ENTITLED, AL ARAF;z REVEALED AT MECCA.a
IN THE NAME OF THE MOST MERCIFUL GOD.
AL. M. S.b A book hath been sent down unto thee: and therefore let there
be no doubt in thy breast concerning it; that thou mayest preach the same, and
that it may be an admonition unto the faithful.
Follow that which hath been sent down unto you from your LORD; and follow
no guides besides him: how little will ye be warned!
How many cities have we destroyed; which our vengeance overtook by
night,c or while they were reposing themselves at noon-day!d And their
supplication, when our punishment came upon them,
was no other than that they said, Verily we have been unjust.
We will surely call those to an account, unto whom a prophet hath been
sent; and we will also call those to account who have been sent unto them.
And we will declare their actions unto them with knowledge; for we are
not absent from them.
The weighing of men's actions on that day shall be just;e and they whose
balances laden with their good works shall be heavy, are those who shall be
happy;
but they whose balances shall be light, are those who have lost their
souls, because they injured our signs.
And now have we placed you on the earth, and have provided you food
therein: but how little are ye thankful!
10 We created you, and afterwards formed you; and then said unto the
angels, Worship Adam; and they all worshipped him, except Eblis, who was not
one of those who worshipped.f
God said unto him, What hindered thee from worshipping Adam, since I had
commanded thee? He answered, I am more excellent than he: thou hast created
me of fire, and hast created him of clay.
y This was revealed in answer to the pressing instances of the
idolaters, who offered to take the crime upon themselves, if Mohammed would
conform to their worship.3
z Al Arâf signifies the partition between paradise and hell, which is
mentioned in this chapter.1
a Some, however, except five or eight verses, begin at these words, And
ask them concerning the city, &c.
b The signification of those letters the more sober Mohammedans confess
GOD alone knows. Some, however, imagine they stand for Allah, Gabriel,
Mohammed, on whom be peace.
c As it did the inhabitants of Sodom and Gomorrah, to whom Lot was
sent.
d As happened to the Midianites, to whom Shoaib preached.
e See the Prelim. Disc. Sect. IV. p. 69.
f See chapter 2, p. 5, &c.
3 Idem. 1 See the Prelim. Disc. Sect. IV. p. 74.
God said, Get thee down therefore from paradise; for it is not fit that
thou behave thyself proudly therein: get thee hence; thou shalt be one of the
contemptible.
He answered, Give me respite until the day of resurrection.
God said, Verily thou shalt be one of those who are respited.g
The devil said, Because thou hast depraved me, I will lay wait for men in
thy strait way;
then will I come upon them from before, and from behind, and from their
right hands, and from their left;h and thou shalt not find the greater part of
them thankful.
God said unto him, Get thee hence, despised, and driven far away: verily
whoever of them shall follow thee, I will surely fill hell with you all:
but as for thee, O Adam, dwell thou and thy wife in paradise; and eat of
the fruit thereof wherever ye will; but approach not this tree, lest ye become
of the number of the unjust.
And Satan suggested to them both, that he would discover unto them their
nakedness, which was hidden from them; and he said, Your LORD hath not
forbidden you this tree, for any other reason but lest ye should become
angels, or lest ye become immortal.
20 And he sware unto them, saying, Verily I am one of those who counsel you
aright.
And he caused them to fall through deceit.i And when they had tasted of
the tree, their nakedness appeared unto them;k and they began to join together
the leaves of paradise,l to cover themselves. And their LORD called to them,
saying, Did I not forbid you this tree: and did I not say unto you, Verily
Satan is your declared enemy?
They answered, O LORD, we have dealt unjustly with our own souls; and if
thou forgive us not, and be not merciful unto us, we shall surely be of those
who perish.
God said, Get ye down, the one of you an enemy unto the other; and ye
shall have a dwelling-place upon the earth, and a provision for a season.
He said, Therein shall ye live, and therein shall ye die, and from thence
shall ye be taken forth at the resurrection.
O children of Adam, we have sent down unto you apparel,m to conceal your
nakedness, and fair garments; but the clothing of piety is better. This is one
of the signs of God; that peradventure ye may consider.
g As the time till which the devil is reprieved is not particularly
expressed, the commentators suppose his request was not wholly granted; but
agree that he shall die, as well as other creatures, at the second sound of
the trumpet.2
h i.e., I will attack them on every side that I shall be able. The
other two ways, viz., from above and from under their feet, are omitted, say
the commentators, to show that the devil's power is limited.3
i The Mohammedan gospel of Barnabas tells us that the sentence which
GOD pronounced on the serpent for introducing the devil into paradise4 was,
that he should not only be turned out of paradise, but that he should have his
legs cut off by the angel Michael, with the sword of GOD; and that the devil
himself, since he had rendered our first parents unclean, was condemned to eat
the excrements of them and all their posterity; which two last circumstances I
do not remember to have read elsewhere. The words of the manuscript are
these: Y llamó [Dios] a la serpiente, y a Michael, aquel que tiene la espada
de Dios, y le dixo; Aquesta sierpe es acelerada, echala la primera del
parayso, y cortale las piernas, y si quisiere caminar, arrastrara la vida por
tierra. Y llamó à Satanas, el qual vino riendo, y dixole; Porque tu reprobo
has engañado a aquestos, y los has hecho immundos? Yo quiero que toda
immundicia suya, y de todos sus hijos, en saliendo de sus cuerpos entre por tu
boca, porque en verdad ellos haran penitencia, y tu quedaras harto de
immundicia.
k Which they had not perceived before; being clothed, as some say, with
light, or garments of paradise, which fell from them on their disobedience.
Yahya imagines their nakedness was hidden by their hair.5
l Which it is said were fig-leaves.6
m Not only proper materials, but also ingenuity of mind and dexterity
of hand to make use of them.7
2 Al Beidâwi. See the Prelim. Disc. Sect. IV. p. 65, and D'Herbelot,
Bibl. Orient. Art. Eblis. 3 Al Beidâwi.
4 See the notes to cap. 2, p. 5. 5 Idem. 6 Idem.
7 Idem.
O children of Adam, let not Satan seduce you, as he expelled your parents
out of paradise, by stripping them of their clothing, that he might show them
their nakedness: verily he seeth you, both he and his companions, whereas ye
see not them.n We have appointed the devils to be patrons of those who believe
not:
and when they commit a filthy action, they say, We found our fathers
practising the same; and GOD hath commanded us to do it. Say, Verily GOD
commandeth not filthy actions. Do ye speak concerning GOD that which ye know
not?
Say, My LORD hath commanded me to observe justice; therefore set your
faces to pray at every place of worship, and call upon him, approving unto him
the sincerity of your religion. As he produced you at first, so unto him
shall ye return. A part of mankind hath he directed; and a part hath been
justly led into error, because they have taken the devils for their patrons
besides GOD, and imagine they are rightly directed.
O children of Adam, take your decent apparel at every place of worship,o
and eat and drink,p but be not guilty of excess; for he loveth not those who
are guilty of excess.
30 Say, Who hath forbidden the decent apparel of GOD, which he hath
produced for his servants, and the good things which he hath provided for
food? Say, these things are for those who believe, in this present life, but
peculiarly on the day of resurrection.q Thus do we distinctly explain our
signs unto people who understand.
Say, Verily my LORD hath forbidden filthy actions, both that which is
discovered thereof, and that which is concealed, and also iniquity, and unjust
violence; and hath forbidden you to associate with GOD that concerning which
he hath sent you down no authority, or to speak of GOD that which ye know not.
Unto every nation there is a prefixed term; therefore when their term is
expired, they shall not have respite for an hour, neither shall they be
anticipated.
O children of Adam, verily apostles from among you shall come unto you,
who shall expound my signs unto you: whosoever therefore shall fear God and
amend, there shall come no fear on them, neither shall they be grieved.
But they who shall accuse our signs of falsehood, and shall proudly
reject them, they shall be the companions of hell fire; they shall remain
therein forever.
And who is more unjust than he who deviseth a lie concerning GOD, or
accuseth his signs of imposture? Unto these shall be given their portion of
worldly happiness, according to what is written in the book of God's decrees,
until our messengersr come unto them, and shall cause them to die; saying,
Where are the idols which ye called upon, besides GOD? They shall answer,
They have disappeared from us. And they shall bear witness against themselves
that they were unbelievers.
n Because of the subtlety of their bodies, and their being void of all
colour.8
o This passage was revealed to reprove an immodest custom of the pagan
Arabs, who used to encompass the Caaba naked, because clothes, they said, were
the signs of their disobedience to GOD.1 The Sonna orders that, when a man
goes to prayers, he should put on his better apparel, out of respect to the
divine majesty before whom he is to appear. But as the Mohammedans think it
indecent, on the one hand, to come into GOD'S presence in a slovenly manner,
so they imagine, on the other, that they ought not to appear before him in
habits too rich or sumptuous, and particularly in clothes adorned with gold or
silver, lest they should seem proud.
p The sons of Amer, it is said, when they performed the pilgrimage to
Mecca, used to eat no more than was absolutely necessary, and that not of the
more delicious sort of food neither, which abstinence they looked upon as a
piece of merit, but they are here told the contrary.2
q Because then the wicked, who also partook of the blessings of this
life, will have no share in the enjoyments of the next.
r viz., The angel of death and his assistants.
8 Jallalo'ddin. 1 idem, al Beidâwi. 2 Idem.
God shall say unto them at the resurrection, Enter ye with the nations
which have preceded you, of genii and of men, into hell fire; so often as one
nation shall enter, it shall curse its sister,s until they shall all have
successively entered therein. The latter of them shall say of the former of
them: O LORD, these have seduced us; therefore inflict on them a double
punishment of the fire of hell. God shall answer, It shall be doubled unto
all:t but ye know it not:
and the former of them shall say unto the latter of them, Ye have not
therefore any favor above us; taste the punishment for that which ye have
gained.
Verily they who shall charge our signs with falsehood, and shall proudly
reject them, the gates of heaven shall not be opened unto them,u neither shall
they enter into paradise, until a camel pass through the eye of a needle,x and
thus will we reward the wicked doers.
Their couch shall be in hell, and over them shall be coverings of fire;
and thus will we reward the unjust.
40 But they who believe, and do that which is right (we will not load any
soul but according to its ability,) they shall be the companions of paradise;
they shall remain therein forever.
And we will remove all grudges from their minds;y rivers shall run at
their feet, and they shall say, Praised be GOD, who hath directed us unto this
felicity, for we should not have been rightly directed, if GOD had not
directed us; now are we convinced by demonstration that the Apostles of our
LORD came unto us with truth. And it shall be proclaimed unto them, This is
paradise, whereof ye are made heirs, as a reward for that which ye have
wrought.
And the inhabitantsz of paradise shall call out to the inhabitants of
hell fire, saying, Now have we found that which our LORD promised us to be
true: have ye also found that which your LORD promised you to be true? They
shall answer, Yea. And a criera shall proclaim between them, The curse of GOD
shall be on the wicked;
who turn men aside from the way of GOD, and seek to render it crooked,
and who deny the life to come.
s That is, the nation whose example betrayed them into their idolatry
and other wickedness.
t Unto those who set the example, because they not only transgressed
themselves, but were also the occasion of the others' transgression; and unto
those who followed them, because of their own infidelity and their imitating
an ill example.1
u That is, when their souls shall, after death, ascend to heaven, they
shall not be admitted, but shall be thrown down into the dungeon under the
seventh earth.2
x This expression was probably taken from our Saviour's words in the
gospel,3 though it be proverbial in the east.
y So that, whatever differences or animosities there had been between
them in their lifetime, they shall now be forgotten, and give place to sincere
love and amity. This Ali is said to have hoped would prove true to himself
and his inveterate enemies, Othmân, Telha, and al Zobeir.4
z Literally, the companions.
a This crier, some say, will be the angel Israfil.
1 Idem. 2 Jallalo'ddin. See the Prelim. Disc. ubi sup. p.
61. 3 Matth. xix. 24 4 Al Beidâwi.
And between the blessed and the damned there shall be a veil; and men
shall stand on Al Arâfb who shall know every one of them by their marks;c and
shall call unto the inhabitants of paradise, saying, Peace be upon you: yet
they shall not enter therein, although they earnestly desire it.d
And when they shall turn their eyes towards the companions of hell fire,
they say, O LORD, place us not with the ungodly people!
And those who stand on Al Arâf shall call unto certain men,e whom they
shall know by their marks, and shall say, What hath your gathering of riches
availed you, and that ye were puffed up with pride?
Are these the men on whom ye sware that GOD would not bestow mercy?f
Enter ye into paradise; there shall come no fear on you, neither shall ye be
grieved.g
And the inhabitants of hell fire shall call unto the inhabitants of
paradise, saying, Pour upon us some water, or of those refreshments which GOD
hath bestowed on you.h They shall answer, Verily GOD hath forbidden them unto
the unbelievers;
who made a laughing-stock and a sport of their religion, and whom the
life of the world hath deceived: therefore this day will we forget them, as
they did forget the meeting of this day, and for that they denied our signs to
be from God.
50 And now have we brought unto those of Mecca a book of divine
revelations: we have explained it with knowledge; a direction and mercy unto
people who shall believe.
Do they wait for any other than the interpretation thereof?i On the day
whereon the interpretation thereof shall come, they who had forgotten the same
before shall say, Now are we convinced by demonstration that the messengers of
our LORD came unto us with truth: shall we therefore have any intercessors,
who will intercede for us? or shall we be sent back into the world, that we
may do other works than what we did in our life-time? But now have they lost
their souls; and that which they impiously imagined hath fled from them.k
Verily, your LORD is GOD, who created the heavens and the earth in six
days; and then ascended his throne: he causeth the night to cover the day; it
succeedeth the same swiftly: he also created the sun and the moon, and the
stars, which are absolutely subject unto his command. Is not the whole
creation, and the empire thereof, his? Blessed be GOD, the LORD of all
creatures!
b Al Arâf is the name of the wall or partition which, as Mohammed
taught, will separate paradise from hell.5 But as to the persons who are to
be placed thereon the commentators differ, as has been elsewhere observed.6
c i.e., Who shall distinguish the blessed from the damned by their
proper characteristics; such as the whiteness and splendour of the faces of
the former, and the blackness of those of the latter.1
d From this circumstance, it seems that their opinion is the most
probable who make this intermediate partition a sort of purgatory for those
who, though they deserve not to be sent to hell, yet have not merits
sufficient to gain them immediate admittance into paradise, and will be
tantalized here for a certain time with a bare view of the felicity of that
place.
e That is, the chiefs and ringleaders of the infidels.2
f These were the inferior and poorer among the believers, whom they
despised in their lifetimes as unworthy of God's favour.
g These words are directed, by an apostrophe, to the poor and despised
believers above mentioned. Some commentators, however, imagine these and the
next preceding words are to be understood of those who will be confined in al
Arâf; and that the damned will, in return for their reproachful speech, swear
that they shall never enter paradise themselves; whereupon GOD of his mercy
shall order them to be admitted by these words.3
h i.e., Of the other liquors or fruits of paradise. Compare this
passage with the parable of Dives and Lazarus.
i That is, the event of the promises and menaces therein.
k See chapter 6, p. 90, note a.
5 See the Prelim. Disc. Sect. IV. p. 74. 6 See ibid.
1 Al Beidâwi. 2 Idem.
3 Idem
Call upon your LORD humbly and in secret; for he loveth not those who
transgress.l
And act not corruptly in the earth, after its reformation;m and call upon
him with fear and desire: for the mercy of GOD is near unto the righteous.
It is he who sendeth the winds, spread abroadn before his mercy,o until
they bring a cloud heavy with rain, which we drive into a dead country;p and
we cause water to descend thereon, by which we cause all sorts of fruits to
spring forth. Thus will we bring forth the dead from their graves;q that
peradventure ye may consider.
From a good country shall its fruit spring forth abundantly, by the
permission of its LORD; but from the land which is bad, it shall not spring
forth otherwise than scarcely. Thus do we explain the signs of divine
providence unto people who are thankful.
We formerly sent Noahr unto his people: and he said, O my people, worship
GOD: ye have no other GOD than him.s Verily I fear for you the punishment of
the great day.t
The chiefs of his people answered him, We surely perceive thee to be in a
manifest error.
He replied, O my people, there is no error in me; but I am a messenger
from the LORD of all creatures.
60 I bring unto you the messages of my LORD; and I counsel you aright: for
I know from GOD, that which ye know not.
Do ye wonder that an admonition hath come unto you from your LORD by a
manu from among you, to warn you, that ye may take heed to yourselves, and
that peradventure ye may obtain mercy?
l Behaving themselves arrogantly while they pray; or praying with an
obstreperous voice, or a multitude of words and vain repetitions.1
m i.e., After that GOD hath sent his prophets, and revealed his laws,
for the reformation and amendment of mankind.
n Or ranging over a large extent of land. Some copies, instead of
noshran, which is the reading I have here followed, have boshran, which
signifies good tidings; the rising of the wind in such a manner being the
forerunner of rain.
o That is, rain. For the east wind, says al Beidâwi, raises the
clouds, the north wind drives them together, the south wind agitates them, so
as to make the rain fall, and the west wind disperses them again.2
p Or a dry and parched land.
q See the Prelim. Disc. Sect. IV.
r Noah the son of Lamech, according to the Mohammedan writers, was one
of the six principal prophets,3 though he had no written revelations delivered
to him,4 and the first who appeared after his great-grandfather Edrîs or
Enoch. They also say he was by trade a carpenter, which they infer from his
building the ark, and that the year of his mission was the fiftieth, or, as
others say, the fortieth of his age.5
That Noah was a preacher of righteousness unto the wicked antediluvians
is testified by scripture.6 The eastern Christians say that when God ordered
Noah to build the ark, he also directed him to make an instrument of wood,
such as they make use of at this day in the east, instead of bells, to call
the people to church, and named in Arabic Nâkûs, and in modern Greek Semandra;
on which he was to strike three times every day, not only to call together the
workmen that were building the ark, but to give him an opportunity of daily
admonishing his people of the impending danger of the Deluge, which would
certainly destroy them if they did not repent.7
Some Mohammedan authors pretend Noah was sent to convert Zohâk, one of
the Persian kings of the first race, who refused to hearken to him; and that
he afterwards preached GOD's unity publicly.8
s From these words, and other passages of the Korân where Noah's
preaching is mentioned, it appears that, according to Mohammed's opinion, a
principal crime of the antediluvians was idolatry.9
t viz., Either the day of resurrection, or that whereon the Flood was
to begin.
u For, said they, if GOD had pleased, he would have sent an angel, and
not a man; since we never heard of such an instance in the times of our
fathers.10
1 Idem. 2 Idem. 3 See the Prelim. Disc. p. 59.
4 Vide Reland. de Relig. Moh. p. 34.
5 Al Zamakhshari. 6 2 Pet. ii. 5. 7 Eutych. Annal. p. 37.
8 Vide D'Herbal. Bibl. Orient. p. 675.
9 See c. 71, and the Prelim. Disc. Sect. I. p. 14. 10 Al Beidâwi.
And they accused him of imposture: but we delivered him and those who
were with him in the ark,x and we drowned those who charged our signs with
falsehood; for they were a blind people.
And unto the tribe of Ad we sent their brother Hûd.z He said, O my
people, worship GOD: ye have no other GOD than him; will ye not fear him?
The chiefs of those among his people who believed not,a answered, Verily
we perceive that thou art guided by folly; and we certainly esteem thee to be
one of the liars.
He replied, O my people, I am not guided by folly; but I am a messenger
unto you from the LORD of all creatures:
I bring unto you the messages of my LORD; and I am a faithful counsellor
unto you.
Do ye wonder that an admonition hath come unto you from your LORD, by a
man from among you, that he may warn you? Call to mind how he hath appointed
you successors unto the people of Noah,b and hath added unto you in stature
largely.c Remember the benefits of GOD, that ye may prosper.
They said, Art thou come unto us, that we should worship GOD alone, and
leave the deities which our fathers worshipped? Now bring down that judgment
upon us, with which thou threatenest us, if thou speakest truth.
Hud answered, Now shall there suddenly fall upon you from your LORD
vengeance and indignation. Will ye dispute with me concerning the names which
ye have named,d and your fathers; as to which GOD hath not revealed unto you
any authority? Do ye wait therefore, and I will be one of those who wait with
you.
x That is, those who believed on him, and entered into that vessel with
him. Though there be a tradition among the Mohammedans, said to have been
received from the prophet himself, and conformable to the scripture, that
eight persons, and no more, were saved in the ark, yet some of them report the
number variously. One says they were but six, another ten, another twelve,
another seventy-eight, and another four-score, half men and half women,1 and
that one of them was the elder Jorham,2 the preserver, as some pretend, of the
Arabian language.3
y Ad was an ancient and potent tribe of Arabs,4 and zealous idolaters.5
They chiefly worshipped four deities, Sâkia, Hâfedha, Râzeka and Sâlema; the
first, as they imagined, supplying them with rain, the second preserving them
from all dangers abroad, the third providing food for their sustenance, and
the fourth restoring them to health when afflicted with sickness,6 according
to the signification of the several names.
z Generally supposed to be the same person with Heber;7 but others say
he was the son of Abda'llah, the son of Ribâh, the son of Kholûd, the son of
Ad, the son of Aws or Uz, the son of Aram, the son of Sem.8
a These words were added because some of the principal men among them
believed on Hûd, one of whom was Morthed Ebn Saad.9
b Dwelling in the habitations of the antediluvians, who preceded them
not many centuries, or having the chief sway in the earth after them. For the
kingdom of Shedâd, the son of Ad, is said to have extended from the sands of
Alaj to the trees of Omân.10
c See the Prelim. Disc. p. 5.
d That is, concerning the idols and imaginary objects of your worship,
to which ye wickedly gave the names, attributes, and honour due to the only
true GOD.
1 Al Zamakhshari, Jallalo'ddin, Ebn Shohnah. 2 Idem. See the
Prelim. Disc. Sect I. p. 6. 3 Vide Pocock. Orat. Præfix. Carm.
Tograi. 4 See the Prelim. Disc. Sect. I. p. 5. 5 Abulfeda.
6 Vide D'Herbel. Bibl. Orient. Art. Houd.
7 See the Prelim. Disc. p. 5. 1 Al Beidâwi. 9 Idem.
10 Idem.
70 And we delivered him, and them who believed with him by our mercy; and
we cut off the uttermost part of those who charged our signs with falsehood,
and were not believers.e
And unto the tribe of Thamûd we sentf their brother Sâleh.g He said, O
my people, worship GOD: ye have no GOD besides him. Now hath a manifest proof
come unto you from your LORD. This she-camel of GOD is a sign unto you:h
therefore dismiss her freely, that she may feed in GOD's earth; and do her no
hurt, lest a painful punishment seize you.
And call to mind how he hath appointed you successors unto the tribe of
Ad, and hath given you a habitation on earth; ye build yourselves castles on
the plains thereof, and cut out the mountains into houses.i Remember
therefore the benefits of GOD, and commit not violence in the earth, acting
corruptly.
The chiefs among his people who were puffed up with pride, said unto
those who were esteemed weak, namely unto those who believed among them, Do ye
know that Sâleh hath been sent from his LORD? They answered, We do surely
believe in that wherewith he hath been sent.
Those who were elated with pride replied, Verily we believe not in that
wherein ye believe.
e The dreadful destruction of the Adites we have mentioned in another
place,1 and shall only add here some further circumstances of that calamity,
and which differ a little from what is there said; for the Arab writers
acknowledge many inconsistencies in the histories of these ancient tribes.2
The tribe of Ad having been for their incredulity previously chastised
with a three years' drought, sent Kail Ebn Ithar and Morthed Ebn Saad, with
seventy other principal men, to the temple of Mecca to obtain rain. Mecca was
then in the hands of the tribe of Amalek whose prince was Moâwiyah Ebn Becr;
and he, being without the city when the ambassadors arrived, entertained them
there for a month in so hospitable a manner that they had forgotten the
business they came about had not the king reminded them of it, not as from
himself, lest they should think he wanted to be rid of them, but by some
verses which he put into the mouth of a singing woman. At which, being roused
from their lethargy, Morthed told them the only way they had to obtain what
they wanted would be to repent and obey their prophet; but this displeasing
the rest, they desired Moâwiyah to imprison him, lest he should go with them;
which being done, Kail with the rest entering Mecca, begged of GOD that he
would send rain to the people of Ad. Whereupon three clouds appeared, a white
one, a red one, and a black one; and a voice from heaven ordered Kail to
choose which he would. Kail failed not to make choice of the last, thinking
it to be laden with the most rain; but when this cloud came over them, it
proved to be fraught with the divine vengeance, and a tempest broke forth from
it which destroyed them all.3
f Thamûd was another tribe of the ancient Arabs who fell into idolatry.
See the Prelim. Disc. Sect. I. p. 5.
g Al Beidâwi deduces his genealogy thus: Sâleh, the son of Obeid, the
son of Asaf, the son of Masekh, the son of Obeid, the son of Hâdher, the son
of Thamûd.4
h The Thamûdites, insisting on a miracle, proposed to Sâleh that he
should go with them to their festival, and that they should call on their
gods, and he on his, promising to follow that deity which should answer. But
after they had called on their idols a long time to no purpose, Jonda Ebn
Amru, their prince, pointed to a rock standing by itself, and bade Sâleh cause
a she-camel big with young to come forth from it, solemnly engaging that, if
he did, he would believe, and his people promised the same. Whereupon Sâleh
asked it of GOD, and presently the rock, after several throes as if in labour,
was delivered of a she-camel answering the description of Jonda, which
immediately brought forth a young one, ready weaned, and, as some say, as big
as herself. Jonda, seeing this miracle, believed on the prophet, and some few
with him; but the greater part of the Thamûdites remained, notwithstanding,
incredulous. Of this camel the commentators tell several very absurd stories:
as that, when she went to drink, she never raised her head from the well or
river till she had drunk up all the water in it, and then she offered herself
to be milked, the people drawing from her as much milk as they pleased; and
some say that she went about the town crying aloud, If any wants milk let him
come forth.5
i The tribe of Thamûd dwelt first in the country of the Adites, but
their numbers increasing, they removed to the territory of Hejr for the sake
of the mountains, where they cut themselves habitations in the rocks, to be
seen at this day.
1 Prelim. Disc. p. 5. 2 Al Beidâwi. Vide D'Herbelot, Bibl
Orient. Art. Houd. 3 See the Prelim. Disc. p. 5.
4 Abulfeda, al Zamakhshari. Vide D'Herbel. Bibl. Orient. Art. Sâleh.
5 See the Prelim. Disc. p. 6.
And they cut off the feet of the camel,k and insolently transgressed the
command of their LORD,l and said, O Sâleh, cause that to come upon us which
thou hast threatened us, if thou art one of those who have been sent by God.
Whereupon a terrible noise from heavenm assailed them; and in the morning
they were found in their dwellings prostrate on their breasts and dead.n
And Sâleh departed from them, and said,o O my people, now have I
delivered unto you the message of my LORD and I advised you well, but ye love
not those who advise you well.
And remember Lot,p when he said unto his people, Do ye commit a
wickedness, wherein no creature hath set you an example?
Do ye approach lustfully unto men, leaving the women? Certainly ye are
people who transgress all modesty.
80 But the answer of his people was no other than that they said the one to
the other, Expel themq your city; for they are men who preserve themselves
pure from the crimes which ye commit.
Therefore we delivered him and his family, except his wife; she was one
of those who stayed behind:r
and we rained a shower of stones upon them.s Behold therefore what was
the end of the wicked.
k This extraordinary camel frighting the other cattle from their
pasture, a certain rich woman named Oneiza Omm Ganem, having four daughters,
dressed them out and offered one Kedâr his choice of them if he would kill the
camel. Whereupon he chose one, and with the assistance of eight other men,
hamstrung and killed the dam, and pursuing the young one, which fled to the
mountain, killed that also and divided his flesh among them.1 Others tell the
story somewhat differently, adding Sadaka Bint al Mokhtâr as a joint
conspiratress with Oneiza, and pretending that the young one was not killed;
for they say that having fled to a certain mountain named Kâra, he there cried
three times, and Sâleh bade them catch him if they could, for then there might
be hopes of their avoiding the divine vengeance; but this they were not able
to do, the rock opening after he had cried, and receiving him within it.2
l Defying the vengeance with which they were threatened; because they
trusted in their strong dwellings hewn in the rocks, saying that the tribe of
Ad perished only because their houses were not built with sufficient
strength.3
m Like violent and repeated claps of thunder, which some say was no
other than the voice of the angel Gabriel,4 and which rent their hearts.5 It
is said that after they had killed the camel, Sâleh told them that on the
morrow their faces should become yellow, the next day red, and the third day
black, and that on the fourth GOD'S vengeance should light on them; and that
the first three signs happening accordingly, they sought to put him to death,
but GOD delivered him by sending him into Palestine.6
n Mohammed, in the expedition of Tabûc, which he undertook against the
Greeks in the ninth year of the Hejra, passing by Hejr, where this ancient
tribe had dwelt, forbade his army, though much distressed with heat and
thirst, to draw any water there, but ordered them if they had drunk of that
water to bring it up again, or if they had kneaded any meal with it, to give
it to their camels;7 and wrapping up his face in his garment, he set spurs to
his mule, crying out, Enter not the houses of those wicked men, but rather
weep, lest that happen unto you which befell them; and having so said, he
continued galloping full speed with his face muffled up, till he had passed
the valley.8
o Whether this speech was made by Sâleh to them at parting, as seems
most probable, or after the judgment had fallen on them, the commentators are
not agreed.
p The commentators say, conformably to the scripture, that Lot was the
son of Haran, the son of Azer or Terah, and consequently Abraham's nephew, who
brought him with him from Chaldea into Palestine, where they say he was sent
by GOD to reclaim the inhabitants of Sodom and the other neighbouring cities
which were overthrown with it, from the unnatural vice to which they were
addicted.9 And this Mohammedan tradition seems to be countenanced by the
words of the apostle, that this righteous man dwelling among them, in seeing
and hearinng vexed his righteous soul from day to day with their unlawful
deeds;10 whence it is probable that he omitted no opportunity of endeavouring
their reformation. The story of Lot is told with further circumstances in the
eleventh chapter.
q viz., Lot, and those who believe on him.
r See chap. II.
s See ibid.
1 Abulfeda. 2 Al Beidâwi. Vide D'Herbel. ubi supra.
3 Al Kessai. 4 See the Prelim. Disc. p. 6. 5
Abulfeda, al Beidâwi. 6 Al Beidâwi. 7 Abulfed. Vit. Moh. p.
124. 8 Al Bokhari. 9 Vide D'Herbelot, Bibl. Orient. Art.
Loth. 10 2 Pet. ii. 8. 1 Gen. xxv. 2.
And unto Madiant we sent their brother Shoaib.u He said unto them, O my
people, worship GOD; ye have no GOD besides him. Now hath an evident
demonstrationx come unto you from your LORD. Therefore give full measure and
just weight, and diminish not unto men aught of their matters:y neither act
corruptly in the earth, after its reformation.z This will be better for you,
if ye believe.
And beset not every way, threatening the passenger;a and turning aside
from the path of GOD him who believeth in him, and seeking to make it crooked.
And remember, when ye were few, and God multiplied you: and behold, what hath
been the end of those who acted corruptly.
And if part of you believe in that wherewith I am sent, and part believe
not, wait patiently until GOD judge between us; for he is the best judge.
The chiefs of his people, who were elated with pride, answered, We will
surely cast thee, O Shoaib, and those who believe with thee, out of our city:
or else thou shalt certainly return unto our religion. He said, What, though
we be averse thereto?
We shall surely imagine a lie against GOD, if we return unto your
religion, after that GOD hath delivered us from the same: and we have no
reason to return unto it, unless GOD our LORD shall please to abandon us. Our
LORD comprehendeth every thing by his knowledge. In GOD do we put our trust.
O LORD do thou judge between us and our nation with truth; for thou art the
best judge.
And the chiefs of his people who believed not said, If ye follow Shoaib,
ye shall surely perish.
Therefore a storm from heavenb assailed them, and in the morning they
were found in their dwellings dead and prostrate.
90 They who accused Shoaib of imposture became as though they had never
dwelt therein; they who accused Shoaib of imposture perished themselves.
And he departed from them, and said, O my people, now have I performed
unto you the messages of my LORD; and I advised you aright: but why should I
be grieved for an unbelieving people.
We have never sent any prophet unto a city, but we afflicted the
inhabitants thereof with calamity and adversity, that they might humble
themselves.
Then we gave them in exchange good in lieu of evil, until they abounded,
and said, Adversity and prosperity formerly happened unto our fathers, as unto
us. Therefore we took vengeance on them suddenly, and they perceived it not
beforehand.
t Or Midian, was a city of Hejâz, and the habitation of a tribe or the
same name, the descendants of Midian, the son of Abraham by Keturah,1 who
afterwards coalesced with the Ismaelites, as it seems; Moses naming the same
merchants who sold Joseph to Potiphar, in one place Ismaelites,2 and in
another Midianites.3
This city was situated on the Red Sea, south-east of Mount Sinai, and is
doubtless the same with the Modiana of Ptolemy; what was remaining of it in
Mohammed's time was soon after demolished in the succeeding wars,4 and it
remains desolate to this day. The people of the country pretend to show the
well whence Moses watered Jethro's flocks.5
u Some Mohammedan writers make him the son of Mikaïl, the son of
Yashjar, the son of Madian;6 and they generally suppose him to be the same
person with the father-in-law of Moses, who is named in scripture Reuel or
Raguel, and Jethro.7 But Ahmed Ebn Abd'alhalim charges those who entertain
this opinion with ignorance. Al Kessâi says that his father's name was Sanûn,
and that he was first called Boyûn, and afterwards Shoaib: and adds that he
was a comely person, but spare and lean, very thoughtful and of few words.
Doctor Prideaux writes this name, after the French translation, Chaib.8
x This demonstration the commentators suppose to have been a power of
working miracles, though the Korân mentions none in particular. However, they
say (after the Jews) that he gave his son-in-law that wonder-working rod,9
with which he performed all those miracles in Egypt and the desert, and also
excellent advice and instructions,10 whence he had the surname of Khatîb al
anbiyâ, or the preacher to the prophets.11
y For one of the great crimes which the Midianites were guilty of was
the using of diverse measures and weights, a great and a small, buying by one
and selling by another.12
z See before, p. 110, note m.
a Robbing on the highway, it seems, was another crying sin frequent
among these people. But some of the commentators interpret this passage
figuratively, of their besetting the way of truth, and threatening those who
gave ear to the remonstrances of Shoaib.13
b Like that which destroyed the Thamûdites. Some suppose it to have
been an earthquake, for the original word signifies either or both; and both
these dreadful calamities may well be supposed to have jointly executed the
divine vengeance.
2 Gen. xxxix. I. 3 Gen. xxxvii. 36. 4 Vide Golii not.
in Alfrag. p. 143. 5 Abulfed Desc. Arab. p. 42. Geogr. Nub. p. 10
6 Al Beidâwi, Tarikh Montakhab. 7 Exod. ii. 18; iii. I.
8 Life of Mah. p. 24.
9 Al Beidâwi. Vide Shalshel hakkab. p. 12. 10 Exod. xviii. 13, &c.
11 Vide D'Herbelot. Bibl. Orient. Art. Schoaib.
12 Vide ibid. al Beidâwi. See Deut. xxv. 13, 14. 13 Idem.
But if the inhabitants of those cities had believed and feared God, we
would surely have opened to them blessings both from heaven and earth. But
they charged our apostles with falsehood, wherefore we took vengeance on them,
for that which they had been guilty of.
Were the inhabitants therefore of those cities secure that our punishment
should not fall on them by night, while they slept?
Or were the inhabitants of those cities secure that our punishment should
not fall on them by day, while they sported?
Were they therefore secure from the stratagem of GOD?c But none will
think himself secure from the stratagem of GOD, except the people who perish.
And hath it not manifestly appeared unto those who have inherited the
earth after the former inhabitants thereof, that if we please, we can afflict
them for their sins? But we will seal up their hearts; and they shall not
hearken.
We will relate unto thee some stories of these cities. Their apostles
had come unto them with evident miracles, but they were not disposed to
believe in that which they had before gainsaid. Thus will GOD seal up the
hearts of the unbelievers.
100 And we found not in the greater part of them any observance of their
covenant; but we found the greater part of them wicked doers.
Then we sent after the above named apostles, Moses with our signs unto
Pharaohd and his princes; who treated them unjustly:e but behold what was the
end of the corrupt doers.
And Moses said, O Pharaoh, verily I am an apostle sent from the LORD of
all creatures.
It is just that I should not speak of GOD other than the truth. Now am I
come unto you with an evident sign from your LORD: send therefore the children
of Israel away with me. Pharaoh answered, If thou comest with a sign, produce
it, if thou speakest truth.
Wherefore he cast down his rod; and behold, it became a visible serpent.f
c Hereby is figuratively expressed the manner of GOD'S dealing with
proud and ungrateful men, by suffering them to fill up the measure of their
iniquity, without vouchsafing to bring them to a sense of their condition by
chastisements and afflictions till they find themselves utterly lost, when
they least expect it.1
d This was the common title or name of the kings of Egypt (signifying
king in the Coptic tongue), as Ptolemy was in after times; and as Cæsar was
that of the Roman emperors, and Khosrû that of the kings of Persia. But which
of the kings of Egypt this Pharaoh of Moses was, is uncertain. Not to mention
the opinions of the European writers, those of the east generally suppose him
to have been al Walîd, who, according to some, was an Arab of the tribe of Ad,
or, according to others, the son of Masáb, the son of Riyân, the son of
Walîd,2 the Amalekite.3 There are historians, however, who suppose Kabûs, the
brother and predecessor of al Walîd, was the prince we are speaking of; and
pretend he lived six hundred and twenty years, and reigned four hundred.
Which is more reasonable, at least, than the opinion of those who imagine it
was his father Masáb, or grand-father Riyân.4 Abulfeda says that Masáb being
one hundred and seventy years old, and having no child, while he kept the
herds saw a cow calve, and heard her say, at the same time, O Masáb, be not
grieved, for thou shalt have a wicked son, who will be at length cast into
hell. And he accordingly had this Walîd, who afterwards coming to be king of
Egypt, proved an impious tyrant.
e By not believing therein.
f The Arab writers tell enormous fables of this serpent or dragon. For
they say that he was hairy, and of so prodigious a size, that when he opened
his mouth, his jaws were fourscore cubits asunder, and when he laid his lower
jaw on the ground, his upper reached to the top of the palace; that Pharaoh
seeing this monster make toward him, fled from it, and was so terribly
frightened that he befouled himself; and that the whole assembly also betaking
themselves to their heels, no less than twenty-five thousand of them lost
their lives in the press. They add that Pharaoh upon this adjured Moses by
GOD who had sent him, to take away the serpent, and promised he would believe
on him, and let the Israelites go; but when Moses had done what he requested,
he relapsed, and grew as hardened as before.5
1 Al Beidâwi. 2 See the Prelim. Disc. p. 7. 3
Abulfeda, &c. 4 Kitâb tafsir lebâb, and al Keshâf.
And he drew forth his hand out of his bosom; and behold, it appeared
white unto the spectators.g
The chiefs of the people of Pharaoh said, This man is certainly an expert
magician:
he seeketh to dispossess you of your land; what therefore do ye direct?
They answered, Put off him and his brother by fair promises for some
time, and in the mean while send unto the cities persons who may assemble
and bring unto thee every expert magician.
110 So the magiciansh came unto Pharaoh; and they said, Shall we surely
receive a reward, if we do overcome?
He answered, Yea; and ye shall certainly be of those who approach near
unto my throne.
They said, O Moses, either do thou cast down thy rod first, or we will
cast down ours.
Moses answered, Do ye cast down your rods first. And when they had cast
them down, they enchanted the eyes of the men who were present, and terrified
them: and they performed a great enchantment.i
And we spake by revelation unto Moses, saying, Throw down thy rod. And
behold, it swallowed up the rods which they had caused falsely to appear
changed into serpents.k
Wherefore the truth was confirmed, and that which they had wrought
vanished.
And Pharaoh and his magicians were overcome there, and were rendered
contemptible.
And the magicians prostrated themselves, worshipping;
and they said, We believe in the LORD of all creatures,
the LORD of Moses and Aaron.l
g There is a tradition that Moses was a very swarthy man; and that when
he put his hand into his bosom, and drew it out again, it became extremely
white and splendid, surpassing the brightness of the sun.6 Marracci7 says we
do not read in scripture that Moses showed this sign before Pharaoh. It is
true, the scripture does not expressly say so, but it seems to be no more than
a necessary inference from that passage where GOD tells Moses that if they
will not hearken to the first sign, they will believe the latter sign, and if
they will not believe these two signs, then directs him to turn the water into
blood.8
h The Arabian writers name several of these magicians, besides their
chief priest Simeon, viz., Sadûr and Ghadûr, Jaath and Mosfa, Warân and Zamân,
each of whom came attended with their disciples, amounting in all to several
thousands.9
i They provided themselves with a great number of thick ropes and long
pieces of wood, which they contrived, by some means, to move, and make them
twist themselves one over the other, and so imposed on the beholders, who at a
distance took them to be true serpents.1
k The expositors add, that when this serpent had swallowed up all the
rods and cords, he made directly towards the assembly, and put them into so
great a terror that they fled, and a considerable number were killed in the
crowd; then Moses took it up, and it became a rod in his hand as before.
Whereupon the magicians declared that it could be no enchantment, because in
such case their rods and cords would not have disappeared.2
l It seems probable that all the magicians were not converted by this
miracle, for some writers introduce Sadûr and Ghadûr only, acknowledging
Moses's miracle to be wrought by the power of GOD. These two, they say, were
brothers, and the sons of a famous magician, then dead; but on their being
sent for to court on this occasion, their mother persuaded them to go to their
father's tomb to ask his advice. Being come to the tomb, the father answered
their call; and when they had acquainted him with the affair, he told them
that they should inform themselves whether the rod of which they spoke became
a serpent while its masters slept, or only when they were awake; for, said he,
enchantments have no effect while the enchanter is asleep, and therefore if it
be otherwise in this case, you may be assured that they act by a divine power.
These two magicians then, arriving at the capital of Egypt, on inquiry found,
to their great astonishment, that when Moses and Aaron went to rest, their rod
became a serpent, and guarded them while they slept.3 And this was the first
step towards their conversion.
5 Al Beidâwi. 6 Idem. 7 In Alc. p. 284.
8 Exod. iv. 8, 9.
9 Vide D'Herbelot, Bibl. Orient. Art. Mousa. p. 643, &c. Al Kessâi.
1 Al Beidâwi. Vide D'Herbelot, ubi sup. and Kor. c. 20.
2 Al Beidâwi. 3 Vide D'Herbel. ubi. sup.
120 Pharaoh said, Have ye believed on him, before I have given you
permission? Verily this is a plot which ye have contrived in the city, that
ye might cast forth from thence the inhabitants thereof.m But ye shall surely
know that I am your master;
for I will cause your hands and your feet to be cut off on the opposite
sides,n then will I cause you all to be crucified.o
The magicians answered, We shall certainly return unto our LORD, in the
next life;
for thou takest vengeance on us only because we have believed in the
signs of our LORD, when they have come unto us. O LORD, pour on us patience;
and cause us to die Moslems.p
And the chiefs of Pharaoh's people said, Wilt thou let Moses and his
people go, that they may act corruptly in the earth, and leave thee and thy
gods?q Pharaoh answered, We will cause their male children to be slain, and
we will suffer their females to live;r and by that means we shall prevail over
them.
Moses said unto his people, Ask assistance of GOD, and suffer patiently:
for the earth is God's, he giveth it for an inheritance unto such of his
servants as he pleaseth; and the prosperous end shall be unto those who fear
him.
They answered, We have been afflicted by having our male children slain,
before thou camest unto us, and also since thou hast come unto us. Moses
said, Peradventure it may happen that our LORD will destroy your enemy, and
will cause you to succeed him in the earth, that he may see how ye will act
therein.
And we formerly punished the people of Pharaoh with dearth and scarcity
of fruits, that they might be warned.
Yet when good happened unto them, they said, This is owing unto us: but
if evil befell them, they attributed the same to the ill luck of Moses, and
those who were with him.s Was not their ill luck with GOD?t But most of them
knew it not.
And they said unto Moses, Whatever sign thou show unto us, to enchant us
therewith, we will not believe on thee.
130 Wherefore we sent upon them a floodu and locusts, and lice,x and frogs,
and blood; distinct miracles: but they behaved proudly, and became a wicked
people.
m i.e., This is a confederacy between you and Moses, entered into
before ye left the city to go to the place of appointment, to turn out the
Copts, or native Egyptians, and establish the Israelites in their stead.4
n That is, your right hands and your left feet.
o Some say Pharaoh was the first inventor of this ignominious and
painful punishment.
p Some think these converted magicians were executed accordingly; but
others deny it, and say that the king was not able to put them to death,
insisting on these words of the Korân,5 You two, and they who follow you,
shall overcome.
q Which were the stars, or other idols. But some of the commentators,
from certain impious expressions of this prince, recorded in the Korân,1
whereby he sets up himself as the only god of his subjects, suppose that he
was the object of their worship, and therefore instead of alihataca, thy gods,
read ilahataca, thy worship.2
r That is, we will continue to make use of the same cruel policy to
keep the Israelites in subjection, as we have hitherto done. The commentators
say that Pharaoh came to this resolution because he had either been admonished
in a dream, or by the astrologers or diviners, that one of that nation should
subvert his kingdom.3
s Looking on him and his followers as the occasion of those calamities.
The original word properly signifies to take an ominous and sinister presage
of any future event, from the flight of birds, or the like.
t By whose will and decree they were so afflicted, as a punishment for
their wickedness.
u This inundation, they say, was occasioned by unusual rains, which
continued eight days together, and the overflowing of the Nile; and not only
covered their lands, but came into their houses, and rose as high as their
backs and necks; but the children of Israel had no rain in their quarters.4
As there is no mention of any such miraculous inundation in the Mosaic
writings, some have imagined this plague to have been either a pestilence, or
the small-pox, or some other epidemical distemper.5 For the word tufân, which
is used in this place, and is generally rendered a deluge, may also signify
any other universal destruction or mortality.
x Some will have these insects to have been a larger sort of tick;
others, the young locusts before they have wings.6
4 Al Beidâwi. 5 Cap. 28. 1 Ibid. and c. 26, &c.
2 Al Beidâwi. 3 Idem, Jallalo'ddin. 4 Idem, Abulfed.
5 Al Beidâwi. 6 Idem.
And when the plaguey fell on them, they said, O Moses, entreat thy LORD
for us, according to that which he hath covenanted with thee; verily if thou
take the plague from off us, we will surely believe thee, and we will let the
children of Israel go with thee. But when we had taken the plague from off
them until the term which God had granted them was expired, behold they broke
their promise.
Wherefore we took vengeance on them, and drowned them in the Red Sea;z
because they charged our signs with falsehood, and neglected them.
And we caused the people who had been rendered weak to inherit the
eastern parts of the earth and the western parts thereof,a which we blessed
with fertility; and the gracious word of thy LORD was fulfilled on the
children of Israel, for that they had endured with patience: and we destroyed
the structures which Pharaoh and his people had made, and that which they had
erected.b
And we caused the children of Israel to pass through the sea, and they
came unto a people who gave themselves up to the worship of their idols,c and
they said, O Moses, make us a god, in like manner as these people have gods.
Moses answered, Verily ye are an ignorant people:
for the religion which these follow will be destroyed, and that which
they do is vain.
He said, Shall I seek for you any other god than GOD; since he hath
preferred you to the rest of the world?
And remember when we delivered you from the people of Pharaoh, who
grievously oppressed you; they slew your male children, and let your females
live: therein was a great trial from your LORD.
And we appointed unto Moses a fast of thirty nights before we gave him
the law,d and we completed them by adding of ten more; and the stated time of
his LORD was fulfilled in forty nights. And Moses said unto his brother
Aaron, Be thou my deputy among my people during my absence; and behave
uprightly, and follow not the way of the corrupt doers.
y viz., Any of the calamities already mentioned, or the pestilence
which GOD sent upon them afterwards.
z See this wonderful event more particularly described in the tenth and
twentieth chapters.
a That is, the land of Syria, of which the eastern geographers reckon
Palestine a part, and wherein the commentators say the children of Israel
succeeded the kings of Egypt and the Amalekites.1
b Particularly the lofty tower which Pharaoh caused to be built, that
he might attack the GOD of Moses.2
c These people some will have to be of the tribe of Amalek, whom Moses
was commanded to destroy, and others of the tribe of Lakhm. Their idols, it
is said, were images of oxen, which gave the first hint to the making of the
golden calf.3
d The commentators say that GOD, having promised Moses to give him the
law, directed him to prepare himself for the high favour of speaking with GOD
in person by a fast of thirty days; and that Moses accordingly fasted the
whole month of Dhu'lkaada; but not liking the savour of his breath, he rubbed
his teeth with a dentrifice, upon which the angels told him that his breath
before had the odour of musk,4 but that his rubbing his teeth had taken it
away. Whereupon GOD ordered him to fast ten days more, which he did; and
these were the first ten days of the succeeding month Dhu'lhajja. Others,
however, suppose that Moses was commanded to fast and pray thirty days only,
and that during the other ten GOD discoursed with him.5
1 Idem. 2 Vide Kor. c. 28 and 40. 3 Al Beidâwi.
4 See the Prelim. Disc. Sect. IV
5 Al Beidâwi. Jallalo'ddin.
And when Moses came at our appointed time, and his LORD spake unto him,e
he said, O LORD, show me thy glory, that I may behold thee. God answereth,
Thou shalt in no wise behold me; but look towards the mountain,f and if it
stand firm in its place, then thou shalt see me. But when his LORD appeared
with glory in the mount,g he reduced it to dust. And Moses fell down in a
swoon.
140 And when he came to himself, he said, Praise be unto thee! I turn unto
thee with repentence, and I am the first of true believers.h
God said unto him, O Moses, I have chosen thee above all men, by
honouring thee with my commissions, and by my speaking unto thee: receive
therefore that which I have brought thee, and be one of those who give
thanks.i
And we wrote for him on the tablesk an admonition concerning every
matter, and a decision in every case,l and said, Receive this with reverence;
and command thy people that they live according to the most excellent precepts
thereof. I will show you the dwelling of the wicked.m
I will turn aside from my signs those who behave themselves proudly in
the earth, without justice: and although they see every sign, yet they shall
not believe therein; and although they see the way of righteousness, yet they
shall not take that way; but if they see the way of error, they shall take
that way.
This shall come to pass because they accuse our signs of imposture, and
neglect the same.
But as for them who deny the truth of our signs and the meeting of the
life to come, their works shall be vain: shall they be rewarded otherwise than
according to what they shall have wrought?
And the people of Moses, after his departure, took a corporeal calf,n
made of their ornaments,o which lowed.p Did they not see that it spake not
unto them, neither directed them in the way?
yet they took it for their god, and acted wickedly.
But when they repented with sorrow,q and saw that they had gone astray,
they said, Verily if our LORD have not mercy upon us, and forgive us not, we
shall certainly become of the number of those who perish.
e Without the mediation of any other, and face to face, as he speaks
unto the angels.6
f This mountain the Mohammedans name al Zabir.
g Or, as it is literally, unto the mount. For some of the expositors
pretend that GOD endued the mountain with life and the sense of seeing.
h This is not to be taken strictly. See the like expression in chapter
6, p. 90.
i The Mohammedans have a tradition that Moses asked to see GOD on the
day of Arafat, and that he received the law on the day they slay the victims
at the pilgrimage of Mecca, which days are the ninth and tenth of Dhu'lhajja.
k These tables, according to some, were seven in number, and according
to others ten. Nor are the commentators agreed whether they were cut out of a
kind of lote-tree in paradise called al Sedra, or whether they were
chrysolites, emeralds, rubies or common stone.1 But they say that they were
each ten or twelve cubits long; for they suppose that not only the ten
commandments but the whole law was written thereon: and some add that the
letters were cut quite through the tables, so that they might be read on both
sides2-which is a fable of the Jews.
l That is, a perfect law comprehending all necessary instructions, as
well in regard to religious and moral duties, as the administration of
justice.
m viz., The desolate habitations of the Egyptians, or those of the
impious tribes of Ad and Thamûd, or perhaps hell, the dwelling of the ungodly
in the other world.
n That is, as some understand it, consisting of flesh and blood; or, as
others, being a mere body or mass of metal, without a soul.3
o Such as their rings and bracelets of gold and silver.4
p See chapter 20, and the notes to chapter 2, p. 6.
q Father Marracci seems not to have understood the meaning of this
phrase, having literally translated the Arabic words, wa lamma sokita fi
eidîhim, without any manner of sense, Et cum cadere factus fuisset in manibus
eorum.
6 Al Beidâwi. Vide D'Herbel. Bibl. Orient. p. 650. 1 Al
Beidâwi. 2 Vide D'Herbel. ubi sup. 3 Al Beidâwi. See cap.
20, and the notes to cap. 2, p. 6. 4 Vide ibid.
And when Moses returned unto his people, full of wrath and indignation,
he said, An evil thing is it that ye have committed after my departure; have
ye hastened the command of your LORD?r And he threw down the tables,s and
took his brother by the hair of the head, and dragged him unto him. And Aaron
said unto him, Son of my mother, verily the people prevailed against me,t and
it wanted little but they had slain me: make not my enemies therefore to
rejoice over me, neither place me with the wicked people.
150 Moses said, O LORD, forgive me and my brother, and receive us into thy
mercy; for thou art the most merciful of those who exercise mercy.
Verily as for them who took the calf for their god, indignation shall
overtake them from their LORD,u and ignominy in this life: thus will we reward
those who imagine falsehood.
But unto them who do evil, and afterwards repent, and believe in God,
verily thy LORD will thereafter be clement and merciful.
And when the anger of Moses was appeased, he took the tables;x and in
what was written thereon was a direction and mercy, unto those who feared
their LORD.
And Moses chose out of his people seventy men, to go up with him to the
mountain at the time appointed by us: and when a storm of thunder and
lightning had taken them away,y he said, O LORD, if thou hadst pleased, thou
hadst destroyed them before, and me also; wilt thou destroy us for that which
the foolish men among us have committed? This is only thy trial; thou wilt
thereby lead into error whom thou pleasest, and thou wilt direct whom thou
pleasest. Thou art our protector, therefore forgive us, and be merciful unto
us; for thou art the best of those who forgive.
And write down for us good in this world, and in the life to come; for
unto thee are we directed. God answered, I will inflict my punishment on whom
I please; and my mercy extendeth over all things; and I will write down good
unto those who shall fear me, and give alms, and who shall believe in our
signs;
who shall follow the apostle, the illiterate prophet,z whom they shall
find written downa with them in the law and the gospel: he will command them
that which is just, and will forbid them that which is evil; and will allow
them as lawful the good things which were before forbidden,b and will prohibit
those which are bad;c and he will ease them of their heavy burden, and of the
yokes which were upon them.d And those who believe in him, and honour him,
and assist him, and follow the light, which hath been sent down with him,
shall be happy.
Say, O men, Verily I am the messenger of GOD unto you all:e
unto him belongeth the kingdom of heaven and earth; there is no GOD but
he: he giveth life, and he causeth to die. Believe therefore in GOD and his
apostle, the illiterate prophet, who believeth in GOD and his word; and follow
him, that ye may be rightly directed.
r By neglecting his precepts, and bringing down his swift vengeance on
you.
s Which were all broken and taken up to heaven, except one only; and
this, they say, contained the threats and judicial ordinances, and was
afterwards put into the ark.1
t Literally, rendered me weak.
u See chapter 2, p. 6.
x Or the fragments of that which was left.
y See chapter 2, p. 6, and chapter 4, p. 70.
z That is, Mohammed. See the Prelim. Disc. Sect. II.
a i.e., Both foretold by name and certain description.
b See chapter 3, p. 37.
c As the eating of blood and swine's flesh, and the taking of usury,
&c.
d See chapter 2, p. 31.
e That is, to all mankind in general, and not to one particular nation,
as the former prophets were sent.
1 Al Beidâwi. Vide D'Herbel. ubi sup. p. 649.
Of the people of Moses there is a partyf who direct others with truth,
and act justly according to the same.
160 And we divided them into twelve tribes, as into so many nations. And
we spake by revelation unto Moses, when his people asked drink of him, and we
said, Strike the rock with thy rod; and there gushed thereout twelve
fountains,g and men knew their respective drinking-place. And we caused
clouds to overshadow them, and manna and quailsh to descend upon them, saying,
Eat of the good things which we have given you for food: and they injured not
us, but they injured their own souls.
And call to mind when it was said unto them, Dwell in this city,i and eat
of the provisions thereof wherever ye will, and say, Forgiveness; and enter
the gate worshipping: we will pardon you your sins, and will give increase
unto the well-doers.
But they who were ungodly among them changed the expression into
another,k which had not been spoken unto them. Wherefore we went down upon
them indignation from heaven, because they transgressed.
And ask them concerning the city,l which was situate on the sea, when
they transgressed on the Sabbath-day: when their fish came unto them on their
Sabbath-day, appearing openly on the water: but on the day whereon they
celebrated no Sabbath, they came not unto them. Thus did we prove them,
because they were wicked-doers.
And when a party of themm said unto the others, Why do ye warn a people
whom GOD will destroy, or will punish with a grievous punishment? They
answered, This is an excuse for us unto your LORD,n and peradventure they will
beware.
But when they had forgotten the admonitions which had been given them, we
delivered those who forbade them to do evil; and we inflicted on those who had
transgressed a severe punishment, because they had acted wickedly.
f viz., Those Jews who seemed better disposed than the rest of their
brethren to receive Mohammed's law; or perhaps such of them as had actually
received it. Some imagine they were a Jewish nation dwelling somewhere beyond
China, which Mohammed saw the night he made his journey to heaven, and who
believed on him.1
g See chapter 2, p. 7.
To what is said in the notes there, we may add that, according to a
certain tradition, the stone on which this miracle was wrought was thrown down
from paradise by Adam, and came into the possession of Shoaib, who gave it
with the rod to Moses; and that, according to another, the water issued thence
by three orifices on each of the four sides of the stone, making twelve in
all, and that it ran in so many rivulets to the quarter of each tribe in the
camp.2
h See chapter 2, p. 7.
i See this passage explained, ibid.
k Professor Sike says, that being prone to leave spiritual for worldly
matters, instead of Hittaton they said Hintaton, which signifies wheat,3 and
comes much nearer the true word than the expression I have in the last place
quoted, set down from Jallalo'ddin. Whether he took this from the same
commentator or not does not certainly appear, though he mentions him just
before; but if he did, his copy must differ from that which I have followed.
l This city was Ailah or Elath, on the Red Sea; though some pretend it
was Midian, and others Tiberias. The whole story is already given in the
notes to chapter 2, p. 8. Some suppose the following five or eight verses to
have been revealed at Medina.
m viz., The religious persons among them, who strictly observed the
Sabbath, and endeavoured to reclaim the others, till they despaired of
success. But some think these words were spoken by the offenders, in answer
to the admonitions of the others.
n That we have done our duty in dissuading them from their wickedness.
1 Al Beidâwi. 2 Idem. 3 Sike, in not. ad
Evang. Infant. p. 71.
And when they proudly refused to desist from what had been forbidden
them, we said unto them, Be ye transformed into apes, driven away from the
society of men. And remember when thy LORD declared that he would surely send
against the Jews until the day of resurrection, some nation who should afflict
them with a grievous oppression:o for thy LORD is swift in punishing, and he
is also ready to forgive, and merciful:
and we dispersed them among the nations in the earth. Some of them are
upright persons, and some of them are otherwise. And we proved them with
prosperity and with adversity, that they might return from their disobedience;
and a succession of their posterity hath succeeded after them, who have
inherited the book of the law, who receive the temporal goods of this world,p
and say, It will surely be forgiven us: and if a temporal advantage like the
former be offered them, they accept it also. Is it not the covenant of the
book of the law established with them, that they should not speak of GOD aught
but the truth?q Yet they diligently read that which is therein. But the
enjoyment of the next life will be better for those who fear God than the
wicked gains of these people: (Do ye not therefore understand?)
and for those who hold fast the book of the law, and are constant at
prayer: for we will by no means suffer the reward of the righteous to perish.
170 And when we shook the mountain of Sinai over them,r as though it had
been a covering, and they imagined, that it was falling upon them; and we
said, Receive the law which we have brought you with reverence; and remember
that which is contained therein, that ye may take heed.
And when thy LORD drew forth their posterity from the loins of the sons
of Adam,s and took them to witness against themselves, saying, Am not I your
LORD? They answered, Yea: we do bear witness. This was done lest ye should
say, at the day of resurrection, Verily we were negligent as to this matter,
because we were not apprised thereof:
or lest ye should say, Verily our fathers were formerly guilty of
idolatry, and we are their posterity who have succeeded them; wilt thou
therefore destroy us for that which vain men have committed?
Thus do we explain our signs, that they may return from their vanities.
And relate unto the Jews the history of him unto whom we brought our
signs,t and the departed from them; wherefore Satan followed him, and he
became one of those who were seduced.
o See chapter 5, p. 82, note g.
p By accepting of bribes for wresting judgment, and for corrupting the
copies of the Pentateuch, and by extorting of usury, &c.1
q Particularly by giving out that GOD will forgive their corruption
without sincere repentance and amendment.
r See chapter 2, p. 8, note z.
s This was done in the plain of Dahia in India, or as others imagine,
in a valley near Mecca. The commentators tell us that God stroked Adam's
back, and extracted from his loins his whole posterity, which should come into
the world until the resurrection, one generation after another; that these men
were actually assembled all together in the shape of small ants, which were
endued with understanding; and that after they had, in the presence of angels,
confessed their dependence on GOD, they were again caused to return into the
loins of their great ancestor.2 From this fiction it appears that the
doctrine of pre-existence is not unknown to the Mohammedans; there is some
little conformity between it and the modern theory of generation ex
animalculis in semine marium.
t Some suppose the person here intended to be a Jewish rabbi, or one
Ommeya Ebn Abi'lsalt, who read the scriptures, and found thereby that GOD
would send a prophet about that time, and was in hopes that he might be the
man; but when Mohammed declared his mission, believed not on him through envy.
But according to the more general opinion, it was Balaam, the son of Beor, of
the Canaanitish race, well acquainted with part at least of the scripture,
having even been favoured with some revelations from GOD; who being requested
by his nation to curse Moses and the children of Israel, refused it at first,
saying, How can I curse those who are protected by the angels? But afterwards
he was prevailed on by gifts; and he had no sooner done it, than he began to
put out his tongue like a dog, and it hung down upon his breast.3
1 Al Beidâwi. 2 Idem, Jallalo'ddin. Yahya. Vide D'Herbelot,
Bibl. Orient. p. 54. 3 Al Beidâwi, Jallalo'ddin, al Zamakhshari.
Vide D'Herbel. Bibl. Orient. Art. Balaam.
And if we had pleased, we had surely raised him thereby unto wisdom; but
he inclined unto the earth, and followed his own desire.u Wherefore his
likeness as the likeness of a dog, which, if thou drive him away, putteth
forth his tongue, or, if thou let him alone, putteth forth his tongue also.
This is the likeness of the people, who accuse our signs of falsehood.
Rehearse therefore this history unto them, that they may consider.
Evil is the similitude of those people who accuse our signs of falsehood,
and injure their own souls.
Whomsoever GOD shall direct, he will be rightly directed; and whomsoever
he shall lead astray, they shall perish.
Moreover we have created for hell many of the genii and of men; they have
hearts by which they understand not, and they have eyes by which they see not:
and they have ears by which they hear not. These are like the brute beasts;
yea they go more astray: these are the negligent.
GOD hath most excellent names;x therefore call on him by the same; and
withdraw from those who use his name perversely:y they shall be rewarded for
that which they shall have wrought.
180 And of those whom we have created there are a people who direct others
with truth, and act justly according thereto.z
But those who devise lies against our signs, we will suffer them to fall
gradually into ruin, by a method which they knew not:a
and I will grant them to enjoy a long and prosperous life; for my
stratagem is effectual.
Do they not consider that there is no devil in their companion?b He is
no other than a public preacher.
Or do they not contemplate the kingdom of heaven and earth, and the
things which GOD hath created; and consider that peradventure it may be that
their end draweth nigh? And in what new declaration will they believe, after
this?c
He whom GOD shall cause to err, shall have no director; and he shall
leave them in their impiety, wandering in confusion.
They will ask thee concerning the last hour; at what time its coming is
fixed? Answer, Verily the knowledge thereof is with my LORD; none shall
declare the fixed time thereof, except he. The expectation thereof is
grievous in heaven and on earth:d it shall come upon you no otherwise than
suddenly.
They will ask thee, as though thou wast well acquainted therewith.
Answer, Verily the knowledge thereof is with GOD alone: but the greater part
of men know it not.
u Loving the wages of unrighteousness, and running greedily after error
for reward.4
x Expressing his glorious attributes. Of these the Mohammedan Arabs
have no less than ninety-nine, which are reckoned up by Marracci.5
y As did Walid Ebn al Mogheira, who hearing Mohammed give GOD the title
of al Rahmân, or the merciful, laughed aloud, saying he knew none of that
name, except a certain man who dwelt in Yamama;1 or as the idolatrous Meccans
did, who deduced the names of their idols from those of the true GOD;
deriving, for example, Allât from Allah, al Uzza from al Azîz, the mighty, and
Manât from al Mannân, the bountiful.2
z As it is said a little above that GOD hath created many to eternal
misery, so here he is said to have created others to eternal happiness.3
a By flattering them with prosperity in this life, and permitting them
to sin in an uninterrupted security, till they find themselves unexpectedly
ruined.4
b viz., In Mohammed, whom they gave out to be possessed when he went up
to Mount Safâ, and from thence called to the several families of each
respective tribe in order, to warn them of GOD'S vengeance if they continued
in their idolatry.5
c i.e., After they have rejected the Korân. For what more evident
revelation can they hereafter expect?6
d Not only to men and genii, but to the angels also.
4 2 Peter ii. v.; Jude II. 5 In Alc. p. 414. 1
Marrac. Vit. Moh. p. 19. 2 Al Beidâwi. Jallalo'ddin. See the
Prelim. Disc. p. 14. 3 Al Beidâwi. 4 Idem. 5
Idem. 6 Idem.
Say, I am able neither to procure advantage unto myself, nor to avert
mischief from me, but as GOD pleaseth. If I knew the secrets of God, I should
surely enjoy abundance of good, neither should evil befall me. Verily I am no
other than a denouncer of threats, and a messenger of good tidings unto people
who believe.
It is he who hath created you from one person, and out of him produced
his wife, that he might dwell with her: and when he had known her, she carried
a light burden for a time, wherefore she walked easily therewith. But when it
became more heavy,e she called upon GOD their LORD, saying, If thou give us a
child rightly shaped, we will surely be thankful.
190 Yet when he had given them a child rightly shaped, they attributed
companions unto him, for that which he had given them.f But far be that from
GOD, which they associated with him!
Will they associate with him false gods which create nothing but are
themselves created: and can neither give them assistance, nor help themselves?
And if ye invite them to the true direction, they will not follow you: it
will be equal unto you, whether ye invite them, or whether ye hold your peace.
Verily the false deities whom ye invoke besides GOD are servants like
unto you.g Call therefore upon them, and let them give you an answer, if ye
speak truth.
Have they feet, to walk with? Or have they hands, to lay hold with? Or
have they eyes, to see with? Or have they ears, to hear with? Say, Call upon
your companions, and then lay a snare for me, and defer it not;
for GOD is my protector, who sent down the book of the Koran; and he
protecteth the righteous.
But they whom ye invoke besides him cannot assist you, neither do they
help themselves;
and if ye call on them to direct you, they will not hear. Thou seest
them look towards thee, but they see not.
Use indulgence,h and command that which is just, and withdraw far from
the ignorant.
e That is, when the child grew bigger in her womb.
f For the explaining of this whole passage, the commentators tell the
following story:-
They say, that when Eve was big with her first child, the devil came to
her and asked her whether she knew what she carried within her, and which way
she should be delivered of it, suggesting that possibly it might be a beast.
She, being unable to give an answer to this question, went in a fright to
Adam, and acquainted him with the matter, who, not knowing what to think of
it, grew sad and pensive. Whereupon the devil appeared to her again (or, as
others say, to Adam), and pretended that he by his prayers would obtain of GOD
that she might be safely delivered of a son in Adam's likeness, provided they
would promise to name him Abda'lhareth, or the servant of al Hareth (which was
the devil's name among the angels), instead of Abd'allah, or the servant of
GOD, as Adam had designed. This proposal was agreed to, and accordingly, when
the child was born, they gave it that name, upon which it immediately died.1
And with this Adam and Eve are here taxed, as an act of idolatry. The story
looks like a rabbinical fiction, and seems to have no other foundation than
Cain's being called by Moses Obed adâmah, that is, a tiller of the ground,
which might be translated into Arabic by Abd'alhareth.
But al Beidâwi, thinking it unlikely that a prophet (as Adam is, by the
Mohammedans, supposed to have been) should be guilty of such an action,
imagines the Korân in this place means Kosai, one of Mohammed's ancestors, and
his wife, who begged issue of GOD, and having four sons granted them, called
their names Abd Menâf, Abd Shams, Abd'al Uzza, and Abd'al Dâr, after the names
of the four principal idols of the Koreish. And the following words also he
supposes to relate to their idolatrous posterity.
g Being subject to the absolute command of GOD. For the chief idols of
the Arabs were the sun, moon, and stars.2
h Or, as the words may also be translated, Take the superabundant
overplus-meaning that Mohammed should accept such voluntary alms from the
people as they could spare. But the passage, if taken in this sense, was
abrogated by the precept of legal alms, which was given at Medina.
1 Idem, Yahya. Vide D'Herbelot, Bibl. Orient. p. 438, et Selden. de
Jure Nat. Sec. Hebr. l. 5, c. 8. 2 See the Prelim. Disc. p. 12, &c.
And if an evil suggestion from Satan be suggested unto thee, to divert
thee from thy duty, have recourse unto GOD: for he heareth and knoweth.
200 Verily they who fear God, when a temptation from Satan assaileth them,
remember the divine commands, and behold, they clearly see the danger of sin
and the wiles of the devil.
But as for the brethren of the devils, they shall continue them in error;
and afterwards they shall not preserve themselves therefrom.
And when thou bringest not a verse of the Koran unto them, they say, Hast
thou not put it together?i Answer, I follow that only which is revealed unto
me from my LORD. This book containeth evident proofs from your LORD, and is a
direction and mercy unto people who believe.
And when the Koran is read, attend thereto, and keep silence; that ye may
obtain mercy.
And meditate on thy LORD in thine own mind, with humility and fear, and
without loud speaking, evening and morning; and be not one of the negligent.
Moreover the angels who are with my LORD do not proudly disdain his
service, but they celebrate his praise and worship him.
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