic: ''Yūsuf'') in the Qur'an, told in full in Surah 12 (Surah Yūsuf), and the book of Genesis in the bible. Reynolds (2025), largely citing Witzum's (2011) 'The Syriac Millenia of the Qur'an: The Recasting of Biblical Narratives pp191-239' , notes how these differences directly match post-biblical writings; with almost all of these distinctive Qur’anic elements showing dependence on or conversation with Syriac Christian traditions (such as Pseudo-Narsai, Ephrem, Pseudo-Basil, Balai, Syriac Bible/Peshitta). A few overlap with the Jewish midrash, but the strongest and most consistent influence comes from Christian sources. (pp76-86)<ref>Reynolds, Gabriel Said. C''hristianity and the Qur'an: The Rise of Islam in Christian Arabia (p. 76-86).'' Yale University Press. Kindle Edition.</ref>

Reynolds provides gives 11 clear examples of this:

# Joseph’s singular dream: Qur’an has only one dream (unlike the Book of Genesis which has two), told directly to Jacob, who warns him to keep it secret - which matches Pseudo-Narsai’s homily (5th-century Syriac Christian). PP76, pp81
# The brothers’ plot to kill Joseph: the Qur’an shows the brothers plotting at home, not spontaneously in the fields - also found in Pseudo-Narsai. pp82
# The wolf motif: the Qur’an specifies a wolf instead of a vague “wild animal” in Genesis - which links to Christian tradition (Pseudo-Narsai) who calls the brothers “wolves” and Joseph “a lamb,” echoing Gospel imagery of shepherds/sheep. pp82-82
# Joseph in the pit: Qur’an has Joseph comforted by God in the pit (''jubb''; {{Quran|12|15}}) - which again follows a report in Pseudo-Narsai of revelation to Joseph in the pit (Syriac ''gubbā''). pp83
# Jacob’s (Joseph's father) response to the bloody shirt: the Qur’an has Jacob suspecting deception - reflected in homilies from Ephrem and Balai, who also have Jacob reason that the brothers’ story is false. pp83
# Potiphar and the garment: the Qur’an shows Potiphar recognizing Joseph’s innocence and his wife's guilt in trying to seduce him - in some post-biblical Jewish Traditions (including ''Genesis Rabbah 87:9'') he shows knowledge of Joseph's innocence - however only in Christian traditions (e.g., Pseudo-Narsai) we find Potiphar, as in {{Quran|12|28-29}}, arguing for Joseph’s innocence by referring to the torn garment as proof. pp83
# Potiphar’s wife confesses: the Qur’an has her admit guilt later in the story - found in the Pseudo-Narsai, where she confesses after Joseph’s rise to power. pp83
# Jacob’s blindness healed by Joseph’s shirt: the Qur’an reports Jacob miraculously regains sight when Joseph’s shirt touches his face - in the bible Jacob is firstly simply 'dim/heavy with age' in Genesis 48:10, but nothing is said about blindness is found in Christian late antique sources, and secondly using the garment to heal him draws on Syriac Christian idioms; (“lighten the eyes” = to gladen), made literal in the Qur’an (like other symbolic items in Christian stories) to heal Jacob's eyes. pp83-84
# Joseph called a thief by his brothers: the Qur’an has Joseph's brothers suggest he committed a past theft - rooted in Pseudo-Narsai, which connects Benjamin’s cup incident to Rachel stealing idols and compares Joseph to her. pp84-85
# Joseph’s garment sent to Jacob: Qur’an has Joseph send his shirt to Jacob. ↳ Related to Syriac Peshitta (and Septuagint and Vulgate) reading of Genesis and Balai’s poetry, where Jacob receives garments from Joseph. pp85
# Brothers Ask Jacob’s Forgiveness – Qur’an has them repent to Jacob, who asks God to forgive them. ↳ Echoes Balai, who also has Jacob forgive and pray for them. pp85

== Flat Earth - Tafsirs ==

=== The Highest Horizon ===
The Qu'ran says Muhammad was in the highest horizon ''bil-ufuqi<ref>افق - [https://lexicon.quranic-research.net/data/01_A/103_Afq.html Lane's lexicon Classical Arabic Dictionary root: hamza fā qāf (أ ف ق)]

Horizon ''ufuq'' (أُفُق) [https://lexicon.quranic-research.net/pdf/Page_0068.pdf Lane's Lexicon p.68]

Horizon ''ufuq'' (أُفُق) [https://lexicon.quranic-research.net/pdf/Page_0069.pdf Lane's Lexicon p.69] </ref>l-aʿlā''<ref>Lanes Lexicon Classical Arabic Dictionary Root: [https://lexicon.quranic-research.net/data/18_E/190_Elw.html ʿayn lām wāw (ع ل و)]

(l-a)ʿlā [https://lexicon.quranic-research.net/pdf/Page_2142.pdf Lanes Lexicon p.2142], [https://lexicon.quranic-research.net/pdf/Page_2143.pdf Lanes Lexicon p.2143]

</ref>. Typically taken as referring to him receiving knowledge there as part of his [[Buraq#The Night Journey (al-Isra wal-Mi'raj)|night journey]].
{{Quote|{{Quran|53|7}}|possessed of sound judgement. He settled, while he (was) in the horizon - the highest.}}See also: {{Quran|81|23}}

On a round Earth, there is no such place as an objective highest horizon, as once you move towards the perceived horizon (the furthest place you can see where the land and sky appear to meet in the distance)<ref>[https://dictionary.cambridge.org/dictionary/english/horizon Horizon Definition] Cambridge Dictionary</ref> the view simply moves further back as you circle around the earth, never actually being reached. So some classical Islamic exegetes have taken this to be the place where the sun rises from, in the seventh heaven, or where it reaches the Earth,<ref>E.g. [https://quranx.com/Tafsir/Jalal/53.7 Tafsir al-Jalalayn on verse Q53:7] by Al-Mahalli (d. 1459 CE) and Al-Suyuti (d. 1505 CE) and the famous pseudepigrapha [https://quranx.com/Tafsir/Abbas/53.7 Tanwîr al-Miqbâs min Tafsîr Ibn ‘Abbâs on verse Q53:7]</ref> which is only possible on a flat Earth.

== The Historical Jesus ==

=== Other Traditions ===

==== Intro ====

Alongside the main consensus from Biblical Scholars/Historians that Jesus was an eschatological preacher in the early first century AD who believed the Earth would end during his time (and therefore couldn't be the Muslim Jesus), there are many other of the most considered authentic teachings of Jesus that clash with Islam; in contrast with the Qur'anic principle of Messenger Uniformitarianism; where all messengers preach essentially the same thing with only minor variations.<ref>Durie, Mark. ''The Qur’an and Its Biblical Reflexes: Investigations into the Genesis of a Religion (pp. 135-142) (Kindle Edition pp. 281-294)''. 5.3 Messenger Uniformitarianism. Lexington Books. 2018.</ref>
{{Quote|{{Quran|41|43}}|Not is said to you except what was said to the Messengers before you. Indeed, your Lord (is) Possessor (of) forgiveness, and Possessor (of) penalty painful.}}{{Quote|{{Quran|2|285}}|The Apostle and the faithful have faith in what has been sent down to him from his Lord. Each [of them] has faith in Allah, His angels, His scriptures and His apostles. [They declare,] ‘We make no distinction between any of His apostles.’ And they say, ‘We hear and obey. Our Lord, forgive us, and toward You is the return.’}}

{{Quote|{{Quran|17|77}}|“This was the sunnah [customary way] of Our messengers whom We sent before you, and you will find no change in Our sunnah”}}cf. {{Quran|6|112}}, {{Quran|35|43}}, {{Quran|22|78}}.

Other than being explicitly told that messengers bring the same message from Allah, Durie (2018) notes the Qur'an repeatedly states that Muhammad was sent to confirm the revelations given to earlier messengers (Q2:91, 97; Q3:3, 50; Q5:48; Q12:111; Q16:43–44; Q35:31), just as each prophet before him confirmed those who came earlier. For example, Jesus (ʿĪsa) confirmed the Torah of Moses (Mūsa) (Q5:46), and the Qurʾan confirms the scriptures revealed to previous prophets (Q4:47). In this way, Muhammad’s role continues the same pattern of reaffirming earlier divine messages rather than introducing a completely new one.<ref>Durie, Mark. ''The Qur’an and Its Biblical Reflexes: Investigations Into the Genesis of a Religion.'' pp.140</ref>

{{Quote|Durie, Mark. The Qur'an and it's Biblical Reflexes. pp.140|• It is also explicitly asserted that messengers bring the same message
from Alla¯h: “Nothing is said to you but what has already been said to
messengers before you” (Q41:43; Q22:78) and “we make no distinction
between any of them” (Q2:136). They also preached the same dīn “commandment” or “religion” (Q42:13; cf. Q3:84; Q4:150), which is referred
to as the “religion of Ibra¯hīm” (Q2:130; Q4:125; Q16:121–23). The
validating function of this idea becomes clear when it is applied against
a group of Jews who reject the concept of the “same message” because
it would mean validating the Messenger. These Jews hold to their own
faith, saying “we believe in what has been sent down on us,” but they
reject the Messenger, or “anything after that” (Q2:91). The ruling against
these Jews is that because they reject the Messenger, they are disbelievers,
rejecting “what All a¯ h has sent down” (Q2:91).31 The idea of the “same message” is further reinforced when the Qurʾan repeatedly states that the Messenger was only sent to confirm what was sent down by previous
messengers (Q2:91, 97; Q3:3, 50; Q5:48; Q12:111; Q16:43–44; Q35:31),
just as previous messengers had done for messengers that preceded them,
for example, ʿĪsa¯ “confirmed” the Tawra¯ h of Mūsa¯(Q5:46), and the Qurʾan
confirms the book(s) sent by previous prophets (Q4:47), just as the Messenger has been doing in his turn.}}
The large differences between the New Testament / Gospels (and by extension the Christian Jesus), and the [[Isa al-Masih (Jesus Christ)|Muslim Jesus,]] are clear to anyone who has read both the Qur'an and NT; with the Qur'an having it's own spin on him and taking many aspects from apocrypha considered inauthentic by NT scholars,<ref>Sanders, E.. ''The Historical Figure of Jesus (pp. 78-79)''. Penguin Books Ltd. Kindle Edition.

..(Gnosticism was a world view that held everything material to be evil; the god who created the world was a bad god, and the creation was wicked. Gnostics who were also Christians held that the good God had sent Jesus to redeem people’s souls, not their bodies, and that Jesus was not a real human being. The Christians who objected to these views finally declared them heretical.) ''I share the general scholarly view that very, very little in the apocryphal gospels could conceivably go back to the time of Jesus. They are legendary and mythological. Of all the apocryphal material, only some of the sayings in the Gospel of Thomas are worth consideration.'' This does not mean that we can make a clean division: the historical four gospels versus the legendary apocryphal gospels. There are legendary traits in the four gospels in the New Testament, and there is also a certain amount of newly created material (as we saw just above)..</ref> and [[Parallels Between the Qur'an and Late Antique Judeo-Christian Literature|later Christian thought/writings]], and have lead to many Muslims arguing for biblical corruption based on textual and theological grounds [though textual don't affect most early & authentic traditions] in general, which is a disputed idea in traditional Islamic thought (cite - Reynolds article. See also: [[Corruption of Previous Scriptures]] & [[Qur'an, Hadith and Scholars:Corruption of Previous Scriptures]])

Historians have searched for a summary of some of the most likely authentic traditions from Biblical historians (using historical-critical methods not Christian or Muslim theologians - more likely to be true and not taken from bias or proving or disproving Islam but historical context, widespread across sources, early - cite Allison explanation - Why - different to time and context, unlikely to be fabricated later by Christians, across all early sources etc.) are shown here as an example of the clashes. [Point: not arguing against Christian Jesus - but secular historians one]

==== Examples ====
{{Quote|Dale C. Allison Jr.. The Historical Christ and the Theological Jesus (Kindle Locations 822-836). Kindle Edition.|2=Given that we typically remember the outlines of an event or the general purport of a conversation rather than the particulars and that we extract patterns and meaning from our memories, it makes little sense to open the quest for Jesus by evaluating individual items with our criteria, in the hope that some bits preserve pristine memory. We should rather be looking for repeating patterns and contemplating the big picture. true. We should trust first, if we are to trust at all, what is most likely to be trustworthy. Although we may, after reading Thucydides, be confident that there was a Peloponnesian War, we may well wonder about many of the details of his account.

The larger the generalization and the more data upon which it is based, the greater our confidence; the more specific the detail and the fewer the data supporting it, the more room we have for doubt. With regard to the sources for Jesus, the traditional criteria of authenticity privilege the parts over the whole. It seems more prudent to privilege generalizations drawn from the whole than to concentrate upon one individual item after another. As a demonstration of how this works in practice, consider the following traditions:

• Jesus prohibited divorce: 1 Cor. 7:10; Mark 10:2-9; Luke 16:18. [Qur'an divorce rules - https://wikiislam.net/wiki/Khula] 

• Jesus sent forth missionaries without staff, food, or money: Matt. 10:9-10; Mark 6:8-9; Luke 10:4.

• Jesus instructed missionaries to get their living by the gospel: 1 Cor. 9:14; Matt. 10:10; Luke 10:7.

• Jesus commanded loving and doing good to enemies: Matt. 5:38-48; Luke 6:27-36. [Qur'an do not be merciful to unbelievers https://wikiislam.net/wiki/Qur%27an,_Hadith_and_Scholars:Non-Muslims & https://wikiislam.net/wiki/Kafir_(Infidel)#Guidelines_on_how_to_deal_with_disbelievers Quran 48:29 ]

• Jesus forbade judging others: Matt. 7:1-2; Luke 6:37-38.

• Jesus asked a prospective follower not to bury his father: Matt. 8:21-22; 22; Luke 959-60.

• Jesus spoke of hating one's father and mother: Matt. 10:37; Luke 14:26; Gospel of Thomas 55, 101. [respect parents - too tenuous]

• Jesus enjoined disciples to take up a cross: Matt. 10:38; Mark 8:34; Luke 14:27.

• Jesus enjoined unlimited forgiveness: Matt. 18:21-22; Luke 17:3-4. [forgiveness against shirk - Qur'an says no Q4:48 and 4:116. ]

• Jesus exhorted hearers to lose their lives in order to save them: Matt. 10:39; Mark 8:35; Luke 17:33.

• Jesus called people away from their livelihoods: Mark 1:16-20; 2:14. [?]

• Jesus figuratively demanded violent removal of hand, foot, and eye: Mark 9:42-48.

• Jesus asked a wealthy man to relinquish his money: Mark 10:17-27. [bring in wealth inequality section of Islam darajat - here]

• Jesus forbade taking oaths: Matt. 5:33-37. [https://www.iium.edu.my/deed/lawbase/risalah_maliki/book31.html#:~:text=Anyone%20who%20swears%20an%20oath,Oneness%2C%20timelessness%20and%20existence.%5D]

• Jesus commanded money to be lent without interest: Matt. 5:42; Gospel of Thomas 95.

• Jesus called some to a life without marriage: Matt. 19:11-12. [Qur'an criticism of monasticism]

• Jesus asked a prospective follower not to say farewell to his parents: Luke 9:61-62. [respect parents?]

• Jesus asked his disciples to renounce all of their possessions: Luke 14:33"}}
<nowiki>--------------------------------------------------</nowiki>

[ highlight those being spoken about in italics or bold]

Professor Allison (2009) notes that Jesus' banning divorce was an important teaching that <s>stood out</s> to early Christians, [https://www.biblegateway.com/passage/?search=Luke%2016%3A18&version=NIV Luke 16:18], [https://www.biblegateway.com/passage/?search=1%20Corinthians%207%3A10-16&version=NIV 1 Corinthians 7:10-16], [https://www.biblegateway.com/passage/?search=Mark%2010%3A2-9&version=NIV Mark 10:2-9], in contrast to Judaism ([https://www.biblegateway.com/passage/?search=Deuteronomy%2024%3A1-4&version=NIV Deuteronomy 24:1-4]) and Islam e.g. Quran 2:228-232, Q65:1-7, (Q4:19 https://quranx.com/hadiths/4.19 & Q4:35), Q33:49 )

He notes that Jesus commanded loving and doing good to enemies in [https://www.biblegateway.com/passage/?search=Matthew%205%3A38-48&version=NIV Matt. 5:38-48]; [https://www.biblegateway.com/passage/?search=Luke%206%3A27-36&version=NIV Luke 6:27-36], while the Qur'an generally advises treating other Muslims well, it specifically states not to be merciful to unbelievers Q48:29. [ For more examples of not being merciful to unbelievers, let alone 'enemies' see: '''[[Qur'an, Hadith and Scholars:Non-Muslims|https://wikiislam.net/wiki/Qur%27an,_Hadith_and_Scholars:Non-Muslims]] & [[Kafir (Infidel)#Guidelines%20on%20how%20to%20deal%20with%20disbelievers|https://wikiislam.net/wiki/Kafir_(Infidel)#Guidelines_on_how_to_deal_with_disbelievers]] Quran 48:29 ]'''

• Jesus enjoined unlimited forgiveness: [https://www.biblegateway.com/passage/?search=Matthew%2018%3A21-22&version=NIV Matt. 18:21-22]; [https://www.biblegateway.com/passage/?search=Luke%2017%3A3-4&version=NIV Luke 17:3-4]. However the Qur'an distinctly says there is no forgiveness for anyone committing shirk (ascribing partners to God) in {{Quran|4|48}} and {{Quran|4|116}}.

He notes Jesus called some to a life without marriage: [https://www.biblegateway.com/passage/?search=Matthew%2019%3A11-12&version=NIV Matt. 19:11-12], while the Qur'an promotes it as a virtue encouraging those to do so.

Marriage is a virtue https://www.getquranic.com/marriage-in-islam-8-quranic-verses-about-marriage/

{{Quote|{{Quran|24|32}}|Marry off those who are single among you, and the upright among your male and female slaves. If they are poor, Allah will enrich them out of His grace, and Allah is all-bounteous, all-knowing.}}

And criticizes monasticism/monks, with celibacy and no marriage being a key aspect<ref>[https://www.britannica.com/topic/monasticism Monasticism] | religion | Britannica Entry</ref> in general

{{Quote|Reynolds, Gabriel Said. Christianity and the Qur'an: The Rise of Islam in Christian Arabia (pp. 131-132). Yale University Press. Kindle Edition.|These verses critical of monks are often read together with Q 57:27, which, while praising certain positive qualities of Christians, also seems to accuse Christians of “innovating” monasticism: Then We sent, following in their footsteps, Our Messengers; and We sent, following, Jesus son of Mary, and gave unto him the Gospel. And We set in the hearts of those who followed him tenderness and mercy. And monasticism they invented—We did not prescribe it for them—only seeking the good pleasure of God; but they observed it not as it should be observed. So We gave those of them who believed their wage; and many of them are ungodly.}}

Criticism of monasticism (https://www.britannica.com/topic/monasticism) - lack of marriage for monks (though admittedly also praises monks in general elsewhere pp130-132)<ref>Reynolds, Gabriel Said. ''Christianity and the Qur'an: The Rise of Islam in Christian Arabia (pp. 130-132).'' Yale University Press. Kindle Edition.</ref>

{{Quote|{{Quran|57|27}}|Then We sent on their footsteps Our Messengers and We followed with Isa, son (of) Maryam, and We gave him the Injeel. And We placed in (the) hearts (of) those who followed him compassion and mercy. But monasticism they innovated - not We prescribed it for them - only seeking (the) pleasure (of) Allah, but not they observed it (with) right observance. So We gave those who believed among them their reward, but most of them (are) defiantly disobediently.}}

<nowiki>-----------------------------------------------------------------</nowiki>

==== Father-son relationship ====
{{Quote|Dale C. Allison Jr.. The Historical Christ and the Theological Jesus (Kindle Location 841-848). Kindle Edition.|2=Working through the tradition in the way I suggest leads to a large number of conclusions. Jesus must have been an exorcist who interpreted his ministry in terms of Satan's downfall. He must have thought highly of John the Baptist. He must have repeatedly spoken of God as Father. [Durie differences in metaphor and understanding of relationship from Hebrew to Arab society = markedly different] He must have composed parables. He must have come into conflict with religious authorities. All of this may seem obvious, but the procedure is not trite, for it also issues in some controversial verdicts. As I have argued elsewhere, for example, ample, the quantity of conventional eschatological material in our primary sources almost necessitates that Jesus was an eschatological prophet.' The reconstruction of Robert Funk and the Jesus Seminar is for this reason alone problematic. Even more controversial is what my approach leads me to infer about Jesus' self-conception. Consider these Synoptic materials:

• Jesus said that the Son of man will return on the clouds of heaven and send angels to gather the elect from throughout the world: Mark 13:26-27; cf. 14:62; Matt. 10:23 (allusions to Daniel 7's depiction of the last judgment are clear). [the son of man plays no part in Islam]}}Allison (2009) notes that Jesus must have repeatedly referred to God as 'father', a way also used by many ancient Jews to describe their relationship to god, also found in the old testament with different metaphorical meanings<ref>Pennington, J.T. "Chapter Nine. God As Father In The Old Testament And Second Temple Literature". ''Heaven and Earth in the Gospel of Matthew''. Leiden, The Netherlands: Brill, 2007. <nowiki>https://doi.org/10.1163/ej.9789004162051.i-399.57</nowiki> Web.</ref> and Talmudic writings with paternal imagery. <ref>Knobnya, S.. (2011). ''God the Father in the Old Testament. European Journal of Theology.'' 20. 139-148. </ref><ref>[https://www.myjewishlearning.com/article/fatherhood-of-god/ Fatherhood of God] | Sages & Scholars | Rabbi Louis Jacobs | My Jewish Learning</ref>

===== Slave-master relationship =====
However this father-son Hebrew metaphorical relationship Jesus used is distinctly abandoned, instead using other things (other metaphors) in Arab society to describe the relationship between humans and God, such as a slave-master relationship,<ref>Durie, Mark. ''The Qur’an and Its Biblical Reflexes: Investigations into the Genesis of a Religion (pp. XX-XX) (pp. 107-110 Kindle Edition)''. 4.1.1. Shirk - Proprietary Partnership. Lexington Books. 2018.</ref> a Patron - Protege (needs explanation of what this is) <ref>Durie, Mark. ''The Qur’an and Its Biblical Reflexes: Investigations into the Genesis of a Religion (pp. XX-XX) (pp. 110-111 Kindle Edition)''. 4.1.2. Shirk - Patron - Protege Relationships. Lexington Books. 2018.</ref>. with Muhammad having strongly condemned the idea that God could have offspring against the unscripted pagans (mushrikun) taking angels as daughters of god early on chronologically of the Qur'an's first recitations, then later against God having a son against Jesus being the son of God.<ref>Durie, Mark. ''The Qur’an and Its Biblical Reflexes: Investigations into the Genesis of a Religion (pp. XX-XX) (pp. 112-113 Kindle Edition)''. 4.1.5 A Polemical Doctrine. Lexington Books. 2018.</ref>

Slave analogy Dure Print edition pp108 - 110 summary:<ref name=":1">Durie, Mark. ''The Qur’an and Its Biblical Reflexes: Investigations into the Genesis of a Religion (pp. 108-110) (pp. XX-XX Kindle Edition)''. 4.1.5 A Polemical Doctrine. Lexington Books. 2018.</ref> Before its theological use, the Arabic root ''sh-r-k'' referred to ordinary '''partnership or shared ownership'''. The Qurʾan draws on this everyday meaning to illustrate why associating partners with God is impossible. Using the metaphor of '''a master and a slave''', the Qurʾan argues that just as a slave with multiple masters suffers confusion and conflict, attributing partners to God creates an impossible and chaotic situation. This logic appears in verses such as Q39:29 and others that argue multiple gods would lead to conflict and the ruin of creation (Q23:91; Q21:22).<ref name=":1" />
{{Quote|{{Quran|39|29}}|Allah presents a parable, “a man was owned by several quarreling partners
(shurakaʾ), and a man was the slave of (just) one man. Are the two equal?”}}

The Qurʾan’s use of the slave-master metaphor differs from Jesus’ teaching in the New Testament. Whereas Jesus uses it to highlight divided human devotion, the Qurʾan uses it to assert the logical impossibility of multiple divine authorities.<ref name=":1" />

{{Quote|Luke 16:13; cf. Matthew. 6:24|No slave can serve two masters; for a slave will either hate the one and love the
other, or be devoted to the one and despise the other. You cannot serve God and wealth.}}

Shirk encompasses various forms of error: attributing partners or helpers to God, believing He needs allies, or seeking aid from others besides Him. The Qurʾan also explores God’s unity through three social analogies relevant to Arabian society: '''patron–protégé relationships''', '''alliances of mutual help''', and '''relationships of equal or unequal status'''.<ref name=":1" />

===== '''Patron–protégé relationships''' =====
The Qur'an distinctly ignores the father-son relationship (and theology) metaphor by using another term that is harder to translate

Explanation of what this is Durie pp.110-111:<ref name=":3">Durie, Mark. ''The Qur’an and Its Biblical Reflexes: Investigations into the Genesis of a Religion (pp. 110-111) (pp. XX-XX Kindle Edition)''. 4.1.5 A Polemical Doctrine. Lexington Books. 2018.</ref> The Qurʾan uses terms from the root '''w-l-y''' to describe '''patron–protégé relationships''', alliances, and guardianship. The key term '''walī''' can mean ally, protector, guardian, or patron, and may indicate either symmetrical alliances or asymmetrical power relationships.<ref name=":3" /><ref>[https://lexicon.quranic-research.net/data/27_w/219_wle.html Root: ''wāw lām yā'' (و ل ي)] - Lane's Lexicon Qur'anic Research

See Lane's Lexicon Classical Arabic Dictionary [https://lexicon.quranic-research.net/pdf/Page_3060.pdf pp.3060] & [https://lexicon.quranic-research.net/pdf/Page_3061.pdf pp.3061] </ref>

In pre-Islamic Arab society, such patronage was essential for protection, as shown by the example of Muḥammad being safeguarded by his uncle Abū Ṭālib. Without a patron, a person was vulnerable.<ref name=":3" /> [in the sirah of Ibn Ishaq]

The Qurʾan emphasizes that '''God has no need of any patron''' and that '''humans should recognize God alone as their walī'''. Seeking any protector besides God is considered '''shirk'''. Believers may take other believers and the Prophet as allies (''awliyāʾ'') alongside God, but not in place of Him.<ref name=":3" />

As the Muslim community developed, especially after what the passage calls the ''Eschatological Transition''—the Qurʾan increasingly stressed exclusive allegiance to God. This served to detach believers from prior tribal or familial loyalties that could compromise their commitment to the faith community.<ref name=":3" />

- and calls for help-

===== Unequal status vs Jesus' views on Wealth =====
Sinai - darajah passage

And inequality in general - inc. the afterlife

=== Punishment narratives ===

==== Punishment BEFORE the day of judgement ====
We are told the sole exception in history was the unnamed town<ref>Unnamed in the Qur'an, though identified as Nineveh (in modern day Iraq) as in the Biblical "Book of Jonah" by Islamic exegetes; e.g. see [https://quranx.com/tafsirs/37.147 tafsirs on Q37:147]</ref> of more than 100,000 people that the messenger Yūnus (Jonah) when the warning was heeded in full by the entire people, and therefore punishment averted ({{Quran|10|98}}, {{Quran|37|147-148}}) “no town believed . . . except the people of Yūnus”<ref>Durie, Mark. 2018. ''The Qur'an and Its Biblical Reflexes: Investigations Into the Genesis of a Religion. pp 49. Kindle Edition pp 151.''</ref>

How many a town defied the command of its Lord and His apostles, then We called it to a severe account and punished it with a dire punishment. Q65:8

So it tasted the evil consequences of its conduct, and the outcome of its conduct was ruin. Q65:9

How many generations that had far more wealth and ostentation have We laid low before them! <<nowiki>https://quranx.com/19.74</nowiki>>

Say, ‘Whoever abides in error, the All-beneficent shall prolong his respite until they sight what they have been promised: either punishment, or the Hour.’ Then they will know whose position is worse, and whose host is weaker <<nowiki>https://quranx.com/19.75</nowiki>>

------

Q34:16 - flood of the damn of Yemen / Saba', the people of Sheba E.g. <ref>See tafsirs on [https://quranx.com/Tafsirs/34.14 Q34:14], [https://quranx.com/Tafsirs/34.15 Q34:15] & [https://quranx.com/Tafsirs/34.16 Q34:16]</ref> {{Quran|34|14-16}}

{{Quote|{{Quran|34|14-16}}|And when We decreed for Solomon death, nothing indicated to the jinn his death except a creature of the earth eating his staff. But when he fell, it became clear to the jinn that if they had known the unseen, they would not have remained in humiliating punishment.
Certainly, (there) was for Saba in their dwelling place a sign: Two gardens on (the) right and (on the) left. "Eat from (the) provision (of) your Lord and be grateful to Him. A land good and a Lord Oft-Forgiving."
But they turned away, so We sent upon them (the) flood (of) the dam, and We changed for them their two gardens (with) two gardens producing fruit bitter, and tamarisks and (some)thing of lote trees few.}}
, {{Quran|65|8-9}}, {{Quran|19|74-75}}

Add: 34:15–21: The punishment of the people of Sheba, without explicit reference to a messenger. Sheba reference <ref>Marshall, David. ''God, Muhammad and the Unbelievers (p. 73).'' Taylor & Francis. Kindle Edition.</ref>

=== Surah 36 ===
Similarly an unnamed town is sent three messengers in {{Quran|36|13-32}}, who's identities have differed in traditional Islamic scholarship,<ref>E.g. see commentaries on [https://quranx.com/Tafsirs/36.13 Q36:13] & [https://quranx.com/tafsirs/36.14 Q36:14], and the later verses in the story, cited as a parable ''(mathal).''</ref> are rejected and so are killed with a cry/shout (''ṣayḥatan)'' ({{Quran|36|29}}). <ref>Marshall, David. ''God, Muhammad and the Unbelievers (p. 63 & 72).'' Taylor & Francis. Kindle Edition.</ref>
{{Quote|Marshall, David. God, Muhammad and the Unbelievers (p. 72). Taylor & Francis. Kindle Edition.|36:13–32: Described as a parable (mathal, v.13), but in outline very similar to the punishment-narratives. The messengers (two of them, reinforced with a third) and the town in which they preach are anonymous. ‘A man from the furthest part of the city’ (v.20) exhorts his people to follow the messengers.}}

== Contradiction ==
The order in Surah 2 has the Jews struck by a lightening bolt after they worship the golden calf, who are then forgiven by Allah by being resurrected.
{{Quote|{{Quran|2|50-67}}|And when We parted the sea with you, and We delivered you and drowned Pharaoh’s clan as you looked on. 
And when We made an appointment with Moses for forty nights, you took up the Calf [for worship] in his absence, and you were wrongdoers. 
Then We excused you after that so that you might give thanks. 
And when We gave Moses the Book and the Criterion so that you might be guided. 
And [recall] when Moses said to his people, ‘O my people! You have indeed wronged yourselves by taking up the Calf [for worship]. Now turn penitently to your Maker, and slay [the guilty among] your folks. That will be better for you with your Maker.’ Then He turned to you clemently. Indeed, He is the All-clement, the All-merciful. 
And when you said, ‘O Moses, we will not believe you until we see Allah visibly.’ Thereupon a thunderbolt seized you as you looked on.
Then We raised you up after your death so that you might give thanks. /n
We shaded you with clouds, and sent down to you manna and quails [saying]: ‘Eat of the good things We have provided for you.’ And they did not wrong Us, but they used to wrong [only] themselves. 
And when We said, ‘Enter this town, and eat thereof freely whencesoever you wish, and enter while prostrating at the gate, and say, ‘‘Relieve [us of the burden of our sins],’’ so that We may forgive your iniquities and We will soon enhance the virtuous.’ 
But the wrongdoers changed the saying with other than what they were told. So We sent down on those who were wrongdoers a plague from the sky because of the transgressions they used to commit. 
And when Moses prayed for water for his people, We said, ‘Strike the rock with your staff.’ Thereat twelve fountains gushed forth from it; every tribe came to know its drinking-place. ‘Eat and drink of Allah’s provision, and do not act wickedly on the earth, causing corruption.’ 
And when you said, ‘O Moses, ‘We will not put up with one kind of food. So invoke your Lord for us, so that He may bring forth for us of that which the earth grows—its greens and cucumbers, its garlic, lentils, and onions.’ He said, ‘Do you seek to replace what is superior with that which is inferior? Go down to any town and you will indeed get what you ask for!’ So they were struck with abasement and poverty, and they earned Allah’s wrath. That, because they would deny the signs of Allah and kill the prophets unjustly. That, because they would disobey and commit transgressions. 
Indeed the faithful, the Jews, the Christians and the Sabaeans—those of them who have faith in Allah and the Last Day and act righteously—they shall have their reward from their Lord, and they will have no fear, nor will they grieve. 
And when We took a pledge from you, and raised the Mount above you, [declaring], ‘Hold on with power to what We have given you and remember that which is in it so that you may be Godwary.’ 
Again you turned away after that; and were it not for Allah’s grace on you and His mercy, you would have surely been among the losers. 
And certainly you know those of you who violated the Sabbath, whereupon We said to them, ‘Be you spurned apes.’ 
So We made it an exemplary punishment for the present and the succeeding [generations], and an advice to the Godwary.}}
In Surah 4 they are struck before they worship the calf. 4:153 specifically says 'then' ''(thumma)''

{{Quote|{{Quran|4|153-161}}|The People of the Book ask you to bring down for them a Book from the sky. Certainly they asked Moses for [something] greater than that, for they said, ‘Show us Allah visibly,’ whereat a thunderbolt seized them for their wrongdoing. Then they took up the Calf [for worship], after all the manifest proofs that had come to them. Yet We excused that, and We gave Moses a manifest authority. 
And We raised the Mount above them for the sake of their covenant, and We said to them, ‘Enter the gate prostrating’ and We said to them, ‘Do not violate the Sabbath,’ and We took from them a solemn covenant. 
Then because of their breaking their covenant, their defiance of Allah’s signs, their killing of the prophets unjustly and for their saying, ‘Our hearts are uncircumcised’… Indeed, Allah has set a seal on them for their unfaith, so they do not have faith except a few. 
And for their faithlessness, and their uttering a monstrous calumny against Mary, 
and for their saying, ‘We killed the Messiah, Jesus son of Mary, the apostle of Allah’—though they did not kill him nor did they crucify him, but so it was made to appear to them. Indeed those who differ concerning him are surely in doubt about him: they do not have any knowledge of that beyond following conjectures, and certainly, they did not kill him. 
Indeed, Allah raised him up toward Himself, and Allah is all-mighty, all-wise. 
There is none among the People of the Book but will surely believe in him before his death; and on the Day of Resurrection, he will be a witness against them. 
Due to the wrongdoing of the Jews, We prohibited them certain good things that were permitted to them [earlier], and for their barring many [people] from the way of Allah, 
and for their taking usury—though they had been forbidden from it—and for eating up the wealth of the people wrongfully. And We have prepared for the faithless among them a painful punishment. }}

=== V2 ===
Surah 4 (summarized version)

1) They ask Moses for a sign and are hit with a thunderbolt

2) They then take up the calf for worship

3) The mountain is raised above them{{Quote|{{Quran|4|153-154}}|The People of the Book ask you to bring down for them a Book from the sky. Certainly they asked Moses for [something] greater than that, for they said, ‘Show us Allah visibly,’ whereat a thunderbolt seized them for their wrongdoing. Then they took up the Calf [for worship], after all the manifest proofs that had come to them. Yet We excused that, and We gave Moses a manifest authority. 
And We raised the Mount above them for the sake of their covenant, and We said to them, ‘Enter the gate prostrating’ and We said to them, ‘Do not violate the Sabbath,’ and We took from them a solemn covenant.}}Surah 2
1) They worshiped the calf. And Moses tells them to slay the guilty among them.

2) They are hit by a thunderbolt - is it chronological?

3) ... a mountain is lifted above them
{{Quote|{{Quran|2|51-56}}|And when We made an appointment with Moses for forty nights, you took up the Calf [for worship] in his absence, and you were wrongdoers. 
Then We excused you after that so that you might give thanks. 
And when We gave Moses the Book and the Criterion so that you might be guided. 
And [recall] when Moses said to his people, ‘O my people! You have indeed wronged yourselves by taking up the Calf [for worship]. Now turn penitently to your Maker, and slay [the guilty among] your folks. That will be better for you with your Maker.’ Then He turned to you clemently. Indeed, He is the All-clement, the All-merciful. 
And when you said, ‘O Moses, we will not believe you until we see Allah visibly.’ Thereupon a thunderbolt seized you as you looked on.
Then We raised you up after your death so that you might give thanks.}}
== The Lote Tree of the utmost Boundary (Sid'rati al-Muntahā) ==
Lote tree's are a real type of tree (Ziziphus spina-christi) native to Arabia and the Middle East.<ref>[https://www.suewickison.com/products/lote-tree?srsltid=AfmBOorj_RU2x1OPxgfRe689M2TWw1g4uZTQLkpSolPGYnIatiIe7h6K Lote Tree | Sidr | Ziziphus spina-christi |] Plants of the Qur'an | Sue Wickison </ref> Different to the tree of eternity/immortality ''(shajarati ul-khul'di)'' in paradise ''jannah,'' the Qur'an mentions The Lote Tree (sidr) of ''the utmost boundary (al-muntahā)''<ref>مُنْتَهَىٰ - [https://lexicon.quranic-research.net/pdf/Page_3029.pdf Lane's Lexicon pp.3029]

</ref> near (but notably not in) the 'garden of abode', said to be 'covered' yaghshā by something unspecified in Q53:16, typically taken by exegetes to mean by angels, light and/or golden animals.<ref>E.g. see [https://quranx.com/Tafsirs/53.16 Tafsirs on Q53:16]</ref>

{{Quote|{{Quran|53|13-17}}|And certainly he saw him (in) descent another,
Near (the) Lote Tree (of) the utmost boundary,
Near it (is the) Garden (of) Abode.
when there covered the Lote Tree what covered it.
Not swerved the sight and not it transgressed.}}

This furthest boundary/limit is said in the hadith, to place the cosmic tree in the sixth heaven, where even celestial creatures cannot go beyond as the limit of creation; said to be seen by Muhammad in his Night Journey (mi’rāj) on the [[:en:Buraq|Buraq]] (E.g. {{Muslim|1|329}}, {{Al Tirmidhi|2=5|3=44|4=3276}}, {{Bukhari|5|58|227}} & {{Al Nasai|2=1|3=5|4=452}}), and by many Islamic exegetes.<ref>See [https://quranx.com/tafsirs/53.14 tafsirs on Q53:14]</ref>

This would align the cosmology of Islamic traditions supporting the idea that paradise (and therefore the garden of the abode) is in the seventh heaven,<ref>[https://islamqa.info/en/answers/215011/where-are-paradise-and-hell#Where_is_Paradise Where is Paradise] | [https://islamqa.info/en/answers/215011/where-are-paradise-and-hell Where Are Paradise and Hell?] | 07/January/2015 islamqa</ref> while some traditions support the idea that paradise is above the seventh heaven,<ref>[https://www.islamweb.net/en/fatwa/107126/the-location-of-paradise-now#:~:text=Paradise%20that%20Allaah%20promised%20for,are%20many%20texts%20proving%20this. The location of Paradise now] | Paradise and Hell | Belief in the Hereafter | Islamic Creed | Fatwa | islamweb.net </ref> both placing the tree relatively close to jannah. However others suggest that this specific ''garden of the abode (jannatu l-mawā)'' is a separate garden/paradise to the eternal one all righteous Muslims will eventually enter, being instead one where martyrs (those killed in war or for their religion) go before judgement day.<ref>E.g. see [https://quranx.com/Tafsirs/53.15 tafsirs on Q53:15]</ref>

Either way there is no evidence of a celestial tree, which must be magic to survive outside of an Earthly plant ecosystem, but is rather an example of tree mythology.
----
----

(See also: <nowiki>https://sunnah.com/mishkat:5865</nowiki> & https://sunnah.com/mishkat:5640, ) read; https://quranx.com/tafsirs/53.14 - exegetes also confirm this is where boundary is the boundary of the skies/heavens where things other than God cannot pass (at least until judgement day where paradise and hell can be entered).

AND Similarly seen next to the 4 main Near-East rivers (Nile, Euphratesm Tigres,) <nowiki>https://sunnah.com/bukhari:5610</nowiki>, which area said to flow from paradise: <nowiki>https://quranx.com/Hadith/Bukhari/USC-MSA/Volume-5/Book-58/Hadith-227/</nowiki> )

cite: [https://www.islamweb.net/en/fatwa/107126/the-location-of-paradise-now#:~:text=Paradise%20that%20Allaah%20promised%20for,are%20many%20texts%20proving%20this. https://www.islamweb.net/en/fatwa/107126/the-location-of-paradise-now#:~:text=Paradise%20that%20Allaah%20promised%20for,are%20many%20texts%20proving%20this.]

The utmost boundary at the end of t heavens confirmed by exegetes in https://quranx.com/tafsirs/53.14

" Jannat al-ma'va' literally means "the Jannat (Garden) that is to be an abode. " Hadrat Hasan Basri says that this is the same Jannat which the believers and righteous will be given in the Hereafter, and from this same verse he has argued that that Jannat is in the heavens. Qatadah says that this is the Jannat in which the souls of the martyrs are kept; it does not imply the Jannat that is to be given in the Hereafter. Ibn 'Abbas also says the same but adds that the Jannat to be granted to the believers in the Hereafter is not in the heavens but here on the earth.

== Parallels Between the Qur'an and Late Antique Judeo-Christian Literature - Part 2 ==
Following on from [[Parallels Between the Qur'an and Late Antique Judeo-Christian Literature|Part 1]], this is Part 2 of Late Antique Judeo-Christian Literature found in the Qur'an. This material, drawing heavily on rabbinical commentaries on the bible, and late Syriac Christian thought found in homilies, was created far later than the biblical cannon; no-where near the time of the events that occurred. This suggests the stories were transmitted in an oral millennia along with local Arabian traditions<ref>Bannister, Andrew G.. ''An Oral-Formulaic Study of the Qur'an (Kindle Location 249-259 in Chapter 1.2 The Biblicist Roots of the Iblis and Adam Story).'' Bloomsbury Publishing. Kindle Edition.

..When the Qur’an emerged in the seventh-century, it did so in an oral culture in which Biblicist traditions were freely circulating and thus there existed a large pool of commonly known stories and traditions to fish from; a pool in which stories could cross-fertilize and influence one another. 23 It is this, more than direct borrowing that perhaps best explains stories like Iblis and Adam as well as other qur’anic tellings of older tales, such as the Seven Sleepers (Q. 18: 9– 25) 24 and the Legend of Alexander (Dhu al-Qarnayn, Q. 18: 83– 101). 25 The Qur’an originates from a milieu in which Biblicist material was well-known to the first audience of the Qur’an; even a simple allusion to a story was often enough to trigger a connection for the hearer. 26 That Biblicist material has been filtered through storytelling rather than simply copied from a written text is further suggested by what the Qur’an leaves out; no minor prophets are referenced, probably because almost no Old Testament narratives feature them nor did the rabbinic literature weave lengthy tales about them. 27 The exception which proves the rule is Jonah (Q. 21: 87– 88; 37: 139– 148; 68: 48– 50), whose short but dramatic story was extremely popular in both Jewish and Christian contexts.28..

And: Bannister, Andrew G.. ''An Oral-Formulaic Study of the Qur'an (Kindle Locations 1391-1392. Chapter 2.3 The Islamic Tradition and Orality).'' Bloomsbury Publishing. Kindle Edition.</ref> where biblical and much later Jewish and Christian stories could be commonly mixed without the new community realizing.
== The story of Noah ==
The prophet Noah is portrayed extremely differently to the one in Genesis,<ref>Segovia, Carlos A.. ''[https://almuslih.org/wp-content/uploads/2024/12/Segovia-C-The-Quranic-Noah-and-the-Making-of-the-Islamic-Prophet.pdf The Quranic Noah and the Making of the Islamic Prophet: A Study of Intertextuality and Religious Identity Formation in Late Antiquity]'', Berlin, München, Boston: De Gruyter, 2015. <nowiki>https://doi.org/10.1515/9783110405897</nowiki></ref> taking on Jewish and Christian traditions, characteristics, as well as terms from late antique Judeo-Christian writings,<ref>The Qur'anic Noah. pp.21-21</ref> molded to suit Muhammad's situation in line with other messengers in the Qur'an.<ref>''The Qurʾan and its Biblical Reflexes: Investigations into the Genesis of a Religion. Chapter 5.3 Messenger Uniformatism. pp.135-143'' By Mark Durie. Lanham, MD: Lexington Books, 2018. </ref>

=== The preaching of Noah ===

Surah 71 consists entirely of the preaching of Noah and his supplications to Allah.{{Quote|{{Quran-range|71|1|28}}|Indeed, We sent Noah to his people, [saying], "Warn your people before there comes to them a painful punishment." He said, "O my people, indeed I am to you a clear warner, [Saying], 'Worship Allah, fear Him and obey me. Allah will forgive you of your sins and delay you for a specified term. Indeed, the time [set by] Allah, when it comes, will not be delayed, if you only knew.' " 
[...]
And Noah said, "My Lord, do not leave upon the earth from among the disbelievers an inhabitant. Indeed, if You leave them, they will mislead Your servants and not beget except [every] wicked one and [confirmed] disbeliever. My Lord, forgive me and my parents and whoever enters my house a believer and the believing men and believing women. And do not increase the wrongdoers except in destruction."}}Reynolds remarks that "The Qur'ānic character of Noah is quite unlike that of the Noah in Genesis, who does not speak a word until after the flood." Citing the Babylonian Talmud, Sanhedrin 108a, he observes that "[his preaching] is also suggested by a passage in the Talmud:
::"The righteous Noah rebuked them, urging, 'Repent; for if not, the Holy One, blessed be He, will bring a deluge upon you and cause your bodies to float upon the water like gourds, as it is written, He is light [i.e., floats] upon the waters. Moreover, ye shall be taken as a curse for all future generations.' (b. Sanhedrin 108a)"
Reynolds further notes, "It is also prominent in the Syriac fathers, several of whom report that Noah preached to his people for a hundred years before God finally sent the flood." citing for example the Syriac authors Narsai, "On the Flood", 33, II. 227-30 and Jacob of Serugh, ''Homilies contre les juifs'', 70, homily 2, II. 37-40.<ref>Gabriel Said Reynolds, ''The Qurʾān and Bible'' p. 858</ref>

The opponents reject Noah's preaching despite him doing so 'day and night' (Quran 71:5-6) in which they respond by putting their fingers in their ears Quran 71:7, on which Neuwirth (2024) notes that "the means of plugging one’s ears in order to shut oneself off from unpleasant news is also encountered in the Talmud (bKetubbot 5a)."<ref>Neuwirth, Angelika. The Qur'an: Text and Commentary, ''Volume 2.1: Early Middle Meccan Suras: The New Elect (p. 280).'' Yale University Press. Kindle Edition.</ref>

=== Noah's disbelieving wife ===
{{Quote|{{Quran|66|10}}|Allah presents an example of those who disbelieved: the wife of Noah and the wife of Lot. They were under two of Our righteous servants but betrayed them, so those prophets did not avail them from Allah at all, and it was said, "Enter the Fire with those who enter."}}The Bible briefly mentions Noah's wife in one verse without further comment ([https://www.biblegateway.com/passage/?search=Genesis%207%3A7&version=NIV Genesis 7:7]), "And Noah and his sons and his wife and his sons’ wives entered the ark to escape the waters of the flood." Regarding the Quranic verse which speaks of her negatively, Reynolds briefly considers the possibility that the Quran has extended to their wives the parallelism between Noah (though not his wife) and Lot found in the New Testament ([https://www.biblegateway.com/passage/?search=2%20Peter%202&version=NIV 2 Peter 2]), but then comments, "However, it is important to note that already in the pre-Islamic period certain groups had developed hostile legends about Noah's wife." He cites Epiphanius (d. 403 CE), ''Panarion'' 2:26, which relates the Gnostic belief that she was not allowed onto the ark, having burned it down three times before the flood.<ref>Gabriel Said Reynolds, ''The Qurʾān and Bible'' p. 841</ref>

=== Noah's flood waters overflowed from an oven ===
The Qur'anic version of the Noah's flood story describes the flood waters as overflowing from an oven. This element is not found even in more ancient versions of the story (Epic of Gilgamesh, Atra hasis, and Ziusudra).

Note that in his translation, Yusuf Ali mistranslates the Aramaic loan word for the oven (alttannooru ٱلتَّنُّورُ)<ref>[http://www.studyquran.org/LaneLexicon/Volume1/00000355.pdf Lane's Lexicon p. 318 تَّنُّورُ]</ref> as "fountains". The Arabic verb translated "gushed forth" (fara فَارَ) means overflowed or boiled in the context of water in a cooking pot<ref>[http://www.studyquran.org/LaneLexicon/Volume6/00000241.pdf Lane's Lexicon p. 2457 فور]</ref>, as well as in the other verse where it is used, {{Quran|67|7}}. Here is Pickthall's more accurate translation:{{Quote|{{Quran|11|40}}|
(Thus it was) till, when Our commandment came to pass '''and the oven gushed forth water''', We said: Load therein two of every kind, a pair (the male and female), and thy household, save him against whom the word hath gone forth already, and those who believe. And but a few were they who believed with him.}}{{Quote|{{Quran|23|27}}|
Then We inspired in him, saying: Make the ship under Our eyes and Our inspiration. Then, when Our command cometh '''and the oven gusheth water''', introduce therein of every (kind) two spouses, and thy household save him thereof against whom the Word hath already gone forth. And plead not with Me on behalf of those who have done wrong. Lo! they will be drowned.}}At one time academic scholars thought this verse alluded to a Midrashic exegesis in which the flood waters were boiling hot (b. Sanhedrin 108b, [https://www.sefaria.org/Rosh_Hashanah.12a.4?lang=bi|Tracate Rosh Hashanah 12a:4]). More recent scholarship, particularly by Olivier Mongellaz in 2024,<ref name="Mongellaz2024">Olivier Mongellaz (2024) [https://brill.com/view/journals/arab/71/4-5/article-p513_4.xml Le four de Noé : un cas d’intertextualité coranique], Arabica 71(4-5), 513-637. https://doi.org/10.1163/15700585-20246900</ref> has identified that these verses most likely reflect a late antique legend in which water gushing up through a bread oven (a large hole dug into the ground) was a sign warning Noah's family of the imminent flood. The interpretation as Noah's own oven is attributed to a number of early commentators (such as Ibn Abbas, Mujahid), while others understood it to be the area of land where the flood waters first rose. Qurtubi said: "The sayings of commentators appear to be different as to the meaning of tannur, but this, in reality, is not a difference. When water began to bulge out, it overflowed from the bread baking oven, and from out of the surface of the land".

Significantly, Mongellaz has argued on literary grounds that a fragmentary Arabic text falsely attributed to Hippolytus of Rome, and which mentions the overflowing bread oven story, is independent of the Islamic tradition and was originally written in a very specific environment which has parallels with the context in which certain parts of the Quran were written.{{Quote|Pseudo. Hippolytus of Rome (translated to English from Mongellaz's French translation)<ref name="Mongellaz2024" />|Meanwhile, Ham's wife stood up to take out the bread that remained in the oven and immediately water sprang out of the oven [fāḍa l-māʾmin al-tannūr] and immediately water came out of the oven, as the Lord had said: "The fountains of the great deeps were opened." Ham's wife called to Noah, saying, "My lord, the word of God has come true (Syr. what God promised has come true!)" - for it had come true just as the Lord had promised her. When Noah heard Ham's wife's words, he said to her, "Oh, the flood has come."}}

=== Noah's ark left behind as a sign ===
{{Quote|{{Quran-range|54|13|15}}|And We carried him on a [construction of] planks and nails, Sailing under Our observation as reward for he who had been denied. And We left it as a sign, so is there any who will remember?}}Unlike the bible, which does not mention the ark as a sign for future generations, Neuwirth (2024) notes the salvation of Noah is made physically plausible to the listeners through the reference to the material verifiability of the ark, which could be taken from various late antique traditions, for example Flavius Josephus (b. 37AD) reports in the ''Jewish Antiquities (I 3.5 § 92)'' of the existence of the remains of Noah’s ark in Armenia (Clementz 1959: 22).<ref name=":0">Neuwirth, Angelika. ''The Qur'an: Text and Commentary, Volume 2.1: Early Middle Meccan Suras: The New Elect (p. 62).'' Yale University Press. Kindle Edition.</ref> She also notes that the appeal to the willingness of the listeners to be admonished by the sign (āya) of Noah’s ark is also reminiscent of the Talmudic story (bSanhedrin 96a) of the death of Sennacherib, who was led to a fateful decision by seeing the remains of Noah’s ark.<ref name=":0" />
==Moses and Pharaoh==
Alongside the biblical account of Moses and the Pharoah, there are some key aspects that match Jewish Rabbinic and Christian non-biblical traditions. Even the place where Moses communicates with God in the story of the burning bush, the word used ''ṭuwan'' in e.g. {{Quran|20|12}} (for the folded land, implying double the holiness)<ref>See; Neuwirth, Angelika. ''The Qur'an: Text and Commentary, Volume 2.1: Early Middle Meccan Suras: The New Elect (p. 199).'' Yale University Press. Kindle Edition. Ṭuwā stands for the holy Mount Sinai or Horeb (cf. KU, 124ff.; FVQ, 206ff.; BEQ, 255ff.). The word was long thought to be a rhyming transformation of Aramaic ṭūrā (“the mountain”), but now, based on rabbinic tradition and in agreement with traditional exegetes, Uri Rubin has convincingly interpreted bi-l-wādī l-muqaddasi Ṭuwā to mean “in the doubly hallowed valley” (see Rubin 2014). (The Sinai is in a sense the “folded Holy Land” [ṬWY = “to fold”].) Citing: Rubin, Uri, 2014, ''[https://urirubin.com/assets/docs/Tuwan.86132451.pdf Moses and the Holy Valley Ṭuwan. On the Biblical and Midrashic Background of a Qurʾanic Scene],'' Journal of Near Eastern Studies 73, 73–81.</ref> does not have a parallel in the bible,<ref>''[https://urirubin.com/assets/docs/Tuwan.86132451.pdf Moses and the Holy Valley Ṭuwan: On the biblical and midrashic background of a qurʾānic scene.]'' Rubin 2014. Ibid. pp. 75.</ref> but does in other Judeo-Christian (later) works.<ref>Ibid. pp. 76-78</ref> And the idea of eschatology in Moses's story such as {{Quran|20|15}}, with reward in the afterlife being mentioned, is not contained in the biblical story of Moses, Neuwirth (2024) notes moves the story into a late antiquity interpretation.<ref>Neuwirth, Angelika. ''The Qur'an: Text and Commentary, Volume 2.1: Early Middle Meccan Suras: The New Elect (p. 199).'' Yale University Press. Kindle Edition.</ref> Key details in the stories include:
===The prophecy of baby Moses===
Alongside the scene of [https://www.biblegateway.com/passage/?search=Exodus%201%3A8-2%3A10&version=NIV Exodus 1:8-2:10] where the Hebrews in Egyptian bondage are told to kill all male babies to control the growing Israelite population, where Moses's mother places his basket in the Nile to escape; Neuwirth (2024) citing Speyer, notes that ''the prophecy to Moses’s mother that an enemy—of Moses as well as of God himself—would take him in reflects a Midrashic interpretation of Exodus Rabba (1:31: “So the daughter of Pharaoh raised the daughter, who was once to take revenge on her father”). The event is explicitly based on a divine intention, namely, to make Moses his chosen one.''<ref>''The Qur'an: Text and Commentary, Volume 2.1: Early Middle Meccan Suras: The New Elect'' Ibid. pp. 201.</ref>{{Quote|{{Quran-range|20|37|39}}|We have bestowed Our favour on you before this, When We told your mother what We relate: 'Put him in a wooden box and cast it in the river. The river will cast it on the bank. An enemy of Ours, and his, will retrieve it.' We bestowed Our love on you that you may be reared under Our eyes.}}And similarly the next verse unlike the bible focuses on the emotional impact of the event on Moses’s mother, Neuwirth notes is comparable to Midrash Exodus Rabba 1:25.<ref>Ibid. pp. 201-202.</ref> Moses's salvation from persecution after manslaughter is commemorated with similar consideration of Moses’s mental condition.<ref>Ibid. pp. 202.</ref>{{Quote|{{Quran|20|40}}|When your sister walked up [to Pharaoh’s palace] saying, “Shall I show you someone who will take care of him?” Then We restored you to your mother, that she might not grieve and be comforted. Then you slew a soul, whereupon We delivered you from anguish, and We tried you with various ordeals. Then you stayed for several years among the people of Midian. Then you turned up as ordained, O Moses!}}
===Moses not suckled by Egyptians===
{{Quote|{{Quran-range|28|12|13}}|And We had prevented from him [all] wet nurses before, so she said, "Shall I direct you to a household that will be responsible for him for you while they are to him [for his upbringing] sincere?" So We restored him to his mother that she might be content and not grieve and that she would know that the promise of Allah is true. But most of the people do not know.}}Reynolds comments, "On this passage cf. Exodus 2:7-9. The Qurʾān's declaration (v. 12) 'We had forbidden him to be suckled by any nurse' (v. 12) reflects a tradition in the Babylonian Talmud that Moses (from whose mouth would come forth the word of God) refused the impure breasts of the Egyptian women:
::Then said his sister to Pharaoh's daughter, Shall I go and call thee a nurse of the Hebrew women? Why just 'of the Hebrew women'? - It teaches that they handed about to all the Egyptian women but he would not suck. He said: Shall a mouth which will speak with [God] suck what is unclean! (b. Sotah 12b)"<ref>Gabriel Said Reynolds, ''The Qurʾān and Bible'' p. 598</ref>
===Moses's speech impediment===
Moses has some kind of speech impediment when going to speak to Pharaoh in the Qurʾān.{{Quote|{{Quran-range|20|24|28}}|"Go to Pharaoh. Indeed, he has transgressed."( Moses) said: "O, my Lord! Expand me my breast,” ease my task for me, And untie the knot from my tongue, so they may understand what I say.”}}Biblical Scholar James Kugel (1997)<ref>Kugel, James L.. The Bible As It Was (Kindle Edition. pp. 432-433). Harvard University Press.</ref> notes that later Jewish and Christian commentators found it necessary to explain Moses's statement in the Old Testament “''Oh my Lord, I am not a man of words … but I am heavy of speech and heavy of tongue''” ([https://www.biblegateway.com/passage/?search=Exodus%204%3A10&version=NIV Exodus 4:10]), as he was believed to be a highly educated man who had been supposedly been schooled in every branch of wisdom, including eloquence.

He notes "it occurred to interpreters that Moses might have been referring here not to any lacuna in his education, but to an actual speech defect, some physical deformity of his mouth or tongue that prevented him from speaking in the usual fashion." We see this in:<ref>Ibid. pp. 432 - 433 (Kindle Edition)</ref>

"''I'' ''am not by nature eloquent; my tongue with difficulty speaks, I stammer, so that I cannot speak before the king."'' —Ezekiel the Tragedian, Exaggē 113– 115 (3rd-2nd century BCE)

''He [Moses] pleased his parents by his beauty, but grieved them by his speech impediment. —''Ephraem, Commentary on Exodus 2: 4 (d. 373 AD)

Others even added stories on how he might have acquired that deformity, such as Josephus in Jewish Antiquities 2: 232– 236 (published ~93/94 AD), connecting their explanation of Moses’ speech problems to the tradition of Pharaoh’s wise men and their warnings about a boy that might grow up and save Israel.<ref>Ibid. pp. 433 - 434 (Kindle Edition)</ref>
===Pharaohs questions===
Neuwirth (2024) comments that the list of further detailed questions to Moses in Surah 26 'The Poets' / al-shuʿarāʾ (i.e. in {{Quran-range|26|22|29}}), citing Speyer, reflect a more detailed episode from Midrash Exodus Rabba 5:18, which also starts from Pharaoh’s self-praise as God.<ref>Neuwirth, Angelika. ''The Qur'an: Text and Commentary, Volume 2.1: Early Middle Meccan Suras: The New Elect (p. 250).'' Yale University Press. Kindle Edition.</ref>
===The Drowning of Pharaoh===
{{Quote|{{Quran-range|10|90|92}}|And We took the Children of Israel across the sea, and Pharaoh and his soldiers pursued them in tyranny and enmity until, when drowning overtook him, he said, "I believe that there is no deity except that in whom the Children of Israel believe, and I am of the Muslims." Now? And you had disobeyed [Him] before and were of the corrupters? So today We will save you in body that you may be to those who succeed you a sign. And indeed, many among the people, of Our signs, are heedless}}Reynolds comments, "The question of Pharaoh's survival appears in an opinion found in the (late fourth century AD) ''Mekilta de-Rabbi Ishmael'' (cr. Gavin McDowell):
::"And the waters returned and covered the chariot etc. [Exo 14:27]. Even Pharaoh, according to the words of R. Judah, as it is said, 'The chariots of Pharaoh and his force, etc.' [Exo 15:4]. R. Nehimiah says: ''Except for Pharaoh.'' About him it says, 'However, for this purpose I have let you live' [Exo 9:16]. Others say that in the end Pharaoh went down and drowned, as it is said, 'Then went the horse of Pharaoh, etc.' [Exo 15:19]. (Beshallah 7)"<ref>Gabriel Said Reynolds, ''The Qurʾān and Bible'' p. 339</ref>
==Arguments for resurrection==
Reynolds (2020) notes the repeated argument that God can resurrect the dead using the analogy that he can bring life back to barren (or dead) land may be connected to a Jewish tradition that God will resurrect the dead with dew, for example, in b. Shabbat 88b.<ref name=":2" />
{{Quote|{{Quran|30|19}}|He brings forth the living from the dead, and brings forth the dead from the living, and revives the earth after its death. Likewise, you [too] shall be raised [from the dead].}}

Cf: {{Quran|16|65}}, {{Quran|43|11}}, {{Quran|50|6-11}}, {{Quran|57|17}}
==Late antique Christian Martyrdom==
{{Main|Shaheed (Martyr)}}
Durie (2018) notes the violence of the Qur'an shares more commonality with contemporary late antique religious (primarily Christian) violence and warfare rather than being directly biblically based.<ref>Durie, Mark. ''The Qur’an and Its Biblical Reflexes: Investigations into the Genesis of a Religion.'' Lexington Books. 2018. Pp. 229 -237. (Kindle Edition: pp. 423-439). 6.9 Stories of Fighting Prophets</ref>

=== Textual overlap ===

Covering the continuity and similarities between late antique religious violence & warfare and the Qur'an (and other Islamic traditions) is too big a topic to cover here; perhaps the most in-depth academic work looking at the continuity between this and Islam is Thomas Sizgorich's ''Violence and Belief in Late Antiquity: Militant Devotion in Christianity and Islam'', however Sinai (2017) notes alongside similar ideas and theology, there are some direct textual references.{{Quote|Sinai, Nicolai. Qur'an: A Historical-Critical Introduction (The New Edinburgh Islamic Surveys) (pp. 301-302). Edinburgh University Press. Kindle Edition.|That the Qur’anic community’s access to Biblical notions of militancy was mediated by late antique Christian discourse is indicated by an intriguing intertextual overlap. According to Q 3: 169–170, those who have been ‘killed in the path of God’ are not dead but ‘alive with their Lord’, rather than having to spend the remaining time until the Resurrection in a state of slumber (similarly Q 2: 154).39 Tor Andrae has pointed out that the phrase ‘alive with their Lord’ (ayāun inda rabbihim) corresponds exactly to the Syriac phrase h. ayyē lwāth alāhā, which a sixth-century Syriac Christian writer (Mar Ishay) applies to the martyrs.40 Furthermore, Mar Ishay contrasts the true fate of the martyrs with unfounded prior opinion: ‘they are believed to be already dead’.41 The same contrast is found in the two Qur’anic passages just cited.42 It could be objected that the parallel demonstrates merely that the Qur’an is familiar with the widespread Christian idea that martyrs are granted prompt access to paradise but that this does not establish a Christian precedent for the Qur’anic application of this idea specifically to those who actively enact – rather than just suffer – violence. However, as Sizgorich reminds us, a Christian martyr was by no means seen merely as a passive victim of persecution but rather as someone who actively ‘defeats the power of the Roman state’.43}}{{Quote|{{Quran|3|169}}|And never think of those who have been killed in the cause of Allah as dead. Rather, they are alive with their Lord, receiving provision}}{{Quote|{{Quran|2|154}}|Do not say that those who are killed in the way of God, are dead, for indeed they are alive, even though you are not aware.}}

=== Martyrs sidestep judgement day ===
After death, humans are typically said to spend their time in an intermediate state known to traditional Islamic scholars as the ''barzakh'' while they wait.<ref>Reynolds, Gabriel Said. 2020. ''Allah:'' ''God in the Qur'an (p. 71-72).'' Yale University Press. Kindle Edition.

It is also the same term used for the barrier between the living and the dead (whilst awaiting judgement day) in the Qur'an, e.g. {{Quran|23|99-100}}</ref> However, as in the above verses, one exception to this rule is Martyrs being with God straight away rather than being judged at judgment day, a non-biblical idea having parallels with late antique Christian thought.

Sinai (2017) similarly notes strong ideological parallels a 6th century hagiographical text (the Panegyric on Macarius, Bishop of Tkow by Pseudo-Dioscorus of Alexandria) of a 5th-century martyr, Egyptian Bishop Macarius of Tkow who was martyred for opposing the council of Chalcedon. Citing Michael Gaddis's summary of the document, ‘He was both willing to die for his faith, and willing to kill for it.’ he notes the same idea in {{Quran|9|111}} … they fight in the way of Allah, kill, and are killed.. <ref>Ibid. (Kindle Edition. pp. 299).</ref> As well as citing English historian of the Byzantine Empire James Howard-Johnston "''..James Howard-Johnston draws attention to a passage in the Chronicle of Theophanes Confessor (d. 818), which reports that at about the same time when the Qur’an promised those ‘killed in the path of God’ immediate entry to paradise, the Byzantine emperor Heraclius similarly announced that those fighting the Sasanians would be recompensed with eternal life. In Heraclius’s address as reported by Theophanes Confessor, we find some of the same general ingredients that are noticeable in Qur’anic calls to militancy…''"<ref>Ibid. (Kindle Edition. pp. 301).</ref> He notes these similarities are likely caused by being on the fringes of the Roman empire.<ref>Ibid. (Kindle Edition. pp. 301).</ref>

==== Martyrdom wipes away other sins and is privileged above other acts from believers ====
{{Quote|Reynolds, Gabriel Said. Christianity and the Qur'an: The Rise of Islam in Christian Arabia (pp. 178-179). Yale University Press. Kindle Edition.|The teaching on the glory earned by martyrs is widespread in the early church. It is nevertheless telling to find the way it is emphasized in the third-century Christian text the aforementioned Didascalia Apostolorum, originally written in Greek but preserved in Syriac.87 The Didascalia clearly teaches that the martyrs will have a privilege above other faithful believers: If then He raises up all men,—as He said by Isaiah: All flesh shall see the salvation of God [Isa 40.5; 52.10],—much more will He quicken and raise up the faithful; and (yet more) again will He quicken and raise up the faithful of the faithful, who are the martyrs, and establish them in great glory and make them His counsellors. For to mere disciples, those who believe in Him, He has promised a glory as of the stars [Dan 12.3]; but to the martyrs He has promised to give an everlasting glory, as of the luminaries which fail not, with more abundant light, that they may be shining for all time.88

The Didascalia is also clear, as is the Qur’an, that martyrs enjoy a special grace through the forgiveness of sins that their deaths have earned for them: But again, sins are forgiven by baptism also to those who from the Gentiles draw near and enter the holy Church of God. Let us inquire also, to whom sins are not imputed. To such as Abraham and Isaac and Jacob and all the patriarchs, as also to the martyrs. Let us hear then, brethren, for the Scripture saith: Who shall boast himself and say: I am clear of sins? Or who shall be confident and say: I am innocent? [Prov 20.9].

And again: There is no man pure of defilement: not though his life be but one day [Job 14.4–5 LXX]. To everyone therefore who believes and is baptized his … former sins have been forgiven; but after baptism also, provided that he has not sinned a deadly sin nor been an accomplice (thereto), but has heard only, or seen, or spoken, and is thus guilty of sin. But if a man go forth from the world by martyrdom for the name of the Lord, blessed is he; for brethren who by martyrdom have gone forth from this world, of these the sins are covered.89

We might compare Q 3:195: “ ‘And those who emigrated, and were expelled from their habitations, those who suffered hurt in My way, and fought, and were slain—them I shall surely acquit of their evil deeds, and I shall admit them to gardens underneath which rivers flow.’ A reward from God! And God with Him is the fairest reward” (italics added). In other words, the Qur’an seems to be well aware of Christian devotion to the martyrs.}}

=== Martyrdom in the Torah and Gospels ===
Muslims who fight are promised paradise, which the Qur'an claims is also a promise in the Torah and Gospel.{{Quote|{{Quran|9|111}}|Indeed Allah has bought from the faithful their souls and their possessions for paradise to be theirs: they fight in the way of Allah, kill, and are killed. A promise binding upon Him in the Torah and the Evangel and the Quran. And who is truer to his promise than Allah? So rejoice in the bargain you have made with Him, and that is the great success.}}Nickel (2020)<ref>Nickel, Gordon D. ''The Quran with Christian Commentary: A Guide to Understanding the Scripture of Islam (p. 222).'' Zondervan Academic. Kindle Edition. 9.111 – They fight in the way of God, and they kill and are killed When the Quran describes believers as fighting “in the way of Allah,” it makes a theological claim by associating Allah with human fighting. See the analysis of these expressions at 73.20 (p. 597). 9.111 – a promise binding on Him in the Torah, and the Gospel, and the Qur’ān This is the only verse in the Quran that brings the Torah (tawrāt), Gospel (injīl), and qur’ān (lit. “recitation”) together. The Quran claims here that the particular point on which the Torah and Gospel agree with the Muslim recitation is that believers “fight in the way of Allah, and they kill and are killed.” This verse makes the reader question whether the Quran has a clear idea of the contents of the Torah and Gospel. A similar question is raised by 61.14, which appears to say that ‘Īsā and his disciples fought against their enemies (cf. 3.52). Along with these misunderstandings, the Quran gives no information about the peaceable teaching and example of Jesus in the Gospel accounts. See the analysis of the Quran’s verses on the “Gospel” at 57.27 (p. 549). Do the Torah and Gospel in fact contain such a promise? See the comment on this characterization of the Bible at 61.14 (p. 566).</ref> and Reynolds (2018) however notes that this is not found there:{{Quote|1=Reynolds, G. S. (2018). The Qur'an and the Bible: Text and Commentary. Commentary on 9:111 (pp. 322) United Kingdom: Yale University Press.|2="9:111 The point of this verse is that those who are prepared to give their lives to God in the holy war are promised paradise as a payment for their services (cf. 2:245; 4:74; 61:10–12). The idea that the martyrs have a special assurance of paradise follows from the Qurʾān’s teaching elsewhere that the act of martyrdom involves forgiveness of sin. This teaching is close to that of the Syriac fathers (see commentary on 2:154, with further references). It is curious that the Qurʾān insists that the promise of heaven for holy warriors is found in the Torah and the Gospel (or “Evangel”); heaven is not found in the Torah and holy war is not found in the Gospels...}}While his commentary on 2:154 (pp. 76) once again highlights the Syriac parallel:{{Quote|2="As Tor Andrae has shown (Les origines de l’islam et le christianisme, 161ff.), the idea that martyrdom involves the absolution of sins is prominent in Syriac Christian texts such as the third-century Didascalia (chap. 20) and the Treaty on the Martyrs of Mar Isaï (d. late sixth cen.); the latter text also insists—much like the Qurʾān—that the martyrs are “living”:

The true martyrs who, by way of a death that covers their sins, demonstrate even more the beauty of their deeds and receive this glorious inheritance by virtue of their blood. By leaving this life they have prepared for their souls an honorable abode in paradise. It was thought that they are already dead, but by their death they have killed their sin, and they are alive with God. (Mar Isaï, Treaty on the Martyrs, 32)}}
=== Further Martyrdom Influence ===
Neuwirth (2024) also notes the influence of Christian martyrdom stories on the sudden conversion and prayers/asking for forgiveness to God of Pharaoh's magician's, who are originally opponents of Moses until he shows them proof of his prophecy via a miracle in the face of a sudden and violent death as threatened by the arrogant ruler (e.g. in {{Quran-range|26|50|51}} and {{Quran-range|20|71|73}}).<ref>Neuwirth, Angelika. ''The Qur'an: Text and Commentary, Volume 2.1: Early Middle Meccan Suras: The New Elect (p. 204).'' Yale University Press. Kindle Edition.</ref> Both Jewish and Christian traditions present individual “anti-Moses” sorcerers named Jannes and Jambres, who continue to appear in later interpretations; citing Nora Schmid, she notes that, although there is no explicit textual reference and the magicians are typically depicted in a negative light, they came to be associated with penance and martyrdom in Christian tradition - in the Qurʾan, this idea is developed further: the forgiveness that Jannes and Jambres either did not receive or only partially received in earlier sources is ultimately granted.<ref>Ibid. pp. 251-252</ref>{{Quote|Neuwirth, Angelika. The Qur'an: Text and Commentary, Volume 2.1: Early Middle Meccan Suras: The New Elect (p. 204). Yale University Press. Kindle Edition.|V. 72–73 qālū lan nuʾthiraka ʿalā mā jāʾanā mina l-bayyināti wa-lladhī faṭaranā fa-qḍi mā anta qāḍin innamā taqḍī hādhihi l-ḥayāta l-dunyā / innā āmannā birabbinā li-yaghfira lanā khaṭāyānā wa-mā akrahtanā ʿalayhi mina l-siḥri wallāhu khayrun wa-abqā] Conversion scene as later in Q 26:50–51. The sorcerers renounce their allegiance to Pharaoh on the basis of the obvious evidence (bayyināt) and give preference to the Creator God, they submit to their worldly fate and hope for the forgiveness of their sins and what they have been forced to do by the ruler—they are a role model for the community, which is also subject to pressure from outside. The request for forgiveness of sins before a violent death is a topos of Christian martyr stories. The entire scene, leaving the context of ‘ancient’ Egypt, reflects the notion of Christian martyrdom stories. Khaṭāyā (singular khaṭīʾa) also lets a Syriac terminus technicus ring through, but the word can be derived from the Arabic root KhṬʿ (“to miss a goal”) (see FVQ, 123ff.). The idea of the forgiveness of sins is prominent in the Christian liturgy—not only through the Lord’s Prayer. In addition to khaṭīʾa, there is the genuine Arabic dhanb, dhunūb.}}

== Expansions on the afterlife ==

Reynolds (2020) notes the Qur’ans provides vivid depictions of hell are highly unlike the New Testament, where Jesus refers to afterlife punishment mostly allusively. The closest the Gospels describe hell is through the few images of “fire,” “wailing,” and “gnashing of teeth.”, for example in Matthew’s Parable of the Weeds, Jesus explains that at the end of the age, the Son of Man will send his angels that will cast evildoers into a fiery furnace where there will be weeping and gnashing of teeth (Matt 13:40–42).<ref>Reynolds, Gabriel Said. ''Allah: God in the Qur'an (pp. 81-82).'' Yale University Press. Kindle Edition.</ref> He notes the much more constant an vivid Qur'anic descriptions far better match later Christian works that expanded the descriptions to be more gruesome, in order to scare the reader/audience.<ref>Ibid. pp. 88.

''We might note how all of these traditions are meant to make humans yearn for paradise and fear hell. The Qur’an, from this regard, is a profoundly psychological work. Like a Christian preacher, like John Chrysostom or Saint Ephrem, the author of the Qur’an speaks of heaven and hell to persuade his audience to repent and believe. He does so in a way, however, that is distinct—emphasizing physical pain and physical pleasure in order, apparently, to make a greater impression on his audience. He puts a terrible tree into hell and young women in paradise.''
</ref>{{Quote|Reynolds, Gabriel Said. Allah: God in the Qur'an (pp. 82-83). Yale University Press. Kindle Edition.|The way that the Qur’an describes hell in particularly vivid, gruesome terms brings us back to something we mentioned in Chapter 1, namely, that the Qur’an in many ways is a “homiletic” work, a work written like a homily or sermon. The Qur’an’s intention is not simply to declare that those who disobey God will be punished, but to describe that punishment in a way which brings the awfulness of hell to life. Similarly, homilists in the early centuries of Christianity expanded dramatically on the New Testament allusions to hell. In a sermon attributed to John Chrysostom (d. 407) we read a description of hell with the sort of detail that we find in the Qur’an: It is a sea of fire—not a sea of the kind or dimensions we know here, but much larger and fiercer, with waves made of fire, fire of a strange and fearsome kind. There is a great abyss there, in fact, of terrible flames, and one can see fire rushing about on all sides like some wild animal…. There will be no one who can resist, no one who can escape: Christ’s gentle, peaceful face will be nowhere to be seen.15}}Sinai (2017) in his paper titled "''The Eschatological Kerygma of the Early Qur’an''" notes many overlap with Syriac Homilies on the afterlife as well as other apocalyptic ideas and terminology.<ref>“[https://almuslih.org/wp-content/uploads/Library/Sinai,%20N%20-%20The%20Eschatological%20Kerygma.pdf The Eschatological Kerygma of the Early Qur’an]”, Nicolai Sinai, in ''Apocalypticism and Eschatology in Late Antiquity: Encounters in the Abrahamic Religions, 6th–8th Centuries'', edited by Hagit Amirav, Emmanouela Grypeou, and Guy Stroumsa, Leuven: Peeters, 2017, 219–266.

These are discussed throughout the whole paper, and a summary can be found in pp.50-57. On heaven and hell specifically, the summary is on pp.55-57.</ref>

== Souls are taken away at night ==

The Qur'an (and traditional Islamic exegetes)<ref>See classical commentaries on these verses such as Al-Jalalayn on [https://quranx.com/Tafsir/Jalal/39.42 Q39:42], [https://quranx.com/Tafsir/Jalal/6.60 Q6:60] and Ibn Kathir on [https://quranx.com/Tafsir/Kathir/39.41 Q39:41-2] and [https://quranx.com/Tafsir/Kathir/6.60 Q6:60]</ref> state that the soul is taken away by Allah during the night.{{Quote|{{Quran|39|42}}|Allah takes the souls at the time of their death, and those who have not died, in their sleep. Then He retains those for whom He has ordained death and releases the others until a specified time. There are indeed signs in that for a people who reflect.}}{{Quote|{{Quran|6|60}}|It is He who takes your souls by night, and He knows what you do by day, then He reanimates you therein so that a specified term may be completed. Then to Him will be your return, whereat He will inform you concerning what you used to do.}}Tesei (2016) notes this idea may mimic a late antique Syriac Christian parallel in the poetical language used by Ephrem, who in the Nisibene hymns (7:15) mentions sleep resembles death, and other Christian writers (such as Babai) wrote about sleep metaphorically Jesus's death and waking up like the resurrection;<ref>Tesei, Tommaso. (2016). "[https://www.researchgate.net/publication/344524709_2_The_barzakh_and_the_Intermediate_State_of_the_Dead_in_the_Quran 2 The barzakh and the Intermediate State of the Dead in the Quran]". pp. 40-42 In Locating Hell in Islamic Traditions. Leiden, The Netherlands: Brill. <nowiki>https://doi.org/10.1163/9789004301368_003</nowiki> (Open access)

''At the same time, the Quran also compares death to the “common sleep” that people experience on a daily basis. This seems to be the case in the cryptic statement found in Q 39:42 (cf. Q 6:60), “God takes the souls at the time of their death (ḥīna mawtihā), and [He takes] that which has not died, in its sleep ( fī manāmihā); He withholds that against which He has decreed death, but sets loose the other until a stated term”. This obscure passage appears to indicate that sleep is a death-like state; sleepers resemble the dead since their souls enter into a state similar to that which they will experience at the moment of death. However, unlike the souls of the dead, which will be raised only on the Day of Resurrection, the ordinary sleeper’s soul is sent back when he awakens―that is, of course, until the time of his death. This parallel between death and “common sleep” finds a fairly close correspondence in the poetical language used by Ephrem, who in the Nisibene hymns (7:15) affirms that: “The one who lies down to sleep resembles the departed and death resembles a dream, and the resurrection the morning”. In these passages the Quran’s eschatological discourse is particularly close to that formulated by Babai, in whose ideas the belief in the soul’s sleep is intimately connected to the strong affirmation of the physical resurrection of the body on the Day of Judgment.'' </ref> with this idea taken literally by Muhammad.

== Arguments for resurrection ==
Reynolds (2020) notes the repeated argument that God can resurrect the dead using the analogy that he can bring life back to barren (or dead) land may be connected to a Jewish tradition that God will resurrect the dead with dew, for example, in b. Shabbat 88b.<ref name=":2">See: Reynolds, Gabriel Said. Allah: ''God in the Qur'an (pp. 76-77).'' Yale University Press. Kindle Edition.

And Footnote 10: Reynolds, Gabriel Said. ''Allah: God in the Qur'an (p. 254).'' Yale University Press. Kindle Edition.</ref>
{{Quote|{{Quran|30|19}}|He brings forth the living from the dead, and brings forth the dead from the living, and revives the earth after its death. Likewise, you [too] shall be raised [from the dead].}}

Cf: {{Quran|16|65}}, {{Quran|43|11}}, {{Quran|50|6-11}}, {{Quran|57|17}}

==See Also==
*[[Pre-Islamic Arab Religion in Islam]]

* [[Parallels Between the Qur'an and Late Antique Judeo-Christian Literature|Parallels Between the Qur'an and Late Antique Judeo-Christian Literature - Part 1]]
* [[Historical Errors in the Quran]]
==References==
<references />

User:CPO675/Sandbox 1

2026-06-04T20:01:56Z

CPO675: /* The story of Joseph */

== The story of Joseph ==
There are many differences between the story of Joseph (Arabic: ''Yūsuf'') in the Qur'an and the book of Genesis in the bible. Reynolds (2025), largely citing Witzum's (2011) 'The Syriac Millenia of the Qur'an: The Recasting of Biblical Narratives pp191-239' , notes how these differences directly match post-biblical writings; with almost all of these distinctive Qur’anic elements showing dependence on or conversation with Syriac Christian traditions (such as Pseudo-Narsai, Ephrem, Pseudo-Basil, Balai, Syriac Bible/Peshitta). A few overlap with the Jewish midrash, but the strongest and most consistent influence comes from Christian sources. (pp76-86)<ref>Reynolds, Gabriel Said. C''hristianity and the Qur'an: The Rise of Islam in Christian Arabia (p. 76-86).'' Yale University Press. Kindle Edition.</ref>

Reynolds provides gives 11 clear examples of this:

# Joseph’s singular dream: Qur’an has only one dream (unlike the Book of Genesis which has two), told directly to Jacob, who warns him to keep it secret - which matches Pseudo-Narsai’s homily (5th-century Syriac Christian). PP76, pp81
# The brothers’ plot to kill Joseph: the Qur’an shows the brothers plotting at home, not spontaneously in the fields - also found in Pseudo-Narsai. pp82
# The wolf motif: the Qur’an specifies a wolf instead of a vague “wild animal” in Genesis - which links to Christian tradition (Pseudo-Narsai) who calls the brothers “wolves” and Joseph “a lamb,” echoing Gospel imagery of shepherds/sheep. pp82-82
# Joseph in the pit: Qur’an has Joseph comforted by God in the pit (''jubb''; {{Quran|12|15}}) - which again follows a report in Pseudo-Narsai of revelation to Joseph in the pit (Syriac ''gubbā''). pp83
# Jacob’s (Joseph's father) response to the bloody shirt: the Qur’an has Jacob suspecting deception - reflected in homilies from Ephrem and Balai, who also have Jacob reason that the brothers’ story is false. pp83-84
# Potiphar and the garment: the Qur’an shows Potiphar recognizing Joseph’s innocence and his wife's guilt in trying to seduce him - in some post-biblical Jewish Traditions (including ''Genesis Rabbah 87:9'') he shows knowledge of Joseph's innocence - however only in Christian traditions (e.g., Pseudo-Narsai) we find Potiphar, as in {{Quran|12|28-29}}, arguing for Joseph’s innocence by referring to the torn garment as proof. pp83
# Potiphar’s wife confesses: the Qur’an has her admit guilt later in the story - found in the Pseudo-Narsai, where she confesses after Joseph’s rise to power. pp83
# Jacob’s blindness healed by Joseph’s shirt: the Qur’an reports Jacob miraculously regains sight when Joseph’s shirt touches his face. - which draws on Syriac Christian idioms; (“lighten the eyes” = console/restore joy), made literal in the Qur’an (like other symbolic items in Christian stories). pp83-84
# Joseph called a thief by his brothers” – the Qur’an has Joseph's brothers suggest he committed a past theft - rooted in Pseudo-Narsai, which connects Benjamin’s cup incident to Rachel stealing idols and compares Joseph to her. pp84-85
# Joseph’s garment sent to Jacob – Qur’an has Joseph send his shirt to Jacob. ↳ Related to Syriac Peshitta (and Septuagint and Vulgate) reading of Genesis and Balai’s poetry, where Jacob receives garments from Joseph. pp85
# Brothers Ask Jacob’s Forgiveness – Qur’an has them repent to Jacob, who asks God to forgive them. ↳ Echoes Balai, who also has Jacob forgive and pray for them. pp85

== Flat Earth - Tafsirs ==

=== The Highest Horizon ===
The Qu'ran says Muhammad was in the highest horizon ''bil-ufuqi<ref>افق - [https://lexicon.quranic-research.net/data/01_A/103_Afq.html Lane's lexicon Classical Arabic Dictionary root: hamza fā qāf (أ ف ق)]

Horizon ''ufuq'' (أُفُق) [https://lexicon.quranic-research.net/pdf/Page_0068.pdf Lane's Lexicon p.68]

Horizon ''ufuq'' (أُفُق) [https://lexicon.quranic-research.net/pdf/Page_0069.pdf Lane's Lexicon p.69] </ref>l-aʿlā''<ref>Lanes Lexicon Classical Arabic Dictionary Root: [https://lexicon.quranic-research.net/data/18_E/190_Elw.html ʿayn lām wāw (ع ل و)]

(l-a)ʿlā [https://lexicon.quranic-research.net/pdf/Page_2142.pdf Lanes Lexicon p.2142], [https://lexicon.quranic-research.net/pdf/Page_2143.pdf Lanes Lexicon p.2143]

</ref>. Typically taken as referring to him receiving knowledge there as part of his [[Buraq#The Night Journey (al-Isra wal-Mi'raj)|night journey]].
{{Quote|{{Quran|53|7}}|possessed of sound judgement. He settled, while he (was) in the horizon - the highest.}}See also: {{Quran|81|23}}

On a round Earth, there is no such place as an objective highest horizon, as once you move towards the perceived horizon (the furthest place you can see where the land and sky appear to meet in the distance)<ref>[https://dictionary.cambridge.org/dictionary/english/horizon Horizon Definition] Cambridge Dictionary</ref> the view simply moves further back as you circle around the earth, never actually being reached. So some classical Islamic exegetes have taken this to be the place where the sun rises from, in the seventh heaven, or where it reaches the Earth,<ref>E.g. [https://quranx.com/Tafsir/Jalal/53.7 Tafsir al-Jalalayn on verse Q53:7] by Al-Mahalli (d. 1459 CE) and Al-Suyuti (d. 1505 CE) and the famous pseudepigrapha [https://quranx.com/Tafsir/Abbas/53.7 Tanwîr al-Miqbâs min Tafsîr Ibn ‘Abbâs on verse Q53:7]</ref> which is only possible on a flat Earth.

== The Historical Jesus ==

=== Other Traditions ===

==== Intro ====

Alongside the main consensus from Biblical Scholars/Historians that Jesus was an eschatological preacher in the early first century AD who believed the Earth would end during his time (and therefore couldn't be the Muslim Jesus), there are many other of the most considered authentic teachings of Jesus that clash with Islam; in contrast with the Qur'anic principle of Messenger Uniformitarianism; where all messengers preach essentially the same thing with only minor variations.<ref>Durie, Mark. ''The Qur’an and Its Biblical Reflexes: Investigations into the Genesis of a Religion (pp. 135-142) (Kindle Edition pp. 281-294)''. 5.3 Messenger Uniformitarianism. Lexington Books. 2018.</ref>
{{Quote|{{Quran|41|43}}|Not is said to you except what was said to the Messengers before you. Indeed, your Lord (is) Possessor (of) forgiveness, and Possessor (of) penalty painful.}}{{Quote|{{Quran|2|285}}|The Apostle and the faithful have faith in what has been sent down to him from his Lord. Each [of them] has faith in Allah, His angels, His scriptures and His apostles. [They declare,] ‘We make no distinction between any of His apostles.’ And they say, ‘We hear and obey. Our Lord, forgive us, and toward You is the return.’}}

{{Quote|{{Quran|17|77}}|“This was the sunnah [customary way] of Our messengers whom We sent before you, and you will find no change in Our sunnah”}}cf. {{Quran|6|112}}, {{Quran|35|43}}, {{Quran|22|78}}.

Other than being explicitly told that messengers bring the same message from Allah, Durie (2018) notes the Qur'an repeatedly states that Muhammad was sent to confirm the revelations given to earlier messengers (Q2:91, 97; Q3:3, 50; Q5:48; Q12:111; Q16:43–44; Q35:31), just as each prophet before him confirmed those who came earlier. For example, Jesus (ʿĪsa) confirmed the Torah of Moses (Mūsa) (Q5:46), and the Qurʾan confirms the scriptures revealed to previous prophets (Q4:47). In this way, Muhammad’s role continues the same pattern of reaffirming earlier divine messages rather than introducing a completely new one.<ref>Durie, Mark. ''The Qur’an and Its Biblical Reflexes: Investigations Into the Genesis of a Religion.'' pp.140</ref>

{{Quote|Durie, Mark. The Qur'an and it's Biblical Reflexes. pp.140|• It is also explicitly asserted that messengers bring the same message
from Alla¯h: “Nothing is said to you but what has already been said to
messengers before you” (Q41:43; Q22:78) and “we make no distinction
between any of them” (Q2:136). They also preached the same dīn “commandment” or “religion” (Q42:13; cf. Q3:84; Q4:150), which is referred
to as the “religion of Ibra¯hīm” (Q2:130; Q4:125; Q16:121–23). The
validating function of this idea becomes clear when it is applied against
a group of Jews who reject the concept of the “same message” because
it would mean validating the Messenger. These Jews hold to their own
faith, saying “we believe in what has been sent down on us,” but they
reject the Messenger, or “anything after that” (Q2:91). The ruling against
these Jews is that because they reject the Messenger, they are disbelievers,
rejecting “what All a¯ h has sent down” (Q2:91).31 The idea of the “same message” is further reinforced when the Qurʾan repeatedly states that the Messenger was only sent to confirm what was sent down by previous
messengers (Q2:91, 97; Q3:3, 50; Q5:48; Q12:111; Q16:43–44; Q35:31),
just as previous messengers had done for messengers that preceded them,
for example, ʿĪsa¯ “confirmed” the Tawra¯ h of Mūsa¯(Q5:46), and the Qurʾan
confirms the book(s) sent by previous prophets (Q4:47), just as the Messenger has been doing in his turn.}}
The large differences between the New Testament / Gospels (and by extension the Christian Jesus), and the [[Isa al-Masih (Jesus Christ)|Muslim Jesus,]] are clear to anyone who has read both the Qur'an and NT; with the Qur'an having it's own spin on him and taking many aspects from apocrypha considered inauthentic by NT scholars,<ref>Sanders, E.. ''The Historical Figure of Jesus (pp. 78-79)''. Penguin Books Ltd. Kindle Edition.

..(Gnosticism was a world view that held everything material to be evil; the god who created the world was a bad god, and the creation was wicked. Gnostics who were also Christians held that the good God had sent Jesus to redeem people’s souls, not their bodies, and that Jesus was not a real human being. The Christians who objected to these views finally declared them heretical.) ''I share the general scholarly view that very, very little in the apocryphal gospels could conceivably go back to the time of Jesus. They are legendary and mythological. Of all the apocryphal material, only some of the sayings in the Gospel of Thomas are worth consideration.'' This does not mean that we can make a clean division: the historical four gospels versus the legendary apocryphal gospels. There are legendary traits in the four gospels in the New Testament, and there is also a certain amount of newly created material (as we saw just above)..</ref> and [[Parallels Between the Qur'an and Late Antique Judeo-Christian Literature|later Christian thought/writings]], and have lead to many Muslims arguing for biblical corruption based on textual and theological grounds [though textual don't affect most early & authentic traditions] in general, which is a disputed idea in traditional Islamic thought (cite - Reynolds article. See also: [[Corruption of Previous Scriptures]] & [[Qur'an, Hadith and Scholars:Corruption of Previous Scriptures]])

Historians have searched for a summary of some of the most likely authentic traditions from Biblical historians (using historical-critical methods not Christian or Muslim theologians - more likely to be true and not taken from bias or proving or disproving Islam but historical context, widespread across sources, early - cite Allison explanation - Why - different to time and context, unlikely to be fabricated later by Christians, across all early sources etc.) are shown here as an example of the clashes. [Point: not arguing against Christian Jesus - but secular historians one]

==== Examples ====
{{Quote|Dale C. Allison Jr.. The Historical Christ and the Theological Jesus (Kindle Locations 822-836). Kindle Edition.|2=Given that we typically remember the outlines of an event or the general purport of a conversation rather than the particulars and that we extract patterns and meaning from our memories, it makes little sense to open the quest for Jesus by evaluating individual items with our criteria, in the hope that some bits preserve pristine memory. We should rather be looking for repeating patterns and contemplating the big picture. true. We should trust first, if we are to trust at all, what is most likely to be trustworthy. Although we may, after reading Thucydides, be confident that there was a Peloponnesian War, we may well wonder about many of the details of his account.

The larger the generalization and the more data upon which it is based, the greater our confidence; the more specific the detail and the fewer the data supporting it, the more room we have for doubt. With regard to the sources for Jesus, the traditional criteria of authenticity privilege the parts over the whole. It seems more prudent to privilege generalizations drawn from the whole than to concentrate upon one individual item after another. As a demonstration of how this works in practice, consider the following traditions:

• Jesus prohibited divorce: 1 Cor. 7:10; Mark 10:2-9; Luke 16:18. [Qur'an divorce rules - https://wikiislam.net/wiki/Khula] 

• Jesus sent forth missionaries without staff, food, or money: Matt. 10:9-10; Mark 6:8-9; Luke 10:4.

• Jesus instructed missionaries to get their living by the gospel: 1 Cor. 9:14; Matt. 10:10; Luke 10:7.

• Jesus commanded loving and doing good to enemies: Matt. 5:38-48; Luke 6:27-36. [Qur'an do not be merciful to unbelievers https://wikiislam.net/wiki/Qur%27an,_Hadith_and_Scholars:Non-Muslims & https://wikiislam.net/wiki/Kafir_(Infidel)#Guidelines_on_how_to_deal_with_disbelievers Quran 48:29 ]

• Jesus forbade judging others: Matt. 7:1-2; Luke 6:37-38.

• Jesus asked a prospective follower not to bury his father: Matt. 8:21-22; 22; Luke 959-60.

• Jesus spoke of hating one's father and mother: Matt. 10:37; Luke 14:26; Gospel of Thomas 55, 101. [respect parents - too tenuous]

• Jesus enjoined disciples to take up a cross: Matt. 10:38; Mark 8:34; Luke 14:27.

• Jesus enjoined unlimited forgiveness: Matt. 18:21-22; Luke 17:3-4. [forgiveness against shirk - Qur'an says no Q4:48 and 4:116. ]

• Jesus exhorted hearers to lose their lives in order to save them: Matt. 10:39; Mark 8:35; Luke 17:33.

• Jesus called people away from their livelihoods: Mark 1:16-20; 2:14. [?]

• Jesus figuratively demanded violent removal of hand, foot, and eye: Mark 9:42-48.

• Jesus asked a wealthy man to relinquish his money: Mark 10:17-27. [bring in wealth inequality section of Islam darajat - here]

• Jesus forbade taking oaths: Matt. 5:33-37. [https://www.iium.edu.my/deed/lawbase/risalah_maliki/book31.html#:~:text=Anyone%20who%20swears%20an%20oath,Oneness%2C%20timelessness%20and%20existence.%5D]

• Jesus commanded money to be lent without interest: Matt. 5:42; Gospel of Thomas 95.

• Jesus called some to a life without marriage: Matt. 19:11-12. [Qur'an criticism of monasticism]

• Jesus asked a prospective follower not to say farewell to his parents: Luke 9:61-62. [respect parents?]

• Jesus asked his disciples to renounce all of their possessions: Luke 14:33"}}
<nowiki>--------------------------------------------------</nowiki>

[ highlight those being spoken about in italics or bold]

Professor Allison (2009) notes that Jesus' banning divorce was an important teaching that <s>stood out</s> to early Christians, [https://www.biblegateway.com/passage/?search=Luke%2016%3A18&version=NIV Luke 16:18], [https://www.biblegateway.com/passage/?search=1%20Corinthians%207%3A10-16&version=NIV 1 Corinthians 7:10-16], [https://www.biblegateway.com/passage/?search=Mark%2010%3A2-9&version=NIV Mark 10:2-9], in contrast to Judaism ([https://www.biblegateway.com/passage/?search=Deuteronomy%2024%3A1-4&version=NIV Deuteronomy 24:1-4]) and Islam e.g. Quran 2:228-232, Q65:1-7, (Q4:19 https://quranx.com/hadiths/4.19 & Q4:35), Q33:49 )

He notes that Jesus commanded loving and doing good to enemies in [https://www.biblegateway.com/passage/?search=Matthew%205%3A38-48&version=NIV Matt. 5:38-48]; [https://www.biblegateway.com/passage/?search=Luke%206%3A27-36&version=NIV Luke 6:27-36], while the Qur'an generally advises treating other Muslims well, it specifically states not to be merciful to unbelievers Q48:29. [ For more examples of not being merciful to unbelievers, let alone 'enemies' see: '''[[Qur'an, Hadith and Scholars:Non-Muslims|https://wikiislam.net/wiki/Qur%27an,_Hadith_and_Scholars:Non-Muslims]] & [[Kafir (Infidel)#Guidelines%20on%20how%20to%20deal%20with%20disbelievers|https://wikiislam.net/wiki/Kafir_(Infidel)#Guidelines_on_how_to_deal_with_disbelievers]] Quran 48:29 ]'''

• Jesus enjoined unlimited forgiveness: [https://www.biblegateway.com/passage/?search=Matthew%2018%3A21-22&version=NIV Matt. 18:21-22]; [https://www.biblegateway.com/passage/?search=Luke%2017%3A3-4&version=NIV Luke 17:3-4]. However the Qur'an distinctly says there is no forgiveness for anyone committing shirk (ascribing partners to God) in {{Quran|4|48}} and {{Quran|4|116}}.

He notes Jesus called some to a life without marriage: [https://www.biblegateway.com/passage/?search=Matthew%2019%3A11-12&version=NIV Matt. 19:11-12], while the Qur'an promotes it as a virtue encouraging those to do so.

Marriage is a virtue https://www.getquranic.com/marriage-in-islam-8-quranic-verses-about-marriage/

{{Quote|{{Quran|24|32}}|Marry off those who are single among you, and the upright among your male and female slaves. If they are poor, Allah will enrich them out of His grace, and Allah is all-bounteous, all-knowing.}}

And criticizes monasticism/monks, with celibacy and no marriage being a key aspect<ref>[https://www.britannica.com/topic/monasticism Monasticism] | religion | Britannica Entry</ref> in general

{{Quote|Reynolds, Gabriel Said. Christianity and the Qur'an: The Rise of Islam in Christian Arabia (pp. 131-132). Yale University Press. Kindle Edition.|These verses critical of monks are often read together with Q 57:27, which, while praising certain positive qualities of Christians, also seems to accuse Christians of “innovating” monasticism: Then We sent, following in their footsteps, Our Messengers; and We sent, following, Jesus son of Mary, and gave unto him the Gospel. And We set in the hearts of those who followed him tenderness and mercy. And monasticism they invented—We did not prescribe it for them—only seeking the good pleasure of God; but they observed it not as it should be observed. So We gave those of them who believed their wage; and many of them are ungodly.}}

Criticism of monasticism (https://www.britannica.com/topic/monasticism) - lack of marriage for monks (though admittedly also praises monks in general elsewhere pp130-132)<ref>Reynolds, Gabriel Said. ''Christianity and the Qur'an: The Rise of Islam in Christian Arabia (pp. 130-132).'' Yale University Press. Kindle Edition.</ref>

{{Quote|{{Quran|57|27}}|Then We sent on their footsteps Our Messengers and We followed with Isa, son (of) Maryam, and We gave him the Injeel. And We placed in (the) hearts (of) those who followed him compassion and mercy. But monasticism they innovated - not We prescribed it for them - only seeking (the) pleasure (of) Allah, but not they observed it (with) right observance. So We gave those who believed among them their reward, but most of them (are) defiantly disobediently.}}

<nowiki>-----------------------------------------------------------------</nowiki>

==== Father-son relationship ====
{{Quote|Dale C. Allison Jr.. The Historical Christ and the Theological Jesus (Kindle Location 841-848). Kindle Edition.|2=Working through the tradition in the way I suggest leads to a large number of conclusions. Jesus must have been an exorcist who interpreted his ministry in terms of Satan's downfall. He must have thought highly of John the Baptist. He must have repeatedly spoken of God as Father. [Durie differences in metaphor and understanding of relationship from Hebrew to Arab society = markedly different] He must have composed parables. He must have come into conflict with religious authorities. All of this may seem obvious, but the procedure is not trite, for it also issues in some controversial verdicts. As I have argued elsewhere, for example, ample, the quantity of conventional eschatological material in our primary sources almost necessitates that Jesus was an eschatological prophet.' The reconstruction of Robert Funk and the Jesus Seminar is for this reason alone problematic. Even more controversial is what my approach leads me to infer about Jesus' self-conception. Consider these Synoptic materials:

• Jesus said that the Son of man will return on the clouds of heaven and send angels to gather the elect from throughout the world: Mark 13:26-27; cf. 14:62; Matt. 10:23 (allusions to Daniel 7's depiction of the last judgment are clear). [the son of man plays no part in Islam]}}Allison (2009) notes that Jesus must have repeatedly referred to God as 'father', a way also used by many ancient Jews to describe their relationship to god, also found in the old testament with different metaphorical meanings<ref>Pennington, J.T. "Chapter Nine. God As Father In The Old Testament And Second Temple Literature". ''Heaven and Earth in the Gospel of Matthew''. Leiden, The Netherlands: Brill, 2007. <nowiki>https://doi.org/10.1163/ej.9789004162051.i-399.57</nowiki> Web.</ref> and Talmudic writings with paternal imagery. <ref>Knobnya, S.. (2011). ''God the Father in the Old Testament. European Journal of Theology.'' 20. 139-148. </ref><ref>[https://www.myjewishlearning.com/article/fatherhood-of-god/ Fatherhood of God] | Sages & Scholars | Rabbi Louis Jacobs | My Jewish Learning</ref>

===== Slave-master relationship =====
However this father-son Hebrew metaphorical relationship Jesus used is distinctly abandoned, instead using other things (other metaphors) in Arab society to describe the relationship between humans and God, such as a slave-master relationship,<ref>Durie, Mark. ''The Qur’an and Its Biblical Reflexes: Investigations into the Genesis of a Religion (pp. XX-XX) (pp. 107-110 Kindle Edition)''. 4.1.1. Shirk - Proprietary Partnership. Lexington Books. 2018.</ref> a Patron - Protege (needs explanation of what this is) <ref>Durie, Mark. ''The Qur’an and Its Biblical Reflexes: Investigations into the Genesis of a Religion (pp. XX-XX) (pp. 110-111 Kindle Edition)''. 4.1.2. Shirk - Patron - Protege Relationships. Lexington Books. 2018.</ref>. with Muhammad having strongly condemned the idea that God could have offspring against the unscripted pagans (mushrikun) taking angels as daughters of god early on chronologically of the Qur'an's first recitations, then later against God having a son against Jesus being the son of God.<ref>Durie, Mark. ''The Qur’an and Its Biblical Reflexes: Investigations into the Genesis of a Religion (pp. XX-XX) (pp. 112-113 Kindle Edition)''. 4.1.5 A Polemical Doctrine. Lexington Books. 2018.</ref>

Slave analogy Dure Print edition pp108 - 110 summary:<ref name=":1">Durie, Mark. ''The Qur’an and Its Biblical Reflexes: Investigations into the Genesis of a Religion (pp. 108-110) (pp. XX-XX Kindle Edition)''. 4.1.5 A Polemical Doctrine. Lexington Books. 2018.</ref> Before its theological use, the Arabic root ''sh-r-k'' referred to ordinary '''partnership or shared ownership'''. The Qurʾan draws on this everyday meaning to illustrate why associating partners with God is impossible. Using the metaphor of '''a master and a slave''', the Qurʾan argues that just as a slave with multiple masters suffers confusion and conflict, attributing partners to God creates an impossible and chaotic situation. This logic appears in verses such as Q39:29 and others that argue multiple gods would lead to conflict and the ruin of creation (Q23:91; Q21:22).<ref name=":1" />
{{Quote|{{Quran|39|29}}|Allah presents a parable, “a man was owned by several quarreling partners
(shurakaʾ), and a man was the slave of (just) one man. Are the two equal?”}}

The Qurʾan’s use of the slave-master metaphor differs from Jesus’ teaching in the New Testament. Whereas Jesus uses it to highlight divided human devotion, the Qurʾan uses it to assert the logical impossibility of multiple divine authorities.<ref name=":1" />

{{Quote|Luke 16:13; cf. Matthew. 6:24|No slave can serve two masters; for a slave will either hate the one and love the
other, or be devoted to the one and despise the other. You cannot serve God and wealth.}}

Shirk encompasses various forms of error: attributing partners or helpers to God, believing He needs allies, or seeking aid from others besides Him. The Qurʾan also explores God’s unity through three social analogies relevant to Arabian society: '''patron–protégé relationships''', '''alliances of mutual help''', and '''relationships of equal or unequal status'''.<ref name=":1" />

===== '''Patron–protégé relationships''' =====
The Qur'an distinctly ignores the father-son relationship (and theology) metaphor by using another term that is harder to translate

Explanation of what this is Durie pp.110-111:<ref name=":3">Durie, Mark. ''The Qur’an and Its Biblical Reflexes: Investigations into the Genesis of a Religion (pp. 110-111) (pp. XX-XX Kindle Edition)''. 4.1.5 A Polemical Doctrine. Lexington Books. 2018.</ref> The Qurʾan uses terms from the root '''w-l-y''' to describe '''patron–protégé relationships''', alliances, and guardianship. The key term '''walī''' can mean ally, protector, guardian, or patron, and may indicate either symmetrical alliances or asymmetrical power relationships.<ref name=":3" /><ref>[https://lexicon.quranic-research.net/data/27_w/219_wle.html Root: ''wāw lām yā'' (و ل ي)] - Lane's Lexicon Qur'anic Research

See Lane's Lexicon Classical Arabic Dictionary [https://lexicon.quranic-research.net/pdf/Page_3060.pdf pp.3060] & [https://lexicon.quranic-research.net/pdf/Page_3061.pdf pp.3061] </ref>

In pre-Islamic Arab society, such patronage was essential for protection, as shown by the example of Muḥammad being safeguarded by his uncle Abū Ṭālib. Without a patron, a person was vulnerable.<ref name=":3" /> [in the sirah of Ibn Ishaq]

The Qurʾan emphasizes that '''God has no need of any patron''' and that '''humans should recognize God alone as their walī'''. Seeking any protector besides God is considered '''shirk'''. Believers may take other believers and the Prophet as allies (''awliyāʾ'') alongside God, but not in place of Him.<ref name=":3" />

As the Muslim community developed, especially after what the passage calls the ''Eschatological Transition''—the Qurʾan increasingly stressed exclusive allegiance to God. This served to detach believers from prior tribal or familial loyalties that could compromise their commitment to the faith community.<ref name=":3" />

- and calls for help-

===== Unequal status vs Jesus' views on Wealth =====
Sinai - darajah passage

And inequality in general - inc. the afterlife

=== Punishment narratives ===

==== Punishment BEFORE the day of judgement ====
We are told the sole exception in history was the unnamed town<ref>Unnamed in the Qur'an, though identified as Nineveh (in modern day Iraq) as in the Biblical "Book of Jonah" by Islamic exegetes; e.g. see [https://quranx.com/tafsirs/37.147 tafsirs on Q37:147]</ref> of more than 100,000 people that the messenger Yūnus (Jonah) when the warning was heeded in full by the entire people, and therefore punishment averted ({{Quran|10|98}}, {{Quran|37|147-148}}) “no town believed . . . except the people of Yūnus”<ref>Durie, Mark. 2018. ''The Qur'an and Its Biblical Reflexes: Investigations Into the Genesis of a Religion. pp 49. Kindle Edition pp 151.''</ref>

How many a town defied the command of its Lord and His apostles, then We called it to a severe account and punished it with a dire punishment. Q65:8

So it tasted the evil consequences of its conduct, and the outcome of its conduct was ruin. Q65:9

How many generations that had far more wealth and ostentation have We laid low before them! <<nowiki>https://quranx.com/19.74</nowiki>>

Say, ‘Whoever abides in error, the All-beneficent shall prolong his respite until they sight what they have been promised: either punishment, or the Hour.’ Then they will know whose position is worse, and whose host is weaker <<nowiki>https://quranx.com/19.75</nowiki>>

------

Q34:16 - flood of the damn of Yemen / Saba', the people of Sheba E.g. <ref>See tafsirs on [https://quranx.com/Tafsirs/34.14 Q34:14], [https://quranx.com/Tafsirs/34.15 Q34:15] & [https://quranx.com/Tafsirs/34.16 Q34:16]</ref> {{Quran|34|14-16}}

{{Quote|{{Quran|34|14-16}}|And when We decreed for Solomon death, nothing indicated to the jinn his death except a creature of the earth eating his staff. But when he fell, it became clear to the jinn that if they had known the unseen, they would not have remained in humiliating punishment.
Certainly, (there) was for Saba in their dwelling place a sign: Two gardens on (the) right and (on the) left. "Eat from (the) provision (of) your Lord and be grateful to Him. A land good and a Lord Oft-Forgiving."
But they turned away, so We sent upon them (the) flood (of) the dam, and We changed for them their two gardens (with) two gardens producing fruit bitter, and tamarisks and (some)thing of lote trees few.}}
, {{Quran|65|8-9}}, {{Quran|19|74-75}}

Add: 34:15–21: The punishment of the people of Sheba, without explicit reference to a messenger. Sheba reference <ref>Marshall, David. ''God, Muhammad and the Unbelievers (p. 73).'' Taylor & Francis. Kindle Edition.</ref>

=== Surah 36 ===
Similarly an unnamed town is sent three messengers in {{Quran|36|13-32}}, who's identities have differed in traditional Islamic scholarship,<ref>E.g. see commentaries on [https://quranx.com/Tafsirs/36.13 Q36:13] & [https://quranx.com/tafsirs/36.14 Q36:14], and the later verses in the story, cited as a parable ''(mathal).''</ref> are rejected and so are killed with a cry/shout (''ṣayḥatan)'' ({{Quran|36|29}}). <ref>Marshall, David. ''God, Muhammad and the Unbelievers (p. 63 & 72).'' Taylor & Francis. Kindle Edition.</ref>
{{Quote|Marshall, David. God, Muhammad and the Unbelievers (p. 72). Taylor & Francis. Kindle Edition.|36:13–32: Described as a parable (mathal, v.13), but in outline very similar to the punishment-narratives. The messengers (two of them, reinforced with a third) and the town in which they preach are anonymous. ‘A man from the furthest part of the city’ (v.20) exhorts his people to follow the messengers.}}

== Contradiction ==
The order in Surah 2 has the Jews struck by a lightening bolt after they worship the golden calf, who are then forgiven by Allah by being resurrected.
{{Quote|{{Quran|2|50-67}}|And when We parted the sea with you, and We delivered you and drowned Pharaoh’s clan as you looked on. 
And when We made an appointment with Moses for forty nights, you took up the Calf [for worship] in his absence, and you were wrongdoers. 
Then We excused you after that so that you might give thanks. 
And when We gave Moses the Book and the Criterion so that you might be guided. 
And [recall] when Moses said to his people, ‘O my people! You have indeed wronged yourselves by taking up the Calf [for worship]. Now turn penitently to your Maker, and slay [the guilty among] your folks. That will be better for you with your Maker.’ Then He turned to you clemently. Indeed, He is the All-clement, the All-merciful. 
And when you said, ‘O Moses, we will not believe you until we see Allah visibly.’ Thereupon a thunderbolt seized you as you looked on.
Then We raised you up after your death so that you might give thanks. /n
We shaded you with clouds, and sent down to you manna and quails [saying]: ‘Eat of the good things We have provided for you.’ And they did not wrong Us, but they used to wrong [only] themselves. 
And when We said, ‘Enter this town, and eat thereof freely whencesoever you wish, and enter while prostrating at the gate, and say, ‘‘Relieve [us of the burden of our sins],’’ so that We may forgive your iniquities and We will soon enhance the virtuous.’ 
But the wrongdoers changed the saying with other than what they were told. So We sent down on those who were wrongdoers a plague from the sky because of the transgressions they used to commit. 
And when Moses prayed for water for his people, We said, ‘Strike the rock with your staff.’ Thereat twelve fountains gushed forth from it; every tribe came to know its drinking-place. ‘Eat and drink of Allah’s provision, and do not act wickedly on the earth, causing corruption.’ 
And when you said, ‘O Moses, ‘We will not put up with one kind of food. So invoke your Lord for us, so that He may bring forth for us of that which the earth grows—its greens and cucumbers, its garlic, lentils, and onions.’ He said, ‘Do you seek to replace what is superior with that which is inferior? Go down to any town and you will indeed get what you ask for!’ So they were struck with abasement and poverty, and they earned Allah’s wrath. That, because they would deny the signs of Allah and kill the prophets unjustly. That, because they would disobey and commit transgressions. 
Indeed the faithful, the Jews, the Christians and the Sabaeans—those of them who have faith in Allah and the Last Day and act righteously—they shall have their reward from their Lord, and they will have no fear, nor will they grieve. 
And when We took a pledge from you, and raised the Mount above you, [declaring], ‘Hold on with power to what We have given you and remember that which is in it so that you may be Godwary.’ 
Again you turned away after that; and were it not for Allah’s grace on you and His mercy, you would have surely been among the losers. 
And certainly you know those of you who violated the Sabbath, whereupon We said to them, ‘Be you spurned apes.’ 
So We made it an exemplary punishment for the present and the succeeding [generations], and an advice to the Godwary.}}
In Surah 4 they are struck before they worship the calf. 4:153 specifically says 'then' ''(thumma)''

{{Quote|{{Quran|4|153-161}}|The People of the Book ask you to bring down for them a Book from the sky. Certainly they asked Moses for [something] greater than that, for they said, ‘Show us Allah visibly,’ whereat a thunderbolt seized them for their wrongdoing. Then they took up the Calf [for worship], after all the manifest proofs that had come to them. Yet We excused that, and We gave Moses a manifest authority. 
And We raised the Mount above them for the sake of their covenant, and We said to them, ‘Enter the gate prostrating’ and We said to them, ‘Do not violate the Sabbath,’ and We took from them a solemn covenant. 
Then because of their breaking their covenant, their defiance of Allah’s signs, their killing of the prophets unjustly and for their saying, ‘Our hearts are uncircumcised’… Indeed, Allah has set a seal on them for their unfaith, so they do not have faith except a few. 
And for their faithlessness, and their uttering a monstrous calumny against Mary, 
and for their saying, ‘We killed the Messiah, Jesus son of Mary, the apostle of Allah’—though they did not kill him nor did they crucify him, but so it was made to appear to them. Indeed those who differ concerning him are surely in doubt about him: they do not have any knowledge of that beyond following conjectures, and certainly, they did not kill him. 
Indeed, Allah raised him up toward Himself, and Allah is all-mighty, all-wise. 
There is none among the People of the Book but will surely believe in him before his death; and on the Day of Resurrection, he will be a witness against them. 
Due to the wrongdoing of the Jews, We prohibited them certain good things that were permitted to them [earlier], and for their barring many [people] from the way of Allah, 
and for their taking usury—though they had been forbidden from it—and for eating up the wealth of the people wrongfully. And We have prepared for the faithless among them a painful punishment. }}

=== V2 ===
Surah 4 (summarized version)

1) They ask Moses for a sign and are hit with a thunderbolt

2) They then take up the calf for worship

3) The mountain is raised above them{{Quote|{{Quran|4|153-154}}|The People of the Book ask you to bring down for them a Book from the sky. Certainly they asked Moses for [something] greater than that, for they said, ‘Show us Allah visibly,’ whereat a thunderbolt seized them for their wrongdoing. Then they took up the Calf [for worship], after all the manifest proofs that had come to them. Yet We excused that, and We gave Moses a manifest authority. 
And We raised the Mount above them for the sake of their covenant, and We said to them, ‘Enter the gate prostrating’ and We said to them, ‘Do not violate the Sabbath,’ and We took from them a solemn covenant.}}Surah 2
1) They worshiped the calf. And Moses tells them to slay the guilty among them.

2) They are hit by a thunderbolt - is it chronological?

3) ... a mountain is lifted above them
{{Quote|{{Quran|2|51-56}}|And when We made an appointment with Moses for forty nights, you took up the Calf [for worship] in his absence, and you were wrongdoers. 
Then We excused you after that so that you might give thanks. 
And when We gave Moses the Book and the Criterion so that you might be guided. 
And [recall] when Moses said to his people, ‘O my people! You have indeed wronged yourselves by taking up the Calf [for worship]. Now turn penitently to your Maker, and slay [the guilty among] your folks. That will be better for you with your Maker.’ Then He turned to you clemently. Indeed, He is the All-clement, the All-merciful. 
And when you said, ‘O Moses, we will not believe you until we see Allah visibly.’ Thereupon a thunderbolt seized you as you looked on.
Then We raised you up after your death so that you might give thanks.}}
== The Lote Tree of the utmost Boundary (Sid'rati al-Muntahā) ==
Lote tree's are a real type of tree (Ziziphus spina-christi) native to Arabia and the Middle East.<ref>[https://www.suewickison.com/products/lote-tree?srsltid=AfmBOorj_RU2x1OPxgfRe689M2TWw1g4uZTQLkpSolPGYnIatiIe7h6K Lote Tree | Sidr | Ziziphus spina-christi |] Plants of the Qur'an | Sue Wickison </ref> Different to the tree of eternity/immortality ''(shajarati ul-khul'di)'' in paradise ''jannah,'' the Qur'an mentions The Lote Tree (sidr) of ''the utmost boundary (al-muntahā)''<ref>مُنْتَهَىٰ - [https://lexicon.quranic-research.net/pdf/Page_3029.pdf Lane's Lexicon pp.3029]

</ref> near (but notably not in) the 'garden of abode', said to be 'covered' yaghshā by something unspecified in Q53:16, typically taken by exegetes to mean by angels, light and/or golden animals.<ref>E.g. see [https://quranx.com/Tafsirs/53.16 Tafsirs on Q53:16]</ref>

{{Quote|{{Quran|53|13-17}}|And certainly he saw him (in) descent another,
Near (the) Lote Tree (of) the utmost boundary,
Near it (is the) Garden (of) Abode.
when there covered the Lote Tree what covered it.
Not swerved the sight and not it transgressed.}}

This furthest boundary/limit is said in the hadith, to place the cosmic tree in the sixth heaven, where even celestial creatures cannot go beyond as the limit of creation; said to be seen by Muhammad in his Night Journey (mi’rāj) on the [[:en:Buraq|Buraq]] (E.g. {{Muslim|1|329}}, {{Al Tirmidhi|2=5|3=44|4=3276}}, {{Bukhari|5|58|227}} & {{Al Nasai|2=1|3=5|4=452}}), and by many Islamic exegetes.<ref>See [https://quranx.com/tafsirs/53.14 tafsirs on Q53:14]</ref>

This would align the cosmology of Islamic traditions supporting the idea that paradise (and therefore the garden of the abode) is in the seventh heaven,<ref>[https://islamqa.info/en/answers/215011/where-are-paradise-and-hell#Where_is_Paradise Where is Paradise] | [https://islamqa.info/en/answers/215011/where-are-paradise-and-hell Where Are Paradise and Hell?] | 07/January/2015 islamqa</ref> while some traditions support the idea that paradise is above the seventh heaven,<ref>[https://www.islamweb.net/en/fatwa/107126/the-location-of-paradise-now#:~:text=Paradise%20that%20Allaah%20promised%20for,are%20many%20texts%20proving%20this. The location of Paradise now] | Paradise and Hell | Belief in the Hereafter | Islamic Creed | Fatwa | islamweb.net </ref> both placing the tree relatively close to jannah. However others suggest that this specific ''garden of the abode (jannatu l-mawā)'' is a separate garden/paradise to the eternal one all righteous Muslims will eventually enter, being instead one where martyrs (those killed in war or for their religion) go before judgement day.<ref>E.g. see [https://quranx.com/Tafsirs/53.15 tafsirs on Q53:15]</ref>

Either way there is no evidence of a celestial tree, which must be magic to survive outside of an Earthly plant ecosystem, but is rather an example of tree mythology.
----
----

(See also: <nowiki>https://sunnah.com/mishkat:5865</nowiki> & https://sunnah.com/mishkat:5640, ) read; https://quranx.com/tafsirs/53.14 - exegetes also confirm this is where boundary is the boundary of the skies/heavens where things other than God cannot pass (at least until judgement day where paradise and hell can be entered).

AND Similarly seen next to the 4 main Near-East rivers (Nile, Euphratesm Tigres,) <nowiki>https://sunnah.com/bukhari:5610</nowiki>, which area said to flow from paradise: <nowiki>https://quranx.com/Hadith/Bukhari/USC-MSA/Volume-5/Book-58/Hadith-227/</nowiki> )

cite: [https://www.islamweb.net/en/fatwa/107126/the-location-of-paradise-now#:~:text=Paradise%20that%20Allaah%20promised%20for,are%20many%20texts%20proving%20this. https://www.islamweb.net/en/fatwa/107126/the-location-of-paradise-now#:~:text=Paradise%20that%20Allaah%20promised%20for,are%20many%20texts%20proving%20this.]

The utmost boundary at the end of t heavens confirmed by exegetes in https://quranx.com/tafsirs/53.14

" Jannat al-ma'va' literally means "the Jannat (Garden) that is to be an abode. " Hadrat Hasan Basri says that this is the same Jannat which the believers and righteous will be given in the Hereafter, and from this same verse he has argued that that Jannat is in the heavens. Qatadah says that this is the Jannat in which the souls of the martyrs are kept; it does not imply the Jannat that is to be given in the Hereafter. Ibn 'Abbas also says the same but adds that the Jannat to be granted to the believers in the Hereafter is not in the heavens but here on the earth.

== Parallels Between the Qur'an and Late Antique Judeo-Christian Literature - Part 2 ==
Following on from [[Parallels Between the Qur'an and Late Antique Judeo-Christian Literature|Part 1]], this is Part 2 of Late Antique Judeo-Christian Literature found in the Qur'an. This material, drawing heavily on rabbinical commentaries on the bible, and late Syriac Christian thought found in homilies, was created far later than the biblical cannon; no-where near the time of the events that occurred. This suggests the stories were transmitted in an oral millennia along with local Arabian traditions<ref>Bannister, Andrew G.. ''An Oral-Formulaic Study of the Qur'an (Kindle Location 249-259 in Chapter 1.2 The Biblicist Roots of the Iblis and Adam Story).'' Bloomsbury Publishing. Kindle Edition.

..When the Qur’an emerged in the seventh-century, it did so in an oral culture in which Biblicist traditions were freely circulating and thus there existed a large pool of commonly known stories and traditions to fish from; a pool in which stories could cross-fertilize and influence one another. 23 It is this, more than direct borrowing that perhaps best explains stories like Iblis and Adam as well as other qur’anic tellings of older tales, such as the Seven Sleepers (Q. 18: 9– 25) 24 and the Legend of Alexander (Dhu al-Qarnayn, Q. 18: 83– 101). 25 The Qur’an originates from a milieu in which Biblicist material was well-known to the first audience of the Qur’an; even a simple allusion to a story was often enough to trigger a connection for the hearer. 26 That Biblicist material has been filtered through storytelling rather than simply copied from a written text is further suggested by what the Qur’an leaves out; no minor prophets are referenced, probably because almost no Old Testament narratives feature them nor did the rabbinic literature weave lengthy tales about them. 27 The exception which proves the rule is Jonah (Q. 21: 87– 88; 37: 139– 148; 68: 48– 50), whose short but dramatic story was extremely popular in both Jewish and Christian contexts.28..

And: Bannister, Andrew G.. ''An Oral-Formulaic Study of the Qur'an (Kindle Locations 1391-1392. Chapter 2.3 The Islamic Tradition and Orality).'' Bloomsbury Publishing. Kindle Edition.</ref> where biblical and much later Jewish and Christian stories could be commonly mixed without the new community realizing.
== The story of Noah ==
The prophet Noah is portrayed extremely differently to the one in Genesis,<ref>Segovia, Carlos A.. ''[https://almuslih.org/wp-content/uploads/2024/12/Segovia-C-The-Quranic-Noah-and-the-Making-of-the-Islamic-Prophet.pdf The Quranic Noah and the Making of the Islamic Prophet: A Study of Intertextuality and Religious Identity Formation in Late Antiquity]'', Berlin, München, Boston: De Gruyter, 2015. <nowiki>https://doi.org/10.1515/9783110405897</nowiki></ref> taking on Jewish and Christian traditions, characteristics, as well as terms from late antique Judeo-Christian writings,<ref>The Qur'anic Noah. pp.21-21</ref> molded to suit Muhammad's situation in line with other messengers in the Qur'an.<ref>''The Qurʾan and its Biblical Reflexes: Investigations into the Genesis of a Religion. Chapter 5.3 Messenger Uniformatism. pp.135-143'' By Mark Durie. Lanham, MD: Lexington Books, 2018. </ref>

=== The preaching of Noah ===

Surah 71 consists entirely of the preaching of Noah and his supplications to Allah.{{Quote|{{Quran-range|71|1|28}}|Indeed, We sent Noah to his people, [saying], "Warn your people before there comes to them a painful punishment." He said, "O my people, indeed I am to you a clear warner, [Saying], 'Worship Allah, fear Him and obey me. Allah will forgive you of your sins and delay you for a specified term. Indeed, the time [set by] Allah, when it comes, will not be delayed, if you only knew.' " 
[...]
And Noah said, "My Lord, do not leave upon the earth from among the disbelievers an inhabitant. Indeed, if You leave them, they will mislead Your servants and not beget except [every] wicked one and [confirmed] disbeliever. My Lord, forgive me and my parents and whoever enters my house a believer and the believing men and believing women. And do not increase the wrongdoers except in destruction."}}Reynolds remarks that "The Qur'ānic character of Noah is quite unlike that of the Noah in Genesis, who does not speak a word until after the flood." Citing the Babylonian Talmud, Sanhedrin 108a, he observes that "[his preaching] is also suggested by a passage in the Talmud:
::"The righteous Noah rebuked them, urging, 'Repent; for if not, the Holy One, blessed be He, will bring a deluge upon you and cause your bodies to float upon the water like gourds, as it is written, He is light [i.e., floats] upon the waters. Moreover, ye shall be taken as a curse for all future generations.' (b. Sanhedrin 108a)"
Reynolds further notes, "It is also prominent in the Syriac fathers, several of whom report that Noah preached to his people for a hundred years before God finally sent the flood." citing for example the Syriac authors Narsai, "On the Flood", 33, II. 227-30 and Jacob of Serugh, ''Homilies contre les juifs'', 70, homily 2, II. 37-40.<ref>Gabriel Said Reynolds, ''The Qurʾān and Bible'' p. 858</ref>

The opponents reject Noah's preaching despite him doing so 'day and night' (Quran 71:5-6) in which they respond by putting their fingers in their ears Quran 71:7, on which Neuwirth (2024) notes that "the means of plugging one’s ears in order to shut oneself off from unpleasant news is also encountered in the Talmud (bKetubbot 5a)."<ref>Neuwirth, Angelika. The Qur'an: Text and Commentary, ''Volume 2.1: Early Middle Meccan Suras: The New Elect (p. 280).'' Yale University Press. Kindle Edition.</ref>

=== Noah's disbelieving wife ===
{{Quote|{{Quran|66|10}}|Allah presents an example of those who disbelieved: the wife of Noah and the wife of Lot. They were under two of Our righteous servants but betrayed them, so those prophets did not avail them from Allah at all, and it was said, "Enter the Fire with those who enter."}}The Bible briefly mentions Noah's wife in one verse without further comment ([https://www.biblegateway.com/passage/?search=Genesis%207%3A7&version=NIV Genesis 7:7]), "And Noah and his sons and his wife and his sons’ wives entered the ark to escape the waters of the flood." Regarding the Quranic verse which speaks of her negatively, Reynolds briefly considers the possibility that the Quran has extended to their wives the parallelism between Noah (though not his wife) and Lot found in the New Testament ([https://www.biblegateway.com/passage/?search=2%20Peter%202&version=NIV 2 Peter 2]), but then comments, "However, it is important to note that already in the pre-Islamic period certain groups had developed hostile legends about Noah's wife." He cites Epiphanius (d. 403 CE), ''Panarion'' 2:26, which relates the Gnostic belief that she was not allowed onto the ark, having burned it down three times before the flood.<ref>Gabriel Said Reynolds, ''The Qurʾān and Bible'' p. 841</ref>

=== Noah's flood waters overflowed from an oven ===
The Qur'anic version of the Noah's flood story describes the flood waters as overflowing from an oven. This element is not found even in more ancient versions of the story (Epic of Gilgamesh, Atra hasis, and Ziusudra).

Note that in his translation, Yusuf Ali mistranslates the Aramaic loan word for the oven (alttannooru ٱلتَّنُّورُ)<ref>[http://www.studyquran.org/LaneLexicon/Volume1/00000355.pdf Lane's Lexicon p. 318 تَّنُّورُ]</ref> as "fountains". The Arabic verb translated "gushed forth" (fara فَارَ) means overflowed or boiled in the context of water in a cooking pot<ref>[http://www.studyquran.org/LaneLexicon/Volume6/00000241.pdf Lane's Lexicon p. 2457 فور]</ref>, as well as in the other verse where it is used, {{Quran|67|7}}. Here is Pickthall's more accurate translation:{{Quote|{{Quran|11|40}}|
(Thus it was) till, when Our commandment came to pass '''and the oven gushed forth water''', We said: Load therein two of every kind, a pair (the male and female), and thy household, save him against whom the word hath gone forth already, and those who believe. And but a few were they who believed with him.}}{{Quote|{{Quran|23|27}}|
Then We inspired in him, saying: Make the ship under Our eyes and Our inspiration. Then, when Our command cometh '''and the oven gusheth water''', introduce therein of every (kind) two spouses, and thy household save him thereof against whom the Word hath already gone forth. And plead not with Me on behalf of those who have done wrong. Lo! they will be drowned.}}At one time academic scholars thought this verse alluded to a Midrashic exegesis in which the flood waters were boiling hot (b. Sanhedrin 108b, [https://www.sefaria.org/Rosh_Hashanah.12a.4?lang=bi|Tracate Rosh Hashanah 12a:4]). More recent scholarship, particularly by Olivier Mongellaz in 2024,<ref name="Mongellaz2024">Olivier Mongellaz (2024) [https://brill.com/view/journals/arab/71/4-5/article-p513_4.xml Le four de Noé : un cas d’intertextualité coranique], Arabica 71(4-5), 513-637. https://doi.org/10.1163/15700585-20246900</ref> has identified that these verses most likely reflect a late antique legend in which water gushing up through a bread oven (a large hole dug into the ground) was a sign warning Noah's family of the imminent flood. The interpretation as Noah's own oven is attributed to a number of early commentators (such as Ibn Abbas, Mujahid), while others understood it to be the area of land where the flood waters first rose. Qurtubi said: "The sayings of commentators appear to be different as to the meaning of tannur, but this, in reality, is not a difference. When water began to bulge out, it overflowed from the bread baking oven, and from out of the surface of the land".

Significantly, Mongellaz has argued on literary grounds that a fragmentary Arabic text falsely attributed to Hippolytus of Rome, and which mentions the overflowing bread oven story, is independent of the Islamic tradition and was originally written in a very specific environment which has parallels with the context in which certain parts of the Quran were written.{{Quote|Pseudo. Hippolytus of Rome (translated to English from Mongellaz's French translation)<ref name="Mongellaz2024" />|Meanwhile, Ham's wife stood up to take out the bread that remained in the oven and immediately water sprang out of the oven [fāḍa l-māʾmin al-tannūr] and immediately water came out of the oven, as the Lord had said: "The fountains of the great deeps were opened." Ham's wife called to Noah, saying, "My lord, the word of God has come true (Syr. what God promised has come true!)" - for it had come true just as the Lord had promised her. When Noah heard Ham's wife's words, he said to her, "Oh, the flood has come."}}

=== Noah's ark left behind as a sign ===
{{Quote|{{Quran-range|54|13|15}}|And We carried him on a [construction of] planks and nails, Sailing under Our observation as reward for he who had been denied. And We left it as a sign, so is there any who will remember?}}Unlike the bible, which does not mention the ark as a sign for future generations, Neuwirth (2024) notes the salvation of Noah is made physically plausible to the listeners through the reference to the material verifiability of the ark, which could be taken from various late antique traditions, for example Flavius Josephus (b. 37AD) reports in the ''Jewish Antiquities (I 3.5 § 92)'' of the existence of the remains of Noah’s ark in Armenia (Clementz 1959: 22).<ref name=":0">Neuwirth, Angelika. ''The Qur'an: Text and Commentary, Volume 2.1: Early Middle Meccan Suras: The New Elect (p. 62).'' Yale University Press. Kindle Edition.</ref> She also notes that the appeal to the willingness of the listeners to be admonished by the sign (āya) of Noah’s ark is also reminiscent of the Talmudic story (bSanhedrin 96a) of the death of Sennacherib, who was led to a fateful decision by seeing the remains of Noah’s ark.<ref name=":0" />
==Moses and Pharaoh==
Alongside the biblical account of Moses and the Pharoah, there are some key aspects that match Jewish Rabbinic and Christian non-biblical traditions. Even the place where Moses communicates with God in the story of the burning bush, the word used ''ṭuwan'' in e.g. {{Quran|20|12}} (for the folded land, implying double the holiness)<ref>See; Neuwirth, Angelika. ''The Qur'an: Text and Commentary, Volume 2.1: Early Middle Meccan Suras: The New Elect (p. 199).'' Yale University Press. Kindle Edition. Ṭuwā stands for the holy Mount Sinai or Horeb (cf. KU, 124ff.; FVQ, 206ff.; BEQ, 255ff.). The word was long thought to be a rhyming transformation of Aramaic ṭūrā (“the mountain”), but now, based on rabbinic tradition and in agreement with traditional exegetes, Uri Rubin has convincingly interpreted bi-l-wādī l-muqaddasi Ṭuwā to mean “in the doubly hallowed valley” (see Rubin 2014). (The Sinai is in a sense the “folded Holy Land” [ṬWY = “to fold”].) Citing: Rubin, Uri, 2014, ''[https://urirubin.com/assets/docs/Tuwan.86132451.pdf Moses and the Holy Valley Ṭuwan. On the Biblical and Midrashic Background of a Qurʾanic Scene],'' Journal of Near Eastern Studies 73, 73–81.</ref> does not have a parallel in the bible,<ref>''[https://urirubin.com/assets/docs/Tuwan.86132451.pdf Moses and the Holy Valley Ṭuwan: On the biblical and midrashic background of a qurʾānic scene.]'' Rubin 2014. Ibid. pp. 75.</ref> but does in other Judeo-Christian (later) works.<ref>Ibid. pp. 76-78</ref> And the idea of eschatology in Moses's story such as {{Quran|20|15}}, with reward in the afterlife being mentioned, is not contained in the biblical story of Moses, Neuwirth (2024) notes moves the story into a late antiquity interpretation.<ref>Neuwirth, Angelika. ''The Qur'an: Text and Commentary, Volume 2.1: Early Middle Meccan Suras: The New Elect (p. 199).'' Yale University Press. Kindle Edition.</ref> Key details in the stories include:
===The prophecy of baby Moses===
Alongside the scene of [https://www.biblegateway.com/passage/?search=Exodus%201%3A8-2%3A10&version=NIV Exodus 1:8-2:10] where the Hebrews in Egyptian bondage are told to kill all male babies to control the growing Israelite population, where Moses's mother places his basket in the Nile to escape; Neuwirth (2024) citing Speyer, notes that ''the prophecy to Moses’s mother that an enemy—of Moses as well as of God himself—would take him in reflects a Midrashic interpretation of Exodus Rabba (1:31: “So the daughter of Pharaoh raised the daughter, who was once to take revenge on her father”). The event is explicitly based on a divine intention, namely, to make Moses his chosen one.''<ref>''The Qur'an: Text and Commentary, Volume 2.1: Early Middle Meccan Suras: The New Elect'' Ibid. pp. 201.</ref>{{Quote|{{Quran-range|20|37|39}}|We have bestowed Our favour on you before this, When We told your mother what We relate: 'Put him in a wooden box and cast it in the river. The river will cast it on the bank. An enemy of Ours, and his, will retrieve it.' We bestowed Our love on you that you may be reared under Our eyes.}}And similarly the next verse unlike the bible focuses on the emotional impact of the event on Moses’s mother, Neuwirth notes is comparable to Midrash Exodus Rabba 1:25.<ref>Ibid. pp. 201-202.</ref> Moses's salvation from persecution after manslaughter is commemorated with similar consideration of Moses’s mental condition.<ref>Ibid. pp. 202.</ref>{{Quote|{{Quran|20|40}}|When your sister walked up [to Pharaoh’s palace] saying, “Shall I show you someone who will take care of him?” Then We restored you to your mother, that she might not grieve and be comforted. Then you slew a soul, whereupon We delivered you from anguish, and We tried you with various ordeals. Then you stayed for several years among the people of Midian. Then you turned up as ordained, O Moses!}}
===Moses not suckled by Egyptians===
{{Quote|{{Quran-range|28|12|13}}|And We had prevented from him [all] wet nurses before, so she said, "Shall I direct you to a household that will be responsible for him for you while they are to him [for his upbringing] sincere?" So We restored him to his mother that she might be content and not grieve and that she would know that the promise of Allah is true. But most of the people do not know.}}Reynolds comments, "On this passage cf. Exodus 2:7-9. The Qurʾān's declaration (v. 12) 'We had forbidden him to be suckled by any nurse' (v. 12) reflects a tradition in the Babylonian Talmud that Moses (from whose mouth would come forth the word of God) refused the impure breasts of the Egyptian women:
::Then said his sister to Pharaoh's daughter, Shall I go and call thee a nurse of the Hebrew women? Why just 'of the Hebrew women'? - It teaches that they handed about to all the Egyptian women but he would not suck. He said: Shall a mouth which will speak with [God] suck what is unclean! (b. Sotah 12b)"<ref>Gabriel Said Reynolds, ''The Qurʾān and Bible'' p. 598</ref>
===Moses's speech impediment===
Moses has some kind of speech impediment when going to speak to Pharaoh in the Qurʾān.{{Quote|{{Quran-range|20|24|28}}|"Go to Pharaoh. Indeed, he has transgressed."( Moses) said: "O, my Lord! Expand me my breast,” ease my task for me, And untie the knot from my tongue, so they may understand what I say.”}}Biblical Scholar James Kugel (1997)<ref>Kugel, James L.. The Bible As It Was (Kindle Edition. pp. 432-433). Harvard University Press.</ref> notes that later Jewish and Christian commentators found it necessary to explain Moses's statement in the Old Testament “''Oh my Lord, I am not a man of words … but I am heavy of speech and heavy of tongue''” ([https://www.biblegateway.com/passage/?search=Exodus%204%3A10&version=NIV Exodus 4:10]), as he was believed to be a highly educated man who had been supposedly been schooled in every branch of wisdom, including eloquence.

He notes "it occurred to interpreters that Moses might have been referring here not to any lacuna in his education, but to an actual speech defect, some physical deformity of his mouth or tongue that prevented him from speaking in the usual fashion." We see this in:<ref>Ibid. pp. 432 - 433 (Kindle Edition)</ref>

"''I'' ''am not by nature eloquent; my tongue with difficulty speaks, I stammer, so that I cannot speak before the king."'' —Ezekiel the Tragedian, Exaggē 113– 115 (3rd-2nd century BCE)

''He [Moses] pleased his parents by his beauty, but grieved them by his speech impediment. —''Ephraem, Commentary on Exodus 2: 4 (d. 373 AD)

Others even added stories on how he might have acquired that deformity, such as Josephus in Jewish Antiquities 2: 232– 236 (published ~93/94 AD), connecting their explanation of Moses’ speech problems to the tradition of Pharaoh’s wise men and their warnings about a boy that might grow up and save Israel.<ref>Ibid. pp. 433 - 434 (Kindle Edition)</ref>
===Pharaohs questions===
Neuwirth (2024) comments that the list of further detailed questions to Moses in Surah 26 'The Poets' / al-shuʿarāʾ (i.e. in {{Quran-range|26|22|29}}), citing Speyer, reflect a more detailed episode from Midrash Exodus Rabba 5:18, which also starts from Pharaoh’s self-praise as God.<ref>Neuwirth, Angelika. ''The Qur'an: Text and Commentary, Volume 2.1: Early Middle Meccan Suras: The New Elect (p. 250).'' Yale University Press. Kindle Edition.</ref>
===The Drowning of Pharaoh===
{{Quote|{{Quran-range|10|90|92}}|And We took the Children of Israel across the sea, and Pharaoh and his soldiers pursued them in tyranny and enmity until, when drowning overtook him, he said, "I believe that there is no deity except that in whom the Children of Israel believe, and I am of the Muslims." Now? And you had disobeyed [Him] before and were of the corrupters? So today We will save you in body that you may be to those who succeed you a sign. And indeed, many among the people, of Our signs, are heedless}}Reynolds comments, "The question of Pharaoh's survival appears in an opinion found in the (late fourth century AD) ''Mekilta de-Rabbi Ishmael'' (cr. Gavin McDowell):
::"And the waters returned and covered the chariot etc. [Exo 14:27]. Even Pharaoh, according to the words of R. Judah, as it is said, 'The chariots of Pharaoh and his force, etc.' [Exo 15:4]. R. Nehimiah says: ''Except for Pharaoh.'' About him it says, 'However, for this purpose I have let you live' [Exo 9:16]. Others say that in the end Pharaoh went down and drowned, as it is said, 'Then went the horse of Pharaoh, etc.' [Exo 15:19]. (Beshallah 7)"<ref>Gabriel Said Reynolds, ''The Qurʾān and Bible'' p. 339</ref>
==Arguments for resurrection==
Reynolds (2020) notes the repeated argument that God can resurrect the dead using the analogy that he can bring life back to barren (or dead) land may be connected to a Jewish tradition that God will resurrect the dead with dew, for example, in b. Shabbat 88b.<ref name=":2" />
{{Quote|{{Quran|30|19}}|He brings forth the living from the dead, and brings forth the dead from the living, and revives the earth after its death. Likewise, you [too] shall be raised [from the dead].}}

Cf: {{Quran|16|65}}, {{Quran|43|11}}, {{Quran|50|6-11}}, {{Quran|57|17}}
==Late antique Christian Martyrdom==
{{Main|Shaheed (Martyr)}}
Durie (2018) notes the violence of the Qur'an shares more commonality with contemporary late antique religious (primarily Christian) violence and warfare rather than being directly biblically based.<ref>Durie, Mark. ''The Qur’an and Its Biblical Reflexes: Investigations into the Genesis of a Religion.'' Lexington Books. 2018. Pp. 229 -237. (Kindle Edition: pp. 423-439). 6.9 Stories of Fighting Prophets</ref>

=== Textual overlap ===

Covering the continuity and similarities between late antique religious violence & warfare and the Qur'an (and other Islamic traditions) is too big a topic to cover here; perhaps the most in-depth academic work looking at the continuity between this and Islam is Thomas Sizgorich's ''Violence and Belief in Late Antiquity: Militant Devotion in Christianity and Islam'', however Sinai (2017) notes alongside similar ideas and theology, there are some direct textual references.{{Quote|Sinai, Nicolai. Qur'an: A Historical-Critical Introduction (The New Edinburgh Islamic Surveys) (pp. 301-302). Edinburgh University Press. Kindle Edition.|That the Qur’anic community’s access to Biblical notions of militancy was mediated by late antique Christian discourse is indicated by an intriguing intertextual overlap. According to Q 3: 169–170, those who have been ‘killed in the path of God’ are not dead but ‘alive with their Lord’, rather than having to spend the remaining time until the Resurrection in a state of slumber (similarly Q 2: 154).39 Tor Andrae has pointed out that the phrase ‘alive with their Lord’ (ayāun inda rabbihim) corresponds exactly to the Syriac phrase h. ayyē lwāth alāhā, which a sixth-century Syriac Christian writer (Mar Ishay) applies to the martyrs.40 Furthermore, Mar Ishay contrasts the true fate of the martyrs with unfounded prior opinion: ‘they are believed to be already dead’.41 The same contrast is found in the two Qur’anic passages just cited.42 It could be objected that the parallel demonstrates merely that the Qur’an is familiar with the widespread Christian idea that martyrs are granted prompt access to paradise but that this does not establish a Christian precedent for the Qur’anic application of this idea specifically to those who actively enact – rather than just suffer – violence. However, as Sizgorich reminds us, a Christian martyr was by no means seen merely as a passive victim of persecution but rather as someone who actively ‘defeats the power of the Roman state’.43}}{{Quote|{{Quran|3|169}}|And never think of those who have been killed in the cause of Allah as dead. Rather, they are alive with their Lord, receiving provision}}{{Quote|{{Quran|2|154}}|Do not say that those who are killed in the way of God, are dead, for indeed they are alive, even though you are not aware.}}

=== Martyrs sidestep judgement day ===
After death, humans are typically said to spend their time in an intermediate state known to traditional Islamic scholars as the ''barzakh'' while they wait.<ref>Reynolds, Gabriel Said. 2020. ''Allah:'' ''God in the Qur'an (p. 71-72).'' Yale University Press. Kindle Edition.

It is also the same term used for the barrier between the living and the dead (whilst awaiting judgement day) in the Qur'an, e.g. {{Quran|23|99-100}}</ref> However, as in the above verses, one exception to this rule is Martyrs being with God straight away rather than being judged at judgment day, a non-biblical idea having parallels with late antique Christian thought.

Sinai (2017) similarly notes strong ideological parallels a 6th century hagiographical text (the Panegyric on Macarius, Bishop of Tkow by Pseudo-Dioscorus of Alexandria) of a 5th-century martyr, Egyptian Bishop Macarius of Tkow who was martyred for opposing the council of Chalcedon. Citing Michael Gaddis's summary of the document, ‘He was both willing to die for his faith, and willing to kill for it.’ he notes the same idea in {{Quran|9|111}} … they fight in the way of Allah, kill, and are killed.. <ref>Ibid. (Kindle Edition. pp. 299).</ref> As well as citing English historian of the Byzantine Empire James Howard-Johnston "''..James Howard-Johnston draws attention to a passage in the Chronicle of Theophanes Confessor (d. 818), which reports that at about the same time when the Qur’an promised those ‘killed in the path of God’ immediate entry to paradise, the Byzantine emperor Heraclius similarly announced that those fighting the Sasanians would be recompensed with eternal life. In Heraclius’s address as reported by Theophanes Confessor, we find some of the same general ingredients that are noticeable in Qur’anic calls to militancy…''"<ref>Ibid. (Kindle Edition. pp. 301).</ref> He notes these similarities are likely caused by being on the fringes of the Roman empire.<ref>Ibid. (Kindle Edition. pp. 301).</ref>

==== Martyrdom wipes away other sins and is privileged above other acts from believers ====
{{Quote|Reynolds, Gabriel Said. Christianity and the Qur'an: The Rise of Islam in Christian Arabia (pp. 178-179). Yale University Press. Kindle Edition.|The teaching on the glory earned by martyrs is widespread in the early church. It is nevertheless telling to find the way it is emphasized in the third-century Christian text the aforementioned Didascalia Apostolorum, originally written in Greek but preserved in Syriac.87 The Didascalia clearly teaches that the martyrs will have a privilege above other faithful believers: If then He raises up all men,—as He said by Isaiah: All flesh shall see the salvation of God [Isa 40.5; 52.10],—much more will He quicken and raise up the faithful; and (yet more) again will He quicken and raise up the faithful of the faithful, who are the martyrs, and establish them in great glory and make them His counsellors. For to mere disciples, those who believe in Him, He has promised a glory as of the stars [Dan 12.3]; but to the martyrs He has promised to give an everlasting glory, as of the luminaries which fail not, with more abundant light, that they may be shining for all time.88

The Didascalia is also clear, as is the Qur’an, that martyrs enjoy a special grace through the forgiveness of sins that their deaths have earned for them: But again, sins are forgiven by baptism also to those who from the Gentiles draw near and enter the holy Church of God. Let us inquire also, to whom sins are not imputed. To such as Abraham and Isaac and Jacob and all the patriarchs, as also to the martyrs. Let us hear then, brethren, for the Scripture saith: Who shall boast himself and say: I am clear of sins? Or who shall be confident and say: I am innocent? [Prov 20.9].

And again: There is no man pure of defilement: not though his life be but one day [Job 14.4–5 LXX]. To everyone therefore who believes and is baptized his … former sins have been forgiven; but after baptism also, provided that he has not sinned a deadly sin nor been an accomplice (thereto), but has heard only, or seen, or spoken, and is thus guilty of sin. But if a man go forth from the world by martyrdom for the name of the Lord, blessed is he; for brethren who by martyrdom have gone forth from this world, of these the sins are covered.89

We might compare Q 3:195: “ ‘And those who emigrated, and were expelled from their habitations, those who suffered hurt in My way, and fought, and were slain—them I shall surely acquit of their evil deeds, and I shall admit them to gardens underneath which rivers flow.’ A reward from God! And God with Him is the fairest reward” (italics added). In other words, the Qur’an seems to be well aware of Christian devotion to the martyrs.}}

=== Martyrdom in the Torah and Gospels ===
Muslims who fight are promised paradise, which the Qur'an claims is also a promise in the Torah and Gospel.{{Quote|{{Quran|9|111}}|Indeed Allah has bought from the faithful their souls and their possessions for paradise to be theirs: they fight in the way of Allah, kill, and are killed. A promise binding upon Him in the Torah and the Evangel and the Quran. And who is truer to his promise than Allah? So rejoice in the bargain you have made with Him, and that is the great success.}}Nickel (2020)<ref>Nickel, Gordon D. ''The Quran with Christian Commentary: A Guide to Understanding the Scripture of Islam (p. 222).'' Zondervan Academic. Kindle Edition. 9.111 – They fight in the way of God, and they kill and are killed When the Quran describes believers as fighting “in the way of Allah,” it makes a theological claim by associating Allah with human fighting. See the analysis of these expressions at 73.20 (p. 597). 9.111 – a promise binding on Him in the Torah, and the Gospel, and the Qur’ān This is the only verse in the Quran that brings the Torah (tawrāt), Gospel (injīl), and qur’ān (lit. “recitation”) together. The Quran claims here that the particular point on which the Torah and Gospel agree with the Muslim recitation is that believers “fight in the way of Allah, and they kill and are killed.” This verse makes the reader question whether the Quran has a clear idea of the contents of the Torah and Gospel. A similar question is raised by 61.14, which appears to say that ‘Īsā and his disciples fought against their enemies (cf. 3.52). Along with these misunderstandings, the Quran gives no information about the peaceable teaching and example of Jesus in the Gospel accounts. See the analysis of the Quran’s verses on the “Gospel” at 57.27 (p. 549). Do the Torah and Gospel in fact contain such a promise? See the comment on this characterization of the Bible at 61.14 (p. 566).</ref> and Reynolds (2018) however notes that this is not found there:{{Quote|1=Reynolds, G. S. (2018). The Qur'an and the Bible: Text and Commentary. Commentary on 9:111 (pp. 322) United Kingdom: Yale University Press.|2="9:111 The point of this verse is that those who are prepared to give their lives to God in the holy war are promised paradise as a payment for their services (cf. 2:245; 4:74; 61:10–12). The idea that the martyrs have a special assurance of paradise follows from the Qurʾān’s teaching elsewhere that the act of martyrdom involves forgiveness of sin. This teaching is close to that of the Syriac fathers (see commentary on 2:154, with further references). It is curious that the Qurʾān insists that the promise of heaven for holy warriors is found in the Torah and the Gospel (or “Evangel”); heaven is not found in the Torah and holy war is not found in the Gospels...}}While his commentary on 2:154 (pp. 76) once again highlights the Syriac parallel:{{Quote|2="As Tor Andrae has shown (Les origines de l’islam et le christianisme, 161ff.), the idea that martyrdom involves the absolution of sins is prominent in Syriac Christian texts such as the third-century Didascalia (chap. 20) and the Treaty on the Martyrs of Mar Isaï (d. late sixth cen.); the latter text also insists—much like the Qurʾān—that the martyrs are “living”:

The true martyrs who, by way of a death that covers their sins, demonstrate even more the beauty of their deeds and receive this glorious inheritance by virtue of their blood. By leaving this life they have prepared for their souls an honorable abode in paradise. It was thought that they are already dead, but by their death they have killed their sin, and they are alive with God. (Mar Isaï, Treaty on the Martyrs, 32)}}
=== Further Martyrdom Influence ===
Neuwirth (2024) also notes the influence of Christian martyrdom stories on the sudden conversion and prayers/asking for forgiveness to God of Pharaoh's magician's, who are originally opponents of Moses until he shows them proof of his prophecy via a miracle in the face of a sudden and violent death as threatened by the arrogant ruler (e.g. in {{Quran-range|26|50|51}} and {{Quran-range|20|71|73}}).<ref>Neuwirth, Angelika. ''The Qur'an: Text and Commentary, Volume 2.1: Early Middle Meccan Suras: The New Elect (p. 204).'' Yale University Press. Kindle Edition.</ref> Both Jewish and Christian traditions present individual “anti-Moses” sorcerers named Jannes and Jambres, who continue to appear in later interpretations; citing Nora Schmid, she notes that, although there is no explicit textual reference and the magicians are typically depicted in a negative light, they came to be associated with penance and martyrdom in Christian tradition - in the Qurʾan, this idea is developed further: the forgiveness that Jannes and Jambres either did not receive or only partially received in earlier sources is ultimately granted.<ref>Ibid. pp. 251-252</ref>{{Quote|Neuwirth, Angelika. The Qur'an: Text and Commentary, Volume 2.1: Early Middle Meccan Suras: The New Elect (p. 204). Yale University Press. Kindle Edition.|V. 72–73 qālū lan nuʾthiraka ʿalā mā jāʾanā mina l-bayyināti wa-lladhī faṭaranā fa-qḍi mā anta qāḍin innamā taqḍī hādhihi l-ḥayāta l-dunyā / innā āmannā birabbinā li-yaghfira lanā khaṭāyānā wa-mā akrahtanā ʿalayhi mina l-siḥri wallāhu khayrun wa-abqā] Conversion scene as later in Q 26:50–51. The sorcerers renounce their allegiance to Pharaoh on the basis of the obvious evidence (bayyināt) and give preference to the Creator God, they submit to their worldly fate and hope for the forgiveness of their sins and what they have been forced to do by the ruler—they are a role model for the community, which is also subject to pressure from outside. The request for forgiveness of sins before a violent death is a topos of Christian martyr stories. The entire scene, leaving the context of ‘ancient’ Egypt, reflects the notion of Christian martyrdom stories. Khaṭāyā (singular khaṭīʾa) also lets a Syriac terminus technicus ring through, but the word can be derived from the Arabic root KhṬʿ (“to miss a goal”) (see FVQ, 123ff.). The idea of the forgiveness of sins is prominent in the Christian liturgy—not only through the Lord’s Prayer. In addition to khaṭīʾa, there is the genuine Arabic dhanb, dhunūb.}}

== Expansions on the afterlife ==

Reynolds (2020) notes the Qur’ans provides vivid depictions of hell are highly unlike the New Testament, where Jesus refers to afterlife punishment mostly allusively. The closest the Gospels describe hell is through the few images of “fire,” “wailing,” and “gnashing of teeth.”, for example in Matthew’s Parable of the Weeds, Jesus explains that at the end of the age, the Son of Man will send his angels that will cast evildoers into a fiery furnace where there will be weeping and gnashing of teeth (Matt 13:40–42).<ref>Reynolds, Gabriel Said. ''Allah: God in the Qur'an (pp. 81-82).'' Yale University Press. Kindle Edition.</ref> He notes the much more constant an vivid Qur'anic descriptions far better match later Christian works that expanded the descriptions to be more gruesome, in order to scare the reader/audience.<ref>Ibid. pp. 88.

''We might note how all of these traditions are meant to make humans yearn for paradise and fear hell. The Qur’an, from this regard, is a profoundly psychological work. Like a Christian preacher, like John Chrysostom or Saint Ephrem, the author of the Qur’an speaks of heaven and hell to persuade his audience to repent and believe. He does so in a way, however, that is distinct—emphasizing physical pain and physical pleasure in order, apparently, to make a greater impression on his audience. He puts a terrible tree into hell and young women in paradise.''
</ref>{{Quote|Reynolds, Gabriel Said. Allah: God in the Qur'an (pp. 82-83). Yale University Press. Kindle Edition.|The way that the Qur’an describes hell in particularly vivid, gruesome terms brings us back to something we mentioned in Chapter 1, namely, that the Qur’an in many ways is a “homiletic” work, a work written like a homily or sermon. The Qur’an’s intention is not simply to declare that those who disobey God will be punished, but to describe that punishment in a way which brings the awfulness of hell to life. Similarly, homilists in the early centuries of Christianity expanded dramatically on the New Testament allusions to hell. In a sermon attributed to John Chrysostom (d. 407) we read a description of hell with the sort of detail that we find in the Qur’an: It is a sea of fire—not a sea of the kind or dimensions we know here, but much larger and fiercer, with waves made of fire, fire of a strange and fearsome kind. There is a great abyss there, in fact, of terrible flames, and one can see fire rushing about on all sides like some wild animal…. There will be no one who can resist, no one who can escape: Christ’s gentle, peaceful face will be nowhere to be seen.15}}Sinai (2017) in his paper titled "''The Eschatological Kerygma of the Early Qur’an''" notes many overlap with Syriac Homilies on the afterlife as well as other apocalyptic ideas and terminology.<ref>“[https://almuslih.org/wp-content/uploads/Library/Sinai,%20N%20-%20The%20Eschatological%20Kerygma.pdf The Eschatological Kerygma of the Early Qur’an]”, Nicolai Sinai, in ''Apocalypticism and Eschatology in Late Antiquity: Encounters in the Abrahamic Religions, 6th–8th Centuries'', edited by Hagit Amirav, Emmanouela Grypeou, and Guy Stroumsa, Leuven: Peeters, 2017, 219–266.

These are discussed throughout the whole paper, and a summary can be found in pp.50-57. On heaven and hell specifically, the summary is on pp.55-57.</ref>

== Souls are taken away at night ==

The Qur'an (and traditional Islamic exegetes)<ref>See classical commentaries on these verses such as Al-Jalalayn on [https://quranx.com/Tafsir/Jalal/39.42 Q39:42], [https://quranx.com/Tafsir/Jalal/6.60 Q6:60] and Ibn Kathir on [https://quranx.com/Tafsir/Kathir/39.41 Q39:41-2] and [https://quranx.com/Tafsir/Kathir/6.60 Q6:60]</ref> state that the soul is taken away by Allah during the night.{{Quote|{{Quran|39|42}}|Allah takes the souls at the time of their death, and those who have not died, in their sleep. Then He retains those for whom He has ordained death and releases the others until a specified time. There are indeed signs in that for a people who reflect.}}{{Quote|{{Quran|6|60}}|It is He who takes your souls by night, and He knows what you do by day, then He reanimates you therein so that a specified term may be completed. Then to Him will be your return, whereat He will inform you concerning what you used to do.}}Tesei (2016) notes this idea may mimic a late antique Syriac Christian parallel in the poetical language used by Ephrem, who in the Nisibene hymns (7:15) mentions sleep resembles death, and other Christian writers (such as Babai) wrote about sleep metaphorically Jesus's death and waking up like the resurrection;<ref>Tesei, Tommaso. (2016). "[https://www.researchgate.net/publication/344524709_2_The_barzakh_and_the_Intermediate_State_of_the_Dead_in_the_Quran 2 The barzakh and the Intermediate State of the Dead in the Quran]". pp. 40-42 In Locating Hell in Islamic Traditions. Leiden, The Netherlands: Brill. <nowiki>https://doi.org/10.1163/9789004301368_003</nowiki> (Open access)

''At the same time, the Quran also compares death to the “common sleep” that people experience on a daily basis. This seems to be the case in the cryptic statement found in Q 39:42 (cf. Q 6:60), “God takes the souls at the time of their death (ḥīna mawtihā), and [He takes] that which has not died, in its sleep ( fī manāmihā); He withholds that against which He has decreed death, but sets loose the other until a stated term”. This obscure passage appears to indicate that sleep is a death-like state; sleepers resemble the dead since their souls enter into a state similar to that which they will experience at the moment of death. However, unlike the souls of the dead, which will be raised only on the Day of Resurrection, the ordinary sleeper’s soul is sent back when he awakens―that is, of course, until the time of his death. This parallel between death and “common sleep” finds a fairly close correspondence in the poetical language used by Ephrem, who in the Nisibene hymns (7:15) affirms that: “The one who lies down to sleep resembles the departed and death resembles a dream, and the resurrection the morning”. In these passages the Quran’s eschatological discourse is particularly close to that formulated by Babai, in whose ideas the belief in the soul’s sleep is intimately connected to the strong affirmation of the physical resurrection of the body on the Day of Judgment.'' </ref> with this idea taken literally by Muhammad.

== Arguments for resurrection ==
Reynolds (2020) notes the repeated argument that God can resurrect the dead using the analogy that he can bring life back to barren (or dead) land may be connected to a Jewish tradition that God will resurrect the dead with dew, for example, in b. Shabbat 88b.<ref name=":2">See: Reynolds, Gabriel Said. Allah: ''God in the Qur'an (pp. 76-77).'' Yale University Press. Kindle Edition.

And Footnote 10: Reynolds, Gabriel Said. ''Allah: God in the Qur'an (p. 254).'' Yale University Press. Kindle Edition.</ref>
{{Quote|{{Quran|30|19}}|He brings forth the living from the dead, and brings forth the dead from the living, and revives the earth after its death. Likewise, you [too] shall be raised [from the dead].}}

Cf: {{Quran|16|65}}, {{Quran|43|11}}, {{Quran|50|6-11}}, {{Quran|57|17}}

==See Also==
*[[Pre-Islamic Arab Religion in Islam]]

* [[Parallels Between the Qur'an and Late Antique Judeo-Christian Literature|Parallels Between the Qur'an and Late Antique Judeo-Christian Literature - Part 1]]
* [[Historical Errors in the Quran]]
==References==
<references />

User:CPO675/Sandbox 1

2026-06-04T19:53:20Z

CPO675: /* The story of Joseph */

== The story of Joseph ==
There are many differences between the story of Joseph in the Qur'an and the book of Genesis in the bible. Reynolds (2025), largely citing Witzum's (2011) 'The Syriac Millenia of the Qur'an: The Recasting of Biblical Narratives pp191-239' , notes how these differences directly match post-biblical writings; with almost all of these distinctive Qur’anic elements showing dependence on or conversation with Syriac Christian traditions (such as Pseudo-Narsai, Ephrem, Pseudo-Basil, Balai, Syriac Bible/Peshitta). A few overlap with the Jewish midrash, but the strongest and most consistent influence comes from Christian sources. (pp76-86)

Reynolds provides gives 11 clear examples of this:

# Joseph’s Dream: Qur’an has only one dream (unlike the Book of Genesis which has two), told directly to Jacob, who warns him to keep it secret - which matches Pseudo-Narsai’s homily (5th-century Syriac Christian). PP76, pp81
# The Brothers’ Plot to kill Joseph: the Qur’an shows the brothers plotting at home, not spontaneously in the fields - also found in Pseudo-Narsai. pp82
# The Wolf Motif: the Qur’an specifies a wolf instead of a vague “wild animal” in Genesis - which links to Christian tradition (Pseudo-Narsai) who calls the brothers “wolves” and Joseph “a lamb,” echoing Gospel imagery of shepherds/sheep. pp82-82
# Joseph in the Pit: Qur’an has Joseph comforted by God in the pit (''jubb''; {{Quran|12|15}}) - which again follows a report in Pseudo-Narsai of revelation to Joseph in the pit (Syriac ''gubbā''). pp83
# Jacob’s (Joseph's father) response to the bloody shirt: the Qur’an has Jacob suspecting deception - reflected in homilies from Ephrem and Balai, who also have Jacob reason that the brothers’ story is false. pp83-84
# Potiphar and the Garment: the Qur’an shows Potiphar recognizing Joseph’s innocence and his wife's guilt in trying to seduce him - in some post-biblical Jewish Traditions (including ''Genesis Rabbah 87:9'') he shows knowledge of Joseph's innocence - however only in Christian traditions (e.g., Pseudo-Narsai) we find Potiphar, as in {{Quran|12|28-29}}, arguing for Joseph’s innocence by referring to the torn garment as proof. pp83
# Potiphar’s Wife Confesses: the Qur’an uniquely has her admit guilt later in the story - found in the Pseudo-Narsai, where she confesses after Joseph’s rise to power. pp83
# Jacob’s blindness healed by Joseph’s Shirt: the Qur’an reports Jacob miraculously regains sight when Joseph’s shirt touches his face. - which draws on Syriac Christian idioms; (“lighten the eyes” = console/restore joy), made literal in the Qur’an (like other symbolic items in Christian stories). pp83-84
# “Joseph Was a Thief Before” – Qur’an has brothers accuse Joseph of past theft. ↳ Rooted in Pseudo-Narsai, who connects Benjamin’s cup incident to Rachel stealing idols and compares Joseph to her. pp84-85
# Joseph’s Garment Sent to Jacob – Qur’an has Joseph send his shirt to Jacob. ↳ Related to Syriac Peshitta reading of Genesis and Balai’s poetry, where Jacob receives garments from Joseph. pp85
# Brothers Ask Jacob’s Forgiveness – Qur’an has them repent to Jacob, who asks God to forgive them. ↳ Echoes Balai, who also has Jacob forgive and pray for them. pp85

== Flat Earth - Tafsirs ==

=== The Highest Horizon ===
The Qu'ran says Muhammad was in the highest horizon ''bil-ufuqi<ref>افق - [https://lexicon.quranic-research.net/data/01_A/103_Afq.html Lane's lexicon Classical Arabic Dictionary root: hamza fā qāf (أ ف ق)]

Horizon ''ufuq'' (أُفُق) [https://lexicon.quranic-research.net/pdf/Page_0068.pdf Lane's Lexicon p.68]

Horizon ''ufuq'' (أُفُق) [https://lexicon.quranic-research.net/pdf/Page_0069.pdf Lane's Lexicon p.69] </ref>l-aʿlā''<ref>Lanes Lexicon Classical Arabic Dictionary Root: [https://lexicon.quranic-research.net/data/18_E/190_Elw.html ʿayn lām wāw (ع ل و)]

(l-a)ʿlā [https://lexicon.quranic-research.net/pdf/Page_2142.pdf Lanes Lexicon p.2142], [https://lexicon.quranic-research.net/pdf/Page_2143.pdf Lanes Lexicon p.2143]

</ref>. Typically taken as referring to him receiving knowledge there as part of his [[Buraq#The Night Journey (al-Isra wal-Mi'raj)|night journey]].
{{Quote|{{Quran|53|7}}|possessed of sound judgement. He settled, while he (was) in the horizon - the highest.}}See also: {{Quran|81|23}}

On a round Earth, there is no such place as an objective highest horizon, as once you move towards the perceived horizon (the furthest place you can see where the land and sky appear to meet in the distance)<ref>[https://dictionary.cambridge.org/dictionary/english/horizon Horizon Definition] Cambridge Dictionary</ref> the view simply moves further back as you circle around the earth, never actually being reached. So some classical Islamic exegetes have taken this to be the place where the sun rises from, in the seventh heaven, or where it reaches the Earth,<ref>E.g. [https://quranx.com/Tafsir/Jalal/53.7 Tafsir al-Jalalayn on verse Q53:7] by Al-Mahalli (d. 1459 CE) and Al-Suyuti (d. 1505 CE) and the famous pseudepigrapha [https://quranx.com/Tafsir/Abbas/53.7 Tanwîr al-Miqbâs min Tafsîr Ibn ‘Abbâs on verse Q53:7]</ref> which is only possible on a flat Earth.

== The Historical Jesus ==

=== Other Traditions ===

==== Intro ====

Alongside the main consensus from Biblical Scholars/Historians that Jesus was an eschatological preacher in the early first century AD who believed the Earth would end during his time (and therefore couldn't be the Muslim Jesus), there are many other of the most considered authentic teachings of Jesus that clash with Islam; in contrast with the Qur'anic principle of Messenger Uniformitarianism; where all messengers preach essentially the same thing with only minor variations.<ref>Durie, Mark. ''The Qur’an and Its Biblical Reflexes: Investigations into the Genesis of a Religion (pp. 135-142) (Kindle Edition pp. 281-294)''. 5.3 Messenger Uniformitarianism. Lexington Books. 2018.</ref>
{{Quote|{{Quran|41|43}}|Not is said to you except what was said to the Messengers before you. Indeed, your Lord (is) Possessor (of) forgiveness, and Possessor (of) penalty painful.}}{{Quote|{{Quran|2|285}}|The Apostle and the faithful have faith in what has been sent down to him from his Lord. Each [of them] has faith in Allah, His angels, His scriptures and His apostles. [They declare,] ‘We make no distinction between any of His apostles.’ And they say, ‘We hear and obey. Our Lord, forgive us, and toward You is the return.’}}

{{Quote|{{Quran|17|77}}|“This was the sunnah [customary way] of Our messengers whom We sent before you, and you will find no change in Our sunnah”}}cf. {{Quran|6|112}}, {{Quran|35|43}}, {{Quran|22|78}}.

Other than being explicitly told that messengers bring the same message from Allah, Durie (2018) notes the Qur'an repeatedly states that Muhammad was sent to confirm the revelations given to earlier messengers (Q2:91, 97; Q3:3, 50; Q5:48; Q12:111; Q16:43–44; Q35:31), just as each prophet before him confirmed those who came earlier. For example, Jesus (ʿĪsa) confirmed the Torah of Moses (Mūsa) (Q5:46), and the Qurʾan confirms the scriptures revealed to previous prophets (Q4:47). In this way, Muhammad’s role continues the same pattern of reaffirming earlier divine messages rather than introducing a completely new one.<ref>Durie, Mark. ''The Qur’an and Its Biblical Reflexes: Investigations Into the Genesis of a Religion.'' pp.140</ref>

{{Quote|Durie, Mark. The Qur'an and it's Biblical Reflexes. pp.140|• It is also explicitly asserted that messengers bring the same message
from Alla¯h: “Nothing is said to you but what has already been said to
messengers before you” (Q41:43; Q22:78) and “we make no distinction
between any of them” (Q2:136). They also preached the same dīn “commandment” or “religion” (Q42:13; cf. Q3:84; Q4:150), which is referred
to as the “religion of Ibra¯hīm” (Q2:130; Q4:125; Q16:121–23). The
validating function of this idea becomes clear when it is applied against
a group of Jews who reject the concept of the “same message” because
it would mean validating the Messenger. These Jews hold to their own
faith, saying “we believe in what has been sent down on us,” but they
reject the Messenger, or “anything after that” (Q2:91). The ruling against
these Jews is that because they reject the Messenger, they are disbelievers,
rejecting “what All a¯ h has sent down” (Q2:91).31 The idea of the “same message” is further reinforced when the Qurʾan repeatedly states that the Messenger was only sent to confirm what was sent down by previous
messengers (Q2:91, 97; Q3:3, 50; Q5:48; Q12:111; Q16:43–44; Q35:31),
just as previous messengers had done for messengers that preceded them,
for example, ʿĪsa¯ “confirmed” the Tawra¯ h of Mūsa¯(Q5:46), and the Qurʾan
confirms the book(s) sent by previous prophets (Q4:47), just as the Messenger has been doing in his turn.}}
The large differences between the New Testament / Gospels (and by extension the Christian Jesus), and the [[Isa al-Masih (Jesus Christ)|Muslim Jesus,]] are clear to anyone who has read both the Qur'an and NT; with the Qur'an having it's own spin on him and taking many aspects from apocrypha considered inauthentic by NT scholars,<ref>Sanders, E.. ''The Historical Figure of Jesus (pp. 78-79)''. Penguin Books Ltd. Kindle Edition.

..(Gnosticism was a world view that held everything material to be evil; the god who created the world was a bad god, and the creation was wicked. Gnostics who were also Christians held that the good God had sent Jesus to redeem people’s souls, not their bodies, and that Jesus was not a real human being. The Christians who objected to these views finally declared them heretical.) ''I share the general scholarly view that very, very little in the apocryphal gospels could conceivably go back to the time of Jesus. They are legendary and mythological. Of all the apocryphal material, only some of the sayings in the Gospel of Thomas are worth consideration.'' This does not mean that we can make a clean division: the historical four gospels versus the legendary apocryphal gospels. There are legendary traits in the four gospels in the New Testament, and there is also a certain amount of newly created material (as we saw just above)..</ref> and [[Parallels Between the Qur'an and Late Antique Judeo-Christian Literature|later Christian thought/writings]], and have lead to many Muslims arguing for biblical corruption based on textual and theological grounds [though textual don't affect most early & authentic traditions] in general, which is a disputed idea in traditional Islamic thought (cite - Reynolds article. See also: [[Corruption of Previous Scriptures]] & [[Qur'an, Hadith and Scholars:Corruption of Previous Scriptures]])

Historians have searched for a summary of some of the most likely authentic traditions from Biblical historians (using historical-critical methods not Christian or Muslim theologians - more likely to be true and not taken from bias or proving or disproving Islam but historical context, widespread across sources, early - cite Allison explanation - Why - different to time and context, unlikely to be fabricated later by Christians, across all early sources etc.) are shown here as an example of the clashes. [Point: not arguing against Christian Jesus - but secular historians one]

==== Examples ====
{{Quote|Dale C. Allison Jr.. The Historical Christ and the Theological Jesus (Kindle Locations 822-836). Kindle Edition.|2=Given that we typically remember the outlines of an event or the general purport of a conversation rather than the particulars and that we extract patterns and meaning from our memories, it makes little sense to open the quest for Jesus by evaluating individual items with our criteria, in the hope that some bits preserve pristine memory. We should rather be looking for repeating patterns and contemplating the big picture. true. We should trust first, if we are to trust at all, what is most likely to be trustworthy. Although we may, after reading Thucydides, be confident that there was a Peloponnesian War, we may well wonder about many of the details of his account.

The larger the generalization and the more data upon which it is based, the greater our confidence; the more specific the detail and the fewer the data supporting it, the more room we have for doubt. With regard to the sources for Jesus, the traditional criteria of authenticity privilege the parts over the whole. It seems more prudent to privilege generalizations drawn from the whole than to concentrate upon one individual item after another. As a demonstration of how this works in practice, consider the following traditions:

• Jesus prohibited divorce: 1 Cor. 7:10; Mark 10:2-9; Luke 16:18. [Qur'an divorce rules - https://wikiislam.net/wiki/Khula] 

• Jesus sent forth missionaries without staff, food, or money: Matt. 10:9-10; Mark 6:8-9; Luke 10:4.

• Jesus instructed missionaries to get their living by the gospel: 1 Cor. 9:14; Matt. 10:10; Luke 10:7.

• Jesus commanded loving and doing good to enemies: Matt. 5:38-48; Luke 6:27-36. [Qur'an do not be merciful to unbelievers https://wikiislam.net/wiki/Qur%27an,_Hadith_and_Scholars:Non-Muslims & https://wikiislam.net/wiki/Kafir_(Infidel)#Guidelines_on_how_to_deal_with_disbelievers Quran 48:29 ]

• Jesus forbade judging others: Matt. 7:1-2; Luke 6:37-38.

• Jesus asked a prospective follower not to bury his father: Matt. 8:21-22; 22; Luke 959-60.

• Jesus spoke of hating one's father and mother: Matt. 10:37; Luke 14:26; Gospel of Thomas 55, 101. [respect parents - too tenuous]

• Jesus enjoined disciples to take up a cross: Matt. 10:38; Mark 8:34; Luke 14:27.

• Jesus enjoined unlimited forgiveness: Matt. 18:21-22; Luke 17:3-4. [forgiveness against shirk - Qur'an says no Q4:48 and 4:116. ]

• Jesus exhorted hearers to lose their lives in order to save them: Matt. 10:39; Mark 8:35; Luke 17:33.

• Jesus called people away from their livelihoods: Mark 1:16-20; 2:14. [?]

• Jesus figuratively demanded violent removal of hand, foot, and eye: Mark 9:42-48.

• Jesus asked a wealthy man to relinquish his money: Mark 10:17-27. [bring in wealth inequality section of Islam darajat - here]

• Jesus forbade taking oaths: Matt. 5:33-37. [https://www.iium.edu.my/deed/lawbase/risalah_maliki/book31.html#:~:text=Anyone%20who%20swears%20an%20oath,Oneness%2C%20timelessness%20and%20existence.%5D]

• Jesus commanded money to be lent without interest: Matt. 5:42; Gospel of Thomas 95.

• Jesus called some to a life without marriage: Matt. 19:11-12. [Qur'an criticism of monasticism]

• Jesus asked a prospective follower not to say farewell to his parents: Luke 9:61-62. [respect parents?]

• Jesus asked his disciples to renounce all of their possessions: Luke 14:33"}}
<nowiki>--------------------------------------------------</nowiki>

[ highlight those being spoken about in italics or bold]

Professor Allison (2009) notes that Jesus' banning divorce was an important teaching that <s>stood out</s> to early Christians, [https://www.biblegateway.com/passage/?search=Luke%2016%3A18&version=NIV Luke 16:18], [https://www.biblegateway.com/passage/?search=1%20Corinthians%207%3A10-16&version=NIV 1 Corinthians 7:10-16], [https://www.biblegateway.com/passage/?search=Mark%2010%3A2-9&version=NIV Mark 10:2-9], in contrast to Judaism ([https://www.biblegateway.com/passage/?search=Deuteronomy%2024%3A1-4&version=NIV Deuteronomy 24:1-4]) and Islam e.g. Quran 2:228-232, Q65:1-7, (Q4:19 https://quranx.com/hadiths/4.19 & Q4:35), Q33:49 )

He notes that Jesus commanded loving and doing good to enemies in [https://www.biblegateway.com/passage/?search=Matthew%205%3A38-48&version=NIV Matt. 5:38-48]; [https://www.biblegateway.com/passage/?search=Luke%206%3A27-36&version=NIV Luke 6:27-36], while the Qur'an generally advises treating other Muslims well, it specifically states not to be merciful to unbelievers Q48:29. [ For more examples of not being merciful to unbelievers, let alone 'enemies' see: '''[[Qur'an, Hadith and Scholars:Non-Muslims|https://wikiislam.net/wiki/Qur%27an,_Hadith_and_Scholars:Non-Muslims]] & [[Kafir (Infidel)#Guidelines%20on%20how%20to%20deal%20with%20disbelievers|https://wikiislam.net/wiki/Kafir_(Infidel)#Guidelines_on_how_to_deal_with_disbelievers]] Quran 48:29 ]'''

• Jesus enjoined unlimited forgiveness: [https://www.biblegateway.com/passage/?search=Matthew%2018%3A21-22&version=NIV Matt. 18:21-22]; [https://www.biblegateway.com/passage/?search=Luke%2017%3A3-4&version=NIV Luke 17:3-4]. However the Qur'an distinctly says there is no forgiveness for anyone committing shirk (ascribing partners to God) in {{Quran|4|48}} and {{Quran|4|116}}.

He notes Jesus called some to a life without marriage: [https://www.biblegateway.com/passage/?search=Matthew%2019%3A11-12&version=NIV Matt. 19:11-12], while the Qur'an promotes it as a virtue encouraging those to do so.

Marriage is a virtue https://www.getquranic.com/marriage-in-islam-8-quranic-verses-about-marriage/

{{Quote|{{Quran|24|32}}|Marry off those who are single among you, and the upright among your male and female slaves. If they are poor, Allah will enrich them out of His grace, and Allah is all-bounteous, all-knowing.}}

And criticizes monasticism/monks, with celibacy and no marriage being a key aspect<ref>[https://www.britannica.com/topic/monasticism Monasticism] | religion | Britannica Entry</ref> in general

{{Quote|Reynolds, Gabriel Said. Christianity and the Qur'an: The Rise of Islam in Christian Arabia (pp. 131-132). Yale University Press. Kindle Edition.|These verses critical of monks are often read together with Q 57:27, which, while praising certain positive qualities of Christians, also seems to accuse Christians of “innovating” monasticism: Then We sent, following in their footsteps, Our Messengers; and We sent, following, Jesus son of Mary, and gave unto him the Gospel. And We set in the hearts of those who followed him tenderness and mercy. And monasticism they invented—We did not prescribe it for them—only seeking the good pleasure of God; but they observed it not as it should be observed. So We gave those of them who believed their wage; and many of them are ungodly.}}

Criticism of monasticism (https://www.britannica.com/topic/monasticism) - lack of marriage for monks (though admittedly also praises monks in general elsewhere pp130-132)<ref>Reynolds, Gabriel Said. ''Christianity and the Qur'an: The Rise of Islam in Christian Arabia (pp. 130-132).'' Yale University Press. Kindle Edition.</ref>

{{Quote|{{Quran|57|27}}|Then We sent on their footsteps Our Messengers and We followed with Isa, son (of) Maryam, and We gave him the Injeel. And We placed in (the) hearts (of) those who followed him compassion and mercy. But monasticism they innovated - not We prescribed it for them - only seeking (the) pleasure (of) Allah, but not they observed it (with) right observance. So We gave those who believed among them their reward, but most of them (are) defiantly disobediently.}}

<nowiki>-----------------------------------------------------------------</nowiki>

==== Father-son relationship ====
{{Quote|Dale C. Allison Jr.. The Historical Christ and the Theological Jesus (Kindle Location 841-848). Kindle Edition.|2=Working through the tradition in the way I suggest leads to a large number of conclusions. Jesus must have been an exorcist who interpreted his ministry in terms of Satan's downfall. He must have thought highly of John the Baptist. He must have repeatedly spoken of God as Father. [Durie differences in metaphor and understanding of relationship from Hebrew to Arab society = markedly different] He must have composed parables. He must have come into conflict with religious authorities. All of this may seem obvious, but the procedure is not trite, for it also issues in some controversial verdicts. As I have argued elsewhere, for example, ample, the quantity of conventional eschatological material in our primary sources almost necessitates that Jesus was an eschatological prophet.' The reconstruction of Robert Funk and the Jesus Seminar is for this reason alone problematic. Even more controversial is what my approach leads me to infer about Jesus' self-conception. Consider these Synoptic materials:

• Jesus said that the Son of man will return on the clouds of heaven and send angels to gather the elect from throughout the world: Mark 13:26-27; cf. 14:62; Matt. 10:23 (allusions to Daniel 7's depiction of the last judgment are clear). [the son of man plays no part in Islam]}}Allison (2009) notes that Jesus must have repeatedly referred to God as 'father', a way also used by many ancient Jews to describe their relationship to god, also found in the old testament with different metaphorical meanings<ref>Pennington, J.T. "Chapter Nine. God As Father In The Old Testament And Second Temple Literature". ''Heaven and Earth in the Gospel of Matthew''. Leiden, The Netherlands: Brill, 2007. <nowiki>https://doi.org/10.1163/ej.9789004162051.i-399.57</nowiki> Web.</ref> and Talmudic writings with paternal imagery. <ref>Knobnya, S.. (2011). ''God the Father in the Old Testament. European Journal of Theology.'' 20. 139-148. </ref><ref>[https://www.myjewishlearning.com/article/fatherhood-of-god/ Fatherhood of God] | Sages & Scholars | Rabbi Louis Jacobs | My Jewish Learning</ref>

===== Slave-master relationship =====
However this father-son Hebrew metaphorical relationship Jesus used is distinctly abandoned, instead using other things (other metaphors) in Arab society to describe the relationship between humans and God, such as a slave-master relationship,<ref>Durie, Mark. ''The Qur’an and Its Biblical Reflexes: Investigations into the Genesis of a Religion (pp. XX-XX) (pp. 107-110 Kindle Edition)''. 4.1.1. Shirk - Proprietary Partnership. Lexington Books. 2018.</ref> a Patron - Protege (needs explanation of what this is) <ref>Durie, Mark. ''The Qur’an and Its Biblical Reflexes: Investigations into the Genesis of a Religion (pp. XX-XX) (pp. 110-111 Kindle Edition)''. 4.1.2. Shirk - Patron - Protege Relationships. Lexington Books. 2018.</ref>. with Muhammad having strongly condemned the idea that God could have offspring against the unscripted pagans (mushrikun) taking angels as daughters of god early on chronologically of the Qur'an's first recitations, then later against God having a son against Jesus being the son of God.<ref>Durie, Mark. ''The Qur’an and Its Biblical Reflexes: Investigations into the Genesis of a Religion (pp. XX-XX) (pp. 112-113 Kindle Edition)''. 4.1.5 A Polemical Doctrine. Lexington Books. 2018.</ref>

Slave analogy Dure Print edition pp108 - 110 summary:<ref name=":1">Durie, Mark. ''The Qur’an and Its Biblical Reflexes: Investigations into the Genesis of a Religion (pp. 108-110) (pp. XX-XX Kindle Edition)''. 4.1.5 A Polemical Doctrine. Lexington Books. 2018.</ref> Before its theological use, the Arabic root ''sh-r-k'' referred to ordinary '''partnership or shared ownership'''. The Qurʾan draws on this everyday meaning to illustrate why associating partners with God is impossible. Using the metaphor of '''a master and a slave''', the Qurʾan argues that just as a slave with multiple masters suffers confusion and conflict, attributing partners to God creates an impossible and chaotic situation. This logic appears in verses such as Q39:29 and others that argue multiple gods would lead to conflict and the ruin of creation (Q23:91; Q21:22).<ref name=":1" />
{{Quote|{{Quran|39|29}}|Allah presents a parable, “a man was owned by several quarreling partners
(shurakaʾ), and a man was the slave of (just) one man. Are the two equal?”}}

The Qurʾan’s use of the slave-master metaphor differs from Jesus’ teaching in the New Testament. Whereas Jesus uses it to highlight divided human devotion, the Qurʾan uses it to assert the logical impossibility of multiple divine authorities.<ref name=":1" />

{{Quote|Luke 16:13; cf. Matthew. 6:24|No slave can serve two masters; for a slave will either hate the one and love the
other, or be devoted to the one and despise the other. You cannot serve God and wealth.}}

Shirk encompasses various forms of error: attributing partners or helpers to God, believing He needs allies, or seeking aid from others besides Him. The Qurʾan also explores God’s unity through three social analogies relevant to Arabian society: '''patron–protégé relationships''', '''alliances of mutual help''', and '''relationships of equal or unequal status'''.<ref name=":1" />

===== '''Patron–protégé relationships''' =====
The Qur'an distinctly ignores the father-son relationship (and theology) metaphor by using another term that is harder to translate

Explanation of what this is Durie pp.110-111:<ref name=":3">Durie, Mark. ''The Qur’an and Its Biblical Reflexes: Investigations into the Genesis of a Religion (pp. 110-111) (pp. XX-XX Kindle Edition)''. 4.1.5 A Polemical Doctrine. Lexington Books. 2018.</ref> The Qurʾan uses terms from the root '''w-l-y''' to describe '''patron–protégé relationships''', alliances, and guardianship. The key term '''walī''' can mean ally, protector, guardian, or patron, and may indicate either symmetrical alliances or asymmetrical power relationships.<ref name=":3" /><ref>[https://lexicon.quranic-research.net/data/27_w/219_wle.html Root: ''wāw lām yā'' (و ل ي)] - Lane's Lexicon Qur'anic Research

See Lane's Lexicon Classical Arabic Dictionary [https://lexicon.quranic-research.net/pdf/Page_3060.pdf pp.3060] & [https://lexicon.quranic-research.net/pdf/Page_3061.pdf pp.3061] </ref>

In pre-Islamic Arab society, such patronage was essential for protection, as shown by the example of Muḥammad being safeguarded by his uncle Abū Ṭālib. Without a patron, a person was vulnerable.<ref name=":3" /> [in the sirah of Ibn Ishaq]

The Qurʾan emphasizes that '''God has no need of any patron''' and that '''humans should recognize God alone as their walī'''. Seeking any protector besides God is considered '''shirk'''. Believers may take other believers and the Prophet as allies (''awliyāʾ'') alongside God, but not in place of Him.<ref name=":3" />

As the Muslim community developed, especially after what the passage calls the ''Eschatological Transition''—the Qurʾan increasingly stressed exclusive allegiance to God. This served to detach believers from prior tribal or familial loyalties that could compromise their commitment to the faith community.<ref name=":3" />

- and calls for help-

===== Unequal status vs Jesus' views on Wealth =====
Sinai - darajah passage

And inequality in general - inc. the afterlife

=== Punishment narratives ===

==== Punishment BEFORE the day of judgement ====
We are told the sole exception in history was the unnamed town<ref>Unnamed in the Qur'an, though identified as Nineveh (in modern day Iraq) as in the Biblical "Book of Jonah" by Islamic exegetes; e.g. see [https://quranx.com/tafsirs/37.147 tafsirs on Q37:147]</ref> of more than 100,000 people that the messenger Yūnus (Jonah) when the warning was heeded in full by the entire people, and therefore punishment averted ({{Quran|10|98}}, {{Quran|37|147-148}}) “no town believed . . . except the people of Yūnus”<ref>Durie, Mark. 2018. ''The Qur'an and Its Biblical Reflexes: Investigations Into the Genesis of a Religion. pp 49. Kindle Edition pp 151.''</ref>

How many a town defied the command of its Lord and His apostles, then We called it to a severe account and punished it with a dire punishment. Q65:8

So it tasted the evil consequences of its conduct, and the outcome of its conduct was ruin. Q65:9

How many generations that had far more wealth and ostentation have We laid low before them! <<nowiki>https://quranx.com/19.74</nowiki>>

Say, ‘Whoever abides in error, the All-beneficent shall prolong his respite until they sight what they have been promised: either punishment, or the Hour.’ Then they will know whose position is worse, and whose host is weaker <<nowiki>https://quranx.com/19.75</nowiki>>

------

Q34:16 - flood of the damn of Yemen / Saba', the people of Sheba E.g. <ref>See tafsirs on [https://quranx.com/Tafsirs/34.14 Q34:14], [https://quranx.com/Tafsirs/34.15 Q34:15] & [https://quranx.com/Tafsirs/34.16 Q34:16]</ref> {{Quran|34|14-16}}

{{Quote|{{Quran|34|14-16}}|And when We decreed for Solomon death, nothing indicated to the jinn his death except a creature of the earth eating his staff. But when he fell, it became clear to the jinn that if they had known the unseen, they would not have remained in humiliating punishment.
Certainly, (there) was for Saba in their dwelling place a sign: Two gardens on (the) right and (on the) left. "Eat from (the) provision (of) your Lord and be grateful to Him. A land good and a Lord Oft-Forgiving."
But they turned away, so We sent upon them (the) flood (of) the dam, and We changed for them their two gardens (with) two gardens producing fruit bitter, and tamarisks and (some)thing of lote trees few.}}
, {{Quran|65|8-9}}, {{Quran|19|74-75}}

Add: 34:15–21: The punishment of the people of Sheba, without explicit reference to a messenger. Sheba reference <ref>Marshall, David. ''God, Muhammad and the Unbelievers (p. 73).'' Taylor & Francis. Kindle Edition.</ref>

=== Surah 36 ===
Similarly an unnamed town is sent three messengers in {{Quran|36|13-32}}, who's identities have differed in traditional Islamic scholarship,<ref>E.g. see commentaries on [https://quranx.com/Tafsirs/36.13 Q36:13] & [https://quranx.com/tafsirs/36.14 Q36:14], and the later verses in the story, cited as a parable ''(mathal).''</ref> are rejected and so are killed with a cry/shout (''ṣayḥatan)'' ({{Quran|36|29}}). <ref>Marshall, David. ''God, Muhammad and the Unbelievers (p. 63 & 72).'' Taylor & Francis. Kindle Edition.</ref>
{{Quote|Marshall, David. God, Muhammad and the Unbelievers (p. 72). Taylor & Francis. Kindle Edition.|36:13–32: Described as a parable (mathal, v.13), but in outline very similar to the punishment-narratives. The messengers (two of them, reinforced with a third) and the town in which they preach are anonymous. ‘A man from the furthest part of the city’ (v.20) exhorts his people to follow the messengers.}}

== Contradiction ==
The order in Surah 2 has the Jews struck by a lightening bolt after they worship the golden calf, who are then forgiven by Allah by being resurrected.
{{Quote|{{Quran|2|50-67}}|And when We parted the sea with you, and We delivered you and drowned Pharaoh’s clan as you looked on. 
And when We made an appointment with Moses for forty nights, you took up the Calf [for worship] in his absence, and you were wrongdoers. 
Then We excused you after that so that you might give thanks. 
And when We gave Moses the Book and the Criterion so that you might be guided. 
And [recall] when Moses said to his people, ‘O my people! You have indeed wronged yourselves by taking up the Calf [for worship]. Now turn penitently to your Maker, and slay [the guilty among] your folks. That will be better for you with your Maker.’ Then He turned to you clemently. Indeed, He is the All-clement, the All-merciful. 
And when you said, ‘O Moses, we will not believe you until we see Allah visibly.’ Thereupon a thunderbolt seized you as you looked on.
Then We raised you up after your death so that you might give thanks. /n
We shaded you with clouds, and sent down to you manna and quails [saying]: ‘Eat of the good things We have provided for you.’ And they did not wrong Us, but they used to wrong [only] themselves. 
And when We said, ‘Enter this town, and eat thereof freely whencesoever you wish, and enter while prostrating at the gate, and say, ‘‘Relieve [us of the burden of our sins],’’ so that We may forgive your iniquities and We will soon enhance the virtuous.’ 
But the wrongdoers changed the saying with other than what they were told. So We sent down on those who were wrongdoers a plague from the sky because of the transgressions they used to commit. 
And when Moses prayed for water for his people, We said, ‘Strike the rock with your staff.’ Thereat twelve fountains gushed forth from it; every tribe came to know its drinking-place. ‘Eat and drink of Allah’s provision, and do not act wickedly on the earth, causing corruption.’ 
And when you said, ‘O Moses, ‘We will not put up with one kind of food. So invoke your Lord for us, so that He may bring forth for us of that which the earth grows—its greens and cucumbers, its garlic, lentils, and onions.’ He said, ‘Do you seek to replace what is superior with that which is inferior? Go down to any town and you will indeed get what you ask for!’ So they were struck with abasement and poverty, and they earned Allah’s wrath. That, because they would deny the signs of Allah and kill the prophets unjustly. That, because they would disobey and commit transgressions. 
Indeed the faithful, the Jews, the Christians and the Sabaeans—those of them who have faith in Allah and the Last Day and act righteously—they shall have their reward from their Lord, and they will have no fear, nor will they grieve. 
And when We took a pledge from you, and raised the Mount above you, [declaring], ‘Hold on with power to what We have given you and remember that which is in it so that you may be Godwary.’ 
Again you turned away after that; and were it not for Allah’s grace on you and His mercy, you would have surely been among the losers. 
And certainly you know those of you who violated the Sabbath, whereupon We said to them, ‘Be you spurned apes.’ 
So We made it an exemplary punishment for the present and the succeeding [generations], and an advice to the Godwary.}}
In Surah 4 they are struck before they worship the calf. 4:153 specifically says 'then' ''(thumma)''

{{Quote|{{Quran|4|153-161}}|The People of the Book ask you to bring down for them a Book from the sky. Certainly they asked Moses for [something] greater than that, for they said, ‘Show us Allah visibly,’ whereat a thunderbolt seized them for their wrongdoing. Then they took up the Calf [for worship], after all the manifest proofs that had come to them. Yet We excused that, and We gave Moses a manifest authority. 
And We raised the Mount above them for the sake of their covenant, and We said to them, ‘Enter the gate prostrating’ and We said to them, ‘Do not violate the Sabbath,’ and We took from them a solemn covenant. 
Then because of their breaking their covenant, their defiance of Allah’s signs, their killing of the prophets unjustly and for their saying, ‘Our hearts are uncircumcised’… Indeed, Allah has set a seal on them for their unfaith, so they do not have faith except a few. 
And for their faithlessness, and their uttering a monstrous calumny against Mary, 
and for their saying, ‘We killed the Messiah, Jesus son of Mary, the apostle of Allah’—though they did not kill him nor did they crucify him, but so it was made to appear to them. Indeed those who differ concerning him are surely in doubt about him: they do not have any knowledge of that beyond following conjectures, and certainly, they did not kill him. 
Indeed, Allah raised him up toward Himself, and Allah is all-mighty, all-wise. 
There is none among the People of the Book but will surely believe in him before his death; and on the Day of Resurrection, he will be a witness against them. 
Due to the wrongdoing of the Jews, We prohibited them certain good things that were permitted to them [earlier], and for their barring many [people] from the way of Allah, 
and for their taking usury—though they had been forbidden from it—and for eating up the wealth of the people wrongfully. And We have prepared for the faithless among them a painful punishment. }}

=== V2 ===
Surah 4 (summarized version)

1) They ask Moses for a sign and are hit with a thunderbolt

2) They then take up the calf for worship

3) The mountain is raised above them{{Quote|{{Quran|4|153-154}}|The People of the Book ask you to bring down for them a Book from the sky. Certainly they asked Moses for [something] greater than that, for they said, ‘Show us Allah visibly,’ whereat a thunderbolt seized them for their wrongdoing. Then they took up the Calf [for worship], after all the manifest proofs that had come to them. Yet We excused that, and We gave Moses a manifest authority. 
And We raised the Mount above them for the sake of their covenant, and We said to them, ‘Enter the gate prostrating’ and We said to them, ‘Do not violate the Sabbath,’ and We took from them a solemn covenant.}}Surah 2
1) They worshiped the calf. And Moses tells them to slay the guilty among them.

2) They are hit by a thunderbolt - is it chronological?

3) ... a mountain is lifted above them
{{Quote|{{Quran|2|51-56}}|And when We made an appointment with Moses for forty nights, you took up the Calf [for worship] in his absence, and you were wrongdoers. 
Then We excused you after that so that you might give thanks. 
And when We gave Moses the Book and the Criterion so that you might be guided. 
And [recall] when Moses said to his people, ‘O my people! You have indeed wronged yourselves by taking up the Calf [for worship]. Now turn penitently to your Maker, and slay [the guilty among] your folks. That will be better for you with your Maker.’ Then He turned to you clemently. Indeed, He is the All-clement, the All-merciful. 
And when you said, ‘O Moses, we will not believe you until we see Allah visibly.’ Thereupon a thunderbolt seized you as you looked on.
Then We raised you up after your death so that you might give thanks.}}
== The Lote Tree of the utmost Boundary (Sid'rati al-Muntahā) ==
Lote tree's are a real type of tree (Ziziphus spina-christi) native to Arabia and the Middle East.<ref>[https://www.suewickison.com/products/lote-tree?srsltid=AfmBOorj_RU2x1OPxgfRe689M2TWw1g4uZTQLkpSolPGYnIatiIe7h6K Lote Tree | Sidr | Ziziphus spina-christi |] Plants of the Qur'an | Sue Wickison </ref> Different to the tree of eternity/immortality ''(shajarati ul-khul'di)'' in paradise ''jannah,'' the Qur'an mentions The Lote Tree (sidr) of ''the utmost boundary (al-muntahā)''<ref>مُنْتَهَىٰ - [https://lexicon.quranic-research.net/pdf/Page_3029.pdf Lane's Lexicon pp.3029]

</ref> near (but notably not in) the 'garden of abode', said to be 'covered' yaghshā by something unspecified in Q53:16, typically taken by exegetes to mean by angels, light and/or golden animals.<ref>E.g. see [https://quranx.com/Tafsirs/53.16 Tafsirs on Q53:16]</ref>

{{Quote|{{Quran|53|13-17}}|And certainly he saw him (in) descent another,
Near (the) Lote Tree (of) the utmost boundary,
Near it (is the) Garden (of) Abode.
when there covered the Lote Tree what covered it.
Not swerved the sight and not it transgressed.}}

This furthest boundary/limit is said in the hadith, to place the cosmic tree in the sixth heaven, where even celestial creatures cannot go beyond as the limit of creation; said to be seen by Muhammad in his Night Journey (mi’rāj) on the [[:en:Buraq|Buraq]] (E.g. {{Muslim|1|329}}, {{Al Tirmidhi|2=5|3=44|4=3276}}, {{Bukhari|5|58|227}} & {{Al Nasai|2=1|3=5|4=452}}), and by many Islamic exegetes.<ref>See [https://quranx.com/tafsirs/53.14 tafsirs on Q53:14]</ref>

This would align the cosmology of Islamic traditions supporting the idea that paradise (and therefore the garden of the abode) is in the seventh heaven,<ref>[https://islamqa.info/en/answers/215011/where-are-paradise-and-hell#Where_is_Paradise Where is Paradise] | [https://islamqa.info/en/answers/215011/where-are-paradise-and-hell Where Are Paradise and Hell?] | 07/January/2015 islamqa</ref> while some traditions support the idea that paradise is above the seventh heaven,<ref>[https://www.islamweb.net/en/fatwa/107126/the-location-of-paradise-now#:~:text=Paradise%20that%20Allaah%20promised%20for,are%20many%20texts%20proving%20this. The location of Paradise now] | Paradise and Hell | Belief in the Hereafter | Islamic Creed | Fatwa | islamweb.net </ref> both placing the tree relatively close to jannah. However others suggest that this specific ''garden of the abode (jannatu l-mawā)'' is a separate garden/paradise to the eternal one all righteous Muslims will eventually enter, being instead one where martyrs (those killed in war or for their religion) go before judgement day.<ref>E.g. see [https://quranx.com/Tafsirs/53.15 tafsirs on Q53:15]</ref>

Either way there is no evidence of a celestial tree, which must be magic to survive outside of an Earthly plant ecosystem, but is rather an example of tree mythology.
----
----

(See also: <nowiki>https://sunnah.com/mishkat:5865</nowiki> & https://sunnah.com/mishkat:5640, ) read; https://quranx.com/tafsirs/53.14 - exegetes also confirm this is where boundary is the boundary of the skies/heavens where things other than God cannot pass (at least until judgement day where paradise and hell can be entered).

AND Similarly seen next to the 4 main Near-East rivers (Nile, Euphratesm Tigres,) <nowiki>https://sunnah.com/bukhari:5610</nowiki>, which area said to flow from paradise: <nowiki>https://quranx.com/Hadith/Bukhari/USC-MSA/Volume-5/Book-58/Hadith-227/</nowiki> )

cite: [https://www.islamweb.net/en/fatwa/107126/the-location-of-paradise-now#:~:text=Paradise%20that%20Allaah%20promised%20for,are%20many%20texts%20proving%20this. https://www.islamweb.net/en/fatwa/107126/the-location-of-paradise-now#:~:text=Paradise%20that%20Allaah%20promised%20for,are%20many%20texts%20proving%20this.]

The utmost boundary at the end of t heavens confirmed by exegetes in https://quranx.com/tafsirs/53.14

" Jannat al-ma'va' literally means "the Jannat (Garden) that is to be an abode. " Hadrat Hasan Basri says that this is the same Jannat which the believers and righteous will be given in the Hereafter, and from this same verse he has argued that that Jannat is in the heavens. Qatadah says that this is the Jannat in which the souls of the martyrs are kept; it does not imply the Jannat that is to be given in the Hereafter. Ibn 'Abbas also says the same but adds that the Jannat to be granted to the believers in the Hereafter is not in the heavens but here on the earth.

== Parallels Between the Qur'an and Late Antique Judeo-Christian Literature - Part 2 ==
Following on from [[Parallels Between the Qur'an and Late Antique Judeo-Christian Literature|Part 1]], this is Part 2 of Late Antique Judeo-Christian Literature found in the Qur'an. This material, drawing heavily on rabbinical commentaries on the bible, and late Syriac Christian thought found in homilies, was created far later than the biblical cannon; no-where near the time of the events that occurred. This suggests the stories were transmitted in an oral millennia along with local Arabian traditions<ref>Bannister, Andrew G.. ''An Oral-Formulaic Study of the Qur'an (Kindle Location 249-259 in Chapter 1.2 The Biblicist Roots of the Iblis and Adam Story).'' Bloomsbury Publishing. Kindle Edition.

..When the Qur’an emerged in the seventh-century, it did so in an oral culture in which Biblicist traditions were freely circulating and thus there existed a large pool of commonly known stories and traditions to fish from; a pool in which stories could cross-fertilize and influence one another. 23 It is this, more than direct borrowing that perhaps best explains stories like Iblis and Adam as well as other qur’anic tellings of older tales, such as the Seven Sleepers (Q. 18: 9– 25) 24 and the Legend of Alexander (Dhu al-Qarnayn, Q. 18: 83– 101). 25 The Qur’an originates from a milieu in which Biblicist material was well-known to the first audience of the Qur’an; even a simple allusion to a story was often enough to trigger a connection for the hearer. 26 That Biblicist material has been filtered through storytelling rather than simply copied from a written text is further suggested by what the Qur’an leaves out; no minor prophets are referenced, probably because almost no Old Testament narratives feature them nor did the rabbinic literature weave lengthy tales about them. 27 The exception which proves the rule is Jonah (Q. 21: 87– 88; 37: 139– 148; 68: 48– 50), whose short but dramatic story was extremely popular in both Jewish and Christian contexts.28..

And: Bannister, Andrew G.. ''An Oral-Formulaic Study of the Qur'an (Kindle Locations 1391-1392. Chapter 2.3 The Islamic Tradition and Orality).'' Bloomsbury Publishing. Kindle Edition.</ref> where biblical and much later Jewish and Christian stories could be commonly mixed without the new community realizing.
== The story of Noah ==
The prophet Noah is portrayed extremely differently to the one in Genesis,<ref>Segovia, Carlos A.. ''[https://almuslih.org/wp-content/uploads/2024/12/Segovia-C-The-Quranic-Noah-and-the-Making-of-the-Islamic-Prophet.pdf The Quranic Noah and the Making of the Islamic Prophet: A Study of Intertextuality and Religious Identity Formation in Late Antiquity]'', Berlin, München, Boston: De Gruyter, 2015. <nowiki>https://doi.org/10.1515/9783110405897</nowiki></ref> taking on Jewish and Christian traditions, characteristics, as well as terms from late antique Judeo-Christian writings,<ref>The Qur'anic Noah. pp.21-21</ref> molded to suit Muhammad's situation in line with other messengers in the Qur'an.<ref>''The Qurʾan and its Biblical Reflexes: Investigations into the Genesis of a Religion. Chapter 5.3 Messenger Uniformatism. pp.135-143'' By Mark Durie. Lanham, MD: Lexington Books, 2018. </ref>

=== The preaching of Noah ===

Surah 71 consists entirely of the preaching of Noah and his supplications to Allah.{{Quote|{{Quran-range|71|1|28}}|Indeed, We sent Noah to his people, [saying], "Warn your people before there comes to them a painful punishment." He said, "O my people, indeed I am to you a clear warner, [Saying], 'Worship Allah, fear Him and obey me. Allah will forgive you of your sins and delay you for a specified term. Indeed, the time [set by] Allah, when it comes, will not be delayed, if you only knew.' " 
[...]
And Noah said, "My Lord, do not leave upon the earth from among the disbelievers an inhabitant. Indeed, if You leave them, they will mislead Your servants and not beget except [every] wicked one and [confirmed] disbeliever. My Lord, forgive me and my parents and whoever enters my house a believer and the believing men and believing women. And do not increase the wrongdoers except in destruction."}}Reynolds remarks that "The Qur'ānic character of Noah is quite unlike that of the Noah in Genesis, who does not speak a word until after the flood." Citing the Babylonian Talmud, Sanhedrin 108a, he observes that "[his preaching] is also suggested by a passage in the Talmud:
::"The righteous Noah rebuked them, urging, 'Repent; for if not, the Holy One, blessed be He, will bring a deluge upon you and cause your bodies to float upon the water like gourds, as it is written, He is light [i.e., floats] upon the waters. Moreover, ye shall be taken as a curse for all future generations.' (b. Sanhedrin 108a)"
Reynolds further notes, "It is also prominent in the Syriac fathers, several of whom report that Noah preached to his people for a hundred years before God finally sent the flood." citing for example the Syriac authors Narsai, "On the Flood", 33, II. 227-30 and Jacob of Serugh, ''Homilies contre les juifs'', 70, homily 2, II. 37-40.<ref>Gabriel Said Reynolds, ''The Qurʾān and Bible'' p. 858</ref>

The opponents reject Noah's preaching despite him doing so 'day and night' (Quran 71:5-6) in which they respond by putting their fingers in their ears Quran 71:7, on which Neuwirth (2024) notes that "the means of plugging one’s ears in order to shut oneself off from unpleasant news is also encountered in the Talmud (bKetubbot 5a)."<ref>Neuwirth, Angelika. The Qur'an: Text and Commentary, ''Volume 2.1: Early Middle Meccan Suras: The New Elect (p. 280).'' Yale University Press. Kindle Edition.</ref>

=== Noah's disbelieving wife ===
{{Quote|{{Quran|66|10}}|Allah presents an example of those who disbelieved: the wife of Noah and the wife of Lot. They were under two of Our righteous servants but betrayed them, so those prophets did not avail them from Allah at all, and it was said, "Enter the Fire with those who enter."}}The Bible briefly mentions Noah's wife in one verse without further comment ([https://www.biblegateway.com/passage/?search=Genesis%207%3A7&version=NIV Genesis 7:7]), "And Noah and his sons and his wife and his sons’ wives entered the ark to escape the waters of the flood." Regarding the Quranic verse which speaks of her negatively, Reynolds briefly considers the possibility that the Quran has extended to their wives the parallelism between Noah (though not his wife) and Lot found in the New Testament ([https://www.biblegateway.com/passage/?search=2%20Peter%202&version=NIV 2 Peter 2]), but then comments, "However, it is important to note that already in the pre-Islamic period certain groups had developed hostile legends about Noah's wife." He cites Epiphanius (d. 403 CE), ''Panarion'' 2:26, which relates the Gnostic belief that she was not allowed onto the ark, having burned it down three times before the flood.<ref>Gabriel Said Reynolds, ''The Qurʾān and Bible'' p. 841</ref>

=== Noah's flood waters overflowed from an oven ===
The Qur'anic version of the Noah's flood story describes the flood waters as overflowing from an oven. This element is not found even in more ancient versions of the story (Epic of Gilgamesh, Atra hasis, and Ziusudra).

Note that in his translation, Yusuf Ali mistranslates the Aramaic loan word for the oven (alttannooru ٱلتَّنُّورُ)<ref>[http://www.studyquran.org/LaneLexicon/Volume1/00000355.pdf Lane's Lexicon p. 318 تَّنُّورُ]</ref> as "fountains". The Arabic verb translated "gushed forth" (fara فَارَ) means overflowed or boiled in the context of water in a cooking pot<ref>[http://www.studyquran.org/LaneLexicon/Volume6/00000241.pdf Lane's Lexicon p. 2457 فور]</ref>, as well as in the other verse where it is used, {{Quran|67|7}}. Here is Pickthall's more accurate translation:{{Quote|{{Quran|11|40}}|
(Thus it was) till, when Our commandment came to pass '''and the oven gushed forth water''', We said: Load therein two of every kind, a pair (the male and female), and thy household, save him against whom the word hath gone forth already, and those who believe. And but a few were they who believed with him.}}{{Quote|{{Quran|23|27}}|
Then We inspired in him, saying: Make the ship under Our eyes and Our inspiration. Then, when Our command cometh '''and the oven gusheth water''', introduce therein of every (kind) two spouses, and thy household save him thereof against whom the Word hath already gone forth. And plead not with Me on behalf of those who have done wrong. Lo! they will be drowned.}}At one time academic scholars thought this verse alluded to a Midrashic exegesis in which the flood waters were boiling hot (b. Sanhedrin 108b, [https://www.sefaria.org/Rosh_Hashanah.12a.4?lang=bi|Tracate Rosh Hashanah 12a:4]). More recent scholarship, particularly by Olivier Mongellaz in 2024,<ref name="Mongellaz2024">Olivier Mongellaz (2024) [https://brill.com/view/journals/arab/71/4-5/article-p513_4.xml Le four de Noé : un cas d’intertextualité coranique], Arabica 71(4-5), 513-637. https://doi.org/10.1163/15700585-20246900</ref> has identified that these verses most likely reflect a late antique legend in which water gushing up through a bread oven (a large hole dug into the ground) was a sign warning Noah's family of the imminent flood. The interpretation as Noah's own oven is attributed to a number of early commentators (such as Ibn Abbas, Mujahid), while others understood it to be the area of land where the flood waters first rose. Qurtubi said: "The sayings of commentators appear to be different as to the meaning of tannur, but this, in reality, is not a difference. When water began to bulge out, it overflowed from the bread baking oven, and from out of the surface of the land".

Significantly, Mongellaz has argued on literary grounds that a fragmentary Arabic text falsely attributed to Hippolytus of Rome, and which mentions the overflowing bread oven story, is independent of the Islamic tradition and was originally written in a very specific environment which has parallels with the context in which certain parts of the Quran were written.{{Quote|Pseudo. Hippolytus of Rome (translated to English from Mongellaz's French translation)<ref name="Mongellaz2024" />|Meanwhile, Ham's wife stood up to take out the bread that remained in the oven and immediately water sprang out of the oven [fāḍa l-māʾmin al-tannūr] and immediately water came out of the oven, as the Lord had said: "The fountains of the great deeps were opened." Ham's wife called to Noah, saying, "My lord, the word of God has come true (Syr. what God promised has come true!)" - for it had come true just as the Lord had promised her. When Noah heard Ham's wife's words, he said to her, "Oh, the flood has come."}}

=== Noah's ark left behind as a sign ===
{{Quote|{{Quran-range|54|13|15}}|And We carried him on a [construction of] planks and nails, Sailing under Our observation as reward for he who had been denied. And We left it as a sign, so is there any who will remember?}}Unlike the bible, which does not mention the ark as a sign for future generations, Neuwirth (2024) notes the salvation of Noah is made physically plausible to the listeners through the reference to the material verifiability of the ark, which could be taken from various late antique traditions, for example Flavius Josephus (b. 37AD) reports in the ''Jewish Antiquities (I 3.5 § 92)'' of the existence of the remains of Noah’s ark in Armenia (Clementz 1959: 22).<ref name=":0">Neuwirth, Angelika. ''The Qur'an: Text and Commentary, Volume 2.1: Early Middle Meccan Suras: The New Elect (p. 62).'' Yale University Press. Kindle Edition.</ref> She also notes that the appeal to the willingness of the listeners to be admonished by the sign (āya) of Noah’s ark is also reminiscent of the Talmudic story (bSanhedrin 96a) of the death of Sennacherib, who was led to a fateful decision by seeing the remains of Noah’s ark.<ref name=":0" />
==Moses and Pharaoh==
Alongside the biblical account of Moses and the Pharoah, there are some key aspects that match Jewish Rabbinic and Christian non-biblical traditions. Even the place where Moses communicates with God in the story of the burning bush, the word used ''ṭuwan'' in e.g. {{Quran|20|12}} (for the folded land, implying double the holiness)<ref>See; Neuwirth, Angelika. ''The Qur'an: Text and Commentary, Volume 2.1: Early Middle Meccan Suras: The New Elect (p. 199).'' Yale University Press. Kindle Edition. Ṭuwā stands for the holy Mount Sinai or Horeb (cf. KU, 124ff.; FVQ, 206ff.; BEQ, 255ff.). The word was long thought to be a rhyming transformation of Aramaic ṭūrā (“the mountain”), but now, based on rabbinic tradition and in agreement with traditional exegetes, Uri Rubin has convincingly interpreted bi-l-wādī l-muqaddasi Ṭuwā to mean “in the doubly hallowed valley” (see Rubin 2014). (The Sinai is in a sense the “folded Holy Land” [ṬWY = “to fold”].) Citing: Rubin, Uri, 2014, ''[https://urirubin.com/assets/docs/Tuwan.86132451.pdf Moses and the Holy Valley Ṭuwan. On the Biblical and Midrashic Background of a Qurʾanic Scene],'' Journal of Near Eastern Studies 73, 73–81.</ref> does not have a parallel in the bible,<ref>''[https://urirubin.com/assets/docs/Tuwan.86132451.pdf Moses and the Holy Valley Ṭuwan: On the biblical and midrashic background of a qurʾānic scene.]'' Rubin 2014. Ibid. pp. 75.</ref> but does in other Judeo-Christian (later) works.<ref>Ibid. pp. 76-78</ref> And the idea of eschatology in Moses's story such as {{Quran|20|15}}, with reward in the afterlife being mentioned, is not contained in the biblical story of Moses, Neuwirth (2024) notes moves the story into a late antiquity interpretation.<ref>Neuwirth, Angelika. ''The Qur'an: Text and Commentary, Volume 2.1: Early Middle Meccan Suras: The New Elect (p. 199).'' Yale University Press. Kindle Edition.</ref> Key details in the stories include:
===The prophecy of baby Moses===
Alongside the scene of [https://www.biblegateway.com/passage/?search=Exodus%201%3A8-2%3A10&version=NIV Exodus 1:8-2:10] where the Hebrews in Egyptian bondage are told to kill all male babies to control the growing Israelite population, where Moses's mother places his basket in the Nile to escape; Neuwirth (2024) citing Speyer, notes that ''the prophecy to Moses’s mother that an enemy—of Moses as well as of God himself—would take him in reflects a Midrashic interpretation of Exodus Rabba (1:31: “So the daughter of Pharaoh raised the daughter, who was once to take revenge on her father”). The event is explicitly based on a divine intention, namely, to make Moses his chosen one.''<ref>''The Qur'an: Text and Commentary, Volume 2.1: Early Middle Meccan Suras: The New Elect'' Ibid. pp. 201.</ref>{{Quote|{{Quran-range|20|37|39}}|We have bestowed Our favour on you before this, When We told your mother what We relate: 'Put him in a wooden box and cast it in the river. The river will cast it on the bank. An enemy of Ours, and his, will retrieve it.' We bestowed Our love on you that you may be reared under Our eyes.}}And similarly the next verse unlike the bible focuses on the emotional impact of the event on Moses’s mother, Neuwirth notes is comparable to Midrash Exodus Rabba 1:25.<ref>Ibid. pp. 201-202.</ref> Moses's salvation from persecution after manslaughter is commemorated with similar consideration of Moses’s mental condition.<ref>Ibid. pp. 202.</ref>{{Quote|{{Quran|20|40}}|When your sister walked up [to Pharaoh’s palace] saying, “Shall I show you someone who will take care of him?” Then We restored you to your mother, that she might not grieve and be comforted. Then you slew a soul, whereupon We delivered you from anguish, and We tried you with various ordeals. Then you stayed for several years among the people of Midian. Then you turned up as ordained, O Moses!}}
===Moses not suckled by Egyptians===
{{Quote|{{Quran-range|28|12|13}}|And We had prevented from him [all] wet nurses before, so she said, "Shall I direct you to a household that will be responsible for him for you while they are to him [for his upbringing] sincere?" So We restored him to his mother that she might be content and not grieve and that she would know that the promise of Allah is true. But most of the people do not know.}}Reynolds comments, "On this passage cf. Exodus 2:7-9. The Qurʾān's declaration (v. 12) 'We had forbidden him to be suckled by any nurse' (v. 12) reflects a tradition in the Babylonian Talmud that Moses (from whose mouth would come forth the word of God) refused the impure breasts of the Egyptian women:
::Then said his sister to Pharaoh's daughter, Shall I go and call thee a nurse of the Hebrew women? Why just 'of the Hebrew women'? - It teaches that they handed about to all the Egyptian women but he would not suck. He said: Shall a mouth which will speak with [God] suck what is unclean! (b. Sotah 12b)"<ref>Gabriel Said Reynolds, ''The Qurʾān and Bible'' p. 598</ref>
===Moses's speech impediment===
Moses has some kind of speech impediment when going to speak to Pharaoh in the Qurʾān.{{Quote|{{Quran-range|20|24|28}}|"Go to Pharaoh. Indeed, he has transgressed."( Moses) said: "O, my Lord! Expand me my breast,” ease my task for me, And untie the knot from my tongue, so they may understand what I say.”}}Biblical Scholar James Kugel (1997)<ref>Kugel, James L.. The Bible As It Was (Kindle Edition. pp. 432-433). Harvard University Press.</ref> notes that later Jewish and Christian commentators found it necessary to explain Moses's statement in the Old Testament “''Oh my Lord, I am not a man of words … but I am heavy of speech and heavy of tongue''” ([https://www.biblegateway.com/passage/?search=Exodus%204%3A10&version=NIV Exodus 4:10]), as he was believed to be a highly educated man who had been supposedly been schooled in every branch of wisdom, including eloquence.

He notes "it occurred to interpreters that Moses might have been referring here not to any lacuna in his education, but to an actual speech defect, some physical deformity of his mouth or tongue that prevented him from speaking in the usual fashion." We see this in:<ref>Ibid. pp. 432 - 433 (Kindle Edition)</ref>

"''I'' ''am not by nature eloquent; my tongue with difficulty speaks, I stammer, so that I cannot speak before the king."'' —Ezekiel the Tragedian, Exaggē 113– 115 (3rd-2nd century BCE)

''He [Moses] pleased his parents by his beauty, but grieved them by his speech impediment. —''Ephraem, Commentary on Exodus 2: 4 (d. 373 AD)

Others even added stories on how he might have acquired that deformity, such as Josephus in Jewish Antiquities 2: 232– 236 (published ~93/94 AD), connecting their explanation of Moses’ speech problems to the tradition of Pharaoh’s wise men and their warnings about a boy that might grow up and save Israel.<ref>Ibid. pp. 433 - 434 (Kindle Edition)</ref>
===Pharaohs questions===
Neuwirth (2024) comments that the list of further detailed questions to Moses in Surah 26 'The Poets' / al-shuʿarāʾ (i.e. in {{Quran-range|26|22|29}}), citing Speyer, reflect a more detailed episode from Midrash Exodus Rabba 5:18, which also starts from Pharaoh’s self-praise as God.<ref>Neuwirth, Angelika. ''The Qur'an: Text and Commentary, Volume 2.1: Early Middle Meccan Suras: The New Elect (p. 250).'' Yale University Press. Kindle Edition.</ref>
===The Drowning of Pharaoh===
{{Quote|{{Quran-range|10|90|92}}|And We took the Children of Israel across the sea, and Pharaoh and his soldiers pursued them in tyranny and enmity until, when drowning overtook him, he said, "I believe that there is no deity except that in whom the Children of Israel believe, and I am of the Muslims." Now? And you had disobeyed [Him] before and were of the corrupters? So today We will save you in body that you may be to those who succeed you a sign. And indeed, many among the people, of Our signs, are heedless}}Reynolds comments, "The question of Pharaoh's survival appears in an opinion found in the (late fourth century AD) ''Mekilta de-Rabbi Ishmael'' (cr. Gavin McDowell):
::"And the waters returned and covered the chariot etc. [Exo 14:27]. Even Pharaoh, according to the words of R. Judah, as it is said, 'The chariots of Pharaoh and his force, etc.' [Exo 15:4]. R. Nehimiah says: ''Except for Pharaoh.'' About him it says, 'However, for this purpose I have let you live' [Exo 9:16]. Others say that in the end Pharaoh went down and drowned, as it is said, 'Then went the horse of Pharaoh, etc.' [Exo 15:19]. (Beshallah 7)"<ref>Gabriel Said Reynolds, ''The Qurʾān and Bible'' p. 339</ref>
==Arguments for resurrection==
Reynolds (2020) notes the repeated argument that God can resurrect the dead using the analogy that he can bring life back to barren (or dead) land may be connected to a Jewish tradition that God will resurrect the dead with dew, for example, in b. Shabbat 88b.<ref name=":2" />
{{Quote|{{Quran|30|19}}|He brings forth the living from the dead, and brings forth the dead from the living, and revives the earth after its death. Likewise, you [too] shall be raised [from the dead].}}

Cf: {{Quran|16|65}}, {{Quran|43|11}}, {{Quran|50|6-11}}, {{Quran|57|17}}
==Late antique Christian Martyrdom==
{{Main|Shaheed (Martyr)}}
Durie (2018) notes the violence of the Qur'an shares more commonality with contemporary late antique religious (primarily Christian) violence and warfare rather than being directly biblically based.<ref>Durie, Mark. ''The Qur’an and Its Biblical Reflexes: Investigations into the Genesis of a Religion.'' Lexington Books. 2018. Pp. 229 -237. (Kindle Edition: pp. 423-439). 6.9 Stories of Fighting Prophets</ref>

=== Textual overlap ===

Covering the continuity and similarities between late antique religious violence & warfare and the Qur'an (and other Islamic traditions) is too big a topic to cover here; perhaps the most in-depth academic work looking at the continuity between this and Islam is Thomas Sizgorich's ''Violence and Belief in Late Antiquity: Militant Devotion in Christianity and Islam'', however Sinai (2017) notes alongside similar ideas and theology, there are some direct textual references.{{Quote|Sinai, Nicolai. Qur'an: A Historical-Critical Introduction (The New Edinburgh Islamic Surveys) (pp. 301-302). Edinburgh University Press. Kindle Edition.|That the Qur’anic community’s access to Biblical notions of militancy was mediated by late antique Christian discourse is indicated by an intriguing intertextual overlap. According to Q 3: 169–170, those who have been ‘killed in the path of God’ are not dead but ‘alive with their Lord’, rather than having to spend the remaining time until the Resurrection in a state of slumber (similarly Q 2: 154).39 Tor Andrae has pointed out that the phrase ‘alive with their Lord’ (ayāun inda rabbihim) corresponds exactly to the Syriac phrase h. ayyē lwāth alāhā, which a sixth-century Syriac Christian writer (Mar Ishay) applies to the martyrs.40 Furthermore, Mar Ishay contrasts the true fate of the martyrs with unfounded prior opinion: ‘they are believed to be already dead’.41 The same contrast is found in the two Qur’anic passages just cited.42 It could be objected that the parallel demonstrates merely that the Qur’an is familiar with the widespread Christian idea that martyrs are granted prompt access to paradise but that this does not establish a Christian precedent for the Qur’anic application of this idea specifically to those who actively enact – rather than just suffer – violence. However, as Sizgorich reminds us, a Christian martyr was by no means seen merely as a passive victim of persecution but rather as someone who actively ‘defeats the power of the Roman state’.43}}{{Quote|{{Quran|3|169}}|And never think of those who have been killed in the cause of Allah as dead. Rather, they are alive with their Lord, receiving provision}}{{Quote|{{Quran|2|154}}|Do not say that those who are killed in the way of God, are dead, for indeed they are alive, even though you are not aware.}}

=== Martyrs sidestep judgement day ===
After death, humans are typically said to spend their time in an intermediate state known to traditional Islamic scholars as the ''barzakh'' while they wait.<ref>Reynolds, Gabriel Said. 2020. ''Allah:'' ''God in the Qur'an (p. 71-72).'' Yale University Press. Kindle Edition.

It is also the same term used for the barrier between the living and the dead (whilst awaiting judgement day) in the Qur'an, e.g. {{Quran|23|99-100}}</ref> However, as in the above verses, one exception to this rule is Martyrs being with God straight away rather than being judged at judgment day, a non-biblical idea having parallels with late antique Christian thought.

Sinai (2017) similarly notes strong ideological parallels a 6th century hagiographical text (the Panegyric on Macarius, Bishop of Tkow by Pseudo-Dioscorus of Alexandria) of a 5th-century martyr, Egyptian Bishop Macarius of Tkow who was martyred for opposing the council of Chalcedon. Citing Michael Gaddis's summary of the document, ‘He was both willing to die for his faith, and willing to kill for it.’ he notes the same idea in {{Quran|9|111}} … they fight in the way of Allah, kill, and are killed.. <ref>Ibid. (Kindle Edition. pp. 299).</ref> As well as citing English historian of the Byzantine Empire James Howard-Johnston "''..James Howard-Johnston draws attention to a passage in the Chronicle of Theophanes Confessor (d. 818), which reports that at about the same time when the Qur’an promised those ‘killed in the path of God’ immediate entry to paradise, the Byzantine emperor Heraclius similarly announced that those fighting the Sasanians would be recompensed with eternal life. In Heraclius’s address as reported by Theophanes Confessor, we find some of the same general ingredients that are noticeable in Qur’anic calls to militancy…''"<ref>Ibid. (Kindle Edition. pp. 301).</ref> He notes these similarities are likely caused by being on the fringes of the Roman empire.<ref>Ibid. (Kindle Edition. pp. 301).</ref>

==== Martyrdom wipes away other sins and is privileged above other acts from believers ====
{{Quote|Reynolds, Gabriel Said. Christianity and the Qur'an: The Rise of Islam in Christian Arabia (pp. 178-179). Yale University Press. Kindle Edition.|The teaching on the glory earned by martyrs is widespread in the early church. It is nevertheless telling to find the way it is emphasized in the third-century Christian text the aforementioned Didascalia Apostolorum, originally written in Greek but preserved in Syriac.87 The Didascalia clearly teaches that the martyrs will have a privilege above other faithful believers: If then He raises up all men,—as He said by Isaiah: All flesh shall see the salvation of God [Isa 40.5; 52.10],—much more will He quicken and raise up the faithful; and (yet more) again will He quicken and raise up the faithful of the faithful, who are the martyrs, and establish them in great glory and make them His counsellors. For to mere disciples, those who believe in Him, He has promised a glory as of the stars [Dan 12.3]; but to the martyrs He has promised to give an everlasting glory, as of the luminaries which fail not, with more abundant light, that they may be shining for all time.88

The Didascalia is also clear, as is the Qur’an, that martyrs enjoy a special grace through the forgiveness of sins that their deaths have earned for them: But again, sins are forgiven by baptism also to those who from the Gentiles draw near and enter the holy Church of God. Let us inquire also, to whom sins are not imputed. To such as Abraham and Isaac and Jacob and all the patriarchs, as also to the martyrs. Let us hear then, brethren, for the Scripture saith: Who shall boast himself and say: I am clear of sins? Or who shall be confident and say: I am innocent? [Prov 20.9].

And again: There is no man pure of defilement: not though his life be but one day [Job 14.4–5 LXX]. To everyone therefore who believes and is baptized his … former sins have been forgiven; but after baptism also, provided that he has not sinned a deadly sin nor been an accomplice (thereto), but has heard only, or seen, or spoken, and is thus guilty of sin. But if a man go forth from the world by martyrdom for the name of the Lord, blessed is he; for brethren who by martyrdom have gone forth from this world, of these the sins are covered.89

We might compare Q 3:195: “ ‘And those who emigrated, and were expelled from their habitations, those who suffered hurt in My way, and fought, and were slain—them I shall surely acquit of their evil deeds, and I shall admit them to gardens underneath which rivers flow.’ A reward from God! And God with Him is the fairest reward” (italics added). In other words, the Qur’an seems to be well aware of Christian devotion to the martyrs.}}

=== Martyrdom in the Torah and Gospels ===
Muslims who fight are promised paradise, which the Qur'an claims is also a promise in the Torah and Gospel.{{Quote|{{Quran|9|111}}|Indeed Allah has bought from the faithful their souls and their possessions for paradise to be theirs: they fight in the way of Allah, kill, and are killed. A promise binding upon Him in the Torah and the Evangel and the Quran. And who is truer to his promise than Allah? So rejoice in the bargain you have made with Him, and that is the great success.}}Nickel (2020)<ref>Nickel, Gordon D. ''The Quran with Christian Commentary: A Guide to Understanding the Scripture of Islam (p. 222).'' Zondervan Academic. Kindle Edition. 9.111 – They fight in the way of God, and they kill and are killed When the Quran describes believers as fighting “in the way of Allah,” it makes a theological claim by associating Allah with human fighting. See the analysis of these expressions at 73.20 (p. 597). 9.111 – a promise binding on Him in the Torah, and the Gospel, and the Qur’ān This is the only verse in the Quran that brings the Torah (tawrāt), Gospel (injīl), and qur’ān (lit. “recitation”) together. The Quran claims here that the particular point on which the Torah and Gospel agree with the Muslim recitation is that believers “fight in the way of Allah, and they kill and are killed.” This verse makes the reader question whether the Quran has a clear idea of the contents of the Torah and Gospel. A similar question is raised by 61.14, which appears to say that ‘Īsā and his disciples fought against their enemies (cf. 3.52). Along with these misunderstandings, the Quran gives no information about the peaceable teaching and example of Jesus in the Gospel accounts. See the analysis of the Quran’s verses on the “Gospel” at 57.27 (p. 549). Do the Torah and Gospel in fact contain such a promise? See the comment on this characterization of the Bible at 61.14 (p. 566).</ref> and Reynolds (2018) however notes that this is not found there:{{Quote|1=Reynolds, G. S. (2018). The Qur'an and the Bible: Text and Commentary. Commentary on 9:111 (pp. 322) United Kingdom: Yale University Press.|2="9:111 The point of this verse is that those who are prepared to give their lives to God in the holy war are promised paradise as a payment for their services (cf. 2:245; 4:74; 61:10–12). The idea that the martyrs have a special assurance of paradise follows from the Qurʾān’s teaching elsewhere that the act of martyrdom involves forgiveness of sin. This teaching is close to that of the Syriac fathers (see commentary on 2:154, with further references). It is curious that the Qurʾān insists that the promise of heaven for holy warriors is found in the Torah and the Gospel (or “Evangel”); heaven is not found in the Torah and holy war is not found in the Gospels...}}While his commentary on 2:154 (pp. 76) once again highlights the Syriac parallel:{{Quote|2="As Tor Andrae has shown (Les origines de l’islam et le christianisme, 161ff.), the idea that martyrdom involves the absolution of sins is prominent in Syriac Christian texts such as the third-century Didascalia (chap. 20) and the Treaty on the Martyrs of Mar Isaï (d. late sixth cen.); the latter text also insists—much like the Qurʾān—that the martyrs are “living”:

The true martyrs who, by way of a death that covers their sins, demonstrate even more the beauty of their deeds and receive this glorious inheritance by virtue of their blood. By leaving this life they have prepared for their souls an honorable abode in paradise. It was thought that they are already dead, but by their death they have killed their sin, and they are alive with God. (Mar Isaï, Treaty on the Martyrs, 32)}}
=== Further Martyrdom Influence ===
Neuwirth (2024) also notes the influence of Christian martyrdom stories on the sudden conversion and prayers/asking for forgiveness to God of Pharaoh's magician's, who are originally opponents of Moses until he shows them proof of his prophecy via a miracle in the face of a sudden and violent death as threatened by the arrogant ruler (e.g. in {{Quran-range|26|50|51}} and {{Quran-range|20|71|73}}).<ref>Neuwirth, Angelika. ''The Qur'an: Text and Commentary, Volume 2.1: Early Middle Meccan Suras: The New Elect (p. 204).'' Yale University Press. Kindle Edition.</ref> Both Jewish and Christian traditions present individual “anti-Moses” sorcerers named Jannes and Jambres, who continue to appear in later interpretations; citing Nora Schmid, she notes that, although there is no explicit textual reference and the magicians are typically depicted in a negative light, they came to be associated with penance and martyrdom in Christian tradition - in the Qurʾan, this idea is developed further: the forgiveness that Jannes and Jambres either did not receive or only partially received in earlier sources is ultimately granted.<ref>Ibid. pp. 251-252</ref>{{Quote|Neuwirth, Angelika. The Qur'an: Text and Commentary, Volume 2.1: Early Middle Meccan Suras: The New Elect (p. 204). Yale University Press. Kindle Edition.|V. 72–73 qālū lan nuʾthiraka ʿalā mā jāʾanā mina l-bayyināti wa-lladhī faṭaranā fa-qḍi mā anta qāḍin innamā taqḍī hādhihi l-ḥayāta l-dunyā / innā āmannā birabbinā li-yaghfira lanā khaṭāyānā wa-mā akrahtanā ʿalayhi mina l-siḥri wallāhu khayrun wa-abqā] Conversion scene as later in Q 26:50–51. The sorcerers renounce their allegiance to Pharaoh on the basis of the obvious evidence (bayyināt) and give preference to the Creator God, they submit to their worldly fate and hope for the forgiveness of their sins and what they have been forced to do by the ruler—they are a role model for the community, which is also subject to pressure from outside. The request for forgiveness of sins before a violent death is a topos of Christian martyr stories. The entire scene, leaving the context of ‘ancient’ Egypt, reflects the notion of Christian martyrdom stories. Khaṭāyā (singular khaṭīʾa) also lets a Syriac terminus technicus ring through, but the word can be derived from the Arabic root KhṬʿ (“to miss a goal”) (see FVQ, 123ff.). The idea of the forgiveness of sins is prominent in the Christian liturgy—not only through the Lord’s Prayer. In addition to khaṭīʾa, there is the genuine Arabic dhanb, dhunūb.}}

== Expansions on the afterlife ==

Reynolds (2020) notes the Qur’ans provides vivid depictions of hell are highly unlike the New Testament, where Jesus refers to afterlife punishment mostly allusively. The closest the Gospels describe hell is through the few images of “fire,” “wailing,” and “gnashing of teeth.”, for example in Matthew’s Parable of the Weeds, Jesus explains that at the end of the age, the Son of Man will send his angels that will cast evildoers into a fiery furnace where there will be weeping and gnashing of teeth (Matt 13:40–42).<ref>Reynolds, Gabriel Said. ''Allah: God in the Qur'an (pp. 81-82).'' Yale University Press. Kindle Edition.</ref> He notes the much more constant an vivid Qur'anic descriptions far better match later Christian works that expanded the descriptions to be more gruesome, in order to scare the reader/audience.<ref>Ibid. pp. 88.

''We might note how all of these traditions are meant to make humans yearn for paradise and fear hell. The Qur’an, from this regard, is a profoundly psychological work. Like a Christian preacher, like John Chrysostom or Saint Ephrem, the author of the Qur’an speaks of heaven and hell to persuade his audience to repent and believe. He does so in a way, however, that is distinct—emphasizing physical pain and physical pleasure in order, apparently, to make a greater impression on his audience. He puts a terrible tree into hell and young women in paradise.''
</ref>{{Quote|Reynolds, Gabriel Said. Allah: God in the Qur'an (pp. 82-83). Yale University Press. Kindle Edition.|The way that the Qur’an describes hell in particularly vivid, gruesome terms brings us back to something we mentioned in Chapter 1, namely, that the Qur’an in many ways is a “homiletic” work, a work written like a homily or sermon. The Qur’an’s intention is not simply to declare that those who disobey God will be punished, but to describe that punishment in a way which brings the awfulness of hell to life. Similarly, homilists in the early centuries of Christianity expanded dramatically on the New Testament allusions to hell. In a sermon attributed to John Chrysostom (d. 407) we read a description of hell with the sort of detail that we find in the Qur’an: It is a sea of fire—not a sea of the kind or dimensions we know here, but much larger and fiercer, with waves made of fire, fire of a strange and fearsome kind. There is a great abyss there, in fact, of terrible flames, and one can see fire rushing about on all sides like some wild animal…. There will be no one who can resist, no one who can escape: Christ’s gentle, peaceful face will be nowhere to be seen.15}}Sinai (2017) in his paper titled "''The Eschatological Kerygma of the Early Qur’an''" notes many overlap with Syriac Homilies on the afterlife as well as other apocalyptic ideas and terminology.<ref>“[https://almuslih.org/wp-content/uploads/Library/Sinai,%20N%20-%20The%20Eschatological%20Kerygma.pdf The Eschatological Kerygma of the Early Qur’an]”, Nicolai Sinai, in ''Apocalypticism and Eschatology in Late Antiquity: Encounters in the Abrahamic Religions, 6th–8th Centuries'', edited by Hagit Amirav, Emmanouela Grypeou, and Guy Stroumsa, Leuven: Peeters, 2017, 219–266.

These are discussed throughout the whole paper, and a summary can be found in pp.50-57. On heaven and hell specifically, the summary is on pp.55-57.</ref>

== Souls are taken away at night ==

The Qur'an (and traditional Islamic exegetes)<ref>See classical commentaries on these verses such as Al-Jalalayn on [https://quranx.com/Tafsir/Jalal/39.42 Q39:42], [https://quranx.com/Tafsir/Jalal/6.60 Q6:60] and Ibn Kathir on [https://quranx.com/Tafsir/Kathir/39.41 Q39:41-2] and [https://quranx.com/Tafsir/Kathir/6.60 Q6:60]</ref> state that the soul is taken away by Allah during the night.{{Quote|{{Quran|39|42}}|Allah takes the souls at the time of their death, and those who have not died, in their sleep. Then He retains those for whom He has ordained death and releases the others until a specified time. There are indeed signs in that for a people who reflect.}}{{Quote|{{Quran|6|60}}|It is He who takes your souls by night, and He knows what you do by day, then He reanimates you therein so that a specified term may be completed. Then to Him will be your return, whereat He will inform you concerning what you used to do.}}Tesei (2016) notes this idea may mimic a late antique Syriac Christian parallel in the poetical language used by Ephrem, who in the Nisibene hymns (7:15) mentions sleep resembles death, and other Christian writers (such as Babai) wrote about sleep metaphorically Jesus's death and waking up like the resurrection;<ref>Tesei, Tommaso. (2016). "[https://www.researchgate.net/publication/344524709_2_The_barzakh_and_the_Intermediate_State_of_the_Dead_in_the_Quran 2 The barzakh and the Intermediate State of the Dead in the Quran]". pp. 40-42 In Locating Hell in Islamic Traditions. Leiden, The Netherlands: Brill. <nowiki>https://doi.org/10.1163/9789004301368_003</nowiki> (Open access)

''At the same time, the Quran also compares death to the “common sleep” that people experience on a daily basis. This seems to be the case in the cryptic statement found in Q 39:42 (cf. Q 6:60), “God takes the souls at the time of their death (ḥīna mawtihā), and [He takes] that which has not died, in its sleep ( fī manāmihā); He withholds that against which He has decreed death, but sets loose the other until a stated term”. This obscure passage appears to indicate that sleep is a death-like state; sleepers resemble the dead since their souls enter into a state similar to that which they will experience at the moment of death. However, unlike the souls of the dead, which will be raised only on the Day of Resurrection, the ordinary sleeper’s soul is sent back when he awakens―that is, of course, until the time of his death. This parallel between death and “common sleep” finds a fairly close correspondence in the poetical language used by Ephrem, who in the Nisibene hymns (7:15) affirms that: “The one who lies down to sleep resembles the departed and death resembles a dream, and the resurrection the morning”. In these passages the Quran’s eschatological discourse is particularly close to that formulated by Babai, in whose ideas the belief in the soul’s sleep is intimately connected to the strong affirmation of the physical resurrection of the body on the Day of Judgment.'' </ref> with this idea taken literally by Muhammad.

== Arguments for resurrection ==
Reynolds (2020) notes the repeated argument that God can resurrect the dead using the analogy that he can bring life back to barren (or dead) land may be connected to a Jewish tradition that God will resurrect the dead with dew, for example, in b. Shabbat 88b.<ref name=":2">See: Reynolds, Gabriel Said. Allah: ''God in the Qur'an (pp. 76-77).'' Yale University Press. Kindle Edition.

And Footnote 10: Reynolds, Gabriel Said. ''Allah: God in the Qur'an (p. 254).'' Yale University Press. Kindle Edition.</ref>
{{Quote|{{Quran|30|19}}|He brings forth the living from the dead, and brings forth the dead from the living, and revives the earth after its death. Likewise, you [too] shall be raised [from the dead].}}

Cf: {{Quran|16|65}}, {{Quran|43|11}}, {{Quran|50|6-11}}, {{Quran|57|17}}

==See Also==
*[[Pre-Islamic Arab Religion in Islam]]

* [[Parallels Between the Qur'an and Late Antique Judeo-Christian Literature|Parallels Between the Qur'an and Late Antique Judeo-Christian Literature - Part 1]]
* [[Historical Errors in the Quran]]
==References==
<references />

User:CPO675/Sandbox 1

2026-06-01T12:32:37Z

CPO675: /* Flat Earth - Tafsirs */

== The story of Joseph ==
There are many differences between the story of Joseph in the Qur'an and the book of Genesis in the bible. Reynolds (2025), largely citing Witzum's (2011) 'The Syriac Millenia of the Qur'an: The Recasting of Biblical Narratives pp191-239' , notes how these match post-biblical writings; with almost all of these distinctive Qur’anic elements showing dependence on or conversation with Syriac Christian traditions (such as Pseudo-Narsai, Ephrem, Pseudo-Basil, Balai, Syriac Bible/Peshitta). A few overlap with Jewish midrash, but the strongest and most consistent influence comes from Christian sources.

Reynolds provides gives 11 clear examples of this

# Joseph’s Dream: Qur’an has only one dream (unlike the Book of Genesis which has two), told directly to Jacob, who warns him to keep it secret - which matches Pseudo-Narsai’s homily (5th-century Syriac Christian). PP78
# The Brothers’ Plot to kill Joseph: the Qur’an shows the brothers plotting at home, not spontaneously in the fields - also found in Pseudo-Narsai.
# The Wolf Motif: the Qur’an specifies a wolf instead of a vague “wild animal” in Gensis - which links to Christian tradition (Pseudo-Narsai) who calls the brothers “wolves” and Joseph “a lamb,” echoing Gospel imagery of shepherds/sheep.
# Joseph in the Pit: Qur’an has Joseph comforted by God in the pit (''jubb''; {{Quran|12|15}}) - which again follows a report in Pseudo-Narsai of revelation to Joseph in the pit (Syriac ''gubbā'').
# Jacob’s (Joseph's father) response to the bloody shirt: the Qur’an has Jacob suspecting deception - reflected in homilies from Ephrem and Balai, who also have Jacob reason that the brothers’ story is false.
# Potiphar and the Garment: the Qur’an shows Potiphar recognizing Joseph’s innocence and his wife's guilt in trying to seduce him - in some post-biblical Jewish Traditions (including ''Genesis Rabbah 87:9'') he shows knowledge of Joseph's innocence - however only in Christian traditions (e.g., Pseudo-Narsai) we find Potiphar, as in {{Quran|12|28-29}}, arguing for Joseph’s innocence by referring to the torn garment as proof.
# Potiphar’s Wife Confesses – Qur’an uniquely has her admit guilt later. ↳ Found in Pseudo-Narsai, where she confesses after Joseph’s rise to power.
# Jacob’s Blindness Healed by Joseph’s Shirt – Qur’an reports Jacob regains sight when Joseph’s shirt touches his face. ↳ Draws on Syriac Christian idioms (“lighten the eyes” = console/restore joy), made literal in the Qur’an (like other symbolic items).
# “Joseph Was a Thief Before” – Qur’an has brothers accuse Joseph of past theft. ↳ Rooted in Pseudo-Narsai, who connects Benjamin’s cup incident to Rachel stealing idols and compares Joseph to her.
# Joseph’s Garment Sent to Jacob – Qur’an has Joseph send his shirt to Jacob. ↳ Related to Syriac Peshitta reading of Genesis and Balai’s poetry, where Jacob receives garments from Joseph.
# Brothers Ask Jacob’s Forgiveness – Qur’an has them repent to Jacob, who asks God to forgive them. ↳ Echoes Balai, who also has Jacob forgive and pray for them.

== Flat Earth - Tafsirs ==

=== The Highest Horizon ===
The Qu'ran says Muhammad was in the highest horizon ''bil-ufuqi<ref>افق - [https://lexicon.quranic-research.net/data/01_A/103_Afq.html Lane's lexicon Classical Arabic Dictionary root: hamza fā qāf (أ ف ق)]

Horizon ''ufuq'' (أُفُق) [https://lexicon.quranic-research.net/pdf/Page_0068.pdf Lane's Lexicon p.68]

Horizon ''ufuq'' (أُفُق) [https://lexicon.quranic-research.net/pdf/Page_0069.pdf Lane's Lexicon p.69] </ref>l-aʿlā''<ref>Lanes Lexicon Classical Arabic Dictionary Root: [https://lexicon.quranic-research.net/data/18_E/190_Elw.html ʿayn lām wāw (ع ل و)]

(l-a)ʿlā [https://lexicon.quranic-research.net/pdf/Page_2142.pdf Lanes Lexicon p.2142], [https://lexicon.quranic-research.net/pdf/Page_2143.pdf Lanes Lexicon p.2143]

</ref>. Typically taken as referring to him receiving knowledge there as part of his [[Buraq#The Night Journey (al-Isra wal-Mi'raj)|night journey]].
{{Quote|{{Quran|53|7}}|possessed of sound judgement. He settled, while he (was) in the horizon - the highest.}}See also: {{Quran|81|23}}

On a round Earth, there is no such place as an objective highest horizon, as once you move towards the perceived horizon (the furthest place you can see where the land and sky appear to meet in the distance)<ref>[https://dictionary.cambridge.org/dictionary/english/horizon Horizon Definition] Cambridge Dictionary</ref> the view simply moves further back as you circle around the earth, never actually being reached. So some classical Islamic exegetes have taken this to be the place where the sun rises from, in the seventh heaven, or where it reaches the Earth,<ref>E.g. [https://quranx.com/Tafsir/Jalal/53.7 Tafsir al-Jalalayn on verse Q53:7] by Al-Mahalli (d. 1459 CE) and Al-Suyuti (d. 1505 CE) and the famous pseudepigrapha [https://quranx.com/Tafsir/Abbas/53.7 Tanwîr al-Miqbâs min Tafsîr Ibn ‘Abbâs on verse Q53:7]</ref> which is only possible on a flat Earth.

== The Historical Jesus ==

=== Other Traditions ===

==== Intro ====

Alongside the main consensus from Biblical Scholars/Historians that Jesus was an eschatological preacher in the early first century AD who believed the Earth would end during his time (and therefore couldn't be the Muslim Jesus), there are many other of the most considered authentic teachings of Jesus that clash with Islam; in contrast with the Qur'anic principle of Messenger Uniformitarianism; where all messengers preach essentially the same thing with only minor variations.<ref>Durie, Mark. ''The Qur’an and Its Biblical Reflexes: Investigations into the Genesis of a Religion (pp. 135-142) (Kindle Edition pp. 281-294)''. 5.3 Messenger Uniformitarianism. Lexington Books. 2018.</ref>
{{Quote|{{Quran|41|43}}|Not is said to you except what was said to the Messengers before you. Indeed, your Lord (is) Possessor (of) forgiveness, and Possessor (of) penalty painful.}}{{Quote|{{Quran|2|285}}|The Apostle and the faithful have faith in what has been sent down to him from his Lord. Each [of them] has faith in Allah, His angels, His scriptures and His apostles. [They declare,] ‘We make no distinction between any of His apostles.’ And they say, ‘We hear and obey. Our Lord, forgive us, and toward You is the return.’}}

{{Quote|{{Quran|17|77}}|“This was the sunnah [customary way] of Our messengers whom We sent before you, and you will find no change in Our sunnah”}}cf. {{Quran|6|112}}, {{Quran|35|43}}, {{Quran|22|78}}.

Other than being explicitly told that messengers bring the same message from Allah, Durie (2018) notes the Qur'an repeatedly states that Muhammad was sent to confirm the revelations given to earlier messengers (Q2:91, 97; Q3:3, 50; Q5:48; Q12:111; Q16:43–44; Q35:31), just as each prophet before him confirmed those who came earlier. For example, Jesus (ʿĪsa) confirmed the Torah of Moses (Mūsa) (Q5:46), and the Qurʾan confirms the scriptures revealed to previous prophets (Q4:47). In this way, Muhammad’s role continues the same pattern of reaffirming earlier divine messages rather than introducing a completely new one.<ref>Durie, Mark. ''The Qur’an and Its Biblical Reflexes: Investigations Into the Genesis of a Religion.'' pp.140</ref>

{{Quote|Durie, Mark. The Qur'an and it's Biblical Reflexes. pp.140|• It is also explicitly asserted that messengers bring the same message
from Alla¯h: “Nothing is said to you but what has already been said to
messengers before you” (Q41:43; Q22:78) and “we make no distinction
between any of them” (Q2:136). They also preached the same dīn “commandment” or “religion” (Q42:13; cf. Q3:84; Q4:150), which is referred
to as the “religion of Ibra¯hīm” (Q2:130; Q4:125; Q16:121–23). The
validating function of this idea becomes clear when it is applied against
a group of Jews who reject the concept of the “same message” because
it would mean validating the Messenger. These Jews hold to their own
faith, saying “we believe in what has been sent down on us,” but they
reject the Messenger, or “anything after that” (Q2:91). The ruling against
these Jews is that because they reject the Messenger, they are disbelievers,
rejecting “what All a¯ h has sent down” (Q2:91).31 The idea of the “same message” is further reinforced when the Qurʾan repeatedly states that the Messenger was only sent to confirm what was sent down by previous
messengers (Q2:91, 97; Q3:3, 50; Q5:48; Q12:111; Q16:43–44; Q35:31),
just as previous messengers had done for messengers that preceded them,
for example, ʿĪsa¯ “confirmed” the Tawra¯ h of Mūsa¯(Q5:46), and the Qurʾan
confirms the book(s) sent by previous prophets (Q4:47), just as the Messenger has been doing in his turn.}}
The large differences between the New Testament / Gospels (and by extension the Christian Jesus), and the [[Isa al-Masih (Jesus Christ)|Muslim Jesus,]] are clear to anyone who has read both the Qur'an and NT; with the Qur'an having it's own spin on him and taking many aspects from apocrypha considered inauthentic by NT scholars,<ref>Sanders, E.. ''The Historical Figure of Jesus (pp. 78-79)''. Penguin Books Ltd. Kindle Edition.

..(Gnosticism was a world view that held everything material to be evil; the god who created the world was a bad god, and the creation was wicked. Gnostics who were also Christians held that the good God had sent Jesus to redeem people’s souls, not their bodies, and that Jesus was not a real human being. The Christians who objected to these views finally declared them heretical.) ''I share the general scholarly view that very, very little in the apocryphal gospels could conceivably go back to the time of Jesus. They are legendary and mythological. Of all the apocryphal material, only some of the sayings in the Gospel of Thomas are worth consideration.'' This does not mean that we can make a clean division: the historical four gospels versus the legendary apocryphal gospels. There are legendary traits in the four gospels in the New Testament, and there is also a certain amount of newly created material (as we saw just above)..</ref> and [[Parallels Between the Qur'an and Late Antique Judeo-Christian Literature|later Christian thought/writings]], and have lead to many Muslims arguing for biblical corruption based on textual and theological grounds [though textual don't affect most early & authentic traditions] in general, which is a disputed idea in traditional Islamic thought (cite - Reynolds article. See also: [[Corruption of Previous Scriptures]] & [[Qur'an, Hadith and Scholars:Corruption of Previous Scriptures]])

Historians have searched for a summary of some of the most likely authentic traditions from Biblical historians (using historical-critical methods not Christian or Muslim theologians - more likely to be true and not taken from bias or proving or disproving Islam but historical context, widespread across sources, early - cite Allison explanation - Why - different to time and context, unlikely to be fabricated later by Christians, across all early sources etc.) are shown here as an example of the clashes. [Point: not arguing against Christian Jesus - but secular historians one]

==== Examples ====
{{Quote|Dale C. Allison Jr.. The Historical Christ and the Theological Jesus (Kindle Locations 822-836). Kindle Edition.|2=Given that we typically remember the outlines of an event or the general purport of a conversation rather than the particulars and that we extract patterns and meaning from our memories, it makes little sense to open the quest for Jesus by evaluating individual items with our criteria, in the hope that some bits preserve pristine memory. We should rather be looking for repeating patterns and contemplating the big picture. true. We should trust first, if we are to trust at all, what is most likely to be trustworthy. Although we may, after reading Thucydides, be confident that there was a Peloponnesian War, we may well wonder about many of the details of his account.

The larger the generalization and the more data upon which it is based, the greater our confidence; the more specific the detail and the fewer the data supporting it, the more room we have for doubt. With regard to the sources for Jesus, the traditional criteria of authenticity privilege the parts over the whole. It seems more prudent to privilege generalizations drawn from the whole than to concentrate upon one individual item after another. As a demonstration of how this works in practice, consider the following traditions:

• Jesus prohibited divorce: 1 Cor. 7:10; Mark 10:2-9; Luke 16:18. [Qur'an divorce rules - https://wikiislam.net/wiki/Khula] 

• Jesus sent forth missionaries without staff, food, or money: Matt. 10:9-10; Mark 6:8-9; Luke 10:4.

• Jesus instructed missionaries to get their living by the gospel: 1 Cor. 9:14; Matt. 10:10; Luke 10:7.

• Jesus commanded loving and doing good to enemies: Matt. 5:38-48; Luke 6:27-36. [Qur'an do not be merciful to unbelievers https://wikiislam.net/wiki/Qur%27an,_Hadith_and_Scholars:Non-Muslims & https://wikiislam.net/wiki/Kafir_(Infidel)#Guidelines_on_how_to_deal_with_disbelievers Quran 48:29 ]

• Jesus forbade judging others: Matt. 7:1-2; Luke 6:37-38.

• Jesus asked a prospective follower not to bury his father: Matt. 8:21-22; 22; Luke 959-60.

• Jesus spoke of hating one's father and mother: Matt. 10:37; Luke 14:26; Gospel of Thomas 55, 101. [respect parents - too tenuous]

• Jesus enjoined disciples to take up a cross: Matt. 10:38; Mark 8:34; Luke 14:27.

• Jesus enjoined unlimited forgiveness: Matt. 18:21-22; Luke 17:3-4. [forgiveness against shirk - Qur'an says no Q4:48 and 4:116. ]

• Jesus exhorted hearers to lose their lives in order to save them: Matt. 10:39; Mark 8:35; Luke 17:33.

• Jesus called people away from their livelihoods: Mark 1:16-20; 2:14. [?]

• Jesus figuratively demanded violent removal of hand, foot, and eye: Mark 9:42-48.

• Jesus asked a wealthy man to relinquish his money: Mark 10:17-27. [bring in wealth inequality section of Islam darajat - here]

• Jesus forbade taking oaths: Matt. 5:33-37. [https://www.iium.edu.my/deed/lawbase/risalah_maliki/book31.html#:~:text=Anyone%20who%20swears%20an%20oath,Oneness%2C%20timelessness%20and%20existence.%5D]

• Jesus commanded money to be lent without interest: Matt. 5:42; Gospel of Thomas 95.

• Jesus called some to a life without marriage: Matt. 19:11-12. [Qur'an criticism of monasticism]

• Jesus asked a prospective follower not to say farewell to his parents: Luke 9:61-62. [respect parents?]

• Jesus asked his disciples to renounce all of their possessions: Luke 14:33"}}
<nowiki>--------------------------------------------------</nowiki>

[ highlight those being spoken about in italics or bold]

Professor Allison (2009) notes that Jesus' banning divorce was an important teaching that <s>stood out</s> to early Christians, [https://www.biblegateway.com/passage/?search=Luke%2016%3A18&version=NIV Luke 16:18], [https://www.biblegateway.com/passage/?search=1%20Corinthians%207%3A10-16&version=NIV 1 Corinthians 7:10-16], [https://www.biblegateway.com/passage/?search=Mark%2010%3A2-9&version=NIV Mark 10:2-9], in contrast to Judaism ([https://www.biblegateway.com/passage/?search=Deuteronomy%2024%3A1-4&version=NIV Deuteronomy 24:1-4]) and Islam e.g. Quran 2:228-232, Q65:1-7, (Q4:19 https://quranx.com/hadiths/4.19 & Q4:35), Q33:49 )

He notes that Jesus commanded loving and doing good to enemies in [https://www.biblegateway.com/passage/?search=Matthew%205%3A38-48&version=NIV Matt. 5:38-48]; [https://www.biblegateway.com/passage/?search=Luke%206%3A27-36&version=NIV Luke 6:27-36], while the Qur'an generally advises treating other Muslims well, it specifically states not to be merciful to unbelievers Q48:29. [ For more examples of not being merciful to unbelievers, let alone 'enemies' see: '''[[Qur'an, Hadith and Scholars:Non-Muslims|https://wikiislam.net/wiki/Qur%27an,_Hadith_and_Scholars:Non-Muslims]] & [[Kafir (Infidel)#Guidelines%20on%20how%20to%20deal%20with%20disbelievers|https://wikiislam.net/wiki/Kafir_(Infidel)#Guidelines_on_how_to_deal_with_disbelievers]] Quran 48:29 ]'''

• Jesus enjoined unlimited forgiveness: [https://www.biblegateway.com/passage/?search=Matthew%2018%3A21-22&version=NIV Matt. 18:21-22]; [https://www.biblegateway.com/passage/?search=Luke%2017%3A3-4&version=NIV Luke 17:3-4]. However the Qur'an distinctly says there is no forgiveness for anyone committing shirk (ascribing partners to God) in {{Quran|4|48}} and {{Quran|4|116}}.

He notes Jesus called some to a life without marriage: [https://www.biblegateway.com/passage/?search=Matthew%2019%3A11-12&version=NIV Matt. 19:11-12], while the Qur'an promotes it as a virtue encouraging those to do so.

Marriage is a virtue https://www.getquranic.com/marriage-in-islam-8-quranic-verses-about-marriage/

{{Quote|{{Quran|24|32}}|Marry off those who are single among you, and the upright among your male and female slaves. If they are poor, Allah will enrich them out of His grace, and Allah is all-bounteous, all-knowing.}}

And criticizes monasticism/monks, with celibacy and no marriage being a key aspect<ref>[https://www.britannica.com/topic/monasticism Monasticism] | religion | Britannica Entry</ref> in general

{{Quote|Reynolds, Gabriel Said. Christianity and the Qur'an: The Rise of Islam in Christian Arabia (pp. 131-132). Yale University Press. Kindle Edition.|These verses critical of monks are often read together with Q 57:27, which, while praising certain positive qualities of Christians, also seems to accuse Christians of “innovating” monasticism: Then We sent, following in their footsteps, Our Messengers; and We sent, following, Jesus son of Mary, and gave unto him the Gospel. And We set in the hearts of those who followed him tenderness and mercy. And monasticism they invented—We did not prescribe it for them—only seeking the good pleasure of God; but they observed it not as it should be observed. So We gave those of them who believed their wage; and many of them are ungodly.}}

Criticism of monasticism (https://www.britannica.com/topic/monasticism) - lack of marriage for monks (though admittedly also praises monks in general elsewhere pp130-132)<ref>Reynolds, Gabriel Said. ''Christianity and the Qur'an: The Rise of Islam in Christian Arabia (pp. 130-132).'' Yale University Press. Kindle Edition.</ref>

{{Quote|{{Quran|57|27}}|Then We sent on their footsteps Our Messengers and We followed with Isa, son (of) Maryam, and We gave him the Injeel. And We placed in (the) hearts (of) those who followed him compassion and mercy. But monasticism they innovated - not We prescribed it for them - only seeking (the) pleasure (of) Allah, but not they observed it (with) right observance. So We gave those who believed among them their reward, but most of them (are) defiantly disobediently.}}

<nowiki>-----------------------------------------------------------------</nowiki>

==== Father-son relationship ====
{{Quote|Dale C. Allison Jr.. The Historical Christ and the Theological Jesus (Kindle Location 841-848). Kindle Edition.|2=Working through the tradition in the way I suggest leads to a large number of conclusions. Jesus must have been an exorcist who interpreted his ministry in terms of Satan's downfall. He must have thought highly of John the Baptist. He must have repeatedly spoken of God as Father. [Durie differences in metaphor and understanding of relationship from Hebrew to Arab society = markedly different] He must have composed parables. He must have come into conflict with religious authorities. All of this may seem obvious, but the procedure is not trite, for it also issues in some controversial verdicts. As I have argued elsewhere, for example, ample, the quantity of conventional eschatological material in our primary sources almost necessitates that Jesus was an eschatological prophet.' The reconstruction of Robert Funk and the Jesus Seminar is for this reason alone problematic. Even more controversial is what my approach leads me to infer about Jesus' self-conception. Consider these Synoptic materials:

• Jesus said that the Son of man will return on the clouds of heaven and send angels to gather the elect from throughout the world: Mark 13:26-27; cf. 14:62; Matt. 10:23 (allusions to Daniel 7's depiction of the last judgment are clear). [the son of man plays no part in Islam]}}Allison (2009) notes that Jesus must have repeatedly referred to God as 'father', a way also used by many ancient Jews to describe their relationship to god, also found in the old testament with different metaphorical meanings<ref>Pennington, J.T. "Chapter Nine. God As Father In The Old Testament And Second Temple Literature". ''Heaven and Earth in the Gospel of Matthew''. Leiden, The Netherlands: Brill, 2007. <nowiki>https://doi.org/10.1163/ej.9789004162051.i-399.57</nowiki> Web.</ref> and Talmudic writings with paternal imagery. <ref>Knobnya, S.. (2011). ''God the Father in the Old Testament. European Journal of Theology.'' 20. 139-148. </ref><ref>[https://www.myjewishlearning.com/article/fatherhood-of-god/ Fatherhood of God] | Sages & Scholars | Rabbi Louis Jacobs | My Jewish Learning</ref>

===== Slave-master relationship =====
However this father-son Hebrew metaphorical relationship Jesus used is distinctly abandoned, instead using other things (other metaphors) in Arab society to describe the relationship between humans and God, such as a slave-master relationship,<ref>Durie, Mark. ''The Qur’an and Its Biblical Reflexes: Investigations into the Genesis of a Religion (pp. XX-XX) (pp. 107-110 Kindle Edition)''. 4.1.1. Shirk - Proprietary Partnership. Lexington Books. 2018.</ref> a Patron - Protege (needs explanation of what this is) <ref>Durie, Mark. ''The Qur’an and Its Biblical Reflexes: Investigations into the Genesis of a Religion (pp. XX-XX) (pp. 110-111 Kindle Edition)''. 4.1.2. Shirk - Patron - Protege Relationships. Lexington Books. 2018.</ref>. with Muhammad having strongly condemned the idea that God could have offspring against the unscripted pagans (mushrikun) taking angels as daughters of god early on chronologically of the Qur'an's first recitations, then later against God having a son against Jesus being the son of God.<ref>Durie, Mark. ''The Qur’an and Its Biblical Reflexes: Investigations into the Genesis of a Religion (pp. XX-XX) (pp. 112-113 Kindle Edition)''. 4.1.5 A Polemical Doctrine. Lexington Books. 2018.</ref>

Slave analogy Dure Print edition pp108 - 110 summary:<ref name=":1">Durie, Mark. ''The Qur’an and Its Biblical Reflexes: Investigations into the Genesis of a Religion (pp. 108-110) (pp. XX-XX Kindle Edition)''. 4.1.5 A Polemical Doctrine. Lexington Books. 2018.</ref> Before its theological use, the Arabic root ''sh-r-k'' referred to ordinary '''partnership or shared ownership'''. The Qurʾan draws on this everyday meaning to illustrate why associating partners with God is impossible. Using the metaphor of '''a master and a slave''', the Qurʾan argues that just as a slave with multiple masters suffers confusion and conflict, attributing partners to God creates an impossible and chaotic situation. This logic appears in verses such as Q39:29 and others that argue multiple gods would lead to conflict and the ruin of creation (Q23:91; Q21:22).<ref name=":1" />
{{Quote|{{Quran|39|29}}|Allah presents a parable, “a man was owned by several quarreling partners
(shurakaʾ), and a man was the slave of (just) one man. Are the two equal?”}}

The Qurʾan’s use of the slave-master metaphor differs from Jesus’ teaching in the New Testament. Whereas Jesus uses it to highlight divided human devotion, the Qurʾan uses it to assert the logical impossibility of multiple divine authorities.<ref name=":1" />

{{Quote|Luke 16:13; cf. Matthew. 6:24|No slave can serve two masters; for a slave will either hate the one and love the
other, or be devoted to the one and despise the other. You cannot serve God and wealth.}}

Shirk encompasses various forms of error: attributing partners or helpers to God, believing He needs allies, or seeking aid from others besides Him. The Qurʾan also explores God’s unity through three social analogies relevant to Arabian society: '''patron–protégé relationships''', '''alliances of mutual help''', and '''relationships of equal or unequal status'''.<ref name=":1" />

===== '''Patron–protégé relationships''' =====
The Qur'an distinctly ignores the father-son relationship (and theology) metaphor by using another term that is harder to translate

Explanation of what this is Durie pp.110-111:<ref name=":3">Durie, Mark. ''The Qur’an and Its Biblical Reflexes: Investigations into the Genesis of a Religion (pp. 110-111) (pp. XX-XX Kindle Edition)''. 4.1.5 A Polemical Doctrine. Lexington Books. 2018.</ref> The Qurʾan uses terms from the root '''w-l-y''' to describe '''patron–protégé relationships''', alliances, and guardianship. The key term '''walī''' can mean ally, protector, guardian, or patron, and may indicate either symmetrical alliances or asymmetrical power relationships.<ref name=":3" /><ref>[https://lexicon.quranic-research.net/data/27_w/219_wle.html Root: ''wāw lām yā'' (و ل ي)] - Lane's Lexicon Qur'anic Research

See Lane's Lexicon Classical Arabic Dictionary [https://lexicon.quranic-research.net/pdf/Page_3060.pdf pp.3060] & [https://lexicon.quranic-research.net/pdf/Page_3061.pdf pp.3061] </ref>

In pre-Islamic Arab society, such patronage was essential for protection, as shown by the example of Muḥammad being safeguarded by his uncle Abū Ṭālib. Without a patron, a person was vulnerable.<ref name=":3" /> [in the sirah of Ibn Ishaq]

The Qurʾan emphasizes that '''God has no need of any patron''' and that '''humans should recognize God alone as their walī'''. Seeking any protector besides God is considered '''shirk'''. Believers may take other believers and the Prophet as allies (''awliyāʾ'') alongside God, but not in place of Him.<ref name=":3" />

As the Muslim community developed, especially after what the passage calls the ''Eschatological Transition''—the Qurʾan increasingly stressed exclusive allegiance to God. This served to detach believers from prior tribal or familial loyalties that could compromise their commitment to the faith community.<ref name=":3" />

- and calls for help-

===== Unequal status vs Jesus' views on Wealth =====
Sinai - darajah passage

And inequality in general - inc. the afterlife

=== Punishment narratives ===

==== Punishment BEFORE the day of judgement ====
We are told the sole exception in history was the unnamed town<ref>Unnamed in the Qur'an, though identified as Nineveh (in modern day Iraq) as in the Biblical "Book of Jonah" by Islamic exegetes; e.g. see [https://quranx.com/tafsirs/37.147 tafsirs on Q37:147]</ref> of more than 100,000 people that the messenger Yūnus (Jonah) when the warning was heeded in full by the entire people, and therefore punishment averted ({{Quran|10|98}}, {{Quran|37|147-148}}) “no town believed . . . except the people of Yūnus”<ref>Durie, Mark. 2018. ''The Qur'an and Its Biblical Reflexes: Investigations Into the Genesis of a Religion. pp 49. Kindle Edition pp 151.''</ref>

How many a town defied the command of its Lord and His apostles, then We called it to a severe account and punished it with a dire punishment. Q65:8

So it tasted the evil consequences of its conduct, and the outcome of its conduct was ruin. Q65:9

How many generations that had far more wealth and ostentation have We laid low before them! <<nowiki>https://quranx.com/19.74</nowiki>>

Say, ‘Whoever abides in error, the All-beneficent shall prolong his respite until they sight what they have been promised: either punishment, or the Hour.’ Then they will know whose position is worse, and whose host is weaker <<nowiki>https://quranx.com/19.75</nowiki>>

------

Q34:16 - flood of the damn of Yemen / Saba', the people of Sheba E.g. <ref>See tafsirs on [https://quranx.com/Tafsirs/34.14 Q34:14], [https://quranx.com/Tafsirs/34.15 Q34:15] & [https://quranx.com/Tafsirs/34.16 Q34:16]</ref> {{Quran|34|14-16}}

{{Quote|{{Quran|34|14-16}}|And when We decreed for Solomon death, nothing indicated to the jinn his death except a creature of the earth eating his staff. But when he fell, it became clear to the jinn that if they had known the unseen, they would not have remained in humiliating punishment.
Certainly, (there) was for Saba in their dwelling place a sign: Two gardens on (the) right and (on the) left. "Eat from (the) provision (of) your Lord and be grateful to Him. A land good and a Lord Oft-Forgiving."
But they turned away, so We sent upon them (the) flood (of) the dam, and We changed for them their two gardens (with) two gardens producing fruit bitter, and tamarisks and (some)thing of lote trees few.}}
, {{Quran|65|8-9}}, {{Quran|19|74-75}}

Add: 34:15–21: The punishment of the people of Sheba, without explicit reference to a messenger. Sheba reference <ref>Marshall, David. ''God, Muhammad and the Unbelievers (p. 73).'' Taylor & Francis. Kindle Edition.</ref>

=== Surah 36 ===
Similarly an unnamed town is sent three messengers in {{Quran|36|13-32}}, who's identities have differed in traditional Islamic scholarship,<ref>E.g. see commentaries on [https://quranx.com/Tafsirs/36.13 Q36:13] & [https://quranx.com/tafsirs/36.14 Q36:14], and the later verses in the story, cited as a parable ''(mathal).''</ref> are rejected and so are killed with a cry/shout (''ṣayḥatan)'' ({{Quran|36|29}}). <ref>Marshall, David. ''God, Muhammad and the Unbelievers (p. 63 & 72).'' Taylor & Francis. Kindle Edition.</ref>
{{Quote|Marshall, David. God, Muhammad and the Unbelievers (p. 72). Taylor & Francis. Kindle Edition.|36:13–32: Described as a parable (mathal, v.13), but in outline very similar to the punishment-narratives. The messengers (two of them, reinforced with a third) and the town in which they preach are anonymous. ‘A man from the furthest part of the city’ (v.20) exhorts his people to follow the messengers.}}

== Contradiction ==
The order in Surah 2 has the Jews struck by a lightening bolt after they worship the golden calf, who are then forgiven by Allah by being resurrected.
{{Quote|{{Quran|2|50-67}}|And when We parted the sea with you, and We delivered you and drowned Pharaoh’s clan as you looked on. 
And when We made an appointment with Moses for forty nights, you took up the Calf [for worship] in his absence, and you were wrongdoers. 
Then We excused you after that so that you might give thanks. 
And when We gave Moses the Book and the Criterion so that you might be guided. 
And [recall] when Moses said to his people, ‘O my people! You have indeed wronged yourselves by taking up the Calf [for worship]. Now turn penitently to your Maker, and slay [the guilty among] your folks. That will be better for you with your Maker.’ Then He turned to you clemently. Indeed, He is the All-clement, the All-merciful. 
And when you said, ‘O Moses, we will not believe you until we see Allah visibly.’ Thereupon a thunderbolt seized you as you looked on.
Then We raised you up after your death so that you might give thanks. /n
We shaded you with clouds, and sent down to you manna and quails [saying]: ‘Eat of the good things We have provided for you.’ And they did not wrong Us, but they used to wrong [only] themselves. 
And when We said, ‘Enter this town, and eat thereof freely whencesoever you wish, and enter while prostrating at the gate, and say, ‘‘Relieve [us of the burden of our sins],’’ so that We may forgive your iniquities and We will soon enhance the virtuous.’ 
But the wrongdoers changed the saying with other than what they were told. So We sent down on those who were wrongdoers a plague from the sky because of the transgressions they used to commit. 
And when Moses prayed for water for his people, We said, ‘Strike the rock with your staff.’ Thereat twelve fountains gushed forth from it; every tribe came to know its drinking-place. ‘Eat and drink of Allah’s provision, and do not act wickedly on the earth, causing corruption.’ 
And when you said, ‘O Moses, ‘We will not put up with one kind of food. So invoke your Lord for us, so that He may bring forth for us of that which the earth grows—its greens and cucumbers, its garlic, lentils, and onions.’ He said, ‘Do you seek to replace what is superior with that which is inferior? Go down to any town and you will indeed get what you ask for!’ So they were struck with abasement and poverty, and they earned Allah’s wrath. That, because they would deny the signs of Allah and kill the prophets unjustly. That, because they would disobey and commit transgressions. 
Indeed the faithful, the Jews, the Christians and the Sabaeans—those of them who have faith in Allah and the Last Day and act righteously—they shall have their reward from their Lord, and they will have no fear, nor will they grieve. 
And when We took a pledge from you, and raised the Mount above you, [declaring], ‘Hold on with power to what We have given you and remember that which is in it so that you may be Godwary.’ 
Again you turned away after that; and were it not for Allah’s grace on you and His mercy, you would have surely been among the losers. 
And certainly you know those of you who violated the Sabbath, whereupon We said to them, ‘Be you spurned apes.’ 
So We made it an exemplary punishment for the present and the succeeding [generations], and an advice to the Godwary.}}
In Surah 4 they are struck before they worship the calf. 4:153 specifically says 'then' ''(thumma)''

{{Quote|{{Quran|4|153-161}}|The People of the Book ask you to bring down for them a Book from the sky. Certainly they asked Moses for [something] greater than that, for they said, ‘Show us Allah visibly,’ whereat a thunderbolt seized them for their wrongdoing. Then they took up the Calf [for worship], after all the manifest proofs that had come to them. Yet We excused that, and We gave Moses a manifest authority. 
And We raised the Mount above them for the sake of their covenant, and We said to them, ‘Enter the gate prostrating’ and We said to them, ‘Do not violate the Sabbath,’ and We took from them a solemn covenant. 
Then because of their breaking their covenant, their defiance of Allah’s signs, their killing of the prophets unjustly and for their saying, ‘Our hearts are uncircumcised’… Indeed, Allah has set a seal on them for their unfaith, so they do not have faith except a few. 
And for their faithlessness, and their uttering a monstrous calumny against Mary, 
and for their saying, ‘We killed the Messiah, Jesus son of Mary, the apostle of Allah’—though they did not kill him nor did they crucify him, but so it was made to appear to them. Indeed those who differ concerning him are surely in doubt about him: they do not have any knowledge of that beyond following conjectures, and certainly, they did not kill him. 
Indeed, Allah raised him up toward Himself, and Allah is all-mighty, all-wise. 
There is none among the People of the Book but will surely believe in him before his death; and on the Day of Resurrection, he will be a witness against them. 
Due to the wrongdoing of the Jews, We prohibited them certain good things that were permitted to them [earlier], and for their barring many [people] from the way of Allah, 
and for their taking usury—though they had been forbidden from it—and for eating up the wealth of the people wrongfully. And We have prepared for the faithless among them a painful punishment. }}

=== V2 ===
Surah 4 (summarized version)

1) They ask Moses for a sign and are hit with a thunderbolt

2) They then take up the calf for worship

3) The mountain is raised above them{{Quote|{{Quran|4|153-154}}|The People of the Book ask you to bring down for them a Book from the sky. Certainly they asked Moses for [something] greater than that, for they said, ‘Show us Allah visibly,’ whereat a thunderbolt seized them for their wrongdoing. Then they took up the Calf [for worship], after all the manifest proofs that had come to them. Yet We excused that, and We gave Moses a manifest authority. 
And We raised the Mount above them for the sake of their covenant, and We said to them, ‘Enter the gate prostrating’ and We said to them, ‘Do not violate the Sabbath,’ and We took from them a solemn covenant.}}Surah 2
1) They worshiped the calf. And Moses tells them to slay the guilty among them.

2) They are hit by a thunderbolt - is it chronological?

3) ... a mountain is lifted above them
{{Quote|{{Quran|2|51-56}}|And when We made an appointment with Moses for forty nights, you took up the Calf [for worship] in his absence, and you were wrongdoers. 
Then We excused you after that so that you might give thanks. 
And when We gave Moses the Book and the Criterion so that you might be guided. 
And [recall] when Moses said to his people, ‘O my people! You have indeed wronged yourselves by taking up the Calf [for worship]. Now turn penitently to your Maker, and slay [the guilty among] your folks. That will be better for you with your Maker.’ Then He turned to you clemently. Indeed, He is the All-clement, the All-merciful. 
And when you said, ‘O Moses, we will not believe you until we see Allah visibly.’ Thereupon a thunderbolt seized you as you looked on.
Then We raised you up after your death so that you might give thanks.}}
== The Lote Tree of the utmost Boundary (Sid'rati al-Muntahā) ==
Lote tree's are a real type of tree (Ziziphus spina-christi) native to Arabia and the Middle East.<ref>[https://www.suewickison.com/products/lote-tree?srsltid=AfmBOorj_RU2x1OPxgfRe689M2TWw1g4uZTQLkpSolPGYnIatiIe7h6K Lote Tree | Sidr | Ziziphus spina-christi |] Plants of the Qur'an | Sue Wickison </ref> Different to the tree of eternity/immortality ''(shajarati ul-khul'di)'' in paradise ''jannah,'' the Qur'an mentions The Lote Tree (sidr) of ''the utmost boundary (al-muntahā)''<ref>مُنْتَهَىٰ - [https://lexicon.quranic-research.net/pdf/Page_3029.pdf Lane's Lexicon pp.3029]

</ref> near (but notably not in) the 'garden of abode', said to be 'covered' yaghshā by something unspecified in Q53:16, typically taken by exegetes to mean by angels, light and/or golden animals.<ref>E.g. see [https://quranx.com/Tafsirs/53.16 Tafsirs on Q53:16]</ref>

{{Quote|{{Quran|53|13-17}}|And certainly he saw him (in) descent another,
Near (the) Lote Tree (of) the utmost boundary,
Near it (is the) Garden (of) Abode.
when there covered the Lote Tree what covered it.
Not swerved the sight and not it transgressed.}}

This furthest boundary/limit is said in the hadith, to place the cosmic tree in the sixth heaven, where even celestial creatures cannot go beyond as the limit of creation; said to be seen by Muhammad in his Night Journey (mi’rāj) on the [[:en:Buraq|Buraq]] (E.g. {{Muslim|1|329}}, {{Al Tirmidhi|2=5|3=44|4=3276}}, {{Bukhari|5|58|227}} & {{Al Nasai|2=1|3=5|4=452}}), and by many Islamic exegetes.<ref>See [https://quranx.com/tafsirs/53.14 tafsirs on Q53:14]</ref>

This would align the cosmology of Islamic traditions supporting the idea that paradise (and therefore the garden of the abode) is in the seventh heaven,<ref>[https://islamqa.info/en/answers/215011/where-are-paradise-and-hell#Where_is_Paradise Where is Paradise] | [https://islamqa.info/en/answers/215011/where-are-paradise-and-hell Where Are Paradise and Hell?] | 07/January/2015 islamqa</ref> while some traditions support the idea that paradise is above the seventh heaven,<ref>[https://www.islamweb.net/en/fatwa/107126/the-location-of-paradise-now#:~:text=Paradise%20that%20Allaah%20promised%20for,are%20many%20texts%20proving%20this. The location of Paradise now] | Paradise and Hell | Belief in the Hereafter | Islamic Creed | Fatwa | islamweb.net </ref> both placing the tree relatively close to jannah. However others suggest that this specific ''garden of the abode (jannatu l-mawā)'' is a separate garden/paradise to the eternal one all righteous Muslims will eventually enter, being instead one where martyrs (those killed in war or for their religion) go before judgement day.<ref>E.g. see [https://quranx.com/Tafsirs/53.15 tafsirs on Q53:15]</ref>

Either way there is no evidence of a celestial tree, which must be magic to survive outside of an Earthly plant ecosystem, but is rather an example of tree mythology.
----
----

(See also: <nowiki>https://sunnah.com/mishkat:5865</nowiki> & https://sunnah.com/mishkat:5640, ) read; https://quranx.com/tafsirs/53.14 - exegetes also confirm this is where boundary is the boundary of the skies/heavens where things other than God cannot pass (at least until judgement day where paradise and hell can be entered).

AND Similarly seen next to the 4 main Near-East rivers (Nile, Euphratesm Tigres,) <nowiki>https://sunnah.com/bukhari:5610</nowiki>, which area said to flow from paradise: <nowiki>https://quranx.com/Hadith/Bukhari/USC-MSA/Volume-5/Book-58/Hadith-227/</nowiki> )

cite: [https://www.islamweb.net/en/fatwa/107126/the-location-of-paradise-now#:~:text=Paradise%20that%20Allaah%20promised%20for,are%20many%20texts%20proving%20this. https://www.islamweb.net/en/fatwa/107126/the-location-of-paradise-now#:~:text=Paradise%20that%20Allaah%20promised%20for,are%20many%20texts%20proving%20this.]

The utmost boundary at the end of t heavens confirmed by exegetes in https://quranx.com/tafsirs/53.14

" Jannat al-ma'va' literally means "the Jannat (Garden) that is to be an abode. " Hadrat Hasan Basri says that this is the same Jannat which the believers and righteous will be given in the Hereafter, and from this same verse he has argued that that Jannat is in the heavens. Qatadah says that this is the Jannat in which the souls of the martyrs are kept; it does not imply the Jannat that is to be given in the Hereafter. Ibn 'Abbas also says the same but adds that the Jannat to be granted to the believers in the Hereafter is not in the heavens but here on the earth.

== Parallels Between the Qur'an and Late Antique Judeo-Christian Literature - Part 2 ==
Following on from [[Parallels Between the Qur'an and Late Antique Judeo-Christian Literature|Part 1]], this is Part 2 of Late Antique Judeo-Christian Literature found in the Qur'an. This material, drawing heavily on rabbinical commentaries on the bible, and late Syriac Christian thought found in homilies, was created far later than the biblical cannon; no-where near the time of the events that occurred. This suggests the stories were transmitted in an oral millennia along with local Arabian traditions<ref>Bannister, Andrew G.. ''An Oral-Formulaic Study of the Qur'an (Kindle Location 249-259 in Chapter 1.2 The Biblicist Roots of the Iblis and Adam Story).'' Bloomsbury Publishing. Kindle Edition.

..When the Qur’an emerged in the seventh-century, it did so in an oral culture in which Biblicist traditions were freely circulating and thus there existed a large pool of commonly known stories and traditions to fish from; a pool in which stories could cross-fertilize and influence one another. 23 It is this, more than direct borrowing that perhaps best explains stories like Iblis and Adam as well as other qur’anic tellings of older tales, such as the Seven Sleepers (Q. 18: 9– 25) 24 and the Legend of Alexander (Dhu al-Qarnayn, Q. 18: 83– 101). 25 The Qur’an originates from a milieu in which Biblicist material was well-known to the first audience of the Qur’an; even a simple allusion to a story was often enough to trigger a connection for the hearer. 26 That Biblicist material has been filtered through storytelling rather than simply copied from a written text is further suggested by what the Qur’an leaves out; no minor prophets are referenced, probably because almost no Old Testament narratives feature them nor did the rabbinic literature weave lengthy tales about them. 27 The exception which proves the rule is Jonah (Q. 21: 87– 88; 37: 139– 148; 68: 48– 50), whose short but dramatic story was extremely popular in both Jewish and Christian contexts.28..

And: Bannister, Andrew G.. ''An Oral-Formulaic Study of the Qur'an (Kindle Locations 1391-1392. Chapter 2.3 The Islamic Tradition and Orality).'' Bloomsbury Publishing. Kindle Edition.</ref> where biblical and much later Jewish and Christian stories could be commonly mixed without the new community realizing.
== The story of Noah ==
The prophet Noah is portrayed extremely differently to the one in Genesis,<ref>Segovia, Carlos A.. ''[https://almuslih.org/wp-content/uploads/2024/12/Segovia-C-The-Quranic-Noah-and-the-Making-of-the-Islamic-Prophet.pdf The Quranic Noah and the Making of the Islamic Prophet: A Study of Intertextuality and Religious Identity Formation in Late Antiquity]'', Berlin, München, Boston: De Gruyter, 2015. <nowiki>https://doi.org/10.1515/9783110405897</nowiki></ref> taking on Jewish and Christian traditions, characteristics, as well as terms from late antique Judeo-Christian writings,<ref>The Qur'anic Noah. pp.21-21</ref> molded to suit Muhammad's situation in line with other messengers in the Qur'an.<ref>''The Qurʾan and its Biblical Reflexes: Investigations into the Genesis of a Religion. Chapter 5.3 Messenger Uniformatism. pp.135-143'' By Mark Durie. Lanham, MD: Lexington Books, 2018. </ref>

=== The preaching of Noah ===

Surah 71 consists entirely of the preaching of Noah and his supplications to Allah.{{Quote|{{Quran-range|71|1|28}}|Indeed, We sent Noah to his people, [saying], "Warn your people before there comes to them a painful punishment." He said, "O my people, indeed I am to you a clear warner, [Saying], 'Worship Allah, fear Him and obey me. Allah will forgive you of your sins and delay you for a specified term. Indeed, the time [set by] Allah, when it comes, will not be delayed, if you only knew.' " 
[...]
And Noah said, "My Lord, do not leave upon the earth from among the disbelievers an inhabitant. Indeed, if You leave them, they will mislead Your servants and not beget except [every] wicked one and [confirmed] disbeliever. My Lord, forgive me and my parents and whoever enters my house a believer and the believing men and believing women. And do not increase the wrongdoers except in destruction."}}Reynolds remarks that "The Qur'ānic character of Noah is quite unlike that of the Noah in Genesis, who does not speak a word until after the flood." Citing the Babylonian Talmud, Sanhedrin 108a, he observes that "[his preaching] is also suggested by a passage in the Talmud:
::"The righteous Noah rebuked them, urging, 'Repent; for if not, the Holy One, blessed be He, will bring a deluge upon you and cause your bodies to float upon the water like gourds, as it is written, He is light [i.e., floats] upon the waters. Moreover, ye shall be taken as a curse for all future generations.' (b. Sanhedrin 108a)"
Reynolds further notes, "It is also prominent in the Syriac fathers, several of whom report that Noah preached to his people for a hundred years before God finally sent the flood." citing for example the Syriac authors Narsai, "On the Flood", 33, II. 227-30 and Jacob of Serugh, ''Homilies contre les juifs'', 70, homily 2, II. 37-40.<ref>Gabriel Said Reynolds, ''The Qurʾān and Bible'' p. 858</ref>

The opponents reject Noah's preaching despite him doing so 'day and night' (Quran 71:5-6) in which they respond by putting their fingers in their ears Quran 71:7, on which Neuwirth (2024) notes that "the means of plugging one’s ears in order to shut oneself off from unpleasant news is also encountered in the Talmud (bKetubbot 5a)."<ref>Neuwirth, Angelika. The Qur'an: Text and Commentary, ''Volume 2.1: Early Middle Meccan Suras: The New Elect (p. 280).'' Yale University Press. Kindle Edition.</ref>

=== Noah's disbelieving wife ===
{{Quote|{{Quran|66|10}}|Allah presents an example of those who disbelieved: the wife of Noah and the wife of Lot. They were under two of Our righteous servants but betrayed them, so those prophets did not avail them from Allah at all, and it was said, "Enter the Fire with those who enter."}}The Bible briefly mentions Noah's wife in one verse without further comment ([https://www.biblegateway.com/passage/?search=Genesis%207%3A7&version=NIV Genesis 7:7]), "And Noah and his sons and his wife and his sons’ wives entered the ark to escape the waters of the flood." Regarding the Quranic verse which speaks of her negatively, Reynolds briefly considers the possibility that the Quran has extended to their wives the parallelism between Noah (though not his wife) and Lot found in the New Testament ([https://www.biblegateway.com/passage/?search=2%20Peter%202&version=NIV 2 Peter 2]), but then comments, "However, it is important to note that already in the pre-Islamic period certain groups had developed hostile legends about Noah's wife." He cites Epiphanius (d. 403 CE), ''Panarion'' 2:26, which relates the Gnostic belief that she was not allowed onto the ark, having burned it down three times before the flood.<ref>Gabriel Said Reynolds, ''The Qurʾān and Bible'' p. 841</ref>

=== Noah's flood waters overflowed from an oven ===
The Qur'anic version of the Noah's flood story describes the flood waters as overflowing from an oven. This element is not found even in more ancient versions of the story (Epic of Gilgamesh, Atra hasis, and Ziusudra).

Note that in his translation, Yusuf Ali mistranslates the Aramaic loan word for the oven (alttannooru ٱلتَّنُّورُ)<ref>[http://www.studyquran.org/LaneLexicon/Volume1/00000355.pdf Lane's Lexicon p. 318 تَّنُّورُ]</ref> as "fountains". The Arabic verb translated "gushed forth" (fara فَارَ) means overflowed or boiled in the context of water in a cooking pot<ref>[http://www.studyquran.org/LaneLexicon/Volume6/00000241.pdf Lane's Lexicon p. 2457 فور]</ref>, as well as in the other verse where it is used, {{Quran|67|7}}. Here is Pickthall's more accurate translation:{{Quote|{{Quran|11|40}}|
(Thus it was) till, when Our commandment came to pass '''and the oven gushed forth water''', We said: Load therein two of every kind, a pair (the male and female), and thy household, save him against whom the word hath gone forth already, and those who believe. And but a few were they who believed with him.}}{{Quote|{{Quran|23|27}}|
Then We inspired in him, saying: Make the ship under Our eyes and Our inspiration. Then, when Our command cometh '''and the oven gusheth water''', introduce therein of every (kind) two spouses, and thy household save him thereof against whom the Word hath already gone forth. And plead not with Me on behalf of those who have done wrong. Lo! they will be drowned.}}At one time academic scholars thought this verse alluded to a Midrashic exegesis in which the flood waters were boiling hot (b. Sanhedrin 108b, [https://www.sefaria.org/Rosh_Hashanah.12a.4?lang=bi|Tracate Rosh Hashanah 12a:4]). More recent scholarship, particularly by Olivier Mongellaz in 2024,<ref name="Mongellaz2024">Olivier Mongellaz (2024) [https://brill.com/view/journals/arab/71/4-5/article-p513_4.xml Le four de Noé : un cas d’intertextualité coranique], Arabica 71(4-5), 513-637. https://doi.org/10.1163/15700585-20246900</ref> has identified that these verses most likely reflect a late antique legend in which water gushing up through a bread oven (a large hole dug into the ground) was a sign warning Noah's family of the imminent flood. The interpretation as Noah's own oven is attributed to a number of early commentators (such as Ibn Abbas, Mujahid), while others understood it to be the area of land where the flood waters first rose. Qurtubi said: "The sayings of commentators appear to be different as to the meaning of tannur, but this, in reality, is not a difference. When water began to bulge out, it overflowed from the bread baking oven, and from out of the surface of the land".

Significantly, Mongellaz has argued on literary grounds that a fragmentary Arabic text falsely attributed to Hippolytus of Rome, and which mentions the overflowing bread oven story, is independent of the Islamic tradition and was originally written in a very specific environment which has parallels with the context in which certain parts of the Quran were written.{{Quote|Pseudo. Hippolytus of Rome (translated to English from Mongellaz's French translation)<ref name="Mongellaz2024" />|Meanwhile, Ham's wife stood up to take out the bread that remained in the oven and immediately water sprang out of the oven [fāḍa l-māʾmin al-tannūr] and immediately water came out of the oven, as the Lord had said: "The fountains of the great deeps were opened." Ham's wife called to Noah, saying, "My lord, the word of God has come true (Syr. what God promised has come true!)" - for it had come true just as the Lord had promised her. When Noah heard Ham's wife's words, he said to her, "Oh, the flood has come."}}

=== Noah's ark left behind as a sign ===
{{Quote|{{Quran-range|54|13|15}}|And We carried him on a [construction of] planks and nails, Sailing under Our observation as reward for he who had been denied. And We left it as a sign, so is there any who will remember?}}Unlike the bible, which does not mention the ark as a sign for future generations, Neuwirth (2024) notes the salvation of Noah is made physically plausible to the listeners through the reference to the material verifiability of the ark, which could be taken from various late antique traditions, for example Flavius Josephus (b. 37AD) reports in the ''Jewish Antiquities (I 3.5 § 92)'' of the existence of the remains of Noah’s ark in Armenia (Clementz 1959: 22).<ref name=":0">Neuwirth, Angelika. ''The Qur'an: Text and Commentary, Volume 2.1: Early Middle Meccan Suras: The New Elect (p. 62).'' Yale University Press. Kindle Edition.</ref> She also notes that the appeal to the willingness of the listeners to be admonished by the sign (āya) of Noah’s ark is also reminiscent of the Talmudic story (bSanhedrin 96a) of the death of Sennacherib, who was led to a fateful decision by seeing the remains of Noah’s ark.<ref name=":0" />
==Moses and Pharaoh==
Alongside the biblical account of Moses and the Pharoah, there are some key aspects that match Jewish Rabbinic and Christian non-biblical traditions. Even the place where Moses communicates with God in the story of the burning bush, the word used ''ṭuwan'' in e.g. {{Quran|20|12}} (for the folded land, implying double the holiness)<ref>See; Neuwirth, Angelika. ''The Qur'an: Text and Commentary, Volume 2.1: Early Middle Meccan Suras: The New Elect (p. 199).'' Yale University Press. Kindle Edition. Ṭuwā stands for the holy Mount Sinai or Horeb (cf. KU, 124ff.; FVQ, 206ff.; BEQ, 255ff.). The word was long thought to be a rhyming transformation of Aramaic ṭūrā (“the mountain”), but now, based on rabbinic tradition and in agreement with traditional exegetes, Uri Rubin has convincingly interpreted bi-l-wādī l-muqaddasi Ṭuwā to mean “in the doubly hallowed valley” (see Rubin 2014). (The Sinai is in a sense the “folded Holy Land” [ṬWY = “to fold”].) Citing: Rubin, Uri, 2014, ''[https://urirubin.com/assets/docs/Tuwan.86132451.pdf Moses and the Holy Valley Ṭuwan. On the Biblical and Midrashic Background of a Qurʾanic Scene],'' Journal of Near Eastern Studies 73, 73–81.</ref> does not have a parallel in the bible,<ref>''[https://urirubin.com/assets/docs/Tuwan.86132451.pdf Moses and the Holy Valley Ṭuwan: On the biblical and midrashic background of a qurʾānic scene.]'' Rubin 2014. Ibid. pp. 75.</ref> but does in other Judeo-Christian (later) works.<ref>Ibid. pp. 76-78</ref> And the idea of eschatology in Moses's story such as {{Quran|20|15}}, with reward in the afterlife being mentioned, is not contained in the biblical story of Moses, Neuwirth (2024) notes moves the story into a late antiquity interpretation.<ref>Neuwirth, Angelika. ''The Qur'an: Text and Commentary, Volume 2.1: Early Middle Meccan Suras: The New Elect (p. 199).'' Yale University Press. Kindle Edition.</ref> Key details in the stories include:
===The prophecy of baby Moses===
Alongside the scene of [https://www.biblegateway.com/passage/?search=Exodus%201%3A8-2%3A10&version=NIV Exodus 1:8-2:10] where the Hebrews in Egyptian bondage are told to kill all male babies to control the growing Israelite population, where Moses's mother places his basket in the Nile to escape; Neuwirth (2024) citing Speyer, notes that ''the prophecy to Moses’s mother that an enemy—of Moses as well as of God himself—would take him in reflects a Midrashic interpretation of Exodus Rabba (1:31: “So the daughter of Pharaoh raised the daughter, who was once to take revenge on her father”). The event is explicitly based on a divine intention, namely, to make Moses his chosen one.''<ref>''The Qur'an: Text and Commentary, Volume 2.1: Early Middle Meccan Suras: The New Elect'' Ibid. pp. 201.</ref>{{Quote|{{Quran-range|20|37|39}}|We have bestowed Our favour on you before this, When We told your mother what We relate: 'Put him in a wooden box and cast it in the river. The river will cast it on the bank. An enemy of Ours, and his, will retrieve it.' We bestowed Our love on you that you may be reared under Our eyes.}}And similarly the next verse unlike the bible focuses on the emotional impact of the event on Moses’s mother, Neuwirth notes is comparable to Midrash Exodus Rabba 1:25.<ref>Ibid. pp. 201-202.</ref> Moses's salvation from persecution after manslaughter is commemorated with similar consideration of Moses’s mental condition.<ref>Ibid. pp. 202.</ref>{{Quote|{{Quran|20|40}}|When your sister walked up [to Pharaoh’s palace] saying, “Shall I show you someone who will take care of him?” Then We restored you to your mother, that she might not grieve and be comforted. Then you slew a soul, whereupon We delivered you from anguish, and We tried you with various ordeals. Then you stayed for several years among the people of Midian. Then you turned up as ordained, O Moses!}}
===Moses not suckled by Egyptians===
{{Quote|{{Quran-range|28|12|13}}|And We had prevented from him [all] wet nurses before, so she said, "Shall I direct you to a household that will be responsible for him for you while they are to him [for his upbringing] sincere?" So We restored him to his mother that she might be content and not grieve and that she would know that the promise of Allah is true. But most of the people do not know.}}Reynolds comments, "On this passage cf. Exodus 2:7-9. The Qurʾān's declaration (v. 12) 'We had forbidden him to be suckled by any nurse' (v. 12) reflects a tradition in the Babylonian Talmud that Moses (from whose mouth would come forth the word of God) refused the impure breasts of the Egyptian women:
::Then said his sister to Pharaoh's daughter, Shall I go and call thee a nurse of the Hebrew women? Why just 'of the Hebrew women'? - It teaches that they handed about to all the Egyptian women but he would not suck. He said: Shall a mouth which will speak with [God] suck what is unclean! (b. Sotah 12b)"<ref>Gabriel Said Reynolds, ''The Qurʾān and Bible'' p. 598</ref>
===Moses's speech impediment===
Moses has some kind of speech impediment when going to speak to Pharaoh in the Qurʾān.{{Quote|{{Quran-range|20|24|28}}|"Go to Pharaoh. Indeed, he has transgressed."( Moses) said: "O, my Lord! Expand me my breast,” ease my task for me, And untie the knot from my tongue, so they may understand what I say.”}}Biblical Scholar James Kugel (1997)<ref>Kugel, James L.. The Bible As It Was (Kindle Edition. pp. 432-433). Harvard University Press.</ref> notes that later Jewish and Christian commentators found it necessary to explain Moses's statement in the Old Testament “''Oh my Lord, I am not a man of words … but I am heavy of speech and heavy of tongue''” ([https://www.biblegateway.com/passage/?search=Exodus%204%3A10&version=NIV Exodus 4:10]), as he was believed to be a highly educated man who had been supposedly been schooled in every branch of wisdom, including eloquence.

He notes "it occurred to interpreters that Moses might have been referring here not to any lacuna in his education, but to an actual speech defect, some physical deformity of his mouth or tongue that prevented him from speaking in the usual fashion." We see this in:<ref>Ibid. pp. 432 - 433 (Kindle Edition)</ref>

"''I'' ''am not by nature eloquent; my tongue with difficulty speaks, I stammer, so that I cannot speak before the king."'' —Ezekiel the Tragedian, Exaggē 113– 115 (3rd-2nd century BCE)

''He [Moses] pleased his parents by his beauty, but grieved them by his speech impediment. —''Ephraem, Commentary on Exodus 2: 4 (d. 373 AD)

Others even added stories on how he might have acquired that deformity, such as Josephus in Jewish Antiquities 2: 232– 236 (published ~93/94 AD), connecting their explanation of Moses’ speech problems to the tradition of Pharaoh’s wise men and their warnings about a boy that might grow up and save Israel.<ref>Ibid. pp. 433 - 434 (Kindle Edition)</ref>
===Pharaohs questions===
Neuwirth (2024) comments that the list of further detailed questions to Moses in Surah 26 'The Poets' / al-shuʿarāʾ (i.e. in {{Quran-range|26|22|29}}), citing Speyer, reflect a more detailed episode from Midrash Exodus Rabba 5:18, which also starts from Pharaoh’s self-praise as God.<ref>Neuwirth, Angelika. ''The Qur'an: Text and Commentary, Volume 2.1: Early Middle Meccan Suras: The New Elect (p. 250).'' Yale University Press. Kindle Edition.</ref>
===The Drowning of Pharaoh===
{{Quote|{{Quran-range|10|90|92}}|And We took the Children of Israel across the sea, and Pharaoh and his soldiers pursued them in tyranny and enmity until, when drowning overtook him, he said, "I believe that there is no deity except that in whom the Children of Israel believe, and I am of the Muslims." Now? And you had disobeyed [Him] before and were of the corrupters? So today We will save you in body that you may be to those who succeed you a sign. And indeed, many among the people, of Our signs, are heedless}}Reynolds comments, "The question of Pharaoh's survival appears in an opinion found in the (late fourth century AD) ''Mekilta de-Rabbi Ishmael'' (cr. Gavin McDowell):
::"And the waters returned and covered the chariot etc. [Exo 14:27]. Even Pharaoh, according to the words of R. Judah, as it is said, 'The chariots of Pharaoh and his force, etc.' [Exo 15:4]. R. Nehimiah says: ''Except for Pharaoh.'' About him it says, 'However, for this purpose I have let you live' [Exo 9:16]. Others say that in the end Pharaoh went down and drowned, as it is said, 'Then went the horse of Pharaoh, etc.' [Exo 15:19]. (Beshallah 7)"<ref>Gabriel Said Reynolds, ''The Qurʾān and Bible'' p. 339</ref>
==Arguments for resurrection==
Reynolds (2020) notes the repeated argument that God can resurrect the dead using the analogy that he can bring life back to barren (or dead) land may be connected to a Jewish tradition that God will resurrect the dead with dew, for example, in b. Shabbat 88b.<ref name=":2" />
{{Quote|{{Quran|30|19}}|He brings forth the living from the dead, and brings forth the dead from the living, and revives the earth after its death. Likewise, you [too] shall be raised [from the dead].}}

Cf: {{Quran|16|65}}, {{Quran|43|11}}, {{Quran|50|6-11}}, {{Quran|57|17}}
==Late antique Christian Martyrdom==
{{Main|Shaheed (Martyr)}}
Durie (2018) notes the violence of the Qur'an shares more commonality with contemporary late antique religious (primarily Christian) violence and warfare rather than being directly biblically based.<ref>Durie, Mark. ''The Qur’an and Its Biblical Reflexes: Investigations into the Genesis of a Religion.'' Lexington Books. 2018. Pp. 229 -237. (Kindle Edition: pp. 423-439). 6.9 Stories of Fighting Prophets</ref>

=== Textual overlap ===

Covering the continuity and similarities between late antique religious violence & warfare and the Qur'an (and other Islamic traditions) is too big a topic to cover here; perhaps the most in-depth academic work looking at the continuity between this and Islam is Thomas Sizgorich's ''Violence and Belief in Late Antiquity: Militant Devotion in Christianity and Islam'', however Sinai (2017) notes alongside similar ideas and theology, there are some direct textual references.{{Quote|Sinai, Nicolai. Qur'an: A Historical-Critical Introduction (The New Edinburgh Islamic Surveys) (pp. 301-302). Edinburgh University Press. Kindle Edition.|That the Qur’anic community’s access to Biblical notions of militancy was mediated by late antique Christian discourse is indicated by an intriguing intertextual overlap. According to Q 3: 169–170, those who have been ‘killed in the path of God’ are not dead but ‘alive with their Lord’, rather than having to spend the remaining time until the Resurrection in a state of slumber (similarly Q 2: 154).39 Tor Andrae has pointed out that the phrase ‘alive with their Lord’ (ayāun inda rabbihim) corresponds exactly to the Syriac phrase h. ayyē lwāth alāhā, which a sixth-century Syriac Christian writer (Mar Ishay) applies to the martyrs.40 Furthermore, Mar Ishay contrasts the true fate of the martyrs with unfounded prior opinion: ‘they are believed to be already dead’.41 The same contrast is found in the two Qur’anic passages just cited.42 It could be objected that the parallel demonstrates merely that the Qur’an is familiar with the widespread Christian idea that martyrs are granted prompt access to paradise but that this does not establish a Christian precedent for the Qur’anic application of this idea specifically to those who actively enact – rather than just suffer – violence. However, as Sizgorich reminds us, a Christian martyr was by no means seen merely as a passive victim of persecution but rather as someone who actively ‘defeats the power of the Roman state’.43}}{{Quote|{{Quran|3|169}}|And never think of those who have been killed in the cause of Allah as dead. Rather, they are alive with their Lord, receiving provision}}{{Quote|{{Quran|2|154}}|Do not say that those who are killed in the way of God, are dead, for indeed they are alive, even though you are not aware.}}

=== Martyrs sidestep judgement day ===
After death, humans are typically said to spend their time in an intermediate state known to traditional Islamic scholars as the ''barzakh'' while they wait.<ref>Reynolds, Gabriel Said. 2020. ''Allah:'' ''God in the Qur'an (p. 71-72).'' Yale University Press. Kindle Edition.

It is also the same term used for the barrier between the living and the dead (whilst awaiting judgement day) in the Qur'an, e.g. {{Quran|23|99-100}}</ref> However, as in the above verses, one exception to this rule is Martyrs being with God straight away rather than being judged at judgment day, a non-biblical idea having parallels with late antique Christian thought.

Sinai (2017) similarly notes strong ideological parallels a 6th century hagiographical text (the Panegyric on Macarius, Bishop of Tkow by Pseudo-Dioscorus of Alexandria) of a 5th-century martyr, Egyptian Bishop Macarius of Tkow who was martyred for opposing the council of Chalcedon. Citing Michael Gaddis's summary of the document, ‘He was both willing to die for his faith, and willing to kill for it.’ he notes the same idea in {{Quran|9|111}} … they fight in the way of Allah, kill, and are killed.. <ref>Ibid. (Kindle Edition. pp. 299).</ref> As well as citing English historian of the Byzantine Empire James Howard-Johnston "''..James Howard-Johnston draws attention to a passage in the Chronicle of Theophanes Confessor (d. 818), which reports that at about the same time when the Qur’an promised those ‘killed in the path of God’ immediate entry to paradise, the Byzantine emperor Heraclius similarly announced that those fighting the Sasanians would be recompensed with eternal life. In Heraclius’s address as reported by Theophanes Confessor, we find some of the same general ingredients that are noticeable in Qur’anic calls to militancy…''"<ref>Ibid. (Kindle Edition. pp. 301).</ref> He notes these similarities are likely caused by being on the fringes of the Roman empire.<ref>Ibid. (Kindle Edition. pp. 301).</ref>

==== Martyrdom wipes away other sins and is privileged above other acts from believers ====
{{Quote|Reynolds, Gabriel Said. Christianity and the Qur'an: The Rise of Islam in Christian Arabia (pp. 178-179). Yale University Press. Kindle Edition.|The teaching on the glory earned by martyrs is widespread in the early church. It is nevertheless telling to find the way it is emphasized in the third-century Christian text the aforementioned Didascalia Apostolorum, originally written in Greek but preserved in Syriac.87 The Didascalia clearly teaches that the martyrs will have a privilege above other faithful believers: If then He raises up all men,—as He said by Isaiah: All flesh shall see the salvation of God [Isa 40.5; 52.10],—much more will He quicken and raise up the faithful; and (yet more) again will He quicken and raise up the faithful of the faithful, who are the martyrs, and establish them in great glory and make them His counsellors. For to mere disciples, those who believe in Him, He has promised a glory as of the stars [Dan 12.3]; but to the martyrs He has promised to give an everlasting glory, as of the luminaries which fail not, with more abundant light, that they may be shining for all time.88

The Didascalia is also clear, as is the Qur’an, that martyrs enjoy a special grace through the forgiveness of sins that their deaths have earned for them: But again, sins are forgiven by baptism also to those who from the Gentiles draw near and enter the holy Church of God. Let us inquire also, to whom sins are not imputed. To such as Abraham and Isaac and Jacob and all the patriarchs, as also to the martyrs. Let us hear then, brethren, for the Scripture saith: Who shall boast himself and say: I am clear of sins? Or who shall be confident and say: I am innocent? [Prov 20.9].

And again: There is no man pure of defilement: not though his life be but one day [Job 14.4–5 LXX]. To everyone therefore who believes and is baptized his … former sins have been forgiven; but after baptism also, provided that he has not sinned a deadly sin nor been an accomplice (thereto), but has heard only, or seen, or spoken, and is thus guilty of sin. But if a man go forth from the world by martyrdom for the name of the Lord, blessed is he; for brethren who by martyrdom have gone forth from this world, of these the sins are covered.89

We might compare Q 3:195: “ ‘And those who emigrated, and were expelled from their habitations, those who suffered hurt in My way, and fought, and were slain—them I shall surely acquit of their evil deeds, and I shall admit them to gardens underneath which rivers flow.’ A reward from God! And God with Him is the fairest reward” (italics added). In other words, the Qur’an seems to be well aware of Christian devotion to the martyrs.}}

=== Martyrdom in the Torah and Gospels ===
Muslims who fight are promised paradise, which the Qur'an claims is also a promise in the Torah and Gospel.{{Quote|{{Quran|9|111}}|Indeed Allah has bought from the faithful their souls and their possessions for paradise to be theirs: they fight in the way of Allah, kill, and are killed. A promise binding upon Him in the Torah and the Evangel and the Quran. And who is truer to his promise than Allah? So rejoice in the bargain you have made with Him, and that is the great success.}}Nickel (2020)<ref>Nickel, Gordon D. ''The Quran with Christian Commentary: A Guide to Understanding the Scripture of Islam (p. 222).'' Zondervan Academic. Kindle Edition. 9.111 – They fight in the way of God, and they kill and are killed When the Quran describes believers as fighting “in the way of Allah,” it makes a theological claim by associating Allah with human fighting. See the analysis of these expressions at 73.20 (p. 597). 9.111 – a promise binding on Him in the Torah, and the Gospel, and the Qur’ān This is the only verse in the Quran that brings the Torah (tawrāt), Gospel (injīl), and qur’ān (lit. “recitation”) together. The Quran claims here that the particular point on which the Torah and Gospel agree with the Muslim recitation is that believers “fight in the way of Allah, and they kill and are killed.” This verse makes the reader question whether the Quran has a clear idea of the contents of the Torah and Gospel. A similar question is raised by 61.14, which appears to say that ‘Īsā and his disciples fought against their enemies (cf. 3.52). Along with these misunderstandings, the Quran gives no information about the peaceable teaching and example of Jesus in the Gospel accounts. See the analysis of the Quran’s verses on the “Gospel” at 57.27 (p. 549). Do the Torah and Gospel in fact contain such a promise? See the comment on this characterization of the Bible at 61.14 (p. 566).</ref> and Reynolds (2018) however notes that this is not found there:{{Quote|1=Reynolds, G. S. (2018). The Qur'an and the Bible: Text and Commentary. Commentary on 9:111 (pp. 322) United Kingdom: Yale University Press.|2="9:111 The point of this verse is that those who are prepared to give their lives to God in the holy war are promised paradise as a payment for their services (cf. 2:245; 4:74; 61:10–12). The idea that the martyrs have a special assurance of paradise follows from the Qurʾān’s teaching elsewhere that the act of martyrdom involves forgiveness of sin. This teaching is close to that of the Syriac fathers (see commentary on 2:154, with further references). It is curious that the Qurʾān insists that the promise of heaven for holy warriors is found in the Torah and the Gospel (or “Evangel”); heaven is not found in the Torah and holy war is not found in the Gospels...}}While his commentary on 2:154 (pp. 76) once again highlights the Syriac parallel:{{Quote|2="As Tor Andrae has shown (Les origines de l’islam et le christianisme, 161ff.), the idea that martyrdom involves the absolution of sins is prominent in Syriac Christian texts such as the third-century Didascalia (chap. 20) and the Treaty on the Martyrs of Mar Isaï (d. late sixth cen.); the latter text also insists—much like the Qurʾān—that the martyrs are “living”:

The true martyrs who, by way of a death that covers their sins, demonstrate even more the beauty of their deeds and receive this glorious inheritance by virtue of their blood. By leaving this life they have prepared for their souls an honorable abode in paradise. It was thought that they are already dead, but by their death they have killed their sin, and they are alive with God. (Mar Isaï, Treaty on the Martyrs, 32)}}
=== Further Martyrdom Influence ===
Neuwirth (2024) also notes the influence of Christian martyrdom stories on the sudden conversion and prayers/asking for forgiveness to God of Pharaoh's magician's, who are originally opponents of Moses until he shows them proof of his prophecy via a miracle in the face of a sudden and violent death as threatened by the arrogant ruler (e.g. in {{Quran-range|26|50|51}} and {{Quran-range|20|71|73}}).<ref>Neuwirth, Angelika. ''The Qur'an: Text and Commentary, Volume 2.1: Early Middle Meccan Suras: The New Elect (p. 204).'' Yale University Press. Kindle Edition.</ref> Both Jewish and Christian traditions present individual “anti-Moses” sorcerers named Jannes and Jambres, who continue to appear in later interpretations; citing Nora Schmid, she notes that, although there is no explicit textual reference and the magicians are typically depicted in a negative light, they came to be associated with penance and martyrdom in Christian tradition - in the Qurʾan, this idea is developed further: the forgiveness that Jannes and Jambres either did not receive or only partially received in earlier sources is ultimately granted.<ref>Ibid. pp. 251-252</ref>{{Quote|Neuwirth, Angelika. The Qur'an: Text and Commentary, Volume 2.1: Early Middle Meccan Suras: The New Elect (p. 204). Yale University Press. Kindle Edition.|V. 72–73 qālū lan nuʾthiraka ʿalā mā jāʾanā mina l-bayyināti wa-lladhī faṭaranā fa-qḍi mā anta qāḍin innamā taqḍī hādhihi l-ḥayāta l-dunyā / innā āmannā birabbinā li-yaghfira lanā khaṭāyānā wa-mā akrahtanā ʿalayhi mina l-siḥri wallāhu khayrun wa-abqā] Conversion scene as later in Q 26:50–51. The sorcerers renounce their allegiance to Pharaoh on the basis of the obvious evidence (bayyināt) and give preference to the Creator God, they submit to their worldly fate and hope for the forgiveness of their sins and what they have been forced to do by the ruler—they are a role model for the community, which is also subject to pressure from outside. The request for forgiveness of sins before a violent death is a topos of Christian martyr stories. The entire scene, leaving the context of ‘ancient’ Egypt, reflects the notion of Christian martyrdom stories. Khaṭāyā (singular khaṭīʾa) also lets a Syriac terminus technicus ring through, but the word can be derived from the Arabic root KhṬʿ (“to miss a goal”) (see FVQ, 123ff.). The idea of the forgiveness of sins is prominent in the Christian liturgy—not only through the Lord’s Prayer. In addition to khaṭīʾa, there is the genuine Arabic dhanb, dhunūb.}}

== Expansions on the afterlife ==

Reynolds (2020) notes the Qur’ans provides vivid depictions of hell are highly unlike the New Testament, where Jesus refers to afterlife punishment mostly allusively. The closest the Gospels describe hell is through the few images of “fire,” “wailing,” and “gnashing of teeth.”, for example in Matthew’s Parable of the Weeds, Jesus explains that at the end of the age, the Son of Man will send his angels that will cast evildoers into a fiery furnace where there will be weeping and gnashing of teeth (Matt 13:40–42).<ref>Reynolds, Gabriel Said. ''Allah: God in the Qur'an (pp. 81-82).'' Yale University Press. Kindle Edition.</ref> He notes the much more constant an vivid Qur'anic descriptions far better match later Christian works that expanded the descriptions to be more gruesome, in order to scare the reader/audience.<ref>Ibid. pp. 88.

''We might note how all of these traditions are meant to make humans yearn for paradise and fear hell. The Qur’an, from this regard, is a profoundly psychological work. Like a Christian preacher, like John Chrysostom or Saint Ephrem, the author of the Qur’an speaks of heaven and hell to persuade his audience to repent and believe. He does so in a way, however, that is distinct—emphasizing physical pain and physical pleasure in order, apparently, to make a greater impression on his audience. He puts a terrible tree into hell and young women in paradise.''
</ref>{{Quote|Reynolds, Gabriel Said. Allah: God in the Qur'an (pp. 82-83). Yale University Press. Kindle Edition.|The way that the Qur’an describes hell in particularly vivid, gruesome terms brings us back to something we mentioned in Chapter 1, namely, that the Qur’an in many ways is a “homiletic” work, a work written like a homily or sermon. The Qur’an’s intention is not simply to declare that those who disobey God will be punished, but to describe that punishment in a way which brings the awfulness of hell to life. Similarly, homilists in the early centuries of Christianity expanded dramatically on the New Testament allusions to hell. In a sermon attributed to John Chrysostom (d. 407) we read a description of hell with the sort of detail that we find in the Qur’an: It is a sea of fire—not a sea of the kind or dimensions we know here, but much larger and fiercer, with waves made of fire, fire of a strange and fearsome kind. There is a great abyss there, in fact, of terrible flames, and one can see fire rushing about on all sides like some wild animal…. There will be no one who can resist, no one who can escape: Christ’s gentle, peaceful face will be nowhere to be seen.15}}Sinai (2017) in his paper titled "''The Eschatological Kerygma of the Early Qur’an''" notes many overlap with Syriac Homilies on the afterlife as well as other apocalyptic ideas and terminology.<ref>“[https://almuslih.org/wp-content/uploads/Library/Sinai,%20N%20-%20The%20Eschatological%20Kerygma.pdf The Eschatological Kerygma of the Early Qur’an]”, Nicolai Sinai, in ''Apocalypticism and Eschatology in Late Antiquity: Encounters in the Abrahamic Religions, 6th–8th Centuries'', edited by Hagit Amirav, Emmanouela Grypeou, and Guy Stroumsa, Leuven: Peeters, 2017, 219–266.

These are discussed throughout the whole paper, and a summary can be found in pp.50-57. On heaven and hell specifically, the summary is on pp.55-57.</ref>

== Souls are taken away at night ==

The Qur'an (and traditional Islamic exegetes)<ref>See classical commentaries on these verses such as Al-Jalalayn on [https://quranx.com/Tafsir/Jalal/39.42 Q39:42], [https://quranx.com/Tafsir/Jalal/6.60 Q6:60] and Ibn Kathir on [https://quranx.com/Tafsir/Kathir/39.41 Q39:41-2] and [https://quranx.com/Tafsir/Kathir/6.60 Q6:60]</ref> state that the soul is taken away by Allah during the night.{{Quote|{{Quran|39|42}}|Allah takes the souls at the time of their death, and those who have not died, in their sleep. Then He retains those for whom He has ordained death and releases the others until a specified time. There are indeed signs in that for a people who reflect.}}{{Quote|{{Quran|6|60}}|It is He who takes your souls by night, and He knows what you do by day, then He reanimates you therein so that a specified term may be completed. Then to Him will be your return, whereat He will inform you concerning what you used to do.}}Tesei (2016) notes this idea may mimic a late antique Syriac Christian parallel in the poetical language used by Ephrem, who in the Nisibene hymns (7:15) mentions sleep resembles death, and other Christian writers (such as Babai) wrote about sleep metaphorically Jesus's death and waking up like the resurrection;<ref>Tesei, Tommaso. (2016). "[https://www.researchgate.net/publication/344524709_2_The_barzakh_and_the_Intermediate_State_of_the_Dead_in_the_Quran 2 The barzakh and the Intermediate State of the Dead in the Quran]". pp. 40-42 In Locating Hell in Islamic Traditions. Leiden, The Netherlands: Brill. <nowiki>https://doi.org/10.1163/9789004301368_003</nowiki> (Open access)

''At the same time, the Quran also compares death to the “common sleep” that people experience on a daily basis. This seems to be the case in the cryptic statement found in Q 39:42 (cf. Q 6:60), “God takes the souls at the time of their death (ḥīna mawtihā), and [He takes] that which has not died, in its sleep ( fī manāmihā); He withholds that against which He has decreed death, but sets loose the other until a stated term”. This obscure passage appears to indicate that sleep is a death-like state; sleepers resemble the dead since their souls enter into a state similar to that which they will experience at the moment of death. However, unlike the souls of the dead, which will be raised only on the Day of Resurrection, the ordinary sleeper’s soul is sent back when he awakens―that is, of course, until the time of his death. This parallel between death and “common sleep” finds a fairly close correspondence in the poetical language used by Ephrem, who in the Nisibene hymns (7:15) affirms that: “The one who lies down to sleep resembles the departed and death resembles a dream, and the resurrection the morning”. In these passages the Quran’s eschatological discourse is particularly close to that formulated by Babai, in whose ideas the belief in the soul’s sleep is intimately connected to the strong affirmation of the physical resurrection of the body on the Day of Judgment.'' </ref> with this idea taken literally by Muhammad.

== Arguments for resurrection ==
Reynolds (2020) notes the repeated argument that God can resurrect the dead using the analogy that he can bring life back to barren (or dead) land may be connected to a Jewish tradition that God will resurrect the dead with dew, for example, in b. Shabbat 88b.<ref name=":2">See: Reynolds, Gabriel Said. Allah: ''God in the Qur'an (pp. 76-77).'' Yale University Press. Kindle Edition.

And Footnote 10: Reynolds, Gabriel Said. ''Allah: God in the Qur'an (p. 254).'' Yale University Press. Kindle Edition.</ref>
{{Quote|{{Quran|30|19}}|He brings forth the living from the dead, and brings forth the dead from the living, and revives the earth after its death. Likewise, you [too] shall be raised [from the dead].}}

Cf: {{Quran|16|65}}, {{Quran|43|11}}, {{Quran|50|6-11}}, {{Quran|57|17}}

==See Also==
*[[Pre-Islamic Arab Religion in Islam]]

* [[Parallels Between the Qur'an and Late Antique Judeo-Christian Literature|Parallels Between the Qur'an and Late Antique Judeo-Christian Literature - Part 1]]
* [[Historical Errors in the Quran]]
==References==
<references />

Science and the Seven Earths

2026-06-01T11:20:15Z

CPO675: /* The solid universe */ Added another verse with the sky held up by pillars we cannot see, and a dictionary entry.

{{QualityScore|Lead=3|Structure=3|Content=3|Language=4|References=3}}
[[File:Sunset from the ISS.JPG|right|thumb|250px|Limb view of the Earth's atmosphere. Colors roughly denote the layers of the atmosphere.]]
The [[Qur'an]] and a number of [[Sahih]] [[Hadith]] make the claim that there are seven different earths. This concept of multiple different earths or worlds is not unusual in the ancient world; ancient Mesopotamian Cosmology similarly saw seven earths and seven heavens.<ref>''[https://www.google.co.uk/books/edition/Mesopotamian_Cosmic_Geography/P8fl8BXpR0MC?hl=en&gbpv=1&dq=inauthor:%22Wayne+Horowitz%22&printsec=frontcover Mesopotamian Cosmic Geography.]'' Wayne Horowitz. Eisenbrauns. 1998. ISBN [[Special:BookSources/9780931464997|<bdi>9780931464997</bdi>]]. ''Chapter "Seven Heavens and Seven Earths". pp. 208-222.''

Read PDF online for free on internetarchive.org: ''[https://ia800904.us.archive.org/3/items/HorowitzmesopotamianCosmicGeographyMesopotamianCivilizations/horowitzmesopotamian%20cosmic%20geography%20mesopotamian%20civilizations%20-.pdf horowitzmesopotamian cosmic geography mesopotamian civilizations -.pdf]''</ref> By comparison, in Norse mythology there are nine world or realms counting Hel, the underworld.<ref>''[https://www.germanicmythology.com/original/9Worlds.html The Nine Worlds of Norse Mythology].'' Old Norse Cosmology. germanicmythology.com</ref>

Some modern [[du'aah]], though, seeking to protect the supposed scientific infallibility of the Qur'an have proposed that this description of seven earths (and also description of seven heavens) actually is a type of scientific miracle whereby the Quran and Sunnah actually predicted the findings of modern earth sciences by over one thousand years. In point of fact no exegete before the modern period ever interpreted the verses this way; such an interpretation is novel and meant to fit the Qur'an into the modern, scientific view of the universe rather than taking the Qur'an and Sunnah as texts of their time and interpreting them in line with their author's intent. Besides ignoring what the texts themselves have to say, these modern apologetic claims themselves ignore or badly mangle the actual earth sciences they are attempting to co-opt in order to justify their claims of an inerrant, scientifically accurate Qur'an and prophetic tradition.

==Qur'an and Sunnah==

The Qur'an itself makes the claim that there are 7 earths and 7 heavens:

{{Quote|{{Quran|65|12}}|ٱللَّهُ ٱلَّذِى خَلَقَ سَبْعَ سَمَٰوَٰتٍ وَمِنَ ٱلْأَرْضِ مِثْلَهُنَّ يَتَنَزَّلُ ٱلْأَمْرُ بَيْنَهُنَّ لِتَعْلَمُوٓا۟ أَنَّ ٱللَّهَ عَلَىٰ كُلِّ شَىْءٍ قَدِيرٌ وَأَنَّ ٱللَّهَ قَدْ أَحَاطَ بِكُلِّ شَىْءٍ عِلْمًۢا

Allah is He Who created seven Firmaments and of the earth a similar number. Through the midst of them (all) descends His Command: that ye may know that Allah has power over all things, and that Allah comprehends, all things in (His) Knowledge.}}

The tradition of the seven earths is also found in hadith collections of Sahih Al-Bukhari, Sahih Muslim, and Tirmidhi:
{{Quote|{{Bukhari|||3196|darussalam}}|Narrated Salim's father:

The Prophet (ﷺ) said, "Any person who takes a piece of land unjustly will sink down the seven earths on the Day of Resurrection."}}

In the next hadith, طوّقه means put on a neck-ring<ref>طوق tawwaqa [http://www.studyquran.org/LaneLexicon/Volume5/00000179.pdf Lane's Lexicon] p. 1894</ref> and hence these are flat, not spherical layers.
{{Quote|{{Bukhari|||3195|darussalam}}|حَدَّثَنَا عَلِيُّ بْنُ عَبْدِ اللَّهِ، أَخْبَرَنَا ابْنُ عُلَيَّةَ، عَنْ عَلِيِّ بْنِ الْمُبَارَكِ، حَدَّثَنَا يَحْيَى بْنُ أَبِي كَثِيرٍ، عَنْ مُحَمَّدِ بْنِ إِبْرَاهِيمَ بْنِ الْحَارِثِ، عَنْ أَبِي سَلَمَةَ بْنِ عَبْدِ الرَّحْمَنِ، كَانَتْ بَيْنَهُ وَبَيْنَ أُنَاسٍ خُصُومَةٌ فِي أَرْضٍ، فَدَخَلَ عَلَى عَائِشَةَ فَذَكَرَ لَهَا ذَلِكَ، فَقَالَتْ يَا أَبَا سَلَمَةَ اجْتَنِبِ الأَرْضَ، فَإِنَّ رَسُولَ اللَّهِ صلى الله عليه وسلم قَالَ ‏

"‏ مَنْ ظَلَمَ قِيدَ شِبْرٍ طُوِّقَهُ مِنْ سَبْعِ أَرَضِينَ ‏"

Narrated Muhammad bin Ibrahim bin Al-Harith:

from Abu Salama bin `Abdur-Rahman who had a dispute with some people on a piece of land, and so he went to `Aisha and told her about it. She said, "O Abu Salama, avoid the land, for Allah's Messenger (ﷺ) said, 'Any person who takes even a span of land unjustly, his neck shall be encircled with it down seven earths.' "}}Although the number is not explicitly given, the plural of word for "earth", "أرض" is used here, أرضين meaning "earths". This is used again in conjunction with the plural of the word سماء "sky" or "heavens", سموات, meaning "heavens":{{Quote|{{Bukhari|||4811|darussalam}}| حَدَّثَنَا آدَمُ، حَدَّثَنَا شَيْبَانُ، عَنْ مَنْصُورٍ، عَنْ إِبْرَاهِيمَ، عَنْ عَبِيدَةَ، عَنْ عَبْدِ اللَّهِ ـ رضى الله عنه ـ قَالَ جَاءَ حَبْرٌ مِنَ الأَحْبَارِ إِلَى رَسُولِ اللَّهِ صلى الله عليه وسلم فَقَالَ يَا مُحَمَّدُ، إِنَّا نَجِدُ أَنَّ اللَّهَ يَجْعَلُ السَّمَوَاتِ عَلَى إِصْبَعٍ وَالأَرَضِينَ عَلَى إِصْبَعٍ، وَالشَّجَرَ عَلَى إِصْبَعٍ، وَالْمَاءَ وَالثَّرَى عَلَى إِصْبَعٍ، وَسَائِرَ الْخَلاَئِقِ عَلَى إِصْبَعٍ، فَيَقُولُ أَنَا الْمَلِكُ‏.‏ فَضَحِكَ النَّبِيُّ صلى الله عليه وسلم حَتَّى بَدَتْ نَوَاجِذُهُ تَصْدِيقًا لِقَوْلِ الْحَبْرِ ثُمَّ قَرَأَ رَسُولُ اللَّهِ صلى الله عليه وسلم ‏{‏وَمَا قَدَرُوا اللَّهَ حَقَّ قَدْرِهِ وَالأَرْضُ جَمِيعًا قَبْضَتُهُ يَوْمَ الْقِيَامَةِ وَالسَّمَوَاتُ مَطْوِيَّاتٌ بِيَمِينِهِ سُبْحَانَهُ وَتَعَالَى عَمَّا يُشْرِكُونَ‏}‏‏

Narrated `Abdullah:

A (Jewish) Rabbi came to Allah's Messenger (ﷺ) and he said, "O Muhammad! We learn that Allah will put all the heavens on one finger, and the earths on one finger, and the trees on one finger, and the water and the dust on one finger, and all the other created beings on one finger. Then He will say, 'I am the King.' Thereupon the Prophet (ﷺ) smiled so that his pre-molar teeth became visible, and that was the confirmation of the Rabbi. Then Allah's Messenger (ﷺ) recited: 'No just estimate have they made of Allah such as due to Him.' (Qur'an 39.67)}}

{{Quote|{{Bukhari|||4811|darussalam}}|Muhammad b. Ibrahim said that Abu Salama reported to him that there was between him and his people dispute over a piece of land, and he came to 'A'isha and mentioned that to her, whereupon she said:

Abu Salama, abstain from getting this land, for Allah's Messenger (ﷺ) said: He who usurps even a span of land would be made to wear around his neck seven earths.}}{{Quote|{{cite web| url=https://sunnah.com/mishkat:2960 | title=Mishkat al-Masabih 2960. In-book reference: Book 11, Hadith 195}}|He told of hearing God’s Messenger say, “If anyone wrongly takes a span of land God who is great and glorious will make him dig it till he gets to the end of seven earths, and then he will have it tied round his neck till the day of resurrection until men are judged.”

Ahmad transmitted it.}}
There is also a da'if/weak chain (graded by Darussalam) of narration hadith referring to this, and so while it may not come from Muhammad, it does show early (and more contemporary) understanding of the verses which was evidently not a mysterious or confusing concept to them:
{{Quote|{{Al Tirmidhi||5|44|3298}}|...Then he said: ‘Do you know what is under you?’ They said: ‘Allah and His Messenger know better.’ He said: ‘Indeed it is the earth.’ Then he said: ‘Do you know what is under that?’ They said: ‘Allah and His Messenger know better.’ He said: ‘Verily, below it is another earth, between the two of which is a distance of five-hundred years.’ Until he enumerated seven earths: ‘Between every two earths is a distance of five-hundred years.’ Then he said: ‘By the One in Whose Hand is the soul of Muhammad! If you were to send [a man] down with a rope to the lowest earth, then he would descend upon Allah.’ Then he recited: He is Al-Awwal, Al-Akhir, Az-Zahir Al-Batin, and He has knowledge over all things.”}}

==Apologetic Claims==

{{Quote|https://archive.ph/97uDr#selection-472.8-489.70|"Allah is He Who Created seven firmaments and of the earth a similar number. Through the midst of them (all) descends His command: that ye may know that Allah has power over all things, and that Allah comprehends all things In (His) Knowledge. (The Noble Quran, 65:12)"

According to Noble Verse 65:12 above, Allah Almighty created 7 Heavens for form the universe. The new scientific discovery had revealed to us that the earth that we currently live on today is also formed from seven layers. The very bottom layer contains most of the uranium and potonium ("sic") and all the materials that we need to create nuclear weapons and energy. Noble Verse 65:12 above does indeed say that the earth was created with seven layers. . . . 
The Seven "Heavens" refers to the layers of our atmosphere.

1. troposphere 2. stratosphere 3. ozone layer 4. mesosphere 5. thermosphere 6. ionosphere 7. exosphere

The Seven "Earths" refer to the layers that literally make up the Earth

1. crust 2. lithosphere 3. upper mantle 4. astenoshpere ("sic") 5. lower mantle 6. outer core 7. inner core

OR they could refer to the "7 Continents" (in the context that "al-ard" means ground)

1. North America 2. South America 3. Australia 4. Asia 5. Africa 6. Antarctica 7. Europe}}

==Analysis==

===Seven Layers===

Verse 37:6 says that the stars are in the lowest heaven, and thus the seven heavens cannot mean the Earth's atmosphere.

{{Quote|{{Quran|37|6}}| Surely We have adorned the nearest heaven with an adornment, the stars}}

Nevertheless, the apologist above claims:

{{Quote||
The Seven "Heavens" refers to the layers of our atmosphere.

1. troposphere 2. stratosphere 3. ozone layer 4. mesosphere 5. thermosphere 6. ionosphere 7. exosphere}}

There is only one atmosphere, but one can classify this one atmosphere by different criteria.
Partitioning by temperature, the result is 5 layers. By aerodynamical state 4 layers, by radiophysical state 3 layers and by chemical processes 2 layers. There is no classification into 7 layers.

To reach the needed "seven layers" different criteria are being mixed to reach the desired number 7. For example, Earth's atmosphere is commonly divided into five main layers based on temperature. From highest to lowest, these layers are:

#Exosphere
#Thermosphere
#Mesosphere
#Stratosphere
#Troposphere

Within the five principal layers which are largely determined by temperature, several secondary layers may be distinguished by other properties:

#Ozone layer
#Ionosphere
#Homosphere and heterosphere
#Planetary boundary layer<ref>{{cite web|url= http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Atmosphere_of_Earth|title= Atmosphere of Earth|publisher= Wikipedia|author= |date= accessed January 2, 2014|archiveurl=http://www.webcitation.org/query?url=http%3A%2F%2Fen.wikipedia.org%2Fwiki%2FAtmosphere_of_Earth&date=2014-01-03 |deadurl=no}}</ref>

[[Apologists]] include all five principle layers in their count, then arbitrarily add the ozone layer (which is contained within the stratosphere) and the ionosphere (which forms the inner edge of the magnetosphere) to reach the desired number 7.

If two of the secondary layers are included in the total count, there is no logically viable reason to exclude the planetary boundary layer (the part of the troposphere that is closest to Earth's surface) or the homosphere and heterosphere (which are contained within all five principle layers).

===Seven Layers of the Earth===

{{Quote||
The Seven "Earths" refer to the layers that literally make up the Earth

1. crust 2. lithosphere 3. upper mantle 4. astenoshpere ("sic") 5. lower mantle 6. outer core 7. inner core}}

Note the same inconsistent approach taken to assign seven layers of the atmosphere - i.e. the ''double counting of layers''.

There is also no linguistical evidence or historical examples for 'al-ard meaning or being used for layer(s) of the planet.

'''The general scientific view is that the earth is composed of four (the dominant view)<ref>[https://education.nationalgeographic.org/resource/resource-library-earth-structure/ ''Earth Structure'']. Education. National Geographic. </ref>'''<ref>''[https://www.forbes.com/sites/trevornace/2019/08/26/4-layers-of-the-earth-made-easy/ 4 Layers Of The Earth Made Easy.]'' Forbes - Innovation - Science. Trevor Nace. 2019</ref> '''or five major layers depending on whether one splits the mantle or not.<ref>Lisa Gardiner - [http://www.windows.ucar.edu/tour/link=/earth/Interior_Structure/interior.html&edu=high Structure of the Interior of Earth] - Windows to the Universe, January 18, 2010</ref><ref>Eugene C. Robertson - [http://pubs.usgs.gov/gip/interior/ The Interior of the Earth] - U.S. Geological Survey, May 21, 2007</ref><ref>Maggi Glasscoe - [http://scign.jpl.nasa.gov/learn/plate1.htm Structure of the Earth] - Southern California Integrated GPS Network (SCIGN), August 14, 1998</ref>'''

The five layers are as follows:

#crust
#upper mantle
#lower mantle
#outer core
#inner core

<center>[[File:Lithosphere.gif|450px]]</center>

There are two ways to classify the composition of the geosphere - chemically, into crust, mantle, and core, or functionally, in the case of the outer layers (crust and mantle) into lithosphere and asthenosphere.<ref>Dr. Michael Pidwirny - [http://www.physicalgeography.net/fundamentals/10h.html Fundamentals of Physical Geography/ Structure of the Earth] - 2nd Edition, 2006</ref><ref>[http://www.palaeos.com/Earth/Geosphere/structure.htm The history of life on Earth] - Palaeos</ref>

<center>[[File:Geosphere.gif]]</center>

From the evidence above, one can see apologetic inconsistency, because the apologists double-count the lithosphere/asthenosphere while also counting the crust and upper mantle. This is not consistent since these are alternative classifications.<ref>''[https://www.snexplores.org/article/explainer-earth-layer-layer#:~:text=Starting%20at%20the%20center%2C%20Earth,12%20kilometers%20(7.6%20miles). Explainer: Earth — layer by layer.]'' Earth. Science News Explores. Beth Geiger. 2019.</ref> One cannot count all lithosphere, asthenosphere, crust, and upper mantle together as one would be recounting the same rocks.

A relatively new scientific hypotheses proposed by J. Marvin Herndon and Prof Xiaodong Song suggest the inner core may be further subdivided into four layers; the inner core, the innermost core, a sub-shell of fission material and decay products, and a subcore of uranium and plutonium forming the georeactor.<ref>D. F. Hollenbach, and J. M. Herndon - [http://www.pnas.org/cgi/content/full/98/20/11085 Deep-Earth reactor: Nuclear fission, helium, and the geomagnetic field] - PNAS 2001 vol. 98 no. 20 pp 11085-11090</ref> If this new theory is accepted the number of layers of the earth will rise from five to eight.

It should also be noted here that there is overlap between the chemical and physical designations of layers, specifically at the core-mantle boundary,<ref>''An Introduction to Geology'' (Johnson, Affolter, Inkenbrandt, and Mosher) ''[https://geo.libretexts.org/Bookshelves/Geology/Book%3A_An_Introduction_to_Geology_(Johnson_Affolter_Inkenbrandt_and_Mosher)/02%3A_Plate_Tectonics/2.02%3A_Layers_of_the_Earth 2.2: Layers of the Earth]. Physical Layers.'' Salt Lake Community College via OpenGeology. Libretexts: Geosciences.</ref> making it more difficult to fully class them as separate distinct 'earths'.

Apologists sometimes depict the hydrosphere in their diagrams but are themselves inconsistent in counting/not counting it as one of their seven layers. Even on the crust, there are many layers of rocks one below the other.<ref>For example, here are the illustrated layers of [https://www.nps.gov/zion/learn/nature/images/ZionStratColumn_small_1.jpg Zion National Park], [http://www.grandcanyonguide.net/sites/default/files/geologic-cross-section-photo_1000.png Grand Canyon], [https://www.steinmann.uni-bonn.de/arbeitsgruppen/strukturgeologie/lehre/wissen-gratis/Abb.315ProfileNKA.jpg the Alps] and [http://newsimg.bbc.co.uk/media/images/39076000/gif/_39076834_everest_composition_inf416.gif Himalayas].</ref> Their exact number varies from place to place but they can easily number in dozens, and the diversity of these rock layers forms the very basis of geology. Ignoring these layers ( e.g. [https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Stratum strata]) is untenable, as that could easily mean the Earth could be classified as having many more layers than so far discussed.

===Seven Continents of the Earth===

Another common apologetic claim about these verses and narrations is that they are either seven layers or seven continents.

{{Quote||OR they could refer to the "7 Continents" (in the context that "al-ard" means ground) 1. North America 2. South America 3. Australia 4. Asia 5. Africa 6. Antarctica 7. Europe}}

The former explanation (seven layers) would seem more accurate as all translations refer to "earth" and not ground. Nevertheless, although the number of continents is traditionally considered seven, some geographers and scientists think there are only six as Europe and Asia are technically a single land mass (i.e. Eurasia) and on the same tectonic plate.<ref>Matt Rosenberg - [http://geography.about.com/library/misc/blcont.htm Continents] - About.com</ref> The classification of "continent" is thus to some extent culturally rather than scientifically defined.

===Seven Earths===

There are some Muslims who claim that Allah created seven earths.<ref>[http://www.justread.20m.com/scientific%20truth.htm Layers of the Earth] - Justread.20m.com</ref> This is in fact the correct understanding of verse 65:12 supported by various [[hadith]]s and [[tafsir]] commentaries. However, we only know of one, our own. To get around this problem, apologists such as Maurice Bucaille claim scientists have just not discovered the other six yet.<ref>Dr. Maurice Bucaille - [http://web.archive.org/web/20030514172921/http://www.masmn.org/Books/Maurice_Bucaille/The_Bible_The_Quran_and_Science/043.htm The Bible, The Qur'an and Science/ Confrontation with the data in the Qur'an concerning the creation]</ref>

To further complicate matters for apologists, Islamic sources state the seven earths being referred to in verse 65:12 are flat islands, one under the other. For example:

{{Quote|1=[{{Reference archive|1=http://www.oocities.org/tirmidhihadith/page8.html|2=2014-01-07}} Al Tirmidhi 5735]|2=Narrated AbuHurayrah:

While Allah's Prophet (peace be upon him) and his companions were sitting clouds came over them and Allah's Prophet (peace be upon him) asked, "Do you know what these are?" On their replying that Allah and His Messenger knew best, he said, "These are the clouds (anan), these are the water-carriers of the Earth, which Allah drives to people who do not thank Him or call upon him." He then asked, "Do you know what is above you?" On their replying that Allah and His Messenger (peace be upon him) knew best, he said, "It is the firmament, a ceiling which is guarded and waves which are kept back." He then asked, "Do you know what is between you and it?" On their replying that Allah and His Messenger (peace be upon him) knew best, he said, "Between you and it are five hundred years." He then asked, "Do you knew what is above that?" On their replying that Allah and His Messenger (peace be upon him) best he said, "Two heavens with a distance of five hundred years between them." He went on speaking like that till he counted seven heavens, the distance between each pair being like between Heaven and Earth. He then asked, "Do you know what is above that?" On their replying that Allah and His Messenger (peace be upon him) knew best, he said, "Above that is the Throne, and the distance between it and the (seventh) heaven is the same as that between each pair of heavens." He then asked, '''"Do you know what is below you?" On their replying that Allah and His Messenger (peace be upon him) knew best, he said, "It is the earth." He then asked, "Do you know what is under that?" On their replying that Allah and His Messenger (peace be upon him) knew best, he said, "Under it there is another Earth with a journey of five hundred years between them," and so on till he had counted seven earths with a journey of five hundred years between each pair. He then said, "By Him in Whose hand Muhammad's soul is, if you were to drop a rope to the lowest earth it would not pass out of Allah's knowledge."''' He then recited, "He is the First and the Last, the Outward and the Inward, and He is omniscient." (Tirmidhi commented that Allah's Messenger's recitation of the verse indicates that it would go down within Allah's knowledge, power and authority, for Allah's knowledge, power and authority are everywhere, while He is on the Throne, as He described Himself in His Book.)}}

{{Quote|{{Tabari|1|pp. 207-208}}|According to Muhammad b. Sahl b. 'Askar-Isma'il b. 'Abd al-Karim-Wahb, mentioning some of his majesty (as being described as follows): The heavens and the earth and the oceans are in the haykal, and the haykal is in the Footstool. God's feet are upon the Footstool. He carries the Footstool. It became like a sandal on His feet. When Wahb was asked: What is the haykal? He replied: Something on the heavens' extremities that surrounds the earth and the oceans like ropes that are used to fasten a tent. And when Wahb was asked how earths are (constituted), he replied: '''They are seven earths that are flat and islands'''. Between each two earths, there is an ocean. All that is surrounded by the (surrounding) ocean, and the haykal is behind the ocean.}}Many classical commentators identify the word 'sijjinn' in verses {{Quran|83|7-8}} with the lowest Earth (or just below it in hell), or as a place where the book of bad deeds of humans is kept and devils live.<ref>[https://quranx.com/Tafsir/Abbas/83.9 ''Verse 83.9.''] Tafsir Ibn Abbas - Tanwîr al-Miqbâs min Tafsîr Ibn ‘Abbâs. (Unknown date)</ref><ref>''[https://quranx.com/Tafsir/Jalal/83.7 Tafsir Al-Jalalayn on verse 87:3.]'' Al-Jalalayn / Al-Mahalli and as-Suyuti. Published 1505.</ref><ref>''[https://quranx.com/Tafsir/Kathir/83.7 Tafsir Ibn Kathir on verse 83.7.]'' Ibn Kathir. d. 1373.</ref>

===Seven Universes===
The word that in English is translated for heaven(s) in these verses is samā'/سَماء, which can also be translated as sky (which is essentially its modern meaning in Arabic),<ref>[https://dictionary.cambridge.org/us/dictionary/english-arabic/sky ''Sky.''] Translation English to Arabic. Cambridge dictionary.</ref> or skies samāwāt/ سماوات (plural). This is separate to 'jannah/جَنَّة', which refers to the paradise supposedly in the afterlife for righteous Muslims - which readers may mistake as being the same given the double meaning (of heaven) in English. However, unlike paradise ''(jannah)'', the heaven(s)/skies ''(samā'/samāwāt)'' are part of the cosmos, with the moon being described as in them ({{Quran|71|15-16}}), clouds ({{Quran|2|164}}), along with the stars ({{Quran|41|12}}) etc.

Modern astronomy and technology has allowed us to see, understand, map and even explore the wider Universe, but never found these 7 skies, nor 7 Earths, which as far as we can tell are listed only as 7 was a pre-scientific number of earths and heavens in antique cosmologies.<ref>''[https://www.britannica.com/topic/number-symbolism/7 7. Number Symbolism.]'' Britannica Entry. </ref> Another common apologetic claim is that these seven skies/heavens are actually seven universes which we are yet to discover, and that we know only our one universe so far, often referred to as the lowest/closest heaven ''(al-samā’a l-dunyā)''.

This is due to the Quran stating the nearest/lowest heaven is adorned with stars which cover the known visible universe (such as {{Quran|41|12}}), rather than any philological analysis and ignoring all historical context of the word, which has always meant a 'firmament', or solid layer in the sky to Islamic scholars.<ref>[https://quranx.com/Tafsir/Kathir/13.2 ''Tafsir on Verse 13:2.''] Ibn Kathir. d. 1373. </ref> Using the term 'heavens/skies' was common to refer to this in pre-Islamic Christian literature too.<ref>''[https://www.degruyter.com/document/doi/10.1515/9783110794083/html?lang=en Creation and Contemplation: The Cosmology of the Qur'ān and Its Late Antique Background] (Studies in the History and Culture of the Middle East Book 47)''. Decharneux, Julien. 2023. (pp. 255 - 257). De Gruyter. </ref>

However, by looking at the [https://corpus.quran.com/qurandictionary.jsp?q=smw >200 times] they are mentioned in the Quran, there are many problems substituting this meaning as we will see below, '''with all verses using a form of the word al-samā'/السماء''' (whether translated as 'the sky/skies' or 'the heaven/heavens').

====Gates and water of the universe====
The following verse contradicts the 7 universes claim since it says rain was made to fall from heaven. Certainly, rain does not come from outer space, let alone from gates at the edge of the universe which would be ~46.5 billion light years away.<ref>[https://www.mos.org/mos-at-home/pulsar/how-far-away-is-the-edge-of-the-universe#:~:text=We're%20looking%20back%20in,again%2C%20is%20what%20cosmologists%20do. ''How Far Away is the Edge of the Universe?''] Museum of Science Podcast. Janine Myszka. </ref> The word used for heaven here is ''samā''', the same as that for the seven heavens.

{{Quote|{{Quran|54|11}}|So We opened the gates of heaven, with water pouring forth. }}The gates of the heavens are mentioned elsewhere such as below, saying even if God opened a gate so the disbelievers could climb up it, they would still not believe.
{{Quote|{{Quran|15|14-15}}|And if We open for them a gate in the heavens, to ascend it through the day – Even then they would say, “Our sights have been hypnotised – in fact, a magic spell has been cast upon us.”}}

God is also described as having the keys to these:
{{Quote|{{Quran|42|12}}|To Him belong the keys of the heavens and the earth: He expands the provision for whomever He wishes, and tightens it [for whomever He wishes]. Indeed He has knowledge of all things.’}}{{Quote|{{Quran|39|63}}|To Him belong the keys of the heavens and the earth, and those who disbelieve in the signs of Allah—it is they who are the losers.}}
It appears that righteous Muslims, once resurrected, will ascend the cosmos to the upper heavens, which are on top of/above each other ({{Quran|67|3}}, {{Quran|71|15}}) on judgement day, for whom God will open the gates of the skies (so that they can pass the firmament - gates would not be needed if they were simply layers rather than solid objects):
{{Quote|{{Quran|78|19}}|And the heavens will be opened and become gates}}
And similarly in Q7:40.

{{Quote|{{Quran|7|40}}|Indeed, those who deny Our signs and are disdainful of them—the gates of the heaven will not be opened for them, nor shall they enter paradise until the camel passes through the needle’s eye, and thus do We requite the guilty.}}

Which likely then connect to actual paradise (jannah) as they leave the cosmos via ascension (as mentioned above in Q15:14), as paradise (jannah) is also separately described as having its own gates (e.g. {{Quran|38|50}}, {{Quran|39|73}}), a common motif in antiquity as Dr Sean W Anthony explains:
{{Quote|Anthony, Sean W., Dr.. Muhammad and the Empires of Faith: The Making of the Prophet of Islam. Kindle Edition. Location 1134 - 1145. University of California Press. |The cosmological notion of humankind being blocked from accessing Paradise by gates and, thus, the existence of a heavenly gatekeeper is quite an ancient one and by no means exclusive to Jewish, Christian, or Muslim sacred cosmology. Indeed, where “the keys to heaven” as opposed to “the keys of Paradise” motif appears first in the Islamic tradition is in the Qurʾan itself. According the Qurʾan, however, it is God alone who possesses “the keys to the Heavens and Earth [maqālīd al-samāwāt wa-l-arḍ]” (Q. Zumar 39:63, Shūrā 42:12). In the Qurʾān, the keys to the Heavens and Earth are cosmological and do not assume an explicitly eschatological function—rather the emphasis falls on God’s unrivaled sovereignty over the cosmos as its sole Creator. Yet the Qurʾan does speak of the doors of heaven in a strikingly eschatological vein. Most illustrative of this is the sole verse in which both Paradise (al-jannah) and heaven (al-samāʾ; lit., “the sky”) are mentioned together: “Truly, as for those who disbelieve and spurn our signs, the doors of heaven will not be opened for them nor will they enter Paradise until the camel passes through the eye of a needle” (Q, Aʿrāf 7:40). If a distinction is to be drawn between heaven (al-samāʾ) and Paradise (al-jannah) in qurʾānic cosmology, Paradise appears to be the felicitous abode that lies beyond the sky canopy of the heavens above the Earth.}}

====Earth created before the universe====
The Quran also has the Earth created before the heavens (universes) are created, while the heaven is 'smoke' (''see [[Quran and a Universe from Smoke]]''). Obviously the Earth cannot be created before the Universe is made:
{{Quote|{{Quran|41|9-12}}|Say: Is it that ye deny Him Who created the earth in two Days? And do ye join equals with Him? He is the Lord of (all) the Worlds. He set on the (earth), mountains standing firm, high above it, and bestowed blessings on the earth, and measure therein all things to give them nourishment in due proportion, in four Days, in accordance with (the needs of) those who seek (Sustenance).
Then turned He to the heaven when it was smoke, and said unto it and unto the earth: Come both of you, willingly or loth. They said: We come, obedient. Then He ordained them seven heavens in two Days and inspired in each heaven its mandate; and We decked the nether heaven with lamps, and rendered it inviolable. That is the measuring of the Mighty, the Knower.}}Nor, it should go without saying, was the universe ever made from smoke.

====The universe as a roof/ceiling/canopy====
The sky/heavens are also repeatedly called a roof/ceiling/canopy/building/edifice etc. in multiple verses using multiple words,<ref>Samk [https://lexicon.quranic-research.net/data/12_s/201_smk.html سمك] - Lane's Lexicon [https://lexicon.quranic-research.net/pdf/Page_1430.pdf pp 1430]

Safq [https://lexicon.quranic-research.net/data/12_s/144_sqf.html سقف] - Lane's Lexicon [https://lexicon.quranic-research.net/pdf/Page_1382.pdf pp 1382]

Bina [https://lexicon.quranic-research.net/data/02_b/198_bne.html بنى] - Lane's Lexicon [https://lexicon.quranic-research.net/pdf/Page_0261.pdf pp 261]</ref> which even being generous as a metaphorical interpretation does not match the description of a complex universe, with the majority in a gaseous state of almost entirely empty space, with structures like stars and planets being extremely sparse throughout the 'void' of space.<ref>''[https://www.popularmechanics.com/space/deep-space/a44050735/the-universe-is-mostly-empty-space/ Most of the Universe Is a Void. Here’s How That Emptiness Will Eventually Gobble Up All of Space.]'' Paul M. Sutter. 2023. Space. Popular Mechanics. A Part of Hearst Digital Media.

''P.M. Sutter is a science educator and a theoretical cosmologist at the Institute for Advanced Computational Science at Stony Brook University'' </ref>

However this description does perfectly match the antiquity view of the sky being a literal solid object, made up of 'firmaments':
{{Quote|{{Quran|2|22}}|who assigned to you the earth for a couch, and heaven for an edifice (binā) , and sent down out of heaven water, wherewith He brought forth fruits for your provision; so set not up compeers to God wittingly.}}{{Quote|{{Quran|52|5}}|And by the canopy (safq) raised ˹high˺!}}{{Quote|{{Quran|79|28}}|He raised its ceiling (samk) and proportioned it.}}{{Quote|{{Quran|40|64}}|It is Allah Who made for you the earth your resting place and the sky a building (binā), and moulded you so gave you the best shape, and gave you pure things for sustenance; such is Allah, your Lord; so Most Auspicious is Allah, the Lord Of The Creation.}}{{Quote|{{Quran|21|32}}|And We made the sky a protected roof (saqf), but they, from its signs, are turning away.}}

=====A raised universe=====
Raising the roof/canopy in Q52:5 and Q79:28 (above, and see also Q55:7 below) also makes no sense in the context of our modern understanding of the Universe, where there is no scientific theory that our visible Universe was 'raised'. But does match the idea of the physical sky being broken from Earth and raised.
{{Quote|{{Quran|55|7}}|He raised the heaven (samā') high and set up the balance,}}

=====The solid universe=====
Expanding on the descriptions of the sky as a solid object (and the upper skies), like a roof/canopy/ceiling etc; this concept is backed up repeatedly in descriptions from other verses, which unanimously support the solid firmament(s) view. The mostly gaseous empty state of the universe is in no way reflected in the Qur'an, with the sky(s):

*Raised without pillars that we can see - {{Quran|13|2}} and {{Quran|31|10}}

*The sky would fall otherwise - {{Quran|22|65}}
*A piece of the sky would fall otherwise - {{Quran|52|44}}, {{Quran|34|9}} or could fall - {{Quran|17|92}}
*They are strong - {{Quran|78|12}}
*And stacked above each other - {{Quran|67|3}} and {{Quran|71|15}}
*Can be split open - {{Quran|25|25}} and {{Quran|42|5}}

*And can be rolled up {{Quran|21|104}} and {{Quran|39|67}}

Which is why the debates around the sky(s) among classical mufassirūn have centred around whether the 'firmament' is flat or domed,<ref>E.g. see: [https://quranx.com/Tafsir/Kathir/13.2 ''Tafsir Ibn Kathir on Verse 13:2''] and [https://quranx.com/Tafsir/Kathir/36.37 ''verse 36:37-40'']. Ibn Kathir d. 1373</ref> not solid or gas. And none have come up with a picture of the universe like we now know based off their studying of the Qur'an.

====The universe as day and night ====
''Main page: [[Geocentrism and the Quran]]''

The Quran also states that the night and morning are said to be an attribute of the heaven (l-samā'u) which God built (banāhā) and raised (rafaʿa) as a ceiling (samkahā) and ordered it (fasawwāhā) when he created the heaven and earth. The possessive hā suffix in laylahā (its night) and ḍuḥāhā (its morning light (translated as 'forenoon' below) relates night and day to the heaven - which does not apply at all to the whole universe.

In reality, the night and day we experience is a feature of the earth's rotation on its axis and is only applicable to Earth itself. There is no sense in which the earth's night and day apply across the wider cosmos as it would need to to be able to substitute the word/modern concept 'universe' with heaven/heavens (samā').
{{Quote|{{Quran|79|27-29}}|Is your creation more prodigious or that of the heaven He has built? He raised its vault and fashioned it, and darkened its night, and brought forth its forenoon.}}

====The universe split from the Earth====
The ancient concept of the sky splitting from the Earth can be traced back to Mesopotamian<ref>''[https://www.metmuseum.org/toah/hd/epic/hd_epic.htm Mesopotamian Creation Myths.]'' Ira Spar. 2009. Heilbrunn Timeline of Art History. The Met Musuem. </ref> and Egyptian<ref>''[https://www.researchgate.net/publication/338646511_Skyscapes_Landscapes_and_the_drama_of_Proto-Indo-European_myth Skyscapes, Landscapes, and the drama of Proto-Indo-European myth.]'' John Grigsby PhD Synthesis. 2020.

''The relevant section can be viewed [https://www.researchgate.net/figure/The-Egyptian-myth-of-the-creation-of-earth-and-sky-has-the-sky-Goddess-Nut-separated-from_fig4_338646511 here].''</ref> creation myths in which heaven was separated from earth. This myth which was wide-spread at the time of Islam's emergence, did not puzzle contemporary Muslims, as can be seen by the many classical tafsirs on this (and other relevant) verses.<ref>''[https://quranx.com/Tafsir/Kathir/21.30 Tafsir Ibn Kathir on verse 21:30.]'' Ibn Kathir d 1373</ref><ref>''[https://quranx.com/Tafsir/Jalal/21.30 Tafsir Al-Jalalayn on Verse 21:30]''. Al-Jalalayn/ al-Maḥalli and as-Suyuti. Published 1505.</ref>

There is no scientific theory in which the much larger universe, (i.e. for context our home galaxy, the Milky Way, containing at least 100 billion much larger stars, and the observable universe containing at least 100 billion galaxies)<ref>''[https://exoplanets.nasa.gov/what-is-an-exoplanet/what-is-the-universe/ What is the universe?]'' NASA’s Astrophysics Division. NASA.</ref> was pulled apart from Earth. Instead current scientific theories support the belief it was formed from when the solar system settled into its current layout about 4.5 billion years ago (billions of years after the universe was created), with Earth specifically forming when gravity pulled swirling gas and dust particles of different sizes orbited the sun at slightly different speeds, allowing them to bump into each other and stick together. Eventually, they grew from tiny dust grains into boulders, then into larger “planetesimals”, with one eventually becoming the third planet from the Sun.<ref>''[https://news.uchicago.edu/explainer/formation-earth-and-moon-explained How the Earth and moon formed, explained.]'' Explainer Series. University of Chicago News. University of Chicago.</ref><ref>''[https://science.nasa.gov/earth/facts/ Facts about Earth.]'' Earth facts. NASA Science. NASA</ref>

The word translated "joined together" is ratqan (رَتْقًا)<ref>[https://www.studyquran.org/LaneLexicon/Volume3/00000193.pdf Lane's Lexicon p. 1027 رَتْقًا]</ref> meaning closed up or sewn up, also used metaphorically in terms of reconciling people, but does not imply a homogenous mass or state, let alone a singularity. Mirroring this is the word fataqnāhumā<ref>[https://www.studyquran.org/LaneLexicon/Volume6/00000115.pdf Lane's Lexicon p. 2331 فتق]</ref> ("parted them"/"rent/clove them asunder"/), which means to slit, rent asunder, divide, unstitch.

{{Quote|{{Quran|21|30}}|Have not those who disbelieve known that the heavens and the earth were joined together as one united piece, then We parted them? And We have made from water every living thing. Will they not then believe?}}Some Muslim apologists ''(such as Zakir Naik, as can be see in 3:27 of this [https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=OvG-606KqwU&t=120s YouTube video] - along with a response to him)'' have even claimed that this verse shows scientific foreknowledge of the Big Bang. His claim seems to be that the verse stating the skies and Earth "joined together/ratqan" is referring to the fact that during the Big Bang all the mass that went on to form the rest of the universe originated from the same point of singularity. There are many issues with this interpretation. These are discussed more in-depth in the page ''[[Quran and a Universe from Smoke]]'' and the main ''[[Scientific Errors in the Quran]]'' section''.'' But some of the obvious issues are:
* If this is supposed to be the big bang itself as Naik claims (with the same mass/atoms from one singularity going on to form others) then this is does not match what actually happened, with the Earth not even existing for another 9.3 billion years after the Universe began.<ref>''[https://www.space.com/24054-how-old-is-the-universe.html How old is the universe?]'' Keith Cooper. 2023. Space.com.

''The Universe is listed as ~13.8bn years old and the Earth ~4.5bn which leaves Earth created ~9.4bn years ago.''</ref>
*Therefore to match the essence of what he is saying you would have to essentially take a metaphorical view of the verse, which there appears to be no real justification for other than trying to avoid the scientific error of its literal meaning - no major tafsir does this before modern times. If God simply meant from the same matter, surely he could have said so.
*If one holds that Q21:30 describes the big bang/substances of the heavens and Earth, the atomic particles that would later form the Earth would at the beginning would have to be separated from those that would go on to form everything else in the universe. This, however, bears no resemblance to modern scientific cosmology, wherein the material that forms the Earth passed through at least one earlier generation of stars,<ref>''[https://www.amnh.org/exhibitions/permanent/the-universe/stars/a-spectacular-stellar-finale/we-are-stardust We Are Stardust.]'' Part of Hall of the Universe. American Museum of Natural History. </ref> and more recently was part of various asteroids, comets and planetesimals orbiting the sun (which could all be described as being in or part of/making up the 'heavens') that sometimes collided and merged with each other, sometimes split apart, and gradually coalesced under gravity to form the Earth and other planets.
*The language and context used, with the verse taking the word 'al-samā' (but plural ''al-samawati''), and 'al-ard' (the Earth), uses them in a way that does not match any other verses, despite having he definite 'al' particle implying they are a specific single thing. For example to say the sky can refer to the substance of the universe contradicts the verse Q79:27-29 which puts night and day as a property of the sky. The very next verse Quran 21:31 speaks of mountains being placed on the Earth, where here, 'the Earth' must mean the actual world, yet Naik is claiming 'the Earth/ 'al-ard' refers merely to atomic particles around the time of the big bang to the creation of our solar system.
*He also completely ignores that this is referring to 'skies' plural, which must mean multiple universes to match the description of stars being in the closest universe in e.g. Q41:12, which is not supported by current scientific theory. In another speech he changes the definition of al-samā' again, this time to mean the atmosphere of the Earth ''(see 16:11 of this [https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=h3ewI1YXc-c&t=1229s YouTube video])'', which contradicts too many verses (and the universe definition) to name, but many can be seen throughout this article.

=====The Universe as a separate entity to Earth=====
Verses in the Quran always describe the heaven and the Earth as separate entities, such as the above verse (Q21:30) describing them as split, with the verse stating that "We clove them" (dual pronoun 'huma'), not "We clove it", thereby indicating that the Earth and skies are distinct after the cloving. Along with things like the moon being described as in them ({{Quran|71|15-16}}), the clouds ''between'' the skies and the Earth ({{Quran|2|164}}), along with the stars being in the nearest sky ({{Quran|41|12}}) etc.

The Quran never indicates that the Earth itself is simply within this lowest/nearest heaven along with the other planets, stars and heavenly objects. In reality Earth is the 3rd planet in our Inner Solar System, of the Orion Arm of the Milky Way Galaxy, which is part of the Virgo Supercluster within the wider Laniakea Supercluster, itself one of many,<ref>[https://aaa.org/2022/08/01/our-cosmic-address-where-is-earth-situated-in-the-univers ''Our Cosmic Address: Where is Earth Situated in the Universe?''] - Simone Lilavois - Amateur Astronomers Association, 1 August 2022</ref> making the description odd in light off modern science, but again matching the 'firmament torn from the Earth' view of antiquity.

====Between the Universe and the Earth====

God is said to have dominion/sovereignty of the heavens and Earth and all that is ''between them (baynahum بينهم).''<ref>Quranic research Lanes' Lexicon [https://lexicon.quranic-research.net/data/02_b/238_byn.html ''root بين'']

''بَيْنَهُمْ / baynahum'' - Lanes' Lexicon Classical Arabic Dictionary [https://lexicon.quranic-research.net/pdf/Page_0287.pdf Book 1 p.287]& [https://lexicon.quranic-research.net/pdf/Page_0288.pdf p.288]</ref>

There is nothing between the Earth and the rest of the universe, so substituting the 'heavens' with the modern definition of the universe does not make sense here. Yet once again matches the ancient view of the heavens as 'firmaments' in the sky with space between them.

This idea is also backed up in many hadith ''(see: [[Qur'an, Hadith and Scholars:Creation]]),'' such as {{Bukhari|||7517|darussalam}}, describing Muhammad's alleged night journey through the heavens, and {{Bukhari|||7423|darussalam}} comparing distances of degree between those in paradise to the distance between the sky (samā', i.e. Universe as apologists claim) and the Earth to show how large they are.
{{Quote|{{Quran|5|18}}|Say the Jews and the Christians: "We are sons of God and beloved of Him." Say: "Why does He punish you then for your sins? No: You are only mortals, of His creation." He can punish whom He pleases and pardon whom He wills, for God's is the kingdom of the heavens and the earth and all that lies between them, and everything will go back to Him.}}

{{Quote|{{Quran|50|38}}|And verily We created the heavens and the earth, and all that is between them, in six Days, and naught of weariness touched Us.}}This is repeated in {{Quran|15|85}}, {{Quran|19|65}}, {{Quran|21|16}} and {{Quran|25|59}}.

Clouds are also distinctly said to be ''between'' the heavens and the Earth, again preventing the interpretation of the 'samā'/heavens/skies as our whole/visible universe.

''Note: This also separately contradicts Zakir Naik's definition of the heaven(s) as the Earths atmosphere which the clouds are also in, and not between.''{{Quote|{{Quran|2|164}}|Indeed in the creation of the heavens and the earth, and the alternation of night and day, and the ships that sail at sea with profit to men, and the water that Allah sends down from the sky—with which He revives the earth after its death, and scatters therein every kind of animal—and the changing of the winds, and the clouds disposed between the sky (samā') and the earth, there are surely signs for a people who exercise their reason.}}

==See Also==

*[[Scientific Miracles in the Quran]]
{{Hub4|Harun Yahya|Harun Yahya}}{{Hub4|Cosmology|Cosmology}}

==External Links==

*[{{Reference archive|1=http://www.answering-islam.org./Quran/Science/seven_earths.html|2=2011-12-05}} Qur'an & Science Problem: The Seven Earths] ''- Answering Islam''

==References==
{{Reflist|30em}}
[[Category:Qur'an]]
[[Category:Islam and Science]]
[[Category:Cosmology]]
[[Category:Harun Yahya]]
[[Category:Apologetics]]

Contradictions in the Quran

2026-05-31T15:46:29Z

CPO675: /* Abraham and the idols */ Added another contradictory aspect of the story - referencing Reynolds.

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{{QualityScore|Lead=4|Structure=4|Content=4|Language=4|References=4}}A recurring [[:Category:Criticism of Islam|criticism]] of the [[Qur'an|Quran]] is that it contains contradictory pronouncements, as is argued of many other religious scriptures. The occurrence of these contradictions, critics argue, is particularly problematic in the case of the Quran because the Islamic tradition holds it to be the direct, unmediated word of [[Allah]], or God. Indeed, {{Quran|4|82}} makes the confident assertion: "Then do they not reflect upon the Qur'an? If it had been from [any] other than Allah, they would have found within it much contradiction."

Critics hold that at least some of these contradictions are irresolvable through any reasonable interpretation and that, to resolve them, exegetes must resort to incredible interpretations. While some of the proposed contradictions, critics admit, may be resolved through the doctrine of [[Naskh (Abrogation)|abrogation]], whereby Allah is said to override his previous instructions (through, for instance, permitting [[alcohol]] at one point and prohibiting at another), many other contradictions are not resolvable in this manner. Indeed, the Islamic tradition holds that the doctrine of abrogation is only applicable in cases of law and not theology - what Allah says at any point with regards to the divine, the hereafter, history, the day of judgement, or other such non-legal matters, must (and, the tradition holds, does) always hold true. Critics, however, have stated that many, including some of the most problematic, of the proposed contradictions are precisely of the theological, and not legal, variety.

A similar discussion exists between critics and Islamic scholars surrounding supposed [[Contradictions in the Hadith|contradictions contained in the hadiths]].

==Parallel narrative passages==
Many stories in the Quran are repeated in multiple surahs. This risks ample opportunity for a human author or editor to unwittingly introduce contradictions between the parallel narratives. Indeed this is the case according to critics. Most of the examples in this section are from the [https://quranvariants.wordpress.com/narrative-contradictions-in-the-quran/ Quran Variants] website where they are discussed in more depth, with further insights and examples. 
[https://quranvariants.files.wordpress.com/2022/04/narrative-contradictions-quran.pdf Narrative Contradictions in the Quran (pdf)]

This section on parallel narratives is much more detailed than the other sections of the article, so some readers may prefer to skip past this section and take a quick run through the other contradictions first.

Due to the columns, if viewing on a mobile phone this section is best viewed by clicking desktop mode at the bottom of the page.

===The forgiveness of Adam===
Academic scholars have noticed that the author or editor of the Quran appears to have combined in verses 2:36-39 the stories of Adam in 7:22-25 and 20:121-124, with the awkward result that Allah tells Adam and company to go down from paradise twice, in verses 2:36 and 2:38.<ref>Witztum, Joseph. 2011. [https://www.docdroid.net/EBk1ghM/the-syriac-milieu-of-the-quran-the-recasting-of-biblical-narratives-pdf The Syriac Milieu of the Qur’ ̄an: The Recasting of Biblical Narratives] Ph.D. thesis, Princeton University, Princeton, NJ, USA. pp. 69-79</ref>

Moreover, a contradiction was thereby created regarding the timing of Adam's forgiveness by Allah. In Surah 20, Adam is forgiven before the command to descend from paradise (part of a longer section narrated chronologically). In Surah 7 Adam requests forgiveness from Allah, but it does not say whether Allah did forgive him. Instead, it immediately proceeds to the command to descend in 7:24. Surah 2 appears to fix the ambiguity in surah 7 by inserting the descent command seen in surah 7:24 into 2:36 (the whole verse is used word for word by 2:36 in the Arabic text) before Allah's forgiveness which "Then" follows immediately afterwards (Arabic: fa<ref name="LanesLexiconFa">fa - [http://www.studyquran.org/LaneLexicon/Volume6/00000105.pdf Lane's Lexicon pp. 2321-2323]</ref>).

Despite the mess, the parallels would just about be possible to harmonise, if not for the timing of the "as enemies of one another" element, which comes in the pre-forgiveness descent command in Surah 2, but in the post-forgiveness descent command in Surah 20.

{| class="wikitable" width="100%" cellspacing="0" cellpadding="5" border="1" align="center"
! scope=col style="width: 33%;" |{{Quran-range|2|36|39}}
! scope=col style="width: 33%;" |{{Quran-range|7|22|25}}
! scope=col style="width: 33%;" |{{Quran-range|20|121|124}}
|- style="vertical-align: top;"
|2:36 But Satan caused them to slip out of it and removed them from that [condition] in which they had been. And We said, "Go down, [all of you], as enemies to one another, and you will have upon the earth a place of settlement and provision for a time." 
2:37 '''Then Adam received from his Lord [some] words, and He accepted his repentance.''' Indeed, it is He who is the Accepting of repentance, the Merciful. 
2:38 We said, "Go down from it, all of you. And when guidance comes to you from Me, whoever follows My guidance - there will be no fear concerning them, nor will they grieve. 
2:39 And those who disbelieve and deny Our signs - those will be companions of the Fire; they will abide therein eternally."
|7:22 So he made them fall, through deception. And when they tasted of the tree, their private parts became apparent to them, and they began to fasten together over themselves from the leaves of Paradise. And their Lord called to them, "Did I not forbid you from that tree and tell you that Satan is to you a clear enemy?" 
7:23 '''They said, "Our Lord, we have wronged ourselves, and if You do not forgive us and have mercy upon us, we will surely be among the losers."''' 
7:24 [Allah] said, "Descend, being to one another enemies. And for you on the earth is a place of settlement and enjoyment for a time." 
7:25 He said, "Therein you will live, and therein you will die, and from it you will be brought forth."
|20:121 And Adam and his wife ate of it, and their private parts became apparent to them, and they began to fasten over themselves from the leaves of Paradise. And Adam disobeyed his Lord and erred. 
20:122 '''Then his Lord chose him and turned to him in forgiveness and guided [him].''' 
20:123 [Allah] said, "Descend from Paradise - all, [your descendants] being enemies to one another. And if there should come to you guidance from Me - then whoever follows My guidance will neither go astray [in the world] nor suffer [in the Hereafter]. 
20:124 And whoever turns away from My remembrance - indeed, he will have a depressed life, and We will gather him on the Day of Resurrection blind."
|}
Durie (2018)<ref>Durie, Mark. 2018. ''The Qur’an and Its Biblical Reflexes: Investigations into the Genesis of a Religion'' (p. 408 - 415 Kindle Edition). Lexington Books. ''pp. 219 - 223''</ref> notes that scholars like Witztum and others have proposed an editorial process for the Qur'an, where earlier texts were reworked into later versions, with this contradiction being the result of combining the versions together. However, an alternative "oral-formulaic" approach, advocated by Bannister,<ref>Andrew Bannister, ''An Oral-Formulaic Study of the Qurʾan'', Lanham: Lexington Books, 2014, <nowiki>ISBN 978-0-7391-8357-1</nowiki>.</ref> suggests the Qur'an's narratives were shaped by oral performance rather than editing. Variations in the Fall stories reflect performance differences rather than textual dependence, with the performer adapting the story for different audiences. From the perspective of an oral-formulaic explanation, we can say that Q2 is an ill-formed performance, and its appearance of dependence upon Q7 and Q20 is simply because those other two recorded performances went more smoothly.<ref>Durie, Mark. 2018. ''The Qur’an and Its Biblical Reflexes: Investigations into the Genesis of a Religion'' (p. 410 Kindle Edition). Lexington Books. ''pp. 220''</ref>

===Timing of Allah's instructions to Noah===
Two passages telling the story of Noah disagree as to when he was given the instructions about who and what to save in the ship. In 11:40, he receives the instructions when the flood is commanded. In 23:27, instead he receives these instructions earlier, at the same time as he is instructed to build the ark.

{| class="wikitable" width="100%" cellspacing="0" cellpadding="5" border="1" align="center"
! scope=col style="width: 50%;" |{{Quran-range|11|37|40}}
! scope=col style="width: 50%;" |{{Quran|23|27}}
|- style="vertical-align: top;"
|11:37 And construct the ship under Our observation and Our inspiration and do not address Me concerning those who have wronged; indeed, they are [to be] drowned." 
11:38 And he constructed the ship, and whenever an assembly of the eminent of his people passed by him, they ridiculed him. He said, "If you ridicule us, then we will ridicule you just as you ridicule. 
11:39 And you are going to know who will get a punishment that will disgrace him [on earth] and upon whom will descend an enduring punishment [in the Hereafter]." 
11:40 [So it was], '''until when Our command came and the oven overflowed, We said,''' "Load upon the ship of each [creature] two mates and your family, except those about whom the word has preceded, and [include] whoever has believed." But none had believed with him, except a few.
|So We inspired to him, "Construct the ship under Our observation, and Our inspiration, '''and when Our command comes and the oven overflows,''' put into the ship from each [creature] two mates and your family, except those for whom the decree [of destruction] has proceeded. And do not address Me concerning those who have wronged; indeed, they are to be drowned.
|}

===Abraham and the idols===
{{Quran-range|37|87|97}} contains a simpler version of the story in which Abraham smashes the idols in {{Quran-range|21|57|68}}. The two versions conflict in terms of where the events take place. In surah 37, everything takes place at the location of the idols. After some dialogue, we see in verse 90 “Then they turned away from him, departing” (fa-tawallaw ʿanhu mud'birīna); Abraham then smashes the idols; and “Then they came toward him, hastening” (fa-aqbalū ilayhi yaziffūna). Lane's Lexicon entry for the conjunction fa used at the start of 37:94 explains that in such usage as we see here, fa conveys proximate and uninterrupted succession.<ref name="LanesLexiconFa />

In contrast, the longer surah 21 version has the people return to find the smashed idols but Abraham is no longer present there. They send a party to bring him, and then back amidst the idols he shows them the folly of their ways (in both versions this is when they decide to burn him). So in the surah 21 version it is Abraham who comes to them.

{| class="wikitable" width="100%" cellspacing="0" cellpadding="5" border="1" align="center"
! scope=col style="width: 50%;" |{{Quran-range|21|57|68}}
! scope=col style="width: 50%;" |{{Quran-range|37|87|97}}
|- style="vertical-align: top;"
|21:57 And [I swear] by Allah, I will surely plan against your idols after you have turned and gone away." 
21:58 So he made them into fragments, except a large one among them, that they might return to it [and question]. 
21:59 They said, "Who has done this to our gods? Indeed, he is of the wrongdoers." 
21:60 They said, "We heard a young man mention them who is called Abraham." 
21:61 '''They said, "Then bring him before the eyes of the people that they may testify."''' 
21:62 They said, "Have you done this to our gods, O Abraham?" 
21:63 He said, "Rather, this - the largest of them - did it, so ask them, if they should [be able to] speak." 
21:64 So they returned to [blaming] themselves and said [to each other], "Indeed, you are the wrongdoers." 
21:65 Then they reversed themselves, [saying], "You have already known that these do not speak!" 
21:66 He said, "Then do you worship instead of Allah that which does not benefit you at all or harm you? 
21:67 Uff to you and to what you worship instead of Allah. Then will you not use reason?" 
21:68 They said, "Burn him and support your gods - if you are to act."
|37:87 Then what is your thought about the Lord of the worlds?" 
37:88 And he cast a look at the stars 
37:89 And said, "Indeed, I am [about to be] ill." 
37:90 '''So they turned away from him, departing.''' 
37:91 Then he turned to their gods and said, "Do you not eat? 
37:92 What is [wrong] with you that you do not speak?" 
37:93 And he turned upon them a blow with [his] right hand. 
37:94 '''Then the people came toward him, hastening.''' 
37:95 He said, "Do you worship that which you [yourselves] carve, 
37:96 While Allah created you and that which you do?" 
37:97 They said, "Construct for him a furnace and throw him into the burning fire."
|}
Reynolds (2025) also notes a difference in the Qur'anic telling of the story of Abraham confronting his father over idol worship (which occurs in eight different surahs (Q 6:74–83, 19:41–48, 21:51–67, 26:69–82, 29:16–25, 37:83–96, 43:26–27, 60:4); in that some (like surah 21 and 26) he questions both his father and his fathers wider community, while in others (like surah 6 and 19) he questions his father alone.<ref>Reynolds, Gabriel Said. ''Christianity and the Qur'an (p. 68-69).'' Yale University Press. Kindle Edition. 2025.</ref>

===Abraham and the Angels===
The parallel Guests of Abraham stories in the Quran have been analysed in depth in a paper by Joseph Witztum in order to determine the relative chronology of the parallel passages.<ref>Joseph Witztum. “Thrice upon a Time: Abraham’s Guests and the Study of Intra-Quranic Parallels”. In Holger Zellentin (ed.), The Quran’s Reformation of Judaism and Christianity: Return to the Origins. London: Routledge, 2019, pp. 277–302.</ref> Four contradictions between them are particularly notable here and discussed below.

{| class="wikitable" width="100%" cellspacing="0" cellpadding="5" border="1" align="center"
! scope=col style="width: 33%;" |{{Quran-range|11|69|79}} (see also {{Quran-range|29|31|32}}
! scope=col style="width: 33%;" |{{Quran-range|15|51|60}}
! scope=col style="width: 33%;" |{{Quran-range|51|24|34}}
|- style="vertical-align: top;"
|11:69 And certainly did Our messengers come to Abraham with good tidings; they said, "Peace." He said, "Peace," and did not delay in bringing [them] a roasted calf. 
11:70 '''But when he saw their hands not reaching for it, he distrusted them and felt from them apprehension. They said, "Fear not. We have been sent to the people of Lot."'''
|15:51 And inform them about the guests of Abraham, 
15:52 '''When they entered upon him and said, "Peace." [Abraham] said, "Indeed, we are fearful of you."''' 
15:53 '''[The angels] said, "Fear not. Indeed, we give you good tidings of a learned boy."'''
|51:24 Has there reached you the story of the honored guests of Abraham? - 
51:25 When they entered upon him and said, "[We greet you with] peace." He answered, "[And upon you] peace, [you are] a people unknown. 
51:26 Then he went to his family and came with a fat [roasted] calf 
51:27 And placed it near them; he said, "Will you not eat?" 
51:28 '''And he felt from them apprehension. They said, "Fear not," and gave him good tidings of a learned boy.'''
|- style="vertical-align: top;"
|11:71 '''And his Wife was standing, and she smiled. Then We gave her good tidings of Isaac and after Isaac, Jacob.''' 
11:72 '''She said, "Woe to me! Shall I give birth while I am an old woman and this, my husband, is an old man? Indeed, this is an amazing thing!"''' 
11:73 They said, "Are you amazed at the decree of Allah? May the mercy of Allah and His blessings be upon you, people of the house. Indeed, He is Praiseworthy and Honorable."
|15:54 He said, "Have you given me good tidings although old age has come upon me? Then of what [wonder] do you inform?" 
15:55 They said, "We have given you good tidings in truth, so do not be of the despairing." 
15:56 He said, "And who despairs of the mercy of his Lord except for those astray?"
|51:29 '''And his wife approached with a cry [of alarm] and struck her face and said, "[I am] a barren old woman!"''' 
51:30 They said, "Thus has said your Lord; indeed, He is the Wise, the Knowing."
|- style="vertical-align: top;"
|11:74 '''And when the fright had left Abraham and the good tidings had reached him, he began to argue with Us concerning the people of Lot.'''' 
11:75 Indeed, Abraham was forbearing, grieving and [frequently] returning [to Allah]. 
11:76 [The angels said], "O Abraham, give up this [plea]. Indeed, the command of your Lord has come, and indeed, there will reach them a punishment that cannot be repelled."
|15:57 '''[Abraham] said, "Then what is your business [here], O messengers?"''' 
15:58 '''They said, "Indeed, we have been sent to a people of criminals,''' 
15:59 Except the family of Lot; indeed, we will save them all 
15:60 Except his wife." Allah decreed that she is of those who remain behind.
|51:31 '''[Abraham] said, "Then what is your business [here], O messengers?"''' 
51:32 '''They said, "Indeed, we have been sent to a people of criminals''' 
51:33 To send down upon them stones of clay, 
51:34 Marked in the presence of your Lord for the transgressors."
|}

Various contradictions are apparent in these parallels (the first 3 discussed by Witztum in his paper).

1) In Surah 11 and Surah 51 Abraham's fear comes after the angels do not take the food and it is at that point that they reassure him of their mission (either to the people of Lot or to bring him the good tidings). In surah 15 however, Abraham expresses his fear as soon as they arrive exchanging greetings of peace.

2) Abraham's wife receives the good tidings either directly (Surah 11) or indirectly, having overhead the tidings given to Abraham (Surah 51). Her immediate reaction is the same in both versions.

3) In 51:28 (and 15:53) Abraham is only given tidings of a learned boy (singular), which his wife overhears, whereas in 11:71 his wife is directly given tidings both of Isaac and of Jacob. Again, it is notable that her same immediate reaction is given in 51:29 and 11:72, so these are portraying the same moment.

4) The 2nd contradiction noted above is a casualty of the author's desire in surah 11 to have Abraham later argue with the angels about the people of Lot. So in 11:70 the angels first calm Abraham's fear by telling him that they have been sent to the people of Lot (qawmi lūṭin) instead of giving him the good tidings as in 15:53 and 51:28. Then since they still have to deliver the good news, it is given directly to his wife in surah 11.

Later, in verse 74, he argues with them on behalf of the people of Lot (qawmi lūṭin, again). In the other two surahs, the topic only comes up for the first time in 15:57 and 51:31 when Abraham asks what is their next business (“Then what” famā).

===Lot and the angels===

After the business with Abraham and his wife, the angels visit Lot and his family to save them from the destruction coming to the people there.

{| class="wikitable" width="100%" cellspacing="0" cellpadding="5" border="1" align="center"
! scope=col style="width: 50%;" |{{Quran-range|15|61|74}}
! scope=col style="width: 50%;" |{{Quran-range|11|77|83}}
|- style="vertical-align: top;"
|15:61 And when the messengers came to the family of Lot, 
15:62 He said, "Indeed, you are people unknown." 
15:63 They said, "But we have come to you with that about which they were disputing, 
15:64 And we have come to you with truth, and indeed, we are truthful. 
15:65 So set out with your family during a portion of the night and follow behind them and let not anyone among you look back and continue on to where you are commanded." 
15:66 And We conveyed to him [the decree] of that matter: that those [sinners] would be eliminated by early morning. 
15:67 '''And the people of the city came rejoicing.''' 
15:68 [Lot] said, "Indeed, these are my guests, so do not shame me. 
15:69 And fear Allah and do not disgrace me." 
15:70 They said, "Have we not forbidden you from [protecting] people?" 
15:71 [Lot] said, "These are my daughters - if you would be doers [of lawful marriage]." 
15:72 By your life, [O Muhammad], indeed they were, in their intoxication, wandering blindly. 
15:73 So the shriek seized them at sunrise. 
15:74 And We made the highest part [of the city] its lowest and rained upon them stones of hard clay.
|11:77 And when Our messengers, [the angels], came to Lot, he was anguished for them and felt for them great discomfort and said, "This is a trying day." 
11:78 '''And his people came hastening to him, and before [this] they had been doing evil deeds.''' He said, "O my people, these are my daughters; they are purer for you. So fear Allah and do not disgrace me concerning my guests. Is there not among you a man of reason?" 
11:79 They said, "You have already known that we have not concerning your daughters any claim, and indeed, you know what we want." 
11:80 He said, "If only I had against you some power or could take refuge in a strong support." 
11:81 '''The angels said, "O Lot, indeed we are messengers of your Lord; [therefore], they will never reach you.''' So set out with your family during a portion of the night and let not any among you look back - except your wife; indeed, she will be struck by that which strikes them. Indeed, their appointment is [for] the morning. Is not the morning near?"? 
11:82 So when Our command came, We made the highest part [of the city] its lowest and rained upon them stones of layered hard clay, [which were] 
11:83 Marked from your Lord. And Allah 's punishment is not from the wrongdoers [very] far.
|}

Three contradictions are evident in these parallel passages.

1) In surah 15, the angels tell Lot when they first arrive that they are there to save him and his family from the punishment to come. A mob arrives trying to take the visitors and Lot attempts to placate them by offering his daughters. In Q. 11, the sequence of events is very expressly the other way around: the mob events occur first, which leads to the angels explaining how they will save Lot and his family. Although 15:67 starts with the "And" conjunction (like some of the previous verses), the suspicion of contradiction in Q. 15 is well justified from the textual sequence of the elements (this is, after all, a narrative), and from what naturally reads like the angels explaining themselves upon their arrival in the first few verses. This is even apparent from the way Lot addresses them as "people unknown" (qawmun munkarūna) in 15:62, mirroring the way Abraham addressed the angels when he greeted them in 51:25 (see above).

2) Another contradiction concerns the context in which the angels tell Lot of their mission to save him and his family. In 15:61-66, the angels reveal this in response to Lot addressing them as people unknown / strange when they first arrive, alluding in verse 63 to Lot's pleadings to the people in other passages. In 11:80-81, instead the angels reveal their mission in order to ease the fear Lot expresses about the mob.

3) Finally, the accounts conflict in sequencing the elements of Lot's appeal to the mob. In 11:78 he says “these are my daughters” then asks them to “fear Allah and do not disgrace me”. In 15:68-71 instead he asks them to “fear Allah and do not disgrace me”, the mob responds, and then comes the “These are my daughters” element.

===Response from Lot's people===
Two passages make exclusive statements about the response of Lot's people to his arguments before the visit of the angels. Both verses come across as sweeping statements on the response of Lot's people to his pleadings, perhaps reflective of Muhammad's own experiences, except that each uses categorically exclusive language ("the answer of his people was not but they said...").

{| class="wikitable" width="100%" cellspacing="0" cellpadding="5" border="1" align="center"
! scope=col style="width: 50%;" |{{Quran-range|27|54|57}}
! scope=col style="width: 50%;" |{{Quran-range|29|28|29}}
|- style="vertical-align: top;"
|27:54 And [mention] Lot, when he said to his people, "Do you commit immorality while you are seeing? 
27:55 Do you indeed approach men with desire instead of women? Rather, you are a people behaving ignorantly." 
27:56 '''But the answer of his people was not except that they said, "Expel the family of Lot from your city. Indeed, they are people who keep themselves pure."''' 
27:57 So We saved him and his family, except for his wife; We destined her to be of those who remained behind.
|29:28 And [mention] Lot, when he said to his people, "Indeed, you commit such immorality as no one has preceded you with from among the worlds. 
29:29 Indeed, you approach men and obstruct the road and commit in your meetings [every] evil." '''And the answer of his people was not but they said, "Bring us the punishment of Allah, if you should be of the truthful."'''
|}

===Moses meets Allah at the fire===
In this example, three accounts of Moses talking with Allah at the fire bear only a passing resemblance to one another. It is worth noting that {{Quran|4|164}} says regarding the nature of the interaction “And Allah spoke to Moses with [direct] speech". Al-Razi notes in his commentary for 20:12 that the Mu’tazilites, Al-Ash’ari and al-Maturidi had different theological views on whether the words of Allah came from via the bush itself, and whether they were audible.

All three versions have “O Moses, Indeed, I am Allah” (or "your Lord") as a common element in the Arabic. However, there is otherwise little attempt at consistency in the variant stories. In surah 27, Allah is introduced as “Lord of the worlds” in the 3rd person and introduces himself with the common element along with another title. In surah 28 we see the opposite sequence with the “Lord of the Worlds” title used in the 1st person after the common introduction.

{| class="wikitable" width="100%" cellspacing="0" cellpadding="5" border="1" align="center"
! scope=col style="width: 33%;" |{{Quran-range|20|10|16}}
! scope=col style="width: 33%;" |{{Quran-range|27|7|9}}
! scope=col style="width: 33%;" |{{Quran-range|28|29|30}}
|- style="vertical-align: top;"
|20:10 When he saw a fire and said to his family, "Stay here; indeed, I have perceived a fire; perhaps I can bring you a torch or find at the fire some guidance."
|27:7 [Mention] when Moses said to his family, "Indeed, I have perceived a fire. I will bring you from there information or will bring you a burning torch that you may warm yourselves."
|28:29 And when Moses had completed the term and was traveling with his family, he perceived from the direction of the mount a fire. He said to his family, "Stay here; indeed, I have perceived a fire. Perhaps I will bring you from there [some] information or burning wood from the fire that you may warm yourselves."
|- style="vertical-align: top;"
|20:11 And when he came to it, he was called, "O Moses, 
20:12 Indeed, I am your Lord, so remove your sandals. Indeed, you are in the sacred valley of Tuwa. 
20:13 And I have chosen you, so listen to what is revealed [to you]. 
20:14 Indeed, I am Allah. There is no deity except Me, so worship Me and establish prayer for My remembrance. 
20:15 Indeed, the Hour is coming - I almost conceal it - so that every soul may be recompensed according to that for which it strives. 
20:16 So do not let one avert you from it who does not believe in it and follows his desire, for you [then] would perish.
|27:8 But when he came to it, he was called, "Blessed is whoever is at the fire and whoever is around it. And exalted is Allah, Lord of the worlds. 
27:9 O Moses, indeed it is I - Allah, the Exalted in Might, the Wise."'''
|28:30 But when he came to it, he was called from the right side of the valley in a blessed spot - from the tree, "O Moses, indeed I am Allah, Lord of the worlds."
|}

===Moses expresses his fears and asks Allah about Aaron===
In this sequence contradiction, Allah has revealed himself at the fire to Moses, who expresses his worries and makes a request. In the surah 26 version, Moses expresses his fear that the people of Pharaoh will deny him; he requests that he be assisted by his brother, Aaron; and finally, Moses mentions that the Egyptians want revenge for someone he had killed. However, in the surah 28 version, these three elements occur in the reverse order.

Regardless of differences that could be simply put down to the vagaries of translation from ancient languages or alternative paraphrases and shortening for brevity, the information content and sequencing is more fundamental and susceptible to contradiction according to critics, particularly when the Quran claims that such and such was said by a person on a particular occasion.

{| class="wikitable" width="100%" cellspacing="0" cellpadding="5" border="1" align="center"
! scope=col style="width: 50%;" |{{Quran-range|26|10|17}}
! scope=col style="width: 50%;" |{{Quran-range|28|33|35}}
|- style="vertical-align: top;"
|26:10 And [mention] when your Lord called Moses, [saying], "Go to the wrongdoing people - 
26:11 The people of Pharaoh. Will they not fear Allah?" 
26:12 He said, "My Lord, indeed I fear that they will deny me 
26:13 And that my breast will tighten and my tongue will not be fluent, so send for Aaron. 
26:14 And they have upon me a [claim due to] sin, so I fear that they will kill me." 
26:15 [Allah] said, "No. Go both of you with Our signs; indeed, We are with you, listening. 
26:16 Go to Pharaoh and say, 'We are the messengers of the Lord of the worlds, 
26:17 [Commanded to say], "Send with us the Children of Israel."'"
|28:33 He said, "My Lord, indeed, I killed from among them someone, and I fear they will kill me. 
28:34 And my brother Aaron is more fluent than me in tongue, so send him with me as support, verifying me. Indeed, I fear that they will deny me." 
28:35 [Allah] said, "We will strengthen your arm through your brother and grant you both supremacy so they will not reach you. [It will be] through Our signs; you and those who follow you will be the predominant."
|}

===How should Moses describe Allah to Pharaoh?===
{{Quran-range|20|47|49}} narrates Allah's instructions to Moses at the fire and his first encounter with Pharaoh, ending with a display of miracles and Pharaoh's subsequent scheming. In this passage, Allah tells Moses to say that he and Aaron are "messengers of your Lord" and the account of their first encounter begins with Pharaoh asking, "So who is the Lord of you two, O Moses?". However, in {{Quran-range|26|16|23}} Allah instructs them to use a different title, "Lord of the worlds", which Pharaoh then enquires upon at the start of the narration of their first encounter, again before the display of miracles and Pharaoh's subsequent scheming. Similarly, {{Quran|7|104}} narrates "And Moses said, "O Pharaoh, I am a messenger from the Lord of the worlds" on their first encounter.

{| class="wikitable" width="100%" cellspacing="0" cellpadding="5" border="1" align="center"
! scope=col style="width: 50%;" |{{Quran-range|20|47|49}}
! scope=col style="width: 50%;" |{{Quran-range|26|16|23}}
|- style="vertical-align: top;"
|20:47 So go to him and say, 'Indeed, we are messengers of your '''Lord''', so send with us the Children of Israel and do not torment them. We have come to you with a sign from your Lord. And peace will be upon he who follows the guidance.
20:48 Indeed, it has been revealed to us that the punishment will be upon whoever denies and turns away.' " 
20:49 [Pharaoh] said, "So who is the '''Lord''' of you two, O Moses?"
|26:16 Go to Pharaoh and say, 'We are the messengers of the '''Lord of the worlds''', 
26:17 [Commanded to say], "Send with us the Children of Israel."'" 
... 
26:23 Said Pharaoh, "And what is the '''Lord of the worlds?'''"
|}

===Pharaoh and his Chiefs===

Coming after Moses has impressed Pharaoh with the miracles of the serpent and white hand, both surah 7 and 26 immediately then describe a discussion between Pharaoh and his chiefs. In surah 7, Pharaoh asks his council what do they instruct/advise (famādhā tamurūna?), but in surah 26, the same question is transferred from his mouth to the council, apparently asking themselves (in both versions the addressee of the question is plural, and the addressee of the answer is singular i.e. Pharaoh).

{| class="wikitable" width="100%" cellspacing="0" cellpadding="5" border="1" align="center"
! scope=col style="width: 50%;" |{{Quran-range|7|109|112}}
! scope=col style="width: 50%;" |{{Quran-range|26|34|35}}
|- style="vertical-align: top;"
|7:109 '''Said the eminent among the people of Pharaoh''', "Indeed, this is a learned magician 
7:110 Who wants to expel you from your land [through magic], so what do you instruct? 
7:111 They said, "Postpone [the matter of] him and his brother and send among the cities gatherers 
7:112 Who will bring you every learned magician."
|26:34 '''[Pharaoh] said to the eminent ones around him''', "Indeed, this is a learned magician 
26:35 He wants to drive you out of your land by his magic, so what do you advise? 
26:36 They said, "Postpone [the matter of] him and his brother and send among the cities gatherers 
26:37 Who will bring you every learned, skilled magician."
|}

The whole dialogue is identical in Arabic, except for the addition of "by his magic" (bisiḥ'rihi) in verse 26:35 and "send" (ib'ʿath) instead of its synonym (arsil) in 26:36.

This contradiction (and the awkwardness of the surah 7 version) has attracted the attention of numerous academic scholars. Joseph Witztum notes that Muslim exegetes proposed that both Pharaoh and his chiefs asked the same question in the same way despite it being portrayed at the same place in the same dialogue in both versions. Judging the attempted harmonization attempt to be "far from compelling", instead he observes that the mala (chiefs) are a theme of surah 7, mentioned eight times (three of which are in an Egyptian context) and speaking in all but one of them. That compares with this one time in surah 26.<ref>Witztum, J. (2021) [https://www.lockwoodonlinejournals.com/index.php/jaos/article/view/795/634 Pharaoh and His Council: Great Minds Think Alike] Journal of the American Oriental Society, 139(4), 945–952. https://doi.org/10.7817/jameroriesoci.139.4.0945</ref> It is then easy to see how dialogue could accidentally be transferred into their mouths at some point during composition, editing or transmission. Indeed, it is not uncommon for small details to be merged, transferred or substituted between repeated narratives.<ref>Another example of transferred dialogue relates to the one of the previous contradiction examples. In the quotes in the earlier section we see that Moses mentions to Allah that he killed a man in surahs 26:10-17 and 28:33-35. However, another version in {{Quran-range|20|24|47}} lacks this element in the words of Moses and instead it is Allah who mentions in verse 40 "And you killed someone, but We saved you from retaliation and tried you with a [severe] trial."</ref>

===Who believed in Moses?===
Some days later, Moses defeats the magicians at the arranged contest by performing the snake miracle again. Three surahs narrate that the magicians then professed their belief in Moses, even defying threats made towards them from Pharaoh. However, surah 10 narrates the same occasion but only mentions the tricks by the magicians without a miracle from Moses. It says that then none believed Moses except for youths/offspring from his people.

There was some discussion by exegetes as to whether “his people” in 10:83 refers to the people of Moses or (awkwardly as al-Tabari notes, since he is only named subsequently) the people of Pharaoh. Regardless, it contradicts the other surahs in which the magicians now believed in him.

{| class="wikitable" width="100%" cellspacing="0" cellpadding="5" border="1" align="center"
! scope=col style="width: 50%;" |{{Quran-range|26|38|51}} (see also {{Quran-range|7|113|129}} and {{Quran-range|20|60|76}})
! scope=col style="width: 50%;" |{{Quran-range|7|161|162}}
|- style="vertical-align: top;"
|26:38 So the magicians were assembled for the appointment of a well-known day. 
26:39 And it was said to the people, "Will you congregate 
26:40 That we might follow the magicians if they are the predominant?" 
26:41 And when the magicians arrived, they said to Pharaoh, "Is there indeed for us a reward if we are the predominant?" 
26:42 He said, "Yes, and indeed, you will then be of those near [to me]." 
26:43 Moses said to them, "Throw whatever you will throw." 
26:44 So they threw their ropes and their staffs and said, "By the might of Pharaoh, indeed it is we who are predominant." 
26:45 Then Moses threw his staff, and at once it devoured what they falsified. 
26:46 So the magicians fell down in prostration [to Allah]. 
26:47 '''They said, "We have believed in the Lord of the worlds,''' 
26:48 '''The Lord of Moses and Aaron."''' 
26:49 [Pharaoh] said, "You believed Moses before I gave you permission. Indeed, he is your leader who has taught you magic, but you are going to know. I will surely cut off your hands and your feet on opposite sides, and I will surely crucify you all." 
26:50 They said, "No harm. Indeed, to our Lord we will return. 
26:51 Indeed, we aspire that our Lord will forgive us our sins because '''we were the first of the believers."'''
|10:80 So when the magicians came, Moses said to them, "Throw down whatever you will throw." 
10:81 And when they had thrown, Moses said, "What you have brought is [only] magic. Indeed, Allah will expose its worthlessness. Indeed, Allah does not amend the work of corrupters. 
10:82 And Allah will establish the truth by His words, even if the criminals dislike it." 
10:83 '''But no one believed Moses, except [some] youths among his people''', for fear of Pharaoh and his establishment that they would persecute them. And indeed, Pharaoh was haughty within the land, and indeed, he was of the transgressors 
10:84 And Moses said, "O my people, if you have believed in Allah, then rely upon Him, if you should be Muslims." 
10:85 So they said, "Upon Allah do we rely. Our Lord, make us not [objects of] trial for the wrongdoing people 
10:86 And save us by Your mercy from the disbelieving people."
|}

===Were Pharaoh's army covered by or thrown into the sea?===
In the verses shown on the left column, particularly 10:90, we are told that the Egyptians pursued the Israelites across the sea “until when” (ḥattā idhā) they were drowned. They had pursued them across a "dry path through the sea" (20:77), “Then” (fa - see Lexicon note above) the sea covered them (20:78) which had towered on each side (26:63).

However, verses 28:40 and 51:40 on the right column state instead that Allah took (akhadhnāhu) Pharaoh and his army then threw them (fanabadhnāhum) into the sea (fī l-yami).

{| class="wikitable" width="100%" cellspacing="0" cellpadding="5" border="1" align="center"
! scope=col style="width: 50%;" |{{Quran|10|90}}
! scope=col style="width: 50%;" |{{Quran|28|40}}
|- style="vertical-align: top;"
|And We took the Children of Israel across the sea, and '''Pharaoh and his soldiers pursued them in tyranny and enmity until, when drowning overtook him''', he said, "I believe that there is no deity except that in whom the Children of Israel believe, and I am of the Muslims."
|So We took him and his soldiers and threw them into the sea. So see how was the end of the wrongdoers.
|}
{| class="wikitable" width="100%" cellspacing="0" cellpadding="5" border="1" align="center"
! scope=col style="width: 50%;" |{{Quran-range|20|77|78}} 
! scope=col style="width: 50%;" |{{Quran|51|40}}
|- style="vertical-align: top;"
|20:77 And We had inspired to Moses, "Travel by night with My servants and strike for them a dry path through the sea; you will not fear being overtaken [by Pharaoh] nor be afraid [of drowning]."
20:78 '''So Pharaoh pursued them with his soldiers, and there covered them from the sea that which covered them,'''
|So We took him and his soldiers and cast them into the sea, and he was blameworthy.
|}
{| class="wikitable" width="50%" cellspacing="0" cellpadding="5" border="1" align="center"
! scope=col style="width: 50%;" |{{Quran-range|26|63|66}}
|- style="vertical-align: top;"
|26:63-66
26:63 Then We inspired to Moses, "Strike with your staff the sea," and it parted, and '''each portion was like a great towering mountain.''' 
26:64 And We advanced thereto the pursuers. 
26:65 And We saved Moses and those with him, all together. 
26:66 Then We drowned the others.
|}

This contradiction has a parallel in the Biblical book of Exodus, which is discussed in detail by Pamela Barmash.<ref>Pamela Barmash. 2017. Through the Kaleidoscope of Literary Imagery in Exodus 15: Poetics and Historiography in Service to Religious Exuberance. Hebrew Studies Vol. 58 (2017) pp. 145-172 
PDF downloadable at [https://hcommons.org/deposits/item/hc:25907/]</ref> Exodus 14:23-28 contains a prose narrative of the episode, considered by academic scholars to be composed of a number of sometimes contradictory sources. The Egyptians follow the Israelites into the midst of the sea. God “shakes off” (naar) the Egyptians in the midst of the sea as they flee the returning waters. Then it says the returning waters cover their chariots, horsemen and all the forces of Pharaoh. The next chapter, Exodus 15, contains the poetic “Song of the Sea”, in which the piled up waters return and cover the Egyptians in verses 8-10, but elsewhere employs a repeated refrain that God has hurled them into the sea as well as other poetic imagery of shattering them with his fist and of burning them like straw. These images combine to give a metaphor of God as a warrior. Barmash observes that “A historical account is replaced by poetic articulation of religious exuberance”.

===Moses berates Aaron about the golden calf===
After the golden calf incident, Aaron makes two very different pleadings in surahs 7 and 20 after Moses grabs him. It is possible with some awkwardness to harmonise that he gave the two different excuses, one after the other, though it is further worth noting that in both accounts Aaron's protest begins with the common address “O son of my mother” as Moses grabs him.

{| class="wikitable" width="100%" cellspacing="0" cellpadding="5" border="1" align="center"
! scope=col style="width: 50%;" |{{Quran|7|150}}
! scope=col style="width: 50%;" |{{Quran-range|20|90|95}}
|- style="vertical-align: top;"
|And when Moses returned to his people, angry and grieved, he said, "How wretched is that by which you have replaced me after [my departure]. Were you impatient over the matter of your Lord?" And he threw down the tablets and '''seized his brother by [the hair of] his head, pulling him toward him. [Aaron] said, "O son of my mother, indeed the people oppressed me and were about to kill me, so let not the enemies rejoice over me and do not place me among the wrongdoing people."'''
|20:90 And Aaron had already told them before [the return of Moses], "O my people, you are only being tested by it, and indeed, your Lord is the Most Merciful, so follow me and obey my order." 
20:91 They said, "We will never cease being devoted to the calf until Moses returns to us." 
20:92 [Moses] said, "O Aaron, what prevented you, when you saw them going astray, 
20:93 From following me? Then have you disobeyed my order?" 
20:94 [Aaron] said, "'''O son of my mother, do not seize [me] by my beard or by my head. Indeed, I feared that you would say, 'You caused division among the Children of Israel, and you did not observe [or await] my word.' "''' 
20:95 [Moses] said, "And what is your case, O Samiri?"
|}

=== Did Moses's speech impediment get fixed? ===
God showed Moses a magical fire that did not burn out, and informs him of his prophethood. Then commanded him to go to Pharaoh with his signs in the hope that he may be warned and fear God. Moses agreed but complained that he couldn’t speak clearly, and he asked God to cure him of it, and to open his breast and make the task easy/easier:
{{Quote|{{Quran|20|24-28}}|...“Go thou to Pharaoh, for he has indeed transgressed all bounds.” “( Moses) said: ‘O, my Lord! Expand me my breast,” ease my task for me, and remove the impediment from my speech, so they may understand what I say.” “( Allah) said: ‘Granted is thy prayer, O Moses!’”...}}
Here God seems to respond to his prayer instantly (the verses in between 20:29-20:35 are part of the same narrative so the order is linear):
{{Quote|{{Quran|20|36}}|...Allah responded, “All that you requested has been granted, O Moses!... }}
However when he actually gets to Pharoah, he (Pharoah) states that he still cannot express himself clearly:
{{Quote|{{Quran|43|52}}|“And Pharaoh proclaimed among his people, saying, ‘O, my people! Does not the dominion of Egypt belong to me, (witness) these streams flowing underneath my (palace)? What! See ye not, then? Am I not better than this (Moses), who is a contemptible wretch, and can scarcely express himself clearly?’”}}

===The destruction of Thamud===
In 54:26, Allah tells the prophet Salih that tomorrow the people of Thamud will know he is not a liar. If this refers merely to the sending of the she-camel the next day, that would contradict other parallel passages where the she-camel does not lead to them accepting Salih as truthful. See 91:11-14 also shown below, where the same root for liar appears as a verb (kadhabūhu) in “But they denied him and hamstrung her” after Salih presents the she-camel, and at the end of 11:65 where it appears as a noun (makdhūbin). Tommaso Tesei has noted that 91:13-14 is likely a later editing or interpolation, the long sentences breaking the metre of the otherwise short verses in that surah and turning verse 15 into theological nonsense (who could think Allah would fear anything?).<ref>Tommaso Tesei, [https://www.academia.edu/75302962/THE_QUR_%C4%80N_S_IN_CONTEXT_S_1 The Qurʾān(s) in Context(s)] Journal Asiatique 309.2 (2021): 185-202 (open access; see pp. 198-200)</ref>

"They will know tomorrow who is the insolent liar" could instead mean that the people of Thamud are to be destroyed that next day and thereby learn that Salih is not a liar. However, according to verse 65 of the surah 11 story, their destruction will instead come three days after they hamstrung the she-camel.

{| class="wikitable" width="100%" cellspacing="0" cellpadding="5" border="1" align="center"
! scope=col style="width: 33%;" |{{Quran-range|54|23|31}}
! scope=col style="width: 33%;" |{{Quran-range|11|64|68}}
! scope=col style="width: 33%;" |{{Quran-range|91|11|15}}
|- style="vertical-align: top;"
|54:23 Thamud denied the warning 
54:24 And said, "Is it one human being among us that we should follow? Indeed, we would then be in error and madness. 
54:25 Has the message been sent down upon him from among us? Rather, he is an insolent liar." 
54:26 '''They will know tomorrow who is the insolent liar.''' 
54:27 Indeed, We are sending the she-camel as trial for them, so watch them and be patient. 
54:28 And inform them that the water is shared between them, each [day of] drink attended [by turn]. 
54:29 But they called their companion, and he dared and hamstrung [her]. 
54:30 And how [severe] were My punishment and warning. 
54:31 Indeed, We sent upon them one blast from the sky, and they became like the dry twig fragments of an [animal] pen.
|11:64 And O my people, this is the she-camel of Allah - [she is] to you a sign. So let her feed upon Allah 's earth and do not touch her with harm, or you will be taken by an impending punishment." 
11:65 '''But they hamstrung her, so he said, "Enjoy yourselves in your homes for three days. That is a promise not to be denied."''' 
11:66 So when Our command came, We saved Salih and those who believed with him, by mercy from Us, and [saved them] from the disgrace of that day. Indeed, it is your Lord who is the Powerful, the Exalted in Might. 
11:67 And the shriek seized those who had wronged, and they became within their homes [corpses] fallen prone 
11:68 As if they had never prospered therein. Unquestionably, Thamud denied their Lord; then, away with Thamud.
|91:11 Thamud denied [their prophet] by reason of their transgression, 
91:12 When the most wretched of them was sent forth. 
91:13 And the messenger of Allah [Salih] said to them, "[Do not harm] the she-camel of Allah or [prevent her from] her drink." 
91:14 '''But they denied him and hamstrung her.''' So their Lord brought down upon them destruction for their sin and made it equal [upon all of them]. 
91:15 And He does not fear the consequence thereof.
|}

Al-Razi and Al-Qurtubi mention a view that “tomorrow” is just a turn of phrase to indicate the future. Such an explanation is very dubious given that the next verse promises a specific event (the sending of the she-camel) and given that a clearly literal timescale is given to the same people in 11:65.

===The destruction of Aad===
In what critics see as a remarkably careless mistake, 41:13 warns that not only Thamud, but both Aad and Thamud were destroyed by a thunderbolt. The next few verses mention a screaming wind sent to Aad over a number of days as a punishment (though without stating that this wind ultimately destroyed them), and goes on to mention the thunderbolt which seized the people of Thamud.

However, all other descriptions of Aad's destruction except for 41:13 say that it was by means of a violent wind over a day or number of days, which uprooted its people like trees and destoyed everything, leaving only ruined homes.

Thamud's sudden destruction by a thunderbolt is narrated also in {{Quran|51|44}}, where the thunderbolt seized Thamud as they looked on. The word thunderbolt in these verses is sa'iqatan, which can refer to the sound of a thunderbolt or the lightning bolt itself.<ref>sa'iqatan - [http://www.studyquran.org/LaneLexicon/Volume4/00000414.pdf Lane's Lexicon p. 1690]</ref> Similarly, the instantaneous death of the people of Thamud by a thunderous blast (ṣayḥatan) appears in surah 11 and surah 54 quoted above in the previous section, and by a single blast (ṭāghiyati) in Q. 69:5, in contrast to Aad's windy destruction in the next verse. They were killed by an earthquake in Q. 7:78, though the word l-rajfatu, needn't mean a literal earthquake, and can mean a convulsion or jolting according to Lane's Lexicon. Thus with some harmonising effort we have a story of sudden thunderous death for the people of Thamud.

In an attempt to rescue the contradiction, Al-Tabari in his tafsir for 41:13 claims that sa'iqatan (thunderbolt) is a catch all term for anything that destroys something, while al-Qurtubi claims that the wind was the sa'iqatan.

{| class="wikitable" width="100%" cellspacing="0" cellpadding="5" border="1" align="center"
! {{Quran-range|41|13|17}}
|- style="vertical-align: top;"
|41:13 But if they turn away, then say, "'''I have warned you of a thunderbolt like the thunderbolt [that struck] 'Aad and Thamud.''' 
41:14 [That occurred] when the messengers had come to them before them and after them, [saying], "Worship not except Allah." They said, "If our Lord had willed, He would have sent down the angels, so indeed we, in that with which you have been sent, are disbelievers." 
41:15 '''As for 'Aad''', they were arrogant upon the earth without right and said, "Who is greater than us in strength?" Did they not consider that Allah who created them was greater than them in strength? But they were rejecting Our signs. 
41:16 '''So We sent upon them a screaming wind during days of misfortune to make them taste the punishment of disgrace in the worldly life'''; but the punishment of the Hereafter is more disgracing, and they will not be helped. 
41:17 '''And as for Thamud''', We guided them, but they preferred blindness over guidance, '''so the thunderbolt of humiliating punishment seized them''' for what they used to earn.
|}
{| class="wikitable" width="100%" cellspacing="0" cellpadding="5" border="1" align="center"
! {{Quran-range|46|24|25}}
|- style="vertical-align: top;"
|46:24 And when they saw it as a cloud approaching their valleys, they said, "This is a cloud bringing us rain!" Rather, it is that for which you were impatient: '''a wind, within it a painful punishment,''' 
46:25 '''Destroying everything by command of its Lord. And they became so that nothing was seen [of them] except their dwellings.''' Thus do We recompense the criminal people.
|}
{| class="wikitable" width="100%" cellspacing="0" cellpadding="5" border="1" align="center"
! {{Quran-range|51|41|42}}
|- style="vertical-align: top;"
|51:41 '''And in 'Aad [was a sign], when We sent against them the barren wind.''' 
51:42 '''It left nothing of what it came upon but that it made it like disintegrated ruins.''' 
51:43 '''And in Thamud''', when it was said to them, "Enjoy yourselves for a time." 
51:44 But they were insolent toward the command of their Lord, '''so the thunderbolt seized them''' while they were looking on. 
51:45 And they were unable to arise, nor could they defend themselves.
|}
{| class="wikitable" width="100%" cellspacing="0" cellpadding="5" border="1" align="center"
! {{Quran-range|54|18|20}}
|- style="vertical-align: top;"
|54:18 'Aad denied; and how [severe] were My punishment and warning. 
54:19 '''Indeed, We sent upon them a screaming wind on a day of continuous misfortune,''' 
54:20 '''Extracting the people as if they were trunks of palm trees uprooted'''
|}
{| class="wikitable" width="100%" cellspacing="0" cellpadding="5" border="1" align="center"
! {{Quran-range|69|4|8}}
|- style="vertical-align: top;"
|69:4 Thamud and 'Aad denied the Striking Calamity. 
69:5 '''So as for Thamud, they were destroyed by the overpowering [blast].''' 
69:6 '''And as for 'Aad, they were destroyed by a screaming, violent wind''' 
69:7 Which Allah imposed upon them for seven nights and eight days in succession, so you would see the people therein fallen as if they were hollow trunks of palm trees. 
69:8 Then do you see of them any remains?
|}

There is possibly a second contradiction concerning the destruction of Aad. Some point to the fact that whereas 41:16 says the wind was sent in "days of misfortune" and 69:7 says the wind was imposed for "seven nights and eight days in succession", 54:19 says it was sent on a "day [singular] of continuous misfortune". Exegetes discussed the word "continuous" in 54:19. Al-Tabari and al-Zamakhshari said the misfortune continued until they were destroyed. Al-Razi mentioned the relevant verses and in order to harmonize them, interpreted "continuous" as indicating further days. He considered two views, that "continuous" relates to the word day or to the word misfortune, preferring the former. The verse itself mentions a "day" singular and the preceding Arabic about when the wind was sent is the same in this verse as in Q. 41:16, which then instead says "days":

arsalnā ʿalayhim rīḥan ṣarṣaran fī yawmi naḥsin mus'tamirri
We sent upon them a screaming wind in a day of continuous misfortune

arsalnā ʿalayhim rīḥan ṣarṣaran fī ayyāmin naḥisātin
We sent upon them a screaming wind in days of misfortune

Lane's Lexicon has some discussion of the word mus'tamirrin ("continuous") as it is used in this verse and in Q. 54:2 where it is used in the phrase (“passing magic”) in the same grammatical form.<ref>mus'tamirrin - [http://www.studyquran.org/LaneLexicon/Volume7/00000230.pdf Lane's Lexicon p. 2702]</ref>

===The annunciation of Jesus to Mary===
In the Qur'an, the coming of Jesus is announced to Mary before he is born in two surahs, in which she is surprised in both and asks how it is possible given she is a virgin.

In the first version a single angel is sent to announce this, as confirmed by the singular word for Our angel/spirit (rūḥanā) or messenger (rasūlu).
{{Quote|{{Quran|19|17-20}}|And she took, in seclusion from them, a screen. '''Then We sent to her Our Angel [rūḥanā], and he represented himself to her as a well-proportioned man.'''
She said, "Indeed, I seek refuge in the Most Merciful from you, [so leave me], if you should be fearing of Allah."
He said, '''"I am only the messenger [rasūlu]''' of your Lord to give you [news of] a pure boy."
She said, "How can I have a boy while no man has touched me and I have not been unchaste?"}}
However, when the annunciation scene is recalled in Surah 3, the plural for angels (l-malāikatu) is used, and different wordings follow the conversations afterwards in the two surahs.
{{Quote|{{Quran|3|45-47}}|When said the Angels, "O Maryam! Indeed, Allah gives you glad tidings of a word from Him, his name (is) the Messiah, Isa, son (of) Maryam, honored in the world and (in) the Hereafter, and of those brought near (to Allah). He will speak to the people in the cradle and in adulthood, and will be one of the righteous.’ She said, ‘My Lord, how shall I have a child seeing that no human has ever touched me?’ He said, ‘So it is that Allah creates whatever He wishes. When He decides on a matter He just says to it ‘‘Be!’’ and it is.}}

==Allah==
===Where is Allah?===

Verses such as 2:255 (the famous throne verse) and other anthropomorphic verses have long been a topic of controversy and debate as to what extent they should be taken metaphorically. For the Asharis they were beyond human understanding.<ref>Stephen J. Vicchio, "Biblical figures in the Islamic faith", USA: Wipf and Stock, 2008, pp. 13-15</ref> To critics, this lack of clear resolution is unsurprising given the apparent contradiction between verses that describe Allah in a location and those that imply he is everywhere.

Upon a throne (arsh and kursi)

{{Quote|{{Quran|2|255}}|Allah - there is no deity except Him, the Ever-Living, the Sustainer of [all] existence. Neither drowsiness overtakes Him nor sleep. To Him belongs whatever is in the heavens and whatever is on the earth. Who is it that can intercede with Him except by His permission? He knows what is [presently] before them and what will be after them, and they encompass not a thing of His knowledge except for what He wills. '''His Kursi extends over the heavens and the earth''', and their preservation tires Him not. And He is the Most High, the Most Great.}}

{{Quote|{{Quran|57|4}}|
He it is Who created the heavens and the earth in six Days; then He mounted the Throne. He knoweth all that entereth the earth and all that emergeth therefrom and all that cometh down from the sky and all that ascendeth therein; and He is with you wheresoever ye may be. And Allah is Seer of what ye do.}}

{{Quote|{{Quran|11|7}}|
And He it is Who created the heavens and the earth in six Days - and His Throne was upon the water - that He might try you, which of you is best in conduct. Yet if thou (O Muhammad) sayest: Lo! ye will be raised again after death! those who disbelieve will surely say: This is naught but mere magic. }}

Everywhere

{{Quote|{{Quran|2|115}}|
To Allah belong the east and the West: Whithersoever ye turn, there is the presence of Allah. For Allah is all-Pervading, all-Knowing. }}

{{Quote|{{Quran|2|186}}|
When My servants ask thee concerning Me, I am indeed close (to them): I listen to the prayer of every suppliant when he calleth on Me: Let them also, with a will, Listen to My call, and believe in Me: That they may walk in the right way. }}

{{Quote|{{Quran|50|16}}|
We verily created man and We know what his soul whispereth to him, and We are nearer to him than his jugular vein}}

===Can Allah be seen?===

No

{{Quote|{{Quran|6|103}}|No vision can grasp Him, but His grasp is over all vision: He is above all comprehension, yet is acquainted with all things.}}

{{Quote|{{Quran|42|51}}|It is not fitting for a man that Allah should speak to him except by inspiration, or from behind a veil, or by the sending of a messenger to reveal, with Allah's permission, what Allah wills: for He is Most High, Most Wise}}

Yes

{{Quote|{{Quran|53|1-18}}|By the star when it descends, Your companion [Muhammad] has not strayed, nor has he erred, Nor does he speak from [his own] inclination. It is not but a revelation revealed, Taught to him by one intense in strength - One of soundness. And he rose to [his] true form While he was in the higher [part of the] horizon. Then he approached and descended And was at a distance of two bow lengths or nearer. And he revealed to His Servant what he revealed. The heart did not lie [about] what it saw. So will you dispute with him over what he saw? And he certainly saw him in another descent At the Lote Tree of the Utmost Boundary - Near it is the Garden of Refuge - When there covered the Lote Tree that which covered [it]. The sight [of the Prophet] did not swerve, nor did it transgress [its limit]. He certainly saw of the greatest signs of his Lord.}}

The vision in the first part of surah al-Najm (53) quoted above was traditionally associated with the beginning of Muhammad's night journey. While there was debate among Muslim scholars as to whether the object of the vision was Allah or an angel, the general consensus of modern academic scholars is that Allah is the object of the vision in this passage, especially considering that it says in {{Quran|53|10}} "And he revealed to His Servant what he revealed". Furthermore, the use of the verb "see" (raʾā) in verses 11-13 and 18 regarding the vision, is used also in the next verse 19 when the opponents are challenged as to whether they have seen their own pagan deities "al-Lāt and al-ʿUzzā and Manāt". Some of the subsequent verses may suggest that the Quranic mushrikeen considered these three to be angels rather than gods, though many academic scholars have observed that these are among the long verses (23 and 26-32) which seem to have been inserted later (whether by Muhammad or an editor) into a surah of otherwise short verses. As Tommaso Tesei notes, these long verses also coincide with the textual location in the surah where the [[Satanic_Verses_(Gharaniq_Incident)|Satanic verses]] were said to have originally appeared.<ref>Tommaso Tesei, [https://www.academia.edu/75302962/THE_QUR_%C4%80N_S_IN_CONTEXT_S_1 The Qurʾān(s) in Context(s)] Journal Asiatique 309.2 (2021): 185-202 (open access; see pp. 192-196)</ref>

===Could Allah have a child?===
The Quran responds to the mushrikeen who associated partners with Allah including sons and daughters. In one response it says this is impossible as Allah has no consort, but in another it responds by conceding it would be possible for him take a son from among his creation but he simply choses not to do so.

No, for he has no consort

{{Quote|{{Quran-range|6|100|101}}|Yet they ascribe as partners unto Him the jinn, although He did create them, and impute falsely, without knowledge, sons and daughters unto Him. Glorified be He and High Exalted above (all) that they ascribe (unto Him).
The Originator of the heavens and the earth! How can He have a child, when there is for Him no consort, when He created all things and is Aware of all things?}}

Yes, he could by other means but he chooses not to

{{Quote|{{Quran-range|39|3|4}}|Surely pure religion is for Allah only. And those who choose protecting friends beside Him (say): We worship them only that they may bring us near unto Allah. Lo! Allah will judge between them concerning that wherein they differ. Lo! Allah guideth not him who is a liar, an ingrate.
If Allah had willed to choose a son, He could have chosen what He would of that which He hath created. Be He Glorified! He is Allah, the One, the Absolute.}}

===Is Allah kind and merciful?===

Yes

{{Quote|{{Quran|1|3}}|
Most Gracious, Most Merciful}}

No

{{Quote|{{Quran|4|56}}|
Those who reject our Signs, We shall soon cast into the Fire: as often as their skins are roasted through, We shall change them for fresh skins, that they may taste the penalty: for Allah is Exalted in Power, Wise.}}

===Does Allah forgive worshipping other gods/shirk?===

No

{{Quote|{{Quran|4|48}}|
Allah forgiveth not that partners should be set up with Him; but He forgiveth anything else, to whom He pleaseth; to set up partners with Allah is to devise a sin Most heinous indeed.}}

No

{{Quote|{{Quran|4|116}}|
Allah forgiveth not (the sin of) joining other gods with Him; but He forgiveth whom He pleaseth other sins than this: one who joins other gods with Allah, Hath strayed far, far away (from the right).}}

Yes

{{Quote|{{Quran|4|153}}|
The people of the Book ask thee to cause a book to descend to them from heaven: Indeed they asked Moses for an even greater (miracle), for they said: "Show us Allah in public," but they were dazed for their presumption, with thunder and lightning. Yet they worshipped the calf even after clear signs had come to them; even so we forgave them; and gave Moses manifest proofs of authority}}

Yes

{{Quote|{{Quran-range|25|68|70}}|Those who invoke not, with Allah, any other god, nor slay such life as Allah has made sacred except for just cause, nor commit fornication; - and any that does this (not only) meets punishment. (But) the Penalty on the Day of Judgment will be doubled to him, and he will dwell therein in ignominy,- Unless he repents, believes, and works righteous deeds, for Allah will change the evil of such persons into good, and Allah is Oft-Forgiving, Most Merciful, }}

==Angels and demons==
===How many angels helped Muhammad at Badr?===

Three thousand

{{Quote|{{Quran|3|124}}|
Remember thou saidst to the Faithful: "Is it not enough for you that Allah should help you with three thousand angels (Specially) sent down? }}

One thousand

{{Quote|{{Quran|8|9}}|
Remember ye implored the assistance of your Lord, and He answered you: "I will assist you with a thousand of the angels, ranks on ranks." }}

Some claim that one of these could refer to the battle of Uhud, but that was a defeat for the Muslims.

===Who could Allah send as messengers (rasulan)?===

Not angels

{{Quote|{{Quran|17|95}}|
Say, "If there were settled, on earth, angels walking about in peace and quiet, We should certainly have sent them down from the heavens an angel for a messenger."}}

Only men from amongst a community

{{Quote|{{Quran|12|109}}|
Nor did We send before thee (as messengers) any but men, whom we did inspire,- (men) living in human habitations. Do they not travel through the earth, and see what was the end of those before them? But the home of the hereafter is best, for those who do right. Will ye not then understand? }}

Both angels and men

{{Quote|{{Quran|22|75}}|
Allah chooses messengers from angels and from men for Allah is He Who hears and sees (all things). }}

==Creation==
===Which was created first; the Heaven or Earth?===

The Heaven

{{Quote|{{Quran-range|79|27|33}}|Are you a more difficult creation or is the heaven? Allah constructed it. He raised its ceiling and proportioned it. And He darkened its night and extracted its brightness. And after that He spread the earth. He extracted from it its water and its pasture, And the mountains He set firmly As provision for you and your grazing livestock.}}

Earth

{{Quote|{{Quran-range|41|9|12}}|Say, "Do you indeed disbelieve in He who created the earth in two days and attribute to Him equals? That is the Lord of the worlds." And He placed on the earth firmly set mountains over its surface, and He blessed it and determined therein its [creatures'] sustenance in four days without distinction - for [the information] of those who ask. Then He directed Himself to the heaven while it was smoke and said to it and to the earth, "Come [into being], willingly or by compulsion." They said, "We have come willingly." And He completed them as seven heavens within two days and inspired in each heaven its command. And We adorned the nearest heaven with lamps and as protection. That is the determination of the Exalted in Might, the Knowing.}}

Earth

{{Quote|{{Quran|2|29}}|
He it is Who created for you all that is in the earth. Then turned He to the heaven, and fashioned it as seven heavens. And He is knower of all things.}}

===How many days did it take Allah to create heaven and earth?===

Commentators interpreted the first two days as part of the first four in the 2nd quote. Quite a few other verses mention the creation of the Earth in six days, so this may well simply be a badly worded description rather than a contradiction in terms of the intended meaning.

6 days

{{Quote|{{Quran|10|3}}|Verily your Lord is Allah, who created the heavens and the earth in six days, and is firmly established on the throne (of authority), regulating and governing all things. No intercessor (can plead with Him) except after His leave (hath been obtained). This is Allah your Lord; Him therefore serve ye: will ye not receive admonition? }}

8 days

{{Quote|{{Quran|41|9-12}}|
Say: Is it that ye deny Him Who created the earth in two Days? And do ye join equals with Him? He is the Lord of (all) the Worlds.
He placed therein firm hills rising above it, and blessed it and measured therein its sustenance in four Days, alike for (all) who ask;
Then He ordained them seven heavens in two Days and inspired in each heaven its mandate; and We decked the nether heaven with lamps, and rendered it inviolable. That is the measuring of the Mighty, the Knower}}

===How long does it take Allah to create?===

A long time

{{Quote|{{Quran|7|54}}|
Your Guardian-Lord is Allah, Who created the heavens and the earth in six days, and is firmly established on the throne (of authority): He draweth the night as a veil o'er the day, each seeking the other in rapid succession: He created the sun, the moon, and the stars, (all) governed by laws under His command. Is it not His to create and to govern? Blessed be Allah, the Cherisher and Sustainer of the worlds! }}

An instant

{{Quote|{{Quran|2|117}}|
The Originator of the heavens and the earth! When He decreeth a thing, He saith unto it only: Be! and it is. }}

==Day of Judgement (''Qiyamah'')==
===Will disbelievers speak on ''Qiyamah''?===

No

{{Quote|{{Quran|27|85}}|
And the Word will be fulfilled against them, because of their wrong-doing, and they will be unable to speak}}

No

{{Quote|{{Quran-range|77|34|38}}|Woe, that Day, to the deniers. This is a Day they will not speak, Nor will it be permitted for them to make an excuse. Woe, that Day, to the deniers. This is the Day of Judgement; We will have assembled you and the former peoples.}}

Not willingly, their body parts will speak the truth

{{Quote|{{Quran|36|65}}|
That Day shall We set a seal on their mouths. But their hands will speak to us, and their feet bear witness, to all that they did. }}

Yes, and they can speak lies. Various verses describe dialogue taking place between disbelievers and believers or Allah or angels on the day of resurrection. For example:

{{Quote|{{Quran-range|6|22|24}}|And [mention, O Muhammad], the Day We will gather them all together; then We will say to those who associated others with Allah, "Where are your 'partners' that you used to claim [with Him]?" Then there will be no [excuse upon] examination except they will say, "By Allah, our Lord, we were not those who associated." See how they will lie about themselves. And lost from them will be what they used to invent.}}

{{Quote|{{Quran-range|37|20|28}}|They will say, "O woe to us! This is the Day of Recompense." [They will be told], "This is the Day of Judgement which you used to deny." [The angels will be ordered], "Gather those who committed wrong, their kinds, and what they used to worship Other than Allah, and guide them to the path of Hellfire And stop them; indeed, they are to be questioned." [They will be asked], "What is [wrong] with you? Why do you not help each other?" But they, that Day, are in surrender. And they will approach one another blaming each other. They will say, "Indeed, you used to come at us from the right."}}

===Will the disbelievers be blind on the day of resurrection?===

Yes

{{Quote|{{Quran-range|20|124|125}}|And whoever turns away from My remembrance - indeed, he will have a depressed life, and We will gather him on the Day of Resurrection blind." He will say, "My Lord, why have you raised me blind while I was [once] seeing?"}}

No

{{Quote|{{Quran|16|76}}|And when those who associated others with Allah see their "partners," they will say," Our Lord, these are our partners [to You] whom we used to invoke besides You." But they will throw at them the statement, "Indeed, you are liars."}}

{{Quote|{{Quran-range|37|16|20}}|When we have died and become dust and bones, are we indeed to be resurrected? And our forefathers [as well]?" Say, "Yes, and you will be [rendered] contemptible." It will be only one shout, and at once they will be observing. They will say, "O woe to us! This is the Day of Recompense."}}

===How long will the unbelievers think they remained on Earth?===

An afternoon or morning

{{Quote|{{Quran|79|46}}|It will be, on the Day they see it, as though they had not remained [in the world] except for an afternoon or a morning thereof.}}

An hour

{{Quote|{{Quran-range|30|55|56}}|And the Day the Hour appears the criminals will swear they had remained but an hour. Thus they were deluded. But those who were given knowledge and faith will say, "You remained the extent of Allah 's decree until the Day of Resurrection, and this is the Day of Resurrection, but you did not used to know."}}

Ten days

{{Quote|{{Quran-range|20|102|104}}|The Day the Horn will be blown. And We will gather the criminals, that Day, blue-eyed. They will murmur among themselves, "You remained not but ten [days in the world]." We are most knowing of what they say when the best of them in manner will say, "You remained not but one day."}}

A day or part of a day

{{Quote|{{Quran-range|23|112|114}}|[Allah] will say, "How long did you remain on earth in number of years?" They will say, "We remained a day or part of a day; ask those who enumerate." He will say, "You stayed not but a little - if only you had known.}}

==Evil==
===Does evil come from Allah?===

Yes

{{Quote|{{Quran|4|78}}|
.... If some good befalls them, they say "This is from Allah". But if evil, they say "This is from thee" (O prophet). Say: "All things are from Allah....}}

No

{{Quote|{{Quran|4|79}}|
Whatever good, (O man!) happens to thee, is from Allah. But whatever evil happens to thee, is from thyself. But what has come to these people. That they fail to understand a single fact}}
==Heaven and Hell==
===Is intercession possible on the last day?===

No

{{Quote|{{Quran|2|123}}|
Then guard yourselves against a-Day when one soul shall not avail another, nor shall compensation be accepted from her nor shall intercession profit her nor shall anyone be helped (from outside). }}

No

{{Quote|{{Quran|2|47}}|
O children of Israel! call to mind My favor which I bestowed on you and that I made you excel the nations. And be on your guard against a day when one soul shall not avail another in the least, neither shall intercession on its behalf be accepted, nor shall any compensation be taken from it, nor shall they be helped. }}

Yes

{{Quote|{{Quran|20|109}}|
On that Day shall no intercession avail except for those for whom permission has been granted by (Allah) Most Gracious and whose word is acceptable to Him.}}

Yes

===Will non-Muslims go to hell forever?===

Not necessarily

{{Quote|{{Quran|6|128}}|
One day will He gather them all together, (and say): "O ye assembly of Jinns! Much (toll) did ye take of men." Their friends amongst men will say: "Our Lord! we made profit from each other: but (alas!) we reached our term - which thou didst appoint for us." He will say: "The Fire be your dwelling-place: you will dwell therein for ever, except as Allah willeth." for thy Lord is full of wisdom and knowledge. }}

Not necessarily

{{Quote|{{Quran|11|106}}|
Those who are wretched shall be in the Fire: There will be for them therein (nothing but) the heaving of sighs and sobs: They will dwell therein for all the time that the heavens and the earth endure, except as thy Lord willeth: for thy Lord is the (sure) accomplisher of what He planneth. And those who are blessed shall be in the Garden: They will dwell therein so long for all the time that the heavens and the earth endure, except as thy Lord willeth: a gift without break }}

Not eternal (''Huqb'' is seventy or eighty years, and every day of it is like one thousand years according to your reckoning in this life—Ibn Kathir)

{{Quote|{{Quran|78|23}}|They will dwell therein for ages.}}

Yes

{{Quote|{{Quran|2|167}}|
And those who followed shall say: Had there been for us a return, then we would renounce them as they have renounced us. Thus will Allah show them their deeds to be intense regret to them, and they shall not come forth from the fire}}

Yes

{{Quote|{{Quran|41|28}}|
Such is the requital of the enemies of Allah,- the Fire: therein will be for them the Eternal Home: a (fit) requital, for that they were wont to reject Our Signs}}

===What will be the food in hell?===

Only thorns, or ''dhari''

{{Quote|{{Quran|88|6}}|
"No food will there be for them but a bitter Dhari"}}

Only pus

{{Quote|{{Quran|69|36}}|
Nor hath he any food except the corruption from the washing of wounds}}

Also ''zaqqum'', hell fruit (see also in {{Quran-range|44|40|46}} and {{Quran-range|56|41|52}})

{{Quote|{{Quran-range|37|62|66}}|
Is Paradise a better accommodation or the tree of zaqqum? Indeed, We have made it a torment for the wrongdoers. Indeed, it is a tree issuing from the bottom of the Hellfire, Its emerging fruit as if it was heads of the devils. And indeed, they will eat from it and fill with it their bellies. }}

===Will people wear silver or gold bracelets in heaven?===
Verses disagree on the bracelets believers will wear with their green silk garments.

Silver
{{Quote|{{Quran|76|21}}|Upon the inhabitants will be green garments of fine silk and brocade. And they will be adorned with bracelets of silver, and their Lord will give them a purifying drink.}}

Gold
{{Quote|{{Quran|18|31}}|Those will have gardens of perpetual residence; beneath them rivers will flow. They will be adorned therein with bracelets of gold and will wear green garments of fine silk and brocade, reclining therein on adorned couches. Excellent is the reward, and good is the resting place.}}

Gold and pearl

{{Quote|{{Quran|22|23}}|Indeed, Allah will admit those who believe and do righteous deeds to gardens beneath which rivers flow. They will be adorned therein with bracelets of gold and pearl, and their garments therein will be silk.}}

{{Quote|{{Quran|35|33}}|[For them are] gardens of perpetual residence which they will enter. They will be adorned therein with bracelets of gold and pearls, and their garments therein will be silk.}}

==Mankind==
===Could someone bear another's burden?===

In some verses the Quran states that no person will bear the sins of another. Academic scholar Gabriel Said Reynolds notes that the Quranic story of Cain and Abel contradicts the maxim. Abel states in {{Quran|5|29}} "Indeed I want you to obtain [thereby] my sin and your sin so you will be among the companions of the Fire." (though Ibn Kathir has a report that some companions said this refers rather to Cain's sin of murdering him and to Cain's previous sins). Regarding this type of contradiction, Reynolds cites such verses as 4:111, 6:164, 17:13-15, 20:12, 39:7, 53:38-42 where each person bears only their own sin, compared to 5:29, 16:25, and 20:13 where someone will bear another's sin.<ref>Gabriel Said Reynolds (2018) ''The Qurʾān and Bible: Text and Commentary'' p. 198</ref> Here are some of those verses and similar examples:

No

{{Quote|{{Quran|6|164}}|
Say: "Shall I seek for (my) Cherisher other than Allah, when He is the Cherisher of all things (that exist)? Every soul draws the meed of its acts on none but itself: no bearer of burdens can bear the burden of another. Your goal in the end is towards Allah: He will tell you the truth of the things wherein ye disputed." }}

No

{{Quote|{{Quran|35|18}}|
Nor can a bearer of burdens bear another's burdens if one heavily laden should call another to (bear) his load. Not the least portion of it can be carried (by the other). Even though he be nearly related. Thou canst but admonish such as fear their Lord unseen and establish regular Prayer. And whoever purifies himself does so for the benefit of his own soul; and the destination (of all) is to Allah. }}

No

{{Quote|{{Quran|2|286}}|
On no soul doth Allah Place a burden greater than it can bear. It gets every good that it earns, and it suffers every ill that it earns. (Pray:) "Our Lord! Condemn us not if we forget or fall into error; our Lord! Lay not on us a burden Like that which Thou didst lay on those before us; Our Lord! Lay not on us a burden greater than we have strength to bear. Blot out our sins, and grant us forgiveness. Have mercy on us. Thou art our Protector; Help us against those who stand against faith." }}

No

{{Quote|{{Quran|17|15}}|
Whoever is guided is only guided for [the benefit of] his soul. And whoever errs only errs against it. And no bearer of burdens will bear the burden of another. And never would We punish until We sent a messenger.}}

Yes (notice how directly this contradicts the previous example, 17:15)

{{Quote|{{Quran|16|25}}|
Let them bear, on the Day of Judgment, their own burdens in full, and also (something) of the burdens of those without knowledge, whom they misled. Alas, how grievous the burdens they will bear! }}

Yes

{{Quote|{{Quran|2|91}}|
When it is said to them, "Believe in what Allah Hath sent down, "they say, "We believe in what was sent down to us:" yet they reject all besides, even if it be Truth confirming what is with them. Say: "Why then have ye slain the prophets of Allah in times gone by, if ye did indeed believe?" }}

Yes

{{Quote|{{Quran|3|181}}|
Allah has certainly heard the saying of those who said: Surely Allah is poor and we are rich. I will record what they say, and their killing the prophets unjustly, and I will say: Taste the chastisement of burning. }}

Yes

{{Quote|{{Quran|29|13}}|They will bear their own burdens, and (other) burdens along with their own, and on the Day of Judgments they will be called to account for their falsehoods.}}Yes; this verse tells contemporary Jews that they will not get their wanted miracle from Muhammad because past Jews killed prophets that performed miracles.<ref>''[https://quranx.com/Tafsir/Jalal/3.183 Tafsir Al-Jalalayn on verse 3:183.]'' Al-Jalalayn / Al-Mahalli and as-Suyuti. Published 1505CE.</ref>
{{Quote|{{Quran|3|183-184}}|Tell those who say, ‘Allah has pledged us not to believe in any apostle unless he brings us an offering consumed by fire,’ ‘Apostles before me certainly did bring you manifest signs and what you speak of. Then why did you kill them, if you are truthful?’ But if they deny you, [other] apostles have been denied before you, who came with manifest signs, holy writs, and an illuminating scripture.}}

===Who takes people's souls?===

One angel

{{Quote|{{Quran|32|11}}|
Say: "The Angel of Death, put in charge of you, will (duly) take your souls: then shall ye be brought back to your Lord." }}

Many angels

{{Quote|{{Quran|47|27}}|
But how (will it be) when the angels take their souls at death, and smite their faces and their backs? }}

Allah

{{Quote|{{Quran|39|42}}|
It is Allah that takes the souls (of men) at death; and those that die not (He takes) during their sleep: those on whom He has passed the decree of death, He keeps back (from returning to life), but the rest He sends (to their bodies) for a term appointed verily in this are Signs for those who reflect. }}

==Muslims==
===Who was the first Muslim (submitter)?===
To be clear, the meaning of "Muslim" in all such verses is "submitter" in its essential sense of monotheistic worship and obedience rather than Muslim in the sense of the distinctly Islamic religion.

Muhammad
(after the word "first" in these verses, some translations add [among you] in square brackets, which is a commentary not present in the Arabic)

{{Quote|{{Quran-range|39|11|12}}|Say (O Muhammad): Lo! I am commanded to worship Allah, making religion pure for Him (only). And I am commanded to be the first of those who are muslims (surrender unto Him).}}

{{Quote|{{Quran|6|14}}|Say: Shall I choose for a protecting friend other than Allah, the Originator of the heavens and the earth, Who feedeth and is never fed? Say: I am ordered to be the first to surrender (unto Him). And be not thou (O Muhammad) of the idolaters.}}

{{Quote|{{Quran|6|163}}|He hath no partner. This am I commanded, and I am first of those who surrender (unto Him).}}

Noah

{{Quote|{{Quran|10|72}}|And if you turn away [from my advice] then no payment have I asked of you. My reward is only from Allah, and I have been commanded to be of the Muslims."}}

Lot and his family

{{Quote|{{Quran|51|36}}|And We found not within them other than a [single] house of Muslims.}}

During the time of Abraham

{{Quote|{{Quran|22|78}}|And strive for Allah with the striving due to Him. He has chosen you and has not placed upon you in the religion any difficulty. [It is] the religion of your father, Abraham. Allah named you "Muslims" before [in former scriptures] and in this [revelation] that the Messenger may be a witness over you and you may be witnesses over the people. So establish prayer and give zakah and hold fast to Allah. He is your protector; and excellent is the protector, and excellent is the helper.}}

The disciples of Jesus

{{Quote|{{Quran|5|111}}|And when I inspired the disciples, (saying): Believe in Me and in My messenger, they said: We believe. Bear witness that we have surrendered (unto Thee) "we are muslims"}}

===How strong is a believer?===

20 Muslims can overcome 200 disbelievers

{{Quote|{{Quran|8|65}}|
If there be of you twenty steadfast they shall overcome two hundred, and if there be of you a hundred (steadfast) they shall overcome a thousand of those who disbelieve }}

100 Muslims can overcome 200 disbelievers

{{Quote|{{Quran|8|66}}|So if there be of you a steadfast hundred they shall overcome two hundred, and if there be of you a thousand (steadfast) they shall overcome two thousand by permission of Allah. }}

===Can you eat non-halal meat?===

Yes, Christian and Jewish food may be eaten

{{Quote|{{Quran|5|5}}|
This day are (all) things good and pure made lawful unto you. The food of the People of the Book is lawful unto you and yours is lawful unto them. (Lawful unto you in marriage) are (not only) chaste women who are believers, but chaste women among the People of the Book, revealed before your time,- when ye give them their due dowers, and desire chastity, not lewdness, nor secret intrigues if any one rejects faith, fruitless is his work, and in the Hereafter he will be in the ranks of those who have lost (all spiritual good). }}

No

{{Quote|{{Quran|6|118}}|
So eat of (meats) on which Allah's name hath been pronounced, if ye have faith in His signs. }}

===How bad is drinking wine?===

These verses are traditionally explained as gradual abrogation, while critics see a contradiction as a result of the author changing his mind over time.

It is a wholesome drink (though not necessarily fermented in this verse)

{{Quote|{{Quran|16|67}}|
And from the fruit of the date-palm and the vine, ye get out wholesome drink and food: behold, in this also is a sign for those who are wise}}

No prohibition on getting drunk as long as you're not praying

{{Quote|{{Quran|4|43}}|
O ye who believe! Draw not near unto prayer when ye are drunken, till ye know that which ye utter, nor when ye are polluted, save when journeying upon the road, till ye have bathed. And if ye be ill, or on a journey, or one of you cometh from the closet, or ye have touched women, and ye find not water, then go to high clean soil and rub your faces and your hands (therewith). Lo! Allah is Benign, Forgiving. }}

It is Satan's handiwork, leave it aside

{{Quote|{{Quran|5|90}}|
O ye who believe! Strong drink and games of chance and idols and divining arrows are only an infamy of Satan's handiwork. Leave it aside in order that ye may succeed. }}

It is a severe sin

{{Quote|{{Quran|2|219}}|
They question thee about strong drink and games of chance. Say: In both is great sin, and (some) utility for men; but the sin of them is greater than their usefulness. And they ask thee what they ought to spend. Say: that which is superfluous. Thus Allah maketh plain to you (His) revelations, that haply ye may reflect}}

===How many sacred months are there?===

Four

{{Quote|{{Quran|9|36}}|
The number of months in the sight of Allah is twelve (in a year)- so ordained by Him the day He created the heavens and the earth; of them four are sacred: that is the straight usage. So wrong not yourselves therein, and fight the Pagans all together as they fight you all together. But know that Allah is with those who restrain themselves. }}

One

{{Quote|{{Quran|5|2}}|
O ye who believe! Violate not the sanctity of the symbols of Allah, nor of the sacred month, nor of the animals brought for sacrifice, nor the garlands that mark out such animals, nor the people resorting to the sacred house, seeking of the bounty and good pleasure of their Lord. But when ye are clear of the sacred precincts and of pilgrim garb, ye may hunt and let not the hatred of some people in (once) shutting you out of the Sacred Mosque lead you to transgression (and hostility on your part). Help ye one another in righteousness and piety, but help ye not one another in sin and rancour: fear Allah: for Allah is strict in punishment. }}

==Non-Muslims==
===Can people be compelled to follow Islam?===

No

{{Quote|{{Quran|2|256}}|
There is no compulsion in religion. The right direction is henceforth distinct from error. And he who rejecteth false deities and believeth in Allah hath grasped a firm handhold which will never break. Allah is Hearer, Knower. }}

No

{{Quote|{{Quran|109|6}}|
Unto you your religion and unto me my religion }}

Yes, the treaty-breakers must die unless they convert or individually seek refuge

{{Quote|{{Quran|9|5}}|And when the sacred months have passed, then kill the polytheists wherever you find them and capture them and besiege them and sit in wait for them at every place of ambush. But if they should repent, establish prayer, and give zakah, let them [go] on their way. Indeed, Allah is Forgiving and Merciful.}}

Yes, certain Christians and Jews who will not believe must be fought until they pay the jizyah

{{Quote|{{Quran|9|29}}|Fight those who (do) not believe in Allah and not in the Day the Last, and not they make unlawful what Allah has made unlawful and His Messenger, and not they acknowledge (the) religion (of) the truth, from those who were given the Scripture, until they pay the jizyah willingly, while they (are) subdued.}}

===Will Allah reward the good deeds of everyone?===

No

{{Quote|{{Quran|9|17}}|
It is not for such as join gods with Allah, to visit or maintain the mosques of Allah while they witness against their own souls to infidelity. The works of such bear no fruit: In Fire shall they dwell. }}

Yes

{{Quote|{{Quran|99|7}}|
And whoso doeth good an atom's weight will see it then}}

===Who sends disbelievers astray?===

Allah

{{Quote|{{Quran|6|25}}|
Of them there are some who (pretend to) listen to thee; but We have thrown veils on their hearts, So they understand it not, and deafness in their ears; if they saw every one of the signs, not they will believe in them; in so much that when they come to thee, they (but) dispute with thee; the Unbelievers say: "These are nothing but tales of the ancients." }}

Allah

{{Quote|{{Quran|35|8}}|
Then is one to whom the evil of his deed has been made attractive so he considers it good [like one rightly guided]? For indeed, Allah sends astray whom He wills and guides whom He wills. So do not let yourself perish over them in regret. Indeed, Allah is Knowing of what they do.}}

Allah

{{Quote|{{Quran|10|100}}|
No soul can believe except by the will of Allah }}

Satan

{{Quote|{{Quran|15|39}}|
(Iblis) said: "O my Lord! because Thou hast put me in the wrong, I will make (wrong) fair-seeming to them on the earth, and I will put them all in the wrong}}

Satan

{{Quote|{{Quran|114|5}}|
Who whispereth in the hearts of mankind}}

Satan

{{Quote|{{Quran|4|119}}|
I will mislead them, and I will create in them false desires....}}

Themselves

{{Quote|{{Quran|9|70}}|
Hath not the story reached them of those before them?- the People of Noah, and 'Ad, and Thamud; the People of Abraham, the men of Midian, and the cities overthrown. To them came their messengers with clear signs. It is not Allah Who wrongs them, but they wrong their own souls. }}

Themselves

{{Quote|{{Quran|6|12}}|
It is they who have lost their own souls, that they will not believe }}

Themselves

{{Quote|{{Quran|30|9}}|
It was not Allah who wronged them, but they wronged their own souls }}

===How should disbelievers be treated?===

Kindly

{{Quote|{{Quran|45|14}}|
Tell those who believe, to forgive those who do not look forward to the Days of Allah: It is for Him to recompense (for good or ill) each People according to what they have earned. }}

Kindly

{{Quote|{{Quran|25|63}}|
The worshipers of the Most Gracious are those who tread the earth gently, and when the ignorant speak to them, they only utter peace }}

They must be attacked

{{Quote|{{Quran|9|29}}|
Fight those who (do) not believe in Allah and not in the Day the Last, and not they make unlawful what Allah has made unlawful and His Messenger, and not they acknowledge (the) religion (of) the truth, from those who were given the Scripture, until they pay the jizyah willingly, while they (are) subdued.}}

==People of the Book==
===How are Christians towards the believers?===
They are allies of the Jews, do not take them as allies

{{Quote|{{Quran|5|51}}|
O you who have believed, do not take the Jews and the Christians as allies. They are [in fact] allies of one another. And whoever is an ally to them among you - then indeed, he is [one] of them. Indeed, Allah guides not the wrongdoing people.}}

Christians are nearest in love to the believers

{{Quote|{{Quran|5|82}}|
Strongest among men in enmity to the believers wilt thou find the Jews and Pagans; and nearest among them in love to the believers wilt thou find those who say, "We are Christians": because amongst these are men devoted to learning and men who have renounced the world, and they are not arrogant. }}

Christians have hearts of compassion and mercy

{{Quote|{{Quran|57|27}}|
We sent after them Jesus the son of Mary, and bestowed on him the Gospel; and we ordained in the hearts of those who followed him compassion and mercy. }}

==Sex==
===Is incest okay?===

No

{{Quote|{{Quran|4|23}}|Prohibited to you (For marriage) are:- Your mothers, daughters, sisters; father's sisters, Mother's sisters; brother's daughters, sister's daughters; foster-mothers (Who gave you suck), foster-sisters; your wives' mothers; your step-daughters under your guardianship, born of your wives to whom ye have gone in,- no prohibition if ye have not gone in;- (Those who have been) wives of your sons proceeding from your loins; and two sisters in wedlock at one and the same time, except for what is past; for Allah is Oft-forgiving, Most Merciful;-}}

Adam's children did it

{{Quote|{{Quran|7|172}}| And (remember) when thy Lord brought forth from the Children of Adam, from their reins, their seed, and made them testify of themselves, (saying): Am I not your Lord? They said: Yea, verily. We testify. (That was) lest ye should say at the Day of Resurrection: Lo! of this we were unaware; }}

===Can multiple wives be dealt with justly?===

Both verses use the word "justly" (taʿdilū).

Yes

{{Quote|{{Quran|4|3}}|
if ye fear that ye shall not be able to deal justly with the orphans, Marry women of your choice, Two or three or four; but if ye fear that ye shall not be able to deal justly (with them), then only one, or (a captive) that your right hands possess, that will be more suitable, to prevent you from doing injustice. }}

No

{{Quote|{{Quran|4|129}}|
Ye will not be able to deal equally between (your) wives, however much ye wish (to do so). But turn not altogether away (from one), leaving her as in suspense. If ye do good and keep from evil, lo! Allah is ever Forgiving, Merciful. }}
==Qur'an==

===Who brought revelation to Muhammad?===

[[Jibreel (Gabriel) and al-Ruh al-Qudus (the Holy Spirit) in the Qur'an|The Holy spirit]]

{{Quote|{{Quran|16|102}}|
Say, the Holy Spirit has brought the revelation from thy Lord in Truth, in order to strengthen those who believe, and as a Guide and Glad Tidings to Muslims }}

[[Jibreel (Angel Gabriel)|Angel Jibreel]]

{{Quote|{{Quran|2|97}}|
Say (O Muhammad, to mankind): Who is an enemy to Gabriel! For he it is who hath revealed (this Scripture) to thy heart by Allah's leave, confirming that which was (revealed) before it, and a guidance and glad tidings to believers; }}

===Is the Quran clear?===

Yes

{{Quote|{{Quran|11|1}}|
(This is) a Book, whose verses are made decisive, then are they made plain, from the Wise, All-aware:}}

Yes

{{Quote|{{Quran|16|89}}|And [mention] the Day when We will resurrect among every nation a witness over them from themselves. And We will bring you, [O Muhammad], as a witness over your nation. And We have sent down to you the Book as clarification for all things and as guidance and mercy and good tidings for the Muslims.}}

Yes

{{Quote|{{Quran|6|114}}|[Say], "Then is it other than Allah I should seek as judge while it is He who has revealed to you the Book explained in detail?" And those to whom We [previously] gave the Scripture know that it is sent down from your Lord in truth, so never be among the doubters.}}

Yes

{{Quote|{{Quran|12|111}}|There was certainly in their stories a lesson for those of understanding. Never was the Qur'an a narration invented, but a confirmation of what was before it and a detailed explanation of all things and guidance and mercy for a people who believe.}}

No

{{Quote|{{Quran|3|7}}|
He it is Who has sent down to thee the Book: In it are verses basic or fundamental (of established meaning); they are the foundation of the Book: others are allegorical. But those in whose hearts is perversity follow the part thereof that is allegorical, seeking discord, and searching for its hidden meanings, but no one knows its hidden meanings except Allah. And those who are firmly grounded in knowledge say: "We believe in the Book; the whole of it is from our Lord:" and none will grasp the Message except men of understanding. }}

No, letters such as these at the start of some surahs have an incomprehensible meaning

{{Quote|{{Quran|2|1}}|
Alif. Lam. Mim. }}

==Miscellaneous==
===How long does it take to wean?===

30 months (perhaps including 9 months pregnancy)

{{Quote|{{Quran|46|15}}|
We have enjoined on man kindness to his parents: In pain did his mother bear him, and in pain did she give him birth. The carrying of the (child) to his weaning is (a period of) thirty months. At length, when he reaches the age of full strength and attains forty years, he says, "O my Lord! Grant me that I may be grateful for Thy favour which Thou has bestowed upon me, and upon both my parents, and that I may work righteousness such as Thou mayest approve; and be gracious to me in my issue. Truly have I turned to Thee and truly do I bow (to Thee) in Islam." }}

24 months

{{Quote|{{Quran|31|14}}|
And We have enjoined upon man concerning his partners - His mother beareth him in weakness upon weakness, and his weaning is in two years - Give thanks unto Me and unto thy parents. Unto Me is the journeying}}

Gabriel Said Reynolds notes that the idea of two years of suckling comes from the Babylonian Talmud Ketubbot 60a.<ref>Gabriel Said Reynolds (2018) ''The Qurʾān and Bible: Text and Commentary'' p. 92</ref>

===The moon was split===
''Main article: [[Muhammads Miracles#Moon Splitting Miracle|Moon splitting miracle]]''

The Qur'an (according to a common interpretation) and a hadith tradition claim that the moon was miraculously split into two pieces and then, presumably, put back together again.
{{Quote|{{Quran-range|54|1|2}}|1. The hour drew nigh and the moon did rend asunder.
2. Yet if they see a sign they turn away, and they say 'A continuous sorcery!'}}
Yet we are told Muhammad cannot produce a sign (in the form of a miracle), but only warn people with the message, in verses such as:
{{Quote|{{Quran|13|7}}|The unbelievers say, "Why has God not sent him, (Muhammad), some miracles." (Muhammad), you are only a warner. For every nation there is a guide.}}
{{Quote|{{Quran|6:109}}|They swear their strongest oaths by Allah, that if a (special) sign came to them, by it they would believe. Say: "Certainly (all) signs are in the power of Allah: but what will make you (Muslims) realise that (even) if (special) signs came, they will not believe."?}}
{{Quote|{{Quran|11|12}}|Perhaps you, (Muhammad), may by chance leave (untold) a part of that which is revealed to you and feel grieved because they say, "Why has some treasure not been sent to him or an angel sent down with him?" Say, "I have come only to warn you." God is the Guardian of all things.}}{{Quote|{{Quran|10|20}}|They (unbelievers) say, “Why has his Lord not given him some miracles to (support his claim of being His Messenger)?” Say “(The knowledge) of the unseen certainly belongs to God. Wait and I too shall be waiting with you}}{{Quote|{{Quran|21|9}}|But they said, ‘[They are] muddled dreams!’ ‘Indeed, he has fabricated it!’ ‘Indeed, he is a poet!’ ‘Let him bring us a sign, like those sent to the former generations.’}}

===What are the shares in an inheritance?===

As is much discussed in some detail on external websites, the Quranic inheritance laws can in many situations result in the total shares being greater than 100 percent. This was so problematic that the 'awl system had to be created after Muhammad's death to work around the issue.

{{Quote|{{Quran-range|4|11|12}}|Allah instructs you concerning your children: for the male, what is equal to the share of two females. But if there are [only] daughters, two or more, for them is two thirds of one's estate. And if there is only one, for her is half. And for one's parents, to each one of them is a sixth of his estate if he left children. But if he had no children and the parents [alone] inherit from him, then for his mother is one third. And if he had brothers [or sisters], for his mother is a sixth, after any bequest he [may have] made or debt. Your parents or your children - you know not which of them are nearest to you in benefit. [These shares are] an obligation [imposed] by Allah. Indeed, Allah is ever Knowing and Wise.
 
And for you is half of what your wives leave if they have no child. But if they have a child, for you is one fourth of what they leave, after any bequest they [may have] made or debt. And for the wives is one fourth if you leave no child. But if you leave a child, then for them is an eighth of what you leave, after any bequest you [may have] made or debt. '''And if a man or woman leaves neither ascendants nor descendants but has a brother or a sister''', then for each one of them is a sixth. But if they are more than two, they share a third, after any bequest which was made or debt, as long as there is no detriment [caused]. [This is] an ordinance from Allah, and Allah is Knowing and Forbearing.}}

{{Quote|{{Quran|4|176}}|They request from you a [legal] ruling. '''Say, "Allah gives you a ruling concerning one having neither descendants nor ascendants [as heirs]."''' If a man dies, leaving no child but [only] a sister, she will have half of what he left. And he inherits from her if she [dies and] has no child. But if there are two sisters [or more], they will have two-thirds of what he left. If there are both brothers and sisters, the male will have the share of two females. Allah makes clear to you [His law], lest you go astray. And Allah is Knowing of all things.}}

As well as the above mentioned issue (and the many scenarios for which the Quran provides no answer at all), there are various contradictions concerning the shares of brothers and sisters. Inheritance shares are stipulated for siblings only when the deceased has no surviving parents or children, but contradictory instructions occur in the two verses where this situation is addressed, {{Quran-range|4|11|12}} and {{Quran|4|176}} (incidentally, the latter verse is oddly appended to the very end of surah al-Nisa).

Both these verses set rules for the estate of someone who has "neither ascendants nor descendants" (kalāla). In a book dedicated to the exegetical history of this word, Pavel Pavlovitch has established that its original meaning was lost by the last quarter of the first century, with early figures admitting their inability to understand the word, as further evidenced by various narrations and interpretations generated during and after that period. Generally, jurists inferred it to mean a person who dies without a child, nor, it was ultimately decided, surviving parents. A later proposal in the mid 2nd century was that the word instead meant the non-parent or child relatives of the deceased, and that it is the direct object of the preceding verb in verse 12.<ref>See Chapter 6 Summary and Conclusion in Pavel Pavlovitch, 2016, "The Formation of the Islamic Understanding of Kalāla in the Second Century AH (718–816 CE)", Leiden: Brill</ref>

Either way, the inheritance shares for siblings of deceased Kalāla in verse 176 are incompatible with the shares that siblings of such a person can receive in verse 12:

- According to verse 12, a brother or sister would each receive a sixth share, but verse 176 says that a brother will have double the share of a sister. 
- According to verse 12, multiple siblings will split a third share between them (a sixth each or less), but verse 176 says two sisters will split a two-thirds share. 
- According to verse 12, if there is only a sister she will receive a sixth share, but verse 176 says she will receive a half share. 
- According to verse 12, if there is only a brother, he will receive a sixth share, but verse 176 says that a brother inherits the entire estate if his sister dies and has no child.

To solve the contradictions, Imam Malik in {{Muwatta|27||7}} is narrated as saying that the generally agreed way of doing things in his experience was to interpret verse 12 as relating to half-siblings by the mother of the deceased, whereas verse 176 was interpreted as relating to siblings by the same father as the deceased. There is no support for these interpretations whatsoever in the verses, which simply refer to brothers and sisters. Al-Tabari in his commentary for verse 12 includes a narration that Sa'd bin Waqas used to add the words "from the mother's side" in his recitation of that verse. It is not obvious why such additional words would not be included in the accepted text or readings of the Quran if they were authentic. Critics further point out that it would be very odd for the situation of half-siblings to be addressed early in Surah al-Nisa and that of full-siblings only in a verse appended to the very end of the surah.

==Quran Variants==
{{Main|Textual History of the Qur'an}}
Besides the contradictions in the agreed text of the Quran as set out above, we also find another type of Qur'anic contradiction; contradictions between different accepted versions of the Qur'an. The rasm text of the Quran standardised by Uthman around 650 CE lacked almost any dotting to distinguish various consonants and had no short vowels or other diacritics. Thus, oral tradition was needed to read it.

While the oral tradition was mostly strong and agreed upon, there was disagreement on how to recite many words, ultimately resulting in the ten canonical readings (qira'at), each of which have two canonical transmitters. These disagree on how to read around 1400 words. The vast majority of printed Qurans since Ottoman times have used the reading transmitted by Hafs from the reader 'Asim, but all of these readings are accepted, recited, and appear in print, supposedly containing the words and variants thereof recited by Muhammad. Yet these variants sometimes contradict each other.

There are too many to list on this page, but some are discussed in the [[:en:Textual_History_of_the_Qur'an|main article]], with many more listed for those exploring further on the [https://quranvariants.wordpress.com/ Quran Variants] website, for example '[https://quranvariants.wordpress.com/dialogue-quran-variants/ ''Dialogue variants in the canonical Qira’at readings of the Quran'']', '''[https://quranvariants.wordpress.com/superfluous-quran-variants/ Superfluous variants in the readings of the Quran]''<nowiki/>' and a list of further resources [https://quranvariants.wordpress.com/resources/ here].

An example involves the canonical reader al-Kisa'i:

{{Quote|{{Quran|17|102}}|قَالَ لَقَدْ '''عَلِمْتَ''' مَآ أَنزَلَ هَٰٓؤُلَآءِ إِلَّا رَبُّ ٱلسَّمَٰوَٰتِ وَٱلْأَرْضِ بَصَآئِرَ وَإِنِّى لَأَظُنُّكَ يَٰفِرْعَوْنُ مَثْبُورًا
 Majority reading: [Moses] said, "'''You have already known''' [alimta] that none has sent down these [signs] except the Lord of the heavens and the earth as evidence, and indeed I think, O Pharaoh, that you are destroyed."}}

{{Quote|{{Quran|17|102}}|قَالَ لَقَدْ '''عَلِمْتُ''' مَآ أَنزَلَ هَٰٓؤُلَآءِ إِلَّا رَبُّ ٱلسَّمَٰوَٰتِ وَٱلْأَرْضِ بَصَآئِرَ وَإِنِّى لَأَظُنُّكَ يَٰفِرْعَوْنُ مَثْبُورًا
 Reading of al-Kisai': [Moses] said, "'''I have already known''' [alimtu] that none has sent down these [signs] except the Lord of the heavens and the earth as evidence, and indeed I think, O Pharaoh, that you are destroyed."}}

For verification of this example, see [[:File:Bridges 17 102.jpg|Bridges translation]] - [https://corpuscoranicum.org/en/verse-navigator/sura/17/verse/102/variants Corpus Coranicum] - [https://www.nquran.com/ar/index.php?group=ayacompare&sora=17&aya=102 nquran.com].

==See Also==

*[[Mary the sister of Aaron in the Quran|Mary, the sister of Aaron, in the Qur'an]]
*[[Contradictions in the Hadith]]
{{Translation-links-english|[[Kontradikce v Koránu|Czech]]}}

==External links==

*[https://quranvariants.wordpress.com/narrative-contradictions-in-the-quran/ Narrative Contradictions in the Quran] [https://quranvariants.files.wordpress.com/2022/04/narrative-contradictions-quran.pdf (Direct pdf download link)] ''- Quran Variants''
*[http://www.answering-islam.org/Quran/Contra/ Contradictions in the Qur'an] ''- Contradictions in the Qur'an, Answering Islam''
*[https://web.archive.org/web/20170719052545/http://www.1000mistakes.com/ 1000 Mistakes] ''- Website dedicated to mistakes in the Qur'an''
*[https://web.archive.org/web/20121124183611/http://www.islam-watch.org/AbulKasem/quranic.contradictions/index.html A Guide To Quranic Contradictions] ''- By Abul Kasem, April 20, 2008''
*[https://web.archive.org/web/20200511161241/https://www.islam-watch.org/index.php?option=com_content&view=article&id=191:last-verse-of-the-quran&catid=68:mumin&Itemid=58 The Last Verse of the Quran That It Was Not] ''- Mumin Salih, Islam Watch, September 27, 2009''

[[Category:Qur'an]]

==References==
<references />

[[Category:Qur'an]]
[[Category:Apologetics]]
[[Category:Criticism of Islam]]
[[ar:تناقضات_القرآن]]

Magic, Miracles, and the Supernatural in the Qur'an

2026-02-08T21:33:41Z

CPO675: /* The Lote Tree of the utmost Boundary (Sid'rati al-Muntahā) */ Added another exegete view describing this on another verse

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While miracles by definition are supposed to defy the laws of nature and scientific explanation, the examples of myths and legends briefly listed in the Qur'an illustrate the pre-scientific worldview with which the Qur'an was composed. Being a product of late antiquity, superstitious beliefs like jinn living among us and people using black magic form a sizeable part of the Qur'an, as does the idea of God interacting with the universe, controlling everything, rather than the universe operating off of scientific laws. Even inanimate things worship Allah, who is a corporeal, anthropomorphic being literally sitting on a throne in the cosmos. While there are many more examples of these found in Islamic literature such as hadith and seerah (biographical) material, the Qur'an is replete with such mythic and legendary accounts of supernatural beings and Allah's supernatural powers.

== Magic ==
=== Creatures ===
==== The existence and attributes of Jinn ====
{{Main|Jinn}}The Quran, Hadith and Sira all support the existence of supernatural, generally invisible creatures known as Jinn (جن‎ ''ǧinn'', singular جني ''ǧinnī'' ; variant spelling ''djinn'') living among us. In the [[Qur'an]], satan/devil(s) are also jinn ({{Quran|18|50}}), which like humans are sent prophets and have (''at least some, see [[Qur'an, Hadith and Scholars:Predestination]]'') free-will and will be judged accordingly alongside mankind ({{Quran|6|130}}). They can interact with us ({{Quran|6|128}}) and even possess humans ({{Quran|2|275}}) (which the main article elaborates on), and cause people to forget things ({{Quran|18|63}}). As well as create buildings/structures ({{Quran|34|12-13}}). These magical beings have roots in Arabian mythology and make appearences thereing. {{Quote|{{quran|72|1}}|Say, [O Muhammad], "It has been revealed to me that a group of the jinn listened and said, 'Indeed, we have heard an amazing Qur'an.}}El-Zein (2009) notes the Qur’an mentions only three terms related to the species of jinn: the generic “jinn,” marid, and ‘ifrit. However, Arabic and Islamic literature provides extended descriptions of them as sub-types of jinn (and others not specifically mentioned in the Qur'an).<ref>El-Zein, Amira. Islam, Arabs, and the Intelligent World of the Jinn (Contemporary Issues in the Middle East) (p. 139). Syracuse University Press. Kindle Edition.</ref>{{Quote|El-Zein, Amira. Islam, Arabs, and the Intelligent World of the Jinn (Contemporary Issues in the Middle East) (p. 142). Syracuse University Press. Kindle Edition.|THE ‘IFRIT The term ‘ifrit is mentioned only once in the Qur’an, when the prophet king Solomon asked for the throne of the Queen of Sheba to be brought to him. One ‘ifrit from among the jinn consented to fulfill his request: “An ‘ifrit of the jinn said, ‘I will bring it to thee, before thou risest from thy place; I have strength for it and I am trusty” (Qur’an 27:39). The term ‘ifrit often presents a problem for the scholars trying to classify the jinn. Many commentators on the verse cited above maintain the word ‘ifrit is an adjective referring to a specific powerful jinni rather than a separate and distinct type among the jinn. Later the word came to describe any powerful and cunning man; in which case, it could refer to dark powers within the human psyche.17 THE MARID In the Qur’an, the marid is an unruly force always striving to predict the future by means of astrological hearsay. The term marid is mentioned only once in the Qur’an in the following verse “We have adorned the lower heaven with the adornment of the stars and to preserve against every [rebel satan (shaytan marid)]; they listen not to the High Council, for they are pelted from every side” (Qur’an 37:7–8). This kind of jinn is mostly found in popular medieval literature, in particular in the stories of The Nights dealing with Solomon. Finally, as with the term ‘ifrit, the term marid could also be applied to humans. Used as an adjective, it denotes a rebellious man.18}}
==== Iblis/Satan/The Devil ====
{{Main|Iblis (Satan)}}The Qur'an contains the well-known supernatural character of Satan (with a capital "S"), or "The Devil", (al-shayṭān); also called Iblīs, who tempts unbelievers into disobedience against god, furthering them in their sin, and generally causing evil on Earth.<ref name=":023">''shayṭān | devil al-shayṭān | the devil, Satan'' Sinai, Nicolai. Key Terms of the Qur'an: A Critical Dictionary (p. 451). Princeton University Press. Kindle Edition.</ref> Similar to later traditions on the book of Genesis (originally the serpent who tempts Eve to eat the fruit in the garden of Eden is not identified with Satan, only in the approximately 4 centuries preceding to the Common Era, known as the intertestamental period does this appear),<ref>Wray, T. J.; Mobley, Gregory. ''The Birth of Satan: Tracing the Devil's Biblical Roots (pp. 68-70, Chapters 5 & 6).'' St. Martin's Publishing Group. Kindle Edition.</ref> he originally lives in paradise. After refusing to obey God’s command to prostrate (sajada) himself to the newly created Adam, Iblīs is expelled from God’s retinue and subsequently retaliates against his nemesis Adam by persuading him and Eve to eat from the forbidden tree (e.g. {{Quran|2|34-39}}, {{Quran|7|11-25}} and {{Quran|20|115-124}}).<ref>''shayṭān | devil al-shayṭān | the devil, Satan'' Sinai, Nicolai. Key Terms of the Qur'an: A Critical Dictionary (p. 453). Princeton University Press. Kindle Edition.</ref>

There are however some differences with Christian-Judeo beliefs, such as him being an evil jinn rather than a 'fallen' angel. Along with him (Iblīs), the term for satans/devils (al-shayāṭīn), “the devils”, usually refer to evil jinn in the Qur'an.<ref name=":023" /> While Iblīs/al-shayṭān is a specific devil who takes on a more defined role in the Qur'an.

This Iblīs is in line with late-antique beliefs, with the devil is in some sense to be envisaged as the chief of the evil demons.<ref name=":123">Ibid. Kindle Edition. pp. 459</ref> Sinai (2023) notes for example one verse mentions Iblīs’s “offspring” (dhurriyyah, {{Quran|18|50}}), raising the possibility that the descendants in question are to be identified with wicked demons, and {{Quran|26|95}} speaks of the “hosts (junūd) of Iblīs” being cast into hell, especially since these hosts are mentioned in addition to “those who have gone astray” (al-ghāwūn) {{Quran|26|94}}, who would seem to refer to human sinners, the “hosts of Iblīs” are probably to be understood as the latter’s demonic minions.<ref name=":123" />
==== The existence and attributes of angels ====
Similarly to Judeo-Christian literature, the Quran, Hadith and Sira affirms the existence of angels, traditionally said to be made from light as mentioned in Islamic tradition (such as {{Muslim||2996|reference}}),<ref>[https://islamqa.info/en/answers/843/angels-in-islam#of-what-are-the-angels-created Angels in Islam.] Of what are the Angels created? Islam Q&A. 2000</ref> while other have asserted they are made from fire like jinn based on (see: {{Quran|38|73-76}} and {{Quran|7|11-12}}),<ref>El-Zein, Amira. ''Islam, Arabs, and the Intelligent World of the Jinn (Contemporary Issues in the Middle East) (Kindle Edition. pp. 44-46 ).'' Syracuse University Press.</ref> before humans ({{Quran|2|30}}).

They are also God's messengers like humans ({{Quran|22|75}}), with generally a humanoid shape,<ref>''malak | angel; angels.'' Sinai, Nicolai. Key Terms of the Qur'an: A Critical Dictionary (p. 632). Princeton University Press. Kindle Edition. ''Despite their wings and their potential invisibility, the default appearance of angels on earth is humanoid: “had we made him”—namely, the Qur’anic Messenger—“an angel, we would have made him a man (rajul),” i.e., endowed him with the appearance of an ordinary human, Q 6:9 affirms. Perhaps one is to understand that angels can exist in two different states of aggregation, as it were: a celestial one involving wings and invisibility to the human eye, and a state of manifestation to humans, in which they appear by and large like humans themselves (see also Burge 2012, 57). It is worth highlighting that Q 6:9, by virtue of employing the word rajul, additionally implies that angels are male. This corresponds to Biblical assumptions (e.g., Matt 16:5) and helps make sense of the Qur’anic polemic against belief in female angels (Q 17:40, 37:149–153, 43:16–19, 53:27–28; see also DTEK 102). A particular aspect of the angels’ humanoid appearance—namely, their possession of hands—is corroborated by Q 6:93, according to which the angels “stretch out their hands” for the wrongdoers when these latter are in the throes of death (DTEK 121). Moreover, it must be on account of the angels’ anthropomorphic appearance that Abraham initially mistook the divinely sent “messengers” (rusul) dispatched to him for ordinary humans, only realising their supernatural—i.e., angelic—status when his guests declined the food offered to them (Q 11:69–70 and 51:26–28; see below and Sinai 2020a, 282–283).26 The generally humanoid shape of Qur’anic angels also emerges from the fact that the female friends of Joseph’s Egyptian mistress so admire him that they exclaim, “This is no human but a noble angel!” (Q 12:31).''</ref> and have at least either two, three or four (pairs of) wings.{{Quote|{{Quran|35|1}}|All praise belongs to Allah, originator of the heavens and the earth, maker of the angels [His] messengers, possessing wings, two, three or four [of them]... He adds to the creation whatever He wishes. Indeed Allah has power over all things.}}They are said to hold God’s throne (in the heavens) {{Quran|69|17}} and some stand around it ({{Quran|40|7}}). Eight angels will carry the throne of God on Judgement Day ({{Quran|69|17}}). Two to the left and right of people write down everyone's deeds for judgment day ({{Quran|50|17-21}}), hovering above people ({{Quran|82|10-12}}). They also ask forgiveness for the faithful on Earth ({{Quran|42|5}}), help fight with believers against non-believers ({{Quran|8|12}}) chastise unbelievers ({{Quran|8|50}}). As well as blow the trumpets on judgement day<ref>[https://islamqa.info/en/answers/49009/what-is-meant-by-the-blowing-of-the-trumpet What is meant by the blowing of the Trumpet?] Islam Q&A. 2003.</ref> in e.g. {{Quran|6|73}} {{Quran|18|99}}

They praise and worship God constantly,<ref>Decharneux, Julien. ''Creation and Contemplation: The Cosmology of the Qur'ān and Its Late Antique Background (Studies in the History and Culture of the Middle East Book 47) (p. 311).'' De Gruyter. Kindle Edition.</ref> e.g. {{Quran|13|13}}, {{Quran|7|206}}, {{Quran|21|19}}, {{Quran|40|7}}, {{Quran|41|38}}, {{Quran|42|5}}, {{Quran|69|17}} and carry out his divine will - and unlike biblical angels, do not seem to be able to disobey god.<ref>Sinai, Nicolai. Key Terms of the Qur'an: A Critical Dictionary (p. 633). Princeton University Press. Kindle Edition. ''...“do as they are commanded” (Q 16:50, 66:6: yafʿalūna mā yuʾmarūn; see also 21:27: wa-hum bi-amrihi yaʿmalūn),30 “do not disobey God” (Q 66:6: lā yaʿṣūna llāha), and “do not deem themselves above serving him” (Q 7:206, 21:19: lā yastakbirūna ʿan ʿibādatihi; see also 16:49: wa-hum lā yastakbirūn)...''</ref>

{{Quran|72|8-9}} describes the firmament as being guarded by watchful protectors [ḥaras], who are undoubtedly angels.<ref>Decharneux, Julien. Creation and Contemplation: ''The Cosmology of the Qur'ān and Its Late Antique Background (Studies in the History and Culture of the Middle East Book 47) (Kindle Edition. pp. 313).'' De Gruyter.</ref> They play an active role in the cosmos by thwarting spying jinn/devils who attempt to eavesdrop on divine decrees from the 'exalted assembly' (''see: [[Shooting Stars in the Quran]]''). These intruders are repelled by stars or meteors ({{Quran|15|16-18}}, {{Quran|37|6-10}}, {{Quran|67|5}}, {{Quran|72|8-9}}.

These angelic beings have their roots in the mythology of Hebrew bible tradition, where these angels were lesser deites or messengers of the gods in the tradition of west Asian religion in the bronze age.
===== '''Cherubs''' =====
The Qur'an mentions 'al-muqarrabūn' [Those close to god]. The traditional view of 'al-muqarrabūn' is often a rank of angels.<ref>[https://theoceanofthequran.org/83-21/ The Ocean of the Qur'an: Q 83:21]</ref> Some academics have suggested these are [https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Cherub cherubs], which have existed in some classical Islamic cosmologies, such as the famous philosopher Ibn Sīnā's (often known as Avicenna in the West).<ref>Stephen Burge. ''"Angels (malāʾika)." [https://www.saet.ac.uk/Islam/Angels#section4.3 4.3 Angels in classical emanationist cosmologies]'' In St Andrews Encyclopaedia of Theology, edited by Brendan N. Wolfe et al. University of St Andrews. Article published August 29, 2024. <nowiki>https://www.saet.ac.uk/Islam/Angels</nowiki>. Journal TSAQAFAH ''[https://philarchive.org/archive/ARIDEA Divine Emanation As Cosmic Origin: Ibn Sînâ and His Critics] pp 334.'' Syamsuddin Arif* Institut Studi Islam Darussalam (ISID)</ref>{{Quote|Decharneux, Julien. Creation and Contemplation: The Cosmology of the Qur'ān and Its Late Antique Background (Studies in the History and Culture of the Middle East Book 47) (pp. 306-307). De Gruyter. Kindle Edition.|As for the cherubs, they are designated by the name al-muqarrabūn in a few passages: By no means! Surely the book of the pious is indeed in ‘Illiyīn. And what will make you know what ‘Illiyīn is? A written book. The ones brought near bear witness to it [yashhadu-hu l-muqarrabūna]. (Q 83:18 – 21) Despite the rather cryptic character of these verses, we see here the motif already studied of angels “witnessing” celestial phenomena. In another passage, Jesus and the angels are also called al-muqarrabūn (“the ones brought near”; Q 4:172). This designation is very odd, especially ascribed to Jesus. The word muqarrabūn sounds like a deformation of the Hebrew or Syriac word for “cherubs”, kerūbīm/krūbē. The name kerūbīm in the Bible is an Assyrian loanword and designates “those who pray” but the root KRB is not used otherwise in the Bible. The cherubs are specifically said to support God’s throne in the Bible (1 Sam 4:4; 2 Sam 6:2; 1 Ch 13:6; 2 K 19:15; Is 37:16; Ps 80:2, 90:1).713 In light of this function, the Qur’ān seems to distort the original Semitic root KRB into QRB so as to give a new meaning to these angels’ name. The cherubs are now muqarrabūn, “the ones close to God”.}}

==== Houri's (Heavenly Virgins) ====
{{Main|Houri (Heavenly Virgin)}}There are allegedly heavenly maidens to service righteous men in paradise. No equivalent male version exists for women (although there are indications in Islamic literature of cup-bearer boys for the homosexual enjoyment of men).<ref>[Do academics think there is a sexual connotation to this verse in Quran (76:19)? https://www.reddit.com/r/AcademicQuran/comments/xjgcsw/do_academics_think_there_is_a_sexual_connotation/].</ref>
{{Quote|{{Quran|56|22}}|And [for them are] fair women with large, [beautiful] eyes,}}{{Quote|{{Quran|78|33}}|and maidens with swelling breasts, like of age,}}

==== Gog and Magog (Yājūj and Mājūj) ====
''Main article: [[Historical Errors in the Quran#Massive wall of iron|Historical Errors in the Quran - Massive wall of iron]]''

The Qur'an relates a story where a servant of Allah ([[:en:Dhul-Qarnayn_and_the_Alexander_Romance|Dhul-Qarnayn]]) traps "Gog and Maggog" behind an iron wall where they will remain until judgment day (essentially making them creatures that live a beyond human lifespan, if not immortal), where they will then swarm the Earth. Most scholars say they are humans, for example Ibn Kathir says they are also descents of Noah through his son Yafith (Japheth), who was the father of the Turks; Turk referring to the group of them who were left behind the barrier which was built by Dhul-Qarnayn.<ref>Ibn Kathir (d 1373.) [https://quranx.com/Tafsir/Kathir/21.95 ''Commentary on Verse 21:96 (95-97)'']</ref> Though others such as al-Idrisi (d. 1165) say they are monsters, with some 120 cubits high and the same length wide among other non-human descriptions.<ref>van Donzel, Emeri; Schmidt, Andrea. ''Gog and Magog in Early Eastern Christian and Islamic Sources: Sallam's Quest for Alexander's Wall''. Leiden: Brill. ''pp. 91-92''. [[International Standard Book Number|ISBN]] [[Special:BookSources/9789004174160|9789004174160]], 2010. The full book and their analysis of the journey taken by Sallam can be read on the ''[https://archive.org/details/gogandmagoginearlyeasternchristianandislamicsources/page/n109/mode/2up Internet Archive linked here.] (page 110 of 229 the PDF)''</ref> However regardless if they are monsters or humans they are still mythical as clearly they would have been found if trapped behind a giant wall until judgement day given we have explored all the land on Earth.{{Quote|{{Quran|18|94}}|They said, "O Dhul-Qarnayn, indeed Gog and Magog are [great] corrupters in the land. So may we assign for you an expenditure that you might make between us and them a barrier?"}}{{Quote|{{Quran|21|96}}|Until when [the dam of] Gog and Magog has been opened and they, from every elevation, descend}}
==== Buraq, the winged horse ====
{{Main|Buraq}}While it took one week to travel from Mecca to Jerusalem (the location of the alleged 'farthest Mosque') by camel, Islamic scripture states that a magical winged horse, called the Buraq, transported Muhammad from Mecca to Jerusalem in a matter of minutes. Creatures like the Buraq were common characters in near-East myths.<ref>E.g. Adnan Qureshi, Christmas in North Korea, Cambridge Scholars Publishing 2020, pp. 141-142: ''Chollima joins the other mythical flying horses such as the horses of Eos, Helios, Apollo, Sol Invictus, and Pegasus (in Greek mythology), al-Buraq (a winged horse in Islamic tradition), Haizum (a heavenly winged horse, ridden by Gabriel according to Islamic tradition), Ponkhiraj (a flying horse from Bangladesh), and the wind horse (in Mongolian, ancient Turkish, and Tibetan traditions).''

& khosravi, M., taheri, A. (2018). 'A Comparative Study on the Image of “Buraq” in the Islamic Art with some Motifs of the Luristan Bronze', ''Journal of Archaeological Studies'', 10(2), pp. 67-81. doi: 10.22059/jarcs.2018.226529.142389</ref>{{Quote|{{Quran|17|1}}|
Glory to (Allah) Who did take His servant for a Journey by night from the Sacred Mosque to the farthest Mosque, whose precincts We did bless,- in order that We might show him some of Our Signs: for He is the One Who heareth and seeth (all things). }}
===The existence of magic and sorcerers===
''Main article: [[Qur'an, Hadith and Scholars:Witchcraft and the Occult]]''

No evidence has ever proven that magic is real. However, {{Quran|113|4}} ("evil of those who blow on knots") is reported in commentaries as referring to those who practice magic.<ref name=":022223">[https://quranx.com/tafsirs/113.4 Tafsirs for Quran 113:4]</ref> Knots were commonly associated with magic in antiquity.<ref name=":122223">Day, C. L. (1950). [https://www.jstor.org/stable/1520741 Knots and Knot Lore. Western Folklore], 9(3), 229–256</ref> The next verse, {{Quran|113|5}} ("evil of the envious when he envies), is said to refer to a superstitious belief known as 'The Evil Eye', a physical and mental supernatural condition that affects those who envy. For further explanation see the [[Qur'an, Hadith and Scholars:Witchcraft and the Occult|main article]].{{Quote|{{Quran|113|1-5}}|1. Say: I seek refuge in the Lord of the dawn 
2. From the evil of what He has created 
3. And from the evil of the utterly dark night when it comes 
4. And from the evil of those who blow on knots 
5. And from the evil of the envious when he envies}}At least once, humans are taught magic by satans (believed to be jinn) and angels ([[w:Harut and Marut|Harut and Marut]] are named in this verse):{{Quote|{{Quran|2|102}}|and they follow what the Satans recited over Solomon's kingdom. Solomon disbelieved not, but the Satans disbelieved, teaching the people sorcery, and that which was sent down upon Babylon's two angels, Harut and Marut; they taught not any man, without they said, 'We are but a temptation; do not disbelieve.' From them they learned how they might divide a man and his wife, yet they did not hurt any man thereby, save by the leave of God, and they learned what hurt them, and did not profit them, knowing well that whoso buys it shall have no share in the world to come; evil then was that they sold themselves for, if they had but known.}}
=== The Holy Spirit (rūḥ al-qudus) ===
{{Main|Jibreel (Gabriel) and al-Ruh al-Qudus (the Holy Spirit) in the Qur'an}}The holy spirit in the Qur'an is presented sometimes as an angel or quasi-angelic intermediary or agent of God.<ref>''rūḥ | spirit rūḥ al-qudus | the holy spirit'' Sinai, Nicolai. Key Terms of the Qur'an: A Critical Dictionary (p. 355). Princeton University Press. Kindle Edition.</ref> Other times as a vivifying or fortifying principle emanating from God.<ref>Ibid. pp. 357</ref> Other times it is more complex to classify.<ref>Ibid. pp. 360</ref>
{{Quote|{{Quran|2|87}}|And We did certainly give Moses the Torah and followed up after him with messengers. And We gave Jesus, the son of Mary, clear proofs and supported him with the Pure Spirit. But is it [not] that every time a messenger came to you, [O Children of Israel], with what your souls did not desire, you were arrogant? And a party [of messengers] you denied and another party you killed.}}{{Quote|{{Quran|66|12}}|And [the example of] Mary, the daughter of ʿImrān, who guarded her chastity, so We blew into [her garment] through Our angel [i.e., Gabriel], and she believed in the words of her Lord and His scriptures and was of the devoutly obedient.}}

=== Sacred geography ===
Sacred (''ḥaram'')<ref>[https://lexicon.quranic-research.net/data/06_H/076_Hrm.html ''ḥā rā mīm'' (ح ر م)] Lane's Lexicon - Quranic Research ''ḥaram'' [https://lexicon.quranic-research.net/pdf/Page_0553.pdf Lane's Lexicon Book 1 page 553] & [https://lexicon.quranic-research.net/pdf/Page_0554.pdf 554]</ref> geography is in Qur'anic theology, currently in Mecca, the Ka'ba. The sacred house referred to as the sacred mosque/place of worship (''al-masjidi al-ḥarāmi'') E.g. {{Quran|17|1}} or the sacred house ''al-bayta al-haram'' {{Quran|5|2}}{{Quote|{{Quran|5|97}}|Allah has made the Ka‘bah, the Sacred House, standing for the people and [has sanctified] the sacred months and the sacrificial animals and the garlands [by which they are identified]. That is so you may know that Allah knows what is in the heavens and what is in the earth and that Allah is Knowing of all things.}}Similarly Jerusalem temple referred to as the furthest mosque (''al-masjidi al-aqṣā''), which although not directly called in the Qur'an it is implied at least was sacred, and later tradition was undecided on the matter.<ref>Neuwirth, Angelika. (2003). ''From the Sacred Mosque to the Remote Temple: Sūrat al-Isrā' between Text and Commentary.'' 10.1093/acprof:oso/9780195137279.003.0025. </ref>{{Quote|{{Quran|17|1}}|Immaculate is He who carried His servant on a journey by night from the Sacred Mosque to the Farthest Mosque whose environs We have blessed, that We might show him some of Our signs. Indeed, He is the All-hearing, the All-seeing.}}Israel is described as the holy land (''al-arḍa al-muqadasata'')<ref>[https://lexicon.quranic-research.net/data/21_q/037_qds.html ''qāf dāl sīn'' (ق د س)] Lane's Lexicon - Quran research

''muqadasata -'' [https://lexicon.quranic-research.net/pdf/Page_2497.pdf Lane's Lexicon Book 1 page 2497]</ref> by Moses.
{{Quote|{{Quran|5|21}}|O my people, enter the Holy Land which Allah has ordained for you, and do not turn your backs, or you will become losers.’}}
And a sacred valley (see also: {{Quran|79|16}}).

{{Quote|{{Quran|20|12}}|Indeed, I am your Lord, so remove your sandals. Indeed, you are in the sacred valley of Tuwa.}}

There is no evidence they are more sacred or special than anywhere else on Earth, therefore this is another superstition.

=== Sacred months ===
''Main article: [[Pre-Islamic Arab Religion in Islam#The%20Four%20Sacred%20Months|Pre-Islamic Arab Religion in Islam - The Four Sacred Months]]''

The Quran contains a mention of four sacred (''ḥurum)''<ref>[https://lexicon.quranic-research.net/data/06_H/076_Hrm.html ''ḥā rā mīm'' (ح ر م)] Lane's Lexicon - Quranic Research

''ḥurumun'' [https://lexicon.quranic-research.net/pdf/Page_0555.pdf Lane's Lexicon Book 1 page 555]</ref> months. These are the lunar-based months Dhul Qadha, Dhul Hijjah, Muharram and Rajab, from Arabic pagan beliefs (see [[Pre-Islamic Arab Religion in Islam#The Four Sacred Months|main article]]). {{Quote|{{Quran|9|36-37}}|Indeed, the number of months with Allah is twelve [lunar] months in the register of Allah since the day He created the heavens and the earth; of these, four months are sacred. That is the correct religion, so do not wrong yourselves during them. And fight against the disbelievers collectively as they fight against you collectively. And know that Allah is with the righteous [who fear Him]. Indeed, the postponing [sacred months] is an increase in disbelief by which those who have disbelieved are led [further] astray. They make it lawful one year and unlawful another year to correspond to the number made unlawful by Allah and [thus] make lawful what Allah has made unlawful.}}{{Quote|{{Quran|9|5}}|And when the sacred months have passed, then kill the polytheists wherever you find them and capture them and besiege them and sit in wait for them at every place of ambush. But if they should repent, establish prayer, and give zakah, let them [go] on their way. Indeed, Allah is Forgiving and Merciful.}}And similarly Ramaḍān is the month of fasting.
=== Tree of immortality ===
In jannah where Adam lives, there is a tree of immortality Adam is tempted by Satan to eat from.
{{Quote|{{Quran|20|120}}|Then Satan whispered to him; he said, "O Adam, shall I direct you to the tree of eternity and possession that will not deteriorate?"}}
===The Lote Tree of the utmost Boundary (Sid'rati al-Muntahā)===
Lote tree's are a real type of tree (Ziziphus spina-christi) native to Arabia and the Middle East.<ref>[https://www.suewickison.com/products/lote-tree?srsltid=AfmBOorj_RU2x1OPxgfRe689M2TWw1g4uZTQLkpSolPGYnIatiIe7h6K Lote Tree | Sidr | Ziziphus spina-christi |] Plants of the Qur'an | Sue Wickison</ref> Different to the tree of eternity/immortality (شرجرة الخلدshajarati ul-khul'di) in paradise (jannah), the Qur'an mentions the Lote Tree (سِدْرَةِ sidra) of ''the utmost boundary (ٱلْمُنتَهَىٰ al-muntahā)''<ref>مُنْتَهَىٰ - [https://lexicon.quranic-research.net/pdf/Page_3029.pdf Lane's Lexicon pp.3029]</ref> near (but notably not in) the 'garden of abode', said to be 'covered' يَغْشَى yaghshā by something unspecified in Q53:16, typically taken by exegetes to mean by angels, light and/or golden animals.<ref>E.g. see [https://quranx.com/Tafsirs/53.16 Tafsirs on Q53:16]</ref>{{Quote|{{Quran|53|13-17}}|And certainly he saw him (in) descent another,
Near (the) Lote Tree (of) the utmost boundary,
Near it (is the) Garden (of) Abode.
when there covered the Lote Tree what covered it.
Not swerved the sight and not it transgressed.}}This furthest boundary/limit is said in the hadith to place the cosmic tree in the sixth heaven, where even celestial creatures cannot go beyond it marking the limit of creation to all but God; said to be seen by Muhammad in his Night Journey (mi’rāj) on the [[:en:Buraq|Buraq]] (E.g. {{Muslim||173|reference}}, {{Al Tirmidhi|2=5|3=44|4=3276}}, {{Bukhari|||3887|darussalam}} & {{Al Nasai|2=1|3=5|4=452}}), and by many Islamic exegetes.<ref>See [https://quranx.com/tafsirs/53.14 tafsirs on Q53:14]</ref>

This would align the cosmology of Islamic traditions supporting the idea that paradise (and therefore the garden of the abode) is in the [[seventh heaven]],<ref>[https://islamqa.info/en/answers/215011/where-are-paradise-and-hell#Where_is_Paradise Where is Paradise] | [https://islamqa.info/en/answers/215011/where-are-paradise-and-hell Where Are Paradise and Hell?] | 07/January/2015 islamqa</ref> while some traditions support the idea that paradise is above the seventh heaven,<ref>[https://www.islamweb.net/en/fatwa/107126/the-location-of-paradise-now#:~:text=Paradise%20that%20Allaah%20promised%20for,are%20many%20texts%20proving%20this. The location of Paradise now] | Paradise and Hell | Belief in the Hereafter | Islamic Creed | Fatwa | islamweb.net</ref> both place the tree relatively close to jannah. However others suggest that this specific ''garden of abode (jannatu l-mawā)'' is a separate garden/paradise to the eternal one all righteous Muslims will eventually enter, being instead where martyrs (those killed in war or for their religion) go before judgement day.<ref>E.g. see [https://quranx.com/Tafsirs/53.15 tafsirs on Q53:15]</ref><ref>See also Al-Kashshaaf on [https://www.altafsir.com/Tafasir.asp?tMadhNo=0&tTafsirNo=2&tSoraNo=53&tAyahNo=7&tDisplay=yes&Page=3&Size=1&LanguageId=1 verse Q53:7] by Al-Zamakhshari (d. 538 AH / 1143 CE)</ref>

Either way there is no evidence of a celestial tree, which must be supernatural to survive outside of an Earthly plant ecosystem.

=== Humans agree to worship god before their existence ===
Humans are said to have verbally agreed that Allah is their lord, so they cannot say they were unaware on judgment day, most commonly taken by classical Islamic commentaries (and hadith) as a magical temporary pre-existent creation before the current life that we all forget,<ref>See commentaries such as Al-Jalalyan, Ibn Kathir and Maududi on [https://quranx.com/tafsirs/7.172 Q7:172]</ref> though it is hard to know given the forgetting what the purpose of the this agreement is.{{Quote|{{Quran|7|172}}|And when (was) taken (by) your Lord from (the) Children (of) Adam - from their loins - their descendants and made them testify over themselves, "Am I not your Lord?" They said, "Yes we have testified." Lest you say (on the) Day (of) the Resurrection, "Indeed, we were about this unaware."}}
=== The soul is taken away during sleep ===
Like many other religions, the Qur'an affirms the idea that humans have a 'soul' that is separate to the physical body (the concept itself now a controversial idea now we know so much of what would be traditionally ascribed to a soul such as personality and memory comes from physical processes in the brain,<ref>Valk SL, Hoffstaedter F, Camilleri JA, Kochunov P, Yeo BTT, Eickhoff SB. ''Personality and local brain structure: Their shared genetic basis and reproducibility.'' Neuroimage. 2020 Oct 15;220:117067. doi: 10.1016/j.neuroimage.2020.117067. Epub 2020 Jun 20. PMID: 32574809; PMCID: PMC10251206.</ref> and can be damaged by physical actions such as brain trauma<ref>[https://www.charliehealth.com/mental-health/trauma/can-trauma-cause-memory-loss Can Trauma Cause Memory Loss?] Charlie Health </ref> and psychoactive drugs<ref>Treatment for Stimulant Use Disorders: Updated 2021 [Internet]. Rockville (MD): ''Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration (US); 1999. (Treatment Improvement Protocol (TIP) Series, No. 33.) Chapter 2—How Stimulants Affect the Brain and Behavior.'' Available from: <nowiki>https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/books/NBK576548/</nowiki></ref>).

According to the Qur'an, humans have souls that are taken away during sleep time.<ref>See classical commentaries on these verses such as Al-Jalalayn on [https://quranx.com/Tafsir/Jalal/39.42 Q39:42], [https://quranx.com/Tafsir/Jalal/6.60 Q6:60] and Ibn Kathir on [https://quranx.com/Tafsir/Kathir/39.41 Q39:41-2] and [https://quranx.com/Tafsir/Kathir/6.60 Q6:60]</ref>
{{Quote|{{Quran|39|42}}|Allah takes the souls at the time of their death, and those who have not died, in their sleep. Then He retains those for whom He has ordained death and releases the others until a specified time. There are indeed signs in that for a people who reflect.}}
{{Quote|{{Quran|6|60}}|It is He who takes your souls by night, and He knows what you do by day, then He reanimates you therein so that a specified term may be completed. Then to Him will be your return, whereat He will inform you concerning what you used to do.}}
Because of this, classical Islamic scholars have called sleep 'a lesser death'.<ref>E.g. Ibn Kathir on [https://quranx.com/Tafsir/Kathir/39.41 Q39:41-2]</ref> Modern science now understands the cause and biological functions that occur during sleep are numerous and complex, and vital to the body for e.g. hormonal regulation, waste clearance, memory, the immune system etc - in highly active processes, in no accurate way comparable to death.<ref>[https://www.ninds.nih.gov/health-information/public-education/brain-basics/brain-basics-understanding-sleep Brain Basics: Understanding Sleep]. National Institute of Neurological Disorders and Stroke (.gov)

For in depth information about what happens during sleep aimed at the general reader, see Professor Matthew Walker's ''"Why we sleep: unlocking the power of sleep and dreams"''</ref>
== Natural processes ascribed to God and magical properties assigned to inanimate objects ==
It could be argued that there is no randomness or natural law in the Qur'an, but rather every single thing including all causal events and interactions are not the results of material conditions and conjunctions, but rather determined by God/Allah's current will; an opinion argued by many Muslim theologians,<ref>Rudolph, Ulrich, 'Occasionalism', in Sabine Schmidtke (ed.), ''The Oxford Handbook of Islamic Theology'', Oxford Handbooks (2016; online edn, Oxford Academic, 3 Mar. 2014), <nowiki>https://doi.org/10.1093/oxfordhb/9780199696703.013.39</nowiki>, accessed 28 Mar. 2025.</ref> such as al-Ghazālī who claims that God is the ultimate cause.<ref>[https://www.ghazali.org/articles/kamali.htm CAUSALITY AND DIVINE ACTION: THE ISLAMIC PERSPECTIVE.] Mohammad Hashim Kamali. Ghazali.org</ref>
Decharneux (2023) highlights that God in the Qur'an is highly active in the cosmos, not just at the beginning of creation to set the world in place.{{Quote|Decharneux, Julien. De Gruyter. 2023. Creation and Contemplation: The Cosmology of the Qur'ān and Its Late Antique Background (Studies in the History and Culture of the Middle East Book 47) (pp. 143).|The text repeatedly ascribes to God the cosmic role of sustaining the world. God continuously provides humans with food and necessary supplies (e. g. Q 6:96, 7:9, 26:75, 28:57, 29:60, 30:40, 34:24, 36:71 – 73). He is also responsible for the regularity of astral motions in the sky (e. g. Q 7:54, 13:2, 14:33, 16:12, 29:61, 31:29, 35:13, 39:5), for the succession of day and night (e. g. Q 14:33, 16:12), as well as any other things that allow humans to live on a daily basis. All these passages show that the Qur’ān grants to the theme of the creatio continua (“continuous creation”; i. e. maintenance of the universe) a prominent place within the overall Qur’ānic cosmological discourse. This is hardly surprising given the natural theological system described in the first chapter. God’s creatorship is observable in the cycles and the regularity of the world.}}And similarly Sinai (2023).{{Quote|allāh {{!}} God Sinai, Nicolai. Key Terms of the Qur'an: A Critical Dictionary (pp. 62-63). Princeton University Press. Kindle Edition.|Even after having been fully set up, the natural realm is thus in no way causally independent of its creator, whom Q 55:29 describes as incessantly busy (kulla yawmin huwa fī shaʾn, “everyday he is engaged in something”).}}In similar fashion to the control seen in the doctrine of [[:en:Qur'an,_Hadith_and_Scholars:Predestination#Qur'an|Predestination in the Qur'an]], events aren't given a somewhat random cause and effect of individual people working within the laws of nature that have been set, but rather God interacts constantly. He (Allāh) regulates affairs from the heaven to the earth {{Quran|32|5}}, gives favour to people {{Quran|16|53}} and chooses when they die {{Quran|32|11}}, as with every nation {{Quran|7|34}} and thing {{Quran|6|67}}. He is seen as deciding the outcome of battles {{Quran|36|74-75}} (which other gods cannot {{Quran|46|28}}) and working through believers to fight unbelievers {{Quran|8|17}}<ref>Durie, Mark. ''The Qur’an and Its Biblical Reflexes: Investigations into the Genesis of a Religion. 2.4 An Act of God by Human Hands (p. 58-59) (Kindle Edition pp. 165-166)'' Lexington Books. 2018.</ref> and sending invisible angels to Muhammad {{Quran|3|123-126}}, {{Quran|33|9}}, {{Quran|9|26}} (cf: {{Quran|3|123-126}}) etc.

=== Natural processes explained by science as miracles ===

==== Wind & rain ====
Wind is seen as a sign of God {{Quran|35|9}} rather than from heat differences,<ref>[https://www.eia.gov/energyexplained/wind/ Wind explained.] U.S Energy information Administration. Last reviewed December 2023. </ref> and God is said to bring down rain, rather than the natural process of water droplets<ref>[https://www.britannica.com/science/water-cycle Water Cycle Entry] - Britannica

[https://scijinks.gov/rain/ What Makes It Rain?] Water and Ice. NOAA SciJinks.gov </ref> condensing onto one another within a cloud, causing the droplets to grow - which when these water droplets get too heavy to stay suspended in the cloud, they fall to Earth as rain (cf: {{Quran|43|11}}). This is in line with the pre-Islamic Arabic poets worldview. <ref>See [https://ora.ox.ac.uk/objects/uuid:977914cb-d783-4949-aed4-f0b6c2eaa562/files/m34f1a166246ec073a79d42ea09d9cc1a Rain-Giver, Bone-Breaker, Score-Settler: Allāh in Pre-Quranic Poetry], ''pp. 15, pp.18, pp. 27-30: Chapter 6. Allāh as Creator and Provider of Rain.'' New Haven, Connecticut: American Oriental Society, 2019. Essay 15. Nicolai Sinai. </ref>

==== Lightning ====
The Qur'an states that lighting is a sign shown by god for fear (''khawfan'') and hope (''waṭamaʿan),'' however now we know that lightening is simply an electrical phenomena caused by negative and positive charges in clouds or between the cloud and the ground build up and suddenly discharge, creating a bright flash,<ref name=":0">[https://www.weather.gov/safety/lightning-science-overview Understanding Lightning Science.] Safety. National Weather Service.</ref> (i.e. explained by science), it is difficult to see why it would give people hope.
{{Quote|{{Quran|30|24}}|And among His Signs, He shows you the lightning, by way both of fear and of hope, and He sends down rain from the sky and with it gives life to the earth after it is dead}}

==== Ships sailing ====
Allah causes ships to stay afloat (and presumably sink) ({{Quran|55|24}}, {{Quran|17|70}}, {{Quran|17|66}}) rather than the scientific principle of buoyancy<ref>[https://letstalkscience.ca/educational-resources/stem-explained/why-do-ships-float Why do ships float?] Amy McDonald. 2019. STEM Explained. Let's Talk Science</ref> (and essentially randomness of those who's boats do not work).

==== The baby's sex and Infertility ====
Allah is said to cause infertility, which we now know has many medical causes, some of which are preventable.<ref>[https://www.mayoclinic.org/diseases-conditions/infertility/symptoms-causes/syc-20354317 Infertility - Symptoms and causes.] Diseases & conditions. Mayo Clinic.org</ref>
{{Quote|{{Quran|42|49-50}}|He creates whatever He wants and bestows female to whomever He wants and bestows male to whomever He wants. Or He mingles them, males and females, and He makes barren whom He pleases. Lo! He is Knower, Powerful.}}

==== The embryo's sex ====
{{Main|Embryology in the Quran}}
In the same verse as above {{Quran|42|49-50}} God is said to decide who is male and who is female, rather than the sex chromosome of the sperm cell that fertilizes the ovum.<ref>For a simple explanation, see: ''[https://kidshealth.org/en/parents/week2.html#:~:text=Every%20egg%20has%20an%20X,baby%20will%20be%20a%20boy. Pregnancy Calendar: Your Baby's Development] Kidshealth.org'' or ''Pampers: [https://www.pampers.co.uk/pregnancy/pregnancy-symptoms/article/what-determines-the-sex-of-a-baby At What Point is a Baby's Sex Determined? 2023.]''</ref> A sahih hadith clarifies that this is determined by whether the mother or father reaches sexual climax first.<ref>{{Bukhari|||3329|darussalam}}</ref>

=== Inanimate objects and animals worship God ===
Inanimate objects that do not have a consciousness like those with complex brains, so are not capable of worshipping anything.

{{Quote|{{Quran|13|13}}|The Thunder celebrates His praise, and the angels [too], in awe of Him, and He releases the thunderbolts and strikes with them whomever He wishes. Yet they dispute concerning Allah, though He is great in might.}}{{Quote|{{Quran|22|18}}|Have you not regarded that whoever is in the heavens and whoever is on the earth prostrates to Allah, as well as the sun, the moon, and the stars, the mountains, the trees, and the animals and many humans? And many have come to deserve the punishment. Whomever Allah humiliates will find no one who may bring him honour. Indeed Allah does whatever He wishes.}}

Even their shadows do somehow.

{{Quote|{{Quran|13|15}}|To Allah prostrates whoever there is in the heavens and the earth, willingly or unwillingly, and their shadows at sunrise and sunset.}}Everything in the cosmos (presumably covering the vast amounts of near-empty space and elements) worships and prostrates before him, as does every animal and angel, all allegedly fearing God ({{Quran|16|49-50}}, {{Quran|22|18}}), including the birds, which do so while flying ({{Quran|24|41}}), and trees ({{Quran|55|6}}).

==== Inanimate objects refused the task of being God's followers, but humans accepted ====
It is hard to know what was meant by this or why Allah would offer an inanimate object with no biology for consciousness that he already knew couldn't answer the task, nor how they refused it. Some classical Islamic commentaries say they could speak at the time.<ref>E.g. Al-Jalalayn on verse [https://quranx.com/Tafsir/Jalal/33.72 33:72]</ref>{{Quote|{{Quran|33|72}}|Indeed We presented the Trust to the heavens and the earth and the mountains, but they refused to undertake it and were apprehensive of it; but man undertook it. Indeed he is most unjust and ignorant.}}

=== Allah speaks to the heavens/skies and the earth and they respond ===
{{Quote|{{Quran|41|11}}|Then He turned towards the heaven when it was smoke, saying to it and to the earth, ‘Submit, willingly or unwillingly.’ They both responded, ‘We submit willingly.’"}}
=== Anthropomorphisms of Allāh ===
Allah is not a totally transcendent God, as he is described as having human features in several verses in the Qur'an. Many hadith also support this view.<ref>Holtzman, L. (2018). [https://www.google.co.uk/books/edition/Anthropomorphism_in_Islam/BPdJEAAAQBAJ?hl=en&gbpv=0 Anthropomorphism in Islam: The Challenge of Traditionalism (700-1350)]. United Kingdom: Edinburgh University Press.

See many examples and debates around their authenticity in early Islam in ''Chapters 1, 2 and 3.''</ref>
==== Hands ====
Sinai (2023) notes the parallels with pre-Islamic and contemporary literature suggesting that these verses are to be taken literally.<ref>allāh {{!}} God Sinai, Nicolai. Key Terms of the Qur'an: A Critical Dictionary (p. 73-74). Princeton University Press. Kindle Edition.

''...in Q 38:75 God upbraids Iblīs for failing to “prostrate to what I have created with my hands,” bi-yadayya. As recognised by al-Ashʿarī (Gimaret 1990, 326), the point of God’s statement here is presumably to highlight a trait of Adam that endows him with peculiar dignity and elevates him over Iblīs—namely, the fact that God has formed Adam in a more intimate fashion than other creatures. Hence, although the Qur’anic God is perfectly capable of creating by verbal fiat, as maintained in places like Q 2:117 and 3:47 (when God “decides on [creating] something, he merely says to it, ‘Be,’ and it is,” idhā qaḍā amran fa-innamā yaqūlu lahu kun fa-yakūn), he can also create in what is literally a hands-on manner, by making use of his own limbs.106 In passing, one may note that the claim that humans were fashioned manually has pre-Qur’anic parallels that lend further support to taking it quite literally. According to Aphrahat, Adam alone was created by God’s own hands while everything else was created by God’s word (Demonstrations 13:11 = Parisot 1894, 563–566, identified in BEQ 46). The same idea is developed at length by Jacob of Sarug (Mathews 2020, 46–51, ll. 2157–2194): whereas all other creatures were brought into existence by a divine “signal” (remzā; cf. Decharneux 2019, 244–245), Adam was uniquely created by God’s hands (l. 2169)—an instance of divine self-abasement that prefigures the incarnation of Christ (ll. 2189–2194). The Cave of Treasures also reports that Adam was shaped by God’s “holy hands” (Ri 1987, ch. 2:12; see Zellentin 2017, 109).107''</ref>{{Quote|{{Quran|38|75}}|He said, ‘O Iblis! What keeps you from prostrating before that which I have created with My [own] two hands? Are you arrogant, or are you one of the exalted ones?’}}
{{Quote|allāh {{!}} God Sinai, Nicolai. Key Terms of the Qur'an: A Critical Dictionary (pp. 73-74). Princeton University Press. Kindle Edition.|2=...in Q 38:75 God upbraids Iblīs for failing to “prostrate to what I have created with my hands,” bi-yadayya. As recognised by al-Ashʿarī (Gimaret 1990, 326), the point of God’s statement here is presumably to highlight a trait of Adam that endows him with peculiar dignity and elevates him over Iblīs—namely, the fact that God has formed Adam in a more intimate fashion than other creatures. Hence, although the Qur’anic God is perfectly capable of creating by verbal fiat, as maintained in places like Q 2:117 and 3:47 (when God “decides on [creating] something, he merely says to it, ‘Be,’ and it is,” idhā qaḍā amran fa-innamā yaqūlu lahu kun fa-yakūn), he can also create in what is literally a hands-on manner, by making use of his own limbs.106 In passing, one may note that the claim that humans were fashioned manually has pre-Qur’anic parallels that lend further support to taking it quite literally. According to Aphrahat, Adam alone was created by God’s own hands while everything else was created by God’s word (Demonstrations 13:11 = Parisot 1894, 563–566, identified in BEQ 46). The same idea is developed at length by Jacob of Sarug (Mathews 2020, 46–51, ll. 2157–2194): whereas all other creatures were brought into existence by a divine “signal” (remzā; cf. Decharneux 2019, 244–245), Adam was uniquely created by God’s hands (l. 2169)—an instance of divine self-abasement that prefigures the incarnation of Christ (ll. 2189–2194). The Cave of Treasures also reports that Adam was shaped by God’s “holy hands” (Ri 1987, ch. 2:12; see Zellentin 2017, 109).107}}

==== Eyes ====
{{Quote|{{Quran|11|37}}|Build the ark before Our eyes and by Our revelation, and do not plead with Me for those who are wrongdoers: they shall indeed be drowned.’}}{{Quote|{{Quran|20|39}}|"That cast him in the chest then cast it in the river, then let cast it the river on the bank; will take him an enemy to Me, and an enemy to him." And I cast over you love from Me, and that you may be brought up under My eye.}}{{Quote|{{Quran|52|48}}|So submit patiently to the judgement of your Lord, for indeed you fare before Our eyes. And celebrate the praise of your Lord when you rise [at dawn]}}

==== Sitting upright ====
Further adding to the special aspect, Sinai (2023) writes, these anthropomorphisms are further bolstered as literal with him "sitting" on a throne, which angels will carry specifically in the sky, most likely the highest one; i.e. part of the cosmos rather than a separate supernatural "universe" or in a state of indescribable non spatial existence. {{Quote|allāh {{!}} God Sinai, Nicolai. Key Terms of the Qur'an: A Critical Dictionary (p. 74). Princeton University Press. Kindle Edition.|Qur’an quite literally understands God to possess a countenance, sensory percipience, and limbs capable of touching, grasping, or imparting movement that the Islamic scripture employs various idioms and formulae involving these features. After all, there is no Qur’anic equivalent to Ephrem’s caveat that God only “put on the names of body parts”—i.e., speaks of himself in anthropomorphic and anthropopathic language—due to the weakness of human understanding (Beck 1955, no. 31:1–4). The Qur’anic God, therefore, is not merely a body but also, at least in some sense, an anthropomorphic body: he is endowed with a face, he is empirically receptive to worldly occurrences (rather than just knowing about them), and he can directly, with his own body, manipulate objects in the world. That the divine body has a fundamentally humanoid shape is further accentuated by the use of the verb istawā, “to stand up straight” or “to sit upright,” which is applied both to God, indicating the modality of his being located on the throne (Q 7:54, 10:3, 13:2, 20:5, 25:59, 32:4, 57:4),108 and to humans, who are described as “sitting upright” in a boat or on the back of a mount (Q 23:28, 43:13; see CDKA 142).}}
==== Made of light/photons ====
God is described as being made of light, which we now know from modern science would essentially be saying he is made of photons.<ref>[https://www.symmetrymagazine.org/article/what-is-a-photon?language_content_entity=und What is a photon?] Symmetry Magazine. Amanda Solliday and Kathryn Jepsen. 2021</ref>{{Quote|{{Quran|39|69}}|And (will) shine the earth with (the) light (of) its Lord and (will) be placed the Record and (will) be brought the Prophets and the witnesses, and it (will) be judged between them in truth, and they will not be wronged.}}
Similarly in regards to light Sinai (2023) notes:

{{Quote|allāh {{!}} God Sinai, Nicolai. Key Terms of the Qur'an: A Critical Dictionary (p. 71). Princeton University Press. Kindle Edition.|Nonetheless, with regard to Q 39:69 it seems more likely that the verse speaks of literal light, given that the same context also mentions the blowing of the eschatological trumpet (v. 68) and the display of the celestial register of deeds in preparation for the judgement (v. 69). But if reference is to concrete light rather than to the metaphorical light of divine guidance, then it stands to reason that this is light emitted by God, who arrives in order to judge humans and other moral agents.}}

And:

{{Quote|allāh {{!}} God Sinai, Nicolai. Key Terms of the Qur'an: A Critical Dictionary (p. 69). Princeton University Press. Kindle Edition.|The obvious reading of the material just surveyed is that the Qur’an considers God to be at least in principle visible and to be spatially located. The Qur’anic God cannot, therefore, be immaterial in any strict sense.}}

==== Human emotions ====
'''Anger and wrath'''

God is said to have human emotions in the Qur'an such as anger (''ghadab'') (Q 1:7; cf. 4:93; 5:60; 7:71, 152; 8:16; 16:106; 20:81; 42:16; 48:6; 58:14; 60:13), and we see for example in Q 4:93,which deals with those who commit murder, we see that God does not simply send murderers to hell; he also grows angry with them.<ref>Reynolds, Gabriel Said. ''Allah: God in the Qur'an (p. 162).'' Yale University Press. Kindle Edition.</ref>{{Quote|{{Quran|4|93}}|Should anyone kill a believer intentionally, his requital shall be hell, to remain in it [forever]; Allah shall be wrathful at him and curse him and He shall prepare for him a great punishment.}}This anger frequently causes Allah to actively take vengeance on them.<ref>Reynolds, Gabriel Said. ''Allah: God in the Qur'an (p. 176-202). Chapter 8: The Avenger.'' Yale University Press. Kindle Edition.</ref>

'''Loving'''

{{Quran|60|8}} Durie (2018) notes that in contrast to the bible, the title ''al-wadūd'' “one who loves” is used of Allah only twice (Q85:14; Q11:90).<ref>''The Qurʾan and its Biblical Reflexes: Investigations into the Genesis of a Religion. pp.107.'' Durie, Mark. Lanham, MD: Lexington Books, 2018.</ref>

'''Not loving'''

Reynolds (2020) notes{{Quote|Reynolds, Gabriel Said. Allah: God in the Qur'an (p. 167). Yale University Press. Kindle Edition. |There are indeed those whom the God of the Qur’an does not love. “God does not love any sinful unbeliever” (Q 2:276). “God does not love the faithless” (Q 3:32; cf. 30:45).9 God also does not love the wrongdoers (Q 3:57, 140; 42:40), the transgressors (Q 2:190, 5:87, 7:55), the arrogant (Q 4:36, 16:23, 31:18, 57:23), the proud (Q 4:36, 31:18, 57:23), the wasteful (Q 6:141, 7:31), the treacherous (Q 8:58, 22:38), the corrupt (Q 5:64, 28:77), and the boastful (Q 28:76).}}'''Hating'''

{{Quran|40|10}} even speaks of God’s “hate” (maqt) of unbelievers.<ref>Reynolds, Gabriel Said. ''Allah: God in the Qur'an (pp. 167-168).'' Yale University Press. Kindle Edition.</ref>

'''Pleasure'''

Alongside other human emotions God can feel pleasure ({{Quran|98|8}}).

'''Other'''

Both God and Humans are said to have a sunnah<ref>See verses in the Qur'an in the Noun section of the root [https://corpus.quran.com/qurandictionary.jsp?q=snn ''sīn nūn nūn'' (س ن ن)] on Quran Corpus.</ref> or "customary way" of acting<ref>''The Qurʾan and its Biblical Reflexes: Investigations into the Genesis of a Religion. pp.177.'' Durie, Mark.</ref> (e.g. {{Quran|35|43}}).

==Miracles and myths==
Miracles and myths, often taken via prophets but other times directly by Allah are listed below. Many are absurd and contradict science.
=== Prophet Miracles ===
=== Noah (Nūḥ) ===
==== Lived to be 950+ years old ====
Noah is said to be be at least 950 years old, with many traditional Islamic commentators taking this to mean he was preaching for this long until the flood came, and was therefore older in total (many exegetes for example say he was granted prophethood at age 40),<ref>See commentaries from [https://quranx.com/tafsirs/29.14 ''Islamic scholars on Q29:14'']</ref> and we are not told how long he lives after these events, but this could easily push him to be over a 1,000 years old in total. The legendary lifespan is typical for prophets and patriarchs in from the first part of the book of Genesis in the bible and is recorded for several other patriarchs there.{{Quote|{{Quran|29|14}}|Certainly We sent Noah to his people, and he remained with them for a thousand-less-fifty years. Then the flood overtook them while they were wrongdoers.}}

=== Adam (ʾĀdam) ===
Adam is not said to have performed any miracles directly (or through Allah) in the Qur'an, though he was magically created from clay rather than evolving.<ref>McAuliffe, J. D. (Eds.). (01 Jan. 2001). "Encyclopaedia of the Qur'ān". In Encyclopaedia of the Qur'ān. Leiden, The Netherlands: Brill. Retrieved Mar 8, 2025, from <nowiki>https://brill.com/view/serial/ENQU</nowiki> ''Page 24.'' ''Adam and Eve.'' Read for [https://archive.org/details/encyclopaedia-of-the-quran-6-volumes-jane-dammen-mc-auliffe/page/n61/mode/2up free on internet archive, page (62/3956) of the PDF]

''The Quran mentions several materials from which Adam was created, i.e. earth or dust (twrab, Q 3:59), clay (tan, Q7:12; see cLAy), and sticky clay or mud (tin lazib). More specifically, it is described as “clay from fetid foul mud” (salsal min hama’ masnin) and “clay like earthenware,” 1.e. baked or dry clay (salsal ka-l-fakhkhar). These terms are commonly interpreted as describing the different states of a single material.'' </ref> And [[User:CPO675/Sandbox 1#The Holy Spirit (Rūḥ al-qudus)|the holy spirit]] was made to create him (e.g. {{Quran|15|29}}, {{Quran|32|6-9}} and {{Quran|38|72}}). According to the Qur'an, he lived in paradise amoung the angels (and at least one jinn who turned into 'the devil') "Allah placed Adam in a paradisical Garden. After Adam sinned by eating from the forbidden tree (Tree of Immortality) after God forbade him from doing so, then paradise was declined to him and he was sent down to live on Earth."

==== Eve (Ḥawwā') ====
Though not mentioned by name in the Qur'an, the mate miraculously created from Adam is interpreted as Eve, and named in the [https://sunnah.com/search?q=eve hadith] and commentaries. No miracles are directly attributed to her either, but she originally lived in jannah (paradise), and is also miraculously created, as Shock (2006) notes "the early commentators report that she was created from the lowest of Adam’s ribs (qusayra) — which is sometimes also understood as the shortest rib",<ref>McAuliffe, J. D. (Eds.). (01 Jan. 2001). "Encyclopaedia of the Qur'ān". In Encyclopaedia of the Qur'ān. Leiden, The Netherlands: Brill. Retrieved Mar 8, 2025, from <nowiki>https://brill.com/view/serial/ENQU</nowiki> ''Page 24.'' ''Adam and Eve.'' Read for [https://archive.org/details/encyclopaedia-of-the-quran-6-volumes-jane-dammen-mc-auliffe/page/n61/mode/2up free on internet archive, page (62/3956) of the PDF]</ref> also [[Scientific Errors in the Quran#Evolution|contradicting evolution]] as the first woman.
{{Quote|{{Quran|4|1}}|O mankind! Be wary of your Lord who created you from a single soul, and created its mate from it, and from the two of them scattered numerous men and women. Be wary of Allah, in whose Name you adjure one another and [of severing ties with] blood relations. Indeed Allah is watchful over you.}}

=== Abraham (Ibrāhīm) ===
==== Magically cooling fire ====
Abraham is thrown into a fire that magically cools for him and burns only his chains.<ref>Tafsir al-Jalalayn on [https://quranx.com/Tafsir/Jalal/21.69 verse 21:69]</ref>{{Quote|{{Quran|21|69}}|We said, ‘O fire! Be cool and safe for Abraham!’}}
==== Cut up birds and bring them back to life ====
{{Quote|{{Quran|2|260}}|And when Abraham said, ‘My Lord! Show me how You revive the dead,’ He said, ‘Do you not believe?’ He said, ‘Yes indeed, but in order that my heart may be at rest.’ He said, ‘Catch four of the birds. Then cut them into pieces, and place a part of them on every mountain, then call them; they will come to you hastening. And know that Allah is all-mighty and all-wise.’}}
==== '''Shown the universe''' ====
{{Quote|{{Quran|6|75}}|And thus did We show Abraham the realm of the heavens and the earth that he would be among the certain [in faith].}}
==== Gives Abraham and his old wife a child ====
{{Quote|{{Quran|11|69-73}}|“There came Our messengers to Abraham with glad tidings. They said, ‘Peace!’ He answered, ‘Peace!’ and hastened to entertain them with a roasted calf. But when he saw their hands went not towards the (meal), he felt some mistrust of them, and conceived a fear of them. They said: ‘Fear not: we have been sent against the people of Lut.’ And his wife was standing (there), and she laughed, but We gave her glad tidings of Isaac, and after him, of Jacob. She said, ‘Alas for me! shall I bear a child, seeing I am an old woman, and my husband here is an old man? That would indeed be a wonderful thing!’ They said, ‘Dost thou wonder at Allah’s decree? The grace of Allah and His blessings on you, O, ye people of the house! For He is indeed worthy of all praise, full of all glory!’”}}
=== Ishmael (ʾIsmāʿīl) ===
Ishmael is Abraham's son, who God originally asks Abraham to sacrifice Ishmael to prove his devotion ({{Quran|37|100-108}}). Ishmael agrees but God swaps him with a ram (according to Islamic commentaries on this verse) before he completes it.<ref>See commentaries on [https://quranx.com/tafsirs/37.107 verse 37:107]</ref>
{{Quote|{{Quran|37|107}}|And We ransomed him with a sacrifice great,}}

=== Abel (Hābīl) and Cane (Qābīl) ===
A raven sent from God shows Abel where to bury his brother Cain.{{Quote|{{Quran|5|31}}|Then Allah sent a crow, exploring in the ground, to show him how to bury the corpse of his brother. He said, ‘Woe to me! Am I unable to be [even] like this crow and bury my brother’s corpse?’ Thus he became regretful.}}

=== Jonah (Yunus) ===

==== Living inside a big fish ====
The Quran presents a version of the Biblical tale in which Jonah is swallowed by a whale ('the big Fish') and then lives in the whale for some time while praying. This legendary account is copied from the simiarly fantastic account in the bible's book of Jonah.{{Quote|{{Quran|37|142}}|Then the big Fish did swallow him, and he had done acts worthy of blame. Had it not been that he (repented and) glorified Allah, He would certainly have remained inside the Fish till the Day of Resurrection. But We cast him forth, on the naked shore in a state of sickness}}

=== Joseph (Yūsuf) ===
==== Dream interpreting ====
Birds are seen in a dream which Joseph interprets in reality.{{Quote|{{Quran|12|36-41}}|There entered the prison two youths along with him. One of them said, ‘I dreamt that I am pressing grapes.’ The other said, ‘I dreamt that I am carrying bread on my head from which the birds are eating.’ ‘Inform us of its interpretation,’ [they said], ‘for indeed we see you to be a virtuous man.’ He said, ‘Before the meals you are served come to you I will inform you of its interpretation. That is among things my Lord has taught me. Indeed, I renounce the creed of the people who have no faith in Allah and who [also] disbelieve in the Hereafter... ...O my prison mates! As for one of you, he will serve wine to his master, and as for the other, he will be crucified and vultures will eat from his head. The matter about which you inquire has been decided.’}}

==== A shirt regains his sons sight ====
Here, Jacob (Ya'qūb) (Joseph's son e.g. {{Quran|12|80}}) is blind, and when Joseph arranges for him to be brought to Egypt for their reunion, he instructs his brothers to place the shirt on Jacob's face, miraculously restoring his sight.
{{Quote|{{Quran|12|93-96}}|Take this shirt of mine, and cast it upon my father’s face; he will regain his sight, and bring me all your folks.’ As the caravan set off, their father said, ‘I sense the scent of Joseph, if you will not consider me a dotard.’ They said, ‘By God, you persist in your inveterate error.’ When the bearer of good news arrived, he cast it on his face, and he regained his sight. He said, ‘Did I not tell you, ‘‘I know from Allah what you do not know?’’ ’}}

=== Job (Ayyūb) ===

==== Magic water spring ====
Though he doesn't seem to perform any miracles directly like Jesus or Moses in the Qur'an, Allah instructs him to strike the ground with his foot, and a spring of water emerges, which heals him.<ref>See commentaries on [https://quranx.com/tafsirs/38.42 verse 38:42]</ref> This might be considered a divine blessing or sign rather than a miracle performed by Job himself.

{{Quote|{{Quran|38|42}}|[We told him:] ‘Stamp your foot on the ground; this [ensuing spring] will be a cooling bath and drink.’}}

=== Moses (Mūsā) ===
==== Sea split in half ====
The Quran present a version of the Biblical story where Moses splits the sea and crosses it with the Israelites. The entire Moses story as we have it both in the bible and derived forms such as the Qur'an is wholy legendary in nature as there's no evidence from the record of Egypt's ancient history that Moses ever existed.
{{Quote|{{Quran|2|50}}|
And remember '''We divided the sea for you''' and saved you and drowned Pharaoh's people within your very sight. }}

==== Stick turned serpent ====
The Quran states that Moses' staff transformed into a serpent.{{Quote|{{Quran|7|107}}|
Then (Moses) threw his rod, and behold! it was a serpent, plain (for all to see)! }}
==== Plagues of Egypt ====
{{Quote|{{Quran|7|133}}|So We sent against them a flood and locusts, lice, frogs and blood, as distinct signs. But they acted arrogantly, and they were a guilty lot.}}
==== Mountain lifted up and dropped in front of him (from Allah) ====
{{Quote|{{Quran|7|143}}|When Moses arrived at Our tryst and his Lord spoke to him, he said, ‘My Lord, show [Yourself] to me, that I may look at You!’ He said, ‘You shall not see Me. But look at the mountain: if it abides in its place, then you will see Me.’ So when his Lord disclosed Himself to the mountain, He levelled it, and Moses fell down swooning. When he recovered, he said, ‘Immaculate are You! I turn to You in penitence, and I am the first of the faithful.’}}{{Quote|{{Quran|2|63}}|And when We took a pledge from you, and raised the Mount above you, [declaring], ‘Hold on with power to what We have given you and remember that which is in it so that you may be Godwary.’}}
==== Moses's magic white hand ====
{{Quote|{{Quran|27|12}}|‘Insert your hand into your shirt. It will emerge white and bright, without any fault—among nine signs meant for Pharaoh and his people. Indeed they are a transgressing lot.’}}
==== 12 Springs magically appear from a rock ====
{{Quote|{{Quran|12|60}}|And when Moses prayed for water for his people, We said, ‘Strike the rock with your staff.’ Thereat twelve fountains gushed forth from it; every tribe came to know its drinking-place. ‘Eat and drink of Allah’s provision, and do not act wickedly on the earth, causing corruption.’}}
==== Dead fish (for food) comes back to life at the junction of the two seas ====
{{Main|A Barrier Between Two Seas and the Cosmic Ocean}}Moses's dead fish comes back to life at the junction of the two seas, in a verse [[Parallels Between the Qur'an and Late Antique Judeo-Christian Literature#Moses, his servant and the fish|paralleling late antique Christian literature.]] {{Quote|{{Quran|18|61-63}}|So when they reached the confluence between them, they forgot their fish, which found its way into the sea, sneaking away. Then when they had passed beyond he said to his boy, "Bring us our morning meal. Certainly we have suffered in our journey this, fatigue." He said, 'What thinkest thou? When we took refuge in the rock, then I forgot the fish-and it was Satan himself that made me forget it so that I should not remember it -- and so it took its way into the sea in a manner marvellous.'}}
==== Mooing statue ====
The Qur'an describes a statue of a calf that was capable of mooing.{{Quote|{{Quran|20|88}}|So he brought forth for them a calf, a (mere) body, which had a mooing sound, so they said: This is your god and the god of Musa, but he forgot.}}
==== Testimony of a dead man by slapping a cow ====
The Quran states that Allah instructed a group of people to strike a murdered man with a piece of a heifer (young female cow that has not yet borne a calf) in order to temporarily resurrect him and discover the identity of the murderer.{{Quote|{{Quran|2|73}}|
And We said: Smite him with some of it. Thus Allah bringeth the dead to life and showeth you His portents so that ye may understand. }}
==== Korah (Qārūn) swallowed ====
{{Quote|{{Quran|28|76-82}}|Korah indeed belonged to the people of Moses, but he bullied them. We had given him so much treasures that their chests indeed proved heavy for a band of stalwarts. When his people said to him, ‘Do not boast! Indeed Allah does not like the boasters. Seek the abode of the Hereafter by means of what Allah has given you, while not forgetting your share of this world. Be good [to others] just as Allah has been good to you, and do not try to cause corruption in the land. Indeed Allah does not like the agents of corruption.’... ...So We caused the earth to swallow him and his house, and he had no party that might protect him from Allah, nor could he rescue himself. By dawn those who longed to be in his place the day before were saying, ‘Don’t you see that Allah expands the provision for whomever He wishes of His servants, and tightens it? Had Allah not shown us favour, He might have made the earth swallow us too. Don’t you see that the faithless do not prosper?’}}

==== His audience are killed by a thunderbolt then brought back to life ====
{{Quote|{{Quran|2|55}}|And when you said, ‘O Moses, we will not believe you until we see Allah visibly.’ Thereupon a thunderbolt seized you as you looked on. Then We revived you from after your death, so that you may (be) grateful.}}

=== David (Dāwūd) ===
==== Understanding birds ====
{{Quote|{{Quran|27|16}}|Solomon inherited from David, and he said, ‘O people! We have been taught the speech of the birds, and we have been given out of everything. Indeed this is a manifest advantage.’}}
==== Mountains and birds sing psalms ====
The Qur'an states that hills and birds would sing the psalms with David.{{Quote|{{Quran|34|10}}|
And assuredly We gave David grace from Us, (saying): O ye hills and birds, echo his psalms of praise! And We made the iron supple unto him}}
==== Allah making iron soft for David ====
{{Quote|{{Quran|34|10}}|Certainly We gave David our grace: ‘O mountains and birds, chime in with him!’ And We made iron soft for him.}}
=== Solomon (Sulaymān) ===
==== Solomon's Army of jinn and birds (controlling them) ====
A story in the Qur'an, drawing on Jewish folklore, states that Solomon commanded a massive army comprised of 'Jinns and men and birds'. Solomon is described as speaking with a Hoopoe bird and thereafter desiring to execute the bird when it is tardy to his assembly. The Hoopoe bird, it is then revealed, was only delayed because it had been spying on a beautiful female ruler, Queen Sheba, who Solomon subsequently insists is misguided and must be conquered. At this point, Solomon assigns a Jinn from his assembly the task of stealing Queen Sheba's magnificent throne. All of these fantastic elements evince the legendary and folkloric origins of the story.

{{Quote|{{Quran|27|16-17}}|
And Solomon was David's heir. He said: "O ye people! We have been taught the speech of birds, and on us has been bestowed (a little) of all things: this is indeed Grace manifest (from Allah.)And before Solomon were marshalled his hosts― of Jinns and men and birds, and they were all kept in order and ranks.}}{{Quote|{{Quran|27|20-23}}|
And he took a muster of the Birds; and he said: "Why is it I see not the Hoopoe? Or is he among the absentees? I will certainly punish him with a severe Penalty, or execute him, unless he bring me a clear reason (for absence). But the Hoopoe tarried not far: he (came up and) said: "I have compassed (territory) which thou hast not compassed, and I have come to thee from Saba with tidings true. I found (there) a woman ruling over them and provided with every requisite; and she has a magnificent throne.}}

==== Fountain of bronze ====
{{Quote|{{Quran|34|12}}|And We caused a fount of (molten) brass to flow for him, and there were jinns that worked in front of him, by the Leave of his Lord, and whosoever of them turned aside from Our Command, We shall cause him to taste of the torment of the blazing Fire.}}
==== Solomon speaks to an ant ====
Solomon understands the speech of an ant advising caution to his fellows{{Quote|{{Quran|27|18}}|When they came to the Valley of Ants, an ant said, ‘O ants! Enter your dwellings, lest Solomon and his hosts should trample on you while they are unaware.’}}
==== Solomons dead body doesn't decompose properly ====
{{Quote|{{Quran|34|14}}|When We decreed death for him, nothing apprised them of his death except a worm which gnawed away at his staff. And when he fell down, [the humans] realized that had the jinn known the Unseen, they would not have remained in a humiliating torment.}}
==== Manipulating the wind ====
The Quran says that Solomon had the power to control the wind and traditional sources elaborate that Solomon could use this wind to fly upon a gigantic wooden carpet to wherever he pleased.{{Quote|{{Quran|38|36}}|
Then We subjected the wind to his power, to flow gently to his order, Whithersoever he willed }}{{Quote|Tafsir Ibn-Kathir on 21:81 | A flying carpet made from wood, on top of which he could carry everything in his kingdom including chairs, to wherever Solomon wants to go, whilst flocks of birds would fly over to give shade }}
=== Zechariah (Zakariyā) ===
==== Cures his wife barreness ====
This produces John the Baptist (Yaḥyā) in the Qur'an.{{Quote|{{Quran|21|89-90}}|“And (remember) Zakariya, when he cried to his Lord: ‘O, my Lord! leave me not childless, and Thou art the best of inheritors.’ So We responded to him, and We granted him Yahya, We cured his wife’s (barrenness) for him. These (three) were ever quick in emulation in good works; they used to call on Us with love and reverence, and humble themselves before Us.”}}
=== Jesus (ʿĪsā) ===
{{Main|Isa al-Masih (Jesus Christ)}}
==== Born from Mary (Mariam) who was a virgin ====
Like the bible, and other pagan mythologies,<ref>[https://www.richardcarrier.info/archives/11161 Virgin Birth: It’s Pagan, Guys.] Get Over It. PhD Richard Carrier. 2016.</ref> Jesus is also born from a virgin, provided by the holy spirit; usually taken as a reference the angel Gabriel here. Given he is not the son of God, it is unclear what the purpose of this is.{{Quote|{{Quran|19|17-21}}|Thus did she seclude herself from them, whereupon We sent to her Our Spirit and he became incarnate for her as a well-proportioned human. She said, ‘I seek the protection of the All-beneficent from you, should you be Godwary!’ He said, ‘I am only a messenger of your Lord that I may give you a pure son.’
She said, ‘How shall I have a child seeing that no human being has ever touched me, nor have I been unchaste?’ He said, ‘So shall it be. Your Lord says, ‘‘It is simple for Me.’’ And so that We may make him a sign for mankind and a mercy from Us, and it is a matter [already] decided.’}}{{Quote|{{Quran|66|12}}|And the example of Maryam the daughter of Imran, who guarded her chastity – We therefore breathed into her a Spirit from Ourselves – and she testified for the Words of her Lord and His Books, and was among the obedient.}}
==== Jesus talking from his Cradle ====
{{Quote|{{Quran|3|45-46}}|(And remember) when the angels said: O Mary! Lo! Allah giveth thee glad tidings of a word from him, whose name is the Messiah, Jesus, son of Mary, illustrious in the world and the Hereafter, and one of those brought near (unto Allah). He will speak unto mankind in his cradle and in his manhood, and he is of the righteous.}}
==== Supernatural food ====
The Qur'an states that Jesus received a feast sent down from heaven.{{Quote|{{Quran-range|5|114|115}}|
Jesus, son of Mary, said: O Allah, Lord of us! '''Send down for us a table spread with food from heaven, that it may be a feast for us''', for the first of us and for the last of us, and a sign from Thee. Give us sustenance, for Thou art the Best of Sustainers. Allah said: Lo! I send it down for you. And whoso disbelieveth of you afterward, him surely will I punish with a punishment wherewith I have not punished any of (My) creatures.}}
==== Magically curing the Blind and Lepersy affected ====
{{Quote|{{Quran|3|49}}|and [he will be] an apostle to the Children of Israel, [and he will declare,] “I have certainly brought you a sign from your Lord: I will create for you the form of a bird out of clay, then I will breathe into it, and it will become a bird by Allah’s leave. I heal the blind and the leper and I revive the dead by Allah’s leave. I will tell you what you have eaten and what you have stored in your houses. There is indeed a sign in that for you, should you be faithful.}}
==== Raising the dead ====
See above {{Quran|3|49}}
==== Clay birds becoming alive ====
See above {{Quran|3|49}}
=== Luqman (Luq'mān) ===
==== Given special wisdom ====
Luq'mān - believed to be a common pre-Islamic sage, though his identity is disputed,<ref name=":1">''Encyclopedia of the Qur'an. pp. 242-243.'' A.H.M. Zahniser. 2021.

Pages (1458-1460/3956) of [https://archive.org/details/encyclopaedia-of-the-quran-6-volumes-jane-dammen-mc-auliffe/page/n1457/mode/2up?q=luqman free book on Intranet Archive]</ref> and may simply be an amalgamation of different characters, as local Arabian tales are brought into salvation history.<ref>E.g. like the destruction of Thamūd, see: Sinai, Nicolai. “[https://almuslih.org/wp-content/uploads/Library/Sinai,%20N%20-%20Religious%20poetry.pdf Religious Poetry from the Quranic Milieu: Umayya b. Abī l-Ṣalt on the Fate of the Thamūd.]” ''Bulletin of the School of Oriental and African Studies'' 74, no. 3 (2011): 397–416. <nowiki>https://doi.org/10.1017/S0041977X11000309</nowiki>.</ref> In the Qur'an God gives him a special widsom (''al-ḥik'mata)''<ref>''[https://lexicon.quranic-research.net/data/06_H/152_Hkm.html ḥā kāf mīm (ح ك م)]'' root on Qur'anic Research.net

See: Lane's Lexicon classical Arabic dictionary Book 1 [https://lexicon.quranic-research.net/pdf/Page_0617.pdf pp.617] & [https://lexicon.quranic-research.net/pdf/Page_0618.pdf pp.618] </ref> although most classical Islamic scholars agree that he was still not a prophet.<ref name=":1" />

{{Quote|{{Quran|31|12-13}}|And We had certainly given Luqman wisdom [and said], "Be grateful to Allah." And whoever is grateful is grateful for [the benefit of] himself. And whoever denies [His favor] - then indeed, Allah is Free of need and Praiseworthy. And [mention, O Muhammad], when Luqman said to his son while he was instructing him, "O my son, do not associate [anything] with Allah. Indeed, association [with him] is great injustice."}}
=== Saleh (Ṣāliḥ) ===
==== The She-Camel of Saleh (Ṣāliḥ) ====
A camel appears to the people of Thamūd from a rock after the unbelieving people ask for a sign Salih is a prophet.<ref>See commentaries [https://quranx.com/tafsirs/7.73 on verse 7:73]</ref>{{Quote|{{Quran|7|73}}|And to [the people of] Thamud [We sent] Salih, their brother. He said, ‘O my people, worship Allah! You have no other god besides Him. There has certainly come to you a manifest proof from your Lord. This she-camel of Allah is a sign for you. Let her alone to graze [freely] in Allah’s land, and do not cause her any harm, for then you shall be seized by a painful punishment.}}
=== Allah Miracles - Misc. ===
==== Speaking body parts ====
The Quran states that human organs will, on the Day of Judgement, testify against their own persons.{{Quote|{{Quran|24|24}}|
On the Day when their tongues, their hands, and their feet will bear witness against them as to their actions. }}
==== Army of magic birds attacking Abraha's army ====
''Main article: [[Historical Errors in the Quran#Surah%20of%20the%20elephant|Historical Errors in the Quran - Surah of the elephant]]''

{{Quote|{{Quran|105|1-5}}|Have you not regarded how your Lord dealt with the army of the elephants? Did He not make their stratagems go awry, and send against them flocks of birds hurling against them stones of baked clay Then He made them like straw eaten up.}}
==== Jews transformed into pigs and apes as a punishment ====
The Qur'an records a miraculous event where Sabbath breakers are transformed into apes and pigs.{{Quote|{{Quran|2|65}}|
And well ye knew those amongst you who transgressed in the matter of the Sabbath: We said to them: "Be ye apes, despised and rejected." }}{{Quote|{{Quran|7|166}}|When they defied [the command pertaining to] what they were forbidden from, We said to them, ‘Be you spurned apes.’}}{{Quote|{{Quran|5|60}}|Say, ‘Shall I inform you concerning something worse than that as a requital from Allah? Those whom Allah has cursed and with whom He is wrathful, and turned some of whom into apes and swine, and worshippers of fake deities! Such are in a worse situation and more astray from the right way.’}}
==== Vivifying Rainfall and Resurrection ====
Rainfall is seen as bringing dead back to life, a common belief in antiquity.<ref>''Tesei, Tommaso. Some Cosmological Notions from Late Antiquity in Q 18:60–65: The Quran in Light of Its Cultural Context. pp28.'' Journal of the American Oriental Society, vol. 135, no. 1, American Oriental Society, 2015, pp. 19–32, <nowiki>https://doi.org/10.7817/jameroriesoci.135.1.19</nowiki>. <nowiki>https://www.jstor.org/stable/10.7817/jameroriesoci.135.1.19</nowiki></ref> Hence the Qur'an repeatedly asserts that just as rainfall revives a barren land, people will likewise be resurrected. However, with our current scientific knowledge, this is now a non-sequitur leap as now we can explain the natural process of germination<ref>[https://www.britannica.com/science/germination Germination] - botany - Life Cycle, Processes & Properties - Britannica</ref> rather than magic through God. So as the revival of plant life is a scientific process, and human resurrection is not, the proof of one is not proof of the other.{{Quote|{{Quran|35|9}}|It is Allah Who sends forth the Winds, so that they raise up the Clouds, and We drive them to a land that is dead, and revive the earth therewith after its death: even so (will be) the Resurrection!}}{{Quote|{{Quran|43|11}}|That sends down (from time to time) rain from the sky in due measure;- and We raise to life therewith a land that is dead; even so will ye be raised (from the dead);}}{{Quote|{{Quran|41|39}}|And among His Signs in this: thou seest the earth barren and desolate; but when We send down rain to it, it is stirred to life and yields increase. Truly, He Who gives life to the (dead) earth can surely give life to (men) who are dead. For He has power over all things.}}
==== A man is killed for 100 years then resurrected ====
{{Quote|{{Quran|2|259}}|Or him who came upon a township as it lay fallen on its trellises. He said, ‘How will Allah revive this after its death?!’ So Allah made him die for a hundred years, then He resurrected him. He said, ‘How long did you remain?’ Said he, ‘I have remained a day or part of a day.’ He said, ‘No, you have remained a hundred years. Now look at your food and drink which have not rotted! Then look at your donkey! [This was done] that We may make you a sign for mankind. And now look at its bones, how We raise them up and clothe them with flesh!’ When it became evident to him, he said, ‘I know that Allah has power over all things.’}}

===== As is his donkey =====
See above {{Quran|2|259}}

===== And his food is kept from rotting =====
See above {{Quran|2|259}}

==== Seven people are kept sleeping for three-hundred and nine years ====
{{Main|Seven Sleepers of Ephesus in the Quran}}{{Quote|{{Quran|18|25}}|So they stayed in their Cave three hundred years, and (some) add nine (more).}}And a dog keeps watch over them, presumably also given a supernatural lifespan.
{{Quote|{{Quran|18|18}}|You will suppose them to be awake, although they are asleep. We turn them to the right and to the left, and their dog [lies] stretching its forelegs at the threshold. If you come upon them, you will surely turn to flee from them, and you will surely be filled with a terror of them.}}

==== The Earth will throw out things on judgement day ====
Classical Islamic commentators explain this can include all kinds of things, including dead people (which in reality would have rotted and not necessarily be in the Earth itself), things to do with their crimes, treasure and metals, and others.<ref>See [https://quranx.com/tafsirs/99.2 commentaries on Quran 99:2]</ref>
{{Quote|{{Quran|99|2}}|And brings forth the earth its burdens,}}

== External Links ==
* [https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ty_2G_esUvI The lost tribes of Gog & Magog in Islam] - YouTube video by The Masked Arab
* [https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=6QvRSAAHjlo Yasir Qadhi on Ya'juj & Ma'Juj (Gog and Magog)] - YouTube video by Hassan Radwan
* [https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=pN8rSybXBaw Stories in the Qur'an] - YouTube video by Abdullah Sameer (now [https://www.youtube.com/@FriendlyExmuslim Friendly ExMuslim])
* [https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=5Sa-ih35idg Why would Allah or God need to swear or insult others in the Quran?] - YouTube video by Adam Elmasri looking at the human emotions involved in the Qur'an
==References==
<references />

Islamic Views on the Shape of the Earth

2026-02-08T21:13:33Z

CPO675: /* Mount Qaf */ Added another verse that taken literally implies a flat earth, with some exegete examples given who have followed this logic.

{{QualityScore|Lead=4|Structure=4|Content=4|Language=4|References=4}}
[[File:Flat Earth The Wonders of Creation.jpg|right|thumb|175px|Taken from Zekeriya Kazvinî's "Acaib-ül Mahlûkat" (The Wonders of Creation). Translated into Turkish from Arabic. Istanbul: ca. 1553. This map depicts "a traditional Islamic projection of the world as a flat disk surrounded by the sundering seas which are restrained by the encircling mountains of Qaf".<ref>[http://www.loc.gov/exhibits/world/earth.html Views of the Earth] - World Treasures of the Library of Congress, July 29, 2010</ref> ]]
Islamic [[scriptures]] imply, adhere to, and describe a flat-Earth cosmography ([[Geocentrism and the Quran|arranged in a geocentric system]]) according to numerous academic studies. While knowledge of the spherical shape of the Earth has existed to a greater or lesser degree since at least the classical Greeks (4th Century BCE), such knowledge prominently entered the Islamic milieu in the 9th century CE when many Greek texts were translated into Arabic for the first time under the sponsorship of the Abbasid [[Khilafah (Caliphate)|caliphate]].

Today, some Islamic scholars claim that Islamic scriptures and their first audiences were fully aware of the spherical shape of the Earth and that this was also a consensus view of early scholars. Evidence does not support any of these claims, despite oft-cited statements from the works of [[Islamic_Views_on_the_Shape_of_the_Earth#Classical_perspectives|Ibn Taymiyyah and Ibn Hazm (see below)]]. Critics note that clear descriptions and assumptions made in the [[Qur'an]], [[hadith]], [[Tafsir|tafsirs]], and writings of early Islamic scholars demonstrate that Muhammad and his companions did not know the Earth was spherical but in fact held it to be flat and disk like, and this is the framework within which the Qur'an operates.

The later idea that Islamic scriptures themselves indicated a spherical Earth was a creative act of reinterpretation. Similarly, attempts to explain Quranic verses about the earth only in terms of local flatness at a human level are often challenged by critics using contextual arguments.

==Greek astronomical knowledge==
Ptolemy’s ''Almagest'', written in the mid 2nd century CE, was translated into Arabic in the 9th century CE after the Qur’an had been completed and [[Textual History of the Qur'an|standardized]]. Ptolemy recorded in book five of the ''Almagest'' the discovery of Hipparchus, and of Aristarchus before him, that the sun is much larger than the earth and much more distant than the moon, as well as the Aristotelian view which maintains that the Earth is spherical and that the heavens are celestial spheres.<ref>{{citation| chapter=Ptolemy and his Greek predecessors| title=Astronomy before the Telescope| first=G. J.| last=Toomer| location=New York| publisher=St. Martin's Press| year=1996| url=https://www.worldcat.org/title/astronomy-before-the-telescope/oclc/36922915| archiveurl=https://web.archive.org/web/20171215163704/https://www.worldcat.org/title/astronomy-before-the-telescope/oclc/36922915| editor-last=Walker| editor-first=Christopher| ISBN=9780312154073|page=86}}</ref> Indian and Sasanian mathematical astronomy works for calculating the apparent movements of the sun, stars and planets were translated into Arabic from the 8th century CE.<ref>[https://www.metmuseum.org/toah/hd/astr/hd_astr.htm Astronomy and Astrology in the Medieval Islamic World] - Marika Sardar, Metropolitan Museum of Art website, 2011</ref>

Kevin Van Bladel, Professor of Near Eastern Languages & Civilizations at Yale University<ref>{{cite web| url=https://nelc.yale.edu/people/kevin-van-bladel| title=Kevin van Bladel| author=| publisher=Yale University| date=| archiveurl=http://www.webcitation.org/query?url=http://articles.latimes.com/2008/jun/29/world/fg-abortion29&date=2011-09-17 | deadurl=no| accessdate=December 11, 2020| quote=Kevin T. van Bladel is a philologist and historian studying texts and societies of the Near East of the period 200-1200 with special attention to the history of scholarship, the transition from Persian to Arab rule, and historical sociolinguistics. His research focuses on the interaction of different language communities and the translation of learned traditions between Arabic, Iranian languages, Aramaic, Greek, and Sanskrit.}}</ref>, writes:

{{Quote|{{citation | last = Van Bladel| first =Kevin| title=Heavenly cords and prophetic authority in the Quran and its Late Antique context| date=July 11th, 2007| publisher=Cambridge University Press| periodical=Bulletin of the School of Oriental and African Studies| volume=70| issue=2| pages=223-246, p. 241| url=https://www.cambridge.org/core/journals/bulletin-of-the-school-of-oriental-and-african-studies/article/abs/heavenly-cords-and-prophetic-authority-in-the-quran-and-its-late-antique-context/DDF890784AD2034CAE98DC46561204F5| archiveurl=https://web.archive.org/web/20201226172221if_/https://www.cambridge.org/core/journals/bulletin-of-the-school-of-oriental-and-african-studies/article/abs/heavenly-cords-and-prophetic-authority-in-the-quran-and-its-late-antique-context/DDF890784AD2034CAE98DC46561204F5}}|When the worldview of educated Muslims after the establishment of the Arab Empire came to incorporate principles of astrology including the geocentric, spherical, Aristotelian-Ptolemaic world picture – particularly after the advent of the ‘Abbāsid dynasty in 750 – the meaning of these passages came to be interpreted in later Islamic tradition not according to the biblical-quranic cosmology, which became obsolete, but according to the Ptolemaic model, according to which the Quran itself came to be interpreted.}}

Earlier in the same paper, Van Bladel describes how Christian theologians in the region of Syria in the sixth century CE shared the view that the Earth was flat and the heaven, or series of heavens was like a dome or tent above the Earth, based on their reading of the Hebrew and New Testament scriptures. This was a rival view to that of the churchmen of Alexandria who supported the Aristotelian-Ptolemaic view of a spherical Earth surrounded by spinning celestial spheres.<ref name="KVB">ibid. pp.224-226. Here are some more excerpts: 
{{Quote||Entering into the debate was John Philoponus, a Christian philosopher of sixth-century Alexandria, who wrote his commentary on Genesis to prove, against earlier, Antiochene, theologians like Theodore of Mopsuestia, that the scriptural account of creation described a spherical geocentric world in accord with the Ptolemaic cosmology. [...]

On the other hand, Cosmas Indicopleustes wrote his contentious ''Christian Topography'' in the 540s and 550s to prove that the spherical, geocentric world-picture of the erroneous, pagan Hellenes contradicted that of the Hebrew prophets. Cosmas was an Alexandrian with sympathies towards the Church of the East, who had travelled through the Red Sea to east Africa, Iran, and India, and who received instruction from the East Syrian churchman Mār Abā on the latter's visit to Egypt. His ''Christian topography'' has been shown to be aimed directly at John Philoponus and the Hellenic, spherical world-model he supported. [...] However, it is clear that Cosmas was going against the opinions of his educated though, as he saw it, misguided contemporaries in Alexandria.

A number of Syrian churchmen, notably but not only the Easterners working in the tradition of Theodore of Mopsuestia, took the view of the sky as an edifice for granted. Narsai d. ''c''. 503), the first head of the school of Nisibis, in his homilies on creation, described God's fashioning of the firmament of heaven in these terms: "Like a roof upon the top of the house he stretched out the firmament / that the house below, the domain of earth, might be complete". ''ayk taṭlîlâ l-baytâ da-l-tḥēt mtaḥ la-rqî῾â I d-nehwê mamlâ dûkkat ar῾â l-baytâ da-l῾el''. Also "He finished building the heaven and earth as a spacious house" ''šaklel wa-bnâ šmayyâ w-ar῾â baytâ rwîḥâ''. Jacob of Serugh (d. 521) wrote similarly on the shape of the world in his Hexaemeron homilies. A further witness to the discussion is a Syriac hymn, composed ''c.'' 543-554, describing a domed church in Edessa as a microcosm of the world, its dome being the counterpart of the sky. This is the earliest known text to make a church edifice to be a microcosm, and it shows that the debates over cosmology were meaningful to more than a small number of theologians.}}
</ref> He summarizes as follows:

{{Quote||Clearly the Ptolemaic cosmology was not taken for granted in the Aramaean part of Asia in the sixth century. It was, rather, controversial.}}

David A. King, Professor of History of Science at Johann Wolfgang Goethe University, writes:

{{Quote|{{citation| chapter=Islamic Astronomy| title=Astronomy before the Telescope| first=David A.| last=King| pages=143-174| location=London| publisher=British Museum Press| year=1996| url=https://muslimheritage.com/islamic-astronomy/| archiveurl=https://web.archive.org/web/20201222044602/https://muslimheritage.com/islamic-astronomy/| editor-last=Walker| editor-first=Christopher| ISBN=978-0714127330}}|The Arabs of the Arabian peninsula before Islam possessed a simple yet developed astronomical folklore of a practical nature. This involved a knowledge of the risings and settings of stars, associated in particular with the cosmical setting of groups of stars and simultaneous heliacal risings of others, which marked the beginning of periods called naw’, plural anwā’. […] Ptolemy’s Almagest was translated at least five times in the late eighth and ninth centuries. The first was a translation into Syriac and the others into Arabic, the first two under Caliph al-Ma’mūn in the middle of the first half of the ninth century, and the other two (the second an improvement of the first) towards the end of that century […] In this way Greek planetary models, uranometry and mathematical methods came to the attention of the Muslims.}}

Michael Hoskin and Owen Gingerich, Professor Emeritus of Astronomy and of the History of Science at Harvard University<ref>{{cite web| url=https://histsci.fas.harvard.edu/people/owen-gingerich | title=Owen Gingerich | author= | publisher=Harvard University | date= | archiveurl=https://web.archive.org/web/20200528204925/https://histsci.fas.harvard.edu/people/owen-gingerich | deadurl=no| accessdate= December 11, 2020| quote=Owen Gingerich is Professor Emeritus of Astronomy and of the History of Science at Harvard University and a senior astronomer emeritus at the Smithsonian Astrophysical Observatory. In 1992-93 he chaired Harvard's History of Science Department.}}</ref>, write:

{{Quote|{{citation| last=Hoskin| first=Michael| last2=Gingerich| first2=Owen| chapter=Islamic Astronomy| title=The Cambridge Concise History of Astronomy| ISBN=9780521576000| url=https://www.cambridge.org/us/academic/subjects/physics/history-philosophy-and-foundations-physics/cambridge-concise-history-astronomy?format=PB&isbn=9780521576000| pages=50-52| year=1999| publisher=Cambridge University press| location: Cambridge| archiveurl=https://web.archive.org/web/20201226174539/https://www.cambridge.org/us/academic/subjects/physics/history-philosophy-and-foundations-physics/cambridge-concise-history-astronomy?format=PB&isbn=9780521576000}}|In 762 [Muhammad’s] successors in the Middle East founded a new capital, Baghdad, by the river Tigris at the point of nearest approach of the Euphrates, and within reach of the Christian physicians of Jundishapur. Members of the Baghdad court called on them for advice, and these encounters opened the eyes of prominent Muslims to the existence of a legacy of intellectual treasures from Antiquity - most of which were preserved in manuscripts lying in distant libraries and written in a foreign tongue. Harun al-Rashid (caliph from 786) and his successors sent agents to the Byzantine empire to buy Greek manuscripts, and early in the ninth century a translation centre, the House of Wisdom, was established in Baghdad by the Caliph al-Ma’mun. […] Long before translations began, a rich tradition of folk astronomy already existed in the Arabian peninsula. This merged with the view of the heavens in Islamic commentaries and treatises, to create a simple cosmology based on the actual appearances of the sky and unsupported by any underlying theory.}}Mohammad Ali Tabatabaʾi and Saida Mirsadri of Tehran University note in their paper surveying Qur'anic cosmography that the Qur'an "takes for granted" the flatness of the earth, a common motif among the scientifically naive people at that time, while it has "not even one hint of a spherical earth"<ref>{{citation |last1=Tabatabaʾi |first1=Mohammad A. |last2=Mirsadri |first2=Saida |date=2016 |title=The Qurʾānic Cosmology, as an Identity in Itself |url=https://www.jstor.org/stable/24811784 |journal=Arabica |volume=63 |issue=3/4 |pages=201-234}} p. 211; also available on [https://www.academia.edu/23427168/The_Quranic_Cosmology_as_an_Identity_in_Itself academia.edu]</ref> They also note that the pre-Islamic poet Umayya ibn Abī al‐Ṣalt (d. 5 / 626) described the earth as a carpet (bisāṭan, like {{Quran|71|19}}) and likened it to the uplifted heavens.

{{Quote|Dīwān, Umayya ibn Abī al‐Ṣalt, p. 179 cited in {{citation |last1=Tabatabaʾi |first1=Mohammad A. |last2=Mirsadri |first2=Saida |date=2016 |title=The Qurʾānic Cosmology, as an Identity in Itself |url=https://www.jstor.org/stable/24811784 |journal=Arabica |volume=63 |issue=3/4 |pages=201-234}} p. 226 See [https://www.aldiwan.net/poem36172.html here] for the poem in Arabic.|And [he] shaped the earth as a carpet then he ordained it, [the area] under the firmament [are] just like those he uplifted}}

Damien Janos in another paper on Qur'anic cosmography has similarly noted that while the exact shape of its boundaries are not described, "what is clear is that the Qurʾān and the early Muslim tradition do not uphold the conception of a spherical earth and a spherical universe. This was a view that later prevailed in the learned circles of Muslim society as a result of the infiltration of Ptolemaic astronomy".<ref>{{citation |last1=Janos |first1=Damien |date=2012 |title=Qurʾānic cosmography in its historical perspective: some notes on the formation of a religious wordview |journal=Religion |volume=42 |issue=2 |pages=215-231}} See pp. 217-218</ref> Likewise, Omar Anchassi in his study of early Islamic cosmography notes, "A plain-sense reading of the Quranic text renders the earth as flat".<ref name="Anchassi" />

==Direct references to a flat Earth in the Qur'an==
The Qur'an frequently describes, in explicit terms, the creation of "al-ard", which can be translated as either "Earth" or "the land", as a flat structure. The use of metaphors and words intimately associated with flat objects (such as beds and carpets) is especially common in cases where the context of the verse makes it clear that the word "al-ard" is being used to describe the creation of the Earth at the beginning of time alongside the creation of the "heavens" (rather than in the more limited sense of a certain portion of "land"). The best example of this is perhaps [[Islamic Views on the Shape of the Earth#Qur.27an_88:20_-_sutihat_.28.22spread_out_flat.22.29|verse 88:20]].

The same term 'al-ard' is even used to describe the creation of the next Earth after judgement day,<ref>E.g. {{Quran|14|48}}</ref> and is commonly used alongside 'the heavens' (i.e. the heavens and the Earth). In the vast majority of Quranic usage, al-ard refers to the whole Earth rather than "the land", as can be verified on [https://corpus.quran.com/search.jsp?t=3&q=the%20earth corpus.quran.com].

===Qur'an 2:22 - ''firashan'' ("thing spread to sit or lie upon")===
{{Quote|{{Quran|2|22}}|'''ٱلَّذِى جَعَلَ لَكُمُ ٱلْأَرْضَ فِرَٰشًا''' وَٱلسَّمَآءَ بِنَآءً وَأَنزَلَ مِنَ ٱلسَّمَآءِ مَآءً فَأَخْرَجَ بِهِۦ مِنَ ٱلثَّمَرَٰتِ رِزْقًا لَّكُمْ ۖ فَلَا تَجْعَلُوا۟ لِلَّهِ أَندَادًا وَأَنتُمْ تَعْلَمُونَ

Allathee jaAAala lakumu alarda firashan

'''[He] who made for you the earth a bed [spread out] and the sky a ceiling''' and sent down from the sky, rain and brought forth thereby fruits as provision for you. So do not attribute to Allah equals while you know [that there is nothing similar to Him].}}
فِرَٰشًا = firashan = a thing that is spread upon the ground, a thing that is spread for one to sit or lie upon.<ref>فِرَٰشًا firashan - [http://www.studyquran.org/LaneLexicon/Volume6/00000155.pdf Lane's Lexicon] page 2371</ref>

===Qur'an 13:3 - ''madad'' ("extend", "stretch out")===
{{Quote|{{Quran|13|3}}| '''وَهُوَ ٱلَّذِى مَدَّ ٱلْأَرْضَ''' وَجَعَلَ فِيهَا رَوَٰسِىَ وَأَنْهَٰرًا ۖ وَمِن كُلِّ ٱلثَّمَرَٰتِ جَعَلَ فِيهَا زَوْجَيْنِ ٱثْنَيْنِ ۖ يُغْشِى ٱلَّيْلَ ٱلنَّهَارَ ۚ إِنَّ فِى ذَٰلِكَ لَءَايَٰتٍ لِّقَوْمٍ يَتَفَكَّرُونَ'''

Wahuwa allathee madda alarda wajaAAala feeha rawasiya waanharan wamin kulli alththamarati jaAAala feeha zawjayni ithnayni yughshee allayla alnnahara inna fee thalika laayatin liqawmin yatafakkaroona

'''And it is He who spread the earth''' and placed therein firmly set mountains and rivers; and from all of the fruits He made therein two mates; He causes the night to cover the day. Indeed in that are signs for a people who give thought.}}
مَدَدْ = madad (madda) = extend by drawing or pulling, stretch out, expand<ref name="LanesLexiconMadda">مد madda (مدد) - [http://www.studyquran.org/LaneLexicon/Volume7/00000223.pdf Lane's Lexicon] page 2695</ref>

The Quran describes a reversal of this process occurring on the last day. It says the mountains will be removed and the earth left as a level plain ({{Quran|18|47}} and {{Quran-range|20|105|107}}, discussed in more detail below) while {{Quran|84|3}} says the Earth will be ''muddat'' i.e. the Arabic verb ''madad'' in the passive voice.

===Qur'an 15:19 - ''madad'' ("extend", "stretch out")===
{{Quote|{{Quran-range|15|16|19}}|And We have placed within the heaven great stars and have beautified it for the observers. And We have protected it from every devil expelled [from the mercy of Allah] Except one who steals a hearing and is pursued by a clear burning flame.

'''والارض مددناها''' والقينا فيها رواسي وانبتنا فيها من كل شئ موزون'''

Waal-arda madadnaha waalqayna feeha rawasiya waanbatnafeeha min kulli shay-in mawzoonin

'''And the earth - We have spread it''' and cast therein firmly set mountains and caused to grow therein [something] of every well-balanced thing.}}
مَدَدْ = madad = extend by drawing or pulling, stretch out, expand<ref name="LanesLexiconMadda" />

See also [[The_Quran_and_Mountains#Casting_mountains_into_the_earth|Mountains cast into the Earth]] regarding the wording about mountains here and in a few similar verses.

===Qur'an 20:53 - ''mahdan'' ("bed")===
{{Quote|{{Quran|20|53}}| '''الذي جعل لكم الارض مهدا''' وسلك لكم فيها سبلا وانزل من السماء ماء فاخرجنا به ازواجا من نبات شتى

Allathee jaAAala lakumu al-arda mahdan wasalaka lakum feeha subulan waanzala mina alssama-imaan faakhrajna bihi azwajan min nabatinshatta

'''[It is He] who has made for you the earth as a bed [spread out]''' and inserted therein for you roadways and sent down from the sky, rain and produced thereby categories of various plants.}}
مَهْدًا = mahdan = cradle or bed; a plain, even, or smooth expanse<ref>مَهْدً mahdan - [http://www.studyquran.org/LaneLexicon/Volume7/00000267.pdf Lane's Lexicon] page 2739</ref>

Sinai (2023) notes that in {{Quran|13|18}}, hell too is called a mihād, a “resting-place spread out.”<ref>Footnote 47 (p. 40): S''inai, Nicolai. Key Terms of the Qur'an: A Critical Dictionary'' (p. 128). Princeton University Press.</ref> Early Muslims pictured the seven earths apparently mentioned in {{Quran|65|12}} as flat discs one above the other, as discussed in the hadith section below. The lowest of these was hell in the view of a number of early and medieval scholars.<ref>See [https://islamqa.info/en/answers/215011/where-are-paradise-and-hell Where Are Paradise and Hell?] IslamQA. 2015. </ref>

===Qur'an 43:10 - ''mahdan'' ("bed")===
{{Quote|{{Quran-range|43|9|10}}|And if you should ask them, "Who has created the heavens and the earth?" they would surely say, "They were created by the Exalted in Might, the Knowing."

'''الذي جعل لكم الارض مهدا''' وجعل لكم فيها سبلا لعلكم تهتدون

Allathee jaAAala lakumu al-arda mahdan wajaAAala lakum feeha subulan laAAallakum tahtadoona

'''[The one] who has made for you the earth a bed''' and made for you upon it roads that you might be guided}}
مَهْدًا = mahdan = cradle or bed; a plain, even, or smooth expanse<ref>مَهْدً mahdan - [http://www.studyquran.org/LaneLexicon/Volume7/00000267.pdf Lane's Lexicon] page 2739</ref>

===Qur'an 50:7 - ''madad'' ("extend", "stretch out")===
{{Quote|{{Quran-range|50|6|7}}|Have they not looked at the heaven above them - how We structured it and adorned it and [how] it has no rifts?

'''والارض مددناها''' والقينا فيها رواسي وانبتنا فيها من كل زوج بهيج

Waal-arda madadnaha waalqayna feeha rawasiya waanbatnafeeha min kulli zawjin baheejin

'''And the earth - We spread it out''' and cast therein firmly set mountains and made grow therein [something] of every beautiful kind,}}
مَدَدْ = madad = extend by drawing or pulling, stretch out, expand<ref name="LanesLexiconMadda" />

===Qur'an 51:48 - ''farasha'' ("spread out") and ''mahidoon'' ("spreaders")===
{{Quote|{{Quran-range|51|47|48}}|We have built the heaven with might, and We it is Who make the vast extent (thereof).

والارض فرشناها فنعم الماهدون

Waal-arda farashnaha faniAAma almahidoona

'''And the earth have We laid out''', how gracious is '''the Spreader (thereof)!''' }}
فَرَشَْ = farasha ([[Islamic Views on the Shape of the Earth#Qur.27an_2:22_-_firashan_.28.22thing_spread_to_sit_or_lie_upon.22.29|verse 2:22]] uses this word in the noun form) = spread or expand, spread a bed or carpet<ref>فرش farasha - [http://www.studyquran.org/LaneLexicon/Volume6/00000153.pdf Lane's Lexicon] page 2369</ref>

الْمَهِدُونَ = mahidoon from مهد = make plain, even, smooth, spread a bed<ref>مهد mahada - [http://www.studyquran.org/LaneLexicon/Volume7/00000267.pdf Lane's Lexicon] page 2739</ref>

A hadith in Ibn Majah uses the plural noun ''furushaat'' to mean "beds":
{{Quote|{{Ibn Majah||5|37|4190}}|
It was narrated from Abu Dharr that the Messenger of Allah (ﷺ) said:
“I see what you do not see, and I hear what you do not hear. The heaven is creaking and it should creak, for there is no space in it the width of four fingers but there is an angel there, prostrating to Allah. By Allah, if you knew what I know, you would laugh little and weep much, and you would never enjoy women in your '''beds''' (الْفُرُشَاتِ, ''al-furushaat''), and you would go out in the streets, beseeching Allah.’”
}}

===Qur'an 71:19 - ''bisaatan'' ("carpet")===
{{Quote|{{Quran-range|71|15|19}}|See ye not how Allah has created the seven heavens one above another, [...]

'''والله جعل لكم الارض بساطا'''

WaAllahu jaAAala lakumu al-arda bisatan

'''And Allah has made the earth for you as a carpet (spread out),''' }}
بِسَاطًا = bisaatan = A thing that is spread or spread out or forth, and particularly a carpet (from the same root we also have بَسَاطٌ = basaatun = Land, expanded and even; and wide or spacious).<ref>بِسَاطًا bisaatan - [http://www.studyquran.org/LaneLexicon/Volume1/00000241.pdf Lane's Lexicon] page 204</ref>

This appears to be paraphrasing a similar pre-Islamic poem mentioning the creation and spreading of the Earth attributed to ʿAdī ibn Zayd (wa-basaṭa l-arḍa basṭan), whose motif can be traced back to at least the Hebrew Bible (Isaiah 42:5 and 44:24, Psalms 136:6).<ref>''arḍ | earth; land'' Sinai, Nicolai. Key Terms of the Qur'an: A Critical Dictionary (pp. 40-41). Princeton University Press.</ref>

A hadith in Tirmidhi uses the word ''bisaatan'' to describe the spreading or rolling out of a mat:
{{Quote|{{Al Tirmidhi||4|34|2369}}|...Then he came to hug the Prophet (s.a.w) and uttered that his father and mother should be ransomed for him. Then he went to grove of his '''and he spread out a mat for them''' [فَبَسَطَ لَهُمْ بِسَاطًا, ''fa-basata la-hum bisaatan'', literally "and-(he)spread for-them a-mat"]. Then he went to a date-palm and returned with a cluster of dates which he put down....}}
===Qur'an 78:6-7 - ''mihadan'' ("bed")===
{{Quote|{{Quran-range|78|6|7}}|أَلَمْ نَجْعَلِ ٱلْأَرْضَ مِهَٰدًا وَٱلْجِبَالَ أَوْتَادًا

Alam najAAali al-arda mihadan Waaljibala awtadan

Have We not made the earth as a wide expanse, And the mountains as pegs?}}
مِهَٰدًا (same as مَهْدًا mahdan) = cradle or bed; a plain, even, or smooth expanse<ref>مَهْدً mahdan - [http://www.studyquran.org/LaneLexicon/Volume7/00000267.pdf Lane's Lexicon] page 2739</ref>

===Qur'an 79:30 - ''daha'' ("spread out wide")===
{{Quote|{{Quran-range|79|27|33}}|Are you a more difficult creation or is the heaven? Allah constructed it. He raised its ceiling and proportioned it. And He darkened its night and extracted its brightness.

'''وَٱلْأَرْضَ بَعْدَ ذَٰلِكَ دَحَىٰهَآ'''

Waalarda baAAda thalika dahaha

'''And after that He spread the earth.'''

He extracted from it its water and its pasture, And the mountains He set firmly As provision for you and your grazing livestock.}}

دحو = dahawa = spread out or forth, expand, make wide.<ref name="LanesLexiconDaHaWa" />

The word dahaha ("He spread it out") also appears in a poem about the creation of a flat earth attributed to the pre-Islamic poet Zayd b. 'Amr, who reportedly was a monotheist who met Muhammad before his prophetic career began. The poem is certainly a very early demonstration of the meaning of the word dahaha in this context since it is recorded in the biography of Muhammad by Ibn Ishaq (d. 767 CE) and must pre-date that work.<ref name="Guillaume102">Guillaume, A., The Life of Muhammad, London: Oxford University Press, 1955, p. 102</ref> Like the Quran, the poem says "He spread it out" (daḥāhā) i.e. the earth, then even clearer than the Quran, saw that it was level (استوت istawat<ref>استوت istawat - [http://www.studyquran.org/LaneLexicon/Volume4/00000201.pdf Lane's Lexicon] p. 1477</ref>) on the water (i.e. flat), "and set firm the mountains on it" (arsā ʿalayhā l-jibālā, very similar to wa-l-jibāla ʾarsāhā in verse 32 of the Quranic passage).

{{Quote|1=Poem attributed to Zayd b. 'Amr, as found for example in Ibn Al Jawzi's Al Muntazam,<ref name="IbnalJawzi">https://shamela.ws/book/12406/736</ref> and Ibn Ishaq's biography of Muhammad (as translated from Ibn Ishaq by Guillaume<ref name="Guillaume102" /> and transliterated by Bravmann<ref name="Bravmann">Bravmann, M. M. (1977) Studies in Semitic Philology, Leiden: Brill p.439</ref>)|2=دحاها فلما رآها استوت ... عَلَى الماء أرسى عليها الجبالا

daḥāhā falammā raʾādā istawat ʿalā l-māʾi arsā ʿalayhā l-jibālā

'''He spread it out''' and when He saw that it was settled upon the waters, He fixed the mountains upon it}}

Similar language is found in the Bible. See [https://www.biblegateway.com/passage/?search=Isaiah%2042%3A5&version=NIV Isaiah 42:5] and particularly [https://www.biblegateway.com/passage/?search=Psalm%20136%3A6&version=NIV Psalms 136:6].

For further discussion of this word and of modern claims attempting to associate it with the shape of eggs, see the [[Islamic_Views_on_the_Shape_of_the_Earth#Qur.27an_79:30_-_daha_.28.22spread_out.22.2C_said_to_mean_.22ostrich_egg.22.29|dedicated section below]].

===Qur'an 88:20 - ''sutihat'' ("spread out flat")===
{{Quote|{{Quran-range|88|18|20}}|And at the sky - how it is raised? And at the mountains - how they are erected?

'''وَإِلَى ٱلْأَرْضِ كَيْفَ سُطِحَتْ'''

Wa-ila al-ardi kayfa sutihat

'''And at the Earth, how it is spread out?'''}}

سَطَحَ = sataha = spread out or forth, expand

The word ''sataha'' is used to describe making the flat top or roof of a house or chamber and making a top surface flat. Words derived from the same root mean: the flat top surface or roof of a house or chamber, a bounded plane in geometry, a level place upon which dates can be spread, a rolling pin (which expands the dough), plane or flat.<ref>سطح sataha - [http://www.studyquran.org/LaneLexicon/Volume4/00000081.pdf Lane's Lexicon] page 1357</ref> Indeed, the modern Arabic phrase used to refer to the "flat earth" today is الأرض مسطحة (''al-ard musattaha'')<ref>{{Citation|title=Translation of "flat earth" in Arabic|url=https://context.reverso.net/translation/english-arabic/flat+earth|archiveurl=https://web.archive.org/web/20201214041522/https://context.reverso.net/translation/english-arabic/flat+earth|publisher=ReversoContext|access-date=December 13, 2020}}</ref>, the word ''musattaha'' is from the same root as the word ''sutihat''.

In the tafsir Al-Jalalayn (from the 15th century) the word ''sutihat'' is used to explain that the Earth is flat. The author of this section, al-Mahalli (d. 1460), maintains that the flat-earth is the opinion of the scholars of the revealed law.
{{Quote|1=[https://www.altafsir.com/Tafasir.asp?tMadhNo=0&tTafsirNo=74&tSoraNo=88&tAyahNo=20&tDisplay=yes&UserProfile=0&LanguageId=2 Tafsir al-Jalalayn 88:20] (See [https://tafsir.app/jalalayn/88/20 here] for the Arabic)|2=And the earth how it was laid out flat? and thus infer from this the power of God exalted be He and His Oneness? The commencing with the mention of camels is because they are closer in contact with it the earth than any other animal. '''As for His words sutihat ‘laid out flat’ this on a literal reading suggests that the earth is flat which is the opinion of''' most [the word "most" is not included in the original Arabic: "وعليه علماء الشرع"; see citation for full text] '''of the scholars of the revealed Law and not a sphere as astronomers ahl al-hay’a have it''' even if this latter does not contradict any of the pillars of the Law.
}}

===Qur'an 91:6 - ''taha'' ("spread out")===
{{Quote|{{Quran-range|91|5|6}}|And the heaven and Him Who built it,

'''والارض وماطحاها'''

Waal-ardi wama tahaha

'''And the earth and Him Who spread it,'''}}

طحو / طحى = taha = Spread out, expand, spread on the ground.<ref>طحو / طحى taha [http://www.studyquran.org/LaneLexicon/Volume5/00000117.pdf Lane's Lexicon] page 1832</ref>

==Indirect references to a flat Earth in the Qur'an==
In addition to [[Islamic Views on the Shape of the Earth#Direct references to a flat Earth in the Qur.27an|direct references to a flat Earth in the Qur'an]], where the original creation of the Earth is explicitly described using terms that denote a flat object, there are many indirect references to the shape of the Earth in contexts not related to the initial creation of the planet. These indirect references, poising themselves as describing the Earth ''as it exists'' rather than ''how it was created'' are, in a sense, stronger testimony to the cosmology of the Qur'an.

Since explicit cosmological descriptions are uncommon in societies with a uniform and common cosmology (due to the simple fact that no one needs state that which everyone knows), otherwise unrelated descriptions of phenomenon occurring within the confines of a given society's cosmology can often serve as the strongest evidence of their cosmological beliefs.<ref>{{Cite book|author=Eustace M. Tillyard|title=The Elizabethan World Picture: A Study of the Idea of Order in the Age of Shakespeare, Donne and Milton|isbn=978-0394701622|publisher=Vintage|publication-date=1959}}</ref>

===Qur'an 18:86 and 18:90 - setting and rising places of the sun===
{{Main|Dhul-Qarnayn and the Sun Setting in a Muddy Spring - Part One|Dhul-Qarnayn and the Sun Setting in a Muddy Spring - Part Two}}{{Quote|{{Quran|18|86}}| حتى اذا بلغ مغرب الشمس وجدها تغرب في عين حمئة ووجد عندها قوما قلنا ياذا القرنين اما ان تعذب واما ان تتخذ فيهم حسنا

Hatta itha balagha maghriba alshshamsi wajadaha taghrubu fee AAaynin hami-atin wawajada AAindaha qawman qulna ya tha alqarnayni imma an tuAAaththiba wa-imma an tattakhitha feehim husnan

Till, when he reached the setting-place of the sun, he found it setting in a muddy spring, and found a people thereabout. We said: O Dhu'l-Qarneyn! Either punish or show them kindness.}}
{{Quote|{{Quran|18|90}}| حَتَّىٰٓ إِذَا بَلَغَ مَطْلِعَ ٱلشَّمْسِ وَجَدَهَا تَطْلُعُ عَلَىٰ قَوْمٍ لَّمْ نَجْعَل لَّهُم مِّن دُونِهَا سِتْرًا

Hatta itha balagha matliAAa alshshamsi wajadaha tatluAAu AAala qawmin lam najAAal lahum min dooniha sitran

Till, when he reached the rising-place of the sun, he found it rising on a people for whom We had appointed no shelter therefrom.}}
A flat conception of the Earth is the only sort that permits the setting and rising places of the sun to be visited. Contemporary 7th-century Arabic poems and [[Dhul-Qarnayn and the Alexander Romance|a mid-6th century Syriac Legend]] telling the same story suggest that early Muslims understood the story literally, as do early tafsirs and narrations therein (see main article).

===Qur'an 2:187 and 17:78 - fasting and prayer times===
{{Main|The Ramadan Pole Paradox}}{{Quote|{{Quran|2|187}}|It is made lawful for you to go in unto your wives on the night of the fast. They are raiment [clothing] for you and ye are raiment for them. Allah is Aware that ye were deceiving yourselves in this respect and He hath turned in mercy toward you and relieved you. So hold intercourse with them and seek that which Allah hath ordained for you, and eat and drink until the white thread becometh distinct to you from the black thread of the dawn. Then strictly observe the fast till nightfall and touch them not, but be at your devotions in the mosques. These are the limits imposed by Allah, so approach them not. Thus Allah expoundeth His revelation to mankind that they may ward off (evil)}}

This verses outlines some of the requirements of the fourth [[Five Pillars of Islam|Pillar of Islam]], fasting: one can not eat, drink, or have [[Reproduction|sexual intercourse]] between "dawn" and "nightfall".

Similar scriptural instructions for worship based on the position of the Sun are given in another verse.

{{Quote|{{Quran|17|78}}|Establish worship at the going down of the sun until the dark of night, and (the recital of) the Qur'an at dawn. Lo! (the recital of) the Qur'an at dawn is ever witnessed.}}

The Qur'an conceives of itself as containing guidance for all people in all times in all places, yet the instructions contained here are, taken literally, impracticable for those who live near the North and South poles of the globe, where above the Artic Circle (and its southern equivalent) a single day/night cycle can take any where from weeks to months.

Even below the Arctic Circle, for instance in Aberdeen, Scotland, the time between the night prayer (Isha) and the dawn prayer (Fajr) is around 4 and a half hours in June, such that a practicing Muslim would be required to regularly awaken around 3:20am for prayer. These matters are further complicated by the increasingly relevant and real cases of space travel, and even simply travel through the air aboard a plane, as it is not entirely clear whether someone flying in or opposite the direction of the sun would be required to repeat or skip certain prayers due to the rapidly changing time of day. By these appearances, the rituals and instructions set out in the Qur'an were intended for the more limited audience and understanding of a 7th-century desert city.

Before embarking on the 1985 Discovery space shuttle flight he had been chosen to serve on as payload engineer, Saudi prince Sultan bin Salman, the first Muslim in space, said the following memorable lines to Sheikh Abd al-Aziz ibn Baz, later the Grand Mufti of Saudi Arabia:

{{Quote|{{citation| url=https://www.google.com/books/edition/Inside_the_Kingdom/VEYsi7ZmtywC?hl=en&gbpv=1&pg=PT99&printsec=frontcover| title=Inside the Kingdom: Kings, Clerics, Modernists, Terrorists, and the Struggle for Saudi Arabia| author=Robert Lacey| publisher=Penguin| date=2009| chapter=Chapter 10| ISBN=9781101140734}}|“‘Look,’” Sultan remembers telling him, “‘we’re going to be traveling at eighteen thousand miles per hour. I’m going to see sixteen sunrises and sunsets every twenty-four hours. So does that mean I’ll get Ramadan finished in two days?' The sheikh loved that one—he laughed out loud.” . . . “It would be no good trying to face Mecca,” remembers the prince. “By the time I’d lined up
on it, it would be behind me.”}}

Sometimes, [[The_Ramadan_Pole_Paradox#Hadith_allowing_an_estimate_for_prayer_times|dubiously appealing to a hadith]] about estimating prayer times in an apocalyptic scenario, Islamic scholars were and are content to permit exceptions to the literal meaning of the verses for those who live in extreme climes (though there is no consensus on alternative methods). Yet the original authors and audiences of Islamic scriptures do not seem to have appreciated this problem. Based on this evidence, the earliest believers were either mistaken about the details of the dynamic system existing between the rotating Earth and the star it orbits or, more likely, simply unaware of the system altogether.

===Qur'an 2:144 - praying towards the Ka'bah===
[[File:Praying towards the Ka'aba.JPG|right|thumb|250px|'''Top-left:''' Due to the sphericity of the earth, a prayer in any direction will point towards the sky/outer-space, not Mecca. '''Top-right:''' People who are located on the opposite 'side' of the earth would have to pray vertically down towards the center of the earth, and would also be guilty of blasphemy, as they would also be defecating in exact direction of the Ka'bah.. '''Bottom-left:''' One is also always simultaneously praying with their face and backside aimed towards the Ka'bah, especially if located on the Ka'bah's antipode. '''Bottom-right:''' From the Ka'bah's antipode, any direction is facing 'towards' Mecca and consequently, there is no one direction that would be the correct one.]]
{{Quote|{{Quran|2|144}}|We have seen the turning of thy face to heaven (for guidance, O Muhammad). And now verily We shall make thee turn (in prayer) toward a qiblah which is dear to thee. So turn thy face toward the Inviolable Place of Worship, and ye (O Muslims), wheresoever ye may be, turn your faces (when ye pray) toward it. Lo! Those who have received the Scripture know that (this revelation) is the Truth from their Lord. And Allah is not unaware of what they do.}}

This verse instructs prayer towards the [[Ka'bah]] (the word ''qiblah'' referring to the direction that one has to face in order to pray towards the Ka'bah). Taken literally, "turning one's face" toward the Ka'bah is only possible on a flat Earth, since on a spherical Earth, facing any direction when located anywhere other than the immediate vicinity of the Ka'bah will point along a tangent to the Earth's surface and ultimately off into outer-space, not Mecca. For this reason, the [[w:Great circle|great circle]] method from spherical geometry is used. Nevertheless, other Islamic practices such as defecting opposite the Ka'bah and sleeping facing the Ka'bah are thereby complicated. Indeed, in facing the Ka'bah perfectly, one's hind side would also, on a sphere, necessarily face the Ka'bah with equal perfection.

Other problems emerge as well. The Americas are largely contained in the hemisphere of the antipode (point directly opposite on a sphere) to Mecca. The great circle lines across the continent diverge from the antipode before they start to converge when they enter the hemisphere of Mecca, causing people north and south across the Americas to face away from each other as they pray, with those on the west coast of North America even facing Northwards over the Arctic. To many this feels unnatural or uncomfortable, so among American Muslims the [[W:Rhumb line|rhumb line]] method is often preferred (a rhumb line appears as a straight line on [[w:Mercator_projection|Mercator projection]] world maps). The two very different methods can lead to disagreement and criticism among Muslims in the same country. Another difficult implication is that a person located at the antipode of Mecca itself would simultaneously be facing toward and directly away from Mecca no matter which direction they turned, a situation similar to that a person attempting to pray within the walls of the Ka'bah itself.

While a non-literal reading of the passage helps to escape some of these implications, critics argue that it remains the case that the author of the verse did not appreciate the complications with his instruction to face the Ka'bah, suggesting that he held the Earth to be flat.

===Qur'an 18:47 - when the mountains are removed, the entire Earth will be apparent===

{{Quote|{{Quran|18|47}}| وَيَوْمَ نُسَيِّرُ ٱلْجِبَالَ وَتَرَى ٱلْأَرْضَ بَارِزَةً وَحَشَرْنَٰهُمْ فَلَمْ نُغَادِرْ مِنْهُمْ أَحَدًا

Wayawma nusayyiru aljibala watara al-arda barizatan wahasharnahum falam nughadir minhum ahadan

And [warn of] the Day when We will remove the mountains and you will see the earth prominent, and We will gather them and not leave behind from them anyone.}}

بَارِزَةً = baarizatan = Wholey, or entirely, apparent or manifest, Land that is open, apparent, or uncovered, upon which is no mountain or any other thing.<ref>بَارِزَةً baarizatan - [http://www.studyquran.org/LaneLexicon/Volume1/00000224.pdf Lane's Lexicon] page 187</ref>

Also in accord with this picture are {{Quran|31|10}} and similar verses which state that mountains were cast upon the earth to prevent it from shaking and {{Quran-range|78|6|7}} (quoted above) in which Allah spread out the earth and made the mountains as pegs.

Similar language about the removal of mountains leaving a level plain appears in the Bible:
{{Quote|1=[https://www.biblegateway.com/passage/?search=Isaiah%2040&version=NIV Isaiah 40:3-5]|2=A voice of one calling: “In the wilderness prepare the way for the Lord[a]; make straight in the desert a highway for our God. 
Every valley shall be raised up, every mountain and hill made low; the rough ground shall become level, the rugged places a plain. 
And the glory of the Lord will be revealed, and all people will see it together. For the mouth of the Lord has spoken.”}}

===Qur'an 20:105-107 - when the mountains are scattered, the Earth is a level plain===

{{Quote|{{Quran-range|20|105|107}}| وَيَسْـَٔلُونَكَ عَنِ ٱلْجِبَالِ فَقُلْ يَنسِفُهَا رَبِّى نَسْفًا فَيَذَرُهَا قَاعًا صَفْصَفًا لَّا تَرَىٰ فِيهَا عِوَجًا وَلَآ أَمْتًا
Wayasaloonaka AAani aljibali faqul yansifuha rabbee nasfan Fayatharuha qaAAan safsafan La tara feeha AAiwajan wala amtan

They will ask thee of the mountains (on that day). Say: My Lord will break them into scattered dust. And leave it as an empty plain, Wherein thou seest neither curve nor ruggedness.}}

The word فَيَذَرُهَا Fayatharuha ('And he will leave it') has the feminine 'ha' suffix, meaning 'it'. "It" here almost certainly refers to the Earth, which is not explicitly mentioned, and is a feminine noun. Similarly the word translated 'Wherein' is فِيهَا feeha (literally 'in it') and has the feminine 'it' suffix too. Since there are no other singular feminine nouns in these verses and due to the context provided by {{Quran|18|47}}, it is clear that the pronoun is referring to al-ard (the Earth).

قَاعًا = qaAAan = an even place; plain, or level, land that produces nothing; plain, or soft, land, low, and free from mountains.<ref>قَاعًا qaAAan - [http://www.studyquran.org/LaneLexicon/Volume8/00000248.pdf Lane's Lexicon] page 2994</ref>

صَفْصَفًا = safsafan = a level, or an even, tract of land or ground.<ref>صَفْصَفًا safsafan - [http://www.studyquran.org/LaneLexicon/Volume4/00000418.pdf Lane's Lexicon] page 1694</ref>

عِوَجًا = AAiwajan = crookedness, a curvity, bending, winding, contortion, wryness, distortion, or uneveness<ref>عِوَجًا AAiwajan - [http://www.studyquran.org/LaneLexicon/Volume5/00000472.pdf Lane's Lexicon] page 2187</ref>

أَمْتًا = amtan = curvity, crookedness, distortion, or uneveness; ruggedness and smoothness in different places; depression and elevation; small hills and hollows.<ref>أَمْتًا amtan - [http://www.studyquran.org/LaneLexicon/Volume1/00000132.pdf Lane's Lexicon] page 95</ref>

Whereas "AAiwajan" and "amtan " may refer to individual portions of land being flat, "qaAAan safsafan" appears to characterize the Earth as a whole as a "level, barren plain".

===Qur'an 69:14 - the Earth and mountains will be lifted===

In a verse about the last day, the {{Quran|69|14}} states that the earth and mountains will be lifted and crushed. The context makes clear that this is a statement concerning the earth as a whole. Such imagery is fully in line with a flat earth worldview, but harder to reconcile with a spherical surface.

{{Quote|{{Quran-range|69|13|16}}|Then when the Horn is blown with one blast '''And the earth and the mountains are lifted''' and leveled with one blow - Then on that Day, the Resurrection will occur, And the heaven will split [open], for that Day it is infirm.}}

The verb used to say the earth and mountains "are lifted" is ḥumilati حُمِلَتِ which is used in the sense of taking up or carrying a load.<ref>hamala حمل - [http://www.studyquran.org/LaneLexicon/Volume2/00000282.pdf Lane's Lexicon] page 646</ref>

The word translated levelled (dakkatan, meaning pounded down to ground level<ref> دك dal-kaf-kaf - [http://www.studyquran.org/LaneLexicon/Volume3/00000064.pdf Lane's Lexicon] page 898</ref>) in the above verse occurs three times in various forms in another verse about the earth:

{{Quote|{{Quran|89|21}}|No! When the earth has been leveled - pounded and crushed -}}

===Qur'an 17:37 - you will not tear / pierce the earth===

{{Quote|{{Quran|17|37}}| وَلَا تَمْشِ فِى ٱلْأَرْضِ مَرَحًا ۖ '''إِنَّكَ لَن تَخْرِقَ ٱلْأَرْضَ''' وَلَن تَبْلُغَ ٱلْجِبَالَ طُولًا

Wala tamshi fee alardi marahan innaka lan takhriqa alarda walan tablugha aljibala tool

And do not walk upon the earth exultantly. '''Indeed, you will never tear the earth [apart]''', and you will never reach the mountains in height.}}

The verb translated "tear" is kharaqa, which meant to make a hole in, perforate, pierce, or bore through something or to tear or rent such as a cloth, and appears also in {{Quran|18|71}} when Allah's servant makes a hole in a ship.<ref>kharaqa خرق [http://www.studyquran.org/LaneLexicon/Volume2/00000363.pdf Lane's Lexicon] page 737</ref> The verse seems to imply that the earth has the kind of predominantly two dimensional shape to which this verb is often applicable, even if humans lack the power to do so.

===Qur'an 26:28 - Lord of the east and the west and what is between them===
{{Quote|{{Quran-range|26|24|28}}|[Moses] said, "'''The Lord of the heavens and earth and that between them''', if you should be convinced." 
[Pharaoh] said to those around him, "Do you not hear?" 
[Moses] said, "Your Lord and the Lord of your first forefathers. 
[Pharaoh] said, "Indeed, your 'messenger' who has been sent to you is mad." 

قَالَ '''رَبُّ ٱلْمَشْرِقِ وَٱلْمَغْرِبِ وَمَا بَيْنَهُمَآ''' ۖ إِن كُنتُمْ تَعْقِلُونَ
 Qala rabbu almashriqi waalmaghribi wama baynahuma in kuntum taAAqiloona
[Moses] said, "'''Lord of the east and the west and that between them''', if you were to reason."}}

This verse says Allah is Lord of the east and the west "and what (is) between them" (wamā baynahumā with dual pronoun suffix). The same Arabic words are also used in verse 24 earlier in the same dialogue with Pharaoh, where Moses describes Allah as "The Lord of the heavens and earth and that between them". Clearly, the meaning in verse 28 is that Allah is Lord of the entire earth, but the phrase attributed to the prophet Moses and narrated approvingly in the Quran here naturally evokes a flat earth conception.

===Qur'an 55:17 - Lord of the two easts and the two wests===

{{Quote|{{Quran|55|17}}| رَبُّ ٱلْمَشْرِقَيْنِ وَرَبُّ ٱلْمَغْرِبَيْنِ
Rabbu almashriqayni warabbu almaghribayni
(He is) Lord of the two Easts and Lord of the two Wests}}

Classical tafsirs unanimously<ref>[https://tafsir.app/55/17 Tafsirs 55:17]</ref> understand this verse as a reference to the two easts, or rising places (almashriqayni), and the two wests, or setting places (almaghribayni) of the sun on the summer and winter solstices. This accords with the literal meanings of mashriq<ref>مَشْرِقُ mashriq - [http://www.studyquran.org/LaneLexicon/Volume4/00000265.pdf Lane's Lexicon] page 1541</ref> and maghrib<ref>مَغْرِبُ maghrib - [http://www.studyquran.org/LaneLexicon/Volume6/00000025.pdf Lane's Lexicon] page 2241</ref>. Similarly, verse 70:40 ({{Quran|70|40}}) was classically understood to refer to all the different places where the sun rises and sets between these ranges (almashariqi waalmagharibi).<ref>[https://tafsir.app/70/40 Tafsirs 70:40]</ref> Taken literally, these descriptions can only concord with a flat Earth, as on a spherical Earth, the "two Easts" and "two Wests" are only relative and everchanging positions lacking any definite, physical nature - that is, there is no place on Earth that could be definitely and universally described as "one of the two Easts", for instance such that Allah could be "Lord of it".
===Qur'an 57:21 - a garden, its width like the width of the heaven(s) and the earth===
{{Quote|{{Quran|57|21}}|سَابِقُوٓا۟ إِلَىٰ مَغْفِرَةٍ مِّن رَّبِّكُمْ '''وَجَنَّةٍ عَرْضُهَا كَعَرْضِ ٱلسَّمَآءِ وَٱلْأَرْضِ''' أُعِدَّتْ لِلَّذِينَ ءَامَنُوا۟ بِٱللَّهِ وَرُسُلِهِۦ ۚ ذَٰلِكَ فَضْلُ ٱللَّهِ يُؤْتِيهِ مَن يَشَآءُ ۚ وَٱللَّهُ ذُو ٱلْفَضْلِ ٱلْعَظِيمِ

Sabiqoo ila maghfiratin min rabbikum wajannatin AAarduha kaAAardi alssamai waalardi oAAiddat lillatheena amanoo biAllahi warusulihi thalika fadlu Allahi yuteehi man yashao waAllahu thoo alfadli alAAatheemi

Be ye foremost (in seeking) Forgiveness from your Lord, and '''a Garden (of Bliss), the width whereof is as the width of heaven and earth''', prepared for those who believe in Allah and His messengers: that is the Grace of Allah, which He bestows on whom he pleases: and Allah is the Lord of Grace abounding}}The words ''ʿarḍuhā kaʿarḍi'' ("its width is like the width") refer to the breadth, width, or side of something.<ref>عَرْضٌ 'ard - [http://www.studyquran.org/LaneLexicon/Volume5/00000291.pdf Lane's Lexicon] page 2006</ref>

The Qur'an says paradise is the width of the heaven and Earth. Some academic scholars cite this verse in support of their argument that the Qur'anic heavens are flat layers above a flat earth (see [[Cosmology of the Quran]]). A very similar verse shown below states that its width is as the width of the heavens (plural) and the Earth.{{Quote|{{Quran|3|133}}|And hasten to forgiveness from your Lord and a Garden - its width (is like that of) the heavens and the earth prepared for the pious.}}The interchangeable width of the heaven singular (57:21) with heavens plural (3:133) lends further support to that view. The verses most naturally indicate that the author imagined the heaven(s), the nearest of which contains the stars ({{Quran|41|12}}, {{Quran|37|6}}), to be of similar width to the earth, whether they were imagined to be dome shaped or flat [[Science and the Seven Earths#The%20solid%20universe|solid layers]], and that the earth's flatness makes for an ideal width yardstick.

===Qur'an 2:22 - the heavens are a canopy / building===

{{Quote|{{Quran|2|22}}| الذي جعل لكم الارض فراشا والسماء بناء وانزل من السماء ماء فاخرج به من الثمرات رزقا لكم فلا تجعلوا لله اندادا وانتم تعلمون

Allathee jaAAala lakumu al-arda firashan waalssamaa binaan waanzala mina alssama-i maan faakhraja bihi mina alththamarati rizqan lakum fala tajAAaloo lillahi andadan waantum taAAlamoona

Who has made the earth your couch, and the heavens your canopy; and sent down rain from the heavens; and brought forth therewith Fruits for your sustenance; then set not up rivals unto Allah when ye know (the truth). }}

The word translated as canopy is binaa or binaan ( بِنَاء ). This word means building, structure, edifice or tent.<ref>بِنَاء binaa - [http://www.studyquran.org/LaneLexicon/Volume1/00000298.pdf Lane's Lexicon] page 261</ref> In his tafsir for another verse, {{Quran|2|29}}, Ibn Kathir uses the same word for his analogy of the earth and seven heavens as a multi-story building.

{{quote |1=[http://m.qtafsir.com/Surah-Al-Baqara/The-Beginning-of-the-Creation Tafsir of Ibn Kathir for 2:29] (See [https://tafsir.app/ibn-katheer/2/29 here] for the Arabic)|2=These Ayat indicate that Allah started creation by creating earth, then He made heaven into seven heavens. This is how building usually starts, with the lower floors first and then the top floors, as the scholars of Tafsir reiterated, as we will come to know, Allah willing.}}

A similar concept occurs in the Bible (another Quranic parallel with Isaiah chapter 40 is shown in the Q. 18:47 section above):
{{Quote|1=[https://www.biblegateway.com/passage/?search=Isaiah%2040&version=NIV Isaiah 40:22]|2=He sits enthroned above the circle of the earth, and its people are like grasshoppers. He stretches out the heavens like a canopy, and spreads them out like a tent to live in.}}

==Flat Earth in the hadiths==
While the Islamic tradition maintain and modern academics contest whether so-called authentic hadiths can be reliably traced back to the prophet and his companions, all agree that hadiths, whether authentic or inauthentic represent the beliefs of various populations among the earliest Muslims. That is, even if a hadith is weak, it's fabrication, existence, and circulation attest to the simple fact that at least some early Muslims, even if this did not include Muhammad and his companions, believed that hadith's contents.

This said, there exist a variety of hadiths in canonical and authentic collections of hadith that explicitly and implicitly attest and adhere to a flat Earth. Countless weak hadiths can be counted which, in addition to these authentic hadiths, reflect the beliefs before the translations of Greek astronomy and philosophy had taken hold, and confirm that the earliest Muslims believed in a flat earth.<ref>Hannam, James. The Globe: How the Earth Became Round REAKTION BOOKS. 2023. ''See Chapter 15: Islam: ‘The Earth laid out like a carpet’.'' Quote on (p. 197):

''..it became evident that a great many of Muhammad’s alleged utterances had been invented later on, to win an argument or prove a point. Their numbers proliferated, and blatant inconsistencies crept into the canon. Muslim scholars were alive to this issue and went to great efforts to authenticate the sayings by verifying the chain of oral transmission. Many were declared ‘weak’ and so treated with scepticism. By AD 900, specialist researchers had winnowed down the thousands of sayings into six overlapping canonical compilations that, according to Muslim consensus, enjoy a high level of reliability.''

''The sayings are an invaluable record of the debates and thinking of Muslim scholars in the earliest years of Islam. In particular, they reflect the intellectual environment before the translations of Greek astronomy and philosophy had taken hold. In this respect, a weak hadith, while not reflecting the words of Muhammad himself, is still evidence of Muslim opinion in the years before 900.''</ref>

===Seven stacked earths===
''Main article: [[Science and the Seven Earths]]''

Various narrations describe seven stacked flat earths (not spherical layers, طوّقه means put on a neck-ring<ref>طوق tawwaqa [http://www.studyquran.org/LaneLexicon/Volume5/00000179.pdf Lane's Lexicon] p. 1894</ref>):{{Quote|{{Bukhari|||2454|darussalam}}|Narrated Salim's father (i.e. `Abdullah):

The Prophet said, "Whoever takes a piece of the land of others unjustly, he will sink down the seven earths on the Day of Resurrection."}}

{{Quote|{{Bukhari|||2452|darussalam}}|Narrated Sa`id bin Zaid:

Allah's Messenger said, "Whoever usurps the land of somebody unjustly, '''his neck will be encircled with it''' down the seven earths (on the Day of Resurrection). "
}}

{{Quote|{{Muslim||1610d|reference}}|Sa'id b. Zaid reported:

I heard Allah's Apostle say: He who took a span of earth wrongly '''would be made to wear around his neck''' seven earths on the Day of Resurrection.}}

This daif (weak) hadith elaborates what some early Muslims (if not Muhammad) thought about the shape of the world:

{{Quote|{{Al Tirmidhi|47|6|44|3298}}|...Then he said: ‘Do you know what is under you?’ They said: ‘Allah and His Messenger know better.’ He said: ‘Indeed it is the earth.’ Then he said: ‘Do you know what is under that?’ They said: ‘Allah and His Messenger know better.’ He said: ‘Verily, below it is another earth, between the two of which is a distance of five-hundred years.’ Until he enumerated seven earths: ‘Between every two earths is a distance of five-hundred years.’...}}

===Setting and rising place of the sun===
The following hadith is graded Sahih by Dar-us-Salam (Hafiz Zubair 'Ali Za'i) and has a chain of narration graded as Sahih (authentic) by al-Albani.

{{Quote|{{Abudawud||4002|darussalam}}|Narrated Abu Dharr:

I was sitting behind the Messenger of Allah (ﷺ) who was riding a donkey while the sun was setting. He asked: Do you know where this sets? I replied: Allah and his Apostle know best. He said: It sets in a spring of warm water (Hamiyah).}}

A similar, more elaborate hadith in Sahih Muslim (shown below) describes a cycle in which Allah instructs the sun to go and rise "from its rising place" (min matli'iha مَطْلِعِهَا - this word also occurs as matli'a ash shamsi "the rising place of the sun" in {{Quran|18|90}}). One day, it will instead be told to go and rise "from the place of your setting" (min maghribiki مِنْ مَغْرِبِكِ), so it goes and rises "from the place of its setting" (min maghribiha مِنْ مَغْرِبِهَا ). The latter phrase also appears in all the simpler narrations of this hadith despite often being mistranslated as "in the west".<ref>Muhsin Khan is particularly guilty of this in his translation of Sahih Bukhari. Compare with min al maghribi in {{Quran|2|258}} which does mean "from the west".</ref> The sun is commanded to go to some particular place. The words "matli'" and "maghrib", when juxtaposed, refer to a "rising place" and "setting place", while the words "al mashriq" and "al maghrib", when juxtaposed, refer more generically to "the east" and "the west", although some English translations attempt to obscure this detail. The use of the words "matli'iha" and "maghribiha" in reference to specific locations as opposed to general directions is further confirmed by the lack of the definite article (al-) and usage of possessive pronouns (-ha) which make these "the sun's matli'" and "the sun's maghrib" - if the narration were referring to the "east" and "west" generically, the hadith would not refer to "the sun's east" and "the sun's west".

{{Quote|{{Muslim||159a|reference}}|It is narrated on the authority of Abu Dharr that the Messenger of Allah (may peace be upon him) one day said:

'''Do you know where the sun goes?''' They replied: Allah and His Apostle know best. He (the Holy Prophet) observed: Verily it (the sun) glides till it reaches its resting place under the Throne. Then it falls prostrate and remains there until it is asked: '''Rise up and go to the place whence you came, and it goes back and continues emerging out from its rising place''' and then glides till it reaches its place of rest under the Throne and falls prostrate and remains in that state until it is asked: Rise up and return to the place whence you came, and it returns and emerges out from it rising place and the it glides (in such a normal way) that the people do not discern anything ( unusual in it) till it reaches its resting place under the Throne. Then it would be said to it: '''Rise up and emerge out from the place of your setting, and it will rise from the place of its setting.''' The Messenger of Allah (may peace be upon him) said. Do you know when it would happen? It would happen at the time when faith will not benefit one who has not previously believed or has derived no good from the faith.<ref>For the Arabic, see [http://sunnah.com/muslim/1/306 sunnah.com] or #159: [http://hadith.al-islam.com/Page.aspx?pageid=192&TOCID=81&BookID=25&PID=299 hadith.al-islam.com]</ref>}}

===Ends of the Earth===
{{Quote|{{Muslim||2889a|reference}}|Thauban reported that Allah's Messenger (ﷺ) said:

'''Allah drew the ends of the world near one another for my sake. And I have seen its eastern and western ends.''' And the dominion of my Ummah would reach those ends which have been drawn near me and I have been granted the red and the white treasure and I begged my Lord for my Ummah that it should not be destroyed because of famine, nor be dominated by an enemy who is not amongst them to take their lives and destroy them root and branch, and my Lord said: Muhammad, whenever I make a decision, there is none to change it. I grant you for your Ummah that it would not be destroyed by famine and it would not be dominated by an enemy who would not be amongst it and would take their lives and destroy them root and branch even if all the people from the different parts of the world join hands together (for this purpose), but it would be from amongst them, viz. your Ummah, that some people would kill the others or imprison the other}}

{{Quote|{{Ibn Majah|25|4|25|2921}}|It was narrated from Sahl bin Sa’d As-Sa’idi that the Messenger of Allah said:
“There is no (pilgrim) who recites the Talbiyah but that which is to his right and left also recites it, rocks and trees and hills, to '''the farthest ends of the earth in each direction''', from here and from there.”}}

===Allah in the last third of the night===
The following two narrations alluding to the optional Tahajjud prayer state that there is a particular time of night when Allah approaches the nearest heaven and invites supplications. This concept could only make any sense at all in a flat earth worldview, not in a spherical world in which it is always night-time somewhere.

{{Quote|{{Muslim||758b|reference}}|Abu Huraira reported Allah's Messenger (ﷺ) as saying:

Allah descends every night to the lowest heaven '''when one-third of the first part of the night is over''' and says: I am the Lord; I am the Lord: who is there to supplicate Me so that I answer him? Who is there to beg of Me so that I grant him? Who is there to beg forgiveness from Me so that I forgive him? '''He continues like this till the day breaks.'''}}

The hadith also appears in Sahih al-Bukhari ("to us" is not present in the Arabic).

{{Quote|{{Bukhari|||1145|darussalam}}|Narrated Abu Huraira:

Allah's Messenger (ﷺ) (p.b.u.h) said, "'''Our Lord, the Blessed, the Superior, comes every night down on the nearest Heaven to us when the last third of the night remains''', saying: "Is there anyone to invoke Me, so that I may respond to invocation? Is there anyone to ask Me, so that I may grant him his request? Is there anyone seeking My forgiveness, so that I may forgive him?"}}

==Flat Earth in tafsirs==
===The spring where the sun sets===
{{Main|Dhul-Qarnayn and the Sun Setting in a Muddy Spring - Part One|Dhul-Qarnayn and the Sun Setting in a Muddy Spring - Part Two}}
Early Tafsirs (commentaries on the Quran from Muslim Scholars) had no issue stating that the Quran supports a flat Earth cosmology. In fact the earliest surviving authentically attributed tafsir, Tafsir Muqātil ibn Sulaymān (d. 767 CE), i.e. who lived closer to the time of Muhammad than any other scholar, reports on verse 18:86 a view attributed to the companion Ibn Abbas that the sun is hotter when it rises than when it sets, which implies the existence of setting and rising places and therefore a flat earth.

{{Quote|1=[https://www.altafsir.com/Tafasir.asp?tMadhNo=0&tTafsirNo=67&tSoraNo=18&tAyahNo=83&tDisplay=yes&UserProfile=0&LanguageId=1 Tafsir Muqātil ibn Sulaymān on Verses 18:83-86]|2={Until when he reached the setting of the sun, he found it setting in a spring of mud}, meaning hot and black. Ibn Abbas said: When the sun rises, it is hotter than when it sets.}}

In the tafsir of al-Tabari (b. 224 AH / 839 CE) for {{Quran|18|86}}, the following remarks are made about the nature of the spring into which the sun sets. For another, full English translation of the relevant page in al-Tabari's tafsir [https://theislamissue.wordpress.com/2022/03/23/tafsir-al-tabari-for-q1886/ see this article]. The similar sounding words hami'ah (muddy) and hamiyah (hot) seem to have become confused at some point in the transmission of the Qur'anic script:

{{Quote|1=[https://tafsir.app/tabari/18/86 Tafsir al-Tabari 18:86]|2=الْقَوْل فِي تَأْوِيل قَوْله تَعَالَى : حَتَّى إِذَا بَلَغَ مَغْرِب الشَّمْس وَجَدَهَا تَغْرُب فِي عَيْن حَمِئَة

يَقُول تَعَالَى ذِكْره : { حَتَّى إِذَا بَلَغَ } ذُو الْقَرْنَيْنِ { مَغْرِب الشَّمْس وَجَدَهَا تَغْرُب فِي عَيْن حَمِئَة } , فَاخْتَلَفَتْ الْقُرَّاء فِي قِرَاءَة ذَلِكَ , فَقَرَأَهُ بَعْض قُرَّاء الْمَدِينَة وَالْبَصْرَة : { فِي عَيْن حَمِئَة } بِمَعْنَى : أَنَّهَا تَغْرُب فِي عَيْن مَاء ذَات حَمْأَة , وَقَرَأَتْهُ جَمَاعَة مِنْ قُرَّاء الْمَدِينَة , وَعَامَّة قُرَّاء الْكُوفَة : " فِي عَيْن حَامِيَة " يَعْنِي أَنَّهَا تَغْرُب فِي عَيْن مَاء حَارَّة . وَاخْتَلَفَ أَهْل التَّأْوِيل فِي تَأْوِيلهمْ ذَلِكَ عَلَى نَحْو اِخْتِلَاف الْقُرَّاء فِي قِرَاءَته

The meaning of the Almighty’s saying, ‘Until he reached the place of the setting of the sun he found it set in a spring of murky water,’ is as follows:

When the Almighty says, ‘Until he reached,’ He is addressing Zul-Qarnain. Concerning the verse, ‘the place of the setting of the sun he found it set in a spring of murky water,’ the people differed on how to pronounce that verse. Some of the people of Madina and Basra read it as ‘Hami’a spring,’ meaning that the sun sets in a spring that contains mud. While a group of the people of Medina and the majority of the people of Kufa read it as, ‘Hamiya spring’ meaning that the sun sets in a spring of warm water. The people of commentary have differed on the meaning of this depending on the way they read the verse.}}

So he says of the Basran reading of the Qur'an:

{{Quote||بـمعنى: أنها تغرب فـي عين ماء ذات حمأة

"Meaning: that it sets in a spring of muddy water."}}

And he says of the Kufan reading of the Qur'an:

{{Quote||يعنـي أنها تغرب فـي عين ماء حارّة

"It means that it sets in a spring of hot water"}}

Early authorities such as Ibn 'Abbas explain this to mean that the sun sets in black mud:

{{Quote|1=[https://tafsir.app/tabari/18/86 Tafsir al-Tabari 18:86]|2=حَدَّثَنَا مُحَمَّد بْن عَبْد الْأَعْلَى , قَالَ : ثنا مَرْوَان بْن مُعَاوِيَة , عَنْ وَرْقَاء , قَالَ : سَمِعْت سَعِيد بْن جُبَيْر ,
قَالَ : كَانَ اِبْن عَبَّاس يَقْرَأ هَذَا الْحَرْف { فِي عَيْن حَمِئَة }

Muhammad ibn 'Abd al-A'la narrated and said: Marwan ibn Mu'awiya narrated from Warqa, he said: I heard Sa'id ibn Jubayr say: Ibn 'Abbas read this letter "in a muddy spring"

وَيَقُول : حَمْأَة سَوْدَاء تَغْرُب فِيهَا الشَّمْس

and he said: the sun sets in black mud.

وَقَالَ آخَرُونَ : بَلْ هِيَ تَغِيب فِي عَيْن حَارَّة

Others said: it disappears (تَغِيب) in a hot spring.}}

This Ibn ‘Abbas narration from Sa'id ibn Jubayr has a trustworthy chain of narrators according to hadith scholars.<ref>[https://dorar.net/h/ec5da855d71296a764b516b57ca8e6d1 dorar.net]</ref> Abu Salih, another companion of Ibn ‘Abbas, made a very similar report narrated through another chain recorded by al-Farra (d. 822 CE) in his Ma'ani al-Qur'an regarding this verse:

{{Quote|1=[https://al-maktaba.org/book/23634/679 al-Farra, Ma'ani al-Qur'an for verse 18:86]|2=حَدَّثَنَا أَبُو الْعَبَّاسِ قَالَ حَدَّثَنَا مُحَمَّدٌ قَالَ حَدَّثَنَا الْفَرَّاءُ قَالَ حَدَّثَنِي حِبَّانُ عَنِ الْكَلْبِيِّ عَنْ أَبِي صَالِحٍ عَنِ ابْنِ عَبَّاسٍ (حَمِئَةٍ) قَالَ: تَغْرُبُ فِي عَيْنٍ سَوْدَاءَ 
[...] al-Farra narrated from Hibban, from al-Kalbi, from Abu Salih, from Ibn ‘Abbas "muddy". He said, "It sets in a black spring".}}

Al-Tabari (d. 923) in his ''History of the Prophets and Kings'' and al-Baydawi (d. 1286) in his tafsir mention the opinion that the sun has 360 springs into which it can set. Another, very early tafsir records Abu al-Aliya (d. 93 H) stating that he was informed that "the sun is in a spring; the spring casts it to the East". The story with the sun literally setting in a spring is also found in early (probably post-Islamic) Arab poems. See the main article (Part One) for all of these things.

===The sky as a dome above the Earth===
Al-Tabari in his tafsir for {{Quran|2|22}} includes narrations from some of the earliest Muslims about the sky being a dome or ceiling over the Earth:

{{Quote|[http://quran.al-islam.com/Page.aspx?pageid=221&BookID=13&Page=1 Tafsir al-Tabari for 2:22] See also the English translation from [https://islaambooks.files.wordpress.com/2012/05/the-commentary-on-the-quran-volume-i-tafsir-al-tabari.pdf J. Cooper's abridged translation of Tafsir al-Tabari]<ref>The commentary on the Qur'an, by Abu Ja'far Muhammad b. Jarir al- Tabari ; being an abridged translation of Jami' al-bayan 'an ta'wil ay al-Qur'an, with an introduction and notes by J. Cooper, general editors, W.F. Madelung, A. Jones. Oxford University Press, 1987. p.164</ref>|2=حَدَّثَنِي مُوسَى بْن هَارُونَ , قَالَ : حَدَّثَنَا عَمْرو بْن حَمَّاد , قَالَ : حَدَّثَنَا أَسْبَاط , عَنْ السُّدِّيّ فِي خَبَر ذَكَرَهُ , عَنْ أَبِي مَالِك , وَعَنْ أَبِي صَالِح , عَنْ ابْن عَبَّاس , وَعَنْ مُرَّة , عَنْ ابْن مَسْعُود وَعَنْ نَاس مِنْ أَصْحَاب النَّبِيّ صَلَّى اللَّه عَلَيْهِ وَسَلَّمَ : { وَالسَّمَاء بِنَاء } , فَبِنَاء السَّمَاء عَلَى الْأَرْض كَهَيْئَةِ الْقُبَّة , وَهِيَ سَقْف عَلَى الْأَرْض .وَحَدَّثَنَا بِشْر بْن مُعَاذ , قَالَ : حَدَّثَنَا يَزِيد , عَنْ سَعِيد , عَنْ قَتَادَةَ فِي قَوْل اللَّه { وَالسَّمَاء بِنَاء } قَالَ : جَعَلَ السَّمَاء سَقْفًا لَك .

Musa ibn Harun narrated and said that Amru ibn Hammad narrated and said that Asbath narrated from al-Suddi in the report mentioned, from Abu Malik, and from Abu Salih, from ibn 'Abbas and from Murrah, from ibn Masud and from people of the companions of the prophet (peace and blessings be upon him):

"...and the sky a canopy..." The canopy of the sky over the earth '''is in the form of a dome''', and it is a roof over the earth. And Bishr bin Mu'az narrated and said from Yazid from Sa'id from Qatada in the words of Allah "...and the sky a canopy..." He says he makes the sky your roof.|[https://tafsir.app/tabari/2/22 Tafsir al-Tabari 2:22]}}

Ibn Kathir in his tafsir for {{Quran|13|2}} has more narrations of the sahabah and [[Salaf al-Salih (Pious Predecessors)|tabi'un (2nd generation)]] on this topic:

{{Quote|1=[http://m.qtafsir.com/Surah-Ar-Rad/Clarifying-Allahs-Perfect-Abi--- Tafsir ibn Kathir 13:2] (see [https://tafsir.app/ibn-katheer/13/2 here] for the Arabic)|2=Allah said next, (..without any pillars that you can see.) meaning, `there are pillars, but you cannot see them,' according to Ibn `Abbas, Mujahid, Al-Hasan, Qatadah, and several other scholars. Iyas bin Mu`awiyah said, "The heaven is like a dome over the earth," meaning, without pillars. Similar was reported from Qatadah, and this meaning is better for this part of the Ayah, especially since Allah said in another Ayah, (He withholds the heaven from falling on the earth except by His permission.) 22:65 Therefore, Allah's statement, (..that you can see), affirms that there are no pillars. Rather, the heaven is elevated (above the earth) without pillars, as you see. This meaning best affirms Allah's ability and power.}}

===Seven flat Earths===

Ibn Kathir records that Mujahid said that the seven heavens and the seven Earths are on top of one another. Many similar narrations demonstrate that this type of cosmology was the standard understanding among Muhammad's companions.

{{Quote|1=[https://tafsir.app/ibn-katheer/2/29 Tafsir ibn Kathir 2:29]|2=فَسَوَّاهُنَّ سَبْعَ سَمَاوَاتٍ - قَالَ: بَعْضُهُنَّ فَوْقَ بَعْضٍ، وَسَبْعُ أَرَضِينَ، يَعْنِي بِعَضَهُنَّ تَحْتَ بَعْضٍ. 
(And made them seven heavens) He [Mujahid] said, one [heaven] above the other, and the seven earths, meaning one below the other.}}

===The Earth on the back of the Islamic Whale===
{{Main|The Islamic Whale}}
Al-Tabari's tafsir regarding {{Quran|68|1}}, which mysteriously starts with the Arabic letter Nun, records, along with many other classical tafsirs and sahih narrations<ref>[https://tafsir.app/68/1 Tafsirs 68:1]</ref><ref>{{Citation|title=Islam & the whale that carries the Earth on its back|url=https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=GVhsVjXJzKM&ab_channel=TheMaskedArab|publisher=The Masked Arab|publication-date=February 25, 2016}}</ref><ref>{{Citation|url=https://answeringislamblog.wordpress.com/2016/10/19/muhammads-magical-mountain-one-whale-of-a-tale/|archiveurl=https://web.archive.org/web/20170701144708/https://answeringislamblog.wordpress.com/2016/10/19/muhammads-magical-mountain-one-whale-of-a-tale/|publisher=Answering Islam Blog|publication-date=October 19, 2016|chapter=Muhammad’s Magical Mountain: One Whale of a Tale!}}</ref><ref>{{Citation|author=Sam Shamoun|publisher=Answering Islam|url=https://www.answering-islam.org/Shamoun/whale_nun.htm|archiveurl=https://web.archive.org/web/20201112030934/https://www.answering-islam.org/Shamoun/whale_nun.htm|chapter=The Quran and the Shape of the Earth}}</ref>, that one of the interpretations among sahabah such as ibn 'Abbas was that the 'nun' is a whale on whose back the Earth is carried (other interpretations were that "Nun" is an inkwell or a name of Allah). While there may not have been a consensus on the existence of the whale, the plausibility and acceptability of the idea implies a flat Earth cosmography among early Muslims.

=== Mount Qaf ===
Similarly Surah 50 begins with the Arabic letter Qaf, which Scott Noegel and Brannon Wheeler (2010) note many Muslim exegetes took to refer to [[W:Mount_Qaf|Mount Qaf]] ''as a “world mountain,” which surrounds the earth and holds up the sky, thus connecting the heavens and the earth.''<ref>Noegel, Scott B.; Wheeler, Brannon M.. ''The A to Z of Prophets in Islam and Judaism (The A to Z Guide Series Book 176).'' 2010. pp 68 (Kindle Edition pp. 148). See under a section titled "Cosmology and Cosmogony" pp. 67-68:

''Much like the classical Greek conception, the earth or the middle realm of the cosmos is envisioned as a flat disc surrounded by the world ocean on all sides. The Quran describes the earth as flat and spread out (Q 71:19), wide and expansive (Q 29:56). There are points on the earth that serve as conduits or points of contact with the lower realms (pits, caves, water sources) and the upper realms (mountains, trees, high buildings). Muslim exegetes describe '''Mt. Qaf (Q 50:1)''' as a "world mountain," which surrounds the earth and holds up the sky, thus connecting the heavens and the earth.''</ref>

This view is found even in the earliest surviving Tafsir, that of Muqatil ibn Suliman (d. 767 CE)<ref>Muqatil ibn Suliman's tafsir on verses [https://www.altafsir.com/Tafasir.asp?tMadhNo=0&tTafsirNo=67&tSoraNo=50&tAyahNo=1&tDisplay=yes&UserProfile=0&LanguageId=1 50:1] and [https://www.altafsir.com/Tafasir.asp?tMadhNo=0&tTafsirNo=67&tSoraNo=18&tAyahNo=85&tDisplay=yes&UserProfile=0&LanguageId=1 18:86] (Arabic)</ref> as well as al-Tabari's<ref>Tafsir al-Tabari on verse [https://www.altafsir.com/Tafasir.asp?tMadhNo=0&tTafsirNo=67&tSoraNo=50&tAyahNo=1&tDisplay=yes&UserProfile=0&LanguageId=1 50:1] (Arabic)</ref> and others. This (a mountain that surrounds the world) is of course only possible on a flat Earth. It was even associated with the mythical city of “Jabalq,” allegedly to be located in the extreme east or west, at the edges of the earth.<ref>Noegel, Scott B.; Wheeler, Brannon M.. ''The A to Z of Prophets in Islam and Judaism (The A to Z Guide Series Book 176)''. 2010. (pp. 271-272). Scarecrow Press. Kindle Edition.

''The Arab geographer Yaqut describes Qaf as a mountain that encompasses and encloses the earth. It is made out of blue or green crystal, and all mountains in the world are tributaries of Qaf. Mt. Qaf is associated with the city of “Jabalq,” which can be read also as “Mt. Qaf” [Ar. Jabal-Qaf] in Arabic. This city is supposed to be located in the extreme east or west, at the edges of the earth. Qaf is also linked to the mountain on which Adam was supposed to have stood and peered into heaven after his expulsion from the Garden of Eden.''</ref>
{{Quote|{{Quran|50|1}}|Qaf. By the Glorious Qur'an,}}
===The Highest Horizon===
The Qu'ran says Muhammad was in the highest horizon ''bil-ufuqi<ref>افق - [https://lexicon.quranic-research.net/data/01_A/103_Afq.html Lane's lexicon Classical Arabic Dictionary root: hamza fā qāf (أ ف ق)] Horizon ''ufuq'' (أُفُق) [https://lexicon.quranic-research.net/pdf/Page_0068.pdf Lane's Lexicon p.68] Horizon ''ufuq'' (أُفُق) [https://lexicon.quranic-research.net/pdf/Page_0069.pdf Lane's Lexicon p.69]</ref>l-aʿlā''<ref>Lanes Lexicon Classical Arabic Dictionary Root: [https://lexicon.quranic-research.net/data/18_E/190_Elw.html ʿayn lām wāw (ع ل و)] (l-a)ʿlā [https://lexicon.quranic-research.net/pdf/Page_2142.pdf Lanes Lexicon p.2142], [https://lexicon.quranic-research.net/pdf/Page_2143.pdf Lanes Lexicon p.2143]</ref>. Typically taken as referring to him receiving knowledge there as part of his [[Buraq#The Night Journey (al-Isra wal-Mi'raj)|night journey]].{{Quote|{{Quran|53|7}}|possessed of sound judgement. He settled, while he (was) in the horizon - the highest.}}See also: {{Quran|81|23}}

On a round Earth, there is no such place as an objective highest horizon, as once you move towards the it (i.e. the furthest place you can see where the land and sky appear to meet in the distance),<ref>[https://dictionary.cambridge.org/dictionary/english/horizon Horizon Definition] Cambridge Dictionary</ref> the view (i.e. the horizon) simply moves further back as you circle around the Earth, never actually being reached. So some classical Islamic exegetes have taken this highest horizon to be the place where the sun rises from, in the seventh heaven, or where it reaches the Earth,<ref>E.g. [https://quranx.com/Tafsir/Jalal/53.7 Tafsir al-Jalalayn on verse Q53:7] by Al-Mahalli (d. 1459 CE) and Al-Suyuti (d. 1505 CE) and the famous pseudepigrapha [https://quranx.com/Tafsir/Abbas/53.7 Tanwîr al-Miqbâs min Tafsîr Ibn ‘Abbâs on verse Q53:7]</ref> which is only possible on a flat Earth.
==Classical perspectives==
Knowledge of the spherical nature of the Earth existed, at the very least, for nearly a millennium prior to the emergence of [[Islam]] in the 7th century. However, due to the non-uniform distribution of knowledge across the world and the pervasive assumption of a flat-Earth in Islamic scriptures, it is widely held that Muhammad and his [[companions]] were almost certainly ignorant of the matter. In the absence of explicit and authentic formulations from [[Muhammad]] and his companions on the topic, however, full confidence is impossible and modern inquirers are left to infer the cosmology of the earliest Muslims on the basis of indirect scriptural allusions. Such allusions are plenty and uniformly point to the assumption of a flat-Earth.

Militating against these appearances are statements from the works of Ibn Taymiyyah and Ibn Hazm, who are often cited as evidence<ref name="IslamQAarticle">{{Citation|publisher=Islam Question & Answer|editor=Muhammad Saalih al-Munajjid|publication-date=April 6, 2014|url=https://islamqa.info/en/answers/118698/consensus-that-the-earth-is-round|archiveurl=https://web.archive.org/web/20201112020029/https://islamqa.info/en/answers/118698/consensus-that-the-earth-is-round|chapter=Consensus that the Earth is round}}</ref> of an early Islamic consensus on a spherical earth. While the notion of a spherical earth had undoubtedly entered the Islamic milieu in the centuries following [[Muhammad's Death|Muhammad's death]] to a limited extent, claims of anything approaching an early consensus on a spherical earth are unfounded, and attempts to extend this to Muhammad's generation, entirely fanciful.

===Al Mawardi (d. 1058)===
Al-Mawardi (d. 450 / 1058 CE), in his commentary on {{Quran|13|3}}, regards that verse as a counter-argument to those who claim the Earth is shaped like a ball.<ref>[https://www.altafsir.com/Tafasir.asp?tMadhNo=0&tTafsirNo=12&tSoraNo=13&tAyahNo=3&tDisplay=yes&UserProfile=0&LanguageId=1 altafsir.com] - Tafsir al-Mawardi for verse 13:3</ref>

===Ibn Hazm (d. 1064)===
One of the three that Ibn Taymiyyah cites, Ibn Hazm (d. 1064) of Cordoba, asserts that while there is sound evidence that the Earth is round, common people and some non-leading Muslim scholars may think otherwise. Still, he maintains, none of the leading scholars of Islam deny that the Earth is round.<ref name="IslamQAarticle"></ref>

This can be taken as evidence that it was not uncommon for uneducated lay persons living in Muslim lands in the 11th century to still believe the Earth to be flat. It is likewise clear from the arguments marshalled by Ibn Hazm that, by his time, members of the scholarly class had, in addition to their round-Earth-friendly interpretations of scripture, solid astronomical reasoning on which to base their belief in the round Earth. The same can be said about the other followers of Imam Ahmad cited by Ibn Taymiyyah (see below).

===Al-Qurtubi (d. 1273)===
Al-Qurtubi (d. 671 AH / 1273 CE), another prominent exegete, in his commentary on {{Quran|13|3}} regards that verse as a counter-argument to those who claim the Earth is shaped like a ball.<ref>[https://www.altafsir.com/Tafasir.asp?tMadhNo=0&tTafsirNo=5&tSoraNo=13&tAyahNo=3&tDisplay=yes&UserProfile=0&LanguageId=1 altafsir.com] - Tafsir al-Qurtubi for verse 13:3</ref>

===Ibn Taymiyyah (d.1328)===
In one oft-cited work<ref name="IslamQAarticle"></ref>, [[Ibn Taymiyyah]] (d. 728 AH / 1328 CE) references Abu’l-Husayn Ahmad ibn Ja‘far ibn al Munadi as saying that the scholars from the second level of the companions of Imam Ahmad (d. 241 AH / 855 CE) – i.e. the early Hanbalis – maintained that there was consensus among the scholars that both heaven and Earth are balls, giving astronomical reasoning for both. However, it has in fact been established that this refers to a consensus among scholars of astronomy and geography, as almost identical wording appears in Muslim astronomical works by Ahmad ibn Rustah (d. 913) and Ibn Kathīr al-Farghānī (d. 861) to describe the agreement and reasoning among astronomical scholars, not the agreement of Muslim scholars in general. [https://www.reddit.com/r/AcademicQuran/comments/1l4qi4b/reexamining_the_origins_of_ibn_almunadis_quote_on/ See here] ([https://web.archive.org/web/20250606223527/https://www.reddit.com/r/AcademicQuran/comments/1l4qi4b/reexamining_the_origins_of_ibn_almunadis_quote_on/ archive]).

Moreover, this evidence does not help determine earlier beliefs, since from the 8th century CE onwards, Muslims were using Greek astronomical scholarship, which had already come to learn of the Earth's spherical form (see above).

In another instance<ref>For the full chapter in Arabic see [https://ar.wikisource.org/wiki/مجموع_الفتاوى/المجلد_السادس/سئل_عن_رجلين_تنازعا_في_كيفية_السماء_والأرض Wikisource.org], and for someone's English translation for most of the relevant parts see [http://www.salafitalk.net/st/viewmessages.cfm?Forum=6&Topic=1859 Salafitalk forum]</ref>, Ibn Taymiyyah, answering a question about the shape of the heavens and Earth, cites Abu’l-Husayn Ahmad ibn Ja‘far ibn al Munadi (a second time), Abu’l-Faraj ibn al-Jawzi (d. 597 AH / 1201 CE), and Ibn Hazm (d. 456 AH / 1064 CE) as saying that there is a consensus that the heavens are round. In this instance, Ibn Taymiyyah makes no mention of the shape of the Earth. He further mentions that these authorities have provided evidence for the shape of the heavens from the Qur'an, sunnah, and narrations from the companions (sahabah) and second generation.

====Evidence cited by Ibn Taymiyyah====
Ibn Taymiyyah proceeds to directly give this evidence for the round shapes of the heavens from the Qur'an, sunnah, and narrations from the early Muslims. Here, he argues that a round heavens and Earth is supported by what specialists on tafsir and language have said about certain words in the Qur'an.

The Qur'an verses cited by Ibn Taymiyyah in support of the round shape of the heavens are {{Quran|21|33}}, {{Quran|36|40}}, {{Quran|39|5}}, and {{Quran|67|5}}). These evidences are, however, indirect, and rely on what Ibn Taymiyyah and those he references argue is implied by their extrapolations on the linguistic nuances of the verses discussed. The solitary piece of direct evidence that Ibn Taymiyyah brings from the companions about the round shape of the heavens is a narration where Ibn 'Abbas and others comment on {{Quran|36|40}}, which describes the heavenly bodies [[Geocentrism and the Quran|swimming in a falak]] (celestial dome or sphere):

{{Quote|1=[https://tafsir.app/ibn-katheer/36/40 Ibn Kathir 36:40]; see also: [https://tafsir.app/tabari/36/40 al-Tabari 36:40]|2=فِي فَلْكَة كَفَلْكَةِ الْمِغْزَل

fee falka, ka-falkati almighzal

in a whirl (whorl), like the whirl of a spindle}}

A whirl or whorl was a small wheel or hemisphere that was constructed around a spindle for the purpose of clothes-making<ref>الفَلَكُ falak - [http://www.studyquran.org/LaneLexicon/Volume6/00000228.pdf Lane's Lexicon] Volume 1 page 2444. See also the [http://www.studyquran.org/LaneLexicon/Volume6/00000227.pdf previous page]. Lane says that the falak was generally imagined as a celestial hemisphere by the Arabs, but also that the Arab astronomers applied the term to seven spheres for the sun, moon, and the five visible planets, rotating about the celestial pole. This must reflect the post-Qur'anic influence of Ptolemy, whose astronomical work was translated for the Arabs from the 8th century onwards.</ref>. As the sun and moon appear to arc across the sky, even those who imagined the Earth was flat and the heavens a dome (or a sphere) would also imagine some path for the two celestial bodies to continue beneath the Earth upon setting so they could return for the following day and night cycle. In his commentary on another, related verse ({{Quran|31|29}}), Ibn Kathir quotes Ibn Abbas again, saying exactly this. The sun runs in its falak (فَلَكهَا) in the sky / heaven (السَّمَاء) during the day, and when it sets it runs during the night (بِاللَّيْلِ - omitted from the translation) in the very same "falak" beneath the Earth until it rises from its rising place (من مشرقها - translated below as "in the east").<ref>[https://tafsir.app/ibn-katheer/31/29 Tafsir Ibn Kathir 31:29]</ref>

{{Quote|1=[http://m.qtafsir.com/Surah-Luqman/The-Might-and-Power-of-Allah-A--- Tafsir ibn Kathir 31:29]|2=Ibn Abi Hatim recorded that Ibn ’Abbas said, “The sun is like flowing water, running in its course in the sky during the day. When it sets, it travels in its course beneath the earth until it rises in the east.” He said, “The same is true in the case of the moon.” Its chain of narration is Sahih.}}

Ibn Taymiyyah follows this with a hadith recorded in Sunan Abu Dawud which, unlike the above sahih hadith, is graded as "da'if" or weak (see: {{Abu Dawud||4726|darussalam}} and in which Muhammad forms a dome with his fingers above his head and proceeds to say that Allah's throne is above the heavens. Ibn Taymiyyah here interprets the narration to mean that the throne is dome shaped.

Finally, Ibn Taymiyyah cites the following hadith from al-Bukhari and, returning to his reliance on indirect grammatical nuance, argues that if the structure (the hadith refers to "[[Jannah (Paradise)|Jannah]]" or Paradise in particular, rather than Heaven in general) described below has a "midmost" part, then it must be spherical, for only spherical structures have such a "midmost" point.

{{Quote|{{Bukhari|||7423|darussalam}}|The Prophet (ﷺ) said, "Whoever believes in Allah and His Apostle offers prayers perfectly and fasts (the month of) Ramadan then it is incumbent upon Allah to admit him into Paradise, whether he emigrates for Allah's cause or stays in the land where he was born." They (the companions of the Prophet) said, "O Allah's Messenger (ﷺ)! Should we not inform the people of that?" He said, "There are one-hundred degrees in Paradise which Allah has prepared for those who carry on Jihad in His Cause. The distance between every two degrees is like the distance between the sky and the Earth, so if you ask Allah for anything, ask Him for the Firdaus, for it is the last part of Paradise ["فَإِنَّهُ أَوْسَطُ الْجَنَّةِ", "أَوْسَطُ" is better translated as "midmost" or "medial"<ref>[https://ejtaal.net/aa/#ll=3039,hw4=1262,ls=74,la=h4830,sg=h1231,ha=h880,br=h1049,pr=h168,aan=h720,mgf=h856,vi=h385,kz=h2934,mr=h796,mn=h1557,uqw=h1850,umr=h1171,ums=h987,umj=h941,ulq=h1799,uqa=h450,uqq=h429,bdw=h954,amr=h694,asb=h1077,auh=h1747,dhq=h609,mht=h973,msb=h259,tla=h98,amj=h920,ens=h1,mis=h1 Lane's Lexicon]</ref>] and the highest part of Paradise, and at its top there is the Throne of Beneficent, and from it gush forth the rivers of Paradise."}}

Given that Ibn Taymiyyah cited the above-mentioned scholars, the narrations he uses to argue for the spherical shape of the heavens (when asked about the shape of both the heavens and Earth), were most probably the best available. Stronger and clearer evidence might reasonably be expected if a consensus for the round shape of the Earth (in addition to that of the heavens) went back to Muhammad and the companions.

===Ibn Kathir (d. 1373)===
Ibn Kathir says the heavens are a dome or roof or like the floors of a building over the Earth which is its foundation in his tafsir for verses [http://m.qtafsir.com/Surah-Al-Baqara/The-Beginning-of-the-Creation 2:29], [http://m.qtafsir.com/Surah-Ar-Rad/Clarifying-Allahs-Perfect-Abi--- 13:2], [http://m.qtafsir.com/Surah-Al-Anbiya/In-everything-there-is-a-Sign---- 21:32], [http://m.qtafsir.com/Surah-Ya-Seen/Among-the-Signs-of-the-Might-a--- 36:38], and [http://m.qtafsir.com/Surah-Fussilat/Some-Details-of-the-Creation-o--- 41:9-12]. It is also clear that like those before him, he is directly aware of astronomers' theories.

{{Quote|[https://quranx.com/Tafsir/Kathir/36.37 Tafsir Ibn Kathir for Quran 36:38]|(on its fixed course for a term (appointed). ) (The first view) is that it refers to its fixed course of location, which is beneath the Throne, beyond the earth in that direction. Wherever it goes, it is beneath the Throne, it and all of creation, because the Throne is the roof of creation and it is not a sphere as many astronomers claim. Rather it is a dome supported by legs or pillars, carried by the angels, and it is above the universe, above the heads of people. When the sun is at its zenith at noon, it is in its closest position to Throne, and when it runs in its fourth orbit at the opposite point to its zenith, at midnight, it is in its furthest position ...}}

===Jalal ad-Din al-Maḥalli (d. 1460)===
In Tafsir al-Jalalayn, started by Jalal ad-Din al-Maḥalli (d. 1460) and completed by Jalal al-Din al-Suyuti (d. 1505), a different majority view is asserted. This relevant portion of the Tafsir is authored by al-Mahalli):

{{Quote|1=[http://main.altafsir.com/Tafasir.asp?tMadhNo=0&tTafsirNo=74&tSoraNo=88&tAyahNo=20&tDisplay=yes&UserProfile=0&LanguageId=2 Tafsir al-Jalalayn for Qur'an 88:20]|2=As for His words sutihat ‘laid out flat’ this on a literal reading suggests that the earth is flat which is the opinion of most of the scholars of the revealed Law and not a sphere as astronomers (ahl al-hay’a) have it even if this latter does not contradict any of the pillars of the Law.}}

The word "sutihat" in {{Quran|88|20}} [[Flat Earth and the Quran#Qur.27an_88:20_-_sutihat_.28.22spread_out_flat.22.29|means "laid out flat"]].

See also their commentary on [https://quranx.com/Tafsir/Jalal/91.6 91.6], [https://quranx.com/Tafsir/Jalal/71.19 71.19], [https://quranx.com/Tafsir/Jalal/13.3 13.3], [https://quranx.com/Tafsir/Jalal/15.19 15.19], [https://quranx.com/Tafsir/Jalal/51.48 51.48], [https://quranx.com/Tafsir/Jalal/79.30 79:30] etc.

===Others===
Many further examples of scholars expressing a flat earth interpretation of the Quran are collated in [https://theislamissue.wordpress.com/2019/03/22/scholarly-consensus-of-a-round-earth/ another article.] One can see that all early mufassirūn (Quranic scholars who wrote commentaries/tafsirs, which can be viewed directly on [https://www.altafsir.com/ tafsir.com]) who commented on the relevant verses took the view the Qur'an was describing a flat earth.

These interpretations contrast with claims of an Islamic scholarly consensus for a round earth. As Dr Omar Anchassi says '<nowiki/>''It is clear that the Aristotelian-Ptolemaic vision of the cosmos remained contested by theologians of all stripes to the end of the fifth/eleventh century''<nowiki/>'<ref name="Anchassi">Omar Anchassi. ''[https://www.academia.edu/93485940/ Against Ptolemy? Cosmography in Early Kalām]'', Journal of the American Oriental Society, '''142'''(4), 2022, pp. 851–881. <nowiki>https://doi.org/10.7817/jaos.142.4.2022.ar033</nowiki></ref> in his article '''[https://doi.org/10.7817/jaos.142.4.2022.ar033 Against Ptolemy? Cosmography in Early Kalām]''<nowiki/>' (2022).

==Modern perspectives and criticisms thereof==
===Qur'an 22:61 and 31:29 - night and day merging===
{{Main|Geocentrism and the Quran}}{{Quote|{{Quran|22|61}}| ذلك بان الله يولج الليل في النهار ويولج النهار في الليل وان الله سميع بصير

Thalika bi-anna Allaha yooliju allayla fee alnnahari wayooliju alnnahara fee allayli waanna Allaha sameeAAun baseerun

That is because Allah merges night into day, and He merges day into night, and verily it is Allah Who hears and sees (all things).}}
{{Quote|{{Quran|31|29}}| الم تر ان الله يولج الليل في النهار ويولج النهار في الليل وسخر الشمس والقمر كل يجري الى اجل مسمى وان الله بما تعملون خبير

Alam tara anna Allaha yooliju allayla fee alnnahari wayooliju alnnahara fee allayli wasakhkhara alshshamsa waalqamara kullun yajree ila ajalin musamman waanna Allaha bima taAAmaloona khabeerun

Seest thou not that Allah merges Night into Day and he merges Day into Night; that He has subjected the sun, and the moon (to his Law), each running its course for a term appointed; and that Allah is well-acquainted with all that ye do?}}Today, it is sometimes advanced that the word "Merging" here means that the night slowly and gradually changes to day and vice versa. This phenomenon, it is then argued, can only take place if the earth is spherical. If the earth was flat, there would have been a sudden change from night to day and from day to night.

However, every person who has ever seen the sun setting and rising, including those who believed in a flat Earth, understood that the transition from day to night and vice versa was a gradual and not sudden one. Therefore, such an argument fails to demonstrate anything about the author's belief about the shape of the Earth.

====39:5 - night and day wrapped over each other====
{{Quote|{{Quran|39|5}}| خلق السماوات والارض بالحق يكور الليل على النهار ويكور النهار على الليل وسخر الشمس والقمر كل يجري لاجل مسمى الا هو العزيز الغفار

Khalaqa alssamawati waal-arda bialhaqqi yukawwiru allayla AAala alnnahari wayukawwiru alnnahara AAala allayli wasakhkhara alshshamsa waalqamara kullun yajree li-ajalin musamman ala huwa alAAazeezu alghaffaru

He created the heavens and earth in truth. He wraps the night over the day and wraps the day over the night and has subjected the sun and the moon, each running [its course] for a specified term. Unquestionably, He is the Exalted in Might, the Perpetual Forgiver.}}

In the very similar verse 39:5 the word يُكَوِّرُ yukawwiru (he overlaps / winds around<ref>كور kawara - [http://www.studyquran.org/LaneLexicon/Volume7/00000165.pdf Lane's Lexicon] page 2637</ref>) is used. The verb كور was used for, among other things, wrapping a turban around a head. Today, it is also sometimes argued that this wrapping connotation of the word comports with a spherical conception of the Earth.

While the words used in 39:5 and 21:33 do not violate a spherical model of the Earth, they are also equally comfortable with a flat model of the Earth. Since all positive evidence in the Islamic scriptures demonstrates that the earliest Muslims though the Earth to be flat, and since these two verses do not contradict that worldview, the simplest explanation of these verses is to relate them to {{Quran|21|33}} and {{Quran|36|40}} which describe the motions of the night, day, sun and moon in a "falak", now popularly translated as "orbit", but meaning a circuitous path, celestial sphere or, more likely, a hemisphere (see [[Geocentrism and the Quran]]). Also relevant are {{Quran|7|54}} where Allah "covers" the night with the day (or possibly vice versa) and {{Quran|36|37}} where Allah strips the day from the night.

Verse 39:5 specifically describes Allah overlapping (or wrapping) the night and the day over each other, with no mention of the Earth, its shape or its rotation. Critics further argue that in any case, these two verses are largely irrelevant to the question of the Earth's shape, as it is possible for one to "wrap around" and "orbit" an object of any shape, whether it be flat or spherical.

It is further worth noting that contrary to a claim sometimes found on English-language Islamic websites, the verb yukawwiru (يُكوِّر) in this verse (overlap/wind around) is not in any way related to the modern Arabic word for "ball" (كرة).<ref>https://en.wiktionary.org/wiki/%D9%83%D8%B1%D8%A9</ref> Nor is yakawwiru (from the root kaf-waw-ra ) related to an entirely different root (ك ر ي kaf-ra-ya) from which certain words mean spherical or sphericalness.<ref>ك ر ي kaf-ra-ya - [http://www.studyquran.org/LaneLexicon/Volume8/00000254.pdf Lane's Lexicon] Supplement, page 3000</ref>

For further discussion, see [[Geocentrism and the Quran#Quran_39:5|Geocentrism and the Quran]].

===Qur'an 79:30 - ''daha'' ("spread out", said to mean "ostrich egg")===
Verse 79:30 uses the word دَحَىٰهَآ (dahaha), commonly translated as ‘He spread it’ or ‘He stretched it’, to describe a step in the creation of the Earth. Today, it is sometimes argued that word means something to the effect of "he made it to be like an ostrich egg", the implication being that because an ostrich egg is both spherical and slightly oval-shaped, it is comparable to the shape of the Earth. Such a translation and interpretation is, however, not backed by any dictionary of classical Arabic and features in no respected translation or tafsir of the Qur'an.
{{Quote|{{Quran|79|30}}| '''Arabic:''' والارض بعد ذلك دحاها

'''Transliteration:''' ''Waal-arda baAAda thalika dahaha''

'''Literal:''' And the Earth after that He stretched/spread it.<ref name="ia-79-30">[http://islamawakened.org/Quran/3/default.htm#003_054 Islam Awakened - Quran 79:30]</ref>

'''Word by word:''' ''Waal-arda'' وَٱلْأَرْضَ (''wa'' - وَ - and; ''al'' - ٱلْ - the; ''ard'' - أَرْضَ - Earth, feminine in Arabic) ''baAAda'' بَعْدَ (after) ''thalika'' ذَٰلِكَ (that) ''dahaha'' دَحَىٰهَآ (''dahaa'' - دَحَىٰ - [he] spread, verb; ''ha'' - هَآ - her or "it" in the English translation, referring to the Earth)}}
Authoritative translations of the Qur'an do not read anything to the effect of an ostrich egg into the verse (see: {{Quran|79|30}}):{{quote ||
'''Yusuf Ali:''' And the earth, moreover, hath He extended (to a wide expanse);}}
{{quote ||
'''Pickthal:''' And after that He spread the earth,}}
{{quote ||
'''Sahih International:''' And after that He spread the earth.}}

====''Daha'' as derived from ''duhiya'' and related to ''madaahi''====
The specific argument often advanced today is that that word ''daha'' may derive from the word ''duhiya'', which is said to mean "ostrich egg".<ref>{{Citation|archiveurl=https://web.archive.org/web/20090621012849/http://www.quranicteachings.co.uk/earth-shape.htm|publisher=The Quranic Teachings|chapter=Quran and the Shape of the Earth}})</ref> The idea here is that, if these words derive from the same root, they both carry the same "signification" of oval-shaped roundness, and, since the Earth is not perfectly spherical but rather slightly oval, this common "signification" serves as evidence that Qur'anic cosmology is essentially modern. Further buttressing this claim, it is argued, are: another sense of the word ''daha'' (which means "he threw" or "he cast", referring particularly to the casting of a ''madaahi'' into its ''udhiyah'')<ref>{{Citation|title=Lane's Lexicon|chapter=دحا|page=863|url=http://ejtaal.net/aa/#hw4=h327,ll=900,ls=h5,la=h1332,sg=h374,ha=h210,br=h324,pr=h55,aan=h184,mgf=h295,vi=h142,kz=h683,mr=h221,mn=h389,uqw=h506,umr=h356,ums=h288,umj=h236,ulq=h695,uqa=h130,uqq=h101,bdw=h297,amr=h219,asb=h279,auh=h557,dhq=h174,mht=h275,msb=h79,tla=h48,amj=h228,ens=h1,mis=h633}}

See the entry on the same page for مدحاة for the specific connotation and usage of the word in this sense</ref>, the word ''madaahi'' (which refers to a small stone or similar object in the shape of a "small round cake of bread")<ref name=":0">The word مداحي is listed under the entry for مدحاة

{{Citation|title=Lane's Lexicon|chapter=مدحاة|page=863|url=http://ejtaal.net/aa/#hw4=h328,ll=900,ls=h5,la=h1338,sg=h375,ha=h210,br=h325,pr=h55,aan=h185,mgf=h296,vi=h142,kz=h686,mr=h221,mn=h391,uqw=h509,umr=h357,ums=h289,umj=h236,ulq=h696,uqa=h130,uqq=h102,bdw=h298,amr=h220,asb=h280,auh=h558,dhq=h175,mht=h276,msb=h79,tla=h48,amj=h229,ens=h1,mis=h633}}</ref>, and ''udhiyah'' (which refers to a small hole, roughly the size of the ''madaahi'', into which the ''madaahi'' is to be cast as part of a game)<ref name=":0" />. All these terms carrying a similar "signification" of roundness, it is thus concluded, make it so that the creation of the Earth described in 79:30 implies roundness.

Critics argue that such a reading is bereft of any linguistic basis or traditional and scriptural precedent.

=====Definitions=====
Almost every word in Arabic is formed of a root consisting of three letters to which have a variety of vowels, prefixes, and suffixes have been added. For instance, "ka-ta-ba" (to write) is the root for words including ''kitab'' (book), ''maktaba'' (library), ''katib'' (author), and ''maktoob'' (written).

''Duhiya'' is derived from "da-ha-wa" (دحو)<ref name="LanesLexiconDaHaWa">دحو dahawa - [http://www.studyquran.org/LaneLexicon/Volume3/00000023.pdf Lane's Lexicon] page 857</ref>, just like the verb ''dahaha'' (دَحَىٰهَآ) in 79:30 (the final -ha being a pronoun suffix meaning "it"). The word ''Duhiya'', while sometimes used in contexts relating to ostrich eggs, is not attested to actually mean "ostrich egg" in any dictionary. {{quote |[http://ejtaal.net/aa/#hw4=h328,ll=h900,ls=h5,la=1338,sg=h375,ha=h210,br=h325,pr=h55,aan=h185,mgf=h296,vi=h142,kz=h686,mr=h221,mn=h391,uqw=h509,umr=h357,ums=h289,umj=h236,ulq=h696,uqa=h130,uqq=h102,bdw=h298,amr=h220,asb=h280,auh=h558,dhq=h175,mht=h276,msb=h79,tla=h48,amj=h229,ens=h1,mis=h633 Lisan al-Arab الأُدْحِيُّ]| الأُدْحِيُّ و الإدْحِيُّ و الأُدْحِيَّة و الإدْحِيَّة و الأُدْحُوّة مَبِيض النعام في الرمل , وزنه أُفْعُول من ذلك , لأَن النعامة تَدْحُوه برِجْلها ثم تَبِيض فيه وليس للنعام عُشٌّ . و مَدْحَى النعام : موضع بيضها , و أُدْحِيُّها موضعها الذي تُفَرِّخ فيه.ِ 
'''Translation:''' Al-udhy, Al-idhy, Al-udhiyya, Al-idhiyya, Al-udhuwwa: The place in sand where an ostrich lays its egg. This is because the ostrich spreads out (تَدْحُوه, tadhooh) the earth with its feet then lays its eggs there, an ostrich doesn't have a nest.}}{{quote |[http://ejtaal.net/aa/#hw4=h328,ll=h900,ls=h5,la=1338,sg=h375,ha=h210,br=h325,pr=h55,aan=h185,mgf=h296,vi=h142,kz=h686,mr=h221,mn=h391,uqw=h509,umr=h357,ums=h289,umj=h236,ulq=h696,uqa=h130,uqq=h102,bdw=h298,amr=h220,asb=h280,auh=h558,dhq=h175,mht=h276,msb=h79,tla=h48,amj=h229,ens=h1,mis=h633 Lisan al-Arab دحا]| الدَّحْوُ البَسْطُ . دَحَا الأَرضَ يَدْحُوها دَحْواً بَسَطَها . وقال الفراء في قوله والأَرض بعد ذلك دَحاها قال : بَسَطَها ; قال شمر : وأَنشدتني أَعرابية : الحمدُ لله الذي أَطاقَا

بَنَى السماءَ فَوْقَنا طِباقَا

ثم دَحا الأَرضَ فما أَضاقا

قال شمر : وفسرته فقالت دَحَا الأَرضَ أَوْسَعَها ; وأَنشد ابن بري لزيد بن عمرو بن نُفَيْل : دَحَاها , فلما رآها اسْتَوَتْ

على الماء , أَرْسَى عليها الجِبالا

و دَحَيْتُ الشيءَ أَدْحاهُ دَحْياً بَسَطْته , لغة في دَحَوْتُه ; حكاها اللحياني . وفي حديث عليّ وصلاتهِ , اللهم دَاحِيَ المَدْحُوَّاتِ يعني باسِطَ الأَرَضِينَ ومُوَسِّعَها , ويروى ; دَاحِيَ المَدْحِيَّاتِ . و الدَّحْوُ البَسْطُ . يقال : دَحَا يَدْحُو و يَدْحَى أَي بَسَطَ ووسع 
'''Translation:''' To daha the earth: to spread it out.}}
The entry in Lisan al-Arab contains Arabic poems whose usage of the word ''daha'' serves as proof for the definition provided by the dictionary{{quote |al-Qamoos al-Muheet دَحَا| دَحَا: الله الأرضَ (يَدْحُوهَا وَيَدْحَاهَا دَحْواً) بَسَطَهة 
'''Translation:''' Allah daha the Earth: He spread it out.}}
{{quote |al-Waseet دَحَا| دَحَا الشيءَ: بسطه ووسعه. يقال: دحا اللهُ الأَرض 
'''Translation:''' To daha something: to spread it out. It is said: Allah daha the Earth.}}
{{quote |1=[http://ejtaal.net/aa/#hw4=h328,ll=900,ls=h5,la=h1338,sg=h375,ha=h210,br=h325,pr=h55,aan=h185,mgf=h296,vi=h142,kz=h686,mr=h221,mn=h391,uqw=h509,umr=h357,ums=h289,umj=h236,ulq=h696,uqa=h130,uqq=h102,bdw=h298,amr=h220,asb=h280,auh=h558,dhq=h175,mht=h276,msb=h79,tla=h48,amj=h229,ens=h1,mis=h633 Lane's Lexicon دحو]|2=Dahw (دحو)

1. Daha (., MM_b;,, 1,) first pers. Dahouth aor, yad'hoo inf. N. dahoo '''He spread; spread out, or forth; expanded; or extended;''' (S, Msb, K; ) a thing; (K; ) and, when said of God, the earth; (Fr, S, Mb, 1V; ) As also daha first pers. dahaithu (K in art. daha) aor. yaad’heae inf. n. dahae: (Msb, and K in art. dahae : ) or '''He (God) made the earth wide, or ample; as explained by an Arab woman of the desert to Sh: (TA : ) also, said of an ostrich, (S, TA,) he expanded, and made wide, (TA,) with his foot, or leg, the place where he was about to deposit his eggs: (S, TA : ) and, said of a man, he spread, &c., and made plain, even, or smooth. (TA in art. dhaha)''' . . . 
Ud'hiyy (S.K) (Originally od'huwa of the measure Uf’ool from dhahaithu but said in the S to be of that measure from dhahouthu the dial. var. dhahaithu not being there mentioned,) and and id’hiyy and Ud’hiyyath and ud’huwwath (K) '''The place of the laying''' of eggs, (S, K,) and of the hatching thereof, (S,) , of the ostrich, (S. K. ) '''in the sand; (K; ) because that bird expands it, and makes it wide''', with its foot, or leg; for the ostrich has no (nest such as is termed) Ush (S: ) pl. Adahin (TA in the present art.) and Adahee (i. e., if not a mistranscription, Adahiyyu agreeably with the sing.): (TA in art. dhaha and mudhhiyya (likewise) signifies '''the place of the eggs of the ostrich. (S.)''' . . .}}The modern usage of words derived from the same root as ''daha'', as found in Hans Wehr, is also strongly indicative of the word's original meaning.
{{Quote|1=[http://ejtaal.net/aa/#hw4=328,ll=h900,ls=h5,la=h1338,sg=h375,ha=h210,br=h325,pr=h55,aan=h185,mgf=h296,vi=h142,kz=h686,mr=h221,mn=h391,uqw=h509,umr=h357,ums=h289,umj=h236,ulq=h696,uqa=h130,uqq=h102,bdw=h298,amr=h220,asb=h280,auh=h558,dhq=h175,mht=h276,msb=h79,tla=h48,amj=h229,ens=h1,mis=h633 Hans Wehr دحو]|2=(da-ha-wa) ''daha'' daha: u (dahw) to spread out, flatten, level, unroll

''udhiya'' udhiya: ostrich nest in the ground
:''midha'' midhan: pl. ''midaah'' madahin roller, steam roller}}

====Dahaha used for a flat earth in pre-Islamic poetry====

As discussed in more detail above in the section [[Islamic_Views_on_the_Shape_of_the_Earth#Qur.27an_79:30_-_daha_.28.22spread_out_wide.22.29| Qur'an 79:30 - daha ("spread out wide")]], a pre-Islamic (or at least very early) arabic poem attributed to Zayd b. 'Amr used daḥāhā "He spread it out" to very explicitly describe the spreading of a flat earth.

{{Quote|1=Poem attributed to Zayd b. 'Amr, as found for example in Ibn Al Jawzi's Al Muntazam,<ref name="IbnalJawzi" /> and Ibn Ishaq's biography of Muhammad (as translated from Ibn Ishaq by Guillaume<ref name="Guillaume102" /> and transliterated by Bravmann<ref name="Bravmann" />)|2=دحاها فلما رآها استوت ... عَلَى الماء أرسى عليها الجبالا

daḥāhā falammā raʾādā istawat ʿalā l-māʾi arsā ʿalayhā l-jibālā

'''He spread it out''' and when He saw that it was settled upon the waters, He fixed the mountains upon it}}

====Tradition and scripture====
Tafsirs explain that this verse describes the Earth to be flat. A brief example of this is found in Tafsir al-Jalalayn. The word translated "He made it flat" is a verbal form of the word for carpet used in {{Quran|71|19}} discussed above, meaning to spread out, expand, stretch forth.
{{Quote|1=[https://www.altafsir.com/Tafasir.asp?tMadhNo=0&tTafsirNo=74&tSoraNo=79&tAyahNo=30&tDisplay=yes&UserProfile=0&LanguageId=2 Tafsir al-Jalalayn 79:30] (see here for the [https://tafsir.app/jalalayn/79/30 Arabic])|2=(and after that He spread out the earth) He made it flat for it had been created before the heaven but without having been spread out;
}}
There is no mention of the Earth being shaped like an ostrich egg in scripture, however the word "ostrich egg" does appear in a hadith in Ibn Majah, and nothing approximating the words ''dahaha'' or ''duhiya'' is used. Instead, an ostrich egg is referred to as بَيْضِ النَّعَامِ (''bayd al-ni'aam''), the first word (''bayd'') meaning "egg" and the second word (''al-ni'aam'') meaning "the ostrich"; the positioning and grammatical qualities of these two words render the phrase possessive, bringing about the meaning "egg of the ostrich" or, more colloquially, "an ostrich egg".
{{Quote|{{Ibn Majah||4|25|3086}}; See more examples [https://sunnah.com/search?q=ostrich+egg here (with translations)] and [https://sunnah.one/?s=%D8%A8%D9%8A%D8%B6+%D8%A7%D9%84%D9%86%D8%B9%D8%A7%D9%85 here (Arabic only)]|
حَدَّثَنَا مُحَمَّدُ بْنُ مُوسَى الْقَطَّانُ الْوَاسِطِيُّ، حَدَّثَنَا يَزِيدُ بْنُ مَوْهَبٍ، حَدَّثَنَا مَرْوَانُ بْنُ مُعَاوِيَةَ الْفَزَارِيُّ، حَدَّثَنَا عَلِيُّ بْنُ عَبْدِ الْعَزِيزِ، حَدَّثَنَا حُسَيْنٌ الْمُعَلِّمُ، عَنْ أَبِي الْمُهَزِّمِ، عَنْ أَبِي هُرَيْرَةَ، أَنَّ رَسُولَ اللَّهِ ـ صلى الله عليه وسلم ـ قَالَ فِي بَيْضِ النَّعَامِ يُصِيبُهُ الْمُحْرِمُ ‏ "‏ ثَمَنُهُ ‏"‏ ‏

It was narrated from Abu Hurairah that the Messenger of Allah (ﷺ) said, concerning '''an ostrich egg''' (بَيْضِ النَّعَامِ) taken by a Muhrim:
“Its cost (must be paid as a penalty).”
}}

====Oblate vs prolate spheroids (earth vs egg shape)====
[[File:oblate-prolate-ostrich.jpg|An oblate spheroid (top left), a prolate spheroid (bottom left), and an ostrich egg, which is a prolate spheroid, no matter its orientation. Spheres, oblate spheroids, and prolate spheroids are all fundamentally different shapes defined by different mathematical equations.|alt=|thumb]]

In addition to the disagreement of definitions available in dictionaries, translations, and tafsirs with the definitions required to justify this modern reinterpretation, neither of the connections attempted ("ostrich egg" and ''madaahi'') accurately denote or imply the shape of the Earth.

An ostrich egg is a prolate spheroid (a sphere-like shape with pointed poles) like most eggs. This is fundamentally different to the shape of the Earth, which is a very slightly oblate spheroid (a sphere-like shape with flattened poles). The Earth is 0.3% wider at its equator than it is tall between its poles.<ref>{{Citation|title=Shape and Size of the Earth|publisher=University of Hawaii Center for Aerospace Education|publication-date=2010|author=Joseph Ciotti|url=http://aerospace.wcc.hawaii.edu/Curriculum_Voyagers/shape.html|archiveurl=https://web.archive.org/web/20191031005204/http://aerospace.wcc.hawaii.edu/Curriculum_Voyagers/shape.html}}</ref> This is not merely a matter of perspective or orientation. An oblate spheroid cannot be made prolate simply by rotating it.

The shape of the ''madaahi'', whether in the form of a stone or some other object, is said to be like a "small round cake of bread" or a "قرصة".<ref name=":0" /> Such cakes of bread are defined as being "very small", "of a round, flattened form", like the apparent "disk of the sun"<ref>{{Citation|title=Lane's Lexicon|page=2572|chapter=قرض|url=http://ejtaal.net/aa/#hw4=h898,ll=2609,ls=h8,la=h3587,sg=h848,ha=h610,br=h777,pr=h126,aan=h519,mgf=h722,vi=h296,kz=h2114,mr=h532,mn=h1107,uqw=h1300,umr=h875,ums=h734,umj=h652,ulq=h1407,uqa=h345,uqq=h305,bdw=h711,amr=h517,asb=h787,auh=h1286,dhq=h452,mht=h732,msb=h197,tla=h84,amj=h640,ens=h1,mis=h633}}</ref>, and, on the whole, far more similar in shape to discs or extremely-oblate spheroids than they are to the only very slightly oblate Earth.

===Qur'an 55:33 - ''aqṭāri'' (regions of the heavens and earth, said to mean diameters)===
Verse 55:33 asserts that men and Jinn may not pass beyond the heavens and earth without Allah's authority. It contains a word typically translated as "regions" or "zones". This aligns with late antique notions of a heavenly firmament, including other Quranic verses which for example describe the heaven as a guarded ceiling ({{Quran|21|32}}) or include imagery of a stairway to heaven ({{Quran|6|35}}).

{{Quote|{{Quran|55|33}}|O company of jinn and mankind, if you are able to pass beyond the regions of the heavens and the earth, then pass. You will not pass except by authority [from Allah].}}

In modern times, some Islamic websites have claimed that the word here translated "regions" actually means "diameters" in this verse, supposedly implying a spherical earth (not to mention spherical heavens). However, critics have pointed out that this claim is based on a post-classical definition. Even without the anachronism, "diameters" would just as well refer to the furthest reaches of a flat Earth and heavenly dome.

The word in Q 55:33 [https://quranx.com/Analysis/55.33#word_9 is the plural noun aqṭāri] (with a genitive 'i' suffix). The same word (with possessive suffix) appears as aqṭārihā in {{Quran|33|14}}, "If the enemy had entered from all sides". Lane's lexicon says it means a side, part, portion, quarter, tract, or region of the heavens and earth. Another meaning was the diameter of a circle, but Lane notes that this post-dates the start of the classical period.

{{Quote|Lane's Lexicon on aqṭār <ref>aqṭār أَقْطَارٌ - [https://www.studyquran.org/LaneLexicon/Volume7/00000070.pdf Lane's Lexicon page 2542] and [https://www.studyquran.org/LaneLexicon/Volume7/00000071.pdf 2543]</ref>|قُطْرٌ '''A side, part, portion, quarter, tract, or region, (S, Msb, K,) of the heavens, and of the earth;''' (TA;) as also قُتْرٌ (S, K, art. قتر,) and قُتُرٌ: (K, ibid.) either side of a man: '''pl. أَقْطَارٌ.''' (S, Msb, K.) You say أَلْقَاهُ على احد قُطْرَيْهِ He threw him down on one of his sides. (S, * Msb, * K, * TA.) And لَا أَدْرِى عَلَى أَىِّ قُطْرَيْهِ يَقَعُ [I know not on which of his two sides he will fall; i. e., what will be his final state]. (JK.) and the pl. signifies The outer parts or regions (نَوَاحٍ) of a horse, and of a camel: the prominent parts of a horse, such as the withers (الكَاثِبَة) and the rump: the prominent parts of the upper portions of a camel, and of a mountain. (TA.) قُطْرُ دَائِرَةٍ '''[The diameter of a circle;]''' a straight line extending from one side of a circle to the other side so that its middle falls upon the centre (KT.) '''[But this is app. post-classical.]'''}}

===Plate tectonics===
One modern Islamic interpretation for verses which mention the spreading of the earth is that Allah is referring to plate tectonics (formerly known as the theory of continental drift). Critics note numerous flaws with this interpretation.

Tectonic history is largely characterised by a cycle of repeated [[w:Supercontinent cycle|supercontinent]] formation and breakup, and not a one-off "spreading of the earth" event, as it is sometimes misrepresented on Islamic websites.

Descriptions of the earth as a bed (20:53 and the other mahdan verses) or carpet (71:19), or the use of verbs for the spreading of such an item (51:48) or stretching it out (13:3 and other verses which use madad), spreading to make it wide (79:30) and flat (88:20), do not remotely sound anything like the process of plate tectonics.

Moreover, the tectonic plate interpretation is reliant on the "spread" verbs in such verses, divorcing them artificially from the nouns which describe the earth as something which was laid out (like a bed or carpet). Yet these are obviously all part of a connected imagery.

It is further notable that verses such as {{Quran-range|88|17|20}} assume that the 7th century listeners are aware of what is being referred to ("Do they not look..."), which can hardly be plate tectonics. Indeed, the earth appears essentially spread out and flat to a scientifically unaware observer. The Judeo-Christian tradition with which the Quran frequently assumes its listeners are familiar uses similar language (see [https://www.biblegateway.com/passage/?search=Isaiah%2042%3A5&version=NIV Isaiah 42:5] and [https://www.biblegateway.com/passage/?search=Psalm%20136%3A6&version=NIV Psalms 136:6]).

Perhaps most importantly, the spreading out of a flat earth makes sense as a beneficial act of creation for mankind. But it is far less obvious how the process of plate tectonics compares as the same kind of direct benefit as the creation of tracts, rivers and fruits of the Earth mentioned in the same verses. Finally, all these things are consistently described as creation events using verbs in the past tense in Arabic (not always clear in translations), yet all are ongoing processes to this day.

===The Earth is flat, but only from a human perspective===
{{Quote|{{citation| url=https://web.archive.org/web/20010427234331/http://www.binbaz.org.sa/RecDisplay.asp?f=n-04-1407-0300007.htm#| title=هل الأرض كروية أم سطحية؟| publisher=Bin Baz official website| author=Abd al-Aziz ibn Baz| trans_title=Is the Earth spherical or flat?| date=accessed April 27th, 2001}}|'''Translation of audio:''' According to the people of knowledge the Earth is round. Indeed, Ibn Hazm and other scholars have declared that there is consensus on this matter among the people of knowledge This means that all of the surface of the Earth is connected together so that the form of the planet is like a sphere.

Nevertheless, Allah has spread out the Earth's surface in relation to us, and He has placed upon it firm mountains, the seas, and life as a mercy for us. For this reason, Allah said: "And (do they not look) at the Earth, how it was spread out flat (sutihat)." [Sûrah al-Ghâshiyah:20]

Therefore, the '''Earth has been made flat for us in regards to our relationship to it''' to facilitate our lives upon it and our comfort. The fact that it is round does not prevent that its surface has been made flat for us. This is because something that is round and very large, then its surface will become very vast or broad, having a flat appearance to those who are upon it."}}

The above fatwa, understanding the statements of scripture to simply describe reality as it is perceived by the unaided human eye, represents another common trend among Islamic scholars today. The example of Ibn Baz's fatwa is especially pertinent since he once maintained that the Earth was flat<ref>{{Citation|author=Robert Lacey|publisher=Penguin|publication-date=2009|pages=89-90|url=https://www.google.com/books/edition/Inside_the_Kingdom/VEYsi7ZmtywC?hl=en&gbpv=0|title=Inside the Kingdom: Kings, Clerics, Modernists, Terrorists, and the Struggle for Saudi Arabia}}{{Quote||. . . soon afterward the sheikh gave an interview in which he mused on how we operate day to day on the basis that the ground beneath us is flat, even though science asserts, against our physical experience, that the world is spherical.
“As I remember from when I could see,” he said, “it seemed to be flat.” 
It was an honest expression of paradox, particularly moving from a man who had been blind most of his life, and it led him to the belief that he was not afraid to voice and for which he became notorious—'''Bin Baz believed that the earth was flat'''.
At least one senior member of the ulema reproved Bin Baz for his embarrassing assertion, which radicals had seized on to satirize the Wahhabi establishment as “members of the Flat Earth Society.” But the sheikh was unrepentant. If Muslims chose to believe the world was round, that was their business, he said, and he would not quarrel with them religiously. But he was inclined to trust what he felt beneath his feet rather than the statements of scientists he did not know: he would go on believing the earth to be flat until he was presented with convincing evidence to the contrary.}}</ref> and, in a fatwa still hosted on his website, asserts that there is no convincing evidence that the sun is larger than the Earth<ref>{{Citation|publisher=Bin Baz official website|author=Abd al-Aziz ibn Baz|title=مدى صحة قول من قال: بأن الشمس أكبر من الأرض|trans_title=How true is the saying: the sun is larger than the Earth?|url=https://binbaz.org.sa/fatwas/1770/%D9%85%D8%AF%D9%89-%D8%B5%D8%AD%D8%A9-%D9%82%D9%88%D9%84-%D9%85%D9%86-%D9%82%D8%A7%D9%84-%D8%A8%D8%A7%D9%86-%D8%A7%D9%84%D8%B4%D9%85%D8%B3-%D8%A7%D9%83%D8%A8%D8%B1-%D9%85%D9%86-%D8%A7%D9%84%D8%A7%D8%B1%D8%B6|archiveurl=https://web.archive.org/web/20201214031427/https://binbaz.org.sa/fatwas/1770/%D9%85%D8%AF%D9%89-%D8%B5%D8%AD%D8%A9-%D9%82%D9%88%D9%84-%D9%85%D9%86-%D9%82%D8%A7%D9%84-%D8%A8%D8%A7%D9%86-%D8%A7%D9%84%D8%B4%D9%85%D8%B3-%D8%A7%D9%83%D8%A8%D8%B1-%D9%85%D9%86-%D8%A7%D9%84%D8%A7%D8%B1%D8%B6}}{{Quote||وأما دعوى بعض الفلكيين أن الشمس أكبر من السماوات وأكبر من الأرض إلى غير هذا فهي دعوى مجردة لا نعلم صحتها ولا نعلم دليلاً عليها فهي آية عظيمة، أما القول بأنها أكبر من السماوات والأرض فهذا شيء يحتاج إلى دليل، هذه مجرد دعوى كما يقول العلماء، هذه مجرد دعاوى ليس عليها دليل واضح فيما نعلم. '''Translation:''' As for the claim of some astronomers that the sun is greater than the heavens and greater than the earth to other than this, it is an abstract claim that we do not know its validity and we do not know of evidence for, it is a great sign. Just claims that do not have clear evidence for as far as we know.}}</ref>. Despite the anti-modern nature of views he once held and even, in some cases, apparently held until his passing in 1999, Ibn Baz eventually revised his literal reading of the verses describing the creation and nature of the Earth. Such changes in readings of scripture are characteristic of a large subset of Islamic scholars.

This modern reinterpretation of Qur'anic cosmology significantly aligns with modern science and historiography insofar as it understands the intent of the Qur'an to be based on the worldview of the 7th-century Arabian city where it is said to have been produced - that is, as far as Muhammad and his companions were concerned and could tell, the world was indeed flat, and this is the same perspective assumed by the Qur'an. The Qur'an and its first audience did not know the Earth was spherical and did not say as much. This reading of the Qur'an also benefits from not relying on faulty linguistic, historic, and geometric ideas in order to force fit a round earth reading into the verses. This view is the most common amongst educated Muslims today and is likely to predominate going forward.

On the other hand, critics, in line with academic scholars such as those quoted earlier in this article, argue that the context of most of the relevant verses is expressly the creation of the heavens and the earth and that these are therefore statements about the earth as a whole, even if the main purpose of the verses are to remind the audience how Allah has thereby made the earth traversible and hospitable to humans.

If the Quranic author was describing the earth only as perceived from a 'human' or 'local' perspective, critics note that he could easily have stated so explicitly, or with further context: for example, 'see how the Earth ''appears'' spread out like a carpet/bed for you to live on safely', or 'the ground ''in front of you'' is spread out'. And/or ignore flat references, focusing on other aspects of nature's beauty and benefits to make the same point, without denoting a cosmological view that has been directly and repeatedly used by devout Islamic scholars throughout history to argue against a round earth.<ref>Read on the debate within Islamic authorities between those following the traditional cosmological view of the Quran verses, against those incorporating Greek science and philosophy in the first five centuries of Islam (in which the debate was not settled in) in: ''[https://www.academia.edu/93485940/Against_Ptolemy_Cosmography_in_Early_Kal%C4%81m_2022_ Against Ptolemy? Cosmography in Early Kalām (2022)].'' Omar Anchassi. ''Journal of the American Oriental Society'', ''142''(4), 851–881</ref>

==See Also==

{{Hub4|Cosmology|Cosmology}}

* [[Scientific Errors in the Quran]]
* [[Geocentrism and the Quran]]
* [[The Islamic Whale]]

{{Translation-links-english|[[Le Coran et la Terre plate|French]], [[Placatá Země a Korán|Czech]]}}

==External Links==

* [https://www.answering-islam.org/Quran/Science/seven_earths.html Qur'an & Science Problem: The Seven Earths - Their Existence and their Location - answering-Islam.org]
* [https://theislamissue.wordpress.com/2019/03/22/scholarly-consensus-of-a-round-earth/ Scholarly consensus of a round earth? - The Islam Issue]

==References==
{{Reflist|30em}}
[[Category:Islam and Science]]
[[Category:Qur'an]]
[[Category:Dhul-Qarnayn]]
[[Category:Cosmology]]
[[bg:Плоската земя и Корана]]
[[Category:Criticism of Islam]]
[[Category:Apologetics]]
[[ar:وجهات_النظر_الإسلامية_على_شكل_الأرض]]

User:CPO675/Sandbox 1

2026-02-08T21:09:02Z

CPO675: /* The Highest Horizon */

== Flat Earth - Tafsirs ==

=== The Highest Horizon ===
The Qu'ran says Muhammad was in the highest horizon ''bil-ufuqi<ref>افق - [https://lexicon.quranic-research.net/data/01_A/103_Afq.html Lane's lexicon Classical Arabic Dictionary root: hamza fā qāf (أ ف ق)]

Horizon ''ufuq'' (أُفُق) [https://lexicon.quranic-research.net/pdf/Page_0068.pdf Lane's Lexicon p.68]

Horizon ''ufuq'' (أُفُق) [https://lexicon.quranic-research.net/pdf/Page_0069.pdf Lane's Lexicon p.69] </ref>l-aʿlā''<ref>Lanes Lexicon Classical Arabic Dictionary Root: [https://lexicon.quranic-research.net/data/18_E/190_Elw.html ʿayn lām wāw (ع ل و)]

(l-a)ʿlā [https://lexicon.quranic-research.net/pdf/Page_2142.pdf Lanes Lexicon p.2142], [https://lexicon.quranic-research.net/pdf/Page_2143.pdf Lanes Lexicon p.2143]

</ref>. Typically taken as referring to him receiving knowledge there as part of his [[Buraq#The Night Journey (al-Isra wal-Mi'raj)|night journey]].
{{Quote|{{Quran|53|7}}|possessed of sound judgement. He settled, while he (was) in the horizon - the highest.}}See also: {{Quran|81|23}}

On a round Earth, there is no such place as an objective highest horizon, as once you move towards the perceived horizon (the furthest place you can see where the land and sky appear to meet in the distance)<ref>[https://dictionary.cambridge.org/dictionary/english/horizon Horizon Definition] Cambridge Dictionary</ref> the view simply moves further back as you circle around the earth, never actually being reached. So some classical Islamic exegetes have taken this to be the place where the sun rises from, in the seventh heaven, or where it reaches the Earth,<ref>E.g. [https://quranx.com/Tafsir/Jalal/53.7 Tafsir al-Jalalayn on verse Q53:7] by Al-Mahalli (d. 1459 CE) and Al-Suyuti (d. 1505 CE) and the famous pseudepigrapha [https://quranx.com/Tafsir/Abbas/53.7 Tanwîr al-Miqbâs min Tafsîr Ibn ‘Abbâs on verse Q53:7]</ref> which is only possible on a flat Earth.

== The Historical Jesus ==

=== Other Traditions ===

==== Intro ====

Alongside the main consensus from Biblical Scholars/Historians that Jesus was an eschatological preacher in the early first century AD who believed the Earth would end during his time (and therefore couldn't be the Muslim Jesus), there are many other of the most considered authentic teachings of Jesus that clash with Islam; in contrast with the Qur'anic principle of Messenger Uniformitarianism; where all messengers preach essentially the same thing with only minor variations.<ref>Durie, Mark. ''The Qur’an and Its Biblical Reflexes: Investigations into the Genesis of a Religion (pp. 135-142) (Kindle Edition pp. 281-294)''. 5.3 Messenger Uniformitarianism. Lexington Books. 2018.</ref>
{{Quote|{{Quran|41|43}}|Not is said to you except what was said to the Messengers before you. Indeed, your Lord (is) Possessor (of) forgiveness, and Possessor (of) penalty painful.}}{{Quote|{{Quran|2|285}}|The Apostle and the faithful have faith in what has been sent down to him from his Lord. Each [of them] has faith in Allah, His angels, His scriptures and His apostles. [They declare,] ‘We make no distinction between any of His apostles.’ And they say, ‘We hear and obey. Our Lord, forgive us, and toward You is the return.’}}

{{Quote|{{Quran|17|77}}|“This was the sunnah [customary way] of Our messengers whom We sent before you, and you will find no change in Our sunnah”}}cf. {{Quran|6|112}}, {{Quran|35|43}}, {{Quran|22|78}}.

Other than being explicitly told that messengers bring the same message from Allah, Durie (2018) notes the Qur'an repeatedly states that Muhammad was sent to confirm the revelations given to earlier messengers (Q2:91, 97; Q3:3, 50; Q5:48; Q12:111; Q16:43–44; Q35:31), just as each prophet before him confirmed those who came earlier. For example, Jesus (ʿĪsa) confirmed the Torah of Moses (Mūsa) (Q5:46), and the Qurʾan confirms the scriptures revealed to previous prophets (Q4:47). In this way, Muhammad’s role continues the same pattern of reaffirming earlier divine messages rather than introducing a completely new one.<ref>Durie, Mark. ''The Qur’an and Its Biblical Reflexes: Investigations Into the Genesis of a Religion.'' pp.140</ref>

{{Quote|Durie, Mark. The Qur'an and it's Biblical Reflexes. pp.140|• It is also explicitly asserted that messengers bring the same message
from Alla¯h: “Nothing is said to you but what has already been said to
messengers before you” (Q41:43; Q22:78) and “we make no distinction
between any of them” (Q2:136). They also preached the same dīn “commandment” or “religion” (Q42:13; cf. Q3:84; Q4:150), which is referred
to as the “religion of Ibra¯hīm” (Q2:130; Q4:125; Q16:121–23). The
validating function of this idea becomes clear when it is applied against
a group of Jews who reject the concept of the “same message” because
it would mean validating the Messenger. These Jews hold to their own
faith, saying “we believe in what has been sent down on us,” but they
reject the Messenger, or “anything after that” (Q2:91). The ruling against
these Jews is that because they reject the Messenger, they are disbelievers,
rejecting “what All a¯ h has sent down” (Q2:91).31 The idea of the “same message” is further reinforced when the Qurʾan repeatedly states that the Messenger was only sent to confirm what was sent down by previous
messengers (Q2:91, 97; Q3:3, 50; Q5:48; Q12:111; Q16:43–44; Q35:31),
just as previous messengers had done for messengers that preceded them,
for example, ʿĪsa¯ “confirmed” the Tawra¯ h of Mūsa¯(Q5:46), and the Qurʾan
confirms the book(s) sent by previous prophets (Q4:47), just as the Messenger has been doing in his turn.}}
The large differences between the New Testament / Gospels (and by extension the Christian Jesus), and the [[Isa al-Masih (Jesus Christ)|Muslim Jesus,]] are clear to anyone who has read both the Qur'an and NT; with the Qur'an having it's own spin on him and taking many aspects from apocrypha considered inauthentic by NT scholars,<ref>Sanders, E.. ''The Historical Figure of Jesus (pp. 78-79)''. Penguin Books Ltd. Kindle Edition.

..(Gnosticism was a world view that held everything material to be evil; the god who created the world was a bad god, and the creation was wicked. Gnostics who were also Christians held that the good God had sent Jesus to redeem people’s souls, not their bodies, and that Jesus was not a real human being. The Christians who objected to these views finally declared them heretical.) ''I share the general scholarly view that very, very little in the apocryphal gospels could conceivably go back to the time of Jesus. They are legendary and mythological. Of all the apocryphal material, only some of the sayings in the Gospel of Thomas are worth consideration.'' This does not mean that we can make a clean division: the historical four gospels versus the legendary apocryphal gospels. There are legendary traits in the four gospels in the New Testament, and there is also a certain amount of newly created material (as we saw just above)..</ref> and [[Parallels Between the Qur'an and Late Antique Judeo-Christian Literature|later Christian thought/writings]], and have lead to many Muslims arguing for biblical corruption based on textual and theological grounds [though textual don't affect most early & authentic traditions] in general, which is a disputed idea in traditional Islamic thought (cite - Reynolds article. See also: [[Corruption of Previous Scriptures]] & [[Qur'an, Hadith and Scholars:Corruption of Previous Scriptures]])

Historians have searched for a summary of some of the most likely authentic traditions from Biblical historians (using historical-critical methods not Christian or Muslim theologians - more likely to be true and not taken from bias or proving or disproving Islam but historical context, widespread across sources, early - cite Allison explanation - Why - different to time and context, unlikely to be fabricated later by Christians, across all early sources etc.) are shown here as an example of the clashes. [Point: not arguing against Christian Jesus - but secular historians one]

==== Examples ====
{{Quote|Dale C. Allison Jr.. The Historical Christ and the Theological Jesus (Kindle Locations 822-836). Kindle Edition.|2=Given that we typically remember the outlines of an event or the general purport of a conversation rather than the particulars and that we extract patterns and meaning from our memories, it makes little sense to open the quest for Jesus by evaluating individual items with our criteria, in the hope that some bits preserve pristine memory. We should rather be looking for repeating patterns and contemplating the big picture. true. We should trust first, if we are to trust at all, what is most likely to be trustworthy. Although we may, after reading Thucydides, be confident that there was a Peloponnesian War, we may well wonder about many of the details of his account.

The larger the generalization and the more data upon which it is based, the greater our confidence; the more specific the detail and the fewer the data supporting it, the more room we have for doubt. With regard to the sources for Jesus, the traditional criteria of authenticity privilege the parts over the whole. It seems more prudent to privilege generalizations drawn from the whole than to concentrate upon one individual item after another. As a demonstration of how this works in practice, consider the following traditions:

• Jesus prohibited divorce: 1 Cor. 7:10; Mark 10:2-9; Luke 16:18. [Qur'an divorce rules - https://wikiislam.net/wiki/Khula] 

• Jesus sent forth missionaries without staff, food, or money: Matt. 10:9-10; Mark 6:8-9; Luke 10:4.

• Jesus instructed missionaries to get their living by the gospel: 1 Cor. 9:14; Matt. 10:10; Luke 10:7.

• Jesus commanded loving and doing good to enemies: Matt. 5:38-48; Luke 6:27-36. [Qur'an do not be merciful to unbelievers https://wikiislam.net/wiki/Qur%27an,_Hadith_and_Scholars:Non-Muslims & https://wikiislam.net/wiki/Kafir_(Infidel)#Guidelines_on_how_to_deal_with_disbelievers Quran 48:29 ]

• Jesus forbade judging others: Matt. 7:1-2; Luke 6:37-38.

• Jesus asked a prospective follower not to bury his father: Matt. 8:21-22; 22; Luke 959-60.

• Jesus spoke of hating one's father and mother: Matt. 10:37; Luke 14:26; Gospel of Thomas 55, 101. [respect parents - too tenuous]

• Jesus enjoined disciples to take up a cross: Matt. 10:38; Mark 8:34; Luke 14:27.

• Jesus enjoined unlimited forgiveness: Matt. 18:21-22; Luke 17:3-4. [forgiveness against shirk - Qur'an says no Q4:48 and 4:116. ]

• Jesus exhorted hearers to lose their lives in order to save them: Matt. 10:39; Mark 8:35; Luke 17:33.

• Jesus called people away from their livelihoods: Mark 1:16-20; 2:14. [?]

• Jesus figuratively demanded violent removal of hand, foot, and eye: Mark 9:42-48.

• Jesus asked a wealthy man to relinquish his money: Mark 10:17-27. [bring in wealth inequality section of Islam darajat - here]

• Jesus forbade taking oaths: Matt. 5:33-37. [https://www.iium.edu.my/deed/lawbase/risalah_maliki/book31.html#:~:text=Anyone%20who%20swears%20an%20oath,Oneness%2C%20timelessness%20and%20existence.%5D]

• Jesus commanded money to be lent without interest: Matt. 5:42; Gospel of Thomas 95.

• Jesus called some to a life without marriage: Matt. 19:11-12. [Qur'an criticism of monasticism]

• Jesus asked a prospective follower not to say farewell to his parents: Luke 9:61-62. [respect parents?]

• Jesus asked his disciples to renounce all of their possessions: Luke 14:33"}}
<nowiki>--------------------------------------------------</nowiki>

[ highlight those being spoken about in italics or bold]

Professor Allison (2009) notes that Jesus' banning divorce was an important teaching that <s>stood out</s> to early Christians, [https://www.biblegateway.com/passage/?search=Luke%2016%3A18&version=NIV Luke 16:18], [https://www.biblegateway.com/passage/?search=1%20Corinthians%207%3A10-16&version=NIV 1 Corinthians 7:10-16], [https://www.biblegateway.com/passage/?search=Mark%2010%3A2-9&version=NIV Mark 10:2-9], in contrast to Judaism ([https://www.biblegateway.com/passage/?search=Deuteronomy%2024%3A1-4&version=NIV Deuteronomy 24:1-4]) and Islam e.g. Quran 2:228-232, Q65:1-7, (Q4:19 https://quranx.com/hadiths/4.19 & Q4:35), Q33:49 )

He notes that Jesus commanded loving and doing good to enemies in [https://www.biblegateway.com/passage/?search=Matthew%205%3A38-48&version=NIV Matt. 5:38-48]; [https://www.biblegateway.com/passage/?search=Luke%206%3A27-36&version=NIV Luke 6:27-36], while the Qur'an generally advises treating other Muslims well, it specifically states not to be merciful to unbelievers Q48:29. [ For more examples of not being merciful to unbelievers, let alone 'enemies' see: '''[[Qur'an, Hadith and Scholars:Non-Muslims|https://wikiislam.net/wiki/Qur%27an,_Hadith_and_Scholars:Non-Muslims]] & [[Kafir (Infidel)#Guidelines%20on%20how%20to%20deal%20with%20disbelievers|https://wikiislam.net/wiki/Kafir_(Infidel)#Guidelines_on_how_to_deal_with_disbelievers]] Quran 48:29 ]'''

• Jesus enjoined unlimited forgiveness: [https://www.biblegateway.com/passage/?search=Matthew%2018%3A21-22&version=NIV Matt. 18:21-22]; [https://www.biblegateway.com/passage/?search=Luke%2017%3A3-4&version=NIV Luke 17:3-4]. However the Qur'an distinctly says there is no forgiveness for anyone committing shirk (ascribing partners to God) in {{Quran|4|48}} and {{Quran|4|116}}.

He notes Jesus called some to a life without marriage: [https://www.biblegateway.com/passage/?search=Matthew%2019%3A11-12&version=NIV Matt. 19:11-12], while the Qur'an promotes it as a virtue encouraging those to do so.

Marriage is a virtue https://www.getquranic.com/marriage-in-islam-8-quranic-verses-about-marriage/

{{Quote|{{Quran|24|32}}|Marry off those who are single among you, and the upright among your male and female slaves. If they are poor, Allah will enrich them out of His grace, and Allah is all-bounteous, all-knowing.}}

And criticizes monasticism/monks, with celibacy and no marriage being a key aspect<ref>[https://www.britannica.com/topic/monasticism Monasticism] | religion | Britannica Entry</ref> in general

{{Quote|Reynolds, Gabriel Said. Christianity and the Qur'an: The Rise of Islam in Christian Arabia (pp. 131-132). Yale University Press. Kindle Edition.|These verses critical of monks are often read together with Q 57:27, which, while praising certain positive qualities of Christians, also seems to accuse Christians of “innovating” monasticism: Then We sent, following in their footsteps, Our Messengers; and We sent, following, Jesus son of Mary, and gave unto him the Gospel. And We set in the hearts of those who followed him tenderness and mercy. And monasticism they invented—We did not prescribe it for them—only seeking the good pleasure of God; but they observed it not as it should be observed. So We gave those of them who believed their wage; and many of them are ungodly.}}

Criticism of monasticism (https://www.britannica.com/topic/monasticism) - lack of marriage for monks (though admittedly also praises monks in general elsewhere pp130-132)<ref>Reynolds, Gabriel Said. ''Christianity and the Qur'an: The Rise of Islam in Christian Arabia (pp. 130-132).'' Yale University Press. Kindle Edition.</ref>

{{Quote|{{Quran|57|27}}|Then We sent on their footsteps Our Messengers and We followed with Isa, son (of) Maryam, and We gave him the Injeel. And We placed in (the) hearts (of) those who followed him compassion and mercy. But monasticism they innovated - not We prescribed it for them - only seeking (the) pleasure (of) Allah, but not they observed it (with) right observance. So We gave those who believed among them their reward, but most of them (are) defiantly disobediently.}}

<nowiki>-----------------------------------------------------------------</nowiki>

==== Father-son relationship ====
{{Quote|Dale C. Allison Jr.. The Historical Christ and the Theological Jesus (Kindle Location 841-848). Kindle Edition.|2=Working through the tradition in the way I suggest leads to a large number of conclusions. Jesus must have been an exorcist who interpreted his ministry in terms of Satan's downfall. He must have thought highly of John the Baptist. He must have repeatedly spoken of God as Father. [Durie differences in metaphor and understanding of relationship from Hebrew to Arab society = markedly different] He must have composed parables. He must have come into conflict with religious authorities. All of this may seem obvious, but the procedure is not trite, for it also issues in some controversial verdicts. As I have argued elsewhere, for example, ample, the quantity of conventional eschatological material in our primary sources almost necessitates that Jesus was an eschatological prophet.' The reconstruction of Robert Funk and the Jesus Seminar is for this reason alone problematic. Even more controversial is what my approach leads me to infer about Jesus' self-conception. Consider these Synoptic materials:

• Jesus said that the Son of man will return on the clouds of heaven and send angels to gather the elect from throughout the world: Mark 13:26-27; cf. 14:62; Matt. 10:23 (allusions to Daniel 7's depiction of the last judgment are clear). [the son of man plays no part in Islam]}}Allison (2009) notes that Jesus must have repeatedly referred to God as 'father', a way also used by many ancient Jews to describe their relationship to god, also found in the old testament with different metaphorical meanings<ref>Pennington, J.T. "Chapter Nine. God As Father In The Old Testament And Second Temple Literature". ''Heaven and Earth in the Gospel of Matthew''. Leiden, The Netherlands: Brill, 2007. <nowiki>https://doi.org/10.1163/ej.9789004162051.i-399.57</nowiki> Web.</ref> and Talmudic writings with paternal imagery. <ref>Knobnya, S.. (2011). ''God the Father in the Old Testament. European Journal of Theology.'' 20. 139-148. </ref><ref>[https://www.myjewishlearning.com/article/fatherhood-of-god/ Fatherhood of God] | Sages & Scholars | Rabbi Louis Jacobs | My Jewish Learning</ref>

===== Slave-master relationship =====
However this father-son Hebrew metaphorical relationship Jesus used is distinctly abandoned, instead using other things (other metaphors) in Arab society to describe the relationship between humans and God, such as a slave-master relationship,<ref>Durie, Mark. ''The Qur’an and Its Biblical Reflexes: Investigations into the Genesis of a Religion (pp. XX-XX) (pp. 107-110 Kindle Edition)''. 4.1.1. Shirk - Proprietary Partnership. Lexington Books. 2018.</ref> a Patron - Protege (needs explanation of what this is) <ref>Durie, Mark. ''The Qur’an and Its Biblical Reflexes: Investigations into the Genesis of a Religion (pp. XX-XX) (pp. 110-111 Kindle Edition)''. 4.1.2. Shirk - Patron - Protege Relationships. Lexington Books. 2018.</ref>. with Muhammad having strongly condemned the idea that God could have offspring against the unscripted pagans (mushrikun) taking angels as daughters of god early on chronologically of the Qur'an's first recitations, then later against God having a son against Jesus being the son of God.<ref>Durie, Mark. ''The Qur’an and Its Biblical Reflexes: Investigations into the Genesis of a Religion (pp. XX-XX) (pp. 112-113 Kindle Edition)''. 4.1.5 A Polemical Doctrine. Lexington Books. 2018.</ref>

Slave analogy Dure Print edition pp108 - 110 summary:<ref name=":1">Durie, Mark. ''The Qur’an and Its Biblical Reflexes: Investigations into the Genesis of a Religion (pp. 108-110) (pp. XX-XX Kindle Edition)''. 4.1.5 A Polemical Doctrine. Lexington Books. 2018.</ref> Before its theological use, the Arabic root ''sh-r-k'' referred to ordinary '''partnership or shared ownership'''. The Qurʾan draws on this everyday meaning to illustrate why associating partners with God is impossible. Using the metaphor of '''a master and a slave''', the Qurʾan argues that just as a slave with multiple masters suffers confusion and conflict, attributing partners to God creates an impossible and chaotic situation. This logic appears in verses such as Q39:29 and others that argue multiple gods would lead to conflict and the ruin of creation (Q23:91; Q21:22).<ref name=":1" />
{{Quote|{{Quran|39|29}}|Allah presents a parable, “a man was owned by several quarreling partners
(shurakaʾ), and a man was the slave of (just) one man. Are the two equal?”}}

The Qurʾan’s use of the slave-master metaphor differs from Jesus’ teaching in the New Testament. Whereas Jesus uses it to highlight divided human devotion, the Qurʾan uses it to assert the logical impossibility of multiple divine authorities.<ref name=":1" />

{{Quote|Luke 16:13; cf. Matthew. 6:24|No slave can serve two masters; for a slave will either hate the one and love the
other, or be devoted to the one and despise the other. You cannot serve God and wealth.}}

Shirk encompasses various forms of error: attributing partners or helpers to God, believing He needs allies, or seeking aid from others besides Him. The Qurʾan also explores God’s unity through three social analogies relevant to Arabian society: '''patron–protégé relationships''', '''alliances of mutual help''', and '''relationships of equal or unequal status'''.<ref name=":1" />

===== '''Patron–protégé relationships''' =====
The Qur'an distinctly ignores the father-son relationship (and theology) metaphor by using another term that is harder to translate

Explanation of what this is Durie pp.110-111:<ref name=":3">Durie, Mark. ''The Qur’an and Its Biblical Reflexes: Investigations into the Genesis of a Religion (pp. 110-111) (pp. XX-XX Kindle Edition)''. 4.1.5 A Polemical Doctrine. Lexington Books. 2018.</ref> The Qurʾan uses terms from the root '''w-l-y''' to describe '''patron–protégé relationships''', alliances, and guardianship. The key term '''walī''' can mean ally, protector, guardian, or patron, and may indicate either symmetrical alliances or asymmetrical power relationships.<ref name=":3" /><ref>[https://lexicon.quranic-research.net/data/27_w/219_wle.html Root: ''wāw lām yā'' (و ل ي)] - Lane's Lexicon Qur'anic Research

See Lane's Lexicon Classical Arabic Dictionary [https://lexicon.quranic-research.net/pdf/Page_3060.pdf pp.3060] & [https://lexicon.quranic-research.net/pdf/Page_3061.pdf pp.3061] </ref>

In pre-Islamic Arab society, such patronage was essential for protection, as shown by the example of Muḥammad being safeguarded by his uncle Abū Ṭālib. Without a patron, a person was vulnerable.<ref name=":3" /> [in the sirah of Ibn Ishaq]

The Qurʾan emphasizes that '''God has no need of any patron''' and that '''humans should recognize God alone as their walī'''. Seeking any protector besides God is considered '''shirk'''. Believers may take other believers and the Prophet as allies (''awliyāʾ'') alongside God, but not in place of Him.<ref name=":3" />

As the Muslim community developed, especially after what the passage calls the ''Eschatological Transition''—the Qurʾan increasingly stressed exclusive allegiance to God. This served to detach believers from prior tribal or familial loyalties that could compromise their commitment to the faith community.<ref name=":3" />

- and calls for help-

===== Unequal status vs Jesus' views on Wealth =====
Sinai - darajah passage

And inequality in general - inc. the afterlife

=== Punishment narratives ===

==== Punishment BEFORE the day of judgement ====
We are told the sole exception in history was the unnamed town<ref>Unnamed in the Qur'an, though identified as Nineveh (in modern day Iraq) as in the Biblical "Book of Jonah" by Islamic exegetes; e.g. see [https://quranx.com/tafsirs/37.147 tafsirs on Q37:147]</ref> of more than 100,000 people that the messenger Yūnus (Jonah) when the warning was heeded in full by the entire people, and therefore punishment averted ({{Quran|10|98}}, {{Quran|37|147-148}}) “no town believed . . . except the people of Yūnus”<ref>Durie, Mark. 2018. ''The Qur'an and Its Biblical Reflexes: Investigations Into the Genesis of a Religion. pp 49. Kindle Edition pp 151.''</ref>

How many a town defied the command of its Lord and His apostles, then We called it to a severe account and punished it with a dire punishment. Q65:8

So it tasted the evil consequences of its conduct, and the outcome of its conduct was ruin. Q65:9

How many generations that had far more wealth and ostentation have We laid low before them! <<nowiki>https://quranx.com/19.74</nowiki>>

Say, ‘Whoever abides in error, the All-beneficent shall prolong his respite until they sight what they have been promised: either punishment, or the Hour.’ Then they will know whose position is worse, and whose host is weaker <<nowiki>https://quranx.com/19.75</nowiki>>

------

Q34:16 - flood of the damn of Yemen / Saba', the people of Sheba E.g. <ref>See tafsirs on [https://quranx.com/Tafsirs/34.14 Q34:14], [https://quranx.com/Tafsirs/34.15 Q34:15] & [https://quranx.com/Tafsirs/34.16 Q34:16]</ref> {{Quran|34|14-16}}

{{Quote|{{Quran|34|14-16}}|And when We decreed for Solomon death, nothing indicated to the jinn his death except a creature of the earth eating his staff. But when he fell, it became clear to the jinn that if they had known the unseen, they would not have remained in humiliating punishment.
Certainly, (there) was for Saba in their dwelling place a sign: Two gardens on (the) right and (on the) left. "Eat from (the) provision (of) your Lord and be grateful to Him. A land good and a Lord Oft-Forgiving."
But they turned away, so We sent upon them (the) flood (of) the dam, and We changed for them their two gardens (with) two gardens producing fruit bitter, and tamarisks and (some)thing of lote trees few.}}
, {{Quran|65|8-9}}, {{Quran|19|74-75}}

Add: 34:15–21: The punishment of the people of Sheba, without explicit reference to a messenger. Sheba reference <ref>Marshall, David. ''God, Muhammad and the Unbelievers (p. 73).'' Taylor & Francis. Kindle Edition.</ref>

=== Surah 36 ===
Similarly an unnamed town is sent three messengers in {{Quran|36|13-32}}, who's identities have differed in traditional Islamic scholarship,<ref>E.g. see commentaries on [https://quranx.com/Tafsirs/36.13 Q36:13] & [https://quranx.com/tafsirs/36.14 Q36:14], and the later verses in the story, cited as a parable ''(mathal).''</ref> are rejected and so are killed with a cry/shout (''ṣayḥatan)'' ({{Quran|36|29}}). <ref>Marshall, David. ''God, Muhammad and the Unbelievers (p. 63 & 72).'' Taylor & Francis. Kindle Edition.</ref>
{{Quote|Marshall, David. God, Muhammad and the Unbelievers (p. 72). Taylor & Francis. Kindle Edition.|36:13–32: Described as a parable (mathal, v.13), but in outline very similar to the punishment-narratives. The messengers (two of them, reinforced with a third) and the town in which they preach are anonymous. ‘A man from the furthest part of the city’ (v.20) exhorts his people to follow the messengers.}}

== Contradiction ==
The order in Surah 2 has the Jews struck by a lightening bolt after they worship the golden calf, who are then forgiven by Allah by being resurrected.
{{Quote|{{Quran|2|50-67}}|And when We parted the sea with you, and We delivered you and drowned Pharaoh’s clan as you looked on. 
And when We made an appointment with Moses for forty nights, you took up the Calf [for worship] in his absence, and you were wrongdoers. 
Then We excused you after that so that you might give thanks. 
And when We gave Moses the Book and the Criterion so that you might be guided. 
And [recall] when Moses said to his people, ‘O my people! You have indeed wronged yourselves by taking up the Calf [for worship]. Now turn penitently to your Maker, and slay [the guilty among] your folks. That will be better for you with your Maker.’ Then He turned to you clemently. Indeed, He is the All-clement, the All-merciful. 
And when you said, ‘O Moses, we will not believe you until we see Allah visibly.’ Thereupon a thunderbolt seized you as you looked on.
Then We raised you up after your death so that you might give thanks. /n
We shaded you with clouds, and sent down to you manna and quails [saying]: ‘Eat of the good things We have provided for you.’ And they did not wrong Us, but they used to wrong [only] themselves. 
And when We said, ‘Enter this town, and eat thereof freely whencesoever you wish, and enter while prostrating at the gate, and say, ‘‘Relieve [us of the burden of our sins],’’ so that We may forgive your iniquities and We will soon enhance the virtuous.’ 
But the wrongdoers changed the saying with other than what they were told. So We sent down on those who were wrongdoers a plague from the sky because of the transgressions they used to commit. 
And when Moses prayed for water for his people, We said, ‘Strike the rock with your staff.’ Thereat twelve fountains gushed forth from it; every tribe came to know its drinking-place. ‘Eat and drink of Allah’s provision, and do not act wickedly on the earth, causing corruption.’ 
And when you said, ‘O Moses, ‘We will not put up with one kind of food. So invoke your Lord for us, so that He may bring forth for us of that which the earth grows—its greens and cucumbers, its garlic, lentils, and onions.’ He said, ‘Do you seek to replace what is superior with that which is inferior? Go down to any town and you will indeed get what you ask for!’ So they were struck with abasement and poverty, and they earned Allah’s wrath. That, because they would deny the signs of Allah and kill the prophets unjustly. That, because they would disobey and commit transgressions. 
Indeed the faithful, the Jews, the Christians and the Sabaeans—those of them who have faith in Allah and the Last Day and act righteously—they shall have their reward from their Lord, and they will have no fear, nor will they grieve. 
And when We took a pledge from you, and raised the Mount above you, [declaring], ‘Hold on with power to what We have given you and remember that which is in it so that you may be Godwary.’ 
Again you turned away after that; and were it not for Allah’s grace on you and His mercy, you would have surely been among the losers. 
And certainly you know those of you who violated the Sabbath, whereupon We said to them, ‘Be you spurned apes.’ 
So We made it an exemplary punishment for the present and the succeeding [generations], and an advice to the Godwary.}}
In Surah 4 they are struck before they worship the calf. 4:153 specifically says 'then' ''(thumma)''

{{Quote|{{Quran|4|153-161}}|The People of the Book ask you to bring down for them a Book from the sky. Certainly they asked Moses for [something] greater than that, for they said, ‘Show us Allah visibly,’ whereat a thunderbolt seized them for their wrongdoing. Then they took up the Calf [for worship], after all the manifest proofs that had come to them. Yet We excused that, and We gave Moses a manifest authority. 
And We raised the Mount above them for the sake of their covenant, and We said to them, ‘Enter the gate prostrating’ and We said to them, ‘Do not violate the Sabbath,’ and We took from them a solemn covenant. 
Then because of their breaking their covenant, their defiance of Allah’s signs, their killing of the prophets unjustly and for their saying, ‘Our hearts are uncircumcised’… Indeed, Allah has set a seal on them for their unfaith, so they do not have faith except a few. 
And for their faithlessness, and their uttering a monstrous calumny against Mary, 
and for their saying, ‘We killed the Messiah, Jesus son of Mary, the apostle of Allah’—though they did not kill him nor did they crucify him, but so it was made to appear to them. Indeed those who differ concerning him are surely in doubt about him: they do not have any knowledge of that beyond following conjectures, and certainly, they did not kill him. 
Indeed, Allah raised him up toward Himself, and Allah is all-mighty, all-wise. 
There is none among the People of the Book but will surely believe in him before his death; and on the Day of Resurrection, he will be a witness against them. 
Due to the wrongdoing of the Jews, We prohibited them certain good things that were permitted to them [earlier], and for their barring many [people] from the way of Allah, 
and for their taking usury—though they had been forbidden from it—and for eating up the wealth of the people wrongfully. And We have prepared for the faithless among them a painful punishment. }}

=== V2 ===
Surah 4 (summarized version)

1) They ask Moses for a sign and are hit with a thunderbolt

2) They then take up the calf for worship

3) The mountain is raised above them{{Quote|{{Quran|4|153-154}}|The People of the Book ask you to bring down for them a Book from the sky. Certainly they asked Moses for [something] greater than that, for they said, ‘Show us Allah visibly,’ whereat a thunderbolt seized them for their wrongdoing. Then they took up the Calf [for worship], after all the manifest proofs that had come to them. Yet We excused that, and We gave Moses a manifest authority. 
And We raised the Mount above them for the sake of their covenant, and We said to them, ‘Enter the gate prostrating’ and We said to them, ‘Do not violate the Sabbath,’ and We took from them a solemn covenant.}}Surah 2
1) They worshiped the calf. And Moses tells them to slay the guilty among them.

2) They are hit by a thunderbolt - is it chronological?

3) ... a mountain is lifted above them
{{Quote|{{Quran|2|51-56}}|And when We made an appointment with Moses for forty nights, you took up the Calf [for worship] in his absence, and you were wrongdoers. 
Then We excused you after that so that you might give thanks. 
And when We gave Moses the Book and the Criterion so that you might be guided. 
And [recall] when Moses said to his people, ‘O my people! You have indeed wronged yourselves by taking up the Calf [for worship]. Now turn penitently to your Maker, and slay [the guilty among] your folks. That will be better for you with your Maker.’ Then He turned to you clemently. Indeed, He is the All-clement, the All-merciful. 
And when you said, ‘O Moses, we will not believe you until we see Allah visibly.’ Thereupon a thunderbolt seized you as you looked on.
Then We raised you up after your death so that you might give thanks.}}
== The Lote Tree of the utmost Boundary (Sid'rati al-Muntahā) ==
Lote tree's are a real type of tree (Ziziphus spina-christi) native to Arabia and the Middle East.<ref>[https://www.suewickison.com/products/lote-tree?srsltid=AfmBOorj_RU2x1OPxgfRe689M2TWw1g4uZTQLkpSolPGYnIatiIe7h6K Lote Tree | Sidr | Ziziphus spina-christi |] Plants of the Qur'an | Sue Wickison </ref> Different to the tree of eternity/immortality ''(shajarati ul-khul'di)'' in paradise ''jannah,'' the Qur'an mentions The Lote Tree (sidr) of ''the utmost boundary (al-muntahā)''<ref>مُنْتَهَىٰ - [https://lexicon.quranic-research.net/pdf/Page_3029.pdf Lane's Lexicon pp.3029]

</ref> near (but notably not in) the 'garden of abode', said to be 'covered' yaghshā by something unspecified in Q53:16, typically taken by exegetes to mean by angels, light and/or golden animals.<ref>E.g. see [https://quranx.com/Tafsirs/53.16 Tafsirs on Q53:16]</ref>

{{Quote|{{Quran|53|13-17}}|And certainly he saw him (in) descent another,
Near (the) Lote Tree (of) the utmost boundary,
Near it (is the) Garden (of) Abode.
when there covered the Lote Tree what covered it.
Not swerved the sight and not it transgressed.}}

This furthest boundary/limit is said in the hadith, to place the cosmic tree in the sixth heaven, where even celestial creatures cannot go beyond as the limit of creation; said to be seen by Muhammad in his Night Journey (mi’rāj) on the [[:en:Buraq|Buraq]] (E.g. {{Muslim|1|329}}, {{Al Tirmidhi|2=5|3=44|4=3276}}, {{Bukhari|5|58|227}} & {{Al Nasai|2=1|3=5|4=452}}), and by many Islamic exegetes.<ref>See [https://quranx.com/tafsirs/53.14 tafsirs on Q53:14]</ref>

This would align the cosmology of Islamic traditions supporting the idea that paradise (and therefore the garden of the abode) is in the seventh heaven,<ref>[https://islamqa.info/en/answers/215011/where-are-paradise-and-hell#Where_is_Paradise Where is Paradise] | [https://islamqa.info/en/answers/215011/where-are-paradise-and-hell Where Are Paradise and Hell?] | 07/January/2015 islamqa</ref> while some traditions support the idea that paradise is above the seventh heaven,<ref>[https://www.islamweb.net/en/fatwa/107126/the-location-of-paradise-now#:~:text=Paradise%20that%20Allaah%20promised%20for,are%20many%20texts%20proving%20this. The location of Paradise now] | Paradise and Hell | Belief in the Hereafter | Islamic Creed | Fatwa | islamweb.net </ref> both placing the tree relatively close to jannah. However others suggest that this specific ''garden of the abode (jannatu l-mawā)'' is a separate garden/paradise to the eternal one all righteous Muslims will eventually enter, being instead one where martyrs (those killed in war or for their religion) go before judgement day.<ref>E.g. see [https://quranx.com/Tafsirs/53.15 tafsirs on Q53:15]</ref>

Either way there is no evidence of a celestial tree, which must be magic to survive outside of an Earthly plant ecosystem, but is rather an example of tree mythology.
----
----

(See also: <nowiki>https://sunnah.com/mishkat:5865</nowiki> & https://sunnah.com/mishkat:5640, ) read; https://quranx.com/tafsirs/53.14 - exegetes also confirm this is where boundary is the boundary of the skies/heavens where things other than God cannot pass (at least until judgement day where paradise and hell can be entered).

AND Similarly seen next to the 4 main Near-East rivers (Nile, Euphratesm Tigres,) <nowiki>https://sunnah.com/bukhari:5610</nowiki>, which area said to flow from paradise: <nowiki>https://quranx.com/Hadith/Bukhari/USC-MSA/Volume-5/Book-58/Hadith-227/</nowiki> )

cite: [https://www.islamweb.net/en/fatwa/107126/the-location-of-paradise-now#:~:text=Paradise%20that%20Allaah%20promised%20for,are%20many%20texts%20proving%20this. https://www.islamweb.net/en/fatwa/107126/the-location-of-paradise-now#:~:text=Paradise%20that%20Allaah%20promised%20for,are%20many%20texts%20proving%20this.]

The utmost boundary at the end of t heavens confirmed by exegetes in https://quranx.com/tafsirs/53.14

" Jannat al-ma'va' literally means "the Jannat (Garden) that is to be an abode. " Hadrat Hasan Basri says that this is the same Jannat which the believers and righteous will be given in the Hereafter, and from this same verse he has argued that that Jannat is in the heavens. Qatadah says that this is the Jannat in which the souls of the martyrs are kept; it does not imply the Jannat that is to be given in the Hereafter. Ibn 'Abbas also says the same but adds that the Jannat to be granted to the believers in the Hereafter is not in the heavens but here on the earth.

== Parallels Between the Qur'an and Late Antique Judeo-Christian Literature - Part 2 ==
Following on from [[Parallels Between the Qur'an and Late Antique Judeo-Christian Literature|Part 1]], this is Part 2 of Late Antique Judeo-Christian Literature found in the Qur'an. This material, drawing heavily on rabbinical commentaries on the bible, and late Syriac Christian thought found in homilies, was created far later than the biblical cannon; no-where near the time of the events that occurred. This suggests the stories were transmitted in an oral millennia along with local Arabian traditions<ref>Bannister, Andrew G.. ''An Oral-Formulaic Study of the Qur'an (Kindle Location 249-259 in Chapter 1.2 The Biblicist Roots of the Iblis and Adam Story).'' Bloomsbury Publishing. Kindle Edition.

..When the Qur’an emerged in the seventh-century, it did so in an oral culture in which Biblicist traditions were freely circulating and thus there existed a large pool of commonly known stories and traditions to fish from; a pool in which stories could cross-fertilize and influence one another. 23 It is this, more than direct borrowing that perhaps best explains stories like Iblis and Adam as well as other qur’anic tellings of older tales, such as the Seven Sleepers (Q. 18: 9– 25) 24 and the Legend of Alexander (Dhu al-Qarnayn, Q. 18: 83– 101). 25 The Qur’an originates from a milieu in which Biblicist material was well-known to the first audience of the Qur’an; even a simple allusion to a story was often enough to trigger a connection for the hearer. 26 That Biblicist material has been filtered through storytelling rather than simply copied from a written text is further suggested by what the Qur’an leaves out; no minor prophets are referenced, probably because almost no Old Testament narratives feature them nor did the rabbinic literature weave lengthy tales about them. 27 The exception which proves the rule is Jonah (Q. 21: 87– 88; 37: 139– 148; 68: 48– 50), whose short but dramatic story was extremely popular in both Jewish and Christian contexts.28..

And: Bannister, Andrew G.. ''An Oral-Formulaic Study of the Qur'an (Kindle Locations 1391-1392. Chapter 2.3 The Islamic Tradition and Orality).'' Bloomsbury Publishing. Kindle Edition.</ref> where biblical and much later Jewish and Christian stories could be commonly mixed without the new community realizing.
== The story of Noah ==
The prophet Noah is portrayed extremely differently to the one in Genesis,<ref>Segovia, Carlos A.. ''[https://almuslih.org/wp-content/uploads/2024/12/Segovia-C-The-Quranic-Noah-and-the-Making-of-the-Islamic-Prophet.pdf The Quranic Noah and the Making of the Islamic Prophet: A Study of Intertextuality and Religious Identity Formation in Late Antiquity]'', Berlin, München, Boston: De Gruyter, 2015. <nowiki>https://doi.org/10.1515/9783110405897</nowiki></ref> taking on Jewish and Christian traditions, characteristics, as well as terms from late antique Judeo-Christian writings,<ref>The Qur'anic Noah. pp.21-21</ref> molded to suit Muhammad's situation in line with other messengers in the Qur'an.<ref>''The Qurʾan and its Biblical Reflexes: Investigations into the Genesis of a Religion. Chapter 5.3 Messenger Uniformatism. pp.135-143'' By Mark Durie. Lanham, MD: Lexington Books, 2018. </ref>

=== The preaching of Noah ===

Surah 71 consists entirely of the preaching of Noah and his supplications to Allah.{{Quote|{{Quran-range|71|1|28}}|Indeed, We sent Noah to his people, [saying], "Warn your people before there comes to them a painful punishment." He said, "O my people, indeed I am to you a clear warner, [Saying], 'Worship Allah, fear Him and obey me. Allah will forgive you of your sins and delay you for a specified term. Indeed, the time [set by] Allah, when it comes, will not be delayed, if you only knew.' " 
[...]
And Noah said, "My Lord, do not leave upon the earth from among the disbelievers an inhabitant. Indeed, if You leave them, they will mislead Your servants and not beget except [every] wicked one and [confirmed] disbeliever. My Lord, forgive me and my parents and whoever enters my house a believer and the believing men and believing women. And do not increase the wrongdoers except in destruction."}}Reynolds remarks that "The Qur'ānic character of Noah is quite unlike that of the Noah in Genesis, who does not speak a word until after the flood." Citing the Babylonian Talmud, Sanhedrin 108a, he observes that "[his preaching] is also suggested by a passage in the Talmud:
::"The righteous Noah rebuked them, urging, 'Repent; for if not, the Holy One, blessed be He, will bring a deluge upon you and cause your bodies to float upon the water like gourds, as it is written, He is light [i.e., floats] upon the waters. Moreover, ye shall be taken as a curse for all future generations.' (b. Sanhedrin 108a)"
Reynolds further notes, "It is also prominent in the Syriac fathers, several of whom report that Noah preached to his people for a hundred years before God finally sent the flood." citing for example the Syriac authors Narsai, "On the Flood", 33, II. 227-30 and Jacob of Serugh, ''Homilies contre les juifs'', 70, homily 2, II. 37-40.<ref>Gabriel Said Reynolds, ''The Qurʾān and Bible'' p. 858</ref>

The opponents reject Noah's preaching despite him doing so 'day and night' (Quran 71:5-6) in which they respond by putting their fingers in their ears Quran 71:7, on which Neuwirth (2024) notes that "the means of plugging one’s ears in order to shut oneself off from unpleasant news is also encountered in the Talmud (bKetubbot 5a)."<ref>Neuwirth, Angelika. The Qur'an: Text and Commentary, ''Volume 2.1: Early Middle Meccan Suras: The New Elect (p. 280).'' Yale University Press. Kindle Edition.</ref>

=== Noah's disbelieving wife ===
{{Quote|{{Quran|66|10}}|Allah presents an example of those who disbelieved: the wife of Noah and the wife of Lot. They were under two of Our righteous servants but betrayed them, so those prophets did not avail them from Allah at all, and it was said, "Enter the Fire with those who enter."}}The Bible briefly mentions Noah's wife in one verse without further comment ([https://www.biblegateway.com/passage/?search=Genesis%207%3A7&version=NIV Genesis 7:7]), "And Noah and his sons and his wife and his sons’ wives entered the ark to escape the waters of the flood." Regarding the Quranic verse which speaks of her negatively, Reynolds briefly considers the possibility that the Quran has extended to their wives the parallelism between Noah (though not his wife) and Lot found in the New Testament ([https://www.biblegateway.com/passage/?search=2%20Peter%202&version=NIV 2 Peter 2]), but then comments, "However, it is important to note that already in the pre-Islamic period certain groups had developed hostile legends about Noah's wife." He cites Epiphanius (d. 403 CE), ''Panarion'' 2:26, which relates the Gnostic belief that she was not allowed onto the ark, having burned it down three times before the flood.<ref>Gabriel Said Reynolds, ''The Qurʾān and Bible'' p. 841</ref>

=== Noah's flood waters overflowed from an oven ===
The Qur'anic version of the Noah's flood story describes the flood waters as overflowing from an oven. This element is not found even in more ancient versions of the story (Epic of Gilgamesh, Atra hasis, and Ziusudra).

Note that in his translation, Yusuf Ali mistranslates the Aramaic loan word for the oven (alttannooru ٱلتَّنُّورُ)<ref>[http://www.studyquran.org/LaneLexicon/Volume1/00000355.pdf Lane's Lexicon p. 318 تَّنُّورُ]</ref> as "fountains". The Arabic verb translated "gushed forth" (fara فَارَ) means overflowed or boiled in the context of water in a cooking pot<ref>[http://www.studyquran.org/LaneLexicon/Volume6/00000241.pdf Lane's Lexicon p. 2457 فور]</ref>, as well as in the other verse where it is used, {{Quran|67|7}}. Here is Pickthall's more accurate translation:{{Quote|{{Quran|11|40}}|
(Thus it was) till, when Our commandment came to pass '''and the oven gushed forth water''', We said: Load therein two of every kind, a pair (the male and female), and thy household, save him against whom the word hath gone forth already, and those who believe. And but a few were they who believed with him.}}{{Quote|{{Quran|23|27}}|
Then We inspired in him, saying: Make the ship under Our eyes and Our inspiration. Then, when Our command cometh '''and the oven gusheth water''', introduce therein of every (kind) two spouses, and thy household save him thereof against whom the Word hath already gone forth. And plead not with Me on behalf of those who have done wrong. Lo! they will be drowned.}}At one time academic scholars thought this verse alluded to a Midrashic exegesis in which the flood waters were boiling hot (b. Sanhedrin 108b, [https://www.sefaria.org/Rosh_Hashanah.12a.4?lang=bi|Tracate Rosh Hashanah 12a:4]). More recent scholarship, particularly by Olivier Mongellaz in 2024,<ref name="Mongellaz2024">Olivier Mongellaz (2024) [https://brill.com/view/journals/arab/71/4-5/article-p513_4.xml Le four de Noé : un cas d’intertextualité coranique], Arabica 71(4-5), 513-637. https://doi.org/10.1163/15700585-20246900</ref> has identified that these verses most likely reflect a late antique legend in which water gushing up through a bread oven (a large hole dug into the ground) was a sign warning Noah's family of the imminent flood. The interpretation as Noah's own oven is attributed to a number of early commentators (such as Ibn Abbas, Mujahid), while others understood it to be the area of land where the flood waters first rose. Qurtubi said: "The sayings of commentators appear to be different as to the meaning of tannur, but this, in reality, is not a difference. When water began to bulge out, it overflowed from the bread baking oven, and from out of the surface of the land".

Significantly, Mongellaz has argued on literary grounds that a fragmentary Arabic text falsely attributed to Hippolytus of Rome, and which mentions the overflowing bread oven story, is independent of the Islamic tradition and was originally written in a very specific environment which has parallels with the context in which certain parts of the Quran were written.{{Quote|Pseudo. Hippolytus of Rome (translated to English from Mongellaz's French translation)<ref name="Mongellaz2024" />|Meanwhile, Ham's wife stood up to take out the bread that remained in the oven and immediately water sprang out of the oven [fāḍa l-māʾmin al-tannūr] and immediately water came out of the oven, as the Lord had said: "The fountains of the great deeps were opened." Ham's wife called to Noah, saying, "My lord, the word of God has come true (Syr. what God promised has come true!)" - for it had come true just as the Lord had promised her. When Noah heard Ham's wife's words, he said to her, "Oh, the flood has come."}}

=== Noah's ark left behind as a sign ===
{{Quote|{{Quran-range|54|13|15}}|And We carried him on a [construction of] planks and nails, Sailing under Our observation as reward for he who had been denied. And We left it as a sign, so is there any who will remember?}}Unlike the bible, which does not mention the ark as a sign for future generations, Neuwirth (2024) notes the salvation of Noah is made physically plausible to the listeners through the reference to the material verifiability of the ark, which could be taken from various late antique traditions, for example Flavius Josephus (b. 37AD) reports in the ''Jewish Antiquities (I 3.5 § 92)'' of the existence of the remains of Noah’s ark in Armenia (Clementz 1959: 22).<ref name=":0">Neuwirth, Angelika. ''The Qur'an: Text and Commentary, Volume 2.1: Early Middle Meccan Suras: The New Elect (p. 62).'' Yale University Press. Kindle Edition.</ref> She also notes that the appeal to the willingness of the listeners to be admonished by the sign (āya) of Noah’s ark is also reminiscent of the Talmudic story (bSanhedrin 96a) of the death of Sennacherib, who was led to a fateful decision by seeing the remains of Noah’s ark.<ref name=":0" />
==Moses and Pharaoh==
Alongside the biblical account of Moses and the Pharoah, there are some key aspects that match Jewish Rabbinic and Christian non-biblical traditions. Even the place where Moses communicates with God in the story of the burning bush, the word used ''ṭuwan'' in e.g. {{Quran|20|12}} (for the folded land, implying double the holiness)<ref>See; Neuwirth, Angelika. ''The Qur'an: Text and Commentary, Volume 2.1: Early Middle Meccan Suras: The New Elect (p. 199).'' Yale University Press. Kindle Edition. Ṭuwā stands for the holy Mount Sinai or Horeb (cf. KU, 124ff.; FVQ, 206ff.; BEQ, 255ff.). The word was long thought to be a rhyming transformation of Aramaic ṭūrā (“the mountain”), but now, based on rabbinic tradition and in agreement with traditional exegetes, Uri Rubin has convincingly interpreted bi-l-wādī l-muqaddasi Ṭuwā to mean “in the doubly hallowed valley” (see Rubin 2014). (The Sinai is in a sense the “folded Holy Land” [ṬWY = “to fold”].) Citing: Rubin, Uri, 2014, ''[https://urirubin.com/assets/docs/Tuwan.86132451.pdf Moses and the Holy Valley Ṭuwan. On the Biblical and Midrashic Background of a Qurʾanic Scene],'' Journal of Near Eastern Studies 73, 73–81.</ref> does not have a parallel in the bible,<ref>''[https://urirubin.com/assets/docs/Tuwan.86132451.pdf Moses and the Holy Valley Ṭuwan: On the biblical and midrashic background of a qurʾānic scene.]'' Rubin 2014. Ibid. pp. 75.</ref> but does in other Judeo-Christian (later) works.<ref>Ibid. pp. 76-78</ref> And the idea of eschatology in Moses's story such as {{Quran|20|15}}, with reward in the afterlife being mentioned, is not contained in the biblical story of Moses, Neuwirth (2024) notes moves the story into a late antiquity interpretation.<ref>Neuwirth, Angelika. ''The Qur'an: Text and Commentary, Volume 2.1: Early Middle Meccan Suras: The New Elect (p. 199).'' Yale University Press. Kindle Edition.</ref> Key details in the stories include:
===The prophecy of baby Moses===
Alongside the scene of [https://www.biblegateway.com/passage/?search=Exodus%201%3A8-2%3A10&version=NIV Exodus 1:8-2:10] where the Hebrews in Egyptian bondage are told to kill all male babies to control the growing Israelite population, where Moses's mother places his basket in the Nile to escape; Neuwirth (2024) citing Speyer, notes that ''the prophecy to Moses’s mother that an enemy—of Moses as well as of God himself—would take him in reflects a Midrashic interpretation of Exodus Rabba (1:31: “So the daughter of Pharaoh raised the daughter, who was once to take revenge on her father”). The event is explicitly based on a divine intention, namely, to make Moses his chosen one.''<ref>''The Qur'an: Text and Commentary, Volume 2.1: Early Middle Meccan Suras: The New Elect'' Ibid. pp. 201.</ref>{{Quote|{{Quran-range|20|37|39}}|We have bestowed Our favour on you before this, When We told your mother what We relate: 'Put him in a wooden box and cast it in the river. The river will cast it on the bank. An enemy of Ours, and his, will retrieve it.' We bestowed Our love on you that you may be reared under Our eyes.}}And similarly the next verse unlike the bible focuses on the emotional impact of the event on Moses’s mother, Neuwirth notes is comparable to Midrash Exodus Rabba 1:25.<ref>Ibid. pp. 201-202.</ref> Moses's salvation from persecution after manslaughter is commemorated with similar consideration of Moses’s mental condition.<ref>Ibid. pp. 202.</ref>{{Quote|{{Quran|20|40}}|When your sister walked up [to Pharaoh’s palace] saying, “Shall I show you someone who will take care of him?” Then We restored you to your mother, that she might not grieve and be comforted. Then you slew a soul, whereupon We delivered you from anguish, and We tried you with various ordeals. Then you stayed for several years among the people of Midian. Then you turned up as ordained, O Moses!}}
===Moses not suckled by Egyptians===
{{Quote|{{Quran-range|28|12|13}}|And We had prevented from him [all] wet nurses before, so she said, "Shall I direct you to a household that will be responsible for him for you while they are to him [for his upbringing] sincere?" So We restored him to his mother that she might be content and not grieve and that she would know that the promise of Allah is true. But most of the people do not know.}}Reynolds comments, "On this passage cf. Exodus 2:7-9. The Qurʾān's declaration (v. 12) 'We had forbidden him to be suckled by any nurse' (v. 12) reflects a tradition in the Babylonian Talmud that Moses (from whose mouth would come forth the word of God) refused the impure breasts of the Egyptian women:
::Then said his sister to Pharaoh's daughter, Shall I go and call thee a nurse of the Hebrew women? Why just 'of the Hebrew women'? - It teaches that they handed about to all the Egyptian women but he would not suck. He said: Shall a mouth which will speak with [God] suck what is unclean! (b. Sotah 12b)"<ref>Gabriel Said Reynolds, ''The Qurʾān and Bible'' p. 598</ref>
===Moses's speech impediment===
Moses has some kind of speech impediment when going to speak to Pharaoh in the Qurʾān.{{Quote|{{Quran-range|20|24|28}}|"Go to Pharaoh. Indeed, he has transgressed."( Moses) said: "O, my Lord! Expand me my breast,” ease my task for me, And untie the knot from my tongue, so they may understand what I say.”}}Biblical Scholar James Kugel (1997)<ref>Kugel, James L.. The Bible As It Was (Kindle Edition. pp. 432-433). Harvard University Press.</ref> notes that later Jewish and Christian commentators found it necessary to explain Moses's statement in the Old Testament “''Oh my Lord, I am not a man of words … but I am heavy of speech and heavy of tongue''” ([https://www.biblegateway.com/passage/?search=Exodus%204%3A10&version=NIV Exodus 4:10]), as he was believed to be a highly educated man who had been supposedly been schooled in every branch of wisdom, including eloquence.

He notes "it occurred to interpreters that Moses might have been referring here not to any lacuna in his education, but to an actual speech defect, some physical deformity of his mouth or tongue that prevented him from speaking in the usual fashion." We see this in:<ref>Ibid. pp. 432 - 433 (Kindle Edition)</ref>

"''I'' ''am not by nature eloquent; my tongue with difficulty speaks, I stammer, so that I cannot speak before the king."'' —Ezekiel the Tragedian, Exaggē 113– 115 (3rd-2nd century BCE)

''He [Moses] pleased his parents by his beauty, but grieved them by his speech impediment. —''Ephraem, Commentary on Exodus 2: 4 (d. 373 AD)

Others even added stories on how he might have acquired that deformity, such as Josephus in Jewish Antiquities 2: 232– 236 (published ~93/94 AD), connecting their explanation of Moses’ speech problems to the tradition of Pharaoh’s wise men and their warnings about a boy that might grow up and save Israel.<ref>Ibid. pp. 433 - 434 (Kindle Edition)</ref>
===Pharaohs questions===
Neuwirth (2024) comments that the list of further detailed questions to Moses in Surah 26 'The Poets' / al-shuʿarāʾ (i.e. in {{Quran-range|26|22|29}}), citing Speyer, reflect a more detailed episode from Midrash Exodus Rabba 5:18, which also starts from Pharaoh’s self-praise as God.<ref>Neuwirth, Angelika. ''The Qur'an: Text and Commentary, Volume 2.1: Early Middle Meccan Suras: The New Elect (p. 250).'' Yale University Press. Kindle Edition.</ref>
===The Drowning of Pharaoh===
{{Quote|{{Quran-range|10|90|92}}|And We took the Children of Israel across the sea, and Pharaoh and his soldiers pursued them in tyranny and enmity until, when drowning overtook him, he said, "I believe that there is no deity except that in whom the Children of Israel believe, and I am of the Muslims." Now? And you had disobeyed [Him] before and were of the corrupters? So today We will save you in body that you may be to those who succeed you a sign. And indeed, many among the people, of Our signs, are heedless}}Reynolds comments, "The question of Pharaoh's survival appears in an opinion found in the (late fourth century AD) ''Mekilta de-Rabbi Ishmael'' (cr. Gavin McDowell):
::"And the waters returned and covered the chariot etc. [Exo 14:27]. Even Pharaoh, according to the words of R. Judah, as it is said, 'The chariots of Pharaoh and his force, etc.' [Exo 15:4]. R. Nehimiah says: ''Except for Pharaoh.'' About him it says, 'However, for this purpose I have let you live' [Exo 9:16]. Others say that in the end Pharaoh went down and drowned, as it is said, 'Then went the horse of Pharaoh, etc.' [Exo 15:19]. (Beshallah 7)"<ref>Gabriel Said Reynolds, ''The Qurʾān and Bible'' p. 339</ref>
==Arguments for resurrection==
Reynolds (2020) notes the repeated argument that God can resurrect the dead using the analogy that he can bring life back to barren (or dead) land may be connected to a Jewish tradition that God will resurrect the dead with dew, for example, in b. Shabbat 88b.<ref name=":2" />
{{Quote|{{Quran|30|19}}|He brings forth the living from the dead, and brings forth the dead from the living, and revives the earth after its death. Likewise, you [too] shall be raised [from the dead].}}

Cf: {{Quran|16|65}}, {{Quran|43|11}}, {{Quran|50|6-11}}, {{Quran|57|17}}
==Late antique Christian Martyrdom==
{{Main|Shaheed (Martyr)}}
Durie (2018) notes the violence of the Qur'an shares more commonality with contemporary late antique religious (primarily Christian) violence and warfare rather than being directly biblically based.<ref>Durie, Mark. ''The Qur’an and Its Biblical Reflexes: Investigations into the Genesis of a Religion.'' Lexington Books. 2018. Pp. 229 -237. (Kindle Edition: pp. 423-439). 6.9 Stories of Fighting Prophets</ref>

=== Textual overlap ===

Covering the continuity and similarities between late antique religious violence & warfare and the Qur'an (and other Islamic traditions) is too big a topic to cover here; perhaps the most in-depth academic work looking at the continuity between this and Islam is Thomas Sizgorich's ''Violence and Belief in Late Antiquity: Militant Devotion in Christianity and Islam'', however Sinai (2017) notes alongside similar ideas and theology, there are some direct textual references.{{Quote|Sinai, Nicolai. Qur'an: A Historical-Critical Introduction (The New Edinburgh Islamic Surveys) (pp. 301-302). Edinburgh University Press. Kindle Edition.|That the Qur’anic community’s access to Biblical notions of militancy was mediated by late antique Christian discourse is indicated by an intriguing intertextual overlap. According to Q 3: 169–170, those who have been ‘killed in the path of God’ are not dead but ‘alive with their Lord’, rather than having to spend the remaining time until the Resurrection in a state of slumber (similarly Q 2: 154).39 Tor Andrae has pointed out that the phrase ‘alive with their Lord’ (ayāun inda rabbihim) corresponds exactly to the Syriac phrase h. ayyē lwāth alāhā, which a sixth-century Syriac Christian writer (Mar Ishay) applies to the martyrs.40 Furthermore, Mar Ishay contrasts the true fate of the martyrs with unfounded prior opinion: ‘they are believed to be already dead’.41 The same contrast is found in the two Qur’anic passages just cited.42 It could be objected that the parallel demonstrates merely that the Qur’an is familiar with the widespread Christian idea that martyrs are granted prompt access to paradise but that this does not establish a Christian precedent for the Qur’anic application of this idea specifically to those who actively enact – rather than just suffer – violence. However, as Sizgorich reminds us, a Christian martyr was by no means seen merely as a passive victim of persecution but rather as someone who actively ‘defeats the power of the Roman state’.43}}{{Quote|{{Quran|3|169}}|And never think of those who have been killed in the cause of Allah as dead. Rather, they are alive with their Lord, receiving provision}}{{Quote|{{Quran|2|154}}|Do not say that those who are killed in the way of God, are dead, for indeed they are alive, even though you are not aware.}}

=== Martyrs sidestep judgement day ===
After death, humans are typically said to spend their time in an intermediate state known to traditional Islamic scholars as the ''barzakh'' while they wait.<ref>Reynolds, Gabriel Said. 2020. ''Allah:'' ''God in the Qur'an (p. 71-72).'' Yale University Press. Kindle Edition.

It is also the same term used for the barrier between the living and the dead (whilst awaiting judgement day) in the Qur'an, e.g. {{Quran|23|99-100}}</ref> However, as in the above verses, one exception to this rule is Martyrs being with God straight away rather than being judged at judgment day, a non-biblical idea having parallels with late antique Christian thought.

Sinai (2017) similarly notes strong ideological parallels a 6th century hagiographical text (the Panegyric on Macarius, Bishop of Tkow by Pseudo-Dioscorus of Alexandria) of a 5th-century martyr, Egyptian Bishop Macarius of Tkow who was martyred for opposing the council of Chalcedon. Citing Michael Gaddis's summary of the document, ‘He was both willing to die for his faith, and willing to kill for it.’ he notes the same idea in {{Quran|9|111}} … they fight in the way of Allah, kill, and are killed.. <ref>Ibid. (Kindle Edition. pp. 299).</ref> As well as citing English historian of the Byzantine Empire James Howard-Johnston "''..James Howard-Johnston draws attention to a passage in the Chronicle of Theophanes Confessor (d. 818), which reports that at about the same time when the Qur’an promised those ‘killed in the path of God’ immediate entry to paradise, the Byzantine emperor Heraclius similarly announced that those fighting the Sasanians would be recompensed with eternal life. In Heraclius’s address as reported by Theophanes Confessor, we find some of the same general ingredients that are noticeable in Qur’anic calls to militancy…''"<ref>Ibid. (Kindle Edition. pp. 301).</ref> He notes these similarities are likely caused by being on the fringes of the Roman empire.<ref>Ibid. (Kindle Edition. pp. 301).</ref>

==== Martyrdom wipes away other sins and is privileged above other acts from believers ====
{{Quote|Reynolds, Gabriel Said. Christianity and the Qur'an: The Rise of Islam in Christian Arabia (pp. 178-179). Yale University Press. Kindle Edition.|The teaching on the glory earned by martyrs is widespread in the early church. It is nevertheless telling to find the way it is emphasized in the third-century Christian text the aforementioned Didascalia Apostolorum, originally written in Greek but preserved in Syriac.87 The Didascalia clearly teaches that the martyrs will have a privilege above other faithful believers: If then He raises up all men,—as He said by Isaiah: All flesh shall see the salvation of God [Isa 40.5; 52.10],—much more will He quicken and raise up the faithful; and (yet more) again will He quicken and raise up the faithful of the faithful, who are the martyrs, and establish them in great glory and make them His counsellors. For to mere disciples, those who believe in Him, He has promised a glory as of the stars [Dan 12.3]; but to the martyrs He has promised to give an everlasting glory, as of the luminaries which fail not, with more abundant light, that they may be shining for all time.88

The Didascalia is also clear, as is the Qur’an, that martyrs enjoy a special grace through the forgiveness of sins that their deaths have earned for them: But again, sins are forgiven by baptism also to those who from the Gentiles draw near and enter the holy Church of God. Let us inquire also, to whom sins are not imputed. To such as Abraham and Isaac and Jacob and all the patriarchs, as also to the martyrs. Let us hear then, brethren, for the Scripture saith: Who shall boast himself and say: I am clear of sins? Or who shall be confident and say: I am innocent? [Prov 20.9].

And again: There is no man pure of defilement: not though his life be but one day [Job 14.4–5 LXX]. To everyone therefore who believes and is baptized his … former sins have been forgiven; but after baptism also, provided that he has not sinned a deadly sin nor been an accomplice (thereto), but has heard only, or seen, or spoken, and is thus guilty of sin. But if a man go forth from the world by martyrdom for the name of the Lord, blessed is he; for brethren who by martyrdom have gone forth from this world, of these the sins are covered.89

We might compare Q 3:195: “ ‘And those who emigrated, and were expelled from their habitations, those who suffered hurt in My way, and fought, and were slain—them I shall surely acquit of their evil deeds, and I shall admit them to gardens underneath which rivers flow.’ A reward from God! And God with Him is the fairest reward” (italics added). In other words, the Qur’an seems to be well aware of Christian devotion to the martyrs.}}

=== Martyrdom in the Torah and Gospels ===
Muslims who fight are promised paradise, which the Qur'an claims is also a promise in the Torah and Gospel.{{Quote|{{Quran|9|111}}|Indeed Allah has bought from the faithful their souls and their possessions for paradise to be theirs: they fight in the way of Allah, kill, and are killed. A promise binding upon Him in the Torah and the Evangel and the Quran. And who is truer to his promise than Allah? So rejoice in the bargain you have made with Him, and that is the great success.}}Nickel (2020)<ref>Nickel, Gordon D. ''The Quran with Christian Commentary: A Guide to Understanding the Scripture of Islam (p. 222).'' Zondervan Academic. Kindle Edition. 9.111 – They fight in the way of God, and they kill and are killed When the Quran describes believers as fighting “in the way of Allah,” it makes a theological claim by associating Allah with human fighting. See the analysis of these expressions at 73.20 (p. 597). 9.111 – a promise binding on Him in the Torah, and the Gospel, and the Qur’ān This is the only verse in the Quran that brings the Torah (tawrāt), Gospel (injīl), and qur’ān (lit. “recitation”) together. The Quran claims here that the particular point on which the Torah and Gospel agree with the Muslim recitation is that believers “fight in the way of Allah, and they kill and are killed.” This verse makes the reader question whether the Quran has a clear idea of the contents of the Torah and Gospel. A similar question is raised by 61.14, which appears to say that ‘Īsā and his disciples fought against their enemies (cf. 3.52). Along with these misunderstandings, the Quran gives no information about the peaceable teaching and example of Jesus in the Gospel accounts. See the analysis of the Quran’s verses on the “Gospel” at 57.27 (p. 549). Do the Torah and Gospel in fact contain such a promise? See the comment on this characterization of the Bible at 61.14 (p. 566).</ref> and Reynolds (2018) however notes that this is not found there:{{Quote|1=Reynolds, G. S. (2018). The Qur'an and the Bible: Text and Commentary. Commentary on 9:111 (pp. 322) United Kingdom: Yale University Press.|2="9:111 The point of this verse is that those who are prepared to give their lives to God in the holy war are promised paradise as a payment for their services (cf. 2:245; 4:74; 61:10–12). The idea that the martyrs have a special assurance of paradise follows from the Qurʾān’s teaching elsewhere that the act of martyrdom involves forgiveness of sin. This teaching is close to that of the Syriac fathers (see commentary on 2:154, with further references). It is curious that the Qurʾān insists that the promise of heaven for holy warriors is found in the Torah and the Gospel (or “Evangel”); heaven is not found in the Torah and holy war is not found in the Gospels...}}While his commentary on 2:154 (pp. 76) once again highlights the Syriac parallel:{{Quote|2="As Tor Andrae has shown (Les origines de l’islam et le christianisme, 161ff.), the idea that martyrdom involves the absolution of sins is prominent in Syriac Christian texts such as the third-century Didascalia (chap. 20) and the Treaty on the Martyrs of Mar Isaï (d. late sixth cen.); the latter text also insists—much like the Qurʾān—that the martyrs are “living”:

The true martyrs who, by way of a death that covers their sins, demonstrate even more the beauty of their deeds and receive this glorious inheritance by virtue of their blood. By leaving this life they have prepared for their souls an honorable abode in paradise. It was thought that they are already dead, but by their death they have killed their sin, and they are alive with God. (Mar Isaï, Treaty on the Martyrs, 32)}}
=== Further Martyrdom Influence ===
Neuwirth (2024) also notes the influence of Christian martyrdom stories on the sudden conversion and prayers/asking for forgiveness to God of Pharaoh's magician's, who are originally opponents of Moses until he shows them proof of his prophecy via a miracle in the face of a sudden and violent death as threatened by the arrogant ruler (e.g. in {{Quran-range|26|50|51}} and {{Quran-range|20|71|73}}).<ref>Neuwirth, Angelika. ''The Qur'an: Text and Commentary, Volume 2.1: Early Middle Meccan Suras: The New Elect (p. 204).'' Yale University Press. Kindle Edition.</ref> Both Jewish and Christian traditions present individual “anti-Moses” sorcerers named Jannes and Jambres, who continue to appear in later interpretations; citing Nora Schmid, she notes that, although there is no explicit textual reference and the magicians are typically depicted in a negative light, they came to be associated with penance and martyrdom in Christian tradition - in the Qurʾan, this idea is developed further: the forgiveness that Jannes and Jambres either did not receive or only partially received in earlier sources is ultimately granted.<ref>Ibid. pp. 251-252</ref>{{Quote|Neuwirth, Angelika. The Qur'an: Text and Commentary, Volume 2.1: Early Middle Meccan Suras: The New Elect (p. 204). Yale University Press. Kindle Edition.|V. 72–73 qālū lan nuʾthiraka ʿalā mā jāʾanā mina l-bayyināti wa-lladhī faṭaranā fa-qḍi mā anta qāḍin innamā taqḍī hādhihi l-ḥayāta l-dunyā / innā āmannā birabbinā li-yaghfira lanā khaṭāyānā wa-mā akrahtanā ʿalayhi mina l-siḥri wallāhu khayrun wa-abqā] Conversion scene as later in Q 26:50–51. The sorcerers renounce their allegiance to Pharaoh on the basis of the obvious evidence (bayyināt) and give preference to the Creator God, they submit to their worldly fate and hope for the forgiveness of their sins and what they have been forced to do by the ruler—they are a role model for the community, which is also subject to pressure from outside. The request for forgiveness of sins before a violent death is a topos of Christian martyr stories. The entire scene, leaving the context of ‘ancient’ Egypt, reflects the notion of Christian martyrdom stories. Khaṭāyā (singular khaṭīʾa) also lets a Syriac terminus technicus ring through, but the word can be derived from the Arabic root KhṬʿ (“to miss a goal”) (see FVQ, 123ff.). The idea of the forgiveness of sins is prominent in the Christian liturgy—not only through the Lord’s Prayer. In addition to khaṭīʾa, there is the genuine Arabic dhanb, dhunūb.}}

== Expansions on the afterlife ==

Reynolds (2020) notes the Qur’ans provides vivid depictions of hell are highly unlike the New Testament, where Jesus refers to afterlife punishment mostly allusively. The closest the Gospels describe hell is through the few images of “fire,” “wailing,” and “gnashing of teeth.”, for example in Matthew’s Parable of the Weeds, Jesus explains that at the end of the age, the Son of Man will send his angels that will cast evildoers into a fiery furnace where there will be weeping and gnashing of teeth (Matt 13:40–42).<ref>Reynolds, Gabriel Said. ''Allah: God in the Qur'an (pp. 81-82).'' Yale University Press. Kindle Edition.</ref> He notes the much more constant an vivid Qur'anic descriptions far better match later Christian works that expanded the descriptions to be more gruesome, in order to scare the reader/audience.<ref>Ibid. pp. 88.

''We might note how all of these traditions are meant to make humans yearn for paradise and fear hell. The Qur’an, from this regard, is a profoundly psychological work. Like a Christian preacher, like John Chrysostom or Saint Ephrem, the author of the Qur’an speaks of heaven and hell to persuade his audience to repent and believe. He does so in a way, however, that is distinct—emphasizing physical pain and physical pleasure in order, apparently, to make a greater impression on his audience. He puts a terrible tree into hell and young women in paradise.''
</ref>{{Quote|Reynolds, Gabriel Said. Allah: God in the Qur'an (pp. 82-83). Yale University Press. Kindle Edition.|The way that the Qur’an describes hell in particularly vivid, gruesome terms brings us back to something we mentioned in Chapter 1, namely, that the Qur’an in many ways is a “homiletic” work, a work written like a homily or sermon. The Qur’an’s intention is not simply to declare that those who disobey God will be punished, but to describe that punishment in a way which brings the awfulness of hell to life. Similarly, homilists in the early centuries of Christianity expanded dramatically on the New Testament allusions to hell. In a sermon attributed to John Chrysostom (d. 407) we read a description of hell with the sort of detail that we find in the Qur’an: It is a sea of fire—not a sea of the kind or dimensions we know here, but much larger and fiercer, with waves made of fire, fire of a strange and fearsome kind. There is a great abyss there, in fact, of terrible flames, and one can see fire rushing about on all sides like some wild animal…. There will be no one who can resist, no one who can escape: Christ’s gentle, peaceful face will be nowhere to be seen.15}}Sinai (2017) in his paper titled "''The Eschatological Kerygma of the Early Qur’an''" notes many overlap with Syriac Homilies on the afterlife as well as other apocalyptic ideas and terminology.<ref>“[https://almuslih.org/wp-content/uploads/Library/Sinai,%20N%20-%20The%20Eschatological%20Kerygma.pdf The Eschatological Kerygma of the Early Qur’an]”, Nicolai Sinai, in ''Apocalypticism and Eschatology in Late Antiquity: Encounters in the Abrahamic Religions, 6th–8th Centuries'', edited by Hagit Amirav, Emmanouela Grypeou, and Guy Stroumsa, Leuven: Peeters, 2017, 219–266.

These are discussed throughout the whole paper, and a summary can be found in pp.50-57. On heaven and hell specifically, the summary is on pp.55-57.</ref>

== Souls are taken away at night ==

The Qur'an (and traditional Islamic exegetes)<ref>See classical commentaries on these verses such as Al-Jalalayn on [https://quranx.com/Tafsir/Jalal/39.42 Q39:42], [https://quranx.com/Tafsir/Jalal/6.60 Q6:60] and Ibn Kathir on [https://quranx.com/Tafsir/Kathir/39.41 Q39:41-2] and [https://quranx.com/Tafsir/Kathir/6.60 Q6:60]</ref> state that the soul is taken away by Allah during the night.{{Quote|{{Quran|39|42}}|Allah takes the souls at the time of their death, and those who have not died, in their sleep. Then He retains those for whom He has ordained death and releases the others until a specified time. There are indeed signs in that for a people who reflect.}}{{Quote|{{Quran|6|60}}|It is He who takes your souls by night, and He knows what you do by day, then He reanimates you therein so that a specified term may be completed. Then to Him will be your return, whereat He will inform you concerning what you used to do.}}Tesei (2016) notes this idea may mimic a late antique Syriac Christian parallel in the poetical language used by Ephrem, who in the Nisibene hymns (7:15) mentions sleep resembles death, and other Christian writers (such as Babai) wrote about sleep metaphorically Jesus's death and waking up like the resurrection;<ref>Tesei, Tommaso. (2016). "[https://www.researchgate.net/publication/344524709_2_The_barzakh_and_the_Intermediate_State_of_the_Dead_in_the_Quran 2 The barzakh and the Intermediate State of the Dead in the Quran]". pp. 40-42 In Locating Hell in Islamic Traditions. Leiden, The Netherlands: Brill. <nowiki>https://doi.org/10.1163/9789004301368_003</nowiki> (Open access)

''At the same time, the Quran also compares death to the “common sleep” that people experience on a daily basis. This seems to be the case in the cryptic statement found in Q 39:42 (cf. Q 6:60), “God takes the souls at the time of their death (ḥīna mawtihā), and [He takes] that which has not died, in its sleep ( fī manāmihā); He withholds that against which He has decreed death, but sets loose the other until a stated term”. This obscure passage appears to indicate that sleep is a death-like state; sleepers resemble the dead since their souls enter into a state similar to that which they will experience at the moment of death. However, unlike the souls of the dead, which will be raised only on the Day of Resurrection, the ordinary sleeper’s soul is sent back when he awakens―that is, of course, until the time of his death. This parallel between death and “common sleep” finds a fairly close correspondence in the poetical language used by Ephrem, who in the Nisibene hymns (7:15) affirms that: “The one who lies down to sleep resembles the departed and death resembles a dream, and the resurrection the morning”. In these passages the Quran’s eschatological discourse is particularly close to that formulated by Babai, in whose ideas the belief in the soul’s sleep is intimately connected to the strong affirmation of the physical resurrection of the body on the Day of Judgment.'' </ref> with this idea taken literally by Muhammad.

== Arguments for resurrection ==
Reynolds (2020) notes the repeated argument that God can resurrect the dead using the analogy that he can bring life back to barren (or dead) land may be connected to a Jewish tradition that God will resurrect the dead with dew, for example, in b. Shabbat 88b.<ref name=":2">See: Reynolds, Gabriel Said. Allah: ''God in the Qur'an (pp. 76-77).'' Yale University Press. Kindle Edition.

And Footnote 10: Reynolds, Gabriel Said. ''Allah: God in the Qur'an (p. 254).'' Yale University Press. Kindle Edition.</ref>
{{Quote|{{Quran|30|19}}|He brings forth the living from the dead, and brings forth the dead from the living, and revives the earth after its death. Likewise, you [too] shall be raised [from the dead].}}

Cf: {{Quran|16|65}}, {{Quran|43|11}}, {{Quran|50|6-11}}, {{Quran|57|17}}

==See Also==
*[[Pre-Islamic Arab Religion in Islam]]

* [[Parallels Between the Qur'an and Late Antique Judeo-Christian Literature|Parallels Between the Qur'an and Late Antique Judeo-Christian Literature - Part 1]]
* [[Historical Errors in the Quran]]
==References==
<references />

User:CPO675/Sandbox 1

2026-02-08T09:15:20Z

CPO675: /* Flat Earth - Tafsirs */

== Flat Earth - Tafsirs ==

=== The Highest Horizon ===
The Qu'ran says Muhammad was in the highest horizon ''bil-ufuqi<ref>افق - [https://lexicon.quranic-research.net/data/01_A/103_Afq.html Lane's lexicon Classical Arabic Dictionary root: hamza fā qāf (أ ف ق)]

Horizon ''ufuq'' (أُفُق) [https://lexicon.quranic-research.net/pdf/Page_0068.pdf Lane's Lexicon p.68]

Horizon ''ufuq'' (أُفُق) [https://lexicon.quranic-research.net/pdf/Page_0069.pdf Lane's Lexicon p.69] </ref>l-aʿlā''<ref>Lanes Lexicon Classical Arabic Dictionary Root: [https://lexicon.quranic-research.net/data/18_E/190_Elw.html ʿayn lām wāw (ع ل و)]

(l-a)ʿlā [https://lexicon.quranic-research.net/pdf/Page_2142.pdf Lanes Lexicon p.2142], [https://lexicon.quranic-research.net/pdf/Page_2143.pdf Lanes Lexicon p.2143]

</ref>. Typically taken as referring to him receiving knowledge as part of his [[Buraq#The Night Journey (al-Isra wal-Mi'raj)|night journey]].
{{Quote|{{Quran|53|7}}|possessed of sound judgement. He settled, while he (was) in the horizon - the highest.}}See also: {{Quran|81|23}}

On a round Earth, there is no such place as an objective highest horizon, as once you move towards it - the perceived horizon (the furthest place you can see where the land and sky appear to meet in the distance)<ref>[https://dictionary.cambridge.org/dictionary/english/horizon Horizon Definition] Cambridge Dictionary</ref> view just moves as you circle the earth, never actually being reached. So some tafsirs have taken this to be the place where the sun rises from, in the seventh heaven, or where it reaches the Earth, such as Al-Jalalayn (cite) & Ibn 'Abbas etc, (cite) which is only possible on a flat Earth.

== The Historical Jesus ==

=== Other Traditions ===

==== Intro ====

Alongside the main consensus from Biblical Scholars/Historians that Jesus was an eschatological preacher in the early first century AD who believed the Earth would end during his time (and therefore couldn't be the Muslim Jesus), there are many other of the most considered authentic teachings of Jesus that clash with Islam; in contrast with the Qur'anic principle of Messenger Uniformitarianism; where all messengers preach essentially the same thing with only minor variations.<ref>Durie, Mark. ''The Qur’an and Its Biblical Reflexes: Investigations into the Genesis of a Religion (pp. 135-142) (Kindle Edition pp. 281-294)''. 5.3 Messenger Uniformitarianism. Lexington Books. 2018.</ref>
{{Quote|{{Quran|41|43}}|Not is said to you except what was said to the Messengers before you. Indeed, your Lord (is) Possessor (of) forgiveness, and Possessor (of) penalty painful.}}{{Quote|{{Quran|2|285}}|The Apostle and the faithful have faith in what has been sent down to him from his Lord. Each [of them] has faith in Allah, His angels, His scriptures and His apostles. [They declare,] ‘We make no distinction between any of His apostles.’ And they say, ‘We hear and obey. Our Lord, forgive us, and toward You is the return.’}}

{{Quote|{{Quran|17|77}}|“This was the sunnah [customary way] of Our messengers whom We sent before you, and you will find no change in Our sunnah”}}cf. {{Quran|6|112}}, {{Quran|35|43}}, {{Quran|22|78}}.

Other than being explicitly told that messengers bring the same message from Allah, Durie (2018) notes the Qur'an repeatedly states that Muhammad was sent to confirm the revelations given to earlier messengers (Q2:91, 97; Q3:3, 50; Q5:48; Q12:111; Q16:43–44; Q35:31), just as each prophet before him confirmed those who came earlier. For example, Jesus (ʿĪsa) confirmed the Torah of Moses (Mūsa) (Q5:46), and the Qurʾan confirms the scriptures revealed to previous prophets (Q4:47). In this way, Muhammad’s role continues the same pattern of reaffirming earlier divine messages rather than introducing a completely new one.<ref>Durie, Mark. ''The Qur’an and Its Biblical Reflexes: Investigations Into the Genesis of a Religion.'' pp.140</ref>

{{Quote|Durie, Mark. The Qur'an and it's Biblical Reflexes. pp.140|• It is also explicitly asserted that messengers bring the same message
from Alla¯h: “Nothing is said to you but what has already been said to
messengers before you” (Q41:43; Q22:78) and “we make no distinction
between any of them” (Q2:136). They also preached the same dīn “commandment” or “religion” (Q42:13; cf. Q3:84; Q4:150), which is referred
to as the “religion of Ibra¯hīm” (Q2:130; Q4:125; Q16:121–23). The
validating function of this idea becomes clear when it is applied against
a group of Jews who reject the concept of the “same message” because
it would mean validating the Messenger. These Jews hold to their own
faith, saying “we believe in what has been sent down on us,” but they
reject the Messenger, or “anything after that” (Q2:91). The ruling against
these Jews is that because they reject the Messenger, they are disbelievers,
rejecting “what All a¯ h has sent down” (Q2:91).31 The idea of the “same message” is further reinforced when the Qurʾan repeatedly states that the Messenger was only sent to confirm what was sent down by previous
messengers (Q2:91, 97; Q3:3, 50; Q5:48; Q12:111; Q16:43–44; Q35:31),
just as previous messengers had done for messengers that preceded them,
for example, ʿĪsa¯ “confirmed” the Tawra¯ h of Mūsa¯(Q5:46), and the Qurʾan
confirms the book(s) sent by previous prophets (Q4:47), just as the Messenger has been doing in his turn.}}
The large differences between the New Testament / Gospels (and by extension the Christian Jesus), and the [[Isa al-Masih (Jesus Christ)|Muslim Jesus,]] are clear to anyone who has read both the Qur'an and NT; with the Qur'an having it's own spin on him and taking many aspects from apocrypha considered inauthentic by NT scholars,<ref>Sanders, E.. ''The Historical Figure of Jesus (pp. 78-79)''. Penguin Books Ltd. Kindle Edition.

..(Gnosticism was a world view that held everything material to be evil; the god who created the world was a bad god, and the creation was wicked. Gnostics who were also Christians held that the good God had sent Jesus to redeem people’s souls, not their bodies, and that Jesus was not a real human being. The Christians who objected to these views finally declared them heretical.) ''I share the general scholarly view that very, very little in the apocryphal gospels could conceivably go back to the time of Jesus. They are legendary and mythological. Of all the apocryphal material, only some of the sayings in the Gospel of Thomas are worth consideration.'' This does not mean that we can make a clean division: the historical four gospels versus the legendary apocryphal gospels. There are legendary traits in the four gospels in the New Testament, and there is also a certain amount of newly created material (as we saw just above)..</ref> and [[Parallels Between the Qur'an and Late Antique Judeo-Christian Literature|later Christian thought/writings]], and have lead to many Muslims arguing for biblical corruption based on textual and theological grounds [though textual don't affect most early & authentic traditions] in general, which is a disputed idea in traditional Islamic thought (cite - Reynolds article. See also: [[Corruption of Previous Scriptures]] & [[Qur'an, Hadith and Scholars:Corruption of Previous Scriptures]])

Historians have searched for a summary of some of the most likely authentic traditions from Biblical historians (using historical-critical methods not Christian or Muslim theologians - more likely to be true and not taken from bias or proving or disproving Islam but historical context, widespread across sources, early - cite Allison explanation - Why - different to time and context, unlikely to be fabricated later by Christians, across all early sources etc.) are shown here as an example of the clashes. [Point: not arguing against Christian Jesus - but secular historians one]

==== Examples ====
{{Quote|Dale C. Allison Jr.. The Historical Christ and the Theological Jesus (Kindle Locations 822-836). Kindle Edition.|2=Given that we typically remember the outlines of an event or the general purport of a conversation rather than the particulars and that we extract patterns and meaning from our memories, it makes little sense to open the quest for Jesus by evaluating individual items with our criteria, in the hope that some bits preserve pristine memory. We should rather be looking for repeating patterns and contemplating the big picture. true. We should trust first, if we are to trust at all, what is most likely to be trustworthy. Although we may, after reading Thucydides, be confident that there was a Peloponnesian War, we may well wonder about many of the details of his account.

The larger the generalization and the more data upon which it is based, the greater our confidence; the more specific the detail and the fewer the data supporting it, the more room we have for doubt. With regard to the sources for Jesus, the traditional criteria of authenticity privilege the parts over the whole. It seems more prudent to privilege generalizations drawn from the whole than to concentrate upon one individual item after another. As a demonstration of how this works in practice, consider the following traditions:

• Jesus prohibited divorce: 1 Cor. 7:10; Mark 10:2-9; Luke 16:18. [Qur'an divorce rules - https://wikiislam.net/wiki/Khula] 

• Jesus sent forth missionaries without staff, food, or money: Matt. 10:9-10; Mark 6:8-9; Luke 10:4.

• Jesus instructed missionaries to get their living by the gospel: 1 Cor. 9:14; Matt. 10:10; Luke 10:7.

• Jesus commanded loving and doing good to enemies: Matt. 5:38-48; Luke 6:27-36. [Qur'an do not be merciful to unbelievers https://wikiislam.net/wiki/Qur%27an,_Hadith_and_Scholars:Non-Muslims & https://wikiislam.net/wiki/Kafir_(Infidel)#Guidelines_on_how_to_deal_with_disbelievers Quran 48:29 ]

• Jesus forbade judging others: Matt. 7:1-2; Luke 6:37-38.

• Jesus asked a prospective follower not to bury his father: Matt. 8:21-22; 22; Luke 959-60.

• Jesus spoke of hating one's father and mother: Matt. 10:37; Luke 14:26; Gospel of Thomas 55, 101. [respect parents - too tenuous]

• Jesus enjoined disciples to take up a cross: Matt. 10:38; Mark 8:34; Luke 14:27.

• Jesus enjoined unlimited forgiveness: Matt. 18:21-22; Luke 17:3-4. [forgiveness against shirk - Qur'an says no Q4:48 and 4:116. ]

• Jesus exhorted hearers to lose their lives in order to save them: Matt. 10:39; Mark 8:35; Luke 17:33.

• Jesus called people away from their livelihoods: Mark 1:16-20; 2:14. [?]

• Jesus figuratively demanded violent removal of hand, foot, and eye: Mark 9:42-48.

• Jesus asked a wealthy man to relinquish his money: Mark 10:17-27. [bring in wealth inequality section of Islam darajat - here]

• Jesus forbade taking oaths: Matt. 5:33-37. [https://www.iium.edu.my/deed/lawbase/risalah_maliki/book31.html#:~:text=Anyone%20who%20swears%20an%20oath,Oneness%2C%20timelessness%20and%20existence.%5D]

• Jesus commanded money to be lent without interest: Matt. 5:42; Gospel of Thomas 95.

• Jesus called some to a life without marriage: Matt. 19:11-12. [Qur'an criticism of monasticism]

• Jesus asked a prospective follower not to say farewell to his parents: Luke 9:61-62. [respect parents?]

• Jesus asked his disciples to renounce all of their possessions: Luke 14:33"}}
<nowiki>--------------------------------------------------</nowiki>

[ highlight those being spoken about in italics or bold]

Professor Allison (2009) notes that Jesus' banning divorce was an important teaching that <s>stood out</s> to early Christians, [https://www.biblegateway.com/passage/?search=Luke%2016%3A18&version=NIV Luke 16:18], [https://www.biblegateway.com/passage/?search=1%20Corinthians%207%3A10-16&version=NIV 1 Corinthians 7:10-16], [https://www.biblegateway.com/passage/?search=Mark%2010%3A2-9&version=NIV Mark 10:2-9], in contrast to Judaism ([https://www.biblegateway.com/passage/?search=Deuteronomy%2024%3A1-4&version=NIV Deuteronomy 24:1-4]) and Islam e.g. Quran 2:228-232, Q65:1-7, (Q4:19 https://quranx.com/hadiths/4.19 & Q4:35), Q33:49 )

He notes that Jesus commanded loving and doing good to enemies in [https://www.biblegateway.com/passage/?search=Matthew%205%3A38-48&version=NIV Matt. 5:38-48]; [https://www.biblegateway.com/passage/?search=Luke%206%3A27-36&version=NIV Luke 6:27-36], while the Qur'an generally advises treating other Muslims well, it specifically states not to be merciful to unbelievers Q48:29. [ For more examples of not being merciful to unbelievers, let alone 'enemies' see: '''[[Qur'an, Hadith and Scholars:Non-Muslims|https://wikiislam.net/wiki/Qur%27an,_Hadith_and_Scholars:Non-Muslims]] & [[Kafir (Infidel)#Guidelines%20on%20how%20to%20deal%20with%20disbelievers|https://wikiislam.net/wiki/Kafir_(Infidel)#Guidelines_on_how_to_deal_with_disbelievers]] Quran 48:29 ]'''

• Jesus enjoined unlimited forgiveness: [https://www.biblegateway.com/passage/?search=Matthew%2018%3A21-22&version=NIV Matt. 18:21-22]; [https://www.biblegateway.com/passage/?search=Luke%2017%3A3-4&version=NIV Luke 17:3-4]. However the Qur'an distinctly says there is no forgiveness for anyone committing shirk (ascribing partners to God) in {{Quran|4|48}} and {{Quran|4|116}}.

He notes Jesus called some to a life without marriage: [https://www.biblegateway.com/passage/?search=Matthew%2019%3A11-12&version=NIV Matt. 19:11-12], while the Qur'an promotes it as a virtue encouraging those to do so.

Marriage is a virtue https://www.getquranic.com/marriage-in-islam-8-quranic-verses-about-marriage/

{{Quote|{{Quran|24|32}}|Marry off those who are single among you, and the upright among your male and female slaves. If they are poor, Allah will enrich them out of His grace, and Allah is all-bounteous, all-knowing.}}

And criticizes monasticism/monks, with celibacy and no marriage being a key aspect<ref>[https://www.britannica.com/topic/monasticism Monasticism] | religion | Britannica Entry</ref> in general

{{Quote|Reynolds, Gabriel Said. Christianity and the Qur'an: The Rise of Islam in Christian Arabia (pp. 131-132). Yale University Press. Kindle Edition.|These verses critical of monks are often read together with Q 57:27, which, while praising certain positive qualities of Christians, also seems to accuse Christians of “innovating” monasticism: Then We sent, following in their footsteps, Our Messengers; and We sent, following, Jesus son of Mary, and gave unto him the Gospel. And We set in the hearts of those who followed him tenderness and mercy. And monasticism they invented—We did not prescribe it for them—only seeking the good pleasure of God; but they observed it not as it should be observed. So We gave those of them who believed their wage; and many of them are ungodly.}}

Criticism of monasticism (https://www.britannica.com/topic/monasticism) - lack of marriage for monks (though admittedly also praises monks in general elsewhere pp130-132)<ref>Reynolds, Gabriel Said. ''Christianity and the Qur'an: The Rise of Islam in Christian Arabia (pp. 130-132).'' Yale University Press. Kindle Edition.</ref>

{{Quote|{{Quran|57|27}}|Then We sent on their footsteps Our Messengers and We followed with Isa, son (of) Maryam, and We gave him the Injeel. And We placed in (the) hearts (of) those who followed him compassion and mercy. But monasticism they innovated - not We prescribed it for them - only seeking (the) pleasure (of) Allah, but not they observed it (with) right observance. So We gave those who believed among them their reward, but most of them (are) defiantly disobediently.}}

<nowiki>-----------------------------------------------------------------</nowiki>

==== Father-son relationship ====
{{Quote|Dale C. Allison Jr.. The Historical Christ and the Theological Jesus (Kindle Location 841-848). Kindle Edition.|2=Working through the tradition in the way I suggest leads to a large number of conclusions. Jesus must have been an exorcist who interpreted his ministry in terms of Satan's downfall. He must have thought highly of John the Baptist. He must have repeatedly spoken of God as Father. [Durie differences in metaphor and understanding of relationship from Hebrew to Arab society = markedly different] He must have composed parables. He must have come into conflict with religious authorities. All of this may seem obvious, but the procedure is not trite, for it also issues in some controversial verdicts. As I have argued elsewhere, for example, ample, the quantity of conventional eschatological material in our primary sources almost necessitates that Jesus was an eschatological prophet.' The reconstruction of Robert Funk and the Jesus Seminar is for this reason alone problematic. Even more controversial is what my approach leads me to infer about Jesus' self-conception. Consider these Synoptic materials:

• Jesus said that the Son of man will return on the clouds of heaven and send angels to gather the elect from throughout the world: Mark 13:26-27; cf. 14:62; Matt. 10:23 (allusions to Daniel 7's depiction of the last judgment are clear). [the son of man plays no part in Islam]}}Allison (2009) notes that Jesus must have repeatedly referred to God as 'father', a way also used by many ancient Jews to describe their relationship to god, also found in the old testament with different metaphorical meanings<ref>Pennington, J.T. "Chapter Nine. God As Father In The Old Testament And Second Temple Literature". ''Heaven and Earth in the Gospel of Matthew''. Leiden, The Netherlands: Brill, 2007. <nowiki>https://doi.org/10.1163/ej.9789004162051.i-399.57</nowiki> Web.</ref> and Talmudic writings with paternal imagery. <ref>Knobnya, S.. (2011). ''God the Father in the Old Testament. European Journal of Theology.'' 20. 139-148. </ref><ref>[https://www.myjewishlearning.com/article/fatherhood-of-god/ Fatherhood of God] | Sages & Scholars | Rabbi Louis Jacobs | My Jewish Learning</ref>

===== Slave-master relationship =====
However this father-son Hebrew metaphorical relationship Jesus used is distinctly abandoned, instead using other things (other metaphors) in Arab society to describe the relationship between humans and God, such as a slave-master relationship,<ref>Durie, Mark. ''The Qur’an and Its Biblical Reflexes: Investigations into the Genesis of a Religion (pp. XX-XX) (pp. 107-110 Kindle Edition)''. 4.1.1. Shirk - Proprietary Partnership. Lexington Books. 2018.</ref> a Patron - Protege (needs explanation of what this is) <ref>Durie, Mark. ''The Qur’an and Its Biblical Reflexes: Investigations into the Genesis of a Religion (pp. XX-XX) (pp. 110-111 Kindle Edition)''. 4.1.2. Shirk - Patron - Protege Relationships. Lexington Books. 2018.</ref>. with Muhammad having strongly condemned the idea that God could have offspring against the unscripted pagans (mushrikun) taking angels as daughters of god early on chronologically of the Qur'an's first recitations, then later against God having a son against Jesus being the son of God.<ref>Durie, Mark. ''The Qur’an and Its Biblical Reflexes: Investigations into the Genesis of a Religion (pp. XX-XX) (pp. 112-113 Kindle Edition)''. 4.1.5 A Polemical Doctrine. Lexington Books. 2018.</ref>

Slave analogy Dure Print edition pp108 - 110 summary:<ref name=":1">Durie, Mark. ''The Qur’an and Its Biblical Reflexes: Investigations into the Genesis of a Religion (pp. 108-110) (pp. XX-XX Kindle Edition)''. 4.1.5 A Polemical Doctrine. Lexington Books. 2018.</ref> Before its theological use, the Arabic root ''sh-r-k'' referred to ordinary '''partnership or shared ownership'''. The Qurʾan draws on this everyday meaning to illustrate why associating partners with God is impossible. Using the metaphor of '''a master and a slave''', the Qurʾan argues that just as a slave with multiple masters suffers confusion and conflict, attributing partners to God creates an impossible and chaotic situation. This logic appears in verses such as Q39:29 and others that argue multiple gods would lead to conflict and the ruin of creation (Q23:91; Q21:22).<ref name=":1" />
{{Quote|{{Quran|39|29}}|Allah presents a parable, “a man was owned by several quarreling partners
(shurakaʾ), and a man was the slave of (just) one man. Are the two equal?”}}

The Qurʾan’s use of the slave-master metaphor differs from Jesus’ teaching in the New Testament. Whereas Jesus uses it to highlight divided human devotion, the Qurʾan uses it to assert the logical impossibility of multiple divine authorities.<ref name=":1" />

{{Quote|Luke 16:13; cf. Matthew. 6:24|No slave can serve two masters; for a slave will either hate the one and love the
other, or be devoted to the one and despise the other. You cannot serve God and wealth.}}

Shirk encompasses various forms of error: attributing partners or helpers to God, believing He needs allies, or seeking aid from others besides Him. The Qurʾan also explores God’s unity through three social analogies relevant to Arabian society: '''patron–protégé relationships''', '''alliances of mutual help''', and '''relationships of equal or unequal status'''.<ref name=":1" />

===== '''Patron–protégé relationships''' =====
The Qur'an distinctly ignores the father-son relationship (and theology) metaphor by using another term that is harder to translate

Explanation of what this is Durie pp.110-111:<ref name=":3">Durie, Mark. ''The Qur’an and Its Biblical Reflexes: Investigations into the Genesis of a Religion (pp. 110-111) (pp. XX-XX Kindle Edition)''. 4.1.5 A Polemical Doctrine. Lexington Books. 2018.</ref> The Qurʾan uses terms from the root '''w-l-y''' to describe '''patron–protégé relationships''', alliances, and guardianship. The key term '''walī''' can mean ally, protector, guardian, or patron, and may indicate either symmetrical alliances or asymmetrical power relationships.<ref name=":3" /><ref>[https://lexicon.quranic-research.net/data/27_w/219_wle.html Root: ''wāw lām yā'' (و ل ي)] - Lane's Lexicon Qur'anic Research

See Lane's Lexicon Classical Arabic Dictionary [https://lexicon.quranic-research.net/pdf/Page_3060.pdf pp.3060] & [https://lexicon.quranic-research.net/pdf/Page_3061.pdf pp.3061] </ref>

In pre-Islamic Arab society, such patronage was essential for protection, as shown by the example of Muḥammad being safeguarded by his uncle Abū Ṭālib. Without a patron, a person was vulnerable.<ref name=":3" /> [in the sirah of Ibn Ishaq]

The Qurʾan emphasizes that '''God has no need of any patron''' and that '''humans should recognize God alone as their walī'''. Seeking any protector besides God is considered '''shirk'''. Believers may take other believers and the Prophet as allies (''awliyāʾ'') alongside God, but not in place of Him.<ref name=":3" />

As the Muslim community developed, especially after what the passage calls the ''Eschatological Transition''—the Qurʾan increasingly stressed exclusive allegiance to God. This served to detach believers from prior tribal or familial loyalties that could compromise their commitment to the faith community.<ref name=":3" />

- and calls for help-

===== Unequal status vs Jesus' views on Wealth =====
Sinai - darajah passage

And inequality in general - inc. the afterlife

=== Punishment narratives ===

==== Punishment BEFORE the day of judgement ====
We are told the sole exception in history was the unnamed town<ref>Unnamed in the Qur'an, though identified as Nineveh (in modern day Iraq) as in the Biblical "Book of Jonah" by Islamic exegetes; e.g. see [https://quranx.com/tafsirs/37.147 tafsirs on Q37:147]</ref> of more than 100,000 people that the messenger Yūnus (Jonah) when the warning was heeded in full by the entire people, and therefore punishment averted ({{Quran|10|98}}, {{Quran|37|147-148}}) “no town believed . . . except the people of Yūnus”<ref>Durie, Mark. 2018. ''The Qur'an and Its Biblical Reflexes: Investigations Into the Genesis of a Religion. pp 49. Kindle Edition pp 151.''</ref>

How many a town defied the command of its Lord and His apostles, then We called it to a severe account and punished it with a dire punishment. Q65:8

So it tasted the evil consequences of its conduct, and the outcome of its conduct was ruin. Q65:9

How many generations that had far more wealth and ostentation have We laid low before them! <<nowiki>https://quranx.com/19.74</nowiki>>

Say, ‘Whoever abides in error, the All-beneficent shall prolong his respite until they sight what they have been promised: either punishment, or the Hour.’ Then they will know whose position is worse, and whose host is weaker <<nowiki>https://quranx.com/19.75</nowiki>>

------

Q34:16 - flood of the damn of Yemen / Saba', the people of Sheba E.g. <ref>See tafsirs on [https://quranx.com/Tafsirs/34.14 Q34:14], [https://quranx.com/Tafsirs/34.15 Q34:15] & [https://quranx.com/Tafsirs/34.16 Q34:16]</ref> {{Quran|34|14-16}}

{{Quote|{{Quran|34|14-16}}|And when We decreed for Solomon death, nothing indicated to the jinn his death except a creature of the earth eating his staff. But when he fell, it became clear to the jinn that if they had known the unseen, they would not have remained in humiliating punishment.
Certainly, (there) was for Saba in their dwelling place a sign: Two gardens on (the) right and (on the) left. "Eat from (the) provision (of) your Lord and be grateful to Him. A land good and a Lord Oft-Forgiving."
But they turned away, so We sent upon them (the) flood (of) the dam, and We changed for them their two gardens (with) two gardens producing fruit bitter, and tamarisks and (some)thing of lote trees few.}}
, {{Quran|65|8-9}}, {{Quran|19|74-75}}

Add: 34:15–21: The punishment of the people of Sheba, without explicit reference to a messenger. Sheba reference <ref>Marshall, David. ''God, Muhammad and the Unbelievers (p. 73).'' Taylor & Francis. Kindle Edition.</ref>

=== Surah 36 ===
Similarly an unnamed town is sent three messengers in {{Quran|36|13-32}}, who's identities have differed in traditional Islamic scholarship,<ref>E.g. see commentaries on [https://quranx.com/Tafsirs/36.13 Q36:13] & [https://quranx.com/tafsirs/36.14 Q36:14], and the later verses in the story, cited as a parable ''(mathal).''</ref> are rejected and so are killed with a cry/shout (''ṣayḥatan)'' ({{Quran|36|29}}). <ref>Marshall, David. ''God, Muhammad and the Unbelievers (p. 63 & 72).'' Taylor & Francis. Kindle Edition.</ref>
{{Quote|Marshall, David. God, Muhammad and the Unbelievers (p. 72). Taylor & Francis. Kindle Edition.|36:13–32: Described as a parable (mathal, v.13), but in outline very similar to the punishment-narratives. The messengers (two of them, reinforced with a third) and the town in which they preach are anonymous. ‘A man from the furthest part of the city’ (v.20) exhorts his people to follow the messengers.}}

== Contradiction ==
The order in Surah 2 has the Jews struck by a lightening bolt after they worship the golden calf, who are then forgiven by Allah by being resurrected.
{{Quote|{{Quran|2|50-67}}|And when We parted the sea with you, and We delivered you and drowned Pharaoh’s clan as you looked on. 
And when We made an appointment with Moses for forty nights, you took up the Calf [for worship] in his absence, and you were wrongdoers. 
Then We excused you after that so that you might give thanks. 
And when We gave Moses the Book and the Criterion so that you might be guided. 
And [recall] when Moses said to his people, ‘O my people! You have indeed wronged yourselves by taking up the Calf [for worship]. Now turn penitently to your Maker, and slay [the guilty among] your folks. That will be better for you with your Maker.’ Then He turned to you clemently. Indeed, He is the All-clement, the All-merciful. 
And when you said, ‘O Moses, we will not believe you until we see Allah visibly.’ Thereupon a thunderbolt seized you as you looked on.
Then We raised you up after your death so that you might give thanks. /n
We shaded you with clouds, and sent down to you manna and quails [saying]: ‘Eat of the good things We have provided for you.’ And they did not wrong Us, but they used to wrong [only] themselves. 
And when We said, ‘Enter this town, and eat thereof freely whencesoever you wish, and enter while prostrating at the gate, and say, ‘‘Relieve [us of the burden of our sins],’’ so that We may forgive your iniquities and We will soon enhance the virtuous.’ 
But the wrongdoers changed the saying with other than what they were told. So We sent down on those who were wrongdoers a plague from the sky because of the transgressions they used to commit. 
And when Moses prayed for water for his people, We said, ‘Strike the rock with your staff.’ Thereat twelve fountains gushed forth from it; every tribe came to know its drinking-place. ‘Eat and drink of Allah’s provision, and do not act wickedly on the earth, causing corruption.’ 
And when you said, ‘O Moses, ‘We will not put up with one kind of food. So invoke your Lord for us, so that He may bring forth for us of that which the earth grows—its greens and cucumbers, its garlic, lentils, and onions.’ He said, ‘Do you seek to replace what is superior with that which is inferior? Go down to any town and you will indeed get what you ask for!’ So they were struck with abasement and poverty, and they earned Allah’s wrath. That, because they would deny the signs of Allah and kill the prophets unjustly. That, because they would disobey and commit transgressions. 
Indeed the faithful, the Jews, the Christians and the Sabaeans—those of them who have faith in Allah and the Last Day and act righteously—they shall have their reward from their Lord, and they will have no fear, nor will they grieve. 
And when We took a pledge from you, and raised the Mount above you, [declaring], ‘Hold on with power to what We have given you and remember that which is in it so that you may be Godwary.’ 
Again you turned away after that; and were it not for Allah’s grace on you and His mercy, you would have surely been among the losers. 
And certainly you know those of you who violated the Sabbath, whereupon We said to them, ‘Be you spurned apes.’ 
So We made it an exemplary punishment for the present and the succeeding [generations], and an advice to the Godwary.}}
In Surah 4 they are struck before they worship the calf. 4:153 specifically says 'then' ''(thumma)''

{{Quote|{{Quran|4|153-161}}|The People of the Book ask you to bring down for them a Book from the sky. Certainly they asked Moses for [something] greater than that, for they said, ‘Show us Allah visibly,’ whereat a thunderbolt seized them for their wrongdoing. Then they took up the Calf [for worship], after all the manifest proofs that had come to them. Yet We excused that, and We gave Moses a manifest authority. 
And We raised the Mount above them for the sake of their covenant, and We said to them, ‘Enter the gate prostrating’ and We said to them, ‘Do not violate the Sabbath,’ and We took from them a solemn covenant. 
Then because of their breaking their covenant, their defiance of Allah’s signs, their killing of the prophets unjustly and for their saying, ‘Our hearts are uncircumcised’… Indeed, Allah has set a seal on them for their unfaith, so they do not have faith except a few. 
And for their faithlessness, and their uttering a monstrous calumny against Mary, 
and for their saying, ‘We killed the Messiah, Jesus son of Mary, the apostle of Allah’—though they did not kill him nor did they crucify him, but so it was made to appear to them. Indeed those who differ concerning him are surely in doubt about him: they do not have any knowledge of that beyond following conjectures, and certainly, they did not kill him. 
Indeed, Allah raised him up toward Himself, and Allah is all-mighty, all-wise. 
There is none among the People of the Book but will surely believe in him before his death; and on the Day of Resurrection, he will be a witness against them. 
Due to the wrongdoing of the Jews, We prohibited them certain good things that were permitted to them [earlier], and for their barring many [people] from the way of Allah, 
and for their taking usury—though they had been forbidden from it—and for eating up the wealth of the people wrongfully. And We have prepared for the faithless among them a painful punishment. }}

=== V2 ===
Surah 4 (summarized version)

1) They ask Moses for a sign and are hit with a thunderbolt

2) They then take up the calf for worship

3) The mountain is raised above them{{Quote|{{Quran|4|153-154}}|The People of the Book ask you to bring down for them a Book from the sky. Certainly they asked Moses for [something] greater than that, for they said, ‘Show us Allah visibly,’ whereat a thunderbolt seized them for their wrongdoing. Then they took up the Calf [for worship], after all the manifest proofs that had come to them. Yet We excused that, and We gave Moses a manifest authority. 
And We raised the Mount above them for the sake of their covenant, and We said to them, ‘Enter the gate prostrating’ and We said to them, ‘Do not violate the Sabbath,’ and We took from them a solemn covenant.}}Surah 2
1) They worshiped the calf. And Moses tells them to slay the guilty among them.

2) They are hit by a thunderbolt - is it chronological?

3) ... a mountain is lifted above them
{{Quote|{{Quran|2|51-56}}|And when We made an appointment with Moses for forty nights, you took up the Calf [for worship] in his absence, and you were wrongdoers. 
Then We excused you after that so that you might give thanks. 
And when We gave Moses the Book and the Criterion so that you might be guided. 
And [recall] when Moses said to his people, ‘O my people! You have indeed wronged yourselves by taking up the Calf [for worship]. Now turn penitently to your Maker, and slay [the guilty among] your folks. That will be better for you with your Maker.’ Then He turned to you clemently. Indeed, He is the All-clement, the All-merciful. 
And when you said, ‘O Moses, we will not believe you until we see Allah visibly.’ Thereupon a thunderbolt seized you as you looked on.
Then We raised you up after your death so that you might give thanks.}}
== The Lote Tree of the utmost Boundary (Sid'rati al-Muntahā) ==
Lote tree's are a real type of tree (Ziziphus spina-christi) native to Arabia and the Middle East.<ref>[https://www.suewickison.com/products/lote-tree?srsltid=AfmBOorj_RU2x1OPxgfRe689M2TWw1g4uZTQLkpSolPGYnIatiIe7h6K Lote Tree | Sidr | Ziziphus spina-christi |] Plants of the Qur'an | Sue Wickison </ref> Different to the tree of eternity/immortality ''(shajarati ul-khul'di)'' in paradise ''jannah,'' the Qur'an mentions The Lote Tree (sidr) of ''the utmost boundary (al-muntahā)''<ref>مُنْتَهَىٰ - [https://lexicon.quranic-research.net/pdf/Page_3029.pdf Lane's Lexicon pp.3029]

</ref> near (but notably not in) the 'garden of abode', said to be 'covered' yaghshā by something unspecified in Q53:16, typically taken by exegetes to mean by angels, light and/or golden animals.<ref>E.g. see [https://quranx.com/Tafsirs/53.16 Tafsirs on Q53:16]</ref>

{{Quote|{{Quran|53|13-17}}|And certainly he saw him (in) descent another,
Near (the) Lote Tree (of) the utmost boundary,
Near it (is the) Garden (of) Abode.
when there covered the Lote Tree what covered it.
Not swerved the sight and not it transgressed.}}

This furthest boundary/limit is said in the hadith, to place the cosmic tree in the sixth heaven, where even celestial creatures cannot go beyond as the limit of creation; said to be seen by Muhammad in his Night Journey (mi’rāj) on the [[:en:Buraq|Buraq]] (E.g. {{Muslim|1|329}}, {{Al Tirmidhi|2=5|3=44|4=3276}}, {{Bukhari|5|58|227}} & {{Al Nasai|2=1|3=5|4=452}}), and by many Islamic exegetes.<ref>See [https://quranx.com/tafsirs/53.14 tafsirs on Q53:14]</ref>

This would align the cosmology of Islamic traditions supporting the idea that paradise (and therefore the garden of the abode) is in the seventh heaven,<ref>[https://islamqa.info/en/answers/215011/where-are-paradise-and-hell#Where_is_Paradise Where is Paradise] | [https://islamqa.info/en/answers/215011/where-are-paradise-and-hell Where Are Paradise and Hell?] | 07/January/2015 islamqa</ref> while some traditions support the idea that paradise is above the seventh heaven,<ref>[https://www.islamweb.net/en/fatwa/107126/the-location-of-paradise-now#:~:text=Paradise%20that%20Allaah%20promised%20for,are%20many%20texts%20proving%20this. The location of Paradise now] | Paradise and Hell | Belief in the Hereafter | Islamic Creed | Fatwa | islamweb.net </ref> both placing the tree relatively close to jannah. However others suggest that this specific ''garden of the abode (jannatu l-mawā)'' is a separate garden/paradise to the eternal one all righteous Muslims will eventually enter, being instead one where martyrs (those killed in war or for their religion) go before judgement day.<ref>E.g. see [https://quranx.com/Tafsirs/53.15 tafsirs on Q53:15]</ref>

Either way there is no evidence of a celestial tree, which must be magic to survive outside of an Earthly plant ecosystem, but is rather an example of tree mythology.
----
----

(See also: <nowiki>https://sunnah.com/mishkat:5865</nowiki> & https://sunnah.com/mishkat:5640, ) read; https://quranx.com/tafsirs/53.14 - exegetes also confirm this is where boundary is the boundary of the skies/heavens where things other than God cannot pass (at least until judgement day where paradise and hell can be entered).

AND Similarly seen next to the 4 main Near-East rivers (Nile, Euphratesm Tigres,) <nowiki>https://sunnah.com/bukhari:5610</nowiki>, which area said to flow from paradise: <nowiki>https://quranx.com/Hadith/Bukhari/USC-MSA/Volume-5/Book-58/Hadith-227/</nowiki> )

cite: [https://www.islamweb.net/en/fatwa/107126/the-location-of-paradise-now#:~:text=Paradise%20that%20Allaah%20promised%20for,are%20many%20texts%20proving%20this. https://www.islamweb.net/en/fatwa/107126/the-location-of-paradise-now#:~:text=Paradise%20that%20Allaah%20promised%20for,are%20many%20texts%20proving%20this.]

The utmost boundary at the end of t heavens confirmed by exegetes in https://quranx.com/tafsirs/53.14

" Jannat al-ma'va' literally means "the Jannat (Garden) that is to be an abode. " Hadrat Hasan Basri says that this is the same Jannat which the believers and righteous will be given in the Hereafter, and from this same verse he has argued that that Jannat is in the heavens. Qatadah says that this is the Jannat in which the souls of the martyrs are kept; it does not imply the Jannat that is to be given in the Hereafter. Ibn 'Abbas also says the same but adds that the Jannat to be granted to the believers in the Hereafter is not in the heavens but here on the earth.

== Parallels Between the Qur'an and Late Antique Judeo-Christian Literature - Part 2 ==
Following on from [[Parallels Between the Qur'an and Late Antique Judeo-Christian Literature|Part 1]], this is Part 2 of Late Antique Judeo-Christian Literature found in the Qur'an. This material, drawing heavily on rabbinical commentaries on the bible, and late Syriac Christian thought found in homilies, was created far later than the biblical cannon; no-where near the time of the events that occurred. This suggests the stories were transmitted in an oral millennia along with local Arabian traditions<ref>Bannister, Andrew G.. ''An Oral-Formulaic Study of the Qur'an (Kindle Location 249-259 in Chapter 1.2 The Biblicist Roots of the Iblis and Adam Story).'' Bloomsbury Publishing. Kindle Edition.

..When the Qur’an emerged in the seventh-century, it did so in an oral culture in which Biblicist traditions were freely circulating and thus there existed a large pool of commonly known stories and traditions to fish from; a pool in which stories could cross-fertilize and influence one another. 23 It is this, more than direct borrowing that perhaps best explains stories like Iblis and Adam as well as other qur’anic tellings of older tales, such as the Seven Sleepers (Q. 18: 9– 25) 24 and the Legend of Alexander (Dhu al-Qarnayn, Q. 18: 83– 101). 25 The Qur’an originates from a milieu in which Biblicist material was well-known to the first audience of the Qur’an; even a simple allusion to a story was often enough to trigger a connection for the hearer. 26 That Biblicist material has been filtered through storytelling rather than simply copied from a written text is further suggested by what the Qur’an leaves out; no minor prophets are referenced, probably because almost no Old Testament narratives feature them nor did the rabbinic literature weave lengthy tales about them. 27 The exception which proves the rule is Jonah (Q. 21: 87– 88; 37: 139– 148; 68: 48– 50), whose short but dramatic story was extremely popular in both Jewish and Christian contexts.28..

And: Bannister, Andrew G.. ''An Oral-Formulaic Study of the Qur'an (Kindle Locations 1391-1392. Chapter 2.3 The Islamic Tradition and Orality).'' Bloomsbury Publishing. Kindle Edition.</ref> where biblical and much later Jewish and Christian stories could be commonly mixed without the new community realizing.
== The story of Noah ==
The prophet Noah is portrayed extremely differently to the one in Genesis,<ref>Segovia, Carlos A.. ''[https://almuslih.org/wp-content/uploads/2024/12/Segovia-C-The-Quranic-Noah-and-the-Making-of-the-Islamic-Prophet.pdf The Quranic Noah and the Making of the Islamic Prophet: A Study of Intertextuality and Religious Identity Formation in Late Antiquity]'', Berlin, München, Boston: De Gruyter, 2015. <nowiki>https://doi.org/10.1515/9783110405897</nowiki></ref> taking on Jewish and Christian traditions, characteristics, as well as terms from late antique Judeo-Christian writings,<ref>The Qur'anic Noah. pp.21-21</ref> molded to suit Muhammad's situation in line with other messengers in the Qur'an.<ref>''The Qurʾan and its Biblical Reflexes: Investigations into the Genesis of a Religion. Chapter 5.3 Messenger Uniformatism. pp.135-143'' By Mark Durie. Lanham, MD: Lexington Books, 2018. </ref>

=== The preaching of Noah ===

Surah 71 consists entirely of the preaching of Noah and his supplications to Allah.{{Quote|{{Quran-range|71|1|28}}|Indeed, We sent Noah to his people, [saying], "Warn your people before there comes to them a painful punishment." He said, "O my people, indeed I am to you a clear warner, [Saying], 'Worship Allah, fear Him and obey me. Allah will forgive you of your sins and delay you for a specified term. Indeed, the time [set by] Allah, when it comes, will not be delayed, if you only knew.' " 
[...]
And Noah said, "My Lord, do not leave upon the earth from among the disbelievers an inhabitant. Indeed, if You leave them, they will mislead Your servants and not beget except [every] wicked one and [confirmed] disbeliever. My Lord, forgive me and my parents and whoever enters my house a believer and the believing men and believing women. And do not increase the wrongdoers except in destruction."}}Reynolds remarks that "The Qur'ānic character of Noah is quite unlike that of the Noah in Genesis, who does not speak a word until after the flood." Citing the Babylonian Talmud, Sanhedrin 108a, he observes that "[his preaching] is also suggested by a passage in the Talmud:
::"The righteous Noah rebuked them, urging, 'Repent; for if not, the Holy One, blessed be He, will bring a deluge upon you and cause your bodies to float upon the water like gourds, as it is written, He is light [i.e., floats] upon the waters. Moreover, ye shall be taken as a curse for all future generations.' (b. Sanhedrin 108a)"
Reynolds further notes, "It is also prominent in the Syriac fathers, several of whom report that Noah preached to his people for a hundred years before God finally sent the flood." citing for example the Syriac authors Narsai, "On the Flood", 33, II. 227-30 and Jacob of Serugh, ''Homilies contre les juifs'', 70, homily 2, II. 37-40.<ref>Gabriel Said Reynolds, ''The Qurʾān and Bible'' p. 858</ref>

The opponents reject Noah's preaching despite him doing so 'day and night' (Quran 71:5-6) in which they respond by putting their fingers in their ears Quran 71:7, on which Neuwirth (2024) notes that "the means of plugging one’s ears in order to shut oneself off from unpleasant news is also encountered in the Talmud (bKetubbot 5a)."<ref>Neuwirth, Angelika. The Qur'an: Text and Commentary, ''Volume 2.1: Early Middle Meccan Suras: The New Elect (p. 280).'' Yale University Press. Kindle Edition.</ref>

=== Noah's disbelieving wife ===
{{Quote|{{Quran|66|10}}|Allah presents an example of those who disbelieved: the wife of Noah and the wife of Lot. They were under two of Our righteous servants but betrayed them, so those prophets did not avail them from Allah at all, and it was said, "Enter the Fire with those who enter."}}The Bible briefly mentions Noah's wife in one verse without further comment ([https://www.biblegateway.com/passage/?search=Genesis%207%3A7&version=NIV Genesis 7:7]), "And Noah and his sons and his wife and his sons’ wives entered the ark to escape the waters of the flood." Regarding the Quranic verse which speaks of her negatively, Reynolds briefly considers the possibility that the Quran has extended to their wives the parallelism between Noah (though not his wife) and Lot found in the New Testament ([https://www.biblegateway.com/passage/?search=2%20Peter%202&version=NIV 2 Peter 2]), but then comments, "However, it is important to note that already in the pre-Islamic period certain groups had developed hostile legends about Noah's wife." He cites Epiphanius (d. 403 CE), ''Panarion'' 2:26, which relates the Gnostic belief that she was not allowed onto the ark, having burned it down three times before the flood.<ref>Gabriel Said Reynolds, ''The Qurʾān and Bible'' p. 841</ref>

=== Noah's flood waters overflowed from an oven ===
The Qur'anic version of the Noah's flood story describes the flood waters as overflowing from an oven. This element is not found even in more ancient versions of the story (Epic of Gilgamesh, Atra hasis, and Ziusudra).

Note that in his translation, Yusuf Ali mistranslates the Aramaic loan word for the oven (alttannooru ٱلتَّنُّورُ)<ref>[http://www.studyquran.org/LaneLexicon/Volume1/00000355.pdf Lane's Lexicon p. 318 تَّنُّورُ]</ref> as "fountains". The Arabic verb translated "gushed forth" (fara فَارَ) means overflowed or boiled in the context of water in a cooking pot<ref>[http://www.studyquran.org/LaneLexicon/Volume6/00000241.pdf Lane's Lexicon p. 2457 فور]</ref>, as well as in the other verse where it is used, {{Quran|67|7}}. Here is Pickthall's more accurate translation:{{Quote|{{Quran|11|40}}|
(Thus it was) till, when Our commandment came to pass '''and the oven gushed forth water''', We said: Load therein two of every kind, a pair (the male and female), and thy household, save him against whom the word hath gone forth already, and those who believe. And but a few were they who believed with him.}}{{Quote|{{Quran|23|27}}|
Then We inspired in him, saying: Make the ship under Our eyes and Our inspiration. Then, when Our command cometh '''and the oven gusheth water''', introduce therein of every (kind) two spouses, and thy household save him thereof against whom the Word hath already gone forth. And plead not with Me on behalf of those who have done wrong. Lo! they will be drowned.}}At one time academic scholars thought this verse alluded to a Midrashic exegesis in which the flood waters were boiling hot (b. Sanhedrin 108b, [https://www.sefaria.org/Rosh_Hashanah.12a.4?lang=bi|Tracate Rosh Hashanah 12a:4]). More recent scholarship, particularly by Olivier Mongellaz in 2024,<ref name="Mongellaz2024">Olivier Mongellaz (2024) [https://brill.com/view/journals/arab/71/4-5/article-p513_4.xml Le four de Noé : un cas d’intertextualité coranique], Arabica 71(4-5), 513-637. https://doi.org/10.1163/15700585-20246900</ref> has identified that these verses most likely reflect a late antique legend in which water gushing up through a bread oven (a large hole dug into the ground) was a sign warning Noah's family of the imminent flood. The interpretation as Noah's own oven is attributed to a number of early commentators (such as Ibn Abbas, Mujahid), while others understood it to be the area of land where the flood waters first rose. Qurtubi said: "The sayings of commentators appear to be different as to the meaning of tannur, but this, in reality, is not a difference. When water began to bulge out, it overflowed from the bread baking oven, and from out of the surface of the land".

Significantly, Mongellaz has argued on literary grounds that a fragmentary Arabic text falsely attributed to Hippolytus of Rome, and which mentions the overflowing bread oven story, is independent of the Islamic tradition and was originally written in a very specific environment which has parallels with the context in which certain parts of the Quran were written.{{Quote|Pseudo. Hippolytus of Rome (translated to English from Mongellaz's French translation)<ref name="Mongellaz2024" />|Meanwhile, Ham's wife stood up to take out the bread that remained in the oven and immediately water sprang out of the oven [fāḍa l-māʾmin al-tannūr] and immediately water came out of the oven, as the Lord had said: "The fountains of the great deeps were opened." Ham's wife called to Noah, saying, "My lord, the word of God has come true (Syr. what God promised has come true!)" - for it had come true just as the Lord had promised her. When Noah heard Ham's wife's words, he said to her, "Oh, the flood has come."}}

=== Noah's ark left behind as a sign ===
{{Quote|{{Quran-range|54|13|15}}|And We carried him on a [construction of] planks and nails, Sailing under Our observation as reward for he who had been denied. And We left it as a sign, so is there any who will remember?}}Unlike the bible, which does not mention the ark as a sign for future generations, Neuwirth (2024) notes the salvation of Noah is made physically plausible to the listeners through the reference to the material verifiability of the ark, which could be taken from various late antique traditions, for example Flavius Josephus (b. 37AD) reports in the ''Jewish Antiquities (I 3.5 § 92)'' of the existence of the remains of Noah’s ark in Armenia (Clementz 1959: 22).<ref name=":0">Neuwirth, Angelika. ''The Qur'an: Text and Commentary, Volume 2.1: Early Middle Meccan Suras: The New Elect (p. 62).'' Yale University Press. Kindle Edition.</ref> She also notes that the appeal to the willingness of the listeners to be admonished by the sign (āya) of Noah’s ark is also reminiscent of the Talmudic story (bSanhedrin 96a) of the death of Sennacherib, who was led to a fateful decision by seeing the remains of Noah’s ark.<ref name=":0" />
==Moses and Pharaoh==
Alongside the biblical account of Moses and the Pharoah, there are some key aspects that match Jewish Rabbinic and Christian non-biblical traditions. Even the place where Moses communicates with God in the story of the burning bush, the word used ''ṭuwan'' in e.g. {{Quran|20|12}} (for the folded land, implying double the holiness)<ref>See; Neuwirth, Angelika. ''The Qur'an: Text and Commentary, Volume 2.1: Early Middle Meccan Suras: The New Elect (p. 199).'' Yale University Press. Kindle Edition. Ṭuwā stands for the holy Mount Sinai or Horeb (cf. KU, 124ff.; FVQ, 206ff.; BEQ, 255ff.). The word was long thought to be a rhyming transformation of Aramaic ṭūrā (“the mountain”), but now, based on rabbinic tradition and in agreement with traditional exegetes, Uri Rubin has convincingly interpreted bi-l-wādī l-muqaddasi Ṭuwā to mean “in the doubly hallowed valley” (see Rubin 2014). (The Sinai is in a sense the “folded Holy Land” [ṬWY = “to fold”].) Citing: Rubin, Uri, 2014, ''[https://urirubin.com/assets/docs/Tuwan.86132451.pdf Moses and the Holy Valley Ṭuwan. On the Biblical and Midrashic Background of a Qurʾanic Scene],'' Journal of Near Eastern Studies 73, 73–81.</ref> does not have a parallel in the bible,<ref>''[https://urirubin.com/assets/docs/Tuwan.86132451.pdf Moses and the Holy Valley Ṭuwan: On the biblical and midrashic background of a qurʾānic scene.]'' Rubin 2014. Ibid. pp. 75.</ref> but does in other Judeo-Christian (later) works.<ref>Ibid. pp. 76-78</ref> And the idea of eschatology in Moses's story such as {{Quran|20|15}}, with reward in the afterlife being mentioned, is not contained in the biblical story of Moses, Neuwirth (2024) notes moves the story into a late antiquity interpretation.<ref>Neuwirth, Angelika. ''The Qur'an: Text and Commentary, Volume 2.1: Early Middle Meccan Suras: The New Elect (p. 199).'' Yale University Press. Kindle Edition.</ref> Key details in the stories include:
===The prophecy of baby Moses===
Alongside the scene of [https://www.biblegateway.com/passage/?search=Exodus%201%3A8-2%3A10&version=NIV Exodus 1:8-2:10] where the Hebrews in Egyptian bondage are told to kill all male babies to control the growing Israelite population, where Moses's mother places his basket in the Nile to escape; Neuwirth (2024) citing Speyer, notes that ''the prophecy to Moses’s mother that an enemy—of Moses as well as of God himself—would take him in reflects a Midrashic interpretation of Exodus Rabba (1:31: “So the daughter of Pharaoh raised the daughter, who was once to take revenge on her father”). The event is explicitly based on a divine intention, namely, to make Moses his chosen one.''<ref>''The Qur'an: Text and Commentary, Volume 2.1: Early Middle Meccan Suras: The New Elect'' Ibid. pp. 201.</ref>{{Quote|{{Quran-range|20|37|39}}|We have bestowed Our favour on you before this, When We told your mother what We relate: 'Put him in a wooden box and cast it in the river. The river will cast it on the bank. An enemy of Ours, and his, will retrieve it.' We bestowed Our love on you that you may be reared under Our eyes.}}And similarly the next verse unlike the bible focuses on the emotional impact of the event on Moses’s mother, Neuwirth notes is comparable to Midrash Exodus Rabba 1:25.<ref>Ibid. pp. 201-202.</ref> Moses's salvation from persecution after manslaughter is commemorated with similar consideration of Moses’s mental condition.<ref>Ibid. pp. 202.</ref>{{Quote|{{Quran|20|40}}|When your sister walked up [to Pharaoh’s palace] saying, “Shall I show you someone who will take care of him?” Then We restored you to your mother, that she might not grieve and be comforted. Then you slew a soul, whereupon We delivered you from anguish, and We tried you with various ordeals. Then you stayed for several years among the people of Midian. Then you turned up as ordained, O Moses!}}
===Moses not suckled by Egyptians===
{{Quote|{{Quran-range|28|12|13}}|And We had prevented from him [all] wet nurses before, so she said, "Shall I direct you to a household that will be responsible for him for you while they are to him [for his upbringing] sincere?" So We restored him to his mother that she might be content and not grieve and that she would know that the promise of Allah is true. But most of the people do not know.}}Reynolds comments, "On this passage cf. Exodus 2:7-9. The Qurʾān's declaration (v. 12) 'We had forbidden him to be suckled by any nurse' (v. 12) reflects a tradition in the Babylonian Talmud that Moses (from whose mouth would come forth the word of God) refused the impure breasts of the Egyptian women:
::Then said his sister to Pharaoh's daughter, Shall I go and call thee a nurse of the Hebrew women? Why just 'of the Hebrew women'? - It teaches that they handed about to all the Egyptian women but he would not suck. He said: Shall a mouth which will speak with [God] suck what is unclean! (b. Sotah 12b)"<ref>Gabriel Said Reynolds, ''The Qurʾān and Bible'' p. 598</ref>
===Moses's speech impediment===
Moses has some kind of speech impediment when going to speak to Pharaoh in the Qurʾān.{{Quote|{{Quran-range|20|24|28}}|"Go to Pharaoh. Indeed, he has transgressed."( Moses) said: "O, my Lord! Expand me my breast,” ease my task for me, And untie the knot from my tongue, so they may understand what I say.”}}Biblical Scholar James Kugel (1997)<ref>Kugel, James L.. The Bible As It Was (Kindle Edition. pp. 432-433). Harvard University Press.</ref> notes that later Jewish and Christian commentators found it necessary to explain Moses's statement in the Old Testament “''Oh my Lord, I am not a man of words … but I am heavy of speech and heavy of tongue''” ([https://www.biblegateway.com/passage/?search=Exodus%204%3A10&version=NIV Exodus 4:10]), as he was believed to be a highly educated man who had been supposedly been schooled in every branch of wisdom, including eloquence.

He notes "it occurred to interpreters that Moses might have been referring here not to any lacuna in his education, but to an actual speech defect, some physical deformity of his mouth or tongue that prevented him from speaking in the usual fashion." We see this in:<ref>Ibid. pp. 432 - 433 (Kindle Edition)</ref>

"''I'' ''am not by nature eloquent; my tongue with difficulty speaks, I stammer, so that I cannot speak before the king."'' —Ezekiel the Tragedian, Exaggē 113– 115 (3rd-2nd century BCE)

''He [Moses] pleased his parents by his beauty, but grieved them by his speech impediment. —''Ephraem, Commentary on Exodus 2: 4 (d. 373 AD)

Others even added stories on how he might have acquired that deformity, such as Josephus in Jewish Antiquities 2: 232– 236 (published ~93/94 AD), connecting their explanation of Moses’ speech problems to the tradition of Pharaoh’s wise men and their warnings about a boy that might grow up and save Israel.<ref>Ibid. pp. 433 - 434 (Kindle Edition)</ref>
===Pharaohs questions===
Neuwirth (2024) comments that the list of further detailed questions to Moses in Surah 26 'The Poets' / al-shuʿarāʾ (i.e. in {{Quran-range|26|22|29}}), citing Speyer, reflect a more detailed episode from Midrash Exodus Rabba 5:18, which also starts from Pharaoh’s self-praise as God.<ref>Neuwirth, Angelika. ''The Qur'an: Text and Commentary, Volume 2.1: Early Middle Meccan Suras: The New Elect (p. 250).'' Yale University Press. Kindle Edition.</ref>
===The Drowning of Pharaoh===
{{Quote|{{Quran-range|10|90|92}}|And We took the Children of Israel across the sea, and Pharaoh and his soldiers pursued them in tyranny and enmity until, when drowning overtook him, he said, "I believe that there is no deity except that in whom the Children of Israel believe, and I am of the Muslims." Now? And you had disobeyed [Him] before and were of the corrupters? So today We will save you in body that you may be to those who succeed you a sign. And indeed, many among the people, of Our signs, are heedless}}Reynolds comments, "The question of Pharaoh's survival appears in an opinion found in the (late fourth century AD) ''Mekilta de-Rabbi Ishmael'' (cr. Gavin McDowell):
::"And the waters returned and covered the chariot etc. [Exo 14:27]. Even Pharaoh, according to the words of R. Judah, as it is said, 'The chariots of Pharaoh and his force, etc.' [Exo 15:4]. R. Nehimiah says: ''Except for Pharaoh.'' About him it says, 'However, for this purpose I have let you live' [Exo 9:16]. Others say that in the end Pharaoh went down and drowned, as it is said, 'Then went the horse of Pharaoh, etc.' [Exo 15:19]. (Beshallah 7)"<ref>Gabriel Said Reynolds, ''The Qurʾān and Bible'' p. 339</ref>
==Arguments for resurrection==
Reynolds (2020) notes the repeated argument that God can resurrect the dead using the analogy that he can bring life back to barren (or dead) land may be connected to a Jewish tradition that God will resurrect the dead with dew, for example, in b. Shabbat 88b.<ref name=":2" />
{{Quote|{{Quran|30|19}}|He brings forth the living from the dead, and brings forth the dead from the living, and revives the earth after its death. Likewise, you [too] shall be raised [from the dead].}}

Cf: {{Quran|16|65}}, {{Quran|43|11}}, {{Quran|50|6-11}}, {{Quran|57|17}}
==Late antique Christian Martyrdom==
{{Main|Shaheed (Martyr)}}
Durie (2018) notes the violence of the Qur'an shares more commonality with contemporary late antique religious (primarily Christian) violence and warfare rather than being directly biblically based.<ref>Durie, Mark. ''The Qur’an and Its Biblical Reflexes: Investigations into the Genesis of a Religion.'' Lexington Books. 2018. Pp. 229 -237. (Kindle Edition: pp. 423-439). 6.9 Stories of Fighting Prophets</ref>

=== Textual overlap ===

Covering the continuity and similarities between late antique religious violence & warfare and the Qur'an (and other Islamic traditions) is too big a topic to cover here; perhaps the most in-depth academic work looking at the continuity between this and Islam is Thomas Sizgorich's ''Violence and Belief in Late Antiquity: Militant Devotion in Christianity and Islam'', however Sinai (2017) notes alongside similar ideas and theology, there are some direct textual references.{{Quote|Sinai, Nicolai. Qur'an: A Historical-Critical Introduction (The New Edinburgh Islamic Surveys) (pp. 301-302). Edinburgh University Press. Kindle Edition.|That the Qur’anic community’s access to Biblical notions of militancy was mediated by late antique Christian discourse is indicated by an intriguing intertextual overlap. According to Q 3: 169–170, those who have been ‘killed in the path of God’ are not dead but ‘alive with their Lord’, rather than having to spend the remaining time until the Resurrection in a state of slumber (similarly Q 2: 154).39 Tor Andrae has pointed out that the phrase ‘alive with their Lord’ (ayāun inda rabbihim) corresponds exactly to the Syriac phrase h. ayyē lwāth alāhā, which a sixth-century Syriac Christian writer (Mar Ishay) applies to the martyrs.40 Furthermore, Mar Ishay contrasts the true fate of the martyrs with unfounded prior opinion: ‘they are believed to be already dead’.41 The same contrast is found in the two Qur’anic passages just cited.42 It could be objected that the parallel demonstrates merely that the Qur’an is familiar with the widespread Christian idea that martyrs are granted prompt access to paradise but that this does not establish a Christian precedent for the Qur’anic application of this idea specifically to those who actively enact – rather than just suffer – violence. However, as Sizgorich reminds us, a Christian martyr was by no means seen merely as a passive victim of persecution but rather as someone who actively ‘defeats the power of the Roman state’.43}}{{Quote|{{Quran|3|169}}|And never think of those who have been killed in the cause of Allah as dead. Rather, they are alive with their Lord, receiving provision}}{{Quote|{{Quran|2|154}}|Do not say that those who are killed in the way of God, are dead, for indeed they are alive, even though you are not aware.}}

=== Martyrs sidestep judgement day ===
After death, humans are typically said to spend their time in an intermediate state known to traditional Islamic scholars as the ''barzakh'' while they wait.<ref>Reynolds, Gabriel Said. 2020. ''Allah:'' ''God in the Qur'an (p. 71-72).'' Yale University Press. Kindle Edition.

It is also the same term used for the barrier between the living and the dead (whilst awaiting judgement day) in the Qur'an, e.g. {{Quran|23|99-100}}</ref> However, as in the above verses, one exception to this rule is Martyrs being with God straight away rather than being judged at judgment day, a non-biblical idea having parallels with late antique Christian thought.

Sinai (2017) similarly notes strong ideological parallels a 6th century hagiographical text (the Panegyric on Macarius, Bishop of Tkow by Pseudo-Dioscorus of Alexandria) of a 5th-century martyr, Egyptian Bishop Macarius of Tkow who was martyred for opposing the council of Chalcedon. Citing Michael Gaddis's summary of the document, ‘He was both willing to die for his faith, and willing to kill for it.’ he notes the same idea in {{Quran|9|111}} … they fight in the way of Allah, kill, and are killed.. <ref>Ibid. (Kindle Edition. pp. 299).</ref> As well as citing English historian of the Byzantine Empire James Howard-Johnston "''..James Howard-Johnston draws attention to a passage in the Chronicle of Theophanes Confessor (d. 818), which reports that at about the same time when the Qur’an promised those ‘killed in the path of God’ immediate entry to paradise, the Byzantine emperor Heraclius similarly announced that those fighting the Sasanians would be recompensed with eternal life. In Heraclius’s address as reported by Theophanes Confessor, we find some of the same general ingredients that are noticeable in Qur’anic calls to militancy…''"<ref>Ibid. (Kindle Edition. pp. 301).</ref> He notes these similarities are likely caused by being on the fringes of the Roman empire.<ref>Ibid. (Kindle Edition. pp. 301).</ref>

==== Martyrdom wipes away other sins and is privileged above other acts from believers ====
{{Quote|Reynolds, Gabriel Said. Christianity and the Qur'an: The Rise of Islam in Christian Arabia (pp. 178-179). Yale University Press. Kindle Edition.|The teaching on the glory earned by martyrs is widespread in the early church. It is nevertheless telling to find the way it is emphasized in the third-century Christian text the aforementioned Didascalia Apostolorum, originally written in Greek but preserved in Syriac.87 The Didascalia clearly teaches that the martyrs will have a privilege above other faithful believers: If then He raises up all men,—as He said by Isaiah: All flesh shall see the salvation of God [Isa 40.5; 52.10],—much more will He quicken and raise up the faithful; and (yet more) again will He quicken and raise up the faithful of the faithful, who are the martyrs, and establish them in great glory and make them His counsellors. For to mere disciples, those who believe in Him, He has promised a glory as of the stars [Dan 12.3]; but to the martyrs He has promised to give an everlasting glory, as of the luminaries which fail not, with more abundant light, that they may be shining for all time.88

The Didascalia is also clear, as is the Qur’an, that martyrs enjoy a special grace through the forgiveness of sins that their deaths have earned for them: But again, sins are forgiven by baptism also to those who from the Gentiles draw near and enter the holy Church of God. Let us inquire also, to whom sins are not imputed. To such as Abraham and Isaac and Jacob and all the patriarchs, as also to the martyrs. Let us hear then, brethren, for the Scripture saith: Who shall boast himself and say: I am clear of sins? Or who shall be confident and say: I am innocent? [Prov 20.9].

And again: There is no man pure of defilement: not though his life be but one day [Job 14.4–5 LXX]. To everyone therefore who believes and is baptized his … former sins have been forgiven; but after baptism also, provided that he has not sinned a deadly sin nor been an accomplice (thereto), but has heard only, or seen, or spoken, and is thus guilty of sin. But if a man go forth from the world by martyrdom for the name of the Lord, blessed is he; for brethren who by martyrdom have gone forth from this world, of these the sins are covered.89

We might compare Q 3:195: “ ‘And those who emigrated, and were expelled from their habitations, those who suffered hurt in My way, and fought, and were slain—them I shall surely acquit of their evil deeds, and I shall admit them to gardens underneath which rivers flow.’ A reward from God! And God with Him is the fairest reward” (italics added). In other words, the Qur’an seems to be well aware of Christian devotion to the martyrs.}}

=== Martyrdom in the Torah and Gospels ===
Muslims who fight are promised paradise, which the Qur'an claims is also a promise in the Torah and Gospel.{{Quote|{{Quran|9|111}}|Indeed Allah has bought from the faithful their souls and their possessions for paradise to be theirs: they fight in the way of Allah, kill, and are killed. A promise binding upon Him in the Torah and the Evangel and the Quran. And who is truer to his promise than Allah? So rejoice in the bargain you have made with Him, and that is the great success.}}Nickel (2020)<ref>Nickel, Gordon D. ''The Quran with Christian Commentary: A Guide to Understanding the Scripture of Islam (p. 222).'' Zondervan Academic. Kindle Edition. 9.111 – They fight in the way of God, and they kill and are killed When the Quran describes believers as fighting “in the way of Allah,” it makes a theological claim by associating Allah with human fighting. See the analysis of these expressions at 73.20 (p. 597). 9.111 – a promise binding on Him in the Torah, and the Gospel, and the Qur’ān This is the only verse in the Quran that brings the Torah (tawrāt), Gospel (injīl), and qur’ān (lit. “recitation”) together. The Quran claims here that the particular point on which the Torah and Gospel agree with the Muslim recitation is that believers “fight in the way of Allah, and they kill and are killed.” This verse makes the reader question whether the Quran has a clear idea of the contents of the Torah and Gospel. A similar question is raised by 61.14, which appears to say that ‘Īsā and his disciples fought against their enemies (cf. 3.52). Along with these misunderstandings, the Quran gives no information about the peaceable teaching and example of Jesus in the Gospel accounts. See the analysis of the Quran’s verses on the “Gospel” at 57.27 (p. 549). Do the Torah and Gospel in fact contain such a promise? See the comment on this characterization of the Bible at 61.14 (p. 566).</ref> and Reynolds (2018) however notes that this is not found there:{{Quote|1=Reynolds, G. S. (2018). The Qur'an and the Bible: Text and Commentary. Commentary on 9:111 (pp. 322) United Kingdom: Yale University Press.|2="9:111 The point of this verse is that those who are prepared to give their lives to God in the holy war are promised paradise as a payment for their services (cf. 2:245; 4:74; 61:10–12). The idea that the martyrs have a special assurance of paradise follows from the Qurʾān’s teaching elsewhere that the act of martyrdom involves forgiveness of sin. This teaching is close to that of the Syriac fathers (see commentary on 2:154, with further references). It is curious that the Qurʾān insists that the promise of heaven for holy warriors is found in the Torah and the Gospel (or “Evangel”); heaven is not found in the Torah and holy war is not found in the Gospels...}}While his commentary on 2:154 (pp. 76) once again highlights the Syriac parallel:{{Quote|2="As Tor Andrae has shown (Les origines de l’islam et le christianisme, 161ff.), the idea that martyrdom involves the absolution of sins is prominent in Syriac Christian texts such as the third-century Didascalia (chap. 20) and the Treaty on the Martyrs of Mar Isaï (d. late sixth cen.); the latter text also insists—much like the Qurʾān—that the martyrs are “living”:

The true martyrs who, by way of a death that covers their sins, demonstrate even more the beauty of their deeds and receive this glorious inheritance by virtue of their blood. By leaving this life they have prepared for their souls an honorable abode in paradise. It was thought that they are already dead, but by their death they have killed their sin, and they are alive with God. (Mar Isaï, Treaty on the Martyrs, 32)}}
=== Further Martyrdom Influence ===
Neuwirth (2024) also notes the influence of Christian martyrdom stories on the sudden conversion and prayers/asking for forgiveness to God of Pharaoh's magician's, who are originally opponents of Moses until he shows them proof of his prophecy via a miracle in the face of a sudden and violent death as threatened by the arrogant ruler (e.g. in {{Quran-range|26|50|51}} and {{Quran-range|20|71|73}}).<ref>Neuwirth, Angelika. ''The Qur'an: Text and Commentary, Volume 2.1: Early Middle Meccan Suras: The New Elect (p. 204).'' Yale University Press. Kindle Edition.</ref> Both Jewish and Christian traditions present individual “anti-Moses” sorcerers named Jannes and Jambres, who continue to appear in later interpretations; citing Nora Schmid, she notes that, although there is no explicit textual reference and the magicians are typically depicted in a negative light, they came to be associated with penance and martyrdom in Christian tradition - in the Qurʾan, this idea is developed further: the forgiveness that Jannes and Jambres either did not receive or only partially received in earlier sources is ultimately granted.<ref>Ibid. pp. 251-252</ref>{{Quote|Neuwirth, Angelika. The Qur'an: Text and Commentary, Volume 2.1: Early Middle Meccan Suras: The New Elect (p. 204). Yale University Press. Kindle Edition.|V. 72–73 qālū lan nuʾthiraka ʿalā mā jāʾanā mina l-bayyināti wa-lladhī faṭaranā fa-qḍi mā anta qāḍin innamā taqḍī hādhihi l-ḥayāta l-dunyā / innā āmannā birabbinā li-yaghfira lanā khaṭāyānā wa-mā akrahtanā ʿalayhi mina l-siḥri wallāhu khayrun wa-abqā] Conversion scene as later in Q 26:50–51. The sorcerers renounce their allegiance to Pharaoh on the basis of the obvious evidence (bayyināt) and give preference to the Creator God, they submit to their worldly fate and hope for the forgiveness of their sins and what they have been forced to do by the ruler—they are a role model for the community, which is also subject to pressure from outside. The request for forgiveness of sins before a violent death is a topos of Christian martyr stories. The entire scene, leaving the context of ‘ancient’ Egypt, reflects the notion of Christian martyrdom stories. Khaṭāyā (singular khaṭīʾa) also lets a Syriac terminus technicus ring through, but the word can be derived from the Arabic root KhṬʿ (“to miss a goal”) (see FVQ, 123ff.). The idea of the forgiveness of sins is prominent in the Christian liturgy—not only through the Lord’s Prayer. In addition to khaṭīʾa, there is the genuine Arabic dhanb, dhunūb.}}

== Expansions on the afterlife ==

Reynolds (2020) notes the Qur’ans provides vivid depictions of hell are highly unlike the New Testament, where Jesus refers to afterlife punishment mostly allusively. The closest the Gospels describe hell is through the few images of “fire,” “wailing,” and “gnashing of teeth.”, for example in Matthew’s Parable of the Weeds, Jesus explains that at the end of the age, the Son of Man will send his angels that will cast evildoers into a fiery furnace where there will be weeping and gnashing of teeth (Matt 13:40–42).<ref>Reynolds, Gabriel Said. ''Allah: God in the Qur'an (pp. 81-82).'' Yale University Press. Kindle Edition.</ref> He notes the much more constant an vivid Qur'anic descriptions far better match later Christian works that expanded the descriptions to be more gruesome, in order to scare the reader/audience.<ref>Ibid. pp. 88.

''We might note how all of these traditions are meant to make humans yearn for paradise and fear hell. The Qur’an, from this regard, is a profoundly psychological work. Like a Christian preacher, like John Chrysostom or Saint Ephrem, the author of the Qur’an speaks of heaven and hell to persuade his audience to repent and believe. He does so in a way, however, that is distinct—emphasizing physical pain and physical pleasure in order, apparently, to make a greater impression on his audience. He puts a terrible tree into hell and young women in paradise.''
</ref>{{Quote|Reynolds, Gabriel Said. Allah: God in the Qur'an (pp. 82-83). Yale University Press. Kindle Edition.|The way that the Qur’an describes hell in particularly vivid, gruesome terms brings us back to something we mentioned in Chapter 1, namely, that the Qur’an in many ways is a “homiletic” work, a work written like a homily or sermon. The Qur’an’s intention is not simply to declare that those who disobey God will be punished, but to describe that punishment in a way which brings the awfulness of hell to life. Similarly, homilists in the early centuries of Christianity expanded dramatically on the New Testament allusions to hell. In a sermon attributed to John Chrysostom (d. 407) we read a description of hell with the sort of detail that we find in the Qur’an: It is a sea of fire—not a sea of the kind or dimensions we know here, but much larger and fiercer, with waves made of fire, fire of a strange and fearsome kind. There is a great abyss there, in fact, of terrible flames, and one can see fire rushing about on all sides like some wild animal…. There will be no one who can resist, no one who can escape: Christ’s gentle, peaceful face will be nowhere to be seen.15}}Sinai (2017) in his paper titled "''The Eschatological Kerygma of the Early Qur’an''" notes many overlap with Syriac Homilies on the afterlife as well as other apocalyptic ideas and terminology.<ref>“[https://almuslih.org/wp-content/uploads/Library/Sinai,%20N%20-%20The%20Eschatological%20Kerygma.pdf The Eschatological Kerygma of the Early Qur’an]”, Nicolai Sinai, in ''Apocalypticism and Eschatology in Late Antiquity: Encounters in the Abrahamic Religions, 6th–8th Centuries'', edited by Hagit Amirav, Emmanouela Grypeou, and Guy Stroumsa, Leuven: Peeters, 2017, 219–266.

These are discussed throughout the whole paper, and a summary can be found in pp.50-57. On heaven and hell specifically, the summary is on pp.55-57.</ref>

== Souls are taken away at night ==

The Qur'an (and traditional Islamic exegetes)<ref>See classical commentaries on these verses such as Al-Jalalayn on [https://quranx.com/Tafsir/Jalal/39.42 Q39:42], [https://quranx.com/Tafsir/Jalal/6.60 Q6:60] and Ibn Kathir on [https://quranx.com/Tafsir/Kathir/39.41 Q39:41-2] and [https://quranx.com/Tafsir/Kathir/6.60 Q6:60]</ref> state that the soul is taken away by Allah during the night.{{Quote|{{Quran|39|42}}|Allah takes the souls at the time of their death, and those who have not died, in their sleep. Then He retains those for whom He has ordained death and releases the others until a specified time. There are indeed signs in that for a people who reflect.}}{{Quote|{{Quran|6|60}}|It is He who takes your souls by night, and He knows what you do by day, then He reanimates you therein so that a specified term may be completed. Then to Him will be your return, whereat He will inform you concerning what you used to do.}}Tesei (2016) notes this idea may mimic a late antique Syriac Christian parallel in the poetical language used by Ephrem, who in the Nisibene hymns (7:15) mentions sleep resembles death, and other Christian writers (such as Babai) wrote about sleep metaphorically Jesus's death and waking up like the resurrection;<ref>Tesei, Tommaso. (2016). "[https://www.researchgate.net/publication/344524709_2_The_barzakh_and_the_Intermediate_State_of_the_Dead_in_the_Quran 2 The barzakh and the Intermediate State of the Dead in the Quran]". pp. 40-42 In Locating Hell in Islamic Traditions. Leiden, The Netherlands: Brill. <nowiki>https://doi.org/10.1163/9789004301368_003</nowiki> (Open access)

''At the same time, the Quran also compares death to the “common sleep” that people experience on a daily basis. This seems to be the case in the cryptic statement found in Q 39:42 (cf. Q 6:60), “God takes the souls at the time of their death (ḥīna mawtihā), and [He takes] that which has not died, in its sleep ( fī manāmihā); He withholds that against which He has decreed death, but sets loose the other until a stated term”. This obscure passage appears to indicate that sleep is a death-like state; sleepers resemble the dead since their souls enter into a state similar to that which they will experience at the moment of death. However, unlike the souls of the dead, which will be raised only on the Day of Resurrection, the ordinary sleeper’s soul is sent back when he awakens―that is, of course, until the time of his death. This parallel between death and “common sleep” finds a fairly close correspondence in the poetical language used by Ephrem, who in the Nisibene hymns (7:15) affirms that: “The one who lies down to sleep resembles the departed and death resembles a dream, and the resurrection the morning”. In these passages the Quran’s eschatological discourse is particularly close to that formulated by Babai, in whose ideas the belief in the soul’s sleep is intimately connected to the strong affirmation of the physical resurrection of the body on the Day of Judgment.'' </ref> with this idea taken literally by Muhammad.

== Arguments for resurrection ==
Reynolds (2020) notes the repeated argument that God can resurrect the dead using the analogy that he can bring life back to barren (or dead) land may be connected to a Jewish tradition that God will resurrect the dead with dew, for example, in b. Shabbat 88b.<ref name=":2">See: Reynolds, Gabriel Said. Allah: ''God in the Qur'an (pp. 76-77).'' Yale University Press. Kindle Edition.

And Footnote 10: Reynolds, Gabriel Said. ''Allah: God in the Qur'an (p. 254).'' Yale University Press. Kindle Edition.</ref>
{{Quote|{{Quran|30|19}}|He brings forth the living from the dead, and brings forth the dead from the living, and revives the earth after its death. Likewise, you [too] shall be raised [from the dead].}}

Cf: {{Quran|16|65}}, {{Quran|43|11}}, {{Quran|50|6-11}}, {{Quran|57|17}}

==See Also==
*[[Pre-Islamic Arab Religion in Islam]]

* [[Parallels Between the Qur'an and Late Antique Judeo-Christian Literature|Parallels Between the Qur'an and Late Antique Judeo-Christian Literature - Part 1]]
* [[Historical Errors in the Quran]]
==References==
<references />

User:CPO675/Sandbox 1

2026-02-08T08:55:17Z

CPO675: /* The Historical Jesus */

== Flat Earth - Tafsirs ==

=== The Highest Horizon ===
The Qu'ran says Muhammad was in the highest horizon bil-ufuqi<ref>افق - [https://lexicon.quranic-research.net/data/01_A/103_Afq.html Lane's lexicon Classical Arabic Dictionary root: hamza fā qāf (أ ف ق)]

Horizon ''ufuq'' (أُفُق) [https://lexicon.quranic-research.net/pdf/Page_0068.pdf Lane's Lexicon p.68]

Horizon ''ufuq'' (أُفُق) [https://lexicon.quranic-research.net/pdf/Page_0069.pdf Lane's Lexicon p.69] </ref> (cite) l-aʿlā (cite.
{{Quote|{{Quran|53|7}}|possessed of sound judgement. He settled, while he (was) in the horizon - the highest.}}

== The Historical Jesus ==

=== Other Traditions ===

==== Intro ====

Alongside the main consensus from Biblical Scholars/Historians that Jesus was an eschatological preacher in the early first century AD who believed the Earth would end during his time (and therefore couldn't be the Muslim Jesus), there are many other of the most considered authentic teachings of Jesus that clash with Islam; in contrast with the Qur'anic principle of Messenger Uniformitarianism; where all messengers preach essentially the same thing with only minor variations.<ref>Durie, Mark. ''The Qur’an and Its Biblical Reflexes: Investigations into the Genesis of a Religion (pp. 135-142) (Kindle Edition pp. 281-294)''. 5.3 Messenger Uniformitarianism. Lexington Books. 2018.</ref>
{{Quote|{{Quran|41|43}}|Not is said to you except what was said to the Messengers before you. Indeed, your Lord (is) Possessor (of) forgiveness, and Possessor (of) penalty painful.}}{{Quote|{{Quran|2|285}}|The Apostle and the faithful have faith in what has been sent down to him from his Lord. Each [of them] has faith in Allah, His angels, His scriptures and His apostles. [They declare,] ‘We make no distinction between any of His apostles.’ And they say, ‘We hear and obey. Our Lord, forgive us, and toward You is the return.’}}

{{Quote|{{Quran|17|77}}|“This was the sunnah [customary way] of Our messengers whom We sent before you, and you will find no change in Our sunnah”}}cf. {{Quran|6|112}}, {{Quran|35|43}}, {{Quran|22|78}}.

Other than being explicitly told that messengers bring the same message from Allah, Durie (2018) notes the Qur'an repeatedly states that Muhammad was sent to confirm the revelations given to earlier messengers (Q2:91, 97; Q3:3, 50; Q5:48; Q12:111; Q16:43–44; Q35:31), just as each prophet before him confirmed those who came earlier. For example, Jesus (ʿĪsa) confirmed the Torah of Moses (Mūsa) (Q5:46), and the Qurʾan confirms the scriptures revealed to previous prophets (Q4:47). In this way, Muhammad’s role continues the same pattern of reaffirming earlier divine messages rather than introducing a completely new one.<ref>Durie, Mark. ''The Qur’an and Its Biblical Reflexes: Investigations Into the Genesis of a Religion.'' pp.140</ref>

{{Quote|Durie, Mark. The Qur'an and it's Biblical Reflexes. pp.140|• It is also explicitly asserted that messengers bring the same message
from Alla¯h: “Nothing is said to you but what has already been said to
messengers before you” (Q41:43; Q22:78) and “we make no distinction
between any of them” (Q2:136). They also preached the same dīn “commandment” or “religion” (Q42:13; cf. Q3:84; Q4:150), which is referred
to as the “religion of Ibra¯hīm” (Q2:130; Q4:125; Q16:121–23). The
validating function of this idea becomes clear when it is applied against
a group of Jews who reject the concept of the “same message” because
it would mean validating the Messenger. These Jews hold to their own
faith, saying “we believe in what has been sent down on us,” but they
reject the Messenger, or “anything after that” (Q2:91). The ruling against
these Jews is that because they reject the Messenger, they are disbelievers,
rejecting “what All a¯ h has sent down” (Q2:91).31 The idea of the “same message” is further reinforced when the Qurʾan repeatedly states that the Messenger was only sent to confirm what was sent down by previous
messengers (Q2:91, 97; Q3:3, 50; Q5:48; Q12:111; Q16:43–44; Q35:31),
just as previous messengers had done for messengers that preceded them,
for example, ʿĪsa¯ “confirmed” the Tawra¯ h of Mūsa¯(Q5:46), and the Qurʾan
confirms the book(s) sent by previous prophets (Q4:47), just as the Messenger has been doing in his turn.}}
The large differences between the New Testament / Gospels (and by extension the Christian Jesus), and the [[Isa al-Masih (Jesus Christ)|Muslim Jesus,]] are clear to anyone who has read both the Qur'an and NT; with the Qur'an having it's own spin on him and taking many aspects from apocrypha considered inauthentic by NT scholars,<ref>Sanders, E.. ''The Historical Figure of Jesus (pp. 78-79)''. Penguin Books Ltd. Kindle Edition.

..(Gnosticism was a world view that held everything material to be evil; the god who created the world was a bad god, and the creation was wicked. Gnostics who were also Christians held that the good God had sent Jesus to redeem people’s souls, not their bodies, and that Jesus was not a real human being. The Christians who objected to these views finally declared them heretical.) ''I share the general scholarly view that very, very little in the apocryphal gospels could conceivably go back to the time of Jesus. They are legendary and mythological. Of all the apocryphal material, only some of the sayings in the Gospel of Thomas are worth consideration.'' This does not mean that we can make a clean division: the historical four gospels versus the legendary apocryphal gospels. There are legendary traits in the four gospels in the New Testament, and there is also a certain amount of newly created material (as we saw just above)..</ref> and [[Parallels Between the Qur'an and Late Antique Judeo-Christian Literature|later Christian thought/writings]], and have lead to many Muslims arguing for biblical corruption based on textual and theological grounds [though textual don't affect most early & authentic traditions] in general, which is a disputed idea in traditional Islamic thought (cite - Reynolds article. See also: [[Corruption of Previous Scriptures]] & [[Qur'an, Hadith and Scholars:Corruption of Previous Scriptures]])

Historians have searched for a summary of some of the most likely authentic traditions from Biblical historians (using historical-critical methods not Christian or Muslim theologians - more likely to be true and not taken from bias or proving or disproving Islam but historical context, widespread across sources, early - cite Allison explanation - Why - different to time and context, unlikely to be fabricated later by Christians, across all early sources etc.) are shown here as an example of the clashes. [Point: not arguing against Christian Jesus - but secular historians one]

==== Examples ====
{{Quote|Dale C. Allison Jr.. The Historical Christ and the Theological Jesus (Kindle Locations 822-836). Kindle Edition.|2=Given that we typically remember the outlines of an event or the general purport of a conversation rather than the particulars and that we extract patterns and meaning from our memories, it makes little sense to open the quest for Jesus by evaluating individual items with our criteria, in the hope that some bits preserve pristine memory. We should rather be looking for repeating patterns and contemplating the big picture. true. We should trust first, if we are to trust at all, what is most likely to be trustworthy. Although we may, after reading Thucydides, be confident that there was a Peloponnesian War, we may well wonder about many of the details of his account.

The larger the generalization and the more data upon which it is based, the greater our confidence; the more specific the detail and the fewer the data supporting it, the more room we have for doubt. With regard to the sources for Jesus, the traditional criteria of authenticity privilege the parts over the whole. It seems more prudent to privilege generalizations drawn from the whole than to concentrate upon one individual item after another. As a demonstration of how this works in practice, consider the following traditions:

• Jesus prohibited divorce: 1 Cor. 7:10; Mark 10:2-9; Luke 16:18. [Qur'an divorce rules - https://wikiislam.net/wiki/Khula] 

• Jesus sent forth missionaries without staff, food, or money: Matt. 10:9-10; Mark 6:8-9; Luke 10:4.

• Jesus instructed missionaries to get their living by the gospel: 1 Cor. 9:14; Matt. 10:10; Luke 10:7.

• Jesus commanded loving and doing good to enemies: Matt. 5:38-48; Luke 6:27-36. [Qur'an do not be merciful to unbelievers https://wikiislam.net/wiki/Qur%27an,_Hadith_and_Scholars:Non-Muslims & https://wikiislam.net/wiki/Kafir_(Infidel)#Guidelines_on_how_to_deal_with_disbelievers Quran 48:29 ]

• Jesus forbade judging others: Matt. 7:1-2; Luke 6:37-38.

• Jesus asked a prospective follower not to bury his father: Matt. 8:21-22; 22; Luke 959-60.

• Jesus spoke of hating one's father and mother: Matt. 10:37; Luke 14:26; Gospel of Thomas 55, 101. [respect parents - too tenuous]

• Jesus enjoined disciples to take up a cross: Matt. 10:38; Mark 8:34; Luke 14:27.

• Jesus enjoined unlimited forgiveness: Matt. 18:21-22; Luke 17:3-4. [forgiveness against shirk - Qur'an says no Q4:48 and 4:116. ]

• Jesus exhorted hearers to lose their lives in order to save them: Matt. 10:39; Mark 8:35; Luke 17:33.

• Jesus called people away from their livelihoods: Mark 1:16-20; 2:14. [?]

• Jesus figuratively demanded violent removal of hand, foot, and eye: Mark 9:42-48.

• Jesus asked a wealthy man to relinquish his money: Mark 10:17-27. [bring in wealth inequality section of Islam darajat - here]

• Jesus forbade taking oaths: Matt. 5:33-37. [https://www.iium.edu.my/deed/lawbase/risalah_maliki/book31.html#:~:text=Anyone%20who%20swears%20an%20oath,Oneness%2C%20timelessness%20and%20existence.%5D]

• Jesus commanded money to be lent without interest: Matt. 5:42; Gospel of Thomas 95.

• Jesus called some to a life without marriage: Matt. 19:11-12. [Qur'an criticism of monasticism]

• Jesus asked a prospective follower not to say farewell to his parents: Luke 9:61-62. [respect parents?]

• Jesus asked his disciples to renounce all of their possessions: Luke 14:33"}}
<nowiki>--------------------------------------------------</nowiki>

[ highlight those being spoken about in italics or bold]

Professor Allison (2009) notes that Jesus' banning divorce was an important teaching that <s>stood out</s> to early Christians, [https://www.biblegateway.com/passage/?search=Luke%2016%3A18&version=NIV Luke 16:18], [https://www.biblegateway.com/passage/?search=1%20Corinthians%207%3A10-16&version=NIV 1 Corinthians 7:10-16], [https://www.biblegateway.com/passage/?search=Mark%2010%3A2-9&version=NIV Mark 10:2-9], in contrast to Judaism ([https://www.biblegateway.com/passage/?search=Deuteronomy%2024%3A1-4&version=NIV Deuteronomy 24:1-4]) and Islam e.g. Quran 2:228-232, Q65:1-7, (Q4:19 https://quranx.com/hadiths/4.19 & Q4:35), Q33:49 )

He notes that Jesus commanded loving and doing good to enemies in [https://www.biblegateway.com/passage/?search=Matthew%205%3A38-48&version=NIV Matt. 5:38-48]; [https://www.biblegateway.com/passage/?search=Luke%206%3A27-36&version=NIV Luke 6:27-36], while the Qur'an generally advises treating other Muslims well, it specifically states not to be merciful to unbelievers Q48:29. [ For more examples of not being merciful to unbelievers, let alone 'enemies' see: '''[[Qur'an, Hadith and Scholars:Non-Muslims|https://wikiislam.net/wiki/Qur%27an,_Hadith_and_Scholars:Non-Muslims]] & [[Kafir (Infidel)#Guidelines%20on%20how%20to%20deal%20with%20disbelievers|https://wikiislam.net/wiki/Kafir_(Infidel)#Guidelines_on_how_to_deal_with_disbelievers]] Quran 48:29 ]'''

• Jesus enjoined unlimited forgiveness: [https://www.biblegateway.com/passage/?search=Matthew%2018%3A21-22&version=NIV Matt. 18:21-22]; [https://www.biblegateway.com/passage/?search=Luke%2017%3A3-4&version=NIV Luke 17:3-4]. However the Qur'an distinctly says there is no forgiveness for anyone committing shirk (ascribing partners to God) in {{Quran|4|48}} and {{Quran|4|116}}.

He notes Jesus called some to a life without marriage: [https://www.biblegateway.com/passage/?search=Matthew%2019%3A11-12&version=NIV Matt. 19:11-12], while the Qur'an promotes it as a virtue encouraging those to do so.

Marriage is a virtue https://www.getquranic.com/marriage-in-islam-8-quranic-verses-about-marriage/

{{Quote|{{Quran|24|32}}|Marry off those who are single among you, and the upright among your male and female slaves. If they are poor, Allah will enrich them out of His grace, and Allah is all-bounteous, all-knowing.}}

And criticizes monasticism/monks, with celibacy and no marriage being a key aspect<ref>[https://www.britannica.com/topic/monasticism Monasticism] | religion | Britannica Entry</ref> in general

{{Quote|Reynolds, Gabriel Said. Christianity and the Qur'an: The Rise of Islam in Christian Arabia (pp. 131-132). Yale University Press. Kindle Edition.|These verses critical of monks are often read together with Q 57:27, which, while praising certain positive qualities of Christians, also seems to accuse Christians of “innovating” monasticism: Then We sent, following in their footsteps, Our Messengers; and We sent, following, Jesus son of Mary, and gave unto him the Gospel. And We set in the hearts of those who followed him tenderness and mercy. And monasticism they invented—We did not prescribe it for them—only seeking the good pleasure of God; but they observed it not as it should be observed. So We gave those of them who believed their wage; and many of them are ungodly.}}

Criticism of monasticism (https://www.britannica.com/topic/monasticism) - lack of marriage for monks (though admittedly also praises monks in general elsewhere pp130-132)<ref>Reynolds, Gabriel Said. ''Christianity and the Qur'an: The Rise of Islam in Christian Arabia (pp. 130-132).'' Yale University Press. Kindle Edition.</ref>

{{Quote|{{Quran|57|27}}|Then We sent on their footsteps Our Messengers and We followed with Isa, son (of) Maryam, and We gave him the Injeel. And We placed in (the) hearts (of) those who followed him compassion and mercy. But monasticism they innovated - not We prescribed it for them - only seeking (the) pleasure (of) Allah, but not they observed it (with) right observance. So We gave those who believed among them their reward, but most of them (are) defiantly disobediently.}}

<nowiki>-----------------------------------------------------------------</nowiki>

==== Father-son relationship ====
{{Quote|Dale C. Allison Jr.. The Historical Christ and the Theological Jesus (Kindle Location 841-848). Kindle Edition.|2=Working through the tradition in the way I suggest leads to a large number of conclusions. Jesus must have been an exorcist who interpreted his ministry in terms of Satan's downfall. He must have thought highly of John the Baptist. He must have repeatedly spoken of God as Father. [Durie differences in metaphor and understanding of relationship from Hebrew to Arab society = markedly different] He must have composed parables. He must have come into conflict with religious authorities. All of this may seem obvious, but the procedure is not trite, for it also issues in some controversial verdicts. As I have argued elsewhere, for example, ample, the quantity of conventional eschatological material in our primary sources almost necessitates that Jesus was an eschatological prophet.' The reconstruction of Robert Funk and the Jesus Seminar is for this reason alone problematic. Even more controversial is what my approach leads me to infer about Jesus' self-conception. Consider these Synoptic materials:

• Jesus said that the Son of man will return on the clouds of heaven and send angels to gather the elect from throughout the world: Mark 13:26-27; cf. 14:62; Matt. 10:23 (allusions to Daniel 7's depiction of the last judgment are clear). [the son of man plays no part in Islam]}}Allison (2009) notes that Jesus must have repeatedly referred to God as 'father', a way also used by many ancient Jews to describe their relationship to god, also found in the old testament with different metaphorical meanings<ref>Pennington, J.T. "Chapter Nine. God As Father In The Old Testament And Second Temple Literature". ''Heaven and Earth in the Gospel of Matthew''. Leiden, The Netherlands: Brill, 2007. <nowiki>https://doi.org/10.1163/ej.9789004162051.i-399.57</nowiki> Web.</ref> and Talmudic writings with paternal imagery. <ref>Knobnya, S.. (2011). ''God the Father in the Old Testament. European Journal of Theology.'' 20. 139-148. </ref><ref>[https://www.myjewishlearning.com/article/fatherhood-of-god/ Fatherhood of God] | Sages & Scholars | Rabbi Louis Jacobs | My Jewish Learning</ref>

===== Slave-master relationship =====
However this father-son Hebrew metaphorical relationship Jesus used is distinctly abandoned, instead using other things (other metaphors) in Arab society to describe the relationship between humans and God, such as a slave-master relationship,<ref>Durie, Mark. ''The Qur’an and Its Biblical Reflexes: Investigations into the Genesis of a Religion (pp. XX-XX) (pp. 107-110 Kindle Edition)''. 4.1.1. Shirk - Proprietary Partnership. Lexington Books. 2018.</ref> a Patron - Protege (needs explanation of what this is) <ref>Durie, Mark. ''The Qur’an and Its Biblical Reflexes: Investigations into the Genesis of a Religion (pp. XX-XX) (pp. 110-111 Kindle Edition)''. 4.1.2. Shirk - Patron - Protege Relationships. Lexington Books. 2018.</ref>. with Muhammad having strongly condemned the idea that God could have offspring against the unscripted pagans (mushrikun) taking angels as daughters of god early on chronologically of the Qur'an's first recitations, then later against God having a son against Jesus being the son of God.<ref>Durie, Mark. ''The Qur’an and Its Biblical Reflexes: Investigations into the Genesis of a Religion (pp. XX-XX) (pp. 112-113 Kindle Edition)''. 4.1.5 A Polemical Doctrine. Lexington Books. 2018.</ref>

Slave analogy Dure Print edition pp108 - 110 summary:<ref name=":1">Durie, Mark. ''The Qur’an and Its Biblical Reflexes: Investigations into the Genesis of a Religion (pp. 108-110) (pp. XX-XX Kindle Edition)''. 4.1.5 A Polemical Doctrine. Lexington Books. 2018.</ref> Before its theological use, the Arabic root ''sh-r-k'' referred to ordinary '''partnership or shared ownership'''. The Qurʾan draws on this everyday meaning to illustrate why associating partners with God is impossible. Using the metaphor of '''a master and a slave''', the Qurʾan argues that just as a slave with multiple masters suffers confusion and conflict, attributing partners to God creates an impossible and chaotic situation. This logic appears in verses such as Q39:29 and others that argue multiple gods would lead to conflict and the ruin of creation (Q23:91; Q21:22).<ref name=":1" />
{{Quote|{{Quran|39|29}}|Allah presents a parable, “a man was owned by several quarreling partners
(shurakaʾ), and a man was the slave of (just) one man. Are the two equal?”}}

The Qurʾan’s use of the slave-master metaphor differs from Jesus’ teaching in the New Testament. Whereas Jesus uses it to highlight divided human devotion, the Qurʾan uses it to assert the logical impossibility of multiple divine authorities.<ref name=":1" />

{{Quote|Luke 16:13; cf. Matthew. 6:24|No slave can serve two masters; for a slave will either hate the one and love the
other, or be devoted to the one and despise the other. You cannot serve God and wealth.}}

Shirk encompasses various forms of error: attributing partners or helpers to God, believing He needs allies, or seeking aid from others besides Him. The Qurʾan also explores God’s unity through three social analogies relevant to Arabian society: '''patron–protégé relationships''', '''alliances of mutual help''', and '''relationships of equal or unequal status'''.<ref name=":1" />

===== '''Patron–protégé relationships''' =====
The Qur'an distinctly ignores the father-son relationship (and theology) metaphor by using another term that is harder to translate

Explanation of what this is Durie pp.110-111:<ref name=":3">Durie, Mark. ''The Qur’an and Its Biblical Reflexes: Investigations into the Genesis of a Religion (pp. 110-111) (pp. XX-XX Kindle Edition)''. 4.1.5 A Polemical Doctrine. Lexington Books. 2018.</ref> The Qurʾan uses terms from the root '''w-l-y''' to describe '''patron–protégé relationships''', alliances, and guardianship. The key term '''walī''' can mean ally, protector, guardian, or patron, and may indicate either symmetrical alliances or asymmetrical power relationships.<ref name=":3" /><ref>[https://lexicon.quranic-research.net/data/27_w/219_wle.html Root: ''wāw lām yā'' (و ل ي)] - Lane's Lexicon Qur'anic Research

See Lane's Lexicon Classical Arabic Dictionary [https://lexicon.quranic-research.net/pdf/Page_3060.pdf pp.3060] & [https://lexicon.quranic-research.net/pdf/Page_3061.pdf pp.3061] </ref>

In pre-Islamic Arab society, such patronage was essential for protection, as shown by the example of Muḥammad being safeguarded by his uncle Abū Ṭālib. Without a patron, a person was vulnerable.<ref name=":3" /> [in the sirah of Ibn Ishaq]

The Qurʾan emphasizes that '''God has no need of any patron''' and that '''humans should recognize God alone as their walī'''. Seeking any protector besides God is considered '''shirk'''. Believers may take other believers and the Prophet as allies (''awliyāʾ'') alongside God, but not in place of Him.<ref name=":3" />

As the Muslim community developed, especially after what the passage calls the ''Eschatological Transition''—the Qurʾan increasingly stressed exclusive allegiance to God. This served to detach believers from prior tribal or familial loyalties that could compromise their commitment to the faith community.<ref name=":3" />

- and calls for help-

===== Unequal status vs Jesus' views on Wealth =====
Sinai - darajah passage

And inequality in general - inc. the afterlife

=== Punishment narratives ===

==== Punishment BEFORE the day of judgement ====
We are told the sole exception in history was the unnamed town<ref>Unnamed in the Qur'an, though identified as Nineveh (in modern day Iraq) as in the Biblical "Book of Jonah" by Islamic exegetes; e.g. see [https://quranx.com/tafsirs/37.147 tafsirs on Q37:147]</ref> of more than 100,000 people that the messenger Yūnus (Jonah) when the warning was heeded in full by the entire people, and therefore punishment averted ({{Quran|10|98}}, {{Quran|37|147-148}}) “no town believed . . . except the people of Yūnus”<ref>Durie, Mark. 2018. ''The Qur'an and Its Biblical Reflexes: Investigations Into the Genesis of a Religion. pp 49. Kindle Edition pp 151.''</ref>

How many a town defied the command of its Lord and His apostles, then We called it to a severe account and punished it with a dire punishment. Q65:8

So it tasted the evil consequences of its conduct, and the outcome of its conduct was ruin. Q65:9

How many generations that had far more wealth and ostentation have We laid low before them! <<nowiki>https://quranx.com/19.74</nowiki>>

Say, ‘Whoever abides in error, the All-beneficent shall prolong his respite until they sight what they have been promised: either punishment, or the Hour.’ Then they will know whose position is worse, and whose host is weaker <<nowiki>https://quranx.com/19.75</nowiki>>

------

Q34:16 - flood of the damn of Yemen / Saba', the people of Sheba E.g. <ref>See tafsirs on [https://quranx.com/Tafsirs/34.14 Q34:14], [https://quranx.com/Tafsirs/34.15 Q34:15] & [https://quranx.com/Tafsirs/34.16 Q34:16]</ref> {{Quran|34|14-16}}

{{Quote|{{Quran|34|14-16}}|And when We decreed for Solomon death, nothing indicated to the jinn his death except a creature of the earth eating his staff. But when he fell, it became clear to the jinn that if they had known the unseen, they would not have remained in humiliating punishment.
Certainly, (there) was for Saba in their dwelling place a sign: Two gardens on (the) right and (on the) left. "Eat from (the) provision (of) your Lord and be grateful to Him. A land good and a Lord Oft-Forgiving."
But they turned away, so We sent upon them (the) flood (of) the dam, and We changed for them their two gardens (with) two gardens producing fruit bitter, and tamarisks and (some)thing of lote trees few.}}
, {{Quran|65|8-9}}, {{Quran|19|74-75}}

Add: 34:15–21: The punishment of the people of Sheba, without explicit reference to a messenger. Sheba reference <ref>Marshall, David. ''God, Muhammad and the Unbelievers (p. 73).'' Taylor & Francis. Kindle Edition.</ref>

=== Surah 36 ===
Similarly an unnamed town is sent three messengers in {{Quran|36|13-32}}, who's identities have differed in traditional Islamic scholarship,<ref>E.g. see commentaries on [https://quranx.com/Tafsirs/36.13 Q36:13] & [https://quranx.com/tafsirs/36.14 Q36:14], and the later verses in the story, cited as a parable ''(mathal).''</ref> are rejected and so are killed with a cry/shout (''ṣayḥatan)'' ({{Quran|36|29}}). <ref>Marshall, David. ''God, Muhammad and the Unbelievers (p. 63 & 72).'' Taylor & Francis. Kindle Edition.</ref>
{{Quote|Marshall, David. God, Muhammad and the Unbelievers (p. 72). Taylor & Francis. Kindle Edition.|36:13–32: Described as a parable (mathal, v.13), but in outline very similar to the punishment-narratives. The messengers (two of them, reinforced with a third) and the town in which they preach are anonymous. ‘A man from the furthest part of the city’ (v.20) exhorts his people to follow the messengers.}}

== Contradiction ==
The order in Surah 2 has the Jews struck by a lightening bolt after they worship the golden calf, who are then forgiven by Allah by being resurrected.
{{Quote|{{Quran|2|50-67}}|And when We parted the sea with you, and We delivered you and drowned Pharaoh’s clan as you looked on. 
And when We made an appointment with Moses for forty nights, you took up the Calf [for worship] in his absence, and you were wrongdoers. 
Then We excused you after that so that you might give thanks. 
And when We gave Moses the Book and the Criterion so that you might be guided. 
And [recall] when Moses said to his people, ‘O my people! You have indeed wronged yourselves by taking up the Calf [for worship]. Now turn penitently to your Maker, and slay [the guilty among] your folks. That will be better for you with your Maker.’ Then He turned to you clemently. Indeed, He is the All-clement, the All-merciful. 
And when you said, ‘O Moses, we will not believe you until we see Allah visibly.’ Thereupon a thunderbolt seized you as you looked on.
Then We raised you up after your death so that you might give thanks. /n
We shaded you with clouds, and sent down to you manna and quails [saying]: ‘Eat of the good things We have provided for you.’ And they did not wrong Us, but they used to wrong [only] themselves. 
And when We said, ‘Enter this town, and eat thereof freely whencesoever you wish, and enter while prostrating at the gate, and say, ‘‘Relieve [us of the burden of our sins],’’ so that We may forgive your iniquities and We will soon enhance the virtuous.’ 
But the wrongdoers changed the saying with other than what they were told. So We sent down on those who were wrongdoers a plague from the sky because of the transgressions they used to commit. 
And when Moses prayed for water for his people, We said, ‘Strike the rock with your staff.’ Thereat twelve fountains gushed forth from it; every tribe came to know its drinking-place. ‘Eat and drink of Allah’s provision, and do not act wickedly on the earth, causing corruption.’ 
And when you said, ‘O Moses, ‘We will not put up with one kind of food. So invoke your Lord for us, so that He may bring forth for us of that which the earth grows—its greens and cucumbers, its garlic, lentils, and onions.’ He said, ‘Do you seek to replace what is superior with that which is inferior? Go down to any town and you will indeed get what you ask for!’ So they were struck with abasement and poverty, and they earned Allah’s wrath. That, because they would deny the signs of Allah and kill the prophets unjustly. That, because they would disobey and commit transgressions. 
Indeed the faithful, the Jews, the Christians and the Sabaeans—those of them who have faith in Allah and the Last Day and act righteously—they shall have their reward from their Lord, and they will have no fear, nor will they grieve. 
And when We took a pledge from you, and raised the Mount above you, [declaring], ‘Hold on with power to what We have given you and remember that which is in it so that you may be Godwary.’ 
Again you turned away after that; and were it not for Allah’s grace on you and His mercy, you would have surely been among the losers. 
And certainly you know those of you who violated the Sabbath, whereupon We said to them, ‘Be you spurned apes.’ 
So We made it an exemplary punishment for the present and the succeeding [generations], and an advice to the Godwary.}}
In Surah 4 they are struck before they worship the calf. 4:153 specifically says 'then' ''(thumma)''

{{Quote|{{Quran|4|153-161}}|The People of the Book ask you to bring down for them a Book from the sky. Certainly they asked Moses for [something] greater than that, for they said, ‘Show us Allah visibly,’ whereat a thunderbolt seized them for their wrongdoing. Then they took up the Calf [for worship], after all the manifest proofs that had come to them. Yet We excused that, and We gave Moses a manifest authority. 
And We raised the Mount above them for the sake of their covenant, and We said to them, ‘Enter the gate prostrating’ and We said to them, ‘Do not violate the Sabbath,’ and We took from them a solemn covenant. 
Then because of their breaking their covenant, their defiance of Allah’s signs, their killing of the prophets unjustly and for their saying, ‘Our hearts are uncircumcised’… Indeed, Allah has set a seal on them for their unfaith, so they do not have faith except a few. 
And for their faithlessness, and their uttering a monstrous calumny against Mary, 
and for their saying, ‘We killed the Messiah, Jesus son of Mary, the apostle of Allah’—though they did not kill him nor did they crucify him, but so it was made to appear to them. Indeed those who differ concerning him are surely in doubt about him: they do not have any knowledge of that beyond following conjectures, and certainly, they did not kill him. 
Indeed, Allah raised him up toward Himself, and Allah is all-mighty, all-wise. 
There is none among the People of the Book but will surely believe in him before his death; and on the Day of Resurrection, he will be a witness against them. 
Due to the wrongdoing of the Jews, We prohibited them certain good things that were permitted to them [earlier], and for their barring many [people] from the way of Allah, 
and for their taking usury—though they had been forbidden from it—and for eating up the wealth of the people wrongfully. And We have prepared for the faithless among them a painful punishment. }}

=== V2 ===
Surah 4 (summarized version)

1) They ask Moses for a sign and are hit with a thunderbolt

2) They then take up the calf for worship

3) The mountain is raised above them{{Quote|{{Quran|4|153-154}}|The People of the Book ask you to bring down for them a Book from the sky. Certainly they asked Moses for [something] greater than that, for they said, ‘Show us Allah visibly,’ whereat a thunderbolt seized them for their wrongdoing. Then they took up the Calf [for worship], after all the manifest proofs that had come to them. Yet We excused that, and We gave Moses a manifest authority. 
And We raised the Mount above them for the sake of their covenant, and We said to them, ‘Enter the gate prostrating’ and We said to them, ‘Do not violate the Sabbath,’ and We took from them a solemn covenant.}}Surah 2
1) They worshiped the calf. And Moses tells them to slay the guilty among them.

2) They are hit by a thunderbolt - is it chronological?

3) ... a mountain is lifted above them
{{Quote|{{Quran|2|51-56}}|And when We made an appointment with Moses for forty nights, you took up the Calf [for worship] in his absence, and you were wrongdoers. 
Then We excused you after that so that you might give thanks. 
And when We gave Moses the Book and the Criterion so that you might be guided. 
And [recall] when Moses said to his people, ‘O my people! You have indeed wronged yourselves by taking up the Calf [for worship]. Now turn penitently to your Maker, and slay [the guilty among] your folks. That will be better for you with your Maker.’ Then He turned to you clemently. Indeed, He is the All-clement, the All-merciful. 
And when you said, ‘O Moses, we will not believe you until we see Allah visibly.’ Thereupon a thunderbolt seized you as you looked on.
Then We raised you up after your death so that you might give thanks.}}
== The Lote Tree of the utmost Boundary (Sid'rati al-Muntahā) ==
Lote tree's are a real type of tree (Ziziphus spina-christi) native to Arabia and the Middle East.<ref>[https://www.suewickison.com/products/lote-tree?srsltid=AfmBOorj_RU2x1OPxgfRe689M2TWw1g4uZTQLkpSolPGYnIatiIe7h6K Lote Tree | Sidr | Ziziphus spina-christi |] Plants of the Qur'an | Sue Wickison </ref> Different to the tree of eternity/immortality ''(shajarati ul-khul'di)'' in paradise ''jannah,'' the Qur'an mentions The Lote Tree (sidr) of ''the utmost boundary (al-muntahā)''<ref>مُنْتَهَىٰ - [https://lexicon.quranic-research.net/pdf/Page_3029.pdf Lane's Lexicon pp.3029]

</ref> near (but notably not in) the 'garden of abode', said to be 'covered' yaghshā by something unspecified in Q53:16, typically taken by exegetes to mean by angels, light and/or golden animals.<ref>E.g. see [https://quranx.com/Tafsirs/53.16 Tafsirs on Q53:16]</ref>

{{Quote|{{Quran|53|13-17}}|And certainly he saw him (in) descent another,
Near (the) Lote Tree (of) the utmost boundary,
Near it (is the) Garden (of) Abode.
when there covered the Lote Tree what covered it.
Not swerved the sight and not it transgressed.}}

This furthest boundary/limit is said in the hadith, to place the cosmic tree in the sixth heaven, where even celestial creatures cannot go beyond as the limit of creation; said to be seen by Muhammad in his Night Journey (mi’rāj) on the [[:en:Buraq|Buraq]] (E.g. {{Muslim|1|329}}, {{Al Tirmidhi|2=5|3=44|4=3276}}, {{Bukhari|5|58|227}} & {{Al Nasai|2=1|3=5|4=452}}), and by many Islamic exegetes.<ref>See [https://quranx.com/tafsirs/53.14 tafsirs on Q53:14]</ref>

This would align the cosmology of Islamic traditions supporting the idea that paradise (and therefore the garden of the abode) is in the seventh heaven,<ref>[https://islamqa.info/en/answers/215011/where-are-paradise-and-hell#Where_is_Paradise Where is Paradise] | [https://islamqa.info/en/answers/215011/where-are-paradise-and-hell Where Are Paradise and Hell?] | 07/January/2015 islamqa</ref> while some traditions support the idea that paradise is above the seventh heaven,<ref>[https://www.islamweb.net/en/fatwa/107126/the-location-of-paradise-now#:~:text=Paradise%20that%20Allaah%20promised%20for,are%20many%20texts%20proving%20this. The location of Paradise now] | Paradise and Hell | Belief in the Hereafter | Islamic Creed | Fatwa | islamweb.net </ref> both placing the tree relatively close to jannah. However others suggest that this specific ''garden of the abode (jannatu l-mawā)'' is a separate garden/paradise to the eternal one all righteous Muslims will eventually enter, being instead one where martyrs (those killed in war or for their religion) go before judgement day.<ref>E.g. see [https://quranx.com/Tafsirs/53.15 tafsirs on Q53:15]</ref>

Either way there is no evidence of a celestial tree, which must be magic to survive outside of an Earthly plant ecosystem, but is rather an example of tree mythology.
----
----

(See also: <nowiki>https://sunnah.com/mishkat:5865</nowiki> & https://sunnah.com/mishkat:5640, ) read; https://quranx.com/tafsirs/53.14 - exegetes also confirm this is where boundary is the boundary of the skies/heavens where things other than God cannot pass (at least until judgement day where paradise and hell can be entered).

AND Similarly seen next to the 4 main Near-East rivers (Nile, Euphratesm Tigres,) <nowiki>https://sunnah.com/bukhari:5610</nowiki>, which area said to flow from paradise: <nowiki>https://quranx.com/Hadith/Bukhari/USC-MSA/Volume-5/Book-58/Hadith-227/</nowiki> )

cite: [https://www.islamweb.net/en/fatwa/107126/the-location-of-paradise-now#:~:text=Paradise%20that%20Allaah%20promised%20for,are%20many%20texts%20proving%20this. https://www.islamweb.net/en/fatwa/107126/the-location-of-paradise-now#:~:text=Paradise%20that%20Allaah%20promised%20for,are%20many%20texts%20proving%20this.]

The utmost boundary at the end of t heavens confirmed by exegetes in https://quranx.com/tafsirs/53.14

" Jannat al-ma'va' literally means "the Jannat (Garden) that is to be an abode. " Hadrat Hasan Basri says that this is the same Jannat which the believers and righteous will be given in the Hereafter, and from this same verse he has argued that that Jannat is in the heavens. Qatadah says that this is the Jannat in which the souls of the martyrs are kept; it does not imply the Jannat that is to be given in the Hereafter. Ibn 'Abbas also says the same but adds that the Jannat to be granted to the believers in the Hereafter is not in the heavens but here on the earth.

== Parallels Between the Qur'an and Late Antique Judeo-Christian Literature - Part 2 ==
Following on from [[Parallels Between the Qur'an and Late Antique Judeo-Christian Literature|Part 1]], this is Part 2 of Late Antique Judeo-Christian Literature found in the Qur'an. This material, drawing heavily on rabbinical commentaries on the bible, and late Syriac Christian thought found in homilies, was created far later than the biblical cannon; no-where near the time of the events that occurred. This suggests the stories were transmitted in an oral millennia along with local Arabian traditions<ref>Bannister, Andrew G.. ''An Oral-Formulaic Study of the Qur'an (Kindle Location 249-259 in Chapter 1.2 The Biblicist Roots of the Iblis and Adam Story).'' Bloomsbury Publishing. Kindle Edition.

..When the Qur’an emerged in the seventh-century, it did so in an oral culture in which Biblicist traditions were freely circulating and thus there existed a large pool of commonly known stories and traditions to fish from; a pool in which stories could cross-fertilize and influence one another. 23 It is this, more than direct borrowing that perhaps best explains stories like Iblis and Adam as well as other qur’anic tellings of older tales, such as the Seven Sleepers (Q. 18: 9– 25) 24 and the Legend of Alexander (Dhu al-Qarnayn, Q. 18: 83– 101). 25 The Qur’an originates from a milieu in which Biblicist material was well-known to the first audience of the Qur’an; even a simple allusion to a story was often enough to trigger a connection for the hearer. 26 That Biblicist material has been filtered through storytelling rather than simply copied from a written text is further suggested by what the Qur’an leaves out; no minor prophets are referenced, probably because almost no Old Testament narratives feature them nor did the rabbinic literature weave lengthy tales about them. 27 The exception which proves the rule is Jonah (Q. 21: 87– 88; 37: 139– 148; 68: 48– 50), whose short but dramatic story was extremely popular in both Jewish and Christian contexts.28..

And: Bannister, Andrew G.. ''An Oral-Formulaic Study of the Qur'an (Kindle Locations 1391-1392. Chapter 2.3 The Islamic Tradition and Orality).'' Bloomsbury Publishing. Kindle Edition.</ref> where biblical and much later Jewish and Christian stories could be commonly mixed without the new community realizing.
== The story of Noah ==
The prophet Noah is portrayed extremely differently to the one in Genesis,<ref>Segovia, Carlos A.. ''[https://almuslih.org/wp-content/uploads/2024/12/Segovia-C-The-Quranic-Noah-and-the-Making-of-the-Islamic-Prophet.pdf The Quranic Noah and the Making of the Islamic Prophet: A Study of Intertextuality and Religious Identity Formation in Late Antiquity]'', Berlin, München, Boston: De Gruyter, 2015. <nowiki>https://doi.org/10.1515/9783110405897</nowiki></ref> taking on Jewish and Christian traditions, characteristics, as well as terms from late antique Judeo-Christian writings,<ref>The Qur'anic Noah. pp.21-21</ref> molded to suit Muhammad's situation in line with other messengers in the Qur'an.<ref>''The Qurʾan and its Biblical Reflexes: Investigations into the Genesis of a Religion. Chapter 5.3 Messenger Uniformatism. pp.135-143'' By Mark Durie. Lanham, MD: Lexington Books, 2018. </ref>

=== The preaching of Noah ===

Surah 71 consists entirely of the preaching of Noah and his supplications to Allah.{{Quote|{{Quran-range|71|1|28}}|Indeed, We sent Noah to his people, [saying], "Warn your people before there comes to them a painful punishment." He said, "O my people, indeed I am to you a clear warner, [Saying], 'Worship Allah, fear Him and obey me. Allah will forgive you of your sins and delay you for a specified term. Indeed, the time [set by] Allah, when it comes, will not be delayed, if you only knew.' " 
[...]
And Noah said, "My Lord, do not leave upon the earth from among the disbelievers an inhabitant. Indeed, if You leave them, they will mislead Your servants and not beget except [every] wicked one and [confirmed] disbeliever. My Lord, forgive me and my parents and whoever enters my house a believer and the believing men and believing women. And do not increase the wrongdoers except in destruction."}}Reynolds remarks that "The Qur'ānic character of Noah is quite unlike that of the Noah in Genesis, who does not speak a word until after the flood." Citing the Babylonian Talmud, Sanhedrin 108a, he observes that "[his preaching] is also suggested by a passage in the Talmud:
::"The righteous Noah rebuked them, urging, 'Repent; for if not, the Holy One, blessed be He, will bring a deluge upon you and cause your bodies to float upon the water like gourds, as it is written, He is light [i.e., floats] upon the waters. Moreover, ye shall be taken as a curse for all future generations.' (b. Sanhedrin 108a)"
Reynolds further notes, "It is also prominent in the Syriac fathers, several of whom report that Noah preached to his people for a hundred years before God finally sent the flood." citing for example the Syriac authors Narsai, "On the Flood", 33, II. 227-30 and Jacob of Serugh, ''Homilies contre les juifs'', 70, homily 2, II. 37-40.<ref>Gabriel Said Reynolds, ''The Qurʾān and Bible'' p. 858</ref>

The opponents reject Noah's preaching despite him doing so 'day and night' (Quran 71:5-6) in which they respond by putting their fingers in their ears Quran 71:7, on which Neuwirth (2024) notes that "the means of plugging one’s ears in order to shut oneself off from unpleasant news is also encountered in the Talmud (bKetubbot 5a)."<ref>Neuwirth, Angelika. The Qur'an: Text and Commentary, ''Volume 2.1: Early Middle Meccan Suras: The New Elect (p. 280).'' Yale University Press. Kindle Edition.</ref>

=== Noah's disbelieving wife ===
{{Quote|{{Quran|66|10}}|Allah presents an example of those who disbelieved: the wife of Noah and the wife of Lot. They were under two of Our righteous servants but betrayed them, so those prophets did not avail them from Allah at all, and it was said, "Enter the Fire with those who enter."}}The Bible briefly mentions Noah's wife in one verse without further comment ([https://www.biblegateway.com/passage/?search=Genesis%207%3A7&version=NIV Genesis 7:7]), "And Noah and his sons and his wife and his sons’ wives entered the ark to escape the waters of the flood." Regarding the Quranic verse which speaks of her negatively, Reynolds briefly considers the possibility that the Quran has extended to their wives the parallelism between Noah (though not his wife) and Lot found in the New Testament ([https://www.biblegateway.com/passage/?search=2%20Peter%202&version=NIV 2 Peter 2]), but then comments, "However, it is important to note that already in the pre-Islamic period certain groups had developed hostile legends about Noah's wife." He cites Epiphanius (d. 403 CE), ''Panarion'' 2:26, which relates the Gnostic belief that she was not allowed onto the ark, having burned it down three times before the flood.<ref>Gabriel Said Reynolds, ''The Qurʾān and Bible'' p. 841</ref>

=== Noah's flood waters overflowed from an oven ===
The Qur'anic version of the Noah's flood story describes the flood waters as overflowing from an oven. This element is not found even in more ancient versions of the story (Epic of Gilgamesh, Atra hasis, and Ziusudra).

Note that in his translation, Yusuf Ali mistranslates the Aramaic loan word for the oven (alttannooru ٱلتَّنُّورُ)<ref>[http://www.studyquran.org/LaneLexicon/Volume1/00000355.pdf Lane's Lexicon p. 318 تَّنُّورُ]</ref> as "fountains". The Arabic verb translated "gushed forth" (fara فَارَ) means overflowed or boiled in the context of water in a cooking pot<ref>[http://www.studyquran.org/LaneLexicon/Volume6/00000241.pdf Lane's Lexicon p. 2457 فور]</ref>, as well as in the other verse where it is used, {{Quran|67|7}}. Here is Pickthall's more accurate translation:{{Quote|{{Quran|11|40}}|
(Thus it was) till, when Our commandment came to pass '''and the oven gushed forth water''', We said: Load therein two of every kind, a pair (the male and female), and thy household, save him against whom the word hath gone forth already, and those who believe. And but a few were they who believed with him.}}{{Quote|{{Quran|23|27}}|
Then We inspired in him, saying: Make the ship under Our eyes and Our inspiration. Then, when Our command cometh '''and the oven gusheth water''', introduce therein of every (kind) two spouses, and thy household save him thereof against whom the Word hath already gone forth. And plead not with Me on behalf of those who have done wrong. Lo! they will be drowned.}}At one time academic scholars thought this verse alluded to a Midrashic exegesis in which the flood waters were boiling hot (b. Sanhedrin 108b, [https://www.sefaria.org/Rosh_Hashanah.12a.4?lang=bi|Tracate Rosh Hashanah 12a:4]). More recent scholarship, particularly by Olivier Mongellaz in 2024,<ref name="Mongellaz2024">Olivier Mongellaz (2024) [https://brill.com/view/journals/arab/71/4-5/article-p513_4.xml Le four de Noé : un cas d’intertextualité coranique], Arabica 71(4-5), 513-637. https://doi.org/10.1163/15700585-20246900</ref> has identified that these verses most likely reflect a late antique legend in which water gushing up through a bread oven (a large hole dug into the ground) was a sign warning Noah's family of the imminent flood. The interpretation as Noah's own oven is attributed to a number of early commentators (such as Ibn Abbas, Mujahid), while others understood it to be the area of land where the flood waters first rose. Qurtubi said: "The sayings of commentators appear to be different as to the meaning of tannur, but this, in reality, is not a difference. When water began to bulge out, it overflowed from the bread baking oven, and from out of the surface of the land".

Significantly, Mongellaz has argued on literary grounds that a fragmentary Arabic text falsely attributed to Hippolytus of Rome, and which mentions the overflowing bread oven story, is independent of the Islamic tradition and was originally written in a very specific environment which has parallels with the context in which certain parts of the Quran were written.{{Quote|Pseudo. Hippolytus of Rome (translated to English from Mongellaz's French translation)<ref name="Mongellaz2024" />|Meanwhile, Ham's wife stood up to take out the bread that remained in the oven and immediately water sprang out of the oven [fāḍa l-māʾmin al-tannūr] and immediately water came out of the oven, as the Lord had said: "The fountains of the great deeps were opened." Ham's wife called to Noah, saying, "My lord, the word of God has come true (Syr. what God promised has come true!)" - for it had come true just as the Lord had promised her. When Noah heard Ham's wife's words, he said to her, "Oh, the flood has come."}}

=== Noah's ark left behind as a sign ===
{{Quote|{{Quran-range|54|13|15}}|And We carried him on a [construction of] planks and nails, Sailing under Our observation as reward for he who had been denied. And We left it as a sign, so is there any who will remember?}}Unlike the bible, which does not mention the ark as a sign for future generations, Neuwirth (2024) notes the salvation of Noah is made physically plausible to the listeners through the reference to the material verifiability of the ark, which could be taken from various late antique traditions, for example Flavius Josephus (b. 37AD) reports in the ''Jewish Antiquities (I 3.5 § 92)'' of the existence of the remains of Noah’s ark in Armenia (Clementz 1959: 22).<ref name=":0">Neuwirth, Angelika. ''The Qur'an: Text and Commentary, Volume 2.1: Early Middle Meccan Suras: The New Elect (p. 62).'' Yale University Press. Kindle Edition.</ref> She also notes that the appeal to the willingness of the listeners to be admonished by the sign (āya) of Noah’s ark is also reminiscent of the Talmudic story (bSanhedrin 96a) of the death of Sennacherib, who was led to a fateful decision by seeing the remains of Noah’s ark.<ref name=":0" />
==Moses and Pharaoh==
Alongside the biblical account of Moses and the Pharoah, there are some key aspects that match Jewish Rabbinic and Christian non-biblical traditions. Even the place where Moses communicates with God in the story of the burning bush, the word used ''ṭuwan'' in e.g. {{Quran|20|12}} (for the folded land, implying double the holiness)<ref>See; Neuwirth, Angelika. ''The Qur'an: Text and Commentary, Volume 2.1: Early Middle Meccan Suras: The New Elect (p. 199).'' Yale University Press. Kindle Edition. Ṭuwā stands for the holy Mount Sinai or Horeb (cf. KU, 124ff.; FVQ, 206ff.; BEQ, 255ff.). The word was long thought to be a rhyming transformation of Aramaic ṭūrā (“the mountain”), but now, based on rabbinic tradition and in agreement with traditional exegetes, Uri Rubin has convincingly interpreted bi-l-wādī l-muqaddasi Ṭuwā to mean “in the doubly hallowed valley” (see Rubin 2014). (The Sinai is in a sense the “folded Holy Land” [ṬWY = “to fold”].) Citing: Rubin, Uri, 2014, ''[https://urirubin.com/assets/docs/Tuwan.86132451.pdf Moses and the Holy Valley Ṭuwan. On the Biblical and Midrashic Background of a Qurʾanic Scene],'' Journal of Near Eastern Studies 73, 73–81.</ref> does not have a parallel in the bible,<ref>''[https://urirubin.com/assets/docs/Tuwan.86132451.pdf Moses and the Holy Valley Ṭuwan: On the biblical and midrashic background of a qurʾānic scene.]'' Rubin 2014. Ibid. pp. 75.</ref> but does in other Judeo-Christian (later) works.<ref>Ibid. pp. 76-78</ref> And the idea of eschatology in Moses's story such as {{Quran|20|15}}, with reward in the afterlife being mentioned, is not contained in the biblical story of Moses, Neuwirth (2024) notes moves the story into a late antiquity interpretation.<ref>Neuwirth, Angelika. ''The Qur'an: Text and Commentary, Volume 2.1: Early Middle Meccan Suras: The New Elect (p. 199).'' Yale University Press. Kindle Edition.</ref> Key details in the stories include:
===The prophecy of baby Moses===
Alongside the scene of [https://www.biblegateway.com/passage/?search=Exodus%201%3A8-2%3A10&version=NIV Exodus 1:8-2:10] where the Hebrews in Egyptian bondage are told to kill all male babies to control the growing Israelite population, where Moses's mother places his basket in the Nile to escape; Neuwirth (2024) citing Speyer, notes that ''the prophecy to Moses’s mother that an enemy—of Moses as well as of God himself—would take him in reflects a Midrashic interpretation of Exodus Rabba (1:31: “So the daughter of Pharaoh raised the daughter, who was once to take revenge on her father”). The event is explicitly based on a divine intention, namely, to make Moses his chosen one.''<ref>''The Qur'an: Text and Commentary, Volume 2.1: Early Middle Meccan Suras: The New Elect'' Ibid. pp. 201.</ref>{{Quote|{{Quran-range|20|37|39}}|We have bestowed Our favour on you before this, When We told your mother what We relate: 'Put him in a wooden box and cast it in the river. The river will cast it on the bank. An enemy of Ours, and his, will retrieve it.' We bestowed Our love on you that you may be reared under Our eyes.}}And similarly the next verse unlike the bible focuses on the emotional impact of the event on Moses’s mother, Neuwirth notes is comparable to Midrash Exodus Rabba 1:25.<ref>Ibid. pp. 201-202.</ref> Moses's salvation from persecution after manslaughter is commemorated with similar consideration of Moses’s mental condition.<ref>Ibid. pp. 202.</ref>{{Quote|{{Quran|20|40}}|When your sister walked up [to Pharaoh’s palace] saying, “Shall I show you someone who will take care of him?” Then We restored you to your mother, that she might not grieve and be comforted. Then you slew a soul, whereupon We delivered you from anguish, and We tried you with various ordeals. Then you stayed for several years among the people of Midian. Then you turned up as ordained, O Moses!}}
===Moses not suckled by Egyptians===
{{Quote|{{Quran-range|28|12|13}}|And We had prevented from him [all] wet nurses before, so she said, "Shall I direct you to a household that will be responsible for him for you while they are to him [for his upbringing] sincere?" So We restored him to his mother that she might be content and not grieve and that she would know that the promise of Allah is true. But most of the people do not know.}}Reynolds comments, "On this passage cf. Exodus 2:7-9. The Qurʾān's declaration (v. 12) 'We had forbidden him to be suckled by any nurse' (v. 12) reflects a tradition in the Babylonian Talmud that Moses (from whose mouth would come forth the word of God) refused the impure breasts of the Egyptian women:
::Then said his sister to Pharaoh's daughter, Shall I go and call thee a nurse of the Hebrew women? Why just 'of the Hebrew women'? - It teaches that they handed about to all the Egyptian women but he would not suck. He said: Shall a mouth which will speak with [God] suck what is unclean! (b. Sotah 12b)"<ref>Gabriel Said Reynolds, ''The Qurʾān and Bible'' p. 598</ref>
===Moses's speech impediment===
Moses has some kind of speech impediment when going to speak to Pharaoh in the Qurʾān.{{Quote|{{Quran-range|20|24|28}}|"Go to Pharaoh. Indeed, he has transgressed."( Moses) said: "O, my Lord! Expand me my breast,” ease my task for me, And untie the knot from my tongue, so they may understand what I say.”}}Biblical Scholar James Kugel (1997)<ref>Kugel, James L.. The Bible As It Was (Kindle Edition. pp. 432-433). Harvard University Press.</ref> notes that later Jewish and Christian commentators found it necessary to explain Moses's statement in the Old Testament “''Oh my Lord, I am not a man of words … but I am heavy of speech and heavy of tongue''” ([https://www.biblegateway.com/passage/?search=Exodus%204%3A10&version=NIV Exodus 4:10]), as he was believed to be a highly educated man who had been supposedly been schooled in every branch of wisdom, including eloquence.

He notes "it occurred to interpreters that Moses might have been referring here not to any lacuna in his education, but to an actual speech defect, some physical deformity of his mouth or tongue that prevented him from speaking in the usual fashion." We see this in:<ref>Ibid. pp. 432 - 433 (Kindle Edition)</ref>

"''I'' ''am not by nature eloquent; my tongue with difficulty speaks, I stammer, so that I cannot speak before the king."'' —Ezekiel the Tragedian, Exaggē 113– 115 (3rd-2nd century BCE)

''He [Moses] pleased his parents by his beauty, but grieved them by his speech impediment. —''Ephraem, Commentary on Exodus 2: 4 (d. 373 AD)

Others even added stories on how he might have acquired that deformity, such as Josephus in Jewish Antiquities 2: 232– 236 (published ~93/94 AD), connecting their explanation of Moses’ speech problems to the tradition of Pharaoh’s wise men and their warnings about a boy that might grow up and save Israel.<ref>Ibid. pp. 433 - 434 (Kindle Edition)</ref>
===Pharaohs questions===
Neuwirth (2024) comments that the list of further detailed questions to Moses in Surah 26 'The Poets' / al-shuʿarāʾ (i.e. in {{Quran-range|26|22|29}}), citing Speyer, reflect a more detailed episode from Midrash Exodus Rabba 5:18, which also starts from Pharaoh’s self-praise as God.<ref>Neuwirth, Angelika. ''The Qur'an: Text and Commentary, Volume 2.1: Early Middle Meccan Suras: The New Elect (p. 250).'' Yale University Press. Kindle Edition.</ref>
===The Drowning of Pharaoh===
{{Quote|{{Quran-range|10|90|92}}|And We took the Children of Israel across the sea, and Pharaoh and his soldiers pursued them in tyranny and enmity until, when drowning overtook him, he said, "I believe that there is no deity except that in whom the Children of Israel believe, and I am of the Muslims." Now? And you had disobeyed [Him] before and were of the corrupters? So today We will save you in body that you may be to those who succeed you a sign. And indeed, many among the people, of Our signs, are heedless}}Reynolds comments, "The question of Pharaoh's survival appears in an opinion found in the (late fourth century AD) ''Mekilta de-Rabbi Ishmael'' (cr. Gavin McDowell):
::"And the waters returned and covered the chariot etc. [Exo 14:27]. Even Pharaoh, according to the words of R. Judah, as it is said, 'The chariots of Pharaoh and his force, etc.' [Exo 15:4]. R. Nehimiah says: ''Except for Pharaoh.'' About him it says, 'However, for this purpose I have let you live' [Exo 9:16]. Others say that in the end Pharaoh went down and drowned, as it is said, 'Then went the horse of Pharaoh, etc.' [Exo 15:19]. (Beshallah 7)"<ref>Gabriel Said Reynolds, ''The Qurʾān and Bible'' p. 339</ref>
==Arguments for resurrection==
Reynolds (2020) notes the repeated argument that God can resurrect the dead using the analogy that he can bring life back to barren (or dead) land may be connected to a Jewish tradition that God will resurrect the dead with dew, for example, in b. Shabbat 88b.<ref name=":2" />
{{Quote|{{Quran|30|19}}|He brings forth the living from the dead, and brings forth the dead from the living, and revives the earth after its death. Likewise, you [too] shall be raised [from the dead].}}

Cf: {{Quran|16|65}}, {{Quran|43|11}}, {{Quran|50|6-11}}, {{Quran|57|17}}
==Late antique Christian Martyrdom==
{{Main|Shaheed (Martyr)}}
Durie (2018) notes the violence of the Qur'an shares more commonality with contemporary late antique religious (primarily Christian) violence and warfare rather than being directly biblically based.<ref>Durie, Mark. ''The Qur’an and Its Biblical Reflexes: Investigations into the Genesis of a Religion.'' Lexington Books. 2018. Pp. 229 -237. (Kindle Edition: pp. 423-439). 6.9 Stories of Fighting Prophets</ref>

=== Textual overlap ===

Covering the continuity and similarities between late antique religious violence & warfare and the Qur'an (and other Islamic traditions) is too big a topic to cover here; perhaps the most in-depth academic work looking at the continuity between this and Islam is Thomas Sizgorich's ''Violence and Belief in Late Antiquity: Militant Devotion in Christianity and Islam'', however Sinai (2017) notes alongside similar ideas and theology, there are some direct textual references.{{Quote|Sinai, Nicolai. Qur'an: A Historical-Critical Introduction (The New Edinburgh Islamic Surveys) (pp. 301-302). Edinburgh University Press. Kindle Edition.|That the Qur’anic community’s access to Biblical notions of militancy was mediated by late antique Christian discourse is indicated by an intriguing intertextual overlap. According to Q 3: 169–170, those who have been ‘killed in the path of God’ are not dead but ‘alive with their Lord’, rather than having to spend the remaining time until the Resurrection in a state of slumber (similarly Q 2: 154).39 Tor Andrae has pointed out that the phrase ‘alive with their Lord’ (ayāun inda rabbihim) corresponds exactly to the Syriac phrase h. ayyē lwāth alāhā, which a sixth-century Syriac Christian writer (Mar Ishay) applies to the martyrs.40 Furthermore, Mar Ishay contrasts the true fate of the martyrs with unfounded prior opinion: ‘they are believed to be already dead’.41 The same contrast is found in the two Qur’anic passages just cited.42 It could be objected that the parallel demonstrates merely that the Qur’an is familiar with the widespread Christian idea that martyrs are granted prompt access to paradise but that this does not establish a Christian precedent for the Qur’anic application of this idea specifically to those who actively enact – rather than just suffer – violence. However, as Sizgorich reminds us, a Christian martyr was by no means seen merely as a passive victim of persecution but rather as someone who actively ‘defeats the power of the Roman state’.43}}{{Quote|{{Quran|3|169}}|And never think of those who have been killed in the cause of Allah as dead. Rather, they are alive with their Lord, receiving provision}}{{Quote|{{Quran|2|154}}|Do not say that those who are killed in the way of God, are dead, for indeed they are alive, even though you are not aware.}}

=== Martyrs sidestep judgement day ===
After death, humans are typically said to spend their time in an intermediate state known to traditional Islamic scholars as the ''barzakh'' while they wait.<ref>Reynolds, Gabriel Said. 2020. ''Allah:'' ''God in the Qur'an (p. 71-72).'' Yale University Press. Kindle Edition.

It is also the same term used for the barrier between the living and the dead (whilst awaiting judgement day) in the Qur'an, e.g. {{Quran|23|99-100}}</ref> However, as in the above verses, one exception to this rule is Martyrs being with God straight away rather than being judged at judgment day, a non-biblical idea having parallels with late antique Christian thought.

Sinai (2017) similarly notes strong ideological parallels a 6th century hagiographical text (the Panegyric on Macarius, Bishop of Tkow by Pseudo-Dioscorus of Alexandria) of a 5th-century martyr, Egyptian Bishop Macarius of Tkow who was martyred for opposing the council of Chalcedon. Citing Michael Gaddis's summary of the document, ‘He was both willing to die for his faith, and willing to kill for it.’ he notes the same idea in {{Quran|9|111}} … they fight in the way of Allah, kill, and are killed.. <ref>Ibid. (Kindle Edition. pp. 299).</ref> As well as citing English historian of the Byzantine Empire James Howard-Johnston "''..James Howard-Johnston draws attention to a passage in the Chronicle of Theophanes Confessor (d. 818), which reports that at about the same time when the Qur’an promised those ‘killed in the path of God’ immediate entry to paradise, the Byzantine emperor Heraclius similarly announced that those fighting the Sasanians would be recompensed with eternal life. In Heraclius’s address as reported by Theophanes Confessor, we find some of the same general ingredients that are noticeable in Qur’anic calls to militancy…''"<ref>Ibid. (Kindle Edition. pp. 301).</ref> He notes these similarities are likely caused by being on the fringes of the Roman empire.<ref>Ibid. (Kindle Edition. pp. 301).</ref>

==== Martyrdom wipes away other sins and is privileged above other acts from believers ====
{{Quote|Reynolds, Gabriel Said. Christianity and the Qur'an: The Rise of Islam in Christian Arabia (pp. 178-179). Yale University Press. Kindle Edition.|The teaching on the glory earned by martyrs is widespread in the early church. It is nevertheless telling to find the way it is emphasized in the third-century Christian text the aforementioned Didascalia Apostolorum, originally written in Greek but preserved in Syriac.87 The Didascalia clearly teaches that the martyrs will have a privilege above other faithful believers: If then He raises up all men,—as He said by Isaiah: All flesh shall see the salvation of God [Isa 40.5; 52.10],—much more will He quicken and raise up the faithful; and (yet more) again will He quicken and raise up the faithful of the faithful, who are the martyrs, and establish them in great glory and make them His counsellors. For to mere disciples, those who believe in Him, He has promised a glory as of the stars [Dan 12.3]; but to the martyrs He has promised to give an everlasting glory, as of the luminaries which fail not, with more abundant light, that they may be shining for all time.88

The Didascalia is also clear, as is the Qur’an, that martyrs enjoy a special grace through the forgiveness of sins that their deaths have earned for them: But again, sins are forgiven by baptism also to those who from the Gentiles draw near and enter the holy Church of God. Let us inquire also, to whom sins are not imputed. To such as Abraham and Isaac and Jacob and all the patriarchs, as also to the martyrs. Let us hear then, brethren, for the Scripture saith: Who shall boast himself and say: I am clear of sins? Or who shall be confident and say: I am innocent? [Prov 20.9].

And again: There is no man pure of defilement: not though his life be but one day [Job 14.4–5 LXX]. To everyone therefore who believes and is baptized his … former sins have been forgiven; but after baptism also, provided that he has not sinned a deadly sin nor been an accomplice (thereto), but has heard only, or seen, or spoken, and is thus guilty of sin. But if a man go forth from the world by martyrdom for the name of the Lord, blessed is he; for brethren who by martyrdom have gone forth from this world, of these the sins are covered.89

We might compare Q 3:195: “ ‘And those who emigrated, and were expelled from their habitations, those who suffered hurt in My way, and fought, and were slain—them I shall surely acquit of their evil deeds, and I shall admit them to gardens underneath which rivers flow.’ A reward from God! And God with Him is the fairest reward” (italics added). In other words, the Qur’an seems to be well aware of Christian devotion to the martyrs.}}

=== Martyrdom in the Torah and Gospels ===
Muslims who fight are promised paradise, which the Qur'an claims is also a promise in the Torah and Gospel.{{Quote|{{Quran|9|111}}|Indeed Allah has bought from the faithful their souls and their possessions for paradise to be theirs: they fight in the way of Allah, kill, and are killed. A promise binding upon Him in the Torah and the Evangel and the Quran. And who is truer to his promise than Allah? So rejoice in the bargain you have made with Him, and that is the great success.}}Nickel (2020)<ref>Nickel, Gordon D. ''The Quran with Christian Commentary: A Guide to Understanding the Scripture of Islam (p. 222).'' Zondervan Academic. Kindle Edition. 9.111 – They fight in the way of God, and they kill and are killed When the Quran describes believers as fighting “in the way of Allah,” it makes a theological claim by associating Allah with human fighting. See the analysis of these expressions at 73.20 (p. 597). 9.111 – a promise binding on Him in the Torah, and the Gospel, and the Qur’ān This is the only verse in the Quran that brings the Torah (tawrāt), Gospel (injīl), and qur’ān (lit. “recitation”) together. The Quran claims here that the particular point on which the Torah and Gospel agree with the Muslim recitation is that believers “fight in the way of Allah, and they kill and are killed.” This verse makes the reader question whether the Quran has a clear idea of the contents of the Torah and Gospel. A similar question is raised by 61.14, which appears to say that ‘Īsā and his disciples fought against their enemies (cf. 3.52). Along with these misunderstandings, the Quran gives no information about the peaceable teaching and example of Jesus in the Gospel accounts. See the analysis of the Quran’s verses on the “Gospel” at 57.27 (p. 549). Do the Torah and Gospel in fact contain such a promise? See the comment on this characterization of the Bible at 61.14 (p. 566).</ref> and Reynolds (2018) however notes that this is not found there:{{Quote|1=Reynolds, G. S. (2018). The Qur'an and the Bible: Text and Commentary. Commentary on 9:111 (pp. 322) United Kingdom: Yale University Press.|2="9:111 The point of this verse is that those who are prepared to give their lives to God in the holy war are promised paradise as a payment for their services (cf. 2:245; 4:74; 61:10–12). The idea that the martyrs have a special assurance of paradise follows from the Qurʾān’s teaching elsewhere that the act of martyrdom involves forgiveness of sin. This teaching is close to that of the Syriac fathers (see commentary on 2:154, with further references). It is curious that the Qurʾān insists that the promise of heaven for holy warriors is found in the Torah and the Gospel (or “Evangel”); heaven is not found in the Torah and holy war is not found in the Gospels...}}While his commentary on 2:154 (pp. 76) once again highlights the Syriac parallel:{{Quote|2="As Tor Andrae has shown (Les origines de l’islam et le christianisme, 161ff.), the idea that martyrdom involves the absolution of sins is prominent in Syriac Christian texts such as the third-century Didascalia (chap. 20) and the Treaty on the Martyrs of Mar Isaï (d. late sixth cen.); the latter text also insists—much like the Qurʾān—that the martyrs are “living”:

The true martyrs who, by way of a death that covers their sins, demonstrate even more the beauty of their deeds and receive this glorious inheritance by virtue of their blood. By leaving this life they have prepared for their souls an honorable abode in paradise. It was thought that they are already dead, but by their death they have killed their sin, and they are alive with God. (Mar Isaï, Treaty on the Martyrs, 32)}}
=== Further Martyrdom Influence ===
Neuwirth (2024) also notes the influence of Christian martyrdom stories on the sudden conversion and prayers/asking for forgiveness to God of Pharaoh's magician's, who are originally opponents of Moses until he shows them proof of his prophecy via a miracle in the face of a sudden and violent death as threatened by the arrogant ruler (e.g. in {{Quran-range|26|50|51}} and {{Quran-range|20|71|73}}).<ref>Neuwirth, Angelika. ''The Qur'an: Text and Commentary, Volume 2.1: Early Middle Meccan Suras: The New Elect (p. 204).'' Yale University Press. Kindle Edition.</ref> Both Jewish and Christian traditions present individual “anti-Moses” sorcerers named Jannes and Jambres, who continue to appear in later interpretations; citing Nora Schmid, she notes that, although there is no explicit textual reference and the magicians are typically depicted in a negative light, they came to be associated with penance and martyrdom in Christian tradition - in the Qurʾan, this idea is developed further: the forgiveness that Jannes and Jambres either did not receive or only partially received in earlier sources is ultimately granted.<ref>Ibid. pp. 251-252</ref>{{Quote|Neuwirth, Angelika. The Qur'an: Text and Commentary, Volume 2.1: Early Middle Meccan Suras: The New Elect (p. 204). Yale University Press. Kindle Edition.|V. 72–73 qālū lan nuʾthiraka ʿalā mā jāʾanā mina l-bayyināti wa-lladhī faṭaranā fa-qḍi mā anta qāḍin innamā taqḍī hādhihi l-ḥayāta l-dunyā / innā āmannā birabbinā li-yaghfira lanā khaṭāyānā wa-mā akrahtanā ʿalayhi mina l-siḥri wallāhu khayrun wa-abqā] Conversion scene as later in Q 26:50–51. The sorcerers renounce their allegiance to Pharaoh on the basis of the obvious evidence (bayyināt) and give preference to the Creator God, they submit to their worldly fate and hope for the forgiveness of their sins and what they have been forced to do by the ruler—they are a role model for the community, which is also subject to pressure from outside. The request for forgiveness of sins before a violent death is a topos of Christian martyr stories. The entire scene, leaving the context of ‘ancient’ Egypt, reflects the notion of Christian martyrdom stories. Khaṭāyā (singular khaṭīʾa) also lets a Syriac terminus technicus ring through, but the word can be derived from the Arabic root KhṬʿ (“to miss a goal”) (see FVQ, 123ff.). The idea of the forgiveness of sins is prominent in the Christian liturgy—not only through the Lord’s Prayer. In addition to khaṭīʾa, there is the genuine Arabic dhanb, dhunūb.}}

== Expansions on the afterlife ==

Reynolds (2020) notes the Qur’ans provides vivid depictions of hell are highly unlike the New Testament, where Jesus refers to afterlife punishment mostly allusively. The closest the Gospels describe hell is through the few images of “fire,” “wailing,” and “gnashing of teeth.”, for example in Matthew’s Parable of the Weeds, Jesus explains that at the end of the age, the Son of Man will send his angels that will cast evildoers into a fiery furnace where there will be weeping and gnashing of teeth (Matt 13:40–42).<ref>Reynolds, Gabriel Said. ''Allah: God in the Qur'an (pp. 81-82).'' Yale University Press. Kindle Edition.</ref> He notes the much more constant an vivid Qur'anic descriptions far better match later Christian works that expanded the descriptions to be more gruesome, in order to scare the reader/audience.<ref>Ibid. pp. 88.

''We might note how all of these traditions are meant to make humans yearn for paradise and fear hell. The Qur’an, from this regard, is a profoundly psychological work. Like a Christian preacher, like John Chrysostom or Saint Ephrem, the author of the Qur’an speaks of heaven and hell to persuade his audience to repent and believe. He does so in a way, however, that is distinct—emphasizing physical pain and physical pleasure in order, apparently, to make a greater impression on his audience. He puts a terrible tree into hell and young women in paradise.''
</ref>{{Quote|Reynolds, Gabriel Said. Allah: God in the Qur'an (pp. 82-83). Yale University Press. Kindle Edition.|The way that the Qur’an describes hell in particularly vivid, gruesome terms brings us back to something we mentioned in Chapter 1, namely, that the Qur’an in many ways is a “homiletic” work, a work written like a homily or sermon. The Qur’an’s intention is not simply to declare that those who disobey God will be punished, but to describe that punishment in a way which brings the awfulness of hell to life. Similarly, homilists in the early centuries of Christianity expanded dramatically on the New Testament allusions to hell. In a sermon attributed to John Chrysostom (d. 407) we read a description of hell with the sort of detail that we find in the Qur’an: It is a sea of fire—not a sea of the kind or dimensions we know here, but much larger and fiercer, with waves made of fire, fire of a strange and fearsome kind. There is a great abyss there, in fact, of terrible flames, and one can see fire rushing about on all sides like some wild animal…. There will be no one who can resist, no one who can escape: Christ’s gentle, peaceful face will be nowhere to be seen.15}}Sinai (2017) in his paper titled "''The Eschatological Kerygma of the Early Qur’an''" notes many overlap with Syriac Homilies on the afterlife as well as other apocalyptic ideas and terminology.<ref>“[https://almuslih.org/wp-content/uploads/Library/Sinai,%20N%20-%20The%20Eschatological%20Kerygma.pdf The Eschatological Kerygma of the Early Qur’an]”, Nicolai Sinai, in ''Apocalypticism and Eschatology in Late Antiquity: Encounters in the Abrahamic Religions, 6th–8th Centuries'', edited by Hagit Amirav, Emmanouela Grypeou, and Guy Stroumsa, Leuven: Peeters, 2017, 219–266.

These are discussed throughout the whole paper, and a summary can be found in pp.50-57. On heaven and hell specifically, the summary is on pp.55-57.</ref>

== Souls are taken away at night ==

The Qur'an (and traditional Islamic exegetes)<ref>See classical commentaries on these verses such as Al-Jalalayn on [https://quranx.com/Tafsir/Jalal/39.42 Q39:42], [https://quranx.com/Tafsir/Jalal/6.60 Q6:60] and Ibn Kathir on [https://quranx.com/Tafsir/Kathir/39.41 Q39:41-2] and [https://quranx.com/Tafsir/Kathir/6.60 Q6:60]</ref> state that the soul is taken away by Allah during the night.{{Quote|{{Quran|39|42}}|Allah takes the souls at the time of their death, and those who have not died, in their sleep. Then He retains those for whom He has ordained death and releases the others until a specified time. There are indeed signs in that for a people who reflect.}}{{Quote|{{Quran|6|60}}|It is He who takes your souls by night, and He knows what you do by day, then He reanimates you therein so that a specified term may be completed. Then to Him will be your return, whereat He will inform you concerning what you used to do.}}Tesei (2016) notes this idea may mimic a late antique Syriac Christian parallel in the poetical language used by Ephrem, who in the Nisibene hymns (7:15) mentions sleep resembles death, and other Christian writers (such as Babai) wrote about sleep metaphorically Jesus's death and waking up like the resurrection;<ref>Tesei, Tommaso. (2016). "[https://www.researchgate.net/publication/344524709_2_The_barzakh_and_the_Intermediate_State_of_the_Dead_in_the_Quran 2 The barzakh and the Intermediate State of the Dead in the Quran]". pp. 40-42 In Locating Hell in Islamic Traditions. Leiden, The Netherlands: Brill. <nowiki>https://doi.org/10.1163/9789004301368_003</nowiki> (Open access)

''At the same time, the Quran also compares death to the “common sleep” that people experience on a daily basis. This seems to be the case in the cryptic statement found in Q 39:42 (cf. Q 6:60), “God takes the souls at the time of their death (ḥīna mawtihā), and [He takes] that which has not died, in its sleep ( fī manāmihā); He withholds that against which He has decreed death, but sets loose the other until a stated term”. This obscure passage appears to indicate that sleep is a death-like state; sleepers resemble the dead since their souls enter into a state similar to that which they will experience at the moment of death. However, unlike the souls of the dead, which will be raised only on the Day of Resurrection, the ordinary sleeper’s soul is sent back when he awakens―that is, of course, until the time of his death. This parallel between death and “common sleep” finds a fairly close correspondence in the poetical language used by Ephrem, who in the Nisibene hymns (7:15) affirms that: “The one who lies down to sleep resembles the departed and death resembles a dream, and the resurrection the morning”. In these passages the Quran’s eschatological discourse is particularly close to that formulated by Babai, in whose ideas the belief in the soul’s sleep is intimately connected to the strong affirmation of the physical resurrection of the body on the Day of Judgment.'' </ref> with this idea taken literally by Muhammad.

== Arguments for resurrection ==
Reynolds (2020) notes the repeated argument that God can resurrect the dead using the analogy that he can bring life back to barren (or dead) land may be connected to a Jewish tradition that God will resurrect the dead with dew, for example, in b. Shabbat 88b.<ref name=":2">See: Reynolds, Gabriel Said. Allah: ''God in the Qur'an (pp. 76-77).'' Yale University Press. Kindle Edition.

And Footnote 10: Reynolds, Gabriel Said. ''Allah: God in the Qur'an (p. 254).'' Yale University Press. Kindle Edition.</ref>
{{Quote|{{Quran|30|19}}|He brings forth the living from the dead, and brings forth the dead from the living, and revives the earth after its death. Likewise, you [too] shall be raised [from the dead].}}

Cf: {{Quran|16|65}}, {{Quran|43|11}}, {{Quran|50|6-11}}, {{Quran|57|17}}

==See Also==
*[[Pre-Islamic Arab Religion in Islam]]

* [[Parallels Between the Qur'an and Late Antique Judeo-Christian Literature|Parallels Between the Qur'an and Late Antique Judeo-Christian Literature - Part 1]]
* [[Historical Errors in the Quran]]
==References==
<references />

User:CPO675/Sandbox 1

2025-12-29T12:06:13Z

CPO675: /* Slave-master relationship */

== The Historical Jesus ==

=== Other Traditions ===

==== Intro ====

Alongside the main consensus from Biblical Scholars/Historians that Jesus was an eschatological preacher in the early first century AD who believed the Earth would end during his time (and therefore couldn't be the Muslim Jesus), there are many other of the most considered authentic teachings of Jesus that clash with Islam; in contrast with the Qur'anic principle of Messenger Uniformitarianism; where all messengers preach essentially the same thing with only minor variations.<ref>Durie, Mark. ''The Qur’an and Its Biblical Reflexes: Investigations into the Genesis of a Religion (pp. 135-142) (Kindle Edition pp. 281-294)''. 5.3 Messenger Uniformitarianism. Lexington Books. 2018.</ref>
{{Quote|{{Quran|41|43}}|Not is said to you except what was said to the Messengers before you. Indeed, your Lord (is) Possessor (of) forgiveness, and Possessor (of) penalty painful.}}{{Quote|{{Quran|2|285}}|The Apostle and the faithful have faith in what has been sent down to him from his Lord. Each [of them] has faith in Allah, His angels, His scriptures and His apostles. [They declare,] ‘We make no distinction between any of His apostles.’ And they say, ‘We hear and obey. Our Lord, forgive us, and toward You is the return.’}}

{{Quote|{{Quran|17|77}}|“This was the sunnah [customary way] of Our messengers whom We sent before you, and you will find no change in Our sunnah”}}cf. {{Quran|6|112}}, {{Quran|35|43}}, {{Quran|22|78}}.

Other than being explicitly told that messengers bring the same message from Allah, Durie (2018) notes the Qur'an repeatedly states that Muhammad was sent to confirm the revelations given to earlier messengers (Q2:91, 97; Q3:3, 50; Q5:48; Q12:111; Q16:43–44; Q35:31), just as each prophet before him confirmed those who came earlier. For example, Jesus (ʿĪsa) confirmed the Torah of Moses (Mūsa) (Q5:46), and the Qurʾan confirms the scriptures revealed to previous prophets (Q4:47). In this way, Muhammad’s role continues the same pattern of reaffirming earlier divine messages rather than introducing a completely new one.<ref>Durie, Mark. ''The Qur’an and Its Biblical Reflexes: Investigations Into the Genesis of a Religion.'' pp.140</ref>

{{Quote|Durie, Mark. The Qur'an and it's Biblical Reflexes. pp.140|• It is also explicitly asserted that messengers bring the same message
from Alla¯h: “Nothing is said to you but what has already been said to
messengers before you” (Q41:43; Q22:78) and “we make no distinction
between any of them” (Q2:136). They also preached the same dīn “commandment” or “religion” (Q42:13; cf. Q3:84; Q4:150), which is referred
to as the “religion of Ibra¯hīm” (Q2:130; Q4:125; Q16:121–23). The
validating function of this idea becomes clear when it is applied against
a group of Jews who reject the concept of the “same message” because
it would mean validating the Messenger. These Jews hold to their own
faith, saying “we believe in what has been sent down on us,” but they
reject the Messenger, or “anything after that” (Q2:91). The ruling against
these Jews is that because they reject the Messenger, they are disbelievers,
rejecting “what All a¯ h has sent down” (Q2:91).31 The idea of the “same message” is further reinforced when the Qurʾan repeatedly states that the Messenger was only sent to confirm what was sent down by previous
messengers (Q2:91, 97; Q3:3, 50; Q5:48; Q12:111; Q16:43–44; Q35:31),
just as previous messengers had done for messengers that preceded them,
for example, ʿĪsa¯ “confirmed” the Tawra¯ h of Mūsa¯(Q5:46), and the Qurʾan
confirms the book(s) sent by previous prophets (Q4:47), just as the Messenger has been doing in his turn.}}
The large differences between the New Testament / Gospels (and by extension the Christian Jesus), and the [[Isa al-Masih (Jesus Christ)|Muslim Jesus,]] are clear to anyone who has read both the Qur'an and NT; with the Qur'an having it's own spin on him and taking many aspects from apocrypha considered inauthentic by NT scholars,<ref>Sanders, E.. ''The Historical Figure of Jesus (pp. 78-79)''. Penguin Books Ltd. Kindle Edition.

..(Gnosticism was a world view that held everything material to be evil; the god who created the world was a bad god, and the creation was wicked. Gnostics who were also Christians held that the good God had sent Jesus to redeem people’s souls, not their bodies, and that Jesus was not a real human being. The Christians who objected to these views finally declared them heretical.) ''I share the general scholarly view that very, very little in the apocryphal gospels could conceivably go back to the time of Jesus. They are legendary and mythological. Of all the apocryphal material, only some of the sayings in the Gospel of Thomas are worth consideration.'' This does not mean that we can make a clean division: the historical four gospels versus the legendary apocryphal gospels. There are legendary traits in the four gospels in the New Testament, and there is also a certain amount of newly created material (as we saw just above)..</ref> and [[Parallels Between the Qur'an and Late Antique Judeo-Christian Literature|later Christian thought/writings]], and have lead to many Muslims arguing for biblical corruption based on textual and theological grounds [though textual don't affect most early & authentic traditions] in general, which is a disputed idea in traditional Islamic thought (cite - Reynolds article. See also: [[Corruption of Previous Scriptures]] & [[Qur'an, Hadith and Scholars:Corruption of Previous Scriptures]])

Historians have searched for a summary of some of the most likely authentic traditions from Biblical historians (using historical-critical methods not Christian or Muslim theologians - more likely to be true and not taken from bias or proving or disproving Islam but historical context, widespread across sources, early - cite Allison explanation - Why - different to time and context, unlikely to be fabricated later by Christians, across all early sources etc.) are shown here as an example of the clashes. [Point: not arguing against Christian Jesus - but secular historians one]

==== Examples ====
{{Quote|Dale C. Allison Jr.. The Historical Christ and the Theological Jesus (Kindle Locations 822-836). Kindle Edition.|2=Given that we typically remember the outlines of an event or the general purport of a conversation rather than the particulars and that we extract patterns and meaning from our memories, it makes little sense to open the quest for Jesus by evaluating individual items with our criteria, in the hope that some bits preserve pristine memory. We should rather be looking for repeating patterns and contemplating the big picture. true. We should trust first, if we are to trust at all, what is most likely to be trustworthy. Although we may, after reading Thucydides, be confident that there was a Peloponnesian War, we may well wonder about many of the details of his account.

The larger the generalization and the more data upon which it is based, the greater our confidence; the more specific the detail and the fewer the data supporting it, the more room we have for doubt. With regard to the sources for Jesus, the traditional criteria of authenticity privilege the parts over the whole. It seems more prudent to privilege generalizations drawn from the whole than to concentrate upon one individual item after another. As a demonstration of how this works in practice, consider the following traditions:

• Jesus prohibited divorce: 1 Cor. 7:10; Mark 10:2-9; Luke 16:18. [Qur'an divorce rules - https://wikiislam.net/wiki/Khula] 

• Jesus sent forth missionaries without staff, food, or money: Matt. 10:9-10; Mark 6:8-9; Luke 10:4.

• Jesus instructed missionaries to get their living by the gospel: 1 Cor. 9:14; Matt. 10:10; Luke 10:7.

• Jesus commanded loving and doing good to enemies: Matt. 5:38-48; Luke 6:27-36. [Qur'an do not be merciful to unbelievers https://wikiislam.net/wiki/Qur%27an,_Hadith_and_Scholars:Non-Muslims & https://wikiislam.net/wiki/Kafir_(Infidel)#Guidelines_on_how_to_deal_with_disbelievers Quran 48:29 ]

• Jesus forbade judging others: Matt. 7:1-2; Luke 6:37-38.

• Jesus asked a prospective follower not to bury his father: Matt. 8:21-22; 22; Luke 959-60.

• Jesus spoke of hating one's father and mother: Matt. 10:37; Luke 14:26; Gospel of Thomas 55, 101. [respect parents - too tenuous]

• Jesus enjoined disciples to take up a cross: Matt. 10:38; Mark 8:34; Luke 14:27.

• Jesus enjoined unlimited forgiveness: Matt. 18:21-22; Luke 17:3-4. [forgiveness against shirk - Qur'an says no Q4:48 and 4:116. ]

• Jesus exhorted hearers to lose their lives in order to save them: Matt. 10:39; Mark 8:35; Luke 17:33.

• Jesus called people away from their livelihoods: Mark 1:16-20; 2:14. [?]

• Jesus figuratively demanded violent removal of hand, foot, and eye: Mark 9:42-48.

• Jesus asked a wealthy man to relinquish his money: Mark 10:17-27. [bring in wealth inequality section of Islam darajat - here]

• Jesus forbade taking oaths: Matt. 5:33-37. [https://www.iium.edu.my/deed/lawbase/risalah_maliki/book31.html#:~:text=Anyone%20who%20swears%20an%20oath,Oneness%2C%20timelessness%20and%20existence.%5D]

• Jesus commanded money to be lent without interest: Matt. 5:42; Gospel of Thomas 95.

• Jesus called some to a life without marriage: Matt. 19:11-12. [Qur'an criticism of monasticism]

• Jesus asked a prospective follower not to say farewell to his parents: Luke 9:61-62. [respect parents?]

• Jesus asked his disciples to renounce all of their possessions: Luke 14:33"}}
<nowiki>--------------------------------------------------</nowiki>

[ highlight those being spoken about in italics or bold]

Professor Allison (2009) notes that Jesus' banning divorce was an important teaching that <s>stood out</s> to early Christians, [https://www.biblegateway.com/passage/?search=Luke%2016%3A18&version=NIV Luke 16:18], [https://www.biblegateway.com/passage/?search=1%20Corinthians%207%3A10-16&version=NIV 1 Corinthians 7:10-16], [https://www.biblegateway.com/passage/?search=Mark%2010%3A2-9&version=NIV Mark 10:2-9], in contrast to Judaism ([https://www.biblegateway.com/passage/?search=Deuteronomy%2024%3A1-4&version=NIV Deuteronomy 24:1-4]) and Islam e.g. Quran 2:228-232, Q65:1-7, (Q4:19 https://quranx.com/hadiths/4.19 & Q4:35), Q33:49 )

He notes that Jesus commanded loving and doing good to enemies in [https://www.biblegateway.com/passage/?search=Matthew%205%3A38-48&version=NIV Matt. 5:38-48]; [https://www.biblegateway.com/passage/?search=Luke%206%3A27-36&version=NIV Luke 6:27-36], while the Qur'an generally advises treating other Muslims well, it specifically states not to be merciful to unbelievers Q48:29. [ For more examples of not being merciful to unbelievers, let alone 'enemies' see: '''[[Qur'an, Hadith and Scholars:Non-Muslims|https://wikiislam.net/wiki/Qur%27an,_Hadith_and_Scholars:Non-Muslims]] & [[Kafir (Infidel)#Guidelines%20on%20how%20to%20deal%20with%20disbelievers|https://wikiislam.net/wiki/Kafir_(Infidel)#Guidelines_on_how_to_deal_with_disbelievers]] Quran 48:29 ]'''

• Jesus enjoined unlimited forgiveness: [https://www.biblegateway.com/passage/?search=Matthew%2018%3A21-22&version=NIV Matt. 18:21-22]; [https://www.biblegateway.com/passage/?search=Luke%2017%3A3-4&version=NIV Luke 17:3-4]. However the Qur'an distinctly says there is no forgiveness for anyone committing shirk (ascribing partners to God) in {{Quran|4|48}} and {{Quran|4|116}}.

He notes Jesus called some to a life without marriage: [https://www.biblegateway.com/passage/?search=Matthew%2019%3A11-12&version=NIV Matt. 19:11-12], while the Qur'an promotes it as a virtue encouraging those to do so.

Marriage is a virtue https://www.getquranic.com/marriage-in-islam-8-quranic-verses-about-marriage/

{{Quote|{{Quran|24|32}}|Marry off those who are single among you, and the upright among your male and female slaves. If they are poor, Allah will enrich them out of His grace, and Allah is all-bounteous, all-knowing.}}

And criticizes monasticism/monks, with celibacy and no marriage being a key aspect<ref>[https://www.britannica.com/topic/monasticism Monasticism] | religion | Britannica Entry</ref> in general

{{Quote|Reynolds, Gabriel Said. Christianity and the Qur'an: The Rise of Islam in Christian Arabia (pp. 131-132). Yale University Press. Kindle Edition.|These verses critical of monks are often read together with Q 57:27, which, while praising certain positive qualities of Christians, also seems to accuse Christians of “innovating” monasticism: Then We sent, following in their footsteps, Our Messengers; and We sent, following, Jesus son of Mary, and gave unto him the Gospel. And We set in the hearts of those who followed him tenderness and mercy. And monasticism they invented—We did not prescribe it for them—only seeking the good pleasure of God; but they observed it not as it should be observed. So We gave those of them who believed their wage; and many of them are ungodly.}}

Criticism of monasticism (https://www.britannica.com/topic/monasticism) - lack of marriage for monks (though admittedly also praises monks in general elsewhere pp130-132)<ref>Reynolds, Gabriel Said. ''Christianity and the Qur'an: The Rise of Islam in Christian Arabia (pp. 130-132).'' Yale University Press. Kindle Edition.</ref>

{{Quote|{{Quran|57|27}}|Then We sent on their footsteps Our Messengers and We followed with Isa, son (of) Maryam, and We gave him the Injeel. And We placed in (the) hearts (of) those who followed him compassion and mercy. But monasticism they innovated - not We prescribed it for them - only seeking (the) pleasure (of) Allah, but not they observed it (with) right observance. So We gave those who believed among them their reward, but most of them (are) defiantly disobediently.}}

<nowiki>-----------------------------------------------------------------</nowiki>

==== Father-son relationship ====
{{Quote|Dale C. Allison Jr.. The Historical Christ and the Theological Jesus (Kindle Location 841-848). Kindle Edition.|2=Working through the tradition in the way I suggest leads to a large number of conclusions. Jesus must have been an exorcist who interpreted his ministry in terms of Satan's downfall. He must have thought highly of John the Baptist. He must have repeatedly spoken of God as Father. [Durie differences in metaphor and understanding of relationship from Hebrew to Arab society = markedly different] He must have composed parables. He must have come into conflict with religious authorities. All of this may seem obvious, but the procedure is not trite, for it also issues in some controversial verdicts. As I have argued elsewhere, for example, ample, the quantity of conventional eschatological material in our primary sources almost necessitates that Jesus was an eschatological prophet.' The reconstruction of Robert Funk and the Jesus Seminar is for this reason alone problematic. Even more controversial is what my approach leads me to infer about Jesus' self-conception. Consider these Synoptic materials:

• Jesus said that the Son of man will return on the clouds of heaven and send angels to gather the elect from throughout the world: Mark 13:26-27; cf. 14:62; Matt. 10:23 (allusions to Daniel 7's depiction of the last judgment are clear). [the son of man plays no part in Islam]}}Allison (2009) notes that Jesus must have repeatedly referred to God as 'father', a way also used by many ancient Jews to describe their relationship to god, also found in the old testament with different metaphorical meanings<ref>Pennington, J.T. "Chapter Nine. God As Father In The Old Testament And Second Temple Literature". ''Heaven and Earth in the Gospel of Matthew''. Leiden, The Netherlands: Brill, 2007. <nowiki>https://doi.org/10.1163/ej.9789004162051.i-399.57</nowiki> Web.</ref> and Talmudic writings with paternal imagery. <ref>Knobnya, S.. (2011). ''God the Father in the Old Testament. European Journal of Theology.'' 20. 139-148. </ref><ref>[https://www.myjewishlearning.com/article/fatherhood-of-god/ Fatherhood of God] | Sages & Scholars | Rabbi Louis Jacobs | My Jewish Learning</ref>

===== Slave-master relationship =====
However this father-son Hebrew metaphorical relationship Jesus used is distinctly abandoned, instead using other things (other metaphors) in Arab society to describe the relationship between humans and God, such as a slave-master relationship,<ref>Durie, Mark. ''The Qur’an and Its Biblical Reflexes: Investigations into the Genesis of a Religion (pp. XX-XX) (pp. 107-110 Kindle Edition)''. 4.1.1. Shirk - Proprietary Partnership. Lexington Books. 2018.</ref> a Patron - Protege (needs explanation of what this is) <ref>Durie, Mark. ''The Qur’an and Its Biblical Reflexes: Investigations into the Genesis of a Religion (pp. XX-XX) (pp. 110-111 Kindle Edition)''. 4.1.2. Shirk - Patron - Protege Relationships. Lexington Books. 2018.</ref>. with Muhammad having strongly condemned the idea that God could have offspring against the unscripted pagans (mushrikun) taking angels as daughters of god early on chronologically of the Qur'an's first recitations, then later against God having a son against Jesus being the son of God.<ref>Durie, Mark. ''The Qur’an and Its Biblical Reflexes: Investigations into the Genesis of a Religion (pp. XX-XX) (pp. 112-113 Kindle Edition)''. 4.1.5 A Polemical Doctrine. Lexington Books. 2018.</ref>

Slave analogy Dure Print edition pp108 - 110 summary:<ref name=":1">Durie, Mark. ''The Qur’an and Its Biblical Reflexes: Investigations into the Genesis of a Religion (pp. 108-110) (pp. XX-XX Kindle Edition)''. 4.1.5 A Polemical Doctrine. Lexington Books. 2018.</ref> Before its theological use, the Arabic root ''sh-r-k'' referred to ordinary '''partnership or shared ownership'''. The Qurʾan draws on this everyday meaning to illustrate why associating partners with God is impossible. Using the metaphor of '''a master and a slave''', the Qurʾan argues that just as a slave with multiple masters suffers confusion and conflict, attributing partners to God creates an impossible and chaotic situation. This logic appears in verses such as Q39:29 and others that argue multiple gods would lead to conflict and the ruin of creation (Q23:91; Q21:22).<ref name=":1" />
{{Quote|{{Quran|39|29}}|Allah presents a parable, “a man was owned by several quarreling partners
(shurakaʾ), and a man was the slave of (just) one man. Are the two equal?”}}

The Qurʾan’s use of the slave-master metaphor differs from Jesus’ teaching in the New Testament. Whereas Jesus uses it to highlight divided human devotion, the Qurʾan uses it to assert the logical impossibility of multiple divine authorities.<ref name=":1" />

{{Quote|Luke 16:13; cf. Matthew. 6:24|No slave can serve two masters; for a slave will either hate the one and love the
other, or be devoted to the one and despise the other. You cannot serve God and wealth.}}

Shirk encompasses various forms of error: attributing partners or helpers to God, believing He needs allies, or seeking aid from others besides Him. The Qurʾan also explores God’s unity through three social analogies relevant to Arabian society: '''patron–protégé relationships''', '''alliances of mutual help''', and '''relationships of equal or unequal status'''.<ref name=":1" />

===== '''Patron–protégé relationships''' =====
The Qur'an distinctly ignores the father-son relationship (and theology) metaphor by using another term that is harder to translate

Explanation of what this is Durie pp.110-111:<ref name=":3">Durie, Mark. ''The Qur’an and Its Biblical Reflexes: Investigations into the Genesis of a Religion (pp. 110-111) (pp. XX-XX Kindle Edition)''. 4.1.5 A Polemical Doctrine. Lexington Books. 2018.</ref> The Qurʾan uses terms from the root '''w-l-y''' to describe '''patron–protégé relationships''', alliances, and guardianship. The key term '''walī''' can mean ally, protector, guardian, or patron, and may indicate either symmetrical alliances or asymmetrical power relationships.<ref name=":3" /><ref>[https://lexicon.quranic-research.net/data/27_w/219_wle.html Root: ''wāw lām yā'' (و ل ي)] - Lane's Lexicon Qur'anic Research

See Lane's Lexicon Classical Arabic Dictionary [https://lexicon.quranic-research.net/pdf/Page_3060.pdf pp.3060] & [https://lexicon.quranic-research.net/pdf/Page_3061.pdf pp.3061] </ref>

In pre-Islamic Arab society, such patronage was essential for protection, as shown by the example of Muḥammad being safeguarded by his uncle Abū Ṭālib. Without a patron, a person was vulnerable.<ref name=":3" /> [in the sirah of Ibn Ishaq]

The Qurʾan emphasizes that '''God has no need of any patron''' and that '''humans should recognize God alone as their walī'''. Seeking any protector besides God is considered '''shirk'''. Believers may take other believers and the Prophet as allies (''awliyāʾ'') alongside God, but not in place of Him.<ref name=":3" />

As the Muslim community developed, especially after what the passage calls the ''Eschatological Transition''—the Qurʾan increasingly stressed exclusive allegiance to God. This served to detach believers from prior tribal or familial loyalties that could compromise their commitment to the faith community.<ref name=":3" />

- and calls for help-

===== Unequal status vs Jesus' views on Wealth =====
Sinai - darajah passage

And inequality in general - inc. the afterlife

=== Punishment narratives ===

==== Punishment BEFORE the day of judgement ====
We are told the sole exception in history was the unnamed town<ref>Unnamed in the Qur'an, though identified as Nineveh (in modern day Iraq) as in the Biblical "Book of Jonah" by Islamic exegetes; e.g. see [https://quranx.com/tafsirs/37.147 tafsirs on Q37:147]</ref> of more than 100,000 people that the messenger Yūnus (Jonah) when the warning was heeded in full by the entire people, and therefore punishment averted ({{Quran|10|98}}, {{Quran|37|147-148}}) “no town believed . . . except the people of Yūnus”<ref>Durie, Mark. 2018. ''The Qur'an and Its Biblical Reflexes: Investigations Into the Genesis of a Religion. pp 49. Kindle Edition pp 151.''</ref>

How many a town defied the command of its Lord and His apostles, then We called it to a severe account and punished it with a dire punishment. Q65:8

So it tasted the evil consequences of its conduct, and the outcome of its conduct was ruin. Q65:9

How many generations that had far more wealth and ostentation have We laid low before them! <<nowiki>https://quranx.com/19.74</nowiki>>

Say, ‘Whoever abides in error, the All-beneficent shall prolong his respite until they sight what they have been promised: either punishment, or the Hour.’ Then they will know whose position is worse, and whose host is weaker <<nowiki>https://quranx.com/19.75</nowiki>>

------

Q34:16 - flood of the damn of Yemen / Saba', the people of Sheba E.g. <ref>See tafsirs on [https://quranx.com/Tafsirs/34.14 Q34:14], [https://quranx.com/Tafsirs/34.15 Q34:15] & [https://quranx.com/Tafsirs/34.16 Q34:16]</ref> {{Quran|34|14-16}}

{{Quote|{{Quran|34|14-16}}|And when We decreed for Solomon death, nothing indicated to the jinn his death except a creature of the earth eating his staff. But when he fell, it became clear to the jinn that if they had known the unseen, they would not have remained in humiliating punishment.
Certainly, (there) was for Saba in their dwelling place a sign: Two gardens on (the) right and (on the) left. "Eat from (the) provision (of) your Lord and be grateful to Him. A land good and a Lord Oft-Forgiving."
But they turned away, so We sent upon them (the) flood (of) the dam, and We changed for them their two gardens (with) two gardens producing fruit bitter, and tamarisks and (some)thing of lote trees few.}}
, {{Quran|65|8-9}}, {{Quran|19|74-75}}

Add: 34:15–21: The punishment of the people of Sheba, without explicit reference to a messenger. Sheba reference <ref>Marshall, David. ''God, Muhammad and the Unbelievers (p. 73).'' Taylor & Francis. Kindle Edition.</ref>

=== Surah 36 ===
Similarly an unnamed town is sent three messengers in {{Quran|36|13-32}}, who's identities have differed in traditional Islamic scholarship,<ref>E.g. see commentaries on [https://quranx.com/Tafsirs/36.13 Q36:13] & [https://quranx.com/tafsirs/36.14 Q36:14], and the later verses in the story, cited as a parable ''(mathal).''</ref> are rejected and so are killed with a cry/shout (''ṣayḥatan)'' ({{Quran|36|29}}). <ref>Marshall, David. ''God, Muhammad and the Unbelievers (p. 63 & 72).'' Taylor & Francis. Kindle Edition.</ref>
{{Quote|Marshall, David. God, Muhammad and the Unbelievers (p. 72). Taylor & Francis. Kindle Edition.|36:13–32: Described as a parable (mathal, v.13), but in outline very similar to the punishment-narratives. The messengers (two of them, reinforced with a third) and the town in which they preach are anonymous. ‘A man from the furthest part of the city’ (v.20) exhorts his people to follow the messengers.}}

== Contradiction ==
The order in Surah 2 has the Jews struck by a lightening bolt after they worship the golden calf, who are then forgiven by Allah by being resurrected.
{{Quote|{{Quran|2|50-67}}|And when We parted the sea with you, and We delivered you and drowned Pharaoh’s clan as you looked on. 
And when We made an appointment with Moses for forty nights, you took up the Calf [for worship] in his absence, and you were wrongdoers. 
Then We excused you after that so that you might give thanks. 
And when We gave Moses the Book and the Criterion so that you might be guided. 
And [recall] when Moses said to his people, ‘O my people! You have indeed wronged yourselves by taking up the Calf [for worship]. Now turn penitently to your Maker, and slay [the guilty among] your folks. That will be better for you with your Maker.’ Then He turned to you clemently. Indeed, He is the All-clement, the All-merciful. 
And when you said, ‘O Moses, we will not believe you until we see Allah visibly.’ Thereupon a thunderbolt seized you as you looked on.
Then We raised you up after your death so that you might give thanks. /n
We shaded you with clouds, and sent down to you manna and quails [saying]: ‘Eat of the good things We have provided for you.’ And they did not wrong Us, but they used to wrong [only] themselves. 
And when We said, ‘Enter this town, and eat thereof freely whencesoever you wish, and enter while prostrating at the gate, and say, ‘‘Relieve [us of the burden of our sins],’’ so that We may forgive your iniquities and We will soon enhance the virtuous.’ 
But the wrongdoers changed the saying with other than what they were told. So We sent down on those who were wrongdoers a plague from the sky because of the transgressions they used to commit. 
And when Moses prayed for water for his people, We said, ‘Strike the rock with your staff.’ Thereat twelve fountains gushed forth from it; every tribe came to know its drinking-place. ‘Eat and drink of Allah’s provision, and do not act wickedly on the earth, causing corruption.’ 
And when you said, ‘O Moses, ‘We will not put up with one kind of food. So invoke your Lord for us, so that He may bring forth for us of that which the earth grows—its greens and cucumbers, its garlic, lentils, and onions.’ He said, ‘Do you seek to replace what is superior with that which is inferior? Go down to any town and you will indeed get what you ask for!’ So they were struck with abasement and poverty, and they earned Allah’s wrath. That, because they would deny the signs of Allah and kill the prophets unjustly. That, because they would disobey and commit transgressions. 
Indeed the faithful, the Jews, the Christians and the Sabaeans—those of them who have faith in Allah and the Last Day and act righteously—they shall have their reward from their Lord, and they will have no fear, nor will they grieve. 
And when We took a pledge from you, and raised the Mount above you, [declaring], ‘Hold on with power to what We have given you and remember that which is in it so that you may be Godwary.’ 
Again you turned away after that; and were it not for Allah’s grace on you and His mercy, you would have surely been among the losers. 
And certainly you know those of you who violated the Sabbath, whereupon We said to them, ‘Be you spurned apes.’ 
So We made it an exemplary punishment for the present and the succeeding [generations], and an advice to the Godwary.}}
In Surah 4 they are struck before they worship the calf. 4:153 specifically says 'then' ''(thumma)''

{{Quote|{{Quran|4|153-161}}|The People of the Book ask you to bring down for them a Book from the sky. Certainly they asked Moses for [something] greater than that, for they said, ‘Show us Allah visibly,’ whereat a thunderbolt seized them for their wrongdoing. Then they took up the Calf [for worship], after all the manifest proofs that had come to them. Yet We excused that, and We gave Moses a manifest authority. 
And We raised the Mount above them for the sake of their covenant, and We said to them, ‘Enter the gate prostrating’ and We said to them, ‘Do not violate the Sabbath,’ and We took from them a solemn covenant. 
Then because of their breaking their covenant, their defiance of Allah’s signs, their killing of the prophets unjustly and for their saying, ‘Our hearts are uncircumcised’… Indeed, Allah has set a seal on them for their unfaith, so they do not have faith except a few. 
And for their faithlessness, and their uttering a monstrous calumny against Mary, 
and for their saying, ‘We killed the Messiah, Jesus son of Mary, the apostle of Allah’—though they did not kill him nor did they crucify him, but so it was made to appear to them. Indeed those who differ concerning him are surely in doubt about him: they do not have any knowledge of that beyond following conjectures, and certainly, they did not kill him. 
Indeed, Allah raised him up toward Himself, and Allah is all-mighty, all-wise. 
There is none among the People of the Book but will surely believe in him before his death; and on the Day of Resurrection, he will be a witness against them. 
Due to the wrongdoing of the Jews, We prohibited them certain good things that were permitted to them [earlier], and for their barring many [people] from the way of Allah, 
and for their taking usury—though they had been forbidden from it—and for eating up the wealth of the people wrongfully. And We have prepared for the faithless among them a painful punishment. }}

=== V2 ===
Surah 4 (summarized version)

1) They ask Moses for a sign and are hit with a thunderbolt

2) They then take up the calf for worship

3) The mountain is raised above them{{Quote|{{Quran|4|153-154}}|The People of the Book ask you to bring down for them a Book from the sky. Certainly they asked Moses for [something] greater than that, for they said, ‘Show us Allah visibly,’ whereat a thunderbolt seized them for their wrongdoing. Then they took up the Calf [for worship], after all the manifest proofs that had come to them. Yet We excused that, and We gave Moses a manifest authority. 
And We raised the Mount above them for the sake of their covenant, and We said to them, ‘Enter the gate prostrating’ and We said to them, ‘Do not violate the Sabbath,’ and We took from them a solemn covenant.}}Surah 2
1) They worshiped the calf. And Moses tells them to slay the guilty among them.

2) They are hit by a thunderbolt - is it chronological?

3) ... a mountain is lifted above them
{{Quote|{{Quran|2|51-56}}|And when We made an appointment with Moses for forty nights, you took up the Calf [for worship] in his absence, and you were wrongdoers. 
Then We excused you after that so that you might give thanks. 
And when We gave Moses the Book and the Criterion so that you might be guided. 
And [recall] when Moses said to his people, ‘O my people! You have indeed wronged yourselves by taking up the Calf [for worship]. Now turn penitently to your Maker, and slay [the guilty among] your folks. That will be better for you with your Maker.’ Then He turned to you clemently. Indeed, He is the All-clement, the All-merciful. 
And when you said, ‘O Moses, we will not believe you until we see Allah visibly.’ Thereupon a thunderbolt seized you as you looked on.
Then We raised you up after your death so that you might give thanks.}}
== The Lote Tree of the utmost Boundary (Sid'rati al-Muntahā) ==
Lote tree's are a real type of tree (Ziziphus spina-christi) native to Arabia and the Middle East.<ref>[https://www.suewickison.com/products/lote-tree?srsltid=AfmBOorj_RU2x1OPxgfRe689M2TWw1g4uZTQLkpSolPGYnIatiIe7h6K Lote Tree | Sidr | Ziziphus spina-christi |] Plants of the Qur'an | Sue Wickison </ref> Different to the tree of eternity/immortality ''(shajarati ul-khul'di)'' in paradise ''jannah,'' the Qur'an mentions The Lote Tree (sidr) of ''the utmost boundary (al-muntahā)''<ref>مُنْتَهَىٰ - [https://lexicon.quranic-research.net/pdf/Page_3029.pdf Lane's Lexicon pp.3029]

</ref> near (but notably not in) the 'garden of abode', said to be 'covered' yaghshā by something unspecified in Q53:16, typically taken by exegetes to mean by angels, light and/or golden animals.<ref>E.g. see [https://quranx.com/Tafsirs/53.16 Tafsirs on Q53:16]</ref>

{{Quote|{{Quran|53|13-17}}|And certainly he saw him (in) descent another,
Near (the) Lote Tree (of) the utmost boundary,
Near it (is the) Garden (of) Abode.
when there covered the Lote Tree what covered it.
Not swerved the sight and not it transgressed.}}

This furthest boundary/limit is said in the hadith, to place the cosmic tree in the sixth heaven, where even celestial creatures cannot go beyond as the limit of creation; said to be seen by Muhammad in his Night Journey (mi’rāj) on the [[:en:Buraq|Buraq]] (E.g. {{Muslim|1|329}}, {{Al Tirmidhi|2=5|3=44|4=3276}}, {{Bukhari|5|58|227}} & {{Al Nasai|2=1|3=5|4=452}}), and by many Islamic exegetes.<ref>See [https://quranx.com/tafsirs/53.14 tafsirs on Q53:14]</ref>

This would align the cosmology of Islamic traditions supporting the idea that paradise (and therefore the garden of the abode) is in the seventh heaven,<ref>[https://islamqa.info/en/answers/215011/where-are-paradise-and-hell#Where_is_Paradise Where is Paradise] | [https://islamqa.info/en/answers/215011/where-are-paradise-and-hell Where Are Paradise and Hell?] | 07/January/2015 islamqa</ref> while some traditions support the idea that paradise is above the seventh heaven,<ref>[https://www.islamweb.net/en/fatwa/107126/the-location-of-paradise-now#:~:text=Paradise%20that%20Allaah%20promised%20for,are%20many%20texts%20proving%20this. The location of Paradise now] | Paradise and Hell | Belief in the Hereafter | Islamic Creed | Fatwa | islamweb.net </ref> both placing the tree relatively close to jannah. However others suggest that this specific ''garden of the abode (jannatu l-mawā)'' is a separate garden/paradise to the eternal one all righteous Muslims will eventually enter, being instead one where martyrs (those killed in war or for their religion) go before judgement day.<ref>E.g. see [https://quranx.com/Tafsirs/53.15 tafsirs on Q53:15]</ref>

Either way there is no evidence of a celestial tree, which must be magic to survive outside of an Earthly plant ecosystem, but is rather an example of tree mythology.
----
----

(See also: <nowiki>https://sunnah.com/mishkat:5865</nowiki> & https://sunnah.com/mishkat:5640, ) read; https://quranx.com/tafsirs/53.14 - exegetes also confirm this is where boundary is the boundary of the skies/heavens where things other than God cannot pass (at least until judgement day where paradise and hell can be entered).

AND Similarly seen next to the 4 main Near-East rivers (Nile, Euphratesm Tigres,) <nowiki>https://sunnah.com/bukhari:5610</nowiki>, which area said to flow from paradise: <nowiki>https://quranx.com/Hadith/Bukhari/USC-MSA/Volume-5/Book-58/Hadith-227/</nowiki> )

cite: [https://www.islamweb.net/en/fatwa/107126/the-location-of-paradise-now#:~:text=Paradise%20that%20Allaah%20promised%20for,are%20many%20texts%20proving%20this. https://www.islamweb.net/en/fatwa/107126/the-location-of-paradise-now#:~:text=Paradise%20that%20Allaah%20promised%20for,are%20many%20texts%20proving%20this.]

The utmost boundary at the end of t heavens confirmed by exegetes in https://quranx.com/tafsirs/53.14

" Jannat al-ma'va' literally means "the Jannat (Garden) that is to be an abode. " Hadrat Hasan Basri says that this is the same Jannat which the believers and righteous will be given in the Hereafter, and from this same verse he has argued that that Jannat is in the heavens. Qatadah says that this is the Jannat in which the souls of the martyrs are kept; it does not imply the Jannat that is to be given in the Hereafter. Ibn 'Abbas also says the same but adds that the Jannat to be granted to the believers in the Hereafter is not in the heavens but here on the earth.

== Parallels Between the Qur'an and Late Antique Judeo-Christian Literature - Part 2 ==
Following on from [[Parallels Between the Qur'an and Late Antique Judeo-Christian Literature|Part 1]], this is Part 2 of Late Antique Judeo-Christian Literature found in the Qur'an. This material, drawing heavily on rabbinical commentaries on the bible, and late Syriac Christian thought found in homilies, was created far later than the biblical cannon; no-where near the time of the events that occurred. This suggests the stories were transmitted in an oral millennia along with local Arabian traditions<ref>Bannister, Andrew G.. ''An Oral-Formulaic Study of the Qur'an (Kindle Location 249-259 in Chapter 1.2 The Biblicist Roots of the Iblis and Adam Story).'' Bloomsbury Publishing. Kindle Edition.

..When the Qur’an emerged in the seventh-century, it did so in an oral culture in which Biblicist traditions were freely circulating and thus there existed a large pool of commonly known stories and traditions to fish from; a pool in which stories could cross-fertilize and influence one another. 23 It is this, more than direct borrowing that perhaps best explains stories like Iblis and Adam as well as other qur’anic tellings of older tales, such as the Seven Sleepers (Q. 18: 9– 25) 24 and the Legend of Alexander (Dhu al-Qarnayn, Q. 18: 83– 101). 25 The Qur’an originates from a milieu in which Biblicist material was well-known to the first audience of the Qur’an; even a simple allusion to a story was often enough to trigger a connection for the hearer. 26 That Biblicist material has been filtered through storytelling rather than simply copied from a written text is further suggested by what the Qur’an leaves out; no minor prophets are referenced, probably because almost no Old Testament narratives feature them nor did the rabbinic literature weave lengthy tales about them. 27 The exception which proves the rule is Jonah (Q. 21: 87– 88; 37: 139– 148; 68: 48– 50), whose short but dramatic story was extremely popular in both Jewish and Christian contexts.28..

And: Bannister, Andrew G.. ''An Oral-Formulaic Study of the Qur'an (Kindle Locations 1391-1392. Chapter 2.3 The Islamic Tradition and Orality).'' Bloomsbury Publishing. Kindle Edition.</ref> where biblical and much later Jewish and Christian stories could be commonly mixed without the new community realizing.
== The story of Noah ==
The prophet Noah is portrayed extremely differently to the one in Genesis,<ref>Segovia, Carlos A.. ''[https://almuslih.org/wp-content/uploads/2024/12/Segovia-C-The-Quranic-Noah-and-the-Making-of-the-Islamic-Prophet.pdf The Quranic Noah and the Making of the Islamic Prophet: A Study of Intertextuality and Religious Identity Formation in Late Antiquity]'', Berlin, München, Boston: De Gruyter, 2015. <nowiki>https://doi.org/10.1515/9783110405897</nowiki></ref> taking on Jewish and Christian traditions, characteristics, as well as terms from late antique Judeo-Christian writings,<ref>The Qur'anic Noah. pp.21-21</ref> molded to suit Muhammad's situation in line with other messengers in the Qur'an.<ref>''The Qurʾan and its Biblical Reflexes: Investigations into the Genesis of a Religion. Chapter 5.3 Messenger Uniformatism. pp.135-143'' By Mark Durie. Lanham, MD: Lexington Books, 2018. </ref>

=== The preaching of Noah ===

Surah 71 consists entirely of the preaching of Noah and his supplications to Allah.{{Quote|{{Quran-range|71|1|28}}|Indeed, We sent Noah to his people, [saying], "Warn your people before there comes to them a painful punishment." He said, "O my people, indeed I am to you a clear warner, [Saying], 'Worship Allah, fear Him and obey me. Allah will forgive you of your sins and delay you for a specified term. Indeed, the time [set by] Allah, when it comes, will not be delayed, if you only knew.' " 
[...]
And Noah said, "My Lord, do not leave upon the earth from among the disbelievers an inhabitant. Indeed, if You leave them, they will mislead Your servants and not beget except [every] wicked one and [confirmed] disbeliever. My Lord, forgive me and my parents and whoever enters my house a believer and the believing men and believing women. And do not increase the wrongdoers except in destruction."}}Reynolds remarks that "The Qur'ānic character of Noah is quite unlike that of the Noah in Genesis, who does not speak a word until after the flood." Citing the Babylonian Talmud, Sanhedrin 108a, he observes that "[his preaching] is also suggested by a passage in the Talmud:
::"The righteous Noah rebuked them, urging, 'Repent; for if not, the Holy One, blessed be He, will bring a deluge upon you and cause your bodies to float upon the water like gourds, as it is written, He is light [i.e., floats] upon the waters. Moreover, ye shall be taken as a curse for all future generations.' (b. Sanhedrin 108a)"
Reynolds further notes, "It is also prominent in the Syriac fathers, several of whom report that Noah preached to his people for a hundred years before God finally sent the flood." citing for example the Syriac authors Narsai, "On the Flood", 33, II. 227-30 and Jacob of Serugh, ''Homilies contre les juifs'', 70, homily 2, II. 37-40.<ref>Gabriel Said Reynolds, ''The Qurʾān and Bible'' p. 858</ref>

The opponents reject Noah's preaching despite him doing so 'day and night' (Quran 71:5-6) in which they respond by putting their fingers in their ears Quran 71:7, on which Neuwirth (2024) notes that "the means of plugging one’s ears in order to shut oneself off from unpleasant news is also encountered in the Talmud (bKetubbot 5a)."<ref>Neuwirth, Angelika. The Qur'an: Text and Commentary, ''Volume 2.1: Early Middle Meccan Suras: The New Elect (p. 280).'' Yale University Press. Kindle Edition.</ref>

=== Noah's disbelieving wife ===
{{Quote|{{Quran|66|10}}|Allah presents an example of those who disbelieved: the wife of Noah and the wife of Lot. They were under two of Our righteous servants but betrayed them, so those prophets did not avail them from Allah at all, and it was said, "Enter the Fire with those who enter."}}The Bible briefly mentions Noah's wife in one verse without further comment ([https://www.biblegateway.com/passage/?search=Genesis%207%3A7&version=NIV Genesis 7:7]), "And Noah and his sons and his wife and his sons’ wives entered the ark to escape the waters of the flood." Regarding the Quranic verse which speaks of her negatively, Reynolds briefly considers the possibility that the Quran has extended to their wives the parallelism between Noah (though not his wife) and Lot found in the New Testament ([https://www.biblegateway.com/passage/?search=2%20Peter%202&version=NIV 2 Peter 2]), but then comments, "However, it is important to note that already in the pre-Islamic period certain groups had developed hostile legends about Noah's wife." He cites Epiphanius (d. 403 CE), ''Panarion'' 2:26, which relates the Gnostic belief that she was not allowed onto the ark, having burned it down three times before the flood.<ref>Gabriel Said Reynolds, ''The Qurʾān and Bible'' p. 841</ref>

=== Noah's flood waters overflowed from an oven ===
The Qur'anic version of the Noah's flood story describes the flood waters as overflowing from an oven. This element is not found even in more ancient versions of the story (Epic of Gilgamesh, Atra hasis, and Ziusudra).

Note that in his translation, Yusuf Ali mistranslates the Aramaic loan word for the oven (alttannooru ٱلتَّنُّورُ)<ref>[http://www.studyquran.org/LaneLexicon/Volume1/00000355.pdf Lane's Lexicon p. 318 تَّنُّورُ]</ref> as "fountains". The Arabic verb translated "gushed forth" (fara فَارَ) means overflowed or boiled in the context of water in a cooking pot<ref>[http://www.studyquran.org/LaneLexicon/Volume6/00000241.pdf Lane's Lexicon p. 2457 فور]</ref>, as well as in the other verse where it is used, {{Quran|67|7}}. Here is Pickthall's more accurate translation:{{Quote|{{Quran|11|40}}|
(Thus it was) till, when Our commandment came to pass '''and the oven gushed forth water''', We said: Load therein two of every kind, a pair (the male and female), and thy household, save him against whom the word hath gone forth already, and those who believe. And but a few were they who believed with him.}}{{Quote|{{Quran|23|27}}|
Then We inspired in him, saying: Make the ship under Our eyes and Our inspiration. Then, when Our command cometh '''and the oven gusheth water''', introduce therein of every (kind) two spouses, and thy household save him thereof against whom the Word hath already gone forth. And plead not with Me on behalf of those who have done wrong. Lo! they will be drowned.}}At one time academic scholars thought this verse alluded to a Midrashic exegesis in which the flood waters were boiling hot (b. Sanhedrin 108b, [https://www.sefaria.org/Rosh_Hashanah.12a.4?lang=bi|Tracate Rosh Hashanah 12a:4]). More recent scholarship, particularly by Olivier Mongellaz in 2024,<ref name="Mongellaz2024">Olivier Mongellaz (2024) [https://brill.com/view/journals/arab/71/4-5/article-p513_4.xml Le four de Noé : un cas d’intertextualité coranique], Arabica 71(4-5), 513-637. https://doi.org/10.1163/15700585-20246900</ref> has identified that these verses most likely reflect a late antique legend in which water gushing up through a bread oven (a large hole dug into the ground) was a sign warning Noah's family of the imminent flood. The interpretation as Noah's own oven is attributed to a number of early commentators (such as Ibn Abbas, Mujahid), while others understood it to be the area of land where the flood waters first rose. Qurtubi said: "The sayings of commentators appear to be different as to the meaning of tannur, but this, in reality, is not a difference. When water began to bulge out, it overflowed from the bread baking oven, and from out of the surface of the land".

Significantly, Mongellaz has argued on literary grounds that a fragmentary Arabic text falsely attributed to Hippolytus of Rome, and which mentions the overflowing bread oven story, is independent of the Islamic tradition and was originally written in a very specific environment which has parallels with the context in which certain parts of the Quran were written.{{Quote|Pseudo. Hippolytus of Rome (translated to English from Mongellaz's French translation)<ref name="Mongellaz2024" />|Meanwhile, Ham's wife stood up to take out the bread that remained in the oven and immediately water sprang out of the oven [fāḍa l-māʾmin al-tannūr] and immediately water came out of the oven, as the Lord had said: "The fountains of the great deeps were opened." Ham's wife called to Noah, saying, "My lord, the word of God has come true (Syr. what God promised has come true!)" - for it had come true just as the Lord had promised her. When Noah heard Ham's wife's words, he said to her, "Oh, the flood has come."}}

=== Noah's ark left behind as a sign ===
{{Quote|{{Quran-range|54|13|15}}|And We carried him on a [construction of] planks and nails, Sailing under Our observation as reward for he who had been denied. And We left it as a sign, so is there any who will remember?}}Unlike the bible, which does not mention the ark as a sign for future generations, Neuwirth (2024) notes the salvation of Noah is made physically plausible to the listeners through the reference to the material verifiability of the ark, which could be taken from various late antique traditions, for example Flavius Josephus (b. 37AD) reports in the ''Jewish Antiquities (I 3.5 § 92)'' of the existence of the remains of Noah’s ark in Armenia (Clementz 1959: 22).<ref name=":0">Neuwirth, Angelika. ''The Qur'an: Text and Commentary, Volume 2.1: Early Middle Meccan Suras: The New Elect (p. 62).'' Yale University Press. Kindle Edition.</ref> She also notes that the appeal to the willingness of the listeners to be admonished by the sign (āya) of Noah’s ark is also reminiscent of the Talmudic story (bSanhedrin 96a) of the death of Sennacherib, who was led to a fateful decision by seeing the remains of Noah’s ark.<ref name=":0" />
==Moses and Pharaoh==
Alongside the biblical account of Moses and the Pharoah, there are some key aspects that match Jewish Rabbinic and Christian non-biblical traditions. Even the place where Moses communicates with God in the story of the burning bush, the word used ''ṭuwan'' in e.g. {{Quran|20|12}} (for the folded land, implying double the holiness)<ref>See; Neuwirth, Angelika. ''The Qur'an: Text and Commentary, Volume 2.1: Early Middle Meccan Suras: The New Elect (p. 199).'' Yale University Press. Kindle Edition. Ṭuwā stands for the holy Mount Sinai or Horeb (cf. KU, 124ff.; FVQ, 206ff.; BEQ, 255ff.). The word was long thought to be a rhyming transformation of Aramaic ṭūrā (“the mountain”), but now, based on rabbinic tradition and in agreement with traditional exegetes, Uri Rubin has convincingly interpreted bi-l-wādī l-muqaddasi Ṭuwā to mean “in the doubly hallowed valley” (see Rubin 2014). (The Sinai is in a sense the “folded Holy Land” [ṬWY = “to fold”].) Citing: Rubin, Uri, 2014, ''[https://urirubin.com/assets/docs/Tuwan.86132451.pdf Moses and the Holy Valley Ṭuwan. On the Biblical and Midrashic Background of a Qurʾanic Scene],'' Journal of Near Eastern Studies 73, 73–81.</ref> does not have a parallel in the bible,<ref>''[https://urirubin.com/assets/docs/Tuwan.86132451.pdf Moses and the Holy Valley Ṭuwan: On the biblical and midrashic background of a qurʾānic scene.]'' Rubin 2014. Ibid. pp. 75.</ref> but does in other Judeo-Christian (later) works.<ref>Ibid. pp. 76-78</ref> And the idea of eschatology in Moses's story such as {{Quran|20|15}}, with reward in the afterlife being mentioned, is not contained in the biblical story of Moses, Neuwirth (2024) notes moves the story into a late antiquity interpretation.<ref>Neuwirth, Angelika. ''The Qur'an: Text and Commentary, Volume 2.1: Early Middle Meccan Suras: The New Elect (p. 199).'' Yale University Press. Kindle Edition.</ref> Key details in the stories include:
===The prophecy of baby Moses===
Alongside the scene of [https://www.biblegateway.com/passage/?search=Exodus%201%3A8-2%3A10&version=NIV Exodus 1:8-2:10] where the Hebrews in Egyptian bondage are told to kill all male babies to control the growing Israelite population, where Moses's mother places his basket in the Nile to escape; Neuwirth (2024) citing Speyer, notes that ''the prophecy to Moses’s mother that an enemy—of Moses as well as of God himself—would take him in reflects a Midrashic interpretation of Exodus Rabba (1:31: “So the daughter of Pharaoh raised the daughter, who was once to take revenge on her father”). The event is explicitly based on a divine intention, namely, to make Moses his chosen one.''<ref>''The Qur'an: Text and Commentary, Volume 2.1: Early Middle Meccan Suras: The New Elect'' Ibid. pp. 201.</ref>{{Quote|{{Quran-range|20|37|39}}|We have bestowed Our favour on you before this, When We told your mother what We relate: 'Put him in a wooden box and cast it in the river. The river will cast it on the bank. An enemy of Ours, and his, will retrieve it.' We bestowed Our love on you that you may be reared under Our eyes.}}And similarly the next verse unlike the bible focuses on the emotional impact of the event on Moses’s mother, Neuwirth notes is comparable to Midrash Exodus Rabba 1:25.<ref>Ibid. pp. 201-202.</ref> Moses's salvation from persecution after manslaughter is commemorated with similar consideration of Moses’s mental condition.<ref>Ibid. pp. 202.</ref>{{Quote|{{Quran|20|40}}|When your sister walked up [to Pharaoh’s palace] saying, “Shall I show you someone who will take care of him?” Then We restored you to your mother, that she might not grieve and be comforted. Then you slew a soul, whereupon We delivered you from anguish, and We tried you with various ordeals. Then you stayed for several years among the people of Midian. Then you turned up as ordained, O Moses!}}
===Moses not suckled by Egyptians===
{{Quote|{{Quran-range|28|12|13}}|And We had prevented from him [all] wet nurses before, so she said, "Shall I direct you to a household that will be responsible for him for you while they are to him [for his upbringing] sincere?" So We restored him to his mother that she might be content and not grieve and that she would know that the promise of Allah is true. But most of the people do not know.}}Reynolds comments, "On this passage cf. Exodus 2:7-9. The Qurʾān's declaration (v. 12) 'We had forbidden him to be suckled by any nurse' (v. 12) reflects a tradition in the Babylonian Talmud that Moses (from whose mouth would come forth the word of God) refused the impure breasts of the Egyptian women:
::Then said his sister to Pharaoh's daughter, Shall I go and call thee a nurse of the Hebrew women? Why just 'of the Hebrew women'? - It teaches that they handed about to all the Egyptian women but he would not suck. He said: Shall a mouth which will speak with [God] suck what is unclean! (b. Sotah 12b)"<ref>Gabriel Said Reynolds, ''The Qurʾān and Bible'' p. 598</ref>
===Moses's speech impediment===
Moses has some kind of speech impediment when going to speak to Pharaoh in the Qurʾān.{{Quote|{{Quran-range|20|24|28}}|"Go to Pharaoh. Indeed, he has transgressed."( Moses) said: "O, my Lord! Expand me my breast,” ease my task for me, And untie the knot from my tongue, so they may understand what I say.”}}Biblical Scholar James Kugel (1997)<ref>Kugel, James L.. The Bible As It Was (Kindle Edition. pp. 432-433). Harvard University Press.</ref> notes that later Jewish and Christian commentators found it necessary to explain Moses's statement in the Old Testament “''Oh my Lord, I am not a man of words … but I am heavy of speech and heavy of tongue''” ([https://www.biblegateway.com/passage/?search=Exodus%204%3A10&version=NIV Exodus 4:10]), as he was believed to be a highly educated man who had been supposedly been schooled in every branch of wisdom, including eloquence.

He notes "it occurred to interpreters that Moses might have been referring here not to any lacuna in his education, but to an actual speech defect, some physical deformity of his mouth or tongue that prevented him from speaking in the usual fashion." We see this in:<ref>Ibid. pp. 432 - 433 (Kindle Edition)</ref>

"''I'' ''am not by nature eloquent; my tongue with difficulty speaks, I stammer, so that I cannot speak before the king."'' —Ezekiel the Tragedian, Exaggē 113– 115 (3rd-2nd century BCE)

''He [Moses] pleased his parents by his beauty, but grieved them by his speech impediment. —''Ephraem, Commentary on Exodus 2: 4 (d. 373 AD)

Others even added stories on how he might have acquired that deformity, such as Josephus in Jewish Antiquities 2: 232– 236 (published ~93/94 AD), connecting their explanation of Moses’ speech problems to the tradition of Pharaoh’s wise men and their warnings about a boy that might grow up and save Israel.<ref>Ibid. pp. 433 - 434 (Kindle Edition)</ref>
===Pharaohs questions===
Neuwirth (2024) comments that the list of further detailed questions to Moses in Surah 26 'The Poets' / al-shuʿarāʾ (i.e. in {{Quran-range|26|22|29}}), citing Speyer, reflect a more detailed episode from Midrash Exodus Rabba 5:18, which also starts from Pharaoh’s self-praise as God.<ref>Neuwirth, Angelika. ''The Qur'an: Text and Commentary, Volume 2.1: Early Middle Meccan Suras: The New Elect (p. 250).'' Yale University Press. Kindle Edition.</ref>
===The Drowning of Pharaoh===
{{Quote|{{Quran-range|10|90|92}}|And We took the Children of Israel across the sea, and Pharaoh and his soldiers pursued them in tyranny and enmity until, when drowning overtook him, he said, "I believe that there is no deity except that in whom the Children of Israel believe, and I am of the Muslims." Now? And you had disobeyed [Him] before and were of the corrupters? So today We will save you in body that you may be to those who succeed you a sign. And indeed, many among the people, of Our signs, are heedless}}Reynolds comments, "The question of Pharaoh's survival appears in an opinion found in the (late fourth century AD) ''Mekilta de-Rabbi Ishmael'' (cr. Gavin McDowell):
::"And the waters returned and covered the chariot etc. [Exo 14:27]. Even Pharaoh, according to the words of R. Judah, as it is said, 'The chariots of Pharaoh and his force, etc.' [Exo 15:4]. R. Nehimiah says: ''Except for Pharaoh.'' About him it says, 'However, for this purpose I have let you live' [Exo 9:16]. Others say that in the end Pharaoh went down and drowned, as it is said, 'Then went the horse of Pharaoh, etc.' [Exo 15:19]. (Beshallah 7)"<ref>Gabriel Said Reynolds, ''The Qurʾān and Bible'' p. 339</ref>
==Arguments for resurrection==
Reynolds (2020) notes the repeated argument that God can resurrect the dead using the analogy that he can bring life back to barren (or dead) land may be connected to a Jewish tradition that God will resurrect the dead with dew, for example, in b. Shabbat 88b.<ref name=":2" />
{{Quote|{{Quran|30|19}}|He brings forth the living from the dead, and brings forth the dead from the living, and revives the earth after its death. Likewise, you [too] shall be raised [from the dead].}}

Cf: {{Quran|16|65}}, {{Quran|43|11}}, {{Quran|50|6-11}}, {{Quran|57|17}}
==Late antique Christian Martyrdom==
{{Main|Shaheed (Martyr)}}
Durie (2018) notes the violence of the Qur'an shares more commonality with contemporary late antique religious (primarily Christian) violence and warfare rather than being directly biblically based.<ref>Durie, Mark. ''The Qur’an and Its Biblical Reflexes: Investigations into the Genesis of a Religion.'' Lexington Books. 2018. Pp. 229 -237. (Kindle Edition: pp. 423-439). 6.9 Stories of Fighting Prophets</ref>

=== Textual overlap ===

Covering the continuity and similarities between late antique religious violence & warfare and the Qur'an (and other Islamic traditions) is too big a topic to cover here; perhaps the most in-depth academic work looking at the continuity between this and Islam is Thomas Sizgorich's ''Violence and Belief in Late Antiquity: Militant Devotion in Christianity and Islam'', however Sinai (2017) notes alongside similar ideas and theology, there are some direct textual references.{{Quote|Sinai, Nicolai. Qur'an: A Historical-Critical Introduction (The New Edinburgh Islamic Surveys) (pp. 301-302). Edinburgh University Press. Kindle Edition.|That the Qur’anic community’s access to Biblical notions of militancy was mediated by late antique Christian discourse is indicated by an intriguing intertextual overlap. According to Q 3: 169–170, those who have been ‘killed in the path of God’ are not dead but ‘alive with their Lord’, rather than having to spend the remaining time until the Resurrection in a state of slumber (similarly Q 2: 154).39 Tor Andrae has pointed out that the phrase ‘alive with their Lord’ (ayāun inda rabbihim) corresponds exactly to the Syriac phrase h. ayyē lwāth alāhā, which a sixth-century Syriac Christian writer (Mar Ishay) applies to the martyrs.40 Furthermore, Mar Ishay contrasts the true fate of the martyrs with unfounded prior opinion: ‘they are believed to be already dead’.41 The same contrast is found in the two Qur’anic passages just cited.42 It could be objected that the parallel demonstrates merely that the Qur’an is familiar with the widespread Christian idea that martyrs are granted prompt access to paradise but that this does not establish a Christian precedent for the Qur’anic application of this idea specifically to those who actively enact – rather than just suffer – violence. However, as Sizgorich reminds us, a Christian martyr was by no means seen merely as a passive victim of persecution but rather as someone who actively ‘defeats the power of the Roman state’.43}}{{Quote|{{Quran|3|169}}|And never think of those who have been killed in the cause of Allah as dead. Rather, they are alive with their Lord, receiving provision}}{{Quote|{{Quran|2|154}}|Do not say that those who are killed in the way of God, are dead, for indeed they are alive, even though you are not aware.}}

=== Martyrs sidestep judgement day ===
After death, humans are typically said to spend their time in an intermediate state known to traditional Islamic scholars as the ''barzakh'' while they wait.<ref>Reynolds, Gabriel Said. 2020. ''Allah:'' ''God in the Qur'an (p. 71-72).'' Yale University Press. Kindle Edition.

It is also the same term used for the barrier between the living and the dead (whilst awaiting judgement day) in the Qur'an, e.g. {{Quran|23|99-100}}</ref> However, as in the above verses, one exception to this rule is Martyrs being with God straight away rather than being judged at judgment day, a non-biblical idea having parallels with late antique Christian thought.

Sinai (2017) similarly notes strong ideological parallels a 6th century hagiographical text (the Panegyric on Macarius, Bishop of Tkow by Pseudo-Dioscorus of Alexandria) of a 5th-century martyr, Egyptian Bishop Macarius of Tkow who was martyred for opposing the council of Chalcedon. Citing Michael Gaddis's summary of the document, ‘He was both willing to die for his faith, and willing to kill for it.’ he notes the same idea in {{Quran|9|111}} … they fight in the way of Allah, kill, and are killed.. <ref>Ibid. (Kindle Edition. pp. 299).</ref> As well as citing English historian of the Byzantine Empire James Howard-Johnston "''..James Howard-Johnston draws attention to a passage in the Chronicle of Theophanes Confessor (d. 818), which reports that at about the same time when the Qur’an promised those ‘killed in the path of God’ immediate entry to paradise, the Byzantine emperor Heraclius similarly announced that those fighting the Sasanians would be recompensed with eternal life. In Heraclius’s address as reported by Theophanes Confessor, we find some of the same general ingredients that are noticeable in Qur’anic calls to militancy…''"<ref>Ibid. (Kindle Edition. pp. 301).</ref> He notes these similarities are likely caused by being on the fringes of the Roman empire.<ref>Ibid. (Kindle Edition. pp. 301).</ref>

==== Martyrdom wipes away other sins and is privileged above other acts from believers ====
{{Quote|Reynolds, Gabriel Said. Christianity and the Qur'an: The Rise of Islam in Christian Arabia (pp. 178-179). Yale University Press. Kindle Edition.|The teaching on the glory earned by martyrs is widespread in the early church. It is nevertheless telling to find the way it is emphasized in the third-century Christian text the aforementioned Didascalia Apostolorum, originally written in Greek but preserved in Syriac.87 The Didascalia clearly teaches that the martyrs will have a privilege above other faithful believers: If then He raises up all men,—as He said by Isaiah: All flesh shall see the salvation of God [Isa 40.5; 52.10],—much more will He quicken and raise up the faithful; and (yet more) again will He quicken and raise up the faithful of the faithful, who are the martyrs, and establish them in great glory and make them His counsellors. For to mere disciples, those who believe in Him, He has promised a glory as of the stars [Dan 12.3]; but to the martyrs He has promised to give an everlasting glory, as of the luminaries which fail not, with more abundant light, that they may be shining for all time.88

The Didascalia is also clear, as is the Qur’an, that martyrs enjoy a special grace through the forgiveness of sins that their deaths have earned for them: But again, sins are forgiven by baptism also to those who from the Gentiles draw near and enter the holy Church of God. Let us inquire also, to whom sins are not imputed. To such as Abraham and Isaac and Jacob and all the patriarchs, as also to the martyrs. Let us hear then, brethren, for the Scripture saith: Who shall boast himself and say: I am clear of sins? Or who shall be confident and say: I am innocent? [Prov 20.9].

And again: There is no man pure of defilement: not though his life be but one day [Job 14.4–5 LXX]. To everyone therefore who believes and is baptized his … former sins have been forgiven; but after baptism also, provided that he has not sinned a deadly sin nor been an accomplice (thereto), but has heard only, or seen, or spoken, and is thus guilty of sin. But if a man go forth from the world by martyrdom for the name of the Lord, blessed is he; for brethren who by martyrdom have gone forth from this world, of these the sins are covered.89

We might compare Q 3:195: “ ‘And those who emigrated, and were expelled from their habitations, those who suffered hurt in My way, and fought, and were slain—them I shall surely acquit of their evil deeds, and I shall admit them to gardens underneath which rivers flow.’ A reward from God! And God with Him is the fairest reward” (italics added). In other words, the Qur’an seems to be well aware of Christian devotion to the martyrs.}}

=== Martyrdom in the Torah and Gospels ===
Muslims who fight are promised paradise, which the Qur'an claims is also a promise in the Torah and Gospel.{{Quote|{{Quran|9|111}}|Indeed Allah has bought from the faithful their souls and their possessions for paradise to be theirs: they fight in the way of Allah, kill, and are killed. A promise binding upon Him in the Torah and the Evangel and the Quran. And who is truer to his promise than Allah? So rejoice in the bargain you have made with Him, and that is the great success.}}Nickel (2020)<ref>Nickel, Gordon D. ''The Quran with Christian Commentary: A Guide to Understanding the Scripture of Islam (p. 222).'' Zondervan Academic. Kindle Edition. 9.111 – They fight in the way of God, and they kill and are killed When the Quran describes believers as fighting “in the way of Allah,” it makes a theological claim by associating Allah with human fighting. See the analysis of these expressions at 73.20 (p. 597). 9.111 – a promise binding on Him in the Torah, and the Gospel, and the Qur’ān This is the only verse in the Quran that brings the Torah (tawrāt), Gospel (injīl), and qur’ān (lit. “recitation”) together. The Quran claims here that the particular point on which the Torah and Gospel agree with the Muslim recitation is that believers “fight in the way of Allah, and they kill and are killed.” This verse makes the reader question whether the Quran has a clear idea of the contents of the Torah and Gospel. A similar question is raised by 61.14, which appears to say that ‘Īsā and his disciples fought against their enemies (cf. 3.52). Along with these misunderstandings, the Quran gives no information about the peaceable teaching and example of Jesus in the Gospel accounts. See the analysis of the Quran’s verses on the “Gospel” at 57.27 (p. 549). Do the Torah and Gospel in fact contain such a promise? See the comment on this characterization of the Bible at 61.14 (p. 566).</ref> and Reynolds (2018) however notes that this is not found there:{{Quote|1=Reynolds, G. S. (2018). The Qur'an and the Bible: Text and Commentary. Commentary on 9:111 (pp. 322) United Kingdom: Yale University Press.|2="9:111 The point of this verse is that those who are prepared to give their lives to God in the holy war are promised paradise as a payment for their services (cf. 2:245; 4:74; 61:10–12). The idea that the martyrs have a special assurance of paradise follows from the Qurʾān’s teaching elsewhere that the act of martyrdom involves forgiveness of sin. This teaching is close to that of the Syriac fathers (see commentary on 2:154, with further references). It is curious that the Qurʾān insists that the promise of heaven for holy warriors is found in the Torah and the Gospel (or “Evangel”); heaven is not found in the Torah and holy war is not found in the Gospels...}}While his commentary on 2:154 (pp. 76) once again highlights the Syriac parallel:{{Quote|2="As Tor Andrae has shown (Les origines de l’islam et le christianisme, 161ff.), the idea that martyrdom involves the absolution of sins is prominent in Syriac Christian texts such as the third-century Didascalia (chap. 20) and the Treaty on the Martyrs of Mar Isaï (d. late sixth cen.); the latter text also insists—much like the Qurʾān—that the martyrs are “living”:

The true martyrs who, by way of a death that covers their sins, demonstrate even more the beauty of their deeds and receive this glorious inheritance by virtue of their blood. By leaving this life they have prepared for their souls an honorable abode in paradise. It was thought that they are already dead, but by their death they have killed their sin, and they are alive with God. (Mar Isaï, Treaty on the Martyrs, 32)}}
=== Further Martyrdom Influence ===
Neuwirth (2024) also notes the influence of Christian martyrdom stories on the sudden conversion and prayers/asking for forgiveness to God of Pharaoh's magician's, who are originally opponents of Moses until he shows them proof of his prophecy via a miracle in the face of a sudden and violent death as threatened by the arrogant ruler (e.g. in {{Quran-range|26|50|51}} and {{Quran-range|20|71|73}}).<ref>Neuwirth, Angelika. ''The Qur'an: Text and Commentary, Volume 2.1: Early Middle Meccan Suras: The New Elect (p. 204).'' Yale University Press. Kindle Edition.</ref> Both Jewish and Christian traditions present individual “anti-Moses” sorcerers named Jannes and Jambres, who continue to appear in later interpretations; citing Nora Schmid, she notes that, although there is no explicit textual reference and the magicians are typically depicted in a negative light, they came to be associated with penance and martyrdom in Christian tradition - in the Qurʾan, this idea is developed further: the forgiveness that Jannes and Jambres either did not receive or only partially received in earlier sources is ultimately granted.<ref>Ibid. pp. 251-252</ref>{{Quote|Neuwirth, Angelika. The Qur'an: Text and Commentary, Volume 2.1: Early Middle Meccan Suras: The New Elect (p. 204). Yale University Press. Kindle Edition.|V. 72–73 qālū lan nuʾthiraka ʿalā mā jāʾanā mina l-bayyināti wa-lladhī faṭaranā fa-qḍi mā anta qāḍin innamā taqḍī hādhihi l-ḥayāta l-dunyā / innā āmannā birabbinā li-yaghfira lanā khaṭāyānā wa-mā akrahtanā ʿalayhi mina l-siḥri wallāhu khayrun wa-abqā] Conversion scene as later in Q 26:50–51. The sorcerers renounce their allegiance to Pharaoh on the basis of the obvious evidence (bayyināt) and give preference to the Creator God, they submit to their worldly fate and hope for the forgiveness of their sins and what they have been forced to do by the ruler—they are a role model for the community, which is also subject to pressure from outside. The request for forgiveness of sins before a violent death is a topos of Christian martyr stories. The entire scene, leaving the context of ‘ancient’ Egypt, reflects the notion of Christian martyrdom stories. Khaṭāyā (singular khaṭīʾa) also lets a Syriac terminus technicus ring through, but the word can be derived from the Arabic root KhṬʿ (“to miss a goal”) (see FVQ, 123ff.). The idea of the forgiveness of sins is prominent in the Christian liturgy—not only through the Lord’s Prayer. In addition to khaṭīʾa, there is the genuine Arabic dhanb, dhunūb.}}

== Expansions on the afterlife ==

Reynolds (2020) notes the Qur’ans provides vivid depictions of hell are highly unlike the New Testament, where Jesus refers to afterlife punishment mostly allusively. The closest the Gospels describe hell is through the few images of “fire,” “wailing,” and “gnashing of teeth.”, for example in Matthew’s Parable of the Weeds, Jesus explains that at the end of the age, the Son of Man will send his angels that will cast evildoers into a fiery furnace where there will be weeping and gnashing of teeth (Matt 13:40–42).<ref>Reynolds, Gabriel Said. ''Allah: God in the Qur'an (pp. 81-82).'' Yale University Press. Kindle Edition.</ref> He notes the much more constant an vivid Qur'anic descriptions far better match later Christian works that expanded the descriptions to be more gruesome, in order to scare the reader/audience.<ref>Ibid. pp. 88.

''We might note how all of these traditions are meant to make humans yearn for paradise and fear hell. The Qur’an, from this regard, is a profoundly psychological work. Like a Christian preacher, like John Chrysostom or Saint Ephrem, the author of the Qur’an speaks of heaven and hell to persuade his audience to repent and believe. He does so in a way, however, that is distinct—emphasizing physical pain and physical pleasure in order, apparently, to make a greater impression on his audience. He puts a terrible tree into hell and young women in paradise.''
</ref>{{Quote|Reynolds, Gabriel Said. Allah: God in the Qur'an (pp. 82-83). Yale University Press. Kindle Edition.|The way that the Qur’an describes hell in particularly vivid, gruesome terms brings us back to something we mentioned in Chapter 1, namely, that the Qur’an in many ways is a “homiletic” work, a work written like a homily or sermon. The Qur’an’s intention is not simply to declare that those who disobey God will be punished, but to describe that punishment in a way which brings the awfulness of hell to life. Similarly, homilists in the early centuries of Christianity expanded dramatically on the New Testament allusions to hell. In a sermon attributed to John Chrysostom (d. 407) we read a description of hell with the sort of detail that we find in the Qur’an: It is a sea of fire—not a sea of the kind or dimensions we know here, but much larger and fiercer, with waves made of fire, fire of a strange and fearsome kind. There is a great abyss there, in fact, of terrible flames, and one can see fire rushing about on all sides like some wild animal…. There will be no one who can resist, no one who can escape: Christ’s gentle, peaceful face will be nowhere to be seen.15}}Sinai (2017) in his paper titled "''The Eschatological Kerygma of the Early Qur’an''" notes many overlap with Syriac Homilies on the afterlife as well as other apocalyptic ideas and terminology.<ref>“[https://almuslih.org/wp-content/uploads/Library/Sinai,%20N%20-%20The%20Eschatological%20Kerygma.pdf The Eschatological Kerygma of the Early Qur’an]”, Nicolai Sinai, in ''Apocalypticism and Eschatology in Late Antiquity: Encounters in the Abrahamic Religions, 6th–8th Centuries'', edited by Hagit Amirav, Emmanouela Grypeou, and Guy Stroumsa, Leuven: Peeters, 2017, 219–266.

These are discussed throughout the whole paper, and a summary can be found in pp.50-57. On heaven and hell specifically, the summary is on pp.55-57.</ref>

== Souls are taken away at night ==

The Qur'an (and traditional Islamic exegetes)<ref>See classical commentaries on these verses such as Al-Jalalayn on [https://quranx.com/Tafsir/Jalal/39.42 Q39:42], [https://quranx.com/Tafsir/Jalal/6.60 Q6:60] and Ibn Kathir on [https://quranx.com/Tafsir/Kathir/39.41 Q39:41-2] and [https://quranx.com/Tafsir/Kathir/6.60 Q6:60]</ref> state that the soul is taken away by Allah during the night.{{Quote|{{Quran|39|42}}|Allah takes the souls at the time of their death, and those who have not died, in their sleep. Then He retains those for whom He has ordained death and releases the others until a specified time. There are indeed signs in that for a people who reflect.}}{{Quote|{{Quran|6|60}}|It is He who takes your souls by night, and He knows what you do by day, then He reanimates you therein so that a specified term may be completed. Then to Him will be your return, whereat He will inform you concerning what you used to do.}}Tesei (2016) notes this idea may mimic a late antique Syriac Christian parallel in the poetical language used by Ephrem, who in the Nisibene hymns (7:15) mentions sleep resembles death, and other Christian writers (such as Babai) wrote about sleep metaphorically Jesus's death and waking up like the resurrection;<ref>Tesei, Tommaso. (2016). "[https://www.researchgate.net/publication/344524709_2_The_barzakh_and_the_Intermediate_State_of_the_Dead_in_the_Quran 2 The barzakh and the Intermediate State of the Dead in the Quran]". pp. 40-42 In Locating Hell in Islamic Traditions. Leiden, The Netherlands: Brill. <nowiki>https://doi.org/10.1163/9789004301368_003</nowiki> (Open access)

''At the same time, the Quran also compares death to the “common sleep” that people experience on a daily basis. This seems to be the case in the cryptic statement found in Q 39:42 (cf. Q 6:60), “God takes the souls at the time of their death (ḥīna mawtihā), and [He takes] that which has not died, in its sleep ( fī manāmihā); He withholds that against which He has decreed death, but sets loose the other until a stated term”. This obscure passage appears to indicate that sleep is a death-like state; sleepers resemble the dead since their souls enter into a state similar to that which they will experience at the moment of death. However, unlike the souls of the dead, which will be raised only on the Day of Resurrection, the ordinary sleeper’s soul is sent back when he awakens―that is, of course, until the time of his death. This parallel between death and “common sleep” finds a fairly close correspondence in the poetical language used by Ephrem, who in the Nisibene hymns (7:15) affirms that: “The one who lies down to sleep resembles the departed and death resembles a dream, and the resurrection the morning”. In these passages the Quran’s eschatological discourse is particularly close to that formulated by Babai, in whose ideas the belief in the soul’s sleep is intimately connected to the strong affirmation of the physical resurrection of the body on the Day of Judgment.'' </ref> with this idea taken literally by Muhammad.

== Arguments for resurrection ==
Reynolds (2020) notes the repeated argument that God can resurrect the dead using the analogy that he can bring life back to barren (or dead) land may be connected to a Jewish tradition that God will resurrect the dead with dew, for example, in b. Shabbat 88b.<ref name=":2">See: Reynolds, Gabriel Said. Allah: ''God in the Qur'an (pp. 76-77).'' Yale University Press. Kindle Edition.

And Footnote 10: Reynolds, Gabriel Said. ''Allah: God in the Qur'an (p. 254).'' Yale University Press. Kindle Edition.</ref>
{{Quote|{{Quran|30|19}}|He brings forth the living from the dead, and brings forth the dead from the living, and revives the earth after its death. Likewise, you [too] shall be raised [from the dead].}}

Cf: {{Quran|16|65}}, {{Quran|43|11}}, {{Quran|50|6-11}}, {{Quran|57|17}}

==See Also==
*[[Pre-Islamic Arab Religion in Islam]]

* [[Parallels Between the Qur'an and Late Antique Judeo-Christian Literature|Parallels Between the Qur'an and Late Antique Judeo-Christian Literature - Part 1]]
* [[Historical Errors in the Quran]]
==References==
<references />

User:CPO675/Sandbox 1

2025-12-29T12:01:55Z

CPO675: /* Other Traditions */

== The Historical Jesus ==

=== Other Traditions ===

==== Intro ====

Alongside the main consensus from Biblical Scholars/Historians that Jesus was an eschatological preacher in the early first century AD who believed the Earth would end during his time (and therefore couldn't be the Muslim Jesus), there are many other of the most considered authentic teachings of Jesus that clash with Islam; in contrast with the Qur'anic principle of Messenger Uniformitarianism; where all messengers preach essentially the same thing with only minor variations.<ref>Durie, Mark. ''The Qur’an and Its Biblical Reflexes: Investigations into the Genesis of a Religion (pp. 135-142) (Kindle Edition pp. 281-294)''. 5.3 Messenger Uniformitarianism. Lexington Books. 2018.</ref>
{{Quote|{{Quran|41|43}}|Not is said to you except what was said to the Messengers before you. Indeed, your Lord (is) Possessor (of) forgiveness, and Possessor (of) penalty painful.}}{{Quote|{{Quran|2|285}}|The Apostle and the faithful have faith in what has been sent down to him from his Lord. Each [of them] has faith in Allah, His angels, His scriptures and His apostles. [They declare,] ‘We make no distinction between any of His apostles.’ And they say, ‘We hear and obey. Our Lord, forgive us, and toward You is the return.’}}

{{Quote|{{Quran|17|77}}|“This was the sunnah [customary way] of Our messengers whom We sent before you, and you will find no change in Our sunnah”}}cf. {{Quran|6|112}}, {{Quran|35|43}}, {{Quran|22|78}}.

Other than being explicitly told that messengers bring the same message from Allah, Durie (2018) notes the Qur'an repeatedly states that Muhammad was sent to confirm the revelations given to earlier messengers (Q2:91, 97; Q3:3, 50; Q5:48; Q12:111; Q16:43–44; Q35:31), just as each prophet before him confirmed those who came earlier. For example, Jesus (ʿĪsa) confirmed the Torah of Moses (Mūsa) (Q5:46), and the Qurʾan confirms the scriptures revealed to previous prophets (Q4:47). In this way, Muhammad’s role continues the same pattern of reaffirming earlier divine messages rather than introducing a completely new one.<ref>Durie, Mark. ''The Qur’an and Its Biblical Reflexes: Investigations Into the Genesis of a Religion.'' pp.140</ref>

{{Quote|Durie, Mark. The Qur'an and it's Biblical Reflexes. pp.140|• It is also explicitly asserted that messengers bring the same message
from Alla¯h: “Nothing is said to you but what has already been said to
messengers before you” (Q41:43; Q22:78) and “we make no distinction
between any of them” (Q2:136). They also preached the same dīn “commandment” or “religion” (Q42:13; cf. Q3:84; Q4:150), which is referred
to as the “religion of Ibra¯hīm” (Q2:130; Q4:125; Q16:121–23). The
validating function of this idea becomes clear when it is applied against
a group of Jews who reject the concept of the “same message” because
it would mean validating the Messenger. These Jews hold to their own
faith, saying “we believe in what has been sent down on us,” but they
reject the Messenger, or “anything after that” (Q2:91). The ruling against
these Jews is that because they reject the Messenger, they are disbelievers,
rejecting “what All a¯ h has sent down” (Q2:91).31 The idea of the “same message” is further reinforced when the Qurʾan repeatedly states that the Messenger was only sent to confirm what was sent down by previous
messengers (Q2:91, 97; Q3:3, 50; Q5:48; Q12:111; Q16:43–44; Q35:31),
just as previous messengers had done for messengers that preceded them,
for example, ʿĪsa¯ “confirmed” the Tawra¯ h of Mūsa¯(Q5:46), and the Qurʾan
confirms the book(s) sent by previous prophets (Q4:47), just as the Messenger has been doing in his turn.}}
The large differences between the New Testament / Gospels (and by extension the Christian Jesus), and the [[Isa al-Masih (Jesus Christ)|Muslim Jesus,]] are clear to anyone who has read both the Qur'an and NT; with the Qur'an having it's own spin on him and taking many aspects from apocrypha considered inauthentic by NT scholars,<ref>Sanders, E.. ''The Historical Figure of Jesus (pp. 78-79)''. Penguin Books Ltd. Kindle Edition.

..(Gnosticism was a world view that held everything material to be evil; the god who created the world was a bad god, and the creation was wicked. Gnostics who were also Christians held that the good God had sent Jesus to redeem people’s souls, not their bodies, and that Jesus was not a real human being. The Christians who objected to these views finally declared them heretical.) ''I share the general scholarly view that very, very little in the apocryphal gospels could conceivably go back to the time of Jesus. They are legendary and mythological. Of all the apocryphal material, only some of the sayings in the Gospel of Thomas are worth consideration.'' This does not mean that we can make a clean division: the historical four gospels versus the legendary apocryphal gospels. There are legendary traits in the four gospels in the New Testament, and there is also a certain amount of newly created material (as we saw just above)..</ref> and [[Parallels Between the Qur'an and Late Antique Judeo-Christian Literature|later Christian thought/writings]], and have lead to many Muslims arguing for biblical corruption based on textual and theological grounds [though textual don't affect most early & authentic traditions] in general, which is a disputed idea in traditional Islamic thought (cite - Reynolds article. See also: [[Corruption of Previous Scriptures]] & [[Qur'an, Hadith and Scholars:Corruption of Previous Scriptures]])

Historians have searched for a summary of some of the most likely authentic traditions from Biblical historians (using historical-critical methods not Christian or Muslim theologians - more likely to be true and not taken from bias or proving or disproving Islam but historical context, widespread across sources, early - cite Allison explanation - Why - different to time and context, unlikely to be fabricated later by Christians, across all early sources etc.) are shown here as an example of the clashes. [Point: not arguing against Christian Jesus - but secular historians one]

==== Examples ====
{{Quote|Dale C. Allison Jr.. The Historical Christ and the Theological Jesus (Kindle Locations 822-836). Kindle Edition.|2=Given that we typically remember the outlines of an event or the general purport of a conversation rather than the particulars and that we extract patterns and meaning from our memories, it makes little sense to open the quest for Jesus by evaluating individual items with our criteria, in the hope that some bits preserve pristine memory. We should rather be looking for repeating patterns and contemplating the big picture. true. We should trust first, if we are to trust at all, what is most likely to be trustworthy. Although we may, after reading Thucydides, be confident that there was a Peloponnesian War, we may well wonder about many of the details of his account.

The larger the generalization and the more data upon which it is based, the greater our confidence; the more specific the detail and the fewer the data supporting it, the more room we have for doubt. With regard to the sources for Jesus, the traditional criteria of authenticity privilege the parts over the whole. It seems more prudent to privilege generalizations drawn from the whole than to concentrate upon one individual item after another. As a demonstration of how this works in practice, consider the following traditions:

• Jesus prohibited divorce: 1 Cor. 7:10; Mark 10:2-9; Luke 16:18. [Qur'an divorce rules - https://wikiislam.net/wiki/Khula] 

• Jesus sent forth missionaries without staff, food, or money: Matt. 10:9-10; Mark 6:8-9; Luke 10:4.

• Jesus instructed missionaries to get their living by the gospel: 1 Cor. 9:14; Matt. 10:10; Luke 10:7.

• Jesus commanded loving and doing good to enemies: Matt. 5:38-48; Luke 6:27-36. [Qur'an do not be merciful to unbelievers https://wikiislam.net/wiki/Qur%27an,_Hadith_and_Scholars:Non-Muslims & https://wikiislam.net/wiki/Kafir_(Infidel)#Guidelines_on_how_to_deal_with_disbelievers Quran 48:29 ]

• Jesus forbade judging others: Matt. 7:1-2; Luke 6:37-38.

• Jesus asked a prospective follower not to bury his father: Matt. 8:21-22; 22; Luke 959-60.

• Jesus spoke of hating one's father and mother: Matt. 10:37; Luke 14:26; Gospel of Thomas 55, 101. [respect parents - too tenuous]

• Jesus enjoined disciples to take up a cross: Matt. 10:38; Mark 8:34; Luke 14:27.

• Jesus enjoined unlimited forgiveness: Matt. 18:21-22; Luke 17:3-4. [forgiveness against shirk - Qur'an says no Q4:48 and 4:116. ]

• Jesus exhorted hearers to lose their lives in order to save them: Matt. 10:39; Mark 8:35; Luke 17:33.

• Jesus called people away from their livelihoods: Mark 1:16-20; 2:14. [?]

• Jesus figuratively demanded violent removal of hand, foot, and eye: Mark 9:42-48.

• Jesus asked a wealthy man to relinquish his money: Mark 10:17-27. [bring in wealth inequality section of Islam darajat - here]

• Jesus forbade taking oaths: Matt. 5:33-37. [https://www.iium.edu.my/deed/lawbase/risalah_maliki/book31.html#:~:text=Anyone%20who%20swears%20an%20oath,Oneness%2C%20timelessness%20and%20existence.%5D]

• Jesus commanded money to be lent without interest: Matt. 5:42; Gospel of Thomas 95.

• Jesus called some to a life without marriage: Matt. 19:11-12. [Qur'an criticism of monasticism]

• Jesus asked a prospective follower not to say farewell to his parents: Luke 9:61-62. [respect parents?]

• Jesus asked his disciples to renounce all of their possessions: Luke 14:33"}}
<nowiki>--------------------------------------------------</nowiki>

[ highlight those being spoken about in italics or bold]

Professor Allison (2009) notes that Jesus' banning divorce was an important teaching that <s>stood out</s> to early Christians, [https://www.biblegateway.com/passage/?search=Luke%2016%3A18&version=NIV Luke 16:18], [https://www.biblegateway.com/passage/?search=1%20Corinthians%207%3A10-16&version=NIV 1 Corinthians 7:10-16], [https://www.biblegateway.com/passage/?search=Mark%2010%3A2-9&version=NIV Mark 10:2-9], in contrast to Judaism ([https://www.biblegateway.com/passage/?search=Deuteronomy%2024%3A1-4&version=NIV Deuteronomy 24:1-4]) and Islam e.g. Quran 2:228-232, Q65:1-7, (Q4:19 https://quranx.com/hadiths/4.19 & Q4:35), Q33:49 )

He notes that Jesus commanded loving and doing good to enemies in [https://www.biblegateway.com/passage/?search=Matthew%205%3A38-48&version=NIV Matt. 5:38-48]; [https://www.biblegateway.com/passage/?search=Luke%206%3A27-36&version=NIV Luke 6:27-36], while the Qur'an generally advises treating other Muslims well, it specifically states not to be merciful to unbelievers Q48:29. [ For more examples of not being merciful to unbelievers, let alone 'enemies' see: '''[[Qur'an, Hadith and Scholars:Non-Muslims|https://wikiislam.net/wiki/Qur%27an,_Hadith_and_Scholars:Non-Muslims]] & [[Kafir (Infidel)#Guidelines%20on%20how%20to%20deal%20with%20disbelievers|https://wikiislam.net/wiki/Kafir_(Infidel)#Guidelines_on_how_to_deal_with_disbelievers]] Quran 48:29 ]'''

• Jesus enjoined unlimited forgiveness: [https://www.biblegateway.com/passage/?search=Matthew%2018%3A21-22&version=NIV Matt. 18:21-22]; [https://www.biblegateway.com/passage/?search=Luke%2017%3A3-4&version=NIV Luke 17:3-4]. However the Qur'an distinctly says there is no forgiveness for anyone committing shirk (ascribing partners to God) in {{Quran|4|48}} and {{Quran|4|116}}.

He notes Jesus called some to a life without marriage: [https://www.biblegateway.com/passage/?search=Matthew%2019%3A11-12&version=NIV Matt. 19:11-12], while the Qur'an promotes it as a virtue encouraging those to do so.

Marriage is a virtue https://www.getquranic.com/marriage-in-islam-8-quranic-verses-about-marriage/

{{Quote|{{Quran|24|32}}|Marry off those who are single among you, and the upright among your male and female slaves. If they are poor, Allah will enrich them out of His grace, and Allah is all-bounteous, all-knowing.}}

And criticizes monasticism/monks, with celibacy and no marriage being a key aspect<ref>[https://www.britannica.com/topic/monasticism Monasticism] | religion | Britannica Entry</ref> in general

{{Quote|Reynolds, Gabriel Said. Christianity and the Qur'an: The Rise of Islam in Christian Arabia (pp. 131-132). Yale University Press. Kindle Edition.|These verses critical of monks are often read together with Q 57:27, which, while praising certain positive qualities of Christians, also seems to accuse Christians of “innovating” monasticism: Then We sent, following in their footsteps, Our Messengers; and We sent, following, Jesus son of Mary, and gave unto him the Gospel. And We set in the hearts of those who followed him tenderness and mercy. And monasticism they invented—We did not prescribe it for them—only seeking the good pleasure of God; but they observed it not as it should be observed. So We gave those of them who believed their wage; and many of them are ungodly.}}

Criticism of monasticism (https://www.britannica.com/topic/monasticism) - lack of marriage for monks (though admittedly also praises monks in general elsewhere pp130-132)<ref>Reynolds, Gabriel Said. ''Christianity and the Qur'an: The Rise of Islam in Christian Arabia (pp. 130-132).'' Yale University Press. Kindle Edition.</ref>

{{Quote|{{Quran|57|27}}|Then We sent on their footsteps Our Messengers and We followed with Isa, son (of) Maryam, and We gave him the Injeel. And We placed in (the) hearts (of) those who followed him compassion and mercy. But monasticism they innovated - not We prescribed it for them - only seeking (the) pleasure (of) Allah, but not they observed it (with) right observance. So We gave those who believed among them their reward, but most of them (are) defiantly disobediently.}}

<nowiki>-----------------------------------------------------------------</nowiki>

==== Father-son relationship ====
{{Quote|Dale C. Allison Jr.. The Historical Christ and the Theological Jesus (Kindle Location 841-848). Kindle Edition.|2=Working through the tradition in the way I suggest leads to a large number of conclusions. Jesus must have been an exorcist who interpreted his ministry in terms of Satan's downfall. He must have thought highly of John the Baptist. He must have repeatedly spoken of God as Father. [Durie differences in metaphor and understanding of relationship from Hebrew to Arab society = markedly different] He must have composed parables. He must have come into conflict with religious authorities. All of this may seem obvious, but the procedure is not trite, for it also issues in some controversial verdicts. As I have argued elsewhere, for example, ample, the quantity of conventional eschatological material in our primary sources almost necessitates that Jesus was an eschatological prophet.' The reconstruction of Robert Funk and the Jesus Seminar is for this reason alone problematic. Even more controversial is what my approach leads me to infer about Jesus' self-conception. Consider these Synoptic materials:

• Jesus said that the Son of man will return on the clouds of heaven and send angels to gather the elect from throughout the world: Mark 13:26-27; cf. 14:62; Matt. 10:23 (allusions to Daniel 7's depiction of the last judgment are clear). [the son of man plays no part in Islam]}}Allison (2009) notes that Jesus must have repeatedly referred to God as 'father', a way also used by many ancient Jews to describe their relationship to god, also found in the old testament (cite) and Talmudic writings with paternal imagery. <ref>Knobnya, S.. (2011). ''God the Father in the Old Testament. European Journal of Theology.'' 20. 139-148. </ref><ref>[https://www.myjewishlearning.com/article/fatherhood-of-god/ Fatherhood of God] | Sages & Scholars | Rabbi Louis Jacobs | My Jewish Learning</ref>

===== Slave-master relationship =====
However this father-son Hebrew metaphorical relationship Jesus used is distinctly abandoned, instead using other things (other metaphors) in Arab society to describe the relationship between humans and God, such as a slave-master relationship,<ref>Durie, Mark. ''The Qur’an and Its Biblical Reflexes: Investigations into the Genesis of a Religion (pp. XX-XX) (pp. 107-110 Kindle Edition)''. 4.1.1. Shirk - Proprietary Partnership. Lexington Books. 2018.</ref> a Patron - Protege (needs explanation of what this is) <ref>Durie, Mark. ''The Qur’an and Its Biblical Reflexes: Investigations into the Genesis of a Religion (pp. XX-XX) (pp. 110-111 Kindle Edition)''. 4.1.2. Shirk - Patron - Protege Relationships. Lexington Books. 2018.</ref>. with Muhammad having strongly condemned the idea that God could have offspring against the unscripted pagans (mushrikun) taking angels as daughters of god early on chronologically of the Qur'an's first recitations, then later against God having a son against Jesus being the son of God.<ref>Durie, Mark. ''The Qur’an and Its Biblical Reflexes: Investigations into the Genesis of a Religion (pp. XX-XX) (pp. 112-113 Kindle Edition)''. 4.1.5 A Polemical Doctrine. Lexington Books. 2018.</ref>

Slave analogy Dure Print edition pp108 - 110 summary:<ref name=":1">Durie, Mark. ''The Qur’an and Its Biblical Reflexes: Investigations into the Genesis of a Religion (pp. 108-110) (pp. XX-XX Kindle Edition)''. 4.1.5 A Polemical Doctrine. Lexington Books. 2018.</ref> Before its theological use, the Arabic root ''sh-r-k'' referred to ordinary '''partnership or shared ownership'''. The Qurʾan draws on this everyday meaning to illustrate why associating partners with God is impossible. Using the metaphor of '''a master and a slave''', the Qurʾan argues that just as a slave with multiple masters suffers confusion and conflict, attributing partners to God creates an impossible and chaotic situation. This logic appears in verses such as Q39:29 and others that argue multiple gods would lead to conflict and the ruin of creation (Q23:91; Q21:22).<ref name=":1" />
{{Quote|{{Quran|39|29}}|Allah presents a parable, “a man was owned by several quarreling partners
(shurakaʾ), and a man was the slave of (just) one man. Are the two equal?”}}

The Qurʾan’s use of the slave-master metaphor differs from Jesus’ teaching in the New Testament. Whereas Jesus uses it to highlight divided human devotion, the Qurʾan uses it to assert the logical impossibility of multiple divine authorities.<ref name=":1" />

{{Quote|Luke 16:13; cf. Matthew. 6:24|No slave can serve two masters; for a slave will either hate the one and love the
other, or be devoted to the one and despise the other. You cannot serve God and wealth.}}

Shirk encompasses various forms of error: attributing partners or helpers to God, believing He needs allies, or seeking aid from others besides Him. The Qurʾan also explores God’s unity through three social analogies relevant to Arabian society: '''patron–protégé relationships''', '''alliances of mutual help''', and '''relationships of equal or unequal status'''.<ref name=":1" />

===== '''Patron–protégé relationships''' =====
The Qur'an distinctly ignores the father-son relationship (and theology) metaphor by using another term that is harder to translate

Explanation of what this is Durie pp.110-111:<ref name=":3">Durie, Mark. ''The Qur’an and Its Biblical Reflexes: Investigations into the Genesis of a Religion (pp. 110-111) (pp. XX-XX Kindle Edition)''. 4.1.5 A Polemical Doctrine. Lexington Books. 2018.</ref> The Qurʾan uses terms from the root '''w-l-y''' to describe '''patron–protégé relationships''', alliances, and guardianship. The key term '''walī''' can mean ally, protector, guardian, or patron, and may indicate either symmetrical alliances or asymmetrical power relationships.<ref name=":3" /><ref>[https://lexicon.quranic-research.net/data/27_w/219_wle.html Root: ''wāw lām yā'' (و ل ي)] - Lane's Lexicon Qur'anic Research

See Lane's Lexicon Classical Arabic Dictionary [https://lexicon.quranic-research.net/pdf/Page_3060.pdf pp.3060] & [https://lexicon.quranic-research.net/pdf/Page_3061.pdf pp.3061] </ref>

In pre-Islamic Arab society, such patronage was essential for protection, as shown by the example of Muḥammad being safeguarded by his uncle Abū Ṭālib. Without a patron, a person was vulnerable.<ref name=":3" /> [in the sirah of Ibn Ishaq]

The Qurʾan emphasizes that '''God has no need of any patron''' and that '''humans should recognize God alone as their walī'''. Seeking any protector besides God is considered '''shirk'''. Believers may take other believers and the Prophet as allies (''awliyāʾ'') alongside God, but not in place of Him.<ref name=":3" />

As the Muslim community developed, especially after what the passage calls the ''Eschatological Transition''—the Qurʾan increasingly stressed exclusive allegiance to God. This served to detach believers from prior tribal or familial loyalties that could compromise their commitment to the faith community.<ref name=":3" />

- and calls for help-

===== Unequal status vs Jesus' views on Wealth =====
Sinai - darajah passage

And inequality in general - inc. the afterlife

=== Punishment narratives ===

==== Punishment BEFORE the day of judgement ====
We are told the sole exception in history was the unnamed town<ref>Unnamed in the Qur'an, though identified as Nineveh (in modern day Iraq) as in the Biblical "Book of Jonah" by Islamic exegetes; e.g. see [https://quranx.com/tafsirs/37.147 tafsirs on Q37:147]</ref> of more than 100,000 people that the messenger Yūnus (Jonah) when the warning was heeded in full by the entire people, and therefore punishment averted ({{Quran|10|98}}, {{Quran|37|147-148}}) “no town believed . . . except the people of Yūnus”<ref>Durie, Mark. 2018. ''The Qur'an and Its Biblical Reflexes: Investigations Into the Genesis of a Religion. pp 49. Kindle Edition pp 151.''</ref>

How many a town defied the command of its Lord and His apostles, then We called it to a severe account and punished it with a dire punishment. Q65:8

So it tasted the evil consequences of its conduct, and the outcome of its conduct was ruin. Q65:9

How many generations that had far more wealth and ostentation have We laid low before them! <<nowiki>https://quranx.com/19.74</nowiki>>

Say, ‘Whoever abides in error, the All-beneficent shall prolong his respite until they sight what they have been promised: either punishment, or the Hour.’ Then they will know whose position is worse, and whose host is weaker <<nowiki>https://quranx.com/19.75</nowiki>>

------

Q34:16 - flood of the damn of Yemen / Saba', the people of Sheba E.g. <ref>See tafsirs on [https://quranx.com/Tafsirs/34.14 Q34:14], [https://quranx.com/Tafsirs/34.15 Q34:15] & [https://quranx.com/Tafsirs/34.16 Q34:16]</ref> {{Quran|34|14-16}}

{{Quote|{{Quran|34|14-16}}|And when We decreed for Solomon death, nothing indicated to the jinn his death except a creature of the earth eating his staff. But when he fell, it became clear to the jinn that if they had known the unseen, they would not have remained in humiliating punishment.
Certainly, (there) was for Saba in their dwelling place a sign: Two gardens on (the) right and (on the) left. "Eat from (the) provision (of) your Lord and be grateful to Him. A land good and a Lord Oft-Forgiving."
But they turned away, so We sent upon them (the) flood (of) the dam, and We changed for them their two gardens (with) two gardens producing fruit bitter, and tamarisks and (some)thing of lote trees few.}}
, {{Quran|65|8-9}}, {{Quran|19|74-75}}

Add: 34:15–21: The punishment of the people of Sheba, without explicit reference to a messenger. Sheba reference <ref>Marshall, David. ''God, Muhammad and the Unbelievers (p. 73).'' Taylor & Francis. Kindle Edition.</ref>

=== Surah 36 ===
Similarly an unnamed town is sent three messengers in {{Quran|36|13-32}}, who's identities have differed in traditional Islamic scholarship,<ref>E.g. see commentaries on [https://quranx.com/Tafsirs/36.13 Q36:13] & [https://quranx.com/tafsirs/36.14 Q36:14], and the later verses in the story, cited as a parable ''(mathal).''</ref> are rejected and so are killed with a cry/shout (''ṣayḥatan)'' ({{Quran|36|29}}). <ref>Marshall, David. ''God, Muhammad and the Unbelievers (p. 63 & 72).'' Taylor & Francis. Kindle Edition.</ref>
{{Quote|Marshall, David. God, Muhammad and the Unbelievers (p. 72). Taylor & Francis. Kindle Edition.|36:13–32: Described as a parable (mathal, v.13), but in outline very similar to the punishment-narratives. The messengers (two of them, reinforced with a third) and the town in which they preach are anonymous. ‘A man from the furthest part of the city’ (v.20) exhorts his people to follow the messengers.}}

== Contradiction ==
The order in Surah 2 has the Jews struck by a lightening bolt after they worship the golden calf, who are then forgiven by Allah by being resurrected.
{{Quote|{{Quran|2|50-67}}|And when We parted the sea with you, and We delivered you and drowned Pharaoh’s clan as you looked on. 
And when We made an appointment with Moses for forty nights, you took up the Calf [for worship] in his absence, and you were wrongdoers. 
Then We excused you after that so that you might give thanks. 
And when We gave Moses the Book and the Criterion so that you might be guided. 
And [recall] when Moses said to his people, ‘O my people! You have indeed wronged yourselves by taking up the Calf [for worship]. Now turn penitently to your Maker, and slay [the guilty among] your folks. That will be better for you with your Maker.’ Then He turned to you clemently. Indeed, He is the All-clement, the All-merciful. 
And when you said, ‘O Moses, we will not believe you until we see Allah visibly.’ Thereupon a thunderbolt seized you as you looked on.
Then We raised you up after your death so that you might give thanks. /n
We shaded you with clouds, and sent down to you manna and quails [saying]: ‘Eat of the good things We have provided for you.’ And they did not wrong Us, but they used to wrong [only] themselves. 
And when We said, ‘Enter this town, and eat thereof freely whencesoever you wish, and enter while prostrating at the gate, and say, ‘‘Relieve [us of the burden of our sins],’’ so that We may forgive your iniquities and We will soon enhance the virtuous.’ 
But the wrongdoers changed the saying with other than what they were told. So We sent down on those who were wrongdoers a plague from the sky because of the transgressions they used to commit. 
And when Moses prayed for water for his people, We said, ‘Strike the rock with your staff.’ Thereat twelve fountains gushed forth from it; every tribe came to know its drinking-place. ‘Eat and drink of Allah’s provision, and do not act wickedly on the earth, causing corruption.’ 
And when you said, ‘O Moses, ‘We will not put up with one kind of food. So invoke your Lord for us, so that He may bring forth for us of that which the earth grows—its greens and cucumbers, its garlic, lentils, and onions.’ He said, ‘Do you seek to replace what is superior with that which is inferior? Go down to any town and you will indeed get what you ask for!’ So they were struck with abasement and poverty, and they earned Allah’s wrath. That, because they would deny the signs of Allah and kill the prophets unjustly. That, because they would disobey and commit transgressions. 
Indeed the faithful, the Jews, the Christians and the Sabaeans—those of them who have faith in Allah and the Last Day and act righteously—they shall have their reward from their Lord, and they will have no fear, nor will they grieve. 
And when We took a pledge from you, and raised the Mount above you, [declaring], ‘Hold on with power to what We have given you and remember that which is in it so that you may be Godwary.’ 
Again you turned away after that; and were it not for Allah’s grace on you and His mercy, you would have surely been among the losers. 
And certainly you know those of you who violated the Sabbath, whereupon We said to them, ‘Be you spurned apes.’ 
So We made it an exemplary punishment for the present and the succeeding [generations], and an advice to the Godwary.}}
In Surah 4 they are struck before they worship the calf. 4:153 specifically says 'then' ''(thumma)''

{{Quote|{{Quran|4|153-161}}|The People of the Book ask you to bring down for them a Book from the sky. Certainly they asked Moses for [something] greater than that, for they said, ‘Show us Allah visibly,’ whereat a thunderbolt seized them for their wrongdoing. Then they took up the Calf [for worship], after all the manifest proofs that had come to them. Yet We excused that, and We gave Moses a manifest authority. 
And We raised the Mount above them for the sake of their covenant, and We said to them, ‘Enter the gate prostrating’ and We said to them, ‘Do not violate the Sabbath,’ and We took from them a solemn covenant. 
Then because of their breaking their covenant, their defiance of Allah’s signs, their killing of the prophets unjustly and for their saying, ‘Our hearts are uncircumcised’… Indeed, Allah has set a seal on them for their unfaith, so they do not have faith except a few. 
And for their faithlessness, and their uttering a monstrous calumny against Mary, 
and for their saying, ‘We killed the Messiah, Jesus son of Mary, the apostle of Allah’—though they did not kill him nor did they crucify him, but so it was made to appear to them. Indeed those who differ concerning him are surely in doubt about him: they do not have any knowledge of that beyond following conjectures, and certainly, they did not kill him. 
Indeed, Allah raised him up toward Himself, and Allah is all-mighty, all-wise. 
There is none among the People of the Book but will surely believe in him before his death; and on the Day of Resurrection, he will be a witness against them. 
Due to the wrongdoing of the Jews, We prohibited them certain good things that were permitted to them [earlier], and for their barring many [people] from the way of Allah, 
and for their taking usury—though they had been forbidden from it—and for eating up the wealth of the people wrongfully. And We have prepared for the faithless among them a painful punishment. }}

=== V2 ===
Surah 4 (summarized version)

1) They ask Moses for a sign and are hit with a thunderbolt

2) They then take up the calf for worship

3) The mountain is raised above them{{Quote|{{Quran|4|153-154}}|The People of the Book ask you to bring down for them a Book from the sky. Certainly they asked Moses for [something] greater than that, for they said, ‘Show us Allah visibly,’ whereat a thunderbolt seized them for their wrongdoing. Then they took up the Calf [for worship], after all the manifest proofs that had come to them. Yet We excused that, and We gave Moses a manifest authority. 
And We raised the Mount above them for the sake of their covenant, and We said to them, ‘Enter the gate prostrating’ and We said to them, ‘Do not violate the Sabbath,’ and We took from them a solemn covenant.}}Surah 2
1) They worshiped the calf. And Moses tells them to slay the guilty among them.

2) They are hit by a thunderbolt - is it chronological?

3) ... a mountain is lifted above them
{{Quote|{{Quran|2|51-56}}|And when We made an appointment with Moses for forty nights, you took up the Calf [for worship] in his absence, and you were wrongdoers. 
Then We excused you after that so that you might give thanks. 
And when We gave Moses the Book and the Criterion so that you might be guided. 
And [recall] when Moses said to his people, ‘O my people! You have indeed wronged yourselves by taking up the Calf [for worship]. Now turn penitently to your Maker, and slay [the guilty among] your folks. That will be better for you with your Maker.’ Then He turned to you clemently. Indeed, He is the All-clement, the All-merciful. 
And when you said, ‘O Moses, we will not believe you until we see Allah visibly.’ Thereupon a thunderbolt seized you as you looked on.
Then We raised you up after your death so that you might give thanks.}}
== The Lote Tree of the utmost Boundary (Sid'rati al-Muntahā) ==
Lote tree's are a real type of tree (Ziziphus spina-christi) native to Arabia and the Middle East.<ref>[https://www.suewickison.com/products/lote-tree?srsltid=AfmBOorj_RU2x1OPxgfRe689M2TWw1g4uZTQLkpSolPGYnIatiIe7h6K Lote Tree | Sidr | Ziziphus spina-christi |] Plants of the Qur'an | Sue Wickison </ref> Different to the tree of eternity/immortality ''(shajarati ul-khul'di)'' in paradise ''jannah,'' the Qur'an mentions The Lote Tree (sidr) of ''the utmost boundary (al-muntahā)''<ref>مُنْتَهَىٰ - [https://lexicon.quranic-research.net/pdf/Page_3029.pdf Lane's Lexicon pp.3029]

</ref> near (but notably not in) the 'garden of abode', said to be 'covered' yaghshā by something unspecified in Q53:16, typically taken by exegetes to mean by angels, light and/or golden animals.<ref>E.g. see [https://quranx.com/Tafsirs/53.16 Tafsirs on Q53:16]</ref>

{{Quote|{{Quran|53|13-17}}|And certainly he saw him (in) descent another,
Near (the) Lote Tree (of) the utmost boundary,
Near it (is the) Garden (of) Abode.
when there covered the Lote Tree what covered it.
Not swerved the sight and not it transgressed.}}

This furthest boundary/limit is said in the hadith, to place the cosmic tree in the sixth heaven, where even celestial creatures cannot go beyond as the limit of creation; said to be seen by Muhammad in his Night Journey (mi’rāj) on the [[:en:Buraq|Buraq]] (E.g. {{Muslim|1|329}}, {{Al Tirmidhi|2=5|3=44|4=3276}}, {{Bukhari|5|58|227}} & {{Al Nasai|2=1|3=5|4=452}}), and by many Islamic exegetes.<ref>See [https://quranx.com/tafsirs/53.14 tafsirs on Q53:14]</ref>

This would align the cosmology of Islamic traditions supporting the idea that paradise (and therefore the garden of the abode) is in the seventh heaven,<ref>[https://islamqa.info/en/answers/215011/where-are-paradise-and-hell#Where_is_Paradise Where is Paradise] | [https://islamqa.info/en/answers/215011/where-are-paradise-and-hell Where Are Paradise and Hell?] | 07/January/2015 islamqa</ref> while some traditions support the idea that paradise is above the seventh heaven,<ref>[https://www.islamweb.net/en/fatwa/107126/the-location-of-paradise-now#:~:text=Paradise%20that%20Allaah%20promised%20for,are%20many%20texts%20proving%20this. The location of Paradise now] | Paradise and Hell | Belief in the Hereafter | Islamic Creed | Fatwa | islamweb.net </ref> both placing the tree relatively close to jannah. However others suggest that this specific ''garden of the abode (jannatu l-mawā)'' is a separate garden/paradise to the eternal one all righteous Muslims will eventually enter, being instead one where martyrs (those killed in war or for their religion) go before judgement day.<ref>E.g. see [https://quranx.com/Tafsirs/53.15 tafsirs on Q53:15]</ref>

Either way there is no evidence of a celestial tree, which must be magic to survive outside of an Earthly plant ecosystem, but is rather an example of tree mythology.
----
----

(See also: <nowiki>https://sunnah.com/mishkat:5865</nowiki> & https://sunnah.com/mishkat:5640, ) read; https://quranx.com/tafsirs/53.14 - exegetes also confirm this is where boundary is the boundary of the skies/heavens where things other than God cannot pass (at least until judgement day where paradise and hell can be entered).

AND Similarly seen next to the 4 main Near-East rivers (Nile, Euphratesm Tigres,) <nowiki>https://sunnah.com/bukhari:5610</nowiki>, which area said to flow from paradise: <nowiki>https://quranx.com/Hadith/Bukhari/USC-MSA/Volume-5/Book-58/Hadith-227/</nowiki> )

cite: [https://www.islamweb.net/en/fatwa/107126/the-location-of-paradise-now#:~:text=Paradise%20that%20Allaah%20promised%20for,are%20many%20texts%20proving%20this. https://www.islamweb.net/en/fatwa/107126/the-location-of-paradise-now#:~:text=Paradise%20that%20Allaah%20promised%20for,are%20many%20texts%20proving%20this.]

The utmost boundary at the end of t heavens confirmed by exegetes in https://quranx.com/tafsirs/53.14

" Jannat al-ma'va' literally means "the Jannat (Garden) that is to be an abode. " Hadrat Hasan Basri says that this is the same Jannat which the believers and righteous will be given in the Hereafter, and from this same verse he has argued that that Jannat is in the heavens. Qatadah says that this is the Jannat in which the souls of the martyrs are kept; it does not imply the Jannat that is to be given in the Hereafter. Ibn 'Abbas also says the same but adds that the Jannat to be granted to the believers in the Hereafter is not in the heavens but here on the earth.

== Parallels Between the Qur'an and Late Antique Judeo-Christian Literature - Part 2 ==
Following on from [[Parallels Between the Qur'an and Late Antique Judeo-Christian Literature|Part 1]], this is Part 2 of Late Antique Judeo-Christian Literature found in the Qur'an. This material, drawing heavily on rabbinical commentaries on the bible, and late Syriac Christian thought found in homilies, was created far later than the biblical cannon; no-where near the time of the events that occurred. This suggests the stories were transmitted in an oral millennia along with local Arabian traditions<ref>Bannister, Andrew G.. ''An Oral-Formulaic Study of the Qur'an (Kindle Location 249-259 in Chapter 1.2 The Biblicist Roots of the Iblis and Adam Story).'' Bloomsbury Publishing. Kindle Edition.

..When the Qur’an emerged in the seventh-century, it did so in an oral culture in which Biblicist traditions were freely circulating and thus there existed a large pool of commonly known stories and traditions to fish from; a pool in which stories could cross-fertilize and influence one another. 23 It is this, more than direct borrowing that perhaps best explains stories like Iblis and Adam as well as other qur’anic tellings of older tales, such as the Seven Sleepers (Q. 18: 9– 25) 24 and the Legend of Alexander (Dhu al-Qarnayn, Q. 18: 83– 101). 25 The Qur’an originates from a milieu in which Biblicist material was well-known to the first audience of the Qur’an; even a simple allusion to a story was often enough to trigger a connection for the hearer. 26 That Biblicist material has been filtered through storytelling rather than simply copied from a written text is further suggested by what the Qur’an leaves out; no minor prophets are referenced, probably because almost no Old Testament narratives feature them nor did the rabbinic literature weave lengthy tales about them. 27 The exception which proves the rule is Jonah (Q. 21: 87– 88; 37: 139– 148; 68: 48– 50), whose short but dramatic story was extremely popular in both Jewish and Christian contexts.28..

And: Bannister, Andrew G.. ''An Oral-Formulaic Study of the Qur'an (Kindle Locations 1391-1392. Chapter 2.3 The Islamic Tradition and Orality).'' Bloomsbury Publishing. Kindle Edition.</ref> where biblical and much later Jewish and Christian stories could be commonly mixed without the new community realizing.
== The story of Noah ==
The prophet Noah is portrayed extremely differently to the one in Genesis,<ref>Segovia, Carlos A.. ''[https://almuslih.org/wp-content/uploads/2024/12/Segovia-C-The-Quranic-Noah-and-the-Making-of-the-Islamic-Prophet.pdf The Quranic Noah and the Making of the Islamic Prophet: A Study of Intertextuality and Religious Identity Formation in Late Antiquity]'', Berlin, München, Boston: De Gruyter, 2015. <nowiki>https://doi.org/10.1515/9783110405897</nowiki></ref> taking on Jewish and Christian traditions, characteristics, as well as terms from late antique Judeo-Christian writings,<ref>The Qur'anic Noah. pp.21-21</ref> molded to suit Muhammad's situation in line with other messengers in the Qur'an.<ref>''The Qurʾan and its Biblical Reflexes: Investigations into the Genesis of a Religion. Chapter 5.3 Messenger Uniformatism. pp.135-143'' By Mark Durie. Lanham, MD: Lexington Books, 2018. </ref>

=== The preaching of Noah ===

Surah 71 consists entirely of the preaching of Noah and his supplications to Allah.{{Quote|{{Quran-range|71|1|28}}|Indeed, We sent Noah to his people, [saying], "Warn your people before there comes to them a painful punishment." He said, "O my people, indeed I am to you a clear warner, [Saying], 'Worship Allah, fear Him and obey me. Allah will forgive you of your sins and delay you for a specified term. Indeed, the time [set by] Allah, when it comes, will not be delayed, if you only knew.' " 
[...]
And Noah said, "My Lord, do not leave upon the earth from among the disbelievers an inhabitant. Indeed, if You leave them, they will mislead Your servants and not beget except [every] wicked one and [confirmed] disbeliever. My Lord, forgive me and my parents and whoever enters my house a believer and the believing men and believing women. And do not increase the wrongdoers except in destruction."}}Reynolds remarks that "The Qur'ānic character of Noah is quite unlike that of the Noah in Genesis, who does not speak a word until after the flood." Citing the Babylonian Talmud, Sanhedrin 108a, he observes that "[his preaching] is also suggested by a passage in the Talmud:
::"The righteous Noah rebuked them, urging, 'Repent; for if not, the Holy One, blessed be He, will bring a deluge upon you and cause your bodies to float upon the water like gourds, as it is written, He is light [i.e., floats] upon the waters. Moreover, ye shall be taken as a curse for all future generations.' (b. Sanhedrin 108a)"
Reynolds further notes, "It is also prominent in the Syriac fathers, several of whom report that Noah preached to his people for a hundred years before God finally sent the flood." citing for example the Syriac authors Narsai, "On the Flood", 33, II. 227-30 and Jacob of Serugh, ''Homilies contre les juifs'', 70, homily 2, II. 37-40.<ref>Gabriel Said Reynolds, ''The Qurʾān and Bible'' p. 858</ref>

The opponents reject Noah's preaching despite him doing so 'day and night' (Quran 71:5-6) in which they respond by putting their fingers in their ears Quran 71:7, on which Neuwirth (2024) notes that "the means of plugging one’s ears in order to shut oneself off from unpleasant news is also encountered in the Talmud (bKetubbot 5a)."<ref>Neuwirth, Angelika. The Qur'an: Text and Commentary, ''Volume 2.1: Early Middle Meccan Suras: The New Elect (p. 280).'' Yale University Press. Kindle Edition.</ref>

=== Noah's disbelieving wife ===
{{Quote|{{Quran|66|10}}|Allah presents an example of those who disbelieved: the wife of Noah and the wife of Lot. They were under two of Our righteous servants but betrayed them, so those prophets did not avail them from Allah at all, and it was said, "Enter the Fire with those who enter."}}The Bible briefly mentions Noah's wife in one verse without further comment ([https://www.biblegateway.com/passage/?search=Genesis%207%3A7&version=NIV Genesis 7:7]), "And Noah and his sons and his wife and his sons’ wives entered the ark to escape the waters of the flood." Regarding the Quranic verse which speaks of her negatively, Reynolds briefly considers the possibility that the Quran has extended to their wives the parallelism between Noah (though not his wife) and Lot found in the New Testament ([https://www.biblegateway.com/passage/?search=2%20Peter%202&version=NIV 2 Peter 2]), but then comments, "However, it is important to note that already in the pre-Islamic period certain groups had developed hostile legends about Noah's wife." He cites Epiphanius (d. 403 CE), ''Panarion'' 2:26, which relates the Gnostic belief that she was not allowed onto the ark, having burned it down three times before the flood.<ref>Gabriel Said Reynolds, ''The Qurʾān and Bible'' p. 841</ref>

=== Noah's flood waters overflowed from an oven ===
The Qur'anic version of the Noah's flood story describes the flood waters as overflowing from an oven. This element is not found even in more ancient versions of the story (Epic of Gilgamesh, Atra hasis, and Ziusudra).

Note that in his translation, Yusuf Ali mistranslates the Aramaic loan word for the oven (alttannooru ٱلتَّنُّورُ)<ref>[http://www.studyquran.org/LaneLexicon/Volume1/00000355.pdf Lane's Lexicon p. 318 تَّنُّورُ]</ref> as "fountains". The Arabic verb translated "gushed forth" (fara فَارَ) means overflowed or boiled in the context of water in a cooking pot<ref>[http://www.studyquran.org/LaneLexicon/Volume6/00000241.pdf Lane's Lexicon p. 2457 فور]</ref>, as well as in the other verse where it is used, {{Quran|67|7}}. Here is Pickthall's more accurate translation:{{Quote|{{Quran|11|40}}|
(Thus it was) till, when Our commandment came to pass '''and the oven gushed forth water''', We said: Load therein two of every kind, a pair (the male and female), and thy household, save him against whom the word hath gone forth already, and those who believe. And but a few were they who believed with him.}}{{Quote|{{Quran|23|27}}|
Then We inspired in him, saying: Make the ship under Our eyes and Our inspiration. Then, when Our command cometh '''and the oven gusheth water''', introduce therein of every (kind) two spouses, and thy household save him thereof against whom the Word hath already gone forth. And plead not with Me on behalf of those who have done wrong. Lo! they will be drowned.}}At one time academic scholars thought this verse alluded to a Midrashic exegesis in which the flood waters were boiling hot (b. Sanhedrin 108b, [https://www.sefaria.org/Rosh_Hashanah.12a.4?lang=bi|Tracate Rosh Hashanah 12a:4]). More recent scholarship, particularly by Olivier Mongellaz in 2024,<ref name="Mongellaz2024">Olivier Mongellaz (2024) [https://brill.com/view/journals/arab/71/4-5/article-p513_4.xml Le four de Noé : un cas d’intertextualité coranique], Arabica 71(4-5), 513-637. https://doi.org/10.1163/15700585-20246900</ref> has identified that these verses most likely reflect a late antique legend in which water gushing up through a bread oven (a large hole dug into the ground) was a sign warning Noah's family of the imminent flood. The interpretation as Noah's own oven is attributed to a number of early commentators (such as Ibn Abbas, Mujahid), while others understood it to be the area of land where the flood waters first rose. Qurtubi said: "The sayings of commentators appear to be different as to the meaning of tannur, but this, in reality, is not a difference. When water began to bulge out, it overflowed from the bread baking oven, and from out of the surface of the land".

Significantly, Mongellaz has argued on literary grounds that a fragmentary Arabic text falsely attributed to Hippolytus of Rome, and which mentions the overflowing bread oven story, is independent of the Islamic tradition and was originally written in a very specific environment which has parallels with the context in which certain parts of the Quran were written.{{Quote|Pseudo. Hippolytus of Rome (translated to English from Mongellaz's French translation)<ref name="Mongellaz2024" />|Meanwhile, Ham's wife stood up to take out the bread that remained in the oven and immediately water sprang out of the oven [fāḍa l-māʾmin al-tannūr] and immediately water came out of the oven, as the Lord had said: "The fountains of the great deeps were opened." Ham's wife called to Noah, saying, "My lord, the word of God has come true (Syr. what God promised has come true!)" - for it had come true just as the Lord had promised her. When Noah heard Ham's wife's words, he said to her, "Oh, the flood has come."}}

=== Noah's ark left behind as a sign ===
{{Quote|{{Quran-range|54|13|15}}|And We carried him on a [construction of] planks and nails, Sailing under Our observation as reward for he who had been denied. And We left it as a sign, so is there any who will remember?}}Unlike the bible, which does not mention the ark as a sign for future generations, Neuwirth (2024) notes the salvation of Noah is made physically plausible to the listeners through the reference to the material verifiability of the ark, which could be taken from various late antique traditions, for example Flavius Josephus (b. 37AD) reports in the ''Jewish Antiquities (I 3.5 § 92)'' of the existence of the remains of Noah’s ark in Armenia (Clementz 1959: 22).<ref name=":0">Neuwirth, Angelika. ''The Qur'an: Text and Commentary, Volume 2.1: Early Middle Meccan Suras: The New Elect (p. 62).'' Yale University Press. Kindle Edition.</ref> She also notes that the appeal to the willingness of the listeners to be admonished by the sign (āya) of Noah’s ark is also reminiscent of the Talmudic story (bSanhedrin 96a) of the death of Sennacherib, who was led to a fateful decision by seeing the remains of Noah’s ark.<ref name=":0" />
==Moses and Pharaoh==
Alongside the biblical account of Moses and the Pharoah, there are some key aspects that match Jewish Rabbinic and Christian non-biblical traditions. Even the place where Moses communicates with God in the story of the burning bush, the word used ''ṭuwan'' in e.g. {{Quran|20|12}} (for the folded land, implying double the holiness)<ref>See; Neuwirth, Angelika. ''The Qur'an: Text and Commentary, Volume 2.1: Early Middle Meccan Suras: The New Elect (p. 199).'' Yale University Press. Kindle Edition. Ṭuwā stands for the holy Mount Sinai or Horeb (cf. KU, 124ff.; FVQ, 206ff.; BEQ, 255ff.). The word was long thought to be a rhyming transformation of Aramaic ṭūrā (“the mountain”), but now, based on rabbinic tradition and in agreement with traditional exegetes, Uri Rubin has convincingly interpreted bi-l-wādī l-muqaddasi Ṭuwā to mean “in the doubly hallowed valley” (see Rubin 2014). (The Sinai is in a sense the “folded Holy Land” [ṬWY = “to fold”].) Citing: Rubin, Uri, 2014, ''[https://urirubin.com/assets/docs/Tuwan.86132451.pdf Moses and the Holy Valley Ṭuwan. On the Biblical and Midrashic Background of a Qurʾanic Scene],'' Journal of Near Eastern Studies 73, 73–81.</ref> does not have a parallel in the bible,<ref>''[https://urirubin.com/assets/docs/Tuwan.86132451.pdf Moses and the Holy Valley Ṭuwan: On the biblical and midrashic background of a qurʾānic scene.]'' Rubin 2014. Ibid. pp. 75.</ref> but does in other Judeo-Christian (later) works.<ref>Ibid. pp. 76-78</ref> And the idea of eschatology in Moses's story such as {{Quran|20|15}}, with reward in the afterlife being mentioned, is not contained in the biblical story of Moses, Neuwirth (2024) notes moves the story into a late antiquity interpretation.<ref>Neuwirth, Angelika. ''The Qur'an: Text and Commentary, Volume 2.1: Early Middle Meccan Suras: The New Elect (p. 199).'' Yale University Press. Kindle Edition.</ref> Key details in the stories include:
===The prophecy of baby Moses===
Alongside the scene of [https://www.biblegateway.com/passage/?search=Exodus%201%3A8-2%3A10&version=NIV Exodus 1:8-2:10] where the Hebrews in Egyptian bondage are told to kill all male babies to control the growing Israelite population, where Moses's mother places his basket in the Nile to escape; Neuwirth (2024) citing Speyer, notes that ''the prophecy to Moses’s mother that an enemy—of Moses as well as of God himself—would take him in reflects a Midrashic interpretation of Exodus Rabba (1:31: “So the daughter of Pharaoh raised the daughter, who was once to take revenge on her father”). The event is explicitly based on a divine intention, namely, to make Moses his chosen one.''<ref>''The Qur'an: Text and Commentary, Volume 2.1: Early Middle Meccan Suras: The New Elect'' Ibid. pp. 201.</ref>{{Quote|{{Quran-range|20|37|39}}|We have bestowed Our favour on you before this, When We told your mother what We relate: 'Put him in a wooden box and cast it in the river. The river will cast it on the bank. An enemy of Ours, and his, will retrieve it.' We bestowed Our love on you that you may be reared under Our eyes.}}And similarly the next verse unlike the bible focuses on the emotional impact of the event on Moses’s mother, Neuwirth notes is comparable to Midrash Exodus Rabba 1:25.<ref>Ibid. pp. 201-202.</ref> Moses's salvation from persecution after manslaughter is commemorated with similar consideration of Moses’s mental condition.<ref>Ibid. pp. 202.</ref>{{Quote|{{Quran|20|40}}|When your sister walked up [to Pharaoh’s palace] saying, “Shall I show you someone who will take care of him?” Then We restored you to your mother, that she might not grieve and be comforted. Then you slew a soul, whereupon We delivered you from anguish, and We tried you with various ordeals. Then you stayed for several years among the people of Midian. Then you turned up as ordained, O Moses!}}
===Moses not suckled by Egyptians===
{{Quote|{{Quran-range|28|12|13}}|And We had prevented from him [all] wet nurses before, so she said, "Shall I direct you to a household that will be responsible for him for you while they are to him [for his upbringing] sincere?" So We restored him to his mother that she might be content and not grieve and that she would know that the promise of Allah is true. But most of the people do not know.}}Reynolds comments, "On this passage cf. Exodus 2:7-9. The Qurʾān's declaration (v. 12) 'We had forbidden him to be suckled by any nurse' (v. 12) reflects a tradition in the Babylonian Talmud that Moses (from whose mouth would come forth the word of God) refused the impure breasts of the Egyptian women:
::Then said his sister to Pharaoh's daughter, Shall I go and call thee a nurse of the Hebrew women? Why just 'of the Hebrew women'? - It teaches that they handed about to all the Egyptian women but he would not suck. He said: Shall a mouth which will speak with [God] suck what is unclean! (b. Sotah 12b)"<ref>Gabriel Said Reynolds, ''The Qurʾān and Bible'' p. 598</ref>
===Moses's speech impediment===
Moses has some kind of speech impediment when going to speak to Pharaoh in the Qurʾān.{{Quote|{{Quran-range|20|24|28}}|"Go to Pharaoh. Indeed, he has transgressed."( Moses) said: "O, my Lord! Expand me my breast,” ease my task for me, And untie the knot from my tongue, so they may understand what I say.”}}Biblical Scholar James Kugel (1997)<ref>Kugel, James L.. The Bible As It Was (Kindle Edition. pp. 432-433). Harvard University Press.</ref> notes that later Jewish and Christian commentators found it necessary to explain Moses's statement in the Old Testament “''Oh my Lord, I am not a man of words … but I am heavy of speech and heavy of tongue''” ([https://www.biblegateway.com/passage/?search=Exodus%204%3A10&version=NIV Exodus 4:10]), as he was believed to be a highly educated man who had been supposedly been schooled in every branch of wisdom, including eloquence.

He notes "it occurred to interpreters that Moses might have been referring here not to any lacuna in his education, but to an actual speech defect, some physical deformity of his mouth or tongue that prevented him from speaking in the usual fashion." We see this in:<ref>Ibid. pp. 432 - 433 (Kindle Edition)</ref>

"''I'' ''am not by nature eloquent; my tongue with difficulty speaks, I stammer, so that I cannot speak before the king."'' —Ezekiel the Tragedian, Exaggē 113– 115 (3rd-2nd century BCE)

''He [Moses] pleased his parents by his beauty, but grieved them by his speech impediment. —''Ephraem, Commentary on Exodus 2: 4 (d. 373 AD)

Others even added stories on how he might have acquired that deformity, such as Josephus in Jewish Antiquities 2: 232– 236 (published ~93/94 AD), connecting their explanation of Moses’ speech problems to the tradition of Pharaoh’s wise men and their warnings about a boy that might grow up and save Israel.<ref>Ibid. pp. 433 - 434 (Kindle Edition)</ref>
===Pharaohs questions===
Neuwirth (2024) comments that the list of further detailed questions to Moses in Surah 26 'The Poets' / al-shuʿarāʾ (i.e. in {{Quran-range|26|22|29}}), citing Speyer, reflect a more detailed episode from Midrash Exodus Rabba 5:18, which also starts from Pharaoh’s self-praise as God.<ref>Neuwirth, Angelika. ''The Qur'an: Text and Commentary, Volume 2.1: Early Middle Meccan Suras: The New Elect (p. 250).'' Yale University Press. Kindle Edition.</ref>
===The Drowning of Pharaoh===
{{Quote|{{Quran-range|10|90|92}}|And We took the Children of Israel across the sea, and Pharaoh and his soldiers pursued them in tyranny and enmity until, when drowning overtook him, he said, "I believe that there is no deity except that in whom the Children of Israel believe, and I am of the Muslims." Now? And you had disobeyed [Him] before and were of the corrupters? So today We will save you in body that you may be to those who succeed you a sign. And indeed, many among the people, of Our signs, are heedless}}Reynolds comments, "The question of Pharaoh's survival appears in an opinion found in the (late fourth century AD) ''Mekilta de-Rabbi Ishmael'' (cr. Gavin McDowell):
::"And the waters returned and covered the chariot etc. [Exo 14:27]. Even Pharaoh, according to the words of R. Judah, as it is said, 'The chariots of Pharaoh and his force, etc.' [Exo 15:4]. R. Nehimiah says: ''Except for Pharaoh.'' About him it says, 'However, for this purpose I have let you live' [Exo 9:16]. Others say that in the end Pharaoh went down and drowned, as it is said, 'Then went the horse of Pharaoh, etc.' [Exo 15:19]. (Beshallah 7)"<ref>Gabriel Said Reynolds, ''The Qurʾān and Bible'' p. 339</ref>
==Arguments for resurrection==
Reynolds (2020) notes the repeated argument that God can resurrect the dead using the analogy that he can bring life back to barren (or dead) land may be connected to a Jewish tradition that God will resurrect the dead with dew, for example, in b. Shabbat 88b.<ref name=":2" />
{{Quote|{{Quran|30|19}}|He brings forth the living from the dead, and brings forth the dead from the living, and revives the earth after its death. Likewise, you [too] shall be raised [from the dead].}}

Cf: {{Quran|16|65}}, {{Quran|43|11}}, {{Quran|50|6-11}}, {{Quran|57|17}}
==Late antique Christian Martyrdom==
{{Main|Shaheed (Martyr)}}
Durie (2018) notes the violence of the Qur'an shares more commonality with contemporary late antique religious (primarily Christian) violence and warfare rather than being directly biblically based.<ref>Durie, Mark. ''The Qur’an and Its Biblical Reflexes: Investigations into the Genesis of a Religion.'' Lexington Books. 2018. Pp. 229 -237. (Kindle Edition: pp. 423-439). 6.9 Stories of Fighting Prophets</ref>

=== Textual overlap ===

Covering the continuity and similarities between late antique religious violence & warfare and the Qur'an (and other Islamic traditions) is too big a topic to cover here; perhaps the most in-depth academic work looking at the continuity between this and Islam is Thomas Sizgorich's ''Violence and Belief in Late Antiquity: Militant Devotion in Christianity and Islam'', however Sinai (2017) notes alongside similar ideas and theology, there are some direct textual references.{{Quote|Sinai, Nicolai. Qur'an: A Historical-Critical Introduction (The New Edinburgh Islamic Surveys) (pp. 301-302). Edinburgh University Press. Kindle Edition.|That the Qur’anic community’s access to Biblical notions of militancy was mediated by late antique Christian discourse is indicated by an intriguing intertextual overlap. According to Q 3: 169–170, those who have been ‘killed in the path of God’ are not dead but ‘alive with their Lord’, rather than having to spend the remaining time until the Resurrection in a state of slumber (similarly Q 2: 154).39 Tor Andrae has pointed out that the phrase ‘alive with their Lord’ (ayāun inda rabbihim) corresponds exactly to the Syriac phrase h. ayyē lwāth alāhā, which a sixth-century Syriac Christian writer (Mar Ishay) applies to the martyrs.40 Furthermore, Mar Ishay contrasts the true fate of the martyrs with unfounded prior opinion: ‘they are believed to be already dead’.41 The same contrast is found in the two Qur’anic passages just cited.42 It could be objected that the parallel demonstrates merely that the Qur’an is familiar with the widespread Christian idea that martyrs are granted prompt access to paradise but that this does not establish a Christian precedent for the Qur’anic application of this idea specifically to those who actively enact – rather than just suffer – violence. However, as Sizgorich reminds us, a Christian martyr was by no means seen merely as a passive victim of persecution but rather as someone who actively ‘defeats the power of the Roman state’.43}}{{Quote|{{Quran|3|169}}|And never think of those who have been killed in the cause of Allah as dead. Rather, they are alive with their Lord, receiving provision}}{{Quote|{{Quran|2|154}}|Do not say that those who are killed in the way of God, are dead, for indeed they are alive, even though you are not aware.}}

=== Martyrs sidestep judgement day ===
After death, humans are typically said to spend their time in an intermediate state known to traditional Islamic scholars as the ''barzakh'' while they wait.<ref>Reynolds, Gabriel Said. 2020. ''Allah:'' ''God in the Qur'an (p. 71-72).'' Yale University Press. Kindle Edition.

It is also the same term used for the barrier between the living and the dead (whilst awaiting judgement day) in the Qur'an, e.g. {{Quran|23|99-100}}</ref> However, as in the above verses, one exception to this rule is Martyrs being with God straight away rather than being judged at judgment day, a non-biblical idea having parallels with late antique Christian thought.

Sinai (2017) similarly notes strong ideological parallels a 6th century hagiographical text (the Panegyric on Macarius, Bishop of Tkow by Pseudo-Dioscorus of Alexandria) of a 5th-century martyr, Egyptian Bishop Macarius of Tkow who was martyred for opposing the council of Chalcedon. Citing Michael Gaddis's summary of the document, ‘He was both willing to die for his faith, and willing to kill for it.’ he notes the same idea in {{Quran|9|111}} … they fight in the way of Allah, kill, and are killed.. <ref>Ibid. (Kindle Edition. pp. 299).</ref> As well as citing English historian of the Byzantine Empire James Howard-Johnston "''..James Howard-Johnston draws attention to a passage in the Chronicle of Theophanes Confessor (d. 818), which reports that at about the same time when the Qur’an promised those ‘killed in the path of God’ immediate entry to paradise, the Byzantine emperor Heraclius similarly announced that those fighting the Sasanians would be recompensed with eternal life. In Heraclius’s address as reported by Theophanes Confessor, we find some of the same general ingredients that are noticeable in Qur’anic calls to militancy…''"<ref>Ibid. (Kindle Edition. pp. 301).</ref> He notes these similarities are likely caused by being on the fringes of the Roman empire.<ref>Ibid. (Kindle Edition. pp. 301).</ref>

==== Martyrdom wipes away other sins and is privileged above other acts from believers ====
{{Quote|Reynolds, Gabriel Said. Christianity and the Qur'an: The Rise of Islam in Christian Arabia (pp. 178-179). Yale University Press. Kindle Edition.|The teaching on the glory earned by martyrs is widespread in the early church. It is nevertheless telling to find the way it is emphasized in the third-century Christian text the aforementioned Didascalia Apostolorum, originally written in Greek but preserved in Syriac.87 The Didascalia clearly teaches that the martyrs will have a privilege above other faithful believers: If then He raises up all men,—as He said by Isaiah: All flesh shall see the salvation of God [Isa 40.5; 52.10],—much more will He quicken and raise up the faithful; and (yet more) again will He quicken and raise up the faithful of the faithful, who are the martyrs, and establish them in great glory and make them His counsellors. For to mere disciples, those who believe in Him, He has promised a glory as of the stars [Dan 12.3]; but to the martyrs He has promised to give an everlasting glory, as of the luminaries which fail not, with more abundant light, that they may be shining for all time.88

The Didascalia is also clear, as is the Qur’an, that martyrs enjoy a special grace through the forgiveness of sins that their deaths have earned for them: But again, sins are forgiven by baptism also to those who from the Gentiles draw near and enter the holy Church of God. Let us inquire also, to whom sins are not imputed. To such as Abraham and Isaac and Jacob and all the patriarchs, as also to the martyrs. Let us hear then, brethren, for the Scripture saith: Who shall boast himself and say: I am clear of sins? Or who shall be confident and say: I am innocent? [Prov 20.9].

And again: There is no man pure of defilement: not though his life be but one day [Job 14.4–5 LXX]. To everyone therefore who believes and is baptized his … former sins have been forgiven; but after baptism also, provided that he has not sinned a deadly sin nor been an accomplice (thereto), but has heard only, or seen, or spoken, and is thus guilty of sin. But if a man go forth from the world by martyrdom for the name of the Lord, blessed is he; for brethren who by martyrdom have gone forth from this world, of these the sins are covered.89

We might compare Q 3:195: “ ‘And those who emigrated, and were expelled from their habitations, those who suffered hurt in My way, and fought, and were slain—them I shall surely acquit of their evil deeds, and I shall admit them to gardens underneath which rivers flow.’ A reward from God! And God with Him is the fairest reward” (italics added). In other words, the Qur’an seems to be well aware of Christian devotion to the martyrs.}}

=== Martyrdom in the Torah and Gospels ===
Muslims who fight are promised paradise, which the Qur'an claims is also a promise in the Torah and Gospel.{{Quote|{{Quran|9|111}}|Indeed Allah has bought from the faithful their souls and their possessions for paradise to be theirs: they fight in the way of Allah, kill, and are killed. A promise binding upon Him in the Torah and the Evangel and the Quran. And who is truer to his promise than Allah? So rejoice in the bargain you have made with Him, and that is the great success.}}Nickel (2020)<ref>Nickel, Gordon D. ''The Quran with Christian Commentary: A Guide to Understanding the Scripture of Islam (p. 222).'' Zondervan Academic. Kindle Edition. 9.111 – They fight in the way of God, and they kill and are killed When the Quran describes believers as fighting “in the way of Allah,” it makes a theological claim by associating Allah with human fighting. See the analysis of these expressions at 73.20 (p. 597). 9.111 – a promise binding on Him in the Torah, and the Gospel, and the Qur’ān This is the only verse in the Quran that brings the Torah (tawrāt), Gospel (injīl), and qur’ān (lit. “recitation”) together. The Quran claims here that the particular point on which the Torah and Gospel agree with the Muslim recitation is that believers “fight in the way of Allah, and they kill and are killed.” This verse makes the reader question whether the Quran has a clear idea of the contents of the Torah and Gospel. A similar question is raised by 61.14, which appears to say that ‘Īsā and his disciples fought against their enemies (cf. 3.52). Along with these misunderstandings, the Quran gives no information about the peaceable teaching and example of Jesus in the Gospel accounts. See the analysis of the Quran’s verses on the “Gospel” at 57.27 (p. 549). Do the Torah and Gospel in fact contain such a promise? See the comment on this characterization of the Bible at 61.14 (p. 566).</ref> and Reynolds (2018) however notes that this is not found there:{{Quote|1=Reynolds, G. S. (2018). The Qur'an and the Bible: Text and Commentary. Commentary on 9:111 (pp. 322) United Kingdom: Yale University Press.|2="9:111 The point of this verse is that those who are prepared to give their lives to God in the holy war are promised paradise as a payment for their services (cf. 2:245; 4:74; 61:10–12). The idea that the martyrs have a special assurance of paradise follows from the Qurʾān’s teaching elsewhere that the act of martyrdom involves forgiveness of sin. This teaching is close to that of the Syriac fathers (see commentary on 2:154, with further references). It is curious that the Qurʾān insists that the promise of heaven for holy warriors is found in the Torah and the Gospel (or “Evangel”); heaven is not found in the Torah and holy war is not found in the Gospels...}}While his commentary on 2:154 (pp. 76) once again highlights the Syriac parallel:{{Quote|2="As Tor Andrae has shown (Les origines de l’islam et le christianisme, 161ff.), the idea that martyrdom involves the absolution of sins is prominent in Syriac Christian texts such as the third-century Didascalia (chap. 20) and the Treaty on the Martyrs of Mar Isaï (d. late sixth cen.); the latter text also insists—much like the Qurʾān—that the martyrs are “living”:

The true martyrs who, by way of a death that covers their sins, demonstrate even more the beauty of their deeds and receive this glorious inheritance by virtue of their blood. By leaving this life they have prepared for their souls an honorable abode in paradise. It was thought that they are already dead, but by their death they have killed their sin, and they are alive with God. (Mar Isaï, Treaty on the Martyrs, 32)}}
=== Further Martyrdom Influence ===
Neuwirth (2024) also notes the influence of Christian martyrdom stories on the sudden conversion and prayers/asking for forgiveness to God of Pharaoh's magician's, who are originally opponents of Moses until he shows them proof of his prophecy via a miracle in the face of a sudden and violent death as threatened by the arrogant ruler (e.g. in {{Quran-range|26|50|51}} and {{Quran-range|20|71|73}}).<ref>Neuwirth, Angelika. ''The Qur'an: Text and Commentary, Volume 2.1: Early Middle Meccan Suras: The New Elect (p. 204).'' Yale University Press. Kindle Edition.</ref> Both Jewish and Christian traditions present individual “anti-Moses” sorcerers named Jannes and Jambres, who continue to appear in later interpretations; citing Nora Schmid, she notes that, although there is no explicit textual reference and the magicians are typically depicted in a negative light, they came to be associated with penance and martyrdom in Christian tradition - in the Qurʾan, this idea is developed further: the forgiveness that Jannes and Jambres either did not receive or only partially received in earlier sources is ultimately granted.<ref>Ibid. pp. 251-252</ref>{{Quote|Neuwirth, Angelika. The Qur'an: Text and Commentary, Volume 2.1: Early Middle Meccan Suras: The New Elect (p. 204). Yale University Press. Kindle Edition.|V. 72–73 qālū lan nuʾthiraka ʿalā mā jāʾanā mina l-bayyināti wa-lladhī faṭaranā fa-qḍi mā anta qāḍin innamā taqḍī hādhihi l-ḥayāta l-dunyā / innā āmannā birabbinā li-yaghfira lanā khaṭāyānā wa-mā akrahtanā ʿalayhi mina l-siḥri wallāhu khayrun wa-abqā] Conversion scene as later in Q 26:50–51. The sorcerers renounce their allegiance to Pharaoh on the basis of the obvious evidence (bayyināt) and give preference to the Creator God, they submit to their worldly fate and hope for the forgiveness of their sins and what they have been forced to do by the ruler—they are a role model for the community, which is also subject to pressure from outside. The request for forgiveness of sins before a violent death is a topos of Christian martyr stories. The entire scene, leaving the context of ‘ancient’ Egypt, reflects the notion of Christian martyrdom stories. Khaṭāyā (singular khaṭīʾa) also lets a Syriac terminus technicus ring through, but the word can be derived from the Arabic root KhṬʿ (“to miss a goal”) (see FVQ, 123ff.). The idea of the forgiveness of sins is prominent in the Christian liturgy—not only through the Lord’s Prayer. In addition to khaṭīʾa, there is the genuine Arabic dhanb, dhunūb.}}

== Expansions on the afterlife ==

Reynolds (2020) notes the Qur’ans provides vivid depictions of hell are highly unlike the New Testament, where Jesus refers to afterlife punishment mostly allusively. The closest the Gospels describe hell is through the few images of “fire,” “wailing,” and “gnashing of teeth.”, for example in Matthew’s Parable of the Weeds, Jesus explains that at the end of the age, the Son of Man will send his angels that will cast evildoers into a fiery furnace where there will be weeping and gnashing of teeth (Matt 13:40–42).<ref>Reynolds, Gabriel Said. ''Allah: God in the Qur'an (pp. 81-82).'' Yale University Press. Kindle Edition.</ref> He notes the much more constant an vivid Qur'anic descriptions far better match later Christian works that expanded the descriptions to be more gruesome, in order to scare the reader/audience.<ref>Ibid. pp. 88.

''We might note how all of these traditions are meant to make humans yearn for paradise and fear hell. The Qur’an, from this regard, is a profoundly psychological work. Like a Christian preacher, like John Chrysostom or Saint Ephrem, the author of the Qur’an speaks of heaven and hell to persuade his audience to repent and believe. He does so in a way, however, that is distinct—emphasizing physical pain and physical pleasure in order, apparently, to make a greater impression on his audience. He puts a terrible tree into hell and young women in paradise.''
</ref>{{Quote|Reynolds, Gabriel Said. Allah: God in the Qur'an (pp. 82-83). Yale University Press. Kindle Edition.|The way that the Qur’an describes hell in particularly vivid, gruesome terms brings us back to something we mentioned in Chapter 1, namely, that the Qur’an in many ways is a “homiletic” work, a work written like a homily or sermon. The Qur’an’s intention is not simply to declare that those who disobey God will be punished, but to describe that punishment in a way which brings the awfulness of hell to life. Similarly, homilists in the early centuries of Christianity expanded dramatically on the New Testament allusions to hell. In a sermon attributed to John Chrysostom (d. 407) we read a description of hell with the sort of detail that we find in the Qur’an: It is a sea of fire—not a sea of the kind or dimensions we know here, but much larger and fiercer, with waves made of fire, fire of a strange and fearsome kind. There is a great abyss there, in fact, of terrible flames, and one can see fire rushing about on all sides like some wild animal…. There will be no one who can resist, no one who can escape: Christ’s gentle, peaceful face will be nowhere to be seen.15}}Sinai (2017) in his paper titled "''The Eschatological Kerygma of the Early Qur’an''" notes many overlap with Syriac Homilies on the afterlife as well as other apocalyptic ideas and terminology.<ref>“[https://almuslih.org/wp-content/uploads/Library/Sinai,%20N%20-%20The%20Eschatological%20Kerygma.pdf The Eschatological Kerygma of the Early Qur’an]”, Nicolai Sinai, in ''Apocalypticism and Eschatology in Late Antiquity: Encounters in the Abrahamic Religions, 6th–8th Centuries'', edited by Hagit Amirav, Emmanouela Grypeou, and Guy Stroumsa, Leuven: Peeters, 2017, 219–266.

These are discussed throughout the whole paper, and a summary can be found in pp.50-57. On heaven and hell specifically, the summary is on pp.55-57.</ref>

== Souls are taken away at night ==

The Qur'an (and traditional Islamic exegetes)<ref>See classical commentaries on these verses such as Al-Jalalayn on [https://quranx.com/Tafsir/Jalal/39.42 Q39:42], [https://quranx.com/Tafsir/Jalal/6.60 Q6:60] and Ibn Kathir on [https://quranx.com/Tafsir/Kathir/39.41 Q39:41-2] and [https://quranx.com/Tafsir/Kathir/6.60 Q6:60]</ref> state that the soul is taken away by Allah during the night.{{Quote|{{Quran|39|42}}|Allah takes the souls at the time of their death, and those who have not died, in their sleep. Then He retains those for whom He has ordained death and releases the others until a specified time. There are indeed signs in that for a people who reflect.}}{{Quote|{{Quran|6|60}}|It is He who takes your souls by night, and He knows what you do by day, then He reanimates you therein so that a specified term may be completed. Then to Him will be your return, whereat He will inform you concerning what you used to do.}}Tesei (2016) notes this idea may mimic a late antique Syriac Christian parallel in the poetical language used by Ephrem, who in the Nisibene hymns (7:15) mentions sleep resembles death, and other Christian writers (such as Babai) wrote about sleep metaphorically Jesus's death and waking up like the resurrection;<ref>Tesei, Tommaso. (2016). "[https://www.researchgate.net/publication/344524709_2_The_barzakh_and_the_Intermediate_State_of_the_Dead_in_the_Quran 2 The barzakh and the Intermediate State of the Dead in the Quran]". pp. 40-42 In Locating Hell in Islamic Traditions. Leiden, The Netherlands: Brill. <nowiki>https://doi.org/10.1163/9789004301368_003</nowiki> (Open access)

''At the same time, the Quran also compares death to the “common sleep” that people experience on a daily basis. This seems to be the case in the cryptic statement found in Q 39:42 (cf. Q 6:60), “God takes the souls at the time of their death (ḥīna mawtihā), and [He takes] that which has not died, in its sleep ( fī manāmihā); He withholds that against which He has decreed death, but sets loose the other until a stated term”. This obscure passage appears to indicate that sleep is a death-like state; sleepers resemble the dead since their souls enter into a state similar to that which they will experience at the moment of death. However, unlike the souls of the dead, which will be raised only on the Day of Resurrection, the ordinary sleeper’s soul is sent back when he awakens―that is, of course, until the time of his death. This parallel between death and “common sleep” finds a fairly close correspondence in the poetical language used by Ephrem, who in the Nisibene hymns (7:15) affirms that: “The one who lies down to sleep resembles the departed and death resembles a dream, and the resurrection the morning”. In these passages the Quran’s eschatological discourse is particularly close to that formulated by Babai, in whose ideas the belief in the soul’s sleep is intimately connected to the strong affirmation of the physical resurrection of the body on the Day of Judgment.'' </ref> with this idea taken literally by Muhammad.

== Arguments for resurrection ==
Reynolds (2020) notes the repeated argument that God can resurrect the dead using the analogy that he can bring life back to barren (or dead) land may be connected to a Jewish tradition that God will resurrect the dead with dew, for example, in b. Shabbat 88b.<ref name=":2">See: Reynolds, Gabriel Said. Allah: ''God in the Qur'an (pp. 76-77).'' Yale University Press. Kindle Edition.

And Footnote 10: Reynolds, Gabriel Said. ''Allah: God in the Qur'an (p. 254).'' Yale University Press. Kindle Edition.</ref>
{{Quote|{{Quran|30|19}}|He brings forth the living from the dead, and brings forth the dead from the living, and revives the earth after its death. Likewise, you [too] shall be raised [from the dead].}}

Cf: {{Quran|16|65}}, {{Quran|43|11}}, {{Quran|50|6-11}}, {{Quran|57|17}}

==See Also==
*[[Pre-Islamic Arab Religion in Islam]]

* [[Parallels Between the Qur'an and Late Antique Judeo-Christian Literature|Parallels Between the Qur'an and Late Antique Judeo-Christian Literature - Part 1]]
* [[Historical Errors in the Quran]]
==References==
<references />

User:CPO675/Sandbox 1

2025-12-24T12:52:13Z

CPO675: /* Other Traditions */

== The Historical Jesus ==

=== Other Traditions ===

==== Intro ====

Alongside the main consensus from Biblical Scholars/Historians that Jesus was an eschatological preacher in the early first century AD who believed the Earth would end during his time (and therefore couldn't be the Muslim Jesus), there are many other of the most considered authentic teachings of Jesus that clash with Islam; in contrast with the Qur'anic principle of Messenger Uniformitarianism; where all messengers preach essentially the same thing with only minor variations.<ref>Durie, Mark. ''The Qur’an and Its Biblical Reflexes: Investigations into the Genesis of a Religion (pp. 135-142) (Kindle Edition pp. 281-294)''. 5.3 Messenger Uniformitarianism. Lexington Books. 2018.</ref>
{{Quote|{{Quran|41|43}}|Not is said to you except what was said to the Messengers before you. Indeed, your Lord (is) Possessor (of) forgiveness, and Possessor (of) penalty painful.}}{{Quote|{{Quran|2|285}}|The Apostle and the faithful have faith in what has been sent down to him from his Lord. Each [of them] has faith in Allah, His angels, His scriptures and His apostles. [They declare,] ‘We make no distinction between any of His apostles.’ And they say, ‘We hear and obey. Our Lord, forgive us, and toward You is the return.’}}

{{Quote|{{Quran|17|77}}|“This was the sunnah [customary way] of Our messengers whom We sent before you, and you will find no change in Our sunnah”}}cf. {{Quran|6|112}}, {{Quran|35|43}}, {{Quran|22|78}}.

Other than being explicitly told that messengers bring the same message from Allah, Durie (2018) notes the Qur'an repeatedly states that Muhammad was sent to confirm the revelations given to earlier messengers (Q2:91, 97; Q3:3, 50; Q5:48; Q12:111; Q16:43–44; Q35:31), just as each prophet before him confirmed those who came earlier. For example, Jesus (ʿĪsa) confirmed the Torah of Moses (Mūsa) (Q5:46), and the Qurʾan confirms the scriptures revealed to previous prophets (Q4:47). In this way, Muhammad’s role continues the same pattern of reaffirming earlier divine messages rather than introducing a completely new one.<ref>Durie, Mark. ''The Qur’an and Its Biblical Reflexes: Investigations Into the Genesis of a Religion.'' pp.140</ref>

{{Quote|Durie, Mark. The Qur'an and it's Biblical Reflexes. pp.140|• It is also explicitly asserted that messengers bring the same message
from Alla¯h: “Nothing is said to you but what has already been said to
messengers before you” (Q41:43; Q22:78) and “we make no distinction
between any of them” (Q2:136). They also preached the same dīn “commandment” or “religion” (Q42:13; cf. Q3:84; Q4:150), which is referred
to as the “religion of Ibra¯hīm” (Q2:130; Q4:125; Q16:121–23). The
validating function of this idea becomes clear when it is applied against
a group of Jews who reject the concept of the “same message” because
it would mean validating the Messenger. These Jews hold to their own
faith, saying “we believe in what has been sent down on us,” but they
reject the Messenger, or “anything after that” (Q2:91). The ruling against
these Jews is that because they reject the Messenger, they are disbelievers,
rejecting “what All a¯ h has sent down” (Q2:91).31 The idea of the “same message” is further reinforced when the Qurʾan repeatedly states that the Messenger was only sent to confirm what was sent down by previous
messengers (Q2:91, 97; Q3:3, 50; Q5:48; Q12:111; Q16:43–44; Q35:31),
just as previous messengers had done for messengers that preceded them,
for example, ʿĪsa¯ “confirmed” the Tawra¯ h of Mūsa¯(Q5:46), and the Qurʾan
confirms the book(s) sent by previous prophets (Q4:47), just as the Messenger has been doing in his turn.}}
While the large differences between the New Testament / Gospels / Christian Jesus and the [[Isa al-Masih (Jesus Christ)|Muslim Jesus]] are clear to anyone who has read both the Qur'an and NT, (which takes from apocrypha considered inauthentic by NT scholars,<ref>Sanders, E.. ''The Historical Figure of Jesus (pp. 78-79)''. Penguin Books Ltd. Kindle Edition.

..(Gnosticism was a world view that held everything material to be evil; the god who created the world was a bad god, and the creation was wicked. Gnostics who were also Christians held that the good God had sent Jesus to redeem people’s souls, not their bodies, and that Jesus was not a real human being. The Christians who objected to these views finally declared them heretical.) ''I share the general scholarly view that very, very little in the apocryphal gospels could conceivably go back to the time of Jesus. They are legendary and mythological. Of all the apocryphal material, only some of the sayings in the Gospel of Thomas are worth consideration.'' This does not mean that we can make a clean division: the historical four gospels versus the legendary apocryphal gospels. There are legendary traits in the four gospels in the New Testament, and there is also a certain amount of newly created material (as we saw just above)..</ref> and [[Parallels Between the Qur'an and Late Antique Judeo-Christian Literature|later Christian thought/writings]] ) are too large to list here, and have lead to many Muslims arguing for biblical corruption based on textual and theological grounds [though textual don't affect most early & authentic traditions] in general, which is a disputed idea in traditional Islamic thought (cite - Reynolds article. See also: [[Corruption of Previous Scriptures]] & [[Qur'an, Hadith and Scholars:Corruption of Previous Scriptures]]) a summary of some of the most likely authentic traditions from Biblical historians (using historical-critical methods not Christian or Muslim theologians - more likely to be true and not taken from bias or proving or disproving Islam but historical context, widespread across sources, early - cite Allison explanation - Why - different to time and context, unlikely to be fabricated later by Christians, across all early sources etc.) are shown here as an example of the clashes. [Point: not arguing against Christian Jesus - but secular historians one]

==== Examples ====
{{Quote|Dale C. Allison Jr.. The Historical Christ and the Theological Jesus (Kindle Locations 822-836). Kindle Edition.|2=Given that we typically remember the outlines of an event or the general purport of a conversation rather than the particulars and that we extract patterns and meaning from our memories, it makes little sense to open the quest for Jesus by evaluating individual items with our criteria, in the hope that some bits preserve pristine memory. We should rather be looking for repeating patterns and contemplating the big picture. true. We should trust first, if we are to trust at all, what is most likely to be trustworthy. Although we may, after reading Thucydides, be confident that there was a Peloponnesian War, we may well wonder about many of the details of his account.

The larger the generalization and the more data upon which it is based, the greater our confidence; the more specific the detail and the fewer the data supporting it, the more room we have for doubt. With regard to the sources for Jesus, the traditional criteria of authenticity privilege the parts over the whole. It seems more prudent to privilege generalizations drawn from the whole than to concentrate upon one individual item after another. As a demonstration of how this works in practice, consider the following traditions:

• Jesus prohibited divorce: 1 Cor. 7:10; Mark 10:2-9; Luke 16:18. [Qur'an divorce rules - https://wikiislam.net/wiki/Khula] 

• Jesus sent forth missionaries without staff, food, or money: Matt. 10:9-10; Mark 6:8-9; Luke 10:4.

• Jesus instructed missionaries to get their living by the gospel: 1 Cor. 9:14; Matt. 10:10; Luke 10:7.

• Jesus commanded loving and doing good to enemies: Matt. 5:38-48; Luke 6:27-36. [Qur'an do not be merciful to unbelievers https://wikiislam.net/wiki/Qur%27an,_Hadith_and_Scholars:Non-Muslims & https://wikiislam.net/wiki/Kafir_(Infidel)#Guidelines_on_how_to_deal_with_disbelievers Quran 48:29 ]

• Jesus forbade judging others: Matt. 7:1-2; Luke 6:37-38.

• Jesus asked a prospective follower not to bury his father: Matt. 8:21-22; 22; Luke 959-60.

• Jesus spoke of hating one's father and mother: Matt. 10:37; Luke 14:26; Gospel of Thomas 55, 101. [respect parents - too tenuous]

• Jesus enjoined disciples to take up a cross: Matt. 10:38; Mark 8:34; Luke 14:27.

• Jesus enjoined unlimited forgiveness: Matt. 18:21-22; Luke 17:3-4. [forgiveness against shirk - Qur'an says no Q4:48 and 4:116. ]

• Jesus exhorted hearers to lose their lives in order to save them: Matt. 10:39; Mark 8:35; Luke 17:33.

• Jesus called people away from their livelihoods: Mark 1:16-20; 2:14. [?]

• Jesus figuratively demanded violent removal of hand, foot, and eye: Mark 9:42-48.

• Jesus asked a wealthy man to relinquish his money: Mark 10:17-27. [bring in wealth inequality section of Islam darajat - here]

• Jesus forbade taking oaths: Matt. 5:33-37. [https://www.iium.edu.my/deed/lawbase/risalah_maliki/book31.html#:~:text=Anyone%20who%20swears%20an%20oath,Oneness%2C%20timelessness%20and%20existence.%5D]

• Jesus commanded money to be lent without interest: Matt. 5:42; Gospel of Thomas 95.

• Jesus called some to a life without marriage: Matt. 19:11-12. [Qur'an criticism of monasticism]

• Jesus asked a prospective follower not to say farewell to his parents: Luke 9:61-62. [respect parents?]

• Jesus asked his disciples to renounce all of their possessions: Luke 14:33"}}
<nowiki>--------------------------------------------------</nowiki>

[ highlight those being spoken about in italics or bold]

Dale/Allison (2009) notes that Jesus' banning divorce was an important teaching that <s>stood out</s> to early Christians, [https://www.biblegateway.com/passage/?search=Luke%2016%3A18&version=NIV Luke 16:18], [https://www.biblegateway.com/passage/?search=1%20Corinthians%207%3A10-16&version=NIV 1 Corinthians 7:10-16], [https://www.biblegateway.com/passage/?search=Mark%2010%3A2-9&version=NIV Mark 10:2-9], in contrast to Judaism ([https://www.biblegateway.com/passage/?search=Deuteronomy%2024%3A1-4&version=NIV Deuteronomy 24:1-4]) and Islam e.g. Quran 2:228-232, Q65:1-7, (Q4:19 https://quranx.com/hadiths/4.19 & Q4:35), Q33:49 )

He notes that Jesus commanded loving and doing good to enemies in [https://www.biblegateway.com/passage/?search=Matthew%205%3A38-48&version=NIV Matt. 5:38-48]; [https://www.biblegateway.com/passage/?search=Luke%206%3A27-36&version=NIV Luke 6:27-36], while the Qur'an generally advises treating other Muslims well, it specifically states not to be merciful to unbelievers Q48:29. [ For more examples of not being merciful to unbelievers, let alone 'enemies' see: '''[[Qur'an, Hadith and Scholars:Non-Muslims|https://wikiislam.net/wiki/Qur%27an,_Hadith_and_Scholars:Non-Muslims]] & [[Kafir (Infidel)#Guidelines%20on%20how%20to%20deal%20with%20disbelievers|https://wikiislam.net/wiki/Kafir_(Infidel)#Guidelines_on_how_to_deal_with_disbelievers]] Quran 48:29 ]'''

• Jesus enjoined unlimited forgiveness: [https://www.biblegateway.com/passage/?search=Matthew%2018%3A21-22&version=NIV Matt. 18:21-22]; [https://www.biblegateway.com/passage/?search=Luke%2017%3A3-4&version=NIV Luke 17:3-4]. [forgiveness against shirk - Qur'an says no Q4:48 and 4:116. - anyone who believed in him would/could be saved ]

He notes Jesus called some to a life without marriage: [https://www.biblegateway.com/passage/?search=Matthew%2019%3A11-12&version=NIV Matt. 19:11-12], while the Qur'an promotes it as a virtue encouraging those to do so.

Marriage is a virtue https://www.getquranic.com/marriage-in-islam-8-quranic-verses-about-marriage/

{{Quote|{{Quran|24|32}}|Marry off those who are single among you, and the upright among your male and female slaves. If they are poor, Allah will enrich them out of His grace, and Allah is all-bounteous, all-knowing.}}

And criticizes monasticism/monks, with celibacy and no marriage being a key aspect<ref>[https://www.britannica.com/topic/monasticism Monasticism] | religion | Britannica Entry</ref> in general

{{Quote|Reynolds, Gabriel Said. Christianity and the Qur'an: The Rise of Islam in Christian Arabia (pp. 131-132). Yale University Press. Kindle Edition.|These verses critical of monks are often read together with Q 57:27, which, while praising certain positive qualities of Christians, also seems to accuse Christians of “innovating” monasticism: Then We sent, following in their footsteps, Our Messengers; and We sent, following, Jesus son of Mary, and gave unto him the Gospel. And We set in the hearts of those who followed him tenderness and mercy. And monasticism they invented—We did not prescribe it for them—only seeking the good pleasure of God; but they observed it not as it should be observed. So We gave those of them who believed their wage; and many of them are ungodly.}}

Criticism of monasticism (https://www.britannica.com/topic/monasticism) - lack of marriage for monks (though admittedly also praises monks in general elsewhere pp130-132)<ref>Reynolds, Gabriel Said. ''Christianity and the Qur'an: The Rise of Islam in Christian Arabia (pp. 130-132).'' Yale University Press. Kindle Edition.</ref>

{{Quote|{{Quran|57|27}}|Then We sent on their footsteps Our Messengers and We followed with Isa, son (of) Maryam, and We gave him the Injeel. And We placed in (the) hearts (of) those who followed him compassion and mercy. But monasticism they innovated - not We prescribed it for them - only seeking (the) pleasure (of) Allah, but not they observed it (with) right observance. So We gave those who believed among them their reward, but most of them (are) defiantly disobediently.}}

<nowiki>-----------------------------------------------------------------</nowiki>

==== Father-son relationship ====
{{Quote|Dale C. Allison Jr.. The Historical Christ and the Theological Jesus (Kindle Location 841-848). Kindle Edition.|2=Working through the tradition in the way I suggest leads to a large number of conclusions. Jesus must have been an exorcist who interpreted his ministry in terms of Satan's downfall. He must have thought highly of John the Baptist. He must have repeatedly spoken of God as Father. [Durie differences in metaphor and understanding of relationship from Hebrew to Arab society = markedly different] He must have composed parables. He must have come into conflict with religious authorities. All of this may seem obvious, but the procedure is not trite, for it also issues in some controversial verdicts. As I have argued elsewhere, for example, ample, the quantity of conventional eschatological material in our primary sources almost necessitates that Jesus was an eschatological prophet.' The reconstruction of Robert Funk and the Jesus Seminar is for this reason alone problematic. Even more controversial is what my approach leads me to infer about Jesus' self-conception. Consider these Synoptic materials:

• Jesus said that the Son of man will return on the clouds of heaven and send angels to gather the elect from throughout the world: Mark 13:26-27; cf. 14:62; Matt. 10:23 (allusions to Daniel 7's depiction of the last judgment are clear). [the son of man plays no part in Islam]}}

===== Slave-master relationship =====
Father son Hebrew relationship Jesus used distinctly abandoned, instead using other things (other metaphors) in Arab society to describe the relationship between humans and God, such as a slave-master relationship,<ref>Durie, Mark. ''The Qur’an and Its Biblical Reflexes: Investigations into the Genesis of a Religion (pp. XX-XX) (pp. 107-110 Kindle Edition)''. 4.1.1. Shirk - Proprietary Partnership. Lexington Books. 2018.</ref> a Patron - Protege (needs explanation of what this is) <ref>Durie, Mark. ''The Qur’an and Its Biblical Reflexes: Investigations into the Genesis of a Religion (pp. XX-XX) (pp. 110-111 Kindle Edition)''. 4.1.2. Shirk - Patron - Protege Relationships. Lexington Books. 2018.</ref>. having strongly condemned the idea that God could have offspring against the unscripted pagans (mushrikun) taking angels as daughters of god, then against God having a son<ref>Durie, Mark. ''The Qur’an and Its Biblical Reflexes: Investigations into the Genesis of a Religion (pp. XX-XX) (pp. 112-113 Kindle Edition)''. 4.1.5 A Polemical Doctrine. Lexington Books. 2018.</ref>

Slave analogy Dure Print edition pp108 - 110 summary:<ref name=":1">Durie, Mark. ''The Qur’an and Its Biblical Reflexes: Investigations into the Genesis of a Religion (pp. 108-110) (pp. XX-XX Kindle Edition)''. 4.1.5 A Polemical Doctrine. Lexington Books. 2018.</ref> Before its theological use, the Arabic root ''sh-r-k'' referred to ordinary '''partnership or shared ownership'''. The Qurʾan draws on this everyday meaning to illustrate why associating partners with God is impossible. Using the metaphor of '''a master and a slave''', the Qurʾan argues that just as a slave with multiple masters suffers confusion and conflict, attributing partners to God creates an impossible and chaotic situation. This logic appears in verses such as Q39:29 and others that argue multiple gods would lead to conflict and the ruin of creation (Q23:91; Q21:22).<ref name=":1" />
{{Quote|{{Quran|39|29}}|Allah presents a parable, “a man was owned by several quarreling partners
(shurakaʾ), and a man was the slave of (just) one man. Are the two equal?”}}

The Qurʾan’s use of the slave-master metaphor differs from Jesus’ teaching in the New Testament. Whereas Jesus uses it to highlight divided human devotion, the Qurʾan uses it to assert the logical impossibility of multiple divine authorities.<ref name=":1" />

{{Quote|Luke 16:13; cf. Matthew. 6:24|No slave can serve two masters; for a slave will either hate the one and love the
other, or be devoted to the one and despise the other. You cannot serve God and wealth.}}

Shirk encompasses various forms of error: attributing partners or helpers to God, believing He needs allies, or seeking aid from others besides Him. The Qurʾan also explores God’s unity through three social analogies relevant to Arabian society: '''patron–protégé relationships''', '''alliances of mutual help''', and '''relationships of equal or unequal status'''.<ref name=":1" />

===== '''Patron–protégé relationships''' =====
The Qur'an distinctly ignores the father-son relationship (and theology) metaphor by using another term that is harder to translate

Explanation of what this is Durie pp.110-111:<ref name=":3">Durie, Mark. ''The Qur’an and Its Biblical Reflexes: Investigations into the Genesis of a Religion (pp. 110-111) (pp. XX-XX Kindle Edition)''. 4.1.5 A Polemical Doctrine. Lexington Books. 2018.</ref> The Qurʾan uses terms from the root '''w-l-y''' to describe '''patron–protégé relationships''', alliances, and guardianship. The key term '''walī''' can mean ally, protector, guardian, or patron, and may indicate either symmetrical alliances or asymmetrical power relationships.<ref name=":3" /><ref>[https://lexicon.quranic-research.net/data/27_w/219_wle.html Root: ''wāw lām yā'' (و ل ي)] - Lane's Lexicon Qur'anic Research

See Lane's Lexicon Classical Arabic Dictionary [https://lexicon.quranic-research.net/pdf/Page_3060.pdf pp.3060] & [https://lexicon.quranic-research.net/pdf/Page_3061.pdf pp.3061] </ref>

In pre-Islamic Arab society, such patronage was essential for protection, as shown by the example of Muḥammad being safeguarded by his uncle Abū Ṭālib. Without a patron, a person was vulnerable.<ref name=":3" /> [in the sirah of Ibn Ishaq]

The Qurʾan emphasizes that '''God has no need of any patron''' and that '''humans should recognize God alone as their walī'''. Seeking any protector besides God is considered '''shirk'''. Believers may take other believers and the Prophet as allies (''awliyāʾ'') alongside God, but not in place of Him.<ref name=":3" />

As the Muslim community developed, especially after what the passage calls the ''Eschatological Transition''—the Qurʾan increasingly stressed exclusive allegiance to God. This served to detach believers from prior tribal or familial loyalties that could compromise their commitment to the faith community.<ref name=":3" />

- and calls for help-

===== Unequal status vs Jesus' views on Wealth =====
Sinai - darajah passage

And inequality in general - inc. the afterlife

=== Punishment narratives ===

==== Punishment BEFORE the day of judgement ====
We are told the sole exception in history was the unnamed town<ref>Unnamed in the Qur'an, though identified as Nineveh (in modern day Iraq) as in the Biblical "Book of Jonah" by Islamic exegetes; e.g. see [https://quranx.com/tafsirs/37.147 tafsirs on Q37:147]</ref> of more than 100,000 people that the messenger Yūnus (Jonah) when the warning was heeded in full by the entire people, and therefore punishment averted ({{Quran|10|98}}, {{Quran|37|147-148}}) “no town believed . . . except the people of Yūnus”<ref>Durie, Mark. 2018. ''The Qur'an and Its Biblical Reflexes: Investigations Into the Genesis of a Religion. pp 49. Kindle Edition pp 151.''</ref>

How many a town defied the command of its Lord and His apostles, then We called it to a severe account and punished it with a dire punishment. Q65:8

So it tasted the evil consequences of its conduct, and the outcome of its conduct was ruin. Q65:9

How many generations that had far more wealth and ostentation have We laid low before them! <<nowiki>https://quranx.com/19.74</nowiki>>

Say, ‘Whoever abides in error, the All-beneficent shall prolong his respite until they sight what they have been promised: either punishment, or the Hour.’ Then they will know whose position is worse, and whose host is weaker <<nowiki>https://quranx.com/19.75</nowiki>>

------

Q34:16 - flood of the damn of Yemen / Saba', the people of Sheba E.g. <ref>See tafsirs on [https://quranx.com/Tafsirs/34.14 Q34:14], [https://quranx.com/Tafsirs/34.15 Q34:15] & [https://quranx.com/Tafsirs/34.16 Q34:16]</ref> {{Quran|34|14-16}}

{{Quote|{{Quran|34|14-16}}|And when We decreed for Solomon death, nothing indicated to the jinn his death except a creature of the earth eating his staff. But when he fell, it became clear to the jinn that if they had known the unseen, they would not have remained in humiliating punishment.
Certainly, (there) was for Saba in their dwelling place a sign: Two gardens on (the) right and (on the) left. "Eat from (the) provision (of) your Lord and be grateful to Him. A land good and a Lord Oft-Forgiving."
But they turned away, so We sent upon them (the) flood (of) the dam, and We changed for them their two gardens (with) two gardens producing fruit bitter, and tamarisks and (some)thing of lote trees few.}}
, {{Quran|65|8-9}}, {{Quran|19|74-75}}

Add: 34:15–21: The punishment of the people of Sheba, without explicit reference to a messenger. Sheba reference <ref>Marshall, David. ''God, Muhammad and the Unbelievers (p. 73).'' Taylor & Francis. Kindle Edition.</ref>

=== Surah 36 ===
Similarly an unnamed town is sent three messengers in {{Quran|36|13-32}}, who's identities have differed in traditional Islamic scholarship,<ref>E.g. see commentaries on [https://quranx.com/Tafsirs/36.13 Q36:13] & [https://quranx.com/tafsirs/36.14 Q36:14], and the later verses in the story, cited as a parable ''(mathal).''</ref> are rejected and so are killed with a cry/shout (''ṣayḥatan)'' ({{Quran|36|29}}). <ref>Marshall, David. ''God, Muhammad and the Unbelievers (p. 63 & 72).'' Taylor & Francis. Kindle Edition.</ref>
{{Quote|Marshall, David. God, Muhammad and the Unbelievers (p. 72). Taylor & Francis. Kindle Edition.|36:13–32: Described as a parable (mathal, v.13), but in outline very similar to the punishment-narratives. The messengers (two of them, reinforced with a third) and the town in which they preach are anonymous. ‘A man from the furthest part of the city’ (v.20) exhorts his people to follow the messengers.}}

== Contradiction ==
The order in Surah 2 has the Jews struck by a lightening bolt after they worship the golden calf, who are then forgiven by Allah by being resurrected.
{{Quote|{{Quran|2|50-67}}|And when We parted the sea with you, and We delivered you and drowned Pharaoh’s clan as you looked on. 
And when We made an appointment with Moses for forty nights, you took up the Calf [for worship] in his absence, and you were wrongdoers. 
Then We excused you after that so that you might give thanks. 
And when We gave Moses the Book and the Criterion so that you might be guided. 
And [recall] when Moses said to his people, ‘O my people! You have indeed wronged yourselves by taking up the Calf [for worship]. Now turn penitently to your Maker, and slay [the guilty among] your folks. That will be better for you with your Maker.’ Then He turned to you clemently. Indeed, He is the All-clement, the All-merciful. 
And when you said, ‘O Moses, we will not believe you until we see Allah visibly.’ Thereupon a thunderbolt seized you as you looked on.
Then We raised you up after your death so that you might give thanks. /n
We shaded you with clouds, and sent down to you manna and quails [saying]: ‘Eat of the good things We have provided for you.’ And they did not wrong Us, but they used to wrong [only] themselves. 
And when We said, ‘Enter this town, and eat thereof freely whencesoever you wish, and enter while prostrating at the gate, and say, ‘‘Relieve [us of the burden of our sins],’’ so that We may forgive your iniquities and We will soon enhance the virtuous.’ 
But the wrongdoers changed the saying with other than what they were told. So We sent down on those who were wrongdoers a plague from the sky because of the transgressions they used to commit. 
And when Moses prayed for water for his people, We said, ‘Strike the rock with your staff.’ Thereat twelve fountains gushed forth from it; every tribe came to know its drinking-place. ‘Eat and drink of Allah’s provision, and do not act wickedly on the earth, causing corruption.’ 
And when you said, ‘O Moses, ‘We will not put up with one kind of food. So invoke your Lord for us, so that He may bring forth for us of that which the earth grows—its greens and cucumbers, its garlic, lentils, and onions.’ He said, ‘Do you seek to replace what is superior with that which is inferior? Go down to any town and you will indeed get what you ask for!’ So they were struck with abasement and poverty, and they earned Allah’s wrath. That, because they would deny the signs of Allah and kill the prophets unjustly. That, because they would disobey and commit transgressions. 
Indeed the faithful, the Jews, the Christians and the Sabaeans—those of them who have faith in Allah and the Last Day and act righteously—they shall have their reward from their Lord, and they will have no fear, nor will they grieve. 
And when We took a pledge from you, and raised the Mount above you, [declaring], ‘Hold on with power to what We have given you and remember that which is in it so that you may be Godwary.’ 
Again you turned away after that; and were it not for Allah’s grace on you and His mercy, you would have surely been among the losers. 
And certainly you know those of you who violated the Sabbath, whereupon We said to them, ‘Be you spurned apes.’ 
So We made it an exemplary punishment for the present and the succeeding [generations], and an advice to the Godwary.}}
In Surah 4 they are struck before they worship the calf. 4:153 specifically says 'then' ''(thumma)''

{{Quote|{{Quran|4|153-161}}|The People of the Book ask you to bring down for them a Book from the sky. Certainly they asked Moses for [something] greater than that, for they said, ‘Show us Allah visibly,’ whereat a thunderbolt seized them for their wrongdoing. Then they took up the Calf [for worship], after all the manifest proofs that had come to them. Yet We excused that, and We gave Moses a manifest authority. 
And We raised the Mount above them for the sake of their covenant, and We said to them, ‘Enter the gate prostrating’ and We said to them, ‘Do not violate the Sabbath,’ and We took from them a solemn covenant. 
Then because of their breaking their covenant, their defiance of Allah’s signs, their killing of the prophets unjustly and for their saying, ‘Our hearts are uncircumcised’… Indeed, Allah has set a seal on them for their unfaith, so they do not have faith except a few. 
And for their faithlessness, and their uttering a monstrous calumny against Mary, 
and for their saying, ‘We killed the Messiah, Jesus son of Mary, the apostle of Allah’—though they did not kill him nor did they crucify him, but so it was made to appear to them. Indeed those who differ concerning him are surely in doubt about him: they do not have any knowledge of that beyond following conjectures, and certainly, they did not kill him. 
Indeed, Allah raised him up toward Himself, and Allah is all-mighty, all-wise. 
There is none among the People of the Book but will surely believe in him before his death; and on the Day of Resurrection, he will be a witness against them. 
Due to the wrongdoing of the Jews, We prohibited them certain good things that were permitted to them [earlier], and for their barring many [people] from the way of Allah, 
and for their taking usury—though they had been forbidden from it—and for eating up the wealth of the people wrongfully. And We have prepared for the faithless among them a painful punishment. }}

=== V2 ===
Surah 4 (summarized version)

1) They ask Moses for a sign and are hit with a thunderbolt

2) They then take up the calf for worship

3) The mountain is raised above them{{Quote|{{Quran|4|153-154}}|The People of the Book ask you to bring down for them a Book from the sky. Certainly they asked Moses for [something] greater than that, for they said, ‘Show us Allah visibly,’ whereat a thunderbolt seized them for their wrongdoing. Then they took up the Calf [for worship], after all the manifest proofs that had come to them. Yet We excused that, and We gave Moses a manifest authority. 
And We raised the Mount above them for the sake of their covenant, and We said to them, ‘Enter the gate prostrating’ and We said to them, ‘Do not violate the Sabbath,’ and We took from them a solemn covenant.}}Surah 2
1) They worshiped the calf. And Moses tells them to slay the guilty among them.

2) They are hit by a thunderbolt - is it chronological?

3) ... a mountain is lifted above them
{{Quote|{{Quran|2|51-56}}|And when We made an appointment with Moses for forty nights, you took up the Calf [for worship] in his absence, and you were wrongdoers. 
Then We excused you after that so that you might give thanks. 
And when We gave Moses the Book and the Criterion so that you might be guided. 
And [recall] when Moses said to his people, ‘O my people! You have indeed wronged yourselves by taking up the Calf [for worship]. Now turn penitently to your Maker, and slay [the guilty among] your folks. That will be better for you with your Maker.’ Then He turned to you clemently. Indeed, He is the All-clement, the All-merciful. 
And when you said, ‘O Moses, we will not believe you until we see Allah visibly.’ Thereupon a thunderbolt seized you as you looked on.
Then We raised you up after your death so that you might give thanks.}}
== The Lote Tree of the utmost Boundary (Sid'rati al-Muntahā) ==
Lote tree's are a real type of tree (Ziziphus spina-christi) native to Arabia and the Middle East.<ref>[https://www.suewickison.com/products/lote-tree?srsltid=AfmBOorj_RU2x1OPxgfRe689M2TWw1g4uZTQLkpSolPGYnIatiIe7h6K Lote Tree | Sidr | Ziziphus spina-christi |] Plants of the Qur'an | Sue Wickison </ref> Different to the tree of eternity/immortality ''(shajarati ul-khul'di)'' in paradise ''jannah,'' the Qur'an mentions The Lote Tree (sidr) of ''the utmost boundary (al-muntahā)''<ref>مُنْتَهَىٰ - [https://lexicon.quranic-research.net/pdf/Page_3029.pdf Lane's Lexicon pp.3029]

</ref> near (but notably not in) the 'garden of abode', said to be 'covered' yaghshā by something unspecified in Q53:16, typically taken by exegetes to mean by angels, light and/or golden animals.<ref>E.g. see [https://quranx.com/Tafsirs/53.16 Tafsirs on Q53:16]</ref>

{{Quote|{{Quran|53|13-17}}|And certainly he saw him (in) descent another,
Near (the) Lote Tree (of) the utmost boundary,
Near it (is the) Garden (of) Abode.
when there covered the Lote Tree what covered it.
Not swerved the sight and not it transgressed.}}

This furthest boundary/limit is said in the hadith, to place the cosmic tree in the sixth heaven, where even celestial creatures cannot go beyond as the limit of creation; said to be seen by Muhammad in his Night Journey (mi’rāj) on the [[:en:Buraq|Buraq]] (E.g. {{Muslim|1|329}}, {{Al Tirmidhi|2=5|3=44|4=3276}}, {{Bukhari|5|58|227}} & {{Al Nasai|2=1|3=5|4=452}}), and by many Islamic exegetes.<ref>See [https://quranx.com/tafsirs/53.14 tafsirs on Q53:14]</ref>

This would align the cosmology of Islamic traditions supporting the idea that paradise (and therefore the garden of the abode) is in the seventh heaven,<ref>[https://islamqa.info/en/answers/215011/where-are-paradise-and-hell#Where_is_Paradise Where is Paradise] | [https://islamqa.info/en/answers/215011/where-are-paradise-and-hell Where Are Paradise and Hell?] | 07/January/2015 islamqa</ref> while some traditions support the idea that paradise is above the seventh heaven,<ref>[https://www.islamweb.net/en/fatwa/107126/the-location-of-paradise-now#:~:text=Paradise%20that%20Allaah%20promised%20for,are%20many%20texts%20proving%20this. The location of Paradise now] | Paradise and Hell | Belief in the Hereafter | Islamic Creed | Fatwa | islamweb.net </ref> both placing the tree relatively close to jannah. However others suggest that this specific ''garden of the abode (jannatu l-mawā)'' is a separate garden/paradise to the eternal one all righteous Muslims will eventually enter, being instead one where martyrs (those killed in war or for their religion) go before judgement day.<ref>E.g. see [https://quranx.com/Tafsirs/53.15 tafsirs on Q53:15]</ref>

Either way there is no evidence of a celestial tree, which must be magic to survive outside of an Earthly plant ecosystem, but is rather an example of tree mythology.
----
----

(See also: <nowiki>https://sunnah.com/mishkat:5865</nowiki> & https://sunnah.com/mishkat:5640, ) read; https://quranx.com/tafsirs/53.14 - exegetes also confirm this is where boundary is the boundary of the skies/heavens where things other than God cannot pass (at least until judgement day where paradise and hell can be entered).

AND Similarly seen next to the 4 main Near-East rivers (Nile, Euphratesm Tigres,) <nowiki>https://sunnah.com/bukhari:5610</nowiki>, which area said to flow from paradise: <nowiki>https://quranx.com/Hadith/Bukhari/USC-MSA/Volume-5/Book-58/Hadith-227/</nowiki> )

cite: [https://www.islamweb.net/en/fatwa/107126/the-location-of-paradise-now#:~:text=Paradise%20that%20Allaah%20promised%20for,are%20many%20texts%20proving%20this. https://www.islamweb.net/en/fatwa/107126/the-location-of-paradise-now#:~:text=Paradise%20that%20Allaah%20promised%20for,are%20many%20texts%20proving%20this.]

The utmost boundary at the end of t heavens confirmed by exegetes in https://quranx.com/tafsirs/53.14

" Jannat al-ma'va' literally means "the Jannat (Garden) that is to be an abode. " Hadrat Hasan Basri says that this is the same Jannat which the believers and righteous will be given in the Hereafter, and from this same verse he has argued that that Jannat is in the heavens. Qatadah says that this is the Jannat in which the souls of the martyrs are kept; it does not imply the Jannat that is to be given in the Hereafter. Ibn 'Abbas also says the same but adds that the Jannat to be granted to the believers in the Hereafter is not in the heavens but here on the earth.

== Parallels Between the Qur'an and Late Antique Judeo-Christian Literature - Part 2 ==
Following on from [[Parallels Between the Qur'an and Late Antique Judeo-Christian Literature|Part 1]], this is Part 2 of Late Antique Judeo-Christian Literature found in the Qur'an. This material, drawing heavily on rabbinical commentaries on the bible, and late Syriac Christian thought found in homilies, was created far later than the biblical cannon; no-where near the time of the events that occurred. This suggests the stories were transmitted in an oral millennia along with local Arabian traditions<ref>Bannister, Andrew G.. ''An Oral-Formulaic Study of the Qur'an (Kindle Location 249-259 in Chapter 1.2 The Biblicist Roots of the Iblis and Adam Story).'' Bloomsbury Publishing. Kindle Edition.

..When the Qur’an emerged in the seventh-century, it did so in an oral culture in which Biblicist traditions were freely circulating and thus there existed a large pool of commonly known stories and traditions to fish from; a pool in which stories could cross-fertilize and influence one another. 23 It is this, more than direct borrowing that perhaps best explains stories like Iblis and Adam as well as other qur’anic tellings of older tales, such as the Seven Sleepers (Q. 18: 9– 25) 24 and the Legend of Alexander (Dhu al-Qarnayn, Q. 18: 83– 101). 25 The Qur’an originates from a milieu in which Biblicist material was well-known to the first audience of the Qur’an; even a simple allusion to a story was often enough to trigger a connection for the hearer. 26 That Biblicist material has been filtered through storytelling rather than simply copied from a written text is further suggested by what the Qur’an leaves out; no minor prophets are referenced, probably because almost no Old Testament narratives feature them nor did the rabbinic literature weave lengthy tales about them. 27 The exception which proves the rule is Jonah (Q. 21: 87– 88; 37: 139– 148; 68: 48– 50), whose short but dramatic story was extremely popular in both Jewish and Christian contexts.28..

And: Bannister, Andrew G.. ''An Oral-Formulaic Study of the Qur'an (Kindle Locations 1391-1392. Chapter 2.3 The Islamic Tradition and Orality).'' Bloomsbury Publishing. Kindle Edition.</ref> where biblical and much later Jewish and Christian stories could be commonly mixed without the new community realizing.
== The story of Noah ==
The prophet Noah is portrayed extremely differently to the one in Genesis,<ref>Segovia, Carlos A.. ''[https://almuslih.org/wp-content/uploads/2024/12/Segovia-C-The-Quranic-Noah-and-the-Making-of-the-Islamic-Prophet.pdf The Quranic Noah and the Making of the Islamic Prophet: A Study of Intertextuality and Religious Identity Formation in Late Antiquity]'', Berlin, München, Boston: De Gruyter, 2015. <nowiki>https://doi.org/10.1515/9783110405897</nowiki></ref> taking on Jewish and Christian traditions, characteristics, as well as terms from late antique Judeo-Christian writings,<ref>The Qur'anic Noah. pp.21-21</ref> molded to suit Muhammad's situation in line with other messengers in the Qur'an.<ref>''The Qurʾan and its Biblical Reflexes: Investigations into the Genesis of a Religion. Chapter 5.3 Messenger Uniformatism. pp.135-143'' By Mark Durie. Lanham, MD: Lexington Books, 2018. </ref>

=== The preaching of Noah ===

Surah 71 consists entirely of the preaching of Noah and his supplications to Allah.{{Quote|{{Quran-range|71|1|28}}|Indeed, We sent Noah to his people, [saying], "Warn your people before there comes to them a painful punishment." He said, "O my people, indeed I am to you a clear warner, [Saying], 'Worship Allah, fear Him and obey me. Allah will forgive you of your sins and delay you for a specified term. Indeed, the time [set by] Allah, when it comes, will not be delayed, if you only knew.' " 
[...]
And Noah said, "My Lord, do not leave upon the earth from among the disbelievers an inhabitant. Indeed, if You leave them, they will mislead Your servants and not beget except [every] wicked one and [confirmed] disbeliever. My Lord, forgive me and my parents and whoever enters my house a believer and the believing men and believing women. And do not increase the wrongdoers except in destruction."}}Reynolds remarks that "The Qur'ānic character of Noah is quite unlike that of the Noah in Genesis, who does not speak a word until after the flood." Citing the Babylonian Talmud, Sanhedrin 108a, he observes that "[his preaching] is also suggested by a passage in the Talmud:
::"The righteous Noah rebuked them, urging, 'Repent; for if not, the Holy One, blessed be He, will bring a deluge upon you and cause your bodies to float upon the water like gourds, as it is written, He is light [i.e., floats] upon the waters. Moreover, ye shall be taken as a curse for all future generations.' (b. Sanhedrin 108a)"
Reynolds further notes, "It is also prominent in the Syriac fathers, several of whom report that Noah preached to his people for a hundred years before God finally sent the flood." citing for example the Syriac authors Narsai, "On the Flood", 33, II. 227-30 and Jacob of Serugh, ''Homilies contre les juifs'', 70, homily 2, II. 37-40.<ref>Gabriel Said Reynolds, ''The Qurʾān and Bible'' p. 858</ref>

The opponents reject Noah's preaching despite him doing so 'day and night' (Quran 71:5-6) in which they respond by putting their fingers in their ears Quran 71:7, on which Neuwirth (2024) notes that "the means of plugging one’s ears in order to shut oneself off from unpleasant news is also encountered in the Talmud (bKetubbot 5a)."<ref>Neuwirth, Angelika. The Qur'an: Text and Commentary, ''Volume 2.1: Early Middle Meccan Suras: The New Elect (p. 280).'' Yale University Press. Kindle Edition.</ref>

=== Noah's disbelieving wife ===
{{Quote|{{Quran|66|10}}|Allah presents an example of those who disbelieved: the wife of Noah and the wife of Lot. They were under two of Our righteous servants but betrayed them, so those prophets did not avail them from Allah at all, and it was said, "Enter the Fire with those who enter."}}The Bible briefly mentions Noah's wife in one verse without further comment ([https://www.biblegateway.com/passage/?search=Genesis%207%3A7&version=NIV Genesis 7:7]), "And Noah and his sons and his wife and his sons’ wives entered the ark to escape the waters of the flood." Regarding the Quranic verse which speaks of her negatively, Reynolds briefly considers the possibility that the Quran has extended to their wives the parallelism between Noah (though not his wife) and Lot found in the New Testament ([https://www.biblegateway.com/passage/?search=2%20Peter%202&version=NIV 2 Peter 2]), but then comments, "However, it is important to note that already in the pre-Islamic period certain groups had developed hostile legends about Noah's wife." He cites Epiphanius (d. 403 CE), ''Panarion'' 2:26, which relates the Gnostic belief that she was not allowed onto the ark, having burned it down three times before the flood.<ref>Gabriel Said Reynolds, ''The Qurʾān and Bible'' p. 841</ref>

=== Noah's flood waters overflowed from an oven ===
The Qur'anic version of the Noah's flood story describes the flood waters as overflowing from an oven. This element is not found even in more ancient versions of the story (Epic of Gilgamesh, Atra hasis, and Ziusudra).

Note that in his translation, Yusuf Ali mistranslates the Aramaic loan word for the oven (alttannooru ٱلتَّنُّورُ)<ref>[http://www.studyquran.org/LaneLexicon/Volume1/00000355.pdf Lane's Lexicon p. 318 تَّنُّورُ]</ref> as "fountains". The Arabic verb translated "gushed forth" (fara فَارَ) means overflowed or boiled in the context of water in a cooking pot<ref>[http://www.studyquran.org/LaneLexicon/Volume6/00000241.pdf Lane's Lexicon p. 2457 فور]</ref>, as well as in the other verse where it is used, {{Quran|67|7}}. Here is Pickthall's more accurate translation:{{Quote|{{Quran|11|40}}|
(Thus it was) till, when Our commandment came to pass '''and the oven gushed forth water''', We said: Load therein two of every kind, a pair (the male and female), and thy household, save him against whom the word hath gone forth already, and those who believe. And but a few were they who believed with him.}}{{Quote|{{Quran|23|27}}|
Then We inspired in him, saying: Make the ship under Our eyes and Our inspiration. Then, when Our command cometh '''and the oven gusheth water''', introduce therein of every (kind) two spouses, and thy household save him thereof against whom the Word hath already gone forth. And plead not with Me on behalf of those who have done wrong. Lo! they will be drowned.}}At one time academic scholars thought this verse alluded to a Midrashic exegesis in which the flood waters were boiling hot (b. Sanhedrin 108b, [https://www.sefaria.org/Rosh_Hashanah.12a.4?lang=bi|Tracate Rosh Hashanah 12a:4]). More recent scholarship, particularly by Olivier Mongellaz in 2024,<ref name="Mongellaz2024">Olivier Mongellaz (2024) [https://brill.com/view/journals/arab/71/4-5/article-p513_4.xml Le four de Noé : un cas d’intertextualité coranique], Arabica 71(4-5), 513-637. https://doi.org/10.1163/15700585-20246900</ref> has identified that these verses most likely reflect a late antique legend in which water gushing up through a bread oven (a large hole dug into the ground) was a sign warning Noah's family of the imminent flood. The interpretation as Noah's own oven is attributed to a number of early commentators (such as Ibn Abbas, Mujahid), while others understood it to be the area of land where the flood waters first rose. Qurtubi said: "The sayings of commentators appear to be different as to the meaning of tannur, but this, in reality, is not a difference. When water began to bulge out, it overflowed from the bread baking oven, and from out of the surface of the land".

Significantly, Mongellaz has argued on literary grounds that a fragmentary Arabic text falsely attributed to Hippolytus of Rome, and which mentions the overflowing bread oven story, is independent of the Islamic tradition and was originally written in a very specific environment which has parallels with the context in which certain parts of the Quran were written.{{Quote|Pseudo. Hippolytus of Rome (translated to English from Mongellaz's French translation)<ref name="Mongellaz2024" />|Meanwhile, Ham's wife stood up to take out the bread that remained in the oven and immediately water sprang out of the oven [fāḍa l-māʾmin al-tannūr] and immediately water came out of the oven, as the Lord had said: "The fountains of the great deeps were opened." Ham's wife called to Noah, saying, "My lord, the word of God has come true (Syr. what God promised has come true!)" - for it had come true just as the Lord had promised her. When Noah heard Ham's wife's words, he said to her, "Oh, the flood has come."}}

=== Noah's ark left behind as a sign ===
{{Quote|{{Quran-range|54|13|15}}|And We carried him on a [construction of] planks and nails, Sailing under Our observation as reward for he who had been denied. And We left it as a sign, so is there any who will remember?}}Unlike the bible, which does not mention the ark as a sign for future generations, Neuwirth (2024) notes the salvation of Noah is made physically plausible to the listeners through the reference to the material verifiability of the ark, which could be taken from various late antique traditions, for example Flavius Josephus (b. 37AD) reports in the ''Jewish Antiquities (I 3.5 § 92)'' of the existence of the remains of Noah’s ark in Armenia (Clementz 1959: 22).<ref name=":0">Neuwirth, Angelika. ''The Qur'an: Text and Commentary, Volume 2.1: Early Middle Meccan Suras: The New Elect (p. 62).'' Yale University Press. Kindle Edition.</ref> She also notes that the appeal to the willingness of the listeners to be admonished by the sign (āya) of Noah’s ark is also reminiscent of the Talmudic story (bSanhedrin 96a) of the death of Sennacherib, who was led to a fateful decision by seeing the remains of Noah’s ark.<ref name=":0" />
==Moses and Pharaoh==
Alongside the biblical account of Moses and the Pharoah, there are some key aspects that match Jewish Rabbinic and Christian non-biblical traditions. Even the place where Moses communicates with God in the story of the burning bush, the word used ''ṭuwan'' in e.g. {{Quran|20|12}} (for the folded land, implying double the holiness)<ref>See; Neuwirth, Angelika. ''The Qur'an: Text and Commentary, Volume 2.1: Early Middle Meccan Suras: The New Elect (p. 199).'' Yale University Press. Kindle Edition. Ṭuwā stands for the holy Mount Sinai or Horeb (cf. KU, 124ff.; FVQ, 206ff.; BEQ, 255ff.). The word was long thought to be a rhyming transformation of Aramaic ṭūrā (“the mountain”), but now, based on rabbinic tradition and in agreement with traditional exegetes, Uri Rubin has convincingly interpreted bi-l-wādī l-muqaddasi Ṭuwā to mean “in the doubly hallowed valley” (see Rubin 2014). (The Sinai is in a sense the “folded Holy Land” [ṬWY = “to fold”].) Citing: Rubin, Uri, 2014, ''[https://urirubin.com/assets/docs/Tuwan.86132451.pdf Moses and the Holy Valley Ṭuwan. On the Biblical and Midrashic Background of a Qurʾanic Scene],'' Journal of Near Eastern Studies 73, 73–81.</ref> does not have a parallel in the bible,<ref>''[https://urirubin.com/assets/docs/Tuwan.86132451.pdf Moses and the Holy Valley Ṭuwan: On the biblical and midrashic background of a qurʾānic scene.]'' Rubin 2014. Ibid. pp. 75.</ref> but does in other Judeo-Christian (later) works.<ref>Ibid. pp. 76-78</ref> And the idea of eschatology in Moses's story such as {{Quran|20|15}}, with reward in the afterlife being mentioned, is not contained in the biblical story of Moses, Neuwirth (2024) notes moves the story into a late antiquity interpretation.<ref>Neuwirth, Angelika. ''The Qur'an: Text and Commentary, Volume 2.1: Early Middle Meccan Suras: The New Elect (p. 199).'' Yale University Press. Kindle Edition.</ref> Key details in the stories include:
===The prophecy of baby Moses===
Alongside the scene of [https://www.biblegateway.com/passage/?search=Exodus%201%3A8-2%3A10&version=NIV Exodus 1:8-2:10] where the Hebrews in Egyptian bondage are told to kill all male babies to control the growing Israelite population, where Moses's mother places his basket in the Nile to escape; Neuwirth (2024) citing Speyer, notes that ''the prophecy to Moses’s mother that an enemy—of Moses as well as of God himself—would take him in reflects a Midrashic interpretation of Exodus Rabba (1:31: “So the daughter of Pharaoh raised the daughter, who was once to take revenge on her father”). The event is explicitly based on a divine intention, namely, to make Moses his chosen one.''<ref>''The Qur'an: Text and Commentary, Volume 2.1: Early Middle Meccan Suras: The New Elect'' Ibid. pp. 201.</ref>{{Quote|{{Quran-range|20|37|39}}|We have bestowed Our favour on you before this, When We told your mother what We relate: 'Put him in a wooden box and cast it in the river. The river will cast it on the bank. An enemy of Ours, and his, will retrieve it.' We bestowed Our love on you that you may be reared under Our eyes.}}And similarly the next verse unlike the bible focuses on the emotional impact of the event on Moses’s mother, Neuwirth notes is comparable to Midrash Exodus Rabba 1:25.<ref>Ibid. pp. 201-202.</ref> Moses's salvation from persecution after manslaughter is commemorated with similar consideration of Moses’s mental condition.<ref>Ibid. pp. 202.</ref>{{Quote|{{Quran|20|40}}|When your sister walked up [to Pharaoh’s palace] saying, “Shall I show you someone who will take care of him?” Then We restored you to your mother, that she might not grieve and be comforted. Then you slew a soul, whereupon We delivered you from anguish, and We tried you with various ordeals. Then you stayed for several years among the people of Midian. Then you turned up as ordained, O Moses!}}
===Moses not suckled by Egyptians===
{{Quote|{{Quran-range|28|12|13}}|And We had prevented from him [all] wet nurses before, so she said, "Shall I direct you to a household that will be responsible for him for you while they are to him [for his upbringing] sincere?" So We restored him to his mother that she might be content and not grieve and that she would know that the promise of Allah is true. But most of the people do not know.}}Reynolds comments, "On this passage cf. Exodus 2:7-9. The Qurʾān's declaration (v. 12) 'We had forbidden him to be suckled by any nurse' (v. 12) reflects a tradition in the Babylonian Talmud that Moses (from whose mouth would come forth the word of God) refused the impure breasts of the Egyptian women:
::Then said his sister to Pharaoh's daughter, Shall I go and call thee a nurse of the Hebrew women? Why just 'of the Hebrew women'? - It teaches that they handed about to all the Egyptian women but he would not suck. He said: Shall a mouth which will speak with [God] suck what is unclean! (b. Sotah 12b)"<ref>Gabriel Said Reynolds, ''The Qurʾān and Bible'' p. 598</ref>
===Moses's speech impediment===
Moses has some kind of speech impediment when going to speak to Pharaoh in the Qurʾān.{{Quote|{{Quran-range|20|24|28}}|"Go to Pharaoh. Indeed, he has transgressed."( Moses) said: "O, my Lord! Expand me my breast,” ease my task for me, And untie the knot from my tongue, so they may understand what I say.”}}Biblical Scholar James Kugel (1997)<ref>Kugel, James L.. The Bible As It Was (Kindle Edition. pp. 432-433). Harvard University Press.</ref> notes that later Jewish and Christian commentators found it necessary to explain Moses's statement in the Old Testament “''Oh my Lord, I am not a man of words … but I am heavy of speech and heavy of tongue''” ([https://www.biblegateway.com/passage/?search=Exodus%204%3A10&version=NIV Exodus 4:10]), as he was believed to be a highly educated man who had been supposedly been schooled in every branch of wisdom, including eloquence.

He notes "it occurred to interpreters that Moses might have been referring here not to any lacuna in his education, but to an actual speech defect, some physical deformity of his mouth or tongue that prevented him from speaking in the usual fashion." We see this in:<ref>Ibid. pp. 432 - 433 (Kindle Edition)</ref>

"''I'' ''am not by nature eloquent; my tongue with difficulty speaks, I stammer, so that I cannot speak before the king."'' —Ezekiel the Tragedian, Exaggē 113– 115 (3rd-2nd century BCE)

''He [Moses] pleased his parents by his beauty, but grieved them by his speech impediment. —''Ephraem, Commentary on Exodus 2: 4 (d. 373 AD)

Others even added stories on how he might have acquired that deformity, such as Josephus in Jewish Antiquities 2: 232– 236 (published ~93/94 AD), connecting their explanation of Moses’ speech problems to the tradition of Pharaoh’s wise men and their warnings about a boy that might grow up and save Israel.<ref>Ibid. pp. 433 - 434 (Kindle Edition)</ref>
===Pharaohs questions===
Neuwirth (2024) comments that the list of further detailed questions to Moses in Surah 26 'The Poets' / al-shuʿarāʾ (i.e. in {{Quran-range|26|22|29}}), citing Speyer, reflect a more detailed episode from Midrash Exodus Rabba 5:18, which also starts from Pharaoh’s self-praise as God.<ref>Neuwirth, Angelika. ''The Qur'an: Text and Commentary, Volume 2.1: Early Middle Meccan Suras: The New Elect (p. 250).'' Yale University Press. Kindle Edition.</ref>
===The Drowning of Pharaoh===
{{Quote|{{Quran-range|10|90|92}}|And We took the Children of Israel across the sea, and Pharaoh and his soldiers pursued them in tyranny and enmity until, when drowning overtook him, he said, "I believe that there is no deity except that in whom the Children of Israel believe, and I am of the Muslims." Now? And you had disobeyed [Him] before and were of the corrupters? So today We will save you in body that you may be to those who succeed you a sign. And indeed, many among the people, of Our signs, are heedless}}Reynolds comments, "The question of Pharaoh's survival appears in an opinion found in the (late fourth century AD) ''Mekilta de-Rabbi Ishmael'' (cr. Gavin McDowell):
::"And the waters returned and covered the chariot etc. [Exo 14:27]. Even Pharaoh, according to the words of R. Judah, as it is said, 'The chariots of Pharaoh and his force, etc.' [Exo 15:4]. R. Nehimiah says: ''Except for Pharaoh.'' About him it says, 'However, for this purpose I have let you live' [Exo 9:16]. Others say that in the end Pharaoh went down and drowned, as it is said, 'Then went the horse of Pharaoh, etc.' [Exo 15:19]. (Beshallah 7)"<ref>Gabriel Said Reynolds, ''The Qurʾān and Bible'' p. 339</ref>
==Arguments for resurrection==
Reynolds (2020) notes the repeated argument that God can resurrect the dead using the analogy that he can bring life back to barren (or dead) land may be connected to a Jewish tradition that God will resurrect the dead with dew, for example, in b. Shabbat 88b.<ref name=":2" />
{{Quote|{{Quran|30|19}}|He brings forth the living from the dead, and brings forth the dead from the living, and revives the earth after its death. Likewise, you [too] shall be raised [from the dead].}}

Cf: {{Quran|16|65}}, {{Quran|43|11}}, {{Quran|50|6-11}}, {{Quran|57|17}}
==Late antique Christian Martyrdom==
{{Main|Shaheed (Martyr)}}
Durie (2018) notes the violence of the Qur'an shares more commonality with contemporary late antique religious (primarily Christian) violence and warfare rather than being directly biblically based.<ref>Durie, Mark. ''The Qur’an and Its Biblical Reflexes: Investigations into the Genesis of a Religion.'' Lexington Books. 2018. Pp. 229 -237. (Kindle Edition: pp. 423-439). 6.9 Stories of Fighting Prophets</ref>

=== Textual overlap ===

Covering the continuity and similarities between late antique religious violence & warfare and the Qur'an (and other Islamic traditions) is too big a topic to cover here; perhaps the most in-depth academic work looking at the continuity between this and Islam is Thomas Sizgorich's ''Violence and Belief in Late Antiquity: Militant Devotion in Christianity and Islam'', however Sinai (2017) notes alongside similar ideas and theology, there are some direct textual references.{{Quote|Sinai, Nicolai. Qur'an: A Historical-Critical Introduction (The New Edinburgh Islamic Surveys) (pp. 301-302). Edinburgh University Press. Kindle Edition.|That the Qur’anic community’s access to Biblical notions of militancy was mediated by late antique Christian discourse is indicated by an intriguing intertextual overlap. According to Q 3: 169–170, those who have been ‘killed in the path of God’ are not dead but ‘alive with their Lord’, rather than having to spend the remaining time until the Resurrection in a state of slumber (similarly Q 2: 154).39 Tor Andrae has pointed out that the phrase ‘alive with their Lord’ (ayāun inda rabbihim) corresponds exactly to the Syriac phrase h. ayyē lwāth alāhā, which a sixth-century Syriac Christian writer (Mar Ishay) applies to the martyrs.40 Furthermore, Mar Ishay contrasts the true fate of the martyrs with unfounded prior opinion: ‘they are believed to be already dead’.41 The same contrast is found in the two Qur’anic passages just cited.42 It could be objected that the parallel demonstrates merely that the Qur’an is familiar with the widespread Christian idea that martyrs are granted prompt access to paradise but that this does not establish a Christian precedent for the Qur’anic application of this idea specifically to those who actively enact – rather than just suffer – violence. However, as Sizgorich reminds us, a Christian martyr was by no means seen merely as a passive victim of persecution but rather as someone who actively ‘defeats the power of the Roman state’.43}}{{Quote|{{Quran|3|169}}|And never think of those who have been killed in the cause of Allah as dead. Rather, they are alive with their Lord, receiving provision}}{{Quote|{{Quran|2|154}}|Do not say that those who are killed in the way of God, are dead, for indeed they are alive, even though you are not aware.}}

=== Martyrs sidestep judgement day ===
After death, humans are typically said to spend their time in an intermediate state known to traditional Islamic scholars as the ''barzakh'' while they wait.<ref>Reynolds, Gabriel Said. 2020. ''Allah:'' ''God in the Qur'an (p. 71-72).'' Yale University Press. Kindle Edition.

It is also the same term used for the barrier between the living and the dead (whilst awaiting judgement day) in the Qur'an, e.g. {{Quran|23|99-100}}</ref> However, as in the above verses, one exception to this rule is Martyrs being with God straight away rather than being judged at judgment day, a non-biblical idea having parallels with late antique Christian thought.

Sinai (2017) similarly notes strong ideological parallels a 6th century hagiographical text (the Panegyric on Macarius, Bishop of Tkow by Pseudo-Dioscorus of Alexandria) of a 5th-century martyr, Egyptian Bishop Macarius of Tkow who was martyred for opposing the council of Chalcedon. Citing Michael Gaddis's summary of the document, ‘He was both willing to die for his faith, and willing to kill for it.’ he notes the same idea in {{Quran|9|111}} … they fight in the way of Allah, kill, and are killed.. <ref>Ibid. (Kindle Edition. pp. 299).</ref> As well as citing English historian of the Byzantine Empire James Howard-Johnston "''..James Howard-Johnston draws attention to a passage in the Chronicle of Theophanes Confessor (d. 818), which reports that at about the same time when the Qur’an promised those ‘killed in the path of God’ immediate entry to paradise, the Byzantine emperor Heraclius similarly announced that those fighting the Sasanians would be recompensed with eternal life. In Heraclius’s address as reported by Theophanes Confessor, we find some of the same general ingredients that are noticeable in Qur’anic calls to militancy…''"<ref>Ibid. (Kindle Edition. pp. 301).</ref> He notes these similarities are likely caused by being on the fringes of the Roman empire.<ref>Ibid. (Kindle Edition. pp. 301).</ref>

==== Martyrdom wipes away other sins and is privileged above other acts from believers ====
{{Quote|Reynolds, Gabriel Said. Christianity and the Qur'an: The Rise of Islam in Christian Arabia (pp. 178-179). Yale University Press. Kindle Edition.|The teaching on the glory earned by martyrs is widespread in the early church. It is nevertheless telling to find the way it is emphasized in the third-century Christian text the aforementioned Didascalia Apostolorum, originally written in Greek but preserved in Syriac.87 The Didascalia clearly teaches that the martyrs will have a privilege above other faithful believers: If then He raises up all men,—as He said by Isaiah: All flesh shall see the salvation of God [Isa 40.5; 52.10],—much more will He quicken and raise up the faithful; and (yet more) again will He quicken and raise up the faithful of the faithful, who are the martyrs, and establish them in great glory and make them His counsellors. For to mere disciples, those who believe in Him, He has promised a glory as of the stars [Dan 12.3]; but to the martyrs He has promised to give an everlasting glory, as of the luminaries which fail not, with more abundant light, that they may be shining for all time.88

The Didascalia is also clear, as is the Qur’an, that martyrs enjoy a special grace through the forgiveness of sins that their deaths have earned for them: But again, sins are forgiven by baptism also to those who from the Gentiles draw near and enter the holy Church of God. Let us inquire also, to whom sins are not imputed. To such as Abraham and Isaac and Jacob and all the patriarchs, as also to the martyrs. Let us hear then, brethren, for the Scripture saith: Who shall boast himself and say: I am clear of sins? Or who shall be confident and say: I am innocent? [Prov 20.9].

And again: There is no man pure of defilement: not though his life be but one day [Job 14.4–5 LXX]. To everyone therefore who believes and is baptized his … former sins have been forgiven; but after baptism also, provided that he has not sinned a deadly sin nor been an accomplice (thereto), but has heard only, or seen, or spoken, and is thus guilty of sin. But if a man go forth from the world by martyrdom for the name of the Lord, blessed is he; for brethren who by martyrdom have gone forth from this world, of these the sins are covered.89

We might compare Q 3:195: “ ‘And those who emigrated, and were expelled from their habitations, those who suffered hurt in My way, and fought, and were slain—them I shall surely acquit of their evil deeds, and I shall admit them to gardens underneath which rivers flow.’ A reward from God! And God with Him is the fairest reward” (italics added). In other words, the Qur’an seems to be well aware of Christian devotion to the martyrs.}}

=== Martyrdom in the Torah and Gospels ===
Muslims who fight are promised paradise, which the Qur'an claims is also a promise in the Torah and Gospel.{{Quote|{{Quran|9|111}}|Indeed Allah has bought from the faithful their souls and their possessions for paradise to be theirs: they fight in the way of Allah, kill, and are killed. A promise binding upon Him in the Torah and the Evangel and the Quran. And who is truer to his promise than Allah? So rejoice in the bargain you have made with Him, and that is the great success.}}Nickel (2020)<ref>Nickel, Gordon D. ''The Quran with Christian Commentary: A Guide to Understanding the Scripture of Islam (p. 222).'' Zondervan Academic. Kindle Edition. 9.111 – They fight in the way of God, and they kill and are killed When the Quran describes believers as fighting “in the way of Allah,” it makes a theological claim by associating Allah with human fighting. See the analysis of these expressions at 73.20 (p. 597). 9.111 – a promise binding on Him in the Torah, and the Gospel, and the Qur’ān This is the only verse in the Quran that brings the Torah (tawrāt), Gospel (injīl), and qur’ān (lit. “recitation”) together. The Quran claims here that the particular point on which the Torah and Gospel agree with the Muslim recitation is that believers “fight in the way of Allah, and they kill and are killed.” This verse makes the reader question whether the Quran has a clear idea of the contents of the Torah and Gospel. A similar question is raised by 61.14, which appears to say that ‘Īsā and his disciples fought against their enemies (cf. 3.52). Along with these misunderstandings, the Quran gives no information about the peaceable teaching and example of Jesus in the Gospel accounts. See the analysis of the Quran’s verses on the “Gospel” at 57.27 (p. 549). Do the Torah and Gospel in fact contain such a promise? See the comment on this characterization of the Bible at 61.14 (p. 566).</ref> and Reynolds (2018) however notes that this is not found there:{{Quote|1=Reynolds, G. S. (2018). The Qur'an and the Bible: Text and Commentary. Commentary on 9:111 (pp. 322) United Kingdom: Yale University Press.|2="9:111 The point of this verse is that those who are prepared to give their lives to God in the holy war are promised paradise as a payment for their services (cf. 2:245; 4:74; 61:10–12). The idea that the martyrs have a special assurance of paradise follows from the Qurʾān’s teaching elsewhere that the act of martyrdom involves forgiveness of sin. This teaching is close to that of the Syriac fathers (see commentary on 2:154, with further references). It is curious that the Qurʾān insists that the promise of heaven for holy warriors is found in the Torah and the Gospel (or “Evangel”); heaven is not found in the Torah and holy war is not found in the Gospels...}}While his commentary on 2:154 (pp. 76) once again highlights the Syriac parallel:{{Quote|2="As Tor Andrae has shown (Les origines de l’islam et le christianisme, 161ff.), the idea that martyrdom involves the absolution of sins is prominent in Syriac Christian texts such as the third-century Didascalia (chap. 20) and the Treaty on the Martyrs of Mar Isaï (d. late sixth cen.); the latter text also insists—much like the Qurʾān—that the martyrs are “living”:

The true martyrs who, by way of a death that covers their sins, demonstrate even more the beauty of their deeds and receive this glorious inheritance by virtue of their blood. By leaving this life they have prepared for their souls an honorable abode in paradise. It was thought that they are already dead, but by their death they have killed their sin, and they are alive with God. (Mar Isaï, Treaty on the Martyrs, 32)}}
=== Further Martyrdom Influence ===
Neuwirth (2024) also notes the influence of Christian martyrdom stories on the sudden conversion and prayers/asking for forgiveness to God of Pharaoh's magician's, who are originally opponents of Moses until he shows them proof of his prophecy via a miracle in the face of a sudden and violent death as threatened by the arrogant ruler (e.g. in {{Quran-range|26|50|51}} and {{Quran-range|20|71|73}}).<ref>Neuwirth, Angelika. ''The Qur'an: Text and Commentary, Volume 2.1: Early Middle Meccan Suras: The New Elect (p. 204).'' Yale University Press. Kindle Edition.</ref> Both Jewish and Christian traditions present individual “anti-Moses” sorcerers named Jannes and Jambres, who continue to appear in later interpretations; citing Nora Schmid, she notes that, although there is no explicit textual reference and the magicians are typically depicted in a negative light, they came to be associated with penance and martyrdom in Christian tradition - in the Qurʾan, this idea is developed further: the forgiveness that Jannes and Jambres either did not receive or only partially received in earlier sources is ultimately granted.<ref>Ibid. pp. 251-252</ref>{{Quote|Neuwirth, Angelika. The Qur'an: Text and Commentary, Volume 2.1: Early Middle Meccan Suras: The New Elect (p. 204). Yale University Press. Kindle Edition.|V. 72–73 qālū lan nuʾthiraka ʿalā mā jāʾanā mina l-bayyināti wa-lladhī faṭaranā fa-qḍi mā anta qāḍin innamā taqḍī hādhihi l-ḥayāta l-dunyā / innā āmannā birabbinā li-yaghfira lanā khaṭāyānā wa-mā akrahtanā ʿalayhi mina l-siḥri wallāhu khayrun wa-abqā] Conversion scene as later in Q 26:50–51. The sorcerers renounce their allegiance to Pharaoh on the basis of the obvious evidence (bayyināt) and give preference to the Creator God, they submit to their worldly fate and hope for the forgiveness of their sins and what they have been forced to do by the ruler—they are a role model for the community, which is also subject to pressure from outside. The request for forgiveness of sins before a violent death is a topos of Christian martyr stories. The entire scene, leaving the context of ‘ancient’ Egypt, reflects the notion of Christian martyrdom stories. Khaṭāyā (singular khaṭīʾa) also lets a Syriac terminus technicus ring through, but the word can be derived from the Arabic root KhṬʿ (“to miss a goal”) (see FVQ, 123ff.). The idea of the forgiveness of sins is prominent in the Christian liturgy—not only through the Lord’s Prayer. In addition to khaṭīʾa, there is the genuine Arabic dhanb, dhunūb.}}

== Expansions on the afterlife ==

Reynolds (2020) notes the Qur’ans provides vivid depictions of hell are highly unlike the New Testament, where Jesus refers to afterlife punishment mostly allusively. The closest the Gospels describe hell is through the few images of “fire,” “wailing,” and “gnashing of teeth.”, for example in Matthew’s Parable of the Weeds, Jesus explains that at the end of the age, the Son of Man will send his angels that will cast evildoers into a fiery furnace where there will be weeping and gnashing of teeth (Matt 13:40–42).<ref>Reynolds, Gabriel Said. ''Allah: God in the Qur'an (pp. 81-82).'' Yale University Press. Kindle Edition.</ref> He notes the much more constant an vivid Qur'anic descriptions far better match later Christian works that expanded the descriptions to be more gruesome, in order to scare the reader/audience.<ref>Ibid. pp. 88.

''We might note how all of these traditions are meant to make humans yearn for paradise and fear hell. The Qur’an, from this regard, is a profoundly psychological work. Like a Christian preacher, like John Chrysostom or Saint Ephrem, the author of the Qur’an speaks of heaven and hell to persuade his audience to repent and believe. He does so in a way, however, that is distinct—emphasizing physical pain and physical pleasure in order, apparently, to make a greater impression on his audience. He puts a terrible tree into hell and young women in paradise.''
</ref>{{Quote|Reynolds, Gabriel Said. Allah: God in the Qur'an (pp. 82-83). Yale University Press. Kindle Edition.|The way that the Qur’an describes hell in particularly vivid, gruesome terms brings us back to something we mentioned in Chapter 1, namely, that the Qur’an in many ways is a “homiletic” work, a work written like a homily or sermon. The Qur’an’s intention is not simply to declare that those who disobey God will be punished, but to describe that punishment in a way which brings the awfulness of hell to life. Similarly, homilists in the early centuries of Christianity expanded dramatically on the New Testament allusions to hell. In a sermon attributed to John Chrysostom (d. 407) we read a description of hell with the sort of detail that we find in the Qur’an: It is a sea of fire—not a sea of the kind or dimensions we know here, but much larger and fiercer, with waves made of fire, fire of a strange and fearsome kind. There is a great abyss there, in fact, of terrible flames, and one can see fire rushing about on all sides like some wild animal…. There will be no one who can resist, no one who can escape: Christ’s gentle, peaceful face will be nowhere to be seen.15}}Sinai (2017) in his paper titled "''The Eschatological Kerygma of the Early Qur’an''" notes many overlap with Syriac Homilies on the afterlife as well as other apocalyptic ideas and terminology.<ref>“[https://almuslih.org/wp-content/uploads/Library/Sinai,%20N%20-%20The%20Eschatological%20Kerygma.pdf The Eschatological Kerygma of the Early Qur’an]”, Nicolai Sinai, in ''Apocalypticism and Eschatology in Late Antiquity: Encounters in the Abrahamic Religions, 6th–8th Centuries'', edited by Hagit Amirav, Emmanouela Grypeou, and Guy Stroumsa, Leuven: Peeters, 2017, 219–266.

These are discussed throughout the whole paper, and a summary can be found in pp.50-57. On heaven and hell specifically, the summary is on pp.55-57.</ref>

== Souls are taken away at night ==

The Qur'an (and traditional Islamic exegetes)<ref>See classical commentaries on these verses such as Al-Jalalayn on [https://quranx.com/Tafsir/Jalal/39.42 Q39:42], [https://quranx.com/Tafsir/Jalal/6.60 Q6:60] and Ibn Kathir on [https://quranx.com/Tafsir/Kathir/39.41 Q39:41-2] and [https://quranx.com/Tafsir/Kathir/6.60 Q6:60]</ref> state that the soul is taken away by Allah during the night.{{Quote|{{Quran|39|42}}|Allah takes the souls at the time of their death, and those who have not died, in their sleep. Then He retains those for whom He has ordained death and releases the others until a specified time. There are indeed signs in that for a people who reflect.}}{{Quote|{{Quran|6|60}}|It is He who takes your souls by night, and He knows what you do by day, then He reanimates you therein so that a specified term may be completed. Then to Him will be your return, whereat He will inform you concerning what you used to do.}}Tesei (2016) notes this idea may mimic a late antique Syriac Christian parallel in the poetical language used by Ephrem, who in the Nisibene hymns (7:15) mentions sleep resembles death, and other Christian writers (such as Babai) wrote about sleep metaphorically Jesus's death and waking up like the resurrection;<ref>Tesei, Tommaso. (2016). "[https://www.researchgate.net/publication/344524709_2_The_barzakh_and_the_Intermediate_State_of_the_Dead_in_the_Quran 2 The barzakh and the Intermediate State of the Dead in the Quran]". pp. 40-42 In Locating Hell in Islamic Traditions. Leiden, The Netherlands: Brill. <nowiki>https://doi.org/10.1163/9789004301368_003</nowiki> (Open access)

''At the same time, the Quran also compares death to the “common sleep” that people experience on a daily basis. This seems to be the case in the cryptic statement found in Q 39:42 (cf. Q 6:60), “God takes the souls at the time of their death (ḥīna mawtihā), and [He takes] that which has not died, in its sleep ( fī manāmihā); He withholds that against which He has decreed death, but sets loose the other until a stated term”. This obscure passage appears to indicate that sleep is a death-like state; sleepers resemble the dead since their souls enter into a state similar to that which they will experience at the moment of death. However, unlike the souls of the dead, which will be raised only on the Day of Resurrection, the ordinary sleeper’s soul is sent back when he awakens―that is, of course, until the time of his death. This parallel between death and “common sleep” finds a fairly close correspondence in the poetical language used by Ephrem, who in the Nisibene hymns (7:15) affirms that: “The one who lies down to sleep resembles the departed and death resembles a dream, and the resurrection the morning”. In these passages the Quran’s eschatological discourse is particularly close to that formulated by Babai, in whose ideas the belief in the soul’s sleep is intimately connected to the strong affirmation of the physical resurrection of the body on the Day of Judgment.'' </ref> with this idea taken literally by Muhammad.

== Arguments for resurrection ==
Reynolds (2020) notes the repeated argument that God can resurrect the dead using the analogy that he can bring life back to barren (or dead) land may be connected to a Jewish tradition that God will resurrect the dead with dew, for example, in b. Shabbat 88b.<ref name=":2">See: Reynolds, Gabriel Said. Allah: ''God in the Qur'an (pp. 76-77).'' Yale University Press. Kindle Edition.

And Footnote 10: Reynolds, Gabriel Said. ''Allah: God in the Qur'an (p. 254).'' Yale University Press. Kindle Edition.</ref>
{{Quote|{{Quran|30|19}}|He brings forth the living from the dead, and brings forth the dead from the living, and revives the earth after its death. Likewise, you [too] shall be raised [from the dead].}}

Cf: {{Quran|16|65}}, {{Quran|43|11}}, {{Quran|50|6-11}}, {{Quran|57|17}}

==See Also==
*[[Pre-Islamic Arab Religion in Islam]]

* [[Parallels Between the Qur'an and Late Antique Judeo-Christian Literature|Parallels Between the Qur'an and Late Antique Judeo-Christian Literature - Part 1]]
* [[Historical Errors in the Quran]]
==References==
<references />

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CPO675: /* Other Traditions */

== The Historical Jesus ==

=== Other Traditions ===

==== Intro ====

Alongside the main consensus from Biblical Scholars/Historians that Jesus was an eschatological preacher in the early first century AD who believed the Earth would end during his time (and therefore couldn't be the Muslim Jesus), there are many other of the most considered authentic teachings of Jesus that clash with Islam; considering the principle of Messenger Uniformitarianism; where all messengers preach essentially the same thing with only minor variations.<ref>Durie, Mark. ''The Qur’an and Its Biblical Reflexes: Investigations into the Genesis of a Religion (pp. 135-142) (Kindle Edition pp. 281-294)''. 5.3 Messenger Uniformitarianism. Lexington Books. 2018.</ref>
{{Quote|{{Quran|41|43}}|Not is said to you except what was said to the Messengers before you. Indeed, your Lord (is) Possessor (of) forgiveness, and Possessor (of) penalty painful.}}{{Quote|{{Quran|2|285}}|The Apostle and the faithful have faith in what has been sent down to him from his Lord. Each [of them] has faith in Allah, His angels, His scriptures and His apostles. [They declare,] ‘We make no distinction between any of His apostles.’ And they say, ‘We hear and obey. Our Lord, forgive us, and toward You is the return.’}}

{{Quote|{{Quran|17|77}}|“This was the sunnah [customary way] of Our messengers whom We sent before you, and you will find no change in Our sunnah”}}cf. {{Quran|6|112}}, {{Quran|35|43}}, {{Quran|22|78}}.

Other than being explicitly told that messengers bring the same message from Allah, Durie (2018) notes the Qur'an repeatedly states that Muhammad was sent to confirm the revelations given to earlier messengers (Q2:91, 97; Q3:3, 50; Q5:48; Q12:111; Q16:43–44; Q35:31), just as each prophet before him confirmed those who came earlier. For example, Jesus (ʿĪsa) confirmed the Torah of Moses (Mūsa) (Q5:46), and the Qurʾan confirms the scriptures revealed to previous prophets (Q4:47). In this way, Muhammad’s role continues the same pattern of reaffirming earlier divine messages rather than introducing a completely new one.<ref>Durie, Mark. ''The Qur’an and Its Biblical Reflexes: Investigations Into the Genesis of a Religion.'' pp.140</ref>

{{Quote|Durie, Mark. The Qur'an and it's Biblical Reflexes. pp.140|• It is also explicitly asserted that messengers bring the same message
from Alla¯h: “Nothing is said to you but what has already been said to
messengers before you” (Q41:43; Q22:78) and “we make no distinction
between any of them” (Q2:136). They also preached the same dīn “commandment” or “religion” (Q42:13; cf. Q3:84; Q4:150), which is referred
to as the “religion of Ibra¯hīm” (Q2:130; Q4:125; Q16:121–23). The
validating function of this idea becomes clear when it is applied against
a group of Jews who reject the concept of the “same message” because
it would mean validating the Messenger. These Jews hold to their own
faith, saying “we believe in what has been sent down on us,” but they
reject the Messenger, or “anything after that” (Q2:91). The ruling against
these Jews is that because they reject the Messenger, they are disbelievers,
rejecting “what All a¯ h has sent down” (Q2:91).31 The idea of the “same message” is further reinforced when the Qurʾan repeatedly states that the Messenger was only sent to confirm what was sent down by previous
messengers (Q2:91, 97; Q3:3, 50; Q5:48; Q12:111; Q16:43–44; Q35:31),
just as previous messengers had done for messengers that preceded them,
for example, ʿĪsa¯ “confirmed” the Tawra¯ h of Mūsa¯(Q5:46), and the Qurʾan
confirms the book(s) sent by previous prophets (Q4:47), just as the Messenger has been doing in his turn.}}
While the large differences between the New Testament / Gospels / Christian Jesus and the [[Isa al-Masih (Jesus Christ)|Muslim Jesus]] are clear to anyone who has read both the Qur'an and NT, (which takes from apocrypha considered inauthentic by NT scholars,<ref>Sanders, E.. ''The Historical Figure of Jesus (pp. 78-79)''. Penguin Books Ltd. Kindle Edition.

..(Gnosticism was a world view that held everything material to be evil; the god who created the world was a bad god, and the creation was wicked. Gnostics who were also Christians held that the good God had sent Jesus to redeem people’s souls, not their bodies, and that Jesus was not a real human being. The Christians who objected to these views finally declared them heretical.) ''I share the general scholarly view that very, very little in the apocryphal gospels could conceivably go back to the time of Jesus. They are legendary and mythological. Of all the apocryphal material, only some of the sayings in the Gospel of Thomas are worth consideration.'' This does not mean that we can make a clean division: the historical four gospels versus the legendary apocryphal gospels. There are legendary traits in the four gospels in the New Testament, and there is also a certain amount of newly created material (as we saw just above)..</ref> and [[Parallels Between the Qur'an and Late Antique Judeo-Christian Literature|later Christian thought/writings]] ) are too large to list here, and have lead to many Muslims arguing for biblical corruption based on theological grounds [textual grounds too - though don't affect authentic traditions] in general, a disputed idea (cite - Reynolds article. See also: [[Corruption of Previous Scriptures]] & [[Qur'an, Hadith and Scholars:Corruption of Previous Scriptures]]) a summary of some of the most likely authentic traditions from Biblical historians (using historical-critical methods not Christian or Muslim theologians - more likely to be true and not taken from bias or proving or disproving Islam but historical context, widespread across sources, early - cite Allison explanation - Why - different to time and context, unlikely to be fabricated later by Christians, across all early sources etc.) are shown here as an example of the clashes. [Point: not arguing against Christian Jesus - but secular historians one]

==== Examples ====
{{Quote|Dale C. Allison Jr.. The Historical Christ and the Theological Jesus (Kindle Locations 822-836). Kindle Edition.|2=Given that we typically remember the outlines of an event or the general purport of a conversation rather than the particulars and that we extract patterns and meaning from our memories, it makes little sense to open the quest for Jesus by evaluating individual items with our criteria, in the hope that some bits preserve pristine memory. We should rather be looking for repeating patterns and contemplating the big picture. true. We should trust first, if we are to trust at all, what is most likely to be trustworthy. Although we may, after reading Thucydides, be confident that there was a Peloponnesian War, we may well wonder about many of the details of his account.

The larger the generalization and the more data upon which it is based, the greater our confidence; the more specific the detail and the fewer the data supporting it, the more room we have for doubt. With regard to the sources for Jesus, the traditional criteria of authenticity privilege the parts over the whole. It seems more prudent to privilege generalizations drawn from the whole than to concentrate upon one individual item after another. As a demonstration of how this works in practice, consider the following traditions:

• Jesus prohibited divorce: 1 Cor. 7:10; Mark 10:2-9; Luke 16:18. [Qur'an divorce rules - https://wikiislam.net/wiki/Khula] 

• Jesus sent forth missionaries without staff, food, or money: Matt. 10:9-10; Mark 6:8-9; Luke 10:4.

• Jesus instructed missionaries to get their living by the gospel: 1 Cor. 9:14; Matt. 10:10; Luke 10:7.

• Jesus commanded loving and doing good to enemies: Matt. 5:38-48; Luke 6:27-36. [Qur'an do not be merciful to unbelievers https://wikiislam.net/wiki/Qur%27an,_Hadith_and_Scholars:Non-Muslims & https://wikiislam.net/wiki/Kafir_(Infidel)#Guidelines_on_how_to_deal_with_disbelievers Quran 48:29 ]

• Jesus forbade judging others: Matt. 7:1-2; Luke 6:37-38.

• Jesus asked a prospective follower not to bury his father: Matt. 8:21-22; 22; Luke 959-60.

• Jesus spoke of hating one's father and mother: Matt. 10:37; Luke 14:26; Gospel of Thomas 55, 101. [respect parents - too tenuous]

• Jesus enjoined disciples to take up a cross: Matt. 10:38; Mark 8:34; Luke 14:27.

• Jesus enjoined unlimited forgiveness: Matt. 18:21-22; Luke 17:3-4. [forgiveness against shirk - Qur'an says no Q4:48 and 4:116. ]

• Jesus exhorted hearers to lose their lives in order to save them: Matt. 10:39; Mark 8:35; Luke 17:33.

• Jesus called people away from their livelihoods: Mark 1:16-20; 2:14. [?]

• Jesus figuratively demanded violent removal of hand, foot, and eye: Mark 9:42-48.

• Jesus asked a wealthy man to relinquish his money: Mark 10:17-27. [bring in wealth inequality section of Islam darajat - here]

• Jesus forbade taking oaths: Matt. 5:33-37. [https://www.iium.edu.my/deed/lawbase/risalah_maliki/book31.html#:~:text=Anyone%20who%20swears%20an%20oath,Oneness%2C%20timelessness%20and%20existence.%5D]

• Jesus commanded money to be lent without interest: Matt. 5:42; Gospel of Thomas 95.

• Jesus called some to a life without marriage: Matt. 19:11-12. [Qur'an criticism of monasticism]

• Jesus asked a prospective follower not to say farewell to his parents: Luke 9:61-62. [respect parents?]

• Jesus asked his disciples to renounce all of their possessions: Luke 14:33"}}
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[ highlight those being spoken about in italics or bold]

Dale/Allison (2009) notes that Jesus' banning divorce was an important teaching that <s>stood out</s> to early Christians, [https://www.biblegateway.com/passage/?search=Luke%2016%3A18&version=NIV Luke 16:18], [https://www.biblegateway.com/passage/?search=1%20Corinthians%207%3A10-16&version=NIV 1 Corinthians 7:10-16], [https://www.biblegateway.com/passage/?search=Mark%2010%3A2-9&version=NIV Mark 10:2-9], in contrast to Judaism ([https://www.biblegateway.com/passage/?search=Deuteronomy%2024%3A1-4&version=NIV Deuteronomy 24:1-4]) and Islam e.g. Quran 2:228-232, Q65:1-7, (Q4:19 https://quranx.com/hadiths/4.19 & Q4:35), Q33:49 )

He notes that Jesus commanded loving and doing good to enemies in [https://www.biblegateway.com/passage/?search=Matthew%205%3A38-48&version=NIV Matt. 5:38-48]; [https://www.biblegateway.com/passage/?search=Luke%206%3A27-36&version=NIV Luke 6:27-36], while the Qur'an generally advises treating other Muslims well, it specifically states not to be merciful to unbelievers Q48:29. [ For more examples of not being merciful to unbelievers, let alone 'enemies' see: '''[[Qur'an, Hadith and Scholars:Non-Muslims|https://wikiislam.net/wiki/Qur%27an,_Hadith_and_Scholars:Non-Muslims]] & [[Kafir (Infidel)#Guidelines%20on%20how%20to%20deal%20with%20disbelievers|https://wikiislam.net/wiki/Kafir_(Infidel)#Guidelines_on_how_to_deal_with_disbelievers]] Quran 48:29 ]'''

• Jesus enjoined unlimited forgiveness: [https://www.biblegateway.com/passage/?search=Matthew%2018%3A21-22&version=NIV Matt. 18:21-22]; [https://www.biblegateway.com/passage/?search=Luke%2017%3A3-4&version=NIV Luke 17:3-4]. [forgiveness against shirk - Qur'an says no Q4:48 and 4:116. - anyone who believed in him would/could be saved ]

He notes Jesus called some to a life without marriage: [https://www.biblegateway.com/passage/?search=Matthew%2019%3A11-12&version=NIV Matt. 19:11-12], while the Qur'an promotes it as a virtue encouraging those to do so.

Marriage is a virtue https://www.getquranic.com/marriage-in-islam-8-quranic-verses-about-marriage/

{{Quote|{{Quran|24|32}}|Marry off those who are single among you, and the upright among your male and female slaves. If they are poor, Allah will enrich them out of His grace, and Allah is all-bounteous, all-knowing.}}

And criticizes monasticism/monks, with celibacy and no marriage being a key aspect<ref>[https://www.britannica.com/topic/monasticism Monasticism] | religion | Britannica Entry</ref> in general

{{Quote|Reynolds, Gabriel Said. Christianity and the Qur'an: The Rise of Islam in Christian Arabia (pp. 131-132). Yale University Press. Kindle Edition.|These verses critical of monks are often read together with Q 57:27, which, while praising certain positive qualities of Christians, also seems to accuse Christians of “innovating” monasticism: Then We sent, following in their footsteps, Our Messengers; and We sent, following, Jesus son of Mary, and gave unto him the Gospel. And We set in the hearts of those who followed him tenderness and mercy. And monasticism they invented—We did not prescribe it for them—only seeking the good pleasure of God; but they observed it not as it should be observed. So We gave those of them who believed their wage; and many of them are ungodly.}}

Criticism of monasticism (https://www.britannica.com/topic/monasticism) - lack of marriage for monks (though admittedly also praises monks in general elsewhere pp130-132)<ref>Reynolds, Gabriel Said. ''Christianity and the Qur'an: The Rise of Islam in Christian Arabia (pp. 130-132).'' Yale University Press. Kindle Edition.</ref>

{{Quote|{{Quran|57|27}}|Then We sent on their footsteps Our Messengers and We followed with Isa, son (of) Maryam, and We gave him the Injeel. And We placed in (the) hearts (of) those who followed him compassion and mercy. But monasticism they innovated - not We prescribed it for them - only seeking (the) pleasure (of) Allah, but not they observed it (with) right observance. So We gave those who believed among them their reward, but most of them (are) defiantly disobediently.}}

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==== Father-son relationship ====
{{Quote|Dale C. Allison Jr.. The Historical Christ and the Theological Jesus (Kindle Location 841-848). Kindle Edition.|2=Working through the tradition in the way I suggest leads to a large number of conclusions. Jesus must have been an exorcist who interpreted his ministry in terms of Satan's downfall. He must have thought highly of John the Baptist. He must have repeatedly spoken of God as Father. [Durie differences in metaphor and understanding of relationship from Hebrew to Arab society = markedly different] He must have composed parables. He must have come into conflict with religious authorities. All of this may seem obvious, but the procedure is not trite, for it also issues in some controversial verdicts. As I have argued elsewhere, for example, ample, the quantity of conventional eschatological material in our primary sources almost necessitates that Jesus was an eschatological prophet.' The reconstruction of Robert Funk and the Jesus Seminar is for this reason alone problematic. Even more controversial is what my approach leads me to infer about Jesus' self-conception. Consider these Synoptic materials:

• Jesus said that the Son of man will return on the clouds of heaven and send angels to gather the elect from throughout the world: Mark 13:26-27; cf. 14:62; Matt. 10:23 (allusions to Daniel 7's depiction of the last judgment are clear). [the son of man plays no part in Islam]}}

===== Slave-master relationship =====
Father son Hebrew relationship Jesus used distinctly abandoned, instead using other things (other metaphors) in Arab society to describe the relationship between humans and God, such as a slave-master relationship,<ref>Durie, Mark. ''The Qur’an and Its Biblical Reflexes: Investigations into the Genesis of a Religion (pp. XX-XX) (pp. 107-110 Kindle Edition)''. 4.1.1. Shirk - Proprietary Partnership. Lexington Books. 2018.</ref> a Patron - Protege (needs explanation of what this is) <ref>Durie, Mark. ''The Qur’an and Its Biblical Reflexes: Investigations into the Genesis of a Religion (pp. XX-XX) (pp. 110-111 Kindle Edition)''. 4.1.2. Shirk - Patron - Protege Relationships. Lexington Books. 2018.</ref>. having strongly condemned the idea that God could have offspring against the unscripted pagans (mushrikun) taking angels as daughters of god, then against God having a son<ref>Durie, Mark. ''The Qur’an and Its Biblical Reflexes: Investigations into the Genesis of a Religion (pp. XX-XX) (pp. 112-113 Kindle Edition)''. 4.1.5 A Polemical Doctrine. Lexington Books. 2018.</ref>

Slave analogy Dure Print edition pp108 - 110 summary:<ref name=":1">Durie, Mark. ''The Qur’an and Its Biblical Reflexes: Investigations into the Genesis of a Religion (pp. 108-110) (pp. XX-XX Kindle Edition)''. 4.1.5 A Polemical Doctrine. Lexington Books. 2018.</ref> Before its theological use, the Arabic root ''sh-r-k'' referred to ordinary '''partnership or shared ownership'''. The Qurʾan draws on this everyday meaning to illustrate why associating partners with God is impossible. Using the metaphor of '''a master and a slave''', the Qurʾan argues that just as a slave with multiple masters suffers confusion and conflict, attributing partners to God creates an impossible and chaotic situation. This logic appears in verses such as Q39:29 and others that argue multiple gods would lead to conflict and the ruin of creation (Q23:91; Q21:22).<ref name=":1" />
{{Quote|{{Quran|39|29}}|Allah presents a parable, “a man was owned by several quarreling partners
(shurakaʾ), and a man was the slave of (just) one man. Are the two equal?”}}

The Qurʾan’s use of the slave-master metaphor differs from Jesus’ teaching in the New Testament. Whereas Jesus uses it to highlight divided human devotion, the Qurʾan uses it to assert the logical impossibility of multiple divine authorities.<ref name=":1" />

{{Quote|Luke 16:13; cf. Matthew. 6:24|No slave can serve two masters; for a slave will either hate the one and love the
other, or be devoted to the one and despise the other. You cannot serve God and wealth.}}

Shirk encompasses various forms of error: attributing partners or helpers to God, believing He needs allies, or seeking aid from others besides Him. The Qurʾan also explores God’s unity through three social analogies relevant to Arabian society: '''patron–protégé relationships''', '''alliances of mutual help''', and '''relationships of equal or unequal status'''.<ref name=":1" />

===== '''Patron–protégé relationships''' =====
The Qur'an distinctly ignores the father-son relationship (and theology) metaphor by using another term that is harder to translate

Explanation of what this is Durie pp.110-111:<ref name=":3">Durie, Mark. ''The Qur’an and Its Biblical Reflexes: Investigations into the Genesis of a Religion (pp. 110-111) (pp. XX-XX Kindle Edition)''. 4.1.5 A Polemical Doctrine. Lexington Books. 2018.</ref> The Qurʾan uses terms from the root '''w-l-y''' to describe '''patron–protégé relationships''', alliances, and guardianship. The key term '''walī''' can mean ally, protector, guardian, or patron, and may indicate either symmetrical alliances or asymmetrical power relationships.<ref name=":3" /><ref>[https://lexicon.quranic-research.net/data/27_w/219_wle.html Root: ''wāw lām yā'' (و ل ي)] - Lane's Lexicon Qur'anic Research

See Lane's Lexicon Classical Arabic Dictionary [https://lexicon.quranic-research.net/pdf/Page_3060.pdf pp.3060] & [https://lexicon.quranic-research.net/pdf/Page_3061.pdf pp.3061] </ref>

In pre-Islamic Arab society, such patronage was essential for protection, as shown by the example of Muḥammad being safeguarded by his uncle Abū Ṭālib. Without a patron, a person was vulnerable.<ref name=":3" /> [in the sirah of Ibn Ishaq]

The Qurʾan emphasizes that '''God has no need of any patron''' and that '''humans should recognize God alone as their walī'''. Seeking any protector besides God is considered '''shirk'''. Believers may take other believers and the Prophet as allies (''awliyāʾ'') alongside God, but not in place of Him.<ref name=":3" />

As the Muslim community developed, especially after what the passage calls the ''Eschatological Transition''—the Qurʾan increasingly stressed exclusive allegiance to God. This served to detach believers from prior tribal or familial loyalties that could compromise their commitment to the faith community.<ref name=":3" />

- and calls for help-

===== Unequal status vs Jesus' views on Wealth =====
Sinai - darajah passage

And inequality in general - inc. the afterlife

=== Punishment narratives ===

==== Punishment BEFORE the day of judgement ====
We are told the sole exception in history was the unnamed town<ref>Unnamed in the Qur'an, though identified as Nineveh (in modern day Iraq) as in the Biblical "Book of Jonah" by Islamic exegetes; e.g. see [https://quranx.com/tafsirs/37.147 tafsirs on Q37:147]</ref> of more than 100,000 people that the messenger Yūnus (Jonah) when the warning was heeded in full by the entire people, and therefore punishment averted ({{Quran|10|98}}, {{Quran|37|147-148}}) “no town believed . . . except the people of Yūnus”<ref>Durie, Mark. 2018. ''The Qur'an and Its Biblical Reflexes: Investigations Into the Genesis of a Religion. pp 49. Kindle Edition pp 151.''</ref>

How many a town defied the command of its Lord and His apostles, then We called it to a severe account and punished it with a dire punishment. Q65:8

So it tasted the evil consequences of its conduct, and the outcome of its conduct was ruin. Q65:9

How many generations that had far more wealth and ostentation have We laid low before them! <<nowiki>https://quranx.com/19.74</nowiki>>

Say, ‘Whoever abides in error, the All-beneficent shall prolong his respite until they sight what they have been promised: either punishment, or the Hour.’ Then they will know whose position is worse, and whose host is weaker <<nowiki>https://quranx.com/19.75</nowiki>>

------

Q34:16 - flood of the damn of Yemen / Saba', the people of Sheba E.g. <ref>See tafsirs on [https://quranx.com/Tafsirs/34.14 Q34:14], [https://quranx.com/Tafsirs/34.15 Q34:15] & [https://quranx.com/Tafsirs/34.16 Q34:16]</ref> {{Quran|34|14-16}}

{{Quote|{{Quran|34|14-16}}|And when We decreed for Solomon death, nothing indicated to the jinn his death except a creature of the earth eating his staff. But when he fell, it became clear to the jinn that if they had known the unseen, they would not have remained in humiliating punishment.
Certainly, (there) was for Saba in their dwelling place a sign: Two gardens on (the) right and (on the) left. "Eat from (the) provision (of) your Lord and be grateful to Him. A land good and a Lord Oft-Forgiving."
But they turned away, so We sent upon them (the) flood (of) the dam, and We changed for them their two gardens (with) two gardens producing fruit bitter, and tamarisks and (some)thing of lote trees few.}}
, {{Quran|65|8-9}}, {{Quran|19|74-75}}

Add: 34:15–21: The punishment of the people of Sheba, without explicit reference to a messenger. Sheba reference <ref>Marshall, David. ''God, Muhammad and the Unbelievers (p. 73).'' Taylor & Francis. Kindle Edition.</ref>

=== Surah 36 ===
Similarly an unnamed town is sent three messengers in {{Quran|36|13-32}}, who's identities have differed in traditional Islamic scholarship,<ref>E.g. see commentaries on [https://quranx.com/Tafsirs/36.13 Q36:13] & [https://quranx.com/tafsirs/36.14 Q36:14], and the later verses in the story, cited as a parable ''(mathal).''</ref> are rejected and so are killed with a cry/shout (''ṣayḥatan)'' ({{Quran|36|29}}). <ref>Marshall, David. ''God, Muhammad and the Unbelievers (p. 63 & 72).'' Taylor & Francis. Kindle Edition.</ref>
{{Quote|Marshall, David. God, Muhammad and the Unbelievers (p. 72). Taylor & Francis. Kindle Edition.|36:13–32: Described as a parable (mathal, v.13), but in outline very similar to the punishment-narratives. The messengers (two of them, reinforced with a third) and the town in which they preach are anonymous. ‘A man from the furthest part of the city’ (v.20) exhorts his people to follow the messengers.}}

== Contradiction ==
The order in Surah 2 has the Jews struck by a lightening bolt after they worship the golden calf, who are then forgiven by Allah by being resurrected.
{{Quote|{{Quran|2|50-67}}|And when We parted the sea with you, and We delivered you and drowned Pharaoh’s clan as you looked on. 
And when We made an appointment with Moses for forty nights, you took up the Calf [for worship] in his absence, and you were wrongdoers. 
Then We excused you after that so that you might give thanks. 
And when We gave Moses the Book and the Criterion so that you might be guided. 
And [recall] when Moses said to his people, ‘O my people! You have indeed wronged yourselves by taking up the Calf [for worship]. Now turn penitently to your Maker, and slay [the guilty among] your folks. That will be better for you with your Maker.’ Then He turned to you clemently. Indeed, He is the All-clement, the All-merciful. 
And when you said, ‘O Moses, we will not believe you until we see Allah visibly.’ Thereupon a thunderbolt seized you as you looked on.
Then We raised you up after your death so that you might give thanks. /n
We shaded you with clouds, and sent down to you manna and quails [saying]: ‘Eat of the good things We have provided for you.’ And they did not wrong Us, but they used to wrong [only] themselves. 
And when We said, ‘Enter this town, and eat thereof freely whencesoever you wish, and enter while prostrating at the gate, and say, ‘‘Relieve [us of the burden of our sins],’’ so that We may forgive your iniquities and We will soon enhance the virtuous.’ 
But the wrongdoers changed the saying with other than what they were told. So We sent down on those who were wrongdoers a plague from the sky because of the transgressions they used to commit. 
And when Moses prayed for water for his people, We said, ‘Strike the rock with your staff.’ Thereat twelve fountains gushed forth from it; every tribe came to know its drinking-place. ‘Eat and drink of Allah’s provision, and do not act wickedly on the earth, causing corruption.’ 
And when you said, ‘O Moses, ‘We will not put up with one kind of food. So invoke your Lord for us, so that He may bring forth for us of that which the earth grows—its greens and cucumbers, its garlic, lentils, and onions.’ He said, ‘Do you seek to replace what is superior with that which is inferior? Go down to any town and you will indeed get what you ask for!’ So they were struck with abasement and poverty, and they earned Allah’s wrath. That, because they would deny the signs of Allah and kill the prophets unjustly. That, because they would disobey and commit transgressions. 
Indeed the faithful, the Jews, the Christians and the Sabaeans—those of them who have faith in Allah and the Last Day and act righteously—they shall have their reward from their Lord, and they will have no fear, nor will they grieve. 
And when We took a pledge from you, and raised the Mount above you, [declaring], ‘Hold on with power to what We have given you and remember that which is in it so that you may be Godwary.’ 
Again you turned away after that; and were it not for Allah’s grace on you and His mercy, you would have surely been among the losers. 
And certainly you know those of you who violated the Sabbath, whereupon We said to them, ‘Be you spurned apes.’ 
So We made it an exemplary punishment for the present and the succeeding [generations], and an advice to the Godwary.}}
In Surah 4 they are struck before they worship the calf. 4:153 specifically says 'then' ''(thumma)''

{{Quote|{{Quran|4|153-161}}|The People of the Book ask you to bring down for them a Book from the sky. Certainly they asked Moses for [something] greater than that, for they said, ‘Show us Allah visibly,’ whereat a thunderbolt seized them for their wrongdoing. Then they took up the Calf [for worship], after all the manifest proofs that had come to them. Yet We excused that, and We gave Moses a manifest authority. 
And We raised the Mount above them for the sake of their covenant, and We said to them, ‘Enter the gate prostrating’ and We said to them, ‘Do not violate the Sabbath,’ and We took from them a solemn covenant. 
Then because of their breaking their covenant, their defiance of Allah’s signs, their killing of the prophets unjustly and for their saying, ‘Our hearts are uncircumcised’… Indeed, Allah has set a seal on them for their unfaith, so they do not have faith except a few. 
And for their faithlessness, and their uttering a monstrous calumny against Mary, 
and for their saying, ‘We killed the Messiah, Jesus son of Mary, the apostle of Allah’—though they did not kill him nor did they crucify him, but so it was made to appear to them. Indeed those who differ concerning him are surely in doubt about him: they do not have any knowledge of that beyond following conjectures, and certainly, they did not kill him. 
Indeed, Allah raised him up toward Himself, and Allah is all-mighty, all-wise. 
There is none among the People of the Book but will surely believe in him before his death; and on the Day of Resurrection, he will be a witness against them. 
Due to the wrongdoing of the Jews, We prohibited them certain good things that were permitted to them [earlier], and for their barring many [people] from the way of Allah, 
and for their taking usury—though they had been forbidden from it—and for eating up the wealth of the people wrongfully. And We have prepared for the faithless among them a painful punishment. }}

=== V2 ===
Surah 4 (summarized version)

1) They ask Moses for a sign and are hit with a thunderbolt

2) They then take up the calf for worship

3) The mountain is raised above them{{Quote|{{Quran|4|153-154}}|The People of the Book ask you to bring down for them a Book from the sky. Certainly they asked Moses for [something] greater than that, for they said, ‘Show us Allah visibly,’ whereat a thunderbolt seized them for their wrongdoing. Then they took up the Calf [for worship], after all the manifest proofs that had come to them. Yet We excused that, and We gave Moses a manifest authority. 
And We raised the Mount above them for the sake of their covenant, and We said to them, ‘Enter the gate prostrating’ and We said to them, ‘Do not violate the Sabbath,’ and We took from them a solemn covenant.}}Surah 2
1) They worshiped the calf. And Moses tells them to slay the guilty among them.

2) They are hit by a thunderbolt - is it chronological?

3) ... a mountain is lifted above them
{{Quote|{{Quran|2|51-56}}|And when We made an appointment with Moses for forty nights, you took up the Calf [for worship] in his absence, and you were wrongdoers. 
Then We excused you after that so that you might give thanks. 
And when We gave Moses the Book and the Criterion so that you might be guided. 
And [recall] when Moses said to his people, ‘O my people! You have indeed wronged yourselves by taking up the Calf [for worship]. Now turn penitently to your Maker, and slay [the guilty among] your folks. That will be better for you with your Maker.’ Then He turned to you clemently. Indeed, He is the All-clement, the All-merciful. 
And when you said, ‘O Moses, we will not believe you until we see Allah visibly.’ Thereupon a thunderbolt seized you as you looked on.
Then We raised you up after your death so that you might give thanks.}}
== The Lote Tree of the utmost Boundary (Sid'rati al-Muntahā) ==
Lote tree's are a real type of tree (Ziziphus spina-christi) native to Arabia and the Middle East.<ref>[https://www.suewickison.com/products/lote-tree?srsltid=AfmBOorj_RU2x1OPxgfRe689M2TWw1g4uZTQLkpSolPGYnIatiIe7h6K Lote Tree | Sidr | Ziziphus spina-christi |] Plants of the Qur'an | Sue Wickison </ref> Different to the tree of eternity/immortality ''(shajarati ul-khul'di)'' in paradise ''jannah,'' the Qur'an mentions The Lote Tree (sidr) of ''the utmost boundary (al-muntahā)''<ref>مُنْتَهَىٰ - [https://lexicon.quranic-research.net/pdf/Page_3029.pdf Lane's Lexicon pp.3029]

</ref> near (but notably not in) the 'garden of abode', said to be 'covered' yaghshā by something unspecified in Q53:16, typically taken by exegetes to mean by angels, light and/or golden animals.<ref>E.g. see [https://quranx.com/Tafsirs/53.16 Tafsirs on Q53:16]</ref>

{{Quote|{{Quran|53|13-17}}|And certainly he saw him (in) descent another,
Near (the) Lote Tree (of) the utmost boundary,
Near it (is the) Garden (of) Abode.
when there covered the Lote Tree what covered it.
Not swerved the sight and not it transgressed.}}

This furthest boundary/limit is said in the hadith, to place the cosmic tree in the sixth heaven, where even celestial creatures cannot go beyond as the limit of creation; said to be seen by Muhammad in his Night Journey (mi’rāj) on the [[:en:Buraq|Buraq]] (E.g. {{Muslim|1|329}}, {{Al Tirmidhi|2=5|3=44|4=3276}}, {{Bukhari|5|58|227}} & {{Al Nasai|2=1|3=5|4=452}}), and by many Islamic exegetes.<ref>See [https://quranx.com/tafsirs/53.14 tafsirs on Q53:14]</ref>

This would align the cosmology of Islamic traditions supporting the idea that paradise (and therefore the garden of the abode) is in the seventh heaven,<ref>[https://islamqa.info/en/answers/215011/where-are-paradise-and-hell#Where_is_Paradise Where is Paradise] | [https://islamqa.info/en/answers/215011/where-are-paradise-and-hell Where Are Paradise and Hell?] | 07/January/2015 islamqa</ref> while some traditions support the idea that paradise is above the seventh heaven,<ref>[https://www.islamweb.net/en/fatwa/107126/the-location-of-paradise-now#:~:text=Paradise%20that%20Allaah%20promised%20for,are%20many%20texts%20proving%20this. The location of Paradise now] | Paradise and Hell | Belief in the Hereafter | Islamic Creed | Fatwa | islamweb.net </ref> both placing the tree relatively close to jannah. However others suggest that this specific ''garden of the abode (jannatu l-mawā)'' is a separate garden/paradise to the eternal one all righteous Muslims will eventually enter, being instead one where martyrs (those killed in war or for their religion) go before judgement day.<ref>E.g. see [https://quranx.com/Tafsirs/53.15 tafsirs on Q53:15]</ref>

Either way there is no evidence of a celestial tree, which must be magic to survive outside of an Earthly plant ecosystem, but is rather an example of tree mythology.
----
----

(See also: <nowiki>https://sunnah.com/mishkat:5865</nowiki> & https://sunnah.com/mishkat:5640, ) read; https://quranx.com/tafsirs/53.14 - exegetes also confirm this is where boundary is the boundary of the skies/heavens where things other than God cannot pass (at least until judgement day where paradise and hell can be entered).

AND Similarly seen next to the 4 main Near-East rivers (Nile, Euphratesm Tigres,) <nowiki>https://sunnah.com/bukhari:5610</nowiki>, which area said to flow from paradise: <nowiki>https://quranx.com/Hadith/Bukhari/USC-MSA/Volume-5/Book-58/Hadith-227/</nowiki> )

cite: [https://www.islamweb.net/en/fatwa/107126/the-location-of-paradise-now#:~:text=Paradise%20that%20Allaah%20promised%20for,are%20many%20texts%20proving%20this. https://www.islamweb.net/en/fatwa/107126/the-location-of-paradise-now#:~:text=Paradise%20that%20Allaah%20promised%20for,are%20many%20texts%20proving%20this.]

The utmost boundary at the end of t heavens confirmed by exegetes in https://quranx.com/tafsirs/53.14

" Jannat al-ma'va' literally means "the Jannat (Garden) that is to be an abode. " Hadrat Hasan Basri says that this is the same Jannat which the believers and righteous will be given in the Hereafter, and from this same verse he has argued that that Jannat is in the heavens. Qatadah says that this is the Jannat in which the souls of the martyrs are kept; it does not imply the Jannat that is to be given in the Hereafter. Ibn 'Abbas also says the same but adds that the Jannat to be granted to the believers in the Hereafter is not in the heavens but here on the earth.

== Parallels Between the Qur'an and Late Antique Judeo-Christian Literature - Part 2 ==
Following on from [[Parallels Between the Qur'an and Late Antique Judeo-Christian Literature|Part 1]], this is Part 2 of Late Antique Judeo-Christian Literature found in the Qur'an. This material, drawing heavily on rabbinical commentaries on the bible, and late Syriac Christian thought found in homilies, was created far later than the biblical cannon; no-where near the time of the events that occurred. This suggests the stories were transmitted in an oral millennia along with local Arabian traditions<ref>Bannister, Andrew G.. ''An Oral-Formulaic Study of the Qur'an (Kindle Location 249-259 in Chapter 1.2 The Biblicist Roots of the Iblis and Adam Story).'' Bloomsbury Publishing. Kindle Edition.

..When the Qur’an emerged in the seventh-century, it did so in an oral culture in which Biblicist traditions were freely circulating and thus there existed a large pool of commonly known stories and traditions to fish from; a pool in which stories could cross-fertilize and influence one another. 23 It is this, more than direct borrowing that perhaps best explains stories like Iblis and Adam as well as other qur’anic tellings of older tales, such as the Seven Sleepers (Q. 18: 9– 25) 24 and the Legend of Alexander (Dhu al-Qarnayn, Q. 18: 83– 101). 25 The Qur’an originates from a milieu in which Biblicist material was well-known to the first audience of the Qur’an; even a simple allusion to a story was often enough to trigger a connection for the hearer. 26 That Biblicist material has been filtered through storytelling rather than simply copied from a written text is further suggested by what the Qur’an leaves out; no minor prophets are referenced, probably because almost no Old Testament narratives feature them nor did the rabbinic literature weave lengthy tales about them. 27 The exception which proves the rule is Jonah (Q. 21: 87– 88; 37: 139– 148; 68: 48– 50), whose short but dramatic story was extremely popular in both Jewish and Christian contexts.28..

And: Bannister, Andrew G.. ''An Oral-Formulaic Study of the Qur'an (Kindle Locations 1391-1392. Chapter 2.3 The Islamic Tradition and Orality).'' Bloomsbury Publishing. Kindle Edition.</ref> where biblical and much later Jewish and Christian stories could be commonly mixed without the new community realizing.
== The story of Noah ==
The prophet Noah is portrayed extremely differently to the one in Genesis,<ref>Segovia, Carlos A.. ''[https://almuslih.org/wp-content/uploads/2024/12/Segovia-C-The-Quranic-Noah-and-the-Making-of-the-Islamic-Prophet.pdf The Quranic Noah and the Making of the Islamic Prophet: A Study of Intertextuality and Religious Identity Formation in Late Antiquity]'', Berlin, München, Boston: De Gruyter, 2015. <nowiki>https://doi.org/10.1515/9783110405897</nowiki></ref> taking on Jewish and Christian traditions, characteristics, as well as terms from late antique Judeo-Christian writings,<ref>The Qur'anic Noah. pp.21-21</ref> molded to suit Muhammad's situation in line with other messengers in the Qur'an.<ref>''The Qurʾan and its Biblical Reflexes: Investigations into the Genesis of a Religion. Chapter 5.3 Messenger Uniformatism. pp.135-143'' By Mark Durie. Lanham, MD: Lexington Books, 2018. </ref>

=== The preaching of Noah ===

Surah 71 consists entirely of the preaching of Noah and his supplications to Allah.{{Quote|{{Quran-range|71|1|28}}|Indeed, We sent Noah to his people, [saying], "Warn your people before there comes to them a painful punishment." He said, "O my people, indeed I am to you a clear warner, [Saying], 'Worship Allah, fear Him and obey me. Allah will forgive you of your sins and delay you for a specified term. Indeed, the time [set by] Allah, when it comes, will not be delayed, if you only knew.' " 
[...]
And Noah said, "My Lord, do not leave upon the earth from among the disbelievers an inhabitant. Indeed, if You leave them, they will mislead Your servants and not beget except [every] wicked one and [confirmed] disbeliever. My Lord, forgive me and my parents and whoever enters my house a believer and the believing men and believing women. And do not increase the wrongdoers except in destruction."}}Reynolds remarks that "The Qur'ānic character of Noah is quite unlike that of the Noah in Genesis, who does not speak a word until after the flood." Citing the Babylonian Talmud, Sanhedrin 108a, he observes that "[his preaching] is also suggested by a passage in the Talmud:
::"The righteous Noah rebuked them, urging, 'Repent; for if not, the Holy One, blessed be He, will bring a deluge upon you and cause your bodies to float upon the water like gourds, as it is written, He is light [i.e., floats] upon the waters. Moreover, ye shall be taken as a curse for all future generations.' (b. Sanhedrin 108a)"
Reynolds further notes, "It is also prominent in the Syriac fathers, several of whom report that Noah preached to his people for a hundred years before God finally sent the flood." citing for example the Syriac authors Narsai, "On the Flood", 33, II. 227-30 and Jacob of Serugh, ''Homilies contre les juifs'', 70, homily 2, II. 37-40.<ref>Gabriel Said Reynolds, ''The Qurʾān and Bible'' p. 858</ref>

The opponents reject Noah's preaching despite him doing so 'day and night' (Quran 71:5-6) in which they respond by putting their fingers in their ears Quran 71:7, on which Neuwirth (2024) notes that "the means of plugging one’s ears in order to shut oneself off from unpleasant news is also encountered in the Talmud (bKetubbot 5a)."<ref>Neuwirth, Angelika. The Qur'an: Text and Commentary, ''Volume 2.1: Early Middle Meccan Suras: The New Elect (p. 280).'' Yale University Press. Kindle Edition.</ref>

=== Noah's disbelieving wife ===
{{Quote|{{Quran|66|10}}|Allah presents an example of those who disbelieved: the wife of Noah and the wife of Lot. They were under two of Our righteous servants but betrayed them, so those prophets did not avail them from Allah at all, and it was said, "Enter the Fire with those who enter."}}The Bible briefly mentions Noah's wife in one verse without further comment ([https://www.biblegateway.com/passage/?search=Genesis%207%3A7&version=NIV Genesis 7:7]), "And Noah and his sons and his wife and his sons’ wives entered the ark to escape the waters of the flood." Regarding the Quranic verse which speaks of her negatively, Reynolds briefly considers the possibility that the Quran has extended to their wives the parallelism between Noah (though not his wife) and Lot found in the New Testament ([https://www.biblegateway.com/passage/?search=2%20Peter%202&version=NIV 2 Peter 2]), but then comments, "However, it is important to note that already in the pre-Islamic period certain groups had developed hostile legends about Noah's wife." He cites Epiphanius (d. 403 CE), ''Panarion'' 2:26, which relates the Gnostic belief that she was not allowed onto the ark, having burned it down three times before the flood.<ref>Gabriel Said Reynolds, ''The Qurʾān and Bible'' p. 841</ref>

=== Noah's flood waters overflowed from an oven ===
The Qur'anic version of the Noah's flood story describes the flood waters as overflowing from an oven. This element is not found even in more ancient versions of the story (Epic of Gilgamesh, Atra hasis, and Ziusudra).

Note that in his translation, Yusuf Ali mistranslates the Aramaic loan word for the oven (alttannooru ٱلتَّنُّورُ)<ref>[http://www.studyquran.org/LaneLexicon/Volume1/00000355.pdf Lane's Lexicon p. 318 تَّنُّورُ]</ref> as "fountains". The Arabic verb translated "gushed forth" (fara فَارَ) means overflowed or boiled in the context of water in a cooking pot<ref>[http://www.studyquran.org/LaneLexicon/Volume6/00000241.pdf Lane's Lexicon p. 2457 فور]</ref>, as well as in the other verse where it is used, {{Quran|67|7}}. Here is Pickthall's more accurate translation:{{Quote|{{Quran|11|40}}|
(Thus it was) till, when Our commandment came to pass '''and the oven gushed forth water''', We said: Load therein two of every kind, a pair (the male and female), and thy household, save him against whom the word hath gone forth already, and those who believe. And but a few were they who believed with him.}}{{Quote|{{Quran|23|27}}|
Then We inspired in him, saying: Make the ship under Our eyes and Our inspiration. Then, when Our command cometh '''and the oven gusheth water''', introduce therein of every (kind) two spouses, and thy household save him thereof against whom the Word hath already gone forth. And plead not with Me on behalf of those who have done wrong. Lo! they will be drowned.}}At one time academic scholars thought this verse alluded to a Midrashic exegesis in which the flood waters were boiling hot (b. Sanhedrin 108b, [https://www.sefaria.org/Rosh_Hashanah.12a.4?lang=bi|Tracate Rosh Hashanah 12a:4]). More recent scholarship, particularly by Olivier Mongellaz in 2024,<ref name="Mongellaz2024">Olivier Mongellaz (2024) [https://brill.com/view/journals/arab/71/4-5/article-p513_4.xml Le four de Noé : un cas d’intertextualité coranique], Arabica 71(4-5), 513-637. https://doi.org/10.1163/15700585-20246900</ref> has identified that these verses most likely reflect a late antique legend in which water gushing up through a bread oven (a large hole dug into the ground) was a sign warning Noah's family of the imminent flood. The interpretation as Noah's own oven is attributed to a number of early commentators (such as Ibn Abbas, Mujahid), while others understood it to be the area of land where the flood waters first rose. Qurtubi said: "The sayings of commentators appear to be different as to the meaning of tannur, but this, in reality, is not a difference. When water began to bulge out, it overflowed from the bread baking oven, and from out of the surface of the land".

Significantly, Mongellaz has argued on literary grounds that a fragmentary Arabic text falsely attributed to Hippolytus of Rome, and which mentions the overflowing bread oven story, is independent of the Islamic tradition and was originally written in a very specific environment which has parallels with the context in which certain parts of the Quran were written.{{Quote|Pseudo. Hippolytus of Rome (translated to English from Mongellaz's French translation)<ref name="Mongellaz2024" />|Meanwhile, Ham's wife stood up to take out the bread that remained in the oven and immediately water sprang out of the oven [fāḍa l-māʾmin al-tannūr] and immediately water came out of the oven, as the Lord had said: "The fountains of the great deeps were opened." Ham's wife called to Noah, saying, "My lord, the word of God has come true (Syr. what God promised has come true!)" - for it had come true just as the Lord had promised her. When Noah heard Ham's wife's words, he said to her, "Oh, the flood has come."}}

=== Noah's ark left behind as a sign ===
{{Quote|{{Quran-range|54|13|15}}|And We carried him on a [construction of] planks and nails, Sailing under Our observation as reward for he who had been denied. And We left it as a sign, so is there any who will remember?}}Unlike the bible, which does not mention the ark as a sign for future generations, Neuwirth (2024) notes the salvation of Noah is made physically plausible to the listeners through the reference to the material verifiability of the ark, which could be taken from various late antique traditions, for example Flavius Josephus (b. 37AD) reports in the ''Jewish Antiquities (I 3.5 § 92)'' of the existence of the remains of Noah’s ark in Armenia (Clementz 1959: 22).<ref name=":0">Neuwirth, Angelika. ''The Qur'an: Text and Commentary, Volume 2.1: Early Middle Meccan Suras: The New Elect (p. 62).'' Yale University Press. Kindle Edition.</ref> She also notes that the appeal to the willingness of the listeners to be admonished by the sign (āya) of Noah’s ark is also reminiscent of the Talmudic story (bSanhedrin 96a) of the death of Sennacherib, who was led to a fateful decision by seeing the remains of Noah’s ark.<ref name=":0" />
==Moses and Pharaoh==
Alongside the biblical account of Moses and the Pharoah, there are some key aspects that match Jewish Rabbinic and Christian non-biblical traditions. Even the place where Moses communicates with God in the story of the burning bush, the word used ''ṭuwan'' in e.g. {{Quran|20|12}} (for the folded land, implying double the holiness)<ref>See; Neuwirth, Angelika. ''The Qur'an: Text and Commentary, Volume 2.1: Early Middle Meccan Suras: The New Elect (p. 199).'' Yale University Press. Kindle Edition. Ṭuwā stands for the holy Mount Sinai or Horeb (cf. KU, 124ff.; FVQ, 206ff.; BEQ, 255ff.). The word was long thought to be a rhyming transformation of Aramaic ṭūrā (“the mountain”), but now, based on rabbinic tradition and in agreement with traditional exegetes, Uri Rubin has convincingly interpreted bi-l-wādī l-muqaddasi Ṭuwā to mean “in the doubly hallowed valley” (see Rubin 2014). (The Sinai is in a sense the “folded Holy Land” [ṬWY = “to fold”].) Citing: Rubin, Uri, 2014, ''[https://urirubin.com/assets/docs/Tuwan.86132451.pdf Moses and the Holy Valley Ṭuwan. On the Biblical and Midrashic Background of a Qurʾanic Scene],'' Journal of Near Eastern Studies 73, 73–81.</ref> does not have a parallel in the bible,<ref>''[https://urirubin.com/assets/docs/Tuwan.86132451.pdf Moses and the Holy Valley Ṭuwan: On the biblical and midrashic background of a qurʾānic scene.]'' Rubin 2014. Ibid. pp. 75.</ref> but does in other Judeo-Christian (later) works.<ref>Ibid. pp. 76-78</ref> And the idea of eschatology in Moses's story such as {{Quran|20|15}}, with reward in the afterlife being mentioned, is not contained in the biblical story of Moses, Neuwirth (2024) notes moves the story into a late antiquity interpretation.<ref>Neuwirth, Angelika. ''The Qur'an: Text and Commentary, Volume 2.1: Early Middle Meccan Suras: The New Elect (p. 199).'' Yale University Press. Kindle Edition.</ref> Key details in the stories include:
===The prophecy of baby Moses===
Alongside the scene of [https://www.biblegateway.com/passage/?search=Exodus%201%3A8-2%3A10&version=NIV Exodus 1:8-2:10] where the Hebrews in Egyptian bondage are told to kill all male babies to control the growing Israelite population, where Moses's mother places his basket in the Nile to escape; Neuwirth (2024) citing Speyer, notes that ''the prophecy to Moses’s mother that an enemy—of Moses as well as of God himself—would take him in reflects a Midrashic interpretation of Exodus Rabba (1:31: “So the daughter of Pharaoh raised the daughter, who was once to take revenge on her father”). The event is explicitly based on a divine intention, namely, to make Moses his chosen one.''<ref>''The Qur'an: Text and Commentary, Volume 2.1: Early Middle Meccan Suras: The New Elect'' Ibid. pp. 201.</ref>{{Quote|{{Quran-range|20|37|39}}|We have bestowed Our favour on you before this, When We told your mother what We relate: 'Put him in a wooden box and cast it in the river. The river will cast it on the bank. An enemy of Ours, and his, will retrieve it.' We bestowed Our love on you that you may be reared under Our eyes.}}And similarly the next verse unlike the bible focuses on the emotional impact of the event on Moses’s mother, Neuwirth notes is comparable to Midrash Exodus Rabba 1:25.<ref>Ibid. pp. 201-202.</ref> Moses's salvation from persecution after manslaughter is commemorated with similar consideration of Moses’s mental condition.<ref>Ibid. pp. 202.</ref>{{Quote|{{Quran|20|40}}|When your sister walked up [to Pharaoh’s palace] saying, “Shall I show you someone who will take care of him?” Then We restored you to your mother, that she might not grieve and be comforted. Then you slew a soul, whereupon We delivered you from anguish, and We tried you with various ordeals. Then you stayed for several years among the people of Midian. Then you turned up as ordained, O Moses!}}
===Moses not suckled by Egyptians===
{{Quote|{{Quran-range|28|12|13}}|And We had prevented from him [all] wet nurses before, so she said, "Shall I direct you to a household that will be responsible for him for you while they are to him [for his upbringing] sincere?" So We restored him to his mother that she might be content and not grieve and that she would know that the promise of Allah is true. But most of the people do not know.}}Reynolds comments, "On this passage cf. Exodus 2:7-9. The Qurʾān's declaration (v. 12) 'We had forbidden him to be suckled by any nurse' (v. 12) reflects a tradition in the Babylonian Talmud that Moses (from whose mouth would come forth the word of God) refused the impure breasts of the Egyptian women:
::Then said his sister to Pharaoh's daughter, Shall I go and call thee a nurse of the Hebrew women? Why just 'of the Hebrew women'? - It teaches that they handed about to all the Egyptian women but he would not suck. He said: Shall a mouth which will speak with [God] suck what is unclean! (b. Sotah 12b)"<ref>Gabriel Said Reynolds, ''The Qurʾān and Bible'' p. 598</ref>
===Moses's speech impediment===
Moses has some kind of speech impediment when going to speak to Pharaoh in the Qurʾān.{{Quote|{{Quran-range|20|24|28}}|"Go to Pharaoh. Indeed, he has transgressed."( Moses) said: "O, my Lord! Expand me my breast,” ease my task for me, And untie the knot from my tongue, so they may understand what I say.”}}Biblical Scholar James Kugel (1997)<ref>Kugel, James L.. The Bible As It Was (Kindle Edition. pp. 432-433). Harvard University Press.</ref> notes that later Jewish and Christian commentators found it necessary to explain Moses's statement in the Old Testament “''Oh my Lord, I am not a man of words … but I am heavy of speech and heavy of tongue''” ([https://www.biblegateway.com/passage/?search=Exodus%204%3A10&version=NIV Exodus 4:10]), as he was believed to be a highly educated man who had been supposedly been schooled in every branch of wisdom, including eloquence.

He notes "it occurred to interpreters that Moses might have been referring here not to any lacuna in his education, but to an actual speech defect, some physical deformity of his mouth or tongue that prevented him from speaking in the usual fashion." We see this in:<ref>Ibid. pp. 432 - 433 (Kindle Edition)</ref>

"''I'' ''am not by nature eloquent; my tongue with difficulty speaks, I stammer, so that I cannot speak before the king."'' —Ezekiel the Tragedian, Exaggē 113– 115 (3rd-2nd century BCE)

''He [Moses] pleased his parents by his beauty, but grieved them by his speech impediment. —''Ephraem, Commentary on Exodus 2: 4 (d. 373 AD)

Others even added stories on how he might have acquired that deformity, such as Josephus in Jewish Antiquities 2: 232– 236 (published ~93/94 AD), connecting their explanation of Moses’ speech problems to the tradition of Pharaoh’s wise men and their warnings about a boy that might grow up and save Israel.<ref>Ibid. pp. 433 - 434 (Kindle Edition)</ref>
===Pharaohs questions===
Neuwirth (2024) comments that the list of further detailed questions to Moses in Surah 26 'The Poets' / al-shuʿarāʾ (i.e. in {{Quran-range|26|22|29}}), citing Speyer, reflect a more detailed episode from Midrash Exodus Rabba 5:18, which also starts from Pharaoh’s self-praise as God.<ref>Neuwirth, Angelika. ''The Qur'an: Text and Commentary, Volume 2.1: Early Middle Meccan Suras: The New Elect (p. 250).'' Yale University Press. Kindle Edition.</ref>
===The Drowning of Pharaoh===
{{Quote|{{Quran-range|10|90|92}}|And We took the Children of Israel across the sea, and Pharaoh and his soldiers pursued them in tyranny and enmity until, when drowning overtook him, he said, "I believe that there is no deity except that in whom the Children of Israel believe, and I am of the Muslims." Now? And you had disobeyed [Him] before and were of the corrupters? So today We will save you in body that you may be to those who succeed you a sign. And indeed, many among the people, of Our signs, are heedless}}Reynolds comments, "The question of Pharaoh's survival appears in an opinion found in the (late fourth century AD) ''Mekilta de-Rabbi Ishmael'' (cr. Gavin McDowell):
::"And the waters returned and covered the chariot etc. [Exo 14:27]. Even Pharaoh, according to the words of R. Judah, as it is said, 'The chariots of Pharaoh and his force, etc.' [Exo 15:4]. R. Nehimiah says: ''Except for Pharaoh.'' About him it says, 'However, for this purpose I have let you live' [Exo 9:16]. Others say that in the end Pharaoh went down and drowned, as it is said, 'Then went the horse of Pharaoh, etc.' [Exo 15:19]. (Beshallah 7)"<ref>Gabriel Said Reynolds, ''The Qurʾān and Bible'' p. 339</ref>
==Arguments for resurrection==
Reynolds (2020) notes the repeated argument that God can resurrect the dead using the analogy that he can bring life back to barren (or dead) land may be connected to a Jewish tradition that God will resurrect the dead with dew, for example, in b. Shabbat 88b.<ref name=":2" />
{{Quote|{{Quran|30|19}}|He brings forth the living from the dead, and brings forth the dead from the living, and revives the earth after its death. Likewise, you [too] shall be raised [from the dead].}}

Cf: {{Quran|16|65}}, {{Quran|43|11}}, {{Quran|50|6-11}}, {{Quran|57|17}}
==Late antique Christian Martyrdom==
{{Main|Shaheed (Martyr)}}
Durie (2018) notes the violence of the Qur'an shares more commonality with contemporary late antique religious (primarily Christian) violence and warfare rather than being directly biblically based.<ref>Durie, Mark. ''The Qur’an and Its Biblical Reflexes: Investigations into the Genesis of a Religion.'' Lexington Books. 2018. Pp. 229 -237. (Kindle Edition: pp. 423-439). 6.9 Stories of Fighting Prophets</ref>

=== Textual overlap ===

Covering the continuity and similarities between late antique religious violence & warfare and the Qur'an (and other Islamic traditions) is too big a topic to cover here; perhaps the most in-depth academic work looking at the continuity between this and Islam is Thomas Sizgorich's ''Violence and Belief in Late Antiquity: Militant Devotion in Christianity and Islam'', however Sinai (2017) notes alongside similar ideas and theology, there are some direct textual references.{{Quote|Sinai, Nicolai. Qur'an: A Historical-Critical Introduction (The New Edinburgh Islamic Surveys) (pp. 301-302). Edinburgh University Press. Kindle Edition.|That the Qur’anic community’s access to Biblical notions of militancy was mediated by late antique Christian discourse is indicated by an intriguing intertextual overlap. According to Q 3: 169–170, those who have been ‘killed in the path of God’ are not dead but ‘alive with their Lord’, rather than having to spend the remaining time until the Resurrection in a state of slumber (similarly Q 2: 154).39 Tor Andrae has pointed out that the phrase ‘alive with their Lord’ (ayāun inda rabbihim) corresponds exactly to the Syriac phrase h. ayyē lwāth alāhā, which a sixth-century Syriac Christian writer (Mar Ishay) applies to the martyrs.40 Furthermore, Mar Ishay contrasts the true fate of the martyrs with unfounded prior opinion: ‘they are believed to be already dead’.41 The same contrast is found in the two Qur’anic passages just cited.42 It could be objected that the parallel demonstrates merely that the Qur’an is familiar with the widespread Christian idea that martyrs are granted prompt access to paradise but that this does not establish a Christian precedent for the Qur’anic application of this idea specifically to those who actively enact – rather than just suffer – violence. However, as Sizgorich reminds us, a Christian martyr was by no means seen merely as a passive victim of persecution but rather as someone who actively ‘defeats the power of the Roman state’.43}}{{Quote|{{Quran|3|169}}|And never think of those who have been killed in the cause of Allah as dead. Rather, they are alive with their Lord, receiving provision}}{{Quote|{{Quran|2|154}}|Do not say that those who are killed in the way of God, are dead, for indeed they are alive, even though you are not aware.}}

=== Martyrs sidestep judgement day ===
After death, humans are typically said to spend their time in an intermediate state known to traditional Islamic scholars as the ''barzakh'' while they wait.<ref>Reynolds, Gabriel Said. 2020. ''Allah:'' ''God in the Qur'an (p. 71-72).'' Yale University Press. Kindle Edition.

It is also the same term used for the barrier between the living and the dead (whilst awaiting judgement day) in the Qur'an, e.g. {{Quran|23|99-100}}</ref> However, as in the above verses, one exception to this rule is Martyrs being with God straight away rather than being judged at judgment day, a non-biblical idea having parallels with late antique Christian thought.

Sinai (2017) similarly notes strong ideological parallels a 6th century hagiographical text (the Panegyric on Macarius, Bishop of Tkow by Pseudo-Dioscorus of Alexandria) of a 5th-century martyr, Egyptian Bishop Macarius of Tkow who was martyred for opposing the council of Chalcedon. Citing Michael Gaddis's summary of the document, ‘He was both willing to die for his faith, and willing to kill for it.’ he notes the same idea in {{Quran|9|111}} … they fight in the way of Allah, kill, and are killed.. <ref>Ibid. (Kindle Edition. pp. 299).</ref> As well as citing English historian of the Byzantine Empire James Howard-Johnston "''..James Howard-Johnston draws attention to a passage in the Chronicle of Theophanes Confessor (d. 818), which reports that at about the same time when the Qur’an promised those ‘killed in the path of God’ immediate entry to paradise, the Byzantine emperor Heraclius similarly announced that those fighting the Sasanians would be recompensed with eternal life. In Heraclius’s address as reported by Theophanes Confessor, we find some of the same general ingredients that are noticeable in Qur’anic calls to militancy…''"<ref>Ibid. (Kindle Edition. pp. 301).</ref> He notes these similarities are likely caused by being on the fringes of the Roman empire.<ref>Ibid. (Kindle Edition. pp. 301).</ref>

==== Martyrdom wipes away other sins and is privileged above other acts from believers ====
{{Quote|Reynolds, Gabriel Said. Christianity and the Qur'an: The Rise of Islam in Christian Arabia (pp. 178-179). Yale University Press. Kindle Edition.|The teaching on the glory earned by martyrs is widespread in the early church. It is nevertheless telling to find the way it is emphasized in the third-century Christian text the aforementioned Didascalia Apostolorum, originally written in Greek but preserved in Syriac.87 The Didascalia clearly teaches that the martyrs will have a privilege above other faithful believers: If then He raises up all men,—as He said by Isaiah: All flesh shall see the salvation of God [Isa 40.5; 52.10],—much more will He quicken and raise up the faithful; and (yet more) again will He quicken and raise up the faithful of the faithful, who are the martyrs, and establish them in great glory and make them His counsellors. For to mere disciples, those who believe in Him, He has promised a glory as of the stars [Dan 12.3]; but to the martyrs He has promised to give an everlasting glory, as of the luminaries which fail not, with more abundant light, that they may be shining for all time.88

The Didascalia is also clear, as is the Qur’an, that martyrs enjoy a special grace through the forgiveness of sins that their deaths have earned for them: But again, sins are forgiven by baptism also to those who from the Gentiles draw near and enter the holy Church of God. Let us inquire also, to whom sins are not imputed. To such as Abraham and Isaac and Jacob and all the patriarchs, as also to the martyrs. Let us hear then, brethren, for the Scripture saith: Who shall boast himself and say: I am clear of sins? Or who shall be confident and say: I am innocent? [Prov 20.9].

And again: There is no man pure of defilement: not though his life be but one day [Job 14.4–5 LXX]. To everyone therefore who believes and is baptized his … former sins have been forgiven; but after baptism also, provided that he has not sinned a deadly sin nor been an accomplice (thereto), but has heard only, or seen, or spoken, and is thus guilty of sin. But if a man go forth from the world by martyrdom for the name of the Lord, blessed is he; for brethren who by martyrdom have gone forth from this world, of these the sins are covered.89

We might compare Q 3:195: “ ‘And those who emigrated, and were expelled from their habitations, those who suffered hurt in My way, and fought, and were slain—them I shall surely acquit of their evil deeds, and I shall admit them to gardens underneath which rivers flow.’ A reward from God! And God with Him is the fairest reward” (italics added). In other words, the Qur’an seems to be well aware of Christian devotion to the martyrs.}}

=== Martyrdom in the Torah and Gospels ===
Muslims who fight are promised paradise, which the Qur'an claims is also a promise in the Torah and Gospel.{{Quote|{{Quran|9|111}}|Indeed Allah has bought from the faithful their souls and their possessions for paradise to be theirs: they fight in the way of Allah, kill, and are killed. A promise binding upon Him in the Torah and the Evangel and the Quran. And who is truer to his promise than Allah? So rejoice in the bargain you have made with Him, and that is the great success.}}Nickel (2020)<ref>Nickel, Gordon D. ''The Quran with Christian Commentary: A Guide to Understanding the Scripture of Islam (p. 222).'' Zondervan Academic. Kindle Edition. 9.111 – They fight in the way of God, and they kill and are killed When the Quran describes believers as fighting “in the way of Allah,” it makes a theological claim by associating Allah with human fighting. See the analysis of these expressions at 73.20 (p. 597). 9.111 – a promise binding on Him in the Torah, and the Gospel, and the Qur’ān This is the only verse in the Quran that brings the Torah (tawrāt), Gospel (injīl), and qur’ān (lit. “recitation”) together. The Quran claims here that the particular point on which the Torah and Gospel agree with the Muslim recitation is that believers “fight in the way of Allah, and they kill and are killed.” This verse makes the reader question whether the Quran has a clear idea of the contents of the Torah and Gospel. A similar question is raised by 61.14, which appears to say that ‘Īsā and his disciples fought against their enemies (cf. 3.52). Along with these misunderstandings, the Quran gives no information about the peaceable teaching and example of Jesus in the Gospel accounts. See the analysis of the Quran’s verses on the “Gospel” at 57.27 (p. 549). Do the Torah and Gospel in fact contain such a promise? See the comment on this characterization of the Bible at 61.14 (p. 566).</ref> and Reynolds (2018) however notes that this is not found there:{{Quote|1=Reynolds, G. S. (2018). The Qur'an and the Bible: Text and Commentary. Commentary on 9:111 (pp. 322) United Kingdom: Yale University Press.|2="9:111 The point of this verse is that those who are prepared to give their lives to God in the holy war are promised paradise as a payment for their services (cf. 2:245; 4:74; 61:10–12). The idea that the martyrs have a special assurance of paradise follows from the Qurʾān’s teaching elsewhere that the act of martyrdom involves forgiveness of sin. This teaching is close to that of the Syriac fathers (see commentary on 2:154, with further references). It is curious that the Qurʾān insists that the promise of heaven for holy warriors is found in the Torah and the Gospel (or “Evangel”); heaven is not found in the Torah and holy war is not found in the Gospels...}}While his commentary on 2:154 (pp. 76) once again highlights the Syriac parallel:{{Quote|2="As Tor Andrae has shown (Les origines de l’islam et le christianisme, 161ff.), the idea that martyrdom involves the absolution of sins is prominent in Syriac Christian texts such as the third-century Didascalia (chap. 20) and the Treaty on the Martyrs of Mar Isaï (d. late sixth cen.); the latter text also insists—much like the Qurʾān—that the martyrs are “living”:

The true martyrs who, by way of a death that covers their sins, demonstrate even more the beauty of their deeds and receive this glorious inheritance by virtue of their blood. By leaving this life they have prepared for their souls an honorable abode in paradise. It was thought that they are already dead, but by their death they have killed their sin, and they are alive with God. (Mar Isaï, Treaty on the Martyrs, 32)}}
=== Further Martyrdom Influence ===
Neuwirth (2024) also notes the influence of Christian martyrdom stories on the sudden conversion and prayers/asking for forgiveness to God of Pharaoh's magician's, who are originally opponents of Moses until he shows them proof of his prophecy via a miracle in the face of a sudden and violent death as threatened by the arrogant ruler (e.g. in {{Quran-range|26|50|51}} and {{Quran-range|20|71|73}}).<ref>Neuwirth, Angelika. ''The Qur'an: Text and Commentary, Volume 2.1: Early Middle Meccan Suras: The New Elect (p. 204).'' Yale University Press. Kindle Edition.</ref> Both Jewish and Christian traditions present individual “anti-Moses” sorcerers named Jannes and Jambres, who continue to appear in later interpretations; citing Nora Schmid, she notes that, although there is no explicit textual reference and the magicians are typically depicted in a negative light, they came to be associated with penance and martyrdom in Christian tradition - in the Qurʾan, this idea is developed further: the forgiveness that Jannes and Jambres either did not receive or only partially received in earlier sources is ultimately granted.<ref>Ibid. pp. 251-252</ref>{{Quote|Neuwirth, Angelika. The Qur'an: Text and Commentary, Volume 2.1: Early Middle Meccan Suras: The New Elect (p. 204). Yale University Press. Kindle Edition.|V. 72–73 qālū lan nuʾthiraka ʿalā mā jāʾanā mina l-bayyināti wa-lladhī faṭaranā fa-qḍi mā anta qāḍin innamā taqḍī hādhihi l-ḥayāta l-dunyā / innā āmannā birabbinā li-yaghfira lanā khaṭāyānā wa-mā akrahtanā ʿalayhi mina l-siḥri wallāhu khayrun wa-abqā] Conversion scene as later in Q 26:50–51. The sorcerers renounce their allegiance to Pharaoh on the basis of the obvious evidence (bayyināt) and give preference to the Creator God, they submit to their worldly fate and hope for the forgiveness of their sins and what they have been forced to do by the ruler—they are a role model for the community, which is also subject to pressure from outside. The request for forgiveness of sins before a violent death is a topos of Christian martyr stories. The entire scene, leaving the context of ‘ancient’ Egypt, reflects the notion of Christian martyrdom stories. Khaṭāyā (singular khaṭīʾa) also lets a Syriac terminus technicus ring through, but the word can be derived from the Arabic root KhṬʿ (“to miss a goal”) (see FVQ, 123ff.). The idea of the forgiveness of sins is prominent in the Christian liturgy—not only through the Lord’s Prayer. In addition to khaṭīʾa, there is the genuine Arabic dhanb, dhunūb.}}

== Expansions on the afterlife ==

Reynolds (2020) notes the Qur’ans provides vivid depictions of hell are highly unlike the New Testament, where Jesus refers to afterlife punishment mostly allusively. The closest the Gospels describe hell is through the few images of “fire,” “wailing,” and “gnashing of teeth.”, for example in Matthew’s Parable of the Weeds, Jesus explains that at the end of the age, the Son of Man will send his angels that will cast evildoers into a fiery furnace where there will be weeping and gnashing of teeth (Matt 13:40–42).<ref>Reynolds, Gabriel Said. ''Allah: God in the Qur'an (pp. 81-82).'' Yale University Press. Kindle Edition.</ref> He notes the much more constant an vivid Qur'anic descriptions far better match later Christian works that expanded the descriptions to be more gruesome, in order to scare the reader/audience.<ref>Ibid. pp. 88.

''We might note how all of these traditions are meant to make humans yearn for paradise and fear hell. The Qur’an, from this regard, is a profoundly psychological work. Like a Christian preacher, like John Chrysostom or Saint Ephrem, the author of the Qur’an speaks of heaven and hell to persuade his audience to repent and believe. He does so in a way, however, that is distinct—emphasizing physical pain and physical pleasure in order, apparently, to make a greater impression on his audience. He puts a terrible tree into hell and young women in paradise.''
</ref>{{Quote|Reynolds, Gabriel Said. Allah: God in the Qur'an (pp. 82-83). Yale University Press. Kindle Edition.|The way that the Qur’an describes hell in particularly vivid, gruesome terms brings us back to something we mentioned in Chapter 1, namely, that the Qur’an in many ways is a “homiletic” work, a work written like a homily or sermon. The Qur’an’s intention is not simply to declare that those who disobey God will be punished, but to describe that punishment in a way which brings the awfulness of hell to life. Similarly, homilists in the early centuries of Christianity expanded dramatically on the New Testament allusions to hell. In a sermon attributed to John Chrysostom (d. 407) we read a description of hell with the sort of detail that we find in the Qur’an: It is a sea of fire—not a sea of the kind or dimensions we know here, but much larger and fiercer, with waves made of fire, fire of a strange and fearsome kind. There is a great abyss there, in fact, of terrible flames, and one can see fire rushing about on all sides like some wild animal…. There will be no one who can resist, no one who can escape: Christ’s gentle, peaceful face will be nowhere to be seen.15}}Sinai (2017) in his paper titled "''The Eschatological Kerygma of the Early Qur’an''" notes many overlap with Syriac Homilies on the afterlife as well as other apocalyptic ideas and terminology.<ref>“[https://almuslih.org/wp-content/uploads/Library/Sinai,%20N%20-%20The%20Eschatological%20Kerygma.pdf The Eschatological Kerygma of the Early Qur’an]”, Nicolai Sinai, in ''Apocalypticism and Eschatology in Late Antiquity: Encounters in the Abrahamic Religions, 6th–8th Centuries'', edited by Hagit Amirav, Emmanouela Grypeou, and Guy Stroumsa, Leuven: Peeters, 2017, 219–266.

These are discussed throughout the whole paper, and a summary can be found in pp.50-57. On heaven and hell specifically, the summary is on pp.55-57.</ref>

== Souls are taken away at night ==

The Qur'an (and traditional Islamic exegetes)<ref>See classical commentaries on these verses such as Al-Jalalayn on [https://quranx.com/Tafsir/Jalal/39.42 Q39:42], [https://quranx.com/Tafsir/Jalal/6.60 Q6:60] and Ibn Kathir on [https://quranx.com/Tafsir/Kathir/39.41 Q39:41-2] and [https://quranx.com/Tafsir/Kathir/6.60 Q6:60]</ref> state that the soul is taken away by Allah during the night.{{Quote|{{Quran|39|42}}|Allah takes the souls at the time of their death, and those who have not died, in their sleep. Then He retains those for whom He has ordained death and releases the others until a specified time. There are indeed signs in that for a people who reflect.}}{{Quote|{{Quran|6|60}}|It is He who takes your souls by night, and He knows what you do by day, then He reanimates you therein so that a specified term may be completed. Then to Him will be your return, whereat He will inform you concerning what you used to do.}}Tesei (2016) notes this idea may mimic a late antique Syriac Christian parallel in the poetical language used by Ephrem, who in the Nisibene hymns (7:15) mentions sleep resembles death, and other Christian writers (such as Babai) wrote about sleep metaphorically Jesus's death and waking up like the resurrection;<ref>Tesei, Tommaso. (2016). "[https://www.researchgate.net/publication/344524709_2_The_barzakh_and_the_Intermediate_State_of_the_Dead_in_the_Quran 2 The barzakh and the Intermediate State of the Dead in the Quran]". pp. 40-42 In Locating Hell in Islamic Traditions. Leiden, The Netherlands: Brill. <nowiki>https://doi.org/10.1163/9789004301368_003</nowiki> (Open access)

''At the same time, the Quran also compares death to the “common sleep” that people experience on a daily basis. This seems to be the case in the cryptic statement found in Q 39:42 (cf. Q 6:60), “God takes the souls at the time of their death (ḥīna mawtihā), and [He takes] that which has not died, in its sleep ( fī manāmihā); He withholds that against which He has decreed death, but sets loose the other until a stated term”. This obscure passage appears to indicate that sleep is a death-like state; sleepers resemble the dead since their souls enter into a state similar to that which they will experience at the moment of death. However, unlike the souls of the dead, which will be raised only on the Day of Resurrection, the ordinary sleeper’s soul is sent back when he awakens―that is, of course, until the time of his death. This parallel between death and “common sleep” finds a fairly close correspondence in the poetical language used by Ephrem, who in the Nisibene hymns (7:15) affirms that: “The one who lies down to sleep resembles the departed and death resembles a dream, and the resurrection the morning”. In these passages the Quran’s eschatological discourse is particularly close to that formulated by Babai, in whose ideas the belief in the soul’s sleep is intimately connected to the strong affirmation of the physical resurrection of the body on the Day of Judgment.'' </ref> with this idea taken literally by Muhammad.

== Arguments for resurrection ==
Reynolds (2020) notes the repeated argument that God can resurrect the dead using the analogy that he can bring life back to barren (or dead) land may be connected to a Jewish tradition that God will resurrect the dead with dew, for example, in b. Shabbat 88b.<ref name=":2">See: Reynolds, Gabriel Said. Allah: ''God in the Qur'an (pp. 76-77).'' Yale University Press. Kindle Edition.

And Footnote 10: Reynolds, Gabriel Said. ''Allah: God in the Qur'an (p. 254).'' Yale University Press. Kindle Edition.</ref>
{{Quote|{{Quran|30|19}}|He brings forth the living from the dead, and brings forth the dead from the living, and revives the earth after its death. Likewise, you [too] shall be raised [from the dead].}}

Cf: {{Quran|16|65}}, {{Quran|43|11}}, {{Quran|50|6-11}}, {{Quran|57|17}}

==See Also==
*[[Pre-Islamic Arab Religion in Islam]]

* [[Parallels Between the Qur'an and Late Antique Judeo-Christian Literature|Parallels Between the Qur'an and Late Antique Judeo-Christian Literature - Part 1]]
* [[Historical Errors in the Quran]]
==References==
<references />

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== The Historical Jesus ==

=== Other Traditions ===

==== Intro ====

Alongside the main consensus from Biblical Scholars/Historians that Jesus was an eschatological preacher in the early first century AD who believed the Earth would end during his time (and therefore couldn't be the Muslim Jesus), there are many other of the most considered authentic teachings of Jesus that clash with Islam considering the message of Messenger Uniformitarianism (cite Durie - reuse 51 citation),<ref>Durie, Mark. ''The Qur’an and Its Biblical Reflexes: Investigations into the Genesis of a Religion (pp. 135-142) (pp. 281-294 Kindle Edition)''. 5.3 Messenger Uniformitarianism. Lexington Books. 2018.</ref> where all messengers from God/Allah are outside of minor variations said to essentially preach the same thing.

{{Quote|{{Quran|2|285}}|The Apostle and the faithful have faith in what has been sent down to him from his Lord. Each [of them] has faith in Allah, His angels, His scriptures and His apostles. [They declare,] ‘We make no distinction between any of His apostles.’ And they say, ‘We hear and obey. Our Lord, forgive us, and toward You is the return.’}}

{{Quote|{{Quran|17|77}}|“This was the sunnah [customary way] of Our messengers whom We sent before you, and you will find no change in Our sunnah”}}cf: cf. {{Quran|6|112}}, {{Quran|35|43}}, {{Quran|22|78}}. We are explicitly told that messengers bring the same message from Allah: “Nothing is said to you but what has already been said to

messengers before you” {{Quran|41|43}}. Durie (2018) notes ''The idea of the “same message” is further reinforced when the Qurʾan repeatedly states that the Messenger was only sent to confirm what was sent down by previous messengers (Q2:91, 97; Q3:3, 50; Q5:48; Q12:111; Q16:43–44; Q35:31), just as previous messengers had done for messengers that preceded them, for example, ʿĪsa¯ “confirmed” the Tawra¯ h of Mūsa¯(Q5:46), and the Qurʾan confirms the book(s) sent by previous prophets (Q4:47), just as the Messenger has been doing in his turn.''<ref>Durie, Mark. The Qur'an and it's Biblical Reflexes. pp.140</ref>{{Quote|Durie, Mark. The Qur'an and it's Biblical Reflexes. pp.140|• It is also explicitly asserted that messengers bring the same message
from Alla¯h: “Nothing is said to you but what has already been said to
messengers before you” (Q41:43; Q22:78) and “we make no distinction
between any of them” (Q2:136). They also preached the same dīn “commandment” or “religion” (Q42:13; cf. Q3:84; Q4:150), which is referred
to as the “religion of Ibra¯hīm” (Q2:130; Q4:125; Q16:121–23). The
validating function of this idea becomes clear when it is applied against
a group of Jews who reject the concept of the “same message” because
it would mean validating the Messenger. These Jews hold to their own
faith, saying “we believe in what has been sent down on us,” but they
reject the Messenger, or “anything after that” (Q2:91). The ruling against
these Jews is that because they reject the Messenger, they are disbelievers,
rejecting “what All a¯ h has sent down” (Q2:91).31 The idea of the “same message” is further reinforced when the Qurʾan repeatedly states that the Messenger was only sent to confirm what was sent down by previous
messengers (Q2:91, 97; Q3:3, 50; Q5:48; Q12:111; Q16:43–44; Q35:31),
just as previous messengers had done for messengers that preceded them,
for example, ʿĪsa¯ “confirmed” the Tawra¯ h of Mūsa¯(Q5:46), and the Qurʾan
confirms the book(s) sent by previous prophets (Q4:47), just as the Messenger has been doing in his turn.}}
While the large differences between the New Testament / Gospels / Christian Jesus and the [[Isa al-Masih (Jesus Christ)|Muslim Jesus]] are clear to anyone who has read both the Qur'an and NT, (which takes from apocrypha considered inauthentic by NT scholars,<ref>Sanders, E.. ''The Historical Figure of Jesus (pp. 78-79)''. Penguin Books Ltd. Kindle Edition.

..(Gnosticism was a world view that held everything material to be evil; the god who created the world was a bad god, and the creation was wicked. Gnostics who were also Christians held that the good God had sent Jesus to redeem people’s souls, not their bodies, and that Jesus was not a real human being. The Christians who objected to these views finally declared them heretical.) ''I share the general scholarly view that very, very little in the apocryphal gospels could conceivably go back to the time of Jesus. They are legendary and mythological. Of all the apocryphal material, only some of the sayings in the Gospel of Thomas are worth consideration.'' This does not mean that we can make a clean division: the historical four gospels versus the legendary apocryphal gospels. There are legendary traits in the four gospels in the New Testament, and there is also a certain amount of newly created material (as we saw just above)..</ref> and [[Parallels Between the Qur'an and Late Antique Judeo-Christian Literature|later Christian thought/writings]] ) are too large to list here, and have lead to many Muslims arguing for biblical corruption based on theological grounds [textual grounds too - though don't affect authentic traditions] in general, a disputed idea (cite - Reynolds article. See also: [[Corruption of Previous Scriptures]] & [[Qur'an, Hadith and Scholars:Corruption of Previous Scriptures]]) a summary of some of the most likely authentic traditions from Biblical historians (using historical-critical methods not Christian or Muslim theologians - more likely to be true and not taken from bias or proving or disproving Islam but historical context, widespread across sources, early - cite Allison explanation - Why - different to time and context, unlikely to be fabricated later by Christians, across all early sources etc.) are shown here as an example of the clashes. [Point: not arguing against Christian Jesus - but secular historians one]

==== Examples ====
{{Quote|Dale C. Allison Jr.. The Historical Christ and the Theological Jesus (Kindle Locations 822-836). Kindle Edition.|2=Given that we typically remember the outlines of an event or the general purport of a conversation rather than the particulars and that we extract patterns and meaning from our memories, it makes little sense to open the quest for Jesus by evaluating individual items with our criteria, in the hope that some bits preserve pristine memory. We should rather be looking for repeating patterns and contemplating the big picture. true. We should trust first, if we are to trust at all, what is most likely to be trustworthy. Although we may, after reading Thucydides, be confident that there was a Peloponnesian War, we may well wonder about many of the details of his account.

The larger the generalization and the more data upon which it is based, the greater our confidence; the more specific the detail and the fewer the data supporting it, the more room we have for doubt. With regard to the sources for Jesus, the traditional criteria of authenticity privilege the parts over the whole. It seems more prudent to privilege generalizations drawn from the whole than to concentrate upon one individual item after another. As a demonstration of how this works in practice, consider the following traditions:

• Jesus prohibited divorce: 1 Cor. 7:10; Mark 10:2-9; Luke 16:18. [Qur'an divorce rules - https://wikiislam.net/wiki/Khula] 

• Jesus sent forth missionaries without staff, food, or money: Matt. 10:9-10; Mark 6:8-9; Luke 10:4.

• Jesus instructed missionaries to get their living by the gospel: 1 Cor. 9:14; Matt. 10:10; Luke 10:7.

• Jesus commanded loving and doing good to enemies: Matt. 5:38-48; Luke 6:27-36. [Qur'an do not be merciful to unbelievers https://wikiislam.net/wiki/Qur%27an,_Hadith_and_Scholars:Non-Muslims & https://wikiislam.net/wiki/Kafir_(Infidel)#Guidelines_on_how_to_deal_with_disbelievers Quran 48:29 ]

• Jesus forbade judging others: Matt. 7:1-2; Luke 6:37-38.

• Jesus asked a prospective follower not to bury his father: Matt. 8:21-22; 22; Luke 959-60.

• Jesus spoke of hating one's father and mother: Matt. 10:37; Luke 14:26; Gospel of Thomas 55, 101. [respect parents - too tenuous]

• Jesus enjoined disciples to take up a cross: Matt. 10:38; Mark 8:34; Luke 14:27.

• Jesus enjoined unlimited forgiveness: Matt. 18:21-22; Luke 17:3-4. [forgiveness against shirk - Qur'an says no Q4:48 and 4:116. ]

• Jesus exhorted hearers to lose their lives in order to save them: Matt. 10:39; Mark 8:35; Luke 17:33.

• Jesus called people away from their livelihoods: Mark 1:16-20; 2:14. [?]

• Jesus figuratively demanded violent removal of hand, foot, and eye: Mark 9:42-48.

• Jesus asked a wealthy man to relinquish his money: Mark 10:17-27. [bring in wealth inequality section of Islam darajat - here]

• Jesus forbade taking oaths: Matt. 5:33-37. [https://www.iium.edu.my/deed/lawbase/risalah_maliki/book31.html#:~:text=Anyone%20who%20swears%20an%20oath,Oneness%2C%20timelessness%20and%20existence.%5D]

• Jesus commanded money to be lent without interest: Matt. 5:42; Gospel of Thomas 95.

• Jesus called some to a life without marriage: Matt. 19:11-12. [Qur'an criticism of monasticism]

• Jesus asked a prospective follower not to say farewell to his parents: Luke 9:61-62. [respect parents?]

• Jesus asked his disciples to renounce all of their possessions: Luke 14:33"}}
<nowiki>--------------------------------------------------</nowiki>

[ highlight those being spoken about in italics or bold]

Dale/Allison (2009) notes that Jesus' banning divorce was an important teaching that <s>stood out</s> to early Christians, [https://www.biblegateway.com/passage/?search=Luke%2016%3A18&version=NIV Luke 16:18], [https://www.biblegateway.com/passage/?search=1%20Corinthians%207%3A10-16&version=NIV 1 Corinthians 7:10-16], [https://www.biblegateway.com/passage/?search=Mark%2010%3A2-9&version=NIV Mark 10:2-9], in contrast to Judaism ([https://www.biblegateway.com/passage/?search=Deuteronomy%2024%3A1-4&version=NIV Deuteronomy 24:1-4]) and Islam e.g. Quran 2:228-232, Q65:1-7, (Q4:19 https://quranx.com/hadiths/4.19 & Q4:35), Q33:49 )

He notes that Jesus commanded loving and doing good to enemies in [https://www.biblegateway.com/passage/?search=Matthew%205%3A38-48&version=NIV Matt. 5:38-48]; [https://www.biblegateway.com/passage/?search=Luke%206%3A27-36&version=NIV Luke 6:27-36], while the Qur'an generally advises treating other Muslims well, it specifically states not to be merciful to unbelievers Q48:29. [ For more examples of not being merciful to unbelievers, let alone 'enemies' see: '''[[Qur'an, Hadith and Scholars:Non-Muslims|https://wikiislam.net/wiki/Qur%27an,_Hadith_and_Scholars:Non-Muslims]] & [[Kafir (Infidel)#Guidelines%20on%20how%20to%20deal%20with%20disbelievers|https://wikiislam.net/wiki/Kafir_(Infidel)#Guidelines_on_how_to_deal_with_disbelievers]] Quran 48:29 ]'''

• Jesus enjoined unlimited forgiveness: [https://www.biblegateway.com/passage/?search=Matthew%2018%3A21-22&version=NIV Matt. 18:21-22]; [https://www.biblegateway.com/passage/?search=Luke%2017%3A3-4&version=NIV Luke 17:3-4]. [forgiveness against shirk - Qur'an says no Q4:48 and 4:116. - anyone who believed in him would/could be saved ]

He notes Jesus called some to a life without marriage: [https://www.biblegateway.com/passage/?search=Matthew%2019%3A11-12&version=NIV Matt. 19:11-12], while the Qur'an promotes it as a virtue encouraging those to do so.

Marriage is a virtue https://www.getquranic.com/marriage-in-islam-8-quranic-verses-about-marriage/

{{Quote|{{Quran|24|32}}|Marry off those who are single among you, and the upright among your male and female slaves. If they are poor, Allah will enrich them out of His grace, and Allah is all-bounteous, all-knowing.}}

And criticizes monasticism/monks, with celibacy and no marriage being a key aspect<ref>[https://www.britannica.com/topic/monasticism Monasticism] | religion | Britannica Entry</ref> in general

{{Quote|Reynolds, Gabriel Said. Christianity and the Qur'an: The Rise of Islam in Christian Arabia (pp. 131-132). Yale University Press. Kindle Edition.|These verses critical of monks are often read together with Q 57:27, which, while praising certain positive qualities of Christians, also seems to accuse Christians of “innovating” monasticism: Then We sent, following in their footsteps, Our Messengers; and We sent, following, Jesus son of Mary, and gave unto him the Gospel. And We set in the hearts of those who followed him tenderness and mercy. And monasticism they invented—We did not prescribe it for them—only seeking the good pleasure of God; but they observed it not as it should be observed. So We gave those of them who believed their wage; and many of them are ungodly.}}

Criticism of monasticism (https://www.britannica.com/topic/monasticism) - lack of marriage for monks (though admittedly also praises monks in general elsewhere pp130-132)<ref>Reynolds, Gabriel Said. ''Christianity and the Qur'an: The Rise of Islam in Christian Arabia (pp. 130-132).'' Yale University Press. Kindle Edition.</ref>

{{Quote|{{Quran|57|27}}|Then We sent on their footsteps Our Messengers and We followed with Isa, son (of) Maryam, and We gave him the Injeel. And We placed in (the) hearts (of) those who followed him compassion and mercy. But monasticism they innovated - not We prescribed it for them - only seeking (the) pleasure (of) Allah, but not they observed it (with) right observance. So We gave those who believed among them their reward, but most of them (are) defiantly disobediently.}}

<nowiki>-----------------------------------------------------------------</nowiki>

==== Father-son relationship ====
{{Quote|Dale C. Allison Jr.. The Historical Christ and the Theological Jesus (Kindle Location 841-848). Kindle Edition.|2=Working through the tradition in the way I suggest leads to a large number of conclusions. Jesus must have been an exorcist who interpreted his ministry in terms of Satan's downfall. He must have thought highly of John the Baptist. He must have repeatedly spoken of God as Father. [Durie differences in metaphor and understanding of relationship from Hebrew to Arab society = markedly different] He must have composed parables. He must have come into conflict with religious authorities. All of this may seem obvious, but the procedure is not trite, for it also issues in some controversial verdicts. As I have argued elsewhere, for example, ample, the quantity of conventional eschatological material in our primary sources almost necessitates that Jesus was an eschatological prophet.' The reconstruction of Robert Funk and the Jesus Seminar is for this reason alone problematic. Even more controversial is what my approach leads me to infer about Jesus' self-conception. Consider these Synoptic materials:

• Jesus said that the Son of man will return on the clouds of heaven and send angels to gather the elect from throughout the world: Mark 13:26-27; cf. 14:62; Matt. 10:23 (allusions to Daniel 7's depiction of the last judgment are clear). [the son of man plays no part in Islam]}}

===== Slave-master relationship =====
Father son Hebrew relationship Jesus used distinctly abandoned, instead using other things (other metaphors) in Arab society to describe the relationship between humans and God, such as a slave-master relationship,<ref>Durie, Mark. ''The Qur’an and Its Biblical Reflexes: Investigations into the Genesis of a Religion (pp. XX-XX) (pp. 107-110 Kindle Edition)''. 4.1.1. Shirk - Proprietary Partnership. Lexington Books. 2018.</ref> a Patron - Protege (needs explanation of what this is) <ref>Durie, Mark. ''The Qur’an and Its Biblical Reflexes: Investigations into the Genesis of a Religion (pp. XX-XX) (pp. 110-111 Kindle Edition)''. 4.1.2. Shirk - Patron - Protege Relationships. Lexington Books. 2018.</ref>. having strongly condemned the idea that God could have offspring against the unscripted pagans (mushrikun) taking angels as daughters of god, then against God having a son<ref>Durie, Mark. ''The Qur’an and Its Biblical Reflexes: Investigations into the Genesis of a Religion (pp. XX-XX) (pp. 112-113 Kindle Edition)''. 4.1.5 A Polemical Doctrine. Lexington Books. 2018.</ref>

Slave analogy Dure Print edition pp108 - 110 summary:<ref name=":1">Durie, Mark. ''The Qur’an and Its Biblical Reflexes: Investigations into the Genesis of a Religion (pp. 108-110) (pp. XX-XX Kindle Edition)''. 4.1.5 A Polemical Doctrine. Lexington Books. 2018.</ref> Before its theological use, the Arabic root ''sh-r-k'' referred to ordinary '''partnership or shared ownership'''. The Qurʾan draws on this everyday meaning to illustrate why associating partners with God is impossible. Using the metaphor of '''a master and a slave''', the Qurʾan argues that just as a slave with multiple masters suffers confusion and conflict, attributing partners to God creates an impossible and chaotic situation. This logic appears in verses such as Q39:29 and others that argue multiple gods would lead to conflict and the ruin of creation (Q23:91; Q21:22).<ref name=":1" />
{{Quote|{{Quran|39|29}}|Allah presents a parable, “a man was owned by several quarreling partners
(shurakaʾ), and a man was the slave of (just) one man. Are the two equal?”}}

The Qurʾan’s use of the slave-master metaphor differs from Jesus’ teaching in the New Testament. Whereas Jesus uses it to highlight divided human devotion, the Qurʾan uses it to assert the logical impossibility of multiple divine authorities.<ref name=":1" />

{{Quote|Luke 16:13; cf. Matthew. 6:24|No slave can serve two masters; for a slave will either hate the one and love the
other, or be devoted to the one and despise the other. You cannot serve God and wealth.}}

Shirk encompasses various forms of error: attributing partners or helpers to God, believing He needs allies, or seeking aid from others besides Him. The Qurʾan also explores God’s unity through three social analogies relevant to Arabian society: '''patron–protégé relationships''', '''alliances of mutual help''', and '''relationships of equal or unequal status'''.<ref name=":1" />

===== '''Patron–protégé relationships''' =====
The Qur'an distinctly ignores the father-son relationship (and theology) metaphor by using another term that is harder to translate

Explanation of what this is Durie pp.110-111:<ref name=":3">Durie, Mark. ''The Qur’an and Its Biblical Reflexes: Investigations into the Genesis of a Religion (pp. 110-111) (pp. XX-XX Kindle Edition)''. 4.1.5 A Polemical Doctrine. Lexington Books. 2018.</ref> The Qurʾan uses terms from the root '''w-l-y''' to describe '''patron–protégé relationships''', alliances, and guardianship. The key term '''walī''' can mean ally, protector, guardian, or patron, and may indicate either symmetrical alliances or asymmetrical power relationships.<ref name=":3" /><ref>[https://lexicon.quranic-research.net/data/27_w/219_wle.html Root: ''wāw lām yā'' (و ل ي)] - Lane's Lexicon Qur'anic Research

See Lane's Lexicon Classical Arabic Dictionary [https://lexicon.quranic-research.net/pdf/Page_3060.pdf pp.3060] & [https://lexicon.quranic-research.net/pdf/Page_3061.pdf pp.3061] </ref>

In pre-Islamic Arab society, such patronage was essential for protection, as shown by the example of Muḥammad being safeguarded by his uncle Abū Ṭālib. Without a patron, a person was vulnerable.<ref name=":3" /> [in the sirah of Ibn Ishaq]

The Qurʾan emphasizes that '''God has no need of any patron''' and that '''humans should recognize God alone as their walī'''. Seeking any protector besides God is considered '''shirk'''. Believers may take other believers and the Prophet as allies (''awliyāʾ'') alongside God, but not in place of Him.<ref name=":3" />

As the Muslim community developed, especially after what the passage calls the ''Eschatological Transition''—the Qurʾan increasingly stressed exclusive allegiance to God. This served to detach believers from prior tribal or familial loyalties that could compromise their commitment to the faith community.<ref name=":3" />

- and calls for help-

===== Unequal status vs Jesus' views on Wealth =====
Sinai - darajah passage

And inequality in general - inc. the afterlife

=== Punishment narratives ===

==== Punishment BEFORE the day of judgement ====
We are told the sole exception in history was the unnamed town<ref>Unnamed in the Qur'an, though identified as Nineveh (in modern day Iraq) as in the Biblical "Book of Jonah" by Islamic exegetes; e.g. see [https://quranx.com/tafsirs/37.147 tafsirs on Q37:147]</ref> of more than 100,000 people that the messenger Yūnus (Jonah) when the warning was heeded in full by the entire people, and therefore punishment averted ({{Quran|10|98}}, {{Quran|37|147-148}}) “no town believed . . . except the people of Yūnus”<ref>Durie, Mark. 2018. ''The Qur'an and Its Biblical Reflexes: Investigations Into the Genesis of a Religion. pp 49. Kindle Edition pp 151.''</ref>

How many a town defied the command of its Lord and His apostles, then We called it to a severe account and punished it with a dire punishment. Q65:8

So it tasted the evil consequences of its conduct, and the outcome of its conduct was ruin. Q65:9

How many generations that had far more wealth and ostentation have We laid low before them! <<nowiki>https://quranx.com/19.74</nowiki>>

Say, ‘Whoever abides in error, the All-beneficent shall prolong his respite until they sight what they have been promised: either punishment, or the Hour.’ Then they will know whose position is worse, and whose host is weaker <<nowiki>https://quranx.com/19.75</nowiki>>

------

Q34:16 - flood of the damn of Yemen / Saba', the people of Sheba E.g. <ref>See tafsirs on [https://quranx.com/Tafsirs/34.14 Q34:14], [https://quranx.com/Tafsirs/34.15 Q34:15] & [https://quranx.com/Tafsirs/34.16 Q34:16]</ref> {{Quran|34|14-16}}

{{Quote|{{Quran|34|14-16}}|And when We decreed for Solomon death, nothing indicated to the jinn his death except a creature of the earth eating his staff. But when he fell, it became clear to the jinn that if they had known the unseen, they would not have remained in humiliating punishment.
Certainly, (there) was for Saba in their dwelling place a sign: Two gardens on (the) right and (on the) left. "Eat from (the) provision (of) your Lord and be grateful to Him. A land good and a Lord Oft-Forgiving."
But they turned away, so We sent upon them (the) flood (of) the dam, and We changed for them their two gardens (with) two gardens producing fruit bitter, and tamarisks and (some)thing of lote trees few.}}
, {{Quran|65|8-9}}, {{Quran|19|74-75}}

Add: 34:15–21: The punishment of the people of Sheba, without explicit reference to a messenger. Sheba reference <ref>Marshall, David. ''God, Muhammad and the Unbelievers (p. 73).'' Taylor & Francis. Kindle Edition.</ref>

=== Surah 36 ===
Similarly an unnamed town is sent three messengers in {{Quran|36|13-32}}, who's identities have differed in traditional Islamic scholarship,<ref>E.g. see commentaries on [https://quranx.com/Tafsirs/36.13 Q36:13] & [https://quranx.com/tafsirs/36.14 Q36:14], and the later verses in the story, cited as a parable ''(mathal).''</ref> are rejected and so are killed with a cry/shout (''ṣayḥatan)'' ({{Quran|36|29}}). <ref>Marshall, David. ''God, Muhammad and the Unbelievers (p. 63 & 72).'' Taylor & Francis. Kindle Edition.</ref>
{{Quote|Marshall, David. God, Muhammad and the Unbelievers (p. 72). Taylor & Francis. Kindle Edition.|36:13–32: Described as a parable (mathal, v.13), but in outline very similar to the punishment-narratives. The messengers (two of them, reinforced with a third) and the town in which they preach are anonymous. ‘A man from the furthest part of the city’ (v.20) exhorts his people to follow the messengers.}}

== Contradiction ==
The order in Surah 2 has the Jews struck by a lightening bolt after they worship the golden calf, who are then forgiven by Allah by being resurrected.
{{Quote|{{Quran|2|50-67}}|And when We parted the sea with you, and We delivered you and drowned Pharaoh’s clan as you looked on. 
And when We made an appointment with Moses for forty nights, you took up the Calf [for worship] in his absence, and you were wrongdoers. 
Then We excused you after that so that you might give thanks. 
And when We gave Moses the Book and the Criterion so that you might be guided. 
And [recall] when Moses said to his people, ‘O my people! You have indeed wronged yourselves by taking up the Calf [for worship]. Now turn penitently to your Maker, and slay [the guilty among] your folks. That will be better for you with your Maker.’ Then He turned to you clemently. Indeed, He is the All-clement, the All-merciful. 
And when you said, ‘O Moses, we will not believe you until we see Allah visibly.’ Thereupon a thunderbolt seized you as you looked on.
Then We raised you up after your death so that you might give thanks. /n
We shaded you with clouds, and sent down to you manna and quails [saying]: ‘Eat of the good things We have provided for you.’ And they did not wrong Us, but they used to wrong [only] themselves. 
And when We said, ‘Enter this town, and eat thereof freely whencesoever you wish, and enter while prostrating at the gate, and say, ‘‘Relieve [us of the burden of our sins],’’ so that We may forgive your iniquities and We will soon enhance the virtuous.’ 
But the wrongdoers changed the saying with other than what they were told. So We sent down on those who were wrongdoers a plague from the sky because of the transgressions they used to commit. 
And when Moses prayed for water for his people, We said, ‘Strike the rock with your staff.’ Thereat twelve fountains gushed forth from it; every tribe came to know its drinking-place. ‘Eat and drink of Allah’s provision, and do not act wickedly on the earth, causing corruption.’ 
And when you said, ‘O Moses, ‘We will not put up with one kind of food. So invoke your Lord for us, so that He may bring forth for us of that which the earth grows—its greens and cucumbers, its garlic, lentils, and onions.’ He said, ‘Do you seek to replace what is superior with that which is inferior? Go down to any town and you will indeed get what you ask for!’ So they were struck with abasement and poverty, and they earned Allah’s wrath. That, because they would deny the signs of Allah and kill the prophets unjustly. That, because they would disobey and commit transgressions. 
Indeed the faithful, the Jews, the Christians and the Sabaeans—those of them who have faith in Allah and the Last Day and act righteously—they shall have their reward from their Lord, and they will have no fear, nor will they grieve. 
And when We took a pledge from you, and raised the Mount above you, [declaring], ‘Hold on with power to what We have given you and remember that which is in it so that you may be Godwary.’ 
Again you turned away after that; and were it not for Allah’s grace on you and His mercy, you would have surely been among the losers. 
And certainly you know those of you who violated the Sabbath, whereupon We said to them, ‘Be you spurned apes.’ 
So We made it an exemplary punishment for the present and the succeeding [generations], and an advice to the Godwary.}}
In Surah 4 they are struck before they worship the calf. 4:153 specifically says 'then' ''(thumma)''

{{Quote|{{Quran|4|153-161}}|The People of the Book ask you to bring down for them a Book from the sky. Certainly they asked Moses for [something] greater than that, for they said, ‘Show us Allah visibly,’ whereat a thunderbolt seized them for their wrongdoing. Then they took up the Calf [for worship], after all the manifest proofs that had come to them. Yet We excused that, and We gave Moses a manifest authority. 
And We raised the Mount above them for the sake of their covenant, and We said to them, ‘Enter the gate prostrating’ and We said to them, ‘Do not violate the Sabbath,’ and We took from them a solemn covenant. 
Then because of their breaking their covenant, their defiance of Allah’s signs, their killing of the prophets unjustly and for their saying, ‘Our hearts are uncircumcised’… Indeed, Allah has set a seal on them for their unfaith, so they do not have faith except a few. 
And for their faithlessness, and their uttering a monstrous calumny against Mary, 
and for their saying, ‘We killed the Messiah, Jesus son of Mary, the apostle of Allah’—though they did not kill him nor did they crucify him, but so it was made to appear to them. Indeed those who differ concerning him are surely in doubt about him: they do not have any knowledge of that beyond following conjectures, and certainly, they did not kill him. 
Indeed, Allah raised him up toward Himself, and Allah is all-mighty, all-wise. 
There is none among the People of the Book but will surely believe in him before his death; and on the Day of Resurrection, he will be a witness against them. 
Due to the wrongdoing of the Jews, We prohibited them certain good things that were permitted to them [earlier], and for their barring many [people] from the way of Allah, 
and for their taking usury—though they had been forbidden from it—and for eating up the wealth of the people wrongfully. And We have prepared for the faithless among them a painful punishment. }}

=== V2 ===
Surah 4 (summarized version)

1) They ask Moses for a sign and are hit with a thunderbolt

2) They then take up the calf for worship

3) The mountain is raised above them{{Quote|{{Quran|4|153-154}}|The People of the Book ask you to bring down for them a Book from the sky. Certainly they asked Moses for [something] greater than that, for they said, ‘Show us Allah visibly,’ whereat a thunderbolt seized them for their wrongdoing. Then they took up the Calf [for worship], after all the manifest proofs that had come to them. Yet We excused that, and We gave Moses a manifest authority. 
And We raised the Mount above them for the sake of their covenant, and We said to them, ‘Enter the gate prostrating’ and We said to them, ‘Do not violate the Sabbath,’ and We took from them a solemn covenant.}}Surah 2
1) They worshiped the calf. And Moses tells them to slay the guilty among them.

2) They are hit by a thunderbolt - is it chronological?

3) ... a mountain is lifted above them
{{Quote|{{Quran|2|51-56}}|And when We made an appointment with Moses for forty nights, you took up the Calf [for worship] in his absence, and you were wrongdoers. 
Then We excused you after that so that you might give thanks. 
And when We gave Moses the Book and the Criterion so that you might be guided. 
And [recall] when Moses said to his people, ‘O my people! You have indeed wronged yourselves by taking up the Calf [for worship]. Now turn penitently to your Maker, and slay [the guilty among] your folks. That will be better for you with your Maker.’ Then He turned to you clemently. Indeed, He is the All-clement, the All-merciful. 
And when you said, ‘O Moses, we will not believe you until we see Allah visibly.’ Thereupon a thunderbolt seized you as you looked on.
Then We raised you up after your death so that you might give thanks.}}
== The Lote Tree of the utmost Boundary (Sid'rati al-Muntahā) ==
Lote tree's are a real type of tree (Ziziphus spina-christi) native to Arabia and the Middle East.<ref>[https://www.suewickison.com/products/lote-tree?srsltid=AfmBOorj_RU2x1OPxgfRe689M2TWw1g4uZTQLkpSolPGYnIatiIe7h6K Lote Tree | Sidr | Ziziphus spina-christi |] Plants of the Qur'an | Sue Wickison </ref> Different to the tree of eternity/immortality ''(shajarati ul-khul'di)'' in paradise ''jannah,'' the Qur'an mentions The Lote Tree (sidr) of ''the utmost boundary (al-muntahā)''<ref>مُنْتَهَىٰ - [https://lexicon.quranic-research.net/pdf/Page_3029.pdf Lane's Lexicon pp.3029]

</ref> near (but notably not in) the 'garden of abode', said to be 'covered' yaghshā by something unspecified in Q53:16, typically taken by exegetes to mean by angels, light and/or golden animals.<ref>E.g. see [https://quranx.com/Tafsirs/53.16 Tafsirs on Q53:16]</ref>

{{Quote|{{Quran|53|13-17}}|And certainly he saw him (in) descent another,
Near (the) Lote Tree (of) the utmost boundary,
Near it (is the) Garden (of) Abode.
when there covered the Lote Tree what covered it.
Not swerved the sight and not it transgressed.}}

This furthest boundary/limit is said in the hadith, to place the cosmic tree in the sixth heaven, where even celestial creatures cannot go beyond as the limit of creation; said to be seen by Muhammad in his Night Journey (mi’rāj) on the [[:en:Buraq|Buraq]] (E.g. {{Muslim|1|329}}, {{Al Tirmidhi|2=5|3=44|4=3276}}, {{Bukhari|5|58|227}} & {{Al Nasai|2=1|3=5|4=452}}), and by many Islamic exegetes.<ref>See [https://quranx.com/tafsirs/53.14 tafsirs on Q53:14]</ref>

This would align the cosmology of Islamic traditions supporting the idea that paradise (and therefore the garden of the abode) is in the seventh heaven,<ref>[https://islamqa.info/en/answers/215011/where-are-paradise-and-hell#Where_is_Paradise Where is Paradise] | [https://islamqa.info/en/answers/215011/where-are-paradise-and-hell Where Are Paradise and Hell?] | 07/January/2015 islamqa</ref> while some traditions support the idea that paradise is above the seventh heaven,<ref>[https://www.islamweb.net/en/fatwa/107126/the-location-of-paradise-now#:~:text=Paradise%20that%20Allaah%20promised%20for,are%20many%20texts%20proving%20this. The location of Paradise now] | Paradise and Hell | Belief in the Hereafter | Islamic Creed | Fatwa | islamweb.net </ref> both placing the tree relatively close to jannah. However others suggest that this specific ''garden of the abode (jannatu l-mawā)'' is a separate garden/paradise to the eternal one all righteous Muslims will eventually enter, being instead one where martyrs (those killed in war or for their religion) go before judgement day.<ref>E.g. see [https://quranx.com/Tafsirs/53.15 tafsirs on Q53:15]</ref>

Either way there is no evidence of a celestial tree, which must be magic to survive outside of an Earthly plant ecosystem, but is rather an example of tree mythology.
----
----

(See also: <nowiki>https://sunnah.com/mishkat:5865</nowiki> & https://sunnah.com/mishkat:5640, ) read; https://quranx.com/tafsirs/53.14 - exegetes also confirm this is where boundary is the boundary of the skies/heavens where things other than God cannot pass (at least until judgement day where paradise and hell can be entered).

AND Similarly seen next to the 4 main Near-East rivers (Nile, Euphratesm Tigres,) <nowiki>https://sunnah.com/bukhari:5610</nowiki>, which area said to flow from paradise: <nowiki>https://quranx.com/Hadith/Bukhari/USC-MSA/Volume-5/Book-58/Hadith-227/</nowiki> )

cite: [https://www.islamweb.net/en/fatwa/107126/the-location-of-paradise-now#:~:text=Paradise%20that%20Allaah%20promised%20for,are%20many%20texts%20proving%20this. https://www.islamweb.net/en/fatwa/107126/the-location-of-paradise-now#:~:text=Paradise%20that%20Allaah%20promised%20for,are%20many%20texts%20proving%20this.]

The utmost boundary at the end of t heavens confirmed by exegetes in https://quranx.com/tafsirs/53.14

" Jannat al-ma'va' literally means "the Jannat (Garden) that is to be an abode. " Hadrat Hasan Basri says that this is the same Jannat which the believers and righteous will be given in the Hereafter, and from this same verse he has argued that that Jannat is in the heavens. Qatadah says that this is the Jannat in which the souls of the martyrs are kept; it does not imply the Jannat that is to be given in the Hereafter. Ibn 'Abbas also says the same but adds that the Jannat to be granted to the believers in the Hereafter is not in the heavens but here on the earth.

== Parallels Between the Qur'an and Late Antique Judeo-Christian Literature - Part 2 ==
Following on from [[Parallels Between the Qur'an and Late Antique Judeo-Christian Literature|Part 1]], this is Part 2 of Late Antique Judeo-Christian Literature found in the Qur'an. This material, drawing heavily on rabbinical commentaries on the bible, and late Syriac Christian thought found in homilies, was created far later than the biblical cannon; no-where near the time of the events that occurred. This suggests the stories were transmitted in an oral millennia along with local Arabian traditions<ref>Bannister, Andrew G.. ''An Oral-Formulaic Study of the Qur'an (Kindle Location 249-259 in Chapter 1.2 The Biblicist Roots of the Iblis and Adam Story).'' Bloomsbury Publishing. Kindle Edition.

..When the Qur’an emerged in the seventh-century, it did so in an oral culture in which Biblicist traditions were freely circulating and thus there existed a large pool of commonly known stories and traditions to fish from; a pool in which stories could cross-fertilize and influence one another. 23 It is this, more than direct borrowing that perhaps best explains stories like Iblis and Adam as well as other qur’anic tellings of older tales, such as the Seven Sleepers (Q. 18: 9– 25) 24 and the Legend of Alexander (Dhu al-Qarnayn, Q. 18: 83– 101). 25 The Qur’an originates from a milieu in which Biblicist material was well-known to the first audience of the Qur’an; even a simple allusion to a story was often enough to trigger a connection for the hearer. 26 That Biblicist material has been filtered through storytelling rather than simply copied from a written text is further suggested by what the Qur’an leaves out; no minor prophets are referenced, probably because almost no Old Testament narratives feature them nor did the rabbinic literature weave lengthy tales about them. 27 The exception which proves the rule is Jonah (Q. 21: 87– 88; 37: 139– 148; 68: 48– 50), whose short but dramatic story was extremely popular in both Jewish and Christian contexts.28..

And: Bannister, Andrew G.. ''An Oral-Formulaic Study of the Qur'an (Kindle Locations 1391-1392. Chapter 2.3 The Islamic Tradition and Orality).'' Bloomsbury Publishing. Kindle Edition.</ref> where biblical and much later Jewish and Christian stories could be commonly mixed without the new community realizing.
== The story of Noah ==
The prophet Noah is portrayed extremely differently to the one in Genesis,<ref>Segovia, Carlos A.. ''[https://almuslih.org/wp-content/uploads/2024/12/Segovia-C-The-Quranic-Noah-and-the-Making-of-the-Islamic-Prophet.pdf The Quranic Noah and the Making of the Islamic Prophet: A Study of Intertextuality and Religious Identity Formation in Late Antiquity]'', Berlin, München, Boston: De Gruyter, 2015. <nowiki>https://doi.org/10.1515/9783110405897</nowiki></ref> taking on Jewish and Christian traditions, characteristics, as well as terms from late antique Judeo-Christian writings,<ref>The Qur'anic Noah. pp.21-21</ref> molded to suit Muhammad's situation in line with other messengers in the Qur'an.<ref>''The Qurʾan and its Biblical Reflexes: Investigations into the Genesis of a Religion. Chapter 5.3 Messenger Uniformatism. pp.135-143'' By Mark Durie. Lanham, MD: Lexington Books, 2018. </ref>

=== The preaching of Noah ===

Surah 71 consists entirely of the preaching of Noah and his supplications to Allah.{{Quote|{{Quran-range|71|1|28}}|Indeed, We sent Noah to his people, [saying], "Warn your people before there comes to them a painful punishment." He said, "O my people, indeed I am to you a clear warner, [Saying], 'Worship Allah, fear Him and obey me. Allah will forgive you of your sins and delay you for a specified term. Indeed, the time [set by] Allah, when it comes, will not be delayed, if you only knew.' " 
[...]
And Noah said, "My Lord, do not leave upon the earth from among the disbelievers an inhabitant. Indeed, if You leave them, they will mislead Your servants and not beget except [every] wicked one and [confirmed] disbeliever. My Lord, forgive me and my parents and whoever enters my house a believer and the believing men and believing women. And do not increase the wrongdoers except in destruction."}}Reynolds remarks that "The Qur'ānic character of Noah is quite unlike that of the Noah in Genesis, who does not speak a word until after the flood." Citing the Babylonian Talmud, Sanhedrin 108a, he observes that "[his preaching] is also suggested by a passage in the Talmud:
::"The righteous Noah rebuked them, urging, 'Repent; for if not, the Holy One, blessed be He, will bring a deluge upon you and cause your bodies to float upon the water like gourds, as it is written, He is light [i.e., floats] upon the waters. Moreover, ye shall be taken as a curse for all future generations.' (b. Sanhedrin 108a)"
Reynolds further notes, "It is also prominent in the Syriac fathers, several of whom report that Noah preached to his people for a hundred years before God finally sent the flood." citing for example the Syriac authors Narsai, "On the Flood", 33, II. 227-30 and Jacob of Serugh, ''Homilies contre les juifs'', 70, homily 2, II. 37-40.<ref>Gabriel Said Reynolds, ''The Qurʾān and Bible'' p. 858</ref>

The opponents reject Noah's preaching despite him doing so 'day and night' (Quran 71:5-6) in which they respond by putting their fingers in their ears Quran 71:7, on which Neuwirth (2024) notes that "the means of plugging one’s ears in order to shut oneself off from unpleasant news is also encountered in the Talmud (bKetubbot 5a)."<ref>Neuwirth, Angelika. The Qur'an: Text and Commentary, ''Volume 2.1: Early Middle Meccan Suras: The New Elect (p. 280).'' Yale University Press. Kindle Edition.</ref>

=== Noah's disbelieving wife ===
{{Quote|{{Quran|66|10}}|Allah presents an example of those who disbelieved: the wife of Noah and the wife of Lot. They were under two of Our righteous servants but betrayed them, so those prophets did not avail them from Allah at all, and it was said, "Enter the Fire with those who enter."}}The Bible briefly mentions Noah's wife in one verse without further comment ([https://www.biblegateway.com/passage/?search=Genesis%207%3A7&version=NIV Genesis 7:7]), "And Noah and his sons and his wife and his sons’ wives entered the ark to escape the waters of the flood." Regarding the Quranic verse which speaks of her negatively, Reynolds briefly considers the possibility that the Quran has extended to their wives the parallelism between Noah (though not his wife) and Lot found in the New Testament ([https://www.biblegateway.com/passage/?search=2%20Peter%202&version=NIV 2 Peter 2]), but then comments, "However, it is important to note that already in the pre-Islamic period certain groups had developed hostile legends about Noah's wife." He cites Epiphanius (d. 403 CE), ''Panarion'' 2:26, which relates the Gnostic belief that she was not allowed onto the ark, having burned it down three times before the flood.<ref>Gabriel Said Reynolds, ''The Qurʾān and Bible'' p. 841</ref>

=== Noah's flood waters overflowed from an oven ===
The Qur'anic version of the Noah's flood story describes the flood waters as overflowing from an oven. This element is not found even in more ancient versions of the story (Epic of Gilgamesh, Atra hasis, and Ziusudra).

Note that in his translation, Yusuf Ali mistranslates the Aramaic loan word for the oven (alttannooru ٱلتَّنُّورُ)<ref>[http://www.studyquran.org/LaneLexicon/Volume1/00000355.pdf Lane's Lexicon p. 318 تَّنُّورُ]</ref> as "fountains". The Arabic verb translated "gushed forth" (fara فَارَ) means overflowed or boiled in the context of water in a cooking pot<ref>[http://www.studyquran.org/LaneLexicon/Volume6/00000241.pdf Lane's Lexicon p. 2457 فور]</ref>, as well as in the other verse where it is used, {{Quran|67|7}}. Here is Pickthall's more accurate translation:{{Quote|{{Quran|11|40}}|
(Thus it was) till, when Our commandment came to pass '''and the oven gushed forth water''', We said: Load therein two of every kind, a pair (the male and female), and thy household, save him against whom the word hath gone forth already, and those who believe. And but a few were they who believed with him.}}{{Quote|{{Quran|23|27}}|
Then We inspired in him, saying: Make the ship under Our eyes and Our inspiration. Then, when Our command cometh '''and the oven gusheth water''', introduce therein of every (kind) two spouses, and thy household save him thereof against whom the Word hath already gone forth. And plead not with Me on behalf of those who have done wrong. Lo! they will be drowned.}}At one time academic scholars thought this verse alluded to a Midrashic exegesis in which the flood waters were boiling hot (b. Sanhedrin 108b, [https://www.sefaria.org/Rosh_Hashanah.12a.4?lang=bi|Tracate Rosh Hashanah 12a:4]). More recent scholarship, particularly by Olivier Mongellaz in 2024,<ref name="Mongellaz2024">Olivier Mongellaz (2024) [https://brill.com/view/journals/arab/71/4-5/article-p513_4.xml Le four de Noé : un cas d’intertextualité coranique], Arabica 71(4-5), 513-637. https://doi.org/10.1163/15700585-20246900</ref> has identified that these verses most likely reflect a late antique legend in which water gushing up through a bread oven (a large hole dug into the ground) was a sign warning Noah's family of the imminent flood. The interpretation as Noah's own oven is attributed to a number of early commentators (such as Ibn Abbas, Mujahid), while others understood it to be the area of land where the flood waters first rose. Qurtubi said: "The sayings of commentators appear to be different as to the meaning of tannur, but this, in reality, is not a difference. When water began to bulge out, it overflowed from the bread baking oven, and from out of the surface of the land".

Significantly, Mongellaz has argued on literary grounds that a fragmentary Arabic text falsely attributed to Hippolytus of Rome, and which mentions the overflowing bread oven story, is independent of the Islamic tradition and was originally written in a very specific environment which has parallels with the context in which certain parts of the Quran were written.{{Quote|Pseudo. Hippolytus of Rome (translated to English from Mongellaz's French translation)<ref name="Mongellaz2024" />|Meanwhile, Ham's wife stood up to take out the bread that remained in the oven and immediately water sprang out of the oven [fāḍa l-māʾmin al-tannūr] and immediately water came out of the oven, as the Lord had said: "The fountains of the great deeps were opened." Ham's wife called to Noah, saying, "My lord, the word of God has come true (Syr. what God promised has come true!)" - for it had come true just as the Lord had promised her. When Noah heard Ham's wife's words, he said to her, "Oh, the flood has come."}}

=== Noah's ark left behind as a sign ===
{{Quote|{{Quran-range|54|13|15}}|And We carried him on a [construction of] planks and nails, Sailing under Our observation as reward for he who had been denied. And We left it as a sign, so is there any who will remember?}}Unlike the bible, which does not mention the ark as a sign for future generations, Neuwirth (2024) notes the salvation of Noah is made physically plausible to the listeners through the reference to the material verifiability of the ark, which could be taken from various late antique traditions, for example Flavius Josephus (b. 37AD) reports in the ''Jewish Antiquities (I 3.5 § 92)'' of the existence of the remains of Noah’s ark in Armenia (Clementz 1959: 22).<ref name=":0">Neuwirth, Angelika. ''The Qur'an: Text and Commentary, Volume 2.1: Early Middle Meccan Suras: The New Elect (p. 62).'' Yale University Press. Kindle Edition.</ref> She also notes that the appeal to the willingness of the listeners to be admonished by the sign (āya) of Noah’s ark is also reminiscent of the Talmudic story (bSanhedrin 96a) of the death of Sennacherib, who was led to a fateful decision by seeing the remains of Noah’s ark.<ref name=":0" />
==Moses and Pharaoh==
Alongside the biblical account of Moses and the Pharoah, there are some key aspects that match Jewish Rabbinic and Christian non-biblical traditions. Even the place where Moses communicates with God in the story of the burning bush, the word used ''ṭuwan'' in e.g. {{Quran|20|12}} (for the folded land, implying double the holiness)<ref>See; Neuwirth, Angelika. ''The Qur'an: Text and Commentary, Volume 2.1: Early Middle Meccan Suras: The New Elect (p. 199).'' Yale University Press. Kindle Edition. Ṭuwā stands for the holy Mount Sinai or Horeb (cf. KU, 124ff.; FVQ, 206ff.; BEQ, 255ff.). The word was long thought to be a rhyming transformation of Aramaic ṭūrā (“the mountain”), but now, based on rabbinic tradition and in agreement with traditional exegetes, Uri Rubin has convincingly interpreted bi-l-wādī l-muqaddasi Ṭuwā to mean “in the doubly hallowed valley” (see Rubin 2014). (The Sinai is in a sense the “folded Holy Land” [ṬWY = “to fold”].) Citing: Rubin, Uri, 2014, ''[https://urirubin.com/assets/docs/Tuwan.86132451.pdf Moses and the Holy Valley Ṭuwan. On the Biblical and Midrashic Background of a Qurʾanic Scene],'' Journal of Near Eastern Studies 73, 73–81.</ref> does not have a parallel in the bible,<ref>''[https://urirubin.com/assets/docs/Tuwan.86132451.pdf Moses and the Holy Valley Ṭuwan: On the biblical and midrashic background of a qurʾānic scene.]'' Rubin 2014. Ibid. pp. 75.</ref> but does in other Judeo-Christian (later) works.<ref>Ibid. pp. 76-78</ref> And the idea of eschatology in Moses's story such as {{Quran|20|15}}, with reward in the afterlife being mentioned, is not contained in the biblical story of Moses, Neuwirth (2024) notes moves the story into a late antiquity interpretation.<ref>Neuwirth, Angelika. ''The Qur'an: Text and Commentary, Volume 2.1: Early Middle Meccan Suras: The New Elect (p. 199).'' Yale University Press. Kindle Edition.</ref> Key details in the stories include:
===The prophecy of baby Moses===
Alongside the scene of [https://www.biblegateway.com/passage/?search=Exodus%201%3A8-2%3A10&version=NIV Exodus 1:8-2:10] where the Hebrews in Egyptian bondage are told to kill all male babies to control the growing Israelite population, where Moses's mother places his basket in the Nile to escape; Neuwirth (2024) citing Speyer, notes that ''the prophecy to Moses’s mother that an enemy—of Moses as well as of God himself—would take him in reflects a Midrashic interpretation of Exodus Rabba (1:31: “So the daughter of Pharaoh raised the daughter, who was once to take revenge on her father”). The event is explicitly based on a divine intention, namely, to make Moses his chosen one.''<ref>''The Qur'an: Text and Commentary, Volume 2.1: Early Middle Meccan Suras: The New Elect'' Ibid. pp. 201.</ref>{{Quote|{{Quran-range|20|37|39}}|We have bestowed Our favour on you before this, When We told your mother what We relate: 'Put him in a wooden box and cast it in the river. The river will cast it on the bank. An enemy of Ours, and his, will retrieve it.' We bestowed Our love on you that you may be reared under Our eyes.}}And similarly the next verse unlike the bible focuses on the emotional impact of the event on Moses’s mother, Neuwirth notes is comparable to Midrash Exodus Rabba 1:25.<ref>Ibid. pp. 201-202.</ref> Moses's salvation from persecution after manslaughter is commemorated with similar consideration of Moses’s mental condition.<ref>Ibid. pp. 202.</ref>{{Quote|{{Quran|20|40}}|When your sister walked up [to Pharaoh’s palace] saying, “Shall I show you someone who will take care of him?” Then We restored you to your mother, that she might not grieve and be comforted. Then you slew a soul, whereupon We delivered you from anguish, and We tried you with various ordeals. Then you stayed for several years among the people of Midian. Then you turned up as ordained, O Moses!}}
===Moses not suckled by Egyptians===
{{Quote|{{Quran-range|28|12|13}}|And We had prevented from him [all] wet nurses before, so she said, "Shall I direct you to a household that will be responsible for him for you while they are to him [for his upbringing] sincere?" So We restored him to his mother that she might be content and not grieve and that she would know that the promise of Allah is true. But most of the people do not know.}}Reynolds comments, "On this passage cf. Exodus 2:7-9. The Qurʾān's declaration (v. 12) 'We had forbidden him to be suckled by any nurse' (v. 12) reflects a tradition in the Babylonian Talmud that Moses (from whose mouth would come forth the word of God) refused the impure breasts of the Egyptian women:
::Then said his sister to Pharaoh's daughter, Shall I go and call thee a nurse of the Hebrew women? Why just 'of the Hebrew women'? - It teaches that they handed about to all the Egyptian women but he would not suck. He said: Shall a mouth which will speak with [God] suck what is unclean! (b. Sotah 12b)"<ref>Gabriel Said Reynolds, ''The Qurʾān and Bible'' p. 598</ref>
===Moses's speech impediment===
Moses has some kind of speech impediment when going to speak to Pharaoh in the Qurʾān.{{Quote|{{Quran-range|20|24|28}}|"Go to Pharaoh. Indeed, he has transgressed."( Moses) said: "O, my Lord! Expand me my breast,” ease my task for me, And untie the knot from my tongue, so they may understand what I say.”}}Biblical Scholar James Kugel (1997)<ref>Kugel, James L.. The Bible As It Was (Kindle Edition. pp. 432-433). Harvard University Press.</ref> notes that later Jewish and Christian commentators found it necessary to explain Moses's statement in the Old Testament “''Oh my Lord, I am not a man of words … but I am heavy of speech and heavy of tongue''” ([https://www.biblegateway.com/passage/?search=Exodus%204%3A10&version=NIV Exodus 4:10]), as he was believed to be a highly educated man who had been supposedly been schooled in every branch of wisdom, including eloquence.

He notes "it occurred to interpreters that Moses might have been referring here not to any lacuna in his education, but to an actual speech defect, some physical deformity of his mouth or tongue that prevented him from speaking in the usual fashion." We see this in:<ref>Ibid. pp. 432 - 433 (Kindle Edition)</ref>

"''I'' ''am not by nature eloquent; my tongue with difficulty speaks, I stammer, so that I cannot speak before the king."'' —Ezekiel the Tragedian, Exaggē 113– 115 (3rd-2nd century BCE)

''He [Moses] pleased his parents by his beauty, but grieved them by his speech impediment. —''Ephraem, Commentary on Exodus 2: 4 (d. 373 AD)

Others even added stories on how he might have acquired that deformity, such as Josephus in Jewish Antiquities 2: 232– 236 (published ~93/94 AD), connecting their explanation of Moses’ speech problems to the tradition of Pharaoh’s wise men and their warnings about a boy that might grow up and save Israel.<ref>Ibid. pp. 433 - 434 (Kindle Edition)</ref>
===Pharaohs questions===
Neuwirth (2024) comments that the list of further detailed questions to Moses in Surah 26 'The Poets' / al-shuʿarāʾ (i.e. in {{Quran-range|26|22|29}}), citing Speyer, reflect a more detailed episode from Midrash Exodus Rabba 5:18, which also starts from Pharaoh’s self-praise as God.<ref>Neuwirth, Angelika. ''The Qur'an: Text and Commentary, Volume 2.1: Early Middle Meccan Suras: The New Elect (p. 250).'' Yale University Press. Kindle Edition.</ref>
===The Drowning of Pharaoh===
{{Quote|{{Quran-range|10|90|92}}|And We took the Children of Israel across the sea, and Pharaoh and his soldiers pursued them in tyranny and enmity until, when drowning overtook him, he said, "I believe that there is no deity except that in whom the Children of Israel believe, and I am of the Muslims." Now? And you had disobeyed [Him] before and were of the corrupters? So today We will save you in body that you may be to those who succeed you a sign. And indeed, many among the people, of Our signs, are heedless}}Reynolds comments, "The question of Pharaoh's survival appears in an opinion found in the (late fourth century AD) ''Mekilta de-Rabbi Ishmael'' (cr. Gavin McDowell):
::"And the waters returned and covered the chariot etc. [Exo 14:27]. Even Pharaoh, according to the words of R. Judah, as it is said, 'The chariots of Pharaoh and his force, etc.' [Exo 15:4]. R. Nehimiah says: ''Except for Pharaoh.'' About him it says, 'However, for this purpose I have let you live' [Exo 9:16]. Others say that in the end Pharaoh went down and drowned, as it is said, 'Then went the horse of Pharaoh, etc.' [Exo 15:19]. (Beshallah 7)"<ref>Gabriel Said Reynolds, ''The Qurʾān and Bible'' p. 339</ref>
==Arguments for resurrection==
Reynolds (2020) notes the repeated argument that God can resurrect the dead using the analogy that he can bring life back to barren (or dead) land may be connected to a Jewish tradition that God will resurrect the dead with dew, for example, in b. Shabbat 88b.<ref name=":2" />
{{Quote|{{Quran|30|19}}|He brings forth the living from the dead, and brings forth the dead from the living, and revives the earth after its death. Likewise, you [too] shall be raised [from the dead].}}

Cf: {{Quran|16|65}}, {{Quran|43|11}}, {{Quran|50|6-11}}, {{Quran|57|17}}
==Late antique Christian Martyrdom==
{{Main|Shaheed (Martyr)}}
Durie (2018) notes the violence of the Qur'an shares more commonality with contemporary late antique religious (primarily Christian) violence and warfare rather than being directly biblically based.<ref>Durie, Mark. ''The Qur’an and Its Biblical Reflexes: Investigations into the Genesis of a Religion.'' Lexington Books. 2018. Pp. 229 -237. (Kindle Edition: pp. 423-439). 6.9 Stories of Fighting Prophets</ref>

=== Textual overlap ===

Covering the continuity and similarities between late antique religious violence & warfare and the Qur'an (and other Islamic traditions) is too big a topic to cover here; perhaps the most in-depth academic work looking at the continuity between this and Islam is Thomas Sizgorich's ''Violence and Belief in Late Antiquity: Militant Devotion in Christianity and Islam'', however Sinai (2017) notes alongside similar ideas and theology, there are some direct textual references.{{Quote|Sinai, Nicolai. Qur'an: A Historical-Critical Introduction (The New Edinburgh Islamic Surveys) (pp. 301-302). Edinburgh University Press. Kindle Edition.|That the Qur’anic community’s access to Biblical notions of militancy was mediated by late antique Christian discourse is indicated by an intriguing intertextual overlap. According to Q 3: 169–170, those who have been ‘killed in the path of God’ are not dead but ‘alive with their Lord’, rather than having to spend the remaining time until the Resurrection in a state of slumber (similarly Q 2: 154).39 Tor Andrae has pointed out that the phrase ‘alive with their Lord’ (ayāun inda rabbihim) corresponds exactly to the Syriac phrase h. ayyē lwāth alāhā, which a sixth-century Syriac Christian writer (Mar Ishay) applies to the martyrs.40 Furthermore, Mar Ishay contrasts the true fate of the martyrs with unfounded prior opinion: ‘they are believed to be already dead’.41 The same contrast is found in the two Qur’anic passages just cited.42 It could be objected that the parallel demonstrates merely that the Qur’an is familiar with the widespread Christian idea that martyrs are granted prompt access to paradise but that this does not establish a Christian precedent for the Qur’anic application of this idea specifically to those who actively enact – rather than just suffer – violence. However, as Sizgorich reminds us, a Christian martyr was by no means seen merely as a passive victim of persecution but rather as someone who actively ‘defeats the power of the Roman state’.43}}{{Quote|{{Quran|3|169}}|And never think of those who have been killed in the cause of Allah as dead. Rather, they are alive with their Lord, receiving provision}}{{Quote|{{Quran|2|154}}|Do not say that those who are killed in the way of God, are dead, for indeed they are alive, even though you are not aware.}}

=== Martyrs sidestep judgement day ===
After death, humans are typically said to spend their time in an intermediate state known to traditional Islamic scholars as the ''barzakh'' while they wait.<ref>Reynolds, Gabriel Said. 2020. ''Allah:'' ''God in the Qur'an (p. 71-72).'' Yale University Press. Kindle Edition.

It is also the same term used for the barrier between the living and the dead (whilst awaiting judgement day) in the Qur'an, e.g. {{Quran|23|99-100}}</ref> However, as in the above verses, one exception to this rule is Martyrs being with God straight away rather than being judged at judgment day, a non-biblical idea having parallels with late antique Christian thought.

Sinai (2017) similarly notes strong ideological parallels a 6th century hagiographical text (the Panegyric on Macarius, Bishop of Tkow by Pseudo-Dioscorus of Alexandria) of a 5th-century martyr, Egyptian Bishop Macarius of Tkow who was martyred for opposing the council of Chalcedon. Citing Michael Gaddis's summary of the document, ‘He was both willing to die for his faith, and willing to kill for it.’ he notes the same idea in {{Quran|9|111}} … they fight in the way of Allah, kill, and are killed.. <ref>Ibid. (Kindle Edition. pp. 299).</ref> As well as citing English historian of the Byzantine Empire James Howard-Johnston "''..James Howard-Johnston draws attention to a passage in the Chronicle of Theophanes Confessor (d. 818), which reports that at about the same time when the Qur’an promised those ‘killed in the path of God’ immediate entry to paradise, the Byzantine emperor Heraclius similarly announced that those fighting the Sasanians would be recompensed with eternal life. In Heraclius’s address as reported by Theophanes Confessor, we find some of the same general ingredients that are noticeable in Qur’anic calls to militancy…''"<ref>Ibid. (Kindle Edition. pp. 301).</ref> He notes these similarities are likely caused by being on the fringes of the Roman empire.<ref>Ibid. (Kindle Edition. pp. 301).</ref>

==== Martyrdom wipes away other sins and is privileged above other acts from believers ====
{{Quote|Reynolds, Gabriel Said. Christianity and the Qur'an: The Rise of Islam in Christian Arabia (pp. 178-179). Yale University Press. Kindle Edition.|The teaching on the glory earned by martyrs is widespread in the early church. It is nevertheless telling to find the way it is emphasized in the third-century Christian text the aforementioned Didascalia Apostolorum, originally written in Greek but preserved in Syriac.87 The Didascalia clearly teaches that the martyrs will have a privilege above other faithful believers: If then He raises up all men,—as He said by Isaiah: All flesh shall see the salvation of God [Isa 40.5; 52.10],—much more will He quicken and raise up the faithful; and (yet more) again will He quicken and raise up the faithful of the faithful, who are the martyrs, and establish them in great glory and make them His counsellors. For to mere disciples, those who believe in Him, He has promised a glory as of the stars [Dan 12.3]; but to the martyrs He has promised to give an everlasting glory, as of the luminaries which fail not, with more abundant light, that they may be shining for all time.88

The Didascalia is also clear, as is the Qur’an, that martyrs enjoy a special grace through the forgiveness of sins that their deaths have earned for them: But again, sins are forgiven by baptism also to those who from the Gentiles draw near and enter the holy Church of God. Let us inquire also, to whom sins are not imputed. To such as Abraham and Isaac and Jacob and all the patriarchs, as also to the martyrs. Let us hear then, brethren, for the Scripture saith: Who shall boast himself and say: I am clear of sins? Or who shall be confident and say: I am innocent? [Prov 20.9].

And again: There is no man pure of defilement: not though his life be but one day [Job 14.4–5 LXX]. To everyone therefore who believes and is baptized his … former sins have been forgiven; but after baptism also, provided that he has not sinned a deadly sin nor been an accomplice (thereto), but has heard only, or seen, or spoken, and is thus guilty of sin. But if a man go forth from the world by martyrdom for the name of the Lord, blessed is he; for brethren who by martyrdom have gone forth from this world, of these the sins are covered.89

We might compare Q 3:195: “ ‘And those who emigrated, and were expelled from their habitations, those who suffered hurt in My way, and fought, and were slain—them I shall surely acquit of their evil deeds, and I shall admit them to gardens underneath which rivers flow.’ A reward from God! And God with Him is the fairest reward” (italics added). In other words, the Qur’an seems to be well aware of Christian devotion to the martyrs.}}

=== Martyrdom in the Torah and Gospels ===
Muslims who fight are promised paradise, which the Qur'an claims is also a promise in the Torah and Gospel.{{Quote|{{Quran|9|111}}|Indeed Allah has bought from the faithful their souls and their possessions for paradise to be theirs: they fight in the way of Allah, kill, and are killed. A promise binding upon Him in the Torah and the Evangel and the Quran. And who is truer to his promise than Allah? So rejoice in the bargain you have made with Him, and that is the great success.}}Nickel (2020)<ref>Nickel, Gordon D. ''The Quran with Christian Commentary: A Guide to Understanding the Scripture of Islam (p. 222).'' Zondervan Academic. Kindle Edition. 9.111 – They fight in the way of God, and they kill and are killed When the Quran describes believers as fighting “in the way of Allah,” it makes a theological claim by associating Allah with human fighting. See the analysis of these expressions at 73.20 (p. 597). 9.111 – a promise binding on Him in the Torah, and the Gospel, and the Qur’ān This is the only verse in the Quran that brings the Torah (tawrāt), Gospel (injīl), and qur’ān (lit. “recitation”) together. The Quran claims here that the particular point on which the Torah and Gospel agree with the Muslim recitation is that believers “fight in the way of Allah, and they kill and are killed.” This verse makes the reader question whether the Quran has a clear idea of the contents of the Torah and Gospel. A similar question is raised by 61.14, which appears to say that ‘Īsā and his disciples fought against their enemies (cf. 3.52). Along with these misunderstandings, the Quran gives no information about the peaceable teaching and example of Jesus in the Gospel accounts. See the analysis of the Quran’s verses on the “Gospel” at 57.27 (p. 549). Do the Torah and Gospel in fact contain such a promise? See the comment on this characterization of the Bible at 61.14 (p. 566).</ref> and Reynolds (2018) however notes that this is not found there:{{Quote|1=Reynolds, G. S. (2018). The Qur'an and the Bible: Text and Commentary. Commentary on 9:111 (pp. 322) United Kingdom: Yale University Press.|2="9:111 The point of this verse is that those who are prepared to give their lives to God in the holy war are promised paradise as a payment for their services (cf. 2:245; 4:74; 61:10–12). The idea that the martyrs have a special assurance of paradise follows from the Qurʾān’s teaching elsewhere that the act of martyrdom involves forgiveness of sin. This teaching is close to that of the Syriac fathers (see commentary on 2:154, with further references). It is curious that the Qurʾān insists that the promise of heaven for holy warriors is found in the Torah and the Gospel (or “Evangel”); heaven is not found in the Torah and holy war is not found in the Gospels...}}While his commentary on 2:154 (pp. 76) once again highlights the Syriac parallel:{{Quote|2="As Tor Andrae has shown (Les origines de l’islam et le christianisme, 161ff.), the idea that martyrdom involves the absolution of sins is prominent in Syriac Christian texts such as the third-century Didascalia (chap. 20) and the Treaty on the Martyrs of Mar Isaï (d. late sixth cen.); the latter text also insists—much like the Qurʾān—that the martyrs are “living”:

The true martyrs who, by way of a death that covers their sins, demonstrate even more the beauty of their deeds and receive this glorious inheritance by virtue of their blood. By leaving this life they have prepared for their souls an honorable abode in paradise. It was thought that they are already dead, but by their death they have killed their sin, and they are alive with God. (Mar Isaï, Treaty on the Martyrs, 32)}}
=== Further Martyrdom Influence ===
Neuwirth (2024) also notes the influence of Christian martyrdom stories on the sudden conversion and prayers/asking for forgiveness to God of Pharaoh's magician's, who are originally opponents of Moses until he shows them proof of his prophecy via a miracle in the face of a sudden and violent death as threatened by the arrogant ruler (e.g. in {{Quran-range|26|50|51}} and {{Quran-range|20|71|73}}).<ref>Neuwirth, Angelika. ''The Qur'an: Text and Commentary, Volume 2.1: Early Middle Meccan Suras: The New Elect (p. 204).'' Yale University Press. Kindle Edition.</ref> Both Jewish and Christian traditions present individual “anti-Moses” sorcerers named Jannes and Jambres, who continue to appear in later interpretations; citing Nora Schmid, she notes that, although there is no explicit textual reference and the magicians are typically depicted in a negative light, they came to be associated with penance and martyrdom in Christian tradition - in the Qurʾan, this idea is developed further: the forgiveness that Jannes and Jambres either did not receive or only partially received in earlier sources is ultimately granted.<ref>Ibid. pp. 251-252</ref>{{Quote|Neuwirth, Angelika. The Qur'an: Text and Commentary, Volume 2.1: Early Middle Meccan Suras: The New Elect (p. 204). Yale University Press. Kindle Edition.|V. 72–73 qālū lan nuʾthiraka ʿalā mā jāʾanā mina l-bayyināti wa-lladhī faṭaranā fa-qḍi mā anta qāḍin innamā taqḍī hādhihi l-ḥayāta l-dunyā / innā āmannā birabbinā li-yaghfira lanā khaṭāyānā wa-mā akrahtanā ʿalayhi mina l-siḥri wallāhu khayrun wa-abqā] Conversion scene as later in Q 26:50–51. The sorcerers renounce their allegiance to Pharaoh on the basis of the obvious evidence (bayyināt) and give preference to the Creator God, they submit to their worldly fate and hope for the forgiveness of their sins and what they have been forced to do by the ruler—they are a role model for the community, which is also subject to pressure from outside. The request for forgiveness of sins before a violent death is a topos of Christian martyr stories. The entire scene, leaving the context of ‘ancient’ Egypt, reflects the notion of Christian martyrdom stories. Khaṭāyā (singular khaṭīʾa) also lets a Syriac terminus technicus ring through, but the word can be derived from the Arabic root KhṬʿ (“to miss a goal”) (see FVQ, 123ff.). The idea of the forgiveness of sins is prominent in the Christian liturgy—not only through the Lord’s Prayer. In addition to khaṭīʾa, there is the genuine Arabic dhanb, dhunūb.}}

== Expansions on the afterlife ==

Reynolds (2020) notes the Qur’ans provides vivid depictions of hell are highly unlike the New Testament, where Jesus refers to afterlife punishment mostly allusively. The closest the Gospels describe hell is through the few images of “fire,” “wailing,” and “gnashing of teeth.”, for example in Matthew’s Parable of the Weeds, Jesus explains that at the end of the age, the Son of Man will send his angels that will cast evildoers into a fiery furnace where there will be weeping and gnashing of teeth (Matt 13:40–42).<ref>Reynolds, Gabriel Said. ''Allah: God in the Qur'an (pp. 81-82).'' Yale University Press. Kindle Edition.</ref> He notes the much more constant an vivid Qur'anic descriptions far better match later Christian works that expanded the descriptions to be more gruesome, in order to scare the reader/audience.<ref>Ibid. pp. 88.

''We might note how all of these traditions are meant to make humans yearn for paradise and fear hell. The Qur’an, from this regard, is a profoundly psychological work. Like a Christian preacher, like John Chrysostom or Saint Ephrem, the author of the Qur’an speaks of heaven and hell to persuade his audience to repent and believe. He does so in a way, however, that is distinct—emphasizing physical pain and physical pleasure in order, apparently, to make a greater impression on his audience. He puts a terrible tree into hell and young women in paradise.''
</ref>{{Quote|Reynolds, Gabriel Said. Allah: God in the Qur'an (pp. 82-83). Yale University Press. Kindle Edition.|The way that the Qur’an describes hell in particularly vivid, gruesome terms brings us back to something we mentioned in Chapter 1, namely, that the Qur’an in many ways is a “homiletic” work, a work written like a homily or sermon. The Qur’an’s intention is not simply to declare that those who disobey God will be punished, but to describe that punishment in a way which brings the awfulness of hell to life. Similarly, homilists in the early centuries of Christianity expanded dramatically on the New Testament allusions to hell. In a sermon attributed to John Chrysostom (d. 407) we read a description of hell with the sort of detail that we find in the Qur’an: It is a sea of fire—not a sea of the kind or dimensions we know here, but much larger and fiercer, with waves made of fire, fire of a strange and fearsome kind. There is a great abyss there, in fact, of terrible flames, and one can see fire rushing about on all sides like some wild animal…. There will be no one who can resist, no one who can escape: Christ’s gentle, peaceful face will be nowhere to be seen.15}}Sinai (2017) in his paper titled "''The Eschatological Kerygma of the Early Qur’an''" notes many overlap with Syriac Homilies on the afterlife as well as other apocalyptic ideas and terminology.<ref>“[https://almuslih.org/wp-content/uploads/Library/Sinai,%20N%20-%20The%20Eschatological%20Kerygma.pdf The Eschatological Kerygma of the Early Qur’an]”, Nicolai Sinai, in ''Apocalypticism and Eschatology in Late Antiquity: Encounters in the Abrahamic Religions, 6th–8th Centuries'', edited by Hagit Amirav, Emmanouela Grypeou, and Guy Stroumsa, Leuven: Peeters, 2017, 219–266.

These are discussed throughout the whole paper, and a summary can be found in pp.50-57. On heaven and hell specifically, the summary is on pp.55-57.</ref>

== Souls are taken away at night ==

The Qur'an (and traditional Islamic exegetes)<ref>See classical commentaries on these verses such as Al-Jalalayn on [https://quranx.com/Tafsir/Jalal/39.42 Q39:42], [https://quranx.com/Tafsir/Jalal/6.60 Q6:60] and Ibn Kathir on [https://quranx.com/Tafsir/Kathir/39.41 Q39:41-2] and [https://quranx.com/Tafsir/Kathir/6.60 Q6:60]</ref> state that the soul is taken away by Allah during the night.{{Quote|{{Quran|39|42}}|Allah takes the souls at the time of their death, and those who have not died, in their sleep. Then He retains those for whom He has ordained death and releases the others until a specified time. There are indeed signs in that for a people who reflect.}}{{Quote|{{Quran|6|60}}|It is He who takes your souls by night, and He knows what you do by day, then He reanimates you therein so that a specified term may be completed. Then to Him will be your return, whereat He will inform you concerning what you used to do.}}Tesei (2016) notes this idea may mimic a late antique Syriac Christian parallel in the poetical language used by Ephrem, who in the Nisibene hymns (7:15) mentions sleep resembles death, and other Christian writers (such as Babai) wrote about sleep metaphorically Jesus's death and waking up like the resurrection;<ref>Tesei, Tommaso. (2016). "[https://www.researchgate.net/publication/344524709_2_The_barzakh_and_the_Intermediate_State_of_the_Dead_in_the_Quran 2 The barzakh and the Intermediate State of the Dead in the Quran]". pp. 40-42 In Locating Hell in Islamic Traditions. Leiden, The Netherlands: Brill. <nowiki>https://doi.org/10.1163/9789004301368_003</nowiki> (Open access)

''At the same time, the Quran also compares death to the “common sleep” that people experience on a daily basis. This seems to be the case in the cryptic statement found in Q 39:42 (cf. Q 6:60), “God takes the souls at the time of their death (ḥīna mawtihā), and [He takes] that which has not died, in its sleep ( fī manāmihā); He withholds that against which He has decreed death, but sets loose the other until a stated term”. This obscure passage appears to indicate that sleep is a death-like state; sleepers resemble the dead since their souls enter into a state similar to that which they will experience at the moment of death. However, unlike the souls of the dead, which will be raised only on the Day of Resurrection, the ordinary sleeper’s soul is sent back when he awakens―that is, of course, until the time of his death. This parallel between death and “common sleep” finds a fairly close correspondence in the poetical language used by Ephrem, who in the Nisibene hymns (7:15) affirms that: “The one who lies down to sleep resembles the departed and death resembles a dream, and the resurrection the morning”. In these passages the Quran’s eschatological discourse is particularly close to that formulated by Babai, in whose ideas the belief in the soul’s sleep is intimately connected to the strong affirmation of the physical resurrection of the body on the Day of Judgment.'' </ref> with this idea taken literally by Muhammad.

== Arguments for resurrection ==
Reynolds (2020) notes the repeated argument that God can resurrect the dead using the analogy that he can bring life back to barren (or dead) land may be connected to a Jewish tradition that God will resurrect the dead with dew, for example, in b. Shabbat 88b.<ref name=":2">See: Reynolds, Gabriel Said. Allah: ''God in the Qur'an (pp. 76-77).'' Yale University Press. Kindle Edition.

And Footnote 10: Reynolds, Gabriel Said. ''Allah: God in the Qur'an (p. 254).'' Yale University Press. Kindle Edition.</ref>
{{Quote|{{Quran|30|19}}|He brings forth the living from the dead, and brings forth the dead from the living, and revives the earth after its death. Likewise, you [too] shall be raised [from the dead].}}

Cf: {{Quran|16|65}}, {{Quran|43|11}}, {{Quran|50|6-11}}, {{Quran|57|17}}

==See Also==
*[[Pre-Islamic Arab Religion in Islam]]

* [[Parallels Between the Qur'an and Late Antique Judeo-Christian Literature|Parallels Between the Qur'an and Late Antique Judeo-Christian Literature - Part 1]]
* [[Historical Errors in the Quran]]
==References==
<references />